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Every year, the the federal watchdogs at the Government Accountability Office attempts to audit the U.S. government’s consolidated financial statements. I say “attempts” because for the last couple years, GAO’s report has essentially said: Sorry, no can do. Just like last year, the GAO reports that it is unable to provide a judgment on the government’s 2012 consolidated financial statements “because of widespread material internal control weaknesses, significant uncertainties, and other limitations.” The major problems that prevented an effective audit last year continued in 2012. Those problems include “serious financement management problems at the Department of Defense” making the agency’s finances “unauditable,” the inability of the federal government to “adequately account for and reconcile intragovernmental activity and balances between federal agencies” and its “ineffective process for preparing the consolidated financial statements.” Still, the report does manage to a few opinions on the state of the U.S. government’s big-picture fiscal outlook. The GAO notes that its report is designed to help both policymakers and the public get a sense of both the trajectory of the fiscal situation and the urgency of any potential problems. On the question of trajectory, the report is quite clear: “The projections in this report indicate that current policy is not sustainable.” No surprise there: That’s the same word that the Congressional Budget Office uses to describe the country’s fiscal outlook. And the big problem, of course, is debt. Here’s the GAO’s 75 year outlook on our debt build up: Ouch, right? And, sadly, also not a surprise to those who've followed previous projections of debt-driven doom. But this is not just the same terrible trajectory we saw last year. It's worse. As the report also notes, in last year’s report, public debt was only expected to equal 287 percent of the economy by 2086. This year, they’re projecting that without changes it will rise to 388 percent of the economy. As for the urgency of bending the debt curve, the GAO makes it pretty clear that sooner is better. The longer the delay, the bigger the surpluses necessary to stabilize — not eliminate, but stabilize — the nation’s debt. A fiscal reform starting next year would need to produce an immediate primary surplus equal to 2.7 percent of GDP, and keep it there for the foreseeable future. A budgetary overhaul that doesn’t kick in for a decade would need to generate a 3.2 percent surplus. And that’s if you’re looking on the bright side. The report further warns that its estimates probably understate the cost of delay “because they assume interest rates will not rise as the debt-to-GDP ratio grows.” That’s the real worry, and where the GAO’s fiscal prognostications get seriously grim. If interest rates suddenly go up, the report says, that may result in a higher debt ratio, “potentially leading to the point where there may be no feasible level of taxes and spending that would reduce the debt-to-GDP ratio to its 2012 level.” That's a problem much worse than books too messy to audit.
When: 4:25 p.m. ET, Sunday Where: Ford Field, Detroit TV: Fox The most recent time the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings played, Calvin Johnson was on the bench, Teddy Bridgewater had one of the worst games of his rookie season, and the Lions' defense continued to be dominant. Now Johnson is back, Bridgewater is improved, and the Lions defense has remained one of the best in the NFL. So what happens Sunday in Detroit's regular-season home finale? Lions NFL Nation reporter Michael Rothstein and Vikings NFL Nation reporter Ben Goessling break down what you might see. NFL Nation: Week 15 Previews Our NFL Nation reporters break down the Week 15 schedule: • Arizona at St. Louis • Cincinnati at Cleveland • Washington at N.Y. Giants • Miami at New England • Oakland at Kansas City • Houston at Indianapolis • Jacksonville at Baltimore • Tampa Bay at Carolina • Pittsburgh at Atlanta • Green Bay at Buffalo • Denver at San Diego • N.Y. Jets at Tennessee • Minnesota at Detroit • San Francisco at Seattle • Dallas at Philadelphia • New Orleans at Chicago Rothstein: The Lions saw possibly the worst of Bridgewater in Week 6. It seems he has grown since then. Where have the biggest changes come for him in the past two months? Goessling: You're right -- that game probably was Bridgewater at his worst, but he's really made a marked improvement since then, especially in the past few weeks. The biggest change I've seen is in his accuracy, particularly downfield. He was really struggling with his deep throws earlier this season -- we saw him overthrowing quite a few of them -- but the coaches worked with him to keep from dropping the ball during his delivery, which was causing him to throw higher-arcing passes that got away from his receivers. He's getting more confident in his progressions, and he's getting better at avoiding pressure -- in short, he just looks a lot less like a rookie. It's helped that Charles Johnson has emerged as a go-to option for him, whereas Cordarrelle Patterson has fallen short, but Bridgewater deserves plenty of credit for his progress. The Lions, though, will get a shot at him when the Vikings' offensive line is in a state of disrepair. They've cranked the pressure back up in the past couple weeks after Arizona and New England kept them from getting to the quarterback. Is there anything the Vikings can take from the Cardinals and Patriots, in terms of protecting Bridgewater against the Lions' pass rush? Rothstein: Not really. Detroit played one of the best at getting rid of the ball quickly in New England's Tom Brady, and Arizona was a strange game. But the Lions have been excelling at flustering quarterbacks the past two weeks, and considering how badly Ezekiel Ansah dominated Matt Kalil in Minneapolis, it might be another long day for Bridgewater. Teams have tried to take Detroit's pass rush and run defense away by using a lot of screens and quick passes to receivers on the outside, but the Lions have gotten good at adapting to that, too. Consider this: Ansah had nine quarterback hurries on Jay Cutler. Then the Lions hit Josh McCown 14 times Sunday. Bridgewater has more speed and agility than both of them, and if I were Norv Turner, I'd try rolling Bridgewater out and putting him on the run as much as possible to force Detroit to give chase. That might be the best strategy. Speaking of defense, Jim Caldwell praised Mike Zimmer's ability to disguise defenses -- something Detroit has done well this season. How do the Vikings end up doing that, and does Sharrif Floyd's injury change that? Goessling: The Vikings' ability to disguise defenses comes largely from their double-A gap blitz package, which we'll see plenty of Sunday. From that look in the Vikings' nickel defense, Zimmer can send both linebackers up the middle and drop one or both into coverage, but no matter what he does, offensive lines have to account for the possibility they'll see heavy pressure up the middle. The Vikings will occasionally blitz Harrison Smith off the edge in conjunction with a linebacker and will send slot cornerback Captain Munnerlyn after the quarterback, too. The fact that they've got two defensive ends who have linebacker experience and can drop into coverage (Everson Griffen and Brian Robison) just adds to their options. The Vikings would love to have Floyd healthy -- he's had a nice second season, particularly as a pass-rusher -- but they've got enough personnel flexibility to be unpredictable even if he doesn't play Sunday. None of this works, though, if the Vikings can't cover Johnson. They didn't see him in October, but it seems he's back to his old self now. If he's at split end, Xavier Rhodes will match up well with him, but if he's moving around, the Lions will get some mismatches. How do you expect they'll use him? Rothstein: They've moved him around a bunch this season, which had been offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi's plan all along. With the caveat that the Lions have played two poor defenses over the past two weeks, this is what Detroit had hoped its offense would look like when it brought in Lombardi, Golden Tate and Eric Ebron this offseason. Johnson makes everything else in the offense happen, though, because of the attention teams still pay to him. They'll continue to use him on intermediate and deep routes from varying areas of the field in order to find good pockets for him to run into. With Tate in the offense, they don't use him as often in catch-and-run situations on shorter routes, but he is still the team's main breakout threat. That he's had 12 or more air yards per target in four of the past five games is evidence of that. Going back to the offense, we discussed Bridgewater earlier, but even without Adrian Peterson, Minnesota has a decent-to-good rushing offense. What's been the key there, and who is the running back of the future for the Vikings? Goessling: Well, it hasn't been very good since Jerick McKinnon got hurt. Matt Asiata is only averaging 3.3 yards per carry this season, and he needed 33 carries to gain a total of 106 yards the past two weeks. He doesn't have the speed or the ability to make people miss once he gets through the line, and at this point, the Vikings' offensive line is in such a state of disrepair that I'm not sure the run game is going to rebound, short of Peterson walking through that door, so to speak. The Vikings' best two run-blocking linemen, Brandon Fusco and Phil Loadholt, are both out for the year, and though John Sullivan has had a good season, the Vikings just haven't been able to get the consistent push they need to run the ball without more people healthy. I don't see that changing Sunday against the Lions. This is obviously a game the Lions need in a heated NFC playoff race. Do you see this team being able to secure a playoff berth? How far can they go if they get in? Rothstein: Yes, I do. This team has a much different feel than last season's Lions team, which fell apart at the end of the season. Jim Caldwell has the attention and trust of his players, and it shows every week. They understand more than ever that they can't look too far ahead, and they haven't. But they also know they are in a good position right now. As far as how far they can go? It depends. This is a team that can probably beat most teams at Ford Field. On the road against a good team? I'm not convinced. If they ended up at Dallas or the NFC South winner, they can win. Otherwise, the road game is where Detroit's journey ends.
A lawyer who has worked with the anti-gay Alliance Defending Freedom has been found guilty of coercing a 14-year-old girl into making pornographic videos. Manchester, New Hampshire, lawyer Lisa Biron was arrested in 2012 after taking a teenage girl to Canada and filming her have sex with two adult men. On Friday, the jury deliberated for less than two hours before finding Biron guilty of eight federal indictments, including transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, possession of child pornography, and sexual exploitation of a child. Biron was remanded into custody last fall after breaking the conditions of her bail. According to the Concord Monitor: * Two witnesses testified to seeing Biron in possession of ecstasy, marijuana and cocaine. * Biron sent a threatening text message to the person who turned her in to the police, advising him he would have to watch his back “FOR EVER.” * Biron sent a text to a friend saying she might flee to Cuba because she had “nothing left.” * Biron has asked people to lie to law enforcement about her case. * Other juveniles have been subjected to Biron’s sexual activity and drug use. During the trial, jurors listened to a recording of a jailhouse phone call between Biron and her father, in which she claimed the girl “had a part in this.” Biron’s sentencing is scheduled for April, when prosecutors say they’ll ask for a nice long prison sentence. ADF is a legal foundation founded in 1994 by, among others, Focus on the Family’s James Dobson and American Family Association’s Donald Wildmon. The group files suits to oppose same-sex marriage, civil unions, and gay adoptions; and established the Day of Truth, a counterpoint to the LGBT-inclusive Day of Silence.
Why not a new Ferris Wheel at Navy Pier? So today, the front page of the Chicago Tribune has an article about Navy Pier’s upcoming $278 million redevelopment plan, you know, the one that’s been in talks for like 3 years now? I guess they finally agreed that phase 1 of the project will cost a cool $166 million and be done by 2015. Which is just an absurd amount of public money to spend on a sightseeing spot for out-of-towners. $278 million… it’s like you having tonight’s winning Powerball lottery ticket and spending the lump sum to plant trees at Navy Pier so more people from Iowa will come to take a couple pictures and buy some overpriced fast food. Ridiculous. Here’s where I normally would go off into a rant where the money should have been used to keep CPS schools from closing, but its a lost cause, they already spent a year drawing up pictures of the proposal: You know what they should have done as part of the redevelopment? A new Ferris Wheel. Like, a real Ferris Wheel. The kind they made back in the day. Everyone at the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago got to ride in a MASSIVE Ferris Wheel that used train cars for riders. It was twice as tall and could carry 10x as many people as the scrappy one currently sitting on Navy Pier. And now, riders are strapped into a couple of kiddy high-chairs with windows up to the ceiling so you can’t throw your gum or pennies or stuff out the window. It’s a terrible ride and I can’t believe people drive all the way from Iowa to go in it. Use some of that $200 million and build a real Ferris Wheel again. photo via: spudart.org Share this: Twitter Facebook Google LinkedIn
Share. We've got the scoop on DC's big summer crossover. We've got the scoop on DC's big summer crossover. DC has enjoyed a pretty strong track record with their event comics in the New 52 so far, focusing not on separate mini-series like Final Crisis or Blackest Night, but on inter-book crossovers like Throne of Atlantis and Rotworld. That new approach is informing what is already shaping up to be the biggest event storyline since the New 52 began: Trinity War. This six-issue saga will unfold in the pages of Justice League, Justice League of America, and Justice League Dark in June and July as it chronicles the re-emergence of the Trinity of Sin and the first big clash between these three teams. Justice League's Trinity War Expands There are still many questions leading up to Trinity War. What trinity is the title referring to exactly? How do characters like Shazam factor into the plot? How far back have writers Geoff Johns and Jeff Lemire been planning this crossover? We were able to chat with both writers recently to find out the answers to these questions and how the three titles are currently paving the way for this event. IGN Comics: You first began directly teasing Trinity War with the FCBD special last year, but as far as Pandora goes, she was there at the very beginning of the New 52. How long would you say you've been planning this story? Geoff Johns: There have been seeds of it since that far back. And as the New 52 grew out of that and evolved, the story kind of had elements that we were going to hit on, like obviously Pandora and the box and certain things that happen in this storyline. But Jeff and I cracked the story and what the story is really going to be about and how it was going to explore the teams and everything. It really takes a lot of threads that have been set up since Justice League #1 and even Flashpoint that pay off in Trinity War. IGN: Jeff, what point did you get drawn into this project? Was this something you started prepping for once you took over Justice League Dark last year? Jeff Lemire: No, not really. It happened fairly organically, because the story was in a different stage as far as what it was going to be. Once it became a Justice League-specific story I became involved, because obviously I'm writing one of the Justice League books. Once Geoff decided it would be a League-specific story, that's when it he kind of officially brought me into the process. He decided we were going to work together to break the story down. IGN: So far, all of the big event storylines in the New 52 have been crossovers rather than separate, individual mini-series. Why do you think that approach works best for Trinity War? Johns: Because it's about the Justice League. And we've never done this before. I can't remember the last time there was a Justice League event along the lines of a Green Lantern event or a Batman event or a Superman event. It really grew into a Justice League-specific story about the teams and the differences between the characters on the teams. Just because they're on one team doesn't mean they'll side with that team during this storyline. It's really an exploration of what the Justice Leagues are and what the differences are between the teams and what their purposes are going forward. “ Justice League titles should feel big and feel like they're the center of the DC Universe. Lemire: When Geoff and I started talking informally about me coming on Justice League Dark, one of the first things we talked about was why "Justice League" is in the title of that book. So I kind of actively tried to make that book a bigger part of the Justice League franchise and that family of books -- tying A.R.G.U.S. and Steve Trevor into it and everything. Once you had that, it became easier to make Dark become a part of this thing, because the connections were already there. We definitely talked even back then about trying to make the Justice League books feel like a family the way the Bat books feel like a family and the Green Lantern books do. Johns: Yeah, we spoke, and you came on pretty early with Justice League Dark. We talked for a while about A.R.G.U.S. and Steve Trevor and the connections they could have. They felt a little too separate for us, and they really are the same world. So we talked about bringing these books closer together and how the characters and storylines would come together, and Trinity War was an opportunity to focus on the Justice League. It was an opportunity to bring the books together rather than do a separate mini-series, and really make the books where the event is. Justice League titles should feel big and feel like they're the center of the DC Universe. That was our goal with the story. IGN: With these three Justice League teams, you've got different mandates, different members, and different personalities. How would you describe the dynamic as they all encounter each other for the first time? Johns: Speaking specifically to Justice League and Justice League of America, it's very antagonistic. The JLA members are undergoing training to take down the Justice League members if it ever comes to that. In Trinity War, it comes to that. Something happens where the JLA have to confront the Justice League, and things don't go down very well. And I think the Justice League look at the JLA and wonder about the government leading a team like this without any of their input or involvement. Lemire: And the Justice League Dark, by the nature of what they are, they don't see themselves as being part of this bigger world of superheroes. Even though they kind of are, they don't see themselves that way. There's something about the mystery of magic that the other teams aren't really comfortable with. They're kind of the unwanted step-brother of the Justice League family. They're the outsiders. Because of that, their role and how they become involved in the story makes them pretty interesting. They see Constantine as this force and this wild card they can't control. Johns: I feel like Constantine has this chip on his shoulder that he brings to the team and their viewpoint of the other Justice Leagues. Even with Zatanna, she was kind of forced out of Justice League Dark by Constantine. She comes into this story through Justice League. She's got a new uniform that reflects more of her superhero side. It's something Constantine acknowledges. Jeff wrote that scene, and I think it's a great little scene. But it definitely bothers him. They're doing the dirty work that the Justice League either don't know about or couldn't do. IGN: A lot of the speculation so far has involved what trinity the title is actually referring to. You've got the Trinity of Sin, the three different Justice Leagues, and this dynamic between Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. Can you talk a little about how these various trinities factor into the conflict? Johns: I think what trinity it's referring to is a bit of a mystery tied to the whole thing, and it'll definitely be explored within the book. Is it about the Trinity of Sin? The trinity of Leagues? Is it about Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman? What does "trinity" mean? What is it all about? That's something that the story explores. The cover is beautiful and really sells the action of the story, but at its heart it's a mystery. It's a mystery that's very character-driven. And that Trinity War and what that is is at the heart of the story. “ The Question almost embodies the entire approach to this storyline. He's a big mystery. IGN: As far as the Trinity of Sin goes, we've seen a lot of Phantom Stranger, obviously, and Pandora has popped up here and there since the beginning of the New 52. But The Question has only appeared a couple of times in the build-up so far. Is there any reason why he's been kept off the table more than the others, and that he's the only one of the three that won't have his own solo book by the time Trinity War begins? Lemire: I think what Geoff said about this story being more of a mystery at its heart than a blockbuster action story, that's reflected a lot in The Question. It's obviously a mystery in terms of who he is and how he's going to interact directly with the DC Universe, because we haven't seen him much. The Question really is at the heart of the mystery aspect of the book. Pandora has been there from the beginning, and Phantom Stranger has his book. This story is a great platform to introduce The Question in a really big way; I've always loved the character. To me, writing scenes with him has been the most fun so far. Johns: Yeah, The Question almost embodies the entire approach to this storyline. He's a big mystery. And you'll know who he is and what he's all about by the end of this story as well. IGN: Both Justice League and Justice League Dark kicked off new storylines this month. I'm sure you guys wanted to have fresh jumping-on points in advance of Trinity War, but are there any elements in these stories that are specifically building towards the event? Johns: Justice League #21 is the conclusion of the Shazam storyline that Gary and I have been doing for over a year. It really closes out this first chapter of Billy Batson as Shazam and everything with Black Adam, and it leads directly into Trinity War. Justice League #19, which is already out, and Ivan Reis and Joe Prado did a beautiful job on it, and Justice League #20 are basically the prologue to Trinity War. There are things happening here. Someone broke into the Batcave and stole the Kryptonite ring, and now Despero has it. Who did that, and why? What is the purpose behind that? The mystery of who's hacking into the Watchtower and all of that is paid off in Trinity War. So Justice League #19 and #20 and #21, the conclusion of Shazam, are all kind of setting the stage for where Justice League goes next. Lemire: In Dark, we saw Zatanna leave the team at the end of the previous arc. That obviously leads into Trinity War. You'll also see the Flash join the team in this current arc. This is sort of the first chance you'll get to see one of the main Justice League members interact with the Dark team. That interaction leads toward the bigger story coming up. IGN: When you have crossovers like this, part of the challenge is always in trying to maintain a consistent visual tone with the different artists. Can you talk about how the story is shaping up in that regard? Johns: We have some of the best artists in the business working on these books, so it's been great. We've got Ivan Reis and Joe Prado on Justice League #22 and #23. We've got Doug Mahnke, who's coming off of Green Lantern, doing JLA #6 and #7. And Mikel Janin, who's been doing great work on Dark and is doing those Dark issues. So we've got three of the best artists in the business on this storyline. They're all partners on this. You look at that cover by Ivan and Joe, and they deliver that scope and they bring the power and action of it. But they also bring emotion, and that's something I know Jeff and I look for. The action is awesome, and the mystery and intensity and reveals are great, but there's got to be emotion behind all of it. It's got to affect the characters in a real way. Obviously the artists on this are uber important, and we've got the best. “ The ending is going to change just about everything. Lemire: And also, I think having the three regular artists doing these three books helps keep each book's identity. Even though it's one story, each chapter keeps the identity of Justice League Dark in the Dark issues, and so on. Johns: Also, what really kicks off this story is an unexpected death and the circumstances surrounding it, and I don't think anyone's going to be to be expecting it. And it's not necessarily about the death, but the circumstances around it. When Part 1 comes out, I think it'll become very clear what kind of story this is. This is not just a "Let's put our heroes up against each other and have them fight like action figures." This is a mystery that's going to affect the teams from here on out. And the ending is going to change just about everything. Jesse is a writer for various IGN channels. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter, or Kicksplode on MyIGN.
Nokia will be rejoining the mobile business. Thanks to HMD for buying the brand from Microsoft. Now, it can work again on getting back its old crown. Well, it may be a challenge and it may not happen real soon but Nokia is determined to finally join the Android game. It’s something the Finnish company has been wanting to do but wasn’t able to because the Windows Phone platform and the Lumia series were a total failure. Before 2016 ended, we noted that HMD would be releasing four new Nokia Android phones for this year. Looks like the number is small as we’re now hearing it will release not four but 6 or 7 smartphones. This is according to a recent presentation by Avaxx. The Malaysian distributor showed a slide that says there there will be more phones. These units will launch from different price ranges–low, mid-range, and high-end. That is good news because it means Nokia wants to touch all the price points and not just one. Nokia is believed to be working closely with Google for a more “uncluttered” Android experience. So far, we only know of the Nokia D1C. There’s also the Nokia D1 and Nokia E1 which was recently spotted in the wild. We’re expecting more leaks and rumors will be revealed in the next few weeks and until an official announcement is made. VIA: NPU
The Trump administration wants to direct resources from the Justice Department's civil rights department to a project investigating affirmative action in college admissions. According to the New York Times, an internal directive involves "investigations and possible litigation related to intentional race-based discrimination in college and university admissions." The lawyers involved in the project will likely not be from the Educational Opportunities Section, but rather the civil rights division's front office, which is full of Trump's political appointees. Affirmative action policies benefit students who traditionally suffer from discrimination. Last year, the Supreme Court ruled in Fisher v. University of Texas that race-conscious admissions are constitutional. The move follows a series of civil rights hits by the administration. On Friday, President Trump spoke at a rally of law enforcement agents advocating roughness with suspects, though on Tuesday the White House denied that's what his statement meant. On Wednesday, Trump announced a ban against transgender people from serving in the military.
Five legends of the game will be inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame at a special ceremony to celebrate their lives and careers in the game in Rugby, England, on Friday 10 November. An Englishman, an American, a Canadian, a Frenchman and an Argentinian will be honoured at the ceremony, which will also be attended by a host of other rugby luminaries at the Hall of Fame’s state-of-the-art physical home in the town that gave the game its name. The full list of new inductees (with induction number and country) is: Felipe Contepomi (133, Argentina), Al Charron (134, Canada), Rob Andrew (135, England), Fabien Pelous (136, France) and Phaidra Knight (137, USA). Confirmation of the class of 2017, as chosen by the World Rugby Hall of Fame panel of experts, takes the grand total of inductees to 137 with each celebrated and profiled within a physical experience in the birthplace of the game that is fully interactive, immersive and delivered in multiple languages. 0:00 / 0:00 RWC 2019 trophy tour starts in Rugby This year’s induction ceremony coincides with the start of the Rugby World Cup 2019 trophy tour, which will kick off in Rugby town on 10 November and take the famous Webb Ellis Cup all over the globe before arriving in Japan in time for the game’s pinnacle tournament less than two years from now. World Rugby Chairman Bill Beaumont, who will be in attendance at the induction ceremony on 10 November, said: “The World Rugby Hall of Fame recognises those who have made an indelible mark on our sport through feats on the field of play, displays of great character or through their tireless and inspirational work in driving forward our great game. “The latest set of inductions includes some real legends, players who have helped to shape the image of rugby and inspire generations of fans. They all have contributed immensely to the enjoyment we have all felt watching top-level rugby over the decades. Each of these five inductees has made a positive impression on the sport, in their own countries and around the world, that will last the test of time. "While the Hall of Fame has been in existence for many years, it was just 12 months ago that we opened a permanent home for it in the town that gave our game its name, Rugby. The physical Hall of Fame is proving to be a wonderful focal point for the game and is attracting fans from all over the world to relive the great exploits of rugby's most prominent and talented individuals.” Profound influence on our sport World Rugby Hall of Famer and chairman of the Hall of Fame panel John Eales said: “I’m very proud to be the chair of the selection panel for the World Rugby Hall of Fame. This year’s nominations continue in the tradition of inducting players who have had a profound influence on our sport over a very long period of time. “Phaidra, Rob, Fabien, Felipe and Al have each been wonderful ambassadors for rugby in the way they conducted themselves on the field and have continued to do so in retirement. Our Hall of Fame is in great hands as long as we continue to have men and women of this calibre to induct.” For more on the World Rugby Hall of Fame, visit www.worldrugby.org/halloffame.
18.05.2016, 21:37 by Mare I got samples of Si7013. The Si7013 I2C Humidity and 2-Zone Temperature Sensor is a monolithic CMOS IC integrating humidity and temperature sensor elements, an analog-to-digital converter, signal processing, calibration data, and an I2C Interface. The patented use of industry-standard, low-K polymeric dielectrics for sensing humidity enables the construction of low-power, monolithic CMOS Sensor ICs with low drift and hysteresis, and excellent long term stability. The humidity and temperature sensors are factory-calibrated and the calibration data is stored in the on-chip non-volatile memory. This ensures that the sensors are fully interchangeable, with no recalibration or software changes required. An auxiliary sensor input with power management can be tied directly to an external thermistor network or other voltage-output sensor. On-board logic performs calibration/linearization of the external input using user-programmable coefficients. The least-significant bit of the Si7013’s I2C address is programmable, allowing two devices to share the same bus. The Si7013 is available in a 3×3 mm DFN package and is reflow solderable. The optional factory-installed cover offers a low profile, convenient means of protecting the sensor during assembly (e.g., reflow soldering) and throughout the life of the product, excluding liquids (hydrophobic/oleophobic) and particulates. The Si7013 offers an accurate, low-power, factory-calibrated digital solution ideal for measuring humidity, dew-point, and temperature, in applications ranging from HVAC/R and asset tracking to industrial and consumer platforms. I prepared prototyping board with STM32F0 and line RS485 driver: Next, I populated the PCB with the components: The sensor schematic is from Si7013 datasheet, typical application: The microcontroller pinout is: The microcontroller UART has hardware support for DE in RS-485 Half Duplex interface, which is nice feature for reliable RS485 operation. Finally, I prepared driver for Si7013. I put the code to GitHUB, because it will hopefully evolve to some usable final application. First “alpha” testing provide reading and writing of “user registers” for chip configuration and readout of the humidity, temperature and external thermistor voltage. si7013 driver: https://github.com/s54mtb/Si7013 And some preliminary testing:
Nothing is funny. Everyone is a victim deserving of special rights and treatment. Women need to not be treated like fragile damsels, because they need to be treated like fragile damsels instead. Progress is only allowable as long as affirmative action standards are met. Rape culture is real, and it is the Holocaust, even as sexual assault reaches all time low. Homosexuals need to check their privilege because trans people say so. The Holocaust will be real again, and will contain only cishet white males. The wage gap will be considered equal as soon as men make 10 cents to every dollar that a woman makes. We never recognize the idea that men can be raped and sexualized. We never recognize the idea that reverse racism, or racism towards white people, actually exists. We fully recognize that women have always had less rights, and had it harder than homosexuals. We fully recognize that demisexuals, dragonkin, and peoples headmates have it the worst of all. We no longer live by the sentiments of love and acceptance expressed by Martin Luther King Jr. Transethnicity will be the greatest struggle of all ever endured by mankind. Every woman receives their mandatory “male tears” mugs as soon as they exit the womb. Every man receives castration as soon as they exit the womb. Video games are understood to be the underlying reason why the Third Reich came to power. Video games are understood to be the reason why brothels exist all over the world. Video games are understood to be the reason behind everything bad ever, and statistics will showcase it to be true without ever being scrutinized as skewed and biased. Able-body people will never play roles of handicapped characters in TV or movies. Anita Sarkeesian is President of the United States forever. No one is Vice President because that is triggering. ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, and FOX have officially gone under and have effectively been replaced by subsidiaries of Gawker, Vox, and The Daily Dot. Only then will the world be made right. However, women in third world countries will still be stoned to death, and have acid splashed in their faces, Palestinians will still be displaced and have their land stripped from them by military force, Wall Street bankers will still own all of the wealth and all of the real power, and poverty stricken sweatshop workers will still be building iPhones and other neat first world gadgets. Those things haven’t changed, thankfully! tl;dr I enacted Godwin’s Law, and you didn’t even notice.
If you already have, and/or, have lots of followers, AND that you use those huge accounts on a daily basis, you already have the means to start making money starting today.The great thing that you need to be is to be creative with your posts to get the attention of your followers so that they will click on your post and investigate what you are offering. It is a pretty good chance that you already know how to do this too.You will need to have a Paypal account to actually see the money that you will be making. After getting your Paypal account, be sure to connect it to your Bank Account(s) so that you would be able to transfer money from your Paypal account. I highly recommend that you also ask Paypal to send you their debit card for you account. It comes in handy!There are many advertisers at IZEA that are very eager to have you create content for them to broadcast to a large audienc…
The past week has put on full display one of the big lies told by Democrats, Planned Parenthood and others who are defenders of abortion. They call themselves "pro-choice" and say they simply want the government to keep out of women's healthcare. While about half the country believes abortion should be legal in many cases, a huge majority of Americans agree that tax dollars shouldn't fund abortions. The underlying principle here is that abortion is an issue in which the moral faculties, and perhaps religious faith, are intensely engaged, and that no citizen should be forced to fund someone else's decision to kill her gestating baby. For Democrats, however, public funding of abortion is a non-negotiable pillar of their party. During budget fights in 2011, Democrats made it clear that the one thing they wouldn't bend on was subsidies for Planned Parenthood. But Democrats don't control government anymore. President Trump on Monday reinstated the Mexico City Policy, which bars foreign aid from funding abortionists. Specifically, U.S. subsidies for family planning organizations overseas. The policy says organizations who want this taxpayer money cannot abort babies or advocate abortion, as some do even in countries where it is illegal. In short, the Mexico City Policy tries to ensure that taxpayers aren't unwittingly paying to abort little Nigerian babies or to bankroll abortion lobbyists in the Philippines. President Obama in 2009 rescinded this policy, and Democrats and liberal journalists this week exploded with ire at Trump's reinstatement of the rule. But, sadly, the Mexico City Policy doesn't stop the abortion industry from going about its business or pushing its lobbying agenda. It just tells the abortion industry to do it without public money. Democrats also unanimously opposed a bill in Congress to stop taxpayer-funded abortions. The " No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2017," passed the House 238 to 183 Tuesday night, with only three Democratic votes. "No funds authorized or appropriated by federal law, and none of the funds in any trust fund to which funds are authorized or appropriated by federal law, shall be expended for any abortion," the bill reads. The bill also prohibits Washington, D.C., which the Constitution places under federal control, from using its citizens' tax dollars to abort babies. The bill doesn't outlaw or regulate abortion. It actually gets Uncle Sam out of women's uteri. It also gives people the choice to fund abortion or not as they wish. Defenders of abortion recently showed that they can put their own money where their mouth is. At Christmastime, Planned Parenthood announced that donations to the organization increased by 4,000 percent after Republicans won the election. This post-election surge suggests that federal funding of abortion and abortionists is also a way to help rich liberals skimp on their charitable giving. Of course, the abortion lobby has a grander cause than that. You can discern their aim from the recent lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union. The supposed champions of civil liberties sued in an effort to force Catholic Hospitals to abort babies. The abortion lobby doesn't want to be left alone at all. It wants the opposite. Planned Parenthood, the ACLU, NARAL and their congressional allies all want to rope the rest of us into their dirty work. What offends them isn't anyone telling them what to do. What offends them is that any woman should have her hands clean of abortion.
Is water a free and basic human right, or should all the water on the planet belong to major corporations and be treated as a product? Should the poor who cannot afford to pay these said corporations suffer from starvation due to their lack of financial wealth? According to the former CEO and now Chairman of the largest food product manufacturer in the world, corporations should own every drop of water on the planet — and you’re not getting any unless you pay up. The company notorious for sending out hordes of ‘internet warriors’ to defend the company and its actions online in comments and message boards (perhaps we’ll find some below) even takes a firm stance behind Monsanto’s GMOs and their ‘proven safety’. In fact, the former Nestle CEO actually says that his idea of water privatization is very similar to Monsanto’s GMOs. In a video interview, Nestle Chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe states that there has never been ‘one illness’ ever caused from the consumption of GMOs. Watch the video below for yourself: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4C29_U0Ksao The way in which this sociopath clearly has zero regard for the human race outside of his own wealth and the development of Nestle, who has been caught funding attacks against GMO labeling, can be witnessed when watching and listening to his talk on the issue. This is a company that actually goes into struggling rural areas and extracts the groundwater for their bottled water products, completely destroying the water supply of the area without any compensation. In fact, they actually make rural areas in the United States foot the bill. As reported on by Corporate Watch, Nestle and former CEO Peter Brabeck-Letmathe have a long history of disregarding public health and abusing the environment to take part in the profit of an astounding $35 billion in annual profit from water bottle sales alone. The report states: “Nestlé production of mineral water involves the abuse of vulnerable water resources. In the Serra da Mantiqueira region of Brazil, home to the “circuit of waters” park whose groundwater has a high mineral content and medicinal properties, over-pumping has resulted in depletion and long-term damage.” Nestle has also come under fire over the assertion that they are actually conducting business with massive slavery rings. Another Corporate Watch entry details: “In 2001, Nestlé faced criticism for buying cocoa from the Ivory Coast and Ghana, which may have been produced using child slaves.[58] According to an investigative report by the BBC, hundreds of thousands of children in Mali, Burkina Faso and Togo were being purchased from their destitute parents and shipped to the Ivory Coast, to be sold as slaves to cocoa farms.” So is water a human right, or should it be owned by big corporations? Well, if water is not here for all of us, then perhaps air should be owned by major corporations as well. And as for crops, Monsanto is already working hard to make sure their monopoly on our staple crops and beyond is well situated. It should really come as no surprise that this Nestle Chairman fights to keep Monsanto’s GMOs alive and well in the food supply, as his ideology lines right up with that of Monsanto. Via Natural Society
Dr. Ben Carson speaks to Fox News Conservative neurosurgeon Ben Carson said last week that supporters of equal marriage rights for LGBT people were “directly attacking the relationship between God and his people” and could endanger “everything else in the Bible.” Speaking to the anti-LGBT group Illinois Family Institute (IFI) on Friday, Carson explained that the Bible compares the relationship between Jesus Christ and his followers to a marriage. “Think about the implications of that,” he said. “When people come along and try to change the definition of marriage, they are directly attacking the relationship between God and his people.” “And that’s the reason it’s so important for them to change the definition, because if you can get rid of that, you can get rid of everything else in the Bible too,” Carson warned. Carson, who became a tea party hero after he lectured President Barack Obama about a flat tax during the National Prayer Breakfast earlier this year, said that he drew fire from liberals when he suggested to Fox News host Sean Hannity that same sex marriage was like pedophilia and bestiality. In his speech to IFI on Friday, Carson opined that the “secular progressive movement” was like a “new group of mathematicians who come along and say, ‘Two plus two is five.'” “The new ones say, ‘If it’s not five for you, you’re a mathophobe,'” he added. “We just have to continue to make it clear because they want to say that anybody who doesn’t believe what they believe is a hater.” “I was amused how they tried to paint me as a homophobe, they came out with all guns blasting. It was funny, it had the Chick-fil-A effect… They realized they were actually doing me a favor so they stopped.” Carson remarks begin at the 12:50 mark in the video below, uploaded to YouTube on Sept. 6, 2013.
A substantial portion of the research on human has explored the decisions leading up to a romantic union. For example, the pioneering work of David M. Buss has identified the attributes in prospective mates that are universally sought by men and women (Buss, 1989).* In my own work, I have explored differences in mate search prior to choosing a winning partner or rejecting unworthy candidates. (See my recent post on this project.) A fundamental evolutionary principle that runs through many of these studies is the recognition that men and women have evolved distinct costs and benefits associated with mating, yielding a wide range of distinct behaviors and preferences—for example, the greater choosiness of women when it comes to mate . Given these biological realities—which hold true across a great majority of species—when it comes to mate choice, women are in the driver’s seat. But does this dynamic change when it comes to the dissolution of a union? If women choose the winning suitor, do they also instigate proceedings more often, or do men serve as the greater catalysts of matrimonial ruptures? Take a moment to make your prediction. . . Here's the answer: A 2000 paper published in American Law and Economics Review by Margaret F. Brinig and Douglas W. Allen reported data (Table 1, p. 128) from several studies across the United States spanning more than 100 years (1867 to 1995) regarding the percentage of instances where the woman had filed for divorce. Based on the collected data, I calculated that women had initiated the divorce in 68.9% of all cases. In only one of 25 separate datasets were men the greater initiators of divorce. Does this surprise you? It is somewhat surprising that this sex effect appears impervious to the profound legal, economic, and social changes that women have experienced in American society within the time period covered by the study. But while Brinig and Allen offered several compelling economic arguments to explain this ubiquitous pattern, I think that women’s greater likelihood of seeking to end a union is a further testament that when it comes to mate choice—or, in this case, mate rejection—the ladies hold much of the power. That said, there remain many cultural and traditions that seek to mitigate, if not remove, much of women's mating autonomy, such as the practice of forced marriages, or Talaq as mandated by Sharia law. * I was honored that Dr. Buss was kind enough to write the foreword to my 2011 trade book The Consuming Instinct: What Juicy Burgers, Ferraris, Pornography, and Gift Giving Reveal About Human Nature. Please consider following me on Twitter (@GadSaad). Source for Image: http://bit.ly/175ixiQ
Considered one of the brightest prospects at Manchester City, Thierry Ambrose endured a setback in his development when, in 2015, he suffered a serious knee injury, severe enough that it kept him out for almost a year. The 19-year-old returned to action last November, playing 25 minutes against Everton U23s for City’s EDS. He quickly found form after that, an impressive feat after such a long injury, bagging 4 goals in his next 4 games in the Premier League 2, including strikes against Chelsea, Everton and Arsenal. Ambrose, who joined City at the age of 16, spoke at length to Foot Mercato about his injury, recovery and future hopes. Thierry spoke of a “complicated” period of his career, after injuring his knee, starting a comeback, then missing another three months after damaging his right knee. The first injury in particular frustrated the attacker because before it, he had been training with the first team often and sensing opportunity. Ambrose said, “The coach told me that I would have my chance with the first team if I continued.” For Ambrose, the injury came at the worst possible time, but having returned, his mental state is positive. “I am doing very well. I’m back on the pitch, I’m scoring goals. I’m happy.” The season still has a couple of months remaining and Ambrose has set some modest targets, but can’t help dreaming of a first team chance. He told Foot Mercato, “My goal is to play a series of matches until the end of the season and hopefully win a title with the U23s. And if there is an opportunity to return to the pros, especially because of the injury to Gabriel Jesus, then why not.” Ambrose knows his chances of first team shot in the final months of the season are slim and understands why. “I realise that this is not necessarily the best time for a youngster to be thrown into the team, especially a player coming back from injury. So I will finish the season with the U23s and we will see.” The French youth international was asked about Pep Guardiola and said he has had several conversations with the Manchester City boss since he arrived. “Pep knows me, he’s not afraid to trust young players and has already shown it. He told me, ‘Thierry, I know your qualities, I know you’ve had a long injury… take your time.’ It was great that he knew my history.” The 2016-17 season is approaching its final stage and soon it will be time for Ambrose and the club to decide ‘What next?’. At the age of 19, a loan move is obviously an option, but he explained that injuries have held back his development for two years. He offered insight into his future plans, saying, “If I finish the season well, in good physical condition and scoring goals, I have two options: either I plan to go on loan or stay at City if they have a bigger project for me. We plan to meet the club in the coming weeks to discuss this. Whatever happens to me, my goal is to launch my career.” It’s a big choice for a talented player who has been held back by injuries, but if he does decide to go out on loan, he has a destination in mind. “I think that a loan to France and Ligue 1 would be the most suitable for me. We will see if there’s room for a player like me in France. We have to see which clubs are interested and if that club would suit my profile. I’m not worried about that.” Next season promises to be a crucial one for young Thierry Ambrose, a year that could determine if his long-term future is at Manchester City or elsewhere.
We believe that early exposure to STEM through toys will inspire change. -------------------------------------------- Roominate is a different kind of toy. It is our first step in inspiring the next generation of female technology innovators. Roominate is a stackable, attachable & customizable miniature room with working circuits that you build yourself. Our Idea We are three women who majored in engineering, math, and science. Throughout our education and at work, we were all far outnumbered by men. We realized that our own experiences in childhood were integral in attracting us to math and science as adults. Alice grew up playing in a robotics lab and her father gave her a saw when she asked for a Barbie. grew up playing in a robotics lab and her father gave her a saw when she asked for a Barbie. Bettina built hundreds of Lego creations with her older brother and hence gave no thought to any gender differences in toys growing up. built hundreds of Lego creations with her older brother and hence gave no thought to any gender differences in toys growing up. Jennifer loved solving math riddles with her dad, and one of her earliest childhood memories is of her grandfather teaching her how to do long division in her head. Based on the belief that childhood exposure can facilitate excitement, familiarity, and confidence between young girls and STEM, we came together to design Roominate. Roominate is a kit of wooden building pieces and circuit components with which a child can use her creativity to design, build, wire, and decorate her own unique interactive room. AND, the rooms are attachable and stackable, enabling girls to build and design expandable structures. The pieces are made to be simple and intuitive so as to allow a girl to explore and discover on her own.
The squid giant synapse is a chemical synapse found in squid. It is the largest chemical junction in nature. Anatomy [ edit ] The squid giant synapse (Fig 1) was first recognized by John Zachary Young in 1939. It lies in the stellate ganglion on each side of the midline, at the posterior wall of the squid’s muscular mantle. Activation of this synapse triggers a synchronous contraction of the mantle musculature, causing the forceful ejection of a jet of water from the mantle. This water propulsion allows the squid to move rapidly through the water and even to jump through the surface of the water (breaking the air-water barrier) to escape predators. The signal to the mantle is transmitted via a chain consisting of three giant neurons organized in sequence. The first is located in the ventral magnocellular lobe, central to the eyes. It serves as a central integrating manifold that receives all sensory systems and consists of two symmetrical neurons (I). They, in turn, contact secondary neurons (one in each side) in the dorsal magnocellular lobe and (II) and in turn contact the tertiary giant axons in the stellate ganglion (III, one in each side of the mantle). These latter are the giant axons that the work of Alan Hodgkin and Andrew Huxley made famous. Each secondary axon branches at the stellate ganglion and contacts all the tertiary axons; thus, information concerning relevant sensory input is relayed from the sense organs in the cephalic ganglion (the squid’s brain) to the contractile muscular mantle (which is activated directly by the tertiary giant axons). Fig 1. Upper left, side view of a squid. Upper right, the area inside the black square is enlarged in the diagram below, showing the giant neuronal system with the first (red) second (green) and third giant neuronal elements (brown). The arrows indicate the direction of transmission flow from the head ganglion towards the mantle. The light blue funnel is the site for water flow following rapid water expulsion when the mantle contracts (Modified from [ page needed ] Upper left, side view of a squid. Upper right, the area inside the black square is enlarged in the diagram below, showing the giant neuronal system with the first (red) second (green) and third giant neuronal elements (brown). The arrows indicate the direction of transmission flow from the head ganglion towards the mantle. The light blue funnel is the site for water flow following rapid water expulsion when the mantle contracts (Modified from Llinás 1999 ). Electrophysiology [ edit ] Many essential elements of how all chemical synapses function were first discovered by studying the squid giant synapse. Early electrophysiological studies demonstrated the chemical nature of transmission at this synapse by making simultaneous intracellular recording from the presynaptic and postsynaptic terminals in vitro (Bullock & Hagiwara 1957, Hagiwara & Tasaki 1958, Takeuchi & Takeuchi 1962). Classical experiments later on demonstrated that, in the absence of action potentials, transmission could occur (Bloedel et al. 1966, Katz & Miledi 1967, Kusano, Livengood & Werman 1967). The calcium hypothesis for synaptic transmission was directly demonstrated in this synapse by showing that at the equilibrium potential for calcium, no transmitter is released (Katz & Miledi 1967). Thus, calcium entry and not the change in the transmembrane electric field per se is responsible for transmitter release (Llinás et al. 1981,[not specific enough to verify] Augustine, Charlton & Smith 1985). This preparation continues to be the most useful for the study of the molecular and cell biological basis for transmitter release. Other important new mammalian preparations are now available for such studies such as the calyx of Held. Fig 2. Upper left image: Enlarged picture of the squid stellate ganglion showing the giant synapse. Intracellular dye injection was used to stain the presynaptic axon green and the postsynaptic axon red. The presynpatic fiber has seven branches, each for one giant tertiary axon. Only the last postsynaptic axon on the right is colored. Lower left image: A) Simultaneous intracellular recording from the presynaptic fiber (pre) and the postsynaptic axon (post). The synaptic action potential releases a transmitter substance (glutamate) that acts on the postsynaptic receptors and activates the postsynaptic action potential. B & C) Synaptic transmission can be evoked with either a square voltage pulse (B) or an artificial action potential wave form (C) these are delivered to a command amplifier as shown in D. D. Diagram of a command amplifier (CO) and current injection amplifier (I) with a feedback control via presynaptic voltage (Pre V). The response to these stimuli is recorded as a current (Im) and displayed in green in E and F. E) Synaptic transmission and calcium current (ICa, green) evoked by a square voltage pulse (Pre). F) Calcium current (green) and postsynaptic potential (Post) evoked by an artificial action potential (Pre). Note that in F the calcium curren starts during the down swing of the presynaptic action potential (modified from [ page needed ] Middle Image: Left, Voltage clamp records illustrating the relation between transmembrane voltage in mV (square wave at the bottom of each record) Calcium current amplitude in nA (middle record) and postsynaptic potential in mV. Time mark one ms. The voltage steps are generates from a holding potential of -170mV. (Llinás et al. 1981).[ not specific enough to verify ] Right image: Relation between voltage and current for the “on” (red plot) and “tail” (white plot) calcium current. Voltage in mV current in nA (modified from [ page needed ] Upper left image: Enlarged picture of the squid stellate ganglion showing the giant synapse. Intracellular dye injection was used to stain the presynaptic axon green and the postsynaptic axon red. The presynpatic fiber has seven branches, each for one giant tertiary axon. Only the last postsynaptic axon on the right is colored. Lower left image: A) Simultaneous intracellular recording from the presynaptic fiber (pre) and the postsynaptic axon (post). The synaptic action potential releases a transmitter substance (glutamate) that acts on the postsynaptic receptors and activates the postsynaptic action potential. B & C) Synaptic transmission can be evoked with either a square voltage pulse (B) or an artificial action potential wave form (C) these are delivered to a command amplifier as shown in D. D. Diagram of a command amplifier (CO) and current injection amplifier (I) with a feedback control via presynaptic voltage (Pre V). The response to these stimuli is recorded as a current (Im) and displayed in green in E and F. E) Synaptic transmission and calcium current (ICa, green) evoked by a square voltage pulse (Pre). F) Calcium current (green) and postsynaptic potential (Post) evoked by an artificial action potential (Pre). Note that in F the calcium curren starts during the down swing of the presynaptic action potential (modified from Llinás 1999 ).Middle Image: Left, Voltage clamp records illustrating the relation between transmembrane voltage in mV (square wave at the bottom of each record) Calcium current amplitude in nA (middle record) and postsynaptic potential in mV. Time mark one ms. The voltage steps are generates from a holding potential of -170mV. (Llinás et al. 1981).Right image: Relation between voltage and current for the “on” (red plot) and “tail” (white plot) calcium current. Voltage in mV current in nA (modified from Llinás 1999 ). See also [ edit ]
The Asian American Donor Program is holding a bone marrow drive in San Francisco tonight to encourage residents to become potential donors, with the added goal of saving the life of a 29-year-old Bay Area man. Tonight’s drive is the third in a series aimed at getting more donors to join the national registry. Medical patients who are not Caucasian are more likely to die of leukemia and other blood cancers because of a shortage of donors of other ethnicities, according to the Asian American Donor Program. For 29-year-old Ryan Manansala (photo above, center), tonight’s bone marrow drive could be life-saving. Manansala, who is Filipino, was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia on Jan. 31, 2012. He was unable to find a matching donor, and received a cord blood transplant in the summer of 2012, bone marrow drive organizers said. However, Manansala relapsed and urgently needs a marrow donor this time, according to the donor program. None of his immediate family members is a marrow match. The bone marrow drive will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. at the HackCancer symposium at 1650 Owens St. in San Francisco.
