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<p>A woman walks by a securities firm in Tokyo, Wednesday, March 12, 2014. Asian stock markets sank Wednesday as recent falls in Chinese copper and iron prices added to jitters that the world's No. 2 economy is continuing to slow. (AP Photo/Junji Kurokawa)</p>
<p>LONDON - Modestly stronger than anticipated U.S. retail sales figures helped shore up sentiment across financial markets Thursday despite disappointing Chinese economic figures and a rate hike in New Zealand.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Government figures showed that U.S. retail sales rose by 0.3 percent in February from the previous month. That was the first monthly increase in three months and was just ahead of the consensus in the markets. U.S. retail sales are a particularly important barometer of the health of the U.S. economy as they account for around 70 percent of all activity.</p>
<p>"The U.S. consumer might not have ventured out to the usual extent for the time of year on account of cold, snowy conditions, but investors will be warmed by news that those that stayed at home last month bought more at online venues," said Andrew Wilkinson, chief market analyst at Interactive Brokers.</p>
<p>The figures helped stocks on Wall Street's open, where the Dow Jones industrial average was trading 0.2 percent higher at 16,377 and the S&amp;P 500 index firmed 0.1 percent to 1,870.</p>
<p>In Europe, the mood was more cautious, partly because of concerns over the situation in Ukraine ahead of Sunday's referendum in the region of Crimea on whether to join Russia.</p>
<p>The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 0.3 percent at 6,603 while Germany's DAX rose 0.1 percent to 9,193. The CAC-40 in France was 0.1 percent lower at 4,303.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The euro, meanwhile, was making ground and headed toward the $1.40 mark for the first time since 2011. It was trading 0.4 percent higher at $1.3967, its strongest level since October 2011.</p>
<p>Most market attention, though, remains focused on China amid fears that its economy is beginning to struggle. Those fears accentuated Thursday after government figures showed industrial production rose by a lower than anticipated 8.6 percent in the first two months of this year. Retail sales growth also fell short of estimates.</p>
<p>Markets largely brushed aside the move by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand to raise its main interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 2.75 percent. Though other central banks have raised rates since the global financial crisis of 2008, such as increases in 2011 by the European Central Bank and Sweden's Riksbank, analysts said the move by the New Zealand central bank may represent a milestone in the global recovery.</p>
<p>Craig Erlam, market analyst at Alpari said the move marked "the beginning of a new chapter for the recovery in the global economy."</p>
<p>Earlier in Asia, trading was lackluster, with Japan's Nikkei 225 closing down 0.1 percent at 14,815.98 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng sank 0.7 percent to 21,756.08.</p>
<p>But in mainland China, the Shanghai Composite rose 1.1 percent to 2,015.03.</p>
<p>"With the Chinese central bank poised to cut the amount of cash banks must keep as reserves in an attempt to stimulate the economy, the local rally can perhaps be justified," said Patrick Latchford at Valutrades.</p> | US retail sales report helps steady markets | false | https://abqjournal.com/366887/china-worries-stalk-markets.html | 2 |
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<p>Social networkers and good old fashioned newspapers may have the unique opportunity to serve Sri Lankan President&#160;Mahinda Rajapaksa a summons to answer for his alleged role in extrajudicial killings during the civil war between government forces and Tamil insurgents.</p>
<p>According to a press release issued by Bruce Fein, the lawyer for the plaintiffs in a lawsuit seeking $30 million in damages from Rajapaksa for alleged offenses that occurred during his command responsibility as head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces, Fein has moved for permission to serve a summons to Rajapaksa by alternative means, such as publishing notices in newspapers circulated in Sri Lanka and social media.</p>
<p>"Basically, it [may mean] the President can be served via the Internet, Facebook and Twitter and email. The President can no longer claim he is unaware of the charges alleged against him," the statement quoted Fein as saying.</p>
<p>The complaint holds Rajapaksa responsible for the alleged extrajudicial killings of Ragihar Manoharan, the son of Plaintiff Dr. Kasippillai Manoharan, Premas Anandarajah, a humanitarian aid worker for Action Against Hunger, and first husband of Plaintiff Kalaiselvi Lavan, and four members of the Tevarajah family, all relatives of Plaintiff Jeyakumar Aiyathurai, the statement said.</p>
<p>International human rights groups and advocates for press freedom will monitor the Sri Lankan media to track the publications which publish the summons and take note of any repercussions that media outlets or journalists may face for&#160;deciding to publish the complaint, the press release said.</p>
<p>"In 2010, Reporters Sans Frontiers ranked Sri Lanka as the fifth deadliest country for a reporter to work in," Fein said. "In the final phase of the war, 14 journalists were murdered or disappeared and dozens more had to flee the country or risk losing their lives."</p>
<p>Until now all attempts to serve the summons on the president have been refused including those under the Hague Convention, but international pressure on the regime is mounting.</p>
<p>Only hours after President Rajapaksa addressed the UN General Assembly last week, Sri Lanka's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Major Shavendra Silva, was served on charges relating to war crimes by a U.S. Court.</p>
<p>After filing the motion, a Judge will rule if the summons can be served via press or petitioned electronic means. In the meantime, Sri Lankans along with millions of readers worldwide will be made aware for the first time of the detailed charges alleged against the President.</p> | Social networkers to subpoena Sri Lankan president for alleged war crimes? | false | https://pri.org/stories/2011-10-01/social-networkers-subpoena-sri-lankan-president-alleged-war-crimes | 2011-10-01 | 3 |
<p />
<p>The Brazilian Catholic church has apparently decided the best way to reach rich people is to talk to them in terms they understand. Instead of asking the well-to-do to give to the poor, it’s asking them to invest in them.</p>
<p>According to ADBUSTERS, the church is offering stock in its Banco da Providencia (Bank of Providence), which funds programs for orphans, alcoholics, and ex-convicts in Rio. Shareholders will receive “social dividends”, which are reports telling them in detail about the good works they’re helping to support.</p>
<p />
<p />
<p><a href="/mustreads/120100.html" type="external">12/1 – Barbara Walters, soup-shill</a></p>
<p><a href="/mustreads/113000.html" type="external">11/30 – Skiing green</a></p>
<p><a href="/mustreads/112900.html" type="external">11/29 – Cheney’s ties to Iraq</a></p>
<p><a href="/mustreads/112800.html" type="external">11/28 – Safe sex for plants</a></p>
<p>So if “investors” give money and get nothing in return but a nice warm glow, how is it different from a donation? It’s not, really — the church simply hopes the unique packaging will reach a different kind of donor. And, since this is the finance world it’s hitting up here, as opposed to the usual little old ladies, they’re aiming for more than small change — the church is putting $604 million worth of stock up for sale.</p> | Stock options for the poor? | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2000/12/stock-options-poor/ | 2000-12-02 | 4 |
<p>KABUL, Afghanistan — A dispute over recent elections is raising fears of a return to ethnic infighting in Afghanistan, where supporters of one disgruntled candidate on Friday staged the largest protests yet in a weeklong series of demonstrations.</p>
<p>Chanting, “our vote is our honor” as a call to rally, thousands of supporters of presidential hopeful Abdullah Abdullah marched from early morning to gather in a downtown avenue housing ministries and the president’s palace.</p>
<p>After the June 14 election, Abdullah, the widely presumed frontrunner, accused the country’s election commission of rigging the vote in favor of his opponent, Ashraf Ghani. Abdullah also asserted that Hamid Karzai had helped tamper the vote, triggering outrage at the outgoing president.</p>
<p>“Karzai must know he is nothing in front of the people. We want the government to be selected by the people,” said Mohammad Nadim, a protester. “We want our rights, we want prosperity for Afghanistan.”</p>
<p>The protests, so far peaceful, are threatening the legitimacy of what could be Afghanistan’s first democratic transition of power. They also stir anxiety among people who fear a return to the ethnic infighting that has marred Afghanistan in the past.</p>
<p>In the first election round in April, a majority of Afghans voted for a ticket they considered part of their own ethnic group. So while most Pashtuns voted overwhelmingly for Ghani, Abdullah, who is of mixed Tajik and Pashtun ethnicity, mustered almost unanimous support from the Tajik, as well as the Hazara population. Under the flurry of fraud allegations, the same ethnic divides have begun to surface.</p>
<p>“Unfortunately, the elections have accelerated the ethnicization of the country,” says Aslam Jawadi, founder of Daily Open Society, a reformist Kabul newspaper.</p>
<p>Leading up to Friday’s protest, Abdullah’s team arranged marches to begin from both Tajik and Hazara neighborhoods of Kabul. But while actively mobilizing protesters along ethnic lines may be an efficient tactic, it could also turn out to be a reckless one.</p>
<p>“[Abdullah] is getting a lot of behind the scenes advice and warnings about what could happen,” says Christine Roehrs of the Kabul-based Afghan Analysts Network (AAN). “There’s a lot of mitigating going on behind the scenes,” she said. “But his team is also very emotional at the moment.”</p>
<p>In a procession in the wealthy Wazir Akbar Khan neighborhood, protesters waved flags of Ahmad Shah Massoud, the anti-Taliban fighter assassinated in 2001 who is lionized by many across the nation. Shouting, “Abdullah is our Massoud,” several protesters insisted that they did not wish to see Afghanistan divided.</p>
<p>“No, those who say such a thing want to create disunity among Afghan people,” said Nadim. “It’s not a matter of being Tajik or Pashtu.”</p>
<p>Indeed, although protesters seemed to be mainly Tajik, ethnic boundaries were not clear-cut.</p>
<p>“It’s not the case that all Pashtuns support Ghani,” said Mohammad Yosufi, a 25-year-old Pashtun protester, who nevertheless feared ethnic strife boiling over if a political solution is not found. “It might be the only way if they don’t comply with people’s wishes,” he said.</p>
<p>As a case in point, in the first round, Abdullah reaped double-digit percentages in several Pashtun dominated districts.</p>
<p>“It’s a simplified narrative that Afghans always vote along ethnic fault lines,” said Roehrs, of AAN. However, she added, because of intensified rallying in certain provinces before the second round, voting on June 14 seemed to reverse to more familiar ethnic patterns.</p>
<p>A little after 11 AM the crowd began to sway unsteadily, and moved towards an open pickup truck where Abdullah himself suddenly appeared. Abdullah, who narrowly escaped an assassination attempt less than a month ago, made his way through the crowd, waving and smiling.</p>
<p>Within a day after the June 14 vote, before any official tally, Abdullah cried foul, claiming that Ghani had been propped up by more than a million fake votes. Abdullah’s team then released an audio recording, allegedly capturing a senior election official conspiring to stuff ballots.</p>
<p>After Abdullah announced his boycott of the official election process, the official purportedly appearing on the tape, Zia ul-Haq Amarkhail, resigned as head of the Independent Election Committee.</p>
<p>Though Amarkhail maintains his innocence – stepping down “for the national interest and the sake of the election process” – protesters repeatedly shouted “Death to Kharkhail,” with a play on the Dari word for donkey.</p>
<p>After the resignation, Abdullah agreed to resume conversations with the election commission, but still insists on acting “in support of people’s rights,” and has continued to drum up street protests. He has also upheld his accusations against president Karzai for meddling in the process.</p>
<p>After a violence-ridden election, where more than half the population defied Taliban attempts to disrupt the vote, including the killing of at least 46 civilians, protesters here seemed to direct their scorn just as much at Karzai as Ghani.</p>
<p>“People in the presidential palace want to ignore the will of the people who have lost their fingers to protect democracy,” said Yosufi.</p>
<p>A preliminary count is expected early July, while the final result is slated for July 22. &#160;</p> | Amid election protests, Afghans wary of ethnic conflict | false | https://pri.org/stories/2014-06-27/amid-election-protests-afghans-wary-ethnic-conflict | 2014-06-27 | 3 |
<p>TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - A woman who tried to order murders from a Florida jail now faces more than a century in federal prison.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.tampabay.com/news/courts/criminal/Woman-who-ordered-Colombian-necktie-hit-from-Pinellas-jail-tells-judge-she-has-bad-judgment-gets-65-more-years_164163952" type="external">The Tampa Bay Times</a> reports 51-year-old Priscilla Ellis was sentenced Thursday to 65 years, to start after she completes 40 years for a 2016 fraud conviction.</p>
<p>Ellis was convicted for her role in an $11 million fraud scheme. Prosecutors say she then began soliciting fellow inmates at the local jail to arrange the murders of one trial witness and the mother of another. A jailhouse informer worked with the FBI to secretly record conversations.</p>
<p>An FBI agent posing as a would-be hit man met with Ellis in jail. Authorities say she tried paying for the murders with $1,600 in counterfeit checks.</p>
<p>Ellis claimed entrapment and said she never intended to have anyone killed.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, Fla.), <a href="http://www.tampabay.com." type="external">http://www.tampabay.com.</a></p>
<p>TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - A woman who tried to order murders from a Florida jail now faces more than a century in federal prison.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.tampabay.com/news/courts/criminal/Woman-who-ordered-Colombian-necktie-hit-from-Pinellas-jail-tells-judge-she-has-bad-judgment-gets-65-more-years_164163952" type="external">The Tampa Bay Times</a> reports 51-year-old Priscilla Ellis was sentenced Thursday to 65 years, to start after she completes 40 years for a 2016 fraud conviction.</p>
<p>Ellis was convicted for her role in an $11 million fraud scheme. Prosecutors say she then began soliciting fellow inmates at the local jail to arrange the murders of one trial witness and the mother of another. A jailhouse informer worked with the FBI to secretly record conversations.</p>
<p>An FBI agent posing as a would-be hit man met with Ellis in jail. Authorities say she tried paying for the murders with $1,600 in counterfeit checks.</p>
<p>Ellis claimed entrapment and said she never intended to have anyone killed.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, Fla.), <a href="http://www.tampabay.com." type="external">http://www.tampabay.com.</a></p> | Woman gets another 65 years for ordering murders from jail | false | https://apnews.com/amp/b0b73b19b3004698ae5f71102ea7c642 | 2018-01-05 | 2 |
<p>Medtronic Plc. said Tuesday it had net income of $1.016 billion, or 74 cents a share, in its fiscal first quarter to July 28, up from $929 million, or 66 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings came to $1.12, ahead of the FactSet consensus of $1.08. The Dublin-based medical equipment maker said sales rose to $7.39 billion from $7.17 billion, below the FactSet consensus of $7.45 billion. Chief Executive Omar Ishrak said revenue was hurt by a global IT disruption in June and temporary Diabetes sensor supply constraints. "While these temporary issues had affected first quarter revenue growth, we continued to drive operating margin expansion," Ishrak said in a statement. Shares were indicating higher in premarket trade, but have gained 17% in 2017, while the S&amp;P 500 has gained 8.5%.</p>
<p>Copyright © 2017 MarketWatch, Inc.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p> | Medtronic Tops Profit Estimate, But Sales Fall Short | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2017/08/22/medtronic-tops-profit-estimate-but-sales-fall-short.html | 2017-08-22 | 0 |
<p>FAIRMONT, W.Va. (AP) - Seeing the old-fashioned architecture and period-accurate technology, clothing and settlers going about their days at Pricketts Fort feels like a step back in time.</p>
<p>But a weekend in October actually brings visitors forward in time a few months into a somewhat colder, snowier and jollier season.</p>
<p>Pricketts Fort celebrated its Christmas in October weekend Oct. 13-15, when visitors came to not only buy gifts, but also to learn about history.</p>
<p>"We have the whole place decorated to the time period," said Greg Bray, director of Pricketts Fort. This allows visitors and opportunity to see what Christmas celebrations in the past would have looked like.</p>
<p>The history within in the walls of Pricketts Fort resonates with stories dating back to the time in which the real fort was first built. Originally constructed in the 1770s, the fort served as a fortified safe-space from Native Americans for settlers in colonial times, used by the Prickett family. The fort was restored through reconstruction in 1975 and is now a certified West Virginian state park, dedicated to Jacob Prickett, of the family who created the fort.</p>
<p>The mission of the restored fort is to educate the people of West Virginia about what life was like in a time that the fort was active. The history and the spirit of the old fort is conveyed through period-accurate costumes, props and interpreters inside who stay inside the fort throughout the day, and go about business as if it were still active.</p>
<p>One aspect of the time period that the folks at the fort have adapted to modern times is the celebration of Christmas. In the past, Pricketts Fort has hosted a Christmas market in its visitor center during the actual winter month of December. However, this market was moved into October a few years ago for reasons that would make sense even to the original settlers; the inclement December weather.</p>
<p>With the exception of the more mild weather, the fort's market resembles Christmas in many ways, complete with vendors selling handcrafted items made through methods such as woodcarving.</p>
<p>But in reality, the all-out decoration and celebration of the Christmas season the current fort provides portrays a stark contrast to the Christmas past, which was anything but a celebration.</p>
<p>"They did very little at the time of the fort. They recognized Christmas as a holiday, but it was very low-key. There was no real Christmas celebration at the time. The adults might have celebrated a little bit too much, but as far as a Christmas celebration there just wasn't any," Bray said.</p>
<p>Bray explained that as time went on and the Pricketts adjusted to life in the fort over the years, the festivities may have grown slightly with the kids possibly getting candy as a present and decorations including some flowers. During a time of war Christmas was also seldom mentioned.</p>
<p>"During the Revolutionary War, you hear the troops talk about Christmas, maybe have a drink to celebrate. They just didn't do a lot," Bray said.</p>
<p>The interpreters explained some parts of winter living as well, as they re-enacted some daily tasks of the time such as cooking.</p>
<p>They also explained some history while they were at it explaining how colonists stayed warm.</p>
<p>"They had to make their own clothes, they had to make their own cloth to make their own clothes. They had to produce their own food, they couldn't just go and buy food, they had to be able to produce everything they ate," Cordelia Spencer, an interpreter at Pricketts Fort, said about the settlers. "You think of the simple-ness of how they lived, but it's just fascinating when you think about how they lived."</p>
<p>Spencer explained that using the knitting wheel to craft clothing out of sheep's wool was commonplace in American history which families used to keep kids warm in winter.</p>
<p>One of the spinning wheels kept in the fort is an antique piece, which was donated to the park. Although the interpreters don't know what time period the wheel is from, they can see its age from the rough texture it developed.</p>
<p>Keeping warm was top priority then, so the fireplace in the home was left burning almost permanently in the winter. But in addition to keeping the home warm in the winter, the fireplace was also used largely for cooking, in a method known as hearth cooking. Spencer demonstrated this as well.</p>
<p>"Hearth cooking is cooking over a fireplace. They had to keep the fire going all winter so they would also cook their meals over it," Spencer said.</p>
<p>Another interpreter, Bob Smith, elaborated on hearth cooking while using the method to cook cornmeal.</p>
<p>"They would keep corn and beans ready for the winter and they would have them to keep all winter," Smith said. "There were 16 people in a family and you had to produce enough for the whole family."</p>
<p>Bray himself has attempted to recreate the living experience of the Pricketts.</p>
<p>"I've been here in the middle of winter, stayed overnight, and the water froze on the hearth it was so cold. That's how cold it was, I can just imagine those people were very cold most of the time. They dressed warm like we do, they had winter coats, things like that but they must have been cold. They lived right in front of the fireplace."</p>
<p>Using the fireplace to cook was the most efficient method, and with more than 20 mouths to feed, it was necessary to keep a steady supply of food cooking and stocked.</p>
<p>The absence of an 18th century Christmas doesn't hinder Bray and the rest of the staff at Pricketts Fort, however. Bray said it takes them a few days after the week of Thanksgiving to get candles, wreaths and holly strung all around the fort and visitor's center for December. And although the original settlers of the home didn't really have the chance, Bray and the staff do the best they can to bring out the fort's full Christmas potential.</p>
<p>"There's a lot of time and energy going into the fort's Christmas now," Bray said.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Times West Virginian, <a href="http://www.timeswv.com" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.timeswv.com" type="external">http://www.timeswv.com</a></p>
<p>FAIRMONT, W.Va. (AP) - Seeing the old-fashioned architecture and period-accurate technology, clothing and settlers going about their days at Pricketts Fort feels like a step back in time.</p>
<p>But a weekend in October actually brings visitors forward in time a few months into a somewhat colder, snowier and jollier season.</p>
<p>Pricketts Fort celebrated its Christmas in October weekend Oct. 13-15, when visitors came to not only buy gifts, but also to learn about history.</p>
<p>"We have the whole place decorated to the time period," said Greg Bray, director of Pricketts Fort. This allows visitors and opportunity to see what Christmas celebrations in the past would have looked like.</p>
<p>The history within in the walls of Pricketts Fort resonates with stories dating back to the time in which the real fort was first built. Originally constructed in the 1770s, the fort served as a fortified safe-space from Native Americans for settlers in colonial times, used by the Prickett family. The fort was restored through reconstruction in 1975 and is now a certified West Virginian state park, dedicated to Jacob Prickett, of the family who created the fort.</p>
<p>The mission of the restored fort is to educate the people of West Virginia about what life was like in a time that the fort was active. The history and the spirit of the old fort is conveyed through period-accurate costumes, props and interpreters inside who stay inside the fort throughout the day, and go about business as if it were still active.</p>
<p>One aspect of the time period that the folks at the fort have adapted to modern times is the celebration of Christmas. In the past, Pricketts Fort has hosted a Christmas market in its visitor center during the actual winter month of December. However, this market was moved into October a few years ago for reasons that would make sense even to the original settlers; the inclement December weather.</p>
<p>With the exception of the more mild weather, the fort's market resembles Christmas in many ways, complete with vendors selling handcrafted items made through methods such as woodcarving.</p>
<p>But in reality, the all-out decoration and celebration of the Christmas season the current fort provides portrays a stark contrast to the Christmas past, which was anything but a celebration.</p>
<p>"They did very little at the time of the fort. They recognized Christmas as a holiday, but it was very low-key. There was no real Christmas celebration at the time. The adults might have celebrated a little bit too much, but as far as a Christmas celebration there just wasn't any," Bray said.</p>
<p>Bray explained that as time went on and the Pricketts adjusted to life in the fort over the years, the festivities may have grown slightly with the kids possibly getting candy as a present and decorations including some flowers. During a time of war Christmas was also seldom mentioned.</p>
<p>"During the Revolutionary War, you hear the troops talk about Christmas, maybe have a drink to celebrate. They just didn't do a lot," Bray said.</p>
<p>The interpreters explained some parts of winter living as well, as they re-enacted some daily tasks of the time such as cooking.</p>
<p>They also explained some history while they were at it explaining how colonists stayed warm.</p>
<p>"They had to make their own clothes, they had to make their own cloth to make their own clothes. They had to produce their own food, they couldn't just go and buy food, they had to be able to produce everything they ate," Cordelia Spencer, an interpreter at Pricketts Fort, said about the settlers. "You think of the simple-ness of how they lived, but it's just fascinating when you think about how they lived."</p>
<p>Spencer explained that using the knitting wheel to craft clothing out of sheep's wool was commonplace in American history which families used to keep kids warm in winter.</p>
<p>One of the spinning wheels kept in the fort is an antique piece, which was donated to the park. Although the interpreters don't know what time period the wheel is from, they can see its age from the rough texture it developed.</p>
<p>Keeping warm was top priority then, so the fireplace in the home was left burning almost permanently in the winter. But in addition to keeping the home warm in the winter, the fireplace was also used largely for cooking, in a method known as hearth cooking. Spencer demonstrated this as well.</p>
<p>"Hearth cooking is cooking over a fireplace. They had to keep the fire going all winter so they would also cook their meals over it," Spencer said.</p>
<p>Another interpreter, Bob Smith, elaborated on hearth cooking while using the method to cook cornmeal.</p>
<p>"They would keep corn and beans ready for the winter and they would have them to keep all winter," Smith said. "There were 16 people in a family and you had to produce enough for the whole family."</p>
<p>Bray himself has attempted to recreate the living experience of the Pricketts.</p>
<p>"I've been here in the middle of winter, stayed overnight, and the water froze on the hearth it was so cold. That's how cold it was, I can just imagine those people were very cold most of the time. They dressed warm like we do, they had winter coats, things like that but they must have been cold. They lived right in front of the fireplace."</p>
<p>Using the fireplace to cook was the most efficient method, and with more than 20 mouths to feed, it was necessary to keep a steady supply of food cooking and stocked.</p>
<p>The absence of an 18th century Christmas doesn't hinder Bray and the rest of the staff at Pricketts Fort, however. Bray said it takes them a few days after the week of Thanksgiving to get candles, wreaths and holly strung all around the fort and visitor's center for December. And although the original settlers of the home didn't really have the chance, Bray and the staff do the best they can to bring out the fort's full Christmas potential.</p>
<p>"There's a lot of time and energy going into the fort's Christmas now," Bray said.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Times West Virginian, <a href="http://www.timeswv.com" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.timeswv.com" type="external">http://www.timeswv.com</a></p> | 18th Century fort gives glimpse of winters long ago | false | https://apnews.com/a21370ddbbcb431b9c7415a069fc9da3 | 2018-01-07 | 2 |
<p>The first results published by the Electoral Court on Monday, November 27, gave a clear lead to opposition candidate Salvador Nasralla. Then a second count radically inverted this tendency, putting incumbent Juan Orlando Hernández as the victor. With protests of fraud, the court decided to suspend the final publication of the results. Both candidates called on their supporters to defend victory&#160; <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FajvRQRlCgg" type="external">on the streets</a>.</p>
<p>But in the following days, Nasralla denounced that opposition protests were being infiltrated by outside elements, thus creating an image of a country in chaos. It was the perfect excuse for minister Jorge Ramón Hernández, who took no time in announcing the&#160; <a href="" type="internal">suspension of constitutional rights</a>&#160;on Friday night, for a period of 10 days. However, as constitutional law experts have stressed, this decree could only be approved by the President in a cabinet meeting.</p>
<p>The curfew specifically forbids people from going out on the streets between 6PM and 6AM. Soon after the images of the first dead people started circulating on social media. But that is not enough for some people to lose sleep…</p>
<p>The long road towards democracy</p>
<p>As soon as the Electoral Court announced the vote swing favouring Juan Orlando Hernández, Nasralla announced that the elections were “being stolen” and that this time he would not allow it, referring to the 2013 elections in which he also ran, garnering 13% of the vote. Nasralla was then the candidate for the Anti-Corruption party that he had co-founded.</p>
<p>In September 2014, the director of the Honduran Institute for Social Security was seized by the police for a theft estimated at 335 million dollars. The government of Juan Orlando Hernández declared that fighting corruption was to become a priority and signed agreements with several international organisations dedicated to transparency.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, the period after the 2009 coup has been extremely hard on Hondurans, who have valiantly resisted against the repression and the impunity of state agents. In 2015, the Honduran people marched every week with torches to protest against the dictatorship they faced, but the state carried on assassinating social leaders. The Honduran people have been subjected by the system to extreme violence, but there seem to be no alternative sight, as an opposition movement had yet to be unified.</p>
<p>In early July 2017, after months of waiting and only a day before the deadline, the Electoral Court registered the candidacy from the Opposition Alliance Against the Dictatorship. This coalition, coordinated by the ousted former president Manuel Zelaya, rallies multiple political forces around a social and democratic program: transparency and rooting out corruption; an alternative economic system with restructured productive sectors; investment in public services such as education, healthcare and housing; environmental protection, etc.</p>
<p>In the elections inside the Anticorruption Party earlier this year, the party did not choose its co-founder Salvador Nasralla as general secretary. Then Nasralla became the candidate for the Opposition Alliance due to his popularity as a former sports journalist.</p>
<p>Are democracy and impunity compatible?</p>
<p>It is important to take into account the difficulty in mobilising voters in a country immersed in extreme, structural violence. Honduras is one of the most dangerous countries in the world. Its murder rate is only comparable to the situation of countries during wars, such as Iraq! In the run-up to the elections there has been an escalation of violence. In the weeks leading to the November 26 poll, activists from both Opposition Alliance and the governing party were attacked.</p>
<p>The murder of activist Berta Cáceres in March 2015 became engraved in the minds of an entire generation. Since then, banners, murals and posters have multiplied to commemorate the courage she showed in her struggle against all odds. The slogan “Berta lives, she has multiplied” has spread beyond the borders of this small country. Berta had become renowned around the world for her role in the struggles of her organisation, COPINH. Her case is far from unique: for years, environmental activists have been harassed and attacked with impunity.</p>
<p>In this context, the daughters of Cáceres, Laura and Bertha Zúñiga, quickly moved to the spotlight and&#160; <a href="https://www.investigaction.net/en/honduras-they-want-to-terrorize-the-communities-that-fight-to-defend-their-territory/" type="external">denounced</a>&#160;the responsibility of Juan Orlando Hernández’s government:</p>
<p>the oligarchic groups have great influence, they mobilize the army to repress people. We should point out that since the 2009 coup many military people have become shareholders in extractive industry projects (hydroelectric, mining, and others). But the corrupt mafias also allow for the organization of criminal groups that work in coordination with major corporations.</p>
<p>In early November, an&#160; <a href="" type="internal">independent report</a>&#160;rattled a lot of cages. Finally the complicity of the state in Berta Cáceres’ assassination was confirmed, in line with the strong suspicions held by relatives and friends from the very beginning. The report’s authors are adamant:</p>
<p>Among the chat exchanges between DESA staff members, the experts could detect that there was permanent contact between the company and state security forces, such as the Seguridad y Policía Preventiva. For example, only 14 hours after Berta’s murder, there were messages between DESA managers and staff members revealing that they had asked public officials for help in being shielded from any investigation.</p>
<p>Consequently Juan Orlando Hernández had every interest in hiding the incestuous links between the state and multinational corporations. It is no coincidence that during his term the security budget was increased and special military forces were created. The $17.3 million provided in&#160; <a href="https://securityassistance.org/honduras" type="external">security aid</a>&#160;by the United States seem to pose no problem to our democracies.</p>
<p>But the plot thickens: the president of the Constitutional Court, David Matamoros, is a relative of Dennis Matamoros Batson, a legal counsel of a company that&#160; <a href="http://www.latamlex.com/Oficinas/honduras" type="external">provides services</a>&#160;for DESA, the company accused of playing a role in the assassination of Berta Cáceres.</p>
<p>One of the things at stake in the current Honduran elections is to get rid, once and for all, of this culture of political impunity.</p>
<p>Venezuela, an ever present scarecrow in elections all over the world</p>
