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<p>The lobster roll is&#160;one of the real seafood treats during the summer here in New England.&#160; <a href="http://stevedolinsky.com/blog" type="external">Food writer Steve Dolinsky</a> is tireless in his search for the perfect one. Seriously, <a href="http://instagram.com/stevedolinsky" type="external">check out his Instagram stream</a>.</p>
<p>Currently, he's up in New Brunswick in Canada, sampling the crustaceans north of the border.</p>
<p>To be honest, he says, there's really not that much difference in the lobsters up in, for example, the Bay of Fundy and those off the coast of Maine.&#160;</p>
<p>"You probably couldn't tell them apart unless you're a fisherman," Dolinsky says. "It's not like you cross the border and suddenly you get a more polite lobster," he jokes.</p>
<p>Dolinsky notes that some 140,000 pounds of lobster were harvested from Canada's maritime provinces last year. That's why it's not hard to find it being served up in all variety of forms. But a special favorite is the lobster roll.</p>
<p>"First of all," Dolinsky explains. "A lobster roll is not a sweet roll, or a cinammon roll, or a pecan roll. It's a sandwich."</p>
<p>But it's so much more than just a sandwich. You take fresh lobster, boil it, and then get rid of all the shell. Next, you mix up the fresh lobster meat with mayonnaise, and maybe some celery and dill, and add lemon juice.</p>
<p>Each restaurant, as you might imagine, has it's own recipe. "It's kind of like with chili," Dolinsky says. Some use a lot of mayo, making a really thick spread.</p>
<p>But not at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/theclamdigger" type="external">The Clam Digger</a>, a well known seafood spot in a New Brunswick town called St. Andrews by-the-Sea.&#160;</p>
<p>"You mix it up with just enough mayonnaise to hold it together," says Andrew Jacobs, manager of The Clam Digger. "Real mayonnaise," he insists, "not dressing. Maybe a touch of butter. There's not a big secret to it. Keep it lobster. Keep it fresh."</p>
<p>Then, you "top-load" that lobster salad into a New England-style hot dog bun.</p>
<p>"The bun has flat sides," says Dolinsky. "So you can butter up each side and toast them on a flat-top grill."&#160;</p>
<p>If you're in New Brunswick and would like to try more than one, Dolinsky says that you can check out the lobster roll offerings at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Gables-Restaurant/165474053509799?sk=info" type="external">The Gables</a>, and <a href="http://www.capeenrage.ca/en/plan-your-trip/restaurant" type="external">Cape Enrage</a>.</p>
<p>So how does the Canadian version compare to its American cousin?</p>
<p>"It's a little bit more modest, a little bit more diminutive," Dolinksy says. "Dare I say it, a little bit more polite. They're a little bit tidier. My son says it's the perfect ratio of lobster to roll."</p>
<p>And slightly cheaper, too. Whereas a lobster roll in Maine might run you $15, or even up to $25 in places like Chicago, in New Brunswick they cost around $10. Be sure, Dolinsky says, to get the fries and slaw&#160;with the lobster roll. He notes that some places you can even get poutine — that infamous Canadian combo of french fries, gravy and cheese curds — with your roll.</p>
<p>Is that what he ordered?</p>
<p>"You betcha," he says.</p> | A tidier, more polite lobster roll ... courtesy of Canada | false | https://pri.org/stories/2014-08-29/tidier-more-polite-lobster-roll-courtesy-canada | 2014-08-29 | 3left-center
| A tidier, more polite lobster roll ... courtesy of Canada
<p>The lobster roll is&#160;one of the real seafood treats during the summer here in New England.&#160; <a href="http://stevedolinsky.com/blog" type="external">Food writer Steve Dolinsky</a> is tireless in his search for the perfect one. Seriously, <a href="http://instagram.com/stevedolinsky" type="external">check out his Instagram stream</a>.</p>
<p>Currently, he's up in New Brunswick in Canada, sampling the crustaceans north of the border.</p>
<p>To be honest, he says, there's really not that much difference in the lobsters up in, for example, the Bay of Fundy and those off the coast of Maine.&#160;</p>
<p>"You probably couldn't tell them apart unless you're a fisherman," Dolinsky says. "It's not like you cross the border and suddenly you get a more polite lobster," he jokes.</p>
<p>Dolinsky notes that some 140,000 pounds of lobster were harvested from Canada's maritime provinces last year. That's why it's not hard to find it being served up in all variety of forms. But a special favorite is the lobster roll.</p>
<p>"First of all," Dolinsky explains. "A lobster roll is not a sweet roll, or a cinammon roll, or a pecan roll. It's a sandwich."</p>
<p>But it's so much more than just a sandwich. You take fresh lobster, boil it, and then get rid of all the shell. Next, you mix up the fresh lobster meat with mayonnaise, and maybe some celery and dill, and add lemon juice.</p>
<p>Each restaurant, as you might imagine, has it's own recipe. "It's kind of like with chili," Dolinsky says. Some use a lot of mayo, making a really thick spread.</p>
<p>But not at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/theclamdigger" type="external">The Clam Digger</a>, a well known seafood spot in a New Brunswick town called St. Andrews by-the-Sea.&#160;</p>
<p>"You mix it up with just enough mayonnaise to hold it together," says Andrew Jacobs, manager of The Clam Digger. "Real mayonnaise," he insists, "not dressing. Maybe a touch of butter. There's not a big secret to it. Keep it lobster. Keep it fresh."</p>
<p>Then, you "top-load" that lobster salad into a New England-style hot dog bun.</p>
<p>"The bun has flat sides," says Dolinsky. "So you can butter up each side and toast them on a flat-top grill."&#160;</p>
<p>If you're in New Brunswick and would like to try more than one, Dolinsky says that you can check out the lobster roll offerings at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Gables-Restaurant/165474053509799?sk=info" type="external">The Gables</a>, and <a href="http://www.capeenrage.ca/en/plan-your-trip/restaurant" type="external">Cape Enrage</a>.</p>
<p>So how does the Canadian version compare to its American cousin?</p>
<p>"It's a little bit more modest, a little bit more diminutive," Dolinksy says. "Dare I say it, a little bit more polite. They're a little bit tidier. My son says it's the perfect ratio of lobster to roll."</p>
<p>And slightly cheaper, too. Whereas a lobster roll in Maine might run you $15, or even up to $25 in places like Chicago, in New Brunswick they cost around $10. Be sure, Dolinsky says, to get the fries and slaw&#160;with the lobster roll. He notes that some places you can even get poutine — that infamous Canadian combo of french fries, gravy and cheese curds — with your roll.</p>
<p>Is that what he ordered?</p>
<p>"You betcha," he says.</p> | 4,100 |
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p />
<p>The video, posted at 5:35 p.m., shows Trump smiling and posing for pictures on the tarmac at San Antonio International Airport with a group of uniformed motorcycle officers, at least 14 of them wearing the campaign’s signature red baseball caps.</p>
<p>Trump’s tweet calls on people to register to vote at the Republican National Committee’s vote.gop website, and the video ends with bold white text reading, “We will make America safe and great again, together!”</p>
<p>The officers’ apparent show of support drew swift criticism from city and police officials, who said it violated department policy.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said the officers should not have worn the hats and “will be disciplined appropriately.”</p>
<p>“I expect them to know better than to give the appearance of endorsing a candidate while on duty and in uniform,” McManus said in a statement, “regardless of the political campaign or the candidate.”</p>
<p>Mayor Ivy Taylor said in a tweet that she was disappointed in the officers’ “lack of judgment.”</p>
<p>“Police must be above politics and serve everyone equally,” she said. “Everything they do should send that message and today’s actions did not.”</p>
<p>The 25-second video opens with Trump standing outside his plane, flanked by officers in the red campaign hats, as one officer takes a picture with his iPhone. The candidate says, “Thank you, fellas,” and shakes some officers’ hands before turning to leave. “Thank you, sir,” multiple officers say as others give him a thumbs-up.</p>
<p>As Trump boards his plane, the video shows a group of at least 14 officers wearing the hats walk across the tarmac to their motorcycles.</p>
<p>The officers were from a department motorcycle unit that escorts politicians and other dignitaries when they come to town, the San Antonio Express-News reported. On Tuesday, they helped transport Trump’s motorcade to and from the airport while the candidate was in town for a private fundraiser.</p>
<p>Mike Helle, president of the San Antonio Police Officers Association, said the department prohibits political displays while officers are on-duty. He told the Express-News he was surprised that they decided to wear the hats, but expects the punishment to be light.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“It seems kind of benign,” Helle said. “They’d probably get a written reprimand or counseling to not do that sort of thing on duty.”</p>
<p>San Antonio policy bars public employees from engaging in political activity on the job.</p>
<p>Throughout the campaign, Trump has boasted about his support from the law enforcement community, telling a North Carolina police union in August that the law enforcement vote for him “could be unanimous” in November. “I’m on your side a thousand percent,” he said in the speech.</p>
<p>The Fraternal Order of Police, which represents 325,000 law enforcement officers, endorsed Trump for president, saying he “understands and supports our priorities, and our members believe he will make America safe again.”</p>
<p>The Trump campaign found itself in hot water late last month, when it released an advertisement showing Trump talking with on-duty Phoenix police officers. The video shows a brief clip of Trump standing on an airport tarmac with a group of uniformed officers, one of them shaking his hand. City Attorney Brad Holm sent the campaign a cease-and-desist letter saying the ad violated federal and state law.</p>
<p>“The officers depicted in the ad were in uniform precisely because they were on duty performing work for Phoenix at the time,” Holm wrote. “In this context, the ad unmistakably and wrongfully suggests that Phoenix and the officers support or endorse Mr. Trump’s campaign.”</p>
<p>—</p>
<p><a href="http://wapo.st/2edUV7N" type="external">http://wapo.st/2edUV7N</a></p>
<p>trump-police</p> | San Antonio police officers face discipline for wearing ‘Make America Great Again’ hats in Trump video | false | https://abqjournal.com/865573/san-antonio-police-officers-face-discipline-for-wearing-make-america-great-again-hats-in-trump-video.html | 2least
| San Antonio police officers face discipline for wearing ‘Make America Great Again’ hats in Trump video
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p />
<p>The video, posted at 5:35 p.m., shows Trump smiling and posing for pictures on the tarmac at San Antonio International Airport with a group of uniformed motorcycle officers, at least 14 of them wearing the campaign’s signature red baseball caps.</p>
<p>Trump’s tweet calls on people to register to vote at the Republican National Committee’s vote.gop website, and the video ends with bold white text reading, “We will make America safe and great again, together!”</p>
<p>The officers’ apparent show of support drew swift criticism from city and police officials, who said it violated department policy.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said the officers should not have worn the hats and “will be disciplined appropriately.”</p>
<p>“I expect them to know better than to give the appearance of endorsing a candidate while on duty and in uniform,” McManus said in a statement, “regardless of the political campaign or the candidate.”</p>
<p>Mayor Ivy Taylor said in a tweet that she was disappointed in the officers’ “lack of judgment.”</p>
<p>“Police must be above politics and serve everyone equally,” she said. “Everything they do should send that message and today’s actions did not.”</p>
<p>The 25-second video opens with Trump standing outside his plane, flanked by officers in the red campaign hats, as one officer takes a picture with his iPhone. The candidate says, “Thank you, fellas,” and shakes some officers’ hands before turning to leave. “Thank you, sir,” multiple officers say as others give him a thumbs-up.</p>
<p>As Trump boards his plane, the video shows a group of at least 14 officers wearing the hats walk across the tarmac to their motorcycles.</p>
<p>The officers were from a department motorcycle unit that escorts politicians and other dignitaries when they come to town, the San Antonio Express-News reported. On Tuesday, they helped transport Trump’s motorcade to and from the airport while the candidate was in town for a private fundraiser.</p>
<p>Mike Helle, president of the San Antonio Police Officers Association, said the department prohibits political displays while officers are on-duty. He told the Express-News he was surprised that they decided to wear the hats, but expects the punishment to be light.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“It seems kind of benign,” Helle said. “They’d probably get a written reprimand or counseling to not do that sort of thing on duty.”</p>
<p>San Antonio policy bars public employees from engaging in political activity on the job.</p>
<p>Throughout the campaign, Trump has boasted about his support from the law enforcement community, telling a North Carolina police union in August that the law enforcement vote for him “could be unanimous” in November. “I’m on your side a thousand percent,” he said in the speech.</p>
<p>The Fraternal Order of Police, which represents 325,000 law enforcement officers, endorsed Trump for president, saying he “understands and supports our priorities, and our members believe he will make America safe again.”</p>
<p>The Trump campaign found itself in hot water late last month, when it released an advertisement showing Trump talking with on-duty Phoenix police officers. The video shows a brief clip of Trump standing on an airport tarmac with a group of uniformed officers, one of them shaking his hand. City Attorney Brad Holm sent the campaign a cease-and-desist letter saying the ad violated federal and state law.</p>
<p>“The officers depicted in the ad were in uniform precisely because they were on duty performing work for Phoenix at the time,” Holm wrote. “In this context, the ad unmistakably and wrongfully suggests that Phoenix and the officers support or endorse Mr. Trump’s campaign.”</p>
<p>—</p>
<p><a href="http://wapo.st/2edUV7N" type="external">http://wapo.st/2edUV7N</a></p>
<p>trump-police</p> | 4,101 |
|
<p>DETROIT (AP) _ The winning numbers in Saturday evening’s drawing of the Michigan Lottery’s “Fantasy 5” game were:</p>
<p>01-05-10-18-28</p>
<p>(one, five, ten, eighteen, twenty-eight)</p>
<p>Estimated jackpot: $244,000</p>
<p>DETROIT (AP) _ The winning numbers in Saturday evening’s drawing of the Michigan Lottery’s “Fantasy 5” game were:</p>
<p>01-05-10-18-28</p>
<p>(one, five, ten, eighteen, twenty-eight)</p>
<p>Estimated jackpot: $244,000</p> | Winning numbers drawn in ‘Fantasy 5’ game | false | https://apnews.com/d462dc8f8a834cd98d048d2c7ac6e0db | 2018-01-21 | 2least
| Winning numbers drawn in ‘Fantasy 5’ game
<p>DETROIT (AP) _ The winning numbers in Saturday evening’s drawing of the Michigan Lottery’s “Fantasy 5” game were:</p>
<p>01-05-10-18-28</p>
<p>(one, five, ten, eighteen, twenty-eight)</p>
<p>Estimated jackpot: $244,000</p>
<p>DETROIT (AP) _ The winning numbers in Saturday evening’s drawing of the Michigan Lottery’s “Fantasy 5” game were:</p>
<p>01-05-10-18-28</p>
<p>(one, five, ten, eighteen, twenty-eight)</p>
<p>Estimated jackpot: $244,000</p> | 4,102 |
<p />
<p>As we approach the millennium, this is the astonishing reality of American political life: A radio talk show host occupies center stage. Rush Limbaugh is an unlikely man for the role: a college dropout, fired from four radio jobs, twice divorced, obese, and insecure. Yet he has become one of the most influential forces in the country. Even his mother can’t believe it.</p>
<p>If you’re skeptical, too, talk to the 73 Republican freshmen. They attribute their stunning victory to Rush Limbaugh, citing polls that show people who listen to talk radio 10 hours or more per week voted Republican 3-to-1.</p>
<p>Limbaugh is the national precinct captain for the Republican Party. And he works the precinct hard, five days a week, three hours a day. Like an electronic ward boss, Limbaugh explains the issues, offers the conservative GOP spin, rallies the faithful, and turns out the voters. It is a virtuoso performance, his harangue leavened by bursts of rock ‘n’ roll, bad-boy jokes, and moments of self-deprecating humor. It was no mistake that the Republican freshmen anointed Rush the “majority-maker” and inducted him as an honorary member of the 104th Congress at their orientation last December.</p>
<p>Another guy who started out in radio, Ronald Reagan, recognized Limbaugh’s importance back in 1992, when he declared Rush “the number one voice for conservatism in our country.” But the Democrats have been in denial. Before the Republican landslide last November, Democratic strategists shrugged off Limbaugh’s clout. “People who listen to the radio in the morning are normal people,” declared Clinton political adviser Paul Begala. “People who listen to Limbaugh in the afternoon are has-been, shut-in malcontents. I don’t pay much attention to right-wing, foam-at-the-mouth radio because they just talk to each other. It’s 20 million people telling each other how they hate Hillary.” It’s also 20 million voters, energized and mobilized by Mr. Limbaugh, as a chastened Begala discovered.</p>
<p>Liberals and progressives have consistently misunderstood, ignored, and underestimated Rush Limbaugh and his 20 million fans. That’s fine, if you don’t mind waking up one day to find Phil Gramm in the White House and an occupying army of Newts on Capitol Hill. But if Democrats and what’s left of the Left have any intention of getting back in the game, their first step must be an accurate, clear-eyed assessment of Mr. Bombast and his loyal dittoheads.</p>
<p />
<p>When it comes to defining their enemy, Democrats are stuck in a time warp. They still criticize the in-your-face ranter who performed “caller abortions” on air, ridiculed “feminazis,” and mocked people dying of AIDS. These hurtful, offensive routines helped Rush build an audience of angry white males, but they also sparked protests.</p>
<p>During a 1990 guest appearance on the “Pat Sajak Show,” then CBS’ late-night program, Limbaugh was rattled by ACT UP hecklers. To restore order, the entire audience was ushered out and a dejected Limbaugh delivered his final words to an empty studio. A CBS executive said, “He came out full of bluster and left a very shaken man. I had never seen a man sweat as much in my life.”</p>
<p>Since then Rush has recalibrated his act. Recently, he criticized “anyone who takes pleasure” in the revelation that former Olympic diver Greg Louganis has AIDS. “It’s just sad,” he told his listeners. Rush will still resort to a fag joke now and then. He still makes fun of the homeless. He can still be reprehensible. But the new Rush is focused on partisan politics. His show is duller, more predictable, more strategic.</p>
<p>The transformation began in 1992 when the Bush campaign was shocked to learn how much political weight Limbaugh could throw around. In the New Hampshire primary, Rush endorsed Pat Buchanan, and the hard-line conservative scored 37 percent of the vote. The scared Bush team quickly invited Rush to spend the night at the White House and to join Marilyn Quayle in the vice president’s box at the GOP convention in Houston. Rush loyally denounced Ross Perot, who appealed to many of his own listeners, and he hit the campaign trail, introducing Bush at a “victory rally” in New Jersey.</p>
<p>Even Rush could not save Bush. But after Clinton’s victory, when conservatives were dispirited and leaderless, Rush played a crucial role, offering an optimistic voice that promised a conservative backlash. “I’ll never forget those dreary, dark, depressing, despondent days after that defeat in 1992,” recalls Bush’s political director, Mary Matalin. “All we had to hold us together was Rush Limbaugh. And I can remember sitting in my apartment, by myself, day after day, for weeks on end, and [listening to Rush’s radio program] was a centerpiece of my day.” Matalin, who now hosts her own cable TV talk show, says Limbaugh was the “only voice in that huge defeat, in the arrogance of the Clintonistas rushing into town, that really kept us collected.”</p>
<p>William Buckley’s National Review proclaimed Rush “the leader of the opposition.” It wasn’t long before Newt Gingrich took notice, and he and Rush teamed up to become a heavyweight tag team body slamming the Democrats.</p>
<p>All the president’s men are dazed and confused. “I haven’t quite got it figured out,” admits Paul Begala. “I don’t know if it’s Gingrich working for Rush, or if it’s Rush working for Gingrich, but neither of them is working for America.”</p>
<p><a href="/commentary/ednote/1995/03/klein.html" type="external">As Mother Jones first reported</a>, Newt conspired to crush Clinton’s lobby reform bill. At the 11th hour, Gingrich suddenly objected to language in the bill that he himself had added, declaring that it would muzzle grassroots activists. He then faxed Limbaugh, who dutifully warned his dittoheads that the lobby bill was a plot to stifle free speech. By the next morning, congressional phones were ringing off the hook. A Republican filibuster in the Senate finally killed the bill.</p>
<p>When the Clintons unveiled their health care plan and dispatched a bus tour across the country to rally support, Limbaugh and other conservative talk show hosts put their listeners on red alert, announcing the tour schedule, urging protests, and reporting–often with on-scene phone calls–the resulting confrontations. The bus tour, which had been such an effective technique during the Clinton/Gore campaign, was a fiasco.</p>
<p>Similarly, Rush ambushed the president’s crime bill, which had seemed a sure winner. When Limbaugh denounced it as “social pork,” Republican strategist Bill Kristol was delighted. He furiously faxed memos to congressional Republicans, urging them to create gridlock and deny the Democrats any legislative victories during the ’94 campaign.</p>
<p>“I don’t think in the old days we would have had much of a chance,” admits Kristol. “The president of the United States said it was a crime bill. A fair number of state and local officials liked it because they got money from it. But Rush Limbaugh and several others were able to label it as pork.”</p>
<p>“You cannot underestimate, and you cannot overstate, the power of Rush Limbaugh,” insists Mary Matalin. “What he’s saying is sinking in out there.”</p>
<p>No wonder. Rush has the volume, and he’s mastered the language his listeners like to echo. Radio consultants even have a name for Rush’s format: “nonguested confrontation.” The host is free to pontificate, entertain, and intimidate to his heart’s content–with no guests and only a few heavily screened callers to challenge whatever he might say. And he repeats the format for half an hour each weekday on his nationally syndicated TV show. “No one has had this uncontested monologue of political advocacy in the history of U.S. television,” complains media watchdog Jeff Cohen of Fairness &amp; Accuracy in Reporting. “Never been heard of.”</p>
<p />
<p>Democrats are slowly, belatedly figuring out Rush. But they still don’t seem to have nailed his listeners. I regard Molly Ivins as a national treasure, like bluesman John Lee Hooker or the San Francisco 49ers. But she’s behind the curve about the typical Rush Limbaugh listener. Rush may be blaring from the AM radio in Bubba’s battered pickup as he bounces down some backwoods road on the way to an NRA meeting. But Bubba is only part of Rush’s audience. To get a better sense of Rush’s core followers, you have to look at his TV studio audience. There, Bubba would be a catfish out of water.</p>
<p>“Is this the best-looking audience in television or what?” Rush asks the adoring, cheering crowd in his New York studio. Most of them are white men–whiter than the Republican delegation in Congress–between the ages of 18 and 54. But they are not trailer park trash, survivalists in battle fatigues, or rednecked Klansmen. They are wearing suits, sports coats, and ties. A few are military men in dress uniform, clean-shaven and pink-cheeked. Women are welcome, as long as they behave. And on the surface anyway, these folks are not seething with anger and hatred. In fact, they appear to be happy, deliriously happy. And why not? Their side is winning.</p>
<p>So who are these people, and why are they listening to Rush? That’s what I set out to discover last summer when I began producing the documentary “Rush Limbaugh’s America” for the PBS series “Frontline.” We crisscrossed the country, interviewing self-proclaimed dittoheads–people who say “dittos, Rush” as a shorthand expression of praise and agreement with their favorite talk show host. It might reassure Democrats to think of Rush’s fans as poorly educated, gay-bashing morons. But dittoheads are not just marginalized hatemongers; they are a mainstream political force, and as such they are far more threatening.</p>
<p>A Times-Mirror survey last year split the right-wing electorate into three main groups: libertarians, moralists, and enterprisers. The enterprisers, who represent about 10 percent of American adults, are fiercely partisan Republicans who express the strongest anti-government, pro-business views. They hate taxes and regulations. They are suspicious of social welfare and the liberal media. They love Rush.</p>
<p>“The typical Limbaugh listener is a white male, suburbanite, conservative,” says Times-Mirror pollster Andrew Kohut. “Better-than-average job, but not really a great job. Frustrated with the system, with the way the world of Washington works. Frustrated by cultural change. Maybe threatened by women.”</p>
<p>These enterprising conservatives are salesmen, engineers, computer technicians, accountants, independent truckers, realtors, and owners of franchise food outlets. They want to make money. But they also tend to be civic-minded, and they vote. They are found in small towns and suburbs throughout the country, but the heart of “Limbaughland” is in the Midwest and the South, now the most populous region in the country.</p>
<p>If there is a quintessential Limbaugh listener, we found him in suburban Atlanta: a 33-year-old mortgage banker named B.J. Van Gundy. A graduate of Georgia Tech, a former bartender, Catholic, married, Van Gundy is a fiscal conservative who doesn’t want the Republican Party to get bogged down in battles over abortion or school prayer. He’s earnest, opinionated. He’s comfortable in his business suit, regularly whips out his cellular phone, and drives a Jeep Cherokee with a bumper sticker that reads: “Visualize No Liberals.”</p>
<p>Like all dittoheads, Van Gundy grimaces at the notion that he is the member of a cult. “Do I look robotic to you?” he asks. Well, a bit stiff perhaps, but a robot, no. “I think most of us out here listening to Rush like what he says because we already think these things. He’s just incredible at saying it.”</p>
<p>But what really seems to inspire Van Gundy is Limbaugh’s personal success: “He was a loser 10 or 12 years ago. He didn’t have two nickels to rub together. And for him to have done this is just phenomenal. I just want my turn next.”</p>
<p>Limbaugh’s fans are not country club Republicans. They are Kmart conservatives who consider Rush one of them, even if he did make $25 million over the last two years. Their demographics excite strategists like Bill Kristol, who sees in Rush a way to expand the Republicans’ base. “He’s a populist figure,” says Kristol. “The Republican Party has changed an awful lot from the days when George Herbert Walker Bush was the example of a Republican. Conservatism today represents the common sense of the American people.”</p>
<p />
<p>Rush’s singular achievement has been to destroy the notion that “funny conservative” is an oxymoron. There had been strident right-wing voices on radio before–Father Coughlin, Joe Pyne, Morton Downey Jr.–but they were mean-spirited and shrill. When KFBK-AM in Sacramento hired Rush in 1984, they were looking for a kinder, gentler conservative. Rush played the angry white guy with a sense of humor. It seems obvious now, but no one had tried it before.</p>
<p>Rush’s strength is that his humor and his conservatism both come naturally. Before there was Rush, there was Big Rush, his 300-pound father–a Goldwater Republican and “an imposing presence, physically and mentally,” according to Rush’s younger brother, David. “We were indoctrinated at an early age.”</p>
<p>But Rush inherited his prankish humor from his mother, Millie. While the Limbaugh men are beefy, Millie is Long Tall Sally. She hails from Arkansas, her parents were Democrats, and she set out to be a jazz singer. “I was paid to be a singer for about four months of my life,” she recalls with a smile, “and that’s been the biggest joy of my life, besides my family.”</p>
<p>When Rush, who always hated school, resisted his father’s pressure to follow in the family tradition and become a lawyer, Millie supported her son’s efforts to become a Top 40 disc jockey. “He got his good sense from his dad and his nonsense from me,” she says with a laugh.</p>
<p>At 16 Rush found his calling inside a booth, behind a microphone. He got an after-school show on a tiny radio station partly owned by his father. “It gave him a feeling of superiority,” Millie recalls, “and made him feel like King Tut.”</p>
<p>But Rush also bears the profound insecurity of a lonely, socially awkward fat boy who skipped his senior prom. He is still, acknowledges his brother, a man driven by old insecurities. The square, the nerd, the guy girls refused to kiss. His first two wives left him. David Limbaugh says it’s because his brother is “sedentary.” His mother confesses, “I can’t imagine what it would be like to be married to him,” and adds, “I think he needs a wife subservient to him.”</p>
<p>Today, behind a microphone in his “Excellence in Broadcasting” studio, speaking to America over 650 radio stations, Rush Limbaugh is still King Tut. Some analysts speculate that Limbaugh might be tempted to run for office. His fans sell “Limbaugh for President” bumper stickers. But I doubt he’ll ever risk it. Despite his immense popularity and political effectiveness, he remains an extreme, polarizing figure. And from what I observed of Limbaugh–he refused to be interviewed for either Mother Jones or for “Frontline”–he is simply too uncomfortable with people. Unlike Jack Kemp or Bill Clinton, Limbaugh hates to press flesh. He is a radio personality, magically transformed by a microphone, a man who prefers the security of his studio bubble to the uncontrolled environment of real life. Inside his bubble, Rush can make wild, unfounded assertions that would doom any politician. And he can avoid the debate that would deflate him in a campaign.</p>
<p>After six months of studying Rush Limbaugh, the image that lingers is of him at the freshman Republican orientation last December: A ponderously heavy man, sweating profusely, silent, uncomfortable, sitting alone in the midst of a noisy, celebratory crowd. At the moment of his political triumph, about to be honored by the Republican members of Congress who believe him responsible for their victory, Rush looks like a man who would rather be home on his couch channel-surfing. Then he rises, assumes his position behind the mike, and once again lacerates Clinton and warns Newt to hang tough. It makes me think of the Wizard of Oz, full of bluff and bluster, until Toto pulls back the curtain.</p>
<p>Stephen Talbot is a writer and documentary filmmaker. His report on the funding of the 1992 presidential campaign, “The Best Campaign Money Can Buy,” won a Dupont Award last year.</p>
<p /> | Wizard of Ooze | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/1995/05/wizard-ooze/ | 2018-05-01 | 4left
| Wizard of Ooze
<p />
<p>As we approach the millennium, this is the astonishing reality of American political life: A radio talk show host occupies center stage. Rush Limbaugh is an unlikely man for the role: a college dropout, fired from four radio jobs, twice divorced, obese, and insecure. Yet he has become one of the most influential forces in the country. Even his mother can’t believe it.</p>
<p>If you’re skeptical, too, talk to the 73 Republican freshmen. They attribute their stunning victory to Rush Limbaugh, citing polls that show people who listen to talk radio 10 hours or more per week voted Republican 3-to-1.</p>
<p>Limbaugh is the national precinct captain for the Republican Party. And he works the precinct hard, five days a week, three hours a day. Like an electronic ward boss, Limbaugh explains the issues, offers the conservative GOP spin, rallies the faithful, and turns out the voters. It is a virtuoso performance, his harangue leavened by bursts of rock ‘n’ roll, bad-boy jokes, and moments of self-deprecating humor. It was no mistake that the Republican freshmen anointed Rush the “majority-maker” and inducted him as an honorary member of the 104th Congress at their orientation last December.</p>
<p>Another guy who started out in radio, Ronald Reagan, recognized Limbaugh’s importance back in 1992, when he declared Rush “the number one voice for conservatism in our country.” But the Democrats have been in denial. Before the Republican landslide last November, Democratic strategists shrugged off Limbaugh’s clout. “People who listen to the radio in the morning are normal people,” declared Clinton political adviser Paul Begala. “People who listen to Limbaugh in the afternoon are has-been, shut-in malcontents. I don’t pay much attention to right-wing, foam-at-the-mouth radio because they just talk to each other. It’s 20 million people telling each other how they hate Hillary.” It’s also 20 million voters, energized and mobilized by Mr. Limbaugh, as a chastened Begala discovered.</p>
<p>Liberals and progressives have consistently misunderstood, ignored, and underestimated Rush Limbaugh and his 20 million fans. That’s fine, if you don’t mind waking up one day to find Phil Gramm in the White House and an occupying army of Newts on Capitol Hill. But if Democrats and what’s left of the Left have any intention of getting back in the game, their first step must be an accurate, clear-eyed assessment of Mr. Bombast and his loyal dittoheads.</p>
<p />
<p>When it comes to defining their enemy, Democrats are stuck in a time warp. They still criticize the in-your-face ranter who performed “caller abortions” on air, ridiculed “feminazis,” and mocked people dying of AIDS. These hurtful, offensive routines helped Rush build an audience of angry white males, but they also sparked protests.</p>
<p>During a 1990 guest appearance on the “Pat Sajak Show,” then CBS’ late-night program, Limbaugh was rattled by ACT UP hecklers. To restore order, the entire audience was ushered out and a dejected Limbaugh delivered his final words to an empty studio. A CBS executive said, “He came out full of bluster and left a very shaken man. I had never seen a man sweat as much in my life.”</p>
<p>Since then Rush has recalibrated his act. Recently, he criticized “anyone who takes pleasure” in the revelation that former Olympic diver Greg Louganis has AIDS. “It’s just sad,” he told his listeners. Rush will still resort to a fag joke now and then. He still makes fun of the homeless. He can still be reprehensible. But the new Rush is focused on partisan politics. His show is duller, more predictable, more strategic.</p>
<p>The transformation began in 1992 when the Bush campaign was shocked to learn how much political weight Limbaugh could throw around. In the New Hampshire primary, Rush endorsed Pat Buchanan, and the hard-line conservative scored 37 percent of the vote. The scared Bush team quickly invited Rush to spend the night at the White House and to join Marilyn Quayle in the vice president’s box at the GOP convention in Houston. Rush loyally denounced Ross Perot, who appealed to many of his own listeners, and he hit the campaign trail, introducing Bush at a “victory rally” in New Jersey.</p>
<p>Even Rush could not save Bush. But after Clinton’s victory, when conservatives were dispirited and leaderless, Rush played a crucial role, offering an optimistic voice that promised a conservative backlash. “I’ll never forget those dreary, dark, depressing, despondent days after that defeat in 1992,” recalls Bush’s political director, Mary Matalin. “All we had to hold us together was Rush Limbaugh. And I can remember sitting in my apartment, by myself, day after day, for weeks on end, and [listening to Rush’s radio program] was a centerpiece of my day.” Matalin, who now hosts her own cable TV talk show, says Limbaugh was the “only voice in that huge defeat, in the arrogance of the Clintonistas rushing into town, that really kept us collected.”</p>
<p>William Buckley’s National Review proclaimed Rush “the leader of the opposition.” It wasn’t long before Newt Gingrich took notice, and he and Rush teamed up to become a heavyweight tag team body slamming the Democrats.</p>
<p>All the president’s men are dazed and confused. “I haven’t quite got it figured out,” admits Paul Begala. “I don’t know if it’s Gingrich working for Rush, or if it’s Rush working for Gingrich, but neither of them is working for America.”</p>
<p><a href="/commentary/ednote/1995/03/klein.html" type="external">As Mother Jones first reported</a>, Newt conspired to crush Clinton’s lobby reform bill. At the 11th hour, Gingrich suddenly objected to language in the bill that he himself had added, declaring that it would muzzle grassroots activists. He then faxed Limbaugh, who dutifully warned his dittoheads that the lobby bill was a plot to stifle free speech. By the next morning, congressional phones were ringing off the hook. A Republican filibuster in the Senate finally killed the bill.</p>
<p>When the Clintons unveiled their health care plan and dispatched a bus tour across the country to rally support, Limbaugh and other conservative talk show hosts put their listeners on red alert, announcing the tour schedule, urging protests, and reporting–often with on-scene phone calls–the resulting confrontations. The bus tour, which had been such an effective technique during the Clinton/Gore campaign, was a fiasco.</p>
<p>Similarly, Rush ambushed the president’s crime bill, which had seemed a sure winner. When Limbaugh denounced it as “social pork,” Republican strategist Bill Kristol was delighted. He furiously faxed memos to congressional Republicans, urging them to create gridlock and deny the Democrats any legislative victories during the ’94 campaign.</p>
<p>“I don’t think in the old days we would have had much of a chance,” admits Kristol. “The president of the United States said it was a crime bill. A fair number of state and local officials liked it because they got money from it. But Rush Limbaugh and several others were able to label it as pork.”</p>
<p>“You cannot underestimate, and you cannot overstate, the power of Rush Limbaugh,” insists Mary Matalin. “What he’s saying is sinking in out there.”</p>
<p>No wonder. Rush has the volume, and he’s mastered the language his listeners like to echo. Radio consultants even have a name for Rush’s format: “nonguested confrontation.” The host is free to pontificate, entertain, and intimidate to his heart’s content–with no guests and only a few heavily screened callers to challenge whatever he might say. And he repeats the format for half an hour each weekday on his nationally syndicated TV show. “No one has had this uncontested monologue of political advocacy in the history of U.S. television,” complains media watchdog Jeff Cohen of Fairness &amp; Accuracy in Reporting. “Never been heard of.”</p>
<p />
<p>Democrats are slowly, belatedly figuring out Rush. But they still don’t seem to have nailed his listeners. I regard Molly Ivins as a national treasure, like bluesman John Lee Hooker or the San Francisco 49ers. But she’s behind the curve about the typical Rush Limbaugh listener. Rush may be blaring from the AM radio in Bubba’s battered pickup as he bounces down some backwoods road on the way to an NRA meeting. But Bubba is only part of Rush’s audience. To get a better sense of Rush’s core followers, you have to look at his TV studio audience. There, Bubba would be a catfish out of water.</p>
<p>“Is this the best-looking audience in television or what?” Rush asks the adoring, cheering crowd in his New York studio. Most of them are white men–whiter than the Republican delegation in Congress–between the ages of 18 and 54. But they are not trailer park trash, survivalists in battle fatigues, or rednecked Klansmen. They are wearing suits, sports coats, and ties. A few are military men in dress uniform, clean-shaven and pink-cheeked. Women are welcome, as long as they behave. And on the surface anyway, these folks are not seething with anger and hatred. In fact, they appear to be happy, deliriously happy. And why not? Their side is winning.</p>
<p>So who are these people, and why are they listening to Rush? That’s what I set out to discover last summer when I began producing the documentary “Rush Limbaugh’s America” for the PBS series “Frontline.” We crisscrossed the country, interviewing self-proclaimed dittoheads–people who say “dittos, Rush” as a shorthand expression of praise and agreement with their favorite talk show host. It might reassure Democrats to think of Rush’s fans as poorly educated, gay-bashing morons. But dittoheads are not just marginalized hatemongers; they are a mainstream political force, and as such they are far more threatening.</p>
<p>A Times-Mirror survey last year split the right-wing electorate into three main groups: libertarians, moralists, and enterprisers. The enterprisers, who represent about 10 percent of American adults, are fiercely partisan Republicans who express the strongest anti-government, pro-business views. They hate taxes and regulations. They are suspicious of social welfare and the liberal media. They love Rush.</p>
<p>“The typical Limbaugh listener is a white male, suburbanite, conservative,” says Times-Mirror pollster Andrew Kohut. “Better-than-average job, but not really a great job. Frustrated with the system, with the way the world of Washington works. Frustrated by cultural change. Maybe threatened by women.”</p>
<p>These enterprising conservatives are salesmen, engineers, computer technicians, accountants, independent truckers, realtors, and owners of franchise food outlets. They want to make money. But they also tend to be civic-minded, and they vote. They are found in small towns and suburbs throughout the country, but the heart of “Limbaughland” is in the Midwest and the South, now the most populous region in the country.</p>
<p>If there is a quintessential Limbaugh listener, we found him in suburban Atlanta: a 33-year-old mortgage banker named B.J. Van Gundy. A graduate of Georgia Tech, a former bartender, Catholic, married, Van Gundy is a fiscal conservative who doesn’t want the Republican Party to get bogged down in battles over abortion or school prayer. He’s earnest, opinionated. He’s comfortable in his business suit, regularly whips out his cellular phone, and drives a Jeep Cherokee with a bumper sticker that reads: “Visualize No Liberals.”</p>
<p>Like all dittoheads, Van Gundy grimaces at the notion that he is the member of a cult. “Do I look robotic to you?” he asks. Well, a bit stiff perhaps, but a robot, no. “I think most of us out here listening to Rush like what he says because we already think these things. He’s just incredible at saying it.”</p>
<p>But what really seems to inspire Van Gundy is Limbaugh’s personal success: “He was a loser 10 or 12 years ago. He didn’t have two nickels to rub together. And for him to have done this is just phenomenal. I just want my turn next.”</p>
<p>Limbaugh’s fans are not country club Republicans. They are Kmart conservatives who consider Rush one of them, even if he did make $25 million over the last two years. Their demographics excite strategists like Bill Kristol, who sees in Rush a way to expand the Republicans’ base. “He’s a populist figure,” says Kristol. “The Republican Party has changed an awful lot from the days when George Herbert Walker Bush was the example of a Republican. Conservatism today represents the common sense of the American people.”</p>
<p />
<p>Rush’s singular achievement has been to destroy the notion that “funny conservative” is an oxymoron. There had been strident right-wing voices on radio before–Father Coughlin, Joe Pyne, Morton Downey Jr.–but they were mean-spirited and shrill. When KFBK-AM in Sacramento hired Rush in 1984, they were looking for a kinder, gentler conservative. Rush played the angry white guy with a sense of humor. It seems obvious now, but no one had tried it before.</p>
<p>Rush’s strength is that his humor and his conservatism both come naturally. Before there was Rush, there was Big Rush, his 300-pound father–a Goldwater Republican and “an imposing presence, physically and mentally,” according to Rush’s younger brother, David. “We were indoctrinated at an early age.”</p>
<p>But Rush inherited his prankish humor from his mother, Millie. While the Limbaugh men are beefy, Millie is Long Tall Sally. She hails from Arkansas, her parents were Democrats, and she set out to be a jazz singer. “I was paid to be a singer for about four months of my life,” she recalls with a smile, “and that’s been the biggest joy of my life, besides my family.”</p>
<p>When Rush, who always hated school, resisted his father’s pressure to follow in the family tradition and become a lawyer, Millie supported her son’s efforts to become a Top 40 disc jockey. “He got his good sense from his dad and his nonsense from me,” she says with a laugh.</p>
<p>At 16 Rush found his calling inside a booth, behind a microphone. He got an after-school show on a tiny radio station partly owned by his father. “It gave him a feeling of superiority,” Millie recalls, “and made him feel like King Tut.”</p>
<p>But Rush also bears the profound insecurity of a lonely, socially awkward fat boy who skipped his senior prom. He is still, acknowledges his brother, a man driven by old insecurities. The square, the nerd, the guy girls refused to kiss. His first two wives left him. David Limbaugh says it’s because his brother is “sedentary.” His mother confesses, “I can’t imagine what it would be like to be married to him,” and adds, “I think he needs a wife subservient to him.”</p>
<p>Today, behind a microphone in his “Excellence in Broadcasting” studio, speaking to America over 650 radio stations, Rush Limbaugh is still King Tut. Some analysts speculate that Limbaugh might be tempted to run for office. His fans sell “Limbaugh for President” bumper stickers. But I doubt he’ll ever risk it. Despite his immense popularity and political effectiveness, he remains an extreme, polarizing figure. And from what I observed of Limbaugh–he refused to be interviewed for either Mother Jones or for “Frontline”–he is simply too uncomfortable with people. Unlike Jack Kemp or Bill Clinton, Limbaugh hates to press flesh. He is a radio personality, magically transformed by a microphone, a man who prefers the security of his studio bubble to the uncontrolled environment of real life. Inside his bubble, Rush can make wild, unfounded assertions that would doom any politician. And he can avoid the debate that would deflate him in a campaign.</p>
<p>After six months of studying Rush Limbaugh, the image that lingers is of him at the freshman Republican orientation last December: A ponderously heavy man, sweating profusely, silent, uncomfortable, sitting alone in the midst of a noisy, celebratory crowd. At the moment of his political triumph, about to be honored by the Republican members of Congress who believe him responsible for their victory, Rush looks like a man who would rather be home on his couch channel-surfing. Then he rises, assumes his position behind the mike, and once again lacerates Clinton and warns Newt to hang tough. It makes me think of the Wizard of Oz, full of bluff and bluster, until Toto pulls back the curtain.</p>
<p>Stephen Talbot is a writer and documentary filmmaker. His report on the funding of the 1992 presidential campaign, “The Best Campaign Money Can Buy,” won a Dupont Award last year.</p>
<p /> | 4,103 |
<p />
<p>Welcome to OnSale at FOXBusiness, where we look at cool deals and insane bargains. Best Buy is offering great deals on iPhone, and you can take your iPhone savings and accessorize the device with a case from Evouni. A last-minute hotel booking service now lets you gift a stay or two. Borrow books from friends, no matter what E-reading device you have, with this new cloud-based library. And&#160;before you take your holiday road trip you’ll want to download this app.iPhone DiscountBest Buy (NYSE:BBY) has some great savings on iPhone 4S and iPhone 5. The company is discounting the devices by $50 when you sign up for a 2-year contract. The offer is good for 16GB and 32GB models. Shipping is free through January 2, 2013. Best Buy is also promising a price match guarantee on qualifying products. If you find something at a competing retailer for less, and the item has a Low Price Guarantee badge at <a href="http://www.bestbuy.com" type="external">BestBuy.com Opens a New Window.</a> you can save the URL or print the offer and call the company or take it to your local Best Buy.&#160; If you decide to give an iPhone as a gift this year, you may want to check out this <a href="http://www.ahalife.com/product/2591/leather-iphone-stand-pouch/" type="external">great iPhone case Opens a New Window.</a>&#160; from Evouni. The leather case doubles as a holder so you can prop it up on your desk, vertically or horizontally. It comes in orange, blue, green and black and is priced at $60. Give HotelTonight <a href="http://www.hoteltonight.com" type="external">HotelTonight Opens a New Window.</a> now lets you give the gift of last-minute hotel deals. The service, which helps you find nearby unsold hotel rooms at rock-bottom prices, offers HT Credits in $25, $50, $100 and $250 increments. It's the perfect gift for your friends who are prone to spontaneous travel plans. And it's easy to access HotelTonight's discounts anywhere, anytime with the <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/app/id407690035?mt=8" type="external">app for iPhone Opens a New Window.</a> and <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hoteltonight.android.prod&amp;referrer=utm_campaign%3Dapp.net%26utm_medium%3Dapp.net%26utm_source%3Dapp.net" type="external">Android Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>You can search according to category, from a luxe suite to a new, trendy hotel. HotelTonight is available in cities across the country, and in major ski resorts, popular beaches and northern California's wine country. You can also book rooms internationally, in Canada, Belgium, Ireland, France, the Netherlands, Germany and the UK.&#160;Library Cloud&#160;</p>
<p>If you're looking for a good read this holiday season, a new company is revolutionizing the way we borrow books. Ownshelf lets you share E-books with your friends, no matter what device you use. It's based in the cloud so you can peruse friends' bookshelves, get recommendations and access your own collection from anywhere. And it's free! <a href="http://ownshelf.com/" type="external">Sign up Opens a New Window.</a> to join Ownshelf Beta at Ownshelf.comCar Trip AppIf you're planning to hit the road this holiday season, you'll want to check out the Roadtrippers app for iPhone. The free app allows you to set up your itinerary, create a must-see "bucket list", store locations and destinations and photos, descriptions and addresses, plus any contact numbers you may need. You can also get turn-by-turn directions with iOS 6. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/roadtrippers/id573012550?mt=8" type="external">Download it here Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>Know of a killer deal or insane bargain? Email the goods to [email protected], or follow us on Twitter&#160; <a href="http://www.twitter.com/OnSale_FOXBiz" type="external">http://www.twitter.com/OnSale_FOXBiz Opens a New Window.</a>&#160;and share the wealth.&#160;</p> | iPhone Discounts and an App for Roadtrips | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2012/12/12/on-sale-consumer-deals-websites-new-products-holiday-shopping-bargain.html | 2016-03-04 | 0right
| iPhone Discounts and an App for Roadtrips
<p />
<p>Welcome to OnSale at FOXBusiness, where we look at cool deals and insane bargains. Best Buy is offering great deals on iPhone, and you can take your iPhone savings and accessorize the device with a case from Evouni. A last-minute hotel booking service now lets you gift a stay or two. Borrow books from friends, no matter what E-reading device you have, with this new cloud-based library. And&#160;before you take your holiday road trip you’ll want to download this app.iPhone DiscountBest Buy (NYSE:BBY) has some great savings on iPhone 4S and iPhone 5. The company is discounting the devices by $50 when you sign up for a 2-year contract. The offer is good for 16GB and 32GB models. Shipping is free through January 2, 2013. Best Buy is also promising a price match guarantee on qualifying products. If you find something at a competing retailer for less, and the item has a Low Price Guarantee badge at <a href="http://www.bestbuy.com" type="external">BestBuy.com Opens a New Window.</a> you can save the URL or print the offer and call the company or take it to your local Best Buy.&#160; If you decide to give an iPhone as a gift this year, you may want to check out this <a href="http://www.ahalife.com/product/2591/leather-iphone-stand-pouch/" type="external">great iPhone case Opens a New Window.</a>&#160; from Evouni. The leather case doubles as a holder so you can prop it up on your desk, vertically or horizontally. It comes in orange, blue, green and black and is priced at $60. Give HotelTonight <a href="http://www.hoteltonight.com" type="external">HotelTonight Opens a New Window.</a> now lets you give the gift of last-minute hotel deals. The service, which helps you find nearby unsold hotel rooms at rock-bottom prices, offers HT Credits in $25, $50, $100 and $250 increments. It's the perfect gift for your friends who are prone to spontaneous travel plans. And it's easy to access HotelTonight's discounts anywhere, anytime with the <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/app/id407690035?mt=8" type="external">app for iPhone Opens a New Window.</a> and <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hoteltonight.android.prod&amp;referrer=utm_campaign%3Dapp.net%26utm_medium%3Dapp.net%26utm_source%3Dapp.net" type="external">Android Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>You can search according to category, from a luxe suite to a new, trendy hotel. HotelTonight is available in cities across the country, and in major ski resorts, popular beaches and northern California's wine country. You can also book rooms internationally, in Canada, Belgium, Ireland, France, the Netherlands, Germany and the UK.&#160;Library Cloud&#160;</p>
<p>If you're looking for a good read this holiday season, a new company is revolutionizing the way we borrow books. Ownshelf lets you share E-books with your friends, no matter what device you use. It's based in the cloud so you can peruse friends' bookshelves, get recommendations and access your own collection from anywhere. And it's free! <a href="http://ownshelf.com/" type="external">Sign up Opens a New Window.</a> to join Ownshelf Beta at Ownshelf.comCar Trip AppIf you're planning to hit the road this holiday season, you'll want to check out the Roadtrippers app for iPhone. The free app allows you to set up your itinerary, create a must-see "bucket list", store locations and destinations and photos, descriptions and addresses, plus any contact numbers you may need. You can also get turn-by-turn directions with iOS 6. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/roadtrippers/id573012550?mt=8" type="external">Download it here Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>Know of a killer deal or insane bargain? Email the goods to [email protected], or follow us on Twitter&#160; <a href="http://www.twitter.com/OnSale_FOXBiz" type="external">http://www.twitter.com/OnSale_FOXBiz Opens a New Window.</a>&#160;and share the wealth.&#160;</p> | 4,104 |
<p>ANAHEIM, Calif. – C.J. Cron has spent almost as much time in Salt Lake City as he has Anaheim in 2017.</p>
<p>He was sent down to the <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Los-Angeles-Angels/" type="external">Los Angeles Angels</a>‘ Triple-A affiliate at the end of April after driving in only three runs in 16 starts.</p>
<p>He was recalled in May, got six starts and was sent out again.</p>
<p>He was recalled in June, went 6-for-36 and was handed another boarding pass to the minors.</p>
<p>Now he hopes he’s back to stay.</p>
<p>Cron hit a pinch-hit, two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning Sunday, the first pinch-hit home run by the Angels in 2017, to give them a 4-3 win to salvage the last game of a series with the <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Tampa_Bay_Rays/" type="external">Tampa Bay Rays</a>.</p>
<p>Cron hit the first pitch he saw from Rays left-handed reliever Adam Kolarek, a line drive down the right-field line that was caught by a fan in the first row of seats. It was only his fifth at-bat since being recalled July 9.</p>
<p>“It’s been awhile since I had an at-bat, so I wanted to be aggressive when I got a chance,” Cron, a first-round pick in 2011, said. “It’s good to help the team win a game. It makes you feel like you are part of the team.”</p>
<p>The win was just the third in nine games for the Angels but their first in the second half of the season at a time when they were in danger of falling five games below .500 for the first time this year.</p>
<p>The right-handed-hitting Cron batted .278 with 16 home runs and 69 RBI last season, but his slow start forced the Angels to consider other options. For now, he’s in a platoon with left-handed hitter <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Luis_Valbuena/" type="external">Luis Valbuena</a>.</p>
<p>“It’s tough for any guy, young or old, when you get in maybe two games a week,” Angels manager <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Mike-Scioscia/" type="external">Mike Scioscia</a> said. “He made the most of his opportunity today. We’ve been looking for any kind of contribution from first base this season.”</p>
<p>Cron’s home run was the key moment, but the Angels had several on a day with a must-win feel.</p>
<p>Rookie Parker Bridwell, who has also been on the Salt Lake-Anaheim shuttle this season, went 6 1/3 innings, allowing six hits, one of them a two-run homer by <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Logan_Morrison/" type="external">Logan Morrison</a> (his 26th). He struck out a career-high eight before leaving the game.</p>
<p>Bridwell has held the opponent to two runs or less in five of his six starts this season and looks like he’s locked in a spot in the rotation. “This was the kind of effort I think I can repeat,” he said, “keep the hitters off-balance and throw my off-speed and fastballs for strikes.”</p>
<p><a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Albert_Pujols/" type="external">Albert Pujols</a> had a two-out RBI single, the first hit with a runner in scoring position by an Angel in their last 16 opportunities. They’re hitting .099 with runners in scoring position in their last 15 games.</p>
<p>Catcher Martin Maldonado also dropped a successful squeeze bunt that scored the second run.</p>
<p>The Rays scored a run and had the bases loaded in the ninth against closer <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Bud_Norris/" type="external">Bud Norris</a> when shortstop Andrelton Simmons made a nice pickup and relay of a hard-hit grounder by <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Tim-Beckham/" type="external">Tim Beckham</a> for a game-ending double play.</p>
<p>Simmons also had three hits.</p>
<p>The loss snapped Tampa Bay’s four-game winning streak, but manager <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Kevin_Cash/" type="external">Kevin Cash</a> still felt good after winning the series.</p>
<p>“We lost, which stinks, but it happens,” he said. “I just liked the way we responded in the ninth. I tip my cap to Simmons on that double play.”</p>
<p>Rays starter Chris Archer had an uncharacteristic day, walking three batters in the first two innings and five total in his six innings. It was the most walks he has allowed in a game since Cleveland had six on May 15. He has allowed three walks or less in 17 of his 20 starts this season.</p>
<p>“He didn’t have his usual command, obviously, but I thought he did a nice job battling,” Cash said. “He made several big pitches when he needed. I can’t complain about two runs in six innings.”</p>
<p>Tampa Bay’s <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Evan_Longoria/" type="external">Evan Longoria</a> had three hits to extend his hitting streak to nine. Morrison and Steve Souza Jr. had two each, with Souza extending his hitting streak to 12.</p>
<p>The Rays used three hits in the ninth against closer Bud Norris to trim the margin to a run on a Longoria double and singles by Morrison and Souza. Norris walked <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Brad_Miller/" type="external">Brad Miller</a> to load the bases but induced Beckham to hit into a game-ending double play.</p>
<p>NOTES: Angels RHP Parker Bridwell was recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake City to start. His demotion was a personnel maneuver to work around the All-Star break and he didn’t make an appearance with the Bees. … The Angels designated 2B <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Danny_Espinosa/" type="external">Danny Espinosa</a> for assignment. Acquired from Washington in an offseason trade, Espinosa hit .162 in 77 games with six home runs, 29 RBIs and 91 strikeouts in 228 at-bats. The Angeles will platoon Nick Franklin and <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Cliff_Pennington/" type="external">Cliff Pennington</a> at second base. … Rays C <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Wilson_Ramos/" type="external">Wilson Ramos</a> sat out his second game after suffering a slight strain in his hamstring in Friday’s win over the Angels. … INF Tim Beckham returned to the starting lineup after being activated from the DL. He was 1-for-4 with two strikeouts and is hitting .205 in his last 10 games.</p> | C.J. Cron's homer helps Los Angeles Angels beat Tampa Bay Rays | false | https://newsline.com/c-j-cron039s-homer-helps-los-angeles-angels-beat-tampa-bay-rays/ | 2017-07-16 | 1right-center
| C.J. Cron's homer helps Los Angeles Angels beat Tampa Bay Rays
<p>ANAHEIM, Calif. – C.J. Cron has spent almost as much time in Salt Lake City as he has Anaheim in 2017.</p>
<p>He was sent down to the <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Los-Angeles-Angels/" type="external">Los Angeles Angels</a>‘ Triple-A affiliate at the end of April after driving in only three runs in 16 starts.</p>
<p>He was recalled in May, got six starts and was sent out again.</p>
<p>He was recalled in June, went 6-for-36 and was handed another boarding pass to the minors.</p>
<p>Now he hopes he’s back to stay.</p>
<p>Cron hit a pinch-hit, two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning Sunday, the first pinch-hit home run by the Angels in 2017, to give them a 4-3 win to salvage the last game of a series with the <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Tampa_Bay_Rays/" type="external">Tampa Bay Rays</a>.</p>
<p>Cron hit the first pitch he saw from Rays left-handed reliever Adam Kolarek, a line drive down the right-field line that was caught by a fan in the first row of seats. It was only his fifth at-bat since being recalled July 9.</p>
<p>“It’s been awhile since I had an at-bat, so I wanted to be aggressive when I got a chance,” Cron, a first-round pick in 2011, said. “It’s good to help the team win a game. It makes you feel like you are part of the team.”</p>
<p>The win was just the third in nine games for the Angels but their first in the second half of the season at a time when they were in danger of falling five games below .500 for the first time this year.</p>
<p>The right-handed-hitting Cron batted .278 with 16 home runs and 69 RBI last season, but his slow start forced the Angels to consider other options. For now, he’s in a platoon with left-handed hitter <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Luis_Valbuena/" type="external">Luis Valbuena</a>.</p>
<p>“It’s tough for any guy, young or old, when you get in maybe two games a week,” Angels manager <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Mike-Scioscia/" type="external">Mike Scioscia</a> said. “He made the most of his opportunity today. We’ve been looking for any kind of contribution from first base this season.”</p>
<p>Cron’s home run was the key moment, but the Angels had several on a day with a must-win feel.</p>
<p>Rookie Parker Bridwell, who has also been on the Salt Lake-Anaheim shuttle this season, went 6 1/3 innings, allowing six hits, one of them a two-run homer by <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Logan_Morrison/" type="external">Logan Morrison</a> (his 26th). He struck out a career-high eight before leaving the game.</p>
<p>Bridwell has held the opponent to two runs or less in five of his six starts this season and looks like he’s locked in a spot in the rotation. “This was the kind of effort I think I can repeat,” he said, “keep the hitters off-balance and throw my off-speed and fastballs for strikes.”</p>
<p><a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Albert_Pujols/" type="external">Albert Pujols</a> had a two-out RBI single, the first hit with a runner in scoring position by an Angel in their last 16 opportunities. They’re hitting .099 with runners in scoring position in their last 15 games.</p>
<p>Catcher Martin Maldonado also dropped a successful squeeze bunt that scored the second run.</p>
<p>The Rays scored a run and had the bases loaded in the ninth against closer <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Bud_Norris/" type="external">Bud Norris</a> when shortstop Andrelton Simmons made a nice pickup and relay of a hard-hit grounder by <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Tim-Beckham/" type="external">Tim Beckham</a> for a game-ending double play.</p>
<p>Simmons also had three hits.</p>
<p>The loss snapped Tampa Bay’s four-game winning streak, but manager <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Kevin_Cash/" type="external">Kevin Cash</a> still felt good after winning the series.</p>
<p>“We lost, which stinks, but it happens,” he said. “I just liked the way we responded in the ninth. I tip my cap to Simmons on that double play.”</p>
<p>Rays starter Chris Archer had an uncharacteristic day, walking three batters in the first two innings and five total in his six innings. It was the most walks he has allowed in a game since Cleveland had six on May 15. He has allowed three walks or less in 17 of his 20 starts this season.</p>
<p>“He didn’t have his usual command, obviously, but I thought he did a nice job battling,” Cash said. “He made several big pitches when he needed. I can’t complain about two runs in six innings.”</p>
<p>Tampa Bay’s <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Evan_Longoria/" type="external">Evan Longoria</a> had three hits to extend his hitting streak to nine. Morrison and Steve Souza Jr. had two each, with Souza extending his hitting streak to 12.</p>
<p>The Rays used three hits in the ninth against closer Bud Norris to trim the margin to a run on a Longoria double and singles by Morrison and Souza. Norris walked <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Brad_Miller/" type="external">Brad Miller</a> to load the bases but induced Beckham to hit into a game-ending double play.</p>
<p>NOTES: Angels RHP Parker Bridwell was recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake City to start. His demotion was a personnel maneuver to work around the All-Star break and he didn’t make an appearance with the Bees. … The Angels designated 2B <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Danny_Espinosa/" type="external">Danny Espinosa</a> for assignment. Acquired from Washington in an offseason trade, Espinosa hit .162 in 77 games with six home runs, 29 RBIs and 91 strikeouts in 228 at-bats. The Angeles will platoon Nick Franklin and <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Cliff_Pennington/" type="external">Cliff Pennington</a> at second base. … Rays C <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Wilson_Ramos/" type="external">Wilson Ramos</a> sat out his second game after suffering a slight strain in his hamstring in Friday’s win over the Angels. … INF Tim Beckham returned to the starting lineup after being activated from the DL. He was 1-for-4 with two strikeouts and is hitting .205 in his last 10 games.</p> | 4,105 |
<p>FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Authorities say exposed human remains found at a Flint cemetery are believed to be of an infant buried in an unmarked gravesite.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2018/01/exposed_human_remains_found_in.html" type="external">The Flint Journal</a> reports officers found the remains on Friday afternoon in Gracelawn Cemetery.</p>
<p>Authorities have previously said the remains were not fresh.</p>
<p>Police say an investigate shows a wooden casket located in the ground where the body was found and believe the grave was unmarked.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: The Flint Journal, <a href="http://www.mlive.com/flint" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.mlive.com/flint" type="external">http://www.mlive.com/flint</a></p>
<p>FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Authorities say exposed human remains found at a Flint cemetery are believed to be of an infant buried in an unmarked gravesite.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2018/01/exposed_human_remains_found_in.html" type="external">The Flint Journal</a> reports officers found the remains on Friday afternoon in Gracelawn Cemetery.</p>
<p>Authorities have previously said the remains were not fresh.</p>
<p>Police say an investigate shows a wooden casket located in the ground where the body was found and believe the grave was unmarked.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: The Flint Journal, <a href="http://www.mlive.com/flint" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.mlive.com/flint" type="external">http://www.mlive.com/flint</a></p> | Police: Infant’s exposed remains found in Flint cemetery | false | https://apnews.com/2fa96adbf5754cf69ce942a0fe1f807b | 2018-01-21 | 2least
| Police: Infant’s exposed remains found in Flint cemetery
<p>FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Authorities say exposed human remains found at a Flint cemetery are believed to be of an infant buried in an unmarked gravesite.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2018/01/exposed_human_remains_found_in.html" type="external">The Flint Journal</a> reports officers found the remains on Friday afternoon in Gracelawn Cemetery.</p>
<p>Authorities have previously said the remains were not fresh.</p>
<p>Police say an investigate shows a wooden casket located in the ground where the body was found and believe the grave was unmarked.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: The Flint Journal, <a href="http://www.mlive.com/flint" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.mlive.com/flint" type="external">http://www.mlive.com/flint</a></p>
<p>FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Authorities say exposed human remains found at a Flint cemetery are believed to be of an infant buried in an unmarked gravesite.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2018/01/exposed_human_remains_found_in.html" type="external">The Flint Journal</a> reports officers found the remains on Friday afternoon in Gracelawn Cemetery.</p>
<p>Authorities have previously said the remains were not fresh.</p>
<p>Police say an investigate shows a wooden casket located in the ground where the body was found and believe the grave was unmarked.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: The Flint Journal, <a href="http://www.mlive.com/flint" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.mlive.com/flint" type="external">http://www.mlive.com/flint</a></p> | 4,106 |
<p>Published time: 8 Nov, 2017 20:05</p>
<p>Bitcoin has reached a new record high, surging 10 percent, and was trading at $7,888 on the Bitstamp exchange Wednesday after a controversial update to the cryptocurrency’s software was suspended.</p>
<p>The bitcoin rate dipped briefly Tuesday, falling below $7,000 due to uncertainty over a new code proposal, Segwit2x, which could have create a competing cryptocurrency, Bitcoin2x.</p>
<p>Read more</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/business/409174-bitcoin-speculative-bubble-roubini/" type="external" /></p>
<p>But after reports emerged Wednesday that Segwit2x had been suspended, the cryptocurrency resumed its surge, swiftly beating its previous record high of $7,601 and reaching $7,888.</p>
<p>“Our goal has always been a smooth upgrade for Bitcoin. Although we strongly believe in the need for a larger blocksize, there is something we believe is even more important: keeping the community together,” the developers of the Segwit2x upgrade said in an emailed statement, cited by <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurashin/2017/11/08/bitcoin-hard-fork-called-off-averting-major-disruptions-and-turbulence-in-cryptocurrency/#6a4c0de85303" type="external">Forbes</a> magazine.</p>
<p>“Unfortunately, it is clear that we have not built sufficient consensus for a clean blocksize upgrade at this time. Continuing on the current path could divide the community and be a setback to Bitcoin’s growth. This was never the goal of Segwit2x. We are suspending our plans for the upcoming 2MB upgrade,” it read.</p>
<p>Those who signed the statement included Mike Belshe, CEO of Bitcoin security company BitGo; Wences Casares, CEO of Bitcoin vault company Xapo; Jihan Wu, CEO of mining equipment manufacturer Bitmain; Jeff Garzik, CEO of blockchain enterprise company Bloq; Peter Smith, CEO of Bitcoin wallet and data company Blockchain; and Erik Voorhees, CEO of crypto-to-crypto exchange Shapeshift.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/business/409067-india-central-bank-rejects-bitcoin/" type="external">READ MORE: India’s central bank rejects bitcoin &amp; other cryptocurrencies as legal tender</a></p>
<p>Goldman Sachs experts predicted that Bitcoin prices will consolidate near the $8,000 mark for some time before continuing its surge, the <a href="https://futurism.com/goldman-sachs-bitcoin-consolidate-8000-before-rising-more/" type="external">CoinTelegraph</a> reported.</p> | Bitcoin hits record high of $7,888 after hard fork update suspended | false | https://newsline.com/bitcoin-hits-record-high-of-7888-after-hard-fork-update-suspended/ | 2017-11-08 | 1right-center
| Bitcoin hits record high of $7,888 after hard fork update suspended
<p>Published time: 8 Nov, 2017 20:05</p>
<p>Bitcoin has reached a new record high, surging 10 percent, and was trading at $7,888 on the Bitstamp exchange Wednesday after a controversial update to the cryptocurrency’s software was suspended.</p>
<p>The bitcoin rate dipped briefly Tuesday, falling below $7,000 due to uncertainty over a new code proposal, Segwit2x, which could have create a competing cryptocurrency, Bitcoin2x.</p>
<p>Read more</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/business/409174-bitcoin-speculative-bubble-roubini/" type="external" /></p>
<p>But after reports emerged Wednesday that Segwit2x had been suspended, the cryptocurrency resumed its surge, swiftly beating its previous record high of $7,601 and reaching $7,888.</p>
<p>“Our goal has always been a smooth upgrade for Bitcoin. Although we strongly believe in the need for a larger blocksize, there is something we believe is even more important: keeping the community together,” the developers of the Segwit2x upgrade said in an emailed statement, cited by <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurashin/2017/11/08/bitcoin-hard-fork-called-off-averting-major-disruptions-and-turbulence-in-cryptocurrency/#6a4c0de85303" type="external">Forbes</a> magazine.</p>
<p>“Unfortunately, it is clear that we have not built sufficient consensus for a clean blocksize upgrade at this time. Continuing on the current path could divide the community and be a setback to Bitcoin’s growth. This was never the goal of Segwit2x. We are suspending our plans for the upcoming 2MB upgrade,” it read.</p>
<p>Those who signed the statement included Mike Belshe, CEO of Bitcoin security company BitGo; Wences Casares, CEO of Bitcoin vault company Xapo; Jihan Wu, CEO of mining equipment manufacturer Bitmain; Jeff Garzik, CEO of blockchain enterprise company Bloq; Peter Smith, CEO of Bitcoin wallet and data company Blockchain; and Erik Voorhees, CEO of crypto-to-crypto exchange Shapeshift.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/business/409067-india-central-bank-rejects-bitcoin/" type="external">READ MORE: India’s central bank rejects bitcoin &amp; other cryptocurrencies as legal tender</a></p>
<p>Goldman Sachs experts predicted that Bitcoin prices will consolidate near the $8,000 mark for some time before continuing its surge, the <a href="https://futurism.com/goldman-sachs-bitcoin-consolidate-8000-before-rising-more/" type="external">CoinTelegraph</a> reported.</p> | 4,107 |
<p>TIDMTSCO</p>
<p>FORM 8.3</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>PUBLIC OPENING POSITION DISCLOSURE/DEALING DISCLOSURE BY</p>
<p>A PERSON WITH INTERESTS IN RELEVANT SECURITIES REPRESENTING 1% OR MORE</p>
<p>Rule 8.3 of the Takeover Code (the "Code")</p>
<p>1. KEY INFORMATION</p>
<p>(a) Full name of discloser: Invesco Ltd.</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>(b) Owner or controller of interests and short positions</p>
<p>disclosed, if different from 1(a):</p>
<p>The naming of nominee or vehicle companies is insufficient.</p>
<p>For a trust, the trustee(s), settlor and beneficiaries</p>
<p>must be named.</p>
<p>(c) Name of offeror/offeree in relation to whose relevant</p>
<p>securities this form relates: Tesco Plc.</p>
<p>Use a separate form for each offeror/offeree</p>
<p>(d) If an exempt fund manager connected with an offeror/offeree,</p>
<p>state this and specify identity of offeror/offeree:</p>
<p>(e) Date position held/dealing undertaken: 30 January 2018</p>
<p>For an opening position disclosure, state the latest</p>
<p>practicable date prior to the disclosure</p>
<p>(f) In addition to the company in 1(c) above, is the Yes: Booker Group Plc.</p>
<p>discloser making disclosures in respect of any other</p>
<p>party to the offer?</p>
<p>If it is a cash offer or possible cash offer, state</p>
<p>"N/A"</p>
<p>2. POSITIONS OF THE PERSON MAKING THE DISCLOSURE</p>
<p>If there are positions or rights to subscribe to disclose in more than</p>
<p>one class of relevant securities of the offeror or offeree named in 1(c),</p>
<p>copy table 2(a) or (b) (as appropriate) for each additional class of</p>
<p>relevant security.</p>
<p>1. Interests and short positions in the relevant securities of the offeror</p>
<p>or offeree to which the disclosure relates following the dealing (if any)</p>
<p>GB0008847096</p>
<p>Class of relevant security: 5p Ordinary</p>
<p>Interests Short positions</p>
<p>Number % Number %</p>
<p>(1) Relevant securities owned and/or controlled: 28,477,787 0.34%</p>
<p>(2) Cash-settled derivatives:</p>
<p>(3) Stock-settled derivatives (including options)</p>
<p>and agreements to purchase/sell:</p>
<p>TOTAL: 28,477,787 0.34%</p>
<p>All interests and all short positions should be disclosed.</p>
<p>Details of any open stock-settled derivative positions (including traded</p>
<p>options), or agreements to purchase or sell relevant securities, should</p>
<p>be given on a Supplemental Form 8 (Open Positions).</p>
<p>(b) Rights to subscribe for new securities (including directors'</p>
<p>and other employee options)</p>
<p>Class of relevant security in relation to which subscription</p>
<p>right exists:</p>
<p>Details, including nature of the rights concerned</p>
<p>and relevant percentages:</p>
<p>3. DEALINGS (IF ANY) BY THE PERSON MAKING THE DISCLOSURE</p>
<p>Where there have been dealings in more than one class of relevant</p>
<p>securities of the offeror or offeree named in 1(c), copy table 3(a), (b),</p>
<p>(c) or (d) (as appropriate) for each additional class of relevant</p>
<p>security dealt in.</p>
<p>The currency of all prices and other monetary amounts should be stated.</p>
<p>1. Purchases and sales</p>
<p>Class of relevant Purchase/sale Number of securities Price per unit</p>
<p>security</p>
<p>Ordinary Purchase 2,515,429 2.09 GBP</p>
<p>(b) Cash-settled derivative transactions</p>
<p>Class of Product description Nature of dealing Number of Price</p>
<p>relevant e.g. CFD e.g. opening/closing a long/short position, increasing/reducing reference per</p>
<p>security a long/short position securities unit</p>
<p>(c) Stock-settled derivative transactions (including options)</p>
<p>(i) Writing, selling, purchasing or varying</p>
<p>Class of Product Writing, Number of Exercise Type Expiry Option</p>
<p>relevant description purchasing, securities price e.g. American, European etc. date money</p>
<p>security e.g. call selling, to which per paid/</p>
<p>option varying option unit received</p>
<p>etc. relates per</p>
<p>unit</p>
<p>(ii) Exercise</p>
<p>Class of Product description Exercising/ Number of Exercise</p>
<p>relevant e.g. call option exercised securities price per</p>
<p>security against unit</p>
<p>(d) Other dealings (including subscribing for new securities)</p>
<p>Class of Nature of dealing Details Price per unit</p>
<p>relevant e.g. subscription, conversion (if</p>
<p>security applicable)</p>
<p>4. OTHER INFORMATION</p>
<p>(a) Indemnity and other dealing arrangements</p>
<p>Details of any indemnity or option arrangement, or</p>
<p>any agreement or understanding, formal or informal,</p>
<p>relating to relevant securities which may be an inducement</p>
<p>to deal or refrain from dealing entered into by the</p>
<p>person making the disclosure and any party to the</p>
<p>offer or any person acting in concert with a party</p>
<p>to the offer:</p>
<p>Irrevocable commitments and letters of intent should</p>
<p>not be included. If there are no such agreements,</p>
<p>arrangements or understandings, state "none"</p>
<p>None</p>
<p>(b) Agreements, arrangements or understandings relating to</p>
<p>options or derivatives</p>
<p>Details of any agreement, arrangement or understanding,</p>
<p>formal or informal, between the person making the</p>
<p>disclosure and any other person relating to:</p>
<p>(i) the voting rights of any relevant securities under</p>
<p>any option; or</p>
<p>(ii) the voting rights or future acquisition or disposal</p>
<p>of any relevant securities to which any derivative</p>
<p>is referenced:</p>
<p>If there are no such agreements, arrangements or understandings,</p>
<p>state "none"</p>
<p>None</p>
<p>(c) Attachments</p>
<p>Is a Supplemental Form 8 (Open Positions) attached? NO</p>
<p>Date of disclosure: 31 January 2018</p>
<p>Contact name: Philippa Holmes</p>
<p>Telephone number: 01491 417 447</p>
<p>Public disclosures under Rule 8 of the Code must be made to a Regulatory</p>
<p>Information Service and must also be emailed to the Takeover Panel at</p>
<p>[email protected]. The Panel's Market Surveillance Unit is</p>
<p>available for consultation in relation to the Code's disclosure</p>
<p>requirements on +44 (0)20 7638 0129.</p>
<p>The Code can be viewed on the Panel's website at</p>
<p>www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk.</p>
<p>This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf</p>
<p>of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients.</p>
<p>The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely</p>
<p>responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information</p>
<p>contained therein.</p>
<p>Source: Invesco Ltd. via Globenewswire</p>
<p>http://www.invescoperpetual.co.uk/</p>
<p>(END) Dow Jones Newswires</p>
<p>January 31, 2018 09:06 ET (14:06 GMT)</p> | Invesco UK Ltd Invesco Ltd. : Form 8.3 - Tesco Plc | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2017/09/26/invesco-uk-ltd-invesco-ltd-form-8-3-tesco-plc.html | 2018-01-31 | 0right
| Invesco UK Ltd Invesco Ltd. : Form 8.3 - Tesco Plc
<p>TIDMTSCO</p>
<p>FORM 8.3</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>PUBLIC OPENING POSITION DISCLOSURE/DEALING DISCLOSURE BY</p>
<p>A PERSON WITH INTERESTS IN RELEVANT SECURITIES REPRESENTING 1% OR MORE</p>
<p>Rule 8.3 of the Takeover Code (the "Code")</p>
<p>1. KEY INFORMATION</p>
<p>(a) Full name of discloser: Invesco Ltd.</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>(b) Owner or controller of interests and short positions</p>
<p>disclosed, if different from 1(a):</p>
<p>The naming of nominee or vehicle companies is insufficient.</p>
<p>For a trust, the trustee(s), settlor and beneficiaries</p>
<p>must be named.</p>
<p>(c) Name of offeror/offeree in relation to whose relevant</p>
<p>securities this form relates: Tesco Plc.</p>
<p>Use a separate form for each offeror/offeree</p>
<p>(d) If an exempt fund manager connected with an offeror/offeree,</p>
<p>state this and specify identity of offeror/offeree:</p>
<p>(e) Date position held/dealing undertaken: 30 January 2018</p>
<p>For an opening position disclosure, state the latest</p>
<p>practicable date prior to the disclosure</p>
<p>(f) In addition to the company in 1(c) above, is the Yes: Booker Group Plc.</p>
<p>discloser making disclosures in respect of any other</p>
<p>party to the offer?</p>
<p>If it is a cash offer or possible cash offer, state</p>
<p>"N/A"</p>
<p>2. POSITIONS OF THE PERSON MAKING THE DISCLOSURE</p>
<p>If there are positions or rights to subscribe to disclose in more than</p>
<p>one class of relevant securities of the offeror or offeree named in 1(c),</p>
<p>copy table 2(a) or (b) (as appropriate) for each additional class of</p>
<p>relevant security.</p>
<p>1. Interests and short positions in the relevant securities of the offeror</p>
<p>or offeree to which the disclosure relates following the dealing (if any)</p>
<p>GB0008847096</p>
<p>Class of relevant security: 5p Ordinary</p>
<p>Interests Short positions</p>
<p>Number % Number %</p>
<p>(1) Relevant securities owned and/or controlled: 28,477,787 0.34%</p>
<p>(2) Cash-settled derivatives:</p>
<p>(3) Stock-settled derivatives (including options)</p>
<p>and agreements to purchase/sell:</p>
<p>TOTAL: 28,477,787 0.34%</p>
<p>All interests and all short positions should be disclosed.</p>
<p>Details of any open stock-settled derivative positions (including traded</p>
<p>options), or agreements to purchase or sell relevant securities, should</p>
<p>be given on a Supplemental Form 8 (Open Positions).</p>
<p>(b) Rights to subscribe for new securities (including directors'</p>
<p>and other employee options)</p>
<p>Class of relevant security in relation to which subscription</p>
<p>right exists:</p>
<p>Details, including nature of the rights concerned</p>
<p>and relevant percentages:</p>
<p>3. DEALINGS (IF ANY) BY THE PERSON MAKING THE DISCLOSURE</p>
<p>Where there have been dealings in more than one class of relevant</p>
<p>securities of the offeror or offeree named in 1(c), copy table 3(a), (b),</p>
<p>(c) or (d) (as appropriate) for each additional class of relevant</p>
<p>security dealt in.</p>
<p>The currency of all prices and other monetary amounts should be stated.</p>
<p>1. Purchases and sales</p>
<p>Class of relevant Purchase/sale Number of securities Price per unit</p>
<p>security</p>
<p>Ordinary Purchase 2,515,429 2.09 GBP</p>
<p>(b) Cash-settled derivative transactions</p>
<p>Class of Product description Nature of dealing Number of Price</p>
<p>relevant e.g. CFD e.g. opening/closing a long/short position, increasing/reducing reference per</p>
<p>security a long/short position securities unit</p>
<p>(c) Stock-settled derivative transactions (including options)</p>
<p>(i) Writing, selling, purchasing or varying</p>
<p>Class of Product Writing, Number of Exercise Type Expiry Option</p>
<p>relevant description purchasing, securities price e.g. American, European etc. date money</p>
<p>security e.g. call selling, to which per paid/</p>
<p>option varying option unit received</p>
<p>etc. relates per</p>
<p>unit</p>
<p>(ii) Exercise</p>
<p>Class of Product description Exercising/ Number of Exercise</p>
<p>relevant e.g. call option exercised securities price per</p>
<p>security against unit</p>
<p>(d) Other dealings (including subscribing for new securities)</p>
<p>Class of Nature of dealing Details Price per unit</p>
<p>relevant e.g. subscription, conversion (if</p>
<p>security applicable)</p>
<p>4. OTHER INFORMATION</p>
<p>(a) Indemnity and other dealing arrangements</p>
<p>Details of any indemnity or option arrangement, or</p>
<p>any agreement or understanding, formal or informal,</p>
<p>relating to relevant securities which may be an inducement</p>
<p>to deal or refrain from dealing entered into by the</p>
<p>person making the disclosure and any party to the</p>
<p>offer or any person acting in concert with a party</p>
<p>to the offer:</p>
<p>Irrevocable commitments and letters of intent should</p>
<p>not be included. If there are no such agreements,</p>
<p>arrangements or understandings, state "none"</p>
<p>None</p>
<p>(b) Agreements, arrangements or understandings relating to</p>
<p>options or derivatives</p>
<p>Details of any agreement, arrangement or understanding,</p>
<p>formal or informal, between the person making the</p>
<p>disclosure and any other person relating to:</p>
<p>(i) the voting rights of any relevant securities under</p>
<p>any option; or</p>
<p>(ii) the voting rights or future acquisition or disposal</p>
<p>of any relevant securities to which any derivative</p>
<p>is referenced:</p>
<p>If there are no such agreements, arrangements or understandings,</p>
<p>state "none"</p>
<p>None</p>
<p>(c) Attachments</p>
<p>Is a Supplemental Form 8 (Open Positions) attached? NO</p>
<p>Date of disclosure: 31 January 2018</p>
<p>Contact name: Philippa Holmes</p>
<p>Telephone number: 01491 417 447</p>
<p>Public disclosures under Rule 8 of the Code must be made to a Regulatory</p>
<p>Information Service and must also be emailed to the Takeover Panel at</p>
<p>[email protected]. The Panel's Market Surveillance Unit is</p>
<p>available for consultation in relation to the Code's disclosure</p>
<p>requirements on +44 (0)20 7638 0129.</p>
<p>The Code can be viewed on the Panel's website at</p>
<p>www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk.</p>
<p>This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf</p>
<p>of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients.</p>
<p>The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely</p>
<p>responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information</p>
<p>contained therein.</p>
<p>Source: Invesco Ltd. via Globenewswire</p>
<p>http://www.invescoperpetual.co.uk/</p>
<p>(END) Dow Jones Newswires</p>
<p>January 31, 2018 09:06 ET (14:06 GMT)</p> | 4,108 |
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p>MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Activists claiming an imbalance in economic and social equality prayed, rallied and marched in Memphis on Tuesday, the 49th anniversary of the assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.</p>
<p>Hundreds of supporters of the Black Lives Matter and Fight for $15 movements demanded higher wages and equal rights as they walked more than a mile (1.6 kilometers), from Memphis City Hall to the National Civil Rights Museum.</p>
<p>The museum is at the site of the former Lorraine Motel. King was standing on the motel’s balcony when he was shot down by a sniper’s bullet on April 4, 1968. He was in the midst of his “Poor People’s Campaign” when he came to Memphis to support striking sanitation workers seeking better pay, safer working conditions and union rights.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Led by a 220-piece band from Talladega College in Alabama, marchers chanted “This is what democracy looks like” and held signs saying “I Am A Man.” Some wore T-shirts emblazoned with the words “Show Me $15. Real Change. No Pennies.”</p>
<p>The Fight for $15 group wants a higher hourly minimum wage for low-pay workers, including fast food employees and home and child care workers. The Black Lives Matter movement developed after the deaths of unarmed black men during confrontations with white police officers and has waged protests throughout the country.</p>
<p>Marchers also came from Arkansas and Missouri to join their Tennessee colleagues. Police did not immediately have an estimate of the number of marchers who participated.</p>
<p>Renita Moore, a 54-year-old nursing assistant from St. Louis, said raising the minimum wage is important because her cost of living keeps going up.</p>
<p>“We’ve all come together as one,” Moore said. “It’s very important that we stick together, stand together and fight together.”</p>
<p>The march was one of many King-related events in Memphis.</p>
<p>Earlier Tuesday, more than 200 people gathered at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church to hear the Rev. Jesse Jackson and the Rev. William Barber talk about how King’s fight for economic and racial equality and social justice is far from over.</p>
<p>A vocalist belted out a religious hymn and another song, “The Impossible Dream,” and attendees held hands in prayer.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Barber, known for his firebrand public speaking style, called for those seeking progress on social and economic issues affecting poor people to help register more blacks voters and engage in “civil disobedience.”</p>
<p>The pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church in Goldsboro, North Carolina, was critical of President Donald Trump, including his effort to suspend new visas for people in six Muslim-majority countries. He called Trump a “narcissistic tweeter.”</p>
<p>“We are not those who believe the terrible lies that the best way to better America is to attack public education and attack Muslims and attack immigrants and attack living wages,” said Barber, progressively raising his voice. “How in the world can America attack refugees when we sing ‘God bless America, shed his grace on us,’ but we don’t have grace for immigrants? That’s contradictory to everything we say we believe.”</p>
<p>Then, he added: “We are the crowd that believes in justice and love and mercy and goodness and hope, the common good, the general welfare. We believe ‘liberal’ is a good word, and ‘conservative’ is a good word.”</p>
<p>Outside the church, Sharon Johnson, 60, said she came to the rally to honor King’s memory.</p>
<p>“He came from the right place in his heart, believing that all people are equal, that everyone should be treated with respect, that people deserve equal pay for their work,” said Johnson, a pharmacy technician. “He sacrificed his life to make that happen.”</p>
<p>Rallies also were scheduled in Florida, California, Illinois, Massachusetts and Michigan. In Boston, dozens of people marched through the Boston Common to call for less racism and a higher minimum wage. Marchers held a moment of silence at 6:01 p.m. Central Time to mark when King was shot.</p> | Marchers demand equality on anniversary of MLK’s death | false | https://abqjournal.com/982390/rally-in-memphis-for-equality-on-anniversary-of-mlks-death.html | 2017-04-04 | 2least
| Marchers demand equality on anniversary of MLK’s death
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p>MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Activists claiming an imbalance in economic and social equality prayed, rallied and marched in Memphis on Tuesday, the 49th anniversary of the assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.</p>
<p>Hundreds of supporters of the Black Lives Matter and Fight for $15 movements demanded higher wages and equal rights as they walked more than a mile (1.6 kilometers), from Memphis City Hall to the National Civil Rights Museum.</p>
<p>The museum is at the site of the former Lorraine Motel. King was standing on the motel’s balcony when he was shot down by a sniper’s bullet on April 4, 1968. He was in the midst of his “Poor People’s Campaign” when he came to Memphis to support striking sanitation workers seeking better pay, safer working conditions and union rights.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Led by a 220-piece band from Talladega College in Alabama, marchers chanted “This is what democracy looks like” and held signs saying “I Am A Man.” Some wore T-shirts emblazoned with the words “Show Me $15. Real Change. No Pennies.”</p>
<p>The Fight for $15 group wants a higher hourly minimum wage for low-pay workers, including fast food employees and home and child care workers. The Black Lives Matter movement developed after the deaths of unarmed black men during confrontations with white police officers and has waged protests throughout the country.</p>
<p>Marchers also came from Arkansas and Missouri to join their Tennessee colleagues. Police did not immediately have an estimate of the number of marchers who participated.</p>
<p>Renita Moore, a 54-year-old nursing assistant from St. Louis, said raising the minimum wage is important because her cost of living keeps going up.</p>
<p>“We’ve all come together as one,” Moore said. “It’s very important that we stick together, stand together and fight together.”</p>
<p>The march was one of many King-related events in Memphis.</p>
<p>Earlier Tuesday, more than 200 people gathered at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church to hear the Rev. Jesse Jackson and the Rev. William Barber talk about how King’s fight for economic and racial equality and social justice is far from over.</p>
<p>A vocalist belted out a religious hymn and another song, “The Impossible Dream,” and attendees held hands in prayer.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Barber, known for his firebrand public speaking style, called for those seeking progress on social and economic issues affecting poor people to help register more blacks voters and engage in “civil disobedience.”</p>
<p>The pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church in Goldsboro, North Carolina, was critical of President Donald Trump, including his effort to suspend new visas for people in six Muslim-majority countries. He called Trump a “narcissistic tweeter.”</p>
<p>“We are not those who believe the terrible lies that the best way to better America is to attack public education and attack Muslims and attack immigrants and attack living wages,” said Barber, progressively raising his voice. “How in the world can America attack refugees when we sing ‘God bless America, shed his grace on us,’ but we don’t have grace for immigrants? That’s contradictory to everything we say we believe.”</p>
<p>Then, he added: “We are the crowd that believes in justice and love and mercy and goodness and hope, the common good, the general welfare. We believe ‘liberal’ is a good word, and ‘conservative’ is a good word.”</p>
<p>Outside the church, Sharon Johnson, 60, said she came to the rally to honor King’s memory.</p>
<p>“He came from the right place in his heart, believing that all people are equal, that everyone should be treated with respect, that people deserve equal pay for their work,” said Johnson, a pharmacy technician. “He sacrificed his life to make that happen.”</p>
<p>Rallies also were scheduled in Florida, California, Illinois, Massachusetts and Michigan. In Boston, dozens of people marched through the Boston Common to call for less racism and a higher minimum wage. Marchers held a moment of silence at 6:01 p.m. Central Time to mark when King was shot.</p> | 4,109 |
<p>Broadcaster Katie Couric once said that Matt Lauer “pinches me on the ass a lot” during their time working together on NBC’s “Today,” according to <a href="http://www.tmz.com/2017/11/29/katie-couric-today-show-matt-lauer-sexual-harassment-allegations/?adid=hero1" type="external">TMZ</a>.</p>
<p>TMZ on Wednesday reported that Couric made the remark during a 2012 interview on Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live.”</p>
<p>“You co-hosted ‘The Today Show’ with Matt Lauer for 15 years. What is Matt’s most annoying habit?” host Andy Cohen asked Couric.</p>
<p>RELATED: <a href="" type="internal">NBC News fired Matt Lauer for 'inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace'</a></p>
<p>“Um, he pinches me on the a—a lot,” she said after a pause, eliciting laughter from Cohen and others listening.</p>
<p>“Wow, I wouldn’t have a problem with that,” Cohen retorted. “Thanks everybody. Thank you. Katie Couric did not plead the Fifth.”</p>
<p>Couric co-hosted “Today” alongside Lauer from 1991 to 2006, and the veteran journalist has also appeared extensively on other NBC broadcasts in the past.</p>
<p>Savannah Guthrie, a current “Today” co-host, earlier Wednesday announced that NBC News had fired Lauer for “inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace.”</p>
<p>The broadcaster then read a memo from NBC News Chairman Andrew Lack explaining Lauer’s abrupt termination.</p>
<p>“Dear colleagues, on Monday night, we received a detailed complaint from a colleague about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace by Matt Lauer,” she read from Lack’s statement.</p>
<p>“It represented, after serious review, a clear violation of our company’s standards,” Guthrie continued. “As a result, we’ve decided to terminate his employment.”</p>
<p>“While it is the first complaint about his behavior in the over twenty years he’s been at NBC News, we were also presented with reason to believe this may not have been an isolated incident.”</p>
<p>Lauer began co-hosting “Today” in 1997, and he was a marquee name associated with NBC News prior to his ouster.</p>
<p>Variety reported last year that Lauer had extended his contract with NBC News through 2018 for $20 million annually.</p>
<p>Lauer is the latest male celebrity who has faced backlash for alleged sexual misconduct this year amid renewed global focus on the issue.</p> | Katie Couric said Matt Lauer 'pinches me on the ass a lot' in a 2012 interview | false | https://circa.com/story/2017/11/29/nation/katie-couric-in-2012-matt-lauer-pinches-me-on-the-a-a-lot | 2017-11-29 | 1right-center
| Katie Couric said Matt Lauer 'pinches me on the ass a lot' in a 2012 interview
<p>Broadcaster Katie Couric once said that Matt Lauer “pinches me on the ass a lot” during their time working together on NBC’s “Today,” according to <a href="http://www.tmz.com/2017/11/29/katie-couric-today-show-matt-lauer-sexual-harassment-allegations/?adid=hero1" type="external">TMZ</a>.</p>
<p>TMZ on Wednesday reported that Couric made the remark during a 2012 interview on Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live.”</p>
<p>“You co-hosted ‘The Today Show’ with Matt Lauer for 15 years. What is Matt’s most annoying habit?” host Andy Cohen asked Couric.</p>
<p>RELATED: <a href="" type="internal">NBC News fired Matt Lauer for 'inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace'</a></p>
<p>“Um, he pinches me on the a—a lot,” she said after a pause, eliciting laughter from Cohen and others listening.</p>
<p>“Wow, I wouldn’t have a problem with that,” Cohen retorted. “Thanks everybody. Thank you. Katie Couric did not plead the Fifth.”</p>
<p>Couric co-hosted “Today” alongside Lauer from 1991 to 2006, and the veteran journalist has also appeared extensively on other NBC broadcasts in the past.</p>
<p>Savannah Guthrie, a current “Today” co-host, earlier Wednesday announced that NBC News had fired Lauer for “inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace.”</p>
<p>The broadcaster then read a memo from NBC News Chairman Andrew Lack explaining Lauer’s abrupt termination.</p>
<p>“Dear colleagues, on Monday night, we received a detailed complaint from a colleague about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace by Matt Lauer,” she read from Lack’s statement.</p>
<p>“It represented, after serious review, a clear violation of our company’s standards,” Guthrie continued. “As a result, we’ve decided to terminate his employment.”</p>
<p>“While it is the first complaint about his behavior in the over twenty years he’s been at NBC News, we were also presented with reason to believe this may not have been an isolated incident.”</p>
<p>Lauer began co-hosting “Today” in 1997, and he was a marquee name associated with NBC News prior to his ouster.</p>
<p>Variety reported last year that Lauer had extended his contract with NBC News through 2018 for $20 million annually.</p>
<p>Lauer is the latest male celebrity who has faced backlash for alleged sexual misconduct this year amid renewed global focus on the issue.</p> | 4,110 |
<p>Savings bonds are popular gifts for young children, and grandparents often see a savings bond as a great way to make a long-term investment in their grandchild's future. In some cases, though, parents will want to use savings bond proceeds while their child is still a minor. In that case, the parent needs to follow U.S. Treasury procedures to cash in the bond.</p>
<p>Requirements for cashing in a child's savings bondThe Treasury differentiates between paper savings bonds and bonds that are in electronic form. For paper bonds, the Treasury allows parents to redeem a child's bonds if two conditions are met. First, the child must be too young to sign the request for payment. Second, the child must live with the parent, or the parent must have legal custody of the child.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>To redeem the bond, the <a href="https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/research/indepth/ebonds/res_e_bonds_eeredeem_special.htm" type="external">Treasury advises that you write specific language Opens a New Window.</a> on the back of the bond and sign it as parent on behalf of the child. The language is as follows:</p>
<p>"I certify that I am the parent of [child's name]. [Child's name] resides with me / I have been granted legal custody of [child's name]. [She/he] is __ years old and is not of sufficient understanding to make this request."</p>
<p>If the parent takes the bond to a local financial institution that is willing to redeem it for the parent, then the institution can make payment directly to the parent. If the local financial institution won't redeem the bond, then the parent must have the signature guaranteed or certified and then must send the bond to the Treasury Retail Securities Site. You can get more details at the <a href="https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/research/indepth/ebonds/res_e_bonds_eeredeem_special.htm" type="external">Treasury website</a>.</p>
<p>Electronic bondsFor electronic bonds held in a TreasuryDirect account, different rules apply. Typically, bonds held for a minor are held in a special minor's account over which the parent will have authority. The TreasuryDirect system will allow you to view the child's bonds and select redemption options for cashing bonds in either in part or in full.</p>
<p>With a minor's account, most of the administrative work is done at the beginning when you first set up the account. Therefore, as long as you've set things up correctly, it can be a lot easier for a parent to redeem a child's savings bond electronically. However, any changes can complicate the process and require multiple actions to get your bonds cashed in.</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>Savings bonds can be a great introduction to long-term saving. But if you need to cash them in to pay for the child's needs, then parents can generally find a way to get the job done with a little legwork.</p>
<p>This article is part of The Motley Fool's Knowledge Center, which was created based on the collected wisdom of a fantastic community of investors. We'd love to hear your questions, thoughts, and opinions on the Knowledge Center in general or this page in particular. Your input will help us help the world invest, better! Email us at <a href="http://mailto:[email protected]?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">[email protected] Opens a New Window.</a>. Thanks -- and Fool on!</p>
<p>The article <a href="http://www.fool.com/knowledge-center/2016/03/26/can-i-cash-my-childs-savings-bonds.aspx" type="external">Can I Cash My Child's Savings Bonds? Opens a New Window.</a> originally appeared on Fool.com.</p>
<p>Try any of our Foolish newsletter services <a href="http://www.fool.com/shop/newsletters/index.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">free for 30 days Opens a New Window.</a>. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that <a href="http://wiki.fool.com/Motley?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">considering a diverse range of insights Opens a New Window.</a> makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/help/index.htm?display=about02" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> | Can I Cash My Child's Savings Bonds? | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/03/26/can-cash-my-child-savings-bonds.html | 2016-03-27 | 0right
| Can I Cash My Child's Savings Bonds?