Last week, Gearbox gave G2A a bit of an ultimatum, it asked that the shady key marketplace commit to several changes in an effort to be a fairer place for both game developers and customers. If G2A did not respond, Gearbox would pull out of its Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition partnership. G2A chose to remain silent on the topic last week and as a result, Gearbox has begun its ‘extraction process’. However, it seems that G2A has finally got around to issuing its own statement on the matter. According to G2A, Gearbox’s demands were “based on both a lack of knowledge and a lack of desire to learn the other side of the story”. From there, the company went on to claim that people are out to get G2A and paint it as an “intermediary in selling illegally acquired keys”, something that G2A claims is a “depiction far removed from reality”. From there, in a statement given to Vice, G2A tried to tackle each of Gearbox’s demands. When it came to G2A Shield, the company claims no wrongdoing and won’t be making any changes to the service. When it came to Gearbox’s request for a free API for developers to access G2A’s database and flag fraudulent keys, G2A says that it already will take down stolen keys if the developer provides evidence. Alternatively, they can sign a contract with G2A via G2A Direct, which will give the developer access to the database. This essentially boils down to ‘you can have access, but only if you partner with us’. Gearbox also asked that a system be put in place for ‘non-certified’ key sellers trying to sell massive amounts of keys. With a limit on the number of sales that can be made in a day, developers have a better chance of discovering stolen keys before they are sold on to customers. G2A’s answer isn’t posted in full but we are told that it boils down to ‘no, unless you sign a contract’. Finally, Gearbox also requested that G2A ‘restructure its payment system’ in order to let users know that they could potentially be buying a fraudulent key. Gearbox also requested that there be no more hidden fees or obfuscated charges, which derives from complaints that G2A’s checkout system has unwittingly signed many customers up to a monthly G2A Shield subscription. G2A claims that “all fees and rates are clearly labeled”, essentially shrugging that criticism off entirely. So there you have it. G2A won’t be making any changes because G2A doesn’t think it’s doing anything wrong. If a developer wants access to stop sellers from swiftly flipping stolen keys, then it will need to become a G2A partner. KitGuru Says: The problem for many developers here is that by the time it obtains all of the evidence G2A needs to stop key sales, many of those keys will have already been sold. It takes minutes for a key to sell on G2A, whereas investigating, gathering evidence and waiting for responses can take hours if not days. Bullying developers into partnering up for protection isn’t really a satisfying solution for anyone.
German power provider RWE says it's changing how it does business to respond to sector transformations. Photo by Reinhard Tiburzy/Shutterstock ESSEN, Germany, Aug. 11 (UPI) -- German energy company RWE announced it was reconfiguring how it does business to work through what it said was a "massive" energy market transformation. The company announced board directors approved a plan to simplify how it operates in the German market to move in reaction to industry trends. "The massive transformation of the energy market in recent years, and in RWE's core markets in particular, have posed major challenges for RWE, and the company has to be able to adapt accordingly," the company said. The German government in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan started taking steps to phase out nuclear power. Wind power generated on land and offshore is now emerging as one of the main pillars of Germany's new energy mix. RWE, the country's largest utility, said it was restricting management along conventional, retail, grid and renewable operations while at the same time eliminating redundancies on board committees and reigning in its subsidiaries. Peter Terium, the company's chief executive officer, said the changes would make RWE fit better in what he said was a new energy world. "The new RWE will be faster and more flexible -- as the far-reaching changes on the energy market demand," he said in a statement. "We are one RWE and we want to stay that way. But without change, we cannot make the group future-proof. Now is the time to pull even closer together."
Mongoose entered into the mountain bike world in 1985 with the Mongoose All-Terrain Bike, or “ATB”. Originally made with a chromoly frame and scratch resistant chrome finish, the bike featured a wide range 15-speed drivetrain with a 1:1 low range gear. The wheels were built using “Pro Class” lightweight rims, and the unique skinwall tires provide that “fat tire” comfort for the time.Paying homage to the original bike is this new limited edition Mongoose ATB. Pulling inspiration from the original ATB, we’ve included elements like a small diameter Chromoly frame with chrome finish skin wall tires, thumb shifters, and cantilever brakes. Foam grips, vintage style saddle, and a Bullmoose handlebar round out the cockpit. A few modern tweaks include 27.5+ tires, 24 speeds with index rear shifter, and modern cross country geometry make this a fun ride on and off road.While we aren’t ruling out doing another run, with only five bikes being made, one for Chris Akrigg and the remaining four for a select few this may be the most limited bike Mongoose has ever offered!Three of these bikes are being given away on Mongoose Bike’s Facebook page at the link below! Register for your chance to win today!
Astronomers believe they have discovered a dwarf planet beyond Pluto, 7 billion miles from Earth. The new discovery is already causing scientists to reconsider everything they know about our solar system. The planetary body was discovered in the outer regions of space, which scientists long believed was populated by nothing more than floating chunks of matter, until they discovered a dwarf planet in 2003. That dwarf planet, a term that is defined as a celestial body that is neither entirely a ‘planet’ or a satellite but orbits the sun, was dubbed Sedna in honor of the goddess who created the creatures of the Arctic sea in Inuit mythology. Planetary observers previously thought that Sedna was an anomaly. The newly found dwarf planet is currently named VP 113, but because of the object’s initials it is jokingly nicknamed “Biden” after the US vice president. Chad Trujillo, an astronomer at Gemini University in Hilo, Hawaii, and Scott Sheppard, an astronomer at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington DC, first reported the finding in Wednesday’s issue of Nature science journal. “It goes to show that there’s something we don’t know about our Solar System, and it’s something important,” Trujillo said. “We’re starting to get a taste of what’s out beyond what we consider the edge.” Using advanced technology to gaze 7.5 billion miles into space, the team first found the small dot years ago. They have observed and recorded its path since then and found that, despite being so far away from the sun, “Biden” still floats around the gravitational center of the solar system. In the future, after more researchers note the celestial body’s orbit, they will submit a new name for official consideration by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Astronomers use astronomical units (AU), one of which is equivalent to approximately 150 million kilometers, to measure distance in space. During Sedna’s orbit its distance from the sun ranges from 76 AU to 1,000 AU. Yet VP 113 never travels further away than 452 AU from Earth, a distinction that is still perplexing to much of the scientific community. At 280 miles across (and with a temperature of minus 430 Fahrenheit), VP 113 is approximately half the size of Sedna, and a fraction of the 7,900 mile diameter that makes Earth. “Finding Sedna so far away seemed odd and potentially a fluke,” Mike Brown, an astronomer at the California Institute of Technology, told the Associated Press. “But this one is beginning to make it look like that might be a typical place for objects to be. Not at all what I would have guessed.” Experts now suspect that there may be tens of thousands of similar objects, though they would not speculate if future discoveries will prove as large as Sedna or VP 113. Trujillo and Sheppard used a 520-megapixel Dark Energy camera located on a telescope at the renown Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. The discovery comes after a string of new findings which have illuminated what is known about outer space. In an unrelated announcement in Nature, Brazilian astronomers identified a pair of rings circling Chariklo, an asteroid that is also considered a minor planet. It was the first time gas rings, which astronomers speculated formed due to debris from a collision, were found outside of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. “What we are witnessing is perhaps the unveiling of an object that is in the middle of the same stage of development as the Earth and the moon 4.5 billion years ago, when there was a giant collision between Earth and another planet,” the University of Copenhagen's Uffe Graae Jorgensen said Wednesday in a news release, as quoted by CBC. Last month NASA announced it had found 715 new planets outside the solar system, nearly doubling the previous total known planets in the galaxy.
Author: Patrick Jory, University of Queensland In April Thailand’s military dictatorship lifted the martial law imposed on the country since the coup against the democratically-elected government of Yingluck Shinawatra in May 2014. It was a characteristically contemptuous and deceitful move apparently designed to reassure investors and international tourists. In place of the democratically-elected government, the junta invoked Article 44 of the provisional constitution its lawyers had drafted following the coup. The sweeping powers of Article 44 confers General Prayut Chan-ocha and the National Council for Peace and Order with absolute power — even if the actual use of the powers allowed under the article is circumscribed by political realities. Under martial law the actions of the regime were at least subject to the military courts. Now there is no legal oversight whatsoever. Thailand has reverted to an absolutist state. Within weeks of receiving royal endorsement to use Article 44, the junta-appointed Constitutional Drafting Committee released the draft constitution, which the military regime requires to be in place before new elections can be held. As expected, the new constitution has been designed with the sole aim of weakening the role of elected politicians, political parties, and the National Assembly, in favour of unelected bureaucrats or kha ratchakan (servants of the king). Since political meetings giving the public the opportunity to discuss and debate the draft constitution are prohibited by the dictatorship the reaction has been muted. But even the military’s own allies, the conservative Democrat Party, have publically expressed reservations about the constitution, suggesting that its adoption may be problematic. Pre-empting opposition to the charter the military has warned that if a redrafting process is required Thailand’s return to ‘democratic’ rule will be delayed even further. The essence of the political conflict remains unchanged since it began in late 2005, when a movement backed by Thailand’s conservative elite ousted the elected government of the popular Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Today, a power bloc — consisting of the military, the bureaucracy, and Sino–Thai banking and industry, given political legitimacy and ideological unity by the monarchy — continues its struggle to preserve its political supremacy. This power bloc is threatened by the politicisation of Thailand’s rural and urban working classes — whose political potential Thaksin was the first to recognise and exploit. The power bloc wages this struggle in ideological terms in the name of ‘reform’. But what is endlessly debated in the pro-establishment media and by conservative intellectuals as a moral issue — how to solve the problem of corrupt politicians, vote-buying, ignorant voters — is in reality a political issue: how to accommodate the entry of millions of Thai citizens into Thailand’s political process. The draft constitution’s oft-stated desire to rid Thai politics of the former is really an attempt to block the latter. In the same way, the chronic hysteria surrounding the future of the monarchy can be understood as a gauge of the level of fear that the power bloc feels about its political future, especially with the imminent passing of King Bhumibol Adulyadej and uncertainty surrounding the succession. As many observers of Thailand’s politics have argued, the succession has been a factor in the conservative political backlash of the last decade. But the reversion to absolute rule under the current military regime could not have been possible without a culture of absolutism that was revived by the Thai state during the reign of King Bhumibol. The monarchy — since its return to political significance in the late 1950s, after it came close to abolition in the 1930s and 1940s — has kept alive the dream of absolute rule by the morally virtuous, a powerful Buddhist idea which dates from the days of the absolute monarchy. This culture of absolutism pervades the senior levels of the military, the bureaucracy, the judiciary, the Buddhist Sangha, and all levels of Thailand’s education system. In its schools and mass media Thailand’s democratic history has been largely erased or heavily censored. Democracy is a gift bestowed on subjects by the Thai kings, to be given or taken away when necessary. Royalist constitutional lawyer and chair of the Constitutional Drafting Committee, Bowornsak Uwanno, argues that Thailand differs from other countries in that sovereignty is shared between the people and the monarch, but — after a coup — sovereignty reverts back to the king. As a result, in Thailand the principle of citizenship is exceedingly weak. Normative models of good manners are based on the servile courtier. The Buddhist doctrine of kamma — which has arguably been revived under the present reign — subtly justifies and naturalises social inequality. Notions of the political and legal equality of Thai citizens are correspondingly undeveloped. As in all dictatorships, key political terms like ‘democracy’ are emptied of any meaning, but instead are mobilised purely for the political ends of the regime. Eight decades after the overthrow of the absolute monarchy, Thailand remains haunted by the ghost of absolutism. Dr Patrick Jory is a Senior Lecturer in Southeast Asian History at the School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry at the University of Queensland.
Let's quote from an article I stumbled upon after writing the reivew for The Wrestler : Cobain wrote it to be the "ultimate pop song," though its anti-materialistic, anti-establishment lyrical content was anything but. "It was such a cliched riff," Cobain told Rolling Stone in 1994. "It was so close to a Boston riff or 'Louie, Louie.' When I came up with the guitar part, Krist [Novoselic] looked at me and said, 'That is so ridiculous.'" The song became an uncontrollable cultural phenomenon anyway. It launched Nirvana's album Nevermind to the top of the charts, unseating Michael Jackson and moving so many copies the label couldn't keep up with demand. Every industry sought to capitalize off the grunge aesthetic. "Flannel shirts and torn jeans found their way onto Manhattan fashion runways," Jamie Allen wrote for Salon. "Movies like 'Wayne's World' mocked slackers while taking their money. Commercials used the word "dude" far too often." And major labels started investing in a lot of astronomically shitty "grunge" bands trying to duplicate Nirvana's irresistibly rebellious sound. To his eternal credit, Cobain saw the influence his music was having on mainstream culture and tried to stem the spread. He began refusing to play "Smells Like Teen Spirit" live, or "purposefully performing it sloppily, just to mess with the audiences he cynically saw as flocking to Nirvana shows just to hear that song while it was flavour of the month," Al Horner wrote for NME. Nirvana's next and final record, In Utero, was far more dissonant and inaccessible than its predecessor, a likely attempt to shake the pop audiences they'd gathered. As former NME writer Keith Cameron put it: "Kurt didn't want to sell records to cunts." But that was fine with the majors, because other bands would. After Cobain's death, major labels began desperately searching for the "next Nirvana." They mined the hell out of the Seattle scene looking for another hit band, signing underground acts left and right. Pearl Jam, which Cobain once described as "pioneering a corporate, alternative and cock-rock fusion," became the new grunge. "Knock-off bands," like Candlebox, Stone Temple Pilots and Silverchair, as Kyle Anderson described them in his book Accidental Revolution: The Story of Grunge, "stormed the barricades." The lameness multiplied as labels worked to promote scores of corporatized rock bands content with writing sterile pop-rock anthems, bands like Nickelback, Godsmack, Staind, Creed and Limp Bizkit, whose lead singer Fred Durst described Cobain as an "inspiration." "They sold millions," Anderson wrote. "But were as empty as the hairmetal bands their forefathers fought so hard to vanquish." Nirvana's surviving members are well aware of their sins. In an interview with the Guardian, Krist Novoselic claimed: "We had punk-rock values, but we signed those papers," referring to their band's major label deal. He nodded to alternative acts at the time that remained independent, Fugazi and Pavement, saying "I could never face them again." Dave Grohl, Nirvana's drummer, admitted the same in a previous interview hosted by Spinner. "We fucked up an awesome underground scene 20 years ago," he said, according to Ultimate Guitar. "Maybe we shouldn't fuck up the next one." Grohl placed his comments within a hopeful context. "20 years ago, everything was ruled by these major labels, but there was this really cool underground scene flourishing in its independence," he added. I would propose the moral is pretty clear. All the piece says, insistently, on a dozen voices plus three choruses, is that it's not ok to be successful. A hollow simulacra of success of the kind described by Ballas may perhaps be attempted, if the people involved are greedy and altogether morally unsound. Lamers and business majors do that sort of thing. Actually cool people are not supposed to be successful, period and full stop. Somehow the question as to why exactly is it that they shouldn't be truly successful, and especially so successful as to in fact take control of the "majors" rather than let them continue to exist is not posed. The controversy is painted as "be unsuccessful or else be successful in this stupid way". Failure is signalled as the correct solution of this nonsensical false dilemma, which just happens to be entirely designed to distract from the actual correct solution : to actually - ie not metaphorically - burn the majors, and everything else, to the ground. Now let's turn the clock forward a quarter century, and let's look at the exact same machinery packaging an entirely similar success : At the very moment when Donald Trump is making an unprecedented attack on our democracy, millions of people are registering to vote early and volunteer in this campaign. Hillary Rodham Clinton, in Coconut Creek, Florida, The Banana Republic. Donald Trump, domestic terrorist : The man who tried to kill democracy - and why we had it coming. Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com Donald Trump can't be just defeated. He must be humiliated. Donald Trump is running against democracy itself. Dana Millbank, Chicago Tribune The Party of Lincoln's nominee returned to the site of his greatest speech to attack the faith in democratic government that Lincoln so carefully fostered. Yoni Appelbaum, The Atlantic Donald Trump, the Anti-Democratic Candidate Benjamin Wallace-Wells, The New Yorker I will spare you the rest - pretty much every jew with a "mainstream" media account is out in force, and vituperations abound. Why ? Why exactly is Kurt Cobain not the anti-democratic musician, that must not just be defeated but humiliated for his sinful attempt to kill democracy ? Why isn't he a domestic terrorist ? Why is it that when it comes to Nirvana, a strict rejection of the embrace of the public is not merely expected, not merely required, but outright a religious obligation, surrounded by all the verbiage of sin and taboo ? Back in 1990 the imperative was still to stick it to the majority. Why ? What exactly changed in these intervening 25 years ? Clinton can explain this to you, if you haven't figured it out on your own. Back in 1990, the majority was still white. That's all it is. "Our" democracy very strictly looks like an unhappy white man who married a monkey and spawned a coupla whatever those are. Before, back when "our" democracy meant Reagan got elected, the job of everyone was to stick it to the democracy. Back then it was no good, you see. Back then it was too white. Now that it's brown enough, "our" democracy is a sort of chest of the covenant, come from heavens beyond the ocean to be forever right and forever perfect and never rightfully attacked. Why is Trump not an uncontrollable cultural phenomenon ? It tops the charts, doesn't it ? Oh, that's right - the man behind it lacks a "healthy" dose of self-deprecation. Healthy enough to kill him, ideally. White racism is real. It is another name for self hatred. ———
A northern Illinois man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison after burning a toddler by using her back to iron one of his work shirts. A northern Illinois man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison after burning a toddler by using her back to iron one of his work shirts. The Rockford Register Star reports that 43-year-old Elliott Moore pleaded guilty on Wednesday to aggravated battery to a child before being sentenced. Rockford police were sent to Rockford Memorial Hospital on Feb. 5, 2010 to take a report on the 18-month-old child, who had a large, open burn mark in the middle of her back. The child's mother says Moore lived with her and watched her children while she was at school. Moore admitted to detectives that he ironed one of his work shirts on the child's back because he was having difficulty ironing with the child sitting on his lap.
In large parts of the world, it is commonly said that the harassment and assault on women are accompanied by a verbal or conceptual debasing of anti-women offences. For example, in the '60s, it was commonplace throughout India to refer to criminal attacks as "eve teasing". But the biblical Eve was never "teased" by anyone. Yet, this patriarchal term continued for decades. Now the term Romeo has emerged. But Shakespeare never showed Romeo as a predator attacking Juliet in his play Romeo and Juliet. Why is it that in this country of many languages, literatures and cultures, these European terms are used with reference to assault on women? After all, police personnel handle FIRs, not Shakespeare. By now, the Bard of Avon must have turned in his grave many times over. And why does this foreign slant to describe crimes against women persist? Isn't the assault and denigration of women very much part of the Indian culture and tradition? Isn't the disrobing of Draupadi, as described in one of our most famous epics, a brazen attack on a woman - that too in a royal court? In one version of the Ramayana, didn't Lord Ram exile Sita on the basis of the suspicion of a washerman? Only few decades ago did the Supreme Court rule that a woman could be the guardian of her child. The laws on various feminist concerns are antiquated and partisan. Under various sections of Article 371, the customary laws practised by various tribal communities outweigh women's rights. In Nagaland, few months ago, owing to patriarchal resentment, three women were killed for daring to be members of the district councils. The CM who brought in 33 per cent reservations in the district councils had to resign because as he put it the "Centre" did not like what he had done. Such examples are rife. These attitudes thrive. Matrimonial advertisements, for example, often state that the sought after bride must be "homely". This term in the West is the opposite of terms like "beautiful" and "fair", which are also the staple of those searching for potential brides. In the West "homely" means not physically attractive. But the Indian use is telling. The potential wife must be largely at home. There are differences because of religion, sect, class, caste, region education, et al. But the widespread prevalence of the dowry system has not diminished. Most parents welcome a male child. The female child is not considered precious owing to reasons like the potential costs of marriage. The increase in the number of women CEOs is heartening, but they remain a fraction of the managerial elite. Despite the continued endeavours of feminist groups, the "feminising" of texts by educationists, strict laws on the premature abortion of female foetuses, and so on are yet highly inadequate. Yet, risqué to political jokes are widespread. One of the less vulgar ones is about a man sitting on a women's seat in a DTC bus. When the conductor asks him to get up, he retorts that even then PM Morarji Desai had occupied a woman's seat, the reference being to Desai replacing Indira Gandhi as PM. The deeper meaning: women prime ministers don't deserve their seats. Politicians are sometimes worse. During the furore in the Shah Bano case, Muslim clerics vociferously opposed the ruling of the Supreme Court on the right of Muslim divorcees to have a right to maintenance. When women MPs met PM Rajiv Gandhi on the issue, he retorted that women's equality was a "western concept". In the next meeting of the Lok Sabha, CPI(M) MP Saifuddin Choudhury pointed out that the PM himself had a "western wife." Now Muslim clerics are demanding that "triple talaq" should be retained as it is part of their religious heritage and law. But many Muslim countries do not have such a law. Our neighbour Pakistan does not have any such law. This law is grossly anti-women and unequal. But religious arguments are often used to subordinate women. The most important point is that under the Constitution there is equality of rights for women, and infirmities or deviations are supposed to be removed or corrected by gender just civil codes. Patriarchal mindsets cannot be allowed to prevail. One last, but distressing example: the Women's Reservation Bill. In a stridently brazen assault, women who had demanded 33 per cent reservation met with abuse in the Rajya Sabha from male patriarchs. The redoubtable Geeta Mukherjee and other women MPs were insulted by socialist MP Sharad Yadav as being "par kati" - a reference to pigeons whose wings are clipped so they can't fly. Shamefully, the Speaker did not marshal Sharad Yadav out of the House. This proposed measure is not even discussed since then in the House. Men, after all, are better MPs, as most male MPs will testify. Tearing up parliamentary papers, storming the well of the House, speaking longer than the allotted time, irrelevant if not irreverent suggestions, quips, et al are their characteristics. You can see such antics in the controversial discussions. Wouldn't women members, in adequate numbers, add to the quality of discussions? Many such instances highlight the real situation of women, even those who are significantly politically empowered. Look at any Council of Ministers, say in the last five regimes. How many women have had major ministerial positions compared to men? How many women have been MPs in the last five Lok Sabhas? Why five? Because there should have been improvements in later years. As the feminists had said in the '60s, "Men who oppress women themselves cannot be free."
According to a strict interpretation of Scripture, the Earth is approximately 6,000 years old (give or take a few years). Given what we know about our planet's geological past, it's only fitting that a chart be prepared to align this history with the actual dates involved. The result: A rapid-fire sequence of events that only a true Creationist could appreciate — or understand. Advertisement So, looking at the chart, it appears that humanity made its appearance just in time for the Obama administration (there's an irony in there I can't quite put my finger on...), and the dinosaurs went extinct just as the first transatlantic telephone call was made from New York to London. Looker yet even deeper into our epically long 6,000 year geologic history, the Triassic period coincided with the European Enlightenment, and the New World was discovered by Columbus sometime during the Devonian era (I wonder if he saw any tiktaaliks walking fishes — oh, wait, there weren't any humans yet...my head is starting to hurt). Lastly, and looking at the very dawn of time, Jesus lived during the Mesoproterozoic era, a mere 1,200 years before the end of the age that started it all, the Archean. Advertisement More seriously, it's charts like these that show us how ridiculous — and perilous — it is to ignore the findings of science. If you're going to make extraordinary claims drawn from a literal interpretation of Scripture, you're also going to have to reconcile it against centuries of scientific due diligence. Click here to see the full chart. H/t Mindat.org via Science-Based Life.
Take a second and imagine what your ideal presidential candidate stands for. Think bigger picture. Does logic win over partisanship? Are they in the pocket of any interest groups? Do they have a strong sense of morality? Is it Kanye West? Unless you’re supporting Donald Trump, chances are you won’t find whatever it is you’re looking for in this year’s field of presidential candidates. But what if we could program the most desirable traits and create our perfect president? This whole exercise originally started with a Reddit comment, a questionable Ted Cruz campaign tactic, and of course, Senator Marco Rubio’s “glitch” during the New Hampshire GOP presidential debate. After a Redditor posted a photo of a check he had received in the mail made out to Ted Cruz’s campaign, another user commented that they’d rather vote for a robot president over any other candidate running for office. Clearly it was meant to be a joke — one person’s modern day, “modest proposal” to show their disgust with the 2016 election. But with the rise of “Robot Rubio” and Hillary Clinton’s android comparisons, suddenly the idea didn’t sound so farfetched. Why couldn’t a computer run for president by 2028? If we‘re to carry out this elaborate what-if scenario, the first step we need to confirm is whether our robotic candidate is actually eligible for office. (Imagine the field day Donald Trump could have with this.) The Constitution states, “no person except a natural born citizen shall be eligible to the office of President.” And since the idea of a robo-POTUS isn’t an entirely novel concept, Phillip Bump at the Washington Post has already carried out a portion of this thought experiment by defining what constitutional eligibility means for androids. Bump concluded: The Constitution does not stipulate that the president must be a human. It does, however, stipulate that no person except those that are natural-born citizens can be president, suggesting that one must at least be a person. But “person” and “human” are not necessarily the same. If you are a corporation, you are given personhood, which grants you rights. If you are a chimpanzee and you want your rights recognized, you need personhood — and a friendly judge. Ironically, it may be corporations that help smooth the social path toward personhood for chimps and robots and others. Natural born citizenship is a different hurdle that I won’t spend a lot of time with, mainly because it’s a ridiculously outdated concept that might cease to exist by the time we’re ready to campaign for our artificial friends. To borrow from Bump again: “If an android is considered to have personhood sufficient to vote and run for office, and if the interpretation of the “natural-born citizen” clause is meant simply as a native American, questions of age and residency — included in the Article II criteria — become somewhat less critical, particularly if you again look at purpose versus language.” So, we’ve managed to legally get our robot on the ballot, what would make them an effective leader? “I for one welcome our new computer overlords.” — Ken Jennings Our best example for why a computer presidency could work comes to us courtesy of IBM’s Watson — a supercomputer most famous for its widely televised takedown of past Jeopardy champions, Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter. Nowadays, Watson spends the bulk of its time diagnosing cancer, and not as a part of another marketing gimmick. In a little over three years, Watson’s successful diagnosis rate for lung cancer is around 90%, an incredibly significant figure when you consider that most doctors hover around 50%. IBM claims Watson has the potential to drastically reduce health care costs — Affordable Care Act Round II, anyone? It’s not just a medical miracle worker, Watson’s ability to store and analyze vast quantities of data make it invaluable to a variety of industry fields. There’s even the potential for Watson to learn from peer-reviewed knowledge, meaning “experience” could be simulated. Watson even has its own presidential campaign, another political statement born partially in jest, and certainly not affiliated with IBM in any way. From that fake campaign, a Transhumanist who was also running for president in 2016 noticed Watson’s bid and wanted to weigh in. Zoltan Istvan, the founder of the Transhumanist movement, believes that robots could provide the solution for today’s current hostile political climate. “Historically, one of the big problems with leaders is that they are selfish mammals,” Istvan said in an interview with Newsweek. “An artificial intelligence president could be truly altruistic. It wouldn’t be susceptible to lobbyists, special interest groups or personal desires.” “I think in 2020 you will see a field emerge with competing AI robots for president, who want to debate and discuss policy. It’s unlikely any of them will be sophisticated enough to take on the job.” Being a leader is clearly more than just being able to answer trivia questions and teach doctors, it’s about morality — a concept that may prove to be our biggest obstacle in electing an android. Thanks to the Matrix, Terminator, Ex Machina, and a whole host of other pop culture tropes — humanity is well aware of the potential disaster artificial intelligence brings, with scientists and tech industry leaders frequently weighing in on the issue. Elon Musk compared their destructive potential above that of nukes, while Stephen Hawking predicts it will signal the end of mankind. Which is why researchers are now attempting to teach robots empathy, or at least establish a protocol that mimics are own set of values. At Georgia Tech, AI academics teach computers how to read books, hoping that our stories can assist them in learning ethical behavior. “For example, if a robot is tasked with picking up a prescription for a human as quickly as possible, the robot could a) rob the pharmacy, take the medicine, and run; b) interact politely with the pharmacists, or c) wait in line. Without value alignment and positive reinforcement, the robot would learn that robbing is the fastest and cheapest way to accomplish its task.” But even if we can’t teach our hypothetical robot empathy, we can still fuse different parts of our current democratic system together to create a new kind of election. Let’s assume our robot wins the election and needs to choose its Cabinet. It uses its ability to process data and finds two or three candidates for each department that are most qualified for the job, no political favors or nepotism here. We could continue to allow Senate the power to confirm, or have a separate election for America to decide. While we’re at it, why not give these department heads more power to override cyber-POTUS? This is all uncharted territory of course, but if America proves willing to try and elect a non-human — what’s stopping us from reforming other parts of our archaic political system? That isn’t to say that a robot president comes without its own flaws, far from it. One of the biggest dilemmas involves using logic as the sole means for acquiring a solution. In the Georgia Tech example above, a robot would choose to rob a store if it provided the quickest answer. It’s not too difficult to imagine this scenario in the realm of foreign policy — in which a robot could determine that the best way to handle North Korea would be to nuke it. (Cut to some of my fellow North Carolinians nodding in approval.) Then of course there’s the issue of cyber security, a growing problem that our past two administrations have had difficulty handling. Why even jeopardize the chance of our leader falling under control of another government? Not to mention the issues that could occur with day-to-day responsibilities and delegating — or even just the flaws that come with being a computer (glitches, programming errors, etc). Okay, maybe assigning a robot to the most powerful political position is far from a foolproof plan, but is it any worse than our current situation? With confidence in the government at an all-time low and distrust between the two leading presidential candidates hovering around 60%, electing a robot could provide us with the “change” we’ve clamored for, a real outsider that could deliver on some much needed transparency. We already enjoy accusing our politicians of being robots, why not vote for one?
William Peter Blatty, author and screenwriter of “The Exorcist,” based his book on a real-life exorcism conducted on a boy, known as Roland Doe, who lived in this house in Prince George’s County. It is where his reported possession began in 1949. That winter, according to the boy’s parents and several books on the case, Roland’s bed began to shake violently, furniture moved across the room, and scratching noises were heard in the walls. After having Roland evaluated at Georgetown University Hospital, his parents met with the Rev. Albert Hughes, a Roman Catholic priest at St. James Parish, near their Maryland home. Hughes said he believed the boy was possessed and sought permission from the archbishop of Washington to begin the rite of exorcism. William Peter Blatty, author and screenwriter of “The Exorcist,” based his book on a real-life exorcism conducted on a boy, known as Roland Doe, who lived in this house in Prince George’s County. It is where his reported possession began in 1949. That winter, according to the boy’s parents and several books on the case, Roland’s bed began to shake violently, furniture moved across the room, and scratching noises were heard in the walls. After having Roland evaluated at Georgetown University Hospital, his parents met with the Rev. Albert Hughes, a Roman Catholic priest at St. James Parish, near their Maryland home. Hughes said he believed the boy was possessed and sought permission from the archbishop of Washington to begin the rite of exorcism. Jim Lo Scalzo/European Pressphoto Agency The film still captivates 40 years after its debut, in part because it draws on the real-life story of a Prince George’s County boy. Its screenwriter and author, William Peter Blatty, died yesterday. Forty years after the movie’s debut, William Peter Blatty’s creation still captivates audiences, in part because it was based on a real-life story of a Prince George’s County boy. Forty years after the movie’s debut, William Peter Blatty’s creation still captivates audiences, in part because it was based on a real-life story of a Prince George’s County boy. The author of the thriller “The Exorcist” has new hope he has put the fear of God in Georgetown University. William Peter Blatty, a Georgetown graduate, submitted to the Vatican last fall a petition with some 2,000 signatures calling for the school to be stripped of the labels Catholic and Jesuit. The petition said neither the faculty nor the student body was sufficiently Catholic, and Blatty complained about “scandals,” including that the school had invited then-Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, a supporter of abortion rights, to speak. What the Vatican plans to do was not immediately clear from its response, but it appeared somewhat encouraging to Blatty. In a letter dated April 4, Archbishop Angelo Zani, secretary of the Vatican’s Congregation for Catholic Education, said the case could not be handled in the way Blatty had asked, because Blatty himself had not “suffered an objective change” at the hands of Georgetown. However, the letter, first reported by the National Catholic Register, also said this: “Your communications to this Dicastery in the matter of Georgetown University . . . constitute a well-founded complaint,” Zani wrote. “Our Congregation is taking the issue seriously, and is cooperating with the Society of Jesus in this regard.” A request for clarification from a Vatican spokesman was directed toward the Washington Archdiocese, which declined to comment. Georgetown spokeswoman Stacy Kerr said the school has never received anything from the Vatican or the archdiocese, to which Blatty had also complained. Georgetown officials have disputed Blatty’s assertion that the university has lost its Catholic identity. Chieko Noguchi, an archdiocese spokeswoman, declined to comment, saying Archbishop Donald Wuerl “has not been involved in the preparation of the petition nor the process undertaken to challenge the Catholic identity of Georgetown University.” The effort was brought by Blatty and a group connected with the Cardinal Newman Society. The campaign represents the frustration of some conservative Catholics who want to see Catholic institutions more orthodox and uniform. They rally around Ex Corde Ecclesiae, a 1990 document by Pope John Paul II that gives instructions to colleges and universities about how to keep their Catholic identities. Catholics have debated since 1990 what it means to satisfy Ex Corde and its guidelines on, for example, what percent of faculty members should be Catholic and what kind of credentials theologians at Catholic schools should have. “Pope John Paul II was trying to say, ‘Here are common characteristics of what would be good to have at a Catholic college or university.’ Some people take that document and turn it into a checklist,” said Michael Galligan-Stierle, president of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities. “It falls to the bishop at the end of the day to read that document” and consider all the specifics of a school, such as its setting and its work, he said. Asked how a Catholic school could satisfy Ex Corde if it hosts people and conversations supporting abortion rights, for example, Galligan-Stierle said: “It’s very important our colleges prepare students to engage culture in a substantive way. . . . That’s different than advancing a certain method.” In addition to writing the novel “The Exorcist,” Blatty produced and wrote the screenplay for the movie, which is one of the top-grossing R-rated films in history. It is about the demonic possession of a girl, a troubled Georgetown University priest who is assigned to her case and the Prospect Street NW home where the nightmare unfolds.
Flickr/andi.vs.zf Since we first began reporting on how IBM was quietly reducing its workforce, we've heard lots of stories from current and ex-IBMers. But this one, from a wife of a long-time IBM employee, seems particularly insightful ... and sad. We're not saying that IBM owes long-time workers something special. But after talking to current and ex-IBMers over the past few weeks, it seems clear that long-term employees, might be getting the short end of the stick, in the hopes they will quit. If they quit, IBM doesn't have to pay them a bundle in a layoff package. Many of them are quitting. Others feel stuck. A woman who we'll identify as the wife of an IBM employee in the New York area, shares the story of what it's been like for her and her husband. Her husband is a career IBMer since the 1970s, and loves the company, she said. But for the past few years, she feels like the company has been treating him like an indentured servant. A stacked-against review system. IBM employees are given a four-point rating. (1, 2+, 2, 3). These ratings determine bonuses and other stuff. Employees believe that management predetermines how many 1s they can give, and how many 3's to give, to help justify the number of layoffs they have been told to implement. All work, no vacay: 12-14 hour workdays are normal for the husband, as are weekend hours. And she says he's unable to use his vacation because they always call him back into work -- or they've loaded him up with so many projects his vacation doesn't get approved. But he also fears that "taking time off probably would make him a target as well," for a layoff. He took three days off for Memorial Day and "those were the first days completely work free he'd had in the past five months, including weekends," she says. No raises. This wife says that although her husband typically gets a 2 or better on his review, he hasn't gotten a raise in years because he's topped out on IBM's internal salary chart. He feels pressured to leave -- and would like to -- but he's in his early 60s and older workers have it especially rough in the tech industry. Until the economy heats up again, job offers just aren't flowing his way. The early retirement offer is also a source of frustration, many IBMers have told us. IBM has offered employees a cut in salary and pay if they announce retirement, but many long-term workers believe that IBM wouldn't hold up its end of the bargain. Are you a current IBM worker with some insight to share? We want to hear it. We are discreet. [email protected] or Julie188 on Twitter.
The goat mascot and Goat Major of the Royal Regiment of Wales, 1999. The Royal Regiment of Wales (24th/41st Foot) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. It was formed in 1969 by the amalgamation of the South Wales Borderers and the Welch Regiment. The 1st Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Wales (24th/41st Foot) had a short existence in military terms, just over 36 years. Within two months of amalgamation, the battalion was one of the first units to be deployed to Northern Ireland. History [ edit ] The regiment was formed in 1969 by the amalgamation of the South Wales Borderers and the Welch Regiment.[1] Prince Charles was appointed Colonel-in-Chief of the new regiment in early 1969, his first Army appointment. The amalgamation parade of the two regiments took place in Cardiff Castle in early 1969, in front of Prince Charles.[1] In August 1969 units of the 1st Battalion the Royal Regiment of Wales became the first British troops to be deployed in Belfast with A & B companies taking control of the Lower Falls Road on the night of 15 August. C company had been deployed some days earlier in Derry.[1] In late 1969 Prince Charles went to Caernarfon, North Wales, where the Queen created him Prince of Wales. Charles wore the uniform of Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Regiment of Wales for the ceremony.[2] From 1969 to 1973 the regiment was posted to Osnabrück in West Germany, returning to Northern Ireland on two occasions for short tours.[3] The battalion returned to Belfast in 1973 for two years as the resident unit then in 1975 it was posted for two years in West Berlin.[3] In 1977 the battalion were brought back to the United Kingdom and posted to Aldershot, also during this period they spent time in Belize and Hong Kong as well as on exercise in Germany and a further tour in Northern Ireland. The battalion re-enacted the defence of Rorke's Drift as part of the centenary events at the Cardiff Castle Tattoo in 1979.[1] Towards the end of 1979, 25 soldiers were to play a significant role during Operation Agila, which monitored the fragile ceasefire in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) prior to and during the first all-party elections.[1] In 1982 the regiment was posted to Lemgo in West Germany to begin a six-year tour of duty as a Mechanised Infantry Battalion.[3] Northern Ireland continued to dominate life in the battalion’s history and during this period. Of particular note was its deployment to Belfast for an emergency tour in May 1981 during which the regiment formed the spearhead for the funeral of hunger-striker Bobby Sands. There were further operational tours in the province of Northern Ireland during 1983-84 and 1986-87.[3] In 1988 the regiment returned to the United Kingdom to Warminster in Wiltshire as the School of Infantry's Demonstration Battalion and in 1990 the regiment arrived in Hong Kong where it was deployed to the Sino-Hong Kong Border and also carried out anti-smuggling operations with the police.[3] In 1992 the regiment returned to Britain to be stationed at Clive Barracks in Shropshire and in 1994 the regiment changed roles and began an intense period of Northern Ireland training prior to its deployment to Shackleton Barracks in County Londonderry as a Resident Battalion.[3] The regiment moved to Cavalry Barracks, Hounslow in London in 1996 and then moved to Paderborn (Germany) to take up an Armoured Infantry role, equipped with Warrior armoured fighting vehicles, in 1st (UK) Armoured Division, part of NATO's Allied Rapid Reaction Corps in 1998.[3] The regiment deployed operationally to Bosnia (Operation PALATINE) in 1999, C coy also deployed to Kosovo (Operation AGRICOLA) 1999 and 2000 and to Iraq (Operation Telic 3) in 2003. It moved to Tidworth in 2005 and units were deployed on Operation Telic 6 later that year.[3] On 1 March 2006 it was announced that, as part of the reorganisation of the infantry, the Royal Welch Fusiliers and the Royal Regiment of Wales (24th/41st Foot) would amalgamate to form the Royal Welsh. This occurred on 1 March 2006, St David's Day, the national day of Wales.[1] 1969–: Lt-Gen. HRH Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, KG, KT, GCB, AK, QSO, ADC Colonels of the regiment [ edit ] Colonels of the Regiment were as follows:[4] 11 June 1969 - Lieutenant-General Sir David Peel Yates KCB CVO DSO OBE 25 September 1977 - Major-General Lionel Alexander Digby Harrod OBE 1 January 1983 - Major-General Lennox Alexander Hawkins Napier CB OBE MC DL 1 October 1989 - Brigadier Kenneth John Davey CBE MC DL 1 October 1994 - Brigadier David de Gonville Bromhead CBE LVO 22 October 1999 - Major-General Christopher Haslett Elliott CVO CBE 1 November 2004 – 1 March 2006 - Brigadier Robert Hanbury Tenison Aitken 2006: Regiment amalgamated with The Royal Welch Fusiliers to form The Royal Welsh Regimental goat [ edit ] The Royal Regiment of Wales was one of two British regiments to have a goat as its mascot. The other one was the Royal Welch Fusiliers. The regiment's goats were always named Taffy plus a Roman numeral to show the succession, and are traditionally selected from the royal herd kept at Whipsnade Zoo, an outstation of the London Zoo. It's fitting that the two regiments with goat-mascots have now combined as one. The soldier in charge of the mascot is styled as the "Goat Major", who, unlike what the rank suggests, is a corporal.[5] References [ edit ]
Downloads / Operation Arrowhead / Modules / Over The Top Author: eaglke Author Website: Requirements: Arma 2 Version: Alpha 2 Signed: No Short description: World War One Total Converstion Arma 2Alpha 2NoWorld War One Total Converstion Date: 2014-05-02 12:53 Comments: Rating: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 2014-05-02 12:53 Over The top by eaglke byeaglke Description: Over The Top is a total conversion for Arma 2 CO, it turns Arma 2 from its modern setting to a world war one setting immersing players in the mud filled trench's of 1914 to 1918. With access to tanks, planes, armoured cars and many other objects players are sure to enjoy the mods first release. Features: - 3 functioning factions. - Guns and emplacements. - Tanks - Planes - Armoured cars - Cars and Trucks Installation: To install the Over The Top we always recommend use modfolders to seperate the custom content from the official game content to prevent problems. For different ways to set up your modfolders and use them please visit our When you are using the Steam version you can find a Steam mod installation and activation FAQ Included files: .pbo Known issues: This version have a lot of bug, and model can look unifished Notes: For bug reports and questions sign up on our forum here. http://www.dev.decades-of-development.com/ Credits & Thanks: - Topas for donations - Petrtlach for donations - Lodu for Infantry model donation - Scrubber, Mirek and all the other alpha testers who aided in helping us find bugs. Camel: Fokker dr1: Fokker VII: And a bonus for those who want add it to the alpha Pflaz d XII: Changelog: Alpha 2 New Models: - Early french troop added (1914 -15 style) - Italian Unit added - Carcano rifle - Chauchat lmg - 45mm hotckiss naval gun - Fiat rivelli HMG - 65 mm french moutain gun - 15cm Mod 1893 Howitzer - Mercedes GP 1914 race car - Renault Taxi - SE5a - Nieuport 11 (French and italian) - Stokes mortar Reworked Model - Lebel Rifle - Fokker E3 - Caudron G3 Map - Gallipoli (early WIP) - Trench map with new items (windmill, bunker, barbed wire... Forums Topic: - BI forums - Arma 2 You are using our website as a guest. Guest have the lowest downloadspeeds and will download from our public file servers. If you would like to know how you can download with higher speeds and have to wait less while downloading check out the Armaholic subscription system. When you have already subscribed and your account is not upgraded within 24 hours it means you probably forgot to include your username. If that is the case please contact us as soon as possible! What is two plus two? Type : Size : 651 MB Downloaded : 2318 times Report archive: Troubles downloading from Armaholic? Enable javascript to be able to download from Armaholic please! Over The Top is a total conversion for Arma 2 CO, it turns Arma 2 from its modern setting to a world war one setting immersing players in the mud filled trench's of 1914 to 1918. With access to tanks, planes, armoured cars and many other objects players are sure to enjoy the mods first release.- 3 functioning factions.- Guns and emplacements.- Tanks- Planes- Armoured cars- Cars and TrucksTo install the Over The Top we always recommend use modfolders to seperate the custom content from the official game content to prevent problems. For different ways to set up your modfolders and use them please visit our FAQ When you are using the Steam version you can find a Steam mod installation and activation FAQ here .pboThis version have a lot of bug, and model can look unifishedFor bug reports and questions sign up on our forum here.- Topas for donations- Petrtlach for donations- Lodu for Infantry model donation- Scrubber, Mirek and all the other alpha testers who aided in helping us find bugs.Camel: http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id=7285 Fokker dr1: http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id=17344 Fokker VII: http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id=9299 And a bonus for those who want add it to the alpha Pflaz d XII: http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id=8394 Alpha 2New Models:- Early french troop added (1914 -15 style)- Italian Unit added- Carcano rifle- Chauchat lmg- 45mm hotckiss naval gun- Fiat rivelli HMG- 65 mm french moutain gun- 15cm Mod 1893 Howitzer- Mercedes GP 1914 race car- Renault Taxi- SE5a- Nieuport 11 (French and italian)- Stokes mortarReworked Model- Lebel Rifle- Fokker E3- Caudron G3Map- Gallipoli (early WIP)- Trench map with new items (windmill, bunker, barbed wire...- Arma 2 Tags: World War One, Wwi
Planned Parenthood (PP) has always been a controversial organization and a main target of the pro-life movement. While PP maintains they are vital for women’s healthcare provision in this country, pro-life organizations regularly refute that assertion, saying that the country’s largest abortion provider doesn’t provide much care at all; it is certainly not a healthy place for a baby in the womb. The fight to publicly defund PP’s abortion mills rages on, but PP also engages in strong-arm tactics and harassment in efforts to shut down alternative forms of women’s and pregnancy healthcare. No one knows this better than Brandi Swindell, founder and director of the Stanton Healthcare Center in Boise, Idaho. Swindell is well known in the pro-life movement and established her non-profit, free pregnancy and healthcare center after an experience with a friend who had an abortion changed her heart forever. She saw the pain and emotional despair in the aftermath and knew there had to be a better way to help frightened women in desperate situations. After years of networking and fundraising, Swindell has been able to purchase outright a building to house Stanton services. Those building just so happen to be the direct neighbors of a Planned Parenthood. From the beginning the abortion provider was none too pleased to see the pregnancy center open right next door. They immediately began making petty complaints, even calling police when Swindell sent her assistant to take pictures of surrounding business’s banners as to make sure their own met the size requirements. Their complaint? The assistant stepped on their grass. The police took one look at the slight, meek 22-year-old employee and told the Stanton staff to have a nice day. Over the years Stanton’s PP neighbors have eased up on their complaints. Swindell is extremely careful to meet all of the requirements of the state and her business complex. When Stanton began a mobile healthcare clinic which sometimes parks in the commons area of the complex, it seemed a bridge too far. Last week Planned Parenthood slapped Stanton with a lawsuit alleging misuse and abuse of the common areas and claiming that the clinic invites people to use the common area to protest and cause nuisances. Swindell says her attorneys are currently reviewing the rules but are confident PP does not have appropriate grounds for the law suit. They’re saying that we’re inviting other groups to our property and they’re blaming us for any nuisances brought by groups. We have very strict policies of code of conduct. Our brand is getting bigger and bigger and women are responding. That, claims Swindell, is really what PP finds the most threatening. While PP simply hands out referrals for many vital healthcare services like mammograms and health screenings, the Stanton mobile clinic provides a full array of medical services, free of charge. The 35 ft. state-of-the-art RV includes an exam room, ultrasound equipment, baby supplies, maternity clothes, prenatal vitamins and a host of other medical necessitities for women who are left out of the healthcare system. For now the clinic remains local to the center, but once the proper provisions are in place (which Swindell says should be in a short time) the clinic plans to bring their services directly to the homeless community in Boise. They will provide feminine hygiene products and healthcare to homeless women and will continue their support for the refugee community in ID as well. They also aim to travel to high schools and underserved rural areas across the state. But that’s not all Stanton plans to do. After recently closing on their second building Swindell says they have plans to build a “mega-clinic” to provide the highest possible quality of life-affirming women’s healthcare. This – she maintains- is the real reason PP suddenly brought suit. The abortion giant feels threatened. Swindell finds it all very ironic. Planned Parenthood is always fighting for access issues; they’re always accusing the pro-life community of trying to block access and here they are trying to block access! For Stanton’s part, the healthcare provider claims the only complaints they have ever received from the community in their business complex have come from Planned Parenthood, and in fact they have been welcomed openly as their services have driven up the value of the property. They support us. They like us there because we bring some calmness and peace. When Planned Parenthood comes in property value goes down and most businesses don’t like it. We don’t like abortion clinics because they kill children but they’re not even wanted by the business community. Swindell maintains that Stanton’s only goal is to provide quality care for women in need. She wants Stanton to directly compete with PP as an alternative that affirms life instead of takes lives. Stanton’s only tactics are to be visible and accessible. Nothing more. “Whether people are pro-life or prochoice they need to know that Planned Parenthood thinks they have the authority to prevent us from helping women. They’re trying to prevent us from doing good. That’s disgusting.” Stanton has set up a GoFundMe page for those who might like to donate in support of their legal defense. There is also information about resources and support opportunities on their website.
