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Nearly 80 percent of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, according to a survey released Thursday by CareerBuilder.
The results:
78 percent live paycheck to paycheck, up from 75 percent last year.
81 percent of women live paycheck to paycheck vs. 75 percent men.
Nine percent of workers making $100,000 or more live paycheck to paycheck.
More than 1 in 4 do not contribute to savings each month.
Nearly 3 in 4 say they are in debt; more than half think they always will be in debt.
"Living paycheck to paycheck is the new way of life for U.S. workers," CareerBuilder spokesman Mike Erwin told CBS News. "It's not just one salary range. It's pretty much across the board, and it's trending in the wrong direction. Jobs have come back, but we haven't seen salaries rebound."
Further, 59 percent of Americans making $100,000 or more say they are in debt, and 70 percent of those making between $50,000 and $99,000 are in debt, according to the survey.
"As an employer, your employees' financial problems become your financial problems," said Rosemary Haefner, chief human resources officer for CareerBuilder. "If workers are constantly thinking about their financial struggles, their quality of work can decrease, and it can take a hit on their morale and productivity."
The survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder among 2,369 hiring and human resource managers ages 18 and over and 3,462 employees ages 18 and over between May 24 and June 16, 2017. There's a 95 percent probability that the results have sampling errors of plus or minus 2 percentage points. | {
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Nobody was supposed to take Dogecoin seriously. Back in 2013, a couple of guys created a new cryptocurrency inspired by the "doge" meme, which features a Shiba Inu dog making excited but ungrammatical declarations.
"The price doesn't even matter," Dogecoin cofounder Billy Markus told Motherboard in 2013. Everyone assumed that people would have some fun playing around with a pretend currency for a year or two and then move on. The currency's value peaked around $90 million in February 2014 and then began a years-long slump.
At the start of 2017, the value of all Dogecoins in circulation was around $20 million.
"New features aren't being implemented into dogecoin because there's no active development anymore," cofounder Jackson Palmer told Coindesk in March of last year. "Eventually, it will become outdated. And with that, the network will organically wind down."
But cryptocurrency investors didn't get the memo. As the cryptocurrency market in general exploded in the summer and fall of 2017, Dogecoin went along for the ride. Its value started rising, and by the end of 2017, the value of all Dogecoins in circulation was almost $1 billion.
Then on Saturday the value hit $2 billion. Since then, it has lost some ground and the value of Dogecoins in circulation is now around $1.7 billion.
Palmer, who hasn't been actively involved in the project since 2015, thinks this is all kind of crazy. "It says a lot about the state of the cryptocurrency space in general that a currency with a dog on it which hasn't released a software update in over 2 years has a $1B+ market cap," Palmer told Coindesk last week. | {
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I had a party at my house a few weeks ago, and I’ve always hated the idea of excluding anybody, so I kind of cast a wide net in terms of invites. It was too wide, I know it, I hate having to do stuff like this, but it’s either invite everybody or don’t have a party at all. Because the last thing I want is for someone’s status update or shared photo to ruin it for someone else, that, sorry, I had a party and I didn’t invite you.
And am I really being cool about it? Looking back, I don’t think I’ve ever been cool about it at all. I kind of spread the word in advance to the people that I would have invited had I allowed myself a more exclusive get-together, and then like two or three days before, I put out a general announcement to everybody at work, friends on Facebook.
All I’m really doing is reaching for the bottom, right, like who else is not only not going to have any plans on such short notice? I feel like a jerk even laying it out like that, but that’s exactly what it is, all right, people with nothing else to do, just waiting for a last minute sympathy invite.
The party was on a Saturday, I sent out my mass invite on a Thursday. Friday morning this guy Phil at work sends me an email, “Hey Rob, what should I bring?” And what do you mean what should you bring? You ever been to a party before? Just bring some beer, a bottle of wine, I don’t know, a bag of chips. This isn’t high tea here.
But what do I say? “Don’t bring anything.” Because what are you really supposed to say? You tell people not to bring something. You kind of hope that they bring a little extra booze or some snacks. Not Jell-O. OK, that’s just weird. That’s what Phil brought. He brought some weird molded Jell-O thing, like something straight out of a sixties cookbook, a big, green ring with stuff floating around in it.
“Hey man, I made some dessert,” and he was smiling, like I was trying to get a read on him. Was this some sort of a joke, like a gag gift? But I swear, I couldn’t tell, and while a part of me really wanted to laugh and be like, “Ha, that’s hilarious,” I just really wasn’t that convinced that this Jell-O thing wasn’t anything less than a hundred percent sincere.
I was right in the middle of laying out all of the snacks, pouring this giant bag of tortilla chips that I had bought at Costco into a big plastic bowl. I had all of this party stuff spread out around me. And it wasn’t because I wasn’t ready yet, OK, it was because Phil showed up exactly at eight o’clock.
Like was he walking around the block? Just waiting for the clock to strike eight so he could knock on my door? Nobody else was here yet, and I was clearly still setting up, but he has this thing in my face, it wasn’t even wrapped, like I don’t understand how he got it all the way from his place to my place, was he just sitting on the subway with the Jell-O on his lap, breathing on it? It’s too much.
And I get it, OK, like I can be socially awkward sometimes, I have that same tendency to overthink everything. And yeah, when I get invited to a party, I’m totally stressed out about what time I’m supposed to show up, right, but I’m not the guy walking around the block wasting time so I can show up at just the right second, OK, I’m the guy walking around the block waiting for just the right time to make an entrance that looks natural, like I’m not obsessing about how many people have arrived before me, or if I’m too late.
OK, so I understand. But this guy is like me but with absolutely no inhibitions. Just, it’s eight o’clock, ding-dong, here’s your Jell-O. Maybe it was a joke. “Ha, that’s funny,” I did say it, hoping he’d laugh back, because come on dude, I’ve never seen a dessert like that in real life, and maybe it’s really tasty and everything, but nobody’s going to eat that. And tell me you had it wrapped up, please, tell me you ditched the wrapping outside, something, because I can’t get over the exposed jiggly surface, like somebody two seats down from you on the subway sneezes, it just seems like a giant germ magnet.
“What’s so funny?” and what do I say to that? “Nothing,” I said, “Just something I was thinking about from earlier, something funny happened.” And he was like, “What happened?” and I wanted to be like, Phil, come on dude, just help me out a little here, OK, just stop with the follow up questions, just put down the Jell-O man, come on dude, just let me finish setting up here.
“Where do you want me to put this Jell-O?”
“I don’t know man, anywhere’s fine. Just grab yourself a drink, OK, just hang out while I finish getting ready.”
And I’m telling you, that fucking Jell-O was like the hit of the party, I don’t even know where that cake slicer thing came from, because I definitely don’t have a cake slicer, like Phil must have brought it, OK, he must have had that thing in his back pocket. But everybody had like cake slices of Jell-O, I wanted to give out a warning, like, “Jesus, Chris, don’t eat that Jell-O,” and Chris was like, “Why? This Jell-O is awesome. Classic Phil.”
What was I not getting? “You’ve had this before?”
“Yeah man, Phil brings it to all the parties, that’s like his thing.”
And I was just thinking, how come I’ve never been to any parties with Phil before? Like I don’t care, OK, it’s not like I have to be invited to everything, OK, I know that not everybody does the whole blanket invite thing like I do. But not once? How many parties are people having that Phil’s invited to and I’m not? Because I would have noticed that, OK, I’m telling you I would have noticed a green fucking Jell-O ring cake with pieces of canned pineapple floating around in it. | {
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The College Board plans to assign an adversity score to every student who takes the SAT to try to capture their social and economic background, jumping into the debate raging over race and class in college admissions.
This new number, called an adversity score by college admissions officers, is calculated using 15 factors including the crime rate and poverty levels from the student’s high school and neighborhood. Students won’t be told the scores, but colleges will see the numbers when reviewing their applications.
Fifty... | {
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Channel 4 is planning to push ahead with the broadcast of a controversial documentary next week alleging that three former Conservative ministers were willing to sell their services as advisers to a fake Chinese business set up by the broadcaster.
The episode of Dispatches had been pulled from transmission on Monday amid a string of complaints from the trio but it is understood that it is expected to be aired next week following an emergency review involving the chief executive, Alex Mahon, and the director of television, Ian Katz.
The programme is expected to show Andrew Lansley, Andrew Mitchell and Peter Lilley being lured to a luxury Mayfair office and secretly filmed talking to actors who were posing as Chinese businessmen hoping to hire them to make money out of Britain leaving the EU.
But Lilley accused Channel 4 of a “tawdry attempt at entrapment” and insisted he had done nothing wrong. Mitchell said he was “totally innocent” and suggested that he had launched his own investigation and alerted MI5 after suspecting the approach was fake.
The Sunday Times was also due to splash on a version of the story last weekend, with three more pages inside, but this was also pulled in the early evening. Insiders said that the final decision to delay by Channel 4 and the newspaper had been taken because of warnings about the potential impact of airing the programme on Lansley’s health who is being treated for illness.
By then, the former ministers had also briefed their version of events to the Mail on Sunday. That front page account outlined how the three former ministers were asked to come to the Mayfair property and were greeted by a woman named as Fei Liu, who said she represented Chinese millionaires.
In the coverage, Mitchell claimed that he had realised “within minutes of arriving at the meeting” that he was the target of a sting. He said he had made clear that he could not lobby and would only take up work with the clearance of parliamentary authorities.
“Like many other politicians, in addition to my work as a backbench MP I have a few outside interests. I am paid for some, but not all,” he said. “There are some who argue that MPs should do no outside work at all.”
A spokesman for Lansley said: “He has always kept his outside interests separate from his parliamentary duties and at no time did he offer any privileged access, insider information, lobbying activity, parliamentary advice or services.”
It is thought that the programme will also claim that while Mitchell said he would be available “at any time” to Lu’s company, he had failed to offer the same service to a person living in his constituency of Sutton Coldfield.
The Guardian understands that producers are now working on a recut version of the documentary, likely to air on Monday, which will challenge some of the claims made by Mitchell in the Mail on Sunday.
Ofcom is expected to take a close interest in the documentary once it airs. The communications regulator has no power to intervene pre-transmission but it can investigate whether Channel 4 complied with the broadcasting code in its use of secret filming.
To be justified there has to be “prima facie evidence” that the story is “in the public interest” meaning that fishing expeditions in which a sting is set up in the hope of incriminating somebody are not allowed.
All three men have denied wrongdoing.
A Channel 4 spokesman said: “This investigation raises important questions about transparency and accountability in public life. We are continuing to work on the film, which will be broadcast soon.”
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Alpine Country Club questions 'authenticity' of $30K purse; waiter no longer being sued
Keldy Ortiz | NorthJersey
Show Caption Hide Caption Aerial video of Alpine Country Club Aerial video of Alpine Country Club.
A Bergen country club being sued for $30,000 in damages after a waiter allegedly spilled wine on an Alpine woman’s expensive purse is questioning whether it's real, according to court documents.
The lawyer for Alpine Country Club, Kenneth Merber, also in court documents said the club will not be seeking to sue the waiter. The club initially filed a cross-claim action, in which one defendant sues another in the same proceeding.
Maryana Beyder, a country club member from Alpine, filed a lawsuit in October against the club saying it should be held responsible for irreversibly damaging her Hermès Kelly bag, which was rare and has since been discontinued.
Hermès handbags are sometimes priced in the tens of thousands of dollars.
“The pleadings raise issues regarding the property damage Plaintiff claims she suffered, the authenticity of the handbag and its value. Plaintiff has not provided any receipt pertaining to the purchase of the subject handbag,” Merber said in a statement. “Alpine Country Club is not making any claim against and is not seeking any damages from any of its employees, including the waiter who allegedly caused damage to Plaintiff’s handbag, pertaining to the subject incident.”
More: Alpine Country Club responds to suit over wine spilled on $30K purse
Opinion: We should be embarrassed by the lawsuit over the $30K handbag at Alpine Country Club
On Sept. 7, 2018, Beyder was having a meal at the Demarest country club when a waiter spilled red wine on her pink Hermès bag, according to court documents. For nearly a year, said Alexandra Errico, Beyder’s attorney, she attempted to resolve the issue with the country club. The club stopped being responsive, she said, and even the insurance company was dismissive, not understanding why the bag was priced so high. Beyder's handbag was a birthday gift from her husband.
In a response to the country club's claims, Errico said Tuesday that she plans to file a defamation and libel lawsuit. Errico also said her client will not be suing the server.
"We have two authentication reports that it is real," Errico said about the purse. "For them to say that, it’s in bad faith. They are lying."
A Hermès handbag sold at an auction in Hong Kong for $377,000 in 2017, setting the world record for most expensive bag.
The Himalaya Birkin handbag sold at the auction wasn't just any handbag. It was a variation of a handbag conceived by Hermès founder Jean-Louis Dumas and actress/singer Jane Birkin on a flight from Paris to London.
Keldy Ortiz is a breaking news reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to all the major news happening in North Jersey, subscribe here. To get breaking news directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter.
Email: [email protected] Twitter: @KeldyOrtiz | {
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Temps de lecture : 4 minutes
TORONTO – Postes Canada a enfreint la Loi sur les langues officielles en décidant de rediriger les internautes francophones vers des adresses web en anglais seulement, a tranché le Commissariat aux langues officielles. Corriger cette gaffe sera complexe et coûteux, réplique la Société des postes, qui devra néanmoins se plier à la décision.
Au premier abord, l’URL de Postes Canada est bel et bien en français : www.postescanada.ca. Mais en navigant dans le site, l’internaute francophone se fait ensuite rediriger vers des pages dont les adresses sont sur le portail anglophone www.canadapost.ca. Le contenu est en français, mais l’adresse URL de la page est en anglais.
Un détail ? Pas selon le commissaire aux langues officielles du Canada, Raymond Théberge.
« Le nom de domaine est le noyau de l’URL ; il représente l’identité que l’institution veut présenter au grand public et à son public cible. Toute institution fédérale canadienne représente le Canada, et selon la partie IV [de la Loi sur les langues officielles], elle doit de se présenter également dans les deux langues officielles », écrit-il dans son rapport d’enquête daté de février 2020, dont ONFR+ a obtenu copie.
Le site internet de Postes Canada et un exemple d’adresse en anglais du site internet. Photomontage ONFR+
Le commissaire aux langues officielles s’appuie sur le concept de l’offre active pour justifier sa décision.
« Bien que le contenu d’une page web soit la raison pour laquelle un utilisateur visite le site web, le nom de domaine et ses URL sont comme les panneaux de signalisation qui jouent le rôle d’offre active de service bilingue au sens de l’article 28 de la Loi », avance-t-il.
La plaignante explique ses motivations
Un URL unilingue anglais n’est pas non une bagatelle, selon la plaignante dans cette affaire, Chantal Carey.
« Le manque de respect envers quiconque me choque. Il y a deux langues officielles reconnues au Canada par la législation. Il faut condamner le comportement des institutions fédérales qui donnent préséance à une langue plutôt qu’à une autre en ignorant une loi que tout le monde est tenue de suivre », affirme-t-elle.
Observatrice privilégiée du bilinguisme canadien, elle a porté plainte à de nombreuses reprises concernant différent manquement à la Loi sur les langues officielles. Un URL en anglais est une chose, mais lorsque cela s’ajoute aux autres lacunes du système, les francophones payent le prix fort, croit-elle.
« Lorsqu’on examine le portrait global du traitement qui est accordé à chacune des langues officielles par le gouvernement fédéral, ce genre de situation est loin d’être banale ou isolée. Un moustique qui vous tourne autour de la tête est désagréable. Imaginez-en plusieurs au quotidien et vous finirez par trouver la situation insoutenable », dit-elle.
Des changements qui coûteront des « millions de dollars »
Postes Canada a justifié sa décision. « La Société des postes a expliqué que les URL sont en anglais parce qu’elle a fusionné ses deux domaines antérieurs (canadapost.ca et postescanada.ca) en un seul (canadapost.ca) en 2015. Cette décision avait été prise pour des raisons techniques et d’image de marque. D’après la SCP, avoir deux domaines séparés et deux ensembles de pages portait à confusion et nuisait à la facilité de recherche du site sur Internet par le public », rapporte le Commissariat. Postes Canada affirme que le contenu des pages est francophone et que c’est ce qui importe.
Revenir à l’ancien système (un domaine en français et un autre en anglais) ou encore adopter un URL bilingue (comme canadapost-postescanada.ca) constitue un projet « pluriannuel requérant des millions de dollars, ce qui aurait une incidence négative sur toutes les ressources de l’entreprise », selon Postes Canada.
L’un des bureaux de la poste de Postes Canada. Gracieuseté : Postes Canada
Le commissaire aux langues officielles affirme ne pas être insensible aux conséquences financières de sa décision.
« Bien que la mise en œuvre des recommandations peut représenter des coûts et des efforts importants, la Société des postes est tout de même responsable de s’assurer que toute communication avec le public soit faite dans les deux langues officielles en tout temps. Exceptionnellement, une prolongation du délai de mise en œuvre des recommandations de 12 à 18 mois est accordée », a-t-il décidé.
Chantal Carey est d’avis que de laisser passer des gaffes sans forcer les organismes fédéraux à les corriger c’est s’engager sur une pente bien glissante.
« C’est la propre négligence de la Société canadienne des postes qui va lui coûter cher. Elle est responsable de ses erreurs, tout comme je suis responsable si je casse quelque chose chez vous ! Ça n’aurait pas coûté plus cher si la Société des postes avait bien fait son travail dès le début. Peut-être devra-t-elle penser à prendre des assurances pour que les Canadiens n’aient pas à payer la note la prochaine fois ! », lance-t-elle.
Mme Carey note qu’entre le moment où elle a porté plainte dans ce dossier et la date butoir pour établir les correctifs, plus de deux ans se seront écoulés…
Postes Canada n’aurait-il pas pu s’assurer de conserver une plateforme avec des adresses bilingues dès le début ? Combien de temps les changements prendront-ils ? Combien cela coûtera ? Postes Canada a fourni une réponse laconique à toutes ces questions.
« Nous examinons le rapport du commissaire et ses recommandations. Nous tenons à souligner que le contenu de notre site web unifié est entièrement bilingue et offre aux clients une meilleure expérience grâce à un accès simultané à des informations en français et en anglais », a soutenu la société d’État dans une courte déclaration anonyme et non-signée.
LE COMMISSARIAT AUX LANGUES OFFICIELLES IMPOSE À POSTES CANADA DE :
S’assurer que l’offre active soit présente de manière non équivoque dans le nom de domaine de son site web et que l’URL de chaque page affichée soit, en tout temps, de qualité égale dans les deux langues officielles.
D’établir et de mettre en œuvre des procédures officielles documentées afin de s’assurer que l’offre active de service bilingue soit prise en compte dans toutes les décisions institutionnelles touchant les médias électroniques. | {
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NEW DELHI — The government of Goa, on India’s western coast, is setting up a program to get young gay people to lead “a normal life,” according to the state’s minister for sports and youth affairs.
“We will tell them what to do and how to get over same-sex feelings,” the minister, Ramesh Tawadkar, said on Tuesday in a telephone interview. Mr. Tawadkar called homosexuality a “big problem” in Indian society, where same-sex relations are illegal.
Mr. Tawadkar revealed the plans on Monday in Panjim, the state capital, as he announced Goa’s state youth policy for 2015. The new policy treats gay youths as a problem group to be addressed with government action, along with drug addicts, dropouts, migrants and others.
Mr. Tawadkar confirmed in the interview Tuesday that the state government, run by the Bharatiya Janata Party, intended to set up “camps” to treat gay, bisexual and transgender young people. He gave few specifics, but said that the program would include counseling. | {
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Jack Markell supports the president's stance on sequestration. Markell: Obama not exaggerating
The chair of the National Governors Association said on Monday that President Barack Obama isn’t exaggerating the impact of the deep, across-the-board spending cuts that will kick in this week if Congress doesn’t head off sequestration.
“Here’s the issue,” said Delaware Gov. Jack Markell, a Democrat, on CNN’s “Starting Point.” “If you’re one of the people, if you’re a kid in Head Start, and you’re going to be impacted, if you’re somebody who’s supposed to get some job training so you can go get a job and you’re not going to get it and you’re impacted, there’s no exaggeration for you.”
( PHOTOS: What they’re saying about sequestration)
The deadline to hammer out a sequestration deal is Friday, March 1. On Sunday, the White House released a summary of the “devastating impact the sequester will have on jobs and middle-class families across the country” on a state-by-state basis.
Some Republicans have charged that Obama is exaggerating the impact of those cuts. On Monday, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker said that there’s “no doubt” that the administration is using “scare tactics.”
“As governors, Democrat and Republican alike, we have to do this all the time, we have to make those tough choices and we find a better way than the scare tactics,” the GOP governor said on Fox News’s “Fox & Friends.” “For years I’ve heard, not just in state but even in local government, ‘If you don’t give us all this money at the local level, fire and police are going to go away’ or other things like that. Well, there’s always a better way.”
Walker called for authorizing the administration to make the necessary cuts, adding that there is “certainly enough waste to be cut in this town.”
But Markell said that if the automatic cuts are allowed to take effect, the country’s economic recovery will be thrown off track.
“… [The] most frustrating conversation any governor can have these days is when we talk to a business [person] who says, ‘I’d love to hire, but I can’t find people with the right skills,’” Markell continued. “So we have resources available for job training and if those resources get cut, it … stops the recovery in its tracks. And that’s just not what we should be doing.” | {
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If you thought what’s going on on the college campuses in the U.S. is out of control, promulgation of Islam’s religious ideals and beliefs, to the negation of all other religions, has spread to the public school system. This news story is not something exceptional. In California and several other states, a 7th grade course is being taught in Middle Schools on Islam. Not just about Islam’s history and culture. This course is about being a Muslim. For three weeks, children are asked to dress as Muslims, change their names to Muslim names, memorize verses from the Koran, and make Islamic faith declarations. The field trip of the month is a visit to a mosque. Many non-Muslim parents are very upset by this new course which appears as a chapter in a widespread social studies book. Yet the school system seems to be defending the course.
Could it be that some Muslim oil currency has been helping them create this learning program? Do politicians and school administrators have something to gain by playing along? There are those who seem to think so… | {
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You are invited to participate in a research study that looks at how society influences the way men feel about themselves. You have been asked to participate in this study to further our knowledge of men’s mental health. Your participation in this research study is voluntary and unpaid. No personal benefit is expected for completing the study. If you agree to participate in the study, you will be asked to complete a web-based questionnaire that will take about 15-20 minutes. You will be asked questions about depression and male identity.
The study is anonymous. You will not be asked to disclose your name any point. We will have no way of knowing who you are. Because we will have no idea of who you are, once you submit your answers, we will not be able to remove them from the study.
Any risk to you completing this study is small. It is limited to some emotional discomfort. If you feel uncomfortable answering any of the questions, you can choose to stop, exit the study, and not submit your responses. In addition, a list of resources is included at the end of the study should you feel you need any help. Please note that the investigator is not liable for any injuries that could occur.
If you have any questions or concerns at any point, you can email me at [email protected]. My name is Lan Yang and I am a doctoral student at Widener University. If you would like to receive a copy of my dissertation once it is done, please email me at the address above. I will be happy to share my work with you. For any questions related to your rights as a participant, please contact the IRB chairperson at [email protected]. In addition, you may choose to print out a copy of this informed consent for your records.
By continuing with this study you indicate that you are a man. In addition, you are at least 18 years old. Also, you have read and understood the above Consent Form, its general purposes, the particulars of involvement and possible risk. Once you answer and submit the questions, you agree to having your responses used in this research study. Please continue to the study if you agree to all of the above.
*The Institutional Review Board has approved the solicitation of participants for this study.
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Andrew Wolfson
@adwolfson
In an extraordinary move, prosecutors are trying to remove a prominent defense lawyer from representing his client on the word of a convicted felon who says the lawyer urged him not to testify.
On the eve of trial, the commonwealth is seeking to disqualify Rob Eggert from defending a client on robbery, kidnapping and assault charges based on assertions of a prosecuting witness who said Eggert told him not to come to court.
The witness, Deshawn Powell, faces unrelated charges of burglary and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Prosecutors Justin Janes and Dorislee Gilbert moved Wednesday to remove Eggert from representing Christopher William Locke in his trial set to start next week on the grounds that Eggert visited him in jail and asked him to “do a favor and not come to court.” They said Powell said Eggert reminded him he has “enemies.”
But the only corroboration for the statement is a jail recording in which Powell told his mother the same thing.
Locke is charged with assault in the shooting of Powell, who attorneys say is a brother of Katina Powell, the escort service owner at the center of the University of Louisville men’s basketball scandal.
Attorney Marc Murphy, who is representing Eggert in the disqualification motion, said he is a “respected and experienced officer of the court” and that the accusations are false.
Deshawn Powell, on the other hand, Murphy said, is a felon in jail facing trial on his own charges and that his “bias, unreliability and desire to curry favor and/or work a deal with the commonwealth are obvious.”
Murphy also said in a written response that the “serious allegations" that Eggert committed criminal and ethical violations “rely entirely upon the statement of a single witness.”
A hearing on the commonwealth’s motion is set for 10 a.m. Monday before Jefferson Circuit Judge Angela McCormick-Bisig.
Appellate courts have held that disqualification of a lawyer is considered a drastic measure that judges should be reluctant to impose except when absolutely necessary.
Prosecutors Janes and Gilbert claim it’s required here because they say Eggert's request to Powell suggests Locke is guilty and that they intend to present it as evidence at trial. That, in turn, might require Eggert to testify, which the prosecutors say would bar him from defending Locke because professional rules generally disallow lawyers from testifying in their client’s trial.
Janes and Gilbert also said if Eggert did testify, it would create “an incurable conflict of interest” for Eggert and jeopardize Locke’s right to a fair trial.
But Murphy, writing for Eggert, said “there are more leaps in this argument than we saw last week during the Olympic hurdles.”
For one thing, Murphy said, even if the allegation against Eggert is true, which he denies, there is no evidence that his client asked him to do it, meaning it would be inadmissible against him.
Murphy also said it would be unfair to allow Eggert to be knocked off as Locke’s lawyer — based on Powell’s unsworn allegation — after Locke has sat in jail for a year awaiting trial.
“A decision to disqualify Mr. Eggert would create a frightening and unworkable precedent and unconstitutionally handcuff defense counsel from meeting with witnesses,” Murphy wrote.
Defense lawyers are obligated to try to interview prosecuting witnesses before trial, according to attorneys not involved in the case. They usually try to bring a witness to protect against allegations like Powell’s.
Eggert was accompanied by his investigator.
Murphy said he would have no comment before Monday’s hearing, while Commonwealth’s Attorney Tom Wine and spokesman Jeff Cooke did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Eggert said he couldn't comment on a pending case.
Powell was indicted with two other defendants in March on charges that also included tampering with evidence and fleeing police. Locke was indicted last September on charges that also included wanton endangerment, being a persistent felon and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Both pleaded not guilty.
Reporter Andrew Wolfson can be reached at (502) 582-7189 or [email protected]. | {
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LONDON (Reuters) - Sainsbury’s and Walmart’s Asda are in talks to create Britain’s biggest supermarket group, a combination which would surpass Tesco’s grocery market share and be worth up to 15 billion pounds.
Sainsbury’s confirmed on Saturday that it and Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, were in advanced discussions regarding a combination of the Sainsbury’s and Asda businesses, the UK’s No. 2 and 3 UK grocers. It said they will make a further announcement at 0600 GMT on Monday.
Britain’s big grocers, including No. 4 player Morrisons, have been losing share to German discounters Aldi and Lidl and must also deal with growing demand for internet grocery shopping and the march of Amazon.
Sainsbury’s gave no details of the deal’s structure but a source with knowledge of the situation told Reuters the holding company of the combined group would retain the Sainsbury’s name. Sainsbury’s Chief Executive Mike Coupe, who used to work for Asda, would lead it, the source said.
The source described the planned deal -- which would consolidate a brutally competitive UK food market while helping Walmart address its underperforming UK arm through greater buying power -- as a “merger”.
Three sources with knowledge of the situation said Walmart would take a minority stake in the combined business. Two said Walmart would be the biggest shareholder, with a stake of around 40 percent.
The Qatar Investment Authority, which has tried to buy Sainsbury’s in the past, is currently the supermarket group’s biggest shareholder with a 22 percent stake. The deal would probably dilute that holding.
Sainsbury’s invited media and analysts to presentations scheduled for Monday, indicating a done deal.
Walmart declined to comment. Asda did not respond to requests for comment.
Sky News, which first reported the news, said the deal could be worth over 10 billion pounds.
One of the sources who spoke to Reuters said the combined company would have an enterprise value, including debt, of around 15 billion pounds and would remain listed in London.
Sainsbury’s shares closed on Friday at 269 pence, giving the company an equity value of 6 billion pounds.
The deal would be the largest in the UK supermarket sector since Morrisons acquired the Safeway business in 2004.
Slideshow ( 3 images )
PROFIT DECLINE
Sainsbury’s has reported three straight years of profit decline, and is forecast to report a fourth on Wednesday. Asda has seen two years of falls.
Asda, which Walmart bought in 1999 for 6.7 billion pounds, is one of the retail giant’s largest and worst-performing international businesses. Analysts reckon Asda was hurt the most by the rise of the discounters, which eroded its traditional price advantage.