<p>Savings bonds are popular gifts for young children, and grandparents often see a savings bond as a great way to make a long-term investment in their grandchild's future. In some cases, though, parents will want to use savings bond proceeds while their child is still a minor. In that case, the parent needs to follow U.S. Treasury procedures to cash in the bond.</p>
<p>Requirements for cashing in a child's savings bondThe Treasury differentiates between paper savings bonds and bonds that are in electronic form. For paper bonds, the Treasury allows parents to redeem a child's bonds if two conditions are met. First, the child must be too young to sign the request for payment. Second, the child must live with the parent, or the parent must have legal custody of the child.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>To redeem the bond, the <a href="https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/research/indepth/ebonds/res_e_bonds_eeredeem_special.htm" type="external">Treasury advises that you write specific language Opens a New Window.</a> on the back of the bond and sign it as parent on behalf of the child. The language is as follows:</p>
<p>"I certify that I am the parent of [child's name]. [Child's name] resides with me / I have been granted legal custody of [child's name]. [She/he] is __ years old and is not of sufficient understanding to make this request."</p>
<p>If the parent takes the bond to a local financial institution that is willing to redeem it for the parent, then the institution can make payment directly to the parent. If the local financial institution won't redeem the bond, then the parent must have the signature guaranteed or certified and then must send the bond to the Treasury Retail Securities Site. You can get more details at the <a href="https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/research/indepth/ebonds/res_e_bonds_eeredeem_special.htm" type="external">Treasury website</a>.</p>
<p>Electronic bondsFor electronic bonds held in a TreasuryDirect account, different rules apply. Typically, bonds held for a minor are held in a special minor's account over which the parent will have authority. The TreasuryDirect system will allow you to view the child's bonds and select redemption options for cashing bonds in either in part or in full.</p>
<p>With a minor's account, most of the administrative work is done at the beginning when you first set up the account. Therefore, as long as you've set things up correctly, it can be a lot easier for a parent to redeem a child's savings bond electronically. However, any changes can complicate the process and require multiple actions to get your bonds cashed in.</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>Savings bonds can be a great introduction to long-term saving. But if you need to cash them in to pay for the child's needs, then parents can generally find a way to get the job done with a little legwork.</p>
<p>This article is part of The Motley Fool's Knowledge Center, which was created based on the collected wisdom of a fantastic community of investors. We'd love to hear your questions, thoughts, and opinions on the Knowledge Center in general or this page in particular. Your input will help us help the world invest, better! Email us at <a href="http://mailto:[email protected]?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">[email protected] Opens a New Window.</a>. Thanks -- and Fool on!</p>
<p>The article <a href="http://www.fool.com/knowledge-center/2016/03/26/can-i-cash-my-childs-savings-bonds.aspx" type="external">Can I Cash My Child's Savings Bonds? Opens a New Window.</a> originally appeared on Fool.com.</p>
<p>Try any of our Foolish newsletter services <a href="http://www.fool.com/shop/newsletters/index.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">free for 30 days Opens a New Window.</a>. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that <a href="http://wiki.fool.com/Motley?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">considering a diverse range of insights Opens a New Window.</a> makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/help/index.htm?display=about02" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> | 4,111 |
<p>“Taft is a fathead.” (Theodore Roosevelt, 1912)</p>
<p>The anti-gay blog QueerHunt has just launched an expose that General David Petraeus is gay and has a secret Arab boyfriend he periodically meets in a Dubai hotel. The young man goes by the code name ‘awrence, an apparent reference to how T. E. Lawrence was known by his beloved Arab boys.</p>
<p>Just imagine the legs this will get in the blogosphere.</p>
<p>But wait. There is no blog called QueerHunt (that I know of) and I just batted out the lead paragraph above on my keyboard. I totally made it up. But in this freaky world we live in, it’s now a meme out there for any nutcase with a blog to run with.</p>
<p>My apologies to General Petraeus for abusing him to make a point, but there’s really no difference between this hypothetical scenario and the absurdity that 18% of Americans and 31% of Republicans think President Barack Obama is a Muslim.</p>
<p>You have a supposedly educated man like Franklin Graham suggesting Islam is passed via a man’s semen from one generation to another. Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell was asked on “Meet The Press” if he thought Obama was a Muslim, and, with a flick of his snake tongue, he said, “I take him at his word” that he is a Christian.</p>
<p>Truth seems to be no protection from the virulent nature of this stuff.</p>
<p>The fact the President’s middle name is Hussein may lead some people to assume he’s Muslim. But, hey, by the same token, Petraeus is a Greek name, and we know about those Greeks and how they liked to drop the soap in their ancient tiled bathhouses. The Greeks even had a centaur named Petraeus, a guy who had the head of a man and the fully-equipped hind quarters of a horse.</p>
<p>Give that some rope in the mental space and see where it can go.</p>
<p>The silly season in American politics</p>
<p>There is nothing new or novel about this kind of politics. American history is full of it. The human mind always seems to prefer a compelling fiction that reinforces its prejudices over a boring fact that challenges them.</p>
<p>In 1828, John Quincy Adams was smeared for being a “dandy” and having a “foreign wife.” She was British. He was accused of pimping his wife’s maid to a Russian when he had been an ambassador there. His opponent, Andrew Jackson was called a drunk and a bigamist; his wife was called “fat” and a “whore” guilty of “open and notorious lewdness.”</p>
<p>In 1856, slurs suggested bachelor James Buchanan was a homosexual. He was also accused of having failed in an attempt to hang himself, which, the story went, caused his head to tilt to the left, which it did. Andrew Jackson called him “Miss Nancy,” a name that stuck through his career.</p>
<p>The greatest example of turning circumstance into opportunity for slander may have been in the 1912 election when ex-President and then Progressive Party candidate Theodore Roosevelt was shot in the chest by a raving maniac while giving a speech in Milwaukee.</p>
<p>Roosevelt picked himself up and, to gasps from the audience, returned to the podium. He pulled his bloody speech from his chest pocket (it had apparently slowed the bullet down) and delivered his speech, ad-libbing added remarks blaming his loathsome opponents for trying to kill him.</p>
<p>George Smathers ran for Congress in Florida in the fifties and told crowds his opponent Claude Pepper was “practicing nepotism with his niece,” who worked for her uncle’s campaign.</p>
<p>Franklin Roosevelt may have summed up the business of smearing with this how-to formula, referring to opponent Wendell Wilkie’s mistress, saying, “We can’t have any of our principal speakers refer to it, but the people way down the line can get it out. …They can use the raw material. She’s an extremely attractive little tart.”</p>
<p>The life has gone out of this nastiness today. Everything now is based on avoiding “the slip” from the controlled image. Everything is about acting and not screwing up.</p>
<p>Xenophobia and American exceptionalism</p>
<p>So why do 18% of Americans and 31% of Republicans polled believe the cockamamie notion that Obama is a Muslim?</p>
<p>The answer may lie in the nature of the slurs that tend to get legs in dirty politics. There usually is some degree of truth in them, as there is a larger degree of fear or submerged hatred.</p>
<p>John Quincy Adams’ wife was “foreign-born,” and Claude Pepper was “practicing nepotism with his niece.” In the latter case, Smather’s genius was in manipulating the audience’s ignorance and fear of the incest taboo.</p>
<p>Jackson’s wife had indeed been married before and there was some legal glitch in the divorce that caused the Jacksons to undergo a second wedding ceremony. Thus, the bigamy charge. The woman who Jackson loved dearly was apparently not a skinny woman. As for Taft being a “fathead,” his head was indeed as “fat” as his famously huge ass.</p>
<p>James Buchanan was a life-long bachelor whose head tilted to the left because of some congenital disease. Tough guy Jackson was apparently repulsed by the sickly “Miss Nancy.”</p>
<p>So what reality is the Obama-is-a-Muslim slur rooted in?</p>
<p>Franklin’s Graham’s notion about the Muslim “seed” would seem to give it all away, by pointing an implicit finger at the fact the “seed” that conceived President Obama was from the dark continent of Africa and that the human source of that “seed” was indeed a Muslim, a current national boogieman. You can almost hear the Tarzan movie drums.</p>
<p>In the deep recesses of the national psyche, the delicacies of the US Constitution and citizenship laws don’t carry much weight. We’re talking primal, here. And if you doubt elections work on this level, ask Lee Atwater and Karl Rove. What matters is the heft of ideas in America’s history and how they can be manipulated deep in the minds of Americans.</p>
<p>In that realm it’s hard to ignore the fact that, national patriotic myth aside, two of the most powerful mass psychological forces in American history have been western expansion and the enslavement of Africans — and that institution’s less-than-stellar aftermath.</p>
<p>Racism is a fundamental fuel for developing hatred of the enemy in wars; it was ever-present against the Japanese in the South Pacific, the Vietnamese and many others. On an abstract level, the twins of American Destiny and Exceptionalism have fueled and, then, justified incredible horrors in our history.</p>
<p>Whether we like it or not – and some do like it – this dark motivational impulse is deeply involved in the anti-Muslim hatred we see more and more of in America. That it rises in intensity as the war in Afghanistan becomes more controversial should surprise no one. It is central in the arrogant attitude that we have the right—some say the duty — to tell people in Afghanistan and Pakistan what they can and cannot do.</p>
<p>For those facile at manipulating these deep symbols, linking our half-African President to the “enemy” in the war on Islam is a real coup.</p>
<p>A “Muslim” President on the horns of a dilemma</p>
<p>The question is why doesn’t President Obama fight back?</p>
<p>The coding in the Obama-is-a-Muslim charge is tricky. On one hand, it is rooted in racism, specifically a fear of Africans and African-Americans – that dark foreign “seed.” While on the other hand, it’s saturated with xenophobia and the post-911 hatred of Islam.</p>
<p>Obama certainly has the stand-up chops to come out swinging against the Muslim slur against him. With a straight face, he could mourn how the “seed” that spawned Franklin Graham had been friendly to previous Christian Presidents. So how did Franklin veer so far from the DNA in his father’s “seed”? Then, on “Meet The Press,” he could say, “I love the people of Kentucky so much I’ll take Mitch McConnell at his word that he’s not the hind quarter of an entry in this year’s Kentucky Derby.”</p>
<p>His problem seems to be, to directly respond to those gleefully propagating the absurd slur would mean ultimately engaging the entire complex of racist and xenophobic fears underneath the slur. This would make life difficult for him, since he would, by natural extension, end up having to oppose the very post-9/11 stigmatization of Islam that sustains the Bush War On Terror he has fully assumed as his own.</p>
<p>So, he’s vague and “Clintonian” about it all. First, he supports the Manhattan Sufi cultural center – then he sounds as if he’s not so sure. He says he plans to withdraw troops from Afghanistan in July 2011, then he passively sits by as his commanding general tells everybody that’s not going to happen.</p>
<p>Making the Pentagon position even clearer, the retiring commandant of the Marine Corp just told reporters at a Pentagon briefing that the July 2011 withdrawal plan was a cynical sop to the American public weary over the war. He was actually quite positive on the feign, since a small, token withdrawal, “in terms of the enemy’s psyche,” would be a positive military move when the enemy realizes our military is going to be “still there hammering them” for years to come.</p>
<p>If Obama assertively used his bully pulpit to turn the egregiously un-just and superficially asinine slurs to his African descent and his father’s Muslim “seed” into a teachable moment, he would quickly find himself on a short and slippery slope to serious opposition to what many see as a massive, Pentagon-driven secret war against Muslim elements around the world.</p>
<p>Better to lay low in the Oval Office and let Biden handle Afghanistan.</p>
<p>JOHN GRANT is a founding member of ThisCantBeHappening!, the new independent, collectively-owned, journalist-run online newspaper. For the rest of his work, and that of colleagues Dave Lindorff, Linn Washington and Charles Young, please go to: <a href="http://www.thiscantbehappening.net" type="external">http://www.thiscantbehappening.net</a></p> | The Curse of the Muslim Seed | true | https://counterpunch.org/2010/08/26/the-curse-of-the-muslim-seed/ | 2010-08-26 | 4left
| The Curse of the Muslim Seed
<p>“Taft is a fathead.” (Theodore Roosevelt, 1912)</p>
<p>The anti-gay blog QueerHunt has just launched an expose that General David Petraeus is gay and has a secret Arab boyfriend he periodically meets in a Dubai hotel. The young man goes by the code name ‘awrence, an apparent reference to how T. E. Lawrence was known by his beloved Arab boys.</p>
<p>Just imagine the legs this will get in the blogosphere.</p>
<p>But wait. There is no blog called QueerHunt (that I know of) and I just batted out the lead paragraph above on my keyboard. I totally made it up. But in this freaky world we live in, it’s now a meme out there for any nutcase with a blog to run with.</p>
<p>My apologies to General Petraeus for abusing him to make a point, but there’s really no difference between this hypothetical scenario and the absurdity that 18% of Americans and 31% of Republicans think President Barack Obama is a Muslim.</p>
<p>You have a supposedly educated man like Franklin Graham suggesting Islam is passed via a man’s semen from one generation to another. Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell was asked on “Meet The Press” if he thought Obama was a Muslim, and, with a flick of his snake tongue, he said, “I take him at his word” that he is a Christian.</p>
<p>Truth seems to be no protection from the virulent nature of this stuff.</p>
<p>The fact the President’s middle name is Hussein may lead some people to assume he’s Muslim. But, hey, by the same token, Petraeus is a Greek name, and we know about those Greeks and how they liked to drop the soap in their ancient tiled bathhouses. The Greeks even had a centaur named Petraeus, a guy who had the head of a man and the fully-equipped hind quarters of a horse.</p>
<p>Give that some rope in the mental space and see where it can go.</p>
<p>The silly season in American politics</p>
<p>There is nothing new or novel about this kind of politics. American history is full of it. The human mind always seems to prefer a compelling fiction that reinforces its prejudices over a boring fact that challenges them.</p>
<p>In 1828, John Quincy Adams was smeared for being a “dandy” and having a “foreign wife.” She was British. He was accused of pimping his wife’s maid to a Russian when he had been an ambassador there. His opponent, Andrew Jackson was called a drunk and a bigamist; his wife was called “fat” and a “whore” guilty of “open and notorious lewdness.”</p>
<p>In 1856, slurs suggested bachelor James Buchanan was a homosexual. He was also accused of having failed in an attempt to hang himself, which, the story went, caused his head to tilt to the left, which it did. Andrew Jackson called him “Miss Nancy,” a name that stuck through his career.</p>
<p>The greatest example of turning circumstance into opportunity for slander may have been in the 1912 election when ex-President and then Progressive Party candidate Theodore Roosevelt was shot in the chest by a raving maniac while giving a speech in Milwaukee.</p>
<p>Roosevelt picked himself up and, to gasps from the audience, returned to the podium. He pulled his bloody speech from his chest pocket (it had apparently slowed the bullet down) and delivered his speech, ad-libbing added remarks blaming his loathsome opponents for trying to kill him.</p>
<p>George Smathers ran for Congress in Florida in the fifties and told crowds his opponent Claude Pepper was “practicing nepotism with his niece,” who worked for her uncle’s campaign.</p>
<p>Franklin Roosevelt may have summed up the business of smearing with this how-to formula, referring to opponent Wendell Wilkie’s mistress, saying, “We can’t have any of our principal speakers refer to it, but the people way down the line can get it out. …They can use the raw material. She’s an extremely attractive little tart.”</p>
<p>The life has gone out of this nastiness today. Everything now is based on avoiding “the slip” from the controlled image. Everything is about acting and not screwing up.</p>
<p>Xenophobia and American exceptionalism</p>
<p>So why do 18% of Americans and 31% of Republicans polled believe the cockamamie notion that Obama is a Muslim?</p>
<p>The answer may lie in the nature of the slurs that tend to get legs in dirty politics. There usually is some degree of truth in them, as there is a larger degree of fear or submerged hatred.</p>
<p>John Quincy Adams’ wife was “foreign-born,” and Claude Pepper was “practicing nepotism with his niece.” In the latter case, Smather’s genius was in manipulating the audience’s ignorance and fear of the incest taboo.</p>
<p>Jackson’s wife had indeed been married before and there was some legal glitch in the divorce that caused the Jacksons to undergo a second wedding ceremony. Thus, the bigamy charge. The woman who Jackson loved dearly was apparently not a skinny woman. As for Taft being a “fathead,” his head was indeed as “fat” as his famously huge ass.</p>
<p>James Buchanan was a life-long bachelor whose head tilted to the left because of some congenital disease. Tough guy Jackson was apparently repulsed by the sickly “Miss Nancy.”</p>
<p>So what reality is the Obama-is-a-Muslim slur rooted in?</p>
<p>Franklin’s Graham’s notion about the Muslim “seed” would seem to give it all away, by pointing an implicit finger at the fact the “seed” that conceived President Obama was from the dark continent of Africa and that the human source of that “seed” was indeed a Muslim, a current national boogieman. You can almost hear the Tarzan movie drums.</p>
<p>In the deep recesses of the national psyche, the delicacies of the US Constitution and citizenship laws don’t carry much weight. We’re talking primal, here. And if you doubt elections work on this level, ask Lee Atwater and Karl Rove. What matters is the heft of ideas in America’s history and how they can be manipulated deep in the minds of Americans.</p>
<p>In that realm it’s hard to ignore the fact that, national patriotic myth aside, two of the most powerful mass psychological forces in American history have been western expansion and the enslavement of Africans — and that institution’s less-than-stellar aftermath.</p>
<p>Racism is a fundamental fuel for developing hatred of the enemy in wars; it was ever-present against the Japanese in the South Pacific, the Vietnamese and many others. On an abstract level, the twins of American Destiny and Exceptionalism have fueled and, then, justified incredible horrors in our history.</p>
<p>Whether we like it or not – and some do like it – this dark motivational impulse is deeply involved in the anti-Muslim hatred we see more and more of in America. That it rises in intensity as the war in Afghanistan becomes more controversial should surprise no one. It is central in the arrogant attitude that we have the right—some say the duty — to tell people in Afghanistan and Pakistan what they can and cannot do.</p>
<p>For those facile at manipulating these deep symbols, linking our half-African President to the “enemy” in the war on Islam is a real coup.</p>
<p>A “Muslim” President on the horns of a dilemma</p>
<p>The question is why doesn’t President Obama fight back?</p>
<p>The coding in the Obama-is-a-Muslim charge is tricky. On one hand, it is rooted in racism, specifically a fear of Africans and African-Americans – that dark foreign “seed.” While on the other hand, it’s saturated with xenophobia and the post-911 hatred of Islam.</p>
<p>Obama certainly has the stand-up chops to come out swinging against the Muslim slur against him. With a straight face, he could mourn how the “seed” that spawned Franklin Graham had been friendly to previous Christian Presidents. So how did Franklin veer so far from the DNA in his father’s “seed”? Then, on “Meet The Press,” he could say, “I love the people of Kentucky so much I’ll take Mitch McConnell at his word that he’s not the hind quarter of an entry in this year’s Kentucky Derby.”</p>
<p>His problem seems to be, to directly respond to those gleefully propagating the absurd slur would mean ultimately engaging the entire complex of racist and xenophobic fears underneath the slur. This would make life difficult for him, since he would, by natural extension, end up having to oppose the very post-9/11 stigmatization of Islam that sustains the Bush War On Terror he has fully assumed as his own.</p>
<p>So, he’s vague and “Clintonian” about it all. First, he supports the Manhattan Sufi cultural center – then he sounds as if he’s not so sure. He says he plans to withdraw troops from Afghanistan in July 2011, then he passively sits by as his commanding general tells everybody that’s not going to happen.</p>
<p>Making the Pentagon position even clearer, the retiring commandant of the Marine Corp just told reporters at a Pentagon briefing that the July 2011 withdrawal plan was a cynical sop to the American public weary over the war. He was actually quite positive on the feign, since a small, token withdrawal, “in terms of the enemy’s psyche,” would be a positive military move when the enemy realizes our military is going to be “still there hammering them” for years to come.</p>
<p>If Obama assertively used his bully pulpit to turn the egregiously un-just and superficially asinine slurs to his African descent and his father’s Muslim “seed” into a teachable moment, he would quickly find himself on a short and slippery slope to serious opposition to what many see as a massive, Pentagon-driven secret war against Muslim elements around the world.</p>
<p>Better to lay low in the Oval Office and let Biden handle Afghanistan.</p>
<p>JOHN GRANT is a founding member of ThisCantBeHappening!, the new independent, collectively-owned, journalist-run online newspaper. For the rest of his work, and that of colleagues Dave Lindorff, Linn Washington and Charles Young, please go to: <a href="http://www.thiscantbehappening.net" type="external">http://www.thiscantbehappening.net</a></p> | 4,112 |
<p />
<p>Coca-Cola Co. on Wednesday said it raised its quarterly dividend by 6% to 35 cents and promoted three executives to senior vice presidents.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Atlanta-based Coke is trying to jump-start sales, as consumers around the world cut back on sugary drinks because of health concerns. Soda consumption in the U.S. has been declining for more than a decade.</p>
<p>The increased dividend, from 33 cents, is seen lifting Coke's dividend yield to 3.2% from 3%, based on the closing price Wednesday. The higher dividend is payable April 1 to shareholders of record March 15.</p>
<p>Coca-Cola also said Brent Hastie, Craig Williams and Julie Hamilton will become senior vice presidents.</p>
<p>Mr. Hastie is vice president for strategy and planning, responsible for Coke's global strategic planning and helping develop new areas of revenue growth. Mr. Williams is president of the division that manages Coke's relationship with McDonald's Corp., one of its largest clients.</p>
<p>Ms. Hamilton is Coke's global chief customer and commercial leadership officer, where she builds commercial strategies and customer capabilities and supports Coke's global partners.</p> | Coca-Cola Raises Dividend 6%, Promotes Three Executives | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/02/18/coca-cola-raises-dividend-6-promotes-three-executives.html | 2016-07-06 | 0right
| Coca-Cola Raises Dividend 6%, Promotes Three Executives
<p />
<p>Coca-Cola Co. on Wednesday said it raised its quarterly dividend by 6% to 35 cents and promoted three executives to senior vice presidents.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Atlanta-based Coke is trying to jump-start sales, as consumers around the world cut back on sugary drinks because of health concerns. Soda consumption in the U.S. has been declining for more than a decade.</p>
<p>The increased dividend, from 33 cents, is seen lifting Coke's dividend yield to 3.2% from 3%, based on the closing price Wednesday. The higher dividend is payable April 1 to shareholders of record March 15.</p>
<p>Coca-Cola also said Brent Hastie, Craig Williams and Julie Hamilton will become senior vice presidents.</p>
<p>Mr. Hastie is vice president for strategy and planning, responsible for Coke's global strategic planning and helping develop new areas of revenue growth. Mr. Williams is president of the division that manages Coke's relationship with McDonald's Corp., one of its largest clients.</p>
<p>Ms. Hamilton is Coke's global chief customer and commercial leadership officer, where she builds commercial strategies and customer capabilities and supports Coke's global partners.</p> | 4,113 |
<p>(What was the reaction there?) I was in a Georgian village in South Ossetia which is now taken over by the Russians and now the South Ossetians, who are now firmly in control. my guide seemed very pleased, he said this was a national holiday. His colleagues had a noisy sound of celebration. (The Georgian government reaction is what?) They're curious, I'd say. They call this Soviet-style imperialism, that Russia is trying to shave off their territory in order to bring about Georgia's fury. Russia sees this differently???they think the West has mistaken the victim for the aggressor in this conflict and that they're doing the right thing by their citizens in South Ossetia. (These two breakaway regions are not going to be part of Russia, but what does independence mean and are they a threat to Georgia?) They're not legally independent in the sense that they haven't been recognized as such by the U.N. Russia has just said it recognizes them as independent. So we're in a limbo between de facto independence and full independence. (Is diplomacy the only tool that Georgia has?) Georgia has little military power at the moment, so at the moment the Georgians are relying on support from the big powers like the U.S. The U.S. is backing up their support with more than words, and has sent a big military ship full of humanitarian aid which is a clear signal, as there are now U.S. Navy personnel in the area. (What does the guide expect will happen now?) I'm not sure what immediate effect it'll make because South Ossetia has run its own territory for the most part since the 1990s. but this will be a more stable or possibly stable or established way with the backing of the Russia.</p> | Reaction in South Ossetia | false | https://pri.org/stories/2008-08-26/reaction-south-ossetia | 2008-08-26 | 3left-center
| Reaction in South Ossetia
<p>(What was the reaction there?) I was in a Georgian village in South Ossetia which is now taken over by the Russians and now the South Ossetians, who are now firmly in control. my guide seemed very pleased, he said this was a national holiday. His colleagues had a noisy sound of celebration. (The Georgian government reaction is what?) They're curious, I'd say. They call this Soviet-style imperialism, that Russia is trying to shave off their territory in order to bring about Georgia's fury. Russia sees this differently???they think the West has mistaken the victim for the aggressor in this conflict and that they're doing the right thing by their citizens in South Ossetia. (These two breakaway regions are not going to be part of Russia, but what does independence mean and are they a threat to Georgia?) They're not legally independent in the sense that they haven't been recognized as such by the U.N. Russia has just said it recognizes them as independent. So we're in a limbo between de facto independence and full independence. (Is diplomacy the only tool that Georgia has?) Georgia has little military power at the moment, so at the moment the Georgians are relying on support from the big powers like the U.S. The U.S. is backing up their support with more than words, and has sent a big military ship full of humanitarian aid which is a clear signal, as there are now U.S. Navy personnel in the area. (What does the guide expect will happen now?) I'm not sure what immediate effect it'll make because South Ossetia has run its own territory for the most part since the 1990s. but this will be a more stable or possibly stable or established way with the backing of the Russia.</p> | 4,114 |
<p><a href="http://www.tradeking.com/events" type="external">here Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p>Analysis on SPX :</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Discussion from TradeKing Options Analyst Brian Overby:</p>
<p><a href="http://community.tradeking.com/members/optionsguy/blogs/97018-vix-options-how-to-video" type="external">VIX Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p>QuickTakesPro's Chart of the Day is Intel - (INTC)</p>
<p><a href="https://www.tradeking.com/education/stocks/technical-analysis-explained" type="external">Support / resistance Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p>Brian Overby’s potential strategy based on Michael’s chart – INTC – Long In-The-Money Straddle</p>
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<p>INTC – Possible Short Term Strategy - Long Straddle with the Put In-The- Money</p>
<p>INTC – Possible Longer Term Strategy - Bear Put Spread</p>
<p><a href="https://www.tradeking.com/education/options/strategies/long-call" type="external">TradeKing Long Straddle Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.tradeking.com/education/options/strategies/long-put-spread" type="external">TradeKing Long Put Spread Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.tradeking.com/education/tools/volatility-charts" type="external">TradeKing Volatility Charts Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.tradeking.com/events" type="external">www.tradeking.com/events</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.tradeking.com/ODD" type="external">www.TradeKing.com/ODD Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://content.tradeking.com/wiki/display/tkservice/Multi-Leg+Option+Orders" type="external">additional risks and multiple commissions Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.tradeking.com/rates" type="external">Commissions + Fees page Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://community.tradeking.com/members/tk-all-star/blogs" type="external">TradeKing All-Star Blog Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.tradeking.com/education/list/video" type="external">TradeKing Webinars Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://community.tradeking.com/members/tk-all-star/details" type="external">All-Star Roster Opens a New Window.</a></p> | TradeKing Midday Market Call Recap: SPX, VIX, INTC | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2012/09/06/tradeking-midday-market-call-recap-spx-vix-intc.html | 2016-03-03 | 0right
| TradeKing Midday Market Call Recap: SPX, VIX, INTC
<p><a href="http://www.tradeking.com/events" type="external">here Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p>Analysis on SPX :</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Discussion from TradeKing Options Analyst Brian Overby:</p>
<p><a href="http://community.tradeking.com/members/optionsguy/blogs/97018-vix-options-how-to-video" type="external">VIX Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p>QuickTakesPro's Chart of the Day is Intel - (INTC)</p>
<p><a href="https://www.tradeking.com/education/stocks/technical-analysis-explained" type="external">Support / resistance Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p>Brian Overby’s potential strategy based on Michael’s chart – INTC – Long In-The-Money Straddle</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>INTC – Possible Short Term Strategy - Long Straddle with the Put In-The- Money</p>
<p>INTC – Possible Longer Term Strategy - Bear Put Spread</p>
<p><a href="https://www.tradeking.com/education/options/strategies/long-call" type="external">TradeKing Long Straddle Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.tradeking.com/education/options/strategies/long-put-spread" type="external">TradeKing Long Put Spread Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.tradeking.com/education/tools/volatility-charts" type="external">TradeKing Volatility Charts Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.tradeking.com/events" type="external">www.tradeking.com/events</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.tradeking.com/ODD" type="external">www.TradeKing.com/ODD Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://content.tradeking.com/wiki/display/tkservice/Multi-Leg+Option+Orders" type="external">additional risks and multiple commissions Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.tradeking.com/rates" type="external">Commissions + Fees page Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://community.tradeking.com/members/tk-all-star/blogs" type="external">TradeKing All-Star Blog Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.tradeking.com/education/list/video" type="external">TradeKing Webinars Opens a New Window.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://community.tradeking.com/members/tk-all-star/details" type="external">All-Star Roster Opens a New Window.</a></p> | 4,115 |
<p>Kelly Mantle&#160; (Photo courtesy Mantle)</p>
<p>“RuPaul’s Drag Race” alum Kelly Mantle will be considered for nomination for both Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress at the Academy Awards for her role in indie flick, “Confessions of a Womanizer.”</p>
<p>This is the first time a performer has been considered for both categories, according to <a href="http://www.newnownext.com/kelly-mantle-oscar-consideration/12/2016/" type="external">NewNowNext.</a></p>
<p>Mantle shared the news on Facebook writing “So this is happening….Honored &amp; humbled to be considered.”</p>
<p />
<p>Director and Writer Miguel Ali also shared his thoughts on&#160; <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ConfessionsOfAWomanizer/#_=_" type="external">Facebook&#160;</a>.</p>
<p>“To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time in Oscar history that a person will be considered for an acting Oscar in both gender categories. Of course – I hope we get Kelly nominated. Regardless, we are bringing spotlight to our androgynous and transgendered community,” Ali writes. “I’m grateful for the path that has already been carved by transgender/androgynous-empowering Oscar-contending films like Tangerine and others. I firmly believe that our androgynous/transgendered acting community is the most untapped resource in Hollywood. We need to bring them more attention, and by doing so, we will create more empathy for our androgynous/transgendered brothers and sisters.”</p>
<p>“I’m grateful for the path that has already been carved by transgender/androgynous-empowering Oscar-contending films like Tangerine and others. I firmly believe that our androgynous/transgendered acting community is the most untapped resource in Hollywood. We need to bring them more attention, and by doing so, we will create more empathy for our androgynous/transgendered brothers and sisters,” Ali continued.</p>
<p>Watch Mantle’s Oscar submission video below.</p>
<p />
<p>&#160;</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">Academy Awards 2017</a> <a href="" type="internal">Confessions of a Womanizer</a> <a href="" type="internal">Kelly Mantle</a> <a href="" type="internal">Michael Ali</a> <a href="" type="internal">NewNowNext</a></p> | Kelly Mantle first performer considered for two gender categories at Oscars | false | http://washingtonblade.com/2016/12/09/kelly-mantle-first-performer-considered-two-gender-categories-oscars/ | 3left-center
| Kelly Mantle first performer considered for two gender categories at Oscars
<p>Kelly Mantle&#160; (Photo courtesy Mantle)</p>
<p>“RuPaul’s Drag Race” alum Kelly Mantle will be considered for nomination for both Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress at the Academy Awards for her role in indie flick, “Confessions of a Womanizer.”</p>
<p>This is the first time a performer has been considered for both categories, according to <a href="http://www.newnownext.com/kelly-mantle-oscar-consideration/12/2016/" type="external">NewNowNext.</a></p>
<p>Mantle shared the news on Facebook writing “So this is happening….Honored &amp; humbled to be considered.”</p>
<p />
<p>Director and Writer Miguel Ali also shared his thoughts on&#160; <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ConfessionsOfAWomanizer/#_=_" type="external">Facebook&#160;</a>.</p>
<p>“To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time in Oscar history that a person will be considered for an acting Oscar in both gender categories. Of course – I hope we get Kelly nominated. Regardless, we are bringing spotlight to our androgynous and transgendered community,” Ali writes. “I’m grateful for the path that has already been carved by transgender/androgynous-empowering Oscar-contending films like Tangerine and others. I firmly believe that our androgynous/transgendered acting community is the most untapped resource in Hollywood. We need to bring them more attention, and by doing so, we will create more empathy for our androgynous/transgendered brothers and sisters.”</p>
<p>“I’m grateful for the path that has already been carved by transgender/androgynous-empowering Oscar-contending films like Tangerine and others. I firmly believe that our androgynous/transgendered acting community is the most untapped resource in Hollywood. We need to bring them more attention, and by doing so, we will create more empathy for our androgynous/transgendered brothers and sisters,” Ali continued.</p>
<p>Watch Mantle’s Oscar submission video below.</p>
<p />
<p>&#160;</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">Academy Awards 2017</a> <a href="" type="internal">Confessions of a Womanizer</a> <a href="" type="internal">Kelly Mantle</a> <a href="" type="internal">Michael Ali</a> <a href="" type="internal">NewNowNext</a></p> | 4,116 |
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<p>President Obama told the Pentagon it needs to <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2013/12/barack-obama-military-sexual-assault-101378.html#ixzz2o4R0QRHY" type="external">get its act together on sexual assault</a>over the next year.</p>
<p>A federal court agrees that <a href="http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/win-women-and-medical-evidence" type="external">Wisconsin’s law requiring abortion providers to have admitting privileges at local hospitals</a> is likely unconstitutional.</p>
<p>This high school student was <a href="http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/12/23/21795266-kicked-out-of-high-school-for-public-lewdness-after-reporting-rape?lite" type="external">kicked out of school for “public lewdness”</a>&#160;after she reported being raped.</p>
<p>Meet the <a href="http://newday.blogs.cnn.com/2013/12/20/meet-nbas-only-female-referee/" type="external">NBA’s only female referee</a>.</p>
<p>Watch an anti-choice legislator consider <a href="http://www.upworthy.com/a-dude-trying-to-ban-abortions-is-asked-a-question-he-never-considered-its-so-obvious-it-hurts-8?g=3" type="external">why a woman might want to have an abortion</a> for the very first.</p>
<p>One reason men continue to dominate on Wall Street? <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-12-23/secret-handshakes-greet-frat-brothers-on-wall-street.html" type="external">Frats</a>.</p> | Daily Feminist Cheat Sheet | true | http://feministing.com/2013/12/23/daily-feminist-cheat-sheet-233/ | 4left
| Daily Feminist Cheat Sheet
<p>President Obama told the Pentagon it needs to <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2013/12/barack-obama-military-sexual-assault-101378.html#ixzz2o4R0QRHY" type="external">get its act together on sexual assault</a>over the next year.</p>
<p>A federal court agrees that <a href="http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/win-women-and-medical-evidence" type="external">Wisconsin’s law requiring abortion providers to have admitting privileges at local hospitals</a> is likely unconstitutional.</p>
<p>This high school student was <a href="http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/12/23/21795266-kicked-out-of-high-school-for-public-lewdness-after-reporting-rape?lite" type="external">kicked out of school for “public lewdness”</a>&#160;after she reported being raped.</p>
<p>Meet the <a href="http://newday.blogs.cnn.com/2013/12/20/meet-nbas-only-female-referee/" type="external">NBA’s only female referee</a>.</p>
<p>Watch an anti-choice legislator consider <a href="http://www.upworthy.com/a-dude-trying-to-ban-abortions-is-asked-a-question-he-never-considered-its-so-obvious-it-hurts-8?g=3" type="external">why a woman might want to have an abortion</a> for the very first.</p>
<p>One reason men continue to dominate on Wall Street? <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-12-23/secret-handshakes-greet-frat-brothers-on-wall-street.html" type="external">Frats</a>.</p> | 4,117 |
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<p />
<p>President Donald Trump’s early policy action has caused fireworks on Capitol Hill, but investors are anticipating a relatively quiet Wednesday over at the Federal Reserve as central bankers await more clarity on the president’s fiscal-policy priorities.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>At the conclusion of its two-day meeting, the central bank’s policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee is expected to keep the short-term federal funds rate steady at between 0.50% and 0.75%, after raising it a quarter percentage point in December.</p>
<p>The decision comes a week after Fed Chief Janet Yellen said the economy has made “considerable” progress toward the central bank’s dual mandate of price stability and full employment, noting “solid” job gains and a drawdown in labor market slack. At the same time, though, Yellen warned of a “nasty surprise” if the Fed moves too slowly on rate rises. Because of that, a majority of FOMC participants expect at least three more increases before the year is up.</p>
<p>Federal funds futures, a tool used to predict changes in monetary policy, show a more than 66% probability for at least one increase in the fed funds rate by the June meeting, but a low 4% chance of a rate rise Wednesday.</p>
<p>While the economic backdrop remains stable, an age of expansionary fiscal policy from the Trump administration could spur even more robust economic growth.</p>
<p>While the president, who has been critical of the Fed and its actions since the financial crisis, has taken swift action to implement certain campaign-trail pledges -- including imposing a temporary travel ban on travelers from seven predominately-Muslim nations, an executive order against the Affordable Care Act and a memorandum on the construction of delayed oil pipelines -- bigger promises of lower taxes, less regulation and more fiscal spending (on initiatives like a broad-based infrastructure program) have yet to be enacted.</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>Those promises are of particular interest to the Fed, because potential follow-up action could force the central bank into a position of carefully balancing its monetary policy efforts with the Trump administration’s fiscal priorities to ensure the economy doesn’t overheat, or cause runaway levels of inflation.</p>
<p>“If…the Fed is forced to tighten monetary policy to avoid a significant undershoot of the unemployment rate and an overshoot of inflation, the Fed will want to have signaled this response is based on progress toward the dual mandate and nothing else,” Barclays team, led by Chief U.S. Economist Michael Gapen, noted, referring to the Fed’s December meeting minutes which showed a desire to articulate that tighter monetary policy will not be part of a broader effort to work against aggressive fiscal-policy goals.</p>
<p>While inflation has for years run below the Fed’s 2% target, data this week showed a gauge of core personal consumption expenditures held steady in December at 1.7%, compared to the prior year. That rate carries with it a “healthy momentum” and is likely to pick up over the next two years, said Ameriprise Financial Senior Economist Russell Price, but it’s far from a level at which the Fed should be too concerned.</p>
<p>The extent to which Trump’s more permanent policy efforts can impact the overall economy remains to be seen, though initial enthusiasm pushed U.S. stocks to record levels and consumer and business sentiment to multi-year highs.</p>
<p>By the March FOMC meeting, Nomura Chief U.S. Economist Lewis Alexander expects the Fed will have a more complete dataset with which to judge the expected impact of Trump’s first year in office.</p>
<p>“Rep. Mick Mulvaney, President Trump’s nominee for OMB, stated that the Trump administration will have a top-line budget proposal by the end of February. That proposal should indicate to what extent expected increases in spending on defense, border security and veterans would be offset with spending cuts elsewhere,” he said.</p> | Fed Decision on Tap as Trump Moves Forward with Policy Overhaul | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2017/02/01/fed-decision-on-tap-as-trump-moves-forward-with-policy-overhaul.html | 2017-02-01 | 0right
| Fed Decision on Tap as Trump Moves Forward with Policy Overhaul
<p />
<p>President Donald Trump’s early policy action has caused fireworks on Capitol Hill, but investors are anticipating a relatively quiet Wednesday over at the Federal Reserve as central bankers await more clarity on the president’s fiscal-policy priorities.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>At the conclusion of its two-day meeting, the central bank’s policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee is expected to keep the short-term federal funds rate steady at between 0.50% and 0.75%, after raising it a quarter percentage point in December.</p>
<p>The decision comes a week after Fed Chief Janet Yellen said the economy has made “considerable” progress toward the central bank’s dual mandate of price stability and full employment, noting “solid” job gains and a drawdown in labor market slack. At the same time, though, Yellen warned of a “nasty surprise” if the Fed moves too slowly on rate rises. Because of that, a majority of FOMC participants expect at least three more increases before the year is up.</p>
<p>Federal funds futures, a tool used to predict changes in monetary policy, show a more than 66% probability for at least one increase in the fed funds rate by the June meeting, but a low 4% chance of a rate rise Wednesday.</p>
<p>While the economic backdrop remains stable, an age of expansionary fiscal policy from the Trump administration could spur even more robust economic growth.</p>
<p>While the president, who has been critical of the Fed and its actions since the financial crisis, has taken swift action to implement certain campaign-trail pledges -- including imposing a temporary travel ban on travelers from seven predominately-Muslim nations, an executive order against the Affordable Care Act and a memorandum on the construction of delayed oil pipelines -- bigger promises of lower taxes, less regulation and more fiscal spending (on initiatives like a broad-based infrastructure program) have yet to be enacted.</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>Those promises are of particular interest to the Fed, because potential follow-up action could force the central bank into a position of carefully balancing its monetary policy efforts with the Trump administration’s fiscal priorities to ensure the economy doesn’t overheat, or cause runaway levels of inflation.</p>
<p>“If…the Fed is forced to tighten monetary policy to avoid a significant undershoot of the unemployment rate and an overshoot of inflation, the Fed will want to have signaled this response is based on progress toward the dual mandate and nothing else,” Barclays team, led by Chief U.S. Economist Michael Gapen, noted, referring to the Fed’s December meeting minutes which showed a desire to articulate that tighter monetary policy will not be part of a broader effort to work against aggressive fiscal-policy goals.</p>
<p>While inflation has for years run below the Fed’s 2% target, data this week showed a gauge of core personal consumption expenditures held steady in December at 1.7%, compared to the prior year. That rate carries with it a “healthy momentum” and is likely to pick up over the next two years, said Ameriprise Financial Senior Economist Russell Price, but it’s far from a level at which the Fed should be too concerned.</p>
<p>The extent to which Trump’s more permanent policy efforts can impact the overall economy remains to be seen, though initial enthusiasm pushed U.S. stocks to record levels and consumer and business sentiment to multi-year highs.</p>
<p>By the March FOMC meeting, Nomura Chief U.S. Economist Lewis Alexander expects the Fed will have a more complete dataset with which to judge the expected impact of Trump’s first year in office.</p>
<p>“Rep. Mick Mulvaney, President Trump’s nominee for OMB, stated that the Trump administration will have a top-line budget proposal by the end of February. That proposal should indicate to what extent expected increases in spending on defense, border security and veterans would be offset with spending cuts elsewhere,” he said.</p> | 4,118 |
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<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — For further proof that the Christmas shopping season is already upon us, consider that even the local mall Santa Claus is raring to go.</p>
<p>Ol’ St. Nick is slated to make his first appearance at <a href="http://www.simon.com/mall/cottonwood-mall" type="external">Cottonwood Mall</a> this weekend. For those of you counting, that’s nearly two full weeks ahead of Black Friday and 5½ before Christmas.</p>
<p>The West Side Albuquerque shopping mall will welcome Santa with a special event at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 16. Santa will lead children on a short “jingle bell parade” within the mall before he settles in for 39 straight days of lap visits and photo opps.</p>
<p>While his arrival may seem early, a spokeswoman for Cottonwood’s ownership notes that it’s actually later than recent years.</p>
<p>Santa’s 2012 stint at Cottonwood began on Nov. 14.</p>
<p>The year before, he barely waited out Halloween, showing up on Nov. 5, 2011.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | Ready or not, Santa is already on his way to the mall | false | https://abqjournal.com/299754/ready-or-not-santa-is-already-on-his-way-to-the-mall.html | 2013-11-12 | 2least
| Ready or not, Santa is already on his way to the mall
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — For further proof that the Christmas shopping season is already upon us, consider that even the local mall Santa Claus is raring to go.</p>
<p>Ol’ St. Nick is slated to make his first appearance at <a href="http://www.simon.com/mall/cottonwood-mall" type="external">Cottonwood Mall</a> this weekend. For those of you counting, that’s nearly two full weeks ahead of Black Friday and 5½ before Christmas.</p>
<p>The West Side Albuquerque shopping mall will welcome Santa with a special event at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 16. Santa will lead children on a short “jingle bell parade” within the mall before he settles in for 39 straight days of lap visits and photo opps.</p>
<p>While his arrival may seem early, a spokeswoman for Cottonwood’s ownership notes that it’s actually later than recent years.</p>
<p>Santa’s 2012 stint at Cottonwood began on Nov. 14.</p>
<p>The year before, he barely waited out Halloween, showing up on Nov. 5, 2011.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | 4,119 |
<p>Investing.com – oil stocks rose by 6.18 million barrels at the end of last week, the American Petroleum Institute said on Tuesday, more than the 2.5 million gain expected.</p>
<p>It was the second straight build after Hurricane Harvey shut production in some Gulf of Mexico fields and refineries in Texas as some domestic producers also trimmed output to avoid a larger glut at storage. The oil storage hub at Cushing, Oklahoma, saw a build of 1.32 million barrels.</p>
<p>However, gasoline supplies dropped 7.90 million barrels and distillates fell by 1.81 million barrels as key refineries in Houston and Corpus Christi were offline. The Energy Information Administration will release official data on Wednesday.</p>
<p />
<p>Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.</p> | API Reports 6.18 Mln Barrels Crude Build As Harvey Hit Tallied | false | https://newsline.com/api-reports-6-18-mln-barrels-crude-build-as-harvey-hit-tallied/ | 2017-09-12 | 1right-center
| API Reports 6.18 Mln Barrels Crude Build As Harvey Hit Tallied
<p>Investing.com – oil stocks rose by 6.18 million barrels at the end of last week, the American Petroleum Institute said on Tuesday, more than the 2.5 million gain expected.</p>
<p>It was the second straight build after Hurricane Harvey shut production in some Gulf of Mexico fields and refineries in Texas as some domestic producers also trimmed output to avoid a larger glut at storage. The oil storage hub at Cushing, Oklahoma, saw a build of 1.32 million barrels.</p>
<p>However, gasoline supplies dropped 7.90 million barrels and distillates fell by 1.81 million barrels as key refineries in Houston and Corpus Christi were offline. The Energy Information Administration will release official data on Wednesday.</p>
<p />
<p>Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.</p> | 4,120 |
<p>Chuck Hagel / AP</p>
<p>BY: <a href="" type="internal">Adam Kredo</a> December 13, 2012 2:09 pm</p>
<p>Former Nebraska Republican Senator Chuck Hagel, on the shortlist for&#160;secretary of defense in the second Obama administration, sits on the board of a bank that is under investigation for allegedly violating United States sanctions on Iran.</p>
<p>The revelation could complicate the possible nomination of Hagel, who has come under sharp <a href="" type="internal">criticism</a> for what critics describe as his <a href="" type="internal">troubling</a> foreign policy views, which include calling for direct unconditional talks with Iran. Hagel reportedly met with President Barack Obama on <a href="https://twitter.com/BloombergNews/status/279299434662223872" type="external">Dec. 4</a> to discuss the Secretary of Defense position, according to Bloomberg News, and has <a href="https://twitter.com/BloombergNews/status/279300177536380928" type="external">passed the White House counsel's vetting process</a>.</p>
<p>Hagel was <a href="https://www.db.com/medien/en/content/press_releases_2009_4480.htm" type="external">appointed</a> in 2009 to Deutsche Bank’s Americas Advisory Board. The paid position placed him in close contact with the bank’s senior leadership.</p>
<p>Germany’s Deutsche Bank is reportedly being <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-18/deutsche-bank-among-four-said-to-be-in-u-s-laundering-probe.html" type="external">probed</a> by U.S. authorities for <a href="http://www.jpost.com/IranianThreat/News/Article.aspx?id=289899" type="external">violating</a> a trade embargo on Iran’s oil and energy sector, which is believed to play a key role in Tehran’s nuclear enrichment program.</p>
<p>Deutsche Bank denies these allegations.</p>
<p>Hagel’s opponents tell the Free Beacon that the former Senator has many questions to answer about his ties to Deutsche Bank.</p>
<p>"The key question for the committees during a confirmation process will be what did Mr. Hagel know, when did he know it, and why has he remained affiliated with Deutsche Bank throughout this process?" asked a senior senate aide involved in the potential confirmation process.</p>
<p>"Why has this man not resigned yet from this advisory council?" the source asked.</p>
<p>Senate insiders have told the Free Beacon that Hagel would face staunch opposition if he were to be nominated by the president. He has been criticized by the pro-Israel community for what they claim is his sharp criticism of Israel and for his support for the elimination of America’s nuclear arsenal.</p>
<p>Hagel’s relationship with Deutsche Bank raises troubling questions and could pose a serious conflict of interest, sources said.</p>
<p>"Somebody who willingly stands by as an official of a company helping the Iranian regime acquire nuclear weapons capabilities cannot credibly stand up as the secretary of defense for a country that may need to go to war with Iran," said the senate source.</p>
<p>Attempts to reach Hagel through the Atlantic Council, where he currently <a href="http://www.acus.org/users/chuck-hagel" type="external">serves</a> as chairman, were unsuccessful.</p>
<p>A source close to Deutsche Bank's American division told the Free Beacon that Hagel would not have had knowledge of any possible dealings with Iran and would not have been briefed on the issue.</p>
<p>Deutsche Bank in Germany is <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-18/deutsche-bank-among-four-said-to-be-in-u-s-laundering-probe.html" type="external">reported</a> to be one of four European banks under investigation for doing business with Iran. Deutsche Bank officials deny the&#160;allegation.</p>
<p>The bank allegedly admitted in its quarterly earnings report this year that it was being investigated by U.S. authorities for its dealings with Iran, <a href="http://www.jpost.com/IranianThreat/News/Article.aspx?id=289899" type="external">according</a> to the Jerusalem Post.</p>
<p>"The possible violation deals with a financial transaction with the Islamic Republic in U.S. dollars," according to the report. "Deutsche Bank says it will now cooperate with the authorities, though it had previously refused to comment on the allegations."</p>
<p>A source close Deutsche Bank confirmed that there was an inquiry, but maintained that it related to the bank's "historical" dealings with Iran and would have pre-dated Hagel's affiliation with company.</p>
<p>It is believed that Deutsche Bank "funneled billions of dollars through their American branches for Iran, Sudan, and other sanctioned nations, according to law enforcement officials with knowledge of the cases," the New York Times <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/18/business/deutsche-banks-business-with-sanctioned-nations-under-scrutiny.html?_r=2&amp;pagewanted=all&amp;" type="external">reported</a> earlier this year.</p>
<p>Hagel joined Deutsche Bank’s Americas Advisory Board (AAB) in 2009, soon after leaving the Senate, where he served for 12 years.</p>
<p>"We are extremely proud to add yet another member to the Board with strong business experience and a distinguished record of service to his country," Seth Waugh, Deutsche Bank Americas’ CEO and a member of the Group Executive Committee, <a href="https://www.db.com/medien/en/content/press_releases_2009_4480.htm" type="external">said</a> at the time. "The collective knowledge and experience assembled on these boards has been exceptionally beneficial for Deutsche Bank and its clients, and we look forward to Chuck’s participation going forward."</p>
<p>Hagel’s position involves advising and consulting with "Deutsche Bank executives and clients on a wide range of strategic and market issues, including business development and growth as well as economic, industry, political and social trends," according to a statement. "Board members also advise on client initiatives."</p>
<p>Hagel serves on the board in a non-governmental role and has no&#160;fiduciary&#160;responsibilities&#160;related to the bank.</p>
<p>Prosecutors raided Deutsche Bank's headquarters Wednesday in a tax-evasion investigation,&#160; <a href="http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/12/13/deutsche-bank-acknowledges-earnings-will-be-weak/" type="external">according</a>&#160;to The New York Times. The bank revealed Thursday that it expects weak earnings.</p> | A Potential Conflict of Interest for Chuck Hagel | true | http://freebeacon.com/a-potential-conflict-of-interest-for-chuck-hagel/ | 2012-12-13 | 0right
| A Potential Conflict of Interest for Chuck Hagel
<p>Chuck Hagel / AP</p>
<p>BY: <a href="" type="internal">Adam Kredo</a> December 13, 2012 2:09 pm</p>
<p>Former Nebraska Republican Senator Chuck Hagel, on the shortlist for&#160;secretary of defense in the second Obama administration, sits on the board of a bank that is under investigation for allegedly violating United States sanctions on Iran.</p>
<p>The revelation could complicate the possible nomination of Hagel, who has come under sharp <a href="" type="internal">criticism</a> for what critics describe as his <a href="" type="internal">troubling</a> foreign policy views, which include calling for direct unconditional talks with Iran. Hagel reportedly met with President Barack Obama on <a href="https://twitter.com/BloombergNews/status/279299434662223872" type="external">Dec. 4</a> to discuss the Secretary of Defense position, according to Bloomberg News, and has <a href="https://twitter.com/BloombergNews/status/279300177536380928" type="external">passed the White House counsel's vetting process</a>.</p>
<p>Hagel was <a href="https://www.db.com/medien/en/content/press_releases_2009_4480.htm" type="external">appointed</a> in 2009 to Deutsche Bank’s Americas Advisory Board. The paid position placed him in close contact with the bank’s senior leadership.</p>
<p>Germany’s Deutsche Bank is reportedly being <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-18/deutsche-bank-among-four-said-to-be-in-u-s-laundering-probe.html" type="external">probed</a> by U.S. authorities for <a href="http://www.jpost.com/IranianThreat/News/Article.aspx?id=289899" type="external">violating</a> a trade embargo on Iran’s oil and energy sector, which is believed to play a key role in Tehran’s nuclear enrichment program.</p>
<p>Deutsche Bank denies these allegations.</p>
<p>Hagel’s opponents tell the Free Beacon that the former Senator has many questions to answer about his ties to Deutsche Bank.</p>
<p>"The key question for the committees during a confirmation process will be what did Mr. Hagel know, when did he know it, and why has he remained affiliated with Deutsche Bank throughout this process?" asked a senior senate aide involved in the potential confirmation process.</p>
<p>"Why has this man not resigned yet from this advisory council?" the source asked.</p>
<p>Senate insiders have told the Free Beacon that Hagel would face staunch opposition if he were to be nominated by the president. He has been criticized by the pro-Israel community for what they claim is his sharp criticism of Israel and for his support for the elimination of America’s nuclear arsenal.</p>
<p>Hagel’s relationship with Deutsche Bank raises troubling questions and could pose a serious conflict of interest, sources said.</p>
<p>"Somebody who willingly stands by as an official of a company helping the Iranian regime acquire nuclear weapons capabilities cannot credibly stand up as the secretary of defense for a country that may need to go to war with Iran," said the senate source.</p>
<p>Attempts to reach Hagel through the Atlantic Council, where he currently <a href="http://www.acus.org/users/chuck-hagel" type="external">serves</a> as chairman, were unsuccessful.</p>
<p>A source close to Deutsche Bank's American division told the Free Beacon that Hagel would not have had knowledge of any possible dealings with Iran and would not have been briefed on the issue.</p>
<p>Deutsche Bank in Germany is <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-18/deutsche-bank-among-four-said-to-be-in-u-s-laundering-probe.html" type="external">reported</a> to be one of four European banks under investigation for doing business with Iran. Deutsche Bank officials deny the&#160;allegation.</p>
<p>The bank allegedly admitted in its quarterly earnings report this year that it was being investigated by U.S. authorities for its dealings with Iran, <a href="http://www.jpost.com/IranianThreat/News/Article.aspx?id=289899" type="external">according</a> to the Jerusalem Post.</p>
<p>"The possible violation deals with a financial transaction with the Islamic Republic in U.S. dollars," according to the report. "Deutsche Bank says it will now cooperate with the authorities, though it had previously refused to comment on the allegations."</p>
<p>A source close Deutsche Bank confirmed that there was an inquiry, but maintained that it related to the bank's "historical" dealings with Iran and would have pre-dated Hagel's affiliation with company.</p>
<p>It is believed that Deutsche Bank "funneled billions of dollars through their American branches for Iran, Sudan, and other sanctioned nations, according to law enforcement officials with knowledge of the cases," the New York Times <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/18/business/deutsche-banks-business-with-sanctioned-nations-under-scrutiny.html?_r=2&amp;pagewanted=all&amp;" type="external">reported</a> earlier this year.</p>
<p>Hagel joined Deutsche Bank’s Americas Advisory Board (AAB) in 2009, soon after leaving the Senate, where he served for 12 years.</p>
<p>"We are extremely proud to add yet another member to the Board with strong business experience and a distinguished record of service to his country," Seth Waugh, Deutsche Bank Americas’ CEO and a member of the Group Executive Committee, <a href="https://www.db.com/medien/en/content/press_releases_2009_4480.htm" type="external">said</a> at the time. "The collective knowledge and experience assembled on these boards has been exceptionally beneficial for Deutsche Bank and its clients, and we look forward to Chuck’s participation going forward."</p>
<p>Hagel’s position involves advising and consulting with "Deutsche Bank executives and clients on a wide range of strategic and market issues, including business development and growth as well as economic, industry, political and social trends," according to a statement. "Board members also advise on client initiatives."</p>
<p>Hagel serves on the board in a non-governmental role and has no&#160;fiduciary&#160;responsibilities&#160;related to the bank.</p>
<p>Prosecutors raided Deutsche Bank's headquarters Wednesday in a tax-evasion investigation,&#160; <a href="http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/12/13/deutsche-bank-acknowledges-earnings-will-be-weak/" type="external">according</a>&#160;to The New York Times. The bank revealed Thursday that it expects weak earnings.</p> | 4,121 |
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<p>The last gas balloon to launch as part of the 2014 America’s Challenge Gas Balloon Race leaves Balloon Fiesta Park early Tuesday morning. (Jim Thompson/Journal)</p>
<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The last gas balloon competing in the balloon fiesta’s distance race took off just before sunrise Tuesday morning, according to a Journal photographer.</p>
<p>The balloons were approaching the Texas border around 7:20 a.m., though the last one was still in the Albuquerque area. That balloon is smaller and not expected to compete with the other six.</p>
<p>The balloons launched late Monday night for the America’s Challenge Distance Race, which was rescheduled from Saturday night because of high winds.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>See a real time map of where the gas balloons are <a href="http://www.balloonfiesta.com/GasTracking/2014/" type="external">here</a>.</p>
<p>Press release from Balloon Fiesta.org:</p>
<p>America’s Challenge is Aloft! Tue 10/7/14 1:30 a.m. MDT (0730Z)</p>
<p>Patience paid off for pilots, crews, and a handful of stalwart spectators at Balloon Fiesta Park who were witness to a spectacular nighttime launch for the 19th America’s Challenge distance race for gas balloons.</p>
<p>Pesky winds that plagued the Park earlier in the evening finally died off about 10 PM, and inflation began around 10:30.&#160; Shortly after midnight, the balloons were filled with hydrogen, flight instruments, food, and supplies were loaded, and the teams were ready to go.</p>
<p>At 12:30 PM the first balloon piloted by Phil Bryant and Andy Cayton (Team 1) was walked to the launch platform.&#160; All of the balloons take off from this platform, so they all begin their journeys from the exact same point.&#160; Four minutes later they were airborne, to the delight of the small crowd.</p>
<p>Mark Sullivan and Cheri White (Team 4) were the next to launch, followed by Peter Cuneo and Barbara Fricke (Team 5), Kryzstolf Zapart and Matiesz Rękas, the Polish team (Team 6) and the Spanish entry piloted by Anulfo Gonzalez and Angel Aguirre (Team 7).&#160; The German team of Heinz-Otto and Marion Lausch (Team 2) were last to launch, at 1:04 AM (0704Z).&#160; Most of the teams have now cleared the mountains east and south of Albuquerque and are headed across New Mexico’s eastern plains.</p>
<p>Team 3, Bert Padelt and Mike Emich, is at this writing still on the ground at Balloon Fiesta Park.&#160; Their balloon is only about 2/3 the size of the other balloons (24,000 cu. ft. vs. 35,000 cu. ft.).&#160; Because it is smaller, it is not really competitive in the race and the team always planned to do a shorter, fun flight.&#160; They are planning to fly out early this morning, before the hot air balloon events begin.</p>
<p>We are pleased to let you know that live tracking is now operational!&#160; You can follow the competition on your favorite computer, tablet, phone, or other electronic gadget at <a href="http://www.balloonfiesta.com/undefined/" type="external">www.balloonfiesta.com</a> or via the 2014 Balloon Fiesta app.</p> | Final gas balloon launches from Balloon Fiesta Park | false | https://abqjournal.com/475714/final-gas-balloon-launches-from-balloon-fiesta-park.html | 2least
| Final gas balloon launches from Balloon Fiesta Park
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p>The last gas balloon to launch as part of the 2014 America’s Challenge Gas Balloon Race leaves Balloon Fiesta Park early Tuesday morning. (Jim Thompson/Journal)</p>
<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The last gas balloon competing in the balloon fiesta’s distance race took off just before sunrise Tuesday morning, according to a Journal photographer.</p>
<p>The balloons were approaching the Texas border around 7:20 a.m., though the last one was still in the Albuquerque area. That balloon is smaller and not expected to compete with the other six.</p>
<p>The balloons launched late Monday night for the America’s Challenge Distance Race, which was rescheduled from Saturday night because of high winds.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>See a real time map of where the gas balloons are <a href="http://www.balloonfiesta.com/GasTracking/2014/" type="external">here</a>.</p>
<p>Press release from Balloon Fiesta.org:</p>
<p>America’s Challenge is Aloft! Tue 10/7/14 1:30 a.m. MDT (0730Z)</p>
<p>Patience paid off for pilots, crews, and a handful of stalwart spectators at Balloon Fiesta Park who were witness to a spectacular nighttime launch for the 19th America’s Challenge distance race for gas balloons.</p>
<p>Pesky winds that plagued the Park earlier in the evening finally died off about 10 PM, and inflation began around 10:30.&#160; Shortly after midnight, the balloons were filled with hydrogen, flight instruments, food, and supplies were loaded, and the teams were ready to go.</p>
<p>At 12:30 PM the first balloon piloted by Phil Bryant and Andy Cayton (Team 1) was walked to the launch platform.&#160; All of the balloons take off from this platform, so they all begin their journeys from the exact same point.&#160; Four minutes later they were airborne, to the delight of the small crowd.</p>
<p>Mark Sullivan and Cheri White (Team 4) were the next to launch, followed by Peter Cuneo and Barbara Fricke (Team 5), Kryzstolf Zapart and Matiesz Rękas, the Polish team (Team 6) and the Spanish entry piloted by Anulfo Gonzalez and Angel Aguirre (Team 7).&#160; The German team of Heinz-Otto and Marion Lausch (Team 2) were last to launch, at 1:04 AM (0704Z).&#160; Most of the teams have now cleared the mountains east and south of Albuquerque and are headed across New Mexico’s eastern plains.</p>
<p>Team 3, Bert Padelt and Mike Emich, is at this writing still on the ground at Balloon Fiesta Park.&#160; Their balloon is only about 2/3 the size of the other balloons (24,000 cu. ft. vs. 35,000 cu. ft.).&#160; Because it is smaller, it is not really competitive in the race and the team always planned to do a shorter, fun flight.&#160; They are planning to fly out early this morning, before the hot air balloon events begin.</p>
<p>We are pleased to let you know that live tracking is now operational!&#160; You can follow the competition on your favorite computer, tablet, phone, or other electronic gadget at <a href="http://www.balloonfiesta.com/undefined/" type="external">www.balloonfiesta.com</a> or via the 2014 Balloon Fiesta app.</p> | 4,122 |
|
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — A pro-Israel advocacy group known for publicly criticizing Islam can display its political advertisement containing the phrase "Hamas Killing Jews" on New York City's buses, a judge said.</p>
<p>Judge John Koeltl said in a decision made public Tuesday that the advertisement is protected speech.</p>
<p>He said he was sensitive to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's claim that the ad could incite violence and appreciates the efforts necessary to prevent violent attacks.</p>
<p>But he noted that substantially the same advertisement ran in San Francisco and Chicago in 2013 without incident. He added that examples of violent attacks cited by the MTA show that individuals may commit heinous acts without warning.</p>
<p>"Under the First Amendment, the fear of such spontaneous attacks, without more, cannot override individuals' rights to freedom of expression," Koeltl said in a ruling dated Monday. He stayed the effect of the decision for a month so it can be appealed.</p>
<p>MTA spokesman Adam Lisberg said the agency is disappointed in the ruling and is reviewing its options.</p>
<p>It came in a lawsuit filed last year by the American Freedom Defense Initiative, an organization headed by blogger Pamela Geller that's behind the advertisement.</p>
<p>David Yerushalmi, a lawyer for the organization, said the decision "sends a strong message both to government bureaucrats who would restrict our freedom of speech based upon what they perceive to be a global jihadist threat, and it also sends a telling message to our enemies abroad and at home: Their threats of violence will not prevent the courts from upholding the First Amendment."</p>
<p>The lawsuit said Geller's group buys the advertisements to express its message on current events and public issues "including issues such as Islam's hatred of Jews."</p>
<p>The lawsuit was filed after the MTA notified the group in August that it would display three of four proposed advertisements but not an ad with the quote "Killing Jews is Worship that draws us close to Allah" because it could incite violence. In the ad, a covered face is shown next to the quote, which is attributed to "Hamas MTV." It is followed by the words: "That's his Jihad. What's yours?"</p>
<p>In a September statement, the MTA said it recognized that the rejected ad was a parody of "MyJihad" ads sponsored by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which said it was promoting the concept that jihad is an individual and personal struggle rather than a violent conflict or terrorism.</p>
<p>Koeltl said he recognized that the MTA believes it would be far more difficult to counter the advertisement because it has parodic aspects.</p>
<p>But he said he believes the agency underestimates "the power of counter-advertisements to explain that the MTA does not endorse the ad and that the ad is not to be taken seriously."</p>
<p>Monica Klein, a spokeswoman for Mayor Bill de Blasio, noted in a statement that the mayor has said "these anti-Islamic ads are outrageous, inflammatory and wrong, and have no place in New York City, or anywhere."</p>
<p>"These hateful messages serve only to divide and stigmatize when we should be coming together as one city," she added. "While those behind these ads only display their irresponsible intolerance, the rest of us who may be forced to view them can take comfort in the knowledge that we share a better, loftier and nobler view of humanity."</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — A pro-Israel advocacy group known for publicly criticizing Islam can display its political advertisement containing the phrase "Hamas Killing Jews" on New York City's buses, a judge said.</p>
<p>Judge John Koeltl said in a decision made public Tuesday that the advertisement is protected speech.</p>
<p>He said he was sensitive to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's claim that the ad could incite violence and appreciates the efforts necessary to prevent violent attacks.</p>
<p>But he noted that substantially the same advertisement ran in San Francisco and Chicago in 2013 without incident. He added that examples of violent attacks cited by the MTA show that individuals may commit heinous acts without warning.</p>
<p>"Under the First Amendment, the fear of such spontaneous attacks, without more, cannot override individuals' rights to freedom of expression," Koeltl said in a ruling dated Monday. He stayed the effect of the decision for a month so it can be appealed.</p>
<p>MTA spokesman Adam Lisberg said the agency is disappointed in the ruling and is reviewing its options.</p>
<p>It came in a lawsuit filed last year by the American Freedom Defense Initiative, an organization headed by blogger Pamela Geller that's behind the advertisement.</p>
<p>David Yerushalmi, a lawyer for the organization, said the decision "sends a strong message both to government bureaucrats who would restrict our freedom of speech based upon what they perceive to be a global jihadist threat, and it also sends a telling message to our enemies abroad and at home: Their threats of violence will not prevent the courts from upholding the First Amendment."</p>
<p>The lawsuit said Geller's group buys the advertisements to express its message on current events and public issues "including issues such as Islam's hatred of Jews."</p>
<p>The lawsuit was filed after the MTA notified the group in August that it would display three of four proposed advertisements but not an ad with the quote "Killing Jews is Worship that draws us close to Allah" because it could incite violence. In the ad, a covered face is shown next to the quote, which is attributed to "Hamas MTV." It is followed by the words: "That's his Jihad. What's yours?"</p>
<p>In a September statement, the MTA said it recognized that the rejected ad was a parody of "MyJihad" ads sponsored by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which said it was promoting the concept that jihad is an individual and personal struggle rather than a violent conflict or terrorism.</p>
<p>Koeltl said he recognized that the MTA believes it would be far more difficult to counter the advertisement because it has parodic aspects.</p>
<p>But he said he believes the agency underestimates "the power of counter-advertisements to explain that the MTA does not endorse the ad and that the ad is not to be taken seriously."</p>
<p>Monica Klein, a spokeswoman for Mayor Bill de Blasio, noted in a statement that the mayor has said "these anti-Islamic ads are outrageous, inflammatory and wrong, and have no place in New York City, or anywhere."</p>
<p>"These hateful messages serve only to divide and stigmatize when we should be coming together as one city," she added. "While those behind these ads only display their irresponsible intolerance, the rest of us who may be forced to view them can take comfort in the knowledge that we share a better, loftier and nobler view of humanity."</p> | Judge: Pro-Israel group can post 'Killing Jews' ads on buses | false | https://apnews.com/amp/36a52364fc224396936473e4182ce728 | 2015-04-22 | 2least
| Judge: Pro-Israel group can post 'Killing Jews' ads on buses
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — A pro-Israel advocacy group known for publicly criticizing Islam can display its political advertisement containing the phrase "Hamas Killing Jews" on New York City's buses, a judge said.</p>
<p>Judge John Koeltl said in a decision made public Tuesday that the advertisement is protected speech.</p>
<p>He said he was sensitive to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's claim that the ad could incite violence and appreciates the efforts necessary to prevent violent attacks.</p>
<p>But he noted that substantially the same advertisement ran in San Francisco and Chicago in 2013 without incident. He added that examples of violent attacks cited by the MTA show that individuals may commit heinous acts without warning.</p>
<p>"Under the First Amendment, the fear of such spontaneous attacks, without more, cannot override individuals' rights to freedom of expression," Koeltl said in a ruling dated Monday. He stayed the effect of the decision for a month so it can be appealed.</p>
<p>MTA spokesman Adam Lisberg said the agency is disappointed in the ruling and is reviewing its options.</p>
<p>It came in a lawsuit filed last year by the American Freedom Defense Initiative, an organization headed by blogger Pamela Geller that's behind the advertisement.</p>
<p>David Yerushalmi, a lawyer for the organization, said the decision "sends a strong message both to government bureaucrats who would restrict our freedom of speech based upon what they perceive to be a global jihadist threat, and it also sends a telling message to our enemies abroad and at home: Their threats of violence will not prevent the courts from upholding the First Amendment."</p>
<p>The lawsuit said Geller's group buys the advertisements to express its message on current events and public issues "including issues such as Islam's hatred of Jews."</p>
<p>The lawsuit was filed after the MTA notified the group in August that it would display three of four proposed advertisements but not an ad with the quote "Killing Jews is Worship that draws us close to Allah" because it could incite violence. In the ad, a covered face is shown next to the quote, which is attributed to "Hamas MTV." It is followed by the words: "That's his Jihad. What's yours?"</p>
<p>In a September statement, the MTA said it recognized that the rejected ad was a parody of "MyJihad" ads sponsored by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which said it was promoting the concept that jihad is an individual and personal struggle rather than a violent conflict or terrorism.</p>
<p>Koeltl said he recognized that the MTA believes it would be far more difficult to counter the advertisement because it has parodic aspects.</p>
<p>But he said he believes the agency underestimates "the power of counter-advertisements to explain that the MTA does not endorse the ad and that the ad is not to be taken seriously."</p>
<p>Monica Klein, a spokeswoman for Mayor Bill de Blasio, noted in a statement that the mayor has said "these anti-Islamic ads are outrageous, inflammatory and wrong, and have no place in New York City, or anywhere."</p>
<p>"These hateful messages serve only to divide and stigmatize when we should be coming together as one city," she added. "While those behind these ads only display their irresponsible intolerance, the rest of us who may be forced to view them can take comfort in the knowledge that we share a better, loftier and nobler view of humanity."</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — A pro-Israel advocacy group known for publicly criticizing Islam can display its political advertisement containing the phrase "Hamas Killing Jews" on New York City's buses, a judge said.</p>
<p>Judge John Koeltl said in a decision made public Tuesday that the advertisement is protected speech.</p>
<p>He said he was sensitive to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's claim that the ad could incite violence and appreciates the efforts necessary to prevent violent attacks.</p>
<p>But he noted that substantially the same advertisement ran in San Francisco and Chicago in 2013 without incident. He added that examples of violent attacks cited by the MTA show that individuals may commit heinous acts without warning.</p>
<p>"Under the First Amendment, the fear of such spontaneous attacks, without more, cannot override individuals' rights to freedom of expression," Koeltl said in a ruling dated Monday. He stayed the effect of the decision for a month so it can be appealed.</p>
<p>MTA spokesman Adam Lisberg said the agency is disappointed in the ruling and is reviewing its options.</p>
<p>It came in a lawsuit filed last year by the American Freedom Defense Initiative, an organization headed by blogger Pamela Geller that's behind the advertisement.</p>
<p>David Yerushalmi, a lawyer for the organization, said the decision "sends a strong message both to government bureaucrats who would restrict our freedom of speech based upon what they perceive to be a global jihadist threat, and it also sends a telling message to our enemies abroad and at home: Their threats of violence will not prevent the courts from upholding the First Amendment."</p>
<p>The lawsuit said Geller's group buys the advertisements to express its message on current events and public issues "including issues such as Islam's hatred of Jews."</p>
<p>The lawsuit was filed after the MTA notified the group in August that it would display three of four proposed advertisements but not an ad with the quote "Killing Jews is Worship that draws us close to Allah" because it could incite violence. In the ad, a covered face is shown next to the quote, which is attributed to "Hamas MTV." It is followed by the words: "That's his Jihad. What's yours?"</p>
<p>In a September statement, the MTA said it recognized that the rejected ad was a parody of "MyJihad" ads sponsored by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which said it was promoting the concept that jihad is an individual and personal struggle rather than a violent conflict or terrorism.</p>
<p>Koeltl said he recognized that the MTA believes it would be far more difficult to counter the advertisement because it has parodic aspects.</p>
<p>But he said he believes the agency underestimates "the power of counter-advertisements to explain that the MTA does not endorse the ad and that the ad is not to be taken seriously."</p>
<p>Monica Klein, a spokeswoman for Mayor Bill de Blasio, noted in a statement that the mayor has said "these anti-Islamic ads are outrageous, inflammatory and wrong, and have no place in New York City, or anywhere."</p>
<p>"These hateful messages serve only to divide and stigmatize when we should be coming together as one city," she added. "While those behind these ads only display their irresponsible intolerance, the rest of us who may be forced to view them can take comfort in the knowledge that we share a better, loftier and nobler view of humanity."</p> | 4,123 |
<p>TIDMNHY</p>
<p>Hydro's underlying earnings before financial items and tax decreased to</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>NOK 2 446 million in the third quarter, down from NOK 2 930 million in</p>
<p>the second quarter. The decrease mainly reflects higher raw material</p>
<p>costs and negative currency effects.</p>
<p>-- Underlying EBIT of NOK 2 446 million</p>
<p>-- Negative result effects from raw material costs and USD depreciation</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>-- Weak Rolled Products results on continued operational issues and negative</p>
<p>currency effect</p>
<p>-- Acquisition of Sapa completed on October 2, integration progressing</p>
<p>according to plan</p>
<p>-- Better improvement program on track for 2019 target of NOK 2.9 billion,</p>
<p>despite 2017 setback</p>
<p>-- Karmøy Technology Pilot on time and budget, expected start-up Q4</p>
<p>2017</p>
<p>-- Positive market sentiment on announced Chinese closures, global market</p>
<p>expected largely balanced in 2017</p>
<p>"We have lifted our global demand estimate for 2017 to 5-6%, indicating</p>
<p>a continued strong demand for aluminium. There is a positive market</p>
<p>sentiment for aluminium, mainly driven by curtailments of primary</p>
<p>production in China, which have supported the market balance in the</p>
<p>quarter," says President and CEO Svein Richard Brandtzæg.</p>
<p>"This quarter marks a new chapter in our history, adding Extruded</p>
<p>Solutions as a fifth business area in Hydro. We are now 35,000-people</p>
<p>strong, with 150 sites all over the world and 30,000 customers</p>
<p>throughout the entire value chain of aluminium. We have a global reach</p>
<p>as well as being very close to our customers and all the communities we</p>
<p>serve," says Brandtzæg.</p>
<p>"We now have the best-possible platform for further growth and</p>
<p>opportunities, innovation and product development," says Brandtzæg.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Bauxite &amp; Alumina decreased compared to the second</p>
<p>quarter. Higher bauxite and caustic prices, negative currency effects</p>
<p>and increased depreciation, primarily in Paragominas, were partly offset</p>
<p>by improved consumption factors. The ongoing ramp-up process of the new</p>
<p>press filter operation caused additional cost at the alumina refinery.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Primary Metal declined in the third quarter due to</p>
<p>negative currency effects, as the NOK strengthened against the USD, in</p>
<p>addition to seasonally lower volumes and higher carbon costs. This was</p>
<p>partly offset by lower alumina and fixed costs.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Metal Markets declined in the third quarter, mainly</p>
<p>due to negative inventory valuation and less positive currency effects.</p>
<p>Results from remelters declined in the third quarter driven by lower</p>
<p>sales volumes in Europe.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Rolled Products in the third quarter improved</p>
<p>slightly compared to the second quarter of 2017. The increase was</p>
<p>primarily due to an accrual for employee compensation recognized in the</p>
<p>second quarter. This was partly offset by negative currency developments</p>
<p>and seasonal effects including summer shutdown in certain plants. The</p>
<p>Neuss smelter result was on same level compared to prior quarter.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Energy increased compared to the previous quarter,</p>
<p>mainly due to improved commercial results and higher production, partly</p>
<p>offset by periodically higher property tax.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Sapa decreased compared to the previous quarter, in</p>
<p>line with general seasonality in the extrusion business.</p>
<p>Due to the ongoing performance challenges in Rolled Products, progress</p>
<p>on Hydro's "Better" improvement program is behind plan. While Hydro does</p>
<p>not expect to reach the year end target of NOK 500 million, the delay is</p>
<p>not expected to impact the ability to reach the 2019 target of NOK 2.9</p>
<p>billion.</p>
<p>Hydro's net cash position increased by NOK 1.7 billion to NOK 7.7</p>
<p>billion at the end of the quarter. Net cash provided by operating</p>
<p>activities amounted to NOK 3.0 billion. Net cash used in investment</p>
<p>activities, excluding short term investments, amounted to NOK 1.3</p>
<p>billion.</p>
<p>Reported earnings before financial items and tax amounted to NOK 2,323</p>
<p>million for the third quarter. In addition to the factors discussed</p>
<p>above, reported EBIT included net unrealized derivative gains of NOK 23</p>
<p>million and negative metal effects of NOK 151 million.</p>
<p>Net income amounted to NOK 2,184 million in the third quarter including</p>
<p>a reduction in tax expense and related interest income of NOK 125</p>
<p>million in total following a closed tax case in September 2017. Net</p>
<p>income also includes net foreign exchange gains of NOK 520 million,</p>
<p>mainly unrealized, reflecting a weakening of USD against BRL affecting</p>
<p>US dollar debt in Brazil, while the weakening of EUR forward rates</p>
<p>against NOK resulted in an unrealized gain on the embedded derivatives</p>
<p>in power contracts denominated in EUR.</p>
<p>Change</p>
<p>Third Second Change Third prior First 9 First 9</p>
<p>Key financial information quarter quarter prior quarter year months months Year</p>
<p>NOK million, except per share data 2017 2017 quarter 2016 quarter 2017 2016 2016</p>
<p>Revenue 22,799 24,591 (7) % 20,174 13 % 70,416 60,703 81,953</p>
<p>Earnings before financial items and tax (EBIT) 2,323 2,946 (21) % 1,376 69 % 7,678 5,047 7,011</p>
<p>Items excluded from underlying EBIT 123 (16) &gt;100 % 101 21 % (18) (451) (586)</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT 2,446 2,930 (17) % 1,477 66 % 7,660 4,596 6,425</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT :</p>
<p>Bauxite &amp; Alumina 413 662 (38) % 153 &gt;100 % 1,831 516 1,227</p>
<p>Primary Metal 1,298 1,486 (13) % 637 &gt;100 % 3,684 1,657 2,258</p>
<p>Metal Markets 91 244 (63) % 117 (22) % 359 358 510</p>
<p>Rolled Products 95 84 12 % 211 (55) % 285 701 708</p>
<p>Energy 368 284 30 % 285 29 % 1,075 983 1,343</p>
<p>Other and eliminations 181 170 7 % 75 &gt;100 % 426 380 380</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT 2,446 2,930 (17) % 1,477 66 % 7,660 4,596 6,425</p>
<p>Earnings before financial items, tax, depreciation</p>
<p>and</p>
<p>amortization (EBITDA) 3,766 4,335 (13) % 2,792 35 % 11,863 8,922 12,485</p>
<p>Underlying EBITDA 3,889 4,319 (10) % 2,753 41 % 11,845 8,331 11,474</p>
<p>Net income (loss) 2,184 1,562 40 % 1,119 95 % 5,585 5,578 6,586</p>
<p>Underlying net income (loss) 1,785 2,214 (19) % 958 86 % 5,580 2,906 3,875</p>
<p>Earnings per share 1.00 0.73 37 % 0.53 88 % 2.59 2.61 3.13</p>
<p>Underlying earnings per share 0.82 1.04 (21) % 0.46 80 % 2.61 1.37 1.83</p>
<p>Financial data:</p>
<p>Investments 1,424 1,420 0 % 1,914 (26) % 4,216 5,596 9,137</p>
<p>Adjusted net cash (debt) (2,976) (5,146) 42 % (8,072) 63 % (2,976) (8,072) (5,598)</p>
<p>Change</p>
<p>Third Second Change Third prior First 9 First 9</p>
<p>quarter quarter prior quarter year months months Year</p>
<p>Key Operational information 2017 2017 quarter 2016 quarter 2017 2016 2016</p>
<p>Bauxite production (kmt) 3,043 2,943 3 % 2,777 10 % 8,386 8,069 11,132</p>
<p>Alumina production (kmt) 1,605 1,576 2 % 1,635 (2) % 4,704 4,706 6,341</p>
<p>Primary aluminium production (kmt) 527 523 1 % 526 0 % 1,566 1,559 2,085</p>
<p>Realized aluminium price LME (USD/mt) 1,921 1,902 1 % 1,612 19 % 1,859 1,552 1,574</p>
<p>Realized aluminium price LME (NOK/mt) 15,496 16,265 (5) % 13,375 16 % 15,510 13,049 13,193</p>
<p>Realized USD/NOK exchange rate 8.07 8.55 (6) % 8.30 (3) % 8.35 8.41 8.38</p>
<p>Rolled Products sales volumes to external market</p>
<p>(kmt) 236 239 (1) % 231 3 % 716 697 911</p>
<p>Sapa sales volumes (kmt) 170 180 (6) % 170 0 % 527 527 682</p>
<p>Power production (GWh) 2,509 2,369 6 % 2,946 (15) % 7,746 8,781 11,332</p>
<p>Investor contact</p>
<p>Contact Stian Hasle</p>
<p>Cellular +47 97736022</p>
<p>E-mail [email protected]</p>
<p>Press contact</p>
<p>Contact Halvor Molland</p>
<p>Cellular +47 92979797</p>
<p>E-mail [email protected]</p>
<p>Cautionary note</p>
<p>Certain statements included in this announcement contain forward-looking</p>
<p>information, including, without limitation, information relating to (a)</p>
<p>forecasts, projections and estimates, (b) statements of Hydro management</p>
<p>concerning plans, objectives and strategies, such as planned expansions,</p>
<p>investments, divestments, curtailments or other projects, (c) targeted</p>
<p>production volumes and costs, capacities or rates, start-up costs, cost</p>
<p>reductions and profit objectives, (d) various expectations about future</p>
<p>developments in Hydro's markets, particularly prices, supply and demand</p>
<p>and competition, (e) results of operations, (f) margins, (g) growth</p>
<p>rates, (h) risk management, and (i) qualified statements such as</p>
<p>"expected", "scheduled", "targeted", "planned", "proposed", "intended"</p>
<p>or similar.</p>
<p>Although we believe that the expectations reflected in such</p>
<p>forward-looking statements are reasonable, these forward-looking</p>
<p>statements are based on a number of assumptions and forecasts that, by</p>
<p>their nature, involve risk and uncertainty. Various factors could cause</p>
<p>our actual results to differ materially from those projected in a</p>
<p>forward-looking statement or affect the extent to which a particular</p>
<p>projection is realized. Factors that could cause these differences</p>
<p>include, but are not limited to: our continued ability to reposition and</p>
<p>restructure our upstream and downstream businesses; changes in</p>
<p>availability and cost of energy and raw materials; global supply and</p>
<p>demand for aluminium and aluminium products; world economic growth,</p>
<p>including rates of inflation and industrial production; changes in the</p>
<p>relative value of currencies and the value of commodity contracts;</p>
<p>trends in Hydro's key markets and competition; and legislative,</p>
<p>regulatory and political factors.</p>
<p>No assurance can be given that such expectations will prove to have been</p>
<p>correct. Hydro disclaims any obligation to update or revise any</p>
<p>forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,</p>
<p>future events or otherwise.</p>
<p>This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to</p>
<p>section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.</p>
<p>Q3 2017 Presentation: http://hugin.info/106/R/2144192/821719.pdf</p>
<p>Q3 2017 Report: http://hugin.info/106/R/2144192/821711.pdf</p>
<p>This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf</p>
<p>of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients.</p>
<p>The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely</p>
<p>responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information</p>
<p>contained therein.</p>
<p>Source: Norsk Hydro via Globenewswire</p>
<p>http://www.hydro.com/en/?WT.mc_id=Pressrelease</p>
<p>(END) Dow Jones Newswires</p>
<p>October 25, 2017 01:15 ET (05:15 GMT)</p> | Norsk Hydro AS Norsk Hydro: Results Down On -2- | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2017/10/25/norsk-hydro-as-norsk-hydro-results-down-on-2.html | 2017-10-25 | 0right
| Norsk Hydro AS Norsk Hydro: Results Down On -2-
<p>TIDMNHY</p>
<p>Hydro's underlying earnings before financial items and tax decreased to</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>NOK 2 446 million in the third quarter, down from NOK 2 930 million in</p>
<p>the second quarter. The decrease mainly reflects higher raw material</p>
<p>costs and negative currency effects.</p>
<p>-- Underlying EBIT of NOK 2 446 million</p>
<p>-- Negative result effects from raw material costs and USD depreciation</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>-- Weak Rolled Products results on continued operational issues and negative</p>
<p>currency effect</p>
<p>-- Acquisition of Sapa completed on October 2, integration progressing</p>
<p>according to plan</p>
<p>-- Better improvement program on track for 2019 target of NOK 2.9 billion,</p>
<p>despite 2017 setback</p>
<p>-- Karmøy Technology Pilot on time and budget, expected start-up Q4</p>
<p>2017</p>
<p>-- Positive market sentiment on announced Chinese closures, global market</p>
<p>expected largely balanced in 2017</p>
<p>"We have lifted our global demand estimate for 2017 to 5-6%, indicating</p>
<p>a continued strong demand for aluminium. There is a positive market</p>
<p>sentiment for aluminium, mainly driven by curtailments of primary</p>
<p>production in China, which have supported the market balance in the</p>
<p>quarter," says President and CEO Svein Richard Brandtzæg.</p>
<p>"This quarter marks a new chapter in our history, adding Extruded</p>
<p>Solutions as a fifth business area in Hydro. We are now 35,000-people</p>
<p>strong, with 150 sites all over the world and 30,000 customers</p>
<p>throughout the entire value chain of aluminium. We have a global reach</p>
<p>as well as being very close to our customers and all the communities we</p>
<p>serve," says Brandtzæg.</p>
<p>"We now have the best-possible platform for further growth and</p>
<p>opportunities, innovation and product development," says Brandtzæg.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Bauxite &amp; Alumina decreased compared to the second</p>
<p>quarter. Higher bauxite and caustic prices, negative currency effects</p>
<p>and increased depreciation, primarily in Paragominas, were partly offset</p>
<p>by improved consumption factors. The ongoing ramp-up process of the new</p>
<p>press filter operation caused additional cost at the alumina refinery.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Primary Metal declined in the third quarter due to</p>
<p>negative currency effects, as the NOK strengthened against the USD, in</p>
<p>addition to seasonally lower volumes and higher carbon costs. This was</p>
<p>partly offset by lower alumina and fixed costs.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Metal Markets declined in the third quarter, mainly</p>
<p>due to negative inventory valuation and less positive currency effects.</p>
<p>Results from remelters declined in the third quarter driven by lower</p>
<p>sales volumes in Europe.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Rolled Products in the third quarter improved</p>
<p>slightly compared to the second quarter of 2017. The increase was</p>
<p>primarily due to an accrual for employee compensation recognized in the</p>
<p>second quarter. This was partly offset by negative currency developments</p>
<p>and seasonal effects including summer shutdown in certain plants. The</p>
<p>Neuss smelter result was on same level compared to prior quarter.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Energy increased compared to the previous quarter,</p>
<p>mainly due to improved commercial results and higher production, partly</p>
<p>offset by periodically higher property tax.</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT for Sapa decreased compared to the previous quarter, in</p>
<p>line with general seasonality in the extrusion business.</p>
<p>Due to the ongoing performance challenges in Rolled Products, progress</p>
<p>on Hydro's "Better" improvement program is behind plan. While Hydro does</p>
<p>not expect to reach the year end target of NOK 500 million, the delay is</p>
<p>not expected to impact the ability to reach the 2019 target of NOK 2.9</p>
<p>billion.</p>
<p>Hydro's net cash position increased by NOK 1.7 billion to NOK 7.7</p>
<p>billion at the end of the quarter. Net cash provided by operating</p>
<p>activities amounted to NOK 3.0 billion. Net cash used in investment</p>
<p>activities, excluding short term investments, amounted to NOK 1.3</p>
<p>billion.</p>
<p>Reported earnings before financial items and tax amounted to NOK 2,323</p>
<p>million for the third quarter. In addition to the factors discussed</p>
<p>above, reported EBIT included net unrealized derivative gains of NOK 23</p>
<p>million and negative metal effects of NOK 151 million.</p>
<p>Net income amounted to NOK 2,184 million in the third quarter including</p>
<p>a reduction in tax expense and related interest income of NOK 125</p>
<p>million in total following a closed tax case in September 2017. Net</p>
<p>income also includes net foreign exchange gains of NOK 520 million,</p>
<p>mainly unrealized, reflecting a weakening of USD against BRL affecting</p>
<p>US dollar debt in Brazil, while the weakening of EUR forward rates</p>
<p>against NOK resulted in an unrealized gain on the embedded derivatives</p>
<p>in power contracts denominated in EUR.</p>
<p>Change</p>
<p>Third Second Change Third prior First 9 First 9</p>
<p>Key financial information quarter quarter prior quarter year months months Year</p>
<p>NOK million, except per share data 2017 2017 quarter 2016 quarter 2017 2016 2016</p>
<p>Revenue 22,799 24,591 (7) % 20,174 13 % 70,416 60,703 81,953</p>
<p>Earnings before financial items and tax (EBIT) 2,323 2,946 (21) % 1,376 69 % 7,678 5,047 7,011</p>
<p>Items excluded from underlying EBIT 123 (16) &gt;100 % 101 21 % (18) (451) (586)</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT 2,446 2,930 (17) % 1,477 66 % 7,660 4,596 6,425</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT :</p>
<p>Bauxite &amp; Alumina 413 662 (38) % 153 &gt;100 % 1,831 516 1,227</p>
<p>Primary Metal 1,298 1,486 (13) % 637 &gt;100 % 3,684 1,657 2,258</p>
<p>Metal Markets 91 244 (63) % 117 (22) % 359 358 510</p>
<p>Rolled Products 95 84 12 % 211 (55) % 285 701 708</p>
<p>Energy 368 284 30 % 285 29 % 1,075 983 1,343</p>
<p>Other and eliminations 181 170 7 % 75 &gt;100 % 426 380 380</p>
<p>Underlying EBIT 2,446 2,930 (17) % 1,477 66 % 7,660 4,596 6,425</p>
<p>Earnings before financial items, tax, depreciation</p>
<p>and</p>
<p>amortization (EBITDA) 3,766 4,335 (13) % 2,792 35 % 11,863 8,922 12,485</p>
<p>Underlying EBITDA 3,889 4,319 (10) % 2,753 41 % 11,845 8,331 11,474</p>
<p>Net income (loss) 2,184 1,562 40 % 1,119 95 % 5,585 5,578 6,586</p>
<p>Underlying net income (loss) 1,785 2,214 (19) % 958 86 % 5,580 2,906 3,875</p>
<p>Earnings per share 1.00 0.73 37 % 0.53 88 % 2.59 2.61 3.13</p>
<p>Underlying earnings per share 0.82 1.04 (21) % 0.46 80 % 2.61 1.37 1.83</p>
<p>Financial data:</p>
<p>Investments 1,424 1,420 0 % 1,914 (26) % 4,216 5,596 9,137</p>
<p>Adjusted net cash (debt) (2,976) (5,146) 42 % (8,072) 63 % (2,976) (8,072) (5,598)</p>
<p>Change</p>
<p>Third Second Change Third prior First 9 First 9</p>
<p>quarter quarter prior quarter year months months Year</p>
<p>Key Operational information 2017 2017 quarter 2016 quarter 2017 2016 2016</p>
<p>Bauxite production (kmt) 3,043 2,943 3 % 2,777 10 % 8,386 8,069 11,132</p>
<p>Alumina production (kmt) 1,605 1,576 2 % 1,635 (2) % 4,704 4,706 6,341</p>
<p>Primary aluminium production (kmt) 527 523 1 % 526 0 % 1,566 1,559 2,085</p>
<p>Realized aluminium price LME (USD/mt) 1,921 1,902 1 % 1,612 19 % 1,859 1,552 1,574</p>
<p>Realized aluminium price LME (NOK/mt) 15,496 16,265 (5) % 13,375 16 % 15,510 13,049 13,193</p>
<p>Realized USD/NOK exchange rate 8.07 8.55 (6) % 8.30 (3) % 8.35 8.41 8.38</p>
<p>Rolled Products sales volumes to external market</p>
<p>(kmt) 236 239 (1) % 231 3 % 716 697 911</p>
<p>Sapa sales volumes (kmt) 170 180 (6) % 170 0 % 527 527 682</p>
<p>Power production (GWh) 2,509 2,369 6 % 2,946 (15) % 7,746 8,781 11,332</p>
<p>Investor contact</p>
<p>Contact Stian Hasle</p>
<p>Cellular +47 97736022</p>
<p>E-mail [email protected]</p>
<p>Press contact</p>
<p>Contact Halvor Molland</p>
<p>Cellular +47 92979797</p>
<p>E-mail [email protected]</p>
<p>Cautionary note</p>
<p>Certain statements included in this announcement contain forward-looking</p>
<p>information, including, without limitation, information relating to (a)</p>
<p>forecasts, projections and estimates, (b) statements of Hydro management</p>
<p>concerning plans, objectives and strategies, such as planned expansions,</p>
<p>investments, divestments, curtailments or other projects, (c) targeted</p>
<p>production volumes and costs, capacities or rates, start-up costs, cost</p>
<p>reductions and profit objectives, (d) various expectations about future</p>
<p>developments in Hydro's markets, particularly prices, supply and demand</p>
<p>and competition, (e) results of operations, (f) margins, (g) growth</p>