Here’s a new diet you certainly don’t want to try at home. Extreme stress—like the kind that accompanies large third-degree burns—can make the body turn ordinary fat cells into super–calorie-burning brown fat, scientists report. Their observation is the first to confirm that the human body can convert white fat into “healthy” brown fat, and it may eventually lead to drugs that can accomplish the conversion. “The convincing thing in this study is that these people weren’t selected for any prior ability to produce these cells, and yet it seems they all showed this increase in brown fat,” says Sheila Collins, a biochemist at the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute in Orlando, Florida, who was not involved in the new work. Most fat in mammals is a type called white adipose (fat) tissue, yet small animals and newborn humans have large amounts of brown fat, which is loaded with energy-burning mitochondria that cause it to use more calories and produce more heat than white fat. Until recently, scientists believed that in people, this brown fat disappeared after infancy. But in 2009, researchers showed that adult humans also have brown fat at the base of their necks, raising the possibility that drugs could help people produce more of it to combat obesity, diabetes, and high cholesterol. Since then, studies in mice and isolated human cells have found that exposure to extreme cold may turn white fat cells into supercharged brown ones that can burn hundreds more calories a day than usual. But, until now, that conversion hadn’t been shown to take place inside the human body. After noticing that victims of severe, bodywide third-degree burns require more calories than normal to maintain their weight during recovery, researchers led by geriatrician Labros Sidossis at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston started studying their fat cells. They followed 48 child and adult burn patients, collecting fat samples within a few days of their arrival at the hospital and throughout the following weeks of treatment. Although the fat samples started out as normal white adipose tissue, some cells started resembling brown adipose tissue over the recovery period, the scientists report this week in Cell Metabolism. The cells showed increasing levels of energy-burning mitochondria and a protein present in brown fat called UCP1. “We think in these patients who have lost much of their skin, which normally helps keep us warm, white fat is turning into brown fat in an effort to increase the ability of the body to produce heat,” Sidossis speculates. He and his colleagues believe that high levels of adrenaline—the stress hormone responsible for the fight-or-flight response—released after burns initially spur the conversion. Animal studies have previously shown a link between adrenaline and brown fat. “This finding provides a proof of concept that it is possible to turn white fat into brown fat in humans,” Sidossis says. “The next step is to find the mechanism.” Although the white-fat-turned-brown-fat cells weren’t as efficient as regular brown fat, there were enough of them to burn an average of 263 extra calories each day in burn patients, without any change in exercise or diet. That amount is enough to make it relevant to disease treatment, Collins says. “263 calories a day is a candy bar,” she says. “If you do that math, over the course of a year, that adds up to significant weight loss.” Sidossis’s team is now conducting further experiments, exploring which molecular pathways are spurring the conversion and monitoring the burn patients to find out how long the brown fat cells remain active.
Michigan universities shouldn't be able to pick and choose which constitutional amendments apply to them - and that includes the right to bear arms, a state senator from Monroe County says. "Universities shouldn't be allowed to choose what parts of the constitution they think are good enough for them or not," said Sen. Randy Richardville, R-Monroe, whose district includes southern Washtenaw County. "It would be tantamount to saying illegal search and seizure can be allowed on a college campus." George Mason University student and former active duty Marine Andrew Dysart stands on the George Mason campus with an empty holster in Fairfax, Va. In the wake of the Virginia Tech shootings, Dysart is advocated the right of students with concealed handgun permits to carry guns on campus for protection. Photo: The Associated Press Richardville sponsored Senate Bill 747, which would give universities the discretion - but not force them - to allow individuals with permits to carry concealed guns in classrooms and dormitories. The Senate Judiciary Committee heard testimony on the bill earlier this month, but took no action and won't meet again until Jan 1. That legislation has prompted talk ofÂ revising Richardville's bill to eliminate all designated gun-free zones - including theaters, stadiums, hospitals, classrooms and dormitories, said State Sen. Wayne Kuipers, R-Holland, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. "The testimony was mixed and sparked a broad debate," Kuipers said. "There's discussion now on whether or not Michigan should eliminate all its gun-free zones." Currently, the local boards that govern Michigan's universities and community colleges can pass policies on whether guns are allowed - carried by a concealed weapon license holder or otherwise - on campus. State law bans the institutions from allowing guns in gun-free zones such as classrooms, dormitories and stadiums. SB 747 would remove classrooms and dormitories from that list. Michigan State University is the only of the state's 15 public universities to allow concealed pistol license holders to bring firearms on campus, except for the banned areas. Southwestern Michigan College is the only of 28 community colleges in that allows the same. Richardville said beyond the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the Michigan Constitution dictates individuals have "a right to keep and bear arms for the defense of himself and the state." Officials from Washtenaw Community College, the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University have condemned legislation that would allow concealed permit holders to carry anywhere on campus. To obtain a concealed weapons permit, a person must be a 21 years old, a U.S. citizen and a Michigan resident for at least six months, with some exceptions. Applicants must have a record clear of various crimes, a clean bill of mental health and complete a safety training course. "One of the things that came up were the shootings down in Virginia Tech," Richardville said. "The professor in that class was a CPL holder. His university did not allow him, because of a no-gun rule, to have his concealed with him. It was in his car, in the parking lot locked up. He was murdered and so were 31 other people." Lobbyists from the Michigan Community Colleges Association and the Presidents Council, State Universities of Michigan, testified against the bill. "Nobody is intending to violate someone's national constitutional rights," said Michael Hansen, president of the MCCA. "On the other hand, we want to be able to recognize that all of those rights come with certain natural restrictive conditions." And local boards should have control over student conduct on their campuses, Hansen said. A separate measure that would also change laws regulating guns on campus, House Bill 5474, is now waiting in a House committee, where one of its sponsors, Rep. Joel Sheltrown, D-West Branch, says it will stay while he educates the public about what the bill really does. The House measure would allow concealed pistol license holders to have guns on roads, sidewalks, green space and other open spaces on campus, but not in closed campus spaces like museums, student unions, dormitories or classrooms. The bills have sparked debate on local college campuses. At U-M, the Michigan Student Assembly passed a resolution condemning the HB 5474. "Having concealed weapons on campus is not something we endorse," MSA President Abhishek Mahanti said. The majority of students who spoke about the bills at a November panel discussion at EMUÂ opposed changing laws to allow concealed weapons permit holders to carry guns on campus. Sheltrown said he's been inundated with e-mails in recent months, and most of them either opposed the bill or confused the House bill with one that would allow guns everywhere on campus. "If the public has concerns, we can slow this process down and address those concerns to make sure everyone understands," he said. "This could be a very long process." And not all students oppose the measures.Â U-M history senior Julian Lizzio is a member of Students for Concealed Carry, a volunteer group of activists that supports expanding gun rights on college campuses. It has 42,000 members on its Facebook page. "Our group supports allowing qualified individuals with concealed pistol licenses to do on campus what they do everywhere else," Lizzio said. "We don't think campus is a special place where you are automatically safer by not having a gun. We want the same rights that apply everywhere else to apply while we're at a school." Juliana Keeping covers higher education for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at [email protected] or 734-623-2528. Follow Juliana Keeping on Twitter
Bill authorises police to remove people from crown land if land minister deems there is a ‘public safety issue’ Sydney’s CBD “tent city” residents will have to find shelter elsewhere, with police given the power by government to tear the camp down. The bill authorises police to remove people from crown land if the land minister deems there is a “public safety issue”. 'Where do we go?': Martin Place's tent city and the people used as front-page fodder Read more It was passed in the upper house on Wednesday evening without amendment after being introduced by the government on Tuesday in a bid to quickly clear the Martin Place camp. The bill was opposed by Labor and the Greens who described it as nothing but a smokescreen to mask “political argy-bargy” between two tiers of government. A plan agreed to by the City of Sydney and the homeless tent dwellers to vacate the Martin Place campsite had failed. Both the council and state government have blamed each other for the stalemate. The opposition said the government already had the laws required to clear the tent city. But under previously existing laws, the NSW government would need to issue a warrant against the homeless residents, which the premier, Gladys Berejiklian, had said she was reluctant to do. “It is a sham and a mockery of this chamber, it is indicative of a government that simply do not understand their legislative powers, abilities, do not understand the need to build relationships across levels of government,” Labor MP Clayton Barr said during debate in the Legislative Assembly. Greens MP David Shoebridge said the bill was a “new low” from the government and they are giving police new powers to arrest the homeless, rather than providing permanent housing for them. The social housing minister, Pru Goward, said the proposed legislation would ensure any unlawful use of Martin Place could be dealt with “appropriately and in a timely manner”. “This bill underscores the principle that no one … should need to sleep in a tent in Martin Place,” Goward said. “The new powers are not intended to apply generally or specifically to homeless persons in the City of Sydney.” Homelessness groups had criticised the proposed law before it was put to parliament.
This story was originally published Aug. 16. Calgary's iconic western wear purveyor Riley & McCormick — which is one of Alberta's oldest businesses, founded in 1901 as a saddlery — is riding into the sunset. "The costs keep going up and the sales seem to have gone down. We've had a tough couple of years here," owner Brian Guichon told CBC News. The store on Calgary's Stephen Avenue will close on Aug. 30. Owner Brian Guichon will oversee the closure of Riley & McCormick. (Evelyne Asselin/CBC) Before this year's Stampede, Guichon said sales were down because of the economic slump and that he was hoping the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth would provide a boost. But relentless rain resulted in about 80,000 fewer people heading to the grounds or shopping downtown on their way there. "It was one of the worst Stampedes for local business we've had in a long time ... The decision was not made easily. We knew that this was a make or break Stampede for us." Belt buckles, along with hats, boots and clothing are all on clearance. (Evelyne Asselin/CBC) Guichon says the closing of the store on Calgary's downtown pedestrian avenue, with its wooden horse out front, means the city is losing a bit of its identity. "I guess in a lot of respects we were a cultural icon," he said. The store is offering deals to help clear out merchandise. (Evelyne Asselin/CBC) Guichon's grandfather Eneas McCormick co-founded the business as a saddlery with William James Riley, in 1901 — before Alberta was even officially a province. It has been a part of every Stampede since the first one in 1912. "History has passed by the doors of Riley & McCormick stores — pioneer missionary Father Lacombe for supplies for his orphanage, military saddles ordered for the Russian Cavalry in WWI," the store's website says. McCormick went on to found CFCN radio, and was elected as a Calgary alderman and deputy mayor. 'Nothing lasts forever' A Labour Day parade float passes the Dominion Bank in 1908, followed by little girls in white dresses. Beside that is Ellis & Grogan and Riley & McCormick's saddlery store in its first location, 111 Eighth Avenue. It later moved to 205 Eighth Avenue. (Glenbow Archives) Guichon said more taxes, an increased minimum wage and inflexible landlords all helped pile on the business costs, while the emptying-out of downtown offices and fewer people wearing western gear bit into sales. "There's always going to be a segment of the market that will wear western clothing and products ... Just not as many as there used to be." Men working in the Riley & McCormick saddle room, circa 1920s. (Glenbow Archives) "It's kind of sad, but nothing lasts forever," he said. Riley & McCormick is hardly the only business to have closed this year in Calgary. The city recorded 3,532 business that had shut down or moved in the first six months of the year, a small uptick from the 3,342 that closed in the first half of last year, and the 3,209 in the first half of 2013 at the height of the energy boom. At the same time, the number of new business licenses is also up at 3,804 for the first half of this year compared with 3,511 in the same time frame last year, with the city attributing the increase to more home-based and consulting businesses. The company's airport location lease runs until the end of the year, but its fate is uncertain beyond that. "We hope to carry it on there ... we'll see," Guichon said.
After opened fire at for abusing her during their relationship in an explosive interview, the latter said that he will sue her for conjuring false accusations towards him. Later, in an interview to a leading website, Aditya’s wife refuted Kangana’s claims of reaching out to her for help to save herself from his violent tendencies. She said that she never treated her like a daughter, adding that how could she have ever treated her as a daughter when she knew that she was dating her husband. Zarina also asked Kangana if she knew that Aditya was such a bad person, why was she with him for four-and-a-half years. In a retaliation of sorts, Kangana’s sister Rangoli has now reacted to Zarina’s claims. Rangoli took to her Twitter account to post her side of the story as she recited how Kangana and Aditya met in 2005 and the FIR against him was lodged in 2007, therefore discrediting Zarina’s assertion that they dated for four-and-a-half years. She went on to add more to the saga, by adding that Kangana pleaded many times with Zarina for help, but instead “you gave her diamonds and got her dresses from Bangkok; took her to meet Sanjay Leela Bhansali”. She also tweeted that Zarina and Aditya should be behind the bars. Here’s what Rangoli tweeted.
Speculation about what lies beneath Pluto’s icy surface began long before the New Horizons spacecraft flew by the dwarf planet in September, 2015. Before the flyby, the odds that Pluto once had a subsurface ocean seemed high. Now, it seems more likely than not that some amount of liquid may still be lurking beneath the Kuiper-belt-object’s frozen crust. Pluto is a comparatively small body with a comparatively enormous primary moon. Not only is Chiron half the size and one-eighth the mass of Pluto, but it is very close to the dwarf-planet’s surface: twenty times closer than our own Moon is to Earth. Given the strength of the tides on Earth, it seemed reasonable that Chiron would be strongly pulling on Pluto, heating the inside of the dwarf planet from the inside out, melting volatiles – materials like water that can be separated from rock with heating – which can then form into oceans. The best current evidence that we have for Pluto’s possible ocean comes from Pluto’s wandering heart: a large geologic feature that looks a bit like Earth’s first artificial satellite, Sputnik. Sputnik Planum, as it’s come to be called, seems to have been made when a large object struck Pluto near its north pole. A paper published on November 16th, 2016 points out that the crater should have remained a heart-shaped hole in the ground, with less mass than when it started. Instead, Sputnik Planum grew and grew, so much so that it actually caused Pluto’s access to tilt. Models of how this might be possible call for a substantial amount of water under a crust of frozen nitrogen. These days, Pluto’s heart lies closer to the equator than it does to the pole. Though the studies will continue, in the end, we may have an ocean to thank for that. More than Only Skin Deep – What Waits Beneath Charon’s Cracked Surface By Sheyna Gifford (originally posted June 24, 2014) Is there evidence of an ocean-past or present-waiting to surprise us on Charon? It isn’t impossible. In fact, it might be likely. What used to be the smallest planet in our solar system has, comparatively, the biggest moon. Pluto, now classified as a dwarf planet, has a moon, Charon, almost 1/8th its own mass and almost half its physical volume. Our Moon, by comparison, has about 1% of the Earth’s mass and only 2% of its volume. Charon is so large compared to Pluto that some astronomer’s consider the two to be a sort of binary dwarf-planet system, as opposed to a moon-and-planet system. Both Charon and our Moon are believed to have formed in the same way: when they were knocked off their parent planets. Enormous collisions liquified parts of the Earth and Pluto. The debris was thrown into orbit where it later cooled. In the process of cooling into solid bodies around the Earth and Pluto, the Moon and Charon became locked to their parent planets’ orbits. That locking of the planets to moons results in tides: here on Earth, on the Moon, and, we believe, on Pluto and Charon. An analysis by scientists at Goddard suggests that tides on Pluto and Charon could have been especially high as Charon cooled. This is because the part of Pluto knocked into orbit didn’t get very far. Charon formed incredibly close to Pluto: only 19,000 km (12,000 miles) away. By comparison, our Moon is currently 384,000 km (238,855 mi) from Earth. Initially, the orbit might not have been very circular, either: it might have been more eccentric or elliptical-shaped. Eccentrically-moving, close-by Charon would have pulled on Pluto, and Pluto would have pulled back, resulting in heating of both planets and–maybe–an ocean under Charon’s ice shell. “Depending on exactly how Charon’s orbit evolved, particularly if it went through a high-eccentricity phase, there may have been enough heat from tidal deformation to maintain liquid water beneath the surface of Charon for some time,” said Alyssa Rhoden of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “Using plausible interior structure models that include an ocean, we found it wouldn’t have taken much eccentricity (less than 0.01) to generate surface fractures like we are seeing on Europa.” On icy moons like Europa and Enceladus, tidal forces exerted by their parent planets cause massive surface cracks to form. Those cracks are easily appreciated by passing spacecraft. According to Rhoden and colleagues’ model, Charon’s surface should be similarly cracked. We expect to see evidence of this fractured surface geology as the New Horizons spacecraft approaches Pluto. New Horizons will pass directly over Pluto and Charon, briefly, on July 15th 2015. Charon was discovered thirty-five years ago, in 1978, but well-photographed for the first time by New Horizons in 2013. With the 2015 close-up just around the corner, scientists are working swiftly to make best use of surface photographs returned by the spacecraft. New Horizons will give us the ability to resolve objects as small as a football field on part of the surface of Pluto and Charon. With pictures of that detail and models such as this one, we may be able to look backwards in time to determine details about both bodies, such as how thick their ice shells were when they formed. Studying patterns of fractures in Charon’s surface is critical to building accurate models of the ice shell and layers beneath. “Our model predicts different fracture patterns on the surface of Charon depending on the thickness of its surface ice, the structure of the moon’s interior and how easily it deforms, and how its orbit evolved,” said Rhoden. “By comparing the actual New Horizons observations of Charon to the various predictions, we can see what fits best and discover if Charon could have had a subsurface ocean in its past, driven by high eccentricity.” The oceans of certain icy moons with surface fractures are considered to be places where extraterrestrial life might be found. Like Charon, Europa and Enceladus are very cold and very distant from the sun. In all three cases, the formation and maintenance of life would depend upon a reliable energy source as well as elements that can participate in the chemistry of life, such as carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus. It is unknown if a potential ocean on Charon may have harbored these ingredients or if the ocean there existed for long enough for life to form. The same questions apply to any ancient ocean on any moon in our Solar System or any other. The first step on Charon is to find the fractures, and then go looking for the warmth that liquified water. “Since it’s so easy to get fractures, if we get to Charon and there are none, it puts a very strong constraint on how high the eccentricity could have been and how warm the interior ever could have been,” said Rhoden. “This research gives us a head start on the New Horizons arrival – what should we look for and what can we learn from it. We’re going to Pluto and Pluto is fascinating, but Charon is also going to be fascinating.”
When Vin Scully took over the mic for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1950, baseball was a different game in many different ways. There weren’t any night games. Players still held day jobs and many were war heroes. Baseball teams west of Chicago and St. Louis didn’t exist. The color barrier had just been broken. Fast forward to today, and many things have changed. For the better, baseball is one of the most diverse sports in the United States. Players, are paid outrageous salaries. California has five baseball teams, with a few more teams in between California and Chicago. Among all these things that have changed in and outside of the game, the one constant is Vin Scully, who has begun his final season as the television voice of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Modern announcers are focused around stats, player interviews, and even at times trying to make their call of a rare moment as big as the moment they are commentating on. Not Vin Scully, though. Take Vin Scully’s call of Kirk Gibson’s pinch home run in the 1988 World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Oakland Athletics. If you listen to the call after the home run was hit, you’ll notice aside from a few remarkable words, Vin just lets the picture and the sound tell the story. That’s what makes Vin Scully great. Whether you are listening to the game on the radio or watching it on TV, Vin Scully wants the fan to feel like they were at the game with him. The Gibson home run is just one example of the many great calls Scully has allowed to play out. “My job, basically is to call the play as accurately and swiftly as possible. Get out of the way for the crows. And perhaps somewhere along the way inform a little bit, entertain even a little bit. The entire job is based on accuracy so the viewer trusts you. Trust goes right there with accuracy.” Scully, describing his commentating style in an interview on The Dan Patrick Show in 2014. As unique as Vin’s broadcasting style is, even more admirable is his ability to have a story to tell for just about every player in the game. Whether the player was just called up from the minors, or has been in the game for ten years, Vin Scully has something to say about the player that you probably haven’t heard before. Scully also finds a way to insert commentary on just about any subject as well. Listen to Scully below talk about the emergence of beards in baseball. While Scully would humbly disagree, it’s a pastime just to listen to Scully as much as it is to watch or listen to the game. If you can afford it, one of the best things a baseball fan can do this year, is watch as many home Dodgers games as they can, even if it’s watching the replay on MLB.TV. Even if you just have it on the background and never look up at the TV, turn the game on and give Vin a listen. Dodgers fans may identify him as the voice of their team, however Vin Scully is just as much the voice of baseball. No doubt, the game will move on without him after he calls his last out this season, and many announcers will be able to come close to his greatness, but there simply just won’t be another Vin. For many Dodgers fans and baseball fans alike, it just won’t be the same for a while, and some of us may even catch ourselves recalling his famous quote as we get used to him not calling Dodgers home games: “Good is not good when better is expected.” – Vin Scully Main Photo:
Authored or posted by Pao Chang By Michael Rivero, author of WhatReallyHappened.com Click here for PDF version of this article “The modern banking system manufactures money out of nothing. The process is perhaps the most astounding piece of sleight of hand that was ever invented. Banking was conceived in iniquity and was born in sin. The Bankers own the Earth. Take it away from them, but leave them the power to create deposits, and with the flick of a pen they will create enough deposits to buy it back again. However, take it away from them, and all the fortunes like mine will disappear, and they ought to disappear, for this world would be a happier and better world to live in. But if you wish to remain slaves of the Bankers and pay for the cost of your own slavery, let them continue to create deposits.” — Sir Josiah Stamp, President of the Bank of England in the 1920s, the second richest man in Britain “The Bank, its property and assets and all deposits and other funds entrusted to it shall be immune in time of peace and in time of war from any measure such as expropriation, requisition, seizure, confiscation, prohibition or restriction of gold or currency export or import, and any other measure.” — Article 10, Instrument of Foundation, Bank of International Settlements “When the world around the IMF goes downhill, we thrive. We become extremely active because we lend money, we earn interest and charges and all the rest of it, and the institution does well. When the world goes well and we’ve had years of growth, as was the case back in 2006 and 2007, the IMF doesn’t do so well both financially and otherwise.” — Christine Lagarde I know many people have a great deal of difficulty comprehending just how many wars are started for no other purpose than to force private central banks onto nations, so let me share a few examples, so that you understand why the US Government is mired in so many wars against so many foreign nations. There is ample precedent for this. The United States fought the American Revolution primarily over King George III’s Currency act, which forced the colonists to conduct their business only using printed bank notes borrowed from the Bank of England at interest. Benjamin Franklin, acting as the colonies’ representative to Britain, argued against this move in 1763. “You see, a legitimate government can both spend and lend money into circulation, while banks can only lend significant amounts of their promissory bank notes, for they can neither give away nor spend but a tiny fraction of the money the people need. Thus, when your bankers here in England place money in circulation, there is always a debt principal to be returned and usury to be paid. The result is that you have always too little credit in circulation to give the workers full employment. You do not have too many workers, you have too little money in circulation, and that [money] which circulates all bears the endless burden of unpayable debt and usury…..In the Colonies, we issue our own money. It is called Colonial Scrip [interest-free, wealth-based money issued by The Colonies 1750-1764 before Bank of England crooks made it illegal]. We issue it in proper proportion to make the products pass easily from the producers to the consumers. In this manner, creating ourselves our own paper money, we control its purchasing power, and we have no interest to pay to no one.” The following year, King George III passed the Currency act which outlawed all forms of money in the colonies, forcing them to conduct all commerce using bank notes borrowed at interest from the Bank of England! The Currency Act Interest Bearing bank note from the Bank of England, 1764 “The bank hath benefit of interest on all moneys which it creates out of nothing.” — William Paterson, founder of the Bank of England in 1694 After the revolution, the new United States adopted a radically different economic system in which the government issued its own value-based money, so that private banks like the Bank of England were not siphoning off the wealth of the people through interest-bearing bank notes. “Any person holding any office or any stock in any institution in the nature of a bank for issuing or discounting bills or notes payable to bearer or order, cannot be a member of the House whilst he holds such office or stock.” — Third Congress of the United States Senate, 23rd of December, 1793, signed by the President, George Washington The First Bank of the United States Following the revolution, the US Government actually took steps to keep the bankers out of the new government! But bankers are nothing if not dedicated to their schemes to acquire your wealth, and know full well how easy it is to corrupt a nation’s leaders. Mayer Amschal Rothschild Just one year after Mayer Amschel Rothschild had uttered his infamous “Let me issue and control a nation’s money and I care not who makes the laws”, the bankers succeeded in setting up a new Private Central Bank called the First Bank of the United States , largely through the efforts of the Rothschild’s chief US supporter, Alexander Hamilton Founded in 1791, by the end of its twenty year charter the First Bank of the United States had almost ruined the nation’s economy, while enriching the bankers. Congress refused to renew the charter and signaled their intention to go back to a state issued value based currency on which the people paid no interest at all to any banker. This resulted in a threat from Nathan Mayer Rothschild against the US Government, “Either the application for renewal of the charter is granted, or the United States will find itself involved in a most disastrous war.” Congress still refused to renew the charter for the First Bank of the United States, whereupon Nathan Mayer Rothschild railed, “Teach those impudent Americans a lesson! Bring them back to colonial status!” The British Prime Minister at the time, Spencer Perceval was adamently opposed to war with the United States, primarily because the majority of England’s military might was occupied with the ongoing Napoleonic wars. Spencer Perceval was concerned that Britain might not prevail in a new American war, a concern shared by many in the British government. Then, Spencer Perceval was assassinated (the only British Prime Minister to be assassinated in office) and replaced by Robert Banks Jenkinson, the 2nd Earl of Liverpool, who was fully supportive of a war to recapture the colonies. “If my sons did not want wars, there would be none.” — Gutle Schnaper, wife of Mayer Amschel Rothschild and mother of his five sons Financed at virtually no interest by the Rothschild controlled Bank of England, Britain then provoked the war of 1812 to recolonize the United States and force them back into the slavery of the Bank of England, or to plunge the United States into so much debt they would be forced to accept a new private central bank. And the plan worked. Even though the War of 1812 was won by the United States, Congress was forced to grant a new charter for yet another private bank issuing the public currency as loans at interest, the Second Bank of the United States. Once again, private bankers were in control of the nation’s money supply and cared not who made the laws or how many British and American soldiers had to die for it. Bank Note from the Second Bank of the United States Andrew Jackson and the Second Bank of the United States Once again the nation was plunged into debt, unemployment, and poverty by the predations of the private central bank, and in 1832 Andrew Jackson successfully campaigned for his second term as President under the slogan, “Jackson And No Bank!” True to his word, Jackson succeeded in blocking the renewal of the charter for the Second Bank of the United States. “Gentlemen! I too have been a close observer of the doings of the Bank of the United States. I have had men watching you for a long time, and am convinced that you have used the funds of the bank to speculate in the breadstuffs of the country. When you won, you divided the profits amongst you, and when you lost, you charged it to the bank. You tell me that if I take the deposits from the bank and annul its charter I shall ruin ten thousand families. That may be true, gentlemen, but that is your sin! Should I let you go on, you will ruin fifty thousand families, and that would be my sin! You are a den of vipers and thieves. I have determined to rout you out, and by the Eternal, (bringing his fist down on the table) I will rout you out!” — Andrew Jackson, shortly before ending the charter of the Second Bank of the United States. From the original minutes of the Philadelphia committee of citizens sent to meet with President Jackson (February 1834), according to Andrew Jackson and the Bank of the United States (1928) by Stan V. Henkels News report of Jackson shutting down the Second Bank of the United States, Geneva Gazette, October 2, 1833 Shortly after President Jackson (the only American President to actually pay off the National Debt) ended the Second Bank of the United States, there was an attempted assassination which failed when both pistols used by the assassin, Richard Lawrence, failed to fire. Lawrence later said that with Jackson dead, “Money would be more plenty.” Following the loss of its charter, the Second Bank of the United States tried to operate as a normal bank, but failed after just 5 years. President Zachary Taylor President Zachary Taylor opposed the creation of a new Private Central Bank, owing to the historical abuses of the First and Second Banks of the United States. “The idea of a national bank is dead, and will not be revived in my time.” — Zachary Taylor Taylor died on July 9, 1850 after eating a bowl of cherries and milk rumored to have been poisoned. The symptoms he displayed are consistent with acute arsenic poisoning. President Zachary Taylor, ca 1850 President James Buchanan President James Buchanan also opposed a private central bank. During the panic of 1857 he attempted to set limits on banks issuing more loans than they had actual funds, and to require all issued bank notes to be backed by Federal Government assets. He was poisoned with arsenic and survived, although 38 other people at the dinner died. President James Buchanon “The few who understand the system will either be so interested in its profits or be so dependent upon its favours that there will be no opposition from that class, while on the other hand, the great body of people, mentally incapable of comprehending the tremendous advantage that capital derives from the system, will bear its burdens without complaint, and perhaps without even suspecting that the system is inimical to their interests.” — The Rothschild brothers of London writing to associates in New York, 1863 President Abraham Lincoln The public school system is as subservient to the bankers’ wishes to keep certain history from you, just as the corporate media is subservient to Monsanto’s wishes to keep the dangers of GMOs from you, and the global warming cult’s wishes to conceal from you that the Earth has actually been cooling for the last 16 years. Thus is should come as little surprise that much of the real reasons for the events of the Civil War are not well known to the average American. President Abraham Lincoln When the Confederacy seceded from the United States, the bankers once again saw the opportunity for a rich harvest of debt, and offered to fund Lincoln’s efforts to bring the south back into the union, but at 30% interest. Lincoln remarked that he would not free the black man by enslaving the white man to the bankers and using his authority as President, issued a new government currency, the greenback . This was a direct threat to the wealth and power of the central bankers, who quickly responded. In 1872 New York bankers sent a letter to every bank in the United States, urging them to fund newspapers that opposed government-issued money (Lincoln’s greenbacks). “Dear Sir: It is advisable to do all in your power to sustain such prominent daily and weekly newspapers… as will oppose the issuing of greenback paper money, and that you also withhold patronage or favors from all applicants who are not willing to oppose the Government issue of money. Let the Government issue the coin and the banks issue the paper money of the country… [T]o restore to circulation the Government issue of money, will be to provide the people with money, and will therefore seriously affect your individual profit as bankers and lenders.” — Triumphant plutocracy; the story of American public life from 1870 to 1920, by Lynn Wheeler “It will not do to allow the greenback, as it is called, to circulate as money any length of time, as we cannot control that.” — Triumphant plutocracy; the story of American public life from 1870 to 1920, by Lynn Wheeler “Slavery is likely to be abolished by the war power, and chattel slavery destroyed. This, I and my European friends are in favor of, for slavery is but the owning of labor and carries with it the care for the laborer, while the European plan, led on by England, is for capital to control labor by controlling the wages. THIS CAN BE DONE BY CONTROLLING THE MONEY.” — Triumphant plutocracy; the story of American public life from 1870 to 1920, by Lynn Wheeler Goaded by the private bankers, much of Europe supported the Confederacy against the Union, with the expectation that victory over Lincoln would mean the end of the Greenback. France and Britain considered an outright attack on the United States to aid the confederacy, but were held at bay by Russia, which had just ended the serfdom system and had a state central bank similar to the system the United States had been founded on. Tsar Alexander II of Russia, who prevented France and Britain from invading the US during the civil war. President Andrew Johnson Left free of European intervention, the Union won the war, and Lincoln announced his intention to go on issuing greenbacks. Following Lincoln’s assassination, the Greenbacks were pulled from circulation and the American people forced to go back to an economy based on bank notes borrowed at interest from the private bankers. Tsar Alexander II, who authorized Russian military assistance to Lincoln, was subsequently the victim of multiple attempts on his life in 1866, 1879, and 1880, until his assassination in 1881. In Andrew Johnson’s 1886 Fourth Annual Message (forerunner of the State of the Union), he dared question the validity and legitimacy of the accumulated debt. In particular the practice of allowing the banks to make loans using ink and paper but demanding repayment in silver and gold. “The anomalous condition of our currency is in striking contrast with that which was originally designed. Our circulation now embraces, first, notes of the national banks, which are made receivable for all dues to the Government, excluding imposts, and by all its creditors, excepting in payment of interest upon its bonds and the securities themselves; second, legal tender, issued by the United States, and which the law requires shall be received as well in payment of all debts between citizens as of all Government dues, excepting imposts; and, third, gold and silver coin. By the operation of our present system of finance however, the metallic currency, when collected, is reserved only for one class of Government creditors, who, holding its bonds, semiannually receive their interest in coin from the National Treasury. There is no reason which will be accepted as satisfactory by the people why those who defend us on the land and protect us on the sea; the pensioner upon the gratitude of the nation, bearing the scars and wounds received while in its service; the public servants in the various departments of the Government; the farmer who supplies the soldiers of the Army and the sailors of the Navy; the artisan who toils in the nation’s workshops, or the mechanics and laborers who build its edifices and construct its forts and vessels of war, should, in payment of their just and hard-earned dues, receive depreciated paper, while another class of their countrymen, no more deserving are paid in coin of gold and silver. “ With the end of Lincoln’s Greenbacks, the US could no longer create its own interest free money and was manipulated during the term of President Ruthford B. Hayes into borrowing from the Rothschilds banking system in 1878, restoring to the Rothschilds control of the US economy they had lost under Andrew Jackson. Messrs. Rothschild & Sons to Mr. Sherman. [Cable message.]April 12,1878. Hon. John Sherman, Secretary of the Treasury, Washington D. C.: Very pleased we have entered into relations again with American Government. Shall do our best to make the business successful. ROTHSCHILDS. President James Garfield James A. Garfield was elected President in 1880 on a platform of government control of the money supply. “The chief duty of the National Government in connection with the currency of the country is to coin money and declare its value. Grave doubts have been entertained whether Congress is authorized by the Constitution to make any form of paper money legal tender. The present issue of United States notes has been sustained by the necessities of war; but such paper should depend for its value and currency upon its convenience in use and its prompt redemption in coin at the will of the holder, and not upon its compulsory circulation. These notes are not money, but promises to pay money. If the holders demand it, the promise should be kept. — James Garfield “By the experience of commercial nations in all ages it has been found that gold and silver afford the only safe foundation for a monetary system. Confusion has recently been created by variations in the relative value of the two metals, but I confidently believe that arrangements can be made between the leading commercial nations which will secure the general use of both metals. Congress should provide that the compulsory coinage of silver now required by law may not disturb our monetary system by driving either metal out of circulation. If possible, such an adjustment should be made that the purchasing power of every coined dollar will be exactly equal to its debt-paying power in all the markets of the world. –James Garfield “Whoever controls the volume of money in our country is absolute master of all industry and commerce, and when you realize that the entire system is very easily controlled, one way or another, by a few powerful men at the top, you will not have to be told how periods of inflation and depression originate.” — President James A. Garfield, two weeks before he was assassinated President James Garfield “There is too much loose talk nowadays about the danger of so much capital in the hands of a few men.” — Baron Alphonso Rothschild, 1892 President William McKinley Garfield was shot on July 2, 1881 and died of his wounds several weeks later. Chester A. Arthur succeeded Garfield as President. In 1896, William McKinley was elected President in the middle of a depression-driven debate over gold-backed government currency versus bank notes borrowed at interest from private banks. McKinley favored gold-backed currencies and a balanced government budget which would free the public from accumulating debt. “Our financial system needs some revision; our money is all good now, but its value must not further be threatened. It should all be put upon an enduring basis, not subject to easy attack, nor its stability to doubt or dispute. Our currency should continue under the supervision of the Government. The several forms of our paper money offer, in my judgment, a constant embarrassment to the Government and a safe balance in the Treasury.” — William McKinley President William McKinley The Aldrich Plan McKinley was shot by an out-of-work anarchist on September 14, 1901, in Buffalo, NY, succumbing to his wounds a few days later. He was suceeded in office by Theodore Roosevelt. In 1910, Senator Nelson Aldrich, Frank Vanderlip of National City (Citibank), Henry Davison of Morgan Bank, and Paul Warburg of the Kuhn, Loeb Investment House met secretly on Jekyll Island, Georgia, to formulate a plan for a US central bank, and created the Aldrich Plan, which called for a system of fifteen regional central banks, openly and directly controlled by Wall Street commercial banks. These banks would have the legal ability to create mnoney out of thin air and represented an attempt to create a new Bank of the United States. Public reaction was swift. The Third Bank of the United States, aka The Federal Reserve Do to the intense public opposition to the Aldrich Plan, the measure was defeated in the House of Representaives in 1912. One year later the bankers would be back! Following the defeat of the Aldrich Plan, in 1913, the Private Central Bankers of Europe, in particular the Rothschilds of Great Britain and the Warburgs of Germany, met with their American financial collaborators once again on Jekyll Island, Georgia to form a new banking cartel with the express purpose of forcing the United States to accept a private central bank, with the aim of placing complete control of the United States money supply once again under the control of private bankers. Owing to hostility over the previous banks, the name was changed from the Third Bank of the United States to “The Federal Reserve” system in order to grant the new bank a quasi-governmental image, but in fact it is a privately owned bank, no more “Federal” than Federal Express. In the following video, former Chairman of the FED Allan Greenspan admits the Federal Reserve is a private bank and answers to no government authority. [In the following video, former Chairman of the FED] The Federal Reserve is also exempt from all taxation, except property tax. “When you or I write a check, there must be sufficient funds in our account to cover the check; but when the Federal Reserve writes a check, there is no bank deposit on which that check is drawn. When the Federal Reserve writes a check, it is creating money.” — From the Boston Federal Reserve Bank pamphlet, “Putting it Simply.” “Neither paper currency nor deposits have value as commodities. Intrinsically, a ‘dollar’ bill is just a piece of paper. Deposits are merely book entries.” — “Modern Money Mechanics Workbook” – Federal Reserve of Chicago, 1975 “I am afraid the ordinary citizen will not like to be told that the banks can and do create money. And they who control the credit of the nation direct the policy of Governments and hold in the hollow of their hand the destiny of the people.” — Reginald McKenna, as Chairman of the Midland Bank, addressing stockholders in 1924 “States, most especially the large hegemonic ones, such as the United States and Great Britain, are controlled by the international central banking system, working through secret agreements at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), and operating through national central banks (such as the Bank of England and the Federal Reserve)… The same international banking cartel that controls the United States today previously controlled Great Britain and held it up as the international hegemon. When the British order faded, and was replaced by the United States, the US ran the global economy. However, the same interests are served. States will be used and discarded at will by the international banking cartel; they are simply tools.” — Andrew Gavin Marshall In 2012, the Federal Reserve attempted to rebuff a Freedom of Information Lawsuit by Bloomberg News on the grounds that as a private banking corporation and not actually a part of the government, the Freedom of Information Act did not apply to the “trade secret” operations of the Federal Reserve. The 16th Amendment and the Income Tax 1913 proved to be a transformative year for the nation’s economy, first with the passage of the 16th “income tax” Amendment and the false claim that it had been ratified. Later that same year, and apparently unwilling to risk another questionable amendment, Congress passed the Federal Reserve Act over Christmas holiday 1913, while members of Congress opposed to the measure were at home. This was a very underhanded deal, as the Constitution explicitly vests Congress with the authority to issue the public currency, does not authorize its delegation, and thus should have required a new Amendment to transfer that authority to a private bank. But pass it Congress did, and President Woodrow Wilson signed it as he promised the bankers he would in exchange for generous campaign contributions. News report of Wilson’s signing the Federal Reserve Act. Under the Constitution, only a new Amendment could transfer the government’s authority to create the currency to a private party. President Woodrow Wilson President Woodrow Wilson Woodrow Wilson later regretted that decision. Thomas Edison Thomas Edison, arguably the most brilliant man of the age, was also well aware of the fraud of private central banks. Thomas Edison “People who will not turn a shovel full of dirt on the project nor contribute a pound of material, will collect more money from the United States than will the People who supply all the material and do all the work. This is the terrible thing about interest …But here is the point: If the Nation can issue a dollar bond it can issue a dollar bill. The element that makes the bond good makes the bill good also. The difference between the bond and the bill is that the bond lets the money broker collect twice the amount of the bond and an additional 20%. Whereas the currency, the honest sort provided by the Constitution pays nobody but those who contribute in some useful way. It is absurd to say our Country can issue bonds and cannot issue currency. Both are promises to pay, but one fattens the usurer and the other helps the People. If the currency issued by the People were no good, then the bonds would be no good, either. It is a terrible situation when the Government, to insure the National Wealth, must go in debt and submit to ruinous interest charges at the hands of men who control the fictitious value of gold.”Look at it another way. If the Government issues bonds, the brokers will sell them. The bonds will be negotiable; they will be considered as gilt edged paper. Why? Because the government is behind them, but who is behind the Government? The people. Therefore it is the people who constitute the basis of Government credit. Why then cannot the people have the benefit of their own gilt-edged credit by receiving non-interest bearing currency on Muscle Shoals, instead of the bankers receiving the benefit of the people’s credit in interest-bearing bonds?” — Thomas A. Edison, New York Times, December 4, 1921 The War to End All Wars – WW1 The next year, World War One started, and it is important to remember that prior to the creation of the Federal Reserve, there was no such thing as a world war. World War One started between Austria-Hungary and Serbia with the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand. Archduke Franz Ferdinand, whose assassination triggered World War One Although the war started between Austria-Hungary and Serbia , it quickly shifted to focus on Germany, whose industrial capacity was seen as an economic threat to Great Britain, who saw the decline of the British Pound as a result of too much emphasis on financial activity to the neglect of agriculture, industrial development, and infrastructure (not unlike the present day United States). Although pre-war Germany had a private central bank, it was heavily restricted and inflation kept to reasonable levels. Under government control, investment was guaranteed to internal economic development, and Germany was seen as a major power. So, in the media of the day, Germany was portrayed as the prime opponent of World War One, and not just defeated, but its industrial base flattened. Following the Treaty of Versailles, Germany was ordered to pay the war costs of all the participating nations, even though Germany had not actually started the war. This amounted to three times the value of all of Germany itself. Germany’s private central bank, to whom Germany had gone deeply into debt to pay the costs of the war, broke free of government control, and massive inflation followed (mostly triggered by currency speculators) , permanently trapping the German people in endless debt. WW2 When the Weimar Republic collapsed economically, it opened the door for the National Socialists to take power. Their first financial move was to issue their own state currency which was not borrowed from private central bankers. Freed from having to pay interest on the money in circulation, Germany blossomed and quickly began to rebuild its industry. The media called it “The German Miracle”. TIME magazine lionized Hitler for the amazing improvement in life for the German people and the explosion of German industry, and even named him TIME Magazine’s Man Of The Year in 1938. Hitler as TIME’s Man Of The Year “Should Germany merchandise (do business) again in the next 50 years we have led this war (WW1) in vain.” – Winston Churchill in The Times (1919) “We will force this war upon Hitler, if he wants it or not.” – Winston Churchill (1936 broadcast) “Germany becomes too powerful. We have to crush it.” – Winston Churchill (November 1936 speaking to US – General Robert E. Wood) “This war is an English war and its goal is the destruction of Germany.” – Winston Churchill (- Autumn 1939 broadcast) “Not the political doctrine of Hitler has hurled us into this war. The reason was the success of his increase in building a new economy. The roots of war were envy, greed and fear.” — Major General J.F.C. Fuller, historian, England Once again, Germany’s industrial output became a threat to Great Britain. Germany’s state-issued value based currency was also a direct threat to the wealth and power of the private central banks, and as early as 1933 they started to organize a global boycott against Germany to strangle this upstart ruler who thought he could break free of private central bankers! “The war wasn’t only about abolishing fascism, but to conquer sales markets. We could have, if we had intended so, prevented this war from breaking out without doing one shot, but we didn’t want to.”