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’s heart breaking to see a good man so consumed by revenge, as it tore me between my sense of justice for him and wish for him to find peace.
Gankutsuou is the sort of show that keeps me in anime. It reminds me that no matter how bad an anime I have seen, there will always be a few artists who can create something unique and captivating. I leave you with a quote from the Count that illustrates his complexities: “I am now no longer alone in my solitude. For I am now surrounded by the Furies, the goddesses of vengeance. In the darkness, I awaited the dawn. And once dawn came, I cursed my flesh until night fell once more. I even prayed that I would lose my sanity. But those prayers went unheeded. I even strove for death, but the Devil’s cold, pitiless hand held me back.”
Art – Very High
The most unique art in anime. A kaleidoscope of texture and colour. You could take just about any screenshot from Gankutsuou and it would be a piece of art. It’s fun figuring out where you have seen that texture before. Is her hair a thumbprint? While the texturing does blend much of the CG into the scene, some of it still looks out of place when in prominence.
Sound – Very High
The voice work is great in either language; it’s a matter of preference. I preferred English for the use of French honorifics in a French setting. Strangely, they changed the French introductions from the Japanese track to English in the English track – I would have thought they would do it even better with a bilingual English actor. The count’s deep voice is suave yet menacing. Gankutsuou exhibits a fantastic soundtrack. There’s no out-of-place J-pop here, just piano, opera, harp, and a few English and French lyrical tracks. The piece used for mystery makes the heart race with excitement at the unfolding drama.
Story – Very High
This anime is excellence in storytelling with well-implemented science fiction changes to the original novel. To see the Count manipulate people in such cunning ways makes for a gripping tale.
Overall Quality – Very High
Recommendation: A must watch. Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo shows how much the anime medium can achieve when adapting a foreign literary masterpiece, maintaining the core of the source material while making it their own. From the characters to the marvellous art, every facet comes together in an unforgettable series.
(Request reviews here. Find out more about the rating system here.)
Awards: (hover mouse over each award to see descriptions; click award for more recipients)
Positive:
Negative: None. | 1,265,900 |
Kerala Lottery Results : 7.7.2017 Nirmal Lottery NR 25: Are you Looking for Kerala Lottery Result for Today’s Nirmal Lottery NR 25 Drawn on 07/07/2017? Well, the Result for the NR 25 will get declared by 3.30PM From the official Kerala Lottery Result 2017 declaration portal Trivandrum. As per Schedule Nirmal Lottery NR 25 lottery results will get drawn on every Friday under Kerala Lottery Department council recommendation.In fact, the each draw on Kerala Nirmal Lottery NR 25 Will holds a price money of 70 lakhs for as First Price and proceeds with 8 other prices as follows the Series NR 25.
Kerala Lottery Results : 7.7.2017 Nirmal Lottery NR 25 in Detail:
The Below table shows the details on Nirmal Lottery NR 25 Kerala Lottery Result Number Updates as per Latest report and the numbers that draw for the same will reflected only after the draw from the official center by Friday evening 4.00 PM.
Serial No NR 25 Lottery Name Nirmal Lottery NR 25 Date of Draw 07-07-2017 Day of Draw Friday Ticket Rate 30 INR First Prize for AK 300 70 lakhs Second Prize for AK 300 5 lakhs Third Prize for AK 300 2 lakhs (Each For 10 Members) 4th Prize for AK 300 5000 5th Prize for AK 300 2000 6th Prize for AK 300 1000 7th Prize for AK 300 500 8th Prize for AK 300 100 Consolation Prize for AK 300 10000 (For 10 Members) Number of Series NA,NB,NC,ND,NE,NG,NH,NJ,NK,NL Series of Draw 10 Agents Commissions 10% of Draw Center of Draw Thiruvananthapuram Time of Draw 3 PM (IST 15:00PM) 07-07-2017 License Kerala State Lotteries
General Notification on Nirmal Lottery NR 25:
While, If you are one of the Lucky member of Nirmal Lottery NR 25, then you should kindly report it with the Kerala or state authorities ASAP. This is the second draw on Nirmal Lottery NR 25 after the Successful Introduction on GST to India.
Most promisingly, Nirmal Lottery will reflect the price money for the First 2 members or says Prize winners and third Price winner to Consolation prizes usually Nirmal Lottery don’t reflect any kind of GST or VAT since the introduction of Kerala State Lottery.
Stay tuned for the result on Kerala Lottery Results : 7.7.2017 Nirmal Lottery NR 25.!! Meantime, read the detailed notification made by Kerala state Government with respect to Kerala lottery at the back side of every ticket Nirmal Lottery.
Find More on: Karunya KR 301 Lottery Result | 1,265,901 |
There is a great profile in the Boston Magazine about attorney James Sokolove, a guy that advertises his legal services on T.V. so often I just assumed he didn’t actually exist.
Apparently, he does exist, but his legal services don’t, at least not in the traditional sense:
Despite his prodigious success and his omnipresent image as a bulldog attorney, Sokolove hasn’t seen the inside of a courtroom in nearly three decades. Truth be told, he’s argued only one case before a jury; it was back in the early 1970s, and he lost. It wasn’t tenacious lawyering that allowed Sokolove to build a legal empire, but rather his prowess as a businessman and an innovator. He and his staff of 80 don’t try cases; instead they connect prospective clients to other lawyers, who pay Sokolove a cut of their fees for ginning up business.
Sweet. The only thing better then an unabashed “ambulance chaser” is an unabashed ambulance chaser who doesn’t know where the courthouse is located.
But after the jump, what’s really fascinating is that this guy really does have a system.
Sokolove, a graduate of Suffolk Law School, figured out a very straightforward way to generate business:
Sokolove has since also discovered that his most successful ads are the most formulaic. Unadorned with fancy graphics, they speak to very specific audiences (patients who once took a drug the FDA has pulled off the market is a big one). These ads always display his toll-free phone number and website address for the duration of the segment, to allow plenty of time to write it down. Sokolove–wearing his lawyerly suit–speaks directly to the camera, in a style he describes as “serious but not stern.” He knows from his research that most people think hiring a lawyer means paying up front, so he always explains that it costs nothing to talk to him. He never brings up any of his affiliates, because that only confuses viewers. And he always, always mentions the potential rewards. The message behind his ads, he says, is simple: Injured? Free money.
Briliant! No suspense, no drama, no intellect, no prestige. Just “me get money, give to you.”
And all the criticism and the fact that most lawyers look down on him doesn’t bother him one bit. He’s rich b&*^h.
You can read the full profile here. It’s a good read and a great reminder that there are so many ways to make money with a law degree.
He’s Attorney James Sokolove [Boston Magazine] | 1,265,902 |
One of the best ways to see the magnificent beauty of Alaska is to take one of the many wonderful Alaska cruises that are available. When planning your trip you will have many choices such as Alaska cruises from Vancouver. While these are great, it is even better and more convenient for US citizens to enjoy one of the Alaska Cruises from Seattle. While enjoying one of these cruises, you will be able to see much more of this beautiful state as you approach. There are many wonderful Alaska Cruises from Seattle to choose from. Here we have a brief list of the five best cruises from Seattle to Alaska.
1. Lindblad Expedition Alaska Cruise – This is a small boutique cruise line. Because of the ships smaller size, it is able to venture into some places that the larger ships are unable to squeeze into. While enjoying this cruise, guests may enjoy the breathtaking views of whales and the Alaska wilderness. To enjoy this cruise, the price is about $7700 per person for eleven nights. This includes such ports of calls as Juneau, Glacier Bay and Sitka.
2. Holland America – This cruise starts at about $1400 per person for seven nights. Guests will enjoy visiting the Alaska destinations such as Juneau, Sitka and Ketchikan. Guests will have access to the lido pool, fitness center and the greenhouse treatment room. From the decks there is an unobstructed view of the beauty of the Alaska wilderness.
3. Carnival Cruise Line – For one of the seven day Alaska cruises from Seattle, the rates start at about $659 per person making this one of the best cheap Alaska cruises. While at sea, you will have access to the pool and hot tub, fitness center and daily entertainment. Ports of call include Glacier Bay, Skagway and Ketchikan.
4. Norwegian Cruise Line – Starting at only about $749 per person, this is a great deal. While aboard the ship, there are beautiful and spacious staterooms and suites. Guests will be able to enjoy the pool with waterslide as well as the casino. From the decks there is a beautiful view of the whales and the mountainous views that Alaska is famous for.
5. Royal Caribbean Cruise Line – This is one of the cheap cruises from Seattle starting at only about $689 per person. This cruise line offers a wonderful seven night Alaska Sawyer Glacier Cruise aboard the Rhapsody of the Seas. These cruises depart from Seattle and travel to Alaska on a weekly basis. While aboard the ship, guests will enjoy the large swimming pool, rock climbing wall, the spa and fitness center and daily entertainment. Ports of call include Juneau, Skagway and Tracy Arm Fjord.
Whichever of these wonderful Alaska cruises from Seattle you end up choosing, you will be enchanted by the clear blue water of the Pacific Ocean as well as the majestic mountain views of Alaska. | 1,265,903 |
New York — Corrections officers may have falsified reports saying they checked on Jeffrey Epstein as required by protocol, according to a law enforcement source with knowledge of the investigation into Epstein's apparent suicide. CBS News has learned that surveillance video apparently showed guards never made some of the checks noted in the prison log.
Multiple sources told CBS News that Epstein's cellmate at the Metropolitan Correctional Center posted bail last Friday, leaving Epstein alone in his cell the day before he died. Another source familiar with the investigation said it appears Epstein had been dead one to two hours before he was found.
Epstein, who was being held on sex-trafficking charges, was taken off suicide watch about one week after an apparent attempt to hang himself on July 23.
At least one temporary employee at the detention center was on watch Friday night into Saturday morning, multiple sources said. The replacement employee was not part of the regular detail assigned to Epstein's special housing unit.
A representative for staffers at the Metropolitan Correctional Center said work conditions at the facility have been inadequate for nearly two years. Corrections officers have long complained about being overworked with 60-plus hour work weeks and mandatory overtime.
The Department of Justice announced Tuesday that the warden of the federal jail will be reassigned and two prison staffers were placed on administrative leave.
The FBI has begun reaching out to begin the process of interviewing officers and staff at the Manhattan detention center as part of its investigation into Epstein's death, a source familiar with the matter said. There are at least two or three prison guards who have gotten defense attorneys, the source said.
The FBI also wants to review video from cameras in the special housing unit where Epstein was held, the source said. It is unclear whether the cameras record individual cells or areas outside the cells. It is also unknown whether the cameras were even working at the time. Investigators also want to look at prison documents, including overtime records.
One day after the FBI raided Epstein's 70 acre private estate in the Virgin Islands, President Trump said Tuesday he wants a full investigation, which he said included questions about former President Bill Clinton.
"You have to ask, did Bill Clinton go to the island? That's the question. If you find that out, you're gonna know a lot," the president said.
Mr. Trump on Saturday retweeted a conspiracy theory that claims to link the Clintons to Epstein's death. In a statement, a Clinton spokesman said the suggestion that the Clintons were involved is "ridiculous, and of course not true — and Donald Trump knows it."
Attorneys representing some of Epstein's alleged victims told CBS News they plan to file civil cases against his estate in the coming days. Some are even trying to tear up the now infamous 2008 plea deal Epstein made with Florida prosecutors which would make it easier for them to go after his accomplices.
Pat Milton contributed to this report. | 1,265,904 |
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on Friday that analysis continued on North Korea’s most recent missile test, but he did not believe its intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) posed an imminent threat to the United States.
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis addresses a news conference during a NATO defence ministers meeting at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, February 16, 2017. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir/Files
“It has not yet shown to be a capable threat against us right now... we’re still doing the forensics analysis,” Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon.
Last month, North Korea said it had successfully tested a new type of ICBM that could reach all of the U.S. mainland and South Korea and U.S.-based experts said data from the Nov. 29 test appeared to support that.
Mattis did not elaborate on what was lacking in the test to show it was not a capable threat.
He said himself immediately after the test that the missile had gone higher than any previous North Korean launch and that it was part of a research and development effort “to continue building ballistic missiles that can threaten everywhere in the world, basically.”
U.S.-based experts, some of whom have been skeptical about past North Korean claims, said last month that data and photos from the test appeared to confirm North Korea had a missile of sufficient power to deliver a nuclear warhead anywhere in America.
But experts and U.S. officials have said questions remain about whether it has a re-entry vehicle capable of protecting a nuclear warhead as it speeds toward its target and about the accuracy of its guidance systems.
South Korea’s Defense Ministry said this latest test put Washington within range, but Pyongyang still needed to prove it had mastered re-entry, terminal stage guidance and warhead activation.
Some U.S. based experts believe North Korea could be only two or three tests away from being able to declare the missile operational.
U.S. President Donald Trump vowed “it won’t happen” after North Korean said in January is was in the final stages of developing a nuclear weapon capable of reaching the United States.
Trump has said all options are on the table, including military ones, although his administration has made clear it prefers a diplomatic solution.
“It continues to be a diplomatically led effort,” Mattis said. “When we’re ready to have conversations... dialogues, that will be up to the president and secretary of state.”
At a U.N. Security Council session on the crisis on Friday, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson urged North Korea to carry out a “sustained cessation” of weapons testing to allow the two countries to hold talks. | 1,265,905 |
WASHINGTON: The Air Force Chief of Staff appeared to be talking about putting nuclear-armed bombers back on 24-hour alert, but the man who’d make the decision, the head of Strategic Command, wasn’t.
After my colleague Marcus Weisgerber reported that Gen. David Goldfein said the Air Force was considering putting bombers back on alert, I checked with Strategic Command, since they are the ones who make operational decisions about the use of nuclear weapons systems.
Gen. John Hyten, head of Strategic Command, is not considering putting bombers back on alert, his spokesman says in an email.
“There are no discussions or plans for U.S. Strategic Command to place bombers on alert. Any decisions related to the posture of nuclear forces would come from, or through, U.S. Strategic Command. We constantly train, prepare and equip our personnel to ensure we have a combat-ready force that underwrites strategic deterrence in the 21st century,” Navy Capt. Brook DeWalt writes.
This raises a really interesting question: did Gen. David Goldfein tell Marcus — who was on an extended trip with the general inspecting nuclear bases — that the Air Force is preparing for the order?
“This is yet one more step in ensuring that we’re prepared,” Goldfein told Marcus in an interview. “I look at it more as not planning for any specific event, but more for the reality of the global situation we find ourselves in and how we ensure we’re prepared going forward.” While his story stresses the order has not been given, Marcus certainly raises the specter that the policy change is being considered. But Strategic Command says, unequivocally, that the only general empowered with the decision isn’t considering the change. So, the answer is no.
At first, this story seemed to contain the seeds of a policy under consideration, or one where the Air Force might be pressing for a change in policy. But it’s clearly a case where one fact got added to another and the result may have turned out to be less than first seemed. The alert center at Barksdale is being upgraded and renovated, but it’s not with an eye to housing bomber crews on 24/7 alert. Crews of planes such as the National Airborne Operations Center — the E4-B NAOC used by the Defense Secretary or other authority in time of war — use the center and it’s just being upgraded.
Work on the alert facility at Barksdale has been going on since August 2016. There’s a $3.5 million contract to improve the interior, electrical and mechanical systems. STRATCOM provided $136,000 at the end of fiscal 2017 to paint the building’s exterior and help with “quality of life” purchases. | 1,265,906 |
Passaic High School teacher asked for lewd pictures in exchange for better grades
The Passaic High School teacher arrested Wednesday on charges he allegedly had sexually inappropriate conversations with two teenage students asked for pictures of their penis in exchange for a better class grade, according to court documents.
When one of the two male students was asked by Jose Maria, who according to court documents is a Spanish teacher, about sending a picture of his private area in exchange for a better grade, the student did. The boy identified only as Ro.C., told authorities Maria would pick him and another teen up to buy them Chinese food and alcohol.
“Ro.C. said he found a picture on the internet of a black penis and sent it to Mr. Maria,” according to a copy of the affidavit of probable cause reviewed Thursday. “Ro.C. said his mother confronted Mr. Maria who admitted it, said he would kill himself and asked her not to go to the police.”
Read more: Passaic High teacher charged with sending sexually inappropriate texts
Pascack Valley: Nude images of students being investigated by police
Reports: Glen Rock to pay out $295K in sexting case
Maria, 39, was charged Wednesday with endangering the welfare of a child and official misconduct, authorities said. The teens were students at the school when the incident happened between 2010 and 2012. According to court documents, Ro.C. spoke with police Tuesday.
Maria was immediately suspended from his $75,513 teaching position with pay, said Keith Furlong, a spokesman for the Passaic School District. The suspension is required to be with pay.
Maria was released on a pretrial monitoring with weekly reporting and the conditions that he would have no contact with the victim and no unsupervised contact with children under 18, a court official said. A cellphone number listed for Maria was disconnected.
Maria has been a teacher since September 2005, Furlong said.
One person who was identified as R.NM, a mother to one of the victims, according to court documents, confronted Maria about the incident.
“R.NM. stated that she confronted Mr. Maria who told her the texts were true and asked for forgiveness,” according to court documents.
Later, student Ro.C. called Maria and asked him about the incident, according to court documents. Maria said he “made a mistake” and deleted the picture, calling it an “impulse” to ask for the picture of the student’s penis.
Maria admitted in both an audio and video interview with police he asked the two students for pictures of their private areas, according to court documents.
The case has been referred to the grand jury, a court official said.
Email: [email protected] | 1,265,907 |
Alexander Litvinenko publicly accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of being a pedophile just four months before he was poisoned in 2006, an inquiry into the ex-KGB spy’s death has found.
When the future Russian president was a student, he was filmed abusing children in an apartment where another top politician had a threesome with prostitutes, Litvinenko claimed in an article on the Chechenpress website in July 2006, four months before he was murdered, The Daily Mail reported.
Litvinenko made the accusation after the president was pictured a month earlier kissing the stomach of a 5-year-old boy during a walkabout in a public square near the Kremlin.
“Nobody can understand why the Russian president did such a strange thing as kissing the stomach of an unfamiliar small boy,” Litvinenko wrote in the article.
The inquiry report, which included the article as evidence, described how Litvinenko claimed Mr. Putin was a “pedophile” and that the FSB — the KGB’s successor agency — possessed videos of him “making sex with some underage boys,” which Mr. Putin allegedly had destroyed.
The allegations were revealed in a comprehensive 329-page report prepared by retired High Court Judge Sir Robert Owen and released Thursday.
“It hardly needs saying that the allegations made by Mr. Litvinenko against President Putin in this article were of the most serious nature. Could they have had any connection with his death?” Mr. Owen wrote, The Independent reported.
“There was undoubtedly a personal dimension to the antagonism between Mr. Litvinenko on the one hand and President Putin on the other,” he added.
The judge’s report concluded that Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun poisoned the 43-year-old with radioactive polonium 210 at a Mayfair hotel in 2006.
“Taking full account of all the evidence and analysis available to me, I find that the FSB operation to kill Mr. Litvinenko was probably approved by [the spy agency’s then-head, Nikolai] Patrushev and also by President Putin,” the report said.
The Russian Foreign Ministry on Thursday dismissed the report as “politically motivated.”
“We need time to study in detail the contents of this document, and then give a detailed assessment,” a spokesperson said, The Independent reported.
“We would like to note that Russia’s position on this issue remains unchanged and is well known. … There was no reason to expect the final report of a politically engaged and highly opaque process to be objective and impartial.”
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Copyright © 2020 The Washington Times, LLC. Click here for reprint permission. | 1,265,908 |
The police watchdog has found the tasering of a drunk teenager driving a stolen tractor was an excessive use of force.
Photo: NZ Police
The 15-year-old was pursued by two police officers after stealing a small tractor from a Kaiwaka sports grounds and driving it to Wellsford on 16 April, 2018.
An officer first spotted the teenager on State Highway 1 and followed him but he began "pulling the fingers" and yelling at her, an Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) report reads.
The driver then began driving the tractor on the wrong side of the road and, joined by a second officer, he was pursued by police.
Travelling at a maximum speed of 18 km/h, the tractor covered almost 19 kilometres from Kaiwaka to Wellsford from the point it was stolen.
In the pursuit, which lasted 12 minutes, the teenager drove on the wrong side of the road, changed directions several times and turned the lights on and off.
The teenager eventually drove onto a footpath to avoid a set of road spikes set up by a third officer and stopped the tractor but kept the engine running.
He was tasered by a police officer and rolled off the tractor and onto the road before being arrested.
The taser barbs attached to the teenagers clothing but he said he was "shocked pretty good".
Police investigated the tasering themselves and despite identifying two potential policy breaches they found the officer's decision to use the taser was appropriate.
A separate investigation was carried out by the IPCA who found the tasering unreasonable and an excessive use of force.
The officers had told the police watchdog they believed the teenager, one officer described as "highly unpredictable", posed a real risk and may be trying to ram a police car parked next to the spikes.
But the IPCA found the driver did not pose a threat and the tasering could have resulted in unnecessary injury to the teenager.
It pointed to police policy, which states tasers should not be used on people operating machinery and that they pose a greater risk when someone is intoxicated.
Waitematā District commander superintendent Naila Hassan accepted the findings but said the police officer was acting in good faith with community safety at the forefront of his intentions.
"While we accept these findings, it's important to acknowledge that this was a dynamic, unpredictable situation, involving an intoxicated male driving dangerously on the highway and posing a safety risk to the public, himself and to our Police officers.
"The nature of Policing is unpredictable and our officers are frequently faced with situations where they are required to make split-second decisions in rapidly-changing, and often dangerous, environments."
She said it was accepted the police officer had other tactical options and lessons learnt from the incident would be communicated to the police workforce. | 1,265,909 |
Open source
NATO Parliamentary Assembly urged Russia to assume responsibility for the crash of the MH17, Ukrinform reports.
‘Parliamentary Assembly confirms its firm support for the investigation of the MH17 crash in Ukraine, which is partially undertaken by the Netherlands authority; and calls the Kremlin to fulfill the resolution of the United Nations Security Council 2166, to take responsibility and to join the efforts to establish justice,’ reads the draft resolution of NATO Parliamentary Assembly.
Related: Families of MH17 victims ask Trump to apply pressure on Putin
The assembly also condemns Russia’s interference in recent elections and referendums in the Euro-Atlantic area, expresses deep concern about such threats that face future elections, and the Kremlin’s support for marginal political movements in the West.
Earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry said that the missile that downed MH17 Boeing in Donbas in 2014 belonged to Ukraine. The Russian authority claimed that the missile was made at Dolgoprudnensky factory in 1986 and sent to Ukraine's military unit; it allegedly was kept there until the tragedy happened. The ministry also claimed that it has access to the audio records made by the Ukrainian military; the tapes allegedly confirm that Ukraine is involved in the crash.
Earlier, U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker assigned responsibility for the MH17 tragedy in Donbas to Russia.
Related: Poroshenko offers to prolong mandate for mission that protects MH17 investigation
'Russia is responsible for that as it intervened and occupied this part of Ukraine,' Volker noted.
He said that the air defense system which shot down the plane came from the Russian regular military unit. It was delivered from Russia to Ukraine, used to fire a missile, which shot down a civil plane from the Ukrainian territory and then this system was returned to Russian military unit.
'And the question on who exactly pushed the button, a Russian or Ukrainian, a Ukrainian from Donbas or an officer of Russia’s Armed Forces, is actually less important than the fact that this Russian military equipment was transported to another sovereign state under Russia’s control, used to launch a missile which killed all these civilians and then taken from Ukraine,' Volker said.
Related: Australia is ready to increase pressure on Russia due to MH17 crash
Boeing 777 of Malaysian Airlines, flight number MH17, was destroyed while performing a regular flight from the Netherlands to Malaysia in July 2014. The tragedy took place in the sky over the militant-held section of Donetsk region. All 298 people aboard deceased; most of the victims, 196, were Dutch, but there were citizens of other nine countries as well. Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 (MH17) brought down in Eastern Ukraine on July 2014 by Buk missile launcher, brought from Kursk, Russia, stated in Bellingcat's report, British NGO of investigative journalists. | 1,265,910 |
It wasn’t all that long ago that Dayne Bartscht bought a farm in Ann Arbor with the idea that he and his friends would put a nanobrewery in the horse barn.
How things have changed. In June, Bartscht, along with Devin Drowley and Paul Hoskin, bought a 1929 former meatpacking plant at 2515 Riopelle St. in Eastern Market in Detroit to open Eastern Market Brewing Co.
The owners have day jobs. Bartscht is a strategy manager at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan in Detroit. Drowley is an engineering manager at a medical device company and Hoskin is a self-employed entrepreneur. In their spare time, they are overseeing the repurposing of a 5,200-square-foot industrial building with the goal of opening in the spring. They hope to add a kitchen next summer.
“At the end of the day, we want to be a brewery,” Bartscht said. “We will open with just beer and people can bring food in.”
The owners said what is taking time is obtaining federal, state and city permits, particularly a Michigan brewery license.
EMBC had somewhat of a debut during the Detroit Design Festival’s recent Eastern Market After Dark event. They were giving out free samples and swag and ran out of both, Bartscht said, adding that the event was a successful marketing effort. They plan to participate in the Detroit Fall Beer Festival Oct. 21-22 in Eastern Market to again promote their product.
Meanwhile, the about-face the EMBC founders made going from 5 Mile Brewing Co. on a farm in Ann Arbor to a plant in Detroit came about as they observed the city’s resurgence and wanted to be part of it. They especially liked the Eastern Market location and its strong community.
“We saw this building and, on the side, was a (faded) phone number” to call to lease or buy, Bartscht said. They learned another group was doing due diligence to buy the building to open a wine bar and shop. But the owners alerted them when that deal fell through.
