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What is Valentine's Day and how did it start? | seb_ra Valentine's Day, or St Valentine's Day, is celebrated every year on 14 February. It's the day when people show their affection for another person or people by sending cards, flowers or chocolates with messages of love. The day gets its name from a famous saint, but there are several stories of who he was. The popular belief about St Valentine is that he was a priest from Rome in the third century AD. PA This is the oldest known Valentine's Day message in English. It was written in 1477 Emperor Claudius II had banned marriage because he thought married men were bad soldiers. Valentine felt this was unfair, so he broke the rules and arranged marriages in secret. When Claudius found out, Valentine was thrown in jail and sentenced to death. There, he fell in love with the jailer's daughter and when he was taken to be killed on 14 February he sent her a love letter signed "from your Valentine". Oops you can't see this activity! To enjoy Newsround at its best you will need to have JavaScript turned on. The first Valentine's Day was in the year 496! Having a particular Valentine's Day is a very old tradition, thought to have originated from a Roman festival. The Romans had a festival called Lupercalia in the middle of February - officially the start of their springtime. Getty Images These penguins in California have been known to get into the spirit of Valentine's Day It's thought that as part of the celebrations, boys drew names of girls from a box. They'd be boyfriend and girlfriend during the festival and sometimes they'd get married. Later on, the church wanted to turn this festival into a Christian celebration and decided to use it to remember St Valentine too. Gradually, St Valentine's name started to be used by people to express their feelings to those they loved. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/16945378 |
Why is Doug Ford attacking student newspapers? | Even for a government that seems like a series of sideshows in search of a plot, Premier Doug Fords attacks on campus student organizations has a jump-the-shark feel. This week, he looped back to a perplexing storyline about how undergrads have been held hostage by Marxist student government unions that allegedly impose extortionist fees and levies. The Eyeopener, a student newspaper at Ryerson University, is investigating improper spending by Ryerson student council executives. ( Photo Supplied ) Its bizarre to watch Ford attempt to convince voters in the Peoples Republic of Ontario that he has a mandate to eliminate not just student government, but also the campus newspapers that hold those dues-collecting student groups to account. As The Varsity, the University of Torontos student newspaper, revealed last week, the Tories have now set out the rules that give students the right to opt-out of paying levies for campus clubs and organizations, among them student newspapers. During last springs election, Ford talked frequently about bringing accountability to government and restoring free speech on university campuses. But Fords student choice initiative, as this policy has been dubbed, may well achieve the opposite. Article Continued Below In fact, it is conceivable that undergrads on some campuses may opt to continue funding student unions while defunding campus media organizations a result that could allow those organizations to operate with little or no scrutiny. The notion that a provincial government would have a hand in snuffing out campus journalism is not just ridiculous, but also unprecedented. Even more troubling is the fact that student news organizations are the only media that systematically cover university administrations, faculty and staff unions, and governing councils. Its a big file. Ontario spent $6.6 billion on university and college operating costs in fiscal 2017-2018. The post-secondary sector absorbs billions more from tuition and fundraising revenue streams, as well as vast research grants from the federal government. These institutions, moreover, are enormous employers and serve as the stewards of professional education in the province. Yet the mainstream medias coverage of this vast and costly sector is slim. Most news organizations have stopped systematically covering university spending and labour relations, except during strikes. Research breakthroughs and large philanthropic gifts generate hits of coverage. In the main, only campus news organizations have the mandate and the contacts to provide thorough coverage, some of which becomes raw material for the daily press. Case in point: a series of recent investigative stories by Ryerson Universitys Eyeopener about thousands of dollars of alleged spending irregularities by members of the student union executive. The Star has picked up the story, reporting last week about the unions move to approve a forensic audit of $700,000 in spending. Its hardly the only such example. The University of Ottawas Fulcrum last year broke a story about a fraud probe involving senior student union officials. In 2017, The Varsity dug up the findings of an audit of secret slush fund maintained by the Canadian Federation of Students, a secretive umbrella organization. Its also worth noting that campuses such as York University are as large in population terms as small- to mid-sized cities. They experience crime and addiction-related crises and contend with controversies over development and investment plans. Such topics are only grist for campus media, yet find audiences among the students and faculty. Article Continued Below With a few universities, independent student news organizations have sought to offer alternatives to fee-financed campus papers. But given the precipitous decline in ad revenue, it seems unlikely that privately run campus media can fill the void left when student newspapers lose their levy funding. Its possible that university administrators will step in to fill the funding breach. But the arrangement is less than ideal. After all, student journalists covering university presidents, governing councils or influential deans may wonder if hard-hitting coverage will jeopardize their funding. Fords strange digression through the world of campus organizations may produce less light where more is required or create a scenario in which student journalists are subtly discouraged from doing precisely what the premier claims to want, which is holding expensive public institutions to account. Then again, for a government that launched a fake news channel to broadcast propaganda about itself, maybe this big campus chill is precisely the desired result. Urban affairs journalist John Lorinc is a senior editor of Spacing and a former Varsity staff reporter (1984-1987). Read more about: | https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/2019/02/13/why-is-doug-ford-attacking-student-newspapers.html |
When did Valentine's day start? | We look at the history of Valentine's day and how our soppy traditions came about. It turns out that it is in fact a real thing and it's been around for thousands of years. The Ancient Romans used to hold a festival in February called Lupercalia which celebrated the coming spring. And the first official Valentine's Day was in 496. In the 1500s, St Valentine's Day really started to get popular, with people sending messages to the ones they loved. And by the late 1700s, this tradition had really started to take hold, when printed cards were made with declarations of love. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/47228743 |
How does social media affect mental health? | Video Three women have spoken out about how social media has impacted on their mental health. Social media firms have been criticised recently for the negative effects they can have on some young people. Rosie, 22, from Cardiff, said social media can overly reflect the more negative aspects of social media and not focus on recovery. However, Dina, also 22, from Denbighshire, told BBC Wales Live that banning supposedly harmful content could lead to helpful recovery material be inadvertently hidden. If you are suffering from emotional distress, you can get help though BBC Action Line BBC Wales Live is on BBC One Wales at 22:35 GMT on Wednesday, 13th February. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-wales-47224847/how-does-social-media-affect-mental-health |
Could WR Jermaine Kearse return to the Seahawks? | 1 / 4 Back to Gallery With NFL free agency a month away, it's impossible to ignore that a beloved ex-Seahawk could wind up back in Seattle. Wide receiver Jermaine Kearse, a key contributor during the Seahawks' glory years earlier this decade and holder of some of the most memorable catches in franchise history, will become a free agent when the new league year starts on March 13. The Lakewood, Washington native, most recently a member of the Jets, finished the final season of a three-year deal (that he signed in Seattle and New York acquired the rights to when he was traded) in 2018. RELATED: Report: Seahawks impending FA Earl Thomas moves family to Austin The Seahawks traded Kearse (and a second-round pick) to New York for defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson prior to the 2017 season. The fresh start seemed to benefit the Washington alum at first, as he posted career highs across the board: in targets (102), receptions (65) and receiving yards (810). His five touchdowns also matched a career best. But he fell off last year. His 371 receiving yards were his fewest since his second NFL season in 2013. And with a new head coach in Adam Gase, and a desire (and need) to build a young core around prized quarterback Sam Darnold, there's a strong chance the Jets won't look to renew the 29-year-old's services. Well, there's a need at receiver. Tyler Lockett emerged as a legitimate No. 1 target last season, and Doug Baldwin looked like himself late in the year when he got healthy, but a No. 3 option was nowhere to be found down the stretch of 2018. David Moore, who had a breakout second season, became a non-factor and Jaron Brown wasn't much of a factor all year (despite an eye-popping touchdown-to-reception ratio). Seattle, with its re-tooled roster, would benefit from more competition in the receiver group and another veteran voice in the locker room. It's a bonus that Kearse's chemistry with Russell Wilson was clearly evident in their time together and especially on the biggest stage. Kearse had the game-winning TD catch in back-to-back NFC Championship games, helping to send the Seahawks to the Super Bowl in 2013 and 2014. His impossible, circus catch in Super Bowl XLIX to put the Seahawks at the goal line late in the fourth quarter is still impressive (despite Seattle losing that game): But there was also a reason why Kearse was expendable in the first place. He took a step back production-wise after signing that three-year extension before the 2016 season. His history of dropped passes has been a source of frustration, too. It makes sense on paper. At the very least, it's a strong possibility. Ben Arthur is a Seahawks reporter for the SeattlePI. He can be reached by email at [email protected]. Follow him on twitter at @benyarthur. | https://www.seattlepi.com/sports/seahawks/article/Could-WR-Jermaine-Kearse-return-to-the-Seahawks-13614206.php |
How much do Durham houses cost, what is tax value? | New county tax appraisals show property values in the downtown Durham area have more than doubled. The highest average increase 133.9 percent is in a census tract just south of the Downtown Loop, on both sides of the Durham Freeway. The assessed market value of a single-family home there, according to the county tax office, rose from $107,995 in the 2016 tax assessment to $252,574 today. Overall, the typical single-family home in the county increased 24.5 percent in value since 2016, according to the assessments sent to property owners this month. The typical home is now assessed at $225,793 up from $181,342. Sign Up and Save Get six months of free digital access to The News & Observer Another area just outside downtown, north of Holloway Street and south of Geer Street, saw an increase of 89.1 percent. The lowest increases are in south Durham and northern Durham, where some assessed values dropped. . Tax bills to come Kenny Flowers lives in Old East Durham. He and his wife, Jamie Flowers, bought their house on Hart Street in 2016 for $189,000, well above its tax value at the time. Their house had sat abandoned for years before bring bought and renovated and sold to the couple. Last year its tax value was $99,000. Their new assessment is $162,501, a 64 percent jump. but Flowers said he wasnt too surprised. The state requires counties to do reappraisals every eight years. Durham Countys last appraisal was three years ago, but the county is doing it again now to help ensure the countys tax burden is distributed equitably based on current property values, according to the tax administration office. If a property value is changing a lot in one area but not another area, then the tax burden is skewed, without frequent reappraisals, said Teresa Hairston, interim Durham County tax administrator. The new assessments will help determine tax bills, once the City Council and county commissioners finalize their budgets for the 2019-20 fiscal year and set their property tax rates in June. Tax bills will go out in July and August and will be due Sept. 1, though property owners will have until Jan. 5 to pay them without incurring interest. The county spent two years working on the tax assessments, which reflect nearby home sales, as well as the status of the home and any renovations. About 12,000 properties were sold in Durham County in the past two years. About 110,000 property owners received the new assessments earlier this month. Hairston told county commissioners Monday night that the tax administration office has received about 589 appeals so far. Property owners can appeal their appraised value online or with a printed form from the county tax office. Durham County has property tax exemptions for the elderly and disabled, as well as other tax-relief programs available to those who qualify. Didnt want to gentrify The Flowerses looked in northern Durham and Hope Valley before buying their house in Old East Durham, primarily because they could afford it. Kenny Flowers said they didnt want to cause gentrification. We did some research and found out the story of the place. [The sellers] didnt force somebody out of their home it had been abandoned for several years before they bought it and renovated it. It was in our budget, which was one of the biggest factors, he said. The couples last city and county property tax bill on their three-bedroom, one-story house was around $1,350, Flowers said, and if they pay an equivalent rate this year, their bill would be about $2,200. They dont plan to appeal the assessment He describes his neighborhood as very much in transition, which is a nice way to say a bunch of peoples houses are being bought to be flipped. Many of their neighbors are senior citizens who have owned their homes for a long time, he said. And other neighbors are moving into newly renovated houses.The Flowerses are white, while many of their neighbors are African-American and Hispanic, he said. We have good relationships with all of our neighbors, but its hard to know what they really think about us, if you know what Im saying, Flowers said. Kate Dobbs Ariail has lived downtown since 1988. The new tax assessment increased her property value by almost 44 percent, she said. I was guessing it would be 20 to 25 percent, because the previous assessments have been big leaps, she said. Im not surprised that it went up. I think they just want the money. She would prefer the city and county not raise taxes this year. I dont think that will happen even in the [Chinese] year of the pig, when pigs might fly, she said. I want them to go below revenue neutral because I think weve gone too far in what the city and the county feel are appropriate uses of everyones money. Under a revenue-neutral tax rate, the government lowers the tax rate on the higher overall tax base to take in the same amount of revenue as before. Im concerned about my friends who are in retirement, or close to retirement, and have lived all their lives in modest houses in town and paid all their own way all this time, and now are threatened by these escalating property values, Ariail said. She wants local government leaders to consider the realities of the people that are really right at median income or just a little bit over, especially those on a fixed income. If they are serious about keeping people in their homes, they need to adjust spending expectations, she said. You cant just keep adding things in when its going to do significant harm to those people paying the bills. This years tax rate On Monday night, county commissioners said this springs budget talks would start with how much a revenue-neutral tax rate would be. City Council member Charlie Reece recorded a Facebook live video explaining how revaluation works, noting that state law requires local governments to publish what the revenue neutral tax rate would be for the coming fiscal year. The council will hold a budget retreat on Friday. Some property owners in the city can still benefit from a tax-relief grant program for the 2017 tax year. The deadline is March 31 to apply for a longtime homeowner grant for the Southside, Northeast Central Durham or Southwest Central Durham target areas within 500 feet of a city housing investment who saw tax increases starting in 2016. That program is ending, though, and is not available as part of the new tax assessments. | https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article226100190.html |
What Is the Status of Lisa Vanderpump With the Rest of the RHOBH Cast? | It's no secret that Lisa Vanderpump is at the center of the drama this season of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Rumors have been swirling and reports have been reported that the Vanderpump matriarch won't be back on RHOBH after season nine, but neither she nor the rest of the cast will confirm anything right now. All they can say is that we've got to watch season nine to see how all of this drama plays out, and that it probably isn't just about Dorit giving a dog away. Some of that drama manifested at the show's premiere party last night. Lisa Vanderpump was not on the tip sheet for press attending the event, but she showed up anyway. | https://www.eonline.com/ap/news/1014922/what-is-the-status-of-lisa-vanderpump-with-the-rest-of-the-rhobh-cast |
Do we really need a 'Gossip Girl' reboot? | There is reportedly a "Gossip Girl" reboot in the works and fans have mixed feelings about it. The CW show told the story of rich kids living on Manhattan's Upper East Side. The teen drama had a massive following when it aired between 2007-2012. In the age of reboots, it makes sense for the network to attempt to revive the popular show, but some fans argue the ship has sailed and the network should leave the past alone. PERSPECTIVES When news broke "Gossip Girl" may be coming back to the small screen, some fans quickly got excited. THEY MIGHT REBOOT GOSSIP GIRL, GUESS WHOS PUMPED?!?! -- abygail (@TheOnlyAbygail) February 1, 2019 Not everyone is jumping on the "Gossip Girl" reboot bandwagon. Some argue a show about Manhattan's elite is outdated and unnecessary. According to Teen Vogue: It's already been argued before that Gossip Girl has had its fair share of problematic plot points. For starters, the series seriously lacked in terms of diversity. The first season featured no person of color in the leading cast, and not one plus-size character was ever featured. It also included a sexual assault storyline in which Chuck Bass preyed on young girls and got away with it -- largely because he was a rich white man -- only to have the show make him out to be a good guy and someone we should root for by the end of the series. Say NO to the Gossip Girl reboot. pic.twitter.com/RBjLiArnWK -- Miss Elizabeth Morgan-Stark-Rogers (@SakuraAi) February 2, 2019 i'm the biggest gossip girl fan i know and i can admit that the show had many many faults can you even imagine how bad a reboot would be lmaooo -- cynthia (@jonathansgroffs) February 1, 2019 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.nola.com/interact/2019/02/do_we_really_need_a_gossip_gir.html |
Would Lakers fans want a quick first round playoff exit or a lottery pick? | Magic Johnson has taken unjust heat from many Lakers fans for his inability to pull off a blockbuster deal at the trade deadline. It wasnt his fault the New Orleans Pelicans would rather keep and shelve Anthony Davis than trade him for a package of Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, Lonzo Ball and two first-round picks. Thats essentially five first-round picks for Davis. That wasnt enough to get the deal done, but Johnson put together the best package he possibly could have for one of the best players in the league. He swung for the fences and tried to add another superstar to the Lakers to help them contend this season. If you would prefer he stay the course and keep this roster intact, you probably havent been watching the Lakers much the last couple seasons. Johnson is a big reason why James is a Laker, why Davis has publicly stated he wants to be a Laker and why the team will likely add another max player this offseason. None of this would have been in play if Jim Buss and Mitch Kupchak were still running the show. | https://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-dodgers-harper-machado-markazi-20190213-story.html |
Are these the first bluebonnets of the season? | It's official bluebonnet season is nearly upon us. Texas Parks and Wildlife posted two photos on its Instagram account of some blooming bluebonnets in Big Bend Ranch State Park today. View this post on Instagram Blooming now @bigbendranchsp, the hardy Big Bend bluebonnet doesnt need much water and can grow up to 3 feet tall. Texans note early arrival of state flower Bluebonnet season usually lasts from March until May and is at its peak in April, according to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Bloom timing largely depends on the weather warm weather will speed things up, while cool weather will slow it down. Something to keep in mind: The Big Bend bluebonnets are different than the flowers we see beside our highways, and not just because they can grow up to 3 feet. The Texas bluebonnet (Lupinus texensis) usually starts blooming in March, while the Big Bend bluebonnets (Lupinus havardii) bloom up to a month earlier. It'll likely be a few more weeks until it's time to grab the camera. | https://www.statesman.com/news/20190213/are-these-first-bluebonnets-of-season |
Can former Avon standout Sampson James push Stevie Scott for carries as IU's running back? | BLOOMINGTON A product of Avon High Schools well-respected strength and conditioning program, Sampson James knew David Ballou well before he came to Indiana. Ballou, now IUs director of athletic performance, trained James brothers when they were at Avon, and Ballou even worked with James prior to his freshman season in high school. Thus, James arrived in Bloomington for his first semester of college possessing at least some familiarity with Ballous approach to strength and conditioning. That hasnt made the last month any easier. Buy Photo Avon High School senior Sampson James (2) breaks into the Brownsburg secondary during the first half of action. Avon High School hosted Brownsburg High School in an IHSAA varsity football Class 6A Sectional Championship game, Friday, Nov. 2, 2018. (Photo: Doug McSchooler/for IndyStar, Doug McSchooler/for IndyStar) Its been really intense, James said. But its a lot of energy in there with the guys, so we help each other out. But its definitely intense. Its all-out. Every ounce of energy youve got, youre gonna spend it in the weight room for sure. I love it. I see the improvement within guys, within myself. Its great. The highest-rated signee in IUs 2019 recruiting class and the second highest-rated recruit in program history per 247Sports, James flipped his commitment from Ohio State to Indiana last fall, in a watershed moment for IU coach Tom Allen. A four-star prospect at Avon, James was rated the No. 10 running back in his class, according to the same service. The crown jewel in the best-ranked recruiting class in program history, James spurned the Big Tens elite to stay close to home. Now, enrolled early and on campus, hes settling in quickly. At first, it was a big adjustment. It was a little challenging, but definitely now, Im used to it and I love it. I love it here, James said. (The running back room) feels like family. Its been a smooth transition and it feels great in there with the guys. Theyre all great guys. We all push each other to do great in the weight room and in workouts, in running and all that. Itll be a fun year, definitely. A prolific ball carrier for Mark Bless at Avon, James finished his high school career with nearly 3,500 rushing yards, and 38 touchdowns. He was a two-time all-state selection and a two-time member of the IndyStar Super Team. Wherever he went to college, James always planned to finish high school early and enroll midyear. Now, he joins a running back room thats young but promising, with position coach Mike Hart leading a group headlined by 1,000-yard back Stevie Scott. NEWSLETTERS Get the IndyStar Motor Sports newsletter delivered to your inbox We're sorry, but something went wrong The latest news in IndyCar and the world of motor sports. Please try again soon, or contact Customer Service at 1-888-357-7827. Delivery: Sun - Fri Invalid email address Thank you! You're almost signed up for IndyStar Motor Sports Keep an eye out for an email to confirm your newsletter registration. Indiana will probably hope he can carve out his own role next to the powerful rising sophomore. In that effort, James has an entire semester to get better in the weight room and on the field once spring practice begins. I just want to see improvement, really, James said. Definitely get bigger, faster and stronger. Ive put on about 12, 14 pounds since Ive been here. Thats great. Definitely getting faster and doing a lot better. As far as goals, I just want to learn the playbook, obviously, get familiar with that for sure, and come out, have a strong spring. Follow IndyStar reporter Zach Osterman on Twitter: @ZachOsterman. | https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/college/indiana/2019/02/13/iu-football-can-highly-touted-sampson-james-push-stevie-scott-carries/2862302002/ |
Will Walmart's Holiday Quarter Bolster Its E-Commerce Growth? | Last year was a topsy-turvy one for Walmart (NYSE: WMT) investors. The stock climbed to all-time highs early in 2018 due to excitement about the company's growing e-commerce sales. That enthusiasm gave way to reality when its more than 50% year-over-year growth fell to 23% in the final quarter of 2017 (reported in late February of last year), putting investors on notice that it would take longer to build Walmart's budding digital empire. The stock has since climbed out of that hole and is back near its record highs, as shareholders were relieved that the company's 40% year-over-year online sales goals seemed achievable. Walmart is scheduled to report its fiscal 2019 fourth-quarter financial results before the market opens on Tuesday, Feb. 19. Let's recap the company's showing last quarter and see if it provides any insight into what investors can expect when the company reports earnings. Woman removing large box from a Walmart pickup storage locker. More Image source: Walmart. Improved comps and growing pains Walmart reported mixed results for the third quarter. The company generated sales of $124.9 billion, an increase of 1.4% year over year, and up 2.4% in constant currency. This fell short of analysts' consensus estimates of $125.45 billion. Profits fared better, with adjusted earnings per share of $1.08 up 8% compared to the prior-year quarter, beating expectations. The best news came from comparable-store sales, which improved 3.4% year over year in Walmart's U.S. markets, resulting from 2.2% ticket growth and a 1.2% increase in foot traffic. Sam's Club produced even better comps, up 5.7%. Digital sales at Walmart in the U.S. climbed 43% year over year, while Sam's Club online sales jumped 32%. This was the first quarter that included Walmart's recent acquisition of India's e-commerce giant Flipkart. Walmart isn't breaking out those results, but reporting them as part of its international sales segment. The company said the 44 days of results from Flipkart hit gross margins by 42 basis points, as it "drove significant operating income dilution in line with expectations." What the quarter might hold A recent report indicates that Walmart's same-day grocery delivery ambitions may have hit a snag. Deliv, one of the company's earliest delivery partners has cut ties with the project, saying its drivers were waiting as much as 40 minutes to pick up orders from Walmart stores. The project is still ongoing; Walmart is still working with seven other delivery companies, and same-day service is still available from 800 of the company's 5,000 stores in the U.S. It's likely this will be discussed on Walmart's conference call. Walmart doesn't provide a quarterly forecast, but revised its full-year guidance in the wake of its third-quarter results. The company is now expecting comparable-store sales in the U.S. of "at least" 3% compared to its previous expectations of "about" 3%. That may seem like semantics, but remember we're dealing with billions of dollars here. This outlook is also notably up from the 2% comparable-store sales growth the company forecast for the U.S. market this time last year. Additionally, Walmart reduced its full-year earnings-per-share guidance to a range of $2.26 to $2.36, down from its previous expectations of $2.65 to $2.80. Much of the decrease is related to Flipkart. | https://news.yahoo.com/walmart-apos-holiday-quarter-bolster-002100909.html |
Which teams will move on in Greater Cincinnati high school girls basketball postseason? | CLOSE The Enquirer writers discuss their favorites in the girls basketball postseason in Ohio and Northern Kentucky. Melanie Laughman, [email protected] The 2019 OHSAA girls basketball postseason begins locally on Feb. 13 and the KHSAA girls basketball postseason starts Feb. 18; with a look at local district tournaments, preps writers John Snodgrass, Shelby Dermer, Jon Richardson and James Weber give their best guesses at which local teams will be advancing to regional tournaments. Ohio Division I Princeton 1 District Snodgrass - This district has the potential for the best championship game in Division I. I like Lakota West to easily move out of the Lakota East sectional and Centerville to do the same in Troy. I'll take the Firebirds in an overtime thriller to advance to the Fairmont regional. Potential surprises: Sycamore and Springboro. Dermer - It's hard to fathom a championship game in this district that doesn't pit Centerville and Lakota West in a battle of two state-ranked teams. The Elks and Firebirds are on a collision course for March 2, where I like Lakota West to advance to a Kettering in a thriller. Richardson - Just like John and Shelby said, the end result of this district is almost certainly a matchup of Lakota West and Centerville, two of the top teams in the state all season. I will give the edge to Centerville, though this should be an awesome game. Princeton 2 District Snodgrass - This field has the potential for some upsets. I still like Walnut Hills to move out of the Sycamore sectional, holding off a very good Princeton team, while Wayne makes quick work of the Butler sectional. In the end, I think the Eagles prevail and win a second-straight district championship. Dermer - I've held the belief that Walnut Hills is the best Division I girls basketball team in Cincinnati all season and think the Eagles will be headed to regionals again. Walnut Hills will play back-to-back 20-plus seeds before likely meeting a 19-win Princeton team in the sectional final. I like Walnut Hills to take care of business against the Lady Vikings, then beat (probably) Wayne for a district championship. Richardson - I, too, like Wayne to come out of the bottom of the bracket to face the winner of Princeton and Walnut Hills. I will take Princeton over Walnut Hills, and have the Lady Vikings winning this district. Princeton 3 District Snodgrass - A very balanced district. I'll take Mercy McAuley to best Loveland in the Sycamore sectional and Mason to come out of the Lakota East field. I give Mason and McDonald's All-American Sammie Puisis the slight edge over the Wolves in the district final. This field has some great individual players; along with Puisis (Florida State signee), Loveland's Jillian Hayes, Mercy McAuley's Alexa Fleming (Bowling Green verbal commit) and Wilmington's Mya Jackson (Seton Hall signee) are some of the best in Southwest Ohio. Dermer - Mercy McAuley gets a great draw in this district and should be shoe-ins for a spot in the district final. The Wolves should have no problem beating a 10-12 Hamilton club in the first round, then they will likely play two opponents they handled with ease earlier this season. Mercy McAuley beat Lakota East 48-26 back in November and will see the Thunderhawks in the second round. Then it should be Loveland in the sectional final, which they beat by 74-38 back in January. I like Mason to meet Mercy McAuley in the district final, although that's a very tough sectional with West Clermont and Fairfield. Give me Mason and McDonald's All-American Sammie Puisis to go to regionals. Richardson - Hayes and Loveland may give them a test, but Mercy McAuley should march to the district final and take advantage of their strong draw. I have Mason meeting them there in a battle of two teams that have flow under the state-wide radar all season. I'll take the Wolves to advance. 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 Princeton 4 District Snodgrass - Mount Notre Dame is the big favorite out of the Lakota East sectional, and for good reason. The Cougars should face Fairmont in the district final after the Firebirds defeat Beavercreek for the third time this year. I like MND to topple the Troy sectional champions. Dermer - Mount Notre Dame, the No. 4 Division I team in the state, will see only double-digit seeds until the district final, where I like them to handle 3-seed Kettering Fairmont. The Cougars have the talent to win a second state title in three seasons. Richardson - Not much more to say, this district should belong to Mount Notre Dame. Division II Buy Photo Roger Bacon center Clarissa Craig (40) tries to shoot the ball over Purcell Marian forward Kara King. (Photo: Tony Tribble for the Enquirer) Mason 1 District Snodgrass - Trotwood-Madison is the favorite out of the Springfield sectional. The Rams should hold to that. At Lebanon, I see Badin and Franklin playing a tight game with the Wildcats eventually prevailing. The Rams move on to Springfield regional. Dermer - This district will come down to a pair of big-time matchups: Trotwood-Madison vs. Tippecanoe and Badin vs. Franklin. I like the state-ranked Rams to win a district final. Richardson - Trotwood-Madison has not lost since mid December and this is likely to change. They have a tough second-round matchup with Tippecanoe, who they beat by just two on Jan. 24, but I will take the Rams to come out of this district. Mason 2 District Snodgrass - Roger Bacon and Indian Hill, a pair of state-ranked teams, are on a collision course in the Walnut Hills sectional. I see the Spartans moving on to the district final against the Lebanon sectional winner, Valley View. Roger Bacon advances to the regional. Dermer - Somehow Cincinnati's two best Division II teams ended up in the same sectional. I like the winner of Indian Hill-Roger Bacon to win the district title and I'm riding with the Lady Braves to advance in a very close game. Richardson - It is unfortunate that Roger Bacon and Indian Hill are not on opposite sides of this bracket as it would make for a good championship, but the winner here should win this district. I like Roger Bacon to advance. Mason 3 District Snodgrass - McNicholas and Northwest should be a great game in the Walnut Hills sectional with the Rockets getting a close victory. McNick will then play Springfield sectional champion and GCL-C rival, Carroll. The Patriots advance. Dermer - There are five top 10 seeds in one sectional and I like McNicholas to get through it, although No. 7 Hughes should not be overlooked. I'll take McNicholas to beat Wyoming to advance to the district final, but that's where Dayton Carroll, the state's top-ranked team will be waiting. I think the Patriots are headed to the Springfield regional. Richardson - I will take Northwest to come out of the Walnut Hills sectional, as they beat Wyoming Jan. 17. They will most certainly face Carroll, who I am also picking to win this district. Division III Buy Photo Purcell Marian guard Santia Cravens attempts to score from the lane. McNicholas upset Purcell 51-50. (Photo: Jim Owens for the Enquirer) Springfield 1 District Snodgrass - Rivals Gamble Montessori and Clark Montessori should meet each other in the second round with the Gators winning a competitive game advancing to face Purcell Marian in the Fairfield sectional. I see the Cavaliers advancing to face Covington sectional winner, West Liberty-Salem. Purcell Marian moves on to the regional tournament at Springfield. Dermer - Can't see this district not being Purcell Marian vs. West Liberty-Salem in the district final. I like the senior-led Cavaliers to get the job done and advance to Springfield. Richardson - This district belongs to Purcell Marian. Like John and Shelby, I have them winning and advancing. Springfield 2 District Snodgrass - The Wilmington sectional has a lot of really good matchups. I see an all-CHL final with Mariemont toppling Deer Park for a third time this season. Waynesville should dominate the Covington sectional. I like the SWBL champions to remain undefeated and move to the regional field. Dermer - The Wilmington sectional is up for grabs - Summit Country Day has a lot of postseason experience, but I like CHL-rivals Mariemont and Deer Park to meet for a sectional title, where I think Mariemont advances having already beat the Wildcats twice this season, albeit by single digits both times. Waynesville seems to have an easy path to meet Mariemont in the district final, where I think the undefeated Spartans will roll and advance to regionals yet again. Richardson - I will take Deer Park exacting revenge over their two losses to Mariemont and advancing to the final. Waynesville has been tough all year, though, and should be the team that comes out of this district. Springfield 3 District Snodgrass - Williamsburg and Madeira are the favorites to meet in the Wilmington sectional. I think they will. I see Madeira getting a close victory and advancing to the district final against Anna out of the Covington sectional. Anna moves on to the regional. Dermer - I also like 10-seed Madeira to get past reigning district champion Williamsburg in the sectional final. But I think Madeira's run stalls in a loss to Versailles in the district championship. Richardson - Much like the Roger Bacon/Indian Hill matchup, it is a shame that Anna and Versailles will face each other before the championship. The winner here should face (and should beat) Williamsburg. I like Anna. Division IV Sabrina Delbello of Cincinnati Country day is on the All-Enquirer Preseason Basketball Team. (Photo: Thanks to Greg Ross, Cincinnati Country Day) Troy 1 District Snodgrass - Cedarville beats both MVCA and Felicity-Franklin before besting Fayetteville-Perry in the Monroe sectional final. But top-ranked Fort Loramie dismantles the Sidney sectional and easily wins the district to set-up a potential showdown with No. 2 Minster in the Butler regional championship. Dermer - I don't see any teams standing in the way of Fort Loramie, Ohio's top-ranked team in DIV, capturing a district championship. Richardson - I am with John and Shelby... this district belongs to Fort Loramie. Troy 3 District Snodgrass - Cincinnati Country Day and Georgetown should be a very good sectional final at Monroe. I like CCD in an extremely close win. Tri-Village should come out of the Brookville sectional. Tri-Village to the regional. Dermer - Last season, Cincinnati Country Day had to face a CHL co-champions Madeira and Mariemont in the postseason. This year's draw is more favorable for the Miami Valley Conference champions. CCD is the No. 1 seed in its sectional and I like them to beat fellow No. 1 seed Tri-Village in the district final. Richardson - Cincinnati Country Day beat Georgetown Feb. 4 and should do that again in the sectional final. On the other side, it should be Tri-Village in a tough win over Springfield Catholic Central. I will take CCD to come out of this district. Kentucky 32nd District Weber - Simon Kenton (17-10) and Walton-Verona (20-8) are heavily favored to meet in the district final, which will be Feb. 22 at Simon Kenton. SK beat WV 63-60 in double overtime way back on Dec. 8 and a rematch could be just as close. SK standouts Maggie Jones and Morgan Stamper were named all-8th Region this week along with Walton-Verona senior Brooke Perry. The winner of the district final is likely to avoid Eighth Region favorite Anderson County (23-6) until at least the Eighth Region semifinals. 33rd District Weber - Conner (27-1), top-ranked in Kentuckys AP poll, and fifth-ranked Ryle (23-5) are heavily favored to meet in next weeks district final at Cooper. Both teams went 4-0 against district foes Boone County and Cooper with the smallest win 30 points. Ryle and Conner have split their two meetings this year, and the district champion will likely avoid another regional contender in the first round of the Ninth Region tourney. 34th District Weber - Always one of the most interesting districts. Dixie Heights (17-10) went 4-0 against district foes, with the closest win by 11 points over two seed St. Henry. St. Henry (17-9) is favored over NKAC Division III champion Ludlow (20-9) in the semis. The final is 7 p.m. Feb. 21 at St. Henry. 35th District Weber - Holy Cross (20-7) and Notre Dame (16-11) are heavily favored to meet in the final at Holmes. NDA won by 10, 47-37, on Dec. 6 on a night HC didnt have 6-foot-5 center Sidney Thomas. Olivia Crigler averages 18 points per game for the Indians with 74 3-pointers. Senior Danielle Rennekamp averages 13.7 ppg for the Pandas. 36th District Weber - Highlands (25-4), ranked sixth in the state in the AP, is heavily favored to face Newport Central Catholic (16-8) in the final. The final is 7 p.m. Feb. 22 at NewCath. 37th District Weber - Scott (20-9) is favored to win the district. Bishop Brossart (19-9) and Campbell County (14-13) will meet in one semifinal. The Camels won by two points Jan. 4. The final is 7 p.m. Feb. 22 at Campbell County Middle School. | https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/high-school/ohio-high-school/2019/02/13/greater-cincinnati-high-school-girls-basketball-bracket-predictions/2855737002/ |
Can Tottenham Hotspur stay under radar in Champions League? | Jan Vertonghen scored and assisted in a goal in Spurs' 3-0 win Tottenham's understated and underrated progress through this season has been accompanied every inch of the way by suggestions they are going "under the radar". Mauricio Pochettino's side have been following in the slipstream of headline-grabbing Premier League pacesetters Manchester City and Liverpool, almost but not quite getting knocked out of the Champions League and generally living in the shadows cast by Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp. Spurs midfielder Moussa Sissoko even used the phrase in recent days to illustrate how they might just be able to emerge to win the title. In reality, the big prizes are rarely won by stealth and if Spurs are still under the radar after their magnificent 3-0 dismissal of Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund to put themselves on the brink of the Champions League quarter-finals, then we must assume they are currently being tracked by the cheapest, most inefficient detection system known to man. Pochettino's stock will only rise after Spurs, regarded as slight underdogs when the draw was made, overpowered the highly touted Germans with a display of skill, steel and organisation that made light of the absence of signature talents such as injured captain Harry Kane and Dele Alli. The Spurs manager might still be on the radar of Manchester United and even Real Madrid - but on nights like this he will realise what a good thing he is on to in north London and this will be mutually felt by chairman Daniel Levy. When all this is bolted on to the fact that Spurs made no signings in the summer transfer window or in January, it simply underlines what a superb job Pochettino is doing. Indeed, it is a tough task to think of any manager at a high-profile club currently making better use of, or getting more out of, the resources available to him. Spurs will now need a collapse of calamitous proportions not to reach the Champions League last eight, while still standing only five points behind Manchester City and Liverpool in the title race, despite the searing pace the top two teams have set this season. And while they certainly used the scenic route to reach the Champions League knockout phase after losing to Inter Milan and Barcelona and drawing with PSV Eindhoven in their first three games, they look like making the most of achieving "mission impossible" by going through. The manner in which they first subdued and then outclassed such impressive opponents as Borussia Dortmund was a tribute to the inner steel and staying power of a team that has not had the credit it deserves this season. And that applies close to home, where some of us praising them now were doubting them earlier in the season. After the home loss to Barcelona maintained that miserable start, this observer suggested it was stretching credibility to say Spurs belonged anywhere near Europe's best, as Pochettino had stated a year earlier after Real Madrid were beaten at Wembley. Spurs qualified for the knockout stages by virtue of away goals in their games against Inter Milan If the humble pie is not yet being eaten, it is certainly on its way from the kitchen in the aftermath of this Spurs performance. Credit where credit is due. The recent late victories against Watford and Newcastle United and the fight to the finishing line against Leicester City showed one side of Spurs, stubborn and resilient and almost overcoming themselves to grind out the points. Against a team five points clear of Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga, they delivered a more complete display here to snuff out the threat of the first half and push themselves into dreamland after the break as two late goals from Jan Vertonghen and Fernando Llorente delivered that crucial three-goal cushion bolstered by the all-important clean sheet. Vertonghen, in a wing-back role, gave a performance that must rank among his finest for Spurs. The Belgian was not only solid in defence, he gave Spurs an added dimension in attack, his cross dropping over Dan-Axel Zagadou for Son's opener before he knocked the stuffing out of Dortmund by slamming home the second himself. Llorente, sometimes derided but now a match-winner against Watford and the scorer of the third here, demonstrated exactly why Pochettino retains such faith in him. Harry Winks, the long injury problems behind him, is maturing into a midfielder who will excel for Spurs and England. And in Son, Spurs have a remarkably consistent attacking operator of the highest class, tireless, dangerous, intelligent and never frightened of running the hard yards. Son has also made Borussia Dortmund his personal playthings. He scored five in five games against them when he was with Hamburg and Bayer Leverkusen in Germany and now has four in five games for Spurs in Europe. They must be sick of the sight of the South Korean. He is the man keeping Spurs going in an attacking context in the absence of their big hitter and with Kane now on the brink of a return after his latest ankle problems, Son's contribution cannot be praised highly enough. No wonder he attracts so many from his homeland to Spurs games, South Korean fans posing proudly with their national flag for photographs after the final whistle. This was no freak victory. This was fully deserved, a sign of growing quality and stature and a reminder that when Spurs get it right they can be a huge threat in this competition. Pochettino will now be warning his players against complacency before the second leg in Germany on 5 March, although Spurs do not look like a team that entertains such an attitude. They still feel the pain of how a five-minute switch off cost them in the second leg against Juventus at this stage last season, wasting the hard work of the first game when they came from two goals down to earn a draw in Italy. Of course, accidents can still happen but what a position Spurs have fashioned for themselves. Spurs are the team that simply will not go away. And if Pochettino and his players are still under the radar, it is time to invest in a new detection system. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/47234647 |
Can small liberal arts colleges survive the next decade? | There are hundreds of people who live in the town and hundreds who live in the Valley whose family income comes from Hampshire College, says Amherst Town Manager Paul Bockelman. It has a significant impact on the town. Along with Amherst College and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Hampshire is one of the largest employers in Amherst, a bucolic yet lively town of 40,000 in Massachusetts Pioneer Valley. But Hampshires woes have attracted significant attention, perhaps because the school epitomizes many of the qualities that have made small private liberal-arts colleges an attractive option in the past. The college, while unique in its approach to higher education, faces many of the same challenges faced by other small liberal-arts colleges in the United States, particularly in the Northeast. Recent closings have included Burlington College in Burlington, Vt., Green Mountain College in Poultney, Vt., Dowling College in Oakdale, N.Y., Mount Ida College in Newton, Mass., and Wheelock College in Boston. Hampshire College, an experimental school sitting on about 650 acres of rolling farmland and orchards in Amherst, Mass., announced Feb. 1 that, in the face of severe financial difficulties, it will be admitting a freshman class consisting of just 41 early-decision students and another 36 students who deferred admission for one year. The very first lesson Jessamyn West learned upon graduating from Hampshire College in 1986 was one that would foretell the schools precarious financial position some three decades later. When I graduated and grabbed my diploma, says Ms. West, now a noted librarian, author, and technologist, the then-president of Hampshire told me how he talked to my dad last week, literally as Im walking across the stage. To West, the presidents message was clear: Your value is your parents, who paid your tuition, she says. West was one of the schools handful of students who paid full tuition, which at a school that depends on tuition for its operating costs meant weird perks, such as getting invited to the presidents house for some special lets-drink-champagne-before-noon thing that felt completely inappropriate and awful, she says. And yet her experience at Hampshire was unlike one she could get anywhere else. I was not really an outcast in high school, but I didnt fit in the way I felt like fitting-in people fit in, says West. At Hampshire, an experimental school sitting on about 650 acres of rolling farmland and orchards in Amherst, Mass., known for eschewing majors and offering detailed written evaluations instead of grades, West found the intellectual and social nourishment she was seeking. I actually kind of wanted someplace where I could just be me and everybody else could be them, too, says West, who studied linguistics there. And Hampshire was like that. And honestly its the only time Ive ever been in a situation like that in my whole life. Hampshire, whose current enrollment is 1,120, announced on Feb. 1 that, in the face of severe financial difficulties, it will be admitting a freshman class consisting of just 41 early-decision students and another 36 students who deferred admission for one year. The nearly 50-year-old school, Hampshire President Miriam Nelson announced, would be seeking a long-term partner that can help us achieve a thriving and sustainable future for Hampshire. The college, while unique in its approach to higher education, faces many of the same challenges faced by other small liberal-arts colleges in the United States, particularly in the Northeast. Recent closings have included Burlington College in Burlington, Vt., Green Mountain College in Poultney, Vt., Dowling College in Oakdale, N.Y., Mount Ida College in Newton, Mass., and Wheelock College in Boston. But Hampshires woes have attracted significant attention, perhaps because the school epitomizes many of the qualities small classes, curricular flexibility, a faculty largely committed to teaching as opposed to research that have made small private liberal-arts colleges an attractive option in the past. My colleagues and I have heard from so many far-flung academics who have never set foot on the Hampshire campus but who consider Hampshire very important to the project of the liberal arts in the United States, writes Christoph Cox, a philosophy professor at Hampshire. One told a colleague of mine, If we lose Hampshire, weve lost the war. So far, less than 1 percent of private colleges in the United States have closed in recent years, a failure rate that doesnt yet confirm Harvard Business School professor Clayton Christensens dire 2011 prediction that half of the the roughly 4,000 or so colleges and universities in the United States would be bankrupt in 10 to 15 years. But the pace of closings is rising, according to a 2018 report from Moodys that finds colleges are closing at a rate of about 11 per year. Many small schools rely on tuition and operate on razor-thin margins, making them vulnerable to downturns. And as these schools close, downsize, or merge with other institutions, those seeking the specialized-yet-versatile approach that small colleges offer curricular flexibility, small class sizes, opportunities for cross-disciplinary research will have to look elsewhere. A demographic cliff I dont think that small size is intrinsically a problem, says Will Wootton, the former president of Sterling College in Craftsbury Common, Vt., and author of Good Fortune Next Time: Life, Death, Irony, and the Administration of Very Small Colleges. But, he says, small institutions cannot weather fiscal downturns like big institutions can. One of the big threats facing small schools is demographics. As pointed out by Carleton College social scientist Nathan Grawe in his 2018 book, Demographics and the Demand for Higher Education, the population of traditionally college-aged people is set to decline in the Northeast and the Midwest by about 5 percent by the mid-2020s. Whats more, the economic downturn of 2008 led many others to delay starting families. This birth dearth, which is set to begin around 2026, could add up to a loss of 15 percent of the typical college-age population. The Ivy League schools will undoubtedly survive the demographic shifts, as will other elite schools with large endowments, state schools, and community colleges. But schools with endowments of less than $100 million Hampshire has about $50 million, compared with nearby Amherst Colleges $2.2 billion are feeling the pinch, according to Moodys. But, Mr. Wootton says, small colleges can still thrive if they are nimble and address a lack of incoming students immediately. Its possible to keep these places going, especially the very small places, because of the local population who needs those colleges, Wootton says. They have a great economic impact on their towns and villages. Thats our identity Along with the Amherst College and University of Massachusetts Amherst, the flagship campus of the state system, Hampshire is one of the largest employers in Amherst, a bucolic yet lively town of 40,000 in Massachusetts Pioneer Valley. There are hundreds of people who live in the town and hundreds who live in the Valley whose family income comes from Hampshire College, says Amherst Town Manager Paul Bockelman. It has a significant impact on the town. Mr. Bockelman, who graduated from Hampshire in 1978, notes that its graduates also have an outsized influence on the regions economy. If you looked at Hampshire grads as being part of the Valley and being entrepreneurial in the Valley, youll see a much higher proportion than the other colleges. He attributes this entrepreneurial spirit a quarter of Hampshire graduates start their own businesses or nonprofits to the way the school requires students to create their own courses of study by, for instance, not offering predefined majors. You have to be self-motivated, he says. And thats why a lot of students dont succeed, because theyre used to being in a sort of lockstep version of high school, and thats what a lot of colleges have become. Beyond Hampshires economic footprint, the school plays a special role in shaping the identity of the surrounding towns. Hampshire, which admitted its first class in 1970, was formed out a partnership between four other schools in the region Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Smith College in Northampton, Amherst College, and UMass Amherst to create the Five College Consortium. The academic collaboration quickly entered the Valleys popular consciousness, inspiring the names of several businesses, including a realtor, a moving company, a credit union, and a farm that specializes in heirloom tomatoes. The Five Colleges also serve as an origin story for the characters of Scooby-Doos Mystery Gang that, sadly, turns out to be an urban legend. We think of ourselves as being from the Five College area, says Bockelman, and the town of Amherst takes great pride in having three high-quality institutions of higher education. Thats our identity. And potentially if we were to lose one of those partners, it would be devastating. The ultimate cause of Hampshires problems, says Bockelman, is Americas widening class disparity. Higher education is in crisis, and it's become unaffordable to many people, he says. And it seems to be moving toward the income inequality thats really hit a lot of the population in general in terms of the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. Im not going to close The walls of Global Cuts International World of Barber Styling, near Hampshires campus, are covered with heroes photographed during some of their most iconic moments. Muhammad Ali standing over Sonny Liston in 1965. Julius Erving defending himself against Larry Bird on the court in 1984. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. shaking hands with Malcolm X in 1964. The Four Tops. The Jackson 5. But the most prominent item on the wall is a huge laminated map of the world, with pins showing each customers hometown. Much of the United States and Europe is covered. Same goes for sub-Saharan Africa, India, and Southeast Asia. A few pins stand in more remote places, like Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, and Antananarivo, Madagascar. Owner Khayyam Mahdi admits that his cosmopolitan barbershop seems incongruous amid Amhersts fields and orchards, but, for all its rural New England charm, this towns cultural currents have long been shaped by the regular influx of students and faculty from around the world. You would expect a place like this in New York City, Mr. Mahdi says. Mahdi estimates that about a third of his customers are Hampshire students. When they visit, Mahdi hopes that they get more than just a haircut. This is a place where relationships are made, he says. Despite Hampshires troubles, Mahdi remains optimistic about his shops future. Im not going to close because they got shut down, says Mr. Mahdi. Were global. We all missed the window For most of Hampshires 400 full-time and 50 part-time workers, the announcement that the school wouldnt be admitting a full-size freshman class in September came as a shock, as it would mean steep layoffs before the beginning of next semester. For teaching faculty, the announcement came in the off-cycle in the job market, as applications for positions are typically due in November and December. Most of those laid off on June 30 will have to wait more than a year to begin working again in a comparable position. We all missed the window to apply for other jobs that start this fall, says a Hampshire professor who requested anonymity so as not to prejudice any future employers. It leaves all of us and our families in desperate situations that we never saw coming. Many college professors spend six or seven years obtaining a doctoral degree, followed by several years of postdocs and modestly paid teaching jobs before attaining anything resembling job security, if they ever do so. For those who do, being suddenly hurled back into the academic job market can be daunting. A lot of the professors that I talk to are really having a hard time finding work, says Darcy Daniels, who worked as an adjunct professor of history at Mount Ida College before the school suddenly closed last year. My former department chair called me into his office, and he asked if I could help him create a LinkedIn account. He was a 20-year tenured professor. Ms. Daniels, who is now teaching social studies at a boarding school in Braintree, Mass., considers herself relatively fortunate among her peers, some of whom are considering leaving academia altogether. In a lot of ways, she says, Mount Ida traumatized them. For the students of colleges that close after they graduate, it can feel like an important link is broken. Nicole Muschinski, who majored in environmental studies and sociology/anthropology at Green Mountain College, was in Amsterdam last year when she got the news that her alma mater would be closing its doors. I was surprised, but at the same time I was not, says Ms. Muschinski, who had been aware that the school had been experiencing financial problems. Muschinski, who says she just started working very part time for Missouri Interfaith Power and Light, an organization that promotes religious response to climate change, says that her schools closing comes at a time when the world needs more schools like it. We need places that offer education in sustainability and in environmental studies and environmental justice, she says. The fact that it cant stay open because it cant afford to stay open is really unfortunate. This hit everybody out of the blue, says a business owner near Green Mountain College whose establishment is heavily patronized by students and their parents. Its definitely going to affect my business. The owner, who asked to remain anonymous, lamented the lack of communication between the college and the town in the years leading up to Green Mountains closure. For Wootton, vulnerable schools might seek financial safety in numbers: In other words, partnerships. Partnerships with equals. Get the Monitor Stories you care about delivered to your inbox. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Partnering with peers was Hampshires original plan, and today the school hopes to partner with a more financially secure institution, although none have so far stepped forward. Im hopeful that Hampshire will be the bellwether for the model for how small colleges can survive going into the future, says Bockelman. If any college can transform to take on the challenges of higher education, its Hampshire College. | https://www.csmonitor.com/EqualEd/2019/0213/Can-small-liberal-arts-colleges-survive-the-next-decade |