<p>The media campaign for the Honduran elections was another opportunity to attack Venezuela. The Spanish CNN channel posed the crucial question of our time to Nasralla: “What is your position concerning Venezuela?”. And he responded “the Venezuelan problems should be solved by Venezuelans, just like Honduran problems should be solved by Hondurans” … and adding that should Venezuela sell oil at low prices Honduras would not complain…</p>
<p>To prove Venezuelan interference in the electoral process, secretary of the right-wing National Party Juan Diego Zelaya&#160; <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AblRNC6tZow" type="external">showed</a>&#160;in the same program a photo of Manuel Zelaya, now coordinator of the Opposition Alliance, in a car next to Nicolás Maduro. But he did not mention the context of said photo, which is almost 10 years old! After the coup against Zelaya in 2009, Maduro was one of the few Latin American foreign ministers who committed personally to taking Zelaya to the Honduran border and risking his life to defend democracy in Honduras. But this is about taking advantage of the media propaganda of him being a dictator to demonise the Opposition Alliance…</p>
<p>For the dominant ideology, raising the Venezuelan scarecrow is a tactic to draw attention away from the shortcomings of governments that embrace economic policies that hinge on the almighty “free market”. Cultivating amnesia and distorting the historical examples of social achievements that challenge powerful elites is a tried and tested propaganda technique, which in this case has the virtue of ignoring the needs of the Honduran population! The most surreal moment happened when the government of Juan Orlando Hernández expelled the Venezuelan band Los Guaragaos, who were going to play at an opposition rally. Has Latin American folk music become a weapon of mass destruction against elites in power? (1)</p>
<p>The lesson of the Honduran people</p>
<p>The Opposition Alliance had demanded total transparency in the special tallying process announced by the Electoral Court, and sent a letter detailing 11 necessary conditions for them to accept the result. But the Court did not respect these conditions, and the Alliance has called on people to defy the curfew and defend the victory stolen via electoral fraud. Nasralla has pointed the finger at president Juan Orlando Hernández and Electoral Court president David Matamoros as the ones responsible for the situation.</p>
<p>It is true that elections are just a single moment in people’s lives. But in Central America, where institutions have done nothing to defend quality public services, representatives have destroyed whatever was left by raiding social security funds, there are crucial matters at stake. People would have plenty of reasons to adhere to fatalist ideas of “all politicians are the same”. If we add to this the trivialisation of violence and judicial impunity, we would believe that nothing could be done. But this is a vision that underestimates people.</p>
<p>History has shown, in contrast, that resistance is necessary and inevitable. The day after the 2009 coup, in spite of their suffering, the Honduran people did not sit idly by. First it created a Resistance Front against the coup government. Then it focused efforts in the struggle against corruption and continuity, especially since Juan Orlando Hernández bypassed the law to run for re-election, something that is illegal under the current Constitution. Finally, it is equally important to emphasise that these movements have understood that struggles, in order to be effective, also should bring about a change of government, even if that is not the final goal. As such, they have formed an Opposition Alliance to take on the current political opponent, and not shying away from openly describing the government of Juan Orlando Hernández as a dictatorship.</p>
<p>From Saturday, December 3rd, to Sunday, Hondurans again protested against electoral fraud, the curfew and repression by&#160; <a href="" type="internal">banging pots and pans</a>. In this context, the announcement of new results by an Electoral Court which is suspected of colluding with the government offers no prospects of exiting this deep political and institutional crisis. Only adhering to the conditions demanded by the main opposition party and putting a stop to repression will do.</p>
<p>In light of the challenges posed by Honduran events, the reactions from international bodies such as the OAS (whose president Almagro is obsessed exclusively with Venezuela) and the media have been timid or non-existent. This shows that the big powers are more than comfortable with failed states so long as they help advance their geopolitical interests.</p>
<p>The Honduran people are providing a brave lesson of hope for the oppressed peoples of the world. Let us join them in their struggle.</p>
<p>Note:</p>
<p>(1) The group Los Guaragaos became known by their rendition of Ali Primera’s “Casas de Cartón”, a song that denounces structural poverty in Latin America.</p>
<p>Source:&#160; <a href="https://www.investigaction.net/fr/category/journal-de-notre-amerique/" type="external">The Journal of Our Americas</a>&#160;(to appear) / Investig’Action.</p> | From One Coup to Another: Honduras Under Siege | true | https://counterpunch.org/2017/12/07/from-one-coup-to-another-honduras-under-siege/ | 2017-12-07 | 4 |
<p>JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Missouri residents who were adopted now have access to their original birth certificates.</p>
<p>Access to the birth certificates began on Monday thanks to the Missouri Adoptee Rights Act that was signed into law last year, <a href="https://www.semissourian.com/story/2472530.html" type="external">the Southeast Missourian reported</a> .</p>
<p>A nonprofit called G's Adoption Registry recently held an event in Jefferson City celebrating the new access. The event included speakers, events and entertainment, as well as an appearance by Republican Rep. Don Phillips of Kimberling City, who sponsored the bill.</p>
<p>Previously, Missouri law didn't allow people who handled adoptions to discuss any identifying information about the biological parents. State law also didn't allow people access to their original birth certificates if they were adopted though a closed-adoption process. This meant Missouri-born adoptees didn't have immediate access to medical history or family heritage.</p>
<p>Steve Hamblin, who was adopted, said there were medical tests his insurer refused to pay for because he couldn't show family history of medical conditions. He said he and his daughter eventually decided to get their DNA tested with a commercial service, and found some members of Hamblin's biological family.</p>
<p>Hamblin, who grew up in Cape Girardeau, said some opponents to the adoptee bill argued that biological parents were promised confidentiality. But barring access to direct information means other options have to be used, and "with DNA, with Facebook, there is no privacy," he said.</p>
<p>Allowing adoptees access to their birth certificates is a logical and necessary step, said Heather Dodd, founder of the Missouri Adoptee Rights Movement.</p>
<p>"It's pretty amazing how many lives have been affected by the passage of this bill," Dodd said. "We're just glad people are finally getting their truth."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Southeast Missourian, <a href="http://www.semissourian.com" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.semissourian.com" type="external">http://www.semissourian.com</a></p>
<p>JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Missouri residents who were adopted now have access to their original birth certificates.</p>
<p>Access to the birth certificates began on Monday thanks to the Missouri Adoptee Rights Act that was signed into law last year, <a href="https://www.semissourian.com/story/2472530.html" type="external">the Southeast Missourian reported</a> .</p>
<p>A nonprofit called G's Adoption Registry recently held an event in Jefferson City celebrating the new access. The event included speakers, events and entertainment, as well as an appearance by Republican Rep. Don Phillips of Kimberling City, who sponsored the bill.</p>
<p>Previously, Missouri law didn't allow people who handled adoptions to discuss any identifying information about the biological parents. State law also didn't allow people access to their original birth certificates if they were adopted though a closed-adoption process. This meant Missouri-born adoptees didn't have immediate access to medical history or family heritage.</p>
<p>Steve Hamblin, who was adopted, said there were medical tests his insurer refused to pay for because he couldn't show family history of medical conditions. He said he and his daughter eventually decided to get their DNA tested with a commercial service, and found some members of Hamblin's biological family.</p>
<p>Hamblin, who grew up in Cape Girardeau, said some opponents to the adoptee bill argued that biological parents were promised confidentiality. But barring access to direct information means other options have to be used, and "with DNA, with Facebook, there is no privacy," he said.</p>
<p>Allowing adoptees access to their birth certificates is a logical and necessary step, said Heather Dodd, founder of the Missouri Adoptee Rights Movement.</p>
<p>"It's pretty amazing how many lives have been affected by the passage of this bill," Dodd said. "We're just glad people are finally getting their truth."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Southeast Missourian, <a href="http://www.semissourian.com" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.semissourian.com" type="external">http://www.semissourian.com</a></p> | Adoptees in Missouri get birth certificate access | false | https://apnews.com/06d711f857b447c6ad0cb9180fab584c | 2018-01-03 | 2 |
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<p>It started with a bus breakdown that resulted in the Demons arriving at Wilson Stadium roughly 30 minutes late. The rest of their evening was spent trying – with little success – to track down Highland ball carriers.</p>
<p>The Hornets scored touchdowns on their first four possessions and just kept rolling in a 55-12 blowout. Highland (1-1) amassed 472 yards of offense and played the entire second half with a running clock.</p>
<p>Hive quarterback Dylan Chavez was 12-of-16 passing for 213 yards and three touchdowns. David Brown caught two of the TD passes and rushed for another score.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>"A lot of guys got to touch the ball tonight, which will pay off for us," Highland coach Gary Sanchez said. "It's exciting to have an offensive night like that, but I was happy with our pressure on defense, too. Santa Fe's quarterback is good."</p>
<p>Junior Jason Fitzpatrick was indeed solid for the Demons, passing for 231 yards and a score. This effort came despite the fact Santa Fe generated almost no rushing offense until the fourth quarter and struggled to protect Fitzpatrick for much of the game.</p>
<p>The outcome was effectively decided in the first quarter, when Highland built a 27-0 lead. Running back Julian Sanchez scored on each of his first two carries (from 5 and 27 yards) and the Hornets never looked back.</p>
<p>The Hive rushed for 254 rushing yards. Santa Fe (0-2) managed just 50 rushing yards, 41 of them by Fitzpatrick. His brother, senior Ryan Fitzpatrick, had four receptions for 105 yards and touchdown. The Demons have lost 14 straight games dating to 2008.</p>
<p>– Ken Sickenger</p>
<p>LAS CRUCES 21, CIBOLA 14: At the Field of Dreams in Las Cruces, Xavier Hall's 72-yard run midway through the second quarter proved to be the final touchdown of the night, and the Bulldawgs improved to 2-0.</p>
<p>"We played one of the best teams in the state, and I was happy how we played," CHS coach Judge Chavez said.</p>
<p>Las Cruces scored the game's first 14 points, including a TD run by Hall.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>After the first Hall TD, Fred Caste&amp;ntilde;eda of Cibola returned the ensuing kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown for the Cougars (1-1).</p>
<p>Moments later, Ramon Garcia's 14-yard touchdown run helped Cibola tie the game at 14.</p>
<p>But Hall scored just as Las Cruces regained possession, and the Bulldawgs defense did the rest.</p>
<p>"We made some big steps toward becoming a pretty good football team," Chavez said.</p>
<p>SILVER 28, ST. PIUS 21: In Silver City, Colts quarterback Iseha Conklin, a transfer from Cleveland, busted an 86-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to stake Silver to a 28-7 lead.</p>
<p>The Sartans (0-2) battled back with two unanswered touchdowns and had a couple of scoring opportunities but were unable to convert.</p>
<p>SALPOINTE CATHOLIC, ARIZ., 31, RIO RANCHO 8: In Tucson, Salpointe scored the first 31 points and handed the Rams their second straight defeat to start the season.</p>
<p>Frankie Morlock had 73 yards rushing for Rio Rancho; QB Tim Foley scored the Rams' only touchdown.</p>
<p>BELEN 48, DEL NORTE 28: In Belen, quarterback Dylan Barba ran 68 yards for a touchdown on the first play from scrimmage and Class 4A's second-ranked Eagles (2-0) pulled away to beat the Knights (0-2).</p> | Highland Rips Santa Fe; Las Cruces Nips Cibola | false | https://abqjournal.com/232603/highland-rips-santa-fe-las-cruces-nips-cibola.html | 2 |
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<p>A vigil that was intended to commemorate the death of a 17-year-old who was shot in police custody ended with police, in full riot gear, carrying assault weapons, and eventually deploying tear gas.</p>
<p>Nearly 200 people took to the streets to demonstrate and rally against the shooting death of Jesus Huerta. The police claim that Huerta, in the back of police cruiser, shot himself in the head with a gun that the Durham, North Carolina police have&#160;yet to explain the origins of.</p>
<p>Huerta was frisked and no weapon was found, but police insist that he shot himself in the back of the police cruiser.</p>
<p>Police say that back on November 19 around 2:30 in the morning, the arresting officer reported hearing a loud shot. He says that he jumped out of the moving vehicle, which then hit other parked vehicles in the police department parking lot.</p>
<p>Arresting Officer Samuel Duncan insists that Huerta had been searched at the time of his arrest, and no weapons of any sort were found on him. Strangely enough, Huerta is the third non-white person shot by police in the past four months.</p>
<p>Police Chief Jose Lopez said, “I know that it is hard for people not in law enforcement to understand how someone could be capable of shooting themselves while handcuffed behind the back. While incidents like this are not common, they unfortunately have happened in other jurisdictions in the past.”</p>
<p>Chief Lopez failed to give any examples of similar incidences elsewhere, in spite of his insistence that they have occurred.</p>
<p>Protesters were hit with tear gas after lighting off firecrackers, which police say were aimed at them. One protester &#160;held a sign that read , “Murdered by Police.” Watch the video and see for yourself how things unfolded.</p>
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<p>Jesus’ sister – Evelin Huerta – issued a statement yesterday which demanded that Chief Lopez resign because of this incident.</p>
<p>“The actions of the Durham Police Department last night, led by Chief Lopez, were a tried and true tactic to intimidate and spread fear into our community.&#160;The Durham Police cannot be trusted to investigate my brother’s death, and we need a federal investigation.”</p>
<p>What are your thoughts? Should Lopez resign? Is there any truth to the arresting officer’s story? Could he have missed a gun in a frisk and if so, why would a 17-year-old commit suicide over a mere trespassing misdemeanor?</p>
<p>(Article by James Achisa;&#160;images via NewsObserver.com and from a video uploaded on YouTube by user@leelaura1; headline image composite made by PBSpot)</p> | Vigil For Teen Shot In Police Custody Ends In Tear Gas | true | http://politicalblindspot.com/vigil-for-teen/ | 2013-12-22 | 4 |
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<p>This <a href="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/2012/09/07/first-purebred-bison-born-disease-washing-embryo-transfer/" type="external">story</a> first appeared on the <a href="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/2012/09/07/first-purebred-bison-born-disease-washing-embryo-transfer/" type="external">Scientific American</a> website.</p>
<p>What does a two-month-old bison calf in the Bronx have to do with the future of its species? Quite a lot, it turns out.</p>
<p>After being slaughtered to near extinction in the 19th century, the American plains bison (Bison bison bison) has become a bit of a conservation success story, albeit with a few important caveats. Today as many as half a million bison live in the United States, but most of them are genetically impure due to a misguided attempt to crossbreed bison with domestic cattle in the early 20th century. The crossbred bison, which live exclusively in commercial herds, contain what are referred to as “ancestral cattle genes” representing up to 2 percent of their DNA—a not-so-insignificant amount that makes them essentially useless for conservation purposes. Meanwhile, about 40 percent of the 20,000 or so remaining pure bison living in Yellowstone National Park and a few other government-owned herds have, over the years, been exposed to diseases such as brucellosis, which can cause cattle to abort their pregnancies. Many ranchers and other people fear these diseases could leap into domestic cattle or other species. This concern has to date prevented efforts to expand purebred bison populations into new herds.</p>
<p>The bison calf in the Bronx, which is <a href="http://www.news.colostate.edu/Release/6376" type="external">not only genetically pure but also free of disease</a>, could be the first step in changing that. The calf’s parents, which came from the American Prairie Reserve in Montana, were both purebred but carried paratuberculosis, also known as Johne’s disease, which can cause diarrhea and wasting in cattle. Reproductive physiologist Jennifer Barfield and her team at Colorado State University removed fertilized embryos from these bison, “washed” them with a special technique to remove the risk of disease, and implanted them into the embryos of surrogate bison that were disease free but carried ancestral cattle genes. One of the implanted embryos took and the pregnant mother and the other 15 members of her herd were transplanted from Colorado to the Bronx Zoo, where the healthy male calf was born on June 20.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.fao.org/docrep/004/T0117E/T0117E14.htm" type="external">embryo washing technique</a> is a multistep process standardized by the <a href="http://www.iets.org/" type="external">International Embryo Transfer Society</a>that had previously proved effective in cattle but had never been used on bison. “You take the embryo and you move it through a series of drops of fluid that contains a chemical that removes any pathogens from the surface of the embryo,” Barfield says. “It’s very quick. They’re only in these drops of fluid for 10 seconds at a time.” The amount of chemicals are reduced each step of the way until the embryo is free of pathogens.</p>
<p>Barfield says the same procedure could be used with mothers that have brucellosis. “We’re trying to set this up and we will continue the research with animals that have brucellosis to see if we can get around this disease as well with embryo transfer.”</p>
<p>The birth of pure, disease-free bison outside of Yellowstone will help efforts to establish new herds and conserve the species. “The animals in Yellowstone are genetically valuable,” Barfield says. “But they can’t easily be moved into other herds or used to start restoration herds until they’ve been cleared of the disease.” That’s a long process that requires frequent testing and extended quarantines. “[Embryo washing] will be another way to get around that disease,” she says.</p>
<p>Barfield praises the collaboration between Colorado State University, the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, the American Prairie Reserve and the Wildlife Conservation Society, which runs the Bronx Zoo. “A university, a government institution and a nonprofit came together with a common goal and made it work. I think it was a great accomplishment from that perspective.”</p>
<p>Barfield and her team are now preparing for their next round of bison embryo transfers, which are currently scheduled for later this month.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" />Also <a href="" type="internal">read David Samuels</a> on the forces shaping the future of the American Bison’s great plains habitats.</p> | First Purebred Bison Calf Born After Disease-Washing Embryo Transfer | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2012/09/first-purebred-bison-calf-born-after-disease-washing-embryo-transfer/ | 2012-09-10 | 4 |
<p>“We are you, and you are us,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrogantly proclaimed to President Barack Obama in the White House recently.</p>
<p>How is it possible that Israel, a tiny country with only eight million people, can have so much influence over the foreign policy of the most powerful empire of all-time?&#160; Yet Israel played a major role in shaping the war on terror against Islam, the war with Afghanistan, two wars with Iraq, and the annihilation of Libya by NATO.&#160; And now Israel is aggressively doing everything within its power to provoke a war between the United States and Iran – a war which could quite easily precipitate World War III.&#160; That’s a lot!</p>
<p>The $3 billion in annual economic and military aid which the United States officially provides Israel enables it to engage in continuous acts of terrorism, genocide, and ethnic cleansing against its Palestinian neighbors whose land was stolen by Israel at its inception back in 1948.&#160; This process of Israeli expansion into Palestinian occupied territory continues unabated.&#160; The Obama administration pretends to be opposed to further Israeli encroachment into Palestinian lands, but obviously couldn’t care less.</p>
<p>The moral justification for all of this can be traced to the Holocaust.&#160; Because six million Jews were killed by the Nazis in World War II, Jews are entitled to their own country within what was once the Biblical Holy Land.&#160; Never mind the fact that the land happened to be occupied by Palestinians.&#160; For similar reasons, Jews are also entitled to revenge against anyone or any government which challenges the moral authority of Israel.&#160; According to Israeli writer Gilad Atzmon in his provocative book entitled The Wandering Who?, this way of thinking has given rise to a new Jewish religion grounded in revenge, which he calls the “Holocaust religion.”&#160; In the name of Jewish suffering, the Holocaust religion “issues licenses to kill, to flatten, to nuke, to annihilate, to loot, to ethnically cleanse.&#160; It has made vengeance into an acceptable Western value.”&#160; According to Holocaust theology a nuclear attack against Iran by either Israel or the United States would be morally justifiable, since Iran has challenged Israel’s right to exist.&#160; “Israel has the right to defend itself.”</p>
<p>Because Americans were slow to respond to the horrors of the Holocaust, they are expected to do penance.&#160; The U.S. government is obliged to provide Israel with unconditional economic and military support.&#160; It must veto all U.N. Security Council resolutions deemed to be critical of Israel and boycott all international conferences which might embarrass Israel.</p>
<p>Israel expects the United States to treat it as its only true ally in the Middle East.&#160; The so-called Arab-Israeli peace process is a complete sham, since the United States always sides with Israel.</p>
<p>In return for the unconditional support which the United States extends to Israel, Israel is encouraged to destabilize the Middle East so as to justify American intervention in the region enabling it to hegemonize the supply of oil.&#160; It’s all a very cozy relationship.</p>
<p>The Israeli military machine is free to invade any country in the Middle East of its choosing and can expect the full support of the Pentagon, no questions asked.&#160; Israel is the only country in the Middle East which has the right to possess nuclear weapons.&#160; Any other country in the region which aspires to membership in the elite club will be demonized and treated as a terrorist state.</p>
<p>Few Americans are aware of the role Israel played in derailing détente in 1974 and prolonging the Cold War unnecessarily for at least fifteen years by accusing the Soviet Union of discrimination against Soviet Jews who wanted to leave.&#160; The charges were a complete fabrication.&#160; The vast majority of Soviet citizens allowed to emigrate to the West between 1968 and 1989 were, in fact, Jews.&#160; By portraying itself as both a victim of communism and America’s only true non-communist friend in the Middle East, Israel extracted billions of dollars from the United States to finance its never ending war with the Palestinians.&#160; This strategy also helped deflect public opinion away from Israel’s own human rights abuses.</p>
<p>All of this is made possible by the American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), our nation’s most powerful political lobbying organization. Anyone who has the audacity to challenge America’s foreign policy towards Israel is by definition an anti-Semite and can expect to receive the full wrath of the Israeli Lobby and become the target of a disinformation campaign. Candidates for Congress who are not openly pro-Israel will fall victim to a negative media blitz which virtually assures political defeat.</p>
<p>Nothing better illustrates the power of AIPAC than the invitation by Columbia University to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak on the campus on September 24, 2007.&#160; Rather than withdrawing the invitation in response to the political firestorm created by the Israeli Lobby, Columbia’s President Lee Bollinger opted personally to introduce Ahmadinejad.&#160; His introduction took the form of a highly inflammatory, arrogant, insulting diatribe against the University’s guest – all to appease AIPAC and its constituents.&#160; As a graduate of Columbia University, I was overcome by a sense of shame as a result of Bollinger’s demagogic behavior.&#160; He reminded me of white racist politicians such as George W. Wallace and Ross Barnett in the South in the 1960s.&#160; The rage against Iran expressed by Republican Presidential candidates Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, and Rick Santorum is more of the same.</p>
<p>Since President Ahmadinejad is one of only a handful of surviving political leaders in the world who has ever stood up against Israel and the United States, he must not only be demonized but eventually taken out.&#160; Indeed, there is no more important test of one’s Americanism than one’s stand against Iran and its president.</p>
<p>In the eyes of the United States, Iran has been persona non grata since Iranian revolutionaries seized the U.S. Embassy on November 4, 1979.&#160; Few Americans recall that in 1953 when the Eisenhower administration disapproved of Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh, the CIA removed him from office, had him placed under house arrest, and installed Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi as head of state.&#160; Most Americans have also forgotten that Ronald Reagan collaborated with his buddy Saddam Hussein to destroy Iran.&#160; All the while Reagan had arranged for the Israelis to sell weapons to the Iranians to finance the Contras in Nicaragua whose aim was to overthrow the duly elected Sandinista government.&#160; Such financial aid had been specifically banned by the U.S. Congress.&#160; Is there any wonder that the Iranian government is not particularly fond of the United States?</p>
<p>Although American politicians like to quote the Founding Fathers, no admonition has ever been more systematically ignored than President George Washington’s warning in his 1796 farewell address, about the inherent dangers of blindly siding with one nation, “a passionate attachment of one nation for another produces a variety of ills.”</p>
<p>The U.S.-Israeli relationship gets right to the very essence of what the American Empire is all about.&#160; The United States and Israel are the two foremost technofascist nations in the world.&#160; That’s why there is such a close symbiotic relationship between the two war mongering nations. The answer to the question, “Who controls whom?” remains in doubt.&#160; But as we previously noted, Israel is nevertheless useful to the United States, even though it pulls our string.</p>
<p>About Israel, Human Scale author Kirkpatrick Sale once said, “The original idea of a Jewish state was a mistake, and to establish it in an Islamic Middle East essentially by force and with the immiseration of millions of natives was a tragic mistake.&#160; We are reaping the awful results of that error today.”&#160; Continuing he said, “It is not so easy to know what to do to undo that mistake, but I would argue that a world that can make a state can unmake it.”</p>
<p>Because the compliant American media marches in lockstep to the beat of the AIPAC drum, no change in the U.S. – Israeli relationship is expected anytime soon.</p>
<p>The only way to stop Israeli terrorism is for the U.S. to discontinue all economic and military aid to Israel.&#160; Only then will the fighting cease.&#160; But this will never happen so long as the Empire remains intact.&#160; So strong are the ties between Israel and the United States that only the dissolution of the Union itself could put an end to the relationship.</p>
<p>If there is any hope for Israel and Palestine, it lies in some form of Swiss federalism.&#160; The crux of the Swiss Confederation is a loosely defined three-dimensional matrix consisting of 26 cantons, 4 cultures, and 7 major departments of the federal government.&#160; One could envision Gaza, the West Bank, and the Golan Heights as Palestinian cantons which cooperate with Israel, the State which surrounds two of them.</p>
<p>Nothing good can ever come from the confluence of American military might and the lust for revenge of Israel.</p>
<p>Thomas H. Naylor&#160;is Founder of the Second Vermont Republic and Professor Emeritus of Economics at Duke University; co-author of&#160; <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1576753573/counterpunchmaga" type="external">Affluenza</a>,&#160; <a href="" type="internal">Downsizing the U.S.A.</a>,&#160;and&#160; <a href="" type="internal">The Search for Meaning</a>.</p> | The Absurdity of US/Israeli Relations | true | https://counterpunch.org/2012/03/06/the-absurdity-of-usisraeli-relations/ | 2012-03-06 | 4 |
<p>PHOENIX (AP) - A volunteer for an organization that tries to prevent immigrants from dying in the Arizona desert was arrested several hours after the group released videos showing Border Patrol agents kicking over water bottles left for those crossing into the U.S. illegally.</p>
<p>Scott Daniel Warren, 35, with the group No More Deaths, faces a federal charge of harboring two people in the country illegally. His arrest last week came after Border Patrol agents conducted surveillance on a building where two immigrants were given food, water, beds and clean clothes, according to federal court records.</p>
<p>Group volunteer Caitlin Deighan stopped short of calling the arrest retaliation but said it looks suspicious to have charged Warren so close to the release of the videos.</p>
<p>"We see it as an escalation and criminalization of aid workers," Deighan said Monday.</p>
<p>The Border Patrol didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment.</p>
<p>William Walker, an attorney for Warren, said his client's actions were not criminal.</p>
<p>"This is a humanitarian aid worker trying to save lives," Walker said.</p>
<p>No More Deaths last week gave news organizations videos taken between 2010 and 2017, mostly by cameras at its desert camp. In one clip, a Border Patrol agent kicked over five water jugs meant to supply immigrants. In another, an agent pours gallons of water on the ground.</p>
<p />
<p>In 2005, two group volunteers were arrested after they drove three immigrants from a desert location to a Tucson church to get medical attention from a doctor and nurse. The indictment was eventually dismissed by a federal judge.</p>
<p>No More Deaths is a coalition of religious organizations, human rights advocates and individuals who provide food, water and medical assistance to immigrants crossing the Arizona desert from Mexico.</p>
<p>Immigrants who sneak into the United States through that terrain face many dangers, including walking for several days in the scorching heat.</p>
<p>Thousands have died crossing the border since the mid-1990s, when heightened enforcement in San Diego and El Paso, Texas, pushed traffic into Arizona's deserts. In recent years, south Texas has become the busiest corridor for illegal crossings and also the most deadly.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Follow Jacques Billeaud at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/jacquesbilleaud" type="external">www.twitter.com/jacquesbilleaud</a> . His work can be found at <a href="" type="internal" /> <a href="" type="internal">https://www.apnews.com/search/jacques%20billeaud</a> .</p>
<p>PHOENIX (AP) - A volunteer for an organization that tries to prevent immigrants from dying in the Arizona desert was arrested several hours after the group released videos showing Border Patrol agents kicking over water bottles left for those crossing into the U.S. illegally.</p>
<p>Scott Daniel Warren, 35, with the group No More Deaths, faces a federal charge of harboring two people in the country illegally. His arrest last week came after Border Patrol agents conducted surveillance on a building where two immigrants were given food, water, beds and clean clothes, according to federal court records.</p>
<p>Group volunteer Caitlin Deighan stopped short of calling the arrest retaliation but said it looks suspicious to have charged Warren so close to the release of the videos.</p>
<p>"We see it as an escalation and criminalization of aid workers," Deighan said Monday.</p>
<p>The Border Patrol didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment.</p>
<p>William Walker, an attorney for Warren, said his client's actions were not criminal.</p>
<p>"This is a humanitarian aid worker trying to save lives," Walker said.</p>
<p>No More Deaths last week gave news organizations videos taken between 2010 and 2017, mostly by cameras at its desert camp. In one clip, a Border Patrol agent kicked over five water jugs meant to supply immigrants. In another, an agent pours gallons of water on the ground.</p>
<p />
<p>In 2005, two group volunteers were arrested after they drove three immigrants from a desert location to a Tucson church to get medical attention from a doctor and nurse. The indictment was eventually dismissed by a federal judge.</p>
<p>No More Deaths is a coalition of religious organizations, human rights advocates and individuals who provide food, water and medical assistance to immigrants crossing the Arizona desert from Mexico.</p>
<p>Immigrants who sneak into the United States through that terrain face many dangers, including walking for several days in the scorching heat.</p>
<p>Thousands have died crossing the border since the mid-1990s, when heightened enforcement in San Diego and El Paso, Texas, pushed traffic into Arizona's deserts. In recent years, south Texas has become the busiest corridor for illegal crossings and also the most deadly.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Follow Jacques Billeaud at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/jacquesbilleaud" type="external">www.twitter.com/jacquesbilleaud</a> . His work can be found at <a href="" type="internal" /> <a href="" type="internal">https://www.apnews.com/search/jacques%20billeaud</a> .</p> | Volunteer arrested after border agents seen dumping water | false | https://apnews.com/ee090a053cb74c18be783053de370c9f | 2018-01-22 | 2 |
