text
stringlengths 1
134k
| label
int64 0
1
|
|---|---|
Remy Porter Remy escaped the enterprise world and now works as a consultant. Editor-in-Chief for TDWTF.
Unit tests are a wonderful tool for proving that your code works. Ideally, when you’re using other code, like say, the .NET Framework, you don’t write tests that test the framework itself. After all, didn’t Microsoft already do that?
David T ’s co-worker laughs at your naïveté . Why would you trust Microsoft ? You need to make sure the framework works as advertised. Which is why their unit tests are mostly made up of code like this: [Test] public void It_Converts_DataType_Text_Into_ConcreteType() { const string dataTypeText = "System.DateTime"; var dataType = Type.GetType(dataTypeText); Assert.IsTrue(dataType == typeof(DateTime)); } [Test] public void It_Converts_String_Into_Given_DataType() { const string data = "10-10-2014"; const string dataTypeText = "System.DateTime"; var dataType = Type.GetType(dataTypeText); object newData = Convert.ChangeType(data, dataType); Assert.That(newData, Is.TypeOf<DateTime>()); }
Now, if the .NET Framework’s ability to load and recognize types ever breaks, David’s team will be the first to know. [Advertisement] Application Release Automation – build complex release pipelines all managed from one central dashboard, accessibility for the whole team. Download and learn more today! | 0 |
WASHINGTON — With tensions escalating between Donald J. Trump and prominent black leaders, Mr. Trump met privately on Monday with the eldest son of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the holiday devoted to the civil rights hero. The hastily arranged meeting at Trump Tower occurred as Mr. Trump feuded publicly with Representative John Lewis, Democrat of Georgia, who fought for civil rights alongside Dr. King. It has highlighted the challenges Mr. Trump faces as he prepares to take office on Friday deeply distrusted by minorities across the country, many of whom have been offended by his false allegations that President Obama was born outside the United States, appalled that his candidacy drew backing from white supremacist organizations, and dismayed at policy proposals they consider antithetical to their interests. Mr. Trump on Monday did not address those issues, appearing in the lobby to allow news cameras to capture pictures of him shaking hands with Martin Luther King III, but ignoring questions shouted by reporters about their conversation or his statements about Mr. Lewis. Tentative plans for Mr. Trump to visit the Smithsonian Museum of History and Culture in Washington, as the nation paused to remember Dr. King, had been shelved in favor of the session, which lasted just under one hour. But Mr. Trump made sure that journalists had an opportunity to see him with Mr. King, a visual manifestation of his stated aspiration to unite a divided nation. Mr. King said the session, which included a discussion about voting rights, had been “constructive,” and described Mr. Trump as eager to present himself as inclusive. “He said that he is going to represent Americans — he’s said that over and over again,” Mr. King, the president of the Drum Major Institute, a progressive New public policy organization, told reporters. “We will continue to evaluate that. ” On Monday, Mr. King sought to defuse the furor surrounding Mr. Trump’s remarks about Mr. Lewis, saying, “In the heat of emotion, a lot of things get said on both sides. ” Mr. King has pressed for the creation of a free photographic government identification card to make it easier for Americans who do not have driver’s licenses, including many black voters, to cast ballots, and he indicated on Monday that Mr. Trump had taken an interest in the plan. “It is very clear that the system is not working at its maximum,” Mr. King told reporters. “We believe we provided a solution. ” But other leaders said Mr. Trump’s relationship with — tense bordering on toxic after a strident campaign that instilled fear, and a transition that has done little to allay their concerns — would not improve unless the altered both his tone and his policy positions. “There’s a lot of anxiety, there’s a lot of distrust, there are people who have expressed to me that they’re scared of what his policies might entail,” said Marc Morial, the president of the National Urban League. Mr. Trump won election with 8 percent of the vote, according to exit polls. A Pew Research Center poll in November found roughly of African Americans believed race relations would worsen during his presidency. The Rev. Al Sharpton said nothing underscored Mr. Trump’s challenge more vividly than his outburst in a pair of Twitter postings on Saturday that called Mr. Lewis, who was brutally beaten in the “Bloody Sunday” march in 1965 in Selma, Ala. “all talk,” and said that instead of “falsely complaining” about the election results, he should focus on fixing his “falling apart” and “crime infested” Georgia district. Mr. Lewis actually represents a district that includes part of the wealthy enclave of Buckhead the world’s busiest airport, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Georgia Institute of Technology. Mr. Trump’s remarks were a reaction to an interview on Friday in which Mr. Lewis said he would not attend the inauguration and did not see Mr. Trump as a legitimate president because of questions about whether Russian hacking had affected the American election. “If you can disrespect John Lewis on Martin Luther King Day, then what are you saying about the rest of us?” Mr. Sharpton said, adding that no single meeting Mr. Trump could hold would alleviate the concerns felt in the community. “He seems to have a very negative view of what black America looks like, and that is frightening to many black Americans. ” Mr. Sharpton said he was concerned that Mr. Trump was more interested in public appearances than substantive meetings with activists and lawmakers to address issues of voting rights, criminal justice and policing reform, health care and economic inequality. “He still thinks that we’re playing television red carpet here, rather than dealing with the presidency of the United States, with something of real substance. This is not a ” Rev. Sharpton said. Sean Spicer, Mr. Trump’s press secretary and communications director, announced the meeting in New York between Mr. Trump and Mr. King in a morning posting on Twitter. In a series of television interviews on Monday, Mr. Spicer said Mr. Lewis had started the fight with his “disappointing” assertion that Mr. Trump was not a legitimate president, and he defended the ’s decision to respond, telling CBS that the is “not going to sit back and just take attacks without responding. ” Still, Mr. Trump himself had seemed to temper his attack on Mr. Lewis subtly by Saturday night he said that the congressman should help him focus on “burning and crime infested ” throughout the United States and added, “I can use all the help I can get!” Outside the history museum in Washington on Monday, some visitors argued that the episode said more about the ’s thin skin than his views on race. “Somebody said something bad and he’s got to say something back,” said Nancy Alston of Columbia, Md. “He said bad stuff about Meryl Streep, too. ” Ginelle Johnson, 35, of San Diego, said that she believed Mr. Trump’s comments were motivated by how he views minorities. But she also said that they appeared to show his proclivity to hit back at whoever criticizes him. “Politics has become entertainment and I think Trump is just a bully,” Ms. Johnson said. Mr. Trump’s brief sighting on Monday afternoon at Trump Tower was a striking contrast to President Obama, who spent part of Monday — his final observance of Martin Luther King’s Birthday in office — making a stop at a homeless shelter in Washington. Earlier, his wife, Michelle Obama, had spoken out subtly in her own Twitter post, saying she was, “Thinking of Dr. King and great leaders like @repjohnlewis who carry on his legacy. ” “May their example be our call to action,” she wrote. | 1 |
George F. Will, a conservative columnist and prominent Republican pundit for the past 40 years, said he has left the Republican Party because Donald J. Trump is the party’s presumptive presidential nominee. Mr. Will revealed his decision on Friday in an interview with PJ Media. He said he had switched his party registration to unaffiliated this month, adding that Republicans should “grit their teeth” during a Hillary Clinton presidency and then hope to beat her in 2020. “This is not my party,” Mr. Will said in a speech on Friday at the Federalist Society before the PJ Media interview. Mr. Will has criticized Mr. Trump throughout his presidential run. “Only he knows what he is hiding by being the first presidential nominee in two generations not to release his tax returns,” Mr. Will wrote in his Washington Post column on Wednesday. “It is reasonable to assume that the returns would refute many of his assertions about his net worth, his charitableness and his supposed business wizardry. They might also reveal some awkwardly small tax payments. ” Mr. Trump has returned fire, denouncing Mr. Will often on Twitter and in his speeches. “You know he looks smart because he wears those little glasses,” he said at a rally in November. “If you take those glasses away from him, he’s a dummy. ” Few prominent conservatives have gone so far as to change their party registration since Mr. Trump clinched the nomination in May. But some have strongly condemned Mr. Trump and have said they will sit out the presidential race. | 1 |
And you think we are stupid Obama? You are as big a liar as Hillary! | 0 |
The last election I covered didn’t work out so well for me. It was May 2013, and I was in Pakistan. As I was returning from a polling station in the southern city of Lahore, military intelligence officials flagged down my car. Hours later I was on a plane out of the country, having been deported. Elections are a fraught business in many parts of the world. In many of those countries, the American way of choosing a president seems ideal, however imperfect. The electoral machine resembles a classic, limousine: large, showy and expensive, yet robust and broadly predictable. This year’s race, at the outset, looked set to follow in that vein as a contest between the scions of two storied political dynasties, Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush. Then the upstart billionaire and reality TV star Donald J. Trump thrust himself into the fray, shredding the script, dismissing Mr. Bush and upending most notions of what is possible, or acceptable, in an American political contest. I have come from my regular base in Cairo to the United States to help with The New York Times’s coverage of the 2016 campaign. You might wonder what I can add, given that I’m Irish and my American colleagues are already producing a stream of illuminating and incisive stories. I hope to supplement that coverage with reporting that responds to the queries of our international readers, and approaches the election — in all its drama, significance and absurdity — in much the same way as we would events abroad. The series will be called Abroad in America. This feverish political season has transfixed the world outside America, too. The election’s first act — the primary contests, when the two main parties select their ultimate candidates — attracts an unusual degree of international scrutiny. Violence at rallies, incendiary speeches, race baiting, attacks on journalists and judges, proposals to bar Muslims or Mexicans — the primaries signaled a sudden sea change that left watching with fascination, puzzlement and a profound sense of trepidation. For some countries, the changes resonate strongly at home. Mr. Trump’s success chimes with nationalist surges across Europe and the “Brexit” vote. Disillusionment with traditional elites, hostility toward immigrants and anger among the losers from globalization — all resonate elsewhere. Yet it is odd and disturbing to hear terms like fascism and demagogy, most frequently associated with the European fringe or rickety governments, being used in the context of an American campaign. Mrs. Clinton’s campaign is haunted by the high levels of hostility even among many voters on the left. And so the election, which starts in earnest in the coming weeks, is shaping up as a close unpopularity contest: In the latest polls, Mr. Trump and Mrs. Clinton both have 40 percent support. But it is not just about the winner in November. The process has thrown up urgent new questions — about race, guns and the global economy, among others — as well as anguished soul searching about the very process of selecting a president. Where will the politics of resentment and anger ultimately lead? Does the United States suffer, as one writer suggested, from too much democracy? Could this be an “ event” for representative government? My reporting will focus more at ground level. Some of my efforts will be explanatory — unraveling the intricacies and curiosities like the Electoral College, a source of befuddlement to many foreigners (and some Americans). More broadly, though, I hope to turn my focus as a foreign correspondent to deciphering the fears, hopes and motivations that are driving voters of every hue, and will determine the most powerful leader on the planet. My journey will also be driven by you, the readers. I’ll be posting on Twitter and Instagram, and soliciting your questions and concerns. What infuriates, intrigues or mystifies you about the elections? I’ll be starting the journey on Monday at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Please join me on the way. | 1 |
The Algemeiner reports: The Palestinian Authority must “stop its incitement to violence” and engage with Israel in “direct peace negotiations, rather than looking to the UN,” a top American diplomatic official said on Tuesday. [US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley made the statement after meeting with her Palestinian counterpart, Riyad Mansour — an encounter she described as “productive. ” “The US is committed to supporting a true peace process between Israel and the Palestinian Authority,” she said. Last month, Haley received warm praise from the community in both the US and abroad after taking the UN Security Council to task for its double standards when it comes to its treatment of the Jewish state. Read more here. | 1 |
Keywords: Better Tasting Food , GMOs , homestead , Homesteading
If you clicked a link that got you to this page, you can’t pretend that you are not interested in homesteading any longer. I’m not sure if you are afraid of the effort, afraid that you won’t know what to do, or what you are afraid of, but it’s time to get up and get going.
I have been homesteading for over 15 years and wouldn’t change it for anything in the world. My husband and I have made many mistakes along the way, but we have never been afraid to put in the hard work to get any job done. For all our hard work, we have become one of the rare profitable homesteads that are more than just surviving.
We all have our own reasons that we want to try homesteading, so don’t base yours off of mine. I am just hoping to spark some interest to get you off your feet so you can make your dream become a reality. I Provide Healthy Food For My Family
We are not vegan, vegetarian, of allergic to gluten, but we are completely aware of what we are putting into our bodies. I just don’t like to buy vegetables from the grocery store that have been produced chemically. I also don’t like to buy meat that was fed all sorts of things that I don’t know about.
Everything that I put on my kitchen table, to feed my family, has been grown or produced by me or someone I know. I know that the corn we ate last night was grown using some organic soil, water, and a little alpaca poop for good measure. The pork also came from our farm, and I know about everything that pig ate in his very happy two years of life.
I’m not saying that we are the healthiest family in the world, but I know we aren’t eating chemicals . That is what matters to me and my husband! The Food Tastes So Much Better
The food that we produce on our homestead is so much better that the food you are purchasing at the grocery store. The truth is that they are looking to produce as much perfect looking food as they can, as fast as they can. They don’t want to grow the strands of produce that take a little longer but taste exponentially better.
The meat also takes better because you aren’t rushing that either. Not to mention the fact that you are feeding the animals with healthier and better tasting food. When you slaughter the food yourself, it will taste better as well. Animals that are stressed when they get slaughtered produce meat that is much tougher that meat that we produce here on the homestead. Freedom
Not many people can say that they have complete freedom to do what they please during the day. Now, that doesn’t mean that we don’t have responsibilities, but we can take an hour off in the middle of the day to attend the elementary school winter concert. We can also take those doctor appointments in the middle of the day when the office isn’t insane.
If you want to get freedom over your own life, start homesteading today ! We Have Economic Security
If the economy crashes, we are not in risk of going without anything that we really need. We don’t rely on anyone for any of the basic necessities, including a source of income. We have everything that we need in order to survive right here on the homestead. There isn’t much that can go wrong with the government that could put us at risk.
I am not an apocalypse prepper, but I will say that homesteaders are more prepared should a disaster occur. We have more knowledge and experience in all of the tasks needed in an extreme survival situation than most people I know. Our Kids Understand The Meaning of Hard Work
I’m not saying that your kids don’t understand the meaning of hard work, but my kids have been there and done that. My nine year old wakes up two hours before school and takes care of the chickens every day. Those chickens are completely her responsibility and she know that.
I do allow my kids to use electronics during down time, they just know the difference between down time and chore time. They feel like they are part of the team, so it doesn’t feel like we are making them do chores every day. You might also like… | 0 |
Over the last two years, the Golden State has licensed over 800, 000 illegal aliens to drive, and as the new motor voter law AB 1461 goes into effect in 2017, lawmakers are vowing to fight the Trump administration on attempts to enforce immigration law. [AB 60 went into effect on January 1, 2015, inviting well over a million illegal aliens in California to apply for driver licenses with lawmaker promises that their status would not be shared with immigration authorities. With the law about to hit the mark, the California Department of Motor Vehicles announced that 806, 000 illegal aliens have been granted driver licenses, according to the Bay Area’s Mercury News. 14, 000 of those licenses were issued in November of this year. In 2017, new motor voter law AB 1461 will go into effect, automatically registering most licensed California drivers to vote. As the Mercury News points out, concerns have been raised about the crossover of AB60 illegal alien licensees being illegally registered to vote as a result. Some lawmakers have claimed there are safeguards against such a case. In light of Donald Trump’s promises to secure the border and enforce immigration laws, illegal aliens and California legislators have already begun working on contingency plans. Former Assemblyman Luis Alejo, author of AB 60, offered reassurance to illegal aliens that he had spoken with Gov. Jerry Brown’s office, the DMV, and state legislative leaders who are all “committed to protecting all the information submitted to the DMV by AB60 applicants,” according to the Mercury News. Alejo pledged to fight against the Trump administration on illegal immigration and to do “everything possible” to maintain AB 60. AB60 licenses are said to require proof of identity, but the use of a Mexican Consular Card has been brought into serious question. A Mexican Federal Electoral Card, Mexican Institute National Electoral Card, Mexican Passport, or Mexican Consular Card are accepted as forms of ID to procure a California driver license. Several other types of foreign identification cards may be used as well. In late 2014, Assemblyman Tim Donnelly told Breitbart News, “When I look at the list of acceptable documents and see it is to include the Mexican Consular Card, I know it is a document even the FBI has been concerned about. ” The DMV has assured illegal aliens that although U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is among agencies with the ability to access basic driver license information, no information on immigration status or whether a license was issued under AB 60 will be available, reported the Mercury News. During the 2016 election cycle, Trump highlighted the stories of families who have lost loved ones as a result of the actions of illegal aliens. Legal immigrant Sabine Durden was one of those “Angel Moms. ” Durden’s only child Dominic was killed in 2012 when an unlicensed Guatemalan national with two prior DUIs, and illegally in the U. S. struck and killed the young black man with his vehicle. Follow Michelle Moons on Twitter @MichelleDiana. | 1 |
Gamechanger: Russia successfully tests its first-ever hypersonic weapon ‹ › South Front Analysis & Intelligence is a public analytical project maintained by an independent team of experts from the four corners of the Earth focusing on international relations issues and crises. They focus on analysis and intelligence of the ongoing crises and the biggest stories from around the world: Ukraine, the war in Middle East, Central Asia issues, protest movements in the Balkans, migration crises, and others. In addition, they provide military operations analysis, the military posture of major world powers, and other important data influencing the growth of tensions between countries and nations. We try to dig out the truth on issues which are barely covered by governments and mainstream media. Syrian War Report – October 31, 2016: Al-Nusra-led Forces Failed to Break Aleppo Siege By South Front on October 31, 2016 …from SouthFront
As SouthFront forecasted on October 28, the Jaish al-Fatah militant coalition, led by Jabhat Fatah al-Sham (formerly Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian Al-Qaeda branch) has not been able to deliver a devastating blow to the Syrian government forces and to break the siege of eastern Aleppo.
After the initial success based on massive usage of VBIEDs and a lack of support by the Russian Aerospace Forces (President Vladimir Putin declined the general staff’s request to deliver air strikes in Aleppo area), Jaish al-Fatah stalled in the trench warfare in non-populated urban areas. Fatah al-Sham-led attempt to cut off the Ithriyah-Aleppo Highway also failed.
The Syrian military also deployed reinforcements from the Syrian Army Tiger Forces and its commander, Major General Suheil Al Hassan, arrived the city to coordinate military operations against the joint terrorist forces. Hezbollah and Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba were set to assist to Al Hassan-led operations.
By October 31, Al Hassan–led forces, supported by the Syrian Air Force, have repelled attacks on the Minyan area and the 3000 Apartment Project, retaken the al-Assad Neighborhood and made a series of counter-attacks in the 1070 Apartment Project.
Since the start of Aleppo offensive, Jaish al-Fatah has lost about 120 fighters, 7 armored vehicles, 19 VBIEDs, 7 ‘technical’ vehicles, 2 battle tanks and 2 artillery pieces. The government forces have lost about 45 fighters, 3 battle tanks, 2 ‘technical’ vehicles, 1 Shilka vehicle.
Separately, the pro-government forces liberated Tal Qarah, Kafr Qaris, Tal Susin, Fafin, Babinnis, Tal Shair and the Infantry School from ISIS in northeastern Aleppo. The advance was synchronized with operations of the Kurdish YPG in the same area.
On October 30, the army and the NDF liberated the town of Tell Kurdi and the area of Tell Sawwan in Eastern Ghouta near the Syrian capital, Damascus. These areas had been controlled by the Jaish al-Islam militant group. The liberation of Tell Kurdi and Tell Sawwan decreases significantly the militant-controlled area near Damascus and sets a foothold for advance on Duma, the last major militant stronghold in the region.
On October 28, the government forces took control of the Air Defense Battalion hill between Deir Khabiyan and the 137th Regiment in Western Ghouta and splitted the militant-controlled area into two separate pockets. Next days the army and the NDF continued offensive operations in the direction of Khan Shih. On October 31, the government delegation arrived to the town to negotiate with members of the FSA, Jaish al-Islam and Jabhat Fatah al-Sham terms and conditions of their surrender.
Three Russian attack submarines armed Kalibr cruise missiles have joined a Russian naval taskforce heading towards Syria. The Royal Navy has been reportedly tracking two nuclear-powered Akula-class submarines and a diesel-powered Kilo-class submarine. The subs entered the North Atlantic from portsaround Murmansk and joined the Admiral Kuznetsov battle group as it sailed down the North Sea last week. The Kuznetsov and its battlegroup are now off the north African coast. The mainstream media speculates that the subs will deliver missile strikes on peaceful targets in Aleppo city. Related Posts: No Related Posts The views expressed herein are the views of the author exclusively and not necessarily the views of VT, VT authors, affiliates, advertisers, sponsors, partners, technicians, or the Veterans Today Network and its assigns. LEGAL NOTICE - COMMENT POLICY Posted by South Front on October 31, 2016, With 245 Reads Filed under WarZone . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 . You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed. FaceBook Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment Login WHAT'S HOT | 0 |
Now that the Rio Olympics are over, inevitable questions about the city’s legacy have surfaced. Rio de Janeiro, like every host city, hopes to continue reaping benefits long past the closing ceremony, such as increased tourism and a bolstered world reputation. But things don’t always go as planned. In fact, cities rarely make a profit from hosting the Games, and often end up deep in the red. Rio initially planned on the Games costing about $3 billion, but the actual cost will be at least $4. 6 billion, according to a study by the University of Oxford. “If you’re looking to gain money from an Olympics, that’s not a good reason to be doing it,” said David Wallechinsky, president of the International Society of Olympic Historians. For the cities that learned this the hard way, specific venues can end up being reminders of a lack of foresight. The Bird’s Nest in Beijing is a cautionary tale. The construction cost $480 million to build and an estimated $11 million to maintain annually. But by most accounts, it does not draw enough visitors to justify the expense, despite the curious existence of a wax museum in its basement featuring former International Olympic Committee presidents. “Tourists actually pay money to have their photo taken next to a wax figurine of Sigfrid Edstrom, which is pretty weird,” said Gary Hustwit, who with a fellow photographer, Jon Pack, has visited several Olympic cities for their ongoing Olympic City photo project. While Beijing, which produced the most expensive Summer Games in history, is often cited as an example of poor execution, other cities like London, home of the 2012 Games, seem to be faring better. “I think what they did was realistic planning, and with a lot of the cities it’s just, kind of, speculative planning,” Mr. Wallechinsky said of London. He added that four years is not enough time to truly judge a host city’s legacy. Of course, not everything can be anticipated, like a war breaking out eight years after hosting the Games, as was the case for Sarajevo after it held the Winter Games in 1984. But even cities with such dire circumstances can endure and become worthwhile destinations. “Sarajevo is a fascinating and beautiful place,” Mr. Pack said. “It’s a pretty profound reminder of the consequences of war on a city and its people, and how an Olympic city can carry on. ” Whether they are from good planning or unanticipated events, indelible marks of 120 years of modern Olympic competition have been left on many host cities. Here are six that are worth exploring. If Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London looks a bit emptier than it did four years ago, it’s not for a lack of trying. The expansive park near Stratford Station is now home to the largest urban beach in the country, nature trails and boat tours. (Oh, and a long metal tube attached to the ArcelorMittal Orbit.) The park’s athletic facilities, including the aquatics center, velodrome and Copper Box arena, are open to the public for recreational use, and Olympic Stadium is now the home of West Ham United of the English Premier League. The venues no longer exist, but, as the name suggests, they were meant to be temporary. “That to me seems like the real legacy of London 2012, the idea that maybe you don’t need to build dozens of new permanent sports facilities, which was what happened in Athens in 2004, and then struggle to figure out what to do with these things afterward,” Mr. Hustwit said. Another key feature is the ArcelorMittal Orbit, the tallest sculpture in Britain, which is now home to the world’s longest tunnel slide. While its design was widely criticized during the Games, its observation deck offers a view of London. Development of the park will continue into at least the next decade. In the works is the addition of a cultural and education district, home of a new Victoria and Albert Museum “for the digital age,” a Sadler’s Wells dance theater and educational institutions. Have you been to a nice beach in Barcelona recently? For that, you have the 1992 Summer Games to thank. “Barcelona is a good example of using the Olympics almost as an excuse to improve a city,” Mr. Pack said. The beaches of today used to be an industrial dumping ground, and were redeveloped as part of the preparations for the Games. “They opened up the beach to the rest of the city, redesigned areas to make them safer, and built athletic facilities that are still used by the citizens today,” Mr. Pack said. One site that still gets plenty of use is the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Company, whose impressive stone facades remain from the stadium’s original early 20th century design by the architect Pere Domènech i Roura. Originally built for the 1929 International Exposition and remodeled for the 1992 Games, it was recently host to a performance by Beyoncé, the latest of many concerts and sporting events. Barcelona’s profile soared after the Games. It was the seventh city in Europe in 2014, according to Euromonitor Research. The Zetra Sports Hall, where the figure skater Scott Hamilton captured the gold for the United States, was repurposed as a morgue during the Bosnian War of the early 1990s. In the 20 years since then, Sarajevo has come a long way but its residents haven’t forgotten the war. “The people I spoke to there all had profoundly sad stories and memories of the war, often following them up with dark humor,” Mr. Pack said of visiting Sarajevo. “They then often spoke of the Olympics with a sense of pride. ” In some cities like Turin, where he visited in June, he said, “there is almost no evidence that the Olympics was ever there. ” The Dinaric Alps, which held many of the events from the 1984 Winter Games, form a dramatic backdrop to a city with an abundance of ethnic and architectural diversity. The Olympic Stadium, also known as Kosevo Stadium, was renovated after the war and remains active. A notable nearby landmark is the Sarajevo War Theater, created months after the siege began in 1992. Despite the danger, the theater was well attended throughout the war and continues to feature plays, music, poetry and exhibitions. Other facilities are in use as well, but not in ways often associated with former host cities. “Many of these sites probably look like they did right after the war ended,” Mr. Pack said. “But when I was there, locals were using these venues. There were people picnicking near the bobsled tracks, and biking and skateboarding down the actual concrete segments of track. ” This city has long been known for its excellence in design, so it’s no surprise that many of its structures stand out for their appearance. The Olympic Village was designed by the Finnish architects Martti Valikangas and Hilding Ekelund, and its style can still be appreciated today. “The Olympic Village in Kapyla are now private condos, while the neighborhood next door, is a great, early example of the garden city movement in Finland: small, colorful wooden houses and surrounding gardens, designed by Valikangas,” Mr. Pack said. Ekelund also designed the Helsinki Velodrome, which hosted cycling and field hockey events during the Games and was renovated in the late 1990s. It still holds athletic events today and remains a notable architectural site. The Olympic Stadium and Tower, recently recognized by Architectural Digest in its list of best Olympic architecture, is undergoing a major renovation and is set to reopen in 2019. It’s home to the Sports Museum of Finland as well as many sporting events and concerts. “For Winter, Lillehammer and Vancouver have been success stories, but probably none more so than Salt Lake City,” said Bill Mallon, a founder of the International Society of Olympic Historians. “They have really put the venues to good use. ” Utah residents always knew they had great snow, but exposure from the Games turned the area into an international skiing destination. Utah resorts drew a record 4. 5 million visitors in 2015, compared with about 3 million in 2002, the year the Games were held. The area can now claim to have the largest ski resort in the United States, Park City, which is about 30 miles east of the city’s center. It resulted from Vail Resorts merging its Park City Mountain Resort with the nearby Canyons resort in 2015. Elsewhere, three of the Games’s top venues, the Utah Olympic Park, the Olympic Ice Oval, and the Soldier Hollow skiing and biathlon venue, remain in use, serving as training grounds for Olympic hopefuls and providing recreational fun for the public. Getting to skate on the same ice as Olympians is an easy sell for locals and tourists, and braver visitors can ride a bobsled (no matter the season). Other summer activities at the park include extreme tubing, and adventure courses. The smallest city (technically a village) to host an Olympics actually did it twice, first in 1932 and more famously in 1980, when a scrappy American men’s hockey team upset the heavily favored Soviets. “Winter sports and Lake Placid go together like wildlife and forests,” Robert Flacke, New York State’s commissioner of Environmental Conservation at the time, told The New York Times in January 1981. Whiteface Mountain, one of the highest peaks in the Adirondacks, hosted all of Lake Placid’s Alpine skiing events and is an obvious destination for skiers in the winter and outdoor enthusiasts in the summer. The Olympic Center features the Lake Placid Olympic Museum and is where the “Miracle on Ice” occurred. That same rink is open for public use, as is the original skating oval from the 1932 Winter Games. For stunning views of the Adirondacks, options include driving the Whiteface Veteran’s Memorial Highway to the top of Whiteface Mountain or taking an elevator to the top of the Olympic Jumping Complex. | 1 |
Monday at the League Conference, FBI Director James Comey said law enforcement “officers and deputies and agents” need to do a better job “understanding” the communities they serve, including “the history and journey of black America — the hopes, the dreams, the disappointments, and the pain. ” Comey said,”Everybody in this room knows that officers and deputies and agents signed up for this work because they want to do good for other people. They want to help other people o matter what they look like, no matter what they believe, no matter who they love. They signed up to help all the people, all the time. But we have to do a better job of not just explaining that to the communities we serve and protect. We need to do a better job of understanding those communities. Especially those with the greatest need for police. We need to know the people who live there, the challenges they confront, the fears that they have, the hopes they have. ” “As law enforcement officers, we especially need a full understanding of the history and journey of black America — the hopes, the dreams, the disappointments, and the pain,” he continued. “We need to know the history of law enforcement’s interaction with black America because black people cannot forget it. We need to know what is happening in all of our communities, not what we think is happening, or even what the people we’re serving to think is happening, but what is really happening. ” Comey added, “For that, we need better information in this country. Now, I know data is a boring word. People tend to tune out when you start talking about data. But it’s vital because only data, only information, gives us a full picture of what’s happening. It’s what smart people use to make hard decisions. We at the FBI have been pressing for more data in this country for the last two years, and we will keep pressing for it. Data related to violent crimes of homicides, data related to shootings, data related to altercations with citizens and attacks against law enforcement officers, and yes, data related to hate crime. ” “We must do a better job of tracking and reporting hate crime to fully understand what’s happening in our communities and in our country so we can stop it,” he continued. “Some jurisdictions do not report hate crime data. Some say there were no hate crimes in their jurisdiction, which would be awesome if it were true. We must continue to impress upon our state and local counterparts how important it is that we track and report hate crime data. It’s not something we can ignore, not something we can sweep under the rug, even though it’s painful. ” Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN | 1 |
Home / Blue Privilege / Deputy Shot and Killed by Fellow Deputy While Having a Conversation on Weapon Safety Deputy Shot and Killed by Fellow Deputy While Having a Conversation on Weapon Safety Matt Agorist November 2, 2016 1 Comment
Fresno, CA — A 20-year veteran deputy of the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department was shot and killed Monday by his fellow officer. Officials immediately ruled it an accident and began the narrative that the gun somehow just went off on its own.
“We do not know yet the mechanics of how the weapon discharged,” Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims said. “So far, we have absolutely no reason to believe this was anything more than a tragic accidental shooting.”
Deputy Sgt. Rod Lucas was having a conversation near the Fresno Yosemite International Airport about how to carry backup weapons when one deputy’s weapon was discharged striking Lucas in the chest.
Lucas was in the room with two other deputies, and, according to Mims, there was no dispute at the time — ironically, just a conversation about weapons safety.
“The detective had his weapon out. During this discussion, the detective’s weapon discharged,” the sheriff said. “Sgt. Lucas was struck by the bullet in his chest, and he dropped to the ground.”
According to FOX, Mims did not disclose the type of firearm involved in the incident, calling it “an improved secondary weapon for the detective.” She said all witnesses have been interviewed except for the detective, who was not identified, due to his mental state which she described as extremely upset.
“We’re giving him the time he needs,” said Mims, who declined to identify the detective by name. “We’re taking care of him.”
Imagine for a moment, that a non-cop ‘accidentally’ shot and killed another man. Would they be allowed this same opportunity to not be investigated? Would a person who just killed someone in a room be ‘taken care of’ if they simply used the excuse of the gun accidentally going off?
Sadly enough, this is the third such incident in only a week in which a cop’s firearm ‘accidentally discharged’ and put the lives of others in danger.
At a Halloween party over the weekend, a cop in North Carolina shot and severely injured her own daughter as she showed off her service weapon. She has not been charged.
Prior to that shooting, a cop in Ohio fired his weapon into a daycare center — while it was fully occupied.
Despite the officer clearly admitting to committing the misdemeanor offense of discharging a firearm within city limits, police have yet to charge him.
Imagine if the people in these incidents were not police officers. The double standard is glaring.
Aside from the above the law treatment of these officers, the excuse of the weapons accidentally discharging is nothing short of asinine.
Guns do not fire themselves.
Weapons companies spend a significant amount of time and money making sure their guns don’t simply ‘go off.’ While it is entirely possible for older single action revolvers, which required the hammer to be cocked, to go off when dropped, the idea of a modern pistol accidentally firing without someone pulling the trigger is simply absurd.
There are more guns than people in the United States. It is estimated that Americans own around 357 million firearms. If these weapons were so prone to accidentally firing, there would be a lot of dead Americans. However, that is clearly not the case.
The reality is that these cases involve police, who are entrusted by the public to responsibly carry weapons, failing miserably at their jobs. You could rest assured that if a mere citizen were to shoot and kill another person while ‘discussing backup weapons,’ they would be cast out by the anti-gun crowd and plastered across the mainstream media. They would also be in jail.
However, if your job is to carry a firearm for a living to ostensibly protect society and you kill your own colleague while doing this job — you are immediately presumed innocent and given special treatment. Matt Agorist is an honorably discharged veteran of the USMC and former intelligence operator directly tasked by the NSA. This prior experience gives him unique insight into the world of government corruption and the American police state. Agorist has been an independent journalist for over a decade and has been featured on mainstream networks around the world. Follow @MattAgorist on Twitter and now on Steemit Share Google + Phil Freeman
Improved backup weapon means it’s been to the gunsmith for modification, reduction in trigger pull is the most common. So my guess is detective kojack was showing off his new play pretty and the hair trigger spring he just installed and shot this cop. Well done safety meeting I say. One less gangster in Fresno. Social | 0 |
WASHINGTON — In a message posted on Twitter on Saturday, President Trump highlighted a dip in the national debt during his first month in office, contrasting it with an increase in the first month of the Obama administration. The numbers are broadly accurate, but the lack of attention to them is for good reason: Neither president bore responsibility for changes in the federal debt in his opening month in the White House. The slight decline cited by Mr. Trump — a drop of 0. 06 percent, according to Treasury data — is a temporary fluctuation, not a change in direction. The federal debt is determined by the government’s decisions about taxing and spending, and by the strength of the American economy. The debt was increasing rapidly in early 2009 because the economy was in free fall, and because of policy decisions made during the administration of President George W. Bush. The debt is rising more slowly now because economic growth has strengthened and because of policy decisions made during Mr. Obama’s administration. But the debt is on a clear upward trend. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated in January that the debt would increase by $559 billion in the current fiscal year, ending in September. The exact amount of the debt bounces around that trend line because the Treasury borrows money by selling securities with maturities — or repayment dates — ranging from 28 days to 30 years. That creates an irregular pattern of inflows and outflows from the federal cash box. The president leveled his complaint on Twitter not long after Herman Cain, a former Republican presidential candidate, raised a similar criticism on “Fox and Friends Weekend. ” Mr. Trump did not describe his calculations, but similar numbers can be derived from the Treasury’s daily reports on the national debt. The data show that on Feb. 21, the national debt was $12 billion smaller than on Jan. 20. As of Thursday, the day with the most recent data, the national debt had declined by $33 billion since Mr. Trump’s inauguration. The daily Treasury reports also show that the national debt increased by $212 billion from Jan. 20 to Feb. 20 in 2009. Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, issued a statement applauding the president for focusing on the national debt while noting that “the improvement this early in his term has to do with normal fluctuations in spending and revenues rather than new policies he has implemented. ” While presidents do not exert immediate influence over the size of the national debt, Mr. Trump will have his chance to make an impact. He has proposed tax cuts that would reduce federal revenues, as well as tariffs on imports that would have the opposite effect. He has also proposed reducing federal spending in some areas while increasing it in others, like defense and infrastructure. The performance of the economy will also play an important role. Economic growth generates more tax revenue and reduces federal spending on social welfare programs. The national debt increased sharply during Mr. Obama’s first term as the government increased spending in response to the 2008 financial crisis. The debt grew more slowly during his second term as the economy improved and tax increases brought more money into the government’s coffers. | 1 |
During his first 11 days in office, President Trump has provided news outlets with plenty of material, at all hours of the morning and night. But his maelstrom of activity — the bold executive orders, the fiery Twitter posts, the brazen speeches — has also exposed, and perhaps exacerbated, ideological differences. For those devouring news about the administration, the choice of narratives has become starker, with brighter lines drawn around the content. For the readers and viewers, it’s follow the narrative of your choice, and be wary of the great chasm between. Over the weekend, as protesters descended on airports across the country in response to Mr. Trump’s immigration ban, fissures began to emerge even among news organizations. On Monday, the divide only widened. And not everyone behaved predictably. Bill O’Reilly, the outspoken Fox News host, expressed skepticism about the rollout of Mr. Trump’s plan and called it “a mistake” to rush it. While he did make some effort to defend Mr. Trump, he was also somewhat moderate in one segment. “It is certainly responsible and logical for a new president to institute updated protections for this country by ordering specific temporary immigration actions,” Mr. O’Reilly said. “However, it’s also responsible for a federal judge to order that foreigners with the proper credentials already issued not be punished. There should be room for decision making. ” He even invoked the Statue of Liberty to make his point. Some of Mr. O’Reilly’s guests were also critical. Karl Rove said of Mr. Trump that “the controversy is hurting him more than the controversy is helping him. ” Brit Hume said it was handled “very clumsily. ” And Charles Krauthammer said it was introduced in the “most amateurish, botched way. ” But, in more typical form, Mr. O’Reilly also focused on what he said he perceived to be Mr. Trump’s political calculation, adding that much of the country was “getting fed up with the people. ” By late Monday, order on Fox News had been fully restored. In his opening monologue, Sean Hannity followed a familiar trope, criticizing the mainstream news media for “freaking out and completely misrepresenting” the immigration ban. The Trump administration, he said, was trying to “set the record straight, but the media won’t listen. ” The Wall Street Journal, part of the Rupert News Corporation, delivered a scathing editorial on Monday denouncing Mr. Trump’s “blunderbuss” policy. But on Tuesday, some journalists at the publication were frustrated after a note from the editor in chief, Gerard Baker, instructed editors to avoid the phrase “seven majority Muslim countries” when writing about the order. “It’s very loaded,” Mr. Baker wrote Monday night in the note, a copy of which was obtained by The New York Times (and reported earlier by BuzzFeed). “The reason they’ve been chosen is not because they’re majority Muslim but because they’re on the list of countries Obama identified as countries of concern. Would be less loaded to say ‘seven countries the U. S. has designated as being states that pose significant or elevated risks of terrorism. ’” The note caused concern among some editors and reporters in the newsroom as inappropriate interference. In a statement, a spokeswoman for The Journal said Mr. Baker’s note was “part of a larger conversation discussing developments as a story was being edited on deadline. ” In the same email chain, she said, Mr. Baker also pushed to include more comments from critics of Mr. Trump’s policy. On Tuesday, Mr. Baker sent a memo to employees saying there was “no ban on the phrase ‘ country’” but that the publication should “always be careful that this term is not offered as the only description of the countries covered under the ban. ” The unrest was only the latest manifestation of greater concern among a faction of reporters and editors at The Journal who are dissatisfied with what they view as sympathetic coverage of Mr. Trump. Mr. Baker has maintained that the publication is committed to fair reporting. Elsewhere in the news and entertainment empire of the Murdoch family, there was a more pointed response to Mr. Trump’s immigration policy. In a memo to employees of 21st Century Fox on Monday evening, James and Lachlan Murdoch suggested they did not fully support Mr. Trump’s executive order. “21CF is a global company, proudly headquartered in the U. S. founded by — and comprising at all levels of the business — immigrants,” they wrote. “We deeply value diversity and believe immigration is an essential part of America’s strength. ” Among organizations, the tone in the last few days has been predictably defiant and jubilant, reflecting their position on the conservative spectrum. Several seized on Mr. Trump’s accusation that Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, had shed “fake tears” over the ban. The Federalist, a web magazine, published an article under the headline, “No, Trump’s Immigration Order Isn’t Racist or Reminiscent of the Holocaust. ” After Mr. Trump fired Sally Q. Yates, the acting attorney general, on Monday night for refusing to carry out his immigration order, Breitbart News went with the spirited headline, “You’re Fired: Trump Fires AG for ‘Betrayal. ’” The conservative Daily Caller called Ms. Yates’s decision a “brazen act of defiance that cost her the post. ” On Tuesday afternoon, Breitbart readers may have been surprised to see the site covering protests — but the blaring headline would have quickly showed the organization’s focus. “Trump Supporter Knocked Unconscious at Portland Airport Protest,” the site wrote. | 1 |
The accusation that President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign colluded with the Russians, and that he is trying to cover it up, looks increasingly like a classic Russian disinformation campaign — one designed to bring down the only president since the Cold War who has actually been willing to confront Russia in any meaningful way. [It is an article of faith on the left that Russia wanted Trump to win the election because Vladimir Putin anticipated a more pliant approach, signaled by Trump’s explicit desire to negotiate a better relationship. But the Russians may just as well have preferred Hillary Clinton, who had given Russia everything it wanted while serving as President Barack Obama’s Secretary of State — from the “reset,” to a surrender of U. S. missile defenses in Eastern Europe, to the sale of 20% of America’s uranium reserves to a Russian company closely tied to the Russian state. It is more plausible to suggest that Russia simply wants to disrupt American politics if it can get away with doing so, and would do the same regardless of which candidate won the election. Even if — for argument’s sake — Putin once preferred Trump, that would not preclude him from trying to undermine President Trump now, if possible. And in the “ ” complex, Putin has found a particularly potent weapon, aimed directly at the president. One could not imagine a better way to create havoc for an adversary — and the left is playing into the enemy’s hands, eagerly and mindlessly, forgetting its own slavish enthusiasm for Russia for nearly a century. Holman Jenkins, writing in the Wall Street Journal on Saturday, notes that Putin found a unique vulnerability in the of contemporary American politics, which makes devotees on either side more willing to believe the worst about the other. Partisans on both sides might share a conspiratorial mindset when relegated to opposition status, but only the Democrats can harness the alchemy of the mainstream media to “normalize” fringe theories. Regardless, the flimsiness of the evidence against Trump is a clue. Jenkins notes that it was a dubious “dossier” that alleged that Russia had dirt on Trump that caused much of the initial suspicion last year — and that it may well have been fed by Russian sources for that purpose. Add to that the recent revelation that FBI director James Comey suspected that a key email — purportedly hacked by Russians, and which implicated Attorney General Loretta Lynch in a scheme to suppress any FBI investigation into Clinton — was a fake, and a pattern seems to emerge. Moreover, many of the recent intelligence leaks that have attempted to tie Trump to Putin have been at best — in some cases, laughably so. The information that has been leaked could well have been fabricated — or at least fed to unwitting U. S. Intelligence sources who were ready to believe, and convey, the worst. Sen. Lindsey Graham — an early critic of Trump’s Russia policy — said as much on Sunday, when he speculated that an intercepted message from the Russian ambassador to his bosses back home, claiming that Jared Kushner wanted to set up a “back channel,” could well have been a exposed on purpose to be intercepted by the U. S. Regardless, Trump is almost certainly right that the Russians are “laughing” at us. The entire political and media establishment is utterly consumed by an obsession with Russian influence for which there is no actual evidence. It is a hysteria worse than that of the McCarthy years, because in those days there really were American communists trying to take over the U. S. government on Moscow’s behalf. Thanks to the “ complex,” this may be the most powerful Russian disinformation campaign ever, and stands on the verge of bringing the American Republic to its knees. Journalists and elected Democrats are busily slapping each other on the back for “standing up for democracy. ” To the extent that they believe it — when they are doing the opposite — Russia is surely grateful. Joel B. Pollak is Senior at Breitbart News. He was named one of the “most influential” people in news media in 2016. He is the of How Trump Won: The Inside Story of a Revolution, is available from Regnery. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak. | 1 |
Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email. PLEASE DONATE TO KEEP BARE NAKED ISLAM UP AND RUNNING. Choose DONATE for one-time donation or SUBSCRIBE for monthly donations Payment Options GET ALL NEW BNI POSTS/LINKS ON TWITTER Subscribe to Blog via Email
Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Email Address | 0 |
LONDON — One was a police constable who spent 15 years with the Metropolitan Police in London. A second was a teacher who, according to reports, was walking from her school along Westminster Bridge. Another was a man from Utah who was on vacation with his wife, celebrating their 25th anniversary. The fourth was a man, whose family removed him from life support. They were all killed by an assailant who plowed through pedestrians on the bridge — injuring at least 50 others in the heart of the city — crashed his vehicle into a fence and then emerged with knives to stab the constable on Wednesday. Among the wounded, many of them foreign tourists, were 12 Britons, four South Koreans, three French high school students, two Romanians, two Greeks and one citizen each of China, Germany, Ireland, Italy and the United States. On Thursday afternoon local time, the police identified the assailant, who was shot and killed by officers, as Khalid Masood, 52. In a speech at Parliament, Prime Minister Theresa May said the attacker was and was previously investigated by MI5, Britain’s domestic counterintelligence agency, for possible ties to violent extremism. The prime minister visited victims at a hospital in London for 40 minutes on Thursday, according to her office. Many of them had not been publicly identified. At a news conference, Mark Rowley, the assistant police commissioner, cited both the police investigation and the need to notify family members as reasons. But information has dribbled out. ■ Police Constable Keith Palmer, 48, a member of the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command, was patrolling the Parliament building when the assailant fatally stabbed him. Tributes for Constable Palmer have poured in. “He was someone who left for work today expecting to return home at the end of his shift, and he had every right to expect that would happen,” Commissioner Rowley said in a statement. Mayor Sadiq Khan said, “Keith Palmer was killed while bravely doing his duty — protecting our city and the heart of our democracy from those who want to destroy our way of life. ” James Cleverly, a lawmaker, said on Twitter that he had served in the Royal Artillery with Constable Palmer, calling him “a lovely man, a friend. ” On Thursday, the Metropolitan Police announced in a Twitter post that his badge number would be retired. ■ Kurt Cochran, an American traveling in Europe with his wife, Melissa Payne Cochran, died of injuries sustained in the attack, according to a statement from the family issued through the Church of Jesus Christ of Saints in Salt Lake City. Clint Payne, Mr. Cochran’s said in the statement: “Our family is heartbroken to learn of the death of our and Kurt W. Cochran, who was a victim of Wednesday’s terrorist attack in London. Kurt was a good man and a loving husband to our sister and daughter, Melissa. They were in Europe to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary, and were scheduled to return to the United States on Thursday. ” Mr. Cochran’s wife was also wounded in the attack, and she was hospitalized with “a broken leg, a broken rib and a cut on her head,” said her sister Sarah in a post on Facebook. Their parents were serving as missionaries in London, according to the church. The couple ran a recording studio in West Bountiful, Utah, and Mr. Cochran had shared pictures of their stops in Germany and Scotland. ■ Aysha Frade, 43, a British teacher, lived in London with her husband and two daughters. She taught Spanish not far from Westminster Bridge, according to the Spanish newspaper La Voz de Galicia, and she had family in Spain, according to the Spanish Foreign Ministry. Ms. Frade’s mother immigrated to Britain from Betanzos, a Galician town in northwestern Spain. Ms. Frade’s two sisters run the Academia Notting Hill language school in Betanzos and live in a village nearby. Her father is of Turkish Cypriot descent, a family friend said. On Thursday, the Betanzos town hall held a moment of silence at noon to honor Ms. Frade. Local leaders decreed three days of mourning. Ms. Frade, 43, was a British citizen, but “her link with our town was always very strong,” José Luis Pariente, a Betanzos town hall official, said by phone. “She came back here to visit every summer. ” Amy Winter, the family friend and a neighbor in the Notting Hill district of London, said on the phone: “When I think of Aysha, I think of her radiant smile. She always cheered people up. ” “It crushes me to know that she was going to pick up her girls when she was killed,” she said, adding, “They were everything to her. ” Rachel Borland, the principal of DLD College London, said in a statement: “We are all deeply shocked and saddened at the news that one of the victims yesterday was a member of our staff, Aysha Frade. All our thoughts and our deepest sympathies are with her family. ” ■ Leslie Rhodes, 75, a retired window cleaner from the Streatham neighborhood of south London, was injured in the rampage. He was removed from life support on Thursday. One of his neighbors, Michael Carney, told local news media that he had known Mr. Rhodes for 40 years, calling him “the nicest mind you ever met. ” Another neighbor described Mr. Rhodes as “fit as a fiddle” and said he wasn’t married and had no children. Mr. Carney said his own relatives went to the hospital to be by Mr. Rhodes’s side. “My wife and my two girls went up there and were with him until he died, playing him music,” Mr. Carney said. “He liked Queen and that. ” He added: “He had no one. You can’t have someone dying on their own. ” ■ Three of the wounded were boys from France who were on the bridge with other visiting students. The three attended St. high school in Concarneau, Brittany, according to the French Foreign Ministry. The mother of one of the injured students told the French news media that he had borrowed a friend’s cellphone to text that he was O. K. “His phone didn’t work, but he must have known I would try to reach him because I immediately got a text message from him,” the mother, Isabelle Calvez, said on French television. “He told me he was O. K. but had the incident happened 20 seconds later, he would’ve been hit by the car. ” She added that two of the other students had fractured arms and legs, while another had a neck injury. On Thursday, the French Education Ministry said that the injured students from Brittany had been treated and that their conditions were no longer . Juliette Meadel, the government minister for victims’ affairs, told CNEWS that the three students were among a group of 56 that went to a nearby hostel after the attack. A second group from the high school, with 36 students, was in another location in London when the attack occurred. Ms. Meadel said the uninjured students would return to France on Thursday. There are more than 4, 200 students in London on school trips from France, according to the Education Ministry. Most of the other planned school trips to London on Thursday or Friday have been postponed. Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve of France expressed solidarity with “our British friends” hurt in the attack and offered “full support to the injured French pupils, their families and their classmates. ” ■ Five South Koreans were among the 29 people hospitalized. They were wounded when they were mobbed by a crowd fleeing the attack site, according to the South Korean Foreign Ministry. Four of them — three women and a man in their 50s and 60s — sustained fractures and other injuries that were not believed to be . A woman, however, suffered a head injury when she was pushed by the fleeing crowd, according to South Korean news reports. She later had surgery to treat her injuries. ■ The two Romanian victims, Andrei Burnaz, 32, and Andreea Cristea, 31, are from the Black Sea port city of Constanta, according to the Romanian news agency Mediafax, which quoted an official as saying they were in London to celebrate Mr. Burnaz’s birthday. Ms. Cristea went into the Thames off Westminster Bridge when the assailant drove through the crowd, and news reports said she suffered serious head injuries and lung damage. She was rescued, and Mr. Burnaz’s foot was fractured. ■ At least three of those injured after being “driven at by a vehicle” were members of the police force, and were in stable condition. ■ A woman described as “an Australian permanent resident” was among the wounded, according to that nation’s government. Australian news outlets reported that the assailant’s vehicle had run over her foot on the bridge. The woman, originally from Germany, lives in South Australia, according to an Australian news report. ■ Two Greeks were hospitalized for minor injuries, according to Alexis Georgiades, the press counselor at the Greek Embassy in London. | 1 |
LONDON — The final match of the Premier League season for Manchester United and Bournemouth was abandoned Sunday afternoon after a security blunder forced the dramatic evacuation of tens of thousands of fans from the stadium. The authorities were initially praised for ushering 50, 000 spectators out of Manchester’s Old Trafford stadium after a suspicious object was found in the stands. Sniffer dogs were dispatched, and bomb disposal experts carried out a controlled detonation of what was then described as an “incredibly lifelike explosive device. ” But to officials’ embarrassment, the suspicious item — a cellphone connected to a gas pipe — turned out to be a training device that the police later announced had “accidentally been left by a private company following a training exercise involving search dogs. ” “Whilst this item did not turn out to be a viable explosive, on appearance this device was as real as could be, and the decision to evacuate the stadium was the right thing to do, until we could be sure that people were not at risk,” said John O’Hare, an assistant chief constable with the Greater Manchester Police. The bomb scare caused particular fear because Britain had just days before raised the terrorist threat level linked to Northern Ireland to “substantial” from “moderate,” warning that an attack was a strong possibility. Theresa May, Britain’s home secretary, said that decision reflected “the continuing threat from dissident republican activity. ” In March, a group calling itself the New Irish Republican Army claimed responsibility for a bomb attack on a van driven by a prison officer. The group, which opposes the Northern Ireland peace process, said it was “ready and determined to take the war to the enemy of our nation. ” There has been a heightened awareness of security surrounding sporting events in Europe, with the European soccer championships set to begin in France next month. French officials have said repeatedly that the championships, the Continent’s marquee soccer tournament, will be secure. But scrutiny of the plans has intensified since terrorists targeted the Stade de France, outside Paris, as part of a wave of attacks in Paris in November. The championship, which will run from June 10 to July 10, will be held in 10 cities across France. Organizers have revamped plans for security and estimated that 10, 000 people would be hired to staff the operation, which will cover the stadiums as well as city centers and organized fan zones: areas for people to congregate and watch matches on video screens. Each host city has gone through simulations of a variety of situations, including terrorist attacks. After the attacks in Paris, and this year in Brussels, the security budget for the fan zones was doubled to about $27 million. While postponements of matches for security reasons are rare, Sunday’s decision was hardly unprecedented. After the terrorist attacks in Paris, an exhibition game between Germany and the Netherlands was called off and fans were evacuated after a suspicious object was found inside the stadium in Hanover, Germany. Officials described an “intention to ignite explosives. ” In 2004, the Basque newspaper Gara reportedly received a phone call saying a bomb was set to explode at Real Madrid’s Bernabéu stadium. More than 70, 000 people were evacuated shortly before the end of a match between Real Madrid and Real Sociedad, but no explosive device was found. The number of significant sporting events taking place in cities across Europe on a daily basis can make tighter security measures everywhere impractical. For regular league matches, local police officers work with the clubs to handle security. When a possible emergency occurs, as it did Sunday, protocol typically involves calling in national or military officers for assistance, which was what the Manchester police did. The Premier League rescheduled the match between Manchester United and Bournemouth for Tuesday. | 1 |
How they could steal the election from Trump even if he is announced the winner next Tuesday October 31, 2016 at 2:13 am
How they could steal the election from Trump even if he is announced the winner next Tuesday
By Dr. Patrick Slattery — There has been a great deal of talk recently about the “rigging” of elections. Trump talks about it, and then the media accuses him of being a threat to democracy by refusing to accept the will of the voters. Nobody asks Hillary if she will accept the will of the voters…
Of course, we know that our electoral system is unfair, biased, and even rigged at a variety of levels. Without going into detail, the media, which plays an absolutely crucial role in staging our elections, has abandoned even the pretense of neutrality. Ballot access is unfair. Campaign finance is corrupt. Electronic voting machines are vulnerable. Voting by foreigners and dead people exists, as does multiple voting by individuals.