Slideshow ( 3 images )
“Asda doesn’t have discount and it doesn’t have convenience. This (deal) provides a potential solution for Walmart to deliver a more profitable Asda in the long run,” said Shore Capital analyst Clive Black.
In recent years Walmart has shifted its traditional approach from building overseas businesses itself to partnering with local players, for example in China.
In January, Walmart appointed Chief Operating Officer Judith McKenna to run its international unit with a remit that included fixing its UK operations. McKenna is a Briton and a veteran of Asda, where she served as both COO and finance chief.
Roger Burnley, who took over as Asda CEO in January, is a former Sainsbury’s executive, working under Coupe. One of the sources said he would stay at the combined group.
Tesco last month moved to strengthen its grip on the UK food sector, completing the 4 billion-pound purchase of wholesaler Booker. In 2016 Sainsbury’s purchased general merchandise retailer Argos for 1.1 billion pounds.
Sainsbury’s and the similarly-sized Asda would overtake Tesco with a combined market share of 31.4 percent versus Tesco’s 27.6 percent, according to the latest data from market researcher Kantar Worldpanel.
Asda stores would continue to trade under their own brand, separate from the more upmarket Sainsbury’s, the sources said.
REGULATORY HURDLES
A major uncertainty surrounding any combination would be whether the move secures approval from Britain’s competition regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), given that the deal would effectively create a duopoly.
However, the CMA’s surprise unconditional waving through of Tesco’s Booker deal may have changed the regulatory landscape.
“It’s going to be a really big test of the CMA’s understanding of the market and whether it believes that this deal is in the consumer’s interest,” said Shore Capital’s Black.
“It’s hard to believe it would not require considerable store disposals and there aren’t many buyers out there.” | {
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World War One Diary for Wednesday, August 22, 1917:
Western Front
Ypres: 4 British divisions with 16 tanks engaged before St Julien, 2 more with 18 tanks south of Fortuin while 3 more with tanks battle along Menin Road (until August 23). 500-880-yd gains for heavy losses (3,000 casualties). 2 British battalions capture and hold Glencorse Wood (until August 24).
Air War
Britain – LAST DAYLIGHT ATTACK ON ENGLAND: 10 (15 sent) Gotha bombers (total 3 lost) attack Margate, Ramsgate and Dover. 138 defence sorties, 2 bombers shot down by RNAS fighters, 1 by anti-aircraft fire (total casualties 39 including 16 servicemen).
Home Fronts
Britain-Germany: Now 102,218 German PoWs to 43,000 British.
Russia: Constituent Assembly elections put back to November 12 from September 17.
Italy – Turin strikes and riots (until August 28): Bread shortage leads to factory close down and shop sacking, 2 churches burnt down. Army uses tanks and MGs to clear barricades on August 23 and repulse worker columns. Order restored on August 24 after 50 killed (3 soldiers) and 800 arrests. Turin not imitated by rest of Italy. | {
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A set of D.C. activists see a direct tie between two events in 2016: The D.C. Council passed the The Neighborhood Engagement Achieves Results Amendment Act in March; and in September, 31-year-old Terrence Sterling was shot and killed by Metropolitan Police Department officer Brian Trainer. One would think these events would have come in reverse order, but they didn’t.
Outside of an administrative hearing for Trainer last week, Bailey Cox, an organizer with Stop Police Terror Project DC, is protesting alongside nearly a dozen other activists as people begin to trickle in for the start of the hearing.
“These are not isolated events, and to say that these are just some poisonous apples is a disservice,” she says. “We want to uproot the entire tree and say, ‘There are alternative measures to this and our communities deserve better and they deserve public safety and public measures that aren’t just police officers, which dips into the hyper policing and the police violence that disproportionately targets black communities.”
The alternative measures Cox refers to are within the NEAR Act, a comprehensive law dealing with crime in D.C. that operates on three key provisions. One is a public health approach to violence prevention and intervention which established two new government agencies—the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement and the Office of Violence Prevention and Health Equity—along with a Community Crime Prevention Team that serves residents who show signs of mental illness and substance use. The second provision is about community policing practices, and requires regular public opinion surveys as well as training for MPD officers on preventing bias-related policing.
But it’s the final provision of the NEAR Act that’s currently causing strife: data collection.
More than two years after it became law—one that the D.C. Council proudly and unanimously passed and, after a year of budget drama, fully funded in 2017—certain elements of the NEAR Act aren’t being followed, and both activists and some Councilmembers are pissed.
At the crosshairs: a key provision in the data collection element that requires all MPD officers to record detailed information about all stops-and-frisks—when an officer stops a pedestrian or motorist and searches them.
In February of 2017, the ACLU of DC filed a Freedom of Information Act request for all the data collected “pursuant to the NEAR Act’s Stop & Frisk Data provision since the implementation of the Act,” but MPD denied the request, explaining that the collection of that data hadn’t been implemented yet. A year later, WUSA9 filed a similar FOIA that revealed that the MPD was still not collecting stop-and-frisk data.
On the heels of that revelation, ACLU-DC, along with Stop Police Terror Project DC and Black Lives Matter DC, sent a letter to Mayor Muriel Bowser threatening a lawsuit for the stop-and-frisk data, or—if the data hasn’t been collected—a detailed plan and timetable for doing so.
In the most recent budget oversight hearings, Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen, who chairs the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, grilled Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice Kevin Donahue as to why the MPD hasn’t been collecting the data. The previous year’s fiscal budget allotted $150,000 specifically for the MPD to collect stop-and-frisk data pursuant to the NEAR Act law. But after questioning from Allen, Donahue explained that, though some data had been collected, MPD didn’t have the necessary tools to collect all the required data.
“Some data we already collect, exactly as listed,” Donahue said in the hearing. “Some data we collect, but not consistently, or have to clean. And sometimes we don’t collect the data at all, and so that would involve a fundamental change to either an IT system, a police protocol, in order to get it.”
Donahue added that though the MPD is required to collect stop-and-frisk and use of force data under the NEAR Act, “the law does not require reporting” on such data collection.
“We’re doing it because it’s in the spirit of the law. There’s not actually a reporting element here,” he said. He explained that because MPD isn’t required by law to report their data collected on stops-and-frisks; it’s not a “mission critical” requirement of the NEAR Act.
Monica Hopkins, the executive director of the ACLU of D.C., sees it differently. “I think, quite frankly, it’s really frustrating because I don’t think that there is anything more mission critical than understanding how your police force is policing in the District,” she tells City Paper. “What do you have to hide? … Because accountability and transparency are the fundamental tenets of police-community relations.”
In his questioning of Donahue during the March 29 budget oversight hearing, Allen laid out the issue more bluntly: “I believe we passed a law to say ‘We need X, Y, and Z.’ And I can respect and hear if you say, ‘We collect X, but we don’t do Y and Z. And here’s the way we need to change.’ Or, ‘We need support to change an IT system,’ or ‘We need to add in an applicability clause to give us the time to make the change to the system to collect it that way. But I’m not hearing that right now.”
Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie, who was the lead author on the NEAR Act when he was chair of the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, echoes Allen’s frustration. “The police data collection provisions of the NEAR Act … was something that we looked at from other jurisdictions,” he says. “We modeled it off of some of the work that … the former Obama administration did in police data collection, and we wanted to include it because we knew from evidence, and experience in other places, that it helped to foster better police-community relations.”
Neither Donahue nor MPD responded to City Paper’s requests for comment, but at the March 29 oversight hearing D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham apologized, agreeing with Allen that his department’s failure to collect the data is “not acceptable.”
Hopkins says that the Mayor’s office had 15 days to respond to their demand letter, or ask for an extension, before the ACLU would move to take legal action against the MPD. At the time of publication, the ACLU of D.C. says that it hasn’t received a response, and plans to move forward this week.
“Essentially what is happening here is, you can’t have the Council, or any state legislature, pass a law requiring government agencies to do something, and then the government agency essentially saying ‘Sorry we don’t feel like it.’ They have to comply with the law,” Hopkins says.
“And so, unfortunately, if the mayor is not going to do what she is supposed to do, because it says the mayor shall compel MPD to do this,” Hopkins says. “If she won’t do it and MPD won’t do it, then we are compelled, on behalf of our over 20,000 members and our partners who have been asking for this data, to take them to court and have a court compel them.”
For the activists who work with Stop Police Terror Project DC and Black Lives Matter DC, advocating for the NEAR Act and its full implementation has been a long process, but one worthy of a continued fight.
“It just seems like they don’t want to do it, and they try to get away without doing it,” says Greg Montross, the policy director of Stop Police Terror Project DC. “And if it weren’t for the advocacy and Council hearings, they wouldn’t.” | {
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Nolan Arenado never wanted to go anywhere else, and Tuesday morning, the Colorado Rockies were making sure he was staying put.
The Rockies and Arenado have agreed to an eight-year, $260 million contract with an opt-out in three years, a person with direct knowledge told USA TODAY Sports. He was unauthorized to speak publicly because the Rockies have yet to announce the deal.
Arenado, 27, just 16 months older than Bryce Harper, will receive the highest annual salary of $32.5 million, breaking Miguel Cabrera’s record of $31 million per year for a position player.
“It’s such a great place,’’ Arenado toled USA TODAY Sports, “I really enjoy the fact there’s a comfortability here. You know the coaches. You know the players. Some of my best friends are on this team.
“I grew up here in this organization, so it feels like home in a way. I’ve been here since the tide has changed, and that’s a really good feeling. I was part of that change.
“You want to win in a place where you’ve been all of your life.’’
MLB's BIGGEST CONTRACTS: Where Arenado deal would rank
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Arenado, who has finished in the top five in MVP voting for three consecutive years, is not only the face of the Rockies, but also one of baseball’s ultimate role models. There’s a reason why the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox and Philadelphia Phillies were hoping contract talks would break down with the Rockies, giving them the privilege to woo him in the free-agent next winter.
“Listen, I think those places are great,’’ Arenado says, “but the grass isn’t always greener on the other side for certain people. I’m not saying that it wouldn’t be for me. It’d be great to play in a big market.
“But at the same time, I’m doing what’s best for me. I’m not a guy who’s going to be searching for the biggest contract in the game. That’s not me. I want to be where I’m comfortable."
Besides, despite being the greatest player in the National League, and one of only four players in history to win three home-run titles and earn four Gold Gloves in a four-year period, Arenado knew there was no guarantee teams would line up at his door when he his free agency.
Arenado saw what happened this winter. He sees Harper still sitting on the free-agent market. Former Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel and seven-time All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel, too.
“There are so many good players out there,’’ Arenado says. “It’s crazy to think they’re still out there. But honestly, I wouldn’t be making my decision what I’m seeing. I base it on what I feel is right.’’
Dick Monfort, chairman and CEO of the Rockies, expressed confidence a long-term extension would be completed after Arenado agreed to a record $26 million contract in his final year of arbitration earlier this month. The beauty of their talks is that both sides were being transparent, leading to calm, respectful and quiet talks.
“That’s why I have a lot of respect for them,’’ Arenado says. “No one’s playing any games. That’s why I’m willing to stay because of how they’ve communicated so well with me.’’
And now that the Rockies are winning, Arenado really has no complaints at all. He loves the city, where he owns a condo in downtown Denver. He adores the passionate fanbase. Coors Field may no longer be the hitters’ paradise of Cincinnati or Philadelphia now that they are sorting baseballs in a humidor, but he won’t deny it’s a fabulous place to hit. He has a career .320 batting average and staggering .984 OPS [on-base-plus-slugging percentage] at Coors Field.
So, he asks, despite not having the fame if he played in New York or Los Angeles, and the contract is fair, why in the world would he ever want to leave. It’s no different than Mike Trout wanting to stay with the Los Angeles Angels.
He could be the modern-day George Brett, who was drafted and signed by the Kansas City Royals, and never left.
Rockies manager Bud Black, Brett’s former teammate in Kansas City, is reminded of the comparisons every day. Two high-school kids from Southern California, drafted and signed by mid-market organizations, who are the finest third basemen in the game. One went onto the Hall of Fame. The other is headed there.
“When I played with George, his thought all along was that he wanted to stay a Royal forever, and he wanted to make that happen. My hope would be that Nolan’s a Rockie forever. There’s something special about that. I think Nolan realizes that as well.’’
Arenado became the first player in history to sign a contract eclipsing $225 million, and remaining with the same team.
“It would be pretty cool,’’ Arenado said before he agreed to the deal, “to be one of those guys that stays with one organization their whole career. It just doesn’t happen anymore. I’d like to change that.
“Man, it would be pretty special.’’
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Sinclair, America's biggest owner of local TV stations, is about to get even bigger.
On Monday morning the company agreed to buy Tribune Media for $43.50 per share, valuing the deal at $3.9 billion.
Sinclair will also assume about $2.7 billion in net debt, according to the joint announcement.
Tribune operates dozens of TV stations across the country. It also has a cable channel, WGN America; a 32% stake in the CareerBuilder web site; and a 31% stake in the Food Network.
The acquisition is subject to regulatory approval, but the Trump administration's FCC has signaled its openness to media consolidation.
"This acquisition will create a leading media platform that includes our country's largest markets and will further our commitment to connecting people with content everywhere," Sinclair CEO Chris Ripley said in an email to employees.
"This is a pivotal time for broadcast, and we are excited to reach more communities across the United States, as well as better serve our consumers and advertisers with new technologies that will super charge our capabilities," Ripley said.
Sinclair beat out another local station ownership group, Nexstar, in the Tribune auction process. 21st Century Fox and Blackstone Group explored a joint bid, partly to block Sinclair's move, but Fox ultimately didn't make a bid, according to sources familiar with the matter.
There has also been speculation that Sinclair, with the addition of Tribune's portfolio, could try to launch a rival to Fox News, though the company has not commented on the possibility.
Sinclair has been scrutinized over the years for its corporate ties to Republican politicians and its on-air support for conservative causes.
Craig Aaron, the head of Free Press, an anti-consolidation nonprofit, said his group has objections to the deal.
"It's a scandal," Aaron said. "Trump-favoring mega-chain gets rules changed -- and expects others to be erased -- so it can put its cookie-cutter newscasts in nearly 70 percent of local markets across the country."
Aaron added: "I feel terrible for the local journalists who will be forced to set aside their news judgment to air Trump administration talking points and reactionary commentaries from headquarters. This deal would have been DOA in any other admin, but the Trump FCC isn't just approving it; they're practically arranging it." | {
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Article content
With low oil prices hammering the provincial economy, the Alberta government is looking to give a boost to both its value-added petrochemical sector and the ailing natural gas industry. On Feb. 1, it unveiled the Petrochemicals Diversification Program.
On Monday, Energy Minister Margaret McCuaig-Boyd gave an update on the program, saying interest from industry was surprisingly strong after applications closed April 22.
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tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Alberta petrochemical diversification program attracts 16 applicants Back to video
What: The program will offer incentives worth $500 million for the construction of plants using methane or propane to make products such as plastics, detergents and textiles. Investors in the projects will earn credits that can be used to pay royalties on natural gas production, or sold to producers. “We know there is a great deal of interest from companies looking to invest here in Alberta, but our winters and our distance to market create serious challenges,” said McCuaig-Boyd. “They can cause companies to look to Louisiana or Texas rather than to Alberta. We want to change that.” | {
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How scary are your jack-o’-lanterns? Scarier than you think, according to the Energy Department, which claims the holiday squash is responsible for unleashing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
Most of the 1.3 billion pounds of pumpkins produced in the U.S. end up in the trash, says the Energy Department’s website, becoming part of the “more than 254 million tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) produced in the United States every year.”
Municipal solid waste decomposes into methane, “a harmful greenhouse gas that plays a part in climate change, with more than 20 times the warming effect of carbon dioxide,” Energy says.
What’s a Halloween-loving pumpkin carver to do?
Turn that pumpkin in to … energy?
Municipal solid waste can be used to harness bioenergy, the Energy Department says, which can help the U.S. become less dependent on carbon-based fuels while limiting stress on landfills by reducing waste. The agency has partnered with industry to develop and test two integrated biorefineries — “facilities capable of efficiently converting plant and waste material into affordable biofuels, biopower and other products.”
Neither of these proposed facilities is operational yet, but someday, all that squishy, orange squash could become clean, green energy.
Until then, happy carving!
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There is no clear Republican frontrunner. | AP Photos GOP braces for 2016 free-for-all
The message from Republican officials has been crystal clear for two years: The 2016 Republican primary cannot be another prolonged pummeling of the eventual nominee. Only one person ultimately benefited from that last time — Barack Obama — and Republicans know they can’t afford to send a hobbled nominee up against Hillary Clinton.
Yet interviews with more than a dozen party strategists, elected officials and potential candidates a month out from the unofficial start of the 2016 election lay bare a stark reality: Despite the national party’s best efforts, the likelihood of a bloody primary process remains as strong as ever.
The sprawling, kaleidoscope-like field that’s forming is already prompting Republican presidential hopefuls to knock their likely rivals privately and, at times, publicly. The fact that several candidates’ prospects hinge in part on whether others run only exacerbates that dynamic. Ultimately, the large pack won’t be whittled for many months: Republicans have no idea who will end up running, and insiders don’t expect the field will gel significantly until at least the spring of next year.
( Also on POLITICO: Bobby Jindal ‘thinking and praying’ on 2016)
“It feels like a big traffic jam after a sporting event,” said Craig Robinson, ex-executive director of the Iowa GOP. “There’s a lot of competition for every segment of the party.”
At least 15 Republicans are weighing campaigns, with no clear front-runner. Contrast that with Clinton, who has solidified her Democratic support to a deeper extent than any candidate in recent memory.
There’s no indication that the reforms suggested by the national Republican Party to protect the eventual nominee — fewer debates, friendlier moderators and a truncated primary calendar — have necessarily altered how potential candidates are thinking about campaigning against other Republicans. In fact, they already are jockeying to define themselves — and their opponents — in sharp terms.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is a prime example. Seeking to expand his base of support beyond tea partiers, Cruz, who has been working donors and elites aggressively, has routinely dismissed New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie in private conversations as the “Rudy Giuliani of this cycle,” multiple sources told POLITICO. (A Cruz adviser noted that the senator has often praised Christie.) Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) denounced Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), an establishment avatar, in a Senate floor speech last month over what turned out to be an Internet hoax, a photo that falsely identified the senator meeting with Islamic State militants. When outgoing Texas Gov. Rick Perry attacked Paul’s foreign policy views, Paul responded in kind.
( Also on POLITICO: Ted Cruz: No decision yet on 2016)
The desire in some quarters for a new tenor in the Republican primary is a visceral reaction to the party’s bitter 2012 loss, and Clinton’s commanding position.
“I think because we’ve been frozen out of the White House for two terms here, I think Republicans by and large are going to be really focused on winning the general election and not wanting to do things to handicap your eventual nominee,” Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) told POLITICO. He said that there will be “pressure this time around to ask candidates to play nice with one another so that we can make sure we can focus on the general election.”
In an interview, Christie said, “It’s always important for us not to destroy each other — it’d be nice.”
“I think that after eight years in the wilderness, we should all be focused on winning,” he said. “That would help. And I think if we did that, people will conduct themselves” in a positive way.
( Also on POLITICO: Lindsey Graham 'nowhere near' presidential run)
Yet Christie and Paul spent a good chunk of 2013 savaging each other. And several Republicans point to a simple reality: After the GOP’s tea party wing notched big wins in the 2010 and 2012 congressional elections, and establishment forces battled back successfully this year, both sides are primed for a fight.
Newt Gingrich, one of the short-lived insurgent front-runners in the 2012 primary, dismisses the party’s desire to avoid bloodletting as “nonsense.”
“There’s a wing of the Republican Party which would like life to be orderly and dominated by the rich,” said Gingrich, whose own candidacy was enabled by a super PAC funded by $21 million from casino magnate Sheldon Adelson and his wife, Miriam. “And so they would like to take all of the things that make politics exciting and responding to the popular will and they would like to hide from it. The fact is, if you can’t nominate somebody who can win debates and come out of the contest stronger, they wouldn’t have a chance to beat Hillary in the general.”
For his part, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus pushed through major 2016 changes, including a condensed primary calendar and fewer debates.
“What I can do is follow through on what I can control,” Priebus said in an interview. “Limiting the process from a six-month slice-and-dice festival to 60-plus” days. Priebus added that he senses a “greater spirit of cooperation” among candidates who understand that the party is “not going to get ahead by killing each other.”
“I think people are starting to get that,” he said. “I think they understand that donors are not going to go out of their way to support candidates to kill each other.”
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Some big-dollar donors who previously were harshly critical of bomb-throwing Republicans are trying to keep the spirit of being team players. Al Hoffman, a Florida-based bundler who lambasted people like Cruz for instigating the government shutdown, now says that he “can’t talk negatively against any Republican candidates right now.”
“The more, the merrier,” he said.
Hoffman might get exactly that.
Each of the more than dozen potential candidates appeals to a different slice of the GOP primary electorate. And their future plans depend, in part, on one another — a drastic shift from past cycles that had a clear front-runner from the outset.
In the establishment lane are Christie, Ryan and Bush, while Paul and Cruz occupy the insurgent lane. Paul has grabbed headlines with his ventures into inner cities and the liberal Bay Area. Cruz has impressed donors in money centers like New York. Cruz has a strong connection to the grass roots and social conservatives, but his hawkish views on foreign policy have helped draw support from the donor base as well.
Paul, who’s drawn the most media coverage of anyone in the field, is trying not to be typecast as a libertarian.
“Rand is positioned to be the conservative who can build a bigger, more inclusive Republican Party so we can win in 2016,” said a Paul adviser. “He knows you don’t get there overnight or in a straight line, but it will take new ideas and new tactics to break the GOP losing streak. Our party’s worst-case scenario is that we box ourselves in again and put forward the same old, same old.”
David Kochel, who ran Romney’s campaign in Iowa in 2012, said, “There’s no question” Paul is the early front-runner in the Hawkeye State, but he has room to slip.
“He’s got the firmest and biggest base of support right now,” he said. “But we saw what happened to Ron Paul, which is what Rand Paul is trying to avoid, which is having a high floor, but a low ceiling.”
Not to be forgotten is Mitt Romney, who limped out of 2012 but is now seeing a wave of adulation. His backers think many of his 2012 campaign positions have been validated, especially on foreign policy. Most Romney insiders believe he won’t run, but enough donors are taking it seriously to spark constant chatter in money circles. Ohio Sen. Rob Portman is publicly toying with a bid but is unlikely to jump in if the establishment lane is too crowded. His state’s governor, John Kasich, will also likely watch what Portman does.
“It’s much more complicated this time than it was last time,” said strategist John Brabender, Santorum’s longtime adviser. “Last time Romney had his own box.” This time it’s much more complicated.”
That means a field that is so crowded and overrepresented in each segment that the top few vote-getters will win by substantially smaller percentages, he said.
“No one’s going to win Iowa with 38 percent; they’re going to win with 28 percent,” Brabender said.
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal has positioned himself as a thought leader, though it’s not clear he will run. And Perry is poised to run a redemption race by trying to win Iowa. Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, who was an early adopter of tea party flavored policies by voting against Bush-era spending, is also considering a White House campaign.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio — who, like Ryan and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, can straddle different lanes of the GOP electorate — is showing moderate interest in a race but is unlikely to run if Bush jumps in. Rubio would be especially dissuaded if the Senate turns Republican. Walker is considering running, and Ryan is seen as less likely to run if the governor does.
The social conservative sphere is also complicated. Cruz fits in the mold, as does former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum and Dr. Ben Carson.
The true fear that’s gripping some operatives: There will be no way to narrow the field anytime soon. The push to eliminate the Ames Straw Poll in Iowa has exacerbated those worries. Establishment Republicans say the event, held the August before the caucuses, is too easy to rig and turns candidates away from Iowa.
“My fear is we have a giant field and nothing to winnow it until the contests,” said Robinson, the former head of the Iowa Republican party. “No Ames Straw Poll and fewer debates.”
Despite the huge number of candidates, players in the establishment andgrassroots are sounding hopeful tones. Former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour said the “field promises to be a much higher-quality field [than 2008] — a lot of governors with records of accomplishment, both sitting governors and former governors.”
Conservative strategist Greg Mueller said there is “a lot of energy and excitement in the conservative grassroots for the field that appears to be emerging.
“It is an A-list of conservative and reform-minded thinkers who are strong advocates for limited constitutional government,” he said. “I do not think big-government Republicanism is going to sell very well in the 2016 cycle, so candidates such as Gov. Bush and some others who advocate for these types of Washington-driven policies, even though they may have a higher name ID, are going to be somewhat out of step with not only the conservative voter, but I would say the mainstream Republican voter in the wake of the Obama, Reid, Pelosi era of radical liberalism.”
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In this week’s episode entitled ‘Out of Sight, Out of Mind’ we see a sinking ship car, new potential Rosewood residents and a new addition to Radley. Here’s how it went down:
Detective Emily Fields
The episode begins with Spencer finally coming clean to Aria & Emily that Toby is apart of the ‘A’ team. Aria & Emily initially seem really shocked, and Emily is actually in denial. The three continue to debate how it’s possible and what his motive is, but can’t seem to come to a mutual answer.
Emily, super pressed by this news decides that since she was Toby’s friend, that she wants answers from him herself, so she tries tracking him down by calling and leaving voicemails and texting him. She also decides to visit Toby’s work to see if anyone there has seen him, but one of his colleagues tells her that he said he was going out of town and he hasn’t seen him in a few weeks.
Later on, Emily finally gets a reply text from Toby saying he agrees to meet her, but alone. Emily obviously not having a life, sits and waits in her car for 2 hours and still no sign of Toby. She decides to go inside their meeting place and sees the guy she spoke to earlier from his work. He asks what she’s doing there and she tells him she’s meeting Toby. He calls Emily by her name, but Emily says she never told him her name.
Emily returns to her car to find it broken into, and a note is left saying “Toby is no more – A”. Hmm.
Am I Seeing Things?
Hanna and her mum, Ashley are still shaken up by the whole running over Wilden incident. While Ashley was out, she actually sees Wilden in the distance, but he disappears in the blink of an eye. Why are you playing hide and seek Wilden?
Later Hanna goes home to find Wilden’s car in her garage. She approaches the car and sees a video of her mum and Wilden’s meeting, including when she ran him over. Conveniently, the video is shot at an angle that hides Wilden’s actions (going for his gun). Hanna tells Aria what happened and they decide to get rid of the evidence the best way they know how, by pushing the car into the river. I don’t really think that was the best idea ladies, but let’s see what happens.
Third Wheel
Maggie and Malcolm are staying with Ezra now that his mum has decided to sell the apartment she had them staying in due to her argument with Ezra last episode. Ezra tells Aria that Maggie wants to move to Rosewood and she’s looking at places and looking for a job as this would make things easier if they lived closer to each other.
Aria ends up baby sitting Malcolm while Maggie and Ezra are out. Poor Aria turns her back for a few minutes and Malcolm starts jumping on the bed and falls off and hits his chin. Aria & Ezra take him to the hospital and he gets some stitches. Aria feels really guilty and apologises profusely to Ezra, but he ensures her it’s alright and they both admit that they know nothing about being parents. Aww, how sweet. Maggie should have Parenting 101 classes for them.
R.I.P To The Girl That You Used To Know
Spencer gets a mysterious wreath of flowers, with a threat from ‘A’ about her spilling the beans about Toby to her friends. She later sees Mona at the coffee shop and confronts her about the flowers. As expected, Mona denies having sent them but doesn’t leave without winding Spencer up again. Spencer threatens Mona and tells her if she ever hurts any of her friends that she won’t like what’ll be coming to her. Yes, bad bitch Spencer is in the building!
Later on, Spencer overhears a conversation Mona’s having on the phone and decides to follow her. She follows her to the woods and Mona leads her straight to a body. The body is seemingly dead but has a helmet on. Spencer bursts into tears after seeing a tattoo that resembles the one that Toby has. Mona shouts from a distance that he’s dead. Spencer chases Mona through the woods and seems to get lost. She is later found by the park ranger and labelled as a Jane Doe where she looks completely out of it. The last thing we see of poor Spencer, is her in her brand new room at what is assumed to be Radley, Mona’s old stomping ground. Oh how the tables have turned.
Yes Emily, Toby is dead because you felt the need to be unnecessarily nosey as usual. Conclusion:
Was Ashley seeing things or did she actually see Wilden? Paranoia can really mess with a girl.
I really think that Emily should enlist the help of her cousin, the best explorer in the world, Dora the Explorer. She’d find Toby in minutes.
Why does it always seem like all the other Liars have something going on in their lives but Emily?
It was cool that Ezra wasn’t pissed off with Aria about Malcolm hurting himself.
Ella gave Aria some solid advice that we all know she won’t take, but could it lead to the end of Ezria?
More Lady in Red mystery appearances.
When will Emily learn that she should stop going out and meeting people alone at night, especially ones that can have her killed.
I fail to believe Aria & Hanna were able to push a car from her house to the river all on their own.
The irony of Spencer ending up in Radley due to Mona’s antics.
Another brilliant performance by Troian Bellisario (Spencer).
Do you really think Toby is dead? I don’t.
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Rabbi Nancy Wiener, D.Min.