Are Married at First Sight's Jessika and Love Island's Eden Dating Now? | Noticeably absent: Jessika's MAFS husband, 31-year-old Mick, who reportedly spent the weekend on his farm in Gympie. Adding fuel to the fire, Married at First Sight season 5 star Telv Williamswho often hangs out with 26-year-old Edencongratulated "the happy couple" on his Instagram Stories Feb. 13. It's unclear if he was joking about the romance rumours or actually confirming their love. Sydneysider Eden and his Love Island Australia partner Erin Barnett announced their breakup last September after being runners up on the reality dating series. "We wanted to share with you, that after much deliberation, we have quietly parted ways. We look back and cherish the time we have spent together, the memories we have created, in both Spain and in Australia," read their statement. "We can't thank each and everyone of you enough, for the support and love you have shown us, but we have to be honest within ourselves as we realise that our forever as a couple, is no longer. We look forward to supporting each other moving forward and remain best friends." | https://www.eonline.com/au/news/1014959/are-married-at-first-sight-s-jessika-and-love-island-s-eden-dating-now |
Who Won Celebrity Big Brother Season 2? | Another season of Celebrity Big Brother has come to a close, and once again, we could never have guessed at the start of the season that this is where we'd end up. The final five came down to Dina Lohan, Kandi Burruss, Ricky Williams, Lolo Jones, and Tamar Braxton, with at least two final alliances at odds with each other going into the finale. Ricky won the first HOH, securing his spot in the final four, and immediately sent Kandi out of the house. Ricky then won HOH again, sending Dina and Lolo out the door with Tamar remaining as his fellow final two. Kandi, Dina, and Lolo all then joined the jury. After taking all of the first five votes read, Tamar Braxton was named the winner! Which was obvious, but still! Congrats to Tamar! | https://www.eonline.com/ap/news/1015015/who-won-celebrity-big-brother-season-2 |
Did Clarke Gayford get the worst Valentine's Day gift of all time? | Happy Valentine's Day to everyone but especially New Zealand's first bloke Clarke Gayford who's going through some rough times. Gayford, who had been quiet on Twitter since November, posted on the social network this afternoon that, for Valentine's Day, he received a load of plain white bread. "It might not seem like much, but considering the food poisoning I'm coming out the other side of, it is EVERYTHING," he added. For valentine's I got this loaf of plain white bread. It might not seem like much, but considering the food poisoning I'm coming out the other side of, it is EVERYTHING. pic.twitter.com/OAtTlP2YHF Clarke Gayford (@NZClarke) February 14, 2019 There won't be any fancy candlelit dinners at the Ardern-Gayford's this evening. Advertisement Twitter users jumped onto the chance to sympathise with Gayford and also offer advice on coping with his misfortune. One Twitter user suggested raspberry cordial to help with the runs (at least the cordial is red so it's sort of within the theme of the day), while another one suggests ginger ale. | https://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=12203954 |
Why did the Airbus A380 fail? | Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The A380 is the world's largest passenger aircraft When Singapore Airlines took the A380 superjumbo for its first commercial flight in 2007, there was widespread applause that the future of air travel had arrived. But the Airbus programme, long-delayed and over-budget, never really shook off accusations that it would be a white elephant of the skies. The A380, whose wings are made at Airbus UK, was a bold challenger to US rival Boeing's dominance of the large aircraft market. While Airbus was taking a multi-billion-dollar bet that airlines would want big aircraft in the future, Boeing was developing its smaller, nimbler (and seemingly more successful) 787 Dreamliner. Carrying about 550 passengers - but with capacity for more - over a range of 8,000 nautical miles, the A380 was pitched at the fast-growing Asia and Middle East markets, where airlines were keen to fly more people per flight. The A380 also boasted more than 500 sq m of usable floor space, enabling carriers to offer plush first-class suites, as well as bars, beauty salons and duty-free shops. But after an initial surge of orders, especially from Dubai-based Emirates, demand dried up and the programme has never turned a profit. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The spacious plane has rooms for bars and lounge areas The whole programme is thought to have cost $25bn (19.4bn) and has been dogged by controversies over subsidies from the French and German governments. Last year, the World Trade Organisation ruled that the EU failed to comply with requests to end state aid to the planemaker, ramping up trade tensions between the bloc and the US. As of January, Airbus had received 313 firm orders for the passenger version of the plane, of which 234 had been delivered. Its target was to sell 700 in total. Ironically, the double-decker planes are popular with passengers, but airlines have come to view them as inefficient. Some argue that the A380 is too large, making it unprofitable when too many seats go unfilled. And Willie Walsh, boss of British Airways-owner IAG, just last week suggested that the plane - while good - was too pricey. With fuel prices rising and campaigners questioning the environmental impact of aircraft, some airlines chose to opt for smaller, but more efficient, planes produced by both Boeing and Airbus. Some airlines preferred to wait for more details about Boeing's new family of 777s - deliveries of which start in 2020 - which has fewer seats but the same range, more payload, and two fewer engines. Since 2005, a total of 57 firm orders for the A380 have been cancelled by airlines including Emirates, Virgin Atlantic and Lufthansa. A cargo version of the plane also never took off because of a lack of interest. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The wings of the A380 are made in Broughton, Wales, then transported to France on Airbus's Beluga cargo plane Not surprisingly, speculation that the aircraft could be scrapped has swirled for years, although Airbus could have continued to produce the A380 in limited numbers, experts say. However, a decision by its biggest customer, Emirates, to downgrade an order appears to have forced Airbus's hand. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47225789 |
Whats new in auto technology at the AutoShow? | If you havent been in the new-vehicle market for more than a year or two, you may be surprised at some of the technologies youll now find available, or even in common, on the new cars, trucks and utility vehicles at this years Canadian International AutoShow. The future of automobiles, the prognosticators say, will be autonomous and electric, and many of the vehicles on show floors reinforce that direction. Infiniti has developed a new engine technology that varies the compression ratio, which helps save fuel without affecting performance. ( Courtesy of Infiniti ) While there are no vehicles in production yet that even approach full autonomy, there are many that incorporate a variety of advanced driver-assist systems (ADAS) that are stepping stones toward that ultimate goal. Among those systems, most manufacturers have agreed to make automatic emergency braking standard by model year 2022 and many are well ahead of that schedule, with standard availability right now. In a few cases, the vehicle can even steer automatically around objects in its path. Lane-keeping assist features, which provide a warning if the driver ventures out of the driving lane and, in many cases, automatically keep the car in the centre of the lane, are now commonplace. Article Continued Below Cross-traffic alert systems, which warn of oncoming traffic when reversing out of a parking place, are now commonly available, too. On some models, they work at the front, as well, and several automatically stop the vehicle if a potential collision is imminent. The availability of adaptive cruise control, which automatically maintains a pre-set space behind the vehicle ahead, has moved from high-priced luxury models well down into the mainstream. And its capability has been expanded to include operation in stop-and-go traffic, in some cases. Several vehicles, primarily those of premium brands, do now offer semi-hands-free operation in specific conditions, such as expressway driving, although they typically require some verification that the driver remains in control, such as a touch on the steering wheel every few seconds. The flip side of that scenario is technology that detects driver distraction and provides a warning to the errant driver, available in various guises. As for electrification, not only are there a few new fully electric models ready to buy, including fuel-cell electrics, plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) are proliferating, with several new variants now available. PHEVs permit battery charging from an external source that will provide a period of pure-electric driving in some cases up to 50 kilometres or more before the gasoline engine cuts in and normal operation (as we know it) takes over. More models are adopting mild-hybrid technologies, as well typically using the alternator as a motor to provide some driving assistance. A few premium vehicles have adopted 48-volt electrical systems to aid such technologies, as well as to support ever-increasing electrical loads. Article Continued Below Also becoming more widespread are automatic stop-start systems that shut off the engine when the vehicle stops and restarts it when the driver applies the accelerator. But powertrain advances arent limited to electrification. Eight, nine and 10-speed transmissions are now routine, and even CVTs (continuously variable transmissions) are being improved to seem less disconnected some even with artificial shift points. Engines, too, continue to improve. Features such as direct injection are all but ubiquitous and small four-cylinder engines with turbochargers have replaced larger fours and V6s in many applications, providing similar power outputs but with lower fuel consumption. Theres even a whole new engine concept variable compression ratio making its debut in the Infiniti QX50 utility vehicle. A long sought-after technology, varying the compression ratio according to conditions helps optimize both fuel efficiency and performance. As for performance, peak power outputs just keep on climbing. The 700-horsepower barrier has now been breached, more than once, and not just by exotics. On a whole different technology front, connectivity in cars is no longer a novelty. Its simply expected. Bluetooth is the norm and almost everything offers Android Auto or Apple CarPlay or both, as well as in-car Wi-Fi. And theres a whole universe of available apps. Of course, most automakers offer their own navigation and infotainment systems, as well, each with its own features to entice buyers with more than just smartphone connectivity. There seems to be a size war growing with touchscreen displays, and both gesture and voice controls are making huge progress. The latter is exemplified by Mercedes-Benzs new MBUX system, introduced on the entry-level CLA and the subject of a recent Super Bowl TV ad. It responds to the command, Hey, Mercedes! and incorporates AI (artificial intelligence) learning capabilities. Most of these features are available on a multitude of models from several manufacturers. To find out which are offered on any vehicle youre interested in, just ask the brand representatives at the show. | https://www.thestar.com/autos/toronto_auto_show/2019/02/14/whats-new-in-auto-technology-at-the-autoshow.html |
Could On-Demand Online Tutoring Be The Gateway To Personalizing Learning For Colleges? | A few years ago, the ReWired Groupand Bob Moesta, my coauthor on my next book, Choosing College, undertook a project for the tutoring marketplace company, Wyzant. As players like Byjus, Khan Academy, and others have disrupted the tutoring market, online tutoring companies, which offer access to real, live tutors, have mostly struggled to break out of a crowded market. The question Wyzant, which began as a platform that typically facilitated face-to-face tutoring sessions, wanted to understand was what Job to be Done were people hiring it to do in their livesthat is, what is the progress people were trying to make that caused them to pay for Wyzants services. In Bobs words, they initially discovered four discreet Jobs (you can listen more about the process Wyzant took on this podcast at the Disruptive Voice). Help me recover from failure. After students failed in something in school, they would hire Wyzant to help them get back on track. Help me ensure my successand avoid painful failure. Students hired Wyzant before trouble arrived. Help me get the skills I need now to do my job or help me get the skills I need in the future to look good. Employees with this Job were either currently working in a job where they didnt have the requisite skillset and they wanted to cover up for it, or they were eyeing their future and knew they needed to improve their skillset so they could look good in the eyes of their colleagues. Help me advance in my hobby or passion.People wanted help in a variety of pursuits. Rather than hire a full-time private instructor, an on-demand tutor was good enough. Whats striking about these Jobs is how emotional and, in certain cases, social they are. The tutors werent just being hired for the functional reason of helping a student with their academic progress, but with elements far more fundamental to their sense of self and the avoidance of crippling failure. Following this research, Wyzant focused its efforts on becoming a one-to-one, synchronous online tutoring platformas opposed to the face-to-face tutoring on which it had focused previouslyas it realized its customers were willing to work in any environment to avoid failure. As Wyzant has continued to grow, they also work directly now with colleges and universities to provide on-demand online tutoring support that helps students ensure their success. Thats a Job that colleges themselves are increasingly paying attention to. As Levi Belnap, Wyzants VP of Business Development, and I argue in a new white paper titled, Success for Post-Traditional Learners: How to Make Colleges More Student-Ready, given the increasing proportion of diverse post-traditional students who hail from a far wider range of backgrounds, its time to not only prepare students to be college ready, but for colleges to also become more student ready. Today, the post-traditional college student is in the majority. In 2012, roughly three-quarters of students had at least one of the seven post-traditional characteristics, according to the National Center for Education Statistics: being independent for financial aid purposes, having one or more dependents, being a single caregiver, not having a traditional high school diploma, delaying postsecondary enrollment, attending school part time, or being employed full time. The challenge is that higher education was not designed for this diversity, but rather with the needs of only an elite few in mind. Although many post-traditional students attend college, relatively few graduate for a wide variety of reasons, as we detail in the paper. We recommend that colleges explore several actions. They could move away from offering remedial classes that are a blunt instrument with low efficacy and instead offer so-called corequisite classes, in which students in need of support take more rigorous credit-bearing classes that are paired with some sort of additional reinforcement, such as a small-group seminar or one-on-one tutoring designed to fill in their academic gaps. The City University of New York and Austin Peay offer promising examples of this approach. Another piece of advice is to move away from lecture-based courses that are tied to the credit hour and instead use competency-based education, in which students progress as they demonstrate mastery. In this system, time becomes the variable and learning the constant as opposed to our current system in which time is held as a constant and students learning is highly variable. The challenge of course with this sort of an approach is it flies in the face of decades of processes and priorities in most colleges and universities that are built around the credit hour and passive learning. Undoing this is difficult at best. And its why I left with one other takeaway. In K12 education, the last decade has seen significant innovation around personalizing learningtailoring learning to an individual students particular needs to help each individual succeed given that students learn at different paces and possess different background knowledge. In higher education there has conversely been a lot of innovation around business models, but, relative to K12 education, comparatively less innovation around learning models. Personalizing learning is sometimes discussedby leading disruptive innovators like Western Governors Universitybut for most its a fanciful term. If colleges and universities cannot redesign their processes and prioritiesor introduce new models with new and different processes and prioritiesthen bolting online tutoring on top of their existing model could be a critical sustaining innovation that allows them to capture some of the benefits of personalizing learning to become student-ready institutions. The reason why is that tutoring is inherently adaptive. Even if a college course cant slow its pace of learning or accommodate learners with different levels of background knowledge about a subject, tutors can adjust and fill in whats missingeven if its knowledge entirely outside the scope of the class that dates back to earlier concepts a student should have mastered in high school. If a student is struggling with a different challengea sense of belonging in a class or on campus, the ability to prioritize, or other habits of success critical to making progresstutors can offer the necessary emotional and social support to allow a student to persist and ultimately thrive. As such, online tutoring can be the gateway to personalizing learning for traditional higher education institutionsand a critical step toward accelerating needed innovation on the road to becoming student-ready institutions. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelhorn/2019/02/14/could-on-demand-online-tutoring-be-the-gateway-to-personalizing-learning-for-colleges/ |
How can we tax the footloose multinationals? | In the last few years, globalisation has come under renewed attack. Some of the criticisms may be misplaced but one is spot on: globalisation has enabled large multinationals, such as Apple, Google and Starbucks, to avoid paying tax. Apple has become the poster child for corporate tax avoidance, with its legal claim that a few hundred people working in Ireland were the real source of its profits, and then striking a deal with that countrys government that resulted in its paying a tax amounting to .005% of its profit. Apple, Google, Starbucks and companies like them all claim to be socially responsible, but the first element of social responsibility should be paying your fair share of tax. If everyone avoided and evaded taxes like these companies, society could not function, much less make the public investments that led to the internet, on which Apple and Google depend. Risk of global recession may be low but we are heading for slowdown Read more For years, multinational corporations have encouraged a race to the bottom, telling each country that it must lower its taxes below that of its competitors. US president Donald Trumps 2017 tax cut culminated that race. A year later, we can see the results: the sugar high it brought to the US economy is quickly fading, leaving behind a mountain of debt (the US deficit passed the trillion dollar mark last year). Spurred on by the threat that the digital economy will deprive governments of the revenues to fund function (as well as distorting the economy away from traditional ways of selling), the international community is at long last recognising that something is wrong. But the flaws in the current framework of multinational taxation based on so-called transfer pricing have long been known. Transfer pricing relies on the well-accepted principle that taxes should reflect where an economic activity occurs. In a globalised economy, products move repeatedly across borders, typically in an unfinished state: a shirt without buttons, a car without a transmission, a wafer without a chip. The transfer price system assumes that we can establish arms-length values for each stage of production, and thereby assess the value added within a country. But we cant. The growing role of intellectual property and intangibles makes matters even worse, because ownership claims can easily be moved around the world. Thats why the United States long ago abandoned using the transfer price system within the US, in favour of a formula that attributes companies total profits to each state in proportion to the share of sales, employment and capital there. We need to move toward such a system at the global level. The objective for multinationals is reforms that continue the race to the bottom and maintain opportunities for tax avoidance How that is actually done, however, makes a great deal of difference. If the formula is based largely on final sales, which occur disproportionately in developed countries, developing countries will be deprived of needed revenues, which will be increasingly missed as fiscal constraints diminish aid flows. Final sales may be appropriate for taxation of digital transactions, but not for manufacturing or other sectors, where it is vital to include employment as well. Some worry that including employment might exacerbate tax competition, as governments seek to encourage multinationals to create jobs in their jurisdictions. The appropriate response to this concern is to impose a global minimum corporate-income tax. The US and the EU could and should do this on their own. If they did, others would follow, preventing a race in which only the multinationals win. Since its inception, the OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project has made an important contribution to rethinking the taxation of multinationals by advancing understanding of some of the fundamental issues. For example, if there is true value in multinationals, the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Standard tax principles of simplicity, efficiency and equity should guide our thinking in allocating the residual value as the Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation (of which I am a member) advocates. But these principles are inconsistent either with retaining the transfer price system or with basing taxes primarily on sales. Sign up to the daily Business Today email or follow Guardian Business on Twitter at @BusinessDesk Politics matters: the multinationals objective is to gain support for reforms that continue the race to the bottom and maintain opportunities for tax avoidance. Governments in some advanced countries where these companies have significant political influence will support these efforts even if doing so disadvantages the rest of the country. Other advanced countries, focusing on their own budgets, will simply see this as another opportunity to benefit at the expense of developing countries. The OECD/G20 initiative refers to its efforts as providing an inclusive framework. Such a framework must be guided by principles, not just politics. If the goal is genuine inclusiveness, the top priority must be the wellbeing of the more than 6 billion people living in developing countries and emerging markets. Joseph E Stiglitz is a Nobel laureate in economics, university professor at Columbia University and chief economist at the Roosevelt Institute. Project Syndicate | https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/feb/14/how-can-we-tax-the-footloose-multinationals |
Will an increasingly progressive Democratic Party become steadily more anti-Semitic? | Progressives see Israel as an occupying power, an apartheid state, illegitimate. You dont have to be anti-Semite to be anti-Zionist but it helps. The Democratic Partys civil war flared anew this week with a battle on the Israeli front. Freshman Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., made headlines with a Twitter outburst that criticized Israel backers, which was widely seen as anti-Semitic. Please. The person who tweeted that Israel has hypnotized the world knew exactly what she was doing. Rep. Omar seems to be managing her crisis. Maybe she will be disciplined by Democratic Party leaders, maybe not. President Donald Trump called on her to resign from Congress, or at least from the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and she blasted him right back. But in a larger sense, laffaire Omar is a symptom of a much deeper problem in the Democratic Party. Most of them just dont like Israel. According to a Pew survey, in the dispute between the Israelis and Palestinians, only 27 percent of Democrats side with the Jewish state. Almost equal numbers of Democrats side with the Palestinians, and the subset of left-wing Democrats are pro-Palestinian by almost two to one. So it is not at all controversial for Omar to trash the American Israel Public Affairs Committee for its pro-Israel advocacy, especially among progressives. The now trendy Democratic Socialists of America have even called for Israel to be eliminated. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D- Minn. (Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images) Read more commentary: Anti-Semitic bullies targeted me in school. Now I'm fighting for other Jewish children. Debbie Wasserman Schultz: Why I refuse to walk with the Washington Womens March Suspend, investigate doctor who called Jews 'dogs' and said she'd give them 'wrong meds' Of course, you dont have to be an anti-Semite to be anti-Zionist but it helps. We saw this dog whistle becoming more audible during the recent liberal crackup over the Womens March. What began as feminists expressing solidarity with Palestinians evolved into a claim from organizers Tamika Mallory and Carmen Perez that Jewish people bore a special collective responsibility as exploiters of black and brown people, according to Tablet magazine. Mallory had ties to arch-anti-Semite Louis Farrakhan, and it was revealed this week that freshman Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., wrote for Farrakhans Nation of Islam newsletter The Final Call in 2006. Tlaib had also tripped on a trope last month when she accused members of Congress of dual loyalties when it came to Israel. Meanwhile, Womens March organizer and Israel critic Linda Sarsour surprised no one by rushing to Rep. Omars defense along with also no surprise former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke. Progressives naturally align against Israel Progressives see Israel as an occupying power, an apartheid state, and fundamentally illegitimate. Furthermore, the concept of intersectionality forces them to put the Jewish state in the bad category. Activist Yonah Lieberman explains that all progressive issues necessarily tie together: We dont see a distinction between supporting Palestinian freedom and supporting a Green New Deal. We dont see a distinction between believing that the occupation is a moral crisis and believing that health care is a human right. Practical politicians know that these issues have nothing to do with each other, but that kind of sensible thinking is abhorrent to the ideologically motivated progressives who are driving the Democratic Party to the far-left edge of sanity. Forcing the formerly moderate-liberal Democrats into the Procrustean bed of progressivism is not a winning model in a politically pragmatic country like the United States. In this sense, the fight over Israel mirrors the general conundrum faced by old-school liberal party leaders trying to explain the facts of political life to their unruly progressive progeny. Expect more of this from Democrats Contrast the Democrats' rising anti-Israel focus with the Republican Partys embrace of the Jewish state. Pew survey data going back to 1978 show that the GOP has always been the more pro-Israel party, but lately Republican support has climbed to 79 percent, more than 50 points greater than Democrats. Trump is probably the most pro-Israel president in American history, exemplified when he moved the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, something three previous presidents had cynically promised and then ducked. (Meanwhile, many Democrats booed Jerusalem as the capital of Israel on the floor of their 2012 nominating convention.) And while most American Jews inexplicably continue to back even the most left-leaning Democratic candidates, President Trump has received overwhelming support from the more observant Orthodox Jewish community. Rep. Omar said it was exciting that her views are forcing Democrats to finally have conversations that we weren't really willing to. Indeed, Democrats should have an open, honest debate over whether their party is rapidly becoming an incubator for the kind of anti-Semitism that has infected the liberal parties of Europe. Jewish Democrats who think this controversy is only about Israel could be in for an unpleasant surprise. James S. Robbins, a member of USA TODAY's Board of Contributors and author of "Erasing America: Losing Our Future by Destroying Our Past," has taught at the National Defense University and the Marine Corps University and served as a special assistant in the office of the secretary of Defense in the George W. Bush administration. Follow him on Twitter: @James_Robbins You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @usatodayopinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To respond to a column, submit a comment to [email protected]. Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2019/02/14/progressive-democrats-ilhan-omar-rashida-tlaib-anti-semitism-israel-column/2851440002/ | https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2019/02/14/progressive-democrats-ilhan-omar-rashida-tlaib-anti-semitism-israel-column/2851440002/ |
What's the best Windows all-in-one or iMac for illustrators? | AT wants to replace her MacBook Pro with an all-in-one computer with a bigger screen Im an illustrator, and Im looking to replace my old MacBook Pro with a PC. I have a budget of up to 1,500, but would love to spend less if possible (about 1,300). I mainly use Adobe Photoshop for digital painting and editing scanned artwork, InDesign and occasionally Illustrator. For space and comfort reasons, I would ideally buy an all-in-one. I want a fast processor, lots of RAM (16GB at least) and a good screen display. So far my research is pointing to the Lenovo ThinkCentre M920Z, but reviews suggest that the display isnt particularly good. I was wondering if you had a better solution. TA Last September, Bernadette, a writer and photographer, asked for a cheaper Windows alternative to her MacBook, and I was criticised for recommending that she stuck with what she knew. Guess what: Im going to do it again. Anyone who switches either way will lose some of the benefits of years of experience, and will spend time relearning. Lost productivity is a cost. I do understand that Apples prices have become a strain on creative freelances finances. And, obviously, there are lots of cheap Windows all-in-ones that would do a decent job for most home users. But if your career depends on something, its not a step to take lightly. Lenovo vs iMac The Lenovo is good value and stands up pretty well against the entry-level Apple iMac. Both have Intel Core i5 processors, 8GB of memory, slow 1TB hard drives and 1920 x 1080-pixel screens. The ThinkCentre has the edge thanks to its 2.8GHz six-core i5-8400 (the iMac has an older 2.3GHz dual-core i5-7360U) and slightly larger screen (23.8in vs 21.5in). At 839.99, its also 209 cheaper. In addition, Lenovo will sell you four years of on-site service for an extra 51.60, where AppleCare adds 189 for three years, not on-site. The problem is that neither machine is really what you want. I think your best choice is the 21.5in iMac with 16GB of memory and 4K Retina display for 1,429. Upgrading the slow 1TB hard drive to a 1TB Fusion drive would add 90, busting your maximum budget at 1,519. Sorry. To be fair, these low-end iMacs are pixel doubled so they work like 2048 x 1152-pixel screens, but as an illustrator, you would benefit from the superior colour accuracy and extra pixel density. The other problem with the Lenovo ThinkCentre M920Z is that while it can support a very high specification, Lenovo is only offering two pre-built systems, not ones that you can configure. However, the M920Z has two memory slots, so you could add another 8GB of RAM or get someone to do it for you. In fact, you could upgrade it to 32GB, though that would be expensive. The alternative is to shop around for an M920Z with a better spec. For example, you could get one with slightly faster Core i5-8500, 16GB of memory and a 256GB SSD for 1,105 from Laptops Direct or 1,201 from ebuyer.com. Unfortunately, youd lose the Lenovo support option. Otherwise, my pick would be the 24in touch-screen Dell Inspiron 24 5000, which you could look at in PC World. This has a Core i7-8700T, 16GB of memory, an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 graphics card with 4GB of memory, a 128GB SSD and a 1TB hard drive for 1,379 (or possibly less if you find a Dell deal or a discount code). The closest iMac equivalent would cost 1,789. However, if a fairy godmother waves a magic wand, ask for a Dell Precision Workstation AIO 5720 and a 27in Dell Canvas touch-screen with pen support. I had a play with one last month. (Yes, putting 10 loudspeakers in the built-in soundbar was a little extravagant.) All-in-one vs small form-factor Facebook Twitter Pinterest Apples iMac comes in various sizes and performance levels, all the way up to the latest iMac Pro. Photograph: Apple I dont like all-in-ones (AIOs) very much because you lose the benefits of having a desktop tower, where you can upgrade or repair the PC separately from upgrading the monitor. Also, as with laptops, an AIOs performance may be constrained by heat generation problems. You get more bangs for fewer bucks if you put a hot fast chip in a big mains-powered case. Separately, you said you wanted a bigger screen than your laptop, but you didnt have a lot of space. An all-in-one does solve both problems admirably. But there is an alternative. You can attach a small form-factor (SFF) or micro form-factor (MFF) PC to the back of a monitor, as long as both support the industry standard VESA mount. This gives you much more flexibility in your hardware spec, and a wide choice of good screens. Dells Optiplex 7060 MFF would do the job for 754 at ebuyer, though again, youd have to add an extra 8GB of memory separately. (Dells price 728.99 isnt cheaper because it doesnt include VAT and delivery.) Alternatively, talk to PC Specialist. They offer four ranges of mini-PCs built to order, and if you take one of the gaming options, you get a choice of nine different cases. They can probably find one that supports VESA, and youll get the best spec you can afford. The catch is fitting a good graphics card into a very small case. Apples SFF solution is the Mac Mini. This started out as an affordable machine but the latest versions are anything but. A Mac Mini with a fast six-core i5-8500B, 16GB of not-really-expandable memory and 256GB of not-really-expandable SSD storage costs 1,279, which wouldnt leave much for the screen. A third alternative is to use the laptop as an SFF PC, and connect it to an external monitor and keyboard. You wouldnt get the performance of a desktop tower, but you could still use a big high-resolution monitor. (For the record, I just bought an LG 27UK650-W for 434.27.) What you save on the laptop you can spend on the screen, or vice versa. Unfortunately, the world is not awash with laptops that have 16GB of memory, except for games machines that are mostly beyond your budget. The cheapest option I can find at the moment is a silver HP Pavilion 15-cs0511sa at PC World. This has a Core i7-8550U with 16GB of RAM, a 256GB SSD and an Nvidia GeForce MX150 graphics card with 4GB of video memory for 849. An alternative would be a 14in Lenovo ThinkPad E490 configured with a quad-core i5-8265U, 16GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD for 841.78. Upgrading to a Core i7-8565U would add 98.65 to the price, while an AMD Radeon RX 550X graphics card with 2GB of video RAM would add 91.13. The E machines are entry level and not built or tested to the same level as the ThinkPad T and X ranges, but I assume you dont work in a hazardous environment. As previously mentioned, the best value MacBook is the 13in MacBook Pro with a 2.3GHz dual-core i5-7360U, 8GB of memory and either 128GB (1,249) or 256GB (1,449) of SSD storage. A system with 16GB of memory and a 256GB SSD would therefore cost 1,629, which is almost twice the price of the ThinkPad E490. Three years of AppleCare at 249 would bump it up to 1,878. Its not worth dropping down to a MacBook Air. The new 2018 Air has a 1.6GHz dual-core m5 processor and a less bright screen with lower colour accuracy for 1,579 (16GB RAM/256GB SSD) a saving of 50. Email it to [email protected] This article contains affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission if a reader clicks through and makes a purchase. All our journalism is independent and is in no way influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative. The links are powered by Skimlinks. By clicking on an affiliate link, you accept that Skimlinks cookies will be set. More information. | https://www.theguardian.com/technology/askjack/2019/feb/14/best-windows-all-in-one-or-imac-illustrators |
How might Brexit affect teams in the Premier League? | Brexit-anxiety has engulfed businesses across the UK over the past few months, and when it comes to English football, the Premier League is not shielded from the uncertainty. For decades, Englands top tier has become increasingly international, with clubs sourcing the best talent from around the world. But this has meant playing time has been reduced for English players, something that hasnt sat well with the games governing body. The FA sees Brexit as a chance to increase the number of English players in the Premier League, which it says will boost the chances of the national team by exposing more players to the best football. But the Premier League has rejected this view, saying there is no evidence it would work. As part of their plan, the FA has called for a cut in the maximum number of non-homegrown players allowed in each teams 25-player squad from 17 to 12. A homegrown player is currently defined as one thats been registered with the FA for at least three years before they turn 21, regardless of nationality. Its a rule thats allowed Manchester Uniteds Paul Pogba to qualify as homegrown, because he first signed at Old Trafford as a 16-year-old. The FA is also considering reducing this age by which players must have three years of association with the FA to 18. While plenty of negotiations between the FA and the Premier League remain, few teams would be unaffected by the rule changes floated. The Premier Leagues on-the-pitch-product has led to soaring revenues off-the pitch, and the Premier League is by far the richest league in the world with revenues reaching 4.5bn for 2016-17. Additionally, eight of the worlds 20 richest clubs are English, and the Premier League fears that stricter quotas on non-homegrown players would hit those clubs by making them less competitive. Brexit could mean players from EU and European Economic Area countries are subject to the same, visa and work permit restrictions as players from countries outside the EU, making the criteria for signing players stricter and making it harder for teams to trade. This years January transfer window was noticeably slower compared to a year ago, which could signal, among other reasons, that teams are keeping a watchful eye on Brexit developments, and are reluctant to spend large sums of money on players they may be forced to sell. In the bigger picture, the managers are themselves divided. Jrgen Klopp, the Liverpool manager, said Brexit makes no sense. But on the other hand Neil Warnock, manager of Premier League Cardiff City, said he couldnt wait to get out of the EU. With just 43 days until the UK is due to leave the EU, time is running out for the FA to find a balanced deal that not only promotes the prospects of English players, but also one that protects the immense wealth of its prized asset, the Premier League. | https://www.theguardian.com/football/ng-interactive/2019/feb/14/how-might-brexit-affect-premier-league |
When Race, Tech and Class Collide, What Does The Future Look Like? | These past few weeks in our culture have shown us nothing if not the searing fact that we are deeply embroiled within the turmoil of the redefinition of such important elements in our society as identity and authenticity in the largest sense of these words. Who gets to "own" what values, accolades and responsibilities, particularly as it pertains to race and class, is a growing narrative in our culture with people quick to take sides, form opinions and brutally chastise or fiercely support. Naturally, the modern-day Colosseum is clearly the no-holds-barred feeds of today's social media where current business leaders would do well to observe the sentiment, concerns and future impact of such exchange in order to ensure relevancy in today's turbulent world and perhaps even create new business models at the tech and culture intersection. Talk about the winter of our discontent! The dark February weather has seemed to usher in equally dark emotions and actions. And the fact that this has all primarily kicked off Black History Month, has not been lost on many, and in less than a two-week time span. From actor Liam Neesom revealing that the thought had more than crossed his mind to find a Black man to kill in place of the Black man that raped a friend of Neesom to the governor of Virginia dodging accusations about sporting blackface during his younger years to Latina multi-hyphenate Jennifer Lopez being berated for commandeering a tribute during the recent Grammy Awards to the legendary Motown record label known for its iconic Black artists to talk show host Steve Harvey completely over-talking his female guest Academy-award winning actress Mo'Nique regarding the unwritten rules of being Black and making money; it's been a particularly prickly moment and Twitter, in particular, has been the immediate go-to for everything from unwavering support to massive tongue-lashing, or shall we say, a post-lashing. Indeed, at a recent trend discussion held by Wunderman Thompson during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, former Futurist at Intel, Steve Brown said, " This era is forcing a lot of introspection. People are asking 'who am I, and what's important to me? ' " And I would add to that mix that we are also asking who others are in relationship to us, what the parameters and rules are and what is and is not appropriate for the new era. This collective of questions is perhaps one of the most intriguing and everlasting because as mankind evolves and our tools for communication along with us, these questions become more expansive, often times more bold, confrontational, wide-spread and definitely transparent given the aid of technology. The Wunderman Thompson event lured by noting that it is not so much about predicting the future but asking ourselves how we might best prepare. But I actually believe it's a definite combination of both elements. As we begin to have even greater interaction about what could be called the delicate current and future negotiation of sub-cultural borders between each other, businesses need to be fully armed with an understanding of both in order to truly be relevant in a bottom-up society. For example, Dr. Anita Sengupta, Head of Innovation and Strategy, Airspace Experience Technologies, noted at the event that over the course of history, transportation technology has traditionally spurred economic growth. From the invention of the wheel to that of the airplane, transportation is a major factor in connecting people and expanding industry. And many companies, such as LG, are making a bet on autonomous vehicles driving more of that connection via all sorts of content that will envelop and occupy you on each and every trip. Indeed, Mike LaSalle, partner at Shamrock Capital Advisors, a venture firm that specializes in investing in media and content libraries says, "People are consuming and creating more content than ever before. So we're definitely looking and thinking about how that will intersect with autonomous cars as well as the infrastructure that will support this new industry for the future." So if you think information, news and opinion travel quickly and abundantly across our current tech devices, imagine the ante being upped significantly via this next iteration in transportation, should it be successful. And, of course, Artificial Intelligence and 5G will facilitate work toward such innovation. Guru Gowrappan, Oath CEO told me, "AI is already helping improve the consumer experience for a billion Verizon Media consumers globally from personalizing content to delivering a more customized video experience, and yet we've only scratched the surface." He continues, "With a highly engaged audience that generates billions of data signals daily, our continued investment in AI this year will help fuel our learning, optimize our experiences for consumers and advertisers, and lead to the innovations of tomorrow. We are empowering consumers with personalization and utility across our portfolio of brands, on top of Verizon's world-class 5G network." But perhaps the most intriguing part of all such offerings is what impact these advances will have on perspective, debate and culture and vice-versa. One is not a driver of the other but rather both are reflections of the other. The intersection of the two is, indeed, everything. The impact on one's mind and thoughts is massive. Yet, the very rich psychological and sociological components of this arena are those which are, for the most part, unfortunately, hidden within the halls of academia. But here is where the true, modern business opportunity may lie. Those who can actually create a more holistic approach to emerging tech in the context of the massive cultural upheaval taking place now and for the foreseeable future will have the new competitive edge. Companies that can somehow go the extra step in successfully providing greater comprehension, additional resources for support and somehow facilitate unification within a society actively growing in analysis around race and class relations while barreling toward ever greater tech usage will be that which is most sought. This will be how we define the new powerhouse corporations of the day. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurencoleman/2019/02/14/when-race-tech-and-class-collide-what-does-the-future-look-like/ |
Will Xilinx's Hot 5G Catalyst Fade Away? | Xilinx (NASDAQ: XLNX) is probably one of hottest semiconductor names on the stock market. Shares of the chipmaker have defied the broader market weakness over the past year and as of this writing trade very close to their 52-week highs. Those who have been following Xilinx for a long time wouldn't be surprised at the company's rapid rise, as it was pulling strings in the right areas to boost long-term growth. The company's latest third-quarter results, quite expectedly, gave it yet another massive boost thanks to the early ramp in the 5G business, as well as continued strength across other segments such as automotive, data centers, and industrial. Let's find out. Stressed woman sitting with her hands on her face. More Image Source: Getty Images. Something to be afraid of Xilinx had always expected that fifth generation (5G) wireless networks would be a catalyst, but it probably didn't expect this space to start paying off so soon. Its 5G chip platforms moved from the prototyping phase to the early production phase during the fiscal second quarter. So, the 41% annual jump in its communications business, thanks to early 5G deployments, was a welcome surprise. CEO Victor Peng credited "5G deployments in South Korea and a very early start of the ramp of 5G deployments in China" for Xilinx's strong performance in the communications business, which supplied 35% of its revenue last quarter. As such, the proliferation of 5G networks in the coming years should be a long-term tailwind for Xilinx, though that might be easier said than done. Xilinx is known for making field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). These are programmable chips that aren't made with a specific purpose, so they can be easily configured after being bought off the shelf, which saves on both time and costs. FPGAs work for early stage 5G deployments as carriers need to test the new networks and the related algorithms, and that may require regular tweaks and updates. That's where Xilinx's FPGAs excel, since they can be reprogrammed multiple times, giving developers a low-cost option to test new technology. However, demand for these programmable chips starts waning in a couple of years once the standards are set and application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) are designed for those tasks. Development of ASICs usually takes around two years and a lot of money, so Xilinx's FPGAs are in strong demand in the early 5G deployment phase. But once a custom chip comes out, the chipmaker could lose market share to rivals because the former are supposed to perform faster and also cost less since they are already programmed for that purpose. Cavium, which was acquired by Marvell Technology in 2018, already showcased its next-generation 5G chips at the Mobile World Congress last year. Nokia, meanwhile, launched its ReefShark 5G chipsets last year in January, claiming that they can reduce the size of 5G antennas considerably and also reduce power consumption of baseband units by 64%. However, the good news is that Xilinx has found ways to beat this inevitability by ingraining itself deeply into the 5G ecosystem. | https://news.yahoo.com/xilinx-apos-hot-5g-catalyst-112100386.html |
