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What's The WMO And Why Does The U.S. National Weather Service Director Want To Lead It? | My posts in Forbes Science are written on a variety of weather, climate, and science topics. My goal is to increase science literacy and provide a slow-release "antidote pill" against the massive infection of bad science out there. I recently learned that the director of the U.S. National Weather Service (NWS), Dr. Louis Uccellini (bio at this link), is running for President of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). Unless you are an insider within the global weather-climate community, you probably have no idea what the WMO is and why someone would want to preside over it. Here's an explanation for you. In a support letter issued by the NWS parent organization NOAA, Dr. Neil Jacobs, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Environmental Observation and Prediction and Deputy NOAA Administrator, announced Uccellini's candidacy and said, "his decision to seek the Presidency of the WMO is a reflection of both his high standing in the international weather, water and climate enterprise, as well as the importance of U.S. policy and actions in these areas on the worlds communities." The easiest answer can be found on the organization's website: The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is an intergovernmental organization with a membership of 192 Member States and Territories. It originated from the International Meteorological Organization (IMO), the roots of which were planted at the 1873 Vienna International Meteorological Congress. Established by the ratification of the WMO Convention on 23 March 1950, WMO became the specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) for meteorology (weather and climate), operational hydrology and related geophysical sciences a year later. The Secretariat or headquarters of the WMO is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and the supreme governing body is the World Meteorological Congress (WMC). Secretary-General who is appointed by the WMC and is essentially the executive administrator leads the The Secretariat. A complete list of the duties of the President can be found at this link, but they include presiding over the WMC, providing leadership, and coordinating activities of the WMO. It is honestly quite similar in many ways to the structure of the American Meteorological Society (AMS) which Dr. Uccellini and I both had the honor of serving as President of during the past decade. That organization had an Executive Council, Executive Director, and a President. Dr. Uccellini has been a driving force behind transitioning the U.S. National Weather Service into a framework that enables a Weather-Ready Nation. He has also strongly advocated for decision support systems and impact-based forecasting that provides more meaningful weather, water, climate, and related information to the public, policymakers and stakeholders. Uccellini says, I am running for President of the WMO because I believe the course we set for the WMO now will determine our relevance for decades to come. I strongly believe the challenges and opportunities we face are global and must be dealt with in a spirit of partnership, a spirit that was an essential component that built the global observing and forecast systems the WMO works to sustain today, a spirit I believe can successfully carry us into the future. Dr. Uccellini has been the permanent representative (PR) for the U.S. for the past few years. PRs are typically Directors of Meteorological or Hydrometeorological Services that provide technical expertise and serve as the primary communication line between the Organization and Members. Uccellini told me in a call that he has a clear vision for WMO. Based on my experiences working with him over the years, I believe him. Weather and climate processes do not know understand the concept of borders so it is important that global leaders like Dr. Uccellini work collectively on research, applications, and good will. Uccellini says that he has three key focus areas for his presidency: A focus on science and technology including the advancement of predictive capability from an Earth System Science perspective and embracing the weather-water-climate framework within WMO's "Grand Challenges (2010)," The use and implementation of decision support systems by members with a particular emphasis on end-to-end service (observing systems, data processing and dissemination, forecasting, service delivery, and science and technology integration), and Creation of a more efficient and interdisciplinary governance structure for the WMO. Surprisingly, Uccellini told me that if elected (each member nation receives one vote), he will be the first U.S.-elected President in several decades. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/marshallshepherd/2019/02/19/whats-the-wmo-and-why-does-the-u-s-national-weather-service-director-want-to-lead-it/ |
Is The Future Of Financial Health The Self-Driving Wallet? | Imagine a Siri-like assistant that is part accountant, part budgeting guru, part fortune teller, constantly monitoring and learning from your financial data in order to manage your money. Knowing how much you earn and owe, it would determine the optimal schedule for drawing down wages, paying bills, and saving for both emergencies and longer-term goals. It would constantly be on the lookout for opportunities to switch to cheaper or better-suited financial products, and it would warn you ahead of time about upcoming bumps in the road. This kind of modern financial advice is destined to become the new free checking of the banking industry in this digital era, when checking accounts are indistinguishable from one provider to another, and a bank is less a place you go and more about what you can do from the comfort of your smartphone. Plus, with more people cobbling together incomes from multiple jobs with variable pay, the task of managing cash flow is increasingly complex. Consumers want help, and they are beginning to expect that help from their financial providers. In a recent J.D. Powers study, for instance, more than 75 percent of retail bank customers surveyed said they were interested in receiving advice from their bank, on topics including investments, how to improve their financial situation, retirement and budgeting. The road to a self-driving wallet is littered with failed attempts, from the earliest personal financial management (PFM) apps that required extreme amounts of set-up time, to initial efforts by banks to predict customers future cash flows without insight from accounts at other institutions. Data is the fuel of the self-driving wallet, and more recent entrants into the space have benefitted from the growth of data aggregation services and their ability to deliver a broader range of higher-quality financial data more reliably. The growing importance of data explains how the aggregation service Plaid has become a unicorn with a $2.65 billion valuation. The companys recent announcement to buy Quovo, which traffics largely in investment data, offers the potential for financial services providers to create an even more comprehensive picture of consumers financial lives. While early PFM tools were designed for information sharing, the current generation are focused on problem solving. Innovators have learned that their solutions need to be focused on solving a specific financial pain point in order to drive engagement. When the now BBVA-owned neobank Simple first launched a decade ago, its claim to fame was its Safe to Spend feature, which was meant to help consumers know exactly how much they had available in their accounts. Simples breakthrough inspired a wave of similar innovation. Digit started as a way to help consumers save by using an algorithm to identify spare change in their checking accounts. Prism was founded to help consumers manage the timing and process of paying bills. Even was designed to help smooth the cash flow of consumers with volatile incomes. The newest wave of innovation is focused on knitting these niche functions into a unified experience. Getting there will require an even broader window into peoples financial lives and more sophisticated algorithms to match the variety and complexity of peoples financial lives. As Even has learned, that journey will not be easy or straightforward. Evens original product, Pay Protection, was designed to even out peoples volatile incomes by calculating their average pay, and then automatically setting aside money from above-average paychecks for use during below-average periods. It turned out that volatile incomes werent the only challenge. Volatile expenses made Evens task more difficult so difficult, in fact, that they ultimately pivoted to Instapay, a product that allows people to decide for themselves when to draw down a portion of their already-earned wages ahead of payday. While the team at Even saw themselves as building the self-driving car of finance, the company came to realize there are times when consumers need to take the wheel. The next generation of entrepreneurs is building from this understanding. Brightside, for instance, a personalized financial health platform providing employees a one-stop shop for all their financial needs, is marrying the efficiencies and insights of technology with the nuance and empathy of financial assistants. Brightsides technology automates day-to-day money management tasks, like figuring out what order to pay bills or finding money to set aside for savings, while the companys assistants build trust and provide support. Sophie Raseman, Head of Financial Solutions at Brightside, coined the term self-driving wallet back in the early days of PFM to help explain her vision for how fintech can solve big problems for people by removing the drudgery and margin for error in every day money management. In the financial health industry, the self-driving wallet should be our moonshot. Authors Note: This article mentions companies that are part of CFSIs Financial Health Network (Simple/BBVA, Quovo, Plaid). It also mentions organizations that have participated in The Financial Solutions Lab, a partnership between JP Morgan Chase and CFSI (Digit, Prism, Even, Brightside). | https://www.forbes.com/sites/jennifertescher/2019/02/19/the-self-driving-wallet/ |
How old is too old to drive? | (The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.) Alice Pomidor, Florida State University (THE CONVERSATION) When Britains Prince Philip crashed his Land Rover into another vehicle on Jan. 17, 2019, many people were surprised that he was still driving at age 97. would have persuaded him to give it up, or would have taken away the keys. Older unsafe drivers are a growing problem, thanks to the baby boom generation. In the U.S., 42 million adults 65 and older were licensed to drive in 2016, an increase of 15 million from 20 years ago. It is not only a major symbol of independence but also a needed activity for older people to be able to shop, go to the doctor and maintain social connections. Im a geriatrics specialist physician, a daughter of parents who had to stop driving. I live in Florida, where 29 percent of our drivers are older adults, which everywhere else in the U.S. will experience about 10 years from now. I also serve as editorial board chair of the Clinicians Guide to Assessing and Counseling Older Drivers, a collaborative project between the American Geriatrics Society and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA. I have spent a great deal of time training clinicians how to detect and treat factors leading to the loss of driving skills early enough to prevent crashes and the loss of independent mobility. Older drivers by the numbers By 2030, NHTSA estimates that 1 of out of every 4 drivers will be an older adult. About 7,400 adults ages 65 and older were killed, and more than 290,000 were treated for motor vehicle crash injuries in 2016 alone. Males 85 years and older and 20-24 years of age have the highest crash rates. Age and experience may be a factor here, but far and away the greatest number of vehicular deaths are still from substance abuse-related crashes, accounting for 23,611 out of a total 37,133 deaths in 2017. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, most older drivers have good driving habits. The CDC reports that many self-restrict their driving to conditions where they feel safe and confident, such as avoiding high-speed roads, nighttime driving, bad weather or high-congestion times of day. Know the stop signs Prince Philip announced on Feb. 9, 2019 that he would give up his drivers license, but only after he and others had suffered serious consequences. It is all about the skills, not the age. Key warning signs that it may be time to stop include getting lost, failing to obey traffic signals, reacting slowly to emergencies, using poor judgment, or forgetting to use common safety strategies, such as checking for blind spots. Vision, cognition and the physical ability to manage the controls to the vehicle are critical functions that we must be able to perform, whether we are young or old in order to drive safely and effectively. Vision is well-recognized as the single most important source of information we use when navigating and making judgments. Having difficulty with daytime sun glare, as was reported in Prince Philips crash, or nighttime headlights, brushing into objects on one side, or having to brake suddenly may be signs that something is impairing our ability to perceive road hazards accurately. Regular vision checkups are important to assure that we keep optimal vision for driving. Cognition is essential to processing all the information we receive, ignoring distractions, remembering our route, responding to traffic signals and making good decisions. Medications and medical conditions such as sleep apnea, Parkinsons disease or dementia can stop us from being able to think and respond well enough to keep ourselves or others safe while driving. Getting a good evaluation from your health care provider can help to minimize these risks and flag situations. Physical abilities such as turning the steering wheel, neck flexibility and detecting where the pedals are correctly are important for operating the vehicle smoothly. Many of the same conditions associated with falls are also related to motor vehicle crashes. Possible solutions People can take brief self-assessments to get an idea of how they are doing, or ask a trusted individual to rate their driving using a tool validated by on-road testing, and discuss the results. A driving rehabilitation specialist may be helpful in identifying problem areas, learning strategies for improvement and rehabilitating rusty or lost driving skills. You can find one using national databases on the America Occupational Therapy Association or the Association for Driver Rehabilitation Specialists websites. It may be tempting to get a new vehicle featuring the latest safety features such as collision avoidance sensors, but these are not a substitute for a drivers own skills. And, sometimes changing vehicles may even create mild confusion in a driver accustomed to a certain vehicle. Mom, can I take away the keys? Adult children often want to protect their parents if they notice impairment. Its important to have open, respectful communication to establish that maintaining mobility and finding alternative means of transportation are key to retiring from driving. These discussions should occur long before theres a crisis. Being willing and able to stop driving requires having a realistic mobility plan. National and local transportation resources can help people get around without driving, but it does take some effort to get used to planning activities well in advance. New skills may be needed, such as learning how to access ride-hailing services like Uber or Lyft, or someday, managing an autonomous vehicle. Until then, following basic driving safety strategies and keeping as mentally and physically fit as possible is the best way to help us help ourselves to keep driving for longer. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: http://theconversation.com/how-old-is-too-old-to-drive-111596. | https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/article/How-old-is-too-old-to-drive-13626795.php |
Why did Stonehenge's massive rocks come from Wales, 180 miles away? | Scientists have discovered the exact location of the quarries where many of Stonehenge's massive stones came from, a new study released Tuesday said. In addition to pinpointing the location of the quarries in western Wales, about 180 miles away from Stonehenge archaeologists also now say they know how and when the stones were quarried. "What's really exciting about these discoveries is that they take us a step closer to unlocking Stonehenge's greatest mystery why its stones came from so far away," said study lead author Mike Parker Pearson of University College London. "Every other Neolithic monument in Europe was built of megaliths brought from no more than 10 miles away." The stones were quarried so far away from Stonehenge because they were relatively "easy" to remove, Pearson theorizes, since they were already natural vertical pillars: Using wood mallets, quarry workers only had to bash wedges into the ready-made joints between the pillars to break them apart, according to the study. The stones were then lowered onto wooden sledges and dragged to their new location in present-day England. Unlike stone quarries in ancient Egypt, where obelisks were carved out of the solid rock, the Welsh quarries were easier to exploit, the study said. Prehistoric French may have inspired it and other European megaliths While geologists have long known that many of Stonehenge's smaller stones came from present-day Wales, the new study identifies the exact locations of two of these quarries: the Preseli hills in Pembrokeshire, west Wales. As for when the stones were quarried, the study suggests roughly 3000 B.C., based on pieces of charcoal found at the site, which were dated to that era. Stonehenge, one of the most impressive prehistoric megalithic monuments on Earth, is a World Heritage site known for its alignment with the movements of the sun. Thousands of people travel there each year to mark the solstices in summer and winter. Built in several phases from 2900 B.C. to 1650 B.C., the stones have figured in numerous debates, both scholarly and whimsical, over their origins. Tuesday's study was published in the peer-reviewed archaeology journal Antiquity. | https://news.yahoo.com/why-did-stonehenge-apos-massive-120002741.html |
Do Leftists Believe What They Say? | Truth is not a left-wing value. I first discovered this as a graduate student studying the Soviet Union and left-wing ideologies at the Russian Institute of Columbia University School of International Affairs. Everything I have learned since has confirmed this view. Individuals on both the left and right lie. Individuals on both the left and right tell the truth. And liberalism, unlike leftism, does value truth. But the further left one goes, the more one enters the world of the lie. There are two main reasons. One is that leftists deem their goals more important than telling the truth. For example, every honest economist knows women do not earn 20 percent less money than men for the same work done for the same amount of hours under the same conditions. Yet leftists repeat the lie that women earn 78 cents for every dollar men earn. Why any employers would hire men when they could hire women and get the same amount of work done at the same level of excellence for the same number of hours while saving 20 cents on the dollar is a question only God or the sphinx could answer. The answer is they dont ask themselves, Is it true? They ask themselves, Does the claim help promote the left-wing doctrine that women are oppressed? Whatever serves that end is morally justified. The second reason is leftism is rooted in feelings, not reason or truth. From Karl Marx to Bernie Sanders, left-wing preference for socialism over capitalism is entirely rooted in emotion. Only capitalism creates wealth. Socialism merely spends what capitalism creates. Even if they know it, the emotional pull of socialism prevails. Of course not. Thats why they renamed sex gender and then redefined gender to mean whatever one wants it to mean. So then, on the left, truth is subservient to two higher values: doctrine and emotion. I dont know. They seem to talk themselves into believing their hysterias. But they dont act on them. Heres a simple proof that the left is lying about the imminent threat of global warming to civilization: Leftists dont support nuclear power. It is simply not possible to believe fossil-fuel emissions will destroy the world and, at the same time, oppose nuclear power. Nuclear power is clean and safe. Sweden, a model country for leftists, meets 40 percent of its energy needs with nuclear power. Another example of left-wing rhetoric leftists dont act on: The left tells us that colleges are permeated by a rape culture, yet virtually all left-wing parents send their daughters to college. Of course not. The answer would seem to be they know its a lie but that doesnt matter, since the left views telling the truth as incomparably less significant than combating sexism, sexual assault, misogyny, toxic masculinity, and patriarchy. One more example: Walls dont work. It is inconceivable that people who say this especially those with walls around their home believe it. Yet leftists say it with the same degree of ease that Stalin labeled Trotsky a fascist, even though Trotsky and Lenin were the fathers of the Bolshevik Revolution. | https://news.yahoo.com/leftists-believe-113026649.html |
Should presidential candidates be required to hold higher elected office? | By Cait Bladt New York Mayor Bill de Blasio is hinting heavily at a potential presidential run. He would join South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg and former San Antonio Mayor Julin Castro as candidates who have never held elected office higher than the city level. Some argue mayoral duties are more similar to presidential tasks than elected offices on the federal level, like the Senate. Others believe the president must have a familiarity with national issues that can only be gained through higher office. CityLab argues that changing demographics and national needs are making it much more likely that a mayor, or a candidate with similar local experience, could ascend to the presidency. Many mayors now have a track record of success: Most cities are vastly better than they were twenty years ago. They are safer, better governed, and in better fiscal shape ... The demographic line that used to divide city and suburb is blurring. Cities are becoming more white and many suburbs have diversified. They are looking more ethnically alike, and they now both face similar challenges of poverty, crime, transportation, and housing. As titular heads of their metro regions, mayors are ideally positioned to capture the metro vote and speak to these national issues. Cities especially are becoming a microcosm of the nation as a whole. Mayors must represent a far more diverse constituency than a senator from a gerrymandered district. Per Politico: Cities are powerful forces now; theyre almost like city-states, said Henry Cisneros, who was mayor of San Antonio when, in 1984, he was interviewed to be Walter Mondales presidential running mate. While it is perfectly plausible that a governor, even of a small state, can run for president why isnt it plausible that a mayor of a major, global epicenter of power like New York or Los Angeles or Chicago or Seattle or Miami shouldnt be plausible at the presidential level? The Atlantic explains, even among higher offices, there is a hierarchy of who the American public sees as most fit for the presidency. While senators and governors frequently ascend to the presidency, members of the House of Representatives have a much harder time. For all the worthy experience that a career in the House affords, no one has been elected directly from that body to the presidency or vice presidency since 1880 and 1932, respectively. But if House service doesnt qualify you for the presidency, it doesnt seem to count against you, either. Lyndon Johnsons long tenure in the House didnt knock him out of contention. And George H. W. Bush, who was exceptional in having never been a governor or a senator, made it from the House to the vice presidency in 14 years, after an intervening career as United Nations ambassador, envoy to China, and CIA director. As for mayors, state legislators, and other political leaders, the story is simple: Able though they may be, they might as well forget it. Even New York City Mayors John Lindsay and Rudy Giuliani, whose national profiles rivaled those of any governor, couldnt make the jump. According to Slate, governors are in the best position to argue their experience is analogous to what they would do as president. Running even a small state government resembles being president more than holding hearings and issuing press releases or even passing the occasional resolution. And thats about all that a Senator can do, ever since Congress more or less ceded dictatorial power in foreign policy to the president. However, according to Vox, the current president has the least political and military experience of any president before. In the offices storied 227-year existence from George Washington to Barack Obama there has never been a president who has entirely lacked both political and military service. Donald Trump has broken this barrier. 2020 could be the year the United States finally elects a former mayor to the presidency. The Tylt is focused on debates and conversations around news, current events and pop culture. We provide our community with the opportunity to share their opinions and vote on topics that matter most to them. We actively engage the community and present meaningful data on the debates and conversations as they progress. The Tylt is a place where your opinion counts, literally. The Tylt is an Advance Local Media, LLC property. Join us on Twitter @TheTylt, on Instagram @TheTylt or on Facebook, wed love to hear what you have to say. | https://www.oregonlive.com/tylt/2019/02/should-presidential-candidates-be-required-to-hold-higher-elected-office.html |
Could Russia Be Subject To Venezuela-Style Sanctions? | The short answer to that question is "yes". The market is betting in favor of much stricter sanctions on Russian bonds, pushing Russian 10-year bond yields higher on Friday but not sending the ruble much lower on Monday. The ruble was relatively flat on Monday, down just 0.06% to 66.286 rubles to the dollar. Ruble strength may be because American traders were off yesterday due to the President's Day holiday. Europe didn't send ruble packing. It's still one of the strongest emerging market currencies around, even outperforming the Brazilian real, which is the hottest of the BRIC equity markets. "I have no idea what new sanctions would look like, maybe they will just limit investment on Russian sovereign debt," says Alina Sychova, head of capital markets for Sova Capital a Russian investment bank in London. "Over 40% of Russian government bonds are held by foreign investors. So if you cut them out of that youre punishing both sides." New bond issues by sanctioned Russian banks Sberbank and VTB Bank are already sanctioned and cannot be purchased by Americans, except in the secondary market. The secondary market is where the pain really kicks in because it freezes out the potential for anyone to realize any gains in those bonds. They become dead money. The U.S. did this with Venezuela sovereign bonds and its quasi-sovereign, PdVSA, just last week. Those bonds are now untradable by Americans. "If they banned secondary trading, youre potentially limiting the owners from the U.K. to Germany because now they lose the American market to sell too and maybe even transact with," she says, assuming U.S. intermediaries would be unable to facilitate in the trade. Banning the trading of Russian bonds have been tossed around ever since Trump got elected. Anti-Russian politicians on both sides of the aisle have taken full advantage of Trump being caught in a Russian scandal to force the president to play super hardball with Vladimir Putin and anyone within a country mile of him. Since taking office, Trump has already signed harsher sanctions against Russian individuals and Russian companies, making some of them extra-territorial. Extra-territorial means sanctions apply to non-U.S. citizens and entities transacting with the sanctioned firm subject to penalties. BNP Paribas got served with an $8.9 billion sentence in 2015 for violating Iran sanctions. China's Huawei is currently in hot water for doing the same. Trump is boxed in. If he doesn't sign new sanctions, he will be made to look like he is favoring Putin. President Trumps willful paralysis in the face of Kremlin aggression has reached a boiling point in Congress, Senator Bob Menendez, the top Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee, and a sponsor of the legislation said in a statement. What exactly that willful paralysis is, Menendez doesn't mention. Menendez signed onto a resolution by another anti-Russia Democrat in the Senate, Chuck Schumer, last month to remove sanctions on En+Group. The London listed holding company was majority owned by sanctioned Russian businessman Oleg Deripaska. Sanctions on Deripaska remain, but Schumer and Menendez's attempt to keep sanctions on En+Group, an important aluminum exporter to Europe, failed last month. The company is no longer facing sanctions as Deripaska complied with the Treasury Department to relinquish majority ownership of the company. The stock price rose over 55% on the news. Russian bonds might rally, but not that much. And they will have to wait until the Senate decides what they are going to do with their latest round of corporate Russia bashing. According to a report by Bloomberg on Feb. 13, the Senators like Republican Lindsey Graham want to target new Russian government bond issues. If so, that means Americans would be banned from participating. You can't buy them. You can't underwrite them. Other sanctions seem more commercial in nature and impact private companies as much as they do the state-controlled behemoths in the oil and gas space. The Senate wants to sanction individuals and companies from investing in Russian LNG projects outside of Russia. As well as punish the two big state-owned energy plays, Gazprom and Rosneft, for operations overseas. It is unclear what exactly this would entail. The Senate has already made it clear that it is at Treasury's discretion to fine Gazprom's partners in Nord Stream II, the new natural gas pipeline being built from Russia into Germany. Meanwhile, Nord Stream II, while not smooth sailing, is still sailing. "I know the government doesnt want us to buy new Russian corporate debt," says Katherine Renfrew, a bond fund manager for TIAA International. She co-leads the TIAA-CREF Emerging Market Debt mutual fund. "If they take that second step and say we dont want you trading in the old issues either...its a bit daunting to think about," she says. "If you're an investor in Russia, you definitely don't need this. But you don't need to have exposure to those bonds and can still be in Russia." The timing of the new sanctions coincided with the annual Munich Security Conference, which ended this weekend. And the meeting of a European Foreign Affairs Committee on Monday. It gives the officials some new official meat to chew on. Despite the tough language from Menendez and maybe even Lindsey Graham, who has made himself more of Trump's trusty sidekick since the Matt Kavanaugh hearings of last summer, investors are more likely to wait and see what gets put in a final bill. The biggest fear, for now, is that the new sanctions will take from the Venezuela playbook, making it illegal to trade in certain bond issues in the secondary market. The secondary market is a market between investors, rather than an investor buying directly from the issuer. Moreover, concerns that Washington will block Russia from U.S. dollar settlements are greatly exaggerated, and a threat to the dollar as Russia could easily make the switch to euros and Europe, not all that in love with Trump themselves, wouldn't bat an eye if Putin did that. Given that En+Group, the holding company behind aluminum firm Rusal, had sanctions removed following loud outcries from European automakers who were forced to by Chinese aluminum instead, it is unlikely that systemically important companies in Russia will be punished. In other words, pipelines may get spitballs thrown at them, but that's about it. On the energy front, if the U.S. makes it legally impossible for American firms to work with or provide some level of funding for Russian oil and gas firms, then they run the risk of Russia banning the Americans from the oil and gas sector there, opening up the door to China Russian -based Macro Advisory, a big picture investment research firm, says GAZ Group is the entity to watch in the latest round of sanctions. GAZ is an important supplier and sub-contractor for foreign companies operating in Russia. It is also known that the Russian government is actively looking at options, like attracting a new strategic investor. Russia is a very important market for China, but more so for Europe. So far, Russia has been quiet. Finance Minister Anton Siluanov was rather sanguine about the whole thing, saying in a nutshell that they will have to find a way to cope with it. There has been little commentary by other officials, although that may change in the days ahead. "The hope appears to be that the next round will be for the optics rather than economically damaging," Macro Advisory founder Christopher Weafer wrote in a recently published report. "If damaging sanctions are put in place then an appropriate Russian response will almost certainly be forthcoming." Russia's Economic Development Ministry estimated yesterday that the country has lost at least $6 billion due to sanctions and trade restrictions. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2019/02/19/could-russian-bonds-be-subject-to-venezuela-style-sanctions/ |
Are ETFs About To Rule The World? | When I was a kid growing up in New Jersey, my mother would always remind my brother and me that we had plenty of choices in life. Typically, this took the form of a statement such as thats why Baskin Robbins has 31 flavors! As I spent a day roving around the annual Inside ETFs Conference in nearby Hollywood, Florida, last week, I was reminded that the pace of change in the investment business has become so rapid, entire eras of investment history may pass by without us realizing what has changed. For those not familiar, Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) are securities that represent a basket of other securities, similar to a mutual fund. The key difference with many (but not all) ETFs is that the basket of securities is typically determined by a mechanism designed by the manager. Back in 1993 (69 years after the first mutual fund was created), State Street came up with the pioneering idea that led to the launch of the first ETF. The investor could buy a security that replicated the return of the S&P 500 Index, but could be traded during market hours, unlike mutual funds which are typically priced at the end of the trading day. 26 years and over 2,000 product launches later (in the U.S. alone), ETFs have become a staple for many institutional investors, traders, asset managers and individual investors. However, I do get the sense that most investors still have no idea what ETFs are. As an investment manager who has used them since the very early days, I feel I have quite a bit of historical perspective. I also have some concerns, not with ETFs themselves, but with how investors are using them. This was highlighted in the recently-released, 6th annual study of ETF usage by professional investors, including financial advisors, RIAs and institutional investors by Brown Brothers Harriman and ETF.com. The survey found that while cost (expense ratio) continues to be the leading factor in these investors evaluating ETFs for portfolios, it is tied in significance with past performance. The other highly-regarded factors for choosing ETFs included the brand (issuer) and to a lesser degree, the investment strategy. I imagine you just breezed through that last paragraph, so I want to point out what is so startling to me as an investor: I am all for finding a lower-cost way to do things. But past performance is, as every fund ad is required to say, no indication of future returns. Try telling that to the people that pour billions of dollars into them! This is a long-standing issue for investors, and smacks of the fever that led to chasing tech stocks to heights not sustainable around the turn of the last century. It doesnt seem to matter what the investment vehicle is; its still a buy what just went up attitude out there. The brand issue is also, well, an issue. So much ETF money is jammed into a small number of brands and strategies (S&P 500 funds and broad market U.S. bond funds, in particular) that two things occur, both of which will offer massive opportunities for those who dont drink the Kool-Aid. First, as I have written many times in this space, the S&P 500 will at some point topple under the weight of a run for the exits mentality. The 15% drop in 3 weeks last December was a warning shot. I have no idea when or what will trigger the next such panic, but I do suspect that S&P 500 indexing will one day be a dirty phrasewhich will likely be the best time to step back in. But the most telling thing to me is that investors in this survey seem to be missing what I consider to be the most important thing about any ETF they would consider for their portfolios: the strategy involved, an assessment of when it is likely to do well or poorly (thus assisting the investor in determining if it should play a long-term or tactical role in the portfolio), and a real look through into the specific securities it owns. Silly me, I thought that what is contained in the portfolio would actually matter. But then again, I am also one of those people who checks the label of each packaged food product he purchases, to see what junk might be in it. ETFs are now firmly established as an investment vehicle, and as the chart above shows, they continue to be issued at a steady rate. As investors continue to have more ways to slice up the global stock and bond markets, either to complement stock or mutual fund holdings or via an all-ETF portfolio structure, the study I noted reminds us that there is still an open runway in the form of using ETFs to piece together portfolios that allow investors to get in sync with the dramatic changes in investment market behavior that algorithms, high-frequency traders, and other relatively new entrants have wrought. I for one am looking forward to honing in on that currently under-appreciated aspect of ETFswhat they actually are, and how they contribute to the investors ultimate happiness via the wealth the protect and grow. For research and insight on these issues and more, click HERE. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/robisbitts2/2019/02/19/are-etfs-about-to-rule-the-world/ |
Can TripAdvisor Witness A Turnaround In Its Hotel Segment In Fiscal 2019? | TripAdvisors Q4 results beat revenue estimates, but missed on EPS and Hotel performance metrics. The companys Q4 performance was driven by solid demand for its Non-Hotel business, particularly the Restaurants and Experiences segment. This segment has continued to deliver operational and marketing efficiencies, which has led to solid improvement in its profitability, which we expect to continue in fiscal 2019 as well. In fiscal 2018, the companys total revenues grew 4% year-over-year (y-o-y) to $1.6 billion. Its adjusted EBITDA grew more than 25% during the same period, largely driven by the Hotel segments EBITDA margin expansion. We have a price estimate for TripAdvisor of $64, which is around 10% ahead of the current market price. The company saw a more than 50% surge in its stock price over the course of 2018. We have created an interactive dashboard on What To Expect From TripAdvisors 2019, which details our key forecasts and estimates for the company for fiscal 2019. In addition, you can see all of our Information Technology company data here. Segment Expectations TripAdvisors Hotel segment accounts for almost 80% of the companys revenues. The companys revenues declined moderately in its core hotel-booking segment, even as profitability spiked in the division in fiscal 2018. Management expects the segment to see slight declines in fiscal 2019, due to a continued negative impact from marketing pullbacks and some additional currency headwinds in the fiscal first half. However, the segments profitability will likely remain strong on the back of its lower cost base and more restrained spending. TripAdvisors Non-Hotel segment is broken down into Experiences, Restaurants, and Rentals. In fiscal 2018, the segments revenue jumped 27% to $460 million. The segment has been profitable, but is still largely in growth mode as management focuses on adding to its portfolio of bookable products in hopes of capturing a dominant position in this high-growth market. The company expects this segment to grow at a similar pace as last year in fiscal 2019, with rentals weighing marginally on it. Revenue Forecasts We expect TripAdvisors Hotel segment to generate about $1.1 billion in revenue for full-year 2019 from Click-Based and Transaction revenues, Display-Based Advertising and Subscription revenue, and Other Hotel revenues. The company has witnessed increased visitors (or hotel shoppers) on its primary website over recent years, where direct suppliers and Online Travel Agencies place their advertisements. The company also generates commissions from its travel partners for its instant booking feature. Increased visitors on the TripAdvisor website have driven more clicks and partnerships with advertisers (hotels and OTAs). However, declining revenue per hotel shopper amid increased competition has weighed on revenues. We expect this metric to decline going forward, putting further pressure on the companys Hotel revenue growth. Explore example interactive dashboards and create your own. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2019/02/19/can-tripadvisor-witness-a-turnaround-in-its-hotel-segment-in-fiscal-2019/ |
Can One Small Town Doc Change The Way We Diagnose Mental Health Conditions? | When it comes to health and tech innovation, people have spent years talking about how Gen Z and Millennials along with their Silicon Valley startups are going to disrupt the health ecosystem. Those in the know have been fond of claiming they are going to be the next Uber or AirBnB of health. And everyone is scrambling to be at the forefront of personalized medicine. But the truth is, our most basic health needs and care requirements have been known for a long time. With mental health being at the core of both better health and better care. Despite nearly one in five U.S. adults living with a mental illness (about 45 million people), and mental disorders being reported as the most costly medical condition in the U.S. (with spending at an estimated $201 billion a decade ago) Americans tend to separate mental and physical health from one another. But after more than 20 years of specializing in child and adolescent psychiatry and more than 70 clinical trials as a primary investigator, Dr. Nelson Handal is among the voices in public health advocating that mental and physical well-being are intrinsically tied. Thats why in the small town of Dothan, Alabama, Dr. Handal and his team have quietly set out to do research, see patients, and use the ever-growing clinical data points of patient history and experience to create an online portal for physicians, mental health professionals and patients to do assessments, standardize questions, compare results, and develop treatment plans based on individual needs. Actions Speak Louder Than Words In place of buzzwords and flashy slogans, CliniCom has slowly and steadily, over more than a decade, built a database of more than 35,000 patient assessments. Using those as the basis, algorithms to assess potential conditions and severity were created for patients to do at-home assessments before ever setting foot in a doctors office. The team claims this saves significant time and money for both doctors and patients by allowing a remote, honest, unbiased assessment of patient psychiatric information based on standardized questionnaires, DSM-5 criteria, community benchmarks, and expert opinions in real-time. Further, it can suggest multiple psychiatric conditions alone or together (comorbidity). While the results are not an official diagnosis, CliniCom asserts that it can comprehensively screen for 52 mental health conditions using 26 possible chief and secondary complaints. According to Dr. Handal, it also provides an, analysis of suicide and violence risk, and warns of possible traumatic brain injury, if applicable. In July of 2018, CliniCom published the results of a study to determine the specificity and reproducibility of its software to appropriately diagnose five prevalent disorders including: Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and Social Phobia. The online tool was, Overall 78% concordant in diagnosing the same disorder during a test-retest analysis. When subjects exhibited two, three, or four disorders, the tool was less consistent in diagnosing the same set of disorders during the test-retest analysis (53% concordant). However, if evaluated as individual disorders within subjects, the more persistent disorders had a higher rate of concordance: MDD (83%), ADHD (81%), and OCD (68%). The conclusion is that the algorithms used by CliniCom in its online assessment tools are pretty reliable in determining both a patients type of psychiatric illness and the severity among common psychiatric illnesses. Thus, potentially cutting down on the number of clinical visits for diagnosis, bringing access to remote patients more easily, and providing assessments in languages that are often neglected in traditional care settings. Hope Beyond Hype In September of 2018, CliniCom was accepted in the App Developer program with Epic Systems Corporation, the largest EHR provider for hospitals in the world. Given that hospitals using Epics software hold 64% of U.S. medical records and 2.5% of patient medical records worldwide not to mention Epics decision to roll out a behavioral health module - and the coming months could prove very prosperous for CliniComs ever-growing database. With each new entry providing deeper and richer information about mental health. While they avoided public announcement and grand claims in the press, CliniCom has now been made readily available to all large hospital and health providers using Epic software, the behavioral health module is designed to also be used by smaller psychiatric practices. Even better, it can be used in a range of languages, incorporating patients who speak Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian. According to Dr. Handal, We are very serious about our research and global reach in helping people with mental health disorders. And his team in Alabama believe that through pending and ongoing partnerships with the University of Alabama, and health departments and agencies in Puerto Rico and Italy, as well as inclusion in Epics system, the coming year will prove just how valuable an ever-learning system like CliniCom can be for those wanting to access mental health tools in real time anywhere in the world. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicolefisher/2019/02/19/can-one-small-town-doc-change-the-way-we-diagnose-mental-health/ |
Can We Wait Any Longer For A Multinational Cyber Treaty? | Each year, my company and I release a series of cybersecurity predictions for the upcoming year. One of our predictions for this year is that the United Nations (UN) will address the issue of state-sponsored cyberattacks by enacting a multinational cybersecurity treaty. Unlike the majority of our predictions, which focus on scary evolutions in malware or attack techniques, this is one I actually hope comes true. Lets explore why. Over the years, governments have become very active in cyber. Moving past mere defense, many have actively built red teams that carry out offensive cyberattacks against other countries, ranging from basic espionage and digital propaganda to assaults on infrastructure and stolen money or intellectual property (IP). The public likely became broadly aware of state-sponsored attacks during 2010s leak of Stuxnet, a sophisticated computer worm designed to infiltrate Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities. It successfully destroyed a significant percentage of Irans nuclear centrifuges at the Natanz nuclear facility, and while no country has officially claimed responsibility, significant evidence suggests it was a U.S. and Israeli operation. Launching Stuxnet or Operation Olympic Games was like opening Pandoras box. Though it was sophisticated enough to avoid detection and non-targeted machines, mistakes in its code allowed the worm to leak to other machines that put the threat in the hands of security researchers and antivirus companies. Once they released Stuxnets details to the public, governments saw proof that some nations were participating in aggressive cyberattacks. I imagine some governments asked, If the U.S. has taken off its cyber kid gloves, why shouldnt we? The public leak seems to have been the turning point, where government cyber operations that were previously more passive and covert turned serious. Take the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) breach of 2015, allegedly a Chinese-led attack that compromised government employees Social Security numbers and fingerprints. Believed to be launched by North Korea over the planned releases of a particularly unflattering movie, this attack destroyed 100 terabytes of data and scuttled the company for weeks. The list goes on. The 2016 U.S. presidential race was marred by incidents attributed to Russian threat actors, including stolen data from voter registration databases, the DNC breach and tons of fake social media activity designed to sway voter opinions. In 2017, infections from self-spreading ransomware variant WannaCry caused an estimated $4 billion in damages and even shut down U.K. health services. The attacks were attributed to North Korea this time. Shortly after that, the suspected Russian false flag attack NotPetya wreaked havoc throughout the world, masquerading as ransomware but wiping computers after ransom payments with no chance of data recovery. As you can see, governments are getting much more aggressive with offensive cyber campaigns. Worse yet, they seem to be breaking certain unspoken rules of engagement, which is why a multinational cybersecurity agreement is so necessary. While its sometimes hard to argue why cyber espionage is acceptable, society has pretty much come to expect it. As long as cyber black ops doesnt affect the average citizen, we can more easily accept it, whether or not we think espionage is right or wrong. However, the same cant be said of state-sponsored cyberattacks that affect everyday citizens and private business. Governments shouldnt harm innocent civilians or steal IP or money from private companies and people. Yet, some of the latest nation-state attacks directly affect everyone. WannaCry, in particular, cost the world billions in damages, even though its perpetrators only made about $250,000. Furthermore, recent attacks like the 2016 election hacks are the type of aggressive actions that could provoke a nation to respond to a cyberattack with a physical response -- especially if future perpetrators more directly hack election results. Based on these recent state-sponsored attacks, a cyberattack that results in a real war might not be far off. Given all this, you would think the UN would enact a multinational treaty. The truth is, theyve been trying to for quite some time. As early as 2003, the UN set up a Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) to tackle cybersecurity issues. Interestingly, Russia was actually the first to propose this information security GGE working group. While it did come up with codes of conduct that make sense, certain language within the agreement prevented the delegation from coming to a consensus. In fact, when brought to vote, the U.S. was actually the only country to vote against the resolution. In 2009, a second cybersecurity GGE group was set up, this time started by a report from delegates from Russia and China (and a few others). While this agreement did have a few things everyone could agree upon, the U.S., along with many other countries, voted against it. In short, the U.S. and many other countries have been concerned with language in proposed resolutions that seems to give an individual state ultimate control over their own internet. While there doesnt seem to be much disagreement on the cyberwarfare rules themselves, we are still fighting about whether we should govern cyberspace in a multilateral (every state owns their own) or multi-stakeholder (as a global community) fashion. Until we can compromise or remove this particular topic from our cyberwarfare resolutions, progress will continue to be a challenge. The Cost Is Becoming Too Great Recent state-sponsored attacks are getting out of hand. Theyve cost citizens and businesses around the world billions of dollars while making the world a more dangerous place. Whether or not the nuclear arms race is really over is up for debate, but we currently find ourselves in a dangerous cyber arms race. If the UN, or any other international body, doesnt get the worlds superpowers to approve a multinational cyberwar code of conduct soon, we may find ourselves in a real war that could have easily been avoided. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2019/02/19/can-we-wait-any-longer-for-a-multinational-cyber-treaty/ |
How Can Estate Agents Capitalize On The Booming Northern Property Market? | The residential property market in northern England has garnered a great deal of media attention over the last few months as it continues to go from strength to strength, with property transactions and house prices rising across several regions. Southern cities used to dominate house price growth reports, but over the past five years, more than half of northern cities have made the UK top 10. Zoopla research revealed that houses prices grew the fastest in cities in the Midlands, the North of England, Wales and Scotland. Values have surged by 15% in Manchester and Leicester, and 16% in Birmingham. Meanwhile, growth in the South has slowed to just 1% in London and 2% in Oxford. The millennial and homeowner exodus Dont get me wrong I love London. The unique history, the museums and galleries, the public transport links, the parks and the incredible bars and restaurants add up to something special. But theres no doubt that its also an expensive city. The average house price in London is more than double that of the rest of the U.K., coming in at 479,000 compared to the national average of 223,000. House prices here outstrip average earnings by 13 times, compared to seven times in England and Wales as a whole. And with the average rent for a two-bedroom private rented house in London at 1,730 compared with 820 across England, rents often consume large portions of wages. For many, the capital has simply become unaffordable. The number of millennials leaving the city is at its highest level for more than a decade. Even homeowners are leaving for greener pastures. While its hard to say how much is pull versus push, a common theme cited among leavers is the significantly cheaper housing. Young Londoners simply dont have the space to start a family. For homeowners, theres a widespread desire to trade up the housing ladder, cashing in on the London property bonus and buying something bigger outside of the capital. Years ago, when Londoners relocated, they tended to move to commuter towns but more and more, thats not the case. One in 17 headed to the Midlands or the North back in 2008. In 2018, it was one in five. While ex-Londoners are moving further and away from the capital, this hasnt necessarily meant leaving London work behind. Faster broadband and a rise in flexible working conditions have allowed many to keep their London jobs and work from home. For others committed to commuting, the prospect of HS2, a high-speed railway which will connect London, Birmingham, the East Midlands, Leeds and Manchester cutting the journey time between Birmingham and London down to just 45 minutes has proved enticing. Set to open between 2026 and 2033, its impact is already being noted in rising prices. Foreign investment Its not just the changing needs of the domestic market that are boosting prices up North; the evolving desires of foreign buyers are also contributing to price surges. Stimulated by low-interest rates and favourable exchange rates, foreign investors have been in a position to snap up U.K. property at discount prices. Chinese buyers, in particular, are seizing the opportunity. In 2003, 16 yuan was equivalent to one pound. Now, its just eight yuan to the pound. In combination with rising GDP per capita, Chinese nationals are increasingly in a position to splash out on commercial and residential property. Its Northern cities with more affordable offerings, like Manchester, that are frequently catching their eye. Part of the citys appeal is the university, which is already one of the largest recruiters of international students in the U.K. In fact, of the 20 universities attracting the most foreign students, only six are in London. Named one of the top global cities for foreign direct investment, prices surged in Manchester more than anywhere else in the U.K. last year increasing 6.6% and enquiries by Chinese investors about buy-to-let in the city soared in January 2018 by 255.6% compared to the previous year. Opportunity to capitalize For estate agents looking to capitalize on this trend, aligning sales and marketing with diverse customer segments and needs will be key. The Midlands, the North and Scotland have attracted buyers with varied motivations: from young professionals and new families to foreign investors. For millennials, the largest segment of homebuyers, spacious properties as well as access to London through public transport will be key. Starter homes that provide entry into the real estate market and allow young buyers to work their way up the property ladder will be a great demand. For foreign investors, bearing in mind more than 70% of the homes bought in the U.K. by foreigners are rental investments, buy-to-let yields and the growth potential of Northern properties will prove appealing. Engaging the inner investor will be a winning strategy. Others with sons and daughters studying in the U.K. may also be looking at student-style accommodation. These might be one-bedroom or two-bedroom properties within easy reach of the university central campus, lecture hall or library. Final thoughts This doesnt mean London is off the cards in any way; a significant portion of sales handled in the capital by international estate agents are overseas buyers, especially in central areas. It does, however, ring in a new era, where we may expect to see a wider geographical spread of the national demand for housing. Its undoubtedly an exciting and potentially growth-rich time for those agencies that are not only able to meet these changing demand patterns on surface level, but for those who are pre-empting the changing needs of buyers, and adapting at their core to be nimble enough to meet buyers where they are at. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/garybarker/2019/02/19/how-can-estate-agents-capitalize-on-the-booming-northern-property-market/ |