Dr. Paul and Trudy Steinberg Chair in Human Relations; Founding Director, Jacob and Hilda Blaustein Center for Pastoral Counseling at HUC-JIR/New York
What do we do when death strikes suddenly and unexpectedly? What do we do when we can’t do anything for those whom we’d most like to protect? And what do we do when the rites, rituals and customs that help us retain a sense of order in the face of death are suspended, leaving us doubly disoriented—trying to figure out who we are in the world when someone central to our lives has died and unable to be surrounded by those who care for us to offer their love and support?
This week’s parsha begins with the community gathering to celebrate the dedication of the Mishkan and the High Priesthood. After a lengthy process of ritual purification and sacrifices and following a prescribed waiting period, Aaron stands before the community as Moses anoints him, declares him High Priest and informs the community that the priesthood will be inherited by Aaron’s descendants. The future looks bright for Aaron, his family and the entire people.
And then suddenly, Aaron’s whole world is upended. He is told his two sons, Nadav and Abihu, have died, died while engaging in an activity that, at first glance, seems to be within their family’s purview. With his sons dead, Aaron, despite his exalted ritual status, is first and foremost a grief-stricken parent—human, humbled, left speechless by the news. Moses informs Aaron that because of his status, he cannot mourn with the normative customs of the Israelites. And Aaron’s response? The text says, “And Aaron fell silent.” Perhaps Aaron holds his tongue. Or, perhaps he contains the weeping and wailing that accompanied the initial pain of his loss. Either way, in an unexpected act of creativity and defiance, Aaron listens to Moses’ words and responds that he will, nevertheless, assert his status as a mourner—even if it doesn’t look like mourning to him or other community members.
Like Aaron in the wake of his sons’ deaths, we find ourselves living out some of our worst nightmares. Daily, the numbers of the dying and the dead mount—those dying from the pandemic and those who would have died anyway during these days, weeks and months. And the pain of all of their family members is exacerbated by the imposed physical distancing we all live with due to Covid-19. Unable to go to long-term care facilities, hospitals, emergency rooms and ICUs during this pandemic, families cannot be at their loved ones’ bedsides, saying their final goodbyes in person or holding their loved ones’ hands. They cannot have the people dearest to them gather around to offer love and support as they await the departure of their loved ones’ spirits.
So foreign and painful is this reality that we can’t allow ourselves to sit for long with this agonizing specter. And when we add the layers of burial and shiva without the normal concentric circles of family, friends and colleagues surrounding us as we stand at graveside, and caring for us—physically, emotionally and spiritually—as we sit in our homes, it’s literally unbearable, beyond imagining.
Yet, today, circumstances beyond our control make this the reality for an ever-increasing number of us, our friends, and the members of our communities. We, like Aaron, might scream in terror as we experience these horrors. And if we or others try to make sense of it, to offer explanations as Moses does, we will likely find ourselves speechless. And, as it was for Aaron, the factors that make the familiar, comforting rituals unattainable are inspiring us to think creatively about how we can make our new forms of mourning as meaningful as possible. In the absence of the goodbyes today’s mourners envisioned; in the absence of being able to offer tributes and emotional and physical support by gathering in a sacred assembly of family, friends and community; in the absence of knowing that an array of loving hands will shovel to bury our loved ones—we are taking on new responsibilities to ensure that we can still shower them with love and care. We are reaching out to accompany those who are able to attend a burial and those who under virtually any other circumstance would have. We are making every effort to hear the eulogies and graveside rituals on our phones or computers or to read the transcripts. We are forming literal rows with our cars or virtual ones on our screens to usher those mourners who made it to graveside back to their homes. We are attending virtual minyanim for shiva, shloshim and yahrzeits. The world of mourners has been profoundly altered, almost to the point of being unrecognizable. Yet, one thing can and does remain the same: we and those in mourning are bound together emotionally and spiritually, even when we must be physically apart. | {
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Despite the embarrassment, it’s most important to not be shy: Your ob-gyn needs to know what's going on with you to make sure your pregnancy is on track.
Ob-gyn Michele M. Hakakha, MD, author of Expecting 411: Clear Answers & Smart Advice for Your Pregnancy , says, "Many things happen to a woman's body when she becomes pregnant, and most are shocking: hair growth on your belly, belching and constipation , increased vaginal discharge , and hemorrhoids , to name a few." Hakakha says, "These aren't things that a woman usually talks about. So it's no wonder there's a bit of embarrassment."
You knew that your belly would expand, you'd feel more tired than usual, and you might throw up a few times as your pregnancy progressed. But you may not have expected some of the other physical changes.
1. Excess Gas
Virtually every pregnant woman gets gassy. That's because pregnancy brings a hormonal surge that can slow down your gastrointestinal tract.
You might not be able to keep it to yourself because you don't have the same control over your muscles during pregnancy.
When you're not pregnant, Michelle Smith, author of Taboo Secrets of Pregnancy: A Guide to Life with a Belly, says, "Most of the time you know it's coming and can keep it at bay until the coast is clear. [But when you are pregnant], you'll think: 'Oh my gosh, did I really just fart in front of my in-laws? How can I show my face again?'"
Though you can't erase the problem, you can reduce your tendency toward gassiness with exercise and changes to your diet.
"Exercise helps increase the motility of the GI tract, allowing food to move through faster," Hakakha says. "The less time it has to sit around and ferment, the less gas is produced. Some foods are more likely to produce gas, so the best bet is to avoid them completely: carbonated drinks, beans, broccoli, cauliflower, and dried fruit."
Dairy products can also cause GI distress during pregnancy, leading to flatulence. "Many women start drinking milk every day during pregnancy and think it's good for them," Sonja Kinney, MD, associate professor in the ob-gyn department at the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Medicine, says. "But they can't tolerate milk as an adult."
Try lactose-free milk or other calcium-rich foods if you’re lactose intolerant. | {
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Blizzard winding down but persist across Cape Cod and the Islands through late evening.
Blizzard Warning now in effect until 10 pm EST this evening. | {
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Sprint shut down a cellphone tower on the campus of a California elementary school after some parents said it may be linked to several recent cases of childhood cancer. Those families at Weston Elementary School in Ripon claim the tower could have exposed their kids to harmful radiation. Sprint said the tower is safe and has operated well below federal safety limits, but the company turned it off anyway and plans to move it to a new location.
Kellie Prime's son, Kyle, was just 10 years old when he was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2016.
"My son missed growing up with his friends. My son lost all of his hair," Prime said, choking up with emotion. "It's not something that I wish on anybody to watch their child go through what our children have gone through."
Five months later, Kyle's friend and classmate, Mason Ferrulli, developed brain cancer.
"Fourteen hours to get the tumor out and he had five weeks of inpatient rehabilitation. He had to learn to walk, talk, eat, everything all over again," said Mason's mother, Monica Ferrulli.
Two more kids at the school were diagnosed this year.
"At what point are you saying, we gotta take a close look at the school here?" CBS News correspondent Carter Evans asked.
"The moment that I found out that Mason had been diagnosed... it popped into my mind that something was not OK," Prime said.
The moms believe the recent increase in cancer cases could be caused by radiation from radio frequency, or RF, waves coming from a cell tower located on the elementary school campus.
Cell phone tower at Weston Elementary School in Ripon, California CBS News
"It is classified as a possible carcinogen. That tells us that there is some evidence out there," Ferrulli said. "We're not naive to the fact that there could be other components out there -- other environmental influences… but the bottom line that we feel in regards to this tower is it doesn't belong there... if there's any indications that its unsafe."
Ferrulli said it's "absolutely" not worth the risk.
The district hired engineers to measure the exposure and concluded the tower met "government and industry standards in all respects" and posed "no threat to student safety."
The parents hired their own investigator who found much higher RF levels than the district did, but still within government safety standards.
Sprint network project manager Dharma Nordell said three tests have shown the tower is operating 100 times below the federal limit.
"Does Sprint believe that tower could be causing cancer?" Evans asked her.
"Absolutely not," Nordell said. "It is not a safety concern to the community but we do hear the community's concerns, so we're quickly working to relocate the tower."
CBS News medical contributor and oncologist Dr. David Agus said the number of cases warrants further investigation.
"Whenever you hear of cases of cancer in a child obviously that itself is alarming. When there's several cases in one school… that's even more alarming," Agus said.
But he said people exposed to RF waves at normal levels have not been found to be at higher risk for developing cancer.
"The way to study this is to look at the incidents of cancer in proximity to these towers," Agus said. "We have to look at epidemiologic data… but the data today both in adults and children don't point to these causing cancer."
The American Cancer Society said there is "very little evidence" to support the idea that being near a cell tower might increase the risk of cancer, but they also said "very few human studies have focused specifically" on that risk.
"Do you believe the oncologists who say cell towers can't cause cancer?" Evans asked.
"I believe that everybody wants to believe our government," Prime said. "Technology is what it is and it's growing and it's growing out of control."
Ferruli's son's cancer has returned and he's now undergoing treatment. Prime's son, Kyle, is in remission, but still undergoes scans every three months.
"I've looked into his eyes and I've looked at the fear that he has as a 9-year-old facing something, asking me, 'Mom am I going to die?'" Prime said. "It would push you to fight as well. It would push any parent to fight. I won't stop until it's done, until that thing is gone."
The school district tells CBS News it has been in touch with the California Department of Health and has tested the school's soil and water. It is waiting for the results of those tests.
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В "Штабі блокади" заявляють про захоплення їхнього редуту на станції Кривий Торець силами СБУ і спецпідрозділу поліції КОРД.
Про це повідомляє сторінка так званого "штабу" у Facebook.
"Інформація про силовий розгін підтвердилася. Зараз Редут на Кривому Торці захоплений силами т. зв. СБУ і т. зв. "спецпідрозділом поліції Корд". Штаб вживає заходів для оборони інших Редутів і визволення незаконно заарештованих", – йдеться в повідомленні.
Водночас раніше поліція Донецької області раніше заявляла, що в рамках контрдиверсійних заходів, введених штабом АТО, поліція здійснює посилену перевірку на блокпостах.
Також у поліції зазначали, що "наказ" про розгін блокади, який розповсюджується в мережі Інтернет у понеділок, є фейком.
Один із організаторів "блокади торгівлі з окупантами" народний депутат від "Самопомочі" Семен Семенченко виклав у Facebook свою версію подій:
"Приїхали на БТР, озброєні автоматичною зброєю і почали розповідати що шукають ДРГ і проводять спецоперацію по боротьбі з терористами. Перевірили у всіх документи. Потім спробували вилучити офіційно зареєстровану зброю. Хлопці не дали", – повідомив нардеп.
За його даними, потім з редутом зник зв'язок.
Через годину один з учасників блокади додзвонився до штабу блокади у Білій Церкві. За його словами було силове затримання, хлопці сильно побили... Зараз, за його словами, всі заарештовані і знаходяться у відділенні поліції Торецька. Хлопці на інших редутах приготувалися до бою. Резерви штабу пішли у "сіру зону", – пише Семенченко.
Нардеп зазначив, що поїхав перевіряти отриману інформацію.
"Українська правда" звернулася по коментар до Служби безпеки.
Українська правда | {
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The woman was arrested while driving with a blood-alcohol level more than four times the legal limit in New York state. (Stock image)
A woman in America has escaped a drink-driving charge because she suffers from a rare condition known as auto-brewery syndrome.
The drink-driving charges were dismissed based on an unusual defence: her body is a brewery.
The woman was arrested while driving with a blood-alcohol level more than four times the legal limit in New York state. She then discovered she had a rare condition called "auto-brewery syndrome", in which her digestive system converts ordinary food into alcohol, according to her lawyer, Joseph Marusak.
A town judge in the Buffalo suburb of Hamburg dismissed the drink-drive charges this month, after Mr Marusak presented medical research showing the woman had a previously undiagnosed condition in which yeast in her intestines fermented carbohydrate into alcohol.
The rare condition, also known as gut fermentation syndrome, was first documented in the 1970s in Japan, and medical and legal experts in the US say it is being used more frequently in drink-driving cases.
"At first glance, it seems like a get-out-of-jail-free card," said Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University. "But it's not that easy. Courts tend to be sceptical of such claims. You have to be able to document the syndrome through recognised testing."
The condition was first documented in the US by Barbara Cordell of Panola College in Texas, who published a case study in 2013 of a 61-year-old man who had been experiencing episodes of debilitating drunkenness without drinking alcohol.
Mr Marusak contacted Ms Cordell for help with his client who insisted she hadn't had more than three drinks in the six hours before she was pulled over for erratic driving in 2014.
"At the end of the day, she had a blood-alcohol content of .36 without drinking any alcoholic beverages," he said. He added the woman also bought a Breathalyser and blew into it every night for 18 days, registering around .20 every time.
The legal threshold for drunkenness in New York is 0.08. Mr Marusak submitted medical evidence of his client's condition to the judge, who dismissed the drink-driving charges. The woman is now free to drive without restrictions
Christopher Belling, Assistant Erie County District Attorney, said the matter was being reviewed and his office did not comment on open cases.
Mr Marusak declined to name the woman, citing medical confidentiality laws. He said the case had been sealed since the charges were dropped.
The 'Buffalo News' described her as a 35-year-old school teacher, and quoted the arresting officer as saying she had bloodshot eyes, slurred speech, and failed several field sobriety tests.
Irish Independent | {
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David Cameron said Labour had failed the poorest in society The Tories have been attacked as "out of touch" for wrongly claiming more than half of girls in the most deprived areas get pregnant before they turn 18. The party said the conception rate for this age group in the 10 most disadvantaged areas of England was 54%, while the real figure was 5.4%. Labour accused the Conservatives of using "smears and distortions". But the Tories said the misplacing of a decimal point made "no difference" to claims Labour had let down the poor. The pregnancy figure was given in a 20-page dossier, published on Sunday, attacking the government for allowing the creation of "two nations" - the wealthy and the impoverished. 'Deception' In response, Labour said the correct figure of 5.4% represented a fall from 6% in 1998. Children's Secretary Ed Balls said the "dodgy" figures were an insult to communities and called on the Tories to withdraw the document. The party that prides itself on fairness has delivered the very opposite
Tory leader David Cameron He said: "David Cameron's latest deception and airbrushed statistics cannot conceal the fact that the Tories haven't changed. "They are totally out of touch and have nothing to say on the important issue of reducing teenage pregnancies except smears and distortions." House of Commons leader Harriet Harman told the BBC: "You would have thought that someone [in the Conservative Party] would have thought 'Surely there's something wrong about this'. "They are so out of touch. Someone junior made a mistake and no-one picked it up." 'Let down' The Liberal Democrats' chief of staff, Danny Alexander, said: "The Tories seem to think that half our teenagers are pregnant, our cities are like The Wire and that people will get married for a few extra quid. "If they really believe Britain is like this, it's remarkable that Conservative MPs can pluck up the courage to leave their houses. "They should lower their drawbridges, spend less time tending their moats and duck houses, and join the rest of us in the real world." But a Conservative Party spokesman said: "A decimal point was left out in a calculation. "It makes no difference at all to the conclusions of a wide-ranging report which shows that Labour have consistently let down the poorest in Britain." On Monday Tory leader Mr Cameron and party chairman Eric Pickles launched a poster campaign designed to reach out to voters who would not usually vote Conservative. In the foreword to the "Two Nations" document, Mr Cameron said: "Labour's great claim is that they are 'for the many, not the few'. "That rings hollow today. This report exposes the truth: after 13 years in government, the party that prides itself on fairness has delivered the very opposite. Labour have failed the poorest in our society."
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Portage la Prairie, MB –
Indians are starting a movement to get their name and image back. Canadians who have family roots in India are fed up with the term “Indian” being used to describe First Nations People.
“It’s frustrating to have Indian food associated with bannock, wild game, wiener water soup and something called Indian tacos,” Indians for Indians leader, Arjun Kumar said.
The group is launching court challenges, lobbying efforts and protests to end the use of the term Indian to describe anything but those people and things from India.
“We want to correct an insulting error that Christopher Columbus started ,” Kumar explained. “With typical European arrogance he assumed he reached India and started calling North American Indigenous People, Indians.”
Indians for Indians is hoping to have sports teams and brands that use the term Indian make changes to reflect the group’s wishes.
“We have contacted the Indian Motorcycle Company about a change to their logo,” Kumar said. “We are recommending using the image of a Sikh man wearing the traditional Dastaar headwear.”
“The Cleveland Indians have been notified that we would like them to replace the logo with a caricature of Russel Peters.”
While some First Nations People have embraced and still use the term, Indians for Indians want to end what they believe, is the incorrect use of the term. Current immigration trends and higher birth rates among Canadians of Indian decent are making the need for change more urgent.
“A Swede would not appreciate being called a Fin and a Dutch person is not a German,” Kumar rationalized. “We should be called Indians and First Nations should be identified by their original Nation.”
Kumar recommends that people replace the term Indian when describing Indigenous North Americans with more accurate terms like Cree, Mohawk, Dakotah and Ojibwe.
“We don’t generally call people from Europe, Europeans. We refer to the actual country they are from, so we can certainly do that in Canada,” Kumar said.
The lobby group points out their cultures are quite different from each other but the First Nations and Indian people share a history of dealing with British Empire.
“We have a common frenemy in the Crown,” Kumar said. “We stand with all First Nations People in their fight for treaty and human rights but we just want our name back.”
Protests are scheduled across the country starting Monday in all major Canadian cities including Portage la Prairie and Winnipeg.
Notice to readers/disclaimer – click here to read about the fact this story and website are fictional and satire. That means you shouldn’t get all upset about it. You should be upset about people having their human rights ignored but not about satire. Please read and share responsibly.
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KABUL: The United States has said the Taliban’s failure to engage in talks to end Afghanistan’s nearly 17-year conflict is “unacceptable” and called on Pakistan to exert more pressure on the militants.
US envoy Alice Wells made the remarks during a visit to Kabul on Saturday, two weeks after an unprecedented ceasefire triggered spontaneous street celebrations involving Taliban fighters and security forces.
“I think it [the ceasefire reaction] creates this impulse for everyone to renew their efforts to find a negotiated political solution,” Ms Wells, the principal deputy assistant secretary for the State Department’s Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, told reporters in remarks embargoed until Sunday.
Alice Wells says Islamabad should do more to bring militants to negotiating table
“Increasingly I think it’s becoming simply unacceptable for the Taliban not to negotiate.” The Taliban have so far ignored President Ashraf Ghani’s offer of peace negotiations. Instead, they have insisted on direct talks with the United States, which Washington has repeatedly refused.
One of the Taliban’s key demands for engaging in talks is the complete withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan.
Ms Wells said that since the Afghan government and United States were willing to start talking without preconditions, the onus was now on the Taliban to respond. “Right now it’s the Taliban leaders... who aren’t residing in Afghanistan, who are the obstacle to a negotiated political settlement,” she said.
Ms Wells, who is due to hold talks in Pakistan on Monday, said Islamabad needed to do more to pressurise the Taliban and bring them to the negotiating table.
“Pakistan has an important role to play... but we have not yet seen that sustained and decisive action on the part of Islamabad,” she said. “It’s going to be very hard for us to achieve our objectives... if Pakistan isn’t working with us.” — AFP
President Ghani has said that Afghanistan and Pakistan have forged a unique deal to root out terrorism from their region, Anwar Iqbal in Washington adds.
Mr Ghani’s statement — made at a Saturday afternoon event in Kabul — came a day after the Afghan government formally ended the Eid ceasefire, allowing Afghan forces to resume fighting after more than two weeks of unprecedented peace.
“It has been agreed on paper for the first time. The Afghanistan-Pakistan negotiations framework is now on paper. Now, serious actions are required,” Mr Ghani said.
Afghanistan’s Tolo news agency reported that the Afghan president also talked about “some recent improvements” in counter-terrorism cooperation between Afghanistan and Pakistan but did not explain what those improvements were.
Mr Ghani insisted that “the issue of Taliban should be solved in our relations with Pakistan,” said the Tolo report. “Some things have been done in this respect and some things are still needed to be done,” he added.
The report — reproduced by some US media outlets — also included a quote from Zahid Nasrullah, Pakistan’s ambassador to Kabul, pointing out that Pakistan had strongly supported the Eid ceasefire.
“Pakistan’s President Mamnoon Hussain was in China when he announced that Pakistan is strongly supporting the ceasefire. Pakistan knows its role well in peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan and we will fulfil our role very well,” he said.
Published in Dawn, July 2nd, 2018 | {
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In the wake of their embarrassing electoral defeat in November, Congressional Democrats are turning against the wealthy tech benefactors who bankroll their campaigns. To wit, a group of 12 Democratic Congressman have signed a letter urging the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission to conduct a more in-depth review of e-commerce giant Amazon.com Inc.'s plan to buy grocer Whole Foods Market Inc., according to Reuters.
Rumblings that Amazon is engaging in monopolistic business practices resurfaced last week when the top Democrat on the House antitrust subcommittee, David Civilline, voiced concerns about Amazon's $13.7 billion plan to buy Whole Foods Market and urged the House Judiciary Committee to hold a hearing to examine the deal's potential impact on consumers.
Making matters worse for the retailer, Reuters reported earlier this week that the FTC is investigating the company for allegedly misleading customers about its pricing discounts, citing a source close to the probe.
The letter is at least third troubling sign that lawmakers are turning against Amazon, even as President Donald Trump has promised to roll back regulations, presumably making it easier for megamergers like the AMZN-WFM tieup to proceed.
So far, it’s mostly Democrats who are urging the FTC to take “a closer look” at the deal. However, some suspect that Amazon founder Jeff Bezo’s ownership of the Washington Post – a media outlet that has published dozens of embarrassing stories insinuating that Trump and his compatriots colluded with Russia to help defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton – could hurt the company’s chances of successfully completing the merger, as its owner has earned the enmity of president Trump. Similar concerns have dogged CNN-owner Time Warner’s pending merger with telecoms giant AT&T.
In the letter, the group of Democratic lawmakers – which includes rumored presidential hopeful Cory Booker, the junior senator from New Jersey – worried that the merger could negatively impact low-income communities. By putting other grocers out of business, the Amazon-backed WFM could worsen the problem of “food deserts,” areas where residents may have limited access to fresh groceries.
"While we do not oppose the merger at this time, we are concerned about what this merger could mean for African-American communities across the country already suffering from a lack of affordable healthy food choices from grocers," the letter said on Thursday.
In the hopes of changing Whole Foods’ “whole paycheck” image, Amazon has lobbied Congress to be able to accept food stamps online, and is participating in a pilot program to “expand access” to fresh food in impoverished communities. You can read the letter in full below:
Brian Huseman, Amazon's vice president of policy, in a letter to Fudge, tried to placate the angry Democrats by assuring them that Amazon intends to address their concerns.
"'We agree with you that access to food is an important issue for the country, and we share your goal of improving that access,' Huseman said in the letter. 'We deliver low-cost, healthy food to zip codes across the country that before Amazon had limited access to a large selection of high quality foods,' Huseman wrote to Fudge.
Huseman also disputed claims that Amazon is anti-competitive, pointing out that Wal-Mart has a larger market share, and added that the company doesn’t plan on laying off workers…despite widely touting its plans to rely on automation – including special sensors and artificial intelligence – to eliminate the need for cashiers in it brick-and-mortar grocers.
“Amazon has sought to dispute that it would monopolize the grocery industry. Wal-Mart Stores Inc currently controls the largest market share. ‘We also do not plan job reductions as part of the acquisition, which if approved would result in a company with a combined less than 3 percent of national grocery sales,’ Huseman wrote.”
The letter was released to the public by the United Food and Commercial Workers union, which praised the Democrats plans to fight back against a merger that will likely result (despite Huseman’s claims to the contrary) in a sharp reduction in its membership base.
“Political concerns about Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods are growing for good reason,” UFCW President Marc Perrone said on Friday. “Amazon’s monopolistic desire to control the retail market and replace good jobs with automation is not only a direct threat to the hard-working men and women at Whole Foods, it’s also a direct threat to our economy and consumers."
Amazon and Whole Foods hope to expand access to fresh food, said Brian Huseman, Amazon's vice president of policy, in a letter to Fudge, also on Thursday.
"We agree with you that access to food is an important issue for the country, and we share your goal of improving that access," Huseman said in the letter.
So far, any negative impact on Amazon’s shares has been minimal as the broader market remains in rally mode. On Friday, the Nasdaq fell after rising for nine straight days – stopping just shy of what would’ve been its longest winning streak in years.
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San Juan (AFP) - Authorities in Puerto Rico rushed Saturday to evacuate people living downriver from a dam said to be in danger of collapsing because of flooding from Hurricane Maria.
The drama unfolded as the US island territory, working without electricity, struggled to dig out and clean up from its disastrous brush with the hurricane, blamed for at least 33 deaths across the Caribbean.
The 1920's era earthen dam on the Guajataca River in northwest Puerto Rico cracked on Friday, prompting the government to issue an order for 70,000 people in downstream towns to evacuate -- the combined population of those towns.
Late Saturday, however, the governor's office said it was impossible to determine exactly how many people were ordered out by local mayors, because they do not have working phones and the government has been unable to contact them.
But a Puerto Rican government official confirmed Saturday that evacuations that began Friday evening were continuing.
He said the dam had cracked, sending water gushing through and prompting fears of flash flooding.
On Friday, public safety chief Hector Pesquera had cited a different cause for the initial dam failure, according to the newspaper El Vocero. Pesquera said a drain which normally releases water from the dam in a controlled fashion had broken, sending it gushing out in torrents.
Puerto Rico was already battling dangerous floods elsewhere on the island because of Hurricane Maria, which hit before dawn Wednesday as part of its furious tear across the Caribbean.
Governor Ricardo Rossello visited Isabela, an area near the dam, late Friday and urged people to get out. The government is also sending in buses to take people to higher ground.
As the island is without power but for emergency generators, and without telecommunications, the governor's entourage left a satellite phone with the mayor of Isabela so he can talk to crews manning the dam.
Rossello has called Maria the most devastating storm to hit the island in a century.
Story continues
A preliminary assessment said 13 people had died as a result of the storm, he told CNN Friday.
In its latest update at 2100 GMT, the US National Hurricane Center said Maria was moving northwest and located 285 miles (460 km) east of Great Abaco island in the Bahamas.
So far, at least 33 people have been confirmed dead as a result of Hurricane Maria, including 15 in Dominica, three in Haiti and two in Guadeloupe.
Of the 13 victims in Puerto Rico, eight died in the northern town of Toa Baja, one of the worst-hit areas which was ravaged by winds of more than 125 miles per hour (200 kilometers per hour) and then hit by flooding when the island's largest river, La Plata, burst its banks.
It was also distressing day for Marina Montalbo, 36, a secretary from Isabela. She was trying to rest in a shelter with her husband and her 11-month-old baby.
"They made us evacuate. It was a really difficult thing to have to do," she said, sobbing. "We just had to get out; they were screaming that we had to get out."
- Aid ships trying to dock -
Across the island, streets were littered with debris from the storm, with toppled trees, street signs and power cables strewn everywhere.
The torrential rain also turned some roads into muddy brown rivers, impassable to all but the largest of vehicles.
Puerto Rico's electricity network has been crippled by the storm and engineers say it could take months for power to be fully restored.
US federal emergency chief Brock Long said ships carrying millions of meals and bottles of water were trying to dock as the island's ports are slowly reopened.
Before reaching Puerto Rico, the storm devastated the small island nation of Dominica.
And after striking Puerto Rico, the storm headed west toward the Dominican Republic where it damaged nearly 5,000 homes, forcing the evacuation of more than 18,000 people, the president's office said. | {
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Indiferent de deciziile luate astăzi în Comitetul Executiv al PSD, partidul aflat la guvernare „pierde masiv”, a spus Cristian Tudor Popescu, la Digi24. Jurnalistul a adăugat că, după șase ore de discuții, „absența știrii e de rău”. El a exemplificat și posibilele scenarii care ar putea avea loc după ședința CEx și efectele lor.
„Deocamdată nu e niciun spectacol. Nu vede nimic, oferă spectacol doar diversele știri pe surse. Ce se întâmplă înăuntru nu se vede, dar ceva putem spune. Indiferent ce se întâmplă acolo PSD pierde. Pierde masiv. De ce? Cât a trecut de când dl. Tudose a călcat detonatorul. Trei zile? Trei zile în care criza nu a fost rezolvată. Trei zile de când dl. Dragnea nu a reușit să-l convingă pe Mihai, pe Mihăiță, la care ține, să-și vine în fire și 'să guvernăm'.
E de bănuit că se întâmplă lucruri. N-au ieșit după o oră. După șase ore niciun rezultat. No news, bad news. Absența știrii e de rău.
Cu ce se poate ieși din spectacolul ăsta? PSD pierde în toate variantele.
- Tudose își dă demisia. Asta poate fi justitificat imediat de Dragnea cu vorbe de genul: tovarășul Tudose și-a pierdut mințile, a avut un moment de rătăcire. Și în felul ăsta să mai repare imaginea în ochii pesediștilor de rând. Dar în situația asta se va duce cu hârtiuța la Iohannis. A spus deja că nu mai vrea să se ducă a treia oară. Umilința e uriașă. Nu e în stare marele PSD cu Dragnea în frunte să mențină guvenarea... Dl. Iohannis poate să joace foarte multe lucruri. Mai multe decât după Grindeanu. El îi punea urmașului lui o armă letală: nu va putea fi demis prin moțiune de cenzură. Dl. Tudose știe că nu poate fi dat afară. Spre deosebire de Grindeanu, el a spus că își va da demisia. Iar dl. Iohannis va spune PSD-ului: n-ai fost în stare să guvernezi, fără ca opoziția să tragă vreun glonț în țintă. Cu ce răspundea acum zece luni dl. Dragnea? Că ia în considerare să meargă la suspendare. Mai poate să deschidă gura dl. Dragnea în direcția suspendării lui Iohannis? Ar intra și mai mult în grotesc. Dl. Iohannis poate să împingă lucrurile și până la alegerile anticipate, în care probabil PSD va câștiga, dar cu siguranță nu mai câștigă cu același scor. Va fi un sor negociabil și se va încheia epoca Dragnea.