<p>In early November of 1967, the administration of President Lyndon Johnson ratcheted up a media campaign designed to convince the American people that victory in Vietnam was possible. Dubbed the “Success Offensive,” it began with coordinated leaks to the press of cherry picked reports in order to manufacture the most positive spin possible.</p>
<p>On Meet the Press, Vice President Humphrey asserted that “there has been progress on every front in Vietnam,” and Ambassador Bunker reported that the Saigon government was increasing its territorial control. Most notably, it was LBJ himself who at his November 17 press conference hinted at the complexity of the problem: “We have a lot to do yet. A great many mistakes have been made. We take two steps forward, and we slip back one. It is not all perfect by any means. There are a good many days when we get a C-minus instead of an A-plus. But overall, we are making progress. We are satisfied with that progress.”</p>
<p>Ironically, one of the chief architects of the war did not participate in the public relations blitz. Robert McNamara already had concluded that the U.S. public simply would not tolerate a prolonged war. The last word, however, would belong to the commanding officer of U.S. forces.</p>
<p>General William Westmoreland could not have been more optimistic. For over three years, he had been preoccupied with what he called a “laboratory experiment in pacification” designed to establish security in Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, and the surrounding area. On November 21, at the National Press Club he conceded that the fighting would continue but argued “we have reached an important point where the end begins to come into view.”</p>
<p>He told the gathered reporters: “It is conceivable to me that within two years or less, it will be possible for us to phase down our level of commitment and turn more of the burden of the war over to the Vietnamese Armed Forces.” Basing his remarks on doctored intelligence, he declared: “With your support we will give you a success that will impact not only South Vietnam but every emerging nation in the world.”</p>
<p>With only a few exceptions, politicians of both parties and major news outlets parroted the general’s positive spin. In his book Paper Soldiers: The American Press and the Vietnam War, Clarence Wyatt shows convincingly how the media uncritically reported the administration’s optimistic account with headlines announcing that the “tide was turning in our favor” (U.S. News and World Report).</p>
<p>For the most part, the propaganda worked. By Christmas, support for the war was holding steady at about 50% and even troops in the field surmised that the war would soon be over. But a mere two months after Westmoreland’s appearance at the National Press Club, the Tet offensive put the lie to the rosy predictions the generals and the Johnson administration had foisted on the American public. By July of 1968, Johnson had announced he would not seek reelection and General Westmoreland had been replaced.</p>
<p>“Success Offensive” Redux</p>
<p>Almost forty years later, the administration of George W. Bush has initiated its own propaganda war. Ranging from speeches authored by neoconservative revisionists and delivered by Bush at veterans’ forums to Vice President Cheney doing the talk show circuit to a sleazy radio/TV ad campaign headed by former White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, this psychological blitz is designed to soften up the citizenry for the main act-the appearance next month of the military commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus.</p>
<p>The son of a Dutch immigrant father and an impressive Horatio Alger story in his own right, Petraeus is undoubtedly the U.S. military officer caught in the most difficult political squeeze since Westmoreland. The question is whether or not Petraeus will spin the facts to fabricate a deceptively positive assessment in order to please his civilian bosses, as most historians believe Westmoreland did.</p>
<p>What is more likely is that Petraeus will offer an appraisal of the Iraq misadventure that is highly ambiguous and therefore open to numerous interpretations. Last April, he told Charlie Rose that he was a “qualified optimist” and described a situation in which “the change is dramatic” but there is “still a lot to be done.” There has been “incremental progress,” he argued, and “in some neighborhoods, we’re seen as liberators again[but] this is not uniform; in other areas we’re seen as occupiers.”</p>
<p>This sounds remarkably like LBJ’s “two steps forward, one back” speech in 1967. Of course the U.S. war in Southeast Asia lasted another six years. Petraeus openly admits that what he is orchestrating in Iraq is not only a counterinsurgency operation but also an anti-terrorist, law enforcement, and nation building exercise, all of which are long-term projects that ultimately depend on the establishment of a stable Iraqi government.</p>
<p>In all likelihood, then, Petraeus’ report will echo the most recent National Intelligence Estimate for Iraq: “We assess, to the extent that Coalition forces continue to conduct robust counterinsurgency operations and mentor and support the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), that Iraq’s security will continue to improve modestly during the next six to 12 months but that levels of insurgent and sectarian violence will remain high and the Iraqi Government will continue to struggle to achieve national-level political reconciliation and improved governance.”</p>
<p>Modest security gains with high levels of violence and no national unity-a clear-cut recipe for an open-ended U.S. occupation that will last at least as long if not longer than the U.S. debacle in Southeast Asia. Petraeus may not quite be the new Westmoreland but it is clear that Iraq is the American people’s new Vietnam, and just like forty years ago only the American people can stop it.</p>
<p>JORGE MARISCAL is a Vietnam veteran and member of Project YANO. He is the author of Aztlán and Viet Nam: Chicano and Chicana Experiences of the War. Visit his blog at: <a href="http:/" type="external">jorgemariscal.blogspot.com/</a> He can be reached at: <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a></p>
<p>&#160;</p> | The General Reports | true | https://counterpunch.org/2007/08/27/the-general-reports/ | 2007-08-27 | 4 |
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<p>PHOENIX — The National Park Service says the search for two missing hikers related to the co-founder of the Merrell Boot Co. is difficult and complex and that it is not requesting any additional resources despite an announcement from the family that it planned on sending its own support.</p>
<p>A spokeswoman said Wednesday that the park service is working closely with the family of 62-year-old LouAnn Merrell and 14-year-old Jackson Standefer and is considering the resources their family has suggested donating.</p>
<p>The family announced late Tuesday night that the Merrell company would be providing climbers and rescuers and that the family of the missing boy was offering a military-grade drone to assist in the search. The Merrell company is owned by Wolverine Worldwide.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>LouAnn Merrell, the wife of Randy Merrell, was with her husband, stepgrandson and the boy’s mother on a multi-day hike in a remote area of the Grand Canyon on Saturday when she and the boy lost footing and were swept away by water. LouAnn Merrell has been previously referred to as Lou-Ann, which is how she identifies on her Facebook page, but a spokesman for the families of both hikers says it is spelled without a hyphen.</p>
<p>But the intense search for Merrell and Standefer continues, said spokeswoman Robin Martin.</p>
<p>The National Park Service on Wednesday again deployed three ground search teams, a helicopter, a drone and an inflatable motor raft.</p>
<p>Ground search crews have spent the night at the bottom of the canyon for several nights, although their searches only take place in daylight.</p>
<p>Martin said weather has also been about the same as the last few days, with clear and breezy daytime temperatures in the mid-90s and overnight lows in the 50s.</p>
<p>The Grand Canyon is consistently one of the most popular attractions in the United States, drawing nearly 6 million people last year.</p>
<p>But the park’s nearly 2,000 square miles, steep cliffs and mesmerizing views have often led to accidents and deaths.</p>
<p>The park service reported over 1,000 medical emergencies, 15 deaths and 318 search and rescue incidents in 2015, the last readily available data.</p>
<p>The remote area where the family was hiking on multi-day backpacking trip is at the bottom of the canyon near the North Rim, a much-less visited area of the park.</p>
<p>Experts like Matthew Nelson, the executive director of the Arizona Trial Association and a former Grand Canyon backpacking guide, say hiking down to the Tapeats Creek area where the two went missing is arduous and requires at least a couple of days and some experience in backpacking.</p>
<p>Nelson said in an Associated Press interview on Tuesday that the creek where Merrell and Standefer went missing can get heavy water flow after the winter, when snow from the North Rim melts and travels down the canyon.</p>
<p>He said that area is particularly hot during the day and doesn’t cool off very much because of the geology.</p>
<p>“This is one of the gems of backpacking in the Grand Canyon,” Nelson said.</p> | Merrell offers to assist Grand Canyon search for woman, teen | false | https://abqjournal.com/990136/grand-canyon-search-for-missing-hikers-aided-by-merrell-boot.html | 2017-04-19 | 2 |
<p>“Without the destructive power of the banks, hedge funds and other investment companies, the world would not be where it is today — at the edge of an abyss.”</p>
<p>—Der Spiegel, “The&#160;Destructive&#160;Power of the&#160;Financial&#160;Markets”&#160;</p>
<p>Tuesday’s 322 point surge on the Dow Jones must rank among the dumbest rallies of all time. The proximate trigger for the triple-digit moonshot was the feint hope that Fed chairman Ben Bernanke might pull another rabbit out of his hat at his Jackson Hole confab and announce another round of his bond purchasing program called Quantitative Easing. Keep in mind, that at the same time high-frequency computers were juicing the market with an ocean of liquidity sending near-dead equities into the stratosphere, skittish investors with hard cash were headed for the exits. 2-year Treasuries hit a record low yield of 0.22 percent as the flight-to-safety continued apace a full 3 years after Lehman Brothers crashed. Plunging Treasuries confirm that the economy is still in the throes of a multi-year Depression that hasn’t been mitigated by any of interest-hacking strategies of the Fed or by the blinkered budget-cutting antics of our vacationing executive, Barack Hoover Obama.&#160;</p>
<p>Is it any wonder why confidence in the markets and the country’s main institutions is at an all-time low?&#160;</p>
<p>Look; Unemployment is tipping 9 percent, GDP has slipped below 1 percent for the last 6 months, the fiscal jet fuel that kept the economy in the black is gone, the credit markets are beginning to refreeze, and Europe’s in the shitter. Is there any reason to load up on stocks expecting brighter returns in the future?&#160;</p>
<p>No.&#160;</p>
<p>The bond market is blinking “Depression”. The benchmark 10-year is hovering around 2 percent as terrified investors load up on risk-free assets that actually lose money when adjusted for inflation. Does that sound like a ringing endorsement of current policy?&#160;</p>
<p>So what does Obama do? He pushes through a structural adjustment program (The “debt ceiling” agreement) that stuffs the stimulus-starved economy into a fiscal straightjacket, and then crows about how mush he “cares about jobs”.&#160;</p>
<p>Right. How can the government create jobs when the new law forbids expansion of the deficits? It can’t be done. So, unemployment will stay unnecessarily high for the foreseeable future, all because of Obama. Is that why the markets are so happy?&#160;</p>
<p>Here’s a clip from an article by Michael Spence at Project Syndicate:</p>
<p>“The world is witnessing is a correlated growth slowdown across the advanced countries, …and across all of the systemically important parts of the global economy, possibly including the emerging economies. And equity values’ decline toward a more realistic reflection of economic fundamentals will further weaken aggregate demand and growth. Hence the rising risk of a major downturn – and additional fiscal distress.” — Michael Spence, “Stagnant and Paralyzed”, Project Syndicate</p>
<p>Great summary. Not only is demand flagging across the industrial world, but political gridlock in the EU and the US has increased the likelihood of another slump. Austerity-obsessed policymakers have slashed spending and implemented belt-tightening measures that are dimming the prospects for &#160;future growth. Add to that the fact the EU is in the midst of a credit crunch, and you have all the ingredients for another stomach-churning stock market crash followed by years of vicious contraction. Needless to say, policymakers in the US and EU have no idea of how to put the economy back on track. &#160; They remain committed to a flawed ideology that’s pushing the world to the brink of disaster.</p>
<p>Let’s look at the eurozone for a minute. It’s generally accepted now that saving the 17-member monetary union will require some kind of financial transfer from the rich countries to the poor. Eurobonds provide the easiest way of achieving that objective. But how much would that cost a country like Germany? If we can figure that out; then we can determine whether the plan will be acceptable or not to German policymakers. Here’s an excerpt from an article titled “The Future of the Eurozone” by Max-Planck Gesellschaft:</p>
<p>“A transfer mechanism that simply equalizes 50 percent of the difference from average, based on 2007 figures, sums up to 445 billion euros per year. For Germany, for instance, this would be a contribution of almost 74 billion euros per year, on the basis of the 2007 figures….</p>
<p>These rough calculations show: a transfer mechanism that achieves little more than half the amount of equalization in governmental revenues would have transfers that are magnitudes larger than the total current EU budget. …</p>
<p>It is hard to believe that Europe could survive the political antagonisms that would be created by transfers of this magnitude….” (“The Future of the Eurozone”, Max-Planck Gesellschaft)</p>
<p>This plan is never going to fly in Germany, so we can assume that the eurozone will eventually break up, although it could take a year or so. That means the panic in the credit markets will intensify, widening the spreads on bond yields and putting more pressure on the EU banking system which is chock-full of garbage bonds that are set to take hefty haircuts when the sh** hits the fan. &#160;</p>
<p>Is that why the markets are surging, because traders just love the idea on another credit meltdown?&#160;</p>
<p>And, while the credit-noose is tightening in the EU, what’s going on in the US?&#160;</p>
<p>Nothing. No jobs programs, no extension of unemployment benefits, the payroll tax break ends on December 30, and Obama refuses to stump for second round of stimulus. How’s that for a “pro growth” strategy? &#160; &#160;</p>
<p>The economy needs more stimulus and it needs it fast. Take a look at <a href="" type="internal">this chart</a> on Paul Krugman’s blogsite that shows how the depletion in government stimulus coincides with the decline in growth.&#160;</p>
<p>Now, take a look at GDP, which peaked in late 2009 and early 2010, and has slipped ever since: &#160;(4Q 2009-3.8%; 1Q 2010–3.9%; 2Q 2010–3.8%; 3Q 2010–2.5%; 4Q 2010–2.3%; 1Q 2011–0.4%, “revised” 2Q 2011—0.9%)</p>
<p>Get the picture? &#160; The recovery was stimulus. Absent the stimulus, there is no recovery. Credit is not expanding, households are still deleveraging, business investment is way off, and aggregate demand is weak. In other words, the economy is dead-in-the-water. Without sustained government spending to shore up the flagging economy, recession is inevitable. But policymakers—led by Obama–refuse to budge. They remain fully committed to their bad ideas.&#160;</p>
<p>Why?&#160;</p>
<p>Economist Peter Dorman answers this question in his essay titled “It’s the Political Economy, Stupid!” Here’s a short excerpt:&#160;</p>
<p>“….We are not living through an epoch of intellectual failure, but one in which there is no available mechanism to oust a political-economic elite whose interests have become incompatible with ours. &#160;This is not some sudden development, much less a coup d’etat as is sometimes claimed. No, the accretion of power by the rentiers has been systematic, structural and the outcome of a decades-long process. It is deeply rooted in modern capitalist economies due to the transformation of corporations into tradable, recombinant portfolios of assets, increasing concentration of and returns to ownership, and the failure of regulation to keep pace with technology and transnational scale. Those who sit at the pinnacle of wealth for the most part no longer think about production, nor do they worry very much about who the ultimate consumers will be; they take financial positions and demand policies that will see to it that these positions are profitable….</p>
<p>The real problem is political, and it is profound. Unless we can unseat the class that sees the world only through its portfolios, they may well take us all the way down. Unfortunately, no one seems to have a clue how such a revolution can be engineered in a modern, complex, transnational economy. (“It’s the Political Economy, Stupid!”, Peter Dorman, Econospeak)</p>
<p>So, when does discontent turn to open rebellion?&#160;</p>
<p>The sooner the better.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>Mike Whitney lives in Washington state. He can be reached at: <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a>.</p> | The Dumbest Rally of All Time | true | https://counterpunch.org/2011/08/25/the-dumbest-rally-of-all-time/ | 2011-08-25 | 4 |
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<p />
<p>Javier Gonzales was sworn in Monday night as Santa Fe's mayor.</p>
<p>He says he'll remain on the NMSU board at least through the summer.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>According to the Las Cruces Sun-News, that's when he says he'll determine how much time each position requires.</p>
<p>He says he wants to serve as an NMSU regent through the end of his term on Dec. 31.</p> | Mayor Gonzales will stay on NMSU board, for now | false | https://abqjournal.com/366335/mayor-gonzales-will-stay-on-nmsu-board-for-now.html | 2 |
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<p>Two more insurance companies have announced that they will leave Obamacare's failing exchanges.</p>
<p>On Monday, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/03/health/iowa-healthcare-wellmark-blue-cross-blue-shield-obamacare.html" type="external">reported</a> that Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield announced their intention to leave Iowa's Obamacare exchange next year because they lost $90 million in three years due to most of their enrollees having "expensive medical conditions."</p>
<p>"Finding solutions to stabilize this market is in the best interest of all Iowans, including providers of health care and insurance carriers,” Wellmark Chairman and CEO John Forsyth <a href="https://www.wellmark.com/about/newsroom/2017/04/03/2018-aca-market-decision" type="external">said</a> in a statement. "No one really benefits from rising costs. While there are many potential solutions, the timing and relative impact of those solutions is currently unclear. This makes it difficult to establish plans for 2018."</p>
<p>Wellmark's departure from Iowa's Obamacare exchange will affect 21,400 people, but 1.64 million will still be able to receive insurance from Wellmark outside of the Obamacare exchanges.</p>
<p>Only two insurers remain in the Iowa exchange – Aetna and Medica – and it's uncertain if both will choose to participate in the exchange next year. Medica is still mulling over its options while Aetna "has largely exited the market and declined to comment on its plans," according to The New York Times.</p>
<p>Wellmark isn't the only insurer to recently leave a failing Obamacare exchange.</p>
<p>On Friday, it was reported that Anthem Inc. is poised to leave most of the Obamacare exchanges, as <a href="http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/anthem-pulls-the-plug-no-obamacare-really-is-not-doing-well/article/2618958" type="external">they had lost $374 million last year</a>. This is a significant development because, as Guy Benson pointed out at <a href="https://townhall.com/tipsheet/guybenson/2017/03/31/fox-news-poll-n2306668" type="external">Townhall</a>:</p>
<p>Thanks to Obamacare's slow-motion implosion, just one single provider remains as a "choice" for consumers who live in roughly one-third of all US counties. In many of those places, Anthem has been that last holdout insurer, which is now reportedly about to end in 2018. Millions of Americans could be left with zero marketplace options, as the planned withdrawal of the last remaining US healthcare giant from most areas marks the latest sign that Obamacare is an unworkable actuarial nightmare.</p>
<p>Anthem and Wellmark will join <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/14/health/humana-plans-to-pull-out-of-obamacares-insurance-exchanges.html" type="external">Humana</a>, <a href="http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/aug/29/aetna-unitedhealth-pulling-out-of-obamacare-leavin/" type="external">Aetna and UnitedHealth</a> as insurers who have fled Obamacare exchanges, reaffirming that the Obamacare death spiral is real and will only worsen from here.</p>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/bandlersbanter" type="external">Follow Aaron Bandler on Twitter.</a></p> | Two More Insurance Companies Drop Out Of Failing Obamacare Exchanges | true | https://dailywire.com/news/15107/another-insurance-company-drops-out-obamacares-aaron-bandler | 2017-04-05 | 0 |
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<p>The White House has responded to the Department of Interior’s Inspector General’s charge that the administration’s report on offshore drilling was&#160; <a href="" type="internal">edited in a way</a> that mischaracterized its conclusions. According to the IG, several of the independent experts who evaluated the offshore drilling report’s conclusions said they had not actually weighed in on a six-month moratorium on offshore drilling, yet the report’s summary made it appear that they had. In a statement issued Wednesday night responding to the allegations, White House spokesman Bill Burton emphasized that the IG’s review “found no intentional misrepresentation of [scientists’] views” and that the “Interior acted quickly to correct” the misrepresentation.</p>
<p>The White House also stood behind the moratorium, which was <a href="" type="internal">lifted last month</a>. “The decision to implement a 6-month moratorium on deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico was correctly based on the need for adequate spill response, well containment and safety measures, and we stand behind that decision,” Burton said.</p>
<p>Interior Secretary Ken Salazar’s spokeswoman, Kendra Barkoff, also issued a statement:</p>
<p>There was no intent to mislead the public. The decision to impose a temporary moratorium on deepwater drilling was made by the Secretary, following consultation with colleagues including the White House. As the report makes clear, the misunderstanding with the reviewers was resolved with the June 3rd letter and a subsequent conference call with those experts.</p>
<p>Even if one accepts that this was a mistake (and the IG’s report notes that the engineers who complained about the issue said they agreed it was unintentional), it’s not really an excuse for sloppy editing. If this were the Bush administration, we’d all be falling over ourselves complaining about the lack of scientific integrity here—especially considering this isn’t the first time White House energy and climate adviser Carol Browner or her office have misrepresented “peer review.” Browner made similar claims about the report on where all the oil in the Gulf had gone. But that <a href="" type="internal">had not actually been reviewed</a>, either, and Browner and others in the administration have been <a href="" type="internal">criticized</a> for this and other issues surrounding their handling of information related to the oil spill.</p>
<p>It’s worth mentioning that the <a href="" type="internal">scientific integrity plan</a> that President Obama called for in one of his first executive orders—an effort to distance the new administration from the last—is now 16 months over due. It strikes me as something that would be useful right about now.</p>
<p /> | Whatever Happened to That Scientific Integrity Plan? | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2010/11/whatever-happened-scientific-integrity-plan/ | 2010-11-11 | 4 |
<p>Three years ago this month, people in poor French neighborhoods rioted for 21 days, burning cars and destroying property. The violence in those areas – known to the French as ‘Banlieues’, with large immigrant populations packed into concrete high-rise buildings and youth unemployment of about 40 percent, caused damage &#160;estimated at 150 million Dollars. &#160;Approximately 10,000 autos alone were ‘torched’.</p>
<p>In November 2007 rioters in Villiers-le-Bel, north of Paris, went on a rampage for a few nights, this time with guns. ‘Things are much more violent than in 2005,’ Patrick Ribeiro, head of the Synergie Officiers police union, said at the time. ‘The youths are shooting at us with handguns and hunting rifles.’</p>
<p>Last month Jean-Luc Besson’s movie-production company, Europacorp SA, was forced to cancel filming of “From Paris With Love” starring John Travolta, in the Paris suburb of Montfermeil, after youths torched its autos and threatened the crew, despite the company having offered employment as extras to over 100 locals .</p>
<p>Nicolas Sarkozy, the President of France, or ‘Sarko’ as he is known, &#160;has just failed in a legal attempt to have sales of a Voodoo Doll depicting him, carrying some of his quotes as would put likes of Dick Cheney to shame, stopped.</p>
<p>Amongst other of ‘Sarko’s bon mots contained thereon:</p>
<p>‘get lost, you pathetic arsehole’</p>
<p>as said to &#160;poor French Citizen who refused to shake his hand at Agricultural show.</p>
<p>The subject of this small article is a particular aspect of the times in which we live. &#160;The defining &#160;aspect of our times even.</p>
<p>It is not in the primary instance ‘that one’ of the decline of political vernacular as mirroring tension or the widening gaps between the haves and have nots in Society – though I have to admit it was as ‘news’ to me that France has poverty to rival that found in the black ghettos of American Metropolis, where in Harlem for example, it can be that the average life expectancy of a 35-year-old black man is lower than that of the average male citizen of Bangladesh at the same stage in life.</p>
<p>The subject here is the burning issue of the times, albeit on back burner&#160; as yet (?); the French phrase being as between ‘Liberalisme’ and ‘Dirigisme’ – or between ‘Free &#160;Market’ and ‘State Intervention’.</p>
<p>Or indeed, as put by American true and proper: Between mere monetary profits and social values more noble.</p>
<p>One of the ‘benefits’ of this financial meltdown, if anything good can come from such, &#160;and &#160;unfortunately we ain’t seen nothing yet; is that a lot of people ‘all sides’ are going to have to think long and hard about so many of the things as have come to be taken for granted, the so called ‘free market’ being one. Foremost in mind here is the manipulation of the rugged spirit of individualism which has been purveyed as ‘pap for the swallowing’ &#160;&#160;in the Land of the Free and home of the Brave.</p>
<p>One says ‘pap’ because the moment the chips were down for the serious money, the State was called upon to intervene; form of ‘bailout’ for the wealthy, to exhortation tearful, indeed on bended knee…</p>
<p>The ruggedness of individualism only extends so far it would appear, and certainly not such as to embrace body Corporate, form of private finance.</p>
<p>No such ‘bailout’ for the poor, for the ordinary, hard working and honest Citizen.</p>
<p>Hell, no!</p>
<p>That would be ‘Socialism’, something completely contrary to the American Way.</p>
<p>As to &#160;the growing body of the poor American Citizen?</p>
<p>– ‘qu’ils mangent de la <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brioche" type="external">brioche</a>.’</p>
<p>‘Let them eat cake’ as Marie Antoinette might have said?</p>
<p>One of the ways thought can be provoked about society &#160;under Financial Meltdown is contemplation of the proposition that Democracy can only really exist within certain margins concerning the distribution of wealth; as measured by Gini Coefficient.</p>
<p>‘Really existing’ meaning out with the intermediary determining of such as ‘black box’, within which contained ‘non reality’ such sense.</p>
<p>What scared me witless recently, not to be uncouth and say ‘shitless’, was to look at a topographical representation of the society outlined in Orwell’s 1984, delineating the small proportion of ‘inner party’ as ‘2%’ – and &#160;thinking of the ‘trickle down’ theory of economics deployed as rationale for tax cuts in the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001, and the small proportion of society those tax cuts benefited directly as approximating same by way of percentage, now such chicken coming home to roost.</p>
<p>The words ‘Inner Party’, coming in fear and resoundingly so, to mind.</p>
<p>Truth is, this burning question of our times concerning ‘Free Market or State intervention’? is not new; it has been around before for America &#160;with such piercing, shrill scream as is realised currently; in 1933 as was to be precise.</p>
<p>‘plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose’&#160; as the French could say – or indeed as banking institutions JP Morgan and Bank of America could have said in 1933, to more contemporary reference having consolidated control over US Banking unprecedented this meltdown:</p>
<p>‘We’ll be back..’</p>
<p>Thence of Brecht and of &#160;‘bastard’ in quote indeed.</p>
<p>Roosevelt only went so far along the lines of ‘Dirigisme’, or State Intervention – and we are indebted to likes of Smedley Butler for contribution indicating as to why, and to the fact that POTUS 32 survived an assassination attempt.</p>
<p>America is currently rejoicing in the fact that it is to have a new President, and a large part of this rejoice in the anticipation probably founded in no small measure on the fact that ‘any President has to be better than George W Bush’.</p>
<p>Citizens of America turned out in droves to vote Election 2008 – so I guess you can say something positive about that which POTUS 43 ‘gifted’ – unlike the gift of ‘President’ Mugabe of Zimbabwe, who clings to power regardless of such droves of Citizen as turned out – to be turned over by the ‘Democratic process’.</p>
<p>However, the reality is that when it comes to ‘money talking’ language of free market, America is now facing a future where never has so much been in the hands of so few – while needed by so many. This does not bode well for the future of American Democracy -unless Barack Obama as POTUS 44 can do as Roosevelt and implement greater State Control?</p>
<p>When such as money is the sole delineating and determining factor, it is very difficult to ‘prise’ control in a situation where few have it in greater proportional share than ever before?</p>
<p>‘From their dead fingers’ as it were being apposite in terms of the ‘resistance’ liable to be encountered?</p>
<p>Franklin Delano Roosevelt knew a thing or two about such matters, and was careful to tread a fine line over such as he invoked Presidential by way of the State stepping in to take over, and starting to represent the interests of the many over the few, way of Democracy realised – to collective sigh of ‘at last’ amongst Citizen. &#160;The defining issue facing Barack Obama is just this challenge reborn.</p>
<p>You cannot campaign on a basis of offering hope midst of crisis without being held to it – and pivotal to such hope is that things are going to improve for the ordinary Citizen.</p>
<p>America is tired of the interests of the Free Market being held aloft at the expense of Citizen, not the least in the sufferance it has brought, and continues to bring. &#160;‘Trickle down economics’ is dead, as also, with the Paulson Bailout, is the ‘Free Market’ – &#160;such unrestrained ideology as being ‘laissez faire’- and ‘passé’ as the French say.</p>
<p>So what does that leave as choice, to help get America working again, to get a resurgent Main Street, which is really beginning to suffer at the hands of the grip of Wall Street?</p>
<p>I sincerely hope that Barack Obama proves doubters wrong in finding parallel solution to that same problem as faced by FDR all those years ago. Hope herein that he is able to further Democracy in America by making it more representative of the interests of the ordinary Citizen, not just in words as empty promise, but by deed, in real terms such as the quality of life experienced everyday for ‘Joe Six Pack’. Hope that the fact we have just witnessed the most expensive political campaign in history, as financed in large part by Wall Street, does not mean the ‘wisdom’ of Lone Star State in ‘gotta dance with them as brung ya’ being realised; does not mean parallel for America of Tony Blair, ex Prime Minister of the UK, who is now in the employ of JP Morgan, making speeches on the ‘tired old whore’ circuit to personal ‘reward’. Tony could talk a good game for sure, but the reality experienced by ordinary Citizen was little different than under free market ideology; or ‘no such thing as Society’ rhetoric of Margaret Thatcher -now there was an ‘individual’ who could hate, without need for sweetening lie political, &#160;or further twist such knife as held by Tony, way of saying one thing while doing complete opposite.</p>
<p>I hope that Barack Obama is no George W Bush in face of ‘big money’ when it comes to representing the Citizen who shared the hope in caste of vote. Hope that the tears of&#160; joy such as &#160;of Jesse Jackson do not turn unto tears of sadness, &#160;hope that Martin Luther King will find his genius words of humanity concerning ‘Dream’ ring true, &#160;hope that Democracy will prevail over Fascism, and hope that things will get better for the ordinary Citizen in America.</p>
<p>Barack Obama’s finest hour – or America’s worst, beckons.</p>
<p>Lest trouble as of in the Banlieues be as small time, political vernacular degenerate further, 1984 seem as pipe dream – and Democracy die as American dream turns unto nightmare.</p>
<p>That sure is a lot of hope to be on the shoulders of one President.</p>
<p>How wonderful it will be if Barack Obama can ‘stiff the money in dancing with the Citizen as them as really brung’, transcending thereby &#160;the cauldron of corruption, and make life as pursuit of happiness and in liberty the reality, rather than woe begotten ideal, &#160;for the Citizen of America in the greatest Democracy in the World ever seen thereby?</p>
<p>How wonderful that he could avoid ‘j’accuse’ as avoided ‘black box’ unreality.</p>
<p>That Harlem may be no more as Bangladesh, and trouble in such as Banlieues a thing of the past as distant geographic,&#160; yet closer in the solicitation of upward change, way of learning.</p>
<p>In a lesson taught World by America, this coming President elect, as how things can be brought to be by such as man in faith, and concerning ‘temple’.</p>
<p>In closing, some words from Franklin Delano Roosevelt, such as did indeed realise&#160; hope, &#160;and &#160;concerning way things are as they are, stated in 1933 Inauguration address – though &#160;they could just as well be said today, such the profundity – and joyous be the marvel that Barack Obama may find his own seam of &#160;such wisdom in form of re-iteration; his own words and actions found Presidential accordant:</p>