– Winston Churchill to Truman (Fultun, USA March 1946) “Germany’s unforgivable crime before WW2 was its attempt to loosen its economy out of the world trade system and to build up an independent exchange system from which the world-finance couldn’t profit anymore. …We butchered the wrong pig.” -Winston Churchill (The Second World War – Bern, 1960) As had been the case in World War One, Great Britain and other nations threatened by Germany’s economic power looked for an excuse to go to war, and as public anger in Germany grew over the boycott, Hitler foolishly gave them that excuse. Years later, in a spirit of candor, the real reasons for that war were made clear. Smedley Butler Marine Corps Major General Smedly Butler. As a side note, we need to step back before WW2 and recall Marine Major General Smedley Butler. In 1933, Wall Street bankers and financiers had bankrolled the successful coups by both Hitler and Mussolini. Brown Brothers Harriman in New York was financing Hitler right up to the day war was declared with Germany. Albeft Einstein was of the opinion that the late entry of the US into the war against Germany was because the US was controlled by bankers who were making money off of Hitler. “I spent 33 years and four months in active military service as a member of our country’s most agile military force — the Marine Corps. I served in all commissioned ranks from second lieutenant to Major General. And during that period I spent more of my time being a high–class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and for the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism. “I suspected I was just a part of a racket at the time. Now I am sure of it. Like all members of the military profession I never had an original thought until I left the service. My mental faculties remained in suspended animation while I obeyed the orders of the higher-ups. This is typical with everyone in the military service. Thus I helped make Mexico and especially Tampico safe for American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefit of Wall Street. The record of racketeering is long. I helped purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers in 1909-12. I brought light to the Dominican Republic for American sugar interests in 1916. In China in 1927 I helped see to it that the Standard Oil went its way unmolested. During those years, I had, as the boys in the back room would say, a swell racket. I was rewarded with honors, medals and promotion. Looking back on it, I feel I might have given Al Capone a few hints. The best he could do was to operate his racket in three city districts. I operated on three continents.” — General Smedley Butler, former US Marine Corps Commandant,1935 The Wall Street bankers decided that a fascist dictatorship in the United States based on the one on Italy would be far better for their business interests than Roosevelt’s “New Deal” which threatened massive wealth re-distribution to recapitalize the working and middle class of America. So the Wall Street tycoons recruited General Butler to lead the overthrow of the US Government and install a “Secretary of General Affairs” who would be answerable to Wall Street and not the people, would crush social unrest and shut down all labor unions. General Butler pretended to go along with the scheme but then exposed the plot to Congress. Congress, then as now in the pocket of the Wall Street bankers, refused to act. When Roosevelt learned of the planned coup he demanded the arrest of the plotters, but the plotters simply reminded Roosevelt that if any one of them were sent to prison, their friends on Wall Street would deliberatly collapse the still-fragile economy and blame Roosevelt for it. Roosevelt was thus unable to act until the start of WW2, at which time he prosecuted many of the plotters under the Trading With The Enemy act. The Congressional minutes into the coup were finally declassified in 1967, but rumors of the attempted coup became the inspiration for the movie, “Seven Days in May” but with the true financial villains erased from the script. Louis T. McFadden Louis T. McFadden “Mr. Chairman, we have in this country one of the most corrupt institutions the world has ever known. I refer to the Federal Reserve Board and the Federal reserve banks. The Federal Reserve Board, a Government board, has cheated the Government of the United States out of enough money to pay the national debt. The depredations and the iniquities of the Federal Reserve Board and the Federal reserve banks acting together have cost this country enough money to pay the national debt several times over. This evil institution has impoverished and ruined the people of the United States; has bankrupted itself, and has practically bankrupted our Government. It has done this through defects of the law under which it operates, through the maladministration of that law by the Federal Reserve Board and through the corrupt practices of the moneyed vultures who control it.” — Louis T. McFadden, June 10, 1932 Louis T. McFadden was a member of the House of Representatives in the twenties and thirties. He was the chair of the House Banking and Currency Committee during the twenties. He used his position in Congress occasionally to crusade against the Federal Reserve. At one point McFadden started impeachment proceedings against the entire board of the federal reserve. Not too surprisingly, there were three attempts on McFadden’s life, one shooting and two poisonings, the second of which was cuccessful. Although still officially declared as heart failure, newspapers of the time reported … “Now that this sterling American patriot has made the Passing, it can be revealed that not long after his public utterance against the encroaching powers of Judah, it became known among his intimates that he had suffered two attacks against his life. The first attack came in the form of two revolver shots fired at him from ambush as he was alighting from a cab in front of one of the Capital hotels. Fortunately both shots missed him, the bullets burying themselves in the structure of the cab.”He became violently ill after partaking of food at a political banquet at Washington. His life was only saved from what was subsequently announced as a poisoning by the presence of a physician friend at the banquet, who at once procured a stomach pump and subjected the Congressman to emergency treatment.” President John F. Kennedy President John F. Kennedy As President, John F. Kennedy understood the predatory nature of private central banking. He understood why Andrew Jackson fought so hard to end the Second Bank of the United States. So Kennedy wrote and signed Executive Order 11110 which ordered the US Treasury to issue a new public currency, the United States Note. Kennedy’s United States Notes were not borrowed from the Federal Reserve but created by the US Government and backed by the silver stockpiles held by the US Government. It represented a return to the system of economics the United States had been founded on, and was perfectly legal for Kennedy to do. All told, some four and one half billion dollars went into public circulation, eroding interest payments to the Federal Reserve and loosening their control over the nation. Five months later John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas Texas, and the United States Notes pulled from circulation and destroyed (except for samples held by collectors). John J. McCloy John J. McCloy, President of the Chase Manhattan Bank, and President of the World Bank, was named to the Warren Commission, presumably to make certain the banking dimensions behind the assassination were concealed from the public. Kennedy’s E.O. 11110 has never been repealed and is still in effect, although no modern President dares to use it. Almost all of the current national debt has been created since 1963. As we enter the eleventh year of what future history will most certainly describe as World War Three, we need to examine the financial dimensions behind the wars. Towards the end of World War Two, when it became obvious that the allies were going to win and dictate the post war environment, the major world economic powers met at Bretton Woods, a luxury resort in New Hampshire in July of 1944, and hammered out the Bretton Woods agreement for international finance. The British Pound lost its position as the global trade and reserve currency to the US dollar (part of the price demanded by Roosevelt in exchange for the US entry into the war). Absent the economic advantages of being the world’s “go-to” currency, Britain was forced to nationalize the Bank of England in 1946. The Bretton Woods agreement, ratified in 1945, in addition to making the dollar the global reserve and trade currency, obligated the signatory nations to tie their currencies to the dollar. The nations that ratified Bretton Woods did so on two conditions. The first was that the Federal Reserve would refrain from over-printing the dollar as a means to loot real products and produce from other nations in exchange for ink and paper; basically an imperial tax. That assurance was backed up by the second requirement, which was that the US dollar would always be convertible to gold at $35 per ounce. The Bretton Woods resort, New Hampshire The Federal Reserve, being a private bank and not answerable to the US Government, did start overprinting paper dollars, and much of the perceived prosperity of the 1950s and 1960s was the result of foreign nations’ obligations to accept the paper notes as being worth gold at the rate of $35 an ounce. Then in 1970, France looked at the huge pile of paper notes sitting in their vaults, for which real French products like wine and cheese had been traded, and notified the United States government that they would exercise their option under Bretton Woods to return the paper notes for gold at the $35 per ounce exchange rate. The United States had nowhere near the gold to redeem the paper notes. By 1966, the IMF estimated foreign central banks held $14 billion U.S. dollars, however the United States had only $3.2 billion in gold to redeem those paper notes! So on August 15th, 1971, Richard Nixon “temporarily” suspended the gold convertibility of the US Federal Reserve Notes. Nixon announces the end of gold convertability Later termed the “Nixon shock”, this move effectively ended Bretton Woods and many global currencies started to delink from the US dollar. The “Nixon Shock” Worse, since the United States had collateralized their loans with the nation’s gold reserves, it quickly became apparent that the US Government did not in fact have enough gold to cover the outstanding debts. Foreign nations began to get very nervous about their loans to the US and understandably were reluctant to loan any additional money to the United States without some form of collateral. So Richard Nixon started the environmental movement, with the EPA and its various programs such as “wilderness zones”, Roadless areas”, Heritage rivers”, “Wetlands”, all of which took vast areas of public lands and made them off limits to the American people who were technically the owners of those lands. But Nixon had little concern for the environment and the real purpose of this land grab under the guise of the environment was to pledge those pristine lands and their vast mineral resources as collateral on the national debt. The plethora of different programs was simply to conceal the true scale of how much American land was being pledged to foreign lenders as collateral on the government’s debts; eventually almost 25% of the nation itself. All of this is illegal as the Enclave Clause of the Constitution limits the Federal Government to owning the land under Federal Government buildings and military bases, and that Enclave Clause was written into the Constitution by the Founding Fathers specifically to prevent the Federal Government simply seizing the land belonging to the people to sell off, pledge as collateral, or rent! With open lands for collateral already in short supply, the US Government embarked on a new program to shore up sagging international demand for the dollar. The United States approached the world’s oil producing nations, mostly in the Middle East, and offered them a deal. In exchange for only selling their oil for dollars, the United States would guarantee the military safety of those oil-rich nations. The oil rich nations would agree to spend and invest their US paper dollars inside the United States, in particular in US Treasury Bonds, redeemable through the slave labor of future generations of US taxpayers. The concept was labeled the “petrodollar”. In effect, the US, no longer able to back the dollar with gold, was now backing it with oil. Other peoples’ oil. And that necessity to keep control over those oil nations to prop up the dollar has shaped America’s foreign policy in the region ever since. But as America’s manufacturing and agriculture has declined, the oil producing nations faced a dilemma. Those piles of US Federal Reserve notes were not able to purchase much from the United States because the United States had little (other than real estate) anyone wanted to buy. Europe’s cars and aircraft were superior and less costly, while experiments with GMO food crops led to nations refusing to buy US food exports. Israel’s constant belligerence against its neighbors caused them to wonder if the US could actually keep their end of the petrodollar arrangement. Oil producing nations started to talk of selling their oil for whatever currency the purchasers chose to use. Saddam Hussein and the lie of Iraq’s nuclear weapons Saddam Hussein Iraq, already hostile to the United States following Desert Storm, demanded the right to sell their oil for Euros in 2000 and in 2002, the United Nations agreed to allow it under the “Oil for food” program instituted following Desert Storm. One year later the United States re-invaded Iraq under the lie of Saddam’s nuclear weapons, lynched Saddam Hussein, and placed Iraq’s oil back on the world market only for US dollars. The clear US policy shift following 9-11, away from being an impartial broker of peace in the Mideast to one of unquestioned support for Israel’s aggressions only further eroded confidence in the Petrodollar deal and even more oil producing nations started openly talking of oil trade for other global currencies. Gaddafi and the Gold Dinar Gaddafi Over in Libya, Muammar Gaddafi had instituted a state-owned central bank and a value based trade currency, the Gold Dinar. The Gold Dinar Gaddafi announced that Libya’s oil was for sale, but only for the Gold Dinar. Other African nations, seeing the rise of the Gold Dinar and the Euro, even as the US dollar continued its inflation-driven decline, flocked to the new Libyan currency for trade. This move had the potential to seriously undermine the global hegemony of the dollar. French President Nicolas Sarkozy reportedly went so far as to call Libya a “threat” to the financial security of the world. So, the United States invaded Libya, brutally murdered Qaddafi ( the object lesson of Saddam’s lynching not being enough of a message, apparently), imposed a private central bank, and returned Libya’s oil output to dollars only. The gold that was to have been made into the Gold Dinars, 144 tons of it, is as of last report, unaccounted for. UPDATE: Emails surfacing as part of the investigation into Hilary Clinton’s use of a private email server for classified information CONFIRM that the real reason for the US invasion of Libya was to destroy the threat of the Gold Dinar becoming a pan-African currency, displacing the dollar! General Wesley Clark blows the whistle on US plans to conquer the oil-rich Middle East According to General Wesley Clark, the master plan for the “dollarification” of the world’s oil nations included seven targets, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Iran (Venezuela, which dared to sell their oil to China for the Yuan, is a late addition). What is notable about the original seven nations originally targeted by the US is that none of them are members of the Bank for International Settlements, the private central bankers private central bank, located in Switzerland. This meant that these nations were deciding for themselves how to run their nations’ economies, rather than submit to the international private banks. UPDATE: Emails from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton released as part of the Benghazi investigation confirm that the true motive for the attack on Libya was to control the Libyan oil reserves and to destroy Libya’s gold-backed currency. Now the bankers’ gun sights are on Iran, which dares to have a government central bank and sell their oil for whatever currency they choose. The war agenda is, as always, to force Iran’s oil to be sold only for US dollars and to force them to accept a privately owned central bank. Malaysia, one of the few remaining nations without a Rothschild central bank, is now being invaded by a force claimed to be “Al Qaeda” and has suffered numerous suspicious losses of its commercial passenger jets. With the death of President Hugo Chavez, plans to impose a US and banker friendly regime on Venezuela are clearly being implemented. So, just where is the gold? Germany’s gold bullion. Where is it? The German government recently asked for the return of some of their gold bullion from the Bank of France and the New York Federal Reserve. France has said it will take 5 years to return Germany’s gold. The United States has said they will need 8 years to return Germany’s gold. This suggests strongly that the Bank of France and the NY Federal Reserve have used the deposited gold for other purposes, most likely to cover gold futures contracts used to artificially suppress the price of gold to keep investors in the equities markets, and the Central Banks are scrambling to find new gold to cover the shortfall and prevent a gold run. So it is inevitable that suddenly France invades Mali, ostensibly to combat Al Qaeda, with the US joining in. Mali just happens to be one of the world’s largest gold producers with gold accounting for 80% of Mali exports. War for the bankers does not get more obvious than that! Mexico has demanded a physical audit of their gold bullion stored at the Bank of England, and along with Venezuela’s vast oil reserves (larger than Saudi Arabia), Venezuela’s gold mines are a prize lusted after by all the Central Banks that played fast and loose with other peoples’ gold bullion. So we can expect regime change if not outright invasion soon. Can a bank foreclose on your house if they have provided nothing of real value in the mortgage? A little remembered footnote in banking history occurred in December 1968. A bank was moving to foreclose on a house, and the homeowner decided to fight the foreclosure in court, arguing that contract law requires two contracting parties to agree to swap two items of value, legally called the “consideration.” In the case of First National Bank of Montgomery vs. Jerome Daly, Daly argued that since the bank simply wrote a number in a ledger to create the loaned money out of think air, there was no real value and therefore no legally binding consideration. The lawyers for the bank admitted that this is how the bank works. They create money out of thin air as a ledger or computer entry, which you must repay with your labor. And there was no law in 1968 that specifically gave banks the legal right to do that. Daly argued that because there was no equal consideration, the mortgage was null and void and the attempt to foreclose invalid. The jury agreed! So did Judge Mahoney, who resisted demands to over-rule the jury in favor of the bank, and wrote a simple streightforward decision that stated that there was no question that the mortgage contract was void because the claim that the bank simply made up the money out of thin air was not disputed by the bank itself. Judge Mahoney was murdered with poison less than six months later, and the lawyer representing Daly was debarred. The decision in favor of Daly was then nullified on procedural grounds and the entire matter forgotten! You are BRAINWASHED! You have been raised by a public school system and media that constantly assures you that the reasons for all these wars and assassinations are many and varied. The US claims to bring democracy to the conquered lands (they haven’t; the usual result of a US overthrow is the imposition of a dictatorship, such as the 1953 CIA overthrow of Iran’s democratically elected government of Mohammad Mosaddegh and the imposition of the Shah, or the 1973 CIA overthrow of Chile’s democratically elected government of President Salvador Allende, and the imposition of Augusto Pinochet), or to save a people from a cruel oppressor, revenge for 9-11, or that tired worn-out catch all excuse for invasion, weapons of mass destruction. Assassinations are always passed off as “crazed lone nuts” to obscure the real agenda. The real agenda is simple. It is enslavement of the people by creation of a false sense of obligation. That obligation is false because the Private Central Banking system, by design, always creates more debt than money with which to pay that debt. Private Central Banking is not science, it is a religion; a set of arbitrary rules created to benefit the priesthood, meaning the owners of the Private Central Bank. The fraud persists, with often lethal results, because the people are tricked into believing that this is the way life is supposed to be and no alternative exists or should be dreamt of. The same was true of two earlier systems of enslavement, Rule by Divine Right and Slavery, both systems built to trick people into obedience, and both now recognized by modern civilization as illegitimate. Now we are entering a time in human history where we will recognize that rule by debt, or rule by Private Central Bankers issuing the public currency as a loan at interest, is equally illegitimate. It only works as long as people allow themselves to believe that this is the way life is supposed to be. But understand this above all; Private Central Banks do not exist to serve the people, the community, or the nation. Private Central Banks exist to serve their owners, to make them rich beyond the dreams of Midas and all for the cost of ink, paper, and the right bribe to the right official. Behind all these wars, all these assassinations, the hundred million horrible deaths from all the wars lies a single policy of dictatorship. The private central bankers allow rulers to rule only on the condition that the people of a nation be enslaved to the private central banks. Failing that, said ruler will be killed, and their nation invaded by those other nations enslaved to private central banks. The so-called “clash of civilizations” we read about on the corporate media is really a war between banking systems, with the private central bankers forcing themselves onto the rest of the world, no matter how many millions must die for it. Indeed the constant hatemongering against Muslims lies in a simple fact. Like the ancient Christians (prior to the Knights Templars private banking system) , Muslims forbid usury, or the lending of money at interest. And that is the reason our government and media insist they must be killed or converted. They refuse to submit to currencies issued at interest. They refuse to be debt slaves. So off to war your children must go, to spill their blood for the money-junkies’ gold. We barely survived the last two world wars. In the nuclear/bioweapon age, are the private central bankers willing to risk incinerating the whole planet just to feed their greed? Apparently so. This brings us to the current situation in the Ukraine, Russia, and China. The European Union had been courting the government of the Ukraine to merge with the EU, and more to the point, entangle their economy with the private-owned European Central Bank. The government of the Ukraine was considering the move, but had made no commitments. Part of their concern lay with the conditions in other EU nations enslaved to the ECB, notably Cyprus, Greece, Spain, and Italy. So they were properly cautious. Then Russia stepped in with a better deal and the Ukraine, exercising the basic choice all consumers have to choose the best product at the best price, dropped the EU and announced they were going to go with Russia’s offer. It was at that point that agents provocateurs flooded into the Ukraine, covertly funded by intelligence agency fronts like CANVAS and USAID, stirring up trouble, while the western media proclaimed this was a popular revolution. Snipers shot at people and this violence was blamed on then-President Yanukovich. However a leaked recording of a phone call between the EU’s Catherine Ashton and Estonia’s Foreign Minister Urmas Paet confirmed the snipers were working for the overthrow plotters, not the Ukrainian government. Urmas Paet has confirmed the authenticity of that phone call. This is a classic pattern of covert overthrow we have seen many times before. Since the end of WW2, the US has covertly tried to overthrow the governments of 56 nations, succeeding 25 times. Examples include the 1953 overthrow of Iran’s elected government of Mohammed Mossadegh and the imposition of the Shah, the 1973 overthrow of Chile’s elected government of Salvador Allende and the imposition of the Pinochet dictatorship, and of course, the current overthrow of Ukraine’s elected government of Yanukovich and the imposition of the current unelected government, which is already gutting the Ukraine’s wealth to hand to the western bankers. Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa have formed a parallel financial system called BRICS, scheduled to officially launch on January 1, 2015. As of this writing some 80 nations are ready to trade with BRICS in transactions that do not involve the US dollar. Despite US economic warfare against both Russia and China, the Ruble and Yuan are seen as more attractive for international trade and banking than the US dollar, hence the US attempt to fan the Ukraine crisis into war with Russia, and attempts to provoke North Korea as a back door to war with China. Flag waving and propaganda aside, all modern wars are wars by and for the private bankers, fought and bled for by third parties unaware of the true reason they are expected to gracefully be killed and crippled for. The process is quite simple. As soon as the Private Central Bank issues its currency as a loan at interest, the public is forced deeper and deeper into debt. When the people are reluctant to borrow any more, that is when the Keynesian economists demand the government borrow more to keep the pyramid scheme working. When both the people and government refuse to borrow any more, that is when wars are started, to plunge everyone even deeper into debt to pay for the war, then after the war to borrow more to rebuild. When the war is over, the people have about the same as they did before the war, except the graveyards are far larger and everyone is in debt to the private bankers for the next century. This is why Brown Brothers Harriman in New York was funding the rise of Adolf Hitler. As long as Private Central Banks are allowed to exist, inevitably as the night follows day there will be poverty, hopelessness, and millions of deaths in endless World Wars, until the Earth itself is sacrificed in flames to Mammon. The path to true peace on Earth lies in the abolishment of all private central banking everywhere, and a return to the state-issued value-based currencies that allow nations and people to become prosperous. “Banks do not have an obligation to promote the public good.” — Alexander Dielius, CEO, Germany, Austrian, Eastern Europe Goldman Sachs, 2010 “I am just a banker doing God’s work.” — Lloyd Blankfein, CEO, Goldman Sachs, 2009 [The Essence Of The Banking Industry…] Other articles by Michael Rivero on the fraud of Private Central Banking. THE ELEVENTH MARBLE HOW YOU BECAME A SLAVE TO THE BANKERS! Awaken slaves! – How The Private Central Bank Ponzi Scheme Trapped And Destroyed America THE FATAL FLAWS IN WALL STREET’S ECONOMIC THEORY BANKERS GONE WILD – HOW THE US GOVERNMENT HELPED WALL STREET GANG-RAPE AMERICA’S MIDDLE CLASS (AND MOST OF EUROPE) This article was originally titled “ALL WARS ARE BANKERS’ WARS!” It was found on WhatReallyHappened.com and republished on this website for educational purposes. For additional information, watch the following video. All Wars Are Bankers’ Wars Donate to Help Make a Difference OmniThought.org is a true independent blog and is free of third-party ads. If you like reading the articles on this site, please take action now by clicking the "Donate" button below to send a donation to the author/editor. Your generous support will help fund his research and expenses, allowing him to continue his quest to educate and teach people to create a better world for everyone. Category: Banksters, Conspiracy
• Van Gaal has been out of work since leaving Old Trafford last May • Dutchman was reportedly offered £11m a season by Asian club Louis van Gaal has confirmed he intends to retire from coaching despite the former Manchester United manager receiving an offer to manage a club in Asia where he would have earned £44m in three seasons. What has happened to Pep Guardiola’s project at Manchester City? Read more The Dutchman, 65, has been out of work since leaving Manchester United in May – just two days after he led them to victory in the FA Cup final. Despite initially stating that he was keen to work again after two years at Old Trafford, Van Gaal told the Dutch newspaper the Telegraaf on Monday that “events in his family” have persuaded him not to despite the chance to earn a lucrative salary overseas. “I could go there, but I’m still here,” Van Gaal said. “So much has happened in my family.” Van Gaal also managed Ajax, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Holland in a coaching career that began in 1991. He said after leaving United that he was interested in coaching again, but that door now seems to have closed. The report said that last month one of his daughters lost her husband, and that has weighed heavily on his decision. “I thought maybe I would stop, then I thought it would be a sabbatical, but now I do not think I will return to coaching,” he said.
Crews are cleaning up an oil spill at an Enbridge storage facility in Strathcona County. Oil leaked into a storm pond on an adjacent site and then into a creek, the National Energy Board said in a news release Monday. The leak has been controlled and the oil contained, the release said. There is no estimate of the volume of oil that leaked. The board reports there were no injuries, no fire, no evacuations and no risk to the public. The board said its staff is on site and will verify that Enbridge "conducts an adequate and appropriate clean-up and remediation of any environmental impacts caused by the incident." The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has also deployed a team of investigators. The TSB will gather information and assess the occurrence, it said in a news release. Last month an Enbridge pipeline in the same vicinity leaked 200,000 litres of oil condensate after a third party struck the line during construction.
Ups I “Hey, look. It’s that fat kid from recon. And he’s running.” Aaron pointed to Kevin, a haughty, portly, unpleasant fellow from our detailing shop. It had begun to rain and Kevin was high-steppin’ across the parking lot. Neither Aaron nor I had ever seen him run; usually, Kevin lurches around the dealership like he has mortar blocks for feet. “He runs like a fat kid,” I said, then take a drag from my toke up. “He is a fat kid,” Aaron said, laughing as he exhaled. “Yep. But it doesn’t mean he has to run like one.” “Fuckin’ right.” A pause. “Gay people all run the same, though.” “You know, I think you may be on to something there.” “I’m fucking sure of it.” “I knew a mechanic with a wife and two kids that turned gay.” “That’s fucked up.” “Tis. One day he dumped his wife, kissed his kids goodbye, and went of to live with this dude.” “Was the other fag rich or something?” “No. He just genuinely loved this other dude. And the other dude was really gay. Like, so gay that if he passed you doing 100 miles an hour on the freeway, and you didn’t even see his face, you’d know he was a fucking faggot.” Aaron laughed and pulled a drag. His eyes danced through the car lot, looking for browsing customers. I did the same, dillegently alert for even the briefest appearance of an “up”–slang in the car business for a customer. “Oh, and the homo mechanic? Yeah, he still ran like a faggot,” I said, flicking my cigarette away. I caught a glimpse of a car slowing down. I checked my pockets: pen, pad, used car list, incentives and rebates, and, most importantly, business cards, ensconced it a silver inlaid card holder. The guy in the car stopped and dashed from his 1998 base Chevy Lumina (fuck), leaving the door open and car running. He ran to a new Camry LE, with pie pan wheels and a four-cylinder engine. Twenty-three grand. That means I’m gonna offer this guy a thousand bucks for his car and he’s gonna be pissed. On top of all that, there has to be a reason he’s still driving a fucking 98 Lumina. Either he’s extremely pleased with his 98 fucking Lumina, which is highly unlikely. Or he’s trapped by bad credit. One I can handle. The other will crumble and annihilate three hours of work. “I’m gonna go talk to the douchebag in the Luminator,” says I. “Take an app with you,” says Aaron. He means take a credit app with me and have the gentleman fill it out on the hood of his car. It doesn’t happen these days. But it did back in the grand ol’ days of the car business. Everything happened back then. I laugh. Four and a half hours later, that guy drove home a car. He ended up paying $23 grand out the door. But his credit was shit, so his payments were $549.11 a month for 72 months. That means he would have to pay back forty thousand dollars for a car that cost 20. You know, I think it’d be easier just to throw that money into a fucking fire, man; rather than have to spend four hours with me jawing at you to buy the fucking car. II I know a very abrasive Jewish salesman. First of all, he kind of mumbles when he speaks, so I’m always saying, “excuse me?” or “pardon?” (I’m not the kind of guy who says, “huh?”). So then the abrasive Jewish guy gets angry when he has to repeat himself; “Get. The. MSO. FROM. LINDA. THEN, Give. It. To. Gina. Do you understand the words coming from my mouth?” He hisses under his breath so I have to strain to hear him berating me. He treats everyone the same: management, his colleagues, even his customers–who hate him, for the most part. His job is to present Toyotas, and he does it well. He knows his product forward and back. But he’s certainly not passionate about cars. No, he knows the product because he’s great at his job; he has no great love of vehicles. He is a consumate salesman who is overbearing, arrogant, snide, and, worst of all, intelligent. People have to work very hard to like him. But after you put an effort in to something, you tend to relish the outcome more–even seemingly trivial things. So all of his friendships are based on the effort put in to learn to like him. But I do like him. Immensley. His name is Frank. He’s a bastard. Car customers, in general, are confrontational. And salesman are, for the most part, inviting, even stoic. Frank is also confrontational, which produces a strange sociological effect, wheras the customer and Frank are forced to become confrontational with each other to satisfy both their needs. Like two wildebeast fighting over a water hole. Salesman as wildebeasts usually just welcome the other wildebeasts in for a drink, tell them about all the features of the water hole, then ask them, politely, if they’d like to own it. Not Frank. Frank defends the water hole, berates and bewilders the other wildebeast, then, grudgingly lets the other wildebeast buy it at substantial profit. He clobbers customers with Consumer Reports and facts and trivia about Toyotas. He convinces them that they are fools to buy any other car on the road. (Just by hanging around him so much, the feeling has rubbed off). He says things like, “You’re just shopping? You drove 60 miles just to shop? That’s ludicrous. Of course you’re buying a car.” And, “I’ve answered this question for you six times. Let me write it down for you.” And the immortal, “Ma’am, you just called me a liar. Please leave.” The last lady, the one he asked to leave? Yeah, she bought a car off of him. A used Camry. He clubbed her like a baby seal; maximum gross, something like four or five grand. I had to deliver the car because she loathed him that much. But she was happy in her purchase, believe it or not. Frank is the top salesman at our dealership. He consistently pulls down at least six grand a month. When he’s not talking to customers, he’s reading. When he’s not reading, he’s belittiling. I”ve loaned this guy dozens of books. He reads voraciously. He likes historical fiction and sci-fi. (As do I.) He also digs fantasty, but I don’t hold it against him. III Salesman are as gossipy as school girls. I know the service manager has only one testicle. I know that Neil, one of the detail guys, has a raunchy porn mag and a bottle of Jergens in his car. I know that the chick in the body shop will suck you off if you infer something about her tongue piercing and the price of Vicoden these days. I know my manager and co-worker are having affairs. (My manager is discreet; my co-worker stops a car in the middle of the car wash and fucks his college co-ed in her white Scion TC.) The internet manager was in jail for six months for vehicular manslaughter. My business manager–yes, my business manager–was in jail for four years after robbing countless convienent stores at gunpoint. The chances are very great that he was repeatedly raped. I know about bastard children, ex-wives, penis sizes, and all about the smell and size of pretty much everyone’s bowel movements. Car dealerships, it seems, are smoking craters of depravity. Or perhaps the people who work there are just brutally honest. Or maybe just brutal. Or maybe just. I used to work as a director of a christian non-profit. (Although I’m a devout atheist). I had a board of directors who believed very strongly in morals and just behavior. They were pedantic and fueled by dogma. They were my colleagues and I found them proselytizing naysayers. Now, in the past week, I’ve seen 13 pictures of naked girlfriends, one grainy cell phone video of a colleague getting a back-alley blow job, and one manager that came from behind me, put his hands in my pockets and checked out the size of my cock and balls. And I couldn’t be happier. Presently, the people I work with are real people. Previously, I worked with people assembled from the same manual. Built by The Book. They didn’t want to get their souls dirty.
Javaslang, an open-source functional library that provides persistent data types and functional control structures for Java 8 and beyond, published a version 3.0 roadmap scheduled for March 2017: Javaslang was created by software developer Daniel Dietrich and first released in 2013 to coincide with the early release of Java 8. It leverages Java 8’s lambdas to “create various new features based on functional patterns” with the intent to replace Java’s standard collections with a functional collection library. In a recent interview with jOOQ (Java Object-Oriented Querying API), Dietrich explained his vision for adding object-functional programming style to Java: I think that many users were disappointed about Java 8 in the whole, especially those who are already familiar with more advanced languages. The Java language architects did an awesome job. Java 8 brought groundbreaking new features like Lambdas, the new Stream API and CompletableFuture. But the new abstractions were only poorly integrated into the language from an API perspective. Object-functional programming is nothing new. It is the best of both worlds, object-oriented programming and functional programming. Scala is one of the better choices to do it on the JVM. Java’s Lambdas are an enabling feature. They allowed us to create a Javaslang API that is similar to Scala. Michael Feathers, founder and director of R7K Research & Conveyance, once tweeted, “OO makes code understandable by encapsulating moving parts; FP makes code understandable by minimizing moving parts.” Previous version 2.0 release Version 2.0 focused on interoperability with Java 8. With over 1900 commits, significant features included: New interfaces, Future and Promise, for concurrent programming. A new pattern-matching API. New collection types. A more recent Javaslang blog demonstrated how to use the new pattern-matching API along with a preview of additional API methods for the upcoming version 2.1.0: March 2017 version 3.0 release While the version 3 changeset is being planned, the development community is encouraged to participate in Javaslang’s Gitter discussion, peruse the formal list of proposals, and contribute. Dietrich spoke to InfoQ about the road to version 3.0: InfoQ: What sets Javaslang apart from other functional libraries, like jOOλ, StreamEx, and Cyclops? Daniel Dietrich: Javaslang aims to bring as much as possible of the Scala goodness to the Java language. That is the unique selling point. There is no reason to reinvent the wheel and create new concepts for problems that are already solved. We benefit from aligning to Scala for the following reasons: Some of the basic ideas behind Scala are also valid for Javaslang, for example the similar persistent collection hierarchy. The learning curve is smooth. Using Javaslang should be easy for those of us who are already familiar with Scala. There is much Scala documentation available that is also valid for Javaslang, especially on how to solve common problems with the collection library (e.g. on Stack Overflow). Javaslang is more expressive/concise than plain Java 8 and might also be faster than Java 8’s Stream (see benchmarks of our upcoming Vector: https://github.com/javaslang/javaslang/pull/1557). jOOλ and StreamEx contain utility functions, they work well for making it easier to use Java 8’s Stream. But users still have to write unnecessary, noisy code. More lines of code correlates to more errors. Cyclops is a niche library for distributed programming but not as popular as RxJava and Akka. It looks a little bit like a playground for functional-ish features, like stackless recursion with trampolines and lifting of monadic types. These are not practical in Java, and intentionally these features were not included in the Javaslang core. InfoQ: Does the delay of Java 9, now scheduled for July 2017, affect your planned release of Javaslang 3.0 in March? Dietrich: Javaslang will stay backward compatible to Java 8. New Java features that will influence the Javaslang API will be shipped with Java 10. So I currently see no reason why the delay of Java 9 should affect the release date of Javaslang 3.0. However, there are already changes to the roadmap. InfoQ: Are there any updates you can share on the release of Javaslang 2.1.0 and/or the roadmap to Javaslang 3.0? Dietrich: The development and testing of the new Javaslang features will take more time. We will make a public BETA version of Javaslang 2.1.0 available at the end of this year. The work on Javaslang 3.0 will be started after the release of Javaslang 2.1.0 to reduce friction losses. To compensate the delay of 3.0, we will include some features into 2.1.0 that were originally targeted for a posterior release. A complete list of features can be viewed on our project site https://github.com/javaslang/javaslang. Javaslang 2.0.x is already pretty mature, so we will take our time to get 2.1.0 right. I currently cannot tell an exact release date but I want encourage our users to start testing the BETA version and release candidates as soon as they are available. Javaslang 3.0 will not be backward compatible to Javaslang 2.x. From the user-perspective the upcoming 2.1.0 release is more interesting regarding existing code bases that already depend on Javaslang. The 3.0 release will be the future of Javalsang. Resources
Inuit employees working for the Government of Nunavut make on average $20,000 less than non-Inuit workers, according to a report by the territory's Department of Finance. The salary discrepancy is a sign more Inuit require further training, says the president of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. The Public Service Annual Report for 2014/2015 tabled in the winter sitting of the Nunavut Legislative Assembly breaks down the average salaries for 3,400 full-time public servants working for the territory. The report shows about a $20,000 difference between what an average female Nunavut Land Claims beneficiary earns ($79,480) compared with a non-beneficiary female employee ($99,042). A beneficiary male ($82,376) earns on average $20,000 less than a non-Inuit male ($102,569). "There's a huge salary disparity," said NTI president Cathy Towtongie. "That's why it's crucial for Inuit to gain these skill sets so the salary levels will follow them." Half of full-time Government of Nunavut employees are beneficiaries, a figure consistent since 2009 according to the report and far short of the territory's goal of reaching a workforce that's 85 per cent Inuit by 2020. Inuit men are proportionately under-represented, making up less than 12 per cent of the Government of Nunavut workforce, something Towtongie hopes to change. "How do we target Inuit men who are less employed?" Towtongie said. "That's what we're looking at." Cathy Towtongie, president of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., says 'it's crucial for Inuit to gain these skill sets so the salary levels will follow them.' (Sima Sahar Zerehi/CBC) The Makigiaqta Inuit Training Corporation is working on a plan to train, retain and encourage more Inuit to enter the workforce in a territory with a massive unemployment rate. Unemployment among Inuit in Nunavut was 22.8 per cent in March. The training corporation is made up of leaders at NTI, the three regional Inuit associations, Nunavut's premier and the territory's minister of education. It was created out of a $255 million settlement agreement between NTI and the federal and territorial governments in 2015. "We are all working in unity to ensure Inuit beneficiaries are given opportunities, but at the same time, we don't want to set them up for failure," Towtongie said. Beneficiary-only jobs One way to get more Inuit working with the territory is a policy introduced in September 2015 restricting some Nunavut government job postings to beneficiaries only. "Only those that are enrolled under the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement would screen in or have the opportunity to screen in for that particular competition," said Virginia Lloyd, associate deputy minister at Nunavut's Department of Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs. Lloyd says the territory is also looking at what it can do to fill its 1,141 vacant full-time positions with Inuit employees. The territory is trying to identify what it can do to bring potential employees into the workforce, part of an Inuit employment plan it's working on putting together this year with NTI and the federal government. "Knowing that there is a high interest from Inuit to work within the Government of Nunavut is very encouraging and motivational for us to ensure we provide all opportunities," Lloyd said.
Nicola Sturgeon has warned Theresa May must “honour her promise” to keep Scotland at the heart of crunch Brexit negotiations or face the break-up of the UK, as both leaders prepare for showdown talks in London. The First Minister admitted she has been left “frustrated” by the approach of the Tory leader since they met in Edinburgh in the days after Mrs May replaced David Cameron in Downing Street. It’s time [for the PM] to prove these things and demonstrate to Scotland that our voice does count in the UK and our interests can be protected NICOLA STURGEON The SNP leader warned again that Scotland must be allowed to stay in the EU single market even if other parts of the UK leave – and that failure to secure this will mean a second independence referendum is staged. Ms Sturgeon again repeated her belief that such a scenario is now “highly likely” in the aftermath of the Brexit vote. Proposals for a separate deal which Scotland could broker with the EU will be published by Ms Sturgeon in the next few weeks, while a new Bill for a second independence referendum will be unveiled in the coming days. Ms Sturgeon said: “Theresa May, perfectly legitimately, has said she values the UK, she wants to keep the UK together. In the independence referendum, Scotland was told repeatedly it was an equal partner in the UK. “My message to the Prime Minister is, it’s now time to prove these things and demonstrate to Scotland that our voice does count in the UK and our interests can be protected. If that’s not the case, then I think Scotland would have the right to decide whether it wanted to follow a different path.” Scotland voted 62 per cent to 38 per cent in favour of remaining in the European Union in the June referendum, but the weight of votes south of the Border swung the result in favour of Leave. Ms Sturgeon admitted yesterday she is fed up being frozen out of the Brexit proposals by the new Prime Minister. “I think it has been frustrating, if I can be diplomatic about it,” Ms Sturgeon said yesterday. “Theresa May came to Edinburgh just a couple of days after she became Prime Minister, gave a commitment to me and to Scotland that we’d be fully involved and that she would listen to options we put forward. “I think it’s fair to say that promise hasn’t yet been fully honoured and I hope we’ll see it honoured in the days to come.” The First Minister said it would be “challenging” but “possible” for Scotland to remain in the single market outside the EU, even if the rest of the UK is not party to such an arrangement. She told the SNP conference last week that detailed proposals will be published within weeks. “We are going to put forward proposals, that we would hope that the UK government would be prepared to listen to, that would allow Scotland to preserve its place in the single market and preserve aspects of its relationship with the EU,” Ms Sturgeon said. “What I’m trying to do is to explore options whereby Scotland doesn’t have to leave the European Union or the single market, because we voted to stay in.” The First Minister is due meet the Prime Minister along with the leaders of other devolved administrations next Monday at the first meeting of the Joint Ministerial Committee to discuss Brexit. The SNP leader has also said that the UK government’s current reluctance to share its negotiating position on Brexit with the public or the House of Commons is “unacceptable”. Ms Sturgeon said: “The House of Commons and the wider public has almost been told to butt out and mind their own business, and we saw in the House of Commons last week there’s not a lot of support for that kind of approach.” She said it was not acceptable to have a “secret negotiating strategy” and it should be shared with the public and endorsed by parliament. At last week’s SNP conference, the First Minister pledged that the Scottish Government will call a second independence referendum if the UK opts for a “hard Brexit”, but said she wants to work with others to try and “save” the UK from being removed from the single market. The Scottish Government’s draft independence referendum bill will be published for consultation next week. The SNP has already launched a campaign to reach out to those who voted No in 2014 but who are now wavering. But Scottish Secretary David Mundell played down claims that the EU result in Scotland was grounds for another vote on leaving the UK. He said: “We’ve had a vote which we were told was a once in a generation vote as to whether Scotland should remain part of the United Kingdom – there was a decisive result in that vote. “We were aware there was going to be a vote on whether the United Kingdom remained in the EU. The reasons for Scotland remaining in the UK were overwhelmingly economic and those are the same issues that there was today in relation to the UK single market. “I find it very odd that people who are very, very concerned about the EU single market are quite willing to give up the UK single market, which is four times as valuable to Scotland and responsible for a million jobs.” The UK government would have to authorise a new referendum on Scottish independence if it was to be legally binding because constitutional issues are reserved to Westminster, but Mr Mundell refused to explicitly state whether it would or not. “There could be another referendum, but we want to argue that there shouldn’t be another referendum. “I’ve said from the outset that we would listen to any proposals that the Scottish Government brought forward in relation to Scotland’s interests. “We’ve had four months and no specific proposals have come forward. “I see it as impossible, for example, that Scotland could remain in the EU while the rest of the EU left.” Asked whether Scotland could stay in the single market, Mr Mundell said: “I think it’s difficult to see how that would be achieved, but I’ve said before we will listen to any proposals that the Scottish Government brings forward.”
The group hopes to use the satellite to provide internet access to developing countries [EPA] Want to buy your very own state-of-the-art satellite? The idea sounds outlandish, but an international group of internet activists are trying to raise $150,000 in the hope of eventually purchasing the Terrestar-1 satellite to provide free internet connections to people in the developing world. "The satellite is as big as a school bus," said Kosta Grammatis, a visiting researcher at MIT Media Labs and a founder of the internet accessibility programme ahumanright.org. "We want to raise $150,000 then we can bring in experts, finalise the business plan and start chasing after the big bucks," which will amount to millions of dollars, he added. It may seem like they are reaching for the stars, but Grammatis says every project needs to start somewhere. He believes internet access is a crucial tool for human development and poverty alleviation. "If people have access to the internet, they can learn, educate themselves and solve their own problems," he said. Getting connected A country like Papua New Guinea, with six million people and an internet penetration rate of just 2.1 per cent, would be an ideal candidate for the project because there is a desire for increased connectivity and an orbital slot above the island where a satellite could be parked, Grammatis said. The group hopes to buy the satellite, move it over the country where they think it would be most useful, and then partner with local service providers that already operate in the area. Their business model revolves around selling high speed connections to users who want the service and using the revenue generated to provide slower speed broadband that will be free to everyone. But if a country cannot afford widespread broadband internet connections, how will the average person be able to buy a computer to surf the web? "India is building a laptop that will cost about $12," Grammatis said. "The cost of computers is falling, but the price of internet access has actually gone up in some places." The owners of Terrestar-1, an American communications satellite blasted into space in 2009, are facing bankruptcy. Terre Star Mobile Communications did not respond to Al Jazeera's requests for comment. "These big companies have giant debt to pay back. If we buy it, we don't owe any debt," Grammatis said. Expensive plan But it is not that simple. "Building, funding and launching that satellite was incredibly difficult and expensive," said Jason Bates, the editor of Satellite Today magazine in the US, a trade publication which has covered the development of Terrestar-1. Bates says the Buy This Satellite campaign is "a very cool, grassroots, help the world kind of idea, but the funding aspect of this makes it very difficult". Bates agrees with Grammatis that the "best way to close the digital divide will be through existing satellites," rather than laying down traditional lines on the ground. And, he likes the idea of partnering with local companies because "a hybrid network makes sense". The Buy This Satellite campaign has raised more than $19,000 in just a few days by campaigning online. But Bates believes that "there would be a better way to provide this service [accessible internet] with that cash than buying this satellite". "You can move the satellite, but you need to find a way to get the reception equipment to actually access the system, to distribute it over a wide area." Activists say the reception equipment and long-term maintenance are not insurmountable problems. "It actually isn't that expensive to run the satellite," said Grammatis, who came up with the plan to buy the device during a meeting of 30 people under the age of 30 who were trying to address global problems. "The satellite just sits in space, it is solar-powered, and it adjusts itself with thrusters." Broader implications The internet brings information and inter-personal connectivity to the furthest reaches of the planet. "It is seed infrastructure. You build a road in a city before you build the city," Grammatis said. Thomas Friedman, the Pulitzer Prize winning New York Times columnist, once wrote that "thanks to satellite dishes, the internet and television ... we can now see through, hear through and look through almost every conceivable wall". However, the internet is not a boundless flow of free information. Walls, in the real world and online, are still separating people and ideas. China's government has used internet technology to create the great fire wall, blocking sites that the ruling elite deem problematic. And the Chinese are not alone in their ability to control activities on the net. Omar Bongo, the former dictator of Gabon in West Africa, once remarked that: "Information on the internet must be as free as in the newspapers." The irony, of course, being that Gabon did not have a free press. The net may be a crucial tool for social betterment; however technology alone cannot bring freedom, democracy, poverty alleviation or new ideas. But the people behind Buy This Satellite are trying to do their bit and Bates says: "If the whole world thought like these people, it would be a great place."
Chuck Schumer. Alex Wong/Getty Images Incoming Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is about to be the most powerful Democrat in Washington — tasked with leading Democrats on issues of agreement with President-elect Donald Trump, while also opposing him on issues they don't see eye to eye on. It just so happens that the Democrat who will likely have to work closest with Trump is also the senator who's received more in campaign donations from the Manhattan billionaire than any other member of the Senate. From 1996, when Schumer was running for a House seat, to 2010, Trump donated roughly $9,000 directly to the New York Democrat's campaign, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Three of Trump's children — Eric, Donald Jr., and Ivanka — donated a combined $6,800 to Schumer. Jared Kushner, Ivanka's husband and a top adviser to the president-elect, donated $4,000 to Schumer. "I mean, I've contributed to Schumer, I contribute — I've known Schumer for many, many years," Trump said last year. "And I have a good relationship with him. The fact is, that I think it is time maybe that we all do get along." At last month's Al Smith dinner in New York, Trump joked that Schumer "used to love me when I was a Democrat." Schumer, who was elected Senate minority leader on Wednesday, spoke with Trump "a couple of times" since the real-estate magnate pulled off his unforeseen victory last week. The New York Times reported that Democrats plan to announce populist economic and ethics plans in the coming weeks that are in line with some of Trump's campaign rhetoric, and areas of agreement will seemingly include infrastructure spending, child tax credits, and stricter enforcement of trade agreements. "When we can agree on issues, then we're going to work with them," Schumer said. "But I've also said to the president-elect on issues where we disagree, you can expect a strong and tough fight." Other House and Senate Democrats who have received donations from Trump and his family and will serve after Trump's inauguration include Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida, Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts, Rep. Charlie Crist of Florida, and Rep. Carolyn Maloney of New York.
Goldbug view on bitcoin BitSwan What geeks need to learn from gold market chartist Blocked Unblock Follow Following Nov 30, 2013 “By 2005 or so, it will become clear that the Internet’s impact on the economy has been no greater than the fax machine’s.” ~Paul Krugman Social transitions are unpredictable. Nobody knew how internet would change society. Nobel laureates confirms that perfectly. Now IT continued to develop at ever increasing rates since then. And the Dot.com bubble didn’t stop this evolution. The evolution of technology continued uninterrupted. This is good news for bitcoin but at the same time says nothing about the sustainable price level. Dot.com bubble burst Stock prices after Dot.com bubble burst didn’t come back in minutes. So the big question regarding bitcoin is where are we in the bubble cycle? Where are we now with bitcoin. Who knows? I don’t think public understands but also can’t get in on $1000 easily? Did we take off? 1.Sure we can say that after hitting $1000 dollar barrier. 2.Yes, there were many sell offs. 3.Bitcoin has a lot of media attention and enthusiasm involved. 4.Greed hard to define, but sure lot of people are greedy about bitcoin now, mostly those who lost their hardware:}. My feeling is that we are in a Delusion phase with bitcoin right now. But what I can’t say now is that public is somehow involved. The participation in bitcoin is minuscule versus other asset classes. That would play well for further bitcoin price rise but on current levels above $1000 for bitcoin, it is very hard for public to get in.When “some” don’t even understand how to be secure on internet not to understand concept of crypto-currency. So to say, bitcoin market potentially got ahead of itself because the widespread masses don’t have that much capital for gabling if they were not involved in lower prices. That means that there may be very little supporting barriers on the way down? Maybe yes, maybe not. Technology will not stop and will continue to bring unexpected social changes , positive or negative as they can’t exist in isolation. But that was the same with Dot.com, only the price valuations were not sustainable in terms of average subjective opinion on value. 5000 years vs. 4 years of history Goldbugs can’t get their heads around the unbelievable surprise of crypto-currencies. Their “thing” is 5000 years proven medium of exchange. And still gold wasn’t able to become transparent non-controlled market for long decades. Now suddenly crypto currencies in few months beats performance of all asset classes in the world. Seeing gold to bitcoin ratio fluctuating around 1:1 must bring tears to eyes to longterm precious metal investors. Bitcoin Now Worth More Than Gold But more than ever after this unexpected Tulip like rise in bitcoin, we must not forget how small bitcoin market is in regards to those with money. Look what was done to gold by controlling markets with unlimited fiat money. This is something bitcoiners need to keep in mind. Great resource for Precious metals investors http://jessescrossroadscafe.blogspot.sk/ Bitcoin market capitalization around $15 billion is very small in comparison to other markets, so any of big financial players, or big funds, not to say central banks can corner that market very easily. As I have said in my research Questioning bitcoin, concentration of power in bitcoin market is the most threatening aspect of bitcoin. Confirmed by the list of top bitcoin holders which represent over 20% of the entire outstanding amount of the alternative currency.
ESPN's Taylor Twellman had a rant this past weekend at halftime during the broadcast of Portland's 2-2 draw at FC Dallas, which sent them to their first MLS Cup. It was about the annual MLS Best XI, and to sum it up: The list is not representative of the best 11 players in the league, nor of the best 11-man team it's possible to create out of MLS players, nor of the best players at each position in the league this year. I happen to agree with him. I think that putting together teams of each of the above has merit and can be a fun exercise, but to me, the "Best XI" each year means the best players at each position throughout the course of the season. That means there has to be a d-mid (there was this year), and there have to be fullbacks (nope). The team also has to line up in a formation that's representative of how the league plays, and 20 out of 20 MLS teams use fullbacks. To ignore them entirely – even if it was an unremarkable year for fullbacks across the league – doesn't make sense. For what it's worth, here's this year's official Best XI: Guess you'd line up that "Best XI" like this? pic.twitter.com/23RMFFAiYG — Total MLS (@TotalMLS) November 29, 2015 This really isn't bad. They'd get slaughtered defensively out wide, and there'd be a constant disconnect between the Dax McCarty/Benny Feilhaber line and the five-man attack of Ethan Finlay, Robbie Keane, Sebastian Giovinco, Kei Kamara and Fabian Castillo, but at least it makes a certain amount of sense. Not enough, though. No compromises: #FullbacksArePeopleToo. So in what's becoming something of an annual tradition, here's my Best XI x3: First XI GK: Luis Robles LB: Waylon Francis CB: Kendall Waston CB: Matt Hedges RB: Steven Beitashour DM: McCarty CM: Feilhaber RM: Finlay LM: Castillo FW: Giovinco FW: Kamara I think this is fairly representative of the best players in each zone this season, though with the league's shift from a 4-4-2 base to more of a 4-2-3-1, I could argue for dropping one of the true forwards and bringing in another central midfielder. Which of Giovinco or Kamara could you justify dropping, though? The other compromise I made is putting Finlay and Castillo in there as true midfielders. These guys are both field-stretching wingers in real life, and would struggle to do some of the defensive and possession work that we see out of wide players in the 4-4-2 – guys like Sebastian Lletget or Shea Salinas. Yet I've seen enough of them to be comfortable enough with this set up. And obviously the toughest spot to fill is right back. Beitashour was good but not great, which pretty much says it all about that position in 2015. Second XI GK: David Ousted LB: Chris Tierney CB: Laurent Ciman CB: Nat Borchers RB: Tyrone Mears DM: Matias Laba CM: Tony Tchani CM: Sacha Kljestan RW: Lloyd Sam FW: Didier Drogba LW: David Villa The only cheat I used here was putting Villa at left wing. He spent only part of his season there, playing much more frequently as a sort of False 9 and playing his best as a second forward in various two-forward set-ups. Nonetheless, I'm comfortable with him in this spot since he spends so much time attacking inverted on the left and remains a reliable worker on the defensive side of the ball. For what it's worth: If I were to choose any one of these three teams to go out and get me a win against the Monstars, this is the group. Third XI GK: Bill Hamid LB: DaMarcus Beasley CB: Matt Besler CB: Matt Miazga RB: Marvell Wynne DM: Diego Chara CM: Darlington Nagbe AM: Mauro Diaz RW: Krisztian Nemeth CF: Obafemi Martins LW: Robbie Keane Yeah... I fudged it a bit on this one because Keane is clearly not a left wing. I'm not 100% confident that this XI would hold up defensively because of that – he'd spend a ton of time cutting inside and leaving the flank exposed. A more representative pick would have been Montreal's Ignacio Piatti, but 1) He only moved out wide for the last couple of weeks of the season, and 2) Keane carried LA down the stretch pretty much single-handedly, and he needed recognition. The Besler selection will, I'm sure, draw some comments. But bear this in mind: Sporting replaced their starting 'keeper, both starting fullbacks, Besler's partner in central defense and their starting d-mid either in the offseason or throughout the year itself. He was literally the only constant, the only holdover in a league where chemistry and continuity play outsize roles. He is, along with Borchers, the best organizer in the league – he makes the collection of talent a "team" – and since it's a team game, that needs some dap. A couple more notes:
About 20 people witnessed a historic moment Monday night as Dorval Mayor Edgar Rouleau recited for the last time a prayer seeking God’s guidance at the start of the city council meeting. Before reading a short prayer as has been customary for decades in Dorval, Rouleau acknowledged a Supreme Court of Canada ruling is forcing his hand to end the practice. The April 15 ruling, which involved the city of Saguenay and was based on a complaint filed by an atheist, had declared that the practice of reciting prayers at the start of council meetings is an infringement on freedom of conscience and religion. Rouleau, first elected to council in 1982, said he wanted to recite the council meeting prayer one last time to honour the city’s heritage. “We’ve been doing it for many years,” he said of the council prayer. “It was, of course, way before my time. I said 100 years, it might be 50 years, I don’t know. I think it was fitting to record it was the last time we did the prayer on April 20.” Dorval has never faced complaints or objections regarding its prayer and it’s disappointing the practice has to end, Rouleau said, adding it’s more about reflecting the city’s heritage than observing a Catholic faith. “I find it unfortunate (we have to end the practice),” he added. “It’s the Supreme Court, we cannot challenge it.” The mayor said his council will likely hold a moment of reflection or possibly read a non-religious affirmation as an alternative. As well, Rouleau told The Gazette that the crucifix hanging on the wall behind the mayor’s chair in the council chamber will remain, at least until there is a judicial ruling forcing the matter. An old, yet undated, and yellowing copy of Dorval’s prayer will be framed and mounted for posterity at city hall, he vowed. Meanwhile, the Pierrefonds-Roxboro borough will also no longer read a prayer before the start of its council meetings, a practice which dated back decades to when Pierrefonds was an independent municipality and then continued after its merger with Montreal in 2002. “It’s not something that should be politicized,” borough mayor Jim Beis said. “It’s something that comes from the Supreme Court of Canada and that’s the law that governs us. We will talk at caucus whether we will hold a moment of silence instead of a prayer. But it’s clear the prayer is going to be removed from our council meetings. There’s no debate about it. We are respectful of the ruling and we are going to abide by it.” Beis noted their prayer never evoked any objections from the public. “The public is very respectful. Some choose not to stand. I respect that. If they choose not to, that’s fine. This is what it is to live together,” he said. “In light of the judgment, we can’t continue something that we’re not supposed to.” A cross also adorns a wall in the borough council chamber. Beis said the Supreme Court ruling doesn’t address the placement of crosses and there are no plans to take it down. “We also have to be very respectful of history and traditions and make sure when we do make a decision that we have all that information, and make a decision that’s acceptable for all,” Beis said of the cross.