- dacă dl. Tudose nu-și dă demisia:
1. Nu se întâmplă nimic. Nu-și dă nimeni demisia și vor spune că partidul a ieșit întărit. N-a ieșit întărit, se va fac de râs monstruos.
2. Se cade la o tocmeală. Rămân unii, pleacă ceilalți. Cel mai mult de pierdut are dl. Dragnea. Orice demisie a unui ministru va fi o înfrângere pentru dl. Dragnea.
3. Sunt acceptate toate cererile domnului Tudose. În aceste condițiie epoca Dragnea s-a încehiat. Nu înseamnă că va veni la conducerea PSD dl. Tudose, nu, va rămâne la guvernare. Din acel moment va guverna. Iar dl. Dragnea va rămâne ca un copac tăiat de la rădăcină care încă n-a căzut. O să vedem cine o să-i dea bobârnacul.
Asta este situația pentru PS-Dragnea. Prea-Sfințitul-Dragnea.” | {
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The MBC Gayo Daejejun will be filled with amazing collaboration stage with the latest revealed to be featuring Lucky J’s Jessi (Jessica H.O), SISTAR’s Hyorin, and Ailee.
The special stage was announced and confirmed by the MBC Gayo Daejun official on December 20th, who said, “The three female singers will decorate the stage with their vocals for a special performance. The three will be performing an amazing stage of ‘Bang Bang,’ please look forward to it.”
“Bang Bang” is a hit American track sung by Ariana Grande, Jessie J, and Nicki Minaj that took over American radio for a brief time.
The MBC Gayo Daejejun will air on December 31st.
Source: Star News | {
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A coalition of U.S. Muslim groups behind a fundraiser to rebuild black churches targeted with arson in the aftermath of the Charleston, South Carolina shooting say they are nearing their goal of raising $100,000.
The fundraiser launched on July 2 has raised nearly $90,000 and ends on Eid — the holiday celebrating the end of Ramadan, a Muslim holy month of fasting — at 3:45 a.m. Friday morning, organizers said.
Their initial goal was to raise $10,000 for the churches. But after the fundraiser went viral, the group increased that target to $100,000.
Although some questioned what Muslims were doing raising money for Christian churches, one of the organizers, Namira Islam, executive director of MuslimARC — a Muslim anti-racism group — said the impetus to help came largely because of the racist nature of the attacks. UmmahWide, a Muslim digital media startup, and the Arab American Association of New York, a group aimed at empowering Arab Americans, also helped organize the fundraiser.
The church burnings across the South occurred in the weeks following the killing of nine African Americans in a Charleston church by a self-professed white supremacist.
Fires at four black churches across the South were determined to be arson attacks, Islam said. At least four other black churches caught fire, but they were apparently the result of natural causes, including lightning.
“We’re in a state of shock,” Brandon Reeves, a member of God’s Power Church of Christ in Macon, Georgia, said on July 9. The church, founded by his great-grandmother, Lillie Powell, was destroyed by fire on June 23. “With all these other churches in flames, I can’t help but think it might have been a hate crime.”
“Helping a church burned down out of hate is something we need to take action on,” Islam said. “Raising money was one tangible way of doing that.”
Muslims have faced similar discrimination in the U.S. as blacks, although African Americans have undoubtedly experienced more racism and racist violence than American Muslims, the Muslim coalition said on the LaunchGood fundraiser page.
In addition to challenges the groups both face in the U.S. today, Christians and Muslims have an intertwined history, Islam said.
“In the time of the prophet (Muhammed), peace be upon him, there was a really strong history of Muslims working with Christians very closely — some of the first Muslims were sent to seek shelter under a Christian king in Ethiopia,” Islam said. “That connection has always been there.”
Islam said the coalition has reached out to two of the four churches targeted by arson attacks: College Hill Seventh Day Adventist in Knoxville, Tennessee, and God’s Power Church of Christ in Macon, Georgia. The coalition hopes to help rebuild the churches with money from the fundraiser.
The groups hope to distribute the money they raised next week, Islam said, and have reached out to another campaign that is raising money — the Christ Church Cathedral campaign — to figure out the best way to help all four of the churches burned in arson attacks.
Leaders from the targeted churches have been “really, really gracious,” Islam said.
“They were really just pleased hearing about the fundraiser and we really talked and connected over the fact that mosques have also been the targets of arson as well,” Islam said.
Islam said she hopes the campaign will lead to more interfaith cooperation between Muslims and Christians in the U.S., especially in the face of hateful attacks on places of worship.
“It is a new chapter, and we’re excited to move forward and make new relationships and have a greater sense of connection with each other,” Islam said.
With wire services | {
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Depuis des mois, Laurent Lessard ne cachait pas qu'il était en réflexion sur son avenir politique et sa décision ne surprendra personne.
Le ministre Laurent Lessard est devenu vendredi le septième membre du gouvernement Couillard à annoncer qu'il allait quitter la vie politique au terme du présent mandat.
C'est aussi le 16e député libéral à tirer sa révérence.
Dans les rangs libéraux, on s'attend à ce que l'annonce de M. Lessard soit suivie bientôt par celle du ministre des Affaires autochtones, Geoffrey Kelley, qui deviendrait le huitième ministre du gouvernement Couillard à tirer un trait sur sa vie politique.
Quant au ministre de l'Agriculture, il a fait l'annonce de son départ vendredi, dans sa circonscription de Lotbinière-Frontenac.
Depuis des mois, il ne cachait pas qu'il était en réflexion sur son avenir politique et sa décision ne surprendra personne.
Élu pour la première fois en 2003, dans l'équipe de Jean Charest, M. Lessard a dit vendredi, par voie de communiqué, qu'il ne solliciterait pas un sixième mandat.
Il avait rencontré son exécutif de circonscription la veille pour rendre la nouvelle officielle.
L'ancien maire de Thetford Mines, âgé de 55 ans, n'a rien dit à son entourage des motivations à l'origine de sa décision ni soufflé mot sur ses projets d'avenir une fois sorti de l'univers politique.
Dans son bref communiqué, il dit partir pour des raisons familiales, ayant pris cette décision «bien réfléchie», avec «la volonté de retrouver les (siens)».
Notaire de formation, il aura été ministre du Travail, des Affaires municipales, des Transports, des Forêts, mais son passage le plus remarqué aura été celui à l'Agriculture, un poste qu'il a occupé pendant plusieurs années, d'abord au sein du gouvernement Charest, puis dans celui du premier ministre Couillard.
La liste des départs s'allonge
7 ministres vont quitter:
• Jean-Marc Fournier (Saint-Laurent)
• Stéphanie Vallée (Gatineau)
• Julie Boulet (Laviolette)
• Martin Coiteux (Nelligan)
• David Heurtel (Viau)
• Robert Poëti (Marguerite-Bourgeoys)
• Laurent Lessard (Lotbinière-Frontenac)
9 députés libéraux vont quitter:
• Raymond Bernier (Montmorency)
• Norbert Morin (Côte-du-Sud)
• Karine Vallières (Richmond)
• Guy Hardy (Saint-François)
• Germain Chevarie (Îles-de-la-Madeleine)
• Pierre Reid (Orford)
• André Drolet (Jean-Lesage)
• Ghislain Bolduc (Mégantic)
• Michel Matte (Portneuf)
1 ministre est toujours en réflexion:
Geoffrey Kelley (Jacques-Cartier)
1 députée poursuit sa réflexion:
Rita de Santis (Bourassa-Sauvé)
Dans les rangs libéraux, on tient aussi pour acquise l'annonce du départ du président de l'Assemblée nationale, Jacques Chagnon (Westmount-Saint-Louis), le 15 juin, dernier jour de la session parlementaire. | {
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SÃO PAULO – Após cinco dias fora do ar, a FoxBit, maior corretora de bitcoins do Brasil, informou nesta quarta-feira (14) que não voltará a funcionar por pelo menos mais 12 dias, com retorno previsto do sistema para o dia 26 de março. Por conta da complicada situação, a exchange liberou o saque do saldo de seus usuários sem cobrança de taxa.
Em um novo vídeo publicado em seu YouTube, o CEO da FoxBit, João Canhada, e o COO, Guto Schiavon, disseram que quem tem saldo na exchange poderá sacá-lo. O usuário que tiver reais, só poderá sacar em dinheiro, enquanto quem tiver bitcoins, só poderá retirar em moeda virtual, sem nenhuma arbitragem sobre estas quantias.
Segundo Canhada, mesmo que todas as pessoas queiram retirar seu saldo neste momento, a FoxBit tem caixa para arcar com este custo. A nova explicação dada pelos diretores é que a Blinktrade, provedora de serviços deles, segue com problemas e por isso a nova data de retorno. Duas exchanges estrangeiras também estão fora do ar.
PUBLICIDADE
Vale destacar que desde que o problema foi apresentado e a exchange saiu do ar, o bitcoin já caiu cerca de 20%. Ou seja, para os investidores com conta na FoxBit e que ficaram com saldo travado, a cada dia que passa a perda de dinheiro só aumenta.
Na última segunda-feira, a dupla da FoxBit explicaram que ocorreram cerca de 130 saques em duplicidade, totalizando algo em torno de 30 bitcoins perdidos. Com a cotação da época, em R$ 35 mil cada moeda, seriam mais de R$ 1 milhão perdidos.
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Os dois explicaram que, constatada a falha, eles tiveram que realizar uma manutenção emergencial no sistema. Porém, ao fazer isso ocorreu um erro com o banco de dados da FoxBit, sendo que a falha corrompeu os índices do banco de dados da Blinktrade.
Esta foi a explicação dada pelos diretores, mas a questão maior é como o problema chegou a este ponto. Especialistas em Tecnologia da Informação explicam que é preciso ter um plano de contingência, uma alternativa pensada para desastres como esse.
Uma sugestão seria ter um backup do sistema em outra plataforma, que poderia fazer a corretora voltar a funcionar em um prazo menor, mesmo que de maneira provisória. | {
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Thank you ! It's heavily inspired from my birth country (Normandy)... This place is the perfect set for this kind of ambiance | {
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Quick Vegetarian Recipe for Tomato and Mushroom Spaghetti. It is very easy to make. It is low in Carbs and Trans-Fat and Vegetarian. For Vegan, omit Cheese
Ok, I am a little late posting this tomato and mushroom spaghetti recipe. I couldn’t bring myself to post it because I didn’t like any of the pictures I took. Wish I could say it was because I am a perfectionist. The sad fact is: it is because I am bad a photography.
Sometimes! Or maybe, the tomato and mushroom spaghetti just didn’t want their good side photographed! They can be such Divas….
The combination of mushrooms, tomatoes and garlic is enough to make your taste buds jump in joy!. The cherry tomatoes have a tangyness to it, the mushrooms have a slight salty taste and garlic has a spice taste to it. Together, they create a jumping taste party and I love how it clears my sinuses……
You know, while I was making this mushroom spaghetti, I was counting the many mistakes I have made in my life. Do you do that often? Cooking is a time for my mind to sit back and take stock of my life. This time, I was focusing on the mistakes in my life.
Next cooking time, I am going to focus on the things that went right in my life.
Frankly, you don’t even need the spaghetti or any pasta in this recipe. You can eat this by itself or add it to your favorite greens as a salad.
But, this time, I am going to use it in whole wheat spaghetti. It is filing and that is what I am looking for.
When the pasta was done, I simply bought together the roasted vegetables with the spaghetti. Done in under 30 minutes. Fresh ground pepper tastes so good on the tomatoes that I ate half of them just as I was pulling them out of the oven.
I thought about adding more veggies to the recipe but then thought against it. While mess up a good thing by adding too many items? And it will take longer to make the recipe.
I served this with a my homemade garlic toast
Now, if you will excuse me, I am going to go and enjoy this delicious tomato and mushroom spaghetti. Feel free to let me know what you think about the recipe.
If you like tomato and pasta combination, try my pasta pomodoro, pasta primevera or my fettuccine pasta recipe.
A brief history of pasta
Roasted Tomato and Mushroom Spaghetti | {
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When recent reports suggested Apple was considering bringing iTunes to Android to help boost flagging music sales, skeptics scoffed at the thought of the iPhone maker supporting a competing platform. But with its $3 billion purchase of Beats, Apple has now revealed it plans to keep the Beats Music subscription apps alive not only on Google's Android, but also Microsoft's Windows Phone.
Speaking at the Code Conference on Wednesday, Apple executive Eddy Cue revealed that Beats Music for both Android and Windows Phone will continue to exist. That's a significant change for Apple, as the company has historically discontinued applications on competing platforms following an acquisition.
"It's on Android now, and we want to keep it that way," Cue said.
By keeping the popular Beats brand alive, Apple has found a way to give itself a presence on competing platforms — and sell music subscriptions to even more users — without directly using the Apple name.
Keeping Beats Music on competing platforms also lessens the chance of federal scrutiny of the acquisition, which is expected to close later this year. Apple is already under sanctions from the U.S. government for its iBooks service following its defeat in a federal antitrust case.
Interestingly, the official Beats Music website only showcases the application running on an iPhone 5s, with no signs of any Android or Windows Phone devices.
Rumors first surfaced in March claiming that Apple was in talks with record labels about launching an on-demand music service. In hindsight, it would appear that Apple held those apparent talks in anticipation of acquiring Beats Music, which is a Spotify-like service that allows unlimited on-demand music streaming for $99.99 per year.
The same report from Billboard suggested that Apple was considering an iTunes application for Android. Whether that's actually in the works remains to be seen, but the existence of Beats on Android and Windows Phone will still stand as the first Apple-owned applications written for third-party modern smartphone platforms.
Apple, of course, has dabbled in others' platforms before, most prominently with iTunes for Windows PCs. But that came at a time when Apple was pushing its iPod media players, which required syncing with a desktop in order to transfer music.
Presumably, Apple will also keep the Beats application for Microsoft's Windows 8 alive as well. iTunes remains a desktop-only affair, incompatible with Microsoft's tile-based "Metro" interface.
DRM-free music purchased through Apple's iTunes Store can be listened to on Android and Windows Phone handsets if the files are manually synced, but the iTunes application itself does not support syncing. And direct downloads from the iTunes Store to smartphones or tablets are only available on iPhones and iPads.
Similarly, Apple's iTunes Radio service can be streamed to iPhone, iPad, and even Apple TV. And iTunes Radio is also included in iTunes for Mac and Windows, but the service cannot be accessed from an Android device or Windows Phone.
Late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs talked about the prospect of iTunes for Android with biographer Walter Isaacson before he passed away in 2011. Jobs admitted that Apple considered bringing iTunes to Google's mobile platform, but ultimately decided it wasn't a wise decision. | {
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Norway fatal crash helicopter type cleared to fly Published duration 8 July 2017
image copyright AFP image caption The aviation authorities have imposed new safety rules on the helicopter type
Super Puma 225 helicopters, which were grounded after a fatal crash in Norway, are to fly over the North Sea again.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the Norwegian authorities have allowed flights to resume if operators meet new safety conditions.
A crash involving the helicopter off the coast of Norway killed 13 people , including Iain Stuart from Aberdeenshire, in April 2016.
The Unite Union has expressed concern about the decision.
CAA head of airworthiness John McColl said: "This is not a decision we have taken lightly. It has only been made after receiving extensive information from the Norwegian accident investigators and being satisfied with the subsequent changes introduced by Airbus Helicopters through detailed assessment and analysis.
"The safety of those who travel on offshore helicopter flights is a key priority for both the UK and Norwegian aviation authorities.
"We would not have made this decision unless we were convinced that the changes to the helicopters and their maintenance restore the required airworthiness standards."
The CAA said that helicopters would not begin flying immediately. A plan of checks, modifications and inspections will be undertaken before any flights take place.
These include:
Change in the design by removal of the components that were susceptible to premature deterioration
Earlier replacement of component
Design change to introduce an improved maintenance inspection method to detect any deterioration at an early stage
More frequent inspections
Reduction in the thresholds for rejecting components based upon early signs of any deterioration
Mr McColl added: "We continue to work with the helicopter operators, the offshore industries, international regulators, unions and pilot representatives to enhance offshore safety standards still further and all these parties are actively involved in ongoing discussions."
The Unite Union has expressed concern at the decision, saying its members were "very nervous" about flying in the helicopter.
The union's regional organiser in Aberdeen, Tommy Campbell, said Unite was still waiting to see a full analysis of the April 2016 accident and its causes.
image copyright EVN grab image caption Thirteen people died after the Super Puma crash in April 2016
"The offshore work force have been surveyed, they've been surveyed by the unions, they've been surveyed by magazines in the industry and there is a lack of confidence," he told the BBC.
"There's a significant issue and it's very understandable. Offshore workers - or any workers - want to go to their work and come back home safely and there's been far, far too many deaths now as a result of helicopter accidents."
Les Linklater, executive director of the offshore industry safety group, Step Change in Safety, said: "At this time, there is an ongoing Airbus survey for pilots and passengers regarding these specific helicopters' flight safety and comfort, which was issued just one week ago. It's our understanding that this survey still has a further three weeks to run.
"Given the importance of the workforce's opinion regarding this highly emotive subject, we do not feel it's appropriate to make any further comment until Airbus has gathered, and shared, the survey's results and can demonstrate how they intend to address any concerns raised by the workforce. | {
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CAMDEN, N.J. — The concept sounds simple enough: Shoot when you’re open. But for Markelle Fultz, having the confidence to take open shots is a huge step after a rookie season derailed by a shoulder injury and the much-maligned jumper that accompanied it.
“The best thing I see in him, and I saw it in the month of September, is he’s not bashful,” Sixers head coach Brett Brown said Sunday at training camp. “He takes the shots he should shoot. And sometimes they go in, sometimes they don’t. But his mindset is money. He’s really not gun-shy at all. And I think that’s as good a compliment as I could give him.”
Fultz, who shot down the notion that he had the "yips" (see story) on Saturday, wouldn’t detail the mechanical adjustments he’s made. But the brief glimpses we’ve seen of his jumper so far, both in a Players’ Tribune video and at training camp, look nothing like the shaky, hesitant shot we saw last season. The release appears more fluid, the follow-through more natural and pronounced. He looked comfortable working a pick-and-roll with Joel Embiid and pulling up from just inside the foul line during a scrimmage at the end of practice.
Markelle Fultz with the soft touch on the pull-up jumper. pic.twitter.com/BihMo5cwxX — Noah Levick (@NoahLevick) September 23, 2018
“I just had to figure out what worked for me,” Fultz said. “It was a lot of trial-and-error stuff, and I found out what clicked. I’m happy with it and I’m just going to keep working every day.”
The sheer volume of Fultz’s work with trainer Drew Hanlen is the No. 1 reason for his newfound confidence. Brown said Fultz took 150,000 jumpers this summer.
“You feel like you’ve studied and you’re ready to take a test,” Brown said. “And he’s done that, he’s put in the time. To me, his body language, his spirit, really to me reeks of one that seems very sure in himself. I think that’s based out of him knowing he hasn’t skipped steps or cheated. He’s invested time and he feels pretty good about it, and he should.”
Brown placed plenty of faith in Hanlen this offseason; not every coach would’ve trusted an outsider to repair their No. 1 pick’s shot.
“His reputation with a few of the players that I know was excellent,” Brown said. “Any time you get somebody that’s committed to live with somebody for the summer, and the client, the player is really equally as excited to partner up as well. And re-position himself on the other side of the country; the Philadelphia scene for a moment probably didn’t produce a ton of great memories and he just wanted to get away. And I applauded it.
“We maintained continuous dialogue and flying out there and seeing him … I think that Drew’s done a great job. He’s really taken it personally, trying to bring him under his wing and help a young man as much as somebody’s shot, and for those reasons, I respect Drew’s genuine care for him. It’s deeper than, ‘let’s fix his shot.’ And I respect it, I appreciate it.”
If Fultz is taking and making outside shots, the prospect of playing him together with Ben Simmons becomes much more promising. The pair were together again during the Sixers' end-of-practice scrimmage, with Simmons at the power forward spot and Fultz running the point.
“It just helps to know that you have someone out there who’s going to get you the ball when you’re open,” Fultz said of Simmons, “and who’s going to play as hard as you also.”
Trudging into Camden every day and trying to fix what was wrong with his body and the shot that had served him well most of his life, then sitting on the sidelines at night, must not have been a very fun way to spend most of last season for Fultz. This season feels very different.
“Just being able to know that I prepared very well for this season, I can’t wait to start it off with these guys,” Fultz said. “Every day I’ve been coming in, I’ve been happy.”
More on the Sixers | {
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Toy Fair season is upon us now, with the London one running this week, Nuremberg starting next week and finally the biggie in New York on February 12th. I went for my first time as "press" and here are my favorite things from around the exhibition floor.
1. Lego
I'll be honest here, I could have written this entire post about all the cool stuff Lego has coming our way this year, and theirs was the only stand I'd actually booked a slot to look around. Talk about a kid in a candy store!
First up was the Super Heroes section, which featured the new Batman sets we already knew about and also a Superman / Wonder Woman set. On the other half of this room were some brand new Marvel sets, all tied in to this summer's Avengers movie. The five sets (out in April) feature Captain America's Avenging Cycle, Wolverine's Chopper Showdown with Magento and Deadpool (Wolverine's claws are a nice touch here), Loki's Cosmic Cube Escape with Hawkeye and Iron Man, Hulk’s Hellcarrier Breakout with an ace Hulk jumbo-fig as well as Hawkeye, Loki and Thor and finally a huge Quinjet Aerial Battle pack with Black Window, Thor and Loki and Iron Man.
The next room had a new line launching in time for Halloween: Monster Fighters. The fighters are all 1920s/30s styled figures in art deco/steampunky vehicles and the monsters are the classics: vampires, werewolves, ghosts, etc. Highlights of the range include Dracula's amazing Hot Rod Hearse, Dr. Frankenstein's Lab complete with operating table, and a flying ghost train.
The Star Wars section had a ton of great new sets for the summer, including a proper minifig scale X-Wing and a Tie Fighter, an escape pod from the Tantive IV, a Gungan sub (with an incredible minifig of Queen Amidala in full royal garb), a massive model of General Grevious' flagship (the Invisible Hand or maybe the Malevolence), and huge set of Jabba's Palace (complete with Salacious Crumb!). Also out this year is a new collectible range, Star Wars Planets – the hook here being that all the pieces come in a two halves of a planet. They include a unique minifig and the model is of a vehicle from that planet, a fighter from Naboo, a Pod Racer from Tatooine etc. After you assemble the model, you can hang the planet spheres form your ceiling and make your own galaxy far, far away. And if you loved last year's advent calendar, then you're in luck again this year.
Of course the details everyone wants are on the new Lord of the Rings license and I can safely say that if you love Lego and LotR, then you won't be disappointed. The image at the top of this post shows the whole Fellowship in minifig form and they look fantastic. Even though these are obviously renders and not photos, I can tell you that the level of detail in the minifigs is incredible, right down to the painting of the ears – which are actually on the hairpieces for the goblins, orcs, elves, etc. The Precious is present in all its shiny glory, as is its former bearer Gollum. There are seven sets in the first wave, all available in August:
Gandalf Arrives - featuring Gandalf on his horse and cart and Frodo.
- featuring Gandalf on his horse and cart and Frodo. Shelob Attacks - the giant spider tries to eat Sam and Frodo, encouraged by Gollum
- the giant spider tries to eat Sam and Frodo, encouraged by Gollum Attack on Weathertop - Merry, Frodo and Aragon battle two Nazgul Ringwraiths (the horses are new moulds and can rear up now)
- Merry, Frodo and Aragon battle two Nazgul Ringwraiths (the horses are new moulds and can rear up now) The Mines of Moria - A huge set featuring Pippin, Gimli, Legolas, Boromir, goblins, skeletons and a cave troll
- A huge set featuring Pippin, Gimli, Legolas, Boromir, goblins, skeletons and a cave troll The Battle of Helm's Deep - another huge, double-sided set with Aragon, Gimli, Legolas, Theoden, and five Uruk-hai
- another huge, double-sided set with Aragon, Gimli, Legolas, Theoden, and five Uruk-hai Uruk-hai Army - with four Uruk-hai, a Rohirrim Soldier and a Rider Of Rohan, which can easily be joined to the Helm's Deep set
- with four Uruk-hai, a Rohirrim Soldier and a Rider Of Rohan, which can easily be joined to the Helm's Deep set Orc Forge - five mean looking orcs forging weapons for the army
There are some great little touches in all of them, which I won't spoil for you now. I hope we'll eventually get a Saruman minifig so he can battle a Count Dooku one, Lee vs. Lee style!
Last, but by no means least, I ended up in the Friends section. Opinions on this new range have been very divided, but at the end of the day, it's selling really well – I was told it's accounted for around 10% of all Lego sales since its launch. My daughter loves it and spent most of her Christmas money on four sets, so she was very excited when I brought her home a freebie pen with the logo on it – hey, she's only five! For the second half of the year there's another batch of about eight sets planned. Olivia, she of the inventor's workshop fame, loses a bit of geek-cred by having a speedboat and beach lounger set, Mia gains some cool by revealing that she's a drummer, and Andrea goes all fluffy with her bunny hutch. Two of the larger sets both feature horses in a big way, one with a campervan (though not as cool as the VW one) and horse trailer, and the biggest set being a show-jumping weekend camp, complete with bunk beds and a little toilet! The fabulous new colors are also being rolled out in the revamped "Pink Brick" boxes too. I'm sure these will continue to divide the audience and sell really well too. Oh, and they'll also be an advent calendar for them, which is great as that means we won't be fighting over one here!
2. Jumbo Inflatable R2D2 from Bladez Toys
Princess Leia herself was on hand to demonstrate this incredibly fun RC R2D2 unit. The motors in the base unit weigh the inflatable top half down perfectly so he never falls over and can always right himself should your driving skills send him down some steps. The £40 RC unit is tri-band so you'll be able to run three together when the range is expanded later in the year. Coming up are Yoda, Vader, Boba, Trooper and AT-AT variations, although I can't imagine any of them moving around as much 'in character' as R2 does. Maybe if they did a mouse droid?
3. iPieces from Jumbo Games
This is an interesting fusion of apps and board games. There are four packs of these molded play pieces covering four different games; Snakes and Ladders, Air Hockey, Game of Goose and a Fishing game. Their respective apps are free from the App Store and in reality the 'iPawns' included in each pack will work with any of the apps, which is handy as the £10 RRP is a bit pricey for what you get. I was given a set of the Snakes and Ladders one to try out which comes with four iPawns and two metal ladders.
Each time the game is started up, the ladders are snakes are randomly positioned and the snakes have a little animated and hissing sound effect attached to them. A roll of the on-screen dice and you're away up the grid. If you land on a ladder square you're prompted to place the ladder piece on the screen and move your iPawn to the top, if you land on a snake, it animates as you slide your iPawn down its back. It's a nice concept, but some of the apps still seem like Beta versions. The Snakes and Ladders doesn't keep track of the pieces or whose turn it is, just a fanfare when the Finish square is touched – which you can activate at any point and this also finishes the game which could be annoying if touched accidentally.
All the games are fun to play for 5 or 10 minutes – especially the Air Hockey, where the act of physically holding something lends it a slightly more real feel to it than just placing your finger on the screen.
4. Retro styled Sci-Fi merchandise
Half Moon Bay had a great little stand full of fantastic geek-branded merchandise, not just from the Star Wars universe, but also some of our other beloved franchises including Star Trek, Marvel and DC. The thing that they all have in common is that they reject the modern interpretation of the characters and designs and go with the original artworks from back in the day. My favorites have to be these tote bags featuring some of Ralph MacQuarrie's concept art of Luke Starkiller (love that logo) and The "Guerre Stellari" poster. I wish these guys had a T-Shirt license.
(as pointed out in the comments, their website is trade only)
5. Bandai's AR enhanced packaging
The Japanese toy giant has partnered with app developer Aurasma to make their packaging come to life. If you have the free app installed, you can point the camera at the box art for certain Thundercats, Power Rangers and Ben 10 products and the 'Auras' they create will come to life on your screen, or show you a nice TV advert with built in links to online stores! Better to watch the video for this one.
6. Sharker surf/skate board hybrid
I was intrigued by the look of this as I walked by one of the smaller stands, although it might just have been the day-glo colors that caught my eye. The shape of the board it obviously modeled after a surfboard, but with the front trucks of the skateboard replaced by an angled caster wheel. When I first stood on it, it seemed incredibly unstable. I put my right foot on, facing forwards, with my left ready to kick off. Luckily before I could sprain my ankle I was given a demo on the correct way to ride it. Standing sideways on you weave along without needing to kick at all. I'm sure with a bit more practice I could have mastered it, but I didn't want to fall off in front of everyone!