Is the #Resistance Just a Branding Exercise? | He is so unpresidential that when he meets the minimum requirements of decency, he is praised as if he has done something consequential. When he addressed a joint session of Congress early in his presidency, he managed to read his prepared speech from a teleprompter without the bluster that characterized his campaign rallies or press conferences, and at one point honored the wife of a slain Navy seal. He became president of the United States in that moment, period, CNNs Van Jones declared. No matter that the speech contained outright falsehoods about immigration, crime, welfare, the federal budget, and that it overstated the impact the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines would have on job creation (not to mention the disastrous environmental impact and displacement of indigenous people). What mattered was his presentation. Trump briefly sounded like a president. That should not have been enough. But for a moment it was. The Resistance is not about whether one agrees or disagrees with Trump on the issues, whatever those may be. It is not about policy. It is about the threat that Trump poses to the idea of progress, the comforting notion, entrenched by the election of Barack Obama, that things in this country could get better without anyone having to give anything up to make that so. When Trump refuses to denounce white supremacist groups that have endorsed him, the issue becomes less that his beliefs line up with theirs, and more that he has not rhetorically separated himself from avowed white supremacists. It becomes embarrassing to witness him on a global stage push past other world leaders so that he can be in front of a photo-op. His sophomoric speaking style is far below the level of what presidents are supposed to be able to employ. He watches television compulsively and live tweets his favorite Fox News shows. He refuses to release his tax returns to be reviewed by the American people. He is deeply incurious and proudly so, refusing to sit for traditional presidential briefs or to read anything that doesnt mention him by name. During a ceremony to reintroduce the National Space Council, he responded to Buzz Aldrins sarcastic exclamation of Infinity and beyond! by saying, It could be infinity. We dont really dont know. But it could be. It has to be somethingbut it could be infinity, right? Its not good to have someone with so little interest in knowledge as president, someone who flaunts his ignorance as a badge of populist pride. And that is the dilemma the Resistance faces in exercising any meaningful political power. Trump has defied the norms and expectations of the presidency, and American politics more generally, and succeeded. The Resistance has made heroes of those who have pointed this out. But it has not questioned the basic nature of the presidency, or the country. It is dangerous to believe there is some victory in removing one person from an oppressive system while leaving the system intact. This is a dynamic the Resistance has shown no interest in addressing. Until it does, it can never be a movement. There is a gross underestimation of how norms produced the Trump presidency. The Electoral College is an American norm. Placating racist voters is the norm, and cuts across both parties. Distrust and disdain for women in positions of power is the norm. Executive orders that overstep the constitutional powers granted to the presidency are now the norm. Some norms need to be challenged. Americas liberals have only been willing to challenge them to the extent that they do not uncomfortably burden its ruling classes with drastic calls for change. The Resistance has reflected that stance. It is the major impediment to consolidating this would-be movement around an agenda worth fighting for. Even if the principal objective is the removal of Trump from office, what drives that cannot be a desire for a return to what was once defined as normal. That would only set the stage for another Trump to rise. The goal has to be a complete reconsideration of the American system of governance. Resistance is a reactive state of mind, Michelle Alexander wrote in The New York Times. While it can be necessary for survival and to prevent catastrophic harm, it can also tempt us to set our sights too low and to restrict our field of vision to the next election cycle, leading us to forget our ultimate purpose and place in history. Viewed this way, the word resistance itself provides the wrong framework for understanding what must be done. James Baldwin refused to say the Civil Rights Movement because it was a term applied by white media onlookers. He instead referred to the period of heightened activism in the 1950s and 60s as the latest slave rebellion. The contrast in meaning is stark. The enslaved possess no rights to be protected, only a system of dehumanization and exploitation to rebel against. Phrasing it this way captures a very different, very dire political terrain, one that requires a higher level of militancy to effectively counter. The Resistance is something else entirely. Its active distancing from militancy reveals as much. On January 20, 2017, the day of Trumps inauguration, thousands of protesters in Washington, D.C., took part in a different kind of demonstration than the one that would follow the next day during the Womens March. Two hundred and thirty-four people would be arrested and face charges including felony inciting to riot, conspiracy to riot, rioting, and destruction of property. The J20 march, as it came to be known, was not just anti-Trump but anti-capitalist and anti-fascist. Its participants left a trail of thrown objects and smashed windows. Police teargassed and arrested them. These protesters were roundly denounced by those who supported the next days events. Indeed, the virtual absence of arrests among the estimated 500,000 to one million people at the Womens March in D.C. (or among demonstrators at any of the other sites across the country) the next day was heralded as a sign of its success. These were peaceful participants in democratic action, unlike the rabble-rousers of J20. There is something immensely powerful about orchestrating the largest single-day march in the history of this country, as the Womens March is believed to be. Many of its participants had previously never attended a march or thought of themselves as actively political. But there is also something shortsighted about not simultaneously embracing the J20 protesters. Those repelled by their tactics see only destruction and chaos, rather than the inevitable direct confrontation of state powerinevitable if there is a goal past the removal of Trump. The two years of his presidency have shown that he is a uniquely dangerous president, but his ascent was made possible by entrenched interests that predate him. He is only the latest representative. Confrontational resistance is justified because conventional processes can only do so much to mitigate harm. Voting, in particular, is effective only to the point that it is understood that the citizenry will forcefully dissent from governance if its will is not honored. But it must also be understood that the problems Trump represents do not only exist at the state level. What is now called the alt-right has been organizing itself, in the shadows, for decades. Its adherents have developed alternative information channels, formed online communities, adopted a common language, and mobilized in ways that have found a home in the Republican Party. Their agenda is best understood in the simplest terms: white supremacy. And yet they have been treated with an inordinate amount of benign curiosity, as if they present some fresh ideological viewpoint worthy of consideration in what is, in name, a multiracial democracy. Profiles of their supposedly dapper media leaders have portrayed them as fairly innocuous. But as the killing of Heather Heyer in Charlottesville in August 2017 showed, the violence of white supremacy is both broader and deeper than the apparatus of the state under Trump. The young men photographed clad in polos and khakis, carrying torches and yelling Jews will not replace us! are not minor actors in a political game. They are a vicious threat. The Resistance has not settled on an adequate response to this threat. Months before Heyer was killed, the alt-right provocateur Richard Spencer made headlines, not for his inflammatory rhetoric, but for being the subject of a viral video in which an antifa activist punched him in the face. The violence was decried, in some circles, as the wrong approach to his growing influence. It was also suggested by some liberal voices that other tactics, like protesting paid speaking engagements for the likes of Milo Yiannopoulos and Steve Bannon, were also outside the bounds of civility and proper discourse. Better to expose their ideas and debate them with a superior vision of an American future. This misjudges the extent of their appeal, the composition of their threat, and naively places faith in the American populace that it will reject nativist, xenophobic, racist ideologies for their core maliciousness. There is less progress on that front than many would like to believe. It also presumes that alt-right white supremacists can be somehow shamed into receding from public life or driven from it by force of argument. But no simple denunciation is capable of producing the level of shame needed to elicit the desired effect. Nor is the political terrain conducive to the task. Nonviolent protest, aside from its moral dimensions, has been successful as a tactic because the imagery of the violence it seeks to provoke has had the ability to shame those in power on a global scale. In the United States, however, that was most effective when there was a competing global superpower that could exploit discord within the country as propaganda in an anti-U.S. crusade. With Americas current hegemony, there is little that can be done to shame our leaders, and the grassroots of the alt-right are no different. When confronting people who gleefully rip children away from their families and place them in cages at the border, under the guise of criminality but actually in an effort to establish a white ethnonationalist state, shame, as strategy, fails. The Resistance has had its greatest success in elections. There have been meaningful defeats of Republican candidates in key races. The first came against Roy Moore in the December 2017 special election in Alabama to fill then-Attorney General Jeff Sessionss vacated Senate seat. Democratic nominee Doug Jones was able to beat the Trump-endorsed candidate, due in part to multiple allegations of sexual assault against Moore, including that he had improper relationships with minors. As narrow a victory as it was, it nonetheless counted and served as an important signal that Democrats could win contests outside their traditional strongholds. But the party has had to contend with the split that showed itself during the 2016 presidential campaign. Senator Bernie Sanders mounted an impressive campaign that tapped into the concerns of many young people, and reflected a potentially far-reaching ideological shift. Yet the Democratic establishment, and cautious party members, nominated Hillary Clinton, who ultimately lost. Sanderss success, and Clintons failure, were clear signs to those on the left that their time had come. The reluctance of party officials to concur has frustrated those who feel the Democratic Party, as currently constructed, cedes too much ground to Republicans and cannot serve as an effective opposition against Trump. When Maxine Waters, one of the presidents most boisterous critics, voiced her agreement with activists disrupting Trump officials everyday activities, such as eating dinner in a public restaurant, Senator Chuck Schumer denounced the idea from the floor of the Senate, saying, I strongly disagree with those who advocate harassing folks if they dont agree with you. If you disagree with a politician, organize your fellow citizens to action and vote them out of office. But no one should call for the harassment of political opponents. Thats not right. Thats not American. Any real resistance would understand that the party ostensibly on its side has done little to advance its agenda, even within the narrow scope of defeating Trump. And yet, experienced, centrist Democrats are still viewed by many within the party as best equipped to lead, at least in the near term. They havent given anyone any reason to believe they are. The surprise primary win in June of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over the incumbent Joe Crowley in New Yorks 14th Congressional District was the first sign from within the party that big changes could be afoot. Ocasio-Cortez received little press attention before her win, and ran as a member of the newly reinvigorated Democratic Socialists of America. Still, it would be easy to overreact to this single win. Ocasio-Cortez prevailed in a blue district and faced an opponent who did not take her seriously enough. She was shocked by her victory on election night. But the midterms in November delivered exactly what her win seemed to portend: a wave of Democratic victories that consisted of important demographic shifts toward electing women of color who situate themselves in the left flank of the party. For all the celebration of this development, it is far from certain that the party establishment will adjust course. The drug of bipartisanship is difficult to kick. Finding common ground might have seemed reasonable before Trump, although the agenda of the Republican Party has been practically the same for the past 40 years. The Resistance, if it is a movement, cannot be too preoccupied with the Democratic Party as an arm of its organization. Institutions as old as the party are primarily concerned with survival. The extent to which the Democrats can be pushed in any given direction will be determined by whether or not they fear a mass exodus from their ranks. With no viable alternative party available to liberal and left-leaning voters, there is no reason to believe such an egress will happen. The Resistance will have to ask something more of the people who have taken it up. There is a politics beyond that which created Trump. There are labor strikes, sit-ins, boycotts, and, yes, smashed windows and Nazi punching. But if it is to persuade a meaningful number of people to consent to such tactics, much less adopt them, the Resistance has to show itself as a true movement, one worthy of the name it carries and more meaningful to the people who are participating. It needs to find a definition and purpose beyond Trump. And when those goals have been identified, the Resistance needs to settle in for the drudgery of movement work. It has to accept that this is a fight longer and more difficult than a presidential term, even two. The Resistance can be more than what it has shown thus far. It can be the very political movement that saves America from itself. If it wants to be. | https://newrepublic.com/article/153063/passive-resistance-trump-opposition-exercise-branding |
Will Deckers Outdoor Corporation (DECK) Continue to Surge Higher? | As of late, it has definitely been a great time to be an investor in Deckers Outdoor. As of late, it has definitely been a great time to be an investor in Deckers Outdoor Corporation DECK. The stock has moved higher by 16.1% 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 APPSs recent earnings estimate revision activity. From this look, the companys future is quite favorable; as APPS 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. Here's another stock idea to consider. Much like petroleum 150 years ago, lithium power may soon shake the world, creating millionaires and reshaping geo-politics. Soon electric vehicles (EVs) may be cheaper than gas guzzlers. Some are already reaching 265 miles on a single charge. With battery prices plummeting and charging stations set to multiply, one company stands out as the #1 stock to buy according to Zacks research. It's not the one you think. Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Deckers Outdoor Corporation (DECK) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. | https://news.yahoo.com/deckers-outdoor-corporation-deck-continue-120712556.html |
Will Hacienda HealthCare finally kill Gov. Doug Ducey's #CutTheRedTape crusade? | CLOSE Karina Cesena and her daughter, Jazzmyne Morris, 22, had a bad experience when Morris lived at the Hacienda Healthcare facility. Cesena removed Morris as a result. Tom Tingle, The Republic | azcentral.com Opinion: Hacienda HealthCare is only the latest fiasco to pop up in Gov. Doug Ducey's 'pro-business' environment. There is nothing wrong with embracing a rules-free state government until something goes terribly wrong. In Arizona Gov. Doug Duceys case, a few things have gone terribly wrong under his watch that must give Arizonans pause over his #CutTheRedTape mantra. Hacienda HealthCare is the latest appalling example of Arizonas lax regulatory environment. Nurse Nathan Sutherland has been accused of impregnating an incapacitated woman. The 29-year-old woman gave birth without anyone there noticing her condition for nine months. The agency also is reeling from separate sexual-harassment and bullying complaints. Yet Hacienda, which has a 74-bed skilled-nursing facility and a 60-bed intermediate-care facility for people with intellectual disabilities, has gone unregulated. The state didn't require Hacienda to get a license. These aren't minor incidents Now Ducey is getting aggressive with Hacienda, and lawmakers are rushing to push through bills to avoid similar situations. Well, thats nice. But its too late for the incapacitated woman who was raped and gave birth. Just like it was too late for the woman struck and killed by an Uber self-driving vehicle after Ducey agreed to the experiment without the same regulations the company faced in states like California. And how its too late for the countless Arizonans who relied on faulty blood tests from Theranos, the company that Ducey welcomed to Arizona with open arms but turned out to be a total fraud, according to federal regulators. These arent minor incidents that state government can shove under the rug. These are major mistakes with grave consequences that illustrate how bad things can go when those running government go all-out with lax regulations. No lesson learned with Theranos CLOSE Elizabeth Holmes, the CEO of a company promising revolutionary blood testing by taking just a finger prick for multiple blood tests, was charged with fraud. USA TODAY In Theranos' case, Ducey quickly became enchanted by the sales pitch of Elizabeth Holmes, the woman behind the company's blood tests that were fast, painless and accurate. Not only did the Ducey administration fail to carefully scrutinize the company, but in 2015 it helped clear the way legislatively for people to purchase lab tests directly without a doctors order. Federal regulators found, among other things, that Theranos had faulty products resulting in nearly 1 million blood tests voided or corrected in Arizona and California. You'd think Ducey would have learned his lesson with Theranos. But no. A woman had to be killed for the governor to abruptly halt Uber's driverless car experiment in Arizona. Playing clean-up won't avoid future mistakes And now, Ducey is faced with Hacienda's fiasco, the unregulated system that has captured international headlines. The fallout is so severe that the Ducey administration stepped in to keep Hacienda open after the company recently announced its closure. That would have meant patients, who made Hacienda their home, would have no immediate place to go. Of course not. MORE: Hacienda has a history of special protection from the state Ducey and lawmakers are merely reacting to upheavals. At the heart of the matter is the regulatory environment that allows for such mistakes to happen in the first place. I doubt it. There is nothing wrong with being pro-business. In fact, it could be good for Arizonas economy. But that shouldnt be synonymous with an unregulated-for-all approach. NEWSLETTERS Get the Opinions Newsletter newsletter delivered to your inbox We're sorry, but something went wrong Our best and latest in commentary in daily digest form. Please try again soon, or contact Customer Service at 1-800-332-6733. Delivery: Mon-Fri Invalid email address Thank you! You're almost signed up for Opinions Newsletter Keep an eye out for an email to confirm your newsletter registration. More newsletters That only leads to guinea pigs and disastrous consequences. Elvia Daz is an editorial columnist for The Republic and azcentral. Reach her at 602-444-8606 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter, @elviadiaz1. MORE FROM DIAZ: Read or Share this story: https://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/elviadiaz/2019/02/14/hacienda-healthcare-uber-theranos-need-regulation-doug-ducey/2863741002/ | https://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/elviadiaz/2019/02/14/hacienda-healthcare-uber-theranos-need-regulation-doug-ducey/2863741002/ |
Will China Replace The U.S. As The Middle East Hegemon? | The U.S. is assembling its allies in Warsaw this week to coordinate Middle East policy but with limited success. EU policy chief Federica Mogherini, joined by China, Russia, France, Germany, Turkey, and Qatar are boycotting the gathering, opting to adopt a more diplomatic, business-focused, and less confrontational track with the Islamic Republic. At the same time, Washington is sending mixed signals, announcing its withdrawal from Syria (and Afghanistan), with President Trump calling Bashar al-Assads country a place of sand and death. The U.S. is awash in oil and gas, projected to become a net energy exporter next year. 2020 should also see domestic production reach a record 13 million barrels of oil per day. This does not increase Americas interest in the Middle East. China, on the other hand, is only growing thirstier for energy. Most of its oil comes from OPEC members in the Persian Gulf. A whopping 45% of Middle East trade is with Asia, whereas only 14% is with the U.S., and 7% with Europe. China has replaced the UAE as the main investor in the Middle East, focusing on energy. However, $3.5 trillion dollars of future opportunities in the Middle East are awaiting Asian investors from infrastructure projects, to tourism, to industry, says Nasser Saidi, the former Chief Economist of the Dubai International Financial Center and the former Lebanese central banker. Saidi and other top experts spoke at a conference organized by the Middle East Institute of the National University of Singapore (NUS) this week. The event, titled The Middle East Pivot: Chinas Belt and Road Initiative between Geostrategy and Commercial Opportunity, attracted business people and academics from China, the U.S., Singapore, and the Gulf. This author presented a report Future Calling: Infrastructure Investment in Central Asia. The answer is a qualified yes. First, because the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is the most ambitious geopolitical and geo-economic program since the Marshall Plan, and surpasses it in scope and costs. The Marshall Plan dealt with the rebuilding of Europe only, while the U.S. also helped raising Japan from the ashes of World War II. It was limited in time to four years. Belt and Road, proclaimed by Chairman Xi Jinping in 2013, involves over 80 countries in Eurasia, Europe, South and Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Middle East energy will be the lifeblood of BRI, with China its engine and brain. Western Europe and the developing world will be its market. The United States so far failed to offer a comprehensive, strategic response to Belt and Road, which would need to include an economic, cultural and human dimension. Instead, under both the Obama and the Trump Administration, Washington is sticking to mostly military answers, while ipso facto creating an anti-American block that includes Russia and China something Henry Kissinger warned against over 40 years ago. Second, Beijing is aggressively bolstering its Near East presence. China is already building strategic partnerships with countries from Algeria to Saudi Arabia to Iran, Iraq, and the UAE. It is targeting major OPEC and Gulf Cooperation Council members, while also focusing on U.S. allies, like Israel, Jordan, Qatar, and Egypt. Following World War II, the British Lion went home to lick his wounds. The British Empire could not sustain its presence in the Middle East after losing its Jewel in the Crown India in 1947. In the aftermath of the protracted and costly wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the American Eagle wants a respite. Vital national interests of the U.S., chief among them energy, are no longer bound to the Middle East region due to the shale gale. Attention is now shifting to the Pacific, as China, the peer competitor, is not flinching over its South China Sea expansion. The Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) Navy is planning to build four carrier battle groups, and is targeting American aircraft carriers with new ship-busting nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles. Chinas high-tech naval railguns and hypersonic cruise missiles are just around the corner. The security of the Middle East and its energy supplies will be defined in the next two decades by the balance of military and economic power between the U.S., China, and Russia. Within the region, the confrontation between Saudi Arabia and the UAE vs. Iran and Qatar will take center stage. Some Chinese participants at the Singapore conference, such as Prof. Wang Suolao of Institute of Area Studies in Beijing University, tried to deny that China is playing geopolitics in the Middle East. However, one cannot help but analyze the region through the prisms of political interests, spheres of influence, proxy management, and exclusive economic zones. China already maintains a sizeable military base in Djibouti, at Bab-el-Mandeb, the entrance to the strategically important Red Sea, which leads to Suez Canal, one of the three principal choke points of global naval routes (the others being the Strait of Malacca, and the Panama Canal). Djibouti is also home to an American Naval Expeditionary Base, Camp Lemonnier, just 11 kilometers away. The two opposing bases present a fitting metaphor of competing national interests on the African continent. Chinese and American forces have even engaged in laser skirmishes there, where China deployed high energy lasers to blind U.S. pilots. This is just a telltale symptom of things to come. China is deploying its economic and diplomatic power in the Middle East first, while the military involvement may come later: the launch of the petro-yuan, which will exclude the dollar; massive Chinese advantage in mobile payment tech which would allow 85 million unbanked people in the Middle East to integrate in business and financial activities; the growth of Chinese tourism to the Gulf; the involvement of Chinese Muslim communities with the Middle East all discussed at the Singapore conference in great detail. These will be the tools used by Beijing to expand its influence from Morocco to Muscat and beyond. The forum, led by the NUS Middle East Institute Chairman Bilahari Kausikan, highlighted the tremendous opportunities and risks facing Asian (including Singaporean) investments in the Middle East. Experts view pragmatic approaches to industrialization and investment, including in new areas beyond oil and gas, as key. This also applies to political instruments in resolving simmering hostilities, and furthering broad cooperation in fighting religious extremism of both the Sunni and Shia variety. Hydrocarbons, the bread and butter of the Middle East for the past 100 years, may become a stranded resource in just a few decades. Soon, it could be infrastructure, renewables, IT, AI, robotics, high tech, and services that drive the regions economic development. The U.S. has not yet lost-out to China in the Middle East, but American and European businesses and strategic planners will need to work twice as hard to stay competitive. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/arielcohen/2019/02/14/will-china-replace-the-u-s-as-the-middle-east-hegemon/ |
How Much Oil Does Saudi Arabia Really Have? | Officially, Venezuela has the world's largest crude oil reserves with 303 billion barrels of proved reserves. In reality, a lot of this oil is extra-heavy crude oil, and may not be economical to produce at prevailing prices. Thus, some portion of Venezuela's barrels may in reality no longer be in the "proved reserves" category. Consider that Venezuela's proved reserves jumped from 80 billion barrels in 2005 to 300 billion barrels in 2014. The main reason for that wasn't a bunch of new oil discoveries. No, it was the fact that oil prices had reached triple digits, making Venezuela's extra heavy oil economical to produce. In other words, "resources" (the oil in the ground) were moved into the "proved reserves" (oil that is economical to produce) category. Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, reported 264 billion barrels of proved reserves in 2005, and 267 billion barrels in 2014. In other words, Saudi Arabia's barrels were deemed to be economical to produce even before oil prices spiked. For that reason, I consider Saudi Arabia's proved reserves -- 16% of the global total -- to be of the most significance to the global oil market. But doubts about the amount of Saudi Arabia's reserves have persisted for years. In 1982, Saudi Arabia stopped allowing their oil and gas data to be scrutinized. Prior to that, outsiders had some access to information on their reserves. When that accessibility was shut down, Saudi proved oil reserves were estimated to be 166 billion barrels. However, around 1988 Saudi raised their estimate of proved reserves by 90 billion barrels. Many pundits have suggested that this upward revision was based on internal OPEC politics. Since the reserves were no longer subject to outside audit, there was a great deal of skepticism around the official numbers the Saudis released. The skepticism deepened when one considered that Saudi's reserves in 1990 were 260 billion barrels, and today -- nearly 30 years later -- they are reportedly 266 billion barrels. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia produced over 100 billion barrels between 1990 and 2017. In preparation for a potential IPO, Saudi's national oil company, Saudi Aramco, recently commissioned an outside audit of its proved reserves. The independent external audit found Saudi's proved oil reserves to be at least 270 billion barrels. But doubts persist. For example, oil economist Dr. Mamdouh G. Salameh, who is a Visiting Professor of Energy Economics at ESCP Europe Business School, London, recently wrote: My calculation of Saudi reserves based on Saudi production since the discovery of oil in 1938 till now (for which we have figures) and a deduction of an annual depletion rate of Saudi aging fields averaging 5%-7% for the same period, gives a figure of 70-74 bb of remaining reserves. My figures are more or less in line with those of other experts." In fact, I once did a similar calculation. I started with the assumption that the 1982 estimate of 166 billion barrels was correct, and then I just subtracted Saudi production since then. I calculated their total production since 1982 as ~100 billion barrels, leaving 66 billion barrels of reserves. However, I then did a sanity check that threw that calculation in doubt. I did the same calculation for U.S. proved reserves over the same time frame. In 1982, U.S. proved crude oil reserves were reported to be 35 billion barrels. By 2005 -- and before the shale oil boom was underway, U.S. proved reserves had only fallen to 30 billion barrels. But total U.S. production between 1982 and 2005 was 77 billion barrels. If we extend that calculation through the end of 2017, U.S. proved reserves have actually jumped to 50 billion barrels, and there have been 117 billion barrels of U.S. production since 1982 (more even than for Saudi Arabia). To reiterate, in 1982 U.S. proved crude oil reserves stood at 35 billion barrels. Between then and 2017, the U.S. produced 117 billion barrels of oil, yet proved reserves grew to 50 billion barrels. There were new discoveries, technological improvements that allowed more barrels to be extracted from existing fields, and higher prices that made additional resources economical to extract. I think it's reasonable to assume that Saudi Arabia also found additional barrels since 1982. They also have access to the same kinds of technology that improved recovery in U.S. fields. Therefore, I do not believe it's a legitimate exercise to consider depletion from a historical reserves number to estimate current reserves. Such an exercise would have suggested that U.S. oil production would have fallen to zero by 1991. Thus, I think it's reasonable to conclude that Saudi Arabia really does have the proved reserves they say they have and not a much lower number. Their published reserves are consistent with the independent audit, and they are consistent with the experience in the U.S. of reserves growth despite significant oil production. Lest you think that the U.S. results are atypical, you can repeat this exercise for any of the world's major oil producers and find the same thing. Starting with the proved reserves in 1982 and subtracting the subsequent production will not accurately predict the reserves at some point in the future. In many cases -- as with the U.S. -- cumulative production was greater than the 1982 proved reserves number. So, I have no good reason to doubt Saudi Arabia's official numbers. They probably do have 270 billion barrels of proved oil reserves. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/rrapier/2019/02/14/how-much-oil-does-saudi-arabia-have/ |
Does Customer Engagement Really Matter? | The business of marketing technology is awash in words that have largely lost their connection to human experience. Some of these words are personalization, activation, acquire, CRM, data-driven and engagement. In each case, these words or phrases have meaning, but we plaster them in PowerPoint decks and toss them around on conference calls so often that its easy to forget that business -- even in the world of big data and marketing automation -- is all about humans. At every single point of data collection and strategy execution, there is a human being with a human need. With this understanding in mind, I want to talk about engagement. Engagement can mean a couple of different things. One prominent dictionary defines it in part as "an arrangement to employ someone or to use their services," while another describes it as "emotional involvement or commitment." So, in addition to bringing prospects in from the cold to work through the process of deciding to engage us in delivering a product or service, which is the primary job of marketing, it means finding ways to connect with them emotionally during and after completion of the task. Most of us in martech deal with vast chunks of data rather than living, breathing humans who have heartbeats, body language, fears, hopes and dreams. Its easy to forget how important this is. Its easy to leave all of that up to salespeople or customer service staff, hoping that they will put a human face to the experience we work so hard to automate. I see this as a huge threat and an equally large opportunity. Learning to harness the power of engagement means taking real ownership of your brand. Leaving engagement -- in the ways that it touches these real human customers and partners -- to chance means risking a relationship that could become profitable over and over again through repeat and referral business. Author Seth Godin, whose books and blogs have influenced me greatly over the years, says this about your brand: A brand is the set of expectations, memories, stories and relationships that, taken together, account for a consumers decision to choose one product or service over another. Think about the brands you love to drive, wear and eat. If you love them, its because they have engaged you over and over again. They are reliable, they bolster your self-image and esteem, they deliver as promised and they feel good. You are happy to be seen using their products. If they do an excellent job, you tell stories about them to your friends and family. This delivery of a companys ethos cant be left to chance. Even using the tools of logic and big data, we must find ways of meeting these people at the point of real need to own what are called the moments of truth. Moments of truth are interactions that define the entire experience. Inevitably, these are emotional moments. They can act as paper cuts of frustration, confusion, and anger or add layers of clarity, relief and satisfaction. In this Inc. article, Logan Chierotti writes: Humans are driven by feelings. So if you want the consumer to remember your product or brand, they must be engaged and impassioned by the interaction with your company. ... According to Harvard professor Gerald Zaltman, the answer is directly related to the subconscious mind. In Zaltman's book, How Customers Think: Essential Insights into the Mind of the Market, the professor reveals many exciting ideas that can be helpful to marketers and brands." It is not enough to capture attention, get a solid percentage of these prospects to say yes and then fulfill the order. Engagement has to become a real core value for any company that wants to thrive now and in the future. And its not just a matter of adding the word to a mission statement or marketing strategy document. Our job is to figure out how many ways we touch people before, during and after a transaction. Then its our job to refine our contact with them (often using scalable technology) so that they feel that they are being treated with respect and care. If we do this hard work, we earn our place as a trusted brand. It is easy to buy a new app or martech service that promises seamless communication and powerful engagement. Thats the easy part. As with any major project, this is one of those things that can languish as a footnote to endless meetings, but I believe in starting the process simply. Here are a few steps that can help to create clarity and indicate specific action: Put yourself through your entire customer journey as an anonymous lead (sort of like a secret shopper) and carefully watch what those coming in from the outside experience along the way. Ask yourself, "Do I feel reassured and that my human needs for information and proper expectations are handled with care at every step?" Note the areas that need improvement and growth. Develop a plan with your company's marketing, fulfillment and service teams to actively find solutions that will humanize your engagement with the people who will make or break your future success -- your customers. Companies that find a way to answer these questions with a truthful yes will shine. You will know which ones have done the work because they will inevitably enjoy a steady stream of repeat and referral business for many years to come. This is why a focus on and commitment to real engagement is essential to the bottom line. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2019/02/14/does-customer-engagement-really-matter/ |
Can Watsco Get Itself Moving Again in 2019? | Anyone can appreciate the importance of having good heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems to keep you and those around you comfortable. For decades, Watsco (NYSE: WSO) has made it its business to distribute and sell the HVAC systems that get the job done for millions of residential and commercial customers. With an increasing migration of jobs and people to areas in which climate control is a necessity, Watsco has sought to capitalize on growing demand and find new ways to promote its products. Coming into Thursday's fourth-quarter financial report, Watsco investors wanted to see continuing signs that the HVAC specialist was doing a good job of capitalizing on the opportunities in its industry right now. Watsco's numbers were solid, but some would've preferred to see even more positive momentum going into 2019. Two people shaking hands in front of an outside air conditioner, with third person watching More Image source: Watsco. Watsco coasts to the end of the year Watsco's fourth-quarter report failed to meet everyone's expectations for the company. Sales climbed 3% to $991 million, but that was slightly lower than the $1.02 billion that most of those following the stock had wanted to see. Similarly, the company reported adjusted net income of $40 million, up 18% from year-earlier levels, but the resulting adjusted earnings of $1.02 per share fell short of the $1.06 per-share consensus forecast among investors. Sales trends for the fourth quarter were generally slower than what Watsco had seen earlier in the year. HVAC equipment sales were up 3% from year-earlier levels, which was slower than the 4% rise Watsco saw in the third quarter. Sales of other HVAC products were up 4%, which was the same as the third quarter's growth rate, while commercial refrigeration sales stayed unchanged compared to year-earlier results. For the full year, HVAC equipment picked up 6% on the top line, with other HVAC products seeing 5% growth and commercial refrigeration staying flat for the year. Watsco's efforts to boost its earnings efficiency also slowed down. Gross profit climbed at just a 4% rate, half the pace of growth in the third quarter. Operating income actually declined 5%. Yet CEO Albert Nahmad was ambitious about the progress the company made in 2018 and what it means for the future. "We are proud of our track record and industry leadership position," Nahmad said, "but there is much more for us to achieve in the $35 billion North American HVAC/R distribution market." The CEO is working with executives in the company to find new ways to stay on the cutting edge of the business. How Watsco wants to foster growth Watsco sees its future stemming from key initiatives. The company wants to invest further in technology to help its sales associates match up customer needs with the best products available, and adding more workers to help with customer service should help serve clients more effectively. Watsco is also adding data analytics capabilities to identify ways to cut costs. At the same time, a boost to 401(k) matching and a better wellness program for employees point to cultural shifts within Watsco's business organization. Already, Watsco's efforts have paid off in many ways. E-commerce sales were up by a third in 2018 compared to 2017 levels, and increased warehouse efficiency and use of business intelligence capabilities show the internal commitment to making the best use of Watsco's expanded resources in those areas. | https://news.yahoo.com/watsco-itself-moving-again-2019-142100430.html |
Are Investors Undervaluing Air Lease (AL) Right Now? | Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore strong picks. While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies. Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by the broader market. Value investors use fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large. Zacks has developed the innovative Style Scores system to highlight stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will be interested in stocks with great grades in the "Value" category. When paired with a high Zacks Rank, "A" grades in the Value category are among the strongest value stocks on the market today. Air Lease (AL) is a stock many investors are watching right now. AL is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 6.23 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 11.30. Over the past 52 weeks, AL's Forward P/E has been as high as 10.07 and as low as 4.82, with a median of 8.11. We also note that AL holds a PEG ratio of 0.73. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. AL's PEG compares to its industry's average PEG of 1.10. AL's PEG has been as high as 1.65 and as low as 0.57, with a median of 0.94, all within the past year. Another valuation metric that we should highlight is AL's P/B ratio of 0.89. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 1.33. Within the past 52 weeks, AL's P/B has been as high as 1.15 and as low as 0.67, with a median of 1.04. Finally, we should also recognize that AL has a P/CF ratio of 2.96. This data point considers a firm's operating cash flow and is frequently used to find companies that are undervalued when considering their solid cash outlook. This company's current P/CF looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 4.27. Within the past 12 months, AL's P/CF has been as high as 3.99 and as low as 2.23, with a median of 3.55. These are just a handful of the figures considered in Air Lease's great Value grade. Still, they help show that the stock is likely being undervalued at the moment. Add this to the strength of its earnings outlook, and we can clearly see that AL is an impressive value stock right now. Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Air Lease Corporation (AL) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research | https://news.yahoo.com/investors-undervaluing-air-lease-al-141002593.html |
What Awaits SolarEdge Technologies (SEDG) in Q4 Earnings? | SolarEdge Technologies, Inc. SEDG is set to report fourth-quarter 2018 results on Feb 20, after the market closes. In the last reported quarter, the company witnessed a positive earnings surprise of 2.38%. The bottom line outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the trailing four quarters, the average beat being 9.29%. Lets see how things are shaping up prior to this announcement. Factors Under Consideration Growing commercial and residential solar installations in the United States and increasing demand for its inverters in Europe have been constantly driving SolarEdge Technologies revenues, of late. These trends are likely to boost the companys top line in the to-be-reported quarter. Meanwhile, SolarEdge Technologies continues to invest in manufacturing capacity. This, in turn, is likely to increase shipments to its valued customers and bolster the companys revenue growth in the to-be-reported quarter. In line with this, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth- quarter revenues is pegged at $249 million, reflecting an annual increase of 31.6%. In December, SolarEdge Technologies acquired approximately 75% of Kokam Co., a leading provider of lithium ion cells, batteries and energy storage solutions. Although the acquisition will enable the company to further enhance its portfolio and industry leadership in the long run, the deal might have unfavorable impacts on the upcoming quarterly results. This is because SolarEdge Technologies made an aggregate investment of $88 million to purchase Kokam's shares, including transaction-related expenses, which might drag down the formers bottom line. As a result, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 56 cents, reflecting an annual decline of 30%. What the Zacks Model Unveils Our proven model does not conclusively show that SolarEdge Technologies is likely to beat estimates in the fourth quarter. This is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. Earnings ESP: SolarEdge Technologies has an Earnings ESP of 0.00%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter. Zacks Rank: SolarEdge Technologies has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Please note that we caution against stocks with a Zacks Rank #4 or 5 (Strong Sell) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions. SolarEdge Technologies, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise SolarEdge Technologies, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise | SolarEdge Technologies, Inc. Quote Upcoming Solar Releases Canadian Solar Inc. CSIQ sports a Zacks Rank #1 and is scheduled to report fourth-quarter results on March 21. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Sunrun Inc. RUN carries a Zacks Rank #3 and is scheduled to report fourth-quarter results on Feb 28. First Solar Inc. FSLR carries a Zacks Rank #3 and is scheduled to report fourth-quarter results on Feb 21. Here's another stock idea to consider. Much like petroleum 150 years ago, lithium power may soon shake the world, creating millionaires and reshaping geo-politics. Soon electric vehicles (EVs) may be cheaper than gas guzzlers. Some are already reaching 265 miles on a single charge. With battery prices plummeting and charging stations set to multiply, one company stands out as the #1 stock to buy according to Zacks research. It's not the one you think. Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report First Solar, Inc. (FSLR) : Free Stock Analysis Report SolarEdge Technologies, Inc. (SEDG) : Free Stock Analysis Report Sunrun Inc. (RUN) : Free Stock Analysis Report Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research | https://news.yahoo.com/awaits-solaredge-technologies-sedg-q4-141002236.html |
Are Investors Undervaluing Information Services Group (III) Right Now? | Here at Zacks, our focus is on the proven Zacks Rank system, which emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find great stocks. Nevertheless, we are always paying attention to the latest value, growth, and momentum trends to underscore strong picks. Here at Zacks, we focus on our proven ranking system, which places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, to find winning stocks. But we also understand that investors develop their own strategies, so we are constantly looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong companies for our readers. Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits. In addition to the Zacks Rank, investors looking for stocks with specific traits can utilize our Style Scores system. Of course, value investors will be most interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with "A" grades for Value and high Zacks Ranks are among the best value stocks available at any given moment. One company to watch right now is Information Services Group (III). III is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with P/E ratio of 10.48 right now. For comparison, its industry sports an average P/E of 20.45. Over the last 12 months, III's Forward P/E has been as high as 13.62 and as low as 9.44, with a median of 10.80. Investors should also note that III holds a PEG ratio of 0.75. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. III's industry has an average PEG of 1.79 right now. Over the past 52 weeks, III's PEG has been as high as 0.99 and as low as 0.67, with a median of 0.78. Investors should also recognize that III has a P/B ratio of 2.45. Investors use the P/B ratio to look at a stock's market value versus its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. III's current P/B looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/B of 6.56. Over the past 12 months, III's P/B has been as high as 3.41 and as low as 2.41, with a median of 2.67. Value investors also use the P/S ratio. The P/S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales. Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement. This means it could be a truer performance indicator. III has a P/S ratio of 0.68. This compares to its industry's average P/S of 1.4. These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Information Services Group is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, III feels like a great value stock at the moment. Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Information Services Group, Inc. (III) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. | https://news.yahoo.com/investors-undervaluing-information-services-group-141002992.html |
Will Japan have self-driving cars on the road in time for the 2020 Olympics? | Open this photo in gallery During the Tokyo Olympics, Toyota's e-Palette will be used to ferry competitors around the Athletes Village. Brendan McAleer/The Globe and Mail On the first of October, 1964, at precisely 10 a.m., two Hikari Super Express Shinkansen trains pulled into stations at Osaka and Tokyo, respectively. The bullet trains were right on time, and their arrival just weeks before the start of the summer Olympics marked a massive change in transportation for the people of Japan. Now, Tokyo is looking forward to a new Olympics in 2020, and toward a potential new era in mobility. Ambitious infrastructure projects are in full swing, including a new national stadium that threatened to be the most expensive in the world before plans were sent back to the drawing board. Elsewhere, billions of yen are being spent on highway upgrades and a push for hydrogen-powered vehicles. Theres also an initiative to make the 2020 Olympics a showcase for Japanese technology, and in todays automotive world, that means autonomous vehicles. There are a number of factors that make Tokyo an ideal place for vehicle autonomy to gain wider acceptance. First, there's governmental will behind the decision. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government has set ambitious targets for a fleet of self-driving cars by 2020, with aims to make the service commercially viable by 2022. Story continues below advertisement Second, residents of Tokyo are already used to giving up their steering wheels. With expensive toll roads everywhere, heavy traffic and limited parking, owning a car in Japans capital city is generally more trouble than its worth. In urban environments, a fleet of autonomous cars is likely to generate excited curiosity rather than suspicion. Lastly, theres the well-developed Japanese infrastructure. With smooth, well maintained toll roads throughout the country, limiting automated functions to specific areas via geo-fencing is a straightforward proposition. However, all is not smooth sailing toward the future. The Olympics themselves, for instance, are set to cost four times their initial budget. The scandal surrounding Nissan chief executive Carlos Ghosn comes at a time when ambitious leadership is required to deliver on the promise of a fleet of fully autonomous electric Nissan Leafs by 2020. Further, while the Japanese government seems generally willing to support the testing of automated vehicles on public roads, official legislation regulating autonomy is not due until next year. In Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, the mood seems cautiously optimistic. Toyota became an official Olympics and Paralympics partner in 2015 and, as Japans largest automaker, is deeply involved in planning for the huge influx of tourists. However, Toyotas big project is not full autonomy but hydrogen- and hybrid-powered vehicles. The goal is to have some 3,000 fuel-cell and plug-in hybrid vehicles in service for logistics and transportation during the games, including everything from the fuel-cell-powered Sora bus to the Mirai passenger car to fuel-cell forklifts. Honda will also be diving into hydrogen power, and the Japanese government is set to provide about 45.2 billion yen (more than $541-million) in hydrogen infrastructure and subsidies. Open this photo in gallery The Toyota i-Road, right, will be used by security teams during the 2020 Olympics. Brendan McAleer/The Globe and Mail By comparison, Toyota's autonomous vehicles will operate in more of a showcase capacity. Their boxy e-Palette autonomous EV will ferry competitors around the athlete's village, while the Concept-i will be used for demonstrations. On the busy roads beneath Tokyos towering concrete overpasses, you can see why the Japanese have evolved a disciplined approach to public transit just watch any escalator in operation during rush hour, as stationary people stand in a strictly ordered line to the left but the countrys city traffic is chaotic. Cars and trucks flip on their four-way-flashers and park in the curb lane, while scooters carve up traffic. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement This is to say nothing of narrow alleyways that arent even wide enough for two of the tiny kei-cars to pass abreast, nor of the surprisingly flexible Japanese attitude toward merging. The highways will be easy, but the cut-and-thrust of regular Tokyo traffic presents more of a challenge to computerized brains and sensors. Toyota and others are therefore taking a split-level approach toward automation, with privately owned vehicles proceeding step-by-step through ever greater driver assistance, and full autonomy being deployed experimentally. Toyotas goal is a zero-accident games, something they hope to achieve with improved automated safety systems. The idea of a car that protects society with pedestrian detection and automated emergency braking is a relatively easy sell to western markets. Toyota's future plans for data collection may not be as easy to translate. For the Olympics, the ability to manage fleet logistics via vehicle tracking makes a great deal of sense. A Japanese acceptance of vehicle telematics being tied to insurance rates, as is currently present in the mid-sized Toyota Crown sedan, might not fly in the North American market. Its worth noting that the Shinkansen themselves are not without their critics. Their construction had considerable environmental impact, and the long-term effect on Japanese society has been increasing city sprawl and the draining of youth from rural areas. By 2020, vehicle autonomy will be on display in Japan, but still likely in an early phase. The creation of hydrogen-fuelling infrastructure will likely be the larger change in the short term. But perhaps dont expect upheaval like that driven by Japans high-speed rail revolution. The trains arrived, just on time, with the speed of a bullet. Autonomous vehicles, even in highly organized Japan, seem to be plotting a slower course. Check out the new Globe Drive Build and Price Tool to see the latest discounts, rebates and rates on new cars, trucks and SUVs. Click here to get your price. Stay on top of all our Drive stories. We have a Drive newsletter covering car reviews, innovative new cars and the ups and downs of everyday driving. Sign up for the weekly Drive newsletter, delivered to your inbox for free. Follow us on Instagram, @globedrive. | https://www.theglobeandmail.com/drive/culture/article-tokyo-accelerates-its-push-for-autonomous-cars-ahead-of-the-202/ |
Should IS teenager be allowed back in UK? | Video A British woman who ran away to Syria as a schoolgirl to join the Islamic State group has now said she wants to come back to the UK. Speaking from a Syrian refugee camp, Shamima Begum, now 19, told the Times newspaper she had no regrets but wanted to come back to the UK as she was nine months pregnant. In Syria, she married an IS fighter and had two children, who have both died. In her interview, Ms Begum showed little remorse for her involvement with the terror group, saying she was not fazed by seeing "beheaded heads" in bins. "I don't regret coming here," she told Times journalist Anthony Loyd, who found her in the camp. "I'm not the same silly little 15-year-old schoolgirl who ran away from Bethnal Green four years ago." | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-47244397/should-is-teenager-be-allowed-back-in-uk |
How Much Does Fashion Week Cost (And What Is The ROI)? | There are few constants in fashion except, perhaps, change itself. It is the reason the industry's bi-annual fashion weeks exist and the reason fashion designers, brands and houses spend a fortune trying to stand out from the crowd. While their respective shows, presentations and PR stunts set the tone for the sartorial season ahead, the Big Four (New York, London, Milan, and Paris) 'Weeks' have to battle for influence more imaginatively than ever. The fashion industry represents over $2.5 trillion dollars (according to a recent McKinsey report) and, on average, a 10 to 15 minute fashion show can cost anywhere from $200,000 to over $1 million. According to data analytics provider Launchmetrics, the answer is more complex. The company's new 'Data On The Runway' report suggests the key is MIV (or media impact value) - an algorithm which measures the impact of media placements to derive a number for performance outcomes. Ultimately, the success of Fashion Week events comes down to the strategic approach taken when organizing ones communication directives. Last season (Spring/Summer 2019) was chock full of consciously curated celebrations - a 360 campaign to celebrate Ralph Lauren's 50th anniversary, a rebranding at Celine under Hedi Slimane , Guccis Milan to Paris city change, et al. By leveraging the voices that resonate most with their audiences, Launchmetrics' data analysts found that Ralph Lauren's widely publicized anniversary show ranks first amongst the brands, with the highest Media Impact Value generated over the Fashion Weeks at $38 million. For the campaign Ralph Lauren activated some of the most influential international voices (everyone from Hillary Clinton, Oprah Winfrey and Robert De Niro to Donna Karan, Calvin Klein and Anna Wintour), hoested an extravagant collection presentation and finished with a paparazzi-heavy post-show dinner party. When looking at the voice split, it is clear that influencers garnered enormous buzz for the brand (taking 46.2% of the pie) followed by Ralph Laurens owned media channels (at 29.7%). Coach ($27 million), Dior ($22.6 million) and Gucci ($19.4 million) followed closely behind and, once again, Chiara Ferragni topped the charts as the top influencer Voice. Ferragni (also known by her blog's moniker The Blonde Salad) led with $18.3 million in Media Impact Value; to put that into perspective, she nearly reached the same MIV as Versace ($18.7 million) did for their SS19 show proving the continual power of influencer investments. Social media actually proved imperative for fashion brands altogether; posts shared by celebrities and influencers represent an impressive 89% of buzz compared to online media's 11%. SS19's top-performing celebrity was Nicki Minaj, who generated a total of $11.3 million Media Impact Value over the season. Alison Bring, CMO at Launchmetrics, said: "Today, fashion weeks are no longer industry events but are a platform to reach the digital savvy consumer, so brands need to think outside the box in order to transform their 15-minute event into something that lives on, beyond what happens on the runway. The case studies within the report shed light on how brands can generate buzz through activities such as using influencers to create 360 campaigns, changing their location to talk to new consumers and markets, or even by focusing on their owned media to increase the share of wallet. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/lelalondon/2019/02/14/how-much-fashion-week-cost-what-is-roi/ |