<p>rates, (h) risk management, and (i) qualified statements such as</p>
<p>"expected", "scheduled", "targeted", "planned", "proposed", "intended"</p>
<p>or similar.</p>
<p>Although we believe that the expectations reflected in such</p>
<p>forward-looking statements are reasonable, these forward-looking</p>
<p>statements are based on a number of assumptions and forecasts that, by</p>
<p>their nature, involve risk and uncertainty. Various factors could cause</p>
<p>our actual results to differ materially from those projected in a</p>
<p>forward-looking statement or affect the extent to which a particular</p>
<p>projection is realized. Factors that could cause these differences</p>
<p>include, but are not limited to: our continued ability to reposition and</p>
<p>restructure our upstream and downstream businesses; changes in</p>
<p>availability and cost of energy and raw materials; global supply and</p>
<p>demand for aluminium and aluminium products; world economic growth,</p>
<p>including rates of inflation and industrial production; changes in the</p>
<p>relative value of currencies and the value of commodity contracts;</p>
<p>trends in Hydro's key markets and competition; and legislative,</p>
<p>regulatory and political factors.</p>
<p>No assurance can be given that such expectations will prove to have been</p>
<p>correct. Hydro disclaims any obligation to update or revise any</p>
<p>forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,</p>
<p>future events or otherwise.</p>
<p>This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to</p>
<p>section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.</p>
<p>Q3 2017 Presentation: http://hugin.info/106/R/2144192/821719.pdf</p>
<p>Q3 2017 Report: http://hugin.info/106/R/2144192/821711.pdf</p>
<p>This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf</p>
<p>of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients.</p>
<p>The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely</p>
<p>responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information</p>
<p>contained therein.</p>
<p>Source: Norsk Hydro via Globenewswire</p>
<p>http://www.hydro.com/en/?WT.mc_id=Pressrelease</p>
<p>(END) Dow Jones Newswires</p>
<p>October 25, 2017 01:15 ET (05:15 GMT)</p> | 4,124 |
<p>In his new book, “The Slave Side of Sunday,” former NFL player Anthony Prior writes about the legacy of racism in professional sports. “We are not looked at as leaders, rather, just a labor force where the money is generated. Plantation capitalism is still alive today,” he tells Truthdig contributor James Harris. What follows is an uncut transcript of their conversation. (Or jump to our <a href="" type="internal">audio version.</a>)</p>
<p>James Harris:</p>
<p>Here we sit with Anthony Prior, former NFL player. He’s played for the greats, like the Minnesota Vikings and the Oakland Raiders, and he’s also spent some time in the Canadian Football League. He joins me today, though, as the author of one of the more controversial books out there. The book is called “The Slave Side of Sunday,” and you will be able to buy it [March 9]. One way to do that is through <a href="http://stoneholdbooks.com/" type="external">Stone Hold Books</a>. We’ll be talking more about that as the interview goes on.</p>
<p>Anthony, Welcome to Truthdig.</p>
<p />
<p>Anthony Prior:</p>
<p>I want to thank you for having me.</p>
<p>You say after 11 years of pro football, you’re well equipped to discuss the souls of African American players who have transcended the game to a billion-dollar market, but yet have no chance and no voice within the industry. You say the black athlete should have the right to express his concerns, whether to his team, community or his country — without suffering career suicide. Can you elaborate exactly on your meaning there?</p>
<p />
<p>(Above: Anthony Prior) <a href="http://stoneholdbooks.com/" type="external">Stone Hold Books</a> Anthony Prior’s official web site</p>
<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591096146/sr=8-1/qid=1141953534/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-6149873-1257767?%5Fencoding=UTF8" type="external">“Faith on Forty Yards”</a> Amazon.com review page of Prior’s previous book</p>
<p>I have read a lot of black sports stories and one that really stuck out was written by Harry Edwards, and he said that black players in the&#160;’60s were united through their oppression, and the black athletes of today are divided through their successes. So I took from that and I explained it in more of a contemporary sense–and based on my 11-year experience, the things I have witnessed, how players have become more submissive, more obedient; they have become more like automatons–a mechanical device resembling a human being. That’s the conflict I witnessed.</p>
<p>But the conflict today is–what the conflict means is serious disagreement. The conflict is, too many black athletes believe they are going to the pros. They have this illusion that because they can run, throw or jump, they’re guaranteed an opportunity in the sports industry. This is creating a crisis, a time of severe difficulty. The crisis today is the lack of knowledge and information, on an informative basis, a spiritual basis. We have a crisis when players don’t make teams on a pro level and start engaging in crime and a [garbled] lifestyle. We have a crisis when we see grown men fighting like slaves on a plantation before the game even starts. These are moral issues that must be addressed. We have a crisis when, in 1946, the NFL was forced to integrate and black athletes have taken it to a billion-dollar-plus market, yet have no owner in the industry. We are the record-breakers and trendsetters, yet we have no guaranteed contracts in the NFL. And the owners in the NFL are guaranteed profits annually. Since the players have ignored these aspects of the game, we are not looked at as leaders, rather, just a labor force where the money is generated. Plantation capitalism is still alive today.</p>
<p>So, the resolution. Well, resolution means a firm decision. Every black athlete must realize when pursuing a pro sports career, his fate, his talent, his determination, is in the hands of a committee that’s holding his lottery ticket–a lottery ticket that he didn’t print. Your career is in the balance of people who never even put on a helmet. Every player must pursue sports as a hobby, and get all you can out of it before it gets all it can out of you. Because I’ve witnessed this beast, this sports institution that can take the life right out of a grown man. And I’ve seen lives destroyed, because players felt they couldn’t do nothing else but be a physical beast on the field.</p>
<p>So what was your hope giving it the title “Slave Side of Sunday”?</p>
<p>Before Malcolm X was assassinated, he was interviewed, and a reporter asked Malcolm, “If you could do anything different concerning your movement, what would it be?” I quote Malcolm X: He said, “I wish I would have woke the people up first, before I tried to organize them.”‘ You cannot direct a sleeping giant, so an athlete today, he needs to be woken up. He’s sleepwalking, he’s such a powerful force that could change the entire fabric of this nation. Anytime you created a billion-dollar-plus market, you should first establish a voice. And we don’t have that today. This is what I call “mental slavery.” Slavery is not limited to bondage and chains. You got parents, preachers, teachers, coaches, fundamentally imposing these characteristics on these young black children in America, that without sports, you’re going to amount to nothing. Every black athlete we see on a professional level, he is one in 12,000. There are two things that can’t lie: That’s God and mathematics. So my objective is to go around the country and educate through sports, and let the youth know that if you don’t get all you can out of sports, and it turns around and gets all it can out of you, there’s going to be hell to pay.</p>
<p>In the NFL, 65% of the player force–as you know and well document in the text–are black. Six percent of the general managers are black. No–as you noted–no owners in the NFL are black. We can take a peek over at major league baseball and look at the managers over there. There are virtually none. We can look at the ownership again. There are very few, or none. And this is true of all of the leagues. Blacks have not managed to break into ownership or management. Is the NFL responsible for recruiting and maintaining a significant level of blacks in the league? Should they be held responsible for that?</p>
<p>I believe history explains a lot of things. From 1934 to 1945, blacks were banned in the NFL. But from there we created the Negro Football League. We were establishing ourselves, we were laying a foundation. You had a lot of black outstanding college athletes during that period that were playing in the Negro League. They didn’t care about going into the white NFL. But after WWII and the contributions of blacks in the war, it necessitated a whole new responsibility in America. A lot of blacks were speaking up, we wanted to integrate and we wanted a lot more of the American dream. So the black press pressured the NFL; the Negro League pressured the NFL, saying we want to become your competitor, so the NFL had to re-integrate, because they knew they couldn’t win. So what happened there, we lost our owners, our trophy cases, our fight songs, we lost coaches, general managers. And then came in the architect of the black athlete today, because today we’re just looked at as physical specimens. Those who prescribe your knowledge determine the range of your thinking. As soon as little Tyrone or little Pooky starts running, jumping or throwing something, the first thing we say in our minds is, oh, he’s going to get us out of this present condition, he’s going to be an athlete, he’s going to make a million dollars. But the owners of the institutions, the general managers and presidents, they’re leaving their kids’ wealth in a legacy. But my kids, with that mentality, will always have to prove themselves. So this has become fundamental. Because any time as a young black man, you don’t see black grown men in a position of leadership, you don’t feel you can lead. The only thing you see us as is a labor force, just like a slave on a plantation. And that mentality holds strong today. A lot of players feel they can’t be owners, they feel they can’t be coaches and general managers and scouts and work in the administration and make decisions, because they feel decisions have always been made for us–and against us.</p>
<p>It sounds to me like you’re saying that the history of the NFL has led it to a racist presence now, and that this is built into the framework of the league.</p>
<p>Absolutely. Racism in the NFL exists in the 21st century. You see, there was one point in time black players were a little bit above 70%, and today we’re at 65, you see, this is all by design. Because once they get our numbers down to 50%, there’s going to be no argument for the black athlete. Because the white athlete, he’s represented very well. He gots 32 owners, he gots 25 of the head coaches, are white. The administration, 89% are white. He’s represented very well. But in my opinion, the white athlete is not made to be the black man’s equal on the field. But as long as you’re being represented well, at high places, you know football’s a team sport and team sports can be manipulated. You can take a below-average player and surround him with great players to compensate his weaknesses. And that’s what’s going on today. That’s why the white athlete is present. He’s present with steroids, and he’s present with people in high places making decisions for him, allowing him to play on the field. Just like arena football: You condense the field, you don’t gotta be that fast, you don’t gotta be that agile. That’s allowing more white players to play.</p>
<p>More people can become competitive. And it sounds like similar things are happening in the NBA. The game is changing in such a way that a different level of competition has become possible.</p>
<p>Absolutely. You got a lot of white players that are outside shooters, and that myth that black players are only good enough to dunk and rebound. When you control the game, you can put people you want on the game. Sports–team sports–is just like a chess board. As long as the weak go up against the weak, and the strong go up against the strong, everybody looks good.</p>
<p>[Laughs] Very true. Very true. Anthony, how different is the argument you’re making in your new book, “The Slave Side of Sunday,” how different is your argument from the traditional one, that said–where black people were calling for their 40 acres and a mule, which they were promised, of course, by the government. How different is your argument from that? What solution do you have? Give me something that listeners, that players can be proactive about in solving this problem, as opposed to something that they would be reactive about? [Like:] “Hey, the NFL isn’t giving me this, they aren’t doing this, and we’re suffering as a result of it.”</p>
<p>You know what I would love to see?</p>
<p>What’s that?</p>
<p>And I believe a lot of other players would love to see? Have a black players union where our voice can be represented, our interests can be heard. Any time if you’re the labor force you’re gonna need somebody speaking for you. I know Gene Upshaw–.</p>
<p>Who is the director of the players union and is a black man. How do you think he’s done so far? I know there’s a far cry between having one black man as the all encompassing leader of every player in the NFL, versus what you’re suggesting as having a specific union that deals specifically with issues for black folk.</p>
<p>Gene Upshaw has been there for 23 years, he has a stellar record. I think we need to change today; you know, we’re in the 21st century, we need some new ideas, a fresh face, fresh ideas. And I’d like to see a change.</p>
<p>What kind of change, anything specific?</p>
<p>I would like to see somebody that is more boisterous, somebody that is more willing to speak out on racism and hypocrisy that is so prevalent in the NFL today, and make–let’s see some real changes. I know they got the Rooney rule.</p>
<p>Which is, what is the Rooney rule?</p>
<p>The Rooney rule is when a coach [position] is available in the NFL, they have to interview one minority. That’s good, it can kind of go both ways. Even though a franchise in the NFL already knows which coach they want to hire — his buddy, which is white, that’s in the other room — let’s go ahead and fly in this black coach, let’s just interview him, pay for his hotel and his airline flight, interviewed him, we did our quota, OK, bye, then we can go ahead and hire who we originally wanted to hire.</p>
<p>Sure.</p>
<p>That’s not good enough. Allow players to vote on their president, their head coach, on their head chief in charge. Let players have some say-so, and I guarantee you’ll have more black coaches in the NFL, whether it’s head coach or assistant coach. Players vote on our peers, to go to the Pro Bowl, who’s good enough [for] the Pro Bowl. How come we can’t vote on our coaches, who we think that can lead us to the Super Bowl, who can lead us to the promised land.</p>
<p>Anything specifically from the text that you want to share related to that?</p>
<p>Just like black players having their own democracy on the football field. If we’re 70% of the NFL, we generate the money, we’re the oil, we’re the engine behind this industry, because without the black sweat on Sunday afternoon, leagues would crumble. The NFL would crumble, so we need to have more say-so. We need to have our own democracy.</p>
<p>So you’re not calling for the NFL to do this. You’re calling for black players, black managers and black money, which there’s been over 500 players to cash out a million dollars in this game. I’d be calling for those guys to make some changes.</p>
<p>Absolutely. So in that respect it’s not the “40 acres” argument, it’s kind of a black community introspective, it’s saying, hey, this is what we need to change and this is why we need to change it. Kids are affected, athletes are affected, and ultimately the black community is affected by this lack of action in the NFL.</p>
<p>Absolutely. Gene Upshaw cannot make no changes. The person that can make the chance is the assembly of black players. Individually people can shout, and have rhetoric and talk all day long. But when you assemble, you come together as a group, that’s powerful.</p>
<p>I’m talking to a gentleman by the name of Robert Morris who is the founder and CEO of a group called Center for Diversity. He says– and I think you guys agree on this– he says that black people need a shift in mind-set. His quote is that blacks collectively need to understand that the NFL is about profit and not about humanitarian efforts.</p>
<p>So I think Morris is saying that it is about capitalism, it is about money, and so these people put money in the hands and control of teams in the hands of people they’re close to and people that they grew up with. I think that the problems you mention with regard to the lack of diversity and the lack of true commitment to getting black people in there is problematic, just like affirmative action has become problematic in that people are trying to fill quotas.</p>
<p>People are trying to respond to things like the Rooney rule –.</p>
<p>Yeah. (laughs)</p>
<p>That’s where affirmative action goes wrong, that’s where diversity programs go wrong. How could the NFL solve that political issue, how could they move past just saying “hey we’re gonna interview a black guy” into an area where they’d actually consider a black guy?</p>
<p>We’ve got to take some of the control out of their hands and into the hands of players, to have a little more of a balance when it comes to hiring coaches, when it comes to hiring a leader to try to take team into the Superbowl and win a championship.</p>
<p>If I’m a player, man! I wanna have some say-so of what coach and what philosophy he’s bringing in. You know, when the head coach and the team is about to sign a free agent, a high-profile player, there’s dialogue between the coach and players: “We’re gonna bring him, what do you guys think about it?”</p>
<p>It’s the same thing with Donovan McNabb and Terrell Owens they were talkin’ at the Super Bowl. Dovovan was puttin’ in word to the coaches and the coaches were talking with teammates–“we’re gonna bring in Terrell Owens”–and everybody agreed!</p>
<p>So we need to have that same opportunity when a coach comes in, we gotta have a better relationship with the president and the general manager. He needs to come down and say we’re gonna hire a few coaches, we got five on our list, and then the president and the general manager can address the team, with the coach’s qualifications, his philosophy, and see if he’s the best man for the job–based on his qualifications, not on his skin color.</p>
<p>Why don’t more players say “I want 10 million dollars, plus 6 million dollars of equity in this team?” Why don’t more players actually have written into their contract–I want team equity–so then it becomes a shared ownership, then they start to care about some of the decisions that are made?</p>
<p>They’re involved in the managerial process, they’re involved in the capitalist process, and it’s not just a social argument, it’s not just “do this for me because I get help or I need help or I was discriminated in the past,” it’s because I have equity in this team and I care about this team and I value this team. It surprises me that more players haven’t done that. What do you think about that?</p>
<p>Too many players have that impoverished mind, you know? They feel they’re money’s gonna run out, so they gotta get all they can while they can, while they’re able to perform. They don’t have that type of mind-set. That is something that can be educated to the young, the teenagers coming up.</p>
<p>The players that are presently in the NFL today–you’ve got a few warriors here and there, you got a few that have a consciousness to speak out, a consciousness for better compensation, but they feel that they are gonna be blackballed.</p>
<p>That’s why you gotta have a voice, you gotta have something separate from the NFL players association. You gotta have a black voice, you gotta have a black players association so issues like that policies can be written in bylaws, that can be effective.</p>
<p>Until you have a bylaw, you have a policy, ideas are just great [gravy].</p>
<p>Can a group of black NFL professionals really come together and really make a change?</p>
<p>Absolutely. I think it would be great to get some ex-players, that have contributed very well to the NFL, establish that outside voice, be able to have policies to where some of the profits these NFL owners have –they could go into where they recruit their players, some of these ghettos in America where they’re getting their prize-winning machines, you know start developing some of these communities, you know, policies like that.</p>
<p>That way everybody benefits. Because right now we got great individual achievement in our communities and our cities, but collectively, black people, we’re not–we have some, that collectively have a strong voice collectively gettin’ things done, but we need to see it more on a bigger scale.</p>
<p>And perhaps the book, “Slave Side of Sunday,” will be a start to that coming together.</p>
<p>Just last night I was hosting and I gave a presentation at the Fontana NAACP viewing party of the NAACP Image Awards last night, and there was over 200 people there, really first class. I got a chance to really let loose and let&#160;’em know what’s coming and I had over 50 people pre-order the book, so they wanna put a book show on for me, so, you know —</p>
<p>It starts with the community first, and if the community doesn’t back you, you’re not gonna be heard. So right now the campaign has started, and thanks for you giving me this radio interview. It all just gets the ball rolling.</p>
<p>The “Slave Side of Sunday,” Stone Hold Books, tell us a little bit about who publishes that book.</p>
<p>Stone Hold Books, that’s my publishing company. I started it in 2003, because when I first wrote a proposal, I sent my proposal out to major publishers, and a few got back to me, but they said they wanted to turn my story into a fiction story and change the title.</p>
<p>They said it’s gonna take about a year, year and a half to get the book out.</p>
<p>So I said to myself no way, can’t nobody tell my story better than me. I’m not gonna put my dream, my vision on hold for nobody.</p> | The 'Slave Side' of NFL Sundays | true | https://truthdig.com/articles/the-slave-side-of-nfl-sundays/ | 2006-03-10 | 4left
| The 'Slave Side' of NFL Sundays
<p>In his new book, “The Slave Side of Sunday,” former NFL player Anthony Prior writes about the legacy of racism in professional sports. “We are not looked at as leaders, rather, just a labor force where the money is generated. Plantation capitalism is still alive today,” he tells Truthdig contributor James Harris. What follows is an uncut transcript of their conversation. (Or jump to our <a href="" type="internal">audio version.</a>)</p>
<p>James Harris:</p>
<p>Here we sit with Anthony Prior, former NFL player. He’s played for the greats, like the Minnesota Vikings and the Oakland Raiders, and he’s also spent some time in the Canadian Football League. He joins me today, though, as the author of one of the more controversial books out there. The book is called “The Slave Side of Sunday,” and you will be able to buy it [March 9]. One way to do that is through <a href="http://stoneholdbooks.com/" type="external">Stone Hold Books</a>. We’ll be talking more about that as the interview goes on.</p>
<p>Anthony, Welcome to Truthdig.</p>
<p />
<p>Anthony Prior:</p>
<p>I want to thank you for having me.</p>
<p>You say after 11 years of pro football, you’re well equipped to discuss the souls of African American players who have transcended the game to a billion-dollar market, but yet have no chance and no voice within the industry. You say the black athlete should have the right to express his concerns, whether to his team, community or his country — without suffering career suicide. Can you elaborate exactly on your meaning there?</p>
<p />
<p>(Above: Anthony Prior) <a href="http://stoneholdbooks.com/" type="external">Stone Hold Books</a> Anthony Prior’s official web site</p>
<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591096146/sr=8-1/qid=1141953534/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-6149873-1257767?%5Fencoding=UTF8" type="external">“Faith on Forty Yards”</a> Amazon.com review page of Prior’s previous book</p>
<p>I have read a lot of black sports stories and one that really stuck out was written by Harry Edwards, and he said that black players in the&#160;’60s were united through their oppression, and the black athletes of today are divided through their successes. So I took from that and I explained it in more of a contemporary sense–and based on my 11-year experience, the things I have witnessed, how players have become more submissive, more obedient; they have become more like automatons–a mechanical device resembling a human being. That’s the conflict I witnessed.</p>
<p>But the conflict today is–what the conflict means is serious disagreement. The conflict is, too many black athletes believe they are going to the pros. They have this illusion that because they can run, throw or jump, they’re guaranteed an opportunity in the sports industry. This is creating a crisis, a time of severe difficulty. The crisis today is the lack of knowledge and information, on an informative basis, a spiritual basis. We have a crisis when players don’t make teams on a pro level and start engaging in crime and a [garbled] lifestyle. We have a crisis when we see grown men fighting like slaves on a plantation before the game even starts. These are moral issues that must be addressed. We have a crisis when, in 1946, the NFL was forced to integrate and black athletes have taken it to a billion-dollar-plus market, yet have no owner in the industry. We are the record-breakers and trendsetters, yet we have no guaranteed contracts in the NFL. And the owners in the NFL are guaranteed profits annually. Since the players have ignored these aspects of the game, we are not looked at as leaders, rather, just a labor force where the money is generated. Plantation capitalism is still alive today.</p>
<p>So, the resolution. Well, resolution means a firm decision. Every black athlete must realize when pursuing a pro sports career, his fate, his talent, his determination, is in the hands of a committee that’s holding his lottery ticket–a lottery ticket that he didn’t print. Your career is in the balance of people who never even put on a helmet. Every player must pursue sports as a hobby, and get all you can out of it before it gets all it can out of you. Because I’ve witnessed this beast, this sports institution that can take the life right out of a grown man. And I’ve seen lives destroyed, because players felt they couldn’t do nothing else but be a physical beast on the field.</p>
<p>So what was your hope giving it the title “Slave Side of Sunday”?</p>
<p>Before Malcolm X was assassinated, he was interviewed, and a reporter asked Malcolm, “If you could do anything different concerning your movement, what would it be?” I quote Malcolm X: He said, “I wish I would have woke the people up first, before I tried to organize them.”‘ You cannot direct a sleeping giant, so an athlete today, he needs to be woken up. He’s sleepwalking, he’s such a powerful force that could change the entire fabric of this nation. Anytime you created a billion-dollar-plus market, you should first establish a voice. And we don’t have that today. This is what I call “mental slavery.” Slavery is not limited to bondage and chains. You got parents, preachers, teachers, coaches, fundamentally imposing these characteristics on these young black children in America, that without sports, you’re going to amount to nothing. Every black athlete we see on a professional level, he is one in 12,000. There are two things that can’t lie: That’s God and mathematics. So my objective is to go around the country and educate through sports, and let the youth know that if you don’t get all you can out of sports, and it turns around and gets all it can out of you, there’s going to be hell to pay.</p>
<p>In the NFL, 65% of the player force–as you know and well document in the text–are black. Six percent of the general managers are black. No–as you noted–no owners in the NFL are black. We can take a peek over at major league baseball and look at the managers over there. There are virtually none. We can look at the ownership again. There are very few, or none. And this is true of all of the leagues. Blacks have not managed to break into ownership or management. Is the NFL responsible for recruiting and maintaining a significant level of blacks in the league? Should they be held responsible for that?</p>
<p>I believe history explains a lot of things. From 1934 to 1945, blacks were banned in the NFL. But from there we created the Negro Football League. We were establishing ourselves, we were laying a foundation. You had a lot of black outstanding college athletes during that period that were playing in the Negro League. They didn’t care about going into the white NFL. But after WWII and the contributions of blacks in the war, it necessitated a whole new responsibility in America. A lot of blacks were speaking up, we wanted to integrate and we wanted a lot more of the American dream. So the black press pressured the NFL; the Negro League pressured the NFL, saying we want to become your competitor, so the NFL had to re-integrate, because they knew they couldn’t win. So what happened there, we lost our owners, our trophy cases, our fight songs, we lost coaches, general managers. And then came in the architect of the black athlete today, because today we’re just looked at as physical specimens. Those who prescribe your knowledge determine the range of your thinking. As soon as little Tyrone or little Pooky starts running, jumping or throwing something, the first thing we say in our minds is, oh, he’s going to get us out of this present condition, he’s going to be an athlete, he’s going to make a million dollars. But the owners of the institutions, the general managers and presidents, they’re leaving their kids’ wealth in a legacy. But my kids, with that mentality, will always have to prove themselves. So this has become fundamental. Because any time as a young black man, you don’t see black grown men in a position of leadership, you don’t feel you can lead. The only thing you see us as is a labor force, just like a slave on a plantation. And that mentality holds strong today. A lot of players feel they can’t be owners, they feel they can’t be coaches and general managers and scouts and work in the administration and make decisions, because they feel decisions have always been made for us–and against us.</p>
<p>It sounds to me like you’re saying that the history of the NFL has led it to a racist presence now, and that this is built into the framework of the league.</p>
<p>Absolutely. Racism in the NFL exists in the 21st century. You see, there was one point in time black players were a little bit above 70%, and today we’re at 65, you see, this is all by design. Because once they get our numbers down to 50%, there’s going to be no argument for the black athlete. Because the white athlete, he’s represented very well. He gots 32 owners, he gots 25 of the head coaches, are white. The administration, 89% are white. He’s represented very well. But in my opinion, the white athlete is not made to be the black man’s equal on the field. But as long as you’re being represented well, at high places, you know football’s a team sport and team sports can be manipulated. You can take a below-average player and surround him with great players to compensate his weaknesses. And that’s what’s going on today. That’s why the white athlete is present. He’s present with steroids, and he’s present with people in high places making decisions for him, allowing him to play on the field. Just like arena football: You condense the field, you don’t gotta be that fast, you don’t gotta be that agile. That’s allowing more white players to play.</p>
<p>More people can become competitive. And it sounds like similar things are happening in the NBA. The game is changing in such a way that a different level of competition has become possible.</p>
<p>Absolutely. You got a lot of white players that are outside shooters, and that myth that black players are only good enough to dunk and rebound. When you control the game, you can put people you want on the game. Sports–team sports–is just like a chess board. As long as the weak go up against the weak, and the strong go up against the strong, everybody looks good.</p>
<p>[Laughs] Very true. Very true. Anthony, how different is the argument you’re making in your new book, “The Slave Side of Sunday,” how different is your argument from the traditional one, that said–where black people were calling for their 40 acres and a mule, which they were promised, of course, by the government. How different is your argument from that? What solution do you have? Give me something that listeners, that players can be proactive about in solving this problem, as opposed to something that they would be reactive about? [Like:] “Hey, the NFL isn’t giving me this, they aren’t doing this, and we’re suffering as a result of it.”</p>
<p>You know what I would love to see?</p>
<p>What’s that?</p>
<p>And I believe a lot of other players would love to see? Have a black players union where our voice can be represented, our interests can be heard. Any time if you’re the labor force you’re gonna need somebody speaking for you. I know Gene Upshaw–.</p>
<p>Who is the director of the players union and is a black man. How do you think he’s done so far? I know there’s a far cry between having one black man as the all encompassing leader of every player in the NFL, versus what you’re suggesting as having a specific union that deals specifically with issues for black folk.</p>
<p>Gene Upshaw has been there for 23 years, he has a stellar record. I think we need to change today; you know, we’re in the 21st century, we need some new ideas, a fresh face, fresh ideas. And I’d like to see a change.</p>
<p>What kind of change, anything specific?</p>
<p>I would like to see somebody that is more boisterous, somebody that is more willing to speak out on racism and hypocrisy that is so prevalent in the NFL today, and make–let’s see some real changes. I know they got the Rooney rule.</p>
<p>Which is, what is the Rooney rule?</p>
<p>The Rooney rule is when a coach [position] is available in the NFL, they have to interview one minority. That’s good, it can kind of go both ways. Even though a franchise in the NFL already knows which coach they want to hire — his buddy, which is white, that’s in the other room — let’s go ahead and fly in this black coach, let’s just interview him, pay for his hotel and his airline flight, interviewed him, we did our quota, OK, bye, then we can go ahead and hire who we originally wanted to hire.</p>
<p>Sure.</p>
<p>That’s not good enough. Allow players to vote on their president, their head coach, on their head chief in charge. Let players have some say-so, and I guarantee you’ll have more black coaches in the NFL, whether it’s head coach or assistant coach. Players vote on our peers, to go to the Pro Bowl, who’s good enough [for] the Pro Bowl. How come we can’t vote on our coaches, who we think that can lead us to the Super Bowl, who can lead us to the promised land.</p>
<p>Anything specifically from the text that you want to share related to that?</p>
<p>Just like black players having their own democracy on the football field. If we’re 70% of the NFL, we generate the money, we’re the oil, we’re the engine behind this industry, because without the black sweat on Sunday afternoon, leagues would crumble. The NFL would crumble, so we need to have more say-so. We need to have our own democracy.</p>
<p>So you’re not calling for the NFL to do this. You’re calling for black players, black managers and black money, which there’s been over 500 players to cash out a million dollars in this game. I’d be calling for those guys to make some changes.</p>
<p>Absolutely. So in that respect it’s not the “40 acres” argument, it’s kind of a black community introspective, it’s saying, hey, this is what we need to change and this is why we need to change it. Kids are affected, athletes are affected, and ultimately the black community is affected by this lack of action in the NFL.</p>
<p>Absolutely. Gene Upshaw cannot make no changes. The person that can make the chance is the assembly of black players. Individually people can shout, and have rhetoric and talk all day long. But when you assemble, you come together as a group, that’s powerful.</p>
<p>I’m talking to a gentleman by the name of Robert Morris who is the founder and CEO of a group called Center for Diversity. He says– and I think you guys agree on this– he says that black people need a shift in mind-set. His quote is that blacks collectively need to understand that the NFL is about profit and not about humanitarian efforts.</p>
<p>So I think Morris is saying that it is about capitalism, it is about money, and so these people put money in the hands and control of teams in the hands of people they’re close to and people that they grew up with. I think that the problems you mention with regard to the lack of diversity and the lack of true commitment to getting black people in there is problematic, just like affirmative action has become problematic in that people are trying to fill quotas.</p>
<p>People are trying to respond to things like the Rooney rule –.</p>
<p>Yeah. (laughs)</p>
<p>That’s where affirmative action goes wrong, that’s where diversity programs go wrong. How could the NFL solve that political issue, how could they move past just saying “hey we’re gonna interview a black guy” into an area where they’d actually consider a black guy?</p>
<p>We’ve got to take some of the control out of their hands and into the hands of players, to have a little more of a balance when it comes to hiring coaches, when it comes to hiring a leader to try to take team into the Superbowl and win a championship.</p>
<p>If I’m a player, man! I wanna have some say-so of what coach and what philosophy he’s bringing in. You know, when the head coach and the team is about to sign a free agent, a high-profile player, there’s dialogue between the coach and players: “We’re gonna bring him, what do you guys think about it?”</p>
<p>It’s the same thing with Donovan McNabb and Terrell Owens they were talkin’ at the Super Bowl. Dovovan was puttin’ in word to the coaches and the coaches were talking with teammates–“we’re gonna bring in Terrell Owens”–and everybody agreed!</p>
<p>So we need to have that same opportunity when a coach comes in, we gotta have a better relationship with the president and the general manager. He needs to come down and say we’re gonna hire a few coaches, we got five on our list, and then the president and the general manager can address the team, with the coach’s qualifications, his philosophy, and see if he’s the best man for the job–based on his qualifications, not on his skin color.</p>
<p>Why don’t more players say “I want 10 million dollars, plus 6 million dollars of equity in this team?” Why don’t more players actually have written into their contract–I want team equity–so then it becomes a shared ownership, then they start to care about some of the decisions that are made?</p>
<p>They’re involved in the managerial process, they’re involved in the capitalist process, and it’s not just a social argument, it’s not just “do this for me because I get help or I need help or I was discriminated in the past,” it’s because I have equity in this team and I care about this team and I value this team. It surprises me that more players haven’t done that. What do you think about that?</p>
<p>Too many players have that impoverished mind, you know? They feel they’re money’s gonna run out, so they gotta get all they can while they can, while they’re able to perform. They don’t have that type of mind-set. That is something that can be educated to the young, the teenagers coming up.</p>
<p>The players that are presently in the NFL today–you’ve got a few warriors here and there, you got a few that have a consciousness to speak out, a consciousness for better compensation, but they feel that they are gonna be blackballed.</p>
<p>That’s why you gotta have a voice, you gotta have something separate from the NFL players association. You gotta have a black voice, you gotta have a black players association so issues like that policies can be written in bylaws, that can be effective.</p>
<p>Until you have a bylaw, you have a policy, ideas are just great [gravy].</p>
<p>Can a group of black NFL professionals really come together and really make a change?</p>
<p>Absolutely. I think it would be great to get some ex-players, that have contributed very well to the NFL, establish that outside voice, be able to have policies to where some of the profits these NFL owners have –they could go into where they recruit their players, some of these ghettos in America where they’re getting their prize-winning machines, you know start developing some of these communities, you know, policies like that.</p>
<p>That way everybody benefits. Because right now we got great individual achievement in our communities and our cities, but collectively, black people, we’re not–we have some, that collectively have a strong voice collectively gettin’ things done, but we need to see it more on a bigger scale.</p>
<p>And perhaps the book, “Slave Side of Sunday,” will be a start to that coming together.</p>
<p>Just last night I was hosting and I gave a presentation at the Fontana NAACP viewing party of the NAACP Image Awards last night, and there was over 200 people there, really first class. I got a chance to really let loose and let&#160;’em know what’s coming and I had over 50 people pre-order the book, so they wanna put a book show on for me, so, you know —</p>
<p>It starts with the community first, and if the community doesn’t back you, you’re not gonna be heard. So right now the campaign has started, and thanks for you giving me this radio interview. It all just gets the ball rolling.</p>
<p>The “Slave Side of Sunday,” Stone Hold Books, tell us a little bit about who publishes that book.</p>
<p>Stone Hold Books, that’s my publishing company. I started it in 2003, because when I first wrote a proposal, I sent my proposal out to major publishers, and a few got back to me, but they said they wanted to turn my story into a fiction story and change the title.</p>
<p>They said it’s gonna take about a year, year and a half to get the book out.</p>
<p>So I said to myself no way, can’t nobody tell my story better than me. I’m not gonna put my dream, my vision on hold for nobody.</p> | 4,125 |
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<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Aside from taking standardized test, filing applications and writing essays, high school students applying to college have another assignment: clean up their online lives.</p>
<p>According to a Kaplan survey of college admissions officers, more than 80% of colleges use Facebook to connect with and recruit potential students. The same study shows an increase of friend requests from applicants and that students are open to the idea of communicating through social media. While schools may not &#160;base a decision on social media content, students should maintain profiles that shed a positive light on them.</p>
<p>“A first impression is no longer a handshake; it’s a <a href="" type="internal">Google</a> search, it’s a search on <a href="" type="internal">Facebook</a>,” says Dan Schawbel, author of Me 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve Career Success and founder of <a href="http://www.personalbranding.com/" type="external">Millenial Branding Opens a New Window.</a>. “Because all of this information is online, it makes it easier for employers and admissions officers to find out information on candidates.”</p>
<p>Your Facebook profile should always be a positive representation of yourself, even if you aren’t actively applying to college or a job.</p>
<p>Red Flags to Avoid&#160;</p>
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<p>Your profile picture is easily accessible and should never depict something inappropriate or illegal, says Schawbel.</p>
<p>“No matter what Facebook does to the profile, because they keep changing and customizing it, that picture is always the most prominent thing on the page by far,” he says.</p>
<p>While a picture is worth a thousand words, what you say on your profile can also be very damaging.</p>
<p>Miriam Salpeter, owner of the job search and social-media coaching firm&#160; <a href="http://www.keppiecareers.com/" type="external">Keppie Careers Opens a New Window.</a> and author of Social Networking for Career Success says to avoid making “comments that are extremely negative about anything or anyone, anything derogatory, anything offensive, racist, sexist, homophobic--anything that would indicate that you don’t have good judgment.”</p>
<p>Admissions officers are looking to form a strong, productive student body, and negativity, whether it’s in your status or wall postings, can be a huge turn off.</p>
<p>“Most people don’t want to be around someone who is constantly complaining,” Salpeter says. “Do a self audit; read through what you’re saying in your status. If you wouldn’t get a good impression, make a point to change how you’re illustrating what you’re doing in terms of your persona.”</p>
<p>Be Tight About Privacy Settings</p>
<p>Be proactive in maintaining your online credibility by enacting tight privacy settings on personal information and photos. Michael Fertik, CEO of <a href="http://www.reputation.com/" type="external">Reputation.com Opens a New Window.</a>, explains that the notion that kids don’t care about privacy or their reputations is false.</p>
<p>“Studies show that they actually try to take control of certain parts of their digital lives,” he says. “What they don't fully appreciate yet is the fact that even if you have privacy settings, it’s still public. The data keeps getting edited in ways you never expected because the social networks change their rules.”</p>
<p>Facebook’s ever-changing privacy settings are more in depth and complicated than ever before, claims Schawbel, which can result in content you intended to stay private to be available for those outside of your network.</p>
<p>Schawbel points out that the new Facebook layout posts the last five pictures you were“tagged in” on the front of your profile, giving you more visibility.</p>
<p>“If you don't set your preferences so that people can't tag pictures of you then you lose control of your brand and how you're perceived online,” he says. “Those pictures will represent you at the forefront when someone searches for your name.”</p>
<p>Careful Who You ‘Friend’</p>
<p>Friends can be a great support system to have in your daily life, but they can wreak havoc on your online reputation. The comments and pictures they post can make admission officers think twice about admitting you.</p>
<p>“You never know when someone who you thought was your friend may share something that you wouldn’t want shared,” says Salpeter. “People share things in a private forum and then it winds up that somebody tells or shows somebody else and the person ends up losing an opportunity as a result.”</p>
<p>Make sure the company you keep online makes you look good.</p>
<p>“Even if you're pretty pristine in your own behavior, that does not mean that your friends’ behavior is pristine or that you will come across as pristine,” Fertik says.</p>
<p>Use Social Networks to Your Advantage</p>
<p>There are ways you can use Facebook and other social media sites to help your college admission process. Connect with the universities and programs that you’re interested in by “liking” them or joining certain groups.</p>
<p>“If your profile is clean and you're using it professionally, then it can help you,” says Schawbel. “When everyone has the same skills, that passion, that enthusiasm, that willingness to do whatever it takes to get into that school or get into that company, [it] counts big time.”</p>
<p>Salpeter says that you can demonstrate your leadership and communication abilities to recruiters through Facebook interaction.</p>
<p>“Students can absolutely use Facebook to their advantage by following a school's page, making intelligent, insightful comments, and generally indicating an ability to function well in an online community,” she says. “This helps show an admissions officer how the candidate may behave on campus or as a representative of the school if admitted.”</p>
<p>Fertik says to keep in mind that social networks are just the tip of the iceberg on how admissions officers gauge your online presence. You may want to do some self-investigating to ensure that you’re putting forth your best impression in the digital world.</p>
<p>“We’re also seeing that decision-makers are looking at search results, they're looking online data bases, they're looking everywhere they can, not just the social networking page,” he says. “I think they'd like to see that who you say you are matches with who you appear to be.”</p> | Attention College Applicants: Admissions Can See Your Facebook Page | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2011/03/23/attention-college-applicants-admissions-facebook-page.html | 2016-03-04 | 0right
| Attention College Applicants: Admissions Can See Your Facebook Page
<p />
<p>Growing up is tough enough without the worries of your financial future, so <a href="" type="internal">Money101 Opens a New Window.</a> &#160;is here for you. <a href="http://mailto:[email protected]" type="external">E-mail us Opens a New Window.</a> your questions and let us take off some of the pressure.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Aside from taking standardized test, filing applications and writing essays, high school students applying to college have another assignment: clean up their online lives.</p>
<p>According to a Kaplan survey of college admissions officers, more than 80% of colleges use Facebook to connect with and recruit potential students. The same study shows an increase of friend requests from applicants and that students are open to the idea of communicating through social media. While schools may not &#160;base a decision on social media content, students should maintain profiles that shed a positive light on them.</p>
<p>“A first impression is no longer a handshake; it’s a <a href="" type="internal">Google</a> search, it’s a search on <a href="" type="internal">Facebook</a>,” says Dan Schawbel, author of Me 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve Career Success and founder of <a href="http://www.personalbranding.com/" type="external">Millenial Branding Opens a New Window.</a>. “Because all of this information is online, it makes it easier for employers and admissions officers to find out information on candidates.”</p>
<p>Your Facebook profile should always be a positive representation of yourself, even if you aren’t actively applying to college or a job.</p>
<p>Red Flags to Avoid&#160;</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>Your profile picture is easily accessible and should never depict something inappropriate or illegal, says Schawbel.</p>
<p>“No matter what Facebook does to the profile, because they keep changing and customizing it, that picture is always the most prominent thing on the page by far,” he says.</p>
<p>While a picture is worth a thousand words, what you say on your profile can also be very damaging.</p>
<p>Miriam Salpeter, owner of the job search and social-media coaching firm&#160; <a href="http://www.keppiecareers.com/" type="external">Keppie Careers Opens a New Window.</a> and author of Social Networking for Career Success says to avoid making “comments that are extremely negative about anything or anyone, anything derogatory, anything offensive, racist, sexist, homophobic--anything that would indicate that you don’t have good judgment.”</p>
<p>Admissions officers are looking to form a strong, productive student body, and negativity, whether it’s in your status or wall postings, can be a huge turn off.</p>
<p>“Most people don’t want to be around someone who is constantly complaining,” Salpeter says. “Do a self audit; read through what you’re saying in your status. If you wouldn’t get a good impression, make a point to change how you’re illustrating what you’re doing in terms of your persona.”</p>
<p>Be Tight About Privacy Settings</p>
<p>Be proactive in maintaining your online credibility by enacting tight privacy settings on personal information and photos. Michael Fertik, CEO of <a href="http://www.reputation.com/" type="external">Reputation.com Opens a New Window.</a>, explains that the notion that kids don’t care about privacy or their reputations is false.</p>
<p>“Studies show that they actually try to take control of certain parts of their digital lives,” he says. “What they don't fully appreciate yet is the fact that even if you have privacy settings, it’s still public. The data keeps getting edited in ways you never expected because the social networks change their rules.”</p>
<p>Facebook’s ever-changing privacy settings are more in depth and complicated than ever before, claims Schawbel, which can result in content you intended to stay private to be available for those outside of your network.</p>
<p>Schawbel points out that the new Facebook layout posts the last five pictures you were“tagged in” on the front of your profile, giving you more visibility.</p>
<p>“If you don't set your preferences so that people can't tag pictures of you then you lose control of your brand and how you're perceived online,” he says. “Those pictures will represent you at the forefront when someone searches for your name.”</p>
<p>Careful Who You ‘Friend’</p>
<p>Friends can be a great support system to have in your daily life, but they can wreak havoc on your online reputation. The comments and pictures they post can make admission officers think twice about admitting you.</p>
<p>“You never know when someone who you thought was your friend may share something that you wouldn’t want shared,” says Salpeter. “People share things in a private forum and then it winds up that somebody tells or shows somebody else and the person ends up losing an opportunity as a result.”</p>
<p>Make sure the company you keep online makes you look good.</p>
<p>“Even if you're pretty pristine in your own behavior, that does not mean that your friends’ behavior is pristine or that you will come across as pristine,” Fertik says.</p>
<p>Use Social Networks to Your Advantage</p>
<p>There are ways you can use Facebook and other social media sites to help your college admission process. Connect with the universities and programs that you’re interested in by “liking” them or joining certain groups.</p>
<p>“If your profile is clean and you're using it professionally, then it can help you,” says Schawbel. “When everyone has the same skills, that passion, that enthusiasm, that willingness to do whatever it takes to get into that school or get into that company, [it] counts big time.”</p>
<p>Salpeter says that you can demonstrate your leadership and communication abilities to recruiters through Facebook interaction.</p>
<p>“Students can absolutely use Facebook to their advantage by following a school's page, making intelligent, insightful comments, and generally indicating an ability to function well in an online community,” she says. “This helps show an admissions officer how the candidate may behave on campus or as a representative of the school if admitted.”</p>
<p>Fertik says to keep in mind that social networks are just the tip of the iceberg on how admissions officers gauge your online presence. You may want to do some self-investigating to ensure that you’re putting forth your best impression in the digital world.</p>
<p>“We’re also seeing that decision-makers are looking at search results, they're looking online data bases, they're looking everywhere they can, not just the social networking page,” he says. “I think they'd like to see that who you say you are matches with who you appear to be.”</p> | 4,126 |
<p />
<p>While this dog sacrificed itself to save his owner, a cat would probably just watch it’s blind owner get hit.&#160;This is why dogs rule! So glad to hear he will be ok.</p>
<p>Figo may be a service dog, but on Monday he went above and beyond the call of duty to protect his blind owner from an oncoming bus.</p>
<p>The golden retriever was out with owner Audrey Stone in Brewster, New York, when a bus driver turned a corner without looking. Leaping into action, Figo threw himself in front of the oncoming mini-bus in an attempt to shield Stone from harm’s way.</p>
<p>Stone fractured her elbow and ankle, broke three ribs, and cut her head from the imapct Figo received a deep, severe cut on his leg; his fur clung to the bus’ bumper and the pavement.</p>
<p>…</p>
<p>The dog was being a good sport, really calm. He sat with me the whole time. He was limping as we put him on a big blanket on the sidewalk and it started to rain. He let us wrap up his leg without any problem. He wasn’t barking or crying or yelping. But he kept pulling toward her. After she was put on a gurney and taken away, he stopped doing that. He seemed a little lost after she left.</p>
<p>Read more: <a href="http://mashable.com/2015/06/09/service-dog-saves-owner-from-bus/" type="external">mashable.com</a></p> | MAN’S BEST FRIEND: Service Dog Throws Itself in Front of Bus to Save Blind Owner | true | http://girlsjustwannahaveguns.com/mans-best-friend-service-dog-throws-itself-in-front-of-bus-to-save-blind-owner/ | 0right
| MAN’S BEST FRIEND: Service Dog Throws Itself in Front of Bus to Save Blind Owner
<p />
<p>While this dog sacrificed itself to save his owner, a cat would probably just watch it’s blind owner get hit.&#160;This is why dogs rule! So glad to hear he will be ok.</p>
<p>Figo may be a service dog, but on Monday he went above and beyond the call of duty to protect his blind owner from an oncoming bus.</p>
<p>The golden retriever was out with owner Audrey Stone in Brewster, New York, when a bus driver turned a corner without looking. Leaping into action, Figo threw himself in front of the oncoming mini-bus in an attempt to shield Stone from harm’s way.</p>
<p>Stone fractured her elbow and ankle, broke three ribs, and cut her head from the imapct Figo received a deep, severe cut on his leg; his fur clung to the bus’ bumper and the pavement.</p>
<p>…</p>
<p>The dog was being a good sport, really calm. He sat with me the whole time. He was limping as we put him on a big blanket on the sidewalk and it started to rain. He let us wrap up his leg without any problem. He wasn’t barking or crying or yelping. But he kept pulling toward her. After she was put on a gurney and taken away, he stopped doing that. He seemed a little lost after she left.</p>
<p>Read more: <a href="http://mashable.com/2015/06/09/service-dog-saves-owner-from-bus/" type="external">mashable.com</a></p> | 4,127 |
|
<p>Nov. 29 (UPI) — A public transport operator in Singapore confirmed a massive monitor lizard found in the undercarriage of a train parked at a depot was removed by staff.</p>
<p>A video that went viral on social media shows employees at railway operator SMRT’s depot in Bishan dragging the monitor lizard by the tail Tuesday after it was found hiding in the undercarriage of a parked train.</p>
<p>“A monitor lizard was found in one of our depots yesterday and was removed,” Patrick Nathan, SMRT’s vice president for corporate communications, told <a href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/monitor-lizard-found-in-smrt-train-depot-9450542" type="external">Channel NewsAsia</a>.</p>
<p>Many online commenters criticized the depot workers for their rough handling of the lizard, and officials with the Animal Concerns Research &amp; Education Society agreed the monitor should have been left alone until experienced wildlife rescuers could be summoned.</p>
<p>“The presence of many people and the use of sticks to prod the lizard, which was most likely a water monitor, and the dragging of its tail, can cause the animal to get very stressed,” ACRES deputy chief executive Kalai Balakrishnan <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/monitor-lizard-hiding-under-train-removed-from-smrts-bishan-depot" type="external">told The Singapore Straits Times</a>.</p>
<p>Balakrishnan said the situation could have led to injuries for the lizard or the employees.</p>
<p>“For this case, one thing we noted in the video was that we could hear the staff saying what they wanted was to chase the lizard out. We appreciate the effort and intention,” he said.</p> | Huge monitor lizard removed from underneath commuter train | false | https://newsline.com/huge-monitor-lizard-removed-from-underneath-commuter-train/ | 2017-11-29 | 1right-center
| Huge monitor lizard removed from underneath commuter train
<p>Nov. 29 (UPI) — A public transport operator in Singapore confirmed a massive monitor lizard found in the undercarriage of a train parked at a depot was removed by staff.</p>
<p>A video that went viral on social media shows employees at railway operator SMRT’s depot in Bishan dragging the monitor lizard by the tail Tuesday after it was found hiding in the undercarriage of a parked train.</p>
<p>“A monitor lizard was found in one of our depots yesterday and was removed,” Patrick Nathan, SMRT’s vice president for corporate communications, told <a href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/monitor-lizard-found-in-smrt-train-depot-9450542" type="external">Channel NewsAsia</a>.</p>
<p>Many online commenters criticized the depot workers for their rough handling of the lizard, and officials with the Animal Concerns Research &amp; Education Society agreed the monitor should have been left alone until experienced wildlife rescuers could be summoned.</p>
<p>“The presence of many people and the use of sticks to prod the lizard, which was most likely a water monitor, and the dragging of its tail, can cause the animal to get very stressed,” ACRES deputy chief executive Kalai Balakrishnan <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/monitor-lizard-hiding-under-train-removed-from-smrts-bishan-depot" type="external">told The Singapore Straits Times</a>.</p>
<p>Balakrishnan said the situation could have led to injuries for the lizard or the employees.</p>
<p>“For this case, one thing we noted in the video was that we could hear the staff saying what they wanted was to chase the lizard out. We appreciate the effort and intention,” he said.</p> | 4,128 |
<p>The Texas lieutenant governor's&#160;recent&#160;threat&#160;that statehouse reporters could potentially be arrested and jailed if their behavior is deemed "not respectful" of the legislature is being called "worrisome" and "absurd" by Texas journalists.</p>
<p>Several editors and reporters who have been covering the contentious abortion debate in the state Senate, which drew national interest last week during an 11-hour filibuster&#160;that derailed the legislation, said Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst's threats of potential arrest during an interview&#160;Friday&#160;raised concerns.</p>
<p>During a June 28&#160; <a href="http://hotair.com/archives/2013/06/28/dewhurst-ill-pass-the-late-term-abortion-ban-and-take-action-against-those-who-incited-demonstration/" type="external">interview</a>&#160;with HotAir.com's Ed Morrissey, Dewhurst&#160;said&#160;that his staff was reviewing security tapes of the Senate gallery to examine the behavior of reporters during the demonstration that occurred as Republican leaders failed to pass the bill before the legislative session expired. Dewhurst explained:</p>
<p>"We have reports and&#160;I have&#160;my staff taking&#160;a&#160;look at the video, the internet video that we keep,&#160;we store,&#160;on the proceedings that evening and if I find as I've been told examples of the media waving and trying to inflame the crowd,&#160;incite&#160;them in the direction of a riot, I'm going to take action against them. That is wrong. That's inciting a riot. That is wrong. And we have a provision in our rules that if people do not deport themselves with decorum, they're not respectful of the legislative process, one of our rules&#160;says we can imprison them up to 48 hours. Of course that was out of the question with that many people, but it is, we take a democratic policy seriously."</p>
<p />
<p>Within a day, Dewhurst's office backpedaled from the threat, claiming they had reviewed tapes of the session and found nothing worth pursuing.</p>
<p>Still, several journalists are speaking out with concern that such a threat was even made and the option of arresting reporters even considered.</p>
<p>"As I listened to this, I said, 'what the hell is this, you're going to throw us in jail?'" said Wayne Slater, a longtime political reporter for the&#160;Dallas Morning News,&#160;who posted video of the&#160;HotAir.com interview on his blog.&#160;"The first thing I thought of is there are other countries that do this, where they arrest reporters whose work they don't like or who don't report things or act in the way the majority likes. It seemed absurd to me because there are countries that do this and we are not one of them."</p>
<p>After Slater posted the interview video on his&#160;Morning News&#160;blog Saturday, he said Dewhurst's office called him within hours to backtrack on the comments.</p>
<p>"They saw it and made a decision fairly quickly that they had to pull back from this," he said. "To call and say no media did anything wrong."</p>
<p>But that did not stop other journalists from criticizing the original comments and worrying about what they could mean&#160;for&#160;future reporting.</p>
<p>"As a newspaper editor, the lieutenant governor's statement I found worrisome," said&#160;Steve Proctor, managing editor of the&#160;Houston Chronicle.&#160;"If any action were taken against a&#160;Houston Chronicle reporter, they would be defended vigorously. Any editor is going to consider that worrisome."</p>
<p>He said even a hint of such action can be negative to reporters' work: "I want to be able to cover the news without interruption or interference, so you are always worried when there is interference on the information."</p> | Texas Journalists: Lt. Gov's Threat To Arrest Reporters "Worrisome" | true | http://mediamatters.org/blog/2013/07/01/texas-journalists-lt-govs-threat-to-arrest-repo/194705 | 2013-07-01 | 4left
| Texas Journalists: Lt. Gov's Threat To Arrest Reporters "Worrisome"
<p>The Texas lieutenant governor's&#160;recent&#160;threat&#160;that statehouse reporters could potentially be arrested and jailed if their behavior is deemed "not respectful" of the legislature is being called "worrisome" and "absurd" by Texas journalists.</p>
<p>Several editors and reporters who have been covering the contentious abortion debate in the state Senate, which drew national interest last week during an 11-hour filibuster&#160;that derailed the legislation, said Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst's threats of potential arrest during an interview&#160;Friday&#160;raised concerns.</p>
<p>During a June 28&#160; <a href="http://hotair.com/archives/2013/06/28/dewhurst-ill-pass-the-late-term-abortion-ban-and-take-action-against-those-who-incited-demonstration/" type="external">interview</a>&#160;with HotAir.com's Ed Morrissey, Dewhurst&#160;said&#160;that his staff was reviewing security tapes of the Senate gallery to examine the behavior of reporters during the demonstration that occurred as Republican leaders failed to pass the bill before the legislative session expired. Dewhurst explained:</p>
<p>"We have reports and&#160;I have&#160;my staff taking&#160;a&#160;look at the video, the internet video that we keep,&#160;we store,&#160;on the proceedings that evening and if I find as I've been told examples of the media waving and trying to inflame the crowd,&#160;incite&#160;them in the direction of a riot, I'm going to take action against them. That is wrong. That's inciting a riot. That is wrong. And we have a provision in our rules that if people do not deport themselves with decorum, they're not respectful of the legislative process, one of our rules&#160;says we can imprison them up to 48 hours. Of course that was out of the question with that many people, but it is, we take a democratic policy seriously."</p>
<p />
<p>Within a day, Dewhurst's office backpedaled from the threat, claiming they had reviewed tapes of the session and found nothing worth pursuing.</p>
<p>Still, several journalists are speaking out with concern that such a threat was even made and the option of arresting reporters even considered.</p>
<p>"As I listened to this, I said, 'what the hell is this, you're going to throw us in jail?'" said Wayne Slater, a longtime political reporter for the&#160;Dallas Morning News,&#160;who posted video of the&#160;HotAir.com interview on his blog.&#160;"The first thing I thought of is there are other countries that do this, where they arrest reporters whose work they don't like or who don't report things or act in the way the majority likes. It seemed absurd to me because there are countries that do this and we are not one of them."</p>
<p>After Slater posted the interview video on his&#160;Morning News&#160;blog Saturday, he said Dewhurst's office called him within hours to backtrack on the comments.</p>
<p>"They saw it and made a decision fairly quickly that they had to pull back from this," he said. "To call and say no media did anything wrong."</p>
<p>But that did not stop other journalists from criticizing the original comments and worrying about what they could mean&#160;for&#160;future reporting.</p>
<p>"As a newspaper editor, the lieutenant governor's statement I found worrisome," said&#160;Steve Proctor, managing editor of the&#160;Houston Chronicle.&#160;"If any action were taken against a&#160;Houston Chronicle reporter, they would be defended vigorously. Any editor is going to consider that worrisome."</p>
<p>He said even a hint of such action can be negative to reporters' work: "I want to be able to cover the news without interruption or interference, so you are always worried when there is interference on the information."</p> | 4,129 |
<p>Andy Griffith, who can only be described as one of television's greatest icons, died today at the age of 86, according to local reports.&#160;</p>
<p>Dare County Sheriff Doug Doughtie <a href="http://www.witn.com/home/headlines/SHERIFF__EMS_Called_To_Andy_Griffiths_Home_161201175.html" type="external">confirmed to WITN News</a> that Griffith has passed.</p>
<p>Griffith rose to fame as Sheriff Andy Taylor in The Andy Griffith Show on CBS from 1960-1968.&#160; <a href="http://content.usatoday.com/communities/entertainment/post/2012/07/andy-griffith-dies-at-age-86/1" type="external">USA Today noted</a>&#160;that his greatest success came later in life with the legal drama Matlock from 1986 to 1995.</p>
<p>In 2005, Griffith received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. <a href="http://www.eonline.com/news/andy_griffith_matlock_mayberrys/327572" type="external">E! Online reported</a>that then-President George W. Bush noted that Griffith was larger than any show he ever appeared on saying, "TV shows come and go, but there's only one Andy Griffith."</p>
<p>President Obama released a statement today saying, "Michelle and I were saddened to hear about the passing of Andy Griffith this morning. A performer of extraordinary talent, Andy was beloved by generations of fans and revered by entertainers who followed in his footsteps. He brought us characters from Sheriff Andy Taylor to Ben Matlock, and in the process, warmed the hearts of Americans everywhere. Our thoughts and prayers are with Andy's family," <a href="http://www.politico.com/politico44/2012/07/obama-mourns-andy-griffith-127979.html" type="external">according to Politico</a>.</p>
<p>Griffith married his first wife Barbara Bray Edwards in 1949. They two children together, Dixie and Sam. Griffith and Edwards divorced in 1972 and she received custody of their daughter, while he received custody of son Sam, who died in 1996 after years of battling alcoholism, <a href="http://content.usatoday.com/communities/entertainment/post/2012/07/andy-griffith-dies-at-age-86/1" type="external">USA Today noted.</a> His second marriage, to Greek actress Solica Cassuto, lasted eight years, from 1973 to 1981.</p>
<p><a href="http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/07/03/andy-griffith-dies/" type="external">Entertainment Weekly noted</a> that in 1993 Griffith said, "I don't know how to do but two things. I know how to write and I know how to act. I'm just not good at anything else."</p>
<p />
<p /> | Andy Griffith died at 86: local reports | false | https://pri.org/stories/2012-07-03/andy-griffith-died-86-local-reports | 2012-07-03 | 3left-center
| Andy Griffith died at 86: local reports
<p>Andy Griffith, who can only be described as one of television's greatest icons, died today at the age of 86, according to local reports.&#160;</p>
<p>Dare County Sheriff Doug Doughtie <a href="http://www.witn.com/home/headlines/SHERIFF__EMS_Called_To_Andy_Griffiths_Home_161201175.html" type="external">confirmed to WITN News</a> that Griffith has passed.</p>
<p>Griffith rose to fame as Sheriff Andy Taylor in The Andy Griffith Show on CBS from 1960-1968.&#160; <a href="http://content.usatoday.com/communities/entertainment/post/2012/07/andy-griffith-dies-at-age-86/1" type="external">USA Today noted</a>&#160;that his greatest success came later in life with the legal drama Matlock from 1986 to 1995.</p>
<p>In 2005, Griffith received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. <a href="http://www.eonline.com/news/andy_griffith_matlock_mayberrys/327572" type="external">E! Online reported</a>that then-President George W. Bush noted that Griffith was larger than any show he ever appeared on saying, "TV shows come and go, but there's only one Andy Griffith."</p>
<p>President Obama released a statement today saying, "Michelle and I were saddened to hear about the passing of Andy Griffith this morning. A performer of extraordinary talent, Andy was beloved by generations of fans and revered by entertainers who followed in his footsteps. He brought us characters from Sheriff Andy Taylor to Ben Matlock, and in the process, warmed the hearts of Americans everywhere. Our thoughts and prayers are with Andy's family," <a href="http://www.politico.com/politico44/2012/07/obama-mourns-andy-griffith-127979.html" type="external">according to Politico</a>.</p>
<p>Griffith married his first wife Barbara Bray Edwards in 1949. They two children together, Dixie and Sam. Griffith and Edwards divorced in 1972 and she received custody of their daughter, while he received custody of son Sam, who died in 1996 after years of battling alcoholism, <a href="http://content.usatoday.com/communities/entertainment/post/2012/07/andy-griffith-dies-at-age-86/1" type="external">USA Today noted.</a> His second marriage, to Greek actress Solica Cassuto, lasted eight years, from 1973 to 1981.</p>
<p><a href="http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/07/03/andy-griffith-dies/" type="external">Entertainment Weekly noted</a> that in 1993 Griffith said, "I don't know how to do but two things. I know how to write and I know how to act. I'm just not good at anything else."</p>
<p />
<p /> | 4,130 |
<p>By Bob Allen</p>
<p>Georgetown College’s search for a new president will continue after two of three previously announced finalists withdrew from further consideration.</p>
<p>College officials said May 9 that former Lexington, Ky., Mayor Jim Newberry and Jason Rogers of Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., withdrew from consideration “for personal and professional reasons,” the school announced Thursday.</p>
<p>They, along with Cheryl Kimberling, president of Multicultural Alliance in Fort Worth, Texas, were announced April 23 as finalists to succeed current president William Crouch, who retires June 30 after 22 years.</p>
<p>William Houston, chair of the presidential search committee, said the panel would immediately begin a second round of confidential interviews with leading applicants and with leading existing applicants and “hopefully, schedule future campus visits as soon as possible.”</p>
<p>Chartered in 1829, Georgetown College has long been affiliated with the Kentucky Baptist Convention. Convention leaders were poised last November to end the relationship but at the last minute postponed the vote to wait and see if the next president wants to continue to discuss issues behind the proposal to sever ties.</p>
<p>A state convention study committee that proposed ending ties with Georgetown cited factors including a recent decision by the school’s trustees to drop the requirement that 75 percent of the board members be Kentucky Baptists.</p>
<p>Another was a revision of Georgetown’s identity statement from sectarian Baptist to one “built on a Baptist foundation” in pursuit of “a knowledge of and commitment to the Christian faith.” Also mentioned was the 2010 <a href="http://www.georgetowncollege.edu/news/2010/09/baptist-seminary-of-kentucky-celebrates-sharing-of-space-at-georgetown-college/" type="external">relocation</a> to Georgetown’s campus of the Baptist Seminary of Kentucky, a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship partner.</p> | Georgetown still seeking president | false | https://baptistnews.com/article/georgetown-still-seeking-president/ | 3left-center
| Georgetown still seeking president
<p>By Bob Allen</p>
<p>Georgetown College’s search for a new president will continue after two of three previously announced finalists withdrew from further consideration.</p>
<p>College officials said May 9 that former Lexington, Ky., Mayor Jim Newberry and Jason Rogers of Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., withdrew from consideration “for personal and professional reasons,” the school announced Thursday.</p>
<p>They, along with Cheryl Kimberling, president of Multicultural Alliance in Fort Worth, Texas, were announced April 23 as finalists to succeed current president William Crouch, who retires June 30 after 22 years.</p>
<p>William Houston, chair of the presidential search committee, said the panel would immediately begin a second round of confidential interviews with leading applicants and with leading existing applicants and “hopefully, schedule future campus visits as soon as possible.”</p>
<p>Chartered in 1829, Georgetown College has long been affiliated with the Kentucky Baptist Convention. Convention leaders were poised last November to end the relationship but at the last minute postponed the vote to wait and see if the next president wants to continue to discuss issues behind the proposal to sever ties.</p>
<p>A state convention study committee that proposed ending ties with Georgetown cited factors including a recent decision by the school’s trustees to drop the requirement that 75 percent of the board members be Kentucky Baptists.</p>
<p>Another was a revision of Georgetown’s identity statement from sectarian Baptist to one “built on a Baptist foundation” in pursuit of “a knowledge of and commitment to the Christian faith.” Also mentioned was the 2010 <a href="http://www.georgetowncollege.edu/news/2010/09/baptist-seminary-of-kentucky-celebrates-sharing-of-space-at-georgetown-college/" type="external">relocation</a> to Georgetown’s campus of the Baptist Seminary of Kentucky, a Cooperative Baptist Fellowship partner.</p> | 4,131 |
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<p>There's now a statewide manhunt underway for a man who violently threatened a 7-11 convenience store employee with an axe demanding cigarettes.</p>
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<p>Police say the incident happened in the city of Miramar, after the clerk at the convenience store refused to sell the man tobacco products because he had identification, and he lashed out.</p>
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<p>Once he was refused the purchase, the man then left the store, retrieved an axe from his truck, and returned to threaten the employee.</p>
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<p>Law enforcement released the surveillance video of the crime where the man appears to be carrying an ax and can be seen rushing toward the clerk behind the checkout counter.</p>
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<p>A customer comes in as the man is charging toward the clerk, and you can hear him screaming, "No! No! No! What are you doing?" as the other customer attempts to calm him down from what would be a violent assault with a deadly weapon.</p>
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<p>Miramar Police later posted a detailed thread trying to identify the suspect on Facebook, where they said he had a deadly weapon and that he drives a white Ford 250 King Cab with a trailer attached to it.</p>
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<p>Anyone with any information on the crime is asked to call the Miramar Police Department at <a href="tel:9547644357" type="external">954-764-4357</a> or Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. If you see the suspect you're asked to not approach as he's clearly deranged and dangerous.</p> | Police Searching for Thug Wanted in Violent Ax Attack at Florida 7-11 | true | http://thegoldwater.com/news/6405-Police-Searching-for-Thug-Wanted-in-Violent-Ax-Attack-at-Florida-7-11 | 2017-08-11 | 0right
| Police Searching for Thug Wanted in Violent Ax Attack at Florida 7-11
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<p>There's now a statewide manhunt underway for a man who violently threatened a 7-11 convenience store employee with an axe demanding cigarettes.</p>
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<p>Police say the incident happened in the city of Miramar, after the clerk at the convenience store refused to sell the man tobacco products because he had identification, and he lashed out.</p>
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<p>Once he was refused the purchase, the man then left the store, retrieved an axe from his truck, and returned to threaten the employee.</p>
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<p>Law enforcement released the surveillance video of the crime where the man appears to be carrying an ax and can be seen rushing toward the clerk behind the checkout counter.</p>
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<p>A customer comes in as the man is charging toward the clerk, and you can hear him screaming, "No! No! No! What are you doing?" as the other customer attempts to calm him down from what would be a violent assault with a deadly weapon.</p>
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<p>Miramar Police later posted a detailed thread trying to identify the suspect on Facebook, where they said he had a deadly weapon and that he drives a white Ford 250 King Cab with a trailer attached to it.</p>
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<p>Anyone with any information on the crime is asked to call the Miramar Police Department at <a href="tel:9547644357" type="external">954-764-4357</a> or Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. If you see the suspect you're asked to not approach as he's clearly deranged and dangerous.</p> | 4,132 |
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<p>NBCUniversal has reached an agreement with Cable ONE that will keep its networks on the air for Cable ONE customers, including those in Rio Rancho.</p>
<p>NBCUniversal announced the agreement this week, putting an end to the parties’ battle over a new contract.</p>
<p>In December, NBCUniversal began running crawl messages on its networks to alert Cable ONE customers to the potential loss of programming. Those who subscribe to Cable ONE — a Phoenix-based cable TV provider that covers both Rio Rancho and Roswell — were warned that cuts could include USA, Syfy, Bravo and more channels if the companies couldn’t come to terms before the end of the year.</p>
<p>At the time, NBCUniversal alleged that Cable ONE wanted to get its programming at prices “below market rates,” while a Cable ONE spokeswoman told the Journal NBCUniversal wanted a contract that paid more than double its last deal.</p>
<p>Cable ONE has just over 12,000 video subscribers in New Mexico.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | Cable ONE, NBC reach agreement | false | https://abqjournal.com/520568/cable-one-nbc-reach-agreement.html | 2least
| Cable ONE, NBC reach agreement
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<p>NBCUniversal has reached an agreement with Cable ONE that will keep its networks on the air for Cable ONE customers, including those in Rio Rancho.</p>
<p>NBCUniversal announced the agreement this week, putting an end to the parties’ battle over a new contract.</p>
<p>In December, NBCUniversal began running crawl messages on its networks to alert Cable ONE customers to the potential loss of programming. Those who subscribe to Cable ONE — a Phoenix-based cable TV provider that covers both Rio Rancho and Roswell — were warned that cuts could include USA, Syfy, Bravo and more channels if the companies couldn’t come to terms before the end of the year.</p>
<p>At the time, NBCUniversal alleged that Cable ONE wanted to get its programming at prices “below market rates,” while a Cable ONE spokeswoman told the Journal NBCUniversal wanted a contract that paid more than double its last deal.</p>
<p>Cable ONE has just over 12,000 video subscribers in New Mexico.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | 4,133 |
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<p>Hillary Clinton has picked a fight with the NRA and Second Amendment supporters.&#160; It was not required.&#160; From 1995 to 2012, the Democrats had shied away from public fights with the NRA, because of the severe beating at the polls they took in 1994.&#160; It can be argued that the the Democrats gained the presidency of Barack Obama because they stayed quiet on Second Amendment issues during his elections.&#160; But after being re-elected in 2012, Obama and the Democrats fiercely attacked the NRA.&#160; They lost big in the 2014 mid-terms.</p>
<p>Hillary must believe that the demographics have flipped in her favor, and she can attack the NRA, claim she respects the Second Amendment, and say that the Supreme Court was wrong in holding that the Second Amendment is an individual right, all at the same time, and gain votes.</p>
<p>Here is the clip where she says the enemy that she is most proud of making is the NRA.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOzfdG1BCS8" type="external">Link to video</a></p>
<p>Her problem is that she is not trusted nearly as much as the NRA.&#160; Her favorability rating is between 10 and 20 points below that for the NRA. In spite of surveys that have been widely circulated in “progressive” circles, gun ownership is likely at some of the highest levels ever in the United States.</p>
<p>The other problem is that Second Amendment supporters are highly motivated, and often single issue voters.&#160; Gun haters, on the other hand, are not nearly as motivated, are a much smaller group, and are almost all in the Democrat base to start with.</p>
<p>Trump, on the other hand, has been consistently pro-Second Amendment during the campaign.&#160; He has high unfavorables; but an NRA endorsement works to raise him up, and against Hillary.</p>
<p>The extent to which the establishment media and Hillary allies are spinning her position on the NRA and the Second Amendment are extraordinary.&#160; Politifact is a good example.&#160; <a href="http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/politics-columns-blogs/under-the-dome/article95454287.html" type="external">From Politifact</a>:</p>
<p>Speaker: NRA</p>
<p>Statement: Says Hillary Clinton “doesn’t believe in your right to keep a gun at home for self-defense.”</p>
<p>Ruling: Clinton has never said that. The NRA cited a recording of her saying she disagreed with a Supreme Court case affirming some gun rights, but the same recording shows Clinton is clearly talking about concerns other than keeping a gun at home for self-defense. She specifically talks about someone going armed to a grocery store. We rate this claim False.</p>
<p>Politfact conveniently ignores that Hillary is a lawyer, and the Heller case did not make a finding about people going to the store with an AK47.&#160; The case was all about the right of the people to own guns in their home for self defense.&#160; She said:</p>
<p>“So I’m going to speak out. … The Supreme Court is wrong on the Second Amendment, and I am going to make my case on that every chance I get.”</p>
<p>Politifact then goes on to claim that Hillary’s statement in 2015, long after the Heller decision in 2008, was the same as the Bush administration concerns about the case before it was decided.</p>
<p>Politifact makes the unconvincing argument that President Bush could not be against the right to self defense in the home before the decision was made (far from proven). Therefore Hillary’s statement years after the decision, which was all about the individual right to self defense in the home, could not be against self defense in the home.</p>
<p>The argument simply makes no logical sense.&#160; What does President Bush have to do with the question?&#160; What does his position before the decision was made, have to do with Hillary’s definitive statement years after the decision was settled law?&#160; This is what passes for a defense of Hillary’s stand on the Second Amendment.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2016/08/15/the-nras-false-claim-that-hillary-clinton-doesnt-believe-americans-can-keep-guns-at-home/#comments" type="external">Washington Post echoed politifact’s</a> argument.</p>
<p>The NRA ad will resonate with voters.&#160; It is not that the NRA has a direct quote of Hillary Clinton saying that she wants to confiscate all American’s guns in her first term.&#160; No one, at least until recently, would believe that Hillary would be so stupid as to say such a thing directly.</p>
<p>But very few believe what Hillary says, because the vast majority of people know that she is a liar with a long history of lies.&#160; When some one catches her in an unguarded moment saying that she believes the Supreme Court is wrong on the Second Amendment, they believe her.&#160; They do not believe she is making some nuanced policy that is really Republican.</p>
<p>If it comes to a choice between Hillary and the NRA, the NRA wins.</p>
<p>©2016 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.</p>
<p><a href="http://gunwatch.blogspot.com/" type="external">Link to Gun Watch</a></p>
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<p>We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, vulgarity, profanity, all caps, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain a courteous and useful public environment where we can engage in reasonable discourse.</p> | Hillary vs the NRA | true | http://bulletsfirst.net/2016/09/21/hillary-vs-the-nra/ | 0right
| Hillary vs the NRA
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<p>Hillary Clinton has picked a fight with the NRA and Second Amendment supporters.&#160; It was not required.&#160; From 1995 to 2012, the Democrats had shied away from public fights with the NRA, because of the severe beating at the polls they took in 1994.&#160; It can be argued that the the Democrats gained the presidency of Barack Obama because they stayed quiet on Second Amendment issues during his elections.&#160; But after being re-elected in 2012, Obama and the Democrats fiercely attacked the NRA.&#160; They lost big in the 2014 mid-terms.</p>
<p>Hillary must believe that the demographics have flipped in her favor, and she can attack the NRA, claim she respects the Second Amendment, and say that the Supreme Court was wrong in holding that the Second Amendment is an individual right, all at the same time, and gain votes.</p>
<p>Here is the clip where she says the enemy that she is most proud of making is the NRA.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOzfdG1BCS8" type="external">Link to video</a></p>
<p>Her problem is that she is not trusted nearly as much as the NRA.&#160; Her favorability rating is between 10 and 20 points below that for the NRA. In spite of surveys that have been widely circulated in “progressive” circles, gun ownership is likely at some of the highest levels ever in the United States.</p>
<p>The other problem is that Second Amendment supporters are highly motivated, and often single issue voters.&#160; Gun haters, on the other hand, are not nearly as motivated, are a much smaller group, and are almost all in the Democrat base to start with.</p>
<p>Trump, on the other hand, has been consistently pro-Second Amendment during the campaign.&#160; He has high unfavorables; but an NRA endorsement works to raise him up, and against Hillary.</p>
<p>The extent to which the establishment media and Hillary allies are spinning her position on the NRA and the Second Amendment are extraordinary.&#160; Politifact is a good example.&#160; <a href="http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/politics-columns-blogs/under-the-dome/article95454287.html" type="external">From Politifact</a>:</p>
<p>Speaker: NRA</p>
<p>Statement: Says Hillary Clinton “doesn’t believe in your right to keep a gun at home for self-defense.”</p>
<p>Ruling: Clinton has never said that. The NRA cited a recording of her saying she disagreed with a Supreme Court case affirming some gun rights, but the same recording shows Clinton is clearly talking about concerns other than keeping a gun at home for self-defense. She specifically talks about someone going armed to a grocery store. We rate this claim False.</p>
<p>Politfact conveniently ignores that Hillary is a lawyer, and the Heller case did not make a finding about people going to the store with an AK47.&#160; The case was all about the right of the people to own guns in their home for self defense.&#160; She said:</p>
<p>“So I’m going to speak out. … The Supreme Court is wrong on the Second Amendment, and I am going to make my case on that every chance I get.”</p>
<p>Politifact then goes on to claim that Hillary’s statement in 2015, long after the Heller decision in 2008, was the same as the Bush administration concerns about the case before it was decided.</p>
<p>Politifact makes the unconvincing argument that President Bush could not be against the right to self defense in the home before the decision was made (far from proven). Therefore Hillary’s statement years after the decision, which was all about the individual right to self defense in the home, could not be against self defense in the home.</p>
<p>The argument simply makes no logical sense.&#160; What does President Bush have to do with the question?&#160; What does his position before the decision was made, have to do with Hillary’s definitive statement years after the decision was settled law?&#160; This is what passes for a defense of Hillary’s stand on the Second Amendment.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2016/08/15/the-nras-false-claim-that-hillary-clinton-doesnt-believe-americans-can-keep-guns-at-home/#comments" type="external">Washington Post echoed politifact’s</a> argument.</p>
<p>The NRA ad will resonate with voters.&#160; It is not that the NRA has a direct quote of Hillary Clinton saying that she wants to confiscate all American’s guns in her first term.&#160; No one, at least until recently, would believe that Hillary would be so stupid as to say such a thing directly.</p>
<p>But very few believe what Hillary says, because the vast majority of people know that she is a liar with a long history of lies.&#160; When some one catches her in an unguarded moment saying that she believes the Supreme Court is wrong on the Second Amendment, they believe her.&#160; They do not believe she is making some nuanced policy that is really Republican.</p>
<p>If it comes to a choice between Hillary and the NRA, the NRA wins.</p>
<p>©2016 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.</p>
<p><a href="http://gunwatch.blogspot.com/" type="external">Link to Gun Watch</a></p>
<p>&#160;</p>
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<p />
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, vulgarity, profanity, all caps, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain a courteous and useful public environment where we can engage in reasonable discourse.</p> | 4,134 |
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<p>The banking industry and its paid protectors have hounded Elizabeth Warren for the past decade because she is one of the few people in Washington who poses a threat to Wall Street’s control over government.</p>
<p>Warren is the Democratic candidate in the race to represent Massachusetts in the Senate. She is challenging incumbent Republican Scott Brown, who won the seat after Ted Kennedy’s death in 2009 called for a special election. Brown’s victory ended Democratic control of the position dating back to 1953.</p>
<p>In an attempt to scare the Massachusetts electorate into re-electing Brown, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg <a href="http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/21/bloomberg-raises-socialism-label-in-discussing-warren/?partner=rss&amp;emc=rss&amp;smid=tw-thecaucus" type="external">accused</a> Warren of “socialism” in an interview with The New York Times published Oct. 21.</p>
<p>“You can question, in my mind, whether [Warren is] God’s gift to regulation, close the banks and get rid of corporate profits, and we’d all bring socialism back, or the U.S.S.R.”</p>
<p />
<p>The charge is typical fare from fiscal conservatives amid the far right backlash that has enveloped politics since President Obama bailed out the banks but failed to protect ordinary Americans from losing their jobs and homes after the 2008 financial crisis. It’s hardly merited though. The kind of regulation that Warren supports and Bloomberg opposes saved capitalism after the stock market imploded in the Great Depression, and kept it functioning with less damage to the American people until President Clinton repealed the Glass-Steagall Act of 1932, permitting banks to make unstable investments and grow to their current, “too big to fail” size.</p>
<p>Warren became a nationally recognized figure during the response to the 2008 crisis, when her longstanding campaign for a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau gained fresh relevance. Such a bureau, Warren suggested, would represent members of the public in their dealings with banks, credit unions and other financial companies. For many liberals, Warren was the obvious pick to lead the bureau when it was created by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act in July 2010. But Obama selected a former Ohio attorney general for the job, suggesting to many observers that he didn’t want to alienate the banks that Warren sought to regulate. She was made a special adviser to the agency instead.</p>
<p>Undeterred, Warren continued her work in the public interest when she announced her candidacy for the U.S. Senate in September 2011. The banking industry immediately began to make huge contributions to Brown, who does not seek the reforms Warren wants. Brown’s re-election campaign had raised <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-09-13/scott-brown-wall-streets-hope-to-stop-elizabeth-warren#p1" type="external">$53 million</a> by mid-September.</p>
<p>Warren’s reputation as a public defender is widely recognized. In 1995, while a professor at Harvard Law School and an adviser for the National Bankruptcy Review Commission, she opposed legislation intended to restrict the right of consumers to file for bankruptcy. From 2006 to 2010, she served on the FDIC’s Advisory Committee on Economic Inclusion. Throughout recent years she has been named The Boston Globe’s Bostonian of the Year and was awarded the Lelia J. Robinson Award from the Women’s Bar Association of Massachusetts. Time magazine recognized her as one of the 100 Most Influential People of the World in 2009 and 2010, and The National Law Journal has repeatedly named her one of the 50 Most Influential Women Lawyers in America.</p>
<p>According to economics writer Jeff Madrick, the praise is well deserved. In an article in The New York Times, Madrick said of a book Warren co-authored with her daughter:</p>
<p>“More clearly than anyone else, I think, Ms. Warren and Ms. Tyagi have shown how little attention the nation and our government have paid to the way Americans really live.”</p>
<p>Humble beginnings never guarantee a life spent in service of the underrepresented. But Warren’s career has gone that way. She began her working life as a teenager after a heart attack suffered by her father left her family in dire financial circumstances. She is intimately acquainted with the hardship and loss afflicting much of the public today, and she knows that all Americans need a government that protects their ability to build decent lives. For that reason, and for the words that close this article, we honor Elizabeth Warren as our Truthdigger of the Week.</p>
<p>“There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own — nobody. … You moved your goods to market on the roads the rest of us paid for; you hired workers the rest of us paid to educate; you were safe in your factory because of police forces and fire forces that the rest of us paid for. You didn’t have to worry that marauding bands would come and seize everything at your factory, and hire someone to protect against this, because of the work the rest of us did. Now look, you built a factory and it turned into something terrific, or a great idea. God bless — keep a big hunk of it. But part of the underlying social contract is, you take a hunk of that and pay forward for the next kid who comes along.” –Elizabeth Warren, September 2011</p>
<p>— Posted by <a href="" type="internal">Alexander Reed Kelly</a>.</p> | Truthdigger of the Week: Elizabeth Warren | true | https://truthdig.com/articles/truthdigger-of-the-week-elizabeth-warren-2/ | 2012-10-28 | 4left
| Truthdigger of the Week: Elizabeth Warren
<p>The banking industry and its paid protectors have hounded Elizabeth Warren for the past decade because she is one of the few people in Washington who poses a threat to Wall Street’s control over government.</p>
<p>Warren is the Democratic candidate in the race to represent Massachusetts in the Senate. She is challenging incumbent Republican Scott Brown, who won the seat after Ted Kennedy’s death in 2009 called for a special election. Brown’s victory ended Democratic control of the position dating back to 1953.</p>
<p>In an attempt to scare the Massachusetts electorate into re-electing Brown, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg <a href="http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/21/bloomberg-raises-socialism-label-in-discussing-warren/?partner=rss&amp;emc=rss&amp;smid=tw-thecaucus" type="external">accused</a> Warren of “socialism” in an interview with The New York Times published Oct. 21.</p>
<p>“You can question, in my mind, whether [Warren is] God’s gift to regulation, close the banks and get rid of corporate profits, and we’d all bring socialism back, or the U.S.S.R.”</p>
<p />
<p>The charge is typical fare from fiscal conservatives amid the far right backlash that has enveloped politics since President Obama bailed out the banks but failed to protect ordinary Americans from losing their jobs and homes after the 2008 financial crisis. It’s hardly merited though. The kind of regulation that Warren supports and Bloomberg opposes saved capitalism after the stock market imploded in the Great Depression, and kept it functioning with less damage to the American people until President Clinton repealed the Glass-Steagall Act of 1932, permitting banks to make unstable investments and grow to their current, “too big to fail” size.</p>
<p>Warren became a nationally recognized figure during the response to the 2008 crisis, when her longstanding campaign for a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau gained fresh relevance. Such a bureau, Warren suggested, would represent members of the public in their dealings with banks, credit unions and other financial companies. For many liberals, Warren was the obvious pick to lead the bureau when it was created by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act in July 2010. But Obama selected a former Ohio attorney general for the job, suggesting to many observers that he didn’t want to alienate the banks that Warren sought to regulate. She was made a special adviser to the agency instead.</p>
<p>Undeterred, Warren continued her work in the public interest when she announced her candidacy for the U.S. Senate in September 2011. The banking industry immediately began to make huge contributions to Brown, who does not seek the reforms Warren wants. Brown’s re-election campaign had raised <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-09-13/scott-brown-wall-streets-hope-to-stop-elizabeth-warren#p1" type="external">$53 million</a> by mid-September.</p>
<p>Warren’s reputation as a public defender is widely recognized. In 1995, while a professor at Harvard Law School and an adviser for the National Bankruptcy Review Commission, she opposed legislation intended to restrict the right of consumers to file for bankruptcy. From 2006 to 2010, she served on the FDIC’s Advisory Committee on Economic Inclusion. Throughout recent years she has been named The Boston Globe’s Bostonian of the Year and was awarded the Lelia J. Robinson Award from the Women’s Bar Association of Massachusetts. Time magazine recognized her as one of the 100 Most Influential People of the World in 2009 and 2010, and The National Law Journal has repeatedly named her one of the 50 Most Influential Women Lawyers in America.</p>
<p>According to economics writer Jeff Madrick, the praise is well deserved. In an article in The New York Times, Madrick said of a book Warren co-authored with her daughter:</p>
<p>“More clearly than anyone else, I think, Ms. Warren and Ms. Tyagi have shown how little attention the nation and our government have paid to the way Americans really live.”</p>
<p>Humble beginnings never guarantee a life spent in service of the underrepresented. But Warren’s career has gone that way. She began her working life as a teenager after a heart attack suffered by her father left her family in dire financial circumstances. She is intimately acquainted with the hardship and loss afflicting much of the public today, and she knows that all Americans need a government that protects their ability to build decent lives. For that reason, and for the words that close this article, we honor Elizabeth Warren as our Truthdigger of the Week.</p>
<p>“There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own — nobody. … You moved your goods to market on the roads the rest of us paid for; you hired workers the rest of us paid to educate; you were safe in your factory because of police forces and fire forces that the rest of us paid for. You didn’t have to worry that marauding bands would come and seize everything at your factory, and hire someone to protect against this, because of the work the rest of us did. Now look, you built a factory and it turned into something terrific, or a great idea. God bless — keep a big hunk of it. But part of the underlying social contract is, you take a hunk of that and pay forward for the next kid who comes along.” –Elizabeth Warren, September 2011</p>
<p>— Posted by <a href="" type="internal">Alexander Reed Kelly</a>.</p> | 4,135 |
<p>Civil rights activist Rev. Jesse Jackson announced on Twitter that he has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.</p>
<p>In a statement released Friday he said, "Throughout my career of service, God has kept me in the embrace of his loving arms, and protected me and my family from dangers, seen and unseen. Now in the latter years of my life, at 76 years old, I find it increasingly difficult to perform routine tasks, and getting around is more of a challenge."</p>
<p>The statement continues, "Recognition of the effects of this disease on me has been painful, and I have been slow to grasp the gravity of it. For me, Parkinson's diagnosis is not a stop sign but rather a signal that I must make lifestyle change and dedicate myself to physical therapy in hopes of slowing the disease's progression."</p>
<p>Read the full statement:</p>
<p>Parkinson's disease is a progressive disorder that affects the central nervous system often causing tremors. There is no known cure, but there are some treatments to aid it's affects on the body.</p>
<p>Related Stories: <a href="" type="internal">1,000 trees are being grown for a 'Future Library'. But you can't read them until 2114.</a> <a href="" type="internal">Tesla unveiled its new Semi truck and 'fastest production car ever' Roadster</a> <a href="" type="internal">The world’s first 'successful' human head transplant was performed on a corpse</a></p> | Jesse Jackson announced that he has Parkinson's disease | false | https://circa.com/story/2017/11/17/nation/jesse-jackson-announced-that-he-has-parkinsons-disease | 2017-11-17 | 1right-center