But one massive threat has so far gone completely unmentioned: the vulnerability of the electoral college to post-election shenanigans.
What people are not aware of is that, under the Constitution, the president is not elected on November 8. The Tuesday after the first Monday in November is designated for Congressional elections. It just so happens that over the years all the states decided to have their electors to the Electoral College selected by the voters on that day. In the early days of the Republic, it was actually more common for state legislatures to select the electors, and the Constitution allows the state legislatures to determine how the electors are selected.
It is actually the Electoral College that elects the president, and that happens on the Monday after the second Wednesday in December, which this year will be December 19. On this day, the electors will meet in their respective state capitals to cast their ballots, which will then be sent to Washington to be opened by Vice President Biden before a joint session of Congress on January 6 of next year. Some of you may remember the scene from Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 911 showing Vice President Gore reading votes that elected President Bush, ironically denying the objections raised by some Congressmen to Florida’s electoral votes, which Bush won over Gore amidst the greatest of controversy.
So if this system is enshrined in the Constitution, what could possibly go wrong? Plenty.
Unless Hillary goes into complete meltdown over the next week, a Trump victory on November 8 will likely be a narrow one in terms of the electoral college map. One very plausible scenario has Trump losing Pennsylvania but winning the rest of the main battleground states plus one of Maine’s congressional districts. (Maine, along with Nebraska, allow for electors to be elected on a congressional district basis rather than winner-take-all.) Under this scenario, 270 Republican electors would be elected, a bare majority, while 268 Democrat electors would be elected.
Notice I did not say “Trump would get 270 electoral votes,” which is what we are used to hearing. The fact is that the electoral votes are not cast until December 19, and there is no guarantee that every single one of the 270 Republican electors would actually vote for Trump. Do you remember a few months ago how alarmed we were at the prospect of supposed Trump delegates to the Republican National Convention deserting Trump and voting for Cruz? It was only that Trump piled up such large victories in the final primaries that he had big enough majority of delegates to cause the Never Trump people in the Republican establishment to give up on rigging the convention.
So who are these electors? Just as the method of electing the electors is left up to the states, the method for nominating the candidates for the electoral college is also left up to the states. Some states allow the presidential candidates to nominate their own slate of electors. Presumably, these people could be counted on to be loyal. But in other states the party’s slate of electors is chosen at state party conventions and even electoral district conventions.
As a young man I attended one such convention and had my name put into nomination as a Democratic elector. Myself and the other three contenders then made short speeches to the convention. The other three talked about being precinct captains or hard-working party volunteers. Then I gave a speech calling for the direct election of the president and the abolition of the electoral college. I got a huge round of applause. I would have easily won, but as a matter of principle I withdrew my name from nomination.
The point of the story is that most of the electors are unknown to the public, typically cogs in the party apparatus, and not even necessarily high-level ones, and some of them may even be smooth-talking slicksters like me, unknown to the party itself.
So how likely is it that one or more Republican electors would betray Trump? Such a person is known as a “faithless elector,” and while faithless electors have never ultimately altered the outcome of a presidential election, there have been 179 faithless electors in our history. In fact, faithless electors caused the Congress to have to decide the 1836 election for Vice President.
It is true that about half the states have laws punishing faithless voters, but in all but a few states the votes of faithless electors would still count.
The nightmare situation would be after a close election the Hillary people, or the Never Trump people, could bribe or pressure Republican electors, some of whom may not like Trump anyway, not to vote for Trump. They could vote for Hillary, they could vote for Pence, they could vote for anyone else, or they could even abstain from voting.
Then what happens? If enough Republican electors are cajoled into voting for Hillary (in the above 270-268 scenario, it would only require two), then Hillary gets inaugurated on January 20. If it’s a tie, then the House of Representatives breaks the tie. Obviously, there have been Republican members of the House that say they won’t vote for Trump for president in November, so there is no reason to assume they would vote for him in January.
However, not only are Republicans likely to retain a significant majority in the House, but the voting for president by the House is not one vote for each representative, but one vote per state. This means that California, which currently has 39 Democratic representatives, would get only one vote, while Alaska’s single representative, who is a Republican, would also get one vote. This heavily favors the Republicans and means that if Hillary cannot flip enough Republican electors to herself to win a majority of the electoral votes, she is finished. There is no real prospect of the House of Representative electing Hillary.
But what if enough Republican electors vote for other people, Paul Ryan for example, so that no candidate gets a majority? Then the House of Representatives gets to choose between the top three vote finishers in the electoral college vote. You could get a coalition between Democrats and Republican defectors that would deny Trump the presidency and give it to someone like Ryan. (The same applies in the case that Mormon ex-CIA operative and never-Trump independent presidential candidate Evan McMullen wins Utah , which some polls predict is possible.)
While none of the above scenarios may come to pass, we do have to face the fact that the establishment has so far stopped at nothing to try to defeat Trump, and so it is not too far fetched to think that they would try these tactics, especially if the November 8 voting produces a very narrow victory for Trump. The media could start inventing more reasons why Trump is uniquely unfit to become president and claim that the Constitution allows for these scenarios (which is the case), and that this in fact was why the framers of the Constitution created the Electoral College (which is not the case).
It would then be incumbent on us to make it clear to the members of the Electoral College and the Congress that any violation of the people’s will would not be tolerated. | 0 |
To be a woman in the United States is to feel unequal, despite great strides in gender equality, according to a poll about gender in postelection America released Tuesday. It’s catcalls on the street, disrespect at work and unbalanced responsibilities at home. For girls, it’s being taught, more than boys, to aspire to marriage, and for women, it’s watching positions of power go to men. Men, however, don’t necessarily see it that way. Those are some of the findings from the poll, by PerryUndem, a nonpartisan research and polling firm whose biggest clients are foundations. It surveyed 1, 302 adults in December via the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago’s AmeriSpeak panel. percent of women said sexism was a problem in society today, and 41 percent of women said they had felt unequal because of their gender. Men underestimated the sexism felt by the women in their lives, the survey found. And while most respondents agreed it’s a better time to be a man than a woman in our society, only Republican men thought it was a better time to be a woman than a man. As women across the nation prepare to march in protest of an election in which gender loomed large, the poll results reveal nearly unanimous support for gender equality and policies that would help women — but deep partisan divides in the perception of inequality and of who’s thriving and who’s losing in society. Many Americans seemed to think others had it better than they did, especially Republican men. Over all, only 37 percent of respondents thought it was a good time to be a woman in the United States. Fewer thought it was a good time to be a minority woman 24 percent said it was a good time to be a Latina, and 11 percent a Muslim woman. Republican men seem to see it differently. Just over half thought it was a good time to be a woman, while only 41 percent of them thought it was a good time to be a man. Donald J. Trump’s rhetoric has appealed to people who feel this way. At his victory rally in Cincinnati last month, he said about women: “I hate to tell you men, generally speaking, they’re better than you are. Now, if I said it the other way around, I’d be in big trouble. ” Dennis Halaszynski, 81, is a retired police captain in McKeesport, Pa. and a registered Democrat who voted for Mr. Trump. “It’s easier being a woman today than it is a man,” he said in an interview. “The white man is a low person on the totem pole. Everybody else is above the white man. ” Women “should be highly respected,” he said, but they are no longer unequal: “Everything in general is in favor of a woman. No matter what happens in life, it seems like the man’s always at fault. ” Democrats of both genders were much more likely to have felt unequal because of some aspect of their identity — 68 percent, compared with 47 percent of Republicans. Gender, race and religious views were the biggest reasons. The only reasons Republicans were more likely than Democrats to feel unequal were their religious views and military status. There is overwhelming support for gender equality in work, life and politics: 93 percent of respondents said they believed in it. But 43 percent of male Trump voters said it had already been achieved. Only 20 percent of those polled and 12 percent of women agreed. The disparity is partly because people define equality very differently, based on their politics and gender. A majority of respondents said the following things affected women’s rights and equality: unequal responsibilities caring for children violence against women a focus on women’s beauty and sexuality the lack of women in political office and positions of power sexism racism equal opportunities in the workplace and access to birth control and abortion. But in almost every instance, Republican men had a different view. For example, 51 percent of respondents but 24 percent of Republican men said a lack of women in political office affected women’s rights. percent of respondents over all and 36 percent of Republican men said unequal responsibilities caring for family affected women’s rights. Even men who said women were still treated unequally underestimated the sexism that women experience. While 41 percent of women said they frequently or sometimes heard sexist language in their daily lives, 26 percent of men thought their partners did. percent of women said they had been touched by a man in an inappropriate way without consent, while 31 percent of men thought their partners had. “The typical catcalling or comments or inappropriate gestures that men make toward you, I don’t think there’s any women who haven’t experienced that sort of harassment,” said Cristina Hall, 44, who works in customer service in San Diego. But she was not surprised that men didn’t realize it. “I think when people don’t go through certain experiences, it’s hard for them to understand that it even happens,” Ms. Hall said. “Maybe they’ve never done it to a woman. Plus as women, we don’t typically say anything because of fear we’re not going to be believed or retaliation or shame. ” About 40 percent of women said acts of sexism would be more likely because Mr. Trump won, including sexual assault and feelings of entitlement among men to treat women as sexual objects. About a third of respondents said they were less tolerant of sexism in their own lives as a result of Mr. Trump’s victory, and 43 percent of parents said it made them teach their children about sexual assault and consent. “People seem to feel validated in their racist and sexist beliefs right now,” said Tayler Lien, 22, a college student in Las Vegas who voted for Hillary Clinton. “It’s a little bit scary. ” There was widespread support among large majorities in both parties for policies that would help women, like equal pay and paid leave. These have been rallying cries for feminists and progressives, and Republicans have traditionally opposed them. Congress failed to act on those policies during the Obama administration, but Mr. Trump has said he would push for them. Ninety percent of the respondents and 86 percent of Republicans supported the idea that the next president and Congress should work on equal pay laws. percent of respondents supported policies improving access to affordable child care, and 87 percent supported paid family and medical leave. Policies concerning reproductive rights were the exception to the bipartisan support. percent of Republicans and 82 percent of Democrats said they supported work toward protecting a woman’s right to abortion from the next president and Congress, and 40 percent of Republicans and 80 percent of Democrats opposed getting rid of the part of Obamacare that offers birth control without a . Peg Cherry, 83, a lifelong Republican who voted for Mr. Trump, said only jobs were available when she was young. She worked in retail and elder care jobs while raising five daughters. All five worked — “a feather in my cap,” she said — and so she supports policies like equal pay and paid leave. She thinks Mr. Trump will deliver. “I think he’s going to put his money where his mouth is,” said Ms. Cherry, who lives in Lisbon Falls, Me. “I think he’s more likely to because, look, he’s had his daughter in charge of a company and he could very well put a man in there. ” Ms. Cherry is not the only one pinning her hopes on Ivanka Trump for policies. percent of people, including the majority of Democrats, said they wanted her to help push forward on women’s rights and equality. Despite the widespread support for gender equality and certain feminist policies, only 19 percent of respondents said they considered themselves feminists. There was no clear consensus on who best represented feminism today. The largest shares of people, both women and men, named two black women: Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey. | 1 |
Border Patrol agents in Vermont arrested two illegal immigrants who worked as dairy farmers following their participation in a Ben Jerry’s protest march. Agents stopped the suspects as they returned from the demonstration to go back to work. [The agents arrested Yesenia and Esau on Saturday after a stop at a routine immigration check. The location of the stop is near the U. S. Border. Agents transported the two migrants to a detention facility after determining they had no legal status in the U. S. the Washington Post reported. The two illegal workers joined with others protesting conditions at a Ben Jerry’s factory in Waterbury, Vermont, Breitbart News reported. The workers marched to demand better pay and living conditions on the farms that provide milk to the nationwide ice cream maker. “We can’t wait anymore. We are going to pressure them and see what happens,” Mexican migrant worker Victor Diaz told reporters. Diaz is a Mexican immigrant who works on a dairy farm in Vergennes. Following the arrest of the two illegal farm workers, others gathered outside a U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in St. Albans. “We were there to denounce the arrest of Esau and Yesenia and to call on ICE to use their discretion to release them back to their families, back to their community so they can continue to live and work in Vermont and continue to raise their voice for their dignity and human rights,” Migrant Justice organizer Will Lambek told the Post. The Washington news outlet reported that Vermont has about 1, 000 farm workers who are Latino. They reported that many of those are in the country illegally. The Migrant Justice group claims their workers are being targeted for selective enforcement by immigration officials. They brought up Enrique Balcazar and Zully Palacios, who protested on Monday. The two migrant workers were arrested in March and were released later that month. Ben Jerry’s responded to the protests with the following statement: We are concerned that productive members of our community, who contribute to the success of dairy farms in Vermont, would face criminalization. We need policy change that serves Vermont’s dairy workers, farmers, and industry as a whole. The company said it is working to resolve its differences with the workers. They did not make any statement about the illegal immigration status of their workers. Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas. He is a founding member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Facebook. | 1 |
On Thursday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” DNC Senior Adviser and head of the Democrats’ Trump War Room Zac Petkanas reacted to President Trump revoking President Obama’s guidelines on transgendered students by stating, “Donald Trump is not only a monster, but he’s a coward. We’re talking about somebody who is so emasculated by Vladimir Putin … that he has to come back and pick on vulnerable kids. ” Petkanas said, “This is guidance that was provided to schools that schools wanted and asked for, and it is very — it’s for a very specific reason, they wanted to create a safe environment for all the kids in their school, and they wanted to avoid Title IX lawsuits. I mean, that’s what’s so about what the Trump administration did today. He took away practical guidance to school administrators and principals, who were looking to create this safe environment, and were looking to not get sued for Title IX violations. ” He added, “Donald Trump is not only a monster, but he’s a coward. We’re talking about somebody who is so emasculated by Vladimir Putin, that he has to come back — no no — that he has to come back and pick on vulnerable kids. ” The discussion then turned to the issue of transgenderism writ large. Petkanas stated that “One’s gender identity is enough to show what gender they are. ” Petkanas was asked what would prevent host Tucker Carlson from playing on a women’s sports team, serving a prison sentence in a women’s prison. He responded that there aren’t any examples of anyone doing this. After Petkanas said later in the interview that “Your gender identity determines your gender, period. ” Carlson asked if this would mean he could go to a women’s college or qualify for an SBA loan for small businesses if he identified as a woman. Petkanas answered in the affirmative, and that gender identity determines gender. When asked if you could identify as another race, Petkanas answered that you can’t, and dismissed this as a “silly” hypothetical. Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett | 1 |
No doubt putting on dresses and makeup too. | 0 |
Q. I’ve been in a lot of restaurants in New York, and I’ve never seen an F in any of those inspection grading cards given out by the health department. Does this mean that all of the restaurants in New York are above average? A. Actually, many of the city’s roughly 24, 000 restaurants do get the worst grades, but the trick is that C, not F, is the lowest one. By now, most New Yorkers are familiar with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s system, which was introduced in 2010, and assigns ratings based on a system that is calculated by the amount of major and minor infractions found by inspectors. The dirtier the restaurant, the more points accumulated, the worse the grade. According to a city database, there are more than 200 restaurants that currently have C ratings. There are more than 800 “grade pending” restaurants, because operators of restaurants are given the choice of displaying a “grade pending” sign or a letter grade while they contest any violations. If this makes you a little queasy, keep in mind that New York is generally a culinarily clean city: The A rating is by far the most common, with more than 21, 500 restaurants claiming that blue card. There are more than 1, 500 B ratings. So if you’re contemplating entering a C restaurant, rest assured that moving a few feet down the street might land you in A territory. The health department does not force any restaurant to close over ratings. Restaurants are closed by the department as a temporary emergency measure when there is an immediate public health hazard, such as a severe pest infestation. A restaurant can also be closed as a result of repeated violations or an extensive number of violations. “Once these issues have been corrected, a restaurant may request a reopening inspection,” Carolina Rodriguez, an assistant press secretary with the health department, said in an email. | 1 |
Top 5 unusual tragic deaths on sets # Top5darkests 0
Over the years, conspiracies and theories of paranormal activity on movie sets has grown. With a large amount of horror productions having unfortunate deaths, some deaths closely resembling story lines of the horror production, theories of movies with a curse has been spoken by some. From deaths on movie productions involving the devil to the conspiracy of the hanging extra in the wizard of oz, we will cover in this video our top 5 unusual tragic deaths on sets. Tags | 0 |
Posted by Martin Walsh | Nov 11, 2016 | Liberal Corruption Trump Delivering His FIRST Order
This feeling of a President Trump is a breathe of fresh air. You can feel it in your communities all across the country and in your own life. You can feel yourself imagining things that you want to accomplish because Trump has already instilled a cultural change that breeds toughness and hard work. How To Make An Organic Super Food For Survial At Home - Watch Video Click Here
Democrats and the lying media slammed Donald Trump for months when he argued that he may not accept the results of the election. Now that he has won, ironically, it has been the media and Hillary’s supporters that are refusing to accept the results of the election.
In wake of Donald Trump winning the election in a landslide, thousands of whiny, entitled liberals are flooding the streets with their violence and tears because they just cannot deal with a President that has said mean things. Your burning and disrespect of the flag is why Trump won, kids #TrumpProtestors
— Katie Pavlich (@KatiePavlich) November 10, 2016
These ungrateful, entitled crybabies are burning the American flag, which is something that should never be tolerated.
In September of 2015, Donald Trump was asked about his stance on the legality of burning our flag.
“Personally, I don’t think it should be legal,” the Republican presidential front-runner told the Daily Caller last year. Yet, now we have more examples than we need of this treason. Notice Hillary supporters burning the American flag. Trump supporters don't burn American flags. Vote Trump! pic.twitter.com/IdzCghzia1
— Caesar Ramirez (@caesar_ramirez) June 4, 2016
Or this act of treason… Students burn American flags at AU in protest of Donald Trump's presidential win. Video courtesy of Meh. https://t.co/u4y2xX2sxe #fox5dc pic.twitter.com/nkFUnY2pk8
— FOX 5 DC (@fox5dc) November 9, 2016
The United States Supreme Court has ruled that flag burning is constitutionally protected freedom of speech. Now that Donald Trump will be appointing several Conservative Judges to serve on the Court, we can expect that ruling to change in the coming year or so.
On top of Trump’s comments a year ago, senior members in his administration have indicated President Trump has now made this issue one of this top priorities. Sources argue that soon after President Trump assembles his cabinet and has a Supreme Court Judge nominated, they will move this issue forward immediately to prosecute anyone caught burning the American flag.
Trump officials argue, “you have the right to peacefully protest and voice your opinion. You do not have the right to burn our Nation’s strongest symbol.”
Liberals just cannot fathom why burning the American flag is bad. They cannot see beyond their own entitlement that millions of brave men and women have given their lives to fight for everything our flag represents. The only bigots I see are the ones burning American flags, attacking Trump supporters, and destroying cities.
— Martin Walsh (@mrwalsh8) November 10, 2016
President Trump has indicated that he is more than willing to work with everyone in this great Nation so that we can all come together. If you still choose to incite violence, you will be charged with a crime and sent to jail.
If you are threatening to leave this country, go ahead and leave. We no longer have time to console people who got their feelings hurt or need a nap. We are about to make this country great again by getting people back to work. We are going to instill the idea of being tough and working hard to achieve your goals instead of holding your hand out as if you are entitled to something.
It’s truly amazing that we finally have a President that will love and respect our military. The American flag is bigger than any of us. It represent decades of sacrifice, bravery, and patriotism. Millions of men and women gave their life so that scumbag liberals have the freedom to cry in the streets and throw temper tantrums when their candidate doesn’t win the election.
Under President Trump, if you are caught burning our flag, you will be charged with a crime. We are going to make America great again. Either you are with us, or you can leave. | 0 |
Over the course of this year’s US presidential election, which has been nothing if not bizarre, some have repeatedly speculated that the election may not actually happen at all if an... | 0 |
November 18, 2016
As part of efforts to halt the dissemination of inaccurate reporting and propaganda on social media, Facebook has now blocked all status updates by ‘fake’ happy families. Likewise in the interests of truth, all images of new possessions will now be accompanied by scans of the various debtor agency letters, credit card warnings and the inevitable divorce certificate.
‘Identifying “the truth” is actually quite difficult in an algorithm-driven environment,’ explained CEO Mark Zuckerber. ‘But anyone could see that the shots of this happy couple on a beach in Marbella were entirely bogus, considering the discovery of her clandestine affair, and his ongoing problem drinking.’
Unfortunately Facebook is awash with liars – like holier-than-thou Animal Rights supporters who secretly scoff burgers. Or staged images of ‘angelic’ grandchildren – who off camera are referred to as ‘snotty little shits’ who talk through the soaps. The same with sunset views of shapely legs; they are just photo-shopped knees, which normally resemble a pair of bowling bowls ‘lost in a sausage factory’.
Anticipating a serious loss of revenue from lack of usership, Zuckerberg has announced plans for ‘FuckOffBook’– catering to the new straight-talking age of Brexit and Trump. It will encourage ‘honest’ discourse between new users with faeces and middle finger emojis. ‘We will not rest in our commitment to ending the scourge of fake news. And that’s as sure as Hillary Clinton ordered 9/11, and President Elect Trump won the popular vote.’ Dr Turmoil & SJ Roe (team effort!) Share this story...
Guest Guest .. | 0 |
Share on Twitter
Donald Trump's campaign manager Kellyanne Conway took incoming fire on behalf of her boss about the candidate's treatment of reporters covering his campaign.
Wolf Blitzer asked Conway to convince Trump not to ridicule reporters at his rallies, saying that they are “scared” violence will go down:
“He shouldn't be doing that. I mean, can you talk to him? And say to him, 'Mr. Trump, we only have a few days left, these are hardworking young journalists, they deserve to have some security,' if you will, because some of those Trump supporters out there, they get pretty nasty with what they're screaming at these young people.” Image Credit: Screenshot/CNN
Conway said she would tell him. And then, she calmly withdrew her rhetorical scalpel, checked the glinting blade by the bright studio lights and carved out the reasons for Blitzer on why the reporters who cover the candidate deserve ridicule.
She mentioned the WikiLeaks email which showed reporters had sought approval for stories from Clinton campaign chair John Podesta:
"...[T]hat's not journalism, that's advocacy and, frankly, that's collusion. So if there's any spectrum between coziness to collaboration to collusion—any of that would bother us.
Many journalists have admitted that Donald Trump has compelled them to suspend objective standards of journalism. I think Americans deserve to have the race covered fairly."
Blitzer interrupted to mention the scared young reporters who might be harmed by Trump supporters.
Conway said:
“[T]he only violence I saw at rallies so far was what we saw on video tape by somebody whose cohorts were at the White House 346 times, actively paying people—$1,500 a pop—to be protesters to incite violence at Trump rallies. That's being done by Democratic operatives. The stink goes all the way up the chain through the DNC and related groups to Hillary Clinton's campaign. That's all I saw, but I'll make a deal with those embeds [cross talk with Wolf]...I'll excuse some of their tweets, but their twitter feed for some of them—we've done an analysis— 85%-90% negative toward Donald Trump.” Image Credit: Screenshot/CNN
Then Conway asked Blitzer a final, rhetorical question about the coverage of the campaign:
“I wonder if the way the news is being covered in this election cycle, particularly in the last few weeks, is the way Americans actually see the news and see the race? It's not clear to me that they're being told is what they think is important to them is what is being reported to them.”
Conway claimed that what people at Trump rallies are concerned with are jobs, ObamaCare and defeating ISIS, not necessarily what's being reported. | 0 |
The Writing Center at the University of Washington, Tacoma, is telling students that expecting Americans to use proper grammar perpetuates racism. [A press release put out by UW Tacoma’s Writing Center argues that “there is no inherent ‘standard’ of English,” and that pressure to conform to proper American grammar standards perpetuate systems of racism. “Linguistic and writing research has shown clearly for many decades that there is no inherent ‘standard’ of English,” claims the writing center’s statement. “Language is constantly changing. These two facts make it very difficult to justify placing people in hierarchies or restricting opportunities and privileges because of the way people communicate in particular versions of English. ” The university’s Writing Center Director, Dr. Asoa Inoue, suggests that racism has produced certain unfair standards in education. “It is a founding assumption that, if believed, one must act differently than we, the institution and its agents, have up to this point,” Inoue claimed. While overt racism is usually easily identified, more elusive are microaggressions, forms of degradation which manifest on a subconscious and casual level. As the statement reads “Racism is pervasive. It is in the systems, structures, rules, languages, expectations, and guidelines that make up our classes, school, and society. ” The university’s Vice Chancellor, Jill Purdy, claimed that the Writing Center’s new statement is a great example of how academia can fight back against racism. “Language is the bridge between ideas and action,” she claimed. “So how we use words has a lot of influence on what we think and do. ” | 1 |
Ancient Origins Words from the Ancient Past: The Sogdian Ancient Letters
The Sogdians were a people of Iranian origin who lived in the fertile valleys of Central Asia between the sixth century BC and tenth century AD. The secret to the Sogdians’ success was their knack for commerce. Building cities in what is today Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, the Sogdian merchants became vital go-betweens for trade on the Silk Road. The legacy of these people is also preserved in the fragments of writings that remain with us today. Many of the documents are translations of Buddhist scriptures. More intriguingly, there are also five nearly-complete personal letters that paint a vivid picture of what life was like for the ordinary people living in a vast trade society. Sogdians on an Achaemenid Persian relief from the Apadana of Persepolis, offering tributary gifts to the Persian king Darius I, 5th century BC ( public domain )
The five letters were discovered in 1907 by Aurel Stein, a famous British archaeologist, in the ruins of a Chinese watchtower that guarded the city of Dunhuang (an administrative and cultural center modern-day Gansu Province). The tower stood at the western approaches of the city, which would have been an important stop on Silk Road trading routes. These letters “are the earliest substantial examples of Sogdian writing and thus provide extremely important information about the early history of the Sogdian diaspora along the eastern end of the silk route” (Sims-Williams, 2004). Some experts theorize that the letters had been confiscated by the Chinese officials at a time when Chinese control over this region was under threat; others suggest that they were abandoned in the hasty flight of a deliveryman fleeing from the city. The letters were found outside Dunhuang, pictured ( sand and tsunamis / flickr )
Each letter had evidence of being folded and refolded several times; they also bore the names of the senders and intended recipients on the outside. At least two were written by people in Dunhuang. The letters are believed to have been part of a ‘mailbag’ traveling among the major cities of the region. Letters nos. 2 and 5 concern the commercial activity of the writers, who were most likely merchants or their representatives abroad. The author of Letter 2 lived in Jincheng (modern-day Lanzhou, also in Gansu province), a town built at the entrance to a pass between the southern mountains and the northern deserts that ultimately leads to Dunhuang, a gateway known as the Hexi Corridor. The author was a member of the Sogdian diaspora living in China; he was a representative of a wealthy Sogdian merchant in Samarkand. He wrote to the home office to relate the recent attacks by the Huns on the Chinese cities of Yeh and Luoyang. “The last emperor, so they say, fled from Luoyang because of the famine and fire was set to his palace and to the city, and the palace was burnt and the city [destroyed]. Luoyang is no more, Yeh is no more! […] And, sirs, if I were to write to you about how China has fared, it would be beyond grief: there is no profit for you to gain from it […] [in] Luoyang… the Indians and the Sogdians there had all died of starvation” (Sims-William quoted in Vaissière, 2003). The letter also expresses concerns involving the distribution of some money that the author had deposited back at home.
Sogdian script on the Bugut Inscription (585), central Mongolia. Sogdian is the distant ancestor of the Mongolian script. ( public domain )
Letter 5 originated in Guzang, located within the Hexi Corridor northwest of Luoyang. The intended recipient “may have been resident in Khotan, an important town along the southern silk route just before it crosses the Pamir Mountains to reach the oases of Transoxania, the region between the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers” (Sims-Williams, 2004). This letter also discusses the difficult conditions wrought on China by the Huns. This author seems to be in a more perilous position than the author of Letter 2: he complains that his commercial partner has just abandoned him. Huns in battle with the Alans, an Iranian nomadic pastoral people of antiquity. An 1870s engraving after a drawing by Johann Nepomuk Geiger ( public domain )
Letters 1 and 3 are of a different nature. They were written by a woman named Mewnai (“tiger cub”) whose husband Nanaidat (“created by the goddess Nanai”) had abandoned her in Dunhuang. The first letter is addressed to Mewnai’s mother, Catis; the third letter is addressed to Nanaidat and written on behalf of Mewnai and Nanidat’s daughter, Sen. Both letters describe how Mewnai and Sen have been living in Dunhuang for over 3 years without any word from Nanaidat. As they have run out of clothes and money, Mewnai begs to be allowed to return to her parents’ home. However, the closest relative of her husband, a man named Farnxund, is refusing to let them leave. Mewnai writes that a priest has offered to provide the mother and daughter with a camel and escort; he implores Mewnai to go home. In the first letter, Mewnai asks her mother if it is okay to agree to the priest’s offer. In the other letter, Mewnai and Sen say that if Nanaidat does not speak up soon, they will be sold by Fernxund into the servitude of the Chinese. There is a good chance Nanaidat died while out on the dangerous trade roads. In any case, there is no evidence of what ever happened to this small Sogdian family. An 8th-century figurine of a Sogdian man wearing a distinctive cap and face veil, possibly a camel rider or even a Zoroastrian priest engaging in a ritual at a fire temple, since face veils were used to avoid contaminating the holy fire with breath or saliva ( public domain )
Much of what is known about the Sogdians comes from Chinese chronicles in which the phrases ‘inland Silk Road’ and ‘Sogdian trading network’ are all but synonymous. Other references to the people come from Greek, Indian, Arabic, Byzantine, and Armenian sources. The renowned traders sold musk, silver goods, silk, and slaves. Sogdian city-states, such as Samarkand and Bukhara, were cosmopolitan urban centers of culture but were never very powerful.
Top image: Sogdian text. Manichaean Letter ( public domain ) | 0 |
November 3, 2016 at 5:27 pm GMT • 100 Words
Computers, paper ballots, acorns, peas, corn cobs, it doesn’t matter which medium is employed the cold hard fact being :
Democrats cannot win an election without cheating, and they most likely have never won a single election without cheating.
The old worn-out cliche’ about grandpa having been a republican voter all of his life, and after he passed away he switched to voting for the democrats, this running joke has been around for eons and there is always a spark of truth to be found in persistant rumors.
And this FACT, the fact of eternal cheating by the democrats, is what is being brought out of the closet by DT, and things will change in a most profound manner as a result.
Authenticjazzman, “Mensa” Society member of forty-plus years, and pro jazz performer. | 0 |
As John G. Stumpf, the chief executive of Wells Fargo, prepares to face a congressional tribunal on Thursday for the second time in two weeks, questions are intensifying about the bank’s sham accounts scandal and its lethargic response to it. And late Tuesday, with the focus of the criticism spreading from the bank’s chief executive to its board, the company’s directors took action. Announcing an investigation into the bank’s sales practices, the board said Mr. Stumpf would forfeit approximately $41 million worth of stock awards, forgo his salary during the inquiry and receive no bonus for 2016. The Wells Fargo board also announced the immediate retirement of Carrie L. Tolstedt, the former senior executive vice president of community banking, who ran the unit where the fake accounts were created. She will forfeit $19 million in stock grants, will receive neither a bonus for this year nor a severance, and will be denied certain enhancements in retirement pay, the board said. These actions by the Wells Fargo board, while welcome, were slow in coming. A corporate board has many duties, but three of the most crucial are at the center of the Wells Fargo mess. One is to assess the risks inherent in the company’s business and handle them before they develop into a crisis. Another is to dispense compensation that does not encourage bad behavior. And finally, a board must monitor a company’s culture, from top to bottom. The Wells Fargo board has disappointed in all three. “Unfortunately, it appears that the bank’s response was to view the problem as employee misconduct and to fire people as opposed to looking at the supervisory chain and culture,” said Sheila C. Bair, the former chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation who is now president of Washington College in Chestertown, Md. “Culture and tone at the top are exactly what the board should be looking at. ” I asked Mary Eshet, a Wells Fargo spokeswoman, to respond to Ms. Bair’s criticism. She declined and said the company had no comment on the board’s discussions. The Wells Fargo culture is under attack for good reason. For years, the bank pressed its employees to open as many different types of accounts as possible, whether or not their customers needed them, rewarding workers who complied with promotions and bonuses and punishing those who did not. The push for these accounts was so intense and relentless that some bank employees forged customers’ signatures on new accounts to make sales quotas. Mr. Stumpf acknowledged in testimony before the Senate last week that Wells Fargo officials knew about the practice far longer than they had initially stated. It is troubling, given the nature of the scandal and the bank’s failure to correct it, that two Wells Fargo directors are former financial regulators with extensive experience in consumer banking. One is Elizabeth A. Duke, a member of the Federal Reserve Board from 2008 to 2013. She served as chairwoman of the Fed’s committee on consumer and community affairs and also sat on its bank supervision and regulation committee. Ms. Duke joined Wells Fargo’s board in 2015 and is a member of the bank’s credit, finance and risk committees. In its proxy filing, Wells Fargo cited Ms. Duke’s “insight and a unique understanding of risks and opportunities that contribute important risk management experience to the board. ” Cynthia H. Milligan is the other former bank regulator on the Wells Fargo board. A member since 1992, Ms. Milligan was director of banking and finance for the State of Nebraska from 1987 until 1991, responsible for supervising several hundred banks and other financial institutions, the bank said. Neither director would speak to me for this article. From the outside looking in, the composition of the Wells Fargo board seems to check all the right boxes. Its 15 members include top corporate executives, former United States government officials, an accounting expert and an academic. All are paid well for their work. Last year, directors earned from $279, 000 to $402, 000. Wells Fargo is especially proud of its board’s diversity. Ten of the directors are either female, Asian, or Hispanic, the company’s proxy said. Women make up 40 percent of its board, twice that of the typical Standard Poor’s 500 company. As is the case at many large companies, Wells Fargo’s chief executive, Mr. Stumpf, is also its board chairman. In that role, he made recommendations on pay to the human resources committee charged with setting compensation for his top lieutenants. During the last three years, Ms. Tolstedt received compensation worth over $27 million, according to Wells Fargo’s proxy statement. She stepped down in July and was scheduled to retire at the end of the year. That process was accelerated on Tuesday. But in his Senate testimony last week, Mr. Stumpf seemed to back away from a role in determining compensation. He also balked when asked if the bank would claw back some of Ms. Tolstedt’s compensation. Claiming that he was not an expert in compensation, he said the Wells Fargo board and its human resources committee would make that decision independently. “I’m not part of that process,” he said. “I want to make sure that’s a very independent process and nothing that I would say would prejudice their deliberative process. ” But Brian T. Foley, a compensation consultant in White Plains, pointed out that Wells Fargo’s proxy filings clearly state Mr. Stumpf’s direct role in the committee’s incentive pay decisions. Last year’s filing stated that for four top executives at the bank, including Ms. Tolstedt, the committee considered “the recommendations of Mr. Stumpf based on his assessment of their respective 2015 performance,” among other things. Asked about this discrepancy, Ms. Eshet, the Wells Fargo spokeswoman, said in a statement: “The current situation involving the board’s consideration of potential recovery of compensation is different, and Mr. Stumpf did not want to bias that process. He believes it is appropriate for the human resources committee and the board to first consider that issue independently. If the board asks his view during their process, he will of course share it. ” Still, by punting the decision to the committee, Mr. Foley said, Mr. Stumpf showed zero leadership. “Stumpf is saying, ‘I have no involvement in assessing the situation,’ but he’s been doing it year in, year out,” Mr. Foley said in an interview. “I would have expected him to have not only apologized but to have said, ‘I’m not taking a bonus this year, and I’m going to urge the board to be very careful about paying bonuses to any executive officer who knew about the activities or should have known. ’” Some of that happened on Tuesday. Since the financial crisis of 2008, it has become clear that a bank’s compensation practices can pose enormous risks if they reward improper behavior. Wells Fargo’s proxy says as much. It noted that the human resources committee meets each year with the company’s chief risk officer “to review and assess any risks posed by our enterprise incentive compensation programs,” the company said. Still, this meeting did not appear to pick up the risks associated with the unauthorized account openings at Wells Fargo. Ms. Bair said one reason for this lapse may have been a communication breakdown between the risk committee of the Wells Fargo board and its human resources committee. “Compensation drives behavior, but was the risk committee ever briefed on compensation?” Ms. Bair asked. “For any risk committee to do their job, they really have to understand compensation issues. ” In recent years, some shareholders have tried to force Wells Fargo to hire an independent board chairman, contending that the dual role held by Mr. Stumpf assigns too much power to him. Companies whose chief executives also preside over their boards argue that having a lead independent director achieves the necessary balance of power. Wells Fargo made just such a pitch to shareholders at its annual meeting in April when they voted on a proposal requiring the company to engage an independent chairman. The bank’s lead independent director is Stephen W. Sanger, a former chairman and chief executive of General Mills. Contending that its governance structure “is working effectively” and citing Mr. Sanger’s role, Wells Fargo urged shareholders to vote against the proposal. The company was persuasive — the proposal garnered support of only 17. 2 percent of votes cast. Depending upon how the board handles the current difficulties, though, such a vote could have a different outcome next year. It’s doubtful that anyone on the Wells Fargo board welcomes the spotlight that is now trained on it. After all, corporate boards rarely have to answer for their actions or inaction. Clearly, the Wells Fargo board has some ’splaining to do. And the sooner it realizes that, the better. | 1 |
Democrats denounced it as an assault on democracy and a sop to billionaires when the Supreme Court issued a ruling two years ago that loosened limits on campaign giving. But Hillary Clinton and Democratic Party leaders are now exploiting the decision, funneling tens of millions of dollars from their wealthiest donors into a handful of presidential swing states. The flow of money, documented in Federal Election Commission reports, shows Democrats expanding their advantage in the final phase of the presidential race, defying expectations at the beginning of the campaign that Republicans would dominate the money chase. Mrs. Clinton and the Democrats are now outpacing Mr. Trump and the Republicans on every front, according to F. E. C. records: Mrs. Clinton’s campaign, her party and outside groups supporting her have raised almost twice as much as Mr. Trump and his allies. The influx of cash and the new rules have allowed the national Democratic Party to overcome a cash shortage and provide Democrats in key states like Virginia and North Carolina with money for early voting drives, additional staff and canvassing aimed up and down the ticket. The Democratic National Committee — in debt and underfinanced a year ago — has poured nearly $30 million into these key states through the beginning of September. The funding was powered by a surge of contributions raised by Mrs. Clinton from the likes of James Cameron, the Hollywood director, and George Soros, the retired hedge fund manager, as well as several members of the billionaire Pritzker family. The Republican National Committee has provided the states with just $11 million, limited by Donald J. Trump’s difficulties in persuading the traditional Republican base to invest in his campaign. “In many ways, we are kind of used to the concept of building our own empire,” said Matt Borges, the executive director of the Republican Party of Ohio, adding that he did not believe Ohio Republicans would be at a disadvantage come Election Day. “I’ll take whatever I can get. ” More than of the Democrats’ cash went to a dozen presidential battlegrounds critical to any Clinton victory. The biggest beneficiaries were Florida, which has taken in close to $3. 5 million, and Pennsylvania and Ohio, which have each received more than $2 million. In each of those states, the funds from the national party have made a difference, erasing deficits in federal contributions against the respective Republican state parties. The money followed a legal but circuitous route turbocharged by the 2014 ruling in McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, which struck down limits on the combined amount one person could donate to all federal candidates and parties in an election cycle. Like other candidates for federal office this year, Mrs. Clinton can accept only up to $5, 400 from any one donor over the course of her campaign. But after the McCutcheon decision, Mrs. Clinton established an agreement last year with the Democratic Party under which she asked her wealthiest patrons to write checks in excess of $300, 000, more than double the old limit, to the Hillary Victory Fund, an account made up of the national and state parties and the Clinton campaign. That amount is a lump sum equal to the total contributions each donor is allowed to give to her campaign and the Democratic National Committee, along with $10, 000 to each of the 38 state party organizations now participating in the arrangements. Because there are no limits on how much money party committees can transfer to one another, most of the state parties have cycled their share back to the Democratic National Committee. The party then moved the cash into a smaller number of battleground states to prepare for Election Day. The effect is a legal around contribution limits, allowing wealthy donors to give far more than $5, 400 to help Mrs. Clinton where she needs it the most. “If you’re a party leader or a candidate who can attract big enough donors, it means contribution limits are for the little guy,” said Ian Vandewalker, a counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice, which favors tighter controls on political money. “The party leaders, the candidates who have a national name, significant amounts of their war chests are built from these big checks,” he said. The Democrats’ unexpected advantage comes courtesy of a lawsuit filed in 2012 by the Republican National Committee and Shaun McCutcheon, an Alabama businessman. While both parties have used joint arrangements for years, the decision issued two years ago in the McCutcheon case made it easier to raise and concentrate even more money from the same small group of wealthy donors. At the time, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority rejected concerns that lifting the limit would make candidates more indebted to the biggest donors. During oral arguments, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. dismissed the idea that party leaders or candidates in different states would cooperate by sending their contributions elsewhere as “wild hypotheticals. ” Democrats also castigated the court, arguing that it had paved the way for the wealthiest donors to further dominate campaign giving. “With the rate the Supreme Court is going, there will only be three or four people in the whole country that have to finance our entire political system,” Mrs. Clinton said during an appearance in Oregon the week after the McCutcheon decision. Mrs. Clinton was no doubt exaggerating for effect. Still, the actual numbers are striking: Just 250 donors have accounted for about $44 million in contributions to the Hillary Victory Fund during the last year. Josh Schwerin, a spokesman for the Clinton campaign, said that Mrs. Clinton continued to support new restrictions on campaign money, but that the only way to achieve them was to elect more Democrats who shared her views. “Hillary Clinton has fought for campaign finance reform her entire career and, as president, will make it a priority to restore the role of everyday voters in elections,” Mr. Schwerin said, “but the stakes of this election are too high to unilaterally disarm. ” By contrast, the money raised by Mr. Trump and the Republicans, while robust, has been driven chiefly by small checks from his supporters. And the Republicans have not been as shrewd at maximizing whatever money Mr. Trump’s have contributed. More of the Republican money is being directed into national party accounts that cannot be spent directly on the election. And the committee for Trump Victory — the collective account set up to receive big contributions for the state, national and Trump campaigns — had shared virtually no cash with the state parties through June. A Republican spokeswoman declined to explain why. Only one Republican state organization, the Republican Party of Pennsylvania, had received any cash through August, according to Federal Election Commission records. The amount was $1, 050, to reimburse the party for tables and chairs. In an interview, Mr. McCutcheon said he did not mind that his lawsuit was paying more dividends for Democrats this year. “I think a lot of those Democrats were just publicly saying it was a bad idea, but a lot of them were on board,” he said. “I don’t care what party wins or loses as long as it’s a free speech system. ” | 1 |
Anthony Weiner and Human Abedin have reportedly been turned by the FBI and NYPD after horrific evidence discovered on Weiner’s computer. Hillary’s Shrinking Support
With news of Hillary’s emails revealing almost unbelievable satanic practices and pedophile activity being embraced by Hillary Clinton and John Podesta, even the DNC supporters of Clinton are beginning to get cold feet.