Is the Health Care Bill DOA? | This is a rush transcript from "On the Record," January 21, 2010. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated. GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: The stunning Massachusetts upset gave the GOP much more power than it's had in a year -- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's filibuster-proof Senate smashed. We went to Capitol Hill, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell went "On the Record." (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) VAN SUSTEREN: Senator, nice to see you, sir. MCCONNELL: Good to be back. VAN SUSTEREN: And of course, it's always fun to be in the U.S. Capitol. It's a gorgeous building, as I always note every time we start these interviews. MCCONNELL: Yes, the most important symbol of democracy in the world. VAN SUSTEREN: Speaking of democracy, you have a new member, or you're going to have a new member as soon as he's sworn in, Senator-elect Brown from the state of Massachusetts. MCCONNELL: Yes. He was here for a meeting in my office on Thursday, and we took him to a lunch that we have every Thursday that includes all the Republican senators. I can't recall the arrival of a new Republican senator that was more happily greeted than this one. VAN SUSTEREN: So what, everyone -- applauds or... MCCONNELL: Absolutely. We stood up and applauded. I mean, you know, this was significant in every way, not only a Republican being elected in the most -- arguably the most liberal state in America, but being elected in large measure on the health care issue. I think Brown's election mean the end of the health care proposal as currently constituted that the Democrats are trying to jam through, that they did jam through the Senate, thanks to the "Cornhusker kickback" and the "Louisiana purchase" and the other tactics that they employed. I think that's over. The American people have been saved from that by the election of -- of the new Massachusetts senator. VAN SUSTEREN: Of course, though, he has said that he's not a Reagan Republican or any other kind of Republican, he's a Scott Brown Republican. So there's still, I imagine, some level of uncertainty, at least, for the Republicans as to where he's going to fit in line here. MCCONNELL: Well, we have a lot of diversity in our conference anyway. I can tell you a senator from Maine doesn't necessarily see things like a senator from Mississippi. So we have broad philosophical diversity, and the Northeast Republicans are not exactly like a Southeast or a Western Republican. But on the health care issue, we were together, all 100 -- all -- 100 percent of us, every single one thought that this was a bad deal for America. VAN SUSTEREN: How enthusiastic -- I mean, outside of Massachusetts -- I mean, I -- we saw the level of enthusiasm in Massachusetts because we took our show there. And last week, I was flying back from Kentucky to Washington, and of course, there were a bunch of people on the plane that wanted to talk about health care and Scott Brown. They view these as sort of indistinguishable. Got off the plane, a lady came up to me and said, I'm a constituent of yours. I live in Kentucky. Meet my husband, who lives in Massachusetts, and we're going up to Massachusetts so he can vote for Scott Brown. VAN SUSTEREN: So he cared enough to travel to buy a ticket to... MCCONNELL: Yes, they bought a ticket for no other purpose than to get him up to vote in that special election. Speaker Pelosi has said today she does not have the votes in the House to adopt the Senate bill, which of course, puts a little bit of a wrench into any plans that might have been that the House would simply adopt the Senate bill. MCCONNELL: Well, let me tell you this. The 2,700-page monstrosity that took a half billion out of Medicare, raised taxes a half billion dollars and raised insurance premiums for everybody else, is dead. VAN SUSTEREN: We'll start over. MCCONNELL: We need to start over, as we've been advocating -- my side has been advocating for some time, start over and go step-by-step to fix the problem... VAN SUSTEREN: All right... MCCONNELL: ... which is cost. VAN SUSTEREN: That's what you want to do. MCCONNELL: Well, as long as they try to restructure one sixth of the economy by cutting Medicare, raising taxes and raising premiums, I don't think it's going anywhere. I think there's a lot of nervousness on the Democratic side. The leadership marks (ph) them out right off the cliff politically, trying to get them to pass a bill the American people hated. I don't think they're going to have any stomach for that one more time. MCCONNELL: I think the attitude is they would like for this issue to go away for a while. MCCONNELL: Democratic senators, many of them, would like for this issue to go away for a while. MCCONNELL: I think -- you'll have to ask him, but my guess is, further efforts to jam this wildly unpopular bill through this Congress would be very counterproductive for them in next November's election. VAN SUSTEREN: All right. Big decision across the street, the United States Supreme Court today... MCCONNELL: Yes. VAN SUSTEREN: ... a decision that actually -- I think you tried to challenge the law once before having to do with campaign finance reform. MCCONNELL: Important. I mean, the core of the decision was now a corporation that owns a media outlet, which has been free to speak, will be treated no differently from a corporation that doesn't own a media outlet. Every corporation and every union will be able to speak freely at any time, whether they own a media outlet or not. Free speech for everyone. VAN SUSTEREN: All right. MCCONNELL: Oh, sure. I mean, the Court upheld disclosure of sources of campaign spending. But basically, what they did was equalize the playing field and say every entity -- union, corporation, corporation that owns a media outlet -- all are treated the same under the 1st Amendment. Everybody can speak freely at any time without government restriction. MCCONNELL: Well, I think he was a great choice. Leader Boehner and I... VAN SUSTEREN: You chose him! MCCONNELL: Yes. VAN SUSTEREN: Well, you ought to like the choice... (CROSSTALK) MCCONNELL: ... like the choice! Of course. You know, he's an example of a new Republican governor, just sworn in a week ago, fresh face with new ideas, and the American people need to meet him. (END VIDEOTAPE) Content and Programming Copyright 2010 Fox News Network, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Transcription Copyright 2010 CQ Transcriptions, LLC, which takes sole responsibility for the accuracy of the transcription. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No license is granted to the user of this material except for the user's personal or internal use and, in such case, only one copy may be printed, nor shall user use any material for commercial purposes or in any fashion that may infringe upon Fox News Network, LLC'S and CQ Transcriptions, LLC's copyrights or other proprietary rights or interests in the material. This is not a legal transcript for purposes of litigation. | https://www.foxnews.com/story/is-the-health-care-bill-doa |
Can Starboard Value Do for Papa John's What It Did for Olive Garden? | Shares of Papa John's (NASDAQ: PZZA) continue to rise in the aftermath of activist investor Starboard Value injecting $200 million into the pizzeria and having the hedge fund's founder Jeffrey Smith take on the role of chairman of the board. Many believe that Smith, who is credited with engineering the turnaround at Olive Garden following the ouster of the entire board of directors at Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI), has the skills to fashion a resurgence at Papa John's. Couple eating pizza More Image source: Getty Images. But the pizza chain is not the Italian restaurant, which suffered mostly from execution issues (which is why Smith's action plan included such minutiae as salting the pasta water). Papa John's has seemingly much bigger problems in that its reputation has been damaged by the actions of John Schnatter, its former chairman and founder. Schnatter purportedly made racially insensitive comments and blamed the National Football League for falling sales. While the latter point suggests there were issues prior to the various brouhahas that resulted in Schnatter resigning his position with the company (he still owns 30% of the company's stock), sales plunged in the aftermath. Winning back consumer trust will not be as easy as tweaking Papa John's pizza sauce. Sticking with a winning formula Yet Starboard's Smith is expected to use the same formula at the pizzeria that he did at Olive Garden: Overhaul the menu, its marketing, and its operational performance. In announcing the investment and his elevation to board chairman, Smith extolled Papa John's pizza -- calling it "the best product in the space" -- its franchisees, and the board for taking decisive action. Cost-cutting is not as much of a priority at Papa John's as it was at Olive Garden, but there is only so much space to maneuver with a somewhat limited menu. People aren't going to a pizzeria for a new chicken, fish, or pasta dish, like they could at the Italian food chain; they want pizza, and there are only so many ways to innovate. Pizza is also somewhat more competitive than casual dining. While there are only a handful of national pizza chains, there are almost 42,000 independent pizzerias, making Papa John's turnaround more of a challenge. Customers can always go to their local pizza joint if they don't want to patronize one of the national chains. Better messaging might not be enough to persuade customers to return. Moreover, rival Domino's (NYSE: DPZ) is already the industry leader, and made a point of trying to capitalize on Papa John's woes by attracting more customers with the promise of free pies. It has also greatly improved its digital presence, an area where Papa John's was seen as leading, and Domino's has maintained consistently high rates of comparable-store sales growth, logging 30 consecutive quarters of gains. Similarly, Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) is also hungry for a turnaround with its Pizza Hut chain after years of languishing. Its efforts may finally be starting to pay off with comps flat year over year in the fourth quarter as well as for the year, a sign that the chain may have finally stabilized. Meanwhile, Papa John's 2018 comps were down 7.3%, making the hill it has to climb much steeper. The pizza chain will use Starboard's $200 million investment to pay down some of its debt. In return, the hedge fund is buying a newly designated Series B convertible preferred stock with an option to purchase up to $50 million more. Franchisees are also being given an opportunity to buy a total of $10 million of the convertible preferred stock on the same terms as Starboard. Most of Papa John's efforts need to go toward repairing its image. But because this is not a quick-fix solution, something Starboard Value acknowledges, it may not be a battle it can easily win. It also suggests investors can bide their time before deciding whether the Papa John's turnaround will work. More From The Motley Fool Rich Duprey has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. | https://news.yahoo.com/starboard-value-papa-john-apos-160100331.html |
Where are Stoneman Douglas students, parents, officials now? | PARKLAND, Fla. The massacre that left 17 dead at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School pushed students, parents, officials and others into the national limelight, something most never sought. A look at where some of the most prominent are today: STUDENTS EMMA GONZALEZ -- Gonzalez, 19, became known for her "We Call B.S." speech criticizing politicians who accept money from the National Rifle Association, which she gave days after the shooting during a Fort Lauderdale rally. She, David Hogg and other March for Our Lives founders were featured on the cover of Time magazine. They spent the summer as part of the "Road to Change" tour, which registered young voters around the country. She is attending Florida's New College. DAVID HOGG -- Hogg, 18, became the most prominent spokesman for March for Our Lives, a group he and other Stoneman Douglas students founded that is pushing for stronger gun laws. It won the International Children's Peace Prize. His activism led to significant criticism, including death threats. He and his younger sister, Lauren, wrote a book, "#NeverAgain: A New Generation Draws the Line." He will be attending Harvard in the fall. KYLE KASHUV -- The Stoneman Douglas senior has become the most prominent conservative voice among the students, meeting with President Donald Trump, Republican members of Congress and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Kashuv was a member of Gov. Ron DeSantis' transition team and is high school outreach director for Turning Point USA, a conservative group. PARENTS ANDREW POLLACK -- Pollack, whose 18-year-old daughter Meadow died in the shooting, became the most outspoken critic of school and law enforcement officials among the victims' parents and a force in Florida conservative politics. He has met with Trump, and was on DeSantis' transition team. He is pushing for the removal of Broward school Superintendent Robert Runcie and is suing suspect Nikolas Cruz, the Broward school district and sheriff's office and former Broward sheriff's Deputy Scot Peterson, who was on duty at the school during the shooting but did not enter the building to confront the shooter. FRED GUTTENBERG -- Guttenberg, whose 14-year-old daughter Jaime was killed, has become an outspoken advocate for gun control and liberal causes. He drew national attention when he approached new Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearing and extended his hand, only to have Kavanaugh walk away. Guttenberg was part of the transition team for new state Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, Florida's only statewide Democratic officeholder. RYAN PETTY -- Petty, whose 14-year-old daughter Alaina died, was appointed to the state commission investigating the shooting's causes. His comments tended to hit at police and school system failures he perceived. He lost a bid for the Broward County school board, but was also part of DeSantis' transition team. MAX SCHACHTER -- Schacter, whose 14-year-old son Alex died, became the emotional voice of the parents as a member of the state commission and founder of the group, "Safe Schools for Alex." He has traveled extensively looking at school security systems. LORI ALHADEFF -- Alhadeff, whose 14-year-old daughter Alyssa was killed, won a school board seat representing Parkland in August. She tried hiring a Runcie critic as her secretary, but the superintendent said the woman, a college instructor who holds a doctorate, was unqualified because she didn't have related experience. Alhadeff has pushed Runcie to set a timeline for implementing school security projects. TONY MONTALTO -- Montalto, whose 14-year-old daughter Gina was killed, is president of "Stand with Parkland," a group of parents and spouses of the victims. The group has pushed for enhanced school security measures, better mental health screening programs and universal background checks for gun purchases. MANUEL OLIVER -- Oliver, whose 17-year-old son Joaquin died, is an artist who has created projects honoring his son and condemning gun violence. He recently took on comic Louis CK, who mocked the victims during a December performance. At his website, changetheref.org, Oliver poses as a standup comedian and in the form of a joke he tells about dropping his son off the day he died. No one laughs. OFFICIALS ROBERT RUNCIE -- The Broward County school superintendent remains in office over the objection of the victims' families, as he has the backing of a majority of the nine-member school board. DeSantis has hinted he would like to suspend Runcie, but state law won't allow it as Runcie is an appointed official, not elected. SCOTT ISRAEL - DeSantis suspended the Broward County sheriff on Jan. 11, saying he "repeatedly failed and has demonstrated a pattern of poor leadership." Before the shooting, Israel had changed his department's policy to say deputies "may" confront shooters from "shall." Critics say that gave eight deputies an excuse for not confronting the gunman when they arrived during the shooting but stayed outside. Israel's attorneys say he intends to challenge the suspension. He intends to run again next year. SCOT PETERSON -- Peterson, a longtime Broward sheriff's deputy assigned to school, retired shortly after the shooting. Security video showed he drew his gun but did not enter the three-story freshman building where the killings took place. Instead, he took cover nearby and stayed there for about 50 minutes. In interviews with the "Today" show and The Washington Post, he said he did not know where the shots were coming from. He was subpoenaed to testify before the state investigative commission, but invoked his Fifth Amendment right to silence after it was announced he is under criminal investigation. The commission concluded that he lied about not knowing the location of the shooter, and several members called him a coward. He is collecting a pension of more than $100,000 annually. SUSPECT AND FAMILY NIKOLAS CRUZ -- Cruz, 20, remains jailed in Broward County, charged with 17 counts of first-degree murder. His attorneys have said the former Stoneman Douglas student would plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence, but prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. No trial date has been set. In November, he was charged with attacking a jail guard who investigators say told him not to drag his sandals while walking. The guard fended off the attack, investigators said. ZACHARY CRUZ -- The suspect's 18-year-old brother pleaded no contest in March to trespassing at the school 33 days after the shooting. He was re-arrested weeks later for violating probation for driving without a license and for driving near a school, but was quickly released. He has moved to Virginia, and has shown up at some of his brother's court hearings. | http://www.startribune.com/where-are-stoneman-douglas-students-parents-officials-now/505836002/ |
Does Netanyahu's chumminess with Arab leaders really signal a new era? | They are images that will infuriate the Palestinian leadership. Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu joking and smiling with Arab leaders at an international conference on the Middle East. Israel has formal diplomatic relations with only two Arab states, Egypt and Jordan. And for decades, one price the small country has paid for its occupation of the Palestinian territories has been snubs by the majority of its neighbours. But events at a two-day summit in Warsaw tell a different story. First, there were the videos of Netanyahu sitting at the grand opening dinner on Wednesday night with Arab officials. I believe we are beginning a new era, said US vice-president Mike Pence at the meal, with prime minister Netanyahu from the state of Israel, with leaders from Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, all breaking bread together. Then there was the meeting and warm handshake with Omani Foreign Minister, Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah. It built on another landmark trip Netanyahu made in October, when he met with the Gulf countrys Sultan, the first such visit in more than two decades. Raphael Ahren (@RaphaelAhren) PM @Netanyahu met with Omani FM Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah in Warsaw: The courageous decision of Sultan Qaboos to invite me to #Oman is changing the world. Its pointing the way for many others to do what you said - not to be stuck in the past but to cease the future. pic.twitter.com/20JolijILO And finally, the gut-punch, a brief smile with the foreign minister of Yemen, who Netanyahu sat next to for a group discussion. Jason Greenblatt, President Trumps Middle East envoy, said minister Khaled Alyemany even offered Netanyahu his microphone when the Israeli premiers broke during a closed session. Netanyahu joked about the new cooperation between Israel and Yemen. Step by step ... Greenblatt said on Twitter. The Israeli leader, who will likely become the countrys longest-serving prime minister if he wins the forthcoming election in April, has promised his citizens that warmer ties with Arab states are still possible despite lacklustre peace efforts with the Palestinians. Antipathy towards Iran and trade are two areas where his government has sought to find common ground, hoping they will overshadow solidarity with the Palestinians, who have long relied on regional pressure against Israel. Mike Pence chides US allies at Warsaw summit on Iran Read more In a room of some 60 foreign ministers representative of dozens of governments, an Israeli prime minister and the foreign ministers of the leading Arab countries stood together and spoke with unusual force, clarity and unity against the common threat of the Iranian regime, Netanyahu told reporters in Warsaw. So far, Arab countries have been reluctant to show public ties, fearful of domestic embarrassment, but there are growing signs of thawing relations. Last March, Saudi Arabia opened its airspace to an Israel-bound passenger plane, breaking a 70-year-ban on commercial jets flying over the Arab kingdom to reach the Jewish state. Washington has also pressured Arab leaders, seeking their backing in an unreleased peace plan drafted by Trumps son-in-law, Jared Kushner. His deal is rumoured to award Israel normalised relations with some Middle East powers for yet-to-be specified compromises for the Palestinians. A Palestinian delegation was reportedly invited to the conference but refused to attend. The West Bank-based leadership rejected Washingtons historical role as a peace mediator after Trump declared the contested city of Jerusalem as Israels capital. Palestine will not provide cover to warmongering or legitimise efforts to market an Israeli-centric fake solution that normalises Arab-Israeli relations at the expense of Palestinian rights, senior Palestinian politician Hanan Ashrawi said ahead of the summit. But in Israel, some are already cheering the end of an era. An article in the Jerusalem Post newspaper said on Thursday that the message from Warsaw was clear: Palestinian leaders do not have a veto on which Arab countries can ally with Israel. The long-held assumption that the Arab world would not deal with Israel until the Palestinian issue is solved has proven empty, it said. | https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/feb/14/netanyahu-israel-arab-leaders-iran-palestine-warsaw-summit |
Which Republicans will take on Trump in 2020? | As the 2020 election cycle begins, some centrist Republicans are already said to be considering challenging the president as the GOP works to stifle any rebellion As more and more Democrats line up for a chance to take on Donald Trump in 2020 the president has predictably responded by doling out insults and nicknames. But while Democrats remain the object of Trumps ire for now, he may soon have to worry about Republican primary challengers as well. Stronger together: why Trumps theft of Hillary Clintons slogan is tradition Read more Since Trumps 2016 run, centrist Republicans have watched aghast as the president transformed the party and its supporters to fit his own style and beliefs. Many of his former opponents within the Republican party fell in line, but others have not. As the 2020 election cycle begins, some Republicans may now seek to challenge Trump in the presidential primaries. One potential insurgent Republican candidate is former Massachusetts governor Bill Weld, who was the vice-presidential nominee on Gary Johnsons Libertarian party ticket in 2016. Last week, the Associated Press reported that Weld had changed his party registration from Libertarian back to Republican. In late January, he told the New Hampshire television station WMUR that he would not say anything regarding whether he was running or not until he gave a speech in the state home to the first primary in the nation on 15 February. If he enters the race and does so in his old party he will be the first rebel Republican to challenge Trump. It certainly seems that if he runs, it will be as a Republican. And that presents a danger to Trump because incumbent presidents who get primaried usually end up weakened and losing the general election, said Rob Gray, who was Welds press secretary when he was governor of Massachusetts. He added: The establishment Republican theory is that four years out in the cold with a Democratic president is better for the Republican party long-term than eight years of Trump pushing out and turning off liberal, middle-of-the-road Republicans from the party. Sign up for the US morning briefing The latest speculation over Welds candidacy comes as others are also said to be considering taking on Trump. Trump critic and two-time presidential candidate John Kasich, who recently finished his final term as governor of Ohio, has been considering a run. Maryland governor Larry Hogan is also a potential contender. But facing off against Trump is a daunting challenge. He attacks those who criticise him relentlessly and for Republicans hoping to advance in the partys ranks, facing the wrath of the president, his allies and his large base of voters is could be politically dangerous. Even the presidents biggest enemies on the 2016 primary campaign trail, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz (who Trump tauntingly called Little Marco and Lyin Ted) were quick to fall in line. With the party firmly under Trumps control, the GOP is now working to stifle any potential rebellion. Last month, Republican National Committee members unanimously voted to approve a resolution declaring undivided support of Trump and his presidency at the bodys annual winter meeting in New Mexico. Meanwhile, in South Carolina, Republicans have voiced support for cancelling the states primary to block potential challengers and protect the president. The Republican party has really fallen in line behind Donald Trump, in part because theyre afraid of his base and in part because theyre afraid of being targeted by Donald Trump, said Erin OBrien, an associate professor of political science at University of Massachusetts Boston. While that could dissuade some Republican candidates, OBrien said it will not scare off Weld, who operates independent of the party apparatus. Hes not afraid to run and lose. Bill Weld is not afraid to run to make a point, she said. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Bill Weld in Canton, Massachusetts on 8 November 2016. Hes not afraid to run and lose, Erin OBrien said of Weld. Photograph: Michael Dwyer/AP For Weld or any other candidate who runs as a Republican, playing the spoiler might be the best they can do. The presidents approval ratings remain high among Republicans and few observers see him losing the nomination. But historically, wounding is what insurgent candidates have done best. George HW Bush defeated fellow Republican Pat Buchanans primary effort in 1992 only to lose to Bill Clinton in the general. In 1980, Jimmy Carter lost 12 primary contests to Massachusetts senator Ted Kennedy before losing by a landslide to Ronald Reagan. And in 1976, Reagan challenged Gerald Ford, who lost to Carter. Any attempt to primary the president would be an attempt to wound, said Steve Duprey, a New Hampshire Republican National Committee member who was a senior adviser to the late John McCains 2008 campaign. Now with the basically co-joining of the Republican National Committee with the Trump campaign so its one, I think it makes it a very daunting task to take him on. Still, some do see some room for potential insurgent candidates to mount more competitive campaigns aimed at denying Trump the nomination. Tom Rath, a former New Hampshire attorney general who served as a senior national advisor to Kasich in the 2016 election, said there is no appetite in the Republican party for a challenger. However, if Trump seems unlikely to win re-election in 2020, Republicans afraid of losing the White House after having already lost the House of Representatives could be more open to an insurgent candidate. The full list of Democrats vying to take on Trump Read more The only cogent argument that will cut is electability, he said. And if there was a weakening of the presidents numbers, I think that would potentially give more credence to a challenger. The former chair of the Massachusetts Republican party, Jennifer Nassour, said 2016 shook history up a little bit. I dont know if I would apply historical norms to any election after 2016. A lot of centrists are looking for someone to call home and thats people both on the right and the left who feel the parties have left them, she added. But to University of New Hampshire political science professor Dante Scala, while potential candidates like Weld and Kasich appear attractive to moderate Republicans and independent voters, he believes there is only so far they can go. Unless the bottom drops out from underneath the president, all theyre going to do is hit that ceiling, he said. | https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/feb/14/trump-2020-republicans-against-president-never-trumpers |
What happened to our feminist Prime Minister? | In September 2017 I was in the audience at the Women in the World Summit in Toronto, and listened to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau talk about his feminist bona fides. Well, first we had to watch a video many clips set to a pumping rock score on that subject. I am a feminist, and proud to call myself one, said the onscreen Prime Minister. He went on to add, A gender-balanced cabinet is a significant accomplishment and one that I am particularly proud of. Then our chief elected feminist, whose party has never been led by a woman, came out on stage to be interviewed by famed editor Tina Brown. Mr. Trudeau trotted out a familiar line about goodness-through-utility: Its not just about doing the right thing, its about doing the smart thing. Its about recognizing that when you have a gender-balanced, diverse cabinet, you can really make better decisions, have better conversations. Story continues below advertisement Then he made a very interesting point about how it was relatively easy to recruit women into politics, compared with keeping them there, which he called a challenge around retention. Women would be elected, he said, and after a couple of years wonder if this business was really for them, because of the nastiness, because of the negativity. Im not sure what the retention challenge was when it came to Mr. Trudeaus colleague Jody Wilson-Raybould, who quit the federal cabinet this week. We dont know, and likely wont until all the parties write their memoirs, because a government that promised transparency and openness actually operates with a pythons grip on information. Worse, this government, which branded itself as womens champions I dont know if youve heard, but theyre feminists made a colossal error in hanging out to dry the first Indigenous woman to be named justice minister. The trouble began when the Globe and Mail reported that Ms. Wilson-Raybould, when she was justice minister and attorney-general, had felt pressed by the Prime Ministers Office to intervene in the upcoming bribery case of the Quebec construction giant SNC-Lavalin. Ms. Wilson-Raybould reportedly resisted these entreaties (she hasnt spoken on the matter, citing attorney-client privilege.) In the last cabinet shuffle, Ms. Wilson-Raybould was moved to veteran affairs, which was largely seen as a demotion. We may have to wait a long time, perhaps until Ottawa thaws, before we understand the underlying realities. The optics, though, are stick-in-the-eye terrible. Mr. Trudeau pronounced himself disappointed that Ms. Wilson-Raybould didnt come to him with her concerns, in the tone that you might take with a wayward teenager. Its one thing for a government to treat a female cabinet minister shabbily; its quite another when the government has hung its entire brand national and global on the twin hooks of fairness and feminism. Live by the f-word, die by the f-word. The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs released a statement calling on the Prime Minister to condemn the racist and sexist innuendo about Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould that is being spread by unnamed elected officials and staff of your government. That innuendo was contained in a Canadian Press story in which the minister was described as a thorn in the side of cabinet difficult and sort of in it for herself. In case you didnt know, difficult is a whistle that feminist ears are particularly good at picking up. It is part of a familiar and timeworn melody. Here I defer to a much more authoritative source, the World Banks 2015 report The Female Political Career, which looks at the sources of stagnation in womens political trajectories around the world: Once in office, gendered roles and expectations continue to dog female legislators, capping ambitions as surely as they stunt their success. Its no fun pointing out the shortfall between the shiny brand and the dull reality. Id much prefer there was no gap at all. In fairness, this government has made meaningful progress, including a federal budget developed through gender analysis, as well as important legislation on violence against women and sexual harassment. Theres also Foreign Affairs minister Chrystia Freeland, who spends her time actually doing feminism rather than talking about it. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement This government is being held to a high standard because it claimed that space for itself, and then when it fell short, decided to mouth platitudes instead of taking responsibility. Or said nothing at all, which is more the style of a government that likes to communicate through statement socks rather than letting its MPs speak freely. The abandoned campaign promise of electoral reform is just one issue. Proponents of electoral reform argue that we need a new system to draw in non-traditional candidates, include women and people from different racial backgrounds. This government promised, then chucked, a commitment to systemic change and left a young minister, Maryam Monsef, to do that dirty work. At the time, Conservative MP Candice Bergen called out the Prime Minister for turning his young female ministers into political roadkill. At least Ms. Wilson-Raybould can count on the support of some of the women in the Liberal caucus, who seem to have defied the Prime Ministers Office and reached out through Twitter (really, you need a degree in Kremlinology to understand this government.) MP Celina Caesar-Chavannes wrote, As someone on the inside, who knows @Puglaas, I can tell you that she is fierce, smart and unapologetic. When women speak up and out, they are always going to be labelled. Go ahead. Label away. We are not going anywhere. Treasury Board President Jane Philpott tweeted a picture with Ms. Wilson-Raybould, the two of them smiling together on a boat, with the words, You taught me so much - particularly about Indigenous history, rights and justice. I know you will continue to serve Canadians. Ms. Wilson-Raybould will undoubtedly continue to serve, and one day shell speak her piece. Im not worried about her. Im worried that the idea of a feminist agenda has now become a joke, a tarnished brand, and its the women of this country who will pay. | https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-what-happened-to-our-feminist-prime-minister/ |
Does Will Smith look terrifying as Genie in 'Aladdin'? | By Keydra Manns Disney recently released a trailer to the live-action version of "Aladdin" and almost shut down Twitter. The approximately one-minute trailer ends with a massive and muscled up Will Smith coated in a shade of deep blue. And although fans are excited for the movie, they feel Smith looks terrifying and is not giving the beloved Genie his proper justice. But some say folks online are exaggerating per usual and the Genie looks fine. PERSPECTIVES Some critics were terrified after seeing Will Smith as Genie. Some wish they hadn't seen it at all. #WillSmith as Aladin's genie is the smurf of my nightmares -- beau harris (@roast_and_toast) February 11, 2019 But others argue it is just a movie, and folks will find anything to complain about. Its ah MOVIE!!!!! Some folks just Need anything to Trip on!!!!! -- Mony Wayne (@WayneMony) February 12, 2019 Blue Will, I can't wait to watch it... 2019 is all about bringing our childhood back: Alladin, Dumbo, The Lion King let's just try to enjoy it... -- Alexander Herrera (@alexherlara) February 12, 2019 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/entertainment/index.ssf/2019/02/does_will_smith_look_terrifyin.html |
Are Jimmy Eat World playing a surprise Valentine's Day show? | Jimmy Eat World will be at Lost Lake Festival 2018 in Phoenix October 19-21. (Photo: Provided by Lost Lake Festival) Jimmy Eat World are celebrating their 25th anniversary tonight that's Thursday, Feb. 14 in Phoenix with a surprise show at the Rebel Lounge. After dropping a hint last night on Twitter, the band officially announced the show today on Facebook. "25 years ago, to the day, we played our first show ever in the storage room of a used clothing store in Mesa, Az," the post reads. "As we pondered how to mark this occasion, we felt it would be wrong to not celebrate with surprise hometown rock show. Come hang out with us at The Rebel Lounge so we can properly celebrate a quarter century!" The former site of the Mason Jar, at 2303 E. Indian School Road, the Rebel Lounge is a shockingly intimate venue for one of the Valley's most successful bands to celebrate their silver anniversary, with a 300-person capacity. So if you're going, you will need to score those tickets fast. Tickets ($20) go on sale at noon via therebellounge.com. Roar are listed as a special guest on the bill. There is a two-ticket limit. Tickets are non-transferable and there is will-call pick-up only. The show is 21 and up. Jimmy Eat World will spend the summer on a co-headlining tour with Third Eye Blind. The Summer Gods Tour plays Ak-Chin on Jul. 31. Read or Share this story: https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/music/2019/02/14/jimmy-eat-world-surprise-valentines-day-concert-phoenix-rebel-lounge/2869985002/ | https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/music/2019/02/14/jimmy-eat-world-surprise-valentines-day-concert-phoenix-rebel-lounge/2869985002/ |
Are private home-care companies about to become more profitable? | Despite Ontarios health ministers insistence that nothing has been decided it seems likely that radical changes to Ontario health care delivery will arrive shortly. Legislation has been drafted and new structures to support a super agency have been incorporated. According to leaked government documents, it appears that agencies such as Local Health Integration Networks (LHINs) and Cancer Care Ontario are soon to be eliminated. (H)ome-care companies have grown from small organizations to diversified profit generators. They even provide international consulting services that are focused on maximizing profits as the richest generation in the worlds history ages and requires help at home, writes Bob Bell. ( Dreamstime ) Despite mounting evidence of impending transformation, neither the premier nor the minister have explained what this radical change will accomplish. The premiers health platform commitments were to eliminate hallway medicine and increase long-term care beds and mental illness services. These promises do not require dismembering our current system. The commitment to new long-term care beds is fundamental to ending hallway medicine. We have an immediate need for about 5,000 such beds. Patients waiting for these beds to open are crowding our hospital wards. With the number of Ontarians over 75 growing at 4 to 5 per cent annually, we need 15,000 new nursing home beds over the next four years and a continued expansion of home-care services to eliminate hallway medicine. Article Continued Below Thinking of the advisers presumably recommending radical structural changes to our system, three of the 11 members of the Premiers Council to Improve Healthcare and Eliminate Hallway Medicine are associated now, or in the past, with the private companies that deliver home-care in Ontario. Two are current CEOs of home-care companies and a third council member is a former home-care company board chair. Over the past 18 months, the LHINs have organized the delivery, payment and supervision of home-care services provided by these private companies. With the LHINs presumably about to expire, the private companies that provide more than 95 per cent of Ontario home-care are going to be supervised more loosely, presumably by the bureaucratic Queens Park super agency. The profit margins that these companies enjoy in their existing business with the LHINs are very healthy. For each home-care visit made by a personal support worker (PSW), the company gets $34. The worker gets $17 to $19 of this money. Even with employment benefits worth about 18 per cent of pay, these companies are achieving at least a 20 per cent profit margin with no risk of bad debts since their client is the tax payer of Ontario. The former government and LHINs initially standardized the cost of a PSW visit to $34, with the hope that this price could be reduced by a process of managed competition that would allow for increased home-care services with less incremental cost. Managed competition envisioned offering companies the ability to provide contracted services at a slightly lower rate than the current standard. Managed competition would create lower costs without the race to the bottom that often occurs with tendering. This opportunity for managed competition will likely disappear with the churn of transferring home-care contracts to the Super Agency. And the healthy margins that home-care companies already make from PSW visits seem insufficient for them. In their 2019 prebudget submission, Home Care Ontario, the association for home-care companies, demands a provincial task force . to determine contract rate increases. Article Continued Below Getting rid of the LHINs, which wanted better value for tax payers by using managed competition to increase home-care services, risks leaving the private companies largely unaccountable. Well, these companies also provide private home-care services and will increase their profit margin even further if they can shift more vulnerable Ontarians from a publicly funded to a private model of care. These home-care companies have grown from small organizations to diversified profit generators. They even provide international consulting services that are focused on maximizing profits as the richest generation in the worlds history ages and requires help at home. If the LHINS had been able to achieve managed competition, patients would have benefited from more hours of service and PSWs would have kept the wage enhancements provided by the former government. And, with two or three years of competition and increased efficiency, the large home-care companies would have maintained profitability. With three insiders on the Premiers Council, the home-care industry is getting relief from supervision by the LHINs. Now, without any provincial agency focused on better value for tax payers, the home-care industry may be about to enter a golden era of profitability in Ontario. Bob Bell worked in Ontario health care for more than 40 years as a GP, surgeon, hospital CEO and Deputy Minister of Health. Read more about: | https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/2019/02/14/are-private-home-care-companies-about-to-become-more-profitable.html |
Is "slow love" the key to a lasting relationship? | On this Valentine's Day, new research shows a revolution is in the works when it comes to finding love that lasts. The concept is called "slow love." "Marriage used to be the beginning of a relationship. Now it's the finale," biological anthropologist Helen Fisher said Thursday on "CBS This Morning." In her annual study with Match.com, Fisher saw signs of a new approach to the courtship process. From a national sample of more than 35,000 single adults, 66 percent said they've had one-night stands, 54 percent have had uncommitted friends-with-benefits relationships, and 56 percent said they've lived together with a partner before marriage. "What's really happening is we're seeing an extension of the pre-commitment stage of love," Fisher said. "And Americans seem to think that this is reckless, and it began to occur to me it's caution. These people want to know every single thing about a person before they tie the knot." "One of the main strategies is they first start out with just friends. And then they move into friends with benefits. Don't tell anybody. Secretive. Non-committal. And then have the official first date," she added. Fisher said singles today are "terrified of divorce" and want to make a solid partnership. "So I began to think, with this long pre-commitment stage, maybe you're learning a lot, you're getting rid of what you don't want, so that by the time you walk down the aisle, you got what you want. You can keep what you want," she said. Fisher has also done research with people who have been married for an average of 21 years. She said through brain scans, she was able to see three parts of the brain that become active in a long-term and happy marriage: "[A] brain region linked with empathy, a brain region linked with controlling your own stress and your own emotions, and a brain region linked with overlooking the negative and focusing on the positive. What we call the positive illusions." | https://www.cbsnews.com/news/valentines-day-is-slow-love-the-key-to-a-successful-relationship-helen-fisher/ |
What will Miami Heat do with Winslow when Dragic returns? | The weekly Miami Herald Heat mailbag is here to answer your questions. If you werent able to ask one this time, send your questions for future mailbags via Twitter (@Anthony_Chiang). You can also email me at [email protected]. Anthony Chiang: Good question. There are valid arguments that can be made for different solutions to this issue. Justise Winslow, 22, has been playing the best basketball of his NBA career as Goran Dragics replacement in the starting point guard role, but Dragic, 32, is still the Heats most reliable offensive player when healthy. Sign Up and Save Get six months of free digital access to the Miami Herald Thats what makes this situation so complicated. Or does coach Erik Spoelstra decide to start Dragic and Winslow together as the Heats backcourt, with Dion Waiters coming off the bench. Heres my prediction: When Dragic returns from knee surgery, which is expected shortly after the All-Star break, he plays his first few games as a reserve and Winslow continues to start. But once Dragic is ready, he returns to the starting lineup and Winslow returns to the bench. The Dragic-Waiters starting backcourt, or 7-Eleven, will be a thing again. It doesnt really make sense to play Dragic and Winslow together because they are Miamis best two point guards, especially with Tyler Johnson off the roster. It makes more sense to split them up. And the Dragic-Waiters combination seemed to work when both were completely healthy two seasons ago. The duo was a plus-42 in 808 minutes together in 2016-17. But the Winslow-Waiters pairing hasnt been bad either. Its a plus-19 in 214 minutes together this season. Another tough decision awaits Spoelstra after the All-Star break. Anthony: If one of the Heats frontcourt players (Hassan Whiteside, James Johnson, Kelly Olynyk, Bam Adebayo) sustains an injury, Anderson could see some minutes. It might even take two of them to go down for Anderson to get a spot in Miamis rotation. Other than that, hes just a depth player. Miami already has an established frontcourt rotation, and its going to take an injury or major foul trouble for Anderson to play meaningful minutes. He made a franchise record in threes last year (not an easy one) and now he is gone. Anthony: I get it. It seems like Wayne Ellington could have helped a Heat team thats ranked 24th in offensive rating and 27th in team shooting percentage. But Spoelstra opted to play Miamis two-way players over the three-point specialist. Sure. But Ellington also wanted a consistent role. So, parting ways made sense for both sides, with the trade working to reduce the Heats luxury tax bill. | https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nba/miami-heat/article226246945.html |
What 5 used cars are best values for Cincinnati area shoppers? | <b>Nissan Altima:</b> As the cornerstone of Nissans dynamic product lineup, Nissan Altima embodies the philosophy of Innovation that excites with thoughtful technology solutions that make life easier and a premium experience that is unique in its segment. Altima is not only Nissans best-selling vehicle but also one of the top-selling cars in the United States thanks to its distinctive exterior and interior design, rewarding driving experience and innovative, driver-focused technology. Base price: $22,300. (Photo: Provided) If you're in the market for a new set of wheels and looking for a bargain, you might consider buying used. According to the latest study by the automotive research firm and search engine, iSeeCars.com, you could reduce what you pay by more than 23 percent if you choose a lightly used vehicle, 1-year-old, over a new version of the same vehicle. In Cincinnati, selecting certain vehicle models could save you even more. Certain lightly used vehicles can cost up to 37.7 percent less than their new counterpart, savings in dollars between $6,700 to $10,600. According to iSeeCars.com, the top used vehicles to buy in Cincinnati are: Nissan Altima Chevrolet Impala Hyundai Santa Fe Sport Nissan Rogue Kia Optima More: Report: Deals on a Hyundai Elantra, Ford Focus or Chevrolet Malibu can be found here More: Study: 1 in 10 Cincinnati residents keep their car for over 15 years Support local journalism: President's Day sale for new subscribers. The research firm also ranked vehicles nationally. Best values for lightly used vs. new SUVs, for example, according to iSeeCars.com are: Ford Expedition Infiniti QX80 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport Kia Sportage Nissan Armada Nissan Rogue GMC Yukon XL Nissan Pathfinder Kia Sorento Mitsubishi Outlander In developing its list, iSeeCars.com analyzed more than 7 million new and used cars sold from August 2018 to January 2019, comparing prices of new cars to lightly used equivalents and identifying those with the highest price differences to determine the cars consumers should buy used in Cincinnati. Read or Share this story: https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2019/02/14/what-five-used-cars-best-values-cincinnati-shoppers/2868906002/ | https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2019/02/14/what-five-used-cars-best-values-cincinnati-shoppers/2868906002/ |
Is Moderna a Buy? | The sheer size of the December initial public offering of Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA) stock, the largest ever in the biotech industry at $604 million, might have been enough to get the attention of the average stock investor. But the fact that the "unicorn" had attracted $2.6 billion from private equity, hired 735 employees, and built a 200,000-square-foot manufacturing facility before shares were even offered to the public was a strong indication that investors with deep pockets were already firm believers in the value of the company. It's no mystery why Moderna has attracted so much investment. The company isn't simply pursuing commercialization of a few drug candidates. It's building a platform to create an almost limitless number of drug candidates in an entirely new class of medicines based on messenger RNA (mRNA). Molecules in a cell nucleus. The pink strand is mRNA. Source: Getty Images. Moderna refers to mRNA as "the software of life." Nearly every function in the body is carried out by proteins, which are manufactured by ribosomes, found within all living cells. The sequence of amino acids required to produce all proteins is encoded in the double helix of DNA in the nucleus of the cell. Messenger RNA is a molecule that carries that genetic code from the nucleus to the ribosome in the cytoplasm, bringing with it the complete set of instructions for production of a protein. Moderna's approach is to splice information into mRNA that will direct cells to produce naturally occurring proteins that have therapeutic value in treating or preventing disease. Companies that are working on editing DNA, such as CRISPR Therapeutics, Editas Medicine, Intellia Therapeutics, and Sangamo Therapeutics, are also striving to change the proteins that cells produce, and investors have tuned in to the enormous potential in these gene-editing stocks. Moderna is taking an arguably simpler and potentially safer approach not by affecting the blueprint stored in DNA but by introducing customized instructions for protein synthesis to the cell's protein factories. Image source: Moderna. Moderna has put a tremendous amount of effort into the building of the platform rather than initially focusing on specific drugs. The company has developed a set of computer programs and automated manufacturing tools that allow it to produce experimental mRNA medicines in a very short time. The company's scientists start with a protein that they want to "turn on" in the body to fight or prevent a disease. The platform gives them the ability to synthesize the corresponding mRNA, the cellular software for producing the target protein. Moderna then combines the mRNA with one of several delivery mechanisms for getting the finished drug into the right cells in the right organs. The power to address a huge diversity of conditions The simplicity of the approach and the fact that proteins underlie almost all disease processes in the body opens up many categories, or modalities, of therapeutics that Moderna can pursue. One modality that the company is focusing on, and that it believes involves little biological risk of failure, is vaccines. By designing mRNA that causes the body to produce disease antigens -- proteins that are introduced into the body with viruses or other pathogens -- Moderna believes it can trigger an immune response in the same way that traditional vaccines do with deactivated viruses. But one advantage of Moderna's platform is that it can potentially create vaccines that would be impossible to produce using conventional methods. The company is working with Merck to develop personalized cancer vaccines, which involve making a one-off medicine tailored to an individual's particular tumors. Each cancer is unique, which is why current treatments will work on some patients and not on others. Moderna plans to sequence the DNA of a patient's tumor, identify the specific mutations that have led to the cancer's origin, and create mRNA that will induce cells in the body to create proteins that mimic those mutations, triggering an immune response that attacks that specific cancer. The ability to induce cells to produce target proteins opens up possibilities that go beyond stimulating natural immune responses. Moderna is working on mRNA to treat rare diseases, to create disease antibodies directly, and to code for therapeutic proteins such as vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), which stimulates growth of cardiac blood vessels in heart attack victims. A rapidly growing portfolio, but success is far off The company's process has enabled it to create new drug candidates at a remarkably rapid rate. It has gone from zero drugs in its pipeline four years ago to 21 today, adding one about every three months. Moderna expects the pace of discovery to accelerate as it addresses new disease pathways. Since it can produce a new mRNA sequence in a matter of days, research scientists can test concepts very quickly. However, those 21 candidates are still years away from regulatory approval. The VEGF-A medicine is in phase 2 testing, 11 others are in phase 1, and the rest are still preclinical, meaning they are not yet being tested in humans. Moderna's clinical studies are focused on identifying any safety issues and on making measurements to see whether the intended proteins are being produced in patients' cells. The big question that still hasn't been answered for any of Moderna's medicines is whether the proteins are functional. We won't know the full answer for years. Other companies that are working on drugs that operate on RNA, such as Ionis Pharmaceuticals and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, have taken years to learn how to get their drugs to the cells in the target organs in high enough concentrations to be therapeutic without running into toxicity issues. Moderna's drugs have shown promising results when injected into mice and primates, but the company's delivery technology is crucial for success in humans and is yet unproven. The approval process is lengthy, and RNA-based therapies are still relatively unproven. Alnylam made history last year when it won the first FDA approval for an RNA interference drug, Onpattro, but it was a long time coming. That company started the phase 1 trial of that drug in July 2010, and it took eight years to get it across the finish line. Ionis has also run into safety issues for its RNA-based drugs, which led to a surprising rejection by the FDA last year at the end of a long development process. Further, the FDA considers mRNA medicines to be gene therapy products, and the regulatory pathway to approving such a drug is still very uncertain. The fact that many of Moderna's drug candidates are vaccines may also lengthen the time it takes the company to win an approval. Since vaccines are injected into healthy individuals, and often into large populations of them, regulatory agencies want to make extra sure that there are no safety issues, even ones that could occur in very small numbers in a diverse population. And finally, by the time the candidates are approved, Moderna could be facing stiff competition, not only from drugs taking different approaches but from other companies pursuing mRNA therapies themselves. Privately held CureVac has been working on mRNA drugs since the 1990s and has cancer vaccines and a rabies vaccine in phase 1 testing. Investors flocked to DNA-editing stocks based on the huge promise for an entirely new class of therapies. Moderna is in the lead in developing yet another class of medicine that could be equally promising. But the recent history of CRISPR Therapeutics, Editas Medicine, Intellia Therapeutics, and Sangamo Therapeutics should be a warning to investors. Their share prices have been cut in half or even more as the initial excitement was replaced by disillusionment after numerous setbacks and scares hammered the stocks. Moderna's market capitalization is about $6 billion, while CRISPR sells for $1.6 billion and the other three for less than $1 billion. There's more hope built into Moderna's stock price than for all the biggest gene-editing stocks put together. Adventurous investors may want to take a small position in Moderna if they want to get in early on what is likely to be a bumpy ride. As with gene-editing companies, the payoff could be huge, and Moderna could have enough milestones along the way to keep the stock price up if test results are positive. But for most investors, it would be best to stay away, at least until we see clinical data that indicates these drugs actually prevent or cure diseases. More From The Motley Fool Jim Crumly owns shares of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, and Sangamo Therapeutics. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Editas Medicine, and Ionis Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool owns shares of CRISPR Therapeutics. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. | https://news.yahoo.com/moderna-buy-170156532.html |
Will Amazon still hire 25,000 more workers? | There will be only one Amazon HQ2 -- Northern Virginia was supposed to split the HQ duties with New York. The country music capital wasn't chosen to be a HQ2 spot but it won a lucrative consolation prize: an "operations center of excellence" that will employ 5,000 people. Amazon (AMZN) didn't give any details in its statement about the end of the LIC HQ2. But the company clearly suggested that there will be more jobs at other locations . And if that answer is less than 25,000, it begs the question of why Amazon ever felt a need to build two HQ2s in the first place. | https://www.cnn.com/business/live-news/amazon-headquarters-new-york-city/h_e3c60adb809521525f36b9a2a1ae3c47?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+CNN+-+Top+Stories%29 |
Will Democrats leftward drift hurt their chances in 2020? | Theres no question the party has shifted since President Trumps election and shifted fairly dramatically. The Democrats arent just changing their rhetoric, writes Peter Beinart in The Atlantic. They are embracing Big Government policies dismissed as utopian or irresponsible only a year or two ago. As Mr. Beinart notes, as recently as 2016, Hillary Clinton said that a single-payer health care system would never, ever come to pass. Now, most of the 2020 contenders are endorsing the concept of Medicare-for-all. Theyre also promoting higher taxes on the wealthy, backing a broad-scale approach to climate change like the one outlined in the Green New Deal, and talking seriously about things like free college tuition. Liberals defend these policies by noting that many public polls show majority support for them. Turns out, these supposedly wacky socialist ideas Democrats are proposing are things Americans think are perfectly worthwhile, writes Paul Waldman in The Washington Post. But some worry the partys leftward shift will create political challenges for Democratic lawmakers from more moderate states and districts many of whom were key to the Democrats retaking the House last November. It makes it more difficult in more rural areas like mine, West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin told the Post. It may also give Mr. Trump an opening to win back some of the swing voters who have been moving away from him and whose support he will need in order to win reelection. Interestingly, The Cook Political Reports Amy Walter points to Gallup data showing that while 50 percent of Democrats now identify as liberal, 54 percent also say they want their party to become more moderate. (This is in contrast to Republicans, 57 percent of whom want their party to become more conservative.) That seeming contradiction suggests Democratic voters are more concerned with winning right now than with holding their eventual nominee to certain ideological standards, Ms. Walter writes. Indeed, when it comes to picking their presidential nominee, Democratic voters are likely to have one overriding goal: defeating Trump. And ideological purity may factor far less into their decision than pure politics. Let us know what youre thinking at [email protected]. | https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/Politics-Watch/2019/0214/Will-Democrats-leftward-drift-hurt-their-chances-in-2020 |