Should the Legislature bring universal health care to Washington? | Universal health-care proposals in the Washington Legislature this year also come as Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Jay Inslee also push bills to design a "public option" plan for Washington's health benefit exchange. OLYMPIA Universal health care, three words on the lips of many Democratic voters, has gained some traction among state legislators. And yet it remains a distant possibility for the state. After campaigning last year on expanding and improving medical coverage, Democratic state lawmakers are introducing bills to make substantial health-care changes. But the proposals for universal health care also come as Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Jay Inslee consider more modest and some say practical legislation for a public option plan for people who buy insurance on Washingtons health-benefit exchange. The proposals are not necessarily mutually exclusive. But lawmakers have limited time, political capital and money to put toward priorities in this years regularly scheduled 105-day legislative session. And the two approaches highlight a debate within the Democratic Party one thats playing out around the nation on how to reshape the health-care system. Do we stand up whats not working in the Affordable Care Act? said Sen. David Frockt, D-Seattle, adding later: But at the same time, how do you move into a transformational direction into some kind of universal system? He called the question a complicated issue for Democrats. On Monday, the Senate Health & Long Term Care Committee gave a public hearing to Senate Bill 5822, sponsored by Sen. Emily Randall, D-Bremerton. It would form a work group with consumers, health-care providers, insurance companies and others to study how a universal health-care system could be created here. The work group wouldnt have to report its recommendations until November 2020, after that years elections. Lawmakers would then have to figure out how to pay for the program, which could be prohibitively expensive. Randalls bill has 14 Democratic co-sponsors meaning more than half of the Senate Democratic caucus has signed onto it. I think we heard over and over that people are drowning in our current situation, said Randall after Mondays hearing. Lawmakers are already scheduled in June to receive the final report of a state study on universal health care. But Randall says the work group in her bill would bring together groups to find agreement on how best to actually implement universal coverage. Otherwise, We could have the best policy but not have the political buy-in to pass it, said Randall. Meanwhile, Senate Bill 5222, a proposal by Democratic state Sen. Bob Hasegawa this year to create a form of universal health coverage, has not yet gotten a legislative hearing. Inslee, who is considering a run for president, on Monday was cool to the prospect of implementing universal coverage anytime soon. He said lawmakers should concentrate on a public option because, Its something thats achievable now. And Id like to make progress now, said Inslee in a regularly scheduled news conference. He has previously described his proposal as a first step toward universal coverage. The public-option legislation is intended to stabilize the exchange, which has experienced double-digit premium increases and efforts by congressional Republicans and President Donald Trump to roll back the Affordable Care Act. Currently, 14 Washington counties have just one insurance option on the exchange. Those are: Asotin, Chelan, Clallam, Douglas, Ferry, Garfield, Grays Harbor, Island, Okanogan, Pacific, Pend Oreille, San Juan, Skagit and Wahkiakum counties. The Senate version, SB 5526, requires the state to create a standardized insurance plan, and contract with health-care insurance providers to offer those plans. The proposal also requires the state to develop a plan to provide subsidies that would help low-income people afford premiums. SB 5526 which counts Randall as a co-sponsor also got a public hearing Monday. Its counterpart in the House, HB 1523, has already cleared a committee vote. Sen. Steve OBan, R-University Place, said hes open to a public-option proposal. But hes worried a public option might hurt other parts of the insurance market, such as private coverage, or people who depend on Medicaid. Theres no question theres a problem there, said OBan, ranking Republican on the Senate Health & Long Term Care Committee, referring to the counties with just one health plan on the exchange. But the health-care system, just seems like the proverbial balloon, you push it in one area and it becomes a problem on the other end, he added. OBan said he had serious reservations for any universal-care proposal that leads to a single-payer health-care system. | https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/should-the-legislature-bring-universal-healthcare-to-washington/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_seattle-news |
Who is Derek Hatton? | Mr Hatton's expulsion from Labour in 1986 was seen as the defining moment in then leader Neil Kinnock's efforts to purge the party of the "hard left". It was a stepping stone towards the creation of Tony Blair's New Labour - and the banishing of Jeremy Corbyn, John McDonnell and others on the left of the party to Labour's margins for three decades. A brash, voluble Scouser, with a taste for Armani-suits, Mr Hatton became a national figure as deputy leader of Liverpool City Council, which defied the Thatcher government's cuts to local government by setting an illegal budget. But it was his role as a leading figure in the Militant tendency that made him such a bogey figure for the so-called moderate wing of the party - and a hero to the left. Militant had grown out of the Revolutionary Socialist League - one of a bewildering number of tiny communist parties to have emerged from the radical student movement of the 1960s. Image copyright PA Image caption Derek Hatton joins supporters on a demonstration in support of Liverpool Council in 1985 It was widely categorised as Trotskyist - the Marxist philosophy of "international socialism" developed by Leon Trotsky, one of the founders of the Soviet Union. And it was initially a clandestine organisation, with potential recruits being approached individually and invited to attend secret meetings. It drew much of its support from young people hungry for social change and disillusioned with what they saw as Labour's watered-down version of socialism - they believed capitalism was beyond reform and the only answer was to nationalise private industry without compensation. From the mid-1970s, Militant's critics claimed it pursued an "entryist" policy of attempting to gain key positions within the Labour Party in an effort to promote its policies. They claimed it was operating as a "party within a party", something always denied by its supporters. The rallying point for supporters was the Militant newspaper. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Celebrity politician: Derek Hatton at a film premiere in 1988 Supporters of Militant underwent intensive training in Trotskyist ideology and were known for their highly disciplined approach to politics and their willingness to make personal sacrifices for the cause. At its height, Militant is thought to have had about 8,000 supporters. Militant's most notable success was in Liverpool, where the local Labour Party - dominated by Militant members - took control of the city council in 1983. Despite being only deputy leader, Mr Hatton was seen as effectively in charge. Liverpool was particularly receptive to Militant's ideas because it had suffered a steep decline in heavy industry, and traffic at its port, sending unemployment and deprivation in the city soaring. Militant vehemently opposed the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher, attempting to resist a reduction in the city's grant from central government by setting an illegal budget that allowed for more spending than there was income. Supporters of Militant point to the wave of building it initiated in Liverpool, replacing slum housing and improving sports and other leisure facilities. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption A 1986 anti-Militant demonstration in Liverpool But the council did not have enough money to pay for its programme and action by the district auditor was averted only by taking out loans. A move to apparently issue redundancy notices to every single council employee - ostensibly as a negotiating tactic - was widely criticised. And the then Labour leader, Neil Kinnock, used a conference speech to attack Militant for "the grotesque chaos of a Labour council hiring taxis to scuttle round a city handing out redundancy notices to its own workers". In June 1986, Mr Hatton was expelled from the Labour Party after a disciplinary hearing. A number of other politicians and activists were also thrown out and Militant was banned by the party. Some saw this as an overreaction, including Jeremy Corbyn, who accused the party leadership of carrying out a witch-hunt against alleged Militant infiltrators. "There's an atmosphere of Star Chamber surrounding this whole thing. It's a scandalous miscarriage of justice," said Mr Corbyn after a Labour Party branch in Bermondsey was suspended by Neil Kinnock. Several leading figures from Militant have attempted to rejoin the Labour Party since Mr Corbyn was elected leader. These include Peter Taaffe, who now leads The Socialist Party, the successor to Militant, but they have largely been rebuffed because they are members of other parties, something that is not allowed under Labour rules. Mr Hatton, now 71, who has pursued careers in property development, broadcasting and public speaking since being pushed out of politics, has also been attempting to rejoin the Labour Party for some time. This week he told BBC News his membership had been approved, although Labour said it could not comment on individual applications. He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "It's good to be back. "In a way, I've never left. For 34 years, I have stayed absolutely solid with the Labour Party." He said he has no ambitions to seek elected office again but was "probably more excited about the future" than he had ever been. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-47290094 |
Why are sharks amazing? | Getty Images Great white sharks could help scientists discover a cure for cancer and it's all down to their genes. Scientists have been researching the predators' genes and have found that they protect them from disease, help them heal quickly and allow them to have a higher resistance to cancer. According to the findings published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, their genes also help to protect them from age-related diseases. Now, the scientists are hoping that research into these shark genes could lead to a better understanding of how humans might beat cancer. But, these new findings are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to how special sharks are. Read on to find out more. Getty Images They are super bendy There are over 500 different species of shark. The largest is 40 feet long and the smallest could fit in the palm of your hand. Sharks don't have any bones and their bodies are made up entirely of cartilage - similar to the stuff human ears and noses are made from. It's strong and flexible, which allows the shark to turn quickly when chasing prey. Barcroft Some sharks can't stop swimming Sharks need to keep water moving over their gills to get the oxygen that they need to live. Because of this, some sharks like great whites have to keep moving at all times which makes things like sleeping a bit difficult. Not all sharks need to move constantly, though. Some sharks have developed a way to breathe while staying still. They developed an opening called spiracles behind their eyes, which force water across the shark's gills so the shark can be still when it rests. Getty Images Their skin feels like sand paper Sharks have unique skin made from millions of small teeth coated in enamel. The skin feels like sand paper but the specially adapted teeth-like skin allows the shark to swim faster. Getty Images They have lots of teeth Sharks are always losing teeth because they don't have roots, but instead have lots of layers of teeth that replaces the old ones as soon as they fall out. Unlike human beings who have just two rows of teeth that they have to look after! Getty Images Scientists think the megalodon died out when it's favourite type of food disappeared from our oceans Giant sharks have existed in the past The largest shark to ever live was the massive Megalodon. This super-predator was swimming about in the oceans millions of years ago. Scientists think Megalodons could grow to over 50 feet long, which is just shorter than two double-decker busses parked end to end. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/47289113 |
Can New Products & Expansion Aid GoDaddy (GDDY) Q4 Earnings? | GoDaddy Inc. GDDY is set to report fourth-quarter 2018 results on Feb 20. In the last reported quarter, the company recorded a negative earnings surprise of 55.56%. Nonetheless, it managed to pull off average four-quarter positive surprise of 1.04%. The company's shares have gained 30.7% in the past 12 months against its industrys decline of 18.8%. Let's see how things are shaping up for this announcement. GoDaddy generates revenues from three segments Domain, Hosting and Presence, and Business Applications. All its segments are expected to have performed well in the fourth quarter, driven by increasing investments in products and technology platform, as well as strong customer growth. The company is expanding internationally by investing in technology, marketing programs and customer service teams. Growing international expansion and the shift toward dynamic online presence for small businesses are likely to play an important role in the to-be-reported quarter. In the last reported quarter, Business Applications revenues were $106.8 million, increasing 4.5% sequentially and 25.9% from the year-ago level. The corresponding Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter to be reported is pegged at $114 million. Domain revenues increased 1.5% sequentially and 14% year over yearin the third quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter Domain revenues is pegged at $317 million. Hosting and Presence revenues were $263.2 million in the third quarter, increasing 7.6% sequentially and 16.5% from the prior-year period. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the same is pegged at $261.0 million for the fourth quarter. The company made efforts to offer advanced but simplified solutions in a bid to expand its small business clientele, thereby boosting Hosting and Presence revenues. The companys total bookings in the third quarter were $741.8 million, up 11% year over year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the metric is pegged at $734 million for the fourth quarter. Increasing competition in domain, hosting and presence markets from companies like Endurance, Amazon and Google might impact its results in the to-be-reported quarter. What Our Model Says According to the Zacks model, a company with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) has a good chance of beating estimates if it also has a positive Earnings ESP. Sell-rated stocks (Zacks Rank #4 or 5) are best avoided. GoDaddy currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) and an Earnings ESP of 0.00%, which is not indicative of a likely positive surprise. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter. GoDaddy Inc. Price and EPS Surprise | https://news.yahoo.com/products-expansion-aid-godaddy-gddy-131401469.html |
What's in the Offing for Keysight (KEYS) in Q1 Earnings? | Keysight Technologies Inc. KEYS is scheduled to release first-quarter fiscal 2019 results on Feb 21. Notably, the company has surpassed earnings estimates in three of the trailing four quarters, recording average beat of 13.3%. In fourth-quarter fiscal 2018, the company delivered non-GAAP earnings of $1.01 per share beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 91 cents per share. Further, the figure surged 42.3% from the year-ago quarter. Revenues advanced 19% from the year-ago quarter to $1.047 billion and outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.017 billion. Non-GAAP core revenues (excluding the impact of currency and revenues from acquisitions completed within the last 12 months) increased 17% year over year. Notably, Keysight stock has returned 75.2% in the past year, outperforming the industrys rally of 50.1%. Guidance & Estimates For the first quarter of fiscal 2019, Keysight envisions GAAP and non-GAAP revenues to be in the range of $962-$982 million and $965-$985 million, respectively. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues is pegged at $978.2 million, indicating growth of approximately 16.9% from the year-ago quarter. Non-GAAP earnings per share for first-quarter fiscal 2019 are projected in the range of 76-82 cents per share. We note that the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings has remained stable in the past week. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter under review is pegged at 79 cents per share, representing growth of approximately 54.9% from the year-ago quarter. Lets see how things are shaping up prior to this announcement. Factors at Play Keysights continuous focus on launching new solutions for growth markets like 5G, Internet of Things (IoT), next-generation wireless, high-speed datacenters and automotive & energy bodes well for the topline. Focus on 5G Key Catalyst Strength in Keysights comprehensive test and measurement solutions bodes well. The companys 5G product design validation solutions ranging from Layer 1 to 7 enable telecom and semiconductor companies to accelerate their 5G initiatives. Moreover, Keysights 5G network emulation solutions facilitate end-to-end processes from development to deployment, accelerating the 5G device architecture. The solutions offer cost-efficient test techniques with high flexibility and control capabilities, reducing time to market. Additionally, the acquisitions of Ixia, Anite and AT4 Wireless have enriched the companys 5G solutions portfolio. In fact, Keysight stated that orders for 5G solutions recorded triple-digit growth year over year in the last reported quarter. In the to-be-reported quarter, Keysights collaborations with the likes of Softbank, MediaTek, SK Telecom, China Telecom and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm QCOM are anticipated to aid it in achieving 5G commercialization related milestones. Strength in Automotive Domain Holds Promise Growing clout of radar technologies for autonomous driving, and high-power devices and applications are driving demand for the Keysights solutions in this end market. The growing demand for electric and hybrid cars also bode well for the companys product portfolio, which was enhanced by Scienlab acquisition. In fact, management noted double-digit growth in automotive and energy verticals in the last reported quarter. The companys latest high frequency Keysight E8740A automotive radar test solution is anticipated to generate incremental revenues, going forward. The new solution assists radar-driven, advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) to identify and alleviate collision risks on a real-time basis. Keysight Technologies Inc. Price and EPS Surprise Keysight Technologies Inc. Price and EPS Surprise | Keysight Technologies Inc. Quote Other Factors Keysights buyout of Melbourne, Australia-based Thales Calibration Services, a subsidiary of Thales Group is likely to expand the companys current electrical portfolio, particularly in the defense and security space. We believe that the company's focus on expanding software portfolio on the back of strong demand for its solutions is likely to fuel growth. Moreover, rapid adoption of the companys high-speed Ethernet based testing solutions, and security and application solutions are anticipated to bolster Ixia Solutions Group (ISG) segment revenues. However, competition from Rohde & Schwarz GmbH & Co. KG, Anritsu Corporation, and Fortive Corporation, is a headwind. Furthermore, uncertain macroeconomic conditions and imposition of tariff owing to trade war between the United States and China is a major concern. What Our Model Says According to the Zacks model, a company with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) has a good chance of beating estimates if it also has a positive Earnings ESP. Sell-rated stocks (Zacks Rank #4 or 5) are best avoided. Keysight has a Zacks Rank #3 and an Earnings ESP of 0.00%, which makes surprise prediction difficult. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter. Stocks that Warrant a Look Here are some stocks you may consider, as our proven model shows that these have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter. Warrior Met Coal, Inc. HCC has an Earnings ESP of +4.97% and a Zacks Rank #1. The company is slated to report fourth-quarter 2018 earnings on Feb 21. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. LYV has an Earnings ESP of +3.77% and a Zacks Rank #1.The company is scheduled to report fourth-quarter 2018 earnings on Feb 26. Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report QUALCOMM Incorporated (QCOM) : Free Stock Analysis Report Keysight Technologies Inc. (KEYS) : Free Stock Analysis Report Warrior Met Coal Inc. (HCC) : Free Stock Analysis Report Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (LYV) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. | https://news.yahoo.com/whats-offing-keysight-keys-q1-130701769.html |
Where did the Yat accent come from? | There are certain sounds New Orleans has historically been known for: Jazz, Mr. Okras shouts about whats on his vegetable truck, cries of Hey Mister at Mardi Gras, Yat accents. But that last one may have a history thats a little less straightforward than just knowing its how your mamanem talked. I talked to two linguistic researchers last year who outlined who actually speaks like a Yat. They discovered that speakers of New Orleans signature accent are disappearing and those who remain typically live in Chalmette. New Orleans' signature accent is disappearing One of those researchers New Orleans-born Katie Carmichael partnered with another researcher, Kara Becker, to take that work a step further. When you talk to people about this accent, they always bring it up that it sounds like New York, that theyre mistaken for people from New York, Carmichael said. A particularly festive example coined by Bunny Matthews was noted by Carmichael and Becker this month in a paper for an Oxford University Press journal: For those who have never heard it (New Orleans Yats), you must begin by imagining all of Brooklyn on Quaaludes. So, Carmichael and Becker decided to figure out if its actually true that theres a connection between New Orleans signature accent and how New Yorkers speak. Turns out, the linguistic research says yeah, dawlin, there is. By analyzing contemporary Yat speakers and New Yorkers, Carmichael and Becker essentially road-mapped the structures of the two accents. While nailing down specifics is tough without something like recordings of speakers from both places going back several hundred years, the researchers were able to see the shared history of both sets of speakers. Essentially, what it boils down to is this: There are strong connections between the older features of how Yats talk and how New York City English speakers talk. Its most likely that people in New Orleans learned to speak a certain way because they heard the sounds of people from New York speaking sometime in the 19th century, and not the other way around. It was those New York accents that got passed on and became the Yat sounds we hear today. We cant with 100 percent certainty saw we can contribute the linguistic analysis to a clear picture, Becker said. But we can make suggestions about what we think may have happened. One suggestion, which Becker noted after a conversation with Tulane University geographer Richard Campanella, highlights the transient businessmen, seamen and craftsmen, many of whom would have come from New York to travel through the area at the time. Back then, New Orleans port was a major aspect of American business and still required plenty of travel for those engaging in commerce in and around it. Despite that history, the results were not necessarily something Carmichael expected to hear. Initially, I was a naysayer, saying theres no way New York had an influence on New Orleans, so I actually embarked thinking I would finally put that theory to bed, she said. Now, we get the data, and Im a believer. The science does, at least for some folks explanations, put some veracity behind the stories people have heard about why Yats sound the way they do. Some folk histories, as the researchers called them, note theories like a group of New York nuns coming to New Orleans to teach in local Catholic schools, or the numbers of Irish and Italian immigrants who settled here and elsewhere in the 19th century. While theres no available evidence for the nuns and the way language develops puts a few holes in the immigration theories, little more is known, the researchers said. Those stories persist because people love to spread these around, Carmichael said. But then science! Still, theres one thing that remains absolutely certain, according to Carmichael. People from New Orleans sure as hell dont sound like southerners." - - - Chelsea Brasted is a columnist on the Latitude team at NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune. Latitude is a place to share opinions about the challenges facing Louisiana. Follow @LatitudeNOLA on Facebook and Twitter. Write to Chelsea at [email protected]. You can also call or text with story ideas, tips and complaints 225.460.1350. | https://www.nola.com/opinions/2019/02/where-did-the-yat-accent-come-from.html |
Whose fault is it really? Brittany Dawns or the people who purchased her fantasy? | A couple of minutes into Brittany Dawns BEST ab Exercises post, we realized we arent the target audience. Good morning YouTube! she chirped from the front seat of her car before telling us twice the brand of the conventional and indistinguishable gym clothes she was wearing. Then it was into what looked like a strip mall gym, where she did a handful of ab exercises to a techno beat, never breaking a sweat or mussing her make-up. Now, back to the front seat of the car where she cheerfully wished us goodbye and blew a kiss to the camera.I will see you guys on the next blog! Byee! | https://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/editorials/2019/02/19/whose-fault-really-brittany-dawns-people-purchased-fantasy |
Are Digital Currencies The Answer To Transforming The Trillion Dollar Travel Industry? | Because of the globalizing of the world, traveling has become a major past time for a variety of people. Shoestring backpackers and corporate millionaires are taking to the skies, crossing borders, and experiencing the shrinking of our world through the travel industry. For this reason, the industry itself has ballooned into a massive beast that encompasses over $7 trillion a year, but because travel is a modern and ever-evolving entity, there are plenty of issues with the current state of affairs. While the world is globalising in terms of travel, geopolitical issues are trying to subjugate and differentiate countries and people. The industry has opened its doors and welcomed everyone in, but the framework underpinning it is not a simple thing to work around. Borders, visa requirements, even the different currencies used across the globe, all play their part in making travel difficult. Some of these factors are purely geopolitical, and not much can be done about them, but there are areas where the travel industry can benefit from a change. As is often the case, blockchain solutions are being pointed at different sectors, and the travel sector is not immune. People are looking at the technology for supply chain logging in terms of moving produce across the globe, but digital currencies could have a significant role to play in improving the travel industry as it stands. Cryptocurrencies, as an entity, have many benefits, especially in a modern world, but their borderless and decentralised nature means that the could be accepted anywhere, regardless of what the native currency of a travel destination is. A millennial solution to a millennial pursuit Travel has always been a pleasurable pursuit, but it is one that has become more and more accessible to a younger and more liberal age group. Because of budget traveling and backpacking, millennials and youngsters are looking to take advantage of the globalised world. In fact, they are not only taking advantage of the travel industry; they are helping prop it up. Millennials are spending over $200 billion a year on travel, and we believe it will grow exponentially, explains Gyanendra Khadka, founder of XcelTrip, a blockchain company that is looking to make travel services consumable with cryptocurrencies. Data points aside, we all know that the per capita income is on the rise around the world, more people are planning to travel frequently both domestically and internationally. This combined with the cross-border transfer of talent, business and internet are fuelling rapid globalization in the travel industry. Despite this massive size and growth, the industry is in constant turmoil; it is getting affected by various factors such as currency volatility, political issues, and others. For example US-China Trade war or Brexit is negatively affecting the travel industry. Furthermore, the industry is suffering from seller power, meaning service providers have more power over end-users and many a time the vendor abuses it by charging higher cost and travelers have very little say about it. The type of people who are looking to travel frequently are also the same who have been showing the most interest in cryptocurrencies and their advantages over traditional financial products and offerings. So clearly, there is a need for disruption of the travel industry, especially when it comes to the financial side of things; and there is also demand as the age-group of travelers is getting younger, and more inclined to experiment and utilize things like digital currencies. But, does this necessarily mean that digital currencies are the next step in disrupting the travel industry, and more so, are they even the right tools to effect a financial change. A decentralised ecosystem The fact of the matter is that within the travel industry, there are a lot of moving parts. Hotels and airlines have agents and intermediaries which perform duties that are not necessarily essential for travelers. These added intermediaries add a lot of extra costs, wasted time and effort, and take their cut in doing a job that can be achieved without them. Many people moved away from travel agents for this very reason, but they still have not cut all ties with the travel intermediaries. Khadka believes there is room for a decentralised ecosystem, driven by cryptocurrencies, in the travel industry. The beauty of a digital currency is the fact that it is decentralized, encrypted and transfers the power into the hands of the users in the real sense, added Khadka. Crypto will enable both service providers and end-users to avoid unwanted costs and intermediaries by providing access for direct interaction, fulfillment and transactions. Typically, convenience fee, currency conversion fee, transaction fee, bank charges, etc., will eat away about 15-20 percent of the transaction value. This burden is usually passed on the end-users by the vendors. A global travel digital currency such as our XCELToken can help create this decentralized ecosystem, that will enable direct interaction, easy transfer of value and remove non-value adding services. It can allow users to to bargain better value, drive service providers to follow more ethical practices in pricing and service quality. He also goes on to explain the problem of the current set up which sees a massive majority of the current travel industry being monopolised by a few companies. Travel industry today is becoming Oligopolistic, said Khadka. A handful of players are controlling the industry. Almost 70 percent of online travel booking is controlled by 2-3 players such as Expedia, Priceline, Booking.com and their subsidiaries. This decentralization is very much needed, to gain control. For example, in the internet world, we have GAFA The Google-Apple-Amazon-Facebook, who are controlling so much of our life, information and everybody knows the damages that they have been doing there. Cryptocurrencies thus not only help in bypassing some of the geopolitical issues, but they also breathe this decentralised ecosystem which again empowers individuals. A case of centralised control It is not surprising that an industry as big as the travel ecosystem is in a position where a few companies and corporations have managed to squeeze huge fortunes out of it. This is, as is always the case, at the expense of individuals who are still flocking to the industry. Cryptocurrencies have, in the past, been viewed sceptically by companies that have no form of control over them, and thus has led to them being slated by major centralized controlling bodies. The fact of the matter is that traveling has become more inclusive and open, but remained monopolised, thus, by creating a decentralised ecosystem, a lot of control and money will no longer be offered up to these big businesses. It is potentially positive for the travelers, and problematic for the monopolies. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/darrynpollock/2019/02/19/are-digital-currencies-the-answer-to-transforming-the-trillion-dollar-travel-industry/ |
Will Security Token Offerings Be The Future Of Raising Money? | This is the first of a two piece article series regarding Security Token Offerings (STO"). This first explains why STOs are becoming increasingly popular. The second will explain how to properly perform an STO. 2017 was the year of the initial coin offering, a new way for companies to raise money. Since then, over $22 billion have been raised for companies of all sizes, from pre-product startups to companies with publicly traded equities on traditional stock markets. This fundraising gold rush was partially fueled by the Bitcoin and Ethers colossal rise, but also through the invention of a more liquid investment instrument. Initial coin offerings (ICO) are based off the premise that a company, organization, non-profit or individual can create a digital representation of value, known as a token, and sell this representation anywhere in the world. This token rests on a system called a blockchain, an immutable and globally accessible ledger. For those not in the know, blockchain first became popular as the technology that enables Bitcoin to exist. By having a token on a blockchain, the ICO token is easy to create, easy to store, and easy to send to anyone in the world. Initially, companies would sell the tokens, known as utility tokens, for the purpose of using their platform once it was built. However, due to how liquid the tokens were, speculative secondary markets developed, allowing investors to purchase the tokens and then sell them for a higher price, often by orders of magnitudes. Soon, companies would begin to focus their offerings on the investment aspect of the token as opposed to the utility aspect. As a result, whether intentional or not, security token offerings (STO) were born. While the change in focus lead to faster fundraising from a global market of cash rich investors, an investment focused offering, whether it be a physical paper contract or a tokenized one, turned a once unregulated form of raising money into a regulated one. I spoke with Gordon Einstein, US lawyer, chief legal officer of Distributed Labs, and advisor to over 20 Blockchain companies, to learn more about the different kinds of tokens and token offerings. A security, whether a blockchain-based token or not, is fundamentally an investment contract recognized by law, typically for either the preservation of capital or an expectation of return. For there to be a security contract, there must be an active counter party, such as a company issuing a stock. When people discuss security tokens, they are often referring to traditional securities like stocks and bonds, but tokenized on a blockchain for more liquidity and transparency. However, a pre-functional utility token sold to investors with the expectation of return is likely a security. Security token offerings have not had the best history. By the end of 2017, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), made it very clear that pre-functional utility tokens sold with an expectation of profit was in fact a security offering. This sparked the beginning of regulatory compliant STOs. In as early as 2018, my company Inwage worked on one of the first and largest compliant security token offerings: the $50MM Moria Token raise by GS Mining Company. However, shortly afterwards, there was an issue. Growing pressure from international securities regulators made it impossible for cryptocurrency exchanges to list security tokens, a non-issue for non-security tokens, such as traditional cryptocurrencies or utility tokens. The only secondary markets available to security token investors were decentralized and peer to peer exchanges, which are illiquid and have poor user experience. The result was a slow down in the ICO and STO markets. But the infrastructure is now in place. tZero, the most well-funded and compliant US-based digital asset and digital securities exchange and subsidiary of public company, overstock.com, initiated secondary market trading for their first security token in January. They offered tZero security tokens, which raised $134MM in their initial STO, to other accredited investors through brokerage accounts at Dinosaur Financial Group, LLC. On the first day, the exchange performed 50 transactions. Through a recent acquisition, they now have direct programmatic connections with over 150 different brokerages. ICOrating.com shows that only $650MM have been raised by compliance STOs so far (although Moria Token is not listed). However, on the issuer side, there is still a lot of interest in running an STO. About half of the companies I am personally advising are choosing to run compliant STOs as opposed to ICOs. I spoke with CEO of tZero Saum Noursalehi to learn more about the advantages of STOs. Simply put, he said that the Compared to traditional security transactions, which have little transparency and take up to 3 days to settle, the benefits of a security tokens are the ability to make markets more accessible and transparent, to enable 24/7 instant trading, to apply liquidity in markets that traditionally are illiquid, and to gain access to new types of investors. These assets can be coded for a lot more fine tuned customization. From a compliance perspective, elements such as KYC and transaction limits can be built directly into the asset. The security can also be broken down in various ways, such as having non-voting rights or paying out 10% of adjusted gross revenue to token holders as a dividend. The security could have a utility function as well. By leveraging the flexibility of security tokens, companies are finding that different components of a companys value can now become liquid, tradable and investable. A couple examples are United Cancer Centers (UCC) and the Torus project, both projects I am an advisor to. United Cancer Centers is a new network of cancer clinics that leverages new Right-To-Try legislature to give patients access to potentially life saving drugs that are still in clinical development. Kenneth Webster, Esq, the CEO of UCC explains they are pursuing an STO because We have interest in the concept of fractionating distribution based investment contracts. This allows for multiple investors to participate in a revenue share model, and the recent establishment of STO exchanges provide a platform to potentially liquidate these smart contracts in the near future. Torus is the subsidiary of Nowa Energia, a European utility grade wind farm developer with previous partnerships with Santander and AES. Torus CEO, Tomasz Drzazgowski, explains, With the application of Blockchain technology, we can expand our fundraising capabilities beyond a classic public offer within Europe to a larger group of investors, while offering revenue sharing options to token holders and potentially facilitate fast diffusion of invested funds by them Despite the current bear market within the general cryptocurrency markets, Wagner explains that the STO markets still look strong. First, he stated that dividend payments are based on USD transactions within the UCC outpatient clinic network. As a result, the value of the investment is independent from the ebb and flow of crypto markets. Second, he explained that his company provides a hedge against the recent increase in volatility in the crypto markets in general for existing crypto investors. Lastly, he revealed that investors are still very much interested in USD investments. Value from the STO comes from an ability to automate and fractionate revenue sharing contracts. Investor interest is growing in STO, as they provide the liquidity benefits of cryptocurrency without the same risk profile. Lambert Despaux, partner at Scheme investments, a Blockchain focused fund based in Malta, and ex-private equity analyst, agrees with Wagner. One of the great ideas that emerged from the ICO bubble hype is security tokens. This is because of greater liquidity for all types of assets. A great example is for assets that have high unit cost, which until then, were hard to reach. If we to invest into manhattan real estate, we would either be out of market because of high unit costs or have to invest in a Real Estate Investment Trust, which would commingle our portfolio with other assets. Digitalization of real estate is the opportunity to invest with fractional ownership. Through security tokens, we can own assets in a granular way and build portfolios that invest in very specific types of assets. This can be applied by investing into certain streets and neighborhoods or access to securities of small and medium sized businesses. This is why we intend to invest in companies building infrastructure dedicated to the issuance, digitalization and trade of security tokens. With a transparent, globally connected market enabling instantly transferrable, liquid investment contracts for issuers and investors both, we may be seeing the creation of a new standard for public security offerings. The infrastructure is now in place, but the innovation of security tokens does not stop with just liquidity and revenue distribution models. Security tokens will enable a vast new array of investment capabilities. Individual investors of certain security tokens could choose to sell off either a portion of their interest or the dividend portion of full equity in a secondary market. Brokers could bundle sets of voting security tokens and sell them into international markets. A minimum accumulation of shares could give access to various system benefits or constitute as a membership to a club. Or even decentralized autonomous organizations, companies which exist entirely within smart contracts on a blockchain, could have governance mechanisms which include human shareholders coding voting preferences directly into the contract. The opportunities are only limited by the imagination. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonathanchester/2019/02/19/will-security-token-offerings-be-the-future-of-raising-money/ |
Can Taiwan Semiconductor Find Life Beyond Smartphones? | Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (NYSE: TSM) has benefited greatly from the smartphone boom. Smartphones have evolved dramatically since the launch of the original iPhone back in 2007, and underpinning that evolution have been increases in semiconductor content inside these devices. Since TSMC manufactures chips for many Apple suppliers, as well as directly for Apple, that semiconductor content growth, coupled with the dramatic growth in smartphone unit shipments over the years, has benefited the company. TSM Revenue (TTM) Chart More TSM Revenue (TTM) data by YCharts. However, the smartphone boom is over. The smartphone market saw a second consecutive year of smartphone unit shipment declines in 2018 and is on pace for a third, according to market researchers with IDC (via EETimes). And, although TSMC has indicated that the imminent transition to 5G wireless -- something that should help boost silicon content per smartphone because of the increased complexity of 5G technology compared to 4G LTE -- should help drive long-term growth, it seems like a good bet that the smartphone market won't be enough to sustain TSMC's long-term growth ambition of compound annual revenue growth between 5% and 10%. So TSMC needs to look beyond smartphones for additional growth. The logical question that comes to mind is whether the company can find it. The answer seems to be yes. Here's why. Growth from high-performance computing Although smartphones will continue to be a huge part of TSMC's business, the company has been talking up the growth opportunities in the high-performance computing (HPC) portion of the market. The area includes products such as graphics processing units (GPUs), central processing units (CPUs) for things like PCs and data center applications, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and network switch silicon. "With the successful ramp of 7-nanometer, we are able to expand our customer product portfolio and can add applications related to PC and tablets to the HPC platform," said TSMC CEO C.C. Wei on the company's fourth-quarter 2018 earnings call. "With this inclusion, we believe HPC will become the largest contributor to our business in terms of revenue growth in the next five years." A person with code overlaid on them and binary on the wall behind the person. More Image source: Getty Images. | https://news.yahoo.com/taiwan-semiconductor-life-beyond-smartphones-151100450.html |
Will Skechers U.S.A. Continue to Surge Higher? | As of late, it has definitely been a great time to be an investor in Skechers U.S.A. As of late, it has definitely been a great time to be an investor in Skechers U.S.A., Inc. SKX. The stock has moved higher by 5.6% in the past month, while it is also above its 20 Day SMA too. This combination of strong price performance and favorable technical, could suggest that the stock may be on the right path. We certainly think that this might be the case, particularly if you consider SKXs recent earnings estimate revision activity. From this look, the companys future is quite favorable; as SKX has earned itself a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), meaning that its recent run may continue for a bit longer, and that this isnt the top for the in-focus company. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Skechers U.S.A., Inc. (SKX) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research | https://news.yahoo.com/skechers-u-continue-surge-higher-145002076.html |
Will Escalated Costs Mar B&G Foods' (BGS) Earnings in Q4? | B&G Foods, Inc. BGS is scheduled to release fourth-quarter 2018 results on Feb 26. We note that earnings of this New Jersey-based company missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the trailing four quarters, the average negative surprise being 2.1%. In the last reported quarter, the company witnessed a negative earnings surprise of 3.4%. Lets see whats in store for the company this time around. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 52 cents, reflecting an 8.8% decline from 57 cents per share registered in the year-ago quarter. Notably, the consensus mark has remained stable over the past 30 days. For revenues, the consensus estimate stands at $467.8 million, depicting a 1.2% decrease from the year-ago quarters figure. Rising freight expenses has been a worry for B&G Foods for a while. Industry-wide freight costs are expected to remain high throughout the year, which is likely to put pressure on margins. This raises concerns for the companys upcoming performance. For 2018, management had projected adjusted EBITDA to come in the range of $338-$343 million compared with $345-$355 million guided earlier. Further, the company is exposed to headwinds stemming from a high debt level, which have led to higher interest burden. This, combined with the divestiture of Pirate Brands induced management to curtail sales and earnings outlook for 2018, making us apprehensive about the quarter to be reported results. Currently, the company expects net sales of $1.71-$1.72 billion, down from $1.73-$1.75 billion projected earlier. Also, it projects adjusted earnings per share between $1.98 and $2.05 compared with $2.05-$2.15 forecasted earlier. Buyouts & Pricing Strategy on Track B&G Foods is gaining from solid performances by the acquired brands such as Back to Nature and Green Giant, which should also act as a key catalyst for sales during the impending quarter. Also, contributions from McCanns Irish oatmeal business, acquired from TreeHouse Foods, are providing a boost to B&G Foods top line. Other notable brands acquired by the company are Victoria, Cream of Wheat, Mama Mary, Specialty Brands from affiliates of American Capital, Rickland Orchards and TrueNorth. These apart, the companys strategic pricing initiatives have strengthened sales and profitability. Notably, management expects pricing initiatives to boost sales by almost $8-$10 million in the fourth quarter. Though these factors act as top-line drivers, it remains to be seen whether these can fully offset the aforementioned hurdles. Our proven model does not conclusively show that B&G Foods is likely to beat estimates this quarter. A stock needs to have both a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) and a positive Earnings ESP for this to happen. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter. Though B&G Foods has a Zacks Rank #3, its Earnings ESP of 0.00% makes surprise prediction difficult. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Stocks With Favorable Combination Here are some other companies you may want to consider as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to post earnings beat. Turning Point Brands, Inc. TPB has an Earnings ESP of +11.11% and a Zacks Rank #2. Blue Apron Holdings, Inc. APRN has an Earnings ESP of +6.34% and a Zacks Rank #3. US Foods Holding Corp. USFD has an Earnings ESP of +0.24% and a Zacks Rank #3. See how you can more effectively safeguard your retirement with a new Special Report, 4 Warning Signs Your Investment Advisor Might Be Sabotaging Your Financial Future. Click to get it free >> | https://news.yahoo.com/escalated-costs-mar-b-g-144702897.html |
Will Surmodics Continue to Surge Higher? | As of late, it has definitely been a great time to be an investor in Surmodics. As of late, it has definitely been a great time to be an investor in Surmodics, Inc. SRDX. The stock has moved higher by 87.5% in the past month, while it is also above its 20 Day SMA too. This combination of strong price performance and favorable technical, could suggest that the stock may be on the right path. We certainly think that this might be the case, particularly if you consider SRDXs recent earnings estimate revision activity. From this look, the companys future is quite favorable; as SRDX has earned itself a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), meaning that its recent run may continue for a bit longer, and that this isnt the top for the in-focus company. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Surmodics, Inc. (SRDX) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research | https://news.yahoo.com/surmodics-continue-surge-higher-144502335.html |
Are Movies Getting Better? | Enlarge this image ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images NOTE: This is an excerpt of Planet Money's newsletter. You can sign up here. It's the Oscars on Sunday, and the betting markets favor Roma for Best Picture. Set in Mexico City in the 1970s, Roma is a gorgeous and evocative film about the joys and struggles of an indigenous housemaid named Cleo. It's also a film that doesn't quite fit the typical Hollywood mold. Shot in black and white, it's a slow-burn, foreign-language flick that lacks A-list stars and a big budget. But what really sets Roma apart is it went almost directly to streaming on Netflix, which bought the rights to distribute the film. It had a short stint in theaters in order to qualify for awards. Yet, basically, it's an internet film and a perfect symbol of Hollywood's dramatic transformation over the last twenty years. It's part of a broad media revolutionin music, in books, in TV, and, yes, moviesthat economist Joel Waldfogel calls a "digital renaissance," which is also the title of his new book. 99% Amazing It's easy to boo the movie industry. It seems like every week there's another superhero movie or reboot or sequelor prequel to the sequel. But Waldfogel argues that cinema really is better than ever. Being an economist, he does it with data. His data provides evidence that the number of great films (as judged by both the majority of critics and average moviegoers) has exploded since digital technology helped reinvent the film industry in the early 2000s. Waldfogel crunched the numbers on the 100 best films every year according to the movie-rating site Rotten Tomatoes. He finds that up and down the list, movies are getting rated higher. This is especially apparent for movies at the bottom of the list. The 100th-best movie of 1998, a reboot of the movie Psycho, scored only 38%, an atrocious score. In contrast, the 100th-best movie of 2018 was 24 Frames, which scored an impressive 94%. Click here: Critical Acclaim Of Top Movies On Rotten Tomatoes (1998-2017). (Assigning the job of valuing a culture's output to a site called Rotten Tomatoes does raise some flags. We should note that Waldfogel does try to measure the quality of movies from a few other angles, too.) An Outlet Explosion In the old movie system, Waldfogel says, it was prohibitively expensive for most people outside the major studios to make quality movies. And then once they were made, the limited number of movie screens created a distribution bottleneck. Digital technology changed all that. Digital cameras and editing software made production crazy cheap. And the internet, with outlets like Amazon and YouTube, created an unlimited number of "theaters." As a result, "We've seen just an explosion in the number of movies made," says Waldfogel. If you look at features alone (and not documentaries), there are now at least three times more movies being made every year than there were in 2000. Click here: Growth of U.S.-Origin Movies "Nobody Knows Anything" The famous screenwriter William Goldman had a saying about the ability of the movie studios to predict what would be a critical or commercial success: "Nobody knows anything." Waldfogel calls this "Goldman's Law," and he thinks it's important in understanding why opening the floodgates of new content hasn't left us only with a sea of duds. Yes, the tripling of annual cinema output has brought us more awful movies like Father Of The Year, Future World, and Speed Kills, which all got a whopping 0% on Rotten Tomatoes this year. But the lower cost of making and distributing films with digital technology has also given the industry the ability to take more shots at greatness and reach niche audiences that they couldn't profitably reach before. Most importantly, digital filmmaking has lowered barriers to entry and given birth to a growing "minor league" of indie filmmakers, who can either go it alone with cheap digital production and distribution or prove themselves to the big studios as worthy of investment down the road. The result, Waldfogel argues, is many more cinematic gems. Also, by the way, our money's on Roma. Well, it looks even better in your inbox! You can sign up here. | https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2019/02/19/695758291/are-movies-getting-better?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=storiesfromnpr |