They bought the building from brothers John and Chuck Boudia. So far, the project has been a $1 million investment. The founders are sharing overseeing the demolition of the plant’s interior. What used to be six rooms on the main floor is now one large room. The main floor near the entrance, which used to be the office for S&D Packing Co., will house the brewing equipment. The rest will be a bar. Eventually, the second floor will be a tap room and the rooftop, which avails great views of downtown, will be an outdoor deck.
The weathered building was the home of S&D Packing Co. until just two years ago. | 1,265,911 |
Reviewed by: Dale Nickey
This is Mark Mansfield’s second solo release and is the finest album in his canon, which includes his under-appreciated and poorly promoted solo debut “Love’s Final Round”. Mansfield has also released multiple albums under the band name, “The Redeemers”. This new album contains recordings that predate all his previous releases. This album serves as an anthology of his earliest studio recordings from the 70s and early 80s. Additionally, it’s a prequel that documents Mr. Mansfield’s eclectic tastes before he fully immersed himself in 60s-style garage rock and country. All qualifiers aside, the cogency of the songs confers on “It Happened One Evening” the gravitas of a stand-alone album.
The CD’s initial songs recorded in Hollywood boast a studio band that included future Plimsouls’ main man, Peter Case; Dickies’ guitarist, Glen Laughlin; and future Red Rockers’ drummer, Patrick Jones. The later songs, recorded in Washington, DC, were cut solo with Winwoodian efficiency and polish. The final result is a Proustian remembrance of things past — more than simply a collection of pop ditties — “It Happened One Evening” is a progressive song cycle that gains sustenance from a potent elixir containing equal parts romance and innocence. The material is light and approachable, yet still shrouded by the chill evening mist of mortality.
The title cut,which also opens the CD, establishes an atmosphere of autumnal twilight ambiance that pervades the entire project. Starry-night keyboards and earnest Anglo-tinged vocals evoke a dark pastel shade of melancholy that is both of its time and timeless. This is chamber pop from someone who had his life changed by the Beatles. And while the album never descends into slavish imitation, one cannot help but note swatches of Al Stewart and the Beau Brummels woven into the tapestry. Reinforced is the notion that sad songs are the most beautiful and can be attractively packaged with deft songcraft and a bearable lightness of being. The finest cut on the album is “Sad To Blue” (inexplicably buried seventh in the running order). It has an eerie, atmospheric vibe that carries the faintest whiff of Bryan Ferry’s earliest, spookiest, piano balladry. And, in a perfect galaxy, the lilting, sourball confection “The Underworld” would be a crossover MOR hit.
This attractively packaged and expertly remastered CD deserves a wider audience and more media attention than it will probably get. However, those who still bring any degree of imagination to their music listening will be greatly rewarded by “It Happened One Evening”. | 1,265,912 |
By Tara Fowler
This weekend sees the sixth (sixth!) installment of the "Fast & Furious" franchise hit theaters (and it's not the last — a seventh is set for next summer). The action series received a blast of adrenaline in the form of Dwayne Johnson with 2011's "Fast Five," and "Fast & Furious 6" promises to be just as, well, fast and furious thanks to the big guy's return (and that's saying something, since there are quite a few "big guys" — sorry Vin Diesel!). Here are seven things you may or may not have known about Johnson and his 18-inch biceps below:
1) He has a degree in criminology: And a criminal record. In fact, Johnson elected to get a degree in the field partly due to his shady past. "I struggled to stay on the right path," he told the Examiner. "I had multiple arrests by the time that I was 17. The last time I was arrested, my parents came down to the police station to get me. My parents were struggling at that time, even to put food on the table. That was a lot of stress at that time and I was adding to it. "
2) He made his acting debut on "That '70s Show": Though "The Mummy Returns" was Johnson's entrance onto the big screen, he previously played Rocky Johnson (that is, his own father) on a 1999 episode of "That '70s Show" and also appeared on an episode of "Star Trek: Voyager" as "The Champion."
3) He became a pro wrestler only after he was rejected by the Canadian Football League: Johnson was actually a stellar football player in high school, earning a scholarship to the University of Miami, only to be sidelined by a shoulder injury. After playing a short while in the CFL, he was cut from the team and decided to follow in his father's footsteps and become a wrestler.
4) He still holds the rights to his nickname, "The Rock," but prefers to be called by his real name now that he's an actor: "I no longer am a wrestler," he told Entertainment Magazine in 2006. "I am now pursuing a future as an actor and someday as a director. I am not The Rock. I am Dwayne Johnson."
5) He holds a Guinness World Record: Thanks to "The Scorpion King." Johnson was paid $5.5 million to appear in the film, the most any actor has ever received in their first starring role.
6) His grandfather was a Bond villain: And Johnson hopes to play one someday as well. Peter Fanene Maivia appeared as a ne'er-do-well car driver in "You Only Live Twice." Here's hoping Johnson gets a more high-profile role. YOLO!
Will you check out Fast & Furious 6 this weekend? | 1,265,913 |
After an email campaign to get people to configure the Model 3, Tesla is now pushing back delivery windows on new orders for the Performance version and the rear-wheel-drive version of the new electric vehicle.
Last month, Tesla updated the Model 3 options and pricing after opening orders to anyone in North America.
At the same time, it updated the delivery timelines – shifting priority to the performance version with a 2 to 4-month delivery window after confirming the order.
The Long Range battery pack with rear-wheel-drive motor, which has so far been the only vehicle in production, was now getting a 3 to 5-month delivery window, like the dual motor version without performance package.
Two weeks ago, Tesla cut those delivery windows down to just 1-3 months for the Performance version and the rear-wheel-drive Long Range battery pack version, according to a new update on their website.
Now the company has updated its online design studio and Model 3 page with 2-4 months delivery windows for all versions of the vehicle:
The change comes a day after Tesla sent out an email campaign to get people to order the Model 3 and introduce the white interior in the Dual Motor non-performance version.
The automaker wrote in the email to customers:
You can design and order any Model 3 today for delivery in as soon as 1‑3 months.”
Tesla is not listing the standard battery pack option because it’s not yet available to order, but it is still listed at 6-9 months in the online design studio.
Electrek’s Take
Now let’s speculate as to why Tesla is increasing the delay in deliveries of new orders.
The way I see it, Tesla is still experimenting on what demand lever to pull to maintain an order rate that matches the recently increased production rate.
For example, Elon Musk said that Tesla had over 7,000 new orders (5,000 Model 3’s and 2,000 S/X) in a single week earlier this month. That was after we believed Tesla received a significant batch of new orders following the launch of the Model 3 Performance.
To be fair, I could be wrong and Tesla could have issues maintaining its current production rate, which would also result in a delay in deliveries for new orders.
That said, Tesla has also accelerated deliveries of vehicles already on orders, which makes a production issue resulting in the delay less likely in my opinion.
Tesla actually warned earlier this month that it believes the new order rate would soon exceed the production rate. I think that might be the result of this happening.
What do you guys think? Let us know in the comment section below.
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February was a great month for us. We expanded our operations in East-Java and invited new partners to the ecosystem. All with a focus on sustainability. Let’s take a moment to reflect together!
Kick-off Meeting with BNI in Bojonegoro
HARA conducted a meeting with the BNI team in Bojonegoro. The main objective of the meeting was to coordinate with both teams on the disbursements of KUR (subsidized microcredit and is one of the national economic initiatives aimed at improving access to finance for small to medium enterprises in Indonesia) that will be launched in April.
HARA joins the Inclusive Business Ecosystem in Indonesia (Seminar AVPN)
HARA was invited to speak at the Developing Inclusive Business & Impact Investment 2019 seminar organized by Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN) and Business Action Network (IBAN) at Hermitage Hotel, Jakarta. The members of both networks consist of leaders from the public and private sector all with an interest in including the poor and underprivileged. The aim of the seminar is to explore the market opportunities of Inclusive Business (IB) in Indonesia. An Inclusive Business is trusted to give sustainable benefits for low-income communities. It was great to meet like-minded organizations that are focusing on creating opportunities for the Bottom of the Pyramid (BoP).
A new partnership with TerraSphere
The firm belief that data sharing in the agriculture value chain can help improve the productivity of smallholder farmers brought together HARA and TerraSphere in a new partnership. With both companies enabling data-driven decisions making for the agriculture sector, this partnership aims to leverage satellite data to improve the visibility of crop growth and productivity in the field. TerraSphere is a Netherlands-based company that offers Geo-ICT (Geographic Information and Communication Technologies) solutions through satellite, UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) mapping, as well as GIS analysis. TerraSphere provides custom mapping products based on earth observation imagery to various companies (Arcadis, Microsoft) and government agencies.
Sustainable Development Goals
HARA is working towards the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. While creating a data-driven ecosystem HARA is supporting #1 No Poverty, #2 Zero Hunger, #5 Gender Equality, #8 Descent Work and Economic Growth, #9 Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure.
Plans for March
March will be a special month for us. Our main focus of the month will be on the repayment of the loans provided by BTPN-Syariah. Our field agents are trained and ready for the big operation!
Last but not least, HARA will star at the prestigious SXSW Conference in Texas, USA. HARA is the only Indonesian company invited by the organization to speak during the Ignite session about Data Empowerment and Blockchain. | 1,265,915 |
Britain and Germany condemned Iran on Thursday for attacking Israel the night before, prompting a massive retaliation in Syria, with UK Prime Minister Theresa May appealing to Russia to use its influence to stop any further offensives.
A spokesman for the prime minister told reporters, “We condemn Iran’s attack on Israel. Israel has every right to defend itself.”
He added, “We call on Iran to refrain from any further attacks and for calm on all sides. We call on Russia to use its influence in Syria to prevent further Iranian attacks.”
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that the latest hostilities were a matter of “war and peace” for the region.
Earlier Thursday, Germany condemned the attack, stressing the Jewish state’s right to defend itself. At the same time, Berlin said it was important not to let the situation escalate.
“We note reports of Iranian rocket attacks on Israeli military bases with great concern,” a spokesperson for Germany’s Foreign Ministry said. “These attacks are a serious provocation that we strongly condemn. As we have always emphasized, Israel has a right to self-defense.
“At the same time, it is crucial that there is no further escalation,” the spokesperson continued. “In particular, this means that we must do everything we can to finally achieve a lasting political solution to the Syrian conflict — to end the suffering of the Syrian people, but also so as not to jeopardize stability in the entire region.“
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, meanwhile, called for dialogue between Israel and Iran.
“This is a very disturbing trend. We proceed from the fact that all issues should be solved through dialogue,” Lavrov said at a press conference, adding that Moscow had warned Israel to avoid “all actions that could be seen as provocative.”
The Israeli army said Thursday morning that it had coordinated with Russia its strikes in Syria, which it said set back Iranian military capabilities in the country by “many months.”
Those followed the firing of some 20 rockets at Israeli military bases on the Golan Heights by Iranian forces from southern Syria.
Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said the IDF had destroyed “nearly all” of Iran’s military infrastructure sites in Syria.
“The Iranians tried to attack the sovereign territory of Israel,” Liberman said. “Not one Iranian rocket landed in the State of Israel. Nobody was hurt. Nothing was damaged. And we’re to be thankful for that. We damaged nearly all of the Iranian infrastructure in Syria.”
Liberman stressed that Israel had no interest in an escalation but that Iranian provocation would always be met with force. | 1,265,916 |
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If you aren’t utilizing social networking on your internet site then it’s your superlative mistake. Because among the social networking websites are hierarchical in search outcomes like Quora, Pinterest, Google+ and so forth. So, in case you have not created your internet site webpage on social media but then create it as quickly as doable. Once you could have created social media pages, then place the social media sharing button in your internet site. So, your readers can simply subscribe or abide by with you on social media and share your articles.
There are many benefits of social media like 1st and most necessary is among the social media websites are hierarchical in search outcomes. 2nd is social media websites are high-quality websites with excessive DA (Domain Authority) PR (Page Rank). third is social media websites have an tremendous measure of site visitants every day. 4th is social media websites give nofollow backlinks (or els of Tumblr, Tumblr offers dofollow backlinks) which is useful to create backlinks from high-quality websites & drive site visitants in direction of your internet site. And the fifth is it’s free! So, construct your social media presence. | 1,265,917 |
proponents from extolling their virtues. In July, Goldman Sachs boasted of having structured $14 billion in cat bonds since 2006 as part of its “long-standing commitment to harness markets and deploy capital to scale-up clean energy technologies and facilitate the transition to a low-carbon energy future.” The World Bank, the United Nations and the Union of Concerned Scientists have all heralded cat bonds as a way to leverage private capital markets to protect against climate catastrophe. In 2014, the World Bank created a $30 million cat bond to cover the risk of tropical cyclones and earthquakes in 16 countries, including Haiti.
In the United States, corporations are hyping cat bonds as a private-market solution to the National Flood Insurance Program’s $24 billion debt (caused almost entirely by Katrina and Sandy). The National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies testified before Congress last year that “ceding a portion of the NFIP’s risk to the private sector through reinsurance and catastrophe bonds could reduce taxpayer exposure to future debt.”
Though framed as a convenient, market-friendly means to help governments and insurance companies cope with disaster, cat bonds are no substitute for public sector investment in resiliency and robust federal disaster relief. And judging from these products’ short history, we should be vigilant as to whether the private sector’s “innovative” catbond solution to climate disaster truly serves the public good, or is another way to increase private profits. | 1,265,918 |
India goes to the West Indies sensing more cricketing opportunities than threats
In the past, a tour of the West Indies was deemed the toughest endeavour for any cricketer. Reputations were either enhanced or lost and fractures seemed imminent in the battles against the fiery fast bowlers, while the crowds requested the perfume-ball, a euphemism for a nasty bouncer. But times change, and the inherent quality of the Caribbean squads has declined so much that a sporting visit to the isles with their sunny beaches is seen as an exercise towards etching triumphs, fattening batting averages and multiplying bowling yields. With this as the backdrop, India will fly halfway across the earth for a set of three Twenty20s — interestingly, two of them are being hosted in the United States of America — three ODIs and two Tests against the West Indies from August 3 to September 3. India will be the favourites across the three formats, though in limited overs games, where the abridged nature of the sport tends to iron out the flaws, the host might fancy its chances. The tour, coming as it does close on the heels of the World Cup in England, presents an opportunity for India to look ahead, make a few changes in personnel and prepare for the future. Transition always coincides with the quadrennial World Cup and India too is part of that global trend.
M.S. Dhoni has straddled three generations, the one that had Sachin Tendulkar, the second with the likes of Yuvraj Singh and the latest under Virat Kohli as captain. The former India captain has held firm in a storied career of triumphs, losses, frenzied runs, sharp catches and quicksilver stumpings, but at 38 he is near his cricketing twilight. Though he avoided retiring from the blue shade by preferring to serve the Army in his role as an honorary lieutenant colonel, Dhoni presented an opportunity to M.S.K. Prasad and his fellow selectors to fast-track Rishabh Pant as the first-choice wicket-keeper batsman across all formats. Dhoni, who retired from Tests in 2014, might still make appearances in the shorter versions, and there is speculation about next year’s Twenty20 World Cup in Australia being his preferred last stop. But it all depends on what the selectors and Kohli prefer as they look at building the team afresh for the 2023 World Cup in India. The imminent West Indies tour will help the team management get a fair idea about the potential in the likes of Shreyas Iyer, Mayank Agarwal, Manish Pandey, Rahul Chahar, Krunal Pandya, Washington Sundar, Khaleel Ahmed, Deepak Chahar and Navdeep Saini, besides the other regulars. The opposition may be depleted, but for these players, hope floats and a crucial August awaits. | 1,265,919 |
The Boston Police Department recently fired an officer after two strippers allegedly stole his service weapon earlier this year, authorities said.
Emanuel Brandao, 37, was terminated for unsatisfactory conduct during his probationary period, the Boston Globe reported. The department hired Brandao in December 2016.
'"[H[is conduct during his probationary period was unsatisfactory and rendered him unfit to be a police officer with the Boston police," Boston Police Sgt. John Boyle said, according to the Globe.
At about 2:30 a.m. on Feb. 2, Brandao reported his department-owned.40-caliber Glock 22, stolen from his vehicle at Hampton Inn hotel in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.
"While off-duty in Rhode Island, he failed to properly secure his department-issued firearm when he gave his vehicle keys to a civilian and the civilian used those keys to take his firearm," Boyle said.
Brandao was on paid leave until his firing on March 28.
What are the details?
It all started when Brandao met up with a "Natalia" at the Hampton Inn hotel bar in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. He claims he met the woman through a relative on Instagram. Police identified Natalia as Neish Rivera, 26.
The pair went to meet Rivera's friend, Melissa Dacier, 23, at the Nara Lounge in Providence. Brandao told authorities his weapon was on him at the time.
Later, the trio went to a strip club before returning to the Pawtucket hotel for the night.
Brandao said he locked his service weapon inside the glove box of his BMW before heading into the strip club, according to the Providence Journal.
At the hotel, Brandao gave Dacier his car keys and sent her to his car for his phone charger.
After Dacier didn't return, Rivera left the hotel room to look for her. Neither of the women returned.
Brandao then went to his car and discovered his glove box was open and his firearm was missing.
Hours later, police arrested Rivera on a warrant for larceny of a firearm and conspiracy, according to the report.
Police also arrested and charged Dacier with larceny of a firearm, conspiracy, and failure to report for a summons in an unrelated incident.
Was the gun recovered?
Rivera led authorities to the missing gun. It was reportedly found wrapped in a Walmart bag inside a mail slot of a fire station in Providence.
What else?
A week after the alleged theft, Kyle Benford, 24, was arrested in connection to the crime, according to the Globe. Police also charged him with larceny of a firearm and conspiracy. It's unclear what role Benford played in the incident. | 1,265,920 |
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well as aestethics over gross appetites hardly requires emphasis. But people should be free to choose the life-style they want. Lacking the right to do so, they will remain with a sense of enforced privation that makes irrational choices seem desirable.
Fourth, we must totally reconceptualize our ideas of justice and freedom. No one is “equal” to everyone else in any society, whether it be in terms of our personal diminishing powers in the life-cycle or the different capacities, experiences, and knowledge that distinguish one person from another (such as physical strength, certain abilities, and the like). A new society will want to be guided by an ethics of complementarity, as I have called it, that tries to equalize the differences within and between people—in short, that will be guided by an “equality of unequals”—rather than retain the pretensions of justice that regard “all people” as equal, notably as an “inequality of equals.” Unlike justice, which works from the pretensions that all are equal in theory, despite their many differences in fact, freedom makes no pretense that all are equal but tries to compensate for the inequalities that occur with age, physical infirmity, and different abilities.
It remains to be seen if the market society that prevails today will eventually so devitalize public life that an enlightened humanism will be untenable in the coming decades. Indeed, the human enterprise may end in wars, demoralization, instability, and an authoritarian society. Nor can we exclude the possibility that advances in technology and science will create new sources of non-pollutiong energy, genetically engineered foods forests, and food animals that will largely absorb the biosphere by a technologically contrived sociosphere. In which case, Gaia will be turned into a plaything of corporate giants, to be manipulated freely for the benefit of profit and capital expansion.
If this should happen at some time in the future, antihumanists will have contributed to this dismal alternative because they perpetuate a grossly alienating athmosphere of indifference to humaninty’s social plight. The logic of their premises is a misanthropic view of humanity’s most remarkable qualities: its rationality and capacity to act upon the world. It is not quatism and Asian resignation, so widely propagated by antihumanists of all kinds, that can save us from so dark a fate but activism and militancy. We live in a time when the free and rational society humanists have sought to achieve is barely a stone’s throw away. But perhaps because of that fact, it will require a great ethical effort to cross the threshold from the old to the new. The achievement of freedom must be a free act on the highest level of intellectual and moral probity, for if we cannot act vigorously to free ourselves, we will not deserve to be free. | 1,265,922 |
Sugar is so interlaced in our snacks, meals and drinks that it’s hard to imagine a world without it. But prior to 1850, this sweet substance was a hot commodity that only society’s most wealthy could afford. Then, mid-nineteenth century, Napoleon changed all of that, flooding the European market with affordable sugar and perhaps inadvertently sparking an epidemic of obesity and diabetes a century and a half down the road.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln writes:
During the mid-1700’s, the German chemist Andreas Margraff discovered that both white and the red beetroot contained sucrose, which was indistinguishable from that produced from cane. He predicted then that domestic use and manufacture of sugar was possible in temperate climates, but these ideas would not be realized for another 50 years until new ways of extraction could be developed.
During this time, sugar came from plantations in the South Pacific. But the discovery of the sugar beet opened new routes for harvesting the sought-after ingredient.
The BBC explains:
Britain had the monopoly on the sugar cane trade for over a century. During the Napoleonic wars of the early 1800s the British blockaded France’s trade routes with the Caribbean, leaving the country with low supplies of sugar.
The European Food Information Council elaborates:
By 1806, cane sugar had virtually disappeared from the shelves of European shops. In 1811, French scientists presented Napoleon with two loaves of sugar made from sugar beet. Napoleon was so impressed he decreed that 32,000 hectares of beet should be planted and provided assistance to get the factories established. Within a few years there were more than 40 sugar beet factories, mostly in Northern France but also in Germany, Austria, Russia, and Denmark
Napoleon encouraged new research with sugar beets, the University of Nebraska writes, and by 1815, over 79,000 acres were put into production with more than 300 small factories being built in France.
Soon, sugar beet sugar flooded the British market, and by 1850 sugar was at last affordable for all.
The BBC continues:
The public could not get enough of this cheap and tasty pick-me-up. From sweetened tea in the workplace, to meals on the family table, to the new working class tradition of high tea – sugar soon became indispensable.
It didn’t take long for sugar to become a household staple, and today, about 35 percent of the 130 metric tons of sugar comes from sugar beets. The BBC concludes:
So addicted were we to this new taste, that at the beginning of the 19th century we consumed 12 pounds of sugar per head. By the end of the century that amount had rocketed to 47 pounds per head.
More from Smithsonian.com:
Sugar on Snow
A Field Guide to Sugars | 1,265,923 |
the trade union leaders is that the strike will escalate out of their control and become a pole of attraction for Ryanair flight attendants and ground crew, as well as throughout the whole flight industry.
The Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) union refused to mount any pickets or to organise protests at any of Ryanair’s 10 bases of operation in Germany. Instead, the union called on its members to attend a “meeting” in the basement of its Frankfurt headquarters, miles away from the airport and from the colleagues of the Ryanair pilots at other airlines.
The underground meeting was nothing more than a staged photo opportunity, where the union functionaries did their best to keep their own membership in check. Representatives from the World Socialist Web Site were forbidden from distributing leaflets to the union members present. The union representatives repeatedly told the workers they should not talk to the press under any circumstances. Only the union’s press spokesman could do this, they said.
For the union, the meeting merely served as a means to reemphasize its “partnership” with Ryanair. Martin Locher, the president of the Vereinigung Cockpit union, quoted Ryanair marketing chief Kenny Jacobs, who has talked about “this unnecessary strike,” and said he agreed “one hundred percent with this.” It would “have made much more sense,” Locher said, “to sit down and have constructive negotiations.”
The efforts of the trade unions to prevent the development of a European-wide strike could also be seen in Ireland, where Ryanair has its home base.
Forsa, representing some of Ryanair’s Ireland-based pilots, said it was Ryanair’s “lack of experience” in industrial relations, i.e., that it did not yet sufficiently trust the union bureaucracy to police the workforce, that had led to its members’ fifth one-day strike. The Irish Air Line Pilots' Association (IALPA), which is part of FORSA, only represents around a quarter of Ryanair’s Irish-based pilots—with the company able to run the majority of its operations in Ireland by utilising pilots employed via third-party agencies.
Next week, IALPA is scheduled to meet with Ryanair under the auspices of mediator Kieran Mulvey. Ahead of the talks, IALPA announced it had no plans for further strikes.
Workers at Ryanair must not allow the trade unions to sabotage their struggle. They must form independent workplace committees that will continue to expand the strike. They must reach out to workers at all other locations and airlines to fight for the international unity of the working class against the nationalist parochialism of the trade unions.
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U.S. Army Sikorsky UH-6A Black Hawk of the 1st Battalion, 5th Aviation Regiment, crashed under unknown circumstances during a MEDEVAC mission. One crew member died, three others were injured.
In a post, JRTC and Fort Polk said that emergency services immediately responded to the scene and that the accident is under investigation.
A spokesperson for Fort Polk told ABC News that the helicopter was a UH-60 Black Hawk medevac unit comprised of four soldiers that crashed just after 12 a.m. en route to pick up another soldier needing treatment for heat-related symptoms. That individual is OK.
Two of the injured members were sent to Rapides Regional Medical Center. The third was sent to Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital. All three injuries were non-life-threatening.
The aircraft was flying a MEDEVAC mission. The personnel was with Fort Polk’s U.S. Army Air Ambulance Detachment, 1st Battalion, 5th Aviation Regiment.
Kim Reischling, a Fort Polk spokeswoman, gave the Army Times the following statement:
“One of their biggest missions on Fort Polk is to fly medevac and they were on their way to pick up a routine injury out in the training area. There are accidents out there, minor ones, soldiers get overheated, soldiers sprain their hands, stuff like that…We have personnel from Fort Rucker, the Army Aviation Safety Center, who are in-route here to Fort Polk to begin the investigation.”
The crash is still under investigation and names will not be released until possibly Friday.
Senator John Kennedy sent his condolences on Twitter, saying, “I’m saddened to learn about this tragic accident at Fort Polk.
My thoughts are with the family of the fallen, with the service members who were injured and with all the men and women at Fort Polk who are mourning the loss of a friend.”