| Jesse Jackson announced that he has Parkinson's disease
<p>Civil rights activist Rev. Jesse Jackson announced on Twitter that he has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.</p>
<p>In a statement released Friday he said, "Throughout my career of service, God has kept me in the embrace of his loving arms, and protected me and my family from dangers, seen and unseen. Now in the latter years of my life, at 76 years old, I find it increasingly difficult to perform routine tasks, and getting around is more of a challenge."</p>
<p>The statement continues, "Recognition of the effects of this disease on me has been painful, and I have been slow to grasp the gravity of it. For me, Parkinson's diagnosis is not a stop sign but rather a signal that I must make lifestyle change and dedicate myself to physical therapy in hopes of slowing the disease's progression."</p>
<p>Read the full statement:</p>
<p>Parkinson's disease is a progressive disorder that affects the central nervous system often causing tremors. There is no known cure, but there are some treatments to aid it's affects on the body.</p>
<p>Related Stories: <a href="" type="internal">1,000 trees are being grown for a 'Future Library'. But you can't read them until 2114.</a> <a href="" type="internal">Tesla unveiled its new Semi truck and 'fastest production car ever' Roadster</a> <a href="" type="internal">The world’s first 'successful' human head transplant was performed on a corpse</a></p> | 4,136 |
<p>A new study finds that even how you solve a difficult math problem can depend on your politics.&lt;a href="http://www.shutterstock.com/cat.mhtml?lang=en&amp;search_source=search_form&amp;search_tracking_id=OIJVM9RoMHCjdKnAI5CTdA&amp;version=llv1&amp;anyorall=all&amp;safesearch=1&amp;searchterm=math+confusion&amp;search_group=&amp;orient=&amp;search_cat=&amp;searchtermx=&amp;photographer_name=&amp;people_gender=&amp;people_age=&amp;people_ethnicity=&amp;people_number=&amp;commercial_ok=&amp;color=&amp;show_color_wheel=1#id=92321848&amp;src=OIJVM9RoMHCjdKnAI5CTdA-1-5"&gt;AlenKadr&lt;/a&gt;/Shutterstock</p>
<p />
<p>Everybody knows that our political views can sometimes get in the way of thinking clearly. But perhaps we don’t realize how bad the problem actually is. According to a <a href="http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2319992" type="external">new psychology paper</a>, our political passions can even undermine our very basic reasoning skills. More specifically, the study finds that people who are otherwise very good at math may totally flunk a problem that they would otherwise probably be able to solve, simply because giving the right answer goes against their political beliefs.</p>
<p><a href="http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2319992" type="external">The study</a>, by Yale law professor <a href="http://www.law.yale.edu/faculty/DKahan.htm" type="external">Dan Kahan</a> and his colleagues, has an ingenious design. At the outset, 1,111 study participants were asked about their political views and also asked a series of questions designed to gauge their “ <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numeracy" type="external">numeracy</a>,” that is, their mathematical reasoning ability. Participants were then asked to solve a fairly difficult problem that involved interpreting the results of a (fake) scientific study. But here was the trick: While the fake study data that they were supposed to assess remained the same, sometimes the study was described as measuring the effectiveness of a “new cream for treating skin rashes.” But in other cases, the study was described as involving the effectiveness of “a law banning private citizens from carrying concealed handguns in public.”</p>
<p>The result? Survey respondents performed wildly differently on what was in essence the same basic problem, simply depending upon whether they had been told that it involved guns or whether they had been told that it involved a new skin cream. What’s more, it turns out that highly numerate liberals and conservatives were even more—not less—susceptible to letting politics skew their reasoning than were those with less mathematical ability.</p>
<p>But we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves—to fully grasp the Enlightenment-destroying nature of these results, we first need to explore the tricky problem that the study presented in a little bit more detail.</p>
<p>Let’s start with the “skin cream” version of this brain twister. You can peruse the image below to see exactly what research subjects read (and try out your own skill at solving it), or skip on for a brief explanation:</p>
<p />
<p>As you can see above, the survey respondents were presented with a fictional study purporting to assess the effectiveness of a new skin cream, and informed at the outset that “new treatments often work but sometimes make rashes worse” and that “even when treatments don’t work, skin rashes sometimes get better and sometimes get worse on their own.” They were then presented with a table of experimental results, and asked whether the data showed that the new skin cream “is likely to make the skin condition better or worse.”</p>
<p>So do the data suggest that the skin cream works? The correct answer in the scenario above is actually that patients who used the skin cream were “more likely to get worse than those who didn’t.” That’s because the ratio of those who saw their rash improve to those whose rash got worse is roughly 3:1 in the “skin cream” group, but roughly 5:1 in the control group—which means that if you want your rash to get better, you are better off not using the skin cream at all. (For half of study subjects asked to solve the skin cream problem, the data were reversed and presented in such a way that they did actually suggest that the skin cream works.)</p>
<p>This is no easy problem for most people to solve: Across all conditions of the study, 59 percent of respondents got the answer wrong. That is, in significant part, because trying to intuit the right answer by quickly comparing two numbers will lead you astray; you have to take the time to compute the ratios.</p>
<p>Not surprisingly, Kahan’s study found that the more numerate you are, the more likely you are to get the answer to this “skin cream” problem right. Moreover, it found no substantial difference between highly numerate Democrats and highly numerate Republicans in this regard. The better members of both political groups were at math, the better they were at solving the skin cream problem.</p>
<p>But now take the same basic study design and data, and simply label it differently. Rather than reading about a skin cream study, half of Kahan’s research subjects were asked to determine the effectiveness of laws “banning private citizens from carrying concealed handguns in public.” Accordingly, these respondents were presented not with data about rashes and whether they got better or worse, but rather with data about cities that had or hadn’t passed concealed carry bans, and whether crime in these cities had or had not decreased.</p>
<p>Overall, then, study respondents were presented with one of four possible scenarios, depicted below with the correct answer in bold:</p>
<p />
<p>So how did people fare on the handgun version of the problem? They performed quite differently than on the skin cream version, and strong political patterns emerged in the results—especially among people who are good at mathematical reasoning. Most strikingly, highly numerate liberal Democrats did almost perfectly when the right answer was that the concealed weapons ban does indeed work to decrease crime (version C of the experiment)—an outcome that favors their pro-gun-control predilections. But they did much worse when the correct answer was that crime increases in cities that enact the ban (version D of the experiment).</p>
<p>The opposite was true for highly numerate conservative Republicans: They did just great when the right answer was that the ban didn’t work (version D), but poorly when the right answer was that it did (version C).</p>
<p>Here are the results overall, comparing subjects’ performances on the “skin cream” versions of the problem (above) and the “gun ban” versions of the problem (below), and relating this performance to their political affiliations and numeracy scores:</p>
<p />
<p>For study author Kahan, these results are a fairly strong refutation of what is called the “ <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_deficit_model" type="external">deficit model</a>” in the field of science and technology studies—the idea that if people just had more knowledge, or more reasoning ability, then they would be better able to come to consensus with scientists and experts on issues like climate change, evolution, the safety of vaccines, and pretty much anything else involving science or data (for instance, whether concealed weapons bans work). Kahan’s data suggest the opposite—that political biases skew our reasoning abilities, and this problem seems to be worse for people with advanced capacities like scientific literacy and numeracy. “If the people who have the greatest capacities are the ones most prone to this, that’s reason to believe that the problem isn’t some kind of deficit in comprehension,” Kahan explained in an interview.</p>
<p>So what are smart, numerate liberals and conservatives actually doing in the gun control version of the study, leading them to give such disparate answers? It’s kind of tricky, but here’s what Kahan thinks is happening.</p>
<p>Our first instinct, in all versions of the study, is to leap instinctively to the wrong conclusion. If you just compare which number is bigger in the first column, for instance, you’ll be quickly led astray. But more numerate people, when they sense an apparently wrong answer that offends their political sensibilities, are both motivated and equipped to dig deeper, think harder, and even start performing some calculations—which in this case would have led to a more accurate response.</p>
<p>“If the wrong answer is contrary to their ideological positions, we hypothesize that that is going to create the incentive to scrutinize that information and figure out another way to understand it,” says Kahan. In other words, more numerate people perform better when identifying study results that support their views—but may have a big blind spot when it comes to identifying results that undermine those views.</p>
<p>What’s happening when highly numerate liberals and conservatives actually get it wrong? Either they’re intuiting an incorrect answer that is politically convenient and feels right to them, leading them to inquire no further—or else they’re stopping to calculate the correct answer, but then refusing to accept it and coming up with some elaborate reason why 1 + 1 doesn’t equal 2 in this particular instance. (Kahan suspects it’s mostly the former, rather than the latter.)</p>
<p>The Scottish Enlightenment philosopher <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Hume" type="external">David Hume</a> famously described reason as a “slave of the passions.” Today’s political scientists and political psychologists, like Kahan, are now affirming Hume’s statement with reams of new data. This new study is just one out of many in this respect, but it provides perhaps the most striking demonstration yet of <a href="" type="internal">just how motivated, just how biased, reasoning can be</a>—especially about politics.</p>
<p /> | Science Confirms: Politics Wrecks Your Ability to Do Math | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2013/09/new-study-politics-makes-you-innumerate/ | 2013-09-04 | 4left
| Science Confirms: Politics Wrecks Your Ability to Do Math
<p>A new study finds that even how you solve a difficult math problem can depend on your politics.&lt;a href="http://www.shutterstock.com/cat.mhtml?lang=en&amp;search_source=search_form&amp;search_tracking_id=OIJVM9RoMHCjdKnAI5CTdA&amp;version=llv1&amp;anyorall=all&amp;safesearch=1&amp;searchterm=math+confusion&amp;search_group=&amp;orient=&amp;search_cat=&amp;searchtermx=&amp;photographer_name=&amp;people_gender=&amp;people_age=&amp;people_ethnicity=&amp;people_number=&amp;commercial_ok=&amp;color=&amp;show_color_wheel=1#id=92321848&amp;src=OIJVM9RoMHCjdKnAI5CTdA-1-5"&gt;AlenKadr&lt;/a&gt;/Shutterstock</p>
<p />
<p>Everybody knows that our political views can sometimes get in the way of thinking clearly. But perhaps we don’t realize how bad the problem actually is. According to a <a href="http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2319992" type="external">new psychology paper</a>, our political passions can even undermine our very basic reasoning skills. More specifically, the study finds that people who are otherwise very good at math may totally flunk a problem that they would otherwise probably be able to solve, simply because giving the right answer goes against their political beliefs.</p>
<p><a href="http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2319992" type="external">The study</a>, by Yale law professor <a href="http://www.law.yale.edu/faculty/DKahan.htm" type="external">Dan Kahan</a> and his colleagues, has an ingenious design. At the outset, 1,111 study participants were asked about their political views and also asked a series of questions designed to gauge their “ <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numeracy" type="external">numeracy</a>,” that is, their mathematical reasoning ability. Participants were then asked to solve a fairly difficult problem that involved interpreting the results of a (fake) scientific study. But here was the trick: While the fake study data that they were supposed to assess remained the same, sometimes the study was described as measuring the effectiveness of a “new cream for treating skin rashes.” But in other cases, the study was described as involving the effectiveness of “a law banning private citizens from carrying concealed handguns in public.”</p>
<p>The result? Survey respondents performed wildly differently on what was in essence the same basic problem, simply depending upon whether they had been told that it involved guns or whether they had been told that it involved a new skin cream. What’s more, it turns out that highly numerate liberals and conservatives were even more—not less—susceptible to letting politics skew their reasoning than were those with less mathematical ability.</p>
<p>But we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves—to fully grasp the Enlightenment-destroying nature of these results, we first need to explore the tricky problem that the study presented in a little bit more detail.</p>
<p>Let’s start with the “skin cream” version of this brain twister. You can peruse the image below to see exactly what research subjects read (and try out your own skill at solving it), or skip on for a brief explanation:</p>
<p />
<p>As you can see above, the survey respondents were presented with a fictional study purporting to assess the effectiveness of a new skin cream, and informed at the outset that “new treatments often work but sometimes make rashes worse” and that “even when treatments don’t work, skin rashes sometimes get better and sometimes get worse on their own.” They were then presented with a table of experimental results, and asked whether the data showed that the new skin cream “is likely to make the skin condition better or worse.”</p>
<p>So do the data suggest that the skin cream works? The correct answer in the scenario above is actually that patients who used the skin cream were “more likely to get worse than those who didn’t.” That’s because the ratio of those who saw their rash improve to those whose rash got worse is roughly 3:1 in the “skin cream” group, but roughly 5:1 in the control group—which means that if you want your rash to get better, you are better off not using the skin cream at all. (For half of study subjects asked to solve the skin cream problem, the data were reversed and presented in such a way that they did actually suggest that the skin cream works.)</p>
<p>This is no easy problem for most people to solve: Across all conditions of the study, 59 percent of respondents got the answer wrong. That is, in significant part, because trying to intuit the right answer by quickly comparing two numbers will lead you astray; you have to take the time to compute the ratios.</p>
<p>Not surprisingly, Kahan’s study found that the more numerate you are, the more likely you are to get the answer to this “skin cream” problem right. Moreover, it found no substantial difference between highly numerate Democrats and highly numerate Republicans in this regard. The better members of both political groups were at math, the better they were at solving the skin cream problem.</p>
<p>But now take the same basic study design and data, and simply label it differently. Rather than reading about a skin cream study, half of Kahan’s research subjects were asked to determine the effectiveness of laws “banning private citizens from carrying concealed handguns in public.” Accordingly, these respondents were presented not with data about rashes and whether they got better or worse, but rather with data about cities that had or hadn’t passed concealed carry bans, and whether crime in these cities had or had not decreased.</p>
<p>Overall, then, study respondents were presented with one of four possible scenarios, depicted below with the correct answer in bold:</p>
<p />
<p>So how did people fare on the handgun version of the problem? They performed quite differently than on the skin cream version, and strong political patterns emerged in the results—especially among people who are good at mathematical reasoning. Most strikingly, highly numerate liberal Democrats did almost perfectly when the right answer was that the concealed weapons ban does indeed work to decrease crime (version C of the experiment)—an outcome that favors their pro-gun-control predilections. But they did much worse when the correct answer was that crime increases in cities that enact the ban (version D of the experiment).</p>
<p>The opposite was true for highly numerate conservative Republicans: They did just great when the right answer was that the ban didn’t work (version D), but poorly when the right answer was that it did (version C).</p>
<p>Here are the results overall, comparing subjects’ performances on the “skin cream” versions of the problem (above) and the “gun ban” versions of the problem (below), and relating this performance to their political affiliations and numeracy scores:</p>
<p />
<p>For study author Kahan, these results are a fairly strong refutation of what is called the “ <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_deficit_model" type="external">deficit model</a>” in the field of science and technology studies—the idea that if people just had more knowledge, or more reasoning ability, then they would be better able to come to consensus with scientists and experts on issues like climate change, evolution, the safety of vaccines, and pretty much anything else involving science or data (for instance, whether concealed weapons bans work). Kahan’s data suggest the opposite—that political biases skew our reasoning abilities, and this problem seems to be worse for people with advanced capacities like scientific literacy and numeracy. “If the people who have the greatest capacities are the ones most prone to this, that’s reason to believe that the problem isn’t some kind of deficit in comprehension,” Kahan explained in an interview.</p>
<p>So what are smart, numerate liberals and conservatives actually doing in the gun control version of the study, leading them to give such disparate answers? It’s kind of tricky, but here’s what Kahan thinks is happening.</p>
<p>Our first instinct, in all versions of the study, is to leap instinctively to the wrong conclusion. If you just compare which number is bigger in the first column, for instance, you’ll be quickly led astray. But more numerate people, when they sense an apparently wrong answer that offends their political sensibilities, are both motivated and equipped to dig deeper, think harder, and even start performing some calculations—which in this case would have led to a more accurate response.</p>
<p>“If the wrong answer is contrary to their ideological positions, we hypothesize that that is going to create the incentive to scrutinize that information and figure out another way to understand it,” says Kahan. In other words, more numerate people perform better when identifying study results that support their views—but may have a big blind spot when it comes to identifying results that undermine those views.</p>
<p>What’s happening when highly numerate liberals and conservatives actually get it wrong? Either they’re intuiting an incorrect answer that is politically convenient and feels right to them, leading them to inquire no further—or else they’re stopping to calculate the correct answer, but then refusing to accept it and coming up with some elaborate reason why 1 + 1 doesn’t equal 2 in this particular instance. (Kahan suspects it’s mostly the former, rather than the latter.)</p>
<p>The Scottish Enlightenment philosopher <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Hume" type="external">David Hume</a> famously described reason as a “slave of the passions.” Today’s political scientists and political psychologists, like Kahan, are now affirming Hume’s statement with reams of new data. This new study is just one out of many in this respect, but it provides perhaps the most striking demonstration yet of <a href="" type="internal">just how motivated, just how biased, reasoning can be</a>—especially about politics.</p>
<p /> | 4,137 |
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p />
<p>Larry Eustachy isn’t afraid of expectations.</p>
<p>In fact, he’s fueling the fire in Fort Collins, asking the simple question of “Why not us?” when discussion of Mountain West championships and deep NCAA Tournament runs come up.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The first-year Colorado State head coach, replacing Tim Miles who moved on to take a Big 12 coaching job at Nebraska, knows he inherits an experienced bunch of players who won 20 games a season ago and got an invite to the NCAA Tournament.</p>
<p>The well-traveled Eustachy, who most recently turned around the Southern Miss program, says he won’t adjust his high-intensity defensive coaching philosophy to match the Rams roster, but he may not need to.</p>
<p>“These guys are a very close-knit group,” Eustachy said. “And the key to coaching is blending the new guys with the old guys and asking these returning guys who are very much set in their ways to look at it a little differently and play a little different and try a different way. No way is right or wrong.”</p>
<p>The Rams return four players with starting experience and add three transfers expected to contribute immediately.</p>
<p>Colorado State a season ago was probably at its best when playing a four-guard lineup with the undersized 6-foot-5 Pierce Hornung playing in the post by himself. That is why the addition of 6-10 Colton Iverson, a senior transfer from Minnesota, has so many people around the CSU program excited.</p>
<p>Should Iverson provide quality minutes at center, Hornung can be freed up a bit on both ends of the floor to play more of a traditional power forward role. Throw in junior college transfer Gerson Santo, a 6-9 player whom Eustachy said he has been pleasantly surprised with in the preseason, and the Rams have some options in the paint they didn’t during the 2011-12 season.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>One big loss for CSU was the late September loss of senior guard Jesse Carr, who tore his ACL and is expected to miss the season.</p>
<p>“It’s really unfortunate,” Eustachy said. “He was arguably our best perimeter shooter. He was really playing well. We can absorb it and sometimes there’s a silver lining. Jonathan Octeus has come in from Wabash (Valley Junior College), and I think he can really be good.”</p>
<p>Big things are also expected of 6-4 sophomore guard Daniel Bejarano, a transfer from Arizona who was once a top 100 recruit out of Phoenix.</p>
<p>Acclimating new players on a roster with seven seniors could be a challenge, especially at a school coming off an NCAA Tournament season after proving to be one of the nation’s best home-court teams.</p>
<p>“They’ve been very receptive to it,” Eustachy said. “They want to win. They’re not happy with 12 losses. They’re not happy with their road record (6-11 in road and neutral site games away from Fort Collins). So we’re out to prove (ourselves), and I’m grateful to be a part of it and try to help them.”</p>
<p>Head coach: Larry Eustachy (1st season at CSU, 402-268 overall) 2011-12 record: 20-12, 8-6 MWC (1-1 vs. UNM) Returning starters: G Wes Eikmeir, G Dorian Green, G Greg Smith, F Pierce Hornung Key players lost: G Jesse Carr*, F Will Bell Key newcomers: C Colton Iverson, G Daniel Bejarano, F Gerson Santo This season vs. UNM: Jan. 23 in Albuquerque, Feb. 23 at Fort Collins, Colo. Of note: UNM head coach Steve Alford’s Iowa Hawkeyes went 3-2 against the Larry Eustachy-coached Iowa State Cyclones. Eustachy’s final game at Iowa State was a 54-53 loss to Alford’s Hawkeyes on March 21, 2003, in the NIT.”At one time I thought it was over,” Eustachy recalled. “We had it. It was one of the weird games that I thought the game was over. I think Steve actually came up to me after the game and said, ‘Nice win.’ It was so bang, bang at the end. It was like mind-boggling. We had it, and lost it. So all the way back to the last game, it was an intense rivalry.” *Carr, a senior, is still on the CSU roster but tore his ACL in late September and is expected to miss the entire season.</p>
<p>— This article appeared on page D4 of the Albuquerque Journal</p> | MWC Hoops Preview: Eustachy Has High Hopes For Talented Rams | false | https://abqjournal.com/238145/eustachy-has-high-hopes-for-talented-rams.html | 2least
| MWC Hoops Preview: Eustachy Has High Hopes For Talented Rams
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p />
<p>Larry Eustachy isn’t afraid of expectations.</p>
<p>In fact, he’s fueling the fire in Fort Collins, asking the simple question of “Why not us?” when discussion of Mountain West championships and deep NCAA Tournament runs come up.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The first-year Colorado State head coach, replacing Tim Miles who moved on to take a Big 12 coaching job at Nebraska, knows he inherits an experienced bunch of players who won 20 games a season ago and got an invite to the NCAA Tournament.</p>
<p>The well-traveled Eustachy, who most recently turned around the Southern Miss program, says he won’t adjust his high-intensity defensive coaching philosophy to match the Rams roster, but he may not need to.</p>
<p>“These guys are a very close-knit group,” Eustachy said. “And the key to coaching is blending the new guys with the old guys and asking these returning guys who are very much set in their ways to look at it a little differently and play a little different and try a different way. No way is right or wrong.”</p>
<p>The Rams return four players with starting experience and add three transfers expected to contribute immediately.</p>
<p>Colorado State a season ago was probably at its best when playing a four-guard lineup with the undersized 6-foot-5 Pierce Hornung playing in the post by himself. That is why the addition of 6-10 Colton Iverson, a senior transfer from Minnesota, has so many people around the CSU program excited.</p>
<p>Should Iverson provide quality minutes at center, Hornung can be freed up a bit on both ends of the floor to play more of a traditional power forward role. Throw in junior college transfer Gerson Santo, a 6-9 player whom Eustachy said he has been pleasantly surprised with in the preseason, and the Rams have some options in the paint they didn’t during the 2011-12 season.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>One big loss for CSU was the late September loss of senior guard Jesse Carr, who tore his ACL and is expected to miss the season.</p>
<p>“It’s really unfortunate,” Eustachy said. “He was arguably our best perimeter shooter. He was really playing well. We can absorb it and sometimes there’s a silver lining. Jonathan Octeus has come in from Wabash (Valley Junior College), and I think he can really be good.”</p>
<p>Big things are also expected of 6-4 sophomore guard Daniel Bejarano, a transfer from Arizona who was once a top 100 recruit out of Phoenix.</p>
<p>Acclimating new players on a roster with seven seniors could be a challenge, especially at a school coming off an NCAA Tournament season after proving to be one of the nation’s best home-court teams.</p>
<p>“They’ve been very receptive to it,” Eustachy said. “They want to win. They’re not happy with 12 losses. They’re not happy with their road record (6-11 in road and neutral site games away from Fort Collins). So we’re out to prove (ourselves), and I’m grateful to be a part of it and try to help them.”</p>
<p>Head coach: Larry Eustachy (1st season at CSU, 402-268 overall) 2011-12 record: 20-12, 8-6 MWC (1-1 vs. UNM) Returning starters: G Wes Eikmeir, G Dorian Green, G Greg Smith, F Pierce Hornung Key players lost: G Jesse Carr*, F Will Bell Key newcomers: C Colton Iverson, G Daniel Bejarano, F Gerson Santo This season vs. UNM: Jan. 23 in Albuquerque, Feb. 23 at Fort Collins, Colo. Of note: UNM head coach Steve Alford’s Iowa Hawkeyes went 3-2 against the Larry Eustachy-coached Iowa State Cyclones. Eustachy’s final game at Iowa State was a 54-53 loss to Alford’s Hawkeyes on March 21, 2003, in the NIT.”At one time I thought it was over,” Eustachy recalled. “We had it. It was one of the weird games that I thought the game was over. I think Steve actually came up to me after the game and said, ‘Nice win.’ It was so bang, bang at the end. It was like mind-boggling. We had it, and lost it. So all the way back to the last game, it was an intense rivalry.” *Carr, a senior, is still on the CSU roster but tore his ACL in late September and is expected to miss the entire season.</p>
<p>— This article appeared on page D4 of the Albuquerque Journal</p> | 4,138 |
|
<p>Jan 24 (Reuters) - RlI Corp:</p>
<p>* RLI REPORTS FOURTH QUARTER AND YEAR-END 2017 RESULTS</p> * Q4 EARNINGS PER SHARE $1.29
<p>* Q4 EARNINGS PER SHARE VIEW $0.49 — THOMSON REUTERS I/B/E/S</p>
<p>* RLI - TJCA LOWERED TAX EXPENSE IN QUARTER, INCREASING NET EARNINGS AND OPERATING EARNINGS BY $0.63/SHARE WITH PERFORMANCE-RELATED INCENTIVE, OTHERS</p>
<p>* RLI’S NET INVESTMENT INCOME FOR QUARTER INCREASED 9.8% TO $14.4 MILLION, COMPARED TO SAME PERIOD IN 2016 Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - The world’s financial leaders on Tuesday reaffirmed their commitment to fighting protectionism but called for “further dialogue and actions” on trade, just days before U.S. metals tariffs take effect and U.S. President Donald Trump readies sanctions on China.</p> Finance ministers and Central Bank presidents pose for the official photo at the G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers in Buenos Aires, Argentina, March 19, 2018. REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci
<p>Finance ministers and central bankers of the world’s 20 biggest economies, the G20, issued the change to their communique as a two-day meeting in Buenos Aires drew to a close amid worries about the potential for a global trade war.</p>
<p>The statement added a phrase that was not in their initial draft, which stresses the need for further talks on trade issues.</p> Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-g20-argentina-imf/imfs-lagarde-urges-g20-to-avoid-exceptional-trade-measures-idUSKBN1GW2NZ" type="external">IMF's Lagarde urges G20 to avoid 'exceptional' trade measures</a>
<a href="/article/us-g20-argentina-communique/g20-financial-leaders-say-need-more-dialogue-on-trade-as-u-s-tariffs-loom-idUSKBN1GW2JG" type="external">G20 financial leaders say need more dialogue on trade as U.S tariffs loom</a>
<p>“International trade and investment are important engines of growth, productivity, innovation, job creation and development,” the G20 said. “We reaffirm the conclusions of our leaders on trade at the Hamburg Summit and recognize the need for further dialogue and actions. We are working to strengthen contribution of trade to our economies.”</p>
<p>Many G20 officials fought hard at the meeting to preserve language from the Hamburg Summit, which was signed by Trump in July 2017, which said that G20 countries would “continue to fight protectionism including all unfair trade practices.”</p>
<p>The Hamburg statement also said that G20 leaders “recognize the role of legitimate trade defense instruments”, an ambiguity which provides the U.S. with a way to argue its cause on the tariffs. Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs are based on a Cold War-era national security trade law.</p> Argentina's Central Bank President Federico Sturzenegger speaks during a news conference at the G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers in Buenos Aires, Argentina, March 20, 2018. REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci
<p>The new G20 language on the need for trade dialogue comes as Trump is readying plans to punish China with tariffs over its intellectual property practices.</p>
<p>Two officials briefed on the matter said Trump is expected to unveil tariffs on up to $60 billion in Chinese technology and telecoms products by Friday, the same day when a tariff of 25 percent on imported steel and 10 percent on aluminum are to apply.</p> Slideshow (6 Images)
<p>In the final communique, the G20 ministers repeated their traditional pledges to refrain from competitive devaluations and avoid targeting their foreign exchange rates for export advantage.</p>
<p>But they also added some new language on exchange rates, emphasizing stability and flexibility:</p>
<p>“Strong fundamentals, sound policies, and a resilient international monetary system are essential to the stability of exchange rates, contributing to strong and sustainable growth and investment. Flexible exchange rates, where feasible, can serve as a shock absorber,” the communique said.</p>
<p>The G20 also called for continued international monitoring of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, and their risks. It said these assets raised issues with consumer and investor protections, market integrity, money laundering and terrorist financing.</p>
<p>“Crypto-assets lack the key attributes of sovereign currencies. At some point they could have financial stability implications,” the G20 ministers said.</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Jan Strupczewski, Luc Cohen, Francesco Canepa and Leika Kihara; Editing by Paul Simao and Rosalba O'Brien</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday she urged G20 finance leaders “to avoid resorting to exceptional measures” to resolve trade disputes, in a veiled reference to U.S. tariff actions.</p> U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and France's Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire talk as they gather for the official photo at the G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers in Buenos Aires, Argentina, March 19, 2018. REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci
<p>In a statement issued at the end of a G20 meeting fraught with worries about U.S. President Donald Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs and potential trade sanctions on China, Lagarde said she emphasized that it was an opportune time for countries to implement economic reforms “to make growth more solid, sustainable, balanced and inclusive.”</p>
<p>“I joined others in reiterating that we should avoid the temptation of inward-looking policies and, rather, work together to reduce trade barriers and resolve trade disagreements without resorting to exceptional measures,” Lagarde added.</p>
<p>Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Andrea Ricci</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Salesforce.com Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CRM.N" type="external">CRM.N</a>) is in advanced discussions to acquire U.S. software maker MuleSoft Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MULE.N" type="external">MULE.N</a>), people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday, as it looks to expand its offerings beyond customer relationship management software.</p> FILE PHOTO - The Salesforce logo is pictured on a building in San Francisco, California, U.S. October 12, 2016. REUTERS/Lily Jamali/File Photo
<p>The acquisition, which the sources said could be worth more than $6 billion, would be Salesforce’s biggest ever deal, illustrating Chief Executive Marc Benioff’s push to supplement the company’s cloud-based portfolio with new technology.</p>
<p>A deal could be announced as soon as this week, the sources said, cautioning that negotiations had not been finalized and that an agreement was not certain.</p>
<p>The sources asked not to be identified because the negotiations are confidential. Salesforce and MuleSoft declined to comment.</p>
<p>MuleSoft shares jumped more than 20 percent to $39.88 after Reuters reported the talks, giving the company a market value of $5.3 billion. Salesforce shares were up 0.3 percent at $125.31.</p>
<p>Based in San Francisco, MuleSoft makes software that automatically integrates disparate data, devices and applications to help companies’ networks run faster. It could help Salesforce win business from customers which are not yet ready to transition their systems to the cloud.</p>
<p>Buying MuleSoft would help Salesforce build a larger enterprise apps ecosystem around its own products, Barclays Plc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=BARC.L" type="external">BARC.L</a>) analysts wrote in a research note, adding that MuleSoft could command a premium given its rapid growth and good fit.</p>
<p>Salesforce Ventures, the company’s venture capital arm, led a $128 million funding round in MuleSoft in 2015.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CRM.N" type="external">Salesforce.com Inc</a> 125.67 CRM.N New York Stock Exchange +0.69 (+0.55%) CRM.N MULE.N BARC.L KO.N MCD.N
<p>MuleSoft has more than 1,000 customers, including Coca-Cola Co ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=KO.N" type="external">KO.N</a>), McDonald’s Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MCD.N" type="external">MCD.N</a>), Spotify and Unilever ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=ULVR.L" type="external">ULVR.L</a>). It went public about a year ago.</p>
<p>Salesforce holds more than 18 percent of the global customer relationship management software market, followed by Oracle Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=ORCL.N" type="external">ORCL.N</a>) with 9.4 percent, according to 2016 figures provided by research firm IDC.</p>
<p>Alphabet Inc’s ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GOOGL.O" type="external">GOOGL.O</a>) Google acquired a competitor of MuleSoft called Apigee Corp in a $625 million deal in 2016.</p>
<p>Salesforce has benefited from companies switching to cloud-based services due to the lower costs and high level of scalability. Last month, it posted a quarterly profit that topped Wall Street targets, fueled by growth in its cloud-based sales and marketing software.</p>
<p>Reporting by Liana B. Baker and Greg Roumeliotis in New York; Additional reporting by Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Bill Rigby and Meredith Mazzilli</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc is making a push for merchants on its website to sell goods into other countries, setting the stage for greater competition with rival marketplaces run by eBay Inc and potentially Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.</p>
<p>More than a quarter of all revenue for sellers on Amazon globally was from cross-border transactions in 2017, up more than 50 percent from the year prior, Amazon Vice President Eric Broussard said in an interview, ahead of his Tuesday speech at the ShopTalk conference in Las Vegas.</p>
<p>That amounts to between $50 billion and $75 billion for merchants selling to customers in another country, based on analysts’ estimates for Amazon’s total gross merchandise sales. Amazon does not disclose the figure.</p>
<p>The cross-border increase - outpacing Amazon’s 31 percent rise in overall net sales - represents a massive opportunity for the world’s largest online retailer. That is why Amazon has encouraged merchants to list ever-more products on its websites around the world, which could make its marketplaces more desirable to shoppers than those of the competition.</p>
<p>“The speed with which sellers have been selling globally has accelerated over time,” said Broussard, who oversees Amazon’s international marketplaces.</p>
<p>Global trade has been crucial to Amazon and its e-commerce competitors. In a 2015 news post online, eBay touted cross-border sales as one of its key strengths. It said cross-border represented about 20 percent of its gross merchandise volume in 2014, or $17 billion. The company declined to offer a figure for 2017.</p>
<p>Last month, eBay’s chief executive told Reuters the company planned to bring “the world’s inventory into Japan” as part of its global expansion. [nL4N1QH72Z]</p>
<p>Alibaba, meanwhile, recruits companies to sell into China, and its unit Tmall Global features products from brands in 63 countries and regions, it has said.</p>
<p>Critics of Amazon have said there are too many counterfeit products from China on its U.S. marketplace. Amazon prohibits the sale of counterfeit goods and has said it is investing heavily in programs to keep them off its platform.</p> FILE PHOTO: A worker gathers items for delivery from the warehouse floor at Amazon's distribution center in Phoenix, Arizona, U.S., on November 22, 2013. REUTERS/Ralph D. Freso/File Photo CUT OF SALES
<p>For Amazon, a key way it attracts sellers is by renting space in more than 150 warehouses worldwide so merchants can store inventory near customers - without the hassle of exporting each order. Amazon operates 13 marketplaces globally.</p>
<p>“A customer shops in German, pays in euros and gets very rapid fulfillment” for a product from a U.S. seller, for example, Broussard said.</p> Slideshow (2 Images)
<p>Tech Armor, a smartphone accessories maker near Los Angeles, said that its business was growing faster internationally than in the United States and that it has shipped more than 12 million units through Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) since 2012. That has come partly from Amazon’s encouragement.</p>
<p>“Someone from the FBA business called,” Tech Armor co-founder Joe Jaconi told Reuters. “They wanted to talk to us about Canada.”</p>
<p>Amazon takes a cut of merchants’ transactions, which for jewelry can reach 30 percent of a sale fulfilled by Amazon, said Elena Castaneda, founder of Bling Jewelry in greater New York. Amazon’s net sales from seller services was $32 billion in 2017.</p>
<p>Castaneda said this was worthwhile.</p>
<p>“Say I do $1 million in Amazon U.S. If you take all of Europe and you do all five countries (with Amazon Marketplaces), it would almost be equivalent to the amount you do in the U.S.,” she said.</p>
<p>Exports by sellers on Amazon - where merchants handle the fulfillment to foreign countries - increased by nearly 30 percent in 2017, Amazon said.</p>
<p>Reporting By Jeffrey Dastin in Las Vegas, Editing by Vanessa O'Connell and Rosalba O'Brien</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> | BRIEF-RLI Q4 Earnings Per Share $1.29 G20 ministers call for 'further dialogue and actions' on trade IMF's Lagarde urges G20 to avoid 'exceptional' trade measures Exclusive: Salesforce in advanced talks to buy MuleSoft - sources Exclusive: On Amazon, a quarter of merchants' sales are cross-border | false | https://reuters.com/article/brief-rli-q4-earnings-per-share-129/brief-rli-q4-earnings-per-share-129-idUSASB0C26S | 2018-01-24 | 2least
| BRIEF-RLI Q4 Earnings Per Share $1.29 G20 ministers call for 'further dialogue and actions' on trade IMF's Lagarde urges G20 to avoid 'exceptional' trade measures Exclusive: Salesforce in advanced talks to buy MuleSoft - sources Exclusive: On Amazon, a quarter of merchants' sales are cross-border
<p>Jan 24 (Reuters) - RlI Corp:</p>
<p>* RLI REPORTS FOURTH QUARTER AND YEAR-END 2017 RESULTS</p> * Q4 EARNINGS PER SHARE $1.29
<p>* Q4 EARNINGS PER SHARE VIEW $0.49 — THOMSON REUTERS I/B/E/S</p>
<p>* RLI - TJCA LOWERED TAX EXPENSE IN QUARTER, INCREASING NET EARNINGS AND OPERATING EARNINGS BY $0.63/SHARE WITH PERFORMANCE-RELATED INCENTIVE, OTHERS</p>
<p>* RLI’S NET INVESTMENT INCOME FOR QUARTER INCREASED 9.8% TO $14.4 MILLION, COMPARED TO SAME PERIOD IN 2016 Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - The world’s financial leaders on Tuesday reaffirmed their commitment to fighting protectionism but called for “further dialogue and actions” on trade, just days before U.S. metals tariffs take effect and U.S. President Donald Trump readies sanctions on China.</p> Finance ministers and Central Bank presidents pose for the official photo at the G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers in Buenos Aires, Argentina, March 19, 2018. REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci
<p>Finance ministers and central bankers of the world’s 20 biggest economies, the G20, issued the change to their communique as a two-day meeting in Buenos Aires drew to a close amid worries about the potential for a global trade war.</p>
<p>The statement added a phrase that was not in their initial draft, which stresses the need for further talks on trade issues.</p> Related Coverage
<a href="/article/us-g20-argentina-imf/imfs-lagarde-urges-g20-to-avoid-exceptional-trade-measures-idUSKBN1GW2NZ" type="external">IMF's Lagarde urges G20 to avoid 'exceptional' trade measures</a>
<a href="/article/us-g20-argentina-communique/g20-financial-leaders-say-need-more-dialogue-on-trade-as-u-s-tariffs-loom-idUSKBN1GW2JG" type="external">G20 financial leaders say need more dialogue on trade as U.S tariffs loom</a>
<p>“International trade and investment are important engines of growth, productivity, innovation, job creation and development,” the G20 said. “We reaffirm the conclusions of our leaders on trade at the Hamburg Summit and recognize the need for further dialogue and actions. We are working to strengthen contribution of trade to our economies.”</p>
<p>Many G20 officials fought hard at the meeting to preserve language from the Hamburg Summit, which was signed by Trump in July 2017, which said that G20 countries would “continue to fight protectionism including all unfair trade practices.”</p>
<p>The Hamburg statement also said that G20 leaders “recognize the role of legitimate trade defense instruments”, an ambiguity which provides the U.S. with a way to argue its cause on the tariffs. Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs are based on a Cold War-era national security trade law.</p> Argentina's Central Bank President Federico Sturzenegger speaks during a news conference at the G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers in Buenos Aires, Argentina, March 20, 2018. REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci
<p>The new G20 language on the need for trade dialogue comes as Trump is readying plans to punish China with tariffs over its intellectual property practices.</p>
<p>Two officials briefed on the matter said Trump is expected to unveil tariffs on up to $60 billion in Chinese technology and telecoms products by Friday, the same day when a tariff of 25 percent on imported steel and 10 percent on aluminum are to apply.</p> Slideshow (6 Images)
<p>In the final communique, the G20 ministers repeated their traditional pledges to refrain from competitive devaluations and avoid targeting their foreign exchange rates for export advantage.</p>
<p>But they also added some new language on exchange rates, emphasizing stability and flexibility:</p>
<p>“Strong fundamentals, sound policies, and a resilient international monetary system are essential to the stability of exchange rates, contributing to strong and sustainable growth and investment. Flexible exchange rates, where feasible, can serve as a shock absorber,” the communique said.</p>
<p>The G20 also called for continued international monitoring of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, and their risks. It said these assets raised issues with consumer and investor protections, market integrity, money laundering and terrorist financing.</p>
<p>“Crypto-assets lack the key attributes of sovereign currencies. At some point they could have financial stability implications,” the G20 ministers said.</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Jan Strupczewski, Luc Cohen, Francesco Canepa and Leika Kihara; Editing by Paul Simao and Rosalba O'Brien</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday she urged G20 finance leaders “to avoid resorting to exceptional measures” to resolve trade disputes, in a veiled reference to U.S. tariff actions.</p> U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and France's Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire talk as they gather for the official photo at the G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers in Buenos Aires, Argentina, March 19, 2018. REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci
<p>In a statement issued at the end of a G20 meeting fraught with worries about U.S. President Donald Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs and potential trade sanctions on China, Lagarde said she emphasized that it was an opportune time for countries to implement economic reforms “to make growth more solid, sustainable, balanced and inclusive.”</p>
<p>“I joined others in reiterating that we should avoid the temptation of inward-looking policies and, rather, work together to reduce trade barriers and resolve trade disagreements without resorting to exceptional measures,” Lagarde added.</p>
<p>Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Andrea Ricci</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>(Reuters) - Salesforce.com Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CRM.N" type="external">CRM.N</a>) is in advanced discussions to acquire U.S. software maker MuleSoft Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MULE.N" type="external">MULE.N</a>), people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday, as it looks to expand its offerings beyond customer relationship management software.</p> FILE PHOTO - The Salesforce logo is pictured on a building in San Francisco, California, U.S. October 12, 2016. REUTERS/Lily Jamali/File Photo
<p>The acquisition, which the sources said could be worth more than $6 billion, would be Salesforce’s biggest ever deal, illustrating Chief Executive Marc Benioff’s push to supplement the company’s cloud-based portfolio with new technology.</p>
<p>A deal could be announced as soon as this week, the sources said, cautioning that negotiations had not been finalized and that an agreement was not certain.</p>
<p>The sources asked not to be identified because the negotiations are confidential. Salesforce and MuleSoft declined to comment.</p>
<p>MuleSoft shares jumped more than 20 percent to $39.88 after Reuters reported the talks, giving the company a market value of $5.3 billion. Salesforce shares were up 0.3 percent at $125.31.</p>
<p>Based in San Francisco, MuleSoft makes software that automatically integrates disparate data, devices and applications to help companies’ networks run faster. It could help Salesforce win business from customers which are not yet ready to transition their systems to the cloud.</p>
<p>Buying MuleSoft would help Salesforce build a larger enterprise apps ecosystem around its own products, Barclays Plc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=BARC.L" type="external">BARC.L</a>) analysts wrote in a research note, adding that MuleSoft could command a premium given its rapid growth and good fit.</p>
<p>Salesforce Ventures, the company’s venture capital arm, led a $128 million funding round in MuleSoft in 2015.</p>
<a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=CRM.N" type="external">Salesforce.com Inc</a> 125.67 CRM.N New York Stock Exchange +0.69 (+0.55%) CRM.N MULE.N BARC.L KO.N MCD.N
<p>MuleSoft has more than 1,000 customers, including Coca-Cola Co ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=KO.N" type="external">KO.N</a>), McDonald’s Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MCD.N" type="external">MCD.N</a>), Spotify and Unilever ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=ULVR.L" type="external">ULVR.L</a>). It went public about a year ago.</p>
<p>Salesforce holds more than 18 percent of the global customer relationship management software market, followed by Oracle Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=ORCL.N" type="external">ORCL.N</a>) with 9.4 percent, according to 2016 figures provided by research firm IDC.</p>
<p>Alphabet Inc’s ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GOOGL.O" type="external">GOOGL.O</a>) Google acquired a competitor of MuleSoft called Apigee Corp in a $625 million deal in 2016.</p>
<p>Salesforce has benefited from companies switching to cloud-based services due to the lower costs and high level of scalability. Last month, it posted a quarterly profit that topped Wall Street targets, fueled by growth in its cloud-based sales and marketing software.</p>
<p>Reporting by Liana B. Baker and Greg Roumeliotis in New York; Additional reporting by Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Bill Rigby and Meredith Mazzilli</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>
<p>LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc is making a push for merchants on its website to sell goods into other countries, setting the stage for greater competition with rival marketplaces run by eBay Inc and potentially Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.</p>
<p>More than a quarter of all revenue for sellers on Amazon globally was from cross-border transactions in 2017, up more than 50 percent from the year prior, Amazon Vice President Eric Broussard said in an interview, ahead of his Tuesday speech at the ShopTalk conference in Las Vegas.</p>
<p>That amounts to between $50 billion and $75 billion for merchants selling to customers in another country, based on analysts’ estimates for Amazon’s total gross merchandise sales. Amazon does not disclose the figure.</p>
<p>The cross-border increase - outpacing Amazon’s 31 percent rise in overall net sales - represents a massive opportunity for the world’s largest online retailer. That is why Amazon has encouraged merchants to list ever-more products on its websites around the world, which could make its marketplaces more desirable to shoppers than those of the competition.</p>
<p>“The speed with which sellers have been selling globally has accelerated over time,” said Broussard, who oversees Amazon’s international marketplaces.</p>
<p>Global trade has been crucial to Amazon and its e-commerce competitors. In a 2015 news post online, eBay touted cross-border sales as one of its key strengths. It said cross-border represented about 20 percent of its gross merchandise volume in 2014, or $17 billion. The company declined to offer a figure for 2017.</p>
<p>Last month, eBay’s chief executive told Reuters the company planned to bring “the world’s inventory into Japan” as part of its global expansion. [nL4N1QH72Z]</p>
<p>Alibaba, meanwhile, recruits companies to sell into China, and its unit Tmall Global features products from brands in 63 countries and regions, it has said.</p>
<p>Critics of Amazon have said there are too many counterfeit products from China on its U.S. marketplace. Amazon prohibits the sale of counterfeit goods and has said it is investing heavily in programs to keep them off its platform.</p> FILE PHOTO: A worker gathers items for delivery from the warehouse floor at Amazon's distribution center in Phoenix, Arizona, U.S., on November 22, 2013. REUTERS/Ralph D. Freso/File Photo CUT OF SALES
<p>For Amazon, a key way it attracts sellers is by renting space in more than 150 warehouses worldwide so merchants can store inventory near customers - without the hassle of exporting each order. Amazon operates 13 marketplaces globally.</p>
<p>“A customer shops in German, pays in euros and gets very rapid fulfillment” for a product from a U.S. seller, for example, Broussard said.</p> Slideshow (2 Images)
<p>Tech Armor, a smartphone accessories maker near Los Angeles, said that its business was growing faster internationally than in the United States and that it has shipped more than 12 million units through Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) since 2012. That has come partly from Amazon’s encouragement.</p>
<p>“Someone from the FBA business called,” Tech Armor co-founder Joe Jaconi told Reuters. “They wanted to talk to us about Canada.”</p>
<p>Amazon takes a cut of merchants’ transactions, which for jewelry can reach 30 percent of a sale fulfilled by Amazon, said Elena Castaneda, founder of Bling Jewelry in greater New York. Amazon’s net sales from seller services was $32 billion in 2017.</p>
<p>Castaneda said this was worthwhile.</p>
<p>“Say I do $1 million in Amazon U.S. If you take all of Europe and you do all five countries (with Amazon Marketplaces), it would almost be equivalent to the amount you do in the U.S.,” she said.</p>
<p>Exports by sellers on Amazon - where merchants handle the fulfillment to foreign countries - increased by nearly 30 percent in 2017, Amazon said.</p>
<p>Reporting By Jeffrey Dastin in Las Vegas, Editing by Vanessa O'Connell and Rosalba O'Brien</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> | 4,139 |
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<p />
<p>The Houston Chronicle ( <a href="http://bit.ly/2efgBjx" type="external">http://bit.ly/2efgBjx</a> ) reports Harris County’s reserve deputies perform many of the same functions as the county’s full-time lawmen, on a part-time, voluntary basis.</p>
<p>And for as long as lawmen have patrolled Texas towns and cities, sheriffs and constables here have relied on reserve deputies to bulk up their presence on city streets, and in some cases, provide a training ground for would-be, full-time officers.</p>
<p>A new policy approved last month by county commissioners, however, puts a cap on the number of reserve deputies constables or the sheriff can appoint.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The move comes as the use of reserve deputies — which has enmeshed some local constables in controversy in years past — has resurfaced leading up to Tuesday’s election.</p>
<p>The policy caps the number of deputies at one for every two sworn deputy constables or sheriff’s deputies — but would allow county constables to add an additional 563 reserve deputies to their ranks and the sheriff’s office more than 700.</p>
<p>Those additional reserve deputies would provide the county with more than $11 million worth of free staffing, assuming a full-time deputy’s base pay and benefits and that the reserve deputies work 20 hours per month, which is the minimum work requirement in the sheriff’s office.</p>
<p>The policy is a way to ensure such deputies are being properly monitored and to limit possible liability issues, county officials said.</p>
<p>“You have a supervision issue there. . It’s important that commissioners’ court, we take a close look at quality of service that’s provided and at the same time the liability to the county,” said Precinct 3 Commissioner Steve Radack, who formerly served as Precinct 5 constable.</p>
<p>“To be able to have a good, reserve program — it can be very valuable,” Radack continued. “Some reserves out there work their hearts out and provide great benefit to the county — to county government itself and to taxpayers. It’s basically a way to try to ensure you’re going to have adequate supervision, and so there’s some limitations.”</p>
<p>Wearing law-enforcement blue with a Precinct 1 constable’s patch on his right shoulder, Reserve Deputy Jimmy Bruinsma furiously scribbles notes as he interviews a suspect Wednesday morning in the parking lot of a northwest Houston apartment complex.</p>
<p>Responding to reports of a burglary and stolen car, Bruinsma, 32, is both thorough and deft in his questioning, mixing the pointed — “Where were you Saturday night?” — with the lighthearted — “What did you dress up for as Halloween?”</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Whether it’s working security for Houston’s Gay Pride Parade or being dispatched to crime scenes, Bruinsma takes pride in the community service component of the position, always seeking to represent law enforcement in a positive light.</p>
<p>“I’m here to help them, and sometimes I have to arrest them,” Bruinsma said. “You don’t want to have that perception that it’s us versus them. That’s not the case. These are our people.”</p>
<p>Following his father into law enforcement, Bruinsma volunteers without pay as a reserve deputy about 100 hours a month, working side-by-side with a full-time deputy.</p>
<p>Reserve deputies “make a one-man unit a two-man unit,” according to Deputy Jerry Morton, a 20-year veteran who is training Bruinsma.</p>
<p>“They’re helpful in so many ways,” Morton said. “They take a workload off a stressful job.”</p>
<p>With Tuesday’s election expected to create turnover in several of the county constables’ offices and possibly at the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, and with at least one favored constable contender pledging to bulk up the ranks of reserve deputies, county commissioners voted last week to limit the number of reserve deputies.</p>
<p>The number would limit the smallest Harris County constable offices to approximately 30 reserve deputies, and the sheriff’s — the largest county law enforcement agency — to about 940.</p>
<p>“We’re always recruiting additional reserve deputies to try to address our needs for increased patrol presence,” said Ryan Sullivan, a sheriff’s office spokesman. “They gave us 700 additional slots, which I doubt we’d be able to fill.”</p>
<p>In a letter to commissioners seeking approval of the policy, County Budget Officer William Jackson said the new limits will set reasonable levels for county law enforcement agencies.</p>
<p>“I just wanted to make sure, even before the election, that we had something in there to be a guideline,” he said. “I don’t think anybody would hit it, but it just kind of said, “We just need to manage that.'”</p>
<p>Now, reserve deputies must receive a minimum of 643 hours of training to receive their state license, said Gretchen Grigsby, a Texas Commission on Law Enforcement spokeswoman. Reserve deputies must also complete 40 hours of continuing education every two years, and in Harris County, depending on the agency, work 20 hours a month or more for the department holding their commission.</p>
<p>In years past, such restrictions were far more lax, and some constables became notorious for handing out badges or hiring reserve deputies as political favors.</p>
<p>In 1989, the same year Texas tightened training requirements for reserve deputies, the county tried to institute a now-defunct one-to-one ratio, meaning constables could have as many reserve deputies as they had regular paid deputies.</p>
<p>Victor Treviño, then-Precinct 6 constable, had 10 paid deputies and approximately 80 reserve deputies.</p>
<p>At the time, Treviño told commissioners he needed the deputies to work in schools fighting truancy or inhalant abuse. The constable’s law enforcement career ended when he pleaded guilty in a public corruption case and was sentenced in 2014 to 10 years of probation.</p>
<p>After Treviño’s resignation, nearly three-quarters of the department’s 102 reserve deputies were dismissed or left, many because they weren’t working their required number of hours, said Precinct 6 Chief Deputy Armando Tello.</p>
<p>“We’re not going to just give somebody a gun and a badge and just say, ‘Hey, you’re a reserve,’ as a courtesy to let them carry a badge,” he said.</p>
<p>Precinct 6 now has 27 reserve deputies, he said, adding that Treviño’s successor, Heliodoro Martinez, also dissolved the department’s motorcycle division, which reserve deputies were using to work extra jobs escorting or directing traffic but which provided little value to the department’s day-to-day operations. All of the current reserve deputies work between 24 and 32 hours a month, he said.</p>
<p>Now, Treviño’s wife, Sylvia Treviño, the leading contender to replace Martinez in this year’s election, has campaigned on a platform of bulking up and reinstating the department’s corps of reserve deputies, as well as restoring the agency’s motorcycle division.</p>
<p>All the agencies that could be affected by the new county policy are currently well below the new limits on reserve deputies.</p>
<p>Precinct 5, for example, which has 334 full-time deputy constables, has just four reserve deputies.</p>
<p>Precinct 1, which has 263 full-time deputies, has the highest proportion of reserve deputies, with 41, including Bruinsma, according to county records.</p>
<p>“Considering we would have to triple our reserve force before approaching the cap, the cap causes no immediate staffing concern to Constable (Alan) Rosen,” Precinct 1 spokesman Alan Bernstein said in an email. “It’s a bridge we’d love to worry about crossing someday.”</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Houston Chronicle, <a href="http://www.houstonchronicle.com" type="external">http://www.houstonchronicle.com</a></p>
<p>This is an AP Member Exchange shared by the Houston Chronicle</p> | Harris County reserve deputies add to law enforcement force | false | https://abqjournal.com/883502/harris-county-reserve-deputies-add-to-law-enforcement-force.html | 2least
| Harris County reserve deputies add to law enforcement force
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p />
<p>The Houston Chronicle ( <a href="http://bit.ly/2efgBjx" type="external">http://bit.ly/2efgBjx</a> ) reports Harris County’s reserve deputies perform many of the same functions as the county’s full-time lawmen, on a part-time, voluntary basis.</p>
<p>And for as long as lawmen have patrolled Texas towns and cities, sheriffs and constables here have relied on reserve deputies to bulk up their presence on city streets, and in some cases, provide a training ground for would-be, full-time officers.</p>
<p>A new policy approved last month by county commissioners, however, puts a cap on the number of reserve deputies constables or the sheriff can appoint.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The move comes as the use of reserve deputies — which has enmeshed some local constables in controversy in years past — has resurfaced leading up to Tuesday’s election.</p>
<p>The policy caps the number of deputies at one for every two sworn deputy constables or sheriff’s deputies — but would allow county constables to add an additional 563 reserve deputies to their ranks and the sheriff’s office more than 700.</p>
<p>Those additional reserve deputies would provide the county with more than $11 million worth of free staffing, assuming a full-time deputy’s base pay and benefits and that the reserve deputies work 20 hours per month, which is the minimum work requirement in the sheriff’s office.</p>
<p>The policy is a way to ensure such deputies are being properly monitored and to limit possible liability issues, county officials said.</p>
<p>“You have a supervision issue there. . It’s important that commissioners’ court, we take a close look at quality of service that’s provided and at the same time the liability to the county,” said Precinct 3 Commissioner Steve Radack, who formerly served as Precinct 5 constable.</p>
<p>“To be able to have a good, reserve program — it can be very valuable,” Radack continued. “Some reserves out there work their hearts out and provide great benefit to the county — to county government itself and to taxpayers. It’s basically a way to try to ensure you’re going to have adequate supervision, and so there’s some limitations.”</p>
<p>Wearing law-enforcement blue with a Precinct 1 constable’s patch on his right shoulder, Reserve Deputy Jimmy Bruinsma furiously scribbles notes as he interviews a suspect Wednesday morning in the parking lot of a northwest Houston apartment complex.</p>
<p>Responding to reports of a burglary and stolen car, Bruinsma, 32, is both thorough and deft in his questioning, mixing the pointed — “Where were you Saturday night?” — with the lighthearted — “What did you dress up for as Halloween?”</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Whether it’s working security for Houston’s Gay Pride Parade or being dispatched to crime scenes, Bruinsma takes pride in the community service component of the position, always seeking to represent law enforcement in a positive light.</p>
<p>“I’m here to help them, and sometimes I have to arrest them,” Bruinsma said. “You don’t want to have that perception that it’s us versus them. That’s not the case. These are our people.”</p>
<p>Following his father into law enforcement, Bruinsma volunteers without pay as a reserve deputy about 100 hours a month, working side-by-side with a full-time deputy.</p>
<p>Reserve deputies “make a one-man unit a two-man unit,” according to Deputy Jerry Morton, a 20-year veteran who is training Bruinsma.</p>
<p>“They’re helpful in so many ways,” Morton said. “They take a workload off a stressful job.”</p>
<p>With Tuesday’s election expected to create turnover in several of the county constables’ offices and possibly at the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, and with at least one favored constable contender pledging to bulk up the ranks of reserve deputies, county commissioners voted last week to limit the number of reserve deputies.</p>
<p>The number would limit the smallest Harris County constable offices to approximately 30 reserve deputies, and the sheriff’s — the largest county law enforcement agency — to about 940.</p>
<p>“We’re always recruiting additional reserve deputies to try to address our needs for increased patrol presence,” said Ryan Sullivan, a sheriff’s office spokesman. “They gave us 700 additional slots, which I doubt we’d be able to fill.”</p>
<p>In a letter to commissioners seeking approval of the policy, County Budget Officer William Jackson said the new limits will set reasonable levels for county law enforcement agencies.</p>
<p>“I just wanted to make sure, even before the election, that we had something in there to be a guideline,” he said. “I don’t think anybody would hit it, but it just kind of said, “We just need to manage that.'”</p>
<p>Now, reserve deputies must receive a minimum of 643 hours of training to receive their state license, said Gretchen Grigsby, a Texas Commission on Law Enforcement spokeswoman. Reserve deputies must also complete 40 hours of continuing education every two years, and in Harris County, depending on the agency, work 20 hours a month or more for the department holding their commission.</p>
<p>In years past, such restrictions were far more lax, and some constables became notorious for handing out badges or hiring reserve deputies as political favors.</p>
<p>In 1989, the same year Texas tightened training requirements for reserve deputies, the county tried to institute a now-defunct one-to-one ratio, meaning constables could have as many reserve deputies as they had regular paid deputies.</p>
<p>Victor Treviño, then-Precinct 6 constable, had 10 paid deputies and approximately 80 reserve deputies.</p>
<p>At the time, Treviño told commissioners he needed the deputies to work in schools fighting truancy or inhalant abuse. The constable’s law enforcement career ended when he pleaded guilty in a public corruption case and was sentenced in 2014 to 10 years of probation.</p>
<p>After Treviño’s resignation, nearly three-quarters of the department’s 102 reserve deputies were dismissed or left, many because they weren’t working their required number of hours, said Precinct 6 Chief Deputy Armando Tello.</p>
<p>“We’re not going to just give somebody a gun and a badge and just say, ‘Hey, you’re a reserve,’ as a courtesy to let them carry a badge,” he said.</p>
<p>Precinct 6 now has 27 reserve deputies, he said, adding that Treviño’s successor, Heliodoro Martinez, also dissolved the department’s motorcycle division, which reserve deputies were using to work extra jobs escorting or directing traffic but which provided little value to the department’s day-to-day operations. All of the current reserve deputies work between 24 and 32 hours a month, he said.</p>
<p>Now, Treviño’s wife, Sylvia Treviño, the leading contender to replace Martinez in this year’s election, has campaigned on a platform of bulking up and reinstating the department’s corps of reserve deputies, as well as restoring the agency’s motorcycle division.</p>
<p>All the agencies that could be affected by the new county policy are currently well below the new limits on reserve deputies.</p>
<p>Precinct 5, for example, which has 334 full-time deputy constables, has just four reserve deputies.</p>
<p>Precinct 1, which has 263 full-time deputies, has the highest proportion of reserve deputies, with 41, including Bruinsma, according to county records.</p>
<p>“Considering we would have to triple our reserve force before approaching the cap, the cap causes no immediate staffing concern to Constable (Alan) Rosen,” Precinct 1 spokesman Alan Bernstein said in an email. “It’s a bridge we’d love to worry about crossing someday.”</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Houston Chronicle, <a href="http://www.houstonchronicle.com" type="external">http://www.houstonchronicle.com</a></p>
<p>This is an AP Member Exchange shared by the Houston Chronicle</p> | 4,140 |
|
<p>Published time: 14 Nov, 2017 12:57Edited time: 14 Nov, 2017 13:24</p>
<p>The Duchess of Cambridge’s uncle has pleaded guilty to beating his wife after a night drinking in central London. Gary Goldsmith, the brother of Kate Middleton’s mother Carole, admitted knocking his fourth wife unconscious with a “left hook.”</p>
<p>Julie-Anne was knocked down to the pavement outside the couple’s home after Goldsmith assaulted her, according to taxi driver Daniel Shepherd, who reported the incident to the police after driving the two home. Shepherd said the couple had got in a row before Julie-Anne slapped her husband across the face. Goldsmith reacted by delivering a “left hook” that knocked her unconscious for several seconds.</p>
<p>Read more</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/uk/409628-prince-charles-jews-letter/" type="external" /></p>
<p>At Westminster Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, Goldsmith admitted to punching his wife in the face after they spent the evening at the Home House private members’ club in Portman Square, Marylebone on October 13.</p>
<p>Shepherd said he rushed to the woman’s aid and called the police on her request. When he challenged Goldsmith over his actions, the entrepreneur allegedly became aggressive towards him.</p>
<p>The driver said he told Goldsmith “whoa mate, you can’t do that” and added: “Are you going to start on me now?”</p>
<p>Prosecutor Kate Shilton told the court the incident happened at about 1:20 am.</p>
<p>“The argument took place in the back of a taxi. They both got out of the taxi and he (Shepherd) describes Mrs Goldsmith slapping her husband to the face,” she said.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/uk/409614-prince-harry-remembrance-sunday/" type="external">READ MORE: Prince Harry breaches military rules by sporting beard at Remembrance Sunday service (PHOTOS)</a></p>
<p>“He then describes how Mr Goldsmith punches her hard in the face using a left hook.“Mrs Goldsmith has then fallen backwards. He says: ‘She appears to be unconscious, she isn’t moving.’”</p>
<p>After losing consciousness for around 15 seconds, Shilton said Julie-Anne Shilton became “upset, starts crying and uses some railings to assist her.”</p>
<p>The woman was brought to the hospital and was later discharged, the court heard. Goldsmith was freed on bail until a sentencing hearing on November 21.</p>
<p>The charge carries a maximum penalty of six months’ imprisonment but it is believed he will instead be forced to complete a period of community service.</p> | Kate Middleton's uncle pleads guilty to punching wife unconscious with ‘left hook’ | false | https://newsline.com/kate-middleton039s-uncle-pleads-guilty-to-punching-wife-unconscious-with-left-hook/ | 2017-11-14 | 1right-center
| Kate Middleton's uncle pleads guilty to punching wife unconscious with ‘left hook’
<p>Published time: 14 Nov, 2017 12:57Edited time: 14 Nov, 2017 13:24</p>
<p>The Duchess of Cambridge’s uncle has pleaded guilty to beating his wife after a night drinking in central London. Gary Goldsmith, the brother of Kate Middleton’s mother Carole, admitted knocking his fourth wife unconscious with a “left hook.”</p>
<p>Julie-Anne was knocked down to the pavement outside the couple’s home after Goldsmith assaulted her, according to taxi driver Daniel Shepherd, who reported the incident to the police after driving the two home. Shepherd said the couple had got in a row before Julie-Anne slapped her husband across the face. Goldsmith reacted by delivering a “left hook” that knocked her unconscious for several seconds.</p>
<p>Read more</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/uk/409628-prince-charles-jews-letter/" type="external" /></p>
<p>At Westminster Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, Goldsmith admitted to punching his wife in the face after they spent the evening at the Home House private members’ club in Portman Square, Marylebone on October 13.</p>
<p>Shepherd said he rushed to the woman’s aid and called the police on her request. When he challenged Goldsmith over his actions, the entrepreneur allegedly became aggressive towards him.</p>
<p>The driver said he told Goldsmith “whoa mate, you can’t do that” and added: “Are you going to start on me now?”</p>
<p>Prosecutor Kate Shilton told the court the incident happened at about 1:20 am.</p>
<p>“The argument took place in the back of a taxi. They both got out of the taxi and he (Shepherd) describes Mrs Goldsmith slapping her husband to the face,” she said.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/uk/409614-prince-harry-remembrance-sunday/" type="external">READ MORE: Prince Harry breaches military rules by sporting beard at Remembrance Sunday service (PHOTOS)</a></p>
<p>“He then describes how Mr Goldsmith punches her hard in the face using a left hook.“Mrs Goldsmith has then fallen backwards. He says: ‘She appears to be unconscious, she isn’t moving.’”</p>
<p>After losing consciousness for around 15 seconds, Shilton said Julie-Anne Shilton became “upset, starts crying and uses some railings to assist her.”</p>
<p>The woman was brought to the hospital and was later discharged, the court heard. Goldsmith was freed on bail until a sentencing hearing on November 21.</p>
<p>The charge carries a maximum penalty of six months’ imprisonment but it is believed he will instead be forced to complete a period of community service.</p> | 4,141 |
<p>By Bob Allen</p>
<p>A new book by an author who for one year kept her vow to follow literally&#160;every instruction for women found in the Bible won’t be sold at LifeWay Christian Stores.</p>
<p>Rachel Held Evans, whose anticipated book <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/biblical-womanhood/" type="external">A Year of Biblical Womanhood</a> is due out Oct. 30, reported on her <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/lifeway-year-of-biblical-womanhood" type="external">blog</a> that a few weeks ago she got word that the her book wouldn’t be available at 165 bookstores owned by the Southern Baptist Convention’s publishing arm, LifeWay Christian Resources.</p>
<p>Evans said in an update that she isn’t certain why her book was rejected, but in her original post she speculated it might be because of earlier <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/victory-vagina" type="external">blogs</a> discussing whether her use of the word “vagina” in a couple of references might discourage Christian bookstores from selling it.</p>
<p>She also mentioned another <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/christian-bookstores-chokehold" type="external">blog</a>, where she claimed that Christian bookstores have a “chokehold” on Christian publishing that stifles creativity and sends many authors like her shopping for other publishers.</p>
<p>LifeWay Christian Resources responded with a statement saying the company does not comment on reasons why it chooses specific products out of thousands that it reviews, but factors include “alignment with evangelical beliefs, past sales by an author and how they fit within LifeWay’s values and vision.”</p>
<p>LifeWay carried Evans’ first book, <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/monkey-town/" type="external">Evolving in Monkeytown</a>, about her experience growing up in Dayton, Tenn., the town made famous by the Scopes “monkey trial” over evolution in the 1920s.</p>
<p>A LifeWay spokesman said the company doesn’t release sales figures, but Evans’ previous book sold an average of less than one copy per LifeWay store.</p>
<p>Evans’ new book is being marketed much more aggressively than the first. She has been speaking about it for months and recently engaged in public debates with the anti-feminist Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood based on the campus of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.</p>
<p>Evans will be the featured speaker at an Oct. 18-19 <a href="http://www.kybf.org/-kentucky-current-retreat/" type="external">retreat</a> in Kentucky for Current, an organization of young leaders active in the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.</p>
<p>Her project involved immersing herself in a quest to obey all the Bible’s commands for women as literally as possible, from Genesis to Revelation, with no picking and choosing. Her often-humorous adventure included calling her husband “master,” taking on the impossible task of living up to the qualities of an ideal woman described in Proverbs 31, and at one point even sitting on her roof.</p>
<p>Evans said that other major Christian bookstore chains plan to carry the book, as <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/biblical-womanhood/" type="external">will</a> Amazon, Barnes &amp; Noble and almost everywhere books are sold.</p> | LifeWay won’t sell ‘womanhood’ book | false | https://baptistnews.com/article/lifeway-wont-sell-biblical-womanhood-book/ | 3left-center
| LifeWay won’t sell ‘womanhood’ book
<p>By Bob Allen</p>
<p>A new book by an author who for one year kept her vow to follow literally&#160;every instruction for women found in the Bible won’t be sold at LifeWay Christian Stores.</p>
<p>Rachel Held Evans, whose anticipated book <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/biblical-womanhood/" type="external">A Year of Biblical Womanhood</a> is due out Oct. 30, reported on her <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/lifeway-year-of-biblical-womanhood" type="external">blog</a> that a few weeks ago she got word that the her book wouldn’t be available at 165 bookstores owned by the Southern Baptist Convention’s publishing arm, LifeWay Christian Resources.</p>
<p>Evans said in an update that she isn’t certain why her book was rejected, but in her original post she speculated it might be because of earlier <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/victory-vagina" type="external">blogs</a> discussing whether her use of the word “vagina” in a couple of references might discourage Christian bookstores from selling it.</p>
<p>She also mentioned another <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/christian-bookstores-chokehold" type="external">blog</a>, where she claimed that Christian bookstores have a “chokehold” on Christian publishing that stifles creativity and sends many authors like her shopping for other publishers.</p>
<p>LifeWay Christian Resources responded with a statement saying the company does not comment on reasons why it chooses specific products out of thousands that it reviews, but factors include “alignment with evangelical beliefs, past sales by an author and how they fit within LifeWay’s values and vision.”</p>
<p>LifeWay carried Evans’ first book, <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/monkey-town/" type="external">Evolving in Monkeytown</a>, about her experience growing up in Dayton, Tenn., the town made famous by the Scopes “monkey trial” over evolution in the 1920s.</p>
<p>A LifeWay spokesman said the company doesn’t release sales figures, but Evans’ previous book sold an average of less than one copy per LifeWay store.</p>
<p>Evans’ new book is being marketed much more aggressively than the first. She has been speaking about it for months and recently engaged in public debates with the anti-feminist Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood based on the campus of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.</p>
<p>Evans will be the featured speaker at an Oct. 18-19 <a href="http://www.kybf.org/-kentucky-current-retreat/" type="external">retreat</a> in Kentucky for Current, an organization of young leaders active in the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.</p>
<p>Her project involved immersing herself in a quest to obey all the Bible’s commands for women as literally as possible, from Genesis to Revelation, with no picking and choosing. Her often-humorous adventure included calling her husband “master,” taking on the impossible task of living up to the qualities of an ideal woman described in Proverbs 31, and at one point even sitting on her roof.</p>
<p>Evans said that other major Christian bookstore chains plan to carry the book, as <a href="http://rachelheldevans.com/biblical-womanhood/" type="external">will</a> Amazon, Barnes &amp; Noble and almost everywhere books are sold.</p> | 4,142 |
|
<p>Photo: &lt;a href="http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/tours-and-experiences/bibbidi-bobbidi-boutique/"&gt;Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique&lt;/a&gt;</p>
<p />
<p>On a recent trip to <a href="" type="internal">Disneyland</a>, I came across a pink brochure for the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, where little girls are transformed into princesses.</p>
<p>Now, I get the royal makeover thing—but must young girls be taught that specialness entails gobs of “shimmering <a href="" type="internal">makeup</a>,” fake hair pieces, body jewels, and nail polish?</p>
<p>And the taglines are pure insecurity-bait:</p>
<p>“Helllloooooo? If anyone isn’t noticing, it’s because you’ve blinded them with your looks!” (Side lesson: Valley Girl speak is totally awesome!)</p>
<p>And:</p>
<p>“With the colorful hair piece and Mickey shaped clips, you’re bound to get noticed!”</p>
<p>Yes, girls, it’s hard to feel loved. But with Disney’s help, you too can get attention—and Prince Charming! Just don’t forget the eyeliner.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p /> | Bibbidy-Bobbidy-Lifetime-Insecurity | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2009/06/bibbidy-bobbidy-lifetime-insecurity/ | 2009-06-30 | 4left
| Bibbidy-Bobbidy-Lifetime-Insecurity
<p>Photo: &lt;a href="http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/tours-and-experiences/bibbidi-bobbidi-boutique/"&gt;Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique&lt;/a&gt;</p>
<p />
<p>On a recent trip to <a href="" type="internal">Disneyland</a>, I came across a pink brochure for the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, where little girls are transformed into princesses.</p>
<p>Now, I get the royal makeover thing—but must young girls be taught that specialness entails gobs of “shimmering <a href="" type="internal">makeup</a>,” fake hair pieces, body jewels, and nail polish?</p>
<p>And the taglines are pure insecurity-bait:</p>
<p>“Helllloooooo? If anyone isn’t noticing, it’s because you’ve blinded them with your looks!” (Side lesson: Valley Girl speak is totally awesome!)</p>
<p>And:</p>
<p>“With the colorful hair piece and Mickey shaped clips, you’re bound to get noticed!”</p>
<p>Yes, girls, it’s hard to feel loved. But with Disney’s help, you too can get attention—and Prince Charming! Just don’t forget the eyeliner.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p /> | 4,143 |
<p>Iraq’s prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, was in Washington this week to consult with Barack Obama and American military and political officials, three weeks after the Status of Forces Agreement concerning U.S. forces in Iraq came into effect.</p>
<p>On the same day, in Iraq, tension was reported to be increasing between the Americans, whose combat forces were supposed to leave Baghdad and other cities at the end of June, and the Iraqi military and security forces, which were supposed to take over the Americans’ responsibilities.</p>
<p>American commanders complain that the Iraq authorities have greatly reduced the number of joint patrols, supposed to continue, and in other ways “clearly are signaling that we are no longer wanted” — according to an American officer quoted in The Wall Street Journal. Iraqi commanders have told the Americans no longer to run patrols, and not to conduct raids on suspect locations, without coordinating them with the Iraqis.</p>
<p>A foreign diplomat in Baghdad has said that the Iraqis are determined to show that they are now in charge, in the run-up to national elections next year. Robert Gates, the U.S. defense secretary, says that the situation is not bad. However, attacks have sharply increased in recent days, and some observers insist that the Shiite- and Kurdish-dominated government must do more to reconcile the former ruling Sunni minority if sectarian conflict is not to break out again.</p>
<p />
<p>The Iraqi prime minister is playing the nationalist card, a dangerous one to play when the Sunnis also have sectarian revindications, and a lot of grievances. Washington itself has a hand to play in this game, with 130,000 troops (and at least as many contract forces) still in the country, which Barack Obama has promised to withdraw, and the American public wants withdrawn — and a demagogic American right, for whom national failure means treason.</p>
<p>This is not the way this war was supposed to end. For younger readers: Six years ago the American intervention was supposed to end in a multiparty democratic government, an ally of Israel against the supposed menace of Iran, the strategic base and headquarters for the U.S. as dominant actor in a “New Middle East,” and a permanent and secure source of oil for the United States. None of this has happened. Iran is the principal beneficiary.</p>
<p>Move to another front: Pakistan-Afghanistan. Here there was also supposed to be a straightforward job to do: drive the Taliban out of Afghanistan, into their refuges in the semi-inaccessible Tribal Areas of the Pakistan border. There, the Pakistan army, with American urging and help, would defeat and disarm them, asserting Pakistani national control over the region, as well as U.S.-NATO success in Afghanistan.</p>
<p>What actually is happening is unsurprising. Pakistan continues to look after its own national interests, as it has always defined them. This means that the separate radical religious and tribal movements that make up the Taliban continue to be considered an asset to Pakistan in its long-term struggle with India, in defense of Pakistan’s own security, and in order to recover Muslim-populated Kashmir, which India controls.</p>
<p>The Taliban has also been for Pakistan an important instrument (originally supplied and financed by the United States — but there’s no time to go into that now, although the fact should be kept in mind) in keeping Afghanistan out of hostile hands in Pakistan’s equally long-term effort to control that country as providing Pakistan strategic depth and an additional Muslim bulwark against the threat of India.</p>
<p>Pakistan has made it clear now to Washington — to those who can read between the lines — that it wants no American troops inside Pakistan and no more collateral-damage bombing, and considers the American war in Afghanistan a futile and destructive effort against whose consequences Pakistan must protect itself.</p>
<p>The growing opinion in Europe is that Afghanistan is the United States’ “new Vietnam.” The truth is that it is worse than Vietnam.</p>
<p>In Vietnam, the United States had a clearly identified enemy, supported by a responsible Communist state in North Vietnam with its government in Hanoi. The U.S. had a theory about what it was doing: suppressing the insurrection in the South, and bombing North Vietnam until the government stopped the war. All of this was, in principle, possible.</p>
<p>However, the U.S. acted on a nonsensical theory about the world “going Communist” if the U.S. didn’t win, just as today the U.S. has an even more nonsensical theory about radical Islam conquering Muslim Asia and all of Europe, and then attacking the U.S., if Washington fails.</p>
<p>Unlike the Viet Cong, the Taliban is not a disciplined force acting under some government’s orders, and has neither the intention nor means to attack anybody outside Central Asia. It is motivated by nationalism, today focused against the United States, and by a desire to propagate its form of Islam.</p>
<p>In that respect it’s a war of ideas, which the United States has no theory about how to “win.” There is no way to make the Taliban surrender. At most it will temporarily fade away when U.S. and NATO forces begin to fade away, and fight again another day. There is no Taliban government to bomb. And there is no way to “make” Afghanistan a democratic ally of the United States. The “no’s” have it.</p>
<p>Visit William Pfaff’s Web site at <a href="http://www.williampfaff.com" type="external">www.williampfaff.com</a>.</p>
<p>© 2009 Tribune Media Services Inc.</p> | U.S. Foreign Wars Not Going According to Plan | true | https://truthdig.com/articles/u-s-foreign-wars-not-going-according-to-plan/ | 2009-07-24 | 4left
| U.S. Foreign Wars Not Going According to Plan
<p>Iraq’s prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, was in Washington this week to consult with Barack Obama and American military and political officials, three weeks after the Status of Forces Agreement concerning U.S. forces in Iraq came into effect.</p>
<p>On the same day, in Iraq, tension was reported to be increasing between the Americans, whose combat forces were supposed to leave Baghdad and other cities at the end of June, and the Iraqi military and security forces, which were supposed to take over the Americans’ responsibilities.</p>
<p>American commanders complain that the Iraq authorities have greatly reduced the number of joint patrols, supposed to continue, and in other ways “clearly are signaling that we are no longer wanted” — according to an American officer quoted in The Wall Street Journal. Iraqi commanders have told the Americans no longer to run patrols, and not to conduct raids on suspect locations, without coordinating them with the Iraqis.</p>
<p>A foreign diplomat in Baghdad has said that the Iraqis are determined to show that they are now in charge, in the run-up to national elections next year. Robert Gates, the U.S. defense secretary, says that the situation is not bad. However, attacks have sharply increased in recent days, and some observers insist that the Shiite- and Kurdish-dominated government must do more to reconcile the former ruling Sunni minority if sectarian conflict is not to break out again.</p>
<p />
<p>The Iraqi prime minister is playing the nationalist card, a dangerous one to play when the Sunnis also have sectarian revindications, and a lot of grievances. Washington itself has a hand to play in this game, with 130,000 troops (and at least as many contract forces) still in the country, which Barack Obama has promised to withdraw, and the American public wants withdrawn — and a demagogic American right, for whom national failure means treason.</p>
<p>This is not the way this war was supposed to end. For younger readers: Six years ago the American intervention was supposed to end in a multiparty democratic government, an ally of Israel against the supposed menace of Iran, the strategic base and headquarters for the U.S. as dominant actor in a “New Middle East,” and a permanent and secure source of oil for the United States. None of this has happened. Iran is the principal beneficiary.</p>
<p>Move to another front: Pakistan-Afghanistan. Here there was also supposed to be a straightforward job to do: drive the Taliban out of Afghanistan, into their refuges in the semi-inaccessible Tribal Areas of the Pakistan border. There, the Pakistan army, with American urging and help, would defeat and disarm them, asserting Pakistani national control over the region, as well as U.S.-NATO success in Afghanistan.</p>
<p>What actually is happening is unsurprising. Pakistan continues to look after its own national interests, as it has always defined them. This means that the separate radical religious and tribal movements that make up the Taliban continue to be considered an asset to Pakistan in its long-term struggle with India, in defense of Pakistan’s own security, and in order to recover Muslim-populated Kashmir, which India controls.</p>
<p>The Taliban has also been for Pakistan an important instrument (originally supplied and financed by the United States — but there’s no time to go into that now, although the fact should be kept in mind) in keeping Afghanistan out of hostile hands in Pakistan’s equally long-term effort to control that country as providing Pakistan strategic depth and an additional Muslim bulwark against the threat of India.</p>
<p>Pakistan has made it clear now to Washington — to those who can read between the lines — that it wants no American troops inside Pakistan and no more collateral-damage bombing, and considers the American war in Afghanistan a futile and destructive effort against whose consequences Pakistan must protect itself.</p>
<p>The growing opinion in Europe is that Afghanistan is the United States’ “new Vietnam.” The truth is that it is worse than Vietnam.</p>
<p>In Vietnam, the United States had a clearly identified enemy, supported by a responsible Communist state in North Vietnam with its government in Hanoi. The U.S. had a theory about what it was doing: suppressing the insurrection in the South, and bombing North Vietnam until the government stopped the war. All of this was, in principle, possible.</p>
<p>However, the U.S. acted on a nonsensical theory about the world “going Communist” if the U.S. didn’t win, just as today the U.S. has an even more nonsensical theory about radical Islam conquering Muslim Asia and all of Europe, and then attacking the U.S., if Washington fails.</p>
<p>Unlike the Viet Cong, the Taliban is not a disciplined force acting under some government’s orders, and has neither the intention nor means to attack anybody outside Central Asia. It is motivated by nationalism, today focused against the United States, and by a desire to propagate its form of Islam.</p>
<p>In that respect it’s a war of ideas, which the United States has no theory about how to “win.” There is no way to make the Taliban surrender. At most it will temporarily fade away when U.S. and NATO forces begin to fade away, and fight again another day. There is no Taliban government to bomb. And there is no way to “make” Afghanistan a democratic ally of the United States. The “no’s” have it.</p>
<p>Visit William Pfaff’s Web site at <a href="http://www.williampfaff.com" type="external">www.williampfaff.com</a>.</p>
<p>© 2009 Tribune Media Services Inc.</p> | 4,144 |
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p>NAPA, Calif. — A month after deadly wildfires swept through California’s famed wine country, hot-air balloons are floating again over Napa Valley vineyards splashed with fall colors. On the heels of the disaster, a new winery is opening, keeping the name it chose some time ago: Ashes and Diamonds.</p>
<p>The fires had only a minimal effect on the area’s wineries, according to the Wine Institute, an advocacy and policy group. Of the 1,200 wineries in Sonoma, Napa and Mendocino, about 10 were destroyed or heavily damaged, and 90 percent of this year’s harvest already was complete, the institute said.</p>
<p>Most vineyards were spared due to their high moisture content, and some even helped save surrounding structures by acting as fire breaks.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>But many operators are now grappling with other long-term effects from the fires that killed 43 people and wiped out 8,900 buildings: making up for losses from being closed at the busiest time of year, assessing the impact of smoke and other environmental damage on this year’s vintage, and persuading tourists to return after weeks of news coverage of the fires’ devastation.</p>
<p>One of the most graphic scenes of destruction to emerge was that of the Signorello Estate winery engulfed in flames. Lost in the fire was the Napa winery’s signature stone hospitality building. A kitchen, corporate offices, a wine lab and owner Ray Signorello Jr.’s home also were destroyed.</p>
<p>“We lost all our servers, systems, computers, the things we used to do business,” Signorello said. But he plans to rebuild and says he’s “trying to get people back to work.”</p>
<p>At Cardinale Winery in Oakville, where just one Cabernet Sauvignon vintage is made from prized mountain appellations each year, winemaker Chris Carpenter is eyeing the grapes cautiously. He was a rare winemaker willing to say the fires’ effects would be felt for years, noting there also will be environmental issues to contend with.</p>
<p>Only 50 percent of Cardinale’s harvest was finished when the fires erupted, and he’s worried about smoke tainting what remains.</p>
<p>“All the questions are unknown right now, and we hope to have a handle on that after fermentation,” Carpenter said.</p>
<p>Carpenter said he had a chance to try some smoke-tainted wines in 2008, and they were not very pleasant – like a bacon-flavored wine.</p>
<p>“If we sense any of that, we won’t bottle,” he said.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Things already appeared to be returning to normal for guests at Sonoma’s Gundlach Bundschu winery, where dozens of tourists soaked up the sun outside the tasting room a few weeks after the fires. Nearby blackened hills were the only visible reminder of what recently occurred.</p>
<p>The winery celebrated its reopening with a community party that raised $16,000 for a fund to help fire victims, said sixth-generation vintner Katie Bundschu, who oversees marketing and sales.</p>
<p>“It was a place to come and give each other hugs,” said Bundschu, whose own family has been dealing with the loss of her parents’ home.</p>
<p>Now the push is on to lure visitors back to the three counties, which together saw more than $3.7 billion in tourism spending in 2016.</p>
<p>Wineries are filling the pages of the San Francisco Chronicle with ads. “We are open and welcome you back to Napa!” read one. Some are donating their tasting room fees to wildfire relief charities.</p>
<p>The state’s tourism commission, Visit California, is spending $2 million on an advertising campaign to encourage visitors to return.</p>
<p>“Tourism is the wine country’s lifeblood,” said president and CEO Caroline Beteta. If the groups hosting fundraisers spread their goodwill across the region, she said, “I think they will be back and running and be able to host the world as they were before.”</p>
<p>Once people understand everything is not burned down, tourism will return within a few months, said Eric Luse, the winemaker and owner of Eric Ross Winery in Glen Ellen.</p>
<p>Standing outside his empty tasting room and looking at passing cars, he mused, “If you’re not optimistic, you are in the wrong business.”</p> | California wineries assess wildfires’ long-term effects | false | https://abqjournal.com/1092299/wineries-eager-to-make-up-losses-after-california-wildfires.html | 2017-11-14 | 2least
| California wineries assess wildfires’ long-term effects
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p>NAPA, Calif. — A month after deadly wildfires swept through California’s famed wine country, hot-air balloons are floating again over Napa Valley vineyards splashed with fall colors. On the heels of the disaster, a new winery is opening, keeping the name it chose some time ago: Ashes and Diamonds.</p>
<p>The fires had only a minimal effect on the area’s wineries, according to the Wine Institute, an advocacy and policy group. Of the 1,200 wineries in Sonoma, Napa and Mendocino, about 10 were destroyed or heavily damaged, and 90 percent of this year’s harvest already was complete, the institute said.</p>
<p>Most vineyards were spared due to their high moisture content, and some even helped save surrounding structures by acting as fire breaks.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>But many operators are now grappling with other long-term effects from the fires that killed 43 people and wiped out 8,900 buildings: making up for losses from being closed at the busiest time of year, assessing the impact of smoke and other environmental damage on this year’s vintage, and persuading tourists to return after weeks of news coverage of the fires’ devastation.</p>
<p>One of the most graphic scenes of destruction to emerge was that of the Signorello Estate winery engulfed in flames. Lost in the fire was the Napa winery’s signature stone hospitality building. A kitchen, corporate offices, a wine lab and owner Ray Signorello Jr.’s home also were destroyed.</p>
<p>“We lost all our servers, systems, computers, the things we used to do business,” Signorello said. But he plans to rebuild and says he’s “trying to get people back to work.”</p>
<p>At Cardinale Winery in Oakville, where just one Cabernet Sauvignon vintage is made from prized mountain appellations each year, winemaker Chris Carpenter is eyeing the grapes cautiously. He was a rare winemaker willing to say the fires’ effects would be felt for years, noting there also will be environmental issues to contend with.</p>
<p>Only 50 percent of Cardinale’s harvest was finished when the fires erupted, and he’s worried about smoke tainting what remains.</p>
<p>“All the questions are unknown right now, and we hope to have a handle on that after fermentation,” Carpenter said.</p>
<p>Carpenter said he had a chance to try some smoke-tainted wines in 2008, and they were not very pleasant – like a bacon-flavored wine.</p>
<p>“If we sense any of that, we won’t bottle,” he said.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Things already appeared to be returning to normal for guests at Sonoma’s Gundlach Bundschu winery, where dozens of tourists soaked up the sun outside the tasting room a few weeks after the fires. Nearby blackened hills were the only visible reminder of what recently occurred.</p>
<p>The winery celebrated its reopening with a community party that raised $16,000 for a fund to help fire victims, said sixth-generation vintner Katie Bundschu, who oversees marketing and sales.</p>
<p>“It was a place to come and give each other hugs,” said Bundschu, whose own family has been dealing with the loss of her parents’ home.</p>
<p>Now the push is on to lure visitors back to the three counties, which together saw more than $3.7 billion in tourism spending in 2016.</p>
<p>Wineries are filling the pages of the San Francisco Chronicle with ads. “We are open and welcome you back to Napa!” read one. Some are donating their tasting room fees to wildfire relief charities.</p>
<p>The state’s tourism commission, Visit California, is spending $2 million on an advertising campaign to encourage visitors to return.</p>
<p>“Tourism is the wine country’s lifeblood,” said president and CEO Caroline Beteta. If the groups hosting fundraisers spread their goodwill across the region, she said, “I think they will be back and running and be able to host the world as they were before.”</p>
<p>Once people understand everything is not burned down, tourism will return within a few months, said Eric Luse, the winemaker and owner of Eric Ross Winery in Glen Ellen.</p>
<p>Standing outside his empty tasting room and looking at passing cars, he mused, “If you’re not optimistic, you are in the wrong business.”</p> | 4,145 |
<p>Oslo is dead. Generals Barak and Sharon deliberately killed off Oslo on 28 September 2000 when they knowingly instigated the Al Aqsa Intifada by desecrating the Haram-Al-Sharif. When Barak could not compel President Arafat into permanently accepting the Oslo Agreement as the “final solution” for the Palestinian People at the Camp David II negotiations in July, he and Sharon decided to revert to inflicting raw, naked, brutal force that would culminate in the planned reimposition of Israel’s outright military occupation upon the West Bank. All of the subsequent violence between Israelis and Palestinians is directly attributable to this malicious decision undertaken jointly by Barak (“Labor”) and Sharon (“Likhud”) with the full acquiescence of the United States government (under both Clinton and Bush Jr.) every step of the way.</p>