Approximately 18 people die every day waiting for an organ transplant. But that may change someday sooner than you think—thanks to 3D printing. Advances in the 3D printing of human tissue have moved fast enough that San Diego-based bio-printing company Organovo now expects to unveil the world’s first printed organ—a human liver—next year. Like other forms of 3D printing, bio-printing lays down layer after layer of material—in this case, live cells—to form a solid physical entity—in this case, human tissue. The major stumbling block in creating tissue continues to be manufacturing the vascular system needed to provide it with life-sustaining oxygen and nutrients. Living cells may literally die before the tissue gets off the printer table. Organovo An animation on Organovo's website shows how human tissue can be printed. Organovo, however, said it has overcome that vascular issue to a degree. “We have achieved thicknesses of greater than 500 microns, and have maintained liver tissue in a fully functional state with native phenotypic behavior for at least 40 days,” said Mike Renard, Organovo’s executive vice president of commercial operations. A micron is one-millionth of a meter. To better understand the scale Renard is describing, think of it this way: A sheet of printer paper is 100 microns thick. So the tissue Organovo has printed is the thickness of five sheets of paper stacked on top of each other. Printing hepatocytes—the cells that make up most liver tissue—isn’t enough, however. There are multiple types of cells with different functions in tissue that must be combined to create a living human organ. Organovo’s researchers were able to bring together fibroblasts and endothelial cells, which perform the function of developing tiny vascular networks, allowing the company to achieve thick tissue with good cell viability, Renard said. The liver tissue model that Organovo plans to release next year is for research use only and will be used in the laboratory for medical studies and drug research. That’s important in its own right: Developing a new drug costs, on average, $1.2 billion and takes 12 years. Organovo has as yet not released any information on possible future implantable organs. Any such initiative would have to undergo rigorous government review before being approved for clinical purposes. Still, the creation of a viable liver is a watershed moment for the bio-printing industry and medicine because it proves 3D printed tissue can be kept alive long enough to test the effects of drugs on it or implant it in a human body where it can further develop. ”It is too early to speculate on the breadth of applications that tissue engineering will ultimately deliver or on the efficacy that will be achieved,” Renard said. That question, Renard said, can only be answered through continued successful tissue development and the completion of clinical trials, followed by a review by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)—a process that can take three to 10 years. To spur on the development of bio-printed organs, the Methuselah Foundation, a Springfield, Va.-based not-for-profit that supports regenerative medicine research, this month announced a $1 million prize for the first organization to print a fully functioning liver. Currently, there are about 120,000 people on the organ waiting list in the U.S., and even those who receive a donated organ face the prospect of ongoing medical challenges because of organ rejection issues. However, if a patient’s own stem cells could be used to regenerate a living organ, rejection would become moot. Research into whole organ regeneration currently receives less than $500 million in funding a year in the U.S., compared to $5 billion for cancer research and $2.8 billion for HIV and AIDS, the Methuselah Foundation said in its contest announcement. “Regenerative medicine is the future of healthcare, but right now the field is falling through the cracks,” said Methuselah CEO David Gobel. Organs on a chip While it may be a decade or more before human trials for organ transplants are approved by the FDA, the creation of organ tissue still holds the prospect of revolutionizing medicine. Printing out sustainable organ tissue could allow pharmaceutical companies to develop and test drugs on human and not animal organs. Using human tissue yields more accurate results. Researchers are now experimenting with laying down a thin layer of human tissue from any number of organs for pharmaceutical development. The process is known as creating an “organ on a chip” or a “human on a chip.” Organovo These are human liver cells "printed" onto a petri dish. Scientists have for years been able manually grow thin skin tissue for temporary skin grafts that act as a type of bandage while the body heals itself. However, 3D printing has advanced that process. Instead of the arduous task of manually laying down cells, 3D printing automates the process in an exact and repeatable way using a syringe on the end of a robotic mechanism guided by computer-aided design (CAD) software. ”Using 3D printing has given us the reproducibility and the automation needed to scale up,” said Jordan Miller, assistant professor of bioengineering at Rice University. Miller recently helped open a microfabrication lab at Rice University after spending years in a similar lab at the University of Pennsylvania’s department of bioengineering. The key to creating viable, living tissue is first understanding how it works. As much as scientists know about the human body, the way tissue is formed at the cellular and sub-cellular level is still in large part a mystery. There are about 40 different cell types that make up a human liver, including Kupffer cells for removing debris from the blood, stellate cells for regenerating tissue that has died or been injured, and sinusoidal endothelial cells, which make up the interior surface of blood vessels and lymphatic vessels. ”It’s a complicated challenge,” Miller said. “We don’t know all the structures in the body. We’re still learning. So we don’t know to what extent we need to reconstitute all those features. We have some evidence that we may not need to re-create all those functions.” Miller and others believe that if they reconstitute a portion of tissue, even if it’s not complete, there’s a good chance it will continue to grow into a fully functioning organ once implanted in the body. ”We’ve had some success in thin tissues, skin, corneas and bladder,” Miller said. “It gets more complicated when you’re talking about biochemical functions in the liver or kidney. Those are fragile cells that don’t do well in labs. Some of the most interesting cells we want to print are hardest to keep alive.” Instead of printing cells 10 layers deep, as might be needed for a skin graft, researchers are attempting to print cells 5,000 or 10,000 layers deep, Miller said. Just add sugar and water, and voila—blood vessels In order to print thick tissues, scientists must also be able to create the vascular system needed for sustainability. One approach with 3D printing has been to print out a temporary “scaffolding” made of sugar glass (a sugar-and-water combination) that can act as a mold to support cells that eventually form blood vessels. It’s similar to the way a bronze statue is created: First the mold is formed, then filled with metal. In this case, living cells are used instead of metal. Miller and others have had some success re-creating those vascular structures through the use of sugar glass—the same substance that’s used to make easily breakable bottles and windows for stunts in movies. ”You start with a template, cast it and then melt [the sugar glass] out, leaving the vascular structure behind,” Miller said. “Sugar is great because it’s very rigid.” Using sugar glass as the scaffolding, Miller and his team of researchers have had some success in re-creating liver tissue. To date, the researchers have been able to create a piece of tissue the size of a thumbnail and keep it alive for two weeks. Replacing ears and breasts Earlier this year, researchers at Princeton University created a functional ear using a modified $1,000 ink-jet printer. They said the ear they created has the potential to hear radio frequencies far beyond the range of normal human capability because the tissue was combined with electronics as it grew in a petri dish. Princeton University’s “bionic ear” was initially printed into a petri dish using a modified ink-jet printer. (Image: Princeton University) The researchers laid down 3D printed cells and structural nanoparticles to build the ear. A cell culture was used to combine a small coil antenna with cartilage, creating what the scientists called a “bionic ear.” Scott Collins, CTO and vice president of research and development at bio-printing company TeVido BioDevices, said his firm is in the early-stages of using 3D bio-printing of live cells to build custom implants and grafts for breast cancer survivors. This year alone, about 300,000 women in the U.S. will be diagnosed with breast cancer and up to 60% of them will choose a lumpectomy. According to TeVido BioDevices, at least 25% of women who undergo lumpectomies are dissatisfied with their physical appearance after the operation. TeVido is developing an implant from fat and skin cells as well as working to print nipples and the surrounding areola using the patient’s own cells. That way, the tissue won’t be rejected and will have natural shape and pigmentation. ”Today, we have ways of implanting the breast mound, but as far as rebuilding nipple and areola, it doesn’t work well,” Collins said. “The pigment is just tattooed on and fades over time.”Topic Center. This story, "The first 3D printed organ, a liver, is expected in 2014" was originally published by Computerworld .
These are in no particular order. Death solves all problems - no man, no problem. Everyone imposes his own system as far as his army can reach. Ideas are more powerful than guns. We would not let our enemies have guns, why should we let them have ideas. In the Soviet army it takes more courage to retreat than advance. The Pope? How many divisions has he got? The people who cast the votes do not decide an election, the people who count the votes do. The greatest delight is to mark one's enemy, prepare everything, avenge oneself thoroughly, and then go to sleep. Crusader Motto's Edit Deus Vult. (God wills it.) Anyone who sees and paints a sky green and fields blue ought to be sterilised. What good fortune for governments that the people do not think. In order for a war to be just, three things are necessary. First, the authority of the sovereign.... Secondly, a just cause.... Thirdly ... a rightful intention. No. To crush your enemies, and see them fall at your feet - to take their horses and belongings, and to hear the lamentation of their women. That is the best life. Walls are no stronger than the men that defend them. I love war, because in the end there is victory. He who fears losing, will always lose. Arab Proverbs Edit Those who draw the sword of disobediance are slain by it. In the absence of orders, go find something and kill it. Sweat saves blood, blood saves lives, and brains saves both. Caedite eos! Novit enim Dominus qui sunt eius. (Kill them! for the Lord knows those who are His own.) The more you read and learn, the less your adversary will know. Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent's fate. A military operation involves deception. Even though you are competent, appear to be incompetent. Though effective, appear to be ineffective. Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win. He who knows when he can fight and when he cannot will be victorious. For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill. /.../ Hence to fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting. Veni. Vidi. Vici. (I came. I saw. I conquered.) Have no fear of moving into the unknown. Simply step out fearlessly knowing that I am with you, therefore no harm can befall you; all is very, very well. Do this in complete faith and confidence. Accept the challenges so that you can feel the exhilaration of victory. Wars may be fought with weapons, but they are won by men. It is the spirit of men who follow and of the man who leads that gains the victory. The art of war is simple enough. Find out where your enemy is. Get at him as soon as you can. Strike him as hard as you can, and keep moving on. If we don't end war, war will end us. The only good part of a war is its ending. Only the dead have seen the end of war. You ask, what is our policy? I can say: It is to wage war, by sea, land and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us: to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy. You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word: It is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival. When I am abroad, I always make it a rule never to criticise or attack the government of my own country. I make up for lost time when I come home. I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones. Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere. Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former. Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one. Chuck Reid Edit In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice; In practice, there is. It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets. All sects are different, because they come from men; morality is everywhere the same, because it comes from God. To succeed in the world it is not enough to be stupid, you must also be well-mannered. Prejudice is opinion without judgement. Men are equal; it is not birth but virtue that makes the difference. Love truth, and pardon error. Judge of a man by his questions rather than by his answers. Love is a canvas furnished by Nature and embroidered by imagination. The secret of being boring is to say everything. There is a wide difference between speaking to deceive, and being silent to be impenetrable. Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. Work saves us from three great evils: boredom, vice and need. Think for yourselves and let others enjoy the privilege to do so too. I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it. The illegal we do immediately. The unconstitutional takes a little longer. He hoped and prayed that there wasn't an afterlife. Then he realised there was a contradiction involved here and merely hoped that there wasn't an afterlife. Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job. A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools. In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move. There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable.There is another theory which states that this has already happened. The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at and repair. History is a set of lies agreed upon. You must not fight too often with one enemy, or you will teach him all your art of war. You must not fear death, my lads; defy him, and you drive him into the enemy's ranks. Women are nothing but machines for producing children. When small men attempt great enterprises, they always end by reducing them to the level of their mediocrity. There are only two forces that unite men - fear and interest. There are only two forces in the world, the sword and the spirit. In the long run the sword will always be conquered by the spirit. The surest way to remain poor is to be an honest man. The best way to keep one's word is not to give it. The first virtue in a soldier is endurance of fatigue; courage is only the second virtue. The battlefield is a scene of constant chaos. The winner will be the one who controls that chaos, both his own and the enemies. Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich. Public opinion is the thermometer a monarch should constantly consult. Power is my mistress. I have worked too hard at her conquest to allow anyone to take her away from me. One should never forbid what one lacks the power to prevent. Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake. Men are more easily governed through their vices than through their virtues. It requires more courage to suffer than to die. It is the cause, not the death, that makes the martyr. In politics stupidity is not a handicap. Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools. If you wish to be a success in the world, promise everything, deliver nothing. If you want a thing done well, do it yourself. If I always appear prepared, it is because before entering an undertaking, I have meditated long and have foreseen what might occur. It is not genius where reveals to me suddenly and secretly what I should do in circumstances unexpected by others; it is thought and preparation. He who knows how to flatter also knows how to slander. He who fears being conquered is sure of defeat. Glory is fleeting, but obscurity is forever. Four hostile newspapers are more to be feared than a thousand bayonets. Forethought we may have, undoubtedly, but not foresight. Every soldier carries a marshall's baton in his pack. Death is nothing, but to live defeated and inglorious is to die daily. A true man hates no one. A throne is only a bench covered with velvet. A soldier will fight long and hard for a bit of coloured ribbon. A revolution is an idea which has found its bayonets. A revolution can be neither made nor stopped. The only thing that can be done is for one of several of its children to give it a direction by dint of victories. A Constitution should be short and obscure. A celebrated people lose dignity upon a closer view. England is a nation of shopkeepers. A lie told often enough becomes the truth. Capitalists are no more capable of self-sacrifice than a man is capable of lifting himself up by his own bootstraps. All our lives we fought against exalting the individual, against the elevation of the single person, and long ago we were over and done with the business of a hero, and here it comes up again: the glorification of one personality. This is not good at all. I am just like everybody else. Communism is Soviet power plus the electrification of the whole country. Crime is a product of social excess. Democracy is indispensable to socialism. Fascism is capitalism in decay. Freedom in capitalist society always remains about the same as it was in ancient Greek republics: Freedom for slave owners. Give me four years to teach the children and the seed I have sown will never be uprooted. If it were necessary to give the briefest possible definition of imperialism, we should have to say that imperialism is the monopoly stage of capitalism. It is true that liberty is precious; so precious that it must be carefully rationed. No amount of political freedom will satisfy the hungry masses. One man with a gun can control 100 without one. The goal of socialism is communism. The most important thing when ill is to never lose heart. The way to crush the bourgeoisie is to grind them between the millstones of taxation and inflation. The press should be not only a collective propagandist and a collective agitator, but also a collective organizer of the masses. There are no morals in politics; there is only expedience. A scoundrel may be of use to us just because he is a scoundrel. Under socialism all will govern in turn and will soon become accustomed to no one governing. While the State exists there can be no freedom; when there is freedom there will be no State. A great country worthy of the name does not have any friends. And don't forget to get killed. Authority doesn't work without prestige, or prestige without distance. Church is the only place where someone speaks to me and I do not have to answer back. Diplomats are useful only in fair weather. As soon as it rains they drown in every drop. Don't ask me who's influenced me. A lion is made up of the lambs he's digested, and I've been reading all my life. For glory gives herself only to those who have always dreamed of her. France cannot be France without greatness. How can you govern a country with two hundred and forty six varieties of cheese? I always thought I was Jeanne d'Arc and Bonaparte. How little one knows oneself. I have against me the bourgeois, the military and the diplomats, and for me, only the people who take the Metro. I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a matter to be left to the politicians. I have tried to lift France out of the mud. But she will return to her errors and vomitings. I cannot prevent the French from being French. I predict you will sink step by step into a bottomless quagmire, however much you spend in men and money. I respect only those who resist me, but I cannot tolerate them. In politics it is necessary either to betray one's country or the electorate. I prefer to betray the electorate. No country without an atom bomb could properly consider itself independent. Once upon a time there was an old country, wrapped up in habit and caution. We have to transform our old France into a new country and marry it to its time. Patriotism is when love of your own people comes first; nationalism, when hate for people other than your own comes first. Silence is the ultimate weapon of power, The better I get to know men, the more I find myself loving dogs. Treaties are like roses and young girls. They last while they last. When I am right, I get angry. Churchill gets angry when he is wrong. We are angry at each other much of the time. When I want to know what France thinks, I ask myself. You may be sure that the Americans will commit all the stupidities they can think of, plus some that are beyond imagination. You'll live. Only the best get killed.
Edge of the World is a set of stickers created by Donald X. Vaccarino for the 1996 Manafest gaming convention. Single cards were distributed by the organizers at their own discretion as prizes for winning, losing, and participating in the various events held there. The stickers were designed to be attached to the front of regular Magic cards. About 60 copies of each card are supposed to exist. Although being non-official, the Edge of the World cards were actually approved by Wizards of the Coast but subject to conditions. The stickers could not be sold and could not be distributed in booster packs. After their convention in October 2000, Manafest changed their name to KublaCon and was joined by GameCon in December 2000, with their first combined convention taking place in May 2001. No further custom Magic stickers were produced. Wizards of the Coast used some card mechanics and flavor text for their own Magic cards. Donald X. Vaccarino went on to create the 2009 Spiel des Jahres winning board game, Dominion. At the time of the convention, four known complete sets were in existence (2 to the executive producers of Manafest, 1 to a producer on Manafest and 1 to the creator of the set.) Two have since been sold to collectors, and two remain in the original owner's collections. Kublacon logo Pin from the now defunct Magic convention Manafest 1996 that was run by Japji Khalsa the owner of Khalsa Brain Games and the executive producer of KublaCon, the West Coast's premiere gaming convention. The Manafest convention was turned into the overall gaming convention Kublacon run in the Bay Area of California. EXTERNAL LINKS There's Always Two Maro (The Mechanic), Making Magic
Photo A silver coffee pot, a couple of knives, a fork, a coaster for a bottle of wine: the goods were spread out on the table the way the police would spread out guns or drugs hauled in from a raid that would make the 11 o’clock news. But the well-polished table was made of African maple, fancier than anything in the usual police station. And this was no precinct house; it was the Waldorf-Astoria. The stolen goods had been returned under an amnesty program. Bring back our spoons, the Waldorf said. Our forks. Our long-lost teapots that had been “secretly checked out,” as the hotel put it on its Facebook page. “We’re giving you the chance to give it back, no questions asked.” Some newspaper articles were more pointed after the hotel announced the amnesty program in June: “Do you have a souvenir from New York’s legendary Waldorf-Astoria hotel that perhaps you shouldn’t have?” USA Today wondered. “Perhaps Aunt Bessy had sticky fingers?” The Waldorf does not know how many Aunt Bessies have left with larceny in their luggage. The hotel has not kept track of items that have disappeared over its long history, first as side-by-side hotels on Fifth Avenue, then for the past 81 years at 301 Park Avenue at 50th Street. And hotel officials acknowledged that even a Perry Mason would have a hard time proving that some items had been stolen. “Our towels aren’t branded,” said Meg Towner, the hotel’s social-media manager. “The bathrobes are. But bathrobes take up a lot of space in a suitcase.” (A “plush terry robe” sells for $125 on the Waldorf’s Web site.) Photo The silver coffee pot sent back by Judy Schreiber, a psychotherapist who lives in San Diego, would have crowded a suitcase — probably her father’s, she said. “My dad and my mom had a one-night honeymoon in 1938,” she said. “I think going to the Waldorf was a huge deal in those days, huge. There was not a lot of money around. And, the story goes, my dad stole it, basically. Every year on their anniversary, he took it out and served coffee on it.” Matt Zolbe, the hotel’s director of sales and marketing, said that Ms. Schreiber was one of about 15 people who returned items before the amnesty program ended on Sept. 15. An additional 15 or so items have been promised. He said he was pleased by those numbers. After all, the Waldorf did not start the amnesty program because it needed used silverware, he said, but because it was looking for attention on social media. “Social media is ravenous for content,” he said, and that puts pressure on hotel executives to hold their Facebook followers’ interest. The Waldorf had 15,882 of them as of last Friday, and the amnesty program will give them something to see. The hotel is posting images of the returned items and will eventually display them in the lobby — but not police photos of the people who handed them in. “The word ‘amnesty’ was always used as a word that would be compelling in and of itself,” Mr. Zolbe said. “The idea that we would be litigious was never part of the program, and the word ‘amnesty’ was probably less useful for social media. ‘Amnesty’ is probably why we got snarky comments like ‘What do you think the statute of limitations is on something taken in 1935?’” He said some items came from John Does and Jane Does, people who had slunk in and, desperate to avoid the third degree, had declined to give their names as they slipped the pirated items across the front desk. Most of the objects, though, came from people who signed their names and told stories that might or might not hold up in the interrogation room. Photo Paula Herold, a theatrical producer, said her mother’s response to the amnesty program had been straight-faced. She had summoned Ms. Herold and sent her off to the Waldorf with two butter knives that Ms. Herold’s grandmother had pocketed at charity lunches in the 1950s — one knife one year; the other the next. “She only went those two times,” Ms. Herold said. “God only knows, the Waldorf might not have any silverware if she’d gone more.” Nathanael Mullener, a retired psychologist from New Orleans, said he was sending back a teapot, “a compact, pink one-cupper with silver trim” that had had a place in a corner cabinet in his family’s house in Queens when he was growing up. “It looks like it may have come from the ’20s or ’30s,” he said. “I’m 75 years old, and it’s been in my life as long as I can remember.” Its provenance troubled him, he said, even when he was younger. “I actually couldn’t enjoy using it,” he said. “There was no doubt it was pilfered. I could understand why someone would want it, but I couldn’t understand anyone in my family taking it, with a few exceptions.” Other hotels have tried amnesty programs: the Mayflower Hotel in Washington announced one in 2007, but did not accept everything that was offered. “We had somebody who wanted to return a bathtub,” Keith McClinsey, the director of sales, said. He said hotels had to be careful about the authenticity of items they took back. One item the Mayflower would not accept if it had another amnesty program was the brass-plated plaque from Room 871, the suite in which Eliot Spitzer stayed with a prostitute. Mr. McClinsey had the plaque that was there when Mr. Spitzer checked out taken down as soon as the story hit the newspapers. “We replaced it with an identical one,” he said. “That one was stolen, as we expected it might be.” He said the hotel replaced the plaque with ones “that we would print out in Word and put in a little black frame.” He added, “We went through about five of them.” He said one was soon advertised for sale on eBay.
Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The BBC's Will Grant reports on a face that has haunted Mexico Mexican marines have captured one of the world's most notorious drug-gang leaders in a raid near the US border. Miguel Angel Trevino Morales, 40, head of the Zetas Cartel, was intercepted with two lieutenants in a pick-up truck near Nuevo Laredo. Mexican officials said he had eight guns and $2m (£1.3m) in cash. Trevino Morales, infamous for his brutality, was wanted on both sides of the border for ordering massacres and running drugs on a global scale. He took control of the Zetas following the death of group founder Heriberto Lazcano in October 2012. Analysis The government of Enrique Pena Nieto has said that its strategy on the drug war would involve a shift away from high profile arrests towards a broader reduction of violence on Mexico's streets. For every drug cartel leader who is captured, the government has said, there is another to take his place. But, nevertheless, they will be privately overjoyed at bringing down such an important drug lord as Trevino Morales - especially without even having fired a shot. Unlike other top members of the Zetas, Trevino Morales did not come from the military. But he appeared to make up for his civilian background by specialising in a particularly sadistic form of violence against his victims. His is the highest-profile arrest since President Enrique Pena Nieto came to office last December. Mr Pena Nieto promised to change the policy of the previous government by tackling cartels through law enforcement on a local level rather than the capture of big-name targets. Ex-President Felipe Calderon had deployed the army across the country and pursued cartel leaders. Although the policy eliminated many senior criminal figures, it also created power vacuums that helped fuel the violence. Fall of the Zetas Trevino Morales, known as "Zeta-40", was captured outside Nuevo Laredo, near the US border at dawn on Monday, government spokesman Eduardo Sanchez told a news conference. "Three people in the truck were detained by ground troops, who had arrived to support the naval forces, who had carried out the detention via the helicopter. Not a single shot was fired," he said. The authorities say they acted after a surveillance operation lasting several months. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Government spokesman Eduardo Sanchez Hernandez announces his capture The Zetas began as the enforcement arm of the Gulf Cartel, another powerful criminal gang. They were made up of defectors from an elite military unit and quickly became known for their brutality. Trevino Morales was unlike most of the Zetas because he was a civilian who worked his way up through the ranks. The Zetas split from the Gulf cartel in 2010, sparking brutal turf wars across northern Mexico. By 2012, they were reputed to be the largest and most powerful cartel. Mexico media reaction El Universal charts the rise of Trevino Morales: "His power led him to challenge even the US authorities, orchestrating a series of killings of rivals on American soil" El Sol de Mexico gives a rundown of the country's most wanted, placing Trevino Morales at number two behind Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman, head of the Sinaloa cartel The Excelsior reports claims that Trevino Morales was betrayed by members of the Zetas, and that the cartel is disintegrating But expert Alejandro Hope says the arrest is another step towards the destruction of the Zetas as a coherent organisation. "There will still be people who call themselves Zetas, bands of individuals who maintain the same modus operandi," said Mr Hope, a former member of Mexico's domestic intelligence service. Most wanted Analysts say Trevino Morales' younger brother, Omar, has been one of his closest lieutenants and may try to position himself as successor. The BBC's Will Grant in Mexico City says the authorities fear that the arrest could lead to a period of in-fighting between different Zeta factions. Miguel Angel Trevino Morales Began life of crime as a teenager running errands for Los Tejas gang Joined the Gulf cartel in 1990s and became notorious for brutal murders involving burning his victims to death Began the push for Zetas' split from the Gulf cartel in 2007; became overall Zetas leader in 2012 US authorities put out $5m reward for information leading to his capture Charged with ordering the kidnapping and killing of 265 migrants in two massacres, among other offences Trevino Morales is believed to be responsible for ordering two notorious attacks on migrants from other Latin American countries. In 2010, he allegedly ordered the torture and murder of 72 Central American migrants as punishment for their refusal to act as drugs mules. A year later, he apparently oversaw the massacre of almost 200 immigrants for similar reasons. Before he became the group's overall leader, Trevino Morales co-ordinated the gang's important Nuevo Laredo drug corridor into the US, the region in which he was finally apprehended. He is also believed to have controlled a squad of killers who operated in the US state of Texas. The US authorities had offered $5m reward for any information leading to his capture, making him one of the world's most-wanted drug traffickers.
Jon Dorenbos experienced a treat on Thursday. It was the first Thanksgiving Day he was home in Huntington Beach, Calif., with his family in almost 20 years. The beloved former Eagles long snapper had no doubt much to be thankful for, as he jokingly kidded about rubbing his belly stuffed with turkey and gradually working his way up to a life-long reminder of how fortunate he is — the eight-inch-long vertical scar that runs down the middle of his chest. Then there were those other things, too, he was thankful for, like being able to talk, feeling the water on his face when he took a shower, rolling the window down and feeling the breeze when he drove, hearing the oil sizzle in a pan when you crack an egg. The little things we all tend to take for granted bring the 37-year-old, 14-year NFL veteran to tears. “I’m crying all of the time,” said Dorenbos, who underwent heart surgery on Sept. 12 to repair an aortic aneurysm that was discovered after he was traded from the Eagles to the New Orleans Saints on August 28. “Hey, I think tattoos are cool, but I think scars are sexy. Now I have one. Scars don’t bother me. The chain of events that happened, it’s crazy. The doctor in New Orleans put a stethoscope to my back, I took three breaths and wound up in the hospital. “I was told by multiple surgeons that if I got a good hit to the chest, the percentages for me were significantly higher for me dying than living. They all said I probably was going to die on the field.” Instead, Dorenbos is gradually getting stronger with each passing day and planning out his future after football. It’s not the way he wanted to leave the game since he was on the Saints, who are 8-2 and lead the NFC South, and since he wasn’t ready to retire just yet. Dorenbos finds himself much more informed about the human heart, which if anyone who knows his backstory would never question. He also found out he had a long-undetected birth defect. Most people have a three-leaflet valve (tricuspid). Dorenbos only had two. This undetected birth defect is how actors John Ritter and Alan Thicke died. Actor Bill Paxton died during surgery to repair type-A aortic dissection. It was hard to leave football, Dorenbos explains, but he has a very strong reason why. “People come up to me all of the time and tell me how great the Saints and Eagles are doing, and I’m really happy for my friends on both teams,” said Dorenbos, who turned his phone off for a month and found out he received over 2,000 messages. “Well, my only other option was dying. Maybe if I was released by the Saints and still felt healthy, I would have given it another shot. But when your only other real option was a strong chance of dying, all of a sudden it’s not that bad to be done.” Courtesy Jon Dorenbos/for PhillyVoice Jon and Annalise Dorenbos, following the beloved ex-Eagle's open-heart surgery in September. Dorenbos, however, is far from done. He’s doing work with the “Ellen DeGeneres Show,” and there is a movie in the works about his life and career. He also plans on being an advocate for the rare type of heart defect he had with Dr. Joseph E. Bavaria, who performed the surgery on Dorenbos and is employed by Penn Medicine and considered the best in the world at bicuspid valve repair and aortic aneurysms. The noted magician who captured the nation’s attention as a finalist in 2016’s “America’s Got Talent,” Dorenbos has a new man in his life, a dog he calls “Saint.” He already has 2,000 followers on Instagram. "You realize how much people are pulling for you. I love Philadelphia. I love Eagles fans." – Jon Dorenbos He says he’s at about 50-percent physically. He’s hoping to have an involvement with the Eagles in his future. The Eagles and Philadelphia, he says, have been a large part of his life that he will never forget. Then there’s the movie project and he has a book in the works. He has about 150 pages written and the manuscript is being presented to New York publishers. Dorenbos is also very close to Mike Tollin, the director of the movie “Radio.” The two have been talking about a project involving Dorenbos’ life. Dorenbos may never have another bad day in his life. All he has to do to remind himself of where he was, and where he is, is to touch that scar. “I’m in a good situation,” Dorenbos said. “My fingers will feel that scar every day the rest of my life. There are parts of the scar you can feel through my t-shirt and parts of it still hurt. Every time I see my friends and my Eagles family, I just cry. Every day that I’m here is another day I shouldn’t have had if things went the way they were going. A lot of times what I had goes undetected. Courtesy Jon Dorenbos/for PhillyVoice Jon Dorenbos' “sexy” new scar ... and his new best friend, Saint. “I want to create an awareness of this. It’s something that I’m talking with Dr. Bavaria about. You have to understand that the Eagles will always be a part of me. Keep in mind that there will always be a part of me that’s bummed that the Eagles are killing it and I was there for so long and I’m not able to be a part of it. That sucks. When I think of the other alternative, it’s not so bad. And Ellen DeGeneres gives me something to look forward to every day. She’s an amazing woman, allowing me to do so much. She’s not only a kind-hearted woman, she’s willing to help so many others.” It took a while for his appetite to come back. He lost about 30 pounds due to the surgery. He’s around 240 now. A few days after he was released from the hospital, Dorenbos and his wife, Annalise, who’s been an unsung hero through this whole process, went to a local bar in the Philadelphia Navy Yard. It was in the middle of the day. No one approached them to ask for an autograph. Some patrons peered up from their tables in recognition of the former long-time Eagle. When Dorenbos left with Annalise through the patio section of the bar, one man stood up and gave Jon a slow clap. Soon, it was followed by others. By the time he drove away, a good handful of customers were clapping and cheering for him. “You realize how much people are pulling for you,” Dorenbos said. “I love Philadelphia. I love Eagles fans.” He also still loves magic. “The first time I picked up a deck of cards I enjoyed it. Hearing the riffle shuffling a deck of cards is one of my favorite sounds of all time. After the surgery, I would pick up the cards and put them back down. Then one day I got the cards in my hands and started playing around again.” Annalise came over and kissed him, saying, “It was good to see you doing that again.” Follow Joe on Twitter: @JSantoliquito Like us on Facebook: PhillyVoice Sports
Look like Young Buck is staying in jail longer than anticipated. "Damn the boy Buck gotta do some time," 50 Cent wrote. "They are gonna keep him today. Smh he will be alright. #EFFENVODKA #FRIGO." Young Buck violated his probation by getting arrested in July. Buck’s former girlfriend received a text from the rapper and reported it to the police. The message included a threat that Buck would burn her house down. The Nashville native then arrived at her apartment and kicked down the door. He was arrested on July 21. The "Shorty Wanna Ride" MC was held in custody for a few hours before being released on $5,000 bond. Young Buck was later taken in again for the previous arrest being a probation violation. He was admitted to Warren County Regional on July 28. He was released from federal prison on Aug. 1, but had to come back to court in regards to a potential revocation of his probation. Young Buck's hearing did not go well as he will spend the next seven months in jail. Fellow G-Unit member Tony Yayo expressed support for Buck on Instagram. "Free @buckshotz hold your head big bro," Tony Yayo wrote. "The system is a trap and we the targets. We all make mistakes bro but we got families to feed. Your freedom is everything bro we need you out here. 💯." Young Buck released a new mixtape titled 10 Bodies just a week before his legal troubles began. He also garnered some national attention for his strong words about black people defending themselves against crooked police officers. 10 Instances in Which Rappers Were Searched By Police But Not Arrested
Yesterday, the final stages of our NFL season preview kicked in with a look at the eight teams that will compete for a shot at Jadeveon Clowney, Teddy Bridgewater, and the rest of the top picks in next year’s draft. Today, the preview moves on to a slightly more notable set of teams: Those that I expect to decline in 2013 without finishing among the league’s eight best or worst teams. In other words, here come your angry tweets about fallen contenders. Now, let me be clear: Being in this category doesn’t mean that these teams will be the 17th- through 24th-worst teams in football. It doesn’t mean that they’ll be below .500 or even fail to make the playoffs, just that they won’t be as good as they were a year ago, either in terms of their level of performance or record (often both), and won’t be among the eight teams with the best shot at competing for this year’s Super Bowl. In some cases, that could be a dramatic decline that pushes the team below .500; in others, it could be a small drop-off. I’ll try to point out the reasons behind these expected declines with each team. Atlanta Falcons 2012 Record: 13-3 Pythagorean Wins: 11.0 (overperformed by 2.0 wins, second-luckiest in league) Record in Games Decided by Seven Points or Fewer: 7-2 (0.778, fourth-best in league) Strength of Schedule: 0.463 (fifth-easiest in league) Turnover Margin: Plus-13 (tied for fifth in league) 2013 Out-of-Division Schedule: AFC East, NFC West, vs. Redskins, at Packers It has basically been safe to pencil the Falcons in for 11 wins and a playoff berth over the past five years. That would be enough to get them on this list, but I’m going a step further: I think the Falcons will fail to hit 10 wins and, as a result, miss the playoffs. A good chunk of that has to do with the teams around them simply getting better. The Falcons are extremely unlikely to play the league’s fifth-easiest schedule again in 2013, as they will play in a division where the Buccaneers (massive upgrades in the secondary, improved health), Panthers (improvements from Cam Newton and a young defense), and Saints (return of Sean Payton) are all likely to be better than they were in 2012. The Falcons will also face the NFC West and play a first-place schedule, which includes a trip to Lambeau. The Falcons were also unsustainably good in close games, even for a team that routinely does well in those contests. For the vast majority of teams, performance in games decided by one score is random from year to year; a great year is just as likely to be followed with a dismal one as it is to be followed with another successful run of “clutch” performances. The occasional exception to that rule has been with great quarterbacks who manage the game well at the end of halves. At the moment, there are three active quarterbacks who have exhibited some consistent ability to outperform that 50-50 expectation in close games: Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Matt Ryan. After a 7-2 mark last year, Ryan is now an incredible 27-10 (72.9 percent) in one-touchdown games during the regular season for Atlanta. (He is 1-2 in those games during the playoffs.) The only player since the merger who has been better in close games is Brady, who has won just less than 71 percent of his one-touchdown games. I don’t know that Ryan and the Falcons can quite keep that up. That isn’t to predict some sort of impending poor play by Ryan, but an acknowledgement that the breaks simply don’t always go a team’s way so frequently. Maybe next year, Ron Rivera goes for it on fourth-and-1 and succeeds without putting Ryan onto the field. Most notably, Atlanta’s personnel is making notable changes, some of which aren’t far for the better. The team lost veteran defenders Dunta Robinson and John Abraham to free agency, and there are question marks replacing them in first-round pick Desmond Trufant and former Giants pass-rusher Osi Umenyiora, who most Giants fans were not heartbroken to see leave town. The Falcons are distressingly thin on the defensive side of the ball, fielding a pair of rookie free agents at backup linebacker and fifth- and seventh-round picks behind their defensive linemen, Peria Jerry. They’ve also already lost right tackle Mike Johnson for the year. The only notable signing they made this offseason was running back Steven Jackson, who might be an upgrade on the departed Michael Turner, but Jackson already has a lot of miles on his body at 31, and there’s no guarantee the Falcons will be any better blocking for him than they were for Turner. So, weaker personnel, a tougher schedule, and most likely a bit less luck, both in close games and in recovering fumbles, where they picked up 64.3 percent of all the balls that hit the ground in 2012. I wouldn’t necessarily be shocked if they went 10-6 and made the playoffs again or anything, since the average 13-3 team since 1989 has won 9.7 games the following year, but about 3-in-10 of those teams have missed the playoffs the following season. Atlanta could very well be next in line. Best-Case Scenario: The passing game still hums, and Umenyiora revitalizes an Abraham-less pass rush long enough to keep the secondary alive. The Falcons don’t hit 13-3 again, but they happily settle for 12-4 and another first-round bye in the NFC. Worst-Case Scenario: Injuries overwhelm the defense, which finishes as one of the league’s worst units. Ryan’s offense tries to hold the line, but in the end, all it can do is push the Falcons to .500. Baltimore Ravens 2012 Record: 10-6 Pythagorean Wins: 9.4 (overperformed by 0.6 wins, 10th-luckiest in league) Record in Games Decided by Seven Points or Fewer: 6-4 (0.600, seventh-best in league) Strength of Schedule: 0.518 (12th-hardest in league) Turnover Margin: Plus-9 (tied for eighth in league) 2013 Out-of-Division Schedule: AFC East, NFC North, vs. Texans, at Broncos Is it heretical to suggest the Ravens might actually be better off without Ray Lewis and Ed Reed in 2013? By the end of the 2012 season, although those guys were locking up a Super Bowl, it wasn’t directly due to their play. Lewis was picked on all night by the 49ers and promptly retired after the game, while Reed hit the free-agent market and could only muster a short-term deal with the Texans. For all the veteran leadership they offered, their actual level of play in 2012 wasn’t all that great. Daryl Smith and Michael Huff, respectively, could be comfortable upgrades at those two weak positions. There’s more than that, though. Baltimore overhauled about half of its Super Bowl team over the offseason, dumping everybody from Anquan Boldin to Paul Kruger to Dannell Ellerbe to get back in the good graces of the salary cap and clear out long-term space for Joe Flacco’s mammoth contract extension. The result is a team in transition, just as it was after Baltimore’s first Super Bowl victory in 2000. It’s made additions to the roster — notably the aforementioned Smith, Huff, and Pro Bowl pass-rusher Elvis Dumervil — but those additions will likely take time to jell before playing at Baltimore’s typical level of performance. A likely season-ending injury suffered by emerging tight end Dennis Pitta in training camp complicates things further, as does the disappointing shape in which Jacoby Jones showed up. Flacco is not going to avoid interceptions altogether the way that he did during a flawless playoff run, but he can make a step toward success if the team gives him the appropriate personnel. His list of reliable receivers currently numbers one, and while Torrey Smith has the potential to break out into a true game-changer in 2013, the Ravens are noticeably thin at the position. And, just like Atlanta, Baltimore will face a tough slate in 2013. The Ravens face the sure things of the AFC, with the Patriots, Texans, and Broncos on the horizon, while their divisional opponents only have to face the Pats. Those divisional opponents will also each likely be better in 2013, revitalizing Baltimore’s brutal rivalry with Pittsburgh while also creating difficult matchups in Cleveland and Cincinnati. They’ll also suit up against the NFC North and their bevy of above-average teams. Baltimore could face a top-seven schedule in 2013. That might be enough to slow its momentum coming off that Super Bowl–winning season. (Sorry.) Best-Case Scenario: The Ravens defense comes together quicker than just about anybody predicts, producing a top-10 unit that overcomes an average offense. Flacco holds onto most of his gains from the playoffs and is a much-improved franchise quarterback from here on out. Baltimore finishes 11-5 and wins a weak AFC North. Worst-Case Scenario: The defense never comes together, Flacco is the same guy he had been during the previous regular seasons, and Baltimore has a season that flirts with .500. Chicago Bears 2012 Record: 10-6 Pythagorean Wins: 10.8 (underperformed by 0.8 wins, 10th-unluckiest in league) Record in Games Decided by Seven Points or Fewer: 3-3 (.500) Strength of Schedule: 0.506 (13th-hardest in league) Turnover Margin: Plus-20 (second in league) 2013 Out-of-Division Schedule: AFC North, NFC East, vs. Saints, at Rams Nine. That’s the number of defensive touchdowns the Bears scored last year, the most by any team since the Seattle Seahawks scored 10 in 1998. Even for a team that forces a lot of takeaways, nine touchdowns is extraordinary. It’s also markedly unsustainable; teams with five defensive scores or more in a single season since 1999 averaged just more than two such touchdowns the following year. The Bears, for one, have seen their defensive touchdown totals drastically change from year to year since the turn of the century: Year Bears Defensive Touchdowns 2000 4 2001 5 2002 1 2003 1 2004 6 2005 4 2006 3 2007 1 2008 2 2009 1 2010 1 2011 5 2012 9 Ten. That’s the number of fumbles that Peanut Tillman forced last year with the Peanut Punch, his patented finishing maneuver. While fumble recoveries are random, forcing fumbles is a skill, and no defensive back has forced more fumbles than Tillman has since he joined the league. Do you know what Tillman’s career record for forced fumbles in one season was before 2012? Four. The Bears also got nine picks in 2013 from opposite corner Tim Jennings, who had a total of seven in his six previous years. That’s a lot of takeaways — and touchdowns — likely disappearing in 2013. Eleven. That’s the number of games the Bears needed to win in 2012 to make the playoffs and probably earn Lovie Smith another season at the helm. Instead, the Bears made wholesale changes during the offseason, firing Smith and letting Brian Urlacher slip into retirement. General manager Phil Emery then hired Marc Trestman out of the CFL to rebuild the Chicago offense and help mold Jay Cutler into a better quarterback. You can certainly understand Emery’s process for what he wants to do on offense, and with Cutler about to become a free agent, now would be a great time to figure out what they have with him under center. But even if the offense gets better, the top-ranked defense by far (by DVOA, with second-place San Francisco closer to 13th than to Chicago in first) is likely to fall off. Best-Case Scenario: The Chicago defense holds on for one more day, as the newest member of a famous family — Kyle Long — shores up the offensive line and gives a resurgent Cutler all the time he needs to throw. The Bears win on both sides of the ball and finish 11-5. Worst-Case Scenario: The defense collapses because of age and the absence of Smith, and Trestman’s work with the offense leaves something to be desired. The Bears finish 6-10. Dallas Cowboys 2012 Record: 8-8 Pythagorean Wins: 7.4 (overperformed by 0.6 wins, 11th-luckiest in league) Record in Games Decided by Seven Points or Fewer: 7-5 (0.583, eighth-best in league) Strength of Schedule: 0.539 (third-hardest in league) Turnover Margin: Minus-13 (tied for 27th in league) 2013 Out-of-Division Schedule: AFC West, NFC North, vs. Rams, at Saints Give Dallas this: You can certainly envision a scenario in which it all comes together and the Cowboys win 13 games. They’ve got the franchise quarterback, the trio of elite receivers, the superstar pass-rusher, the sideline-to-sideline middle linebacker, and the pair of talented cornerbacks. You wouldn’t hesitate to build the core of your team through the sorts of players the Cowboys have in their core, nor should you. The problem with the Cowboys is that, as much as it’s often portrayed as such, it’s rarely the core that does them in. It’s usually the weakest link. It’s Abram Elam missing a tackle in the backfield and Gerald Sensabaugh overrunning Victor Cruz in the de facto playoff game against the Giants in Week 17 two years ago. It’s Alex Barron literally costing the Cowboys the game in Week 1 of the 2010 season by holding Brian Orakpo. It’s Chris Gronkowski missing a block in the backfield to let Michael Boley shatter Tony Romo’s collarbone. It’s Jason Garrett mismanaging the clock to set up needlessly long field goals twice over the past two seasons. Sure, occasionally, it’s Romo dropping a field goal snap or Miles Austin coming up an inch short of a game-sealing touchdown catch. But it’s usually the guys who the Cowboys are forced to play because they’re both desperate and capped-out who cost them games. And, well, there’s a lot of capped-out desperation on the roster this year. The 2006 through 2009 drafts for the Cowboys have left them with Doug Free, Jason Hatcher, Orlando Scandrick, and Anthony Spencer, which isn’t much of a haul. And since all of those guys got big contracts, there’s no space to bring in any notable veterans behind them. The Cowboys might have more street free agents and players with no upside who are one false step away from playing a huge role than just about any non-Raiders team in the league. And it’s still the same problems, too: The Cowboys are likely to start below-average players at four of the five spots on the offensive line, which is a hassle when your quarterback is at his best improvising with time to throw. They’re remarkably thin at safety, turning things over to former Steelers backup Will Allen and former undrafted free agent Barry Church, who is coming off a torn Achilles. If the Cowboys don’t turn it around and make the playoffs in 2013, it’s because their stars-and-scrubs philosophy hasn’t worked. Best-Case Scenario: Everybody does their job from top to bottom on the roster, and that includes Garrett, who coaches like the guy the Ravens actually wanted to hire over John Harbaugh a few years back. Romo leads the way with a banner year as the Cowboys win 12 games. Worst-Case Scenario: Romo lasts four games before getting hurt, and then Garrett doesn’t last much longer before he gets canned. It becomes another lost season for a team that sure has a lot of lost seasons. Indianapolis Colts 2012 Record: 11-5 Pythagorean Wins: 7.2 (overperformed by 3.8 wins, luckiest in league) Record in Games Decided by Seven Points or Fewer: 9-1 (0.900, second-best in league) Strength of Schedule: 0.435 (easiest in league) Turnover Margin: Minus-12 (26th in league) 2013 Out-of-Division Schedule: AFC West, NFC West, vs. Dolphins, at Bengals I already wrote about the Colts and their chances of succeeding in 2013 earlier in our season preview; you can read that article here. Let me say this much: The Colts are going to start 2-0. They host the Raiders and the Dolphins during the first two weeks of the 2013 campaign, and those are games that the Colts are exceedingly unlikely to drop to inferior competition. That will get the fans going, but remember that their subsequent six games include trips to San Francisco and Houston and drop-ins from Seattle and Denver. If the Colts are competitive in those four games, we’ll all have a good idea that they’re a team to be reckoned with in 2013. Best-Case Scenario: Andrew Luck overcomes all concepts of regression. Worst-Case Scenario: Andrew Luck is overcome by all concepts of regression. Miami Dolphins 2012 Record: 7-9 Pythagorean Wins: 7.1 (underperformed by 0.1 wins) Record in Games Decided by Seven Points or Fewer: 3-5 (0.375, ninth-worst in league) Strength of Schedule: 0.473 (10th-easiest in league) Turnover Margin: Minus-10 (tied for 24th in league) 2013 Out-of-Division Schedule: AFC North, NFC South, vs. Chargers, at Colts My sentiment toward the Dolphins and the moves they made this offseason are covered at great length in today’s edition of the Grantland NFL Preview Podcast, but in short, Jeff Ireland seems like the kind of guy who might have inquired about purchasing a cabana on the Titanic as it sank. Is Mike Wallace an upgrade on Brandon Marshall? Are the Dolphins better off with Brent Grimes than they were with Sean Smith? Is Dannell Ellerbe really better than Karlos Dansby? Would they really rather have Tyson Clabo at right tackle and Jonathan Martin on the left side than Jake Long on the left and Martin on the right? I don’t know the answers to those questions, and I don’t think Ireland knows them, either, but the shiny newness of those first options are enough to justify spending tens of millions of dollars, apparently. Even more curious was the move to trade up and select Dion Jordan with the third overall pick of this year’s draft. Miami was excited afterward that it only had to pay half-price to acquire the pick, but the draft chart the Dolphins were likely referring to is outdated in a number of ways. Jordan, meanwhile, isn’t exactly a can’t-miss prospect; he had just 14.5 sacks in a little less than three seasons as a “Joker” pass-rusher for Oregon, which seems awfully low for a player who was taken well before SEC superstar Jarvis Jones. He enters into an excellent situation in Miami in the sense that he gets to play across from Cameron Wake and the double-teams Wake draws every week, but is Jordan the missing link that can help the team succeed in 2013? Probably not. And 2013 matters because Ireland is probably going to get fired if he doesn’t deliver a trip to the playoffs this year. The thing that I would still be concerned about, were I a Dolphins fan, is the lack of a safety net for Ryan Tannehill. Last year, Tannehill had Long at left tackle, Reggie Bush catching checkdowns as a pass-catching back, Davone Bess going over the middle and offering safe throws into and out of the slot, and Anthony Fasano as the grizzled tight end. This year, all of those guys are gone, and there’s no obvious replacement. Dustin Keller suffered a season-ending injury in August, leaving a camp battle for tight end that’s still raging. Long’s replacement, Martin, is a question mark. Bush is gone to Detroit, with Lamar Miller taking over. There’s no slot receiver in Bess’s league still on the roster. In short, all of Tannehill’s safety valves are gone. In a way, the Dolphins are trying to serve two masters. They want to develop that young core of Tannehill, et al., but they also want to win now with all the veterans they’ve just gone and spent tons of money on in free agency. Good teams hold on to their draft picks and gradually retool as the years go along. Bad teams don’t have that sort of bigger picture in mind. The Dolphins might just be in a no-picture zone altogether. Best-Case Scenario: Tannehill improves quickly with Wallace at the helm, and Jordan breaks out without any double-teams in his way. Worst-Case Scenario: Tannehill regresses a bit without any checkdown target, and the streets of Miami run red with Ireland’s blood. San Diego Chargers 2012 Record: 7-9 Pythagorean Wins: 8.0 (underperformed by 1.0 wins, seventh-unluckiest in league) Record in Games Decided by Seven Points or Fewer: 1-5 (0.167, second-worst in league) Strength of Schedule: 0.456 (fourth-easiest in league) Turnover Margin: Plus-2 (tied for 14th in league) 2013 Out-of-Division Schedule: AFC South, NFC East, vs. Bengals, at Dolphins No team has enjoyed less attention this offseason than the Chargers, who fit into a weird mix of irrelevant and uneventful. The Chargers aren’t comically inept in the way that the Jets and Raiders are nowadays, nor are they succeeding in any sort of logical sense of the word. They’re rebuilding on the fly by holding on to Philip Rivers and dumping a lot of the veterans who failed to launch under the Norv Turner–A.J. Smith regime. Crucially, they didn’t head into free agency with their checkbook and spend tens of millions of dollars to replace those veterans. Unlike the Dolphins, the Chargers appear to be patient. That rebuild is going to make them a much worse team in terms of level of play than they were a year ago, which is a shame, since there were a bunch of quantitative factors that made one think the Chargers might be better than their 7-9 record. Most notable among those was the fact that San Diego blew an NFL-high five halftime leads last year. That reveals a team that was competitive, even if it was awful at the endgame. And hey, since Turner is terrible in late-game situations and isn’t the coach of the Chargers anymore, they should be better at not blowing leads, right? Well, probably, but they’re also going to lead fewer games heading into the fourth quarter, too. That would place them right around 7-9 again, just with a worse performance record than they had one year earlier. That might not be the best thing for this team, which could use some long-term direction one way or another. If the Chargers think they’re three years of good drafting away from contending, they might be better off biting the bullet and dealing Rivers to a contender like Minnesota, since he’s costing them a lot of money to produce average work. Best-Case Scenario: Numbers, in this specific instance, do not lie! The Chargers bounce back from those close losses in 2012 with a 9-7 or 10-6 season and an unlikely wild-card berth. Worst-Case Scenario: Rivers gets hurt, and the Chargers basically collapse around themselves before eventually taking one of the stars at the top of next year’s draft. Washington Redskins 2012 Record: 10-6 Pythagorean Wins: 9.1 (overperformed by 0.9 wins, sixth-luckiest in league) Record in Games Decided by Seven Points or Fewer: 5-4 (0.556, 12th-best in league) Strength of Schedule: 0.505 (14th-hardest in league) Turnover Margin: Plus-17 (third in league) 2013 Out-of-Division Schedule: AFC West, NFC North, vs. 49ers, at Falcons For what it’s worth, I normally agree a fair amount with the projections done by Football Outsiders, since we’re both looking at the same sorts of stuff to do our analyses. Usually, we will mostly agree on the general direction in which a team is heading; if Football Outsiders projects an 11-5 team to go 7-9, and my idea box says that team will go 10-6, I tend to pay attention to what Football Outsiders thinks. This year, we differ most in the case of the Redskins. I think they will be a good-but-not-great team in the middle of a crowded NFC, giving back some of the performance from that hot stretch at the end of last year in the process. Football Outsiders, meanwhile, projects the Redskins to win 10.3 games next year, with a 51 percent chance of winning 11 or more and competing for a Super Bowl. Only the Patriots (10.6 wins) have a higher win projection. I won’t spoil what Outsiders says in its book with regard to its projection, but I see the Redskins as more of an 8-8 team out of concerns about Robert Griffin’s knee, which I’m sure is a subject worth discussing at length every single day until something happens. Perhaps even more so, I’m worried that the Redskins weren’t able to upgrade their team in the way that a team with their profile normally would, thanks to the multiyear cap penalty they received after dumping the Albert Haynesworth contract into an uncapped year. Look at what the Colts did this year — right or wrong, they at least had the cap flexibility to spend hand-over-fist on improvements in free agency. Washington is basically stuck with the people it had on its roster a year ago, and while those players did finish 10-6, they were also being written off by their own coach at the halfway point. The Redskins contended quicker than anybody expected. They also had some luck along the way. Notably, Washington did miraculous work in terms of recovering fumbles. The team picked up a full 67.4 percent of the fumbles that hit the ground in its games last year, the highest percentage in football. There’s a very slim chance of that happening again in 2013, and that will start to erode its turnover margin. In fact, expect more turnovers on offense, too; the Redskins had just 14 turnovers last year, the seventh-best performance in a full season since the merger. I think of Washington as more of an 8-8 team than a 10-6 one. Of course, as I mentioned yesterday, it was the one team listed in the bottom of the barrel who actually rose out of that barrel and won some games in 2012, so maybe I’m just being harsh on its chances heading into 2013. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. Best-Case Scenario: RG3 and Pierre Garcon each play 16 games, the defense gets a big boost from the returning Brian Orakpo, and the 11-5 Redskins are the class of the NFC East. Worst-Case Scenario: RG3 gets hurt again, Kirk Cousins isn’t a viable solution, and the Redskins fall below .500 once more.