Will it be enough to save the nation from the horrors of an openly demonic dictatorship? Stay tuned…
and pray like your life depends on it.
♞ | 0 |
PALM BEACH, Fla. — The sweepstakes for national security adviser expanded on Sunday as President Trump met with four candidates for the job but signaled that he may yet bring more to Florida for interviews. Mr. Trump has been searching for a replacement for Michael T. Flynn, his first national security adviser, who resigned last week at the president’s request because he had misled Vice President Mike Pence and others about a phone call with Russia’s ambassador. The president’s first choice to succeed Mr. Flynn turned down the job, so the White House arranged for four other contenders to fly to his resort, . Mr. Trump met with John R. Bolton, a former ambassador to the United Nations Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster, a top Army strategist Lt. Gen. Robert L. Caslen Jr. superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point and Keith Kellogg, a retired general serving as acting national security adviser. But Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a White House spokeswoman, said that was not the complete field. “We may have some additional names and meetings” on Monday, she said. She added that Mr. Trump might also summon back one or more of the four he talked with on Sunday for an additional talk. Mr. Trump told reporters on Saturday that he had a favorite, although he did not identify the candidate. “I’ve been thinking about someone for the last three or four days we’ll see what happens,” he said. “I’m meeting with that person. They’re all good they’re all great people. ” In private conversations, the president has praised Mr. Bolton and has noted that many people want him to pick General McMaster, although Mr. Trump seemed convinced that the general had said something unflattering about him during last year’s campaign, according to associates who asked not to be identified sharing private conversations. The White House has had trouble filling some senior positions in part because so many experienced Republicans criticized Mr. Trump during the campaign, and he has vetoed some choices over that. Ms. Sanders said Mr. Trump was entitled to have a team that was on his side. “If you don’t support the president’s agenda, you shouldn’t have a job in the White House,” she said. On a busy holiday weekend, Mr. Trump also attended part of a strategy session on finding a replacement for the Affordable Care Act. | 1 |
By Seizing the Definition of ‘Populism,’ Reuters Warns Us of Chaos to Come By - November 10, 2016
After Trump & Brexit, populist tsunami threatens European mainstream … Back in May, when Donald’s Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election seemed the remotest of possibilities, a senior European official took to Twitter before a G7 summit in Tokyo to warn of a “horror scenario”. Imagine, mused the official, if instead of Barack Obama, Francois Hollande, David Cameron and Matteo Renzi, next year’s meeting of the club of rich nations included Trump, Marine Le Pen, Boris Johnson and Beppe Grillo. -Reuters
Back in June, we identified what has become an overarching elite meme: “populism versus globalism.”
We’ve never fully defined populism, and this Reuters article gives us an opportunity to examine the word and the context in which it is being used.
With Trump’s triumph over his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, the populist tsunami that seemed outlandish a few months ago is becoming reality, and the consequences for Europe’s own political landscape are potentially huge.
In 2017, voters in the Netherlands, France and Germany – and possibly in Italy and Britain too – will vote in elections that could be colored by the triumphs of Trump and Brexit, and the toxic politics that drove those campaigns.
The lessons will not be lost on continental Europe’s populist parties, who hailed Trump’s victory on Wednesday as a body blow for the political mainstream. “Politics will never be the same,” said Geert Wilders of the far-right Dutch Freedom Party. “What happened in America can happen in Europe and the Netherlands as well.”
We can see from these excerpts that “populism” is not seen by Reuters as positive description. In fact, the synonym in the above excerpt is “toxic.”
“Populism” is contrasted to the “political mainstream” as well. This informs us that populism is irregular, even aberrant. We are living through unusual times and populism is the result.
Watching the “populism versus globalism” meme advance is fascinating because it is such a significant positioning of propaganda.
We can see clearly that in many ways mainstream media around the world is not at all hesitant to reveal the basic organizational structure behind it.
There is no way that populism – and, contrastingly, globalism – would appear ubiquitously in so many arenas without considerable unity among supposedly disparate media.
In other words, the organization behind this is formidable. It’s not just this one example either that provokes our observations. The powers-that-be were not shy about illustrating the essential linkages between publications during Trump’s election.
The mainstream sounded as one when it came to Trump. And top-down control was obviously evident, and commented on as well.
The emergence of “populism versus globalism” doesn’t just provide us with evidence of editorial control. Even more importantly it shows us how those who secretly run our societies find this sort of meme-making to be a priority because it anticipates trends and reinterprets them.
By beginning to disseminate the meme in the summer, elite media shapers were able to position fall’s narrative – Trump’s win in particular – within the larger context they’d already defined.
We would suggest that the wave of “populism” sweeping over the US and Europe is at heart a resurgence of a yearning for freedom that is obviously slipping away – not that there was much of it to begin with.
But the Internet has raised people’s consciousness about what they are losing, and why. As a result, more than ever, people are coming to understand the globalist narrative and are registering their disgust.
But this is NOT going to be how the mainstream media interprets what is going on. We can already see that people’s determination to shake off political, monetary and military control is going to be interpreted as essentially greedy and selfish.
We could see this interpretation emerge within the context of Trump’s increasing appeal. Over and over we were told that his support was “rural” and “white” – and that these individuals were flocking to Trump because they were feeling “left out” of the current prosperity and thus resentful.
Of course, one can interpret this trend much differently. Our perspective is that globalism is at fault here. Initiated and expanded by a tiny group of banking interests, globalism seeks to consolidate worldwide power with a tiny group of massive corporations, governments and technocratic leaders.
No wonder why so many people in the West feel left out. This vision provides them no room to grow or prosper. In fact they are not – but their emotion at what’s occurring is perfectly reasonable and logical. We wouldn’t characterize it as resentment so much as rightful anger and frustration.
But Reuters and the other mainstream media have gotten here first and are busily redefining what’s taking place.
We’ve pointed out that the mainstream may be actively enhancing the meme now that they have gotten control of it.
The idea is to marry this emergent propaganda with “directed history” and create a series of economic and political disasters that can be directly (if illegitimately) linked to “populism.”
As populism is denigrated, globalism, in our view, will be uplifted. We’ll be subject to considerable contrasts between “toxic” populism and erudite – “mainstream” – globalism.
We’ve already indicated that we believe this meme is a cultivated one. We don’t believe that the sudden emergence of populism throughout the West is simply coincidental or even evolutionary.
We think this meme is being deliberately cultivated and that it is part of a larger Hegelian dialectic that is intended to reinforce globalism in the long-term. You can see some additional speculation here.
Here at DB we analyze elite memes, their significance and impact. It’s clear to us that the mainstream media is “out front” when it comes to defining “populism” and that there are forces urging it on.
The conclusion of the meme will probably involve a series of catastrophes that will further cultivate and expand globalism. It’s happened before, especially after the 20 th century’s world wars. There is no real reason to think the playbook has been significantly adjusted.
Conclusion: This meme is not only of the utmost importance, it is clearly warning us of considerable distress to come. | 0 |
There is good reason that “‘Master Harold’ … and the Boys” ranks among the South African writer Athol Fugard’s most celebrated and popular plays. As the sterling new production that opened on Monday at the Signature Theater attests, this quiet drama remains a powerful indictment of the apartheid system and the terrible human cost of the racism it codified and legalized. At a time when systemic racism and its roots are once again a subject of national discussion in America, it feels particularly, and sorrowfully, pertinent. The play, here directed with care by Mr. Fugard himself, takes place in 1950, in a modest tea shop in the town of Port Elizabeth. Sam (Leon Addison Brown) in his 40s, works in the shop and wears a waiter’s uniform his Willie (Sahr Ngaujah) about Sam’s age, does more of the rough work and is dressed accordingly. They are black the Hally (Noah Robbins) the son of the tea shop’s owners, is white. He arrives from school on a rainy afternoon and greets Sam and Willie cheerfully. The relationship among them is warm, although Willie calls Hally “Master Hally,” while Sam calls him by just his name. But unsettling news spoils Hally’s friendly demeanor, at least temporarily. He learns that his mother has gone to the hospital to bring home his ailing father, for whom Hally clearly has little affection. When Willie tosses a rag in mock anger at Sam, and it hits Hally, he says sharply: “Cut out the nonsense now and get on with your work. And you too, Sam. Stop fooling around. ” Their relationship is dictated not by their age or intelligence or behavior, but by the color of their skin. Generally, Sam’s rapport with Hally is almost fatherly in a particularly touching passage, they recall with affection a day they shared flying a kite. After Hally talks about being punished for an infraction at school, he is aghast when Sam describes what it’s like to be caned by the police. His intelligence tells him that the racist system his country lives by is morally wrong. “I oscillate between hope and despair for this world as well, Sam,” he says, when Sam expresses a cynical view of the future. “But things will change, you wait and see. One day somebody is going to get up and give history a kick up the backside and get it going again. ” The emotional power of the play resides at first in the affection Sam shows toward Hally. Mr. Brown gives an understated and deeply touching performance. Although Sam was never educated — as he flips through Hally’s textbooks, he marvels at the words he doesn’t know — Mr. Brown underscores his acute moral intelligence. Faith in his dignity as a human being shines in Sam’s every word and act — and, what’s more, a compassion for Hally that allows him to put up with the young man’s slips into casual condescension. As the more juvenile Willie, Mr. Ngaujah, best known for creating the title role in the musical “Fela! ,” is bubbly and likable. His obsession with a coming dance contest brings humor into the play, as Willie rants about his girlfriend’s leaden feet. Perhaps it would help, Sam sternly suggests, if he didn’t beat her when she makes a wrong move. Mr. Robbins is superb, as well, as Hally. Beginning with a fine South African accent, his performance brings out all the nuances in the character: his innate good nature, which has been nurtured by Sam, although Hally doesn’t recognize it his natural intelligence, despite those lousy math scores his submerged guilt and sorrow over his relationship with his father and the hints of patronization that occasionally creep into his conversation. The play moves to a harrowing conclusion when Sam gently admonishes Hally for saying disrespectful things about his father, and Hally lashes out. The moment is shocking, and heartbreaking, too, as we watch a stricken Hally absorb the enormity of what he has done: Mr. Robbins’s face grows ashen, and he sits in his chair with a deathlike stillness. The moment illustrates, too, how it is often our inner demons that stoke our disrespect — or worse — for others. With his outburst, it seems that the kind but callow boy has suddenly and inadvertently taken the first steps to becoming a man. But the question remains: Having grown up absorbing the racism that is endemic in his culture — its omnipresence is subtly symbolized by the rain we hear pelting down throughout the play — what kind of man can he become? | 1 |
Comedy Central is set to debut a new weekly late night series, The President Show, that will see comedian Anthony Atamanuik play a parody President Donald Trump who will address the American people straight from the Oval Office. [The new show, created by Atamanuik, will premier on Thursday, April 27 and will reportedly run weekly if it becomes a ratings success. “When I was first approached about this show I thought it would be about me, but on further thought, this makes way more sense,” Comedy Central president Kent Alterman said. Comedy Central released a short video clip on Monday, which offers a glimpse of what audiences can expect from Atamanuik’s parody Trump. . @LateNightDonald makes a surprising announcement. No, he’s not resigning. #PresidentShowpic. twitter. — The President Show (@PresidentShow) April 3, 2017, “They unzipped my pants. They got on their knees, it was disgusting,” Atamanuik says, surrounded by a gaggle of reporters on Air Force One. “And I would get incredible ratings, some of the best ratings, huge ratings. Great ratings, ok? And they’d say, You want to be on the same channel as Noah Trevor, or whatever the guy’s name is. Who cares? Whatever. I said just invite me on and be nice. ” “I’ll have the best guests, the most beautiful women. It will be so funny, the most funny show,” he says. Atamanuik has made something of a career out of lampooning the president. The 30 Rock alum has performed his Trump impersonation on The View, CNN’s Newsroom, and on a Trump vs. Bernie debate comedy tour that aired on Fusion. “Laughing at the President is a proud American tradition and we hope not to disappoint anyone in that department,” Atamanuik said in a statement. “But our political system is too broken for us to be content joking about one man, even though he is a disastrous silly little toddler boy. Mostly I’d just like to thank Comedy Central for giving us this platform to speak truth to power and if we’re lucky, end up in prison!” Follow Jerome Hudson on Twitter: @JeromeEHudson | 1 |
More Migrants Pitch Tents on Paris Streets as Calais Camp Shuts Ingrid Melander, Reuters, October 28, 2016
The number of migrants sleeping rough on the streets of Paris has risen by at least a third since the start of the week when the “Jungle” shanty town in Calais was evacuated, officials said on Friday.
Along the bustling boulevards and a canal in a northeastern corner of Paris, hundreds of tents have been pitched by migrants–mostly Africans who say they are from Sudan–with cardboard on the ground to try and insulate them from the autumn chill.
While the presence of migrants there is not new, it has grown substantially this week, Colombe Brossel, Paris deputy mayor in charge of security issues, told Reuters.
“We have seen a big increase since the start of the week. Last night, our teams counted 40 to 50 new tents there in two days,” Brossel said, adding there was now a total of 700 to 750.
This means there are some 2,000-2,500 sleeping in the area, up from around 1,500 a few days before, she said.
{snip}
After years as serving as an illegal base camp for migrants trying to get to Britain, the “Jungle” at Calais was finally bulldozed this week and the more than 6,000 residents of the ramshackle camp near the English channel were relocated to shelters around France.
{snip}
Ama, a 24-year-old Sudanese who is six months pregnant, said she had come to Paris from Calais, but that was months ago.
“I was in Calais before but I did not find the route (to Britain),” she said. “I couldn’t stay over there being pregnant, it was too hard.”
Deputy Mayor Brossel said it was up to the central government, and not city authorities, to act.
“These people must be sheltered,” she said.
{snip} | 0 |
The following post was sponsored by Chad Cocker and written by Matt Forney
Everyone says that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but that’s really difficult when the cover makes you throw up a little in your mouth. That’s how I felt when I was tasked with writing a review of Chad T. Cocker’s Memoirs of a Misogynist: An Erotic Novel for Men . What kind of “man” would want to read an erotic novel? Romance and erotica are female masturbation material; trying to write a Harlequin novel men is like marketing lesbian porn to actual lesbians.
Or so I thought.
Despite the packaging, Memoirs of a Misogynist is one of the best works I’ve read this year. Contrary to Cocker’s marketing, the novel is a examination of life as a man in modern America, filtered through the protagonist’s relationships with women. While it starts slowly, Cocker’s prose and honesty save the day and make Memoirs of a Misogynist absolutely worth your time and money.
From The Marquis De Sade To Neomasculinity
Because mainstream publishing almost exclusively caters to women, underground and independent writers have turned to fill the void of male-centric literature. From braggadocios “fratire” writers like Tucker Max and Maddox to “loser lit” authors such as Andy Nowicki and Ann Sterzinger to our very own Roosh and Quintus Curtius, there’s a surfeit of alternative writing for men who are sick of the misandry and feminism of the “real” literary world.
Viewed against the backdrop of alternative publishing, Memoirs of a Misogynist is an odd animal indeed. When I first picked it up, I assumed it would be a tell-all memoir along the lines of Roosh’s A Dead Bat in Paraguay, or a roman à clef in the fashion of Charles Bukowski’s work. However, it does indeed live up to its subtitle, as much of the novel is devoted to lengthy, detailed descriptions of the protagonist’s sexual encounters:
She’d also gotten used to her chastity belt, and that scared her. It still didn’t sit well with her that Master had total control over her sexual gratification. Slave was constantly wet and horny, and that made her even more compliant. The orgasms that Master gave her were unlike anything she had experienced before. They were mind-blowing. Even after a year together, their sex was electric and deeply satisfying.
In the introduction, Cocker warns us that the book is “possibly the dirtiest, most depraved, and most offensive novel you’ve ever read,” making me wonder if he’s ever heard of 120 Days of Sodom. Still, the structure of Memoirs’ plot and the skill of Cocker’s prose shows that he’s both acquainted with classic erotica and has actually had sex with a lot of girls. The first half of the book is reminiscent of Pauline Reage’s Story of O, in which a woman is systematically trained to become a sex slave.
Interestingly, Memoirs of a Misogynist also seems inspired by Venus in Furs: not the Velvet Underground song, but the erotic novel by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch. It’s from Sacher-Masoch that we derive the term “masochism,” the tendency to derive sexual pleasure from pain (akin to how “sadism” is derived from Sade), as the plot revolves around a man who desires nothing more than to be utterly subservient to his mistress. Severin’s humiliation at the hands of his lover drives him to become a “misogynist” in the same way that Cocker’s protagonist is one:
That woman, as nature has created her, and man at present is educating her, is man’s enemy. She can only be his slave or his despot, but never his companion. This she can become only when she has the same rights as he and is his equal in education and work.
(It’s worth noting that Sacher-Masoch was a feminist and believed that equal relationships with women would only become possible with women’s liberation. Insert your own joke here.)
Power Doesn’t Care What You Need, As Long As You’re On Your Knees
Enjoying Memoirs of a Misogynist requires you to get past the initial few chapters, which read like Fifty Shades of Grey with about 30 extra IQ points. The initial plot concerns Melinda, a runaway who falls into the care of a wealthy man who goes unnamed for most of the book. After offering her room and board, the man and Melinda begin a relationship, sealed by a contract where she agrees to become his sexual plaything:
“My body is my Master’s. It is his blank canvas, for him to modify as many times, and in as many different ways as he chooses.” He could hear her breath quickening as he read. “He will control my bodily functions; most particularly my orgasms. I will only orgasm when my Master allows me.”
What saves the book—and what kept me reading—was its depiction of the protagonist (henceforth referred to as “Master”). Far from the masturbatory blank slate that Christian Grey was, Cocker depicts Master as a complex and conflicted character, constantly trying to rationalize the way he treats Melinda (later re-christened “Slave”). Cocker’s deft writing kept me wondering what the protagonist’s motivations were all the way to the end. The book also frequently switches to Melinda’s perspective; while it’s usually a challenge for male writers to depict female characters (and vice versa), Cocker is skilled enough to make her compelling as well.
Where Memoirs really picks up is in the second half, which is set nearly ten years later. The focus shifts to Elizabeth Avery, a disgraced doctor stripped of her medical license after she’s caught abusing a male patient. Destitute and despondent, she accepts a job as the personal physician of Master’s stable of whores, his lifestyle offending her feminist sensibilities:
Doctor Avery’s world was spinning. She tried to distance herself. This was just a patient, after all. She was being paid a significant amount of money for this job—the kind of money that would solve a lot of her problems. Regardless, she couldn’t help but be disgusted that a woman had allowed herself to be treated this way. He’d said she consented to this. In fact, the way she looked at the man showed she clearly loved him, and was a willing participant in her modifications and degradation. The woman, or Melinda, as the man had called her, looked up at him with what the doctor could only call adoration.
Once again, it would have been easy for Cocker to depict Elizabeth as a raging, bra-burning feminist stereotype, but he agilely avoids clichés in favor of nuance. Elizabeth isn’t portrayed as a fire-breathing misandrist, but as a woman who unthinkingly absorbs leftist cant and has her life ruined because of it. The final chapters of the book show Elizabeth tussling with the sexual arousal she feels working for “Mr. X” (her name for the protagonist) and her attempts to maintain her beliefs as the evidence of her failed life piles up. I won’t spoil the ending, other than to say that after finishing the book, I had to sit on it and digest it for a few days.
Each chapter of Memoirs begins with a factual statistic about the state of men and boys in America today, a jarring contrast with the depravity of the book’s action. I initially wondered why they were there, but as I approached the end of the book, it all suddenly clicked. Memoirs of a Misogynist is a biting look at what our toxic sexual marketplace does to men and women. American dating is like an acid bath: no one who dives into it comes out unscathed. Even men who are successful at getting laid are affected by what they have to do to get ahead. There are no winners, no saints, and no role models: just people trying to make the best of a broken system.
As I stated earlier, Memoirs takes a while to really get going, and if you’re not into lascivious descriptions of sex, the book won’t appeal to you. But if you want a haunting, piercing look at the horror show of modern gender relations, Memoirs of a Misogynist is a must-buy. I can’t wait to see what Cocker comes up with next.
Click Here to buy Memoirs of a Misogynist
Advertise Your Product Or Site On Return Of Kings
| 0 |
RIO DE JANEIRO — The highest court for world sports has upheld the decision to ban Russia from the Paralympic Games because of widespread doping, rejecting an appeal by the country and issuing what is considered the final word on the matter. The Court of Arbitration for Sport said in announcing its decision Tuesday that the punishment by the International Paralympic Committee “was proportionate. ” Russia, the court noted, “did not file any evidence contradicting the facts” on which officials had based their decision. The International Paralympic Committee had voted unanimously this month to ban Russia from the competition, which begins here on Sept. 7, after an investigation commissioned by antidoping regulators found that elaborate violations in the country extended to its top disabled athletes. Russia has been a power in the Paralympics, winning 80 medals — nearly 40 percent of the total — at the 2014 Winter Paralympic Games in Sochi, Russia. The decision of the International Paralympic Committee went beyond the sanctions imposed by the International Olympic Committee, which had considered but rejected a blanket ban on Russian athletes. The official who ran the programs at the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Games said he had swapped the urine samples of the country’s top Olympians and Paralympians who were doping with clean ones. Forensic evidence confirmed a coordinated cheating effort by Russia, according to a report published by the World Agency last month. The report concluded that the authorities, including the Sports Ministry, had covered up the use of drugs by top athletes for years. When the International Paralympic Committee ban was announced on Aug. 7, Philip Craven, the committee’s president, denounced Russia’s “thirst for glory” and what he called its “medals over morals” mentality, adding that Russia’s antidoping system was “broken, corrupted and entirely compromised. ” On Tuesday, Mr. Craven struck a more conciliatory tone. “It is not a day for celebration, and we have enormous sympathy for the Russian athletes who will now miss out,” he said in a statement. “We hope this decision acts as a catalyst for change in Russia. ” The banned substances protocol for the Paralympics is different from that in the Olympics. Therapeutic exemptions are made for some Paralympians, but the use of anabolic steroids — which Russia’s antidoping lab director said was common among top medal contenders — is unequivocally prohibited. The Russian sports minister, Vitaly Mutko, expressed frustration with the International Paralympic Committee’s vote, calling the blanket ban “beyond belief” in an interview with the Russian news agency Interfax. Russian Paralympians had participated a series of videos in recent weeks, seeking to persuade sports officials to let them compete. The number of Russian athletes at the Olympic Games here, which concluded Sunday, was affected by the findings of the recent investigation. More than a hundred Russian athletes were barred from competition. The country won 56 medals at this year’s Summer Games, roughly a third fewer than at the 2012 Games in London. As the Rio Games approached, the I. O. C. considered a total ban of all Russian athletes. But it ultimately decided against what the organization’s president called a “nuclear option” that would have resulted in “death and devastation” and run counter to the inclusive spirit of the Games. Instead, Russian athletes were considered tainted, Olympic officials said, and only those who could demonstrate a rigorous history of testing were allowed to compete. In voting to bar all Russian athletes, Paralympic officials, who typically act in accordance with Olympic officials, had taken a bolder decision, which Russia promptly challenged in court. “It’s an unprecedented decision,” Mr. Mutko told Interfax. “I don’t understand what it’s based on. ” | 1 |
October 31, 2016 at 4:52 am
Pretty factual except for women in the selective service. American military is still voluntary only and hasn't been a draft since Vietnam war. The comment was made by a 4 star general of the army about drafting women and he said it to shut up liberal yahoos. | 0 |
By Joseph Jankowski
An organization which has the aim to separate the state of California from the Union of the United States is set to hold a meeting at the state capitol in Sacramento on Wednesday, November 9, 2016, the day after the presidential election.
The Yes California Independence Campaign , which is based in San Diego, describes itself as a “nonviolent campaign to establish the country of California using any and all legal and constitutional means to do so.”
The group is currently trying to qualify a citizen’s initiative in 2018 to get a referendum for secession on the ballot in 2019, reports SF Gate . They will be in Sacramento in hopes to gather support for the state’s exit, or the “Calexit,” as they call it.
“In our view, the United States of America represents so many things that conflict with Californian values, and our continued statehood means California will continue subsidizing the other states to our own detriment, and to the detriment of our children,” reads Yes California ’s official website.
The group’s page reads on:
Although charity is part of our culture, when you consider that California’s infrastructure is falling apart, our public schools are ranked among the worst in the entire country, we have the highest number of homeless persons living without shelter and other basic necessities, poverty rates remain high, income inequality continues to expand, and we must often borrow money from the future to provide services for today, now is not the time for charity. However, this independence referendum is about more than California subsidizing other states of this country. It is about the right to self-determination and the concept of voluntary association, both of which are supported by constitutional and international law.
It is about California taking its place in the world, standing as an equal among nations. We believe in two fundamental truths: (1) California exerts a positive influence on the rest of the world, and (2) California could do more good as an independent country than it is able to do as a just a U.S. state.
Yes California ’s website lays out 9 different points covering topics the group believes will benefit from a California exit from the US, including education, peace and security, debt and taxes and immigration.
One blog post on their page draws parallels with a “Calexit” and the recent referendum known as “Brexit” that passed in the UK in June which showed that most British people are ready for their country to leave the EU.
The push for secession is nothing new to California. In 1941 the mayor of Port Orford, Oregon, Gilbert Gable, proposed the idea to push the Oregon counties of Curry, Josephine, Jackson, and Klamath to join with the California counties of Del Norte, Siskiyou, and Modoc to form a new state, later named Jefferson.
Modoc County of Northern California voted in 2013 to join neighboring Siskiyou County in a push to secede from the State of California .
In 2014, two counties in northern California petitioned for the right to form a 51st State of America, which they also wanted to name Jefferson.
Joseph Jankowski is a contributor for Planet Free Will.com . His works have been published by recognizable alternative news sites like GlobalResearch.ca, ActivistPost.com, Mintpressnews.com and ZeroHedge.com.
Follow Planet Free Will on Twitter @ twitter.com/PlanetFreeWill
Subscribe to our newsletter – The Information Leak
Photo Credit: US National Flag and California State Flag, City Hall, Santa Monica (Ed Uthman/ Flickr ) Activist Post Daily Newsletter Subscription is FREE and CONFIDENTIAL Free Report: 10 Ways to Survive the Economic Collapse with subscription | 0 |
Be the First to Comment! Leave a Reply Click here to get more info on formatting (1) Leave the name field empty if you want to post as Anonymous. It's preferable that you choose a name so it becomes clear who said what. E-mail address is not mandatory either. The website automatically checks for spam. Please refer to our moderation policies for more details. We check to make sure that no comment is mistakenly marked as spam. This takes time and effort, so please be patient until your comment appears. Thanks. (2) 10 replies to a comment are the maximum. (3) Here are formating examples which you can use in your writing:<b>bold text</b> results in bold text <i>italic text</i> results in italic text (You can also combine two formating tags with each other, for example to get bold-italic text.)<em>emphasized text</em> results in emphasized text <strong>strong text</strong> results in strong text <q>a quote text</q> results in a quote text (quotation marks are added automatically) <cite>a phrase or a block of text that needs to be cited</cite> results in: a phrase or a block of text that needs to be cited <blockquote>a heavier version of quoting a block of text...</blockquote> results in: a heavier version of quoting a block of text that can span several lines. Use these possibilities appropriately. They are meant to help you create and follow the discussions in a better way. They can assist in grasping the content value of a comment more quickly. and last but not least:<a href=''http://link-address.com''>Name of your link</a> results in Name of your link (4) No need to use this special character in between paragraphs: ; You do not need it anymore. Just write as you like and your paragraphs will be separated. The "Live Preview" appears automatically when you start typing below the text area and it will show you how your comment will look like before you send it. (5) If you now think that this is too confusing then just ignore the code above and write as you like. Search articles | 0 |
by Jerri-Lynn Scofield
By Jerri-Lynn Scofield, who has worked as a securities lawyer and a derivatives trader. She now spends most of her time in India and other parts of Asia researching a book about textile artisans. She also writes regularly about legal, political economy, and regulatory topics for various consulting clients and publications, as well as writes occasional travel pieces for The National .
The biggest story on Indian television yesterday wasn’t the election of Donald Trump. For on Tuesday night (IST), Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a surprise speech declared that currency notes of rupees (Rs) 500 and Rs 1000 — the highest two denominations in circulation– would be invalid as of midnight that same night. The withdrawn notes could no longer be used for transacting business or as a store of value for future usage (with some limited exceptions, but even these were only allowed for a short transition period).
From Modi’s speech :
“There is a need for a decisive war against the menace of corruption, black money and terrorism… Corruption, black money and terrorism are festering wounds which make the country hollow from within,” he said, adding such activities hold back the nation’s progress.
Describing illegal financial activities as the “biggest blot”, Modi said that despite several steps taken by his government over the last two-and-a-half years, India’s global ranking on corruption had moved only to 76th position from 100th earlier.
“This shows the extent of the web of corruption in the country. The disease of corruption is the domain of some veted people who are flourishing. Some people have misused their positions and benefitted. On the other hand, honest people are suffering,” he said.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)– the Indian central bank– as reported by The Times of India , elaborated:
The incidence of fake Indian currency notes in higher denomination has increased. For ordinary persons, the fake notes look similar to genuine notes, even though no security feature has been copied. The fake notes are used for antinational and illegal activities. High denomination notes have been misused by terrorists and for hoarding black money. India remains a cash based economy hence the circulation of Fake Indian Currency Notes continues to be a menace. In order to contain the rising incidence of fake notes and black money, the scheme to withdraw has been introduced.
Chaos Ensues
India remains a cash-based economy, especially for low-value transactions, and the move has caused widespread chaos, as I write this from Kolkata where I am currently visiting. The move was accompanied by a temporary shut down of all banks and ATMs, with banks reopening earlier today and ATMs due to reopen tomorrow.
Initially, after the announcement, the highest denomination legal tender note in circulation was the Rs 100 note. New legally tender Rs 500 and Rs 2000 notes have been made available today, according to Tushar Roy, chief manager of a nationalized bank, Central Bank of India. Not all banks have yet received the new notes, but Roy says that this problem is expected to be resolved soon. The government also expects to re-introduce Rs 1000 notes soon, to include advanced security features. When ATMs open tomorrow, withdrawals will be limited to a maximum of Rs 2000 per transaction, as compared to the Rs 10,000 and in some cases, Rs 15,000 limits, that previously applied.
Starting today, after producing appropriate identification, people are allowed to exchange old notes for new at any of the 19 RBI offices, any bank branch, or at any head post office or sub-post office. They will have until December 30 to complete their transactions.
Individuals receive full value for the entire volume of bank notes tendered at any of these venues, but here’s the kicker: At the moment, each person is limited to receiving only Rs 4000 per person in cash irrespective of the size of tender. Anything over and above that amount can only be credited to a bank account. This allows the government to track whether the sums tendered have been legitimately acquired. Withdrawals from bank accounts will be limited to Rs 10,000 a day and Rs 20,000 a week. The government has announced this part of the policy may be relaxed in future, says Roy, in order for employers, for example, to meet payrolls currently made in cash. (Ultimately the government wants more transactions to be paid via bank accounts, so that they can be tracked and taxed appropriately).
Does The Policy Make Sense?
It’s beyond the scope of this post to speculate on the impact the new policy will have on individuals of various occupations and with myriad reasons for transacting in large amounts of cash. For more on this point, interested readers might wish to look at this article in The Wire .
Some have criticized the policy for focusing on currency alone, and have noted that black money is typically not held by Indians in stacks of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, but in one of two alternative ways.
The very rich store black assets in offshore accounts (as detailed in, among other sources, the Panama Papers).
But tax evasion and corruption is not limited to the very richest alone. In India, many doctors and other professionals, members of the business community, and small traders also underreport their taxable income. They tend to hold their black assets on-shore, within India, in the form of real estate, art work, gold bullion, jewellery, or securities.
Unlike other current policy areas– border incursions into Pakistan, for example– the political opposition has has not contested the objective of the Modi move. There is virtually unanimous concurrence– at least publicly– on cracking down on black money. Yet as The Hindu reported, former Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram has criticized the Modi government’s method for achieving its objective:
“We support the objective of the government to stamp out black money. But the method they have adopted raises questions… The move has come as a bolt from the blue for the common man.”
The real test for the government would begin [Thursday], Mr Chidambaram said. “How efficiently and how quickly the money is exchanged…. If there is harassment or inconvenience and all kinds of questions are asked, then I think that will be completely counterproductive.”
A similar move had been contemplated by the previous Congress-led UPA government, he recalled. But the idea was dropped as “the economic gains were not too great.”
Mr. Chidambaram said the introduction of the new series of notes was estimated to cost Rs. 15,000 crores to Rs 20,000 crores [Jerri-Lynn here: a crore is 10,000,000 in the Indian numbering system]. “The economic gains of demonetisation should be at least equal to that amount.”
If the additional tax revenue pulled in by the Modi move is less than that amount, the new policy will actually have ended up costing the government money– rather than increasing government revenues.
As Chidambaram summarized (again from The Hindu article quoted above):
The “economic wisdom” of the government’s decision, Mr Chidambaram said, would be tested on three parameters: a) the present cash to GDP ratio is 12 per cent. Will it come down to the world average of about 4 per cent? b) The value of the high denomination notes currently in circulation is about 15 lakh crore rupees [Jerri-Lynn here: a lakh is 100,000, a crore, 10,000,000, so a lakh crore is 1,000,000,000,000.] Will that value come down significantly? c) Will gold imports surge, indicating that unaccounted income/ wealth is seeking refuge in bullion and gold jewellery?
Various economists have also presented other criticisms of the government’s move, as reported by The Wire. Requiring a switch to new bank notes means Indians must take time to switch their existing Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes into the new bank notes. If new notes are not freely and widely available, this will freeze trade and the normal functioning of an exchange economy. Further, many Indians receive salaries in cash and do not have bank accounts at present, so requiring transactions to pass through the banking system will cause them considerable immediate inconvenience.
Impact on Economic Activity
But there is a wider reason for critiquing the policy. “Black money and not paying taxes: These are bad things in a society,” says Suvojit Bagchi, Kolkata bureau chief for The Hindu. “Not surprisingly, everyone– including the opposition– agrees on the objective of cracking down on black money.” Increasing the tax base- is the prime objective here. But will the demonetization policy produce substantial tax revenue? Bagchi noted that Chidambaram questioned whether taxes raised would be sufficient to recoup the cost of printing new bank notes.
Another objective, Bagchi added, is to move India away from its reliance on cash, toward a more American or European plastic system, where it’s easier to track– and tax– money.
And finally, at least half of Indian economic activity occurs in the informal sector, which is not tightly controlled. Bagchi gave the example of a building promoter, whose building activity produces both black and white revenues. Indeed, perhaps 40% of the promoter’s overall activity, he estimated, might be black activity. But that black activity also generates employment, as well as other knock on effects. While the government hopes that its policy will increase the tax base, it’s also possible that demonetization might instead lead to the shut down of at least some black activity. “So, the government’s latest move may actually slow economic activity considerably,” Bagchi says, “But for how long, and to what extent, no one knows.”
He further added, “At the moment, the Indian economy is somewhat insulated from the world economy, in part due to its reliance on cash and the existence of considerable black activity. Once India moves to a plastic system, and cuts back on that black activity, it will lose some of this insulation.”
As reported in The Wire , Abhijit Sen, former member of the Planning Commission, is also concerned about contraction in the informal sector:
The sudden decision to demonetise currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 is targeted to reduce illicit stocks of black money and fake currency. This has a clear rationale if such notes are used mainly to stock undisclosed wealth, rather than for transactions. However, RBI data show that currency notes of these two denominations make up over 80% of the total currency in circulation. Therefore, unless a very large proportion of money in circulation lies permanently as stocks, the demonetisation can also be expected to have a significant immediate effect on that part of the economy which relies mainly on cash transactions.
The size of India’s cash economy is not exactly known but, given the large proportion of workers in informal sectors, it is unlikely to be less than half the total economy. We can, therefore, expect an immediate contraction of this part of the economy in the next two days and with the effect stretching over a longer period of time, although diminishing over time. Whatever its long-term positive effects, those depending on cash whether for daily wages or as payments for goods or services they sell are likely to be in for tough times in the coming days. In the long term as well, all that this does is partially eliminate some black money stocks without undoing the processes that lead to black money creation. | 0 |
Family members say that Esteban Santiago, the suspect in the Fort Lauderdale airport shooting in which five people were killed, seemed troubled when he came back from military service in Iraq. His brother described him as “more furious” after his deployment in 2010 with a Puerto Rico National Guard unit. His aunt said that after coming home, Mr. Santiago “lost his mind. ” After Mr. Santiago’s arrest in the shooting, emerging details of his military service led some to blame the rampage on the mind of a veteran haunted by stress disorder, a common pattern when veterans are arrested in violent crimes. But experts not connected to Mr. Santiago’s mental health treatment say it may be a mistake to blame PTSD. Mr. Santiago, who served for eight years in the National Guard and Army Reserve and saw combat in Iraq in 2010, exhibited symptoms that do not appear to fit the disorder, they say, and more closely resemble schizophrenia, a condition unrelated to military service. Mr. Santiago’s family said he reported hearing voices and had other hallucinations, but said he was never given a diagnosis of PTSD. In November, he walked into an F. B. I. office in Alaska and told agents that his mind was being controlled by a United States intelligence agency. “The delusions, the hallucinations are far more consistent with psychosis than PTSD,” said Dr. Donald C. Goff, a psychiatrist at New York University and a leading expert on schizophrenia. “So is the timing of the onset. ” Mr. Santiago deployed to Iraq when he was 20 years old, which is the age when many males with schizophrenia begin to exhibit symptoms, Dr. Goff said, cautioning that he could not comment on Mr. Santiago specifically without reviewing his medical records. “Generally, it’s in the first year of college or military service, or some other stressful event, that we see schizophrenia,” he said. “It’s not that deployment is the cause of the psychosis, but the stress may contribute to the symptoms coming out. ” The level of stress Mr. Santiago experienced on deployment is unclear. He went to Iraq with the Puerto Rico National Guard’s 1013th Engineering Company, and was charged with keeping highways clear of roadside bombs. Violence had dropped drastically in the country by 2010 nonetheless, two soldiers in his company were killed by a roadside bomb. After his tour, Mr. Santiago was awarded the Combat Action Badge, which is given only to service members who are actively engaged with the enemy. “There is nothing to say that a person can’t have psychosis and PTSD,” said Claude M. Chemtob, a professor of psychology at New York University who has studied the link between PTSD and aggression. But, he said, the two disorders are characterized by different symptoms. PTSD sufferers can struggle with anxiety, sleeplessness, flashbacks and anger. In rare cases, the disorder results in increased violence and aggressiveness. But paranoid delusions are not typical. “That is a cardinal symptom of psychosis,” Dr. Chemtob said. “But inevitably people’s prejudice toward veterans is going to lead them to emphasize PTSD. ” Veterans have complained that too often they are labeled with the disorder, and that ascribing all violent acts among veterans to the psychological scars of war perpetuates damaging stereotypes. Many have argued that is what happened with Eddie Ray Routh, the former Marine corporal who killed Chris Kyle, a member of the Navy SEALs and the author of “American Sniper,” in 2013. Mr. Routh’s medical records revealed he had persistent delusions that he was being devoured from the inside by parasites, and that his were pig people who wanted to eat him, but a doctor at a veterans hospital gave him a diagnosis of PTSD. Veterans have struggled with the reputation for being dangerously unstable since at least the Vietnam War. The stigma was stoked in part by Hollywood narratives like “Rambo,” and is still pervasive today, said Bill Rausch, the executive director of Got Your 6, a nonprofit group that tracks the public image of veterans. According to a survey by the group in 2016, 83 percent of respondents said they believed veterans were more likely to have mental health problems. Respondents also said they thought veterans were more likely to be unemployed and abuse drugs. In fact, in terms of employment and drug use, the opposite is true. “The public sees veterans as broken, and they often shape the narrative to fit their perceptions,” Mr. Rausch said. When the news of the Fort Lauderdale shooting broke, he said: “My first thought was that I hoped no one was hurt. My second was that I hoped it wasn’t a veteran because I knew if they were, it would spark a simplified explanation that would never happen with a civilian, tying everything back to war. ” After telling the F. B. I. in November that his mind was being controlled, Mr. Santiago was taken to a civilian psychiatric hospital. The law prevents patients from being held involuntarily if they are not an imminent threat to themselves or others. Mr. Santiago was released after four days. “Anyone who has ever known someone with mental illness knows it’s extremely complicated and hard to deal with,” Mr. Rausch said. “Blaming on military experience keeps us from having a real conversation about how to fix things. This isn’t a veteran problem, it’s an American problem. ” | 1 |
WASHINGTON — Hillary Clinton and Donald J. Trump have yet to face off in their first debate, but both candidates have already moved teams into a plush office building a block from the White House, where they are vetting résumés, sketching out organizational charts and otherwise planning the transition to a Trump or Clinton administration. The jockeying for jobs that usually consumes the two and a half months between Election Day and Inauguration Day is well underway in Washington, with people swapping their notional lists of cabinet officers and speculating about who might get the plum deputy posts just under them. Speculation on the Republican side has been somewhat subdued, in part because Mr. Trump’s personnel preferences are something of a mystery. But on the Democratic side, Mrs. Clinton’s persistent lead in the polls has made it hard for her supporters to resist the urge to measure the drapes. And no area is more rife with jockeying than national security, with Mrs. Clinton, a former secretary of state, in the rare position of having worked with dozens of the people she may employ again. “There has been a lot of talking going on, and now that it looks like she’s going to win, there is even more,” said Vali R. Nasr, a former adviser to Mrs. Clinton at the State Department who is now the dean of the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. The Clinton campaign’s choice of Thomas E. Donilon, a former national security adviser to President Obama, to oversee this part of the transition reflects continuity with the Obama administration and underscores the differences between 2016 and 2008. When Mr. Obama became he faced a Democratic foreign policy establishment that was split between those who supported him and those who backed Mrs. Clinton, but was eager to be back in power after eight years of Republican rule. This time, Mrs. Clinton would get to choose from a largely unified Democratic Party, with a strong bench of policy makers in diplomacy, defense and intelligence who have served in the Obama administration. And she would have the option of drawing from Republicans who have publicly disavowed Mr. Trump, including Michael V. Hayden, a former director of the C. I. A. and the National Security Agency, and Robert B. Zoellick, a former United States trade representative. “Because there has been such a massive defection of the Republican foreign policy bench,” Mr. Nasr said, “in a way, she has come to inherit of the foreign policy establishment. ” There are other reasons for this early start in the transition, chiefly a new law that aims to make the handoff between the White House and the incoming administration more formal and less frenetic than in the past. On Thursday, both campaigns met with the White House chief of staff, Denis McDonough, and other senior officials to discuss how the Obama administration planned to handle the transition. Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, the head of Mr. Trump’s transition team, represented the Trump campaign, while Ken Salazar, a former interior secretary under Mr. Obama, represented the Clinton campaign. Mr. Salazar is the chairman of what the campaign calls the Transition Project. Neither campaign is eager to discuss the process in detail for fear of looking presumptuous. Brian Fallon, a spokesman for the Clinton campaign, said fewer than 10 people were working in the offices at 1717 Pennsylvania Avenue, a number that would not grow beyond two dozen until after Nov. 8 — and then only if Mrs. Clinton won. None of the job seekers are eager to talk either, at least on the record, but they are trying to show their usefulness in other ways. Mrs. Clinton’s campaign has already designated 35 people to serve as coordinators or senior partners for its foreign policy advisory committee. They oversee groups that are churning out position papers on counterterrorism, cybersecurity, democracy and human rights, and global development. The peculiar nature of this campaign, several members said, had made the advisory job, in some ways, less relevant. While the advisers had expected to write papers defending the reset policy with Russia, for example, Mrs. Clinton is instead facing a candidate whose coziness with President Vladimir V. Putin has become an issue. Another major difference between 2008 and 2016 is that Mrs. Clinton is not a Washington neophyte, as Mr. Obama was. To some extent, she does not need anyone to tell her whom she should hire. “What makes Hillary different than almost any other candidate is that she knows a lot of people in the national security area,” said Dennis B. Ross, who served as a special envoy for her in the State Department before moving to the White House to coordinate Middle East policy. “There’s a combination of familiarity and people she came to know and respect in different situations. ” Aside from Mrs. Clinton herself — and perhaps her husband — the person most influential in filling the administration’s national security jobs is likely to be Jake Sullivan, her senior policy adviser, who had the same role under Mrs. Clinton at the State Department. Mr. Sullivan has long been viewed as a prime candidate to be national security adviser, though his broad portfolio in the campaign suggests he could also end up as White House chief of staff. In either job, people close to the campaign said, Mr. Sullivan would have a lot of say over who got the marquee national security posts: secretary of state, defense secretary and C. I. A. director. Michèle A. Flournoy, a former under secretary of defense in the Obama administration, is viewed as a clear favorite to be defense secretary because, among other things, it would allow Mrs. Clinton to make history by putting a woman in charge of the Pentagon. The outlook for secretary of state is murkier, in part because Mrs. Clinton held the job herself and presumably has strong views on what kind of person she wants. Unlike Mr. Obama, who sought major public figures like Mrs. Clinton and John Kerry to be the nation’s chief diplomat, Mrs. Clinton, advisers said, might prefer a trusted and reliable facilitator of her policy. That has led to speculation about William J. Burns, a former deputy secretary of state who runs the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Mr. Burns is trusted by Mrs. Clinton and is close to Mr. Sullivan, who worked with him on the secret negotiations in Oman that led to a nuclear deal with Iran. Mr. Donilon’s name also figures in speculation about secretary of state, as well as C. I. A. director. For the C. I. A. post, Mrs. Clinton could also pick Michael J. Morell, whom she got to know when he was acting C. I. A. director in the Obama administration, or Michael G. Vickers, a former senior C. I. A. official and under secretary of defense for intelligence. Both recently wrote articles sharply critical of Mr. Trump and favorable to Mrs. Clinton. Mr. Morell also works as a senior counselor at Beacon Global Strategies, a consulting firm started by Philippe Reines and Andrew Shapiro, two former close Clinton aides who could return to a Clinton White House. Among the firm’s other founders is Jeremy Bash, a former chief of staff to Leon E. Panetta when he was defense secretary. Mr. Bash is advising the Clinton campaign on cybersecurity and is in the hunt for a job as well. While gossiping about jobs is a Washington parlor game, some veterans caution that the early handicapping is nearly always wrong. In November 2008, James B. Steinberg and Gregory B. Craig, two former officials in President Bill Clinton’s administration who supported Mr. Obama in the campaign, were viewed as the top two contenders for national security adviser. Neither got the job, which went to a dark horse, James L. Jones, a retired Marine Corps general. And of course, Mr. Obama had an even bigger surprise in store: Mrs. Clinton as secretary of state. | 1 |
Leaked: Podesta's Satanic "Spirit Cooking" Dinner. Distrubing Stuff Beyond Belief! Please scroll down for video
This is disturbing! Make sure you watch the video at the end of the article.