<p>The Israeli/American destruction of Oslo was only a matter of time. There was never any good faith on the part of the Israeli government and the United States government when it came to negotiating a just Middle East peace settlement with the Palestinians going all the way back to the preparatory work for the convocation of the 1991 Madrid Conference by the Bush Sr. administration. American bi-partisanship at work directed against Palestine and the Palestinians.</p>
<p>When the Israeli government finally tendered a proposal for an interim peace agreement to the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East peace negotiations in Washington D.C. in 1992, the Palestinian Delegation rejected it because it constituted nothing more than an apartheid Bantustan for the Palestinian People. Akin to the legal chicanery that the Afrikaners had unsuccessfully attempted to impose upon the Black People in the Republic of South Africa. Or the “Indian reservations” that the United States has so far successfully imposed upon its Indigenous Peoples. Not surprisingly, the United States government fully supported Israel in its attempt to impose this apartheid Bantustan upon Palestine and the Palestinians.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, the Palestinian Liberation Organization applied enormous political pressure upon the Palestinian Delegation and in particular its Head, Dr. Haider Abdul Shaffi, to accept the Israeli Bantustan proposal right then and there in Washington, D.C. This he adamantly refused to do. But it then became incumbent upon Dr. Abdul Shaffi to produce an anti-Bantustan model that would (1) protect and promote the Palestinian right to their own independent and viable nation state; (2) be negotiable in good faith with Israel; and (3) convince the PLO leadership in Tunis that these twin objectives could be accomplished. It was my great honor and pleasure that Dr. Abdul Shaffi and the Palestinian Delegation turned to me at this critical time in their Nation’s history in order to devise this Palestinian alternative to the Israeli Bantustan proposal.</p>
<p>This I did by means of oral briefings and later a formal Memorandum of Law dated 1 December 1992 that was addressed to the Palestinian Delegates to the Middle East Peace Negotiations as well as to the top political leadership of the PLO then headquartered in Tunis. This lengthy Memorandum was translated into Arabic for review, consideration, and approval by the PLO Executive Committee, which serves as the Provisional Government of the State of Palestine, whose President was at the time and still is Yasser Arafat. My Palestinian anti-Bantustan model was approved by the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East Peace Negotiations as well as by the PLO leadership in Tunis. In other words, there was an officially approved Palestinian alternative to Oslo. So there did indeed exist a “choice.”</p>
<p>Because of its historical significance, the Board of Editors of the distinguished Arab Studies Quarterly decided to publish this Memorandum in full in their Volume 22, No. 3, Summer 2000 Issue, together with a brief editorial Note. While going through this Memorandum, the reader should understand that the Israeli proposal severely criticized therein would later become the Oslo Agreement. In other words, this 1 December 1992 Memorandum provided the PLO leadership with a detailed roadmap of precisely what was wrong with Oslo, what would be the negative consequences of Oslo, and why Oslo would inevitably fail. Indeed, this 1 December 1992 Memorandum repeatedly predicted the failure of the Israeli proposal that would later become the Oslo Agreement, which was signed by President Arafat at the White House on 13 September 1993.</p>
<p>All of this analysis was well-known to President Arafat, Dr. Abdul Shaffi, the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East Peace Negotiations, and the PLO Executive Committee well before 13 September 1993. It was for this reason that Dr. Abdul Shaffi and several of the Palestinian Delegates refused as a matter of principle to attend the 13 September 1993 White House signing ceremony. They knew Oslo was a Bantustan and thus wanted nothing at all to do with it. Hence, contrary to some news media accounts and academic speculation, President Arafat knew exactly what he was signing on 13 September 1993. He had been fully informed and properly advised. But he signed on to the Oslo Bantustan anyway.</p>
<p>In our conversations before Oslo was signed and afterwards, the greatest fear and concern shared by Dr. Abdul-Shaffi and me was that Oslo would set off a Palestinian civil war. This would not have bothered the Israelis and the Americans one bit. But to his great credit, so far President Arafat has refused to ignite a Palestinian civil war in the name of enforcing the Oslo Bantustan.</p>
<p>Precisely because President Arafat would not do their dirty work for them, the Israelis and the Americans then turned upon him. Both the Israelis and the Americans have decided to jettison President Arafat in preference to installing some Palestinian quisling willing to become the “chief” of a Palestinian Bantustan where he would employ its “reservation police force” in order to suppress the Al Aqsa Intifada. I doubt very seriously that the Israelis and the Americans will succeed at imposing their nefarious objectives upon Palestine and the Palestinians without violent resistance. What the ultimate consequences might be I cannot predict at this time. But the longer the United States government enables Israel to torment Palestine and the Palestinians, the progressively less likely a comprehensive Middle East peace settlement becomes.</p>
<p>In this regard, having served as Legal Advisor to the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East Peace Negotiations from 1991 to 1993, and in a similar capacity to the Syrian Delegation to the Middle East Negotiations during their First Round held in Washington, D.C. during 1991, I can state unequivocally that if there had been good faith on the part of the governments of Israel and the United States back in 1991, there could have been negotiated a comprehensive Middle East peace settlement between Israel, on the one hand, and Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan, respectively, on the other, no later than by the end of 1993. The conclusion is inexorable that the governments of Israel and the United States were never seriously interested in obtaining a comprehensive and just Middle East peace settlement in the first place. Rather, Israel’s perpetration and prolongation of its “low intensity conflict” against Palestine and the Palestinians as well as against Lebanon, the Lebanese, and Palestinian refugees involuntarily living in Lebanon suit the interests of the interpenetrated security-military-industrial-complexes that really control the governments of the United States and Israel.</p>
<p>Of course, from the Palestinian perspective, there is nothing “low intensity” about their just struggle for national survival against the Israeli-American juggernaut. And there are signs that Sharon would like to unleash a major new war against Lebanon and Syria just as he did in 1982 when as Israel’s “Minister of Defense” – truly Orwellian! – he got the proverbial “green light” from the Reagan administration to do so. Right now the “governments” of the United States and Israel are plotting to launch catastrophic aggression against Iraq, giving Sharon cover to initiate yet another round of ethnic cleansing against the Palestinians by driving their West Bank inhabitants into Jordan. This incredibly volatile situation could readily degenerate into another regional war for the entire Middle East along the lines of 1948/1967/1973.</p>
<p>Francis A. Boyle, Professor of Law, University of Illinois, is author of <a href="" type="internal">Foundations of World Order</a>, Duke University Press, and <a href="" type="internal">The Criminality of Nuclear Deterrence</a>, Clarity Press. He can be reached at: <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a></p>
<p>Today’s Feature</p>
<p>Robert Jensen <a href="" type="internal">Lynne Cheney’s Primer</a></p>
<p>Behzad Yaghmaian <a href="" type="internal">An Alternative to the G-8s Africa Initiative Toward a Global AIDS Fund and a Living Wage</a></p>
<p>John Borowski <a href="" type="internal">Public Schools Under Seige</a></p>
<p>Norman Madarasz <a href="" type="internal">Brazil, the Workers’ Party and the Financial Times</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.counterpunch.org" type="external">home</a> / <a href="http://www.easycarts.net/ecarts/CounterPunch/CounterPunch_Subscriptions.html" type="external">subscribe</a> / <a href="aboutus.html" type="external">about us</a> / <a href="books.html" type="external">books</a> / <a href="archive.html" type="external">archives</a> / <a href="search.html" type="external">search</a> / <a href="links.html" type="external">links</a> /</p> | The Death of the Oslo Accords | true | https://counterpunch.org/2002/07/02/the-death-of-the-oslo-accords/ | 2002-07-02 | 4left
| The Death of the Oslo Accords
<p>Oslo is dead. Generals Barak and Sharon deliberately killed off Oslo on 28 September 2000 when they knowingly instigated the Al Aqsa Intifada by desecrating the Haram-Al-Sharif. When Barak could not compel President Arafat into permanently accepting the Oslo Agreement as the “final solution” for the Palestinian People at the Camp David II negotiations in July, he and Sharon decided to revert to inflicting raw, naked, brutal force that would culminate in the planned reimposition of Israel’s outright military occupation upon the West Bank. All of the subsequent violence between Israelis and Palestinians is directly attributable to this malicious decision undertaken jointly by Barak (“Labor”) and Sharon (“Likhud”) with the full acquiescence of the United States government (under both Clinton and Bush Jr.) every step of the way.</p>
<p>The Israeli/American destruction of Oslo was only a matter of time. There was never any good faith on the part of the Israeli government and the United States government when it came to negotiating a just Middle East peace settlement with the Palestinians going all the way back to the preparatory work for the convocation of the 1991 Madrid Conference by the Bush Sr. administration. American bi-partisanship at work directed against Palestine and the Palestinians.</p>
<p>When the Israeli government finally tendered a proposal for an interim peace agreement to the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East peace negotiations in Washington D.C. in 1992, the Palestinian Delegation rejected it because it constituted nothing more than an apartheid Bantustan for the Palestinian People. Akin to the legal chicanery that the Afrikaners had unsuccessfully attempted to impose upon the Black People in the Republic of South Africa. Or the “Indian reservations” that the United States has so far successfully imposed upon its Indigenous Peoples. Not surprisingly, the United States government fully supported Israel in its attempt to impose this apartheid Bantustan upon Palestine and the Palestinians.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, the Palestinian Liberation Organization applied enormous political pressure upon the Palestinian Delegation and in particular its Head, Dr. Haider Abdul Shaffi, to accept the Israeli Bantustan proposal right then and there in Washington, D.C. This he adamantly refused to do. But it then became incumbent upon Dr. Abdul Shaffi to produce an anti-Bantustan model that would (1) protect and promote the Palestinian right to their own independent and viable nation state; (2) be negotiable in good faith with Israel; and (3) convince the PLO leadership in Tunis that these twin objectives could be accomplished. It was my great honor and pleasure that Dr. Abdul Shaffi and the Palestinian Delegation turned to me at this critical time in their Nation’s history in order to devise this Palestinian alternative to the Israeli Bantustan proposal.</p>
<p>This I did by means of oral briefings and later a formal Memorandum of Law dated 1 December 1992 that was addressed to the Palestinian Delegates to the Middle East Peace Negotiations as well as to the top political leadership of the PLO then headquartered in Tunis. This lengthy Memorandum was translated into Arabic for review, consideration, and approval by the PLO Executive Committee, which serves as the Provisional Government of the State of Palestine, whose President was at the time and still is Yasser Arafat. My Palestinian anti-Bantustan model was approved by the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East Peace Negotiations as well as by the PLO leadership in Tunis. In other words, there was an officially approved Palestinian alternative to Oslo. So there did indeed exist a “choice.”</p>
<p>Because of its historical significance, the Board of Editors of the distinguished Arab Studies Quarterly decided to publish this Memorandum in full in their Volume 22, No. 3, Summer 2000 Issue, together with a brief editorial Note. While going through this Memorandum, the reader should understand that the Israeli proposal severely criticized therein would later become the Oslo Agreement. In other words, this 1 December 1992 Memorandum provided the PLO leadership with a detailed roadmap of precisely what was wrong with Oslo, what would be the negative consequences of Oslo, and why Oslo would inevitably fail. Indeed, this 1 December 1992 Memorandum repeatedly predicted the failure of the Israeli proposal that would later become the Oslo Agreement, which was signed by President Arafat at the White House on 13 September 1993.</p>
<p>All of this analysis was well-known to President Arafat, Dr. Abdul Shaffi, the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East Peace Negotiations, and the PLO Executive Committee well before 13 September 1993. It was for this reason that Dr. Abdul Shaffi and several of the Palestinian Delegates refused as a matter of principle to attend the 13 September 1993 White House signing ceremony. They knew Oslo was a Bantustan and thus wanted nothing at all to do with it. Hence, contrary to some news media accounts and academic speculation, President Arafat knew exactly what he was signing on 13 September 1993. He had been fully informed and properly advised. But he signed on to the Oslo Bantustan anyway.</p>
<p>In our conversations before Oslo was signed and afterwards, the greatest fear and concern shared by Dr. Abdul-Shaffi and me was that Oslo would set off a Palestinian civil war. This would not have bothered the Israelis and the Americans one bit. But to his great credit, so far President Arafat has refused to ignite a Palestinian civil war in the name of enforcing the Oslo Bantustan.</p>
<p>Precisely because President Arafat would not do their dirty work for them, the Israelis and the Americans then turned upon him. Both the Israelis and the Americans have decided to jettison President Arafat in preference to installing some Palestinian quisling willing to become the “chief” of a Palestinian Bantustan where he would employ its “reservation police force” in order to suppress the Al Aqsa Intifada. I doubt very seriously that the Israelis and the Americans will succeed at imposing their nefarious objectives upon Palestine and the Palestinians without violent resistance. What the ultimate consequences might be I cannot predict at this time. But the longer the United States government enables Israel to torment Palestine and the Palestinians, the progressively less likely a comprehensive Middle East peace settlement becomes.</p>
<p>In this regard, having served as Legal Advisor to the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East Peace Negotiations from 1991 to 1993, and in a similar capacity to the Syrian Delegation to the Middle East Negotiations during their First Round held in Washington, D.C. during 1991, I can state unequivocally that if there had been good faith on the part of the governments of Israel and the United States back in 1991, there could have been negotiated a comprehensive Middle East peace settlement between Israel, on the one hand, and Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan, respectively, on the other, no later than by the end of 1993. The conclusion is inexorable that the governments of Israel and the United States were never seriously interested in obtaining a comprehensive and just Middle East peace settlement in the first place. Rather, Israel’s perpetration and prolongation of its “low intensity conflict” against Palestine and the Palestinians as well as against Lebanon, the Lebanese, and Palestinian refugees involuntarily living in Lebanon suit the interests of the interpenetrated security-military-industrial-complexes that really control the governments of the United States and Israel.</p>
<p>Of course, from the Palestinian perspective, there is nothing “low intensity” about their just struggle for national survival against the Israeli-American juggernaut. And there are signs that Sharon would like to unleash a major new war against Lebanon and Syria just as he did in 1982 when as Israel’s “Minister of Defense” – truly Orwellian! – he got the proverbial “green light” from the Reagan administration to do so. Right now the “governments” of the United States and Israel are plotting to launch catastrophic aggression against Iraq, giving Sharon cover to initiate yet another round of ethnic cleansing against the Palestinians by driving their West Bank inhabitants into Jordan. This incredibly volatile situation could readily degenerate into another regional war for the entire Middle East along the lines of 1948/1967/1973.</p>
<p>Francis A. Boyle, Professor of Law, University of Illinois, is author of <a href="" type="internal">Foundations of World Order</a>, Duke University Press, and <a href="" type="internal">The Criminality of Nuclear Deterrence</a>, Clarity Press. He can be reached at: <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a></p>
<p>Today’s Feature</p>
<p>Robert Jensen <a href="" type="internal">Lynne Cheney’s Primer</a></p>
<p>Behzad Yaghmaian <a href="" type="internal">An Alternative to the G-8s Africa Initiative Toward a Global AIDS Fund and a Living Wage</a></p>
<p>John Borowski <a href="" type="internal">Public Schools Under Seige</a></p>
<p>Norman Madarasz <a href="" type="internal">Brazil, the Workers’ Party and the Financial Times</a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.counterpunch.org" type="external">home</a> / <a href="http://www.easycarts.net/ecarts/CounterPunch/CounterPunch_Subscriptions.html" type="external">subscribe</a> / <a href="aboutus.html" type="external">about us</a> / <a href="books.html" type="external">books</a> / <a href="archive.html" type="external">archives</a> / <a href="search.html" type="external">search</a> / <a href="links.html" type="external">links</a> /</p> | 4,146 |
<p>“Each one of you have 1 year (365 days) to truly work in favor of humans and not your private interests…”</p>
<p>(Infowars) – Hackers have compromised the website of the Bilderberg group and defaced its homepage.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>Bilderbergmeetings.org, the official website of the secretive forum, which hosts&#160;annual closed-door discussions between leading figures in politics, finance and academia, remained altered Friday with the hackers’&#160;manifesto.</p>
<p>The hackers, who identified as members of&#160;Anonymous, relayed messages both to the public as well as the&#160;wealthy “1%.”</p>
<p><a href="https://www.yespatriot.com/collections/t-shirts/products/the-real-2016-electoral-college?variant=23158029445" type="external" /></p>
<p>“Dear Bilderberg members, from now on, each one of you have 1 year (365 days) to truly work in favor of humans and not your private interests,”&#160;the hackers wrote. “Each topic you discuss or work you achieve through your uber private meetings should from now benefit world population and not X or Y group of people.”</p>
<p>“Otherwise, we will find you and we will hack you.”</p>
<p>The message ended with praise for&#160;Phineas Fisher, a renowned hacker who, among other things, completely compromised the notorious Italian security firm “Hacking Team” last year.</p>
<p>Earlier this year Fisher hacked the Catalan police Mossos D’Esquadra and released a 39-minute video&#160;revealing how it was done in an attempt to spark a “Hack Back” political movement.</p>
<p>It currently remains unclear how long the Bilderberg website has been under the control of the hackers. A tweet from Guardian journalist Charlie Skelton reveals the manifesto was present on December 22. A snapshot of the site hosted on archive.org&#160;displays an unaltered homepage on December 19.</p>
<p>Infowars reached out to the Bilderberg website’s press contact&#160;for comment and did not hear back at the time of publishing.</p>
<p />
<p>infowars.com/bilderberg-website-hacked-we-will-find-you-and-we-will-hack-you/</p> | Bilderberg Website Hacked: ‘We Will Find You and We Will Hack You’ | true | http://teaparty.org/bilderberg-website-hacked-will-find-will-hack-210126/ | 0right
| Bilderberg Website Hacked: ‘We Will Find You and We Will Hack You’
<p>“Each one of you have 1 year (365 days) to truly work in favor of humans and not your private interests…”</p>
<p>(Infowars) – Hackers have compromised the website of the Bilderberg group and defaced its homepage.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>Bilderbergmeetings.org, the official website of the secretive forum, which hosts&#160;annual closed-door discussions between leading figures in politics, finance and academia, remained altered Friday with the hackers’&#160;manifesto.</p>
<p>The hackers, who identified as members of&#160;Anonymous, relayed messages both to the public as well as the&#160;wealthy “1%.”</p>
<p><a href="https://www.yespatriot.com/collections/t-shirts/products/the-real-2016-electoral-college?variant=23158029445" type="external" /></p>
<p>“Dear Bilderberg members, from now on, each one of you have 1 year (365 days) to truly work in favor of humans and not your private interests,”&#160;the hackers wrote. “Each topic you discuss or work you achieve through your uber private meetings should from now benefit world population and not X or Y group of people.”</p>
<p>“Otherwise, we will find you and we will hack you.”</p>
<p>The message ended with praise for&#160;Phineas Fisher, a renowned hacker who, among other things, completely compromised the notorious Italian security firm “Hacking Team” last year.</p>
<p>Earlier this year Fisher hacked the Catalan police Mossos D’Esquadra and released a 39-minute video&#160;revealing how it was done in an attempt to spark a “Hack Back” political movement.</p>
<p>It currently remains unclear how long the Bilderberg website has been under the control of the hackers. A tweet from Guardian journalist Charlie Skelton reveals the manifesto was present on December 22. A snapshot of the site hosted on archive.org&#160;displays an unaltered homepage on December 19.</p>
<p>Infowars reached out to the Bilderberg website’s press contact&#160;for comment and did not hear back at the time of publishing.</p>
<p />
<p>infowars.com/bilderberg-website-hacked-we-will-find-you-and-we-will-hack-you/</p> | 4,147 |
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<p>Comedian Amy Schumer, joined by her second cousin, U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Monday announced a legislative initiative seeking increased gun control in the wake of last month’s fatal shooting of two people at a Louisiana screening of the film “Trainwreck,” which she wrote and in which she stars. The gunman then killed himself.</p>
<p>“Unless something is done and done soon, dangerous people will continue to get their hands on guns,” she told reporters. “We need a background check system without holes and fatal flaws.”</p>
<p>From Mother Jones:</p>
<p>The three-part legislative plan will seek to limit gun access to the mentally ill and violent criminals by rewarding states that provide thorough background check information while penalizing states that fail to do so. The two also called on Congress to fund greater mental health and substance abuse programs.</p>
<p />
<p>Over the weekend, Schumer responded to an open letter from a mother of a Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victim that urged her to speak out and support gun control legislation. The letter, posted on Medium, asked Schumer to be a “voice for our generation and for women—two groups who make up most of the victims of the gun violence in our country.”</p>
<p>“These are my first public comments on the issue of gun violence,” Schumer said on Monday. “But I promise you they will not be my last.”</p>
<p>Read the full article <a href="http://www.motherjones.com/mixed-media/2015/08/amy-schumer-joins-gun-control-fight" type="external">here</a>.</p>
<p>–Posted by <a href="" type="internal">Roisin Davis</a></p> | VIDEO: Amy Schumer Joins Gun-Control Fight in Wake of 'Trainwreck' Shootings | true | https://truthdig.com/articles/video-amy-schumer-joins-gun-control-fight-in-wake-of-trainwreck-shootings/ | 2015-08-03 | 4left
| VIDEO: Amy Schumer Joins Gun-Control Fight in Wake of 'Trainwreck' Shootings
<p>Comedian Amy Schumer, joined by her second cousin, U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Monday announced a legislative initiative seeking increased gun control in the wake of last month’s fatal shooting of two people at a Louisiana screening of the film “Trainwreck,” which she wrote and in which she stars. The gunman then killed himself.</p>
<p>“Unless something is done and done soon, dangerous people will continue to get their hands on guns,” she told reporters. “We need a background check system without holes and fatal flaws.”</p>
<p>From Mother Jones:</p>
<p>The three-part legislative plan will seek to limit gun access to the mentally ill and violent criminals by rewarding states that provide thorough background check information while penalizing states that fail to do so. The two also called on Congress to fund greater mental health and substance abuse programs.</p>
<p />
<p>Over the weekend, Schumer responded to an open letter from a mother of a Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victim that urged her to speak out and support gun control legislation. The letter, posted on Medium, asked Schumer to be a “voice for our generation and for women—two groups who make up most of the victims of the gun violence in our country.”</p>
<p>“These are my first public comments on the issue of gun violence,” Schumer said on Monday. “But I promise you they will not be my last.”</p>
<p>Read the full article <a href="http://www.motherjones.com/mixed-media/2015/08/amy-schumer-joins-gun-control-fight" type="external">here</a>.</p>
<p>–Posted by <a href="" type="internal">Roisin Davis</a></p> | 4,148 |
<p>Reports are coming out that Hillary Clinton is potentially going to teach at Columbia University. What her professorship would entail, we don’t know. However, people nationwide on social media might have a few ideas of their own.</p>
<p>The hashtag “HillaryCourses” is going viral on Twitter and has revealed some of the most hilarious classes the two-time failed presidential candidate would teach…</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
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<p>h/t <a href="http://www.dailywire.com/news/22259/hillary-clinton-may-teach-columbia-funniest-frank-camp" type="external">Daily Wire</a></p> | Report: Hillary Might Teach at Columbia — Social Media Explodes With Hilarious Reaction | true | http://girlsjustwannahaveguns.com/report-hillary-might-teach-at-columbia-social-media-explodes-with-hilarious-reaction/ | 0right
| Report: Hillary Might Teach at Columbia — Social Media Explodes With Hilarious Reaction
<p>Reports are coming out that Hillary Clinton is potentially going to teach at Columbia University. What her professorship would entail, we don’t know. However, people nationwide on social media might have a few ideas of their own.</p>
<p>The hashtag “HillaryCourses” is going viral on Twitter and has revealed some of the most hilarious classes the two-time failed presidential candidate would teach…</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p />
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<p />
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<p />
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<p>h/t <a href="http://www.dailywire.com/news/22259/hillary-clinton-may-teach-columbia-funniest-frank-camp" type="external">Daily Wire</a></p> | 4,149 |
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<p>Why did Rachel Notley appoint three anti-oilsands lobbyists to her advisory committee on the industry? <a href="http://www.fireberman.ca" type="external">Tzeporah Berman</a>, the co-chair, has spent twenty years with Greenpeace, Forest Ethics and other extremist groups. She is still literally on the payroll of anti-oil lobby groups right now.</p>
<p>But Notley hired Berman's whole crew, too: Simon Dyer of the Pembina Institute, that takes money from foreign interests. <a href="" type="internal">Karen Mahon, who was arrested at a violent anti-pipeline rally.</a> Tim Grey, with Environmental Defence.</p>
<p>Grey is paid up to $600 dollars a day, plus expenses, by Alberta taxpayers.</p>
<p>And he has now launched a new campaign, to fight against the <a href="" type="internal">Energy East pipeline,</a> the $15.7 billion project to take oil from Alberta to St. John, New Brunswick, where Canada's largest oil refinery now imports oil from OPEC countries.</p>
<p>I'll show you the press release about Tim Grey's new anti-Energy East campaign. For one thing, the contact number has a 202 area code. That's Washington, DC. But at the top, they call this a campaign by "Canadian groups." Right.</p>
<p>It's actually a trade war. It's economic sabotage. And it's a disaster for Alberta.</p>
<p>NEXT: The Media Party around the world is doing their best to obscure the truth about Islamic terrorist attacks. Paul Joseph Watson of InfoWars joins me to talk about this phenomenon of "anti-journalism," from blaming the Nice massacre on the "truck," to the BBC's backtracking on using the word "Islamist."</p>
<p>THEN: Journalist (and Democrat) Mickey Kaus and I talk about the week in U.S. politics, which has been highlighted by the Republican and then the Democratic Party conventions.</p>
<p>He talks about what he likes (and doesn't like) about Trump, his take on Bill Clinton's speech about Hillary, and more. "If I were Hillary Clinton, I'd be panicking right now," Kaus says. See why!</p>
<p>FINALLY: Your emails and tweets to me about last night's show on <a href="" type="internal">Marine Le Pen.</a></p>
<p>Plus my thoughts about <a href="" type="internal">fake "Islamophobic" hate crimes.</a></p> | Notley's oil sands advisors declare war on Energy East pipeline - Just as we predicted | true | http://therebel.media/ezra_levant_july_27 | 2016-07-27 | 0right
| Notley's oil sands advisors declare war on Energy East pipeline - Just as we predicted
<p>Why did Rachel Notley appoint three anti-oilsands lobbyists to her advisory committee on the industry? <a href="http://www.fireberman.ca" type="external">Tzeporah Berman</a>, the co-chair, has spent twenty years with Greenpeace, Forest Ethics and other extremist groups. She is still literally on the payroll of anti-oil lobby groups right now.</p>
<p>But Notley hired Berman's whole crew, too: Simon Dyer of the Pembina Institute, that takes money from foreign interests. <a href="" type="internal">Karen Mahon, who was arrested at a violent anti-pipeline rally.</a> Tim Grey, with Environmental Defence.</p>
<p>Grey is paid up to $600 dollars a day, plus expenses, by Alberta taxpayers.</p>
<p>And he has now launched a new campaign, to fight against the <a href="" type="internal">Energy East pipeline,</a> the $15.7 billion project to take oil from Alberta to St. John, New Brunswick, where Canada's largest oil refinery now imports oil from OPEC countries.</p>
<p>I'll show you the press release about Tim Grey's new anti-Energy East campaign. For one thing, the contact number has a 202 area code. That's Washington, DC. But at the top, they call this a campaign by "Canadian groups." Right.</p>
<p>It's actually a trade war. It's economic sabotage. And it's a disaster for Alberta.</p>
<p>NEXT: The Media Party around the world is doing their best to obscure the truth about Islamic terrorist attacks. Paul Joseph Watson of InfoWars joins me to talk about this phenomenon of "anti-journalism," from blaming the Nice massacre on the "truck," to the BBC's backtracking on using the word "Islamist."</p>
<p>THEN: Journalist (and Democrat) Mickey Kaus and I talk about the week in U.S. politics, which has been highlighted by the Republican and then the Democratic Party conventions.</p>
<p>He talks about what he likes (and doesn't like) about Trump, his take on Bill Clinton's speech about Hillary, and more. "If I were Hillary Clinton, I'd be panicking right now," Kaus says. See why!</p>
<p>FINALLY: Your emails and tweets to me about last night's show on <a href="" type="internal">Marine Le Pen.</a></p>
<p>Plus my thoughts about <a href="" type="internal">fake "Islamophobic" hate crimes.</a></p> | 4,150 |
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<p>WASHINGTON - The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee says the record and performance of the most expensive weapons program in U.S. military history has been a scandal and a tragedy.</p>
<p>Senator John McCain of Arizona delivered a withering critique of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter at a committee hearing Tuesday.</p>
<p>The Pentagon plans to spend close to $400 billion to buy nearly 2,500 F-35s for the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps. The budget request for fiscal year 2017 includes $8.3 billion to buy 63 aircraft.</p>
<p>McCain says the aircraft's development schedule has stretched to 15 years, deliveries of the F-35 have been delayed, and costs have skyrocketed.</p>
<p>McCain also says he's disturbed that it costs $70 million annually to run the office that oversees the F-35 program.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | Senator says fighter program has been scandal and tragedy | false | https://abqjournal.com/763692/senator-says-fighter-program-has-been-scandal-and-tragedy.html | 2least
| Senator says fighter program has been scandal and tragedy
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<p>WASHINGTON - The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee says the record and performance of the most expensive weapons program in U.S. military history has been a scandal and a tragedy.</p>
<p>Senator John McCain of Arizona delivered a withering critique of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter at a committee hearing Tuesday.</p>
<p>The Pentagon plans to spend close to $400 billion to buy nearly 2,500 F-35s for the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps. The budget request for fiscal year 2017 includes $8.3 billion to buy 63 aircraft.</p>
<p>McCain says the aircraft's development schedule has stretched to 15 years, deliveries of the F-35 have been delayed, and costs have skyrocketed.</p>
<p>McCain also says he's disturbed that it costs $70 million annually to run the office that oversees the F-35 program.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | 4,151 |
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<p>The Senate has approved a pair of bills taking aim at urgent problems at the Department of Veterans Affairs, clearing a $3.9 billion emergency spending package to fix a looming budget crisis and adopting new measures to pare down a rapidly growing backlog of veterans’ disability claims.</p>
<p>Both bills passed Tuesday by unanimous vote.</p>
<p>The spending package provides $2.1 billion to continue funding the Veterans Choice Program, which allows veterans to receive private medical care at government expense. VA Secretary David Shulkin had warned that without congressional action the program would run out of money by mid-August, disrupting medical care for thousands of veterans.</p>
<p>Another $1.8 billion would go to core VA health programs, including 28 leases for new VA medical facilities.</p>
<p>The other piece of legislation approved by the Senate would cut the time it takes for the VA to handle appeals from veterans unhappy with their disability payouts, part of a bid to reduce a rapidly growing claims backlog. That bill was a priority for Shulkin, who described the appeals process as “broken.” It comes weeks after President Donald Trump signed into law a bipartisan accountability bill to make it easier to fire employees at VA, pledging to continue with other changes to transform VA “until the job is done.”</p>
<p>The spending package now goes to Trump for his signature, while the disability appeals bill goes back to the House.</p>
<p>“It is critical that the Veterans Choice Program has the funding to continue offering timely appointments for veterans in their own communities,” said Sen. Johnny Isakson of Georgia, chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, who helped broker the emergency deal. “This bicameral, bipartisan agreement is truly a testament to what can be accomplished when Congress works together.”</p>
<p>Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., also hailed the spending package for VA care.</p>
<p>“We simply cannot afford to let this program expire and send our veterans back to the status quo of never-ending wait-times for appointments and substandard care. The Senate’s passage of this bill to preserve the Veterans Choice Program is an important step forward,” he said.</p>
<p>The Choice Program was put in place after a 2014 wait-time scandal that was discovered at the Phoenix VA hospital and spread throughout the country. Veterans waited weeks or months for appointments amid phony records that covered up the lengthy waits.</p>
<p>A priority for Trump, the program allows veterans to receive care from outside doctors if they must wait at least 30 days for an appointment or drive more than 40 miles to a VA facility.</p>
<p>The spending package would extend the program for six months and devote $1.8 billion to authorize leases and establish programs to make it easier to hire health specialists, giving Congress more time to debate the future direction of the VA. Costs would be paid for by trimming pensions for some Medicaid-eligible veterans and collecting fees for housing loans.</p>
<p>On disability claims, the measure passed Tuesday by the Senate would overhaul the appeals process, allowing veterans to file “express” appeals if they waive their right to a hearing or the ability to submit new evidence. The VA could test the new program for up to 18 months until Shulkin could certify it was ready for a full rollout with enough money to manage appeals effectively. Lawmakers hope the legislation ultimately could reduce average wait times to less than a year.</p>
<p>Currently, veterans could wait five years or more to resolve their appeals over disability claims.</p> | Senate OKs Bills to Address VA Budget Crisis | false | https://newsline.com/senate-oks-bills-to-address-va-budget-crisis/ | 2017-08-02 | 1right-center
| Senate OKs Bills to Address VA Budget Crisis
<p>The Senate has approved a pair of bills taking aim at urgent problems at the Department of Veterans Affairs, clearing a $3.9 billion emergency spending package to fix a looming budget crisis and adopting new measures to pare down a rapidly growing backlog of veterans’ disability claims.</p>
<p>Both bills passed Tuesday by unanimous vote.</p>
<p>The spending package provides $2.1 billion to continue funding the Veterans Choice Program, which allows veterans to receive private medical care at government expense. VA Secretary David Shulkin had warned that without congressional action the program would run out of money by mid-August, disrupting medical care for thousands of veterans.</p>
<p>Another $1.8 billion would go to core VA health programs, including 28 leases for new VA medical facilities.</p>
<p>The other piece of legislation approved by the Senate would cut the time it takes for the VA to handle appeals from veterans unhappy with their disability payouts, part of a bid to reduce a rapidly growing claims backlog. That bill was a priority for Shulkin, who described the appeals process as “broken.” It comes weeks after President Donald Trump signed into law a bipartisan accountability bill to make it easier to fire employees at VA, pledging to continue with other changes to transform VA “until the job is done.”</p>
<p>The spending package now goes to Trump for his signature, while the disability appeals bill goes back to the House.</p>
<p>“It is critical that the Veterans Choice Program has the funding to continue offering timely appointments for veterans in their own communities,” said Sen. Johnny Isakson of Georgia, chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, who helped broker the emergency deal. “This bicameral, bipartisan agreement is truly a testament to what can be accomplished when Congress works together.”</p>
<p>Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., also hailed the spending package for VA care.</p>
<p>“We simply cannot afford to let this program expire and send our veterans back to the status quo of never-ending wait-times for appointments and substandard care. The Senate’s passage of this bill to preserve the Veterans Choice Program is an important step forward,” he said.</p>
<p>The Choice Program was put in place after a 2014 wait-time scandal that was discovered at the Phoenix VA hospital and spread throughout the country. Veterans waited weeks or months for appointments amid phony records that covered up the lengthy waits.</p>
<p>A priority for Trump, the program allows veterans to receive care from outside doctors if they must wait at least 30 days for an appointment or drive more than 40 miles to a VA facility.</p>
<p>The spending package would extend the program for six months and devote $1.8 billion to authorize leases and establish programs to make it easier to hire health specialists, giving Congress more time to debate the future direction of the VA. Costs would be paid for by trimming pensions for some Medicaid-eligible veterans and collecting fees for housing loans.</p>
<p>On disability claims, the measure passed Tuesday by the Senate would overhaul the appeals process, allowing veterans to file “express” appeals if they waive their right to a hearing or the ability to submit new evidence. The VA could test the new program for up to 18 months until Shulkin could certify it was ready for a full rollout with enough money to manage appeals effectively. Lawmakers hope the legislation ultimately could reduce average wait times to less than a year.</p>
<p>Currently, veterans could wait five years or more to resolve their appeals over disability claims.</p> | 4,152 |
<p>An Alabama company that made a tractor-trailer hitch involved in a deadly Ohio crash last year is bowing to government pressure and will recall 6,800 hitches.</p>
<p>Fontaine Fifth Wheel of Trussville, Alabama, agreed to the recall in August, according to documents posted Thursday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>The safety agency began investigating the hitches in June, 17 months after a 12-ton semi-trailer came loose from its tractor and plowed into oncoming traffic near Cincinnati. Two men driving pickup trucks were killed in the crash on U.S. 50.</p>
<p>Fontaine says in documents filed with the agency that the hitch locking mechanisms can be damaged over time by truck operators who don't follow proper coupling and maintenance procedures.</p>
<p>Fontaine will replace the defective hitches with a different model.</p> | Alabama company recalls 6,800 tractor-trailer hitches after Ohio crash that killed 2 men | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2015/09/10/alabama-company-recalls-6800-tractor-trailer-hitches-after-ohio-crash-that.html | 2016-03-05 | 0right
| Alabama company recalls 6,800 tractor-trailer hitches after Ohio crash that killed 2 men
<p>An Alabama company that made a tractor-trailer hitch involved in a deadly Ohio crash last year is bowing to government pressure and will recall 6,800 hitches.</p>
<p>Fontaine Fifth Wheel of Trussville, Alabama, agreed to the recall in August, according to documents posted Thursday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>The safety agency began investigating the hitches in June, 17 months after a 12-ton semi-trailer came loose from its tractor and plowed into oncoming traffic near Cincinnati. Two men driving pickup trucks were killed in the crash on U.S. 50.</p>
<p>Fontaine says in documents filed with the agency that the hitch locking mechanisms can be damaged over time by truck operators who don't follow proper coupling and maintenance procedures.</p>
<p>Fontaine will replace the defective hitches with a different model.</p> | 4,153 |
<p>Israel's deputy foreign minister said an annual Palestinian protest over the weekend is "political terrorism," <a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jb_fjQQy68-zFOgF1aWrLBIdTrUw?docId=587da8d9d7554738ab4aeb1ed24bd930" type="external">reported the Associated Press</a>.&#160;Danny Ayalon spoke Saturday in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv, saying Land Day protests are "a continuation of the diplomatic terrorism (Palestinian Authority President) Abu Mazen is using against Israel in international forums."</p>
<p>More from GlobalPost:&#160; <a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/middle-east/israel-and-palestine/120217/israel-economy-gdp-debt-crisis" type="external">How Israel dodged the economic crisis</a></p>
<p>Land Day drew demonstrators in groups of hundreds in locations across Israel as well as in the West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza. There were also solidarity marches in neighboring Lebanon and Jordan, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/31/world/middleeast/palestinians-protest-land-seizure-and-control-of-jerusalem.html" type="external">according to The New York Times</a>.&#160;The annual protest commemorates the March 1976 events when Israel confiscated land from Galilee Arab villages, leading to protests in which six Arabs were killed. This year, the focus encompassed the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem, which Palestinians want as the capital of a future state. There were also calls for protests and marches around the world.</p>
<p>Clashes erupted on Friday in Jerusalem between Israel Defense Force soldiers and around 250 Palestinian protesters. At the Qalandiyah checkpoint, protesters threw rocks at soldiers, who fought back with stun grenades and tear gas, <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/palestinian-protesters-marking-land-day-clash-with-idf-soldiers-in-jerusalem-and-west-bank-1.421662" type="external">reported Haaretz</a>. About 300 protesters at the border crossing near Rachel's Tomb, between Jerusalem and Bethlehem, hurled stones and Molotov cocktails at security forces. The area, which is a common crossing for tourists and pilgrims, was closed to the public.</p> | Palestinian protest "political terrorism" according to Israel's deputy foreign minister | false | https://pri.org/stories/2012-03-31/palestinian-protest-political-terrorism-according-israels-deputy-foreign-minister | 2012-03-31 | 3left-center
| Palestinian protest "political terrorism" according to Israel's deputy foreign minister
<p>Israel's deputy foreign minister said an annual Palestinian protest over the weekend is "political terrorism," <a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jb_fjQQy68-zFOgF1aWrLBIdTrUw?docId=587da8d9d7554738ab4aeb1ed24bd930" type="external">reported the Associated Press</a>.&#160;Danny Ayalon spoke Saturday in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv, saying Land Day protests are "a continuation of the diplomatic terrorism (Palestinian Authority President) Abu Mazen is using against Israel in international forums."</p>
<p>More from GlobalPost:&#160; <a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/middle-east/israel-and-palestine/120217/israel-economy-gdp-debt-crisis" type="external">How Israel dodged the economic crisis</a></p>
<p>Land Day drew demonstrators in groups of hundreds in locations across Israel as well as in the West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza. There were also solidarity marches in neighboring Lebanon and Jordan, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/31/world/middleeast/palestinians-protest-land-seizure-and-control-of-jerusalem.html" type="external">according to The New York Times</a>.&#160;The annual protest commemorates the March 1976 events when Israel confiscated land from Galilee Arab villages, leading to protests in which six Arabs were killed. This year, the focus encompassed the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem, which Palestinians want as the capital of a future state. There were also calls for protests and marches around the world.</p>
<p>Clashes erupted on Friday in Jerusalem between Israel Defense Force soldiers and around 250 Palestinian protesters. At the Qalandiyah checkpoint, protesters threw rocks at soldiers, who fought back with stun grenades and tear gas, <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/palestinian-protesters-marking-land-day-clash-with-idf-soldiers-in-jerusalem-and-west-bank-1.421662" type="external">reported Haaretz</a>. About 300 protesters at the border crossing near Rachel's Tomb, between Jerusalem and Bethlehem, hurled stones and Molotov cocktails at security forces. The area, which is a common crossing for tourists and pilgrims, was closed to the public.</p> | 4,154 |
<p>The president of Planned Parenthood says the group is willing to talk to Republicans about threats to its federal funding “because [at] Planned Parenthood, we’re nonpartisan.” In fact, the group’s political action committee gave 98 percent of its campaign contributions in the 2016 election to Democrats.</p>
<p>The group’s president, Cecile Richards, also&#160; <a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4613345/cecile-richards-planned-parenthood-action-fund" type="external">spoke</a> at the Democratic National Convention in support of the party’s 2016 presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton. “Let’s go win this election!” she told Democrats.</p>
<p>Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., receives federal funding for health care services, but that funding is in jeopardy. House Speaker Paul Ryan <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/05/politics/paul-ryan-planned-parenthood-obamacare/" type="external">announced last month</a> that the House would move to defund Planned Parenthood as part of legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.</p>
<p>Planned Parenthood’s funding has <a href="http://www.npr.org/2011/04/13/135354952/planned-parenthood-makes-abortion-foes-see-red" type="external">long been a target</a> of Republicans over the group’s abortion services. As we have <a href="" type="internal">noted</a> <a href="" type="internal">before</a>, the <a href="https://www.plannedparenthoodaction.org/issues/abortion/hyde-amendment" type="external">Hyde Amendment&#160;limits</a>&#160;federal funding to only abortion cases involving rape, incest or endangerment to the life of the mother. Abortions accounted for about 3 percent of the group’s total of nearly 9.5 million services in fiscal year 2014, according to its&#160; <a href="https://www.plannedparenthood.org/files/2114/5089/0863/2014-2015_PPFA_Annual_Report_.pdf" type="external">annual report</a>. Most of its health services were for contraception, treatment and tests for sexually transmitted diseases and infections, cancer screenings, and other women’s health services.</p>
<p>Richards&#160;touted the group’s nonpartisan status during a Feb. 2 interview on MSNBC’s “ <a href="http://www.msnbc.com/morning-joe/watch/planned-parenthood-leader-we-ve-never-been-more-popular-868440131775" type="external">Morning Joe</a>.” Mika&#160;Brzezinski, the show’s co-host, asked Richards about the threat of losing federal funding, and whether the group was willing to negotiate with Republican President Donald Trump’s administration.</p>
<p>Brzezinski, Feb. 2: But you realize you have to cut a deal of some sort with this new administration in some way? Would you come to the table?</p>
<p>Richards: We’re always at the table. I mean we talk to everybody. I mean because Planned Parenthood, we’re nonpartisan.</p>
<p>Richards is the <a href="https://www.plannedparenthood.org/about-us/our-leadership" type="external">president</a>&#160;of the&#160;Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., which is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3)&#160;and <a href="https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charitable-organizations/the-restriction-of-political-campaign-intervention-by-section-501-c-3-tax-exempt-organizations" type="external">prohibited</a> from political activities and making campaign contributions. She is also the president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, which is the political arm of PPFA. Planned Parenthood Action Fund is registered as a 501(c)(4), which is a <a href="https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/other-non-profits/social-welfare-organizations" type="external">social welfare organization</a> that is allowed to engage in political activity.</p>
<p>The Planned Parenthood Action Fund PAC, which is <a href="http://www.fec.gov/fecviewer/CandidateCommitteeDetail.do?candidateCommitteeId=C00314617&amp;tabIndex=3" type="external">registered</a> with the&#160;Federal Election Commission, contributed about $694,000 to congressional candidates in the 2016 cycle, and 98 percent of that went to Democratic candidates, <a href="https://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/pacgot.php?cmte=C00314617&amp;cycle=2016" type="external">according to the Center for Responsive Politics</a>, which tracks federal campaign contributions.</p>
<p>The group also contributed $9,613 to Clinton’s presidential campaign. Richards, as we mention, spoke in support of Clinton at the Democratic National Convention. The daughter of <a href="https://www.tsl.texas.gov/governors/modern/page3.html#Richards" type="external">former Democratic Texas Gov. Ann Richards</a>, Cecile Richards <a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4613345/cecile-richards-planned-parenthood-action-fund" type="external">told</a> Democrats at the convention how proud her mother would be to see a woman elected president.</p>
<p>Richards, July 26, 2016:&#160;Tonight, we are closer than ever to putting a woman in the White House. And I can almost hear mom saying, “Well, it sure took y’all long enough.” So what do you say? Are you ready to make history? Let’s go win this election.</p>
<p>Richards’ support for Clinton and the PAC’s contributions to Democrats is not surprising given that many congressional Republicans oppose abortion rights and seek to defund Planned Parenthood. And we understand the point that Planned Parenthood Federation of America is a nonpartisan provider of health care services. But the group’s leader and its PAC are not nonpartisan.</p> | Planned Parenthood and the Democrats | false | https://factcheck.org/2017/02/planned-parenthood-and-the-democrats/ | 2017-02-02 | 2least
| Planned Parenthood and the Democrats
<p>The president of Planned Parenthood says the group is willing to talk to Republicans about threats to its federal funding “because [at] Planned Parenthood, we’re nonpartisan.” In fact, the group’s political action committee gave 98 percent of its campaign contributions in the 2016 election to Democrats.</p>
<p>The group’s president, Cecile Richards, also&#160; <a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4613345/cecile-richards-planned-parenthood-action-fund" type="external">spoke</a> at the Democratic National Convention in support of the party’s 2016 presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton. “Let’s go win this election!” she told Democrats.</p>
<p>Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., receives federal funding for health care services, but that funding is in jeopardy. House Speaker Paul Ryan <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/05/politics/paul-ryan-planned-parenthood-obamacare/" type="external">announced last month</a> that the House would move to defund Planned Parenthood as part of legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.</p>
<p>Planned Parenthood’s funding has <a href="http://www.npr.org/2011/04/13/135354952/planned-parenthood-makes-abortion-foes-see-red" type="external">long been a target</a> of Republicans over the group’s abortion services. As we have <a href="" type="internal">noted</a> <a href="" type="internal">before</a>, the <a href="https://www.plannedparenthoodaction.org/issues/abortion/hyde-amendment" type="external">Hyde Amendment&#160;limits</a>&#160;federal funding to only abortion cases involving rape, incest or endangerment to the life of the mother. Abortions accounted for about 3 percent of the group’s total of nearly 9.5 million services in fiscal year 2014, according to its&#160; <a href="https://www.plannedparenthood.org/files/2114/5089/0863/2014-2015_PPFA_Annual_Report_.pdf" type="external">annual report</a>. Most of its health services were for contraception, treatment and tests for sexually transmitted diseases and infections, cancer screenings, and other women’s health services.</p>
<p>Richards&#160;touted the group’s nonpartisan status during a Feb. 2 interview on MSNBC’s “ <a href="http://www.msnbc.com/morning-joe/watch/planned-parenthood-leader-we-ve-never-been-more-popular-868440131775" type="external">Morning Joe</a>.” Mika&#160;Brzezinski, the show’s co-host, asked Richards about the threat of losing federal funding, and whether the group was willing to negotiate with Republican President Donald Trump’s administration.</p>
<p>Brzezinski, Feb. 2: But you realize you have to cut a deal of some sort with this new administration in some way? Would you come to the table?</p>
<p>Richards: We’re always at the table. I mean we talk to everybody. I mean because Planned Parenthood, we’re nonpartisan.</p>
<p>Richards is the <a href="https://www.plannedparenthood.org/about-us/our-leadership" type="external">president</a>&#160;of the&#160;Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., which is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3)&#160;and <a href="https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charitable-organizations/the-restriction-of-political-campaign-intervention-by-section-501-c-3-tax-exempt-organizations" type="external">prohibited</a> from political activities and making campaign contributions. She is also the president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, which is the political arm of PPFA. Planned Parenthood Action Fund is registered as a 501(c)(4), which is a <a href="https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/other-non-profits/social-welfare-organizations" type="external">social welfare organization</a> that is allowed to engage in political activity.</p>
<p>The Planned Parenthood Action Fund PAC, which is <a href="http://www.fec.gov/fecviewer/CandidateCommitteeDetail.do?candidateCommitteeId=C00314617&amp;tabIndex=3" type="external">registered</a> with the&#160;Federal Election Commission, contributed about $694,000 to congressional candidates in the 2016 cycle, and 98 percent of that went to Democratic candidates, <a href="https://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/pacgot.php?cmte=C00314617&amp;cycle=2016" type="external">according to the Center for Responsive Politics</a>, which tracks federal campaign contributions.</p>
<p>The group also contributed $9,613 to Clinton’s presidential campaign. Richards, as we mention, spoke in support of Clinton at the Democratic National Convention. The daughter of <a href="https://www.tsl.texas.gov/governors/modern/page3.html#Richards" type="external">former Democratic Texas Gov. Ann Richards</a>, Cecile Richards <a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4613345/cecile-richards-planned-parenthood-action-fund" type="external">told</a> Democrats at the convention how proud her mother would be to see a woman elected president.</p>
<p>Richards, July 26, 2016:&#160;Tonight, we are closer than ever to putting a woman in the White House. And I can almost hear mom saying, “Well, it sure took y’all long enough.” So what do you say? Are you ready to make history? Let’s go win this election.</p>
<p>Richards’ support for Clinton and the PAC’s contributions to Democrats is not surprising given that many congressional Republicans oppose abortion rights and seek to defund Planned Parenthood. And we understand the point that Planned Parenthood Federation of America is a nonpartisan provider of health care services. But the group’s leader and its PAC are not nonpartisan.</p> | 4,155 |
<p>A couple summers ago, I had a brief encounter with a young woman at a security checkpoint at Prologue, an alternative school in Chicago’s Near Northwest Side, that has nagged at me ever since. She looked like a typical teenager on her way to class. She had a baby face framed by braids that were tied up in a knot. Her backpack was slung over shoulder as she rushed through the metal detector.</p>
<p>She paused and looked at me curiously, so I introduced myself and explained that I was waiting to interview one of her classmates. Usually, teenagers get chatty around reporters, especially when they feel like they’re in a safe place like school. Not this girl.</p>
<p>“You have no idea how we’re living,” she said.</p>
<p>That was it. She didn’t have to say anything else. The desperation and pain in her voice, and in her eyes, said it all.</p>
<p>During the past six years, youth have been the No. 1 target of homicides in Chicago. In “Too Young to Die,” our series about young people living with and dying by street violence, we found that from 2008 through 2012, nearly half of Chicago’s 2,389 homicide victims — 1,118 — <a href="" type="internal">were under the age of 25</a>. That number has since increased to 1,336 through April 20.</p>
<p>Of the young people who have been murdered, nearly 500 are 18 or younger. More than eight out of 10 of those school-aged children were killed in the black and Latino neighborhoods where they live. That doesn’t include thousands more who’ve been shot. Or shot at.</p>
<p>After another violent weekend, during which <a href="http://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20140421/grand-crossing/girl-shot-on-easter-please-dont-let-me-die-im-only-11-years-old" type="external">five children were shot on Easter Sunday</a>, we revisited the data to see if Chicago has made any progress in reducing youth homicides. While overall murders are down this year, violence against children 18 and under is stubbornly high; when comparing the first four months of each year since 2008, the numbers have held relatively steady since 2011.</p>
<p>One in every five people murdered in Chicago is 18 or younger. And most of them grew up in neighborhoods where violence is the norm. But that doesn’t make it any less traumatic, the girl’s teacher, Walter Perkins III, told me at the time. “These kids are pushed from place to place. Snatched up and put in places that would intimidate an adult,” Perkins said.</p>
<p>Each dot on this map is a child, 18 or younger, lost to violence in Chicago since 2008.</p>
<p>Correction, April 29, 2014 This story has been updated to show the correct percentage of homicide victims under the age of 25 from 2008 through 2012. Because of an editing error, the previous version cited the percentage of homicide victims under the age of 25 who were African American or Latino.</p>
<p />
<p>Source: <a href="http://homicides.redeyechicago.com/" type="external">RedEye</a> data collected from the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office, the Chicago Police Department and the Chicago Breaking News Center; analyzed by The Chicago Reporter.</p> | Homicides in Chicago down, number of children killed stays the same | false | http://chicagoreporter.com/homicides-chicago-down-number-children-killed-stays-same/ | 2014-04-22 | 3left-center
| Homicides in Chicago down, number of children killed stays the same
<p>A couple summers ago, I had a brief encounter with a young woman at a security checkpoint at Prologue, an alternative school in Chicago’s Near Northwest Side, that has nagged at me ever since. She looked like a typical teenager on her way to class. She had a baby face framed by braids that were tied up in a knot. Her backpack was slung over shoulder as she rushed through the metal detector.</p>
<p>She paused and looked at me curiously, so I introduced myself and explained that I was waiting to interview one of her classmates. Usually, teenagers get chatty around reporters, especially when they feel like they’re in a safe place like school. Not this girl.</p>
<p>“You have no idea how we’re living,” she said.</p>
<p>That was it. She didn’t have to say anything else. The desperation and pain in her voice, and in her eyes, said it all.</p>
<p>During the past six years, youth have been the No. 1 target of homicides in Chicago. In “Too Young to Die,” our series about young people living with and dying by street violence, we found that from 2008 through 2012, nearly half of Chicago’s 2,389 homicide victims — 1,118 — <a href="" type="internal">were under the age of 25</a>. That number has since increased to 1,336 through April 20.</p>
<p>Of the young people who have been murdered, nearly 500 are 18 or younger. More than eight out of 10 of those school-aged children were killed in the black and Latino neighborhoods where they live. That doesn’t include thousands more who’ve been shot. Or shot at.</p>
<p>After another violent weekend, during which <a href="http://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20140421/grand-crossing/girl-shot-on-easter-please-dont-let-me-die-im-only-11-years-old" type="external">five children were shot on Easter Sunday</a>, we revisited the data to see if Chicago has made any progress in reducing youth homicides. While overall murders are down this year, violence against children 18 and under is stubbornly high; when comparing the first four months of each year since 2008, the numbers have held relatively steady since 2011.</p>
<p>One in every five people murdered in Chicago is 18 or younger. And most of them grew up in neighborhoods where violence is the norm. But that doesn’t make it any less traumatic, the girl’s teacher, Walter Perkins III, told me at the time. “These kids are pushed from place to place. Snatched up and put in places that would intimidate an adult,” Perkins said.</p>
<p>Each dot on this map is a child, 18 or younger, lost to violence in Chicago since 2008.</p>
<p>Correction, April 29, 2014 This story has been updated to show the correct percentage of homicide victims under the age of 25 from 2008 through 2012. Because of an editing error, the previous version cited the percentage of homicide victims under the age of 25 who were African American or Latino.</p>
<p />
<p>Source: <a href="http://homicides.redeyechicago.com/" type="external">RedEye</a> data collected from the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office, the Chicago Police Department and the Chicago Breaking News Center; analyzed by The Chicago Reporter.</p> | 4,156 |
<p>Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc.'s stock plunged $12.54, or 24%, in active morning trade Thursday, putting it on track to suffer the biggest one-day price and percentage declines since the home furnishings retailer went public in November 2012. The stock was trading at the lowest level seen since May 6, 2013, on volume that was already more than the full-day average, according to FactSet. The selloff comes after the company provided a fiscal fourth-quarter profit and sales outlook that was well below expectations. The second-biggest one-day decline was when it fell $9.02, or 12, on Sept. 11, 2013 after reporting results. The stock has plunged 58% over the past three months, while the S&amp;P 500 has lost 7.4%.</p>
<p>Copyright © 2016 MarketWatch, Inc.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p> | Restoration Hardware's Stock Suffering Biggest-ever One-day Selloff In Active Trade | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/02/25/restoration-hardware-stock-suffering-biggest-ever-one-day-selloff-in-active.html | 2016-02-25 | 0right
| Restoration Hardware's Stock Suffering Biggest-ever One-day Selloff In Active Trade
<p>Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc.'s stock plunged $12.54, or 24%, in active morning trade Thursday, putting it on track to suffer the biggest one-day price and percentage declines since the home furnishings retailer went public in November 2012. The stock was trading at the lowest level seen since May 6, 2013, on volume that was already more than the full-day average, according to FactSet. The selloff comes after the company provided a fiscal fourth-quarter profit and sales outlook that was well below expectations. The second-biggest one-day decline was when it fell $9.02, or 12, on Sept. 11, 2013 after reporting results. The stock has plunged 58% over the past three months, while the S&amp;P 500 has lost 7.4%.</p>
<p>Copyright © 2016 MarketWatch, Inc.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p> | 4,157 |
<p>China now seems tone-deaf to how seriously its crackdown in Tibet is damaging its international image. San Francisco's torch relay was cut short because of demonstrations, and this Chinese government spokesperson spoke in practical denial. The President of the IOC was not as optimistic, and called on China to improve its human rights obligations, and even sighed when asked if it was right to award China the bid to the Olympics. Many if not most Chinese are excited about the Olympics, but also annoyed by recent foreign media coverage over the conflict in Tibet. Most Chinese are also being fed state media stories about how biased foreign reporting is. Tibet is far away for many Chinese, and many only know what the government is telling them. This government spokesperson calls the Dalai Lama a separatist and a terrorist. The Dalai Lama for his part said in Japan today he's not the devil the Chinese government thinks he is. He accepts Tibet is a part of China, he just wants it to have autonomy. The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said this isn't about religion or cultural, but is about China's territorial integrity and the international community shouldn't interfere. Her tone was defensive, almost defiant. All this has made the continuing torch relay feel like an act of nationalism, rather than one of international friendliness and cooperation.</p> | Delicate Olympic debate | false | https://pri.org/stories/2008-04-10/delicate-olympic-debate | 2008-04-10 | 3left-center
| Delicate Olympic debate
<p>China now seems tone-deaf to how seriously its crackdown in Tibet is damaging its international image. San Francisco's torch relay was cut short because of demonstrations, and this Chinese government spokesperson spoke in practical denial. The President of the IOC was not as optimistic, and called on China to improve its human rights obligations, and even sighed when asked if it was right to award China the bid to the Olympics. Many if not most Chinese are excited about the Olympics, but also annoyed by recent foreign media coverage over the conflict in Tibet. Most Chinese are also being fed state media stories about how biased foreign reporting is. Tibet is far away for many Chinese, and many only know what the government is telling them. This government spokesperson calls the Dalai Lama a separatist and a terrorist. The Dalai Lama for his part said in Japan today he's not the devil the Chinese government thinks he is. He accepts Tibet is a part of China, he just wants it to have autonomy. The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said this isn't about religion or cultural, but is about China's territorial integrity and the international community shouldn't interfere. Her tone was defensive, almost defiant. All this has made the continuing torch relay feel like an act of nationalism, rather than one of international friendliness and cooperation.</p> | 4,158 |
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<p />
<p>“The standards pharmacists and prescribers have to meet today are significantly higher today in order to prescribe and fill opioid prescriptions than they were in 2009,” said R. Dale Tinker, executive director of the New Mexico Pharmacists Association.</p>
<p>Since 2009, the state Pharmacy Board, Medical Board and Legislature have all taken steps to make it harder to divert prescribed narcotics for illegal use or abuse.</p>
<p>The Pharmacy Board has over the last five years issued tougher regulations on how doctors and pharmacists handle drugs with a high potential for abuse.</p>
<p>The board instituted the Prescription Monitoring Program in which pharmacies put every filled opioid prescription into a computer database that other pharmacists are supposed to check when filling opioid and narcotic prescriptions – unless they are familiar with the patient.</p>
<p>The state Medical Board requires that prescribers (doctors and nurse practitioners) must use the computer system every three months when a patient is prescribed opiates on a regular basis and requires a urine drug screen to be performed at least every six months for patients receiving prescription opiates. This is to make sure the patient is taking the medication and not selling it on the black market or giving it to someone.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>In 2012, the state Medical Board passed regulations that required doctors who prescribe narcotics to document the treatment plan in the patient’s records. They are required to review the plan every six months and must check prescription records reported by pharmacies and physicians to ensure patients are not taking additional opiates prescribed by other doctors.</p>
<p>State boards also require training for doctors and pharmacists in dealing with opioid abuse.</p>
<p>In 2016, the Legislature mandated that a practitioner utilize the computer system if prescribing for a greater than four-day supply, and Gov. Susana Martinez signed the bill into law.</p>
<p />
<p /> | Today’s opioid regulations much tougher | false | https://abqjournal.com/1104671/todays-opioid-regulations-much-tougher.html | 2least
| Today’s opioid regulations much tougher
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p />
<p>“The standards pharmacists and prescribers have to meet today are significantly higher today in order to prescribe and fill opioid prescriptions than they were in 2009,” said R. Dale Tinker, executive director of the New Mexico Pharmacists Association.</p>
<p>Since 2009, the state Pharmacy Board, Medical Board and Legislature have all taken steps to make it harder to divert prescribed narcotics for illegal use or abuse.</p>
<p>The Pharmacy Board has over the last five years issued tougher regulations on how doctors and pharmacists handle drugs with a high potential for abuse.</p>
<p>The board instituted the Prescription Monitoring Program in which pharmacies put every filled opioid prescription into a computer database that other pharmacists are supposed to check when filling opioid and narcotic prescriptions – unless they are familiar with the patient.</p>
<p>The state Medical Board requires that prescribers (doctors and nurse practitioners) must use the computer system every three months when a patient is prescribed opiates on a regular basis and requires a urine drug screen to be performed at least every six months for patients receiving prescription opiates. This is to make sure the patient is taking the medication and not selling it on the black market or giving it to someone.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>In 2012, the state Medical Board passed regulations that required doctors who prescribe narcotics to document the treatment plan in the patient’s records. They are required to review the plan every six months and must check prescription records reported by pharmacies and physicians to ensure patients are not taking additional opiates prescribed by other doctors.</p>
<p>State boards also require training for doctors and pharmacists in dealing with opioid abuse.</p>
<p>In 2016, the Legislature mandated that a practitioner utilize the computer system if prescribing for a greater than four-day supply, and Gov. Susana Martinez signed the bill into law.</p>
<p />
<p /> | 4,159 |
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<p>It was certainly surprising to see former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier return to the country on January 16. To say he hasblood on his hands is an understatement–the Duvalier regimes were responsible for <a href="http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2011/01/17/haiti-prosecute-duvalier" type="external">tens of thousands of deaths</a> and widespread abuse, and stole millions of dollars from the country.</p>
<p>Soon thereafter, former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide announced his intention to return to his country.Aristide, twice elected andtwice removed from office, remains a popular figure in Haitian politics. His first stint in office was <a href="" type="internal">remarkably peaceful</a>; his second, during which he faced armed attacks that eventually succeeded in overthrowing his government, was <a href="" type="internal">scarcely more violent</a>. But some media accountsare expressing concern about Aristide’s return, in effect equating him withthe bloody Duvalier.</p>
<p>USA Today columnist <a href="" type="internal">DeWayne Wickham</a> wrote a piece on <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/forum/2011-02-08-column08_ST1_N.htm" type="external">February 8</a> headlined “U.S. Meekly Allows Despots to Return to Haiti.” Wickham recounts the horrors ofDuvalier’s reign of terror, but for some unfathomable reason decides that Aristide poses some comparable menace to Haiti–his return might “push Haiti closer to turmoil,” and the two of them are “old troublemakers from returning at a time when Haiti’s democracy is most vulnerable to the havoc they almost certainly will produce.”</p>
<p>Wickham seems mostly concerned about democracy:</p>
<p>With another round of voting scheduled for March 20, the thing Haiti needs more than anything else now is a level of stability and calm. But what it’s likely to get once Aristide returns–and once he and Duvalier rally their old supporters to their side–will be a return to the bloody factionalism that punctuated their time at the helm of Haiti’s government.</p>
<p>It might be worth pointing out that Aristide’s Lavalas party–still enormously popular–was <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/jan/10/haiti-oas-election-runoff" type="external">banned</a> from participating in last year’s election, which as a result had the <a href="http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/fl-haiti-oped0123-20110123,0,6161454.story" type="external">lowest turnout</a> of any election held in the Western Hemisphere in the last 60 years.</p>
<p>The Duvalier = Aristide equation could be seen elsewhere. A New York Times report ( <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/09/world/americas/09haiti.html" type="external">2/9/11</a>) warned that “experts inside and outside Haiti fear that the presence of the two former leaders could further destabilize the country.” The Times went on to note that “members of the international community expressed concern that Mr. Aristide…could create widespread instability at a precarious moment.” The story does note that Aristidewas “beloved by the poor but criticized by many”–given Haiti’s massive poverty, it’s hard to know what to make of that.</p>
<p>A short Los Angeles Times piece ( <a href="latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-haiti-passport-20110209,0,2257119.story" type="external">2/8/11</a>) conveyed a similar message: Aristide “has broad popular support but remains a polarizing figure in Haiti.” That article also equated Duvalier and Aristide, reporting that “the return of the two former leaders comes at an unsteady moment for the country.”</p>
<p>One would hope reporters could find a way to make a meaningful distinction between a ruthless, bloody dictator and a popular elected president. It is obscene to refer to them both as “leaders” or,as the USA Today headline put it, “despots.”</p>
<p /> | Conflating Ousted Presidents and Former Dictators in Haiti | true | http://fair.org/blog/2011/02/10/conflating-ousted-presidents-and-former-dictators-in-haiti/ | 2011-02-10 | 4left
| Conflating Ousted Presidents and Former Dictators in Haiti
<p>It was certainly surprising to see former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier return to the country on January 16. To say he hasblood on his hands is an understatement–the Duvalier regimes were responsible for <a href="http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2011/01/17/haiti-prosecute-duvalier" type="external">tens of thousands of deaths</a> and widespread abuse, and stole millions of dollars from the country.</p>
<p>Soon thereafter, former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide announced his intention to return to his country.Aristide, twice elected andtwice removed from office, remains a popular figure in Haitian politics. His first stint in office was <a href="" type="internal">remarkably peaceful</a>; his second, during which he faced armed attacks that eventually succeeded in overthrowing his government, was <a href="" type="internal">scarcely more violent</a>. But some media accountsare expressing concern about Aristide’s return, in effect equating him withthe bloody Duvalier.</p>
<p>USA Today columnist <a href="" type="internal">DeWayne Wickham</a> wrote a piece on <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/forum/2011-02-08-column08_ST1_N.htm" type="external">February 8</a> headlined “U.S. Meekly Allows Despots to Return to Haiti.” Wickham recounts the horrors ofDuvalier’s reign of terror, but for some unfathomable reason decides that Aristide poses some comparable menace to Haiti–his return might “push Haiti closer to turmoil,” and the two of them are “old troublemakers from returning at a time when Haiti’s democracy is most vulnerable to the havoc they almost certainly will produce.”</p>
<p>Wickham seems mostly concerned about democracy:</p>
<p>With another round of voting scheduled for March 20, the thing Haiti needs more than anything else now is a level of stability and calm. But what it’s likely to get once Aristide returns–and once he and Duvalier rally their old supporters to their side–will be a return to the bloody factionalism that punctuated their time at the helm of Haiti’s government.</p>
<p>It might be worth pointing out that Aristide’s Lavalas party–still enormously popular–was <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/jan/10/haiti-oas-election-runoff" type="external">banned</a> from participating in last year’s election, which as a result had the <a href="http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/fl-haiti-oped0123-20110123,0,6161454.story" type="external">lowest turnout</a> of any election held in the Western Hemisphere in the last 60 years.</p>
<p>The Duvalier = Aristide equation could be seen elsewhere. A New York Times report ( <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/09/world/americas/09haiti.html" type="external">2/9/11</a>) warned that “experts inside and outside Haiti fear that the presence of the two former leaders could further destabilize the country.” The Times went on to note that “members of the international community expressed concern that Mr. Aristide…could create widespread instability at a precarious moment.” The story does note that Aristidewas “beloved by the poor but criticized by many”–given Haiti’s massive poverty, it’s hard to know what to make of that.</p>
<p>A short Los Angeles Times piece ( <a href="latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-haiti-passport-20110209,0,2257119.story" type="external">2/8/11</a>) conveyed a similar message: Aristide “has broad popular support but remains a polarizing figure in Haiti.” That article also equated Duvalier and Aristide, reporting that “the return of the two former leaders comes at an unsteady moment for the country.”</p>
<p>One would hope reporters could find a way to make a meaningful distinction between a ruthless, bloody dictator and a popular elected president. It is obscene to refer to them both as “leaders” or,as the USA Today headline put it, “despots.”</p>
<p /> | 4,160 |
<p>NBC, the Military Industry Network owned by General Electric, at least unless or until it is sold to Comcast, was, along with most of the rest of the US corporate media, outraged when, last year, the Associated Press circulated, and some newspapers ran, a photo of an American marine, Lance Corporal Joshua Bernard, dying after being shot in battle in Afghanistan.</p>
<p>There was all kinds of high-minded talk about the protecting the dignity of the dead, and about how it was not appropriate to show such images without the permission of the deceased’s close relatives.</p>
<p>But then how to explain the spectacle of poor Notar Kumaritashvili, the 21-year-old luge rider from the Georgian olympic team. Kumaritashvili had the misfortune of hitting the edge of the luge shute he was on during a training run in British Columbia, and, at a speed of 89 mph, he was thrown from his sled and over the safety wall into the air, where he hit a steel pole, which killed him.</p>
<p>NBC, which was taping the run, rushed to air the grisly death. No attempt was made to seek permission from Kumaritashvili’s family. Hey, this was good TV. Why risk ruining it by giving the family a veto over the tape?</p>
<p>Well, NBC, when criticized, claimed it was all in the interest of public safety. They had a legitimate need to show the public that riding a luge is dangerous, the network said. Never mind that almost nobody rides a luge, and that all of those who do are keenly aware that it is a life-risking sport.</p>
<p>The word for this kind of nonsense is hypocrisy. Another word is capitalism. Blood and gore sell, and this tape meant great ratings for NBC.</p>
<p>On the other hand, you’d think that showing what the war in Afghanistan, or the war in Iraq, look like would be good for ratings too. And shouldn’t there be a journalistic responsibility to show Americans what is going on in our name and with our tax dollars, in our country’s wars, not to mention that if it’s important for potential sledders to know how dangerous a luge shute is, shouldn’t potential military recruits be shown how dangerous wearing a uniform can be? Anyhow, we should be able to take the real ugliness and the blood: We Americans pay good money to see the fake gore of military slaughter–even of Americans–in movies like Avatar, or Saving Private Ryan, or Apocalypse Now.</p>
<p>But when it comes to war, politics intervenes. The military and its political handmaidens in Congress and the White House, don’t think that showing the authenic gore of American casualties that occur daily in the course of our bloody imperial adventures is a good idea. It might get Americans to thinking too hard about those wars, and about whether we ought to be fighting them. And so NBC, and most of the rest of the US media, politely keep those images safely abroad.</p>
<p>Seriously. They have the footage, and the photos. They just don’t let Americans see them. I was stunned, for example, when I lived in Taiwan in 2004 for five months, to see that CNN International, which is viewed all around the world, but not seen in the US, had plenty of film footage of dead American soldiers. They have to air that stuff if they want to compete commercially overseas with such other international news programs as the BBC and Al Jazzeera. But those scenes get censored out in Atlanta, so we don’t see them here.</p>
<p>We get to see dead Haitians. We get to see dead Sri-Lankans. We get to see dead Taliban fighters. We get to see dead Olympians–especially if they’re foreigners like poor Kumaritashvili. They don’t get shown any “respect for their dignity.”</p>
<p>But we don’t get to see dead or dying American soldiers. That would be a shameful thing to do.</p>
<p>DAVE LINDORFF is a Philadelphia-based journalist and columnist. His latest book is “ <a href="" type="internal">The Case for Impeachment</a>” (St. Martin’s Press, 2006 and now available in paperback). He can be reached at <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a></p> | Picturing the Dead | true | https://counterpunch.org/2010/02/15/picturing-the-dead/ | 2010-02-15 | 4left
| Picturing the Dead
<p>NBC, the Military Industry Network owned by General Electric, at least unless or until it is sold to Comcast, was, along with most of the rest of the US corporate media, outraged when, last year, the Associated Press circulated, and some newspapers ran, a photo of an American marine, Lance Corporal Joshua Bernard, dying after being shot in battle in Afghanistan.</p>
<p>There was all kinds of high-minded talk about the protecting the dignity of the dead, and about how it was not appropriate to show such images without the permission of the deceased’s close relatives.</p>
<p>But then how to explain the spectacle of poor Notar Kumaritashvili, the 21-year-old luge rider from the Georgian olympic team. Kumaritashvili had the misfortune of hitting the edge of the luge shute he was on during a training run in British Columbia, and, at a speed of 89 mph, he was thrown from his sled and over the safety wall into the air, where he hit a steel pole, which killed him.</p>
<p>NBC, which was taping the run, rushed to air the grisly death. No attempt was made to seek permission from Kumaritashvili’s family. Hey, this was good TV. Why risk ruining it by giving the family a veto over the tape?</p>
<p>Well, NBC, when criticized, claimed it was all in the interest of public safety. They had a legitimate need to show the public that riding a luge is dangerous, the network said. Never mind that almost nobody rides a luge, and that all of those who do are keenly aware that it is a life-risking sport.</p>
<p>The word for this kind of nonsense is hypocrisy. Another word is capitalism. Blood and gore sell, and this tape meant great ratings for NBC.</p>
<p>On the other hand, you’d think that showing what the war in Afghanistan, or the war in Iraq, look like would be good for ratings too. And shouldn’t there be a journalistic responsibility to show Americans what is going on in our name and with our tax dollars, in our country’s wars, not to mention that if it’s important for potential sledders to know how dangerous a luge shute is, shouldn’t potential military recruits be shown how dangerous wearing a uniform can be? Anyhow, we should be able to take the real ugliness and the blood: We Americans pay good money to see the fake gore of military slaughter–even of Americans–in movies like Avatar, or Saving Private Ryan, or Apocalypse Now.</p>
<p>But when it comes to war, politics intervenes. The military and its political handmaidens in Congress and the White House, don’t think that showing the authenic gore of American casualties that occur daily in the course of our bloody imperial adventures is a good idea. It might get Americans to thinking too hard about those wars, and about whether we ought to be fighting them. And so NBC, and most of the rest of the US media, politely keep those images safely abroad.</p>
<p>Seriously. They have the footage, and the photos. They just don’t let Americans see them. I was stunned, for example, when I lived in Taiwan in 2004 for five months, to see that CNN International, which is viewed all around the world, but not seen in the US, had plenty of film footage of dead American soldiers. They have to air that stuff if they want to compete commercially overseas with such other international news programs as the BBC and Al Jazzeera. But those scenes get censored out in Atlanta, so we don’t see them here.</p>
<p>We get to see dead Haitians. We get to see dead Sri-Lankans. We get to see dead Taliban fighters. We get to see dead Olympians–especially if they’re foreigners like poor Kumaritashvili. They don’t get shown any “respect for their dignity.”</p>
<p>But we don’t get to see dead or dying American soldiers. That would be a shameful thing to do.</p>
<p>DAVE LINDORFF is a Philadelphia-based journalist and columnist. His latest book is “ <a href="" type="internal">The Case for Impeachment</a>” (St. Martin’s Press, 2006 and now available in paperback). He can be reached at <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a></p> | 4,161 |
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<p />
<p>We’ve also learned that businesses see locating near undeveloped open spaces and scenic landscapes as a way to attract employees who appreciate the quality of life that these public lands afford.</p>
<p>And, while we all understand the need for natural areas to support wildlife like pronghorn, mule deer and mountain lions, we don’t usually hear about the importance of these lands for our native bird populations.</p>
<p>Yet the grasslands around the Organ Mountains region are vital for more than 20 bird species of conservation concern, of which the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish lists the aplomado falcon as endangered and the peregrine falcon and Baird’s sparrow as threatened.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Other species of conservation concern supported by this habitat include the Swainson’s and ferruginous hawks, long-billed curlew, burrowing owl, loggerhead shrike, Sprague’s pipit, and chestnut-collared longspur – all of which, along with the Baird’s sparrow, are high priority grassland species throughout their entire range from Canada to Mexico.</p>
<p>In fact, grasslands contain more high priority species than any other habitat in New Mexico. As a group, grassland birds have suffered more severe population declines than any other bird species in the United States.</p>
<p>According to the 2011 State of the Birds Report, the nation has lost more than 97 percent of its native grasslands, largely due to conversion to agriculture. The small percentage of the native grasslands that remain on Bureau of Land Management lands are especially important to grassland species in the Western United States during both the breeding and non-breeding seasons.</p>
<p>Given the ongoing transformation of Chihuahuan desert grasslands in nearby areas of northern Mexico, the grasslands of southern New Mexico may be of even greater importance in the years to come if our nation’s remaining grassland bird species are to survive.</p>
<p>It is for this reason, that we endorse the proposal to designate the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks area as a national monument. For while most people focus on the colorful iconic peaks, we believe such protection offers an important opportunity to safeguard many of Doña Ana County’s most valuable grasslands.</p>
<p>One type, the tobosa grasslands, occurs along gently sloping drainages and in flat basins where silty soils settle.</p>
<p>Because of the area’s closed basin topography, low-lying depressions known as playas that fill with water during years of heavy precipitation are common. These temporary wetlands, some of which also function as natural cattle tanks, are an important component of these arid grassland landscapes. They increase the diversity of grasses and other plants available to wildlife, and in wet years also provide open water for species dependent on aquatic habitats.</p>
<p>It is important to include these valuable grasslands in the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument, particularly the Corralitos Valley and the Mason Draw grasslands of the monument proposal’s Sierra de las Uvas Complex.</p>
<p>These areas represent the most expansive and publicly accessible tobosa grassland in the county and will benefit many sensitive bird species.</p>
<p>The 2011 State of the Birds Report helps makes the urgent case for grassland preservation: “Grassland has always been undervalued as wildlife habitat … a small amount of U.S. grassland (less than 2 percent) is both publicly owned and managed primarily for conservation. More public land specifically protected for grassland birds is needed, and a higher proportion of multiple-use lands should be managed with grassland birds in mind.”</p>
<p>We hope our elected officials keep this in mind when deciding how best to safeguard our irreplaceable Organ Mountain-Desert Peaks.</p>
<p /> | Grasslands need to be protected | false | https://abqjournal.com/268584/grasslands-need-to-be-protected.html | 2least
| Grasslands need to be protected
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p />
<p>We’ve also learned that businesses see locating near undeveloped open spaces and scenic landscapes as a way to attract employees who appreciate the quality of life that these public lands afford.</p>
<p>And, while we all understand the need for natural areas to support wildlife like pronghorn, mule deer and mountain lions, we don’t usually hear about the importance of these lands for our native bird populations.</p>
<p>Yet the grasslands around the Organ Mountains region are vital for more than 20 bird species of conservation concern, of which the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish lists the aplomado falcon as endangered and the peregrine falcon and Baird’s sparrow as threatened.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Other species of conservation concern supported by this habitat include the Swainson’s and ferruginous hawks, long-billed curlew, burrowing owl, loggerhead shrike, Sprague’s pipit, and chestnut-collared longspur – all of which, along with the Baird’s sparrow, are high priority grassland species throughout their entire range from Canada to Mexico.</p>
<p>In fact, grasslands contain more high priority species than any other habitat in New Mexico. As a group, grassland birds have suffered more severe population declines than any other bird species in the United States.</p>
<p>According to the 2011 State of the Birds Report, the nation has lost more than 97 percent of its native grasslands, largely due to conversion to agriculture. The small percentage of the native grasslands that remain on Bureau of Land Management lands are especially important to grassland species in the Western United States during both the breeding and non-breeding seasons.</p>
<p>Given the ongoing transformation of Chihuahuan desert grasslands in nearby areas of northern Mexico, the grasslands of southern New Mexico may be of even greater importance in the years to come if our nation’s remaining grassland bird species are to survive.</p>
<p>It is for this reason, that we endorse the proposal to designate the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks area as a national monument. For while most people focus on the colorful iconic peaks, we believe such protection offers an important opportunity to safeguard many of Doña Ana County’s most valuable grasslands.</p>
<p>One type, the tobosa grasslands, occurs along gently sloping drainages and in flat basins where silty soils settle.</p>
<p>Because of the area’s closed basin topography, low-lying depressions known as playas that fill with water during years of heavy precipitation are common. These temporary wetlands, some of which also function as natural cattle tanks, are an important component of these arid grassland landscapes. They increase the diversity of grasses and other plants available to wildlife, and in wet years also provide open water for species dependent on aquatic habitats.</p>
<p>It is important to include these valuable grasslands in the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument, particularly the Corralitos Valley and the Mason Draw grasslands of the monument proposal’s Sierra de las Uvas Complex.</p>
<p>These areas represent the most expansive and publicly accessible tobosa grassland in the county and will benefit many sensitive bird species.</p>
<p>The 2011 State of the Birds Report helps makes the urgent case for grassland preservation: “Grassland has always been undervalued as wildlife habitat … a small amount of U.S. grassland (less than 2 percent) is both publicly owned and managed primarily for conservation. More public land specifically protected for grassland birds is needed, and a higher proportion of multiple-use lands should be managed with grassland birds in mind.”</p>
<p>We hope our elected officials keep this in mind when deciding how best to safeguard our irreplaceable Organ Mountain-Desert Peaks.</p>
<p /> | 4,162 |
|
<p>Valero oil refinery in Aruba/Flickr user &lt;a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/79721788@N00/4901402311/" target="_blank"&gt;David Stanley&lt;/a&gt;</p>
<p />
<p>With federal action on climate change <a href="" type="internal">stalled</a> in the Senate, the next major environmental war is being waged in California, where a ballot measure will soon decide the fate of the most comprehensive piece of greenhouse gas legislation in US history.</p>
<p>The measure— <a href="http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/California_Proposition_23_%282010%29" type="external">Proposition 23</a>—could upset the landmark climate bill Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed into law in 2006. The <a href="http://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/ab32/ab32.htm" type="external">Global Warming Solutions Act</a>, or AB32, requires that the state decrease emissions down to 1990 levels by 2020—an approximate 25 percent cut from current levels. Implementation of the plan is supposed to begin in 2011. But Prop. 23—whose “yes” campaign is funded largely by out-of-state fossil fuel interests—seeks to delay the cuts until the state’s unemployment stays below 5.5 percent for four consecutive quarters—which, given the economic downturn around the country, and the 12.8 percent unemployment rate in California, might take quite a bit of time to pull off.</p>
<p>Competition over the measure is fierce, with both sides now dumping millions into campaigns. “It’s full scale war,” says Steven Maviglio, the spokesman for the No-on-23 <a href="http://www.stopdirtyenergyprop.com/joinbox.php" type="external">campaign</a>, backed by a coalition of environmental, labor, health, and progressive business groups in the state. Maviglio was previously the deputy chief of staff for former California Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, who authored AB32.</p>
<p>“The oil companies want this to be strike three for climate change, after Copenhagen and Capitol Hill,” Maviglio continued, referring, of course, to the failure to reach an international accord at the United Nations climate meeting in Denmark last year and the Senate’s inability to pass legislation this year. “They’ve made it very clear they want to crush this once and for all in California.”</p>
<p>According to data from the California Secretary of State’s office, more than 98 percent of contributions to the <a href="http://www.yeson23.com/" type="external">pro-Prop. 23</a> campaign are from oil companies. Eighty-nine percent of the contributions come from out of state. The biggest spenders have been Texas-based oil giants Tesoro Corp., Valero Energy Corp., and an oil-refining business owned by the oil and gas company Koch Industries. Valero contributed $4 million, Tesoro gave $1.5 million, and a refinery owned by the notorious Kansas-based billionaire brothers <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/08/30/100830fa_fact_mayer" type="external">David and Charles Koch</a>, of Koch Industries, kicked in another $1 million. Just last week, Houston-based Marathon oil contributed $500,000.</p>
<p>The goal is clear: “If you can drive a stake in the heart of climate policy making in California, it will have a massive political chilling effect elsewhere in the country,” said Wade Crowfoot, the West Coast political director of the Environmental Defense Fund.</p>
<p>California certainly has a history of leading the way on emissions rules. It was the state’s 2002 request to set limits on greenhouse gas emissions from automobiles that led 16 other states to adopt the same policy, which in turn forced automakers to accept that standard at a federal level. The deal the Obama administration reached with automakers and those states in 2009 created the first national, unified standard for auto emissions and fuel economy; the rules are expected to equate to the greenhouse gas savings of taking 177 million cars off the road or shutting down 194 coal-fired power plants.</p>
<p>The big spending from oil interests belies the fact that the issue is fairly bipartisan in the state. The state’s Republican governor has been a strong backer of the measure, getting more <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2010/9/28/2228/00883" type="external">fired up</a> in recent weeks in his criticism of the oil companies for what he said are disingenuous claims about the climate law’s effect on jobs. He called the idea that stopping AB32 will create jobs like “Eva Braun writing a kosher cookbook,” among other pointed lines. “Does anyone really believe that these companies out of the goodness of their black oil hearts are spending millions and millions of dollars to protect jobs?” asked Schwarzenegger. (The CEOs of Valero and Tesoro responded with an <a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_16229078" type="external">op-ed</a> accusing the Governator of trying to “demonize” their efforts and claiming that the companies are just trying to protect their combined 3,841 employees in the state.)</p>
<p>The state’s Republican gubernatorial candidate, Meg Whitman, also <a href="http://legalplanet.wordpress.com/2010/09/24/meg-whitman-prop-23-and-ab-32/" type="external">opposes</a> the measure, if less than enthusiastically. She’s tried to cut the issue both ways, calling for a “no” vote on the measure but also a one-year suspension of AB32.&#160;</p>
<p>The majority of likely voters are so far also indicating that they intend to vote “no.” A Reuters/Ipsos <a href="http://blogs.laweekly.com/informer/election-2010-1/proposition-23-reuters-poll/" type="external">poll</a> released on October 6 found that 49 percent of voters oppose Prop. 23, while just 37 percent support it. This is good news for fans of the climate law, as absentee voting began in the state this week. But it’s far from a done deal: Veterans of ballot initiatives recall the 2006 effort to instate a new tax on oil to fund investments in alternative energy. While it polled well early on, oil companies dumped $95 million into a campaign against it, and much of that was spent on television ads late in the game. On election day, 54.7 percent of the state opposed the measure.</p>
<p>With the stakes getting higher by the day, national environmental groups are also pouring in funds and resources. The League of Conservation Voters has contributed $550,000 to the California chapter’s No-on-23 ballot measure committee, and its sister organization, LCV Education Fund, plans on making a similarly sized contribution. EDF and Natural Resources Defense Council Action Fund have made donations in the million-dollar range as well. The No-on-23 efforts have so far gathered a war chest to rival the measure’s backers, with $7.5 million on hand right now, according to the coalition. The No campaign brought in $5 million in the first week of October (with the wives of two Google founders each kicking in six-figure donations), while the campaign to revoke the law brought in just $10,000 in that period.</p>
<p>The effort to protect the state’s landmark law itself holds national significance, says Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune. That the coalition includes several hundred businesses and trade groups—including Pacific Gas &amp; Electric, the largest utility in California—demonstrates the emerging division within the business community when it comes to climate regulations. “We think it’s a harbinger of the national conversation, in which there is an increasing sector of the business community that recognizes that not only is this clean energy transition good for business, it’s necessary to create a strong business climate,” said Brune.</p>
<p>It would also mark the first time that an entire state of voters would get to decide whether or not to take comprehensive action on climate change. Never before has the decision on this kind of comprehensive plan been put directly to voters.</p>
<p>But if AB32 goes down, it would “send the message around the country that no piece of environmental legislation is safe,” said Sierra Club’s Brune. “There’s always an oil company or a coal company that can come in and roll it back.”</p>
<p /> | Will Big Oil Burn California’s Climate Bill? | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2010/10/prop-23-ab32-california-climate-bill/ | 2010-10-12 | 4left
| Will Big Oil Burn California’s Climate Bill?