Are Automakers Doing Enough To Curb Distracted Driving? | Virginia has now outlawed the use of hand-held cellphones while driving as of January 20, 2020. Motorists spotted violating the new law will receive a $125 summons for a first offense and $250 for additional infractions. Talking on a hand-held cellphone while driving is banned in 16 states and the District of Columbia, and text messaging is banned for all drivers in 47 states and the District of Columbia. Manufacturers have added seemingly as much software as its possible to load into vehicles to keep occupants safer in a crash, with ABS brakes and other safety measures now standard as well as assorted airbags and side curtains, crumple zones, alerts on all four sides if your ride comes close to an object, seat belt warnings, automatic braking, the muting of the sound system if the car is in reverse, rings on standard shifts which must be lifted to put the car in reverse, having to step on the brake to start the car, and the list goes on. But the use of cell phones in cars is now estimated to be involved in 26 percent of all motor vehicle crashes, according to a report from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Surprisingly, it isnt texting that causes the majority of crashes its talking, with an estimated 5 percent of crashes involving tapping on keys or reading messages from others, while 21 percent involved drivers gabbing, even hands-free. Not enough, according to a report from AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety a little over a year ago which examined ways to reduce the approximately 3,500 humans killed and the roughly 390,000 injured in U.S. crashes each year. What weve been studying for the last three or four years is the explosion to technology in the vehicle hundreds of buttons, touch screens, gesture controls, heads-up displays, voice commands, according to the author of the study, David Strayer, a professor of cognition and neural science at the University of Utah. Our concern is that in many cases the driver will assume that if its put in the vehicle, and its enabled to be used while the vehicles in motion, then it must be safe. Thats just simply not true. Strayer concluded that Googles Android and Apples CarPlay shaved crucial seconds that from the time a driver was distracted when compared to the infotainment the car came with. If you start to take your eyes off the road for more than two seconds you start to see the crash risk increase, Strayer said. The matter of time it takes to read a text is about 4 seconds, so the shorter the interaction and the easier the interaction, the less it competes with driving. The auto industry has, to their credit, attempted to compensate for the fact that the majority of drivers, especially young drivers, are going to continue to leave their phones on and use them while driving. Fords SYNC system, for example, will send texts dictated by drivers, and read incoming texts out loud. Hands-free communication has been found to be far "safer" than the use of phones held by the driver, says a new study from the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. But in the end, if may be simple human nature to let one's mind wander, whether due to a long distance traveled or being stuck in traffic and wishing to amuse oneself to pass the time. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and Erie Insurance released a study analyzing the data kept by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to draw a picture of distracted driving. The study found that good old-fashioned daydreaming was the cause of 61 percent of fatal distracted crashes, while overall cellphone use texting, talking, dialing, or listening ranked second at 14 percent. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/joshmax/2019/02/14/are-automakers-doing-enough-to-curb-distracted-driving/ |
Who Lost America? | EDITORS NOTE: This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To stay on top of important articles like these, sign up to receive the latest updates from TomDispatch. 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. What dreamers they were! They imagined a kind of global power that would leave even Rome at its Augustan height in the shade. They imagined a world made for one, a planet that could be swallowed by a single great power. No, not just great, but beyond anything ever seen before one that would build (as its National Security Strategy put it in 2002) a military beyond challenge. Lets be clear on that: no future power, or even bloc of powers, would ever be allowed to challenge it again. I mean, it seemed so obvious then that we the United States of America were the best and the last. We had, after all, outclassed and outlasted every imperial power since the beginning of time. Even that other menacing superpower of the Cold War era, the Soviet Union, the Evil Empire that refused to stand down for almost half a century, had gone up in a puff of smoke. Imagine that moment so many years later and consider the crew of neoconservatives who, under the aegis of George W. Bush, the son of the man who had won the Cold War, came to power in January 2001. Not surprisingly, on viewing the planet, they could see nothing not a single damn thing in their way. There was a desperately weakened and impoverished Russia (still with its nuclear arsenal more or less intact) that, as far as they were concerned, had been mollycoddled by President Bill Clintons administration. There was a Communist-gone-capitalist China focused on its own growth and little else. And there were a set of other potential enemies, rogue powers as they were dubbed, so pathetic that not one of them could, under any circumstances, be called great. In 2002, in fact, three of them Iraq, Iran, and North Korea had to be cobbled together into an axis of evil to create a faintly adequate enemy, a minimalist excuse for the Bush administration to act preemptively. It couldnt have been more obvious then that all three of them would go down before the unprecedented military and economic power of us (even if, as it happened, two of them didnt). It was as clear as glass that the world the whole shebang was there for the taking. And it couldnt have been headier, even after a tiny Islamist terror outfit hijacked four American jets and took out New Yorks World Trade Center and part of the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. As President Bush would put it in an address at West Point in 2002, America has, and intends to keep, military strengths beyond challenge, thereby making the destabilizing arms races of other eras pointless, and limiting rivalries to trade and other pursuits of peace. In other words, jihadists aside, it was all over. From now on, there would be an arms race of one and it was obvious who that one would be. The National Security Strategy of that year put the same thought this way: Our forces will be strong enough to dissuade potential adversaries from pursuing a military build-up in hopes of surpassing, or equaling, the power of the United States. Again, anywhere on the planet ever. Look at more or less any document from the period and youll sense that they werent shy about touting the unprecedented greatness of a future global Pax Americana. Take, for instance, columnist Charles Krauthammer who, in February 2001, six months before the terror attacks of September 11th, wrote a piece swooning over the new Bush administrations unilateralism to come and the Bush Doctrine which would go with it. In the process, he gave that administration a green light to put the pathetic Russians in their nuclear place and summed the situation up this way: America is no mere international citizen. It is the dominant power in the world, more dominant than any since Rome. Accordingly, America is in a position to reshape norms, alter expectations, and create new realities. By unapologetic and implacable demonstrations of will. How Did USAs Oil Get Under Iraqs Sand? And soon enough after September 11th, those unapologetic, implacable demonstrations of will did, in fact, begin first in Afghanistan and then, a year and a half later, in Iraq. Goaded by Osama bin Laden, the new Rome went into action. Current Issue View our current issue Of course, in 2019 we have the benefit of hindsight, which Charles Krauthammer, Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz, and the rest of that crew didnt have as they applied their Roman-style vision of an imperial America to the actual world. It should be added, however, that the millions of people who hit the streets globally to protest the coming invasion of Iraq in the winter of 2003 How did USAs oil get under Iraqs sand? said a typical protest sign (which Donald Trump would have understood in his own way) had a far better sense of the world than did their American rulers-to-be. Like the Soviets before them, in fact, they would grievously confuse military power with power on this planet. More than 17 years later, the U.S. military remains stuck in Afghanistan, bedeviled in Iraq, and floundering across much of the Greater Middle East and Africa on a planet with a resurgent Russia, and an impressively rising China. One-third of the former axis of evil, Iran, is, remarkably enough, still in Washingtons gunsights, while another third (North Korea) sits uncomfortably in a presidential bear hug. Its no exaggeration to say that none of the dreams of a new Rome were ever faintly fulfilled. In fact, if you want to think about whats been truly exceptional in these years, it might be this: never in history has such a great power, at its height, seemed quite so incapable of effectively applying force, military or otherwise, to achieve its imperial ends or bring its targets to heel. And yet, wrong as they may have been on such subjects, dont sell Krauthammer and the rest of that neocon crew short. They were, in their own way, also prophets, at least domestically speaking. After all, Rome, like the United States, had been an imperial republic. That republic was replaced, as its empire grew, by autocratic rule, first by the self-anointed emperor Augustus and then by his successors. Arguably, 18 years after Krauthammer wrote that column, the American republic might be heading down the same path. After all, so many years later, the neocons, triumphantly risen yet again in Washington (both in the administration and as its critics), finally have their Caesar. Hail, Donald J. Trump, we who are about to read your latest tweet salute you! A Rogue State of One Lets note some other passing parallels between the new Rome and the old one. As a start, its certainly accurate to say that our new American Caesar has much gall (divided into at least three parts). Admittedly, hes no Augustus, the first of a line of emperors, but more likely a Nero, fiddling while, in his case, the world quite literally burns. Still, he could certainly say of campaign 2016 and what followed: Veni, Vidi, Tweeti (I came, I saw, I tweeted). And dont forget the classic line that might someday be applied to his presidency, Et tu, Mueller? or depending on who turns on him, you can fill in your name of choice. One day, it might also be said that, in a country in which executive power has become ever more imperial (as has the power of the Senates majority leader), blowback from imperial acts abroad has had a significant, if largely hidden, hand in crippling the American republic, as was once true of Rome. In fact, it seems clear enough that the first republican institution to go was the citizens army. In the wake of the Vietnam War, the draft was thrown out and replaced by an all-volunteer force, one which would, as it came to fight on ever more distant battlefields, morph into a home-grown version of an imperial police force or foreign legion. With it went the staggering sums that, in this century, would be invested if thats even the word for it in whats still called defense, as well as in a vast empire of bases abroad and the national security state, a rising locus of power at home. And then, of course, there were the never-ending wars across much of the Greater Middle East and parts of Africa that went with all of that. Meanwhile, so much else, domestically speaking, was put on the equivalent of austerity rations. And all of that, in turn, helped provoke the crisis that brought Donald Trump to power and might, in the end, even sink the American system as weve known it. The Donalds victory in the 2016 election was always a sign of a deep disturbance at the heart of an increasingly unequal and unfair system of wealth and power. But it was those trillions of dollars The Donald claims seven trillion of them that the neocons began sinking into Americas infinite wars, which cost Americans big time in ways they hardly tracked or noticed. Those trillions didnt go into shoring up American infrastructure or health care or education or job-training programs or anything else that might have mattered to most people here, even as untold tax dollars one estimate: $15,000 per middle-class family per year went into the pockets of the rich. And some of those dollars, in turn, poured back into the American political system (with a helping hand from the Supreme Courts 2010 Citizens United decision) and, in the end, helped put the first billionaire in the Oval Office. By the 2020 election campaign, we may achieve another all-American first: two or even three of the candidates could be billionaires. All of this not only gave Americans a visibly unhinged president think of him, in axis-of-evil terms, as a rogue state of one but an increasingly unhinged country. You can feel so much of this in President Trumps confused and confusing attempts to both end American wars and ratchet them up, 17-and-a-half he always claims almost 19 years after the invasion of Afghanistan. You can feel it in his gut-level urge to attack the deep state and yet fund it beyond its wildest dreams. You can feel it in his attempts to create a corps of my generals and then fire them all. You can feel the unhinged nature of events in a world in which, after so many years of war, Americas enemies still seem to have the formula for staying afloat, no matter what Washington does. The Taliban in Afghanistan is on the rise; al-Shabaab in Somalia, is still going strong; the Houthis in Yemen remain functional in a sea of horror and starvation; ISIS, now without its caliphate, has from Syria to the Philippines, Africa to Afghanistan, become a distinctly global brand; al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula thrives, while terror groups more generally continue to spread. You can feel it in the presidents confused and confusing explanations for his urges to withdraw American troops in days or four months or whenever from Syria and do the same or maybe not exactly in Afghanistan. (As he said in his State of the Union address, American troops would both withdraw and focus on counterterrorism in that country.) You can feel it in the way, after so many years of visible failure, the neocons are once again riding high in Washington, ascendant both in his administration and as critics of its global and military policies. But no matter what happens, dont make the mistake of blaming him. Its true that he tweeted endlessly while the world burned, but he wont be the one who lost Afghanistan. It was lost in the grisly dreams of the neocons as the century began and its never truly been found again. Of course, we no more know whats going to happen in the years ahead than the neocons did in 2001. If history has taught us anything, its that prediction is the diciest of human predilections. Still, think of this piece as an obituary of sorts. You know, the kind major newspapers write about those still living and then continually update until death finally occurs. Think of it not as an obituary for a single loopy president, a man who, with his great, great wall, has indeed been an opiate of the masses (for his famed base, at least) in the midst of an opioid crisis hitting them hard. Yes, Donald J. Trump, reality TV star and bankruptee, he of the golden letters, was elevated to a strange version of power by a troubled republic showing signs of wear and tear. It was a republic feeling the pressure of all that money flowing into only half-noticed distant wars and into the pockets of billionaires and corporate entities in a way that turned the very idea of democracy into a bad joke. keep all those failed imperial wars and the national security state that went with them in mind when you try to answer. Cumulatively, they had a far more disruptive role than is now imagined in toppling the dominos that sent us all careening on a path to nowhere here at home. And keep in mind that, whatever Donald Trump does, the Caesarian die was cast early in this century as the neocons crossed their own Rubicon. Hail, Caesar, we who are about to die salute you! | https://www.thenation.com/article/trump-america-empire-republic-iraq/ |
Has the new Nashville MLS logo been leaked? | CLOSE Nashville SC supporters group, The Roadies is the largest and arguably the rowdiest group at every Nashville SC game. Nashville Tennessean Lids.com may have jumped the gun. The website that sells sports apparel and other clothing presented a pair of Nashville MLS hats for sale on Thursday. The hats sported a new logo with the Nashville SC branding and a darker shade of gold than the one currently used by the current USL club. BREAKING | THE NASHVILLE SC MLS LOGO HAS LEAKED ONLINE! https://t.co/BpBJzMB9YTpic.twitter.com/4JguFQD6Ep HasBeenSports (@HasBeenSports) February 14, 2019 Those who clicked to buy one of the hats were redirected to the Lids.com homepage. By noon, the hats were deleted from the site. Since last month, the club has been promotinga major announcement during its "March to MLS" event on Feb. 20 at Marathon Music Works. | https://www.tennessean.com/story/sports/nashvillesc/2019/02/14/nashville-mls-new-logo-leak-lids/2870695002/ |
Could Amazon still pick another HQ2 site after ditching New York? | Amazon's decision to cancel plans for a new headquarters in New York City immediately reignited hope among cities that lost out on the massive economic development project. To be sure, Amazon said it won't reopen the search process, choosing instead to continue with plans to add jobs at its other new headquarters in Arlington, Virginia., a major new operation in Nashville and its 17 current offices and tech hubs. But that won't necessarily stop mayors, governors, economic development officials and real estate developers from making a new pitch for the 25,000 jobs that had been promised to the borough of Queens. "I think theyre getting a lot of calls today," said Tom Stringer, leader of the site consultant practice for the corporate advisory firm BDO. Maybe Dallas and Chicago, for example both of which were said to be among the original leading contenders in the nationwide search could take another shot. After all, the fact that Amazon pulling out of New York suggests its plan was more fungible than the company led the world to believe. "The one thing that's predictable about Amazon is that they're unpredictable," said Jeffrey Shulman, a University of Washington business professor who has tracked the company's presence in Seattle. CLOSE Just like a bad break up, we highlight the flaws that Amazon saw in your city's bid for their second headquarters. USA TODAY Chris Wallace, president and CEO of the North Texas Commission, a public-private partnership, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that I think that the region would welcome these types of discussions." The region remains very attractive for Amazon and other headquarter relocations, Wallace said. Our current and future ready-skilled workforce, our education and transportation infrastructure and low regulatory environment are all great assets. Any potential new suitor would need to learn lessons from the mistakes made on both sides in New York, Stringer said. Opinion: Losing Amazon HQ2 bad for NYC Amazon still committed to this area: Amazon names Arlington County, Va. one of its two new headquarters Political blowback on the tax incentives pledged to Amazon for the proposed operation in the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens contributed to the deal's collapse. Concerns about the negative effects of Amazon's growth on its hometown of Seattle, including housing affordability and transportation issues, also cast a cloud over the so-called HQ2 plan in a gentrifying area of Queens. "Anything is possible: today was the day a group of dedicated, everyday New Yorkers & their neighbors defeated Amazons corporate greed, its worker exploitation, and the power of the richest man in the world," U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York, a leader of the Amazon project opposition, said Thursday on Twitter. John Schoettler, Amazon vice president for real estate and facilities, left, joins New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, center, and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio during a news conference Tuesday Nov. 13, 2018, in New York. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews) (Photo11: Bebeto Matthews, AP) Amazon should have included more officials in the planning process from the beginning to avoid a backlash, while local New York officials should have been more inclusive in their negotiations, Stringer said. "New York really fumbled the ball on the one-yard line in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl. And Amazon should have known better," Stringer said. Anything is possible: today was the day a group of dedicated, everyday New Yorkers & their neighbors defeated Amazons corporate greed, its worker exploitation, and the power of the richest man in the world. https://t.co/nyvm5vtH9k Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 14, 2019 Amazon's own description of its about-face suggests that the company believes it was ambushed after it had secured support from Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill De Blasio. Amazon said it "requires positive, collaborative relationships with state and local elected officials who will be supportive over the long-term" and that too many local leaders "oppose our presence and will not work with us to build the type of relationships that are required to go forward." Those statements suggest that any would-be Amazon hopeful should dampen its enthusiasm if there are any signs that landing the company would cause too much local consternation, Shulman said. Amazon will no longer locate a headquarters in the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens in New York City. (Photo11: DON EMMERT, AFP/Getty Images) "Theyve shown that both economic subsidies and community buy-in matter to where they channel their employee growth," he said. "Doing another search could actually create more backlash, so you might see them pursue economic subsidies and more community buy-in by more slowly growing their satellite offices." The company initially said it wanted to go somewhere with strong talent, high quality of life and solid mass transit options. Those qualities would still apply to a new suitor. BDO's Stringer said it's too soon to say whether Arlington and Nashville can handle most of the 25,000 jobs promised to New York, or whether Amazon will "spread it around" to other sites. Here are four cities that fell short in Amazon's initial bidding process that could take another shot at landing the new headquarters: 1. Dallas Pros: Pro-business environment. Plenty of space. Strong local airport. Cons: Amazon may not want a corporate feel. 2. Chicago Pros: Centrally located. Strong local talent. Two major airports nearby. Cons: High taxes. Regulatory thicket. Tough competition for workers. Pros: Not too far from New York City. Low cost of real estate. Big tax incentive deal. Cons: Poorly developed tech center. Struggling schools. 4. Boston Pros: Strong tech center. High quality of life. Large existing Amazon operation. Cons: Expensive. Activists could have similar negative reaction as New York. Follow USA TODAY reporter Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey. Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/02/14/amazon-cancels-new-york-city-hq-2-hope-other-cities/2870724002/ | https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/02/14/amazon-cancels-new-york-city-hq-2-hope-other-cities/2870724002/ |
Can Richard Branson's Virgin Voyages Make Cruising Cool Again? | Virgin Voyages has started taking reservations to sail on its premier ship, the Scarlet Lady, scheduled to launch in April 2020. Virgins cheeky, rebellious luxe ethos seems tailor-made for contemporary cruising, and the Voyages division will play up a hip fun-in-the-sun spirit to entice image-obsessed Millennials to board in Miami for four and five-night voyages to Havana, Cuba; Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic and Costa Maya, Mexico. You can even book a trip to celebrate Richard Bransons 70th birthday with him and some of his celeb pals during a special four-night Havana After Dark voyage departing July 15, 2020. One thing is clear: Scarlet Lady is not your fathers cruise ship. Designed to evoke a sleek luxurious yacht, the mid-size ship can accommodate 2,770 18+ guests served by more than 1,100 crew from around the world. The Virgin Voyages design team worked with leading contemporary design firms including Tom Dixons Design Research Studio in London, Roman and Williams in New York, Concrete Amsterdam, Softroom in London, and WorkAC in New York. Ranging from gritty to glamorous, weve collaborated with a collection of brilliant interior designers and architects to create a variety of spaces that our sailors will love, said Dee Cooper, senior vice president of product design for Virgin Voyages, per a press release. With careful thought, humor and attention to detail, the Creative Collective has designed a ship thats styled for those thirsty for a wonderfully modern holiday at sea. Scarlet Ladys 78 RockStar Suites, include 15 Mega RockStar Suites in four categories dubbed Massive, Fab, Posh, and Gorgeous. All are located on Deck 15, just below Richards Rooftop, a Branson-inspired top-deck cocktail lounge, exclusively accessible to RockStar Suite guests. The Massive Suite also has a second bedroom that doubles as a music room stocked with guitars and an amp. We wanted to use all aspects of the Virgin brand including our musical legacy, elements of Virgin Galactic and inspiration from Richard BransonsNecker Island, said Jamie Douglas, senior product design manager for Virgin Voyages, according to the brands website. The idea was to consider Sailor needs and comforts and create suites that were social, inspirational and relaxing so that they wanted to spend time in them. Entertainment was another area where Virgin plans to disrupt the conventional cruise model with the goal of getting guests out of their seats and taking part in the shows. The Events & Gigs team creates ever-changing original productions in The Manor and The Red Room, a multi-form theater that transforms into different configurations to create new entertainment experiences each day. Every Scarlet Lady sailing will include a stop at The Beach Club at Bimini, an exclusive day resort not far from the pier that channels Ibiza and St. Tropez, blending decadence with health and wellness on a white sand beach with crystalline turquoise waters. A variety of watersports and beach activities are available or you can just swing in a hammock sipping a rum drink. Guests can start the day with yoga and meditation then progress to DJ-led pool parties and chill out at the end of the night by a beach bonfire. Beach Club dining is included, as is food in any of the ships more than 20 eateries, such as Test Kitchen. Designed by Concrete Amsterdam, the restaurants lab-like environment encourages guests to contemplate the form, function, and elements of food. As top luxury cruise lines have moved to all-inclusive models, Virgin is taking a more-inclusive approach that includes dining, group fitness classes, Wi-Fi, basic non-alcoholic beverages, and gratuities. But you can expect a bill for cocktails and fancy drinks. At Virgin Voyages we are going beyond just great design, to defy and redefine luxury to be rebellious luxe, said Tom McAlpin, president and CEO for Virgin Voyages, in a press release announcing the opening of sales. This new luxury is about knowing you are taken care of, that youre never being nickel and dimed, and what you want, even some of the things you didnt know you wanted, are already taken care of for you. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/lauriekahle/2019/02/14/can-richard-bransons-virgin-voyages-make-cruising-cool-again/ |
What is a 'national emergency,' and how can Trump use it to fund border wall? | President Trump is hoping to avoid another lengthy government shutdown over funding for a border wall, vowing to sign a border security compromise package and declare a "national emergency" to complete his oft-repeated campaign promise. Trump has repeatedly demanded more than $5 billion for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. When he campaigned for president, he often promised Mexico would pay for the wall. Democrats have refused to capitulate to Trump's budget demands, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has rejected what she calls an "immoral and hateful obesssion" with building a border wall. Now Trump is considering a different route for getting his border wall: a declaration of emergency. On Thursday, the White House announced Trump would take other executive actions to "ensure we stop the national security and humanitarian crisis at the border." TRUMP WILL SIGN BORDER SECURITY BILL, DECLARE NATIONAL EMERGENCY, WHITE HOUSE SAYS "We will get a win ... or I will declare a national emergency," Trump previously said amid the recent partial government shutdown that stretched throughout January. Outlined in the National Emergencies Act of 1976, the president has the authority to declare emergencies, thus unlocking certain provisions, when the country is threatened by crisis, exigency, or emergency circumstances other than wars or natural disasters, a 2007 report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) explains. TRUMPS BORDER WALL: A LOOK AT THE NUMBERS Some of those provisions include the ability to seize commodities or property; control production, transportation and communication; institute martial law or restrict travel, according to the report. Trumps continued reassurance that he could declare a national emergency to build the wall has legal scholars and lawmakers at odds over whether it would even be possible. Presidents have the authority to defend the nation, acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney asserted. Rep. Adam Smith, the new Armed Services Committee chair, told ABCs This Week that Trump would have the ability to make such a move earning him a shout-out from the president on Twitter but noted it would almost certainly be met with legal challenges. As Yale Law professor Bruce Ackerman pointed out in a column for The New York Times, Congress does have the ability to reign in an emergency declaration. Although Republicans control the Senate (and Democrats have the House), Ackerman argued its still possible for lawmakers to reject the declaration. PARTIAL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN WORRIES ANTI-SEXUAL VIOLENCE ORGS AS FUNDING RUNS OUT Since President Trumps emergency declaration would be a direct response to his failure to convince Congress that national security requires his wall, it is hard to believe that a majority of the Senate, if forced to vote, would accept his show of contempt for their authority, he said. One statute, 33 U.S. Code 2293, says: "Reprogramming during national emergencies," permits the president to "apply the resources of the Department of the Armys civil works program, including funds, personnel, and equipment, to construct or assist in the construction, operation, maintenance, and repair of authorized civil works, military construction, and civil defense projects that are essential to the national defense." Another law, 10 U.S. Code 2808, dictates: "Construction authority in the event of a declaration of war or national emergency," permits the secretary of defense, in a presidentially declared emergency, to use "funds that have been appropriated for military construction" for the purpose of undertaking "military construction projects." During the Korean War, President Harry S. Truman sought to take control of the countrys steel mills in an attempt to circumvent a planned nationwide strike among workers through an executive order. But the Supreme Court ultimately ruled in Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company v. Sawyer that the president did not have such authority. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Look, if Harry Truman couldnt authorize the steel industry during wartime, this president doesnt have the power to declare an emergency and build a multibillion-dollar wall on the border, Rep. Adam Schiff, the Democratic chair of the Intelligence Committee, told CNN. Fox News' Gregg Re and The Associated Press contributed to this report. | https://www.foxnews.com/politics/what-is-a-national-emergency-how-can-trump-use-it-to-fund-border-wall |
Will the Houston Botanic Garden be a good neighbor? | Like most grand architectural visions, the Houston Botanic Garden has evolved into a simpler version of itself as it nears a built reality. Gone is the eye-catching, if controversial, tree-bridge that was first unveiled in renderings in 2016. The storybook-like climbing structure in the Children's Discovery Garden has been replaced with a quieter, smaller-scale form, and Sims Bayou is no longer featured as prominently as it was in the earlier choreographed entry sequence in which visitors crossed over it and back again to arrive at the formal garden. Still, what remains of the original design of landscape and urban design firm West 8, which has offices in New York City, Rotterdam and Belgium, is a sensitive response to the rolling terrain of the former Glenbrook Golf Course, located eight miles south of downtown in the Park Place and Meadowbrook neighborhoods. A video produced by West 8 takes the viewer on a journey through Phase I of the HBG that, along with a portion of the South Lawn on the opposite side of Sims, includes The Island named so because it is surrounded on three sides by the Sims Meander and by the more recently engineered Sims Bayou to the south. As the video shows, the HBG journey begins at a lacy metal gate off of Park Place Boulevard that opens onto the tree-lined Botanic Boulevard originally called the Botanic Mile, which would have carried visitors across Sims to the South Lawn where they would park before walking back across the bayou to enter the gardens. The revised entry sequence is more straightforward, now, with visitors parking shortly after entering the gated gardens under a canopy of oak trees in the Parking Forest. A Welcome Pavilion defined by repeated thin-shell concrete vaults creates an understated backdrop to the richly articulated landscape. In the Global Collection Garden, pathways weave around mounds planted with a host of subtropical, tropical and arid plants and counter the rectilinear layout of the overall scheme. In addition to the Global Collection Garden, The Island, which is about half of the site, will feature an Events Lawn and Edible Garden. There's more, too. A Children's Discovery Garden on the South Lawn will integrate an existing pond into an oasis for aquatic and carnivorous plants, forests, natural play areas for running free and a picnic grove. A tree farm has been planted and renovations of existing on-site structures that will house administrative offices and classrooms will begin this fall. Though landscape architect Keiji Asakura left the garden's board in 2005, research fields on the northern side hark back to his vision 30 years ago of a research garden that could partner with Houston health care institutions to create botanic pharmaceuticals. After Hurricane Harvey, new concerns about potential flooding have emerged. West 8 has extensive experience in flood control, and the scheme anticipates repeated flooding of both the Sims Meander and Sims Bayou, but some neighbors have raised concerns about the increased risk created by the tons of infill that will lift plantings out of the 100-year floodplain. Evelyn Merz, a resident who was instrumental in advocacy around the Sims Bayou flood-control expansion, is particularly concerned that, with that infill as well as the increase of impermeable surfaces like the Parking Forest on the site, stormwater that would have been absorbed into the golf course will be diverted to the surrounding neighborhoods. Old questions don't seem to have been addressed, either. The revised scheme doesn't alleviate any of the Meadowbrook and Park Place neighbors' initial concerns about access through the garden. The video does not show details about the edge condition that will enclose the site and could cut off access for residents who used to cut through the course every day. The precise edge condition of the revised scheme is unclear the video shows a gated entry from Park Place Boulevard, but the aerial perspective does not. Unless the designers are imagining the Sims Meander as a ha-ha (a landscape element recessed in the earth that creates a vertical barrier while preserving an uninterrupted view), the view into the garden from the surrounding neighborhoods as depicted in the video does not seem possible. The video and aerial perspective also don't show whether there will be a fence around the garden, which raises questions about how the Sims Bayou Greenway, which is under construction, will be accessed. Moreover, a historic right-of-way used to allow residents to walk on cart bridges and other pathways throughout the golf course to access city parks with basketball courts and baseball fields and a swimming pool. Despite the lush richness of the images in the video, it is short on specifics, and the aerial perspectives of the site don't clarify much or resolve these questions. As Christof Spieler, an urban designer and lecturer at Rice University, told me in 2016, "I fear that this garden will become a fenced compound designed to be accessed by car when it could be an integral part of the Bayou Greenways and the surrounding neighborhood." At least for now, the public relations strategy seems to be that the less we understand about the specifics of the garden, the better. Most conservancies in the Houston region, including Memorial Park Conservancy, the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center, Buffalo Bayou Partnership and the Hermann Park Conservancy have shared detailed plans before the construction of major projects. When asked about the integration of Bayou Greenways 2020, a garden representative told me: Houston Botanic Garden's Phase I design integrates the Bayou Greenways 2020 trail to continue along Sims Bayou, and our hope is that the paths along Sims and around the perimeter provide continuous access to pedestrians and bikes. We are working with the Houston Parks Board and City of Houston Parks and Recreation Department as they finalize plans for the Bayou Greenways 2020 trails, but at this time the specific path has not been finalized. The Parks Board added that it, HPARD and the garden finalized the alignment of the greenway in 2018. The plans are still in the design phase, but when they are complete, the greenway will not be interrupted between I-45 and Old Galveston Road and will include connections to Glenbrook Park. Additionally, the Parks Board is working to create a trailhead on a site off River Drive to the southwest of the garden that will provide public access to the greenway. But the jury is still out on what the day-to-day lived experience of the garden will be for its neighbors, who Merz fears won't be able to afford the price of admission on a regular basis. For now, all we can do is hope that the garden won't be a big, beautiful, inaccessible island in a sea of mostly low- to moderate-income households. Sheryl Tucker de Vazquez is a practicing architect and clinical professor at the University of Houston College of Architecture and Design. Email Allyn West. Get the Gray Matters newsletter. Its precise edge condition is unclear. | https://www.houstonchronicle.com/local/gray-matters/article/houston-botanic-garden-plans-access-community-13616937.php |
When did reality TV become ... nice? | Ever since "The Real World" debuted on MTV in 1992, reality TV has given us so much anger: Accusations. Betrayals. Brawls. Plenty of chardonnay in the face. By 2006, when "The Real Housewives" reared its triple-processed blond head, the Mean Reality TV genre had clawed its French Tips into America's brain. Pumpkin spitting on New York. Stassi smacking Kristen. Jeff outing Zeke. Aviva throwing her prosthetic leg at Heather. Trump firing Omarosa. From the White House. Organizing consultant and author Marie Kondo visits the Brit+ Co #CreateGood Wellness event at Build Studio on October 18, 2018 in New York City. Photo / Getty In the past few years, though, there's been a collective softening on reality TV. After years of witnessing beautiful people shred their dignity to find a spouse or get off an island, we've rediscovered the comforts of regular folk whipping up custards and crafts and getting tough on that messy garage. Nice Reality TV, let's call it, has become a respite from all the real-life madness we can't control - the Twitter mobs, the 1 percent gobbling up all the wealth, the breaking news and fake news, all abuzz on our phones. Advertisement There's a reason each episode of "Making It," the NBC competitive crafts show hosted by Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman that aired its first season last summer, kicks off with Poehler announcing: Jonathan Van Ness, Tan France, Antoni Porowski, Bobby Berk and Karamo Brown visit SiriusXM to talk about the Queer Eye for the Straight Guy reboot. Photo / Getty "Life is stressful enough. Let's make a show that makes you feel good!" In our politically contemptuous, personally overwhelmed and financially disempowered lives, escape can come in the form of a perfectly organized sock drawer, a flawless opera cake and the wonders of beard oil. The Nice Reality TV formula is one that HGTV, the fourth most-watched cable channel in 2018, has been building since "House Hunters" hatched atop the real estate bubble two decades ago. Whereas Mean Reality TV feeds on scandal, Nice Reality keeps it behind the scenes, if it must exist at all. Shows such as the squeaky-clean "Fixer Upper," a ratings magnet that wrapped up last year after five seasons, and "Property Brothers," an HGTV cornerstone since it debuted in 2011, keep the drills whirring inside the home - ignoring the clamor of harsh reality outside of it. Today's wave of Nice Reality TV takes HGTV's aversion to conflict, and overwhelming whiteness (recently lampooned by "South Park" in a bit called "White People Renovating Houses") and diversifies it: We've been introduced to avid British bakers, a non-English-speaking organization expert and a rebooted "Queer Eye" Fab Five. It's hard to imagine this moment in a pre-digital streaming era. Reality TV, circa mid-aughts, had to lust - for beauty, money or infamy - to keep its dominance over scripted TV. Back then, the musty cop and doctor shows couldn't compete with the primal wish fulfilment of winning a million dollars or marrying a Harvard real estate prince who looks like a personal trainer. And prestige TV, such as "The Sopranos," was available only to HBO's elite subscribers. Digital streaming platforms, such as HBO Now, Netflix and Hulu, not only spread prestige to the masses, but also helped kindness find its widest audience. Now we can self-soothe whenever we need it. After a bad day. After the kids go to bed. Or even after an election gone sideways, as Hillary Clinton did with HGTV, as she wrote in her 2017 memoir, "What Happened." The latest entry in the growing pantheon of Nice is "Tidying Up with Marie Kondo," the Netflix show from Japan's decluttering expert, which released eight episodes at the start of this year. Where"Hoarders" used horror-movie music to show the stuff Americans can't get rid of, Kondo instead comes in, freshly dressed in her trademark white, and greets the messy home as if it's a Shinto shrine and not a hovel for Nutcracker dolls. She smiles at the junk drawers, coos at out-of-control closets and gushes, in one insta-meme, "I love mess!" Twitter tried to make her controversial - protect your books from this walking Fahrenheit 451, everyone! - but it didn't stick because, well, she doesn't hate books; she's a best-selling author. The truth is, even if her cleanup strategies are just common sense masquerading as the latest in the #blessed witchcrafts, Kondo's positivity toward the slovenly home is a much-needed relief, especially for women who disproportionately clean the home more than men. Kondo, who minored in women's studies in college, vicariously delivers permission ("It's OK if your house falls into disorder") and optimism ("It's never too late to whip it back into shape"), as well as an unflagging belief in the organizational power of little boxes. Some of Nice Reality TV's best examples are imports such as "Tidying Up," because maybe we're all tired of the American penchant for bluntness. When tension happens on "The Great British Baking Show," which has been running in Britain since 2010 and in the United States since 2014, it typically gets resolved with sportsmanship and manners. No one gets dragged or doxed or promises to start therapy, not even when Diana supposedly wrecked Iain's baked Alaska. There's a great weight lifted knowing that the worst crisis we'll suffer is some ice cream gone soupy. See also: "Terrace House," an exceedingly polite "Real World"-like franchise brought to Netflix in the United States from Japan. "The Great British Baking Show" also shows a multicultural modern vision: people of all races, religions and backgrounds, struggling to conquer dampfnudel or some other sweet obscurity. Watching a group of strangers bond, no matter their prior affiliations or competitive rank, counters all the ways in which we're pushed to tribally insulate and view anyone different with suspicion. Nice Reality TV also offers us a marker of how far we've come. The rebooted "Queer Eye" has crossed even more into tear-jerker territory than the first generation. The world is less hostile to five gay strangers than it used to be. In the series premiere, Tom, a 57-year-old Georgia Dad who drinks "redneck margaritas" in his stained recliner, is given the tools to woo a special lady friend into his life. Tom sobs when he says goodbye to the Fab Five and tells his lady friend that he's never "hung out with gay guys before, and they were great. They were so open with me, and I was open with them." His new worldview is the sweet promise of Nice Reality TV: Transformation doesn't always have to be stormy and upsetting. Sometimes, it can just be plain nice. | https://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=12204101 |
What does it take to win the National Handicapping Championship? | Competitors in the National Handicapping Championship react while watching a race at Treasure Island in Las Vegas on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto Bettors gather for the National Handicapping Championship at Treasure Island in Las Vegas on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto If youre like me, youve probably read about the National Handicapping Championship and daydreamed about what it would be like competing for big money against the best handicappers in North America. For some insight, I turned to Vic Stauffer, a Las Vegas resident when hes not serving as the voice of Oaklawn Park and a damn fine handicapper. Hes also a five-time qualifier for the NHC. Here are a few of his thoughts on the strategy you need to do well in the tournament: The basic rule of thumb is that over the 36 races, you have to average about $8 a race return, just by the mathematics, he said this week. That means if youre going to play a horse in the 5-2, 7-2 range, you have to hit over 50 percent. Since thats a threshold few handicappers can even dream of hitting, Stauffer says most players concentrate on finding playable long shots in both the mandatory and optional races over the three-day event. He personally sets a minimum of 8-1 before hell consider using one of his valuable optional picks on a horse. Being organized also is crucial. Once the races start they come fast and furious, said Stauffer, who finished midpack in this years contest. If youre not prepared with a list of horses that are potential plays, then you can not only lose a possible optional (wager), you can have a mandatory race come up and you dont know. Then you could really have to make three decisions at the same time. The handicappers who regularly end up near the top of the leader board at the NHC and on the tour also tend to be avid users of technology. That includes this years winner, 34-year-old Scott Coles, a futures trader who told the Paulick Report this week that he uses TimeformUS to look at pace, the Daily Racing Form and STATS Race Lens to examine specific angles. Stauffer said the ability of the computer jockeys to find the races most likely to produce long-shot winners gives those players a big advantage. When I was going into my 50th hour of prep, I knew that I was desperately behind the 8 ball, he said. I dont know what theyre doing, how theyre eliminating races and horses, but those guys have such an edge over those of us who dont know how to do that. I mentioned that Stauffer is an excellent handicapper. I know that because Ive been following his recently launched Vics Picks report each weekend at Santa Anita. Im not in the habit of recommending winner-picking services, but Im making an exception because the information is good, the report is educational and its entertaining to boot. The cost is $20 per card, or $30 for both weekend cards, but well worth it, in my opinion. You can learn more at https://vicstauffer.com. #RJhorseracing featured races The #RJhorseracing handicappers are zeroed in on the most interesting Triple Crown prep so far this year: the $400,000 Risen Star Stakes at the Fair Grounds, as well as the $200,000 Rachel Alexandra Stakes for 3-year-old fillies. Check back later Thursday to see how the crowd cappers, and yours truly, size up these challenging handicapping puzzles. Better yet, theres still time to get involved. Simply download free past performances, courtesy of Equibase, at http://reviewjournal.com/horseracing, suss out the most likely winners and submit your top three picks, via email or Twitter (hashtag #RJhorseracing) Do it before 5 p.m. and your wisdom will be included in the consensus that appears in Fridays newspaper. Mike Brunkers horse racing column appears Friday. He can be reached at [email protected] or 702-383-4656. Follow @mike_brunker on Twitter. | https://www.reviewjournal.com/sports/sports-columns/mike-brunker/what-does-it-take-to-win-the-national-handicapping-championship-1597213/ |
Where has Mark Smiths six-game absence hurt Mizzou most? | Missouri goes to Mississippi this weekend with a much-needed weapon expected to return to the lineup for the first time in weeks. Tigers coach Cuonzo Martin said on his weekly radio show that barring a setback, sophomore guard Mark Smith will return from a left ankle sprain on Saturday against the Ole Miss Rebels. Smith has missed six games after injuring the ankle in the closing minutes of the Tigers Jan. 23 loss at Arkansas, and his absence has been felt. The Tigers are 2-4 without him and are somehow scoring more in spite of the fact that theyre missing their second-leading scorer and best shooter. In 17 games with Smith in the lineup, Missouri averaged 67.8 points per game. In the six without him, the Tigers are averaging 68.8. Sign Up and Save Get six months of free digital access to The Kansas City Star Smith was also one of Missouris best rebounding guards, averaging 5.5 boards per game, and was the teams leading rebounder in a lot of games, especially when Jeremiah Tilmon was in foul trouble. Freshman point guard Xavier Pinson has seen an uptick in playing time since Smith went down and has followed his lead on the glass. Pinson had 11 points and nine rebounds in Missouris win over Arkansas on Tuesday, and overall, MU has a 227-200 rebounding advantage in the six games Smith has missed. While Missouri has been able to score and rebound without Smith, it has struggled mightily from three-point territory. Smiths 47.5 three-point shooting percentage still ranks top 10 nationally and first in the conference despite his six-game absence, but Missouri cant say the same as a team. With Smith in the lineup, Missouri was one of the top three-point shooting teams in the Southeastern Conference, at a 39 percent clip. The Tigers currently rank No. 5 at 36.6 percent without him. Missouri has shot just 30 percent from three-point range in the six games Smith has missed. Wednesdays win over Arkansas was the first time MU shot better than 34 percent without him. Missouri has yet to hit 10 threes in a game without Smith. Martin admitted after MUs loss to Texas A&M on Saturday that Smiths absence has limited the Tigers on offense in a number of ways. He was a three-point presence, Martin said. What he did was spacing, more than anything. Its hard to leave him so your big can get a layup. Different things that we run, (we) put him in different positions because he can shoot the ball. Freshman Torrence Watson said Smiths presence simplified the offense for the Tigers younger players, who are still adjusting to the college game. The 6-foot-4 Illinois transfer was the one player opposing teams couldnt forget about. Help defense doesnt exist when Smith is on the floor. Hes the guy that you always have to stay attached to, said Torrence Watson, MUs freshman guard. So if hes in the corner, his man has to stay in the corner. Its almost like four-on-four. According to KenPom.com, Ole Miss ranks No. 279 nationally in three-point defense at 36.4, which could be an advantage for the Tigers. The Rebels have otherwise been a pleasant surprise under coach Kermit Davis. Davis is in first season in Oxford after taking over for Andy Kennedy. Last year, Missouris win in Oxford came in the middle of a five-game winning streak that helped get the Tigers to their first NCAA Tournament in five years. Smiths return could have a similar effect with the NIT. | https://www.kansascity.com/sports/college/sec/university-of-missouri/article226287295.html |
Should federal internet law protect gun site Armslist from liability in the Azana Spa mass shooting? | Zina Daniel Haughton was killed by her estranged husband, Radcliffe Haughton, at Azana Salon & Spa near Brookfield Square in 2012. (Photo11: Journal Sentinel files) Gun control and internet commerce advocates nationwide likely were watching arguments at the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Thursday to see if a web-based gun marketer can be held liable for facilitating an unlawful weapon sale. Armslist LLC is where a man obtained the gun used to kill three people and himself at a Brookfield spa in 2012. In April, the state's Court of Appeals became the first court in the nation to hold that a web-based gun marketplace might be held liable for negligence in facilitating an unlawful weapons sale when it reinstated a lawsuit against Armslist, which then sought Supreme Court review. If the Supreme Court overturns the lower court decision to find that Armslist is immune from suit, domestic abusers will continue to have easy and deadly access to firearms, said Patti Seger, executive director of End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin. Police mark off the scene at Azana Salon & Spa in Brookfield after a man shot several people before taking his own life on Oct. 21, 2012. (Photo11: Michael Sears/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) But proponents of an open internet say letting states find ways to hold web platforms responsible for bad acts by the people who use them will have a chilling effect on innovation. Zina Daniel Haughton and two coworkers were killed when her estranged husband, Radcliffe Haughton, shot up the Azana Spa where she worked. Four others were injured, and Radcliffe Haughton fatally shot himself. Yasmeen Daniel, personally and as administrator of her mother's estate, sued Armslist.com, on which Radcliffe Haughton found someone to sell him a gun and ammunition while he was prohibited by a domestic violence injunction from having firearms. Radcliffe Haughton (Photo11: Brookfield Police Department) A lawyer with the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, which is part of the plaintiff's legal team, will argue for Daniel. RELATED: Gun website Armslist wins in Azana shooting case RELATED: Court reinstates lawsuit against online gun seller from Azana Spa mass shooting A trial judge dismissed the case, citing the Communications Decency Act grant of immunity to "interactive computer services" that provide for communication among other parties. But in a unanimous opinion, the Court of Appeals in April reversed that decision. It found Armslist might be liable, based on creating its own content that made it easy for prohibited persons to buy guns, not for just being a conduit or publisher of others' content. Armslist agues risk of chilling effect Lawyers for Armslist say the plaintiff's theory could have far-reaching implications for all kinds of web-based businesses and social networks that, arguably, create environments where bad actors can plot crimes. "If any website built to enable effective communication no longer enjoys CDA immunity, what website is safe?" reads the Armslist brief. But it's not just Daniel and the gun site trying to persuade the court. The case has attracted friend-of-the-court briefs from Computer and Communications Industry Association, the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Everytown for Gun Safety, the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, the American and Wisconsin Medical Societies, The Copia Institute, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and members of Congress The groups support both sides of the debate: that holding Armslist liable for the sale that led to the Azana mass shooting would chill open internet innovation, or that what Armslist does is substantively different from what sites like Facebook or Craigslist, and that by creating its own content, it exposes itself to liability. Those in support of Armslist argue Congress has preempted states from interfering with how the Communications Decency Act applies to internet platforms. Others encourage the high court to uphold the Court of Appeals. NEWSLETTERS Get the NewsWatch Delivered newsletter delivered to your inbox We're sorry, but something went wrong Todays top news delivered to your inbox Please try again soon, or contact Customer Service at 1-844-900-7103. Delivery: Mon - Fri Invalid email address Thank you! You're almost signed up for NewsWatch Delivered Keep an eye out for an email to confirm your newsletter registration. More newsletters The suit says Armslist should be liable for the way it designed and operates its website in a way that simplified, if not encouraged, prohibited gun sales. That is Armslist's own content, the Court of Appeals found, not just information provided by a seller. "This case may look like a domestic violence case, a gun policy case, or even a negligence case, but it is actually a speech case," according to the Copia Institute'. "Laws that protect speech, such as the one at issue in this appeal, are on the books for good reason. They are ignored at our peril because doing so imperils all the important expression they are designed to protect." Armlist called 'threat to public safety' But Everytown for Gun Safety's brief calls Armslist "an unacceptable threat to public safety" that should face consequences under state negligence law. During oral arguments Thursday, Armslist's attorney James Goldschmidt said the design and functions of the website were "neutral tools" and not considered content by the CDA. He noted that private gun sales are legal in Wisconsin. He distinguished cases where websites have been stripped of CDA immunity for material contributing to unlawful activity by, for instance, requiring information that was per se unlawful, or creating completely fraudulent advertising. For Daniel, attorney Jonathan Lowy argued the Armslist site functions and features are not neutral tools, but more a statement to criminals that "this is a safe place" for unlawful gun sales. Justice Rebecca Bradley sounded concerns that if the court allowed Daniel's negligence case to proceed, Facebook, Twitter and every other platform would be sued over actions by their users. Lowy disagreed, and argued that the CDA would rightly prevent such claims, and that Wisconsin courts, considering the unique facts of Daniels' case, should decide if should proceed. The court's decision is not expected for months. Read or Share this story: https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/crime/2019/02/14/gun-sales-website-armslist-argues-immunity-azana-spa-shooting/2863293002/ | https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/crime/2019/02/14/gun-sales-website-armslist-argues-immunity-azana-spa-shooting/2863293002/ |