The following e-mail between Tony Podesta and Marina Abramovic can be found in Wikileaks latest leaks.
Marina Abramovic first sends Tony the following email:
From: Marina Abramovic >
Date: June 28, 2015 at 2:35:08 AM GMT+2
To: Tony Podesta
Subject: Dinner
Dear Tony,
I am so looking forward to the Spirit Cooking dinner at my place. Do you think you will be able to let me know if your brother is joining?
All my love, Marina
The email is then forwarded by Tony to John Podesta.
Fwd: Dinner
Are you in NYC Thursday July 9
Marina wants you to come to dinner... Mary?
Sent from my iPhone
From: https://wikileaks.org/podesta-emails/emailid/15893
Mary is Mary Podesta, John Podesta’s wife .
The e-mail is about an invitation of Podesta to a "Spirit Cooking" dinner that's happening at Tony's house. STRANGE BOOK BY MARINA ABRAMOVIC
When looking up Marina Abramovic it gets you her website and a graphical book she created: Warning: This starts to get really weird and continues to get weirder.
And now this is a video by the same woman on a so called "Spirit Cooking":
(better download before it gets deleted)
Yes, that is Marina Abramovic in the video with the blood paint.
We leave the evaluation of the content of the video up to you, but we are speechless.
How deep is the rabbit hole? Related Articles | 0 |
Billie Joe Armstrong may be punk rock’s biggest triple threat: the frontman of Green Day, which was recently inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the and sometime star of “American Idiot,” the Broadway musical on its way to becoming an HBO movie and the lead of “Ordinary World,” an indie film out Friday, Oct. 14. What he is not, though, by his own admission, is a social media maven. “I’ll try to catch up,” he said. “I get into Instagram, and the next thing I know, someone will say, it’s all about Snapchat now! It’s like, oh God, leave me in the Stone Age — I got one foot in the Stone Age and the millennium right now. ” Mr. Armstrong’s straddled take on culture is laid out on “Revolution Radio,” the new Green Day album, and the first since 2000 that the band — including the bassist Mike Dirnt and the drummer Tré Cool — with an engineer. “It feels more independent than we’ve ever been,” Mr. Armstrong said in a phone interview. He’s also branching out — sort of — with “Ordinary World,” in which he plays a dad who throws himself a 40th birthday party. “My thing was keeping my stubble on for the movie,” he said. “I had to make sure I shaved it in the right way, once every three days. And I wanted to show my gray that I have growing in. ” A still boyish 44, Mr. Armstrong — who went through rehab for substance abuse in 2012 after an onstage outburst at a pop festival — is grappling with his shifting generation. The cover for “Revolution Radio” is a boombox on fire. “It’s like that feeling of what’s obsolete,” he said, “like we’re turning into a graveyard. ” He paused. “Ooh, that was good — graveyard! I’m going to say that so many times in the next few days. ” He hopes to reprise the role of St. Jimmy, the bad influence, in HBO’s “American Idiot,” a rock opera based on the 2004 Green Day album. He credits the ambition of “Idiot” with the new heights of success in his career. But, he added: “I’m not royalty. I’m the king of nothing. I’m in the same high school rock ’n’ roll band I’ve been in since I was 16. ” Here are edited excerpts from the conversation. This is your first leading film role. Did you do any actorly things to prepare? Not like anything weird — I wasn’t exactly doing any, like, mime. Me and Lee Kirk, the director, we spent a lot of time together fleshing the character out, putting it more in my language. I just went from experiences on my own, and I just tried to be as honest as I could. Acting for the stage, you project to the back of the room, especially a character like St. Jimmy. This is all about the subtleties of acting to the camera, which is difficult for me, because I’m anything but subtle. And you were playing opposite some very seasoned improvisers, like Fred Armisen and Judy Greer. Did that throw you? It felt pretty intimidating, just because I have so much respect for those people. They’re brilliant people they’re not like at what they do, they’re all the way good at what they do. Everybody wanted to make things really relaxed and fun. A couple of the guys that played dads in the movie came in, and we just acted out some of the scenes, which is super awkward at first, doing something you’ve never done, but eventually I got comfortable with it. We’re seeing more and more of that nontraditional father onscreen. Can you relate? It’s a different take on parenting, especially people that were maybe Generation X kind of people and are raising kids now. We’re not our dads. I think there’s more sensitivity training that’s involved in being a parent nowadays. My kids are 21 and 18 — that was a trip. I was a very young dad. And your sons are both musicians. Do you jam with them? A little bit. Mostly they show me music that they’re into, they do a lot of demos and things like that on their own. My youngest son, Jakob, he’s becoming a really good songwriter. He writes songs that are straight from the heart. Joey’s band, they’re really good, and they’re different. It’s not about being, like, a rock star. If there’s anything I share with them, it’s the joy and the love of music. You started in the punk scene as a teenager, when it’s a lot about youthful anger. What does it mean to you to be part of a punk scene now? I think punk is a lot more than just anger, and rage. It’s like the weirdo that gets to find their voice for the first time. It could be someone that wants to have their own fanzine, and write about things they believe in, and despite the odds, do it anyway. Green Day records in general are about feeling kind of lost, and a bit stupid, in the midst of chaos and media and everything that’s changed. And the bottom line for this album is to find something that’s attainable, some kind of peace or serenity inside that chaos. The song “Ordinary World” is basically what that’s about. “Say Goodbye” is about watching how Ferguson is this military state, and you see all these tanks and tear gas. “Revolution Radio” mentions that, too. It’s just reflecting what I see, and maybe coming up with a caricature of it. You touch on difficult topics on the album — “Bang Bang” is a song from the perspective of a mass shooter. Is that fun to play? Yeah, and hard — it’s fast. It’s a release for everyone that’s singing it in the crowd. When you grow up in an era of social media and manifestoes and mass shootings and narcissism and that sort of evil side of American life, what do you say about something like that? You’re just left speechless. The best way I’m able to talk about it is when I do it in a song, and that’s sort of my release, and that’s what ends up coming along in our crowds these last few years. Has your songwriting process changed in sobriety? I’ve just become more focused I’ve learned to stop when I’m blocked. Either you go and make the bigger mess right now, or that song doesn’t want to be written right now, your brain’s not ready for it. Sometimes I just gotta know when to back off something. The fact that I’m clearheaded — I just love making stuff. A song like “Revolution Radio,” it’s so subtle and it’s so nerdy. The song’s got the intro, and it’s got a that goes into the chorus, and I decided to not do that going into the chorus in the second verse. It makes the song unpredictable. For me, that’s like the greatest song I’ve ever done. It’s super nerdy, but that’s what I love about writing. Why do you think “American Idiot” has had such a long life, in so many forms? Because people are able to interpret it anyway they want any time there’s any kind of injustice that’s going along, in America, you can adapt it somehow, go listen to that record, and it makes sense. There’s a lot more transparency now. In Pennsylvania, there was a small theater group with an cast that did “American Idiot” for Black Lives Matter. When I saw that, I was like: “Yeah, this is why I do this stuff!” Because people take it and make something of their own out of it. | 1 |
What’s that spell? What’s that spell? Schadenfreude!! Schadenfreude! What’s that spell? Schadenfreude!!! [cheers].
The Democrat establishment was warned about their weak candidate, and they were presented with a popular and well-funded alternative: Bernie Sanders. Instead, as the Podesta emails show in lavish detail, they used their control of the party machinery and their service providers in our famously free press to rig the election in their favor at every turn. When their candidate was nominated, the Democrat establishment tacked right, and proceeded to explain to Sanders voters that their voters were not needed because, as #BernieBros, they were racist and sexist. Sanders supporters have every right to say #WeWereRight and #WeToldYouSo.
If this were Japan, we’d be seeing Democrat Party leaders committing seppuku, or cutting off their little fingers or — supposing them not to be gangsters — ritually and tearfully bowing to the people they betrayed. This being America, and these being Democrats, they are feverishly deploying the Blame Cannons at racist and sexist #BernieBros, Johnson, Stein, and the dogs who wouldn’t eat the dog food. These assclowns will only leave office if they’re whipped with scorpions. So get to it, Sanders supporters. This is your time.
Stats Watch
MBA Mortgage Applications, week of November 4, 2016: “Purchase applications for home mortgages rose a seasonally adjusted 1 percent in the November 4 week as activity by home buyers stabilizes following a decline to the lowest level since January in the previous weeks” [ Econoday ].
Wholesale Trade, September 2016: “Inventories at the wholesale level rose 0.1 percent in September vs a revised 0.1 percent decline in August: [ Econoday ]. “In a special positive, wholesale inventories of autos fell 1.7 percent in a draw, based on last week’s very strong results for October vehicle sales, that will have to be rebuilt. The risk that inventories may be too high are a key concern for the economic outlook, specifically that high levels of unwanted inventories could slow fourth-quarter production and employment growth.”
Wages: “The Atlanta Fed’s Wage Growth Tracker came in at 3.6 percent in September, up from 3.3 percent in August and 3.4 percent in July, but the same as the 3.6 percent reading for June. By this measure, there are no obvious signs of an acceleration in wage growth for continuously employed workers during the last few months” [ Econintersect ]. “However, the headline wage growth tracker is a three month moving average of each month’s median wage growth. Interestingly, for September, the median wage growth (using data that are not averaged, sometimes called “unsmoothed”) was 4.2 percent, up from 3.6 percent in August, and the highest since late 2007.”
Real Estate: “Leading Index for Commercial Real Estate “moves higher” in October” [ Calculated Risk ]. ” According to Dodge, this index leads “construction spending for nonresidential buildings by a full year”. In general, this suggests further increases in CRE spending over the next year.”
Retail: “With the US holiday shopping season now in full swing, the latest monthly Global Port Tracker report produced by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates predicted major US retail ports would handle 4.4% more imports this month than a year earlier. And volumes are expected to show a 4.5% year-on-year gain in December” [ Lloyd’s Loading List ]. That’s the retailers story and they’re sticking to it.
Shipping: “The number of idle containerships has reached yet new highs, even with the current acceleration of vessels heading to the breakers. According to the latest survey conducted by Alphaliner, there were as many as 397 ships above 500 teu awaiting employment on October 31” [ Lloyd’s List ].
Shipping: “Who needs a warehouse when you have a printer?” [ DC Velocity ]. “Will demand for warehouse space shrink as manufacturers print the parts they need on demand instead of making them ahead of time and storing them in DCs? Will express parcel carriers see a drop in business as shippers e-mail digital designs instead of mailing physical parts? Or will 3-D printing be reserved mainly for filling niche demand for prototypes and replacement parts (the approach taken by a New Zealand airline that prints out replacement tray tables)?”
Shipping: “The American Trucking Associations, the largest group representing trucking companies in Washington, said Wednesday it has already started meeting with the Donald Trump transition team as the industry prepares for a possible new look at regulations due to hit operators next year” [ Wall Street Journal , “Trucking Group Starts Meeting With Donald Trump’s Transition Team”]. “Trucking companies are preparing to meet a Dec. 31, 2017 deadline to equip all trucks with electronic logging devices measuring their hours on the road. The rule has divided segments of the industry, with smaller truckers complaining about the cost and shipping customers arguing that it will drive some companies out of business and leave bigger operators free to raise prices.”
Shipping: “Airlines for America (A4A) has welcomed Donald Trump as US President-elect and said that it looks forward to collaborating with his Transition Team on ‘modernising the infrastructure of the skies to meet the needs of a growing US economy'” [ Air Cargo News ]. They want to reform the Air Traffic Control system…
Honey for the Bears: “The growth in U.S. imports of goods has been stubbornly low since the second quarter of 2015, with an average annual growth rate of 0.7 percent. Growth has been even weaker for non-oil imports, which have increased at an average annual rate of only 0.1 percent. This is in sharp contrast to the pattern in the five quarters preceding the second quarter of 2015, when real non-oil imports were growing at an annualized rate of 8 percent per quarter” [ Liberty Stree t]. “How has the recent slowdown in U.S. investment affected U.S. imports? The next chart shows that U.S. capital goods imports are very highly correlated with equipment investment—a category that excludes intangibles, residential investment, and changes in inventories. Equipment investment has been unusually weak, with its four-quarter percentage change falling into negative territory, which is unusual outside a recession period. These data suggest that the slowdown in import growth likely stems from whatever is behind the weakness in equipment, rather than from trade-specific factors such as trade policies or higher trade costs.” Well, we do have a capitalist economy…
Political Risk: “Trump’s victory in the US presidential race adds an exclamation mark to the concerns over anti-globalisation and protectionism expressed by the shipping industry in Copenhagen at the end of October, Norden chief executive Jan Rindbo told Lloyd’s List on Wednesday” [ Lloyd’s List ]. Globalization has been weakening for some time. It’s not just Trump.
Political Risk: “It really does now look like President Donald J. Trump, and markets are plunging. When might we expect them to recover? If the question is when markets will recover, a first-pass answer is never” [Paul Krugman, New York Times ]. Sure, “first pass” is faux Nobel-worthy weasel wording. But come on.
Political Risk: “Dow Makes Miraculous 1,000 Point Recovery From Trump-Fueled Overnight Lows” [ ETF.com ]. “The most short-lived major market crash of all time ended as quickly as currency manipulator” [ Politico ]. “Even if congressional Republicans demonstrated the will and actually managed to approve the TPP in the lame-duck session that begins Monday, the chances of which appear next to nil with Trump headed to the White House, the president-elect would not implement the 12-nation pact, University of California-Irvine Professor Peter Navarro, a Trump adviser, told Politico in August. That makes the Trump presidency the worst-case scenario for the Obama administration and other trade proponents who have been clinging to the hope that the Asia-Pacific pact could pass before the end of this year.” Sad!
“‘I think the TPP is dead, and there will be blood all over the floor if somebody tries to move that through the Congress any time soon,’ Sessions said. ‘Both candidates opposed it, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump'” [ Observer ].
2016
The Rending of Garments and Gnashing of Teeth
“An American Tragedy” [David Remnik, The New Yorker (2:40AM). “That the electorate has, in its plurality, decided to live in Trump’s world of vanity, hate, arrogance, untruth, and recklessness, his disdain for democratic norms, is a fact that will lead, inevitably, to all manner of national decline and suffering.” Notice the flaccidity of the language: “democratic norms”; “all manner of”; “a fact… that will lead to.” Remnik really needs an editor. Sad.
“Homeless in America” [Thomas Friedman, New York Times ]. “How do I explain Trump’s victory? Way too soon to say for sure, but my gut tells me that it has much less to do with trade or income gaps and much more to do with culture and many Americans’ feeling of “homelessness.'” And then Friedman spirals off into abstractions about the “feelings” people have when they lose their homes, while somehow omitting to mention the fact that millions of Americans literally lost their homes in a foreclosure crisis caused by scamming banksters Obama never brought to justice, and who, if they were foolish enough to enter Obama’s “foam the runway” HAMP program, were further screwed.
“Americans are not and have never been united by blood or creed, but by allegiance to a democratic system of government that shares power, cherishes the rule of law and respects the dignity of individuals. We hope our newly elected president will show respect for that system. Americans must stand ready to support him if he does, and to support the system whether he does or does not” [Editorial Board, WaPo ]. Would that any of those things were true. Perhaps for the individuals on WaPo’s editorial board, they are.
“Political scientists have long recognized that most ordinary citizens have only a tenuous grasp of ‘the presuppositions and complex obligations of democracy, the rights it grants and the self-restraints it imposes.’ Thus, political elites ‘serve as the major repositories of the public conscience,’ if anyone does” [Larry Bartels, New York Times ]. I’ve always wondered why the Democrats never really work to extent the franchise. Here at least we have the ideological justification.
“Today the world has seen the end of two centuries of Anglo-Saxon dominance – a hundred years of Britain, from the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 to the Battle of the Somme, and a hundred years of the United States, ending today, with the election as president of the US of a fascist ‘television personality’ married to a nude model” [ Splash 247 ]. “‘Decadence’ is the term that we need, here – decadence on a scale not seen in the world since the fall of the Roman Empire – which fell in much the same way, for much the same reasons.”
We have now seen a hat trick of ‘democratic’ events in which men who come from the elite, and who have betrayed their class – Roderigo Duterte, in the Philippines, on May 9, was the straw in the wind, he was followed by Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage in the UK, on June 23, and today by Donald Trump in the US, and they have, with the use of the internet social media, most especially Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook, successfully suckered the soggy mass of lazy, ill-educated, ill-read and ill-informed proles, and a good supply of what V.I. Lenin called “useful idiots”, in three nations, into putting them into power, by telling lies and by promising the proles what they want.
What the proles want is ‘good jobs’ but with the ability to buy the stuff they buy now at cheap prices, because it is made by under paid, hardworking, men and women in other countries who have ‘stolen their jobs’, and they want ‘no foreigners’. They can’t have this, of course, but no matter, they don’t read, they just look at ‘memes’, and the damage is done.
Leave it to the Brits to work in the class angle, quote Lenin, and toss in an Orwell reference!
“Trump voters will not like what happens next” [Garrison Keillor, WaPo ]. “America is still the land where the waitress’ kids can grow up to become physicists and novelists and pediatricians, but it helps a lot if the waitress and her husband encourage good habits and the ambition to use your God-given talents and the kids aren’t plugged into electronics day and night.” Help me.
“Americans have done a very dangerous thing this week. Because of what they have done we all face dark, uncertain and fearful times” [ Guardian ].
“‘Dear God, America what have you done?’: How the world and its media reacted as Donald Trump became US President-elect” [ Telegraph ]. A nice round-up of front page images.
Policy
“Trump won largely because people couldn’t bring themselves to vote for Clinton, and not so much because anyone like him or his presumed agenda. And along the way he destroyed the Republican party, which may or may not sit so well with Republicans in Congress” [ Mosler Economics] . “So it’s not like he has a mandate to do anything or that he can rely on Republican support for anything.” I’m not so sure; I see the Republican primary and the general taken together a repudiation of both party establishments and the political class in its totality. That said, this is important:
Regarding his proposed tax cuts, under current law bills can’t be introduced in Congress unless they are ‘paid for’, so, for example, to introduce a tax cut it has to be paid for by spending cuts. Yes, Congress could change the law or override it but that would require Senate approval, and that takes a 60% majority that Republicans don’t have.
So my point is that at best it’s going to take a very long time to get anything done. And the way all the charts are decelerating it could all get pretty ugly waiting for the kind of fiscal adjustment needed to reverse course.
“The new Senate’s Republican majority will remain short of the 60 votes needed for a full repeal. But Congress demonstrated in the past year that it could use the upper chamber’s reconciliation process — requiring just 50 votes — to send a bill undoing major ACA elements to the White House. Last winter, President Obama vetoed that legislation” [ WaPo ]. Meaning, of course, that the Democrats could have done exactly the same thing in 2009, but passed HR676 or SB703. That, throwing a bankster or two in jail, and a decent stimulus package instead of the one Larry Summers deked Obama into approving, and the Democrats might control all three branches of government today. And so it goes.
The Voters
“As of 11:55 a.m. ET, Clinton had amassed 59,458,295 votes nationally, to Trump’s 59,265,380 — a margin of 192,915 that puts Clinton on track to become the fifth U.S. presidential candidate to win the popular vote but lose the election” [ NPR ]. But the first woman!
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/11/how-trump-won/507053/
Butterfly
In the great state of Maine, Trump won Maine Second, and Clinton won Maine First [ Politico ]. Maine voters also passed the following ballot measures: Legalize Marijuana | 0 |
Craning over his shoulder, Douglas Tully slowly, cautiously maneuvered his delivery truck down a block of West 56th Street in Midtown Manhattan — in reverse. “I’ve seen a lot of things as a truck driver, but this has got to be a first, ” said Mr. Tully, 40, who had delivered a rug near Trump Tower only to find he could not exit the street 56th Street was blocked off at Fifth Avenue by the police, blast barricades and dogs. As vehicles nosed toward Fifth Avenue, officers stopped each one, forcing them back down the street against traffic. Ever since Donald J. Trump was elected president last month, the sidewalks around his home and office on Fifth Avenue have been clogged with gawkers, security barriers and officers who search shopping bags filled with presents. Traffic, including city buses, crawls by. All around the building, during what is usually a peak time of the year, restaurants are sending home waiters because there are not enough customers, garages say almost no one is parking and salons are doing fewer hairdos for holiday parties. Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues is closed to all vehicle traffic. These days it is filled with deliverymen pushing crates of vegetables for long blocks from their trucks stranded on 56th Street to restaurant kitchens. “The block is now unwelcoming and looks like a war zone,” said Daniel R. Garodnick, a Democratic city councilman who represents the area. “We are getting to a place where these businesses need to plan and worry that they won’t be able to survive. We have a need to protect the but we shouldn’t allow our businesses and all of those jobs be sacrificed in the process. ” Trump Tower sits along Fifth Avenue between 56th and 57th Streets, the entrance flanked by the Gucci and Tiffany Company flagship stores, all of which are behind a cordon of law enforcement protection. Police officers questioning customers yell out “Gucci!” or “Tiffany!” like street peddlers. Just a few days before Christmas Eve, few shoppers seemed to be making the effort. But despite Trump Tower’s gilded address, the neighborhood is filled with many modest businesses, like cafes and hair salons, all struggling to figure out a way to deal with the intense security perimeter. In a letter sent on Tuesday to Mayor Bill de Blasio, Mr. Garodnick said that revenue had declined by 20 percent or more at over three dozen small businesses in the neighborhood. Ten city bus routes are affected by the new traffic patterns around Trump Tower, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. A bottleneck that developed in the days after Election Day has eased on Fifth Avenue, but travel times have increased markedly on 57th Street, where eastbound traffic is 20 percent slower between Fifth and Seventh Avenues than it was before the election, according to the city’s Department of Transportation. Drivers, transportation officials said, seem to be adjusting to the traffic challenges by choosing different routes through the neighborhood. “We are taking an aggressive approach to combating congestion in Midtown,’’ said Eric F. Phillips, Mr. de Blasio’s press secretary. “We regularly convene all of the major agencies and stakeholders. ’’ About 200 members of the New York Police Department serve shifts outside Trump Tower every day, a total of about 1, 400 law enforcement personnel over the course of a week, the police said. The assignments are not permanent, but are done on a rotating basis, using officers from other parts of the city. The officers are pulled evenly from precinct houses across the five boroughs, according to a fact sheet provided by the department. “This would be a job for any other city,” Stephen P. Davis, the Police Department’s chief spokesman, said. “But we have done so much of this that it’s something that’s not alien to us. ” City officials have asked the federal government to reimburse the cost of providing security for Mr. Trump, which they said would reach $35 million by the time of his inauguration on Jan. 20. So far, federal officials have set aside $7 million for such expenses. The constant changing of the guard may prevent policing from suffering in other parts of the city, but it does present complications: Workers collecting garbage from Uncle Jack’s Steakhouse, on 56th Street, have been let through by officers on some days, but turned away by different officers on other days, said Robert Smith, the director of operations for the restaurant. Restaurant workers regularly have to fetch customers who have been stopped by officers at Fifth Avenue. “We go out and find the gold shields and beg them to let people in,” Mr. Smith said, adding that business has fallen 20 percent in what is usually his busiest season, forcing him to reduce shifts for workers. Last month, David Chang, the celebrated of the Momofuku group of restaurants who has several establishments in the area, vented his frustration on Twitter, saying the situation was “killing” foot traffic. In a following tweet, he added: “Make 56th Street Great Again. ” A spokeswoman for Mr. Chang’s restaurants declined to provide details about how severely business had been affected. Mr. Chang, she said, was too busy to speak about the issue. Staff members from the city’s Department of Small Business Services met on Thursday with members of the Police Department to discuss new measures for the area. Among those measures were making sure all officers assigned to Trump Tower are familiar with security protocols, including what kind of vehicles are allowed to pass through security barriers, and replacing some of the larger barricades that might intimidate shoppers. “This is all temporary,” Sgt. Arthur Smarsch of the Police Department said after the meeting as he stood on 56th Street on Thursday, near Fifth Avenue where barricades blocked traffic from proceeding east. “Just for the next four years. ” | 1 |
.@VanJones68: ”The Clinton campaign didn’t spend $1 BILLION on POC or white working class they spent it on themselves.” #PPLSummit #AMJoy pic. twitter. Saturday at The People’s Summit in Chicago, former Obama green jobs czar and CNN contributor Van Jones ripped Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign. Jones took aim at the amount of money spent in the losing effort and how that money was spent. “First of all, I don’t mean to be rude — and I don’t mean to offend anybody,” Jones said. “But the people who ran the Hillary Clinton campaign did not spend their money on white workers, and they did not spend it on people of color. They spent it on themselves. They spent it on themselves, let’s be honest. They took a billion dollars, a billion dollars, a billion dollars, and set it on fire, and called it a campaign! That wasn’t a campaign. That’s not a campaign. ” “A billion dollars for consultants,” he added. “A billion dollars for pollsters. A billion dollars for a data operation, that was run by data dummies who couldn’t figure out that maybe people in Michigan needed to be organized. ” Follow Jeff Poor on Twitter @jeff_poor | 1 |
My son is obsessed with the Berenstain Bears. When bedtime rolls around, I no longer ask him what book he wants to read, but which Berenstain Bears book he would like. And who could blame him? Stan and Jan Berenstain’s series, with its family of bears living in a big tree house down a sunny dirt road deep in Bear Country, covers the waterfront of possible toddler experiences: everything from “Trouble at School” to “Too Much Birthday” to “Messy Room” to “Go to the Doctor. ” And for that reason, the books are easily deployed by scheming parents like myself to inoculate against potentially unsettling changes that might frighten a . When my wife and I were set to take a overseas trip, we read and reread “Week at Grandma’s” with my son as preparation when summer rolled around, we pulled out “Go to Camp. ” If my is any indication, young children are continually concerned about changes to their perceived order: Where is Mommy tonight? Why is there no school today? Where did my toy go? The Berenstain Bears are always facing up to new challenges, but their lives — in that big tree house down the sunny dirt road — never change much. This familiarity is essential to the books’ appeal the stories start with a necessarily brief outburst of chaos, but order is always restored to Bear Country by the end. Parents know best, children always heed their lessons and everything is in its right place. Family values literally reign triumphant, with the books an ongoing celebration of the value of family. This warmth and good humor have captivated generations of young readers since the first volume, “The Big Honey Hunt,” was published in 1962. Small changes would occasionally take place in Bear Country — a baby cub, Honey Bear, was introduced in 2000’s “And Baby Makes Five” — but consistency had always been crucial to the Berenstain Bears’ appeal. So I could practically hear a needle scratch when I opened up some newer editions my son had received as a gift, and I discovered that the Berenstains’ concerns had turned from the mundane to the theological. The new volumes, “The Berenstain Bears: Do Not Fear, God Is Near” and “The Berenstain Bears Go to Sunday School,” had a markedly different cast than my son’s old favorites. Even those without explicitly religious titles are still larded with Bible thumping. In my son’s new favorite volume, “The Berenstain Bears Show Some Respect,” the bears get snappish with one another during a search for the ideal picnic spot, as the cubs talk back to Mama and Papa, and Papa Bear, in turn, speaks disrespectfully to his father. Gramps grows frustrated and, in an impassioned monologue, makes reference to scripture: “You know, us old folks know a thing or two. As the Bible says, ‘Age should speak advanced years should teach wisdom. ’” This was particularly jarring for me because I had always assumed that, given their surnames, the bears were, well, Jewish (and probably secular, considering they never really brought it up). As a parent, I took it for granted that the moral framework of contemporary children’s books, when it made an appearance, would remain disengaged from any actual dogma. So, when had the Berenstain Bears found Christ? And why? The Berenstain Bears franchise currently belongs to Mike Berenstain, who has written the books for the past decade. Berenstain was a when his parents, Stan and Jan Berenstain, professional cartoonists, first learned of a new children’ imprint at Random House started by Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss. The two decided to pass along an idea for a book about a family of bears that runs into a series of comic mishaps while on a quest for honey. This became “The Big Honey Hunt,” published in 1962. Geisel encouraged the Berenstains to avoid being pigeonholed with their bear characters. “He said, ‘No, that’s the worst thing to do,’” Mike recalls. “‘You’d be typecast. Everybody has a bear. There’s Yogi Bear, Sendak has Little Bear, there’s the Chicago Bears. ’” But brisk sales of “Honey Hunt” caused Geisel to change his mind, and he convinced the Berenstains to resurrect the bear family. They handed in the manuscript for the second book, “The Bike Lesson,” soon after that. When it was published, much to their surprise, they found that Random House had given the bears their family name. A dynasty was born. The Berenstain Bears books that followed were intentional throwbacks, reflecting not the tumultuous America of their time — we never saw “The Berenstain Bears Turn On, Tune In and Drop Out” — but of an imagined, idyllic past. “They were creating, at that time, a kind of archaic, genteel, exaggeratedly rustic Americana world,” Mike Berenstain says. This is apparent even in the Berenstains’ taste for oddball euphemisms they refer to dog poop as “calling cards. ” Mike Berenstain became a designer at Random House and then a children’ writer and illustrator for about 10 years before being called in by his overworked parents to help out with the family business in the . Stan died in 2005, and after that, Mike was left in charge of the writing his mother continued to the stories along with Mike until she died in 2012. Mike took over as sole author and illustrator, and the books began to reflect more of his own personality, even as he served as the faithful executor of his parents’ vision. This led to a disconnect between his family’s stolid, universalist postwar morality and his own. Stan Berenstain had been born to a secular Jewish family in West Philadelphia, and Jan Berenstain, née Grant, was Episcopalian by birth. Mike and his brother were not raised in any particular religious faith. “They taught me morals and traditions and ethics, but not a particular spiritual identity,” he says. Mike didn’t find religion until he enrolled his children at Quaker schools near his suburban Philadelphia home, which led him to the Presbyterian Church and a mature religious faith of his own. In 2006, Mike Berenstain, with the agreement of his mother, approached HarperCollins with an idea for a new book series. They had noticed an unusual volume of letters and emails from devoted Christian readers, writing to share their appreciation for the timeless values of the Berenstain Bears books. A light went off: How about an entire series for religious readers? The resulting books, published as part of the Living Lights series by HarperCollins’ Zondervan imprint, best known for its collection of Bibles, were intentionally cordoned off from the original Berenstain Bears series. They were primarily marketed to Christian bookstores and school associations, and promoted to outlets and Christian bloggers. Nonetheless, the Zondervan titles often occupy the same bookstore and library shelves as the other Berenstain Bears books ours came from my a teacher, who purchased them from a decidedly secular website. Not only did sales of the Living Lights series avoid cannibalizing sales of the more traditional Berenstain Bears line, as some at HarperCollins worried overall sales for the Berenstains’ books have actually increased by 30 percent since the series began. Annette Bourland, Zondervan’s senior vice president and publisher, told me they had found an eager audience in the “ community. ” As an observant Jew, I may not have particularly wanted to read to my son about attending Sunday school, but there was hardly anything to take offense at in the new Berenstain Bears adventures. Still, to be perfectly honest, its characters unwound some of the lingering sentiment I’d felt for the Berenstain Bears, who appeared to me to have abandoned their universalist appeal. Their stories were no longer about milestones and stumbling blocks in every young child’s life but took a more narrowly targeted approach that left some out even as it pulled others in. Even knowing Mike Berenstain’s reasoning — his faith, finding a bigger audience — it was hard not to see the Bears’ conversion as another means of escape from the changing world they had always sought to escape. In the 1960s, Bear Country was a refuge from tumult basically, it was the suburbs. Now religion was the refuge, a cloak for the bears’ deliberate and unfashionable fustiness. But was there any need for such a justification? Ultimately, bedtime stories serve twin purposes. To children, they’re entertainment to parents, a soporific. “Show Some Respect” stayed in regular rotation in our household, my discomfort with its Christian themes outweighed by its uncanny ability to speed the progress from bath to bed to blissful (parental) immersion in “Catastrophe. ” My son, though, could not have cared less that the Berenstain Bears were quoting from the Bible, any more than he would have noticed references to the Quran or “The Communist Manifesto. ” He was just glad that the Bears had found a place to have their picnic — and that they always would. | 1 |
You are here: Home / US / Difference Between Growing Up In The 1960s Compared To 2016 Difference Between Growing Up In The 1960s Compared To 2016 October 27, 2016 Pinterest
Seth Connell reports that in August of this year, campus carry went into effect on Texas’ public college campuses, enabling students and staff with valid concealed handgun licenses to legally carry their firearms. Predictably, leftists freaked out at the idea of people legally carrying firearms in their “safe spaces.”
As we reported back in August, the most famous form of protest on Texas college campuses was “Cocks Not Glocks,” a movement where students who opposed campus carry took adult sex toys with them all across the campus.
Related: Campus Carry Starts Today In Texas; Here’s How Liberal Students Are Protesting…
Despite these protestations, campus carry is in effect in Texas, and there is not mass murder happening in dorms, classrooms, or professors’ offices. Who’d have thunk, right?
Well, it turns out that “Cocks no Glocks” is not going away any time soon. In fact, they have been invited to The White House as a kind of reward for their childish, bratty temper tantrums.
Guns.com reported:
Organizers of an anti-gun protest at the University of Texas in Austin against a new campus carry law noted for garnering some 4,000 adult toys which they gave away, earning immortality on the Daily Show, have made their way to Pennsylvania Avenue.
Invited by DoSomething.org to join a gun control advocates to talk to senior officials about grassroots activism, the CNG gang posted images of their visit to the White House to social media– and contend some important firsts were made.
“They think it’s the first time ‘dildo’ has been said in the Roosevelt Room in the West Wing,” the group noted on social media. “‘Cocks’ also reverberated around the room dozens of times and Rosie, who was sitting right next to the Oval Office where Obama was sitting 10ft away, could hear his voice through the door. Does that mean he could hear ours?”
The Facebook page for “Cocks Not Glocks” proudly claims that they are “Fighting Absurdity with Absurdity.” Yes, because using sex toys is a perfectly respectable and mature way to establish your credibility, and to show that you are making well-thought out and logical arguments.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is what the gun control crowd has come to. There is effectively no logic in this kind of protest. It is all fear-mongering and appeal to one of the basest of human passions: sex.
These people are not making any logical or coherent argument. They are lashing out using highly emotionally charged rhetoric and spreading fear. That kind of argumentation is done by demagogues.
This is evidence of the en masse mental enslavement that is happening in public colleges. These students have been trained to think that an inanimate object is evil and has a will of its own, and that the best way to fight that inanimate object is to whine to the point of absolute lunacy.
These people need a dose of reality ASAP. | 0 |
0 69 1 0 The Buffalo-based Roswell Park Cancer Institute will launch a revolutionary cancer treatment method developed by Cuban scientists.
NEW YORK (Sputnik) — The Buffalo-based Roswell Park Cancer Institute will launch a groundbreaking Cuban-developed lung cancer treatment, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Wednesday. "With Roswell Park at the forefront of world-renowned medical research, we are this much closer to making a breakthrough that will combat cancer and save lives," Cuomo stated. "This latest milestone marks another chapter in Buffalo’s success story, and we look forward to seeing the impacts of this partnership resonate in New York and across the nation." On #LungHealthDay , proud to announce a @RoswellPark partnership that will work on #CIMAVax , an immunotherapy for lung cancer pic.twitter.com/ROuDF30HeP — Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) 26 октября 2016 г.
With over 25 years in research, Cuba has developed a potentially life-saving vaccine for lung cancer that has already shown hopeful results in various countries, according to the statement. The vaccine has been reportedly used to treat more than 4,000 lung cancer patients who took part in clinical trials worldwide. Scientists Unleash Teeny Tiny Little Soldiers in Fight Against Breast Cancer During a visit to Cuba last year, Cuomo secured a partnership between Roswell Park and Havana's Center of Molecular Immunology.
Funded primarily by Roswell Park Alliance Foundation, the Buffalo center in the first and only in the United States to offer the clinical trial for the treatment, according to the statement. ... | 0 |
BY ANDREW LEVINE I trust that I am not the only one to have noticed that in rural areas and economically distressed neighborhoods in towns and cities, lawn signs for Donald Trump are everywhere, while Hillary signs are rarer than Teslas and Maseratis. I think I understand the Trump signs: they are cries of defiance. Hillary’s supporters are harder to figure out. I suspect that most of them would just as soon not advertise their intentions November 8. Even if they think that there is no other way to stop Trump, they understand that, by voting for Hillary, they are embarrassing themselves. Lawn signs apart, the evidence that Trump is kaput is, by now, overwhelming. He seems finally to have done his campaign in – to such an extent that even diehard anti-Trump fear mongers concede the inevitability of the Clintons’ return to the White House. Trump’s campaign had been on life support for weeks when the pussy grabbing tape surfaced, followed by a seemingly endless stream of women – a dozen or so already — accusing the Donald of groping them and worse. Then, in the third debate, Trump announced that he would “wait and see” before accepting the legitimacy of a Clinton victory. This seems to have been the final straw for all but the most bona fide “deplorables.” And so, the writing is on the wall: Hillary will win just as surely as the sun will rise tomorrow – well, not quite, but almost. There is no reason to rejoice in her victory, only in Trump’s defeat. Hillary’s supporters are in denial, and even people who know better than to support her for her own sake remain determined to waste their votes by adding to her totals. Apparently, they think that this is a way to send the message that Trumpian “fascism” shall not pass. How much better it would be if they would use their votes to build alternatives to the neoliberal perpetual war regime that Hillary and Bill and their co-thinkers have helped fashion! The best chance for that, at this point, is Jill Stein’s campaign on the Green Party ticket. Stein cannot win, of course; a vote for her is only a protest vote. But there is nothing wrong with that. Hillary needs to know that she has no mandate to end the world “as we know it,” and this is one of many ways to convey that message. And even that isn’t as obvious as it seems . Hillary probably the lesser evil all things considered. But Trump is very likely the less dangerous of the two. The man is an adolescent in a septuagenarian’s body, with a tendency to act out. But at least he is not a Russophobe or a neocon or a “humanitarian” intervener intent on regime change in countries that resist American domination. This would include not only the usual victims, countries incapable of harming the United States militarily, but Russia and China as well. It is relevant too that the supposed lesser evil is a committed neoliberal and a Wall Street toady, and that Trump’s “crooked Hillary” taunts hit the target more often than not. These considerations, and others like them, should cause concern to those who are fine with lesser evil voting in general, but who think that there are thresholds beneath which lesser evil considerations should not apply. There is no need to agonize over these issues, however; not in this case. When Trump became the Republican nominee, lesser evil arguments became moot. This would still be the case even if more voters were not quite so willfully blind to the dangers inherent in Clinton’s determination to maintain American world domination by any means necessary, and to her fondness for military “solutions.” Lesser evil considerations are irrelevant because Trump is and always has been bound to lose to any Democrat, even to her. I have been pressing this point and its corollary — that anti-Trump hysteria is a distraction – from Day One. As recently as a month ago, hardly anyone agreed with me. If only I had a dollar for every time I have been taken to task for not seeing the parallels between the Trump phenomenon and the rise of Nazism in the final years of the Weimar Republic! I would be a rich man today. But because it is now recognized that Trump’s chances of becoming President are, for all practical purposes, nil, no one is pressing that line these days. I used to be out on a limb; I no longer am. It would be only natural to take pleasure in this turn of events, and I would — but for the fact that a Trump defeat implies a Clinton victory. That prospect is, at best, only slightly less nightmarish. Worse, it doesn’t seem to matter that all but the most flagrant worrywarts now finally concede that there will never be a President Trump. Liberals and centrists and even a few foolish leftists are still going all out for Hillary. From the dead center to the soft left, the consensus view is still that now is a time to boost, not knock, Hillary’s campaign — especially in the dozen or so states where the Electoral College outcomes could not have been determined years ago with absolute certainty. It is remarkable that so many people cannot let anti-Trump hysteria go; that they are so focused on Trump’s misogyny, temperamental instability, and narcissistic blather that they don’t see that the only thing we need fear, where Trump is concerned, is, so to speak, the fear itself. However, in Hillary’s case, there really is something to fear: that she is about to become the Commander-in-Chief of the most lethal military force in the history of the world. On that point, her supporters are in denial, and even people who know better than to support her for her own sake remain determined to waste their votes by adding to her totals. Apparently, they think that this is a way to send the message that Trumpian “fascism” shall not pass. How much better it would be if they would use their votes to build alternatives to the neoliberal perpetual war regime that Hillary and Bill and their co-thinkers have helped fashion! The best chance for that, at this point, is Jill Stein’s campaign on the Green Party ticket. Stein cannot win, of course; a vote for her is only a protest vote. But there is nothing wrong with that. Hillary needs to know that she has no mandate to end the world “as we know it,” and this is one of many ways to convey that message. Pundits who claim otherwise are dead wrong. Those who pile on for Hillary are wasting their votes; protest votes aimed at Hillary are not wasted at all. I would imagine that at least some Trump voters are thinking along similar lines. But the racism, nativism and Islamophobia of their candidate tarnishes the messages their votes will convey. They therefore cannot register with any real clarity. The message protest votes for Stein convey is, on the other hand, as clear and distinct as can be. And if she garners at least five percent of the total votes cast, the Greens will have access to federal funding in future elections, and will have a much easier time gaining ballot access in all fifty states. This would not make for much of a “political revolution,” even in Bernie Sanders’ highly attenuated sense of the term, but it would make future elections less mind-numbing and degrading, and it could ultimately lead to more far-reaching transformations of the political scene. Now that Trump has all but killed off the GOP, the duopoly party system is in jeopardy, and all kinds of political realignments have, at last, become feasible. *** I wasn’t just being contrarian when I went out on a limb about Trump’s chances; and my confidence was in no way based on inferences from polling data or statistical extrapolations. Let the blogosphere’s “political junkies” and the corporate media’s talking heads knock themselves out with that. What they do is useful only for entertaining people who care about the horse race aspect of presidential elections. It is distressing how many Americans indulge in that spectator sport. Most of them are essentially apolitical. I was confident that I was right about Trump’s chances because I knew that what people tell pollsters when an election seems far off is basically irrelevant for predicting the election’s outcome. Information about how they and people like them voted in the past is more relevant, but not by much. This is especially true when, as in this case, disdain for one or the other candidate, or for both, is a dispositive factor in many voters’ minds. I was also fairly sure that, rightly or wrongly, more people fear and loathe Trump than fear and loathe Hillary; and that, if they didn’t at the outset, they would before long – because Trump was all but certain to undermine himself, and because there is so much dirt out there on the Donald’s sleazy connections and moral turpitude that even God-fearing Republicans, capable of believing almost any nonsense, were bound eventually to be repulsed. I suspected too that Trump never really wanted to be President; that he only got into the race to promote his brand, and because he is an egotist and publicity-hound. Trump hates to lose, however — especially to the likes of Hillary — and so, at some point, he must have decided to give the campaign his all, even if it meant bringing the Trump brand down with him. Should it come to that, I will shed crocodile tears for his brood, Ivanka especially. A worthwhile thing to do in the months ahead would be to work to make that happen; to do everything possible to assure that the damage done to all things Trump will be irreversible. What a delightful irony that would be! There are plenty of Hillary-haters in the Donald’s base who hate Hillary because they consider her the embodiment of coercive goody-goodyism, or because they think she is disdainful of people like them (people in the “deplorables” demographic), or because they think that she is too leftwing. The idea that she is too leftwing is nonsense, of course; she is not nearly leftwing enough. That anyone would think otherwise is a testament to the media’s ability to shape public perceptions and to the degree of political ignorance rampant in some quarters of the American electorate. But “vast rightwing conspiracy” Hillary-haters are spot on right about the rest of it — and two out of three isn’t bad. Even so, there are better reasons than theirs to dread the prospect of a Clinton presidency. They all have to do with the service Hillary has done, and will go on doing, for the miscreants who control the commanding heights of America’s and the world’s capitalist order, and with her untrammeled, ideologically-driven bellicosity. Hillary knows how to game the system; and she and Bill know how to benefit from doing so. But, for all her vaunted “experience,” she is clueless about the world. And although she and her fans boast of her “pragmatism,” that woman is seriously inept. Most of what she undertakes to do is ill conceived, and nearly all of it turns out badly. In short, the lesser evil, if that is what she is, is a very great evil indeed. It won’t take long, once she moves back into the White House and starts putting her stamp on the empire’s depredations, for the scales to fall from the eyes of all but her most gullible supporters. I am even more sure of this than I was of Trump’s defeat, but I will take even less joy in being proved right again. What lies ahead, with Hillary in control, is too horrible to contemplate. PLEASE COMMENT AND DEBATE DIRECTLY ON OUR FACEBOOK GROUP. JUST CLICK HERE . ABOUT THE AUTHOR ANDREW LEVINE is a Senior Scholar at the Institute for Policy Studies, the author most recently of THE AMERICAN IDEOLOGY (Routledge) and POLITICAL KEY WORDS (Blackwell) as well as of many other books and articles in political philosophy. His most recent book is In Bad Faith: What’s Wrong With the Opium of the People . He was a Professor (philosophy) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Research Professor (philosophy) at the University of Maryland-College Park. He is a contributor to Hopeless: Barack Obama and the Politics of Illusion (AK Press). Note to Commenters Due to severe hacking attacks in the recent past that brought our site down for up to 11 days with considerable loss of circulation, we exercise extreme caution in the comments we publish, as the comment box has been one of the main arteries to inject malicious code. Because of that comments may not appear immediately, but rest assured that if you are a legitimate commenter your opinion will be published within 24 hours. If your comment fails to appear, and you wish to reach us directly, send us a mail at: [email protected]
We apologize for this inconvenience. ALL CAPTIONS AND PULL-QUOTES BY THE EDITORS, NOT THE AUTHORS. | 0 |
Meditation: The Chicago Cubs Winning Edge? Nov 7, 2016 0 0
It is no secret to sports fan around the United States that the Chicago Cubs baseball team just recently won the World Series, which was done for the first time in 108 years. Last year, the Cubs made it to the playoffs, but fell short of the world series. Still though, for an organization who has been used to losing for over a century, the past two years have been a delight in the fans’ eyes. Is it simply a coincidence that for these past two seasons, the Cubs have implemented meditation and yoga into their training regimen, or is there something more to it?