Is President Trump's emergency declaration for a border wall legal? | CLOSE During a press conference in the Rose Garden, President Trump admitted that he didn't need to declare a national emergency to fund his border wall, but that he did it so he could "get it done faster." USA TODAY The President has now declared a national emergency along the southwestern border and claims that this will enable him to obtain funding for his long-promised border wall. His opponents claim that the declaration is illegal, and have threatened litigation. The only thing that is certain about the declaration is that everything is uncertain. I will now discuss the two basic questions that are presented by the declaration. Here we start off with some basic propositions: First, the Constitution makes no provision for a national emergency and does not recognize anything like emergency powers. Second, only Congress can appropriate federal funds. Third, with few exceptions, the President can only act with Congressional authorization, and any presidential action can be challenged as not being authorized by applicable legislation. A number of laws do authorize the President to take certain actions by declaring a national emergency. The National Emergencies Act of 1976, as amended in 1985, governs the Presidents declaration of a national emergency. The President must specify the law under which he proposes to act, and must comply with the provisions of that law. Congress has 18 days to adopt a joint resolution to terminate the declaration. But the joint resolution is subject to a presidential veto, which can only be overturned by a two-thirds vote of both houses. This is highly unlikely. President Donald Trump speaks during an event in the Rose Garden at the White House to declare a national emergency in order to build a wall along the southern border, Friday, Feb. 15, 2019, in Washington. (Photo11: Evan Vucci, AP) One of the laws on which the President is relying is a law dealing with military construction. Under this law (33 U.S.C. sec. 2293), the President may terminate or defer a military construction project that he deems not essential to the national defense, and apply the resources for that project to construct another project that he considers essential to the national defense. More: Michigan, 15 other states sue Trump over national emergency declaration, border wall Mike Thompson: Trump declares a national emergency on the border The President is also relying on other laws that he claims authorize the reprogramming of funds for the wall. In the event of a viable legal challenge to the transfers of funds, the courts will have to determine whether the transfer is authorized by the laws on which the President relies. The government will argue that the courts should give broad deference to the Presidents determination that there is a national emergency and his determination as to what is and what is not essential to the national defense. The challengers will argue that such deference is not appropriate to the transfer of funds that have already been appropriated for other purposes and that the courts should carefully scrutinize the facts on which the President relies to support his determination. It is completely speculative, of course, as to which approach the courts will take. Talk of lawsuits challenging the Presidents declaration must take into account the requirements of standing. Media commentary to the contrary, a viable lawsuit challenging the Presidents declaration is far from a sure thing. At least for now. Robert Sedler, constitutional law professor at Wayne State University (Photo11: Wayne State University) The constitutional jurisdiction of the federal courts is limited to cases and controversies, which means that the courts can only hear cases involving parties with adverse legal interests. In order to bring a federal court suit, the plaintiff must have standing, which requires that the plaintiff must have suffered significant personal harm from the challenged action. The Supreme Court has held that individual senators and representative do not have standing to challenge actions of the President. The court has indicated, though, that if one house of Congress authorizes the suit, that may be sufficient to confer standing. However, the court has also held that unless a conflict between Congress and the President affects the rights of third parties which it usually doesnt it will invoke the political question doctrine and refuse to hear the case. Rather, the court has said that the President and Congress should resolve the conflict as equals. A state or a city in the path of the proposed border wall would have standing to challenge the construction of the wall if, and only if it could show that the construction of the wall could cause some injury to the city or state. Perhaps a city like El Paso, which is a major crossing point between the U.S. and Mexico, could meet this test, but perhaps not. One clear example of a person who would have standing is a landowner whose land would be taken by the government for construction of the wall. But this would be some time in the future. In the months ahead, there will be a plethora of commentary about the Presidents declaration of a national emergency to obtain funding for his long-promised border wall. Ultimately, the questions we examined here will be resolved within the framework of the American constitutional and judicial system. Robert A. Sedler is a constitutional law professor at Wayne State University. Read or Share this story: https://www.freep.com/story/opinion/contributors/2019/02/19/president-trumps-emergency-declaration-border-wall-legal/2913883002/ | https://www.freep.com/story/opinion/contributors/2019/02/19/president-trumps-emergency-declaration-border-wall-legal/2913883002/ |
Is the Insect Apocalypse Really Upon Us? | Its as if our global climate dataset only involved 73 weather stations, mostly in Europe and the United States, active over different historical time windows, explained Alex Wild, from the University of Texas at Austin, on Twitter. Imagine that only some of those stations measured temperature. Others, only humidity. Others, only wind direction. Trying to cobble those sparse, disparate points into something resembling a picture of global trends is ambitious, to say the least. For those reasons, its hard to take the widely quoted numbers from Snchez-Bayo and Wyckhuyss review as gospel. They say that 41 percent of insect species are declining and that global numbers are falling by 2.5 percent a year, but theyre trying to quantify things that we really cant quantify at this point, says Michelle Trautwein from the California Academy of Sciences. I understand the desire to put numbers to these things to facilitate the conversation, but I would say all of those are built on mountains of unknown facts. Still, our approach shouldnt be to downplay these findings to console ourselves, Trautwein adds. I dont see real danger in overstating the possible severity of insect decline, but there is real danger in underestimating how bad things really are. These studies arent perfect, but wed be wise to heed this warning now instead of waiting for cleaner studies. After all, the factors that are probably killing off insects in Europe and North America, such as the transformation of wild spaces into agricultural land, are global problems. I dont see how those drivers would have a different outcome in a different area, whether we know the fauna there well or not, says Jennifer Zaspel from the Milwaukee Public Museum. Insects, though diverse, are also particularly vulnerable to such changes because many of them are so specialized, says May Berenbaum from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Theres a fly that lives in the gills of a crab on one Caribbean island, she says. Thats the kind of danger that insects face. Very few of them can opportunistically exploit a broad diversity of habitats and supplies. (That said, Snchez-Bayo and Wyckhuys concluded that several once-common generalist species are declining, too.) The loss of even a small percent of insects might also be disproportionately consequential. They sit at the base of the food web; if they go down, so will many birds, bats, spiders, and other predators. They aerate soils, pollinate plants, and remove dung and cadavers; if they disappear, entire landscapes will change. Given these risks, do we wait to have definitive evidence that species are disappearing before we do something? Berenbaum asks. Doing something is hard, though, because insect declines have so many factors, and most studies struggle to tease them apart. In their review, Snchez-Bayo and Wyckhuys point the finger at habitat loss above all else, followed by pesticides and other pollutants, introduced species, and climate change, in that order. If it was one thing, wed know what to do, says Moreau from Cornell. Instead, we are stuck trying to tend to 1 million smaller cuts. | https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/02/insect-apocalypse-really-upon-us/583018/?utm_source=feed |
Should every worker have a 75-minute lunch break? | Schoolchildren should have at least 75 minutes of breaktime every day, say a group of MPs. Most schools, according to a report by the all-party parliamentary group on a fit and healthy childhood, have cut lunch and breaktimes, which has a negative impact on pupils concentration, health and social skills. The amount of time people take as breaks during the working day seems to be going down. If we do have some time off, it is for lunch. But that is often spent eating a sandwich at our desk, catching up on work. If we are lucky, we get a working lunch an unholy mashup of a meeting and a lunch hour. But research shows that not taking time off during the day is a big mistake. People who have proper breaks are more productive, less stressed, less likely to burn out and sleep better. Another major benefit of taking a break is that it gives staff an opportunity to build up informal social networks. One study found that employees of a bank who took breaks together tended to be more productive. Even taking a short break is good for us. An investigation of people working at computers found that taking a break of a few minutes every 20 or 40 minutes significantly reduced strains and pains in their neck and shoulders. We are not productive for eight hours a day. A recent analysis of more than 2 million users of a task-management software found that people tend to be very productive in the morning and peak at 11am. It also noticed that productivity tapered off rapidly after about 4pm. Breaks are a vital part of a productive working day, so maybe we should follow schoolkids and ensure we take a set amount of time off. But what is most important is that those breaks are genuine: that we either chat to colleagues or do something relaxing, such as taking a nap. If we dont, it is likely that we will end up taking clandestine social media breaks, which do nothing to refresh and relax us. | https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/shortcuts/2019/feb/19/should-every-worker-have-75-minute-lunch-break |
Is it too late for mom-and-pop operators to get into cannabis? | An oft-told story from the pioneering days in the cannabis industry involves Kayvan Khalatbari and a business partner founding their medical cannabis dispensary in Denver with $4,000 and half a pound of marijuana. Khalatbaris dispensary, Denver Relief, went on to become one of the countrys most well-known dispensaries. His experience wasnt unique either. Stories like his abound from the industrys early days, when all an ambitious entrepreneur needed was a small amount of starting capital and some grit to get their business off the ground. However, the barriers to entry in todays cannabis markets far exceed what most mom-and-pop cannabis operations would be prepared and capitalized to undertake. In todays world, Khalatbaris $4,000 wouldnt even cover the necessary license-application fees in any market let alone be enough to hire the army of attorneys and lobbyists and architects and security experts and operational advisors necessary to license, plan, build and operate a store. Nor would it be enough to cover the one to three years of carrying costs for operating in slow-growing markets or in highly-competitive markets with razor-thin margins. Most of the answer comes down to finding access to capital that can get an operator over the initial hurdles, get a store stood up, and hopefully thrive. Just like any other entrepreneur would do. But in the cannabis industry, banks wont lend money, institutional capital is still on the sidelines, and angel investors are more likely to limit their cannabis investments to more experienced operators who carry less risk of operational failure. As I outlined in a previous column, without traditional lending sources, the difficulty in accessing capital can hamstring the local entrepreneurs who find themselves competing against the better capitalized Multi-State Operators, or MSOs. For those who do manage to find funding sources, they are often at a competitive disadvantage in their operations, since they find themselves competing with the MSOs, which by now can draw on a deep well of operating experience and talent. It is becoming the cannabis equivalent of an independent operator opening Bettys Burger Joint in a crowded market where they must compete with Five Guys, Shake Shack, In-N-Out Burger, and McDonalds. However, there is one reliable source of support in the cannabis industry: those same MSOs, which have large valuations, ample balance sheets, and are looking for opportunities to proliferate their brands in nascent markets and demonstrate growth to their investors. Partnering with MSOs provides several benefits for the moms-and-pops of the cannabis world. First, they provide access to immediate capital for the $200,000-$1,500,000 of start-up and build-out costs a dispensary would need to get started in most significant markets. They provide access to the capital required to obtain and carry the real estate for the operations anywhere from monthly rent (that is always more than market rate due to the use) to a multi-million-dollar purchase; again, banks are not offering mortgages for sites housing cannabis operations. Next, the MSOs provide battle-tested operating platforms that allow entrepreneurial partners to benefit from the years of research and development that have gone into things like securing zoning permits, designing security systems, refining point-of-sale systems, developing HR policies, getting hiring right, securing payroll services, and the like. Through management-services agreements with MSOs, local entrepreneurs also benefit economically from the economies of scale that come from the MSOs buying power for shared services among the operations they support. MSOs also offer branding and marketing support that position an operation to take advantage of a recognized brands momentum and deploy it in a new market such that they can successfully compete against other stores that potentially acquired marketing and branding acumen through their own MSO relationships. Weve seen this on the product marketing side for quite some time as producers on the East Coast license successful brands from the West Coast to bring them to new markets. In many cases in our own company, the leaders of the companies we are supporting also contribute their skills and expertise as part of a larger operational leadership team, helping to grow operations across a larger portfolio of peer dispensaries. This isnt necessarily the right path for every cannabis entrepreneur, but for those who are interested in exchanging some economics to gain support on the operations side, while also maintaining leadership of the growth of their operations, partnering with MSOs can be a good fit. It's worth discussing, however, that not all regulators see it that way. For example, Massachusetts has essentially closed the door on any MSO seeking to provide management support to more than three operations. Intended to limit the stress on local entrepreneurs from well-resourced MSOs, this policy does a tremendous disservice to the very people the Massachusetts regulators are trying to help because it takes away what is by far the most realistic source of financial and operational support for these applicants and makes it much harder for them to succeed. This especially impacts social equity and economic empowerment applicants who are less likely to have access to their own network of high-net-worth friends and family or angel investors. We need to rethink what success for smaller mom-and-pop businesses means at this stage in the industry. If our definition of success for local operators is just that theyre able to operate a business that can successfully compete against the major players in the industry, that will be a challenging benchmark to meet. On the other hand, if our definition of success is that these entrepreneurs are able to meaningfully participate in the growing cannabis market and create legitimate wealth for themselves upon exit, then we should allow them to participate in any way they determine is best for them, whether that means going it alone, sharing in the upside through management or licensing agreements, or even selling portions of the license before they get operational. Many retail licenses in limited-license states will sell for between $1 million and $5 million before a single dollar is spent on development or build-out costs. That kind of money is life changing. None of this is to argue that states should not create avenues for locals, mom-and-pop operators, and social equity applicants to win and hold licenses. In fact, I would argue strongly that they should, as they ensure less capitalized and underrepresented populations can gain a meaningful ownership stake in the industry, no matter the path they take to operate their licenses. But given the realities of the cannabis business landscape today, especially the lack of access to institutional capital and extreme difficulty in raising money from angel and individual investors, we need to rethink how we define success for smaller operators in the space. If our only definition of success is for a local operator to successfully compete against the larger multi-state companies, we are setting ourselves, and these operators, up for failure. In the current regulatory climate, we must expand our definition of success to include having created an avenue for these operators to meaningfully participate in the industry, whether by hitching their wagon to a larger player and reaping the upside rewards, or becoming multi-millionaires through an exit. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/kriskrane/2019/02/19/is-it-too-late-for-mom-and-pop-operators-to-get-into-cannabis/ |
Could Manny Pacquiao Vs. Errol Spence Jr. Be Headed To The Philippines? | Today marks one month since Manny Pacquiao defeated Adrien Broner in Las Vegas to retain his WBA regular welterweight title. Pacquiao looked sharp in his decisive victory over Broner who has captured numerous world championships in four different weight divisions. With many important fights taking place right now in the welterweight division, current IBF welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. didn't hesitate to express his desire to fight Pacquiao when recently asked. In a recent video posted on Fight Hub TV, Spence Jr. said, "I'll fight Manny Pacquiao anywhere, definitely in the Philippines or anywhere else, but right now, I'm worried about Mikey Garcia, after that, you can ask me any questions about Pacquiao." It's just under a month to go before Spence Jr. squares off against Mikey Garcia on March 16 in Arlington, Texas, but yet the one name in the welterweight division that fans and fighters can't stop talking about is Manny Pacquiao. With a Floyd Mayweather Jr. rematch all but a fantasy, Pacquiao is going to have to start to make some real decisions very quickly as to who he will face next. At 40 years old, time is not on Pacquiao's side. The current champion and Filipino senator who is the only fighter in boxing history to capture world titles in eight different weight divisions is in the Philippines waiting to map out his next move. With Mayweather Jr. off the radar and Terence Crawford, not an option, we keep revisiting the potential opponents for Pacquiao. With the understanding that we're working within the Premier Boxing Champions stable of fighters, the options are limited. Pacquiao already defeated Broner and Jessie Vargas. Shawn Porter is an option, but it seems that with Mayweather Jr. off the table, it might come down to the winner of Spence Jr. vs. Garcia. The very fact that Spence Jr. keeps mentioning Pacquiao in interviews and even eluded to the fact that he would even fight him in the Philippines could mean that the very topic has come up. Sure it is. Most likely not. So this leaves us back at square one. Pacquiao's silence has been deafening since the Broner fight. It's almost as if he was asked (told) not to speak about his next move publicly. Time is not Pacquiao's friend at the moment. It leads me to believe one thing. Spence Jr. could be the front runner to face Pacquiao if he gets past Garcia. In a recent interview, while shopping last week during the Gucci drama, Floyd Mayweather Jr. was asked if Pacquiao was going to get the rematch. Mayweather Jr. responded, "I'm not even here to talk about boxing right now." In the same breath, Mayweather Jr. went on to discuss an exhibition he's going to potentially participate in during the summer. If Mayweather Jr. were to fight in July, even an exhibition, it's highly unlikely we're going to see a Mayweather Jr. vs. Pacquiao 2. With as vocal as Spence Jr. has been about Pacquiao and the fact that we haven't even received a hint from Pacquiao regarding his next fight, make what you will out of all of this, but my gut feeling is that it's very possible that the outcome of the Spence Jr. vs. Garcia fight could be the determining factor as to who Pacquiao will face next. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterkahn/2019/02/19/manny-pacquiao-errol-spence-jr-fight-philippines/ |
Which Segments Will Drive Microsoft's Revenue Growth Through 2020? | Microsofts increasingly accommodating stance towards open source to drive growth in its cloud business has opened up several opportunities for the company. While we expect the Intelligent Cloud and More Personal Computing segments to register strong growth, the Productivity and Business Processes division is likely to be the companys fastest-growing segment. We have a price estimate of $104 per share for Microsoft, which is about in line with the current market price. Our interactive dashboard on Microsofts Price Estimate outlines our forecasts and estimates for the company. You can modify any of the key drivers to visualize the impact of changes on its valuation, and see all of our Technology company data here. Segment Overviews Microsofts Azure competes with AWS and Google Cloud in the cloud services space. While the company is a clear number two behind AWS, the movement of budgets towards edge computing and hybrid cloud environments could potentially cool down the scorching pace of cloud growth over the last few years. Microsofts own quarterly growth rates for Azure have declined from 98% a year back to 76% in the last quarter, though a larger base factor certainly contributes to that as well. In addition to global macro environment changes, the U.S.-China trade dispute has taken a toll on hardware OEMs, including chip and PC manufacturers. This had resulted in softening growth for the companys More Personal Computing segment. Going forward, while Windows refresh cycles are likely to keep the growth healthy, the excess inventory situation at OEMs may take another few quarters to clear out before becoming a tailwind for the segments growth. The resilience in Productivity and Business Processes is predicated on the cloud architecture on which Office 365 is delivered across commercial and consumer categories. Dynamics 365 also continues to see strong growth driven by IoT projects on Azure. As highlighted above, the companys single cloud backbone is helping drive application growth, with Office and Dynamics likely to continue witnessing strong growth due to their relative lack of dependence on hardware. LinkedIn which is part of Productivity and Business Processes has a strong position in the professional social networking space, where feed engagement is becoming a tool to supplement resumes in showcasing ones skills. Overall, due to the aforementioned trends, we expect Productivity and Business Processes to be Microsofts biggest value driver over the coming two years. Embed them in your own posts using the Trefis WordPress Plugin. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2019/02/19/which-segments-will-drive-microsofts-revenue-growth-through-2020/ |
Why Do Only Eight Percent Of Cancer Patients In The U.S. Participate In Clinical Trials? | Most cancer clinical trials don't meet their enrollment targets and it has been previously thought that patient reluctance was behind this. Now a new study published today in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, led by researchers from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle challenges that by suggesting that other factors are primarily responsible. "Patients are often fearful of participating in clinical trials, and many consider trial participation as appropriate only for those with no other choices. This is unfortunate since patients receive excellent cancer care in trials," said Dr. Joseph Unger, a health services researcher and biostatistician who led the study. Previous research led by Unger looked at these patient reasons for reluctance, finding some of the most common reasons for patient rejection of clinical trials were dislike of being randomized onto a particular arm of a clinical trial, unease with the trial protocol or apprehension about treatment side effects. However, the new study suggests that patient choice is not as responsible for the low rate of participation in trials as previously thought. The research also involving researchers from Columbia University and the American Cancer Society looked at 13 studies involving almost 9,000 cancer patients and found that over half of patients didn't have a trial available to them at their institution. Almost a quarter were ultimately deemed ineligible for a trial they applied for, but when patients were offered the chance to participate in a clinical trial, about half did. These findings illustrate the need to re-examine the way we think about patient participation in clinical trials. Most of the time its not up to the patient. Instead, structural and clinical barriers are the reasons more than 3 out of 4 patients do not participate in trials," said Unger. The overall trial participation rate for the studies analyzed by Unger and team was 8 percent, notably higher than the typically cited rates of 2 to 3 percent. Unger indicated that this is because about twice as many patients participate in pharmaceutical company sponsored trials than government sponsored trials, a factor which is often overlooked. "There is one large difference between pharma-led and government-sponsored trials. Pharmaceutical companies provide substantially more resources to reimburse cancer centers for patient enrollments to their trials. In contrast, government sponsored trials have limited per-capital reimbursement rates that have not changed substantially over time," said Unger. "Patients can travel to other centers and many do, but many more are hindered by the constraints of travel, having to take time off work, family constraints, and the costs of having to both travel to another location and potentially stay there for long periods to receive their care," said Unger, also mentioning that people with greater financial means are more likely to be able to do this than people less financially secure. Before centers can conduct clinical trials there are many requirements for them to satisfy in terms of staff training, expertise and infrastructure. This means that most clinical trials are often conducted at big treatment centers, sometimes leaving patients who live far away from these centers with difficult choices. Some progress is being made with several schemes in the U.S. designed to make clinical trials more accessible for those who live further away from big centers, but currently the majority of trials are run at big centers often in the middle of big cities. Doctors and clinical trial coordinators are constantly trying to find more methods to increase patient enrollment in clinical trials. One piece published here on Forbes Health last week, suggested that social media could be used to facilitate greater involvement of patients in trials. Unger is positive about the possibilities that this approach opens up. "For many patients, simply accessing a clinical trial is problematic, and using social networks and social media could be one valuable approach to shrinking the divide between patients and access to trials. The stories about patients reaching out to their physicians via social media are emblematic of the idea that patients who understand the benefits of trial participation are much more willing to participate in trials than conventional wisdom suggests," said Unger. Clinical trials missing their recruitment targets not only disadvantages patients who could benefit from access to the newest therapies, but also slows down the progress of cancer research. Trials that miss or are slow in getting to their recruitment targets often take longer to complete and make it more difficult for researchers to draw definitive conclusions about how the new treatment has fared. "Clinical trials provide protocol directed, guideline-based, best practice care, performed by teams of trained professionals dedicated to the patients care. Moreover, clinical trials offer access to the newest available treatments. So for many patients, participation in a clinical trial can actually represent a desirable choice for the cancer care," said Unger. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/victoriaforster/2019/02/19/why-do-only-eight-percent-of-cancer-patients-in-the-u-s-participate-in-clinical-trials/ |
Have Many B2B Companies Missed The Customer Experience Revolution? | The customer experience in recent years has become increasingly complex. Despite this, however, a couple of simple things remain true: A business ability to retain customers is as important, if not more important, than its ability to acquire new customers, particularly when establishing a foundation for sustainable growth and long term success; and If the people and functions within business do not work closely and well together then they are unlikely to be able to deliver a great and consistent customer experience. This sounds simple enough and many organizations get this. But, there is evidence that many B2B companies have still not grasped these fundamentals and the role they play in delivering a well-designed, consistent and connected customer experience. CSO Insights, the research division of Miller Heiman Group, in its recently released 2018-19 Annual Sales Performance Study (Selling in the Age of Ceaseless Change) found that nearly 60% of sales leaders and organizations are still focused on acquiring new customers despite the fact that revenue from new customers accounts for just under 30% of total revenue. In addition, they also found that only 34% of organizations said that their sales and marketing teams had a jointly agreed process for how they would work together to nurture leads and only 30% said that their marketing and sales teams had a common lead definition. Theresa O'Neil, VP of Marketing at Showpad, believes that one of the main reasons that many B2B organizations are lagging behind is that sales leaders are stuck on the won and done strategy because thats how theyre incentivized and in turn, its how they incentivize their teams. As a result, if B2B organizations want to deliver a better customer experience then they are going to need to align their incentives and compensation plans with business objectives that reflect not only customer acquisition but also satisfaction and retention. Otherwise, as ONeil notes, change is unlikely to stick. Moreover, in terms of driving more coordination and collaboration between marketing and sales departments, Seleste Lunsford, Chief Research Officer of CSO Insights, suggests that while the disconnect between marketing and sales is an age-old problem it is one that has gotten worse in recent years as both these functions have become much more operationally focused implementing new processes, metrics and technology platforms to drive internal efficiency and effectiveness. To combat this Lunsford suggests that organizations should Align to the external, not the internal meaning that organizations should align sales and marketing to the customers journey and not only to internal efficiency and performance metrics. Only by doing so will they give themselves a chance of eliminating any process mis-alignment, lack of coordination, cooperation or understanding. The CSO Insights concludes with the finding that the top performing organizations are those that have customer centricity at their heart, excel at sharing insights and educating their customers and have aligned their sales and marketing processes closely to their customers journey. However, these results show that many B2B organizations still have a lot of work to do. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/adrianswinscoe/2019/02/19/have-many-b2b-companies-missed-the-customer-experience-revolution/ |
How Much Does It Cost to Transfer Money Between Banks? | Moving money from account to account is a key part of managing your finances. You can't afford to pay high fees just to get access to your own money. Two banks stand next to each other; two arrows connect them. More Image source: Getty Images. Assembling a set of bank accounts to meet all of your needs can get complicated. At the simplest level, a good checking account gives you instant access to your money through check-writing, debit card transactions, online bill payment, or good old-fashioned in-person withdrawals from your bank's branch locations. A savings account doesn't offer check-writing, but it does give you other ways to get your money quickly, and it will typically pay a healthy interest rate to boot. For many, a money market account is the best of both worlds, including both higher interest rates and limited check-writing privileges. Sometimes, you'll find that the best accounts for each purpose won't necessarily be at the same banking institution. In that case, you'll need to make transfers of that money between banks in order to make sure the right accounts have the right amounts to take care of your financial needs. If you have to pay a lot in order to move money between your accounts at different banks, then it can ruin what would otherwise be a good strategy. Below, we'll take a look at various methods you can use to transfer money between banks and what costs are reasonable to expect for each of them. The four ways to transfer money between banks It used to be that the simplest way to move money between banks would've been to make a withdrawal at one branch and physically take the cash or a bank check to a branch of the other bank. However, with the advent of online banking, it's rare that you'd ever have to resort to using that tactic -- even if it might still remain an option in some cases. Instead, there are four primary ways that most people use to move money from one bank to another: Writing a check on an account at one bank and depositing it at the other bank. Arranging for an electronic funds transfer using the Automated Clearing House network. Having your bank send a wire transfer. Using an app that specializes in person-to-person money transfers. We'll look at each of these in turn below. Sending a check Obviously, sending a check is a simple way to move money from one bank to another. All you have to do is write the check, mail it to the other bank, and include instructions to deposit the check in the appropriate account. Most banks won't charge a thing for this, so you'll only have to bear the cost of a postage stamp to handle the mailing. There are several downsides, though. First, it can take several days for a check to make its way through the mail. Even once your bank receives the check, it'll take more time before the deposit is completed and the funds clear. In addition, this method only works if you have a checking account at the bank from which you want to send funds. If you're trying to get money back from a savings account to a checking account at another bank, then you'll be out of luck using this strategy. Doing an ACH transfer The most common way of moving money between banks is through electronic funds transfers over ACH. This process is relatively quick, usually taking around one to three business days for money to appear in the correct account. Many banks offer the service as a free benefit for accounts. In some cases, a bank will offer an expedited service at a higher cost, and a few banks actually charge for outgoing transfers regardless of timing. | https://news.yahoo.com/much-does-cost-transfer-money-163000286.html |
What's in Store for STORE Capital's (STOR) Earnings in Q4? | STORE Capital Corporation STOR is set to report fourth-quarter 2018 results before the market opens on Feb 21. Both its revenues and funds from operations (FFO) are anticipated to reflect year-over-year growth. In the last reported quarter, this Scottsdale, AZ-based net-lease REIT delivered a positive surprise of 2.17% with respect to FFO per share. The company has a decent surprise history. It surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, average positive surprise being 2.91%. The graph below depicts the surprise history of the company: STORE Capital Corporation Price and EPS Surprise STORE Capital Corporation Price and EPS Surprise | STORE Capital Corporation Quote STORE Capital has guided for its 2018 adjusted FFO per share within the $1.81-$1.84 range. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the same is currently pinned at $1.83. Lets see how things have shaped up for this announcement. Factors to Consider STORE Capital, which is engaged in the acquisition, investment and management of Single Tenant Operational Real Estate, has emerged as one of the fastest growing net-lease REITs. The company has ownership of a large, well-diversified portfolio, comprising investments in more than 2,000 property locations, the bulk of which are profit centers. STORE Capitals tenant roster includes companies from retail, service and manufacturing sectors. Its portfolio estates include restaurants, furniture stores, early childhood education centers, movie theaters and health clubs, as well as sporting goods stores. The company enjoys broad-based demand for its real estate capital solutions. On the acquisition front, the company is active and its fourth-quarter results are likely to mirror benefits from the increase in the size of the real estate investment portfolio. Increase in property locations and customer base are likely to drive its top-line growth. Further, with active portfolio management, the company is likely to maintain a solid portfolio with low delinquencies and vacancies in the fourth quarter. It also maintains adequate financial flexibility, enjoying access to the equity and debt markets. Amid these, the companys fourth-quarter revenues are pinned at $134.2 million, indicating a 17.9% increase from the prior-year quarter. Moreover, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for FFO per share for the quarter under review is 47 cents, reflecting 9.3% year-over-year growth. However, declining mall traffic, store closures and retailers bankruptcies have made the retail real estate market turbulent. In fact, there is stiff competition from alternate channels of purchasing goods and services, including online-service providers and retailers. Therefore, businesses of the companys tenants may be affected, which, in turn, have the capability to impact STORE Capitals business as it leases real estate to service and retail businesses. Also, STORE Capitals activities during the quarter were insufficient to secure analyst confidence. Consequently, the consensus estimate for fourth-quarter FFO per share remained unrevised at 47 cents in a months time. Here is what our quantitative model predicts: STORE Capital does not have the right combination of two key ingredients a positive Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or higher for increasing the odds of an earnings beat. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter. Earnings ESP: The Earnings ESP for STORE Capital is 0.00%. Zacks Rank: STORE Capital has a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy), which increases the predictive power of ESP. However, we also need a positive ESP to be confident of a positive surprise. Stocks That Warrant a Look Here are a few stocks in the REIT sector that you may want to consider, as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to report a positive surprise this quarter: Hersha Hospitality Trust HT, scheduled to release earnings on Feb 25, has an Earnings ESP of +3.81% and carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Americold Realty Trust COLD, slated to release fourth-quarter results on Feb 21, has an Earnings ESP of +12.94% and holds a Zacks Rank of 3. American Tower Corporation AMT, set to release earnings on Feb 27, has an Earnings ESP of +0.29% and carries a Zacks Rank of 3. Note: Anything related to earnings presented in this write-up represents funds from operations (FFO) a widely used metric to gauge the performance of REITs. See how you can more effectively safeguard your retirement with a new Special Report, 4 Warning Signs Your Investment Advisor Might Be Sabotaging Your Financial Future. Click to get it free >> | https://news.yahoo.com/whats-store-store-capitals-stor-161704402.html |
What is sepsis? | Getty Images Sepsis is a condition when the body's immune system - which is meant to fight against disease and infection - starts to attack the body's own organs. The NHS explains: "Sepsis can be triggered by an infection in any part of the body. The most common sites of infection leading to sepsis are the lungs, urinary tract, tummy (abdomen) and pelvis." It can be difficult to diagnose as the symptoms can at first appear to be flu, gastroenteritis or a chest infection. This is a problem because it's really important to diagnose sepsis as early as possible and for the patient to start taking antibiotics. Now, a new test could help to tackle this issue. A new test for quicker diagnosis of sepsis has been developed by researchers at the University of Strathclyde. A device used in the new low-cost test examines the patient's blood and is able to give a result in two-and-a-half minutes. More health news Great white sharks could help scientists discover a cure for cancer At the moment, it can be tricky to diagnose the condition, but the new test would enable doctors and nurses to quickly test for the condition themselves - at a patient's bedside in hospital, in A&E departments or at doctors' surgeries, for example. Not only that, but at the moment blood tests to work out exactly the right antibiotic for the patient can take three days, so this new test could prove revolutionary, as it will provide this information much quicker. It can also be used to monitor sepsis levels, so doctors can work out the right treatment for those who are ill. University of Strathclyde A close-up of the new test device Researchers say it is hoped that it will be possible to use this test for everyday diagnoses in three to five years. The new device tests the blood to see if a protein called interleukin-6 (IL-6) is present. Dr Damion Corrigan, who was part of the team that developed the new test, said that IL-6 is one of the best markers of the condition. It will be able to quickly diagnose the condition and, should this be positive, recommend the right antibiotic for patients to take. Co-author of the project Dr David Alcorn explains: "The implications for this are massive, and the ability to give the right antibiotic at the right time to the right patient is extraordinary. "I can definitely see this having a clear use in hospitals, not only in this country, but all round the world." | https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/47294451 |
Does every box of eggs contain a potential chick? | Fourteen-year-old William Atkins has put the cat among the pigeons or perhaps the fox among the ducklings. He wanted to know if it was possible to hatch a supermarket egg, so he bought an incubator on eBay for 40 and half a dozen free-range duck eggs from Waitrose. Three days later, when he shone a torch on to one of the eggs, he was amazed to see a beating heart; three weeks later the egg started to rock; and then, 28 days on from the start of his experiment, a duckling hatched. This is very nice news for William and Jeremy, the duckling, but a little worrying for the egg industry. People have a dual relationship with eggs, says Mark Diacono, the author of The Chicken & Eggs River Cottage Handbook. They love to eat them, but dont want to think too hard about what they actually are. Which, he says, is part of the female reproductive cycle. The great majority of eggs, whether from ducks or chickens, will not be fertilised. You are not going to open a box of eggs, crack them and a chick will fall out, says Diacono, reassuringly. Commercial egg producers kill off male chicks at birth a subject they prefer not to talk about to try to ensure their flocks are female-only. The odd rogue male may, however, get through, which is what appears to have happened in this case. Clarence Court, the company that produced Williams duck eggs, is unsure how it happened, suggesting that either a male was accidentally allowed to enter the flock by their sexing experts or a wild drake managed to sneak in. Producers of hens eggs are, for obvious reasons, desperate to quash the suggestion that your boiled egg is a potential chick. In commercial egg production, males and females are separated at around a day old and are kept separately, says Lucy Egerton, a British Egg Industry Council spokeswoman. We believe in commercial egg production the sexing process is accurate. We dont think this could happen in a commercial laying flock, though it could happen in a backyard flock. Margaret Manchester, the managing director of Durham Hens, which supplies hens to the hobbyist market, points out that even a fertilised egg is not a living creature. There is no embryo until heat is applied either through the hen sitting on the egg or by putting it in an incubator. She says a fertilised egg doesnt taste any different and wont harm you. Indeed, in the days when most eggs came from farms that kept cockerels, almost all eggs would have been fertilised. She says you can spot a fertilised egg by looking at the yolk: in place of a usual small white spot, you will see a ring. But it is a myth that the presence of blood spots is a sign that the egg is fertilised. Blood spots are just something that can happen in the egg-laying process, she says. While all this is about potential rather than reality, as Diacono says, it does remind us that eggs have the capacity for life. That doesnt mean we should all become vegans, he says, but it does encourage us to reassess our relationship with food. Everyone has to draw the line on what they will and wont eat, says Diacono. | https://www.theguardian.com/food/shortcuts/2019/feb/19/does-every-box-eggs-contain-potential-chick |
What are Brexit contingency plans for pharmaceutical industry? | With fears over manufacturing costs and future investment, heres what firms are doing Brexit poses a big threat to pharmaceutical research and manufacturing in the UK, the industry has said, potentially driving up manufacturing costs and deterring future investment. AstraZeneca and other companies have frozen all manufacturing investments. Britains second-biggest drugmaker decided to halt further investments at its Macclesfield site in the summer of 2017. Its chairman, Leif Johansson, has said the UK needs to make sure it does not become an isolated island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. David Jefferys, a senior executive at the European arm of the Japanese company Eisai, which makes treatments for Alzheimers disease, epilepsy and breast cancer, told the Guardian: Nobody likes uncertainty. We are not making any new investments in the UK until there is clarity. Other major drugmakers, such as Novartis and the Viagra maker Pfizer, have announced plans to close UK manufacturing or packaging sites by 2020. Both decisions were made after the June 2016 referendum but the companies said they were not linked to Brexit. Industry executives worry about their post-Brexit ability to bring highly skilled scientists to the UK, while researchers are concerned about being frozen out of EU-funded research collaborations. A no-deal Brexit would almost halve the UKs funding from the EUs Horizon 2020 programmme a 70bn pot aimed at cutting-edge science a report from the House of Lords said last week. Britain has also lost the European Medicines Agency (EMA), which completed its move to Amsterdam last month, with the loss of 900 jobs. Britains life sciences sector pharmaceutical, medical technology and biotech companies and clinical research and regulatory organisations employs 140,000 people directly but supports half a million jobs in total when the supply chain is included, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers-commissioned review published in 2017. The sector contributed more than 30bn to the economy in 2015. However, despite the scale of the UK drugs industry, two-thirds of the medicines used in the UK are imported from the EU and 90% come through Dover and Folkestone at present. Last summer the government told the pharma industry to increase its emergency supplies by an extra six weeks. Companies have therefore ramped up their preparations for a no-deal Brexit, stockpiling medicines, duplicating drug testing, transferring licences and making plans to ship drugs to and from the EU on ferries leased by the government via six new port routes, from Immingham, Felixstowe, Poole, Plymouth, Portsmouth and Ramsgate. The health secretary, Matt Hancock, has also chartered a plane to fly in medical isotopes for cancer treatment and other supplies with a short shelf life. Mike Thompson, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industrys chief executive, described Brexit as the biggest logistical challenge ever faced by the industry. GlaxoSmithKline Facebook Twitter Pinterest GlaxoSmithKline is Britains largest drugmaker. Photograph: Jill Mead/The Guardian AstraZeneca Pfizer Facebook Twitter Pinterest Pfizer is the maker of Viagra. Photograph: William Vazquez/AP Roche Facebook Twitter Pinterest A worker supervises a Roche production line. Photograph: EPA MSD Novartis Facebook Twitter Pinterest The Swiss company Novartis is stockpiling drugs in the UK in the run-up to Brexit. Photograph: Arnd Wiegmann/Reuters Eli Lilly Sanofi | https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/feb/19/what-are-brexit-contingency-plans-for-pharmaceutical-industry |
Are vegan cheesemakers misleading customers by using the word 'cheese'? | According to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), the answer is yes. In response to an anonymous complaint, the agency has instructed Blue Heron, a purveyor of plant-based butters, cheeses and yogurts in Vancouver, to cease using the word cheese to describe its products, The Globe and Mail reports. Weve always labelled and made it really clear in our packaging that we are dairy-free and plant-based. So for us the frustration is that weve tried to show a lot of clarity and work within the process to not fool consumers, Colin Medhurst from Blue Heron told Global News. To be told that cheese itself is this unattainable and unusable word, unless you are using the (traditional) dairy-based form, is a little ridiculous. The restriction also reportedly applies to the use of types of cheeses in marketing, such as cheddar, chvre and ricotta. Like a host of plant-based proteins before it which the meat industry has repeatedly challenged for adopting labels such as bacon, burgers and meatballs this recent objection to Blue Herons word choices could be further proof that vegan cheese is making headway in the mainstream, posing a real threat to the dairy sector. In Canada, the number of dairy-product complaints increased to 415 in 2018 from 294 in 2014, an increase of 41 per cent, according to Sylvain Charlebois, professor in food distribution and policy at Dalhousie University. Resistance to alternatives is high across the pond as well. Earlier this month, the U.K.s first vegan cheesemonger La Fauxmagerie opened in Brixton, south London. Shortly thereafter, it received a written complaint from industry organization Dairy UK requesting they stop referring to their wares as cheese, arguing that the label deceives customers. Rachel Stevens, who launched La Fauxmagerie with her sister Charlotte, told the Daily Mail that Dairy UKs assertion discredits and underestimates the intelligence of customers. We expected attention because we knew wed be the first in the country, but didnt expect to ruffle feathers. | https://nationalpost.com/life/food/are-vegan-cheesemakers-misleading-customers-by-using-the-word-cheese-in-product-marketing |
What's Going On Between Mesut zil And Unai Emery? | It's been a big year in the life of Mesut zil. In February of 2018, zil signed a new contract with Arsenal until 2021 following protracted negotiations, making him the highest-paid player at the club. By April, Arsene Wenger, the manager he originally signed for at Arsenal and re-signed with a few months before, announced he was leaving the club. In June, zil's German national team was knocked out of the World Cup in the group stage. In July, zil announced his retirement from international soccer because of racist harassment he received due to his Turkish heritage in the wake of the World Cup. So zil came into the 2018-19 season in a strange place, and it didn't help that he had an unfamiliar manager, Unai Emery, waiting for him when he returned to London Colney. It didn't take long for zil, or anyone else for that matter, to find out that Emery and Wenger are not the same. Whereas zil was a central figure in all of Wenger's plans, Emery had a much different role in mind for him. So far this season through a conflation of injuries, illness and what Emery has described as "tactical reasons" zil has missed more games than he's started for Arsenal and has only made a single start since Boxing Day. That's a major issue considering zil is both Arsenal's highest-paid and most naturally-gifted player. The impasse between zil and Emery seemed to finally come to a head last week when zil tweeted a passive-aggressive shot across the bow of Emery in the form of a quote from Arsenal legend Dennis Bergkamp after he was left out of Arsenal's Europa League squad for a 1-0 loss to BATE Borisov. When you start supporting a football club, you don't support it because of the trophies, or a player, or history, you support it because you found yourself somewhere there; found a place where you belong. #DennisBergkamp To anyone who has followed this saga between zil and Emery, the message was clear: This is my club, and I'm not going anywhere. So you better deal with me. This situation is a direct result of the precarious position the club had forced itself into in the final few years of Wenger's tenure. zil was essentially given a huge contract over the fear of the optics of he and Alexis Sanchez leaving the club in the same year. (Sanchez was sold to Manchester United in January 2018.) Without the Champions League to hang their hat on and fill their coffers, it's more difficult to sign top players. So when faced with the choice of selling zil without the option to replace him with a star of similar stature or re-signing him for more than he's worth, the club chose the latter. (zil re-signing also lead to contract stalemate between Aaron Ramsey and the club. Ramsey wanted a payday commensurate with zil's, but the club wasn't willing to give it to him or was unable to because it paid so much over the odds for zil so he'll be leaving for Juventus on a free transfer this summer.) When zil inked that extension, most folks expected him to play out at least a year or two of it under Wenger in a system in which he knew his role. But Emery's system is wildly different than Wenger's and depends to a great extent on his players' willingness to run, press and stay active for the full 90 minutes. Basically the opposite of how the often languid zil plays. On top of that, Emery's system doesn't use a traditional No. 10, zil's natural position. In Emery's system, zil's either forced to the flanks or deeper into midfield, both positions where he's been known to struggle. zil's often lackadaisical approach to the game already makes him ill-suited for Emery's system, and it might be exacerbated by the fact that he no longer has to play hard for that new big-money contract, something the manager who knows him better than any other, Wenger, noted in a recent interview. I feel that the length of the contract has nothing to do normally with the selection of the team, Wenger said Monday after receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Laureus World Sports Awards. But sometimes there are special cases. Most of the time now we think when we sign a player for five years we have a good player for five years. But that doesnt necessarily mean that they practice, they play their best. Because they might be in their comfort zone. If that's the case and zil is in a comfort zone, it would behoove Arsenal to sell him this summer and wash their hands of the whole situation. But that's easier said than done. zil's astronomical wages which are estimated to be around $23,000,000 per year will prevent him from signing with all but the wealthiest of clubs. To make matters more complicated, like Emery many managers these days no longer use a No. 10, leaving only a handful of potential destinations. Then there's the matter of Arsenal getting what they perceive as fair value, which will be difficult when everyone in the soccer world knows the club is desperate to sell him and get his wages off the books. So now we're set up for a power struggle between zil and Emery down the stretch, something Emery knows about all too well from his time being forced to kowtow to Neymar at PSG. In the spring, before being hired by Arsenal, Emery was interviewed by Spanish online magazine The Tactic Room and discussed the different ways leadership can manifest itself at different clubs, and his comments take on a new light in the wake of this Ozil drama. Translation via Goal: One day, Jorge Valdano [former player, coach and director at Real Madrid] made me the following reflection, 'At Barcelona the leader is [Lionel] Messi; at Madrid it is [president] Florentino Perez, and the Atletico de Madrid [leader] is [Diego] Simeone. ... "A player, a president and a coach. Each time, a different leader profile. I know when I'm the main person in a group and when I'm not. Based on what we've seen this year, it seems Emery might have come to North London expecting to be the "main person" then learned that he wasn't. This power struggle with zil is his attempt to the unequivocal leader of Arsenal. The decision to sit zil frequently is a message that this is Emery's team and what he says goes. It's all well and good if you can sit your best player and still win, but Emery is fielding weakened lineups and losing, as happened against BATE in the Europa League last Thursday. zil's vision alone could have been enough to open a path to goal and help Arsenal salvage a win or draw. The fact that he wasn't even on the bench as an option is borderline malpractice by Emery. Maybe Arsenal can sell zil this summer and Emery can finally coach a season without the German's specter over his shoulder and fully implement his style. Great. But that won't happen until the summer, and there's far too much to play for between now and then for Emery to stubbornly try and prove a point. If Emery wants to win the Europa League and/or finish in the top four, he needs to use all tools at his disposal, including zil. But if he keeps leavingzil out of the squad, and the results don't improve, it may be Emery leaving North London this summer, not zil. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/cybrown/2019/02/19/whats-going-on-between-mesut-ozil-and-unai-emery/ |