You may not remember his name, but you probably remember the fun he had after Freddie Gray died. Gray died two years ago on Sunday, April 19, 2015, from injuries sustained a week earlier in the back of a police van. Peaceful protests over his treatment had begun the night before. After his death, tensions between the Baltimore community and police simmered. As national and international media focused on Baltimore, protests swelled, and street insults got ugly, but things remained relatively calm. On Saturday, the 25th, they finally boiled over. A march from the west side toward City Hall crossed the paths of the crowd heading to an Orioles game. At South Howard and West Pratt a jubilant mob caught up with several parked police cars, marked and unmarked. According to charging documents, 18-year-old Allen Bullock led a celebration of destruction. Using an orange traffic cone, he broke out the side window of an unmarked police car and tried to use its public-address system; failing in the attempt, he ripped it out. With other men he tried and failed to flip the car. He mounted the hood and used the cone to smash in the windshield. With two other young men he danced on several of the car roofs, and kicked out the rear window of another unmarked car. In another marked police car he found a peaked police cap and set it on his head at a rakish angle (he would later post a photograph of himself wearing the hat on his Facebook page). Social and other media captured much of the party. Mr. Bullock and his traffic cone made the front page of Sunday's Baltimore Sun. The incident released four nights and days of mayhem, Baltimore's worst rioting since April 1968. Our city got a black eye from which it is still trying to recover. On April 27, police took Mr. Bullock into custody at the Baltimore City Juvenile Justice Center, where he was set to meet with his probation officer. He was charged with eight criminal counts, including rioting and malicious destruction of property. A district court judge approved bail of half a million dollars. On May 7, his mother put up the needed 10 percent of the money to get him out: She paid the bondsmen $15,000 in cash, and agreed to pay them another $35,000 in 70 monthly installments of $500, according to court records. Baltimore Sun Allen Bullock became the teen-aged face of Baltmore rioting in 2015 when he was recorded trashing a city police car. Allen Bullock became the teen-aged face of Baltmore rioting in 2015 when he was recorded trashing a city police car. (Baltimore Sun) Mr. Bullock's antics violated his juvenile probation, leading Judge Sylvester Cox to banish him to Victor Cullen, the juvenile lockup in Frederick County. On Oct. 3, 2015, Mr. Bullock apparently boiled over again. According to the statement of charges filed by a state police trooper, Mr. Bullock was being escorted in the early evening to the medical unit on the campus of Victor Cullen. He broke free and ran through the grounds. Staffers caught up with him; he pushed a woman to the ground, and she rolled downhill. He also swung his fist and spit at a man. Other staffers finally corralled him. Ericka Alston-Buck's Penn-North Kids Safe Zone in West Baltimore is one of the few post-Freddie Gray programs that has expanded over the last two years, sheltering 40-100 kids any given day after school. Ericka Alston-Buck's Penn-North Kids Safe Zone in West Baltimore is one of the few post-Freddie Gray programs that has expanded over the last two years, sheltering 40-100 kids any given day after school. SEE MORE VIDEOS The Victor Cullen staff told the trooper that they believed Mr. Bullock was a member of the Black Guerrilla Family (BGF) gang in Baltimore and that he had incited a number of fights at the facility between residents from Baltimore City and their rivals from Prince George's County. Mr. Bullock was charged as an adult with two counts of misdemeanor assault in Frederick County Circuit Court. He posted bond of only $3,000 and was released from juvenile custody shortly before Christmas. On Feb. 29, 2016, Mr. Bullock came to court on the rioting charges in Baltimore City before Circuit Court Judge Charles J. Peters. Judge Peters is the judge-in-charge for criminal matters. He does not try cases; he moves them along as best he can. If he does not have another judge open for trial, he postpones the case. He also accepts plea agreements. If the plea bargains are not quite ripe, he does what he can to nourish them to fruition — as he did in Mr. Bullock's case according to a recording of the hearing. With the white noise on to prevent others from overhearing, Judge Peters conferred at the bench with the prosecutor, Assistant State's Attorney Mark Jaskulski, and counsel for the defendant, J. Wyndal Gordon. Mr. Gordon presented the judge with his idea of an appropriate sentence: A 15-year-suspended sentence, with credit for the eight months he served in juvenile detention and five years of probation. "I've seen videotapes of people jumping on police cars. Is this supposed to be the guy who was jumping on the police car?" the judge asked, referring to Mr. Bullock. Mr. Gordon answered, "He is one of the guys." Mr. Jaskulski asked for 11 years incarceration. Judge Peters: "I guess what's happened here is the state wants to make an example of him. Is that what it is? ... I'm not upset if that's what the reality is. Trust me, I see a lot of cases coming in through here, and this is basically, unfortunately, malicious destruction. It happened to be a police car, it happened to be very well publicized, but I see malicious destruction impacting private citizens all the time coming in here. I don't get anywhere near that kind of [prosecutorial] response." Mr. Gordon said he suggested additional time that would hang over Mr. Bullock's head if he were to violate probation to "appease the state." Judge Peters replied, "I'm not worried about appeasing the state. I mean, it's OK, I get it. I'm just trying to figure out, trying to keep this moving." Judge Peters made no inquiries about the past juvenile offenses or the pending adult ones. There is nothing in the public record about asking Mr. Bullock to pay restitution. The judge set forth his notion of a sentence: 12 years, suspending all but six months — with no credit for the time in Victor Cullen — and 5 years probation. At this point the judge turned to other cases, presumably to let the lawyers haggle. An hour later, Mr. Bullock and the lawyers returned to court for the formal plea. The white noise was off.
Advertisement Former Patriots star Darrelle Revis surrenders to police Share Shares Copy Link Copy Former Patriots cornerback Darrelle Revis surrendered to authorities Friday in Pittsburgh, where he faces charges stemming from an altercation in which police say two men were punched and knocked out. Revis, 31, did not comment as he arrived at Municipal Court to surrender on charges of aggravated assault, robbery, terroristic threats and conspiracy. According to a docket sheet filed Thursday night, the incident for which Revis is facing charges occurred on Sunday at 2:43 a.m. Pittsburgh police said the alleged fight started when a 22-year-old man from Kittanning, Pennsylvania, not identified in the statement, spotted a man who he believed to be Revis walking along East Carson St. After Revis confirmed he was the NFL player, the man started recording the interaction. Revis grabbed the phone and tried to delete the video. Another 21-year-old man from Ross Township tried to help the other man, but Revis tossed the phone into the road, the statement says. An argument ensued, ending with another man helping Revis, according to the police statement. Police say the 22-year-old man and the 21-year-old man claimed they were punched and knocked out. According to police, the two men regained consciousness and spoke to authorities. Witnesses told police that the two men were unconscious for about 10 minutes. The responding officers viewed the video on the phone and confirmed that the person was Revis. He now plays for the Jets, and that team has confirmed it is aware of the incident and has spoken to Revis, but issued no further comment. His second tenure with New York, after stints with Tampa Bay and New England, might be over after two seasons. Revis is scheduled to make $15 million, including a $2 million roster bonus due on March 11, next season - but that would be a lofty salary for an aging player who admittedly had a subpar year that he attributed to age and injuries.
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption A manhunt was launched in June 2014 to capture the soldier when he fled after opening fire A South Korean soldier who shot dead five of his colleagues and injured seven others has been sentenced to death by a military court. The sergeant opened fire in June 2014 at his post near the North Korean border and fled, sparking a manhunt. He was captured two days later after he shot himself during a tense stand-off with troops. It reignited debate on military culture in South Korea, where all males must do about two years military service. The conscript's attack had previously been attributed by a defence ministry spokesman to his "difficulties in adapting to military life". He had been placed on a list of conscripts requiring special attention. In July last year, the military completed its investigation into the incident and said the attack, at a post near the border town of Goseong, was in revenge for bullying in the army and at school. The 23-year-old recruit, surnamed Im in previous reports but named as Lim by Yonhap news agency, was found guilty of killing and injuring his comrades by detonating a grenade and firing at them. He was also found guilty of running away with a rifle and ammunition, said the news agency. Under South Korea's military law, a soldier must face the death penalty for killing a superior. One of those killed was a staff sergeant. The soldier expressed remorse in a statement last month before his sentence was announced, AFP news agency reported. "I feel deeply sorry for the victims and their relatives... I am overcome with remorse... How happy would I be, had it been merely a dream and had it been possible to return to the past?" he said. Image copyright AP Image caption South Korea's conscription system requires all healthy males to serve in the military for two years Bullying culture? Past incidents in South Korea's military have been linked to bullying and mental health problems. Last year, several suicides by young conscripts were reported. In April, a private died after he was beaten by his superiors - an incident which was only uncovered months later by a civic group. A sergeant was later sentenced to 45 years in military prison for the crime. Four other soldiers were jailed for between 15 and 30 years while a sixth was given a suspended prison sentence. In September last year, two special forces soldiers died after collapsing during captivity training, apparently from suffocation. The incidents sparked a public outcry and prompted the army to take a tougher stance on bullying and abuse. Its chief of staff resigned and his replacement ordered the establishment of a military human rights commission and investigations into hundreds of bullying cases. Prior to last year, South Korea also saw major incidents in 2005 and 2011 where conscripts killed several of their comrades. South Korea has said it needs a conscription system to ensure national security. It technically remains at war with North Korea, as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
Our Jellyfish Tank is a modern design built on functionality and form. With it's clean lines and sophisticated look, the JellyTank looks great in any environment. The tank's design focuses on the Jellyfish themselves with it's seamless shape giving them the overall flow they would expect in the ocean's tides. JellyTank the ultimate jellyfish aquarium, one that solves all the problems that other tanks struggle with. A tank where jellyfish could thrive while keeping it affordable and low maintenance for owners. The JellyTank A proprietary aquarium and flow bar design based on form & function, and backed by science with the assistance of a nationally accredited aquarium and research laboratory. True laminar [pump driven] water flow similar-to what jellyfish would experience in their natural environment A powerful Integrated mechanical and biological filtration system ensures optimal water quality and is easily accessible for maintenance and cleaning A remote LED for easy lighting and mood changes Tank is made of premium high-grade aquarium acrylic Available in ultra-white or premium-black Color Choices: Ultra White or Premium Black JellyTank is currently working on developing an aquaculture facility to grow Jellyfish for our customers. We are speaking with industry experts and marine biologists from across the nation to develop the best protocols and standards of practice to ensure we deliver the healthiest sustainable source of jellyfish available in the world today. Our proposed aquaculture program will be overseen, staffed and managed by leading jellyfish aquaculture specialists. Jellyfish Fishy Facts Have you ever wondered how much water a jellyfish is made of causing their transparency? – While humans are made of seventy percent water, most jellyfish are ninety-five percent H2O. – While humans are made of seventy percent water, most jellyfish are ninety-five percent H2O. There are jellyfish species that are larger than humans, while others are as small as the head of a needle. Did you know a group of jellyfish is not only known as blooms but also by “swarms” or “smacks.” Not all jellyfish sting. For example, the Moon Jellyfish you order for your JellyTank do not sting. While, others can actually kill humans with their poison. Some jellyfish glow in the dark and would make great nightlights. Inspiration - Wyland Mural Growing up in Sarasota, FL, we were always at the beach swimming in the water which sometimes lead to getting stung by a Jellyfish. They didn't hurt for too long, but you quickly grew to dislike jellyfish and want to stay away from them if you ever came across them again. So who would have thought years later, while at a restaurant in Miami Beach, we would sit next to a HUGE jellyfish tank and end up falling in love. Ever since that day, we've been fascinated with their tranquil movements and calming ways. So a little over a year ago, we (Brock and Blake) ordered a desktop Jellyfish Tank for our office, a popular one we found online and spent over $400 to get it set up and going. After owning the tank for less than three weeks, the tank kept sucking the jellyfish through the grates and shredding them. It was very discouraging considering the tank was not only expensive, but we were killing jellyfish. So feeling defeated by these jellyfish tanks, we set out to design and develop a sustainable tank that would keep our jellyfish happy and healthy. A tank where jellyfish could thrive while keeping it low maintenance for owners. After a lot of research, trial & error, multiple designs, several prototypes and the assistance of jellyfish aquarium/aquaculture experts & professionals we are proud to present JellyTank. Top of JellyTank - Easy Access to Jellies & Filtration JellyTank Setup Setting up the tank is very easy since the JellyTank already comes pre-assembled. Fill your tank with 5 Gallons of Saltwater (Salt is included in your Starter Kit) Add Bio Balls & Filter Pad Plug in the LED light & Pump And boom... once this is complete you will then visit our website to claim your Jellyfish. JellyTank Maintenance and Feeding Jellyfish are easy to maintain and require two major components. Food and clean water! Feed your Jellyfish at least once per day. Twice per day if you would like to increase their size Change 20% of the water weekly (1 gallon) and pull out any jelly food or waste daily. We will be adding video to this section over the next 24 to 48 hours to teach you how to maintain and keep your jellyfish thriving.
An Indonesia AirAsia Airbus A320-200. REUTERS/Enny Nuraheni In 2007, all Indonesian airlines were banned from flying to the European Union. Among them was Indonesia AirAsia, whose flight QZ 8501 apparently crashed on Sunday. The EU was concerned about the safety record of Indonesian carriers. The ban was lifted in 2010 for Indonesia AirAsia. But of the 51 Indonesian carriers banned, only four (including Indonesia AirAsia) have been re-authorized to fly to the EU. Indonesia's aviation market is expanding at a rate of 21% annually, but a series of accidents, including the crash of a Lion Air flight in Bali in 2013, indicate a weak safety record for the nation's airlines. The Federal Aviation Administration does not rate, rank, or blacklist airlines, but it 2013 it assessed the Indonesian Directorate General of Civil aviation "as not being in compliance" with international safety standards. [An earlier version of this post was written by Alex Davies.]
“There were more than 165 exits of private CPG companies in 2015, a sharp increase over 2011, when there were less than 50 CPG exits.” – CB Insights Big Food is on a tear, acquiring smaller, craft brands at a quickening pace. It’s a seemingly sensible strategy aimed to counteract the $18 billion of market share the top 25 US food and beverage companies have lost since 2009. If the acquisition trend continues to be an important growth driver of growth for big food, does big food eventually become a mere infrastructure platform for small brands? Can big food justify the risk of cultivating new brands that connect with the modern consumer when they can simply buy the best small and mid sized companies? BIG FOOD ACQUIRES SMALL FOOD From a small food brand point of view, one of the biggest motivations for being acquired (aside from the cash) is to tap into the enormous production, distribution and marketing infrastructure a big food company can offer. Margins improve through more efficient production and sourcing, products can easily slip into existing distribution routes and the brand gets access to a pool of creative agency and media resources from the mother ship. On the other hand, the big brand pays a premium, but gets a vetted brand that’s earned trust from a progressive consumer base, and mostly avoids the messy, expensive process of trying to start a new brand from scratch. The big plays to its strengths (infrastructure) while the small does the same (consumer trust, product innovation). BIG FOOD: THE AWS OF FOOD PRODUCTS What if in the future big food companies simply existed to act as infrastructure for smaller brands? In tech, Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the de facto server standard for smaller companies to quickly get going and scale up. You’d be crazy to try and manage all your own server infrastructure as a startup, because it’s just so easy to build your business on AWS. In the food startup world, incubator kitchens and co-packers provide the infrastructure for small food brands to get going. But the landscape of these resources are fragmented and don’t typically scale easily. It’s a byzantine process, for sure, and an AWS of food in sorely needed. How might a big brand set up a gateway for smaller brands to tap into the infrastructure that it has to offer without the big brand investing or acquiring the smaller brand? Is there an easier way for smaller brands to tap into the production resources of a bigger company? If larger companies’ resources could become much more user friendly and accessible in the same way resources like Hot Bread Kitchen or the Rutgers Food Innovation Center, the barriers to entry for smaller food brands would continue to lower. Lower barriers to entry could mean more ideas make it to market, more consumer choice and better products for everyone. We are certainly seeing a shift in the power dynamics of food today. Small food is becoming the next big food. Big food might not be at the point of existential crisis, but there are certainly signs that suggest companies are nearing that point. If I were a big company with idle capacity and a slow product innovation pipeline, opening up my factory doors to smaller brands with an original product and consumer base might seem like a solid growth plan for the future. I would think about how I could leverage my infrastructure to build the AWS for food. For smaller brands, it would be a boon to be able to access production in a more fluid, scalable manner. While this isn’t a silver bullet to producing a better food future, it does let more people access the market more easily with progressive food brands. Consumers are demanding better, more health and planet conscious products and if we can allow all food entrepreneurs to rise, there will be more brands to choose from that create food for people, planet and profit. This post originally appeared on The Future Market.
This article is over 2 years old Former PM says One Nation has changed in the 16 years since he demanded it be placed last on Liberal how-to-vote cards and deal was now ‘sensible’ The Western Australian Liberal deal with Pauline Hanson’s One Nation has been given the blessing of the former prime minister John Howard, despite his 2001 edict it must be placed last on his party’s how-to-vote cards. Adding star power to the Liberal election campaign in Perth on Thursday, the nation’s second-longest-serving prime minister said the WA division made a “very sensible, pragmatic decision” to cut a deal with the rightwing party. “I fully understand why the WA Liberal party has taken the decision,” he told reporters at a shopping centre in the seat of Southern River on Thursday, when he received almost entirely positive responses from voters and children. One Nation could gain more than the Liberals from Western Australia seats deal \| Ben Raue Read more Howard said One Nation had morphed into a different beast since his 2001 instructions, although he still didn’t agree with everything it espoused. “Everyone changes in 16 years,” he said. “Trying to understand that decision and decisions that were taken by various iterations of the Liberal party 15 or 16 years ago is ridiculous. Everyone changes in 16 years ... I think it’s entirely sensible John Howard “This is a different set of circumstances. I think it’s entirely sensible that the party has done what’s it’s done.” The Greens were the only ones who hadn’t changed, he said, and advocating dismantling the US alliance illustrated the party’s continuing extremism. “The idea that people would see the current One Nation party as more extreme than the Greens is ridiculous,” Howard said. “And who’s playing footsie with the Greens – the Australian Labor party.” His comments came after the WA premier, Colin Barnett, refused to be drawn on whether the Liberals were morally wrong to seal the deal, snubbing alliance partners the Nationals, which retaliated with its preferences. Barnett admitted some of the headline-grabbing views of candidates were abhorrent but said it was a numbers game and he had an election to win. The latest comments from One Nation hopefuls dogging the party reportedly came from the now-deactivated Twitter account of Richard Eldridge, who is contesting an upper house seat in Perth’s South Metropolitan region. In the posts, Eldridge, a real estate agent, advocated killing Indonesian journalists and also attacked the gay community, black people and Muslims. Pauline Hanson is more sophisticated now? Yeah, and so are Guns n' Roses \| Dom Knight Read more Old social media posts are also haunting Michelle Myers, who was nominated for the newly-created seat of Bateman. On Facebook last year, she said the gay community used Nazi-style mind control to get people to support same-sex marriage and has recently been protesting against abortion outside a reproductive health clinic in Midland, where women also get fertility treatment. “In absolutely no way do I endorse the policies or candidates of One Nation,” Barnett told reporters. “I find some of those comments absolutely abhorrent. “I’m not going to be defending One Nation – go and talk to Pauline.”
Free virtual piano instrument available to Focusrite or Novation users The Focusrite Group have announced that XLN Audio Addictive Keys virtual instrument is now included for free with all Focusrite interfaces and selected Novation products. Addictive Keys — reviewed in the Jan 2013 issue — is free with all Focusrite audio interfaces, all Novation controller keyboards and the Novation Launchpad Pro grid instrument, and is available for existing customers as well as new customers. Eligible customers receive one full license per account which enables them to choose one world-class Addictive Keys instrument, up to a maximum of two (one for Focusrite product, one for Novation): Modern Upright Studio Grand Electric Grand Mark One Addictive Keys is a powerful tool for musicians, producers and songwriters. With its unique approach to sound creation, smart workflow, fast loading times and high-quality presets, Addictive Keys is perfectly suited to any production style or music genre. http://sosm.ag/jan13xln Addictive Keys supports all of the major plug-in formats: VST, AU and AAX (32 and 64-bit), so it can be used within most music applications including Pro Tools, SONAR, Cubase, Logic, Live and many others. Addictive Keys can also work as a standalone instrument, without requiring host music software. This makes it easy to load an instrument, find an inspiring preset, and start playing, without having to launch any other music software. XLN Audio is a Swedish software company that makes award-winning virtual instruments, plug-ins and sound content for music makers. Since its inception in 2005, the company has gained worldwide acclaim by focusing on making products that are inspiring, powerful and easy to use. Their most popular products include the Addictive Drums and Addictive Keys virtual instruments, both of which have become go-to products for today's biggest producers and performing artists. XLN Audio is the latest company that Focusrite has worked with to offer high-quality software. The Focusrite Group has also been working on more offers from acclaimed software companies for 2017.
The cities that thrive in the 21st century will be those that put airports at their centre, says US academic John Kasarda. But will the 'aerotropolis' serve the people – or just business? We are, you might like to know, probably doomed. At least those of us who live in Britain are. This is because, in the 21st century, efficient, large, well-connected airports matter to prosperity above everything else. "The fastest, best-connected places will win", and the future belongs to the "city that can see the writing on the wall before the competition can even see the wall". While China is roaring away with $250bn of investment in airports, London finds the efforts to improve its infrastructure mired in environmental opposition, political indecision and local special interest groups. And, with London, so goes the entire UK economy. So, almost, says John Kasarda, travelling preacher for the concept of aerotropolis, the idea that a new type of city will and must appear, where "the airport is not at its periphery but at its core". He combines a professorship at the University of North Carolina with writing books and articles on the subject, with a consultancy advising regional and national governments how to direct their billions to the achievement of their own aerotropolis. Boris Johnson has declared his enthusiasm for the idea, and Kasarda reciprocates his passion: "I find the mayor of London extremely visionary. He has his finger on the pulse. He has a dramatic style, but he's a very wise man." There is, Kasarda says, a "new metric based on time and cost", and "location, location, location has been replaced by accessibility, accessibility, accessibility". Kasarda supports his arguments with batteries of statistics and predictions – that in 2030 there will be 13bn passenger journeys a year, compared with 4.9bn in 2010, or that an iPhone 5 is assembled from parts flown in from several countries. Arlanda airport in Sweden, a popular wedding venue. Photograph: Alamy As airports grow, argues Kasarda, they become more city-like. The shopping zone of Indianapolis International, he says, "really gives the feeling" of a town square. There are 6,000 weddings a year at Stockholm Arlanda, the Rijksmuseum exhibits art in Amsterdam's Schiphol, and the London Philharmonic is performing at Heathrow. "If you want to see the future," he says, "look at the Squaire" – a sleek, glassy slug in Frankfurt where KPMG has moved some of its operations, on the basis that it is only a few minutes' walk from workplace to check-in. The Squaire, an office building inside Frankfurt airport: 'minutes' walk from workplace to check-in'. Photograph: Alamy Kasarda's favourite examples of an aerotropolis are Las Colinas, Texas, which is handily placed for Dallas Fort Worth and "hosts four Global Fortune 500 headquarters", and New Songdo, a development built (with advice from Kasarda) near Incheon airport in South Korea. Also, Dubai, "an airport with an emirate attached", and Singapore, whose growth has been assisted by its impressive airport. He shows a plan of an ideal city, with runways at its dead centre and "aerolanes" connecting such things as "E-fulfilment facilities" and a "medical and wellness cluster". This city is shown as being built on virgin greensward, a site very unlike London, which already has a large number of buildings and services, and people who might resist relocation. Kasarda calls the existing fabric "sunk cost", which roughly means "money down the drain", before acknowledging that they might have some value: "You can't get rid of it, so you have to leverage it as best you can." Dubai International, 'an airport with an emirate attached'. Photograph: Corbis Kasarda is right that international air travel is a growing force, and that London will suffer if it fails to find an intelligent response. But, as currently described, aerotropolis is chilling: a model of a city driven by a combination of business imperatives and state control, with the high levels of security and control that go with airports. Under the dictatorship of speed, individual memory and identity are abolished. An airport shopping mall is, actually, not like a town square, for the reason that everything there is programmed and managed, and spontaneity and initiative are abolished. There may be palliatives. According to Kasarda's 10 points for planning aerotropolises, "thematic architectural features, public art and iconic structures should make aerotropolis developments interpretable, navigable and welcoming". New Songdo includes a Jack Nicklaus golf course and areas modelled on Venetian canals and Central Park. But, according to sociologist Richard Sennett, it's a "stupefying" place where "there is nothing to be learned from walking the streets". Nor are airport cities precisely pure expressions of the market, as some 19th-century railway towns were. The South Korean government has invested heavily in New Songdo, which has yet to prove that it will be the humming metropolis promised by its makers. Of the plan to build a new airport in the Thames estuary, Kasarda tells me that "most airport transportation connectivity will need to be based on public funding, and this will be expensive. I know of no significant commercial airport that has been privately built that had not received substantial public funding support, at least indirectly." The deal, in other words, is this: taxpayers would be expected to pay handsomely for an environment created almost entirely to serve the needs of business. If they don't, as Kasarda says of a Britain without enhanced airports in London, "the city and nation will become markedly weakened in the coming decades". And if the public does foot the bill, the bet might not pay off. "The Thames estuary airport is a high-risk but potentially very high-return option," says Kasarda. In other words, the taxpayer might be asked to stake billions upon billions on something that may not work. When London meets aerotropolis, it is quite a face-off. If the game is simply to see who can build airports (and eve rything that goes with them) biggest, fastest and most efficiently, then London, which carries the baggage of history and democracy, cannot beat Asian cities. On the other hand, London has qualities to which the aerotropolis idea adds little value, like an existing fabric that works and gives pleasure and affords space for the accidental (including the colossal and largely unplanned success, over the decades, of Heathrow). The evidence of property prices, and of international investment, is that these things are worth quite a lot. London can never afford to be complacent – not least about the current state of its airports – but the aerotropolis idea offers a too simplistic view of cities. I hope that Boris Johnson understands.
BOSTON -- The Boston Bruins have stared down perceived disasters before and triumphed. Shortly after defenseman Dennis Seidenberg left their game against the Ottawa Senators with an injury last December, the Bruins learned he was lost for the season and needed surgery to repair the anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in his knee. Less than a month later, a couple of injuries ended defenseman Adam McQuaid's season. The Bruins still won the Presidents' Trophy with 117 points despite missing two of their most important defensemen. With their regular season opening against the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday at TD Garden (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN), the Bruins again are dealing with the loss of one of their reliable veterans on the blue line, but this time on a permanent basis. Defenseman Johnny Boychuk was traded to the New York Islanders on Saturday for draft picks. The trade was made for salary-cap reasons; general manager Peter Chiarelli said, "Arguably this doesn't make us better now." The absences of Seidenberg and McQuaid might have been too much for the Bruins to overcome when they lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the Eastern Conference Second Round. But their experiences from last season should help the Bruins at the outset of the 2014-15 season. "You know a similar thing happened last year when [Seidenberg] went down and [McQuaid] went down. Everybody's freaking out that we're in trouble," Bruins defenseman Torey Krug said. "I thought that the group of guys that we had in there [last season], the committee that filled those spots, did a great job. We ended up winning the Presidents' Trophy. I think it's a similar thing. I think we're excited to hopefully disprove all those things. And we've always been a group that's always showed up when we have to." Just back from a two-day team-bonding trip to Vermont, the Bruins still are dealing with some of the emotions that resulted from the Boychuk trade. However, coach Claude Julien is confident the surprise and disappointment that came from the trade will be gone when the puck drops Wednesday. "I think the players are excited to start the season," Julien said. "Those things, at first they sting and then day-by-day it gets a little better," Julien said. "But our guys have moved on. It doesn't mean you forget about a friend. But we've moved on. We know we have a job to do and we have business that's more important ahead of us. So that's how we feel, and I'm the same way. I'm excited about the season to begin. I saw some good things in training camp. I guess a lot of young players auditioned for those open spots, and we're kind of finalizing that. But it was some great competition, and again we have an opportunity to have a real exciting and competitive team. So what coach wouldn't be excited about that?" The Bruins are three years removed from winning the Stanley Cup in 2011. The core of the team, including defenseman Zdeno Chara, goaltender Tuukka Rask and centers David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron, remains intact; the Bruins are committed to those players through the end of this decade. Much of the supporting cast from the 2011 championship season and the 2013 Stanley Cup runner-up season also remains in Boston. There's no telling how much longer, though, that will be the case. Boychuk can be an unrestricted free agent after the season, and Chiarelli said that based on the market and the NHL salary cap he knew he wouldn't be able to re-sign the defenseman. Chiarelli also has other players heading toward free agency after the season. Centers Carl Soderberg and Gregory Campbell, forward Daniel Paille and defensemen McQuaid and Matt Bartkowski can be unrestricted free agents; defensemen Dougie Hamilton and Krug, forwards Reilly Smith, Ryan Spooner and Matt Fraser and goaltender Niklas Svedberg can be restricted free agents. Like Boychuk, not everyone will be able to stick with the Bruins. Roster uncertainty of that sort hasn't been seen around the Bruins since at least 2011. Perhaps that uncertainty will result in greater focus and determination. "You want to make sure that you're taking care of business because you're fighting for a job, not only this year but for the future as well," Krug said. "So it's very important that you focus on yourself and you don't get too crazy and you just come to work every single day ready to go." Said Smith: "I guess if you think of it like that, there can be that little bit of urgency that this is the year to get it done. And we still have a great group here even with recent transactions. To make the most of it you've got to come out of the gates fast. That's one thing we're focused on." Uncertainty around the Bruins isn't limited to contract status. Campbell hasn't been through a full practice since the start of training camp and is doubtful to play Wednesday. Krejci sustained an injury in the last preseason game and his availability for Wednesday was unknown after practice Tuesday. Forward Milan Lucic still is working his way back from offseason wrist surgery, and Smith and Krug got a late start to camp after signing Sept. 29. And forward Loui Eriksson had a rough training camp. Even though training camp officially is over, there still are ongoing battles for lineup spots. Spooner, Fraser and Bobby Robins have made the team as new faces. At least three of the seven defensemen are competing for regular spots in the lineup. Despite the changes and uncertainty, the Bruins expect to be successful once again. "I usually have high expectations," Bruins president Cam Neely said. "We had a successful regular season last year, and as we all know we fell short of what we wanted to accomplish in the playoffs. I know the guys are hungry. We have a lot of returning players that want to improve upon what we did last year. I think based on what I've seen and the way they're talking, I think they're excited about getting the season going. But the expectations are high."
SACRAMENTO — The only mild complaint against the critically acclaimed TV series Breaking Bad is that the premise is a stretch. It’s hard to imagine a straight-laced high-school chemistry teacher, after being diagnosed with lung cancer and struggling with money problems, becoming a kingpin in the crystal-meth underworld. The 137-page affidavit in the federal corruption case just unveiled against a California senator makes clear that the show doesn’t stack up against reality. TV’s Walter White quickly became believable in his drug-dealing role, but who could ever imagine Sen. Leland Yee, the mild-mannered San Francisco Democrat, as an international arms dealer with links to mobsters? In the FBI document, Yee is described having conversations with an undercover agent about providing large stockpiles of firepower: “(The agent) asked Senator Yee for his commitment. … Senator Yee asked (the agent) if he wanted ‘automatic weapons’ as opposed to semi-automatic weapons.” Yee allegedly said that he didn’t care about people getting guns because “People want to get whatever they want to get.” In addition to being charged with a conspiracy to traffic firearms, Yee was charged with trading official favors—e.g., promising a Senate proclamation praising a Chinatown fraternal organization whose leader has a long rap sheet, and offering meetings with legislators for a medical-marijuana business—for campaign cash. Yee was running to be California secretary of state, but mercifully withdrew from the race on Thursday. “We express our anger and our revulsion at today's events,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, at a press conference on Wednesday. He reminded the media that these are only allegations, but called on Yee to “resign, leave, don’t burden your colleagues in this great institution with your troubles.” But ironies and hypocrisies abound—not just regarding Yee, but with the leadership’s controversial handling of the ethical and legal problems of two other senators. Sen. Ron Calderon, D-Montebello, has been indicted on bribery charges. Sen. Rod Wright, D-Inglewood, has been found guilty of eight felonies related to his not living in the district he represents. Both men have been on voluntary, paid leave—and Steinberg has refused a floor vote on expulsion. After a heated exchange Friday, the Senate voted to suspend with pay those three members and Steinberg announced plans to conduct an office-by-office ethics review. Sen. Joel Anderson, the El Cajon Republican who had unsuccessfully pushed for a Wright expulsion vote, said the Senate leader's talk “falls woefully short of being meaningful.” He compared suspension to paid vacation, and said that “If you reward bad behavior, you can get more of it.” Yet Anderson’s remarks drew an irate response from expected incoming Senate leader Kevin de Leon of Los Angeles, who complained about “sanctimonious, Puritanical behavior” and “political opportunism,” which he said was the equivalent of burning down the greatest legislative house in the nation. De Leon’s rhetoric was oddly grandiose, considering that FBI agents had descended on the Capitol earlier in the week. Are these leaders as out of touch as they seem to be? Gov. Jerry Brown, at least, weighed in with a tough stance late Friday. “Given the extraordinary circumstances of these cases—and today’s unprecedented suspensions—the best way to restore public confidence is for these Senators to resign,” the Democratic governor said in a statement issued by his office. The people I’ve talked to this week who work outside the Capitol bubble have been literally laughing about the events. It comes back, in my view, to the “do as we say, not as we do” attitudes that are at times prevalent in government. Consider that Yee was widely described as a crusader on the gun-control issue. When he introduced a bill to ban the “bullet button” that allows gun owners to convert a rifle into a so-called assault weapon, he said, “I am a father, and I want our communities to be safe, and God forbid if one of these weapons fell into the wrong hands.” It’s not certain that Yee actually had the connections to make the arms-deal happen, but this still is ironic. Yee also was an anti-corruption and campaign-finance crusader, yet the affidavit alleges his zeal for dealing in illegal contributions. He also authored a law—eventually struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2011—that limited violent video games. He once accused gamers of having a “lust for violence” and “lust for money.” That’s beyond parody. Picking on Yee is too easy. What about the leadership? This is third major corruption scandal under Steinberg’s watch, and the buck needs to stop somewhere. Steinberg and de Leon effusively praised themselves for their high ethical standards and for the strides they made implementing a progressive agenda, during the press event and at a Senate staff meeting. De Leon vowed that these aberrations would not stop the Senate from improving the “human condition.” It would be unfair to blame the leaders for the transgressions of a few, but a Senate hammered by these ugly scandals might show a little more humility about its mission. Steinberg, by the way, is still downplaying the Wright conviction, given that other senators are vulnerable on the “domicile” issue. This is a case in point of officials who bristle at a law that ensnares a colleague even as they pass many laws that apply to everyone else. And Steinberg said he will introduce a constitutional measure that must go to voters that would allow legislators to be suspended without pay, but that, too, seems a bit cynical. Ironically, the FBI has done what the ineffective GOP has struggled to do – strip the Democrats of their supermajority. But this is more about ethical blind spots than partisan politics. Even an indictment that alleges activities more unbelievable than a TV crime series can’t break the leadership of its bad habits.
The announcement that the PS4 would allow used games (at least to the extent the PS3 does) brought roars from the audience, and ‘won’ the conference online. But serial contrarian and Gears of War guy Cliff Bleszinski has come out in defense of blocking used games, something the Xbox One does. And to think we called him hot. He said: You cannot have game and marketing budgets this high while also having used and rental games existing. The numbers do NOT work people. The visual fidelity and feature sets we expect from games now come with sky high costs. Assasins Creed games are made by thousands of devs. Newsflash. This is why you’re seeing free to play and microtransactions everywhere. The disc based day one $60 model is crumbling.
Erinn Davis and Alex Tushingham braced themselves to see the motorist who had killed their beloved dad Bruce, to tell her how a lapse behind the wheel was ravaging their family. “The devastation and shock of our loss affects all of us every moment of every day,” Alex read from a victim impact statement his family had tearfully crafted. Alex Tushingham (left) said in a victim impact statement that his family experienced "devastation and shock" after the death of his father, Bruce Tushingham (right). ( Family photo ) But driver Nora Jones never heard that because she was not in court. Alex poured his heart out to a room that was empty except for people paid to be there and a few spectators waiting for the next traffic case. Jones’s legal representative pleaded guilty on her behalf to unsafely leaving a Markham roadway, reduced from careless driving, in August 2013. A justice of the peace fined her $500. Case closed. It never crossed Davis’s mind the driver could stay home. Her family did know, though, that the violent death of a fit, loving 63-year-old cyclist — who had met his grandson the day he was born and returned the next with a photo of him on his T-shirt — would be reduced to a minor traffic violation. Article Continued Below “The charge was no different if she hit a mailbox, or nothing, or killed my dad,” Davis says. “There’s no part of the charge that relates to the outcome, which is the crazy part.” With pedestrians and cyclists dying on Toronto streets at an alarming rate — more than 40 so far this year — safety advocates are demanding reforms to lax penalties in hopes of saving lives. “We give the car a special status in society,” says Patrick Brown, a Toronto lawyer who has argued civil suits for grieving families of dozens of cyclists and pedestrians. “If you want to look at your phone or talk at length to your kid, your car is becoming a weapon … If you use any other weapon to kill someone, like negligent discharge of a gun, you will face very severe penalties.” While there is sometimes anger at the drivers, it’s Ontario laws that dictate penalties. Brown believes car bias is baked into our laws, into how police investigate and question drivers, and finally into drivers’ sentencing at court. Theoretically, drivers can face up to 10 years in jail under a criminal charge of dangerous driving causing injury, up to six months in jail and a fine of $2,000 for the provincial offence of careless driving, or they can face an $85 fine for a minor traffic offence such as an improper turn. Legal observers say courts almost never give the maximums and usually accept plea bargains to less serious charges. There are many examples of motorists paying less than $1,000 for actions that killed a person. Article Continued Below By contrast, Ontario courts have also fined a tourist $1,000 for hunting a bear with a spear, developers $5,000 for each illegally removed tree and a man $2,000 for drunkenly driving a riding mower. Reached by phone, Jones — who told police her sandal got caught on the gas pedal, sending her car to the shoulder and then across the road head-on into Bruce Tushingham — tearfully refused to comment on her penalty. The wife of Alvito Abreu, who was 79 when he was fined $2,000 and handed a six-month partial driving ban after killing 4-year-old Milad Sher-Ahmad, refused to put her husband on the phone. “He has been through so much stress and I don’t want to put him through any more,” she said. “His health has deteriorated. We are people in our 80s and it’s really very, very painful.” Asked if the penalty for careless driving — running a Mississauga stop sign and turning left into an intersection, and the boy — was appropriate, she said: “I’ve accepted that and that’s it. I pray for the family every day and it was not intentional.” More than 10,000 Toronto pedestrians and 5,000 cyclists were killed or seriously injured by motorists between 2008 and 2012. For the pedestrians, according to a city staff analysis, the vast majority had the right of way. Driver Elizabeth Taylor was fined $1,000 for the collision that killed Erica Stark. ( Steve Russell/Toronto Star ) David Stark, whose wife Erica was fatally struck while standing on a Scarborough sidewalk in 2014, resulting in a $1,000 fine for motorist Elizabeth Taylor, co-founded Friends and Families for Safe Streets. The group is pushing for safer road design but also the adoption of “vulnerable road user” laws, with significantly tougher penalties, first introduced in Oregon. If motorists recklessly kill someone, they should face fines in the $50,000 range, Stark says. Drivers convicted in fatal crashes should be forced to attend court so they hear victim impact statements, he adds, and get significant driving bans and be forced to perform community service. “Where we are now with distracted driving is where we were a generation ago with drunk driving,” says Stark. “It’s going to take some time for public opinion to shift and for people to realize it’s not acceptable for me to be tapping away on my phone” while driving. Edward Sapiano, a lawyer who successfully challenged a Toronto police account of Tom Samson’s death that seemed to blame the cyclist, says new laws are not the answer. “We need the police to investigate the death of pedestrians and bicyclists like they investigate all other homicides,” with appropriate resources and trained investigators. “They have plenty of (laws) — dangerous driving causing death or bodily harm, impaired causing death, manslaughter. It’s the investigations that are deficient.” Last June, provincial Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca told Metro news he was “open-minded” about additional penalties or fines. Six months and many fatalities later, he told the Star much the same. Transportation staff continue to look at options. “I don’t mind continuing to work on this, that doesn’t bother me in the least, it is part of my responsibility, but I want to make sure if we’re going to go forward and we have a plan, it’s a plan that is more likely to work than not, and I think that requires a little more time … ” Del Duca said. “I completely respect the frustration and the impatience that some people are feeling and we’ll have more to say, I think, in the relatively near future.” Davis, meanwhile, chokes up describing her sons growing up robbed of a “super-involved” grandpa. “Stiffer penalties won’t help me, I still lost my dad, but maybe they’ll make people think twice about being distracted by the radio, or their coffee, or their shoe, or whatever,” she says. “If everyone is more focused, in less of a hurry and more conscious of others, maybe other families won’t be devastated like mine was. I never thought this would happen to us.” A look at how drivers are penalized Adrian Dudzicki, a 23-year-old elite squash player originally from Ottawa, was cycling to practice in North York on a November 2013 morning when Aleksey Aleksev sped through a red light and fatally hit him. The driver said he was adjusting the heating or the radio in his BMW car shortly before he hit the cyclist. Adrian Dudzicki, a 23-year-old elite squash player originally from Ottawa, was cycling to practice in North York on a November 2013 morning when Aleksey Aleksev sped through a red light and fatally hit him. The driver said he was adjusting the heating or the radio in his BMW car shortly before he hit the cyclist. Aleksev was found guilty of unusually serious charges — dangerous driving causing death, criminal negligence causing death and manslaughter — and sentenced to two years less a day in jail, three years probation and a 15-year driving ban. Riverdale mom Erica Stark was standing on a sidewalk next to a bus shelter in Scarborough, with a service-dog-in-training on a leash. Elizabeth Taylor, for no known reason, veered her minivan toward the curb, jumped it and slammed into a TTC pole and a utility box. Stark, a 42-year-old volunteer and mom of three young boys, died at the scene. Taylor was found guilty of careless driving and given a $1,000 fine, six months probation, a one-month total driving ban and a five-month partial driving ban. Bakhtawar Malik, a 13-year-old Mississauga girl about to start high school, was standing on a sidewalk at Bloor St. and Havenwood Dr. waiting for the light to change. Brikhena Xaci’s car jumped the curb and knocked Malik over a fence, killing her. Xaci, 43, pleaded guilty to careless driving and received a $1,130 fine. A charge for running the red light was withdrawn in return for her guilty plea. Edouard Le Blanc was cycling a hydro corridor near his Scarborough home in October 2014 when he was hit by a driver on Warden Ave. Witnesses told police Le Blanc had the right of way and the motorist ran a red light. Le Blanc, a 62-year-old retiree about to travel the globe with his wife, died at the scene after an impact so hard his organs were not fit for donation. William P. Laurie pleaded guilty to careless driving after a lengthy legal fight and was fined $700 and given six demerit points. Milad Sher-Ahmad, 4, of Mississauga, was being walked to kindergarten at Artesian Dr. Public School by his mother when, a block before their destination, a driver rolled past a stop sign into the intersection and hit the boy. A school bus driver who witnessed the crash said the 79-year-old driver seemed unaware of what he had done. Alvito Abreu pleaded guilty to careless driving and was fined $2,000 under the Highway Traffic Act. A justice of the peace ordered him not to drive for six months except for medical appointments or religious functions. Jessica Spieker, a personal fitness trainer, does not recall what happened while she was cycling on Bathurst St. near Shallmar Blvd. in Forest Hill. She woke up in an emergency room with a fractured spine, torn ligaments in one leg, and a brain injury that for a time impaired her short-term memory. Motorist Sharon L. Gancman received a $300 fine. Correction — Dec. 13, 2016: This article was edited from a previous version that misstated the numbers of pedestrians and cyclists who were injured or died as a result of a collision with a motor vehicle in Toronto.