For major league outfielder Darnell McDonald has been the coordinator for the Cubs new mental skills program for the past couple years and has helped to sharpen the mental edge of the players he works with. The Cubs president Theo Epstein helped push for the creation of the program as he knows the importance of having a mental edge in the game.
“If you approached a player to talk to them about working on his mental game [20 years ago], his response would be, ‘You think I’m nuts?’ You still see that now and then, but that’s the exception, not the rule.”
Darnell McDonald explains that gaining a mental edge over opponents in major league baseball is important because of the incredibly high physical skills that all players have at that level.
“You learn when you get to professional baseball, that everyone is good…they’re really good. And so the separator is the 7th game of the world series; the teams that are able to execute under pressure. It’s when we take off the auto-pilot button and when we’re present and alive and aware.” Darnell McDonald, the Cubs Mental Skills Program Coordinator
The Cubs’ manager, Joe Maddon, has been a big proponent of the program as he meditates himself and understands the importance it can have on the player’s attitudes and their performance. He often says to his team, “I don’t ask you to be perfect, I just want you to be present.”
Jake Arrieta, a starting pitcher for the Cubs and last years Cy Young award winner (best pitcher), loves the program and has benefited tremendously from both yoga and meditation.
“I’m much better at it now. For me, it’s about trying to evolve and be better, not only as a player but as a person, too.”
Meditation has been scientifically proven to help people be more focused, helps to regulate pain receptors in the body, helps reduce physical and emotional stress, strengthens the immune system and helps people to get better sleep, which equates to a better recovery for an athlete’s body and mind. Meditation is spreading quickly in the sports world.
The professional football team of the Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll introduced mindfulness meditation to his team in 2011. Since the 2012 season, the Seahawks have made it to the playoffs the each of the last 4 years, while winning the Superbowl in 2013 and making it back to the Superbowl in 2014. The results of including meditation into training regimens speak for themselves.
Long time NBA coach Phil Jackson is an avid meditator and has discussed why he used mindfulness with his teams like the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers and says that it helped his teams communicate better and be able to handle frustrating or stressful events throughout any given game.
Do you know of other sports teams that use meditation in training or before games? How has it benefited you in games or practice?
Lance Schuttler graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in Health Science and practices health coaching through his website Orgonlight Health . You can follow the Orgonlight Health facebook page or visit the website for more information on how to receive health coaching for yourself, a family member or a friend as well as view other inspiring articles. | 0 |
“Brexit means Clusterfuck” confirms Prime Minister
Theresa May has clarified that Brexit actually means one giant, steaming clusterfuck.
The reincarnation of Emperor Palpatine made the statement following the High Court ruling that Parliament would have to give the go-ahead for Britain to officially tell the EU to piss right off.
“Brexit does indeed mean clusterfuck,” said the Prime Minister, giving the pained smile of a woman who knows she’s going to be the historical equivalent of Basil Fawlty.
“But it is the clusterfuck that the people voted for, and by God, we shall see to it that this clusterfuck gets done right and proper.
“I mean, I’d rather not, because it’s going to be dreadful and tedious, but that’s democracy for you.”
Brexiter, Simon Williams, said,”If ‘clusterfuck’ means ‘taking back control’ then I say bring on the clusterfuck and damn the consequences.
“We’ve already told the experts where to go; there is no going back. Brexit means clusterfuck, and I demand to be clusterfucked immediately.” Get the best NewsThump stories in your mailbox every Friday, for FREE! There are currently | 0 |
Hans Rosling, a Swedish doctor who transformed himself into a statistician by converting dry numbers into dynamic graphics that challenged preconceptions about global health and gloomy prospects for population growth, died on Tuesday in Uppsala, Sweden. He was 68. The cause was pancreatic cancer, according to Gapminder, a foundation he established to generate and disseminate demystified data using images. Even before “ ” entered the lexicon, Dr. Rosling was echoing former Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan’s maxim that everyone is entitled to his own opinions but not to his own facts. “He challenged the whole world’s view of development with his amazing teaching skills,” Isabella Lovin, Sweden’s deputy prime minister, said in a statement. On Twitter, Bill Gates remembered Dr. Rosling as a “great friend, educator and true inspiration. ” A “edutainer,” Dr. Rosling captivated vast audiences in TED Talks — beginning a decade ago in front of live audiences and later viewed online by millions — and on television documentaries like the BBC’s “The Joy of Stats” in 2010. Inviting animated visualizations and prosaic props (like apples and colorful Lego plastic blocks) defined him as a funky philosopher rather than a geeky professor. “I produce a road map for the modern world,” he told The Economist in 2010. “Where people want to drive is up to them. But I have the idea that if they have a proper road map and know what the global realities are, they’ll make better decisions. ” In Dr. Rosling’s version of those realities, the traditional divide between and industrialized nations had become anachronistic, since so many countries were undergoing development, with some in Asia improving faster than some in Europe. He considered that five billion people continued to head toward healthier lives while one billion remained mired in poverty and disease that progress toward health and wealth had contributed to climate change and that the world was so poorly governed that possibilities to improve it abounded. “I’m not an optimist,” Dr. Rosling once said. “I’m a very serious possibilist. ” He predicted that the United Nations’ goal of eradicating extreme poverty by 2030 was attainable because the tools to do so had been identified and the share of people living in that condition had already declined by more than half in 25 years. He also argued vigorously that overpopulation would no longer be problematic as the world grew wealthier and fertility rates declined. “There are so many who think that death keeps control of population growth,” he said in an interview with The Guardian in 2013. “That’s just wrong!” He told The Economist: “The only way to reach sustainable population levels is to improve public health. Child survival is the new green. ” As a medical doctor, epidemiologist and academic, but with the flair of a seasoned performer (he once demonstrated his expertise as a sword swallower) he delivered counterintuitive factoids, accused advocates of tweaking statistics to advance their own causes, and debunked misapprehensions about the third world — although not every expert concurred. He pointed out that Sweden had more children per woman than Iran, that Shanghai was just as wealthy and healthy as the Netherlands, and that the world’s average life expectancy of 71 years was now closer to the highest (84 in Japan) than to the lowest (49 in Swaziland). “They just make it about us and them the West and the rest,” Dr. Rosling told the journal Nature in December. “How could anyone hope to solve problems if they didn’t understand the different challenges faced, for example, by Congolese subsistence farmers far from paved roads and Brazilian street vendors in urban favelas?” Hans Gosta Rosling was born in Uppsala on July 27, 1948. His father was a coffee roaster. He studied statistics and medicine at Uppsala University and public health at St. John’s Medical College in Bangalore, India, where he received his medical degree in 1976. In 1979, he and his wife, the former Agneta Thordeman, whom he met while she was studying to be a nurse, moved to Mozambique with their two young children. He was delivering on a pledge he had made years earlier to Eduardo Mondlane, the founder of the Mozambican Liberation Front, to help provide health services when the country became independent. Mr. Mondlane was killed in 1969, six years before independence was granted by Portugal. Dr. Rosling served as district medical officer in a northern province. He was the sole doctor for a population of 300, 000. His investigation of a paralytic disease called konzo in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which was determined to be caused by ingesting naturally occurring cyanide in cassava roots, earned him a doctorate from Uppsala University. In addition to his wife, a pediatrician and researcher, he is survived by two sons, Ola and Magnus a daughter, Anna and a brother, Mats. With his son Ola and his Anna Rosling Ronnlund, Dr. Rosling established Gapminder in 2006 while he was a professor of global health at the Karolinska Institute, the medical university outside Stockholm. The foundation aims to chart trends and fight what it calls “devastating ignorance with worldviews everyone can understand. ” It derived its name from the London Underground’s recorded warnings to passengers to “mind the gap” between a subway car and the platform. Gapminder’s data images are designed to evoke the divide between statistics and the misleading ways in which they are sometimes interpreted. “It’s like the emperor’s new clothes, and I’m the little child saying: ‘He’s nude! He’s nude! ’” Dr. Rosling told The Guardian. Brandishing his bubble chart graphics during TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) Talks, Dr. Rosling often capsulized the macroeconomics of energy and the environment in a favorite anecdote about the day a washing machine was delivered to his family’s flat. “My mother explained the magic with this machine the very, very first day,” he recalled. “She said: ‘Now Hans, we have loaded the laundry. The machine will make the work. And now we can go to the library.’ Because this is the magic: You load the laundry, and what do you get out of the machine? You get books out of the machines, children’s books. And Mother got time to read to me. ” “Thank you, industrialization,” Dr. Rosling said. “Thank you, steel mill. And thank you, chemical processing industry that gave us time to read books. ” | 1 |
QINGYUAN, China — The 48 soccer fields of the vast Evergrande Football School in south China seem barely enough for its 2, 800 students. Against a backdrop of school spires that seem modeled on Hogwarts, the young athletes swarm onto the fields nearly every day, kicking, dribbling and passing in the hope of soccer glory and riches. “Soccer will be my career after I grow up,” Wang Kai, a gangly who has studied at the boarding school for over three years, said after a morning session under the supervision of a Spanish coach. “I want to be the Chinese Cristiano Ronaldo,” he said, referring to the Portuguese superstar. Grooming the next Ronaldo or Messi has become a national project in China, where the country’s No. 1 fan, President Xi Jinping, is bent on transforming the country into a great soccer power. It is a moonshot for China, whose teams have ranked poor to middling in recent international competition. But the effort has already unleashed a surge of spending and support for the game that has stunned fans and players around the world. In the last two weeks, the main Chinese league has plucked foreign stars from Europe and South America with contracts reported to be worth as much as $40 million a year, the highest pay for any soccer player in the world. A Chinese club offered the real Ronaldo $105 million a year, but he declined, his agent said last week. These giddying sums are shaking the landscape of pro soccer. Antonio Conte, the manager of England’s fabled Chelsea team, denounced the Chinese spending spree last month as a “danger for all teams in the world. ” The drive to match China’s economic ascent with success on the soccer field has become emblematic of Mr. Xi’s ambition to transform China into a great and confident power. “My biggest hope for Chinese soccer is that its teams become among the world’s best,” he announced in 2015. In the last two years, the government has poured the kind of concentrated effort into soccer that it has previously devoted to winning Olympic medals in individual sports like diving and gymnastics. It has promised to clean up and reorganize professional soccer and build a new generation of players by creating tens of thousands of soccer fields and adding soccer programs in tens of thousands of schools. The aim is to establish a flow of top players eventually capable of winning the coveted men’s World Cup and returning the women’s team to its former glory. That effort has emboldened Chinese clubs to spend lavishly. As well as paying tens of millions for foreign players, Chinese team owners have spent hundreds of millions of dollars buying into European clubs, hoping to tap their coaching and marketing expertise. “Current spending has created massive expectations,” said Simon Chadwick, a professor of sports enterprise at the University of Salford in Britain. “Spending big on players is also about acquiring heroes and icons. ” But if soccer distills Mr. Xi’s national ambitions, it also illustrates how his plans could falter, as they have in other arenas, in a muddle of rushed and distorted enforcement, especially at the local level. There has been resistance by parents, worried about their children taking precious time away from academics, as well as fear that splurging on foreign stars diverts money and attention from fostering homegrown talent. The pitfalls in fixing soccer, it turns out, are a bit like those in fixing the economy a desire for quick, flashy success is putting goals at risk. People’s Daily, the main newspaper of the Communist Party, warned last month of a “bubble” of reckless spending in Chinese professional soccer that could burst and badly damage the sport. Too many investors had feverish expectations, while some clubs, officials and schools were only going through the motions of developing young players, the newspaper said. “One of the biggest problems is ” said Cameron Wilson, a Scottish resident of Shanghai who edits Wild East Football, a website that follows the sport in China. “There are these great plans and ideas. But when it gets down to the level in the provinces, it’s like people doing their own thing. ” China’s passionate soccer fans would be thrilled to have competitive national teams instead of the lackluster ones they have now. The national men’s team recently placed 83rd in FIFA rankings, just ahead of the Faroe Islands, a remote outcrop of Denmark with fewer than 50, 000 inhabitants, and it is unlikely to win a spot in the 2018 World Cup. The women’s team — the pride of Chinese soccer in past decades — has stumbled. It was for the Women’s World Cup in 1999 but slipped to 13th in the latest rankings. “The national team is a joke,” said Xu Yun, 16, who had come to Workers’ Stadium in Beijing to watch his favorite Beijing team clobber a listless opponent from Henan Province. “I think it will need decades to get it right. It’s not just a question of spending money, it’s attitude. ” For years, the domestic professional game was riddled with corruption, brazen even by China’s standards. Since revelations grew into a national scandal in 2009, the worst cheating has been cleaned up. “It still exists,” Mr. Wilson said. “Just not so blatantly. ” For Xi, soccer has been a passion since childhood. His trips abroad have included photographs with David Beckham and other soccer celebrities. In Ireland in 2012, he famously had an enthusiastic but seemingly rusty go at kicking a ball. In September, he revisited his old school in Beijing, where he learned to kick and became a fan of the game, according to memoirs of his former teacher. “Look how healthy I am,” Mr. Xi told young soccer players at the school. “I laid the basis for that through sports when I was young. ” Private investors have piled into professional soccer, encouraged by Xi’s backing for the game and apparently eager to curry favor with his government. In the main pro trading season last year, the 16 Chinese Super League teams spent about $300 million hiring away promising foreign players, outstripping player spending by the English Premier League by nearly $120 million, according to FIFA TMS, a player transfer data company. Prices in 2017 are likely to go even higher. But Mr. Xi’s focus is on the long game and the next generation of players. His plan calls for 50, 000 schools to have a strong emphasis on soccer by 2025, a leap from 5, 000 in 2015. The number of soccer fields across the country will grow to over 70, 000 by the end of 2020, from under 11, 000. By then, the plan says, 50 million Chinese, including 30 million students, will regularly play soccer. “Now principals at every school are paying quite a bit more attention to soccer,” said Dai Wei, the athletic director at r. Xi’s old school, the Bayi School. “That was unthinkable before. ” Yet there is deep cultural resistance, even at Bayi. Some parents discourage their children from committing time to sports, Mr. Dai said, because they have so much homework and face stiff competition on academic exams. While China has excelled at individual sports that demand intense discipline from an early age, the country has not done as well at fostering group sports, where skills like teamwork and improvisation count as much as personal virtuosity. The privately run Evergrande school, the world’s biggest soccer boarding school, says its formula of intense training combined with a solid education could show the way for developing young players. “As more soccer schools are built, there’ll be more and more kids playing, and the stars will multiply, too,” said Liu Jiangnan, the principal of the school, which opened in 2012. “I’d guess that in seven or eight years, half the members of the Chinese national squad will come from this school. ” Drawn by such hopes, parents pay up to about $8, 700 a year to send children here, where 24 Spanish coaches oversee training. Students spend 90 minutes a day on drills and also play on weekends. Promising players get scholarships, and children from poorer families get discounts, school officials said. But even here, the children come to the game later than their European and South American counterparts, and they often lack solid grounding in teamwork and tactics, said Sergio Zarco Diaz, a Spanish coach. “The kids are getting better, year by year,” he said hopefully. But the Evergrande approach is too expensive to be widely copied. Some schools, facing a shortage of coaches and space for fields, have devised their own drills, like soccer gymnastics, in which children stand in lines tossing a ball up, down and around. It may impress visiting officials, but it is scant preparation for the free flow of the game, said Zhang Lu, a widely respected soccer commentator. “Chinese soccer has failed before through rushing for instant success,” Mr. Zhang said in an interview in Beijing, recalling previous failed efforts to build up the game in the 1980s and 1990s. “The problem is that everyone’s thinking is still deeply set in traditional ideas. Everyone thinks soccer is just about getting results, competition, training, creating stars. ” Mr. Zhang has instead been encouraging schools to focus on fun and broad participation. That approach gives more children a break from the monotony of the classroom and will eventually bring out more future champions than an elitist, approach, he argues. Some schools are trying his way. On a recent afternoon, the smog that often covers Beijing lifted and the children of Caoqiao Elementary School rushed onto the fields, shouting and squealing with delight. “This morning soccer had been canceled because of the smog,” said the principal, Lin Yanling. “But at midday I notified the kids that it was back on, and they all went crazy with relief. ” | 1 |
In the past week, as a swirl of sexual assault accusations against Donald J. Trump has prompted a loud national discussion about male power and women’s rights, the first woman to be a major party’s presidential nominee was barely heard from. Though Hillary Clinton has stood at the center of feminist debates for more than two decades, she has at times been an imperfect messenger for the cause. That has never been more apparent than now, as her old missteps and her husband’s history have effectively paralyzed her during a moment of widespread outrage. The most impassioned speeches on the topic have come not from her, but from the first lady, Michelle Obama, who said Mr. Trump’s words had “shaken me to my core,” and from President Obama and others. When Mrs. Clinton herself spoke, she quickly changed the subject to other groups of people Mr. Trump had insulted, and she tried to lighten the mood with a joke about watching cat videos. “It makes you want to turn off the news. It makes you want to unplug the internet or just look at cat GIFs,” Mrs. Clinton told donors in San Francisco on Thursday, making her first remarks on Mr. Trump’s treatment of women since several came forward to accuse him. “I’ve watched a lot of cats do a lot of weird and interesting things,” she said, drawing a few laughs. “But we have a job to do. And it’ll be good for people and for cats. ” The virtual silence from Mrs. Clinton speaks volumes about the complicated place she has occupied as a 1960s Wellesley feminist who stayed as a devoted wife to her husband through infidelities and humiliation. Forcefully denouncing sexual assault would most certainly provoke ugly attacks on Bill Clinton and Mrs. Clinton’s role in countering the women who accused him of sexual misconduct. That painful past haunted Mrs. Clinton last Sunday when Mr. Trump invited some of her husband’s accusers to the second presidential debate. In the days since, Mrs. Clinton has had to once again navigate the messy crosscurrents of politics, symbolism and her ambition to shatter “that highest, hardest glass ceiling” of being elected the first female president. Now, when the collective voice of American women and victims of sexual assault seems to be letting out a cathartic scream, Mrs. Clinton has deferred to another first lady to speak for her. At the San Francisco on Thursday, she pointed to Mrs. Obama’s speech earlier that afternoon when the first lady placed her hand on her heart and spoke out for the many who were outraged. Speaking to college students in New Hampshire, Mrs. Obama called Mr. Trump’s lewd remarks about how he had forced himself on women “disgraceful” and “intolerable. ” “I can’t believe I’m saying that a candidate for president of the United States has bragged about sexually assaulting women,” Mrs. Obama said as a crowd of young women watched with silent and somber expressions. “I can’t stop thinking about this — it has shaken me to my core. ” Mrs. Clinton has every political reason to avoid wading into the discussion of sexual assault that has riled a nation and thrown her Republican rival’s candidacy into chaos. Not known as a naturally emotive public speaker, Mrs. Clinton risks stumbling if she embraces the issue at a time when polls show that she is in her strongest position yet to defeat Mr. Trump on Nov. 8. She has played it safe, all but disappearing from the campaign trail until the next debate in Las Vegas on Wednesday. But then again, two decades ago, it was Mrs. Clinton, who, as a first lady in a powder pink suit, defied her husband’s West Wing advisers and captured the attention of women worldwide by declaring, “Human rights are women’s rights, and women’s rights are human rights once and for all. ” Last summer, Mrs. Clinton began her campaign by declaring that she wanted to create “an America where a father can tell his daughter: ‘Yes, you can be anything you want to be. Even president of the United States. ’” Since then, allegations of sexual harassment have led to the ouster of Roger Ailes as chairman of Fox News college campuses have been shaken by the jail sentence given to Brock Turner, a former Stanford University student found guilty of sexual assault and women continue to come forward with allegations against Mr. Trump. At the same time, Mrs. Clinton, so close to becoming the first woman to win the White House amid national outrage over reports of her rival’s male lechery, has all but abandoned gender as an issue. On Thursday, Mrs. Clinton appeared to get choked up on the set of “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” when, during a taping, Ms. DeGeneres played a portion of Mrs. Obama’s speech. But Mrs. Clinton quickly composed herself and, in a remarkable punt, pivoted to a laundry list of other constituencies whom she said Mr. Trump had offended. “It’s not just what Trump has said about women, as terrible as that has been,” Mrs. Clinton told Ms. DeGeneres. It’s “what he has said about immigrants and and Latinos and people with disabilities and P. O. W.s and our military and Muslims and everybody. ” On Friday, without mentioning the accusations against Mr. Trump, Mrs. Clinton told volunteers in Seattle: “This election is incredibly painful. I take absolutely no satisfaction in what is happening on the other side with my opponent. ” Asked if Mrs. Clinton would be speaking more directly about the issue, Jennifer Palmieri, the campaign’s communications director, noted that Mrs. Clinton had confronted Mr. Trump at the last debate about the recently released 2005 video in which he bragged about groping women. “You should expect that she’ll continue to do that,” Ms. Palmieri said. Mrs. Clinton has battle wounds from wading into gender in the past. In 1992, she seemed an affront to mothers when she defended her legal career, saying, “I suppose I could have stayed home and baked cookies. ” As a working mother in the White House, Mrs. Clinton redefined the role of first lady when she tried, and subsequently failed, to overhaul health care, but she also played the role of a traditional wife when she stayed with Mr. Clinton despite his affair with Monica Lewinsky. In hacked emails released by WikiLeaks this week, Mrs. Clinton was shown in an interview transcript pondering, at length, the many complexities of running to be the first female president. “When I ran the last time, the research was pretty clear that there was a resistance to a woman president, not just among Republicans and independents, but among Democrats,” she said in one of the thousands of emails obtained by hackers who illegally breached a top aide’s account. “They didn’t think a woman was qualified, could do the job, didn’t see a woman as commander in chief,” Mrs. Clinton continued. So, in 2008, she played up her fortitude and tried essentially to run as if she were a man. Eight years later, Mrs. Clinton talks regularly about being a mother and a grandmother, and she doesn’t shy away from embracing her potential to make history. She has also promised that as president she would advance policies that would help women, including doubling the child care tax credit, increasing the minimum wage and pushing for 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave. And yet Mrs. Clinton has found in her second presidential campaign that young women aren’t particularly moved by her promise to make history. Many of them voted instead for Mrs. Clinton’s primary opponent, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Thinking about her current campaign, Mrs. Clinton said in the transcript, “You know, I mean, I’m damned if I do, I’m damned if I don’t. ” | 1 |
BREAKING : AP (Finally) Calls Arizona For Trump! BREAKING : AP (Finally) Calls Arizona For Trump! Breaking News By Amy Moreno November 11, 2016
Arizona has finally been called for Donald Trump.
It took two days to get all the votes counted.
Arizona has 11 electoral votes. . @marthamaccallum : “The @AP just called #Arizona for @realDonaldTrump … the president-elect will receive the state’s 11 electoral votes.” pic.twitter.com/J7fGHmL515
— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 11, 2016 Amy Moreno is a Published Author , Pug Lover & Game of Thrones Nerd. You can follow her on Twitter here and Facebook here . Support the Trump Presidency and help us fight Liberal Media Bias. Please LIKE and SHARE this story on Facebook or Twitter. | 0 |
Dr. Zuhdi Jasser, founder and president of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy, joined SiriusXM host Raheem Kassam on Thursday’s Breitbart News Daily to talk about the aftermath of the London Bridge terror attack, and the future of Britain’s struggle against radical Islamic terrorism. [Kassam commiserated with Jasser about the difficulties of being a Muslim reformer in a media environment where stern criticism of Islam, even from Muslims, is treated like racism. Jasser said apologists for Islam’s excesses were “basically doing takfir on national television,” using the Muslim term for disinformation. “My response is, I’m proud not to be part of their Islamist community, but these guys talk about Muslims like we’re a gang,” he said. “Like they own the gang, and we can’t participate, when in fact they want to shut down free speech, they want to deny that we’re a diverse community. ” “When people say ‘why do these radical attacks keep happening?’ it’s because the free world refuses to treat Muslims like adults,” said Jasser. “They want to coddle the Muslim community, use them for partisan purposes and identity politics, and ignore all of the signs and precursors of radicalization — which are, by the way, the signs are hallmarks of the principles of our free society. ” “Equality of men and women, respect for free speech, a denial of conspiracy theories, ownership of who we are — all of these principles, which are basic principles of human rights, in order to coddle Muslims they allow the Islamic supremacists, the sharia supremacists to speak for our community,” he elaborated. “Meanwhile, they are basically telling Muslims like myself who love America, who want to stand up for our country, ‘Oh, go sit at the back of the bus. You don’t deserve any recognition. We’re going to let the men with the long beards and the apologists basically speak for your community.’ It’s bigoted. It is them who are the bigots. We are being told we don’t love our faith, when in fact it’s the tough love of Muslims like myself that really, I believe, should be honored in a free society,” said Jasser. Kassam asked if the wave of terrorist attacks was a direct result of allowing Islamists and their apologists to “dominate the conversation” at the expense of reformists like Jasser, sometimes equating reformist criticism with apostasy. “It definitely is,” Jasser replied. “ISIS, the Islamic State, is not only ISIS. Every one of the Islamic states of the 56 countries that form the Organization of Islamic Cooperation is based on a sharia state platform. That sharia state basically says that you need to follow the laws as determined by the clerics who define what is and is not Islam, what is and is not permitted speech. If you don’t fit in that construct, then you are not a Muslim. Therefore, how do you control that state? You control it by limited free speech and rejecting those who fall outside the confines of their theocracy. ” “People need to understand, political Islam’s goal is not to dominate countries, but to evangelize, spread their ideas globally and defeat secular states, defeat states,” he warned. “They divide the world into the land of Islam and the land of War. ” “We in the West, by virtue of not evangelizing liberty, being offensive in pushing back — not only against terror, which is a symptom, but against the theocratic ideology of political Islam — are being sheepish. Appeasing, if you will. By not pushing for our ideas of universal human rights, we have been basically unarmed, and we’re starting to see a sonic boom of the lack of assimilation,” he said. “Those within our society that are Islamists reject who we are. When Britain looks and says wow, there’s almost more jihadis from Britain going to Syria than there are Muslims loving Britain and serving in their own military — just look at the numbers. It should be 99 percent for one, serving in the British military, versus going to jihad. It is almost 50 to 50. That is why we’re losing this war,” said Jasser. Kassam asked how adherents of a Westernized Muslim could reconcile themselves to the portions of Koranic doctrine that conflict with Western ideals, such as freedom of speech. “That’s a great question, especially now in this month of Ramadan where we fast and reflect, and seek atonement and humility,” Jasser replied. “The Islam that I believe in and teach my kids is a personal faith. It’s not up to the government. It’s not up to the imam who is the teacher. I can talk to five, six imams and then make up my seventh decision, some different decision. ” “Remember, what people read as the Koran is interpretation. The only thing that is Koran is the Arabic. The battle over interpretation is, what are the original words in Arabic? How do we actually define them? Many of them are fake and intentionally misleading interpretations,” he argued. “The others that are about wars and battles, we need to separate and say, ‘You know what? Maybe it made sense in 620, 625 C. E. but we need to circumscribe those and say we no longer apply to today.’ You have to separate the historical part of the passages from applies to today,” he advised. “Muslims have done that with the rejection of polygamy that’s permitted, with the rejection of the cutting of hands for stealing, things like that. There’s a way to separate those things, and other ways to reinterpret. ” As a much more delicate example, Jasser noted there is a passage in the Koran about the permissibility of beating women, but he suggested it could be reinterpreted in a modern context as “going on strike” (i. e. separating from her) instead of physically “striking” her. “There are modern ways to reinterpret the exact same words in a more modern liberal way while staying true to the authenticity of the script,” he stressed, referring to two schools of Islam that reject modernization and insist on highly literal interpretations of the Koran. Breitbart News Daily airs on SiriusXM Patriot 125 weekdays from 6:00 a. m. to 9:00 a. m. Eastern. | 1 |
You Are Here: Home » Health News » Scientists Discover Exactly When a Woman’s Sex Drive Declines Scientists Discover Exactly When a Woman’s Sex Drive Declines Prev post Next post Sex is quite important to most middle-aged women, a fact established by a new study in the journal Menopause , which found that 75% of 1,390 middle-aged women reported sexual functioning to be moderately to extremely important. Women experience a notable decline in sexual function and sex drive approximately 20 months before and one year after their last menstrual period, and that decrease continues, though at a somewhat slower rate, over the following five years, according to a study led by a researcher at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center . Of note, in the natural menopause group the researchers found that race/ethnicity played a major role in the decline of sexual function, with African-American women experiencing a significantly smaller sex drive decline and women of Japanese descent experiencing a much greater decline when compared with white women. Key Sex Drive Study Findings
The study, published ahead of print in the online issue of Menopause: The Journal of the North American Menopause Society , also found that various factors that frequently co-occur with menopause have less direct influence on declining sex drive and sexual function than menopause itself.
“Sexual functioning in women declines with age, and there has been much debate about how much this is due to menopause, aging or other physical, psychological or social factors,” said the study’s lead author, Nancy Avis, Ph.D., professor of public health sciences at Wake Forest School of Medicine, part of Wake Forest Baptist. “Our findings support that menopause has a negative effect on sexual functioning in many women.”
Additionally, the study found that women who have a hysterectomy before the onset of menopause do not experience a marked decline in sexual function and sex drive immediately before undergoing the procedure but do so afterward, for as long as five years.
Common issues known to accompany menopause, such as vaginal dryness, depression, and anxiety, didn’t explain the impact on sex drive, the researchers say.
“Sexual functioning is an important component of women’s lives. More than 75 percent of the middle-aged women in the SWAN study reported that sex was moderately to extremely important to them when the study began,” Avis said. “It is important for women and their health care providers to understand all the factors that may impact women’s experience of sex in relation to both the natural menopausal transition and hysterectomy, and we hope our findings will contribute to better understanding in this area.” A 31 Year Old Was Sick Of Expensive Rent And High Costs. What He Did Took Guts… But Look Inside.
Most grown children have heard this question from their parents at some point in their lives: “If all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump too?” It’s a question that pushes us to think for ourselves. That question doesn’t inspire me, but this man in California does. Alek Lisefski is a web designer […] How Roundup Ready GMO Corn Is Made
Have you ever wondered how GMO corn is made? Roundup Ready Corn is genetically engineered corn that has had its DNA modified to withstand the herbicide glyphosate (the active ingredient in Monsanto’s herbicide Roundup). It is also known as “glyphosate tolerant corn.” Roundup Ready corn was first deregulated in the U.S. in 1997 and first […] Dead Bee’s – Monsanto Genetically Engineered Seeds Killing Off Honeybees
Back in the news.. It’s alarming…More honey bee’s are dying people… It’s Mosanto and the evil GMO crops to blame… Recent studies on epidemic death rates among honeybees are beginning to point fingers at genetically modified seeds produced by Monsanto. In 2012, an epidemic swept through commercial bee colonies killing up to 50% of the […] Where to buy NON-GMO certified foods
Purchasing organic and certified organic products means your buying foods that cannot intentionally include any GMO ingredients. Buying organic is key and another great way is to look for retailers supporting the “Non-GMO Project” verified seals. Shopping at retailers supporting this project will help you avoid GMO ingredients. Organic food regulations prohibit certain (potentially deadly) and […] Psychic Attacks and Protecting Yourself
by Mary Kurus – MKProjects.com Psychic attacks are defined as the manipulation of supernatural energies and forces. Psychic attacks occur when dark and negative energetic vibrations are sent from one individual to another individual or place creating disturbances in the energetic and physical bodies of the person or place. This negative energy can be called […] How To Cure A Sore Throat
by Editor – Everyday Roots A sore throat can be a royal pain in the uh…throat. Like blinking, we never notice how much we swallow until we start paying attention to it, and when it hurts like nobody’s business, it’s kind of difficult not to pay attention. But before you go getting down about how long […] The Lead Vaccine Developer Comes Clean So She Can “Sleep At Night”
Vaccine Developer Dr Diane Harper Comes Clean So She Can “Sleep At Night” Dr. Diane Harper was the lead researcher in the development of the human papilloma virus vaccines, Gardasil and Cervarix. She is the latest to come forward and question the safety and effectiveness of these vaccines. She made the surprising announcement at the 4th […] USDA Approves Toxic Meat Preservatives
Three food preservatives that have previously been prohibited for use in meat and poultry we’re just approved to be used again effective May 6, 2013. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA’s FSIS) says it has determined that sodium benzoate, sodium propionate and benzoic acid are “safe and suitable for use […] 5 Reasons Why You Should Not Eat Bread
by William Kennedy – gnet.org Bread is wrongly placed at the bottom of our food pyramid which gets passed around all our schools despite many respected health professionals claiming bread and other sources of grains are unnecessary and potentially harmful. Here are some alarming facts about bread. 1. Whole Grain Bread Can Spike Blood Sugar Levels […] Organic Food Industry Growing at Record Pace
The organic food industry is experiencing record growth as 2015 was the largest annual dollar gain ever for the organic industry! 2015 was a year of significant growth for the organic food industry despite the continued struggle to meet the seemingly unquenchable consumer demand for organic. Consumers are not just eating organic, they are incorporating more […] Can Dogs Really Smell Cancer?
Yes, dogs can smell cancer. They can even smell it “in situ”, or at stage zero. Let’s take a closer look at why dogs are even interested in smelling cancer in the first place. Why would a dog be interested in smelling cancer? There has to be something in it for them. Dogs have lived […] Toxic Fluoride Causes Disease
Ethan Huff – Natural News A recent study conducted by researchers from the State University of New York (SUNY) found that fluoride ingestion may be responsible for causing premature births. Presented to the American Public Health Association at its annual meeting, these findings ratchet up yet another detrimental consequence of ingesting this toxic poison that […] Choosing to be compassionate
Choosing to be compassionate is one of the most incredible things you can do… by Ben Kim – DrBenKim.com For most of the year 2000, I worked and lived at a fasting clinic in northern California where I spent time with many groups of eclectic guests from all over the world. I often tell my wife […] Fasting for three days can regenerate entire immune system, study finds
by Sarah Knapton – The Telegraph Fasting for as little as three days can regenerate the entire immune system, even in the elderly, scientists have found in a breakthrough described as “remarkable”. Although fasting diets have been criticised by nutritionists for being unhealthy, new research suggests starving the body kick-starts stem cells into producing new white blood […] Join For Free! Discover Little Known Health Secrets and Useful Tips For Healthy Living! First Name | 0 |
Organised crime is diversifying its activities as traditional drug smugglers are now expanding into the growing market of human trafficking, according to European Union police agency Europol. [Smuggling migrants across the Mediterranean is becoming big business as Italy saw its largest ever recorded number of migrants come into the country in 2016. According to Michael Rauschenbach, Director of the department for combating organised crime at Europol, smugglers make more money trafficking migrants than smuggling drugs and controlling prostitution rings, Deutsche Welle reports. “We have specific information that dangerous criminals draw more and more profit from human smuggling,” Mr. Rauschenbach said Wednesday. He said that people smuggling had become “a very lucrative business” as the money involved was higher and the risks lower for organised criminal gangs. The Europol department director noted the prices for smuggling migrants from North Africa, usually from Libya, to the coast of Italy had also gone up in recent years. One year ago, the cost for a migrant from a West African country to reach mainland Europe was between €3, 000 and €5, 000. Now, according to Rauschenbach, that amount may only cover one stage of the entire trip. In 2016, Europol was able to determine and identify some 15, 000 suspects who they believe are involved in the people trafficking trade. Some of the traffickers have been arrested in Italy, a number of them charged with some of the record numbers of drownings that have occurred over the past year on the Mediterranean. Some of the captured traffickers, many who originate from Africa, have given authorities and the public a glimpse into the horrific world of people smuggling. One man, in particular, became infamous in Italy after authorities discovered images on his mobile phone which depicted organ harvesting from migrants who could not pay their smuggling fees and even in some cases, cannibalism. The increased fees have put many of the migrants in a position of not being able to pay. For some who reach Libya it means returning back to West Africa, but for others, their fate can be much worse. Reports have shown that many children and women end up as sex slaves in Italy and as a result of the migrant crisis, thousands of prostitutes in the country have an African origin. Drugs dealing is another way for migrants to pay back their debt and has become common not only in Italy but also in countries like Austria where police note a large number of street dealers in the capital of Vienna have a West African background. | 1 |
Ten progressive judges in Virginia have decided that Muslims can ask judges to change the nation’s national security and immigration policies whenever prior campaign statements in democratic political elections can be described as unfair to Muslims living in America. [“To the extent that our review chills campaign promises to condemn and exclude entire religious groups, we think that a welcome restraint,” boasted the majority opinion, which was approved by 10 judges on the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and announced May 25. President Donald Trump’s Executive Order on Islamic migration “speaks with vague words of national security, but in context drips with religious intolerance, animus, and discrimination” from the 2016 election campaign, the judges insisted. However, a dissent approved by three judges highlighted the political ambitions and risks hiding behind the court’s declaration of support for the Islamic plaintiffs. “The danger of the majority’s new rule is that it will enable any court to justify its decision to strike down any executive action with which it disagrees,” says three dissent, which concluded: Unless corrected by the Supreme Court, the majority’s new approach, which is unsupported by any Supreme Court case, will become a sword for plaintiffs to challenge facially neutral government actions, particularly those affecting regions dominated by a single religion. Government officials will avoid speaking about religion, even privately, lest a court discover statements that could be used to ascribe a religious motivation to their future actions. And, in the more immediate future, our courts will be faced with the unworkable task of determining when this President’s supposed religious motive [in the 2016 election] has sufficiently dissipated so as to allow executive action toward these or other majority Muslim countries. The lawsuit by was brought by Muslim plaintiffs, backed up by a huge array of establishment progressive corporate lawyers, against President Trump’s Executive Order, which merely temporarily blocked or curbed Muslim immigration from six of countries around the world. The temporary block is intended to help officials institute new safeguards against attacks by the growing inflow of Muslim immigrants, refugees, and their future children, into an increasingly diverse, chaotic and divided nation. The judges’ deference to the Muslim plaintiffs comes after 16 years of deadly, repeated and destructive attacks on Americans motivated by the Islamic religion, starting on 2001. Since then, U. S. forces have gone to war in several countries to curb terrorism, and more than 101 people named after Islam’s primary have been arrested and convicted by domestic courts for various jihad and offenses. That bloody and violent record was important to voters in the 2016 election, where the subsequently elected president, Donald Trump, gained support by promising to reduce immigration of Muslims and to step up vetting of Muslim immigrants. Trump’s position was bolstered in June 2016 when the son of Muslim immigrants murdered 49 Americans at the Pulse nightclub in Florida. However, progressive Democrats, establishment Republicans, and business leaders strongly favor a continued inflow of cheap workers, extra consumers and likely future Democratic voters, regardless of the economic and security impact on Americans. In the dissent authored by Circuit Judge Paul Niemeyer, the three moderate judges scoffed at the 10 judges for ignoring prior Supreme Court guidance. The logic of the 10 judges’ decision, says the dissent, is that any future court: need only find one [campaign] statement that contradicts the stated reasons for a subsequent executive action and thereby pronounce that reasons for the executive action are a pretext … Moreover, the unbounded nature of the majority’s new rule will leave the President and his Administration in a clearly untenable position for future action. It is undeniable that President Trump will need to engage in foreign policy regarding nations, including those designated by the Order. And yet the majority now suggests that at least some of those future actions might also be subject to the same challenges upheld today. Presumably, the majority does not intend entirely to stop the President from creating policies that address these nations, but it gives the President no guidelines for “cleansing” himself of the “taint” they have purportedly identified … Finally, the new rule would by itself chill political speech directed at voters seeking to make their election decision. It is hard to imagine a greater or more direct chill on campaign speech than the knowledge that any statement made may be used later to support the inference of some nefarious intent when official actions are inevitably subjected to legal challenges. Indeed, the majority does not even deny that it employs an approach that will limit communication to voters. Instead, it simply opines remarkable that such chilling is “a welcome restraint. ” The Supreme Court surely will shudder at the majority’s adoption of this new rule that has no limits or bounds — one that transforms the [ ] majority’s criticisms of a candidate’s various campaign statements into a constitutional violation … It engages in its own review of the national security justifications supporting the Order and concludes that protecting national security could not be the President’s “primary purpose. ” As evidence, the majority points to the President’s level of consultation with national security agencies before issuing the Order the content of internal Department of Homeland Security reports the comments of former national security officials made in an amicus brief and its own assessment of the national security threats described in the Order … The majority’s intense factual inquiry is particularly inappropriate where the government’s secular purpose is related to national security — a subject, as the majority recognizes, on which we owe the executive significant deference … Unless corrected by the Supreme Court, the majority’s new approach, which is unsupported by any Supreme Court case, will become a sword for plaintiffs to challenge facially neutral government actions, particularly those affecting regions dominated by a single religion. Government officials will avoid speaking about religion, even privately, lest a court discover statements that could be used to ascribe a religious motivation to their future actions. And, in the more immediate future, our courts will be faced with the unworkable task of determining when this President’s supposed religious motive has sufficiently dissipated so as to allow executive action toward these or other majority Muslim countries. The Establishment Clause demands none of these unfortunate and unprecedented results. Read the court decision here. | 1 |
Colson Whitehead has long had a thing for the metaphoric possibilities of mechanized modes of transport, the more the better. His first novel, “The Intuitionist,” was set in the world of Manhattan elevator repair. His sophomore effort, “John Henry Days,” geeked out on the tunnels dug by that mythic man. But in his new novel, Mr. Whitehead grabs onto the most richly metaphoric conveyance of all: the Underground Railroad. That book, called simply “The Underground Railroad,” follows a slave named Cora as she escapes north via a literal network of underground tracks and trains. The novel had generated the biggest buzz of Mr. Whitehead’s career, even before Oprah Winfrey revealed on Tuesday that she had made it her latest book club pick. [ Michiko Kakutani’s review of “The Underground Railroad” ] Mr. Whitehead, 46, may be used to great reviews and enviable prizes, like the MacArthur Fellowship, the genius grant, which he received in 2002. But a few days before Ms. Winfrey’s announcement, he seemed a bit dazed by his impending ride into a bigger spotlight. “I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around how people are responding to the book,” he said during an interview in his home office in Greenwich Village. “I’m someone who just likes being in my cave and thinking up weird stuff. ” “The Underground Railroad” — published by Doubleday, with a first print run of 200, 000 copies — is written in a more straightforwardly realist mode than many of Mr. Whitehead’s books, which have tended toward premises, extended set pieces and jokey riffs. It begins with a harrowing depiction of life on a Georgia plantation around 1850, before taking off on a suspenseful journey through several different states with social systems that mash up racial terrors from decades far into the future. There is Whiteheadian weirdness — hints of strange eugenics experiments Friday night lynchings staged like vaudeville shows and a kitschy “living history” museum, where Cora a sugarcoated version of plantation life — but it creeps in slowly, with a subtlety that may send some readers to Google to check their memories of high school history. “I went back and reread ‘100 Years of Solitude,’ and it made me think about what it would be like if I didn’t turn the dial up to 10, but kept the fantasy much more ” he said. “I wanted it to be like the slave narratives I read, where you get a very contemplation of all these weird and horrible things that keep happening. ” The idea for the book came to Mr. Whitehead around 2000, when he had just finished “John Henry Days. ” “I had the thought, ‘What if the Underground Railroad were a real train? ’” he said. “I sat on the couch, thinking about it, but it seemed like it would require a lot of real research, and I just wasn’t up to it. ” Instead, he wrote a string of very different books, including a nostalgic novel (“Sag Harbor”) a zombie thriller (“Zone One”) and a account of competing in the World Series of poker (“The Noble Hustle”). In the poker book, Mr. Whitehead, who had recently gone through a divorce, styled himself as a hyperactively wisecracking depressive who had a good poker face because, as he put it in the first line, “I am half dead inside. ” In person, he comes off as friendly but guarded, and wary of the expectations put on an writer who publishes a big book about race and freedom in the era of Black Lives Matter. He mentioned a bookstore owner from the South who invited him to come down for “a frank talk about race. ” “I’m honored by the response to the novel, but I was like, ‘Can we just talk about the book? ’” he said. “I’m not a representative of blackness, and I’m not a healer. ” Still, he describes “The Underground Railroad,” which he began in earnest in the spring of 2014, as responding to a kind of inner pull. He was about to start another book with another “existential black dude narrator,” as he put it, but the Underground Railroad idea kept coming to mind. “I thought, why not write the book that really scares you?” he said. Mr. Whitehead dived into the subject, reading classic slave narratives like Harriet Jacobs’s “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl” and oral histories of former slaves gathered by the Works Progress Administration in the 1930s. Above his desk, next to an menu board with letters reading “Next — The Underground Railroad,” is a library with scholarly works by Eric Foner and Edward Baptist, Toni Morrison’s “Beloved,” a historical dictionary of slang and Michelle Alexander’s “The New Jim Crow. ” After he’d written 100 or so pages of the novel, he let himself watch the movie “12 Years a Slave,” but turned it off in the middle. “Seeing the movie really devastated me,” he said. “I could read about slave atrocities for days and days, but watching actors go through it was almost too much. I felt really messed up about what I was writing. ” Where books like “John Henry Days,” which centers on a cheesy festival celebrating a new John Henry postage stamp, have looked at the past through a distancing ironic lens, “The Underground Railroad” goes right into the heart of the historical experience. “Reading the book, I thought, he’s written his ‘Beloved,” said the poet and critic Kevin Young, who has been close with Mr. Whitehead since their undergraduate days at Harvard. “He really conjures up the ghost of slavery and embodies it in a way that is deeply historically accurate. But the book also has these amazing leaps of imagination that help us think about slavery not just in the past, but in the present. ” Mr. Whitehead, who is married to Julie Barer, a literary agent, grew up in Manhattan, where his parents ran an executive recruiting firm. He went to mostly white private schools, but spent summers in an beach enclave in Sag Harbor, N. Y. (the inspiration for the novel) where his maternal grandfather, who owned a chain of funeral homes in New Jersey, built a house from materials he hauled out each weekend in his car. Mr. Whitehead said he knew little about his own ancestors’ experiences in slavery. His mother’s family, he said, had included free black tavern owners in Virginia. His father’s family was in Florida by the early 20th century, but how it got there was largely lost “in the mists of time. ” Having children of his own — his daughter is 11, his son almost 3 — made slavery more viscerally, and sometimes terrifyingly, real. “Thinking about the loss of a child, about how my own children would feel if they saw me beaten to death in front of them, made writing this book very different than it would have been if I had tried it when I was 30,” he said. Mr. Whitehead has generally not been one for celebration of heroes. He and a friend once played around with a satirical website called Nat Turner Overdrive. The day after Barack Obama’s election in 2008, he published a riff of an in The New York Times hailing it as a historic victory for “Skinny Black Guys” like Sammy Davis Jr. Michael Jackson and himself. In “The Underground Railroad,” he talks about racial progress, and its limits, in a more direct, even prophetic way. Near the end, a character is seen heading for St. Louis — or, perhaps, Ferguson, Mo. readers might find themselves thinking. Mr. Whitehead said he saw his closing pages as optimistic, but also realistic. “I find the last pages very hopeful,” he said. “But still, wherever we go, we’re still in America, which is an imperfect place. That’s the reality of things. ” | 1 |
Share on Twitter
Chris Hansen has made a career of entrapping alleged child predators online and then busting them on camera when they arrive at a home where they think a young child is waiting.