Will 2019 Be the Year of King Copper? | Because of its wide availability and exceptional conductivity, copper is found in everything from consumer products to automobiles to semiconductors. Last year global demand for the red metal stood at 23.6 million tons, and by 2027, its projected to reach just under 30 million tons, representing an average annual growth rate of about 2.6 percent. This phenomenal growth is attributable not just to the rise of middle class consumers. Its also thanks to our steady rotation into clean, renewable energy such as wind and solarwhich is good news for copper demand going forward. As Ive shared with you before, renewables require many more times the amount of copper as traditional energy sources. A typical wind farmthose that blanket whole areas of West Texas, California and some other statescan contain as much as 15 million tons of the metal. 2018 Was a Record-Breaking Year for Renewables Whether youre a believer in renewable energy or not, the tipping point may have already occurred. Among the fastest growing jobs in the U.S. right now are wind turbine service technician and solar panel installer, for whatever thats worth. And according to a report by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF), corporate purchasing of renewable energy more than doubled from 2017 to 2018. Globally, companies bought 13.4 gigawatts (GW) last year, compared to the previous record of 6.1 gigawatts in 2017. Over 63 percent of the purchasing activity occurred right here in the U.S. Facebook alone was responsible for consuming 2.6 GW of renewables, three times as much as the next biggest corporate energy buyer, AT&T. The trend toward renewables is expected to accelerate at a white-knuckle pace for years to come. Take a look at the chart below, courtesy of McKinseys Global Energy Perspective 2019. Analysts believe that, by 2035, renewable energy will account for more than half of all power generation as its price falls below that of coal and gas-generated energy. Fifteen years after that, nearly three quarters of total energy consumed around the world will be derived from renewable means, chiefly wind and solar. If this is compelling at all to you, now might be an excellent time to start participating. One of the best ways, I believe, is with exposure to high-quality, well-managed copper miners as well as funds that have a large position in copper mining. China Will Lead the Transition from Internal Combustion Engines to Electric Cars And we havent even mentioned electric vehicles (EVs), which are notorious copper gobblers. As Ive shared with you before, EVs consume between three and four times the amount of copper as traditional internal combustion engines. China is leading the world in EV adoption and will likely continue to do so for some time. In the fourth quarter of last year, China was responsible for 60 percent of global EV sales, according to Bloomberg, which adds that the country holds half of all vehicle-charging infrastructure. By the end of last year, electric cars made up about 7 percent of total new vehicle sales in China, with a compound growth rate of 118 percent since 2011. In about a decade, the Asian country will account for nearly 40 percent of the global EV market, followed by Europe (26 percent) and the U.S. (20 percent), according to BNEF. Not only does China have national subsidies in place, but its carmakers are also incentivized to manufacture EVs thanks to the countrys New Energy Vehicle credit system. The system acts as an EV quota, requiring carmakers to generate credits through the sale of electric cars. According to BNEF, this is the single most important piece of EV policy globally and is shaping automakers electrification plans. Adding to this acceleration is the fact that China has elevated the adoption of new Phase 6 emissions standards under its anti-pollution Blue Sky Defense action plan. Just as were seeing in parts of Europe right now, China will soon begin banning the production of the most polluting diesel engines. Many cities in China see the writing on the wall and have already enacted restrictions on gasoline-powered vehicle sales. In 2018, Shenzhen and Shanghai collectively led the world with more than 165,000 EV sales. Thats more than Norway and Germany combined. With demand for EVs so high, its little wonder that Chinas copper imports climbed to 479,000 tonnes in January, the second-highest on record. Morgan Stanley Bullish on Copper, Upgrades Freeport-McMoRan All of this leads me to believe that 2019 could be not only coppers year but also copper miners year. The price of the red metal is up about 6 percent so far in 2019, trading at close to $2.80 a pound. Thats about 67 percent short of the metals all-time high of $4.62, set in February 2011. Last week Morgan Stanley joined Citi and Goldman Sachs in making a bullish call on the metal. The investment bank projected a 14 percent upside for copper in 2019, based on a widening supply deficit and the likelihood of a resolution to the U.S.-China trade spat. As for copper miners, Morgan Stanley upgraded Freeport-McMoRan, while Goldman Sachs recently upgraded Rio Tinto. Piyush Sood, lead analyst at Morgan Stanley, said in a note that Freeports earnings sensitivity to copper is still the highest among its peers, and combined with its high trading liquidity, we believe it will emerge as the go-to large-cap stock for exposure to a copper price rally. Shares of the Phoenix-based companys stock jumped nearly 7 percent on the news last Wednesday. Singapore-based DBS Bank also sees a copper shortage over the mid-term. Analysts expect supply to be in a deficit each year between now and at least 2022, when it could be at its widest since 2004. Copper is king for this electrification trend taking over the global economy, Matt Gilli, CEO of Nevada Copper, told Reuters. We see demand increasing steadily in the years ahead and, so far, supply is not keeping up. To meet surging demand, four U.S. copper projects are set to open by next year, the first to do so in decades, according to Reuters. And Ivanhoe Mines, founded by my friend Robert Friedland, is in the process of developing the Kamoa-Kakula copper deposit in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which Robert describes as the second-largest copper mine in the world. Youre going to need a telescope to see copper prices in 2021, Robert told us when he visited our office last year. -- All opinions expressed and data provided are subject to change without notice. Some of these opinions may not be appropriate to every investor. By clicking the link(s) above, you will be directed to a third-party website(s). U.S. Global Investors does not endorse all information supplied by this/these website(s) and is not responsible for its/their content. Holdings may change daily. Holdings are reported as of the most recent quarter-end. The following securities mentioned in the article were held by one or more accounts managed by U.S. Global Investors as of (12/31/2018): Ivanhoe Mines Ltd., Citigroup Inc. U.S. Global Investors, Inc. is an investment adviser registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). This does not mean that we are sponsored, recommended, or approved by the SEC, or that our abilities or qualifications in any respect have been passed upon by the SEC or any officer of the SEC. This commentary should not be considered a solicitation or offering of any investment product. Certain materials in this commentary may contain dated information. The information provided was current at the time of publication. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2019/02/19/will-2019-be-the-year-of-king-copper/ |
Is President Trump Playing With Fire In His Attack On Multilateralism? | Western democracies face a range of security threats direct military challenges from Russias hybrid warfare, terrorist threats from Al Qaeda and Islamic State and cyber threats from both state and non-state actors, aimed at stealing industrial secrets or undermining our democratic institutions. At CTD Advisors, we regularly offer counsel to clients on what we feel is the most strategic threat we face as a Western democracy; the erosion of the rules based international order. Like most European countries, the UK is a small, democratic, open trading nation. As such, we rely for our prosperity and security on being able to operate and trade internationally, which requires an effective rules-based order. This order is now under severe threat. It is worth recalling that, when the victors of the second world war set up new organisations such as the UN, NATO and the Bretton Woods institutions; and then established regulatory regimes and standards on everything from aviation and shipping to the environment and communications, they did so in their own image. It was therefore a liberal vision, based on western values of open trade, the rule of law and human rights. This liberal order became known as the Washington Consensus, and over the last 75 years, has greatly benefitted the UK, US and, I would argue, the world as a whole. Throughout the 40 years of the Cold War, the Soviet Union stayed somewhat aloof, unwilling to participate, but unable seriously to challenge this order preferring to operate bilaterally when necessary, for instance in nuclear arms limitations with the United States. Then in 1989, the end of the Cold War and the defeat of communism ushered in a golden era for this liberal international order. The UN Security Council had a new lease of life, mandating many UN peacekeeping operations, particularly in Africa; the International Criminal Court was established, as was the Human Rights Council. Womens and LGBT rights were advanced; the Arms Trade Treaty was agreed and conventions on chemical weapons and cluster munitions; concepts such as Responsibility to Protect (R2P) and humanitarian intervention were proposed; more recently, we have seen the Paris agreement on Climate Change and the UN deal on eliminating poverty through 17 sustainable development goals. It is striking that all of these institutional and normative initiatives came from the West and all of them go in a more liberal, rights-based direction. But in the last few years, there has been a systematic push back against this liberal international order. The sharp point of resistance at the UN was LGBT rights, led by a coalition of conservative Islamic countries, Russia and the Holy See, but the opposition spread also into womens rights and then civil and political rights. We now have the absurd sight of President Putin claiming to be the defender of family values. The Iraq and Libyan interventions certainly played a part. Some nations felt that the West had exploited concepts such as humanitarian intervention and R2P to encroach on sovereignty; and had tried to impose unrealistic democratic and human rights standards on developing countries. At the same time, the financial crisis in 2008 undermined support for western capitalism. More fundamentally still, geopolitical shifts have changed the dynamic particularly the rise of China. Chinas brand of market authoritarianism is admired and occasionally imitated. New institutions have emerged, including the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, the BRICS group, One Belt One Road. Most of these institutions are inspired by China and, significantly, none includes the United States. Against this background, I see worrying signs for the current international order, including: - Blatant challenges to existing norms, such as Russias annexation of Crimea, Chinas militarisation of the South China Sea, North Korea and Irans nuclear ambitions; use of Chemical Weapons in Syria and Myanmars treatment of its Rohingya minority; - A rise in nationalism and populism, particularly in Europe and the United States; - Greater authoritarianism in countries in all regions of the world, including Egypt, Thailand, Turkey, the Philippines and Tanzania. Chinas extraordinary economic rise has certainly increased its right and ability to help set the international agenda. But President Xis recent announcement that China should lead the reform of the global governance system with the concepts of fairness and justice suggest that his ambitions go beyond seeking a greater role in the existing order; and instead is looking to build a new made in China order, perhaps in alliance with Russia. If successful, this would be based on very different values to those that have served us so well over the last 75 years. No-one disputes the need for international governance arrangements to change in order to better reflect the geopolitical realities of the 21stcentury. To take just one obvious example, the make-up of the UN Security Council, has to change discussions have been going on unsuccessfully for nearly 20 years. Ironically, though, China itself is the biggest obstacle to UNSC reform. That is because China is reluctant to share its dominant position on the Council with Asian rivals such as India and Japan, who would inevitably benefit from any reform. But the risk we face now is that any change to international governance arrangements will come through disjunction or even conflict, rather than through dialogue and diplomacy; and that, in the process of that disjunction, the underlying rules-based order itself will be undermined. So, the international order that has done so much to prevent a third world war and facilitated increasing global prosperity is now at risk - to the extent that, for the first time since 1945, there is perhaps some doubt over the ultimate triumph of democracy and economic liberalism over more repressive forms of economic and political governance. It is therefore of considerable concern that, at this critical time, the liberal orders traditional champion the US President does not himself appear to believe in multilateralism or the underpinnings of the rules based international order. In his UN speech in September last year, President Trump attacked the ideology of globalisation and has backed up that rhetoric with action pulling out of the Climate Change agreement, the Trans Pacific Partnership, the INF Treaty, the Iran nuclear deal, and some UN bodies such as UNESCO and the Human Rights Council. He has deprioritised human rights issues in bilateral contacts with Saudi Arabia and North Korea and weakened the support for Free Trade by blocking the appointment of judges at the World Trade Organisation (WTO). It is entirely reasonable for President Trump to put America first all leaders should, and do, put their own countries interests first. But that does not exclude the US playing an engaged and positive international role. Americas traditional allies do not expect America to act as the worlds policeman our values cannot be imposed on others, they need to prevail by example. But without the US leading the way, acting as that shining city upon a hill, it is much less likely that those values of freedom, justice and individual rights on which we rely will prevail. That is surely not in Americas own longer-term interests. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/marklyallgrant/2019/02/19/is-president-trump-playing-with-fire-in-his-attack-on-multilateralism/ |
What's Behind Netflix's TV Show Cancellation Spree? | Netflix previously canceled Marvel's The Punisher and Marvel's Jessica Jones on Monday, Feb. 18. The third season of Jessica Jones starring Krysten Ritter is still slated to premiere on Netflix sometime in 2019. Creator Nicholas Stoller confirmed the news on Twitter. "Friends from College will not be returning for a third season. Thanks to everyone who watched it. Happy Presidents' Day!" he tweeted . Netflix pulled the plug on not just its remaining Marvel shows this weekend. Friends From College was also canceled by the streaming giant. Jessica Jones, The Punisher and Friends From College are just the latest to get canceled by Netflix as the streaming platform continues to grow. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings previously addressed the streamer's cancellation thought process , noting it comes down to how many people are watching (even though they don't reveal that number to the public). Friends From College starred Keegan-Michael Key , Fred Savage , Annie Parisse , Nat Faxon , Jae Suh Park and Cobie Smulders . The comedy, which was not met with much fanfare when it debuted in July 2017, ran for two seasons and produced 16 episodes. Season two dropped in January 2019. It comes down to viewers, but for the Marvel show, it's twofold: Disney owned the Marvel shows, Netflix didn't. And Disney is starting its own streaming service with original content, Disney+, a direct competitor to Netflix. While there hasn't been official confirmation about why the Marvel and Netflix relationship ended, it's easy to draw conclusions between the launch of Disney+ and cancellation of the Netflix shows. While commenting on the Netflix cancellations, Marvel Television's Jeph Loeb teased the story of the heroes from Netflix's shows is not over. "What really matters is I hope our hit ratio is way too high right now," Hastings said back in 2017 . "So, we've canceled very few showsI'm always pushing the content team, we have to take more risk. You have to try more crazy things, because we should have a higher cancel rate overall. Because then, what you get is you get some winners that are just unbelievable winners, like 13 Reasons Why. Over the last three months [13 Reasons Why] has been a big hit for us. And you know, it surprised us too. I mean, it was a great show, but we didn't realize just how it would catch on." See what other shows have been canceled by Netflix below. Netflix Friends From College Stars: Keegan-Michael Key, Fred Savage, Annie Parisse, Nat Faxon, Jae Suh Park and Cobie Smulders About: A tight-nit group of friends, from college, navigating life in their 40s in New York City. Length: Two seasons, 16 episodes. Netflix Marvel's The Punisher Stars: Jon Bernthal, Ebon Moss-Bacharach, Ben Barnes, Amber Rose Revah About: The Marvel vigilante of the same name. Length: Two seasons, 26 episodes. Netflix Marvel's Jessica Jones Stars: Krysten Ritter, Rachael Taylor, Carrie-Anne Moss, Eka Darville About: The Marvel superhero/private eye who struggles with past trauma. Length: Three seasons, 39 episodes. Article continues below Netflix Marvel's Daredevil Stars: Charlie Cox, Deborah Ann Woll, Elden Henson, Vincent D'Onofrio and more About: The Marvel superhero of the same name, by day a blind lawyer, by night a kick-butt vigilante. Length: Three seasons, 39 episodes. Netflix All About the Washingtons Stars: Rev. Run Simmons, Justine Simmons About: A multi-camera sitcom starring the real-life couple as fictionalized versions of themselves raising a family. Length: One season, 10 episodes. Netflix Hater Back Off Stars: Colleen Ballinger, Angela Kinsey, Francesca Reale, Erik Stocklin, Steve Little About: Based on Ballinger's Miranda Sings character, the series is about the YouTube character's family life. Miranda wanted fame at whatever the cost. Length: Two seasons, 16 episodes. Article continues below Netflix A Series of Unfortunate Events Stars: Neil Patrick Harris, Patrick Warburton, Malina Weissman, Louis Hynes, Presley Smith About: Based on the Lemony Snicket novels of the same name, the series follows the Baudelaire children after they're sent to live with a distant relative, Count Olaf. Length: Three seasons, 25 episodes. Season three, which will be seven episodes, has yet to drop. Netflix The Get Down Stars: Justice Smith, Jimmy Smits, Shameik Moore, Jaden Smith About: Created by Baz Luhrmann and Stephen Adly Guirgis, he musical drama was set in the Bronx in the 1970s and followed the rise of hip-hop and disco. Length: One season, 11 episodes. Netflix Girlboss Stars: Britt Robertson, Johnny Simmons, Ellie Reed, Alphonso McAuley About: Created by Pitch Perfect's Kay Cannon and based on Sophia Amoruso's autobiography, the series follows Robertson's Sophia as she begins a vintage clothing business. Length: One season, 13 episodes. Article continues below Netflix Sense8 Stars: Aml Ameen, Donna Bae, Toby Onwumere, Jamie Clayton, Tina Desai, Tuppence Middleton, Max Riemelt, Miguel Angel Silvestre, Brian J. Smith About: The fan-favorite series followed eight strangers who shared a mysterious psychic connection. Length: Two seasons, 24 episodes, and a wrap up movie. Netflix Gypsy Stars: Naomi Watts, Billy Crudup About: Watts starred as Jean Holloway, a psychologist who infiltrates the private lives of her patients. Length: One season, 10 episodes. Netflix Everything Sucks Stars: Jahi Di'Allo Winston, Peyton Kennedy, Patch Darragh, Claudine M. Nako, Quinn Liebling, Elijah Stevenson, Sydney Sweeney, Rio Mangini About: The comedy followed the students of Boring High School, a small Oregon town, in 1996. Length: One season, 10 episodes. Article continues below Netflix Orange Is the New Black Stars: Taylor Schilling, Laura Prepon, Kate Mulgrew, Uzo Aduba, Danielle Brooks, Dascha Polanco, Selenis Leyva, Taryn Manning, Adrienne C. Moore, Natasha Lyonne, Elizabeth Rodriguez About: The dramedy, which was created by Jenji Kohan and based on Piper Kerman's book, follows the prisoners of Litchfield. Length: Seven seasons, 91 episodes. Season seven will drop summer 2019. Netflix House of Cards Stars: Robin Wright, Michael Kelly, Constance Zimmer, Boris McGiver, Patricia Clarkson, Campbell Scott, Kevin Spacey About: Netflix's first original series charted the political rise of Spacey's Frank Underwood. The seventh season centers on Wright's Claire Underwood and her presidency. Length: Six seasons, 73 episodes. Season six drops November 2. Netflix Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Stars: Ellie Kemper, Tituss Burgess, Carol Kane, Jane Krakowski About: Kemper is Kimmy Schmidt, a young woman who was held captive for 15 years in an underground bunker. Once freed, she starts her life over in New York City. Length: Four seasons, 52 episodes. The second part of season four drops January 2019. An additional movie is possible. Article continues below Netflix The Break with Michelle Wolf Stars: Michelle Wolf About: A topical weekly variety-talk show starring the stand-up comic. Length: One season, 10 episodes. Netflix Marvel's Luke Cage Stars: Mike Colter, Rosario Dawson, Alfre Woodard, Theo Rossi, Simone Missick About: Based on the Marvel Comics character, Colter is Luke Cage, a former convict who has super strength and unbreakable skin. Length: Two seasons, 26 episodes. Netflix The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale Stars: Joel McHale About: McHale hosted the topical series that featured guests, sketches and video clips. Length: One season, 19 episodes. Article continues below Netflix Seven Seconds Stars: Regina King, Russell Hornsby, Clare-Hope Ashitey About: This crime drama from the creator of The Killing followed the people involved in the death of a young black boy and the subsequent investigation. Length: One season, 10 episodes Netflix Disjointed Stars: Kathy Bates About: From Chuck Lorre, Bates starred in this sitcom about a marijuana dispensary. Length: One season, 20 episodes. Netflix Lady Dynamite Stars: Maria Bamford, Fred Melamed, Mary Kay Place, Olafur Darri Olafsson About: Bamford starred as a version of herself, a comic and actor who moves back to Los Angeles after getting treatment for bipolar disorder. Length: Two seasons, 20 episodes. Article continues below Netflix Love Stars: Gillian Jacobs, Paul Rust About: Love looked at the world of dating from male and female perspectives. Length: Three seasons, 34 episodes. Netflix Chelsea Stars: Chelsea Handler About: Handler hosted the late-night talk show. Length: Two seasons, 120 episodes. Netflix Marco Polo Stars: Lorenzo Richelmy, Benedict Wong, Joan Chen, Michelle Yeoh, Gabriel Byrne About: The drama series was inspired by Marco Polo's life in the court of Kublai Khan, the founder of the Yuan dynasty. Length: Two seasons, 20 episodes and one special. Article continues below Netflix Longmire Stars: Robert Taylor, Katee Sackhoff, Lou Diamond Phillips About: A Western crime drama originally on A&E, the series is based on the Walt Longmire Mysteries novels. Length: Six seasons total, with three seasons original to Netflix, 63 episodes. Netflix Bloodline Stars: Kyle Chandler, Sissay Spacek, Sam Shepard, Ben Mendelsohn, Linda Cardellini, Norbert Leo Butz About: A family drama/thriller following the Rayburns. Length: Three seasons, 33 episodes. Netflix Marvel's Iron Fist Stars: Finn Jones, Jessica Henwick, Tom Pelphrey, Jessica Stroup About: Based on the Marvel Comics character, Jones starred as Danny Rand the wealthy heir to a family company. He's also a martial arts expert with the ability to use the mystical Iron Fist. Length: Two seasons, 23 episodes. | https://www.eonline.com/uk/news/1016277/what-s-behind-netflix-s-tv-show-cancellation-spree |
What does success look like for FC Cincinnati's No. 1 overall MLS SuperDraft pick Frankie Amaya? | CLOSE Frankie Amaya the number 1 overall pick of the 2019 draft, speaks about heading to FC Cincinnati. Albert Cesare, [email protected] BRADENTON, Florida FC Cincinnati's Feb. 5 training session needed a spark. Several sparks, really, because it was going so badly. The drilling and the play were lackadaisical and uninspired. Then, in the middle of a full-field scrimmage emerged 5-foot-4 Frankie Amaya to help turn the session around. At midfield and amongst players much taller than him, Amaya got up for a ball cruising through the air and won a header for his team. Players on both sides of the scrimmage quickly erupted with encouragement for Amaya. Almost immediately, the pace of the game seemed to quicken. Amaya's header was but one moment during the training session, but it was one of several moments that helped salvage a day of practice that looked to be sliding sideways. In the intervening weeks, Amaya's showed additional flashes of skill, too. Given his size, Amaya's ability to head the ball isn't even close to being one of his best attributes. He's best known for his artistry with the ball at his feet. He's also hard to knock off the ball, so when he breaks into a full stride while on the attack, good things happen for his team. More: As FC Cincinnati's inaugural MLS season approaches, the club works to develop its youth More: 'Roomie movie time' and PS4: A day in the life of an FC Cincinnati player during the preseason Presidents' Day sale: For just $1, get unlimited access to Cincinnati.com content for three months. Get the latest FC Cincinnati news. Download the FC Cincinnati Soccer app on both the Apple App Store and Google Play for Android users. Frankie Amaya (24) trots across the field during a Feb. 2 preseason match against the Colorado Rapids. (Photo11: Provided, FC Cincinnati) Amaya's professional career officially started in January when FC Cincinnati selected Amaya with the No. 1 overall pick in the MLS SuperDraft. Initially, Amaya wasn't seeing much of the field. Just 10 minutes in his first two preseason matches. Now, less than two weeks to go before the MLS regular season kicks off, Amaya's one of three FC Cincinnati draft picks that hasn't been loaned out to the USL Championship and still picking up steady minutes in preseason. He's played 106 minutes in the last three matches against DC United, Indy Eleven and Charleston Battery. "I feel like I'm playing good. I could be playing better, though," Amaya said recently. "I've had a lot of mistakes and I'm just trying to fix them and improve every day." The question looming over Amaya amid intense scrutiny as the club's first-ever draft pick is how to continue his upward trajectory. "He's an excellent little player. It's going to take time to get (him) to speed and get to deal with the physicality," FC Cincinnati head coach Alan Koch said Feb. 7. "I expect him to do very, very well. We have confidence in him." Koch hasn't publicly laid out the plan for Amaya's success, nor has he articulated his vision for success for Amaya looks like. Others paint a clear picture of what success for Amaya looks like, though. For Jorge Salcedo, the head men's soccer coach at UCLA where Amaya played briefly in college last fall, there's an air of confidence whenever he talks about Amaya. He's seen the best of Amaya and is confident he can make it in MLS. Salcedo's relationship with Amaya goes back years, to a time when Amaya, then a rampaging talent for Orange County's Pateadores SC, was known as, "Frankie Amaya, the legend from Santa Anita." "He was one of those players that, the first time I saw him play, I knew there was something special in him as a player," Salcedo told The Enquirer. "That was his sophomore year in high school. Every person I talked to said hes an unbelievable player and he has so much skill." NEWSLETTERS Get the Bengals Beat newsletter delivered to your inbox We're sorry, but something went wrong Please try again soon, or contact Customer Service at 1-800-876-4500. Delivery: Invalid email address Thank you! You're almost signed up for Bengals Beat Keep an eye out for an email to confirm your newsletter registration. More newsletters Commitments to the U.S. Under-20 men's national team limited Amaya to 14 appearances for Salcedo's Bruins. Amaya didn't appear for UCLA after Oct. 28 but further established himself with his breakout performance with the U.S. Under-20 national team at the 2018 CONCACAF U-20 Championship. Now, the 18-year-old Amaya arrives in Cincinnati under the most intense scrutiny of his career. He'll have the weight of expectation on his diminutive shoulders on the club front, where he'll be the youngest player in the team. He'll also be competing with a group of 11 midfielders that includes veterans of some of Europe's biggest club competitions. There's pressure on the U.S. Under-20 national team front, too. There, Amaya will be competing for a spot on the team going to the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland this summer. It's widely held that there wasn't a star ready-made MLS star in the 2019 SuperDraft class. Koch has said all six of the players the team drafted are projects, although each player was signed to an MLS deal as of Feb.6 To Koch's point about no ready-made stars, Ben Lundt, Tommy McCabe and No. 13 overall SuperDraft pick Logan Gdula will continue their development while on loan deals with Louisville City FC, North Carolina FC, and Phoenix Rising FC, respectively. For Salcedo, a successful 2019 for Amaya would mean achieving both for club and country. That doesn't mean he's a key piece for FC Cincinnati. Just as long as he's in the picture and on Koch's radar for the future. "Making the U-20 World Cup would be a huge accomplishment. That level here in the U.S. we have a lot of talented young men, players that have been in professional teams for a couple years already," Salcedo said. "You look at LAFC being interested in Frankie and LAFC being an established club in terms of just one season but with elite coaches and players, they identified Frankies talent and potential. For me, its Frankie finding a way to get on the field and starting some games for Cincinnati. Theyll realize hes not necessarily at his best when his back is to the opponents goal. Thats not really his forte. "Elite and high-level soccer is about creating numerical advantages. If you really analyze the game, the best players in the world that play in the midfield have the ability to maintain the ball in tight spaces and provide time for their attacking players to take more advanced positions. Thats a thing that Frankie does really well." Amaya agreed that a spot on the U-20 World Cup team and some first-team experience would suffice for Year One as a professional. "I'd take that," Amaya said. "I'm working hard every day. If coach Koch gives me the chance, I'll make the most out of it and if I make the World Cup roster, I'll be glad for that, too." | https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/soccer/fc-cincinnati/2019/02/19/what-does-success-look-like-fc-cincinnatis-frankie-amaya/2641329002/ |
Can USA Gymnastics be trusted with CEO hire? | CLOSE What I'm Hearing: USA TODAY Sports' Nancy Armour spoke with USA Gymnastics CEO Li Li Leung and liked what the new hire had to say. USA TODAY Sports USA Gymnastics has done it again. For the third time in less than two years, the beleaguered national governing body has hired a president and CEO. My goodness, lets hope so. The previous president and CEO, Mary Bono, made it just four days. Enter Li Li Leung, a former competitive gymnast who is the NBAs vice president for global partnerships. She was named Tuesday morning as USA Gymnastics new leader, a position that has to be the most challenging job in all of sports. What you need to know the new USA Gymnastics CEO "It breaks my heart to see the state that the sport is in today, Leung told reporters on two conference calls throughout the day. It compelled me to step forward. We can do better for the community and the sport. This is much more than a job. This is a personal calling. Li Li Leung has been appointed president and chief executive officer of USA Gymnastics. (Photo11: Wendy Barrows/USA Gymnastics) Presuming everything goes as planned, Leung will be the person directing the organization through a jaw-dropping minefield of problems. With the next Olympic Games now less than a year and a half away, USA Gymnastics has lost all of its sponsors and declared bankruptcy. It also is facing decertification from the U.S. Olympic Committee and numerous lawsuits from the survivors of Larry Nassars horrors. Talk about your sports upsets. The down side of this job is, well, everything. The up side is simple: theres nowhere to go but up. If Leung succeeds, she will have rescued a high-profile national organization from the darkest place any U.S. governing body has ever been. One can only imagine the job offers she will have then. But first, theres the not insignificant task of lifting what is arguably Americas most popular Olympic sport out of the ashes. Leung said she has spoken with USOC CEO Sarah Hirshland, who has been closely monitoring the mess at USA Gymnastics since she took over the USOC in August. The first order of business for both is to resolve the USOCs effort to decertify USA Gymnastics. Its hard to imagine Leung leaving a high-profile job at the NBA without some sort of assurance that she would be leading the actual gymnastics national governing body. Were USA Gymnastics to be decertified, Leung would be president and CEO of nothing. Both sides are committed to work closely to resolve decertification, Leung said, adding she was very positive things would be worked out. In a statement, Hirshland expressed hope and optimism at Leungs hiring. American gymnasts deserve the support of a world-class organization and securing top-level management is one of the most important aspects of USA Gymnastics way forward, she said. Li Li Leung is an accomplished professional, a former gymnast herself, and committed to transforming the culture of the sport. Im very hopeful that Li Lis combination of experience and desire to lead will be a positive force for change in the lives of gymnasts all over the country. Its day one and everyone is saying the right things. Optimism reigns. But when an organization is on its fourth president and CEO in 23 months, the first reaction to any news like this, even something so promising, should be muted and cautionary. Simply put, lets wait and see. | https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/columnist/brennan/2019/02/19/can-usa-gymnastics-trusted-ceo-hire-li-li-leung/2917743002/ |
Which linemen could KC Chiefs target in the NFL Draft? | ESPN NFL draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. held a conference call with reporters on Tuesday ahead of next weeks NFL Combine and as usual, showed why hes one of the leading voices on the NFLs biggest offseason event. Kiper Jr. offered some thoughts on possible fits for the Chiefs on the second and third days of the draft, where the team will likely seek help on both the offensive and defensive lines. His latest draft projection has the Chiefs taking Mississippi State safety Johnathan Abram with the No. 29 pick in the first round. Here are some names Kiper said could be on the Chiefs radar later in the draft: Connor McGovern, Penn State: He left Happy Valley a year early to declare for the NFL Draft and was Kipers top draft-eligible guard when he announced his intentions. McGovern was an all-Big Ten player at right guard this past season and played exclusively at center as a sophomore. He would give the Chiefs some depth behind Mitch Morse and Mitchell Schwartz. McGovern is listed at 6-foot-5, 323 pounds. Sign Up and Save Get six months of free digital access to The Kansas City Star Dru Samia, Oklahoma: A second-team All-American in 2018, Samia has blocked for a pair of Heisman winners in Kyler Murray and Baker Mayfield, while splitting time at right guard and right tackle, which gives him some versatility. Samia did not give up a sack in 2018 and was chosen offensive lineman of the year in the Big 12. Nate Davis, Charlotte: At 6-foot-3 and coming from a smaller school like Charlotte, Davis is a player who will likely be on the board for the Chiefs at some point. That doesnt mean hes not worth taking. Davis played primary at right guard in college and helped the 49ers offense rank in the top half of Conference USA. Garrett Bradbury, North Carolina State: Bradbury won the Rimington Trophy, given to the top center in college football, in December and has had quite the career after signing as a tight end out of high school. Bradbury blocked for quarterback Ryan Finley, one of the top prospects in the draft, and is considered fundamentally sound and an elite pass-blocker. Theres a chance hes off the board by the time the Chiefs pick in the second round. Michael Jordan, Ohio State: Not the basketball legend or the actor, Jordan joins Samia and Bradbury in the group of linemen who blocked for elite quarterbacks in college. That would translate well for the Chiefs, given the importance of protecting Patrick Mahomes. A two-time All-American, Jordan has an elite frame at 6-foot-7 and played and started in all 41 games of his career, including as a true freshman. Jordan played both guard and center at Ohio State and could even play tackle if needed, making his versatility another attractive trait about him. Khalen Saunders, Western Illinois: A St. Louis native, Saunders is a small school prospect who stands 6-2 and weighs about 300 pounds. Hes been linked to the Chargers and Raiders and had a good showing at the Senior Bowl. Saunders is an elite athlete who rushed for 800 yards as a high school senior and became a small Internet sensation when he was taped doing back flips at the Senior Bowl. | https://www.kansascity.com/sports/nfl/kansas-city-chiefs/article226469065.html |
What International Events Have Created Refugee Crises In Recent Years? | originally appeared on Quora: the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world. Answer by Betsy Fisher, Policy Director, International Refugee Assistance Project, on Quora: UNHCR shows that the biggest countries of origin in 2017 included major conflicts that you might have heard a lot about, like Syria, Afghanistan, and Myanmar. Other leading countries of origin are South Sudan, Somalia, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic, Eritrea, and Burundi, and these conflicts, sadly, dont often receive significant press attention. Other major conflicts with growing numbers of displaced people include Venezuela and Yemen. Humanitarian crises in each of those places have forced large numbers of civilians to flee from their homes, both inside their country and to neighboring countries. What is important to remember is that refugees, who are displaced because of threats to their life or human rights in their home country, need one of three things to resolve their situation: (1) to return to their homes in safe and dignified conditions, (2) to be given access to rights and long-term residence in their countries of asylum, or (3) resettlement to another country where they will have rights and long-term residence. Access to each of these three solutions is extremely limited. Conflicts stretch on for longer, meaning that a return home to safety isnt possible. According to UNHCR, protracted refugee situations across the globe now last an estimated 26 years on average. In the countries of asylum close to refugees country of origin, refugees often dont have the right to work or access to legal residence. So when conflicts stretch on for years or decades, refugees find themselves increasingly impoverished and without the ability to plan for the future. Many refugees are unsafe, even in their country of first asylum, but fewer than 1% of refugees will ever be considered for resettlement, and far fewer will be resettled. This question originally appeared on Quora - the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. More questions: | https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2019/02/19/what-international-events-have-created-refugee-crises-in-recent-years/ |
What Factors Will Impact Nvidia's Fiscal 2020 Earnings? | Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) recently posted its Q4 fiscal 2019 results. While the companys top line was a beat, its adjusted earnings were below our estimates. Revenues declined in the mid-twenties percent, with both GPU, as well as Tegra Processors segments seeing a sharp decline in sales. Earnings plunged over 50% to $0.80 per share on an adjusted basis, amid lower margins. Looking ahead, the company has guided for a weak Q1, as it continues to struggle over crypto-related inventory. We have created an interactive dashboard analysis ~ A Quick Snapshot of Nvidias Q4 Performance And Trefis Estimates For The Fiscal 2020. You can adjust various drivers to see the impact on the companys overall earnings, and price estimate. Below we discuss our forecasts. In addition, here is more Information Technology data. Expect Revenues To Decline In High Single-Digits In FY 2020 We forecast the companys total revenues to decline in high single-digits in fiscal 2020. The GPU business will likely see sales of a little under $9.30 billion, while Tegra Processors revenue could decline to $1.45 billion. This can primarily be attributed to a slowdown in the Chinese economy, which has impacted the consumer demand for GPUs, according to the companys management. Note that China and Taiwan combined account for over 50% of the companys total sales. In addition, the companys Turing graphics card sales so far has been lower than expected, given the high pricing. Also, the crypto hangover is expected to impact the Q1 results as well. Crypto currencies have seen a massive decline in the recent past, and the demand for graphics cards has faded, which were earlier sought for crypto mining. While the company did launch its new Turing architecture in 2018, the pricing of these cards was very high, and so far it appears to have not seen any significant demand. However, with its launch of GTX1660Ti later in this month, the company could see some uptick in sales. GeForce GTX 1660 Ti will be Nvidias first Turing 12nm gaming graphics card without the real-time ray tracing capability. The new card is rumored to outperform several other cards, and it could help Nvidia revive its GPU sales. Looking at the Tegra Processors, the trend in revenues have been volatile in the recent past, led by its automotive business, as well as SOC (system on a chip) modules for gaming consoles, primarily Nintendo Switch. The company posted a 50% dip in Tegra Processors revenue in Q4 fiscal 2019, due to lower shipments of SOC modules. Nintendo also revised its target of selling 20 million consoles to now 17 million consoles in the current fiscal, given the weak sales in the first half of the year. This trend will likely continue in the near term as well. Given these trends, especially in GPUs, the company could see further pressure on its operating margins. We forecast the companys adjusted earnings to decline in low double-digits to $5.90 per share in fiscal 2020. Our price estimate of $176 for Nvidia is based on a 30x forward price to earnings multiple. Explore example interactive dashboards and create your own. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2019/02/19/what-factors-will-impact-nvidias-fiscal-2020-earnings/ |
Did Banksy paint Llanelli rat on charity shop wall? | Image caption Blink and you'll miss it... the rat was painted on a wall beneath a shop sign a decade ago, it is claimed A sheet of protective plastic has been placed over graffiti showing a rat holding a cigarette as council officials determine if it could be a work by artist Banksy. Llanelli mayor David Darkin has sent images to the art dealer who bought Banksy's design Season's Greetings, painted on a garage in Port Talbot. "It's better to have it protected in case it is a Banksy," said the mayor. The graffiti on a charity shop wall is said to have been painted a decade ago. Essex-based gallery owner John Brandler, who paid a six-figure sum for the artwork in Port Talbot, said the Llanelli rat could be authentic and he planned to visit soon to judge for himself. He based his opinion on the photographs he had seen, and the claim that the graffiti was said to be at least a decade old, which is when "Banksy rats" appeared in industrial towns. "I'm happy to go with 50-50 for now that it's a Banksy," Mr Brandler said. Llanelli artist and photographer Roz Moreton, 53, is more convinced. She said she recognised the work when she moved back to the area a decade ago. "I studied in Bristol and lived in London and I've been exposed to a lot of Banksy including his rats on Westminster Bridge," she said. "So I knew right away when I saw the Llanelli rat. I didn't tell anybody because I wanted to be able to come back and see it." Ms Moreton said she revealed her suspicions to the town council after hearing reports that vandals had tried to steal pieces from the Banksy in Port Talbot. About 20,000 people are thought to have visited that artwork over Christmas. Community leaders in Llanelli are hopeful their rat could also prove popular. Mr Darkin said: "The hope is that if it is a Banksy it will bring much needed visitors to Llanelli and the town centre." Councillor John Jenkins, who represents Llanelli Centre, said: "Fingers crossed it is a Banksy, but worst-case scenario it isn't and is still a talking point and people still come and see him." | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-47296721 |
What Are Some Common Myths About Staying Hydrated? | originally appeared on Quora: the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world. Answer by Christie Aschwanden, Author of GOOD TO GO, on Quora: Theres a common misconception out there that you need to drink eight glasses of water per day, but it turns out that theres not much science to support that number, and its not even clear where that idea came from. One of my FiveThirtyEight colleagues debunked the eight glasses per day myth a few years back. Another widespread belief is that drinking lots of water makes you healthier, but theres not much science to back that. Sure, you need to drink fluids to replace what you lose through sweating and respiration (you lose some fluid via the moisture in your breath), but taking in more than you need doesnt have any known benefits. It will make you pee more though. Our bodies have a sophisticated feedback loop to deal with fluid losses. When you sweat, the osmolality of your plasma increases. (Osmolality is a measure of the concentrations of salt and other soluble agents in your blood.) An increase in plasma osmolality triggers the release of antidiuretic hormone, which in turn goes into action conserving water by stimulating the reabsorption of water from your kidneys. This feedback loop protects you from mild dehydration, and it allows your body to operate under variable fluid levels. It also allows you to continue exercising as youre losing fluid through sweat. You dont have to replace every drop youre sweating. Your body can handle it. Athletes are often advised to drink early and often, but this is bad advice. You definitely need to drink to thirst when youre exercising, but drinking beyond thirst can be dangerous. People worry about becoming dehydrated during exercise, but its much easier to become over-hydrated, a condition called water intoxication or hyponatremia. At least five runners have died from hyponatremia they developed during a marathon, and a study of runners at the 2002 Boston Marathon found that 13 percent of them had a diagnosable case of hyponatremia. Whether youre an athlete or a desk jockey, the best current evidence is to drink when youre thirsty. This question originally appeared on Quora - the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. More questions: | https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2019/02/19/what-are-some-common-myths-about-staying-hydrated/ |
What Is The Netflix Effect? | If youre like most consumers, youve done the second thing more often. Even as movies bring in record amounts of money at the box office, Netflix grows its number of subscribers by around 10% a year and now has an estimated more than 59 million subscribers in the U.S. alone. Theres no doubt Netflix is the definitive modern media company, and its impact is felt in a number of industries. Its what experts call the Netflix Effect. Changing How Consumers View Content Before Netflix, consumers went to the movies, rented VHS tapes or DVDs and watched whatever was on live TV. Now, consumers can stream content instantly to any device, anywhere. Netflix has changed how consumers access film and TV. Theyre no longer tied to the TV and forced to sit through commercials. Instead of paying for cable plans, a growing number of Americans are cutting the cord and only using streaming services. In 2018, the number of people who cut the cord increased by nearly 33%, to 33 million people. At the same time, Netflix users are increasing. Consumers prefer the flexibility of being able to watch what they want when they want to. One of the biggest factors for consumers deciding how to view content is the programming. Consumers dont want to pay for content they wont watch. Netflix spent a staggering $13 billion on content in 2018, with around 85% of that going to original shows. Original content is what stands out to viewers. They can watch most network shows in multiple places, but they can only get original content straight from Netflix. The content creation side of the company seems to be hitting on all cylinders. The Netflix original movie Bird Box was watched by 45 million accounts its first weekend. When translated to box office dollars, the movie would smash anything currently in theaters. Updating Internet Business Models Netflix was one of the first companies to use new internet technology to drive nearly its entire business model. The service started as a mail-order DVD company, but now just a sliver of its customers actually get their DVDs by mail. Instead, Netflix relies on the internet to share its products with customers around the world. The online business model has also allowed Netflix to collect huge amounts of data on its customers. Netflixs AI-powered algorithm creates personalized recommendations for each user based on their preferences, watch history, ratings and demographics. The recommendations are usually incredibly accurate. According to Netflix, 80% of watched content comes from recommendations. In an age where brands across all industries are trying to predict what customers want next and create personalized recommendations, Netflix is setting the bar. Netflix also understands the need to constantly be innovating. The company has changed drastically from its original form of a DVD service. Looking for new technology and staying ahead of trends helps it define and disrupt the industry. Impacting Film And TV Industry Netflix affects many industries, but the greatest impact is felt in film and TV. Netflixs content is put right in front of customers for easy marketing. Netflix recently made a move into the independent film category, where traditional movies in theaters typically face an uphill battle being seen. Now, even small films can easily be seen on Netflix. Netflix is also in direct competition with traditional TV. The company used to be a boost to traditional shows and would draw users to existing shows that were still airing on TV. But since 2013, Netflix has been creating its own original content that puts it in direct competition. Essentially, for every show Netflix creates, its taking away viewers from a traditional show on network TV. After all, users can only watch so many things. Film and TV companies have to adjust their processes and content to keep up with Netflix. Its a move towards more convenient, personalized content. The success of Netflix shows that consumers want products that are easy to use and tailored to match their preferences. Every company, no matter the industry, can learn from Netflix and apply the principles of innovation, disruption and personalization. If they dont, they run the risk of being disrupted by the growing media giant that is Netflix. Blake Morgan is a customer experience futurist, author and speaker. You can stay in touch with her weekly on her newsletter here. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/blakemorgan/2019/02/19/what-is-the-netflix-effect/ |
How is Nolan Arenados future with the Rockies affected by Manny Machados mega deal? | SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. Infielder Manny Machados historic contract agreement with San Diego on Tuesday hit Major League Baseball like a tidal wave, but how it affects Nolan Arenados future with the Rockies remains to be seen. One thing, however, does seem clear: Arenado wants to explore all of his options. Machado agreed to a 10-year, $300 million deal with the Padres, according to various reports, making it the biggest free-agent contract in American sports history. Arenado, the six-time Gold Glove third baseman, and four-time all-star, is scheduled to become a free agent after the 2019 season, and Machados monstrous deal could make it difficult for the Rockies to make a similar offer. Arenado, though happy for Machado, said he wasnt sure what the news means to him. I dont know. I dont think it really has too much effect on me, he said after his morning workout here. Im happy he signed. Its good for baseball. Its a well-deserved contract. We need these guys signed and these guys playing ball. Im happy for him. I hope hes happy. I dont know if it has an effect on me, but hes a little bit younger teams look at things a little bit different because of that stuff. Arenado turns 28 on April 16, while Machado turns 27 on July 6. Asked if he thinks hell land a 10-year deal, Arenado laughed and said: I dont know. I dont know if teams are going to be giving that away to me. Arenado said hes considering a number of factors regarding his next contract, including the city hell play in, his next teams future and, of course, the money. Ive lived in Denver, but your mind cant help but wondering whats out there, right? he said. I cant help that, as a human, and as a person in this position, Im like, Hey, I dont know whats out there. Part of me wants to find out, but part of me wants to be one of the best Rockies players of all time. So those are the things I think about. Arenado also made it clear that he will consider the larger landscape of baseball and how his next contract will impact his fellow players, whom he called his brethren. Absolutely, he said. You have to think about baseball. I think you think about the group, and you are setting a standard for the guys around you. You definitely think about the players. Thats why we communicate with the players association about a lot of things. We have to understand whats good for the players. Arenado said hes a great positing heading into the 2019 season. I have a contract right now and I get to play ball this year and its most likely going to be with the Rockies, he said. Arenado signed a record one-year, $26 million contract prior to spring training to avoid facing salary arbitration. He had originally asked for $30 million and the Rockies countered with a $24 million offer. Arenado has repeatedly said he was happy with how those negotiations went. And Rockies owner Dick Monfort recently told The Denver Post that he was optimistic the club could construct a long-term deal to keep their third baseman. Im optimistic that we are close enough that something will come about, Monfort said. Its in Nolans hands, but my last impression with him is that this is something he wants to do. Negotiations have continued throughout the winter, but Arenado said there is no rush to work out a contract. The front office has been great, super honest and really open to questions, he said. If it doesnt get done this spring, thats OK. It doesnt mean it will never happen. Its a long season and the focus is on the team. The front office is trying to help us win games and Im trying to do the same thing, so that will be our No. 1 focus. | https://www.denverpost.com/2019/02/19/nolan-arenado-rockies-future-manny-machado-padres-contract/ |