To some conservatives it is "explosive" unseen footage that shows Barack Obama playing the race card, the perfect retaliation to the devastating Mitt Romney 47% video. But within minutes of the five-year-old video of Obama being released by the Daily Caller website on Tuesday night, the "exclusive" began to unwind amid criticism that much of it had been reported at the time and the content was anything but explosive. The 40-minute video – released in a carefully choreographed operation between Daily Caller editor-in-chief Tucker Carlson, Fox News host Sean Hannity and Drudge Report founder Matt Drudge – was shot in Virginia in June 2007 as Obama was campaigning for the Democratic presidential nomination. It covered a speech to a mainly black audience in which he accused the federal government of failing to provide sufficient monetary help for the victims in New Orleans of Hurricane Katrina, contrasting this with the assistance given to New York after 9/11. He suggested that this may have been because the federal government did not care as much as the victims of Hurricane Katrina, who were mainly black. "What's happening down in New Orleans? Where's your dollar? ... Tells me that somehow the people down in New Orleans they don't care about as much. Obama is also seen as praising his pastor in Chicago, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, whom he was to disown the following year. "My pastor, the guy who puts up with me, counsels me, listens to my wife complain about me. He's a friend and a great leader. Not just in Chicago, but all across the country," he said. In the speech, Obama also questioned the wisdom of spending money on roads in the suburbs when what was needed were jobs in the inner cities. The Daily Caller published the full video on its website on Tuesday night. In what it described as an exclusive, it said: "A barely-recognisable Obama lavishes praise on Rev. Wright ... says feds 'don't care' about black New Orleans ... claims gov't spends too much on suburbs, not 'our neighbourhoods'. On his Fox News show, Hannity described it as "a glimpse into the real mind of Barack Obama. It is pretty explosive stuff". He claimed the mainstream media were guilty of hiding the speech. Carlson, appearing on the show with him, claimed Obama had put on a fake accent to appeal to a black audience. But the video is unlikely to have much impact on the presidential race, unlike the secret video obtained by Mother Jones of Romney's "47%" remarks that went viral and have done serious damage to his campaign. Reporters, including Carlson, covered the speech at the time, as did Fox and the other television networks. Carlson insisted on Tuesday that journalists only reported on a copy given to them by the Obama campaign at the time and did not see his unscripted remarks. On his show, Hannity contrasted Obama's praise for Wright in 2007 with his condemnation of Wright in March the following year, implying hypocrisy. But Obama only disowned Wright after video footage was shown of a fiery rant by the pastor denouncing America and said at the time he did so with a heavy heart, acknowledging how important he had been in his life. Hannity did not have it all his own way on his show. Fox political analyst Juan Williams, who is black, accused him of playing the race card. The Democratic national committee described the conservative attack as "lame". The bigger question is whether the Romney campaign played any part in the release of the footage. Both campaigns can be guilty of dirty tricks operations, passing on material to sympathetic journalists. But Romney officials denied all knowledge and distanced itself from the video, portraying it as thin. The test will come in the presidential debate on Wednesday night and whether Romney ignores it or uses it as a tit-for-tat with Obama when he raises the 47% video.
Pokemon Go continues to hit the headlines. Border Patrol agents detained two teenagers from Canada on Thursday after they illegally crossed the border into the U.S. while playing the game. The duo, who have not been identified, were so busy playing the smartphone app that they didn’t realize they’d walked into another country, the Toronto Sun reports. Sam Mircovich / Reuters Border Patrol stopped the pair as they walked southbound near the Montana community of Sweets Grass, near the Alberta province town of Coutts. Agents apprehended the pair as they walked southbound near the Montana community of Sweets Grass, which borders the Alberta province town of Coutts. After discovering the teens were “unaware of their surroundings” and did not pose a threat, authorities transported them to the nearby Border Patrol Station. “Both juveniles were so captivated by their ‘Pokemon GO’ games that they lost track of where they were,” the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency’s public affairs officer Michael Rappold said via a statement.
For his “tip of the day” Tuesday night, Fox News host Bill O’Reilly chose to delve into a growing right-wing controversy over a line from first lady Michelle Obama’s DNC speech about waking up every morning “in a house built by slaves.” While O’Reilly admitted that “slaves did participate in the construction of the White House,” he made a point to note that “free blacks, whites, and immigrants” also contributed. Then came this assertion, delivered without irony: “Slaves that worked there were well-fed and had decent lodgings provided by the government, which stopped hiring slave labor in 1802. However, the feds did not forbid subcontractors from using slave labor. So, Michelle Obama is essentially correct in citing slaves as builders of the White House, but there were others working as well.”
Samsung Electronics today announced the launch of the Samsung Experience 9.0 beta, part of the Galaxy beta program which offers select customers a chance to experience new features available through the Galaxy ecosystem. Previously known as TouchWiz, Samsung Experience is based on the Android OS and has expanded beyond the user interface to provide Galaxy users with a consistent and seamless experience across all Samsung mobile software, apps and services. This change is in recognition of the increasing suite of unique services Samsung has developed for the Galaxy devices. Following Samsung Experience version 8.5, which was released with the Galaxy Note8, Samsung Experience 9.0 is based on the latest version of the operating system built on the Android Oreo UI and UX, and will be available on the next flagship Galaxy device. Samsung is launching a Samsung Experience 9.0 beta program for select customers. Starting on November 2, 2017, Galaxy S8 and S8+ users based in South Korea, the U.S. and the U.K. will have the opportunity to preview the upcoming Samsung Experience 9.0 before its official release, with additional rounds of registration. The beta period will allow Samsung to gather helpful insights and feedback from customers on their first impressions of the Samsung Experience 9.0 beta’s performance* and usability during the testing period*** to develop a more reliable, high-performing software package and provide Galaxy users with an improved and optimized experience. To apply for the program, users must have an active Samsung Account and meet certain requirements. The Galaxy beta program may be provided via the Samsung Members app or the Samsung+ app for the U.S., which are available through the Google Play store or Galaxy Apps, depending on the user’s country of residence. For more information, please visit the Samsung Members FAQ for Korea, the U.S. and the U.K. * In South Korea, Beta program is available for Galaxy S8 and S8+ users who have a device that is locked to SKT, KT or LG U+. In the U.S., it is available for Galaxy S8 and S8+ users using Sprint or T-Mobile network carriers, or have purchased an unlocked version for the U.S. In the U.K., the program is available for Galaxy S8 and S8+ users who have an open market device (operator unlocked version). Since the beta software is not the official version of the interface, unexpected errors may occur. * End date of program differs by country and may be subject to change.
This is an appeal from a judgment of the District Court declaring unconstitutional a regulation promulgated by the Attorney General at the direction of the President. In the circumstances of this case the court has concluded that the challenged regulation, 8 C.F.R. § 214.5, issued November 13, 1979, must be sustained. Regulation 214.5 requires all nonimmigrant alien post-secondary school students who are natives or citizens of Iran to report to a local INS office or campus representative to "provide information as to residence and maintenance of nonimmigrant status." At the time of reporting each student must present his passport and evidence of his school enrollment, of payment of fees, of the number of course hours in which he is enrolled, of his good standing, and his current address in the United States. The regulation provides that failure to comply with the reporting requirement will be considered a violation of the conditions of the nonimmigrant's stay in the United States and will subject him to deportation proceedings under section 241(a) (9) of the Act. The regulation is within the authority delegated by Congress to the Attorney General under the Immigration and Nationality Act. That statute charges the Attorney General with "the administration and enforcement" of the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1103(a), and directs him to "establish such regulations . . . and perform such other acts as he deems necessary for carrying out his authority under the provisions of" the Act. Id. He is directed to prescribe by regulation the time for which any nonimmigrant alien is admitted to the United States, and the conditions of such an admission. 8 U.S.C. § 1184(a). Finally, the Act authorizes the Attorney General to order the deportation of any nonimmigrant alien who fails to maintain his nonimmigrant status or to comply with the conditions of such status. 8 U.S.C. § 1251(a) (9). These statutory provisions plainly encompass authority to promulgate regulation 214.5. Recognizing the broad authority conferred upon the Attorney General by the Immigration and Nationality Act the District Court nevertheless thought that the Act does not empower him to draw distinctions among nonimmigrant alien students on the basis of nationality. We do not accept this conclusion. The statute need not specifically authorize each and every action taken by the Attorney General, so long as his action is reasonably related to the duties imposed upon him. See Ahmed v. United States, 480 F.2d 531 (2d Cir. 1973); Pilapil v. INS, 424 F.2d 6, 11 (10th Cir.), cert. denied, 400 U.S. 908, 91 S. Ct. 752, 27 L. Ed. 2d 147 (1970); Unification Church v. Attorney General, 189 U.S.App.D.C. 92, 99-100, 581 F.2d 870, 877-78, cert. denied, 439 U.S. 828, 99 S. Ct. 102, 58 L. Ed. 2d 122 (1978); Mak v. INS, 435 F.2d 728, 730 (2d Cir. 1970). Furthermore, we note that the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1303(a), does specifically authorize the Attorney General "to prescribe special regulations and forms for the registration and fingerprinting of . . . (5) aliens of any other class not lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence." Finally, failure to maintain nonimmigrant status or to comply with the conditions of such status is specified as a ground for deportation. 8 U.S.C. § 1251(a) (9). We conclude that promulgation of regulation 214.5 is directly and reasonably related to the Attorney General's duties and authority under the Act. The District Court concluded that even if authorized by statute regulation 214.5 is unconstitutional because it violates the Iranian students' right to equal protection of the laws. The court found no basis for the "discriminatory classification" of the students established by the regulation. Here again we must differ. Distinctions on the basis of nationality may be drawn in the immigration field by the Congress or the Executive. See Saxbe v. Bustos, 419 U.S. 65, 95 S. Ct. 272, 42 L. Ed. 2d 231 (1974); Mathews v. Diaz, 426 U.S. 67, 81-82, 96 S. Ct. 1883, 48 L. Ed. 2d 478 (1970); Fiallo v. Bell, 430 U.S. 787, 97 S. Ct. 1473, 52 L. Ed. 2d 50 (1977); L. Henkin, Foreign Affairs and the Constitution, 258 (1972); Maltz, Alienage Classifications, 31 Okla.L.Rev. 671, 684-91 (1978). So long as such distinctions are not wholly irrational they must be sustained. By way of an affidavit from the Attorney General we are informed that his regulation was issued "as an element of the language of diplomacy by which international courtesies are granted or withdrawn in response to actions by foreign countries. The action implemented by these regulations is therefore a fundamental element of the President's efforts to resolve the Iranian crisis and to maintain the safety of the American hostages in Tehran." The Attorney General refers of course to the lawless seizure of the United States Embassy in Tehran and the imprisonment of the embassy personnel as hostages. Those actions denied to our embassy and citizens the protection to which they are entitled under the Amity Treaty in force between the United States and Iran (284 United Nations Treaty Series 93), and under international law. The lawlessness of this conduct of the Iranian government was recognized by the decision of the World Court on December 15, 1979. United States v. Iran, General List No. 64 (Int'l Ct. Justice, Dec. 15, 1979). Thus the present controversy involving Iranian students in the United States lies in the field of our country's foreign affairs and implicates matters over which the President has direct constitutional authority. Mathews v. Diaz, supra. The District Court perceived no "overriding national interest" justifying the Attorney General's regulation: it found that "although defendants' regulation is an understandable effort designed to somehow reply to the Iranian attack upon this nation's sovereignty and the seizure of its citizens, it is one that does not support a legitimate national interest". In this we think the District Court erred. As we have said, classifications among aliens based upon nationality are consistent with due process and equal protection if supported by a rational basis. Mathews v. Diaz, supra ; Fiallo v. Bell, supra. The Attorney General's regulation 214.5 meets that test; it has a rational basis. To reach a contrary conclusion the District Court undertook to evaluate the policy reasons upon which the regulation is based. In doing this the court went beyond an acceptable judicial role. Certainly in a case such as the one presented here it is not the business of courts to pass judgment on the decisions of the President in the field of foreign policy. Judges are not expert in that field and they lack the information necessary for the formation of an opinion. The President on the other hand has the opportunity of knowing the conditions which prevail in foreign countries, he has his confidential sources of information and his agents in the form of diplomatic, consular and other officials. United States v. Curtiss-Wright Export Corp., 299 U.S. 304, 320, 57 S. Ct. 216, 81 L. Ed. 255 (1936). As the Supreme Court said in Mathews v. Diaz, supra, 426 U.S. at 81, 82, 96 S. Ct. at 1892: For reasons long recognized as valid, the responsibility for regulating the relationship between the United States and our alien visitors has been committed to the political branches of the Federal Government. Since decisions in these matters may implicate our relations with foreign powers, and since a wide variety of classifications must be defined in the light of changing political and economic circumstances, such decisions are frequently of a character more appropriate to either the Legislature or the Executive than to the Judiciary. This very case illustrates the need for flexibility in policy choices rather than the rigidity often characteristic of constitutional adjudication. . . . Any rule of constitutional law that would inhibit the flexibility of the political branches of government to respond to changing world conditions should be adopted only with the greatest caution. The reasons that preclude judicial review of political questions also dictate a narrow standard of review of decisions made by the Congress or the President in the area of immigration and naturalization. (Footnotes omitted) And in Harisiades v. Shaughnessy, 342 U.S. 580, 588-89, 72 S. Ct. 512, 519, 96 L. Ed. 586 (1952), Mr. Justice Jackson wrote for the Court: It is pertinent to observe that any policy toward aliens is vitally and intricately interwoven with contemporaneous policies in regard to the conduct of foreign relations, the war power, and the maintenance of a republican form of government. Such matters are so exclusively entrusted to the political branches of government as to be largely immune from judicial inquiry or interference. (Footnote omitted) This court is not in a position to say what effect the required reporting by several thousand Iranian students, who may be in this country illegally, will have on the attitude and conduct of the Iranian government. That is a judgment to be made by the President and it is not for us to overrule him, in the absence of acts that are clearly in excess of his authority. In view of the foregoing the judgment of the District Court is reversed with directions to dismiss the complaints and enter judgment for the defendants. So ordered. MacKINNON, Circuit Judge (concurring): I concur completely in the court's opinion but write separately to add additional support for its ruling. First, to indicate that this is not an isolated act of diplomacy in the international crisis that faces the United States I would stress that the record also reflects that, as part of the same diplomatic effort, the President by order prohibited "crude oil produced in Iran (from entering) the . . . United States" (Defendant's Ex. 3) and blocked all property and interests of the Government of Iran subject to United States jurisdiction (Defendant's Ex. 4). I also take judicial notice of the reports that substantial forces of the United States Navy have been moved to the Indian Ocean and the President has ordered the Iranian Embassy and consulate to return approximately 85% of its diplomatic staff to Iran. It is also significant that Regulation 214.5 seeks "to identify Iranian students in the United States who are not maintaining status and to take immediate steps to commence deportation proceedings against such persons" (44 F.Reg. 65727) "in accordance with constitutional due process requirements." (Defendant's Ex. 3). The disparity in treatment afforded the appellee nonimmigrant alien students who are in violation of our immigration laws is based upon the fact that the Government of their home country has committed, and is committing, a number of violent lawless acts against the United States and its citizens. That unlawful conduct against the United States places appellees, and others similarly situated who owe their allegiance to that country, in a different class for immigration purposes from the nonimmigrants of any other country. Therefore, since their government has made appellees part of a distinctly separate class, the United States under our Constitution may treat them differently because of the reasons that separate them from other aliens in the United States. The different treatment they may receive under subject regulation is directly related to the reasons for their different classification. The status of Iranian aliens cannot be disassociated from their connection with their mother country since the alien "leaves outstanding a foreign call on his loyalties which international law not only permits our Government to recognize but commands it to respect." Harisiades v. Shaughnessy, 342 U.S. 580, 585-586, 72 S. Ct. 512, 517, 96 L. Ed. 586 (1951). The connection with the home country also means that the power of the United States Government to terminate the alien's stay is a necessary corollary to that observation: Under our law, the alien in several respects stands on an equal footing with citizens, but in others has never been conceded legal parity with the citizen. Most importantly, to protract this ambiguous status within the country is not his right but is a matter of permission and tolerance. The Government's power to terminate its hospitality has been asserted and sustained by this Court since the question first arose. War, of course, is the most usual occasion for extensive resort to the power. Though the resident alien may be personally loyal to the United States, if his nation becomes our enemy his allegiance prevails over his personal preference and makes him also our enemy, liable to expulsion or internment, and his property becomes subject to seizure and perhaps confiscation. But it does not require war to bring the power of deportation into existence or to authorize its exercise. Congressional apprehension of foreign or internal dangers short of war may lead to its use. So long as the alien elects to continue the ambiguity of his allegiance his domicile here is held by a precarious tenure. That aliens remain vulnerable to expulsion after long residence is a practice that bristles with severities. But it is a weapon of defense and reprisal confirmed by international law as a power inherent in every sovereign state. Such is the traditional power of the Nation over the alien and we leave the law on the subject as we find it. 342 U.S. at 586-88, 72 S. Ct. at 517-518. (Footnotes omitted) It is thus my conclusion that the actions of the President and the Attorney General here questioned do "bear (a) reasonable relation to protection of the legitimate interests of the United States," Harisiades v. Shaughnessy, 342 U.S. 580, 584, 72 S. Ct. 512, 516, 96 L. Ed. 586 (1951) and conform to due process requirements. Id. 588-591, 72 S. Ct. 512. On Suggestions for Rehearing En Banc (D.C.Civil Nos. 79-3189 & 79-3210). Opinion filed by Circuit Judge MacKINNON setting forth his reasons for voting against rehearing. Joint statement of Chief Judge J. SKELLY WRIGHT and of Circuit Judges SPOTTSWOOD W. ROBINSON, III, WALD and MIKVA setting forth their reasons for voting to rehear these cases en banc. Before WRIGHT, Chief Judge, and McGOWAN, TAMM, ROBINSON, MacKINNON, ROBB, WILKEY, WALD, and MIKVA, Circuit Judges. ORDER PER CURIAM. The suggestions for rehearing en banc filed by appellees (Narenji, et al., and Confederation of Iranian Students) and the brief in support thereof filed by amicus curiae (Assoc. of Arab American University Graduates) having been transmitted to the full Court and a majority of judges not having voted in favor thereof, it is ORDERED, by the Court, en banc, that appellees' aforesaid suggestions for rehearing en banc are denied. MacKINNON, Circuit Judge: The following individual opinion responds to the petition for rehearing and the amicus brief. The principal point raised by Appellees' petition for rehearing en banc points out that the court's opinion does not discuss the Supreme Court's decision in Kent v. Dulles, 357 U.S. 116, 78 S. Ct. 1113, 2 L. Ed. 2d 1204 (1958) which Appellees' assert is the "leading case" on the issues here involved. In claimed reliance thereon Petitioners contend that the "statute vests no greater discretionary authority in the Attorney General" than the passport statute which was involved in Kent. That argument involves such a gross distortion of the facts and the holding in both Kent and this case, that it should be answered. Kent arose under the passport statute and involved American citizens who were not in violation of the laws of this country but who were denied passports because they refused to sign non-communist affidavits. Whereas this case primarily involves non-immigrant aliens who are in violation of our immigration laws. To say that the Constitution and Immigration Laws vest the President and the Attorney General with no greater rights over illegal aliens than they do over law abiding citizens of the United States is a contention that answers itself. The court's opinion did not discuss Kent because Kent on its facts was substantially distinguishable from the facts of this case. In this country we have given aliens very substantial rights, and the courts have been zealous in protecting those rights, Hampton v. Mow Sun Wong, 426 U.S. 88, 96 S. Ct. 1895, 48 L. Ed. 2d 495 (1976), but we have never held that aliens who are in this nation in violation of our laws have all the rights of law abiding citizens of the United States. The difference in the legal status of the individual involved in Kent and Narenji with respect to their citizenship and compliance with United States laws, thus places them in different classes and supports a difference in treatment. This difference in status and the effect of that difference on one's rights under the Immigration Laws was pointed to directly by Justice Douglas, in Kent, supra, when he remarked: "We must remember that we are dealing here with citizens who have neither been accused of crimes nor found guilty. (357 U.S. at 129, 78 S. Ct. at 1119-1120) . . . The grounds for refusal asserted here do not relate to citizenship or allegiance on the one hand or to criminal or unlawful conduct on the other. (357 U.S. at 128, 78 S. Ct. at 1119) . . . If we were dealing with political questions entrusted to the Chief Executive by the Constitution we would have a different case. 357 U.S. at 130, 78 S. Ct. at 1120 (Emphasis added). The sentence in italics foreshadowed the President's exercise of his power in foreign affairs in the instant crisis. Moreover, Congress by statute clearly authorized the Attorney General to prescribe regulations with respect to "nonimmigrants", such as Appellees, who do not properly maintain their status and are required to depart the United States. Congress in 8 U.S.C. § 1184(a) has provided that: "admission of . . . nonimmigrant (aliens) shall be for such time and under such conditions as the Attorney General may by regulations prescribe, including . . . such conditions as the Attorney General shall prescribe, to insure that at the expiration of such time, or upon failure to maintain the status under which he was admitted, or to maintain any status subsequently acquired under Section 248, such alien will depart from the United States." 8 U.S.C. § 1184(a) (Emphasis added). The regulation here in question is so clearly authorized by this statute, and the other statutes referred to in the majority opinion, that petitioners do not present any substantial question by its argument in this case. Petitioners real objection is to the manner in which the Attorney General through the Regulation has chosen to determine whether those in petitioners' class have maintained their status. The Regulation requires petitioners and others similarly situated to report and only those in violation of law are subject to being sent home. There is nothing novel or illegal about requiring aliens to report. That is the usual requirement which is applied to aliens of all classes. 8 U.S.C. § 1305. The major difference here is one in slightly accelerated timing which is necessitated by the urgency of the present emergency involving Iran. Such regulation is well within the prosecutorial discretion vested in the Attorney General under his duty to enforce the Immigration Laws. Those statutes charge, "The Attorney General shall be charged with the administration and enforcement of this (Immigration and Nationality) Act . . . He shall establish such regulations ; prescribe such . . . reports ; . . . and perform such other acts as he deems necessary for carrying out his authority under the provisions of this Act." 8 U.S.C. § 1103(a). (Emphasis added) Additional authority, previously referred to, for the Regulation promulgated by the Attorney General stems from 8 U.S.C. § 1303 which provides: "(a) . . . the Attorney General is authorized to prescribe special regulations and forms for the registration and fingerprinting of . . . (5) aliens of any . . . class not lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence." (Emphasis added). Petitioners here are not admitted for permanent residence and have definitely been made a special "class" separate from non-immigrants of other nations by virtue of the violent and lawless acts which their Government has allowed to be committed against the United States and its envoys duly accredited to Iran. These facts clearly bring the Attorney General's Regulation within the statutory power vested in him by the statutes cited above. Petitioners also assert that the court's opinion "nowhere indicates how the national identity of non-immigrant students is 'reasonably related' to the obligation of the Attorney General to assure that non-immigrant students are maintaining the lawfulness of their status in the United States and will depart this country when required. (Page 748). This statement, which professes to state the issue here, chooses to ignore the principal fact in the problem, i. e., that the Regulation is confined to Iranian students whose government in violation of all international law, 1 Oppenheim, International Law, § 386, p. 789, has violently infringed in Iran upon the inviolability of over 50 of our diplomatic envoys in that country by countenancing their arrest by so-called "students" and imprisonment as hostages to demands that are beyond the constitutional power of this nation to fulfill. If under such strained circumstances between Iran and the United States, the reasonable relationship of the regulation to the departure of illegal non-immigrant aliens who owe their allegiance to Iran, and to the determination of the location of other non-immigrant Iranian nationals, is not self evident, petitioners are being opaque. The international crisis and confrontation in Iran is of such severity that those who are illegally in this country create a clear and present danger because of their allegiance and illegal status. Under the circumstances it is reasonable even as to those aliens who are legally here but profess their allegiance to Iran, that they should be located in case the international crisis worsens, so that the Government may immediately take proper security measures to protect against the dangers which all aliens of such a foreign nation potentially create under such circumstances. Petitioners also contend that the Regulation amounts to a "discriminatory classification" of those in their class. The basis for the separate classification and its reasonableness is set forth in the concurring opinion and petitioners have not even attempted to attack or answer that explanation. To repeat, the classification of non-immigrants from Iran, and particularly those who are here illegally, is valid and reasonable because they owe allegiance to Iran and Iran at the present time is the only nation that has with force and violence transgressed upon American property and imprisoned our diplomatic envoys as hostages in violation of our treaty and international law. I will not further point out the status of such acts under international law except to state that they justify more extreme action than is called for by the Regulation. Petitioners argue, in effect, that non-immigrant Iranians must be treated the same as all other non-immigrants in the United States. The argument is absurd. In view of the acts of the Iranian Government against the United States and our accredited diplomats, non-immigrant Iranians in the United States at this time, and particularly those who are here illegally, are no more entitled to be treated the same as other non-immigrants than non-immigrants of any other nation would be entitled after their country has committed hostile acts against the United States. It should also be recognized that prior to the issuance of the Regulation in question the President by Executive Order 12170 of November 14, 1979 did "declare a national emergency to deal with . . . the situation in Iran (which) constitutes an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States." Authority: International Emergency Economics Powers Act, 50 U.S.C.A. Sec. 1701 et seq., the National Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. § 1601 et seq., and 3 U.S.C. § 301. 44 Fed.Reg. No. 222 Thursday, November 15, 1979. (Deft's. Ex. 4). (Emphasis added) The argument is advanced that the Regulation deals improperly with Iranian students. The sympathy implicit in that characterization is misplaced. Those who are primarily affected and might be subject to deportation (unless they asked for asylum, delay for valid reasons, or raised compassionate considerations) would be sent home precisely because they are not students. As with the so-called students in Iran, that are blamed for all the mob action that the Government of Iran does not oppose, these students appear to be of the non-studying kind. How they continue to be students eludes me. A student by definition is one who is enrolled and attends educational classes. Those who are the object of this regulation, were admitted for that purpose, but they have not maintained their status as students. Hence, having ceased to be valid students, if they ever acquired that status, the basis upon which they were allowed to enter this country has ceased to exist and they are required to return home. This is not punishment, but merely carrying out the understanding to which they agreed when they were allowed to enter the United States. If the illegal Iranian non-immigrants who are the principal focus of this Regulation are still referred to as students, even though they do not attend classes, then the term student is being misused. In closing I wish to state that because of the authorities I have set forth previously, I disagree with the dissent which suggests that the President's action should be subjected to further "close scrutiny". In the circumstances this is tantamount to seriously questioning the President's action. It should be pointed out, however, that the question has already received full consideration and more than sufficient time has passed to give the questions full consideration. It is also incorrect to say "that the President has taken this action without express authorization from Congress." (Dissent, n. 4). In the situation with which we are here dealing, the President's power is at its zenith right up to the brink of war and he does act pursuant to the "express authorization" of Congress. The relevant statute provides that whenever "any citizen of the United States has been unjustly deprived of his liberty by or under the authority of any foreign government . . . if (their) release is unreasonably delayed or refused, the President shall use such means, not amounting to acts of war, as he may think necessary and proper to obtain or effectuate the release . . .". This expressly covers the holding of United States citizens as hostages. The foregoing Presidential authority has been in existence since the Act of July 27, 1868, R.S. 2001, 15 Stat. 224 which presently appears as Title 22, U.S.C. § 1732. In its entirety it provides: Whenever it is made known to the President that any citizen of the United States has been unjustly deprived of his liberty by or under the authority of any foreign government, it shall be the duty of the President forthwith to demand of that government the reasons of such imprisonment; and if it appears to be wrongful and in violation of the rights of American citizenship, the President shall forthwith demand the release of such citizen, and if the release so demanded is unreasonably delayed or refused, the President shall use such means, not amounting to acts of war, as he may think necessary and proper to obtain or effectuate the release; and all the facts and proceedings relative thereto shall as soon as practicable be communicated by the President to Congress. This direction to the President by Congress is unequivocal. It completely supports every act and order that he has taken to free the United States hostages. No further scrutiny of his acts is required or necessary. I therefore vote to deny rehearing. Joint statement of Chief Judge J. SKELLY WRIGHT and of Circuit Judges SPOTTSWOOD W. ROBINSON, III, WALD and MIKVA setting forth their reasons for voting to rehear these cases en banc. Under challenge in these cases is an executive decision to enforce an immigration statute selectively against a group of aliens because of the conduct of their parent country, thus affecting them solely on the basis of their nationality. Such selective law enforcement poses a novel and serious question implicating an equal protection component of Fifth Amendment due process. Because we believe the question is of exceptional importance, we have voted in favor of en banc reconsideration. There can be no doubt but that Congress has broad authority, which it may vest in the Executive, to limit immigration on a variety of bases, including nationality. But once an alien has taken up residence in the United States, even temporarily, he or she derives substantial protection from the Constitution and laws of this land. It may be that the President, in these troubled days, has the power to decide that our deep aversion to selective law enforcement against a group solely on the basis of their country of origin must give way to some other imperative. The Supreme Court has certainly suggested that Congress has that power. Nevertheless, the question requires close scrutiny, and our answer must reflect careful consideration of "fine, and often difficult, questions of values."
Hollywood movies are an alternate reality where every law of the universe operates differently from our own, from the amount of damage a human body can take to the dating standards of hot girls who inexplicably fall for clumsy nerds. In this dimension, even a hero who is specifically described as "down on his luck" will routinely defeat the overwhelming odds thanks to a long list of coincidences falling his way. Like ... 5 Die Hard -- John McClane Blindly Throws C4 Down an Elevator Shaft, Hits Terrorists We all know/have attempted to re-enact the scene: About halfway through the first Die Hard, John McClane has successfully contacted the police, and they're making their way to the office building where Hans Gruber and his group of long-haired German terrorists have set up camp. However, their raid is cut short when Gruber unleashes his secret weapon: a rocket launcher that his goons use to blast missiles at the SWAT cars. "Is there a way we could make them die a little softer?" Continue Reading Below Advertisement The cops can't get anywhere near the building without getting blown to shit. But John McClane is nothing if not resourceful: He grabs a load of C-4 explosive that he borrowed from a dead terrorist, secures it to a chair using an old school computer monitor and drops it down an elevator shaft. What follows is one of the great moments in classic cinema: The C-4 explodes upon impact at the floor where the missile-launching terrorists are, killing them and making the building a little less insanely dangerous. Thank God for John McClane, right? The Blind Luck: How did McClane know the C-4 would explode on that exact floor? He is on the 38th floor when he drops the explosives, and the hostages (including his wife) are on the 30th or so. He doesn't have a detonator switch to set the bomb off, so how did he know the chair would blow on the terrorists' floor as opposed to, say, landing on an elevator and getting carried up to some other random floor (like, say, the one where all the hostages are)? Hell, what's to say it doesn't bounce off the walls of the shaft at some point on the way down, blowing some key structural support and bringing the whole building down? Or at least a huge part of it?
Jason Brennan and Neil Sinhababu Jason Brennan (left) and Neil Sinhababu (right) on political liberties and hedonism. In this episode, Brennan and Sinhababu air two different arguments on two different topics. First, Brennan argues, contrary to a widely held view, that a given individual’s political liberties should not be considered valuable for that individual: he contends that political liberties do not achieve the ends that would give them such value. Then (starting at 35:21) Sinhababu presents his argument in favor of universal hedonism: he contends that emotional perception (which often seems contrary to hedonism) is unreliable, whereas phenomenal introspection (which he thinks supports hedonism) is reliable. Related works by Brennan: “Political Liberty: Who Needs It?” (draft) The Ethics of Voting (forthcoming) with David Schmidtz, A Brief History of Liberty (2010) “Polluting the Polls: When Citizens Should Not Vote” (2009) by Sinhababu: “The Epistemic Argument for Hedonism” (draft) “Possible Girls” (2008) Blog: The Ethical Werewolf See also: Juan Comesaña, “We Are (Almost) All Externalists Now” (2005) Geoffrey Brennan and Loren Lomasky, Democracy and Decision (1997) Gelman, Silver, and Edlin, “What is the probability your vote will make a difference?” (2008) More video: Jason Brennan’s diavlogs (BhTV) Neil Sinhababu and Jesse Bering (BhTV) [display_podcast]
Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings. April 15, 2017, 12:27 AM GMT / Updated April 15, 2017, 12:27 AM GMT By Andrew Rafferty Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly said Friday that North Korea poses a cyber-threat to the United States but a military strike from the nuclear power is unlikely amid escalating tensions between the two nations. “In the case of North Korea, you know, a kinetic threat (missile attack) against the United States right now I don't think is likely, but certainly a cyber-threat,” Kelly told NBC News’ Chuck Todd. “We would raise various threat levels in the event that something happened and we felt as though that there was a possible threat,” he added. "You always want to caution on the side of — come down on the side of caution." The full interview with Kelly will air on NBC News’ “Meet The Press” on Sunday. Tensions between the U.S. and North Korea are near a boiling point over the communist nation’s nuclear program. Leaders in Pyongyang have announced a "big event" is coming soon, which U.S. officials believe could be a sixth nuclear test. Senior U.S. military officials told NBC News they were prepared to launch a preemptive strike with conventional weapons if they learned North Korea would carry out a nuclear weapons test. The U.S. positioned two destroyers in the region, with one 300 miles from the nuclear test site. North Korean leaders this week declared they would “hit the U.S. first” with a nuclear weapon if they felt threatened. Officials promised a "merciless retaliatory strike" against the U.S. if signs pointed to American military action. Despite its nuclear capabilities, military officials say North Korea does not have the technology to strike the U.S. with a weapon of mass destruction. They do, however, threaten U.S. allies like South Korea.
Common belief holds that Hank's case against Walt in Breaking Bad is composed almost entirely of circumstantial evidence. He seeks a statement from Skyler, telling her that he has "bits and pieces" but needs her help to get the whole picture. Hank is limited by what he's been able to piece together from several case files, but we, as viewers, have seen the story entire. With that in mind, what does Hank know, and is it enough to put Heisenberg away for good? Let's recap: Hank's investigation started with Krazy-8 and his cousin Emilio, the first big break for Walter White. As Hank revealed, he was a DEA informant that would sell out the competition and then scoop up their clientele. His last piece of information was on Captain Cook (and his cousin Emilio, just for completion's sake). As we know, Captain Cook was Jesse Pinkman. At the scene of their disappearance, Hank found Krazy-8's car, evidence of a meth cook, and a gas mask from Walt's school. This led him to investigate Walt's chemistry storeroom, where he found a massive amount of beakers and flasks missing. He jokes with Walt about people beginning to suspect him, and then makes an arrest in the form of "Huge" Hugo, the janitor who happened to have a small amount of marijuana in his car. From there, Gonzo and No-Doz, Tuco's henchmen of dubious intelligence, were brought to Hank's attention. While investigating Tuco, he discovers Jesse Pinkman's car and hauls him in for questioning. Unfortunately, he doesn't manage to make anything stick before Jesse slips free. But then he catches a break. Brandon "Badger" Mayhew gets caught trying to sell Blue Sky to an undercover police officer, and agrees to sell out Heisenberg. Unfortunately again, Walt and Jesse, through Saul Goodman, have hired James Edward Kilkelly, a man who likes prison more than freedom, to take the fall for him. Hank's investigation is stymied yet again. But then, dropped right into his lap, is Gale Boetticher. Here at last, he catches a big break. And, with help from Walt, comes to the conclusion that Gale wasn't Heisenberg, merely aping his work. From there, he gets on the trail of Gustavo Fring, and blows that whole operation out of the water. He even finds the laundry that housed the superlab, though Walt drives them into traffic to keep him from discovering it. And then, after Gus's death? The laptop is wiped clean. Michael Ehrmantraut stonewalls their every attempt at intimidation and finally drops off the map. Then, Walt orchestrates his masterpiece and murders every witness they had slated to testify. Finally, of course, he gets his luckiest break of all and finds the link between Walter White and Gale Boetticher — the copy of Leaves of Grass inscribed in Walter White's bathroom. Then, of course, there's the spectacular(ly comical) break-in at the chemical factory. Jesse and Walt manage to steal an entire oil drum of methylamine, and also get themselves filmed doing it. Hank watches it again with fresh eyes after catching on to Walt, and you can see the realization in his eyes. In short, it's been a long string of close-calls and near-misses, with each move hampered by Walt. In hindsight, Hank's able to spot the breadcrumbs. But will he be able to put them together? The pieces are there to be put together, there's no doubt about that. All it's going to take is a little police work. And Hank Schraeder's shown he's not averse to a little leg work. Even when his legs didn't work. To make sense of all this, we called up former federal prosecutor Moe Fodeman, -- now on the other side, defending those accused of white collar crimes. He's seen plenty of action over the years, including U.S. vs. Ronnell Wilson, who was tried for murdering two NYPD offers in a botched illegal-gun buy, and prosecuting renowned defense lawyer Robert Simels for conspiring to silence witnesses through money and violence. Here, Foderman weighs in on Hank's chances of capturing the elusive Walter White. 1. Hank should know: Circumstantial evidence can be a powerful tool. "Prosecutors tell jurors all the time that circumstantial evidence can be more powerful than direct evidence. Direct evidence is evidence that someone saw something, heard something, or smelled something. Circumstantial evidence is evidence that requires one to make an additional leap about the significance of that evidence. You're offering some fact and from the fact, you're asking a juror to draw an inference. Judges frequently explain the difference to jurors this way: Direct evidence is "I saw it raining." Circumstantial evidence is you're in a closed courtroom and someone walks in with a soaking-wet umbrella. You didn't see it raining, no one told you it was raining, but it's a pretty good inference to make that it's raining out. It's an easy leap. A defendant's finger prints at the scene of the burglary can be strong circumstantial evidence that the he committed the burglary — after all, why else would his fingerprints be at the scene? But if the defendant had been a guest in the apartment before, the evidence of his fingerprints being in the apartment isn't nearly as significant, and the inference that he's the burglar is much weaker. Bottom line is that circumstantial evidence can be weak or powerful. It all depends on how strong is the evidence the fact exists and and how strong is the inference to be drawn from that fact." Advantage: Hank 2. The handwriting connection lacks science ... which Breaking Bad is wholly concerned with. "As a prosecutor, I used handwriting experts a lot and it's routinely admitted in court. But it's not science like DNA. The expert is making a judgment as to whether two writings are a match or not. So the first question is: Is it a match? The second question is, if you believe that it is a match, what is the significance of the fact that this handwriting matches? Just like the fingerprints at a crime scene, a handwriting match can be incredibly significant, or it can be irrelevant depending on the circumstances." Advantage: Walt 3. The only person left who could flip on Walt is Pinkman. Hank needs Jesse to turn if he wants this method of prosecuting. "Federal criminal cases are often made by using accomplice testimony. Agents get the goods on one guy, convince him that the only way to save himself is by cooperating with law enforcement and testifying against his partners in crime. Once the 'cooperator,' as they're commonly referred to in the business, flips, then the rest of the case is about corroborating the cooperator's story and showing the jury this admitted criminal isn't just making stuff up about the defendant to save his own skin. That's a typical federal case. The problem for law enforcement is it's not always to easy to get the goods on the first guy, and even when you do, it's sometimes even harder to get a criminal to switch teams." Advantage: Hank (only if he can get Jesse to turn) 4. Hank's little breadcrumbs could be enough to bring Walt down. "Not all criminal cases have an accomplice, or an eyewitness, pointing the finger at the defendant saying that's the man who did it. Sometimes, prosecutors prove their case by piecing together pieces of circumstantial evidence which, when taken collectively, establish guilt. Maybe there's an innocent explanation for one of these facts, maybe two of them, prosecutors argue, but, at some point, coincidence after coincidence after coincidence has to be proof beyond a reasonable doubt. These little pieces of a puzzle would never all point at the defendant unless he was in fact guilty. No eye-witness, no one saying I did it with this guy, but little pieces that all add up. That can be a powerful case and people are convicted of it all the time. Just ask Scott Peterson — he's on death row for killing his wife and nobody testified they saw him do it. But between the inconsistent stories to the police and family members, strange behavior after the crime, an affair with another woman, other pieces of evidence, prosecutors convinced a jury that taken together, it proved him guilty." Advantage: Hank 5. Walt's hands-on, small-operation approach could be his demise. "Usually a high-level, successful drug-lord is never getting his hands dirty. He's not handling drugs or money himself. You're not going to have him delivering drugs to an undercover officer or informant, and you're not going to catch him on surveillance video with drugs or money. If he's good, he's only dealing with his top lieutenants and those closest to him. These drug lords are smart. They insulate themselves so they're not interacting with the whole organization. They're ultra-careful on the telephone and change their phones frequently, in case law enforcement is listening. Usually, in the end of the day, to get the highest-level people in a drug organization, it goes back to getting an insider to flip." Advantage: Hank 6. Walt's cover-ups and pattern of weird behavior could easily come to bite him in the ass. "Some of the most powerful evidence in a criminal case can be a defendant's attempt to cover his tracks and obstruct the investigation. I was involved in an insider-trading case recently where soon after a defendant learned he was under investigation, the FBI surveilled him eating his cell phone's SIM card. You generally don't do that unless you did something wrong. A suspect's change in behavior, his attempts to conceal evidence, or obstruct the investigation in some way, can be strong circumstantial evidence of guilt. It's not the behavior of an innocent person." Advantage: Hank Conclusion: After listening to an actual expert break down how cases really operate, it's clear that Hank has more than enough pieces to bring down Walt, the video surveillance tape being a pretty damning piece of evidence. But how Hank goes about collecting all these nuggets will be telling for Walt's future. It's the family connection that's going to make it tough for Hank; as much as Breaking Bad is a show about morality, power, becoming evil, and mortality — it's rooted in familial loyalty in strange, roundabout ways. PLUS: A Lot More Breaking Bad on Esquire.com >>
This is bound to cause a stir. Eugene Kaspersky, CEO of the influential Kaspersky security firm today made the comment that will rile some: “I think they [Apple] are ten years behind Microsoft in terms of security,” he said. But that is only the beginning. He went on to say that: For many years I’ve been saying that from a security point of view there is no big difference between Mac and Windows. It’s always been possible to develop Mac malware, but this one was a bit different. For example it was asking questions about being installed on the system and, using vulnerabilities, it was able to get to the user mode without any alarms. Mac security has been recently thrust into the public discourse as several flaps have turned into real stories. The Flashback malware hit a huge number of machines, with TNW reporting later on that some 650,000 Mac machines still had the bad code. Even more, a new study out has some rather stark figures, from the perspective that Macs are invulnerable: One in five Mac computers carry Windows malware but only 2.7% harbor Mac OS X malware. Now, 2.7%, how bad is that? Not too bad I would say, but Kaspersky sees this as a growing problem, just waiting for exploitation: Cyber criminals have now recognised that Mac is an interesting area. Now we have more, it’s not just Flashback or Flashfake. Welcome to Microsoft’s world, Mac. It’s full of malware. Yes, I use PCs, but I’m not trying to stir up another boring argument. The fact is that Macs are likely set to attract more negative attention, as Kaspersky noted, when they reach higher market share numbers. That is just common sense. What is perhaps a bit unsettling is how Kaspersky described Apple’s progress on the security front. Microsoft has learned the hard way in this area, it is well-known. Security problems bugged Microsoft software for years, and the firm paid for it in consumer sentiment and mindshare. It was expensive, in many ways. But the company, with its Security Essentials product and more robust Windows 7 operating system, has turned the tide. Mac’s turn next to live that gauntlet? I wouldn’t say so. I expect Apple to realize, and address the issues quickly; I doubt this will get out of hand. However, if you do run OS X daily, some common sense and perhaps even some security software would not hurt. Read next: Play World of Warcraft, get the person of your dreams? Well, there's one stipulation...
Kevin Spacey arrives at the 66th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on Monday, Aug. 25, 2014, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP) By one very important measure, Netflix looked like a big loser at Monday night's Emmy Awards. The streaming network had been nominated for 31 Primetime Emmys, but walked away from the most important categories empty-handed. The company reportedly spent more than $100 million to produce its marquee original shows "House of Cards" and "Orange is the New Black," which were bested by "Breaking Bad" and "Modern Family" in the Outstanding Drama and Comedy series categories, respectively. The New York Times hailed last night's awards show as "a win for broadcast and cable television," which is widely considered to be having a sort of new golden age. Yet not all is lost for Netflix. The Emmys are basically a huge marketing opportunity for television, prompting people to watch shows they may have missed the first time around. New audiences are likely to watch Emmy winners like "Sherlock," "Scandal," "Louie," "American Horror Story" and, of course, "Breaking Bad," which scored five Emmys Monday night -- so a good night at the Emmys, driving demand for quality programming, could send new customers to Netflix. And perhaps even more importantly, Netflix helped to create that good night at the Emmys. The service, which allows people to catch up on past seasons of shows, also helps keep great programming in circulation. Netflix doesn't release viewership data, but third-party researcher SimilarWeb said that "Breaking Bad" was the most popular show on Netflix last year. Vince Gilligan, the show's creator, has even attributed the success of his show about a high school science teacher-turned-meth dealer to Netflix. "I think Netflix kept us on the air," he told reporters after last year's Emmy Awards, according to Variety. "Not only are we standing up here (with the Emmy), I don't think our show would have even lasted beyond Season 2 ... It's a new era in television, and we've been very fortunate to reap the benefits." That new era of television has dawned in part because technology allows consumers to watch -- and binge-watch -- whenever they want. Consumer time spent watching video on the Internet -- through Netflix, YouTube, HBO Go, Amazon Prime Instant Video, and Hulu -- is up 54 percent this year, according to Nielsen. Many popular new shows, including "House of Cards," "Mad Men" and "True Detective," have succeeded in part because viewers can pause, rewind and watch multiple episodes in one sitting from almost anywhere. That ubiquitous availability has also helped HBO's hit shows and movies, including Emmy winners and nominees like "Game of Thrones," "Silicon Valley," "Veep" and "The Normal Heart." HBO Go, HBO's streaming platform, has grown 40 percent in the last year to 11.3 million registered accounts in the U.S. Broadcast networks like NBC and ABC have also joined the trend, making current seasons of their shows available on-demand, according to USA Today. Rentrak, a media measurement company, says that video-on-demand viewership is up 122 percent since 2010. Investors didn't seem to mind that Netflix didn't win awards in the major categories Monday night (to be fair, the company took home seven awards). The stock closed Tuesday at $479.36, near its all-time high.