But in the latest episode of Hanson’s show “ Crime Watch Daily ,” the host claims he got an unexpected shock when he learned the identity of the latest alleged predator.
“I honestly did not realize it until I walked out. And then I suddenly recognized him because we used to commute into the city every day together from Connecticut,” Hansen told The Daily Mail .
The man is accused of traveling to a home where he believed he would be meeting a 13-year-old boy. When the alleged predator saw Hansen, he blurted out, “Oh s**t. No, Chris!” Image Credit: “Crime Watch Daily”/Daily Mail
“What are you doing here?” Hansen asked.
The man then made a run for it. He was later allegedly found with gay porn and condoms in his car. When he was questioned by police, he claimed he thought the boy was 18, not 13, citing his bad eye sight. He argued he would never meet a 13-year-old boy, calling it “disgusting.” Image Credit: “Crime Watch Daily”/Daily Mail
“I could not believe it,” Hansen told The Daily Mail , grappling with the fact that she shared a train and even carried on conversations with the alleged predator.
The man later confirmed Hansen’s story and suggested they were “friends.”
The new episode of “ Crime Watch Daily ” will air on Friday. | 0 |
Print Email http://humansarefree.com/2016/11/report-eating-raw-weed-prevents-bowel.html Cannabis is taken in different forms all over the world, while being primarily smoked, being eaten raw has been proven to provide incredible heath benefits, whilst also being non-psychoactive, therefore more appealing to a wider of range of people. Marijuana can be described as of of the new range of superfoods, it contains over 400 chemical compounds containing beneficial vitamins, essential oils, and acids. Experts such as Dr. William Courtney have come to call weed a 'dietary essential' Marijuana contains extremely high concentrations of cannabinoid acids which it has been discovered are essential for cell function. Cannabinoid Acids The two main cannabinoid acids that have been studies so far are THCa and CBDa. If these acids are heated, through smoking, vaping, or cooking cannabis then they begin to break down into different chemicals, they become degraded into psychoactive THC and cannabinoid CBD . This process is called decarboxylation, or “decarbing.” and it describes breaking down the acids into the form in which they become active. While active THC and CBD have their own health benefits, a downside is that the human body can only cope with a certain amount of these activated cannabinoids. Dr. Courtney explains : “We have a series of cannabis strains called ACDC. ‘AC’ stands for alternative cannabinoid, which is the CBD acid molecule, which has come into focus lately as being very important as an anti-inflammatory. “And ‘DC’ stands for dietary cannabis. […] If you do heat it, then your dose is around 10mg. And if you don’t heat it, if it’s raw, then your dose is around one to 1-2,000mg.” When eaten raw, the body is able to process much larger amounts of THCa and CBDa, and it can then convert these acids into essential nutrients through its metabolism. Cannabinoid acids have been linked to the prevention of chronic diseases. Endocannabinoid deficiencies thought to be linked to illnesses such as: Migraine Glaucoma Fibromyalgia Dr. Courtney has suggested that large doses of raw CBDa and THCa are much more effective in their raw form to the effect of: Anti-inflammatory properties Anti-ischemic properties (restricted blood flow in the body) Amino Acids Cannabis contains a large amount of essential amino acids, like other essential fatty acids our bodies don't produce essential amino acids of their own accord, so we need to introduce them through our diet. Amino acids are essential in that they help cells to function properly, to repair damaged tissue, to maintain structure and to transport nutrients around the body. Marijuana as a Nutritional Powerhouse Antioxidant In 2003, CBD was patented by the US. government after discovering the cannabinoid had amazing antioxidant and neuroprotective properties. These antioxidants are beneficial in preventing cell damage, thus reducing illness and disease. In the research leading up to the patent, the found that CBD was a more powerful antioxidant than both vitamins C and E. As you can take in large quantities of CBD via raw cannabis, you can introduce a vast amount of antioxidants to your body very easily. Dr. Courntney has suggested consuming raw via juicing or blending, making a marijuana smoothing with other vegetables such as parsley or cilantro. Here are some other recipes to try if you want to enjoy the benefits of raw cannabis: Reference: http://organicandhealthy.org Dear Friends, HumansAreFree is and will always be free to access and use. If you appreciate my work, please help me continue.
Stay updated via Email Newsletter: Related | 0 |
Nestle to launch new non-GMO products ... How shocked will Monsanto be?
Thursday, October 27, 2016 by: Vicki Batts Tags: GMOs , Nestle , Monsanto (NaturalNews) One of the food industry's most prominent players recently announced that they will be expanding their line of non-GMO products, due to the ever-increasing customer demand for clean food. Nestle may have wowed consumers with their choice, but it may make some waves with their good friend, Monsanto ."The company is broadening its product offerings to give consumers more options with no GMO ingredients and identifying these products with the SGS-verified 'no GMO ingredients' claim," the food giant stated on Tuesday."Nestle USA understands that consumers are seeking choice and many prefer to select products with no GMO ingredients," they declared.Of course, this is not Nestle's first move towards GMO-free products. In April, Nestle announced that they would be removing GMO ingredients from six of their top-selling ice cream products, as well. The company states it is trying to evolve along with consumer demands. It is great to see that companies are beginning to realize that consumers want options; no one wants to be forced to buy GMO products.It is easy to want to applaud Nestle for their decision to continue to expand their line of non-GMO products. However, it is also clear that this company is doing so out of their own financial interests – not because they care about what people are eating. Organic, GMO-free foods are the newest trend, and smart manufacturers are beginning to see that they will not win anyone over by insisting that GM, pesticide-laden food products are safe. "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," is a philosophy Nestle has clearly taken to heart.Nestle is not an angelic company, even if they have decided to start serving up "GMO-free" options. Just three years ago, they donated millions of dollars to prevent and oppose GMO labeling in Washington state, along with Monsanto and other biotech firms. Truth Out reports that on October 18, 2013, the Grocery Manufacturers of America disclosed that several of their largest, most powerful players silently donated large sums of money to oppose Initiative 522. This bill would have required grocery items containing GMO ingredients to be labeled as such. The group chose to voluntarily release the names of the silent donors, after Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a lawsuit against their concealment of corporate donors.Nestle was among the top three highest contributors, and donated a cool $1.5 million to keep GMO ingredients under wraps and off product labels. Nestle also made a large donation to oppose similar legislation in California the year before, in 2012. The bill ultimately failed, after Big Food and Big Biotech joined forces and together raised a staggering $46 million to prevent its passing. And we're supposed to believe they care?The controversial history of Nestle doesn't end with their consistent financial support of GMO labeling opposition efforts. It is a corporation that is wrought with wrongdoings and corrupt practices. Look no further than their outright theft of water in California.Given that the coastal state is currently being plagued by a devastating drought, you might be shocked to learn that just last year Nestle pumped a disturbing 36 million gallons of water out of one of the state's water sources, known as Strawberry Creek. Peter Gleick, president of the Pacific Institute and author of Bottled and Sold: The Story Behind Our Obsession with Bottled Water , estimates that Nestle is making millions of dollars in this way."They're converting a public resource into private profit," he told Los Angeles Magazine .The most shocking thing is that their permit to pump water from the creek expired in 1988. The forest service has allowed Nestle to gouge the creek for water at will, so long as they continue to pay a minuscule access fee. While bottled water accounts for only a small fraction of California's water use, the overall environmental impact of what their practices are doing to a drought-stricken state have yet to be examined.Nestle has been subject to countless other controversies, including human rights violations, and has been host to many environmental and product safety issues.To put it simply: Nestle may be trying to win over customers with their non-GMO products, but they don't deserve to. Monsanto may be shocked, but only because Nestle is still one of their own. Sources: | 0 |
By Tony Cartalucci
Myanmar’s defacto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi of the National League for Democracy (NDL) political party, has paved her time since coming to power earlier this year with both irony and hypocrisy. She has not only illegally declared herself “leader” of the Southeast Asian state in contravention of its constitution, she has also embarked on an iron-fisted purge of her political opponents identical to the one she fought against as she struggled to seize power to begin with.
During elections earlier this year, Myanmar’s constitution prevented Suu Kyi from holding the nation’s highest office due to her inordinate amount of time overseas, her status of having been married to a foreign, and her children’s dual citizenship. Instead of adhering to the law, her party once in power, simply contrived an entirely new post for her, State Counsellor of Myanmar, which makes her the “defacto leader” of Myanmar.
Canada’s The Globe and Mail in an article titled, “Stéphane Dion says Aung San Suu Kyi is the ‘de facto’ leader of Myanmar,” would note that Canada’s government recognized this legal side-stepping, stating:
Dion called Suu Kyi, now Myanmar’s foreign minister, “the de facto national leader” of her country “because they have a strange rule that if you have married somebody who’s not of the country, you cannot be the leader of the government and of the state.”
Suu Kyi, the internationally recognized democracy advocate, is barred from becoming president because her late husband was British, as are her two sons. The rule was crafted during Myanmar’s decades of military rule, which Suu Kyi fought against during years of house arrest before finally prevailing last fall.
In essence, she is unelected, and illegally holding power. For a woman who’s Western backers – particularly in the United States and United Kingdom – have held her up as a champion for democracy and the rule of law, she and her party’s first act upon taking power was trampling both. The Inhumane Humanitarian
Another myth built up around Nobel Peace Prize laureate Suu Kyi by the West has been her advocacy for “human rights.” Her advocacy for human rights, however, appears only to extend out to protect only as far as her immediate political allies are concerned. For groups beyond this self-serving political protection, and particularly regarding her political opponents, she and her NDL are just as eager to jail, crush, or kill political opponents as they claimed the ruling military government had been.
In addition to escalating violence targeting the nation’s Rohingya’s population, several activists online have been sent to jail for “insulting” the ruling government and Western-backed media fronts and organizations.
Myanmar’s Eleven Media Group (EMG) in its article, “Facebook offender brought to court for insulting Suu Kyi,” attempted to distance what Suu Kyi and her political supporters had once called draconian censorship as now, a simple matter of enforcing the law. It would state:
A Facebook user named Zaw Zaw (aka Nga Pha) was brought to the North Dagon Township court on October 24 to face prosecution for his defamatory posts about State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi.
He has been charged under Section 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law.
“He’s being sued for defamatory writing and photos about the State Counsellor [posted on Facebook],” said plaintiff Nay Myo Kyaw, a 34-year-old resident of North Okkalapa Township.
Around 50 people showed up at the hearing wearing shirts affiliated with a group called the Network of Supporters of the Rule of Law. They shouted: “You deserved it for insulting a good person.”
The article also admits:
The Myawady Township Court sentenced Aung Win Hlaing (aka A Nyar Thar), the first man to be prosecuted under the current government, for defamatory posts on Facebook about President Htin Kyaw, to nine months in jail after he was convicted under Section 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law.
Aung Myint Tun (aka Ko Pho Htaung), a member of the National League for Democracy, is still facing legal action under the same law for the wording of a resignation letter.
Another man named Yar Pyay was arrested and is being prosecuted for creating a fake Facebook account under the name of Nay Myo Wai, the chairman of Peace and Diversity Party.
Hla Phone was also arrested and is being prosecuted for defamatory posts on Facebook about the Commander-in-Chief.
EMG – ironically awarded for its work in opposing the previous military-led government by Reporters without Borders – would also admit that it itself had taken advantage of Myanmar’s laws to silence its own critics, claiming:
Eleven Media Group (EMG) also filed complaints about repeated defamatory posts on Facebook against the group. Though EMG lodged complaints against film director Mike Tee, who is the owner of a Facebook account named Than Tun Zaw, and another Facebook user named Myat Maw for offensive posts about the group and its staff, the legal process has yet to begin. EMG lodged the complaints on January 27 and March 31 this year.
One would expect such a tidal wave of abuse – as defined by the West in regards to media, governance, and censorship around the world – to be met with sweeping condemnation from the West’s various human rights advocacy organizations including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and a no doubt embarrassed Reporters Without Borders – yet the silence is as deafening as it is telling. Taking Over Where Accused Dictators Left Off
The West’s champions of democracy, rule of law, and human rights in Myanmar appears to have simply taken over right where Suu Kyi and her NDL party had claimed the military-led government left off. And despite the overt nature of Suu Kyi’s breaches of Western standards of “democracy” and “human rights,” the US is on track to lift all sanctions from Myanmar as Suu Kyi and her government open the nation, its people, and its resources to exploitation by Western corporations.
The overt nature of both the West’s and Suu Kyi’s hypocrisy illustrates that “democracy,” “rule of law,” and “human rights” are merely facades behind which the West and its proxies wield their power – hiding behind such principles rather than truly upholding them. And in reality, such behavior undermines these principles more than any overt abuse by an openly tyrannical regime ever could – because genuine advocates thus become associated with hypocrites like the Western governments supporting the current regime in Myanmar, their faux-nongovernmental organizations aiding and abetting the regime, and proxies like Suu Kyi and her NDL themselves.
International audiences must keep this example of hypocrisy in mind as the West attempts to overturn other governments in Southeast Asia and beyond under similar pretexts and using similar rhetoric – supporting supposed “pro-democracy” and “pro-human rights” advocates who have every intention of trampling both upon seizing power.
Tony Cartalucci, Bangkok-based geopolitical researcher and writer, especially for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook” . | 0 |
Donald Trump’s inauguration proceedings this Friday officially confirmed his new job as 45th President of the United States. [Here are some of the best images captured during the ceremony and its aftermath. | 1 |
are u dumb | 0 |
As global markets reel after an vote by Britain to sever ties with Europe, investors are again expecting central banks to ride to the rescue. And that may be the problem. Or so believe a number of investors and economists who worry that another round of central bank intervention in the markets will compound the sense of alienation, frustration and anger at global elites that encouraged a majority of Britons to opt for leaving the European Union. Traditionally, market participants have tended to cheer central bank activism. In times of financial panic, wholesale bond buying, negative interest rates and disbursing cash directly to consumers (the weapon in the central banker’s armory) have been seen as easy policy substitutes for governments unwilling or incapable of taking action themselves. But, as the world’s leading central bankers finished a weekend of brainstorming in Basel, Switzerland, as to what their next move might be, some feared that this time around they might do more harm than good. “People say that central bankers have not done enough, but they have done too much already,” said Stephen Jen, a former official at the International Monetary Fund who now manages a hedge fund in London. Global central bankers had already planned to convene at the annual meeting of the Bank for International Settlements, a clearinghouse and research shop that provides a private forum for central bankers to gather and exchange views. But the British referendum results and the sharp fall in the markets that followed brought an extra urgency to the meeting. On Saturday, Agustín Carstens, the head of Mexico’s central bank and chairman of the bank’s policy group that monitors the global financial system, said that committee members had “endorsed the contingency measures put in place by the Bank of England and emphasized the preparedness of central banks to support the proper functioning of financial markets. ” Adding to global political tensions were parliamentary elections on Sunday in Spain, where the party Podemos was expected to continue its recent run of electoral success. While the in stocks on Friday was very sharp, market participants said over the weekend that they were heartened that major market makers were able to absorb the selling fairly well. Playing a central role were funds, which at one point on Friday accounted for close to 50 percent of overall trading volume in stocks. That is an extraordinary statistic, given that the funds were largely unknown a decade ago as an investment option for investors. The ability for investors to quickly and successfully buy and sell stocks and bonds, the crucial advantage that funds have over mutual funds, is seen by regulators as critical in times of acute financial stress. Part of the conundrum for central bankers is that the recent is not the result of an event like Lehman Brothers going bankrupt in September 2008, which provided authorities with an unassailable excuse to intervene. Lehman’s failure caused markets to seize up and financial institutions to stop dealing with each other. But when the crises that rock global finance are social and political, it becomes more awkward for central bankers to defend any form of extraordinary intervention. And that is what worries analysts, who for some time now have been concerned that interventions by central banks were distorting markets by making them less liquid and creating anomalies such as what currently exists in Japan. There, the nation’s central bank owns 34 percent of the country’s government bonds and is one of the top 10 shareholders in 90 percent of the companies listed on the stock exchange, according to data from Bloomberg. “Central banks have done everything to markets,” said Julian Brigden of Macro Intelligence 2 Partners, an independent research company based in Vail, Colo. that advises large money management firms on global investment themes. “What makes you think they won’t want to do more?” Mr. Jen, the hedge fund manager, scoffed at the notion that the extraordinary central bank interventions of recent years were designed to stamp out deflationary threats and spark an increase in prices and economic activity in stagnant economies in Europe and Japan. “We have plenty of inflation, it’s just asset price inflation,” he argued, referring to elevated equity, bond and housing markets that have been one consequence of these policies. “People can’t live in cities anymore, and they are grumpy about their jobs. ” In Britain, this dynamic has been particularly acute. Thanks to aggressive central bank policies, house prices in London are among the most expensive in the world, yet the weekly average wage of 470 pounds, or about $632, is still £20 lower than it was before the financial crisis, according to the Resolution Foundation, a British research organization. Interestingly, one of the most vocal critics of central bank overreach has been the Bank for International Settlements itself. For years now, two senior economists at its research arm, Claudio Borio and Hyun Song Shin, have been arguing via speeches and papers that artificially low interest rates have created pernicious asset bubbles in equity and housing markets in the developed world and debt frenzies in emerging markets like China and Brazil. These views were highlighted again on Sunday in Basel with the presentation of the bank’s annual report. In a speech, Jaime Caruana, the bank’s managing director, said that extremely low interest rates were a threat to global financial stability as they “depress risk premia and stretch asset valuations. ” The result, Mr. Caruana contended, was the threat of a “loss of confidence in policy making” and “unrealistic expectations about growth and the ability of present policies to lift global growth. ” While couched in platitudes, Mr. Caruana’s message was clear enough. Persistent central bank interventions have not only created dangerous distortions, they have added to a sense of worldwide cynicism that these measures have not accomplished their central aims: lifting economic growth and increasing wages. It is worth noting that Mr. Caruana is familiar with asset bubbles: He was the head of Spain’s central bank a decade ago when reckless lending among the country’s financial institutions resulted in a boom and eventual bust of Spanish property prices. But, Mr. Brigden said, central bankers will have a harder time justifying an intervention when the markets are going haywire because of an election upset somewhere. Of course, bashing central bankers is always a popular and easy pastime for politicians, economists and investors alike. It is also true that central bankers in Britain, Europe, Japan and the United States have consistently said that their actions have been forced by the unwillingness of politicians and governments to act themselves. “Monetary policy cannot do it alone,” said Daniel C. Dektar, a bond investor at Amundi Smith Breeden, a global asset manager. “People have been left behind, which is creating sentiment in just about every democracy in the world. You would think that at some point governments would get the message. ” | 1 |
Comments
Director James Comey of Federal Bureau of Investigation stirred up a hornet’s nest with his decision to interfere in our election by giving House Republicans more ammunition to smear Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton over her “email scandal”– and not even everyone in his own agency is happy about it.
The head of the FBI’s Agent Association (FBIAA), Reynaldo Tariche , resigned tonight to work in the private sector in protest over Director Comey’s decision to use the FBI as a political tool on behalf of Donald Trump. “Importantly, we will not be used for political gains, and any implication that the FBI Special Agents are unwilling or incapable of performing effective investigations is simply false.'”
And quit he should. Comey’s behavior has been most unbecoming as the head of a federal law enforcement agency who is obligated to remain impartial for the good of our nation. The FBI has no idea what the emails that “may be pertinent” that were discovered on disgraced Congressman Anthony Weiner’s laptop actually contain; there was no need to alert Congress and doing so so close to an election is an obvious move to try to tip the scales in favor of the most unqualified and morally abhorrent candidate our nation has ever seen.
Read his letter here:
Dear Members,
After 26 + years of service for the greatest Law Enforcement organization in the world I am retiring from the FBI today. I have accepted a position in the private sector within the Banking Industry. It has truly been a pleasure and honor to serve with the men and women of the FBI in the relentless pursuit of protecting the American people from Domestic and International threats. I will be eternally grateful to have worked side by side with the most dedicated individuals who carry out the FBI mission 24 hours a day seven days a week.
My two terms as President of the FBIAA have been spent in a whirlwind of travel, meetings and other important work on behalf of the members of the FBI AA. It has truly been an amazing journey to witness the incredible work being done on a daily basis by the FBI around the world. Equally impressive has been to see how the FBI family helps each other in times of need including; deaths, family illnesses, natural disasters or any unforeseen tragedy. I am confident that incoming FBIAA President Tom O’Connor, the National Executive Board, and our entire FBIAA team will continue the work of advancing the mission of this incredible organization.
The FBIAA’s mission includes defending the work and integrity of FBI Special Agents. As a non-partisan organization, comment on political campaigns or candidates is atypical for us, and we intend to keep it that way. Yet, in this intensely partisan election cycle, we find our work—our integrity—questioned as it relates to the investigation of Secretary Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server. Thus, honoring our mission, we will continue to remind federal officials and the public that the FBI Special Agents who undertook this investigation did so with an unwavering focus on complying with the law and the Constitution, as we do with all of our investigations. Importantly, we will not be used for political gains, and any implication that the FBI Special Agents are unwilling or incapable of performing effective investigations is simply false.
May God bless the FBI family and may God continue to bless the United States of America | 0 |
ISTANBUL (AFP) — The attacker who shot dead 39 people on New Year’s night at an Istanbul nightclub has been identified as an Uzbek jihadist who belongs to the extremist Islamic State (IS) group, Turkish press reports said. [There had been confusion over the identity of the attacker — who remains on the run — with reports initially suggesting a Kyrgyz national and then a Uighur from China. It said he has the code name of Ebu Muhammed Horasani within the IS extremist group. There was no official confirmation of the report. The killer slipped into the night after killing 27 foreigners and 12 Turkish nationals at the Reina nightclub in Istanbul just 75 minutes into 2017. Despite an intense manhunt, he remains on the run, with some reports saying that he is still believed to be in Istanbul. Turkish police had last week released images of the alleged killer, including a chilling silent video he purportedly took in central Istanbul with a selfie stick. Uzbekistan clamped down on militant Islam after the fall of the Soviet Union under the secular rule of its leader Islam Karimov who died in 2016. IS militants from Central Asia, including Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, as well as from Russia’s Muslim regions of Dagestan and Chechnya are believed to have played a key role in the triple suicide bombings and gun attack at Istanbul’s main airport in June. The IS extremist group claimed the Istanbul nightclub attack, the first time it has ever clearly claimed a major attack in the country despite being blamed for several strikes including the airport bombings. | 1 |
DENVER — A cancer patient nicknamed the Steel Bull got his death sentence on a gloomy March Wednesday in 2015. He was 47, his given name Jason Greenstein, but he had earned the moniker from his oncologist for his stubborn will during more than four years of brutal chemotherapy and radiation treatment — all of which had failed. That Wednesday, March 4, his left side bulged with 15 pounds of tumor, doubling in size every few weeks. Lumps of Hodgkin’s lymphoma cells swelled in his lungs, making it hard to breathe, impinging a nerve and nearly paralyzing his left hand. Yet Mr. Greenstein, ever the optimist, was not prepared for his doctor’s frank words when he displayed his latest symptom: tumors along his right jawline, the first spread of cancer to that side. The oncologist, Dr. Mark Brunvand, said he excused himself to the hallway to gather his emotions. When he returned a moment later, he looked Mr. Greenstein in the eye. “You are going to die,” he remembers saying. “And because you’re my friend, it’s my job to make you as comfortable as possible. ” Behind the doctor stood Mr. Greenstein’s case manager, Poppy Beethe, crying. In a note to himself afterward, Dr. Brunvand described further treatment as “more toxic than beneficial,” and unwarranted “unless he has dramatic response. ” What happened next qualified as well beyond “dramatic response. ” A few days later, Mr. Greenstein agreed to try a drug called nivolumab that was being tested for Hodgkin’s. It dripped into his veins, just like those chemotherapy treatments. But this time, there were no harsh side effects. And this time, the outcome was very different. Three mornings later, Mr. Greenstein woke up to shock from his girlfriend. “Jason, you’ve got to see this!” she said. She looked at his back, where the cancer had so bulged that she affectionately called him Quasimodo. “Your tumors have shrunk!” In an eye blink, after years of agonizing and futile treatment, Mr. Greenstein’s cancer would disappear. Within weeks after that first treatment, his doctors declared him in remission. It was a result that put him at the vanguard of a new generation of cancer treatment called immunotherapy that casts into sharp relief the harshness of how we have long treated cancer and the less grueling way we might. Immunotherapy’s aim is to prompt the immune system, which is often stymied by cancer, to attack tumors with the zeal and sophistication that it attacks other diseases. The concept, at least in a primitive form, stretches back more than a century, but only in recent years have therapies been developed that show its true promise — and, for now, its limitations. In that astonishing span of six weeks, few of immunotherapy’s successes seemed as dramatic as Mr. Greenstein’s. “His story is not just one in a million,” Dr. Brunvand marveled, but “one in 20 million. ” On a personal level, this stunning medical reversal was not entirely surprising to Mr. Greenstein’s family and friends. Jason and I were in a tight circle of high school buddies in Boulder, Colo. To us, he has always been a fierce competitor who attacked the world with passion, humor and unbridled optimism — along with, at times, inattention to detail and procrastination. Life was always an adventure, including Jason’s death match against cancer, which he allowed me to chronicle. Then again, cancer is not easily beaten. And for all its promise, immunotherapy for now brings more disappointment than marvel for the majority of patients. The end of this story, sadly, allows no easy ebullience. Not for medicine. Not for Jason. When the symptoms hit in 2010, Jason was living in Las Vegas, where he had started a company called Green Man Group. It sold trinket boxes to casinos for use as gifts. Jason went to both law and business school and was obsessively entrepreneurial. He loved selling and schmoozing with customers on a instead of clock. Visiting casinos, he crisscrossed the country in an aging Chrysler Concorde, often with Skoal tobacco packed in his lip. He had come from tobacco users his dad had smoked cigars, his mom cigarettes since age 14. It was unseasonably warm on May 10 when Jason, driving back to Las Vegas from Arizona, felt his throat tickle and his head hurt. His legs had felt heavy for several months. Several days later, he attacked the symptoms with a homegrown remedy: He downed most of a of Bud Light Chelada. “It didn’t work out too well,” he said with a laugh, looking back. He felt worse in the morning. My first memories of Jason come from the dugout. We were teammates for years in Little League. I was a player and Jason a perennial — center fielder and shortstop, leadoff hitter. He had the same gifts in football and basketball. Not just that — he was funny, a good student and a good guy. His junior high nickname was Golden. But all was not golden for Jason. One morning in eighth grade, our friend Tom Meier found him in the locker room, sobbing. Jason had learned the day before that his dad, Joel, at 46, had been told he had colon cancer. “Here was the strongest person I knew, and he was absolutely shattered,” Tom said. Over the years, Jason’s friends and family would debate the extent to which his father’s cancer and eventual death, in the summer before our senior year of high school, unmoored Jason. He had been Jason’s first coach and chief advocate, attending every game, often chomping a stogie, stoic and . In the weeks before he died, he watched Jason, a point guard, help lead Boulder High School to a state basketball championship game. After his father’s death, Jason’s grades tanked such that he had to explain them to Occidental College, where he was to play basketball and baseball. A manic side of Jason became more prominent. He never settled down with a family, and his businesses came and went. His inimitable passion remained, while his sometimes faltered. “Dad was his guru I don’t know how to describe it,” Guy Greenstein, Jason’s older brother, and one of five siblings, told me. “When my dad was gone, he was left to flounder a bit. ” After Jason first felt sick, one doctor diagnosed mononucleosis, but two courses of antibiotics did not work. Each week, he felt more rundown, until one day in August, he could not get off the couch. “It reminded me of my dad,” Jason reflected. “He had never done that before, and then he started lying on the couch. ” At summer’s end, a family doctor told him he had Hodgkin’s. It was the best case of a scenario — Hodgkin’s has a 95 percent cure rate. No problem, Jason thought, I’ll get it cured and move on. In 1990, Dr. Brunvand, was climbing Mount McKinley when he and his group got a distress call from 19, 600 feet. Seven Japanese climbers needed rescue in winds. Dr. Brunvand, then huddled at 17, 000 feet, helped bring six of the climbers back alive. His tenacity made him a perfect match for Jason, and he knew what he would be putting Jason through. Dr. Brunvand, 60, a veteran in his field, likens traditional chemotherapy to napalm. It kills not just cancer but other rapidly dividing cells, like the ones in the gut, hair follicles and mouth. “When you have cancer, you spread napalm on it and burn everything to the ground. ” Jason received his first treatment in September 2010 in Denver. A thin nurse with a kind smile hooked him to an IV. He tried to read, and felt like he did not belong with the line of sick people in chemo chairs. Into his veins dripped a cocktail called A. B. V. D. that has been in wide use since the 1980s. After chemo, he described feeling “the sickest you’ve ever felt but multiplied by 10. ” In spring 2011, after a brief remission, Jason became one of the unlucky few with Hodgkin’s his cancer recurred in his chest wall. He moved to the next level of treatment, “salvage” chemotherapy with the acronym ICE. Side effects: diarrhea, bruising, bleeding, hair loss, sore mouth. That winter, he got a round of chemotherapy followed by a transplant. Before the transplant, he met a psychologist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute, and, to prove his zest for life, Jason played air guitar and sang to her, wearing sunglasses. But when the psychologist, Andrea went to see him in the hospital after his transplant, he was slumped in a hoodie. “He looked like this shadow sitting there. He looked up with his eyes, and not his chin, and said: ‘This is terrible,’” she recalled. This was what I, and others, began to see. Cancer had not beaten Jason yet treatment was starting to. When we talked by phone, he sometimes wept about his pain, exhaustion, pill regimen — 15 medications or more daily, an alphabet soup of drugs, from acyclovir to fight infection to Zofran for nausea. Once, he showed up at the hospital after an drive from Las Vegas with his red blood cell count so depleted (20 percent of normal) it could have killed him en route. He crawled to the elevator, where he was discovered, and then, while being wheeled away, joked with Dr. Brunvand that he had been in Las Vegas spending money on “hookers and blow. ” “It’s hard not to love a guy who sees God with one eye and the seedy side with the other,” Dr. Brunvand said. In fall 2013, Jason was in remission again, finally, he said, feeling like himself. Then, the morning after his beloved Denver Broncos were crushed in the 2014 Super Bowl by the Seattle Seahawks, Jason’s phone rang. It was Ms. Beethe, his case manager. “Jason, I have some bad news. ” Another relapse, tests showed. “I didn’t know what was worse,” Jason grimly joked later, “getting cancer again, or the Broncos losing. Any true Bronco fan would say it’s a tie. ” Jason came up with an analogy to describe being a patient in a fight with cancer in his analogy, healthy people live in a village on a beautiful Tahitian island while cancer patients float around it in canoes. “The doctors pull on the rope and pull me back to the pier. I can still visit the people in the village. But I’m drifting further and further,” Jason said. “All around me are coffins — the people who died from cancer. I’m waiting for my canoe to turn into a coffin. ” A few weeks after the Super Bowl, his friends planned a weekend for him in Boulder to, without putting so fine a point on it, say goodbye. Tom came from Minnesota and I from San Francisco. Jason, true to form, showed up to his own party two hours later than everyone else, having made a marathon drive from Las Vegas. At the end, we all said goodbye in the parking lot. I assumed I’d never see Jason again. Jason battled for another year, until March 2015, when he received his death sentence and his family met with Dr. Brunvand to plan hospice care. Without much hope, they agreed to take a flier on a drug called nivolumab, part of the new frontier of immunotherapy. Nivolumab had been approved for advanced melanoma in 2014. An article published that year in The New England Journal of Medicine reported the drug’s remarkable effect on relapsed Hodgkin’s patients, albeit in just 23 people. Dr. Brunvand’s team managed to get a dose, though it was not yet on the market for Hodgkin’s, through a program called “compassionate use. ” Dr. Brunvand expected little. The evidence was scant, Jason so far gone. “When I start to pray, I know it’s time to let go,” Dr. Brunvand said. “I’d started to pray for Jason. ” Immunotherapy is based on the fact that once the immune system recognizes cancer and gears up to fight it, something remarkable happens: The immune system is rendered helpless. Scientists believe that the cancer sends signals to put the brakes on our which are the ones that fight disease. A crucial way the tumor tricks is by displaying on its surface a protein that is recognized by the through a receptor called . It stands for “programmed death. ” It tells the to, in effect, . This might seem like a serious design flaw. After all, why would immune cells commit suicide? It turns out that the PD system is essential to survival: It is against the immune system attacking our own bodies (see: lupus, Crohn’s disease, rheumatoid arthritis). Sometimes we want our bodies to halt the system cancer takes advantage of this survival mechanism. As Jason slogged through chemo, researchers around the country were experimenting with developing a inhibitor for cancer so as to unleash the immune system. This concept was at the heart of the nivolumab treatment that Jason was about to receive. On March 13, Jason’s girlfriend, Beth Schwartz, drove him to his first treatment. On the ride, he was not thinking about surviving, but about having his pain managed well enough to see his nephew Jack play that night in the state high school basketball tournament. Midafternoon, Jason sat in a recliner in the bleak, boxy room. A nurse in a blue gown cleaned his central line, an intravenous port in Jason’s chest. She gave him steroids. Jason couldn’t move his left arm or close his hand, the nerve so squeezed by Hodgkin’s. She hung a translucent bag from an IV pole. It held saline and 200 milligrams of nivolumab. The treatment lasted an hour. At least there were no side effects this was not scorched earth but tinkering. Then Jason went to his nephew’s game and sat with a former high school teammate, Dan Gallagher, who thought: “He looks so bad, I wonder if he’ll make it through the night. It was like looking at his dad again. ” Three mornings later, when Beth exclaimed that Jason’s tumor had shrunk, she wondered if she might be imagining things. So she decided to take pictures each day of his back. The evidence startles. On Day 1, his left half still looks like the Incredible Hulk, a veritable watermelon protruding. If you squint, you can see it shrinking by Day 3. Then, at two weeks, he looks slender, normal definition having returned. He had more nivolumab. Then he went for a appointment. What happened to my cancer, he asked Dr. Brunvand, using an expletive. “I watched the moon landing in 1969, and it was a similar sense of awe,” Dr. Brunvand said. “It was that same sense we’d crossed a threshold,” he said, adding, “I’d just seen the power of the immune system. ” This is when I started taking notes. How could this be possible? Was this, indeed, a miracle? I spoke to Dr. John Timmerman, an oncologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who was among the researchers on the paper in The New England Journal of Medicine. I told him Jason’s story, and he said, “Wow. ” But he also said, “I have seen some pretty remarkable cases similar to this. ” In 2013, Dr. Timmerman treated a woman “near death’s door,” in such pain she could hardly move or sit down. She took the drug. The results: “A miracle,” he said. “The next time she came in, two weeks later, she popped up on the exam table on her butt and my jaw dropped. ” In almost the same breath, Dr. Timmerman offered a warning. “We’re in the honeymoon period,” he said, and for one crucial reason: “Patients are responding. They are also relapsing. ” Sometimes, tumors return in a few months or a year, sometimes not. “I stay awake at night trying to get us beyond the honeymoon,” Dr. Timmerman said. “How do we leverage this into a cure?” Dr. Brunvand, who had worked in his first AIDS clinic in 1986, hopes immunotherapy leads to fruitful, lives for cancer sufferers just as antiretroviral drugs have for people with H. I. V. In summing up his hopes for immunotherapy in cancer, he says, simply, “Think Magic Johnson. ” If Dr. Brunvand is right, some future Jason might not only survive but also not be driven to the edge by the treatment itself. For now, though, life on medicine’s cutting edge is no bowl of cherries, not with your survival at stake. Jason relapsed in August 2015. On Aug. 13, a resplendent Colorado day, Jason pulled up to my ’ house in Denver, where I was visiting. He was a broken man. He moved slowly, hunched at his shoulders, wore and looked to me like a character in “Dallas Buyer’s Club. ” We sat in the backyard. Jason sobbed. “No matter how many times they tell you you’ve got cancer, you don’t get used to it,” he said. He mourned the toll it had taken on his family, especially on his mother, who supported him emotionally and financially. “I think it would be easier for everyone if I was dead. ” He asked for ice for his dry lips. But would you believe it? Jason wasn’t done. He went in for radiation treatment, and soon appeared to have beaten the cancer back again. “It’s awesome. I’m so psyched, dude,” he told me on Oct. 5. He was thinking of new business ventures, including working with a cancer doctor and researcher to develop an immunotherapy company. “I’m living proof!” In early April this year, I called him to check in. Jason did not pick up or call back. After several days, I called Dr. Brunvand. “Jason’s relapsed,” he said. “Ten days ago. ” He had been shoveling snow at his mother’s house when he felt his back go out. In excruciating pain, he went for an M. R. I. and other tests. They found evidence of Hodgkin’s in a vertebrae in the middle of his back and in the lining of his spinal column. Soon, his seventh vertebrae fully collapsed, an agonizing compression fracture, due in part to years of therapies. “The treatment is killing him,” his mother, Catherine, told me when I arrived to visit on April 19. Jason sat in a recliner in the living room, in such agony he could hardly move. Heavy pain medications made him delirious. The next day, it took three nurses to gently lower him into a wheelchair outside the hospital, where he got a course of immunotherapy to treat Hodgkin’s in his spinal column. On May 17, the Food and Drug Administration approved nivolumab for patients with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in cases like Jason’s, where the patient has relapsed or the cancer has progressed after a transplant. Jason got his last dose of the drug in late May. On June 1, he got the results of his latest scan. The tests showed no trace of cancer. But he was still in the hospital, virtually immobile, recuperating from surgery to stabilize his back with rods, and facing complications from coming off pain medications and steroids. On June 21, I woke to a text from Dr. Brunvand. “Jason has taken a dramatic turn for the worse. ” Jason, who had been in the hospital for more than 70 days rehabilitating from the surgery, had suddenly stopped talking, his eyes closed most of the time, glassy and not home when open. Flummoxed, Dr. Brunvand could not find anything on brain or blood scans, ultimately deciding it was encephalopathy, meaning his brain had temporarily shut down to flush out toxins. Too many drugs for too many years. Specifically, Dr. Brunvand reasoned, the awakening of his immune system had led to inflammation in the nervous system. Jason was moved to intensive care, where he had a feeding tube, catheter, intubation. Dr. Brunvand ordered a spinal tap to give him steroids to combat the inflammation. But frankly, we all braced ourselves. “I think he’s lost the fight in him — and why wouldn’t he?” his mom told me. I sent a text for his sister to read to him: “Richtels send their love. ” Over the next few days, Jason remained enveloped, struggling not to be pulled under by toxins, as he had been doing for years against cancer. On July 4, his girlfriend was sitting by his side in the intensive care unit when his eyes popped open. “He’s awake!” she texted me. Happy Independence Day. He voraciously ate soup and applesauce. He watched the Colorado Rockies game. After a few days, the doctors told him his back was healing and they expected to send him home within weeks. On July 7, Jason texted a response to the note I’d sent while he was in the I. C. U. “Thanks,” he wrote. “Better and trying for a comeback. ” | 1 |
Persian Gulf This photo shows anti-regime protesters taking part in a demonstration in the village of Musalla, Bahrain, on November 11, 2016.
Bahrainis have taken to the streets in several villages and towns in support of senior Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim.
On Friday, a mass protest was held near Imam Sadiq mosque in the village of Diraz, the hometown of the cleric.
The demonstrators condemned Manama’s continued ban on holding Friday prayers in the village.
On June 20, Bahraini authorities stripped the 79-year-old cleric of his citizenship, less than a week after suspending the al-Wefaq National Islamic Society, the country’s main opposition bloc, and dissolving the Islamic Enlightenment Institution, founded by Qassim, and the opposition al-Risala Islamic Association.
People in the villages of Shakhoura and Abu Saiba also demonstrated in solidarity with Sheikh Qassem and the political detainees despite tightened security measures.
Similar anti-regime demonstrations were held in the villages of Ma'ameer, Karbabad, Shahrakan, Sehla al-Janoubia and Musalla as well as the town of A'ali and the island of Nabih Saleh.
The protesters also condemned the Al Khalifah regime for its persecution of the Shia community.
Thousands of anti-regime protesters have held numerous demonstrations in Bahrain on an almost daily basis ever since a popular uprising began in the country on February 14, 2011. The protesters demand that the Al Khalifah dynasty relinquish power.
Scores of people have lost their lives and hundreds of others sustained injuries or got arrested as a result of the regime’s crackdown. Loading ... | 0 |
Your vote doesn’t count; it all comes down to the electoral votes which all media is hiding from you! Find out why Clinton is ahead of Trump and may likely win October 31, 2016 Screen-capture: NBC News/YouTube ( INTELLIHUB ) — What the American people need to realize is that their vote literally does not count. That’s right there is absolutely no point in voting as an individual because the election results are only based on electoral votes.
Your vote is only a poll, to let the Establishment know what brand you like best, brand A or brand B, that’s all, just like Jordan Maxwell pointed out in the documentary film SHADE .
You see, 270 electoral votes are needed for either candidate to win.
Right now, according to a website tracking the electoral votes, Hillary Clinton is in the lead with 258 electoral votes, compared to Donald Trumps 157 and there are only 127 remaining on the table for grabs. So you can see that as of yet, Hillary Clinton has the Electoral College wrapped up as expected. This is how Bush won the 2002 election. | 0 |
This skyrocketing price increase is a direct result from several insurers either scaling back their participation or withdrawing completely. Those private insurance corporations who stay are now enjoying a near monopolistic control. And monopolies always jack up prices. It happened with the railroads over a century ago, it's been occurring with the airlines and telecoms, and now health insurance.