Senator Bill Cassidy tweeted, “A terrible accident has happened today at Fort Polk and my heart breaks to hear it. Praying for the families and friends of the Army service members involved in this tragedy. God bless them.”
Rep. Mike Johnson also released a statement, saying: “I am deeply saddened by the report of the tragic accident at Fort Polk early this morning.
My office is closely monitoring the situation and is in contact with Fort Polk officials to receive updates as the situation develops.
Kelly and I join all Louisianians in praying for the family of the brave soldier who passed away and for a speedy recovery for those who were injured. We cannot thank the men and women of Fort Polk enough for all they do, at home and abroad, to keep us safe.” | 1,265,925 |
Argentina: Strike paralyses Buenos Aires and other cities Published duration 21 November 2012
image copyright Reuters image caption Motorways remained empty, as roadblocks were set up on the main access roads to Buenos Aires
A strike called by two of Argentina's biggest unions has paralysed much of Buenos Aires and other cities.
Most trains and underground lines remained closed, flights were cancelled and there was little traffic in the streets of the capital.
This is the second big protest against the government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner in less than two weeks.
The unions are asking for lower income taxes, and there is general discontentment about the economy.
There are also concerns about rising crime and corruption.
President Fernandez, who has been in power since 2007, has seen her approval ratings plunge after her re-election a year ago.
The strike was called by two unions that have recently dropped their support to the government, the CGT and the CTA.
It was also backed up by the powerful Argentine Agrarian Federation, which represents the farming sector.
"It feels like Sunday in Buenos Aires, with the cafes and the shops open but generally empty streets in the usually congested central area of the city," says the BBC's Vladimir Hernandez.
'Red card'
Union leaders have hailed the strike as a major success.
"There are hundreds of thousands of workers across the country sending a message to a government that closes the eyes to all of us who disagree with them," said CTA union leader Pablo Micheli.
But the government says people only stayed at home because of the roadblocks and picket lines.
image copyright AP image caption Cristina Fernandez succeeded her husband Nestor Kirchner as president five years ago
"Luckily the strike was restricted to a few areas in the capital, because people in the rest of the country went to work as usual," President Fernandez said in her first reaction to the industrial action.
Speaking at a ceremony to mark Sovereignty Day in the city of San Pedro, she also sent a defiant message to her critics.
"I will put up with whatever I have to put up with. No one will bully me: not with threats, not with violence."
Economist Alan Cibils told the BBC Mundo the underlying problem was high inflation.
Some economists say annual inflation in Argentina is at 24%, much higher than the official 10% figure.
Most unions are calling for a big rise in the minimum salary and for income tax bands to be adjusted accordingly.
The International Monetary Fund head, Christine Lagarde, has threatened Argentina with a "red card" if it does not provide reliable inflation and growth data by 17 December.
Economic growth in Argentina has dropped from 9% in 2011 to 2.2% this year, according to the World Bank. | 1,265,926 |
ze is basically a backup Lightning Bolt. Meanwhile, Vapor Snag disrupts out opponent just a little bit while also making our opponent lose a life. Apart from eating away our opponent's last life points, these cards also deal with any flying blockers our opponent might present to allow us to keep attacking with our evasive threats.
Getting Jeskai Flying Men down into the ultra-budget price range requires two things. First, we need to lose Spell Queller, which admittedly is one of the best cards in the deck. However, we get Skyknight Legionnaire as a replacement, which is a sort of mini-Mantis Rider. This makes our deck more aggressive, with another hasty, evasive threat, but we lose one of our best ways of disrupting our opponent. Second, we need to downgrade our mana base even more, which is scary because the mana was already one of the weakest parts of the deck we played in the videos. In the ultra-budget build, we have a ton of enters-the-battlefield-tapped lands, which is particularly problematic for a deck like ours that really wants to curve out. My advice would be to patch the mana together the best you can. If you have fast lands, shock lands, pain lands, or any other dual that comes into play untapped, stick them in the deck over the comes-into-play-tapped duals, and the deck will function much better.
As for the non-budget version of Jeskai Flying Men, I'm actually really happy with the nonland cards in the main deck, so the only change there is dropping the Electrolyze for a copy of Snapcaster Mage. By far the biggest improvement is the mana, where we get the typical fetch land, shock land, and basic mana base. If you don't have Scalding Tarn or even any fetch lands as all, the more pain lands you can cut for fast lands or shock lands, the better the deck will be. Otherwise, we touch up the sideboard by adding in powerful white cards like Stony Silence, Rest in Peace, and Leyline of Sanctity, along with a copy of Keranos, God of Storms.
Conclusion
Anyway, that's all for today. We went 4-1 in our recorded matches, and so far, I'm 5-1 with the deck overall, picking up an additional win against our budget Mono-Blue Faeries list. All in all, the deck feels really competitive. The creatures are powerful, the deck is naturally disruptive, and the clock is fast; plus, it's really fun to play! Give it a shot—I don't think you'll be disappointed. As always, leave your thoughts, ideas, opinions, and suggestions in the comments, and you can reach me on Twitter @SaffronOlive or at [email protected]. | 1,265,927 |
but the rule for quarterbacks is to hand the ball off unless they cannot.
Instead, Sanchez kept it and was dropped for a loss.
“One of ‘em, I stared right at 58 and made a pretty bad read,” Sanchez said Wednesday. “And then I ended up getting down. But I’ve gotta clean those up because that ends up being a negative play for us, and I can’t put us in a second-and-long like that. That’s just worse than an incompletion. It’s like a sack. So that can’t happen. And I’ve gotta clean those up. Plenty of stuff to get better.”
Eagles offensive linemen were expecting to go with a ground-heavy attack against Carolina. But when the Panthers came out and played more man coverage with an extra guy in the box, the game plan changed.
“Whenever you dictate what a team is doing, and it’s something that’s out of their comfort zone, then you can put up the yards like we did,” Kelce said. “We obviously were able to get to a lot of points. Some of that’s a good job by our defense giving us good opportunities, but once we really got into a rhythm and understood what was going on, I think we settled in as an offense.”
Still, regardless of what defenses are doing, the Eagles know the run game is the foundation of their offense. With four of five starting offensive linemen back on the field, the results need to be better than they were last week.
“We didn’t execute the way we needed to execute in the run game,” Kelly said. “They did a better job at defeating our blocks than we did at sustaining our blocks. …I think that if you asked the guys on the offensive side of the ball, they felt like they didn’t play well. I believe we didn’t really play up to our potential on the offensive side of the ball.”
Added Kelce: “The run game is something, even though they were doing some things schematically, we still have to do a better job of running against tight boxes and things like that. I think we could have done a lot better job blocking. There were a lot of penalties and a lot of pre-snap things with the cadence and whatnot that hurt us early. And obviously my snaps have got to get a little bit cleaned up.”
The Packers rank 20th against the run, according to Football Outsiders. Chances are they’ll try to force Sanchez to beat them, but even if that’s the case, the Eagles need to get the ground game going to escape Lambeau Field with a victory. | 1,265,928 |
Prominent women’s-rights attorney Gloria Allred is joining the chorus of voices denouncing Bill Cosby’s Jan. 17 shows at the Buell Theatre.
The Los Angeles-based attorney will hold a “Teach In Speak Out” session at 2 p.m. at Denver’s Crawford Hotel, 1701 Wynkoop St., on Jan. 17.
Cosby is scheduled to take the stage for 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. comedy shows.
Allred last month held a press conference flanked by a trio of Cosby’s accusers, suggesting Cosby should settle the growing number of sexual assault claims against him. More than two dozen women have said Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted them in incidents allegedly dating back four decades.
“I think it’s important for the community in Denver to understand why women have made the allegations,” Allred told The Denver Post this afternoon. “It’s also important to know what (Cosby’s) response has been, how this performance is impacting the alleged victims, and what the people of Denver can do about this.”
Allred, who is representing seven of Cosby’s accusers, declined to name specific actions people could take. She said she will discuss them at the event, after which she plans to attend a protest in advance of Cosby’s 5 p.m. show. Her “Teach In” event will also include an unnamed Denver woman who said she is a victim of Cosby’s “sexual misconduct.”
The event is free and open to the public, but attendees must RSVP no later than 4 p.m. on Jan. 16 by e-mailing [email protected] with their name, phone number and e-mail address.
“I’m very excited about what I’m hearing coming out of Denver,” said Allred. “I’m looking forward to meeting the activists and those who oppose this performance in person.”
As previously reported in The Denver Post, activist Lucilla Tenorio is organizing the protests outside the Denver Performing Arts Complex before Cosby’s Jan. 17 shows. Tenorio is among the women who contacted Allred requesting her presence in Denver.
A trio of Denver City Council members this week also showed their solidarity with Tenorio’s “Turn Back Cosby” campaign by abstaining on votes related to a financial deal with the promoter of Cosby’s Denver shows, AEG Live Rocky Mountains.
WATCH: Watch the latest news updates on DPTV with Molly Hughes
John Wenzel: 303-954-1642, [email protected] or twitter.com/johnwenzel | 1,265,929 |
The road to “Drowned Earth” begins here, in the pages of AQUAMAN #41! Following the most recent issue of JUSTICE LEAGUE, Aquaman is missing and the Earth has been flooded! With the arrival of an alien armada came a group of extraterrestrial sea gods. Despite once coming to Earth’s aid in past, these deities are only interested now in drowning our planet in their toxic waters.
What’s worse, any living thing the purple sludge touches turns into a horrific aquatic creature, seemingly driven only by a desire to cause harm! So once again the Earth has been thrown into peril, and only the League can save it. That is if whichever members still remain can survive!
[one_half]
[/one_half][one_half_last]
Talent
Art by: Lan Medina, Vicente Cifuentes
Cover by: Riccardo Federici
Variant cover by: Joshua Middleton
Written by: Dan Abnett
Specs
Series: AQUAMAN 2016
U.S. Price: $3.99
On Sale Date: Oct 17, 2018
Volume/Issue #: 41
Color/B&W: Color
Trim Size: Comic
Page Count: 32
[/one_half_last]
Somewhere, Beyond The Sea
So the first few pages of AQUAMAN #41 showcase Lan Medina, Vicente Cifuentes, and Gabe Eltaeb’s artistic chops. The visuals are equal parts gorgeous and horrifying, starting the issue a delightful scene of the Atlanteans playing in the sea before they transform into a terrifying band of beasts! When Mera arrives to save the day in the last page, everything about this page is immediately captivating. From the epic effect of the splashing sea to the way the sunlight practically shines off her costume, it’s a visual treat for the eyes!
Dan Abnett definitely has a daunting task before him. Setting the tone for DC’s next major event, especially after the massive popular reception of DARK NIGHTS: METAL and JUSTICE LEAGUE: NO JUSTICE, is no easy feat. Fortunately, since the stakes rise almost immediately, it’s clear Abnett isn’t dawdling.
So this looks to be an exciting new storyline, and a unique one as well! I mean, in a world of powerful aliens and mystic monstrosities, when have the League ever had to deal with a flood before? Before the AQUAMAN #41 proper arrives on October 17th, whet your appetite with this exclusive first look at AQUAMAN #41 below!
AQUAMAN #41 Preview Gallery | 1,265,930 |
secret” of the Manmohan Singh period’s high economic growth was “huge asset price inflation, not production.”
Now, economists track economic growth by measuring the change in the GDP and then adjusting for inflation. Asset-price inflation refers to the nominal rise in the prices of stocks, bonds, derivatives, real estate and other assets. All standard measurements of inflation, such as the consumer price index, do not account for rising asset prices. GDP does not factor asset price inflation. Real GDP is just a plain and simple sum of all the goods and services produced adjusted for comparison. Paradoxically, it is nominal GDP, not adjusted for inflation, that is the real GDP. These are basic economic principles that Gurumurthy seems to be ignoring.
Gurumurthy ascribes high GDP growth to increased money supply. The reality is that a growing economy needs more cash, and India is a cash-driven economy where almost 40% of wages are paid daily by cash. The demonetisation exercise, which has rendered large swathes of the economy sterile leaving behind in its wake huge number of unemployed people, should tell him that now.
It’s unfortunate that this realisation must come after shooting oneself in the foot.
Gurumurthy would do well to start with reading and digesting Economics, an introductory textbook by the great Paul Samuelson. It is the best selling economics textbook of all time, described as “the canonical textbook of mainstream economic thought.” My advice to him is that what is not in it on economics does not exist – as yet, anyway.
Old technique
In early 1999 I had an intellectual encounter with Gurumurthy at an event held at the Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad, about how to stimulate investment and hence growth.
I argued that foreign investment is a key driver of rapid industrial growth, as it was in China, because it invariably brings with it the latest technologies and opens up great export markets. Like Ford, Suzuki and Hyundai now do in India.
Gurumurthy argued that ancient India had all of the technologies needed and we need to just draw from them. He said all the capital investment could be achieved by retrieving the gold held in Indian households which, according to him, was worth several trillion dollars.
He kept repeating that all those who advocate foreign direct investment and the import of technologies must be foreign agents.
I see the same technique of simply maligning the opponents, being employed in defence of demonetisation, not only by Gurumurthy but also by his great friend and fellow conspirator, Finance Minister Arun Jaitely.
Mohan Guruswamy heads the Centre for Policy Alternatives, New Delhi, an independent and privately funded think-tank. He is also a Distinguished Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi. | 1,265,931 |
laundry, restaurant and gift shop businesses, which are most easily sustained in large cosmopolitan communities.
A few shoppers brave Chicago’s cold January weather.
Ultimately, though, Yuan predicted the gradual assimilation of Chinatown residents. He saw voluntary segregation as a “temporary ‘safety zone,’” until hostility toward the Chinese diminished. At that has happened in modern American cities, the need for the community to contain themselves in a single urban neighborhood has declined. Even when Yuan wrote his article, two years before the Immigration and Nationality Act passed, he noted that “the great majority of the Chinese (in New York) are living outside Chinatown, scattered all over the metropolitan area.” Chinatown still existed, though, because of the “‘institutionalization’ of the voluntary segregation” — that is, for business purposes. “Chinatown will continue to exist as a ‘symbol’ of voluntary segregation because it will become a commercial district in which not many Chinese will remain as residents,” he wrote. Complete assimilation was only held back, he suggested, by the era’s resistance to intermarriage.
Yuan proved prescient. Most modern Chinatowns are serving less as a singular manifestation of Chinese-American life than as a central gathering place for people to experience Chinese culture — whether or not they have a Chinese heritage. And indeed, Chinatowns themselves were often built on the ground of former ethnic enclaves that had organically dissolved; the one in Manhattan has previous incarnations as the Irish Five Points and Little Italy.
But as Chicago’s Chinatown demonstrates, this is not a predictable story. More than a hundred years after its founding, the neighborhood has a dynamism that can’t be neatly scripted.
“Chicago Chinatown is the only one in the country that has not been gentrified and also has been expanding,” says Wong, of the Chinese American Service League. And its development is orchestrated not only by leaders at the top of influential organizations, but also by the personal choices of people on the ground.
Wong says residents are much more involved in the community too. Older residents who once were isolated are now active, for example, in the seniors program at CASL. They take calligraphy classes, and travel together to San Francisco and Yellowstone National Park.
Wong was part of the group that founded CASL more than 30 years ago. She remembers that in one of their first programs, it was a milestone when they took Chinese seniors on a field trip to The Loop. That’s just three miles north.
“Even though they lived in Chicago a long time, they didn’t know what Chicago looks like,” Wong said. “They only knew Cermak and Wentworth. They were scared to go beyond that.” | 1,265,932 |
The City of Seattle and King County have been cited for discharging sewage into local bodies of water beyond allowable limits.
The Department of Ecology has fined King County $63,500 and the City of Seattle $33,500. Ecology essentially found that the city and county discharged sewage into neighboring bodies of water beyond what is allowed.
VIDEO: Untreated sewage overflows into Seattle’s Elliott Bay
“The county and the city are taking these violations seriously and they are making good progress on their CSO control programs,” said Mark Henley with the Department of Ecology. “They just need to do a little bit better to not violate their permit.”
King County was cited for 23 violations, and Seattle was cited for 10 violations. All incidents happened throughout 2015. Ecology found that King County exceeded pollutant limits from its treatment plants 18 times. Ecology also notes that two out of the four county treatment plants were found in violation of solids removal limits.
“(The county) is mostly regarding one of their CSO satellite treatment plants, called Elliott West,” Henley said. “That’s for various pollutants above the allowable limits, which includes fecal coliform bacteria and excessive levels of chlorine in their discharge.”
Fecal coliform bacteria is basically what it sounds like — scientifically speaking, it originates in the intestines of warm-blooded animals. But locally, excessive levels of the fecal bacteria made it through the sewage lines, and eventually flowed into places like Lake Union and Lake Washington.
Seattle had a similar case. Ecology discovered that the city allowed two unpermitted overflows from its outfalls during dry weather, and seven preventable overflows during other times.
This all means that sewage overflowed into Puget Sound, Elliott Bay, Lake Washington, Lake Union and Longfellow Creek.
How does sewage get into local waters?
The city and the county have federal consent agreements with Ecology to limit how often combined sewage overflows enter local waters. It’s part of the Clean Water Act. And it’s also part of a lawsuit settlement after the agencies violated the act in the past.
What is a combined sewage overflow? The region’s wastewater systems are a bit old and were built for a much smaller population decades ago. Stormwater and sewage — everything that flushes from your home or office building — combines into one pipe and heads to a wastewater treatment plant.
But since it rains quite often and heavily in the Pacific Northwest, those combined pipes tend to fill up fast. When that happens, the pipes overflow into the nearest bodies of water, sending sewage into Lake Union, Elliott Bay, Lake Washington, Puget Sound, etc.
Sometimes local agencies can treat that overflow before it gets to the water. But often it goes into the waters untreated. | 1,265,933 |
Ktionale library to perform currying and lazy programming and more.
Finally, you’ll learn functional design patterns and techniques that will make you a better programmer.By the end of the book, you will be more confident in your functional programming skills and will be able to apply them while programming in Kotlin.
Here is what you’ll learn:- Discover the Coroutines in Kotlin
Uncover Using Monads with funkTionale
Learn the Concepts of Functional Programming with Kotlin
Discover Stream Processing
Learn Monads, Functiors and Applicatives
Uncover Using funkTionale plugin
Combine Functional Programming with OOP and Reactive Programming
Mastering Android Development with Kotlin
This is another book to learn kotlin, the book starts by giving you a strong grasp of Kotlin’s features in the context of Android development and its APIs.
Moving on, you’ll take steps toward building stunning applications for Android. The book will show you how to set up the environment, and the difficulty level will grow steadily with the applications covered in the upcoming chapters.
Later on, the book will introduce you to the Android Studio IDE, which plays an integral role in Android development.
You’ll use Kotlin’s basic programming concepts such as functions, lambdas, properties, object-oriented code, safety aspects, type parameterization, testing, and concurrency, which will guide you through writing Kotlin code into production. Lastly you’ll learn how to integrate Kotlin into any existing Android project.
Adjust your application’s look and feel
Know how to persist and share application database
Work with Services and other concurrency mechanisms
Write effective tests
Understand the basics of Android development with Kotlin
Get to know the key concepts in Android development
See how to create modern mobile applications for the Android platform
Migrate an existing Java-based project to Kotlin What you will learn
So those are some of the best books to learn kotlin and understand how simple it is to learn and program. If you’re serious about becoming a professional android or kotlin developer, I recommend you get yourself a copy of the book.
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Classic Album Sundays, the most popular and respected classic album listening event in the world, is setting up shop in Chicago to expose your ears to a dance party like none other. Saturday Audio Exchange, Transistor Chicago, CHIRP Radio, Dark Matter Coffee, and event organizer Sam Willett will be celebrating the legacy of Daft Punk's Discovery by listening to it in its entirety on vinyl.
Daft Punk’s robotic identity may be imaginary in the eyes of their fans, but for Thomas Bangaltar and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, it’s what allows them to stay human. The futuristic helmets that rest over their heads allow them to infuse their creativity into an imaginary universe and, afterwards, disconnect and become apart of humanity. It’s the difference between contributing and being governed by the world, and once your face is revealed, how could it be forgotten?
Daft Punk is an artist that has played both sides of the field— while their debut album Homework challenged the limits of underground techno and is linked with their human identities, Discovery exposed their brand of electronic music to the world and still stands as a model for marrying electronic and pop music today. This year, their epic sophomore album celebrated its fifteen year anniversary.
Discovery serves as Daft Punk’s magnum opus because it's a simple, pop record defined by complex electronic orchestration— it’s easy to catch onto but difficult to completely comprehend. Many of its songs sample sugary pop hits from the 70s and 80s and are twisted into new ecstasy. The others include recordings of guitars, keyboards, vocoders, and drum kits that are consistently reinterpreted, most of which they recorded themselves. Considering that, Daft Punk have never been laptop musicians, as opposed to many of today’s EDM artists.
Saturday Audio Exchange, a well-renowned Chicago independent music dealer, will be providing a custom-curated hi-fi audio system to make this experience come to life on vinyl. In attending the event, you will listen to the album as if you are watching a movie- no phones, no distractions, and complete focus on the beauty engrained in Discovery. Take a look at the sound equipment Classic Album Sundays typically uses at their events here.
When the event starts, a vinyl-exclusive playlist, including artists that influenced and have been influenced by Daft Punk, will be played. Attendees should take this warm up time to take a look around Saturday, visit with our event partners, socialize with new and old friends, and drink beverages. When we have a full house, we will give attendees a ten minute warning to use to the bathroom and make any phone calls before the album starts. Then, Sam will introduce the album drop the needle. From there, your mind should be completely involved with the album and prepared for a musical adventure. | 1,265,935 |
Google's business is humming along despite mounting concerns over data privacy.
Alphabet (GOOGL), the parent company of Google, reported Monday that its profits hit $9.4 billion in the first three months of 2018, up from $5.4 billion a year earlier.
The company's bottom line was helped by the continued strength of its ad sales business. Google's sales for the quarter jumped 26% to $31.1 billion. Its ads business accounted for $26.6 billion of that.
Alphabet also benefited from a lower effective corporate tax rate of 11%, compared to 20% a year earlier, thanks tax reform.
The stock was effectively flat in after hours trading following the results.
Google is the first of the major tech platforms to report earnings since news of the Cambridge Analytica scandal. While the data debacle focused on Facebook (FB), it also upended the stocks of companies like Google and Twitter (TWTR), which primarily make money by collecting personal information and using it to sell targeted ads.
Related: Exclusive: YouTube ran ads from hundreds of brands on extremist channels
The Cambridge Analytica story broke in mid-March, making it unlikely to affect the tech companies' financial results for the first quarter.
But Wall Street remains on edge about the potential for regulation. Politicians on both sides of the Atlantic have turned their attention to data privacy protections.
"The big lingering question is around the evolving regulatory landscape that could be on horizon for Google," Daniel Ives, an analyst with GBH Insights, wrote in an investor note Monday after the earnings results.
A sweeping new data protection law, called General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), is set to take effect across the European Union late next month. Goldman Sachs analysts estimate the bill could cut Google's ad revenue by as much as 2%.
On a conference call with analysts Monday, Google CEO Sundar Pichai downplayed the potential impact of GDPR by noting that most of its ad business is from search ads, which requires "very limited information" from users.
"We are focused on getting the compliance right," Pichai said on the call, noting that Google has spent the past 18 months working to comply with GDPR. "We think we will be able to do all that with a positive impact for users and publishers and advertisers, and so, our business."
To make matters worse: YouTube, one of Google's key moneymakers, continues to struggle with ads appearing against offensive content. CNN recently found YouTube ran ads from hundreds of brands on extremist channels.
"We are aggressively combating content that violates our strict policies," Pichai said. He touted the success of its "machine systems" in flagging millions of videos to be removed.
Correction: An earlier version of this story said the company's first quarter results were for 2017. | 1,265,936 |
People often don’t appreciate how large South America is. For example Brazil is larger than Australia and that’s just one country within South America! Trying to fit in all the major highlights of South America into a 2-3 week itinerary is near impossible and even if you did manage it you’d spend precious little time actually enjoying yourself and more time on aeroplanes.
So, generally for people with 2-3 weeks available I suggest concentrating on 2-3 countries at most. For example you could spend at least three weeks in Peru without running out of things to do. Peru isn’t just Machu Picchu – the capital Lima is rich in history, being the original conquistador capital for South America. The Southern coast is also often overlooked with some amazing sights like the Ica grape growing region and Huacachina Oasis, the Ballestas Islands, The Nazca Lines, the “White City” of Arequipa and Colca Canyon – one of the world’s deepest canyons.
The Northern Coast line has one of the world’s largest archaeological ruins in Chan Chan (build by the Chimu people) as well as the fascinating Kuelap ruins (built by the Chachapoya people), Andean towns like Cajamarca, one of the world’s most spectacular mountain ranges in the Huaraz area and some beautiful beaches in the Mancora.
And in the above I haven’t even included some of the more traditional areas that people visit like Puno and Lake Titicaca (a week could be spent on Lake Titicaca alone) and the Amazon jungle.
This goes back to philosophy – do you want to just see a small sample of each country or do you want to get a more detailed taste of a few countries. If you see South America is a one-time trip then the first option (3-5 weeks) may be better suited to you. If you see South America as a 2-3 visit destination then biting off chunks and doing them properly is a much better way to do it (means you spend less time and money on flights too).
Eight other ways to plan your South America Tour:
1) Planning for a 3-5 week trip
3) Planning for a 3 months plus trip
4) Planning your trip of you like hiking and outdoor activities
5) Planning your trips if you like cuisine and culture
6) Planning your trip if you like photography
7) Planning your trip if you like wildlife
8) Planning your trip if you like the buzz of cities
9) Planning your trip if you want to relax and unwind on a beach
Contact Chimu Adventures to get more information about your perfect trip to South America.