7. Apptoyz add ons and AR games
Apptoyz had a nice crowd on their stand playing with their wares. They have a simple D-pad A/B button rubber overlay that sticks to your iOS or Android device and controls the action in a Space Invaders clone game. More exciting was the gun accessory, which features a holder for your phone and two triggers that tap the screen for you when you pull them. The game for this shows little aliens that you need to zap, overlaid onto the camera's view and works with the gyroscopes to enable 360 degree gameplay.
Also on show was some kind of Karaoke mic attachment, a Mario Kart-esque steering wheel and four-player quiz stand for the iPad, but by far the most interesting was the App Arena. They sold it to me with the line, "remember the 3D hologram chess in Star Wars..." and showed me a regular chess board with an iPad 2 in a stand in front of it, warning me that it was still very much in development. On the chess board was a set of crude red and blue counters, but when viewed on the iPad screen they came alive as rough 3D models that walk between the squares after the real counters are moved. When the checker pieces are taken, one monster head butts or throws the other to the ground. Could be really good fun when they finish up the software, especially if they secure some decent licenses.
8. Tinybike balance bike
These have been around for a while, but I've included them here because I love the design of the Tiny Bike , especially those super chunky rubber wheels - they remind me of Judge Dredd's Lawmaster! I want them to make an adult sized one.
9. Lego Minifig speech bubbles from Funtastic
Great fun, especially if you're doing a certain project from the first GeekDad book, these little speech, thought and exclamation bubbles fit on the necks of your minifigs and hover behind them. The pack provides a selection of pre-printed words and some blank bubbles for you to write your own on.
10. Makedo's ace robot
We've mentioned Makedo's excellent system before here on GeekDad, but this Robot was certainly the coolest thing I've seen made from old junk, held together with their innovative clips and hinges. If you turn the big key at the side the little heart beats too. Recycled Robots have feelings too, you know. They were showing their new packs which come with a sticker sheet to enhance the final product, in addition to the a bag of clips – chairs and sofas for the doll's house kit and controls panels for the robot kit.
And the worst thing I saw there? Well, that has to be moldable chocolate. Imagine rolling chocolate around in your hands for a while before eating it? Yuk!
See some more of my photos over on Flickr | {
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That more breast cancers are being detected early in the years following passage of the Affordable Care Act in the United States shouldn't be a terribly surprising finding. Not only do more people have health insurance now than they did five years ago, the health insurance they do have is legally required to cover—without the barriers of copayments or out-of-pocket costs—a suite of 45 basic preventative services, including mammograms.
Indeed, a new study published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology notes a significant uptick in diagnoses of Stage 1 breast cancer in the post-ACA years 2011-2013 compared to 2007-2009, before the Act took effect. Specifically, the percentage of breast cancers detected before progressing beyond Stage 1 increased from 54.4 percent to 58.0 percent, according to a survey of some 470,465 breast cancer patients between the ages of 50 and 74. A corresponding downturn in Stage 2 and 3 diagnoses was seen during the same period.
"While the shift in stage I cancers was modest, it translates into a potentially significant public health impact," the study notes. "Given that approximately one-quarter of a million women in the US are diagnosed with breast cancer yearly, a small shift toward stage I diagnoses would improve the prognosis for thousands of women. Additionally, it would reduce the need for invasive treatments such as chemotherapy for a substantial number of women."
According to the American Cancer Society, the survival rates from Stage 1 breast cancer to Stage 3 breast cancer decline from nearly 100 percent to 73 percent. | {
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A University of Adelaide designed and patented battery technology - which could revolutionise electricity storage by providing a far safer, cheaper and more reliable model than those already on the market - has secured a $1million research contract to bring it to market.
The new design uses non-toxic zinc and manganese, two metals that are abundant in Australia, and incombustible aqueous electrolyte to produce a battery with a high energy density.
“I can imagine this battery being used on all vehicle types from small scooters to even diesel electric trains. Also in homes that need batteries to store solar power, or even large solar/wind farms." Dr Dongliang Chao
The high energy safe battery opens up markets where the battery weight, size and safety are essential factors, including automotive and aerospace, and domestic and commercial buildings, and grid-scale energy storage.
Battery designer Dr Dongliang Chao and Prof Shi-Zhang Qiao, from the University of Adelaide’s School of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials, said the potential for the technology is huge.
“I can imagine this battery being used on all vehicle types from small scooters to even diesel electric trains. Also in homes that need batteries to store solar power, or even large solar/wind farms,” he said.
“With more sustainable energy being produced – such as through wind and solar farms - storing this energy in batteries in a safe, non-expensive and environmentally sound way is becoming more urgent but current battery materials – including lithium, lead and cadmium – are expensive, hazardous and toxic.
“Our new electrolytic battery technology uses the non-toxic zinc and manganese and incombustible aqueous electrolyte to produce a battery with a high energy density. The high energy safe battery opens up markets where the battery weight/size and safety are essential factors, such as automotive and aerial vehicles, and domestic and commercial dwellings.
“In addition, the battery uses basic materials and simple manufacturing processes so will be much cheaper to produce and easier to recycle than existing batteries of comparable energy density.”
The cost of this new electrolytic Zn–Mn battery is estimated at < US$ 10 per kWh. This is significantly less than that for current Li-ion batteries of US$ 300 per kWh, Ni–Fe batteries US$ 72 per kWh, and lead–acid batteries US$ 48 per kWh.
Chinese battery manufacturer Zhuoyue Power New Energy Ltd, whose current batteries are lead-based, has committed $1 million to develop the new technology and hopes to have a product available within 12 months.
This project focuses on a combination of the new electrolytic battery technology and the company’s battery assembling technology.
This project is an example of how the University of Adelaide is addressing its industry engagement priorities in energy, mining and resources, and is tackling the grand challenge of sustainable energy for the future benefit of the community. | {
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The AKAs at Spelman are letting the world know that Black Lives Matter.
The “Sweet” Mu Pi Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. took home the gold at the 2016 SpelHouse Homecoming Step Show and did it all while paying homage to the Black lives lost due to police brutality.
As the Mu Pi Chapter performed on the stage, it was apparent that their presentation was much more than a step show, it was a message.
Share this on Facebook if you believe these Spelman AKAs deserve to go VIRAL! | {
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Disable Leaderboard: When checked, students will not be able to submit their scores for this question set. | {
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Geektown Radio returns once again to the regular show with all the tv & film news you could want, plus the latest UK TV air date info, and an exclusive interview with 'Scandal' cinematographer & director Oliver Bokelberg!
Oliver is a German-born and LA-based a cinematographer & director who has worked across a wide range of tv and movies including 'No Ordinary Family', 'My Own Worst Enemy', 'The Bounty Hunter', and 'The Station Agent'. However, his main job for the past 7 years has been as director of photography on the hugely popular Shondaland series 'Scandal', which has just returned to Sky Living for it’s 7th and final season, Wednesday nights at 10pm.
We chat to Oliver about creating the look of the show, making the move from being Scandal's cinematographer to directing episodes, and what it’s like working on a such a popular series for so long. We also discuss getting into the industry and some of his other work.
Also On This Week's Show:
A newly married Ross returned as co-host, so we chat about MCM Birmingham Comic Con, and the EA Star Wars Battlefront II debacle, plus the tv shows and films we've been watching including 'Justice League' , 'The Punisher' , 'Life In Pieces' and 'Peaky Blinders' .
debacle, plus the tv shows and films we've been watching including , , and . We take a look at all the latest tv & film news, including a round up of the headlines from the past week, the new ‘Star Wars’ trilogy and live action TV series, possible 'Suits' cast changes, and the new ‘Hitman’ TV show.
trilogy and live action TV series, possible cast changes, and the new TV show. We give you our recommendations for upcoming TV in the next 7 days.
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/geektown.
See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. | {
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The collegium system is even more unconstitutional than the NJAC. The government, which lost the NJAC battle, must now take the war to challenge the collegium system. The Supreme Court has delivered a self-serving verdict
After the Supreme Court verdict of 16 October that declared the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) as unconstitutional, we have virtually gone back to the collegium system. The five-judge bench of the apex court has unfairly refused to allow the government to appeal against its flawed judgment. The reality is that judges have decided to award themselves the right to decide who their brethren should be, with no external checks.
It is also likely that the bench headed by Justice JS Khehar gave this harsh judgment in the context of the current political situation where the BJP and Congress are not on talking terms. So passing a new NJAC law, even with changes, may be extremely difficult in the Rajya Sabha.
So, what can the NDA government do? The first option to be explored is for the BJP to work out a direct deal with Congress on the broad contours of a new legislation. There may be some political give and take in this, but it must be tried. However, the Congress may see more advantage in embarrassing the BJP than doing something that is right in the context of the Supreme Court’s intransigence on judicial appointments. The Congress has already made the ridiculous comment that “the judgment implicitly reflects the lack of confidence in this government” as though it is the judiciary’s job to express confidence (or the lack of it) in favour of (or against) the government when the latter is directly accountable to the people.
The obvious answer is to file a new case challenging the constitutional validity of the collegium system.
The NJAC has been struck down, but this need not be construed as a vote of confidence in the collegium system or its constitutional validity. In fact, during hearings on the NJAC the bench itself observed that its job was not to compare the NJAC with the collegium, but to confirm or reject the constitutional validity of the NJAC.
In other words, the constitutional validity of the collegium system has not been decided yet. This is the weak point in the judgment which the government must attack.
Here is what the constitution says about how judges should be appointed.
Article 124 (2)” “Every Judge of the Supreme Court shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal after consultation with such of the judges of the Supreme Court and of the high courts in the states as the President may deem necessary for the purpose and shall hold office until he attains the age of 65 years:
“Provided that in the case of appointment of a judge other than the chief Justice, the Chief Justice of India shall always be consulted.” (Italics mine)”.
So, if the NJAC is unconstitutional, so is the collegium. In fact, even more so. There is no place for a collegium in the constitutional scheme of things. The constitution clearly places the onus on the government (ie, the President) to consult the CJI or other judges “as the President may deem necessary.”
The government must demand a return to this original position to challenge the collegium system. The collegium is a naked attempt by the court to arrogate to itself the power to appoint judges by excluding the executive, and is thus even less constitutionally valid than the NJAC which at least tries to strike a balance between executive and judiciary and has been legislated by both houses of parliament and 20 state legislatures.
The Supreme Court may refuse to entertain the government’s appeal, but it is still the right approach as any refusal to re-examine the collegium system would show up the court as being interested only in its vested interests. The Supreme Court has tried to sidestep this by starting hearings on improving the collegium system, but the government should not fall into the trap. It has to seek another bench to challenge the validity of the collegium.
If the challenge is accepted, there can be a stay on further judicial appointments too, or a temporary truce while the case is being heard – as was the case during the NJAC hearings.
There are, of course, more sly tactics the government can adopt if the court tries to brush aside all concerns about its NJAC judgment. The government could delay and probe decisions of the collegium, raise queries, put judges under the scanner and send reports on judges not found fit. It can also scrutinise the relationships between collegium members and proposed appointees. Justice Kurian Joseph, for example, has alleged that previous collegium members favoured kin over deserving people. And Justice J Chelameswar pointed out how the collegium made a big boo-boo by recommending the name of PD Dinakaran for elevation to the Supreme Court when he had allegedly indulged in questionable land dealings.
The government may have lost the battle, but the war is still waiting to be waged. | {
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is that cute girl checking me out? nope. she just looks at me like i'm satan because of my clothes
1,194 shares | {
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Two of the most-buzzed-about parts of Laura Bush’s new memoir Spoken From The Heart have to do with her speaking about the 1963 car crash where she killed a classmate (something she’s never opened up about publicly before) and a decently startling revelation that during a trip to Germany, when she and President GWB fell ill, they believed they might have been poisoned. Oh, and then there’s the part where she plays Ultimate Marriage Defender to that husband of hers.
“In 2004 the social question that animated the campaign was gay marriage,” she writes. “Before the election season had unfolded, I had talked to George about not making gay marriage a significant issue. We have, I reminded him, a number of close friends who are gay or whose children are gay. But at that moment I could never have imagined what path this issue would take and where it would lead.”
That’s clearly not enough to gauge whether she acted to stop Bush from pursuing the constitutional amendment, or even whether she thought that was her responsibility. We hope she felt it was, the same way we hope Michelle Obama finds reason to confront her husband about his own LGBT issues. | {
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NYCC was kind to Generations fans as we got many confirmations on recent rumors regarding the highly-anticipated Decepticons, including our first looks at Shockwave, Skytread, and Trypticon’s tank buddy, Brunt. Check out the pics and some designer notes from John Warden after the jump!
UPDATE: In a surprising twist, these official images give us our first look at Generations Siege Red Alert! Red is shown decked out in the weapons made from Deluxe Weaponizer Brunt’s weapon and armor components
Battlemasters:
Blowpipe
Aimless
Micromasters:
Airstrike Patrol
Soundwave Spy Patrol (Laserbeak and Ravage)
Deluxe:
Skytread (two alt modes)
(two alt modes) Refraktor (three combine into camera)
(three combine into camera) Brunt (weaponizer)
Voyager:
Megatron
Soundwave
Starscream (tetrajet)
Leader:
Shockwave
Warden’s designer notes: | {
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From Flat Earthers to #Q Anon anons to Reptilian obsessives, they all seem to have it out for Satanists. Journalist Mike Rothschild (no relation to the bankers as it turns out) joins us as, by popular request, we once again plumb the darkest depths of the Internet for the weirdest Satanic conspiracy theories we can find. Out of the Satan-centric right-wing conspiracy muck, we hope to make sense out of a mad, mad, mad, mad world.
Praise, condemnation, questions, and other shapes the Earth could possibly be can be sent to [email protected].
SHOW LINKS
GET IN TOUCH WITH BLACK MASS APPEAL
SATANIC BAY AREA | {
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The Dallas Mavericks don't believe that signing Chandler Parsons to a huge offer sheet will cost them a chance to keep Vince Carter.
A source said the Mavs are still optimistic about re-signing their sixth man. However, the three-year deal worth more than $45 million for Parsons would use the Mavs' remaining cap space if the Houston Rockets don't exercise their right to match the offer to the restricted free agent small forward.
The Mavs are hopeful Carter will agree to take the cap room exception of $2.73 million, the source said.
That's not the kind of offer the 37-year-old sixth man hoped to get after being a Mavs bargain the last three seasons, when he averaged a little more than $3 million per year. But Carter has made it clear that he'd prefer to continue playing in Dallas, and the Mavs have successfully convinced Dirk Nowitzki and Devin Harris to agree to re-sign on team-friendly terms.
The Mavs didn't enter free agency planning to pay $15 million per year to a small forward who wasn't a perennial All-Star. They had anticipated that their Plan B targets would top out in the $12 million range, but they went big in calling the Rockets' bluff on restricted free agent Parsons.
It's not clear what kind of market there is for Carter. The Miami Heat and Portland Trail Blazers are among the teams to express interest in him, but they've committed their $5.3 midlevel exceptions to other players. The Toronto Raptors and Oklahoma City Thunder have also been connected to Carter.
For the Mavs to give Carter a raise, they'd have to create cap space with a salary-dumping trade. For instance, if the Mavs could convince a team to take Raymond Felton off their hands, that would create a $3.79 million slot for Carter. In that case, it would make sense for the Mavs to attempt to sign point guard Mo Williams with the cap room exception.
At this point, however, Felton remains in the Mavs' plans. As does Carter, if the price is right for him. | {
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'Game was poised in our favour' - Amla
Bangladesh may receive most of the plaudits for their plucky performance for most of the three days of the drawn first Test but Hashim Amla believes that South Africa were in pole position when the weather intervened | {
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Court reporters play a vital role in the judicial process. But who court reporters really are, what do they do, and what services do they offer? Let us find out more about these here.
The court reporting industry is one of those industries in the world that have fallen into a norm over time. For some professionals in the legal world, hiring court reporters for legal matters seems to become drudgery and having them inside the court is a mere nuisance. This is partly because of the availability of new technological advances that are believed to be more effective and efficient.
The work of a court reporter is time-consuming and the services they offer are more expensive than simply using digital recording devices. The fact, however, is that these technological innovations (e.g. digital audio and video recording devices) can’t still replace the human court reporters no matter how sophisticated and advanced they are.
But who court reporters are, what do they do, and what services do they offer? Let us find out more about these here.
Who are court reporters?
A court reporter is someone who is sitting quietly in one corner of the courtroom who records everything that is being vocally spoken by the witnesses during court hearings. Other than court hearings, they also record everything that the speakers say during official events like a deposition or corporate meetings. They are regarded as guardians of records because of their impartiality.
Court reporters play a vital role in the judicial process. They are highly trained individuals who have completed years of formal education and extensive training. They also need to pass both local and state-regulated certifications before they can start their court reporting career.
They have a vast knowledge of vocabulary, medical terms, and legal jargon. Aside from completing a two-year course in court reporting, the court reporters in Atlanta GA are also required to have a typing speed of around 200 words per minute and a 97.5% overall accuracy rate. In order to type fast, they use a specialized typing machine called a stenography machine. This machine, also known as a steno-machine keyboard, is a compact laptop-like device that looks like a typical typewriter but with fewer keys. Instead of typing letter per letter, court reporters type syllable by syllable or in phonetic sounds. This allows them to catch up with what the speaker says. They are also trained to take accurate record despite all the nuisances and background noise inside the courtroom. This is something that recording devices cannot do.
What do court reporters do?
Court reporters in Georgia are trained to capture and convert spoken words into recorded information that can be read, searched, and archived. They also prepare the official transcript of proceedings. This record plays an important role in safeguarding the legal process. It also serves as the basis of the attorneys in preparing for trial or when making an appeal.
Aside from recording the words spoken during a legal proceeding, court reporters can also read back some important information in front of the court as needed. If the speaker is talking too fast, in a very low voice, or with a vague accent, the court reporter is allowed to interrupt and ask for clarifications before the speaker continues giving his testimony.
When there is also a loud background noise coming in that can affect the audibility of the speaker like for instance when an ambulance, police mobile, or fire truck with its siren on passes by, the court reporter has the right to ask the court to momentarily stop the testimony giving until the loud noise subsides.
What services do court reporters offer?
Court reporting services vary as per the court reporting firm. Aside from conventional court reporting services like taking records during deposition or legal process and preparing an official transcript of record afterward which is made available a couple of days after the proceeding, court reporters also offer expedited services. This service is much similar to the conventional court reporting service but with shorter turnaround time. For litigants or attorneys who need the transcript as early as right after the proceeding, they can opt for expedited services.
Apart from providing services inside the courtroom, court reporters also provide real-time voice-to-text translation and broadcast captioning services. These specialized services are tailored towards the needs of people who are deaf or have difficulties in hearing well. With the use of the latest technology, court reporters can also provide real-time court reporting services that provide the audience with live access to what the speakers say during a deposition or court trial.
Despite being readily available nowadays, technology is still not enough to replace human court reporters. However, integrating the latest technology in court reporting can further improve the services offered by court reporters.
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Elvis Presley « The King ». Intime Arrangeur vocal, Auteur-compositeur, Choeur. Mug Louez-le avec les instruments à cordes Texte imprimé des 2 côtés: Il n’est pas possible d’écouter la musique ici. Mon âme cherche ta présence. Plus D’Information Fiche technique Avis. Souviens-toi de ton créateur pendant les jours de ta jeunesse – Ecc
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David Guetta – ft Anne-Marie – Don’ Eminem – Andrs Suite des tops vidéos Abonnements d’écoute de musique en streaming Web et mobile, packs de téléchargement MP3 – paiement Paypal ou carte bancaire. | {
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The advent of new blockchain platforms is based on offerings that aim to fulfill new kinds of business needs or to overcome shortcomings of existing blockchains by offering better propositions, or a combination of both.
QTUM, operated by the Singapore-based QTUM Foundation, was launched with an aim to address two major problems faced by Bitcoin and Ethereum networks. They include issues of longer payment processing time and power-intensive mining methods of Bitcoin, and problems of scalability, security and network congestion faced by Ethereum. QTUM attempts to present itself as an improvement over Ethereum, another popular smart contract-based blockchain network.
QTUM’s Road So Far – Local, Now Going Global
Apart from a higher valuation of the associated cryptocurrency tokens, a key parameter for the success of blockchain-based networks is their increasing user base. Blockchains remain agile and functioning based on the active contributions from its community members. It involves the users actively conducting transactions on the network, like using dApps or performing transactions, or contributing through their network level activities of mining, transaction authentication, and node operations.
QTUM appears to have generated good traction, and its website claims that the number of global nodes contributing to its network has shot up to 7,241, the third highest behind Ethereum (20,000) and Bitcoin (13,000). However, more than 83% of QTUM nodes are concentrated in the Asian countries, with 65% operating from China alone. Outside Asia, global nodes are primarily in the U.S. with smaller numbers in Germany, Canada and Australia. Still, the total non-Asian global node locations constitute a little over 10 percent. It gives enough room and new unexplored markets for QTUM to expand in the new geographies.
Beyond such infrastructure development, QTUM’s business initiatives have been largely concentrated in the Asian region. For instance, QTUM is working with Qihoo 360, Chinese cybersecurity firm, to build a solution based on the blockchain. Hong Kong-based Baofeng, which serves video content to over 200 million users, has partnered QTUM to develop a decentralized content delivery network. Gaming company Bingo has announced to use QTUM blockchain to improve on the user experience, data accessibility, and price transparency. Messaging service BeeChat that has two million users, and social media network Mithril are using QTUM blockchain for their operations.
The region of origin for a particular initiative usually sees a higher level of interest. Additionally, the approach to newer markets can be supplemented by new updates and features, which makes the venture more attractive to existing as well as new participants. QTUM is attempting to hit on these notes with many new updates recently released and few major initiatives announced for the near future. The QTUM team is also stressing on the need for marketing and user-engagement initiatives, something which has been overlooked so far and may help in bringing more global users onboard.
Founder Patrick Dai said “We’ve been focusing on building the very best technology this year. But we realize we have not put enough effort into marketing and community management recently. We are working on this and will push QTUM once again to massive adoption.”
Technical Enhancements for Global Reach
QTUM evolved with the claims of being a new-age blockchain solution that combines the salient features of the two popular cryptocurrencies – it marries Ethereum’s smart contract functionality with Bitcoin’s near foolproof security aspects. It uses Proof of Stake (POS) consensus algorithm which, unlike the power-hungry Bitcoin’s Proof of Work (POW) algorithm, remains low on power consumption and does not need advanced hardware for mining needs.
Several changes and enhancements are announced by the QTUM network aimed at increasing the global reach and adoption of the cryptocurrency network.
The most prominent update is the development of QTUM’s own dedicated X86 virtual machine (VM), which essentially works as a smart contract supporting the operating system. The QTUM team claims that X86 VM offers major advantages over its predecessor, the standard Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). For instance, the X86 VM supports coding in multiple languages like C, C++, Python and Rust, a standard coding library, an optimized low-cost model towards network resource usage, new feature-rich APIs for easy plug and play, and support for alternative data storage. All such updates are aimed at bringing in more efficiency, flexibility, security and faster execution of the various dApps, allowing ease of coding to the developers in the language of their choice. The system also includes an incentive that will reward participants for developing lighter dApps which consume less network resources.
QTUM co-founder Jordan Earls, in an interview with BitCoin Magazine, claims that the new age QTUM will work as a complete “operating system.” It will help save storage space, network resources, and processing power, allowing the QTUM network to achieve higher scalability, speed and network decongestion.
Additionally, QTUM has announced the launch of three major projects aimed at enhancing the overall QTUM ecosystem. They include Qx – a decentralized trading dApp having dedicated transaction protocol to facilitate digital assets trading on QTUM; QDex – a QTUM blockchain-based decentralized token exchange using which users can perform QRC token transactions through a standard interface; and Qrypto – a browser-integrated wallet management plug-in that will work similar to Metamask and allow for the necessary interface between blockchain and dApps.
By attempting to make dApp development much easier and the network more scalable, QTUM is aiming to increase user engagement across all genres at a global level.
The Bottom Line
The origin of QTUM was based on addressing the challenges faced by Bitcoin and Ethereum, and the recent updates are claimed to further enhance the efficiency and mass adoption of the network. With the founding team also focusing on marketing and engagement initiatives, it will be interesting to see how QTUM’s attempts bear results as it goes global and aims for mass user engagement. | {
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All the latest hype in anti-aging lately has been the research on senolytics. I learned about the astounding drug FOXO4-DRI after talking to Tristan from Ascendence Biomedical.
This led me to De Keizer's research in targeting "senescent cells", the findings so far of the efficacy of a peptide they have created called FOXO-DRI is astounding. It may be the most promising life extension chemical on the horizon right now, that can be sourced and bought if you had the right contacts. | {
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Check out our new site Makeup Addiction
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Brace yourselves International Pi Day posts are coming | {
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Eigens für diesen Anlass war ein provisorischer neuer Plenarsaal geschaffen worden. Während einer Sondersitzung des Bundestags hat Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer am Mittwoch ihren Amtseid als Bundesverteidigungsministerin abgelegt. Da der Plenarsaal im Reichstagsgebäude während der parlamentarischen Sommerpause renoviert wird, wurde das Atrium im benachbarten Paul-Löbe-Haus dafür hergerichtet. In dem Gebäude finden ansonsten unter anderem Ausschusssitzungen statt.
Kramp-Karrenbauer will mehr Geld für Verteidigung
In ihrer Antrittsrede forderte die CDU-Vorsitzende, mehr Geld für Verteidigung auszugeben. „An dem Ziel der Bundesregierung, zwei Prozent anzustreben, halte ich fest“, sagte Kramp-Karrenbauer in Bezug auf eine mögliche Erhöhung der Rüstungsausgaben gemäß einer entsprechenden NATO-Vereinbarung. Auf dem Weg dorthin müsse und wolle sie bis zum Jahr 2024 ein Verteidigungsbudget in Höhe von 1,5 Prozent des Bruttoinlandsprodukts erreichen. Eine Forderung, die im Gegensatz zur mittelfristigen Finanzplanung von Vizekanzler Olaf Scholz steht.
Im Koalitionsvertrag, auf den Kramp-Karrenbauer mehrfach in ihrer Rede verwies, ist zwar die Rede davon, dass Deutschland seine Mittel für Sicherheitspolitik angemessen erhöhen wolle. Jedoch ist dort auch die Koppelung von Verteidigungsausgaben und Mitteln für die Entwicklungszusammenarbeit geregelt. Das bedeutet im Klartext: Werden die Verteidigungsausgaben erhöht, sollen auch die Mittel für Krisenprävention, humanitäre Hilfe und Entwicklungszusammenarbeit im gleichen Maße steigen. Diese Ausgaben sanken zuletzt jedoch unter die 0,7-Prozent-Marke. Eine Mindestvereinbarung, die Deutschland schon vor vielen Jahren gemeinsam mit internationalen Partnerländern getroffen hatte.
Mützenich: Zwei-Prozent-Ziel wie ein Tanz ums Goldene Kalb
Entsprechend deutlich reagierte der SPD-Fraktionsvorsitzende Rolf Mützenich auf Kramp-Karrenbauers Vorstoß, deutlich mehr Geld für Verteidigung auszugeben. Die vom Kabinett für das kommende Jahr beschlossenen Ausgaben für die Bundeswehr in Höhe von 45 Milliarden Euro seien eine Menge Geld. „Deswegen wäre es mein bescheidener Ratschlag an Sie gewesen, am Wochenende nicht in Interviews mehr Verteidigungsmittel zu fordern, sondern sich erst einmal die Zeit zu nehmen, in Ihrem Ressort zu schauen, was die Schwachstellen sind und diese abzustellen“, sagte Mützenich, der seit vielen Jahren mit diesem Themengebiet fachlich vertraut ist.
Der Bezug auf ein „angebliches Zwei-Prozent-Ziel“ erinnere ihn zunehmend an einen Tanz ums Goldene Kalb, fuhr Mützenich fort. Er forderte stattdessen: „Wir sollten über Fähigkeiten reden, die wir in die NATO einbringen können und sollten diese Fähigkeiten stärken.“ Der SPD-Fraktionsvorsitzende erinnerte Kramp-Karrenbauer zudem an einen einstimmigen Kabinettsbeschluss, wonach der Auslandseinsatz der Bundeswehr im Nordirak zum 31. Oktober beendet wird.
„Ein Rassist im Weißen Haus“
Mützenich stellte infrage, inwiefern es richtig sei, „einen militärischen Fußabdruck“ in einer Region zu hinterlassen, in der aktuell neue Kriege drohten. Er machte zudem deutlich: „Allein bündnispolitische Erwägungen genügen nicht, seitdem ein Rassist im Weißen Haus sitzt, der sich durch Unberechenbarkeit und Egoismus auszeichnet." Die aktuelle „politische Tonlage", die unter der Trump-Administration aus dem Weißen Haus komme, sei nicht mehr angemessen gegenüber den europäischen Partnern.
Ursula von der Leyen, die designierte EU-Kommissionspräsidentin, habe ihrer Nachfolgerin viel Arbeit hinterlassen. „Die Öffentlichkeit und wir werden Sie daran messen, ob die Berateraffäre aufgeklärt werden kann, ohne Rücksicht auf derzeit handelnde Personen“, sagte Mützenich. Auch der verteidigungspolitische Sprecher der SPD-Fraktion Fritz Felgentreu kritisierte: „Seit 2005 war ein Unionsminister nach dem anderen für Abbau und Fähigkeitsverlust der Bundeswehr verantwortlich.“ | {
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College of the Ozarks was ranked No. 1 on a national publication's list of colleges "most hostile" to LGBT students.