Will The New Management Push Restaurant Brands' Growth Further? | Restaurant Brands International (NYSE: QSR) reported its 4th quarter and full year results on February 12, 2019 before the market opened. As per the numbers in the early release, comparable sales are up 0.6% in Tim Hortons, 2% in Burger King, and 1.6% in Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen for the Fiscal Year 2018. For Quarter 4 the company beat the Non-GAAP EPS consensus, while total revenue was in line with consensus. The company posted a total revenue of $5.3 billion (as per new standard) while earnings were at $2.63. We have a $69 price estimate for Restaurant Brands International. The charts have been made using our new, interactive platform. View our interactive dashboard Our Outlook For Restaurant Brands International In Fiscal Year 2019 and modify the key assumptions to reach a price estimate of your own. In addition, all Trefis Consumer Discretionary Data is here. Factors That May Impact Future Performance: New Management: The company in a release in the second half of January announced leadership changes to help move the company in the right direction. Daniel Schwartz is promoted to Executive chairman after serving as a CFO and CEO for the last 8 years. Jose Cil is promoted to the CEO of the company after being with Burger King for 18 years. While Josh Kobza is promoted to COO of RBI to oversee the global development, technology, and operational teams responsible for supporting the growth of RBIs brands. Expansion of Burger King: RBI is focused on expanding its Burger King chain and is entering into several franchisee agreements to fulfill this goal. The company has announced a financial agreement with private equity giant Bridgepoint to expand in the U.K. This agreement was followed by a master franchise agreement with Nexus Point in Taiwan and another master franchise agreement to expand its presence in the Netherlands. In fiscal year 2018, the company grew its restaurant count by roughly 6.1% year-on-year, which reflects continued growth from its partners all around the world. Faster growth of the Burger King chain can become a key driver of revenues for RBI. Implementing Delivery: RBI began testing delivery for BK in the U.S. in the first quarter across several hundred restaurants and numerous markets. This strategy follows from the successful model seen in many of its international markets, including China and Spain. The company has now expanded its delivery facility in BK to nearly 3,000 restaurants in North America and over 7,000 restaurants around the world. Moreover, a mobile order and pay app was launched in the U.S. this quarter, which may help to improve the customer experience. The company also made great progress rolling out delivery to over 1,100 Popeyes restaurants in the U.S., representing nearly 50% of the U.S. restaurants within just one year. Prospects of Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen: Revenue growth from this segment can be expected to come from a higher number of its restaurants. In fiscal year 2018, the company had a net restaurant growth of 7.3%. The company has also signed a master franchise agreement for expansion in Brazil, which calls for opening 300 restaurants in the country over the next ten years. In the third quarter, the company also announced a master franchise development agreement in the Philippines, marking its first major development agreement for the Popeyes brand in Asia. Tim Hortons Poor Results In The U.S.: While comps returned to the plus side for TH in Q3 and Q4, there is still plenty of work to be done. The global comparable sales improved just 0.6% for the Fiscal Year 2018. TH launched Breakfast Anytime, in contrast with previously, when breakfast items were only sold till noon. This was done based on research conducted by the company, the results of which showed that this program appealed to roughly 75% of respondents and 60% of THs guests indicated they would likely buy a breakfast sandwich after 12 noon. Moreover, one-third of the guests indicated their frequency of visits would increase post the implementation of the program. This initiative can be considered to be the key driving factor behind the improvement in comps for Canada, and should continue to benefit the company in the forthcoming quarters. In conclusion, we believe Restaurant Brands next year will depend on how the new management takes on the challenges the company currently has. That said, Burger King and delivery seems to be the most likely factors to drive momentum in the first couple of quarters in fiscal year 2019. Explore example interactive dashboards and create your own. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2019/02/14/will-the-new-management-push-restaurant-brands-growth-further/ |
Is Valentine's Day overrated? | By Jessie Blaeser Valentine's Day is filled with chocolate, roses and love -- but it can come at quite the cost. The National Retail Federation projected Americans spent $19.6 billion on Valentine's Day in 2018, reinforcing the belief the day of love is nothing more than a commercial holiday designed to get couples to spend money. Others say Valentine's Day allows couples and friends to express how much they mean to one another. Plus, any holiday with an emphasis on chocolate is fun. PERSPECTIVES There's nothing pleasant about Valentine's Day. If you're in a relationship, you feel huge pressure to orchestrate an extravagant, romantic evening for no reason other than someone told you to. If you're single, you feel ostracized by a community of people seemingly in love. The entire holiday is a lose-lose. Cosmopolitan: 18 reasons Valentine's Day just sucks It's all about perspective. Flowers and chocolate don't have to be expensive, and they can mean the world to your significant other, friend, or even your mom. Whether you're single or in a relationship, Valentine's Day can just be a day to treat yourself. Have an extravagant evening if you want to, or spend the night in with Chipotle and a bottle of wine. The day of love can easily mean self-love. There are plenty of creative ways to celebrate: Valentine's Day is one of the worst days of the year to go out to eat. In reality, you'd probably rather save that special meal for a birthday or anniversary; instead, you feel pressure to succumb to the crazy consumerism of the modern world and suffer through a subpar, over-priced dinner. This is also the time of year when MeUndies and 1-800-Flowers ads are pelting you everywhere you look-Instagram, podcasts, the works. Resist the temptation. Refuse to acknowledge Valentine's Day madness. Just a little snippet of advice from a restaurant industry veteran: don't dine out on Valentine's Day, your service will suck, you won't get the table you want, and you'll be boxed into a prefix menu. Opt for the Monday before or after. -- Jaquline Margwarth (@forrreeeal) January 29, 2019 Perhaps everyone is missing the message here. It is a holiday filled with chocolate and candy. Who cares who you celebrate it with -- it's an excuse to indulge! You get to wear pink and red all day, get dressed up if you want to, and as Her Campus puts it: It's a chance to give [a] poor lonely teddy bear a new loving home. It's fun to embrace your cheesy side every once in a while. Unpopular opinion: I love everything about Valentine's Day pic.twitter.com/AGU4ZZl39p -- Killian [?] (@killiann_) January 30, 2019 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/entertainment/index.ssf/2019/02/is_valentines_day_overrated_1.html |
Was the Huskies' loss to Arizona State a hiccup, or something more? | 1 / 20 Back to Gallery The Washington Huskies were off to a perfect start in the Pac-12. Ten games, ten wins. What's more only three of those victories were even particularly close. On Saturday night in Tempe, however, that streak came grinding to a halt. Facing the Arizona State Sun Devils on their own turf, the Dawgs struggled out of the gate, and were unable to wrest control of the game away from their opponents. Making matters even worse for the Huskies, they were likely right on the cusp of finally breaking back into the AP Top-25 rankings. Now, given the historically bad season the Pac-12 is in the midst of, cracking that coveted list seems more difficult than ever. RELATED: Despite loss, Huskies still on top in latest Pac-12 power rankings Before answering, there are a couple of things about that loss to consider. First, the whole team had been battling off illness during that entire road trip, and was without starting forward Hameir Wright. Second, Arizona State had one of its better nights shooting the ball: the Sun Devils have averaged 44.4 percent shooting from the field all year long, but made a whopping 61.4 percent of their attempts against UW. Clearly, there were some mitigating factors. However, the Huskies can't pawn all of the blame off on someone else. For one thing, the Dawgs shot a paltry 36.8 percent from the field, and just 55 percent from the free throw line. They were also utterly beaten on the boards, grabbing just 23 rebounds to ASU's 40. And while they forced 24 Sun Devil turnovers, Washington coughed up the rock 17 times themselves. So yes, it was a deeply ugly game. But there were spots of good play amidst the mess. The star trio of Jaylen Nowell, David Crisp and Noah Dickerson each posted yet another double-figure performance. Matisse Thybulle had just three points, but also three boards, three assists, three steals and a pair of blocks. And, as noted earlier, all of this came while missing a starter and fighting off sickness. Now, none of that is to say that there isn't cause for concern. Arizona State isn't a truly elite opponent after all, Washington State and Princeton both beat them earlier in the season. Shooting as poorly as the Dawgs did is also worrying, but the team has shot at a 46 percent clip all year long. They've also averaged 32 boards per contest, and under 14 turnovers as well. ALSO: Perfect, but unranked: Evaluating the Huskies' 10-0 Pac-12 start The loss to Arizona State hurts there's no doubting that. A team as passionate as the Dawgs will always hate to give away a winnable contest. But with as solid as the team has been all year, there's little reason to believe that Washington won't right the ship. The Huskies will look to bounce back when they take on Washington State on Saturday, Feb. 16 in Pullman. | https://www.seattlepi.com/sports/college/article/Was-the-Huskies-loss-to-Arizona-State-a-hiccup-13616571.php |
Could diet soda raise a woman's stroke risk? | Older women, beware: New research warns that drinking a lot of diet sodas or artificially sweetened fruit juices may increase your risk for stroke. In a study that tracked nearly 82,000 postmenopausal women, those who drank two or more diet drinks per day saw their overall stroke risk rise by 23 percent, compared with those who consumed diet drinks less than once a week. Blocked arteries were often the main culprit, with heavy diet drink consumption linked to a 31 percent greater risk for an ischemic stroke, which is triggered by a clot, the study findings showed. Study author Yasmin Mossavar-Rahmani acknowledged that an "association does not imply causation." But she stressed that the findings held up even after taking into account the nutritional value of each participant's overall diet. So, "we can't assume these diet drinks are harmless, particularly when consumed at high levels," Mossavar-Rahmani said. "The take-home message is that these findings give us pause," she added. "We need to do more research on why we are seeing these associations. Is there something about the artificial sweeteners, for example, that affect the bacteria in the gut and lead to health issues?" New study looks at diet soda's link to dementia Mossavar-Rahmani is an associate professor in the department of epidemiology and population health's division of health promotion and nutrition research at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, in New York City. The study authors pointed out that the American Heart Association (AHA) has recently underscored the lack of sufficient research into the cardiovascular impact of diet sodas. Until more work is done, the AHA says the jury remains out on whether artificially sweetened beverages do or do not hasten heart disease. Women in the latest study were between 50 and 79 when they first enrolled in the Women's Health Initiative trial between 1993 and 1998. Investigators tracked the general health of all the enrollees for an average of nearly 12 years. During that time -- at the three-year mark -- all the women were asked to indicate how frequently they consumed diet sodas and diet fruit drinks over a three-month period. The researchers did not take note of which brands of artificially sweetened drinks the women drank, and so did not know which artificial sweeteners were being consumed. That said, nearly two-thirds of the women consumed diet sodas or drinks very infrequently, meaning less than once a week or never. Only about 5 percent were found to be "heavy" consumers of artificially sweetened drinks. After taking into consideration a variety of stroke risk factors -- including blood pressure status, smoking history and age -- the study team concluded that heavy consumption of diet drinks did appear to be tied to cardiovascular risks in a number of ways. For example, those women who drank two or more diet beverages a day saw their overall risk for developing heart disease increase by 29 percent. They were also 16 percent more likely to die prematurely from any cause. Certain groups fared even worse: Among obese women and black women with no history of heart disease or diabetes, a diet drink habit pushed clot-driven stroke risk up by roughly twofold and fourfold, respectively, the researchers reported. Whether or not the findings would apply to either men or younger women remains unclear, the study authors noted. The findings were published online Feb. 14 in the journal Stroke. Lona Sandon is program director of the department of clinical nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. She agreed that more research is needed to further explore a possible diet drink-heart disease connection. But for now Sandon offered simple advice: diet or regular, sodas offer no nutritional value other than calories. "If they replace other drinks, such as milk and 100 percent fruit or vegetable drinks, then these women miss out on valuable nutrition for protecting the heart and vascular system," Sandon warned. "The nutrition you are missing because you are drinking artificially sweetened beverages instead may be the real problem," she said. A group representing the artificial sweetener industry offered another caveat about the findings -- that many women who drink diet drinks are already struggling with weight issues. "It is likely study subjects were already at a greater health risk and chose low-calorie sweetened beverages to manage their calorie and sugar intake as these products are proven safe and beneficial for those managing their weight and blood glucose levels," said Robert Rankin, president of the Calorie Control Council. "The contribution of reverse causality, meaning that individuals already at a greater risk of stroke and cardiovascular events chose low-calorie sweetened beverages, is very likely the cause of the associations presented by these researchers," the council added in a statement. | https://www.cbsnews.com/news/could-diet-soda-raise-an-older-womans-stroke-risk/ |
Is the national emergency a big deal and will it get Trump his wall? | Trump said he will declare a national emergency to build a border wall. Donald Trump has said he will declare a national emergency in an effort to secure resources to build a wall on the US-Mexico border. The analysis flies in both directions on this question. Some legal analysts say the emergency declaration is deeply alarming because it is an aggressive power grab by the president on funding issues. The constitution allots the power of the purse uniquely to Congress. Here, Congress has refused to pay for Trumps border wall, and now it appears that Trump is trying to usurp the appropriations power. Many legal analysts take a more sanguine attitude about the emergency declaration. They point out that any declaration built on shaky legal ground is likely to collapse in court. They point out that Democratic House speaker Nancy Pelosi has the power to force the Senate to vote on a resolution to rescind the declaration, which if it does not succeed could extract a potentially large political cost from Republicans. Finally, voices counseling calm in the face of the emergency declaration point to the 59 emergency declarations made by presidents since the 1976 National Emergencies Act. It emerges that presidents declare national emergencies with fair regularity. The most recent such declaration, in November of last year, is described as blocking the property of certain persons contributing to the situation in Nicaragua. In theory it could. Military officials are empowered under multiple statutes, following the declaration of a national emergency, to divert funding and resources essential to the national defense including the use of the armed forces. So Trump might declare a national emergency, then order the military to move money and troops around to address the emergency in this case, Trump imagines, by building a wall. But many analysts believe that the emergency declaration will not produce a wall, owing to the aforementioned anticipated challenges in the courts and Congress. Or it will fail due to public outcryor perhaps to a breakdown in compliance somewhere in the chain of command, either on the part of military officials or Trumps own legal team. A CNN poll conducted 30 January through 2 February found that a strong majority of the public was opposed to the idea of Trump declaring a national emergency to build his wall. In response to the question, Should Trump Declare Emergency to Build Wall?, 31% said yes while 66% said no. The national emergency declaration seems particularly to pose political hazards for Republicans. If they are forced to vote on a resolution to repeal the declaration, they risk being tied to a potentially unpopular policy. If they back the policy, they risk eroding their credentials as devotees to the US constitution, whose checks on the presidency were sermonized gospel among Republicans during the Barack Obama years. But as bad as that could get for Republicans, Mitch McConnell might have decided that the political risks of a national emergency were smaller than those of a second government shutdown in 2019, which Trump had also threatened but many saw as a likely political disaster. | https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/feb/14/trump-national-emergency-explainer-border-wall |
Will Washington cancellation hurt No. 19 ASU women's basketball? | ASU's Courtney Ekmark (22) runs the floor during a game against Arizona on Feb. 16 at Wells Fargo Arena. (Photo11: Patrick Breen/The Republic) The best thing Charli Turner Thorne can say about her team having a game cancelled at Washington last week is that it's a mixed blessing. Arizona State women's basketball was barely done celebrating its win over Washington State on Feb. 7 when it learned that its road trip was ending early because of an impending snowstorm. Rather than flying from Pullman to Seattle on Feb. 8, the Sun Devils returned home via Spokane, and for a second consecutive week played just one game. Going into Friday's game at home against Colorado, No. 19 ASU (16-6, 7-4 in the Pac-12) has played two games in the previous 18 days. Turner Thorne wanted a one-game week in February that was the point of splitting up rivalry games against Arizona with the first held Dec. 30 but not two such weeks in a row. Plus, ASU is in a battle with UCLA and Utah for fourth place in the Pac-12 and a first-round bye in the conference tournament. UCLA (15-9, 8-4) is now a half game ahead of the Sun Devils in addition to holding a tiebreaker because they won in their only regular season meeting on Jan. 25, 61-59. ASU is a half game up on Utah (18-5, 7-5) with a road win over the Utes. The rematch is Sunday at Wells Fargo Arena. To finish ahead of UCLA in Pac-12 in winning percentage, ASU will need one fewer loss. But that would have been the case before the cancellation, too, because of the head-to-head tiebreaker. ASU coach Charli Turner Thorne yells out to her team during the first half of a game against Arizona on Feb. 16 at Wells Fargo Arena. (Photo11: Patrick Breen/The Republic) ASU and UCLA will play the same six teams to end the regular season. The Sun Devils' order is Colorado, Utah, at California, at No. 10 Stanford, No. 9 Oregon State, No. 3 Oregon. For the Bruins, it's Stanford, Cal, at Oregon, at Oregon State, Utah, Colorado. Whoever finishes in fifth place plays the 12th-place team in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament on March 7 in Las Vegas. There's a chance that could be ASU against Washington since the Huskies are currently are tied for 12th with Colorado. It's also possible the Sun Devils are heading toward a Pac-12 quarterfinal game against UCLA. Through Wednesday, ASU was No. 18 nationally in the ratings percentage index and No. 12 in strength of schedule. Playing Washington (No. 144 RPI) would have lowered ASU's strength of schedule and likely RPI even given a win. The Sun Devils were not among the early top 16 NCAA Tournaments seeds announced Monday by the selection committee, but that does not preclude them from achieving that by March. They are a No. 5 seed in ESPN's latest bracketology and need to get to No. 4 to host first- and second-round games in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2016. "For NCAA (seeding), I don't know that it matters that much," Turner Thorne said of losing a projected win against Washington. "We have a schedule down the stretch where we can put ourselves in position to host." UP NEXT: Colorado at Arizona State, 6 p.m. Friday (KDUS-AM 1060) No. 20 ASU (16-6, 7-4) is seeking its fourth consecutive win and a season sweep over the Buffs (11-12, 1-11), coming off their first Pac-12 win. MORE ASU | https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/college/asu/2019/02/14/washington-cancellation-hurt-no-19-asu-womens-basketball/2872376002/ |
How effective is this year's flu shot? | The United States is in the middle of flu season and new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says this year's flu vaccine appears to be working. The CDC estimates the vaccine has reduced the risk of going to the doctor for flu-related illness by 47 percent overall this season. The effectiveness is even higher among children between the ages of 6 months and 17 years old, with the vaccine reducing doctors' visits by 61 percent. "Numbers can change between now and at the end of the season. The important thing is the vaccine is providing some protection against the viruses that are circulating," Dr. Brendan Flannery of the CDC told CBS News. The CDC says the predominant strain of the virus so far this season is H1N1 in most of the country, although a strain called H3N2 is predominant in the southeast. Even though flu activity is lower than it was at this point last year, the illness is still responsible for somewhere between 155,000 and 186,000 hospitalizations and 10,000 to 16,000 deaths nationwide. "That puts it on track to be a season with a substantial number of deaths that's likely to rise," Flannery said. "We also see 28 pediatric deaths so far this season, that's also unfortunately likely to rise." Last season, the CDC estimated 80,000 Americans died of the flu and its complications. That was the deadliest toll in 40 years. Health officials said that after a slow start, flu activity has been picking up in the past few weeks and is now the highest it's been all season. Experts stress if you haven't received a flu shot yet, there is still time to get one. You can also help avoid illnesses like the flu by following these guidelines from the CDC: Wash your hands frequently with soap and warm water. If soap isn't available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer. Try to avoid close contact with sick people. If you are sick, limit contact with others as much as possible. If you have the flu, stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone, except to get medical care or for other necessities. Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth, as germs spread this way. Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze and then throw the tissue away. | https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-effective-is-this-years-flu-shot/ |
When is the rain ever going to stop falling in the Bay Area? | The short answer is showers will continue through the weekend, with the first day of clear skies and dry weather forecast for Monday. On Thursday, lingering bands of heavy rain, and possibly some thunderstorms, will move across the Bay Area as an atmospheric river originating in the tropics sags south and a cold front from the Gulf of Alaska drops into the region from the north. The cold front was still off the coast Thursday afternoon and will push through the region Thursday night, delivering more rain and a cold blast of air. "Behind that cold front we are anticipating rain showers to continue throughout most of the weekend as a colder air mass settles into the region," said Roger Gass, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Monterey. "The weather is going to be similar to last weekend. Cool and showery. It didn't rain all day, but it's not going to be clear, beautiful skies." MORE: Weather going from 'almost tropical' to cold as new storm hits Bay Area As temperatures drop into the 30s and low-40s overnight, snow levels are expected to fall Friday and Saturday and snow is in the forecast for peaks above 3,000 feet. "There's still not a lot of confidence in the forecast, but we think a lot of the higher peaks will see some snow," said Gass. Finally, on Sunday afternoon, the precipitation is expected to taper off and Gass' best educated guess at when the rain might finally stop is Sunday at 3 p.m. Confidence is high Monday will be dry, so if you want to plan a hike or a bike ride over the three-day weekend, that's the day to do it. | https://www.sfgate.com/weather/article/When-is-the-rain-going-to-stop-Bay-Area-SF-13617583.php |
Should Penguins spend at trade deadline to replace Maatta? | Sometimes, when a struggling defenseman gets injured, there can be a sort of dark silver lining: it may force a coach to play someone better. Considering how tough it is to find good defensemen, though, theres the scarier and probably more likely reality that theyd be replaced by someone even worse. Thats the situation the Pittsburgh Penguins are struggling with right now, as they announced that Olli Maatta is out indefinitely with an upper-body injury suffered during Mondays win against the Philadelphia Flyers. Scroll to continue with content Ad Considering that Evgeni Malkin might get suspended for his stick-swinging, that could be a costly win in the short-term, but the long-term implications are more fascinating. A thin group Again, theres no denying that Maatta has been struggling mightily for some time, but more Jack Johnson is frightening, as you can see from how pitiful they both look via Bill Comeaus SKATR comparison tool, which uses Corsicas data. /Insert horror movie scream. As far as other Penguins defensemen go: Schultz has missed most of the season with a pretty freakish injury, having not played since Oct. 13. It seems like hes slated to return soon, but expecting him to hit the ground running with heavy minutes seems like asking a lot yet that might be exactly what the Penguins need. Story continues And, lets face it. Schultz has been a fantastic reclamation project for the Penguins, but hes most useful when hes placed in nurturing situations. During four seasons with the Penguins, Schultz has started an average of 55.7-percent of his shifts in the offensive zone, according to Hockey Reference. Pensburgh and others point out an interesting plug-in option: Ethan Prow. The undrafted 26-year-old has never played an NHL game, yet hes tied for second place among AHL defensemen with 37 points this season. Offense isnt everything, but its a positive sign that maybe he can help, and it wouldnt hurt for the speed-and-skill-oriented Penguins to add another potential weapon. Shaky market When you look at TSNs trade bait list, Craig Custances Top 20 Trade Board (sub. required), and other compilations of trade targets, youll see a lot of fascinating names, from Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky to more grounded considerations, like Wayne Simmonds. Things are a lot thinner when youre looking for defensemen, though. Normally, Id personally recommend going after Dougie Hamilton, a defenseman who is likely to exceed his perception. Dougies not a perfect option for the Penguins for simple money reasons, though: his (actually decent value) $5.75 million cap hit runs through 2020-21. Hamilton also plays for the Hurricanes, who likely wouldnt be thrilled about the prospect of enriching a team ahead of them in the East bubble. Similar problems crop up with, say, Trevor Daley. Granted, there are interesting options here and there. Alec Martinez is a little cheaper than Hamilton ($4M through 2020-21), and the left-handers shown he can play on his off-side. Maybe most importantly, the Kings are eyeing the future, so they might be willing to retain some of Martinezs salary, and one Penguins issue might be something theyd work with better than others Sunk costs The Penguins have already given up a ton of futures in landing the likes of Nick Bjugstad, and previously, Derick Brassard. As you can see from Cap Friendlys chart, the Penguins lack: A second, third, or sixth-rounder in 2019. They have Buffalos fourth-rounder and Vegas seventh-rounder, with Buffalos pick currently slated to be a little better, while Vegas is likely to be worse than Pittsburghs would-be seventh-rounder. The point is, there arent a ton of 2019 picks remaining. They dont have their 2020 second-round pick. The Penguins, then, would need to part with first-round picks in bigger trades, or a would-be seller would need to accept a third-rounder or worse in 2020, or wait until 2021 to get a second-round pick. (Maybe the Kings would be willing to take a 2021 second-rounder for Martinez, possibly as part of a larger package?) Not just eyeing this year Ultimately, Pittsburgh might just look at the landscape and determine that they dont need to take a big shot in 2018-19, instead allowing things to play out. After all, much of the Penguins planning has been getting extended rentals. Bjugstad is signed through 2020-21, as is Tanner Pearson. Jared McCann is cost controlled through 2019-20. Much of the context points to sticking with this current setup, or at least not making another big splash. Sure some will say the Penguins should acquire a top-four defenseman to replace Maatta. Those guys ain't cheap, especially not now. Would be some serious mortgaging. Ain't worth it. Theres also a danger in assuming that Sidney Crosby (31), Evgeni Malkin (32), Phil Kessel (31), and Kris Letang (31) can fight off Father Time enough to keep the Penguins in the contender mix in 2019-20. Sometimes the drop-off can be very, very steep; just ask those selling Los Angeles Kings. Yes, the Penguins won their 2017 Stanley Cup with Letang injured, and that repeat run came with a defense that wasnt world-beating even with Letang feeling spry. That doesnt mean Pittsburgh can always clear those hurdles, so its fair to point out that defense is a clear need. *** To reiterate, the widespread eye test matches the numbers: Maatta hasnt been very good this season. Still, things could get even worse for the Penguins defense with him sidelined, so its not shocking that some might call for more trade deadline spending. James OBrien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins. | https://sports.yahoo.com/penguins-spend-trade-deadline-replace-211905218.html?src=rss |
Will Valentines Day End in Heartbreak for Bitcoin Bulls? | Bitcoin and the rest of the top 5 cryptocurrencies had a pretty boring 24-hour period. The notable moves happened at the opposite end of the market cap spectrum, with Steem gaining 3% and NEM, 2%. Of the top 10 non-stablecoins, only Bitcoin Cash saw any positive movement, with a less than 0.2% global gain. As we reported earlier today, Bitcoin SV is now available for withdrawal at Coinbase. In a related note, Waves Platform is making Bitcoin SV balances available and will be adding a trading market as well. The question is whether the newly available Bitcoin SV poses a risk to the coins price. Bitcoin Cash believers at the time of the hard fork who held BCH in either place have been waiting some time for their Bitcoin SV. Theyve long since missed the peak of more than $200. The market at large has advanced into scarier and scarier bear territory. Read the full story on CCN.com. | https://news.yahoo.com/valentine-day-end-heartbreak-bitcoin-230233703.html |
Did Britain Overhear Theresa Mays Brexit Plan in a Hotel Bar? | On Monday night, Oliver Robbins, Theresa Mays chief Brexit negotiator, left a dinner at the residence of the British Ambassador in Brussels and headed back to his hotel. During the chaotic summer of 2016, Robbins, who is forty-three years old, was chosen by May and Sir Jeremy Heywood, the former head of the civil service, to represent Britain in its talks with the European Union. A looming figure with a heavy brow, Robbins has been one of the Prime Ministers most visible and enduring advisers ever since. When Robbins arrived at his hotel, he joined some colleagues in the bar for a drink. A reporter for ITV News, one of Britains main news channels, was sitting nearby and overheard portions of their conversation, in which Robbins outlined the likely endgame to Mays torturous attempt to steer her Brexit deal through the House of Commons. As things stand, Britain will leave the E.U.with or without an agreementat 11 P.M. London time on March 29th. In the bar in Brussels, Robbins said that May is planning to make members of Parliament wait until the very last minute before giving them a choice between her unpopular compromise package with the E.U. or a lengthy delay to Brexit, during which the already agonizing negotiations would continue. If they dont vote for the deal, Robbins is reported to have said, then the extension is a long one. In politics, as Hannah Arendt said, speech rules supreme. Taken on its own, what Robbins disclosed was not particularly surprising, but, in the current Brexit vacuum, it was enough to dominate the news when the story broke the following day. Britain has been without a leaders voice since December, when it became clear that May could not get her Brexit agreement through Parliament. On January 15th, when she finally tried, she lost by two hundred and thirty votes, the largest government defeat in British history. In the weeks since, there has been all manner of political fiddlingbackbench amendments, unlikely alliances of M.P.s, non-talks between May and Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader, to find a way through the impassebut nothing concrete has emerged. If anything, the respective positions of the E.U., May, and her opponents in Westminster appear to have become further entrenched. Patience is running out. Ive been wondering, Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, told a press conference in Brussels last week, what that special place in Hell looks like for those who promoted Brexit without even a sketch of a plan how to carry it out safely. On Tuesday, May told M.P.s to bear with her a little longer. We now all need to hold our nerve, she said. May adopted a hard-line strategy for the Brexit negotiations a little more than two years ago. No deal for Britain is better than a bad deal, she said in a grand, set-piece speech, which she delivered in the long gallery of Lancaster House, a Foreign Office residence that, in the Netflix series The Crown, often doubles for Buckingham Palace. At the time, and until recently, the threat of walking away from the E.U. without any kind of agreement in place seemed like a piece of bad acting, a crib from The Art of the Deal. But, with Brexit now forty-three days away, the possibility of Britain suddenly losing its place in the international orderby accident or by designis something that you can hear and feel. Last week, the civil service advertised for staff at a planned EU Exit Emergencies Centre, to oversee the widespread disruption to Britains ports, food supplies, and general way of life that is expected in the event of no deal. Withdrawing from forty-six years of integration with European regulations and replacing them with nothing at all would complicate everything from aviation rules to fruit inspections to cross-border arrest warrants. The jobs at the E.U.X.E. center, which will operate around the clock for at least six months, were described in the ad as part of an incredibly high-profile and complex Business Change/Transformation Programme. Applicants should be unflappable and able to see the emergency trends with little or no information and act appropriately at pace. The keenest Brexiteers like to imagine a no deal as a kind of cathartic, revolutionary moment, from which a new, leaner Britain will emerge. The jobs at the E.U.X.E. are advertised as lasting for up to two years. Businesses are panicking. Earlier this week, Britains Food and Drink Federation compared a no-deal Brexit to the outbreak of the Second World War. This is the biggest threat that our members and businesses have faced since 1939, Ian Wright, the groups chief executive, told the BBC, predicting that a quarter of British food exporters would face bankruptcy if there is more than six weeks of delays at the countrys ports. The following day, the British Chambers of Commerce, which represent more than seventy-five thousand businesses, published twenty questions, on behalf of companies preparing for no deal, that Mays government has failed to answer. (Question No. 16: Which regulator will be overseeing my business after 29 March 2019 and what rules do I need to follow?) Multinational corporations are cutting jobs and moving projects out of the U.K. On February 3rd, Nissan, the Japanese carmaker, announced that it would no longer be making its new X-Trail S.U.V. in Sunderland, where it employs almost seven thousand people and where sixty-one per cent of voters decided to leave the E.U. Over all, car production fell by almost ten per cent in the U.K. last year. Britains latest official economic data, published on February 11th, showed that growth came to a standstill in December. Medical supplies are likely to be interrupted if there is no Brexit deal. On Wednesday afternoon, I met Martin Sawer, the executive director of the Healthcare Distribution Association, which represents the logistics firms that transport the drugs used in Britains hospitals, pharmacies, and local doctors clinics. Around two-thirds of medicines used in the U.K. come from the E.U. The H.D.A. recently analyzed the typical contents of a pharmaceuticals warehouse and found that ninety per cent of its products had touched another country at some point. The vast majority of Britains cardboard medical packaging is made in Belgiuman unrecognized consequence of a quarter of a century of seamless trade with the Continent. It grew up in the time of the single market, Sawer said, of Britains current drug-supply network. We dont know any different. Last summer, officials asked pharmaceutical companies to stockpile six weeks worth of medicines, to weather a possible no-deal Brexit. That advice recently changed. Sawer has signed a nondisclosure agreement with the government, so he couldnt tell me the exact plans, but he suggested that the problem lay at the Strait of Doverthe short crossing of the English Channel, which accounts for the vast majority of Britains truck traffic with the E.U. Six weeks wouldnt necessarily be enough for that route, Sawer said. In January, the government chartered extra ferry crossings between France and the ports of Plymouth, Poole, and Portsmouth, to cope with congestion in the Channel. It also quietly introduced a Serious Shortage Protocol, which will allow pharmacists to supply alternative medication to what is listed on a patients prescription, in case of a civil emergency. We are able to ration supply, if we have to, Sawer said. Brexiteers often summon the memory of Britains wartime resilience to indicate that we have what it takes to survive a piffling showdown with the E.U. But the truth is that we are now a nation that makes barely a drop of insulin but that is home to millions of citizens with diabetes. Were all consumers now and we expect things immediately, Sawer told me. It is only going to take a couple of patients to be in trouble for the government to be seriously embarrassed, and they will come down and they will invoke emergency powers. That is where I think we would soon be. I dont think its about fighting them on the beaches. Most rational people think that Britain and the E.U. will still avoid the catastrophe of a no-deal Brexit. That is a large part of the reason why the British media leaped on Robbinss bar talkas proof that there was a plan to extend the talks, a sign that sense will prevail. But most rational people also thought that Britain would vote to stay in the E.U., and Robbins, whom many pro-Brexit campaigners regard as a kind of deep-state saboteur, has been overruled by May before. On Tuesday, Mark Carney, the governor of the Bank of England, who usually has a bearish take on Britains departure from the E.U., described Brexit as the first test of a new global order, which might yet demonstrate a new approach to international trade and diplomacy that is more accountable to populations who feel they have not shared in the spoils of the party. It is possible that new rules of the road will be developed for a more inclusive and resilient global economy, Carney said. The anger that drove the Brexit vote in 2016around immigration, unfettered capitalism, and being ignored by political liteswas real and has not gone anywhere. But, in the past three years, Britains leaders have failed even to start a conversation about what a more equitable society might look like. With exit day only six weeks away and the risk of chaos so high, it is possible that something much worse is about to emerge. | https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-the-uk/did-britain-overhear-theresa-mays-brexit-plan-in-a-hotel-bar |
Will Trump's Wall Solve Our Immigration Problems? | It looks like President Trump is going to go ahead with building a border wall with Mexico no matter what. The main immigration argument has been that there are 11 million illegal immigrants in America that don't belong here and until we secure the border, we cannot reform immigration laws. That may be something to consider at the moment. Not long ago, Edward H. Kaplan and , two professors at the Yale School of Management, completed a study that found that there are, not just 11 million, but most likely 20 million unlawfully present immigrants in the United States. When I asked them why their numbers differ so greatly from the broadly accepted 11 million illegal aliens number, they said, We have taken a very different approach to estimating the number of undocumented immigrants than the methods used to produce the previous results. The standard 11 million estimate is the difference between the presumed total foreign born, and legally-resident foreign born. The latter data come from government records, but the former are based on surveys that ask people for their country of birth. This approach has many issues that are likely to make it unreliable. Many people do not participate in these surveys, or choose not to reveal their citizenship or place of birth. It is clear that in particular, undocumented immigrants are far less likely to participate, and more likely to refuse answering these questions (or answer untruthfully)." They added, that in the case of some of the data on border apprehensions and overstays, it was not available until recently. While you may think the study's results would support President Trump's border wall views, actually the authors did not go there. Their argument was that the wall will not address the reasons why there are so many illegal immigrants in the U.S., such as overstays on visitors visas and immigrants from other countries than Mexico, for example. Let's start with the "facts of life" regarding the wall. You may be surprised to learn that most Americans are not in favor of expanding the wall and in fact, a recent study shows 58 percent are in opposition. In part this may be because most illegal immigrants do not sneak across the border - two thirds of undocumented immigrants entered the U.S. legally. The wall symbolizes anti-immigrant sentiment and that clashes with the symbol of the Statue of Liberty and what it means in American folklore. While Trump argues that cities near walls with Mexico are safer, that was not the experience in El Paso. Finally, Trump has argued that drugs can be stopped with a wall but the vast majority of illegal drugs enter the country through legal ports of entry and the Drug Enforcement Agency claims the wall will do little to stop the illegal flow. Among the items that are currently being used to secure the southern U.S. border there are: Longer-range video cameras, thermal imaging cameras, and radar to provide 24/7 high altitude points of view for officers back at the Nogales Control Center where officers can see whats going on. Motion sensor cameras that help with the safety of the border patrol officers. Thermal cameras that help distinguish bodies even if they are camouflaged. Mobile surveillance trucks equipped with thermal-range finders enabling officers to determine the distance between themselves and people crossing and laser pointers that give agents in the field with night-vision goggles a heads up. Customs and Border Protection have also started testing drones with face-recognition software and a new mobile-navigation tool that will allow them to see the live locations of other officers in the field. The Democratic argument goes that the wall is not needed because America can rely on these kinds of options to secure the southern border. Republicans insist the wall is needed and nothing else will do. As for President Trump's declaration, Senator Dianne Feinstein tweeted recently, "Theres no national emergency at the border. Unauthorized border crossings are at their lowest levels in decades, about one-third of their peak levels two decades ago. If there were an emergency, the president wouldnt have waited two years to make this political decision." Be that as it may, in addition to the national emergency, the tentative deal that was struck to avert a shutdown of the federal government at the end of this week by including funding for the wall seems to be going ahead. The deal would fund some 55 miles of wall and provide President Trump with $ 1.375 billion dollars for that purpose. The deal still needs to be signed by the president, but it appears the president will sign the bill in addition to declaring an emergency. Meanwhile, there is little doubt the declaration of a national emergency will precipitate a constitutional crisis and end up in court. Whatever way you view things, according to Donathan Brown, a professor who focuses on race and public policy in the Department of Communications at Ithaca College, there is a need for refinement in the discussion, How we discuss, define and ultimately label those seeking entry into the United States from along the southern border continues to be a point of contention. Blanket statements that affix labels such as terrorist, drug dealer, and rapist, for example, only contribute to the ignorance proliferated by some elected officials, in an attempt to disassociate us from them." He goes on to say that the problem is not something that can be fixed easily and that there are racial dimensions to it. But the starting point is language. Assuming we can turn the tide on language, still, the border wall issue has eclipsed many other immigration issues that have been left behind. Among them are: border enforcement, family unity, catch and release, immigration judges, the diversity lottery, sanctioning cities, Kate's law regarding re-entry after deportation, chain migration, a path to citizenship, DACA and DAPA, H1B visa reform, quicker processing of all cases, more green cards, refugee law reform, improving the law to make it more desirable to apply legally, and helping Latin America to reduce the number of migrants who are coming to the U.S. border. All of these issues contribute to the immigration problem and no one solution, such as a border wall by itself, will solve it. As Professor Brown argues, comprehensive immigration reform is needed and that requires refinement of language and good will on all sides. So far, there is little good will to be found. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/andyjsemotiuk/2019/02/14/will-trumps-wall-solve-our-immigration-problems/ |
Is There Any Benefit Of "Natural Immunity" When It Comes To Infections Like Measles? | We are in the throes of yet another widespread measles epidemic, this one worse than the 2015 outbreak at Disneyland. This one has spread to pockets in several states, including Washington, Oregon, and New York, as well as to several countries in Europe. Despite measles being a vaccine-preventable illness, with the vaccine carrying close to 99% efficacy (meaning that the vaccine prevents the illness in just about everybody who gets it), there remains a sizable portion of the parent community who oppose vaccinating their children. Thanks to efforts of vaccine scientists and public health professionals, measles was nearly eradicated in the 1990's. But following the popularization of Andrew Wakefield's 1998 fraudulent study, linking the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine to autism in children, followed by celebrity endorsement of vaccines linked to autism, vaccination rates declined over the past decade, leading to larger and larger outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases, many of which carry life-threatening and/or organ-threatening complications. This past week, the wife of top Trump official Bill Shine went on a Twitter rant claiming that the recent outbreaks of measles throughout the country are overblown, "fake," and "hysteria." One of her more questionable (and concerning) quotes was "Bring back childhood diseases--they keep you healthy and fight cancer." Wait. It's one thing to question the safety of vaccines, even though the safety and efficacy of vaccination, on both a personal and public health level, have been repeatedly demonstrated in countless studies. But linking childhood illnesses such as measles, chicken pox, and mumps to cancer prevention has some history, albeit sketchy. In the 1890's, New York surgeon William Coley noted that cancer patients who developed infections after surgery fared better than those who didn't. He felt that the infection stimulated the patient's immune system to fight the cancer. He later created a concoction of bacterial toxins, known as Coley's toxins, to inject into cancer patients, which, in turn, would cause high fevers. His therapy, which was used periodically until the 1950's, sometimes helped with cancer patients, and sometimes it did not. Sometimes it would cause complications; sometimes it didn't. There is no date on his findings, nor is there any record of what his toxin actually was. While the current advent of immunotherapy to treat cancer patients will potentially improve and better tailor the treatment guidelines for many cancers, Coley's toxins did not act in such a manner. The idea that natural immunity, in other words, developing a particular illness such as chicken pox or measles, is somehow better and more protective than receiving an immunization, especially in preventing cancer, is unfounded. The human papillomavirus (HPV) is a perfect example of the inaccuracy of this notion. This virus now known to be the cause of many cancers, including cervical cancer, throat cancers, and sinus cancers. Having the illness (and HPV infection) will predispose you to have one of these cancers. Receiving the HPV vaccine will help prevent these cancers from forming. This week's anti-vaccine rant is yet another example of non-medical voices using their public platforms to politicize and popularize medical fallacy. The reality is that children are sustaining significant morbidity (and mortality) from previously (and currently) preventable illnesses. And while not all vaccines are 100% protective (this year's flu vaccine is about 50% protective, representing a pretty typical year as far as flu vaccines go), the measles vaccine is one of the most fully protective of all, conferring close to 99% immunity to the illness after the second MMR vaccine. Measles is also one of the most highly contagious vaccine-preventable illnesses, which is why we are seeing such large outbreaks in multiple pockets across the globe. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/ninashapiro/2019/02/14/is-there-any-benefit-of-natural-immunity-when-it-comes-to-infections-like-measles/ |
What are the biggest threats to humanity? | Image copyright Getty Images Human extinction may be the stuff of nightmares but there are many ways in which it could happen. Popular culture tends to focus on only the most spectacular possibilities: think of the hurtling asteroid of the film Armageddon or the alien invasion of Independence Day. While a dramatic end to humanity is possible, focusing on such scenarios may mean ignoring the most serious threats we face in today's world. And it could be that we are able to do something about these. Volcanic threats In 1815 an eruption of Mount Tambora, in Indonesia, killed more than 70,000 people, while hurling volcanic ash into the upper atmosphere. It reduced the amount of sunlight hitting the surface of the Earth, triggering what has become known as the "year without a summer". Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora killed more than 70,000 people Lake Toba, at the other end of Sumatra, tells a still more sinister story. It was formed by a truly massive super-volcanic eruption 75,000 years ago, the impact of which was felt around the world. It has been suggested that the event led to dramatic population decline in early humans, although this has recently been questioned. But while the prospect of a super-volcanic eruption is terrifying, we should not worry too much. Super-volcanoes and other natural disasters, such as an asteroid striking Earth or a star exploding in our cosmic neighbourhood, are no more likely in 2019 than any other year. And that is not very likely. Growing threats The same cannot be said for many global threats induced by people. For example, the World Health Organization and the World Economic Forum both listed climate change and its effects as one of their top risks for 2019. Recent UN talks heard climate change was already "a matter of life and death" for many regions. While many, including Sir David Attenborough, believe it could lead to the collapse of civilisations and the extinction of "much of the natural world". The threats are complex and diverse, from killer heatwaves and rising sea levels to widespread famines and migration on a truly immense scale. Also increasing are the potential risks from novel technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI). The scenarios range from increasingly sophisticated cyber-weapons that could hold an entire nation's data to ransom, to autonomous algorithms that could unwittingly cause a stock-market crash. Another threat is the possibility of a nuclear war. While many focus on rising tensions between global powers, new technologies may also be making us less safe. This is because of both the "entanglement" of nuclear and conventional weapons and the risk that AI could help unleash nuclear war. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Avian flu exercise in Hebi, China Another risk that may be increasing is that of global pandemics. Influenza, for example, is thought to kill an average of 700,000 people and cost the global economy $500bn (387,000) per year. Increasingly dense and mobile human populations have the potential to see new influenza strains spread easily. And this raises concerns about a future outbreak like the 1918 Spanish Flu, which killed up to 50 million people. However, widespread vaccination programmes and other disease prevention measures help reduce this risk. How to calculate the chance of an existential risk Look at historical or geological records. We can keep track of some events such as super-volcanoes and asteroid impacts Find a natural precedent. When scientists explored the risk the Cern reactor might pose, they looked at similar environments that occur in stars Build a model. Scientists use sophisticated atmospheric models to explore the future of our climate For threats that can't be modelled, scientists generate insights by engaging in war-gaming and other exercises The UK government also maintains a register of national risks, including floods, space weather and disease A disruptive future While these threats are real, the greatest danger we face in 2019, when viewed from a global perspective, probably lies elsewhere. With almost eight billion people living on Earth, we are increasingly reliant upon global systems to sustain us. These range from the environment that provides us with food, water, clean air and energy, to the global economy that turns these into goods and services. Yet, from declining levels of biodiversity to overextended infrastructure and supply chains, many of these systems are already stressed to breaking point. And rapid climate change is only making things worse. Given this, it may be that global risks should not be defined by the size of the disaster that caused them, but by their potential to disrupt these vital systems. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption A volcanic ash cloud prompted disruptions to flights around the world in 2010 The potential is hinted at in recent examples of cascading effects. The 2010 eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajkull volcano killed no-one but closed air traffic over Europe for six days. And, in 2017, the relatively unsophisticated WannaCry ransomware attack shut down parts of the NHS and other organisations around the world. Since almost everything we rely on also depends on a functioning electrical, computing and internet system, anything that would damage this - from a solar flare to a high atmosphere nuclear explosion - could cause very widespread harm. More stories like this Disaster prevention There may, however, be new ways to reduce this risk. There is an old story of King Canute of the Danes futilely commanding the sea to retreat. A similar sense of powerlessness can easily overtake us when we consider potential future catastrophes. However, the truth is that while King Canute may have failed, the Danes have been pushing back their shoreline for generations: building dykes and draining marshes to protect themselves from the oncoming tide. Sometimes it is better to protect ourselves by thinking of ways to make humanity more resilient to disasters that are to come. And this could give us the best way of ensuring that 2019 - and beyond - are safe years for humanity. About this piece This analysis piece was commissioned by the BBC from experts working for an outside organisation. Dr Simon Beard and Dr Lauren Holt are research associates at the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk. The CSER, based at the University of Cambridge, studies the mitigation of risks that could lead to human extinction or the collapse of civilisation. Edited by Duncan Walker | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-47030233 |