Author: Chad Carey
Comments | 1,265,937 |
Platform Launched in Belarus to Allow Users to Buy Traditional Assets with Bitcoin
VP Capital and Larnabel Ventures, two information technology-focused venture firms in crypto-friendly Belarus have launched a platform that makes it possible for users to buy tokenized traditional assets such as gold, oil, shares of companies and more, using bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, reported Reuters on January 15, 2019.
Belarusians Now Buying Shares and Gold with Bitcoin
Cryptocurrency investors in Belarus can now invest in traditional assets like shares of global firms, precious metals, foreign exchange and more using bitcoin and other digital assets.
Launched by two IT-centric companies, VP Capital and Larnabel Ventures, the creators of the platform claim that it is the world’s first regulated tokenized securities exchange, furthermore, the project has been given a nod by the government as the unveiling of the platform was reportedly broadcasted by the state news agency, BelTa.
“This is the first platform in the world that allows cryptocurrency investors to easily diversify their investments into real assets,” declared the founder of VP Capital, Viktor Prokopenya.
A View to the Future; Belarusian Economy to Transform
Per sources close to the development, the platform issued 150 types of tokens that directly track the value of 150 traditional financial instruments, including shares of highly reputed firms like Apple Inc., as well as gold, oil and several other precious metals, and users of the system can seamlessly invest in these assets.
Going forward, the team has reportedly hinted that it plans to get at least 10,000 traditional financial instruments tokenized and allow anyone from across the globe invest in them.
As part of measures to eliminate money laundering and other unlawful practices, users are required to undergo proper know-your-customer (KYC) procedures.
Just like Malta and Gibraltar, Belarus has since put in place amenable laws to govern its IT, fintech, and cryptocurrency industries, making the eastern European nation a hub for all thing distributed ledger technology (DLT) and cryptoassets.
Now, with the successful launch of this innovative project that merges traditional financial assets with cryptocurrencies, Prokopenya says he’s very optimistic that the platform would transform the nation’s stock market and the economy in general via foreign direct investments.
“We believe that this project will allow Belarusian companies to attract additional funding both domestically and internationally. Because at current, the stock market of Belarus is a far cry from what it should be,” he added.
At a time when the bears still have a firm grip on the price of bitcoin and the entire cryptocurrency markets, developments like this show that hope is not lost for the iron-grip hodlers, however, whether or not this news would have a significant impact on the current market condition remains to be seen. | 1,265,938 |
There are numerous high-profile new titles headed to retail in 2012, but which are the most hotly anticipated for each console? According to a new study from audience measurement firm Nielsen, across all consoles, Halo 4 and Assassin's Creed III are the most eagerly awaited. Xbox 360 owners are hot for Halo.
Nielsen's "Game Rank" is the result of the firm combining eight "key consumer metrics" like awareness and purchase interest into a total rank, and then comparing it to scores for previously released games on the same platform. This is represented in a percentile ranking, denoted in parentheses below.
According to Nielsen's findings, top Xbox 360 titles for 2012 are Halo 4 (98 percent), Assassin's Creed III (94 percent), and Max Payne 3 (91 percent). PlayStation 3 gamers are most interested in Assassin's Creed III (98 percent), Max Payne 3 (96 percent), and Madden NFL 13 (96 percent).
The top three most anticipated 2012 Wii titles, based on Nielsen's findings, are Madden NFL 13 (96 percent), Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two (94 percent), and Battleship (84 percent).
Titles included in Nielsen's analysis were those announced before March 23, 2012, and expected to ship between April and December. Below are Nielsen's most-anticipated 2012 titles, denoted by platform. Italicized titles are platform-exclusives.
Most-anticipated 2012 Xbox 360 titles:
Halo 4 - 98 percent
Assassin's Creed III - 94 percent
Max Payne 3 - 91 percent
Madden NFL 13 - 90 percent
Resident Evil 6 - 89 percent
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier - 85 percent
Fable: The Journey - 85 percent
Kinect Star Wars - 85 percent
NCAA Football 13 - 82 percent
BioShock: Infinite - 77 percent
Tomb Raider - 77 percent
Most-anticipated 2012 PlayStation 3 titles:
Assassin's Creed III - 98 percent
Max Payne 3 - 96 percent
Madden NFL 13 - 96 percent
Resident Evil 6 - 94 percent
Medal of Honor: Warfighter - 87 percent
NCAA Football 13 - 85 percent
Prototype 2 - 85 percent
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier - 80 percent
BioShock: Infinite - 79 percent
Tomb Raider - 79 percent
NBA Live 13 - 79 percent
Most-anticipated 2012 Wii titles:
Madden NFL 13 - 96 percent
Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two - 94 percent
Battleship - 86 percent
Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes - 82 percent
The Amazing Spider-Man - 82 percent
Men in Black - 81 percent
The Last Story - 64 percent
Xenoblade Chronicles - 50 percent
| 1,265,939 |
A few days ago I was thinking about the Common Core, a bipartisan set of standards for K-12 education that was adopted by most states in 2010 and is now slowly getting rolled out. The reason I was thinking about it is that CC has lately become yet another pet rock for the right, bitterly denounced as a liberal scheme to take over the schools and brainwash our children. How did this happen? What’s the history behind this turnabout, which is especially peculiar given that CC grew out of the “accountability movement,” which was originally associated more with the right than the left in the first place?
Today, Paul Krugman directs my attention to Bill Keller, who provides this brief potted history:
The backlash began with a few of the usual right-wing suspects. Glenn Beck warned that under “this insidious menace to our children and to our families” students would be “indoctrinated with extreme leftist ideology.” ….Beck’s soul mate Michelle Malkin warned that the Common Core was “about top-down control engineered through government-administered tests and left-wing textbook monopolies.” Before long, FreedomWorks — the love child of Koch brothers cash and Tea Party passion — and the American Principles Project, a religious-right lobby, had joined the cause. Opponents have mobilized Tea Partyers to barnstorm in state capitals and boiled this complex issue down to an obvious slogan, “ObamaCore!” ….In April the Republican National Committee surrendered to the fringe and urged states to renounce Common Core. The presidential aspirant Marco Rubio, trying to appease conservatives angry at his moderate stance on immigration, last month abandoned his support for the standards. And state by red state, the effort to disavow or defund is under way. Indiana has put the Common Core on hold. Michigan’s legislature cut off money for implementing the standards and is now contemplating pulling out altogether. Last month, Georgia withdrew from a 22-state consortium, one of two groups designing tests pegged to the new standards, ostensibly because of the costs….The Common Core is imperiled in Oklahoma, Utah, Alabama and Pennsylvania. All of the retreat, you will notice, has been in Republican-controlled states.
That’s about how I figured it, but I’ll bet there’s a more interesting story to be written here by some scholar of the right. I’d really like someone to do it.
NOTE: I should add that I personally have no opinion about the Common Core. I haven’t spent any time looking at it or listening to the debates that led up to it. I’m only curious about this on a political basis. How is it that something which was entirely bipartisan up until 2010 managed to morph into a conspiratorial threat to the American way of life in only two years? | 1,265,940 |
Profile of Rihanna in Jackie magazine using racially offensive language solicits furious response and subsequent resignation of editor
This article is more than 8 years old
This article is more than 8 years old
A Dutch magazine editor has resigned after publishing a controversial profile of Rihanna. In an article called "De Niggabitch", Jackie magazine mocked the Barbadian-born Rihanna as a "half naked … Jamaican". "With all [due] respect," the singer replied on Twitter, "here are my two words for you: Fuck You!!!"
The Rihanna profile appears in the latest issue of Jackie, a glossy women's magazine based in Amsterdam. "Rihanna, the good girl gone bad, is the ultimate niggabitch and displays that gladly," they write. The author goes on to describe the singer's "porn heels" and "ghetto ass".
After learning of the piece this week, Rihanna unleashed a volley of furious tweets:
"I hope u can read english, because your magazine is a poor representation of the evolution of human rights," she snarled. "There are 1000's of Dutch girls who would love to be recognised for their contributions to your country, [and] you could have given them an article. Instead, u paid to print one degrading an entire race! That's your contribution to this world! To encourage segregation, to mislead the future leaders to act in the past! You put two words together … with the intent of abasement, that made no sense … 'N**** BITCH'?!"
Eva Hoeke, Jackie's editor-in-chief, initially tried to laugh off the controversy. "The title of the article was intended as a joke," she wrote on Facebook. "There was no malice behind it." Because "you hear [those words] all the time on TV and radio," she claimed, Jackie's editors "[thought] that this was an acceptable form of slang".
"[It] slipped through my … fingers," she went on. "Stupid, painful and sucks for all concerned."
Apparently this apology was insufficient. Yesterday, Jackie magazine's publishers announced that Hoeke had resigned. In a parting statement, Hoeke blamed her departure not on the initial article, but on how she responded to it. "I realise that my first reaction … in which I indicated that [the article] was a joke, was … incomplete," she wrote:
"The term 'niggabitch' came from America and we solely used it to describe a style of dress … I should have counted to 10 before taking un-nuanced stands through social media channels … Because my credibility is now affected, it is better for all parties if I quit my function as editor-in-chief effective immediately."
At the time of writing, Rihanna had not responded to Hoeke's resignation. | 1,265,941 |
A pastor who claims to be ex-gay lost his lawsuit against the video-sharing site Vimeo, which he accused of discriminating against him when it deleted his account for posting conversion therapy videos.
In 2018, Vimeo told pastor James Domen of Church United – an “ex-gay” ministry in California – that his account was deleted because five videos uploaded on the account promoted “sexual orientation change efforts,” which is against Vimeo’s terms of service.
Related: Pulse survivors held an ex-gay rally near the site of the shooting
“That’s like telling Rosa Parks to find another bus,” Domen’s attorney, Robert Tyler, told the court this past Monday.
But U.S. Magistrate Judge Stewart Aaron of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed his complaint yesterday, citing the Communications Decency Act, which gives social media platforms wide latitude to police content and immunizes them from lawsuits. Aaron said that Domen was unable to provide any evidence that Vimeo acted in bad faith when deleting his account, so they can’t be sued.
Domen said that Vimeo acted in bad faith because they were discriminating against his sexual orientation as a “former homosexual” and his religion.
“Because of his desire to pursue his faith in Christianity, he began to identify as a former homosexual,” Domen’s complaint read. The complaint said that he is married to a woman and has three children.
“Through Church United, he shares his experience with other pastors and helps pastors counsel others that are on their own journey toward a heterosexual identity through a biblical perspective and a Christian worldview.”
“Vimeo’s emails… reflect that Vimeo removed plaintiffs’ account because of the content of plaintiffs’ videos, not based upon Domen’s sexuality or religion,” Aaron wrote in his ruling.
Domen also argued that Vimeo should have just removed the five videos that violated its policies instead of deleting his entire account.
But Vimeo’s lawyer Michael Cheah argued in a motion to dismiss that allowing the lawsuit to go forward would upend over 20 years of court decisions on the Communications Decency Act.
Tyler called the ruling “concerning” and said that it allows “intentional acts of discrimination toward protected classes.” LGBTQ people are not protected from discrimination at the federal level.
YouTube, though, still allows content that promotes conversion therapy.
Domen was featured in a 2011 segment on The 700 Club where he talked about how straight men taught him “true masculinity” and that, while he still “struggles” with attraction to other men, he has left the “homosexual lifestyle.” | 1,265,942 |
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Since celebrating its grand opening in February, Green Jeans Farmery has been a big hit in Albuquerque. But some customers say that popularity is making parking there extremely difficult.
“It’s really great. It has a great atmosphere out here,” said customer Gabrielle Menezes.
“I come here every now and then. I think it’s kinda a cool place,” said customer Simon Cao.
It’s only been open a few months but already Green Jeans Farmery has become very popular.
“Every single time that I’ve been here it’s been pretty much packed like this,” said Cao.
Inside, that’s great news for all the restaurants and vendors, but outside it’s a different story.
Cao said, “The parking hasn’t been the greatest.”
“We had to drive around a couple times and then we just parked way down the street,” said Menezes.
Customers say finding a spot can be a hassle.
“It’s pretty miserable to park here. I mean, they’ve got this parking lot back there but it’s always completely full, so generally, we try to park on the street if we can,” said customer Ruben Guadiana.
The unique container community is nestled between I-40 and a hotel, on a small side street, Cutler Avenue. Green Jeans has a few parking spots behind the building and a small lot next to it. But when that’s full the overflow ends up on Cutler, typically on both sides of the road, making it hard to get through.
“You have to really watch when you’re going down the street here for other cars and people parallel parking,” said Menezes.
While typically you can find a spot within a couple blocks, customers say it’s still an inconvenience.
Chao said, “It’s either bad planning or it’s just that maybe they underestimated how great they were gonna be.”
But at this point, many customers say it hasn’t gotten bad enough to keep them away.
Guadiana said, “It’s certainly a pain but I don’t think it deters me from coming. But definitely, just plan on parking a ways out.”
KRQE News 13 spoke to the Green Jeans developer Saturday. He says while people have complained about the parking he doesn’t think it’s a big issue and he says there are no plans in the works to add more parking. | 1,265,943 |
This evening CIG held a live Star Citizen holiday stream for the community and backers but it was a right mess.
What could only be described as streaming amateur hour, the stream was extremely cringeworthy. Not only was the audio either not working or out of sync for much of the stream, but the whole first part was simply terrible. The commentary over the 2.6 gameplay in the first section was embarrassing, and why anyone would want to watch the devs challenge each other on the race tracks for a large chunk of the stream is a mystery.
Many backers had tuned in to finally see something of Squadron 42, which was absent at CitizenCon a couple of months ago, but nothing appeared.
CIG released a statement on progress just prior to the stream via a newsletter.
In anticipation of today’s Live Stream, I did want to address one thing that I have been seeing speculation on in the forums: whether or not today’s Live Stream will feature the Squadron 42 Vertical Slice. After we made the decision before CitizenCon that the Squadron 42 vertical slice wasn’t ready to be shown publically, we spent some time on reviewing how far off we were and what we wanted to achieve in order to be comfortable showing a full chapter of S42 gameplay. After all the effort we expended for CitizenCon, we didn’t want to spend additional developer time polishing intermediate solutions if it wasn’t going towards the final product. A slick demo isn’t that helpful if it pushes back the finished game, so we decided that the priority should be completing full systems over getting the vertical slice into a showable state.
So no Squadron 42 footage then. You can read the full newsletter here and see if you can spot the waffle.
2.6 was also scheduled for a 16 December release on their development schedule but that has been pushed back by at least next week. It may arrive on the PTU this weekend for select testers.
The part of the stream that really rubbed some backers up the wrong way was the push of more ship sales. With nothing really new to show in the stream apart from some Vanduul concept work, asking for more cash has been a step too far for some.
While backers like myself still have some faith Star Citizen will work out, CIG is not helping itself at the moment. The only positive to be taken from the stream is that some backers might finally put their wallets away and force CIG to get an actual game out the door.
You can watch the Star Citizen holiday stream below for comedy value but there’s not much else worth watching it for.
Update: CIG have now pulled the live stream video from their Youtube channel so we have removed it. You can watch it on their Twitch channel if you really want to and the main segments can also be viewed separately in this post. | 1,265,944 |
Image caption Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn called for more transparency on the government's Brexit plan
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has called on the government to spell out its plans for negotiating Brexit to Parliament "without delay".
In a speech in London to trade unionists and activists, he said there needed to be more "transparency" over how Britain would leave the EU.
The High Court ruled on Thursday that MPs should be allowed to vote on triggering Article 50.
The government has said it will appeal against the decision.
Speaking to the Class think tank, Mr Corbyn said his party "accepted and respected" the decision of voters to leave the EU but insisted on "transparency and accountability" to Parliament about the government's plans.
'Secret deals'
"I suspect the government opposes democratic scrutiny of its plans because frankly there aren't any plans.
"There are no plans beyond the hollow rhetoric, which they keep on repeating - apparently - that Brexit means Brexit.''
The Labour leader accused Prime Minister Theresa May of reaching "secret deals" over Brexit with companies such as Nissan, which confirmed it will build two new models at its Sunderland plant following talks with the government.
"We can't have secret deals on Brexit, company by company," Mr Corbyn said.
"All our businesses need the kind of assurances that apparently Nissan has had about the shape of the government's Brexit plans to make the right investment decisions."
'Shabby deals'
Mr Corbyn said that after "six wasted years of austerity and savage cuts", the Conservatives have started to change their rhetoric towards giving more help to ordinary working-class families.
This month's Autumn Statement from the Chancellor Philip Hammond would be "the test of whether they could back up their rhetoric with meaningful change", he added.
Labour has promised £500bn in investment over a decade in infrastructure improvements to railways, housing, energy and broadband, he said.
"A country that doesn't invest is a country that has given up, that has taken the path of managed decline," he told delegates.
"We offer a different way forward that meets the needs and aspirations of our people in 2016, not a 1980s - or even 1950s - never-never land."
Tax targets
The party leader said a Labour government would also hit out at tax dodging.
"This is the message to the tax dodgers - a Labour government will come after you. No more turning a blind eye, no more shabby deals - we will collect the taxes," he said.
The government has said MPs will get a say over any final deal relating to Brexit.
But it is challenging the High Court ruling that states Parliament has the right to vote on whether the UK can start the process of leaving the EU.
The appeal hearing at the Supreme Court is expected to be in early December. | 1,265,945 |
The final season was patchy, but at least the Dexter finale would be worth the wait, right? Wrong: the show fell apart
SPOILER ALERT: This blog contains details about the last ever episode of Dexter.
When it was announced that Dexter's eighth season would be its last, the news was not entirely unwelcome. The show had never fully recovered from the devastation wreaked by season four's main villain the Trinity Killer (John Lithgow), and this final run has played out that inferiority, being patchy, unfocused and, at times, sloppy. Yet for all its flaws, I stuck with it, and hoped the series finale, at least, would be worth the wait. It wasn't. And I'm disappointed. It all fell apart completely in the last few minutes, with Dexter making two boneheaded, un-Dexter-like decisions that wearily knocked the final nails into the coffin that season eight built.
Our protagonist sailed his boat, Slice of Life, into a hurricane, and was pronounced missing, presumed dead. His fugitive girlfriend Hannah choked back the tears in a cafe in Argentina and took Dexter's ever-irritating son Harrison for ice-cream, presumably to soften the blow of his daddy's watery death. But Dexter wasn't dead, after all! He swam like a greased porpoise away from a deadly hurricane and ended up in Oregon, where presumably he will live out his days chopping down trees and tending his awful beard.
Dexter survives eight seasons of hacking and stabbing, leaving "a trail of blood and body parts," and yet viewers don't get to see him caught or killed. In fact, it was his foul-mouthed, grumpy sister Deb who died, without getting the heroine's death she deserved (though she wobbled, she was the show's moral centre). She ended up in a vegetative state, having been shot in the stomach by Oliver Saxon, Dexter's last-minute nemesis and the son of his mentor Evelyn Vogel, at the end of the penultimate episode.
So Dexter switched off her life support and dumped her body in the ocean, where the bad people go, then sent his son to live with Hannah, who, despite seeming quite nice this season, might conceivably poison him at some point in the future.
This whole final season has been shot through with the sense that Dexter is not as smart as he seems, and that is a betrayal of the character we spent seven seasons getting to know, as monstrous as he may have been. He made bad decisions repeatedly, negating the idea of any extraordinary intelligence, which was the one unshakeable truth that held Dexter, as a series and a character, together for so long. With a terrible beard, a boring job and a dead-eyed stare, Dexter is no longer the monster we were introduced to seven years ago. | 1,265,946 |
『NARUTO-ナルト-』の作者である岸本斉史さんが2019年春、新作『サムライ8八丸伝』（サムライエイトハチマルデン）を『週刊少年ジャンプ』で連載開始することが決定しました。岸本さんは原作を担当し、『NARUTO-ナルト-』でアシスタント経験のある大久保彰さんが作画を手掛けます。
幕張メッセで行われた「ジャンプフェスタ2019」で明かされたもの。刀を腰に差した主人公らしきイラストが公開されており、YouTubeでは「7つの鍵」「侍は人にあらず」「鍵と呼ばれる特別な存在だ」などのキーワードがちりばめられた告知動画がアップされています。
岸本斉史さんのコメント 新作やります。ぼくは和モノが好きです。その文化や装飾にワクワクします。そしてSFモノが好きです。そのギミックや設定にワクワクします。なのでこの好きなの2つを混ぜちゃって作品を描く事にしました。僕の魂の叫びを最後に聞いて下さい、皆様。NARUTOより面白くするのに必死!! お楽しみに！
関連キーワード ナルト | サムライ | 集英社 | 動画 | YouTube | 幕張メッセ | 原作
| 1,265,947 |
Update: Nintendo has confirmed that the Switch is the "fastest-selling video game system in Nintendo history" with more than 906,000 units sold in March.
It was also confirmed that 925,000 units of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild were sold during that period of time, equating to a more than 100% attach rate. This has never been achieved by another console.
Original Story: NPD Group published its results for March 2017 today, including sales reports regarding console hardware in North America.
It was confirmed that the PS4 outsold the Xbox One during the month of March. This marks the fifth month in a row that PS4 has led the Xbox One in sales within the territory. The last victory for Microsoft was last October, which was attributed to both strong first-party software (i.e. Gears of War 4), as well as the recent release of the Xbox One S.
However, the top-selling gaming brand was Nintendo with its newly released Switch. The new generation console is confirmed to have sold more than 500,000 units in North America alone during its first week on the market, and had more to show for it in subsequent weeks with the monthly total being over 906,000 units. Demand has outpaced both expectation and supply at a level that surpasses the record-selling Wii during the same length of time post-launch, surprising Nintendo and analysts alike.
So far only Microsoft has come out with a public statement regarding the results. Xbox Corporate Vice President of Marketing Mike Nichols shared the following:
This past quarter, from January to March 2017, we saw record Xbox Live engagement with 1.1 billion multiplayer hours logged globally, a 14 percent increase year-over-year. Looking ahead, we are excited to share more about our plans for Xbox One, including launching the world’s most powerful console – Project Scorpio – alongside an amazing lineup of new Xbox One games. We are thrilled with the incredible response we have received to date for Project Scorpio, and look forward to sharing more about the Xbox One family of devices in the coming months.
As indicated by the quote above, Microsoft is placing emphasis on its plan for Holiday 2017 where it will debut several high profile exclusives, some of which will be announced at E3 this June, alongside a mid-generation hardware refresh: Project Scorpio.
Related: NPD Group: Xbox One's Victory Streak Ends
Sony has had a strong presence to start the year with an array of critically acclaimed exclusives that range from Nioh to Horizon Zero Dawn and Persona 5, in addition to strong third-party representation with NieR: Automata.
The PS4 currently stands as the 12th best-selling gaming device of all-time with over 55 million units sold globally. In contrast, the Xbox One has sold over 28 million consoles. | 1,265,948 |
Warriors Galvatronus with his own team of limbs? (1733320)
Posted by
But I knew they were gonna sneak Rook in somewhere (told ya so) Well, this sucks, want it for the limbs, but don't need two cyclonus'; kinda clever how skydive can hold the cannon a'la glavatron in arm configBut I knew they were gonna sneak Rook in somewhere Posted by Hellscream9999 on October 10th, 2015 @ 12:18pm CDT
Re: Takara Transformers Unite Warriors Galvatronus with his own team of limbs? (1733321)
Posted by
What if.....It is Scourge, Hook, Line and Sinker??? Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on October 10th, 2015 @ 12:20pm CDT
Re: Takara Transformers Unite Warriors Galvatronus with his own team of limbs? (1733323)
Posted by
D-Maximus_Prime wrote: What if.....It is Scourge, Hook, Line and Sinker??? What if.....It is Scourge, Hook, Line and Sinker???
It's possible, and makes sense, they had cool paint jobs in the tfss release with astrotrain It's possible, and makes sense, they had cool paint jobs in the tfss release with astrotrain Posted by Hellscream9999 on October 10th, 2015 @ 12:25pm CDT
Re: Takara Transformers Unite Warriors Galvatronus with his own team of limbs? (1733325)
Posted by
Hellscream9999 wrote: D-Maximus_Prime wrote: What if.....It is Scourge, Hook, Line and Sinker??? What if.....It is Scourge, Hook, Line and Sinker???
It's possible, and makes sense, they had cool paint jobs in the tfss release with astrotrain It's possible, and makes sense, they had cool paint jobs in the tfss release with astrotrain
The G1 Marvel comics Unicron characters unite to for their leader!! Yes!! If only that is the case The G1 Marvel comics Unicron characters unite to for their leader!! Yes!! If only that is the case Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on October 10th, 2015 @ 12:26pm CDT
Re: Takara Transformers Unite Warriors Galvatronus with his own team of limbs? (1733326)
Posted by
https://twitter.com/TFYUKI/status/652430476464926720
by that guy again.
Group shot!
by that guy again.Group shot! Posted by fenrir72 on October 10th, 2015 @ 12:29pm CDT | 1,265,949 |
The two stayed close, swapping inspirations and visiting when they could. At 25, she married a fellow Monegasque she’d known since childhood, someone as eccentric as she, and moved to a grand apartment in a high-rise overlooking Monte Carlo’s harbor. They spent their time traveling the world, befriending artists such as the surrealist American photographer Joel-Peter Witkin and the Italian post-Memphis sculptor Andrea Branzi. Along with Dixon’s work, they amassed pieces by other emerging radical designers of the late 20th century, including the London-based sculptor Ron Arad and the Dordogne, France-based furniture maker André Dubreuil, who fashioned giant clocks and imposing Asian lanterns that appeared both gothic and futuristic. “She was really one of the first adopters of post-postmodern punky stuff,” Dixon says.