<p>‘Primarily this is because rulers of the exchange of mankind’s goods have failed through their own stubbornness and their own incompetence, have admitted their failure, and have abdicated. Practices of the unscrupulous money changers stand indicted in the court of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men. True they have tried, but their efforts have been cast in the pattern of an outworn tradition. Faced by failure of credit they have proposed only the lending of more money. Stripped of the lure of profit by which to induce our people to follow their false leadership, they have resorted to exhortations, pleading tearfully for restored confidence….The money changers have fled from their high seats in the temple of our civilization. We may now restore that temple to the ancient truths. The measure of the restoration lies in the extent to which we apply social values more noble than mere monetary profit.’</p>
<p>STEPHEN MARTIN can be reached at: <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a></p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p /> | Barack and the Temple | true | https://counterpunch.org/2008/11/07/barack-and-the-temple/ | 2008-11-07 | 4 |
<p><a href="http://marmel.com/post/66144576496/this-is-the-nuanced-argument-for-the-affordable" type="external">Marmel.com</a>: The Argument for the Affordable Care Act I Wish Had Been Made in the Beginning</p>
<p><a href="http://www.eclectablog.com/2013/11/action-dont-let-the-michigan-gop-rig-the-state-court-of-claims.html" type="external">EclectaBlog</a>: ACTION: Don’t let the Michigan GOP rig the state Court of Claims</p>
<p><a href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/religious-right-faces-string-election-and-gay-rights-defeats-blown-narrative" type="external">Right Wing Watch</a>: Bad Week for the Religious Right</p>
<p><a href="http://www.emptywheel.net/2013/11/06/60-minutes-writes-the-final-installment-of-the-benghazi-left-behind-novels/" type="external">EmptyWheel</a>: 60 Minutes Writes the Final (?) Installment of the Benghazi Left Behind Novels</p>
<p>Round up by Swimgirl.(tweeter @miamiswimmer) Send tips to mbru AT <a href="" type="internal">crooksandliars.com</a></p> | Mike's Blog Round Up | true | http://crooksandliars.com/swimgirl/mikes-blog-round-114 | 2013-11-07 | 4 |
<p />
<p>China's stocks resumed their slide on Wednesday as skeptical investors quickly booked profits on gains made in the previous day, shrugging off fresh government measures to boost the property market.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>The CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen fell 0.4 percent to 2,948.64 points.</p>
<p>The Shanghai Composite Index also lost 0.4 percent to 2,739.25 points.</p>
<p>Late on Tuesday, China said it would reduce the minimum down payment required for first- and second-time home buyers in most cities, a move aimed at clearing a massive housing glut that is weighing on the property market and the broader economy.</p>
<p>But some analysts say continued easing to prop up China's frothy property prices would do little to spur new property investment, and would put the yuan currency under even more downward pressure.</p>
<p>(Reporting by the Samuel Shen and Pete Sweeney; Editing by Kim Coghill)</p>
<p>Advertisement</p> | China Stocks Resume Slide | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/02/03/china-stocks-resume-slide.html | 2016-02-03 | 0 |
<p>With little fanfare–no celebrity visits, no circling sheriff’s helicopter–the South Central Farmers opened a community center last week. Tables jammed with Swiss chard, radishes, pomegranates, almonds, squash, and grapes lined the sidewalk and overflowed crates. South Central residents were choosing among organically grown produce that was tastier and more colorful than anything in Wild Oats or Whole Foods, fresh from the new farm.</p>
<p>The center is a slap in the face to two Farm opponents, developer Ralph Horowitz and District 9 Councilmember Jan Perry, but it’s only another round in the Farmers’ struggle, and that struggle only an apex in a decades-long battle between the people and land developers in Los Angeles.</p>
<p>The center itself is four freshly painted rooms, lined with art and photos and reminders of the fight to save the Farm, waiting for more art, music, and computers. Here the Farmers and their supporters will meet to assess the South Central community’s needs and how best to meet them, where they will teach healthy eating to all who will listen.</p>
<p>And they will use the center to pressure local officials to take “a principled stance,” as Tezozomoc put it. He and Rufina Juárez have led the Farmers through the eviction and on to these latest contributions from the Farmers to the most industrialized areas in Los Angeles. With evident pride, he added, “We delivered what we promised: we said we’d raise the money to save the Farm, and we did. We promised to deliver healthy food to the community, and we are. We’ll be here every month.”</p>
<p>Across the street is a vacant lot where the South Central Farm once grew. The trees were pulled from the ground and their roots imprisoned in wooden cages for transport to Huntington Park, after Perry refused to find space in her district for this living memorial of the Farm. But the fight for the land at 41st and Alameda goes on still, in courtrooms and in low-key conference rooms.</p>
<p>Some of the original Farmers have gone in different directions. Some are digging plots in Venice, and some in gardens in Watts, newly opened because of the Farmers’ eviction. Some have given up the skills of generations. But some, a hundred or so families, are holding on to the original vision to raise fresh, healthy food for the inner city.</p>
<p>That group, now an incorporated non-profit, has acquired a small school bus. On Friday nights, after work, families climb aboard and travel for hours into the Central Valley, the vast farmlands north of Los Angeles. Not long past dawn, they are in the fields of their new farm, churning the earth, planting and watering seeds, weeding the tiny sprouts, harvesting their first winter crop, and, a day later, driving it along Interstate 5 back to South Central. Sunday is back to the field, jamming a week’s work into a weekend.</p>
<p>The new farm doesn’t have a name yet, but its produce will soon appear at farmers markets across Los Angeles proudly carrying the South Central Farmers’ brand.</p>
<p>The new farm, now fourteen acres with a hundred and thirty more available for eventual cultivation, isn’t the old Farm. It isn’t as picturesque: just row upon row of crops dotted with a wife and husband or a father and daughter carefully pulling weeds away from tiny green onion sprouts. Toddlers still run through the furrows, but the bougainvillea-laced fences that marked garden plots, the homey tarps sheltering hammocks and tools, are gone. It was just after the eviction that a benefactor came forward with the offer to turn part of his organic farm over to the Farmers. As Ruben, a Yaqui Indian from the area who has joined the original Farmers, describes it, the connection was fated. The landowner and a speaker for the Farmers found themselves at the same speakers’ table for a Central Valley gathering. The landowner, who hadn’t heard of the Farm, decided by the end of the Farmers’ story that he would figure out a way to bring the Farmers north.</p>
<p>The plan nearly collapsed when, just weeks later, the landowner was killed by a motorist. But the Farmers’ magic is infectious, and the son proved to be as generous as his father.</p>
<p>Generosity has come in fits and starts for the Farmers. In 2003, after years of squabbling about the future of the land, the Los Angeles City Council voted to sell the fourteen-acre swath of land owned by the Harbor Commission back to one of its original owners, Ralph Horowitz, at nearly the same price the City had paid when it bought it from him in 1986. The council spurned the three hundred and fifty Farm families who had painstakingly rescued the informal dumping ground and drug stop and turned it into a thriving Farm, delivering fresh produce to the most neglected areas of the city. Horowitz promptly raised his asking price for the Farm to three times what he had paid for it. Low income Farmers took time from their jobs and the Farm to work the corridors of City Hall. Support poured in from around the city and the world, including legendary environmentalists and celebrities, demanding the council rescue the Farm. The fight threatened to devolve into a Brown-Black conflict when African-American Councilmember Perry pulled in favors and tossed around threats to hold the city council together against the Farmers. But when the Chicano Mayor, elected in a fragile Chicano, white liberal, and African American coalition, abandoned his Chicano base, the real players were revealed.</p>
<p>The political story of the City of Los Angeles has never had much to do with stars or studios. The real power players have been land developers, seducing politicos with campaign support in exchange for facilitating permits and directing federal redevelopment funds their way. It was predictable: as Chicanos exercised enough political muscle to elect a mayor, that same mayor, with open aspirations for a governorship, would have to choose between the poorest members of his ethnic electoral base and the entrenched power brokers. When Chicano Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa failed to deliver a promised $5M to help save the Farm, the developers had found their candidate.</p>
<p>Land has been the major L.A. commodity since Harrison Gray Otis and Harry Chandler bought up the San Fernando Valley, but by the 1980s L.A. had little left to develop. The 1992 South Central rebellion was not the only uprising in Los Angeles of that decade. The other was the quieter white Westside rebellion, begun in the late 1980s when gated communities and home owners’ associations demanded that developers stop the encroachment of renters, in barely disguised code for racial and cultural redlining. That rebellion culminated in 1994 with the passage of the draconian Proposition 187 (later largely overturned in U.S. District Court). The message was clear: burgeoning Black and Brown populations would be squeezed into the tightly bounded East Los Angeles and South Central neighborhoods. The inevitable tensions would be quelled by police batons. When the batons landed on Rodney King, South Central burned.</p>
<p>The city purchased the land that became the South Central Farm from Horowitz and others in 1986 for a massive incinerator project, but South Central residents organized as the Concerned Citizens of South Los Angeles and halted the burning of 1600 tons of trash daily in their neighborhood. In 1994, the city sold the property to the Port Authority, since it lay on the soon-to-be-developed Alameda Transportation Corridor. The Port Authority turned it over to the L.A. Regional Food Bank so that agency could assist the Farmers who had taken root on the land.</p>
<p>But developers always win in Los Angeles, even when intolerant Westsiders and environmentally-conscious Southsiders push them out. The developers of the eighties remade themselves into redevelopers of the nineties, taking land already in use and finding ways to squeeze out a little more profit by demolishing the old and erecting the new. The city council found two ingenious solution to both the 1992 Rebellion and the Westside homeowners rebellions: the South Los Angeles Comprehensive Economic Strategy, a plan to industrialize and commercialize much of South Central, with a gaggle of federal subsidies for redevelopers to raze damaged and undamaged mom-and-pop stores and replace them with strip malls replete with low-income, low-skilled jobs. When Councilmember Perry last month offered three hundred acres of land for development in her district, she was including half a dozen projects still earmarked for federal assistance to redevelopers.</p>
<p>Perhaps, when they voted to sell the Farm to Horowitz, city council members had in mind the cartoon stereotype of a somnambulant Mexican lounging, lethargically oblivious, against the spines of a cactus, hat pulled over an unseen face–the same graphic emblazoned on developer Horowitz’s letterhead. No one predicted that the Farmers would line up celebrities like John Quigley, Daryl Hannah, Julia Butterfly Hill, Joan Baez, Martin Sheen, Floyd Red Crow Westerman, and Willie Nelson to bring influential Westside liberals to their cause. No one predicted the Farmers would call up international support, not the least of which were farmers rebelling against development and its erosion of traditional life–commonly dubbed “progress”–in Atenco, Mexico. And no one predicted that young people from across the Los Angeles, unjaded by political “realities,” would risk incarceration for the Farmers.</p>
<p>The Farmers managed to raise the $16M Horowitz was demanding, largely from the Annenberg Foundation, but Horowitz turned it down. On June 13, less than a week after the sheriff’s re-election victory party, sheriff’s deputies burst through the barriers erected around the Farm by supporters encamped there for the three weeks following the eviction order. Quigley and Hannah were plucked from a California black walnut tree with an immense hook and ladder fire truck propelled across two generations of labor, crushing original corn and nopales under massive tires. Fourteen mostly young people, arms locked into concrete-filled oil drums, were jackhammered out and hauled off to jail.</p>
<p>Apparently Horowitz hasn’t found a buyer for the land. Under his custodianship, in the six months since the eviction, the block has reverted to the dump and drug haven it was before the Farmers rescued it. Perhaps $16M is too high a price, or perhaps the problem is the echoes of the struggle still there, in the remnants of banners and children’s drawings taped to the fence, in the tiny child’s plastic chair buried among discarded sofas and tires. Horowitz is preparing to grade the land himself. It seems sixteen million dollars is too much to ask for land already paid for with sweat, community prayers, and the sacrifice of young people standing in the path of bulldozers.</p>
<p>But the eviction was then. Today, breakfast on the new farm is instant coffee, tortillas, beans, and chicharrones. Then it’s into the fields, with a crew of fifteen. As many as thirty Farmers have worked the new farm on a weekend, but many more, because of age or disability or work or family commitments, are waiting amidst the asphalt and concrete of South Central, hoping to return to the site of the original Farm.</p>
<p>I’m paired with Juan, a ninth-grader who glibly rattles off what colors you can’t wear on which blocks in his neighborhood. Seventh and eighth grades were problematic for him, arguments with teachers and fights, but this year he’s avoiding trouble, he explains matter-of-factly. A few minutes later, he pulls out one iPod earpiece to tell me that he wants to be a farmer and a lawyer, to protect the farm.</p>
<p>The work is slow and grueling. When hours are marked by only yards, even feet, of progress up a 1500-foot furrow, it pays to stay in the moment. I’m too slow to do much good, so I get to sit and kneel in the trenches as I pluck through the tiny green onion stalks, but Maria all but runs down her row in a crouch that makes me wince. “We all do what we can here,” I’m reassured. The Farmers collectively decide to abandon the rest of the green onions to the weeds–the market price isn’t worth the labor of picking weeds from the tiny sprouts–and to move on to the carrots. Now I understand the high cost of organic produce–it’s this, the interminable weeding that agribusinesses alleviate with a killing rain of pesticides. Lunch is chili, salsa, oranges, and buttercrunch lettuce with the dirt shaken off. Winter crops are the hardest, I’m told; spring will bring ochre and, of course, original corn, both easier to tend. There’s a small squabble between the Mexicans and the Peruvians about whether the tortillas should be cooked directly on the fire’s ashes or on a grill. The grill proponents win, but one Mexican whispers to me that the charcoaled tortillas are better. I’m handed a bunch of the freshest, crispest spinach I’ve ever tasted, and we all snack on the leaves. Next week, the spinach will arrive in South Central.</p>
<p>About half a mile away and far overhead, a helicopter rumbles by softly. One Farmer points skyward and comments, “It’s Jan Perry looking for land for the Farm.” Fits of laughter follow: last month, Perry had tried to salvage her reputation with a much-ballyhooed publicity ride in a helicopter over Los Angeles ostensibly to find vacant land for the Farmers. The afternoon is more of the same, albeit a little faster–the carrot tops are easier to spot among the unwanted grasses, and the ground is softer. Stefanie and her father slowly overtake me one row over. Stefanie confides with a mischievous grin that she plans on being a councilmember and unseating Perry. But her dad and I can only look at each other, silent across the language barrier. “Aqui estamos,” he offers. “Y no nos vamos,” I finish the Farmers’ now famous chant. We begin a litany of Farm chants until they move out of range. A couple of rows over, four-year-old Sandra practices her numbers. “Eight, nine, ten,” she concludes. “Eleven,” I add. She looks up, surprised, and then giggles and launches into a count to twenty for me. Her mom looks up and beams. And then there’s Rusty, who has no language barrier. He romps across the fields, sometimes with a mouthful of almond branch. He stops occasionally, offers a couple of kisses, and flops over in a furrow for tummy rubs.</p>
<p>The irrigating is finished; it’s dark now. Produce is boxed up for transport back to the city. Maria, Berto at her side, waves me over. We start the long walk back to the trailer. Five-year-old Berto tries to translate for us, but he doesn’t quite understand what he’s being asked to do. “Almendra,” I stumble, following Maria’s lead. “Arboles.” “Trees.” “Casa móvil.” “Trailer house,” Maria enunciates carefully. She signals that she’s a garment worker, as she heats a pot of water. The garment workers in the crew protect their hands with latex gloves so they can delicately handle the fabric at their jobs.</p>
<p>The rest of the Farmers trickle in. We sip warm horchata, sweetened with sugar and cinnamon. The portable TV reports on the outcry against Mel Gibson’s “Apolcalypto.” While the Farmers ruminate about the film, Stefanie tries to write a book report on “A Catcher in the Rye.” One of the Farmers runs through a series of stretches on the floor, and everyone laughs when Berto lies down and mimics him.</p>
<p>I’m hitching a ride with the produce and the driver is ready to go, so I have to leave my half-drunk horchata. Driving through the darkness, the driver explains that the new farm is a haven from the daily frustration of language differences and dehumanizing urban life. On the new farm, as on the original, they’re creating a community that shares traditions and stories, where the Farmers manage both labor and product, and where children learn respect for ancestral traditions. An electric line needs to be run to the trailer and a septic tank needs to be installed, but soon some of the Farmers will move to their new farm.</p>
<p>The Farmers’ problem now is distributing what, in a few months, will be thousands of pounds of food. They have their agricultural producers certification to allow them entrée to farmers markets, they have fellow Farmers and supporters back in L.A. to work the booths, but they need a refrigerated truck for the nearly fifty tons of lima beans, broccoli, peas, cauliflower, and other crops coming in soon. It’s pouring rain as we climb up the mountains, and I ask what will happen to the produce if the tianguis is rained out. “We’ll give the food to Catholic Charities and Food Not Bombs,” the driver tells me. “That’s what we do with whatever’s left.” The L.A. Regional Food Bank, the original Farm’s sponsor but which ultimately abandoned it to the city, isn’t on the list. But Catholic Charities has braved a sweltering blaze of political heat with its unflinching support for immigrants.</p>
<p>And Food Not Bombs cooks healthy food for the homeless in MacArthur Park, next to the downtown section of Perry’s council district. Perry, the champion of industrialization for South Central, has been equally vehement in directing police roundups of the homeless to gentrify downtown. “Maybe Food Not Bombs will let us hang a sign.” The driver begins to smile. “Healthy, organic produce for poor people, brought to you by Food Not Bombs and the South Central Farmers.” “Hi, Jan!” he quips. In the intermittent glow along the highway, he is grinning from ear to ear, and the lights of L.A. twinkle over the mountain crest.</p>
<p>LESLIE RADFORD is a correspondent for Aztlan Electronic News and L.A. Indymedia. She can be reached at <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a>.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
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<p>&#160;</p> | The Winter Harvest of the South Central Farmers | true | https://counterpunch.org/2006/12/20/the-winter-harvest-of-the-south-central-farmers/ | 2006-12-20 | 4 |
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<p>South Korean electronics giant Samsung Electronics Co. has started domestic sales of high-end televisions powered by its Tizen operating system and plans to add washing machines, fridges and other appliances to the range of products that use the software.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Samsung said sales of Tizen-powered ultra-HD TVs began Thursday in South Korea. The new TVs come in four sizes from 55 inches diagonally to 88 inches. The smallest model costs 5.49 million won ($5,000).</p>
<p>The company's smartphones and tablets rely on Google's Android operating system despite its efforts to develop Tizen as an alternative. Currently Samsung is focusing on pushing the Tizen OS into living rooms and eventually into kitchens and other corners of the home.</p>
<p>Kim Hyun-seok, head of Samsung's TV business, said all of Samsung's Internet-connected TVs will be powered by Tizen this year as well as refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners and robotic vacuum cleaners.</p>
<p>At a press conference, Samsung executives emphasized what consumers could do with the new televisions, as well as touting the superior color range of the displays compared with standard TVs.</p>
<p>After startup, the screen of Tizen-powered televisions displays most recently used apps and recommendations. The company said users of Samsung's Galaxy mobile devices can stream content from their phones to the television with one tap on the screen.</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>Samsung said it increased the number of games, videos and movie offerings.</p>
<p>The company did not give launch plans for overseas markets.</p> | Samsung launches Tizen TVs in home market, plans to power washers and fridges with own OS too | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2015/02/04/samsung-launches-tizen-tvs-in-home-market-plans-to-power-washers-and-fridges.html | 2016-03-05 | 0 |
<p>Stunningly, a charter school in McKinney, Texas deemed it appropriate to educate elementary-age students on topics like depression, divorce and identifying as transgender, without notifying parents, let alone asking for their consent.</p>
<p>CBS DFW <a href="http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2016/03/25/parents-upset-elementary-students-taught-inappropriate-topics/" type="external">reports</a> that in an annual tradition, 10th graders at Image International Academy of North Texas spend months working on “personal projects." The topics for the projects are all pre-approved before the sophomores present their projects to the entire school; this includes the elementary students. Topics chosen this year included “The impact divorce has on elementary students, depression and being transgender.”</p>
<p>“The school’s administration officer, Julia Brady, said teachers reviewed all the projects ahead of time and deemed them all appropriate,” notes CBS DFW.</p>
<p>A mother of two sons at the school, a third and fourth grader, spoke out in opposition to Image International Academy of North Texas overstepping their bounds without as much as her consent.</p>
<p>“I think those topics make plenty of sense on the high school level,” said Melissa Marrow. “But I don’t think my 8 or 10-year-olds are prepared to tackle some of those things without serious questions. I want to be the parent. I want to be able to walk through those things with them and not be surprised.”</p>
<p>Marrow pointed out that the charter school never so much as ran the topics by her, saying she found out after the fact.</p>
<p>“Brady said the school is addressing the parents’ concerns individually and will consider making changes to the presentation process for next year,” reports CBS DFW.</p>
<p>The school said the presentations were made under teacher supervision and believe the subject manner and discussion was age appropriate.</p> | This May Be The Worst Elementary School In America | true | https://dailywire.com/news/4493/may-be-worst-elementary-school-america-amanda-prestigiacomo | 2016-03-29 | 0 |
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<p>Master service technician Michael Baca trains on energy-efficient furnaces at Gas Co’s. Albuquerque training site. (Journal File)</p>
<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — New Mexico Gas Co. rebates for energy-efficient water and space heaters are so popular that state regulators have approved a 45 percent increase in annual spending on those programs.</p>
<p>The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission granted a utility request this week to spend up to $992,000 on commercial and residential rebates in both 2013 and 2014. That’s up from $686,000 previously approved for each year.</p>
<p>“Those programs have been so well received by customers that we needed to fund additional rebates,” said Steve Casey, energy efficiency program manager.</p>
<p>When the PRC originally approved the utility budget for 2013 and 2014, the company had estimated about 600 customers per year would request rebates for water heaters and 600 for furnaces. But now, the utility expects to pay about 1,200 rebates per program each year.</p>
<p>“By the end of November, we had already reached our original participant estimates, and we still have four months left in the current year,” Casey said. “In addition, it’s winter now, which is when demand spikes.”</p>
<p>Under the programs, the utility pays up to $375 to residential customers who change out old water and space heaters for energy-efficient ones, and up to $300 to commercial builders who install them in new homes.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“We pay a higher incentive for retrofits because there’s more costs involved to change them out and haul away the old appliances,” said Dru Jones, senior program developer.</p>
<p>Apart from water heater and furnace rebates, the company offers five other programs:</p>
<p>With the PRC budget boost, the utility is now authorized to spend $4.26 million per year in both 2013 and 2014, up from $3.9 million per year the PRC had approved last spring.</p>
<p>A current rate rider that amounts to about 1 percent of the average monthly residential bill pays for those programs. Despite the budget increase, that rider won’t be adjusted until after April, when the 2014 budget year begins.</p>
<p>As of last March, about 16,000 customers had participated in the utility’s energy efficiency programs. For more information, visit <a href="http://www.nmgco.com" type="external">nmgco.com</a>.</p> | NM Gas Co. boosts its rebate program | false | https://abqjournal.com/319775/nm-gas-co-boosts-its-rebate-program.html | 2 |
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<p>This may come as a shock to many of you, but Rush Limbaugh was not entirely honest during a discussion of Tiger Woods today. I know, it's hard to believe. But take a listen:</p>
<p>LIMBAUGH: Compare the attention that the drive-bys are giving all of these alleged mistresses. Compare that to the way they treated Gennifer Flowers and the other bimbo eruptions during the first Clinton campaign. They made excuses for Clinton. ... Gennifer Flowers was ignored, and then she was mocked, and then discredited. And she had tapes!</p>
<p>Ok. First, Gennifer Flowers was not "ignored," unless by "ignored" Limbaugh means "The New York Times never quite got around to changing its name to Gennifer Flowers Daily." A Nexis search for "Gennifer Flowers" in the New York Times directory yields 77 hits in 1992. In the Washington Post directory, 171. CNN: 150. ABC: 30. CBS: 41. Flowers' allegations got so much attention, Clinton went on 60 Minutes after the Super Bowl to respond to them. So, "ignored" is just a flat-out lie.</p>
<p>Now, on to "mocked, and then discredited." As Arkansas journalist Gene Lyons has <a href="http://www.dailyhowler.com/h102998_1.shtml" type="external">detailed</a>, "Flowers' resumé claimed degrees from colleges she'd barely attended, membership in a sorority she'd never joined and jobs she'd never held. Her claim to have won the Miss Teenage America crown proved false. Much was made locally of her claim to The Star that she and Clinton had many torrid assignations during 1979 and 1980 at the Excelsior, Little Rock's fanciest hotel. The Excelsior didn't exist until November 1982."</p>
<p>Gennifer Flowers, in other words, discredited herself, by lying about just about everything she could think of. And still, the media did not ignore her; years later, she was still showing up as a guest on Chris Matthews' television show, where she spread lies that the Clintons were murderers.</p>
<p>Finally, the tapes: contemporaneous news reports indicated the tapes were selectively edited to make Clinton look worse. (Years later, Flowers sued James Carville and George Stephanopoulos for defamation because they referred to those news reports. <a href="http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2004/Mar-17-Wed-2004/news/23451328.html" type="external">Her suit was thrown out of court</a>.)</p>
<p>Back to Limbaugh:</p>
<p>LIMBAUGH: And they went out of their way to save Bill Clinton and to destroy-- even when the Lewinsky thing hit.</p>
<p>Right. The Washington Post and New York Times each <a href="/research/2006/01/20/media-matters-by-jamison-foser/134690" type="external">assigned half their newsrooms to cover the Lewinsky story</a> -- and they were certainly not alone in their obsessive coverage.</p>
<p>LIMBAUGH: They all joined forces and tried to make Ken Starr out to be some sex pervert. That was so laugh-- but anyway.</p>
<p>Whitewater Independent Counsel Ken Starr submitted a report to Congress that mentioned the word "Whitewater" twice and the word "sex" more than 500 times -- not to mention the countless graphic descriptions of sex acts. If anyone made Ken Starr appear to be obsessed with sex, it was Ken Starr. (And remember, <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/whitewater/stories/wwtr970625.htm" type="external">Starr was snooping around Arkansas trying to find women who had slept with Clinton long before the Lewinsky matter came to his attention</a>.)</p>
<p>Back to Rush:</p>
<p>LIMBAUGH: Now, with Tiger, all theses alleged mistresses are believed: Every word they say. The media is digging deep to find out everything they-- imagine if the media had acted this way with Bill Clinton and John Edwards back in their day.</p>
<p>Please. If the media had devoted any more attention to the Lewinsky story, they wouldn't have had room for baseball box scores or movie listings.</p>
<p>The simple truth is that no single story -- political or otherwise -- has received the sustained level of media attention the Clinton-Lewinsky story got for all of 1998 and the early part of 1999. Limbaugh claiming the media ignored allegations of infidelity by Bill Clinton isn't like claiming two plus two equals five; it's like claiming two plus two equals three-hundred and forty-seven thousand.</p> | Rush Limbaugh, liar | true | http://mediamatters.org/blog/200912090030 | 2009-12-09 | 4 |
<p>Of all of the holidays a grieving father can be confronted with after the death of his child, Fathers’ Day is for me the most difficult.</p>
<p>My son Nick died in Iraq on May 7, 2004. He is buried next to my father, who had died just a year and a half before. That is not the way it’s supposed to be. I’m supposed to go somewhere between my father and my son. My mother is on the other side of my father, and my mother’s parents are nearby. My proud immigrant grandparents died first, then my parents died many years later. That is the way it is supposed to be.</p>
<p>I want to make sure no father suffers the loss of their son or daughter in Iraq or a future illegal war of aggression. I urge all those who oppose the military occupation of Iraq and do not want to see future wars of choice to sign the Voters Pledge at <a href="http://www.VotersForPeace.US/" type="external">www.VotersForPeace.US</a>. Nearly fifty thousand people have already signed. It will let politicians know that we will not support pro-war candidates in the future.</p>
<p>There is a lot else going on that is not the way it is supposed to be. Our leaders are not supposed to lie to us. Yet that is precisely what George Bush and company have done. They told us to beware of weapons of mass destruction, Iraqi involvement in 9/11, and Al Qaeda infiltration of Iraq. We now know these were all lies, yet still my son and the loved ones of 150,000 other grieving souls lost their lives because of them.</p>
<p>I have no excuse. Though I doubted the veracity of George Bush’s words, I did too little too late.</p>
<p>My son Nick was an independent contractor, not associated with Haliburton, Bechtel, Lockheed-Martin, or the U.S. military. Nick was murdered in retaliation for the atrocities committed at the Abu Ghraib prison: murders, rapes, and torture of Iraqi citizens. Though Donald Rumsfeld says he took responsibility for those atrocities, no consequences were felt by him, but they were by my son and everyone who loved him. George Bush ordered Alberto Gonzalez to rewrite definitions of torture essentially ordering these sins, and he did so with impunity. This is not the way it’s supposed to be either.</p>
<p>Nick was arrested by George Bush’s military without reason and then illegally detained for thirteen days. While he was in custody, the revelations of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal became public. These revelations ignited the resistance in Iraq and made it impossible for Nick to get home alive. When Nick did arrive home, it was to the military mortuary at Dover Air Force Base, a base from which I and all other loved ones of the invisible deceased are barred. This is not the way it’s supposed to be either.</p>
<p>We learn more and more of the truth of what is happening in Iraq every day. We learn what is happening to America and our allies as a result of the voters of these United States electing the wrong men and women: unjustifiable wars, the undermining of vital social programs, willful neglect of the maintenance of the infrastructure of our nation, and dangerous “ignorance” of climate change that could result in unprecedented disaster.</p>
<p>This is the legacy of these leaders. Neither of the two largest political parties in this country are doing anything to make things the way they are supposed be.</p>
<p>On March 17, 2006, I joined many others, both conservatives and liberals, in taking the first steps to put things right. I had the honor to be the first person to sign the Voters Pledge for Peace.</p>
<p>The Voters Pledge on the Voters for Peace website is a project comprising many of the major organizations in the antiwar movement-United for Peace and Justice, Peace Action, Gold Star Families for Peace, Code Pink, and Democracy Rising-as well as groups with broader agendas like the National Organization for Women, Progressive Democrats of America, AfterDowningStreet.com, and magazines including the American Conservative and the Nation. The goal of this coalition is to build a base of antiwar voters that cannot be ignored by anyone running for office in the United States. We want millions of voters to sign the pledge and say no to pro-war candidates.</p>
<p>You can help right now by visiting <a href="http://www.VotersForPeace.US/" type="external">www.VotersForPeace.US</a> and immediately signing the Voters Pledge, which states:</p>