How long can Japans delicate dance between China and Taiwan last? | On the second day of the new year, Chinas President Xi Jinping delivered a speech in which he called for the fulfillment of the historic task of reunifying Taiwan and the mainland by force, if necessary. Days later, Taiwans President Tsai Ing-wen appealed to the international community for help. The situation is dire. In mid-January, the Pentagon released a report in which the most concerning conclusion, according to a senior defense intelligence official, was that Beijing might soon trust its military capabilities enough to invade Taiwan. Taiwans friends in the United States have proposed that Ms. Tsai be invited to address a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress, a stunningly provocative move from Beijings perspective. Itd be an odd one, too, since the United States doesnt recognize her government. Story continues below advertisement Ms. Tsai has been trying to strengthen U.S. ties since Donald Trumps election, and even sparked an international incident by telephoning to congratulate him on winning the presidency. For her efforts, Mr. Trump has talked about Taiwan as a chip in China negotiations. Understandably, Ms. Tsai is cultivating other friends as well, but while they are numerous, one in particular stands out: Japan. In late 2015, then-candidate Ms. Tsai met key officials in Tokyo. One thing she lobbied for was for Taiwans membership in the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade accord, which wound up being scuppered by the United States withdrawal. On Jan. 18, 2016 two days after her electoral triumph Japans chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga indicated that they would support Taiwans entry. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, too, congratulated Ms. Tsai after her victory, calling Taiwan an important partner and a precious friend with whom they shared basic values. But they were careful to say that any deepening of co-operation would be based on the existing position to maintain Japan-Taiwan relations as working relationship on a non-governmental level. The two sides worked to take their relationship to the next stage. In October, 2016, they held a maritime co-operation dialogue and, a year later, they signed a memorandum of understanding on maritime search-and-rescue operations. Then, in January, 2017, Japan changed the name of its representative office in Taipei from the vague Interchange Association to the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association; months later, Taiwan followed suit by changing the name of its unofficial embassy in Japan from the unwieldy Association of East Asian Relations to the Taiwan-Japan Relations Association. This was a notable development. The old names were adopted in 1972 when Japan established relations with China precisely because they did not contain the word Taiwan to please Beijing. The new names acknowledge Taiwans existence and suggest equality between it and Japan. Beijing did not take kindly to the move. In spring 2017, Jiro Akama, Japans senior vice-minister for internal affairs and communications, flew to Taiwan to promote tourism, the highest-ranking official to visit Taiwan since 1972. Beijing protested, again. From Tokyos standpoint, its evolving partnership with Taipei is one of many that its trying to forge in the face of challenges posed by China. Japan has been working to build stronger rapport with Australia, India, the Philippines and Vietnam; likewise, Taiwan is pushing back on Chinese pressure by strengthening ties with many of the same countries. Relations between China and Japan have been in a deep-freeze, too, over a territorial dispute over the uninhabited Diaoyu Islands, or the Senkakus, in Japan. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement But in 2017, Mr. Abe proposed a thaw by holding regular summit meetings. He also announced that Japan would join Chinas Belt and Road Initiative. That November, Mr. Abe met Mr. Xi met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Vietnam. Mr. Xi told Mr. Abe that history and Taiwan were major issues of principle. Previously, China gave priority to history. Now, clearly, Taiwan has become a problem. Mr. Abes diplomatic dance seems to be working. Premier Li Keqiang visited Japan last May and Mr. Abe paid an official visit to China in October. In Beijing, Mr. Abe said that the bilateral relationship was shifting from competition to co-operation. China and Japan agreed that each should see the other as a partner, not a threat. However, all the old issues remain unresolved. It will take political will on both sides to set their differences aside. The question now is how Japans improved relationship with China will affect its developing bonds with Taiwan. Only time will tell. Japan cannot ignore the reality of Chinas rapidly rising military and its huge economy, but Tokyo will also need to keep this neighbour in check. How Japan responds to Taiwans formal request to join the revised TPP will be one straw in the wind: Despite the political sensitivity, Japan announced last week that it would welcome the bid. | https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-how-long-can-japans-delicate-dance-between-china-and-taiwan-last/ |
How Many Iconic Things Can The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills Fit In a One Minute Clip? | Sometimes, all you need is one minute of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills to satisfy all your Housewives cravings. Nothing too crazy is actually happening in the exclusive clip below, but at the same time, so much is happening. It's all about how the whole gang is taking a trip on a private plane to a brand new resort in the Bahamas, and we even get one of those filtered flashbacks to another time when Erika talked about going on a private plane. Not everyone gets the chance to fly on a private plane, you see. Even as this clip is just everyone talking about how fancy it is to go on a private plane, we were mesmerized by a whole bunch of iconic things. | https://www.eonline.com/news/1016406/how-many-iconic-things-can-the-real-housewives-of-beverly-hills-fit-in-a-one-minute-clip |
What can we expect from Manny Machado with the Padres? | CLOSE What I'm Hearing: MLB insider Bob Nightengale discusses how the Padres were able to land Manny Machado and how it impacts the market for Byrce Harper. The Padres already have one of the best, if not the best farm system in baseball, so even though they finished last season with a 66-96 record, the immediate future seems significantly brighter. A two-time Gold Glove winner at third base, Machado instantly gives the Padres a huge upgrade at a position that had no clear occupant entering the winter. But his greatest contributions will come at the plate. Let's take a closer look: Manny Machado hit 37 home runs and drove in a career-high 107 runs last season with the Baltimore Orioles and Los Angeles Dodgers. (Photo11: Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY Sports) Ballpark effects San Diego's Petco Park has been notoriously pitcher-friendly since it opened in 2004. However, last season it tilted slightly hitter-friendly (+3% above average in scoring, according to ESPN's Park Factors). Meanwhile, Machado's two home parks last season Oriole Park at Camden Yards and Dodger Stadium were both below-average in promoting scoring. Where Petco Park could impact Machado the most is in the home run department. He tied his career high of 37 home runs last season with the benefit of playing in two home parks that ranked ninth and 11th for homers (+12% and +6%). Petco Park, meanwhile, depressed home runs by 7%. If conditions remain the same in 2019, a lesser percentage of Machado's offensive contributions in San Diego will come via the home run. (As a result, his fantasy value takes a slight hit falling from the No. 11 overall player to No. 19 in USA TODAY Sports' Top 200 rankings.) Playing in the NL West, the benefits of traveling to Coors Field in Denver will likely be outweighed by road trips to pitcher-friendly parks in San Francisco and, (with the new humidor) Phoenix. Lineup impact Even if he doesn't quite duplicate his 37 homers from a year ago, Machado gives a major boost to a Padres offense that was one of the worst in the majors in 2018, ranking 28th out of 30 teams at 3.81 runs per game. Having Machado, 26, hit in the heart of the order will definitely help. He posted career-best numbers in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging last season (.297/.367/.538), while driving in over 100 runs for the first time. Though he played shortstop almost exclusively last season, he'll likely take over as the starting third baseman in San Diego. By comparison, Padres third basemen hit a collective .231/.299/.409 in 2018. Here's what a potential Padres lineup might look like: 2B Ian Kinsler 1B Eric Hosmer 3B Manny Machado RF Hunter Renfroe LF WIl Myers CF Franchy Cordero SS Luis Urias C Austin Hedges According to Baseball Musings' Lineup Analysis tool, Machado's presence in the Padres' projected lineup would increase production to 4.01 runs/game, moving them ahead of three teams in last year's rankings. However, hitting Hosmer (and his .332 OBP) in the leadoff spot and moving Kinsler to third projects for 4.26 runs/game -- which would move them up seven spots overall. Even with Machado, the Padres offense is still below-average. However, the wealth of young talent coming up through the farm system particularly SS Fernando Tatis Jr. should provide even more punch in the years to come. Follow Gardner on Twitter @SteveAGardner | https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/padres/2019/02/19/manny-machado-padres-petco-park/2917443002/ |
Which NCAA Tournament seed is predicted for LSU this week? | At this point in the season, it appears that the No. 13 LSU Tigers have basically reached lock status for the NCAA Tournament. With six games to go in regular season play, the Tigers appear in all 119 brackets on bracketmatrix.com and are seeded highly at that. The Bracket Project compiles bracket forecasts from all over the web, tracking teams movement in projections all season long. Currently, LSUs average seed in those 109 brackets is 3.64, meaning plenty of bracket forecasters have LSU at either a No. 3 or a No. 4 seed. The highest seed LSU is currently receiving is a No. 2 seed (three bracket forecasts) and the lowest is a No. 6 seed (one bracket prediction). Some of the more notable bracket predictions out there all have LSU seeded highly, too. ESPNs Joe Lunardi had LSU as a No. 5 seed before it upset Kentucky. In his most recent iteration released on Tuesday, he has the Tigers. as the No. 4 seed in the East, facing No. 13 seed Hofstra. That game would be played in Jacksonville, Florida. Jerry Palms Bracketology for CBS Sports, on Monday, had LSU as the No. 3 seed in the West, facing No. 14 seed Old Dominion. USA Todays Bracketology also has LSU as the No. 3 seed in the West, taking on No. 14 Old Dominion. That game would also be played in Jacksonville, Florida. Sports Illustrateds Bracket Watch, on Monday, had LSU as the No. 3 seed in the East, facing No. 14 seed Texas State. The Athletic releases its Bracket Watch on Wednesdays. Last week, after LSUs win over Kentucky but before the Georgia game, LSU was placed as the Easts No. 4 seed, facing No. 13 seed Yale. That game would be played in Salt Lake City. LSU hasnt been higher than a No. 4 seed since 1981 when the Tigers were a No. 1 seed. The last time the Tigers made the NCAA Tournament was in 2015, and they were a No. 9 seed that year. LSU was a No. 8 seed in 2009, and a No. 4 seed in 2006. Will Wades VCU teams in 2016 and 2017 were No. 10 seeds both years. LSUs Will Wade on the NET Rankings: Their formula is wrong' The NCAA created the NET NCAA Evaluation Tool to replace the RPI, but it has received some backlash from coaches. The lingo Plenty of things are factored into seeding for the NCAA Tournament. The full process can be found here. A look at the NET team sheet breaks things down for each individual team and what various wins/losses mean. But before diving into that, a primer on the quadrant system. The quadrant system (Quadrants 1, 2, 3 and 4) was introduced for the 2018 tournament, replacing the RPIs top 50, 100, 150 categories. The quadrants show how good a teams wins are, or how bad their losses are. Each quadrant is divided based on a combination of the location of the game home, neutral court, or away and the opponents NET ranking. So, Quadrant 1 wins are the most impressive, while Quadrant 4 wins arent one to write home about. Even though the NCAA moved away from the RPI to the NET rankings system, the quadrants are the same from last season: Quadrant 1: Home NET 1-30; Neutral NET 1-50; Away NET 1-75 Quadrant 2: Home 31-75; Neutral 51-100; Away 76-135 Quadrant 3: Home 76-160; Neutral 101-200; Away 136-240 Quadrant 4: Home 161-plus; Neutral 201-plus; Away 241-plus. How this works: LSUs game on Wednesday in Baton Rouge against Florida (No. 33 in the latest NET) is a Quadrant 2 contest because the Gators are just outside the NETs Top-30. But when the Tigers travel to Gainesville near the end of the season, thats a Quadrant 1 game because its on the road and Florida is well within the NETs Top-75. LSU has six Quadrant 1 wins and two Quadrant 1 losses. Four of those Quadrant 1 wins came away from home (Kentucky, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Arkansas) and one was a neutral-court game against Saint Marys. LSUs two quadrant one losses were to Houston and Florida State. The Auburn game is the lone Quadrant 1 win for LSU thats occurred in Baton Rouge. LSU has three more Quadrant 1 games left to play in the regular season (vs. Tennessee, at Florida, at Alabama). The Tigers have seven Quadrant 2 wins and two Quadrant 2 losses. The wins over Furman, Missouri, UNC Greensboro and Memphis all fell in Quadrant 2, as did the home win over Alabama, the road win over Texas A&M and the road win over Georgia. The two Quadrant 2 losses were the home loss to Arkansas and the ugly early-season Oklahoma State loss. Wednesdays game against Florida is LSUs last Quadrant 2 game of the regular season. LSU is 5-0 against Quadrant 3 opponents with two more games against Quadrant 3 foes on the schedule (vs. Texas A&M, vs. Vanderbilt). The Tigers also went 3-0 against Quadrant 4 opponents. According to LSUs team sheet, the Tigers have the 18th toughest schedule overall and had the ninth toughest non-conference schedule. No. 13 LSU plays host to Florida on Wednesday and No. 5 Tennessee on Saturday. | https://www.nola.com/lsu/2019/02/which-ncaa-tournament-seed-is-predicted-for-lsu-this-week.html |
What will change for Michigan State's Xavier Tillman in new starting role? | CLOSE Nick Ward and his Michigan State teammates discuss Ward's injured left hand, and the impact it will have on the 10th-ranked Spartans, Feb. 18, 2019. Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press EAST LANSING Xavier Tillman knows his minutes are going to increase as he becomes the likely replacement in No. 10 Michigan State basketballs starting lineup for Nick Ward. That does not mean the sophomore forward plans to do anything differently. My mindset doesnt really change. Just keep doing what Ive been doing, Tillman said after practice Monday. Stay dependable, stay consistent. It will be another adjustment for the Spartans as they prepare to host Rutgers at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. MSU (21-5, 12-3 Big Ten) already has been playing without Joshua Langford, who went out with a foot injury in late December and had season-ending surgery earlier this month. Xavier Tillman #23 of the Michigan State Spartans reacts after a basket against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights during the second half of a college basketball game at the Rutgers Athletic Center on November 30, 2018 in Piscataway, New Jersey. Michigan State defeated Rutgers 78-67. (Photo11: Rich Schultz/Getty Images) Losing the 6-foot-9 Ward disrupts the Spartans three-man post rotation in which coach Tom Izzo has been able to blend his junior star along with senior Kenny Goins as starters and Tillman as the top big man off the bench. Izzo knows there will be an adjustment period but feels comfortable that Tillman can fill in for Ward in the starting group whether that means a few games or the remainder of the season. All these roles are gonna have to be maybe a little bit more specifically defined for him. Like, maybe its not the time to be stepping out and shooting 3s if you can make 1 out of 3 because maybe we need you inside a little bit more, Izzo said. Were just gonna make some adjustments and theyre gonna be adjustments, not overhauls. And of all the guys on my team, I dont think theres a better guy to make adjustments with than Xavier. I think he gets it, he understands it, he is selfless, he cares about the team, the program. I think hes gonna adjust just fine. Tillman averages 8.3 points and 6.9 points rebounds in 21.5 minutes per game. Izzo gave him the first start of his two collegiate seasons on Feb. 5 at Illinois to send a message to an at-the-time slumping Ward. The 6-8, 245-pound Tillman scored a career-high 16 points with eight rebounds in the loss to the Illini. MIchigan State forward Xavier Tillman (23) had 11 points and eight rebounds over 30 minutes against Shaquille Doorson (2) and Rutgers in the Spartans' 78-67 win on Nov. 30 in Piscataway, New Jersey. (Photo11: Vincent Carchietta/USA TODAY Sports) Now comes the challenge for Tillman of trying to minimize foul problems with additional minutes he had four and sat a long stretch of Sundays 62-44 win over the Buckeyes while hoping to increase his scoring and rebounding to try and help replace the 15.1 points and 6.7 rebounds a game lost with Ward sidelined indefinitely after left hand surgery. Im one of those guys if somebodys about to score, thats the last thing I want for pride I dont want you to score so Im trying to block the shot. Im not really trying to foul you, Im trying to block the shot or get the steal or something like that, said Tillman, who leads MSU with 42 blocks and is second with 27 steals. But yeah, Im just gonna have to let some of those plays go and (give up) the 2 points. Forward Thomas Kithier is expected to assume Tillmans top sub role, with fellow freshman Marcus Bingham Jr. and redshirt sophomore Braden Burke next in line for time should foul trouble arise. More: Nick Ward's injury could help Michigan State basketball. Here's why More: Four Michigan State players who could step up in Nick Ward's absence And the Spartans might need all of those bodies against Rutgers (12-13, 5-10), which possesses a deep and massive frontcourt. The Scarlet Knights feature 7-foot center Shaquille Doorson and 6-7 forward Eugene Omoruyi as starters, with 6-9 Shaq Carter and three others who are either 6-9 or 6-10 in reserve. Doorson, at 275 pounds, possesses the same bulk as Ohio States Kaleb Wesson, but Tillman believes they possess different skill-sets that make facing Rutgers an equally tough task. (Doorson) is a taller guy. Not as many post moves, but more athletic as a 7-foot body, so thats kind of different, Tillman said. Hes strong, too. But I feel like hes more athletic, and Wesson probably has better post moves. Tillman had 11 points and eight rebounds over 30 minutes in the first meeting with Rutgers, a 78-67 MSU win on Nov. 30 in Piscataway, New Jersey. Ward scored 20 points with five rebounds in that game and is confident in his understudies, and he helped tutor the younger post players at practice Monday while wearing a sling covering surgically repaired his left hand. He did not feel he needed to do as much for Tillman. I gave him a couple tips, Ward said, but I think hes ready to roll. Contact Chris Solari at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter. | https://www.freep.com/story/sports/college/michigan-state/spartans/2019/02/19/michigan-state-basketball-xavier-tillman-nick-ward/2917073002/ |
Is "zombie deer disease" a threat to humans? | It may sound like a scene out of a horror movie, but cases of "zombie deer disease" are popping up across the Midwest and some experts are warning it could pose a threat to humans. The illness, which is actually called chronic wasting disease, affects free-ranging deer, elk, and moose. The disease erodes the brain so the animal salivates and acts lethargic, in a sort of zombie-like state. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says cases of chronic wasting disease have been reported at least 24 states, as well as two provinces in Canada. The disease is always fatal. It is thought to spread between animals through contact with contaminated body fluids and tissue. It can also be transmitted indirectly through environmental exposures, such as in tainted drinking water or food. "It's a disease that you can't get rid of," Dale Garner, wildlife chief for Iowa's Division of Natural Resources, told CBS Chicago. "There's no cure so far. So as long as you have deer on the landscape, and it continues to spread from animal to animal, you'll probably have more." To date, there have been no cases of chronic wasting disease, or CWD, in humans. However, some experts have raised concerns that it could pose a threat to people. Michael Osterholm, the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, recently warned that the nature of the disease is similar to mad cow disease, which can be transmitted from infected cows to people. "It is my best professional judgment based on my public health experience that it is probable that human cases of CWD associated with the consumption of contaminated meat will be documented in the years ahead. It is possible that number of human cases will be substantial and will not be isolated events," he said, according to the Twin Cities Pioneer Press. Like mad cow and Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease in humans, chronic wasting disease is believed to be caused by abnormal proteins called prions which multiply and cause damage to the brain and spinal cord. To be as safe as possible and to decrease the potential risk of exposure to chronic wasting disease, the CDC recommends that people not touch road kill and that hunters not shoot, handle or eat meat from deer and elk that look sick or are acting strangely. Hunters should also wear gloves when dressing deer and should have the meat tested before eating it. | https://www.cbsnews.com/news/is-zombie-deer-disease-a-threat-to-humans/ |
Where are Holston Medical Groups offices in Charlotte, NC? | Novant Health said a group of 40 doctors planning to exit the hospital system are leaving more than two months sooner than expected, and their last day will now be March 18. Whats more, the doctors have decided not to practice in their current locations. On Tuesday, they said that they will open 13 new offices in Charlotte, Denver, NC, Huntersville and Mooresville. The developments come after Novant confirmed in January that 41 doctors planned to leave Charlottes second-largest hospital system. The figure has since dropped to 40, after one doctor decided to remain with Novant rather than join Tennessee-based Holston Medical Group, Novant has said. In a statement in January, Holston said that it and the doctors want to introduce new models of care and technologies to better serve patients and at lower costs. Sign Up and Save Get six months of free digital access to The Charlotte Observer Experts say that some doctors nationwide have become discontent with being employed by hospitals, which can impose patient quotas and leave physicians with limited control over business decisions. In January, Novant said it had decided to transfer some of its physician offices and medical clinic lease agreements to the doctors. But in its update last week, Novant said the doctors said that they wont be using those sites but, instead, will find new locations. Initially, the doctors asked to retain all of the clinic locations where they currently practice, Novant said in the update. But Danielle Cannon, a spokeswoman for Holston, said there were never any legal agreements for the doctors to lease the Novant spaces. The six locations were: 106 Langtree Village Drive in Mooresville; 6909 Prosperity Church Road in Huntersville; 16525 Holly Crest Lane in Huntersville; 10816 Black Dog Lane, Suite 160, in Charlotte; 14330 Oakhill Park Lane in Huntersville; and 269 Gillman Road in Denver. The final day Novant also said in its update that it was notified last week about the doctors March 18 departure date. Thats sooner than expected, Novant said. In their resignation letters, the doctors had requested an extension allowing them to remain with the system through May 31, Novant said. Cannon said the doctors were not legally bound to remain with the system past March 18 under their employment agreements with Novant. On Tuesday, Holston said contracts between Holston and major insurance companies are expected to be finalized soon. David Cook, one of the Novant doctors spearheading the split, said in a statement that nearly 5,000 patients so far have completed online forms indicating their desire to follow the doctors to Holston. Novant, based in Winston-Salem, has said it has about 900 doctors in the Charlotte area. Holston Medical Group was founded in 1977, according to its website, which says it is one of the largest multispecialty, physician-owned groups in the Southeast. Holston has offices throughout northeast Tennessee and southwest Virginia, according to its website. It marks the second time in less than a year that a large group of doctors in the Charlotte region announced plans to split from a hospital system. In April, about 92 doctors with Mecklenburg Medical Group sued to get out of non-compete contracts with Atrium Health and form an independent practice, Tryon Medical Partners. Atrium, Charlottes largest health care system, granted the doctors request by ending their employment agreements. | https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/banking/article226455875.html |
Could Amazon's Latest Acquisition Hurt Ubiquiti Networks? | Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) recently announced its acquisition of Eero, a maker of mesh home routers that deploy multiple Wi-Fi access points to eliminate the "dead zones" of traditional routers. Eero launched its first mesh routers three years ago, and other major companies -- including Alphabet's Google, Samsung, and Netgear -- followed suit. One of those rivals was Ubiquiti Networks (NASDAQ: UBNT), a networking equipment company that sells long-distance Wi-Fi products for service providers and enterprise customers. In 2016, Ubiquiti followed Eero into the mesh home router network with its AmpliFi wireless system, which includes a sleek box linked to mesh point antennas plugged into wall sockets. AmpliFi's router. More Image source: Ubiquiti Networks. AmpliFi got off to a rocky start with a last-minute redesign and high shipping costs in 2017. But it subsequently became a key component of Ubiquiti's Enterprise Technology unit, which also sells its UniFi and MFi hardware devices to enterprise customers. What AmpliFi means to Ubiquiti The AmpliFi mesh home routers represent Ubiquiti's first step into the consumer-facing market. In theory, that move would reduce its exposure to cyclical slowdowns in the enterprise and service provider markets. Ubiquiti doesn't disclose its AmpliFi revenue separately; its sales are included in the company's Enterprise Technology revenue, which rose 48% annually and accounted for 63% of its top line last quarter, up from 52% a year earlier. The rest of its revenue came from the Service Provider Technology business. Ubiquiti only occasionally discusses the sales of its AmpliFi products on its conference calls. During last year's second quarter conference call in February, CEO Robert Pera stated that Amplifi performed "extremely well" as "a profitable business." But in the third quarter, Pera stated that Amplifi was "doing OK" but "could be a lot better." Pera declared that the business was still generating "tens of millions of dollars of revenue rate" but didn't provide any exact numbers. Pera didn't offer any other notable updates over the following two quarters. This makes it tough to gauge AmpliFi's importance to Ubiquiti, but the growing weight of the Enterprise Technology business since AmpliFi's launch suggests that it generated a significant percentage of the unit's revenue last quarter. Therefore competition from other mesh home router makers won't derail Ubiquiti's entire business, but it could cripple its ability to meaningfully expand into the consumer-facing smart home market. | https://news.yahoo.com/could-amazon-apos-latest-acquisition-221100625.html |
Did Sierra Wireless Just Fire a Warning Shot on the Internet of Things? | The Internet of Things -- that oft-used and generic term that describes the internet-connection-enabling technology being placed in virtually everything -- has been hyped for years. According to tech researcher IDC, spending on the IoT is supposed to grow to $1.2 trillion by 2022, a 14% growth rate each year from now until then. That should be great news for IoT hardware and software provider Sierra Wireless (NASDAQ: SWIR), because the IoT is all the Canadian technologist concerns itself with. As internet connections continue to expand around the globe, sales at the company have climbed higher, and that happened in 2018 once again. However, flat outlook for 2019 -- including a new cost-cutting initiative that's usually reserved for companies exiting high-growth mode -- would indicate all's not well for the IoT specialist or the sand box it plays in. A good year, but... That isn't to say Sierra Wireless had a bad year. In fact, the company did post sales growth in line with IDC's long-term outlook for IoT spending. The problem was with the bottom line, where inconsistent performance has plagued the company for years. Metric Full-Year 2018 Full-Year 2017 Change (YOY) Revenue $794 million $691 million 15% Gross profit margin 33.3% 33.9% (0.6 p.p.) Operating expenses $283 million $234 million 21% Earnings (loss) per share ($0.68) $0.14 N/A Adjusted earnings per share $0.90 $1.05 (14%) Data source: Sierra Wireless. YOY = year over year. P.p. = percentage point. It's worth noting that part of Sierra's top-line growth is attributable to the acquisition of Numerix, an IoT software provider that helped Sierra's services segment double to $94 million in 2018. That was a good move as the gross margin on services (52.3% on the year) is better than Sierra's average and helps broaden the company's reach. Nevertheless, higher expenses -- especially the 44% surge in administration expense -- did a good job dragging down the bottom line. Higher expenses thus explain management's decision to put cost-cutting measures in place over the next couple of years. Research and development has been consolidated into a single team, as have the sales and marketing and product management teams. Total savings should be $40 to $50 million over the next 24 months. Paired with an outlook for flat sales growth in 2019 (including an expected 7% to 9% year-over-year drop in the first quarter), cost-cutting initiatives don't exactly inspire confidence. However, Sierra is still posting growth in its newest and highest-profit segments, and reducing expenses is signaling a shift in focus rather than problems with the IoT industry. An artist's illustration of the IoT. Data and charts are shown being shared around the globe More Image source: Getty Images. CEO Kent Thexton said that expected cost savings will be used to invest back into new product development, especially device connectivity to cloud-based networks, mobile 5G networks, and embedded SIM (a programmable mobile network management chip). Thexton said Sierra's total addressable market should grow to $10 billion a year by 2021, and investing in research will be key to keeping up. With 2018 revenues just shy of $800 million, that means there is plenty of room for the company to capture more sales in the next few years. That should also ease investors' worries that the IoT mega-trend is the problem. The flat outlook implies there will be a rebound later in 2019 after the expected sales drop in the first quarter. So, this looks like a temporary speed bump more than anything. Plus, Thexton said the connected auto segment is slowing, and profit margins are thinner than average, masking stronger performance in the company's network IoT business. The focus going forward will be on the latter, but there will be a transition period before results start to ramp higher again. | https://news.yahoo.com/did-sierra-wireless-just-fire-220600096.html |
Should cities offer huge tax breaks to companies? | Amazon pulled out of plans to build a new headquarters in New York City after the deal was roundly criticized by local politicians and activists. Many in the city were angry about the over $3 billion in tax abatement the company was given as an incentive to move into the nations largest metropolitan area. But lawmakers like Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo claimed the company would create enough jobs and increase property values to justify the lost taxes. The Week explains tax incentives are intended to convince companies to move into cities on the basis they will create new jobs and help grow the economy. Typically, local lawmakers claim the eventual benefit of increased jobs will more than recoup the lost tax revenue. Incentives are premised on the idea that businesses will hire workers and grow the local economy. Amazon, for example, has promised to hire 50,000 workers at an average salary of $100,000 per year at its new headquarters a prospect that has nearly every small and large city salivating. Economist Enrico Moretti of the University of California, Berkeley estimates that the spillover effects could lead to as many as 300,000 new jobs over the next two decades by attracting other technology firms as well as a host of other businesses to service the needs of an affluent workforce. Many experts said New Yorks deal with Amazon gave far too much away to the company. According to NBC News, many experts believe the company would have moved to New York with or without the tax incentives. The price was definitely too high. I think local people were right to complain, said Jeffrey Dorfman, an economics professor at the University of Georgia. Companies dont really need these incentives theyre not really deciding based on the incentives. Theyre deciding where to go and then conning the politicians out of a whole lot of money. As a case in point, Amazons simultaneous deal to build a new headquarters in Virginia showed they were willing to move for far less of a financial incentive. Not only did Virginia offer the company less in terms of tax incentives, but it also included the caveat that taxpayer money must be reinvested in the state in order to support Amazons business and directly into the companys bank account. Virginia offered Amazon $550 million in job-creation grants, which the company will receive only after delivering the proposed 25,000 jobs, with additional subsidies available if the company creates as many as 37,850 jobs. Virginias relatively small offer to Amazon reflected the states very few as-of-right incentives. Virginia threw into the package more than $1 billion in additional taxpayer funds to build a pipeline of technical workers and improve transportation. This portion of the subsidy will not go directly into Amazons pockets but into Virginia schools, universities, and local agencies. It is nearly twice the amount offered to Amazon, a signal that investing in the local work force is more important than offering sweeteners to Amazon. Gone in a New York minute: How the Amazon deal fell apart New Yorks Mayor Bill de Blasio has been on the offensive since Amazon decided to leave the city, saying critics, most notably Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, were misinformed about the way tax abatements function. Per the New York Post: During an appearance on NBCs Meet the Press, de Blasio agreed when host Chuck Todd said that the tax breaks offered to Amazon werent money you had over here. And it was going over there. Correct, de Blasio said. He added: And that $3 billion that would go back in tax incentives was only after we were getting the jobs and getting the revenue. To further drive home the point, Todd said, Theres not $3 billion in money Theres no money right, de Blasio said. The Wall Street Journal argued tax abatements would have been far more beneficial if they had been spread around the city to local businesses, which are already employing large local work forces, instead of being used to bribe an outside company into opening up a new outpost. Slathering on tax abatements and infrastructure promises to lure new development may be irresistible for communities but is always a second-best idea. For New York it was especially unnecessary given all the citys attractions. The city would be better off giving all businesses a tax cut. ...The world would be a better place, and New York would do better by its long-suffering job creators, if it spent less time dishing out favors to a handful of big-name companies. Political capital could be more intelligently employed making the state and city hospitable to businesses of all kinds, especially the smaller businesses that create most jobs. De Blasio, however, maintains the agreement would have been a major boon for the city. In a New York Times op-ed, the mayor claimed the city lost out on a huge influx of capital when the company decided to pull out of its agreement. The agreement we struck with Amazon back in November was a solid foundation. It would have created: at least 25,000 new jobs, including for unionized construction and service workers; partnerships with public colleges; and $27 billion in new tax revenue to fuel priorities from transit to affordable housing a ninefold return on the taxes the city and state were prepared to forgo to win the headquarters. The Tylt is focused on debates and conversations around news, current events and pop culture. We provide our community with the opportunity to share their opinions and vote on topics that matter most to them. We actively engage the community and present meaningful data on the debates and conversations as they progress. The Tylt is a place where your opinion counts, literally. The Tylt is an Advance Local Media, LLC property. Join us on Twitter @TheTylt, on Instagram @TheTylt or on Facebook, wed love to hear what you have to say. | https://www.cleveland.com/nation/2019/02/should-cities-offer-huge-tax-breaks-to-companies.html |
Is high finance growing a social conscience? | LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Financiers who turnaround companies by injecting them with capital are increasingly considering the environmental and social impact of their investments, according to a survey published today by consulting firm PwC. The survey found a growing cohort of these financiers, called private equity firms, have embraced this ethical investment strategy, known as responsible investing or environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing. For a long time, responsible investing was a niche strategy within finance. But increasingly investors are waking up to the fact that they can do good as well as achieving financial returns. PwC polled 162 finance companies from 35 countries, including 145 private equity companies, for its fourth Private Equity Responsible Investment Survey. It found 91 percent of respondents have adopted or are developing responsible investment policies, up from 80 percent in 2013. Meanwhile, 35 percent of the firms polled have formed in-house teams to ensure their investments are responsible. This is really showing they are taking responsible investment seriously and it is becoming more mainstream, Phil Case, a director at PwC and co-author of the report, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. The survey also showed a growing awareness among financiers of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a series of targets to combat global problems, such as poverty, hunger, gender inequality and climate change. According to the survey, 67 percent of respondents selected development goals to tackle that are relevant for the businesses they invest in. In 2016 the year after the SDGs launched just 38 percent did this. What we are seeing in the market, including private equity, is more and more firms hang their sustainability strategies or ESG strategies around the SDGs, so they are being seen as a very useful framework, said Case. However, he warned that there is scope for financiers to exaggerate their allegiance to the development goals. Not all firms are taking the SDGs as seriously as others, he said. The survey showed that human rights and climate change were also high on the agenda for the private equity community. It found 76 percent of respondents said they were concerned about human rights issues, such as poor labor practices within supply chains. Meanwhile, 83 percent are concerned about the impact climate change could have on the businesses they invest in. | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-world-private-equity-finance/is-high-finance-growing-a-social-conscience-idUSKCN1Q82O6 |
How Will Bernie Sanders Distinguish Himself from the 2020 Field? | In an interview that aired Tuesday morning, in conjunction with his Presidential-campaign announcement, Bernie Sanders was asked about the Democratic Partys leftward shift. I guess thats one way of looking at it, Sanders said, laughing. But no. I know many of the people, certainly the senators, who are running. And, without exception, I am fond of them. I think what maybe distinguishes this campaign from the others, he said, is not only that these are, in fact, issues that we did raise and had to take on enormous opposition as we did but also thatwhat I understand from the bottom of my heartthat real change in this country will never come about unless there is struggle, unless millions of people stand up and fight for that change. Unlike in 2016, progressive voters in 2020 will have their pick of candidates offering similar platformsminority and female candidates among them, and all younger than Sanders. He could try making the case that the others will be less committed shepherds of the progressive agenda, given their tardiness to backing some of his proposals, but its not clear how much internecine fighting a primary electorate focussed on beating Donald Trump is willing to stomach. Sanders could become the first in the race to fully embrace procedural reforms, such as eliminating the filibuster, necessary to pass many of the ideas that he and the rest of the candidates are proposing. But he hasnt demonstrated a real interest in procedural questions. In his interview with Dickerson, he dismissed the idea of eliminating the filibuster out of hand. His opponents are staking out territory more ambitious, in some ways, than that of his last campaign. Elizabeth Warren has proposed to grant workers at very large corporations a substantial say in corporate governance; Kamala Harris and Cory Booker have offered proposals inspired by progressive interest in ideas like a federal job guarantee and basic income. Granted, Sanders might not have to define a clear ideological space for himself to do wellhe has extremely high name recognition, broad popularity within the Party, and a dedicated base of supporters excited to donate and organize on his behalf. But, if Sanders decides to draw clearer distinctions between himself and his opponents, he has a few options, including doing what hes pushed his opponents to domove left. | https://www.newyorker.com/news/current/how-will-bernie-sanders-distinguish-himself-from-the-2020-field |
Will a pro athlete ever sign a $1 billion contract with a U.S. team? | Manny Machado reportedly agreed to a 10-year contract worth $300 million with the Padres on Tuesday, meaning the first of two giant dominoes of this baseball offseason has finally fallen. Whenever Bryce Harper signs likely for 10 years and even more money, and likely soon now that Machado has made a match we will once again marvel at the dollar sign with all the zeroes. Really, it's not that far-fetched when you consider how far things have come already while also factoring in inflation. If we isolate on baseball, we find a handy reference chart of single-year salary milestones and the first players to reach them, via Baseball Almanac. Babe Ruth in 1922 was the first $50,000 a year player. We didn't get the first $1 million player 20 times what Ruth made until Nolan Ryan signed for that much per season in 1979, a full 57 years later. Just 21 years after that, in 2000, both Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez reached $20 million a season, that same 20-fold increase. Things have slowed down enough that nobody would envision a player making 20 times that $400 million in a single season anytime soon. But let's say Harper signs soon for 10 years, $350 million the largest overall deal and single-season value ($35 million) in MLB history in a sport that traditionally has combined lucrative contracts with long ones. Even if salaries "only" increase by 2 percent every year a good estimation of inflation a 10-year deal equal to Harper's would top $1 billion a little more than 50 years from now. I'd be in my mid-nineties at that point, yelling at those overpaid bums as I watched in seven-dimension virtual reality. Plenty of you would be even younger (and perhaps still yelling at the CHEAP POHLADS for only offering $800 million). Of course, simply accounting for the past and inflation as a means for explaining the future doesn't take into account the history-altering surprises that will undoubtedly unfold in the next half-century. The rapid acceleration of salaries has coincided with an almost Monopoly money-like growth in television money. It stands to reason that there will be some sort of tipping point (and/or viewer revolt) as broadcast rights become more fragmented. If there is some sort of reckoning likely brought on by an eventual reduction in television contracts, a worldwide revolution or both that started bringing average salaries back down, $1 billion wouldn't happen. If the growth curve continues to ascend and the rich keep getting richer, maybe it won't take a half-century. If you think that sounds absurd, think of how a $300 million-plus contract would have sounded in 1979 when Ryan inked that million dollar a year deal. Maybe if and when it ever happens, a $1 billion contract won't even seem so strange to a lot of people. | http://www.startribune.com/will-a-pro-athlete-ever-sign-a-1-billion-contract-with-a-u-s-team/506059342/ |
Has Bitcoin Broken Free From Its Bear Market? | Bitcoin has shown signs of improvement lately, experiencing notable price gains and robust sentiment. This piece will examine some market data, including price fluctuations and figures surrounding the sentiment of traders. In addition, it will consider the input of several analysts. [Ed note: Investing in cryptocoins or tokens is highly speculative and the market is largely unregulated. Anyone considering it should be prepared to lose their entire investment.] Bullish Market Conditions Bitcoin prices have rallied lately, climbing more than 10% in roughly 24 hours, according to CoinDesk data. The world's largest digital currency by market value rose to as much as $3,975.89 earlier today, an approximately 11.4% gain from 24 hours prior. During roughly the same time frame, the broader cryptocurrency market climbed 11% from $121.5 billion to $134.8 billion, CoinMarketCap figures show. Strong Sentiment Data These price gains have coincided with an uptick in market sentiment, according to data supplied by cryptocurrency analytics platform TheTIE.io. "Daily sentiment on Bitcoin was positive beginning at around 12PM EST on February 15th preceding the upwards price movement. Daily sentiment peaked at 4:30 PM EST yesterday, and has remained strongly positive since then," said Joshua Frank, cofounder of TheTIE.io. "Today, tweet volume is 14.7% above its 30 day moving average, while trading volume is 61.1% higher than normal." The chart below illustrates the cryptocurrency's price fluctuations and changes in sentiment. The optimism of traders was apparent not only in bitcoin, but also in other major digital currencies. "Among the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market cap, 10 have daily sentiment which is either high or very high, while 10 have neutral daily sentiment," said Frank. "None of the 20 largest cryptocurrencies currently have negative daily sentiment." "Only 3 of the 50 largest cryptocurrencies: Decred, 0x, and Paxos Standard Token, currently have negative daily sentiment." Analysts Weigh In While these signs may seem encouraging, several analysts threw cold water on the hopes that the crypto bear market has finally ended. "While we are very optimistic about the long-term prospects of Bitcoin and the crypto market, we agree that the bear market is not quite over yet," said Joe DiPasquale, CEO of cryptocurrency fund of hedge funds BitBull Capital. He elaborated, stating that "We believe there will be a steady rise of Bitcoin through the year, passing $5K by the end of the year." "Once Bitcoin establishes a stable price level above $4,500 and possibly crosses $5,000, we can begin to believe that the bears have had enough," concluded DiPasquale. "I think it's still too early to conclude that the bear market is over," said Tim Enneking, managing director of Digital Capital Management. "While BTC has risen significantly off its lows, its still below the $4.2k level hit in early January," he emphasized. Mati Greenspan, senior market analyst for social trading platform eToro, provided a similar view. "Investors are questioning whether or not the bear has finally retreated," he emphasized. However, "the bear market is still very much in play." Disclosure: I own some bitcoin, bitcoin cash and ether. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/cbovaird/2019/02/19/has-bitcoin-broken-free-from-its-bear-market/ |
Should I Take a Job With My Companys Spinoff? | Q. My employer is spinning off one of its divisions into a separate company. I've been offered a choice to stay with the parent company or accept a role in the spinoff. I'm torn between the two and would appreciate some Foolish perspective. First of all, congratulations on being given a choice in the matter. In many cases in spinoffs, the option that affected employees are given is: "Here's your job offer. Take it, or consider yourself voluntarily separated from service." Unfortunately, I'm not sure anyone can give you the perfect answer to your question. A lot depends on both the companies involved and your own personal interests and skills. Given that you do have the opportunity to choose between them, however, consider these five key questions that might help you decide which path is right for you. Book with divestiture written on the cover More Spinoffs come with opportunities and pitfalls. Image source: Getty Images. 1. There are several reasons why a company will spin off a division. If you can figure out why it's happening at your company, it may help point you in the right direction. If the division itself is performing poorly, a spinoff may be the company's way to eliminate jobs without looking like the bad guy in front of the financial media. In that case, not too long after the spinoff is complete, the spun-off business may very well eliminate jobs, putting you in the position of needing to find another one. In other cases, the parent company itself is flailing, and it's looking to load up its spinoff with debt to get that debt off its own balance sheet and buy itself more breathing room. If that's what's happening in your case, the good news is that the parent company thinks your spinoff is strong enough to handle the debt. The bad news, however, is that too much leverage can sink a company when times turn tough, even if it would otherwise have been able to survive. The best case for the spinoff, however, is that the company believes that being part of the parent organization is holding back the growth of the division being spun off. For instance, many believe that Amazon.com should spin off its Web Services division to truly maximize the value of that business line. After all, many other retailers avoid using Amazon Web Services specifically because it is associated with Amazon -- and strongly encourage their suppliers to do the same. In that line of thinking, Amazon Web Services could potentially grow faster as a separate business than it could as part of Amazon.com, since it could draw from a much larger customer base. 2. Ultimately, for any job to work out for you, it needs to be one that you can perform well in and that keeps you engaged enough to deliver results even when you're working on the not-so-fun parts of it. Take the opportunity of your decision window to talk with your potential managers and co-workers in both companies and see what their visions are for what you'll be doing. You may find that one role simply speaks much more clearly to you than the other does, making your decision that much easier. 3. If the spinoff ends up succeeding, taking the plunge and moving to it may very well give you the opportunity to move up through the ranks quicker. After all, the new business will likely launch with less overhead and fewer resources than it could count on in the parent company's structure. As it evolves, it may discover that it got value from some of those other resources and add them for itself. As someone already on the inside, you may be well positioned to help lead those efforts and thus move up. | https://news.yahoo.com/job-company-spinoff-234500354.html |