The private Christian campus in Point Lookout was the only Missouri institution included on the Top 20 list, part of the Princeton Review's 2018 edition of the Best 382 Colleges. It is a reference guide for prospective college students.
"We are a Christian institution and we are very clear about that," said Valorie Coleman, public relations director for the 1,500-student college. "That is who we are. We are a religious institution that adheres to a Christian world view."
Coleman said the college was aware of the ranking and while it would not have chosen the adjective "hostile," its lack of tolerance for sexual immorality is well-documented in the policies on its website.
"We are pretty transparent about it," she said. "We are very open with anyone seeking admission here."
The college's lifestyle and sexuality policy, which is part of the handbook, states that "human sexuality is a gift from God" and that "sex assigned at birth is a person's God-given, objective gender, whether or not it differs from their internal sense of 'gender identity.'"
According to the policy, students and employees face disciplinary action — including dismissal — for "gender expression inconsistent with sex assigned at birth," gender transition, sexual relations with a person of the same sex or a person other than his or her spouse, possession of pornographic materials, and "touching, caressing and other physical conduct of a sexual nature" with a person of the same gender.
The college dubbed "Hard Work U" allows students to work on campus while enrolled so they graduate without any debt.
Coleman encouraged prospective students to visit campus and read the policies to see if the college is the "right fit" before applying.
In the 2018 publication from the Princeton Review, the College of the Ozarks was also included among the best regional colleges in the Midwest. The college made a string of Top 10 lists including most conservative, most religious, and most intolerant of drugs and alcohol.
The college was ranked No. 2 on the list of "Stone-Cold Sober Schools."
According to the publication, the rankings were based on reviewing college data and survey results from 137,000 students.
Responses to the survey question "Students treat all persons equally, regardless of their sexual orientation and gender identity" served as the basis for the Top 20 colleges most and least hostile to LGBT students.
On the most hostile list, the only other regional institution included was The University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, which was No. 15.
The Top 10 most hostile to LGBT students included:
10. University of Alabama-Tuscaloosa
9. Hillsdale College (Michigan)
8. Hampden-Sydney College (Virginia)
7. Baylor University (Texas)
6. Grove City College (Pennsylvania)
5. University of Tennessee-Knoxville
4. Brigham Young (Utah)
3. Gordon College (Massachusetts)
2. Auburn University (Alabama)
1. College of the Ozarks
No colleges from Missouri or Arkansas appeared on the list of Top 20 colleges that are most friendly to LGBT students. Here is the Top 10 list of least hostile colleges:
10. Grinnell College (Iowa)
9. Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering (Massachusetts)
8. Vassar College (New York)
7. Agnes Scott College (Georgia)
6. Sarah Lawrence College (New York)
5. Mount Holyoke College (Massachusetts)
4. Warren Wilson College (North Carolina)
3. Emerson College (Boston)
2. College of the Atlantic (Maine)
1. Bryn Mawr College (Pennsylvania)
Other rankings
College of the Ozarks announced Friday that it also received top honors by Forbes and Money Magazine.
Forbes has ranked College of the Ozarks as No. 1 of the Top 25 Low-Debt Private Colleges 2017.
College of the Ozarks is ranked within the 650 Top Colleges in the Nation, coming in at No. 235.
Money Magazine ranked College of the Ozarks as the No. 1 College in Missouri on their list, The Best Colleges in Every State. | {
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ガーネットの覚醒奥義、閃技が登場！
「雷雲セレナーデ」
召喚魔法or吟遊詩人アビリティを2回使用する度に追撃[雷雲アンコール](敵単体に6回連続の雷&無属性召喚魔法攻撃+一定時間、雷属性耐性レベルを1段階ダウン)
「美姫の決意」
ガーネットの覚醒奥義は、敵単体に15回連続の強力な雷&無属性召喚魔法攻撃を行い、一定時間、雷属性耐性レベルを2段階ダウンし、一定時間、自身に雷属性をまとい、一定時間、詠唱覚醒モードを付与した上で、限界突破レベル1アップします！詠唱覚醒モードは、召喚魔法or吟遊詩人アビリティ使用回数無限+使用する召喚魔法or吟遊詩人アビリティの待機時間がその精錬度に応じて短縮される+の効果が発動します！敵の雷属性耐性レベルを必殺技本体と追撃どちらでも可能なことに加えて、自身もダメージの高い召喚魔法攻撃を雷属性まといでより強化することができる便利な必殺技と言えそうです！★6閃技は、必殺技ゲージ消費&待機時間なしで自身の必殺技ゲージを2溜める効果を発動します！必殺技を使用したいシーンなどで、必殺技ゲージを溜める時間を省略できるため、使い方によって高い有用性を発揮する閃技ですね！ | {
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Icicle's End is a seasonal event.
from 18 December 2013 to 8 January 2014
from 18 December 2014 to 8 January 2015
from 17 December 2015 to 7 January 2016
from 13 December 2016 to 4 January 2017
from 18 December 2017 to 9 January 2018
Find the starting point at the Central Square in Eldevin City. There is a portal that takes you to Glacial Plains, a place of ever-lasting winter, where you can complete quests for Old Claus, Jonesy, and Frostfang, and defeat unique creatures. The creatures often drop Candy Canes which could be exchanged with Jonesy for various Festive items.
Contents show]
Quests Edit
from game v1.25
from game v1.41
Glacial Plains Edit
Coming through the portal to Glacial Plains (aka Calderheim), you will be close to the Lonely Cabin. Old Claus can be seen standing in front of the Lonely Cabin, Jonesy can be found inside the cabin.
Frostfang is a small ice dragon living in the Cave of Icicles. The Cave entrance can be found in the Level 10 area of the Glacial Plains.
Creatures Edit
In Festive Shoals:
Items Edit
Components Edit
All components can be bought from Jonesy for 2 Candy Canes each with the exception of the Festive Sugar at one Candy Cane each. The components are used in the creation of Festive food and drinks.
Drinks Edit
Created at an alchemy worktable (no skill level requirement) using only Festive components. The items bind on pickup.
Food Edit
Created in a kitchen (no skill level requirement) using only Festive components. The items bind on pickup. Each food item replenishes 3000 health and mana over 15 seconds when eaten.
Gallery Edit
Inside the Lonely Winter Cabin.
Inside the Cave of Icicles. | {
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[discord.gg]
[www.discord.gg]
Hello!After months of hard work, we are very happy to announce that The Riftbreaker: Prologue is now available to download for free to enjoy for everyone!https://store.steampowered.com/app/1293860/The_Riftbreaker_PrologueAs the name implies The Riftbreaker: Prologue is the story prequel to our latest project - The Riftbreaker. It allows you to experience the events taking place before the story campaign of the main game. Explore an entirely new world. Gather resources. Build up a base. Defend yourself from thousands of alien creatures. Or just take the scenic route and do whatever you want - the choice is yours.To celebrate this event we're also running an extra special EXOR Studios Sale with the lowest prices that we've ever done!We'd like to use this opportunity to tell you even more about The Riftbreaker and how the game is shaping up. Check out the Gameplay Trailer:We originally started EXOR Studios as a modding group in 2003. Now, 17 years later, we are still working as a small group of individuals with everyone participating in our games' grand vision and design. Fan feedback has always been crucial to how we make our games. We've learned to open up our development process more and more as early as possible. During the next two weeks, we will be running multiple live streams of the Riftbreaker, straight from our latest development build. On August 7th we will be hosting a full day Developer AMA on our Discordwith multiple members of the development team. If you'd like to ask us anything, whether it's about The Riftbreaker, X-Morph: Defense, Zombie Driver, or even D.I.P.R.I.P. - we'll be waiting there for you!Thank you for all your continuing support! | {
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Yesterday, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam made statements, both video and written, that seemed to confirm he was one of the people in the racist photographs from 1984:
My fellow Virginians, earlier today I released a statement apologizing for behavior in my past that falls far short of the standard you set for me when you elected me to be your governor. I believe you deserve to hear directly from me. pic.twitter.com/1rSw1oxfrX — Ralph Northam (@GovernorVA) February 2, 2019
And this morning, the NY Times’ Jonathan Martin has this update:
NEWS: Northam is calling Va Dems and telling them that’s *not* him in the yearbook photo and he will make a statement this afternoon to say the same. In other words, he is NOT quitting as of right now. Story TK — Jonathan Martin (@jmartNYT) February 2, 2019
The governor has also been calling his former med school classmates to jog their memories. He does NOT think he is the man in Klan hood or blackface and doesn’t want to resign before trying to determine who is in that photo. — Jonathan Martin (@jmartNYT) February 2, 2019
STORY: Northam, hunkered down w advisers, is refusing to quit, making case he does not think it was him in the photo. And he's desperate to prove it, even suggesting he'll use facial recognition software. But some Va Dems say it's too late, he must go >https://t.co/3G8O5zMyy7 — Jonathan Martin (@jmartNYT) February 2, 2019
Also…
JMart is correct. I can confirm this. Gov. Northam woke up this morning and started telling people he has no memory of the blackface-KKK photo and questions whether he was in either 'garb'. https://t.co/s2o7w2pdIF — Larry Sabato (@LarrySabato) February 2, 2019
We made the decision to let Governor Northam do the correct thing and resign this morning – we have gotten word he will not do so this morning. — Virginia Democrats (@vademocrats) February 2, 2019
And now there’s confusion:
wait but you can’t pull this after you apologized last night essentially admitting it was you — Paul Ryan's Mustache (@PaulRyansStache) February 2, 2019
So he lied in his first statement? In it he said: "I am deeply sorry for the decision I made to appear as I did in this photo" ? — Persnickety (@Dawnsfire) February 2, 2019
??? He already said he was in the photo?? https://t.co/EI8Fa3MtFm — Peter J. Hasson (@peterjhasson) February 2, 2019
Except last night he said it was him and that, "I accept responsibility for my past actions and I am ready to do the hard work of regaining your trust." Things change, I guess. https://t.co/NN5twtxclz — Drew McCoy (@_Drew_McCoy_) February 2, 2019
This would make his apology yesterday when he literally took responsibility for being in the photo all the more awkward. Not to mention that his nickname on another photo is "coonman" and clearly the photo was put in his section for a reason. https://t.co/MGcOjrmDsh — Josh Jordan (@NumbersMuncher) February 2, 2019
WUT. He already said… Ah, forget it. NOTHING MATTERS. https://t.co/J7sSPUSSXl — Pradheep J. Shanker, M.D., M.S. (@Neoavatara) February 2, 2019
Ralph to retract his apology and stand firm as a racist eugenicist maniac. https://t.co/64dbkO6SQS — Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) February 2, 2019
What's awesome is last night Northam admitted it was him… Dude is really gonna try to survive this! Oh well, he's a Dem, media might be able to carry him. https://t.co/pGoh3k87uD — Comfortably Smug (@ComfortablySmug) February 2, 2019
Northam will make a statement at 2:30 p.m. EST this afternoon. Stay tuned! | {
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Australia this weekend rejected the most Left-wing Labor Party in a generation, led by the low-energy Bill Shorten, and re-elected the Liberal-National coalition, led by the good friend of Britain, Scott Morrison.
This is a shock to the pollster and pundit class – every poll for years, even the exit polls on election night, pointed to a Labor victory. The Australian people had a different idea. The Shy Liberal Voter came out in droves.
There was simply no mood for change. “In 2007, when Labor took power, we felt a massive mood for change at Australia House in London [the largest voting booth in the world]. Turnout was down [this year], showing a lack of enthusiasm for a Shorten Labor government,” says Jason Groves, of Australian Liberals Abroad in the UK.
The result is reminiscent of Britain’s 2015 general election result, in which a disciplined campaign led by Aussie election whizzes Lynton Crosby and Mark Textor unexpectedly beat the front-runners.
It is a huge turnaround. Just six months ago the Liberal Party was on the path to defeat until they changed leader – an important lesson for the Conservative Party. | {
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source) *Available only while stocks last.
Video: Sleek MakeUp i-Divine Eyeshadow Palette in Arabian Nights
Sleek I-Divine Palette in Arabian Nights
Photo Above from sleekmakeup.com
12X1.1g/12x0.03fl. oz. | $11.99
No Flash | Sleek MakeUp i-Divine Eyeshadow Palette in Arabian Nights
With Flash | Sleek MakeUp i-Divine Eyeshadow Palette in Arabian Nights
Top Row Swatches of Arabian Nights | (Top) No Flash (Bottom) With Flash
Bottom Row Swatches of Arabian Nights | (Top) No Flash (Bottom) With Flash
Swatches: Sleek MakeUp i-Divine Eyeshadow Palette in Arabian Nights, No Flash
Swatches: Sleek MakeUp i-Divine Eyeshadow Palette in Arabian Nights, With Flash
Gold Souk (inner lid), Hocus Pocus (middle of lid), Simbad’s Seas (outer lid),
Black Magic (crease)
Gold Souk (inner lid), Hocus Pocus (middle of lid), Simbad’s Seas (outer lid),
Black Magic (crease)
Scheherazade’s Tale (inner lid), Valley of Diamonds (middle of lid), Genie (outer lid),
Stallion (outer lid and crease)
Scheherazade’s Tale (inner lid), Valley of Diamonds (middle of lid), Genie (outer lid),
Stallion (outer lid and crease)
FOTD with Sleek MakeUp i-Divine Eyeshadow Palette in Arabian Nights
It was "like at first sight" when I saw this limited edition Sleek palette at Luxola's website. The rich, jewel colors were just so beautiful to look at.I have been wanting to try the I-divine palettes because I've heard so many good things about them. I had a 30% discount code for Luxola.com so I grabbed Arabian Nights as my very first eyeshadow palette from the brand.With a great wide range of colors, this palette would surely be an everyday staple. You can create many looks from this - subtle smokeys to rich, striking eye combinations.Top row colors include:- light/medium beige champagne with shimmers, excellent color payoff with a creamy texture, applies smooth and creamy.- a sparkly yellow gold with shimmers, good color payoff, minimal fallout despite the shimmers, applies smooth.- frosted medium brown with warm undertone, good color payoff, smooth texture, applies smooth, blends well.medium soft mint green with gold shimmers, not as pigmented as other shades, abit difficult to blend and build up due to the drier texture.medium green-teal with silver shimmers, great color payoff, smooth and creamy texture. One of my favorites!- rich medium blue-purple with shimmers, great color payoff, smooth and creamy texture. My favorite shade out of the palette.Bottom row colors include:- medium bronze brown with frosty shimmers, very pigmented, great color payoff, texture is soft and smooth. This color is very beautiful and intense.- medium gray-blue with soft shimmers, good color payoff, a bit dry but not really difficult to work with.- medium burgundy with matte finish, a bit dry and chalky texture, good color payoff.- medium blue-gray, a shade darker than Black Magic with soft shimmers, good color payoff, pigmentation is a bit sheer and not as dark as I would have wanted, a bit dry but still blendable.- dark burgundy wine with a bit of gold shimmers, great color payoff, applied smooth and creamy, easy to blend.- deep black, semi-matte finish with a hint of shimmers, good color payoff, applied smooth, very creamy and very easy to blend.Arabian Nights conjure images of intense, brilliant hues of the Mediterranean - sultry gypsies and sexy pirates. I especially love the shimmery goodness of the top row colors- the deep green Hocus Pocus and metallic dark blue Simbad's Seas are my favorites. The bottom row shades, on the other hand, can easily be used for everyday, subtle looks. Sleek MakeUp i-Divine Eyeshadow Palette in Arabian Nights is a versatile palette featuring gorgeous jewel shades. Most colors are highly pigmented, with minimal fallout. Texture is generally smooth and creamy, with good blendability. At only $11.99, this is a MUST BUY for everyone.Get it the | {
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What’s with our overly-sensitive universities sheltering adults from ideas and opinions they may find offensive? And more importantly, what sort of effect will it have on their students, not only during their time at university but once they enter the real world.
Jordan Peterson once rightly said, “It’s hard to make people safe because life is seriously not safe. The way that you make people resilient is by exposing them to the things that they’re afraid of and that make them uncomfortable, voluntarily, but you use exposure.
“If you over coddle people, if you protect them from everything that’s sharp, you make them dull and stupid and narcissistic,” he added.
Dull, stupid, narcissistic. What three words could better describe an adult who needs sheltering from the “violence” of sarcastic speech.
WATCH:
.@GideonCRozner on free speech on university campuses: Several Australian universities ban sarcasm because it’s a 'form of violence'. MORE: https://t.co/ykweMevBOK #outsiders pic.twitter.com/nneP93icoT — Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) November 13, 2018
Related | {
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A computer science engineering team at the University of Nevada, Reno have created an indoor navigation system for the visually impaired. The technology utilizes a combination of human-computer interaction and the motion-planning research was used to build a low-cost accessible navigation system, called Navatar, which can run on a standard smartphone. The navigation system uses digital 2D architechtural maps that are already available for many buildings, and uses low-cost senors, that are available in most smartphones, to navigate users with visual impairments. Directions are provided using synthetic speech and users confirm their presence by verbal confirmation or by pressing a button on the phone. This system decreases the need to rely on guide dogs, which is deemed to be a significant achievement. | {
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TRIPOLI (Reuters) - At least 30 migrants are believed to be missing after their boat sank off the western Libyan city of Sabratha this week, a coastguard spokesman said on Thursday.
According to a survivor the boat was carrying almost 50 migrants, coastguard spokesman Ayoub Qassem said. The body of one child was recovered and 16 migrants were rescued, he added.
Previously, officials had said at least 10 migrants were thought to have died in the incident.
Libya’s western coast is a main departure point for migrants trying to reach Europe, though numbers have dropped since an Italian-led effort to disrupt smuggling networks and support Libya’s coast guard. | {
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The right-wing, oil-baron Koch brothers haven’t yet succeeded in taking over any of our nation’s major newspapers, so in the meantime they’re trying other tactics to influence news coverage of their activities. The Washington Post has a chilling report:
When environmental journalist David Sassoon began reporting about the billionaire Koch brothers’ interests in the Canadian oil industry last year, he sought information from their privately held conglomerate, Koch Industries. The brothers, who have gained prominence in recent years as supporters of and donors to conservative causes and candidates, weren’t playing. Despite Sassoon’s repeated requests, Koch Industries declined to respond to him or his news site, InsideClimate News.
But Sassoon, who also serves as publisher of the Pulitzer Prize-winning site, heard from the Kochs after his story was posted.
In a rebuttal posted on its Web site, KochFacts.com, the company asserted that Sassoon’s story “deceives readers” by suggesting that Koch Industries stood to benefit from construction of the Keystone XL pipeline — a denial Sassoon included in his story. KochFacts went on to dismiss Sassoon as a “professional eco-activist” and an “agenda-driven activist.”
It didn’t stop there. The company took out ads on Facebook and via Google featuring a photo of Sassoon with the headline, “David Sassoon’s Deceptions.” The ad’s copy read, “Activist/owner of InsideClimate News misleads readers and asserts outright falsehoods about Koch. Get the full facts on KochFacts.com.”
Such aggressive tactics have become part of the playbook for Koch Industries and its owners, Charles and David Koch. Faced with news articles they consider flawed or biased, the brothers and their lieutenants don’t just send strongly worded letters to the editor in protest. Instead, the company takes the offensive, with detailed responses that oscillate between correcting, shaming and slamming journalists who’ve written unflattering stories about the company or the Kochs’ myriad political and philanthropic activities. | {
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Patience is a virtue
While some Black Friday sale items are available only for a minute, most will stick around long enough for you to take a breath and more closely assess the item details, the price, and your needs. There's no reason to buy something just because it's on sale, and you may find reasons to shop around. You can always go in with a list of what you want, but that's pretty standard advice. We find that it's helpful to establish target prices, especially for our first-choice items. You can then target a better-quality discount for your second-choice things, and an even better percentage off for your third-choice stuff. That way, you're creating a value rubric where you'll get the most for your money regardless of what you choose.
Checkout choices
Black Friday sales used to be confined to the big players. Now, depending on your needs, smaller online retailers and direct-order companies also offer great discounts. You may even have your choice among the online giants, with Amazon, Best Buy, Target, and Walmart often matching one another. If you see a sale at one of these stores and want to buy that item from another, check around. You may have reason to favor one of these stores over the others, whether it be free fast shipping, an additional percentage off with a store card, or a store location convenient to you for store pickup.
Kitchen appliances and smart tech, but other stuff too
Small kitchen appliances, smart-home items like doorbell cams and smart speakers, and select small electronics such as Bluetooth headphones are almost certain to see their best prices of the year, but other product categories, such as bedding and small consumables, are likely to see great prices too—you'll just need to be more selective or let your favorite deals site (ahem, hello!) uncover these for you, as you'll have more mediocre sales out there to sift through to find the best prices on those items. Check your deals site of choice. Even if you consider yourself a shopping pro, an often overlooked Black Friday shopping tip is to check price-tracking or coupon apps like CamelCamelCamel, Keepa, and Honey for additional price context and opportunities to save.
What are your dealbreakers?
Deciding what features you can't do without is often an essential element of deal shopping around Black Friday. If you covet the always-on display of the Apple Watch Series 5, for instance, you'll need to settle for small discounts at best, but if you just want an Apple Watch and don't care about always-on displays or ECG functions, the Series 3 will be available at rock-bottom prices this holiday season.
Play your shipping cards right
You've finally added that long-sought-after stand mixer to your cart. Now you've got to decide how to ship it. The good news is that you can get some free stuff in the bargain. Opting for Amazon's no-rush shipping can result in account credits on media purchases, and Prime Now promos in the past have offered $5 credits that could apply on a single-order basis. Similarly, Target frequently offers store-pickup deals for those customers who are willing to travel to a nearby store location. Walmart offers additional store-pickup discounts for select items too. If you're shopping for Christmas, there's no particular hurry right now, so choosing a slightly less expeditious shipping method may pay dividends. If you do need expedited shipping, many major retailers are offering some form of it at no additional charge this year.
Happy shopping
Have fun with the deal holidays. Black Friday and Cyber Monday shouldn't feel like a life-or-death struggle—because they aren't one. The opportunities to save and the frenetic pace of the sales should energize you, not drain you. Enjoy the time with family and friends until you're ready to break out the virtual shopping bag again.
To make the most of Black Friday, check out our predictions, advice, and early deals. | {
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Vesti bune! Robert, ambasadorul nostru in Bucuresti, si Bogdan Socol, organizeaza o Intalnire PrestaShop pe data de 06 Aprilie 2016, la care fireste esti invitat(a)!
La aceasta prima intalnire ne vom cunoaste si vom discuta atat subiecte de interes general cat si subiecte care va intereseaza in mod direct.
Agenda:
Prezentare facilitati generale, mod de utilizare si avantaje PrestaShop
Prezentare facilitati generale, mod de utilizare si avantaje PrestaShop I ntroducere despre noua versiune PrestaShop 1.7
ntroducere despre noua versiune PrestaShop 1.7 Subiecte propuse de participanti
Participarea este libera, fara taxe dar intrucat locurile sunt limitate va rog sa confirmati participarea cat de curand.
Photo credit: Gaspar Serrano
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All information collected is subject to data processing and statistics. Your personal data may be communicated to service providers and partners. Under the current "Act on Data Processing, Data Files and Individual Liberties" you have the right to access, rectify and oppose to the processing of your personal data, by sending an email to the event organizer. | {
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BERLIN, May 17 (Reuters) - The planned Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany raises U.S. intelligence and military concerns since it would allow Moscow to place new listening and monitoring technology in the Baltic Sea, an U.S. official said on Thursday.
Sandra Oudkirk, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Diplomacy, told reporters in Berlin that Washington viewed the pipeline project as a bad choice, adding the U.S. was skeptical whether Russian transit guarantees for other countries such as Ukraine were enforceable.
A consortium of western companies and Russia’s Gazprom that is due to build the controversial subsea Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to Germany said on Tuesday it was starting preparatory work in the Greifswald bay off Germany’s Baltic coast. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal Writing by Michael Nienaber Editing by Madeline Chambers) | {
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Not Great Out-of-the-Box, Better After Mods
My curiosity got the better of me and I took the plunge on these when I saw them for at a very steep discount a little while back. I already own a M1060 (modded) and many, many other headphones so I definitely wasn't looking for an upgrade or top-of-the-line set, just something affordable that I could play around with.
Before I get into sound I will talk about build quality. These are built very solid and the wood cups look attractive and class up the headphone quite a bit. It should be noted that they look better in person. I'm not a huge fan of the headband design but it works. Better here than on its big brother the M1060 since the cups and drivers are smaller and, as a result, less floppy. And since the weight is less, the headband creates less of a hot spot too. The included cable is fine, if you don't mind the 90 degree connector. Okay onto the sound.
Straight out of the box the sound didn't impress me at all. The stock pads made it sound not only dark but made the midrange sound "honky" for lack of a better term. I dug around in my box of pads and found my Brainwavz hybrid oval pads. I slapped them on and gave them a listen. Better soundstage and brighter but the treble and upper mid timbre sounded off and the bass was bleeding into the mids.
I looked around my box of pads some more and found some ATH-M50 velour pads. They were the perfect size so I stuck them on. The M565 uses velcro to mount the pads so the dust filter on other pads kind of sticks just enough to hold it in place. More on that later. The M50 pads reduced the soundstage back down to stock pad levels but the treble/timbre didn't sound off anymore. Midrange wasn't harsh and honky like it was with the stock pads either. So the pads qualified as "good enough" since I didn't really feel like spending money on pads for this headphone since it would partially erode the good deal I got.
Others on a modding Head-fi forum tried several different pad options. Brainwavz angled velour was a combo that one person really liked. Another likes his Brainwavz hybrid ovals. and yet another used some Dekoni TH-900 sheepskin pads. Some mount these pads over the stock ones, letting the stock ones hold them one. I, however, cut some plastic ovals from a folder and stuck adhesive velcro to the back of it and use that as a mounting ring. Works pretty well if you are willing to do the work.
The other mod I did (along with most others on the forum) was remove the stock foam from behind the grille. This is a common mod on the M1060 as well. This helps with the soundstage a little and brightens it as well. There are some other mods on the thread that I haven't tried but might at some point.
I also made a padded velour sleeve for the headband, just like the one I made for my M1060 (it's the same headband after all), although it wasn't as necessary as it was for the M1060 since the M565 is much lighter and puts less pressure on the top of the head. I should note that all of these mods that I have done are easily reversible should the need arise.
After modding the sound is pretty good and more than justifies the low price I got mine for. They are still warm/dark so treble and detail heads should look elsewhere. They have strong, punchy bass with the typical planar texture. Mids are forward but are pretty smooth and vocals sound pretty nice. Treble is rolled off but not excessively so. Overall signature reminds of the PortaPro a bit. The M565 is pretty good to just put on and relax with some good music since it has a smooth, laid back sound.
If you are looking for a more neutral alternative I would suggest the HIFIMAN HE4XX from Massdrop. It has more treble, less bass and overall more detail. For the list prices of both of these I would probably recommend the HE4XX but it needs mods to really shine too. However, the M565 on a hot sale (<100) is still a great deal. | {
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for all your graphic design needs | {
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The Committee of Monetary Policy (COPOM) of Argentina’s Central Bank (BCRA) has announced it intends to increase the peso's monetary base by 2.5% per month for the next two months on Sept. 18.
“To ensure monetary and financial stability”
The move is meant to ensure monetary and financial stability. The bank believes that the inflation of the Argentine peso caused by depreciation suggests a reduction in real monetary supply. The new exchange rate also lets observers project a real demand for sustained money.
The bank concludes that — given limited liquidity — it is necessary to update the originally established monetary base goals to avoid excessive monetary contraction.
In the case of September, the variation is considered with respect to the bimonthly goal of July-August, leaving the monetary base objective for the current month at 1,377 billion Argentine pesos ($24.3 billion). The goals will be updated again based on the net exchange operations carried out by the BCRA from the date of publication of the statement.
Liquidity Letters interest rate increase
Furthermore — with the declared intention of guaranteeing the reductive nature of the monetary policy — COPOM decided to undertake a further monetary policy measure. More precisely, it decided to increase the lower limit for the interest rate of the Liquidity Letters (LELIQ) from the current 58% to 78% in September, during the inflationary peak. For October, this limit is set at 68%.
The commission hopes that both measures will allow the country to sustain a positive real interest rate and resume the deflation process from October. Lastly, the announcement also specifies that both the proposals have been unanimously approved by the COPOM members.
“Bitcoin fixes this”
Argentinian Bitcoin (BTC) and open blockchain consultant Camilo Jorajuría de León pointed out the decision of his local central bank in a tweet published on Sept. 19 and commented:
“This is how local politicians steal everyone's future from under their noses. Bitcoin fixes this.”
In August, after the sharp devaluation of the Argentine peso, Bitcoin trading saw a 4% premium in Argentina.
As Cointelegraph reported at the end of July, Morgan Creek Digital Assets co-founder Anthony Pompliano says the European Central Bank’s expected dovish turn will be “rocket fuel” for Bitcoin. | {
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Trailer Frenzy A special place to find the newest trailers for movies and TV shows you're craving. Prev Next View All
28 Days Later and Sunshine writer Alex Garland's directorial debut attempts to sex up the Turing Test. And it's creepy. Really creepy. Check out the latest trailer for Ex Machina, which sets up the story a bit better than the previous trailers.