<p>Valero oil refinery in Aruba/Flickr user &lt;a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/79721788@N00/4901402311/" target="_blank"&gt;David Stanley&lt;/a&gt;</p>
<p />
<p>With federal action on climate change <a href="" type="internal">stalled</a> in the Senate, the next major environmental war is being waged in California, where a ballot measure will soon decide the fate of the most comprehensive piece of greenhouse gas legislation in US history.</p>
<p>The measure— <a href="http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/California_Proposition_23_%282010%29" type="external">Proposition 23</a>—could upset the landmark climate bill Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed into law in 2006. The <a href="http://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/ab32/ab32.htm" type="external">Global Warming Solutions Act</a>, or AB32, requires that the state decrease emissions down to 1990 levels by 2020—an approximate 25 percent cut from current levels. Implementation of the plan is supposed to begin in 2011. But Prop. 23—whose “yes” campaign is funded largely by out-of-state fossil fuel interests—seeks to delay the cuts until the state’s unemployment stays below 5.5 percent for four consecutive quarters—which, given the economic downturn around the country, and the 12.8 percent unemployment rate in California, might take quite a bit of time to pull off.</p>
<p>Competition over the measure is fierce, with both sides now dumping millions into campaigns. “It’s full scale war,” says Steven Maviglio, the spokesman for the No-on-23 <a href="http://www.stopdirtyenergyprop.com/joinbox.php" type="external">campaign</a>, backed by a coalition of environmental, labor, health, and progressive business groups in the state. Maviglio was previously the deputy chief of staff for former California Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, who authored AB32.</p>
<p>“The oil companies want this to be strike three for climate change, after Copenhagen and Capitol Hill,” Maviglio continued, referring, of course, to the failure to reach an international accord at the United Nations climate meeting in Denmark last year and the Senate’s inability to pass legislation this year. “They’ve made it very clear they want to crush this once and for all in California.”</p>
<p>According to data from the California Secretary of State’s office, more than 98 percent of contributions to the <a href="http://www.yeson23.com/" type="external">pro-Prop. 23</a> campaign are from oil companies. Eighty-nine percent of the contributions come from out of state. The biggest spenders have been Texas-based oil giants Tesoro Corp., Valero Energy Corp., and an oil-refining business owned by the oil and gas company Koch Industries. Valero contributed $4 million, Tesoro gave $1.5 million, and a refinery owned by the notorious Kansas-based billionaire brothers <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/08/30/100830fa_fact_mayer" type="external">David and Charles Koch</a>, of Koch Industries, kicked in another $1 million. Just last week, Houston-based Marathon oil contributed $500,000.</p>
<p>The goal is clear: “If you can drive a stake in the heart of climate policy making in California, it will have a massive political chilling effect elsewhere in the country,” said Wade Crowfoot, the West Coast political director of the Environmental Defense Fund.</p>
<p>California certainly has a history of leading the way on emissions rules. It was the state’s 2002 request to set limits on greenhouse gas emissions from automobiles that led 16 other states to adopt the same policy, which in turn forced automakers to accept that standard at a federal level. The deal the Obama administration reached with automakers and those states in 2009 created the first national, unified standard for auto emissions and fuel economy; the rules are expected to equate to the greenhouse gas savings of taking 177 million cars off the road or shutting down 194 coal-fired power plants.</p>
<p>The big spending from oil interests belies the fact that the issue is fairly bipartisan in the state. The state’s Republican governor has been a strong backer of the measure, getting more <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2010/9/28/2228/00883" type="external">fired up</a> in recent weeks in his criticism of the oil companies for what he said are disingenuous claims about the climate law’s effect on jobs. He called the idea that stopping AB32 will create jobs like “Eva Braun writing a kosher cookbook,” among other pointed lines. “Does anyone really believe that these companies out of the goodness of their black oil hearts are spending millions and millions of dollars to protect jobs?” asked Schwarzenegger. (The CEOs of Valero and Tesoro responded with an <a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_16229078" type="external">op-ed</a> accusing the Governator of trying to “demonize” their efforts and claiming that the companies are just trying to protect their combined 3,841 employees in the state.)</p>
<p>The state’s Republican gubernatorial candidate, Meg Whitman, also <a href="http://legalplanet.wordpress.com/2010/09/24/meg-whitman-prop-23-and-ab-32/" type="external">opposes</a> the measure, if less than enthusiastically. She’s tried to cut the issue both ways, calling for a “no” vote on the measure but also a one-year suspension of AB32.&#160;</p>
<p>The majority of likely voters are so far also indicating that they intend to vote “no.” A Reuters/Ipsos <a href="http://blogs.laweekly.com/informer/election-2010-1/proposition-23-reuters-poll/" type="external">poll</a> released on October 6 found that 49 percent of voters oppose Prop. 23, while just 37 percent support it. This is good news for fans of the climate law, as absentee voting began in the state this week. But it’s far from a done deal: Veterans of ballot initiatives recall the 2006 effort to instate a new tax on oil to fund investments in alternative energy. While it polled well early on, oil companies dumped $95 million into a campaign against it, and much of that was spent on television ads late in the game. On election day, 54.7 percent of the state opposed the measure.</p>
<p>With the stakes getting higher by the day, national environmental groups are also pouring in funds and resources. The League of Conservation Voters has contributed $550,000 to the California chapter’s No-on-23 ballot measure committee, and its sister organization, LCV Education Fund, plans on making a similarly sized contribution. EDF and Natural Resources Defense Council Action Fund have made donations in the million-dollar range as well. The No-on-23 efforts have so far gathered a war chest to rival the measure’s backers, with $7.5 million on hand right now, according to the coalition. The No campaign brought in $5 million in the first week of October (with the wives of two Google founders each kicking in six-figure donations), while the campaign to revoke the law brought in just $10,000 in that period.</p>
<p>The effort to protect the state’s landmark law itself holds national significance, says Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune. That the coalition includes several hundred businesses and trade groups—including Pacific Gas &amp; Electric, the largest utility in California—demonstrates the emerging division within the business community when it comes to climate regulations. “We think it’s a harbinger of the national conversation, in which there is an increasing sector of the business community that recognizes that not only is this clean energy transition good for business, it’s necessary to create a strong business climate,” said Brune.</p>
<p>It would also mark the first time that an entire state of voters would get to decide whether or not to take comprehensive action on climate change. Never before has the decision on this kind of comprehensive plan been put directly to voters.</p>
<p>But if AB32 goes down, it would “send the message around the country that no piece of environmental legislation is safe,” said Sierra Club’s Brune. “There’s always an oil company or a coal company that can come in and roll it back.”</p>
<p /> | 4,163 |
<p>This week, New York Magazine is <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/?mid=nymag_press" type="external">running a feature story</a> about more than two dozen real women who have chosen to terminate a pregnancy. And the cover of the magazine allows those women’s experiences to claim a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/11/ny-mag-abortion-cover_n_4254155.html" type="external">prominent platform</a> under the headline “My Abortion”:</p>
<p>As the piece <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/?mid=nymag_press" type="external">notes</a>, even though abortion is a very common aspect of reproductive health care —  <a href="http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html" type="external">one in three</a> U.S. women will have one by the time she reaches 45 years old — it’s still not discussed very widely. There’s a <a href="" type="internal">pervasive stigma surrounding abortion</a> that implicitly communicates it’s not an acceptable topic of conversation for polite company. Women are taught that they’re always supposed to feel <a href="" type="internal">shame and regret</a> about choosing to end a pregnancy, even if that <a href="" type="internal">isn’t actually their personal experience</a> with their own abortion.</p>
<p>And when women do speak openly about their decision to have an abortion, they’re often met with serious backlash. Earlier this year, after one lawmaker in Nevada talked about the abortion she had when she was a teenager, she <a href="" type="internal">received death threats</a>. One of the young women who appeared on MTV’s reality show “16 and Pregnant” to talk about having an abortion <a href="" type="internal">still receives hate mail</a>, even though the episode aired three years ago.</p>
<p>That’s a big reason why many of the people who have experiences with this type of reproductive health care don’t feel safe enough to “ <a href="" type="internal">come out</a>” about it. And that’s also why reproductive rights advocates are attempting to create <a href="" type="internal">more safe spaces</a> for women to discuss their abortions. The “ <a href="http://www.1in3campaign.org/#" type="external">1 in 3 campaign</a>,” for example, is a grassroots effort to combat abortion stigma that has collected women’s abortion stories <a href="http://www.1in3campaign.org/book#.UmaBkflnSSo" type="external">in a book</a>. Last month, the campaign sponsored a <a href="" type="internal">week of activism</a> and encouraged communities to host “abortion speak-outs” to give women an opportunity to share their stories among supportive people. The advocates behind “1 in 3” believe that shifting the conversation about abortion can eventually <a href="" type="internal">help shift the politics around it</a>.</p>
<p>Indeed, when abortion becomes a <a href="" type="internal">lived experience</a> rather than a politicized buzzword, some realities emerge that often get lost in the legislative pushes to continue chipping away at Roe v. Wade.</p>
<p>For instance, the women <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/?mid=nymag_press" type="external">featured in New York Magazine</a> come from a wide range of backgrounds, and each of their stories is very different. Some of them already had children they were struggling to support; others weren’t ready to be a parent yet. Some were raped or in the midst of abusive relationships. Many of them struggled to be able to afford the cost of the procedure and the logistics of getting to the clinic, and some were forced to cross state lines. Nearly all of them explain that it was the right choice for them. “I never cried about it. I don’t feel guilty,” one woman, 29-year-old Yolanda, <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index4.html" type="external">explains</a>. “When I tell people, they respond with a panic face, and when I say I’m truly okay with it, they make a second panic face,” 36-year-old Anya <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index11.html" type="external">notes</a>. “I saw that I could choose not to feel ashamed,” 28-year-old Abby <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index5.html" type="external">says</a>.</p>
<p>But there’s ambiguity and complexity, too. These are real women with real lives. Not everything fits neatly into a box. “Even when I felt I made the right choice, I regretted having anything to regret,” 30-year-old Monica, who remembers weeping at toothpaste commercials during the month following her abortion, <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index12.html" type="external">says</a>. “Society is so focused on women being mothers. I felt selfish for not wanting to be a mom,” 35-year-old Lindsay <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index6.html" type="external">admits</a>. “There’s no room to talk about being unsure,” 23-year-old Mayah <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index4.html" type="external">points out</a>.</p>
<p>In the politicized fight over reproductive rights, there’s some evidence that these type of personal stories can actually sway public opinion. A <a href="" type="internal">recent poll</a> commissioned by Planned Parenthood found that when Americans are given more context about why a woman may need a later abortion, they don’t actually support 20-week abortion bans. That type of restriction is <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2013/07/gop-texas-abortion-fight-93636.html" type="external">typically more popular</a> than other attacks on women’s health care, since public support drops off for abortions after the first trimester. But when Americans are asked whether they want to deny abortion care from a woman who has been raped, or a woman whose health is in danger, or a woman who discovers serious fatal abnormalities, they <a href="" type="internal">tend to say no</a>.</p> | New York Magazine Is Using This Week’s Cover To Tackle Abortion Stigma | true | http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/11/12/2924021/york-mag-abortion-stigma/ | 2013-11-12 | 4left
| New York Magazine Is Using This Week’s Cover To Tackle Abortion Stigma
<p>This week, New York Magazine is <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/?mid=nymag_press" type="external">running a feature story</a> about more than two dozen real women who have chosen to terminate a pregnancy. And the cover of the magazine allows those women’s experiences to claim a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/11/ny-mag-abortion-cover_n_4254155.html" type="external">prominent platform</a> under the headline “My Abortion”:</p>
<p>As the piece <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/?mid=nymag_press" type="external">notes</a>, even though abortion is a very common aspect of reproductive health care —  <a href="http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html" type="external">one in three</a> U.S. women will have one by the time she reaches 45 years old — it’s still not discussed very widely. There’s a <a href="" type="internal">pervasive stigma surrounding abortion</a> that implicitly communicates it’s not an acceptable topic of conversation for polite company. Women are taught that they’re always supposed to feel <a href="" type="internal">shame and regret</a> about choosing to end a pregnancy, even if that <a href="" type="internal">isn’t actually their personal experience</a> with their own abortion.</p>
<p>And when women do speak openly about their decision to have an abortion, they’re often met with serious backlash. Earlier this year, after one lawmaker in Nevada talked about the abortion she had when she was a teenager, she <a href="" type="internal">received death threats</a>. One of the young women who appeared on MTV’s reality show “16 and Pregnant” to talk about having an abortion <a href="" type="internal">still receives hate mail</a>, even though the episode aired three years ago.</p>
<p>That’s a big reason why many of the people who have experiences with this type of reproductive health care don’t feel safe enough to “ <a href="" type="internal">come out</a>” about it. And that’s also why reproductive rights advocates are attempting to create <a href="" type="internal">more safe spaces</a> for women to discuss their abortions. The “ <a href="http://www.1in3campaign.org/#" type="external">1 in 3 campaign</a>,” for example, is a grassroots effort to combat abortion stigma that has collected women’s abortion stories <a href="http://www.1in3campaign.org/book#.UmaBkflnSSo" type="external">in a book</a>. Last month, the campaign sponsored a <a href="" type="internal">week of activism</a> and encouraged communities to host “abortion speak-outs” to give women an opportunity to share their stories among supportive people. The advocates behind “1 in 3” believe that shifting the conversation about abortion can eventually <a href="" type="internal">help shift the politics around it</a>.</p>
<p>Indeed, when abortion becomes a <a href="" type="internal">lived experience</a> rather than a politicized buzzword, some realities emerge that often get lost in the legislative pushes to continue chipping away at Roe v. Wade.</p>
<p>For instance, the women <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/?mid=nymag_press" type="external">featured in New York Magazine</a> come from a wide range of backgrounds, and each of their stories is very different. Some of them already had children they were struggling to support; others weren’t ready to be a parent yet. Some were raped or in the midst of abusive relationships. Many of them struggled to be able to afford the cost of the procedure and the logistics of getting to the clinic, and some were forced to cross state lines. Nearly all of them explain that it was the right choice for them. “I never cried about it. I don’t feel guilty,” one woman, 29-year-old Yolanda, <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index4.html" type="external">explains</a>. “When I tell people, they respond with a panic face, and when I say I’m truly okay with it, they make a second panic face,” 36-year-old Anya <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index11.html" type="external">notes</a>. “I saw that I could choose not to feel ashamed,” 28-year-old Abby <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index5.html" type="external">says</a>.</p>
<p>But there’s ambiguity and complexity, too. These are real women with real lives. Not everything fits neatly into a box. “Even when I felt I made the right choice, I regretted having anything to regret,” 30-year-old Monica, who remembers weeping at toothpaste commercials during the month following her abortion, <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index12.html" type="external">says</a>. “Society is so focused on women being mothers. I felt selfish for not wanting to be a mom,” 35-year-old Lindsay <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index6.html" type="external">admits</a>. “There’s no room to talk about being unsure,” 23-year-old Mayah <a href="http://nymag.com/news/features/abortion-stories-2013-11/index4.html" type="external">points out</a>.</p>
<p>In the politicized fight over reproductive rights, there’s some evidence that these type of personal stories can actually sway public opinion. A <a href="" type="internal">recent poll</a> commissioned by Planned Parenthood found that when Americans are given more context about why a woman may need a later abortion, they don’t actually support 20-week abortion bans. That type of restriction is <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2013/07/gop-texas-abortion-fight-93636.html" type="external">typically more popular</a> than other attacks on women’s health care, since public support drops off for abortions after the first trimester. But when Americans are asked whether they want to deny abortion care from a woman who has been raped, or a woman whose health is in danger, or a woman who discovers serious fatal abnormalities, they <a href="" type="internal">tend to say no</a>.</p> | 4,164 |
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<p>Researchers are currently testing a new compound that can be injected into stroke patients to limit damage to the brain. Pictured is a technician working with mice brain slices on a slide. (Journal File)</p>
<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The University of New Mexico appealed to the New Mexico Angels — a group of individual investors who pool resources to provide seed funding for startup companies — to wrap their wings around four newly developed medical and engineering breakthroughs at a tech showcase Thursday.</p>
<p>About 70 investors, entrepreneurs and economic development experts attended the annual event, now in its fourth year, where UNM researchers presented three new drugs to treat stroke, chronic pain and HPV-positive tumors, plus a novel process for etching silicon wafers.</p>
<p>Angels President John Chavez said all four represent compelling breakthroughs with good market potential.</p>
<p>“I believe all four technologies have high potential to transition into startup companies and move to the next level,” Chavez told the Journal.</p>
<p>In fact, the new drug therapy for stroke already won initial backing from Tyrosine Pharma, a local, Angel-funded startup that’s commercializing a separate stroke therapy from UNM.</p>
<p>That company received $250,000 from the Angels this year to continue developing a peptide that’s based on a derivative of a human protein to protect brain cells against damage from traumatic injuries and stroke.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Now, Tyrosine is acquiring an option to license the new drug that UNM presented Thursday, which is actually a compound that’s already approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treating patients with blood circulation problems in the brain.</p>
<p>The university has “repurposed” that compound to instead treat stroke and neurological disorders, after laboratory experiments with mice showed it could substantially reduce brain damage from a stroke.</p>
<p>The other two therapies presented at the luncheon include a second “repurposing” project to turn some cancer drugs into medicine to fight tumors and warts caused by human papilloma viruses, plus an entirely new medical treatment for chronic pain that eliminates the use of addictive opioids like morphine.</p>
<p>UNM Science and Technology Corp. President and CEO Lisa Kuuttila said Angel seed funding is critical for such technologies to transverse what investors call the “valley of death.”</p>
<p>“It enables researchers to bridge that gap where study grants have dried up, but it’s still too early for the technology to be picked up by established companies,” she said.</p> | NM Angels kick some more UNM technology tires | false | https://abqjournal.com/314538/nm-angels-kick-some-more-unm-technology-tires.html | 2013-12-05 | 2least
| NM Angels kick some more UNM technology tires
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<p>Researchers are currently testing a new compound that can be injected into stroke patients to limit damage to the brain. Pictured is a technician working with mice brain slices on a slide. (Journal File)</p>
<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The University of New Mexico appealed to the New Mexico Angels — a group of individual investors who pool resources to provide seed funding for startup companies — to wrap their wings around four newly developed medical and engineering breakthroughs at a tech showcase Thursday.</p>
<p>About 70 investors, entrepreneurs and economic development experts attended the annual event, now in its fourth year, where UNM researchers presented three new drugs to treat stroke, chronic pain and HPV-positive tumors, plus a novel process for etching silicon wafers.</p>
<p>Angels President John Chavez said all four represent compelling breakthroughs with good market potential.</p>
<p>“I believe all four technologies have high potential to transition into startup companies and move to the next level,” Chavez told the Journal.</p>
<p>In fact, the new drug therapy for stroke already won initial backing from Tyrosine Pharma, a local, Angel-funded startup that’s commercializing a separate stroke therapy from UNM.</p>
<p>That company received $250,000 from the Angels this year to continue developing a peptide that’s based on a derivative of a human protein to protect brain cells against damage from traumatic injuries and stroke.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Now, Tyrosine is acquiring an option to license the new drug that UNM presented Thursday, which is actually a compound that’s already approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treating patients with blood circulation problems in the brain.</p>
<p>The university has “repurposed” that compound to instead treat stroke and neurological disorders, after laboratory experiments with mice showed it could substantially reduce brain damage from a stroke.</p>
<p>The other two therapies presented at the luncheon include a second “repurposing” project to turn some cancer drugs into medicine to fight tumors and warts caused by human papilloma viruses, plus an entirely new medical treatment for chronic pain that eliminates the use of addictive opioids like morphine.</p>
<p>UNM Science and Technology Corp. President and CEO Lisa Kuuttila said Angel seed funding is critical for such technologies to transverse what investors call the “valley of death.”</p>
<p>“It enables researchers to bridge that gap where study grants have dried up, but it’s still too early for the technology to be picked up by established companies,” she said.</p> | 4,165 |
<p />
<p>The current Sino-Japanese tension under the Japanese leadership of Shinzo Abe with his determination to revise the Japanese constitution for a more powerful military and a more active foreign policy to counter the meteoric rise of contemporary China reveals a deeper existential crisis of identity in the Japanese psyche of our time, torn in between two conflicting orientations: namely, racism (superiority complex) and inferiority complex.</p>
<p>The first orientation which has contributed to the existential crisis of identity in the Japanese psyche of our time has to do with the relationship between Japanese racism (superiority complex) and the weakness of modern China.</p>
<p>Japanese racism against (or condescension towards) the Chinese did not exist in the pre-modern past, because, for millennia in East Asian history, Japan had been a backward area (or vassal) in the civilizational shadow of Imperial China known as the “Middle Kingdom” in this Sinocentric part of the world. In fact, the converse was true for millennia, in that the Japanese suffered from some form of inferiority complex towards the dominant Imperial China in the pre-modern past; after all, much of Japanese culture (including the Japanese language) was Chinese in origin.</p>
<p>It was only after the successful modernization of Meiji Japan by learning from the West and joining the rank of Western powers in the game of colonial imperialism near the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century that Japan started to look down on China as “the sick man of Asia,” especially after winning the Sino-Japanese war of 1894-95 (at a time when the Chinese Empire under the Manchu Dynasty was collapsing) and later invading and occupying part of mainland China in the 1930’s. These decades (from the second half of the 19th century to 1949, when the Communists took over mainland China and Mao Zedong formally declared that “China has now stood up”) also constituted what the Chinese historians now call “the one hundred years of humiliation” during which they greatly suffered from Japanese (and Western) imperialism.</p>
<p>Japanese racism reached its peak during WWII, when, for a few years, it invaded and occupied much of Southeast Asia and East Asia and in the process committed enormous atrocity towards the “inferior” natives (mostly Asians). For the first time in its history, Japan thought of itself as “number one” in this part of the world (long dominated by China for millennia) and looked down on other Asians as “inferior” (and looked up towards “whites” like the Western Europeans and Americans for emulation).</p>
<p>The Imperial Japanese surrender to the U.S. in 1945 after the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima did not completely eliminate Japanese racism for two main historical reasons.</p>
<p>The first historical reason for the continuation of Japanese racism after WWII has to do with the Cold War against communism, especially in regard to the Communist takeover of mainland China in 1949, the Korean War in the early 1950s, and the Vietnam War in the 1960s and 1970s, which put Japan on the side of the U.S. to become an indispensable ally in the subsequent Cold War against its communist foes. Unlike East Germany and West Germany after WWII, both of which were under pressure (by the Soviet Union and the U.S., respectively) to condemn and cleanse its Nazi imperial past once and for all, post-WWII Japan benefited from the preoccupation of the U.S. with using Japan as an ally in the Cold War against Communist China, the Soviet Union, North Korea, and later North Vietnam.</p>
<p>Unlike post-WWII West Germany, another ally of the U.S., where it was against the law to deny the Holocaust, there was no shrine nor temple to commemorate the Nazi war criminals, and the victims of Nazi atrocity were offered financial compensation — post-WWII Japan did not go through this process of complete cleansing of its imperial past. On the contrary, Japanese leaders have time and again visited the controversial shrines to commemorate their WWII war criminals, refused to officially offer financial compensations to the victims of imperial Japanese atrocity, even regarded the use of “comfort women” for Japanese soldiers in occupied territories during WWII as “normal,” and went so far to deny, by some more nationalistic Japanese, the historical events of Japanese invasion and atrocity.</p>
<p>In its preoccupation with the Cold War against the communist regimes in mainland China, the Soviet Union, North Korea, and North Vietnam in this part of the world, even though they were all victims of Japanese aggression during WWII, the U.S. had no interest in forcing Japan to undergo this process of complete cleansing of its imperial past to benefit its Communist foes, which, not surprisingly, were not pleased about it.</p>
<p>The current disturbing comments and deeds by Japanese officials under the nationalistic leadership of Shinzo Abe in regard to Japan’s imperial past during WWII is only the latest chapter of this toxic historical legacy. For instance, “on Dec. 26, 2013,…Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo which honors some 2.5 million Japanese war dead, including those convicted of war crimes during World War II,” as reported by Manuel Almario for the Philippine Daily Inquirer on July 10, 2014. His government is exploring ways to revise history textbooks for Japanese students to make them “more patriotic” and proud of their imperial past; worse, they are even trying to revise “the 1993 Kono Declaration” in regard to the “comfort women” issue, as Tessa Morris-Suzuki aptly pointed out in the article “Japan and the Art of Un-Apologising” on July 16, 2014 for The Diplomat, that “the result is the Japanese government can truthfully insist that it has not withdrawn the Kono Declaration, while very effectively demolishing its credibility.” After all, Katsuto Momii, director general of NHK, added in 2014 that “comfort women” for Japanese soldiers during WWII was a “normal” practice in war times. Another NHK leader Naoki Hyakuta even denied the Nanjing massacre and suggested that it “never happened.” Later on, Masataka Kataoka, head of Alps, denied Japan’s aggression in China in the 1930s as an “invasion” at all and suggested instead that Japan was merely “helping” China to fight off American and European colonial imperialism.</p>
<p>It was also at that historical moment of the Cold War against communism that the U.S. had no appetite to make Japan return some of the occupied territories to Communist China (which has led to the current Sino-Japanese dispute over the “Senkaku Islands,” also known as “the “Diaoyu Islands” in China), as Japan annexed the islands after winning the Sino-Japanese war of 1894-95. But this refusal of the U.S. and Japan violated the Cairo Declaration in 1943 among the U.S., the U.K., and (pre-Communist) China that any Japanese surrender required a return of all Imperial Japan’s territorial conquests, including the islands in question. Instead, the U.S. handed over the islands (which it had administered since 1945) to Japan in 1972 in the midst of the Cold War against its Communist foes (e.g., Communist China), in violation of the Cairo Declaration.</p>
<p>And the second historical reason for the continuation of Japanese racism (against the Chinese and other Asians) after WWII has to do with Japan’s “economic miracle” after WWII, partly because of the “free ride” or what Barry Posen in his book “Restraint” called the “cheap ride” by Japan after WWII to focus on economic development under the security protection of the U.S. In the same period, the economy of Communist China almost collapsed due to the disastrous Communist experiments in the 1950s and 1960s, especially in those tumultuous years of the “Great Leap Forward” and the “Cultural Revolution.”</p>
<p>But with the death of Mao Zedong in 1976, mainland China underwent a tectonic change never seen before in human history.</p>
<p>This leads us to the second orientation which has contributed to the existential crisis of identity in the Japanese psyche of our time, which has to do with the relationship between Japanese inferiority complex and what is known in mainland China nowadays as “China’s return to greatness.”</p>
<p>The meteoric rise of mainland China since the economic reforms of the 1970s (under the leadership of Deng Xiaopeng) has dethroned the Japanese economy from number 2 in the world to number 4 nowadays (after the U.S., China, and India, according to the recent ranking of major economies by the World Bank, in a measure by GDP PPP). More precisely, according to an estimate by the IMF, the current Chinese GDP (PPP) is about USD 15.3 trillion, whereas the Japanese one is about USD 4.8 trillion. Even better, China is destined to replace the U.S. as the world’s largest economy by the end of this year (2014), according to the most recent estimate by the International Comparison Programme in the World Bank in early 2014.</p>
<p>This meteoric rise of the Chinese economy has also transformed its military as the third most powerful in the world (only after the U.S. and Russia, with Japan in the tenth place, according to the 2014 GFP ranking). And increasingly, it is China, not Japan, which becomes more influential on the world stage, not only in the economic arena but also in the diplomatic, military, and cultural ones.</p>
<p>The current discourse about “China’s return to greatness” in mainland China, especially under the new leadership of President Xi Jinping, only adds to the increasing unease among the Japanese in their slow but growing realization that Japan is a declining power, by almost all relevant indicators (e.g., economic, military, diplomatic, demographic, etc.), in a region which is fast shifting in favor of the dominant China as the next global superpower.</p>
<p>The flexing of its muscles by China in the South China Sea and the East China Sea (in its territorial disputes with its neighbors) in recent years is only another indication of this global shift of the balance of power in the making. It is in this historical context that Shinzo Abe is all fired up with his determination to revise the Japanese constitution for a more powerful military and a more active foreign policy to counter China, so as to make the world understand that Japan is “somebody,” so to speak. More bluntly, Abe might be thinking: “We are the superior Japanese, and what the hell do the backward Chinese think they are?”</p>
<p>But this Japanese nationalistic defiance (with its intense envy of the Chinese rise) is desperately futile in the long term, although it will make some waves in the short term, though with high economic and political costs. There is the high economic cost, because any Japanese military buildup will take away much needed resources from its ailing economy (for over two decades now) at the worst time, and this would mean the end of the “free ride” with minimal military spending that Japan had enjoyed for its economic prosperity in the post-WWII decades, as this is the classic “gun vs. butter” trade-off in economics. And there is the high political cost, because the Japanese nationalistic drive has already created political tensions with some of its sensitive and important neighbors, especially China, Russia, North Korea, and, shockingly indeed, even its regional ally South Korea.</p>
<p>In any event, the Japanese condescension towards the Chinese since the 20th century is now increasingly countered by an opposite orientation, that is, the Japanese inferiority complex towards the Chinese, or more correctly, Japan’s steady return to its former inferiority complex (not much seen since the times of Imperial China in the pre-modern past), especially under a new China in the coming Sinocentric East Asia.</p>
<p>The nationalistic leadership of Shinzo Abe in contemporary Japan will not be the last of its kind even after he is gone in some years from now, but the historical meaning of his foreign policy has much to do with the truly very painful transition of contemporary Japan to a new epoch of East Asia history, when Japan is a declining power and will eventually fall back to the shadow of its former self, as it has for millennia, this time in the orbit of “China’s return to greatness,” which is totally unacceptable (in a very painful way) to its obsolescent racism against (or condescension towards) the Chinese but will be gradually absorbed by its growing inferiority complex in the making.</p>
<p>But between now and then is a tormentous path to go through, so this very painful transition from racism (superiority complex) to inferiority complex in the current Japanese psyche will continue for years to come, until the growing Japanese inferiority complex will eventually overcome its declining racism (superiority complex) in due time, that is to say, until the so-called “China’s return to greatness” is ever more realized in the rest of the 21st century (and beyond).</p> | Racism and Inferiority Complex in Japan’s Current Foreign Policy towards China | false | http://foreignpolicyjournal.com/2014/07/22/racism-and-inferiority-complex-in-japans-current-foreign-policy-towards-china/ | 2014-07-22 | 1right-center
| Racism and Inferiority Complex in Japan’s Current Foreign Policy towards China
<p />
<p>The current Sino-Japanese tension under the Japanese leadership of Shinzo Abe with his determination to revise the Japanese constitution for a more powerful military and a more active foreign policy to counter the meteoric rise of contemporary China reveals a deeper existential crisis of identity in the Japanese psyche of our time, torn in between two conflicting orientations: namely, racism (superiority complex) and inferiority complex.</p>
<p>The first orientation which has contributed to the existential crisis of identity in the Japanese psyche of our time has to do with the relationship between Japanese racism (superiority complex) and the weakness of modern China.</p>
<p>Japanese racism against (or condescension towards) the Chinese did not exist in the pre-modern past, because, for millennia in East Asian history, Japan had been a backward area (or vassal) in the civilizational shadow of Imperial China known as the “Middle Kingdom” in this Sinocentric part of the world. In fact, the converse was true for millennia, in that the Japanese suffered from some form of inferiority complex towards the dominant Imperial China in the pre-modern past; after all, much of Japanese culture (including the Japanese language) was Chinese in origin.</p>
<p>It was only after the successful modernization of Meiji Japan by learning from the West and joining the rank of Western powers in the game of colonial imperialism near the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century that Japan started to look down on China as “the sick man of Asia,” especially after winning the Sino-Japanese war of 1894-95 (at a time when the Chinese Empire under the Manchu Dynasty was collapsing) and later invading and occupying part of mainland China in the 1930’s. These decades (from the second half of the 19th century to 1949, when the Communists took over mainland China and Mao Zedong formally declared that “China has now stood up”) also constituted what the Chinese historians now call “the one hundred years of humiliation” during which they greatly suffered from Japanese (and Western) imperialism.</p>
<p>Japanese racism reached its peak during WWII, when, for a few years, it invaded and occupied much of Southeast Asia and East Asia and in the process committed enormous atrocity towards the “inferior” natives (mostly Asians). For the first time in its history, Japan thought of itself as “number one” in this part of the world (long dominated by China for millennia) and looked down on other Asians as “inferior” (and looked up towards “whites” like the Western Europeans and Americans for emulation).</p>
<p>The Imperial Japanese surrender to the U.S. in 1945 after the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima did not completely eliminate Japanese racism for two main historical reasons.</p>
<p>The first historical reason for the continuation of Japanese racism after WWII has to do with the Cold War against communism, especially in regard to the Communist takeover of mainland China in 1949, the Korean War in the early 1950s, and the Vietnam War in the 1960s and 1970s, which put Japan on the side of the U.S. to become an indispensable ally in the subsequent Cold War against its communist foes. Unlike East Germany and West Germany after WWII, both of which were under pressure (by the Soviet Union and the U.S., respectively) to condemn and cleanse its Nazi imperial past once and for all, post-WWII Japan benefited from the preoccupation of the U.S. with using Japan as an ally in the Cold War against Communist China, the Soviet Union, North Korea, and later North Vietnam.</p>
<p>Unlike post-WWII West Germany, another ally of the U.S., where it was against the law to deny the Holocaust, there was no shrine nor temple to commemorate the Nazi war criminals, and the victims of Nazi atrocity were offered financial compensation — post-WWII Japan did not go through this process of complete cleansing of its imperial past. On the contrary, Japanese leaders have time and again visited the controversial shrines to commemorate their WWII war criminals, refused to officially offer financial compensations to the victims of imperial Japanese atrocity, even regarded the use of “comfort women” for Japanese soldiers in occupied territories during WWII as “normal,” and went so far to deny, by some more nationalistic Japanese, the historical events of Japanese invasion and atrocity.</p>
<p>In its preoccupation with the Cold War against the communist regimes in mainland China, the Soviet Union, North Korea, and North Vietnam in this part of the world, even though they were all victims of Japanese aggression during WWII, the U.S. had no interest in forcing Japan to undergo this process of complete cleansing of its imperial past to benefit its Communist foes, which, not surprisingly, were not pleased about it.</p>
<p>The current disturbing comments and deeds by Japanese officials under the nationalistic leadership of Shinzo Abe in regard to Japan’s imperial past during WWII is only the latest chapter of this toxic historical legacy. For instance, “on Dec. 26, 2013,…Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo which honors some 2.5 million Japanese war dead, including those convicted of war crimes during World War II,” as reported by Manuel Almario for the Philippine Daily Inquirer on July 10, 2014. His government is exploring ways to revise history textbooks for Japanese students to make them “more patriotic” and proud of their imperial past; worse, they are even trying to revise “the 1993 Kono Declaration” in regard to the “comfort women” issue, as Tessa Morris-Suzuki aptly pointed out in the article “Japan and the Art of Un-Apologising” on July 16, 2014 for The Diplomat, that “the result is the Japanese government can truthfully insist that it has not withdrawn the Kono Declaration, while very effectively demolishing its credibility.” After all, Katsuto Momii, director general of NHK, added in 2014 that “comfort women” for Japanese soldiers during WWII was a “normal” practice in war times. Another NHK leader Naoki Hyakuta even denied the Nanjing massacre and suggested that it “never happened.” Later on, Masataka Kataoka, head of Alps, denied Japan’s aggression in China in the 1930s as an “invasion” at all and suggested instead that Japan was merely “helping” China to fight off American and European colonial imperialism.</p>
<p>It was also at that historical moment of the Cold War against communism that the U.S. had no appetite to make Japan return some of the occupied territories to Communist China (which has led to the current Sino-Japanese dispute over the “Senkaku Islands,” also known as “the “Diaoyu Islands” in China), as Japan annexed the islands after winning the Sino-Japanese war of 1894-95. But this refusal of the U.S. and Japan violated the Cairo Declaration in 1943 among the U.S., the U.K., and (pre-Communist) China that any Japanese surrender required a return of all Imperial Japan’s territorial conquests, including the islands in question. Instead, the U.S. handed over the islands (which it had administered since 1945) to Japan in 1972 in the midst of the Cold War against its Communist foes (e.g., Communist China), in violation of the Cairo Declaration.</p>
<p>And the second historical reason for the continuation of Japanese racism (against the Chinese and other Asians) after WWII has to do with Japan’s “economic miracle” after WWII, partly because of the “free ride” or what Barry Posen in his book “Restraint” called the “cheap ride” by Japan after WWII to focus on economic development under the security protection of the U.S. In the same period, the economy of Communist China almost collapsed due to the disastrous Communist experiments in the 1950s and 1960s, especially in those tumultuous years of the “Great Leap Forward” and the “Cultural Revolution.”</p>
<p>But with the death of Mao Zedong in 1976, mainland China underwent a tectonic change never seen before in human history.</p>
<p>This leads us to the second orientation which has contributed to the existential crisis of identity in the Japanese psyche of our time, which has to do with the relationship between Japanese inferiority complex and what is known in mainland China nowadays as “China’s return to greatness.”</p>
<p>The meteoric rise of mainland China since the economic reforms of the 1970s (under the leadership of Deng Xiaopeng) has dethroned the Japanese economy from number 2 in the world to number 4 nowadays (after the U.S., China, and India, according to the recent ranking of major economies by the World Bank, in a measure by GDP PPP). More precisely, according to an estimate by the IMF, the current Chinese GDP (PPP) is about USD 15.3 trillion, whereas the Japanese one is about USD 4.8 trillion. Even better, China is destined to replace the U.S. as the world’s largest economy by the end of this year (2014), according to the most recent estimate by the International Comparison Programme in the World Bank in early 2014.</p>
<p>This meteoric rise of the Chinese economy has also transformed its military as the third most powerful in the world (only after the U.S. and Russia, with Japan in the tenth place, according to the 2014 GFP ranking). And increasingly, it is China, not Japan, which becomes more influential on the world stage, not only in the economic arena but also in the diplomatic, military, and cultural ones.</p>
<p>The current discourse about “China’s return to greatness” in mainland China, especially under the new leadership of President Xi Jinping, only adds to the increasing unease among the Japanese in their slow but growing realization that Japan is a declining power, by almost all relevant indicators (e.g., economic, military, diplomatic, demographic, etc.), in a region which is fast shifting in favor of the dominant China as the next global superpower.</p>
<p>The flexing of its muscles by China in the South China Sea and the East China Sea (in its territorial disputes with its neighbors) in recent years is only another indication of this global shift of the balance of power in the making. It is in this historical context that Shinzo Abe is all fired up with his determination to revise the Japanese constitution for a more powerful military and a more active foreign policy to counter China, so as to make the world understand that Japan is “somebody,” so to speak. More bluntly, Abe might be thinking: “We are the superior Japanese, and what the hell do the backward Chinese think they are?”</p>
<p>But this Japanese nationalistic defiance (with its intense envy of the Chinese rise) is desperately futile in the long term, although it will make some waves in the short term, though with high economic and political costs. There is the high economic cost, because any Japanese military buildup will take away much needed resources from its ailing economy (for over two decades now) at the worst time, and this would mean the end of the “free ride” with minimal military spending that Japan had enjoyed for its economic prosperity in the post-WWII decades, as this is the classic “gun vs. butter” trade-off in economics. And there is the high political cost, because the Japanese nationalistic drive has already created political tensions with some of its sensitive and important neighbors, especially China, Russia, North Korea, and, shockingly indeed, even its regional ally South Korea.</p>
<p>In any event, the Japanese condescension towards the Chinese since the 20th century is now increasingly countered by an opposite orientation, that is, the Japanese inferiority complex towards the Chinese, or more correctly, Japan’s steady return to its former inferiority complex (not much seen since the times of Imperial China in the pre-modern past), especially under a new China in the coming Sinocentric East Asia.</p>
<p>The nationalistic leadership of Shinzo Abe in contemporary Japan will not be the last of its kind even after he is gone in some years from now, but the historical meaning of his foreign policy has much to do with the truly very painful transition of contemporary Japan to a new epoch of East Asia history, when Japan is a declining power and will eventually fall back to the shadow of its former self, as it has for millennia, this time in the orbit of “China’s return to greatness,” which is totally unacceptable (in a very painful way) to its obsolescent racism against (or condescension towards) the Chinese but will be gradually absorbed by its growing inferiority complex in the making.</p>
<p>But between now and then is a tormentous path to go through, so this very painful transition from racism (superiority complex) to inferiority complex in the current Japanese psyche will continue for years to come, until the growing Japanese inferiority complex will eventually overcome its declining racism (superiority complex) in due time, that is to say, until the so-called “China’s return to greatness” is ever more realized in the rest of the 21st century (and beyond).</p> | 4,166 |
<p><a href="http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/we-are-in-far-worse-shape-than-we-were-just-prior-to-the-last-great-financial-crisis/crushed-car-by-ucffool-4" type="external" />None of the problems that caused the last financial crisis have been fixed.&#160; In fact, they have all gotten worse.&#160; The total amount of debt in the world has grown by more than 40 percent since 2007, the too big to fail banks have gotten 37 percent larger, and the colossal derivatives bubble has spiraled so far out of control that the only thing left to do is to watch the spectacular crash landing that is inevitably coming.&#160; Unfortunately, most people do not know the information that I am about to share with you in this article.&#160; Most people just assume that the politicians and the central banks have fixed the issues that caused the last great financial crisis.&#160; But the truth is that we are in&#160;far worse shape&#160;than we were back then.&#160; When this financial bubble finally bursts, the devastation that we will witness is likely to be absolutely catastrophic.</p>
<p>One of the biggest financial problems that the world is facing is that there is simply way too much debt.&#160; Never before in world history has there ever been a debt binge anything like this.</p>
<p>You would have thought that we would have learned our lesson from 2008 and would have started to reduce debt levels.</p>
<p>Instead, we pushed the accelerator to the floor.</p>
<p>It is hard to believe that this could possibly be true, but according to the Bank for International Settlements the total amount of debt in the world has increased&#160; <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-09/global-debt-exceeds-100-trillion-as-governments-binge-bis-says.html" type="external">by more than 40 percent</a>&#160;since 2007…</p>
<p>The amount of debt globally has soared&#160;more than 40 percent&#160;to&#160;$100 trillion&#160;since the first signs of the financial crisis as governments borrowed to pull their economies out of recession and companies took advantage of record low interest rates, according to the Bank for International Settlements.</p>
<p>The $30 trillion increase from $70 trillion between mid-2007 and mid-2013 compares with a $3.86 trillion decline in the value of equities to $53.8 trillion in the same period, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The jump in debt as measured by the Basel, Switzerland-based BIS in its quarterly review is almost twice the U.S.’s gross domestic product.</p>
<p>That is a recipe for utter disaster, and yet we can’t seem to help ourselves.</p>
<p>And of course the U.S. government is the largest offender.</p>
<p>Back in September 2008, the U.S. national debt was sitting at a total of&#160; <a href="http://www.treasurydirect.gov/govt/reports/pd/histdebt/histdebt_histo5.htm" type="external">10.02 trillion dollars</a>.</p>
<p>As I write this, it is now sitting at a total of&#160; <a href="http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/debt/current" type="external">17.49 trillion dollars</a>.</p>
<p>Is there anyone out there that can possibly conceive of a way that this ends other than badly?</p>
<p>During the last great financial crisis we were also told that one of our biggest problems was the fact that we had banks that were “too big to fail”.</p>
<p>Well, guess what?</p>
<p>Those banks are now much larger than they were back then.&#160; In fact, the six largest banks in the United States ( <a href="" type="internal">JPMorgan Chase</a>, <a href="" type="internal">Bank of America</a>, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley)&#160;have collectively gotten 37 percent larger&#160;since the last financial crisis.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, 1,400 smaller banks have gone out of business during that time frame, and&#160; <a href="http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304579404579232343313671258" type="external">only one new bank</a>&#160;has been started in the United States in the last three years.</p>
<p>So the problem of “too big to fail” is now much worse than it was back in 2008.</p>
<p>The following are some more statistics about our “too big to fail” problem that come from a&#160; <a href="http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/too-big-to-fail-banks-are-taking-over-as-number-of-u-s-banks-falls-to-all-time-record-low" type="external">previous article</a>…</p>
<p>-The U.S. banking system has 14.4 trillion dollars in total assets.&#160; The six largest banks now account for&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">67 percent</a>&#160;of those assets and all of the other banks account for only&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">33 percent</a>&#160;of those assets.</p>
<p>-Approximately&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">1,400 smaller banks</a>&#160;have disappeared over the past five years.</p>
<p>-JPMorgan Chase is roughly the size of the entire British economy.</p>
<p>-The four largest banks have&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">more than a million employees</a>combined.</p>
<p>-The five largest banks account for&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">42 percent</a>&#160;of all loans in the United States.</p>
<p>-Bank of America accounts for about&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">a third</a>&#160;of all business loans all by itself.</p>
<p>-Wells Fargo accounts for about&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">one quarter</a>&#160;of all mortgage loans all by itself.</p>
<p>-About&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">12 percent</a>&#160;of all cash in the United States is held in the vaults of JPMorgan Chase.</p>
<p>Most people simply do not understand that over the past couple of decades Wall Street has been transformed into the largest and wildest casino on the entire planet.</p>
<p>Nobody knows for sure how large the <a href="" type="internal">global derivatives bubble</a> is at this point, because derivatives trading is lightly regulated compared to other types of trading.&#160; But everyone agrees that it is absolutely massive.&#160; Estimates range from $600 trillion to $1.5 quadrillion.</p>
<p>And what we do know is that four of the too big to fail banks&#160;each&#160;have total exposure to derivatives that is in excess of $40 trillion.</p>
<p>The numbers posted below may look similar to numbers that I have included in articles in the past, but for this article I have updated them with&#160; <a href="http://www.occ.gov/topics/capital-markets/financial-markets/trading/derivatives/dq213.pdf" type="external">the very latest numbers</a>&#160;from the U.S. government.&#160; Since the last time that I wrote about this, these numbers have gotten even worse…</p>
<p>Total Assets: $1,989,875,000,000 (nearly 2 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Exposure To Derivatives: $71,810,058,000,000 (more than 71 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Assets: $1,344,751,000,000 (a bit more than 1.3 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Exposure To Derivatives: $62,963,116,000,000 (more than 62 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Assets: $1,438,859,000,000 (a bit more than 1.4 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Exposure To Derivatives: $41,386,713,000,000 (more than 41 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Assets: $111,117,000,000 (just a shade over 111 billion dollars – yes, you read that correctly)</p>
<p>Total Exposure To Derivatives: $47,467,154,000,000 (more than 47 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>During the coming derivatives crisis, several of those banks could fail simultaneously.</p>
<p>If that happened, it would be an understatement to say that we would be facing an “economic collapse”.</p>
<p>Credit would totally freeze up, nobody would be able to get loans, and economic activity would grind to a standstill.</p>
<p>It is absolutely inexcusable how reckless these big banks have been.</p>
<p>Just look at those numbers for Goldman Sachs again.</p>
<p>Goldman Sachs has total assets worth approximately 111 billion dollars (billion with a little “b”), but they have more than 47&#160;trillion&#160;dollars of total exposure to derivatives.</p>
<p>That means that the total exposure that Goldman Sachs has to derivatives contracts is more than&#160;427 times greater&#160;than their total assets.</p>
<p>I don’t know why more people aren’t writing about this.</p>
<p>This is utter insanity.</p>
<p>During the next great financial crisis, it is very likely that the rest of the planet is going to lose faith in the current global financial system that is based on the U.S. dollar and on U.S. debt.</p>
<p>When that day arrives, and the U.S. dollar loses reserve currency status, the shift in our standard of living is going to be dramatic.&#160; Just consider what Marin Katusa of Casey Research&#160; <a href="http://www.shtfplan.com/headline-news/game-changer-it-will-be-shocking-for-the-average-american-your-cost-of-living-will-quadruple_03092014" type="external">had to say the other day</a>…</p>
<p>It will be shocking for the average American… if the petro dollar dies and the U.S. loses its reserve currency status in the world there will be no middle class.</p>
<p>The middle class and the low class… wow… what a game changer. Your cost of living will quadruple.</p>
<p>The debt-fueled prosperity that we are enjoying now will not last forever.&#160; A day of reckoning is fast approaching, and most Americans will not be able to handle the very difficult adjustments that they will be forced to make.&#160; Here is some more from Marin Katusa…</p>
<p>Imagine this… take a country like Croatia… the average worker with a university degree makes about 1200 Euros a month. He spends a third of that, after tax, on keeping his house warm and filling up his gas tank to get to work and get back from work.</p>
<p>In North America, we don’t make $1200 a month, and we don’t spend a third of our paycheck on keeping our house warm and driving to work… so, the cost of living… food will triple… heat, electricity, everything subsidized by the government will triple overnight… and it will only get worse even if you can get the services.</p>
<p>All of this could have been prevented if we had done things the right way.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, we didn’t learn any of the lessons that we should have learned from the last financial crisis, and our politicians and the central banks have just continued to do the same things that they have always done.</p>
<p>So now we all get to pay the price.</p>
<p>Michael Snyder is the Editor of <a href="http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/we-are-in-far-worse-shape-than-we-were-just-prior-to-the-last-great-financial-crisis" type="external">The Economic Collapse Blog</a>.</p>
<p>Image Source: <a href="http://www.whatamimissinghere.com/archives/5551" type="external">www.whatismissinghere.com</a></p>
<p />
<p /> | We Are In FAR Worse Shape Than We Were Just Prior To The Last Great Financial Crisis | true | http://dcclothesline.com/2014/03/11/far-worse-shape-just-prior-last-great-financial-crisis/ | 2014-03-11 | 0right
| We Are In FAR Worse Shape Than We Were Just Prior To The Last Great Financial Crisis
<p><a href="http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/we-are-in-far-worse-shape-than-we-were-just-prior-to-the-last-great-financial-crisis/crushed-car-by-ucffool-4" type="external" />None of the problems that caused the last financial crisis have been fixed.&#160; In fact, they have all gotten worse.&#160; The total amount of debt in the world has grown by more than 40 percent since 2007, the too big to fail banks have gotten 37 percent larger, and the colossal derivatives bubble has spiraled so far out of control that the only thing left to do is to watch the spectacular crash landing that is inevitably coming.&#160; Unfortunately, most people do not know the information that I am about to share with you in this article.&#160; Most people just assume that the politicians and the central banks have fixed the issues that caused the last great financial crisis.&#160; But the truth is that we are in&#160;far worse shape&#160;than we were back then.&#160; When this financial bubble finally bursts, the devastation that we will witness is likely to be absolutely catastrophic.</p>
<p>One of the biggest financial problems that the world is facing is that there is simply way too much debt.&#160; Never before in world history has there ever been a debt binge anything like this.</p>
<p>You would have thought that we would have learned our lesson from 2008 and would have started to reduce debt levels.</p>
<p>Instead, we pushed the accelerator to the floor.</p>
<p>It is hard to believe that this could possibly be true, but according to the Bank for International Settlements the total amount of debt in the world has increased&#160; <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-09/global-debt-exceeds-100-trillion-as-governments-binge-bis-says.html" type="external">by more than 40 percent</a>&#160;since 2007…</p>
<p>The amount of debt globally has soared&#160;more than 40 percent&#160;to&#160;$100 trillion&#160;since the first signs of the financial crisis as governments borrowed to pull their economies out of recession and companies took advantage of record low interest rates, according to the Bank for International Settlements.</p>
<p>The $30 trillion increase from $70 trillion between mid-2007 and mid-2013 compares with a $3.86 trillion decline in the value of equities to $53.8 trillion in the same period, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The jump in debt as measured by the Basel, Switzerland-based BIS in its quarterly review is almost twice the U.S.’s gross domestic product.</p>
<p>That is a recipe for utter disaster, and yet we can’t seem to help ourselves.</p>
<p>And of course the U.S. government is the largest offender.</p>
<p>Back in September 2008, the U.S. national debt was sitting at a total of&#160; <a href="http://www.treasurydirect.gov/govt/reports/pd/histdebt/histdebt_histo5.htm" type="external">10.02 trillion dollars</a>.</p>
<p>As I write this, it is now sitting at a total of&#160; <a href="http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/debt/current" type="external">17.49 trillion dollars</a>.</p>
<p>Is there anyone out there that can possibly conceive of a way that this ends other than badly?</p>
<p>During the last great financial crisis we were also told that one of our biggest problems was the fact that we had banks that were “too big to fail”.</p>
<p>Well, guess what?</p>
<p>Those banks are now much larger than they were back then.&#160; In fact, the six largest banks in the United States ( <a href="" type="internal">JPMorgan Chase</a>, <a href="" type="internal">Bank of America</a>, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley)&#160;have collectively gotten 37 percent larger&#160;since the last financial crisis.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, 1,400 smaller banks have gone out of business during that time frame, and&#160; <a href="http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304579404579232343313671258" type="external">only one new bank</a>&#160;has been started in the United States in the last three years.</p>
<p>So the problem of “too big to fail” is now much worse than it was back in 2008.</p>
<p>The following are some more statistics about our “too big to fail” problem that come from a&#160; <a href="http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/too-big-to-fail-banks-are-taking-over-as-number-of-u-s-banks-falls-to-all-time-record-low" type="external">previous article</a>…</p>
<p>-The U.S. banking system has 14.4 trillion dollars in total assets.&#160; The six largest banks now account for&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">67 percent</a>&#160;of those assets and all of the other banks account for only&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">33 percent</a>&#160;of those assets.</p>
<p>-Approximately&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">1,400 smaller banks</a>&#160;have disappeared over the past five years.</p>
<p>-JPMorgan Chase is roughly the size of the entire British economy.</p>
<p>-The four largest banks have&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">more than a million employees</a>combined.</p>
<p>-The five largest banks account for&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">42 percent</a>&#160;of all loans in the United States.</p>
<p>-Bank of America accounts for about&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">a third</a>&#160;of all business loans all by itself.</p>
<p>-Wells Fargo accounts for about&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">one quarter</a>&#160;of all mortgage loans all by itself.</p>
<p>-About&#160; <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/09/13/too-big-to-fail-banks/" type="external">12 percent</a>&#160;of all cash in the United States is held in the vaults of JPMorgan Chase.</p>
<p>Most people simply do not understand that over the past couple of decades Wall Street has been transformed into the largest and wildest casino on the entire planet.</p>
<p>Nobody knows for sure how large the <a href="" type="internal">global derivatives bubble</a> is at this point, because derivatives trading is lightly regulated compared to other types of trading.&#160; But everyone agrees that it is absolutely massive.&#160; Estimates range from $600 trillion to $1.5 quadrillion.</p>
<p>And what we do know is that four of the too big to fail banks&#160;each&#160;have total exposure to derivatives that is in excess of $40 trillion.</p>
<p>The numbers posted below may look similar to numbers that I have included in articles in the past, but for this article I have updated them with&#160; <a href="http://www.occ.gov/topics/capital-markets/financial-markets/trading/derivatives/dq213.pdf" type="external">the very latest numbers</a>&#160;from the U.S. government.&#160; Since the last time that I wrote about this, these numbers have gotten even worse…</p>
<p>Total Assets: $1,989,875,000,000 (nearly 2 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Exposure To Derivatives: $71,810,058,000,000 (more than 71 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Assets: $1,344,751,000,000 (a bit more than 1.3 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Exposure To Derivatives: $62,963,116,000,000 (more than 62 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Assets: $1,438,859,000,000 (a bit more than 1.4 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Exposure To Derivatives: $41,386,713,000,000 (more than 41 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>Total Assets: $111,117,000,000 (just a shade over 111 billion dollars – yes, you read that correctly)</p>
<p>Total Exposure To Derivatives: $47,467,154,000,000 (more than 47 trillion dollars)</p>
<p>During the coming derivatives crisis, several of those banks could fail simultaneously.</p>
<p>If that happened, it would be an understatement to say that we would be facing an “economic collapse”.</p>
<p>Credit would totally freeze up, nobody would be able to get loans, and economic activity would grind to a standstill.</p>
<p>It is absolutely inexcusable how reckless these big banks have been.</p>
<p>Just look at those numbers for Goldman Sachs again.</p>
<p>Goldman Sachs has total assets worth approximately 111 billion dollars (billion with a little “b”), but they have more than 47&#160;trillion&#160;dollars of total exposure to derivatives.</p>
<p>That means that the total exposure that Goldman Sachs has to derivatives contracts is more than&#160;427 times greater&#160;than their total assets.</p>
<p>I don’t know why more people aren’t writing about this.</p>
<p>This is utter insanity.</p>
<p>During the next great financial crisis, it is very likely that the rest of the planet is going to lose faith in the current global financial system that is based on the U.S. dollar and on U.S. debt.</p>
<p>When that day arrives, and the U.S. dollar loses reserve currency status, the shift in our standard of living is going to be dramatic.&#160; Just consider what Marin Katusa of Casey Research&#160; <a href="http://www.shtfplan.com/headline-news/game-changer-it-will-be-shocking-for-the-average-american-your-cost-of-living-will-quadruple_03092014" type="external">had to say the other day</a>…</p>
<p>It will be shocking for the average American… if the petro dollar dies and the U.S. loses its reserve currency status in the world there will be no middle class.</p>
<p>The middle class and the low class… wow… what a game changer. Your cost of living will quadruple.</p>
<p>The debt-fueled prosperity that we are enjoying now will not last forever.&#160; A day of reckoning is fast approaching, and most Americans will not be able to handle the very difficult adjustments that they will be forced to make.&#160; Here is some more from Marin Katusa…</p>
<p>Imagine this… take a country like Croatia… the average worker with a university degree makes about 1200 Euros a month. He spends a third of that, after tax, on keeping his house warm and filling up his gas tank to get to work and get back from work.</p>
<p>In North America, we don’t make $1200 a month, and we don’t spend a third of our paycheck on keeping our house warm and driving to work… so, the cost of living… food will triple… heat, electricity, everything subsidized by the government will triple overnight… and it will only get worse even if you can get the services.</p>
<p>All of this could have been prevented if we had done things the right way.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, we didn’t learn any of the lessons that we should have learned from the last financial crisis, and our politicians and the central banks have just continued to do the same things that they have always done.</p>
<p>So now we all get to pay the price.</p>
<p>Michael Snyder is the Editor of <a href="http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/we-are-in-far-worse-shape-than-we-were-just-prior-to-the-last-great-financial-crisis" type="external">The Economic Collapse Blog</a>.</p>
<p>Image Source: <a href="http://www.whatamimissinghere.com/archives/5551" type="external">www.whatismissinghere.com</a></p>
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<p>It certainly wasn’t what everyone wanted, but it takes care of business with fairness and in a strategic way.</p>
<p>Regents on Monday approved an operating budget of $571.2 million for NMSU – or $690.5 million, including its community colleges – which deals with an expected $9 million expected shortfall in its system.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>To do this, the budget includes a 2.4 percent tuition increase and plans to reduce staff through attrition and a hiring moratorium. No layoffs or retirement incentives are being considered.</p>
<p>Like universities statewide, NMSU is dealing with a decrease in enrollment – especially as the economy recovers and those students who enrolled simply because they couldn’t find jobs disappear from campus. Last fall, the Las Cruces university had 13,741 students compared to 15,712 in 2010.</p>
<p>“We have now decided that the reality is we need to right-size New Mexico State University to what we see in the demographics coming up,” Carruthers told the Journal.</p>
<p>It’s not all bleak. With an estimated $2.3 million in revenue from the tuition increase and an expected $1.1 million in new money from the Legislature, NMSU’s plans include raising faculty salaries, hiring student advisers and funding a gap in the lottery scholarship.</p>
<p>Those efforts are expected to contribute to the administration’s goals of improving student retention and increasing the four-year graduation rate.</p>
<p>NMSU does well by keeping students’ needs – current and future – at the forefront in this budget cycle.</p>
<p>And mostly, it deserves praise for facing reality and adopting a strategy that involves a lot more than hope and can-kicking.</p>
<p>This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.</p>
<p /> | Editorial: NMSU regents, president are taking care of business | false | https://abqjournal.com/566163/nmsu-regents-president-are-taking-care-of-business.html | 2least
| Editorial: NMSU regents, president are taking care of business
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<p />
<p>It certainly wasn’t what everyone wanted, but it takes care of business with fairness and in a strategic way.</p>
<p>Regents on Monday approved an operating budget of $571.2 million for NMSU – or $690.5 million, including its community colleges – which deals with an expected $9 million expected shortfall in its system.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>To do this, the budget includes a 2.4 percent tuition increase and plans to reduce staff through attrition and a hiring moratorium. No layoffs or retirement incentives are being considered.</p>
<p>Like universities statewide, NMSU is dealing with a decrease in enrollment – especially as the economy recovers and those students who enrolled simply because they couldn’t find jobs disappear from campus. Last fall, the Las Cruces university had 13,741 students compared to 15,712 in 2010.</p>
<p>“We have now decided that the reality is we need to right-size New Mexico State University to what we see in the demographics coming up,” Carruthers told the Journal.</p>
<p>It’s not all bleak. With an estimated $2.3 million in revenue from the tuition increase and an expected $1.1 million in new money from the Legislature, NMSU’s plans include raising faculty salaries, hiring student advisers and funding a gap in the lottery scholarship.</p>
<p>Those efforts are expected to contribute to the administration’s goals of improving student retention and increasing the four-year graduation rate.</p>
<p>NMSU does well by keeping students’ needs – current and future – at the forefront in this budget cycle.</p>
<p>And mostly, it deserves praise for facing reality and adopting a strategy that involves a lot more than hope and can-kicking.</p>
<p>This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.</p>
<p /> | 4,168 |
|
<p>Appearing on Fox News with Tucker Carlson, actor Richard Dreyfuss, who <a href="https://twitter.com/RichardDreyfuss/status/809951053852672002" type="external">definitely</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/RichardDreyfuss/status/796008543547703296" type="external">dislikes</a> <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/big-hollywood/2016/05/31/richard-dreyfuss-goes-full-never-trump-calls-gop-frontrunners-celebrity-supporters-whores/" type="external">President Trump</a>, offered a surprising defense of free speech on campus, ripping colleges that make it difficult for speakers from both political directions to speak.</p>
<p>Dreyfuss offered:</p>
<p>I want to mention one thing … You were talking about the speakers on university campuses. And I am totally, incontrovertibly on your side about this. I think that any intrusion into freedom of speech is an intrusion into freedom of speech. And when one of the presidents of one of the colleges said, “This is a school, not a battlefield,” I said, no, it a battlefield of ideas and we must have dissident, dissenting opinions on campuses and I think it's political correctness taken to a nightmarish point of view.</p>
<p>Asked about President Trump’s threat to withdraw funds from sanctuary cities, which was challenged by a judge, and why no judge challenged the Obama Administration’s threat to withhold funds from North Carolina over its transgender bathroom bill, Dreyfuss decided to eschew answering the question and launch into a discussion of civics, in which he sounded more conservative than would have been supposed, prompting Carlson to respond, “I agree with every single word of that.”</p>
<p>Dreyfuss stated:</p>
<p>I have withdrawn from partisan politics. I am a constitutionalist who believes that the Constitution and the Bill of Rights must be central and the parties must be peripheral. What's most important for me is what you just mentioned haphazardly, we are over 30. Civics has not been taught in the American public school system since 1970. And that means everyone in Congress never studied the constitution and the bill of rights as you and I might have. And that is a critical flaw because it's why we were admired and respected for so long, it gives us our national identity, it tells the world who we are and why we are who we are, and without a frame that gives us values that stand behind the bill of rights, we're just floating in the air and our sectors of society are not connected. What's really important is that the assumptions of the left and the right are all skewed wrong. We have to find areas of agreement and areas that we share. And we do share the notion that education accomplishes certain things. One, it turns students into citizens. And, two, it teaches students how to run the country before it's their turn to run the country. And, three, it teaches the values of this nation. People come from all over the world or are born into this nation without the values that we have here. That's why they came here, to get them. And what are they? You can put them in opportunity, rise by merit, mobility, and freedom. That's what we sell. And if you don't want that, you've chosen the wrong place. And you don't get a pass by being born here, you have to learn it. Even the Ten Commandments are not known at birth. You must learn them. And we must learn our values and if we don't, we are fatally, fatally wounding ourselves. We will not have any way to really combat the ideas behind ISIS because we won't know our own. And we have to.</p>
<p>Video below:</p> | WATCH: This Liberal Actor Just Smacked Down College Leftist Snowflakes | true | https://dailywire.com/news/15922/watch-liberal-actor-just-smacked-down-college-hank-berrien | 2017-05-01 | 0right
| WATCH: This Liberal Actor Just Smacked Down College Leftist Snowflakes
<p>Appearing on Fox News with Tucker Carlson, actor Richard Dreyfuss, who <a href="https://twitter.com/RichardDreyfuss/status/809951053852672002" type="external">definitely</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/RichardDreyfuss/status/796008543547703296" type="external">dislikes</a> <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/big-hollywood/2016/05/31/richard-dreyfuss-goes-full-never-trump-calls-gop-frontrunners-celebrity-supporters-whores/" type="external">President Trump</a>, offered a surprising defense of free speech on campus, ripping colleges that make it difficult for speakers from both political directions to speak.</p>
<p>Dreyfuss offered:</p>
<p>I want to mention one thing … You were talking about the speakers on university campuses. And I am totally, incontrovertibly on your side about this. I think that any intrusion into freedom of speech is an intrusion into freedom of speech. And when one of the presidents of one of the colleges said, “This is a school, not a battlefield,” I said, no, it a battlefield of ideas and we must have dissident, dissenting opinions on campuses and I think it's political correctness taken to a nightmarish point of view.</p>
<p>Asked about President Trump’s threat to withdraw funds from sanctuary cities, which was challenged by a judge, and why no judge challenged the Obama Administration’s threat to withhold funds from North Carolina over its transgender bathroom bill, Dreyfuss decided to eschew answering the question and launch into a discussion of civics, in which he sounded more conservative than would have been supposed, prompting Carlson to respond, “I agree with every single word of that.”</p>
<p>Dreyfuss stated:</p>
<p>I have withdrawn from partisan politics. I am a constitutionalist who believes that the Constitution and the Bill of Rights must be central and the parties must be peripheral. What's most important for me is what you just mentioned haphazardly, we are over 30. Civics has not been taught in the American public school system since 1970. And that means everyone in Congress never studied the constitution and the bill of rights as you and I might have. And that is a critical flaw because it's why we were admired and respected for so long, it gives us our national identity, it tells the world who we are and why we are who we are, and without a frame that gives us values that stand behind the bill of rights, we're just floating in the air and our sectors of society are not connected. What's really important is that the assumptions of the left and the right are all skewed wrong. We have to find areas of agreement and areas that we share. And we do share the notion that education accomplishes certain things. One, it turns students into citizens. And, two, it teaches students how to run the country before it's their turn to run the country. And, three, it teaches the values of this nation. People come from all over the world or are born into this nation without the values that we have here. That's why they came here, to get them. And what are they? You can put them in opportunity, rise by merit, mobility, and freedom. That's what we sell. And if you don't want that, you've chosen the wrong place. And you don't get a pass by being born here, you have to learn it. Even the Ten Commandments are not known at birth. You must learn them. And we must learn our values and if we don't, we are fatally, fatally wounding ourselves. We will not have any way to really combat the ideas behind ISIS because we won't know our own. And we have to.</p>
<p>Video below:</p> | 4,169 |
<p>BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The legal service of the European Parliament said on Wednesday that the European Central Bank’s plan to force banks to set aside more money for new loans that turn sour goes beyond the bank’s competence, adding new criticism to the battered project.</p>
<p>The document, dated Nov. 8 and seen by Reuters, said the ECB had “no competence” to adopt the plan in its current form, because it imposes “binding rules of general scope applicable to all banks” supervised by the bank.</p>
<p />
<p>Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.</p> | EU Parliament legal service says ECB bad loan plan beyond its competence | false | https://newsline.com/eu-parliament-legal-service-says-ecb-bad-loan-plan-beyond-its-competence/ | 2017-11-08 | 1right-center
| EU Parliament legal service says ECB bad loan plan beyond its competence
<p>BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The legal service of the European Parliament said on Wednesday that the European Central Bank’s plan to force banks to set aside more money for new loans that turn sour goes beyond the bank’s competence, adding new criticism to the battered project.</p>
<p>The document, dated Nov. 8 and seen by Reuters, said the ECB had “no competence” to adopt the plan in its current form, because it imposes “binding rules of general scope applicable to all banks” supervised by the bank.</p>
<p />
<p>Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.</p> | 4,170 |
<p>Here it comes—the marking of another year living with the memories and influences of September 11, 1906.</p>
<p>Excuse me? 1906? Don’t I mean 2001? Indeed, when we say “September 11” in the US, it is shorthand for the heinous attacks on that day in 2001. However, September 11 means something special and good in the annals of my field of Conflict Transformation. It’s the day strategic nonviolence began its assault on the institution of war.</p>
<p>On September 11, 1906, Mohandas Gandhi stood to speak in the Imperial Theater in white-ruled South Africa, a society completely grounded and awash in blatant, “legal” racism. Gandhi–those old enough to have seen the 1982 Hollywood version of his life may remember the scene—stood in a crowded theater and explained the new odious racial laws that ruled Hindu marriages void, that allowed police to enter the home of any Indian without a warrant or permission, and that required each Indian to carry a pass at all times.</p>
<p>The theater erupted into shouts of defiance, including threats to kill any policeman who so insulted a Hindu wife. Gandhi expressed admiration for such determination and willingness to fight for justice. Then he said that this was a cause “for which I would die, but there is no cause for which I would kill.”</p>
<p>That vow guided his movement to victory in South Africa, then to the liberation of India, and it became the discipline for the decolonization of British Gold Coast (which reverted to Ghana), as well as Zambia (formerly part of Rhodesia), then the Philippines in 1986, the Velvet Revolution in Eastern and Central Europe, and the “colored revolutions” to Arab Spring and we see thousands of other such campaigns around the world ever since Gandhi first identified it as a method of insurrection.</p>
<p>Nonviolent insurgency succeeds faster and twice as often as does armed rebellion, and obviously with a tiny fraction of the costs in blood, treasure, and ecological damage.</p>
<p>So it has been 110 years—why hasn’t war ended if nonviolence is so effective?</p>
<p>Since we’ve been studying nonviolence approximately one percent as long as we’ve studied war (which archeologists tell us began approximately 11,000 years ago with the first walled cities as a result), let’s marvel rather at how quickly nonviolence has proven itself superior—much more gain for much less pain.</p>
<p>And let’s hope future insurrections are waged with the methods from 1906 rather than 2001.</p> | Commemorate the Good September 11 | true | https://counterpunch.org/2016/09/09/commemorate-the-good-september-11/ | 2016-09-09 | 4left
| Commemorate the Good September 11
<p>Here it comes—the marking of another year living with the memories and influences of September 11, 1906.</p>
<p>Excuse me? 1906? Don’t I mean 2001? Indeed, when we say “September 11” in the US, it is shorthand for the heinous attacks on that day in 2001. However, September 11 means something special and good in the annals of my field of Conflict Transformation. It’s the day strategic nonviolence began its assault on the institution of war.</p>
<p>On September 11, 1906, Mohandas Gandhi stood to speak in the Imperial Theater in white-ruled South Africa, a society completely grounded and awash in blatant, “legal” racism. Gandhi–those old enough to have seen the 1982 Hollywood version of his life may remember the scene—stood in a crowded theater and explained the new odious racial laws that ruled Hindu marriages void, that allowed police to enter the home of any Indian without a warrant or permission, and that required each Indian to carry a pass at all times.</p>
<p>The theater erupted into shouts of defiance, including threats to kill any policeman who so insulted a Hindu wife. Gandhi expressed admiration for such determination and willingness to fight for justice. Then he said that this was a cause “for which I would die, but there is no cause for which I would kill.”</p>
<p>That vow guided his movement to victory in South Africa, then to the liberation of India, and it became the discipline for the decolonization of British Gold Coast (which reverted to Ghana), as well as Zambia (formerly part of Rhodesia), then the Philippines in 1986, the Velvet Revolution in Eastern and Central Europe, and the “colored revolutions” to Arab Spring and we see thousands of other such campaigns around the world ever since Gandhi first identified it as a method of insurrection.</p>
<p>Nonviolent insurgency succeeds faster and twice as often as does armed rebellion, and obviously with a tiny fraction of the costs in blood, treasure, and ecological damage.</p>
<p>So it has been 110 years—why hasn’t war ended if nonviolence is so effective?</p>
<p>Since we’ve been studying nonviolence approximately one percent as long as we’ve studied war (which archeologists tell us began approximately 11,000 years ago with the first walled cities as a result), let’s marvel rather at how quickly nonviolence has proven itself superior—much more gain for much less pain.</p>
<p>And let’s hope future insurrections are waged with the methods from 1906 rather than 2001.</p> | 4,171 |
<p />
<p>When President Barack Obama delivered his big deficit speech this week, he didn’t offer many details.&#160;But when it came to savings in the health-care sector, the president made an exception, and got into the nitty gritty. Stressing the urgency of reining in health-care costs—the single biggest driver of government spending—Obama <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/obamas-budget-is-policy-not-philosophy/2011/04/12/AFE1UQYD_blog.html" type="external">vowed</a> to build upon the cost-containment measures in the Affordable Care Act, the landmark health reform bill he signed last year. One key feature of the new law is an independent Medicare panel that will have new authority to set payment rates and evaluate health-care spending. In his speech, Obama promised to slow the growth of Medicare costs even further by strengthening the authority of the panel, known as the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB).</p>
<p>Unfortunately for the president, the Medicare panel is also one of the most widely misunderstood and reviled parts of health-care reform. Republicans have already launched an effort to repeal the commission, <a href="" type="internal">dubbing</a> it the new “death panel.” What’s more, a growing number of Democrats are joining their effort to kill the panel, putting another thorn in Obama’s side.</p>
<p>Rep. Allyson Schwartz (D-Pa.) recently became the latest Democrat to sign onto the House Republicans’ IPAB repeal bill. As Politico <a href="http://www.politico.com/politicopulse/0411/politicopulse479.html" type="external">reports</a>, the conservative Blue Dog New Dem* is “the most high-profile Democrat yet” to join the GOP’s effort to scrap the payment board. While Republicans have slammed the panel for allowing faceless bureaucrats to “ration” care, Democratic opponents have taken a different tack—they criticize the panel for having the authority to bypass Congress. “Abdicating this responsibility, whether to insurance companies or an unelected commission, would undermine our ability to represent the needs of the seniors and disabled in our communities,” Schwartz wrote in a letter explaining her position.</p>
<p>Schwartz has now becoming the third House Democrat to support the Republican IPAB repeal effort: she <a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/medicare/148515-first-two-democrats-break-with-administration-on-medicare-payment-board" type="external">joins</a> Rep. Michael Capuano (D-Mass.), a member of the Progressive Caucus, and Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.), a centrist New Democrat who’s now running for Senate. The Medicare panel was never popular among House Dems, who refused to include it in their version of the health-care bill, with opposition coming from both liberal and conservative flanks of the party.&#160;</p>
<p>So while Obama want to strengthen IPAB to bring down the deficit, members of his own party want to dismantle it altogether. The lack of Democratic unity behind this central pillar of Obama’s plan reveals just how difficult it will be to reduce the deficit in any meaningful way.&#160;</p>
<p>*This has been corrected. Sorry.</p>
<p /> | Rising Dem Opposition to Key Part of Obama’s Deficit Plan | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2011/04/democratic-opposition-ipab-repeal-medicare/ | 2011-04-15 | 4left
| Rising Dem Opposition to Key Part of Obama’s Deficit Plan
<p />
<p>When President Barack Obama delivered his big deficit speech this week, he didn’t offer many details.&#160;But when it came to savings in the health-care sector, the president made an exception, and got into the nitty gritty. Stressing the urgency of reining in health-care costs—the single biggest driver of government spending—Obama <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/obamas-budget-is-policy-not-philosophy/2011/04/12/AFE1UQYD_blog.html" type="external">vowed</a> to build upon the cost-containment measures in the Affordable Care Act, the landmark health reform bill he signed last year. One key feature of the new law is an independent Medicare panel that will have new authority to set payment rates and evaluate health-care spending. In his speech, Obama promised to slow the growth of Medicare costs even further by strengthening the authority of the panel, known as the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB).</p>
<p>Unfortunately for the president, the Medicare panel is also one of the most widely misunderstood and reviled parts of health-care reform. Republicans have already launched an effort to repeal the commission, <a href="" type="internal">dubbing</a> it the new “death panel.” What’s more, a growing number of Democrats are joining their effort to kill the panel, putting another thorn in Obama’s side.</p>
<p>Rep. Allyson Schwartz (D-Pa.) recently became the latest Democrat to sign onto the House Republicans’ IPAB repeal bill. As Politico <a href="http://www.politico.com/politicopulse/0411/politicopulse479.html" type="external">reports</a>, the conservative Blue Dog New Dem* is “the most high-profile Democrat yet” to join the GOP’s effort to scrap the payment board. While Republicans have slammed the panel for allowing faceless bureaucrats to “ration” care, Democratic opponents have taken a different tack—they criticize the panel for having the authority to bypass Congress. “Abdicating this responsibility, whether to insurance companies or an unelected commission, would undermine our ability to represent the needs of the seniors and disabled in our communities,” Schwartz wrote in a letter explaining her position.</p>
<p>Schwartz has now becoming the third House Democrat to support the Republican IPAB repeal effort: she <a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/medicare/148515-first-two-democrats-break-with-administration-on-medicare-payment-board" type="external">joins</a> Rep. Michael Capuano (D-Mass.), a member of the Progressive Caucus, and Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.), a centrist New Democrat who’s now running for Senate. The Medicare panel was never popular among House Dems, who refused to include it in their version of the health-care bill, with opposition coming from both liberal and conservative flanks of the party.&#160;</p>
<p>So while Obama want to strengthen IPAB to bring down the deficit, members of his own party want to dismantle it altogether. The lack of Democratic unity behind this central pillar of Obama’s plan reveals just how difficult it will be to reduce the deficit in any meaningful way.&#160;</p>
<p>*This has been corrected. Sorry.</p>
<p /> | 4,172 |
<p>&lt;a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cia-lobby-seal.jpg"&gt;Central Intelligence Agency&lt;/a&gt;/Wikimedia Commons</p>
<p />
<p>Last December, Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal Al-Balawi was invited onto a small US&#160;outpost in Khost,&#160;Afghanistan. It was Camp Chapman, a CIA-run base, and the Jordanian Al-Balawi was the agency’s hot new asset:&#160;a doctor with Al Qaeda ties who could lead Americans to Osama bin&#160;Laden’s second-in-command.</p>
<p>But Al-Balawi carried a host of secrets, and an explosive vest. Once he was close enough to a crowd of CIA&#160;officers, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/05/world/asia/05cia.html" type="external">he blew himself up</a>, killing seven Americans and a Jordanian spy. Follow-up reporting showed he’d never abandoned his Islamist loyalties:&#160;He’d instead posed as a double agent. “This is a message to the enemies of the nation,”&#160; <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/world/middleeast/10balawi.html?pagewanted=2" type="external">he said in a video</a> released to Al Jazeera after his death. “To the Jordanian intelligence and the American Central Intelligence Agency.”</p>
<p>In an unusual feat of candor, CIA&#160;Director Leon Panetta <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/20/world/asia/20intel.html?hp" type="external">told reporters Tuesday</a> that the agency had its doubts about Balawi’s loyalties before his attack. In interviews and <a href="https://www.cia.gov/news-information/press-releases-statements/press-release-2010/message-from-the-director-lessons-from-khowst.html" type="external">a press release</a>, Panetta shared details of an internal CIA report on the incident:&#160;A Jordan-based officer for the agency “received warnings” that Balawi might try to kill Americans three weeks before he succeeded, but he kept the information to himself, and Balawi was shoddily vetted. One reason:&#160;Junior CIA&#160;officers were excited about his promises to lead them to Ayman Al-Zawahri, the Egyptian doctor who is bin Laden’s right-hand man.</p>
<p>“The mission itself may have clouded some of the judgments made here,” Panetta <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/20/world/asia/20intel.html?hp" type="external">told the New York Times</a>.</p>
<p>The agency report stopped short of blaming its own officers for the attack, but Mark Mazzetti of the Times reported details that make a strong case for weak CIA&#160;fieldwork on Balawi:</p>
<p>Mr. Panetta said that because he was considered a reliable source, normal security procedures were eased: Mr. Balawi was not subjected to screening at the perimeter of the Khost base, and a large group of C.I.A. officers gathered to greet him when he arrived at the base.</p>
<p>C.I.A. officers became suspicious however, when Mr. Balawi chose to get out of the car on the side opposite the security personnel, who were waiting to pat him down. The security guards soon drew their guns, and Mr. Balawi detonated his suicide vest.</p>
<p>As riveting as the new details are, clues to Badawi’s true loyalties were available to journalists soon after the attack—clues that US intelligence officers probably could (and should) have picked up on. All last winter, Mazzetti <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/world/middleeast/10balawi.html" type="external">turned up new details</a> about Badawi, his life, and his intrigues. But Newsweek got perhaps the most damning evidence, <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/2010/01/07/the-bomber-s-wife.html" type="external">interviewing Badawi’s widow</a> in early January. She made no bones about his work. “My husband was anti-American,” she told the magazine. “So am I.”</p>
<p /> | CIA Suspected Bomber Was Double Agent | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2010/10/cia-knew-bomber-was-double-agent/ | 2010-10-19 | 4left
| CIA Suspected Bomber Was Double Agent
<p>&lt;a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cia-lobby-seal.jpg"&gt;Central Intelligence Agency&lt;/a&gt;/Wikimedia Commons</p>
<p />
<p>Last December, Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal Al-Balawi was invited onto a small US&#160;outpost in Khost,&#160;Afghanistan. It was Camp Chapman, a CIA-run base, and the Jordanian Al-Balawi was the agency’s hot new asset:&#160;a doctor with Al Qaeda ties who could lead Americans to Osama bin&#160;Laden’s second-in-command.</p>
<p>But Al-Balawi carried a host of secrets, and an explosive vest. Once he was close enough to a crowd of CIA&#160;officers, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/05/world/asia/05cia.html" type="external">he blew himself up</a>, killing seven Americans and a Jordanian spy. Follow-up reporting showed he’d never abandoned his Islamist loyalties:&#160;He’d instead posed as a double agent. “This is a message to the enemies of the nation,”&#160; <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/world/middleeast/10balawi.html?pagewanted=2" type="external">he said in a video</a> released to Al Jazeera after his death. “To the Jordanian intelligence and the American Central Intelligence Agency.”</p>
<p>In an unusual feat of candor, CIA&#160;Director Leon Panetta <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/20/world/asia/20intel.html?hp" type="external">told reporters Tuesday</a> that the agency had its doubts about Balawi’s loyalties before his attack. In interviews and <a href="https://www.cia.gov/news-information/press-releases-statements/press-release-2010/message-from-the-director-lessons-from-khowst.html" type="external">a press release</a>, Panetta shared details of an internal CIA report on the incident:&#160;A Jordan-based officer for the agency “received warnings” that Balawi might try to kill Americans three weeks before he succeeded, but he kept the information to himself, and Balawi was shoddily vetted. One reason:&#160;Junior CIA&#160;officers were excited about his promises to lead them to Ayman Al-Zawahri, the Egyptian doctor who is bin Laden’s right-hand man.</p>
<p>“The mission itself may have clouded some of the judgments made here,” Panetta <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/20/world/asia/20intel.html?hp" type="external">told the New York Times</a>.</p>
<p>The agency report stopped short of blaming its own officers for the attack, but Mark Mazzetti of the Times reported details that make a strong case for weak CIA&#160;fieldwork on Balawi:</p>
<p>Mr. Panetta said that because he was considered a reliable source, normal security procedures were eased: Mr. Balawi was not subjected to screening at the perimeter of the Khost base, and a large group of C.I.A. officers gathered to greet him when he arrived at the base.</p>
<p>C.I.A. officers became suspicious however, when Mr. Balawi chose to get out of the car on the side opposite the security personnel, who were waiting to pat him down. The security guards soon drew their guns, and Mr. Balawi detonated his suicide vest.</p>
<p>As riveting as the new details are, clues to Badawi’s true loyalties were available to journalists soon after the attack—clues that US intelligence officers probably could (and should) have picked up on. All last winter, Mazzetti <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/world/middleeast/10balawi.html" type="external">turned up new details</a> about Badawi, his life, and his intrigues. But Newsweek got perhaps the most damning evidence, <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/2010/01/07/the-bomber-s-wife.html" type="external">interviewing Badawi’s widow</a> in early January. She made no bones about his work. “My husband was anti-American,” she told the magazine. “So am I.”</p>
<p /> | 4,173 |
<p />
<p />
<p />
<p>CLAIM</p>
<p>WHEN</p>
<p>WHO</p>
<p>UPSHOT</p>
<p>Mercury-containing preservative thimerosal in vaccines causes autism.</p>
<p>1999-2001</p>
<p>Advocacy group SafeMinds, Robert Kennedy Jr., et al.</p>
<p>Five studies find no link; autism rates stay constant after mercury-containing vaccines pulled.</p>
<p>Measles-mumps-rubella (mmr) shot causes autism.</p>
<p>1998</p>
<p>British gastroenterologist Andrew Wakefield</p>
<p>14 studies find no link; Wakefield’s research funded by lawyers suing vaccine makers.</p>
<p>Aluminum salts in vaccines affect mental development.</p>
<p>Since the ’90s</p>
<p>Baby guru Dr. Robert W. Sears</p>
<p>There’s about as much aluminum in the average vaccine as in a quart of formula.</p>
<p>Vaccines deprive immune system of needed workout.</p>
<p>Since 1970s</p>
<p>Some alternative medicine practitioners including followers of Waldorf originator Rudolf Steiner</p>
<p>Immune system gets plenty of action from everyday germs.</p>
<p>Vaccines may create new disease organisms.</p>
<p>Since 1960s</p>
<p>Perennial concern of vaccine developers</p>
<p>No “replacement diseases” have ever arisen, but possibility exists.</p>
<p>Vaccines are spiritual pollution.</p>
<p>Since 18th c.</p>
<p>Some Rosicrucians, others</p>
<p>Rosi-who?</p>
<p>Read: <a href="/commentary/columns/2008/09/practical-values-immune-to-reason.html" type="external">Vaccine Skeptics vs. Your Kids</a></p>
<p /> | Strains of Resistance | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2008/09/strains-resistance/ | 2018-09-01 | 4left
| Strains of Resistance
<p />
<p />
<p />
<p>CLAIM</p>
<p>WHEN</p>
<p>WHO</p>
<p>UPSHOT</p>
<p>Mercury-containing preservative thimerosal in vaccines causes autism.</p>
<p>1999-2001</p>
<p>Advocacy group SafeMinds, Robert Kennedy Jr., et al.</p>
<p>Five studies find no link; autism rates stay constant after mercury-containing vaccines pulled.</p>
<p>Measles-mumps-rubella (mmr) shot causes autism.</p>
<p>1998</p>
<p>British gastroenterologist Andrew Wakefield</p>
<p>14 studies find no link; Wakefield’s research funded by lawyers suing vaccine makers.</p>
<p>Aluminum salts in vaccines affect mental development.</p>
<p>Since the ’90s</p>
<p>Baby guru Dr. Robert W. Sears</p>
<p>There’s about as much aluminum in the average vaccine as in a quart of formula.</p>
<p>Vaccines deprive immune system of needed workout.</p>
<p>Since 1970s</p>
<p>Some alternative medicine practitioners including followers of Waldorf originator Rudolf Steiner</p>
<p>Immune system gets plenty of action from everyday germs.</p>
<p>Vaccines may create new disease organisms.</p>
<p>Since 1960s</p>
<p>Perennial concern of vaccine developers</p>
<p>No “replacement diseases” have ever arisen, but possibility exists.</p>
<p>Vaccines are spiritual pollution.</p>
<p>Since 18th c.</p>
<p>Some Rosicrucians, others</p>
<p>Rosi-who?</p>
<p>Read: <a href="/commentary/columns/2008/09/practical-values-immune-to-reason.html" type="external">Vaccine Skeptics vs. Your Kids</a></p>
<p /> | 4,174 |
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<p>MATTHEW MEAD/THE ASSOCIATED PRESSBaked jalapeño poppers re-engineer the classic sports bar appetizer with a healthy twist.</p>
<p>Here’s a recipe that re-engineers a classic sports bar appetizer – jalapeño poppers.</p>
<p>Standard jalapeño poppers are thumb-sized hot peppers stuffed with cream cheese and cheddar cheese, then breaded and deep-fried. Yummy, but most home cooks aren’t too excited for the mess of deep-frying. That’s why there also is a baked version – half a jalapeño stuffed with cheese and wrapped in bacon.</p>