How will Pope Francis deal with abuse in the Catholic Church? | Image copyright Getty Images In an effort to deal with the sex scandals rocking the Roman Catholic Church, the Pope has convened an extraordinary summit of bishops in Rome. This follows his recent, unprompted, admission that priests had exploited nuns as "sex slaves" at a convent in France. Pope Francis decided to call this global conference after discussions with the so-called C9. This is the group of nine cardinal advisers who were appointed soon after Francis was elected. The Pope is under serious pressure to provide leadership and generate workable solutions to what is the most pressing crisis facing the modern Church. Stories of abuse have emerged in every corner of the world. And the Church has been accused of covering up crimes committed by priests, leaving its moral authority in tatters. Pope Francis must also confront the assumptions, attitudes and practices that have allowed a culture of abuse to flourish. The extent of this challenge may prove overwhelming. Image copyright Jason Berry Image caption Journalist Jason Berry was one of the first people to expose the extent of abuse in the Church The summit, to be attended by the heads of all national bishops' conferences from more than 130 countries, is only the beginning of an attempt to address a sickness that has been poisoning the Church since at least the 1980s. When Jason Berry, a local newspaper reporter in the US state of Louisiana, began following the story of an abusive priest called Father Gilbert Gauthe, he did not expect his work to ignite an international scandal that is still ablaze more than 30 years later. Mr Berry's work led to the 1992 book Lead Us Not Into Temptation, based on civil legal actions that the Church settled with multiple accusers towards the end of the 1980s. In 2002, Mr Berry's work was followed by an investigation at the Boston Globe newspaper that provided an even more extensive narrative of clergy abuse and cover-up. The journalists won a prestigious Pulitzer Prize and their work was dramatised in the film Spotlight. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The work of the Boston Globe's Michael Rezendes, (left), Walter V Robinson, and Sascha Pfieffer (right) led to the Academy Award-winning film Spotlight The scandals kept coming. Consider six of the eight Roman Catholic dioceses in the state of Pennsylvania, which were the subject of scrutiny last year. The State Attorney, Josh Shapiro, subpoenaed and reviewed half a million internal diocesan documents. Dozens of witnesses gave evidence, some clergy admitted to their offences. Mr Shapiro's report, published in December, was devastating. "Over 1,000 child victims were identifiable from the Church's own records," he wrote, with "credible allegations against over 300 predator priests". The report, which is more than 1,000 pages long, covers the past 70 years - and the examples are horrific. In the diocese of Scranton, a priest raped a girl and when she became pregnant arranged for an abortion. The priest's line manager, his area bishop, wrote a letter. "This is a very difficult time in your life and I realise how upset you are," he wrote. "I too share your grief." The letter was not addressed to the girl, but the priest. In another diocese, a priest visited a seven-year-old girl in hospital after she had undergone a tonsillectomy - and raped her. In another, a priest abused a nine-year-old and then rinsed out the boy's mouth with holy water "to purify him". The report concluded that predatory paedophiles had been able to abuse children because the Church hid their activities by moving accused clerics on to other parishes and not reporting their offences to the police. Rape claims The Rt Rev Franco Mulakkal had risen from small-town Kerala, on India's south-west coast, to become a bishop in the north of the country. He was arrested in September 2018, following allegations from a nun that he regularly visited her convent in order to rape her. The bishop, who has temporarily stood down from ministry, has denied all the charges, telling reporters the accusations are "baseless and concocted". Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Catholic nuns in Kerala, India, are calling for the arrest of the Rt Rev Franco Mulakkal, of Jalandhar, for alleged rape In a letter, written by the nun to her superiors, she claimed the first rape had happened in May 2014 and the last in September 2016. In January, the nuns appealed to the chief minister of Kerala to intervene on their behalf, after Church officials allegedly ordered them to leave the state, in an effort to clean up the mess. Nuns have complained that they are exploited because they are often reliant upon priests and bishops for their accommodation and fear abandonment if they fight back against abusive clergy. In Malawi, where HIV prevalence among adults up to the age of 64 is more than 10%, nuns are also alleged to have been targeted because they are regarded as "pure" and much less likely to be carrying the virus. 'Never again' pledge In 2012, the Australian government announced a Royal Commission, which was charged with investigating institutional responses to child abuse. The organisations involved included residential care centres for young people, schools, sports, arts and other community groups, and the Church. The commission concluded that 7% of Australia's Roman Catholic priests had allegedly abused children between 1950 and 2010. In one religious order, the St John of God Brothers, 40% of its leaders were accused of abusing children. Chrissie Foster, the mother of two children who were abused by priests in Melbourne, complained to the authorities. She told BBC News that instead of addressing her concerns, the family became the subject of a whispering campaign. "They said that we were liars, that we were after money," she said. "That's what they would say to parishioners. It was much easier to believe that lie than the truth that priests were sexually abusing children." In August 2018, the Roman Catholic Church in Australia published its formal response to the Royal Commission. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Chrissie Foster is the mother of two children who were abused by priests in Melbourne, Australia Archbishop the Most Reverend Mark Coleridge, president of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, said that "far too many" clergy, religious and lay people within the Church in Australia had "failed in their duty to protect and honour the dignity of all including and especially the most vulnerable, our children and our young people". "With one voice, the bishops and the leaders of religious orders here this morning make the pledge, 'Never again,'" he said. 'Appalling abuse' Last summer, Britain's Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse published a report on two of the most prestigious Roman Catholic schools in the UK: Ampleforth College, in North Yorkshire, and Downside School, in Somerset. According to the report, the schools "prioritised the monks and their own reputations over the protection of children" and "appalling abuse was inflicted over decades on children as young as seven at Ampleforth and 11 at Downside". The inquiry heard witness testimony from those who were forced into sexual acts, sometimes in the presence of fellow pupils. In conclusion, the report found that "many perpetrators did not hide their sexual interests from the children". "The blatant openness of these activities demonstrates there was a culture of acceptance of abusive behaviour," it said. Following publication, Ampleforth said the "abbey and college wishes to repeat their heartfelt apology to all victims and survivors of abuse". Downside expressed similar regret, saying: "The abbey and school fully acknowledges the serious failings and mistakes made in both protecting those within our care and responding to safeguarding concerns." Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Downside Abbey and school apologised for failing its pupils For an organisation that numbers more than 1.2 billion adherents and is present in virtually every country on Earth, the focus is now firmly fixed on Pope Francis. When he was elected, in March 2013, the Pope was fully aware of the impact of clerical abuse scandals on the Church. Within a year, in July 2014, he met six victims from three countries - two people each from Ireland, Britain and Germany. At a private Mass, with the six victims among the congregation, he offered an explicit apology. "Before God and his people, I express my sorrow for the sins and grave crimes of clerical sexual abuse committed against you," Pope Francis said during his homily, published later by the Vatican. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption A demonstration near the Vatican in support of the victims of paedophile priests "And I humbly ask forgiveness. I beg your forgiveness, too, for the sins of omission on the part of Church leaders who did not respond adequately to reports of abuse made by family members, as well as by abuse victims themselves." Soon after, Pope Francis added eight new members to the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, from Africa, Oceania, Asia, and South America. But this body was soon hit by defections. The only two individuals on the commission who'd been victims of abuse, Marie Collins and Peter Saunders, resigned. Marie Collins, who was molested by a priest when she was 13, wrote a letter saying that while the Pope may have wanted to address clerical abuse, the Vatican's bureaucracy kept obstructing proposals for change. After the commission made a recommendation that all correspondence from victims and survivors should receive a response, she discovered that none had received replies. "I find it impossible to listen to public statements about the deep concern in the Church for the care of those whose lives have been blighted by abuse," she wrote, "yet to watch privately as a congregation in the Vatican refuses to even acknowledge their letters." She concluded with these words: "It is a reflection of how this whole abuse crisis in the Church has been handled: with fine words in public and contrary actions behind closed doors." Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Clerical abuse survivor Marie Collins resigned from the Church's commission for the protection of minors Pope Francis has decided to open the doors, convening an unprecedented summit to address the issue. But he's already tried to reduce expectations by warning the media, during the flight back to Rome from the United Arab Emirates, that a three-day conference represents only the beginning of a conversation. Others have argued that he should simply issue an edict for the Church to follow. But implementing universal protocols is challenging because the Church exists in a range of cultures and judicial systems. It's hard to imagine a more pressing challenge for the 82-year-old pontiff. His pontificate began with widespread enthusiasm for a man who chose pastoral appeal over pomp and ceremony, humility and compassion over the trappings of status. But how it ends is likely to depend on the action he takes, and the protocols he implements, to deal with the scourge of abuse. If you have been affected by any of the issues regarding sexual abuse raised in this article, help and support are available. Find out more at BBC Action Line. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-47201647 |
Does Congress Care About Trumps Emergency? | On Monday, sixteen states filed a lawsuit in a federal court, in San Francisco, naming President Trump and several members of his Cabinet as defendants and asking that they be enjoined from carrying out what the suit called their unconstitutional and unlawful scheme. (The states are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Virginia.) Specifically, the suit asked that the court permanently enjoin Defendants from constructing a border wall without an appropriation by Congress for that purpose. Last Thursday, Congress approved a budget deal to head off another shutdown of much of the government. It included close to $1.4 billion for physical border barriers. That wasnt enough for Trump: the next day, he said that he was invoking the National Emergencies Act of 1976, which would allow him to draw on previously allocated defense-construction funds. He thought that he could get $3.6 billion that way. He also planned to use two and a half billion dollars that had been allocated to fight drug trafficking, and six hundred million that the government had collected as the result of civil forfeiture, which had been meant for law-enforcement purposes. The most alarming item on that list, from a Constitutional point of view, is the emergency declaration. In the states suit, the plaintiffs, echoing Justice Robert Jacksons concurrence in the Supreme Courts Youngstown Steel case, from 1952, note that the President acts at the lowest ebb of his power if he acts contrary to the expressed or implied will of Congress. This means that the courts will be asked to determine what the will of Congress might be. It also means that Republican senators and representatives will not be able to simply slink away this time, as they have done so often during the Trump Presidency. The states may be the plaintiffs, but Congresswhat Congress really wants, with regard to a border wallis at the heart of the lawsuit. There have been dozens of emergency declarations since 1976. Legal commentators have noted, though, that none of them were quite as bald in their defiance of Congress. (Often, they involved measures, such as dealing with foreign sanctions, that Congress simply hadnt acted on.) But the problem goes beyond Trump; the law is loose, leaving it to the President to define what an emergency is. Trump himself, in his own way, laid out the issue when he mentioned his predecessors emergency record in a press conference last week: Theres rarely been a problem. They sign it; nobody cares. I guess they werent very exciting. But nobody cares. Trump also made it clear that he didnt care what the courts said, at least not the lower courtsand especially not the Ninth Circuit, where, he said, we will possibly get a bad ruling, and then well get another bad ruling. And then well end up in the Supreme Court, and hopefully well get a fair shake. And well win in the Supreme Court, just like the ban. (He meant his travel ban, which he was forced to revise and curtail after it became clear that the original, sweeping version had no chance of passing muster in even a conservative Court.) In a tweet on Tuesday, he dismissed the suit as the work of Open Border Democrats and the Radical Left. The states, in their lawsuit, emphasized that they, at least, cared about Congresss role, making the point multiple times: Contrary to the will of Congress, the President has used the pretext of a manufactured crisis of unlawful immigration to declare a national emergency; Congress has repeatedly rebuffed the Presidents insistence to fund a border wall; Use of those additional federal funds for the construction of a border wall is contrary to Congresss intent; The thwarting of congressional intent to fund a vanity project . . . cries out for judicial intervention. Congress has to show that it cares now, too. Before Trump made his declaration, various Republican senators, including Mitch McConnell, the Majority Leader, Susan Collins, of Maine, and Ted Cruz, of Texas, said that they hoped he wouldnt do so, or at least that they had concerns about his doing so. But, just before the Senate voted on the budget deal, McConnell announced that he would go along with such a declaration. This weekend, when Senator Lindsey Graham, of South Carolina, was asked on Face the Nation whether Congress had ceded too much power to the President, he said, I think that every member of Congress has watched three Presidents send troops to the border. Bush, Obama, now Trump. Not one of us have complained about deploying forces to the border to secure the border. Its pretty hard for me to understand the legal difference between sending troops and having them build a barrier. The silence was not as complete as Graham suggested, but what is striking is that he saw a record of complacency as a promise of future passivity on the part of the senators rather than as a habit that it was time for the senators to give up. Unfortunately, when it comes to Trump, the Congress is locked down and will not give him what weve given past Presidents. So unfortunately, hes got to do it on his own and I support his decision to go that route. The most dispiriting phrase in Grahams comment is got to do it. Graham appears to be buying into the panic that Trump tries to project and his message that there is no choice but to act as he insists. Some Republicans who objected to Trumps use of emergency powersnotably Senators Lamar Alexander, of Tennessee, and Marco Rubio, of Floridahavent entirely given up. Others, though, are dodging the issue. (Cruz has moved on to a proposal that El Chapo pay for the wall.) The Democrats in Congress should make sure that the Republicans cannot hide. They have suggested that they have their own lawsuit in the works, but there is also a more direct approach that they can take. The 1976 law has a provision that allows Congress to vote to terminate the emergency. If one chamber of Congress passes such a measurein this case, that would be the House, which the Democrats controlthe other chamber has to take it up, meaning that McConnell could not keep the bill from coming to the Senate floor. Republicans could vote for or against it there. If a majority vote in favor of the termination, Trump could still veto it, in which case the question would be whether there were enough votes for the two-thirds majority required to overturn his veto. In any case, Republicans in Congress would have to put their names down. They would have to show whether they have a will of their own. | https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/does-congress-care-about-trumps-emergency |
Will Trump's National Emergency Declaration Help Him In 2020? | DAVID GREENE, HOST: Well, as President Trump predicted, he is getting sued. Sixteen states are arguing that he can't redirect military and other spending to build a border wall without congressional approval. The president is trying this by declaring a national emergency at the border, but he is entering a legal battle here without clear support from the American people. A new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll finds a majority of Americans disapprove of the president's emergency declaration. Six in 10 Americans actually don't think there is any emergency. That said, the president's political base is behind him overwhelmingly. Let's turn to conservative writer Jonah Goldberg, who's senior editor at National Review and frequently comes on our program. Welcome back, Jonah. JONAH GOLDBERG: Hey. It's always great to be here. GREENE: Well, it's always great to have you. GOLDBERG: Spelunking too deep into Donald Trump's cranium may not be the greatest (laughter) use of my time. GREENE: OK. GOLDBERG: But I think... GREENE: Does it matter - let me rephrase. GOLDBERG: Yeah. GOLDBERG: It clearly doesn't matter. He's been underwater - you know, the guy's never broken 50 in the approval ratings in any polls. It hasn't stopped him from doing - from going with his gut on all sorts of things. And I think that on this, this is one of these things where he - you know, he, basically, has always thought that his base are the only voters who truly matter, you know, the ones he refers to as my people. And he is convinced that - and it's been reported that he thinks this is his no new taxes pledge and that he cannot go back on the wall. And anything he does to get the wall is self-justifying. And this also - just to be blunt and cynical about it, this was a smart political move in the sense that the headlines would've been Trump gets taken to the cleaners in the budget deal that he signed to - you know, he lost that entire exchange for two months of wasted time. He lost the government shutdown fight. And he came out worse the other end with the budget deal. And those headlines... GREENE: Yeah. GOLDBERG: ...Were completely erased by the fact that... GREENE: Changed the narrative. GOLDBERG: ...He - yeah, because he changed narrative. GREENE: Well, let's talk through, I mean, whether or not he needs the base. I mean, the wall was a centerpiece of his 2016 campaign. He won that election. But you could argue - right - that he might have hurt congressional Republicans when he focused on the wall ahead of the midterms. GOLDBERG: I don't think so. I've never thought so. I think it has been bizarre to me that the guy who ran as - I alone can fix it. And I'm going to make deals. And I'm going to work with Democrats - that he is - he's the first president in modern memory who has governed as if he only cares about his base. Normally, presidents at least pretend to care about being president for the whole country. And normally, presidents try to expand their coalition that got them elected once they get into office. He's never pursued that strategy. It's been a base strategy in office the entire time. I don't see how it helps him for re-election, unless there's some third-party candidate. But that is the gamble that they made. They think that if they can churn up the intensity, it will work for him. And I think it's misguided, but that's - it seems apparent that that's either the strategy or that Donald Trump doesn't know how to behave any other way. GREENE: I want to highlight one other finding in our new poll. Eighty-four percent of Republicans and 90 percent of Trump supporters think there is a national emergency at the border. Democrats and independents don't agree with that. I mean, I know these are polarized times. I'm sure you know these are polarized times. GOLDBERG: Yeah. I think you can find some very similar findings about things like climate change and all sorts of stuff. There's an enormous amount of motivated reasoning going on there. And for a lot of voters, this was not - there really isn't an emergency at the border. There was a political emergency for Donald Trump. And this solved that emergency. The comparison, I think, that makes the most sense to me is during the Iraq War, there was a time when only Republicans who were backing President Bush thought the war was going better than it really was. They believed that it was going to get better. And they gave Bush whatever approval ratings he could get. And I think that's a very similar scenario to what we have today. I don't believe that every single Trump supporter thinks there's an actual crisis at the border. I'm not sure that every Trump opponent is really opposed to, say, 50 miles more fence. But this is a polarized time. And support for what Trump does is support for Trump, and it's also opposition to your enemies. And it's going to manifest itself across a wide array of policy issues because they're all wrapped up. I mean, Trump is in everybody's head space. GREENE: You say support for Trump - and maybe not necessarily support for conservative values here. I mean, if the president goes forward with this, he might have to pull money away from improving military housing to build the wall. He may have to take property rights - private property rights along the border - through eminent domain. I mean, supporting service members, protecting property rights - those are some conservative causes. GOLDBERG: (Laughter) I think it does in private conversations. Look. This is why I've felt like I've been taking crazy pills for the last couple years. On trade, you have people who lost their livelihoods because of the various tariffs and protectionist policies that the president put in. And yet, they supported the president for doing it. You can go down a list of things, where people - their self-interest, their longstanding principles are violated by things that the Trump White House is doing. And they still support Donald Trump because they support Donald Trump. It's - we're in a kind of love-me, love-my-president kind of mode on the right these days. And it's very hard to, you know, coordinate with the past that we've all come to expect from conservatives. GREENE: Jonah Goldberg is senior editor at National Review. Jonah, always great to have you. Thanks so much. GOLDBERG: Great to be here - thank you. Copyright 2019 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by Verb8tm, Inc., an NPR contractor, and produced using a proprietary transcription process developed with NPR. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPRs programming is the audio record. | https://www.npr.org/2019/02/19/695874062/will-trumps-national-emergency-declaration-help-him-in-2020?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=morningedition |
Will a New Port Make Tanzania Africas Dubai? | Bagamoyo, a small fishing port about 45 miles north of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, may become Africas biggest container port in the next 10 years. Chinas largest public-port operator, China Merchants Holdings, is about to start what the Ecofin Agency called the most significant construction project in the last four decades of Chinese-Tanzanian relations. Ad Policy Translated by George Miller. This essay continues our exclusive collaboration with Le Monde Diplomatique, monthly publishing jointly commissioned and shared articles, both in print and online. To subscribe to LMD, go to mondediplo.com/subscribe. Part of the $10 billion funding will come from the Sultanate of Omans sovereign-wealth fund and Chinas Exim Bank. There will be a special economic zone modeled on Shenzhen, China. The piers and docks will extend along 10 miles of coastline, and handle 20 million containers a year, more than Rotterdam, Europes biggest port. Tanzanian authorities say it will create an industrial revolution in a mainly rural country where 70 percent still live below the poverty threshold. Tanzania, a rare example of stability in this region, has been governed by John Magufuli since late 2015. He is the political heir of the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM or the Party of the Revolution), founded in 1977 by Julius Nyerere. According to Daudi Mukangara, a political scientist at the University of Dar es Salaam, the CCMs original brand of socialism did not withstand the neoliberal assault of the late 1980s and 90s, which denationalized the very notion of nationalism. Tanzania has one of Africas strongest growth rates5.8 percent in 2018, with a forecast of 6 percent in 2019, according to the IMFand has begun a massive infrastructure-development program. The Bagamoyo project will let Oman regain a foothold in Africa; the nearby island of Zanzibar was Omani territory from 1698, and a major center of the slave trade supplying the Gulf states. China, too, is extending its influence in East Africa in Tanzania, which has been a pillar of Sino-African cooperation. Until the mid-19th century, Bagamoyo was an important transit point for copra (dried coconut), ivory, and slaves. Many expeditions, including those of Richard Burton and Henry Morton Stanley, set off inland from Bagamoyo, following routes established by Arab slavers. It was also the base for East Africas first Catholic mission, and later briefly the capital of German East Africa before the territory passed to the UK. In 1964 Zanzibar was united with Tanganyika, independent since 1961, and the new state elided the two names into Tanzania. Related Articles Brexit Is Deadlocked as the Countdown Continues Paul Mason Discipline and Punish: The Birth of Chinas Social-Credit System Ren Raphael and Ling Xi Forgotten France Rises Up Serge Halimi The Anger of the Gilets Jaunes Alexis Spire China, a pioneer in Global South relations, is bringing Africas globalization full circle in opening the way for Turkish, Egyptian, Indian, and Gulf operators. The new port agreement was made public in March 2013 during the second official visit of Chinas President Xi Jinping to Africa; Tanzania was his first stop. No Chinese leader has visited this region as often since Deng Xiaoping launched his open-door policy in 1978. Nyerere visited China 30 times, and the Soviet Union only once. Charles Sanga, his last personal assistant, remembers that At the end of his life in 1999, he believed we had only one true friend: China. Sanga was Tanzanias ambassador in Beijing at the time of the first Forum on China-Africa Cooperation summit in September 2000, attended by just four African heads of state, including the thenTanzanian president, Benjamin Mkapa. China is Africas biggest trading partner, ahead of the United States. At the eighth China-Africa summit in Beijing last September, under the New Silk Roads banner, China promised $60 billion: Reuters reported that this would be $15 billion of aid, interest-free loans and concessional loans, a credit line of $20 billion, a $10 billion special fund for China-Africa development and a $5 billion special fund for imports from Africa. President Xi said he would not fund any vanity projects: Chinas cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development. In 200016, China loaned Africa $125 billion, according to the China Africa Research Initiative in Washington. In 2017 bilateral trade was worth an estimated $180 billion, $75.3 billion of it Chinese imports from Africa. US-African bilateral trade is worth less than $39 billion. Current Issue View our current issue Tanzania and the New Silk Road President Magufuli was elected in 2015 on a program of reclaiming Tanzanias economic sovereignty from Western investors, said Rwekaza S Mukandala, former deputy rector of the University of Dar es Salaam; in his view, China is best placed to help him do this. Octavian Mshiu, head of the Tanzania Chamber of Commerce, Industry, and Agriculture, agrees. He recognizes Bagamoyos strategic role in enabling Tanzanias clear integration in the New Silk Road project and making it a bridgehead for Chinese manufacturing businesses relocating to East Africa. China views Kenya, Tanzanias rival as a transit country for commodities from East Africas landlocked states, as too problematic. It has become a key US ally in Africa, and is unstable, affected by terrorism and tribalism. As Tanzanias main trading partner, China has stayed silent on Magufulis slide toward authoritarianism, while the United States and other Western nations have become concerned about the erosion of human rights and the threat to development. They have criticized restrictions on press freedom and freedom of assembly, a cyber-crime act that curtails freedom of information, and a statistics act that prevents the publication of any figures not produced by the government. There has also been criticism of assassination attempts against opponents and the 2017 disappearance of journalist Azory Gwanda. Magufuli was explicit in November 2018, opening the new Dar es Salaam University libraryan elegant building funded by China, alongside the Confucius Institute: China [is a] true friend who offers help without any conditions. Free things are really expensive. The only free things that wont cost you anything are those provided by China. In 2016, the United States canceled $470 million in funding from the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a bilateral development fund, over Tanzanias violations of public freedoms. Tanzania and neighboring Zambia are focal points in the war of influence being fought in Africa by the planets two biggest economies. Its Beijing consensus versus Washington consensus: aid without conditions, on the margins of international rules of engagement, in the form of trade agreements dictated by China, versus loans from the IMF and the World Bank, with social and political conditions such as privatizations and reductions in public spending. Donald Trumps administration now clearly wants to block China, which it accuses of deliberately and aggressively targeting their investments in the region to gain a competitive advantage over the United States, as National Security Adviser John Bolton told the Heritage Foundation on December 13. He accused China of resorting to bribes, opaque agreements, and the strategic use of debt to hold states in Africa captive to Beijings wishes and demands. China is unperturbed by US accusations and has reaffirmed its promise to contribute to Africas development by putting its own development to good use. Erratic and unpredictable Bolton mentioned East Africa in his speech on the new US strategy for the continent: Public debt, particularly in Zambia, would leave countries at Chinas mercy. That began a war of words between the United States and China. Tanzania, with Ethiopia, Kenya, and Egypt, is officially a country China identified in 2015 for business delocalizations. Magufuli aims to make it a semi-industrialized nation by 2025. He hopes the manufacturing sector will by then generate at least 40 percent of its wealth, not less than 10 percent as it does now. To finance this program, the government has targeted corruption, misuse of public money, and large-scale theft in the mining industry. Tanzania, Africas fourth-biggest gold producer, has altered mining companies exploitation contracts, giving the government the right to renegotiate or sever them in instances of proven fraud. The new legislation also does away with mining companies right to settle disputes through international arbitration. The tax dispute with Acacia Mining, a subsidiary of the giant London-listed Barrick Gold, which is accused of having understated production for years to save billions in taxes, has ended with an out-of-court agreement with terms and conditions still to be set. Tanzania will receive a 16 percent share in three of Barrick Golds mines and 50 percent of the revenue they generate. Related Article How the Left Should Respond to Ethnic Cleansing in China Daniel Bessner and Isaac Stone Fish Magufulis blunt style of politics, as erratic as it is unpredictable according to a local journalist, initially won support from local young intellectuals. Then in 2016 the regime began to slide towards authoritarianism, said former parliamentarian Zitto Kabwe, 42, who leads the Alliance for Change and Transparency (ACT), to the left of the opposition party, Chadema. Kabwe is critical of the patriotic rhetoric of a government that still hasnt had an impact on Tanzanians daily lives and believes that Magufulis policy, though it raises the fundamental question of resource ownership, has weakened growth in the mining sector and scared off investors, who are now afraid of having to deal with the Tanzanian justice system. ACTs manifesto, the Tabora Declaration, is inspired by the 1967 Ashura Declaration, which began the policy of Ujamaa (Brotherhood), and aims to lay the foundations of a socialism adapted to 21st-century Tanzania. Kabwe is critical of the World Bank and the IMF, which imposed the 1998 mining code, which favors multinational extraction companies, and forced us into a debt trap. China is no better: It is advancing its pawns in Africa in its own interest. He warned against falling into anti-Chinese rhetoric that serves Western interests: Sixty percent of our external public debt is to multilateral organizations such as Bretton Woods and only 10 percent to China. Andrew Huang, a tax consultant with a Tanzanian-registered business, is typical of the several thousand Chinese entrepreneurs in the private sector. Hes been here since the late 1990s, and acknowledges that the governments measures to tackle the mining sector have disheartened some compatriots, who he admits paid no tax: Showing firmness, as President Magufuli has done, is a good thing for this country. A flood of Chinese companies is coming, he insists: Tanzanias development is just beginning. Because of Bagamoyo, this country will soon be Africas Dubai. | https://www.thenation.com/article/tanzania-china-bagamoyo-port/ |
When Wilson-Raybould speaks out, will the Liberals try to control or counter it? | Cabinet ministers dont quit in protest one week then ask to speak to their former colleagues at the next cabinet meeting. At least, they didnt before Tuesday, when Jody Wilson-Raybould showed up. That was no small surprise. Just the day before, Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus right-hand-man, Gerald Butts, had resigned over the SNC-Lavalin affair not to take the blame, but insisting no one in the PMO had put pressure on Ms. Wilson-Raybould to drop the bribery prosecution against the Montreal-based engineering firm. Mr. Butts insisted that hed defend himself against that allegation and the subtext was that if Ms. Wilson-Raybould had an allegation to make, hed fight it. So the former justice ministers appearance at cabinet baffled, to say the least. In the House of Commons, she was still sitting in a front-bench, cabinet-ministers seat. It led to wildfire speculation that she might return to cabinet, that she was back on the team now that Mr. Butts had quit or that there might be some kind of deal to get her to play down the allegations. No one would really say. Story continues below advertisement One thing is clear, however: Mr. Trudeaus team has now decided this whole affair will not be put in the past until weve heard from Ms. Wilson-Raybould, in public. They either want to hear her make allegations in public so they can try to rebut them, or they want to hear her play them down although its hard to imagine, after she resigned from cabinet, how she could play down the matter. It shouldnt be a surprise, then, that Liberal MPs on the Commons justice committee decided to invite Ms. Wilson-Raybould to testify, even though they were unwilling to issue an invitation just last week. Her silence was already doing a whole lot of damage to Mr. Trudeau. The allegation that the PMO put pressure on her is already out there; she quit in apparent protest; the damage to Mr. Trudeaus reputation is growing. So far, Ms. Wilson-Raybould has insisted that there is not much she can say about the whole business, because as the former attorney-general and the governments lawyer, she is bound by solicitor-client privilege. But now there are many people inside the Liberal government willing to argue that there are lot of things she could say without violating any privilege. She could say whether she felt under pressure, for example, or whether she was asked to intervene. Just how free to speak she will be remains an open question. The government is still reluctant to give her a blanket release from solicitor-client privilege or cabinet-confidence secrecy. Mr. Trudeau argues that the government has to be careful to avoid unintentional impact on the two court cases involving SNC-Lavalin. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement But at this point, Mr. Trudeaus government isnt likely to save itself by asking Ms. Wilson-Raybould to testify with one arm tied behind her back or even by allowing the perception that she cannot speak freely. The new Justice Minister David Lametti has been asked to look into whether Ms. Wilson-Raybould can be released from the privilege but he might express the opinion that she is free to speak about most of the SNC-Lavalin affair without risking a breach of solicitor-client privilege. One way or another, this isnt going away before Canadians see Ms. Wilson-Raybould on their TVs, talking about what happened. It seems inconceivable that her attendance at Tuesdays cabinet meeting was arranged so all could agree shed play ball and pretend nothing happened. She quit the cabinet last week when the PM said that her presence in the cabinet was a sign she had not faced pressure. She cant credibly put that in the box. But for a week, Ms. Wilson-Rayboulds stoic silence seemed to make the allegations grow. The Liberals have now decided they cant deal with them until she speaks in public. Whats not yet clear is whether they will still try to control what she says, or counter it. | https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-when-wilson-raybould-speaks-out-will-the-liberals-try-to-control-or/ |
Can Flipdaddy's go national with new, less-expensive burgers? | Buy Photo The Philly steak burger at Flipdaddy's, with onion rings and a wedge salad (Photo11: Enquirer/Polly Campbell) In December, the local burger chain Flipdaddy's filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, eight years after its first location opened. But the Flipdaddy's CEO, on the job since March, thinks they can easily reorganize and continue. Not only that, he thinks the small local chain can go national. CEO Tom Sacco invited me to lunch at the Newport location, and as we tried some of the new items he's added to the menu, he told me how he's applying the chain restaurant management lessons he has learned over a long career. He has helped other chains, most notably Red Robin (he invented their bottomless fries) and BJ's Brewhouse, grow from small businesses to multi-state chains. Later, I visited Flipdaddy's in Mariemont on my own. "I think the concept of Flipdaddy's, gourmet burgers and craft beer, is underrepresented nationally," said Sacco. It's a combination that can be pitched to millennials. Bob Dames founded Flipdaddy's in 2010, and then opened three more stores in three years. "Founders often have brilliant ideas and creativity," said Sacco. "But sometimes a founder hits a wall at a certain number of restaurants when things like systems and processes became very important." He said that the financial difficulties that Flipdaddy's had run into were mostly centered on one location, in Orange Beach, Alabama, now closed. Never go news-hungry: Get it all for just $1 for the first three months To turn things around, he first focused on the burgers. They had gotten to be expensive, at $14, and downsized from 7 to 5 ounces. So he renegotiated his beef supply, changed the custom mix a little, so they are now 50 percent chuck, with some brisket and short rib, and went with a butcher who would be able to supply any restaurant they open in the future. He was able to take them back to 7 ounces. He got rid of cheap Budweiser. "We don't really want the people who come in for that," he said, and pointed out that women feel comfortable in the bar, even bringing their laptops and working. He began hiring service people for their personalities rather than their experience, creating a training model based on the slogan "Servant's Heart, Warrior's Spirit." Then he went about adding variety to the menu. "You've got to make sure no one has a veto vote," he said. In other words, there has to be something for everyone, so no one person steers a group away to somewhere else. Buy Photo Deviled eggs from Flipdaddy's (Photo11: Enquirer/Polly Campbell) This change is what most makes the menu feel like a chain. While there is a trend toward tightly focused or even single-item menus in newer restaurants, the menu at Flipdaddy's has broadened. Sacco added some trendy items like deviled eggs, a banana and Nutella sandwich, loaded shakes. There's even a version of avocado toast in an unusual avocado-egg sandwich. He also added entrees like Nashville hot chicken, steak and ribs. He also added more kinds of burgers. "You want something that's best in class. Some part of your menu where you can go up against the best anywhere," he said. In addition to the burgers and beer, he has chosen desserts as that best-in-class category. New thick shakes are made with ice cream, loaded with whipped cream and garnishes. He also added a super-tall chocolate cake that is enough for three or four people, and an ice cream pie that is mostly ice cream, with an afterthought crust and some chocolate syrup. These seemed like throwbacks to me, the kind of surprise dessert that wowed people in the '90s. And the Shanghai Mama teriyaki salad, made with bok choy but topped with fried chow mein noodles, was a real blast from the past. The "flip sticks" were tasty for sure, but are a very chain-y choice. NEWSLETTERS Get the Things To Do newsletter delivered to your inbox We're sorry, but something went wrong Everything entertainment from weekend plans to showbiz news. Please try again soon, or contact Customer Service at 1-800-876-4500. Delivery: Fri Invalid email address Thank you! You're almost signed up for Things To Do Keep an eye out for an email to confirm your newsletter registration. More newsletters But the deviled eggs were good, whether with blue cheese or a chili sauce. So was the chili, the pretzel nuggets that looked like buckeyes, the fries. At an earlier time in my life, I would have happily polished off either the strawberry or the Oreo shake So for me, the new variety didn't really enhance the experience. I wouldn't order ribs here, for instance. I'd go to a barbecue restaurant for that. If it's a burger restaurant, I'll get a burger. But I had never put Flipdaddy's at the top of my burger lists because I thought they were kind of dry and overly firm. The one we had at lunch didn't make me change my opinion. Buy Photo A strawberry shake from Flipdaddy's (Photo11: Enquirer/Polly Campbell) But an important piece of information Sacco shared was that, while they cook burgers to medium, you can get them to order if you ask. So when I went to the Mariemont location a few weeks after our conversation, I ordered the Philly steak burger medium rare. What a huge difference it made. Now that was a good burger. It was a warm pink inside. It wasn't dripping with juice and fat, but it was tender and you could taste the beef through the peppers and onions that topped it. I got two sides, $3 each: a wedge salad with lots of blue cheese, hard-boiled egg, tomatoes and bacon, and onion rings the way I like them, with a textured coating that crunches and doesn't get too greasy. The beer selection still has some excellent picks, both national crafts and local, along with a few generics. They had Rheingest's newly-released Van Hunks, for instance. I had a glass of the Grand Mimosa from Ciderboys The other thing about that burger: it was $8. I hadn't expected to get out of there for less than $30. But the bill for burger, two sides and a beer was $18.46. And, they still have their genius griddled mac and cheese. They pile some cheddar on the grill, let it melt, put a spoonful of mac and cheese on top so you get a combination of the crisp cheese and the creamy mac. Eating that, I could really see Flipdaddy's going national. 165 Pavilion Parkway, Newport, 859-431-2337. 7453 Wooster Pike, Mariemont, 513-272-2337. 12071 Mason-Montgomery Road, Symmes Township, 513-677-2337. 8863 US 42, Union, 859-371-2337. Open 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. www.flipdaddys.com. Read or Share this story: https://www.cincinnati.com/story/entertainment/dining/2019/02/19/can-flipdaddys-go-national-new-less-expensive-burgers/2805155002/ | https://www.cincinnati.com/story/entertainment/dining/2019/02/19/can-flipdaddys-go-national-new-less-expensive-burgers/2805155002/ |
What Was It Like When Dark Energy First Took Over The Universe? | When we look out at the ultra-distant Universe, billion of light-years away, we're seeing it as it was in the distant past as well. At those earlier times, the Universe was hotter, denser, and filled with smaller, younger, less-evolved galaxies. The light we see from way back in our Universe's history only arrives at our eyes after journeying across these vast cosmic distances, where it's stretched by the expanding fabric of space. It's these early signals, and how that light gets stretched to longer wavelengths i.e., redshifted as a function of distance, that enable us to infer how the Universe expanded throughout its history. That's how we discovered that the Universe wasn't just expanding, but accelerating. That's how we discovered dark energy and measured its properties. Our picture of the Universe will never be the same. Here's what it was like when dark energy first took over. The answer would change over time. When the light first arrived, you'd see the Universe as it was at an age of 380,000 years old: when the Cosmic Microwave Background radiation first reached you. As time went on, you'd see molecular clouds form and contract, followed by stars forming in a slew of early nebulae, followed by the merger of star clusters to form proto-galaxies. As time went on, you'd see these proto-galaxies merge, gravitate, and grow. Eventually, they would evolve into the galaxies we're more familiar with, as they went through quiet eras punctuated by bursts of star-formation. One of the things we don't typically talk about, however, is what we would see as far as redshift is concerned. One of the great properties of the Universe is that the laws of physics appear to be immutable and unchanging throughout time. This means that atoms absorb and emit light at very specific frequencies: frequencies that are the same everywhere, and determined by the energy levels that the electrons within the atom occupy. By identifying series of atomic absorption or emission lines that correspond to the same element at the same redshift, we can pinpoint an object's observed redshift. By determining its distance from us, we can use the distance/redshift combination to reconstruct the history of the expanding Universe. In reality, we can only make observations at one point in time: today, or when the light from all the distant objects throughout the Universe is finally reaching us. But we can imagine our hypothetical scenario just as well. The answer may be a little counterintuitive, but it's tremendously illustrative and educational as far as shedding light on not only what dark energy is, but how it affects the expansion of the Universe. In the earliest stages, the light that first arrived would give you a combination of two parameters: a distance that was relatively small compared to the distances we see today, and a redshift that was large compared to what we see today. The redshift corresponds to an apparent recession speed, or how quickly the object in question appears to be moving away from us. In reality, it isn't that the object's motion is causing the redshift, although motion towards (blueshift) or away from (redshift) an observer can certainly cause that effect. Instead, it's the fact that the light is traveling through the fabric of space and that the fabric expands while the light travels that causes what appears to be a redshift. Initially, the distances would be small and the redshifts would be large: we would infer that this distant galaxy is speeding away from us at a very rapid rate. But then time runs forward, and both distance and velocity appear to change in opposite directions. The distances get larger and larger over time, as the Universe continues to expand. This pushes all objects that aren't gravitationally bound mutually away from one another, increasing the measured distance between them. The Universe's expansion rate changes, and it changes dependent on the total matter and energy density present in the Universe. Since an increasing volume means a decreasing energy density, the expansion rate drops, and the galaxy appears to move away from us at a slower and slower speed. This makes sense when you think about the expanding Universe in the context of the Big Bang. There is a great cosmic race going on: between gravity, working to pull everything back together, and the initial expansion rate, working to drive everything apart. The race has been underway for 13.8 billion years, and the Big Bang was the starting gun. Everything begins moving away from everything else, extremely rapidly at first, while gravity works as hard as it can to pull everything back together. If there were too much matter in the Universe, everything would expand only until a point, as the Universe reached a maximum size and then the expansion reversed. Eventually, the Universe would recollapse. On the other hand, if there were too little matter, the expansion would continue forever, with the expansion rate decreasing and the apparent recession velocities asymptoting to zero. This latter case is exactly what we'd see happening for a long time: for billions of years, in the case of our Universe. An individual galaxy appears to move away from us at an incredibly fast rate, but then its recession velocity drops as the matter and radiation densities drop. Since it's the total energy density that determines the expansion rate, and the expansion rate that determines what we infer the recession velocity to be, this all makes intuitive sense. And then, 7.8 billion years after the Big Bang, things start to get weird. As it turns out, the Universe isn't just filled with matter and radiation. Even adding in neutrinos, black holes, dark matter and more doesn't account for everything. In addition to all of those, we have dark energy: a form of energy inherent to space itself. As the Universe expands, dark energy doesn't dilute; it remains at a constant density. After 7.8 billion years, the matter density drops far enough that the effects of dark energy begin to become important. 7.8 billion years after the Big Bang, the dark energy density will have grown to be as large as half the matter density, which is the critical value it needs to reach in order to cause a distant galaxy to stop decelerating from our perspective. At this moment in cosmic history, 7.8 billion years after the Big Bang, every distant object in the Universe will appear to coast away from us: it will continue to speed away at whatever speed it was moving previously. It will neither accelerate nor decelerate, but maintain a constant apparent motion in its recession. This is a critical time: the repulsive effects of dark energy on the Universe's expansion exactly counteract the attractive effects of matter. But time doesn't stop here. Instead, it continues forward, and the matter density continues to drop. Once 7.8 billion years on the cosmic clock ticks by, dark energy now becomes more important than matter and radiation as far as the expansion rate is concerned. Distant galaxies may have reached their minimum recession speed at that time, but then will appear to speed up once again. As time marches forward, distant objects not bound to one another will recede from each other's perspective at a faster and faster rate. By the time the Universe is 9.2 billion years old, right when our Solar System is forming, the matter density will have dropped below the dark energy density. By the present day, 13.8 billion years after the Big Bang, dark energy accounts for approximately 70% of the total energy in the Universe. Throughout all that time, distant galaxies will continue to speed up, faster and faster, in their apparent recession from our perspective. For the past 6 billion years, the Universe's expansion has been accelerating, meaning that any distant galaxy we monitor appears to recede from us at an ever-increasing speed. Once a galaxy reaches a distance of approximately 15 to 16 billion light-years from us, it will appear to recede away faster than the speed of light, meaning there's nothing we can ever do to reach or contact it again. Given that the Universe is already 46 billion light-years in radius, this means that 97% of the galaxies in the Universe are already forever beyond our reach. For billions of years, dark energy's density would have been tiny compared to the density of matter, meaning its effects would have been undetectable if we had come along too early. Tens of billions of years from now, it will have pushed everything beyond our Local Group far away from us; the merged remains of the Local Group will be the only galaxy left. It's only because we came along when we did, at this golden cosmic time, that we can perceive what the Universe is actually made of. Dark energy is real, has dominated our Universe since it was 7.8 billion years old, and will determine the fate of our Universe from here on out. Further reading on what the Universe was like when: | https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2019/02/20/what-was-it-like-when-dark-energy-first-took-over-the-universe/ |
Is defending making a comeback after the gung-ho attacking years? | Its early days yet, of course. Nobody should be getting carried away. There were no goals in Tuesdays two Champions League ties. Nobody has yet scored a goal in the first half of a Champions League knockout tie this season. Goals per game in the last 16 (with all the obvious caveats about sample size) are at less than two as opposed to 5.0 in the knockout phase last season. Its as though the collective thought has gone round that after last seasons chaos of three-goal comebacks and nearly comebacks, getting the defence right is where teams can gain an edge. Liverpool need more courage to beat Bayern Munich, says Jrgen Klopp Read more This is not just a Champions League phenomenon. Liverpool have been notably more cautious in general this season, while Manchester City too have been less inclined to hurl both full-backs forward at once something seen most obviously in Citys 0-0 draw at Anfield. After the abandon of last season, the feeling that teams unpractised domestically in defending had forgotten how to do it, the start of this seasons group stage has felt something of a throwback. And yet, it is not quite the same as it was. For one thing, an art so long neglected cannot easily be readopted. Players used to hurtling forward at every opportunity are having to learn. At Anfield on Tuesday, the force of will required for the buccaneering Joshua Kimmich and David Alaba to restrain themselves and remain deep was clear. When Kimmich did, on one occasion late in the first half, get caught near the halfway line by Sadio Man, his immediate reaction was a slightly panicky foul that drew the yellow card that will keep him out of the second leg: he knew his job was not to allow Liverpool to get in behind him. Besides, the world has changed. Knowledge of what has gone before, developments elsewhere, have changed the pattern of games. This may be a reversion to a more traditional attitude, but that does not necessarily make it ripe for the reintroduction of Jos Mourinho. Some aspects are familiar. Bayern contentedly wasted time on Tuesday, taking an age over set plays, making sure any treatment they received on the field was as thorough as possible. Attempts to play the ball square at the back, though, were rather less successful. Back in the seventies and early eighties, when Bayern and Liverpool were at their most successful in Europe, the easiest way to kill a game was for a defence to hold the ball, knowing they could always roll it back to their goalkeeper if they came under presssure. The backpass law changed that, of course, and playing out from the back is now the hallmark of a team that want to control possession. The problem with that, though, is that these days just about everybody presses the combination of short passes from goalkeeper to defender and pressing with a conservative mindset leads to something very strange. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Bayerns Joshua Kimmich, right, restrained his normal attacking instincts against Liverpool. Photograph: Chloe Knott - Danehouse/Getty Images By the second half, the game at Anfield had taken on a more conventional pattern, with Bayerns three central midfielders forming a deep-lying block in front of the back four, but for much of the first half the central third of the pitch saw weirdly little action. That can be the sign of an end-to-end thriller, or of two long-ball teams coming face to face, but here it was the result of two sides concerned not to overcommit and anxious about conceding possession by moving the ball forward too quickly, trying to play out from the back and finding themselves hemmed in by their opponents press. Manuel Neuer and Alisson are goalkeepers noted for their ability with their feet, both are comfortable in the sweeper-keeper role Neuer, indeed, could be said to have popularised the modern conception of the position. Yet both had uneasy moments in Tuesdays first half, finding themselves being closed down without an obvious passing option with the route to their defenders blocked by the press and midfielders reluctant to drop deep and break their shape. Almost every chance in the first half was the result of a turnover in the final third, the attempt for caution on the part of both sides paradoxically making them more vulnerable in what became a bitty game almost entirely devoid of fluidity. It was not only the away side doing it, even if the consensus was that Bayern had frustrated Liverpool. Without Virgil van Dijk, with Roberto Firmino struggling to shake off a virus, against opponents who sat deep and so negated the pace of their front line, getting away without conceding an away goal isnt a bad result for Liverpool either even if there are concerns about their recent away record in Europe. It was not necessarily defending as Udo Lattek or Bob Paisley would have recognised it. It was awkward, unsteady and at times unconvincing (if, ultimately, effective). But perhaps the wheel is beginning to turn and gung-ho attacking is beginning to yield once again to something more balanced. | https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/feb/20/defending-comeback-attacking-liverpool-bayern-munich-champions-league-last-16 |