Ex Machina stars three very exciting actors that we love, Oscar Isaac, Domhnall Gleeson (both in the new Star Wars Episode 7 btw) and the very captivating robot Alicia Vikander. Earlier trailers made this whole movie seem like some Turing sex experiment, but this trailer seems more like a test within a test... I guess we'll have to see what happens. Ex Machina will premiere at SXSW. Here's the full synopsis: | {
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Rate design is the process by which electric utilities are attempting to restructure their revenue streams in light of an evolving marketplace for electricity. In California, customers that have solar power are now on time of use schedules, and this has led to a boom in energy storage (along with storage incentives and many other solar supporting measures).
We Energies, a utility serving Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (home of some of the nation’s most expensive electricity), has filed (pdf) to increase the residential fixed charge from $16 to $17.65 / month (10.3%), and seeks to charge an additional fee of $3.53/kWac every month for on its residential customers who utilize solar power.
The electric utility, as part of its rate filing, broke down the standard residential solar power customer electricity costs, that are just over 17¢/kWh (above), as if it was a commercial customer bill. The utility suggested that its Cost of Service Study (COSS) states that “of all the costs to serve our residential customers, 78% are fixed and only 22% are variable.”
For an average sized residential solar power installation of 6 kWac / 7 kWdc, that covers 100% of the home’s annual electricity use, and has a 14% AC capacity factor (as noted in the filing), this fee represents approximately 24% of the variable monthly charges (see calculations in Google Drive).
It should be expected that utility scale generators will battle with distributed generators in some markets; however, there are definitely a variety of responses going on in the 50 unique state energy markets of the United States:
Of course, it is very clear that the utilities are doing hard math on the value of solar power as Wisconsin regulators are reviewing more than 4.6 GWac of solar in more than two dozen utility scale projects.
In recent years, as electricity use has flattened since around 2007, utilities have shifted from building new generation resources to increasing their investments in transmission and distribution (below) of the generated electricity. This has meant that what utilities charge for has shifted from peaking at 70% due to generation, to 54% in 2016.
Transmission investment has grown from approximately $8 billion in 2007, to about $21 billion in 2016.
Some would suggest that this shift is a technique to enable further “gold plating” by the electric utilities in order to keep their guaranteed profits up while falling pricing from wind and solar eat away at generation revenue. | {
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The Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project has established an assurance colony for two species endemic to the Darien, including the Toad Mountain harlequin frog (Atelopus certus), shown here. Credit: Brian Gratwicke, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute
Smithsonian scientists have confirmed that chytridiomycosis, a rapidly spreading amphibian disease, has reached a site near Panama's Darien region. This was the last area in the entire mountainous neotropics to be free of the disease. This is troubling news for the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project, a consortium of nine U.S. and Panamanian institutions that aims to rescue 20 species of frogs in imminent danger of extinction.
Chytridiomycosis has been linked to dramatic population declines or even extinctions of amphibian species worldwide. Within five months of arriving at El Cope in western Panama, chytridiomychosis extirpated 50 percent of the frog species and 80 percent of individuals.
"We would like to save all of the species in the Darien, but there isn't time to do that now," said Brian Gratwicke, biologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute and international coordinator for the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project. "Our project is one of a few to take an active stance against the probable extinction of these species. We have already succeeded in breeding three species in captivity. Time may be running out, but we are looking for more resources to take advantage of the time that remains."
The Darien National Park is a World Heritage site and represents one of Central America's largest remaining wilderness areas. In 2007, Doug Woodhams, a research associate at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, tested 49 frogs at a site bordering the Darien. At that time, none tested positive for the disease. In January 2010, however, Woodhams found that 2 percent of the 93 frogs he tested were infected.
Chytridiomycosis is a rapidly spreading amphibian disease that attacks the skin cells of amphibians (shown here) and is wiping out frog species worldwide. Credit: Doug Woodhams, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
"Finding chytridiomycosis on frogs at a site bordering the Darien happened much sooner than anyone predicted," Woodhams said. "The unrelenting and extremely fast-paced spread of this fungus is alarming."
The Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project has already established captive assurance colonies in Panama of two priority species endemic to the Darienthe Pirre harlequin frog (Atelopus glyphus) and the Toad Mountain harlequin frog (A. certus). In addition, the Smithsonian's National Zoo maintains an active breeding program for the Panamanian golden frog, which is Panama's national animal. The Panamanian golden frog is critically endangered, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and researchers have not seen them in the wild since 2008.
The Smithsonian's National Zoo maintains an active breeding program for the critically endangered Panamanian golden frog. Credit: Brian Gratwicke, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute
"We would like to be moving faster to build capacity," Gratwicke said. "One of our major hurdles is fundraising to build a facility to house these frogs. Until we jump that hurdle, we're limited in our capacity to take in additional species."
Nearly one-third of the world's amphibian species are at risk of extinction. While the global amphibian crisis is the result of habitat loss, climate change and pollution, chytridiomycosis is at least partly responsible for the disappearances of 94 of the 120 frog species thought to have gone extinct since 1980.
"These animals that we are breeding in captivity will buy us some time as we find a way to control this disease in the wild and mitigate the threat directly," said Woodhams, who was the lead author of a whitepaper Mitigating Amphibian Disease: strategies to maintain wild populations and control chytridiomycosis. This paper, published in Frontiers in Zoology, systematically reviews disease-control tools from other fields and examines how they might be deployed to fight chytrid in the wild. One particularly exciting lead in the effort to find a cure is that anti-chytrid bacteria living on frog skin may have probiotics properties that protect their amphibian host from chytrid by secreting anti-fungal chemicals. Woodhams recently discovered that some Panamanian species with anti-chytrid skin bacteria transmit beneficial skin chemicals and bacteria to their offspring. The paper, Social Immunity in Amphibians: Evidence for Vertical Transmission of Innate Defenses, was published in Biotropica in May.
"We are all working around the clock to find a cure," Gratwicke said. "Woodhams' discovery that defenses can indeed be transferred from parent to offspring gives us hope that if we are successful at developing a cure in the lab, we may find a way to use it to save wild amphibians."
Explore further National Zoo and partners first to breed critically endangered tree frog | {
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We started off the festivities with a real bang over our heads while one of the regulars cut the ribbon to the store and someone popped streamers and artificial snow. Lots of laughter and cheer ensured which reminded me why I liked the store more than ever. It was mostly because the team functioned as a family and the clients were welcome to be a part of it. I think that’s one of the reasons why I am so hooked to the store. I know each one of them and they know me by name!
Next on the agenda was cutting the cake. While we were a small group, we certainly managed to make plenty of noise. The delicious cake soon made its way into everyone’s mouths pretty quick. A sweet way to start the morning but I wasn’t complaining.
With that I thought that the festivities were done but I was mistaken. We were then informed that tomorrow (1st October) is International Coffee day. Fancy that! I never realized that there was an international coffee day. Well since the Starbucks coffee shop in Prestige Shantiniketan is closed on Sunday, they had decided to combine the celebrations.
Tejal took us through the process by which coffee is filtered. An interesting story that she told revolved about the creation of filter paper. The first filter paper was apparently created by a lady named Mellita Bentz. She wanted to have nicely strained coffee. After experimenting a lot, she finally found a piece of blotting paper in her sons notebook which she then used to strain the coffee. That was how the first filter paper was born. This tiny ingenious discovery let to her setting up a business with her husband and her sons as her first employees. I’m sure that it turned profitable pretty quick. Now if only I could be as ingenious as that! | {
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Заместитель командира ополчения Донецкой народной республики Эдуард Басурин заявил, что министерство обороны Украины начало применять тактику заградотрядов для того, чтобы не дать силовикам покинуть свои позиции.
«Украинские войска деморализованы, о чем свидетельствует беспрецедентный случай, произошедший сегодня ночью, – отметил Басурин. – В ходе ночных боестолкновений нашим подразделениям сдался раненый военнослужащий 128 отдельной горно-пехотной бригады, который на допросе рассказал о фактах использования заградительных отрядов из состава батальонов территориальной обороны против украинских военнослужащих».
В то же время, по словам представителя оборонного ведомства ДНР, в плен ополченцам сегодня сдались 11 киевских силовиков. «Более 70 украинских военных сдались в плен с 9 января», – добавил замкомкорпусом, передает «Донецкое агентство новостей».
Заградительные отряды размещаются позади основных войск для предотвращения бегства военнослужащих с поля боя, поимки шпионов, диверсантов и дезертиров, возвращения в части бежавших с поля боя и отставших военнослужащих.
В понедельник сообщалось, что мужчины призывного возраста стали чаще уезжать с Украины в Крым, чтобы избежать очередной волны мобилизации, против которой выступают многие жители страны.
В тот же день стало известно, что жители села Кулевча Одесской области взбунтовались против мобилизации и выдворили сотрудников военкомата из села.
Перед этим против четвертой волны мобилизации выступили жители Западной Украины, в частности на Волыни и Коломые.
Четвертая волна мобилизации стартовала на Украине 20 января, еще две планируется провести в апреле и июне. Под мобилизацию не подпадут некоторые категории военнообязанных, в частности непригодные по состоянию здоровья, студенты и аспиранты, священнослужители, родители трех и более детей, жители территорий, неподконтрольных украинской власти.
Представитель генштаба Украины Владимир Талалай сообщил, что за уклонение от службы в вооруженных силах Украины грозит от двух до пяти лет лишения свободы. По его словам, при необходимости в армию будут призываться и женщины в возрасте от 25 до 50 лет.
Однако наблюдатели уже сейчас говорят, что ничего хорошего из этого не выйдет. В последнее время возрос поток украинских беженцев призывного возраста, которые уезжают в Россию, потому что не хотят воевать. Бывает, что на словах они могут поддерживать действия Киева, но жить при этом в России. | {
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Michael Cohen. Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call,Inc.
Donald Trump’s ability to weather the Mueller investigation hinges in large part on whether Trump’s fixer, Michael Cohen, will flip on him. And that question, in turn, hinges on the bizarre relationship between Trump and the sycophant he often spurns. Cohen alternately worships Trump and resents him, and Trump alternates between rewarding Cohen for his canine loyalty and humiliating him for sport.
The Wall Street Journal has a sad example of one of the ways in which Trump has previously embarrassed his fixer. Trump agreed to attend Cohen’s son’s bar mitzvah, but then showed up late, and Cohen humiliatingly delayed the ceremony to suit his boss’s arrival. “After Mr. Trump arrived,” the Journal reports, “he gave a speech, telling guests he hadn’t planned to come, but he relented after Mr. Cohen had repeatedly called him, his secretary and his children begging him to appear, the attendee said.”
Exactly how far Cohen will go to protect Trump is very difficult to predict. Neither of these men is psychologically normal. | {
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Regime’s leader says test of tactical guided weapon would increase the ‘combat power’ of the country
This article is more than 1 year old
This article is more than 1 year old
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un oversaw the testing of a new type of tactical guided weapon on Wednesday, state media Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said on Thursday.
It is North Korea’s first public weapons test since the second US-North Korea summit in Hanoi ended with no agreement in February.
KCNA did not describe exactly what the weapon is, including whether it was a missile or another type of weapon, but “tactical” implies a short-range weapon, as opposed to the long-range ballistic missiles that have been seen as a threat to the United States.
Nevertheless, the missile has a “peculiar mode of guiding flight” and “a powerful warhead,” KCNA said.
North Korea nuclear site shows signs of activity Read more
Kim said “the completion of the development of the weapon system serves as an event of very weighty significance in increasing the combat power” of the North Korean army, according to KCNA.
There was no immediate response to requests for comment from the White House, Pentagon or US State Department.
Also on Thursday, North Korea said it no longer wanted US secretary of state Mike Pompeo to be involved in nuclear talks, calling for someone who “is more careful and mature in communicating”, KCNA said on Thursday.
The state news agency also said, quoting Kwon Jong Gun, a senior official at the North’s foreign ministry, that “no one can predict” the situation on the Korean peninsula if the United States does not abandon the “root cause” that compelled Pyongyang to develop its nuclear programme, without elaborating.
Last year, Kim had also overseen a test of an unidentified “tactical weapon” in November, according to state media, which could protect North Korea like a “steel wall”.
Last year, Kim had said North Korea will stop nuclear tests and launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles, because Pyongyang’s nuclear capabilities had been “verified”.
The news of Kim’s visit to the tactical weapon testing site comes after the North Korean leader visited the North Korean Air and Anti-aircraft Force on Tuesday, according to KCNA, inspecting a flight drill and expressing “great satisfaction” at their combat readiness.
Meanwhile, satellite images from last week show movement at North Korea’s main nuclear site that could be associated with the reprocessing of radioactive material into bomb fuel, the Center for Strategic and International Studies in the United States said on Tuesday.
“Kim is trying to make a statement to the Trump administration that his military potential is growing by the day,” said Harry Kazianis, an analyst at the Center for the National Interest.
“His regime is becoming frustrated with Washington’s lack of flexibility in recent negotiations.”
Koh Yu-hwan, professor of North Korean studies at Dongguk University, agreed the test was a message to the US showing its displeasure over the stalled nuclear talks.
But the fact that it was not a long-range missile or nuclear test “underscores Pyongyang wants to keep alive dialogue with Washington”, he added.
With Reuters and Agence France-Presse | {
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Pradnya Mandhare. — Facebook
En Inde, c'est une héroïne. Pradnya Mandhare, 20 ans, rentrait chez elle mercredi après une journée de cours au Collège Sathaye, dans la banlieue de Bombay. Elle est alors approchée par un homme ivre, rapporte the Telegraph. «Cet homme visiblement saoul s’est rapproché et m’a touchée de manière inappropriée», raconte l’étudiante. «Quand j’ai essayé de l’éviter, il m’a agrippée. J’étais en état de choc pendant quelques secondes, puis je l’ai frappé avec mon sac», poursuit-elle.
«Il a essayé de me taper mais j’ai pu le maîtriser car il puait l’alcool». La station est alors pleine de monde. Personne ne vient aider la jeune femme. «Les gens se sont arrêtés pour regarder, mais personne n’a demandé ce qu’il se passait».
«Je l’ai attrapé par les cheveux et je l’ai traîné à la police»
L’étudiante prend alors les choses en main. «Il était tellement sale, que je ne voulais pas le toucher. Je l’ai attrapé par les cheveux et je l’ai traîné jusqu’au poste de police ferroviaire». Un autre acte de courage. «Les parents peuvent parfois penser que porter plainte nuit à la réputation de leur fille. Mais toutes les femmes devraient se battre en cas d’agression, et ne pas rester dans le silence. Je remercie la police qui a arrêté l’accusé», poursuit-elle.
Pradnya Mandhare ajoute qu'en Inde, la plupart des femmes agressées ont peur de déposer plainte, face à une police qui peut se montrer parfois «pas coopérative». | {
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El libro “Arthur’s Guide to Atlantis” ya se ha lanzado en Estados Unidos, de cara a avanzar el estreno de “Aquaman” el mes que viene. Se trata de un libro de 144 páginas con anotaciones al más puro estilo diario e imágenes no antes vistas. Una guía que nos permite conocer detalles de la ciudad “mítica” de la Atlántida y de la niñez de Aquaman.
Al lanzarse en formato físico, ya nos van llegando alguno de los materiales que este ofrece. Así podemos ver el interior del faro en el que trabaja el padre de Arthur y donde vive con Arthur, o algunas de las anotaciones que este hizo durante su infancia.
Una de las imágenes muestra que en 1986 después de Cristo nació un príncipe, y podemos leer la anotación de Arthur preguntándose si ese príncipe es él. De ser él, implicaría que Aquaman tiene 32 años (Jason Momoa tiene actualmente 39 años).
También podemos leer la carta que la reina Atlanna le deja a bebé Arthur cuando debe abandonarlo:
Para mi querido Arthur, espero que algún día entiendas por qué tenía que irme. Hay cosas aquí que están fuera de nuestro control. Cuando llegué a la superficie, no tenía nada. Fue solo por la bondad de tu padre que sobreviví, y con esa amabilidad, encontré algo hermoso —dice la carta en su comienzo—.
Vía información | Twitter @OceanRageM | {
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Por lo menos desde 2004 la Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos ha insistido en el mejoramiento de las condiciones en las cárceles municipales.
24-10-2017 17:41 Por : Arena Pública
La pena que se paga en una cárcel municipal va más allá de la privación de la libertad.
De entre todos los tipos de reclusorio en los que un ciudadano podría pagar una pena en México: federal, militar, estatal, los municipales son los peores.
Así lo reveló el diagnóstico elaborado por la Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos (CNDH) correspondiente a 2016 pero publicado en junio de 2017.
Las cárceles municipales obtuvieron una calificación de 3.9 puntos de 10 posibles al promediar cinco indicadores de bienestar para los reclusos: integridad del interno, estancia digna, gobernabilidad, reinserción y atención a grupos con requerimientos específicos.
La comisión midió el cumplimiento de cada uno de estos indicadores con un semáforo, en el caso de las cárceles municipales prevaleció el foco rojo para los cinco.
En contraste, los reclusorios mejor calificados fueron las prisiones militares con un 8, seguidas de los Centros Federales de Readaptación Social (Ceferesos) con 7.2.
Las cárceles municipales ganaron su calificación a pulso: no tienen las instalaciones necesarias para su funcionamiento o bien son insuficientes, tampoco cuentan con suficientes actividades laborales y de capacitación para el trabajo.
Sus espacios se caracterizan por tener deficientes condiciones de higiene, no separan a quienes están en proceso de recibir sentencia de quienes ya lo hicieron.
Además, no existen manuales que regulen como debería procederse en caso de ingreso de un recluso, traslado, motín, uso de la fuerza, visitas familiares, visita íntima, entre otras actividades.
Te puede interesar: Terapia en lugar de cárceles, alternativa para quitar presión al sistema penal, 29 de agosto de 2017.
Estas características prevalecen en 90% de las cárceles municipales que se tomaron como muestra para el diagnóstico de la CNDH, es decir, en 38 de 42 las personas en reclusión viven en ocio, instalaciones sucias, reducidas y en desorden respecto de actividades básicas, pues no hay una forma clara de llevar cada proceso.
Las cárceles municipales de Nayarit son las que guardan las peores condiciones para sus reclusos, con una calificación promedio de 1.4 puntos sobre 10.
En el municipio de San Blas es donde los reclusos viven en las condiciones más indignas a nivel nacional. La cárcel registra una sobrepoblación que vive en hacinamiento, no hay siquiera separación entre hombres y mujeres, hay actividades ilícitas, cobros y extorsiones, entre muchas otras deficiencias.
Cárcel municipal en Bahía de Banderas Nayarit, una de las peores a nivel nacional.
Actualmente hay 91 cárceles municipales identificadas en operación con una población de 4 mil 027 internos, 94% hombres y el resto mujeres.
La reclusión de personas sentenciadas o sujetas de algún proceso judicial en cárceles municipales es irregular, ya que esos espacios fueron concebidos únicamente para retener a infractores de reglamentos gubernativos, es decir, aquellos que podrían salir en libertad pagando una multa, no para quienes deben sufrir la pena de prisión, así lo establece el artículo 21 y 115 de la Constitución.
Además, el artículo 18 no prevé que los ayuntamientos sean responsables del sistema penitenciario por lo tanto, son los gobiernos estatales los que deben hacerse cargo de la prisión preventiva y la readaptación social de estas personas, asegura la CNDH.
Municipios desoyen a CNDH, desde hace 13 años
Por el trato indigno que se da a los reclusos en las cárceles municipales la Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos emitió una recomendación general a las autoridades municipales y estatales para que, en conjunto, gestionaran recursos para trasladar a los reclusos a centros estatales.
O bien, para que las cárceles municipales se adecuaran y convirtieran en estatales, esto fue en septiembre de 2016. A poco más de un año solo San Luis Potosí y Tabasco acataron la recomendación.
Te puede interesar: El nuevo sistema penal acusatorio olvida a víctimas de delitos sexuales, 20 de julio de 2017.
Hace tan solo un mes el Mecanismo Nacional de Prevención de la Tortura de la misma comisión emitió una recomendación a Roberto Sandoval, gobernador de Nayarit, para que mejorara las instalaciones, alimentación y erradicara el autogobierno en las 18 cárceles municipales que existen.
La recomendación aclaró que “los municipios no están facultados para realizar tareas del sistema penitenciario”.
En la cárcel de Tizayuca se realizan actividades ilícitas de acuerdo con la CNDH.
Las recomendaciones no son nuevas, por lo menos desde 2004 la Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos ha puesto el dedo en el renglón e insistido en el tema.
“En más de la tercera parte de las entidades federativas existen establecimientos que albergan internos procesados y sentenciados […] y que generalmente no tienen instalaciones constitucionalmente adecuadas para garantizar la seguridad y llevar a cabo las actividades propias de un centro de reclusión”, mencionaba aquel informe de hace 13 años.
MÁS INFORMACIÓN: Diagnóstico Nacional de Supervisión Penitenciaria 2016, CNDH, México.
MÁS INFORMACIÓN: Recomendación M- 3/2017 del Mecanismo Nacional de Prevención de la Tortura (MNPT) al gobernador del estado de Nayarit, CNDH, 8 de septiembre de 2017.
MÁS INFORMACIÓN: Recomendación general número 28 sobre la reclusión irregular en las cárceles municipales y distritales de la República Mexicana, CNDH, 13 de septiembre de 2016. | {
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In 2002, and early parts of 2003 I was in Louisville, Kentucky at OVW (Ohio Valley Wrestling). This camp was the principal development camp of WWE at that time. Under the teaching of Danny Davis, Rip Rodgers, and Jim Cornette, OVW had been pumping out star after star. At one point there we had Randy Orton, Bautista, Brock Lesner, Charlie Haas, Shelton Benjamin, John Cena, Eugene, Rob Conway, and The Basham Brothers, to name a few. It seemed like every month they were pulling a few guys up to the big show. For the majority of the guys pulled up, they were doing well and giving our camp an excellent reputation. So with every call up like a Brock Lesner, or a John Cena, the WWE continued to give young talent chances to make a name for themselves at the next level. My chance came in early 2003 when they flew me to the WWE headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut, to speak with the writers and Stephanie McMahon about an opportunity they had for me. That opportunity was being a part of a new group, a super stable in the works made up of HHH, Ric Flair, and Randy Orton. And now me? What an opportunity!!
Before this was all in the works, I had made an acquaintance with Randy Orton. He had hurt his shoulder around the same time I had dislocated my ankle in 2002. So we found common ground at this time which grew into a friendship. When we heard that we were going to be in this elite group together, it was even that more exciting. When our injuries were healed up, we started traveling on the road together and putting thought into this. We thought of tag team moves, dieted heavily to keep in great shape, and bounced back and forth various training tips to avoid future injuries. It wasn’t something we took lightly.
However, I’m not going to lie, I was very immature at this point in my life. You can make your own accusations about Orton, but I would say he was immature at that time as well. When we got together there was a lot of joking around backstage, and WWE was amused by it but also a bit taken back. I think we had a different way of showing our love for pro wrestling. It wasn’t the conventional way that the WWE was looking for. While the majority of our workmates zoomed out of arenas to get quick to the next city, our road trips felt like vacations. We had a blast traveling from town to town, listening to southern rap in the rent-a-car, playing jokes, and enjoying the restaurants and malls in various cities. We weren’t late to shows or troublemakers off task. I really think WWE just frowned upon how we were perceived backstage as the jokesters who liked to have fun. We were supposed to be priming for an elite group but it seemed we were priming to join a fraternity.
On the road various wrestlers would travel together to help share costs of rental cars and simple company. Really, who wants to be by themselves for close to a 1000 miles of travel per weekend. However occasionally a wrestler’s travel partner wasn’t on the house shows a particular weekend and they ended up being the odd man out. This happened on two occasions that I can recall. One time Garrison Cade asked to ride with us and another Rosey the time he was tagging with Hurricane Helms. These poor guys. They must have felt like they were riding with a circus. Garrison, God rest his soul!! It looked like he wanted to rip his blond hair out trying to find a quiet moment to call his wife. Rosey, on the other hand, bolted on us and found another car a day into our trip. I think probably because it took us 4-5 hours to get to a city when it should have only taken 2-3 hours. There was no peace of mind for whoever was traveling in the same car with us. For example we would here a song we liked on a disc and would start yelling stuff out like “Overrrrr”. Or we’d say things like “this song blew the roof off the joint”. We’d usually be using old southern twang accents yelling and poking fun at the “carney talk” that goes around our locker rooms now and of the past. Funny stuff but we acted like 16 year olds…if that.
One classic story which sums up the way we rolled was also in 2003. We were at a Raw event in Boston. As sort of a tradition, a lot of the guys go to a restaurant called Kowloons after the show. The manager treated us well and had great food there. The fans knew this so there was always a turnout of a few hundred fans waiting outside to sneak a picture or grab an autograph. Well on this particular night we gave them something a little extra haha.
Randy and I, with the help of Maven, pulled off a great joke on this night. However it went a bit rockier than we expected. We were the last wrestlers in the place. There was probably 5-6 police officers outside to keep the crowd in check. There was one officer that was inside that we conversed with and saw that he was cool. So we asked him if he would step in and just break us up if we started a fake fight outside. He agreed and we set a whole plan up for when we got outside. Outside we started arguing back and forth until it turned to shoving. It was only supposed to be shoving but with the passion that Orton and I had for a great “rib”, turned to some pretty stiff forearms and punches.
The cop that was supposed to break us up, got thrown off to the side during the struggle which brought in the other police officers that were unaware it was a joke. When they tried to restrain us, we thought they were going along with us as well. So it really turned to mayhem when we threw them off us too. Maven was trying to stop us but he got wrapped up in the craziness as well. Finally they grabbed us and we all got on the same page. They put Randy in the cop car and told Maven and I to meet them at the gas station down the road. So we did and that capped off our joke. I think the best thing about the fight was our jumpsuits. A day before, we wrestled in Springfield, Massachusetts, home of the basketball hall of fame. Therefore we got a great price on some badass NBA Orlando Magic and Boston Celtics velour jumpsuits. Haha
As the group was ready to start, I remember HHH wanting for us to travel together on a few of the travel loops of house shows and Raw. I think he was looking to establish that bond like the Four Horsemen or DX had. I remember we thought it was pretty cool that we were gonna ride with HHH and occasionally Ric Flair. We knew we had to change our outlook on things and buckle down. In other words, we had to behave lol. So the big question was, could we tone it down when we hopped in the Lincoln Town Car rental of HHH?
The answer was pretty much no. It really felt like to me HHH was chaperoning a couple of teenagers to Wally World. The point of a couple youngsters traveling with a veteran was to pick his brain and ask questions. Me personally, I dropped the ball. I remember once I got comfy in his ride, I would ask stuff like “Hey Hunter, wanna listen to the new Lil Jon disc?” Or I would share with him the goofy stuff I did on my days off before we started this particular loop. Out of me, there was nothing pertaining to the upcoming task at hand which I think turned Hunter off. The more I got comfortable, the more my true side would shine through in terms of pure immaturity. HHH was a cool guy and shared in some of the ridiculous conversations but it just wasn’t the vibe he was on. He was all business and I see crystal clear now that I look back that he wanted the same out of us. Instead I think we drove him crazy as we did Garrison and Rosey. I can’t tell you how many times he called us “dipshits”or “jerkoffs” the few travel weekends we had riding together. That was also a bit of his tough love, and big brother like joking but as time passed, I really felt the truth was said in jest. I was a great athlete and the moves and logistics of pro wrestling came very easy. But in a group like this, it was about telling a story and building something slow and impactful. That part just went over my head. I didn’t understand. I just was too damn immature to realize the immense size of this opportunity.
We shot a vignette on June 16, 2003, in Dallas, before Monday Night Raw. We were getting closer to the full make up of the group. Randy had already been doing stuff on tv and vignettes with HHH and Ric Flair. This is pretty much was the beginning of the end for me. I believe in addition to the immaturity shown, there were two things that also hurt me. First, the “fourth member” was overhyped on tv. They started running polls during the Raw telecast as to who would be the next member of Evolution. If I remember correctly the poll included names like Kevin Nash, Jericho, Test, and a few others. I kept thinking why would you have a poll on consecutive weeks during Raw with established superstars when you know the person occupying the spot was not really known yet in the WWE Universe? I hadn’t really had any sort of run since my time in WCW in 2000 and early 2001. I remember this weighing on me in Dallas and the next week in New York at Madison Square Garden (06/23/03). I thought whenever they do put me out there the fans are going to be expecting a Jericho or Nash, and instead they get Mark Jindrak who hasn’t been regularly on WWE programming since he signed with the company. That was one thing.
The second thing that was really hurting me, as I look back, was the success of Orton. When we would goof around and display our antics it would be me that was more frowned upon. In that particular Raw in Dallas, Randy cut an incredible promo cementing himself in the group. His performances in other Raw events also showed the higher ups in WWE that although he may have been a bit rough around the edges, this guy had natural unbelievable talent. He had the type of talent you couldn’t teach. A talent you that could only be passed through blood for he was a third generation superstar. He could get away with being a jokester or having fun backstage. When you are producing, especially like he was, it’s acceptable. I was not in the same position.