Can Gavin Newsom deliver all those big ideas? | Sacramento is getting a look at what San Francisco has long known. Gavin Newsom is a geyser of ideas, a walking TED Talk podcast who can dazzle and provoke. But hell need to deliver, something he had trouble doing as a two-term mayor. The new governor rolled out his thoughts, small and large, in this weeks State of the State address. It took just an hour, barely a deep breath for a famously wordy politico, but it took his listeners on a speed-dating tour of his thinking. Hes not afraid of big stuff such as halting bullet train construction and trimming plans for a twin-tunnel delta water plan. Those decisions, now teed up for serious debate, are vintage Newsom, springing from the same mind who went with same-sex marriage before anyone else and who drew howls for ending cash welfare payments to the homeless in San Francisco. Hes not afraid to make a call and take the heat. The rest of the speech didnt collect as much notice, though it must have struck a chord for veteran Newsom watchers. He let loose with a string of thoughts and future plans to be given the commission-and-report treatment. On this list are an aging population, changes in the workforce, Alzheimers care, consumer dividends for allowing personal data use, and cuts to drug prices. He promised more on other long-standing topics, such as updating the tax code, reshaping criminal justice and instituting universal preschool. With a grin, he teased about reimagining the DMV, a joke aimed at an easy target and his own overblown vocabulary. If it sounds like too much, you dont know Newsom. There arent enough hours in the day for his imagination and energy in thinking about government. Hes intelligent, well-read and restless and it shows, leading him once to deliver a YouTube city address that ran 7 hours. Imagine being stuck with him on a long car ride on Interstate 5. Heres where it gets interesting. He comes with the kindergarten label of someone who doesnt play well with others. He can be aloof, uninterested, a loner. His thoughtfulness can enrapture a wide-screen audience but not always a brass-tacks negotiating circle. As mayor, he racked up a reputation for not caring about details and skating on to the next big idea. The Team of Rivals concept worked for Abe Lincoln, who could charm and wheedle his way toward agreement. But maybe that formula wont do it for Newsom. In his San Francisco days, he drew foes needlessly by ignoring them. There are signs hes changing. Hes expanding the governors office and including experienced Sacramento hands who wont sit at the feet of the master. In his address this week debuting his grab bag of ideas, he invited legislators to send him bills, something Gov. Jerry Brown never did, to conserve his power and dominance. And Newsom did it all in just 60 minutes. The new governor may be showing a new side. Marshall Kilduff is a Chronicle editorial writer. Email: [email protected] Twitter:@MarshallKilduff This commentary is from The Chronicles editorial board. We invite you to express your views in a letter to the editor. Please submit your letter via our online form: SFChronicle.com/letters. | https://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/openforum/article/Can-Gavin-Newsom-deliver-all-those-big-ideas-13618187.php |
Did London air pollution kill nine-year-old Ella? | This Friday marks six years since Ella Kissi-Debrahs death, which her mother believes was partly caused by air pollution. Plus: 15-year-old George Bond explains why he is going on todays school climate strike Ella Kissi-Debrah lived 25 metres (82ft) from the heavily polluted South Circular Road in Lewisham, London. She died in February 2013 at the age of nine after three years of seizures and 27 visits to hospital for asthma attacks. Until the end of 2010, Ella had been in good health. An expert last year linked her death to the dangerously high levels of pollution from diesel traffic that breached legal limits. Anushka Asthana talks to Rosamund Kissi-Debrah, Ellas mother, about her fight to reopen the inquest so that air pollution can be recognised as a contributing factor to her death. Asthana also talks to Jocelyn Cockburn, the lawyer who represents Kissi-Debrah. Cockburn hopes an inquest will provide a better understanding of whether Ellas death was avoidable and force the government and other bodies to account for their inaction over air pollution. Plus: teenager George Bond explains why he wont be going to school today and is instead joining others across the country in a nationwide school climate strike. | https://www.theguardian.com/news/audio/2019/feb/15/london-air-pollution-death-ella-kissi-debrah-podcast |
Should Juul ads go the way of the Marlboro Man? | Since launching in 2015, Juul has been a runaway success, attracting the ire of parents and regulators who say the companys devices hook teenagers. Thats a comparison floated by Jessica Rosenworcel, a member of the Federal Communications Commission. Her criticism adds to pressure on Silicon Valley darling Juul and its investor, tobacco giant Altria Group Inc., after the head of the Food and Drug Administration signaled curbs are imminent. The presidents own FDA commissioner has called whats happening with vaping a public health crisis, Rosenworcel said at a Washington news conference Thursday. She said agencies should come together, look at what laws are on their books, and identify if there are things we can do. Youth adoption of e-cigarettes has surged, provoking calls for action from parents, public-health advocates and lawmakers. Rosenworcel on Thursday stopped short of calling for a ban on vaping ads. A day earlier she posted a tweet about e-cigarette ads, writing that the @FCC can help put a stop to this, and I think it should. San Francisco-based Juul in December sold a 35 percent stake to Altria in a $12.8 billion deal that turns the e-cigarette maker into one of Silicon Valleys most valuable closely held companies. FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb on Feb. 8 wrote to both companies and asked to talk with them about public statements that seem inconsistent with vows they made to combat nicotine use by minors. Gottlieb also said he expects to issue draft rules restricting sales of most flavored e-cigarette products. Many vaping pods come in fruit or candy flavors. Some have packaging resembling juice boxes or whip cream. A law signed by President Richard Nixon pushed cigarette ads, including those for the rugged cowboy figure touting Marlboro brand cigarettes, off the air in 1971. But now, cigarette advertisers are gasping for new breath on our public airwaves, Rosenworcel said in an opinion piece published Wednesday in USA Today. Today, makers of their modern equivalent electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes are free to market their products where they choose, even on television and radio. Rosenworcel is a member of the FCCs Democratic minority, and her ideas may not take among the majority controlling the agencys agenda. Censoring lawful speech based on its content? Republican FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr said in a tweet. Im with the First Amendment. Im a no. Since launching in 2015, Juul has been a runaway success, attracting the ire of parents and regulators who say the companys devices hook teenagers. The startup has positioned itself as a technology company on a mission to help addicted smokers quit tar-burning cigarettes. Read or Share this story: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/business/2019/02/14/regulator-calls-review-vaping-ads/39061723/ | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/business/2019/02/14/regulator-calls-review-vaping-ads/39061723/ |
Why did gay Muslim comics disappear from Instagram? | Image copyright Twitter/Instagram Earlier this week, an Instagram account which posted comic strips depicting the struggles of gay Muslims in Indonesia vanished from the social media site. Indonesia's communications ministry was quick to claim credit, saying it had asked Instagram to take the account down because it contained "pornographic content". Instagram later denied this claim, saying it had not removed the account. The Instagram account - under the username @Alpantuni - featured comic strips that showed the abuse and discrimination faced by a gay Muslim character. It had almost 6,000 followers. One comic showed the character being told to "burn in hell" and having faeces thrown at him. Local media outlets say the communications ministry had threatened to block Instagram if @Alpantuni's account was not removed. According to BBC Indonesia, the ministry also said the public had "participated in reporting the account... to speed up the takedown process". But Instagram told the BBC the ministry's version of events is wrong. In a statement, the social network said it "did not remove this account", adding that there are "a number of other reasons why an account may no longer be accessible, including, for example, if the account holder deleted the account, deactivated the account, or changed the account username." It also added that it had "reviewed the account against our community guidelines and found that it does not violate our policies." The account has divided people in Indonesia. Some expressed anger over its content. One Instagram user had asked others to report it, saying its depiction of gay Muslims was not "feasible". But others defended the account, saying it was just depicting life for gay Muslims in Indonesia. Image copyright Twitter/fedrianrp One lecturer at the Fahmina Institute of Islamic Studies said he objected to the comics. "There is a problem. [Even when the] heterosexuals show sexual relations, it is still considered taboo in Indonesia. For some people, this [comics] can be considered [to be] disrespecting Islam," Abdul Muiz Ghazali told BBC Indonesia. Another sociology professor expressed similar opinions. Neng Dara Affifah told BBC Indonesia that though there was no element of pornography in the comics, some of the the contents were "counterproductive". It's not clear at this stage. In screenshots of his comics on Instagram, @Alpantuni had added logos from Facebook and Twitter - showing that he previously had accounts there too. He has now vanished from all three platforms. Instagram remains the only one the government has spoken out about. "By falsely boasting of Instagram's removal of a harmless account at their demand, the government has misled the public to sow fear among LGBTI people," said Amnesty International's Indonesia Executive Director Usman Hamid in a statement. "At a time when LGBTI people in the country face routine repression... it's vital that social media remain a safe space for anyone to peacefully express themselves." In recent years Indonesia has shown increasing hostility towards its LGBT community. Homosexuality is not illegal, however, except in the conservative province of Aceh - the only one that implements strict Islamic law. Last year, Blued - one of the world's largest gay dating apps - was pulled from Indonesia's Google store in response to government demands. Two gay men were also publicly caned - receiving 85 lashes each - in Aceh last year. The pair, aged 20 and 23, had been found in bed together. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-47248933 |
Why are students striking for the climate and will it have an impact? | It may not represent a paradigm shift just yet, but the speed and scale of this young person's movement does make it feel more than a momentary splutter of impotent anger. Ever since the then 15-year-old Swede Greta Thunberg decided to stop going to school on Fridays last year and instead protest outside the Swedish parliament, there has been a rapid expansion in similar activities in many parts of the world, especially in Europe. Tens of thousands of schoolchildren in Belgium, Germany and other locations have cut classes and taken to the streets to call on governments to take urgent action on climate change. Now young people in the UK are due to join them, determined to affect change on the issue that they feel is most germane to their future - the impacts of rapidly rising temperatures on an ever more crowded planet. Greta's memorable phrase that we "cannot solve the crisis without treating it as a crisis", reflects the thinking of many, frustrated with the slow pace of progress. That sense of crisis has been affected by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report on the impacts of global temperature reaching 1.5C, released last October. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption 'I'm standing up for our planet' "We are doing this because we feel that climate action really needs to happen after the IPCC report," said Lottie, 17, who says she will join a school protest in London. Speaking to the BBC, she said: "We've been told we have to take serious action and have just 12 years to cut our carbon emissions in half. As the young people who are going to be most affected by the fact that no-one is taking any action on climate change - this is our entire future. "We can't vote yet and this is one of the most effective ways of making our voices heard." Last year also brought a wide range of impacts including heatwaves and forest fires that scientists say were made worse by climate change. All the while, the emissions that are driving up temperatures continue to go up, not down. In the face of this continuing catalogue, the actions taken by governments seem rather limited, much to the frustration of scientists and campaigners. Students contrast the slow pace of tackling climate change with the fact they have managed to get a movement going to organise a UK-wide strike in only four weeks. According to the UK Student Climate Network, there are four key demands. They want the government "to declare a climate emergency", and inform the public about the seriousness of the situation. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Protests in Belgium have made climate change a key issue for all political parties They also want the national curriculum reformed to include "the ecological crisis as an educational priority". To fully include young people in decision-making, especially about issues related to climate change, they are calling on the government to lower the age of voting to 16. These goals are being supported by a group of around 200 UK academics, who have written to a national newspaper to say they stand in solidarity with the strikers. "With the dilution of citizenship education in recent years, this is an important opportunity for schools, colleges and universities to support active citizenship and political engagement," said Molly Scott Cato, the Green Party MEP who signed the letter, who is also a professor of green economics, at the University of Roehampton. "Far from being disengaged, these strikes demonstrate that many young people do care passionately about our planet and the welfare of our neighbours across the world. Our politicians should pay attention and deliver policies that will safeguard future generations." Young people were far, far more visible at last December's key UN climate meeting in Katowice, Poland. Their energy and demands for speedy action marked a significant change from previous events. Similarly in the US, we are seeing demands from young people for political action on climate change, forcefully represented by Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. She is the driving force behind the Green New Deal, a radical climate plan that would see the US decarbonise in only 10 years. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Greta Thunberg has taken her climate strike to Davos In Europe the school strikers are also making a powerful impression. "They have put the climate issue on the public agenda," said Conner Rousseau, a spokesperson for the Flemish Socialist party in Belgium. "They've forced all of the Belgian political parties to take a stand on the climate issue. We have elections in May, it will be one of the main themes." Observers believe the same thing can happen in the UK. "If the government is serious about winning over the next generation of voters, then they need to heed their most pressing concerns," said Richard Baker, from Christian Aid. "But more importantly they are sparking a national debate, they are forcing teachers, parents and politicians to re-evaluate the issue of climate breakdown and, what is most important, while lifting our gaze beyond just immediate short-term national concerns." | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-47242477 |
Can Our Individual Plastic Footprint Stop The Ocean Of Waste From Submerging Us? | Plastic production will increase by 20,000% in 40 years if we keep things how they are. Plastic is everywhere. Over the years it became one of the most used material, and it got to a point where the cars and planes we travel on are made at 50% by plastic, or where it is more common for clothes to be made of polyester and nylon rather than of wool or cotton. In 1955 the whole worlds plastic production was around 2 tons and only 60 years later, in 2015, it had already reached 400 tons. Plastic is, not even so slowly, submerging the planet. If we do not take action now, by 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the oceans and seas. The problem is not new. Already in the 1990s around 80% of the waste in the ocean was non-biodegradable plastic. The amount kept rising, until the garbage in the ocean assembled in giants island entirely made up of mostly plastic. The biggest one is around three times the size of France. The Mediterranean Sea, because of its geographical conformation, is like a trap for plastic waste which has become a serious threat to ecosystems, marine life and human health. Plastic makes up over 95% of the waste in the Mediterranean and the concentration of microplastic, minuscule parts of plastic that disperse into the sea, has become so high that it is now superior to the areas of the plastic islands found in the Pacific Ocean. Damages to wildlife because of marine litter is 90% of the times caused by plastic, and around 134 species are at risk of dying because of ingesting plastic. The situation is alarming, but some steps in the right direction are being taken. Last month the EU signed a provisional agreement that limited the sale and production of single-use plastic products. According to this arrangement, by 2021 EU member states will not allow plastic cutlery, plates and straws anymore, among other similar items. However, it will take time for each member state to put the necessary laws into force and in just a few months, with the European elections that will reshape the composition of the EU institutions, the agreement might be re-discussed. Moreover, even if the EU is the second producer of plastic in the world, such a global issue needs a wider global response. This is why the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) launched a petition to all the countries where the Non-governmental organization is present, addressing the heads of state to sign up a Global Deal that will stop the scattering of plastic into the wilderness. It is the first step of a global campaign that is also directed to every single citizen. There is so much we can do as individuals to play a significant role in a shared journey to a plastic-free planet. Everyday actions can ultimately make a difference. By changing our routines in which plastic is a major component we can make an impact: substituting plastic shoppers, our toothbrush, our clothes, food containers and so on with more sustainable materials and choosing reusable items over single-use ones actually improves our plastic footprint on the planet. Probably the most impacting behavior we can take up is to get used to recycle and do collecting waste separately. Unfortunately, there are situations where the good efforts of individuals are thrown away. It is the case of Italy, a country in which citizens are really good at recycling but there are not the facilities and structures needed to correctly dispose of the waste. In Italy, just around 43.5% of the plastic that has been separately collected ultimately gest recycled, while around 40% ends up in energy-producing incinerators and over 16.5% is left at dumpsters. Italy competes with Germany for the first place in the EU for collecting waste separately, but without the required recycling plants the podium is not making quite the difference. Still, Italians are determined to fight plastic pollutions and a few initiatives have attracted the attention that might bring in investors. For example, Gr3n is a startup based in Piacenza, in the center of the country, which is working on a recycling plant that will be able to transform materials that were impossible to deal with before. With the current recycling technology, it is only possible to process really good materials, like a transparent bottle, but the machinery that Gr3n is working on might be able to recover materials that are now considered to be at the end of the cycle. Right now, by processing plastic products, it is possible to go from a bottle to a clothing item, but it is not possible to do the contrary. By isolating polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the most common thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and a one of the most used plastic, Gr3n will be able to recycle clothing items as well, among many more products. The project won the Innovation Radar Prize in 2018, and hopefully it will pave the way for larger investments in green technology. A better recycling system will reduce our dependence on oil benefitting the environment but also the economy. Because of the work of Conip, the national consortium of plastic packaging, every year Italy avoids buying over 770,000 barrels of oil and emitting around 148,000 tons of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Conip supports the idea of a circular economy and produces boxes for fruits and vegetables that are 100% made of recycled plastic and can be totally recycled once again when thrown away. A couple of days ago, the European Commissioner for the Environment, Karmenu Vella, complimented the project and the efforts the consortium is making to reach a closed circle system, a structure where producing is always anticipated by recycling. A scheme that allows to recycle plastic and use the recycled material at the top of the chain of production needs to be implemented to effectively undermine plastic pollution. Only by investing in green technology and recycling plants, the issue could efficiently be addressed. The facilities that are right now in Italy not only lack the technology to process all kinds of plastic but are simply not enough to take in all the plastic waste Italians produce. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/annalisagirardi/2019/02/15/can-our-individual-plastic-footprint-stop-the-ocean-of-waste-from-submerging-us/ |
Is Gavin Newsom Right to Slow Down Californias High-Speed Train? | During his first State of the State address, this week, Gavin Newsom, Californias newly sworn-in governor, covered immigration, energy, and water policy, but the remark that made the headlines was about the ghost of a long-promised train. Lets level about high-speed rail, Newsom said in the middle of his speech, in Sacramento, turning to the subject of a bullet train connecting San Francisco and Los Angeles. The current project, as planned, would cost too much and, respectfully, take too long. Instead, he proposed focussing on a shorter inland route, between Merced and Bakersfield, two small cities that, its fair to say, most coastal metropolitan Californians happily visit rarely or never. The news was received as a downer on par with the extinction of the space program. This country wont experience modern rail travel for another generationif ever, Fortune lamented on Wednesday, in an otherwise supportive editorial. On Twitter, the governor was compared with the Simpsons character Lyle Lanley, who absconded with the takings from a fraudulent monorail scheme. Finally, on Wednesday night, President Trump tweeted, apparently on behalf of the federal government, that he wanted back the money given for the train, which he referred to as a green disaster. Newsom, a wide-smiling Democrat whose mayorship of San Francisco steered the city toward its current profile, is presumed to have at least one eye on higher office. As it became clear how bracing his announcement had been, his staff, in interviews, walked back the stance. Despite the too much and too long language, a spokesman said, the governor wasnt putting the kibosh on a high-speed train linking Los Angeles and San Franciscohe just wanted to prioritize the shorter line for now. The distinction was semantic: a gubernatorial tenure is eight years, at most, and completing the full line will take longer. But it was also a gratuitous step back, because, as far as the S.F.-to-L.A. route goes, the governor was right. A high-speed train connecting the two cities first appeared as a proposition on the California ballot in 2008, under the governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger. The proposal, which was voted in, planned for a door-handle-shaped route, reaching down the San Francisco Peninsula, to Gilroy; darting inland, toward Merced; following the length of the Central Valley, just past Bakersfield; and then, at Palmdale, moving west again to Burbank, L.A., and Anaheim, along the southern coast. A second phase of the project would add inland legs on either end of the main Central Valley line: up to Sacramento; down through San Bernardino and the North County of San Diego. The system would comprise eight hundred miles in all. Predictably, the project became less ambitious as details of time and money appeared. A report on the rail plan by the Legislative Analysts Office, in 2016, warned that it was still unclear where tens of billions of dollars of required funding was supposed to come from and urged legislators to consider whether a shorter version of the route would be worthwhile if the money couldnt be produced. Another inquiry found that there wasnt nearly enough cash or consideration set aside for the many tunnels, suspensions, and other safety structures required for trains raging at more than a hundred miles per hour through the developed, densely populated regions of the coast. Even so, the project has enjoyed executive support. Schwarzenegger backed the plan, as did his successor, Jerry Brown, who, in 2014, apportioned cap-and-trade funds. The two versions of the Green New Deal that Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez confusingly unveiled last weekone official, the other turned out separately by her office and more pie-in-the-skyboth endorse high-speed rail as low-emissions transportation. (The unofficial version, now taken down, seemed to suggest that trains would replace airplanes nationwide.) Because the globe is confronting a climate crisis, environmental considerations must take policy precedence, and the agency responsible for Californias high-speed rail has made impressive projections: greenhouse-gas emissions reduced by twelve billion pounds per year, energy efficiency three times that of planes, reduced fossil-fuel dependency. But other analyses note that these gains would be scaled back somewhat by the countervailing disruptions of heavy construction, station traffic, and possible groundwater issuesand that systemic efficiency depends on ridership numbers, which are unknown. There is currently a direct train between the Bay Area and Los Angeles, called the Coast Starlightthe ride takes about twelve hours and costs around a hundred dollars. It is also possible to fly between the two cities, hourly throughout the day; the trip is around fifty minutes in the air, and a ticket can be less than a hundred dollars. In reasonable traffic, a car can expect to make the journey, which is roughly the distance from New York City to Brunswick, Maine, in six hours. There are direct buses, too. An S.F.-to-L.A. trip on the high-speed rail would fit amid these options. It is also supposed to cost around a hundred dollars one way and to take two hours and forty minutes, a comfortable length for people wanting to go from downtown to downtown on a schedule, without detouring through the airportin other words, for business people travelling between the states two growing centers of money and power. The High-Speed Rail Authority has produced varying ridership estimates; the highest, a hundred million a year, matches the usage of the Bay Areas most sprawling regional rail system, BART, which is busy with people making daily metropolitan commutes to work or to school. Its easy to imagine a San Franciscan family of four with two small kids preferring, over other possibilities, a three-hour train ride on Friday to visit Grandma in L.A. (Cost: something like seven hundred bucks round-trip, assuming theres a reduced child fare.) But its hard to imagine middle-class families making a commuter habit of such trips, especially given the not horribly longer journey possible for just the cost of a full gas tank. In practice, the S.F.-to-L.A. route would operate chiefly as a business train, for inter-city meeting-makers, executives bouncing between offices, multiple-home owners, and unmoored media types. (Disclosure: I would personally love this train.) Its an alternative connection for already well-connected people. Smart advocates of the plan, of which there are many, point to the success of high-speed rail elsewhere: in China, in Europe. Its worth noting, however, where such admirable trains actually go: on suburban and exurban routes, mostly, not metropolitan ones, the trains doing what air travel cannot. By trimming the high-speed rail of its upscale ends (for now), Newsom focussed the rail plan on the communities most underserved by current transit infrastructurea narrower-use case, but probably one that is more generous to the inland region. Largely agricultural and truly middle-class, the cities between Merced and Bakersfield make up a part of California that risks losing, rather than gaining, steam, especially as some conditions that support the agricultural economy fall away. A major infrastructure project would bring a fresh wave of middle-class workers to these affordable cities. Being the custodians of the states most advanced transit, too, would keep those cities on the map and weave an often-atomized agricultural community together. In a 2000 survey of the topic, Ted Bradshaw, a now-deceased professor at the University of California, Davis, who studied these inland communities, projected social bifurcation. Underskilled workers fail to find a place in the new economy and are increasingly bypassed, while workers from the high-technology urban centers are encouraged to relocate to the Valley, he wrote. While the potential for development is real and the possible benefits are great, these industries face stiff competition from the coastal regions in California. To the extent that California has challenges around inequality (and it does), they have tended to come from lite workers compounding their advantage, attracting similarly lite labor from elsewhere, and building a local economy that crowds out anyone who is not affluent or who has obstacles to opportunity access. Few people would really want Bakersfield or Fresno to be the new frontiers of cost refugeesmetropolitan workers who cant afford the cities or just want more bang for their buck. Even fewer would want these inland destinations themselves to become a true extension of the coastever more a zone of wealth and the enduring worm-jar competition of an lite class. Purely upscale cities, we are starting to realize, are tedious and sad. A high-speed rail tying the Valley to the coast will create a new channel for these business-class powers, and it wont be cheap. According to an analysis by the World Bank, the per-mile cost of building such a system in California is twice the comparable expense in Europe and three times the cost in China: we are paying top dollar for the privilege of emulation. Neither will it come soon. The rail connecting San Francisco and Los Angeles is expected be finished in 2033. By that point, autonomous vehicles, green in both power source and roadway efficiency, are expected to be in commercial usenot everywhere, one assumes, but almost certainly on the stretch of highway separating the headquarters of Uber, in San Francisco, and Space X, in L.A. Because autonomous cars are more predictable and more controlledin short, more train-likethere will be another costly push to streamline existing roadways to their habits. (They can use narrower lanes, for instance.) They also have the virtue, especially in spread-out California, of carrying passengers door to door. The United States is overdue for high-speed rail: it represents the standard we are trailing. But in zooming toward the future its important to remember whom were taking with us and whom is being left behind. | https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/is-gavin-newsom-right-to-slow-down-californias-high-speed-train |
Is It Finally Time to Buy Advanced Micro Devices? | Advanced Micro Devices' (AMD's) (NASDAQ: AMD) stock recently surged to its highest levels since early December after the chipmaker's fourth-quarter earnings report. The double-digit rally was surprising, since AMD's numbers and guidance were mixed. AMD's revenue rose 6% annually to $1.42 billion, which missed estimates by $20 million. Its non-GAAP net income rose more than tenfold to $87 million, or $0.08 per share, which met expectations. On a GAAP basis, AMD generated $38 million in net income, compared to a loss of $19 million a year earlier. A man paints a rising stock chart on a wall. More Image source: Getty Images. For the first quarter, AMD expects its revenue to fall 24% annually, compared to the consensus forecast for an 11% drop. AMD didn't provide any bottom-line guidance, but it should remain profitable by both GAAP and non-GAAP metrics as it gains $60 million in IP licensing revenues during the quarter. AMD's post-earnings rally was likely sparked by three things: its consistent profitability, which led to its most profitable year since 2011; low expectations after Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) and NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) posted weak numbers; and shorts covering their positions (14% of the float was being shorted on Jan. 25). However, AMD still remains well below its 52-week high of $34. The key numbers AMD splits its business into two core segments: computing and graphics, which sells its Ryzen x86 CPUs and Radeon GPUs, and EESC (enterprise, embedded, and semi-custom) chips, which include SoCs (system on chips) for gaming consoles like the PS4 and Xbox One and its Epyc data center chips. Here's how those two businesses fared last quarter. Segment Q4 2018 Revenue Sequential Growth Annual Growth Computing and graphics $986 million 5% 9% EESC $443 million (39%) 0% Source: AMD Q4 earnings report. AMD attributed the steady growth of its computing and graphics business to robust sales of its Ryzen CPUs, which gained market share against Intel's CPUs for five straight quarters. That strength offset the softer sales of AMD's Radeon GPUs, which were impacted by the downturn in cryptocurrency prices. The EESC business was weighed down by seasonally lower demand for gaming consoles and the absence of IP-related revenues, which offset its "significant growth" in its Epyc data center revenues. That growth notably contradicted Intel and NVIDIA's recent warnings about decelerating data center chip sales. | https://news.yahoo.com/finally-time-buy-advanced-micro-010000312.html |
Will Gilead (GILD) Q4 Earnings Disappoint on Weak HCV Sales? | Biotech major Gilead Sciences Inc. GILD is scheduled to report fourth quarter and full-year results on Feb 4, after the market closes. Gilead has a decent track record, with the companys earnings beating estimates in three of the last four quarters. In the last reported quarter, the companys earnings beat expectations by 10.8%. Overall, the company delivered average positive earnings surprise of 6.99%. Gileads stock has declined 8.8% in the last six months, against the industry's decline of 14.1%. Factors in Play Along with third-quarter results, Gilead updated its annual guidance. Gilead expects net product sales of $20.8-$21.3 billion in 2018 compared with the earlier estimate of $20-$21 billion. Adjusted R&D and adjusted SG&A expenses are projected to be $3.4-$3.6 billion and $3.4-$3.6 billion, respectively. Adjusted product gross margin is expected to be 85-87%. While Gileads third-quarter results beat estimates, the year-over-year decline was disappointing as the magnitude of decline in hepatitis C virus (HCV) sales continues to deepen. The franchise suffered a significant plunge in sales due to new competition and fewer patient starts. HCV revenues are projected to decline further and will constitute a smaller portion of the top line. Gileads HCV drug, Harvoni has been approved in China. Nevertheless, the HIV franchise is expected to maintain momentum. Strong HIV performance and other antiviral product sales are being driven by continued uptake of tenofovir alafenamide (TAF) based products Genvoya, Descovy and Odefsey. We expect the trend to continue in the third quarter. Genvoya has been listed as a preferred regimen in several HIV treatment guidelines. Truvada, for use in the pre-exposure prophylaxis setting, continued the momentum with an estimated 193,000 patients using the drug by the end of the third quarter. The China National Drug Administration has approved Genvoya for the treatment of HIV-1 infection. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for sales of Genvoya is $1.2 billion. HIV is one of the primary areas of focus for Gilead and the company is working to bringnew HIV treatments to market to further boost sales of the franchise. The company received a major boost when the FDA approved its once-daily single tablet regimen (STR), Biktarvy (bictegravir 50mg/emtricitabine 200mg/tenofovir alafenamide 25mg, BIC/FTC/TAF) for HIV-1 infection. The approval in Europe has boosted sales further. Gilead currently expects Biktarvy to overtake Genvoya as the most successful launch in HIV history. In March, Biktarvy was added as one of the recommended initial regimens to the U.S. DHHS guidelines for the use of antiretroviral agents in adults and adolescents living with HIV. In December 2018, the board of directors appointed Daniel ODay as the companys chairman and CEO. Apart from the regular top and bottom-line numbers, we expect investors to focus on pipeline updates. Gilead intends to foray into the non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and inflammation market with late-stage candidates, selonsertib and filgotinib, respectively. Both the candidates are being evaluated in late-stage studies and a tentative approval will diversify Gileads portfolio. Earlier this month, Gilead announced that it entered into a licensing and collaboration agreement with South Korea-based Yuhan Corporation to co-develop novel therapeutic candidates for the treatment of patients suffering from advanced fibrosis due to NASH. In December 2018, Gilead entered into a deal with Agenus AGEN to develop and commercialize up to five immuno-oncology (I-O) therapies. | https://news.yahoo.com/gilead-gild-q4-earnings-disappoint-001812282.html |
Which injured players could return soon for beat-up Arizona Coyotes? | Its been more than week since the Coyotes skated together as a group, and the team looked a bit different during Thursdays practice at the Ice Den Scottsdale. Other than Conor Garland showing up with a significant haircut and the newly clean-shaven Alex Galchenyuk, the biggest visible change was the presence of center Christian Dvorak, who has been sidelined since preseason and has been rehabbing a torn pectoral. Granted, Dvorak was skating with a yellow, non-contact sweater, but it was still the first time Dvorak has skated in an organized practice with his peers since the injury. Arizona Coyotes' Christian Dvorak (18) takes a pass in front of Carolina Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward (30) during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Thursday, March 22, 2018. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome) (Photo: Gerry Broome, AP) Hes going to be practicing full-time soon with us, Coyotes head coach Rick Tocchet said of Dvorak. I dont know the time frame but obviously hes non-contact now but eventually itll be (contact) drills. Dvorak, 22, was signed to a six-year contract extension in preseason after tallying 37 points (15 goals, 22 assists) as the teams primary third-line center last season. The Coyotes are struggling at the center position right now. They are without Nick Schmaltz (knee; out for season), Brad Richardson (hand; week-to-week) and Dvorak. But it appears reinforcements could be on the way. It should be noted that Dvorak likely will need significant practice time to get into game shape. As a player with only two seasons of NHL experience under his belt, coupled with the fact that he did not receive a full training camp and has missed the first four months of the season, it wont be an easy task for Dvorak to get ready. Still, its a good sign for the Coyotes to see that process starting. Its tough with no training camp and him being out this long, Tocchet said. But Dvo (Dvorak) is the type of guy that is a two-way guy and plays a 200-foot game. Especially when you come back in that situation, the pace is going to be fast. We all see it where you have to play a simple game out there. Whether or not we get him a game down in Tucson, we havent decided that yet. Coyotes captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson was a full participant at Thursdays practice and will travel with the team for their game against the San Jose Sharks on Saturday. Ekman-Larsson suffered a lower-body injury on Jan. 22 in Toronto. Coyotes' Oliver Ekman-Larsson (23) comes off the ice after an injury against the Rangers during the first period at Gila River Arena in Glendale, Ariz. on January 6, 2019. (Photo: Patrick Breen/The Republic) Ekman-Larsson, who is second on the team with 26 points, was skating on his usual defense pair with Niklas Hjalmarsson and seemed to be getting along fine. The Coyotes will evaluate him before their flight on Friday before deciding his status for Saturday. Hes still sore but he went through a 50-minute practice and I thought he skated well, Tocchet said of Ekman-Larsson. We were a little nervous, obviously, last week but weve been getting good news. Whether he plays, Im not quite sure yet. Here are some other updates from Tocchet on injured Coyotes players, all of whom have been skating on their own as they rehab their respective injuries: Jason Demers: "I hate to say ahead of schedule, but Demers is doing a really nice job on his rehab (from knee surgery) and is skating really well out there." Brad Richardson: "'Richie' has been skating really hard. I think he's getting his hand X-rayed or scanned to see where that's at." Michael Grabner: "We've eventually got to get him into some practices. He needs people in front of his eyes, but he's in great shape. That's the one thing with 'Grabs' is he's in great shape. Vision is another thing ... and that's going to be the test for him." Coyotes open up for 'Yotes Talk' The Coyotes announced Thursday that they will hold "Yotes Talk" night on Feb. 7 as part of an NHL initiative to encourage conversation about mental health. The event is part of the "Hockey Talks" initiative backed by the NHL and several of its member organizations. It will take place during the Coyotes' game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Feb. 7 at Gila River Arena. The Coyotes are encouraging fans to join the conversation by using the hashtag "#YotesTalk" as the Coyotes try to raise money for mental health initiatives. Coyotes defenseman Jakob Chychrun, who is involved with The New Foundation in Scottsdale, has also pledged to donate six cents to the foundation for each retweet of his personal mental health video on Twitter. Fans can learn more below. READ MORE: No matter what you are going through, we want you to know that you are never alone. For every retweet of this video message @j_chychrun7 will donate 6 cents to The New Foundation (@TNFAZ) to help Arizona youth who are struggling with mental health issues. #YotesTalk#DIFDpic.twitter.com/0Eujj7eyz9 Arizona Coyotes (@ArizonaCoyotes) January 31, 2019 Richard Morin covers the Coyotes and Diamondbacks for azcentral sports. He can be reached at [email protected] and by phone at 480-316-2493. Follow him on Twitter @ramorin_azc. | https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/nhl/coyotes/2019/01/31/arizona-coyotes-injured-players-could-return-soon/2738401002/ |
Has The End Come For the Airbus A380, Not With A Bang, But With A Whimper? | The Airbus A380 has always been something of a star-crossed aircraft. The giant 4-engined plane, capable of flying 9000 miles while carrying 555 passengers (or more, depending on configuration) entered service in 2007. Planning and development for the A380 began in the 1990s and reportedly cost some $25 billion. Although popular with customers, particularly those able to afford its often-outrageous First Class accommodations with showers and beds, the aircraft has been a perpetual money-loser for Airbus. When the plane was introduced in 2005, the company projected sales of 1200 of the giant craft. But Airbus has been unable to interest a single American carrier in the plane, and just a handful have gone to rising air travel giant China. Only 234 aircraft have been delivered, out of just 331 confirmed orders for the $465 million plane. Now, it appears that some of the most crucial of those orders may have suddenly become un-confirmed. Emirates may ask that their latest order for twenty A380 aircraft instead be fulfilled with Airbus A350 aircraft, according to both Bloomberg and Reuters. That decision could sound the final death knell for the struggling A380. The order in question arrived a year ago, after protracted negotiations between Airbus and Emirates, its best customer for the A380. Emirates agreed to take 20 more A380 aircraft from Airbus, with an option for an additional 16. At the time, the hard-won $16 billion order was seen as a lifeline for the troubled A380 program. The Emirates order would allow the production line to remain open through 2030, providing employment for more than 3000 people. Emirates has taken delivery of 109 A380s, nearly half of the 234 built, since the plane entered its service in 2008. Emirates President Tim Clark is an outspoken fan of the aircraft. The high-capacity planes have played a critical role in the development of Dubai Airport (DXB), Emirates home base. Dubai, which last year handled 89.1 million people, has become the world's busiest airport by international passenger traffic. But even Emirates is not immune to the economic tremors shaking the airline industry. Today, when seeking a long-haul solution, most airlines focus on fuel-efficient, long-range twin-jet aircraft such as the 314-seat Boeing 777 and Airbus own A350 (250-300 seats), rather than the inefficient four-engine A380, which can also be difficult to fill with passengers. An A350 variant, the long-range Airbus A350-900ULR, now handles the worlds longest flight for Singapore Airlines, the 9500-mile, 19-hour jaunt between Singapore and New York City. In addition to the pull of smaller, more efficient aircraft, Emirates may have also felt a push from frustrating A380 engine issues. Rolls-Royce, the current primary engine manufacturer, has reportedly not met Emirates performance or fuel economy standards for the plane. Reuters notes that Rolls continues to owe the Dubai carrier penalties for underperformance on Trent 900 engines already in its A380 fleet. Meanwhile, Rolls Royce competitors like Engine Alliance (GE plus Pratt & Whitney) are said to be reluctant to invest in competitive engines for what may be an aircraft reaching the end of its manufacturing life. Although ANA is taking reservations for flights from Tokyo to Hawaii on its new A380 aircraft, many other airlines appear to be going in the opposite direction. Air France is considering dumping half of its 10-aircraft A380 fleet, and a pair of A380s once used by Singapore have found no takers, leading the leasing company to break them up for scrap. Both the non-existent secondary market for used A380s and the lack of a cargo version (a product that keeps the A380s aged competitor, the747, in production) are danger signs for the A380s continued survival. If Emirates does decide to dump its last A380 order, it is widely believed that this would cause Airbus to end production after existing orders were fulfilled. Without the twenty new Emirates aircraft, the production line is untenable, a senior industry source told Reuters. Ironically, Airbus has fought to keep the production line open, hoping that increased airport congestion and lack of new gates would make the A380s massive passenger capability attractive to more airlines. On the other hand, the end of the A380 might free up Airbus manufacturing capacity that could be used for more popular models, such as the many A321 variants and the A350. Airbus, Emirates, and Rolls-Royce are reportedly continuing discussions about the A380 contract. One way or another, Reuters speculates that outgoing Airbus Chief Executive Tom Enders will seek to resolve the A380 situation before his upcoming April departure. But resolution is in short supply when it comes to the A380. The continuing soap opera (call it As the A380 Turns) has kept the aviation world on the edge of its seat since before 2000. Thats when Airbus made the fateful decision to build a superjumbo aircraft to fly to world hub airports, in what turned out to be a point-to-point world. The birth of the A380 has been studied in Harvard Business School and as an example of game theory. While an autopsy for the A380 has been predicted for years, the planes have nonetheless safely carried almost 200 million passengers. Airbus calls the A380 an experience to remember. And whatever Emirates and Airbus ultimately decide, the giant plane will still grace the world's airports for many years to come. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelgoldstein/2019/01/31/has-the-end-come-for-the-airbus-a380-not-with-a-bang-but-with-a-whimper/ |