How Scary Are Subprime Auto Loans? | (Bloomberg Opinion) -- One of the lasting legacies of the financial crisis is the markets tendency to take any sign of bad news and frame it in the context of 2008. Collateralized loan obligations, for instance, have been deemed scary because of similarities to the collateralized debt obligations that were riddled with bad mortgages. Now, auto loans are under the microscope. A report last week from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed that as of the end of 2018, more Americans than ever in excess of 7 million were at least three months behind on their car payments. On a percentage basis, the delinquency rate is the highest since 2012, even though lending has shifted toward more creditworthy borrowers. The share considered subprime who are behind on their payments is the highest since mid-2010. This trend is a significant red flag and it could cause some serious problems for auto loan securitizations. If you own some of these, I would be giving them a very hard look, Mark Grant, chief global strategist at B. Riley FBR, wrote in a Feb. 14 note. That was my first thought, too. After all, subprime lending is rife with opportunities for missteps. Plus, the market is booming, with issuance of U.S. auto asset-backed securities reaching a record $107.3 billion in 2018, compared with $59 billion in 2010, according to the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association. And delinquencies are increasing when the labor market is hot and economic growth is relatively robust. At first glance, these trends look like reason for alarm. Yet the more you dig into the auto ABS market, the less likely it seems like a flashpoint for a crisis. For one, its not as if all or even most of subprime auto loans are packaged into securities. Only about 10 percent of the $437 billion of low-rated loans have been turned into ABS, according to Wells Fargo. By contrast, at its peak in 2007, the amount of total subprime mortgage debt was about $1.3 trillion. As far as risks go, auto ABS look paltry in terms of size. Of course, because theyre not securitized, the majority of the loans are kept on lenders balance sheets. But large banks, which have $389 billion of outstanding auto loans, only have a 25 percent subprime share, according to the New York Fed. And small banks (those with less than $50 billion in assets) are even more skewed toward creditworthy borrowers, with just a 14 percent subprime share. Instead, auto finance companies have a disproportionate amount of subprime loans, at 50 percent. Steve Eisman, who was featured in Michael Lewiss book The Big Short, made headlines two years ago when he said that he was concerned about subprime auto loans. Banks make mistakes on credit quality, and we are in an environment where credit quality has never been this good in anyones lifetime, with the one exception of subprime auto, he said at the time. But even he acknowledged its not a big enough asset class to cause problems for the entire financial system. That doesnt mean there wont be isolated problems. Eismans 2017 comments came after a period in which underwriting standards loosened as smaller lenders that focus on weaker borrowers stepped into the growing market. In one example, a class of subprime-auto ABS from Honor Finance was downgraded last year by S&P Global Ratings to CCC+ from BB-, the first such cut since the financial crisis. JPMorgan Chase & Co. analysts noted in July that it could be the first auto loan ABS to default since the late 1990s. Moodys Investors Service flagged Global Lending Services, GO Financial and Skopos Financial as issuers with their first transactions in 2015 that all faced relatively high early losses. Other sponsors with somewhat large losses include DriveTime Automotive, American Credit Acceptance, United Auto Credit and CarNow Acceptance. Certainly, if the pace of auto loan delinquencies continues to climb, these lenders may struggle. And theyre already dealing with slim margins because of competition and increasingly sophisticated data for evaluating borrowers. As Bloomberg Newss Adam Tempkin noted last week: | https://news.yahoo.com/scary-subprime-auto-loans-100021600.html |
How does the Ontario Teachers pension plan stack up against the federal public servants version? | Frederick Vettese is the former chief actuary of a large actuarial firm and the author of Retirement Income for Life: Getting More without Saving More. As secure workplace pensions continue to die out across the Canada, the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan (OTPP) and the federal Public Service Pension Plan (PSPP) are two gold-plated retirement plans that remain intact. Size These plans are large by any measure. At last count, the OTPP has 323,000 active members and pensioners while the corresponding figure for the PSPP is 590,000. Based on 2017 asset figures, that comes out to $587,000 per person in the OTPP and $327,000 per person in the PSPP. Story continues below advertisement Retirement age Most Canadians think of age 65 as normal retirement age. In the public sector, there is nothing normal about retiring that late. The median retirement age in the public sector has been as low as 57.2 in the past, though it has since risen to 61.3. In the case of the OTPP, teachers can retire without penalty once their age plus qualifying years total 85 or more. For example, a teacher with 32 qualifying years can retire without penalty at age 53. The early retirement rules within the PSPP are also generous though they dont quite match the OTPP. Civil servants used to be able to retire without penalty as early as 55 if they had 30 years of pensionable service. During the government of Stephen Harper, the age 55 condition was changed to 60 for new hires. In both plans, members can retire even earlier subject to a modest penalty. Pension benefits When combined with CPP, the PSPP provides a pension of 70 per cent of the final five years average earnings if the member contributed for 35 years. After 65, the pension (including CPP) is actually a little more than 70 per cent because integration with the CPP is not perfect. In addition, members receive OAS pension. The pension for OTPP members is virtually the same except that the pension payable after 65 is even higher than it is under the PSPP. Members with 35 years of service under either plan will be very comfortable in retirement. For workers who were raising families or paying off mortgages, which means almost everyone, a 70-per-cent pension (plus OAS) translates into a standard of living in retirement that is significantly higher than what they enjoyed while they were working. With the CPP being enhanced, this can only go up. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement Inflation protection Both plans strive to provide 100-per-cent inflation protection of pensions, meaning that pensions rise each year in line with the annual change in the consumer price index (CPI). For convenience, this feature is referred to as indexation. The difference between the two plans is that indexation is guaranteed in the PSPP but conditional in the OTPP, depending on the funding level. The full, uncapped indexation within the PSPP is a rarity, even in the public sector. Employee contributions Cost-sharing in the public sector has been evolving in recent years. Most plans now split pension costs 50-50. This is one reason why employee contributions have been rising over the past decade. Another reason is to pay for the investment losses that occurred during the global financial crisis. In the OTPP, employees contribute 10.4 per cent on their earnings below $57,400 and 12 per cent on earnings over $57,400 (which we refer to as 10.4/12). Contributions under the PSPP are a little lower at 9.49/11.67 (same threshold of $57,400). When we add in the employers share, total contributions in both plans exceed 20 per cent of pay. In addition, employees can still contribute another 4 per cent or 5 per cent of pay to a registered retirement savings plan. Note that the federal government restricts tax-assisted saving by workers who are not in defined benefit plans (which describes 90 per cent of private sector workers) to only 18 per cent of pay. Another instance of Do as I say, not as I do." The federal government should be called upon to explain this double-standard or better still, to level the playing field. Even though the contribution formulas are similar, the 50-50 cost-sharing mentioned above is applied very differently in the two plans. In the OTPP, the active members and the employers share all costs 50-50. In the PSPP, the cost of deficits is borne purely by the government (i.e., the taxpayer). This can be a big deal since a federal plan deficit arising of $20-billion or more is not out of the question. Approach to funding In the OTPP, the actuary assumes that the fund will earn a nominal return of just 4.8 per cent. Under the PSPP, the assumed fund return is 6 per cent. The PSPP is thus taking a far more aggressive stance, which can become a problem if future returns are lower than past returns. (There are demographic reasons why this will actually be the case; aging societies Japan, for example tend to have lower interest rates.) This is largely why the PSPPs assets per member are so much lower than under the OTPP. Story continues below advertisement Overall assessment The two plans are fairly similar in most respects except for cost-sharing. The fact that PSPP does not extend the 50-50 cost-sharing principle to the sharing of deficits makes the PSPP considerably more generous overall. In both plans, the contributions being made exceed what private sector workers can contribute to RRSPs or defined contribution pension plans. In both plans, the early retirement rules are quite generous. This might have made some sense in a previous era when the country had more potential workers than the economy could absorb. That is no longer the case, and in fact, we are on the brink of a time when workers will be scarce, even with high levels of immigration. For at least the next two or three decades, it is in the public interest to encourage people to work longer. The PSPP and the OTPP do exactly the opposite. | https://www.theglobeandmail.com/investing/personal-finance/retirement/article-how-does-the-ontario-teachers-pension-plan-stack-up-against-the/ |
Is West Island ready for Bixi bikes? | The city of Montreal recently announced it planned to extend the bike-sharing service beyond the inner city to suburban boroughs such as Lachine, St-Laurent, Montral-Nord, Anjou and St-Lonard. All city boroughs are to be included by 2028. Rivire-des-Prairies-Pointe-aux-Trembles is slated to come on board in 2020, while Pierrefonds-Roxboro is still two years away. There is no firm date yet for le-Bizard-Ste-Genevive. Although Pierrefonds-Roxboro is not expected to see Bixi bikes till 2021, Pierrefonds-Roxboro Mayor Jim Beis said the Plante administrations plan to expand Bixi to the West Island came as news to him. Weve heard nothing, Beis told the West Island Gazette. We read about it in the press. Nothing has been discussed locally. I think the announcement is premature, he added. I think there should have been a lot of discussion before something like this was launched. Beis said he is open to discussing bringing Bixi to Pierrefonds-Roxboro, but cautioned it will require a lot of planning at the local level. Anytime we can improve different transport options, its a good thing. I cant deny that. But if this is announcement theyve made, its strictly for political purpose Beis, who is part of the opposition party Ensemble Montral at city hall, said he has more questions than answers at this point. I need secure bike paths. I need other bike paths, connecters that bring us to different points of assembly. Not just put a bike there and expect people to use it safely without incident. Beis said a bike-sharing program designed for the inner city might need to be tweaked for the suburbs. Its not like Montreal where they have all these designated bike lanes, completely separated from cars. Thats not (something) we can do necessarily everywhere on the West Island. The only thing Im thinking is if people used it to commute to the train station. But that would be the only thing, and youd have to start from a point of assembly. You got to park it somewhere and you have pick it up somewhere, so theres a lot of planning that has to take place before an announcement is made. The Plante administration, being what it is, they havent discussed anything with us and I dont expect they will moving forward. While Beis is skeptical about a Bixi expansion, Montreal Mayor Valrie Plante is bullish on the bike-sharing program that will expand to 11 to 19 boroughs as it enters its 11th year of operation. Bixi is also available in Westmount and Longueuil. Bixi set a record with more than 5.3 million rides last year, an increase of 11.3 per cent over 2017. Since its inception, 1.3 million Bixi users have taken some 38 million rides. [email protected] | https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/west-island-gazette/is-west-island-ready-for-bixi-bikes |
When Will We See the Emergence of Digital Securities? | Tokenized securities, or a security token offerings (STOs), are one of the much-hyped advancements that could help drive blockchain adoption going forward. While cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Litecoin or XRP can be seen as digital gold or digital money, and others like Ethereum or EOS can be seen as an access key to open source computing power, tokenized securities are different. While built on similar blockchain based technologies, tokenized securities are a version of digital ownership governed by smart contracts for any variety of public or private equities, debt, real estate, fractional ownership or other assets. Because of this, many jurisdictions are deeming these types of tokens as securities under existing classifications and regulations. Most famously, the SEC declaring that in its opinion, almost all tokens would be classified as securities under its definition. According to Yoel Goldfeder, Chief Executive Officer of stock transfer agent VStock Transfer, The SECs statements in the midst of the ICO boom demonstrated that technological advances cannot occur in a vacuum. VStock believes that the regulations will evolve to address the nuances and capabilities of blockchain but, that changes to existing regulations can take time. Mr. Goldfeder further added that, In 2018 the technologists and players involved in the crypto space started coming to the realization that to fully realize the potential for this industry they must work within the confines of the regulatory environment. A lot of talk about tokenized securities, but little action While there is much excitement and expectation built around it, thus far, there has been little actual tokenized security activity to date. Part of this could be attributed to the downturn in the crypto markets as well as the impact of a regulatory vacuum in some jurisdictions. It appears that the regulatory path is starting to be clarified. We asked some key players in the space what to expect next. Jamie Finn, President & Co-Founder of Securitize commented, Capital Raising has become increasingly hard and ICOs showed a new way of raising money that was absolutely mind-blowing. Securitze provides primary issuance and compliance software for issuing securities on permissioned and public blockchains. Mr. Finn sees the need to educate investors to the fact that digital securities that are following regulations could be some of the safest and best ways to own a security. He added, ICOs showed how capital formation can happen but quickly poisoned the well as there were so many scams. This lack of a clear regulatory course of action for these tokens is making headway in some regions. While it appears that most of the filing requirements could eventually be satisfied with an appropriate registration statement such as S-1/F-1 or A/A+ among others. In the U.S., there are emerging exchanges that are pursuing this opportunity to list these digital assets, but the rules around the process remain a grey area. Older paper-based systems have long been the heart of the capital markets, and are a comparatively slow settlement, inefficient with a ton of intermediaries, costly and opaque when compared to blockchain-based replacements. Additionally, in the past, the existing infrastructure has been accused of abuses and conflicted relationships such as facilitating naked shorting. According to Darren Marble, CEO of Issuance.com, digital securities use blockchain technology to improve transparency, streamline capital formation, and reduce fraud. Issuance.com is developing a platform to address the problem of distribution, which they believe to be one of the key challenges in the industry. Issuance provides investors with access to pre-vetted digital securities offerings and personalized deal flow based on their preferences in order to allow issuers to raise capital faster, easier, and more efficiently. Mr. Finn from Securitize believes that there is a real appetite for better ways to manage securities than a piece of paper. Issuance sees from its business that demand is coming from digital asset funds in the U.S. and internationally, including legacy crypto hedge funds, as well as newer funds run by seasoned asset managers. In many cases, demand is being driven by a simple need for liquidity. Digital securities could provide some level of liquidity for assets that were previously illiquid. It is this combination of the need to migrate from legacy infrastructure, the emerging technical applicability of blockchain, and demand from a new class of eager investors that is the convergence pushing advancement in digital securities. But, in order for digital securities issued on the Blockchain to really take flight this year and beyond, the right infrastructure needs to be in place for these assets to truly become liquid. Juan Hernandez, Founder & CEO of OpenFinance Network makes the point that, blockchain-based trading platforms are the missing variable in facilitating a new era of smart securities along with much-needed liquidity. With more regulatory certainty, combined with legitimate platforms in place, OpenFinance believes that mainstream adoption is inevitable, with interested parties like REITs and major equities players seeing the value in unlocking liquidity in a market where there was previously very little. Many are concerned about repeating some of the mistakes associated with the ICO boom and bust with many high-risk investments ultimately providing little return for the majority of investors at best, as well as outright frauds in other instances. Consequently, this may have created challenges for the emergence of the first crop of digital security offerings. With the bar raised, the industry may need the first batch to be high-quality issuers in order to attract interest and investors to overcome the initial doubts. While this first batch of digital securities doesnt need to moon or offer outlandish promises or returns, it is critical that they are well vetted, legitimate investment opportunities. Securitize agrees that the appetite is from cutting edge traditional investors but it's still a science project. Adding that, We have not yet seen GREAT digital offerings in terms of the other industry benchmarks. "Alternative asset investors are seeking opportunities to properly diversify their broader investment portfolio. For these tokenized offerings to be properly received by the broader investor community, they need to have something real behind them, added Hernandez from OpenFinance. Additionally, these offerings may need to bridge the gap between existing legacy infrastructure in order to be widely adopted. For example, VStock Transfer, through Vtoken, has been working to marry the potential of blockchain technology within the existing regulatory infrastructure to afford those wishing to conduct compliant digital security offerings with a path forward. This may make it easier for traditional systems to integrate the technology. Ultimately, it will be the adoption of the technology by both retail and institutional investors in order to prove the model. In order for that to happen, all the parties need trust to be a key ingredient in the ecosystem. Disclaimer: All opinions expressed by Jim Preissler are solely his opinions and do not reflect the opinions of Forbes, Forbes CryptoMarkets, their parent company or affiliates. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/jpreissler/2019/02/20/when-will-we-see-the-emergence-of-digital-securities/ |
Who are the three Tory defectors? | Anna Soubry The former barrister and television presenter was a senior figure in David Camerons government, in which she sat in cabinet as a business minister. Representing Broxtowe in Nottinghamshire, she has long expressed concern over Theresa May pursuing a hard Brexit and taking the party too far to the right. Soubry is known for being extremely outspoken, once telling television viewers that Nigel Farage looks like somebody has put their finger up his bottom and he really rather likes it. Three Tory MPs defect to fledgling Independent Group Read more In a letter to her local party, she said: My decision to leave the Conservative Party, which I first joined over 40 years ago, has not been easy but I believe it is the right decision. On Monday a group of MPs resigned from the Labour Party and they are now sitting as members of the Independent Group and I will be sitting with them in parliament. My decision will come as not much of a surprise to regular readers of this email newsletter. I have written of my belief that the Conservative party is drifting to the right wing of British politics. I have also recognised that many constituents feel their views are not represented by either of the two main parties. Nottingham East MP Chris Leslie said on Monday in his resignation speech, enough is enough. I agree with him; in the last few years I have come to the firm view that I have more in common with his values and principles than many people in the Conservative Party. It is time to realign British politics and get back to the centre moderate ground. Sarah Wollaston Wollaston is a former GP known for her centrist views within the Conservative party, after she became the first candidate in the party to win nomination via an open primary in Totnes, Devon. We need reform of the NHS to avoid a decade of misery | Sarah Wollaston, Liz Kendall and Norman Lamb Read more She has repeatedly accused the prime minister of turning the Tories into Blukip and also delivered numerous warnings over NHS funding. As an independent-minded MP, she was elected to the role of the chair of the Commons liaison committee, in charge of scrutinising the work of the prime minister. Wollaston initially said she would back leaving the EU but changed her mind during the campaign and has now become an anti-Brexit campaigner. She told her constituents: At a national level the Conservative Party appears to have abandoned attempts to modernise or to broaden its appeal and has instead become less tolerant and more inward-looking. I can no longer remain a member of a party whose leadership has become so driven by the demands of the European Research Group and the Democratic Unionist party. I do not share their right wing values or those of the UKIP supporters who have been urged to join the Conservative Party via aggressive and well-funded social media campaigns in order to deselect moderate MPs. Heidi Allen The MP for South Cambridgeshire has marked herself out as a moderate within the Tory party since she was elected in 2015. She took a stand against proposed welfare cuts and recently embarked on an anti-poverty tour of Britain with the former Labour MP Frank Field. She has not released a separate statement, but in her joint letter of resignation with Soubry and Wollaston, she said: | https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/feb/20/who-are-the-three-tory-defectors |
Can Auto Tariffs Pry Open Foreign Markets? | The Commerce Departments much-anticipated report on the national security threat posed by auto imports has reportedly arrived at the White House. The contents have not been disclosed, but it seems a safe bet they provide the President with the excuse he has wanted to slap tariffs on auto trade. Whether or not President Trump decides to proceed with protection, he thinks the potential serves an important purpose. Per Axios, Trump tells everyone who'll listen that the threat of car tariffs is his best source of leverage in negotiations with foreign leaders. Setting aside for a moment the wisdom of applying car tariffs (deeply unwise), it is not at all clear that the threat will even give the President leverage. Last summer President Trump used the threat of these auto tariffs as a means to draw Europe and Japan to the negotiating table. This seemed to be evidence of their value as leverage. Yet that accomplishment comes with important caveats. First, the European Union and Japan had not been fundamentally opposed to negotiating trade deals with the United States; they were doing so throughout the Obama administrations last term. Second, the agreements struck during Summer 2018 were remarkably devoid of content. The U.S. promised to hold off on auto tariffs, while Europe promised to let its citizens keep buying U.S. soybeans. They agreed to start new trade talks as well, but that just means President Trump persuaded bureaucrats to issue position papers and attend meetings not a remarkable feat. And it quickly developed that the European position papers were generally at odds with the U.S. conception of the upcoming talks. As soon as Japan realized the easy deal on offer just agree to talk in exchange for avoiding a tariff threat it signed up too. So the car tariff ploy did not buy much the first time around, when it was meant to compel participation in talks. If the same threat is then used to compel particular trade offers, countries may balk at paying for auto peace several times over. Beyond the Presidents unfortunate tendency to use the same threat multiple times, the national security rationale raises a deeper question. The underlying reasoning economic security is national security is so expansive that it implies complete freedom for the United States to deviate from any trade agreement whenever it likes. Normally such agreements involve countries each agreeing to constrain their baser protectionist instincts in a mutually beneficial way. Countries may retaliate rather than capitulate. While it may have seemed harmless to accommodate President Trumps demand for negotiations last summer, even that gave the European Union pause. There were some voices that argued against talks with the United States until U.S. national security tariffs on steel and aluminum were lifted and until the U.S. rejoined the Paris climate agreement. The relevant European parliament committee just this week backed the start of trade talks, but the text calls for talks to be suspended if President Trump imposes auto tariffs. The European Commission, meanwhile, threatened swift and adequate retaliation, should the U.S. apply auto tariffs. Appeasement looks less appealing when it clearly will not buy peace, so it is more palatable to strike back instead. To be effective, a threat has to be credible. President Trump is encouraged in his enthusiasm for auto tariffs by the ease with which he was able to indulge in steel and aluminum protection last year. In that case, a transparently flimsy national security argument was put forward and it went largely unchallenged. To start, autos trade is roughly nine times as big as steel and aluminum trade. Protection would hit consumers directly, rather than indirectly through industrial users. Further, the last time around, there was a sense among the public and members of Congress that protection might be temporary. Yet dismay has grown as the protection and the ensuing retaliation have both lasted even with Canada and Mexico after a new NAFTA deal was concluded. This frustration has prompted new bipartisan legislative proposals to limit the Presidents authority to pose tariffs under the guise of national security. In the context of negotiating leverage, a threatened measure that is increasingly unpopular at home may not appear credible to foreign countries. If the President pursues this path, it would hardly be the first time he has misread the international trade negotiation landscape. He predicted that he would get U.S. farmers better access to the Japanese market than the TPP offered. His team assured the public that China would not retaliate against U.S. tariffs. His negotiators anticipated that Canada would quickly sign on to a fait accompli deal between the United States and Mexico. The Presidents misguided devotion to auto tariffs as a source of negotiating leverage could be an important addition to his growing list of international policy misjudgments. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/phillevy/2019/02/20/can-auto-tariffs-pry-open-foreign-markets/ |
Can Amazon's Whole Foods Afford Price Hikes? | Prices are on the rise at your local grocery store as consumer packaged goods companies pass along increases to retailers, citing higher commodity costs as the primary factors behind their decisions; and that means prices are going up at Whole Foods, too. A Wall Street Journal article published earlier in February pointed to plans by national brand manufacturers including Church & Dwight, Colgate-Palmolive, Clorox and Procter & Gamble to put through increases on a wide variety of everyday staples. The inflationary pressures facing major CPG brands also extend to other suppliers, including those filling smaller niches, such as organic groceries. Another Journal article cited internal documents from Whole Foods showing the chain had raised prices to consumers in response to increases put through by suppliers. While higher prices at the supermarket may not get the attention of shoppers, upward changes could have an impact on the image of Whole Foods. Since its acquisition in 2017 by Amazon, the chain has made a big show of lowering some prices. Not long after being acquired, John Mackey, co-founder and CEO of Whole Foods, said that Amazon had saved the grocery chain from the trap of its Whole Paycheck image. That's an image that some on the RetailWire BrainTrust saw returning. "Theres a huge myth about Amazon lowering prices at Whole Foods that the media sucks up without investigating," wrote consultant Ken Lonyai in a RetailWire online discussion last week. "Sure, they did lower some prices, but in a token sense only, not in a way that would positively impact many shoppers, if any. Going the opposite way is a failure." The post-Amazon Whole Foods acquisition shopping experience has not lived up to its promise of increased savings, Prime benefits and an improved assortment," wrote retail strategist Brandon Rael. "While higher pricing is often a necessary reaction to the increasing cost of goods, in the case of Whole Foods it will have a yo-yo effect on their customers," wrote Liz Adamson, founder of Egility. "After making a big to-do on lowering prices, to turn around and increase them will erode customer trust. As in the past, the CPG brand price increases force retailers to make some decisions. The first is whether they can accept a higher cost in the first place. Assuming that delisting a particular item is not the answer, grocers are left with either passing the full increase along to their customers and protecting their own profits or doing some investment spending i.e., eating some of the cost in an effort to keep consumer prices down. According to the Journal, a Whole Foods spokesperson said the chain was passing along some of the increases it has received while absorbing others. BrainTrust panelist Ryan Mathews, CEO of Black Monk Consulting, didn't see the price hike as being out of kilter with Whole Foods branding. "Pricing was never the issue at Whole Foods," wrote Mr. Mathews. "Shoppers went there despite the pricing and they are not likely to defect en masse because of it assuming the chain doesnt start a policy of insult pricing. So I think Whole Foods does have the ability to raise prices more easily than a Kroger or Walmart." For Mr. Lonyai, though, the price hike was only one factor in a downward trend. ), poor quality produce, and absolutely higher prices than area competitors on a SKU for SKU basis," wrote Mr. Lonyai. "So whats the end game here: totally destroy the brand and usurp the locations for use as Amazon fulfillment centers/commodity food stores?" wrote Mr. Lonyai. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/retailwire/2019/02/20/can-amazons-whole-foods-afford-price-hikes/ |
What are the differences between vinegars? | Open this photo in gallery istock Vinegar is among the worlds oldest prepared foods. The Chinese have been making rice vinegar for more than 3,000 years. It can be a luxurious ingredient (aged balsamic and sherry vinegars command high prices), and a practical one vinegar can add flavour to salads, tenderize meats, preserve pickles and make sauces shine. Importantly, vinegar also perks up flavours. A few drops can rescue a dish that may seem a little underwhelming. Red wine vinegar and its lighter, less commonly used counterpart, white wine vinegar, are among the most basic and versatile of vinegars. But they also have the highest levels of acidity pucker power. Commercial brands are usually around 5-per-cent acidity, and traditionally prepared wine vinegar can be as high as 7 per cent. Mix it with caution in salad dressings so as not to overwhelm the other ingredients. Also, keep its acidity in mind when selecting a wine to pair with your dish. Story continues below advertisement Rice vinegar, made from fermented rice, is most commonly associated with Asian cooking, but it adds a nice touch to many Western dishes as both a finishing vinegar and for less-sharp pickling. It is less acidic (about 4 per cent) and has a sweeter, milder taste. There are several types of rice vinegar. Japanese rice vinegar is a subtle, very low acidity golden vinegar; seasoned Japanese rice vinegar is preseasoned with sugar and salt, often used to flavour sushi rice; and there are three Chinese vinegars: red, a curious mix of sweet and sour flavours, used in sauces and noodle dishes, white, the most acidic of the three, used for sweet and sour dishes and pickling, and black, a rich vinegar that works well with braised dishes. Substitute black with balsamic. Apple cider vinegar is made from crushed apples, sugar and yeast, it is fermented, strained and bottled. The vinegar is best for making pickles and in salad dressings. Balsamic vinegar originates in Modena, Italy, and the best ones are still made there. Artisans reduce white grapes to a syrup, and then keep the resulting must in wooden barrels. A small quantity of older balsamic vinegar is added to encourage acetification. It is kept for a minimum of 12 years; each year, the vinegar is moved to a smaller barrel made of a different kind of wood. As you can imagine, this intensive process adds up to a very high price for authentic balsamic vinegar (to confirm authenticity, look for the codes API MO or API RE on the bottle, indicating that the vinegar was made in Modena or Reggio). There is no comparison in taste between the real thing and the commercial imitation. Moderately priced commercial balsamic is fine for everyday cooking. Many of them are essentially wine vinegar sweetened with sugars, but their sweeter, less acidic taste still makes them an excellent choice for dishes that might be overwhelmed by too much acid. Salad dressings and sauces are their best use. Spain has been making sherry vinegar for at least 500 years, and it is a process that has been honed to an art. Sherry vinegar is the result of painstaking efforts and a highly refined process. It is regarded by many as the finest of vinegars. Sherry vinegars are traditionally aged between 30 and 75 years, and high-quality sherry vinegar is more expensive than sherry itself. It is sweet with a sharp, sour aftertaste that is excellent in sauces and salads. Send your questions to [email protected]. | https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/food-and-wine/article-what-are-the-differences-between-vinegars/ |
Why get down on the floor to cuddle a pig? | Glad that my broken kneecap was mending, I told myself that I would try for a bit to avoid crowded places with people drinking and jostling each other. But the resolution was breached as I dipped my first for the Chinese New Year. The San Francisco Symphonys 19th Chinese New Year concert and banquet started with a reception for everyone a big everyone, since Davies Hall was sold out and simultaneous separate how-do-you-do in the Loge Lobby for friends of the swells, especially event chairs Gorretti and Lawrence Lui. We were guests of Doreen and James Ho, civic powerhouses and friends of the Luis. There wasnt room for one additional embroidered peony in a space packed with lords and ladies in an array of silks, sequins and pearls, all aglimmer. In one nook, a gaggle of fancily attired women in traditional Chinese gowns hitched up their form-fitting skirts, fell to their knees and, hoping that their zippers were up to the strain, said hello to the belle of the ball, LiLou the pig. In the Year of the Boar, LiLou, whose day job is SFOs therapy pig, was an honored guest, decked out in pearls and red nail polish, the same color as City Halls dome was lit that night. LiLou herself is black and white and not at all camera shy. The sight of her brought out every cell phone at the party. Of course, the main event at this celebration of our community and its diversity, said committee member Nanci Nishimura, is the concert, which featured Chinese music (mostly arranged for Western instruments) and was well received. That was followed by a multicourse banquet (by McCalls) in the Soundbox. Mayor London Breed thanked the Luis for their philanthropy and presented them with gifts, and door prizes (including $500 in cash) were given out to lucky guests whose numbers were drawn. I mention this because at so many charity events, people whove already bought tickets are asked to contribute more by participating in post-dinner auctions; at this one, people whod bought tickets were given prizes. My spiritual takeaway from the evening was porcine-inspired. Watching fancily clad partygoers cuddle up with LiLou, I asked Nishimura whether the pig, an animal to which most Westerners wouldnt want to be likened, had such image problems in Asian culture. All of the animals in the Chinese zodiac have very good qualities, she said. They all exude their own power. The Chinese zodiac includes a snake, a rat, a rabbit, a monkey, a goat, a dog. In Western culture, its not a compliment to refer to another person as one of those. In Chinese culture, said James Ho after dinner, its wrong to put one over the other. A rat, for example, isnt considered better than a tiger. Everything is equal. It comes from Buddhism. Killing an ant is like killing a person. And with that thought, Happy New Year. In completely unrelated ethnic matters: I imagined that recovery would provide an ideal opportunity to cure my TV FOMO. At last, time to binge. I hated Mrs. Maisel. There she is, an adorable tiny-waisted doll throwing f-bombs, an improbable and unlikeable Jewish Barbie princess with a father who manages to be both a whiner and a bully, a shallow style-over-substance mother, a loudmouthed and grumpy lesbian agent. She is beautifully dressed, she flirts, she always gets her way, men love her. All the stereotypes set my teeth on edge. Onstage, shes not funny, shes mean. These arent self-canceling concepts, and thank you, Don Rickles, for proving that the best comedians can be both. Mrs. Maisel doesnt have insights, she wears hats (which, BTW, no one was still wearing around 1960). She was so depressing that it was reason to get well. Leah Garchik is open for business in San Francisco, 415-777-8426. Email: [email protected] Twitter: @leahgarchik | https://www.sfchronicle.com/leahgarchik/article/Why-get-down-on-the-floor-to-cuddle-a-pig-13629164.php |
Do Jails Kill People? | There may be no worse place to live in New York City than on Rikers Island, and it is an even worse place to dielocked inside of a jail, forcibly separated from family and friends. Most people whose lives end on Rikers die of natural causes, but there is no doubt that some deaths there have been caused by the culture and conditions of Rikers itself. This tally of preventable deaths includes: Jason Echevarria, twenty-five, who swallowed a packet of soap in his cell, screamed in agony for hours, and died after guards refused to take him to the medical clinic; Carlos Mercado, forty-five, a diabetic in desperate need of insulin, who collapsed in a hallway his first day in jail; Ronald Spear, fifty-two, a kidney-dialysis patient, who died after being kicked in the head by a guard. Every year, several thousand people across the country die while imprisoned. Local officials report the number of deaths to the Department of Justice, but very little attention is paid to the question of how many of these deaths could have been prevented. Several years ago, Homer Venters, a physician and the former chief medical officer for New York Citys Correctional Health Services, sought to answer this question. Between 2010 and 2016, there were a hundred and twelve deaths in New York City jails. Venters and his team found that ten to twenty per cent of those deaths each year were caused by actions taken inside the walls of a jail. He calls these jail-attributable deaths, and writes that some years the percentage of such deaths rose to half or more. Reporters have virtually no access to the jails on Rikers Island, but, for many years, Venters had a rare vantage point from which to observe its inner workings. He started working on Rikers in 2008, overseeing health care for thousands of people imprisoned there. On an island known for abuse and violence, Venters became a legendary figure; he often spoke about human rights and was known for his persistent advocacy on behalf of inmates. He left the citys jail-health service in 2017, and now he has written a crucially important book, Life and Death in Rikers Island, in which he examines one of the most overlooked aspects of mass incarceration: the health risks of being locked up. Eight jails now operate on Rikers, each with its own medical clinics, where incarcerated people go if they feel sick or need follow-up care, often for diseases like diabetes or asthma. But part of what makes jails such health risks for the people confined there is the insidious way that the environment undermines the ability of medical staff to perform their jobs. In 2013, officials at Rikers stopped allowing incarcerated people to walk to clinics alone; now a guard had to escort themand, suddenly, inmates were missing their appointments nearly half the time. Venters writes, We would give security staff list after list of the must see patients whom we feared might die without receiving care. This strategy worked, but only temporarily. We might make a brief improvement, he writes, and then a friendly deputy warden would be promoted, transferred, or fired, and we would fall back to half or fewer of our patients being produced. Although the situation has improved, the problem persists. This conundrum is known as dual loyalty, and Venters writes that, on Rikers, the most dramatic and tortured aspect of dual loyalty involves the role that medical staff play in sending people to solitary confinement. Jail managers who wanted to lock an individual in solitary first had to obtain clearance from a mental-health workerassurance that the inmate would not harm himself if isolated for twenty-three hours a day. Venters is a fierce critic of the process. Health clearance for solitary is not based on any reliable science and violates basic medical ethics because, of course, that patient is supposed to suffer, he writes. Its punishment, after all. Rikers has long been notorious for its culture of brutality, and, soon after Venters started working there, he sought to determine exactly why so many inmates were being injured. The main cause of injuries was fights with other incarcerated people, but the secondary causeaccounting for about a quarter of injurieswas listed as slip and falls, according to official records. Venters and his team developed an injury-surveillance system, with drop-down menus where medical staff could document how and where the injuries had occurred. Soon a pattern of abuse by guards emergedand the prevalence of slip and falls made more sense. If an incarcerated person had his nose broken by an officers fist, he was unlikely to tell the truth when brought to the medical clinic; fearing retaliation from guards, he might instead say that he had slipped in the shower. Venters began combing this electronic database each week, identifying patients whose records showed that they had sustained serious injuries during an interaction with correctional officers, or whose stories of how they got hurt did not match their injuries (like a jaw fracture from falling on a toilet). Then, at about 5:00 pm on Fridays, I would take my list and go to the jails where these patients were being held, he writes. At that hour, he knew that hed be able to move around with more freedom and less scrutiny, and he always made a point of wearing his stethoscope. But, he writes, Within a few weeks of starting these Friday night encounters, the inmates and DOC [Department of Correction] staff alike came to recognize that I was coming to these housing areas and intake pens for reasons that went beyond simple checkups. He continues, Correctional officers would stiffen and slow-walk my requests to see patients. In some instances, officers would outright refuse to produce patients for me to see. Sometimes, Venters would encounter a patient whose injuries were more serious than the medical staff had initially thought, and he would try to correct the record. But when he would send an e-mail to D.O.C. officials asking to upgrade an injury, he recalls that he would get back a flood of responses intended to derail his efforts. Venters recounts one visit from a D.O.C. investigator with zero clinical training who tried to poke holes in his diagnosis. Her challenging of my clinical assessment that a patient had suffered a nasal fracture was maddening, he writes. But had I been one of our hundreds of physician assistants or physiciansinstead of a senior officialthe message would have been clear: this isnt a path you want to go down. To conceal the extent of the abuse toward inmates, Venters discovered, guards would sometimes hide individuals with suspicious injuries in remote jail cells. Venters describes receiving a call one day from a doctor who reported that guards had just beaten a patient in a waiting area at a clinic and that the patient had been dragged away without receiving care and had not been seen since. Venters went searching for him. After failing to find him in any of the normal hiding spots in this jail, I went to another facility where problematic patients were often sent, he writes. I found him in a remote part . . . and heard him sobbing before I saw him in his cell. Even more haunting is a story Venters recounts about a night, in December, 2012, when officers attacked incarcerated people inside a clinic. The next morning, Venters found a doctor there beginning her work shift by wiping blood off of cabinet doors. The night before, guards had brought in two young men, restrained on gurneys, then yelled at the medical staff to get in the back of the clinic, after which the beatings began, Venters writes. I got the stories of several staff, some of whom made it clear they would not repeat their observations to others out of fear for their own safety. But Venters did find one employee who was willing to relay details of the beatings to his boss, Dr. Tom Farley, who was then the commissioner of the New York City Department of Health. Venters writes, She said something to Dr. Farley that revealed the normalization of abuse in jails: Im new here and I didnt know that when this happens, were supposed to go in the back and stay out of the way. The Times investigated the incident, in 2014, and the U.S. Attorneys office for the Southern District of New York mentioned it in a report that year about Rikers, but no criminal charges were filed against the officers. Meanwhile, the worker who spoke up endured retaliation. She was verbally harassed by DOC staff and started to receive calls from currently incarcerated patients to her cell phone, Venters writes. Despite our best efforts to create a safe work environment by transferring her to alternate facilities, she left her job shortly thereafter. Medical workers told Venters that after speaking up about other incidents, they, too, faced retaliation, including slashed tires and dead flowers on their computers. Late one night, during the same month that the clinic beatings occurred, Ronald Spear, a kidney-dialysis patient, at the North Infirmary Command repeatedly demanded to see a doctor. He was feeling ill and, around 5 A.M., he snuck out of his dorm to go to the medical office next door. A jail guard named Brian Coll stopped him. The doctor on duty said that he was busy and Spear would have to wait. Then Coll and Spear got into a scuffle. Two other guards pinned Spear to the floor, following the usual procedure. But the incident did not end there; while Spear was restrained, Coll repeatedly kicked him in the head. Spear died minutes later. When Venters arrived later that day, D.O.C. investigators and a homicide detective were present, and Spears body was still on the floor. Venters doesnt write about Colls subsequent criminal prosecution, but, at Colls trial, in 2016, three medical staff took the witness stand. Their testimony revealed Rikers unofficial rule about medical workers averting their eyes when guards have a physical altercation. Despite the commotion in the hallway outside the medical officeswhich one person said sounded like bodies hitting the groundthe nurse on duty did not investigate. I opened the door and I immediately closed it, she said. The doctor on duty testified that he did not open his office door or peer out the window. Instead, he remained seated at his desk, where, he said, he was trying to finish my paperwork before his overnight shift ended. Eventually, a captain knocked on the door and asked the doctor to evaluate Spear, who was lying face down, wrists cuffed behind his back. He was right in front of the door, the doctor testified. He has no pulse. The usual response to preventable deaths that occur inside a jail is to pin the blame on a few rogue guards (or incompetent medical workers), but Venters argues that the truth is far more complicated. Because jails are chaotic and concealed from outside view, we only become aware of them when very bad outcomes occur, such as deaths, he writes. As a result, our periodic glimpses into this area miss the systemic failings of the systems weve designed, and we make the repeated error of blaming individuals for outcomes that weve essentially predetermined. According to Venters, these systemic failures include not only Rikers culture of brutality but also something more surprising: guards used paper logbooks to record when an inmate arrives and leaves a housing area, which meant that the medical staff did not always know where their patients were located. There were times when an incarcerated person would be moved from one spot to another without any new information being entered into the security system, Venters writes. As a result, medical, mental health, pharmacy, and nursing staff would be forced to roam the halls of the jails every day physically looking for their patients. Jail officials have begun trying to track inmates with wristbands, but the paper logbooks are still in use, and, in Venters view, this archaic paper-based approach to information management . . . may be the single greatest contributor to abuse and neglect in the jails. Mayor Bill de Blasio has promised that Rikers Island will eventually be closed, and, in preparation, New York City has been working to reduce the number of people held in its jails. In January, de Blasio announced that the jail population had dropped to less than eight thousand people for the first time in almost forty years. Now the number of guards on the citys payroll actually exceeds the number of incarcerated people. But Rikers culture of brutality persists, and many of its jails are falling apart. The medical infirmary was literally the DOC bus garage before they decided to upgrade their bus fleet to another site and hand the space over to us for our sickest patients, Venters writes. Ive often heard complaints about inmates who would file lawsuits about bits of the ceiling material falling down on them, but the scope of the problem became clear to me when we received a report that a rotting animal carcass had fallen into the patient area. In the end, Venters places the blame for the slow-rolling disaster of the citys jails at the very top, with City Hall. New York City, like many cities and counties, he writes, turned its back on jail conditions for years, and a culture of mismanagement and brutality took hold that has not been removed. He makes few distinctions between de Blasio and his predecessor, Michael Bloomberg. Having led the health service across two mayoral administrations, one a centrist Republican and the other a progressive Democrat, Venter writes, I have seen remarkable consistency in how the incompetence of the correctional service was not only tolerated but also supported. Now, with Life and Death in Rikers Island, Venters reveals the true human cost of these colossal management failures. | https://www.newyorker.com/books/under-review/do-jails-kill-people |
Will Steelers discipline Antonio Brown for conduct detrimental to the team? | Steelers receiver Antonio Brown seems to be using social media to get what he wants: A one-way ticket out of town. And so the question becomes whether the Steelers will tolerate his strategy quietly, or whether they will push back. The Collective Bargaining Agreement allows a team to fine a player up to four weeks salary and/or to suspend him for a period not to exceed four weeks. The language of the labor deal implies that a suspension would apply only to behavior that occurs within the confines of football season, at the very earliest when training camp begins. Scroll to continue with content Ad The question becomes whether a team can impose a four-week suspension effective Week One for misconduct occurring now, in the offseason. It would be new territory for the NFL and the NFL Players Association, but its becoming undeniable that Brown is engaged in conduct detrimental to the Steelers, because hes obviously being disruptive to key relationships (including with his coach and with his quarterback) in an effort to force his way out. Taking action now would represent an extremely aggressive interpretation of the CBA, but nothing stops the Steelers from giving it a try. If the Steelers were to suspend Brown now, effective Week One, the issue would likely be resolved via a grievance well before Week One. In the interim, the Steelers would be sending a clear message to Brown regarding the teams willingness to tolerate his behavior. Coupled with a meeting between Brown and owner Art Rooney II during which Rooney would tell Brown that hell play for the Steelers or no one, that could be the thing that gets Brown to realize that, if he hopes to continue to play professional football, hell submit to the will of the Steelers and accept the fact that hell remain in Pittsburgh, at least for three more seasons. Story continues Its a strategy that carries real risk. Brown may call the teams bluff, forcing the team to allow a distraction to become even bigger than it is. The Steelers need to ask themselves how aggressively theyre willing to push it, balancing short-term team harmony against the long-term importance of ensuring that players at all times will submit to the will of the entity that pays them to play football. | https://sports.yahoo.com/steelers-discipline-antonio-brown-conduct-014015741.html?src=rss |
Why Did West Virginia Teachers Just Walk Out Again? | If there's one thing we know about a teacher strike, it's that once the sturm and drang end, we can look forward to a few years of peace and quiet. These statewide strikes (see also Oklahoma, Arizona, et. al.) have been different than a "typical" teacher strike because they have been about more than just the size of a teacher paycheck. But they have also been different because instead of trying to get a local school board to the bargaining table, teachers have been striking against state legislatures. When teachers strike against a local school district, the strike ends when both sides sit down, agree on a new contract, put it all in writing, and sign it. When teachers strike against a state legislature, the strike ends when politicians make some promises, and some politicians' promises are just as reliable as a tired donkey in Manhattan traffic. So as the dust has settled from last year's wave of #Red4Ed teacher walkouts, a pattern has emerged. In Oklahoma, teachers achieved some of their goals and emerged from their walkout in April feeling that they had sent a message to the legislature. But one of the first bills proposed in the opening 2019 session was HB 2214, which proposed to close a loophole in Oklahoma law. In Oklahoma, it has been illegal for teachers to strike--but it's only a "strike" if teachers walk out against their local district. HB 2214 proposed that a walkout aimed at the legislature was also illegal, and it further proposed that any teachers who participated in a strike would lose their certification and could never teach in the state again. For good measure, SB 592 proposed that any group of more than 100 persons that wished to hold a demonstration at the capitol must post a $50,000 bond. Neither bill has made it out to the floor yet. Arizona also had a feisty response to its teacher strike, in the form of a proposed Teacher Code of Ethics. Sponsor Mark Finchem claimed that the bill came out of grass roots concerns, but it turns out to be just one of several proposals across the country that trace their origins back to David Horowitz. It's a straightforward gag rule that proposes that teachers not be allowed to speak for or against elected officials, candidates for office, or proposed legislation. Plus, they must always present both sides of any controversial issue in the classroom (get those Flat Earth lessons ready). Then Kelly Townsend proposed to make it illegal to close schools in the event of a strike, so that teachers can never shut down the state again. But these pieces of legislative retaliation pale in comparison to what West Virginia's lawmakers attempted. West Virginia teachers launched the 2018 wave of teacher strikes, walking out not just for better wages and health insurance, but to fight back against charter expansion into the state, stripping of seniority rules, and "paycheck protection" measures designed to hobble the union. The governor and legislature agreed, and history was made. But it was not too long before the GOP members of the legislature were busy trying to unmake history. By the end of January, an omnibus education bill was floating about that included the promised raises--along with paycheck protection measures, big money for charter schools, big money for Education Savings Accounts (a sort of super-voucher), an end for seniority as a factor in staffing decisions, and fines for teachers who chose to strike in the future. The kindest view of the bill is that legislators simply missed the point of the strike and figured that as long as the teachers got a raise, they didn't really care about any of the rest of it. The least generous view is that the West Virginia GOP decided to play hardball with a little legislative extortion, betting that teachers wouldn't endanger their raises in order to protect public education. They also moved quickly, perhaps betting that the teachers could not mobilize quickly enough to respond. They lost both bets. The legislature killed the bill Tuesday, just hours after the walkout began. The teachers expected to stay out again Wednesday (today), just to make sure the bill stays dead. The legislature wanted to play hardball, and hardball is what they got. In the meantime, all parties will keep paying attention. There are many lessons to be learned from the 2018 rounds of strikes, and one, apparently, is that when you're negotiating with a legislature, you can never be sure that negotiations are really over. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/petergreene/2019/02/20/why-did-west-virginia-teachers-just-walk-out-again/ |