For years it's been believed that Dubya was the worst president in the modern era; the implication being that Obama, even with all his faults, is somehow better. I think after 8 long years of his awful reign that we can safely say that he's just as bad as Dubya, worse in some cases (bombed more countries than Dubya, far bigger assault on civil liberties, etc). Expect things to get worse, far worse, for the mass of people when Hillary gets elected. | 0 |
In a medium stock pot, heat the coconut oil for 30 seconds on medium heat. Step 2 Add the cumin seeds and stir until they start to sputter. Then add the onions and cook for another minute, and then, add the tomatoes, stir and cook for a few more minutes until the tomatoes soften. Step 3 Add the rest of the ingredients and stir together. Cover the pan and simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes to keep from burning. Step 4 Ladle the soup into 4 serving bowls and enjoy! Leftover stew can be stored in air-tight container and saved for lunch the next day. Nutritional Analysis Per Serving | 0 |
Since moving downtown, the Whitney Museum of American Art has grown up, thanks to a larger, dashing new building, more ambitious exhibitions and new responsibilities brought by rising attendance and membership. No surprise, its biennial has grown up, too. Perhaps less expected: So has the art in it. This show’s strength and focus make it doubly important at a time when art, the humanities and the act of thinking itself seem under attack in Washington. The 2017 Biennial, the first held in the expansive Renzo structure on Gansevoort Street, is an adult affair: spatially gracious to art and visitors alike, and exceptionally good looking, with an overall mood of easy accessibility. My first thought: It needs a little more edge. Yet this show navigates the museum’s obligations to a broader public and its longtime audience with remarkable success. Organized by Christopher Y. Lew, the Whitney’s associate curator, and Mia Locks, an independent curator, it has some immature inclusions and other letdowns. But once you really start looking, there’s edge all over the place. The show spotlights 63 artists and collectives working at the intersection of the formal and the social, and in this it announces a new chapter of political art — though one already brewing in small museums, galleries and studios. Many of these artists confront such American realities as income inequality, homelessness, misogyny, immigration, violence, hatred and biases of race, religion and class. But they are equally committed to the artistic exploration of media and materials, and to the creation of bold and strange things to see and think about. Important messages are conveyed through perception. Take Henry Taylor’s gripping history painting of Philando Castile dying in the passenger seat of his car in a St. Paul suburb, having just been shot by a policeman whose gun, arm and uniform are visible through the car window. We are inside the car, in the driver’s seat, bearing witness with Diamond Reynolds, Mr. Castile’s girlfriend, as she his mortal injury on a cellphone. Mr. Castile, a school cafeteria manager, has the noble head of a Greek bronze, complete with a jawline beard and an eye whose flat whites the Greeks would have made from silver or alabaster inlay. His shirt is spattered with paint, not blood. Mr. Taylor’s style is harsh but it doesn’t overplay. Samara Golden’s “The Meat Grinder’s Iron Clothes” is a dystopian combination of mirrors and eight miniature interiors — including some upside down — that create endless kaleidoscopic reflections of class conflict. Overlooking the Hudson River, it includes a drab office full of computer stations, an aspirational Upper East Side living room and some merging of hospital and prison featuring pink wheelchairs and filthy toilets. The melding of pleasure and horror it can elicit would have delighted Georges Bataille, the radical philosopher for whom “truth has only one face: that of a violent contradiction. ” This Biennial follows the lead of Kerry James Marshall’s painting retrospective at the Met Breuer last fall, which set a high standard for social engagement sustained by formal ambition. This presentation is also an important bookend to the 1993 Biennial, a raucous, untidy show unforgettable for the issues it threw in viewers’ faces — and for often overly didactic, hectoring and visually dry art. The current Biennial reflects the emergence of artists committed to political subject matter but unwilling to limit themselves artistically or to lecture viewers. Mr. Marshall, who presides here in absentia, has lots of company. Some of the breathtaking openness and diversity of contemporary art is evident in this show’s participants and its range of media — from painting, which is plentiful and mostly but not entirely figurative, to digital and art. Nearly half are female, and half nonwhite its demographics argue that not only do black lives matter (along with Hispanic, Asian, Muslim and immigrant lives) they are essential to our quality of life — physical, emotional, cultural, linguistic, economic, educational, environmental. The show is promising from the start, in the lobby, which is festooned with 10 opulently embroidered and appliquéd banners by Cauleen Smith, a Chicago artist whose work is also in the film program. Serious yet melodramatic, they contrast statements of stark deprivation (“I Cannot Be Fixed”) with images of exposed hearts weapons burning eight balls broken pencils and a large, injured eye, conjuring faith, superstition, violence and thwarted expression. The intensity grows in the gallery off the lobby, where Rafa Esparza, of Los Angeles, has inserted “Figure Ground: Beyond the White Field,” a magical circular room (and floor) made of adobe bricks. It is in, but not of, the museum, and Mr. Esparza has invited five artists not officially in the Biennial to exhibit their work here, most notably Beatriz Cortez, whose “Cairn,” assembled from large chunks of volcanic rock, is a fragile balancing act that speaks volumes about the precariousness of life today. The two main floors of the show, five and six, each begin with a large figurative painting. On the fifth floor, Dana Schutz’s “Elevator,” commissioned by the museum, is a weak, scattered reprise of a smaller, better painting in her last gallery show. Two smaller Schutz works here are stronger: “Shame,” a study in contorted female and especially “Open Casket,” based on a famous photograph of Emmett Till, young, murdered and disfigured, in his coffin. Ms. Schutz doesn’t picture his wounds as much as the pain of looking at them. On the sixth floor, the opener is Mr. Taylor’s ambitious “Ancestors of Ghenghis Khan With Black Man on Horse,” a canvas. It lacks the clarity of the Philando Castile painting (whose furious title is “The Times Thay Aint a Changing, Fast Enough! ”) or “The 4th,” a canvas of a black man at a backyard grill that has the heft of an official royal portrait from centuries past. The large gallery that Mr. Taylor’s paintings share with Deana Lawson’s meticulous photographs is one of the show’s best. Like Mr. Taylor, Ms. Lawson addresses the dangers, contradictions and cultural richness of living in America as a black person. She does so by extending the staged efforts of photo artists like Jeff Wall and Stan Douglas but with slightly smaller, more insistent color images. Showing black people at home, they imply the ties and tensions of family and friendship and smolder with quiet determination. The ambiguous “Sons of Cush,” revolving around two men, a tiny baby and a fist full of cash, is as full of symbols as a Renaissance painting. The show is punctuated with other smart, mutually enhancing pairings. On the fifth floor, the colorful paintings of Shara Hughes push natural forms toward feverish abstraction using the Fauves and early American modernists like Charles Burchfield. These analog visions sync up with the digital ones, directly adjacent, of Anicka Yi’s “The Flavor Genome. ” This gorgeous video alternates between the Amazon rain forest and a pristine lab to tell a fictive story of “bioprospecting” in the name of global consumerism. On the Hudson side of the sixth floor, Jessi Reaves’s alternately raw and beautiful hybrids of found furniture and sculpture provide both seating and ingenious commentaries on design, modernism and waste. Their snarling energy is matched by their neighbors: the creepy coagulations of color, plastic, resin, drawing and grommets that form the paintings of KAYA, a collaboration consisting of the artists Kerstin Brätsch and Debo Eilers. Some artists approach the unvarnished bluntness of the 1993 Biennial, with complexity. “A Very Long Line” — a video installation by the collective Postcommodity involving blurry images of tall fences shot from a moving car — takes over the walls of a small gallery, capturing the viewer in a noisily rattling cage. When you learn that the fences are on the Mexican border, the piece becomes a visceral metaphor for the experience of feeling, or being, trapped, that is now the fate of so many undocumented immigrants. Jordan Wolfson’s “Real Violence” provides a view of a brutal assault — real violence that many Americans rarely see. Horrible to watch, it should at least shock almost anyone into a better understanding of how scarring it is to witness physical savagery. “Real Violence” finds an apt foil in the discombobulated sculptures of Kaari Upson in the same gallery: urethane casts of severely damaged couches shades of red, silver and pink that suggest bodies at once powerful and pathetic. Impressively, the show’s éminence grises are showing some of the best work of their careers. Larry Bell contributes “Pacific Red II,” a majestic line of six large volumes made from progressively lighter or darker sheets of red laminated glass that combines East Coast and West Coast Minimalism as never before. The weird symbolism in Jo Baer’s paintings fuse the grays of her early Minimalist abstractions with visions of Irish myths and monuments. Other efforts deserving attention include the bravura abstract paintings of Carrie Moyer, among her best, and the gritty figurative ones of Celeste . The choreographer Maya Stovall offers videos of modern dance on Detroit sidewalks, vividly juxtaposing art and life. Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s video “The Island,” an unlikely combination of fact and fantasy, revisits the tiny Malaysian island of Pulau Bidong, which sheltered tens of thousands of Vietnamese refugees who fled their country in the 1970s and ’80s. Pope. L’s enormous room covered inside and out with a careful grid of embellished slices of baloney, embodies his usual sarcasm, even if the point about population breakdowns remains obscure. Oto Gillen’s fugal show “New York, 2015 — ” documents the denizens of our sanctuary city’s public spaces — homeless people, food vendors, police officers, bike messengers — presenting a combination of striving and defeat (and surveillance). Providing contrast are shots of the luminous nocturnal beauty of skyscrapers under construction that will do nothing to succor the lives below. At the other end of the exhibition, Asad Raza’s “Root sequence. Mother tongue” brings brief respite: 26 young, often flowering trees facing the flickering light of the city. At a moment when a new president threatens to wipe out the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities, this exhibition makes an exciting, powerful case for art. As seen here, art illuminates the diversity on which this country’s greatness stands and — through its mysterious alchemy of beauty and reality, tragedy and joy — inspires us to think, know our better selves and fight back. 1. What’s playing during Jordan Wolfson’s violent demonstration? A Hebrew prayer or blessing sung upon the lighting of the candles during Hanukkah. 2. How many times is Donald J. Trump’s name mentioned? Twice. 3. How many artists not chosen by the curators are exhibiting in the show? A total of 42, in installations by Rafa Esparza (5) John Riepenhoff (7) and Occupy Museums (30). 4. How many of the 63 artists live in Los Angeles or New York City? 38. 5. How many of the New Yorkers live in Brooklyn? About 11. 6. What is the classroom on the fifth floor? It’s a working classroom, set up by the Puerto Rican artist Chemi to serve students of the Lower Manhattan Arts Academy on the Lower East Side. The students come to the museum for lessons the school displays work from Biennial artists. 7. What’s with those raggedy circles drawn on the wall of each floor? The exhibition graphics were inspired by the Biennial catalog design by Tiguere Corporation, in San Juan, P. R. which includes circles with slashes as a element. The graphics appear on floors that include Biennial works. The single slash means “this floor has some Biennial works” and the double slash or X means “this entire floor has Biennial works. ” 8. Why are cheap foam Statue of Liberty crowns in the gift shop? It’s an addition from Puppies Puppies, the pseudonymous artist also responsible for a performance on the eighth floor: On weekends, a performer dressed as the Statue of Liberty appears on the Whitney’s highest balcony. | 1 |
Thursday 27 October 2016 by Davywavy Destruction of Walk Of Fame star leaves Donald Trump down to his last six Horcruxes
Stabbing a copy of The Art Of The Deal with a Basilisk’s tooth is the next step to eliminating Donald Trump, according to experts this morning.
Donald Trump howled in agony and demanded a flask of serpent’s milk to help him recover some strength after the destruction of his first Horcrux on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame yesterday.
Trump, whose unusually-styled hair is believed to hide a face on the back of his head, is understood to have concealed fragments of his soul in multiple receptacles in an attempt to protect himself from defeat in the forthcoming election.
Fragments are believed to be hidden in places as diverse as the fabric of Trump Tower, a pussy he grabbed without warning in 2003, and Mike Pence’s unnaturally shining white head of hair.
The last Horcrux is believed to be the one national poll which has shown him in the lead. If destroyed, this would cause his organisation to fail and his acolytes, known as the Debt Eaters for their habit of bankruptcy, to disband.
“The Orange Lord is not concerned by this petty attack,” said a spokesman for the Trump campaign.
“Only a cowardly child would act like this, and Donald challenges his attacker to meet him in debate where he shall win, and win, and win again.”
To show he meant business, Trump took off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves to threaten anyone who would wish him harm.
However when Trump handed his jacket to his spokesman to hold, the spokesman cried ‘Dobby’s Free!’, and vanished. Get the best NewsThump stories in your mailbox every Friday, for FREE! There are currently | 0 |
In Hillary's America, email server scrubs you
Obama transfers his Nobel Peace Prize to anti-Trump rioters
Democrats blame Hillary's criminal e-mail server for her loss, demand it face prison
Afraid of "dangerous" Trump presidency, protesters pre-emptively burn America down to the ground
Clinton Foundation in foreclosure as foreign donors demand refunds
Hillary Clinton blames YouTube video for unexpected and spontaneous voter uprising that prevented her inevitable move into the White House
Sudden rise in sea levels explained by disproportionately large tears shed by climate scientists in the aftermath of Trump's electoral victory
FBI director Comey delighted after receiving Nobel Prize for Speed Reading (650,000 emails in one week)
U.N. deploys troops to American college campuses in order to combat staggeringly low rape rates
Responding to Trump's surging poll numbers, Obama preemptively pardons himself for treason
Following hurricane Matthew's failure to devastate Florida, activists flock to the Sunshine State and destroy Trump signs manually
Tim Kaine takes credit for interrupting hurricane Matthew while debating weather in Florida
Study: Many non-voters still undecided on how they're not going to vote
The Evolution of Dissent: on November 8th the nation is to decide whether dissent will stop being racist and become sexist - or it will once again be patriotic as it was for 8 years under George W. Bush
Venezuela solves starvation problem by making it mandatory to buy food
Breaking: the Clinton Foundation set to investigate the FBI
Obama captures rare Pokémon while visiting Hiroshima
Movie news: 'The Big Friendly Giant Government' flops at box office; audiences say "It's creepy"
Barack Obama: "If I had a son, he'd look like Micah Johnson"
White House edits Orlando 911 transcript to say shooter pledged allegiance to NRA and Republican Party
President George Washington: 'Redcoats do not represent British Empire; King George promotes a distorted version of British colonialism'
Following Obama's 'Okie-Doke' speech , stock of Okie-Doke soars; NASDAQ: 'Obama best Okie-Doke salesman'
Weaponized baby formula threatens Planned Parenthood office; ACLU demands federal investigation of Gerber
Experts: melting Antarctic glacier could cause sale levels to rise up to 80% off select items by this weekend
Travel advisory: airlines now offering flights to front of TSA line
As Obama instructs his administration to get ready for presidential transition, Trump preemptively purchases 'T' keys for White House keyboards
John Kasich self-identifies as GOP primary winner, demands access to White House bathroom
Upcoming Trump/Kelly interview on FoxNews sponsored by 'Let's Make a Deal' and 'The Price is Right'
News from 2017: once the evacuation of Lena Dunham and 90% of other Hollywood celebrities to Canada is confirmed, Trump resigns from presidency: "My work here is done"
Non-presidential candidate Paul Ryan pledges not to run for president in new non-presidential non-ad campaign
Trump suggests creating 'Muslim database'; Obama symbolically protests by shredding White House guest logs beginning 2009
National Enquirer: John Kasich's real dad was the milkman, not mailman
National Enquirer: Bound delegates from Colorado, Wyoming found in Ted Cruz’s basement
Iran breaks its pinky-swear promise not to support terrorism; US State Department vows rock-paper-scissors strategic response
Women across the country cheer as racist Democrat president on $20 bill is replaced by black pro-gun Republican
Federal Reserve solves budget crisis by writing itself a 20-trillion-dollar check
Widows, orphans claim responsibility for Brussels airport bombing
Che Guevara's son hopes Cuba's communism will rub off on US, proposes a long list of people the government should execute first
Susan Sarandon: "I don't vote with my vagina." Voters in line behind her still suspicious, use hand sanitizer
Campaign memo typo causes Hillary to court 'New Black Panties' vote
New Hampshire votes for socialist Sanders, changes state motto to "Live FOR Free or Die"
Martin O'Malley drops out of race after Iowa Caucus; nation shocked with revelation he has been running for president
Statisticians: one out of three Bernie Sanders supporters is just as dumb as the other two
Hillary campaign denies accusations of smoking-gun evidence in her emails, claims they contain only smoking-circumstantial-gun evidence
Obama stops short of firing US Congress upon realizing the difficulty of assembling another group of such tractable yes-men
In effort to contol wild passions for violent jihad, White House urges gun owners to keep their firearms covered in gun burkas
TV horror live: A Charlie Brown Christmas gets shot up on air by Mohammed cartoons
Democrats vow to burn the country down over Ted Cruz statement, 'The overwhelming majority of violent criminals are Democrats'
Russia's trend to sign bombs dropped on ISIS with "This is for Paris" found response in Obama administration's trend to sign American bombs with "Return to sender"
University researchers of cultural appropriation quit upon discovery that their research is appropriation from a culture that created universities
Archeologists discover remains of what Barack Obama has described as unprecedented, un-American, and not-who-we-are immigration screening process in Ellis Island
Mizzou protests lead to declaring entire state a "safe space," changing Missouri motto to "The don't show me state"
Green energy fact: if we put all green energy subsidies together in one-dollar bills and burn them, we could generate more electricity than has been produced by subsidized green energy
State officials improve chances of healthcare payouts by replacing ObamaCare with state lottery
NASA's new mission to search for racism, sexism, and economic inequality in deep space suffers from race, gender, and class power struggles over multibillion-dollar budget
College progress enforcement squads issue schematic humor charts so students know if a joke may be spontaneously laughed at or if regulations require other action
ISIS opens suicide hotline for US teens depressed by climate change and other progressive doomsday scenarios
Virginia county to close schools after teacher asks students to write 'death to America' in Arabic
'Wear hijab to school day' ends with spontaneous female circumcision and stoning of a classmate during lunch break
ISIS releases new, even more barbaric video in an effort to regain mantle from Planned Parenthood
Impressed by Fox News stellar rating during GOP debates, CNN to use same formula on Democrat candidates asking tough, pointed questions about Republicans
Shocking new book explores pros and cons of socialism, discovers they are same people
Pope outraged by Planned Parenthood's "unfettered capitalism," demands equal redistribution of baby parts to each according to his need
John Kerry accepts Iran's "Golden Taquiyya" award, requests jalapenos on the side
Citizens of Pluto protest US government's surveillance of their planetoid and its moons with New Horizons space drone
John Kerry proposes 3-day waiting period for all terrorist nations trying to acquire nuclear weapons
Chicago Police trying to identify flag that caused nine murders and 53 injuries in the city this past weekend
Cuba opens to affordable medical tourism for Americans who can't afford Obamacare deductibles
State-funded research proves existence of Quantum Aggression Particles (Heterons) in Large Hadron Collider
Student job opportunities: make big bucks this summer as Hillary’s Ordinary-American; all expenses paid, travel, free acting lessons
Experts debate whether Iranian negotiators broke John Kerry's leg or he did it himself to get out of negotiations
Junior Varsity takes Ramadi, advances to quarterfinals
US media to GOP pool of candidates: 'Knowing what we know now, would you have had anything to do with the founding of the United States?'
NY Mayor to hold peace talks with rats, apologize for previous Mayor's cowboy diplomacy
China launches cube-shaped space object with a message to aliens: "The inhabitants of Earth will steal your intellectual property, copy it, manufacture it in sweatshops with slave labor, and sell it back to you at ridiculously low prices"
Progressive scientists: Truth is a variable deduced by subtracting 'what is' from 'what ought to be'
Experts agree: Hillary Clinton best candidate to lessen percentage of Americans in top 1%
America's attempts at peace talks with the White House continue to be met with lies, stalling tactics, and bad faith
Starbucks new policy to talk race with customers prompts new hashtag #DontHoldUpTheLine
Hillary: DELETE is the new RESET
Charlie Hebdo receives Islamophobe 2015 award ; the cartoonists could not be reached for comment due to their inexplicable, illogical deaths
Russia sends 'reset' button back to Hillary: 'You need it now more than we do'
Barack Obama finds out from CNN that Hillary Clinton spent four years being his Secretary of State
President Obama honors Leonard Nimoy by taking selfie in front of Starship Enterprise
Police: If Obama had a convenience store, it would look like Obama Express Food Market
Study finds stunning lack of racial, gender, and economic diversity among middle-class white males
NASA: We're 80% sure about being 20% sure about being 17% sure about being 38% sure about 2014 being the hottest year on record
People holding '$15 an Hour Now' posters sue Democratic party demanding raise to $15 an hour for rendered professional protesting services
Cuba-US normalization: US tourists flock to see Cuba before it looks like the US and Cubans flock to see the US before it looks like Cuba
White House describes attacks on Sony Pictures as 'spontaneous hacking in response to offensive video mocking Juche and its prophet'
CIA responds to Democrat calls for transparency by releasing the director's cut of The Making Of Obama's Birth Certificate
Obama: 'If I had a city, it would look like Ferguson'
Biden: 'If I had a Ferguson (hic), it would look like a city'
Obama signs executive order renaming 'looters' to 'undocumented shoppers'
Ethicists agree: two wrongs do make a right so long as Bush did it first
The aftermath of the 'War on Women 2014' finds a new 'Lost Generation' of disillusioned Democrat politicians, unable to cope with life out of office
White House: Republican takeover of the Senate is a clear mandate from the American people for President Obama to rule by executive orders
Nurse Kaci Hickox angrily tells reporters that she won't change her clocks for daylight savings time
Democratic Party leaders in panic after recent poll shows most Democratic voters think 'midterm' is when to end pregnancy
Desperate Democratic candidates plead with Obama to stop backing them and instead support their GOP opponents
Ebola Czar issues five-year plan with mandatory quotas of Ebola infections per each state based on voting preferences
Study: crony capitalism is to the free market what the Westboro Baptist Church is to Christianity
Fun facts about world languages: the Left has more words for statism than the Eskimos have for snow
African countries to ban all flights from the United States because "Obama is incompetent, it scares us"
Nobel Peace Prize controversy: Hillary not nominated despite having done even less than Obama to deserve it
Obama: 'Ebola is the JV of viruses'
BREAKING: Secret Service foils Secret Service plot to protect Obama
Revised 1st Amendment: buy one speech, get the second free
Sharpton calls on white NFL players to beat their women in the interests of racial fairness
President Obama appoints his weekly approval poll as new national security adviser
Obama wags pen and phone at Putin; Europe offers support with powerful pens and phones from NATO members
White House pledges to embarrass ISIS back to the Stone Age with a barrage of fearsome Twitter messages and fatally ironic Instagram photos
Obama to fight ISIS with new federal Terrorist Regulatory Agency
Obama vows ISIS will never raise their flag over the eighteenth hole
Harry Reid: "Sometimes I say the wong thing"
Elian Gonzalez wishes he had come to the U.S. on a bus from Central America like all the other kids
Obama visits US-Mexican border, calls for a two-state solution
Obama draws "blue line" in Iraq after Putin took away his red crayon
"Hard Choices," a porno flick loosely based on Hillary Clinton's memoir and starring Hillary Hellfire as a drinking, whoring Secretary of State, wildly outsells the flabby, sagging original
Accusations of siding with the enemy leave Sgt. Bergdahl with only two options: pursue a doctorate at Berkley or become a Senator from Massachusetts
Jay Carney stuck in line behind Eric Shinseki to leave the White House; estimated wait time from 15 min to 6 weeks
100% of scientists agree that if man-made global warming were real, "the last people we'd want to help us is the Obama administration"
Jay Carney says he found out that Obama found out that he found out that Obama found out that he found out about the latest Obama administration scandal on the news
"Anarchy Now!" meeting turns into riot over points of order, bylaws, and whether or not 'kicking the #^@&*! ass' of the person trying to speak is or is not violence
Obama retaliates against Putin by prohibiting unionized federal employees from dating hot Russian girls online during work hours
Russian separatists in Ukraine riot over an offensive YouTube video showing the toppling of Lenin statues
"Free Speech Zones" confuse Obamaphone owners who roam streets in search of additional air minutes
Obamacare bolsters employment for professionals with skills to convert meth back into sudafed
Gloves finally off: Obama uses pen and phone to cancel Putin's Netflix account
Joe Biden to Russia: "We will bury you by turning more of Eastern Europe over to your control!"
In last-ditch effort to help Ukraine, Obama deploys Rev. Sharpton and Rev. Jackson's Rainbow Coalition to Crimea
Al Sharpton: "Not even Putin can withstand our signature chanting, 'racist, sexist, anti-gay, Russian army go away'!"
Mardi Gras in North Korea: " Throw me some food! "
Obama's foreign policy works: "War, invasion, and conquest are signs of weakness; we've got Putin right where we want him"
US offers military solution to Ukraine crisis: "We will only fight countries that have LGBT military"
Putin annexes Brighton Beach to protect ethnic Russians in Brooklyn, Obama appeals to UN and EU for help
The 1980s: "Mr. Obama, we're just calling to ask if you want our foreign policy back . The 1970s are right here with us, and they're wondering, too."
In a stunning act of defiance, Obama courageously unfriends Putin on Facebook
MSNBC: Obama secures alliance with Austro-Hungarian Empire against Russia’s aggression in Ukraine
Study: springbreak is to STDs what April 15th is to accountants
Efforts to achieve moisture justice for California thwarted by unfair redistribution of snow in America
North Korean voters unanimous: "We are the 100%"
Leader of authoritarian gulag-site, The People's Cube, unanimously 're-elected' with 100% voter turnout
Super Bowl: Obama blames Fox News for Broncos' loss
Feminist author slams gay marriage: "a man needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle"
Beverly Hills campaign heats up between Henry Waxman and Marianne Williamson over the widening income gap between millionaires and billionaires in their district
Biden to lower $10,000-a-plate Dinner For The Homeless to $5,000 so more homeless can attend
Kim becomes world leader, feeds uncle to dogs; Obama eats dogs, becomes world leader, America cries uncle
North Korean leader executes own uncle for talking about Obamacare at family Christmas party
White House hires part-time schizophrenic Mandela sign interpreter to help sell Obamacare
Kim Jong Un executes own " crazy uncle " to keep him from ruining another family Christmas
OFA admits its advice for area activists to give Obamacare Talk at shooting ranges was a bad idea
President resolves Obamacare debacle with executive order declaring all Americans equally healthy
Obama to Iran: "If you like your nuclear program, you can keep your nuclear program"
Bovine community outraged by flatulence coming from Washington DC
Obama: "I'm not particularly ideological; I believe in a good pragmatic five-year plan"
Shocker: Obama had no knowledge he'd been reelected until he read about it in the local newspaper last week
Server problems at HealthCare.gov so bad, it now flashes 'Error 808' message
NSA marks National Best Friend Day with official announcement: "Government is your best friend; we know you like no one else, we're always there, we're always willing to listen"
Al Qaeda cancels attack on USA citing launch of Obamacare as devastating enough
The President's latest talking point on Obamacare: "I didn't build that"
Dizzy with success, Obama renames his wildly popular healthcare mandate to HillaryCare
Carney: huge ObamaCare deductibles won't look as bad come hyperinflation
Washington Redskins drop 'Washington' from their name as offensive to most Americans
Poll: 83% of Americans favor cowboy diplomacy over rodeo clown diplomacy
GOVERNMENT WARNING: If you were able to complete ObamaCare form online, it wasn't a legitimate gov't website; you should report online fraud and change all your passwords
Obama administration gets serious, threatens Syria with ObamaCare
Obama authorizes the use of Vice President Joe Biden's double-barrel shotgun to fire a couple of blasts at Syria
Sharpton: "British royals should have named baby 'Trayvon.' By choosing 'George' they sided with white Hispanic racist Zimmerman"
DNC launches 'Carlos Danger' action figure; proceeds to fund a charity helping survivors of the Republican War on Women
Nancy Pelosi extends abortion rights to the birds and the bees
Hubble discovers planetary drift to the left
Obama: 'If I had a daughter-in-law, she would look like Rachael Jeantel'
FISA court rubberstamps statement denying its portrayal as government's rubber stamp
Every time ObamaCare gets delayed, a Julia somewhere dies
GOP to Schumer: 'Force full implementation of ObamaCare before 2014 or Dems will never win another election'
Obama: 'If I had a son... no, wait, my daughter can now marry a woman!'
Janet Napolitano: TSA findings reveal that since none of the hijackers were babies, elderly, or Tea Partiers, 9/11 was not an act of terrorism
News Flash: Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) can see Canada from South Dakota
Susan Rice: IRS actions against tea parties caused by anti-tax YouTube video that was insulting to their faith
Drudge Report reduces font to fit all White House scandals onto one page
Obama: the IRS is a constitutional right, just like the Second Amendment
White House: top Obama officials using secret email accounts a result of bad IT advice to avoid spam mail from Nigeria
Jay Carney to critics: 'Pinocchio never said anything inconsistent'
Obama: If I had a gay son, he'd look like Jason Collins
Gosnell's office in Benghazi raided by the IRS: mainstream media's worst cover-up challenge to date
IRS targeting pro-gay-marriage LGBT groups leads to gayest tax revolt in U.S. history
After Arlington Cemetery rejects offer to bury Boston bomber, Westboro Babtist Church steps up with premium front lawn plot
Boston: Obama Administration to reclassify marathon bombing as 'sportsplace violence'
Study: Success has many fathers but failure becomes a government program
US Media: Can Pope Francis possibly clear up Vatican bureaucracy and banking without blaming the previous administration?
Michelle Obama praises weekend rampage by Chicago teens as good way to burn calories and stay healthy
This Passover, Obama urges his subjects to paint lamb's blood above doors in order to avoid the Sequester
White House to American children: Sequester causes layoffs among hens that lay Easter eggs; union-wage Easter Bunnies to be replaced by Mexican Chupacabras
Time Mag names Hugo Chavez world's sexiest corpse
Boy, 8, pretends banana is gun, makes daring escape from school
Study: Free lunches overpriced, lack nutrition
Oscars 2013: Michelle Obama announces long-awaited merger of Hollywood and the State
Joe Salazar defends the right of women to be raped in gun-free environment: 'rapists and rapees should work together to prevent gun violence for the common good'
Dept. of Health and Human Services eliminates rape by reclassifying assailants as 'undocumented sex partners'
Kremlin puts out warning not to photoshop Putin riding meteor unless bare-chested
Deeming football too violent, Obama moves to introduce Super Drone Sundays instead
Japan offers to extend nuclear umbrella to cover U.S. should America suffer devastating attack on its own defense spending
Feminists organize one billion women to protest male oppression with one billion lap dances
Urban community protests Mayor Bloomberg's ban on extra-large pop singers owning assault weapons
Concerned with mounting death toll, Taliban offers to send peacekeeping advisers to Chicago
Karl Rove puts an end to Tea Party with new 'Republicans For Democrats' strategy aimed at losing elections
Answering public skepticism, President Obama authorizes unlimited drone attacks on all skeet targets throughout the country
Skeet Ulrich denies claims he had been shot by President but considers changing his name to 'Traps'
White House releases new exciting photos of Obama standing, sitting, looking thoughtful, and even breathing in and out
New York Times hacked by Chinese government, Paul Krugman's economic policies stolen
White House: when President shoots skeet, he donates the meat to food banks that feed the middle class
To prove he is serious, Obama eliminates armed guard protection for President, Vice-President, and their families; establishes Gun-Free Zones around them instead
State Dept to send 100,000 American college students to China as security for US debt obligations
Jay Carney: Al Qaeda is on the run, they're just running forward
President issues executive orders banning cliffs, ceilings, obstructions, statistics, and other notions that prevent us from moving forwards and upward
Fearing the worst, Obama Administration outlaws the fan to prevent it from being hit by certain objects
World ends; S&P soars
Riddle of universe solved; answer not understood
Meek inherit Earth, can't afford estate taxes
Greece abandons Euro; accountants find Greece has no Euros anyway
Wheel finally reinvented; axles to be gradually reinvented in 3rd quarter of 2013
Bigfoot found in Ohio, mysteriously not voting for Obama
As Santa's workshop files for bankruptcy, Fed offers bailout in exchange for control of 'naughty and nice' list
Freak flying pig accident causes bacon to fly off shelves
Obama: green economy likely to transform America into a leading third world country of the new millennium
Report: President Obama to visit the United States in the near future
Obama promises to create thousands more economically neutral jobs
Modernizing Islam: New York imam proposes to canonize Saul Alinsky as religion's latter day prophet
Imam Rauf's peaceful solution: 'Move Ground Zero a few blocks away from the mosque and no one gets hurt'
Study: Obama's threat to burn tax money in Washington 'recruitment bonanza' for Tea Parties
Study: no Social Security reform will be needed if gov't raises retirement age to at least 814 years
Obama attends church service, worships self
Obama proposes national 'Win The Future' lottery; proceeds of new WTF Powerball to finance more gov't spending
Historical revisionists: "Hey, you never know"
Vice President Biden: criticizing Egypt is un-pharaoh
Israelis to Egyptian rioters: "don't damage the pyramids, we will not rebuild"
Lake Superior renamed Lake Inferior in spirit of tolerance and inclusiveness
Al Gore: It's a shame that a family can be torn apart by something as simple as a pack of polar bears
Michael Moore: As long as there is anyone with money to shake down, this country is not broke
Obama's teleprompters unionize, demand collective bargaining rights
Obama calls new taxes 'spending reductions in tax code.' Elsewhere rapists tout 'consent reductions in sexual intercourse'
Obama's teleprompter unhappy with White House Twitter: "Too few words"
Obama's Regulation Reduction committee finds US Constitution to be expensive outdated framework inefficiently regulating federal gov't
Taking a page from the Reagan years, Obama announces new era of Perestroika and Glasnost
Responding to Oslo shootings, Obama declares Christianity "Religion of Peace," praises "moderate Christians," promises to send one into space
Republicans block Obama's $420 billion program to give American families free charms that ward off economic bad luck
White House to impose Chimney tax on Santa Claus
Obama decrees the economy is not soaring as much as previously decreeed
Conservative think tank introduces children to capitalism with pop-up picture book "The Road to Smurfdom"
Al Gore proposes to combat Global Warming by extracting silver linings from clouds in Earth's atmosphere
Obama refutes charges of him being unresponsive to people's suffering: "When you pray to God, do you always hear a response?"
Obama regrets the US government didn't provide his mother with free contraceptives when she was in college
Fluke to Congress: drill, baby, drill!
Planned Parenthood introduces Frequent Flucker reward card: 'Come again soon!'
Obama to tornado victims: 'We inherited this weather from the previous administration'
Obama congratulates Putin on Chicago-style election outcome
People's Cube gives itself Hero of Socialist Labor medal in recognition of continued expert advice provided to the Obama Administration helping to shape its foreign and domestic policies
Hamas: Israeli air defense unfair to 99% of our missiles, "only 1% allowed to reach Israel"
Democrat strategist: without government supervision, women would have never evolved into humans
Voters Without Borders oppose Texas new voter ID law
Enraged by accusation that they are doing Obama's bidding, media leaders demand instructions from White House on how to respond
Obama blames previous Olympics for failure to win at this Olympics
Official: China plans to land on Moon or at least on cheap knockoff thereof
Koran-Contra: Obama secretly arms Syrian rebels
Poll: Progressive slogan 'We should be more like Europe' most popular with members of American Nazi Party
Obama to Evangelicals: Jesus saves, I just spend
May Day: Anarchists plan, schedule, synchronize, and execute a coordinated campaign against all of the above
Midwestern farmers hooked on new erotic novel "50 Shades of Hay"
Study: 99% of Liberals give the rest a bad name
Obama meets with Jewish leaders, proposes deeper circumcisions for the rich
Historians: Before HOPE & CHANGE there was HEMP & CHOOM at ten bucks a bag
Cancer once again fails to cure Venezuela of its "President for Life"
Tragic spelling error causes Muslim protesters to burn local boob-tube factory
Secretary of Energy Steven Chu: due to energy conservation, the light at the end of the tunnel will be switched off
Obama Administration running food stamps across the border with Mexico in an operation code-named "Fat And Furious"
Pakistan explodes in protest over new Adobe Acrobat update; 17 local acrobats killed
White House: "Let them eat statistics"
Special Ops: if Benedict Arnold had a son, he would look like Barack Obama | 0 |
A secret relationship had made the two men rich: one, the head of a pharmacy, the other, an executive at a major pharmaceutical company who had promised to funnel millions of dollars to his partner in exchange for receiving millions of his own. They celebrated over email like characters in a classic western movie — with one saying that they would soon “ride into the sunset” together. Those were the details laid out in a complaint announced on Thursday by federal prosecutors, which brought that cinematic tale to an inglorious end. The prosecutors charged the two executives — Andrew Davenport, the chief executive of the pharmacy Philidor Rx Services, and Gary Tanner, an executive at Valeant Pharmaceuticals International — with multiple counts of fraud and conspiracy for what prosecutors described as a scheme to enrich themselves. The arrests represent the first charges in multiple state and federal investigations into Valeant’s business practices, including inquiries by Congress and the Securities and Exchange Commission. As the questions have mounted over the last year, shares of Valeant, a major drug maker that was once a Wall Street darling, have fallen precipitously, putting the company’s future in doubt. In a statement, Valeant noted that the company and its top executives had not been charged in the case, and said it was cooperating with the investigation. A lawyer for Mr. Davenport said his client intended to defend himself, and a lawyer for Mr. Tanner said his client’s innocence would be demonstrated at trial. Of all the questions surrounding the company, its relationship to the small pharmacy Philidor drew perhaps the most scrutiny. In October 2015, Valeant revealed that it had bought an option to acquire Philidor in 2014 but had never disclosed that detail to investors. Several media outlets reported on a host of tactics Valeant was said to have used to steer its products through Philidor and increase sales, including altering prescriptions to specify that Valeant’s drug, and not a cheaper generic, be dispensed. It cut ties to Philidor that same month. According to the complaint, filed Wednesday in Federal District Court for the Southern District of New York, Mr. Tanner and Mr. Davenport were at the heart of this relationship. The government said the two concealed from Valeant a secret pact they had made to promote the pharmacy’s interests inside Valeant, including persuading Valeant to buy an option to acquire Philidor. The government contends Mr. Tanner used a secret email account, under the name “Brian Wilson” to communicate with Mr. Davenport. Prosecutors said Mr. Tanner and Mr. Davenport initiated their plan while Mr. Tanner was in charge of what was known at Valeant as “alternative fulfillment,” or the practice of using pharmacies to increase prescriptions for its drugs that otherwise might have been filled by cheaper generic alternatives. As the scheme developed, prosecutors said, Mr. Tanner resisted efforts by Valeant’s senior leadership to seek out relationships with Philidor’s competitors, and his efforts were critical in leading Valeant into the agreement in December 2014. Philidor profited handsomely from the relationship — prosecutors said it grew to an enterprise with 450 employees and tens of millions of dollars in revenue at the end of 2014 from a tiny in 2013. Until Philidor was shut down in January, at least 90 percent of the drugs it dispensed were sold by Valeant, the federal complaint said. Mr. Tanner also benefited from the arrangement, the authorities said. According to the complaint, Mr. Davenport used a series of shell companies — including one called End Game — to secretly transfer a kickback payment to Mr. Tanner after the agreement went through. According to prosecutors, about $40 million from the deal between Valeant and Philidor went to Mr. Davenport, who, they said, sent about $10 million of that to Mr. Tanner. The complaint said that Valeant officials questioned Mr. Tanner several times about whether he had any financial relationship with Philidor — and that he said he did not. Howard M. Shapiro, a lawyer for Mr. Tanner, said his client had simply been doing his job. “It was Gary Tanner’s job at Valeant to grow and promote Philidor,” he said in a statement. “He performed that job exceptionally well, greatly benefiting Valeant’s shareholders, and regularly communicated to his superiors what he was doing. ” Mr. Davenport’s lawyer, Jonathan Rosen, said Mr. Davenport had worked “with full transparency” and added, “Philidor also benefited Valeant, which is why Valeant and its highly sophisticated and active management team sought to buy it. ” Mr. Tanner was forced out of Valeant in 2015. Mr. Davenport remained at Philidor until the company shut down. Regardless of whether Valeant’s top executives were aware of the arrangement between Mr. Tanner and Mr. Davenport, Valeant benefited significantly from its ties to the pharmacy, allowing it to increase sales of ailing products and obscure more significant problems with the business, said Vicki Bryan, a senior analyst with Gimme Credit, a bond research firm. She noted that Valeant paid Philidor $100 million to enter into the purchase agreement, then quickly paid it $33 million more, according to the complaint. “This is how much Valeant valued this relationship, right off the bat,” Ms. Bryan said. When Valeant disclosed its relationship to Philidor last year, it said that the pharmacy had accounted for about 7 percent of its sales in the third quarter of 2015, or about $196 million. Beyond the relationship between Mr. Davenport and Mr. Tanner, Valeant has said in public filings that the government investigations into Philidor could include looking into whether it improperly used its ties to the pharmacy to bill third parties, such as insurers. Preet Bharara, the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, said at a news conference on Thursday that the investigation was continuing, but he declined to discuss specifics. He would not say whether his office was looking into Valeant’s accounting practices. A spokesman for Mr. Bharara said the office did not have any agreements with cooperating witnesses to make public at this time. His office has tended to make cooperation agreements public when an investigation is largely complete. The criminal complaint also refers to interviews with several unnamed former Valeant executives, but does not identify any of them as cooperating witnesses. The series of negative developments over the last year have pummeled Valeant’s stock — pushing it down to its current $17 a share from nearly $100 a share last November. Its chief executive, J. Michael Pearson, stepped down in the spring, and the problems also led to a of the board. The precipitous decline has punished a number of big hedge funds that hold large positions in Valeant — firms like Pershing Square Capital Management, Paulson Company and ValueAct Capital Management. No hedge fund may have been hurt more than Pershing Square, the $11. 6 billion firm led by the investor William A. Ackman. Mr. Ackman began buying Valeant shares in early 2015, when the stock was trading around $190, and he has remained a true believer. This year, well after concerns about Valeant’s business dealings with Philidor became apparent, he continued to argue the company had value and secured two board seats for his firm, holding one of them himself. Just last week, Mr. Ackman told his investors that he foresaw a comeback strategy for Valeant as it moved to sell off business divisions to reduce its debt obligation. He has even suggested that the company may rename itself in an effort to rebuild its reputation. Yet he has conceded that he and his firm could have done better due diligence on Valeant’s aggressive practices — another business strategy that has prompted controversy and protests from federal legislators. Mr. Ackman, in an email statement on Thursday, declined to comment on the criminal charges beyond the Valeant statement. | 1 |
0 Add Comment
THE RETAIL industry has wasted no time in informing the public it is the first of November, Halloween is over and now it’s time to ‘hand over all of your fucking money’, WWN has learned.
Shops around the country have in recent years made the decision on behalf of the Nation to start Christmas on the 1st of November with a barrage of ads, jingles and more ads, searing them into the public’s mind until they are on the verge of insanity.
“Just place all your savings on the counter, and we’ll give you some crap made in China in return and nobody has to get hurt,” the Retail Association of Ireland (RAI) revealed to the public, while pointing to a calendar.
“It’s the first of November and you know what that means, it’s fucking Christmas so start spending, and don’t be smart and say you’re not going ‘too mad’ this year. Don’t fight us on this,” the RAI added.
Large Tannoy speakers have been erected across Irish towns and cities, armed with subtle messages chosen to induce people into parting with their cash.
“Ah, they just say things like ‘spend, spend, spend’ and ‘your loved ones will hate you forever and disown you if you don’t buy them everything now’, played at a higher level than a Metallica concert on speed. We hope the public start to realise what time of year it is,” senior It’s Never Too Early For Christmas Shopping strategist Henry Mulcahy explained. | 0 |
Trump is the Nation’s Abuser-in-Chief Trump is the Nation’s Abuser-in-Chief By 129
As an emotional abuse survivor, I get an eerie feeling watching Donald Trump.
In fact, a checklist of 30 tactics used by an emotionally abusive partner , published by the blog Live Bold and Bloom , reads like Donald Trump’s debate prep to-do list.
One of the telltale signs of such abuse, for example, is rooted in humiliation:
“They humiliate you, put you down, or make fun of you in front of other people.”
This seems to be a cornerstone of Trump’s political speech — like making fun of a disabled reporter , or placing the women who accuse Hillary Clinton’s husband of sexual misconduct in the audience at the last debate. (I wonder if Trump has ever heard that expression about glass houses and throwing stones.)
“They accuse you or blame you for things you know aren’t true.”
For example, accusing Hillary of laughing at a rape victim, which she didn’t do .
“They make excuses for their behavior, try to blame others, and have difficulty apologizing.”
Like the “locker room talk” apology t hat wasn’t. Tilting At Women, an OtherWords cartoon by Khalil Bendib.
“They call you names, give you unpleasant labels, or make cutting remarks under their breath.”
Remember Trump’s use of pejoratives like Crooked Hillary, Lyin’ Ted Cruz, Little Marco Rubio, Low Energy Jeb Bush, and “Pocahontas”? (That last one refers to Elizabeth Warren.) There’s even a Donald Trump insult generator online based on the candidate’s penchant for name-calling.
“They make subtle threats or negative remarks with the intent to frighten or control you. “
In the second debate: “You’d be in jail,” Donald threatened Hillary, if he becomes president.
“They play the victim and try to deflect blame to you rather than taking personal responsibility.”
After the 2005 video of Trump boasting about sexually assaulting women was leaked, he claimed the entire world was in a conspiracy against him — the media, the Clintons, the Republicans.
Poor Donald, everyone is calling him out for the racist and misogynist that he is.
Most familiar to me as an abuse survivor were Trump’s deflections of Hillary’s jabs during the second debate. In my experience, any time you confront an abuser with their past bad behaviors, you get one of three responses.
First, they might say they never did that. That thing never happened. This is called gaslighting . The name comes from a 1944 film called Gaslight . It’s used when someone attempts to manipulate you into doubting your own lived experiences.
Second, they’ll turn your critique back onto you. You don’t like that they humiliated you in front of your friends? You’re too sensitive. That’s your problem. It’s just one more item on the long list of things that are wrong with you .
Last, they reply to your critique of them with what they don’t like about you. And sometimes, the responses can be quite arbitrary.
Oh, Hillary doesn’t like that Trump bragged about assaulting women? Well, Bill Clinton had affairs. Never mind that Bill isn’t running for president, or that his well-litigated past isn’t the issue at hand.
True, Bill Clinton won’t go down in history for being faithful, but that doesn’t answer the question about Trump’s record with women and his qualifications to be president.
Emotional abuse can be hard to pinpoint when you’re the one being abused. So Donald Trump has just provided us all with a valuable service by demonstrating before a live TV audience what emotional abuse looks like in action.
The best way to deal with a bully? Remove them from your life. | 0 |
Share This
A Hillary Clinton presidency would devastate our nation, damaging an already unstable economy as she destroys our Constitution and taxes Americans until they bleed. Several businesses are aware of this frightening reality, and they have decided to prepare themselves and others for the worst case scenario — a Hillary presidency.
Small businesses are often those affected the most by a Democrat’s economic policy, but many of America’s “mom and pop” shops are determined to overcome should this terrifying possibility become our reality. Surprisingly, there is a silver lining for some. Certain businesses actually realize that a vote for Hillary and her election as our next president will likely make them extremely wealthy — if only temporarily. Democrat presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton
Gun stores everywhere plan to stock up on guns in preparation for the rigged election, in which most think Hillary has already been decided the winner. Although some are driven by the desire to protect their families, many gun owners are stocking up now before Hillary has a chance to try to take their rights away, which she has vowed to do. Those who have shopped in gun stores even tell the owners that they are gearing up for a Hillary presidency.
Two things drive up sales like no ads on TV ever could. The first is election campaigns, which inevitably pit gun-rights advocates against those asking for stricter gun-control laws. And the second, are tragedies in the news, especially mass shootings. Jared Fulton and his son Dave at their gun store, Freedom Firearms
“If Hillary Clinton gets elected it’s going to be all hands on deck, and its going to be a crazy day,” says Jared Fulton, who founded Freedom Firearms with his brother, Joel, in 2002, shortly after Michigan passed a new “concealed-carry” law allowing any adult to carry weapons on their person as long as they’re out of sight. “It’s going to be several crazy days, in fact.” [via Independent ]
While Democrats cry and complain about guns, their antics actually push sales and drive the number of guns in civilian hands exponentially higher. This was seen the day after Barack Obama’s election and the day of his inauguration. Instead of watching him take the presidential oath, many Second Amendment supporters went out and purchased guns that they knew would offend the new president. And, it won’t be different if Hillary is elected.