<p>Both types are delicious, but neither is all that healthy. After all, we want to stay around for a while. So my version delivers gratification without overdoing it.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>From a culinary point of view, jalapeño poppers make complete sense. Nothing tames a chile’s heat like dairy. That’s why so many cultures serve their fiery entrees with dairy as a side dish. The Mexicans team up spicy tortillas with crema. The Indians serve hot curries with yogurt-based raita. And that’s why cheese is right at home in a jalapeño popper.</p>
<p>But it doesn’t have to be high-fat cheese. The fresh goat cheese in this recipe delivers the required creaminess, while a very modest amount of Parmigiano-Reggiano delivers the required flavor.</p>
<p>I brightened up the filling with scallions and lemon zest, then wrapped the stuffed jalapeño in prosciutto, my substitute for bacon. Though it has a lot less fat than bacon, prosciutto boasts big pork flavor. And when it’s baked, as it is here, it’s nice and crispy, which eliminates the need to coat the pepper with breadcrumbs.</p>
<p>A couple of tips for preparing the jalapeños. First, be sure to wear rubber gloves when you’re halving and gutting the peppers. No matter how macho you’re feeling, you don’t want those capsaicin oils burning your hands. Also, use a grapefruit spoon, if you have one, to remove the pepper’s innards – its ribs and seeds – which are the hottest parts of a chile.</p>
<p>BAKED PROSCIUTTO-WRAPPED JALAPEñO POPPERS</p>
<p>Start to finish: 45 minutes (30 minutes active)</p>
<p>Serves 6</p>
<p>4 ounces fresh goat cheese</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>1 ounce grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese</p>
<p>¼ cup finely chopped scallion greens</p>
<p>2 teaspoons grated lemon zest</p>
<p>6 jalapeño peppers</p>
<p>3 ounces (12 slices) prosciutto</p>
<p>Heat the oven to 450 F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, then coat it with cooking spray.</p>
<p>In a medium bowl, combine the goat cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano, scallion greens and lemon zest. Halve the jalapeños lengthwise and carefully remove the ribs and seeds (wear rubber gloves if necessary to protect your hands). Stuff each half with the cheese mixture, being sure to use all of the cheese mixture.</p>
<p>Wrap 1 slice of prosciutto around each stuffed jalapeño half, overlapping the ends of the prosciutto on the bottom of the jalapeño. Arrange the poppers on the prepared baking sheet, then bake on the oven’s center rack until the prosciutto is slightly crispy, about 15 minutes.</p>
<p>PER SERVING: 110 calories; 60 calories from fat (55 percent of total calories); 7 g fat (4 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 25 mg cholesterol; 2 g carbohydrate; 1 g fiber; 1 g sugar; 10 g protein; 540 mg sodium.</p>
<p /> | Baked jalapeño poppers lose some fat, keep the taste | false | https://abqjournal.com/416934/baked-jalapentildeo-poppers-lose-some-fat-keep-the-taste.html | 2least
| Baked jalapeño poppers lose some fat, keep the taste
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p>MATTHEW MEAD/THE ASSOCIATED PRESSBaked jalapeño poppers re-engineer the classic sports bar appetizer with a healthy twist.</p>
<p>Here’s a recipe that re-engineers a classic sports bar appetizer – jalapeño poppers.</p>
<p>Standard jalapeño poppers are thumb-sized hot peppers stuffed with cream cheese and cheddar cheese, then breaded and deep-fried. Yummy, but most home cooks aren’t too excited for the mess of deep-frying. That’s why there also is a baked version – half a jalapeño stuffed with cheese and wrapped in bacon.</p>
<p>Both types are delicious, but neither is all that healthy. After all, we want to stay around for a while. So my version delivers gratification without overdoing it.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>From a culinary point of view, jalapeño poppers make complete sense. Nothing tames a chile’s heat like dairy. That’s why so many cultures serve their fiery entrees with dairy as a side dish. The Mexicans team up spicy tortillas with crema. The Indians serve hot curries with yogurt-based raita. And that’s why cheese is right at home in a jalapeño popper.</p>
<p>But it doesn’t have to be high-fat cheese. The fresh goat cheese in this recipe delivers the required creaminess, while a very modest amount of Parmigiano-Reggiano delivers the required flavor.</p>
<p>I brightened up the filling with scallions and lemon zest, then wrapped the stuffed jalapeño in prosciutto, my substitute for bacon. Though it has a lot less fat than bacon, prosciutto boasts big pork flavor. And when it’s baked, as it is here, it’s nice and crispy, which eliminates the need to coat the pepper with breadcrumbs.</p>
<p>A couple of tips for preparing the jalapeños. First, be sure to wear rubber gloves when you’re halving and gutting the peppers. No matter how macho you’re feeling, you don’t want those capsaicin oils burning your hands. Also, use a grapefruit spoon, if you have one, to remove the pepper’s innards – its ribs and seeds – which are the hottest parts of a chile.</p>
<p>BAKED PROSCIUTTO-WRAPPED JALAPEñO POPPERS</p>
<p>Start to finish: 45 minutes (30 minutes active)</p>
<p>Serves 6</p>
<p>4 ounces fresh goat cheese</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>1 ounce grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese</p>
<p>¼ cup finely chopped scallion greens</p>
<p>2 teaspoons grated lemon zest</p>
<p>6 jalapeño peppers</p>
<p>3 ounces (12 slices) prosciutto</p>
<p>Heat the oven to 450 F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, then coat it with cooking spray.</p>
<p>In a medium bowl, combine the goat cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano, scallion greens and lemon zest. Halve the jalapeños lengthwise and carefully remove the ribs and seeds (wear rubber gloves if necessary to protect your hands). Stuff each half with the cheese mixture, being sure to use all of the cheese mixture.</p>
<p>Wrap 1 slice of prosciutto around each stuffed jalapeño half, overlapping the ends of the prosciutto on the bottom of the jalapeño. Arrange the poppers on the prepared baking sheet, then bake on the oven’s center rack until the prosciutto is slightly crispy, about 15 minutes.</p>
<p>PER SERVING: 110 calories; 60 calories from fat (55 percent of total calories); 7 g fat (4 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 25 mg cholesterol; 2 g carbohydrate; 1 g fiber; 1 g sugar; 10 g protein; 540 mg sodium.</p>
<p /> | 4,175 |
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<p />
<p>Dorothy Papadakos will improvise almost all of the organ accompaniment.</p>
<p>Papadakos said she’s written short themes for different characters.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“The phantom has two themes, one scary, loud and powerful and another very seductive and haunting whenever he’s talking to Christine. She hears the organ playing from deep within the opera house. It enchants her, puts her in a spell,” she said. “Christine and Raoul have a love theme.”</p>
<p>The 1929 version is shorter than the 1925 original film and is tinted.</p>
<p>“In 1929 they were experimenting with early color. In the masked ball scene, the phantom enters as a skeleton and it’s in red,” Papadakos said. “The color tinting varies. It is used to convey the mood of a scene or the time of day.”</p>
<p>Papadakos said she just returned from Norway, where she provided organ accompaniment for the film in three screenings.</p>
<p>The film has placards that pop up on the screen with lines in English.</p>
<p>Advance tickets are $25 general public, $20 seniors, $10 students with ID at <a href="http://www.fcmabq.org" type="external">www.fcmabq.org</a>or at the door.</p>
<p>Prizes will be awarded for best costumes.</p>
<p>“This is my third year back at St. John,” Papadakos said. “We (showed) the film two years. They sold out so fast. … We want to do it again because so many people didn’t get to see it.”</p> | Organist accompanies classic film ‘Phantom’ | false | https://abqjournal.com/140206/organist-accompanies-classic-film-phantom.html | 2012-10-21 | 2least
| Organist accompanies classic film ‘Phantom’
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p />
<p>Dorothy Papadakos will improvise almost all of the organ accompaniment.</p>
<p>Papadakos said she’s written short themes for different characters.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“The phantom has two themes, one scary, loud and powerful and another very seductive and haunting whenever he’s talking to Christine. She hears the organ playing from deep within the opera house. It enchants her, puts her in a spell,” she said. “Christine and Raoul have a love theme.”</p>
<p>The 1929 version is shorter than the 1925 original film and is tinted.</p>
<p>“In 1929 they were experimenting with early color. In the masked ball scene, the phantom enters as a skeleton and it’s in red,” Papadakos said. “The color tinting varies. It is used to convey the mood of a scene or the time of day.”</p>
<p>Papadakos said she just returned from Norway, where she provided organ accompaniment for the film in three screenings.</p>
<p>The film has placards that pop up on the screen with lines in English.</p>
<p>Advance tickets are $25 general public, $20 seniors, $10 students with ID at <a href="http://www.fcmabq.org" type="external">www.fcmabq.org</a>or at the door.</p>
<p>Prizes will be awarded for best costumes.</p>
<p>“This is my third year back at St. John,” Papadakos said. “We (showed) the film two years. They sold out so fast. … We want to do it again because so many people didn’t get to see it.”</p> | 4,176 |
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<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Albuquerque Public Schools Police Chief Bill Reed announced today that he will resign next month to devote more time to business interests. Deputy Chief Steve Tellez will take over as interim police chief and Det. Steve Gallegos will serve as interim deputy chief beginning Aug. 20.</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>“Chief Reed has been a true asset to Albuquerque Public Schools, and he will be sorely missed,” said APS Superintendent Winston Brooks. “However, he leaves behind a safer learning environment for our nearly 90,000 students and for that we are grateful.”</p>
<p>&#160;Reed became APS police chief in October 2007, following 20 years with the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office. He is an entrepreneur, real estate developer and licensed general contractor.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | APS Police Chief to Step Down | false | https://abqjournal.com/8393/aps-police-chief-to-step-down.html | 2least
| APS Police Chief to Step Down
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<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Albuquerque Public Schools Police Chief Bill Reed announced today that he will resign next month to devote more time to business interests. Deputy Chief Steve Tellez will take over as interim police chief and Det. Steve Gallegos will serve as interim deputy chief beginning Aug. 20.</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>“Chief Reed has been a true asset to Albuquerque Public Schools, and he will be sorely missed,” said APS Superintendent Winston Brooks. “However, he leaves behind a safer learning environment for our nearly 90,000 students and for that we are grateful.”</p>
<p>&#160;Reed became APS police chief in October 2007, following 20 years with the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office. He is an entrepreneur, real estate developer and licensed general contractor.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | 4,177 |
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<p>A very-wide angle GoPro camera captured the view from the top of the capsule, with the hatch visible at the very bottom of the picture. The colorful cords which are visible hanging down from the top of the picture hold sandbags that hang below the capsule. The color coding helps the pilots keep track of how much ballast (expendable weight) they've used in the course of the flight. (Courtesy of Two Eagles Balloon Team)</p>
<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Bert Johnson's challenge was to craft a documentary.</p>
<p>For months, Johnson went through roughly 500 video files.</p>
<p>The result is "Two Eagles - Across the Pacific by Balloon." The hourlong documentary will screen at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6, at the KiMo Theatre.</p>
<p>"I was given all the video files and was told what the story was," he says. "I then produced a video log and a time line of the files. It was a long process."</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The documentary follows two gas balloonists - Troy Bradley and Leonid Tiukhtyaev - as they lift off from a tarmac in Japan in the Two Eagles gas balloon in January 2015.</p>
<p>This trip was done to break the two most coveted world records in gas ballooning - for duration and distance.</p>
<p>The documentary was produced by the city of Albuquerque and the Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum.</p>
<p>Johnson and Art Lloyd Jr. worked together in directing the documentary.</p>
<p>Johnson says the biggest hurdle to overcome was the lack of in-flight video and photographs.</p>
<p>"How do you create a documentary about a trans-oceanic balloon flight with absolutely no video of the flight?" he asks. "We used the best resources available to us, in Bradley and Tiukhtyaev. After all, they lived it. This is the story of their adventure, told by them."</p>
<p>After viewing the hours of video, Johnson knew the format he wanted to take.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>"The story then wrote itself," he says. "It was a story of perseverance. Troy always wanted to do it and weather kept him from doing it in 2008. But he never gave up. He kept looking for the opportunity to make it all happen."</p>
<p>And with so much footage, Johnson says, it was difficult to whittle down the information to 60 minutes.</p>
<p>Pilots Troy Bradley of Albuquerque, left, and Leonid Tiukhtyaev of Russia, before they lifted off in a gas balloon last year in Saga, Japan. (Courtesy of Two Eagles Balloon Team/Tami Bradley)</p>
<p>At one point, the documentary stood at 44 minutes and there was hours more of footage to sift through.</p>
<p>"If something didn't move along the story, then we cut it," he says. "It was important to tell a captivating story in such a short time."</p>
<p>Johnson says he was fascinated by the subject.</p>
<p>And with Albuquerque being such a big ballooning community, there has been some pressure on him.</p>
<p>He's anticipating the premiere of the documentary.</p>
<p>"I'm going to be the most squeamish person in the theater," he says. "This has been one of the most inspiring projects I've worked on."</p>
<p>SEND ME YOUR TIPS: If you know of a movie filming in the state, or are curious about one, email <a href="" type="internal">[email protected]</a>. Follow me on Twitter @agomezART.</p>
<p /> | ?Two Eagles' documentary will premiere at the KiMo Theatre | false | https://abqjournal.com/718558/adrian-gome-zreel-nm.html | 2least
| ?Two Eagles' documentary will premiere at the KiMo Theatre
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p>A very-wide angle GoPro camera captured the view from the top of the capsule, with the hatch visible at the very bottom of the picture. The colorful cords which are visible hanging down from the top of the picture hold sandbags that hang below the capsule. The color coding helps the pilots keep track of how much ballast (expendable weight) they've used in the course of the flight. (Courtesy of Two Eagles Balloon Team)</p>
<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Bert Johnson's challenge was to craft a documentary.</p>
<p>For months, Johnson went through roughly 500 video files.</p>
<p>The result is "Two Eagles - Across the Pacific by Balloon." The hourlong documentary will screen at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6, at the KiMo Theatre.</p>
<p>"I was given all the video files and was told what the story was," he says. "I then produced a video log and a time line of the files. It was a long process."</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The documentary follows two gas balloonists - Troy Bradley and Leonid Tiukhtyaev - as they lift off from a tarmac in Japan in the Two Eagles gas balloon in January 2015.</p>
<p>This trip was done to break the two most coveted world records in gas ballooning - for duration and distance.</p>
<p>The documentary was produced by the city of Albuquerque and the Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum.</p>
<p>Johnson and Art Lloyd Jr. worked together in directing the documentary.</p>
<p>Johnson says the biggest hurdle to overcome was the lack of in-flight video and photographs.</p>
<p>"How do you create a documentary about a trans-oceanic balloon flight with absolutely no video of the flight?" he asks. "We used the best resources available to us, in Bradley and Tiukhtyaev. After all, they lived it. This is the story of their adventure, told by them."</p>
<p>After viewing the hours of video, Johnson knew the format he wanted to take.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>"The story then wrote itself," he says. "It was a story of perseverance. Troy always wanted to do it and weather kept him from doing it in 2008. But he never gave up. He kept looking for the opportunity to make it all happen."</p>
<p>And with so much footage, Johnson says, it was difficult to whittle down the information to 60 minutes.</p>
<p>Pilots Troy Bradley of Albuquerque, left, and Leonid Tiukhtyaev of Russia, before they lifted off in a gas balloon last year in Saga, Japan. (Courtesy of Two Eagles Balloon Team/Tami Bradley)</p>
<p>At one point, the documentary stood at 44 minutes and there was hours more of footage to sift through.</p>
<p>"If something didn't move along the story, then we cut it," he says. "It was important to tell a captivating story in such a short time."</p>
<p>Johnson says he was fascinated by the subject.</p>
<p>And with Albuquerque being such a big ballooning community, there has been some pressure on him.</p>
<p>He's anticipating the premiere of the documentary.</p>
<p>"I'm going to be the most squeamish person in the theater," he says. "This has been one of the most inspiring projects I've worked on."</p>
<p>SEND ME YOUR TIPS: If you know of a movie filming in the state, or are curious about one, email <a href="" type="internal">[email protected]</a>. Follow me on Twitter @agomezART.</p>
<p /> | 4,178 |
|
<p>Richmond Times-DispatchJames W. Crawley, a DC-based reporter for Media General News Service, says the news about his uncle, Mark Felt, was a shock -- and a relief. "I had always suspected Uncle Mark was the deep background source for Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward," he writes. "I broached the question a few times. His answers were always non-denial denials. He'd say 'I don't talk about rumors' and 'I never tell secrets.'" &gt; <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/01/politics/01voices.html?" type="external">"I think Mark Felt behaved treacherously," says Buchanan (NYT)</a> &gt; <a href="http://www.suntimes.com/output/novak/cst-nws-novak01.html" type="external">Novak: Everybody knew Felt was leaking info to Woodstein (Sun-Times)</a> &gt; <a href="http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/06/01/throat_soreness/" type="external">McNamara: "Those looking for a hero will not find him in Felt" (BG)</a> &gt; <a href="http://www.courant.com/news/nationworld/hc-deepexcerpts0601.artjun01,0,6893106.story?coll=hc-big-headlines-breaking" type="external">Daley: "So Mark Felt lied to me. I'm not especially surprised" (Courant)</a></p> | Newsman: I just wish Uncle Mark had called me first | false | https://poynter.org/news/newsman-i-just-wish-uncle-mark-had-called-me-first | 2005-06-01 | 2least
| Newsman: I just wish Uncle Mark had called me first
<p>Richmond Times-DispatchJames W. Crawley, a DC-based reporter for Media General News Service, says the news about his uncle, Mark Felt, was a shock -- and a relief. "I had always suspected Uncle Mark was the deep background source for Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward," he writes. "I broached the question a few times. His answers were always non-denial denials. He'd say 'I don't talk about rumors' and 'I never tell secrets.'" &gt; <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/01/politics/01voices.html?" type="external">"I think Mark Felt behaved treacherously," says Buchanan (NYT)</a> &gt; <a href="http://www.suntimes.com/output/novak/cst-nws-novak01.html" type="external">Novak: Everybody knew Felt was leaking info to Woodstein (Sun-Times)</a> &gt; <a href="http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/06/01/throat_soreness/" type="external">McNamara: "Those looking for a hero will not find him in Felt" (BG)</a> &gt; <a href="http://www.courant.com/news/nationworld/hc-deepexcerpts0601.artjun01,0,6893106.story?coll=hc-big-headlines-breaking" type="external">Daley: "So Mark Felt lied to me. I'm not especially surprised" (Courant)</a></p> | 4,179 |
<p>In late 1991, after violent riots between youths and police scarred the suburbs of Lyon, Alain Touraine, the French sociologist, predicted: “It will only be a few years before we face the kind of massive urban explosion the Americans have experienced.” The 11 nights of consecutive violence following the deaths of two young Muslim men of African descent in a Paris suburb show that Touraine’s dark vision of a ghettoised, post-colonial France is now upon us.</p>
<p>Clichy-sous-Bois, the impoverished and segregated north-eastern suburb of Paris where the two men lived and where the violent reaction to their deaths began, was a ticking bomb for the kind of dramatic social upheaval we are currently witnessing. Half its inhabitants are under 20, unemployment is above 40% and identity checks and police harassment are a daily experience.</p>
<p>In this sense, the riots are merely a fresh wave of the violence that has become common in suburban France over the past two decades. Led mainly by young French citizens born into first and second generation immigrant communities from France’s former colonies in north Africa, these cycles of violence are almost always sparked by the deaths of young black men at the hands of the police, and then inflamed by a contemptuous government response.</p>
<p>Four days after the deaths in Clichy-sous-Bois, just as community leaders were beginning to calm the situation, the security forces reignited the fire by emptying teargas canisters inside a mosque. The official reason for the police action: a badly parked car in front of it. The government refuses to offer any apology to the Muslim community.</p>
<p>But the spread of civil unrest to other poor suburbs across France is unprecedented. For Laurent Levy, an anti-racist campaigner, the explosion is no surprise. “When large sections of the population are denied any kind of respect, the right to work, the right to decent accommodation, what is surprising is not that the cars are burning but that there are so few uprisings,” he argues.</p>
<p>Police violence and racism are major factors. In April, an Amnesty International report criticised the “generalised impunity” with which the French police operated when it came to violent treatment of young men from African backgrounds during identity checks.</p>
<p>But the reason for the extent and intensity of the current riots is the provocative behaviour of the interior minister, Nicolas Sarkozy. He called rioters “vermin”, blamed “agents provocateurs” for manipulating “scum” and said the suburbs needed “to be cleaned out with Karsher” (a brand of industrial cleaner used to clean the mud off tractors). Sarkozy’s grandstanding on law and order is a deliberate strategy designed to flatter the French far right electorate in the context of his rivalry with the prime minister, Dominique de Villepin, for the 2007 presidency.</p>
<p>How can France get out of this political race to the bottom? It would obviously help for ministers to stop talking about the suburbs as dens of “scum” and for Sarkozy to be removed: the falsehoods he spread about the events surrounding the two deaths and his deployment of a massively disproportionate police presence in the first days of the riots have again shown his unfitness for office.</p>
<p>A simple gesture of regret could go a long way towards defusing the tensions for now. The morning after the gassing of the mosque, a young Muslim woman summed up a widespread feeling: “We just want them to stop lying, to admit they’ve done it and to apologise.” It might not seem much, but in today’s France it would require a deep political transformation and the recognition of these eternal “immigrants” as full and equal citizens of the republic.</p>
<p>NAIMA BOUTELDJA is a French journalist and researcher for the <a href="http://www.tni.org/" type="external">Transnational Institute</a></p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>&#160;</p> | Paris is Burning | true | https://counterpunch.org/2005/11/07/paris-is-burning/ | 2005-11-07 | 4left
| Paris is Burning
<p>In late 1991, after violent riots between youths and police scarred the suburbs of Lyon, Alain Touraine, the French sociologist, predicted: “It will only be a few years before we face the kind of massive urban explosion the Americans have experienced.” The 11 nights of consecutive violence following the deaths of two young Muslim men of African descent in a Paris suburb show that Touraine’s dark vision of a ghettoised, post-colonial France is now upon us.</p>
<p>Clichy-sous-Bois, the impoverished and segregated north-eastern suburb of Paris where the two men lived and where the violent reaction to their deaths began, was a ticking bomb for the kind of dramatic social upheaval we are currently witnessing. Half its inhabitants are under 20, unemployment is above 40% and identity checks and police harassment are a daily experience.</p>
<p>In this sense, the riots are merely a fresh wave of the violence that has become common in suburban France over the past two decades. Led mainly by young French citizens born into first and second generation immigrant communities from France’s former colonies in north Africa, these cycles of violence are almost always sparked by the deaths of young black men at the hands of the police, and then inflamed by a contemptuous government response.</p>
<p>Four days after the deaths in Clichy-sous-Bois, just as community leaders were beginning to calm the situation, the security forces reignited the fire by emptying teargas canisters inside a mosque. The official reason for the police action: a badly parked car in front of it. The government refuses to offer any apology to the Muslim community.</p>
<p>But the spread of civil unrest to other poor suburbs across France is unprecedented. For Laurent Levy, an anti-racist campaigner, the explosion is no surprise. “When large sections of the population are denied any kind of respect, the right to work, the right to decent accommodation, what is surprising is not that the cars are burning but that there are so few uprisings,” he argues.</p>
<p>Police violence and racism are major factors. In April, an Amnesty International report criticised the “generalised impunity” with which the French police operated when it came to violent treatment of young men from African backgrounds during identity checks.</p>
<p>But the reason for the extent and intensity of the current riots is the provocative behaviour of the interior minister, Nicolas Sarkozy. He called rioters “vermin”, blamed “agents provocateurs” for manipulating “scum” and said the suburbs needed “to be cleaned out with Karsher” (a brand of industrial cleaner used to clean the mud off tractors). Sarkozy’s grandstanding on law and order is a deliberate strategy designed to flatter the French far right electorate in the context of his rivalry with the prime minister, Dominique de Villepin, for the 2007 presidency.</p>
<p>How can France get out of this political race to the bottom? It would obviously help for ministers to stop talking about the suburbs as dens of “scum” and for Sarkozy to be removed: the falsehoods he spread about the events surrounding the two deaths and his deployment of a massively disproportionate police presence in the first days of the riots have again shown his unfitness for office.</p>
<p>A simple gesture of regret could go a long way towards defusing the tensions for now. The morning after the gassing of the mosque, a young Muslim woman summed up a widespread feeling: “We just want them to stop lying, to admit they’ve done it and to apologise.” It might not seem much, but in today’s France it would require a deep political transformation and the recognition of these eternal “immigrants” as full and equal citizens of the republic.</p>
<p>NAIMA BOUTELDJA is a French journalist and researcher for the <a href="http://www.tni.org/" type="external">Transnational Institute</a></p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>&#160;</p> | 4,180 |
<p>SOMERSWORTH, N.H. (AP) — A billboard in New Hampshire that has raised eyebrows among Somersworth residents has been vandalized for a second time.</p>
<p>The billboard advertises the cafe Teatotaller, and originally featured a male model eating a breakfast sandwich with the text, "I like my men, like I like my coffee — with breakfast at Teatotaller." Foster's Daily Democrat <a href="http://www.fosters.com/news/20180108/vandals-strike-somersworth-billboard" type="external">reports</a> the original ad had graffiti stenciled over it sometime in September 2017.</p>
<p>A new advertisement, featuring the same model and the words "Chai curious?" replaced the old advertisement a few months later, but someone threw eggs at the billboard in the past few weeks. Cafe owner Emmett Soldati says they are still assessing the situation.</p>
<p>Somersworth Police Capt. Russ Timmons says the incident would be considered criminal mischief.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Foster's Daily Democrat, <a href="http://www.fosters.com" type="external">http://www.fosters.com</a></p>
<p>SOMERSWORTH, N.H. (AP) — A billboard in New Hampshire that has raised eyebrows among Somersworth residents has been vandalized for a second time.</p>
<p>The billboard advertises the cafe Teatotaller, and originally featured a male model eating a breakfast sandwich with the text, "I like my men, like I like my coffee — with breakfast at Teatotaller." Foster's Daily Democrat <a href="http://www.fosters.com/news/20180108/vandals-strike-somersworth-billboard" type="external">reports</a> the original ad had graffiti stenciled over it sometime in September 2017.</p>
<p>A new advertisement, featuring the same model and the words "Chai curious?" replaced the old advertisement a few months later, but someone threw eggs at the billboard in the past few weeks. Cafe owner Emmett Soldati says they are still assessing the situation.</p>
<p>Somersworth Police Capt. Russ Timmons says the incident would be considered criminal mischief.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Foster's Daily Democrat, <a href="http://www.fosters.com" type="external">http://www.fosters.com</a></p> | Vandals throw eggs, deface cafe-advertising billboard | false | https://apnews.com/amp/c46e7d957c974bb796f3c05cce8f457a | 2018-01-09 | 2least
| Vandals throw eggs, deface cafe-advertising billboard
<p>SOMERSWORTH, N.H. (AP) — A billboard in New Hampshire that has raised eyebrows among Somersworth residents has been vandalized for a second time.</p>
<p>The billboard advertises the cafe Teatotaller, and originally featured a male model eating a breakfast sandwich with the text, "I like my men, like I like my coffee — with breakfast at Teatotaller." Foster's Daily Democrat <a href="http://www.fosters.com/news/20180108/vandals-strike-somersworth-billboard" type="external">reports</a> the original ad had graffiti stenciled over it sometime in September 2017.</p>
<p>A new advertisement, featuring the same model and the words "Chai curious?" replaced the old advertisement a few months later, but someone threw eggs at the billboard in the past few weeks. Cafe owner Emmett Soldati says they are still assessing the situation.</p>
<p>Somersworth Police Capt. Russ Timmons says the incident would be considered criminal mischief.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Foster's Daily Democrat, <a href="http://www.fosters.com" type="external">http://www.fosters.com</a></p>
<p>SOMERSWORTH, N.H. (AP) — A billboard in New Hampshire that has raised eyebrows among Somersworth residents has been vandalized for a second time.</p>
<p>The billboard advertises the cafe Teatotaller, and originally featured a male model eating a breakfast sandwich with the text, "I like my men, like I like my coffee — with breakfast at Teatotaller." Foster's Daily Democrat <a href="http://www.fosters.com/news/20180108/vandals-strike-somersworth-billboard" type="external">reports</a> the original ad had graffiti stenciled over it sometime in September 2017.</p>
<p>A new advertisement, featuring the same model and the words "Chai curious?" replaced the old advertisement a few months later, but someone threw eggs at the billboard in the past few weeks. Cafe owner Emmett Soldati says they are still assessing the situation.</p>
<p>Somersworth Police Capt. Russ Timmons says the incident would be considered criminal mischief.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Foster's Daily Democrat, <a href="http://www.fosters.com" type="external">http://www.fosters.com</a></p> | 4,181 |
<p>Corey Robin, an anti-conservative political science professor at Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY), released his most recent rant against all things American this week, emphasizing that he “hate[s] America.”</p>
<p>“This is the real problem with hoppy craft beer in America: like everything else in this country, it’s too much,” Robin wrote in an excerpt posted to Twitter. Robin, a professor known for his regular rants against the American “ <a href="http://www.salon.com/2015/06/21/the_racist_disease_we_never_discuss_dylann_roof_over_policing_and_the_real_story_about_safety_in_america/" type="external">racist disease</a>”, complained that unlike countries such as Germany and Italy, the United States is too extravagant- presumably because of its “supremacist” mentality.</p>
<p>My rant against microbreweries, craft beer, and America. Prompted by this article. <a href="https://t.co/r4bZ2fQaWM" type="external">https://t.co/r4bZ2fQaWM</a> <a href="https://t.co/j0k4IVHNvS" type="external">pic.twitter.com/j0k4IVHNvS</a></p>
<p>“This is all my way of saying: I hate craft beer, I hate home-brewed beer, I hate American coffee,” he concluded. “Let’s face it: I hate America.” Except for Broadway and The Carpenters, he adds. Duh.</p>
<p>On other occasions, Robin demonstrated a strong distaste for Zionism, capitalism, and a slew of Republican public figures such as Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck.</p>
<p>In July 2014, Robin was <a href="http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/180812/24-arrested-in-protest-against-israels-gaza-campaign" type="external">arrested</a> for clashing with police at an anti-Israel rally in Midtown, New York. When asked whether that was his first time in jail, Robin <a href="https://twitter.com/CoreyRobin/status/494326343627051008" type="external">responded</a> that he was arrested before but never “for Palestine.”</p>
<p>Just earlier this week, Robin contended Zionist ‘racism’ was far worse than Jim Crow laws.</p>
<p>Zionists are right: comparisons to Jim Crow are unfair. At least blacks in South got a seat at the back of the bus. <a href="https://t.co/ONVOZK6979" type="external">https://t.co/ONVOZK6979</a></p>
<p>In August 2014, Robin called <a href="http://coreyrobin.com/2014/08/01/capitalism-and-slavery/" type="external">capitalism</a> a “massive process of ego formation” to which he claimed American slavery was central.</p>
<p>“Let’s face it: I hate America.”</p>
<p>Corey Robin</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0199793743/thedaical-20" type="external">The Reactionary Mind: Conservatism From Edmund Burke to Sarah Palin</a>, a book he wrote in 2012 attacking conservatives, Robin attempted to dub Sarah Palin as an “immoderate” by connecting her to Edmund Burke.</p>
<p>While the conservative theorist claims for his tradition the mantle of prudence and moderation, there is a not-so-subterranean strain of imprudence and moderation running through that tradition-- a strain that, however counterintuitive it seems, connects Sarah Palin to Edmund Burke.</p>
<p>In another section of his book, Robin described his idea of what conservatism is:</p>
<p>For that is what conservatism is: a meditation on-- and theoretical rendition of-- the felt experience of having power, seeing it threatened, and trying to win it back.</p> | CUNY Professor Hates America And Uses Your Tax Dollars to Preach It | true | https://dailywire.com/news/2436/cuny-professor-hates-america-and-uses-your-tax-pardes-seleh | 2016-01-07 | 0right
| CUNY Professor Hates America And Uses Your Tax Dollars to Preach It
<p>Corey Robin, an anti-conservative political science professor at Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY), released his most recent rant against all things American this week, emphasizing that he “hate[s] America.”</p>
<p>“This is the real problem with hoppy craft beer in America: like everything else in this country, it’s too much,” Robin wrote in an excerpt posted to Twitter. Robin, a professor known for his regular rants against the American “ <a href="http://www.salon.com/2015/06/21/the_racist_disease_we_never_discuss_dylann_roof_over_policing_and_the_real_story_about_safety_in_america/" type="external">racist disease</a>”, complained that unlike countries such as Germany and Italy, the United States is too extravagant- presumably because of its “supremacist” mentality.</p>
<p>My rant against microbreweries, craft beer, and America. Prompted by this article. <a href="https://t.co/r4bZ2fQaWM" type="external">https://t.co/r4bZ2fQaWM</a> <a href="https://t.co/j0k4IVHNvS" type="external">pic.twitter.com/j0k4IVHNvS</a></p>
<p>“This is all my way of saying: I hate craft beer, I hate home-brewed beer, I hate American coffee,” he concluded. “Let’s face it: I hate America.” Except for Broadway and The Carpenters, he adds. Duh.</p>
<p>On other occasions, Robin demonstrated a strong distaste for Zionism, capitalism, and a slew of Republican public figures such as Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck.</p>
<p>In July 2014, Robin was <a href="http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/180812/24-arrested-in-protest-against-israels-gaza-campaign" type="external">arrested</a> for clashing with police at an anti-Israel rally in Midtown, New York. When asked whether that was his first time in jail, Robin <a href="https://twitter.com/CoreyRobin/status/494326343627051008" type="external">responded</a> that he was arrested before but never “for Palestine.”</p>
<p>Just earlier this week, Robin contended Zionist ‘racism’ was far worse than Jim Crow laws.</p>
<p>Zionists are right: comparisons to Jim Crow are unfair. At least blacks in South got a seat at the back of the bus. <a href="https://t.co/ONVOZK6979" type="external">https://t.co/ONVOZK6979</a></p>
<p>In August 2014, Robin called <a href="http://coreyrobin.com/2014/08/01/capitalism-and-slavery/" type="external">capitalism</a> a “massive process of ego formation” to which he claimed American slavery was central.</p>
<p>“Let’s face it: I hate America.”</p>
<p>Corey Robin</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0199793743/thedaical-20" type="external">The Reactionary Mind: Conservatism From Edmund Burke to Sarah Palin</a>, a book he wrote in 2012 attacking conservatives, Robin attempted to dub Sarah Palin as an “immoderate” by connecting her to Edmund Burke.</p>
<p>While the conservative theorist claims for his tradition the mantle of prudence and moderation, there is a not-so-subterranean strain of imprudence and moderation running through that tradition-- a strain that, however counterintuitive it seems, connects Sarah Palin to Edmund Burke.</p>
<p>In another section of his book, Robin described his idea of what conservatism is:</p>
<p>For that is what conservatism is: a meditation on-- and theoretical rendition of-- the felt experience of having power, seeing it threatened, and trying to win it back.</p> | 4,182 |
<p>Dennis Van Tine/UPPA via ZUMA Press</p>
<p />
<p>For Achilles, it was the heel. For Samson, it was the hair. For Beast, twas’ beauty. Donald Trump may appear impervious to the sharpest Republican barbs, but he has one proven weakness over the course of his four decades in overly public life: stubby fingers.</p>
<p>Trump has presumably had short fingers for as long as he’s had fingers, but it wasn’t until 1988 that anyone called attention to it. That year, Spy magazine began the practice of needling Trump at every opportunity by referring to him in virtually every story as a “short-fingered vulgarian.” (“Queens-born casino profiteer” would also do.) Trump defended his honor in the New York Post, <a href="http://www.weeklystandard.com/nine-tales-of-trump-at-his-trumpiest/article/2000697" type="external">stating</a> that “my fingers are long and beautiful, as, has been well-documented, are various other parts of my body.”</p>
<p>In an essay last fall, former Spy editor Graydon Carter <a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2015/10/graydon-carter-donald-trump" type="external">revealed</a> how much this pissed Trump off: To this day, the Republican presidential front-runner continues to mail Carter photos of himself, and “[o]n all of them he has circled his hand in gold Sharpie in a valiant effort to highlight the length of his fingers.” The most recent one even included a message: “See, not so short!” On Friday, Republican Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska even joined in on the fun, <a href="https://twitter.com/BenSasse/status/693252441232510976" type="external">responding</a> to an insult from Trump by joking, “you’d think I asked Mr <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump" type="external">@realDonaldTrump</a> abt the length of his fingers or something important like that.”</p>
<p>So just what do Trump’s Bart Simpson hands have to do with making America great again? According to Madame La Roux’s 1993 treatise on palm reading, <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=2yQxule_llcC&amp;dq=society+of+people+with+short+fingers&amp;q=short+fingers#v=onepage&amp;q&amp;f=false" type="external">The Practice of Classical Palmistry</a>, quite a lot!</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>Disdain for detail? Impulsive? Impetuous? Hot-headed? Pushy? Obsessed with doing “big” things like building enormous buildings?</p>
<p>This sounds like someone we know.</p>
<p>Now, I don’t think Trump’s baby-carrot fingers have any bearing on his presidential temperament. But then, I’m not the one who routinely cites the results of post-debate online surveys conducted by the Drudge Report as some kind of science and <a href="https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/265895292191248385?lang=en" type="external">believes</a> that the “concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.” It’s only a matter of time before this shocking revelation hits voters in New Hampshire.</p>
<p /> | What Donald Trump’s Short Fingers Mean for His Presidency | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2016/02/donald-trump-short-fingers-baby-carrots/ | 2016-02-01 | 4left
| What Donald Trump’s Short Fingers Mean for His Presidency
<p>Dennis Van Tine/UPPA via ZUMA Press</p>
<p />
<p>For Achilles, it was the heel. For Samson, it was the hair. For Beast, twas’ beauty. Donald Trump may appear impervious to the sharpest Republican barbs, but he has one proven weakness over the course of his four decades in overly public life: stubby fingers.</p>
<p>Trump has presumably had short fingers for as long as he’s had fingers, but it wasn’t until 1988 that anyone called attention to it. That year, Spy magazine began the practice of needling Trump at every opportunity by referring to him in virtually every story as a “short-fingered vulgarian.” (“Queens-born casino profiteer” would also do.) Trump defended his honor in the New York Post, <a href="http://www.weeklystandard.com/nine-tales-of-trump-at-his-trumpiest/article/2000697" type="external">stating</a> that “my fingers are long and beautiful, as, has been well-documented, are various other parts of my body.”</p>
<p>In an essay last fall, former Spy editor Graydon Carter <a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2015/10/graydon-carter-donald-trump" type="external">revealed</a> how much this pissed Trump off: To this day, the Republican presidential front-runner continues to mail Carter photos of himself, and “[o]n all of them he has circled his hand in gold Sharpie in a valiant effort to highlight the length of his fingers.” The most recent one even included a message: “See, not so short!” On Friday, Republican Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska even joined in on the fun, <a href="https://twitter.com/BenSasse/status/693252441232510976" type="external">responding</a> to an insult from Trump by joking, “you’d think I asked Mr <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump" type="external">@realDonaldTrump</a> abt the length of his fingers or something important like that.”</p>
<p>So just what do Trump’s Bart Simpson hands have to do with making America great again? According to Madame La Roux’s 1993 treatise on palm reading, <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=2yQxule_llcC&amp;dq=society+of+people+with+short+fingers&amp;q=short+fingers#v=onepage&amp;q&amp;f=false" type="external">The Practice of Classical Palmistry</a>, quite a lot!</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>Disdain for detail? Impulsive? Impetuous? Hot-headed? Pushy? Obsessed with doing “big” things like building enormous buildings?</p>
<p>This sounds like someone we know.</p>
<p>Now, I don’t think Trump’s baby-carrot fingers have any bearing on his presidential temperament. But then, I’m not the one who routinely cites the results of post-debate online surveys conducted by the Drudge Report as some kind of science and <a href="https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/265895292191248385?lang=en" type="external">believes</a> that the “concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.” It’s only a matter of time before this shocking revelation hits voters in New Hampshire.</p>
<p /> | 4,183 |
<p>Last week, actress and dedicated soldier in the fight to take the lives of the innocent unborn, Mila Kunis announced that she donates to abortion mill Planned Parenthood under the name of pro-life Vice President Mike Pence.</p>
<p>Her "peaceful protest" earned ravenous applause from the liberal late-night crowd in front of whom she announced the abortion stunt, but those who value the sanctity of life were less enthused — with some even donating to pro-life and conservative groups in the actress' name.</p>
<p>Pro-life group Susan B. Anthony List decided they'd kick-off an initiative where pro-lifers could donate to their cause in Pence's name as a response to Kunis. The Vice President, in a clear nod to the controversy, <a href="http://www.lifenews.com/2017/11/06/vice-president-mike-pences-response-to-mila-kunis-donating-to-planned-parenthood-in-his-name-is-priceless/" type="external">jumped on board</a>.</p>
<p>"We’re now accepting donations to the pro-life cause in Vice President Mike Pence's name. Let's take a stand for life," announced the president of Susan B. Anthony List.</p>
<p>"I'm honored. Thanks for all [Susan B. Anthony List] does for life. I'm in," wrote Pence, captioning the pro-life group's tweet.</p>
<p>All class.</p>
<p>Kunis told host Conan O'Brien about the donations last week and was adamant it was not a "prank."</p>
<p>"I apologize if I’m offending anybody," she stated insincerely. "It’s not so much a prank as much as I disagreed with some of the stuff that Pence was doing and was trying to do. And so as a reminder that there are women out there in the world that may or may not agree with his platform, I put him on a list of recurring donations that are made in his name to Planned Parenthood."</p>
<p>"Every month, to his office, he gets a little letter that says like, 'An anonymous donation has been made in your name.' I don’t look at it as a prank, this is like, I strongly disagree, and this is my little way of doing it. It’s a peaceful protest," added the actress.</p>
<p>Unamused conservatives also <a href="" type="internal">launched</a> a boycott against whiskey company Jim Beam, for which Kunis is a global spokesperson.</p> | Mike Pence Responds To Mila Kunis Donating To Planned Parenthood In His Name | true | https://dailywire.com/news/23253/mike-pence-responds-mila-kunis-donating-planned-amanda-prestigiacomo | 2017-11-07 | 0right
| Mike Pence Responds To Mila Kunis Donating To Planned Parenthood In His Name
<p>Last week, actress and dedicated soldier in the fight to take the lives of the innocent unborn, Mila Kunis announced that she donates to abortion mill Planned Parenthood under the name of pro-life Vice President Mike Pence.</p>
<p>Her "peaceful protest" earned ravenous applause from the liberal late-night crowd in front of whom she announced the abortion stunt, but those who value the sanctity of life were less enthused — with some even donating to pro-life and conservative groups in the actress' name.</p>
<p>Pro-life group Susan B. Anthony List decided they'd kick-off an initiative where pro-lifers could donate to their cause in Pence's name as a response to Kunis. The Vice President, in a clear nod to the controversy, <a href="http://www.lifenews.com/2017/11/06/vice-president-mike-pences-response-to-mila-kunis-donating-to-planned-parenthood-in-his-name-is-priceless/" type="external">jumped on board</a>.</p>
<p>"We’re now accepting donations to the pro-life cause in Vice President Mike Pence's name. Let's take a stand for life," announced the president of Susan B. Anthony List.</p>
<p>"I'm honored. Thanks for all [Susan B. Anthony List] does for life. I'm in," wrote Pence, captioning the pro-life group's tweet.</p>
<p>All class.</p>
<p>Kunis told host Conan O'Brien about the donations last week and was adamant it was not a "prank."</p>
<p>"I apologize if I’m offending anybody," she stated insincerely. "It’s not so much a prank as much as I disagreed with some of the stuff that Pence was doing and was trying to do. And so as a reminder that there are women out there in the world that may or may not agree with his platform, I put him on a list of recurring donations that are made in his name to Planned Parenthood."</p>
<p>"Every month, to his office, he gets a little letter that says like, 'An anonymous donation has been made in your name.' I don’t look at it as a prank, this is like, I strongly disagree, and this is my little way of doing it. It’s a peaceful protest," added the actress.</p>
<p>Unamused conservatives also <a href="" type="internal">launched</a> a boycott against whiskey company Jim Beam, for which Kunis is a global spokesperson.</p> | 4,184 |
<p>Of course Congress should endorse the Iran deal. The renunciation of the agreement by Congress would have disastrous consequences for the Middle East, empowering warmongers everywhere, but especially in Washington, Tel Aviv, and Tehran.</p>
<p>There are three motives driving opponents of the deal.</p>
<p>The first is the desire to maintain the neocons' hegemonic vision of a New American Century, even if this risks war, and in some cases because it means war. Thus <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/war-with-iran-is-probably-our-best-option/2015/03/13/fb112eb0-c725-11e4-a199-6cb5e63819d2_story.html" type="external">Joshua Muravchik</a> declares that war is "our only option." And <a href="http://mondoweiss.net/2015/07/pelosi-podhoretz-israel" type="external">Norman Podhoretz</a>, writing in the Wall Street Journal, explains:</p>
<p>"I remain convinced that containment is impossible, from which it follows that the two choices before us are not war vs. containment but a conventional war now or a nuclear war later."</p>
<p>The second motive is partisan opposition: Republicans oppose on principle anything President Barack Obama does -- some denouncing the deal even before they had <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-hopefuls-denounce-iran-deal-1436887286" type="external">read it</a>. Even <a href="http://mondoweiss.net/2015/07/turned-libertarians-burning" type="external">Rand Paul</a>, who claims to reject foreign interventionism, toes the GOP party line. It doesn't matter that President George W. Bush offered Iran what was in some respects a <a href="http://www.timesofisrael.com/kerry-bush-offered-iran-better-terms-iran-walked-away/" type="external">better deal</a> or that some key Bush administration diplomats have <a href="http://www.lobelog.com/former-bush-diplomats-push-back-on-criticism-of-iran-deal/" type="external">endorsed</a> the current agreement: if Obama's for it, today's Republican politicians are against it.</p>
<p>The third motive is to support Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's regional hegemonic designs and his efforts to distract from his government's failure to address the occupation and Israel's domestic problems. Iran has been an <a href="http://mondoweiss.net/2015/07/israels-pressure-occupation" type="external">obstacle to Israeli domination</a>, supporting Hezbollah and Hamas. Anything that weakens Iran, thereby gives Israel a freer hand to pursue the occupation. Even without nuclear weapons, <a href="http://inthesetimes.com/article/18211/israels-hostility-toward-iran-deal-is-not-really-about-the-bomb" type="external">Israel wants</a> a weak Iran. As former CIA analyst Paul Pillar <a href="http://nationalinterest.org/blog/paul-pillar/the-sources-opposition-the-iran-agreement-13428" type="external">explained</a>, if Netanyahu were concerned about an Iranian nuclear weapon, he would be supporting this agreement, which makes an Iranian weapon less likely. "Clearly he has other motivations." His career has been based on fearmongering about Iran, which he has used to great effect against his domestic political opponents. "[R]epeatedly invoking Iran as the 'real threat' in the Middle East serves to divert attention and change the subject whenever people start to talk about things, such as the occupation of Palestinian territory, that Netanyahu’s government would rather not talk about."</p>
<p>As always, supporting the Israeli government is not the same as "supporting Israel." Not all Israelis oppose the Iran deal. Aside from the Israeli peace movement, the deal is backed by many Israeli <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/beta/1.669390" type="external">national</a> <a href="http://peacenow.org/entry.php?id=12886#.VbzT6PkjXW5" type="external">security experts</a>, not to mention the overwhelming majority of <a href="http://mondoweiss.net/2015/07/majority-palestinians-support" type="external">Palestinian Israelis</a>.</p>
<p>The deal is widely supported within Iran, but in particular by <a href="http://inthesetimes.com/article/18230/iranian-dissidents-explain-why-they-support-the-nuclear-deal" type="external">Iranian dissidents</a> and <a href="http://www.niacouncil.org/policy-memo-iranian-human-rights-defenders-nuclear-deal-is-good-for-human-rights-in-iran/" type="external">human rights</a> <a href="http://www.iranhumanrights.org/wp-content/uploads/Briefing-ICHRI-NuclearNegotiations-June2015.pdf" type="external">activists</a>, and who -- apart from welcoming the reduced risk of war and the end to the economic suffering that the sanctions have caused -- have always viewed the sanctions as strengthening regime hardliners and undermining their own democratic struggle.</p>
<p>In the United States, <a href="http://www.lobelog.com/most-polls-suggest-americans-support-the-deal-especially-jews/" type="external">polls initially</a> showed that the public, and <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/07/27/jewish-americans-support-the-iran-nuclear-deal/" type="external">especially Jews</a>, backed the agreement. But vast amounts of money are being poured into blocking the deal. The major groups opposing the agreement have at least <a href="http://www.lobelog.com/anti-iran-deal-groups-better-funded-than-pro-deal-groups-by-nearly-five-to-one/" type="external">five times</a> the resources of the groups in favor. The rightwing Israel Lobby led by AIPAC and the Zionist Organization of America, has hugely more funds than the smaller, liberal pro-Israel pro-deal groups J-Street and Americans for Peace Now. The intense advertising blitz has led to much more <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2015/08/public-polls-iran-nuclear-deal-support-oppose-120953.html" type="external">mixed</a> <a href="http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/la-fg-iran-deal-polls-20150721-story.html" type="external">poll results</a> (though <a href="http://forward.com/news/breaking-news/318263/polls-showing-jewish-support-for-iran-deal-more-credible/" type="external">Jewish support</a> seems to be holding).</p>
<p>But the opponents of the deal have a very tough road. They need to not only pass a bill opposing the agreement in both houses. But then they need a two-thirds vote in both houses to override Obama's promised veto. To do that they need to get lots of Democrats to cast a vote against the president, against the views of <a href="http://www.thechicagocouncil.org/blog-entry/politics-iran-deal" type="external">Democratic voters</a>, and against the political prospects of their party, let alone against common sense and the views of many <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/271988995/Statement-by-60-National-Security-Leaders-on-the-Announcement-of-a-Joint-Comprehensive-Plan-of-Action" type="external">experts</a> and <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/271773707/Letter-to-the-President-from-over-100-former-American-Ambassadors-on-the-Joint-Comprehensive-Plan-of-Action-on-Iran-s-Nuclear-Program" type="external">diplomats</a>. (These diplomats are not anti-imperialists, but they understand the realistic limits of U.S. power.) Many <a href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/15/07/14/apple-other-big-businesses-eye-reentry-into-iran-after-nuclear-deal-report-says" type="external">business</a> interests also stand to gain from the agreement (including the <a href="http://www.juancole.com/2015/07/vienna-massive-conventional.html" type="external">arms industry</a>). The <a href="http://qz.com/466392/the-bookies-think-the-iran-deal-is-very-likely-to-get-us-approval/" type="external">bookies</a> think the deal will survive.</p>
<p>For AIPAC, Iran has served for years as its <a href="http://www.lobelog.com/former-aipac-official-on-irans-importance-to-aipac/" type="external">major foil for fundraising</a>, and it is going all in on its opposition to the deal. This could have a silver lining. As Philip Weiss of Mondoweiss <a type="external" href="">put it</a>, "the great thing about the Iran deal going through over the opposition of AIPAC and the feverish Jewish community is that it is going to lead to open and vocal opposition to the lobby inside the Establishment." In particular, if the deal's opponents fail to derail it in Congress that will represent a decisive defeat for the rightwing Israel lobby and will weaken its clout among liberal Democrats. The lobby's image of invincibility (often exaggerated) will be dealt a strong blow.</p>
<p>The Downside</p>
<p>But despite all these benefits of the agreement, it is important to understand what's wrong with it.</p>
<p>First, most of the sanctions against Iran that are currently in place and scheduled for lifting under the terms of the agreement are sanctions that should never have been imposed in the first place. Thus, to cheer Obama's having achieved this deal is to endorse the use of deeply unjust means. We don't endorse agreements reached by using torture on an individual; so too we shouldn't endorse agreements reached by torturing a whole society.</p>
<p>The administration has frequently <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/fact-sheet-new-un-security-council-sanctions-iran" type="external">claimed</a> that the sanctions aimed only at Iran's leaders and its nuclear program and were "not intended to&#160;hurt the people of Iran."&#160;In fact, however, the impact of the sanctions on ordinary Iranians has been devastating. In the words of a leading expert on sanctions, Joy Gordon, the measures "affect Iran's economy, infrastructure, and civilian population in a way that is deeply damaging and indiscriminate, affecting even food security, access to health care and education." (Gordon, "Crippling Iran: The U.N. Security Council and the Tactic of Deliberate Ambiguity," 44 Geo. J. Int'l L., 973, 975.) (Hillary Clinton told Congress back in 2009 that she would seek " <a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article6149692.ece" type="external">crippling</a>" Iran sanctions.) By asserting that the oil industry supports the Iranian nuclear program, U.S. officials rationalized cutting off the country's main source of revenue, its banking system, and its international commerce. This has undermined Iran's <a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2015/03/iran-sanctions-debate-ignores-civilian-impact-150328071100321.html" type="external">health care system</a>, access to <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jan/13/iran-lifesaving-drugs-international-sanctions" type="external">medicines</a>, <a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/foreign-policy/215406-sanctions-cause-iranian-airplane-crashes" type="external">airplane safety</a>, and so much else that affects the well-being of the population.</p>
<p>Obama of course was under strong pressure from Republicans in Congress to impose these harsh sanctions. But he was hardly dragged along kicking and screaming. When he signed the 2010 "Iran Sanctions Act," Obama did not express any reservations or criticize legislators for overzealousness. In fact he <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-signing-iran-sanctions-act" type="external">said</a>,</p>
<p>"I’m pleased to sign into law the toughest sanctions against Iran ever passed by the United States Congress -- the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act.</p>
<p>"I want to thank all the members of Congress who worked on behalf of this legislation, including another tireless person, but who never seems to break a sweat -- the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi.&#160; I want to thank Representatives Steny Hoyer and Eric Cantor for doing outstanding work.&#160;Although they weren’t able to join us, I want to acknowledge Senators Harry Reid, Jon Kyl and Richard Shelby.&#160; And I want to thank those who led the effort to forge a final bill that received overwhelming bipartisan support -- Senator Chris Dodd and Representative Howard Berman.&#160; Thank you for your good work."&#160;</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/11/21/executive-order-13590-iran-sanctions" type="external">2011</a>, <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/02/06/executive-order-blocking-property-government-iran-and-iranian-financial-" type="external">early 2012</a>, <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/07/31/executive-order-authorizing-additional-sanctions-respect-iran" type="external">mid 2012</a>, and in <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/06/03/executive-order-authorizing-implementation-certain-sanctions-set-forth-i" type="external">2013</a>, Obama issued executive orders -- meaning on his own authority -- tightening the sanctions in ways not focused on Iran's nuclear program. The 2011 executive order imposed "penalties on foreign companies with sales to Iran of more than $1 million for equipment and services related to its oil industry, or sales of more than $ 250,000 of goods or services for Iran's petrochemical production." (Gordon, p. 984)&#160;The July 2012 order placed "extensive sanctions on any company that purchases oil or petrochemical products from Iran." (Gordon, p. 984)</p>
<p>There is nothing wrong with blocking the sale to Iran of items that are actually part of a nuclear weapons program. Nor should we object to the imposing of various diplomatic sanctions against Tehran's leaders for their gross violations of human rights -- which Iranian dissidents have <a href="http://www.reuters.com/assets/print?aid=USTRE61B3JY20100212" type="external">supported</a>. (Though of course, U.S. officials do these things for their own reasons, and hypocritically -- only penalizing leaders of enemy states while giving friendly human rights abusers a free pass.) &#160;But the dissidents have <a href="http://www.reuters.com/assets/print?aid=USTRE61B3JY20100212" type="external">strongly</a> <a href="http://www.lobelog.com/mousavi-advisor-green-movement-wants-an-end-to-the-economic-sanctions/" type="external">objected</a> -- and we should as well -- to those sanctions that, in violation of international humanitarian law, impose collective punishment on the Iranian people.</p>
<p>In addition to the sanctions being unjust, they were also unnecessary. In 2010, Brazil and Turkey negotiated <a href="https://www.armscontrol.org/act/2010_06/FuelSwap" type="external">a deal</a> with Tehran whereby Iran would send most of its enriched uranium out of the country. Rather than welcome this confidence building measure and building on it, the Obama administration pressed forward with sanctions. Both the <a href="http://www.iranaffairs.com/iran_affairs/2014/09/remembering-the-turkey-brazil-nuclear-deal-with-iran-and-how-obama-killed-it.html" type="external">head of the IAEA</a> and experts from the <a href="http://fas.org/pubs/_docs/2010_07_IranGiveUp20Enrich.pdf" type="external">Federation of American Scientists</a> assess that this was a missed opportunity to settle the dispute without any need for sanctions.</p>
<p>The second problem with Obama's Iran deal is that it represents the wrong way to go about reducing the danger of nuclear weapons. Iran does not have nuclear weapons, says it does not intend to acquire nuclear weapons, and is <a href="https://fas.org/sgp/crs/nuke/RL34544.pdf" type="external">believed by the U.S. intelligence community</a> not to be engaged in a nuclear weapons program. Nevertheless, the United States has continually declared, despite the clear obligation under <a href="http://www.un.org/en/documents/charter/chapter1.shtml" type="external">the UN Charter</a> to refrain from using or threatening force, that " <a href="http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/Obama-advisor-Military-option-against-Iran-still-on-the-table-396363" type="external">all options are on the table</a>" -- a not very subtle way to threaten military action.</p>
<p>In 2006, Pres. George W. Bush was asked explicitly whether the United States might use nuclear weapons against Iran. He <a href="http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PPP-2006-book1/html/PPP-2006-book1-doc-pg733.htm" type="external">replied</a> "All options were on the table." In the words of <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20060928025501/http:/www.thebulletin.org/print_nn.php?art_ofn=so06norris" type="external">two experts</a> writing in The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Bush "directly threatened Iran with a preemptive nuclear strike. It is hard to read his reply in any other way." In 2010, the Obama administration issued its <a href="http://www.defense.gov/npr/docs/2010%20Nuclear%20Posture%20Review%20Report.pdf" type="external">U.S. Nuclear Posture Statement</a>, which, while maintaining the U.S. position that Washington reserves the right to be the first to use nuclear weapons in a conflict against other nuclear powers, declared that it would henceforth not use them first against non-nuclear powers that were parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and in full compliance with their NPT obligations. However, since the International Atomic Energy Agency has said that Iran has violated some of the safeguard agreements it had reached with the agency, the United States considers Iran not to be in full compliance, and thus the Nuclear Posture Statement explicitly indicated that its no-first use policy does not apply to Iran. Note that if the United States had wanted to create an exception to cover the possibility that Iran (or some other country) was a member of the NPT but had illicitly developed nuclear weapons nonetheless, it could easily have worded its policy as allowing nuclear first use against any country possessing nuclear weapons. To threaten Iran with military attack contrary to the UN Charter is bad enough; but to threaten nuclear attack against a country that doesn't have nuclear weapons is simply outrageous.</p>
<p>U.S. intelligence <a href="http://www.dni.gov/files/documents/Unclassified_2015_ATA_SFR_-_SASC_FINAL.pdf" type="external">believes</a> that while Iran is not developing nuclear weapons, it seeks the ability to build&#160;nuclear weapons, "if it chooses to do so." That is, it wants to have peaceful nuclear technology -- as permitted by the NPT -- that in the future could be quickly redirected to military purposes if it becomes necessary. This is a <a href="http://www.salon.com/2009/10/07/iran_nuclear/" type="external">plausible assessment</a> of Tehran's thinking. (It may be the thinking of some other countries as well: for example, <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/fukushima-anniversary/japan-has-nuclear-bomb-basement-china-isnt-happy-n48976" type="external">Japan</a>.) U.S. intelligence <a href="http://www.dni.gov/files/documents/Unclassified_2015_ATA_SFR_-_SASC_FINAL.pdf" type="external">estimates</a> that "Iran does not face any insurmountable technical barriers to producing a nuclear weapon, making Iran’s political will the central issue." But if one wants to influence Iran's political will, then threatening a military strike, aside from being morally and legally unjustified, provides exactly the wrong kind of incentive, encouraging rather than discouraging the development of a nuclear deterrent.</p>
<p>The United States has not just threatened Iran with the use of force; it has also used force. The Stuxnet cyberattack, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/16/world/middleeast/16stuxnet.html" type="external">almost certainly</a> developed by the United States and Israel, was, in the words of a legal study commissioned by NATO and authored by a broad spectrum of international law experts, an <a href="http://issuu.com/nato_ccd_coe/docs/tallinnmanual" type="external">act of force</a> and of intervention. Presumably if the Chinese government deployed malware that destroyed scientific facilities in the United States, we would not restrict our commentary to admiration for the technical expertise involved. (Israel, of course, probably went further than computer viruses, running an <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-pushing-israel-to-stop-assassinating-iranian-nuclear-scientists/" type="external">assassination</a> <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/beta/1.577360" type="external">program</a> against Iranian nuclear scientists, despite the fact that -- again, according to U.S. intelligence -- there is no nuclear weapons program.)</p>
<p>The NPT is a treaty that sets up two classes of states, privileging those that already have nuclear weapons. According to the <a href="https://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/nuke/R40094.pdf" type="external">Congressional Reference Service</a>, "Whether Iran has violated the NPT is unclear." Moreover, the "U.N. Security Council has never declared Iran to be in violation of the NPT." However, the IAEA Board of Governors has issued a "determination that Iran has violated its safeguards agreement." This doesn't mean, however, that Iran is building nuclear weapons. The 2007 U.S. National Intelligence Estimate "assessed that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003; subsequent U.S. official statements have consistently reiterated that Tehran has not yet decided to build nuclear weapons."</p>
<p>But if Iran has failed to live up to its NPT obligations, it is not the only one. One obligation that the treaty imposes on the nuclear-weapon states (Article VI) requires those countries to make good faith efforts to move toward nuclear disarmament. But, as noted above, the United States still refuses to declare a no-first-use policy and explicitly threatens to use nuclear weapons against some nonnuclear states. <a href="http://www.reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Publications/modernization/assuring-destruction-forever-2014.pdf" type="external">Washington continues</a> to modernize its nuclear forces, adding new military capabilities. At an international conference on the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons in December 2014, the U.S. representative stated that his government “does not support efforts to move to a nuclear weapons convention, a ban, or a fixed timetable for elimination of all nuclear weapons.”</p>
<p>Of course the irony of the NPT is that the treaty only binds those states that have ratified it. Three countries that have not done so have acquired nuclear weapons -- India, Pakistan, Israel, and North Korea -- and North Korea withdrew from the treaty, as the treaty permits in <a href="http://www.un.org/disarmament/WMD/Nuclear/NPTtext.shtml" type="external">Article X</a>. But even though these nations are not in violation of the NPT, there is a U.S. <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/22/2799aa" type="external">law</a> (the Symington amendment) which prohibits most U.S. economic and military aid to countries that develop nuclear weapons. When India and Pakistan went forward and built nuclear arsenals, the United States imposed sanctions, but offered frequent <a href="http://archive.armscontrolcenter.org/issues/nonproliferation/articles/india_pakistan_sanctions/" type="external">waivers and exemptions</a>. When the Bush administration signed a <a href="http://www.armscontrol.org/act/2010_07-08/squassoni" type="external">civil nuclear cooperation agreement</a> with India in 2006, India -- and then Pakistan -- were able to increase their unsafeguarded uranium- and plutonium-production capability, with obvious military applications.</p>
<p>In the case of Israel -- which obtained its arsenal with a combination of <a href="http://thebulletin.org/did-israel-steal-bomb-grade-uranium-united-states7056" type="external">theft</a> and <a href="http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/04/israel-nuclear-weapons-117014_Page4.html#.Vb-LNPkjXW4" type="external">deception</a> -- the United States hasn't formally waived the Symington amendment. It has simply <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/09/israel-nuclear-weapons-secret-united-states/380237/" type="external">pretended</a> that Israel doesn't have nuclear weapons, though in fact U.S. officials have known about Israel's nuclear arsenal for many decades. As the debate rages about whether Iran might obtain enough fissile material for several atom bombs, Israel is <a href="http://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/Nuclearweaponswhohaswhat" type="external">thought to have</a> between 80-100 nuclear warheads, with fissile material for up to 200. And, of course, the planes that might deliver those Israeli nukes are provided by the United States (violating at least the spirit of the NPT's prohibition on assisting other countries' nuclear weapons programs).</p>
<p>The Alternative</p>
<p>So if Obama's approach was not the proper way to address the possibility of Iran's developing nuclear weapons, and if going to war or continued sanctions was not the way either, what is the alternative?</p>
<p>Some commentators have suggested that if Iran developed a nuclear weapon, it wouldn't matter very much: nuclear deterrence would kick in and there would simply be a stand-off between Iran and Israel, with neither party seriously thinking of using their nuclear weapons. After all, the argument continues, mutually assured destruction kept the United States and the Soviet Union from a nuclear war throughout the Cold War.</p>
<p>It is certainly true that an Iranian nuclear weapon does not mean an automatic Iranian attack on Israel (just as Israeli weapons have not led to nuclear strikes on Iran). But the fact that we survived the Cold War should give us very little comfort. As <a href="http://thebulletin.org/breaking-down-risk-nuclear-deterrence-failure8562" type="external">Seth Baum</a>, executive director of the&#160;Global Catastrophic Risk Institute, has pointed out, "The historical record contains&#160;several near-misses&#160;in which nuclear war was narrowly avoided due in no small part to luck." <a href="http://www.nuclearfiles.org/menu/key-issues/nuclear-weapons/issues/accidents/20-mishaps-maybe-caused-nuclear-war.htm" type="external">Alan F. Philips</a> has listed "20 Mishaps That Might Have Started Accidental Nuclear War." No, more nukes is not the way to protect us from nuclear war.</p>
<p>Here is a far more just (and fruitful) approach to addressing Iran's potential nuclear program:</p>
<p>The international <a href="http://www.un.org/en/conf/npt/2015/" type="external">conference</a> to review the NPT that was held this past spring illustrates how far we are from this better approach. The conference ended without issuing a consensus document. As <a href="http://thebulletin.org/npt-review-conference-no-outcome-document-better-weak-one8366" type="external">Cesar Jaramillo</a> of Project Ploughshares reported, the nuclear weapons states insisted on removing "any language alluding to specific and effective measures to implement nuclear disarmament." And the call for a conference to pursue a nuclear free zone in the Middle East was blocked by the United States, Britain, and Canada on the grounds that Israel didn't agree -- and Israel wasn't even a participant at the review conference because it is not a party to the NPT.</p>
<p>So by all means, let us urge Congress to support the Iran agreement: it will reduce the risk of war and make the world safer, benefit the Iranian people and especially Iranian dissidents, and defang the Israel lobby to some degree. But let us also make clear that we need a fundamentally new U.S. foreign policy, one that doesn't seek to protect Washington's nuclear arsenal and that of its ally Israel, and one that doesn't use crippling sanctions and military threats to get its way.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p><a href="/filter/tips" type="external">More information about formatting options</a></p> | What's the Big Deal? | true | http://newpol.org/content/whats-big-deal | 2015-08-05 | 4left
| What's the Big Deal?
<p>Of course Congress should endorse the Iran deal. The renunciation of the agreement by Congress would have disastrous consequences for the Middle East, empowering warmongers everywhere, but especially in Washington, Tel Aviv, and Tehran.</p>
<p>There are three motives driving opponents of the deal.</p>
<p>The first is the desire to maintain the neocons' hegemonic vision of a New American Century, even if this risks war, and in some cases because it means war. Thus <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/war-with-iran-is-probably-our-best-option/2015/03/13/fb112eb0-c725-11e4-a199-6cb5e63819d2_story.html" type="external">Joshua Muravchik</a> declares that war is "our only option." And <a href="http://mondoweiss.net/2015/07/pelosi-podhoretz-israel" type="external">Norman Podhoretz</a>, writing in the Wall Street Journal, explains:</p>
<p>"I remain convinced that containment is impossible, from which it follows that the two choices before us are not war vs. containment but a conventional war now or a nuclear war later."</p>
<p>The second motive is partisan opposition: Republicans oppose on principle anything President Barack Obama does -- some denouncing the deal even before they had <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-hopefuls-denounce-iran-deal-1436887286" type="external">read it</a>. Even <a href="http://mondoweiss.net/2015/07/turned-libertarians-burning" type="external">Rand Paul</a>, who claims to reject foreign interventionism, toes the GOP party line. It doesn't matter that President George W. Bush offered Iran what was in some respects a <a href="http://www.timesofisrael.com/kerry-bush-offered-iran-better-terms-iran-walked-away/" type="external">better deal</a> or that some key Bush administration diplomats have <a href="http://www.lobelog.com/former-bush-diplomats-push-back-on-criticism-of-iran-deal/" type="external">endorsed</a> the current agreement: if Obama's for it, today's Republican politicians are against it.</p>
<p>The third motive is to support Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's regional hegemonic designs and his efforts to distract from his government's failure to address the occupation and Israel's domestic problems. Iran has been an <a href="http://mondoweiss.net/2015/07/israels-pressure-occupation" type="external">obstacle to Israeli domination</a>, supporting Hezbollah and Hamas. Anything that weakens Iran, thereby gives Israel a freer hand to pursue the occupation. Even without nuclear weapons, <a href="http://inthesetimes.com/article/18211/israels-hostility-toward-iran-deal-is-not-really-about-the-bomb" type="external">Israel wants</a> a weak Iran. As former CIA analyst Paul Pillar <a href="http://nationalinterest.org/blog/paul-pillar/the-sources-opposition-the-iran-agreement-13428" type="external">explained</a>, if Netanyahu were concerned about an Iranian nuclear weapon, he would be supporting this agreement, which makes an Iranian weapon less likely. "Clearly he has other motivations." His career has been based on fearmongering about Iran, which he has used to great effect against his domestic political opponents. "[R]epeatedly invoking Iran as the 'real threat' in the Middle East serves to divert attention and change the subject whenever people start to talk about things, such as the occupation of Palestinian territory, that Netanyahu’s government would rather not talk about."</p>
<p>As always, supporting the Israeli government is not the same as "supporting Israel." Not all Israelis oppose the Iran deal. Aside from the Israeli peace movement, the deal is backed by many Israeli <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/beta/1.669390" type="external">national</a> <a href="http://peacenow.org/entry.php?id=12886#.VbzT6PkjXW5" type="external">security experts</a>, not to mention the overwhelming majority of <a href="http://mondoweiss.net/2015/07/majority-palestinians-support" type="external">Palestinian Israelis</a>.</p>
<p>The deal is widely supported within Iran, but in particular by <a href="http://inthesetimes.com/article/18230/iranian-dissidents-explain-why-they-support-the-nuclear-deal" type="external">Iranian dissidents</a> and <a href="http://www.niacouncil.org/policy-memo-iranian-human-rights-defenders-nuclear-deal-is-good-for-human-rights-in-iran/" type="external">human rights</a> <a href="http://www.iranhumanrights.org/wp-content/uploads/Briefing-ICHRI-NuclearNegotiations-June2015.pdf" type="external">activists</a>, and who -- apart from welcoming the reduced risk of war and the end to the economic suffering that the sanctions have caused -- have always viewed the sanctions as strengthening regime hardliners and undermining their own democratic struggle.</p>
<p>In the United States, <a href="http://www.lobelog.com/most-polls-suggest-americans-support-the-deal-especially-jews/" type="external">polls initially</a> showed that the public, and <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/07/27/jewish-americans-support-the-iran-nuclear-deal/" type="external">especially Jews</a>, backed the agreement. But vast amounts of money are being poured into blocking the deal. The major groups opposing the agreement have at least <a href="http://www.lobelog.com/anti-iran-deal-groups-better-funded-than-pro-deal-groups-by-nearly-five-to-one/" type="external">five times</a> the resources of the groups in favor. The rightwing Israel Lobby led by AIPAC and the Zionist Organization of America, has hugely more funds than the smaller, liberal pro-Israel pro-deal groups J-Street and Americans for Peace Now. The intense advertising blitz has led to much more <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2015/08/public-polls-iran-nuclear-deal-support-oppose-120953.html" type="external">mixed</a> <a href="http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/la-fg-iran-deal-polls-20150721-story.html" type="external">poll results</a> (though <a href="http://forward.com/news/breaking-news/318263/polls-showing-jewish-support-for-iran-deal-more-credible/" type="external">Jewish support</a> seems to be holding).</p>
<p>But the opponents of the deal have a very tough road. They need to not only pass a bill opposing the agreement in both houses. But then they need a two-thirds vote in both houses to override Obama's promised veto. To do that they need to get lots of Democrats to cast a vote against the president, against the views of <a href="http://www.thechicagocouncil.org/blog-entry/politics-iran-deal" type="external">Democratic voters</a>, and against the political prospects of their party, let alone against common sense and the views of many <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/271988995/Statement-by-60-National-Security-Leaders-on-the-Announcement-of-a-Joint-Comprehensive-Plan-of-Action" type="external">experts</a> and <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/271773707/Letter-to-the-President-from-over-100-former-American-Ambassadors-on-the-Joint-Comprehensive-Plan-of-Action-on-Iran-s-Nuclear-Program" type="external">diplomats</a>. (These diplomats are not anti-imperialists, but they understand the realistic limits of U.S. power.) Many <a href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/15/07/14/apple-other-big-businesses-eye-reentry-into-iran-after-nuclear-deal-report-says" type="external">business</a> interests also stand to gain from the agreement (including the <a href="http://www.juancole.com/2015/07/vienna-massive-conventional.html" type="external">arms industry</a>). The <a href="http://qz.com/466392/the-bookies-think-the-iran-deal-is-very-likely-to-get-us-approval/" type="external">bookies</a> think the deal will survive.</p>
<p>For AIPAC, Iran has served for years as its <a href="http://www.lobelog.com/former-aipac-official-on-irans-importance-to-aipac/" type="external">major foil for fundraising</a>, and it is going all in on its opposition to the deal. This could have a silver lining. As Philip Weiss of Mondoweiss <a type="external" href="">put it</a>, "the great thing about the Iran deal going through over the opposition of AIPAC and the feverish Jewish community is that it is going to lead to open and vocal opposition to the lobby inside the Establishment." In particular, if the deal's opponents fail to derail it in Congress that will represent a decisive defeat for the rightwing Israel lobby and will weaken its clout among liberal Democrats. The lobby's image of invincibility (often exaggerated) will be dealt a strong blow.</p>
<p>The Downside</p>
<p>But despite all these benefits of the agreement, it is important to understand what's wrong with it.</p>
<p>First, most of the sanctions against Iran that are currently in place and scheduled for lifting under the terms of the agreement are sanctions that should never have been imposed in the first place. Thus, to cheer Obama's having achieved this deal is to endorse the use of deeply unjust means. We don't endorse agreements reached by using torture on an individual; so too we shouldn't endorse agreements reached by torturing a whole society.</p>
<p>The administration has frequently <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/fact-sheet-new-un-security-council-sanctions-iran" type="external">claimed</a> that the sanctions aimed only at Iran's leaders and its nuclear program and were "not intended to&#160;hurt the people of Iran."&#160;In fact, however, the impact of the sanctions on ordinary Iranians has been devastating. In the words of a leading expert on sanctions, Joy Gordon, the measures "affect Iran's economy, infrastructure, and civilian population in a way that is deeply damaging and indiscriminate, affecting even food security, access to health care and education." (Gordon, "Crippling Iran: The U.N. Security Council and the Tactic of Deliberate Ambiguity," 44 Geo. J. Int'l L., 973, 975.) (Hillary Clinton told Congress back in 2009 that she would seek " <a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article6149692.ece" type="external">crippling</a>" Iran sanctions.) By asserting that the oil industry supports the Iranian nuclear program, U.S. officials rationalized cutting off the country's main source of revenue, its banking system, and its international commerce. This has undermined Iran's <a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2015/03/iran-sanctions-debate-ignores-civilian-impact-150328071100321.html" type="external">health care system</a>, access to <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jan/13/iran-lifesaving-drugs-international-sanctions" type="external">medicines</a>, <a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/foreign-policy/215406-sanctions-cause-iranian-airplane-crashes" type="external">airplane safety</a>, and so much else that affects the well-being of the population.</p>
<p>Obama of course was under strong pressure from Republicans in Congress to impose these harsh sanctions. But he was hardly dragged along kicking and screaming. When he signed the 2010 "Iran Sanctions Act," Obama did not express any reservations or criticize legislators for overzealousness. In fact he <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-signing-iran-sanctions-act" type="external">said</a>,</p>
<p>"I’m pleased to sign into law the toughest sanctions against Iran ever passed by the United States Congress -- the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act.</p>
<p>"I want to thank all the members of Congress who worked on behalf of this legislation, including another tireless person, but who never seems to break a sweat -- the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi.&#160; I want to thank Representatives Steny Hoyer and Eric Cantor for doing outstanding work.&#160;Although they weren’t able to join us, I want to acknowledge Senators Harry Reid, Jon Kyl and Richard Shelby.&#160; And I want to thank those who led the effort to forge a final bill that received overwhelming bipartisan support -- Senator Chris Dodd and Representative Howard Berman.&#160; Thank you for your good work."&#160;</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/11/21/executive-order-13590-iran-sanctions" type="external">2011</a>, <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/02/06/executive-order-blocking-property-government-iran-and-iranian-financial-" type="external">early 2012</a>, <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/07/31/executive-order-authorizing-additional-sanctions-respect-iran" type="external">mid 2012</a>, and in <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/06/03/executive-order-authorizing-implementation-certain-sanctions-set-forth-i" type="external">2013</a>, Obama issued executive orders -- meaning on his own authority -- tightening the sanctions in ways not focused on Iran's nuclear program. The 2011 executive order imposed "penalties on foreign companies with sales to Iran of more than $1 million for equipment and services related to its oil industry, or sales of more than $ 250,000 of goods or services for Iran's petrochemical production." (Gordon, p. 984)&#160;The July 2012 order placed "extensive sanctions on any company that purchases oil or petrochemical products from Iran." (Gordon, p. 984)</p>
<p>There is nothing wrong with blocking the sale to Iran of items that are actually part of a nuclear weapons program. Nor should we object to the imposing of various diplomatic sanctions against Tehran's leaders for their gross violations of human rights -- which Iranian dissidents have <a href="http://www.reuters.com/assets/print?aid=USTRE61B3JY20100212" type="external">supported</a>. (Though of course, U.S. officials do these things for their own reasons, and hypocritically -- only penalizing leaders of enemy states while giving friendly human rights abusers a free pass.) &#160;But the dissidents have <a href="http://www.reuters.com/assets/print?aid=USTRE61B3JY20100212" type="external">strongly</a> <a href="http://www.lobelog.com/mousavi-advisor-green-movement-wants-an-end-to-the-economic-sanctions/" type="external">objected</a> -- and we should as well -- to those sanctions that, in violation of international humanitarian law, impose collective punishment on the Iranian people.</p>
<p>In addition to the sanctions being unjust, they were also unnecessary. In 2010, Brazil and Turkey negotiated <a href="https://www.armscontrol.org/act/2010_06/FuelSwap" type="external">a deal</a> with Tehran whereby Iran would send most of its enriched uranium out of the country. Rather than welcome this confidence building measure and building on it, the Obama administration pressed forward with sanctions. Both the <a href="http://www.iranaffairs.com/iran_affairs/2014/09/remembering-the-turkey-brazil-nuclear-deal-with-iran-and-how-obama-killed-it.html" type="external">head of the IAEA</a> and experts from the <a href="http://fas.org/pubs/_docs/2010_07_IranGiveUp20Enrich.pdf" type="external">Federation of American Scientists</a> assess that this was a missed opportunity to settle the dispute without any need for sanctions.</p>
<p>The second problem with Obama's Iran deal is that it represents the wrong way to go about reducing the danger of nuclear weapons. Iran does not have nuclear weapons, says it does not intend to acquire nuclear weapons, and is <a href="https://fas.org/sgp/crs/nuke/RL34544.pdf" type="external">believed by the U.S. intelligence community</a> not to be engaged in a nuclear weapons program. Nevertheless, the United States has continually declared, despite the clear obligation under <a href="http://www.un.org/en/documents/charter/chapter1.shtml" type="external">the UN Charter</a> to refrain from using or threatening force, that " <a href="http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/Obama-advisor-Military-option-against-Iran-still-on-the-table-396363" type="external">all options are on the table</a>" -- a not very subtle way to threaten military action.</p>
<p>In 2006, Pres. George W. Bush was asked explicitly whether the United States might use nuclear weapons against Iran. He <a href="http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PPP-2006-book1/html/PPP-2006-book1-doc-pg733.htm" type="external">replied</a> "All options were on the table." In the words of <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20060928025501/http:/www.thebulletin.org/print_nn.php?art_ofn=so06norris" type="external">two experts</a> writing in The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Bush "directly threatened Iran with a preemptive nuclear strike. It is hard to read his reply in any other way." In 2010, the Obama administration issued its <a href="http://www.defense.gov/npr/docs/2010%20Nuclear%20Posture%20Review%20Report.pdf" type="external">U.S. Nuclear Posture Statement</a>, which, while maintaining the U.S. position that Washington reserves the right to be the first to use nuclear weapons in a conflict against other nuclear powers, declared that it would henceforth not use them first against non-nuclear powers that were parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and in full compliance with their NPT obligations. However, since the International Atomic Energy Agency has said that Iran has violated some of the safeguard agreements it had reached with the agency, the United States considers Iran not to be in full compliance, and thus the Nuclear Posture Statement explicitly indicated that its no-first use policy does not apply to Iran. Note that if the United States had wanted to create an exception to cover the possibility that Iran (or some other country) was a member of the NPT but had illicitly developed nuclear weapons nonetheless, it could easily have worded its policy as allowing nuclear first use against any country possessing nuclear weapons. To threaten Iran with military attack contrary to the UN Charter is bad enough; but to threaten nuclear attack against a country that doesn't have nuclear weapons is simply outrageous.</p>
<p>U.S. intelligence <a href="http://www.dni.gov/files/documents/Unclassified_2015_ATA_SFR_-_SASC_FINAL.pdf" type="external">believes</a> that while Iran is not developing nuclear weapons, it seeks the ability to build&#160;nuclear weapons, "if it chooses to do so." That is, it wants to have peaceful nuclear technology -- as permitted by the NPT -- that in the future could be quickly redirected to military purposes if it becomes necessary. This is a <a href="http://www.salon.com/2009/10/07/iran_nuclear/" type="external">plausible assessment</a> of Tehran's thinking. (It may be the thinking of some other countries as well: for example, <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/fukushima-anniversary/japan-has-nuclear-bomb-basement-china-isnt-happy-n48976" type="external">Japan</a>.) U.S. intelligence <a href="http://www.dni.gov/files/documents/Unclassified_2015_ATA_SFR_-_SASC_FINAL.pdf" type="external">estimates</a> that "Iran does not face any insurmountable technical barriers to producing a nuclear weapon, making Iran’s political will the central issue." But if one wants to influence Iran's political will, then threatening a military strike, aside from being morally and legally unjustified, provides exactly the wrong kind of incentive, encouraging rather than discouraging the development of a nuclear deterrent.</p>
<p>The United States has not just threatened Iran with the use of force; it has also used force. The Stuxnet cyberattack, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/16/world/middleeast/16stuxnet.html" type="external">almost certainly</a> developed by the United States and Israel, was, in the words of a legal study commissioned by NATO and authored by a broad spectrum of international law experts, an <a href="http://issuu.com/nato_ccd_coe/docs/tallinnmanual" type="external">act of force</a> and of intervention. Presumably if the Chinese government deployed malware that destroyed scientific facilities in the United States, we would not restrict our commentary to admiration for the technical expertise involved. (Israel, of course, probably went further than computer viruses, running an <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-pushing-israel-to-stop-assassinating-iranian-nuclear-scientists/" type="external">assassination</a> <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/beta/1.577360" type="external">program</a> against Iranian nuclear scientists, despite the fact that -- again, according to U.S. intelligence -- there is no nuclear weapons program.)</p>
<p>The NPT is a treaty that sets up two classes of states, privileging those that already have nuclear weapons. According to the <a href="https://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/nuke/R40094.pdf" type="external">Congressional Reference Service</a>, "Whether Iran has violated the NPT is unclear." Moreover, the "U.N. Security Council has never declared Iran to be in violation of the NPT." However, the IAEA Board of Governors has issued a "determination that Iran has violated its safeguards agreement." This doesn't mean, however, that Iran is building nuclear weapons. The 2007 U.S. National Intelligence Estimate "assessed that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003; subsequent U.S. official statements have consistently reiterated that Tehran has not yet decided to build nuclear weapons."</p>
<p>But if Iran has failed to live up to its NPT obligations, it is not the only one. One obligation that the treaty imposes on the nuclear-weapon states (Article VI) requires those countries to make good faith efforts to move toward nuclear disarmament. But, as noted above, the United States still refuses to declare a no-first-use policy and explicitly threatens to use nuclear weapons against some nonnuclear states. <a href="http://www.reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Publications/modernization/assuring-destruction-forever-2014.pdf" type="external">Washington continues</a> to modernize its nuclear forces, adding new military capabilities. At an international conference on the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons in December 2014, the U.S. representative stated that his government “does not support efforts to move to a nuclear weapons convention, a ban, or a fixed timetable for elimination of all nuclear weapons.”</p>
<p>Of course the irony of the NPT is that the treaty only binds those states that have ratified it. Three countries that have not done so have acquired nuclear weapons -- India, Pakistan, Israel, and North Korea -- and North Korea withdrew from the treaty, as the treaty permits in <a href="http://www.un.org/disarmament/WMD/Nuclear/NPTtext.shtml" type="external">Article X</a>. But even though these nations are not in violation of the NPT, there is a U.S. <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/22/2799aa" type="external">law</a> (the Symington amendment) which prohibits most U.S. economic and military aid to countries that develop nuclear weapons. When India and Pakistan went forward and built nuclear arsenals, the United States imposed sanctions, but offered frequent <a href="http://archive.armscontrolcenter.org/issues/nonproliferation/articles/india_pakistan_sanctions/" type="external">waivers and exemptions</a>. When the Bush administration signed a <a href="http://www.armscontrol.org/act/2010_07-08/squassoni" type="external">civil nuclear cooperation agreement</a> with India in 2006, India -- and then Pakistan -- were able to increase their unsafeguarded uranium- and plutonium-production capability, with obvious military applications.</p>
<p>In the case of Israel -- which obtained its arsenal with a combination of <a href="http://thebulletin.org/did-israel-steal-bomb-grade-uranium-united-states7056" type="external">theft</a> and <a href="http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/04/israel-nuclear-weapons-117014_Page4.html#.Vb-LNPkjXW4" type="external">deception</a> -- the United States hasn't formally waived the Symington amendment. It has simply <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/09/israel-nuclear-weapons-secret-united-states/380237/" type="external">pretended</a> that Israel doesn't have nuclear weapons, though in fact U.S. officials have known about Israel's nuclear arsenal for many decades. As the debate rages about whether Iran might obtain enough fissile material for several atom bombs, Israel is <a href="http://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/Nuclearweaponswhohaswhat" type="external">thought to have</a> between 80-100 nuclear warheads, with fissile material for up to 200. And, of course, the planes that might deliver those Israeli nukes are provided by the United States (violating at least the spirit of the NPT's prohibition on assisting other countries' nuclear weapons programs).</p>
<p>The Alternative</p>
<p>So if Obama's approach was not the proper way to address the possibility of Iran's developing nuclear weapons, and if going to war or continued sanctions was not the way either, what is the alternative?</p>
<p>Some commentators have suggested that if Iran developed a nuclear weapon, it wouldn't matter very much: nuclear deterrence would kick in and there would simply be a stand-off between Iran and Israel, with neither party seriously thinking of using their nuclear weapons. After all, the argument continues, mutually assured destruction kept the United States and the Soviet Union from a nuclear war throughout the Cold War.</p>
<p>It is certainly true that an Iranian nuclear weapon does not mean an automatic Iranian attack on Israel (just as Israeli weapons have not led to nuclear strikes on Iran). But the fact that we survived the Cold War should give us very little comfort. As <a href="http://thebulletin.org/breaking-down-risk-nuclear-deterrence-failure8562" type="external">Seth Baum</a>, executive director of the&#160;Global Catastrophic Risk Institute, has pointed out, "The historical record contains&#160;several near-misses&#160;in which nuclear war was narrowly avoided due in no small part to luck." <a href="http://www.nuclearfiles.org/menu/key-issues/nuclear-weapons/issues/accidents/20-mishaps-maybe-caused-nuclear-war.htm" type="external">Alan F. Philips</a> has listed "20 Mishaps That Might Have Started Accidental Nuclear War." No, more nukes is not the way to protect us from nuclear war.</p>
<p>Here is a far more just (and fruitful) approach to addressing Iran's potential nuclear program:</p>
<p>The international <a href="http://www.un.org/en/conf/npt/2015/" type="external">conference</a> to review the NPT that was held this past spring illustrates how far we are from this better approach. The conference ended without issuing a consensus document. As <a href="http://thebulletin.org/npt-review-conference-no-outcome-document-better-weak-one8366" type="external">Cesar Jaramillo</a> of Project Ploughshares reported, the nuclear weapons states insisted on removing "any language alluding to specific and effective measures to implement nuclear disarmament." And the call for a conference to pursue a nuclear free zone in the Middle East was blocked by the United States, Britain, and Canada on the grounds that Israel didn't agree -- and Israel wasn't even a participant at the review conference because it is not a party to the NPT.</p>
<p>So by all means, let us urge Congress to support the Iran agreement: it will reduce the risk of war and make the world safer, benefit the Iranian people and especially Iranian dissidents, and defang the Israel lobby to some degree. But let us also make clear that we need a fundamentally new U.S. foreign policy, one that doesn't seek to protect Washington's nuclear arsenal and that of its ally Israel, and one that doesn't use crippling sanctions and military threats to get its way.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p><a href="/filter/tips" type="external">More information about formatting options</a></p> | 4,185 |
<p>Amazon.com Inc reported a big quarterly net loss on Thursday as the world's largest Internet retailer spends heavily to expand existing operations and develop new businesses.</p>
<p>Amazon said its third-quarter net loss was $274 million, or 60 cents a share, versus net income of $63 million, or 14 cents a share, in the third quarter of 2011.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Part of the loss related to an impairment charge from Amazon's investment in daily deal company LivingSocial.</p>
<p>Third-quarter revenue was $13.81 billion, up 27 percent from a year earlier, Amazon also said.</p>
<p>(Reporting By Alistair Barr; Editing by M.D. Golan)</p>
<p>Advertisement</p> | Amazon reports big quarterly net loss | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2012/10/25/amazon-reports-big-quarterly-net-loss.html | 2016-01-29 | 0right
| Amazon reports big quarterly net loss
<p>Amazon.com Inc reported a big quarterly net loss on Thursday as the world's largest Internet retailer spends heavily to expand existing operations and develop new businesses.</p>
<p>Amazon said its third-quarter net loss was $274 million, or 60 cents a share, versus net income of $63 million, or 14 cents a share, in the third quarter of 2011.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Part of the loss related to an impairment charge from Amazon's investment in daily deal company LivingSocial.</p>
<p>Third-quarter revenue was $13.81 billion, up 27 percent from a year earlier, Amazon also said.</p>
<p>(Reporting By Alistair Barr; Editing by M.D. Golan)</p>
<p>Advertisement</p> | 4,186 |
<p><a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>It seems like ancient history, but only months ago the Syrian rebels were arrested with Sarin gas. Meanwhile, the Obama administration seems undeterred by any evidence or logic arguing against the Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad having used chemical weapons against his own people.</p>
<p>In May, 2013, Russia asked Turkey for intel on the Syrian rebels, arrested with sarin.&#160;The Syrian rebels were seized on the Turkish-Syrian border with a 2kg cylinder full of the sarin nerve gas.</p>
<p>Russia’s top foreign official Sergei Lavrov said: “I do not rule out that some force may want to use it,” the use of sarin, “to say that the ‘red line’ has been crossed and a foreign intervention is needed.”</p>
<p>He added that “We are still waiting on a comprehensive report from our Turkish colleagues.”</p>
<p>Today, we are facing yet another U.S. war in a Muslim land, based on the rumor that the latest sarin attack was the work of the Assad regime. While Assad is not angel, it was clearly not in his best interests to launch such an attack, particularly with U.N. inspectors in the area at that time. When we look at motive – who serves to gain from the attack – and when we consider that the rebels have recently been caught with the sarin agent, the answer seems clear: this was an attack by the rebels to push the U.S. into bombing Syria.</p>
<p>Most of the world wants Assad gone, but at what cost? Do we want Assad gone just to replace him with rebels who launch chemical attacks on civilians?</p>
<p>(Article: Isa Abu Jamal, Photo: Al-Arabiya)</p> | Remember When Syrian Rebels Were Arrested With Sarin? | true | http://politicalblindspot.com/remember-when-syrian-rebels-were-arrested-with-sarin/ | 2013-09-03 | 4left
| Remember When Syrian Rebels Were Arrested With Sarin?