The 10,000th Syrian Refugee Has Arrived in the U.S. LOOK: Breathtaking Wedding Photos Show Couple on Active Volcano A reindeer mass death has scientists in Norway scratching their heads. Officials said a lightning strike killed 323 reindeer on a mountain plateau. Experts don't know if the reindeer were killed in a single strike or multiple. It's common for the animals to huddle together during a storm. Lightning strike kills more than 300 reindeer in Norway https://t.co/AVXHabznmm pic.twitter.com/fK63D8i56Y — KOKH FOX 25 (@OKCFOX) August 29, 2016 The creatures were found piled on top of each other, many with their antlers tangled, in the isolated area. Five of them were found alive but injured, and had to be shot. 70 calves were among the dead. A spokesman for the country's environmental agency said it's not unusual for animals to be killed by lightning, but this was an unusually large number. "We've never had anything like this with lightning," Kjartan Knutsen said. LOOK: Celebs, Twitter React to Screen Legend Gene Wilder's Death Little Girl Is Afraid of Police, So Officer Goes the Extra Mile During Traffic Stop Apartment Residents Warned About Clown Trying to Lure Kids into Woods
January 2 Hey Huntresses and Huntsmen! The end of 2018 was a wild ride; we launched Bendy and the Ink Machine to console, hit some major game development milestones on our unannounced project, and have been laying the ground work for a whole slough of new community projects and focused content (our new Community Discord, Community Beta site, weekly streams, weekly community game nights, Office Hours, watch parties, etc!) Interested in joining the new Discord? Jump into the conversation HERE at the Official RT Games Discord: https://discord.gg/kf2BfjX As for the new RWBY: Grimm Eclipse update, we ran into a few snags with compatability issues between the older version of Unity that was used to create the game and the version used in the outset to create the new DLC (which caused some bugs, ie the dark screen that was patched when the Unity version was rolled back.) This created a few additional complications with our port and a lot of work for our dev team and third party partners on top of trying to balance this against our other projects. We are happy to tell you the new content should be available to consoles this upcoming month! Once we flip the switch on PS4 and Xbox One, we will also be rolling out the new game mode on all three platforms!It's been a wild ride and lots of learning, juggling priorities and growth for our team. We are SO excited to FINALLY put this in your hands and are very grateful to everyone who has shown as so much patience, understanding, and support.Please watch Twitter and the Community Discord for the fastest way to receive updates and news! We hope the new year treats you well and is filled with wonderful games and gaming experiences.Thanks again, and we'll see you back on Remnant in no time!!!
On July 14 the first official game of 2015/2016 season will take place at Chornomorets Stadium in Odesa. Champions of Ukraine and national cup holders FC Dynamo Kyiv will face FC Shakhtar Donetsk. The match will start at 21:00. FC Dynamo Kyiv 2014/2015 Ukrainian Premier League: 1st place (20 wins, 6 draws) Best striker in 2014/2015 Ukrainian Premier League: Artem Kravets (15 goals) Best assistants in 2014/2015 Ukrainian Premier League: Jeremain Lens, Andriy Yarmolenko (11 assists each) 2014/2015 Ukrainian Cup: cup holders (6 wins, 2 draws, goal difference – 13:3) Sparrings during summer break: Universitatea Craiova (2:0), Legia Warsaw (0:0), Skënderbeu Korçë (3:0), Eintracht Braunschweig (2:1), Fortuna Düsseldorf (1:0), Viktoria Plzeň (match not finished) Transfers during summer break – joined the team: mf. Petrovic (Gençlerbirliğ), mf. Moroziuk, fw. Moraes (both – FC Metalurh Donetsk), gk. Koval, mf. Miakushko (both – return after loan move) left the team: mf. Haruna (Anzhi Makhachkala), mf. Kalytvyntsev (FC Chornomorets Odesa, loan move), df. Betao (contract expired) Doers speak Aleksandar Dragovic, defender: “Victories in sparrings give us confidence. Still it doesn’t matter whether we win these games or lose. We must win on July 14”. Mykola Moroziuk, midfielder: “I think the game will be difficult for both sides. I guess we are moving in the right direction, so we’ll get ready for the match and succeed”. Artem Kravets, striker: “We want to win every competition. Of course our aim is to win the trophy. Super Cup is very prestigious in Ukraine”. FC Shakhtar Donetsk 2014/2015 Ukrainian Premier League: 2nd place (17 wins, 5 draws, 4 defeats) Best striker in 2014/2015 Ukrainian Premier League: Alex Teixeira (17 goals) Best assistant in 2014/2015 Ukrainian Premier League: Luiz Adriano (10 assists) 2014/2015 Ukrainian Cup: runners-up (6 wins, 2 draws, goal difference – 14:3) Sparrings during summer break: Neftchi Baku (1:0), Skënderbeu Korçë (2:0), Eintracht Braunschweig (1:2), Legia Warsaw (0:0), Monaco (3:0), Sion (2:3), Basel (3:1) Transfers during summer break – joined the team: fw. Eduardo (Flamengo), df. Sobol, mf. Kobin, mf. Hryn, mf. Malyshev, mf. Bolbat, mf. Karavayev, fw. Ferreyra (all – return after loan move) left the team: fw. Douglas Costa (Bayern Munich), mf. Fernando (Sampdoria), fw. Luiz Adriano (Milan), mf. Ilsinho Doers speak Yaroslav Rakytskyi, defender: “Considering our sparrings, I’m sure we’ll reach our best conditions by July 14. We have to win the Super Cup”. Alex Teixeira, midfielder: “We have to win the trophy! Last season Shakhtar lost in the domestic league and national cup. I’ve never lost in Odesa before. Victory will be a great start of new season”. Olexandr Hladkyi, striker: “It’s good we won the last starring of the training camp. That gives us confidence”. Copyright © 2015 FC Dynamo Kyiv
The news: This is Phoenix Coldon. Image Credit: Madame Noire On Dec. 18, 2011, she drove her 1998 Chevy Blazer out of her family driveway in St. Louis County, Mo., at 3 p.m. Three hours later, the vehicle was found at an intersection 25 minutes away in East St. Louis. The driver's door was open, the car was empty and the engine was still running. Phoenix was 23 years old. She hasn't been seen or heard from since. Image Credit: Google Maps The Coldons commemorated their daughter's 26th birthday on May 23, a bittersweet moment considering the circumstances. But her disappearance represents a much larger problem: As of today, more than 64,000 black women remain missing across the United States. Background: The Daily Mail explored this phenomenon in early 2012, and recently reposted their story to draw new attention to the issue. The statistics, in addition to others published by the FBI and the nonprofit Black and Missing Foundation, paint a grim picture of race and disappearance in America. Image Credit: Daily Mail (Note: Image is from 2012) The numbers: Despite representing 12.85% of the population, black Americans accounted for nearly 226,000 — or 34% — of all missing persons reported in 2012. According to the FBI's National Crime Information Center, the comparison with other racial groups is unfavorable: Whites and Hispanics are a combined 80.1% of the population, but account for 60% of missing persons. This is especially troubling when you break down the numbers by age. Black and Missing reports that 37% of missing minors and 28.2% of missing adults in 2013 were black. No fewer than 270,000 minorities have gone missing since 2010, 135,000 of whom were black and 64,000 were black women, according to the Atlanta Black Star. Image Credit: Black and Missing Foundation It gets worse: The reasons for these disappearances vary, and cannot all be attributed to foul play. But a telling pattern emerges in how they're documented by the media, with critics citing a stark racial divide in news coverage of such incidents. Essence points to a 2010 report titled "Missing Children in National News Coverage," which found that while black children accounted for 33.2% of missing children that year, the media exposure rate was an unimpressive 19.5%. While black men go missing at statistically higher rates, coverage of black female disappearances is particularly telling in light of the attention similar stories get when white women are involved. "If you Google 'Natalee Holloway,' how many impressions would you get?" Black and Missing cofounder Natalie Wilson told ABC News last year. "If you Google 'Unique Harris,' who's missing from D.C., the story is not the same." Image Credit: AP She added, "We cannot wait until the news cycle. We have to get this information out right away. Our people deserve to be found. We deserve awareness so that their families can get closure." The reasons: Natalie and her sister Derrica Wilson started the Black and Missing Foundation in 2008 specifically to raise awareness and provide resources, advocacy and pressure around this issue. Derrica has a background in law enforcement. Among the reasons she cites for disproportionate black disappearance figures are poor training and dismissive attitudes. "I spent six months at the Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Training Academy in Ashburn, Va., where we had only two hours of training on missing persons cases," she told Essence. "In the field, I've seen a majority of black missing children classified as runaways, who don't get Amber Alerts." Plus: "For black adults, police usually link their disappearances to criminal activity, so they aren't valued as much. Training needs to be enhanced so police forces know how to handle these cases." Natalie told the Daily Mail that lack of newsroom diversity also skews the way black missing persons are covered by the media. And while the plight of missing black women has received more coverage of late (albeit notably through international cases, like the 276 Nigerian girls kidnapped by Boko Haram in April), it's still not nearly at a conscionable level. So many remain missing: The families of girls and women like Relisha Rudd, Kamira Baxter, Cerra Lapsley, Makayla Randall and many others still anguish over their missing loved ones. Phoenix Coldon's family has spent their entire life savings and countless hours searching, posting flyers, distributing mailers, maintaining a Facebook page and appearing on TV and radio shows in a relentless effort to find their daughter. "Some people say that they are impressed with our efforts to find Phoenix," mother Goldia Coldon told the Huffington Post. "But I feel that we have not done enough ... I don't know what else to do." As the numbers clearly indicate, the Coldons are not alone. And so the search continues.
Eyes front, drummer boy! Lucky Rutgers marching band gets a fantasy evening with Victoria's Secret models Rutgers drummers told of appearance on annual Victoria's Secret runway show in August Group of 15 students - 14 males and just one female - have been practicing for months Drummers enjoyed taking photos and chatting to Victoria's Secret models, as well as Taylor Swift and Fall Out Boy, in New York on Wednesday night The male members of Rutgers University drum line couldn't believe their ears when they learned they were going to appear with a bevy of supermodels in recording the Victoria's Secret fashion show. Things got even better on Wednesday night when they got to spend time and take photos with the celebrated models, as well as musicians Taylor Swift and Fall Out Boy. And the amusing snaps taken by some of the students during the filming of the annual runway event, to be screened in December, show their cheeky disbelief. Scroll down for video Dream night out! Rutgers drummer Paul Nalesnik posed for this amusing shot with Victoria's Secret model Proud: The Rutgers drum line started the annual runway show in full military regalia Smiles: Several members of the Rutgers University Marching Scarlet Knights posed with models during Wednesday's event Timothy Smith, director of the Rutgers University Marching Scarlet Knights, told NJ.com of the moment he told the drummers about the performance request back in August. 'I asked a group of 18- to 21-year-old mostly male students if they'd be interested in performing at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show,' Smith said. 'They didn't wait a nanosecond to say, 'Of course!'' On Wednesday the students discovered that the models have to pass the door of their dressing room to get to the runway and didn't waste any time in saying hello. The group of 15 students consisted of 14 males and one female. Drummer Paul Nalesnik was one of several who got his photo taken with a lingerie model and his face says it all. Nalesnik quickly made this his Facebook profile picture. Show: Models (left to right) Magdalena Frackowiak, Lily Aldridge, Karlie Kloss, Doutzen Kroes, Adriana Lima, Candice Swanepoel, Behati Prinsloo, Lindsay Ellingson, and Alessandra Ambrosio dazzled on the runway Union Jack: The band performed as a 'British Invasion' themed section of the show Pricey: Candice Swanepoel got the glory of the opening look, wearing a $10 million bra decorated with diamonds, rubies and sapphires that was cleverly dubbed the 'Crown Jewels' Several grinning members of the Marching Scarlet Knights posed with models during Wednesday's event. 'The girls stopped and wanted to have their pictures taken with our guys,' Smith continued. 'They were so nice and enthusiastic. The same for Taylor Swift. 'She (said), 'Hey, how are you doing? Good luck.' I had hoped it was going to be a good experience, but my goodness, this totally exceeded my expectations,' the director told the website. Rutgers Marching Scarlet Knights reportedly got the rare invite to appear on the show through one of Smith's contacts. The drum line kicked off the show in military dress appearing as part of one of the British Invasion theme . They had spent several months practicing and preparing for the show. VIP: The band got plenty of attention, including from a make-up artist Inspection: The band going on the runway The Victoria's Secret Angels worked their magic on the catwalk, weaving between chart-toppers Taylor Swift and Fall Out Boy, and some fancy sets and stage tricks, yet somehow keeping the spotlight mostly on themselves. Swift donned a Union Jack costume and a sparkly silver mini-dress, but she never put on the lingerie that makes this annual fashion show so famous. She did give a lively performance of I Knew You Were Trouble that got the crowd at the Lexington Avenue Armory on its feet. Favorite models Karlie Kloss, Joan Smalls, Alessandra Ambrosio and Doutzen Kroes paraded in outfits that fitted the other themes of Snow Angels, Shipwrecked, Parisian Nights, Pink Network and Birds of Paradise. Glamor: Model Izabel Goulart walks the runway at the 2013 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show (left) while Cara Delevingne appeared as an English soccer player (right) Performance: Taylor Swift donned a Union Jack costume and a sparkly silver mini-dress, but she never put on the lingerie that makes this annual fashion show so famous At her fitting for her Psychedelic Angel costume, with hand-painted thigh-high boots and maybe the biggest wings of the show, Kloss said that while the garments are skimpy, they take months to make. Candice Swanepoel got the glory of the opening look, wearing a $10 million bra decorated with diamonds, rubies and sapphires that was cleverly dubbed the 'Crown Jewels.' She was quickly followed by Cara Delevingne as an English soccer player and Lily Aldridge, who often gets the good-girl outfits, as a punk in a tartan plaid skirt that no school would allow.
This article is from the archive of our partner . An economic researcher that usually gets these things right has said a double-dip recession is inevitable, and there's nothing policy makers can do about it. It's a glum report from the Economic Cycle Research Group, which Andrew Sullivan and others have pointed out predicted the last three recessions correctly. The group's report reminds us it didn't give any false alarms in between either. The Wall Street Journal points out is a change of tune from ECRI's earlier, conservative reports: "Up until recently, the ECRI, which was among the first to note the recovery that began in mid-2009, has stopped short of saying its leading indicators point to a recession. No longer." For its part, ECRI says the economic cycle has to run its course: A new recession isn’t simply a statistical event. It’s a vicious cycle that, once started, must run its course. Under certain circumstances, a drop in sales, for instance, lowers production, which results in declining employment and income, which in turn weakens sales further, all the while spreading like wildfire from industry to industry, region to region, and indicator to indicator. That’s what a recession is all about. But how can we have a new recession just a couple of years after the last one officially ended? Isn’t this too short for an economic expansion? More than three years ago, before the Lehman debacle, we were already warning of a longstanding pattern of slowing growth: at least since the 1970s, the pace of U.S. growth – especially in GDP and jobs – has been stair-stepping down in successive economic expansions. We expected this pattern to persist in the new economic expansion after the recession ended, and it certainly did. We also pointed out – months before the recession ended – that because the “Great Moderation” of business cycles (from about 1985 to 2007) was now history, the resulting combination of higher cyclical volatility and lower trend growth would virtually dictate an era of more frequent recessions. It's a bummer of a report after economists surveyed Bloomberg's put such faith in the American Jobs Act for restoring the economy. Hopefully this will be the one that breaks ECRI's correct-prediction streak. This article is from the archive of our partner The Wire.
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets British PM Theresa May at the G20 Summit in Hangzhou, in 2016. Reuters / Sputnik Photo Agency LONDON — MI6, the secret intelligence service, has reclassified Russia as a "tier one" threat, alongside Islamic terrorism, after years of regarding the nation as a second-rung security issue. Back in 2010, Russia was not even named in the British National Security Council's annual strategic defence and security review. In 2015, Russia was mentioned but not named specifically as a top priority. Only in 2016 was Russia once again called out — as it was during the Cold War — as a serious threat to national security, in the security review. Alex Younger, the head of MI6, went to NATO last month to tell the joint forces that Europe and the US need to get their act together when it comes to opposing Russia, according to Edward Lucas writing in The Times. The British people have been slow to wake up to Russia's interference in domestic politics. For years, the Russian government has funded misinformation around the Brexit referendum, oligarchs have invested in the London property market via offshore financial vehicles, and Russian espionage services have used the UK as a location for assassinating their political opponents. But the intelligence community has become increasingly alarmed at the boldness of Russian interventions inside Britain. Fourteen people are suspect to have been killed in Britain by Russian spies since 2003, according to BuzzFeed. Now MI6 will no longer stand idly by while Putin acts with a "sense of impunity," Younger told NATO in November. But Younger has a problem: The sheer size of the Russian security and intelligence apparatus. Britain has about 16,000 people devoted to intelligence and security. By contrast, the Russian state employs between 705,000 and 940,000 people across its various security, intelligence and counter-intelligence agencies, according to Victor Madeira, a Russia expert at the Institute for Statecraft, who testified to the House of Commons defence committee. That's 42 times as many, for a country whose population is roughly twice the size of the UK's. TOTAL Russian security agency staffing (ca 2006-2015) 705,000-940,000 FSB: 387,000 SVR: 13,000 GRU: 280,000-480,000 Special Communications and Information Service (Spetssvyaz): 53,000-120,000 TOTAL British security agency staffing (2015): 16,586 MI5, MI6, GCHQ: 12,080 DI, NSS, JIO, OSCT: ~4,506 Of course, not all those people are deployed against the UK. The US remains Russia's great enemy, Madeira told Business Insider. And many of them will be employed in low-level work, such as border guards. But even so, "you're talking orders of magnitude [over the UK] that the number of people that Russia can deploy," Madeira says. For instance, Russia has a massive official propaganda budget. "The resources we have collectively in the West even since Crimea, since Ukraine, that we've thrown at the problem are minuscule compared to what Russia does officially and unofficially, to the tune of annual budgets anywhere from $600 million to $1 billion, the Russians spend on the RTs and the Sputniks and outlets like this," Madeira testified. Russia has maintained that force because of the "mindset" of the Russian state, which has a completely different conception of the post-Cold War "peace" than Western nations do. In the West, peacetime is regarded as a dividend to be celebrated, a time to relax and prosper. But inside the Russian state, which is still run largely by former Soviet intelligence officials, peace is regarded as the period you use to prepare for the next inevitable conflict. "Russia continuously conducts strategic influence operations, especially in what NATO sees as 'peacetime', because to Moscow that is when the foundations of wartime success are laid" The Russian security apparatus, in other words, is in a constant state of war preparation in way that the British government is not. "Russia continuously conducts strategic influence operations, especially in what NATO sees as 'peacetime', because to Moscow that is when the foundations of wartime success are laid," Madeira wrote to the Commons defence committee. "Recent Russian security and intelligence budgets have grown annually by an estimated 15%-20% - with spending going to operations, not infrastructure." "That mindset in the Russian security and intelligence services remains that way today," he told Business Insider. It's not just that the spies are outnumbered, either. NATO is probably not equipped to fend off a surprise attack from Russia, the defence committee heard last year. On that panel, MP Bob Stewart asked Igor Sutyagin, of the Royal United Services Institute, if NATO was capable of reacting in time to a sudden, unprovoked military assault from Russia. "The problem is that the NATO Very High Readiness [Joint Task] Forces are not enough to cope … the mobility, even if they will be there, they will be outnumbered six to one which is very serious," Sutyagin said. "Secondly, the forces, even if deployed have some structural deficiencies … the Western side might be unprepared to deal with these environments."
The fifth-highest ranking House Democrat has suggested that the House minority leader, Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, should step down from leadership to make way for a new generation of lawmakers. On Oct. 5, Democratic Rep. Linda Sanchez of California asserted during an interview that Pelosi should consider stepping down from leadership. Sanchez, who is the vice chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, is the highest-ranking Democrat in the House to call for Pelosi to step down. "I do think we have this real breadth and depth of talent within our caucus and I do think it's time to pass a torch to a new generation of leaders and I want to be a part of that transition," Sanchez told The Washington Post. "I want to see that happen." ADVERTISEMENT Thanks for watching! Visit Website Sanchez added: "I think we have too many great members here that don't always get the opportunities that they should. I would like to see that change." In addition to calling for Pelosi to cede power, Sanchez also suggested that House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer and House Assistant Minority Leader James Clyburn surrender their leadership positions after the 2018 midterm elections. ADVERTISEMENT Thanks for watching! Visit Website ADVERTISEMENT Thanks for watching! Visit Website "They are all of the same generation and again, their contributions to the Congress and the caucus are substantial," Sanchez continued. "But I think there comes a time when you need to pass that torch. And I think it's time." Pelosi spokesperson Drew Hammill did not directly address Sanchez's recommendation in discussing her comments: "Leader Pelosi is focused on winning back the House and anything else is a distraction from our path to the majority," said Hammill. Meanwhile, Hoyer stated that he remained committed to his leadership role but that he agreed "with [Sanchez] that we have talented leaders throughout our Caucus." House Democratic Caucus Chairman Joe Crowley released a statement asserting that the Democratic leadership still maintained broad support. "Leader Pelosi, Whip Hoyer, and Assistant Leader Clyburn work harder and smarter each and every day for our members and our party," Crowley said, according to CNN. Pelosi has led the House Democrats since 2003. In November 2016, Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio made an unsuccessful bid to replace the California lawmaker's leadership position. Since then, several Democrats have suggested that Pelosi and the rest of the party leadership should step aside for a new generation. On June 22, Pelosi pushed back on such talk: "We're paving a way for a new generation of leadership, and I respect any opinion that my members have," Pelosi said during a press conference, according to NBC News. "But my decision about how long I stay is not up to them." The House minority leader added: "I think I'm worth the trouble, quite frankly." Sources: CNN, NBC News, The Washington Post / Featured Image: U.S. Embassy New Delhi/Flickr / Embedded Images: U.S. Congress/Wikimedia Commons, NBC News/YouTube
This article is about followers of William Miller. For the mineral, see Millerite The Millerites were the followers of the teachings of William Miller, who in 1833 first shared publicly his belief that the Second Advent of Jesus Christ would occur in roughly the year 1843–1844. Coming during the Second Great Awakening, his beliefs were taken as predictions, spread widely, and were believed by many, leading to the Great Disappointment. Origins [ edit ] Miller was a prosperous farmer, a Baptist lay preacher, and student of the Bible, living in northeastern New York. Miller spent years of intensive study of symbolic meaning of the prophecies of Daniel, especially Daniel 8:14 (Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed), the 2300 day prophecy.[1] Miller believed that the cleansing of the sanctuary represented the Earth's destruction by fire at Christ's Second Coming. Using the year-day method of prophetic interpretation, Miller became convinced that the 2,300-day period started in 457 BC with the decree to rebuild Jerusalem by Artaxerxes I of Persia. Simple calculation then indicated that this period would end about 1843.[specify] In September 1822, Miller formally stated his conclusions in a twenty-point document, including article 15, "I believe that the second coming of Jesus Christ is near, even at the door, even within twenty-one years,—on or before 1843."[1] This document remained private for many years. Miller did eventually share his views, first to a few friends privately and later to some ministerial acquaintances. Initially he was disappointed at the lack of response from those he spoke to. "To my astonishment, I found very few who listened with any interest. Occasionally, one would see the force of the evidence, but the great majority passed it by as an idle tale."[2] Miller states that he began his public lecturing in the village of Dresden, Washington County, New York, some 16 miles from his home, on "the first Sabbath in August 1833."[3] However, as Sylvester Bliss points out, "The printed article from which this is copied was written in 1845. By an examination of his correspondence, it appears that he must have begun to lecture in August 1831. So that this date is a mistake of the printer or an error in Mr. Miller's memory."[1] In 1832, Miller submitted a series of sixteen articles to the Vermont Telegraph—a Baptist paper. The first of these was published on May 15, and Miller writes of the public's response, "I began to be flooded with letters of inquiry respecting my views, and visitors flocked to converse with me on the subject."[4] In 1834, unable to personally comply with many of the urgent requests for information and the invitations to travel and preach that he received, Miller published a synopsis of his teachings in a "little tract of 64 pages." These he "...scattered, the most of them gratuitously, sending them in reply to letters of inquiry and to places which I could not visit."[5] A national movement [ edit ] 2300-day prophecy time line and its relation to the 70-week prophecy. Miller's interpretation of theprophecy time line and its relation to theprophecy. 2300 Days: The decree of Artaxerses in the 7th year of his reign (457 BC) as recorded in Ezra marks beginning of the 2300 days. King's reigns were counted from New Year to New Year following an Accession Year. The Persian New Year began in Nisan (March–April). The Jewish civil New Year began in Tishri (September–October). The beginning of the: The decree of Artaxerses in the 7th year of his reign (457 BC) as recorded in Ezra marks beginning of the. King's reigns were counted from New Year to New Year following an. The Persian New Year began in Nisan (March–April). The Jewish civil New Year began in Tishri (September–October). From 1840 onward, Millerism was transformed from an "obscure, regional movement into a national campaign."[6] The key figure in this transformation was Joshua Vaughan Himes—the pastor of Chardon Street Chapel in Boston, and an able and experienced publisher. Though Himes did not fully accept Miller's ideas until 1842, he established the fortnightly paper Signs of the Times to publicize them. The first edition was published on February 28, 1840, with Himes as editor. It continues to be published by the Seventh-day Adventist Church as a monthly evangelistic magazine under the same name. Periodical literature played an important part in the rapid and widespread dissemination of Millerite beliefs. "From first to last the power of the press, in this particular form, was one of the foremost factors in the success of this now vigorous, expanding movement."[7] In addition to the Signs of the Times based in Boston, Millerite papers were published in numerous cities including New York City, Philadelphia, Rochester, Cleveland, and Montreal, Quebec.[8] There were at least 48 Millerite periodicals that circulated in the period leading up to the Great Disappointment. The majority of these, however, were quite short-lived—often a new paper was started whenever a Millerite evangelistic campaign entered a new area.[9] As well as publications based on geography, the Millerites issued various papers targeting different groups. The Advent Message to the Daughters of Zion focused on female readers, and was first published in May 1844. The Advent Shield was a more academically orientated paper published in Boston and edited by Joshua Vaughan Himes, Sylvester Bliss, and Apollos Hale. Its announced purpose was to "defend the doctrine from the attacks of the enemies, to exhibit the unscriptural position of the opponents, and furnish the truth to those who were ready to receive it." While only three issues were produced: in May 1844, January 1845, and a final issue in April 1845; it was the largest of the Millerite papers, the first two issues each having 144 pages, and the final having 250.[10] As the various dates of Christ's predicted return approached, Millerite publishing went into high gear. In May 1843, 21,000 copies of the various Millerite papers were published for distribution each week. In New York alone, in the five-month period ending April 1843, 600,000 copies of various publications were distributed. In December 1843, Himes proposed the publication of one million tracts, while in May 1844, he announced that five million copies of Millerite publications had been distributed up to that time.[11] A researcher examined the geographical distribution of correspondents to the Millerite periodical Signs of the Times from 1840 to 1847. Out of a total of 615 correspondents, she found that the 131 correspondents from New York state provided the largest group. Vermont provided another 107, with New England (excluding Vermont) accounting for a further 279. Outside of these areas, representation was sparse: 23 in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland combined; just 65 from the west—including 20 from Ohio; and only 10 from the Southern states.[12] While it seems then, that the vast majority of Miller’s followers were of local origin, his message was not limited to his local area—nor even to the United States. Miller preached across the border in Canada’s Eastern Townships on at least three occasions: in 1835, 1838 and 1840. He made a number of converts there and gained the support of some of the local clergy. At least five Millerite papers were published in Canada: the Faithful Watchman—published in Sherbrooke from January 1843; the influential Voice of Elijah, published in Montreal from June 1843; the short-lived Hope of the Church in St. Thomas in 1844; Behold, He Cometh in Hamilton, and the Bridegroom's Herald in Toronto, both from mid-1844.[13] Many travellers or emigrants to the United States who had heard the Second Advent message there returned to their home districts to preach. From 1841, Millerite evangelists appeared in Great Britain, also, though he never travelled there himself. In addition to the nearly $1000 that Miller and Himes spent supplying literature to enquirers and evangelists in Great Britain, "there is evidence that [in Liverpool, Bristol, and other ports] local Millerite pioneers borrowed copies of Miller's works and Adventist magazines from visiting American sea captains and merchants."[14] As well as utilizing imported American literature, two Millerite papers were published locally in Great Britain: the Second Advent Harbinger in Bristol, and the British Midnight Cry in Liverpool.[15] The Millerite message entered Australia through the Canadian paper Voice of Elijah. Thomas Playford, living in Adelaide, was converted thus. Playford spread the Millerite message in Australia, even publishing a book of his sermons: Discourses on the Second Advent of Jesus Christ. Playford’s preaching apparently resulted in a number of converts.[16] An English Millerite, James William Bonham, apparently sent copies of The Midnight Cry to Van Diemen’s Land (now Tasmania), though no record remains of their effect.[17] In a similar manner, converts were made in Norway and Chile. A letter published in The Midnight Cry of October 12, 1843, from a Mrs O. S. Burnham of Kaloa, The Sandwich Islands, (now Hawaii) stated that she and her husband had accepted the Millerite message and were worshipping with a small company of believers.[18] Despite the urging of his supporters, Miller never personally set an exact date for the expected Second Advent. However, in response to their urgings he did narrow the time-period to sometime in the year 1843, stating: "My principles in brief, are, that Jesus Christ will come again to this earth, cleanse, purify, and take possession of the same, with all the saints, sometime between March 21, 1843 and March 21, 1844"[19] March 21, 1844 passed without incident, and the majority of Millerites maintained their faith. On March 25, Miller wrote to Himes, "I am still looking for the Dear Savior…. The time, as I have calculated it, is now filled up; and I expect every moment to see the Savior descend from heaven. I have now nothing to look for but this glorious hope."[20] As George R. Knight states, the movement's survival was a result of the fact that, "the Millerite leaders had been ‘soft’ on the time…. They allowed for the possibility of small errors in their calculations and even in some of their historic dates."[21] In fact, on February 28, Miller himself had written, "If Christ comes, as we expect, we will sing the song of victory soon; if not, we will watch, and pray, and preach until he comes, for soon our time, and all prophetic days, will have been filled."[22] Further discussion and study resulted in the brief adoption of a new date—April 18, 1844, one based on the Karaite Jewish calendar (as opposed to the Rabbinic calendar).[23] Like the previous date, April 18 passed without Christ's return. More study led the Millerites to believe that they had entered the "tarrying time"—a time of waiting after which Christ would finally return.[24][25] This belief sustained the Millerites through the months of May to July 1844. As Knight notes however, this period represented a "flatness in Millerite evangelism," when even the Millerite preachers must have experienced diminished certainty.[26] In August 1844 at a camp-meeting in Exeter, New Hampshire, everything changed when Samuel S. Snow presented a message of earth-shattering proportions—what became known as the "seventh-month" message or the "true midnight cry."[27] In a complex discussion based on scriptural typology, Snow presented his conclusion (still based on the 2300 day prophecy in Daniel 8:14), that Christ would return on, "the tenth day of the seventh month of the present year, 1844."[28] Again using the calendar of the Karaite Jews, this date was determined to be October 22, 1844. This "seventh month message" "spread with a rapidity unparalleled in the Millerite experience" amongst the general population. The situation caught many of the established leaders—including Himes and Miller himself, by surprise. Knight reports that, "There is no evidence that any of the foremost Millerite preachers accepted this grass-roots development until late September. Most did not accept it until early October."[29] Great Disappointment [ edit ] October 22, 1844, the day Jesus was expected to return, ended like any other day[30] to the disappointment of the Millerites. Both Millerite leaders and followers were left generally bewildered and disillusioned. Responses varied: some Millerites continued to look daily for Christ’s return, others predicted different dates—among them April, July, and October 1845. Some theorized that the world had entered the seventh millennium, the "Great Sabbath", and that, therefore, the saved should not work.[31] Others acted as children, basing their belief on Jesus’ words in Mark 10:15, "Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it." O. J. D. Pickands used Revelation 14:14–16 to teach that Christ was now sitting on a white cloud, and must be prayed down. Some simply gave up their beliefs and attempted to rebuild their lives.[31] Some members rejoined their previous denominations, while a substantial number became Quakers.[32] Hundreds joined the Shakers, who believed that Christ had already appeared for the second time in the person of Mother Ann Lee. The "Advents'" impact was greatest on the Shaker villages at Union Village and Whitewater, Ohio, Harvard, Massachusetts, and Canterbury, New Hampshire. Some remained Shakers for the rest of their lives; others left after a short time.[33] Post 'Great Disappointment' Millerism [ edit ] In the confusion that followed the Great Disappointment it seemed that almost every Millerite had an opinion—all of them different. Miller said that in one week he received sixteen different papers advocating different views, all claiming to be Advent papers.[34] Much of the responsibility for this proliferation of viewpoints must be shouldered by Miller, whose Rules of Biblical Interpretation outlined a method of biblical study that encouraged each person to read the Bible and to "do theology" for themselves. By mid-1845, doctrinal lines amongst the various Millerite groups began to solidify, emphasizing their differences—a process Knight terms "sect building."[35] During this time three main Millerite groups formed, in addition to those who had simply given up their beliefs. The first major division of the Millerite groups who had not completely given up their belief in Christ’s Second Advent were those who accepted a shut-door theology. This belief was popularized by Joseph Turner and was based on that key Millerite passage: Matthew 25:1–13—the Parable of the Ten Virgins. The shut door mentioned in verses 11–12 was interpreted as the "close of probation". As Knight explains, "After the door was shut, there would be no additional salvation. The wise virgins (true believers) would be in the kingdom, while the foolish virgins and all others would be on the outside."[36] The belief became a major issue upon the publication in January 1845, of an article by Apollos Hale and Turner in The Advent Mirror. This article tied the shut-door concept to October 22, 1844, teaching that the work of general salvation was finished at that date—Christ came spiritually as the Bridegroom, the wise virgins had entered into the wedding feast, and the door was then shut on all others.[37] This first group is commonly known as either the "shut-door" or "spiritualizer" group. The widespread acceptance of the "shut-door" belief lost ground as doubts were raised about the significance of the October 22, 1844, date—if nothing happened on that date, then there could be no shut door. The opposition to these "shut-door" beliefs was led by Joshua Vaughan Himes and make up the second post-'Great Disappointment' group. This faction soon gained the upper hand, even converting Miller to their point of view. On March 20, 1845, the Morning Watch published a call by Himes for a conference. The Albany Conference was to have three purposes: "to strengthen one another in the faith of the Advent at the door," "to consult on the best mode of unitedly carrying forth our work, in comforting and preparing the Advent congregations among us for the speedy coming of the Lord," and "to unite our efforts, for the conversion and salvation of sinners."[38] Notably, the stated purpose of the conference was not to debate controversial doctrines. In fact the invitation was extended only to those Adventists who "still adhere to the original faith." The Shut-door Adventists and others who had developed new doctrines were therefore explicitly excluded. The biggest draw card was to be the presence of Miller. In fact Himes wrote to Miller on March 27, 1845, saying, "all depends upon your being there."[39] The Albany Conference began on April 29, 1845, and was to be, "one of the most significant Adventist meetings in the history of post-October 1844 Adventism." The delegates to the Albany Conference– including prominent Millerite leaders such as Miller, Himes. Elon Galusha, Josiah Litch, and Sylvester Bliss; accomplished three main tasks: The production of a ten-point statement of belief. The development of a plan for evangelism that involved further organization, including the establishment of Sunday Schools and Bible classes; and the ordination of selected believers as ministers. The passing of a series of resolutions that rejected a number of beliefs and practices seen as extreme; including mixed foot-washing, compulsory salutation kissing, shaving one's head, and acting childlike. The Albany Conference group of Millerites formed the Evangelical Adventists out of which rose the Advent Christian Church. The Albany Conference Statement with its narrowing of beliefs was unacceptable to many. Millerism had been founded on Miller's open, non-restrictive approach to Bible study--"It was the freedom to discover new truths that had drawn so many Christians and Freewill Baptists to the movement. The new restrictive definitions charted a course that was unacceptable to many who had joined the movement."[40] The third major post-disappointment Millerite group also claimed—like the Hale and Turner led group—that the October 22 date was correct. Rather than Christ returning invisibly however, they came to view the event that took place on October 22, 1844 as having been quite different. The theology of this third group appears to have had its beginnings as early as October 23, 1844—the day after the Great Disappointment. On that day, during a prayer session with a group of Advent believers, Hiram Edson became convinced that "light would be given" and their "disappointment explained."[41] Some years later, Edson reported on his experiences following that meeting: "While passing through a large field I was stopped about midway of the field. Heaven seemed open to my view, and I saw distinctly and clearly that instead of our High Priest coming out of the Most Holy of the heavenly sanctuary to come to this earth on the tenth day of the seventh month, at the end of the 2300 days, that He for the first time entered on that day the second apartment of that sanctuary; and that He had a work to perform in the Most Holy before coming to this earth in His Second Coming. That he came to the marriage at that time; in other words, to the Ancient of days to receive a kingdom, dominion, and glory; and we must wait for his return from the wedding."[41] Edson's experience led him into an extended study on the topic with O. R. L. Crosier and F. B. Hahn. They came to the conclusion that "the sanctuary to be cleansed in Daniel 8:14 was not the earth or the church, but the sanctuary in heaven."[42] Therefore, the October 22 date marked not the Second Coming of Christ, but rather a heavenly event. This is the basis for the later Seventh-day Adventist doctrine of the Investigative Judgement. An article written by O. R. L. Crosier titled "To All Who Are waiting for Redemption, the Following is Addressed" summarising their insights, was published in the March 1845 edition of the Day-Dawn.[43] A more comprehensive article – also by O. R. L. Crosier and titled "The Law of Moses" was published in the Day-Star of February 7, 1846.[44] It is out of this third Millerite group that the Seventh-day Adventist Church arose. Doctrine [ edit ] The Millerites originally had adherents across denominational lines, especially from Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist and Campbellite churches, forming distinct denominations only after the Great Disappointment. They were united by a belief in the imminent return of Jesus Christ—the Second Advent. After the Great Disappointment of October 22, 1844, discussion of beliefs began to fragment the once united Millerites. Dunton points out that there were four main divisive doctrines being discussed by Millerites around the time of the Albany Conference: Biblical prophecies relating to the Jews. The majority of Millerites believed that these prophecies would find a spiritual rather than a literal fulfilment; however the Age to Come Adventists led by Joseph Marsh believed in a literal, physical Jewish return to Palestine prior to the Christ's return. Conditional immortality was not discussed at the Albany Conference, but was a source of controversy soon after. The doctrine of the Sabbath was one of the schismatic issues debated at the Albany Conferences. The seventh-day Sabbath was rejected by delegates at the Albany Conference, who passed a resolution to have "no fellowship with Jewish fables and commandments of man, that turn from the truth."[45] Sabbatarianism remained a minority position among the Millerites, but the doctrine received a significant boost when Thomas Preble published a tract on the topic. The tract, titled, A Tract, Showing that the Seventh Day Should Be Observed as the Sabbath, Instead of the First Day; "According to the Commandment", was widely read by Miller's followers. Following the disappointment of October 22, there was considerable discussion regarding the continuing possibility of the conversion of sinners. The doctrine that excluded this possibility became known as the shut-door. Miller himself believed this for a short time, though he later changed and repudiated it.[46] Influences [ edit ] The Bible Student movement had connections at the very beginning (in the early 2nd half of 19th century) with the Millerite movement. Charles Taze Russell later stated that "I confess indebtedness to Adventists as well as to other denominations". In light of this, the Bible Student Movement was influenced by Adventists roots, but did not emerge from the Millerism movement.[47] Bahá'ís also credit Miller's analysis of the time of Christ's return.[48] See also Day-year principle for a more complete review of how William Miller's analysis of the 2300 day prophecy of Daniel 8 matches the Baha'i understanding. Baha'is believe that, although William Miller's understanding of the location and method of Christ's return was not accurate, his calculation of the timing was entirely correct. See also [ edit ] Notes [ edit ] References [ edit ]
Update: thank you to everyone who got back to me with feedback! Here's what I've fixed: • Fixed crash at main menu due to unexpected resolution • Removed problematic depictions of coerced sex-work • Added a "wait" button, allowing players to advance time even when all other actions have been taken • Graziano no longer performs sword-duels after his death • Fashions will always change weekly. (Previously, it was possible for them not to if the diary wasn't full) • Resolution drop-down menu is hidden when the video options are closed • Clarified that you can't visit the princess successfully twice in one week There is one bug I can't fix: some people have reported playing for a while, quitting, and when they go to start it up again, it just crashes. This is normally caused by a corrupted settings file. The good news is, you can delete it and the game will make a new, clean one: the file is called "settings.gd" and is found (on windows) in "C:\Users\[username]\AppData\LocalLow\James Patton\Masques and Murder_". The bad news is that the game forgets which endings you've completed, but that's not a huge price to pay.
Every year, we’re treated to new statistics about how more and more women in the United States are forgoing motherhood. The panicked media response ensues, we wait for more statistics, and we do it all over again. This year is no different: a new census report found that the percentage of American women without children is rising - with a little over 15% of women between the ages of 40-45 living childfree - and articles featuring pictures of sad tiny baby hands and ghost children abound. It’s all well and good to know fertility and family statistics, but I find it a bit curious that this kind of data is only ever gathered about women. Aren’t men living their lives without children, too? Where are the panicked hot-takes about their selfish, childless lives? Obviously, we all know the answer: men have the distinct privilege of being considered full and fulfilled people no matter what their parenthood status. Women, though, will always be thought of as lacking something without a bouncing baby on their hips. No one cares if men have children - their identities aren’t inextricably tied to fatherhood in the way that we expect women’s to be with motherhood. It’s acceptable and even lauded for a man to live his life as a perpetual bachelor without children. We live in a country where George Clooney is enviable, but Jennifer Aniston - whose lack of a baby bump is debated and fretted over in tabloid headlines - is somehow pitiful. The absence of a substantive conversation about men’s childlessness and fertility isn’t just about sexism, though - it’s about health. Studies show that the more advanced a father’s age, the greater a risk there is that his children will have mental health and developmental problems like schizophrenia or autism. Yet it’s women who are bombarded with scare tactics about their ever-decreasing egg rate and increased monitoring when they get pregnant over the ancient age of 35. In some ways, women have made progress when it comes to the decision not to have kids. There is less of a stigma than in past years, there’s a vibrant community for the childfree by choice, and a more nuanced discussion about those who prefer to remain without kids is happening. But, so long as the research done on family size is focused on women, we will continue to see parenting as a distinctly female endeavor - the consequences of which go beyond statistics and numbers, but impact the way we think about who is responsible for child care, who should be in the workforce, and what it means to be a productive member of society. So please, keep doing the research on women and children. But let’s include some information about men, too. For every article about a woman’s biological clock, I want to see a stock photo of a forlorn man pushing an empty stroller. For every warning that women’s eggs are drying up, there should be headlines about slow sperm and sad sacks. It seems only fair. If the idea of shaming men the way that we have women for so long doesn’t appeal, there is another solution: we can mind our own business and let people live their lives in whatever way suits them best, whether that is with or without children.
Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Footage from the scene shows the aftermath of the strikes Several rockets fired from southern Lebanon landed in northern Israel, the Israeli army has said. There were no casualties from the strikes, the first across the border since 2009. Two buildings were damaged. The rockets fell in the Western Galilee region and the Israeli army returned fire into Lebanon. In 2006, a war was fought between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas based in Lebanon. "The Israeli army considers that it is a serious incident and believes that it is the responsibility of the Lebanese government and the Lebanese army to avoid these kind of attacks," the Israeli army statement added. Minor damage Four rockets landed in Israel, according to a report on Israeli public radio. The Jerusalem Post website said one rocket landed in Biranit, 700 metres from the Lebanese border. No damage was reported. Two rockets landed in the Western Galilee town of Netua, causing minor damage, and police were searching for the fourth rocket in a wooded area just south of Ma'alot, also in Western Galilee. Local military commanders were assessing the situation but people in northern Israel, where the rockets landed, had not been told to go to air raid shelters, said an army spokesman. The 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006 left 1,200 Lebanese and 160 Israelis dead. Lebanon and Israel remain officially in a state of war. Israel and the US have accused Syria of helping Hezbollah rearm. Earlier this year, Damascus denied it was supplying Scud missiles to the group.
(WARNING: This story contains graphic language) UPDATE: 11:30 a.m. – Jian Ghomeshi is not guilty of all charges. The former CBC Radio host pleaded not guilty to four counts of sexual assault and one count of overcoming resistance by choking. The charges stem from accusations made by three women who say Ghomeshi sexually assaulted them between 2002 and 2003. READ MORE: What to expect from the verdict in the Jian Ghomeshi trial He acknowledged in 2014 that he engaged in rough sex acts, but said it was consensual. Globalnews.ca has a full team of reporters covering the trial at the Old City Hall courthouse in Toronto. A special LIVE STREAM of the court proceedings will begin at 10 a.m. ET. You can also follow the verdict as it happens in our live blog below: (You can also scroll down for a recap of the trial)
The defence secretary, Michael Fallon, has dismissed Jeremy Corbyn’s proposed compromise on the Trident nuclear weapons programme in which submarines would be retained but go to sea without warheads as “pointless”, comparing it to going into a fight with an imitation gun. Fallon was speaking after a tour of HMS Vigilant, one of the UK’s four submarines that carry Trident missiles capped with nuclear warheads, docked at Faslane naval base on the river Clyde in Scotland. “If you are going to have a deterrent, you have to be prepared to use it,” he said, adding that he hoped a Labour review into the future of Trident would take into consideration the views of what he described as moderate Labour opinion. “If Labour maintains this new position against the deterrent, clearly they are a threat to national security because it means we would be less safe under a future Labour government. “I hope even now that their review, which is being led by a Labour leader who is anti-nuclear and a shadow defence secretary who is anti-nuclear, will listen to more moderate mainstream Labour voices. “It’s extremely dangerous, it will undermine our alliances, weaken our standing in the world and would threaten our safety. It’s like making imitation rifles. Nuclear patrols would be pointless without nuclear weapons.” The government has still to announce a date for a vote on the successor to the existing Trident fleet. Fallon, in a separate interview with television, initially said it would be held in a matter of weeks but quickly corrected himself to say a decision had still to be taken. Fallon said it would be held “shortly”. Onboard a Trident submarine: 'If I have to pull the trigger, deterrence has failed' Read more The government believes it has enough votes to win on Trident, even in the face of Labour and Scottish National party opposition. The question for ministers is whether to hold the vote in the next two months before the May election campaigns get under way or prolong what they see as Labour’s mess on defence through to the autumn. Submarines such as HMS Vigilant are to remain operational into at least the early 2030s, when a new generation of submarines is due to take over. It is these new subs that parliament will be voting on this year, theoretically because of the long time needed for design and construction. Labour, after three decades of support for Trident, is conducting a review into whether it makes sense for the UK to continue to have nuclear weapons and on the practicality of investing so much, an estimated £31bn for the four new subs, at a time when fast-developing technology could make these subs obsolete. Quantum computers, better surveillance, cybersecurity and underwater drones present a challenge to the ability of the submarines to remain hidden. Fallon denied that the submarines were in danger of being obsolete by the time they became operational 15 years from now, provided they arrived on schedule. “These boats have been patrolling without being detected for 47 years. They patrol in isolation and are well equipped to escape detection,” he said, He added that Trident was better able to protect the UK from unpredictable threats. No one had predicted the emergence of Islamic State, he said, and no one could be sure there would not be a nuclear threat in the next 30 years. He expressed concern about Russia’s nuclear weapons programme, adding: “We are very concerned about nuclear weapons going to rogue states like North Korea.”
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Online sales of electronic cigarettes and tobacco could be banned under a bill introduced by lawmakers on Monday. Claiming kids and teens have easy access to tobacco and electronic cigarettes, Assemblyman Roger Dickinson (D-Sacramento) is introducing a bill blocking people from buying both on the Web. “We need to do more to protect our children from a tobacco addiction and a lifetime of health-related problems,” he said. “Because there is no physical presence of the seller with the buyer, it is easy for a young person who is not eligible to buy tobacco products or e-cigarettes to do so.” Roughly 1 in 10 smokers are buying their cigarettes online. Traditional tobacco is not the only product being targeted. Anti-smoking advocates are focused on electronic cigarettes. “E-cigarettes are very much an emergency trend, and they are being marketed very closely to children and teens,” said Kori Titus with Breathe California. The nicotine in e-cigarettes comes through vapor instead of tobacco. Since the health risks are still being studied, Titus believes they should not fall into the hands of children. “Certainly some of them may have a lower content of nicotine delivery than a cigarette, others have a much higher delivery,” she said. Shop owners like Barry Smith at the Electric Cigarette Lounge say the safety of children is being used to push through another nanny bill. “Yeah we have strawberry, but don’t adults like strawberry margaritas, or strawberry pie, or raspberry this,” he said. “We aren’t going after kids. It’s ludicrous.”

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