Meanwhile, the designer had made a name for himself. After creating the sinuous S chair and licensing it to Cappellini in 1990, his subsequent pieces, including the 1996 polyethylene Jack, a stackable lamp that resembles a cartoon version of the classic metal toy, established Dixon as a juggernaut of industrial design. In 1998, he was named the creative director of Habitat, the then foundering British furniture conglomerate begun in the 1960s by Sir Terence Conran. Dixon ran it until 2008, when he left to launch his eponymous brand of mostly metal (often copper) lighting, chairs and other furnishings.
ONE NIGHT IN 2010, while he and the woman from Monte Carlo were having dinner in London, she offered Dixon a commission that would test even his robust enthusiasm for learning on the job. She and her husband wanted him to design a villa for them on a spectacular cliff-side site just yards beyond the principality’s border in Cap d’Ail, France. At the time, the spot was occupied by a sort of shepherd’s hut surrounded by lemon trees, built in the late 19th century by her great-grandfather. Her family used it as a getaway from the city; she had spent summers there as a teenager, picking tomatoes and looking after an aging tortoise.
Dixon had visited the property in the 1980s, after the woman had taken it over from her father; he had even made some custom furniture for it. But that was far different than designing a residence from the ground up for a client with notoriously outré tastes. Though he had developed an interior design practice alongside his product empire, he had no architectural training. But such concerns didn’t faze the woman. She didn’t even feel the need to give him much direction. “Tom knew me,” she says. “He knew what I liked. I knew he was the person to make it.” | 1,265,950 |
) performed in conjunction with the IgM ELISA must have Zika PRNT titers ≥10 for inclusion. Pregnant women who meet laboratory criteria are included in the surveillance systems whether they report symptoms or not. Women are included retrospectively if laboratory evidence of congenital Zika virus infection is identified in fetal tissues, the placenta, or the infant.
The USZPR was initiated primarily to monitor outcomes in pregnant women returning from travel to areas with local Zika virus transmission (6). To date the majority of cases in pregnant women reported to USZPR are associated with travel, but it also includes cases of sexual transmission (7) and local transmission from the U.S. territories. ZAPSS was developed separately for Puerto Rico to conduct enhanced surveillance in pregnant women at risk for Zika virus infection as a result of ongoing local Zika virus transmission. Using USZPR and ZAPSS, CDC will report the number of pregnant women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection weekly on its website. Data reported by noon Eastern Standard Time each Thursday (for this report, May 12, 2016) will be verified and reported in aggregate the following Thursday. Reporting is subject to a lag of 1 week to verify data from each participating jurisdiction. Reports from Arizona and Idaho have not yet been verified and are excluded from the current report.
As of May 12, 2016, combined data from USZPR and ZAPSS include 279 reports of pregnant women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection, including 157 pregnant women residing in U.S. states and the District of Columbia (Figure 1) and 122 residing in U.S. territories (Figure 2). As of May 11, 2016, 113 pregnant women meeting clinical criteria for Zika virus disease were reported to CDC through ArboNET, 48 in U.S. states, and 65 in U.S. territories.
Among the 157 pregnant women from U.S. states and the District of Columbia monitored through USZPR, 73 (49%)** reported clinical symptoms consistent with Zika virus disease. Among these symptomatic pregnant women, 64 (88%) reported rash, 36 (49%) arthralgia, 37 (51%) fever, and 17 (23%) conjunctivitis. Among all pregnancies included from U.S. states, Zika virus nucleic acid detection by rRT-PCR was reported in 39 (25%).
Among 122 pregnant residents of the U.S. territories†† being monitored in USZPR or ZAPSS, 80 (66%)§§ reported clinical symptoms consistent with Zika virus disease. Among these symptomatic women, 60 (75%) reported rash, 29 (36%) arthralgia, 27 (34%) fever, and 15 (19%) conjunctivitis. Among all women included from U.S. territories, Zika virus nucleic acid detection by rRT-PCR in serum was identified in 67 (55%). | 1,265,951 |
The Mormons basically said, this show tries to entertain you for an evening, but Mormonism changes peoples’ lives for eternity.
Stone: That’s a very bighearted, perfect First Amendment-loving reaction. Prop. 8 aside, I wish more religions acted like the Mormon Church.
What is the most prescient episode in the 15-year history of “South Park”?
Stone: We did the Mel Gibson episode after “Passion of the Christ” came out, and there was that huge national debate on whether he was an anti-Semite. It wasn’t obvious.
You made him a kinky masochist, right?
Stone: Yeah, a torture-obsessed loon, but the anti-Semitism was inherent because Cartman liked him. Then, like, two years later he’s bitching at a cop in Malibu, calling him a Jew. We’re like, O.K., good, we were right about that one.
Do you owe anyone an apology for how you portrayed them?
Stone: I can tell you exactly who we were wrong about — Gary Condit. We did a Gary Condit joke where we just said: “You know you killed your intern. You know you’re guilty.” When someone is arrested for something or pointed at for doing something, our brains go guilty until proven innocent, you know?
Parker: And we were wrong about the Ramseys too — in the same episode. At least it wasn’t spread out.
I very rarely feel bad for anybody you portray on “South Park,” but I winced when I saw you give Sarah Jessica Parker an enormous nose and huge, crossed eyes.
Parker: My girlfriend’s the same way. She loves every show, but she’s like, “You guys were really mean to her.”
Stone: When we were doing the episode, all the women in the room were like, “That’s really mean.” But what’s so mean? She’s on the cover of Vogue with her wispy clothes and her made-up face, and you’re like, O.K., you put yourself out there as a sex symbol.... She bums me out. If I’m on the cover of Funny Animator, that kind of makes sense. But if I was on the cover of Men’s Health, it would be knives out on Matt Stone.
Her husband, Matthew Broderick, is pretty much the king of Broadway. Have you met him?
Parker: No. But I’m sure that if we had, he would have said, “You guys are so right.” | 1,265,952 |
The Big Team Battle Community Refresh is now live! With twelve updated maps and the addition of four brand new maps, this refresh is the largest update to a playlist in Halo 5 to date. Before we dive into each map, we’d like to provide a quick glimpse at how this update came to be.
In order to pull off such a large task, we coordinated with two incredible parts of the Halo community - the Forge experts, and the diehard Big Team Battle players. These communities worked tirelessly to consistently host custom game lobbies in order to make sure each map was thoroughly tested. Specifically, we'd like to thank HaloCustoms, Creative Force, BigTeamBattle.net, and ForgeHub for helping us organize the test lobbies, which allow us to communicate feedback directly to the map creators. Members of our Community and Multiplayer Teams often attend many of these playlists, and also provide feedback that the creators can use to update their map and get it ready for matchmaking. The feedback provided in these online playtests would help bring all of the maps to the point where they were ready to be looked at internally.
After pulling the new and refreshed maps internally, the Multiplayer Team is able to take a closer look at them and contribute even more input on layout, aesthetics, and the overall flow of the gameplay. At this point, the process becomes a very quick back-and-forth as the Forgers look to make the last few changes needed on their maps, such as improving player containment, quality intro and outro cameras, as well as fixing up name location placement. Then, after all of this is complete, the MP Team verifies the fixes and deems the maps ready for matchmaking. Ship it!
Here are the new maps that have made their way into Big Team Battle!
Dispelled by TimeDipper
Estuary by IKyleIzBeastly
Unearthed by ArturBloodshot
As mentioned earlier, we did not let these new maps enter matchmaking without giving the exisiting ones some love as well. That said, every existing map in the Big Team Battle playlist has not only received upgraded aesthetics, but also improvements to its gameplay. Here's a small glimpse at what you can expect from the twelve refreshed maps!
Altar by wyvernzu
Entombed by Ducain23
Deadlock by runNOKYARDRun
Scavenger by CommanderColson
You will be able to find all of these under the Featured section of the Halo 5 Content Browser, as well as bookmarked on our The343Favorites account. If you'd like to submit your own maps for consideration in future playlist updates, you may do so in the Community Creations Forum here on Waypoint.
We hope you all enjoy the Big Team Battle Community Refresh, and be sure to stay tuned for future playlist updates! | 1,265,953 |
2020-01-21
Sometimes, the journey is much more important than the destination. There is much to savor when taking long-distance journeys across broad swathes of the countryside on luxurious coaches. So if you’re in the mood to embark on a rich and opulent journey of self-discovery, or perhaps stumble upon an Agatha Christie-like murder mystery, then please check out our list of the best luxury train rides in Japan below.
• Seven Stars in Kyushu | ¥744,000 to ¥1,528,000 ($6,765 - $13,894)
The Seven Stars in Kyushu is a 3,000 km, four-day cruise spanning five of the seven prefectures (Fukuoka, Kagoshima, Kumamoto, Miyazaki and Oita) on the island of Kyushu. Guests will be spoiled with high-quality local cuisine prepared by celebrity chef Takao Mishima using ingredients sourced locally during the journey, between visits to multiple local attractions like the Miyazaki Aoshima Shrine, Mt Aso, and the Kumiko Woodwork Workshop. Despite the incredible cost, interested parties must submit an online application before they will be considered for the trip – we kid you not!
A visit to Mount Aso, the largest active volcano in Japan, is included in the cruise itinerary. Image courtesy of David Stanley
• Train Suite Shiki-shima | ¥800,000 to ¥1,500,000 ($7,275 - $13,640)
Embark on a four-day round-trip journey into the Japanese hinterland onboard the electric/diesel hybrid E001 coach. Experience the grandeur of nature, as well as Japanese culture, history, and cuisine under the guidance of highly trained tour conductors. Enjoy the luxurious comfort of the train’s five-star suites, lounge (Komorebi), dining car (Shiki-shima), and terrace (Kizashi/Ibuki). Similar to the Seven Stars cruise, an online application must be submitted in advance for the opportunity to place a reservation for this wondrous trip.
The E001 coach seen here in the countryside of the Nagano Prefecture. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
• The Royal Express | ¥35,000 ($320)
The Royal Express is an eight-car coach designed by award-winning engineer Eiji Mitooka. The lavishly decorated 100-seater train commences its three-hour journey at Yokohama before meandering south through the Izu Peninsula. It will probably be the most expensive three-hour trip of your life, but it will be so worth it.
The Royal Express. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Editorial Department
Bringing you the latest real estate & lifestyle news in Japan | 1,265,954 |
People who are in self quarantine really have no idea how weird it is to be a base level essential worker through this whole thing. I don’t mean a doctor or a nurse or someone else working round the clock to put a stop to it or find a cure. I mean a truck driver or a gas station attendant or a retail clerk. Because everything is basically normal, only a little bit off, and then again not as off as it should be.
Every day I get up. I go to work. I sell people things. There are fewer people coming through and they’re buying more because they’re stocking up or they haven’t been shopping in a month, but there are still lines, like always. There’s plexiglass between the cashiers and the customers, and no dividers, and we have to continually yell at people not to put their items on the belt until we’ve finished the previous transaction, and they ignore us or argue with us, same as always. The more rules we have, the more rules there are for people to ignore. And the longer it goes on, the more normal it gets. Pretty much no one thanks us for coming in to work anymore. People are starting to act like we should never, ever run out of an item. It’s just blanket assumed that we will have hand sanitizer and soap and toilet paper and people are shocked when we say we’re out. But there are still ads on the TV in the break room telling us all to stay home and the more the customers ignore social distancing, the more management puts pressure on us to set a good example, until we’re expected to follow standards that are physically impossible.
The longer this goes on, the less ‘essential’ I feel.
And then I come home and get online as always and there are all of these people asking what you’re doing while you’re stuck in quarantine and coming up with fun things to do when you’re in quarantine and talking about what you’re going to do when this whole thing is over and you can finally, finally leave your house. Everyone just seems to assume that you, the person reading their words, are in quarantine, because everyone’s in quarantine. It’s like this big, international, universal experience that you’re not a part of.
It feels like fifteen years from now everyone in the world will be looking at each other and asking “Remember what it was like to be cooped up in the house? Wasn’t it awful?” and I’ll just be sitting there going “…….no, I don’t. I didn’t do that.” And people will look at me and wonder how I could not know.
| 1,265,955 |
“My gut instinct told me the cake was refused because it celebrated gay marriage.”
Another Bakery Has Refused To Make A Cake For A Gay Couple
A bakery in Northern Ireland is facing criticism after it refused to make an engagement cake with a pro-marriage equality slogan for a gay couple.
Charles McQuillan/Getty Images
Ashers bakery rejected the cake order of Grainne McCann, a friend of engaged couple Joe Palmer and Andy Wong. The London native ordered and paid for the cake online, only to have the request denied the next day.
“The wording we requested was ’Gay marriage rocks! Happy engagement, Andy and Joe! Lots of love xxx,'” she told Sunday Life. “We were thrilled when Ashers accepted our online order, and full payment of £23.40 plus £20 P&P, but the next day they sent the cancellation note and a refund.”
“My gut instinct told me the cake was refused because it celebrated gay marriage.”
Londoncakes.com
To prove her point, she then ordered a christening cake for her goddaughter Leila, which the bakery was more than happy to make.
“A woman from the company even offered to drive it to its destination in Dublin as a favor because she was going that way,” McCann added. “This was terribly kind, but I felt angry and sad that Ashers’ attitude to gay people is so different.”
McCann quickly switched gears and ordered the cake from a London baker, who gladly prepared the confection for the couple.
“Obviously, if someone wanted a racist cake for an English Defense League meeting, we’d say no, but I don’t have the right to judge others’ views unless they’re illegal,” said Londoncakes.com owner Graham Brooks, who baked the cake for Palmer and Wong.
Daniel and Amy McArthur/Getty Images
This is the second time the evangelical Christian bakery has landed in hot water for refusing to work with LGBT customers.
In October, judges upheld a finding that owners Daniel and Amy McArthur had discriminated against a man on the basis of sexual orientation after he ordered a cake to commemorate International Day Against Homophobia.
Though Palmer and Wong were saddened by the bakery’s refusal to work with McCann, they’re choosing celebrate the love of family and friends in the weeks before their nuptials.
“In my view, by turning away business based on the sexual orientation of the consumer they risk being sued again,” McCann said.
“My friends and I don’t want to sue—Andy and Joe want to focus on their forthcoming happy day—but others might want to take action.” | 1,265,956 |
French Open bans Hamou over attempts to kiss reporter on live TV Published duration 30 May 2017
image copyright AFP image caption The incident happened after Hamou lost to Uruguay's Pablo Cuevas at the French Open
Tennis player Maxime Hamou has been banned by the organisers of the French Open after he tried to kiss a female reporter repeatedly during a live TV interview.
The French player, 21, kissed journalist Maly Thomas while holding her around her neck and shoulders, despite her efforts to duck away.
The French Tennis Federation (FTT) condemned the "reprehensible behaviour" and ordered an investigation.
Hamou has apologised for his actions.
The incident happened after he was knocked out of the first round of the competition on Monday.
It is the latest case to provoke allegations of harassment of female sports reporters.
Several anchors and commentators on the Eurosport programme Avantage Leconte laughed and clapped as it unfolded.
The episode drew ire on social media, including from French politician Cécile Duflot.
"He kisses her by force, she tries to get away, he holds her by the neck and everyone... laughs #tired," the Green MP wrote on Twitter (in French).
Quoted by the Huffington Post France, Ms Thomas described the player's actions as "frankly unpleasant".
"If I hadn't been live on air, I would have punched him."
image copyright Eurosport image caption Hamou, centre, bends to kiss Ms Thomas's neck as she leans away
image copyright Eurosport image caption He repeated the attempt several times during the interview
In a statement on Facebook on Tuesday, Hamou said: "I offer my deep apologies to Maly Thomas if she feels hurt or shocked by my attitude during her interview.
"I have just spent a magnificent week here at Roland Garros... and I expressed my overflow of enthusiasm crudely towards Maly, who I know and respect sincerely.
"I'm still learning every day from my mistakes to become a better tennis player and a better person."
Eurosport welcomed his apology and offered its own to "any viewers who may have been affected" by its broadcast.
"We sincerely regret the incident that occurred during yesterday evening's interview," it said in a statement.
"The behaviour of the interviewee was highly inappropriate and we do not condone such conduct in any way."
In January 2016, West Indies cricketer Chris Gayle drew a barrage of criticism after he asked a TV reporter for a date in a live interview.
He was later fined $7,200 (£4,900) by his club for "inappropriate conduct".
It is not the first time Hamou, who has a career high singles ranking of 211, has caused controversy at this year's French Open. | 1,265,957 |
(CNSNews.com) – A new report released by the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) shows that the number of immigrants who arrived in the United States – legally and illegally – since 2000 is almost double the number of new jobs created over that same period
(AP Photo)
The report, using government data from December 2014, shows that 18 million immigrants who have arrived in the United States since 2000 are now living here (legal and illegal) and that only 9.8 million jobs were added over those 14 years (2000 -14)
CIS unveiled the report as Congress is considering legislation to increase legal immigration to fill perceived labor shortages, according to the report.
“It is a mistake to think every job taken by an immigrant is a job lost by a native, but it is equally wrong to think that adding this huge number of immigrants has no implications for American workers,” Steven Camarota, co-author of the report and the Center’s director of research, said in a statement about the report.
“If immigration is the great job creator for natives that advocates argue, the record number of new arrivals in the last 14 years should have created a jobs bonanza for natives,” Camarota said. “Instead, job growth did not come close to matching new immigration and natural population increase; and the labor force participation of natives shows a long-term decline, even before the Great Recession.”
(AP Photo)
Other highlights of the report include:
• 89 percent of the 18 million legal and illegal immigrants who are potential workers are 16 and older.
• Legal immigrants account for between two-thirds and three-fourths of the new arrivals.
• In addition to the 18 million new immigrants, the native-born adult population 16 and older grew by 25.2 million since 2000.
• Long-term job growth has not come close to matching new immigration and natural population increase; as a result, the labor force participation rate (the share working or looking for work) of native-born Americans aged 16 to 65 shows significant long-term decline.
• The share of native-born Americans 16 to 65 in the labor force was 77 percent in December 2000, 75 percent in December 2007, and 72 percent in December 2014.
• The number of 16- to 65-year-old natives not in the labor force (neither working nor looking for work) increased by 13 million from December 2000 to December 2014.
• During the period after the Great Recession began, 7.8 million new immigrants arrived from 2008 to 2014, yet net job growth was just two million.
• During the period before the Great Recession, from January 2000 to December 2007, 11.1 million immigrants arrived and job growth was still only 7.3 million. | 1,265,958 |
ANKARA (Reuters) - The presidential candidate for Turkey’s main opposition on Saturday called for the release of the pro-Kurdish opposition’s jailed candidate, challenging President Tayyip Erdogan to “let us race like men” in next month’s election.
Muharrem Ince, Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) candidate for the upcoming snap presidential election, greets supporters as he starts his campaign in Ankara, Turkey, May 4, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
On Friday, the Republican People’s Party (CHP) nominated Muharrem Ince to challenge Erdogan in the June 24 presidential election. The pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party (HDP) nominated its jailed former leader Selahattin Demirtas.
“The HDP are also children of this nation, the AKP are also children of this country... Don’t keep Demirtas in jail. Come, let’s race like men,” Ince told crowds of flag-waving supporters in his hometown of Yalova, where he held his first rally.
In his first interview with international media since being nominated, Demirtas, who has been in jail on security charges for a year and a half, told Reuters a fair election was impossible under the state of emergency imposed after the July 2016 coup attempt.
Erdogan last month called snap parliamentary and presidential elections for June 24, more than a year early, in order to switch to the powerful executive presidency narrowly approved in a referendum last April.
Ahead of the elections, Erdogan’s ruling AK Party (AKP) formed an election alliance, the “People Alliance”, with the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), which supported Erdogan in the referendum.
Ince called on CHP members to sign for other candidates seeking 100,000 signatures in order to run for the presidency, including former interior minister Meral Aksener from the Iyi (Good) Party.
On Saturday, the CHP, Iyi Party, Saadet Party and Democrat Party signed a declaration marking a four-way election alliance called the “Nation Alliance”, pledging to remove polarization, instill independence for the judiciary and ensure basic rights and freedoms can be exercised.
Rights groups and Turkey’s Western allies have criticized Ankara for its deteriorating record on civil rights and have voiced concerns that the NATO member has been sliding further into authoritarianism under Erdogan.
Since the abortive putsch, authorities have carried out a sweeping crackdown on alleged supporters of the cleric Ankara blames for the coup attempt, detaining 160,000 people and dismissing nearly the same number of civil servants, the United Nations said in March.
The government says the measures are necessary due to the security threats it faces. | 1,265,959 |
$40,000-a-year deal. The deal was brokered by former NACSA senior executive and lobbyist David Hansen only days before he resigned as head of the Ohio Office of Quality School Choice amid accusations of having manipulated charter school performance data.
California: More than $4.7 million in federal taxpayer money was handed out to create charter schools that subsequently closed within a few years. CMD's investigation found that California's record on charters is marked by continued failures, including squandering of taxpayer money, along with deference to unaccountable authorizers and resistance to federal efforts to mandate better state oversight.
Wisconsin: More than $2.5 million in CSP money was used to create charter schools that shuttered shortly thereafter. In addition to the school closings, at least one of the schools created by federal charter school money was a former religious school that has since "converted" to charter status so as to be eligible for funding, an audit obtained by CMD shows. There appears to have been no regular evaluations about whether such conversions in Wisconsin--and also Texas--affect the content of the instruction or not.
Indiana: At least $2.2 million was awarded to charters that either closed or never opened. In addition, emails obtained by CMD through a public records request to Gov. Pence's office found troubling examples of how the private charter sector, notably for-profit chain Charter Schools USA, influences on policy-making.
New York State: CMD discovered that almost every single application for the New York subgrants was written by the same multi-million-dollar charter consultancy firm: Charter School Business Management. The nature of CSP funding competition means that charter schools relying on private contractors for services, such as grant-writing and budgeting, can gain a competitive edge.
Colorado: State leadership responsible for managing the federal charter school grants fought legislation that would have advanced charter school oversight and accountability, emails obtained by CMD show.
The report also reviews federal charter spending in Arizona, District of Columbia, Florida, Texas and Utah.
Read the full report here.
Click here for a complete state-by-state list of charter schools that were created by CSP SEA seed money in the 2010-2015 grant cycle. Dozens of these "schools" never opened to students in the first place, and many of the schools that did open have since closed.
For an updated tally of the $3.7 billion disbursed under the CSP umbrella since the inception of the program, click here.
Click here for emails from Ohio's Office of Quality School Choice, detailing the role NACSA and David Hansen, who resigned in July amid accusations of having manipulated data on charter school "success," played in securing the biggest federal charter grant in 2015.
For further information contact: Jonas Persson, [email protected]. | 1,265,960 |
Last updated on.From the section Championship
Blackburn's Bradley Dack opened the scoring with his sixth goal of the season in all competitions
Saido Berahino missed a stoppage-time penalty as Blackburn Rovers survived a spirited Stoke City comeback to inflict a fourth defeat of the season on Gary Rowett's side.
Berahino, who had earlier scored his first league goal since February 2016, struck the bar from the spot after he had been fouled by Darragh Lenihan.
Rowett said after the game that he "did not want to be critical" of Berahino, but that "if you pick the ball up and you take that responsibility of course your responsibility is to score it".
"We've done so much work in the last three or four weeks on our defending," he told BBC Radio Stoke.
"We actually do it quite well in training, and then as soon as the whistle's blown for some reason we make the same mistakes."
Rovers had led when Bradley Dack was left unchallenged to convert from close range, before Elliott Bennett's long ball beat Stoke's backline and let Danny Graham double the advantage.
The hosts were booed off at the break and Harrison Reed, on loan from Southampton, made it three on his first Blackburn start early in the second half after fine work from Bennett and Graham.
Stoke rallied through Berahino's bundled effort and Tom Ince's close-range finish - but fell short of finding an equaliser despite mustering 17 attempts on goal.
Substitute Peter Crouch had a shot cleared off the line, before Berahino wasted their big chance from the penalty spot in the first minute of time added on.
Rowett's men, relegated from the Premier League last season, are now 18th in the table and have the Championship's joint second worst defensive record, having conceded 16 goals so far.
Blackburn only had four shots on target in the contest but were clinical with their finishing and have moved up to 11th.
Tony Mowbray's side are unbeaten in three having won promotion from League One in May.
Blackburn Rovers manager Tony Mowbray:
"Goals change games and from being 3-0 up and being totally dominant in the game, and really should have been 4-0 up, to clinging on for our lives otherwise it would have been another two dropped point.
"I'm not being critical with them, it is young players knowing how to see games out. I think the first goal, from the crowd being against the team to driving them on and us really feeling as if we were playing against a Premier League side with them cheering the side on.
"It's what we worked so hard for last year and I'm delighted that we got the three points." | 1,265,961 |
Shares of Whirlpool, the U.S. based washing machine giant who was once in favor of stricter trade controls for its own industry, posted their worst day in over 30 years after executives blamed rising steel and aluminum costs for diminished quarterly earnings.
"Global steel cost has risen substantially and, particularly in the US, they have reached unexplainable levels," Whirlpool CEO Marc Bitzer told shareholders during a conference call Tuesday.
Whirlpool stock fell 14.5 percent Tuesday, its worst day since October 19, 1987.
The U.S. company was a major advocate for legislation to protect against what Bitzer last year called a "long story of dumping" by foreign competitors LG and Samsung in the washing machine business. Bitzer said during the company's fourth-quarter earnings call that the White House had "put an end" to this alleged dumping, saying it was "encouraging that finally trade laws are being enforced."
"As the next couple months unfold, we will see a lot more clarity" for how tougher trade laws will impact the Whirlpool's bottom-line, Bitzer said on Jan. 25.