<p>I will not vote for or support any candidate for Congress or President who does not make a speedy end to the war in Iraq, and preventing any future war of aggression, a public position in his or her campaign.</p>
<p>And after you sign it, send it to everyone you know and urge them to do the same. Together we can change the path of the United States-move ourselves in a new direction toward the way it’s supposed to be, so that all fathers, all mothers, all Americans will be able to face the next Fathers Day, Mothers Day, and Independence Day with the pride these holidays deserve.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>&#160;</p> | Both Parties Have Betrayed America | true | https://counterpunch.org/2006/06/10/both-parties-have-betrayed-america/ | 2006-06-10 | 4 |
<p>The wreckage of the USS Indianapolis was found Saturday afternoon in the Philippine Sea by a team led by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/08/19/microsoft-co-founder-paul-allen-finds-lost-wwii-ship-uss-indianapolis/583334001/" type="external">USA Today reported. &#160;</a></p>
<p>Allen announced the discovery of the sunken World War II ship Saturday afternoon on Twitter.</p>
<p>We’ve located wreckage of USS Indianapolis in Philippine Sea at 5500m below the sea. ’35’ on hull 1st confirmation: <a href="https://t.co/V29TLj1Ba4" type="external">https://t.co/V29TLj1Ba4</a> <a href="https://t.co/y5S7AU6OEl" type="external">pic.twitter.com/y5S7AU6OEl</a></p>
<p>— Paul Allen (@PaulGAllen) <a href="https://twitter.com/PaulGAllen/status/898945611520552960" type="external">August 19, 2017</a></p>
<p>“Important chapter of WWII history concludes – I hope survivors/families gain some closure,” Allen said in another tweet. “Anchor and ship’s bell seen here.”</p>
<p>Important chapter of WWII history concludes–I hope survivors/families gain some closure. Anchor and ship’s bell seen here. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/USSIndianapolis?src=hash" type="external">#USSIndianapolis</a> <a href="https://t.co/Kk1YrcaeN1" type="external">pic.twitter.com/Kk1YrcaeN1</a></p>
<p>— Paul Allen (@PaulGAllen) <a href="https://twitter.com/PaulGAllen/status/898946312451653632" type="external">August 19, 2017</a></p>
<p>The ship sank on July 30, 1945, in just 12 minutes after it was hit by two torpedoes that came from a Japanese submarine. Around 800 of the ship’s 1,196 sailors and Marines survived the sinking, but only 316 ultimately made it after at least four days on the water. The USS Indianapolis had just completed a secret mission to the island Tinian to deliver components of the atomic bomb “Little Boy” dropped on Hiroshima, which would ultimately end the war.</p>
<p>The ship was found at a depth of more than 18,000 feet by Allen’s 13-person team.</p> | Paul Allen's Team Finds Sunken World War II Ship | false | https://newsline.com/paul-allens-team-finds-sunken-world-war-ii-ship/ | 2017-08-19 | 1 |
<p>your email</p>
<p>your name</p>
<p>recipient(s) email (comma separated)</p>
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<p>message</p>
<p>captcha</p>
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<p>Union members and Occupy Wall Street protesters stage a protest near Wall Street in New York, October 5, 2011. (Photo: EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP/Getty Images)</p>
<p>The initial reaction by the mainstream media may have been to ignore Occupy Wall Street, but that has passed - although for some, like <a href="http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201110040002" type="external">Fox &amp; Friends</a> and <a href="http://jayrosen.tumblr.com/post/11035487240/a-cnn-business-reporter-alison-kosik-summarizes" type="external">CNN's Alison Kosik</a>, it's been replaced by more active ridicule. That hostility could well indicate a growing realization that the Occupy movement isn't going away; on the contrary, it's rapidly spreading across North America's cities, as illustrated by <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/10/04/1022722/-Occupy-Wall-Street:-List-and-map-of-over-200-US-solidarity-events-and-Facebook%C2%A0pages" type="external">this complete list and map created by Daily Kos</a>.</p>
<p>NEW YORK</p>
<p>Right now, it looks like today is the day that the involvement of organized labor really pays off, with around 20,000 people reportedly gathered in New York City's Foley Park to take part in a <a href="http://occupywallst.org/article/occupywallstreet-union-march-foley-square-wall-str/" type="external">union solidarity march</a>.</p>
<p>Update: As of 7:10pm ET, estimates for the number of people at the march had grown to around 50,000. CNN, meanwhile, has aired <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/video/?utm_source=twitterfeed&amp;utm_medium=twitter&amp;utm_campaign=Feed:+rss/cnn_freevideo+%28RSS:+Video%29#/video/bestoftv/2011/10/05/tsr-candiotti-wall-street-protests-grow.cnn" type="external">dramatic aerial footage of the crowds</a> and describes the protest as "exploding in size."</p>
<p>Update, 8 PM ET: Reports are now coming via Twitter that police have been pepper-spraying demonstrators, using nets to corral them, and making arrests; this may be limited to just the march to Wall St. itself that has taken place. British journalist Laurie Penny from The New Statesman has <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/PennyRed" type="external">tweeted</a> that "They're pepper spraying everyone!" and "Police beating and arresting [people]." <a href="http://yfrog.com/h01r0faj" type="external">Mounted police</a> have also moved in.</p>
<p>The Guardian is <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2011/oct/05/occupy-wall-street-protests-live" type="external">liveblogging</a> events in New York, as is The Nation's <a href="http://www.thenation.com/blog/163788/blogging-occupyusa-wednesday-frequent-updates" type="external">Greg Mitchell</a>. Salon's <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/elliottjustin" type="external">Justin Elliott</a> linked to <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WW6HUf9cLt4" type="external">this video</a> showing protesters and police clashing earlier, and reported around 8.45PM ET that the situation is "getting tense."</p>
<p><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpOMlDVaXzc" type="external">This video</a> seems to show an even more damning and undeniable instance of police violence. And in an apparent indication that the NYPD have not discriminated between protesters and even mainstream media, <a href="http://www.myfoxny.com//dpp/news/occupy-wall-street-protest-broadens-scope-20111005" type="external">two journalists from Fox 5 were maced or hit by batons</a>. But arrest hasn't stopped some people from continuing to shoot video, as <a href="http://qik.com/video/44831373" type="external">this footage from inside an NYPD paddywagon</a> shows.</p>
<p>Coverage is being livestreamed from multiple mobile cameras at Global Revolution:</p>
<p />
<p>In These Times' Allison Kilkenny, who will soon be writing for us about exactly these kind of protests on her new blog Uprising, was <a href="http://twitter.com/#%21/allisonkilkenny" type="external">Tweeting</a> from the front of the march and has now posted <a href="http://www.thenation.com/blog/163823/unions-thousands-join-occupy-wall-streets-fight" type="external">this story</a> for The Nation.</p>
<p>Coverage has also been provided today by Laura Flanders, thanks to a collaboration with The UpTake, FreeSpeechTV and other Media Consortium members:</p>
<p />
<p>CHICAGO</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">Ryan Williams</a> sent us this update:</p>
<p>The <a href="http://occupychi.org/" type="external">Occupy Chicago</a> group has definitely become emboldened by the increase in pressure from the Chicago Police Department, and stepped up their efforts to secure real partnerships and solve a lot of the problems I reported for In These Times <a href="" type="internal">earlier this week.</a></p>
<p>Most notably one of the group's leading volunteers, Mark Banks, says that they have found a place for the core group to sleep at Grace's Episcopal Church, which he described as a "progressive church." Grace's is located in Printer's Row, about five blocks southeast of the Federal Reserve, and roughly equidistant from the group's second meeting spot under the&#160;Native American Bowman sculpture at&#160;Michigan and Congress, which the group lovingly refers to as "the racist Indian."</p>
<p>The group has also started dropping the name of the National Lawyers Guild, something they hadn't explicitly mentioned on Sunday. There was at least one person wearing a National Lawyers Guild hat who made a point to stand near the crowd in sight of the CPD when an officer came in to ask someone to relocate a backpack that was leaned against a wall.&#160; Right now they're being used as "observers."</p>
<p>At the Tuesday night's General Assembly,&#160;a group of about three or four young white men appeared to be asserting much more structure and taking a very active role in the group discussion, although it was still open to everyone. At that meeting they said they had secured the support of "at least a dozen" organizations, including unions. The only union that the group specifically mentioned was the Taxi Driver's Union, who they suggested could assist them by offering transportation or even parking their cabs on LaSalle to give them a way to maintain the occupation without violating the sidewalk ordinance.</p>
<p>The meetings are being timed now with 75 minute total limits and 2 minute limits on individual proposals. They're also working with at least a handful of other protests and marches planned for different days to have them culminate at Jackson and LaSalle, in front of the Fed. Some of the core volunteers said that they were well aware of the Bank of America marathon, and that they didn't plan to relocate on that day. To the contrary, several of them suggested it would present a unique opportunity to be heard. At least a small minority also voiced their dissent with the continued peaceful cooperation with police orders, suggesting that there is a point at which some of them will be willing to risk arrest.</p>
<p>This plan to capture wider attention using the Chicago Marathon is confirmed by <a href="http://youranonnews.tumblr.com/post/11069027910/a-word-from-the-folks-on-ground-at-occupychicago" type="external">a blog entry posted this afternoon</a> at a news site run by the group Anonymous:</p>
<p>"This Sunday and every day at Occupy Chicago, we too are in a marathon. We're tirelessly striving for economic equality for all people," Occupy Chicago participant Natalie said. "Our finish line goal of government acting in the best interests of 99 percent of the population will only be accomplished by creating common ground and solidarity with everyone affected."</p>
<p>Chicago has also been the site of a clearly unrepetant response in the form of signs hung in the windows of the Board of Trade declaring " <a href="http://chicagoist.com/2011/10/05/board_of_trade_has_a_message_for_oc.php" type="external">We Are The 1%</a>" - while this message has caught national attention, it had been removed by early afternoon today.</p>
<p>A day after a <a href="http://occupychi.org/press-releases-official-statements-from-occupy-chicago/" type="external">press release</a> announced that they would be "going mobile," Occupy Chicago's shifting relationship with the CPD can be seen by <a href="http://occupychi.org/2011/10/05/update-police-is-here/" type="external">the update posted to their website today</a>, and the dissent Williams describes witnessing can arguably also be seen in some of the comments posted in response.</p>
<p>For more on Occupy Chicago, check out <a href="http://progressillinois.com/posts/content/2011/10/04/occupy-chicago-prepares-phase-two-protest" type="external">this report from Progress Illinois</a>. The group will be taking part in <a href="http://www.chicagoanswer.net/Oct-8-Afghanistan-Protest.html" type="external">an anti-war protest on the 10th anniversary of the beginning of the war in Afghanistan</a>, this Saturday at noon.</p>
<p>Update 10 PM CT: In a story dated tomorrow, The Chicago Tribune reports " <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-occupy-chicago-wall-street-protests-1006-20111006,0,4064014.story" type="external">Occupy Chicago drawing more protesters</a>." That seems borne out by <a href="http://twitpic.com/6vq967" type="external">this photo from tonight's General Assembly</a>.</p>
<p>SEATTLE</p>
<p>Occupy Seattle appears to be the latest local movement to have been targeted for eviction by police. Dominic Holden has been <a href="http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2011/10/05/park-rangers-begin-evicting-protesters" type="external">live-blogging the day's events</a> for The Stranger and says that as of 4:08 PM PT, "only one tent remains." <a href="http://www.twitvid.com/FIVUK" type="external">This video</a> purports to show police denying an arrested protester's request to see his lawyer: The most recent estimate is that there have been 20 arrests. Breaking news (and, of course, rumors) can be found via <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/search?q=%23OccupySeattle" type="external">the #occupyseattle hashtag</a> on Twitter.</p>
<p>Update: The Raw Story has <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/10/05/police-clash-with-occupy-seattle-protesters/" type="external">a write up of today's events in Seattle</a>.</p> | Occupy Movement Growing 'All Day, All Week' | true | http://inthesetimes.com/ittlist/entry/12051/occupy_movement_growing_all_day_all_week/ | 2011-10-05 | 4 |
<p>The inimitable <a href="" type="internal">Charlie Sheen</a> has struck again, this time testing out his literary chops with a charming poem that wishes death upon yet another member of the Trump administration, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer.</p>
<p>Look for the following free verse composition in your overpriced freshman Lit class soon:</p>
<p>bro, that shitty Windsor should b remodeled to asphyxiate u. U R a shameful husk. crawl back into your mom you baleful noxious shoat.</p>
<p>This is now the second time Sheen has wished that someone from the Trump administration would die, the first being <a href="" type="internal">Donald Trump himself</a>. Following the tragic <a href="" type="internal">deaths of Carrie Fisher and her mother Debbie Reynolds</a>, Sheen <a href="https://twitter.com/charliesheen/status/814303837225762816" type="external">tweeted</a>, "Dear God; Trump next, please!" He repeated the prayer five times before closing with a middle finger emoji.</p>
<p>In response to Sheen's Spicer poem, <a href="http://twitchy.com/samj-3930/2017/02/09/what-is-this-crap-did-charlie-sheen-write-a-poem-wishing-death-on-sean-spicer/" type="external">Twitchy</a> posed the question on everyone's mind:</p>
<p>Can you imagine if a celebrity had written something like this about Josh Earnest? The screeching on Twitter would have been epic, thousands of progressives demanding the Secret Service GET THEM. Yup.</p>
<p>One response from the twittersphere will be enough:</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">More from the Daily Wire on Charlie Sheen</a></p> | Here's Charlie Sheen's Poem Wishing Death to Sean Spicer | true | https://dailywire.com/news/13340/heres-charlie-sheens-poem-hoping-sean-spicer-will-james-barrett | 2017-02-09 | 0 |
<p>From Human Events:</p>
<p>Legislation making it illegal for members of Congress to profit from insider information on stock trades cleared the House almost unanimously Thursday.</p>
<p>The Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act passed overwhelmingly 417-2 with Republican Reps. Brad Woodall of Georgia and John Campbell of California voting “no.”</p>
<p>The legislation was passed by the Senate last week and now goes to a conference committee between the two chambers to work out some significant differences.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=49420" type="external">(Read Full Article)</a> <a href="" type="internal" /></p> | House overwhelmingly approves ban on insider trading | false | http://capoliticalreview.com/trending/house-overwhelmingly-approves-ban-on-insider-trading/ | 2012-02-10 | 1 |
<p>Good morning. TGIF. Just because we rarely get the opportunity, today we’ll start with sports.&#160;</p>
<p>The St. Louis Rams may have once again become the Los Angeles&#160;Rams, capping off&#160;the biggest suspense story in the National Football League, but&#160;the controversy over the city’s final lineup of teams has flared up yet again.</p>
<p>In San Diego, where the Chargers have gone down to the wire with city officials on a possible move that once looked like a done deal, the next twist depends on voters.&#160;</p>
<p>Although analysts and fans have cautioned that one NFL team may be plenty for Los Angeles, especially so soon on the heels of the Rams’ return, the stadium deal holding the Chargers’ future in the balance has failed to rally popular support.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">CalWatchdog</a> has more.&#160;</p>
<p>In other news:</p>
<p>“Los Angeles may be the latest opponent of a proposed bullet train route through San Fernando Valley horse country.&#160;Councilman Paul Krekorian has filed a motion to oppose an above-ground high-speed rail route fought by residents from Lake View Terrace to Shadow Hills, who say the foothills train would destroy the environment, kill horse-related businesses and put an end to an equestrian way of life. The <a href="http://www.dailynews.com/government-and-politics/20160922/bullet-train-plan-in-valley-horse-country-could-be-derailed-by-la-city-council" type="external">Los Angeles Daily News</a> has more.</p>
<p>“A national gun control group that helped write California’s Proposition 63 released a study Thursday indicating that thousands of felons disqualified from owning guns are keeping their firearms in this state and most others because of the lack of an effective enforcement mechanism,” reports the <a href="http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-sac-essential-politics-updates-california-other-states-not-doing-1474566429-htmlstory.html" type="external">Los Angeles Times</a>.</p>
<p>“One published media report this month said the campaign to legalize marijuana in California had raised $18 million. Within days, other major news outlets pegged the total at just one-third that amount, while a nonprofit campaign watchdog group said the figure was $11 million.&#160;Why the conflicting numbers?” <a href="http://www.ocregister.com/articles/money-729921-campaign-california.html" type="external">The Orange County Register</a> has more. (We can tell you part of the problem is the Secretary of State’s confusing and redundant website.)</p>
<p><a href="http://www.laweekly.com/news/every-single-state-and-local-ballot-measure-explained-in-haiku-7411428" type="external">LA Weekly</a> explains every ballot measure in haiku. Our favorite&#160;is for Prop. 66:</p>
<p>Legislature:</p>
<p>Gov. Brown:</p>
<p>Tips: [email protected]</p>
<p>Follow us: @calwatchdog @mflemingterp</p>
<p>New follower:&#160; <a href="https://twitter.com/ethanmcbride031" type="external">@ethanmcbride031</a></p> | CalWatchdog Morning Read – September 23 | false | https://calwatchdog.com/2016/09/23/calwatchdog-morning-read-september-23/ | 2018-09-20 | 3 |
<p>Corn and soybean futures fell Friday as global currency swings and the advancing U.S. harvest halted a brief rally in the crop markets.</p>
<p>Soybean prices led the losses as a sharp drop in Brazil's currency led to a selloff in the oilseed market. A weaker real makes Brazilian crops more competitive on global market, generating stiffer competition for U.S. supplies. While recent demand for U.S. soybeans has been strong, analysts say big soybean shipments from Brazil could limit U.S. exports at a time when domestic farmers are harvesting what is expected to be a record crop.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>"If the Réal keeps going down, beans are going down," said Charlie Sernatinger, head of grain trading at ED&amp;F Man Capital. "End of story."</p>
<p>Soybeans for November delivery fell 12 cents, or 1.2%, to $9.77 a bushel at the Chicago Board of Trade. Prices for the oilseeds had risen for three consecutive sessions prior to Friday's trade.</p>
<p>Weakness in the soybean market weighed on corn prices, as did pressure from the U.S. harvest, which progressed this week. Midwest farmers have been reporting better-than-expected corn yields, fueling expectations that the government next week will predict a bigger U.S. crop than previously anticipated.</p>
<p>CBOT December corn declined 2 1/4 cents, or 0.6%, to $3.48 1/4 a bushel. Prices for the grain had improved in the previous two sessions.</p>
<p>Wheat was mixed. December contracts slipped 1/4 cent, or 0.1%, to $4.25 3/4 a bushel, while March-dated contracts were flat.</p>
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<p>Write to Jesse Newman at [email protected]</p>
<p>(END) Dow Jones Newswires</p>
<p>November 03, 2017 16:30 ET (20:30 GMT)</p> | Corn, Soybeans Drop Amid World Currency Gyrations | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2017/11/03/corn-soybeans-drop-amid-world-currency-gyrations.html | 2017-11-03 | 0 |
<p>Jared Diamond’s “ <a href="" type="internal">Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed</a>” is best understood as the environmentalist cousin to recent books and articles by Joseph Stiglitz, George Soros and Jeffrey Sachs that warn about the dangers of globalization. For the economists, the present world economic system is a ticking time-bomb that might destroy rich and poor alike. For Diamond the environmentalist, the refusal to husband resources such as forests, fish and clean water will lead to the collapse of modern-day societies just as surely as they led to Mayan or Easter Island collapse. Since Diamond and the economists all believe in the inviolability of the capitalist system, there is a certain cognitive dissonance at work in their writings. They harp on the symptoms, but stop short at identifying the root cause. It is what psychologists call denial.</p>
<p>But hope for the future arrives like a man on horseback in the concluding section of “Collapse.” Our survival depends on corporations like Chevron who have proved that capitalism and sustainable development can co-exist. During an ornithological expedition in Papua New Guinea, Diamond discovered that the corporation had created a “bird-watcher’s dream.” Descending toward the local airport, he saw virginal rain-forest and scant evidence of the devastation typical of oil exploration and drilling.</p>
<p>What is more, Chevron demonstrated that it really cared about *him*. After stepping several feet onto a company road shortly after his arrival to inspect local birds, he was chastised by company officials that this was a hazard not only to himself but to the environment. A truck could smack into him or a pipeline next to the road, causing a spill of blood or oil. So his conversion took place on a road just like Paul’s on the way to Damascus. The chastened ornithologist and prophet of doom promised company officials that henceforth he would wear a hardhat and stay on the side of the road.</p>
<p>Not only was oil company property home to far more birds than found in Papua New Guinea as a whole, it was also a place where indigenous peoples could be “better off with us there than if we were gone,” according to a Chevron executive. For Chevron, having Jared Diamond and the World Wildlife Fund (on whose board he sits) on their side amounts to a public relations coup. In a massive ad campaign throughout the 1990s, they exploited their partnership with the WWF and other mainstream environmentalist groups.</p>
<p>Chevron officials are very clever, certainly much cleverer than Jared Diamond. In 1992, Chevron’s contributions counsel David McMurray admitted, “Because of the type of business we are in we need to prove that we are responsible corporate citizens. Environmental pollutions are at the forefront in our company, so we are following this up with contributions.” That year Chevron dished out $1.6 million to environmentalist causes. This practice is called “greenwashing.” In “Divided Planet,” Tom Athanasiou explained that “the key to greenwashing is manufactured optimism, which comes in many forms­as images, articles and books, technologies, and even institutions. Anything will do, as long as it can be made to carry the message that, though the world may be seen to be going to hell, everything is good hands.”</p>
<p>The World Wildlife Fund sees no conflict of interest in accepting money by the bucketful from the Chevrons of the world. In Mark Dowie’s “Losing Ground: American Environmentalism at the Close of the Twentieth Century,” we learn about a WWF brochure geared especially to outfits like Chevron. It makes a pitch: “Your company can use a World Wildlife tie-in to achieve virtually every effort in your market planNew Product Launches; Corporate Awareness; New Business Contacts; Brand Loyalty.” In the same brochure, WWF names Jaguar as one company persuaded by their salesmanship. The car company committed funds to a WWF-sponsored preserve in Belize. Since progressive-minded millionaires would feel short-changed if they didn’t have such places available for an eco-vacation, it is understandable why they would open up their wallet for the WWF.</p>
<p>If Chevron were solely about manipulating imagery, then the job of debunking WWF and Jared Diamond’s claims on their behalf would be a lot easier. As it turns out, Chevron did clean up their act to a significant extent in the 1980s and 90s. This was the product of sustained environmental protests and legal actions by the federal government. In 1994, Chevron spent almost $1.5 billion on environmental programs. We learn about their strategies in a chapter devoted to the oil giant in Joshua Karliner’s indispensable “The Corporate Planet: Ecology and Politics in the Age of Globalization.”</p>
<p>Karliner informs us that this expenditure was nearly equal to corporate profits that same year. This was in line with oil company spending as a whole. He also refers to a study by the American Petroleum Institute revealing that the industry spent nearly $8 billion on the environment in 1990 and estimated that this would rise to over 30 billion per year by 2000. When you spend this kind of money at the same time a Democrat is in the White House, it is understandable how the WWF and Jared Diamond can get swept up in the enthusiasm. When Clinton pushed for NAFTA, the WWF and other mainstream environmentalist groups were all too happy to get on the bandwagon.</p>
<p>Like all clever capitalists, Chevron makes sure to hedge its bets. Just as Goldman-Sachs ladled out money to Bush and Kerry alike, Chevron donated funds to anti-environmentalist groups at the same time it was fattening WWF’s coffers. Karliner documented Chevron contributions to the following organizations:</p>
<p>1. Citizens for the Environment: advocates strict deregulation as a solution to environmental problems.</p>
<p>2. Oregonians for Food and Shelter: a pro-pesticide lobby.</p>
<p>3. Global Climate Coalition: global warming skeptics.</p>
<p>4. Pacific Legal Foundation: files court challenges to clean water, hazardous waste and wetlands protection laws.</p>
<p>5. National Wetlands Coalition: should probably be called National Anti-wetlands Coalition since its main goal is remove obstacles to oil drilling in their midst.</p>
<p>6. Mountain States Legal Foundation: founded by batty former Interior Secretary James Watt.</p>
<p>One wonders how trustworthy a corporation can be in protecting the environment when it is handing out money to this rogue’s gallery. The answer is not very much, except for Jared Diamond. At the start of his encomium to Chevron, Diamond says, “Like much of the public, I loved to hate the oil industry, and I deeply suspected the credibility of anybody who dared to report anything positive about the industry’s performance or its contribution to society.” If a Potemkin Village like the Chevron oil field in Papua New Guinea can assuage him, then perhaps one understands his reluctance to provide a complete accounting of the corporation’s behavior elsewhere.</p>
<p>Whatever improvements Chevron has made in the USA, where vigilance against pollution remains relatively strong, they are offset by its practices in a developing world so highly susceptible to “brownmailing.” For example, while Chevron was responsible for spilling “only” 252,000 gallons of oil in the USA in 1990, Karliner reports that a Caltex spill in the Philippines was twice that amount. (Caltex was a joint operation between Chevron and Texaco; the two companies have since merged.)</p>
<p>In Sumatra, Chevron operates within a 32,000 square kilometer concession that has very little in common with the bucolic picture Diamond paints in Papua New Guinea. The November 1993 Multinational Monitor reported that Chevron has completely ruined the area in pursuit of profit. Trees died and fish disappeared from local rivers. A local resident complained, “I relied on the trees for wood for my roof and for food, but now there are only a few trees left.” Since most of “Collapse” is concerned with deforestation, you’d think that Diamond’s antennae would have detected this fact.</p>
<p>Villagers also reported that the local river often smelled of oil and that the river water was no longer safe to drink. Not surprisingly, Chevron excused itself with the explanation that “heavily organic jungle streams are not a good source of drinking water.” Somehow the fish managed to flourish in such heavily organic jungle streams in the past but went belly up shortly after Caltex began releasing its contaminants. A coincidence, one supposes.</p>
<p>Although Shell has the well-earned reputation of being the dirtiest oil company operating in Nigeria, Chevron is no slouch. Notwithstanding Diamond’s assurances that Chevron CEO Kenneth Derr has “been personally concerned about environmental issues” and that Chevron employees receive monthly emails from him about the state of the planet, some ingrates from the more radical wing of the environmental movement threw cream pies in his face back in 1999. They were angry over Chevron’s involvement with human rights abuses in the Niger Delta, where 90 percent of Nigeria’s crude oil is produced.</p>
<p>According to the June 1999 Earth Times:</p>
<p>“Members of the Ijaw tribe, native to the Delta, say they have lost as much as 70 percent of their ancestral lands to Nigeria’s oil operations. Ijaws who protest the environmental degradation of their lands and ask for greater economic returns for their communities have been killed by government troops, their women and children raped and run off, say human rights groups.”</p>
<p>Chevron, it seems, made its helicopters available to Nigerian troops who were summoned to deal with angry protestors. In 1998, after 200 demonstrators took over a Chevron oil platform for three days, the manager called in Nigerian troops, who, Chevron representatives admit, were transported to the platform in the company’s helicopters by company pilots. Two demonstrators were killed. In the second incident, which occurred two months later, four people were killed and 67 left missing when Nigerian forces attacked two small villages, reportedly once again using Chevron helicopters and boats.</p>
<p>Chevron blandly denied any wrongdoing. It said that any equipment, including helicopters, that is leased to its joint venture company in Nigeria is free to be used by its majority partner. That joint venture company just happens to be the blood-soaked Nigerian government.</p>
<p>Perhaps the Ijaws should have picked up and moved to Papua New Guinea where they would have been looked over properly by the good Chevron twin. As it turns out, things were not all they were cracked up to be over there.</p>
<p>In an article titled “Drilling Papua New Guinea: Chevron Comes to Lake Kutubu” that appeared in the March 1996 Multinational Monitor, Project Underground executive director Danny Kennedy describes a less than beneficent impact of development on the local population.</p>
<p>According to Kennedy, a human blockade on the pipeline construction site was broken up by a riot squad flown into the area on company choppers on May 1992. Apparently Chevron is very resourceful when it comes to shuttling in troops on company assets. The indigenous people felt that they were not being properly compensated for Chevron’s land grab. (Of course, the birds might have been less upset. This is in keeping with WWF’s preference for virgin forest as opposed to pesky human beings.) Sasoro Hewago, a leader of the local Fasu clan, told the Wall Street Journal in June 1992 that “The people say problems have come here because Chevron has come here, and so it is Chevron that must take care of them. … If we’re not satisfied there will be no oil. We have pledged to die. …”</p>
<p>Eighteen months later he seemed worn down by constant confrontations with the oil giant. He confessed, “You must chew before you swallow. My people have been exposed to Western civilization for five years, and are expected to deal with it. We are like we are in a dream and when, one day, we wake up it will be gone. We’re choking.”</p>
<p>The 5,000 supposed local beneficiaries of the project, members of the Fasu, Foe and Kikori clans, became increasingly unhappy after oil began being shipped in late 1992. In December 1993, 60 Foe men were arrested for protesting over inadequate royalty payments and were carried off in Chevron helicopters to a nearby jail. Once again Diamond’s favorite capitalist corporation was relying on helicopters to deal with the restless natives.</p>
<p>In December 1995, confrontations deepened further. Indigenous people threatened to blow up the pipeline, prompting Chevron to remove non-essential staff. Although Chevron eventually placated them with handouts, there is little doubt that a culture of dependency was created. Few of them actually work for Chevron but rely on the dole. When Chevron exhausts the local oil supplies, it is doubtful that native Papuans will be able to fend for themselves.</p>
<p>According to Kennedy, “the mining and petroleum sector is based on the degradation of natural capital and produces few human-made assets for PNG. It employs less than 2 percent of the population and does not add value to the raw materials. And in those boom years, the national government ran up an enormous foreign debt, causing it to bow to the strictures of a major structural adjustment program administered by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, in conjunction with its old colonial master Australia, in order to avert a cash-flow crisis.”</p>
<p>Even Diamond’s beloved birds seem less chipper than portrayed in “Collapse.” Stephen Feld, a University of Texas expert on birds in the local rainforests, states that much of the area game has been scared away by air traffic, especially by Chevron’s omnipresent helicopters.</p>
<p>Even the handouts create problems. With 90 percent of royalties going to the Fasu and only 10 percent to the Foe, rivalries have developed. This pattern can also be seen with the Navaho and Hopi in New Mexico, who have been played off against each other by a coal company.</p>
<p>But here’s the clincher. Kennedy reports that the World Wildlife Fund has a $3 million contract with Chevron to implement an “Integrated Conservation and Development Project” for the oil project area. The oil giant saw its ties with WWF as critical to its long term interests. A virtual conspiracy existed, according to Kennedy:</p>
<p>“A leaked 1993 confidential evaluation of the potential impacts of a Kutubu oil spill and the clean-up capacity of the joint venture, written after a practice exercise conducted by the joint-venture partners, expressed concern ‘as to whether a policy exists to control media and interest groups (Greenpeace) at Kopi area should a spill of this magnitude occur.’ Other documents concluded that the joint venture partners could rest easy, however, because ‘WWF will act as a buffer for the joint venture against environmentally damaging activities in the region, and against international environmental criticism.'”</p>