Could Chinese Telecom Giant Huawei Put U.S. Cyber-Security At Risk? | TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross. There's good news about the future of the Internet. A new 5G network is being created now, which will not only offer faster downloading on cell phones. It will provide the kind of connectivity we need in the era of the Internet of Things - driverless cars, Internet-connected medical devices, smart TVs and virtual assistants. But there are dangers that could be lurking in the equipment needed to build the new network. The Chinese telecommunications equipment giant Huawei is dominating the creation of 5G networks around the world. For years, classified intelligence reports from the U.S. have warned that China would one day use Huawei to penetrate American networks for cyber-espionage or cyberattacks. In the U.S., the National Security Agency has banned AT&T and Verizon from using Huawei products in America's 5G network. And last month, the U.S. had a top executive from Huawei arrested in Canada so she could be extradited to the U.S. The growing cyberthreat posed by China was stressed in the Worldwide Threat Assessment - a report from the U.S. intelligence community - that was released this week. And all this is part of the backdrop for this week's trade negotiations between the U.S. and China. My guest David Sanger is the author of a book about cyberwar and cyber-sabotage called "The Perfect Weapon." He's a national security correspondent for The New York Times. David Sanger, welcome back to FRESH AIR. Let's start with the 5G network. DAVID SANGER: Well, at its simplest, the 5G network is an increase in speed and range for what you see on your cell phone. So 5G means just fifth generation. But it's actually much more than that. The hope is that when you're using your phone or some other device over Wi-Fi, you'll get no lag time and that you'll get near instantaneous download of data, webpages and so forth. But as 5G was being rolled out, there was a recognition that the Internet had fundamentally changed, that this was a moment to roll out something that could accommodate a world in which the Internet of Things was connecting up to all of these other wireless devices. And so that's autonomous cars, which, of course, need to constantly get data back and forth from the cloud, constant connectivity so that they know where they are in addition to their sensors helping you drive. It's for every other Internet-connected device that you have. And, you know, when you think about it, Terry, it was just about 10 years ago that in your own house, you probably only had one or two Internet-connected devices - a laptop computer and a desktop computer, maybe. But today you walk into your house and, you know, you've got your Fitbit. And you're waking up Alexa and getting it to play you music. And you've got a smart TV. And you probably have an Internet-connected car parked outside. Even if it isn't a fancy car, most basic cars have some Internet connectivity to them. You might have an Internet-connected refrigerator. You have all of these different devices. And right now worldwide - at the end of last year, we think that there were about 14 billion Internet of Things devices around the world. And by the end of next year, 2020, the estimate is there will be 20 billion. So that gives you a sense of how rapidly we're changing the environment. And the next network has to be able to handle all of that and, of course, handle the GPS needs for navigation, handle greater government and military needs. So this next 5G network is more than just something that'll make your phone faster. It's actually going to be the central nervous system, the backbone of the next generation of the Internet. GROSS: And that's exactly the concern about the Chinese telecom giant Huawei because they're building some of these 5G networks around the world. SANGER: Well, the first thing about Huawei is that while most Americans haven't come in direct contact with it because Huawei phones are not sold that widely in the United States, they are sold nearly universally when you're in Asia and very widely in Europe, in Africa, in Latin America. In fact, at the end of last year, Huawei actually just edged out Apple as the second-largest provider of cell phones in the world. The only one ahead of it is Samsung. But the other part of their business and the part that we really worry about the most is the construction of the giant switches that make up these 5G networks. Now, in the old days of switching, you would think of switches as big, physical devices. What's happened and what is particularly notable about 5G is that the network itself, while it has some hardware to it and, obviously, there are cell phone towers and sort of a radio part of it, the switches are almost entirely software. And they constantly reconfigure themselves. And they are enormously complex. So the old days of doing what the defense department and the National Security Agency and others used to do - which is take a piece of foreign equipment, put it in a laboratory, poke around it, try to figure out if there are flaws or back doors or something that could help an adversary - that's virtually impossible to do when the product is an ever-evolving piece of software. It gets updated as often as your iPhone gets updated when you have it sitting on your bedside table and Apple sends a new, updated operating system to it overnight. So that's what will happen with this 5G network. The concern is that for the first time in our history, we would be reliant on a foreign manufacturer - in this case, a foreign manufacturer of a potential adversary that's also the world's second largest economy - building the highway, backbone, central nervous system of a system that we rely on for everything from our financial transactions to our - many of our military operations to, of course, our communications. GROSS: So describe some more of the kind of trouble that China could create with Huawei building 5G networks in countries around the world where China is becoming increasingly powerful. SANGER: If China is in command of the network itself and has sort of end end control from phones for which it makes its own chips to the software on the switch to all of the other tentacles of the central nervous system, that it, basically, can do whatever it wants. And the chances that you would see it are relatively diminished. Big network operators like AT&T and Verizon, if they bought Huawei equipment - and it's pretty clear the government is not going to allow them to do that - would have some visibility into the system. But it's also possible that Huawei might be able to reach back from China directly into the equipment and software it's put in to go manipulate data. Well, in the Worldwide Threat Assessment that came out earlier this week, the nation's intelligence chiefs mentioned, in particular, that China already has the capability to shut down, at least briefly, the natural gas network. They also said the Russians could do the same briefly with the electric grid. If you had a country that was in full control of your networks, they could shut it down. They could siphon the traffic off to a place you didn't want it to go. They could siphon it back to China. And they would probably have a easier time intercepting it. Now, of course, a lot of that traffic is going to run encrypted. It's not as if the Chinese would be able to look at everything or would want to. But the more network equipment they put in, the more control they would have. And, of course, the Chinese government reserves the right to tell them what to go do with it. SANGER: Not anything notable in the United States now - there were a number of classified meetings that took place between the intelligence agencies, the executives of the big telecom firms - AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, so forth. And there was a lot of discussion about letting - whether or not to let Huawei bid on the construction of some parts of this 5G network as they are doing around the world. And, in fact, some of the telecom companies argued to Congress and to the intelligence agencies that it would make sense to let Huawei bid. And the reason is that if they wanted to bid, they would have to provide their software, their equipment to a test facility in the United States. And the National Security Agency, which is the nation's largest electronic spy agency, and the telecom providers would all be able to crawl around in that software and see if there were any backdoors, see how it was designed. But in the end, the intelligence community didn't even want to take that risk. GROSS: The founder of Huawei is a former engineer with the People's Liberation Army in China, and some people think he's still connected to the People's Liberation Army. And some people also argue that private companies like Huawei are still under the control of Chinese - of China's authoritarian government. SANGER: Well, the founder who you're describing, Ren Zhengfei, is, as you said, a former PLA officer. He then, when he left the PLA, built Huawei initially in the - wiring up the rural parts of China. And he's become obviously one of the most powerful businessmen in China. He's a member of the Communist Party. He's enormously influential there. He has insisted that the Chinese military, the PLA, which has done much of the hacking against the United States, has no role in his company and no continuing control. I've never found any evidence that the United States could prove that the PLA has operative control over Huawei. And of course, Mr. Zheng (ph) has denied it. Now, that issue consumed the U.S. government for years and years until about two years ago when the Chinese government issued a new set of laws under President Xi, Xi Jinping, that basically said any Chinese company - but particularly the telecom companies - would have to participate in Chinese intelligence operations if they are so instructed, that they would have to turn over data that they had. It's not clear, of course, in China what the legal process would be. And so now people say to me, you know, it doesn't make any difference, David, whether or not the PLA has control over Huawei because the law means that the Chinese government has turned the company into its agent. GROSS: Well, let's take a short break here, and then we'll talk some more. If you're just joining us, my guest is David Sanger. He's a national security correspondent for The New York Times, and his latest book is called "The Perfect Weapon: War, Sabotage, And Fear In The Cyber Age." We'll be right back. This is FRESH AIR. (SOUNDBITE OF ALEXANDRE DESPLAT'S "SPY MEETING") GROSS: This is FRESH AIR. Let's get back to my interview with David Sanger, a national security correspondent for The New York Times. We're talking about the 5G network that is being created now and will soon become the central nervous system of the Internet. The Chinese telecom equipment giant Huawei is dominating the creation of 5G networks around the world. For years, classified U.S. intelligence reports have warned that China would one day use Huawei to penetrate American networks for cyber espionage or cyberattacks. So we were talking about the founder of Huawei and his connections to the Chinese military and Huawei's connections to the Chinese government. The founder of Huawei - his daughter was arrested in Canada at the request of the U.S. and indicted last week. SANGER: Well, the first thing we know about the daughter is, in her own right, she's a very powerful figure within Huawei. She's the chief financial officer. But she's also been the architect of a lot of Huawei's spread around the world. When she was arrested in Canada in December at the request of the United States, it was not for any charges that Huawei had participated in espionage against the U.S. It was not for - on any charges that it had participated in cyberattacks on the United States. Instead, it was based on a charge that she had been behind a giant fraud in which Huawei used a cut-out company to violate the sanctions that the United States had against Iran and that this company was in fact a Huawei - secretly a Huawei subsidiary and was doing business with Iran in violation of those sanctions. So the U.S. is using the Iran sanctions violation to go after the company. Now, the other interesting part about this is that President Trump at one point in December after she was arrested but before she was indicted publicly mused about the fact that he might trade her away in the course of the trade negotiations. Thus the president was politicizing what until then had been a legal action going through normal legal channels. And one of the interesting questions is whether the Canadians are going to extradite her because there have been several Canadians now arrested in China so that they have counter-hostages. And it's possible that the Canadians may determine that this case is more political than criminal. GROSS: President Trump has said that he knows more about technology than anyone. SANGER: Well, I have a couple of concerns. The first is the president's mind turns, as he has said himself many times, to things you can build. And so issues around software networks and so forth just don't come naturally to him. He hasn't shown much of an inclination to learn about it during the time he's president according to people who used to be in the administration, including in the national security field. The president has a somewhat hazy understanding about the risks of cyber-escalation. So when you think about our cyber-risk, one concern is one we've discussed already today, which is surveillance. Basically, you can use these networks to steal data. That's the problem of deep fakes. Something that would look like a politician was speaking, but it wasn't really the words coming out of his mouth. It's been faked. It could be substituting numbers and financial transactions. It could be substituting the targeting information in nuclear or non-nuclear weapons. It could be changing the blood types of every soldier and sailor in the United States if you got into the databases of the military. So there's data manipulation that's a concern. And if any country that had access to the networks, you would worry about that. And then the third is cyberattack, and that is that if we went to war or were conducting covert operations, every country in the world now has cyber in its battle plans, and usually in the first 24 hours of its battle plans. In "The Perfect Weapon," I describe a plan the United States had if we went to war with Iran, called Nitro Zeus, to basically unplug Iran's communications and electricity grids. Well, imagine that that's in the Chinese plans for the United States. If they're in control of the communications grid of the U.S. or its allies, you can imagine how much easier that is to do. Now, there is a concern here that we could get into a world of Red Scare, and the president himself might be fueling that some. And I have concerns that we're blaming too much on the Chinese. But the fact of the matter is, these are all major, complex vulnerabilities that, as Henry Kissinger said to me as I was working on the book, are so much more complex than the issues that came up with China in the Cold War. GROSS: And you're concerned that our president doesn't really comprehend those issues and therefore can't adequately address them. SANGER: That's right. And, you know, there are escalation issues here, as well. I mean, there's still a big debate in the United States government about how you respond to a cyberattack. When the Chinese got into Google and other companies in 2009, there were Google engineers who wanted to retaliate directly against the servers where the attack was coming from. Fortunately, they were stopped. And then they would escalate. So you get all the same kind of escalation issues that we worried about in the nuclear age, but you get them in this technology world in which shutting down or diverting data becomes your new weapon. And we don't really understand that escalatory response. Now, the president, in August of last year, issued a new classified order to the National Security Agency that basically gave the director of the National Security Agency more leeway to go respond to offensive cyberactions and to initiate some without presidential approval. But still we don't understand who's in control of the escalation. GROSS: My guest is David Sanger, a national security correspondent for The New York Times who is also the author of the book, "The Perfect Weapon," about cyberwar and cyber-espionage. We'll talk more after we take a short break. And our jazz critic Kevin Whitehead will review a reissue featuring pianist Oscar Peterson and a studio orchestra playing 1960s pop covers. This is FRESH AIR. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) GROSS: This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross. Let's get back to my interview with David Sanger, a national security correspondent for The New York Times and author of "The Perfect Weapon: War, Sabotage, And Fear In The Cyber Age." We're talking about the new 5G network that will soon become the central nervous system of the Internet, providing faster speeds and greater interconnectivity for the era we're entering where nearly everything, from cars to medical devices, connects to the Internet. The Chinese telecom equipment giant Huawei is dominating the creation of 5G networks around the world. For years, classified U.S. intelligence reports have warned that China would one day use Huawei to penetrate American networks for cyber-espionage or cyberattacks. The Worldwide Threat Assessment that was released by intelligence agencies this week said that there's a growing cyberthreat from Russia and China, and that Russia and China are now more aligned than at any point since the mid-1950s. SANGER: Well, it was a fascinating assertion that they made, And I think it was accurate. We have not seen Russia and China cooperate this way since the mid-'50s. And, of course, China only came into being as the People's Republic in 1949. So it was very early in its history, and it was an extremely poor country. It's worth remembering today that Russia and China have very different objectives. Russia's main objective is one of disruption. It does not have much economic power. Its economy is basically the size of Italy's. It does not have the ability to go build these networks. It does not have much economic power. Its economy is basically the size of Italy's. It does not have the ability to go build these networks around the world the way China is doing. It does not have the technology to do it, but it can be a huge disruptor. And of course, we saw them act to disrupt networks and voting systems in Ukraine. We saw their interference in the 2016 election here in the United States, and we've seen them take cyber action elsewhere in the world. We've seen their submarines go out and track where the fiber optic cables are laid around the world. They're only, you know, less than 200 major fiber optic undersea cables. And the Russians have the ability to cut those cables deep undersea. That would be a huge disruption. That could black out communications in the United States. So that's the Russian side. The Chinese have a much different set of objectives. If the world gets disrupted, no one's going to suffer more than they will because their economy is so interdependent with ours and with other major economies around the world. So they're less likely to disrupt, but they're much more likely to want control and subtle ability to divert traffic in those networks. And that's the concern about Huawei. SANGER: Well, the new formula is a diminished role for the United States. That's part of the concern about the degree to which we have alienated our allies. And this issue about Huawei intersects with the alienation of the allies very closely because what's going on now is the United States is going around the world to allies and say, hey, we're living in a new world. The Russians and the Chinese are cooperating more than we've ever seen. We're trying to keep everybody from spinning into a new form of a cold war - Cold War 2.0. And while the Russians and the Chinese have very different strategic objectives, there may be moments - there will be moments when they will have a common objective in diminishing the power of the United States. That's the one area where they both have great common interests. And so it's important that the United States be able to go work with its allies to figure out how you both contain this threat and respond to it, but also how you retain control of your own networks. So what the U.S. is doing right now is it's going around to its allies, particularly the NATO allies, and saying, don't build Huawei into your systems. And there's some urgency to this because the big decisions about contracts to build the 5G networks will be made in the next six months or so. The U.S. has been in Poland, where they have rather unsubtly suggested that if the Poles really want a new, small military - American military base in Poland - it's been referred to sort of informally as Fort Trump by the Polish leadership - they better build a network that does not use Huawei. There's been pressure on the Canadians, the British. And of course, in Latin America and in Africa, the Chinese have been mounting their own counteroffensive where they're coming in offering very low-cost building of the networks, frequently with Chinese government loans to go do it. It's a lot like what the United States did in the 1950s and '60s when we tried to use our foreign aid to go build up close allies by building up their technology and their industry. But now the Chinese are doing it, and they're doing it with the networking technology. GROSS: So our unilateral approach to world affairs, our alienation of our allies is really working against us when it comes to this new technological era of the 5G network. SANGER: You know, Terry, the most interesting observation in that worldwide threat assessment was the assertion that the unilateralism of the United States - they didn't use the phrase America first, but they could've - has made American allies and partners - meaning people who were not necessarily full allies - reassess their relationship with the U.S. and look for power relationships and protection elsewhere. And of course, that means they're looking mostly to the Chinese because they're the only other ones who have a market big enough and have an economy big enough to actually be of significant help to them. You've seen this happen in the Philippines - a country that used to be, at one point, an American colony - where the leadership of the Philippines, a great American ally, is getting closer and closer to the Chinese leadership. You're seeing it happen to some degree in South Korea where - by the way, in Seoul, Huawei was a big player in the competition to rebuild the cell network for Seoul, which is used by American forces who are based around Seoul. You're seeing this happen throughout Africa, where the United States has put a whole lot less money into rebuilding infrastructure, helping countries along than the Chinese have. GROSS: Some of the things you've described about China's capabilities of spying on us and hacking data and interfering with cyberwar, even - I mean, that's - it's some pretty terrifying stuff. At the same time, the U.S. has done similar things to China and other countries. SANGER: Terry, Shotgiant was a National Security Agency operation that happened around 2010. We know about it because some of the details were leaked out in the Snowden documents. It was an effort by the NSA to do to Huawei exactly what we have accused Huawei of doing to us, which is breaking into networks, figuring out how they operate and setting ourselves up to either steal information from those networks or cripple them in the future. It got into Huawei's corporate systems in Shenzhen, the Chinese industrial city. It looked for any evidence that the Chinese PLA was actually secretly controlling the company - doesn't appear they found any. It looked to understand how Huawei's equipment operated, how the software worked so that if Huawei sold a network switching system to an American adversary - say, Venezuela or Cuba or someplace that clearly wouldn't buy American equipment - then the NSA would have an easier time breaking into that equipment. The - this is not unusual. This is what the United States government created the NSA to go do. This is the kind of offensive cyber activity that the NSA conducts not only against China but against Russia, Iran, North Korea and so forth. But what it gets at - and the Chinese use it for these purposes - is that the United States is not above any of these kind of network manipulation issues that we've been worrying about in regard to Huawei. We do it ourselves. - because they make the argument that the NSA is going to get into an American-built network or a network in Europe. And, certainly, the Snowden docs are full of examples of cases where we have done that. SANGER: Well, let's take a short break here. And then we'll talk some more. If you're just joining us, my guest is David Sanger. He's a national security correspondent for The New York Times. And his latest book is called "The Perfect Weapon: War, Sabotage And Fear In The Cyber Age." We'll be right back. This is FRESH AIR. (SOUNDBITE OF AMANDA GARDIER'S "FJORD") GROSS: This is FRESH AIR. Let's get back to my interview with David Sanger, a national security correspondent for The New York Times. We've been talking about how the deep involvement of the Chinese telecom equipment giant Huawei in the development of the new 5G network in many countries could threaten our cybersecurity. If you're negotiating an arms control deal, there are ways that you can verify or come close to verifying whether a nuclear program is continuing, how many weapons the country has, where they're being stored. You can have inspectors go to observe facilities that you know exist. When it comes to, like, cyber issues, it's so much harder to verify what's going on. SANGER: Terry, you've raised the fundamental question that has been haunting us in the cyber age. And it's one of the reasons I went to write "The Perfect Weapon" because this is so much more of a vexing problem than we had in the days of the 1950s, when we had nuclear weapons, the Russians did and the Chinese were about to. They first got theirs in the 1960s. You could do treaties in the nuclear age because there was a very limited number of players. First, it was just us and the Soviets, then the Chinese, of course, some other NATO players, later on, Israel, India, Pakistan. And you can count the weapons. And more importantly, you can count missiles. You can send inspectors just as you described. None of this is true in the cyber age. In the cyber age, the aggressor could be a state - might be Russia or China or Iran or North Korea. But it could be a criminal group. It could be a terrorist group. It could be teenagers. So the first problem is there's just too many players. The second is the technology is so inexpensive. This is what makes it the perfect weapon because it's so cheap that you don't need to be a China or a Russia to play in the cyber arena. By my count, there are probably around 35 countries today that have sophisticated cybercapability and could mount a sophisticated cyberattack, not just a denial of service attack that turned out the lights but something more sophisticated. So treaties will not work here. Well, there are a lot of other ideas. But most of them circulate around codes of conduct - a sort of digital Geneva Convention. And it's an interesting concept because the real Geneva Conventions were not created by governments. The Geneva Convention meetings were organized by the Red Cross. And the idea was to protect civilians. So if you and I, Terry, were trying to come up with a list of things to protect, I think we'd probably sit down and say, OK. Electric grid should be off-limits because if you turn those off, you hurt the most vulnerable people. Communication systems and especially emergency communications - and that's where Huawei intersects with this. You'd want those to be off-limits from cyberattack. You'd probably want election systems to be off-limits. So I could imagine a digital Geneva Convention in which you gathered countries together and they agree to this. And it's not enforceable or inspectable, but you're beginning to set some global standards. One of the difficulties with this idea - even though I think it's sort of the best of the bad ideas that are out there - is that I'm not sure the United States would sign on to that. After all, we had a plan - Nitro Zeus - to turn off all the power in Iran if we got into a conflict with them. So I don't even think the U.S. would sign on to this. GROSS: You know, the power equation, when it comes to cyber, has really changed because there was a period when the U.S. was the kind of ruler of cyberweapons and cyber potential. And that's just, like, no longer true. So if we do anything like that, there will be a cyber-counterattack and vice versa. So the stakes are really higher than they've ever been, I think. SANGER: And our control of the technology, as you point out, is less than it's ever been. Look. The Internet was first invented in the United States - you know, the ARPANET - what became the Internet later on - only 35 years ago. And then, of course, it's Silicon Valley companies that have dominated the technology that's come out of that. That era is ending, just as the era in which Britain and Portugal and a few other major naval powers could rule the world because they had the best. That era is ending, just as the era in which Britain and Portugal and a few other major naval powers could rule the world because they had the best ships. And we're not going to get this back. It's not as if we're going to go back to an era when we were the ones who dominated all of this technology. And now, for the first time in our modern history, we are facing a peer adversary in China that has an economy that will sooner or later overtake the United States in size and that is investing heavily in the major technologies on which 5G will allow big progress - artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles, quantum computing. And, you know, you go into that worldwide threat assessment, I thought one of the most interesting points on it was that our absence of big strategy in many of these technologies is allowing adversaries to close the gap very quickly. Now, if you wanted to declare a national emergency about something, that threat assessment would suggest that's the issue on which the president might want to go declare a national emergency and come up with a strategy, rather than just focusing on the wall. SANGER: You know, there were, Terry. I thought that the president got off to a pretty good start on this. He hired a homeland security adviser, Tom Bossert, who had had some fairly good experience in cyber issues in the Bush administration and had spent time on it when he was out of office. There was also a White House coordinator for cyber issues, a man named Rob Joyce, who had spent his entire career at the National Security Agency. And he ran something called the Tailored Access Operations unit. That's sort of the special forces of the NSA that breaks into foreign computing systems. And the job of the White House cybersecurity coordinator was to try to bring together all of these complex defensive and offensive issues and the policy issues together. They were focused on it. John Bolton came in in the spring as the new national security adviser after the firing of H.R. McMaster. Mr. Bolton, in his first week, got rid of the homeland security adviser, Tom Bossert, and replaced him with a Coast Guard admiral who is, by his own admission, not very familiar with cyber issues. Then Mr. Bolton eliminated the position of cybersecurity coordinator. I guess he must have concluded we were over-coordinated in this government, I suspect because he didn't like the fact that the cybersecurity coordinator had a sort of direct line to the president. In eliminating the position, he has downgraded the number of people within the White House who deal with this. And it doesn't seem to me that the policy is being debated at the level at which it needs to be or coordinated between the Pentagon, the NSA, the Department of Homeland Security, the Commerce Department and so many others who need to work on this. They have gotten policies out on Huawei. They may get this executive order out. But I'm afraid there's no big strategic thinking going on at the White House level. GROSS: Well, David Sanger, thank you so much for talking with us. SANGER: Great to be with you again. GROSS: David Sanger is a national security correspondent for The New York Times and author of "The Perfect Weapon: War, Sabotage, And Fear In The Cyber Age." After we take a short break, our jazz critic, Kevin Whitehead, will review a reissue featuring pianist Oscar Peterson and a studio orchestra playing 1960s pop covers. This is FRESH AIR. (SOUNDBITE OF AARON PARKS' "SMALL PLANET") 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/2019/01/31/690291785/could-chinese-telecom-giant-huawei-put-u-s-cyber-security-at-risk?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=technology |
What's The Best Kept Secret On Grand Cayman? | Grand Cayman is world famous for its miles of coral-sand beaches, luxury resorts, diving opportunities and duty-free shopping. But heres something the majority of its 2 million annual travelers have yet to discover: the Grand Cayman wellness scene. This beach vacation destination actually has endless ways to soothe and pamper even the most stressed-out visitors mind, body and soul. Wellness on Grand Cayman goes beyond getting a massage or facial (although you should definitely visit at least one of the islands incredible spas). It happens when youre meditating on long drives along the coast, feasting on sea-to-table dishes, caring for yourself in outdoor yoga classes and catching a glimpse of endangered species in their natural habitats. To truly experience wellness on Grand Cayman, though, you have to know where to look. Heres where to discover the wellness spirit of Grand Cayman, so you can get to know this Caribbean paradise (and yourself) on an even deeper level. Nature therapy on Grand Cayman The white sands and sparkling waters of Seven Mile Beach draw travelers from around the world. But Grand Caymans also got a wealth of other spots where you can reap the wellness-inducing benefits of nature therapy. Spend a morning strolling through Queen Elizabeth II Botanic Park, a traditional Caymanian garden filled with flora and fauna. Its here where you can see giant blue iguanas, a lizard species found only on Grand Cayman. The blue iguana was once driven to near extinction by predators and habitat destruction. But the National Trust of the Cayman Islands Blue Iguana Recovery Program revived the species from just 13 individuals in 2003 to more than 1,000 today. You can tour the blue iguana breeding facility at Queen Elizabeth II Botanic Park. The warden, Alberto Estevanovich, will tell you all about the fascinating lizards, which can live well into their 60s. Its equal parts heartwarming and fascinating to see the iguanas respond to Estevanovichs call, running right up to him for a neck rub and a treat. After spending time with the lizards, enjoy solitude as you stroll through the park, listening to chirping birds, taking in the aroma of orchids and seeing lush gardens. While many travelers are wary of renting a car abroad, Grand Caymans a worthwhile place to face your fears (just remember to drive on the left, and watch out for the wild chickens!). Having wheels gives you access to the more remote places on the island, like Starfish Point. This secluded beach at the very end of Water Cay Road is famous for the red cushion sea stars that soak beneath the crystal-clear water. Getting up close to these tropical creatures is an unforgettable experience that will inspire you. Finally, dont miss the opportunity to visit Stingray City. The shallow sandbar about 25 miles off the Grand Cayman shore features dozens of friendly Atlantic stingrays to swim around with. Guides, such as those at Red Sail Sports, help visitors interact with these alien-like creatures, which will even give you a massage if placed against your back. This is one of the main tourist attractions on Grand Cayman, so you might need to swim a few yards away to experience the majesty of this marine life away from others. Restorative fitness on Grand Cayman Fitness is a focus for residents on Grand Cayman. Youll see them jogging the beach in the morning, and working up a sweat on evening runs along the streets. But if joggings not your thing, consider trying one of the islands outdoor fitness classes. Theyll help you find endorphin-fueled bliss without missing a moment of the gorgeous scenery. No one does water-based fitness on Grand Cayman better than Vitamin Sea. Owner Kiristen Cousins paddleboard yoga classes will challenge your body and your mind. Watching sea turtles swim by as you practice downward dog while floating in the ocean feels downright magicalbut it requires immense concentration and core strength. Dont worry, though Cousins will give you all the guidance (and more importantly, the encouragement!) you need to try each pose and laugh when you inevitably fall into the water. Many of the resorts on Grand Cayman have also started including outdoor yoga classes in their wellness offerings. The Marriott Beach Resort, for example, offers an early morning beach yoga class every week. Its a convenient way for guests to practice breath work and move their bodies before indulging in the rest of their vacation. Healthy restaurants on Grand Cayman For a true wellness experience on Grand Cayman, skip the heavy dishes you might find at your resort and seek out healthier options at some independent restaurants speckled throughout the island. Fresh Kitchen & Coffee is the perfect place to go for a healthy breakfast or lunch on Grand Cayman. The fast-casual restaurant features a menu of breakfast burritos, aa bowls, salads, sandwiches and smoothies made from the freshest fruits and vegetables. The Buddha bowl, a mix of brown rice, avocado, aged cheddar, cherry tomatoes, black beans, corn and cilantro, packs a punch of flavor with its barbecue sauce. Wash it down with a green juice (kale, spinach, romaine, green apple, cucumber and lemon) and feel healthier all day long. Located in the lively waterfront town of Camana Bay, Jessies Juice Bar is also a great place to refuel on a wellness trip to Grand Cayman. You cant go wrong with the plant-based restaurants wraps, made from your choice of whole wheat or veggie flax and stuffed with perfectly ripe veggies and savory dressing. Try one of Jessies tangy fruit pops, cold-pressed juices or baked treats. For a chilled-out dinner, Vivo hits all the right notes for wellness travelers: sustainable, eco-friendly, organic, gluten-free and veg-friendly. But for Vivo, serving up healthy food goes beyond buzzwords. Each dish on the menu of the waterfront restaurant is created from a range of healthy, tasty ingredients that are as easy on your body as they are on the planet. The restaurant whips up vegan versions of favorites, like calamari (made from deep-fried young coconut) and ChickVeg Parmigiana (breaded vegan seitan with dairy-free mozzarella). But if you just cant live without a little seafood when youre in the Caribbean, Vivos happy to serve you lionfish. The venomous creature disrupts the balance of coral reef ecosystems and threatens local fish populations. Whether you go for veggies or seafood as your main course, dont leave without trying the avocado-chocolate mousse for dessert. Best spas for wellness on Grand Cayman Of course, every wellness trip should include at least one spa treatment. Fortunately, Grand Cayman boasts a few incredible spas to fit any personality. Botanika Union, the spa at the Marriott Beach Resort, offers holistic services in a beach-inspired space that will instantly relax and inspire you. For something a little more luxe, try the Spa at Seafire or La Prairie Spa. They both have posh environments and menus of indulgent wellness treatments to pamper you from head to toe. Whether youre planning a trip around self-care, or you just want to a couple mindfulness-based activities to enhance your vacation, Grand Caymans wellness scene is worth discovering. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonisweet/2019/01/31/wellness-travel-grand-cayman/ |
Should Insurance Be Priced Based Only On Factors Within A Person's Control? | California has just become the most recent and largest state (among roughly half-dozen) to ban the use of a persons gender when assessing risk factors for car insurance. The state insurance commissioner made this rule change as one of his last acts before departing arguing that the new rule would ensure that auto insurance rates are based on factors within a drivers control, rather than personal characteristics over which drivers have no control. This mirrors the motivation for eliminating gender rating and for severely restricting age rating in health insurance under Obamacare. It somehow seemed "unfair" to charge someone a higher rate based on demographic characteristics over which they had no control. How Community Rating Adversely Affects Efficiency But "fairness" is in direct competition with efficiency in this regard. Optimal insurance coverage maximizes coverage at the least cost. And the way to achieve such efficient coverage is to allow insurers to set premiums based on risk [1]. If insurers are prevented from setting premiums based on known risks, they will inevitably charge some people more than the actuarial value of coverage (giving such individuals an incentive to either do without insurance entirely or to underinsure) while charging others less than the actuarial value of coverage (giving such individuals a parallel incentive to over-insure). How Community Rating Adversely Affects Equity Moreover, if the motivation for preventing insurers from risk rating is to make coverage more affordable, there is no a priori reason to suppose that elimination of gender rating, as one example, will achieve this end. That is, if you sorted individuals based on what fraction of take-home income was absorbed by their health insurance premium, there's no reason to suppose that females necessarily would be disproportionately at the bottom of such a list. Thus, for every low-income female who might enjoy a lower health insurance premium there might well be a high-income female counterpart who also enjoys a discounted price even though she would have been able and willing to pay a higher premium in a risk-rated world. In the case of Obamacare, I pointed out 7 years ago that its age-rating restrictions required a typical 20-24 year-oldwhose median weekly earnings are $461to pay 50 percent higher premiums so that workers age 55-64whose median weekly earnings are $887could pay lower premiums. In a similar analysis, Avik Roy showed how Obamacare makes 18-year-olds pay premiums that were 75% higher so that 64-year olds can enjoy premium savings of 13% . It's hard to argue with a straight face that such a policy was more fair than allowing insurers to offer young people coverage at prices more suited to their actual ability to pay. In another post, I demonstrated that using discount rates likely to be used by individuals (as opposed to society), the age-rating restrictions imposed by Obamacare would increase lifetime medical spending for 18-year-olds by 18.3%, for 22-year-olds by 13.8% and for 25-year-olds by 10.6%. In short, even after taking into account the reality that young people eventually would become old and eventually enjoy lower cross-subsidized premiums under Obamacare, the program turned out to be a bad deal for young people. Obamacare's adjusted community rating rules effectively serve as a flagrantly discriminatory excise tax on young people. The reality is that if society is concerned about certain groups being unable to afford a basic necessity such as health care, the most straightforward approach is to subsidize such individuals using the broadest, most efficient tax possible. The worst approach is to use community rating or adjusted community rating to create a system of cross-subsidies that is virtually guaranteed to be both inefficient and unfair. Such a system creates winners and losers completely arbitrarily--i.e., having no connection to whether they actually can afford the health insurance that is being subsidized. Why Adjusted Community Rating Was Unnecessary Under Obamacare What's most sad about Obamacare is that it already created a very rational income-related premium subsidy structure. Thus, there literally was no need to add adjusted community rating rules on top of this. Obamacare's income-related subsidies were designed to ensure that those with the lowest incomes--regardless of what age, gender or health status they might be--got the most help. In that regard--leaving the adjusted community rating rules aside--the subsidy structure created under Obamacare was far more rational than the implicit upside down subsidy structure of the employer tax exclusion which distributes hundreds of billions in subsidies in a grossly inefficient and unfair manner. Just as Obamacare's adjusted community rating rules have created millions of winners and losers so too will California's new auto insurance rating rules produce winners and losers without any particular rhyme or reason. The winners no doubt will view these rules as sensible and fair; the losers are likely to reach the opposite conclusion. The only thing for certain is that this is what happens whenever we allow government to interfere with the operation of free markets. Not only do we all lose some liberty but we all--even if we are unaware of it--pay the price for the attendant inefficiencies and inequities created by such misguided rules. There's a lesson here for citizens and policymakers willing to learn it. READ CHRIS BOOK, (AEI Press, 2012), available at Amazon and other major retailers or as a at AEI. With generous support from the National Research Initiative at the , an complete with downloadable Powerpoint slides and companion spreadsheets has been made available through the Medical Industry Institutes Open Education Hub at the University of Minnesota. Follow @ConoverChris on Twitter, and The Apothecary on Facebook. Or, sign up to receive a weekly e-mail digest of articles from The Apothecary. INVESTORS NOTE : The biggest publicly-traded players in Obamacares health insurance exchanges are Aetna AET -0.28% (NYSE: AET ), Humana HUM -0.78% (NYSE: HUM), Cigna CI -0.25% (NYSE: CI ), Molina (NYSE: MOH ), WellPoint (NYSE: WLP ), and Centene CNC -2.15%(NYSE: CNC ), in order of the number of uninsured exchange-eligible Americans for whom their plans are available. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2019/01/31/should-insurance-be-priced-based-only-on-factors-within-a-persons-control/ |
Will experience and lack of it be the Super Bowl difference? | The idea that experience pays off in the most-pressurized situations in sports is nothing new. Recent history tells us it probably doesnt count for a lot. The Super Bowl thing was something novel for virtually all of the Eagles last year, and they knocked off the perennial contender and frequent AFC champion Patriots. Story continues below advertisement Same thing in the 2014 game when Seattle routed a Peyton Manning-led Broncos team. It was also the case in 2011, when the Saints with Drew Brees prevailed over the Manning-led Colts. Then you can argue that the Patriots benefited greatly from the Falcons lack of familiarity with putting away a championship two years ago. Or that Denver yep, with a QB named Peyton again used the experience edge perfectly against Carolina in 2016. If experience is an edge, its clearly all on the Patriots' side in Super Bowl 53. I think you get to focus more on football [because of the know-how], says Patriots receiver Julian Edelman, who will match up at times with the Rams formidable cornerbacks Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters. Fortunately, Ive played in a couple of these and you get to refine your routine and it allows you to think about football. It allows you to think about the Los Angeles Rams and what theyre doing and how they are on defence and special teams and (Johnny) Hekker being a quarterback back there as a punter, thats what it allows you to do because you have a little experience with that. But thats it. Maybe. Or maybe the Rams, who are 2-point underdogs in their first Super Bowl since the 2001 season a loss to New England wont ever find that comfort zone so necessary at this point. The key just might be if coach Sean McVay, who turned all of 33 last week, keeps pushing the envelope. The only way to beat the Patriots is to remain aggressive for 60 minutes, and possibly beyond. Maybe McVay needs to be a bit outlandish as well. Look up what Doug Pederson did last year in a masterful coaching performance. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement So, its never too soon to be able to make a big impact in a big-time game, McVay says. We certainly have a respect for that experience that the Patriots specifically have. Weve got some guys on our team that do have that experience, but weve also got some really good football players that you feel like no moment is too big for them. We know that its a big-time game, but I think our guys whether they have played in this game before, whether they havent we expect them to play good football. When that ball is kicked off, its just like any other game. Certainly, you dont shy away from the magnitude, but youre still playing football. Playing football in February is unique for most of the Rams, old hat for Tom Brady and many of the Patriots. Pro Picks thinks so: PATRIOTS, 31-22 Last Week: Against Spread (1-1). Straight up (1-1) Season Totals: Against spread (135-114-9). Straight up: (175-89-2) Story continues below advertisement Best Bet: 8-12 against spread, 13-7 straight up Upset special: 11-9 against spread, 10-9-1 straight up | https://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/football/article-will-experience-and-lack-of-it-be-the-super-bowl-difference/ |
Are Sexy Super Bowl Ads A Thing of the Past? | Working with Sascha Raithel of the Freie University of Berlin, I have been doing research on factors related to Super Bowl advertising effectiveness. As part of this effort, we content analyzed Super Bowl ads from recent years. We found very little change in the usage of common executional techniques such as celebrity endorsements, humor, emotional appeals and the inclusion of animals in the ad. There was one notable exception, however, in that over the last several years, the use of sexual appeals has declined and in the last few years, almost disappeared. While the decline in sexy Super Bowl ads is arguably not too surprising, since its inception, the Super Bowl had seen a significant number of sexy ads, including some that were much talked about. Pepsi's 1992 spot featuring two young boys being stunned while watching supermodel Cindy Crawford buy a can of the soda from a vending machine and then drinking it makes many lists of the best Super Bowl ads of all time. Diet Coke's 1998 "Break" ad depicted a number of women admiring "hunky" shirtless man delivering Diet Coke was well received. And Ali Landry's 1999 ad introducing Dorito's 3-D snacks is another that was largely praised in its time and regarded as being effective for the brand. Several other ads using sexual appeals have been much talked about, including Miller Light's "Catfight" from 2003, Meghan Fox for Motorola in 2012, David Beckham in his underwear for H&M in 2012 and Kate Upton's ad for Mercedes Benz in 2013. Clearly, the last few years have seen a decline in the use of sexual appeals, so what happened. The decline is likely for 3 primary reasons: 1) Super Bowl advertisers are being sensitive to societal concerns about the objectification of women Some more recent Super Bowl ads using sexual appeals have criticized for objectifying women. GoDaddy's use of overt sexual appeals received increasing criticism over the year its original Super Bowl campaign ran, culminating in considerable criticism of its 2013 "Wardrobe Malfunction" commercial. Carl's Jr.'s 2015 "All Natural" ad featuring model Charlotte McKinney was controversial and labeled as sexist by some writers and commentators. Watching these ads today, they seem over the top and would certainly invite considerable criticism of the advertisers. 2) Sexual appeals have questionable effectiveness The effectiveness of sexual appeals has been studied in the academic community for a long time. Consistent with prior findings a recent meta-analysis published in the International Journal of Advertising by John Wirtz of the University of Illinois, the use of sexual appeals tends to have a positive effect on recall of an ad, but a slightly negative average effect. Wirtz also observed that men like ads with sexual appeals more than women, but that this did not translate into higher purchase intent for me. Hence, on average, sexual appeals tend to raise awareness, but it is not typically a good formula for boosting attitude toward the brand of purchase intention. GoDaddy effectively used sexual appeal when its goal was raising awareness of the brand as a domain name provider, but once public awareness was high. Kim Kardashian's more image-oriented 2011 Skechers ad, while sexy, scored low across all consumer groups. 3) In light of societal polarization and #MeToo, most advertisers are wisely hesitant to alienate consumers The last few years have seen a high level of political polarization and considerable discord. In this environment, advertisers need to be careful to not offend consumers, as people view ads through the lens of their own upbringing and experience. While this trend likely started before #MeToo, this movement has actually further heightened societal sensitivities. It seems unlikely, for example, that the Teleflora "Faith" ad from 2011 (see below) would be a wise idea today. It is also notable that CBS is not allowing the use of the word "Foodporn" in a commercial from KraftHeinz's Devour frozen foods and is insisting that a sanitized version of a 60-second online ad the brand had developed be used. In this environment, advertisers with mass target audiences are wise to play it safe, at least to some degree. While it would not be a total shock if an advertiser developed a sexy ad in an effort to cut through the clutter and get noticed even in this year's Super Bowl, blatant sexual appeals are likely a thing of the past. Females comprise about 49% of the Super Bowl audience today, making advertisers even more sensitive to portrayals of women. In the face of sexual appeals being of questionable effectiveness, it seems unlikely that we will see a return to the "old days" in this regard. That said, there may well be a place for ads with sexual innuendo or humor that appeal to both genders, as well as somewhat toned down (i.e., less blatant) depictions of an attractive male or female model. So to answer the question, it's probably blatant sexual appeals that have passed away. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/charlesrtaylor/2019/02/01/are-sexy-super-bowl-ads-a-thing-of-the-past/ |
Will James Gunn Give Us The 'Suicide Squad' We Wanted? | Last year, critically acclaimed director James Gunn was ousted from his role directing the third entry in the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise. The shocking move from Disney was triggered when a series of controversial tweets authored by Gunn resurfaced online. The move from Disney has since been debated by fans and critics alike. But now, James Gunn is getting back to work. Last October, Warner Brothers announced that Gunn would hop from the Marvel Cinematic Universe over to the DC Extended Universe by writing the sequel to 2016s Suicide Squad. Now, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Gunn is in talks to take over the directors seat as well. The journey of the original Suicide Squad was a rocky one to say the least. Despite an all star cast including Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, and Will Smith, the film failed to impress, earning an average of 27% on Rotten Tomatoes. This loss was especially devastating as, coming so soon after the divisive Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, the film was meant to get the DC Extended Universe back on track. But hiring Gunn to direct the sequel may just be the perfect move. Suicide Squads marketing campaign emphasized a goofy and comedic tone featuring a band of misfits trying to do good. Essentially, Suicide Squads marketing positioned itself as DCs Guardians of the Galaxy. The problem was that the original cut of the film, as evidenced by the first trailer, wasnt really all that funny. This prompted the studio to hire the trailer company to re-edit the entire film in order to insert more levity. As can likely be predicted, this resulted in a tonal and narrative mess of a final product. Again, people wanted a Guardians of the Galaxy-like adventure in this new series and didnt get it. But now, by hiring James Gunn, the studio finally has the opportunity to give audiences exactly that. Of course the hope wouldnt be that Gunn would create a copy of his other hit franchise. Instead, Gunns overall style would translate well enough to bring over fans of one franchise to another. Interestingly, the new film is not being called a direct sequel, but rather a relaunch, and its unclear what this means. Surely an entire reboot so soon after the first film would not be received well. And as we know Margot Robbies Harley Quinn is continuing on in the series, we know that this continuity isnt being scrapped. So likely what is meant by relaunch is a soft reboot, something that would allow for a complete new direction without destroying already established continuity. This would allow the DC Universe to stay intact while also giving Gunn the freedom he needs to steer the ship aright. A recent example of a soft-reboot move like this, oddly enough, can be found over at Marvel. While the previous two Thor films were by no means flops, they werent ever audience favorites. That all changed when Marvel Studios brought on Taika Waititi to direct the series third film. Without much warning, Taika took the story in a completely new direction, altering Thors personality from a brooding Shakespearean trope to an adorable dumb jock. Waititi accordingly revamped the entirety of Thors world to match his witty and colorful sensibilities. All this was a massive risk for Marvel, but it was a huge hit with audiences. And because a soft-reboot in this way still maintained the already established continuity, the drastic shift in tone didnt do much to alienate. So perhaps James Gunn can do for DC what Taika Waititi did for Marvel. Warner Brothers and DC are increasingly taking bold new directions with their universe, and so far its looking good. James Gunns hiring is a huge win for Warner Brothers, and fans should be very excited to see what becomes of Suicide Squad. It may be too early to say, but perhaps Marvel Studios should keep an eye on their back. The sequel to Suicide Squad is currently set for release on August 6, 2021. For more thoughts on superheroes and the entertainment industry, see the rest of my articles, follow me on Twitter, and subscribe on YouTube. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/anharkarim/2019/01/31/will-james-gunn-give-us-the-suicide-squad-we-wanted/ |
Are Shows About Serial Killers Inherently Offensive? | This has been the topic of hot debate lately, as Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile has come to Sundance, The Ted Bundy Tapes and You have come to Netflix, and FX's The Assassination of Gianni Versace racks up awards at the various awards shows this season. Some, like Extremely Wicked and You are vilified for their portrayals (You, it should be noted, is the only one of these films that is based on a fictional person), while Gianni Versace is beloved. Let's compare two specific series in order to explore that. You and Gianni Versace. You premiered on Lifetime in September to relatively little acknowledgment. However, when it moved to Netflix in December (Netflix will be making season 2) the show's popularity exploded. It became the show to binge. Yet, while many fell somewhat in love with Penn Badgley's (Gossip Girl) portrayal of charming sociopath Ben Goldberg, many also found the show deeply troubling, and not in a good way. The show came under a barrage of criticism for the way it glorifies its serial killer, promoting his view above all others, especially his female victim Beck (Elizabeth Lail). The voiceover of Ben's thoughts throughout the series keeps us trapped in his perspective. The show seems to linger over how he manipulates in an almost loving way, as if trying to endear him to us at the same time as they're trying to horrify us. It would be nice to get to know Beck away from Ben's POV for just a little bit. The show could let us emphasize with her, get close to her, care about her, but they keep their distance, and Beck remains the play-thing of Ben's, objectifying her not just to the show's serial killer, but to the audience as well. The final blow comes when, spoilers, in the season finale Ben kills Beck. She doesn't even get the typical arc of a female who's hunted and abused the whole season or film, only to get up at the end and triumph over the killer (this is in some cases called the "final girl" trope). She's just a victim. Ben wins. Its serial killer, Andrew Cunanan (Darren Criss), like You, is the show's protagonist. We spend most of the series with him, following his arc. And yet, it feels different. For one thing, there's a distance. Rather than the "in his head" approach You takes, you more feel like you're watching Cunanan go through this journey, rather than experiencing it directly through his eyes. It helps that the show spends enormous amounts of time with Cunanan's victims, even when Cunanan isn't with them. It shows us their pasts, their families, their hopes and dreams, their fears. We honestly come to care about them, and we mourn them when they die. Gianni Versace also doesn't glorify its serial killer in any way. While it does make attempts to humanize Cunanan at times, and to try to give an explanation for why he is the way he is, and why he kills all those people, the audience is never meant to fall in love with him, or be charmed by him. Cunanan charms many people in the series into doing what he wants, but to the audience, on the outside looking in, we are never fooled. Cunanan's lies seem over-the-top and ridiculous. We become used to his charade, and are not taken in by it. The characters, as well, one by one become skeptical of Cunanan's stories, and attempt to distance themselves from him, with disastrous results. It's true. Gianni Versace makes a buck off of the pain and suffering Cunanan caused real people (something You, being fictional, has a pass on). However, it does it in such a nuanced and well done way, that it's hard to be angry or offended. It never glorifies the killings, the killer, or objectifies the victims and their loved ones. It gives the victims a voice, and never hesitates to condemn their killer. But it goes about it all wrong, and in an era when we need stories that give back power to women who are abused, You takes great pleasure in objectifying, torturing, and killing its female lead. | https://www.forbes.com/sites/lindamaleh/2019/01/31/are-shows-about-serial-killers-inherently-offensive/ |
Why do Jon Rahm, Jimmy Walker and others have stand bags at the Waste Management Phoenix Open? | Rickie Fowler is a trend setter, but Fowlers use of a Puma stand bag to house his clubs last week at the Farmers Insurance Open isnt the reason Jon Rahm, Jimmy Walker and other TaylorMade and Titleist players are allowing their caddies to lighten the load at this weeks Waste Management Phoenix Open. Farmers Insurance Open - Round Two Stan Badz Rahm and Walker will be using stand bags from their respective companies as part of a product launch for the bags. Titleist is introducing its Players 4 Plus bag and as part of its introduction made bags for each player, putting their names and sponsors logos on the carry bags and allowing players the option to use them. Similarly, TaylorMade rolled out its FlexTech and FlexTech Lifestyle stand bags with Rahm, Beau Hossler and Chez Reavie expected to lighten their caddies load by employing the bag in Scottsdale. The FlexTech and FlexTech Lifestyle bags utilize a design where each main side pocket is built into the center of the bag to create a single piece construction that allows for more storage without adding weight. Scroll to continue with content Ad As for why the Waste Management Phoenix Open, its likely not a coincidence. The event has a decidedly relaxed vibe, making it easier to get players to agree to do something outside the norm. Additionally, the heavier staff bags that tour caddies routinely lug often are stocked with plenty of rain gear. Scottsdale is perhaps the most likely tour venue on the schedule to avoid wet weather, making the use of the smaller bags more viable as the likelihood of inclement weather is minimal. Regardless, the caddies who get to carry the lighter bags will rejoice, but dont expect the bags to stay in play for longer than this week. Sponsors like to see their logos on televisionand they like to see them in big, bold letters. | https://sports.yahoo.com/why-jon-rahm-jimmy-walker-151834461.html?src=rss |
Will there be more snow this weekend? | PA Heavy snow sweeping eastwards across the UK has disrupted travel and led to many schools being closed. The South West is worst affected, with freezing weather affecting Wiltshire, Hampshire, Sussex and Kent and areas of Wales. Around 100 drivers became stuck on a major road in Cornwall, with teenage students at one college in Bodmin having to stay there overnight. More than 100 people also slept overnight in a pub in Cornwall after heavy snow left them stranded. Jamacia Inn Beds were assembled on the floor in the Jamacia Inn pub in Cornwall Temperatures dropped to -13C (8.6F) in Scotland in the early hours of Thursday, making it the coldest night of winter in the UK so far. The coldest place in the country was Loch Glascarnoch in the Highlands. Dozens of schools in the county are closed on Friday, with schools in Wales closing early. Snow depths of 12cm (5in) have been recorded in Bodmin, Cornwall, the Met Office said. Parts of Cumbria have seen 8cm of snow, while there was 7cm recorded in Inverness-shire and 5cm in Powys. An amber warning for heavy snow in south Wales, south and south west England has now passed. Getty Images The snow didn't put off Matilda and Oliver from feeding the ducks with their mum in Stalybridge, Lancashaire The Met Office has warned of "treacherous driving conditions" in some southern areas, with warnings of rail delays and flights cancellations into Friday morning. They warn of some snow and say some stretches of road will be icy. Further snow is forecast overnight into Friday, with 5-10cm (2-4in) expected in Wales and south west England. In other parts of southern England, there could be 1-7cm (up to 3in) of snow. Much of Scotland and the north east of England will see snow showers continuing into Friday. An "intensive effort" is taking place to rescue motorists stuck on the A30 at Bodmin Moor, local police have said. Highways England said traffic was moving "very slowly forward". AFP/Getty Images These Shetland ponies in Scalloway, Shetland Islands look pretty chilly in the snow! Temperatures fell to their lowest level this winter, with Braemar, Aberdeenshire, dropping to -14.5C (6F) on Thursday evening. This is the lowest in the UK since 2012 - when temperatures fell to -15.6C in Holbeach, Lincolnshire. England, Wales and Northern Ireland also recorded their lowest temperatures of the winter so far. In England Redesdale, Northumberland saw: -10.4C, in Wales Sennybridge, Powys: -9.3C, and Magilligan, County Londonderry: -8.5C. | https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/47085773 |
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