Now the company cites U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminium as contributing to the increased cost in Whirpool's raw materials. Three months after calling the government's actions on trade an "incredible" outcome, Bitzer said on Whirlpool's first-quarter earnings call April 24 that costs "have risen substantially and, as a result, we're revising our raw material inflation guidance for 2018."
On Monday, Whirpool again raised its guidance for costs of steel and aluminum in its second-quarter report, while the company again adjusted its expected 2018 profits downward.
Bitzer at times on the call Tuesday downplayed the effects of the tariffs, saying the impact was "almost the same order" as impacts from a freight shortage in the second quarter. Instead, Bitzer focused on the price of steel.
"U.S. steel is 50 percent more expensive than the rest of the world and simply cannot be explained by the input cost," Bitzer said.
Washing machines are one example of how tariffs can have unexpected and adverse effects on the domestic companies the policies attempt to protect. Whirlpool also noted the hit taken by its suppliers.
"We are impacted by the tariffs, as we are an import of record of our suppliers who have to basically pay the tariffs," Bitzer said.
Bitzer expects "the U.S. industry to recover" in the second half of the year, but Whirpool still lowered its full year profit forecast. The company now expects 2018 adjusted earnings per share between $14.20 and $14.80, down from its previously guided range of earnings per share between $14.50 and $15.50, citing primarily the rising costs of steel and aluminium. | 1,265,962 |
Lytro
A report from TechCrunch claims that Google is going to buy the camera company Lytro for "around 40 million dollars." Lytro is best known for creating an innovative "Light field camera," but the company has lately pivoted to professional camera technology for filmmaking and capturing VR video.
You might remember the first Lytro camera, which came in a crazy "tube" form factor with a lens at one end and a 1.5-inch touchscreen on the other. The tube was full of lenses and a special "Light Field Sensor" that would capture images as light-field data rather than a grid of pixels. The benefit was that you could just take a picture without worrying about the focus, and you could later selectively focus the image however you wanted. The downside is that you needed a much denser CMOS sensor to capture a high megapixel image. In 2012, when the camera came out, Lytro could compute all this light-field data down to only a 1MP image.
Lytro followed up the first-gen tube camera with the "Lytro Illum" in 2014. This camera used more of a traditional form factor and increased the resolution. Neither of these cameras sold very well, and the company eventually moved away from consumer cameras and started making more professional cameras for VR and cinema.
TechCrunch says Google's plans for Lytro are "not clear yet." The report suggests that the purchase would help Google's VR efforts, pointing to Google's own work with light-field cameras and a recently released immersive image viewer for Stream VR called "Light Fields." In addition to having competing light-field camera designs and engineers, Lytro also has 59 patents related to light-field imaging that Google might want. There's already a strong connection between Lytro and Google: Rick Osterloh, Google's SVP of hardware, has a seat on Lytro's board of directors.
The report is a bit cloudy on the exact details of the transaction. "One source described the deal as an 'asset sale,' with Lytro going for no more than $40 million," the report says. "Another source said the price was even lower: $25 million and that it was shopped around—to Facebook, according to one source and possibly to Apple, according to another. A separate person told us that not all employees are coming over with the company’s technology: some have already received severance and parted ways with the company, and others have simply left."
All of those possibilities sound like a rough outcome for Lytro. In 2017, the company was valued at $360 million, and the company has raised more than $200 million in total funding from various investors. With a lack of a hit product or service over Lytro's 12-year history, it sounds like the money dried up, and Google is grabbing the company at a bargain. | 1,265,963 |
(and party leadership hopeful) Erin O’Toole’s offer to help win unanimous consent for her motion by tightening it up, because that would have meant “watering it down.”
In a parallel topsy-turviness, Joly has objected to David Anderson’s alternative motion, which replicates Khalid’s motion except for the ambiguous term Islamophobia, because it’s a “weakened and watered down version.”
It’s true to say, as Scott Reid does, that seemingly benign injunctions against “Islamophobia” have been put to the squalid purpose of placing the Muslim religion and the practices of authoritarian Islamic regimes off limits to criticism. But it’s also fair to say that “anti-Muslim bigotry” doesn’t sufficiently capture the full-throated paranoid lunacy animating the nutcase wing of the Conservative support base these days.
“Racism” doesn’t quite cover it. “Hatred” doesn’t quite get at it. Whatever term you like, it’s more than merely ironic that those who make the most hysterical claims about clandestine Islamic conspiracies at the centre of Justin Trudeau’s government are also the ones shouting the loudest that an irrational fear of Islam isn’t even a thing.
It’s not as though the Liberals are blameless in all this. They could have welcomed O’Toole’s efforts at reaching out to find a compromise, but they didn’t. And the Liberals do seem quite content to have the Conservatives squirming and chafing against the appearance that the reason they object to the term Islamophobia is that they themselves are Islamophobic, whatever that might mean. It is not as though it bothers the Liberals that the Conservatives are stuck with the crazy talk coming from several of the leadership candidates these days.
Trudeau may have given away more than he intended last week when he was confronted at a community meeting in Iqaluit about why he reneged on his electoral reform promises. Raising the spectre of proportional representation opening the door to “fringe” parties, Trudeau asked, rhetorically: “Do you think that Kellie Leitch should have her own party?”
Clearly, Trudeau doesn’t want that. For starters, it would mean decent Conservatives couldn’t be tarred so easily with the indecencies committed by the party’s fringe factions. It would mean bigot-baiting the Conservative Party would be that much harder to do. In the meantime, it’s up to the Conservatives to get themselves sorted, and after the sordid events of the past few days, their options are limited:
Isolate, quarantine, amputate or purge. | 1,265,964 |
Sure, these are not absolutely conclusive, but it's nice to see that there's some headway made in this direction. Of course, gaming is only a single aspect of the total experience, but it is admittedly by far the most taxing one, making it perfect for actually gauging what your device will look like under heavy load. Sure, these are not absolutely conclusive, but it's nice to see that there's some headway made in this direction. Of course, gaming is only a single aspect of the total experience, but it is admittedly by far the most taxing one, making it perfect for actually gauging what your device will look like under heavy load.
Buying a new smartphone is usually a joyous occasion (even for non-nerds), so much so that most of us usually forget that the industry is downright ruthless. The battle for dominion continues to rage on, as OEMs from around the globe battle it out on fields as diverse as the Amazon rainforrest.Sure, gimmicks sell, and potential customers do get hooked every now and then, but nothing says dominance as much as having the speediest device. This has given rise to what until recently was exclusive to the PC stage – 'optimizations' for benchmarks, though we call it downright cheating. This is actually so predominant that chances are that your current smartphone is selectively boosting its internal clocks to prime it up during benchmarks, whereas it may actually struggle under other circumstances. So, while we're able to call them off, we aren't exactly able to prevent them. Until now, supposedly...A new benchmark is in town, called GameBench. The good folks behind it reportedly all hail from the chipmaking industry, so we suppose they do know a thing or two about such 'optimizations' and how to prevent them. The new authors of the benchmark (not yet available on the Play Store, don't bother just yet) claim it's “uncheatable”, and they have already pitted the HTC One with the Samsung Galaxy S4 – two devices with otherwise identical hardware and scores on conventional benchies. Unlike those last ones, however, GameBench will run in the background while you play a real game title off the Play Store, taking multiple measurements of both performance and battery drain. Put even simpler, devices get rewarded for high frame rate and penalized for quick juice drain.Going back to the two flagships, GameBench actually ran them through four of some of the most popular games right now, all the while scribbling down their performance. Surprisingly, while Sammy took most of the heat for cheating, it actually still managed to snatch a decisive win against HTC's One. This is actually more meaningful than some may realize, as we otherwise consider these two to be equals in terms of how they handle load, despite the fact that the S4 has a bit of a hand over the One, thanks to its slightly higher-clocked Snapdragon 600. | 1,265,965 |
Lam said on Wednesday that the government had responded to each of the demands but admitted that it "may not be able to address all the grievances of people in society." She then called for dialogue rather than further violence.
The bill can only be fully withdrawn after the parliament resumes in the fall.
A full withdrawal of the bill is one of five demands that protesters have been fighting for. The proposed bill would have allowed people in Hong Kong to be extradited to mainland China for trial. Despite Lam's suspension of the bill in June, protesters continued to rally. On Sunday, the city saw its most violent day since mass protests first broke out earlier this year.
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said in a pre-recorded announcement on Wednesday that she will fully withdraw a contentious extradition bill that has sparked months of mass protests.
"The government will formally withdraw the bill in order to fully allay public concerns. The Secretary for Security will move a motion according to the Rules of Procedure when the Legislative Council resumes," she said via a translation, giving four actions that her government would push forward with.
Other actions included "direct dialogue" with the community, a review of Hong Kong society's "deep-seated problems" and the appointment of two new members to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).
"Our foremost priority now is to end violence, to safeguard the rule of law and to restore order and safety in society. As such, the government has to strictly enforce the law against all violent and illegal acts," Lam added.
The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong had rallied more than 4% Wednesday following early reports that the bill would soon be withdrawn. It comes a day after Lam quelled rumors of Beijing's rejection to her resignation. Lam said on Tuesday she had never asked the Chinese government to let her resign to end Hong Kong's political crisis.
Hong Kong was a British colony until 1997, when it became a special administrative region of China under the "one country, two systems" framework which allows the territory a certain degree of legal and economic autonomy. There are rising concerns among the territory's citizens that their civil rights are being eroded under Beijing's rule.
Hong Kong protesters released their five demands in July. The demands include the following:
Fully withdraw from a proposed bill that would allow Hong Kong people to be extradited to mainland China.
Retract any characterization of the movement as a "riot."
Drop all charges against anti-extradition protesters.
Set up an independent committee to investigate the use of force by Hong Kong police.
Universal suffrage in elections for the city's chief executive and legislature by 2020.
— CNBC's Vivian Kam contributed to this report.
Correction: This story has been updated to correctly reflect that the extradition bill was suspended in June and that Carrie Lam announced the bill will be withdrawn. | 1,265,966 |
flank, while it continues to fight the PKK at home. In a mood of surging nationalism, President Erdoğan, in the wake of snap elections in November 2015, declared the PYD to be a terrorist organisation. At NATO and in Washington, Turkey has been towing the same line that “the PYD is the same as the PKK”.
While Washington, in official parlance sticks to its line that “the PYD and the PKK are different”, in reality the two suicide bombings by a PKK splinter group in Ankara in February and March have not made the coalition’s job of working with the Kurdish forces in Syria any easier. The PYD continues to be a valuable asset in the fight against ISIS in Syria, but Washington increasingly feels the pressure from its NATO ally not to solely rely on them.
Now that a coalition with the Kurds has become even more problematic, who are America’s new allies in the border offensive? The situation is rather murky. Several Turkey-backed Arab and Turkmen groups like the Sultan Murad brigades, the Faylaq el-Sham, and smaller groups named after various Ottoman sultans – none of whom constitute a major fighting force on their own but can move together when backed by coalition airpower and artillery— are taking part in the new military offensive to seal off the Turkish border. Free Syrian Army divisions from the now defunct Pentagon training programs have also been brought to the region. More importantly, Ahrar el-Sham, the jihadist rebel force with significant battle-field experience, is reported to be taking part in this new offensive against ISIS.
The most obvious risk associated with this offensive is that as ISIS is squeezed out of the border area, it could plot further terrorist attacks in Turkey out of desperation. The group has already hit popular tourist targets and Kurdish areas in Turkey over the past year and has an extensive jihadist network here. Turkish officials are bracing themselves for fresh attacks.
In this fragile situation, managing the Turkish-Kurdish rivalry while continuing to advance on ISIS will be a key challenge for the US-led coalition. Moving into the ISIS stronghold in Raqqa will be all the more difficult with Turkish-Kurdish tensions running high, not just in Syria but inside Turkey as well. It is likely that the Turkish-Syrian border will be sealed off over the next few months by Turkey-backed rebel groups, but that could make Kurdish-controlled towns like Tel Abyad and Kobani more vulnerable to an ISIS offensive.
This will be a hot summer in northern Syria — not just on the battlefield, where troops will close in on ISIS, but also in the halls of diplomacy, where the Turkish-Kurdish equilibrium will have to be managed with even more care in the fight against ISIS.
Read more on: Wider Europe, Turkey, The Middle East and North Africa, Syria / Iraq / Lebanon, IS | 1,265,967 |
mysteriously slowed down to 1.7% annually since 2007, but even that rate of gain would not exactly qualify as deflation. OER would double every 40 years at that rate.
But here’s the thing. During the same 17-year period home prices as measured by the Case-Shiller repeat sales index have risen at a 5.2% annual rate—double the OER. And that’s notwithstanding the partial round trip of the housing sector boom and bust during that period.
Undoubtedly, some spreadsheet wiz at the Fed would say do not be troubled by this yawning gap between housing prices and OER. In its wisdom, the Fed has radically repressed the benchmark Treasury rate over this period, meaning that the “carry” cost of homeownership has declined sharply. So, yes, the fact that the housing asset price rose at 2X the rate of imputed rents over the past 17 years all makes sense!
Needless to say, now that interest rates are beginning to normalize the implication would be that the carry cost of ownership—that is, OER—-should begin to accelerate, too. Self-evidently, the deflation fighters in the Eccles building do not expect that—perhaps because they have a front row seat at the government fudge factory where OER is manufactured.
There is one component of the CPI that has experienced genuine deflation since the 1990s—and that is tradable goods subject to the withering force of labor cost reduction that resulted from draining the rice paddies of East Asia. Thus, the index for household furniture, appliances, furnishings, tools and supplies—which has a 4% weight in the CPI— has actually decline slightly since 1997.
The same is true of apparel and shoes which account for another 3.5% of the CPI. Still, household goods are down by only a cumulative 2% over the past 17 years and apparel and shoes by 4%. Those welcome but modest declines pale into insignificance relative to the 50-100% cumulative gains for the commodities and services highlighted above.
And the decline in tradable goods prices do not even begin to off-set the massive but partially invisible rise in the cost of medical, education and other services as will be outlined in Part 2.
Suffice it to say, the monetary politburo has well and truly reached a point of sheer desperation. To keep the Wall Street gamblers in play it needs to keep the money market rates at zero, and therefore the carry trades in business. But 7 years of ZIRP is so insensible on its face that it requires the invention of a giant, preposterous lie—-the myth of “low-flation”—to keep the printing presses humming in the basement of the Eccles Building.
Reprinted with permission from David Stockman.
The Best of David Stockman | 1,265,968 |
tweet that has been reposted numerous times.
While I understand what they are trying to say, they have tried and failed. This is racial justice Twitter theatrics. As a Black woman do you think I feel good because a White, privileged, straight, woman is tweeting, she is Black? Do you think that does something for anyone in these groups? And then the post says, UNTIL this Thing meaning Trump is out of office, they are “these people.” So what happens after that? What happens after being part of the resistance isn’t cool? What happens when you are asked to sacrifice? What happens when your friends don’t want to invite you to dinner anymore because of your stance on race? What happens when you read a tweet that challenges you and your feelings are hurt? Then what?
Emotion alone cannot drive allyship. When you are fighting for justice, your feelings will waver. There will be good days, bad days, and days that you feel like throwing in the towel. I can guarantee you that you are going to read something about White people that offends you. If you don’t believe me, keep reading through this blog. If you are not anchored in something more profound than your feelings you will threaten to quit. You will treat being an ally like you are dangling a carrot in front of the faces of Black people and if someone posts something you do not like, you can just take your allyship away. If you being an ally is rooted in always feeling good, by all means, do not call yourself an ally of mine. If being an ally is rooted in always reading things that make you want to cuddle up with a cup of hot chocolate, this might not be the role for you. If being an ally means coming on Twitter and telling a Black woman that she might not want to speak her truth because that can isolate potential allies, please do not consider yourself an ally.
In the fight for justice, we do not need fairweather allies, allies that are only loyal on the sunny days. Our struggle is rooted in our very survival. This fight is more significant than a tweet or a blog post or your hurt feelings.
Please do not act like you are doing Black people a favor by standing on the side of righteousness. We are glad that you are here but you are not doing us a favor by doing the RIGHT thing. You should be satisfied doing the RIGHT THING because you SHOULD do the right thing. Be satisfied that you are working to make this world a better place not just for Black people but ALL people and that in itself, should be enough! And if that means you have to be a little uncomfortable for the sake of humanity then so be it! Believe me, Black people have uncomfortable for a very long time.
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protesters in hong kong PA
Last week, more than 100 businesses in Hong Kong temporarily shut down so workers could join protests across the city.
Protests were taking place to show residents’ opposition of a controversial extradition bill the government are considering, which would allow criminal suspects to be sent to mainland China for trial, rather than stay in Hong Kong.
More than two million people are reported to have taken to the street to protest the bill, and it seems a number of them were there because a few porn sites told them to be.
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The adult site AV01 shut down its website on Tuesday, June 11, offering expectant users a message instead of the usual videos, telling them to visit the Legislative Council if they’re not happy with the changes, as Shanghaiist reports.
Another site, ThisAV, called on visitors to attend the protest, calling it a ‘life and death’ decision, rather than ‘playing’ on the internet, and had temporarily shut down so its workers could join in the strikes and protests.
Both sites are back to their usual service now, according to reports (sorry but I’m not going to double check that while I’m at work…). However, AV01 is now displaying a message which reads: ‘If you are a Hong Kong police officer, relative, or supporter, please leave this site.’
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As the opposition from residents entered its second week, protesters rejected an apology from Chief Executive of Hong Kong, Carrie Lam, and promised to continue their fight against the controversial law.
Lam tried to apologise for the ways the government had managed the draft extradition law, as The Guardian reports.
However, The Chief Executive did not meet any of the protesters’ demands, which included a withdrawal of the bill, to end the crackdown on activists, and to hold police accountable for violence at previous protests. At the current demonstrations, police fired tear gas and rubber bullets, which resulted in a number of arrests and a hospitalistion.
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protesters in Hong Kong PA
The opposition movement was bolstered after the release of Joshua Wong, a prominent activist who had been jailed for his role in the 2014 pro-democracy movements.
Wong called on Lam to resign too, saying: ‘She is no longer qualified to be Hong Kong’s leader. She must take the blame and resign, be held accountable and step down.’
If Lam’s efforts to pass the extradition bill succeed, Hong Kong residents and visitors could be sent to trial in China, in communist-controlled courts, which many people in Hong Kong fear would be incredibly damaging to their economy and society.
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“Why would someone spend their limited leisure time shoveling horse-shit into a compost pile?” wonders Jason Mark, co-manager at San Francisco’s Alemany Farm, which hosts community workdays twice a week.
More and more, people are clamoring to join in the urban farming movement and get their hands dirty. There’s no doubt that urban gardening has graduated from fledgling trend to part of our cultural landscape, with vegetable gardens taking root everywhere from tiny backyards, to college campuses, to the White House grounds, to fire-escape terraces. Writing for Gastronomica, Mark lays out the motivations behind the movement and why public participation continues to rise:
The new agrarians are seeking a way to refashion the relationships—ecological, emotional—that have been eroded by work without meaning and food without substance. They are trying to accomplish a kind of restoration of the world…. The farm’s gift is the confirmation of our common need for sustenance, for cooperation, achievement, and creativity, and for a visceral connection to the biological systems on which we depend. The farm reminds us of how, when we join together in the spirit of collective action, we fulfill our individual selves.
Mark points to several specific, personal benefits of urban gardening. First, of course, there’s the food. (Who can’t appreciate the crunch of a Mokum carrot or the beauty in a row of ruffle-leaved lettuces?) But behind this real food lies the honest labor that results in real satisfaction, another key reward. Mark writes:
At the end of a workday, the most common sentiment I hear from volunteers is astonishment at how much they have done. They are delighted to witness the immediacy of their accomplishments. When the day started, the onions were a weedy, overgrown mess; by the close of the afternoon, the crop lines are clean and obvious. Most people’s regular jobs don’t provide such clear cause and effect.
Cultivating farmland where we can provides other simple gifts, too: an artistic outlet, an escape from a self-absorbed society, and a much-needed reconnection with nature—no matter how urban it might be. Mark says this of his beloved, if not bucolic, Alemany Farm:
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This isn’t the backwoods of Yosemite. We grow food next to a 165-unit public-housing project. I will never forget one college student I spent an afternoon weeding with. I asked him why he came to the farm. “It’s just great to be out in nature,” he said. I almost dropped my hoe. Didn’t he hear the rush of freeway traffic seventy yards away?
Source: Gastronomica (article not available online) | 1,265,971 |
AP PHOTOS: Virus revives demand for traditional French soap
MARSEILLE, France (AP) — Amid the rapid spread of the new coronavirus across Europe, the hallmark Marseille tradition of soap-making is enjoying a renaissance, as the French rediscover an essential local product.
Serge Bruna’s grandfather entered the then-booming business in the southern port city more than a century ago. His father followed suit, although the family enterprise was requisitioned during World War II, when soap was considered an essential commodity.
Today, Bruna sells soap from the same shopfront on Marseille’s Old Port — wearing a sanitary mask and skintight gloves.
“Even though we work in a factory full of virus-repellent soap, it is good to take precautions,” he said.
Bruna’s Savonnerie de la Licorne, which runs four soap shops on the Old Port, a museum and a small factory in the heart of Marseille, has seen its shop sales increase 30% and delivery orders quadruple since Italy declared a state of emergency over the coronavirus.
“We had fewer tourists or none at all in our stores,” he said. “On the other hand, (Marseilles residents) were much more frequent visitors and some even came to stockpile.”
The COVID-19 illness causes mild or moderate symptoms in most of those infected, but severe symptoms are more likely in the elderly or people with existing health problems. The vast majority of those infected recover.
As the public rushed to buy supplies to last during a looming quarantine, Bruna and his artisans continued making soap by hand, filling the port-view shops as well as boxes destined for export.
See more of AP's top images: Photography
With an abundance of local oils, soda, and salt, Marseille boasts a lengthy tradition of producing the natural soaps once prized throughout Europe. But only a handful of businesses are still active.
Since French shops were ordered closed this week as a public health precaution, the Savonnerie de la Licorne now only carries out deliveries, supplying pharmacies across France and handling individual orders made online.
“I’m not sure that making our soaps is more important than before, but I would say that people who have lost the habit of using Marseille soap have all of a sudden rediscovered its properties,” he said.
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The Associated Press receives support for health and science coverage from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
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Follow AP coverage of the virus outbreak at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak | 1,265,972 |
Philadelphia Cop Who Punched Woman Taken Off the Streets A video posted on YouTube appears to show an officer hit a woman in the face.
Oct. 1, 2012 -- A Philadelphia cop under investigation for punching a woman in the face has been taken off the streets and restricted to administrative duties during the investigation, police said.
A video posted on YouTube shows the unidentified cop punching a woman in the face and knocking her to the ground before she is led off bloodied and handcuffed.
It was decided today that the officer would be placed on "restricted status," meaning that he is relegated to "administrative duties pending the outcome of the investigation," according to Lt. Ray Evers.
The video was taken at Sunday's Puerto Rican Day Parade, an event that Evers said "usually goes off without a hitch."
"We were made aware of the video very, very early this morning. Internal Affairs opened up an investigation in reference to the incident and the actions of that officer," Evers told ABCNews.com. "The incident is being fully investigated."
The video shows a crowd of blue-shirted police officers standing in the middle of a street, around a car. Someone on the left appears to throw something resembling silly string or a liquid on the cops. An officer in a white shirt rushes out of the crowd and goes after a woman with long, dark hair and a black T-shirt.
Her back is to the camera so it is unclear if she was saying anything to him. The officer appears to punch her in the face and then hit her in the back of the head. She falls to the ground where two officers apprehend her and lead her off. As she passes the camera, blood can be seen streaming down her face.
"The video speaks for itself," Evers said. "There were people in the crowd throwing items at the officer, water and other things."
The woman was taken into custody on a disorderly conduct charge and was later released. Evers said he believed she had a cut lip, but was not seriously injured.
Police are not releasing the name of the officer or of the woman.
The YouTube video, titled "Philadelphia Police Brutality" was posted on Sept. 30 and already has over 1,000 comments.
Some of the comments were in support of the officer, but the majority denounced his behavior.
"Regardless of what was done or provoked, the use of excessive force is apparent in this case. She was pursued and smacked, not restrained," one commenter wrote.
"She is obviously not [sic] threat and can easily be subdued by a man of his size versus her small frame plus there was plenty of back up," another wrote. "His position and authority contradict his actions, I would hope his rank was earned off of better judgement [sic] in the past because this was just shameful." | 1,265,973 |
extinguishing our fear. This ability to unlearn threat is compromised in maternally separated animals.
The subsequent reunification with a parent, or the replacement with a new caretaker, may not reverse the changes caused by this early separation stress.
Pictures of the brain reveal altered brain structures
Brain imaging studies demonstrate structural and functional changes in the brains of children separated from their parents. Specifically, the stress of separation increases the size of the amygdala, a key structure in threat processing and emotion, and alters amygdala connections with other brain areas. On the molecular level, separation alters the expression of receptors on the brain cell’s surface involved in stress response and emotion regulation. Without the right number of receptors, the communication between neurons is disrupted.
The trauma of either permanent or temporary separation poses general health risks and affects academic performance, success in career and personal life. In particular, the loss or separation from parents increases the likelihood of various psychiatric disorders, including post-traumatic stress, anxiety, mood, psychotic or substance use disorders.
The feeling of safety and the associated ability to bond with others, the ability to detect and respond to threat, as well as the ability to regulate one’s own emotions and stress are vital. Early reprogramming of neural circuits underlying these functions can directly or indirectly alter the child’s physical, emotional and cognitive development and causes lifelong changes.
About this neuroscience research article
Funding: Funding provided by National Institutes of Health and Brain & Behavior Research Foundation.