<p><a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>It seems like ancient history, but only months ago the Syrian rebels were arrested with Sarin gas. Meanwhile, the Obama administration seems undeterred by any evidence or logic arguing against the Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad having used chemical weapons against his own people.</p>
<p>In May, 2013, Russia asked Turkey for intel on the Syrian rebels, arrested with sarin.&#160;The Syrian rebels were seized on the Turkish-Syrian border with a 2kg cylinder full of the sarin nerve gas.</p>
<p>Russia’s top foreign official Sergei Lavrov said: “I do not rule out that some force may want to use it,” the use of sarin, “to say that the ‘red line’ has been crossed and a foreign intervention is needed.”</p>
<p>He added that “We are still waiting on a comprehensive report from our Turkish colleagues.”</p>
<p>Today, we are facing yet another U.S. war in a Muslim land, based on the rumor that the latest sarin attack was the work of the Assad regime. While Assad is not angel, it was clearly not in his best interests to launch such an attack, particularly with U.N. inspectors in the area at that time. When we look at motive – who serves to gain from the attack – and when we consider that the rebels have recently been caught with the sarin agent, the answer seems clear: this was an attack by the rebels to push the U.S. into bombing Syria.</p>
<p>Most of the world wants Assad gone, but at what cost? Do we want Assad gone just to replace him with rebels who launch chemical attacks on civilians?</p>
<p>(Article: Isa Abu Jamal, Photo: Al-Arabiya)</p> | 4,187 |
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<p>This is the exact reason Dean Kelley enjoys his job.</p>
<p>Kelley has been a clown with Ringling Bros. and Barnum &amp; Bailey for the past eight years, though he joined 11 years ago.</p>
<p>“It helps that we’re able to be in different cities weekly,” Kelley says during an interview from Beaumont, Texas. “I also get it into my head that each night, the guests have never seen the act before, so I have to give it my all.”</p>
<p>Night after night, Kelley dresses up in his clown get-up, and even sports some bright orange hair. He’s also the host for the pre-show, where fans can meet the entertainers backstage.</p>
<p>Kelley and crew began Ringling Bros.’ new show – “Fully Charged: Gold Edition” – on Christmas and have been going strong for seven months.</p>
<p>“It’s really nice that we’re out with a brand-new show,” he says. “Every year, we head to Florida to work on a new show and this one is amazing. There’s so much for the entire family.”</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Kelley says there’s a strongman who has been added to the show and his name is Mr. Power. There’s also a new knife-throwing act.</p>
<p>“This makes my palms sweaty and I would never want knives thrown at me,” he says with a laugh. “They’ve tried to get me to try it and I won’t. I think I’ll stick to being silly.”</p>
<p>For nearly 40 minutes of the show, Kelley is a huge part of it. While he enjoys the stage time, he admits that the pre-show is his favorite.</p>
<p>“It’s free with the ticket purchase and the guests are able to go on the arena floor and get autographs and pictures,” he says. “The kids can try on costumes and look at the animals. It’s a great way to get the event started because most people don’t see all of the hard work that goes into circus shows.</p>
<p>“Visitors get a chance to meet the men and women that fly through the air and risk their lives for the show. It’s also a way for me to get to know some of the audience members.”</p> | Step right up! | false | https://abqjournal.com/240621/rio-rancho-family-fun.html | 2013-08-02 | 2least
| Step right up!
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<p />
<p>This is the exact reason Dean Kelley enjoys his job.</p>
<p>Kelley has been a clown with Ringling Bros. and Barnum &amp; Bailey for the past eight years, though he joined 11 years ago.</p>
<p>“It helps that we’re able to be in different cities weekly,” Kelley says during an interview from Beaumont, Texas. “I also get it into my head that each night, the guests have never seen the act before, so I have to give it my all.”</p>
<p>Night after night, Kelley dresses up in his clown get-up, and even sports some bright orange hair. He’s also the host for the pre-show, where fans can meet the entertainers backstage.</p>
<p>Kelley and crew began Ringling Bros.’ new show – “Fully Charged: Gold Edition” – on Christmas and have been going strong for seven months.</p>
<p>“It’s really nice that we’re out with a brand-new show,” he says. “Every year, we head to Florida to work on a new show and this one is amazing. There’s so much for the entire family.”</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Kelley says there’s a strongman who has been added to the show and his name is Mr. Power. There’s also a new knife-throwing act.</p>
<p>“This makes my palms sweaty and I would never want knives thrown at me,” he says with a laugh. “They’ve tried to get me to try it and I won’t. I think I’ll stick to being silly.”</p>
<p>For nearly 40 minutes of the show, Kelley is a huge part of it. While he enjoys the stage time, he admits that the pre-show is his favorite.</p>
<p>“It’s free with the ticket purchase and the guests are able to go on the arena floor and get autographs and pictures,” he says. “The kids can try on costumes and look at the animals. It’s a great way to get the event started because most people don’t see all of the hard work that goes into circus shows.</p>
<p>“Visitors get a chance to meet the men and women that fly through the air and risk their lives for the show. It’s also a way for me to get to know some of the audience members.”</p> | 4,188 |
<p>When Kenyans want to get something done, the first thing they reach for is a mobile phone. �Mobile phones in Kenya, that's the #1 technology,� this man is a blogger based in Nairobi, �it's basically one in every two people has a phone in their pocket.� And mobile phones in Kenya are for more than just calls. Kenya's cell phone service providers allow people to do banking via their headsets. For example, you can pay for a taxi by sending money from your mobile phone banking account to your taxi driver. But you can't do any of this if you're out of air time on your phone. You see, the vast majority of Kenyans don't have a monthly plan for their phones, instead they buy pre-paid cards. Normally finding a card seller isn't a problem: kiosks, small shops, even bars sell the cards. But when violence flared up, those shops closed, many people were too afraid to leave their houses. This woman is from an area especially hard hit by the violence, �Everything is closed, everything ground to a standstill. So the places you would walk to get phone credits were closed. So what happened is, credits became so scarce that I went to one of the few open kiosks and they told me that if somebody had to buy 100 shillings of credit I would have to pay him 200 shillings.� Face with this kind of price gouging, that woman turned to a web-based service. The service allows Kenyans inside and outside the country to purchase and send cell phone air time to fellow Kenyans. You have to pay a small fee but she says the ability to buy and share cell phone credit is worth it, �I was able to send it out to my family or my friends who were stuck out in the middle of nowhere with no way to communicate.� In fact, cell phone credit has become a kind of currency in Kenya of late. This man can explain why. He's a web strategist in the Lithuanian capitol, Vilnius. But he has a lot of friends and colleagues in Kenya. He heard from them right away when the violence began, �Some had been robbed, some were without food and some were surrounded in the slums by enemy tribes. And some had friends who needed help and so we started contacting and reassuring all these people and sending money through Western Union.� But most of the places to collect that money were closed. So instead he started a web based effort called Pyramid of Peace. Anyone can visit the site and donate money. That money will then be used to purchase cell phone credit for Kenyans. It's already working: Kenyans have started trading that donated air time for food, medicine, even transport. The Vilnius man relates the story of one Kenyan man and his family, �his family had been traveling and then they ran out of food and they sent an email saying, all we're eating is water now and putting sugar in it and this is the last of the food we have for our children. So then we organized for some credit to be sent to him and three days later he wrote and said he was able to exchange it for food because the phone credits are actually worth more than cash. So you give it to the store owner, some minutes, and he'll give you some food.� He says his experience has convinced him that all countries could learn from what's going on in Kenya right now. imagine he says how valuable cell phone credit might be for you if a crisis hit your community.</p> | Cell phone credit shortage in Kenya | false | https://pri.org/stories/2008-01-16/cell-phone-credit-shortage-kenya | 2008-01-16 | 3left-center
| Cell phone credit shortage in Kenya
<p>When Kenyans want to get something done, the first thing they reach for is a mobile phone. �Mobile phones in Kenya, that's the #1 technology,� this man is a blogger based in Nairobi, �it's basically one in every two people has a phone in their pocket.� And mobile phones in Kenya are for more than just calls. Kenya's cell phone service providers allow people to do banking via their headsets. For example, you can pay for a taxi by sending money from your mobile phone banking account to your taxi driver. But you can't do any of this if you're out of air time on your phone. You see, the vast majority of Kenyans don't have a monthly plan for their phones, instead they buy pre-paid cards. Normally finding a card seller isn't a problem: kiosks, small shops, even bars sell the cards. But when violence flared up, those shops closed, many people were too afraid to leave their houses. This woman is from an area especially hard hit by the violence, �Everything is closed, everything ground to a standstill. So the places you would walk to get phone credits were closed. So what happened is, credits became so scarce that I went to one of the few open kiosks and they told me that if somebody had to buy 100 shillings of credit I would have to pay him 200 shillings.� Face with this kind of price gouging, that woman turned to a web-based service. The service allows Kenyans inside and outside the country to purchase and send cell phone air time to fellow Kenyans. You have to pay a small fee but she says the ability to buy and share cell phone credit is worth it, �I was able to send it out to my family or my friends who were stuck out in the middle of nowhere with no way to communicate.� In fact, cell phone credit has become a kind of currency in Kenya of late. This man can explain why. He's a web strategist in the Lithuanian capitol, Vilnius. But he has a lot of friends and colleagues in Kenya. He heard from them right away when the violence began, �Some had been robbed, some were without food and some were surrounded in the slums by enemy tribes. And some had friends who needed help and so we started contacting and reassuring all these people and sending money through Western Union.� But most of the places to collect that money were closed. So instead he started a web based effort called Pyramid of Peace. Anyone can visit the site and donate money. That money will then be used to purchase cell phone credit for Kenyans. It's already working: Kenyans have started trading that donated air time for food, medicine, even transport. The Vilnius man relates the story of one Kenyan man and his family, �his family had been traveling and then they ran out of food and they sent an email saying, all we're eating is water now and putting sugar in it and this is the last of the food we have for our children. So then we organized for some credit to be sent to him and three days later he wrote and said he was able to exchange it for food because the phone credits are actually worth more than cash. So you give it to the store owner, some minutes, and he'll give you some food.� He says his experience has convinced him that all countries could learn from what's going on in Kenya right now. imagine he says how valuable cell phone credit might be for you if a crisis hit your community.</p> | 4,189 |
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<p>Kudos to Mayor Richard Berry and the council for first having the foresight to set aside $2.6 million in this year’s operating budget to start to restore investments in infrastructure that were moved to operations under the previous administration.</p>
<p>Kudos as well to those who understand the money should be spent on game-changing projects, not piecemeal little stuff.</p>
<p>Those include councilors Dan Lewis and Klarissa Peña, who propose:</p>
<p>• $13 million for a regional sports complex, phased in on 81 acres the city already owns adjacent to Albuquerque Public Schools’ new West Side stadium. Supporters say national tournaments for baseball, softball and extreme sports could be held there, and Lewis and Peña are savvy enough to see the opportunity for a double play: This project could address big unmet facility needs for local athletes as well as bring in big sports tourism dollars.</p>
<p>• $10 million for economic development grants, putting the city in a position where it could quickly gear up for the next Tesla-like job creation opportunity.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>• $13 million for other “economic development projects,” which could include an upgrade to Central Avenue to drive pedestrian traffic and a bus rapid transit system that would drive federal matching funds.</p>
<p>Lewis explains “these are regional projects that have a direct benefit to economic development in the city of Albuquerque.” That level of engagement is important for the city and region to move beyond just keeping pace with required maintenance and relying heavily on government jobs and entitlements; it’s also something that won’t happen if the money is parceled out in $3 million chunks to each council district and the mayor.</p>
<p>As the discussion continues on how to allocate this bond money, it’s important for all involved to join Lewis and Peña and consider not just what $36 million will buy in the short term, but what those purchases will mean in the long run.</p>
<p>This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.</p>
<p /> | Editorial: Council should ensure we get bang for 36M bucks | false | https://abqjournal.com/494920/council-should-ensure-we-get-bang-for-36m-bucks.html | 2least
| Editorial: Council should ensure we get bang for 36M bucks
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<p />
<p>Kudos to Mayor Richard Berry and the council for first having the foresight to set aside $2.6 million in this year’s operating budget to start to restore investments in infrastructure that were moved to operations under the previous administration.</p>
<p>Kudos as well to those who understand the money should be spent on game-changing projects, not piecemeal little stuff.</p>
<p>Those include councilors Dan Lewis and Klarissa Peña, who propose:</p>
<p>• $13 million for a regional sports complex, phased in on 81 acres the city already owns adjacent to Albuquerque Public Schools’ new West Side stadium. Supporters say national tournaments for baseball, softball and extreme sports could be held there, and Lewis and Peña are savvy enough to see the opportunity for a double play: This project could address big unmet facility needs for local athletes as well as bring in big sports tourism dollars.</p>
<p>• $10 million for economic development grants, putting the city in a position where it could quickly gear up for the next Tesla-like job creation opportunity.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>• $13 million for other “economic development projects,” which could include an upgrade to Central Avenue to drive pedestrian traffic and a bus rapid transit system that would drive federal matching funds.</p>
<p>Lewis explains “these are regional projects that have a direct benefit to economic development in the city of Albuquerque.” That level of engagement is important for the city and region to move beyond just keeping pace with required maintenance and relying heavily on government jobs and entitlements; it’s also something that won’t happen if the money is parceled out in $3 million chunks to each council district and the mayor.</p>
<p>As the discussion continues on how to allocate this bond money, it’s important for all involved to join Lewis and Peña and consider not just what $36 million will buy in the short term, but what those purchases will mean in the long run.</p>
<p>This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.</p>
<p /> | 4,190 |
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<p><a href="" type="internal" />Feb. 28, 2013</p>
<p>By John Seiler</p>
<p>If you think government “protects” you, remember what happened 20 years ago today: The federal government initiated its <a href="http://www.serendipity.li/waco.html" type="external">siege of the Branch Davidians in Waco, Tex.</a>&#160;The siege lasted 50 days and ended on April 19, 1993 with the feds burning down the compound, killing 76 people, including about 17 children and 20 African-Americans.</p>
<p>The Davidians allegedly violated federal gun laws.</p>
<p>An at the time, Attorney General Janet Reno also justified the mass killings because of alleged “child abuse” by leader David Koresh. But child abuse is a state and local matter, not a federal matter. And the local sheriff said at that time that, if any level of government wanted to arrest Koresh, all they had to do was pick him up when he went jogging.</p>
<p><a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=-k34va6Lx3UC&amp;q=atf+budget#v=snippet&amp;q=atf%20budget&amp;f=false" type="external">According to the 1998 book</a>, “The Ashes of Waco,” by Dick J. Reavis, a more likely reason for the raid was publicity to boost the budget of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms:</p>
<p>“Much of this movement was being filmed because documentation of the event was as important to the ATF as the action itself. The agency faced congressional budget hearings on March 10, less than two weeks away. Televised film of the raid — a ‘dynamic entry,’ the ATF called it — would, at the very least, establish a counterpoint to the sprinkle of bad publicity that its director, Stephen Higgins, had received a few months before. Dramatic footage of the raid might even air in a documentary serial like Cops.&#160;A raid on cultists might make a titillating episode; the ATF’s routine work, such as enforcing the Contraband Cigarette Act, was far from that.”</p>
<p>A tepid congressional investigation didn’t look deeply into the massacre.</p>
<p>If the Constitution had been followed, both Reno and President Bill Clinton would have been impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives for “high crimes and misdemeanors,” then removed form office by the U.S. Senate. (Clinton eventually was impeached, but not removed from office, over his lies in that preposterous Lewinsky business.)</p>
<p>And the ATF officers and officials in charge would have been removed from office, prosecuted, and if found guilty, jailed for the crime of mass murder of American citizens. Then the ATF itself should have been dissolved, our liberties restored.</p>
<p>The Clinton regime and the Mainstream Media in general branded the Branch Davidians a “cult.” That in itself was an assault on the First Amendment right to freedom of religion.</p>
<p>The government’s attitude really hasn’t changed. During the recent hunt for ex-cop Christopher Dorner, a large, tall man, berserk LAPD officers shot up a truck they though belonged to him. But it turned out to be two short Latina women delivering newspapers. Their <a href="http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2013/02/07/2-innocent-women-shot-during-manhunt-for-ex-cop-chris-dorner-had-no-warning/" type="external">attorney said later</a>, “There was no warning. There were no orders. No commands. Just gunshots.”</p>
<p>The Waco Inferno remains as a reminder of the true, murderous nature of government in the once-free United States. Do what you’re told, or they’ll come around and burn out you and your family and exterminate your religion.</p> | 20th anniversary of Waco raid | false | https://calwatchdog.com/2013/02/28/20th-anniversary-of-waco-raid/ | 2018-02-20 | 3left-center
| 20th anniversary of Waco raid
<p><a href="" type="internal" />Feb. 28, 2013</p>
<p>By John Seiler</p>
<p>If you think government “protects” you, remember what happened 20 years ago today: The federal government initiated its <a href="http://www.serendipity.li/waco.html" type="external">siege of the Branch Davidians in Waco, Tex.</a>&#160;The siege lasted 50 days and ended on April 19, 1993 with the feds burning down the compound, killing 76 people, including about 17 children and 20 African-Americans.</p>
<p>The Davidians allegedly violated federal gun laws.</p>
<p>An at the time, Attorney General Janet Reno also justified the mass killings because of alleged “child abuse” by leader David Koresh. But child abuse is a state and local matter, not a federal matter. And the local sheriff said at that time that, if any level of government wanted to arrest Koresh, all they had to do was pick him up when he went jogging.</p>
<p><a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=-k34va6Lx3UC&amp;q=atf+budget#v=snippet&amp;q=atf%20budget&amp;f=false" type="external">According to the 1998 book</a>, “The Ashes of Waco,” by Dick J. Reavis, a more likely reason for the raid was publicity to boost the budget of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms:</p>
<p>“Much of this movement was being filmed because documentation of the event was as important to the ATF as the action itself. The agency faced congressional budget hearings on March 10, less than two weeks away. Televised film of the raid — a ‘dynamic entry,’ the ATF called it — would, at the very least, establish a counterpoint to the sprinkle of bad publicity that its director, Stephen Higgins, had received a few months before. Dramatic footage of the raid might even air in a documentary serial like Cops.&#160;A raid on cultists might make a titillating episode; the ATF’s routine work, such as enforcing the Contraband Cigarette Act, was far from that.”</p>
<p>A tepid congressional investigation didn’t look deeply into the massacre.</p>
<p>If the Constitution had been followed, both Reno and President Bill Clinton would have been impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives for “high crimes and misdemeanors,” then removed form office by the U.S. Senate. (Clinton eventually was impeached, but not removed from office, over his lies in that preposterous Lewinsky business.)</p>
<p>And the ATF officers and officials in charge would have been removed from office, prosecuted, and if found guilty, jailed for the crime of mass murder of American citizens. Then the ATF itself should have been dissolved, our liberties restored.</p>
<p>The Clinton regime and the Mainstream Media in general branded the Branch Davidians a “cult.” That in itself was an assault on the First Amendment right to freedom of religion.</p>
<p>The government’s attitude really hasn’t changed. During the recent hunt for ex-cop Christopher Dorner, a large, tall man, berserk LAPD officers shot up a truck they though belonged to him. But it turned out to be two short Latina women delivering newspapers. Their <a href="http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2013/02/07/2-innocent-women-shot-during-manhunt-for-ex-cop-chris-dorner-had-no-warning/" type="external">attorney said later</a>, “There was no warning. There were no orders. No commands. Just gunshots.”</p>
<p>The Waco Inferno remains as a reminder of the true, murderous nature of government in the once-free United States. Do what you’re told, or they’ll come around and burn out you and your family and exterminate your religion.</p> | 4,191 |
<p>Via <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/chris-christie-smacks-down-the-sharia-crowd/2011/03/04/gIQARsBBuI_blog.html" type="external">Adam Serwer</a>, New Jersey Republican governor Chris Christie delivered some much-needed real talk on Islamophobia on&#160;Wednesday.&#160;For months, he’s been <a href="" type="internal">taking heat</a> from conservative groups over his appointment of a Muslim,&#160;Sohail&#160;Mohammed, to the state superior court ( <a href="http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/atlas_shrugs/2011/01/governor-christies-hamas-pick-for-superior-judgeship.html" type="external">here</a>‘s Pamela Geller’s characteristically calm reaction). With no factual evidence to support their claims, many conservatives fear that Muslims are stealthily forcing a radical strain of Islamic Shariah law on unsuspecting Americans—and Mohammed’s appointment, in such a key position, would no doubt speed up the process.</p>
<p>But Christie, who has been known to speak his mind from time to time, has had enough of it:</p>
<p>Shariah law has nothing to do with this at all. It’s crazy. It’s crazy. The guy’s an American citizen who has been an admitted lawyer to practice in the state of New Jersey, swearing an oath to uphold the laws of New Jersey, the constitution of the state of New Jersey, and the Constitution of the United States of America…this shariah law business is crap. It’s just crazy. And I’m tired of dealing with the crazies. It’s just unnecessary to be accusing this guy of things just because of his religious backround.</p>
<p>Here’s the video:</p>
<p /> | Chris Christie Shoots Down Anti-Shariah Activists | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2011/08/chris-christie-shoots-down-anti-sharia-activists/ | 2011-08-04 | 4left
| Chris Christie Shoots Down Anti-Shariah Activists
<p>Via <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/chris-christie-smacks-down-the-sharia-crowd/2011/03/04/gIQARsBBuI_blog.html" type="external">Adam Serwer</a>, New Jersey Republican governor Chris Christie delivered some much-needed real talk on Islamophobia on&#160;Wednesday.&#160;For months, he’s been <a href="" type="internal">taking heat</a> from conservative groups over his appointment of a Muslim,&#160;Sohail&#160;Mohammed, to the state superior court ( <a href="http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/atlas_shrugs/2011/01/governor-christies-hamas-pick-for-superior-judgeship.html" type="external">here</a>‘s Pamela Geller’s characteristically calm reaction). With no factual evidence to support their claims, many conservatives fear that Muslims are stealthily forcing a radical strain of Islamic Shariah law on unsuspecting Americans—and Mohammed’s appointment, in such a key position, would no doubt speed up the process.</p>
<p>But Christie, who has been known to speak his mind from time to time, has had enough of it:</p>
<p>Shariah law has nothing to do with this at all. It’s crazy. It’s crazy. The guy’s an American citizen who has been an admitted lawyer to practice in the state of New Jersey, swearing an oath to uphold the laws of New Jersey, the constitution of the state of New Jersey, and the Constitution of the United States of America…this shariah law business is crap. It’s just crazy. And I’m tired of dealing with the crazies. It’s just unnecessary to be accusing this guy of things just because of his religious backround.</p>
<p>Here’s the video:</p>
<p /> | 4,192 |
<p>(Screenshot courtesy of YouTube)</p>
<p>Sam Smith announced on Tuesday he would be leaving Twitter following the fall out from his Oscars acceptance speech on Sunday.</p>
<p>Smith received backlash from social media after he misquoted an article by Sir Ian McKellen insinuating he was the first openly gay man to win an Academy Award. One <a href="" type="internal">tweet</a> from screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, who won an Oscar as screenwriter for “Milk,” brought widespread attention to the flub with Black linking his own acceptance speech and asking Smith to “stop texting my&#160;fiancé,” Olympic diver Tom Daley.</p>
<p>Black returned to Twitter and insisted his tweet was meant as a joke.</p>
<p />
<p>Smith has since told his Twitter followers not to expect any Tweet updates from him anytime soon.</p>
<p />
<p>Smith received an Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Writing’s on the Wall” featured on the “Spectre” soundtrack.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">Academy Awards 2016</a> <a href="" type="internal">Dustin Lance Black</a> <a href="" type="internal">Milk</a> <a href="" type="internal">Oscars 2016</a> <a href="" type="internal">Sam Smith</a> <a href="" type="internal">Spectre</a> <a href="" type="internal">Writing's on the Wall</a></p> | Sam Smith takes Twitter hiatus after Oscars debacle | false | http://washingtonblade.com/2016/03/03/sam-smith-takes-twitter-hiatus-after-oscars-debacle/ | 3left-center
| Sam Smith takes Twitter hiatus after Oscars debacle
<p>(Screenshot courtesy of YouTube)</p>
<p>Sam Smith announced on Tuesday he would be leaving Twitter following the fall out from his Oscars acceptance speech on Sunday.</p>
<p>Smith received backlash from social media after he misquoted an article by Sir Ian McKellen insinuating he was the first openly gay man to win an Academy Award. One <a href="" type="internal">tweet</a> from screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, who won an Oscar as screenwriter for “Milk,” brought widespread attention to the flub with Black linking his own acceptance speech and asking Smith to “stop texting my&#160;fiancé,” Olympic diver Tom Daley.</p>
<p>Black returned to Twitter and insisted his tweet was meant as a joke.</p>
<p />
<p>Smith has since told his Twitter followers not to expect any Tweet updates from him anytime soon.</p>
<p />
<p>Smith received an Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Writing’s on the Wall” featured on the “Spectre” soundtrack.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">Academy Awards 2016</a> <a href="" type="internal">Dustin Lance Black</a> <a href="" type="internal">Milk</a> <a href="" type="internal">Oscars 2016</a> <a href="" type="internal">Sam Smith</a> <a href="" type="internal">Spectre</a> <a href="" type="internal">Writing's on the Wall</a></p> | 4,193 |
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<p>(Image courtesy of Facebook)</p>
<p>BlerDCon, an inclusive nerd convention for people of color, is at Hyatt Crystal City (2799 Jefferson Davis Hwy., Arlington, Va.) on Friday, June 30- Sunday, July 2.</p>
<p>The convention will feature vendors, cosplayers and celebrity guests. LGBT HQ will be a part of the convention and will feature two LGBT panels, Men of Cosplay and LGBT Responsibility in Comics and Pop Culture. LGBT cosplayers Jay Justice and Les Levi will make appearances. There will be a LGBT passport raffle that will include prizes donated from vendors. Tickets are $45 and includes entry for all three days.</p>
<p>For more details, visit <a href="http://blerdcon.com/" type="external">blerdcon.com</a>.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">Arlington</a> <a href="" type="internal">BlerDCon</a> <a href="" type="internal">Hyatt Crystal City</a> <a href="" type="internal">Jay Justice</a> <a href="" type="internal">Les Levi</a> <a href="" type="internal">LGBT</a> <a href="" type="internal">Virginia</a></p> | BlerDCon runs next weekend in Arlington | false | http://washingtonblade.com/2017/06/22/blerdcon-runs-next-weekend/ | 3left-center
| BlerDCon runs next weekend in Arlington
<p>(Image courtesy of Facebook)</p>
<p>BlerDCon, an inclusive nerd convention for people of color, is at Hyatt Crystal City (2799 Jefferson Davis Hwy., Arlington, Va.) on Friday, June 30- Sunday, July 2.</p>
<p>The convention will feature vendors, cosplayers and celebrity guests. LGBT HQ will be a part of the convention and will feature two LGBT panels, Men of Cosplay and LGBT Responsibility in Comics and Pop Culture. LGBT cosplayers Jay Justice and Les Levi will make appearances. There will be a LGBT passport raffle that will include prizes donated from vendors. Tickets are $45 and includes entry for all three days.</p>
<p>For more details, visit <a href="http://blerdcon.com/" type="external">blerdcon.com</a>.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">Arlington</a> <a href="" type="internal">BlerDCon</a> <a href="" type="internal">Hyatt Crystal City</a> <a href="" type="internal">Jay Justice</a> <a href="" type="internal">Les Levi</a> <a href="" type="internal">LGBT</a> <a href="" type="internal">Virginia</a></p> | 4,194 |
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<p>The news: Latino homeowners have higher rates of foreclosures than their white counterparts</p>
<p>Behind the news: Some housing advocates say the lack of Spanishspeaking housing counselors increases foreclosures in the Latino community.</p>
<p>A recent report by The Woodstock Institute shows that the 11 Chicago wards with the highest Latino populations saw an increase in the number of foreclosures from 2007 to 2008. The predominantly Latino 31st Ward led the city in foreclosures.</p>
<p>“For someone that is bilingual or speaks English fluently, they have options. They can go here, there, anywhere,” said Ofelia Navarro, executive director of the Spanish Coalition for Housing. “But for someone who is limited as far as their language is concerned, they don’t have those options.”</p>
<p>The Chicago Reporter contacted housing counseling agencies in Chicago certified by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to determine the number of Spanish-speaking counselors.</p>
<p>According to the survey, 19 of the 29 agencies have counselors who speak Spanish. Among those 19 agencies, there are 103 counselors, and only half, or 57, speak Spanish. Two agencies did not respond to the request for information.</p>
<p>In Chicago’s 11 Latino wards, five have no Spanishspeaking HUD-certified counselors or agencies. Of the six Latino wards with agencies, 31 of the 47 counselors there speak Spanish.</p>
<p>Kristen Komara, director of financial services and policy at The Resurrection Project, located in Pilsen, said there are enough bilingual counselors for the current clientele, but there would not be enough if effective outreach made Latino communities aware of the services.</p>
<p>Debbie Wills, public affairs officer for HUD’s Chicago branch, said that the housing crisis has a disproportionate effect on minority communities, but no one has brought any complaints regarding Spanish-speaking housing counselors.</p> | Market demands bilingual counselors | false | http://chicagoreporter.com/market-demands-bilingual-counselors/ | 2009-01-01 | 3left-center
| Market demands bilingual counselors
<p>The news: Latino homeowners have higher rates of foreclosures than their white counterparts</p>
<p>Behind the news: Some housing advocates say the lack of Spanishspeaking housing counselors increases foreclosures in the Latino community.</p>
<p>A recent report by The Woodstock Institute shows that the 11 Chicago wards with the highest Latino populations saw an increase in the number of foreclosures from 2007 to 2008. The predominantly Latino 31st Ward led the city in foreclosures.</p>
<p>“For someone that is bilingual or speaks English fluently, they have options. They can go here, there, anywhere,” said Ofelia Navarro, executive director of the Spanish Coalition for Housing. “But for someone who is limited as far as their language is concerned, they don’t have those options.”</p>
<p>The Chicago Reporter contacted housing counseling agencies in Chicago certified by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to determine the number of Spanish-speaking counselors.</p>
<p>According to the survey, 19 of the 29 agencies have counselors who speak Spanish. Among those 19 agencies, there are 103 counselors, and only half, or 57, speak Spanish. Two agencies did not respond to the request for information.</p>
<p>In Chicago’s 11 Latino wards, five have no Spanishspeaking HUD-certified counselors or agencies. Of the six Latino wards with agencies, 31 of the 47 counselors there speak Spanish.</p>
<p>Kristen Komara, director of financial services and policy at The Resurrection Project, located in Pilsen, said there are enough bilingual counselors for the current clientele, but there would not be enough if effective outreach made Latino communities aware of the services.</p>
<p>Debbie Wills, public affairs officer for HUD’s Chicago branch, said that the housing crisis has a disproportionate effect on minority communities, but no one has brought any complaints regarding Spanish-speaking housing counselors.</p> | 4,195 |
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<p />
<p>Single-game tickets will go on sale Monday at the Lobo Ticket Office at The Pit, beginning at 8:30 a.m. &#160;Tickets may also be purchased through the phone center (M-F, <a href="callto:10-4,%20925-5858" type="external">10-4, 925-5858</a>) and at all Albertsons stores in the Albuquerque/Rio Rancho/Santa Fe/Los Lunas area. &#160;A complete listing of those stores can be found here:&#160; <a href="http://www.unmtickets.com/albertsons" type="external">http://www.unmtickets.com/albertsons</a></p>
<p>Fans coming directly to The Pit can check out the Lobo Den Store,&#160; open from noon to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday.</p>
<p>Men’s games that are expected to sell fast are non-conference matchups with New Mexico State (Nov. 18), Abilene Christian (Nov. 30) and UTEP (Dec. 7). Conference games include UNLV (Jan. 10),&#160;Utah State (Jan. 24),&#160;Boise State (Feb 14), and&#160;San Diego State (March 4).&#160;The game against Abilene Christian will be an extra special event as the Lobo men’s basketball team is celebrating 50 years at The Pit.</p>
<p>On the women’s side, fans will not want to miss non-conference matchups like New Mexico State (Nov. 15) or SMU (Dec. 3). The SMU game on December 3 will mark the Lobo women’s basketball team’s Alumni Day. League games include the Lobos vs. reigning Mountain West Champion, Colorado State (Jan. 14), Boise State (Jan. 18) and Fresno State (Feb. 18). UNM will also host its annual Thanksgiving Tournament (Nov. 25-26) that will feature Tulsa, BYU and St. Joseph’s.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>New Mexico men’s basketball opens the exhibition season with games on Wednesday, Nov. 2 against Western New Mexico at 7 p.m. and on Friday, Nov. 4 against Eastern New Mexico at 7 p.m. The women’s team will take the court for their exhibition season on Tuesday, Nov. 1 against Fort Lewis at 7 p.m. and on Sunday, Nov. 6 against Eastern New Mexico at 2 p.m.</p>
<p>The men’s team opens regular-season play on Friday, Nov. 11 against Idaho State where&#160; <a href="http://golobos.com/coaches.aspx?rc=380" type="external">Craig Neal</a>&#160;will kick off his fourth season as head coach of the Lobos while <a href="http://golobos.com/coaches.aspx?rc=390" type="external">Mike Bradbury</a>&#160;will begin his first season at the helm of the women’s team on Saturday, Nov. 12 against Fairleigh Dickinson at 2 p.m.</p>
<p>&#160;</p> | UNM hoops: Single-game tickets go on sale Saturday | false | https://abqjournal.com/872844/unm-hoops-single-game-tickets-go-on-sale-saturday.html | 2least
| UNM hoops: Single-game tickets go on sale Saturday
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p />
<p>Single-game tickets will go on sale Monday at the Lobo Ticket Office at The Pit, beginning at 8:30 a.m. &#160;Tickets may also be purchased through the phone center (M-F, <a href="callto:10-4,%20925-5858" type="external">10-4, 925-5858</a>) and at all Albertsons stores in the Albuquerque/Rio Rancho/Santa Fe/Los Lunas area. &#160;A complete listing of those stores can be found here:&#160; <a href="http://www.unmtickets.com/albertsons" type="external">http://www.unmtickets.com/albertsons</a></p>
<p>Fans coming directly to The Pit can check out the Lobo Den Store,&#160; open from noon to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday.</p>
<p>Men’s games that are expected to sell fast are non-conference matchups with New Mexico State (Nov. 18), Abilene Christian (Nov. 30) and UTEP (Dec. 7). Conference games include UNLV (Jan. 10),&#160;Utah State (Jan. 24),&#160;Boise State (Feb 14), and&#160;San Diego State (March 4).&#160;The game against Abilene Christian will be an extra special event as the Lobo men’s basketball team is celebrating 50 years at The Pit.</p>
<p>On the women’s side, fans will not want to miss non-conference matchups like New Mexico State (Nov. 15) or SMU (Dec. 3). The SMU game on December 3 will mark the Lobo women’s basketball team’s Alumni Day. League games include the Lobos vs. reigning Mountain West Champion, Colorado State (Jan. 14), Boise State (Jan. 18) and Fresno State (Feb. 18). UNM will also host its annual Thanksgiving Tournament (Nov. 25-26) that will feature Tulsa, BYU and St. Joseph’s.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>New Mexico men’s basketball opens the exhibition season with games on Wednesday, Nov. 2 against Western New Mexico at 7 p.m. and on Friday, Nov. 4 against Eastern New Mexico at 7 p.m. The women’s team will take the court for their exhibition season on Tuesday, Nov. 1 against Fort Lewis at 7 p.m. and on Sunday, Nov. 6 against Eastern New Mexico at 2 p.m.</p>
<p>The men’s team opens regular-season play on Friday, Nov. 11 against Idaho State where&#160; <a href="http://golobos.com/coaches.aspx?rc=380" type="external">Craig Neal</a>&#160;will kick off his fourth season as head coach of the Lobos while <a href="http://golobos.com/coaches.aspx?rc=390" type="external">Mike Bradbury</a>&#160;will begin his first season at the helm of the women’s team on Saturday, Nov. 12 against Fairleigh Dickinson at 2 p.m.</p>
<p>&#160;</p> | 4,196 |
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<p>DETROIT (AP) — After resisting for nearly a month, Chrysler has bowed to government demands and will expand a recall of driver's side air bag inflators across the nation.</p>
<p>The automaker said Friday that it will recall nearly 2.9 million older cars and trucks in the U.S., as demanded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.</p>
<p>The vehicles have driver's air bags equipped with inflators made by Japan's Takata Corp. that can explode with too much force and spew shrapnel at drivers and passengers. At least five deaths have been blamed on Takata inflators.</p>
<p>The recalls previously were limited to areas with high humidity. For instance, Chrysler's recall covered just Hawaii, Florida, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. With the move, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles joins Honda, Mazda and Ford in expanding the recall nationally, which could ease the minds of many car owners whose vehicles previously weren't eligible for repairs.</p>
<p>How soon those owners will get replacement parts remains in question, however. Like other automakers, Chrysler said it will first send replacement parts to areas with high humidity that are at greater risk. The automaker said customers will be notified when the parts are available to schedule repairs at a dealership.</p>
<p>Takata itself has refused the agency's request for a nationwide recall of driver's side inflators, about 8 million in total. But it will still make replacement parts for the automakers that are expanding their recalls. Still undecided is whether Takata or the automakers will pay the extra costs involved.</p>
<p>Takata says it has tested more than 1,000 driver and passenger air bag inflators from outside the high-humidity area without a single failure.</p>
<p>BMW, the lone automaker holding out on a nationwide recall, said Friday it's still evaluating NHTSA's request.</p>
<p>In a statement, Chrysler also said it would add Canada, Mexico and some areas outside North America to the driver's air bag recall, bringing the total to 3.3 million vehicles.</p>
<p>The recall includes Chrysler's most popular model, the Ram pickup, from the 2004 through 2007 model years. Also covered are Dodge Durango and Chrysler Aspen SUVs, Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger sedans, Dodge Magnum wagons, and the Dodge Dakota and Mitsubishi ranger pickups — all from 2004 through 2007.</p>
<p>Chrysler said in its statement that neither it nor Takata has identified a safety defect in the inflators outside the high humidity zone. "These components also are distinct from Takata inflators cited in fatalities involving other automakers," Chrysler's statement said.</p>
<p>One Chrysler vehicle had a malfunctioning inflator in south Florida that injured one person, the company said.</p>
<p>NHTSA has said the inflator propellant, ammonium nitrate, can burn faster than designed if exposed to prolonged airborne moisture. That can cause it to blow apart a metal canister meant to contain the explosion.</p>
<p>The safety agency says there's no data to support a nationwide recall of passenger air bags, which so far has been held to the high-humidity states. In total, 10 automakers have models with Takata driver and passenger air bags. There could be as many as 30 million with the air bags nationwide.</p>
<p>So far, automakers have recalled about 15 million vehicles in the U.S. and about 22 million globally for similar problems.</p>
<p>DETROIT (AP) — After resisting for nearly a month, Chrysler has bowed to government demands and will expand a recall of driver's side air bag inflators across the nation.</p>
<p>The automaker said Friday that it will recall nearly 2.9 million older cars and trucks in the U.S., as demanded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.</p>
<p>The vehicles have driver's air bags equipped with inflators made by Japan's Takata Corp. that can explode with too much force and spew shrapnel at drivers and passengers. At least five deaths have been blamed on Takata inflators.</p>
<p>The recalls previously were limited to areas with high humidity. For instance, Chrysler's recall covered just Hawaii, Florida, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. With the move, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles joins Honda, Mazda and Ford in expanding the recall nationally, which could ease the minds of many car owners whose vehicles previously weren't eligible for repairs.</p>
<p>How soon those owners will get replacement parts remains in question, however. Like other automakers, Chrysler said it will first send replacement parts to areas with high humidity that are at greater risk. The automaker said customers will be notified when the parts are available to schedule repairs at a dealership.</p>
<p>Takata itself has refused the agency's request for a nationwide recall of driver's side inflators, about 8 million in total. But it will still make replacement parts for the automakers that are expanding their recalls. Still undecided is whether Takata or the automakers will pay the extra costs involved.</p>
<p>Takata says it has tested more than 1,000 driver and passenger air bag inflators from outside the high-humidity area without a single failure.</p>
<p>BMW, the lone automaker holding out on a nationwide recall, said Friday it's still evaluating NHTSA's request.</p>
<p>In a statement, Chrysler also said it would add Canada, Mexico and some areas outside North America to the driver's air bag recall, bringing the total to 3.3 million vehicles.</p>
<p>The recall includes Chrysler's most popular model, the Ram pickup, from the 2004 through 2007 model years. Also covered are Dodge Durango and Chrysler Aspen SUVs, Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger sedans, Dodge Magnum wagons, and the Dodge Dakota and Mitsubishi ranger pickups — all from 2004 through 2007.</p>
<p>Chrysler said in its statement that neither it nor Takata has identified a safety defect in the inflators outside the high humidity zone. "These components also are distinct from Takata inflators cited in fatalities involving other automakers," Chrysler's statement said.</p>
<p>One Chrysler vehicle had a malfunctioning inflator in south Florida that injured one person, the company said.</p>
<p>NHTSA has said the inflator propellant, ammonium nitrate, can burn faster than designed if exposed to prolonged airborne moisture. That can cause it to blow apart a metal canister meant to contain the explosion.</p>
<p>The safety agency says there's no data to support a nationwide recall of passenger air bags, which so far has been held to the high-humidity states. In total, 10 automakers have models with Takata driver and passenger air bags. There could be as many as 30 million with the air bags nationwide.</p>
<p>So far, automakers have recalled about 15 million vehicles in the U.S. and about 22 million globally for similar problems.</p> | Chrysler gives in to gov't, expands air bag recall | false | https://apnews.com/amp/e2fb1f28814a41f49aa55b1b8e131fe8 | 2014-12-19 | 2least
| Chrysler gives in to gov't, expands air bag recall
<p>DETROIT (AP) — After resisting for nearly a month, Chrysler has bowed to government demands and will expand a recall of driver's side air bag inflators across the nation.</p>
<p>The automaker said Friday that it will recall nearly 2.9 million older cars and trucks in the U.S., as demanded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.</p>
<p>The vehicles have driver's air bags equipped with inflators made by Japan's Takata Corp. that can explode with too much force and spew shrapnel at drivers and passengers. At least five deaths have been blamed on Takata inflators.</p>
<p>The recalls previously were limited to areas with high humidity. For instance, Chrysler's recall covered just Hawaii, Florida, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. With the move, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles joins Honda, Mazda and Ford in expanding the recall nationally, which could ease the minds of many car owners whose vehicles previously weren't eligible for repairs.</p>
<p>How soon those owners will get replacement parts remains in question, however. Like other automakers, Chrysler said it will first send replacement parts to areas with high humidity that are at greater risk. The automaker said customers will be notified when the parts are available to schedule repairs at a dealership.</p>
<p>Takata itself has refused the agency's request for a nationwide recall of driver's side inflators, about 8 million in total. But it will still make replacement parts for the automakers that are expanding their recalls. Still undecided is whether Takata or the automakers will pay the extra costs involved.</p>
<p>Takata says it has tested more than 1,000 driver and passenger air bag inflators from outside the high-humidity area without a single failure.</p>
<p>BMW, the lone automaker holding out on a nationwide recall, said Friday it's still evaluating NHTSA's request.</p>
<p>In a statement, Chrysler also said it would add Canada, Mexico and some areas outside North America to the driver's air bag recall, bringing the total to 3.3 million vehicles.</p>
<p>The recall includes Chrysler's most popular model, the Ram pickup, from the 2004 through 2007 model years. Also covered are Dodge Durango and Chrysler Aspen SUVs, Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger sedans, Dodge Magnum wagons, and the Dodge Dakota and Mitsubishi ranger pickups — all from 2004 through 2007.</p>
<p>Chrysler said in its statement that neither it nor Takata has identified a safety defect in the inflators outside the high humidity zone. "These components also are distinct from Takata inflators cited in fatalities involving other automakers," Chrysler's statement said.</p>
<p>One Chrysler vehicle had a malfunctioning inflator in south Florida that injured one person, the company said.</p>
<p>NHTSA has said the inflator propellant, ammonium nitrate, can burn faster than designed if exposed to prolonged airborne moisture. That can cause it to blow apart a metal canister meant to contain the explosion.</p>
<p>The safety agency says there's no data to support a nationwide recall of passenger air bags, which so far has been held to the high-humidity states. In total, 10 automakers have models with Takata driver and passenger air bags. There could be as many as 30 million with the air bags nationwide.</p>
<p>So far, automakers have recalled about 15 million vehicles in the U.S. and about 22 million globally for similar problems.</p>
<p>DETROIT (AP) — After resisting for nearly a month, Chrysler has bowed to government demands and will expand a recall of driver's side air bag inflators across the nation.</p>
<p>The automaker said Friday that it will recall nearly 2.9 million older cars and trucks in the U.S., as demanded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.</p>
<p>The vehicles have driver's air bags equipped with inflators made by Japan's Takata Corp. that can explode with too much force and spew shrapnel at drivers and passengers. At least five deaths have been blamed on Takata inflators.</p>
<p>The recalls previously were limited to areas with high humidity. For instance, Chrysler's recall covered just Hawaii, Florida, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. With the move, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles joins Honda, Mazda and Ford in expanding the recall nationally, which could ease the minds of many car owners whose vehicles previously weren't eligible for repairs.</p>
<p>How soon those owners will get replacement parts remains in question, however. Like other automakers, Chrysler said it will first send replacement parts to areas with high humidity that are at greater risk. The automaker said customers will be notified when the parts are available to schedule repairs at a dealership.</p>
<p>Takata itself has refused the agency's request for a nationwide recall of driver's side inflators, about 8 million in total. But it will still make replacement parts for the automakers that are expanding their recalls. Still undecided is whether Takata or the automakers will pay the extra costs involved.</p>
<p>Takata says it has tested more than 1,000 driver and passenger air bag inflators from outside the high-humidity area without a single failure.</p>
<p>BMW, the lone automaker holding out on a nationwide recall, said Friday it's still evaluating NHTSA's request.</p>
<p>In a statement, Chrysler also said it would add Canada, Mexico and some areas outside North America to the driver's air bag recall, bringing the total to 3.3 million vehicles.</p>
<p>The recall includes Chrysler's most popular model, the Ram pickup, from the 2004 through 2007 model years. Also covered are Dodge Durango and Chrysler Aspen SUVs, Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger sedans, Dodge Magnum wagons, and the Dodge Dakota and Mitsubishi ranger pickups — all from 2004 through 2007.</p>
<p>Chrysler said in its statement that neither it nor Takata has identified a safety defect in the inflators outside the high humidity zone. "These components also are distinct from Takata inflators cited in fatalities involving other automakers," Chrysler's statement said.</p>
<p>One Chrysler vehicle had a malfunctioning inflator in south Florida that injured one person, the company said.</p>
<p>NHTSA has said the inflator propellant, ammonium nitrate, can burn faster than designed if exposed to prolonged airborne moisture. That can cause it to blow apart a metal canister meant to contain the explosion.</p>
<p>The safety agency says there's no data to support a nationwide recall of passenger air bags, which so far has been held to the high-humidity states. In total, 10 automakers have models with Takata driver and passenger air bags. There could be as many as 30 million with the air bags nationwide.</p>
<p>So far, automakers have recalled about 15 million vehicles in the U.S. and about 22 million globally for similar problems.</p> | 4,197 |
<p>Donald Trump made two false statements on ABC’s “This Week” while discussing foreign policy and the Republican presidential primary:</p>
<p>In an interview that was taped Jan. 16 for “ <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/week-transcript-donald-trump-hillary-clinton-sen-bernie/story?id=36333245" type="external">This Week</a>,” Trump was asked about <a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/01/16/463293941/iran-says-its-releasing-four-iranian-american-detainees-in-prison-swap" type="external">Iran’s announcement</a>&#160;that day that it had agreed to release four&#160;Americans who had been detained. A day later, <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2016/01/17/statement-president-iran" type="external">President Obama said</a> five Americans were released: former Marine&#160; <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2014/12/17/marine-veteran-amir-hekmati-imprisoned-in-iran-is-launching-a-hunger-strike/" type="external">Amir Hekmati</a>, who had been held four and a half years; Pastor Saeed Abedini, three and a half years; journalist <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2015/07/21/sketchbook-the-posts-jason-rezaian-marks-a-year-behind-the-bars-of-injustice/" type="external">Jason Rezaian</a>, one and a half years; student Matt Trevilick, who had been held for <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/iran-releases-post-correspondent-jason-rezaian-iranian-reports-say/2016/01/16/e8ee7858-ba38-11e5-829c-26ffb874a18d_story.html" type="external">40 days</a>; and&#160;Nosratollah Khosravi-Roodsari. ( <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/iran-releases-post-correspondent-jason-rezaian-iranian-reports-say/2016/01/16/e8ee7858-ba38-11e5-829c-26ffb874a18d_story.html" type="external">The Washington Post story</a> on the president’s announcement said Trevilick “was not part of the exchange deal,” and the detention of&#160;Khosravi-Roodsari “had not been previously publicized.”)</p>
<p>Anchor George Stephanopoulos,&#160;Jan. 16: So we have some news. We have four American hostages, including Jason Rezaian, and released by Iran. Now you said that was never going to happen. You blamed Obama.&#160;Are you ready to give him credit?</p>
<p>Trump: Absolutely not. And I never said it was never going to happen. I said that if I got in, it would happen immediately.</p>
<p>Actually, Trump said both. He said those detained by Iran would never be released under the Obama administration, and he promised to immediately secure their release if&#160;he wins the election. He did so at a <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/video/2015/09/09/trump-if-i-win-i-guarantee-irans-four-american-prisoners-will-be-back-before-i-take-office/" type="external">Capitol Hill rally</a> in September.</p>
<p>Trump, Sept. 9, 2015: We can talk about the $150 billion, which, by the way, they get even if the deal isn’t approved. They get it just for going to the table. We can talk about the fact that we have four wonderful people over there, and frankly they’re never going to come back with this group. And I will say this. If I win the presidency, I guarantee you that those four prisoners are back in our country before I ever take office. I guarantee that.</p>
<p>As for his standing in presidential primary polls, Trump claimed that “all of the latest polls have me No. 1&#160;in Iowa.” He also accused Cruz of lying during the Jan. 14 Republican debate. Both of those statements are false.</p>
<p>Trump, Jan. 16:&#160; I’m No. 1&#160;in every single place, including Iowa, by the way, as you know, all of the latest polls have me No. 1&#160;in Iowa. And I have a great feeling toward Iowa and a great relationship with the people there, with the evangelicals and the tea party.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/ia/iowa_republican_presidential_caucus-3194.html#polls" type="external">Real Clear Politics</a>, which aggregates polling data on its website, shows the most recent <a href="http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/elections/presidential/caucus/2016/01/13/iowa-poll-cruz-holds-3-point-lead-trump-attacks/78684344/" type="external">Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics Iowa Poll</a>&#160;put Cruz ahead of Trump by three points, 25 to 22. The poll, released on Jan. 13, had a margin of error of 4.4 percent, so Cruz’s lead is within the margin of error. But Trump is not “No. 1” in “all of the latest polls” in Iowa.</p>
<p>Stephanopoulos also asked Trump about some of the sharp exchanges that Cruz and Trump had during the <a href="" type="internal">Jan. 14 Republican debate</a> and the days that followed.</p>
<p>Cruz, who was born in Canada to a U.S. citizen, said during the debate that Trump’s questions about Cruz’s eligibility to be president were politically motivated.</p>
<p>Cruz, Jan. 14:&#160;You know, back in September, my friend Donald said that he had had his lawyers look at this from every which way, and there was no issue there. There was nothing to this birther issue.&#160;Now, since September, the Constitution hasn’t changed.&#160;But the poll numbers have.&#160;And I recognize — I recognize that Donald is dismayed that his poll numbers are falling in Iowa.</p>
<p>Cruz is right. The Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics Iowa Poll was released a day before the debate and, as we said, that poll showed Cruz ahead of Trump.</p>
<p>In fact, <a href="http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/ia/iowa_republican_presidential_caucus-3194.html" type="external">Real Clear Politics</a> lists&#160;16 polls taken in Iowa since December, and Cruz placed No. 1 in eight of them, while Trump was in first place in seven. They were tied in one poll. Cruz topped Trump for the first time in Iowa in a <a href="http://www.monmouth.edu/assets/0/32212254770/32212254991/32212254992/32212254994/32212254995/30064771087/de240398-df23-47b6-8470-91977d38b749.pdf" type="external">Monmouth University Poll</a> released Dec. 7, so the race in Iowa has tightened considerably.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, Trump accused Cruz of lying in the “This Week” interview when he was asked about his conservative credentials.</p>
<p>Stephanopoulos, Jan. 16:&#160;But they are — they’re afraid you’re going to abandon conservative issues if you get the nomination.</p>
<p>Trump: I don’t think too many people are afraid of that, OK, because if you look at the polls, I’m leading Ted Cruz by a lot. He even lied about that. You know, he got up and said, well, the polls — well, the polls are showing that I’m the one that’s on the up swing. He’s the one on the down swing, a big down swing.</p>
<p>It is true that Trump is comfortably ahead in the <a href="http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/us/2016_republican_presidential_nomination-3823.html#polls" type="external">national polls</a>. But, during the debate, Cruz specifically mentioned Trump’s poll numbers in Iowa, so Trump is wrong to call Cruz a liar.</p>
<p>We asked the Trump campaign in an email about his statements, but we received no response.</p>
<p>— Eugene Kiely, with Chloe Nurik</p> | Trump Wrong on Iran, Polling | false | https://factcheck.org/2016/01/trump-wrong-on-iran-polling/ | 2016-01-19 | 2least
| Trump Wrong on Iran, Polling
<p>Donald Trump made two false statements on ABC’s “This Week” while discussing foreign policy and the Republican presidential primary:</p>
<p>In an interview that was taped Jan. 16 for “ <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/week-transcript-donald-trump-hillary-clinton-sen-bernie/story?id=36333245" type="external">This Week</a>,” Trump was asked about <a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/01/16/463293941/iran-says-its-releasing-four-iranian-american-detainees-in-prison-swap" type="external">Iran’s announcement</a>&#160;that day that it had agreed to release four&#160;Americans who had been detained. A day later, <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2016/01/17/statement-president-iran" type="external">President Obama said</a> five Americans were released: former Marine&#160; <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2014/12/17/marine-veteran-amir-hekmati-imprisoned-in-iran-is-launching-a-hunger-strike/" type="external">Amir Hekmati</a>, who had been held four and a half years; Pastor Saeed Abedini, three and a half years; journalist <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2015/07/21/sketchbook-the-posts-jason-rezaian-marks-a-year-behind-the-bars-of-injustice/" type="external">Jason Rezaian</a>, one and a half years; student Matt Trevilick, who had been held for <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/iran-releases-post-correspondent-jason-rezaian-iranian-reports-say/2016/01/16/e8ee7858-ba38-11e5-829c-26ffb874a18d_story.html" type="external">40 days</a>; and&#160;Nosratollah Khosravi-Roodsari. ( <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/iran-releases-post-correspondent-jason-rezaian-iranian-reports-say/2016/01/16/e8ee7858-ba38-11e5-829c-26ffb874a18d_story.html" type="external">The Washington Post story</a> on the president’s announcement said Trevilick “was not part of the exchange deal,” and the detention of&#160;Khosravi-Roodsari “had not been previously publicized.”)</p>
<p>Anchor George Stephanopoulos,&#160;Jan. 16: So we have some news. We have four American hostages, including Jason Rezaian, and released by Iran. Now you said that was never going to happen. You blamed Obama.&#160;Are you ready to give him credit?</p>
<p>Trump: Absolutely not. And I never said it was never going to happen. I said that if I got in, it would happen immediately.</p>
<p>Actually, Trump said both. He said those detained by Iran would never be released under the Obama administration, and he promised to immediately secure their release if&#160;he wins the election. He did so at a <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/video/2015/09/09/trump-if-i-win-i-guarantee-irans-four-american-prisoners-will-be-back-before-i-take-office/" type="external">Capitol Hill rally</a> in September.</p>
<p>Trump, Sept. 9, 2015: We can talk about the $150 billion, which, by the way, they get even if the deal isn’t approved. They get it just for going to the table. We can talk about the fact that we have four wonderful people over there, and frankly they’re never going to come back with this group. And I will say this. If I win the presidency, I guarantee you that those four prisoners are back in our country before I ever take office. I guarantee that.</p>
<p>As for his standing in presidential primary polls, Trump claimed that “all of the latest polls have me No. 1&#160;in Iowa.” He also accused Cruz of lying during the Jan. 14 Republican debate. Both of those statements are false.</p>
<p>Trump, Jan. 16:&#160; I’m No. 1&#160;in every single place, including Iowa, by the way, as you know, all of the latest polls have me No. 1&#160;in Iowa. And I have a great feeling toward Iowa and a great relationship with the people there, with the evangelicals and the tea party.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/ia/iowa_republican_presidential_caucus-3194.html#polls" type="external">Real Clear Politics</a>, which aggregates polling data on its website, shows the most recent <a href="http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/elections/presidential/caucus/2016/01/13/iowa-poll-cruz-holds-3-point-lead-trump-attacks/78684344/" type="external">Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics Iowa Poll</a>&#160;put Cruz ahead of Trump by three points, 25 to 22. The poll, released on Jan. 13, had a margin of error of 4.4 percent, so Cruz’s lead is within the margin of error. But Trump is not “No. 1” in “all of the latest polls” in Iowa.</p>
<p>Stephanopoulos also asked Trump about some of the sharp exchanges that Cruz and Trump had during the <a href="" type="internal">Jan. 14 Republican debate</a> and the days that followed.</p>
<p>Cruz, who was born in Canada to a U.S. citizen, said during the debate that Trump’s questions about Cruz’s eligibility to be president were politically motivated.</p>
<p>Cruz, Jan. 14:&#160;You know, back in September, my friend Donald said that he had had his lawyers look at this from every which way, and there was no issue there. There was nothing to this birther issue.&#160;Now, since September, the Constitution hasn’t changed.&#160;But the poll numbers have.&#160;And I recognize — I recognize that Donald is dismayed that his poll numbers are falling in Iowa.</p>
<p>Cruz is right. The Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics Iowa Poll was released a day before the debate and, as we said, that poll showed Cruz ahead of Trump.</p>
<p>In fact, <a href="http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/ia/iowa_republican_presidential_caucus-3194.html" type="external">Real Clear Politics</a> lists&#160;16 polls taken in Iowa since December, and Cruz placed No. 1 in eight of them, while Trump was in first place in seven. They were tied in one poll. Cruz topped Trump for the first time in Iowa in a <a href="http://www.monmouth.edu/assets/0/32212254770/32212254991/32212254992/32212254994/32212254995/30064771087/de240398-df23-47b6-8470-91977d38b749.pdf" type="external">Monmouth University Poll</a> released Dec. 7, so the race in Iowa has tightened considerably.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, Trump accused Cruz of lying in the “This Week” interview when he was asked about his conservative credentials.</p>
<p>Stephanopoulos, Jan. 16:&#160;But they are — they’re afraid you’re going to abandon conservative issues if you get the nomination.</p>
<p>Trump: I don’t think too many people are afraid of that, OK, because if you look at the polls, I’m leading Ted Cruz by a lot. He even lied about that. You know, he got up and said, well, the polls — well, the polls are showing that I’m the one that’s on the up swing. He’s the one on the down swing, a big down swing.</p>
<p>It is true that Trump is comfortably ahead in the <a href="http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/us/2016_republican_presidential_nomination-3823.html#polls" type="external">national polls</a>. But, during the debate, Cruz specifically mentioned Trump’s poll numbers in Iowa, so Trump is wrong to call Cruz a liar.</p>
<p>We asked the Trump campaign in an email about his statements, but we received no response.</p>
<p>— Eugene Kiely, with Chloe Nurik</p> | 4,198 |
<p>Growing up in Mexico and then Mesa, Ariz. with a mother who worked long hours, Jose Castro started writing out of loneliness. Soon he was rapping, and after turning 18 he moved to Las Vegas to try to make it big.</p>
<p>Several years ago he felt like he was close— performing at the House of Blues and other big venues, working with producers and musicians with major label connections. &#160;Like many well-known rappers, his songs were about guns, girls and getting high. That also summed up his lifestyle.</p>
<p>It was intoxicating, but he could tell it was a vicious cycle. He promised himself that when he got a record deal, he would quit drugs. In the summer of 2009, Castro signed a contract with the label 5-7 Records, but he kept right on partying— “I broke my promise,” he said. About two weeks later, the deal fell through. Then on Nov. 11, 2009, Castro had what he describes as a near-death experience. Codeine was his drug of choice at the time, and he chugged a bottle of cough syrup while also smoking lots of marijuana.&#160;</p>
<p>“I started feeling really bad, my speech was going away, my legs were going numb, I felt little shocks all over my spine, my insides were burning hot, my brain was swelling like it was going to pop in my head. I thought I was going to die, and I didn’t want to be remembered as a junkie.”&#160;</p>
<p>He looked at himself in the mirror and the face staring back was gaunt, wide-eyed, a stranger. He asked God to help him, he said, and thought of his mother. Then he said he felt a powerful embrace, more loving and protective than even his mother’s hugs when he was a child. He walked out of the room knowing that he would survive and change his life.</p>
<p>Today at age 22, Castro— his stage name as well as his last name—is still rapping, and his songs still sound raw and edgy, throbbing with the tension of street life. He raps about “hope for the ‘hood,” the power of his faith, the mistakes he’s made and the tragedy of young people losing their way, like the mother of his almost-two-year-old daughter—“a young girl looking for answers … a lost angel.”</p>
<p>Now music is Castro’s way of exploring his own struggles and—without preaching—offering advice and inspiration to those still caught up in the vicious cycle of gangs, drugs and violence.</p>
<p>Using music to help young people break free of that cycle is also the mission of Project Spitfire, a year-old grassroots non-profit organization. Founded last January by youth worker Henry Mann, with start-up funding from the prominent anti-violence group CeaseFire, Project Spitfire pairs young musicians with professional producers who help them record songs and videos. Spitfire also provides the young artists a $100 signing bonus, photo shoots and publicity. Project Spitfire is in the process of recording a compilation CD that along with performances will help show youth that they have alternatives and opportunities. Mann is insistent that the music and the group stay genuine, working with young people who really are or have been involved with gangs and violence, encouraging them to express themselves uncensored, steering clear of “positive hip hop” clichés.</p>
<p>“There is a lot of really crappy conscious hip hop out there where they’re just saying ‘put down the guns,’ but obviously that’s not working,” said Mann, 23, who moved to Chicago from Maine in 2006 to attend the University of Chicago, where he studied for two years before transferring to the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he is finishing a degree in political science. He worked on youth media projects through CeaseFire and the social service agency Sullivan House, including documentary work with youth in the juvenile justice system. “There’s a middle ground between that and glorifying what goes on out there. I’m just asking you to tell your story, who you are,” Mann said. “If we can build relationships, then we can connect them with other organizations too, and be a bridge.”&#160;</p>
<p>Last winter Spitfire, working largely through CeaseFire’s connections, put out a call for musicians to submit demos and personal statements. The project has signed six artists, and it’s looking for more. Marilyn Pitchford, program manager for CeaseFire West, has referred several young men to Project Spitfire and says she is highly impressed by Mann’s passion for the project.</p>
<p>“It can be a great outlet for some of the guys, if they’ve been a victim or a perpetrator” of violence, she said. “Often we only hear one side of a story. This is a way for them to tell their story, I think it’s a great outlet for them. A lot of them don’t ever get counseling or therapy. So this can be a great resource, a healing tool.”</p>
<p>For Castro, that process began when he moved to Chicago several months before hearing of Project Spitfire, after a brief stint in Washington state where he had gone looking for work only to find that temporary construction and other jobs were shutting down for the winter. His biological father, whom he barely knew, invited him to come live in Cicero so the two could build a relationship. Turning over a new leaf, in general, this is where Castro made his musical transformation. He recently completed a CD called “Spiritual Warfare,” in part with the help of Spitfire and affiliated producer Raul Parra, also featuring rapper Nobull, another Project Spitfire artist. &#160;Castro has signed with a local label called Q7 Records. Many of the songs are about love— of Jesus and his fellow human beings. (Listen to Castro’s music here.)</p>
<p>“I used to think love was for sissies and you weren’t supposed to show it,” he said. “But love is the greatest weapon you can use to get someone on your side.”</p>
<p>Castro hands his CD out to young people on the streets, engaging them in conversation when possible. He performed recently at New Life Church in Cicero, a far cry from the House of Blues. Sometimes he misses the success he was having in Las Vegas.</p>
<p>“I had it made— my own place, cars, girls. But how do you acquire that? Selling drugs, hurting people, not even caring about your loved ones. It isn’t worth it.”</p>
<p>He eventually hopes to build an international career as a Christian rapper, starting with performances around Chicago. He raps in Spanish and English, and wants to tour Mexico and South America.</p>
<p>“It’s a slow process,” he said. “But you don’t want something like a microwave, you want something like a crock pot—it tastes better.”</p>
<p>Like Castro, another Spitfire artist, Eric Brown aka Young DBoy Low, has been writing and rapping nearly his whole life. His nine siblings and his parents are all artistic—he grew up surrounded by painting, poetry, gospel music and hip hop. But living in Bronzeville and other tough South Side neighborhoods, music and art weren’t enough to keep them out of trouble. DBoy has been shot at numerous times and beaten up, he said. His songs brim with violence and tragedy. DBoy and his brother, Chill, both 22 years old, applied together to join Spitfire. Soon after they got the news that they’d been accepted, Chill was jailed on charges of possession of a firearm and discharging a firearm. DBoy said he was present during the incident leading to the arrest, and is lucky he didn’t end up hurt or behind bars also.</p>
<p>“It shows even when we go real hard in our music about stopping the violence, we still get caught up in it,” he said. “You try to be goody two shoes, but if you haven’t been a victim of violence you can’t just sit there and say ‘stop the violence.’ You don’t know how hard it is. Here we see violence every day, whether verbal or physical. It’s always easy to find, and if you don’t pay attention it will find you.”</p>
<p>[ <a href="" type="internal">Click here to view photos of DBoy</a>]</p>
<p>And DBoy said violence—in the form of retribution—can find you in Chicago even when you try to escape the gang culture where much of the trouble originates. “It’s your enemies who won’t let you move on,” he said. “Rival gangs don’t care about you wanting what we call ‘out.’ They don’t care about you changing your life and wanting to raise your kids in a different environment. You will still be gunned down on sight.”</p>
<p>“See, you can try to erase your own past, but you can’t erase the pain someone else has suffered due to the hands of your gang sign,” DBoy said.</p>
<p>DBoy writes his lyrics in neat cursive in a battered black and red notebook he’s had for years. Finished songs are in the front of the book, notes and brainstorms are in the back. The lyrics are full of word play, homages to Chicago and delicate images mixed with harsh realities. The song “Gentrifications,” for which Project Spitfire helped him shoot a video, whimsically describes different Chicago public housing projects as individual people who meet tough fates. A man named Robert Taylor who is “tall as hell” ends up overdosing. A silent girl named Ida B. Wells lived on 39th Street and was raped by her father. When she took his gun and tried to fight back, the police came and shot her dead.&#160;</p>
<p>DBoy sings about his own life—running away from home and being abused by his stepfather, “and there’s nothing you can do because he’s three times your size.” He also writes about the lives of family members—his cousin shot in a church parking lot, his grandmother suffering from Alzheimer’s, his aunt who died suddenly of cardiac disease: “She loved everybody, how’d she get a bad heart?”</p>
<p>Invoking the Christian Fenger Academy High School student beaten to death in 2009: “They say loving gets you killed, so I stay froze. I know Derrion Albert’s mom’s heart is closed.”</p>
<p>He hopes that by talking bluntly about the issues that so many young people face, he can help children get through the hard times—“so someone who feels that they are alone can hear my music and know that they’re not alone.”</p>
<p>Along with specific streets, buildings and other landmarks in Chicago, the city’s famous wind is a constant presence in DBoy’s songs. “If you ever watch a scary movie, right before the killer strikes the wind blows.”</p>
<p>One of the songs he’s recorded with Spitfire’s help is called “Too Young to Die.” &#160;Sitting in his girlfriend’s apartment in Englewood, where young people are shot on a regular basis, he raps softly:</p>
<p>“Too young to live, too young to try</p>
<p>How does all this pain feel when you’re too young to cry?</p>
<p>Even when a bird gets wings, you can tell he’s too young to fly.</p>
<p>But in the city of the wind, you’re never too young to die.”</p>
<p>Check out DBoy on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/YoungDBoyLow" type="external">YouTube</a>.</p>
<p>This article is the fourth installment in a series on youth violence. Funding for this project was provided by The Chicago Community Trust via the Community Media Workshop, the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, and the Mansfield Institute for Social Justice and Transformation.</p> | Young hip-hop artists speak the truth about violence in Chicago | false | http://chicagoreporter.com/young-hip-hop-artists-speak-truth-about-violence-chicago/ | 2012-02-15 | 3left-center
| Young hip-hop artists speak the truth about violence in Chicago
<p>Growing up in Mexico and then Mesa, Ariz. with a mother who worked long hours, Jose Castro started writing out of loneliness. Soon he was rapping, and after turning 18 he moved to Las Vegas to try to make it big.</p>
<p>Several years ago he felt like he was close— performing at the House of Blues and other big venues, working with producers and musicians with major label connections. &#160;Like many well-known rappers, his songs were about guns, girls and getting high. That also summed up his lifestyle.</p>
<p>It was intoxicating, but he could tell it was a vicious cycle. He promised himself that when he got a record deal, he would quit drugs. In the summer of 2009, Castro signed a contract with the label 5-7 Records, but he kept right on partying— “I broke my promise,” he said. About two weeks later, the deal fell through. Then on Nov. 11, 2009, Castro had what he describes as a near-death experience. Codeine was his drug of choice at the time, and he chugged a bottle of cough syrup while also smoking lots of marijuana.&#160;</p>
<p>“I started feeling really bad, my speech was going away, my legs were going numb, I felt little shocks all over my spine, my insides were burning hot, my brain was swelling like it was going to pop in my head. I thought I was going to die, and I didn’t want to be remembered as a junkie.”&#160;</p>
<p>He looked at himself in the mirror and the face staring back was gaunt, wide-eyed, a stranger. He asked God to help him, he said, and thought of his mother. Then he said he felt a powerful embrace, more loving and protective than even his mother’s hugs when he was a child. He walked out of the room knowing that he would survive and change his life.</p>
<p>Today at age 22, Castro— his stage name as well as his last name—is still rapping, and his songs still sound raw and edgy, throbbing with the tension of street life. He raps about “hope for the ‘hood,” the power of his faith, the mistakes he’s made and the tragedy of young people losing their way, like the mother of his almost-two-year-old daughter—“a young girl looking for answers … a lost angel.”</p>
<p>Now music is Castro’s way of exploring his own struggles and—without preaching—offering advice and inspiration to those still caught up in the vicious cycle of gangs, drugs and violence.</p>
<p>Using music to help young people break free of that cycle is also the mission of Project Spitfire, a year-old grassroots non-profit organization. Founded last January by youth worker Henry Mann, with start-up funding from the prominent anti-violence group CeaseFire, Project Spitfire pairs young musicians with professional producers who help them record songs and videos. Spitfire also provides the young artists a $100 signing bonus, photo shoots and publicity. Project Spitfire is in the process of recording a compilation CD that along with performances will help show youth that they have alternatives and opportunities. Mann is insistent that the music and the group stay genuine, working with young people who really are or have been involved with gangs and violence, encouraging them to express themselves uncensored, steering clear of “positive hip hop” clichés.</p>
<p>“There is a lot of really crappy conscious hip hop out there where they’re just saying ‘put down the guns,’ but obviously that’s not working,” said Mann, 23, who moved to Chicago from Maine in 2006 to attend the University of Chicago, where he studied for two years before transferring to the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he is finishing a degree in political science. He worked on youth media projects through CeaseFire and the social service agency Sullivan House, including documentary work with youth in the juvenile justice system. “There’s a middle ground between that and glorifying what goes on out there. I’m just asking you to tell your story, who you are,” Mann said. “If we can build relationships, then we can connect them with other organizations too, and be a bridge.”&#160;</p>
<p>Last winter Spitfire, working largely through CeaseFire’s connections, put out a call for musicians to submit demos and personal statements. The project has signed six artists, and it’s looking for more. Marilyn Pitchford, program manager for CeaseFire West, has referred several young men to Project Spitfire and says she is highly impressed by Mann’s passion for the project.</p>
<p>“It can be a great outlet for some of the guys, if they’ve been a victim or a perpetrator” of violence, she said. “Often we only hear one side of a story. This is a way for them to tell their story, I think it’s a great outlet for them. A lot of them don’t ever get counseling or therapy. So this can be a great resource, a healing tool.”</p>
<p>For Castro, that process began when he moved to Chicago several months before hearing of Project Spitfire, after a brief stint in Washington state where he had gone looking for work only to find that temporary construction and other jobs were shutting down for the winter. His biological father, whom he barely knew, invited him to come live in Cicero so the two could build a relationship. Turning over a new leaf, in general, this is where Castro made his musical transformation. He recently completed a CD called “Spiritual Warfare,” in part with the help of Spitfire and affiliated producer Raul Parra, also featuring rapper Nobull, another Project Spitfire artist. &#160;Castro has signed with a local label called Q7 Records. Many of the songs are about love— of Jesus and his fellow human beings. (Listen to Castro’s music here.)</p>
<p>“I used to think love was for sissies and you weren’t supposed to show it,” he said. “But love is the greatest weapon you can use to get someone on your side.”</p>
<p>Castro hands his CD out to young people on the streets, engaging them in conversation when possible. He performed recently at New Life Church in Cicero, a far cry from the House of Blues. Sometimes he misses the success he was having in Las Vegas.</p>
<p>“I had it made— my own place, cars, girls. But how do you acquire that? Selling drugs, hurting people, not even caring about your loved ones. It isn’t worth it.”</p>
<p>He eventually hopes to build an international career as a Christian rapper, starting with performances around Chicago. He raps in Spanish and English, and wants to tour Mexico and South America.</p>
<p>“It’s a slow process,” he said. “But you don’t want something like a microwave, you want something like a crock pot—it tastes better.”</p>
<p>Like Castro, another Spitfire artist, Eric Brown aka Young DBoy Low, has been writing and rapping nearly his whole life. His nine siblings and his parents are all artistic—he grew up surrounded by painting, poetry, gospel music and hip hop. But living in Bronzeville and other tough South Side neighborhoods, music and art weren’t enough to keep them out of trouble. DBoy has been shot at numerous times and beaten up, he said. His songs brim with violence and tragedy. DBoy and his brother, Chill, both 22 years old, applied together to join Spitfire. Soon after they got the news that they’d been accepted, Chill was jailed on charges of possession of a firearm and discharging a firearm. DBoy said he was present during the incident leading to the arrest, and is lucky he didn’t end up hurt or behind bars also.</p>
<p>“It shows even when we go real hard in our music about stopping the violence, we still get caught up in it,” he said. “You try to be goody two shoes, but if you haven’t been a victim of violence you can’t just sit there and say ‘stop the violence.’ You don’t know how hard it is. Here we see violence every day, whether verbal or physical. It’s always easy to find, and if you don’t pay attention it will find you.”</p>
<p>[ <a href="" type="internal">Click here to view photos of DBoy</a>]</p>
<p>And DBoy said violence—in the form of retribution—can find you in Chicago even when you try to escape the gang culture where much of the trouble originates. “It’s your enemies who won’t let you move on,” he said. “Rival gangs don’t care about you wanting what we call ‘out.’ They don’t care about you changing your life and wanting to raise your kids in a different environment. You will still be gunned down on sight.”</p>
<p>“See, you can try to erase your own past, but you can’t erase the pain someone else has suffered due to the hands of your gang sign,” DBoy said.</p>
<p>DBoy writes his lyrics in neat cursive in a battered black and red notebook he’s had for years. Finished songs are in the front of the book, notes and brainstorms are in the back. The lyrics are full of word play, homages to Chicago and delicate images mixed with harsh realities. The song “Gentrifications,” for which Project Spitfire helped him shoot a video, whimsically describes different Chicago public housing projects as individual people who meet tough fates. A man named Robert Taylor who is “tall as hell” ends up overdosing. A silent girl named Ida B. Wells lived on 39th Street and was raped by her father. When she took his gun and tried to fight back, the police came and shot her dead.&#160;</p>
<p>DBoy sings about his own life—running away from home and being abused by his stepfather, “and there’s nothing you can do because he’s three times your size.” He also writes about the lives of family members—his cousin shot in a church parking lot, his grandmother suffering from Alzheimer’s, his aunt who died suddenly of cardiac disease: “She loved everybody, how’d she get a bad heart?”</p>
<p>Invoking the Christian Fenger Academy High School student beaten to death in 2009: “They say loving gets you killed, so I stay froze. I know Derrion Albert’s mom’s heart is closed.”</p>
<p>He hopes that by talking bluntly about the issues that so many young people face, he can help children get through the hard times—“so someone who feels that they are alone can hear my music and know that they’re not alone.”</p>
<p>Along with specific streets, buildings and other landmarks in Chicago, the city’s famous wind is a constant presence in DBoy’s songs. “If you ever watch a scary movie, right before the killer strikes the wind blows.”</p>
<p>One of the songs he’s recorded with Spitfire’s help is called “Too Young to Die.” &#160;Sitting in his girlfriend’s apartment in Englewood, where young people are shot on a regular basis, he raps softly:</p>
<p>“Too young to live, too young to try</p>
<p>How does all this pain feel when you’re too young to cry?</p>
<p>Even when a bird gets wings, you can tell he’s too young to fly.</p>
<p>But in the city of the wind, you’re never too young to die.”</p>
<p>Check out DBoy on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/YoungDBoyLow" type="external">YouTube</a>.</p>
<p>This article is the fourth installment in a series on youth violence. Funding for this project was provided by The Chicago Community Trust via the Community Media Workshop, the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, and the Mansfield Institute for Social Justice and Transformation.</p> | 4,199 |
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