Do Private School Teachers Have A Skills Gap? | When I interview leaders of innovative schools for my Cool Schools podcast, the topic of talent always comes up. Finding great teachers and great leaders is key to running any kind of school, cool or otherwise. Particularly if a school wants to do something new or different, trying to find educators with the necessary knowledge, skills and talents can be a challenge. I just released a study attempting to answer that question. More broadly, I set out to look at the human capital pipeline into private schools. There are currently more than 34,500 private schools in the United States enrolling 4.9 million kids and employing almost 482,000 teachers. To answer these questions, I did something radical and asked them. The study was a survey of 447 private school educators across three states. I asked a detailed battery of questions about their preservice preparation, skills they believe are important and skills they had to learn on the job. Perhaps most interestingly, 51% of the survey respondents had taught at some point in public schools, so they were able to compare and contrast the skills and talents needed to be successful in each sector. Lets start with the good news. Overwhelmingly, the teachers and leaders surveyed believed that their preservice preparation, whether a certificate, bachelors degree, or otherwise, was helpful. Of those with a bachelors degree in education, the most popular form of preservice preparation, 44% said that their preparation was extremely helpful while 36% said it was very helpful. Educators also identified the skills and dispositions that they believed were most important for teaching in a private school. Teachers identified passion for teaching, modeling faith in action, managing classrooms, creating a comfortable learning environment, and communication skills as the five most important. Administrators identified communication skills, strong interpersonal and team building skills, leadership skills, setting academic goals and strategic vision, and organization and planning skills as their five most important. While educators felt generally well prepared for success in private schools, there were some gaps in their preparation. When asked what skills they had to learn on the job, teachers identified skills like managing classrooms, communication skills, and modeling faith in action. For those paying close attention, those are some of the skills they identified as being most important to success. The picture is particularly interesting for private school administrators. Private schools often operate as small independent organizations with little outside managerial support. School principals have to be business leaders in addition to instructional leaders. This is why we should be worried that the most identified skills and knowledge that they had to learn on the job were school budgeting, understanding legal compliance, understanding accounting and finance, and navigating bureaucracy. There is an important point here, illustrated by the answers of those educators who have taught in both private and public schools. Educators who taught in both sectors identified being entrepreneurial, budgeting, public relations skills, accounting and finance, teaching multiple subjects, modeling faith in action, and religious instruction as the major skills needed in private schools that were not needed in public schools. I dont think any of these should really surprise us. Private schools operate more independently and are much more likely to be religious in orientation. These data present an opportunity for entrepreneurial educator preparation programs. The list of missing skills is not that extensive. Its a straightforward set that is probably taught somewhere else on campus. Programs could cross-list courses in non-profit budgeting, accounting and finance, and public relations from business or non-profit management schools or majors. They could work with religious studies departments to cross-list theology courses. Cobble these together in a certificate program or concentration and theyre made a valuable credential that can help preservice private school educators. Private schools, particularly in states with large private school choice programs, are a big potential market for educator preparation programs. Some simple changes to preparation programs geared towards those who are planning to work in private schools can be a win-win-win. It can be a win for educator preparation programs who differentiate themselves, a win for preservice educators who can get the skills they need to succeed in a wider swath of the marketplace, and it can be a win for the millions of students in private schools who can benefit from better instruction and school leadership. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikemcshane/2019/02/20/do-private-school-teachers-have-a-skills-gap/ |
Can 'Captain Marvel' Pull Hollywood Out Of A Box Office Slump? | With Hollywood facing its worst-performing Presidents Day weekend since 2004 and its lowest cumulative gross (around six weeks into 2019) since 2011, there's going to be a lot of finger-pointing in terms of what's going wrong and whether the various Disney mega-movies (starting with Captain Marvel) will be enough to goose the overall domestic box office. The films released in 2019 thus far have earned a combined $616 million in North America, not counting holdovers from 2018 and Oscar platformers. Throwing in the holdovers gives it a $1.171 billion cume thus far. Just two newbies (Glass and The Upside) just over/under $100m domestic. I'm presuming that How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World will become the third such title (and, god willing, the year's first $150m-plus grosser), while LEGO Movie 2 should still crawl to $100m by the end. But either way, Hollywood is currently impatiently waiting for Captain Marvel to save its collective butt. As far as "why," there are, I would argue, three core culprits to be discussed. First, and this applies to the overall cumulative box office (counting 2018 holdover business), the Oscar season was a relative bust. As much as we talk about January being a dump month, it is also when most moviegoers (the ones that don't live in the major cities) get to see the year-end Oscar contenders. The overall grosses in January are almost always boosted by one or two (or three) crowd-pleasing Oscar contenders that earn rave reviews in November and December and then expand to a relatively successful domestic wide release in January and February. Think (among many others) A Beautiful Mind ($171 million in 2001/2002), Million Dollar Baby ($100m in 2004/2005), Slumdog Millionaire ($138m in 2008/2009), American Sniper ($350m in 2014/2015) and Hidden Figures ($169m in 2016/2017). This year was a near-total disaster for year-end Oscar movies, where only the live-action musicals (A Star Is Born, Bohemian Rhapsody and, relatively speaking, Mary Poppins Returns) broke out among adult moviegoers. The only successful post-nomination expansion was for Universal/Comcast's Green Book, which will still be lucky to top $75m domestic by the end. Vice ($45 million) and The Favourite ($31m) are the only other year-end Oscar contenders that grossed more than, believe it or not, Dragon Ball Broly: Super ($30m). Without leggy/crowd-pleasing Oscar contenders that mainstream audiences actually saw in theaters (because heaven forbid adults see grown-up cinema in theaters), one major component that usually makes up a successful winter frame was almost entirely absent. Second, and this also applies to the overall cumulative box office, this is the first year since 2014/2015 where we didn't have a Star Wars movie sucking up post-December grosses. For example, The Force Awakens earned an obscene $651 million in December of 2015 (the biggest December release ever not even counting whatever it made in January and February) and then earned another $244m in January (the second-biggest January earner ever behind only American Sniper's expansion) before nabbing another $41m over the next two months. By the time it was played out, the industry was already knee-deep in Deadpool grosses ($363m) with Zootopia ($341m), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice ($330m) and The Jungle Book ($364m) just a few weeks away. Sure, The Last Jedi ($620 million) earned 2/3 of what The Force Awakens ($937m) did in the domestic box office, and it only earned $102m of its cume in the start of 2018. But it was aided by Sony's stupidly leggy Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (which earned $235m of its $404m cume in 2018) and Fox's hilariously leggy The Greatest Showman (which earned $125m of its $175m cume in 2018). By the time those three biggies slowed down (after pumping a combined $460m into the 2018 box office), Black Panther was ready to (through no fault of its own) steamroll over every other would-be tentpole film between itself and Ready Player One (more on that in a moment). This year, among late 2018 releases, only Aquaman ($138 million of its $332m domestic cume) has pulled in sizable grosses in 2019. The four big Christmas movies (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Bumblebee, Mary Poppins Returns and Aquaman) earned a combined $328m in 2019 thus far, compared to $460m from last year's three big holdovers. The highest-grossing Oscar holdover was Green Book, which earned just $34m since January 1. Moreover, as a side effect of Black Panther's hilariously huge success, the first three months of the year are now almost entirely dependant on one or two "big" movies. Black Panther's "T'Challa breaks for no one" blow-out ($700 million domestic from a $242m Fri-Mon debut) run left a bunch of would-be tentpoles (Red Sparrow, A Wrinkle in Time, Tomb Raider and Pacific Rim: Uprising) looking like glorified counterprogramming. Hollywood (understandably) reacted this year by giving some room between the various would-be biggies in the pre-summer season. Warner Bros. moved Godzilla: King of the Monsters from March 30 to May 30, Lionsgate moved Hellboy from January to April and Universal shifted their Robert Downey Jr. Doctor Dolittle from April to January of 2020. Glass and The Upside were the only two serious contenders in January, The LEGO Movie 2 and How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World were the pre-appointed biggies of February and Captain Marvel and Dumbo (along with, relatively speaking, Us) were the official mega-movies of March. But when the official tentpoles of the month falter, thanks partially to the always-present "fewer people go to the movies just to go to the movies than they did five years ago" variable, the entire month goes down with them. If you argue that Glass slightly underperformed (or performed to realistic expectations) and The Upside overperformed, neither picture went gonzo-bananas. Even if Alita: Battle Angel "surprises" by flirting with $100 million domestic instead of $60m domestic, that still leaves The LEGO Movie 2 earning closer to $115m than $215m. With $175m overseas thus far, DreamWorks Animation and Universal/Comcast's How To Train Your Dragon 3 is now merely hoping that it can at least approximate the $41m debut/$141m domestic finish of 2016's Kung Fu Panda 3. It's not like The Kid Who Would Be King, Miss Bala or Serenity were going to make up the difference. A bummer Oscar season, a smaller-than-usual gross from late-2018 holdovers and a few key biggies underperforming by themselves might have been mitigated had they all not occurred concurrently. A busier tentpole season and a more vibrant Oscar season might have compensated for the lack of a Star Wars movie (yes, Aquaman, Bumblebee and Mary Poppins Returns barely earned more combined, with $627m-and-counting, than The Last Jedi). Or a Star Wars movie earning Star Wars money might have compensated for underperforming tentpoles or a weak Oscar season. But all three, and well, you've got the slowest start, sans inflation, since 2011. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2019/02/20/box-office-aquaman-captain-marvel-alita-lego-star-wars-jumanji-black-panther/ |
Will Maryland College Athletes Be Unionized? | Sign up for Take Action Now and get three actions in your inbox every week. You will receive occasional promotional offers for programs that support The Nations journalism. You can read our Privacy Policy here. Sign up for Take Action Now and get three actions in your inbox every week. Thank you for signing up. For more from The Nation, check out our latest issue Subscribe now for as little as $2 a month! Support Progressive Journalism The Nation is reader supported: Chip in $10 or more to help us continue to write about the issues that matter. The Nation is reader supported: Chip in $10 or more to help us continue to write about the issues that matter. Fight Back! Sign up for Take Action Now and well send you three meaningful actions you can take each week. You will receive occasional promotional offers for programs that support The Nations journalism. You can read our Privacy Policy here. Sign up for Take Action Now and well send you three meaningful actions you can take each week. Thank you for signing up. For more from The Nation, check out our latest issue Travel With The Nation Be the first to hear about Nation Travels destinations, and explore the world with kindred spirits. Be the first to hear about Nation Travels destinations, and explore the world with kindred spirits. Sign up for our Wine Club today. There is a bill in the Maryland state House that would give college athletes the right to unionize. It comes in the aftermath of the death of University of Maryland offensive lineman Jordan McNair during the 2018 offseason. The bill, according to its early language, would require the State Higher Education Labor Relations Board to adopt regulations authorizing and establishing the process for collective bargaining for student athletes on or before July 1, 2020. Ad Policy I spoke with one of the bills sponsors, State Delegate Brooke Lierman, who represents District 46 in Baltimore City and was moved by McNairs death to introduce this legislation. It was horrific, she said. In addition to the negligence, recommended medical staff had been turned away by the athletic department. Lierman cited the an ESPN story by Heather Dinich that exposed the details of the event and the culture of the football program at the school. What was happening was shocking I realized that I was angry, in part, at myself for not doing more to help our college athletes. Because, if the University is not going to correct the situation, then I think its up to state legislatures to step in and to say, This is not acceptable. These are Marylanders. These are our kids. We need to be taking better care of them. Delegate Lierman said that she first started thinking about the injustices of the NCAA in 2011 when reading The Shame of College Sports by Taylor Branch. She said, When it came out, it was the first time I started thinking about the power imbalance and the inherent unfairness of what was going on at our colleges. The article made Lierman reflect on her own history as a student-athlete at Dartmouth where she rode crew: I was given the Best Freshman award. But I decided I didnt want to keep rowing because it was so demanding. So I decided that I wanted to do something else and my coach was furious. I mean, he basically said You owe us, you have to stay. I remember feeling sort of afraid. I was 19 years old, feeling really guilty. And then when I wasnt rowing anymore and he was still angry at me I started remembering the power imbalance, even at such a small level, and I cant even imagine how different it is for scholarship athletes playing football or playing basketball. After McNairs tragic death, Lierman thought about the best way to help correct the balance of power between the Universities and the athletes and landed on the idea of player unionization. Every year, theres a bill introduced to give graduate student assistants collective bargaining rights. So I thought, if graduate student assistants have bargaining rights, why couldnt student athletes?I think that something like having a collective bargaining agreement, having a union or having an advocate on your side, as a student athlete, would make a difference. This bill would allow for that. It would help them establish protections on scholarship terms, on health benefits, on other issues. There are already people saying that they dont think this legislation has much chance of passing. But Lierman believes that the events of the past year shocked people and awakened in them a desire to really step up to the plate and really do more for student athletes. The first hearing on this bill will be February 26. This issue is not going anywhere and neither is the memory of Jordan McNair. Unionization or some form of collective protection needs to become part of the reality of college sports. Bills like this, supported by demonstrations, rallies, and movements by students and athletes on the ground, are how we are going to get there. | https://www.thenation.com/article/university-maryland-jordan-mcnair-union-ncaa/ |
What are Brexit contingency plans for retailers and farmers? | With fears over long delays, high trade tariffs and a lack of migrant workers, heres what firms are doing The UK food industry has begged the government to avoid a no-deal Brexit, warning it could lead to food shortages and price rises. Nearly a third of the food Britons eat comes from the EU. In March, when the UK is set to exit the trading bloc, the proportion is far higher because most British crops are not yet ready to harvest. According to the British Retail Consortium, during the month of March 90% of the lettuces eaten in the UK, 80% of the tomatoes and 70% of soft fruit is sourced from the EU. Sign up to our Brexit weekly briefing Read more The fear is that long delays at ports, the introduction of high import and export tariffs and a lack of migrant workers to pick and process food could not just be highly disruptive, but sound the death knell for some British farmers, producers and retailers. Even the pro-Brexit environment secretary, Michael Gove, has admitted delays were likely in Calais the port that handles most food heading from the EU to the UK due to mandatory EU checks on food exports from the UK on the French side of the channel. That, he said, would have a knock-on effect on trucks and the turnaround of ferries heading back to the UK. No-deal Brexit would mean shortages and price rises, say retailers Read more On Tuesday he told the National Farmers Union annual conference in Birmingham that reports suggesting Britain would operate a zero-tariff regime in order to secure frictionless trade in a no-deal scenario were not accurate. He said the tariff regime Britain would like to apply in the event of no deal most probably on meat, and especially lamb would be revealed in the next few days. Gove promised British food standards would not be lowered in pursuit of trade deals, but UK producers fear a wave of lower standard imports particularly from the US could undercut them and reduce quality for shoppers. Michael Gove vows to uphold UK food standards after Brexit Read more Retailers usually have only a few days food supplies in their distribution centres if they are not kept topped up. They have been stockpiling packet, tinned and frozen foods and are examining ways to increase the shelf life of the most perishable goods, taking on more chilled storage capacity and using varieties of perishables that last longer. Three-quarters of warehouse owners say their space is now full to capacity, according to a January survey by the UK Warehousing Association, whose 750 member operate 9.3m sq metres (100m sq ft) of space across the country. It is understood that frozen and chilled food warehouses, storing everything from garden peas to half-cooked supermarket bread and cold-store potatoes, are now fully booked until beyond April. But many company chiefs privately admit their main policy is to cross their fingers and hope that the UK signs a deal with the EU as soon as possible. Retailers Facebook Twitter Pinterest Marks & Spencer. Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Tesco and Marks & Spencer Both major retailers have said they are working with suppliers to stockpile packet and tinned foods. Tesco boss, Dave Lewis, said the retailer had been working with all its suppliers to build a plan for each category. But he warned that fresh foods would be a pinch point if there was no deal because they could not be stockpiled. With frozen and chilled warehouse storage space now fully booked, Tesco has taken an extra years lease on several hundred refrigerated containers, located in store car parks, which it usually has only at Christmas. Morrisons Facebook Twitter Pinterest Stockpiled tins of Morrisons baked beans in the back of a car. Photograph: Redsnapper/Alamy The Bradford-based supermarket chain has applied and been accepted for authorised economic operator (AEO) status which enables simplified customs procedures and the possibility of fast-tracked shipments for importers. Other retailers may have applied for this status, but have not confirmed the move and it is currently reported to be taking up to 12 months to obtain AEO approval from HMRC. Majestic Wine Facebook Twitter Pinterest French vino at Majestic Wine. Photograph: Graham Turner/The Guardian The wine merchants has stored 1m extra bottles of wine from France, Spain and Italy in case there are import problems or increases in duty post-Brexit. Pets at Home Facebook Twitter Pinterest Pets at Home superstore in Stockport, Greater Manchester. Photograph: Christopher Thomond/The Guardian The listed pet store has stockpiled 8m of extra supplies, including dog and cat food. Sainsburys and Asda Facebook Twitter Pinterest A shopper walks past milk cartons in an aisle of Asda supermarket in London. Photograph: Neil Hall/Reuters Both supermarkets signed a British Retail Consortium-backed letter calling on the government to avoid a no-deal Brexit. The letter said these companies were stockpiling but warned that retailers typically keep no more than two weeks inventory. Food processors Facebook Twitter Pinterest Shopping basket containing Premier Foods products. Photograph: Premier Foods/PA Premier Foods The owner of Mr Kipling, Ambrosia and Sharwoods, has said it is spending 10m on Brexit preparations and has stockpiled both ingredients and its most popular products, such as Oxo cubes and Bisto gravy, to protect against port delays. Mondelz International Facebook Twitter Pinterest Cadbury chocolate sold at Easter. Photograph: Sam Frost/The Guardian The company behind Cadbury chocolates has been stockpiling ingredients as well as finished chocolates and biscuits. Ornua Facebook Twitter Pinterest WTO tariffs on cheddar are as high as 42%. Photograph: David Marsden/Getty Images The Irish dairy company behind brands including Kerrygold and Pilgrims Choice, is stockpiling cheddar in the UK to ensure that its product can get to supermarket shelves and beat any shock price hike if the UK crashes out of the EU bloc on 29 March. World Trade Organization tariffs on cheddar are as high as 42%, and Irish cheesemakers fear sales would plummet if they had to pass on the full extra cost to the consumer. Of the 200,000 tonnes of cheese made a year in Ireland, 45,000 tonnes is cheddar exported to the UK. Unilever Facebook Twitter Pinterest Unilever product, Marmite. Photograph: Chris Radburn/PA The Anglo-Dutch conglomerate has said it is stockpiling large supplies of Magnum ice-creams in the UK amid concerns about importing them from its factories in Italy and Germany. Unilever has also been building up stocks of materials to make and package products including aluminium, plastics and propellants. Farmers Facebook Twitter Pinterest Lettuce pickers in Lancashire. Photograph: Alamy Salad growers In the spring, the vast majority of salads eaten in the UK are imported from southern Spain. Catering supplier Reynolds, has said it usually holds only 1.5 days of stock to ensure its product is fresh in stores. It is considering increasing its stocks on some products, such as tomatoes, but that is severely limited because its delicate products can deteriorate fast. Read more Andy Weir of Reynolds said the company has been investigating using suppliers in other countries, such as Morocco and alternative ports to Dover and Calais, through which most salads are currently shipped. He is also looking at flying in product. However alternative ports add time and cost while flying in product is very costly. Weir has previously flown in lettuce from the US when bad weather in Spain hit supplies, but he said this was only a last resort. Fruit farmers Facebook Twitter Pinterest Farmers fear uncertainty over EU workers rights. Photograph: Robert Harding Picture Library L/Alamy The main concern for soft fruit farmers is securing enough people to pick produce amid uncertainty over EU workers right in the UK after 29 March. Harry Hall at Hall Hunter Partnership, the UKs biggest berry grower based across several sites in southern England, said the company currently had a good supply of seasonal workers and was assuring them it wouldsupport any bureaucratic changes. He said the company would also pay living and working conditions to encourage pickers to come. But he said a no-deal Brexit under which EU workers were excluded from the UK would be armageddon. If that happens the whole country will come to a halt, forget the berries, he said. | https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/feb/20/what-are-brexit-contingency-plans-for-retailers-and-farmers |
Could new group reshape political tribes? | Image copyright EPA Image caption Anna Soubry resigned from the Conservatives on Wednesday to join The Independent Group Only a notion three days ago, The Independent Group now has more members than the DUP and the same number as the Lib Dems. The Tory trio's defection matters for three big reasons, way beyond the enormous personal decision taken by each individual. First, when a government has no majority on its own, even shy of a dozen MPs can wield political strength. The defections change not just the official arithmetic in Parliament, but its alchemy and atmosphere. While none of those who have made the jump are likely to back the prime minister's Brexit deal, they are a new block for the government, and the Labour front bench, to contend with - ultimately, whose votes are up for grabs, and whose numbers are likely to swell in the coming days. Splinter, not split Second, today's departures are evidence of how serious Conservative divisions have become. Right now, as with Labour, it's a splinter, not a split. But don't underestimate how hard a decision it is for any MP to abandon their tribe. These departures illustrate, therefore, a real problem for the governing party. For a very long time, before the referendum even, a clash was apparent in the Conservative Party with those who wanted to accelerate, make real and more relevant David Cameron's so-called modernisation project. In other words, it was an effort to respond to the hopes and desires of floating voters in the middle, rather than the traditional Tory base, and to be more of a mirror of the country and how it was changing. Those questions have, of course, been drowned out by the clamour over Brexit. The split in the Tory party over Europe is not a perfect reflection of that division, but it is certainly one of its contours. Fears over Brexit and the party drifting to the right - and away from relevance - are held far beyond today's "three amigos", but by dozens of MPs privately, including ministers in the government. If, as is likely, more MPs move across, those private pleas to stay in the centre ground have more weight. Like Labour, the Tories have big questions they can't answer at the moment - profound quandaries that it's not clear their leaderships are ready, or perhaps even capable right now of meeting. Huge hurdles Lastly, today's departures mean there is now a group in Parliament who hope to escape the traditional party lines. Of course, there are huge hurdles to that. We know what they all don't like - but we're not sure yet what they all do. It's not remotely clear that the group will actually become a political party. We can't know yet if they will ever be able to agree common cause to produce a whole manifesto, far less that they would become a big enough force to put forward multiple candidates in the hope of actually winning elections. But Brexit, which criss-crosses party lines in Parliament, has already shaken the stability of our two main Westminster parties, and it's always had the potential to reshape our political tribes. This group's potential is easy to dismiss, but unwise for the established parties to ignore. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-47309514 |
Is it Bad to Sleep with Wet Hair? | If you shower before bed, youve probably wondered whether sleeping with damp hair is a problem. Maybe youve heard it could make you sick, or that it can damage your hair or skin. Lets address the it can make you sick myth first. This idea seems to fit into the old bit of folklore that getting yourself chilled and wet will cause you to come down with a cold, says Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. While this idea persists, Schaffner says it was long ago disproved. Its true that youre much more likely to catch a common cold during the winter months. But this has to do with the ways respiratory viruses proliferate and spread, he says. You cannot catch a cold from being cold, he adds. Another wet-hair rumor is the idea that harmful bacteria will colonize your pillow. Illness-causing bacteria and viruses dont appear spontaneously, and so youre not going to make yourself ill by getting your pillow a little damp at night, Schaffner says. But there is a possible exception. Some research has shown that pillowsespecially those made with synthetic materialscan harbor asthma- or allergy-triggering molds and fungus. These microorganisms tend to do well in damp environments, and so do dust mites, says Dr. Payel Gupta, a board-certified allergist and spokesperson for the American Lung Association. Gupta says theres no evidence that people who sleep with wet hair experience more allergy or asthma symptoms, so any concerns about wet hair are theoretical. But if you wake up with a stuffy nose, itchy or watery eyes, breathing problems or other allergy or asthma symptomsor even if you dontyou should wash your pillow cases and sheets in hot water at least once a week to reduce your exposure to any potential irritants. When it comes to the health of your hair and skin, there may be a few other legitimate reasons to worry about water-logged locks. TIME Health Newsletter Get the latest health and science news, plus: burning questions and expert tips. View Sample Sign Up Now Generally, its thought not to be good for hair to sleep with it wet, says Dr. George Cotsarelis, a professor of dermatology at the University of Pennsylvanias Perelman School of Medicine. Over timeanywhere from a few days to weeks or monthswater can degrade a hair follicles protective outer layer, which is called the cuticle, he explains. Once that cuticle breaks down, water can penetrate it and rupture the follicles inner cortex. The resulting damage can lead to breakages, he says, as well as a loss of shine and elasticity. But its worth noting that almost anything you do to your hairfrom brushing and blow-drying it to coloring it or exposing it to the suncan damage it. While sleeping with wet hair may not be optimal, using conditioner can help restore and repair it, says Dr. Adam Friedman, professor and interim chair of dermatology at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. Friedman says the same is true of any potential skin issues that could arise from sleeping with wet hair. If youre a side or stomach sleeper, pinning wet hair between your pillow and the skin of your face could cause some irritation, he says. Also, as the water in your hair evaporates, this could promote dryness on your face or scalp, he adds. But a lot of people sleep with wet hair and dont seem to have any problems, he says. And in some cases, wet hair may actually be a helpful sleep aid. Research has shown that cooling your head at night helps calm the brains metabolic activity in ways that promote sleep onset and restorative ZZZs. There may be some mild risks associated with going to bed with wet hair. But of all the health concerns you could worry about, this one shouldnt keep you up at night. Contact us at [email protected]. | http://time.com/5532533/is-it-bad-to-sleep-with-wet-hair/ |
Is Rob Gronkowski already a first-ballot Hall of Famer? | By Daniel Tran Rob Gronkowski's time in the NFL appears to be coming to close soon. The New England Patriots tight end's resume is Hall of Fame-worthy as it stands now and many would be surprised if he wasn't a first-ballot inductee because of his production in a relatively short period of time. Still, others feel his nine, injury-plagued seasons are not enough to be inducted in his first try. PERSPECTIVES In 115 games, Gronkowski has 7,861 yards and 80 total touchdowns. How this is even a question is ridiculous. Gronkowski has been one of the most dominating players in the NFL for years and deserves the honor of being a first-ballot inductee. Gronk has appeared in less than half of the games Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates have and yet he is third behind them in receiving touchdowns. He also averages more yards and touchdowns per game than both. He blows both out of the water in terms of playoff numbers. And let's not forget the three Super Bowls he helped the Patriots win. His resume speaks for itself. He's a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Hall of Fame hypocrisy continues with new Gronkowski first-ballot debate Gronkowski is worthy of the Hall of Fame. His dominance in nine years has been amazing, but that's the problem. Nine years in the NFL is good, but that's not the ideal length for Hall of Fame voters. They like to see production over ten or more years. Both Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates have more than 15 seasons of playing. Gronkowski has 7,861 receiving yards, which is way behind Gonzalez's 15,127, a total that got the NFL legend the first, and so far only, first-ballot nod for a tight end. Gronk might leave the game in his prime which would hurt his case in the voters' eyes. He will definitely be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but getting in on the first try is not in the cards for him. Probably not, say voters The Tylt is focused on debates and conversations around news, current events and pop culture. We provide our community with the opportunity to share their opinions and vote on topics that matter most to them. We actively engage the community and present meaningful data on the debates and conversations as they progress. The Tylt is a place where your opinion counts, literally. The Tylt is an Advance Local Media, LLC property. Join us on Twitter @TheTylt, on Instagram @TheTylt or on Facebook, we'd love to hear what you have to say. | https://www.cleveland.com/sports/index.ssf/2019/02/is_rob_gronkowski_already_a_fi.html |
What do experts think of revoking Shamima Begum's citizenship? | [Begums] criminality is very relevant We have a wide array of legislative power in this country, many specifically designed to deal with returning fighters and sympathisers. The problem seems to be that [Javid] believed there was insufficient evidence to bring a prosecution. The alternative was to deprive her of citizenship, meaning that the only way she can appeal against this decision is via the special immigration appeals commission, which is largely based on closed evidence, and which she will not have any access to (and neither will her lawyers). It seems that it is an easy way out for the home secretary without having to prove her criminality in a court of law. One problem with the entire policy ... is that it is inherently discriminatory and racist in how it is applied. If you have two British citizens, one white English and born to white English parents, and one like Shamima Begum, who was born in the UK and has no links to Bangladesh apart from her parental heritage, the white English person cannot be deprived of their citizenship on the basis that they do not have another nationality to fall back on. In the legacy of this policy, it is unlikely that any cases have involved a white English person. It can only be used against children of immigrant parents. There is one case Jack Letts, who has been accused of being involved with Isis in Syria and has dual Canadian-British citizenship. He has not been deprived of his statehood yet. At the moment Begum is living in a refugee camp in a war zone in Syria with no consular access to the Bangladeshi authorities and no ability at all to evidence her nationality or benefit from it. For all intents and purposes she is stateless at the moment. | https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/feb/20/what-do-experts-think-of-revoking-shamima-begums-citizenship |
Could Huawei threaten the Five Eyes alliance? | Image copyright Reuters In the shiny, optimistic vision of the future we will all be living in "smart cities" in which self-driving cars will check the best routes after being charged up on intelligent, connected power grids. Public services and safety will be carefully managed though data, while devices in our homes will talk to each other and the wider world as part of the "internet-of-things". Many of these services will be delivered over what is called 5G. It will be much more than just faster data on our phones, but potentially transformational for our lives - if you believe the hype. But there is a darker fear as well. That question risks causing a major divide in the Five Eyes - the intelligence alliance between the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The US is campaigning hard among allies to exclude the Chinese telecoms giant Huawei from delivering 5G. "We have serious concerns over Huawei's obligations to the Chinese government and the danger that poses to the integrity of telecommunications networks in the US and elsewhere," Bill Evanina, head of America's National Counterintelligence and Security Center has said. "Chinese company relationships with the Chinese government aren't like private sector company relationships with governments in the West." 'Rigorous oversight' Huawei has always denied being controlled by the Chinese government, or that its work poses any risks of espionage and sabotage. Its founder repeated these assertions in a recent interview with the BBC. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Ren Zhengfei described the arrest of his daughter as politically motivated But Australia and New Zealand have sounded negative about Huawei's involvement in their 5G networks to varying degrees, and Canada is still deciding. All eyes are now on the UK. In a speech in Brussels on Wednesday, Ciaran Martin, chief executive of the UK's National Cyber Security Centre, set out the framework for considering the security of 5G based on its experience so far of working with the company. The current oversight regime was "arguably the toughest and most rigorous" in the world for Huawei, he said. His officials say they have found ''poor security and engineering" by the company, but the indications are still that the UK may work with Huawei on 5G. If that is the decision then other countries - not only in the Five Eyes but also the EU and Nato - may well be tempted to follow, using the UK as a reference point because of its track record of scrutiny. There could be consequences, former officials warn. Image copyright PA Image caption Ciaran Martin said the UK would "not compromise on the improvements we need to see from Huawei" "Worries about the security of UK networks following their exposure to Huawei may make the Five Eyes partners, and perhaps others such as France, Germany or Japan, less inclined to co-operate with the UK in the future," Charles Parton, a former British diplomat, argues in a new paper for the think tank Rusi. "The maintenance of a 'Five Eyes standard' of cyber-security in telecommunications is a vital strategic and security interest, the loss of which would go far beyond a reduction in intelligence reports exchanged, and might lead to the UK being excluded from work on developing future technologies for intelligence collection." 'Resilience is key' The UK's special relationship with Huawei came about in the early 2000s, when BT was upgrading its networks and the Chinese firm came in much cheaper than the alternatives - by hundreds of millions of pounds. BT told the government it planned to use the company unless the government was willing to compensate it. Even though Huawei was kept out of the core of the network and sensitive systems, concerns over security and the growing use of Huawei by other companies led - a few years later - to the creation of a "cell" to evaluate the security of Huawei products coming into the UK. The cell's last oversight report downgraded the assurance about mitigating the risks associated with Huawei, because of serious problems with security and engineering processes. However, Mr Martin said in his speech, the report said that these were not indicators of hostile activity by China, . The company says it will invest money to deal with these concerns in the coming years, although UK officials say that so far they have not seen "a credible plan". Image copyright Reuters Image caption Huawei's 5G antennas and masts are already being tested in the UK Despite that, the indications are that the UK wants to hold out against US pressure and continue to work with the company on 5G. A decision is expected in the next two months by ministers who will need to balance security with costs and the risks to wider relationships. "Resilience is key," Mr Martin said in Brussels. "There must be sustainable diversity in the supplier market." That was one signal that even though the UK may work with Huawei, it is cautious about ending up with one dominant player on whom it is dependent. But critics fear that Huawei - possibly with Chinese state backing - is working its way into a dominant position in the long term, particularly by penetrating markets in the developing world and by setting standards for 5G. One of the biggest challenges with 5G is cost. Significant cost In many countries, telecoms companies paid much more for the 5G spectrum than they had expected. They are now looking at the sums and indicating their strong preference for the cheapest vendor - Huawei. Telecoms operators in the UK say the way in which 5G can work in a highly integrated system alongside 4G means that excluding Huawei is not realistic without significant cost and delay, including potentially removing existing hardware, leading to the UK falling behind. Breaking the ties with the company could also have significant consequences for the UK-China relationship which poses challenges with Brexit approaching. But the question will be how the US and the Trump administration reacts if the UK does not follow its line - especially if other countries use the UK as cover to follow and work with Huawei. This at a time when the UK may be looking for a post-Brexit trade deal with Washington. It potentially leaves the UK between a rock and a hard place and is one more reason why the Huawei decision is placing strain on the historically close Five Eyes intelligence relationship. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-47311928 |
Will Hamilton County see more diverse juries? | Hamilton County has formed a special commission to review how people are chosen to be called for jury duty. Common Pleas Judge Charles Kubicki, the courts administrative judge, said in a statement that the commission will review practices used to select people for jury service to ensure the end result is representative and inclusive juries. The announcement comes as civil rights groups have called on the county to take steps to increase the diversity of juries. The issue was raised around the time of Ray Tensing's first trial. The former police officer, who is white, was charged with murder in the fatal shooting of a black man, Sam DuBose. Ray Tensing enters the courtroom of Common Pleas Judge Megan Shanahan in the Hamilton County Courthouse Tuesday, November 1, 2016. (Photo11: Carrie Cochran) Typically, juries in the county are mostly white, and the panel in Tensing's first trial was made up of 10 whites and two blacks. The county's population is approximately 26 percent black. The 2016 trial ended with the jury unable to agree on a verdict. For the second trial, which also ended with a deadlocked jury, there were three blacks. Ohio is one of the few states that draws its jurors only from lists of registered voters. Kentucky, for example, uses lists drawn from voter registrations, driver's license records and people who filed individual tax returns. More: 'I want him to rot in hell,' murder victim's sister tells judge More: Oral arguments: Juror with 'extreme bias' served in death penalty case The Hamilton County commission will collect and analyze information to evaluate whether the lists of potential jurors that are generated are representative of the countys population. It will also look at how well citizens respond to summons for jury duty. The commission will be chaired by Richard Niehaus, a retired common pleas judge who served for 40 years. Other members include current common pleas and municipal court judges, a county assistant prosecutor and a member of the countys public defender commission. It will issue a report with findings and any recommendations. The commission will not look at the process of selecting jurors in individual trials. That process is governed by U.S. Supreme Court decisions. SUPPORT LOCAL JOURNALISM: Subscribe now for access to all our coverage Read or Share this story: https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2019/02/20/hamilton-county-see-more-diverse-juries/2873975002/ | https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2019/02/20/hamilton-county-see-more-diverse-juries/2873975002/ |
Why cant America dream big? | Yes, the Green New Deal is vague on how to achieve its goals. But credit its creators for at least having the audacity and faith to believe America can be America again. This, after all, was a country that never feared big, never ran from impossible. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard. John F. Kennedy, 1962 This is a requiem for American vision. Share your thoughts on the news by sending a Letter to the Editor. Email Share your thoughts on the news by sending a Letter to the Editor. Email [email protected] and please include your full name, address and telephone number for verification only. Letters are limited to 200 words. That that quality has been lost is the unavoidable take-away from three weeks of debate over the Green New Deal introduced in Congress by New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Massachusetts Sen. Edward J. Markey. The GND is not a proposed law, but a nonbinding resolution calling for a top-to-bottom restructuring of U.S. social, economic and environmental policy. It is, in other words, a list of goals. Granted, they are very big goals, including: supplying all of Americas power needs through clean, renewable and zero-emission energy sources and retrofitting every building in the country for maximum energy efficiency within 10 years; providing universal access to higher education and health care; ending the oppression of people of color, the poor and other marginalized populations; guaranteeing a job with paid vacation and a livable wage to every American. While many on the right have responded with predictable hysteria calling it communism, fascism and the end of air travel theres one criticism, coming from both left and right, that speaks volumes about what America is in this moment. It says the GND is simply too big an idea. As in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi dubbing it, the green dream; columnist Jonah Goldberg ripping it as a fantasy; the Washington Times calling GND supporters the unicorn caucus. You will read no analysis of the resolution here. Thats not the point. Yes, it is admittedly vague on how to achieve its goals. But the idea that those goals are too big to be achieved is what rankles. That was, you may recall, the same sentiment that pervaded the fight over the Affordable Care Act a decade ago. Then, as now, the argument suggested that something vital has seeped out of us. No. Because big things were what America did. To the contrary, it has always been in the countrys DNA to believe it had the power to transform destiny. Given the frightening state of our affairs and the planets imminent meltdown, we could do a lot worse than to reclaim that conviction. Instead, we get dour pragmatism and lectures on limitations. Goldberg even chided Ocasio-Cortez and Markeys plan as wildly ambitious. Like thats a bad thing. Fine. Whatever it is, make sure it takes into account the urgency of the moment, the fracturing of our social covenant, the peril of the planet. Meantime, credit Ocasio-Cortez and Markey for at least having the audacity and faith to believe America can be America again. This, after all, was a country that never feared big, never ran from impossible. This would be a really bad time to start. | https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/why-cant-america-dream-big/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
Does Amazons Retreat from New York Signal the End of Corporate Subsidies? | In November, Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio held a press conference in New York to announce a deal to bring a new Amazon headquarters to Queens. The event felt familiar: two ambitious politicians, side by side, explaining that a large company had promised to create thousands of jobs in the area in exchange for enormous tax breaks and other incentives, totalling almost three billion dollars, from the city and state. It was the kind of scene that has played out in dozens of American cities and towns. For years, big corporations have been getting tax forgiveness and tax abatements, as well as, in many cases, money to train workers, and, in some cases, outright cash grants or subsidized loans, David Cay Johnston, the author of Free Lunch: How the Wealthiest Americans Enrich Themselves at Government Expense (and Stick You with the Bill), which explores corporate subsidies, told me recently. The reality, unfortunately, is that this is going on all over the country. Opposition to the Amazon deal was instantaneous and fierce. Retail workers and union representatives organized protests; local and national politicians complained that one of the largest and richest companies in the world didnt deserve billions in tax breaks and criticized its opposition to allowing its workers to unionize; people took to calling Amazon Scamazon on Twitter. Our subways are crumbling, our children lack school seats, and too many of our neighbors lack adequate health care, two of the most vocal critics, Michael Gianaris, a state senator, and Jimmy Van Bramer, a city councilman, said in a statement. It is unfathomable that we would sign a $3 billion check to Amazon in the face of these challenges. Increasingly, it began to look like the company would not be able to gain the legislative approvals that it needed for the deal to go through without making concessions, in spite of the support that it had from the mayor and the governor. On February 14th, Amazon abruptly announced that it was abandoning its plan to build the headquarters in Queens. State and local politicians have made it clear that they oppose our presence and will not work with us to build the type of relationships that are required to go forward with the project we and many others envisioned in Long Island City, the company wrote in a statement. Shortly after the decision became public, General Electricwhich, three years ago, had been offered millions of dollars in tax breaks to move its headquarters from Connecticut to Bostoncancelled plans to build a new office tower and drastically reduced the number of employees it planned to hire, citing financial concerns. Foxconn, the Taiwanese technology manufacturer, has also suggested that it might not go through with a plan to construct a ten-billion-dollar manufacturing plant in Racine, Wisconsin, which it had promised to build with the help of more than four billion dollars from the state; the company said that it no longer made sense to manufacture liquid-crystal displays in Wisconsin due to the cost. (Two days later, after criticism, Foxconn said that it was still planning to move forward with the plant.) Neither company cited public protest as the reason for its decision to modify its plans, but each decision took place against a backdrop of rising popular anger about income inequality and the advantages that are often bestowed on large corporations. (Elizabeth Warren and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are two prominent critics of these kinds of tax incentives for companies.) Taken together, these developments raise the question of whether this could be the beginning of the end of the era of corporate subsidies. According to Johnston, state and municipal governments have extended publicly financed benefits to corporations for decades, but the practice didnt really take off until the nineteen-nineties, when major chain stores and developers of sports stadiums began to demand large tax breaks and construction financing in exchange for promises to create jobs and revitalize neighborhoods. In recent years, dozens of companies, including General Motors, Boeing, and Intel, have taken advantage of such deals. (The New York Times calculated, in 2012, that states, counties, and cities are giving away more than eighty billion dollars a year in subsidies to large companies.) In many instances, though, the promised jobs and other benefits to the community never materialize or end up being more modest than was initially suggested in flashy press announcements. Johnston explained how the process typically works: You come in as Walmart or Home Depot or Lowes and say, I want to build a store on that land, and the guy who owns it doesnt want to sell it. In its eagerness to entice the company to build there, the local government might seize the land through eminent domain and then sell municipal bondsessentially borrowing moneyagainst the lease on the store. The chain then builds its store and parking lot and employs local people to work there. The bonds that the government issued, meanwhile, are repaid not by the company but through residents sales taxes. When you check out of a Walmart that has this deal, and you pay eight dollars and change in sales tax, that money does not go to cops, library, schools, or parks, Johnston told me. That money goes to pay the bonds. Approximately ninety per cent of Walmart distribution centers were built this way, according to Johnston. The situation is exacerbated by the fact that states, and even different municipalities within states, can compete with one another to offer the most generous subsidies and the lightest regulation, leading to an arms race of giveaways. Often these things turn out to be complete frauds, Johnston said. Multiple studies have shown that some short-term economic benefits may accrue to the community that has extended the tax breaks, but, over the long term, there is little positive benefit (and often none) because the practice saps money from public education and infrastructure, which is extremely harmful to a local economy. Amazons proposed headquarters in Queens, however, was a more complicated case than most. Because of Amazons powerful brand recognition and the size of the subsidies involved, it attracted an unusual level of attention, most of which was negative. But, according to Johnston, both the number of jobs (twenty-five thousand) and the high salaries that the company promised made this plan somewhat more attractive than many such deals. Amazons presence in New York might also have helped diversify the citys economy, which is heavily dependent on the insurance, finance, and real-estate industries for well-paying jobs, by creating opportunities for tech workers. Once you get an employer that has a large need for certain employment skills, you get other businesses that will also locate nearby, Johnston said. Thats why Rochester had not just Kodak but Bausch & Lomb and Xerox. Its why Fleet Street was called Fleet Street or Madison Avenue called Madison Avenue. Thats why this had potential for other development. Polls of locals in Queens showed that the majority actually supported the deal. The fact that Amazon didnt fight harder to make it work suggests that the company is sensitive to criticism and also that it knows it can get an equally good deal in another city. That they were willing to walk so quickly suggests they were not worried about replacing the deal somewhere else, Johnston said. Johnston is a well-known critic of corporate tax breaks. In general, I detest these kinds of subsidies, he said. If youre going to have a market economy, have a market economy. But, he added, in terms of the Amazon deal, This is not a black-and-white situation. He pointed out that there have been many far more dubious projects that were subsidized with very little protest; both the Goldman Sachs headquarters, in lower Manhattan, and Yankee Stadium, in the Bronx, were built with significant taxpayer assistance, to name two. There are a lot of these deals where its just throwing money down a rat hole, but this is one where theres significant potential that it would have jump-started real change, he said. Fifty years from now, New Yorkers may look back and say, That was a mistake. | https://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/does-amazons-retreat-from-new-york-signal-the-end-of-corporate-subsidies |
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