<p>Finally, despite Diamond’s assurances that Chevron has learned the painful lessons of oil spills, there is evidence that it has minimized the threat of exactly such a threat in its Papua New Guinea showcase. Before Chevron started piping oil, a tanker ran aground on pipe over the Kikori River bed. Environmental management experts Michael Kondolf and Richard Chaney concluded: “We are particularly concerned about potential impacts of catastrophic oil spills from pipeline breakage. Given the proximity to active faulting and subduction, and given the nature of deltaic sediments, pipeline failure at multiple points can be expected due to seismic shaking and liquefaction.”</p>
<p>Kennedy writes: “These dangers were graphically demonstrated in May 1993, when several sections of the riverbed underlying 110 kilometers of pipeline shifted and threatened to rupture. When divers checked the pipeline’s condition, they found more than one kilometer of pipe unsupported. Workers involved said that such a freespan could easily have flexed in the strong tidal currents of this stretch of the Kikori River until the pipe broke. The loss of any crude would likely be an ecological disaster, because Chevron would at best be able to clean up 25 percent of any spill, according to the company’s own oil-spill evaluation.”</p>
<p>If Chevron in Papua New Guinea is supposed to be a model for enlightened corporate management, then perhaps the fate of the earth is that which befell the Mayans and Easter Islanders. Contrary to Jared Diamond, the best hope for humanity is in the youth who threw a cream pie in the face of the Chevron CEO and the indigenous people of Nigeria, Papua New Guinea and elsewhere who are resisting the incursions of mining and drilling companies. With their efforts and the efforts of working people in the industrialized world, a global struggle against capitalism has the potential to remove the greatest obstacle to environmental sustainability: the private ownership of the means of production.</p>
<p>LOUIS PROYECT writes for SWANS. He can be reached at: <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a></p> | Jared Diamond, Greenwasher | true | https://counterpunch.org/2005/05/09/jared-diamond-greenwasher/ | 2005-05-09 | 4 |
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<p>MADRID — Andy Murray’s struggles continued with a 6-3, 6-3 loss to lucky loser Borna Coric in the third round of the Madrid Open on Thursday, while defending champion Novak Djokovic and four-time champion Rafael Nadal made it to the quarterfinals.</p>
<p>Djokovic defeated Spanish veteran Feliciano Lopez 6-4, 7-5, while Nadal eased past Nick Kyrgios of Australia 6-3, 6-1.</p>
<p>The top-ranked Murray was outplayed by the 20-year-old Croatian to lose his fifth match of the year.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Murray has won only one tournament this season and hasn’t made it past the semifinals in the three clay-court tournaments he has played.</p>
<p>“Most things weren’t working particularly well,” Murray said. “I started the match OK, but when I started to go behind I didn’t find any way to improve my game or to make it more difficult for him. I just kind of let the same things keep happening, making mistakes very early in a lot of the rallies. I wasn’t building any points really.”</p>
<p>The 59th-ranked Coric became the first lucky loser to reach the quarterfinals in Madrid. He only made it to the main draw after Richard Gasquet withdrew because of a back injury.</p>
<p>“It’s a huge win, for sure. It’s going to mean to me a lot,” Coric said. “Obviously he didn’t play very good today. That was very obvious. I have noticed it from the beginning.”</p>
<p>Coric will try to win his second tournament this season. He won his first career title in Marrakech, Morocco, last month.</p>
<p>He will play the quarterfinal against Dominic Thiem of Austria, who won a thriller against Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (9).</p>
<p>Murray, who lost last year’s final to Djokovic in Madrid, had 28 unforced errors in a disappointing outing under the closed roof of the center court in Madrid. He was broken three consecutive times in the first set, and once in the second to give Coric a 5-3 lead that he converted to close out the match.</p>
<p>Murray won his only title of the year in Dubai and had started the clay season trying to regain his form following a right elbow injury that kept him out of the Miami Open and the Davis Cup quarterfinals. He lost to Albert Ramos-Vinolas in the third round in Monte Carlo after blowing a 4-0 lead in the deciding set, then was eliminated by Thiem in the semifinals of the Barcelona Open.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Second-ranked Djokovic has also struggled this season but stayed alive in Madrid with the two-set victory over Lopez.</p>
<p>The Serbian player was in control during his service games and broke Lopez once in each set to secure the victory. Djokovic saved the only break point he conceded to Lopez, who was playing in the tournament for a record 16th time.</p>
<p>“The level was definitely very high today I thought from both players,” Djokovic said. “I think Feliciano played really well, especially in the second set. I wasn’t winning too many points on his service games until the last one where I managed to return many balls back in play and then win the match.”</p>
<p>Djokovic won in Doha to start the year but failed to make it past the quarterfinals in the following four tournaments he played since then.</p>
<p>He will next play against sixth-seeded Kei Nishikori of Japan, who defeated David Ferrer 6-4, 6-3 to deny the Spaniard his 700th career win.</p>
<p>A finalist in Madrid in 2014, Nishikori is playing in his first tournament since March. He withdrew from Barcelona last month because of a right wrist injury.</p>
<p>Nadal picked up his tour-leading 31st victory this year by easily defeating 16th-seeded Kyrgios, who never threatened after losing the first set.</p>
<p>“I played a lot better,” said Nadal, who struggled in a three-set win over Fabio Fognini on Wednesday. “It was a big step forward.”</p>
<p>The fifth-ranked Nadal will play ninth-seeded David Goffin of Belgium, who cruised to a 6-4, 6-2 win over fifth-seeded Milos Raonic of Canada.</p>
<p>The other quarterfinal will be played between Pablo Cuevas of Uruguay, who defeated Benoit Paire of France 7-5, 0-6, 6-1, and Alexander Zverev of Germany, who beat Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-4.</p>
<p>On the women’s side, third-seeded Simona Halep of Romania reached the semifinals by beating Coco Vandeweghe of the U.S. 6-1, 6-1 in less than an hour.</p>
<p>“I was a little bit nervous, to be honest, before the match, because she has a big serve,” Halep said. “It’s always tough to play with someone who has a big serve.”</p>
<p>Halep will play Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia, who defeated Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands 6-3, 6-3.</p>
<p>Kristina Mladenovic of France advanced to the final four by overcoming seven double faults to beat Sorana Cirstea of Romania 6-4, 6-4. Mladenovic will play eighth-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia, who easily defeated Canadian Eugenie Bouchard 6-4, 6-0.</p>
<p>Bouchard ousted Maria Sharapova in the second round.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Tales Azzoni on Twitter: <a href="http://twitter.com/tazzoni" type="external">http://twitter.com/tazzoni</a></p> | Top-ranked Murray loses to Coric in 3rd round of Madrid Open | false | https://abqjournal.com/1002015/top-ranked-murray-loses-to-coric-in-3rd-round-of-madrid-open.html | 2017-05-11 | 2 |
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<p>The University of New Mexico women’s basketball team pushed No. 5 Stanford to the brink Monday night at the Pit, twice digging out of double-digit holes to take leads, before finally absorbing a painful 70-65 defeat in front of an announced crowd of 6,594.</p>
<p>The Lobos lost it at the line, hitting just 7 of 16 from the free-throw stripe including 1 of 4 in the final minute. The Cardinal had more opportunities (17-of-29) and cashed in when it counted, hitting 6 of 6 foul shots in the last 30 seconds.</p>
<p>“That was a heartbreaker,” said junior Bryce Owens, who paced UNM with 16 points. “Definitely a heartbreaker. Our team did a lot of good things, but it’s so tough not to pull out that win.”</p>
<p>Despite trailing by 16 points in the first half and 12 in the second, the Lobos had a real chance to upset a Stanford team ranked No. 1 in the most recent USA Today coaches poll. UNM scored nine straight points and grabbed a 65-64 lead when Owens hit one of two free throws with 45 seconds left.</p>
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<p>Stanford’s Kaylee Johnson hit two free throws to give her team a 66-65 edge with 30 seconds to play, but the Lobos got the ball with a chance to go for a winning shot.</p>
<p>The shot never came.</p>
<p>The Cardinal fouled UNM’s Antiesha Brown with 20 seconds left, and Brown missed both free throws. Forced then to foul, the Lobos sent Bonnie Samuelson to the line, and she hit both attempts to make it 68-65.</p>
<p>UNM’s last hopes ended when Stanford’s Amber Orrange blocked Cherise Beynon’s 3-point try with six seconds remaining. Orrange then hit two foul shots for the final margin.</p>
<p>“We were right there,” Lobo coach Yvonne Sanchez said. “A great effort against an unbelievable team that’s probably going to be in the Final Four.</p>
<p>“But we’ve got to hit free throws – that’s everybody. Everybody always remembers the last two and they shouldn’t. We were 7-for-16 at the line as a team and that’s what lost us the game.”</p>
<p>Stanford coach Tara Vanderveer breathed a sigh of relief after escaping with the close victory, crediting New Mexico for its resilient play.</p>
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<p>“The thing that impressed me is (the Lobos) don’t give up,” Vanderveer said. “We got them down but couldn’t put them away, and that’s a compliment to them. We dodged a bullet with the missed free throws at the end, although we missed quite a few free throws, too.”</p>
<p>Both teams were missing key players due to illness. High-scoring guard Lili Thompson sat out for Stanford, while junior forward Alexa Chavez missed the game with a kidney infection.</p>
<p>The Cardinal hardly seemed to miss Thompson early, blistering the nets on their way to a 22-6 lead. Karlie Samuelson, who led all scorers with 23 points, hit two of her six 3-pointers during the early tear.</p>
<p>UNM, which dropped three straight games (two to ranked opponents) at the season-opening Maggie Dixon Classic in Chicago, appeared headed for an early knockout. Such would not be the case.</p>
<p>Beynon, Owens and Brown combined to net four 3-pointers during a wild 21-4 Lobos tear. Khadijah Shumpert’s layup with 5:16 left in the first half gave UNM its first lead at 27-26, and the Pit crowd was suddenly energized.</p>
<p>Beynon finished with 14 points in her first UNM home game, while Shumpert added 13 and Brown had 11.</p>
<p>“Our guards grew up tonight,” Sanchez said. “They hit shots, took care of the basketball, they really did a nice job.”</p>
<p>Brea Mitchell’s jumper gave the Lobos their biggest lead, 35-32, with five seconds left in the half. But Orrange, who last week hit a game-winning 3-pointer against UConn, banked in a long trey at the buzzer to tie the game at halftime.</p>
<p>Stanford then started the second half with a 14-2 run to build a 49-37 lead, but again UNM fought back. Shumpert’s first career 3-pointer and two more by Owens helped ignite the Lobos as they regained a late lead.</p>
<p>“It’s hard being an unranked team being so close against a team like Stanford and having it slip away,” Shumpert said. “But give us until tomorrow and we’ll be on to the next game. A lot of good can come from this.”</p>
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<p /> | UNM women: Upset bid falls short vs. Stanford | false | https://abqjournal.com/501419/unms-upset-bid-falls-short.html | 2 |
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<p>RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A Virginia grand jury has charged a teen with killing a man and then exchanging gunfire with a police officer.</p>
<p>Richmond police said in a release Tuesday that a grand jury indicted 18-year-old James E. Williams Jr. last week in the Dec. 14 shooting death of 24-year-old Antoine L. Smith Jr. and the shootout with the officer. Williams was wounded in the shootout.</p>
<p>Police say Officer Travis Dooley spotted a vehicle matching the description of the one that had left the scene where Smith was shot, and a short chase ensued. Williams then exited the vehicle and fired multiple shots at Dooley, striking his cruiser. Dooley returned fire, and hit Williams.</p>
<p>Williams is in custody on murder charges in Chesterfield County. It’s unclear if he has a lawyer.</p>
<p>RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A Virginia grand jury has charged a teen with killing a man and then exchanging gunfire with a police officer.</p>
<p>Richmond police said in a release Tuesday that a grand jury indicted 18-year-old James E. Williams Jr. last week in the Dec. 14 shooting death of 24-year-old Antoine L. Smith Jr. and the shootout with the officer. Williams was wounded in the shootout.</p>
<p>Police say Officer Travis Dooley spotted a vehicle matching the description of the one that had left the scene where Smith was shot, and a short chase ensued. Williams then exited the vehicle and fired multiple shots at Dooley, striking his cruiser. Dooley returned fire, and hit Williams.</p>
<p>Williams is in custody on murder charges in Chesterfield County. It’s unclear if he has a lawyer.</p> | Virginia teen indicted in homicide, shootout with officer | false | https://apnews.com/68f2cca1e98c4f4b805b2fd15f325f58 | 2018-01-17 | 2 |
<p>BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The first ever National Children's Ministry Day promises to deliver active compassion as children are involved in missions projects across the country.</p>
<p>On Saturday, Feb. 16, 2008, all children's groups in churches are encouraged to join with members of GA and Children in Action to actively serve in their communities for a one-day, concerted effort to minister and witness together.</p>
<p>According to Mitzi Eaker, children's ministry consultant for national WMU, children involved in GA and Children in Action actively learn about and do missions throughout the year, but the focus on children doing missions across the country on a designated, special day will “be exciting to see.”</p>
<p>Hope for the Hungry is the theme for the 2008 day of ministry as children are encouraged to serve those who are in need of food and nourishment. Eaker said a focus on hunger was chosen because it is a tangible need and is part of WMU's focus on poverty through its Project HELP ministry.</p>
<p>The focus Scripture verse is Isaiah 58:10a (NIrV): Work hard to feed hungry people.</p>
<p>“Participation will help children understand the needs of others and grow in their ability to minister to others as Christ did,” said Eaker. “As they serve, children will realize that God can use them in a mighty way, even now while they are young, to share his love and minister to others.”</p>
<p>To help plan and implement the event, a complete Children's Ministry Day promotional pack will be available from WMU in November. It includes numerous resources, including project ideas, learning activities for before and after the project, a children's sermon, ideas for involving families, a variety of promotional materials, and more. To order, visit www.wmu.com or call WMU customer service toll-free at 1-800-968-7301.</p>
<p>Scheduled to coincide with Focus on WMU week each year, Children's Ministry Day will be held annually on the third Saturday of February. For more information on Children's Ministry Day, visit the www.childrensmissions.com.</p> | WMU launches first Children’s Ministry Day | false | https://baptistnews.com/article/wmulaunchesfirstchildrensministryday/ | 3 |
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<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan bill to update regulation of harmful chemicals for the first time in nearly 40 years won approval from a Senate committee Tuesday, moving it closer to a vote in the full Senate.</p>
<p>The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved the bill, 15-5. Four Democrats joined all 11 committee Republicans to support the bill, which would set safety standards for tens of thousands of chemicals that now are unregulated. The bill also would offer protections for people vulnerable to the effects of chemicals such as pregnant women, children and workers, and set deadlines for the Environmental Protection Agency to act.</p>
<p>If enacted into law, the bill would be the first significant update to the Toxic Substances Control Act since the law was adopted in 1976.</p>
<p>"This isn't a perfect bill, but it is a very good one," said Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., one of the bill's lead sponsors. "The American people want a law that protects them and their families from chemicals like asbestos, BPA, formaldehyde, styrene and so many other hazardous substances."</p>
<p>Louisiana Sen. David Vitter, the bill's chief Republican sponsor, said action on toxic chemical regulation is "long overdue," and said the bill approved by the environment panel "provides the necessary updates to ensure chemical safety in the United States for decades to come."</p>
<p>Noting strong opposition from some Democratic senators, including California Sen. Barbara Boxer, Vitter said lawmakers have a choice: support a bipartisan compromise or remain "stuck with existing law."</p>
<p>Regulation of chemicals took on new urgency after a crippling spill in West Virginia last year contaminated drinking water for 300,000 people. The chemical, crude MCHM, is one of thousands unregulated under current law.</p>
<p>The Senate bill cleared a key hurdle this week when three Democratic senators — Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Cory Booker of New Jersey and Jeff Merkley of Oregon — agreed to support the bill after winning several compromises, including one that makes it clear that states may act to regulate a chemical if EPA misses required deadlines.</p>
<p>The compromise language also ensures that states will be able to regulate certain chemicals while EPA is evaluating them for safety and makes clear that states may co-enforce the law, with the condition that penalties may not be collected from both the state and the federal government for the same violation.</p>
<p>Democrats had complained that an earlier version of the bill would have pre-empted aggressive regulation by states such as California, Vermont and Massachusetts that monitor chemicals closely.</p>
<p>"This bipartisan agreement greatly strengthens the ability of states to protect citizens from toxic chemicals when the federal government has failed to do so," Merkley said in a statement. "It's a vast improvement over the broken law currently in force and an important step in protecting families across America."</p>
<p>Booker said the changes mean the bill is fit to bear its name in honor of the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg, a New Jersey Democrat who pushed for chemical reform before his death in 2013. Booker, who holds what had been Lautenberg's seat in the Senate, said Lautenberg "made strengthening federal laws to better protect Americans from toxic substances and pollutants one of his top priorities."</p>
<p>Boxer, the senior Democrat on the environment panel, said changes negotiated by Democrats "got rid of a horrible bill," but said the measure as adopted was still inadequate to protect families and workers from harmful chemicals.</p>
<p>"The legislation does nothing to ensure that terrifying disease clusters of children's cancers are addressed" and omits any mention of asbestos, a substance that kill as estimated 10,000 Americans every year, Boxer said.</p>
<p>She and other Democrats vowed to continue to call attention to what they see as the bill's flaws before a vote in the full Senate, expected later this year.</p>
<p>Reach Matthew Daly: http://twitter.com/MatthewDalyWDC</p>
<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan bill to update regulation of harmful chemicals for the first time in nearly 40 years won approval from a Senate committee Tuesday, moving it closer to a vote in the full Senate.</p>
<p>The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved the bill, 15-5. Four Democrats joined all 11 committee Republicans to support the bill, which would set safety standards for tens of thousands of chemicals that now are unregulated. The bill also would offer protections for people vulnerable to the effects of chemicals such as pregnant women, children and workers, and set deadlines for the Environmental Protection Agency to act.</p>
<p>If enacted into law, the bill would be the first significant update to the Toxic Substances Control Act since the law was adopted in 1976.</p>
<p>"This isn't a perfect bill, but it is a very good one," said Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., one of the bill's lead sponsors. "The American people want a law that protects them and their families from chemicals like asbestos, BPA, formaldehyde, styrene and so many other hazardous substances."</p>
<p>Louisiana Sen. David Vitter, the bill's chief Republican sponsor, said action on toxic chemical regulation is "long overdue," and said the bill approved by the environment panel "provides the necessary updates to ensure chemical safety in the United States for decades to come."</p>
<p>Noting strong opposition from some Democratic senators, including California Sen. Barbara Boxer, Vitter said lawmakers have a choice: support a bipartisan compromise or remain "stuck with existing law."</p>
<p>Regulation of chemicals took on new urgency after a crippling spill in West Virginia last year contaminated drinking water for 300,000 people. The chemical, crude MCHM, is one of thousands unregulated under current law.</p>
<p>The Senate bill cleared a key hurdle this week when three Democratic senators — Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Cory Booker of New Jersey and Jeff Merkley of Oregon — agreed to support the bill after winning several compromises, including one that makes it clear that states may act to regulate a chemical if EPA misses required deadlines.</p>
<p>The compromise language also ensures that states will be able to regulate certain chemicals while EPA is evaluating them for safety and makes clear that states may co-enforce the law, with the condition that penalties may not be collected from both the state and the federal government for the same violation.</p>
<p>Democrats had complained that an earlier version of the bill would have pre-empted aggressive regulation by states such as California, Vermont and Massachusetts that monitor chemicals closely.</p>
<p>"This bipartisan agreement greatly strengthens the ability of states to protect citizens from toxic chemicals when the federal government has failed to do so," Merkley said in a statement. "It's a vast improvement over the broken law currently in force and an important step in protecting families across America."</p>
<p>Booker said the changes mean the bill is fit to bear its name in honor of the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg, a New Jersey Democrat who pushed for chemical reform before his death in 2013. Booker, who holds what had been Lautenberg's seat in the Senate, said Lautenberg "made strengthening federal laws to better protect Americans from toxic substances and pollutants one of his top priorities."</p>
<p>Boxer, the senior Democrat on the environment panel, said changes negotiated by Democrats "got rid of a horrible bill," but said the measure as adopted was still inadequate to protect families and workers from harmful chemicals.</p>
<p>"The legislation does nothing to ensure that terrifying disease clusters of children's cancers are addressed" and omits any mention of asbestos, a substance that kill as estimated 10,000 Americans every year, Boxer said.</p>
<p>She and other Democrats vowed to continue to call attention to what they see as the bill's flaws before a vote in the full Senate, expected later this year.</p>
<p>Reach Matthew Daly: http://twitter.com/MatthewDalyWDC</p> | Senate panel advances bill to overhaul chemical regulation | false | https://apnews.com/amp/db8faf9cc2fd4e37958c46ecfb4b8dc6 | 2015-04-28 | 2 |
<p>Maryam Monsef, the Minister for Democratic Institutions continues to dismiss the idea that a fundamental change to our electoral system must be put to the people because, as she says, “the conversation” we’re going to have isn’t going to be about a “yes” or a “no”.</p>
<p />
<p>How many times and <a href="" type="internal">how loud do we have to say it</a> to get through to the Liberals? You are welcome to have your “conversation” based on your view that a small percentage of Canadians gave you the go-ahead to explore options for changes to our voting system but that’s a far cry from giving you permission or the authority to proceed with any change without direct input from the people.</p>
<p>Changing how we vote is a <a href="" type="internal">constitutional change</a> which requires direct input from the people in the form of a referendum or direct vote in order to have legitimacy.</p>
<p>The Liberals can have their exploratory committees to look into the question but once they have decided on a system that they think will be better, that option must be put to the people for a simple but clear, “yes” or “no” answer.</p>
<p>It seems that the Liberals <a href="" type="internal">aren’t very fond of people power</a> despite their claims otherwise. If you agree, go to <a href="" type="internal">LetUsVote.ca</a> now. Sign the petition and make sure to share it with others because apparently we need to speak loud and clear in order to be heard.</p>
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<p><a href="" type="internal">JOIN TheRebel.media</a> for more fearless news and commentary you won’t find anywhere else.</p>
<p>Trudeau wants to change Canada's voting system.Tell Justin we DEMAND a referendum on this issue! <a href="" type="internal">SIGN THE PETITION at LetUsVote.ca</a></p>
<p>"Don't blame me: I voted Conservative"The t-shirt that says it all -- <a href="https://tinyurl.com/votedconservative" type="external">ONLY from TheRebel.media store!</a></p> | Liberals remain dismissive of giving Canadians final say on voting system changes | true | http://therebel.media/liberals_remain_dismissive_of_giving_canadians_final_say | 2016-01-19 | 0 |
<p />
<p>Image source: PTC Therapeutics.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>After competitor Sarepta Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SRPT) won early approval of Exondys 51, a drug for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), investors sentPTC Therapeutics (NASDAQ: PTCT)shares soaring 20.6% today.</p>
<p>PTC Therapeutics' Translarna is a DMD drug that's available in the European Union but that isn't yet available in the United States.</p>
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<p>Investors are hoping that may change following the FDA's approval of Sarepta Therapeutics Exondys 51. Like Translarna, Exondys 51 helps restore functional dystrophin production in amenable DMD patients by overcoming mutations that interrupt normal dystrophin production.</p>
<p>Previously, the FDA has refused to review Translarna's application for approval twice, including once in 2011 and again this past February.</p>
<p>Muscle loss in DMD patients leads to increasingly less mobility and to heart damage and as a result, DMD patients live shorter lives than non-DMD patients. Unfortunately, DMD patients have limited treatment options.</p>
<p>Exondys 51's approval is potentially game-changing, however, investors might not want to extrapolate its approval to an approval of Translarna. In the wake of Exondys approval, regulators have indicated that they're sensitive to the fact that approving Exondys 51 with limited efficacy data could "lower-the-bar." For that reason, they're quick to say that they're sticking to their strict guidelines. GivenPTC Therapeutics has already received two refuse-to-file letters, it appears that management may still have its work cut out for it.</p>
<p>Instead, investors might want to focus more on two other important catalysts that could move the needle at PTC Therapeutics.</p>
<p>First, Translarna's conditional approval must be renewed annually, and investors are still awaiting a renewal decision that was expected earlier this summer. Secondly, Translarna is being evaluating in cystic fibrosis patients and if those trials are successful, they could double Translarna's addressable patient population.</p>
<p>Overall, a FDA review of Translarna would undeniably be a big win, but given that Translarna is expected to generate at least $65 million in revenue this year, a renewal of the conditional approval in the EU is even more critical.</p>
<p>A secret billion-dollar stock opportunity The world's biggest tech company forgot to show you something, but a few Wall Street analysts and the Fool didn't miss a beat: There's a small company that's powering their brand-new gadgets and the coming revolution in technology. And we think its stock price has nearly unlimited room to run for early in-the-know investors! To be one of them, <a href="http://www.fool.com/mms/mark/ecap-foolcom-apple-wearable?aid=6965&amp;source=irbeditxt0000017&amp;ftm_cam=rb-wearable-d&amp;ftm_pit=2518&amp;ftm_veh=article_pitch&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">just click here Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://my.fool.com/profile/EBCapitalMarkets/info.aspx" type="external">Todd Campbell Opens a New Window.</a> has no position in any stocks mentioned. Todd owns E.B. Capital Markets, LLC. E.B. Capital's clients may have positions in the companies mentioned.Like this article? Follow him onTwitter where he goes by the handle <a href="https://twitter.com/ebcapital" type="external">@ebcapital Opens a New Window.</a>to see more articles like this.The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services <a href="http://www.fool.com/shop/newsletters/index.aspx?source=isiedilnk018048&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">free for 30 days Opens a New Window.</a>. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that <a href="http://www.fool.com/knowledge-center/motley.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">considering a diverse range of insights Opens a New Window.</a> makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> | Why PTC Therapeutics Shares Skyrocketed 20.6% Today | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/09/19/why-ptc-therapeutics-shares-skyrocketed-206-today.html | 2016-09-19 | 0 |
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<p>EL PASO, Texas - A surge in violence in parts of El Paso prompted a crackdown by police that has led to more than 100 arrests over a two-week period.</p>
<p>Police patrols were increased in the northeast section of the city following a spate of violence that included gang feuds that led to fatal shootings of two men and the deadly stabbing of a teenager.</p>
<p>Police Sgt. Enrique Carrillo told the El Paso Times that by focusing on minor offenses such as broken lights on vehicles, police sought to deter more serious crimes from occurring.</p>
<p>Traffic stops over the two weeks led to arrests for offenses that included illegally possessing firearms and drugs.</p>
<p>Police say more than 830 people were questioned and 380 vehicles were checked. Authorities also issued 176 traffic and other citations.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | Spate of violence prompts crackdown by El Paso police | false | https://abqjournal.com/635633/spate-of-violence-prompts-crackdown-by-el-paso-police.html | 2 |
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<p>By Marjan Namazi, <a href="http://en.iranwire.com/features/5931" type="external">IranWire</a>.</p>
<p>At the end of June, Nechirvan Barzani, the prime minister of Iraqi Kurdistan, visited Tehran along with a high-level Kurdish delegation to meet with Rear Admiral Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.</p>
<p>Shamkhani is a moderate military figure and usually appears in public wearing civilian clothes, but when he met Barzani he was dressed in full navy uniform. “I intentionally met with Nechirvan Barzani in uniform so that he would understand that for us the integrity of Iraq is important,” Shamkhani said three days after the meeting.</p>
<p>That a top-ranking Iranian official has resorted to sartorial symbolism reflects just how overwhelmed Iran has been by the twin crises of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Malaki’s failed leadership and the Kurdish move to hold a referendum on independence. For Iran, an effective Kurdish secession from the Iraqi central government would be deeply alarming, with reverberations far beyond simply Iran’s reach across a fragmented Iraq.</p>
<p>“We have stated that violating the progressive and comprehensive constitution of Iraq and demands to overstep its provisions for a federal system would not benefit anyone,” Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, deputy foreign minister for Middle Eastern and African Affairs, told Al-Alam, Iran’s state Arabic news network.</p>
<p>On July 3, Masoud Barzani, president of the Kurdistan Regional Government, asked the Kurdish parliament to form an independent commission to start organizing a referendum on independence. Less than 24 hours after the news was published, Abdollahian implicitly called Barzani unwise, saying that he was confident that “among Kurdish leaders there are also wise people who would not consent to the breakup of Iraq.”</p>
<p>The daily Jomhouri-e Eslami, run by a managing editor close to the former President Hashemi Rafsanjani, described Masoud Barzani on July 21 as an “emotional individual with secessionist slogans” and warned that “in schemes by people like Barzani, there are ridiculous territorial claims on some neighboring countries such as Iran.”</p>
<p>For almost a century since the end of World War I and the creation of Iraq from parts of the Ottoman Empire, both Iran and Turkey have worried that the creation of an independent Kurdish state in Iraq would encourage their own Kurdish political or paramilitary groups and citizens to join that independent Kurdish entity.</p>
<p>“The territorial disintegration of any of Iran’s neighboring countries increases the danger of secessionists movements within Iran,” said Shireen T. Hunter, a professor of international relations at Georgetown University, in an interview with IranWire. “The success or failure of such movements of course depends on the domestic conditions. If the economy is working and the people are content then such movements will not succeed. If not, however, their chances of success will be enhanced.”</p>
<p>Iran faced such an insurgency in the wake of World War II. Under the protection of Soviet troops who had occupied parts of north-western Iran during the war, a Kurdish Republic was declared in the city of Mahabad in the Iranian Kurdistan. It lasted for 10 months from January 1946 to November of the same year, when Soviet troops left Iran under pressure from the United States and in accordance with the Yalta Agreement. The defense minister of this short-lived republic was Mullah Mustafa Barzani, the Iraqi-born father of Masoud Barzani. The president of the republic, Qazi Muhammad, was hanged along with his brother but Mullah Mustafa escaped to Soviet Union and returned to Iraq in 1958.</p>
<p>“Formation of an independent Kurdistan in Iraq can encourage similar movements in Iran,” says Hunter, “especially since Masoud Barzani dreams of a Greater Kurdistan. He is Mullah Mustafa’s son. But Iran is not the only country that is facing the threat of Kurdish separatism.” Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan “imagines that he can come to an arrangement with Barzani but there is no doubt that after Iran Turkey would be in the same situation. It might not happen immediately but happen it will.”</p>
<p>In the chaos after the Islamic Revolution of 1979 and the start of Iran-Iraq war which lasted for eight years, some Iranian Kurds sought to revive their secessionist movement but were weakened by the central government’s relentless suppression and the assassination of some key Kurdish opposition leaders in Europe.</p>
<p>Start and finish your day with the top stories from The Daily Beast.</p>