Source: Jacek Debiec – The Conversation
Publisher: Organized by NeuroscienceNews.com.
Image Source: NeuroscienceNews.com image is in the public domain.
Cite This NeuroscienceNews.com Article
[cbtabs][cbtab title=”MLA”]The Conversation “Sudden and Lasting Separation From Parent Can Permanently Alter Brain Development.” NeuroscienceNews. NeuroscienceNews, 21 June 2018.
<https://neurosciencenews.com/immigration-separation-neurodevelopment-9410/>.[/cbtab][cbtab title=”APA”]The Conversation (2018, June 21). Sudden and Lasting Separation From Parent Can Permanently Alter Brain Development. NeuroscienceNews. Retrieved June 21, 2018 from https://neurosciencenews.com/immigration-separation-neurodevelopment-9410/[/cbtab][cbtab title=”Chicago”]The Conversation “Sudden and Lasting Separation From Parent Can Permanently Alter Brain Development.” https://neurosciencenews.com/immigration-separation-neurodevelopment-9410/ (accessed June 21, 2018).[/cbtab][/cbtabs]
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Dylan Chidick, a formerly homeless high school student in New Jersey, can't remove the smile from his face after he was recently accepted to 17 of the 18 colleges to which he applied.
Since immigrating from Trinidad at the age of 7, Chidick and his family have faced prejudice, homelessness and financial struggles. Chidick, a senior at Henry Snyder High School in Jersey City, would be the first person in his family to attend college.
“I believe that education is the key to basically the world. Nobody could take away the knowledge that you have,” Chidick told NBC News. “They could take away your job or your money, but knowledge that you have in your brain, nobody could ever take that away.”
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Aside from his recent successes, Chidick has been class president for the past three years and serves as vice president of his school’s National Honor Society. He is also a Jersey City Youth Ambassador.
Dylan Chidick, a formerly homeless New Jersey teen who has been accepted into 17 colleges. NBC News
Much of Chidick’s determination comes from seeing his single mother, Khadine Philip, turn to the nonprofit organization Women Rising for help, which helps women and their families build self-sufficient lives.
Witnessing this vulnerability in his “very independent” family struck a chord in the teenager.
“They don't like to accept help," he said. "So, seeing them go through that experience made me change my ways and made me more determined to have my dreams and accept help from others to basically plan my future out correctly.”
The organization helped them secure permanent housing, giving Chidick and his siblings a safe place to live and focus on their studies.
Dylan Chidick in a family photo. NBC News
Chidick’s college acceptances include Albright College, Swindon College and New Jersey City University. He is still waiting to hear back from his top choice, the College of New Jersey. He plans to study political science and later become a lawyer. Eventually, Chidick hopes to help support his family and assist his mother in achieving her dream of opening a Caribbean restaurant.
“I'm used to being a role model already because I have two younger brothers. I've always known I have someone looking up to me, but now there's kids that I never met before saying you’re an inspiration,” Chidick said. “It makes me feel great inside and it warms my heart to know there are other people out there having the same situation as me and using my story as an example to push through it.” | 1,265,975 |
"Bourgin, in turn had a conversation with a reporter named Joe Laitin and Joe Laitin, in turn mentioned it to his wife and it was Joe Laitin's wife who said, "Well, why don't they just read from the book of Genesis?", and that filtered its way back through Si Bourgin to Frank Borman who thought it was a great idea. So he had the verses typed up on a page in the flight plan -- on fireproof paper, like every thing else they brought on board -- and he had this in front of them."
Technological Wonder, Spiritual Moment
Lovell: "Almost the whole world would be listening to us on Christmas Eve. But the whole world does not consist of Christians. Why don't we say something that is significant to the majority of the people in the world? That is how it came to pass that on the last revolution of the moon, we read from the Old Testament the first ten verses of Genesis which is the foundation of many of the world's religions." Bill Anders remembers that is was "not so much a religious reading, but more of a significant statement, that not just Christians and Jews would understand, but that all people, Buddhist, Hindu or atheist would react to in a deep and moving way to help them remember this event of exploration."
Just the Right Thing
Television newsman Walter Cronkite: "You know, I'm afraid that my first reaction was, 'Oh, this is a little too much, this is a little too dramatic.' Even, I might even have thought 'this is a little corny.' But by the time Borman had finished reading that excerpt from the Bible, I admit that I had tears in my eyes. It was really impressive and just the right thing to do at the moment. Just the right thing."
Sharing the Wonder
Chaikin: "The thing about Apollo that sets it apart from every other event in the history of exploration is that because it was happening live on television, humans could share in the event as it was happening. We didn't have to wait for the letters to come back from the western frontier, weeks and months later. We didn't have to wait until the explorers returned to hear about the adventure, we could see it with our own eyes and have our own experience. And that was an experience -- watching, when the world saw those TV pictures and heard those verses in Genesis -- that was an experience for all of us to share in. That was our piece of Apollo 8. That was the moment at which we felt like explorers. We felt the awe and the wonder that these three men were experiencing so far their home planet and that was something that set Apollo 8 apart from anything that had ever happened in the history of exploration."
The Apollo 8 broadcasts won an Emmy, the highest honor given by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. | 1,265,976 |
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The Satanic Temple, always so outspoken in its support for women's right to reproductive choice, filed a lawsuit in federal court on Tuesday challenging Missouri's "informed consent" and waiting period laws, which the temple claims violate members' sincerely held religious beliefs. The case centers on a satanist identified as Mary Doe, who was forced to comply with the state's abortion restrictions when she sought to terminate a pregnancy last month, despite seeking an exemption upon her arrival at a Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Louis.
The lawsuit claims Missouri's standards for when life begins (at conception) as well as its classification of non-viable fetal tissue ("a unique human being with a life of its own, separate and apart from the woman whose uterus it occupies") promote a particular set of religious beliefs in violation of the Establishment Clause, which prohibits the government from doing precisely that. According to Satanic Temple spokesperson Lucien Greaves, the "informed consent" materials don't just require women to comply with certain religious viewpoints, but also -- in the case of satanists -- to contradict their own belief that women can make up their minds themselves.
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“The question of when life begins is absolutely a religious opinion, and the state has no business proselytizing religious beliefs," Greaves said in a statement. "Women of The Satanic Temple, deciding to terminate a pregnancy, and informed in their decision to do so by their adherence to Satanic tenets, are having their religious freedoms violated when subjected to state-mandated ‘informed consent’ propaganda."
Additionally, the temple claims Missouri's 72-hour abortion waiting period also violates members' right to free exercise of religion, by denying access to abortion when a woman (and, presumably, a medical professional) determines she is ready to terminate a pregnancy. "The mandatory abortion waiting-period is imposed with the rationale that women need that time in which to absorb and comprehend the informed consent materials," Greaves explained. "As we reject the informed consent materials entirely, the waiting period justification is moot, acting as nothing more than an obstacle against acting upon a decision made with deference to deeply held religious beliefs.”
Temple representatives have already filed a state lawsuit against Missouri, but the federal suit is meant to challenge similar antiabortion laws across the country. So far, the Satanic Temple has been effectively denied representation by the ACLU and is crowd-funding to cover legal fees. Money aside, satanists seem to see no reason to stop fighting anti-choice legislation.
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“With new restrictions being imposed by theocratically inclined legislatures across the nation, our lawsuit couldn't be any more urgent or crucial," Greaves said. "We anticipate that our efforts will set a precedent in the favor of reproductive rights for generations to come, and bring a sudden halt to the current horrific trend of sanctimonious superstitious assaults on women's freedom of choice." | 1,265,978 |
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Ron DeSantisKey swing-state election lawsuits could help shape the presidential race First death reported from Hurricane Sally in Alabama Trump tells Gulf Coast residents to prepare for 'extremely dangerous' Hurricane Sally MORE (R) said Tuesday that he will not be ordering the beaches in his state to close despite growing concerns over the international COVID-19 outbreak, NBC News reports.
DeSantis said that beaches in the state must adhere to guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which has advised the public to practice social distancing and avoid gatherings with more than 10 people.
"What we're going to be doing for the statewide floor for beaches, we're going to be applying the CDC guidance of no group on a beach more than 10 and you have to have distance apart if you're going to be out there. So that applies statewide,” DeSantis reportedly said at a press conference.
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“We’ve seen some big crowds on the west coast of Florida and I’ve had a chance to speak to mayors on both coast today,” DeSantis also said, according to a local NBC affiliate. “If … they want to continue to [leave the beach open], we want them to have the freedom to do that, but we also want them to have the freedom to do more if they see fit.”
The Florida Republican added that it is “not uniform throughout the state that you're seeing massive crowds at beaches.”
However, DeSantis did urge students celebrating spring break to exercise more caution as the state works to combat the spread. Florida's Department of Health has reported more than 280 cases of residents with the virus and seven deaths so far.
“The universities with the spring break … a lot of students have just been congregating at the universities and going out and doing things there, and that’s not something we want,” DeSantis said at one point during his press conference on Tuesday, according to Fox News.
His comments came after footage went viral recently showing thousands of beachgoers descending on Clearwater Beach, Fla., despite warnings from health officials urging social distancing amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Though the CDC has said experts are still learning how the novel coronavirus spreads, it says on its website that the disease is thought to be transmitted primarily through “person-to-person" contact.
The CDC says more than 7,000 U.S. cases have been reported so far and more than 90 deaths.
The number of those infected by the virus, which was first detected in China months ago, is much higher worldwide, with The New York Times placing the overall number of cases at more than 209,000. According to the Times, more than 8,700 deaths have been reported worldwide. | 1,265,979 |
The man who shot and wounded an Ohio county judge outside a courthouse Monday morning before being shot dead was the father of a Steubenville High School football player who was convicted of rape in 2013, authorities said Monday.
Jefferson County Judge Joseph Bruzzese Jr., 65, was "ambushed" while walking toward the county courthouse in Steubenville Monday morning, court officials said.
The gunman was identified as Nathaniel "Nate" Richmond, the father of Ma'Lik Richmond, a Steubenville High School football player who served nearly 10 months of a year-long sentence in juvenile detention after being convicted, along with another high school football player, of raping a 16-year-old girl in 2012.
The case brought international attention to the Ohio city and led to allegations of a cover-up to protect the football team.
ONE OF TWO TEENS CONVICTED IN STEUBENVILLE RAPE CASE RELEASED
Ma'Lik Richmond is currently on the Youngstown State football team but isn't allowed to participate in any games following backlash surrounding his spot on the team.
Investigators are continuing to search for a motive but haven't yet found a connection to the rape case, Jefferson County Prosecutor Jane Hanlin said.
Jefferson County Sheriff Fred Abdalla said courthouse video shows Bruzzese and Richmond each firing about five shots. A probation officer fired as well, killing Richmond.
A second suspect, in the car with Richmond, was taken into custody shortly after the incident.
Bruzzese was airlifted to the hospital and was seen talking after the shooting, WTOV reported. Ohio Gov. John Kasich said he's been told Judge Bruzzese is expected to survive.
The courthouse was closed for the day as local and state authorities helped secure the scene. Jefferson County Commissioner Thomas Graham told WTOV that some courthouse workers witnessed the "tragic situation" and that people would need time to process what had happened.
BLUE RACISM? NEW YORK POLICE ASSOCIATION SAYS COPS ARE VICTIMS OF RACISM
Bruzzese is one of the two judges serving in Jefferson County Common Pleas Court and hears general and domestic relations cases. He has served on that court since 1997, according to Ohio Supreme Court records. He was most recently re-elected in 2014 for another six-year term.
Judge Joseph Corabi, who also works at the courthouse, said Bruzzese was "clearly an intended target" because judges park in reserved spots next to the courthouse.
Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor said the attack is a reminder of the real potential for violence against judges, and urged court employees to take extra precautions in both personal and professional activites. She added that violence against judges is an attack on the rule of law.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. | 1,265,980 |
A Republican New York state assemblyman retweeted a video that depicts four New York Police Department officers struggling to arrest a man resisting to get into a police car.
Mike Reilly disseminated the video, which shows the officers calling for assistance as onlookers demand the cops call an ambulance for the man, who is under arrest.
The reality on the street. https://t.co/QxMxp2xRnA — Mike Reilly (@MikeWReilly) August 25, 2019
According to the New York Post, the recorded incident surfaced hours after NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill claimed that a police slowdown when performing routine work would not occur in response to Officer Daniel Pantaleo’s termination from the force. Reilly, a former NYPD lieutenant, points to the video as proof that NYPD cops are slowing down their responses to routine calls in the wake of Pantaleo’s firing.
“In that video, you hear the public who were filming it. They actually said, ‘Call him an ambulance.’ They all realize that isn't what's supposed to be done there. He is physically resisting getting put into a police car," Reilly told the Washington Examiner. "So the arrest has not been fully effective at that time. The person is in custody, but he can’t be transported from there.”
Following the firing of Pantaleo, the officer involved in the 2014 death of Eric Garner, the president of the Police Benevolent Association, Patrick Lynch, called on “all New York City police officers to proceed with the utmost caution in this new reality, in which they may be deemed'reckless' just for doing their job."
"We will uphold our oath, but we cannot and will not do so by needlessly jeopardizing our careers or personal safety," Lynch added.
Other videos have surfaced in New York City recently showing law enforcement officers attempting to make arrests while the public has attempted to interfere in the process or the suspect has resisted.
90% when officers in NYC are making a collar, they face imminent danger for themself, but thanks to the liberal leadership they have to protect the perp before they can protect themselves. #StandWithTheBlue pic.twitter.com/dkqCnllX6k — Joel Fischer (@JFNYC1) August 25, 2019
Reilly placed the blame on New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and the top brass at the NYPD. “I think, unfortunately, the actions of the mayor truly indicate what their insight is and how they feel towards law enforcement,” he said.
He added, “Everybody wants to jump on a political bandwagon and that's not what should be done. No. There should be a time and a place where we allow investigations to take their course, and we should be guided by the results and the outcomes.” | 1,265,981 |
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar believes the formation of a new government, particularly one that includes Sinn Féin, could impede the current efforts to deal with the coronavirus crisis.
In a new attack on Sinn Féin last night, a government spokesman said the reasons why Mary Lou McDonald's party should not participate "are even more valid in an emergency" and said a new administration "would not make it any easier" to deal with the outbreak.
"The reasons why Sinn Féin should not participate in government are even more valid in an emergency, particularly when it comes to national security, the Garda, the Defence Forces and the justice system," the spokesman said.
He said the caretaker government was devoting its efforts to the unfolding situation and the opposition was being briefed regularly.
A Cabinet sub-committee meets today to consider further measures, including expediting sick pay for those forced to self-isolate.
The spokesman added: "Covid-19 will be with us for many months and should not prevent a new government from taking office at the appropriate time. However, the appointment of a new government would not make it any easier to deal with Covid-19 in the short term.
"It would mean more than a hundred people taking up new roles across government, many of whom would have no prior experience of government or their new role, and would have to devote time to read into their new brief."
Sinn Féin did not respond to a request for comment.
Some Fianna Fáil TDs have backed calls for a national government involving all parties, including Sinn Féin, to tackle the coronavirus crisis. However, senior figures in Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have ruled it out.
Mr Varadkar spoke with Ms McDonald yesterday after she called for a meeting of all party leaders to discuss the crisis. The Taoiseach's spokesman said Mr Varadkar would consider a meeting.
The pair did not discuss government formation with Mr Varadkar maintaining his view that Fine Gael should go into opposition. However, three senior Fine Gael ministers have signalled their willingness to go back into government. Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan has called for a FF-FG-Green government and "a new deal for Ireland".
Tánaiste Simon Coveney believes a "strong and stable" government will be in place this year, his spokesman said. Writing in the 'Sunday Independent', Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe said the election result represented the "last opportunity to salvage" the political centre.
Meanwhile, Fine Gael TDs have criticised health authorities' refusal to disclose counties where outbreaks are happening. Clare TD Joe Carey said it was "ridiculous", while Cork North-Central TD Colm Burke supported disclosing specific counties. Senior health officials have ruled revealing more details.
Irish Independent | 1,265,982 |
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Although the disappointing box office returns for Alien: Covenant may have harmed Ridley Scott’s hopes of a further four entries in his Alien saga. However, it seems he still intends on at least one more instalment to bring the franchise full circle, and during a recent Q&A he has now suggested using CGI to bring Sigourney Weaver’s Ellen Ripley back into the series.
“We’re heading toward the back end of the first Alien so [using CG] may be feasible. I don’t think it’ll… but Ripley’s going to be somebody’s daughter. Obviously. We’re coming in from the back end. The time constraints, of what’s the time between this film, where we leave David going off heading for that colony, I think you’re probably two films out from even considering her.”
Sigourney Weaver had been keen to reprise the role of Ellen Ripley for Neill Blomkamp’s now-abandoned Alien 5 – even going so far as to convince Blomkamp to add the character into his script in the hopes of giving Ripley “a satisfying ending.” However, it remains to be seen whether she’d be interested in exploring more of Ripley’s early days – and being digitally de-aged at that.
SEE ALSO: 3 Reasons Why Alien: Covenant is the Best in the Franchise Since Aliens
Would you like to see Ripley back in another Ridley Scott-directed Alien movie? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…
Ridley Scott returns to the universe he created in ALIEN with ALIEN: COVENANT, the second chapter in a prequel trilogy that began with PROMETHEUS — and connects directly to Scott’s 1979 seminal work of science fiction. Bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, the crew of the colony ship Covenant discovers what they think is an uncharted paradise, but is actually a dark, dangerous world — whose sole inhabitant is the “synthetic” David (Michael Fassbender), survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition.
Alien: Covenant sees Ridley Scott reuniting with Prometheus stars Michael Fassbender, Noomi Rapace and Guy Pearce, while new cast additions Katherine Waterston (Inherent Vice), Danny McBride (Eastbound & Down), Demian Bichir (A Better Life), Billy Crudup (Watchmen), Jussie Smollett (Empire), Carmen Ejogo (Selma), Amy Seimetz (Upstream Color), Benjamin Rigby (That’s Not Me), Callie Hernandez (Machete Kills), Tess Haubrich (The Wolverine) and James Franco (Why Him?).
Via Dark Horizons | 1,265,983 |
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A SOUTH Dublin mother has written to the Taoiseach this week outlining the ongoing difficulties her family has had over the past few years, claiming she had to lay off her pool cleaner, Carlos, after 7 years of austerity.
The Dalkey woman’s letter has since gone viral around the country, forcing the St Vincent De Paul to since intervene by covering the cost of the cleaner’s pool fees for next year.
Dear Taoiseach,
I am writing to you about this whole austerity thing everyone is talking about these days. You know, the one all those smelly, less-well-off people in the post office queue go on about.
I never thought about it much until yesterday; when I had to sack my live-in pool cleaner, Carlos.
My husband, Pat, who works as a radio presenter, said we just couldn’t afford to pay him cash-in-hand any more due to the new water charges coming in, and we had to send him back home to Argentina with his four kids. Which is a shame, because they sure as hell did a really good job at picking up the leaves from the driveway.
I just wanted you to know: I’m not happy. Pat is a great friend with the president himself, so I’m sure you’ll be hearing a lot more about this from him.
Another thing, why are you guys charging so much road tax? As a family, we have to fork out over €5,000 a year on the two Land Rovers and the son’s car. How can you expect a 17-year-old to afford €1,600 a year for his 5 series? Fiachra is only a student for Christ’s sake! It’s a downright disgrace if you ask me.
You fat cats should be ashamed of yourselves. Look at the misery you’re causing the country with your taxes and charges. No wonder Sinn Féin are leading the polls with that carry on.
If you keep this up, we’ll all be under a communist rule under Gerry Adams.
I don’t like him at all. It’s that beard. And those beady eyes?
Please, cop onto yourself Enda, before you end up having to hand over the country to those goons in suits.
Anyway, I hope Fionnuala is doing well. Give her my blessings, and tell her I’ll see her at bowls on Monday in Dun Laoghaire.
Just do the right thing and give back a little more.
Kind Regards,
Kathy Kenny
P.S. Our neighbour is claiming our property is his again. Can you have a little word with the council? Cheers. | 1,265,984 |
Netanyahu reasserts right to decide on Iran attack
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The Israeli Prime Minister said the decision to attack Iran was up to elected officials, and not the military. This comes amidst reports that the country’s military and intelligence are opposed to a unilateral Israeli strike on Iran.
In separate interviews with four separate Israeli news channels, Benjamin Netanyahu stressed that the military would not have the final say on whether or not a strike on Iran was in the cards. “In a democracy, only the political leaders decide, and the military executes,” he told Israel’s Channel 2. “That is the way it has always been, and will always be.” However, Netanyahu also stated that he has yet to decide on whether to attack Iran, but underscored that Israel had the right to "defend itself" against any threat to its security or existence. “I have not taken a decision,” he noted. “Israel's fate depends solely on us and no other country, however friendly.” He also recalled how in 1981, Prime Minister Menachem Begin gave the go-ahead to Operation Opera – a surprise air strike during which Israel destroyed a nuclear reactor under construction in Iraq – despite opposition from Mossad and military intelligence. While Saddam Hussein did not retaliate – as his country was already at war with Iran – both the UN Security Council and General Assembly adopted resolutions condemning the operation. Netanyahu’s comments came amidst a report published by the Yediot Aharonot daily that US officials believe Israel’s top military intelligence echelon to be opposed to an Israeli strike against Iran without US backing.One of the military leaders mentioned in the report, Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz, stated that he would follow orders coming from the government. “We tell the political echelon what we think and we will do what we are told,” Gantz said, as quoted by Jerusalem Post. “I am not in favor of discussing disagreements if there are such, but I am in favor of telling the government what I think.”In April, Gantz said that he believed Iran would eventually give up trying to develop a nuclear weapon. Netanyahu is set to discuss the issue of Iran’s nuclear program with US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, who is currently on a tour of the Middle East. Panetta denied reports that attack plans were on his agenda.“I think it's the wrong characterization to say that we're going to be discussing potential attack plans,” he told reporters shortly before departure to Jerusalem. “What we are discussing are various contingencies on how we would respond.”On Sunday, Haaretz published a report saying that US National Security Advisor Tom Donilon had discussed contingency plans for a possible Israeli attack on Iran with Netanyahu during his visit to the country three weeks ago. An Israeli official later denied that report. | 1,265,985 |
When the Oregon legislature changed the state's tax rules last year, it was trying to convince Google Fiber to bring its high-speed Internet to Oregonians.
But lawmakers apparently didn't realize that the rule change would also hand a big tax break to Comcast. The new rule reduced property taxes for companies that offer gigabit-speed Internet service, which Google sells for $70 a month with no construction fees passed on to customers. But the rule change didn't specify that companies have to offer gigabit service at any particular price in order to qualify for the tax break. Comcast thus now qualifies for lowered property taxes because it offers 2Gbps Internet service, despite charging prices that would steer most ordinary customers to slower Internet speeds. Comcast's 2Gbps service costs $300 per month, with $1,000 in startup fees.
Further Reading Oregon changes tax rules to lure Google Fiber
Rep. Phil Barnhart (D-Eugene) told utility regulators yesterday that the tax break was meant to spur investments in new networks and that legislators never considered that a company charging such high prices for gigabit service would get the tax break, according to The Oregonian.
"The legislature is not likely to be that foolish," he said. "We are foolish often, but usually not that foolish."
But the state Public Utility Commission ruled 3-0 that Comcast's gigabit service qualifies the company for the tax break because the law as written did nothing to prevent other companies from benefiting. The tax exemption would still have to be certified by the state Department of Revenue.
The commission also confirmed that services from Frontier Communications and Google Fiber make those companies eligible for the tax break, The Oregonian reported.
Google Fiber hasn't actually started offering service in Oregon yet. Google lists Portland as a "potential fiber city," meaning it hasn't made a final commitment to build there yet.
The tax in question is an unusual one, using "central assessment" to tax a company's property based on such nebulous factors as the value of the company's brand. Comcast previously sued the state Department of Revenue over the tax, but it lost an Oregon Supreme Court decision in October 2014. The decision said that companies offering data transmission services are subject to this form of assessment.
Local government officials who tried to block Comcast from getting the tax break said there are "tens of millions" of dollars on the line, money used to fund schools, libraries, and other government services, The Oregonian also reported.
We asked Comcast if it can provide a more specific number, but the company did not provide an answer. Comcast did issue a statement, saying, "We are pleased with the Oregon Public Utilities Commission’s ruling which affirms Comcast’s significant investment in Oregon. Comcast is proud to provide the infrastructure that powers the fastest residential Internet speeds in Oregon and fuels the state’s ongoing economic vitality and competitiveness." | 1,265,986 |
WASHINGTON, Dec. 19, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- America's strength depends on workforce-ready, law abiding men and women who are able to defend our nation. Unfortunately, a new report shows the majority of America's young adults fail to meet at least one of these indicators. More than three-fourths of the states (37 states) earned a grade of C or worse based on the percentage of young adults who miss the mark. Nationwide:
12 percent of adults aged 17-24 have been arrested at least once;
Approximately 1 in 8 young adults aged 16 to 24 are neither employed nor in school;
More than 70 percent of those between the ages of 17 and 24 cannot qualify for military service due to problems with obesity, education, drug abuse or crime.
See the report and state-by-state rankings: http://bit.ly/2BGLyIb
The 2017 Citizen-Readiness Index is produced annually by Council for a Strong America (CSA), a national, bipartisan, nonprofit uniting organizations comprised of five pillars of society. It reveals how each of the 50 states ranks in the number of young adults who fail to meet the Citizen-Ready criteria (with Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Mississippi, Nevada, South Carolina and Tennessee earning a grade of "E" based on collective indicators and Hawaii, Massachusetts and Vermont earning "A"s).