On June 23, 2003, after Raw finished in Madison Square Garden, Vince McMahon wanted to see me in his office backstage. He had told me that he thought it would be in my best interest if they held me out of the group. He told me they had plans of putting me in a tag team with Garrison Cade. He thought I would be best suited as a babyface at this time starting out. I was upset being pulled from this group, but immaturity didn’t let it hit home too much. I figured I’m just going in a different direction, cool. In all actuality Vince was letting me down easy and I appreciate it years later. Then again, I didn’t even realize I just lost out on making millions and millions of dollars and many championship opportunities.
So, it could have been a mixture of things that led to my pull from the group. John Larinitus, ex head of talent, once told me perception is everything in this business. I simply did not give off the perception that I could excel in a big spot like that. Looking back, I wasn’t ready. I do think about it from time to time because it’s something I know I could excel greatly in the mature part of my life. Congrats to Randy Orton on his continued WWE success. He truly is one of the greats. Congratulations to Bautista for his part in Evolution and numerous championships. And…sorry to HHH for being a “dipshit” and “jerkoff” back in the day. He should have called me things much worse for my attitude. It’s a tough pill to swallow but a lot of my failure to get in this group led to a lot of the drive I had used in my life to succeed. Big opportunities sometimes only come once in a lifetime. Thank God I have been blessed with more chances in life that I was more mature to execute.
Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. Next week, we will get back on the task at hand. I have a special talent profile for y’all. I will spotlight a tag team which roots began in Mexico City. After several years wrestling together, they are now arguably pound for pound the best tag team in the world. We will let you all be the judge. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!! Thank you fans for another great year of support for the best entertainment on the planet. Pro wrestling!!
I’m Marco Corleone aka Mark Jindrak, see you next week.
Follow @MarcoCorleone23
Follow @PWMania
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After a 12-year-old African-American girl admitted she lied about a group of white boys cutting off her dreadlocks, the New York Times decided to strip the fact that the accused were “white” from its follow up headline.
The global mainstream media, as well as lawmakers like Rashida Tlaib, amplified Amari Allen’s falsehood after she claimed that three white male classmates had pinned her down, called her “nappy” and “ugly” and cut her hair.
This prompted a wave of sympathy for Allen, a lucrative GoFundMe, and a volley of resentment towards young white men.
In the vast majority of these media reports, the fact that the boys were white was included in the headline.
It subsequently emerged that Allen had faked the entire story, with her grandparents today apologizing to those falsely accused.
However, in the media reports that carried the update to the story, the fact that the entire narrative was predicated on the incident being a racist hate crime was stripped from the story.
In its initial report on the issue, the New York Times headline read ‘Black Virginia Girl Says White Classmates Cut Her Dreadlocks on Playground’.
However, in the follow up story, the headline read ‘Virginia Girl Recants Story of Boys Cutting Off Her Dreadlocks’.
The media seems very keen to obscure the fact that they helped inflate yet another race hate hoax that turned out to be nothing but hot air.
“The most noteworthy part of this story is this girl allegedly getting a bit of her hair cut off made international news while the murder of John Weed was ignored,” comments Chris Menahan.
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Materials Needed:
Red Heart Soft Honey
Red Heart Soft White
Red Heart Soft Cherry Red/Red Heart Soft Pink
5.5 mm. crochet hook
Pair of Scissors
Yarn Needle
Granny Square Dimensions:
measures approximately 5″ x 5″
Abbreviations:
Ch – Chain
st – stitch
SC – single crochet
DC – double crochet
TR – triple crochet
sl st – slip stitch
Free Crochet Pattern:
With honey make a magic ring
Round 1: Ch 2, Make 12 DC in ring, sl st on top of 1st DC changing to white yarn (12 DC)
Round 2: Chain 3 (counts as a TR), 3-TR cluster in same stitch, Ch 3, (make 3-TR cluster in next st, Ch 3) * repeat around, sl st on top of the first 3-TR cluster (12 clusters)
Round 3: Insert your hook on Ch-3 space and grab the pink yarn to change color, Ch 1, Sc on the Ch-3 space, Chain 2(counts as a DC), 2 DC in same Ch 3 space,
on next 2 Ch-3 space make 3 DC, Ch 3, (on next 3 Ch-3 space make 3 DC, Ch 3)*repeat around, sl st on the 2nd Ch of the beg. Ch 2 of the round,
Round 4: Chain 2 (acts as a DC), DC 8, (in the Ch 3 space work 3-DC cluster, Ch 3, 3-DC cluster)
(DC 9, 3-DC cluster, Ch 3, 3-DC cluster)* repeat around
slip stitch, fasten off.
Video Tutorial
Feel free to share this pattern with your friends through the share buttons on the right side of my blog.
You can sell the finished items from my patterns but not the pattern itself. Credit me as the Designer and provide a link back to my site.
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Thanks for stopping by and Happy crocheting everyone… | {
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Four people are facing charges in connection with firearm thefts at a Notre Dame Avenue-area businesses.
Four people are facing charges in connection with firearm thefts at a Notre Dame Avenue-area businesses.
Greater Sudbury Police say three young offenders and a 19-year-old adult are facing a series of charges following two thefts at Kukagami Jack on Newgate Avenue. Five guns were taken in the first theft, which took place June 4. Then on June 16, two young people threw a brick through the front window of the store and took three guns, bear spray and ammunition.
“Through police investigation by the B.E.A.R. Unit (Break Enter and Robbery), a search warrant was obtained for an apartment on Elm Street, Sudbury,” police said in a new release. “Entry into the apartment was made by members of the B.E.A.R. Unit and the Tactical Team due to the involvement of firearms.”
Police made the four arrests and seized three guns, four knives, bear spray, ammunition, a collapsible steel baton, a switchblade and a small amount of marijuana.
The 19 year old Sudbury man is charged with three counts of unauthorized possession of a firearm; three counts of possession of a weapon obtained by crime; three counts of careless use of a firearm; three counts of knowledge of unauthorized possession of a firearm; three counts of possession of restricted firearm with ammunition; possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose (a switchblade); and, possession of a controlled substance (marijuana).
The three young offenders face the same charges. One of the youths was also arrested for breaching a court order, while the other two were arrested for breaching various court orders, as well as break, enter and theft. One of the youths was also charged for the break, enter and theft on June 4.
All four are being held in custody pending bail hearings.
“As reported earlier this week by the media, the owner of Kukagami Jack has greatly enhanced his physical security, video surveillance and alarm systems to prevent anyone from being able to take firearms or other weapons from this location,” police said.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Police at 675-9171 or Crime Stoppers at 222-TIPS, online atwww.sudburycrimestoppers.com or by texting TIPSUD and the information to CRIMES (274637).
On Friday, store owner Jack St. Amand said he had video footage of the suspects from both break-ins. The thieves didn't cover their faces in the first break-in, and, while they wore masks for the second break-in, he's sure it was the same people.
St. Amand opened his store on April 4 at his Notre Dame location after four years at his Highway 17 East location, where he was never the victim of vandalism or theft. The reason for the move was the Notre Dame location offers 7,000 square feet, up from 2,500 square feet, and with potential to expand in the next year.
He said another reason for the move was to accommodate his clientele, bringing his merchandise closer to those who want it.
“At this rate, the Wahnapitae location is starting to look good now,” he said. “It was smaller, but there was a lot less hassle.”
Before the arrests, St. Amand offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the suspects.
“Enough is enough,” he said.
-- files from Arron Pickard. | {
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We should be concerned with the economic fate of people, not statistical brackets.
Most people are not even surprised anymore when they hear about someone who came here from Korea or Vietnam with very little money and very little knowledge of English, but who nevertheless persevered and rose in American society. Nor are we surprised when their children excel in school and go on to professional careers.
Yet, in utter disregard of such plain facts, so-called social scientists do studies which conclude that America is no longer a land of opportunity and that upward mobility is a “myth.” Even when these studies have lots of numbers in tables and equations that mimic the appearance of science, too often their conclusions depend on wholly arbitrary assumptions.
Even people regarded as serious academic scholars often measure social mobility by how many people from families in the lower part of the income distribution end up in higher income brackets. But social mobility — the opportunity to move up — cannot be measured solely by how much movement takes place.
Opportunity is just one factor in economic advancement. How well a given individual or group takes advantage of existing opportunities is another. Only by implicitly (and arbitrarily) assuming that a failure to rise must be due to society’s barriers can we say that American society no longer has opportunity for upward social mobility.
The very same attitudes and behavior that landed a father in a lower income bracket can land the son in that same bracket. But someone with a different set of attitudes and behavior may rise dramatically in the same society. Sometimes even a member of the same family may rise while a sibling stagnates or falls by the wayside.
Ironically, many of the very people who are promoting the idea that the “unfairness” of American society is the reason why some individuals and groups are not advancing are themselves a big part of the reason for the stagnation that occurs.
The welfare state, promoted by those who insist that it is society that is keeping some people down, makes it unnecessary for many low-income people to exert themselves — and therefore makes it unnecessary for them to develop their own potential to the fullest.
The multiculturalist dogma that says one culture is just as good as another paints people into the cultural corner where they happened to have been born, even if other cultures around them have features that offer better prospects of rising.
Just speaking standard English in an English-speaking country can improve the odds of rising. But multiculturalists’ celebration of foreign languages or ethnic dialects — and of counterproductive cultural patterns exemplified by such things as Gangsta rap — can promote the very social stagnation that they blame on “society.”
Meanwhile, Asian immigrants or refugees who arrive here are not handicapped or distracted by a counterproductive social vision full of envy, resentment, and paranoia, and so can rise in the very same society where opportunity is said to be absent.
Those “social scientists,” journalists, and others who are committed to the theory that social barriers keep people down often cite statistics showing that the top income brackets receive a disproportionate and growing share of the country’s income.
But the very opposite conclusion arises in studies that follow actual flesh-and-blood individuals over time, most of whom move up across the various income brackets with the passing years. Most working Americans who were initially in the bottom 20 percent of income-earners rise out of that bottom 20 percent. More of them end up in the top 20 percent than remain in the bottom 20 percent.
People who were initially in the bottom 20 percent in income have had the highest rate of increase in their incomes, while those who were initially in the top 20 percent have had the lowest. This is the direct opposite of the pattern found when following income brackets over time, rather than following individual people.
Most of the media publicize what is happening to the statistical brackets — especially that “top one percent” — rather than what is happening to individual people.
We should be concerned with the economic fate of flesh-and-blood human beings, not waxing indignant over the fate of abstract statistical brackets. Unless, of course, we are hustling for an expansion of the welfare state.
— Thomas Sowell is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution. © 2013 Creators Syndicate, Inc. | {
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President Donald Trump claimed that federal immigration officials asked the Los Angeles Police Department in January to detain an “illegal immigrant,” but the police “let him go, and he killed somebody.” That’s not how it happened.
The murder occurred last summer — before federal immigration officials say they issued a detainer request — so it did not happen after police released him, as Trump implied.
Los Angeles has a history of being what Trump refers to as a “sanctuary city.”
In 2012, Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck announced that people living in the U.S. illegally who were arrested for low-level crimes would no longer be turned over to immigration officials for deportation. At the time, Beck said the city needed to focus on the most serious and violent criminals and initiating deportation for “petty” criminals eroded trust in the city’s Hispanic communities.
Two years later, the city — which has a Hispanic population of about 49 percent — announced that its police would not honor federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement requests to detain unless they were accompanied by a federal warrant or “Judicial Determination of Probable Cause for that detainer.”
Since taking office, the president and his administration have clashed with jurisdictions that refuse to honor ICE detainer requests.
Less than a week after his inauguration, Trump issued an executive order threatening to deny federal funds to jurisdictions that fail to comply with federal immigration laws. After that was nullified by a federal court, the administration turned to withholding law enforcement funds. But Los Angeles sued the Trump administration, and a federal judge last month ruled that the federal government could not give funding preference to localities based on their level of cooperation with immigration laws.
It was against this backdrop that the president told his L.A. murder story at a May 16 meeting, which the White House called a “California Sanctuary State Roundtable.”
Trump, May 16: In January, the Los Angeles Police Department arrested an illegal immigrant from Mexico for drug possession. Instead of honoring the ICE detainer, they set him free. Just a few weeks later, he was arrested again, this time for murder. So they arrested him, they had him, they let him go. Tom, you’ve seen this. They let him go, and he killed somebody.
After the president made his remarks, we contacted the LAPD and the White House to get details on this case. The White House said that a 30-year-old Mexican national was arrested on Jan. 7, 2018, on a drug possession charge. That same day, the White House told us, ICE issued a detainer request, but the man was released.
“On February 26, 2018, he was again arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department for Murder, and booked into the Los Angeles County Jail, where he remains in custody,” the White House said in an email to us.
But the White House did not give us the man’s name, citing privacy rules, or the date of the murder. We also could not find any mention of a murder case in Nexis, the newspaper database, that matched the description of the one provided by the White House.
The LAPD declined repeated requests for information on the case, because we could not provide the name of the murder suspect. However, the police chief on May 22 told the Los Angeles Times that the president got his facts wrong.
Beck said the murder occurred during the summer and the suspect, Juan Ramirez, wasn’t arrested for the murder until February — so the police did not release an immigrant living in the country illegally who then went on to commit a murder.
Officer Tony Im told us that Ramirez, 30, was arrested on Feb. 26 for the murder of Isidro Alba, 39. The murder occurred on Aug. 27, 2017, in the Van Nuys section of the city, he said.
The police chief also told the Times that his office did not receive an ICE detainer for Ramirez in January, although he added that the department would not have honored it, anyway, “because we believe those requests are illegal.”
In a statement, ICE insisted that it issued three detainers for Ramirez. It said the LAPD arrested Ramirez three times and all three times the federal agency issued detainer requests (on Nov. 28, 2017, Jan. 8, 2018, and Feb. 27, 2018).
“ICE has placed three detainers on Mr. Ramirez in the last six months, all of which were not honored, leaving Mr. Ramirez free to reoffend in an escalating fashion rather than be placed in immigration court proceedings and removed from the United States,” the ICE statement said.
ICE’s claim that the LAPD’s release of Ramirez allowed him “to reoffend in an escalating fashion” is inaccurate. As we said, the murder occurred Aug. 27, 2017 — which was three months before the first detainer was issued. We don’t have information on the November arrest, but the January arrest was “on suspicion of a minor narcotics violation,” according to the Times.
We were not able to immediately resolve the disagreement over whether the detainers were issued (as ICE says) or not (as the LAPD insists). Lori K. Haley, an ICE spokeswoman who provided us with information on Ramirez, declined to provide copies of the detainers issued for Ramirez. We were instructed to file a Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA, request, which takes time to process. | {
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ATLANTIC CITY — Ten people in New Jersey have rejected plea deals and will stand trial on ballot fraud charges.
Atlantic City Councilman Marty Small and the others told a judge on Monday they knew they risked long prison sentences if they're convicted.
Prosecutors said "autograph parties" were held in which absentee ballots were steamed open and replaced or destroyed.
The charges stem from Small's failed primary bid to seek the Democratic nomination for mayor in 2009. Incumbent Lorenzo Langford beat Small and a third candidate.
Under terms of the plea deal, Small was offered a sentence that likely would have had him out of prison after a year and a half.
Small was acquitted of similar charges two years ago and he has said he will fight the latest charges.
Previous coverage:
• Judge won't dismiss Atlantic City ballot fraud charges
• Atlantic City mayoral vote probe widens to more campaign workers
• Atlantic City campaign worker admits role in absentee ballot fraud case
• Atlantic City campaign workers appear in court for corruption cases | {
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Scientists estimate that there is a minimum of 320,000 viruses in mammals awaiting discovery. Collecting evidence of these viruses, or even a majority of them, they say, could provide information critical to early detection and mitigation of disease outbreaks in humans. This undertaking would cost approximately $6.3 billion, or $1.4 billion if limited to 85% of total viral diversity -- a fraction of the economic impact of a major pandemic like SARS.
Close to 70% of emerging viral diseases such as HIV/AIDS, West Nile, Ebola, SARS, and influenza, are zoonoses -- infections of animals that cross into humans. Yet until now, there has been no good estimate of the actual number of viruses that exist in any wildlife species.
"Historically, our whole approach to discovery has been altogether too random," says lead author Simon Anthony, D.Phil, a scientist at the Center for Infection and Immunity (CII) at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. "What we currently know about viruses is very much biased towards those that have already spilled over into humans or animals and emerged as diseases. But the pool of all viruses in wildlife, including many potential threats to humans, is actually much deeper. A more systematic, multidisciplinary, and One Health framework is needed if we are to understand what drives and controls viral diversity and following that, what causes viruses to emerge as disease-causing pathogens."
"For decades, we've faced the threat of future pandemics without knowing how many viruses are lurking in the environment, in wildlife, waiting to emerge. Finally we have a breakthrough -- there aren't millions of unknown virus, just a few hundred thousand, and given the technology we have it's possible that in my lifetime, we'll know the identity of every unknown virus on the planet," adds Peter Daszak, PhD, corresponding author and president of EcoHealth Alliance.
Secrets of the Flying Fox
To address the challenges of describing and estimating virodiversity, a team of investigators from CII and EcoHealth Alliance began in jungles of Bangladesh -- home to the flying fox. These bats are the largest flying mammal with a wingspan of up to 6 feet; they are also the source of several outbreaks of Nipah virus. The team collected 1,897 biological samples from the animals, which were captured and released. Back in the lab, they used polymerase chain reaction to identify 55 viruses in nine viral families. Of these, only five were previously known, including two human bocaviruses, an avian adenovirus, a human/bovine betacoronavirus, and an avian gammacoronavirus. Another 50 were newly discovered, including 10 in the same family as Nipah. Next the researchers adapted a statistical technique from the field of ecology to estimate that there were another three rare viruses unaccounted for in the samples, upping the estimate of viruses in the flying fox to 58. Finally, this number was extrapolated to all 5,486 known mammals, yielding a total of at least 320,000 viruses.
A Relative Bargain
The researchers then repeated the exercise for cost, extrapolating from an estimated $1.2 million for surveillance, sampling, and discovery of all 58 flying fox viruses to come up with a total of $6.3 billion for all mammals. Given the disproportionate cost of discovering rare viruses, they showed that limiting discovery to 85% of estimated viral diversity would bring the cost down to $1.4 billion.
"By contrast, the economic impact of the SARS pandemic is calculated to be $16 billion," says Dr. Anthony. "We're not saying that this undertaking would prevent another outbreak like SARS. Nonetheless, what we learn from exploring global viral diversity could mitigate outbreaks by facilitating better surveillance and rapid diagnostic testing."
"If we know what's out there, we'll be a lot better prepared when a virus jumps over into a human population," Dr. Anthony continues, adding that prevention is crucial when it comes to viral infections since antivirals are notoriously difficult to develop.
Plumbing the Depths of the Zoonotic Pool
A continued systematic effort to discover mammal viruses would provide a more accurate estimate on total number of viruses in what co-author Stephen Morse, PhD, co-director of the PREDICT Project and professor of Epidemiology at the Mailman School, calls the "zoonotic pool" of potential viral pathogens that threaten humans.
The researchers say the initial estimate of 320,000 is just a starting point and will likely be considerably higher after accounting for additional viral families and employing high throughput sequencing methods developed at CII. They also point to several unknowns, including whether or not the samples from flying foxes in Bangladesh are representative of all flying foxes, which range across Southern Asia; whether or not all mammal species harbor a similar number of viruses; and the extent to which viruses are shared from species to species (as seen with the human, bovine, and avian viruses in the flying fox). Furthermore, the cost of collecting samples could vary depending on habitat (the flying fox expedition in Bangladesh was relatively low compared with similar undertaking for an animal living in more remote areas).
To help fill in some of these blanks, the team is repeating the process in two follow-up studies -- one in a species of primates in Bangladesh in order to see if their viral diversity is comparable to the flying fox's, and another in Mexico, where analysis of samples from six species of bats that share the same habitat will be undertaken to determine the extent to which they share viruses. With additional resources, they hope to expand the investigation to other species and viral families.
"To quote Benjamin Franklin, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," says senior author W. Ian Lipkin, MD, director of CII. "Our goal is to provide the viral intelligence needed for the global public health community to anticipate and respond to the continuous challenge of emerging infectious diseases."
In fact, this type of large-scale zoonotic virus discovery and characterization is now being done in an economically efficient way through the PREDICT Project, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The work described in the study has been integral to the Project's success.
"PREDICT has already discovered more than 240 novel viruses throughout the world in areas where people and animals live in close contact and depend on the same natural resources," says study co-author Jonna Mazet, PhD, director of the UC Davis One Health Institute and co-director of PREDICT. "That includes new coronaviruses, like the ones that cause SARS and the new Middle East Respiratory Syndrome."
###
The current study follows the One Health approach, which considers the interdependence of the health of people, animals, and the environment. It is a multidisciplinary collaboration between 21 molecular virologists, ecologists, veterinarians, and mathematicians from institutions, including the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia's Mailman School; EcoHealth Alliance, National Autonomous University of Mexico, University of California, Davis; International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Dhaka (Bangladesh); Princeton University; National Institutes of Health; and Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (Bangladesh).
The study, titled "A strategy to estimate unknown viral diversity in mammals," appears in the journal mBio. | {
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Kara Tointon has spoken about the "nerve-wracking' scene she had to do for upcoming ITV drama The Halcyon.
Speaking to the RadioTimes about the series, which the actress claims will be a "sexier Downton [Abbey]", Tointon talked about a scene where her character, hotel bar singer Betsey Day, is discovered in The Halcyon Hotel owner Lord Hamilton's bathtub.
"That was interesting because it's not such a sexy scene; it's just her standing up with nothing on. It made it more nerve-wracking, actually," Tointon said.
"I didn't argue against that scene. It is a funny scene, that's why I didn't. Sometimes when those things come up you question whether it's needed , but I absolutely thought it was great because it introduces you to someone in one swoop: that she doesn't care, and that's what she's about. She's fun."
Lord Hamilton is played by Alex Jennings (King Leopold in Victoria), while Olivia Williams plays his wife Lady Hamilton. Hermione Cornfield performs the role of Emma Garland, who works in the family business, while Matt Ryan - best known for his role in Constantine - performs the American journalist Joe O'Hara.
(ITV (ITV)
The new series will alternate between the life of the aristocratic Hamilton family and the staff who work downstairs. It will include storylines about inter-racial and homesexual relationships, and is set in London during the run-up to the Blitz. | {
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Citation From the April 2, 2020, episode of Fox Business' Varney & Company
STUART VARNEY (HOST): I want to get back to Art Laffer briefly. Art, we do have, I think, a fourth stimulus plan, rescue plan, call it what you like, it's coming at us. You don't think it works? You don't think we should do it?
ART LAFFER (REAGAN ECONOMIC ADVISER): No, I don't. I mean, as you know, Stuart, I'm the biggest fan of this president's ever. I think he's been the best president so far in the last 50 years. I mean, really, I'm a huge fan. But this stimulus package will make things worse, not better. What we need to do is let people who work and produce keep their income, not have the government take it, and by putting that stimulus package in just like in the 2008-2009 period, and in the Great Depression, it will make the economy worse, not better.
VARNEY: I don't get it, Art. I don't get it. I don't see how massive spending, we are talking trillions and trillions and trillions of dollars, I don't see how that does not put a floor under the economy. I don't see how it hurts the economy. You explain it to me. You tell me how spending all of this money actually hurts the economy.
LAFFER: I will. Government spending is taxation. Government doesn't create resources, Stuart. They redistribute resources. Whenever the government spends $1 trillion, it takes $1 trillion from workers and producers who otherwise would — so government spending is taxation and as such, government spending will reduce the growth rate of the U.S. and will hurt the economy in bad, bad times. Now, when we are rich and when prosperous, government spending is perfect then because we can afford to take resources away from producers. But right now, we need to be the fans of producers, not the fans of consumers. I'm very sorry, but that's what has to be done now. We need free markets more than ever. | {
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J. Cole's only offered up a few features over the last few years, so you know he really likes an artist if he drops a hook or verse on their song. So with that in mind, it's probably safe to assume Jermaine's a big fan of Salomon Faye, an artist he appears alongside on his new song, "Live and Learn."
Featuring an understated, melancholy instrumental, "Live and Learn" finds New York City-based Salomon Faye getting introspective as he reflects on his own personal demons and philosophical questions.
"I used to see rain as the proof I can cry with no fear, but now I gotta hide my own tears so I don't seem weak/I don't even want to see me 'cause I don't know that nigga/I don't owe that nigga/To tell the truth, something to show that nigga," he spits on the track, keeping an almost emotionless delivery throughout.
For his part, Cole slides through on the hook, solidifying the depression that permeates the track. "'Cause I've been living way too long in the right or the wrong/I'm as small as a fly with the shit I'm on/So keep going get lost/I don't want to be found/You won't see me if you looking around," Cole half-sings on the track.
"Live and Learn" will appear on Faye's King Salomon EP, which is due out on Nov. 23. Check out "Live and Learn" for yourself below. Read more about Salomon Faye in The Break piece we wrote about him a few years ago.
Illuzion Entertainment | {
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(CNN) Prosecutors in Los Angeles charged Harvey Weinstein on Monday with raping one woman and sexually assaulting another in separate incidents over a two-day period in 2013.
Weinstein faces new felony charges of forcible rape, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by use of force and sexual battery by restraint, Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey said in a statement.
"We believe the evidence will show that the defendant used his power and influence to gain access to his victims and then commit violent crimes against them," Lacey said.
The charges came hours after Weinstein appeared in a New York court for the start of his criminal trial on similar charges in a separate case.
According to the criminal complaint, Weinstein and a woman attended a Hollywood film festival on February 17, 2013, and later that night, he knocked on her hotel room door and was allowed entry into her room. Once inside, they talked briefly before he allegedly attacked the woman, forced her to perform oral sex on him, digitally penetrated her vagina and raped her, the complaint says.
She said that she did not disclose the assault because he threatened her life if she spoke, the complaint says. The charges of forcible rape, forcible oral copulation and sexual penetration by use relate to that incident.
On February 19, Weinstein met with a woman and her acquaintance for a business meeting at a hotel eatery in West Los Angeles, the complaint says. Weinstein persuaded the two to accompany him to his hotel suite, and one woman unwittingly followed him into the bathroom, the complaint says.
He allegedly took off his clothes and prevented her from leaving, and then he held her in place by her breast as he masturbated, the complaint says. He faces a charge of felony sexual battery by restraint for that incident, Lacey said.
Weinstein has denied all allegations of "nonconsensual sexual activity" related to the New York case and other claims made against him. In an earlier interview, Weinstein attorney Donna Rotunna said any new charges would be "highly prejudicial" to a jury in the New York case.
Once one of Hollywood's most powerful producers and gatekeepers, Weinstein's career collapsed in October 2017 after The New York Times and The New Yorker published stories detailing numerous accusations of sexual harassment and assault against him.
Since then more than 80 women have come forward with similar stories of Weinstein using his power and influence to take advantage of young female assistants and actresses over several decades. The reporting, which garnered the two outlets the Pulitzer Prize, also showed how Weinstein used his powerful team of attorneys and media allies to pressure the women into staying silent.
Victims first reported attacks in 2017
In the LA case, the two victims reported these incidents to police in 2017, and they were presented to the district attorney's office for criminal charges later that year. Lacey said that the charges were announced today, years later, because of the challenge of the specific cases.
"It was very challenging to get those victims to open up and tell us what they needed to tell us. For some of them it was embarrassing, it was terrifying, and so until then we were just working to see if we could get the evidence needed to get to court," she said.
Neither of the two women have previously come forward with their allegations, and one is expected to testify in the New York case, prosecutors said.
That the charges were announced the same day as the start of his New York trial was just a coincidence, Lacey said. Prosecutors are asking for his bail to be set at $5 million.
Lacey said she did not want to interfere with the New York case and that the judge will have to decide whether he can remain out on bail given the new charges.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office had previously said that eight women had come forward against Weinstein. Lacey said that three of those cases were outside of the statute of limitation, two led to today's charges and three others are still under investigation.
The case against Weinstein is the first criminal case to be filed by the task force Lacey created in 2017 in response to allegations in the entertainment industry, she said. Her office investigated more than 40 cases and most were declined because they fell outside the statue of limitations or evidence was insufficient.
Weinstein's New York trial began today
Weinstein, 67, arrived to court in Manhattan using a walker on Monday to begin his trial for allegedly raping a woman in 2013 and forcibly performing oral sex on another in 2006.
He faces five felony charges based on the claims by two women, one of whom remains anonymous. Several other women who say he assaulted them will also testify, including "The Sopranos" actress Annabella Sciorra, as prosecutors seek to prove he committed sex crimes against multiple women.
Jury selection in the New York case is expected to begin Tuesday and last for two weeks, followed by arguments and testimony expected to last another 8 weeks.
In emails to CNN prior to the trial , Weinstein said that he has learned to self-reflect over the past two years.
"The past two years have been grueling and have presented me with a great opportunity for self-reflection," Weinstein wrote. "I realize now that I was consumed with my work, my company and my drive for success. This caused me to neglect my family, my relationships and to lash out at the people around me. I have been in rehab since October 2017, and have been involved in a 12-step program and meditation. I have learned to give up my need for control."
Correction: This story has been updated to reflect the correct year accusations against Harvey Weinstein were first reported by The New York Times and The New Yorker. | {
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