<p>A speedy, smart summary of all the news you need to know (and nothing you don't).</p>
<p>In recent years Iranian Kurds have seriously tried to participate in Iranian politics and elections but the Islamic Republic continues to discriminate against them socially, politically and economically. Even now that the crisis in Iraq has escalated and Barzani seeks to hold a referendum, Iranian statesmen, generals and religious figures in the government make no promises to improve the lot of the Kurds and ease discriminations.</p>
<p>Instead they have directed their attacks towards Iraqi Kurdish leaders, the United States and Israel. For example Ahmad Khatami, a hardline cleric and a senior member of the Assembly of Experts, reacted to the news of plans for the independence referendum by saying that “this conspiracy must be nipped in the bud because it would become another cancerous tumor like Israel.” And Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham called the referendum “a Zionist conspiracy.”</p>
<p>At this moment it is unlikely that Iraqi Kurds will go ahead with declaring independence. Besides Iran and Turkey, the United States has also explicitly opposed such a move.</p>
<p>“I agree that the breakup of Iraq can create problems for Iran especially in the Kurdish region,” a Kurdish affairs analyst in Tehran tells IranWire, “but it should not be presented as a nightmare scenario. Most Iranian Kurds have no interest in secession from Iran or in joining an independent republic. It is partly because of nationalistic feelings but there are logical reasons as well. Even if Kurdistan secedes it would not be a safe and secure country.”</p>
<p>The analyst says that a vulnerable independent Kurdish republic, surrounded by hostile Sunnis or a suspicious Iran, would not appeal to Iranian Kurds, who are accustomed to the relative tranquility and stability of their lives in Iran’s Kurdish region.</p>
<p>“Masoud Barzani knows that his plan would not be realized but he is a good political player,” this analyst believes. “He knows that he can use the current panic of Turkey, Iran, the U.S. and the Iraqi central government and extract concessions that he wants. For example, he might ask Iran to stop supporting the Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki who is despised in Iraqi Kurdistan and allow a more nationalist and secular Shi’a to replace him.”</p>
<p>This might be actually what is happening, albeit slowly. In the past few weeks the Iranian Foreign Ministry has made it known that Iran is not adamant that Nuri al-Maliki should remain in power.</p>
<p>Nevertheless Nader Hashemi, director of the Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Denver tells IranWire that “Iran is deeply worried about developments in Iraq. The first is that it wants the Shi’a political parties to remain in power and dominate the system. Iran’s main fear is that the emergence of a Sunni political force, be it extremist or moderate, would increase the influence of Saudi Arabia at the expense of Iran.”</p>
<p>The second fear, according to Hashemi, is that “Iraqi Kurdistan is too close to the West and to Israel and this can turn into a security challenge for Iran. The Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has publicly come out for the independence of Kurdistan. What remains to be seen is how much influence Iran has over Masoud Barzani.” Should the Kurds delay their bid for independence in order to extract more concessions from the central government, Hashemi says, better relations between Tehran and the Kurdish Regional Government might be preserved in the short to medium-term.</p>
<p>Meanwhile there are conflicting reports that in Kubani, a small town in Syrian Kurdistan, Iranian fighters and Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga have fought ISIS together. Fars News Agency, affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, has denied these report which were published in newspapers such as the London-based Asharq Al-Awsat.</p>
<p>While it might seem that ISIS’s recent gains in northern Iraq might quell Kurdish leaders’ inclination to move forward with a referendum at present, the horizon may hold such a move yet, and Iran’s anxieties remain firmly in place.</p>
<p>This <a href="http://en.iranwire.com/features/5931" type="external">article originally written by Marjan Namazi</a> appeared on <a href="http://en.iranwire.com" type="external">IranWire</a>.</p> | Why Iran Fears Iraq’s Kurds | true | https://thedailybeast.com/why-iran-fears-iraqs-kurds | 2018-10-04 | 4 |
<p>&#160; &#160; A cartoon by Patrick Chappatte titled “Middle East Peace Talks.” Patrick Chappatte, The International New York Times</p>
<p>This post originally ran on <a href="http://www.juancole.com/2014/04/actually-israeli-derailed.html" type="external">Juan Cole’s Web page</a>.</p>
<p>Right wing Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Sunday <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/netanyahu-blames-palestinians-for-collapsing-peace-talks/2014/04/06/6bb8019c-bd91-11e3-bcec-b71ee10e9bc3_story.html%20" type="external">blamed the Palestinians for the collapse of peace negotiations</a> that began last August under the auspices of Secretary of State John Kerry. In fact, the Palestinians took no Israeli land whatsoever since August, whereas the Israelis doubled their pace of building squatter settlements on Palestinian territory, territory over which they said they were negotiating! It is like discussing with someone sharing a piece of pie and then looking down and seeing that the other person had snarfed up half of it already.</p>
<p>Here are the top ten things Israel did to cause the negotiations to falter:</p>
<p />
<p>1. Even as it was agreeing to restart the talks with Palestine in August, 2013, <a href="http://www.juancole.com/2013/08/israelis-subsidize-colonies.html%20" type="external">the Israeli government signaled its lack of seriousness</a>. I wrote then,</p>
<p>“On the eve of resumption of peace talks between Israel and Palestine, the far right Israeli nationalist government of Binyamin Netanyahu attempted to torpedo them with a series of provocative announcements. It announced that it would steal 100 acres of land from Palestinian families and build 240 housing units on it. The same government announced that it will grant 90 Israeli colonies on the Palestinian West Bank a special status bringing them “government grants, infrastructure investment, tax breaks and other benefits.” The colonies receiving these perks included several that had been considered illegal even by the expansionist Netanyahu government until recently.”</p>
<p>Israeli squatter settlements on the Palestinian West Bank</p>
<p>2. On August 11, <a href="http://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Israel-announces-tenders-for-new-settlement-homes-in-West-Bank-322690%20" type="external">Housing and Construction Minister Uri Ariel announced his intentions</a> to to publish tenders for 1,187 new Israeli homes in the Palestinian West Bank. Minister Ariel said at the time, “We will continue to build, so it is clear this is just the start. This tune can’t be stopped.” Now that would be reassuring to the Palestinian side, wouldn’t it?</p>
<p>3. In November, Israel announced plans to build <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.557639%20" type="external">20,000 Israeli squatter settlements on Palestinian territory</a>.</p>
<p>4. Israel <a href="http://time.com/11458/israel-doubled-west-bank-settlement-construction-in-2013/%20" type="external">doubled its pace of building illegal squatter settlements on the West Bank in 2013 over 2012–</a> 2,534 new housing units versus 1,133 in 2012. <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-02/obama-urges-netanyahu-to-make-peace-now-to-avert-fallout.html%20" type="external">President Obama remarked of this vast land theft</a>, “we have seen more aggressive settlement construction over the last couple years than we’ve seen in a very long time — if Palestinians come to believe that the possibility of a contiguous, sovereign Palestinian state is no longer within reach, then our ability to manage the international fallout is going to be limited…”</p>
<p>5. In early January 2014, Netanyahu abruptly began demanding that the Palestinians recognize Israel as a “Jewish state” as part of any peace deal. I suspect that this demand was a stealth way of getting prior implicit agreement by the Palestine government to Avigdor Lieberman’s plan to strip over a million Palestinian-Israelis of their Israeli citizenship and render them stateless. In any case, it is a weird demand to make of another country. I pointed out <a href="http://www.juancole.com/2014/01/recognizing-israel-saying.html%20" type="external">that it is as though the US began demanding that other countries recognize it as a “white state” or a “Christian state”</a> (given the non-religious character of the current Israeli government on the whole, likely “white state” is the appropriate analogy.) The Palestinians pointed out that they had recognized Israel within 1949 borders in the Oslo Peace Accords, in return for Israel returning to them 100% of the West Bank and Gaza. Israel got that enormous concession for free, since it reneged on virtually all the obligations it undertook in the Oslo accords and did not in fact withdraw from any of the West Bank at all.</p>
<p>6. In January 2014, the Netanyahu government <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/.premium-1.567938%20" type="external">released tenders for “the construction of 600 housing units in the Ramat Shlomo neighborhood in Jerusalem,</a> which lies over the Green Line [in Palestinian territory], and a further 801 units in settlement blocs in the West Bank [in Palestinian territory].”</p>
<p>7. On January 14, Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon <a href="http://www.juancole.com/2014/01/messianic-palestinian-obsession.html%20" type="external">attacked Secretary of State Kerry’s efforts to secure a negotiated peace,</a> accusing him of having a “messianic obsession”. He said that the American plan for security arrangements was not worth the paper it was printed on and added, “Secretary of State John Kerry — who arrived here determined, and who operates from an incomprehensible obsession and a sense of messianism — can’t teach me anything about the conflict with the Palestinians.” When a senior member of the cabinet in the government of one of the two parties to a negotiation admits such complete disdain for the negotiator, it isn’t a positive sign. Yaalon concluded, “The only thing that might save us is if John Kerry wins the Nobel Prize and leaves us be.” By “let us be,” Yaalon meant “let us go on swallowing up Palestinian territory and kicking Palestinians out of their homes.”</p>
<p>8. In <a href="http://www.juancole.com/2014/02/kerry-semitic-israeli.html%20" type="external">early February, 2014, Netanyahu government members slammed Kerry as an anti-Semitic bigot</a>, slammed Netanyahu for allegedly falling under his influence, and one member of the cabinet actually led a 2000-strong prayer protest with rabbis pleading with Yahweh to remove Mr. Kerry’s Rasputin-like hold over the Israeli prime minister. I wrote at the time,</p>
<p>“Economy Minister Naftali Bennett . . . slammed Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu as being under Kerry’s influence, when Netanyahu was said to be considering leaving Israeli squatters on Palestinian land under the authority of the Palestine government in a peace deal leading to Israel relinquishing its current annexation project. Naftali Bennett is from the small religious Jewish Home Party that is in coalition with the largely secular Netanyahu government. Jewish Home is dead set against returning to pre-1967 borders or allowing the emergence of a Palestinian state, and has been threatening to withdraw from the government if Netanyahu signs a Kerry-brokered peace treaty with the Palestinians. Now Israeli parliament member Motti Yogev, also from the Jewish Home Party, has attacked Kerry, this time as bigotted against Jews. He said, “Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is acting under Kerry’s obsessive pressure, which may have anti-Semitic undertones . . . Kerry is not here to reach a compromise. He wants to decrease the Jewish presence in the Land of Israel and create a Palestinian state.” Yogev himself lives in an Israeli squatter settlement on Palestinian territory. Housing Minister Uriel Ariel of the same party led a protest of some 2000 on Thursday, with rabbis praying that Netanyahu will stand firm against Kerry.”</p>
<p>From a Palestinian point of view, the Americans more or less channeled Israeli proposals, so hearing the Israelis denounce their own talking points as anti-Semitic wouldn’t exactly inspire Palestinian confidence.</p>
<p>9. On March 20, 2014, <a href="http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2014-03/21/c_133202141.htm%20" type="external">far right wing Housing and Construction Minister Uri Ariel approved</a> 839 new housing units in Ariel on Occupied Palestinian territory; in addtion, “Some 31 housing units will be built in Almog, in the northern Dead Sea. Additional 350 housing units are planned to be built in Rahel, north of Ramallah.” Almog and Rahel are in the Palestinian West Bank. On March 20, 2014, as well, “the Jerusalem Local Planning Committee just approved the construction of 184 new housing units beyond the Green Line”. . . i.e. on Palestinian territory, at a time Israel was supposedly negotiating to accept a state on Palestinian territory.</p>
<p>10. Israel in late March abruptly reneged on its agreement to release about 100 Palestinian prisoners, put in jail before 1993, whom it had earlier agreed to release as part of the Oslo Peace Accords, but whom it had not in fact let go. The Israelis released 3/4s of the ones it had agreed to but refused to let the last 25 or so go. It was this piece of bad faith (along with all the others above) that impelled Palestine president Mahmoud Abbas to sign the Geneva Convention of 1949 and other international instruments, to which Israel objects (why?).</p>
<p>—-</p>
<p>Related video:</p>
<p><a href="http://youtu.be/ruQxX4FjgBk%20" type="external">Kerry says US it is ‘evaluating’ role in Middle East peace talks</a></p> | Top 10 Ways in Which It Was Actually the Israeli Government That Derailed the Peace Talks | true | https://truthdig.com/articles/top-10-ways-in-which-it-was-actually-the-israeli-government-that-derailed-the-peace-talks/ | 2014-04-07 | 4 |
<p><a href="" type="internal" />Because her passport expired in 1998, it appears that it must be verified that she is still a Romanian citizen and that she has not given up her citizenship to another country without their knowledge, even though I provided them with her resident alien U.S. re-entry permit (a form of passport for legal immigrants), which also expired in the late 1990s, and her resident alien card.</p>
<p>The Romanians must check that she is a legal entity and that she exists as a Romanian citizen still, for the fee of $81 in cash, according to the condescending clerk in the consular office. How do they know that she has not sworn allegiance to another country in the interim?</p>
<p>After an alleged waiting period of 60 days, she will be eligible for a new passport, providing that the right paperwork, filled out correctly, according to bureaucratic speak (name and surname, her deceased parents, my deceased father, her life story, etc.) will be filed. I have no clue what the fee will be or how long that would take. Hopefully, her siblings will still be alive and mom will be ambulatory and/or able to travel.</p>
<p>But that is not all. I must then proceed with the renewal of her U.S. re-entry permit, facing the legal immigration bureaucracy gauntlet of the United States. I have no idea how long that would take, considering the backlog of 4 million legal immigrants who are awaiting patiently the resolution of their cases, and the priority that the flood of illegal aliens from Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, and El Salvador are receiving.</p>
<p>If mom was <a href="" type="internal">an illegal alien freshly arrived</a> from Mexico, she would be getting her passport and visa on the same day, and from the Social Security office.</p>
<p>That is exactly what happened to a <a href="" type="internal">busload</a> of Mexicans who arrived from Laredo in Memphis, Tennessee. According to the video posted by <a href="http://therightscoop.com/report-obama-admin-giving-illegals-new-passports-and-social-security-numbers-video/" type="external">therightscoop.com</a> (see below), an American citizen confronted some of the members of the group who spoke no English, had been in the U.S. one day, but already had Social Security numbers and new Mexican passports issued not by the Mexican Consulate, but by the Social Security office in Memphis.</p>
<p />
<p>As the videographer says in his citizen video, “They should get these [passports] in Mexico. We need jobs, we have no money in our country, we are giving it all away, and look at this, our tax dollars hard at work, there’s your bus full of people, there’s the Social Security office, and they are giving passports away to illegals.</p>
<p>Chances are, after writing about this egregious issue and the concerned American citizen videographer, my mom will never get travel papers from the United States.</p>
<p>We have to stop <a href="http://freedomoutpost.com/?s=illegal+invasion" type="external">the flood of illegal aliens into our country</a> who claim <a href="http://freedomoutpost.com/2014/07/illegal-aliens-failed-socialist-economies-war-refugees/" type="external">bogus refugee status</a>. They are here for jobs because of bad economic conditions in their countries, and to <a href="" type="internal">receive welfare</a> from the strapped American taxpayers. American businesses <a href="http://freedomoutpost.com/2014/06/even-worse-illegal-immigration-theory-addition-cloward-piven-strategy/" type="external">want illegals here for cheap labor</a>, replacing American workers. We have our own severe economic problems in the United States and our <a href="http://freedomoutpost.com/2014/08/dont-believe-middle-class-destroyed-heres-30-stats-prove/" type="external">middle class is struggling under the heavy burden of taxation, the loss of jobs, and the lack of job creation</a>.</p>
<p>Ileana Johnson is a senior columnist for Canada Free Press, retired teacher with 30 years experience, best selling author of UN Agenda 21: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009WC6JXO/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=390957&amp;creativeASIN=B009WC6JXO&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=freedomoutpos-20&amp;linkId=UIO4FXKU55VQPNA2" type="external">Environmental Piracy</a> at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/" type="external">Amazon</a>, author of Echoes of Communism, Liberty on Life Support, and the upcoming book Communism 2.0 Twenty-Five Years Later. She is also a radio commentator on Liberty Express Radio on Butler on Business, every Wednesday at 10:34 EST. I travel and speak on issues of interest to me, communism, education, economy, immigration, and UN Agenda 21. She has a doctorate in Economics and speaks five other languages. She is a legal immigrant and proud American citizen by choice.</p>
<p>Courtesy of <a href="http://freedomoutpost.com/2014/09/illegal-aliens-us-get-passport-social-security-numbers-one-day-legals-must-wait/" type="external">Freedom Outpost</a>.</p>
<p />
<p /> | Illegal Aliens in the US Get Passport & Social Security Numbers in One Day – Legals must Wait | true | http://dcclothesline.com/2014/09/16/illegal-aliens-us-get-passport-social-security-numbers-one-day-legals-must-wait/ | 2014-09-16 | 0 |
<p>Well, the deputy walks on hard nails and the preacher rides a mount</p>
<p>But nothing really matters much, it’s doom alone that counts</p>
<p>And the one-eyed undertaker, he blows a futile horn</p>
<p>Come in, she said</p>
<p>I’ll give ya shelter from the storm</p>
<p>-Bob Dylan, Shelter From The Storm</p>
<p>Can Donald Trump be taken down? Life in Donald’s America gets more farcical every day. We cannot dump the Donald despite our collective desire to. At this point most Americans would welcome any replacement. We are caught in a dangerous storm and we would trust near any neighbor to take us in. Even one as creepy as Mike Pence. Who will give us shelter from the storm? Lately it appears to be an aptly named porn star, Stormy Daniels. Porn is also the apt comparison for the Donald saga. Absurd, painful and relentlessly climatic. Meanwhile on CNN and more surreptitious browsers, porn rumbles on.</p>
<p>Leigh Raven and Riley Nixon released a YouTube video detailing some of the abuse they have taken at the hands of the porn industry. Just weeks ago we learned of Donald Trump’s affair with porn star Stormy Daniels. Stormy has become the liberal media’s latest sweetheart, perhaps second only to FBI man Bob Mueller. The real storms and droughts that are ravaging the natural world take a back seat to all scandalous details. Stopping the dismantling of environmental protections by Donald Trump could in theory make all frivolous investigations worth it. That is assuming that Mike Pence, Paul Ryan and co. are any better. I’d say don’t count on it. With a smoother operator in town Democrats would be even more hapless in fighting for the environment. The Republican Party’s libertarian commitment to dismantling the protections of the state would continue. The only sort of protection the rich want are protections from the people. This is done through militarizing the cops in poor communities. It is also done through taking away impediments to profit. Who needs safety regulations or environmental protections when they impede on the profits of the rich?</p>
<p>The mainstream media has paid little attention to Trump’s war on the environment and has instead focused on abstract values, most namely a “liberal democracy.” Too often democracy, especially a liberal democracy, is equated with capitalism. Freedom is defined by the individual’s right to make a profit and to form an identity from this profit. This freedom is gained at expense of the earth and the people of the Global South. Global trade deals that abuse workers of poor countries and strip protections from the environment are seen as an expression of the never been freer global market. The right to find one’s passion and voice is seen as the greatest freedom here in America. The people of other countries and the earth we stand upon get no voice. For every new invention and new expansion comes new exploitation and new destruction of the earth.</p>
<p>At the same time the value of democracy is being questioned by the elites because the poor supposedly brought us Donald Trump. The rich want to correct the mistakes of the poor through unelected bureaucrats like Bob Mueller. The rich fail to understand that in our society money means representation. The rich get the policies and politicians they want and the poor do not. The concerns about campaign finance reform and inequality brought up by the Bernie Sanders campaign and Occupy Wall St. are swept under the rug.</p>
<p>The dismissal of Sanders, Occupy and the like are part of a broader dismissal of young people. Millennials are cast off as lazy when they don’t come out to vote for hopeless Democrats or heartless Republicans. On the contrary, I see the lack of young people voting as a sign of hope. We understand that our liberal capitalist democracy is not working, regardless of who runs the show. How we create a new world is a much more difficult question. I see denial of the old one as a fine first step.</p>
<p>The mainstream media is so out of touch with young people it has become a joke to even engage with the high brow liberal outlets, even the ones who are potentially quite thoughtful. Take this recent New Yorker article with an intriguing title: “Donald Trump and the Stress Test of Liberal Democracy”. The author David Remnick quotes Yascha Mounk: “Mounk, who teaches government at Harvard, points out that one reason for the increasing indifference to democratic rule and the rising enthusiasm for authoritarian alternatives, particularly among young people, is the widening historical distance from any direct experience of the horrors of German Fascism or Soviet Communism.” Huh? It has been the old people who are mislabeling Trump a fascist and Obama a communist. The young people see that both men are capitalists. It is the old people who are questioning the value of democracy. They are right to call Trump undemocratic in his actions. But they get really confused when they try to explain his success. How did he do it without the endorsement of established undemocratic American institutions they ask. They naturally just blame the dumb people who elected Trump rather than the capitalists who took away their education, jobs, and economic security.</p>
<p>To the author’s point though I think that young people are seeing the limits of a an unequal liberal democracy. We have elections and free speech, which is awesome. But we have no time or money or long term security. The politicians answer overwhelmingly to corporate interests. How are we supposed to become politically involved?</p>
<p>The broader question we are asking is: how valuable is a society that liberates the individual at the expense of the society? This is the ideology of neoliberalism. Basically all actions are done with the word “liberal” in mine. Liberate the markets through stripping protections for workers and the planet. Liberate the Other in a distant land through military intervention. Liberate each person so they can make a profit off of people if they work hard enough or play dirty enough.</p>
<p>My only criticism of the millennial generation is that we have chosen to interact through self-focused and inherently isolating social media, internet, and entertainment platforms. It is very easy to construct a world of one’s own online. Making a world that works for all of us must be done away from our phones, laptops and headphones.</p>
<p>The porn industry is seen as one of the ways our society is more liberated than ever before. Like other industries of consumption the conditions of the workers are ignored. If a product is cheap for the consumer it is seen as liberating. They say we have never had so many options to buy and consume things, which is true. But what about the people who make these things? What about the people who cannot get jobs because of this newfound efficiency? What about the resources we take from the earth as we consume? To each their own, the liberal democracy answers.</p>
<p>There was some justified horror about the death threats that porn star Mia Khalifa received from ISIS. ISIS is a child of the liberating American Empire but their actions are always blamed on the Muslim community. We are told that the East hates women and that the West loves women. We are told that “our” women are sexually free while “their” women are sexually oppressed. We are told that porn is a way for women to empower themselves. Like all relationships under the free market, the relationship between women and men are assumed to be “free and equal.”</p>
<p>What then to make of this latest story from Leigh Raven and Riley Nixon? They were forced to eat apples to induce vomit from the blow jobs they were to give. The blow job induced choking and despite signals from the actors, the man in the scene would not let up. Raven says: “I got in trouble and was beat vigorously with the largest, strongest hands you can imagine,” … “I proceeded to get slapped in the face, I proceeded to be slapped on my ass, my thighs, my inner thighs, and at this point I begin to cry and now I’m not just crying because I’m deep-throating a dick.”….“He recognized the fact that my legs were shaking and he found it funny and he made me sit up higher, which made it hurt a lot more,”…“I was being penetrated extremely, extremely deep”… “I was squeezing his leg, his left thigh, I think, as hard as I could while pushing away and wincing in pain and tears coming down my face, and he would smack my hand away, say some sort of ‘dumb white bitch’ comment.”….“I’m pretty sure, like, the first thing that happens in the intro video with Rico is he comes in and just slaps me across the face really hard, like really hard.”….“I couldn’t breathe, it went black, I saw stars, I was stunned. Near unconscious.”</p>
<p>Why didn’t they leave? Because they needed to pay rent. They feared repercussions, perhaps sexual ones, from their superiors. This is not so uncommon now for millennials, as sex for rent is something demanded by landlords too. As internet hero Jimmy McMillan tells us: the rent is just too damn high.</p>
<p>What the rich do not realize is that to survive under capitalism one must do whatever it takes to pay the bills. Incarcerating drug dealers who have no other way to make a living is one prevalent example of the punishing of the poor in an unequal society. Ultimately these stories are a result of the failure of the state to provide the basic needs for the individual. Now is the time for a Universal Basic Income. No one should have to live like this to survive.</p>
<p>Stormy Daniels is the latest beacon of hope for the liberals looking to take down Trump. Let’s hope she succeeds. But just as Bob Mueller was paraded through the headlines everyday without a mention of the evils of the FBI, Stormy is brought up everyday without a mention of the cruelty of the porn industry. There is no mention of the negative implications of watching porn either. One would think there could be some links drawn between porn and the violence against women exposed through the #MeToo movement. Although as I have noted before, domestic violence remains an untouchable subject for the media. The toxic nature of porn has been well-documented by many feminists, most notably, Andrea Dworkin. Porn tells us that it is a freedom to be cruel to other people. Could anything better fit the mentality of Donald Trump?</p>
<p>Don’t look for the defenders of a free market democracy to help us either. As nice as it may sound as a principle, the implications of such a self-centered society have been deadly. There are few left in the mainstream who question the ultimate freedom that capitalism brings to us. Stormy Daniels, Russia, or any other scandal may ultimately give us shelter from the storm of Donald Trump. The rent for this shelter unfortunately still depends on the benevolence of those with the freedom to exploit us under capitalism. Regardless of whether we survive Hurricane Donald, liberal democracy has a leaky roof. It will be up to those of us interested in a collective society to build something more durable.</p> | Shelter From The Stormy | true | https://counterpunch.org/2018/03/13/shelter-from-the-stormy/ | 2018-03-13 | 4 |
<p>Published time: 4 Sep, 2017 14:48</p>
<p>The Federal Trade Commission is warning Hurricane Harvey victims of a robocall insurance scam which targets those affected by natural disasters.</p>
<p>Scammers usually call victims located in areas affected by natural disasters and inform them that their “premium is past due,” then direct them to a website where they can make a payment to keep the policy in place, <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2017/08/ftc-warns-hurricane-victims-about-flood-insurance-robocall-scam" type="external">according</a> to the agency.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/usa/401941-houston-toxic-waste-sites/" type="external">READ MORE: 13 toxic waste sites pose public threat due to Harvey floodwater, EPA finds</a></p>
<p>The agency <a href="https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/blog/2017/08/hurricane-harvey-scams-callers-lie-about-flood-insurance" type="external">warned</a> victims that insurance companies do not use robocalls to collect overdue payments and advised customers to contact their insurance provider directly if they do receive one of these calls. &#160;</p>
<p>Some 44 people have died and tens of thousands made homeless after category four Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas last month.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/usa/401732-houston-satellite-flood-damage/" type="external">READ MORE: Breathtaking scale of Harvey devastation laid bare in stark Houston satellite images</a></p>
<p>Texas governor Greg Abbott <a href="https://www.rt.com/usa/401890-hurricane-harvey-relief-cost/" type="external">warned</a> that damage repairs could exceed $120 billion.</p>
<p>Last week, billionaire investor Warren Buffett said that if uninsured losses from Harvey reach $150 billion, the US economy would be hurt.</p>
<p>“I don’t think it would be a full percentage point for a year or anything like that. But it has a real effect. It destroys wealth. If there’s $150 billion, or something, of uninsured losses that’s real wealth,” Buffett <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/30/warren-buffett-we-have-about-500000-cars-insured-in-houston-flood-area.html" type="external">told</a> CNBC.</p>
<p /> | Robocall scammers will target Harvey victims, FTC warns | false | https://newsline.com/robocall-scammers-will-target-harvey-victims-ftc-warns/ | 2017-09-04 | 1 |
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<p>Give Wesley Clark his due: he looks great on paper. First in his class at Westpoint, former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, victor in Kosovo, architect of Dayton, Rhodes Scholar. Not bad. What’s more, less than a week after declaring for president, Clark is running stronger than anyone could have predicted. A Newsweek poll puts him top of the Democratic field, meaning <a href="http://www.msnbc.com/news/969441.asp?0cv=KB20" type="external">he’s already leapfrogged Howard Dean,</a> the most formidable Democratic contender until now. The Democratic party is making nice with Clark, reinforcing the notion that the general, unlike the lightweight Dean, can beat Bush on national security. As New York magazine recently put it, “the only antiwar candidate America is ever going to elect is one who is a four-star general.”</p>
<p>But it’s beginning to seem as though the “white knight” has some chinks in his armor, and that he might even be vulnerable where he seemed strongest.</p>
<p>Clark’s greatest asset, notes London’s Observer, can be summed up in one word: “ <a href="http://observer.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,6903,1046348,00.html" type="external">General.</a>”</p>
<p>“For half a century the Republicans have pounded the Democrats for being soft on national security. Clark, like a white knight on a charger, can finally slay that dragon. It says much about America that the only sort of anti-war candidate with a chance of being elected is a four-star General, and Clark is that man. Cut him and he bleeds the army. He fought in one war and led Nato in another. But he opposed invading Iraq and, unlike many other Democrat candidates, he did it from the beginning.”</p>
<p>Or did he?</p>
<p>Lately Clark has been a strong critic of the Bush administration’s war in Iraq, as in this quote from the New York Times:</p>
<p>“‘It’s important to ask why the administration set the timeline in such a manner that they were unable to wait for an international coalition to emerge and work together,’ he said. ‘And why is it that they failed to plan adequately for the postwar task? Certainly the officers in uniform understood very well the difficulties and what could happen afterward. Why is it that the administration didn’t want those difficulties aired?'”</p>
<p>But last week Clark seemed a lot less sure of his ground. On Thursday he stunned his supporters by telling the Times that <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/19/politics/campaigns/19CLAR.html?ex=1064635200&amp;en=3cf55b5c39e03a89&amp;ei=5062&amp;partner=GOOGLE" type="external">he would have voted for war</a>:</p>
<p>“‘At the time, I probably would have voted for it, but I think that’s too simple a question,’ General Clark said.</p>
<p>A moment later, he said: ‘I don’t know if I would have or not. I’ve said it both ways because when you get into this, what happens is you have to put yourself in a position — on balance, I probably would have voted for it.'”</p>
<p>The following day, Clark stammered — revealing that this general can also wear a politican’s suit and tie:</p>
<p>“I never would have voted for war … What I would have voted for is leverage. Leverage for the United States to avoid a war. That’s what we needed to avoid a war.”</p>