Listen to the concerns of the Council's members: https://youtu.be/T9Nv8_lOOKg
"Yes, this report is full of bad news that the nation cannot ignore, but we don't have to take it lying down," said Lieutenant General Norman R. Seip, U.S. Air Force (Ret.), a member of Mission: Readiness, an organization of more than 700 retired admirals and generals. "Quality early education, strong families and good nutrition and physical activity in our nation's schools will prepare young people to succeed in today's economy or the military if that's the path they choose."
CSA recommends three steps Congress can take to address these challenges:
Ensuring kids are ready-to-learn when they start school, by expanding access to early education through support of Head Start, Child Care Development Block Grants, and Preschool Development Grants.
, by expanding access to early education through support of Head Start, Child Care Development Block Grants, and Preschool Development Grants. Keeping kids healthy while they're in school, by staying the course to improve the nutritional content of school meals and snacks.
, by staying the course to improve the nutritional content of school meals and snacks. Strengthening families, by reauthorizing the Children's Health Insurance Program and the Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program.
SOURCE Council for a Strong America | 1,265,987 |
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are still studying proposed changes to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement trade pact, and there was no agreement to announce it yet, a senior Democratic aide said.
FILE PHOTO: Trucks wait in a long queue for border customs control to cross into the U.S. at the Otay border crossing in Tijuana, Mexico April 2, 2019. REUTERS/Jorge Duenes/File Photo
“We’re studying the proposal,” the aide told Reuters when asked about the state of the negotiations and if there would be an announcement of a final deal or a House vote soon on the replacement for the 26-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement.
Sources familiar with talks between U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Mexican Deputy Foreign Minister Jesus Seade said over the weekend that the two were “very close” to an agreement on revisions aimed at winning support from House Democrats.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Monday said that Mexican senators had accepted changes to the deal, and urged U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to move forward with a vote on the deal.
Time is running out for a vote in the U.S. Congress before year end. U.S. lawmakers from both parties said that waiting until next year to vote on the trade pact could make it more difficult to ratify, because the presidential election campaign -- and perhaps impeachment proceedings against U.S. President Donald Trump -- will be in full swing.
Congress had been scheduled to leave Washington by the end of this week, but consideration of spending and defense bills is likely to keep them working for a few more days beyond that.
The Washington Post quoted AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka as saying that there was a deal on the changes and he will discuss it with his executive committee on Tuesday afternoon.
“We have pushed them hard and have done quite well,” Trumka told the Post in an email.
Trumka discussed the trade pact with U.S. President Donald Trump in a phone call on Monday morning, a person familiar with the conversation said.
Neither Trumka nor his spokeswoman responded to queries about the talks. The labor leader has been a key party to the negotiations, pushing Democrats for stronger enforcement of labor provisions that would allow Mexican workers to unionize.
Mexico’s Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Sunday that Mexico would accept a U.S. demand for stricter definition of North American steel and aluminum in USMCA’s automotive rules of origin if it comes with a five-year phase-in period. The new standard would require the metals to be “melted and poured” in North America, excluding semi-finished steel and aluminum from outside the region. | 1,265,988 |
says.
"He dragged it out for a week or longer to hold onto the vehicle."
Hamilton says he contacted Toronto Police but they told him they couldn't intervene because the dealership willingly gave Regan the vehicle.
"This is just a guy who knew how to work the system," Finlay said.
Finally, Hamilton says, the dealership fooled Regan into returning with the vehicle.
"We tricked him into thinking everything was all approved," Hamilton says. "He'd even contacted the insurance company to set everything up. When he brought it back, we blocked it in."
Regan received an eviction noticed for the Lake Shore Boulevard West luxury condominium he lived in for a year without paying rent.
Other employees confirmed they helped craft a story to convince Regan to bring back the car but were uncertain about how long he'd held on to it.
Regan, however, told CBC News that he was given the car. He says he only had it for about a day.
Free phone
Before Regan moved into the Lake Shore Boulevard West condo he occupied rent-free for a year, Joshua Lapierre lived there.
Lapierre moved out in October 2014 but says some of his mail was still arriving at the condo.
"I can only assume he was opening my mail," Lapierre said in an interview.
The first sign of trouble was when Lapierre started getting notifications about changes being made to his Rogers cellphone account.
Lapierre says the name of the account holder was changed to Joshua Regan and then changed again to James Regan.
Josh Lapierre lived in a Lake Shore Boulevard West condo prior to Regan.
Lapierre says a home phone line and additional services were added to his account by someone else.
Then, another notification came, this one from Lapierre's credit card company, alerting him about a $768.40 charge from a Toronto moving company.
Lapierre says his credit card had expired, and he believes a new one was sent to his old address — where Regan was living — and it was somehow activated.
Lapierre started to worry. "Basically, somebody was impersonating me."
He contacted the moving company and was told the charge was for moving items from Lapierre's old address to the condominium building near Old Mill and Bloor Street, where Regan moved next.
Lapierre learned that changes had been made to his Rogers account.
Regan didn't respond to CBC's questions about the allegations.
Both Rogers and the credit card company reimbursed Lapierre.
Lapierre filed a report with police, but there were no charges.
A Toronto Police spokesman says an officer investigated and consulted with the Crown attorney, and it was determined Lapierre's complaint was a civil matter. | 1,265,989 |
The U.S. Department of Justice building is seen in Washington, U.S., Feb. 1, 2018. (Jim Bourg/Reuters)
UC Berkeley Settles Lawsuit Over Treatment of Conservative Speakers
The University of California at Berkeley settled a free speech lawsuit accusing the school of discriminating against speakers with conservative views on Dec. 2.
Under the settlement filed with the federal court in San Francisco, the university will modify its procedures for handling “major events,” which typically draw hundreds of people, and agreed not to charge “security” fees for a variety of activities, including lectures and speeches.
It will also pay $70,000 to cover legal costs of the Berkeley College Republicans and the Tennessee-based Young America’s Foundation, which filed the lawsuit in April 2017.
The settlement followed an Apr. 27 decision by U.S. District Judge Maxine Chesney letting the plaintiffs challenge what they called the university’s “secret” or unfairly restrictive policies toward conservative speakers.
She also let the plaintiffs pursue an equal protection claim over a security fee charged to host conservative commentator Ben Shapiro that was well above a fee for Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, part of the court’s liberal wing.
In a statement, the university said its new fee schedule is consistent with its treatment of other student groups, and called changes to its major events policy “non-substantive.”
“It has been that very policy that has enabled the campus to work effectively with the Berkeley College Republicans as they hosted numerous events featuring prominent conservative speakers without incident or interruption,” spokesman Dan Mogulof said.
Harmeet Dhillon, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said the settlement addressed university policies that were “flatly unconstitutional” under the First Amendment.
“It is no longer able to tax speech on campus when it finds the speech to be disfavored or unpopular,” she said in an interview. “The university has taken a very important liberty-enhancing step to cover these fees.”
Dhillon added: “We wanted a settlement that doesn’t benefit just conservative students, but all students.”
The U.S. Department of Justice in January filed a “statement of interest” in the case, accusing the university of applying a “double standard” by imposing tougher rules on the Berkeley College Republicans.
Justice Department official Jesse Panuccio applauded the settlement in a statement on Monday, calling it a “win for protecting free speech on public college campuses.”
The case is Young America’s Foundation et al v Napolitano et al, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 17-02255.
By Jonathan Stempel | 1,265,990 |
the time he returned from a stellar Euros the asking price had gone up and the Welsh club would not match it.
Similarly, deals for Nacer Chadli, James Chester, Bony and Leonardo Ulloa failed to materialise.
In addition, doubts about Guidolin’s training methods and man-management did not prevent the Italian being handed a two-year contract. It was a show of faith for his work in securing safety, but it would have a significant knock-on effect the following season.
As things stand it would appear significant investment in January is the only hope of turning the season around.
Takeover tensions
A bad summer was made worse by the fall-out in the wake of an American consortium led by Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan purchasing a majority shareholding in the club.
The Swansea City Supporters’ Trust felt they had been “bypassed” in the process and were particularly angry that their fellow shareholders had made no mention of the deal until it was all but complete.
(Image: Robert Melen)
It caused huge bitterness and discontent between parties who had done so much to get Swansea to the top flight, and supporters made their feelings clear on the matter during the home defeat against Manchester United.
The Trust have held productive talks with the Americans over their involvement in the day-to-day running of the club, but there is no doubt the disappointment and hurt felt at the manner of the takeover deal will linger for some time and it has only added to the sense of gloom brought about by on-field struggles.
Sacking Guidolin, appointing Bradley
Having made the decision to stick with Guidolin, the Italian barely had two months of the new season before being given the chop on his 61st birthday.
There had been some woeful early season performances at Leicester and Southampton – where Swansea were fortunate not to be hammered – mixed with better showings against Manchester City and Liverpool.
Swansea were in trouble but matters have not improved under Bradley and many could argue with some justification things have in fact got worse.
(Image: Huw Evans Picture Agency)
No-one doubts the American’s hard work and commitment, but heavy defeats have happened with alarming regularity, while players have looked bereft of confidence and belief, particularly away from home.
A lot of Swansea’s problems may pre-date his arrival but Bradley’s position is already under scrutiny ahead of home meetings with West Ham and Bournemouth.
It says an awful lot about Swansea’s current predicament that the majority of fans responding to a recent poll would like to see a third manager of the season at the helm before 2017 is rung in.
They say a week is a long time in football, the last 18 months has felt like a lifetime for Swansea fans. | 1,265,991 |
Last month, police in Thailand arrested a British citizen after six roasted fetal corpses were found in his luggage. The bodies were believed to be between two and seven months old, according to the Guardian. Some were plated in gold leaf, apparently for use in black magic rituals.
Image source: Reuters
Outside the annual Bilderberg meeting in Virginia on Thursday, Alex Jones of Infowars accused attendees of possessing the same thing — to eat.
Video posted online captured Jones shouting into a bullhorn outside the meeting place, claiming Bilderberg members “ship in roasted babies wrapped in gold foil for them to eat” — and making it clear he wasn’t kidding.
“Every week they catch them shipping little babies wrapped in gold foil for these guys to eat. They admit that’s where it goes to, I’m not making this up,” Jones said.
Watch below, transcript follows. (Content warning — contains strong language.)
“Alright this is just a person going to pick somebody up, they’re probably bringing him some child to rape or something in the trunk — no I’m not kidding, these people are sick. “Every week they catch them shipping little babies wrapped in gold foil for these guys to eat. They admit that’s where it goes to, I’m not making this up. “You think I’m talking about babies wrapped in gold foil for them to eat — I’m not, I’m not joking about that. “This officer’s laughing at me — $10,000 they try to ship in roasted babies wrapped in gold foil for them to eat, $10,000 right now. You will lose, you will lose the bet!”
The private, three-day meeting is taking place in Chantilly, Va., 25 miles outside the nation’s capital. It has brought together protesters and conspiracy theorists convinced the secretive group runs the world. Officially, Bilderberg is a forum for a “broad cross-section of leading citizens“ to discuss ”topics of current concern especially in the fields of foreign affairs and the international economy.”
The meeting concludes June 3.
Story continues
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A social media campaign designed to highlight the positives of Victoria's taxi industry has backfired, with people instead sharing tales of unskilled, racist, rude and abusive drivers.
The Victorian Taxi Association (VTA), which sent a call-out to the people of Melbourne to "tell your taxi story", denied the negative response to the campaign was an "epic fail".
Negative and sarcastic stories quickly took over the #yourtaxis and #taxiyourway hashtags as Twitter users flooded the official @yourtaxis account with complaints.
"Driver fell asleep on freeway and almost wiped out car in next lane because he'd pulled an all-nighter," wrote one user.
"It smelled like a wookiee's armpit. I was preached at about how Somali immigrants are destroying Australia for 25 minutes," said another.
Another wrote: "Driver said he didn't know where Flinders Street Station was and had me direct him there. Flinders. Street. Station."
Others highlighted tales of sexual harassment, or talked about being refused a short fare or having their belongings stolen by taxi drivers. Many said they now used ride-sharing service Uber instead.
Not everyone was critical of the taxis, with one person writing: "Going to buck the trend as far as @yourtaxis is concerned. Took 2 cabs whilst in Melbourne, friendly drivers and great service."
The campaign comes as the industry battles with rival Uber, and coincides with the launch of a new website and a competition to win free taxi rides for a year.
VTA chief executive David Samuel denied the negative reaction was a "social media fail of epic proportions".
"This was never about selling something, this is about starting a direct conversation with everyone who uses Victorian taxis. This is what we have achieved," he said in a statement.
"The response online over the past 24 hours isn't anything we didn't expect. We asked for feedback and we got it. The good and the bad and everything in between.
"It also demonstrates the number of people that rely on taxi services and we want to make sure our service continues to meet customers' expectations in a period of rapid change.
"We will respond to everything that comes our way on YourTaxis."
The @yourtaxis Twitter account has been busily responding to complaints, and told one user it did not see the campaign as a failure, but rather as an opportunity to begin a conversation with customers.
It is not the first time a social media campaign has gone awry. Last year a New York police department campaign to boost its image via social media instead produced critical tweets and a flood of pictures of apparent police brutality.
Qantas also misjudged its #QantasLuxury campaign, with one Twitter user labelling it "the Hindenburg of social media". | 1,265,993 |
Even a company with reknown designers and engineers, and an R&D budget in the Billions, is not immune to making a mistake of epic proportions:
(song by Jonathan Mann: I’m pressing the space bar)
Jonathan is no troll! He wrote a song about the iPhone 4 during the time of “Antennagate” that said the tech media was blowing it all out of proportion - because it was! It was so good Steve Jobs showed it before he got on stage.
The Outline The new MacBook keyboard is ruining my life It’s so bad
(for those who prefer a detailed article)
It might have been caught with a long-running TREG program.
Anyway, if people are writing articles and making videos for a keyboard fiasco (that is still under warranty), WayTools won’t be able to do damage control if the TextBlade doesn’t work perfectly. Hence they are working nonstop to get it right.
The premise (of TextBlade) checks out. The architecture checks out. They use thrust sensors instead of dome switches, and a very robust butterfly mechanism, was reengineered for greater longevity and resilience against contamination. It’s user serviceable. Every physical aspect was considered, planned, and revised. Even the magnetic force on the charge port was carefully balanced to prevent maghesion when working on a steel surface. And so on. I haven’t a clue about magnetism compared to WayTools.
The TextBlade has proven to be incredibly robust. Mine survived everything except the washing machine. When you get yours, be sure to double check your pockets being doing laundry.
But software issues are harder to catch compared to physical problems. Broken (drowned) keyboards can be sent back, and TREGgers can see and report on issues. Sometimes even field fix them.
Software is invisible, so the sleuthing skills are that much greater.
I am sure everyone’s patience will be rewarded.
Traditional keyboards are bulky. But maybe the crazy-thin MacBook keyboard isn’t the way to deal with the bulk. Maybe the iPad, with it’s blank slate with regard to keyboards (bring your own, or buy theirs, or do without) is Apple’s way of evaluating whether there is a better way forward. It must be so hard for them. On one hand delivering a “traditional” experience with their notebooks and first-party accessories. People expect to be fully productive on day 1 with a new Mac. They can’t just say, ‘oh hey, take a few weeks to get used to this.’ I mean, that’s how long it took for me to go 100% trackpad and ditch the mouse. But there are many who bought mice with their Mac portables. | 1,265,994 |
When Florida Gators head football coach Dan Mullen said his team had a no-guns policy, what he actually meant was the exact opposite.
A week after wide receiver Kadarius Toney was found with a loaded AR-15 rifle in the back seat of his car during a traffic stop, Mullen said the policy allows players to own guns as “we live in a country where that’s one of your rights.”
"A lot of people I know have guns in their house to protect their homes and their family,” Mullen said Thursday during media day for the Gators. “What we do... is really to educate them on weapons, on having guns. Why would you have it? What's the purpose of having it?”
Mullen added that the main concerns are whether gun owners are properly trained, qualified and have a license to own a weapon, as well as ensuring it is a legal gun.
“What we're not looking for, to me, is gun accidents or issues where a gun could maybe cause a bigger problem than if there wasn't a weapon involved."
While Mullen felt the need to clarify what the no-guns policy meant, several of his players thought the message was pretty simple and clear.
"No weapons allowed," receiver Josh Hammond said. "That's been our policy since coach Mullen got here."
However, Mullen, who was hired last November to turn around a struggling Gators’ offense, said that’s only the case in “certain situations.”
"It's a no-weapons policy in certain situations of how to be educated to not have (issues)," he said. "No weapons, that's easy to remember. If I write out all the different (scenarios) — no weapons in these situations or have a weapon for a hunting situation, if I'm doing this, I store it at this location, I keep it here, I have gun safety rules and knowledge — that's not a quick catch to them to register in their mind. Does that make sense?"
Toney, who was not cited for his AR-15 rifle because it was not concealed, nor did it violate the state’s open carry law, told Gainesville police he needed the weapon for protection from locals because "they be coming after us."
Police said the weapon is his.
The traffic incident comes after Toney, and several other football players avoided charges following an on-campus altercation involving some Gainesville residents in late May. Devante Zachery, a resident who was present during the altercation told police on player had an assault rifle, which turned out to be Toney’s Airsoft gun painted black to resemble a real rifle.
The players still face potential discipline from the university.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. | 1,265,995 |
The Coptic Church in Egypt has reportedly organized a conference entitled "The Volcano of Homosexuality" which will offer a variety of ways to "treat" homosexuality.
St. Mark's Orthodox Coptic Cathedral in Alexandria will set up the event to increase awareness about "treatments" for homosexuality and how best to ensure a "speedy recovery," reports The New Arab.
With such an ambiguous title a lot of people showing up are going to be disappointed https://t.co/cxndjcpUVB — Erik Skare (@ErikSkare) September 28, 2017
I've never seen this, "Volcano of Homosexuality" but if there is one it probably Fabulous https://t.co/8AuGdXzrGg — Jim Berman (@jmberman) September 28, 2017
A date for the conference has yet to be confirmed but early reports indicate that a number of workshops will be provided at the event by a "homosexuality healing specialist" who will provide instruction on gay conversion therapy.
The Coptic church has previously described same-sex relationships as "immoral" and a "threat" to family stability.
"Therefore this marriage is completely refused from the Christian faith," head of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Pope Tawadros II, said when asked about gay marriage, as cited by Step Feed.
"When God created man and woman and for them the first family was made by man and woman. [gay marriage] is not acceptable and it is considered as a sin. It's sin," he added.
Homosexuality is taboo in Egypt among the nation's Muslim majority Christians alike. The country has roughly 77 million Muslims and four million Christians, the vast majority of whom are Coptic.
Seven people were detained for flying the rainbow flag at a concert in Cairo on Monday.
"What happened at the concert cannot be accepted by society. Declaring yourself as a homosexual is not a human right," lawmaker and Egyptian Member of Parliament Shadia Thabit said, as cited by The New Arab.
"How can they openly announce their sins? Don't talk to me about human rights. They should go, get lost far away from us," she said.
Abbas Shouman of the Al-Azhar mosque in Cairo described the incident as an "act of moral terrorism," as cited by Egyptian Streets.
At a 2003 meeting of all Christian churches in Egypt, chaired by the former Pope of the Coptic Church, Shenouda III, leaders opposed attempts to legalize homosexual marriage, reports Egypt Independent.
Police in Egypt use decades-old laws to arrest members of the LGBT community including an anti-prostitution law established in 1950 and a 1961 law against "debauchery" which have been pretexts for raids on gay clubs and events in the country. | 1,265,996 |
Police in Stirling, Scotland, say beggars in city are pretending to be homeless
They then go on to use the money to buy alcohol and drugs, claims new report
Officers say they spotted some of those begging appeared to own £500 iPhones
Said: 'No person begging is homeless - they have homes provided by council'
Stirling had a £1.2m hostel for the homeless officially opened back in 2008
Police in Scotland claim beggars in a busy city centre are lying about being homeless in order to scrounge 'hundreds of pounds a week' from shoppers.
Officers began an investigation amid complaints about antisocial behaviour in Stirling city centre and claim they found some of the 'beggars' own £500 iPhones.
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The number of people begging in the city centre increased during the run-up to Christmas with people asking shoppers for money in the main shopping areas of Murray Place, Port Street and Upper Craigs.
Police officers began an investigation amid complaints about antisocial behaviour in Stirling city centre and claim they found some of the 'beggars' own £500 iPhones (file image)
A police report, compiled by one of the area's community officers, was presented to members of the local community council and said: 'We continue to have persons begging and appearing to be homeless.
'I can confirm that no person begging in the city is homeless. They have a home provided to them by the council.
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'The persons who are begging are, in fact, making hundreds of pounds a week and are spending this on drugs and alcohol. Some even have £500 iPhones.
'It continues to be our intention to clamp down robustly on these individuals every day we are on duty.'
Police in Stirling, Scotland (pictured) say beggars in city are pretending to be homeless
It says also: 'Due to our persistence, we have made great inroads into 'cleaning up' Stirling city centre in relation to persons sleeping rough, drinking alcohol, causing a general nuisance and disorder.
'Some of the main offenders are currently on bail [with a condition] not to enter Stirling City centre during retail hours and some are banned from entering the city centre at any time.'
According to a report on the community council meeting in a local paper [The Stirling Observer] Inspector Donna Bryans, of Police Scotland, said she knew of the comments made in the report and was aware of one individual who, while begging, was pretending to be homeless but had been allocated a council flat.
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She added: 'The officers believe the comments made in the report are right. They are in the city centre all the time and were working there during the entire month of December. They had a lot of interactions during that month.' | 1,265,997 |
Major Victory for the Ruling Party
As giant typhoon 21 battered Tokyo on Sunday, October 22, the 48th Diet lower house elections were held, delivering a decisive victory to the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Komeito.
The coalition won more than the two-thirds majority, required for ultimately proposing constitutional reform in the Diet, securing 313 out of 465 seats.
LDP leader Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who has been entrusted with running the government for nearly five years running, is set to be elected party leader for the third consecutive time in the fall of 2018. Abe will be appointed 98th prime minister at a special Diet session on November 1st, and the fourth Abe cabinet will then be underway.
The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan emerged as the leading opposition party.
The LDP independently secured the majority—a feat that Abe had initially believed would only be achieved in tandem with Komeito.
On October 22nd, Prime Minister Abe said, “I am aware that we still have a difficult road ahead of us, so I greet the election victory with humility.” In a commercial television broadcast on election day, LDP secretary general Toshihiro Nikai reiterated his support for Abe going into the next LDP party leader election.
The Komeito’s final tally fell short of the goal of securing more than the 35 seats they won in the previous lower house election, securing 29 seats this time.
Komeito supports the majority in major policies, such as dealing with the North Korean threat as well as countering Japan’s low birth rate through such measures as making childhood education free of charge are set to advance.
Meanwhile, Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike’s Party of Hope went into a slump, failing to maintain the 57 seats they had going into the election. While on an official trip to Paris, Koike told reporters on the 22nd that, “I have caused unpleasant feelings with my words and actions, and this has led to the disappointing results we see today. I cannot help but reflect that I may have brought this about through my own pride.”
The Constitutional Democratic Party, headed by Yukio Edano, launched just prior to the election announcement, gained a lot of ground in the vote tallies, thanks to proportional representation. It made a major leap in seats, more than doubling the 16 it had before the election was announced.
The finally voting tally was completed only on Monday night, October 23. Due to typhoon 21, ballot boxes could not be immediately collected from the outlying islands of Aichi, Ehime, Miyazaki, and other prefectures after the polls closed on the 22nd. It was also the first time that a lower house election was held since the voting age was lowered to 18.
(Click here to read the latest result in Japanese) | 1,265,998 |
Billions have gone missing, in one way or the other, in Afghanistan and Iraq—in overpriced private contracts, in missions started then abandoned, looking for W.M.D.s, frittered away on bribes or on whole delusional military campaigns. And sometimes bricks of shrink-wrapped hundred-dollar bills are just stolen from a plane. That, at any rate, is the current best guess as to what happened to $6.6 billion that went to Iraq in 2003 but that we just haven’t been able to find since. From a Los Angeles Times report:
For the first time, federal auditors are suggesting that some or all of the cash may have been stolen, not just mislaid in an accounting error. Stuart Bowen, special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction, an office created by Congress, said the missing $6.6 billion may be “the largest theft of funds in national history.”
It says a great deal abut the financial imprudence of this whole operation that, for years, auditors considered it plausible that the money might just be “mislaid” somewhere or the other, like a piece of paper on a very messy desk. This particular money came in on a few planes as part of a “cash airlift”; one of our lessons learned in Iraq, according to the L.A. Times, was that “one giant C-130 Hercules cargo plane could carry $2.4 billion.” (The paper measured the money another way: “enough to run the Los Angeles Unified School District” for a year.) After the planes landed in Baghdad, “millions of dollars were stuffed in gunnysacks and hauled on pickups to Iraqi agencies or contractors, officials have testified.”
How much effort, or lack of effort, would it take to steal billions of dollars in cash? To give a sense of the scale, the Lufthansa robbery, at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, in 1978, involved a van, several accomplices, about forty large parcels—and five million dollars in cash, a record-breaking heist but less than a thousandth of what looks to have been stolen in Iraq. Also: although we delivered the money, it was from an account of Iraqi funds accumulated during the years of sanctions. The Iraqi government would like us to pay it back.
The Baghdad airport job is not the only unresolved case from our war in Iraq, and money not the only thing lost; Time magazine reports that a grand jury is looking into the role of the C.I.A., and possible war crimes, in the death of a man photographed at Abu Ghraib, his body packed in ice.
Photograph of C-130 cargo plane by Master Sgt. Scott Wagers, U.S. Air Force, via Wikimedia Commons. | 1,265,999 |
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