Make no mistake that while Obama currently holds the record for “gun salesman of the year,” every year since he was elected, Hillary will surpass him. Having firepower to back your decision not to consent to her corrupt presidency may be key as she tries to start World War III. Not all Americans are going to willingly accept Hillary’s rigged and invalid authority. When tyrannical leaders try to take our country from We the People , it’s our duty to remind them why our Founding Fathers gave us the Second Amendment. | 0 |
The election of Donald J. Trump as president of the United States has shocked the world — and has the potential to reshape it. “I want to tell the world community that while we will always put America’s interests first, we will deal fairly with everyone, with everyone — all people and all other nations,” Mr. Trump said in his victory speech. His triumph was seen as good for Russia’s president, Vladimir V. Putin, but made some in Mexico nervous. Leaders from Asia, Europe and Latin America offered congratulations to Mr. Trump or to the United States, but the distinctions in their messages were noteworthy. Latin American heads of state wished Mr. Trump well, and offered their own ideas on how he might govern. Venezuela, a country that Mr. Trump has repeatedly criticized for its leftist leadership, asked Mr. Trump to essentially mind his own country’s business by “respecting nonintervention in internal issues and to the right of development and peace. ” Juan Manuel Santos, the president of Colombia and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, said he hoped Colombia and the United States “will continue deepening bilateral relations. ” Mr. Trump has criticized a trade agreement between Colombia and the United States, among many other trade deals. Álvaro García Linera, Bolivia’s leftist vice president, said the voters’ endorsement of Mr. Trump’s populist message shows how Americans, too, are questioning prevailing economic paradigms in “a passive revolution,” this time coming from the right. Others expressed dismay with the election entirely. “The excesses of this eccentric millionaire have proven that the number one enemy of the U. S. is not beyond its borders, but rather within,” wrote Vladimir Flórez, a Colombian cartoonist popularly known as Vladdo, in El Tiempo newspaper. “This threat called Trump is a product of American society a nightmarish mutation of the American dream. ” Mr. Trump’s campaign — and his promise to build a wall on the United border and to deport millions of immigrants in the country illegally — became a rallying point for Mexicans. He has promised to blow up the North American Free Trade Agreement, or Nafta, upending commerce between the two countries, valued at about $500 billion a year. Early on Wednesday — as the peso gyrated — President Enrique Peña Nieto said, “Mexico and the U. S. A. are friends, partners and allies. ” Andrés Manuel López Obrador, a popular leftist politician and likely 2018 presidential candidate, asked Mexicans “to remain calm,” and said, “We will stay together no matter what the circumstances are. ” Foreign Minister Claudia Ruiz Massieu repeated in a television interview on Wednesday morning that Mexico would not pay for the wall. — AZAM AHMED President Mauricio Macri had rooted for Hillary Clinton but said he hoped to work with Mr. Trump. “One of the issues that worried us is the transition,” he said. “We will have to adapt, and that is what we will do. ” Earlier in the week, Foreign Minister Susana Malcorra warned that a Trump victory would bring relations between the United States and Argentina “to a standstill,” but on Wednesday she praised his “conciliatory” victory speech. — DANIEL POLITI Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who enjoys a close relationship with President Obama, said that “Canada has no closer friend, partner and ally than the United States. ” He added, “The relationship between our two countries serves as a model for the world. ” But Mr. Trump’s promise to revisit Nafta brings unwelcome uncertainty to Canada’s economy. Mr. Trudeau’s open approach to immigration and refugees is the inverse of Mr. Trump’s. And Canada will be in a difficult position if it imposes carbon taxes only to find that Mr. Trump undoes all American efforts to mitigate climate change. One of the few positive developments for Canada is Mr. Trump’s promise to reverse the Obama administration’s decision to block the Keystone XL pipeline. — IAN AUSTEN Ban the United Nations secretary general, said it was “worth recalling and reaffirming that the unity in diversity of the United States is one of the country’s greatest strengths. ” As if to remind the United States of its role as a guarantor of world stability, he noted that it is “an essential actor across the international agenda. ” Mr. Trump has demanded that the NATO allies of the United States foot more of the bill for their collective defense. Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO secretary general, noted that the alliance comes with legal obligations. “NATO’s security guarantee is a treaty commitment and all allies have made a solemn commitment — a solemn commitment — to defend each other,” Mr. Stoltenberg said. “We have to remember that the only time that we have invoked Article 5, our collective defense clause, is after an attack on the United States, after . ” — RICK GLADSTONE and JAMES KANTER The two top officials of the European Union — Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, and Juncker, president of the European Commission — congratulated Mr. Trump and invited him to visit Europe. “Europeans trust that America, whose democratic ideals have always been a beacon of hope around the globe, will continue to invest in its partnerships with friends and allies, to help make our citizens and the people of the world more secure and more prosperous,” they wrote. Later, however, Mr. Tusk, a former prime minister of Poland, warned that Britain’s decision to leave the European Union, and the election of Mr. Trump, should raise alarms. “The events of the last months and days should be treated as a warning sign for all who believe in liberal democracy,” he said. Guy Verhofstadt, the leader of a prominent group of lawmakers in the European Parliament and a former prime minister of Belgium, called Mr. Trump’s victory “a call for European leaders,” adding, “Donald Trump has declared several times that our priorities are not his. ” He added: “We cannot be dependent anymore on the U. S. we have to take charge of our own destiny. Europe should get its act together, too, and set its internal differences aside. ” Britain’s prime minister, Theresa May, spoke of the country’s “enduring and special relationship” with the United States. President François Hollande of France noted that “some of Donald Trump’s campaign positions must be put to the test of the values and the interests that we share with the United States. ” He added that “disorders in the world are worrying people everywhere, including the people of America, the first world power. ” The French prime minister, Ayrault, asked, “What will become of the Paris agreement on the climate, of the nuclear deal with Iran that Donald Trump wants to reconsider?” Chancellor Angela Merkel congratulated Mr. Trump and offered her cooperation — but stressed that it must rest on human rights and nondiscrimination. Germany’s foreign minister, Steinmeier, said that “if Donald Trump really wants to be president of all Americans, then I think his first duty is to fill in the deep rifts which arose during the campaign. ” — AURELIEN BREEDEN, JAMES KANTER and ALISON SMALE Two nationalist leaders — Geert Wilders in the Netherlands and Marine Le Pen in France — cheered Mr. Trump’s victory. “The Americans are taking their country back,” Mr. Wilders, a lawmaker who leads the Party for Freedom and who faces charges in his home country, wrote on Twitter. He called Mr. Trump’s election “a historic victory” and “a revolution. ” Ms. Le Pen, the leader of the National Front in France and a candidate for the French presidency, congratulated Mr. Trump on Twitter and declared the American people “free!” She called it “good news for our country. ” Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, one of the few European leaders who spoke favorably of Mr. Trump during the campaign, wrote on Facebook: “What a great news. Democracy is still alive. ” — BENOÎT MORENNE and MARTIN de BOURMONT Mr. Trump has called the January agreement between Iran and world powers “the worst deal ever,” and he has vowed to unilaterally abandon it. Under the agreement, Iran has given up large chunks of its nuclear program in exchange for some sanctions relief. The head of Iran’s atomic energy program told the semiofficial Tasnim news agency on Wednesday that the country would “try to continue to implement the nuclear agreement. ” Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said last week that the presidential debates had illustrated “the crisis America is in. ” Some analysts said the election of Mr. Trump was the result of an “awakening,” Iran’s ideological label for some of the Arab Spring revolts. One analyst, Farshad Ghorbanpour, who is close to the government of the Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani, said he feared the implications for Mr. Rouhani, who has been promoting better relations with Washington. “Our will pressure him, they are very happy now,” he said. — THOMAS ERDBRINK “ Trump is a true friend of the State of Israel, and I look forward to working with him to advance security, stability and peace in our region,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement. The United States is Israel’s most important ally. The Israeli government, which has often had a tense relationship with the Obama administration, has studiously avoided taking sides, but at the same time, Jerusalem has moved to improve relations with India and Russia, and is in talks to develop economic ties with China. — ISABEL KERSHNER Across the Middle East, where the United States has a long history of often divisive involvement, many seemed to have no idea how to react to the election of Mr. Trump. President Abdel Fattah of Egypt and Prime Minister Binali Yildirim of Turkey quickly congratulated Mr. Trump, but official reaction was scarce from Saudi Arabia. Mr. Trump said the kingdom may no longer be able to count on American defense guarantees and should give the United States “free oil for the next 10 years. ” Syrians, too, said they had little inkling what the vote would mean for the civil war in their country, although many in the opposition had expressed hope that a victory for Hillary Clinton would mean more robust support for the rebels fighting to topple President Bashar . “I am scared, scared for Syria,” said Murhaf Jouejati, the chairman of the Day After organization, an independent body that aims to prepare Syrians for a democratic future. “Here is a man who is openly saying that he is going to defer to the Russians on Syria. This is a clear victory for the Assad regime. ” Many have expressed worry that Mr. Trump’s negative statements about Islam and Muslims would translate into aggressive policies in the region, as well as making it harder for displaced Syrians to seek refuge. — BEN HUBBARD, ANNE BARNARD and HWAIDA SAAD Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had been planning to meet Mrs. Clinton in Washington in February, tried to calm his country, as the yen surged and stocks stumbled. “Hand in hand with Trump, we will try to work together,” he said. On the campaign trail, Mr. Trump singled out Japan. He claimed that Tokyo was not paying its fair share to support United States military bases, calling into question the American commitment to defend Japan in case of attack. A rising China could put a check on Mr. Trump’s stated ambitions in Asia. “Maybe he will decrease the commitment to Pacific security issues,” said Shin Kawashima, professor of international relations at the University of Tokyo. “But if he carries out such a policy, China will be much more authoritative and aggressive in the Pacific. And then most of the alliance countries and security experts in Washington will be against Trump’s policies. It is a little difficult for Trump to just change all the old policies. ” Mr. Trump’s talk of disengaging could embolden Mr. Abe’s efforts to build its military capabilities and strengthen ties with Russia. — MOTOKO RICH and HISAKO UENO President Park of South Korea instructed her government to coordinate closely with Mr. Trump’s transition team to ensure that her country and the United States would maintain sanctions and pressure on North Korea to stop its nuclear weapons program. “North Korea should not misjudge the solidity of our alliance with the United States and our joint ability to respond” to provocations, said Jeong a government spokesman. Mr. Trump unsettled South Koreans when he said that he might withdraw American troops from their country unless Seoul paid more for their presence. He also indicated that he might let Japan and South Korea protect themselves with nuclear weapons and that he might negotiate directly with the North Korean leader, Kim . Mr. Trump’s surprisingly strong performance caught analysts off guard, but it was welcome news for those in South Korea who believe that their country must build its own nuclear weapons to defend against North Korea. — CHOE Prime Minister Najib Razak of Malaysia was one of the first leaders to offer effusive praise for Mr. Trump. “The world has watched this year’s presidential election with fascination,” he said in a statement. “At almost every turn, media commentators have been proved wrong and the results anticipated by experts have been overturned. Donald Trump was considered a distant outsider when his candidacy was first announced. He beat the establishment consensus by winning the Republican nomination, and did so again with his remarkable victory today. Mr. Trump’s success shows that politicians should never take voters for granted. ” Mr. Najib, who has stared down corruption charges, added, “His appeal to Americans who have been left behind — those who want to see their government more focused on their interests and welfare, and less embroiled in foreign interventions that proved to be against U. S. interests — have won Mr. Trump the White House. ” Arriving in Malaysia on Wednesday evening, Rodrigo Duterte, the president of the Philippines, who has lashed out at the United States and at Mr. Obama in often profane comments, mentioned Mr. Trump in a speech to overseas Filipino workers. “Congratulations,” he said. “We are alike. We both swear. ” — SEWELL CHAN and RICHARD C. PADDOCK Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a tweet addressed at Mr. Trump, “We appreciate the friendship you have articulated towards India during your campaign. ” For India, a central question is whether Washington will reduce its military presence. “If that is called into question, India will no longer be able to rely on the U. S. to be there as a security provider,” said Dhruva Jaishankar, a fellow at the Brookings Institution India Center. The result could be more assertive attitudes from China, Japan and Korea. Manjeet Kripalani, the executive director of Gateway House, a think tank, likened Mr. Trump to Putin of Russia, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, and Mr. Modi. (A former journalist, Ms. Kripalani worked for Steve Forbes’s 1996 presidential campaign.) As far as any change in the relationship between India and the United States is concerned, she predicted, “You will find the Trump administration being realistic about Pakistan, being realistic about India and realistic about China. ” — ELLEN BARRY and NIDA NAJAR Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull reassured his people that “Americans understand that they have no stronger ally, no better friend, than Australia. ” Mr. Turnbull said the American role in the Pacific region had underpinned stability, economic growth and a order, a term he and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop have used when discussing the resolution of disputes with China over territorial and fishing rights in the South China Sea. “I have great confidence that all of our engagement will continue to be strong and intimate, filled with the trust and confidence that has characterized it for so many years,” Mr. Turnbull said. — MICHELLE INNIS | 1 |
Donald J. Trump all but erased his enormous disadvantage against Hillary Clinton in the span of just two months, according to figures released by his campaign on Wednesday, converting the passion of his core followers into a flood of small donations on a scale rarely seen in national politics. Mr. Trump and the Republican National Committee raised $64 million through a joint digital and mail effort in July, according to his campaign, the bulk of it from small donations. All told, Mr. Trump and his party brought in $82 million last month, only slightly behind Mrs. Clinton’s $90 million, and ended with $74 million on hand, suggesting he might now have the resources to compete with Mrs. Clinton in the closing stretch of the campaign. “She’s been doing this for 20 years,” said Steven Mnuchin, a New York investor who is Mr. Trump’s finance chairman. “We’ve been doing it for two months. ” More than of the $64 million had come online, Mr. Mnuchin said. The new figures indicate a major shift in Mr. Trump’s campaign, which until recent months was largely funded by hat and sales and by Mr. Trump’s wallet. And they suggest that Mr. Trump has the potential to be the first Republican nominee whose campaign could be financed chiefly by supporters pitching in $10 or $25 apiece, echoing the success of Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont during the Democratic primary. The numbers released by the Trump campaign Wednesday are preliminary official figures — including money spent on direct mail, which is typically expensive, and a precise breakdown of total cash raised in small increments — will become available when Mr. Trump and Mrs. Clinton file formal reports with the Federal Election Commission this month. Moreover, Mr. Trump’s surge is coming very late in the campaign, at a point where advertising rates climb and the chance to invest in a digital and campaign infrastructure is long past. And Mrs. Clinton’s own operation is rapidly expanding as well. In a Twitter post on Wednesday, a spokesman for Mrs. Clinton said that her campaign and a joint operation with the Democratic National Committee had $102 million on hand, not including cash held directly by the party. But Mr. Trump’s announcement suggests that after months of dithering and false starts, he has begun to exploit an opportunity: marrying his powerful credibility among Republicans with targeted particularly online, where Mr. Trump’s website features buttons soliciting $50, $25 and even $10 contributions. At the end of May, Mr. Trump reported barely more than $1. 3 million in cash, alarming Republicans, who feared a financial rout by Mrs. Clinton. Mitt Romney, the party’s 2012 nominee and a wealthy man in his own right, was never able to stoke intense enthusiasm among small donors and relied disproportionately on big ones. During July of that year, for example, Mr. Romney and the Republican National Committee reported raising a total of just $19 million from contributions of less than $200. Mr. Trump was able to ramp up quickly in part through a digital operation set up by the R. N. C. since that campaign. Even before Mr. Trump was the nominee, the party built out its email list and tested ways of targeting small donors. With that in place, party officials unleashed a desire by Republicans to donate to a candidate who has bluntly attacked lobbyists and big donors. While Mr. Trump accepted online donations during the primary season, he did not send out an email solicitation until late June — which brought in $3 million alone, an indication of the well of money available to him. The campaign has also raised money by promising to match small donations out of Mr. Trump’s pocket, a tactic available only to wealthy candidates. “There was always that potential, but you didn’t have candidates who were as uniquely positioned in the same way that Trump is,” said Patrick Ruffini, a Republican strategist who ran digital at the Republican National Committee under President George W. Bush. But Mr. Trump’s surge also emphasizes the complication for Republicans in having him at the head of their party. He is relying more on in part because he has faced opposition from some of the party’s biggest patrons, such as Meg Whitman, a California business executive, who said Monday that she was so disgusted with Mr. Trump that she would vote for Mrs. Clinton. To bolster his Mr. Trump and his team are now working to assuage the broader pool of affluent Republican donors and . In recent weeks, Mr. Trump has laid off his criticisms of the party’s donor class and scheduled an array of formal events for Republican donors in money centers like Florida and New York. Moreover, even as his name and followers are helping fund Republican efforts around the country, Mr. Trump is feuding with the party’s senior leadership, pointedly refusing to endorse prominent Republicans facing primary opponents, such as the one challenging Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, the House speaker. And it is the Republican National Committee that is providing much of the technical expertise that has allowed Mr. Trump to quickly increase his some Republican officials said. Even as relations fray between Mr. Trump and some fellow Republicans, the party and Mr. Trump each needs the other. And Mr. Trump, as the nominee and the tent pole for the party, may have the upper hand. “Under normal circumstances, the party would have money as leverage,” Mr. Ruffini said. “They could cut off to a candidate who misbehaves. And that leverage has been taken completely away. ” | 1 |
Swedish satire “The Square” a of political correctness and the confused identity of the modern male, won the Palme d’Or top prize at the Cannes film festival Sunday. [In a stunning upset, the jury led by Spanish director Pedro Almodovar and including Hollywood stars Jessica Chastain and Will Smith awarded the trophy to the movie’s director, Ruben Ostlund. “Oh my God, oh my God!” Ostlund shouted from the stage after besting a raft of favourites for one of global cinema’s most coveted honours. In a 70th anniversary edition marked by raging debate over sexism in the movie industry, Sofia Coppola became only the second woman in history to win best director for her thriller “The Beguiled” with Nicole Kidman and Colin Farrell. Kidman, who appeared in four different projects at the festival, accepted a special 70th anniversary award from the jury. Diane Kruger clinched best actress for her first film role in her native German as a devastated mother who has lost her family in a Hamburg terror attack, in Fatih Akin’s “In the Fade”. “I cannot accept this award without thinking of everyone who has been touched by an act of terrorism … you have not been forgotten,” the clearly moved actress said. Oscar nominee Joaquin Phoenix nabbed best actor for his turn as a hitman in the ultraviolent thriller “You Were Never Really Here”. “Any work that I did was linked to the work of Lynne Ramsay,” the film’s British director, Phoenix said, before apologising for his look at the gala ceremony. “I don’t wear leather,” the committed vegetarian explained. — ‘So much courage’ — Greece’s Yorgos Lantimos shared the best screenplay award with Ramsay for “The Killing of a Sacred Deer” an icy thriller set in a wealthy American suburb and starring Kidman and Farrell. The Grand Prix went to moving French drama “120 Beats Per Minute” about the radical activists who helped shame the world into action on AIDS. “This film is an homage to those who died but also those who survived and are still alive, who had so much courage,” said the movie’s director, former ACT UP member Robin Campillo. Campillo also wrote the screenplay for “The Class” a drama about a multicultural Paris high school that scooped the Palme d’Or in 2008 as well as an Oscar nomination. “Loveless” by Andrey Zvyagintsev, a wrenching drama about moral rot eating away at Russian society under Vladimir Putin, took the third place jury prize. — Magic of big screen — “The Square” coming in at two hours and 20 minutes, is an often hilarious art world satire exploring creative liberty, free speech and the blurred lines between the sexes. Danish actor Claes Bang plays a museum director and divorced father of two young daughters who finds himself in an increasingly absurd set of predicaments. The movie features Elisabeth Moss (“Mad Men”) and Dominic West (“The Wire”) in small roles viciously lampooning the art world. One featuring a wild, man performing as an ape wreaking havoc at a posh gala dinner entered festival legend. Cannes’ 12 days of screenings and soirees — which were somewhat muted by the Manchester bombing — were marked by unprecedented measures and a raging row over how technology is shaping the future of the movie industry. Netflix had two movies in competition for the first time but faced blowback from critics who argue that online streaming is destroying cinema distribution and with it the magic of the experience. | 1 |
Financial Whistleblower Explains What’s About to Happen to the Economy Nov 21, 2016 3 0
“How is the government going to get people to pay their taxes if the government is not viewed as legitimate?” ~ Catherine Austin Fitts
The world economy is designed to fail through the mechanism of a banking system that requires all users of money to pay usury every time a transaction takes place. In this way, the financial systems of the world can be manipulated into a managed collapse, thereby causing global chaos so that the world’s nations and citizens can be tricked into demanding a global currency managed a global elite.
Problem, reaction, solution. Economic hit man John Perkins wrote about this strategy as it was used in the 20th century to bring developing nations under the control of the international monetary fund and transnational profiteers, and at present this scheme is being globalized.
“If an EHM is completely successful, the loans are so large that the debtor is forced to default on its payments after a few years. When this happens, then like the Mafia we demand our pound of flesh. This often includes one or more of the following: control over United Nations votes, the installation of military bases, or access to precious resources such as oil or the Panama Canal. Of course, the debtor still owes us the money—and another country is added to our global empire.” ~John Perkins, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
For decades now, the dollar has been in a slow burn style of collapse, and while many journalists, primarily outside of the mainstream, have been warning the world about how and why this is happening, we’re quickly approaching a turning point, where the slow burn moves into something more severe. While at first glance this seems like a frightening potentiality, the truth is that an economic collapse may very well be our best chance at freeing ourselves from the rule of the Gods of Money . A Whistleblower Warns Us and Gives Us Hope
Speaking to Greg Hunter of USA Watchdog news , former Wall Street banker and former Assistant Secretary of Housing and Federal Housing Commissioner at the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development in the first Bush Administration , Catherine Austin Fitts explains why the slow burn is about to come to an end.
“The system has the capacity with monetary policy in one sense to keep going forever if the force and military capacity is there to do it, but at some point, you burn through the fat, you burn through the muscle and then you have to change institutions.” ~ Catherine Austin Fitts
During the financial crisis of 2008, the government was able to prevent an uncontrolled firestorm collapse of the system by colluding with the chiefs of the financial sector, giving them bailouts of extraordinary magnitude , then inflating the dollar by the Federal Reserve’s introduction of quantitative easing . Eight years later, this tactic has reached its limit, however it has given the public significant reason and time to understand why our economy functions the way it does, and people are losing faith in our leadership.
“It’s going to be extremely difficult to get people to continue to pay their taxes when they’re highly confident the money’s not being spent legally and it’s going to the advantage of small parties or things that they don’t understand. And so you can’t move further without institutional overhaul.” ~Catherine Austin Fitts
The thing that frightens her most is the fact that groups within the U.S., such as ALEC , are already calling for changes in the law and even a new constitutional convention to overhaul these institutions. The financial sector has already been operating outside of the law and beyond the constitution for some twenty plus years, and if we haven’t been using the constitution, she notes, then why do they wish to change it?
“If you want to enforce the Constitution or fix things, that’s what you do. The reason you get a Constitutional Convention is you want to tear it up because you’re worried, now that people realize the extent of the corruption, that they’re going to try and enforce.” ~Catherine Austin Fitts
Her warning is that as people continue to wake up to the corruption of our government and financial rulers, the entrenched elites who are fully invested in destroying the middle class will fight tooth and nail to prevent us from holding them accountable, by means of bringing more Draconian laws into place to protect themselves.
In this light, the economic war that is brewing isn’t completely technical, it is social as well, quickly becoming class warfare. The world’s financial elite are in grave danger of being held to the fire for their crimes, and surely they know they how quickly things can change in favor of the populous, as historical events like the French Revolution have shown. Prepare Now
As individuals stuck in the debt-slave matrix , there is very little we can do to challenge this sort of massive global scheme as it’s happening, however, preparing now for collapse is our best chance of chucking our burden of debt to these people, if they are even human , and of creating a future without such obvious criminal financial tyranny holding us back.
Working now to expose these criminals is imperative so that when the ball drops, ordinary people understand why, how and who is truly to blame, thereby making resisting to the takeover possible. Taking care of personal emergency preparations by gathering healthy storable foods , networking in your community, and having plans in place to survive are absolutely necessary at this stage, and once this is done, efforts to awaken others are critical.
View the full interview here :
About the Author
Isaac Davis is a staff writer for WakingTimes.com and OffgridOutpost.com Survival Tips blog. He is an outspoken advocate of liberty and of a voluntary society. He is an avid reader of history and passionate about becoming self-sufficient to break free of the control matrix. Follow him on Facebook, here . This article ( Financial Whistleblower Explains What’s About to Happen to the Economy ) was originally created and published by Waking Times and is published here under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Isaac Davis and WakingTimes.com . Vote Up | 0 |
WashingtonsBlog
By Robert Parry, the investigative reporter who many of the Iran-Contra stories for The Associated Press and Newsweek in the 1980s. Originally published at Parry’s Consortium News (republished with permission).
In the end, Hillary Clinton became the face of a corrupt, arrogant and out-of-touch Establishment, while Donald Trump emerged as an almost perfectly imperfect vessel for a populist fury that had bubbled beneath the surface of America.
There is clearly much to fear from a Trump presidency, especially coupled with continued Republican control of Congress. Trump and many Republicans have denied the reality of climate change; they favor more tax cuts for the rich; they want to deregulate Wall Street and other powerful industries – all policies that helped create the current mess that the United States and much of the world are now in. A sign supporting Donald Trump at a rally at Veterans Memorial Coliseum at the Arizona State Fairgrounds in Phoenix, Arizona. June 18, 2016 (Photo by Gage Skidmore)
Further, Trump’s personality is problematic to say the least. He lacks the knowledge and the temperament that one would like to see in a President – or even in a much less powerful public official. He appealed to racism, misogyny, white supremacy, bigotry toward immigrants and prejudice toward Muslims. He favors torture and wants a giant wall built across America’s southern border.
But American voters chose him in part because they felt they needed a blunt instrument to smash the Establishment that has ruled and mis-ruled America for at least the past several decades. It is an Establishment that not only has grabbed for itself almost all the new wealth that the country has produced but has casually sent the U.S. military into wars of choice, as if the lives of working-class soldiers are of little value.
On foreign policy, the Establishment had turned decision-making over to the neoconservatives and their liberal-interventionist sidekicks, a collection of haughty elitists who often subordinated American interests to those of Israel and Saudi Arabia, for political or financial advantage.
The war choices of the neocon/liberal-hawk coalition have been disastrous – from Iraq to Afghanistan to Libya to Syria to Ukraine – yet this collection of know-it-alls never experiences accountability. The same people, including the media’s armchair warriors and the think-tank “scholars,” bounce from one catastrophe to the next with no consequences for their fallacious “group thinks.” Most recently, they have ginned up a new costly and dangerous Cold War with Russia.
For all his faults, Trump was one of the few major public figures who dared challenge the “group thinks” on the current hot spots of Syria and Russia. In response, Clinton and many Democrats chose to engage in a crude McCarthyism with Clinton even baiting Trump as Vladimir Putin’s “puppet” during the final presidential debate.
It is somewhat remarkable that those tactics failed; that Trump talked about cooperation with Russia, rather than confrontation, and won. Trump’s victory could mean that rather than escalating the New Cold War with Russia, there is the possibility of a ratcheting down of tensions.
Repudiating the Neocons
Thus, Trump’s victory marks a repudiation of the neocon/liberal-hawk orthodoxy because the New Cold War was largely incubated in neocon/liberal-hawk think tanks, brought to life by likeminded officials in the U.S. State Department, and nourished by propaganda across the mainstream Western media. Donald Trump speaking with supporters at a campaign rally in Phoenix, Arizona. June 18, 2016. (Photo by Gage Skidmore)
It was the West, not Russia, that provoked the confrontation over Ukraine by helping to install a fiercely anti-Russian regime on Russia’s borders. I know the mainstream Western media framed the story as “Russian aggression” but that was always a gross distortion.
There were peaceful ways for settling the internal differences inside Ukraine without violating the democratic process, but U.S. neocons, such as Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, and wealthy neoliberals, such as financial speculator George Soros, pushed for a putsch that overthrew the elected President Viktor Yanukovych in February 2014.
Putin’s response, including his acceptance of Crimea’s overwhelming referendum to return to Russia and his support for ethnic Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine opposing the coup regime in Kiev, was a reaction to the West’s destabilizing and violent actions. Putin was not the instigator of the troubles.
Similarly, in Syria, the West’s “regime change” strategy, which dates back to neocon planning in the mid-1990s, involved collaboration with Al Qaeda and other Islamic jihadists to remove the secular government of Bashar al-Assad. Again, Official Washington and the mainstream media portrayed the conflict as all Assad’s fault, but that wasn’t the full picture.
From the start of the Syrian conflict in 2011, U.S. “allies,” including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and Israel, have been aiding the rebellion, with Turkey and the Gulf states funneling money and weapons to Al Qaeda’s Nusra Front and even to the Al Qaeda spinoff, Islamic State.
Though President Barack Obama dragged his heels on the direct intervention advocated by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Obama eventually went in halfway, bending to political pressure by agreeing to train and arm so-called “moderates” who ended up fighting next to Al Qaeda’s Nusra Front and other jihadists in Ahrar al-Sham.
Trump has been inarticulate and imprecise in describing what policies he would follow in Syria, besides suggesting that he would cooperate with the Russians in destroying Islamic State. But Trump didn’t seem to understand the role of Al Qaeda in controlling east Aleppo and other Syrian territory.
Uncharted Territory
So, the American voters have plunged the United States and the world into uncharted territory behind a President-elect who lacks a depth of knowledge on a wide variety of issues. Who will guide a President Trump becomes the most pressing issue today. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaking with supporters at a campaign rally in Phoenix, Arizona. March 21, 2016. (Photo by Gage Skidmore)
Will he rely on traditional Republicans who have done so much to mess up the country and the world or will he find some fresh-thinking realists who will realign policy with core American interests and values.
For this dangerous and uncertain moment, the Democratic Party establishment deserves a large share of the blame. Despite signs that 2016 would be a year for an anti-Establishment candidate – possibly someone like Sen. Elizabeth Warren or Sen. Bernie Sanders – the Democratic leadership decided that it was “Hillary’s turn.”
Alternatives like Warren were discouraged from running so there could be a Clinton “coronation.” That left the 74-year-old socialist from Vermont as the only obstacle to Clinton’s nomination and it turned out that Sanders was a formidable challenger. But his candidacy was ultimately blocked by Democratic insiders, including the unelected “super-delegates” who gave Clinton an early and seemingly insurmountable lead.
With blinders firmly in place, the Democrats yoked themselves to Clinton’s gilded carriage and tried to pull it all the way to the White House. But they ignored the fact that many Americans came to see Clinton as the personification of all that is wrong about the insular and corrupt world of Official Washington. And that has given us President-elect Trump. | 0 |
By karencole
Posted Thursday, October 27, 2016 at 10:20am EDT
Having a great smile can say so much about someone. This is the first thing when making a conversation with someone. If your teeth are not white enough, it may greatly lower your self-esteem, and you lack confidence. In the long run, you end up losing opportunities, and you are unable to express yourself. There are so many people with discolored teeth, and they have spent a fortune in dental visits, yet there are several ways that they can be controlled by below home remedies . Watch what you eat.
Ensure that you frequently eat crunchy fruits as well as vegetable . Fruits such as apples, carrots act as a natural toothbrush. They are important in removing any bacteria that may be present in the mouth. Also, these fruits remove any food particles that may be left in the mouth. They are also useful in scrubbing any stain that may be on the surface of the teeth.
Also, consider taking strawberries. They are known to contain a Malic acid enzyme which is important in removing any stains on the teeth surface thus whitening the teeth. While eating them, you should chew them thoroughly to ensure that they are brushing the teeth. Always brush and floss your teeth on a daily basis.
Brushing and flossing your teeth regularly helps a lot in avoiding the formation of plaque. It is recommended that you should brush and floss at least twice a day. The time taken to brush the teeth may not mean much but it is the quality and how well you do it that matters. While brushing, ensure that u reach the surfaces that are behind your teeth as well as the back molars. The bottom line is removing any food particles and bacteria that may facilitate the formation of plaque. Use the oil pulling method.
This method is quite common with the Indian community. It helps in improving their oral health and cleansing their bodies. For this method, it entails moving a tablespoon of oil in your mouth for a few minutes while pulling it in between your teeth. After about 20 minutes, spit the oil and clean your mouth using plenty of water. Doing this frequently can go a long way in whitening your teeth thus better oral health . Use of a mixture of baking soda and lemon.
This method is used by so many people in whitening the teeth. The mixture has a reaction that often results in brighter teeth. However, you should be very careful in ensuring that the mixture doesn’t stay in your mouth for long without brushing as it will result in enamel erosion.
By following the above natural home remedies, you can rest assured that you will have whiter teeth. Ensure practice these tips frequently.
Author Bio: Karen Cole is working as a freelance writer from last 4 years. Currently, she is doing research on oral health and working with some dentists of USA . You might also like… | 0 |
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said Monday that 1, 934 U. S. persons had their identities unmasked in 2016 based on intelligence collected on foreign targets. [The revelation came during a Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Russian interference in the 2016 elections. He also revealed that he had requested the unmasking, or identity, of either Trump, his associates or members of Congress “once,” but said he could not discuss why in a public setting. Trump has asserted that the Obama administration had surveilled members of his campaign, and last month, it was revealed that Susan Rice had requested the unmasking of Trump transition team members. On Friday, Sen. Rand Paul ( ) a 2016 presidential candidate, announced that he had been told by several sources that the Obama administration had unmasked his or his campaign members’ identities, and has requested more information from the Trump administration and the intelligence community on that. Chairman Sen. Lindsey Graham ( ) said prior to his subcommittee’s investigation on Russian interference in the election, he had not known a lot about unmasking, but that what he’s learned is “disturbing. ” Under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, communications of U. S. persons can be legally captured during surveillance of a foreign target. Since it is illegal to gather intelligence on U. S. persons without a warrant, their identities are masked when caught up in such surveillance, unless there is a request to unmask their identities for legitimate national security reasons. A private phone conversation that appears to have been intercepted in such surveillance between former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak was leaked to the Washington Post in a February 9 article. Former Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates during the hearing said she had notified White House Counsel Don McGahn of that conversation on January 26, but that she did not know who later leaked it to the Washington Post. | 1 |
Breitbart October 31, 2016
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A review of FBI Director James Comey’s professional history and relationships shows that the Obama cabinet leader — now under fire for his handling of the investigation of Hillary Clinton — is deeply entrenched in the big-money cronyism culture of Washington, D.C. His personal and professional relationships — all undisclosed as he announced the Bureau would not prosecute Clinton — reinforce bipartisan concerns that he may have politicized the criminal probe.
These concerns focus on millions of dollars that Comey accepted from a Clinton Foundation defense contractor, Comey’s former membership on a Clinton Foundation corporate partner’s board, and his surprising financial relationship with his brother Peter Comey, who works at the law firm that does the Clinton Foundation’s taxes.
Lockheed Martin
When President Obama nominated Comey to become FBI director in 2013, Comey promised the United States Senate that he would recuse himself on all cases involving former employers.
But Comey earned $6 million in one year alone from Lockheed Martin. Lockheed Martin became a Clinton Foundation donor that very year.
Comey served as deputy attorney general under John Ashcroft for two years of the Bush administration. When he left the Bush administration, he went directly to Lockheed Martin and became vice president, acting as a general counsel .
How much money did James Comey make from Lockheed Martin in his last year with the company, which he left in 2010? More than $6 million in compensation .
Lockheed Martin is a Clinton Foundation donor . The company admitted to becoming a Clinton Global Initiative member in 2010.
According to records , Lockheed Martin is also a member of the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt, which paid Bill Clinton $250,000 to deliver a speech in 2010 .
In 2010 , Lockheed Martin won 17 approvals for private contracts from the Hillary Clinton State Department.
HSBC Holdings
In 2013, Comey became a board member, a director, and a Financial System Vulnerabilities Committee member of the London bank HSBC Holdings.
“Mr. Comey’s appointment will be for an initial three-year term which, subject to re-election by shareholders, will expire at the conclusion of the 2016 Annual General Meeting,” according to HSBC company records .
HSBC Holdings and its various philanthropic branches routinely partner with the Clinton Foundation . For instance, HSBC Holdings has partnered with Deutsche Bank through the Clinton Foundation to “retrofit 1,500 to 2,500 housing units, primarily in the low- to moderate-income sector” in “New York City.”
“Retrofitting” refers to a Green initiative to conserve energy in commercial housing units. Clinton Foundation records show that the Foundation projected “ $1 billion in financing ” for this Green initiative to conserve people’s energy in low-income housing units. | 0 |
France’s future in the European Union was the main talking point for the country’s presidential candidates Tuesday night, in a debate described as a “cacophony”. [All 11 people standing for the French presidency took part in the epic debate, including less well known candidates polling barely above one per cent. Front National leader Marine Le Pen was able to paint herself as a moderate against the words of her smaller rivals, telling François Asselineau, president of the obscure Popular Republican Union, her position was “less brutal” than his policy of unilaterally withdrawing from the EU. Mr. Asselineau responded by accusing Ms. Le Pen of not really wanting ‘Frexit’ to which she responded: “The French will decide. ” The only candidate to passionately support the EU was independent Emmanuel Macron, Ms. Le Pen’s main rival for the presidency, who accused her of wanting to cause “economic war”. “What you are proposing, Ms. Le Pen, is a reduction in French people’s purchasing power, because for savers and for workers, withdrawing from the euro will be a reduction in spending power,” he said. The Front National leader accused Mr. Macron of pretending “to be something new when you are speaking like old fossils that are at least 50 years old”. French daily Le Figaro called the debate a “cacophony” as the 11 candidates shouted at and interrupted one another for four hours. The paper said things soon turned to confusion as the candidates debated “without much coherence” with different candidates seeming to ally with others and then oppose them later. Broadcaster France 24 also called the debate “more surreal than enlightening” and criticised the decision to allow all 11 candidates to debate. “The open contest on the BFM TV and CNEWS networks, while laudable in principle, was absurd in effect with so much on the line. And the top candidates, many of whom have been openly lukewarm about contesting a similar third broadcast on April 20, might be wise to stay away. ” | 1 |
DETROIT — Donald J. Trump’s visit to a black church here on Saturday will be a major moment for a candidate with a history of offending the sensibilities of black Americans. His team was leaving nothing to chance. Instead of speaking to the congregation at Great Faith Ministries International, Mr. Trump had planned to be interviewed by its pastor in a session that would be closed to the public and the news media, with questions submitted in advance. And instead of letting Mr. Trump be his freewheeling self, his campaign prepared lengthy answers for the submitted questions, consulting black Republicans to make sure he says the right things. An draft script obtained by The New York Times shows 12 questions that Bishop Wayne T. Jackson, the pastor, intends to ask Mr. Trump in the taped session, as well as the responses Mr. Trump is being advised to give. The proposed answers were devised by aides working for the Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee, according to an official who has been involved in the planning but declined to be identified while speaking about confidential strategy. The document includes the exact wording of answers the aides are proposing for Mr. Trump to give to questions about police killings, racial tension and the perception among many black voters that he and the Republican Party are racist, among other topics. The official said the answers could change based on feedback from the black Republicans they are consulting with. After this article was published online Thursday night, Jason Miller, the senior communications adviser for the Trump campaign, said that Mr. Trump’s plans had changed and that he would address the congregation for five to 10 minutes after the interview. Mr. Trump will then visit neighborhoods with Ben Carson, a onetime campaign rival, who supports Mr. Trump and grew up in Detroit. “If you know anything about Mr. Trump, it’s that he will want the opportunity to take his vision and message of opportunity directly to the people on Saturday,” Mr. Miller said. It is not uncommon for a candidate to request interview questions in advance aides to Hillary Clinton do it from time to time. But it is unusual for a campaign to go so far as to prepare a script for a candidate’s own responses, and highlights the sensitivity of Mr. Trump’s first appearance at a black church. A series of slights, including his questioning of President Obama’s birth certificate, has not endeared him to black voters. The interview will air about a week later on the Impact Network, Bishop Jackson’s Christian cable TV channel. The official said several Trump aides would work with the network to edit the taped interview so that the final version reflected the campaign’s wishes. (On Thursday night, Mr. Miller said the campaign would not edit the interview.) The arrangements had angered several black Republicans, who urged Mr. Trump, widely seen as distant from the black community, to speak for at least 10 minutes at the service, the official involved in the planning said. The official added that the campaign had been uncomfortable with Mr. Trump’s speaking before the congregation and had insisted on a private interview. On Thursday night, the campaign said Mr. Trump would indeed address the congregation for a few minutes and would spend a casually speaking with church members individually. Mr. Trump is well known for veering from prepared remarks or throwing them away entirely. That could happen on Saturday: Many of the answers being prepared for him do not sound much like Mr. Trump as his usual self. When asked about his vision for black Americans, the script suggests that Mr. Trump stay positive, advising that he use lines such as “If we are to make America great again, we must reduce, rather than highlight, issues of race in this country” and “I want to make race disappear as a factor in government and governance. ” To a question submitted by Bishop Jackson about whether his campaign is racist, the script suggests that Mr. Trump avoid repeating the word, and instead speak about improving education and getting people off welfare and back to work. “The proof, as they say, will be in the pudding,” Mr. Trump is advised to say. “Coming into a community is meaningless unless we offer an alternative to the horrible progressive agenda that has perpetuated a permanent underclass in America. ” To the first question, “Are you a Christian and do you believe the Bible is an inspired word of God?” the scriptwriters have a response they hope will keep Mr. Trump from repeating previous stumbles when asked about his faith. “As I went through my life, things got busy with business, but my family kept me grounded to the truth and the word of God,” the script has Mr. Trump saying. “I treasure my relationship with my family, and through them, I have a strong faith enriched by an God. ” Bishop Jackson said Thursday that he saw no problem with the campaign’s asking to screen his questions, and noted that in the past he had given advance text of prayers he planned to deliver at the White House. “We want this to be as peaceful as possible,” he said. “That’s what I promised would happen. I promised that: You are coming into a place to be interviewed and we don’t want anybody to be hurt or anybody to be misused, so that’s it. ” Of all the proposed answers, the most might be his reply to the final question of the interview: What he would say to undecided black voters? “If you want a strong partner in this journey, you will vote for me. I will never let you down,” Mr. Trump is directed to say, adding, “By the way, my support is now up to 8 percent and climbing. ” | 1 |
A student or staff member at St. Louis Park High School in suburban Minneapolis, Minnesota, was diagnosed with active tuberculosis (TB) in late November, but Hennepin County Department of Health officials and St. Louis Park Public Schools officials concealed that information from the public until the second week of January, six weeks later. [“Some parents received letters in the mail Thursday saying their teenagers may have been exposed to an infectious disease,” WCCO reported. “In late November, the school district was notified by the Hennepin County Department of Health that an individual at the high school had been diagnosed with active (TB),” St. Louis Park Public Schools Superintendent Rob Metz wrote in a letter sent to parents of students dated January 11. The letter was sent in three languages: English, Spanish, and Somali. “By the time we were notified, the individual was receiving medical care and posed no further risk or exposure to the school,” Metz said. “The Tuberculosis experts at the Hennepin County Department of Health asked us to wait to communicate this information and arrange for the testing until they could determine who needed to be tested,” Metz admitted. The concealment of the diagnosis of active TB stands in marked contrast to the decision by Omaha Public School officials and Douglas County, Nebraska, public health officials, who in November, as soon as the diagnosis was confirmed, released to the public news that a student at Benson Magnet High School, where 18 percent of all students are refugees, had been diagnosed with active TB . Public health and public school officials in Rock Hill, South Carolina, also released news that a middle school student had been diagnosed with active TB in December during the first week of January. One public health expert was stunned by the failure of the Hennepin County Department of Health, the Minnesota Department of Health, and the St. Louis Park Public Schools to immediately inform the students, their parents, and staff members of the risk of TB to which they had been exposed. “The proper thing to do when an active case of TB is discovered is to notify and test contacts immediately,” Dr. Jane Orient, executive director of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, tells Breitbart News, adding, “If negative, they need to be tested again in about six weeks. One infected person can affect many. One that he infects can infect many, and soon you have exponential spread and an epidemic. In fact, close contacts of the known patient may have already been spreading disease, especially if they are all refugees that were living in crowded conditions. ” “Moreover,” Dr. Orient continued, “the fact that the individual is receiving care does not guarantee that he is not a risk. Has he had three negative sputum tests? Remember, it may take six weeks to be sure the organism is not going to grow. Is it sensitive to the prescribed drugs? Is the individual taking the drugs faithfully?” “Yes, I think this failure to follow standard public health procedures is stunning,” Orient concludes. St. Louis Park Public Schools Superintendent Metz sent the late notice of the case of active TB to parents eight days after he announced he was resigning to become deputy director of a program called Building Assets, Reducing Risks that began at St. Louis Park High School. “The Building Assets, Reducing Risks position became a possibility after the center won a $20 million U. S. Department of Education grant to implement or expand the initiative in at least 116 schools nationally within the next five years,” the Sun Sailor reported: The federal government has already helped fund expansions of the Building Assets, Reducing Risks program to dozens of schools. The new funding will help the program expand to 50 additional schools across five states, according to the U. S. Department of Education. The Building Assets, Reducing Risks program began as a way for the St. Louis Park School District to help freshmen transition to high school. At the time, nearly half of St. Louis Park students failed at least one class. Other risks on the rise then included higher rates of substance abuse, truancy and discipline referrals. Breitbart News contacted Metz and St. Louis Public Schools Board of Education Chairman Joe Tatalovich for comment but did not receive a response. As Breitbart News reported on January 9, 36 percent of all cases of active TB in Minnesota between 2012 and 2015, or 225 out of 610, were diagnosed in refugees resettled in the state by the federal government, the highest rate in any of the 46 states in which the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) obtains data. Refugees account for less than one percent of the state’s population of 5. 5 million, according to one estimate. Minnesota leads the country by far in one category of public health: refugee TB per capita. During the four years between 2012 and 2015, 4. 08 cases of refugee TB were diagnosed for every 100, 000 residents of the state. Nebraska trailed Minnesota in a very distant second, with 1. 26 cases of refugee TB diagnosed for every 100, 000 residents of the state during the same period. percent of all TB cases diagnosed in Minnesota in 2015, or 128 out of 150, were 19 percent higher than the national average of 66 percent. percent of the 39, 669 refugees who have been resettled by the federal government in Minnesota since 2003, or 28, 831 out of 39, 669, arrived from five high TB burden countries: Somalia (16, 069) Burma (7, 975) Ethiopia (3, 399) Bhutan (1157) and the Democratic Republic of Congo (231) according to the Department of State. One hundred and Somali refugees and 20 Ethiopian refugees have been resettled in the city of St. Louis Park, which had a population in 2015 of 48, 534. The state of Minnesota is home to the largest Somali community in the United States, most of whom live in the Paul metropolitan area. In a presentation made to the St. Louis Park Multicultural Advisory Committee, Human Rights Commission, and Police Advisory Commission in August 2016, Minnesota State demographer Susan Brower reported the city’s 2015 population was 48, 354, and had grown slightly less than 1. 5 percent annually between 2010 and 2015. During the period, 80 percent of the city’s population, or 37, 056 out of 46, 466, was white according to Brower. Twenty percent of the city’s population during the period, or 9, 400 out of 46, 466, were Populations of Color: 3, 329 were black 2, 052 were Latino 2, 051 were “ ” 1, 790 were Asian and 188 were American Indian, Brower reported. Neither the Hennepin County Health Department, the Minnesota Department of Health, nor the St. Louis Park School District disclosed whether the individual diagnosed with active TB was a refugee, a resident with a different original immigration entry status, or U. S. . St. Louis Park Public Schools did not respond to questions from Breitbart News as to the percentage of the 1, 400 students who attend St. Louis Park High School who are refugees. St. Louis Park High School employs two English Language Learner (ELL) teachers. The St. Louis Park Public Schools website states that “over 250 children [receive] ELL services” out of the district’s 4, 590 students ( ) about five percent of all enrolled students. “The school district says someone who had TB but was unaware was inside the building while contagious during the months of September, October and November. The school has about 1, 400 students,” WCCO reported. The testing of students for latent TB is voluntary and is planned to take place at the end of January. The TB bacteria is transmitted from a contagious individual with active TB to a healthy individual through air droplets from coughing, sneezing, or other methods of contact. Once the TB bacteria is in a person’s system, he has latent TB, which is neither active nor contagious, but which can develop into active contagious TB. Only four percent of the general population has latent TB. residents of the United States, and refugees in particular, have a much higher rate of latent TB, ranging from 11 percent in Florida to 35 percent in Vermont. percent of refugees arriving in Minnesota tested positive for latent TB in 2014. Ten percent of those who have latent TB in the general population develop active TB at some point. According to several recent medical studies, including one done in 2013 at the University of California at San Diego, refugee communities with high rates of latent TB experience a higher rate of activation than the general population. This difference may be due to the greater stresses placed on their immune systems. In that U. C. San Diego study, the problem was particularly acute among refugees from Africa, primarily Somalis and Ethiopians: The prevalence of LTBI [latent tuberculosis infection] was highest among refugees from Africa (43 percent) and was associated with current smoking and having a clinical comorbidity that increases the risk for active tuberculosis. … Although refugees from Africa had the highest prevalence of infection, they were significantly less likely to initiate treatment than refugees from the Middle East. Refugees with postsecondary education were significantly more likely to initiate LTBI treatment. The study also showed that “public health strategies are needed to increase treatment rates among refugees with LTBI. Particular attention is required among refugees from Africa and those with less education. ” Breitbart News contacted the office of Sen. Amy Klobuchar ( ) the former county attorney for Hennepin County, for comment on the handling of the St. Louis Park High School active TB case by Minnesota officials, but did not receive a response. Klobuchar is up for in 2018. In November, Donald Trump lost the state of Minnesota to Hillary Clinton by 43, 785 votes, only 1. 5 percent of the more than 2. 7 million votes cast in the state. Before Trump’s electoral victory in November, Klobuchar’s seat was considered safe in 2018. Public concerns about health, security, and crime related to high levels of refugee resettlement, however, helped power Trump’s wins in the nearby states of Wisconsin and Michigan, and his showing in Minnesota. There is no evidence that the individual diagnosed with active TB at St. Louis Park High School in November was either or a refugee. However, the six weeks concealment of the diagnosis from the public by Minnesota officials, combined with their failure to affirmatively declare whether the individual was a refugee, or U. S. all serve to heighten public distrust of public officials in Minnesota and fuel sentiment just as Klobuchar begins to prepare for her campaign. Incumbent Governor Mark Dayton, a Democrat, has said he will not run for to a third term in 2018, so that race is less likely to be influenced by sentiment. | 1 |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.