<p>Some see Clark’s flip-flop as part of a larger <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/news2003/0916-10.htm" type="external">pattern of backpeddling</a>. Here’s Fairness &amp; Accuracy in Reporting, a media watchdog:</p>
<p>“Hearing Clark talking to CNN‘s Paula Zahn (7/16/03), it would be understandable to think he was an opponent of the war. ‘From the beginning, I have had my doubts about this mission, Paula,” he said. “And I have shared them previously on CNN.’</p>
<p>But a review of his statements before, during and after the war reveals that Clark has taken a range of positions– from expressing doubts about diplomatic and military strategies early on, to celebrating the U.S. ‘victory’ in a column declaring that George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair ‘should be proud of their resolve in the face of so much doubt’ (London Times, 4/10/03).</p>
<p>While political reporters might welcome Clark’s entry into the campaign, to label a candidate with such views ‘anti-war’ is to render the term meaningless.”</p>
<p>What to make of this? Here’s a possible clue, from an online discussion between Washington Post military reporter, Vernon Loeb, and Post readers, one of whom asked:</p>
<p>“From what I remember of Clark’s appearances on TV before and during the war, he seemed to mask whether he supported the war or not. One minute he was applauding the liberation of the Iraqi people, and the next he was saying we should have done it with more allies. But then he said that if the UN wouldn’t pass a resolution, we should find a coalition of the willing to take down Saddam. What gives? Did he support the war or not?”</p>
<p>Loeb replied:</p>
<p>“Well, you’ve put your finger on what I would call the Clark problem. Saying different things to different people, sometimes different things to the same people. His critics in the military chide him for just such double-speak, and say this is one reason why people tend not to trust him. On the other hand, there are those who trust him totally, and say Clark is very loyal to people and greatly respects people of comptence…. He is a very complex guy, but sometimes complex doesn’t wear well on the campaign trial, when complex appears to be confusing and a bit manipulative. But you’ve asked THE question about his candidacy.”</p>
<p>Clark’s contradictions extend beyond what he’s said to what he’s done. Though he’s gone on record criticizing Bush for not taking multilateral approach in Iraq, as The Nation’s Katrina vanden Heuvel notes, Clark has in the past shown quite another side — that of a <a href="http://www.thenation.com/edcut/index.mhtml?bid=7" type="external">reckless</a> leader with a go-at-it-alone attitude:</p>
<p>“On June 12, 1999, in the immediate aftermath of NATO’s air war against Yugoslavia, a small contingent of Russian troops dashed to occupy the Pristina airfield in Kosovo. Clark was so anxious to stop the Russians that he ordered an airborne assault to confront these units–an order which could have unleashed the most frightening showdown with Moscow since the end of the Cold War. Hyperbole? You can decide. But British General Michael Jackson, the three-star general and commander of K-FOR, the international force organized and commanded by NATO to enforce an agreement in Kosovo, told Clark: “Sir, I’m not starting world war three for you,” when refusing to accept his order to prevent Russian forces from taking over the airport. (Jackson was rightly worried that any precipitous NATO action could risk a confrontation with a nuclear- armed Russia and upset the NATO-led peacekeeping plan just getting underway with the withdrawal of Serbian forces from Kosovo.)</p>
<p>After being rebuffed by Jackson, Clark, according to various media reports at the time, then ordered Admiral James Ellis, the American in charge of NATO’s southern command, to use Apache helicopters to occupy the airfield.</p>
<p>… In the end, Russian reinforcements were stopped when Washington persuaded Hungary, a new NATO member, to refuse to allow Russian aircraft to fly over its territory.”</p>
<p>So he’s a complex guy, with a complicated history. That, on its own, isn’t a deal-breaker. But Clark has gone very quickly from the perfect Democratic candidate to a potential liability. He’s riding high in the polls, for now. Whether he stays up there will depend on how quickly he gets his campaign game on track and his story straight. But, on current evidence, the more the public learns more about Clark’s background, the less willing it will be to give him the benefit of the doubt. For now, let’s just say he’s “complex,” and contradictory. Then again, there’s always the possibility that he’s just plain confused. After all, he’s a Democrat who <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A46203-2003Sep22.html" type="external">voted</a> for both Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon.</p>
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<p /> | War Or Peace? | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2003/09/war-or-peace/ | 2003-09-23 | 4 |
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<p>Advocates of “intelligent design” say the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science preferred to cancel Darwin Days events rather than provide an opportunity to present an alternative theory of evolution.</p>
<p>Not so, said Mary Ann Hatchitt, communications director for the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, which oversees the state’s museums.</p>
<p>“There was nothing to cancel because there were no Darwin Days events planned or scheduled” for 2015, she said.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Further, the activities held on Feb. 9 and 12 in 2014, in conjunction with International Charles Darwin Day, were a one-time-only event sponsored by the museum, Hatchitt said, and were never intended to be an annual recurring celebration – in part because the museum lacks the money and workforce to organize and oversee it.</p>
<p>“The state is getting a black eye over this one and we don’t deserve it,” Hatchitt said, noting that a recent report about the controversy on a local TV newscast implied that the museum canceled this year’s event and tried to distance itself as a sponsor.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, emails obtained via an Inspection of Public Records Act request made by the two intelligent design advocates – former Sandia scientists Mike Edenburn, a mechanical engineer, and Jim Campbell, a physicist – seem to support their contentions.</p>
<p>In addition, as recently as last month, Evolution News and Views, a website managed by the Seattle-based Discovery Institute, a nonprofit religious “think tank,” accused the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science of working with “atheist groups” to put on “anti-religious lectures” and then dodging the intelligent design debate by cancelling future Darwin Days events.</p>
<p>The theory of intelligent design holds that particular forms and structures of the universe, as well as biologically diverse plants and animals, are best explained by an intelligent cause, rather than a process such as Darwin’s natural selection. Intelligent design also differs from creationism in that it is not based on religious text.</p>
<p>Edenburn said he and Campbell likely would not have challenged the museum’s Darwin Days celebration “if it had just been a promotion of Darwinian evolution.”</p>
<p>But a flier that was available in the museum’s lobby, as well as posted to the museum’s website last year, listed a number of speakers who, combined, “seemed to paint a picture that religion is detrimental to society,” Edenburn said.</p>
<p>That impression, he said, was bolstered by the groups listed on the flier as co-sponsors, including New Mexicans for Science &amp; Reason, Humanist Society of New Mexico and the Albuquerque chapter of the Freedom From Religion Foundation.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“Our problem was that a state institution was participating in sponsoring an event where the speakers denigrated religion,” Edenburn said. “The Supreme Court of the United States has ruled that denigrating religion, just like promoting religion, is a violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Public institutions have to be neutral with respect to religion.”</p>
<p>Numerous bloggers and concerned citizens have posted comments suggesting the museum acted less than honorably in sidestepping the debate and canceling future Darwin Days events.</p>
<p>One of the critics, Albuquerque resident Michela Dai Zovi, wrote in an email to the Journal that “canceling an event because of the related-but-tangential subjects it excludes is nonsense.”</p>
<p>She went on to say that, when an event is held at a publicly funded venue, “obsequity to the demands of two people is not democracy; it’s cowardice. … In canceling an homage to Darwin because two people complained that his legacy conflicts with their views, the Museum of Natural History has shown that it has learned nothing from the man they intended to honor.”</p>
<p>Hatchitt, who was not working at the Department of Cultural Affairs at the time of last year’s Darwin Days, said the event was coordinated by a volunteer who departed while it was still in the planning stages, leaving museum staff to take over.</p>
<p>The particular speakers objected to by Edenburn and Campbell were not supposed to be part of the Darwin Days events, she said, “even though they fit in nicely” with the overall theme.</p>
<p>Additionally, these talks should not have been printed on a flier or posted to the museum’s website because they were considered private meetings in a museum room rented by the organizations giving the talks, not part of Darwin Day events.</p>
<p>The emails provided via the IPRA request and shared with the Journal by Edenburn show museum staffers and volunteers were involved in scheduling the speakers; that the fliers were printed and posted with the approval and knowledge of museum staffers; that museum administrators tried to distance themselves as sponsors by asking groups to list the museum as a location “and don’t even use the word hosted”; and that organizers of Darwin Days were under the impression it would become an annual community event hosted by the museum.</p>
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<p /> | Museum plunged into evolution, religion debate | false | https://abqjournal.com/549593/alleged-cancellation-of-darwin-days-events-sparks-evolution-debate.html | 2 |
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<p>Since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 there have been two further transformative events that have reshaped in enduring ways the global setting. When the Soviet empire collapsed two years later, the way was opened for the triumphalist pursuit of the American Imperial Project, seizing the opportunity for geopolitical expansion provided by its self-anointed global leadership as ‘the sole surviving superpower.’ This first rupture in the character of world order produced a decade of ascendant neoliberal globalization in which state power was temporarily and partially eclipsed by a passing the torch of lead global policymaker to the oligarchs of Davos who met annually under the banner of the World Economic Forum. In that sense, the U.S. Government was the well-subsidized sheriff of predatory globalization while the policy agenda was being set by lead bankers and global corporate executives. Although not often identified as such, the 1990s was the first evidence of the rise of non-state actors, and the decline of state-centric geopolitics.</p>
<p>The second rupture came with the 9/11 attacks, however those events are construed. The impact of the attacks transferred the locus of policymaking authority back to the United States, as state actor, under the rubrics of ‘the war on terror,’ ‘global security,’ and ‘the long war.’ This counter-terrorist response to 9/11 produced claims to engage in preemptive warfare (‘The Bush Doctrine’). This militarist foreign policy was put into practice by initiating a ‘shock and awe’ war against Iraq in March 2003, despite the refusal of the UN Security Council to back American war plans. This second rupture has turned the entire world into a potential battlefield, with a variety of overt and covert military and paramilitary operations launched by the United States without appropriate authorization from either the UN or by deference to international law. Aside from this disruption of the liberal international order, the continuing pattern of responses to 9/11 involve disregard for the sovereign rights of states in the global South as well as complicity of many states in Europe and the Middle East in violation of basic human rights through engaging in torture in response to ‘extreme rendition’ of terrorist suspects and providing ‘black sites’ where persons deemed hostile to the United States are detained and routinely abused. The response to 9/11 also was seized upon by the neoconservative ideologues that rose to power in the Bush presidency to enact their pre-attack grand strategy accentuating ‘regime change’ in the Middle East, starting with Iraq, which was portrayed as ‘low-lying fruit’ that would have multiple benefits once picked: military bases, lower energy prices, oil supplies, regional hegemony, promoting Israeli regional goals.</p>
<p>The third rupture involving the continuing worldwide deep economic recession that started in 2008, and has produced widespread rise in unemployment, declining living standards, and rising costs for basic necessities, especially food and fuel. These developments have exhibited the inequities, gross abuses, and deficiencies of neoliberal globalization, but have not led to the imposition of regulations designed to lessen such widely uneven gains from economic growth, to avoid market abuses, or even to guard against periodic market collapses. This deepening crisis of world capitalism is not being currently addressed, and alternative visions, even the revival of a Keynesian approach, have little political backing. This crisis has also exposed the vulnerabilities of the European Union to the uneven stresses exerted by varying national capabilities to deal with the challenges posed. All of these economic concerns are complicated and intensified by the advent of global warming, and its dramatically uneven impacts.</p>
<p>A fourth rupture in global governance is associated with the unresolved turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa. The mass popular uprisings that started in Tunisia have provided the spark that set off fires elsewhere in the region, especially Egypt. These extraordinary challenges to the established order have vividly inscribed on the global political consciousness the courage and determination of ordinary people living in these Arab countries, especially youth, who have been enduring for their entire lives intolerable conditions of material deprivation, despair, alienation, elite corruption, and merciless oppression. The outcomes of these movements for change in the Arab world is not yet knowable, and will not be for months, if not years to come. It is crucial for supporters on the scene and around the world not to become complacent as it is certain that those with entrenched interests in the old oppressive and exploitative order are seeking to restore former conditions to the extent possible, or at least salvage what they can. In this regard, it would be a naïve mistake to think that transformative and emancipatory results can come from the elimination of a single hated figure such as Ben Ali in Tunisia or Mubarak in Egypt, even if including their immediate entourage. Sustainable significant change requires a new political structure, as well as a new process that ensures free and fair elections and adequate opportunities for popular participation. Real democracy must be substantive as well as procedural, bringing human security to the people, including basic needs, decent work, and a police that protects rather than harasses. Otherwise, the changes wrought merely defer the revolutionary moment to a later day, and an ordeal of mass suffering will resume until that time comes.</p>
<p>To simplify, what remains unresolved is the fundamental nature of the outcome of these confrontations between the aroused populace of the region and state power with its autocratic and neoliberal orientations. Will this outcome be transformative bringing into being authentic democracy based on human rights and an economic order that puts the needs of people ahead of the ambitions of capital? If it is then it will be appropriate to speak of the Egyptian Revolution, the Tunisian Revolution, and maybe others in the region and elsewhere to come, as it was appropriate to describe the Iranian outcome in 1979 as the Iranian Revolution. From this perspective a revolutionary result may not necessarily be a benevolent outcome beyond ridding the society of the old order. In Iran a newly oppressive regime resting on a different ideological foundation emerged, itself being challenged after the 2009 elections by a popular movement calling itself the Green Revolution. So far this use of the word ‘revolution’ expressed hopes rather than referred to realities.</p>
<p>What has actually taken place in Iran, and what seemed to flow from the onslaught unleashed by the Chinese state in Tiananmen Square in 1989 was ‘counterrevolution,’ that is the restoration of the old order and the systematic repression of those identified as participants in the challenge. Actually, the words deployed can be misleading. What most followers of the Green Revolution seemed to seek in Iran was reform not revolution, that is, changes in personnel and policies, protection of human rights, but no challenge to the structure or the constitution of the Islamic Republic.</p>
<p>It is unclear whether the movement in Egypt is at present sufficiently unified or reflective to have a coherent vision of its goals beyond getting rid of Mubarak. The response of the state, besides trying to crush the uprising and even banish media coverage, offers at most promises of reform: fairer and freer elections, respect for human rights. It is rather obscure about what is meant and even more so, what will happen, in the course of an ‘orderly transition’ under the auspices of temporary leaders closely tied to the old regime, and likely enjoying enthusiastic backing in Washington. Will a cosmetic agenda of reform hide the actuality of a politics of counterrevolution? Or will revolutionary expectations come to the fore from an aroused populace to overwhelm the pacifying efforts of ‘the reformers’? Or might there be a genuine mandate of reform, supported by elites and bureaucrats, enacting sufficiently ambitious changes in the direction of democracy and social justice to satisfy the publics? Of course, there is no assurance, or likelihood, that the outcomes will be the same, or even similar, in the various countries undergoing these dynamics of change, and some will see ‘revolution’ where ‘reform’ has taken place, and few will acknowledge the extent to which ‘counterrevolution’ can lead to the breaking of even modest promises of reform.</p>
<p>At stake, as never since the collapse of the colonial order in the Middle East and North Africa, is the unfolding and shaping of self-determination in the entire Arab world, and possibly beyond.</p>
<p>How these dynamics will affect the broader regional agenda is not apparent at this stage, but there is every reason to suppose that the Israel/Palestine conflict will never be quite the same. It is also uncertain how such important regional actors as Turkey or Iran will deploy or not their influence. And, of course, the behavior of the elephant not formally in the room is likely to be a crucial element in the mix for some time to come, for better or worse.</p> | Egypt’s Transformative Moment: Revolution, Counterrevolution, or Reform | false | http://foreignpolicyjournal.com/2011/02/05/egypts-transformative-moment-revolution-counterrevolution-or-reform/ | 2011-02-05 | 1 |
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<p>The Santa Fe County Commission on Tuesday voted unanimously to impose a 12-month moratorium on approvals or issuance of permits for certain developments of countywide impact. The moratorium only applies to landfills, junk yards and sand and gravel extraction activity requiring blasting.</p>
<p>During a public hearing before the vote about a dozen people spoke in support of the moratorium, while only one spoke against it.</p>
<p>Jim Siebert was there representing Buena Vista Estates, the landowner in a proposal previously brought before the commission that called for the creation of a mining zone that would allow an Albuquerque-based company, Rockology, LLC, to start up a sand and gravel mining operation on La Bajada Mesa south of Santa Fe. Siebert presented the commission with a letter from his attorney, Pete Domenici Jr., which was not immediately made available to the Journal.</p>
<p>The proposal by Rockology and Buena Vista Estates received overwhelming opposition from community members during two sets of public hearings that together lasted more than six hours. The commission has yet to make a decision on the issue, stating a month ago that a decision would come at “a future public meeting.”</p>
<p>While that upset mine opponents, those who spoke in favor of the moratorium on Tuesday praised the commission for taking a deliberate approach when considering development and urged the commission to gather public input.</p>
<p>Commissioner Kathy Holian compared the moratorium to action the commission took six years ago to regulate oil and gas. She said the purpose was to protect water resources, historical sites and the landscape.</p>
<p>“We need to strengthen existing regulations and it’s very important we have a process for evaluating,” she said. “This moratorium will give us time to do that.”</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | SF County places moratorium on development of countywide impact | false | https://abqjournal.com/463270/sf-county-places-moratorium-on-development-of-countywide-impact.html | 2 |
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<p>Prompted by a petition campaign by the progressive advocacy group <a href="http://www.colorofchange.org/blog/2012/apr/4/tell-coca-cola-stop-funding-alec/" type="external">Color of Change</a>, Coca-Cola has pulled its support from ALEC, a right-wing corporate-funded front group which has been pushing <a href="http://www.kmtv.com/news/local/140379323.html" type="external">voter restriction efforts</a> around the country. The company released this <a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/politics/washington-secrets/2012/04/coke-caves-face-democratic-boycott-threat/444346" type="external">statement moments ago</a>:</p>
<p>The Coca-Cola Company has elected to discontinue its membership with the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Our involvement with ALEC was focused on efforts to oppose discriminatory food and beverage taxes, not on issues that have no direct bearing on our business. We have a long-standing policy of only taking positions on issues that impact our Company and industry.</p>
<p>Impressively, Coke’s retreat came <a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/politics/washington-secrets/2012/04/coke-caves-face-democratic-boycott-threat/444346" type="external">just five hours after</a> Color of Change announced <a href="http://www.colorofchange.org/blog/2012/apr/4/tell-coca-cola-stop-funding-alec/" type="external">its petition</a>, which read: “ALEC has pushed voter ID laws which disenfranchise large numbers of Black voters. Along with the NRA, ALEC also pushed a bill based on Florida’s ‘shoot first’ law — which has shielded Trayvon Martin’s killer from justice — into two dozen states across the country.”</p>
<p>Just this morning, the Center for American Progress released a report highlighting <a href="http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2012/04/voter_suppression.html" type="external">ALEC’s role in voter suppression</a>:</p>
<p>ALEC charges corporations such as Koch Industries Inc., Wal-Mart Stores Inc., and The Coca-Cola Co. a fee and gives them access to members of state legislatures. Under ALEC’s auspices, legislators, corporate representatives, and ALEC officials work together to draft model legislation. As ALEC spokesperson Michael Bowman told NPR, this system is especially effective because “you have legislators who will ask questions much more freely at our meetings because they are not under the eyes of the press, the eyes of the voters.”</p> | BREAKING: Progressive Movement Compels Coca-Cola To Pull Support From ALEC Over Voter Suppression Efforts | true | http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/04/04/458591/progressive-movement-compels-coca-cola-to-pull-support-from-alec-over-voter-suppression-efforts/ | 2012-04-04 | 4 |
<p>As in the United States, it's still illegal to grow and sell marijuana in Mexico.</p>
<p>But as the death toll from the drug war escalates, and farmers continue to labor in poverty, a growing number of Mexicans, including some prominent figures, are suggesting the government legalize the drug to take away profits and power from the drug lords.</p> | On Location: Mexico City - Legalizing pot? | false | https://pri.org/stories/2011-01-21/location-mexico-city-legalizing-pot | 2011-01-21 | 3 |
<p>Artists have teamed up to "resist" President-elect Donald Trump and his alleged misogyny by creating pornographic erotic anti-Trump artwork for a New York exhibit crudely titled " <a href="https://handsoffmycuntry.com/info/" type="external">Hands Off My Cuntry</a>." The anti-Trump artists say they are most concerned with the President-elect's promise to defund <a href="" type="internal">scandal-ridden Planned Parenthood</a>, and have therefore said that 20 percent of all sales will go toward the lucrative abortion mill.</p>
<p>Such anti-Trump artists created the x-rated images to "communicate in a visual language Trump is sure to understand," <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/art-trump-erotic-x-rated-women_us_587e7bb7e4b0c147f0bb861c?7wj8r5262kx3tmx6r" type="external">notes</a>The Huffington Post. From a still of President Obama seemingly performing oral sex on a woman to President-elect Trump sporting a penis instead of a nose, the artwork is certain to give you a reaction, thought it might not be what the artists intended.</p>
<p>“Sexuality is just another extension of the behavior we expect of women,” featured artist Alexandra Rubinstein told HuffPo. “I think it’s important to recognize that it’s not innately timid, selfless or non-existent.”</p>
<p>Below is a featured piece from Rubinstein called "Thank You Obama," an image of our President gazing from above a woman's spread apart legs. "From his focused gaze, one can only assume Barack applies the same attention and care he afforded our nation to the act of pleasuring a woman," gushes HuffPo. (But Trump supporters are fanatical.)</p>
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<p>Another feature piece, called “You Light Up My Life," shows a an image of female genitalia covered in lipstick "smoking a cigarette," sort of.</p>
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<p>Then there's the ever-so-subtle "Dickhead" piece, created by an artist who goes by <a href="http://trumpsnewportrait.com/" type="external">Jones the Savage</a>. You can figure out what's going on here.</p>
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<p>"The Original Beauty Salon," by Nicki Peck:</p>
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<p>"Boy Scout Salute," by Mike Cockrill:</p>
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<p>"Film Strip," by Savannah Spirit:</p>
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<p>Leftists often turn to sexually explicit images to combat perceived misogyny. In December, The Daily Wire <a href="" type="internal">reported</a>on college girls who stripped naked for a photoshoot in order to fight Trump's objectification of women. Of course, there seems to be a better way to fight against objectification other than getting naked, but that's just me.</p>
<p>( <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?guid=9fU2vVRWhHip-3&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.huffingtonpost.com%2Fentry%2Fart-trump-erotic-x-rated-women_us_587e7bb7e4b0c147f0bb861c%3Fncid%3Dengmodushpmg00000005&amp;media=http%3A%2F%2Fimg.huffingtonpost.com%2Fasset%2Fscalefit_970_noupscale%2F587e7b3f1200002d00ad81b3.jpeg&amp;description=Artists%20Are%20Resisting%20Trump%27s%20Misogyny%20With%20X-Rated%20Erotic%20Art%20%7C%20The%20Huffington%20Post" type="external">Screenshots via</a>Pinterest)</p>
<p>​ <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/art-trump-erotic-x-rated-women_us_587e7bb7e4b0c147f0bb861c?7wj8r5262kx3tmx6r" type="external">H/T</a> The Huffington Post</p> | PICS: Artists Create X-Rated Erotic Art to Resist Trump's 'Misogyny'! | true | https://dailywire.com/news/12545/pics-artists-posting-x-rated-erotic-art-resist-amanda-prestigiacomo | 2017-01-18 | 0 |
<p>Kate Spade &amp; Co. shares dropped 0.8% in Wednesday premarket trading after the clothing and accessories company lowered its full-year 2016 guidance. Second-quarter net income totaled $26.8 million, or 21 cents per share, up from $8.5 million, or 7 cents per share, for the same period a year ago. Adjusted earnings were 19 cents per share, beating the 14 cents per share FactSet consensus. Revenue for the quarter was $319.7 million, up from $281.1 million for the same period last year and above the $318 million FactSet estimate. The results fell below the company's expectations due largely to the retail landscape and tourist headwinds, according to Craig Leavitt, chief executive of Kate Spade. Kate Spade updated its full-year 2016 guidance, now expecting sales between $1.37 billion and $1.40 billion, down from previous revenue guidance in the range of $1.39 billion to $1.41 billion. The company now expects earnings per share in the range of 63 cents to 70 cents, down from previous guidance of 70 cents to 80 cents. Full-year FactSet estimates are for sales of $1.408 billion and earnings of 78 cents per share. Kate Spade shares are up 13.3% for the year so far, while the S&amp;P 500 Index is up 5.5% for the same period.</p>
<p>Copyright © 2016 MarketWatch, Inc.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p> | Kate Spade Shares Fall After Lower Guidance Issued | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/08/03/kate-spade-shares-fall-after-lower-guidance-issued.html | 2016-08-03 | 0 |
<p>PHOENIX (AP) — Gov. Doug Ducey has appointed attorney David Weinzweig to fill a vacancy on the Arizona Court Of Appeals.</p>
<p>Weinzweig will replace former Judge Margaret Downie on the court’s Phoenix-based division, which hears cases from Apache, Coconino, La Paz, Maricopa, Mohave, Navajo, Yavapai and Yuma counties.</p>
<p>Weinzweig is a registered independent who is currently a partner in a Phoenix law firm. He previously worked for the Arizona Attorney General’s Office and for a law firm before that.</p>
<p>Ducey chose Weinzweig as the appointee from among seven nominees recommended by a state commission that screened applicants for the opening.</p>
<p>PHOENIX (AP) — Gov. Doug Ducey has appointed attorney David Weinzweig to fill a vacancy on the Arizona Court Of Appeals.</p>
<p>Weinzweig will replace former Judge Margaret Downie on the court’s Phoenix-based division, which hears cases from Apache, Coconino, La Paz, Maricopa, Mohave, Navajo, Yavapai and Yuma counties.</p>
<p>Weinzweig is a registered independent who is currently a partner in a Phoenix law firm. He previously worked for the Arizona Attorney General’s Office and for a law firm before that.</p>
<p>Ducey chose Weinzweig as the appointee from among seven nominees recommended by a state commission that screened applicants for the opening.</p> | David Weinzweig appointed to fill Court of Appeals vacancy | false | https://apnews.com/e147b360bbd943a5a93f58dc2ee174c0 | 2018-01-11 | 2 |
<p>The White House press corps complained on Wednesday that they have been given very little information and access on the crisis in Egypt from the administration. In a letter from the White House Correspondents Association to Robert Gibbs they said that the administration hasn’t been very forthcoming recently on this issue:</p>
<p>Prior to the president’s statement Tuesday night, the press corps had not received a substantive update from the White House all day on the situation in Egypt. In addition, the press corps did not have an on-camera briefing, or an off-camera gaggle, with you yesterday to ask the White House about its decision-making process during this major foreign policy crisis. Now for two straight days, the full press pool is being shut out of events that typically have been open and provided opportunities try to ask the president a question.</p>
<p>The letter also took issue with the lack of access for Obama’s signing of the new START Treaty:</p>
<p>On behalf of the White House Correspondents Association we are writing to protest in the strongest possible terms the White House’s decision to close the president’s Cabinet meeting on Tuesday and his signing of the START Treaty today to the full press pool.</p>
<p>The START treaty was held up as one of the president’s most important foreign policy priorities for almost a year dating back to the trip to Prague last spring. We are concerned that now his signing of it is open to still photographers but closed to editorial, including print and wire reporters and television cameras.</p>
<p>In response Gibbs told reporters on Wednesday that the situation was “fluid and dynamic” making updates difficult and promised to update them as best as he could but said some things need to be “done away from the TV cameras.”</p>
<p>In other words Obama was planning to throw Mubarak under the bus and allow the destabilization of the region but didn’t want the press to know in advance.</p>
<p>As for the START Treaty squabble, Gibbs said it was due to his fear that reporters would shout questions about Egypt to Obama disrupting the event.</p>
<p>Even though I am not a fan of the press in general, I do think they understand that a treaty signing is more about pomp and circumstance rather than a press conference.&#160; Furthermore, Gibbs wouldn’t have to fear reporters shouting questions if he had just given them information in advance.</p>
<p>After being in office for two years one would think the administration would know how to handle a foreign policy crisis and the press.</p>
<p>h/t <a href="http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/141745-white-house-reporters-complain-obama-is-shutting-them-out-on-egypt" type="external">The Hill</a></p>
<p /> | White House Shuts the Press Out on Egypt, START | true | http://aim.org/don-irvine-blog/white-house-shuts-the-press-out-on-egypt/ | 2011-02-03 | 0 |
<p>NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 8, 2018--Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS), the world’s largest retail bookseller, today announced that it collected approximately 1.6 million books during its 2017 Holiday Book Drive program. The books are being donated to more than 650 local charities across the country that provide services to children.</p>
<p>The donation was made possible through the generous support of Barnes &amp; Noble customers, who purchased books for donation at Barnes &amp; Noble bookstores nationwide between November 1, 2017, and January 1, 2018. Community partners are distributing the books collected to hospitals, schools, literacy organizations and social service organizations.</p>
<p>“The annual Holiday Book Drive is a key initiative for us every year, and our customers once again came through by donating approximately 1.6 million books to kids in need this holiday season,” said Tracy Vidakovich, Vice President of Business Development for Barnes &amp; Noble. “We are always amazed to see the generosity of our customers and want to thank them for giving kids of every background the chance to read.”</p>
<p>Local recipients from the Holiday Book Drive include: Toys for Tots; Children’s Aid Society; Big Brothers Big Sisters; the YMCA; Salvation Army; First Book; children’s hospitals from around the country; Reach Out &amp; Read; Ronald McDonald House; Head Start; United Way; various school districts, schools and public libraries; and hundreds of other deserving organizations.</p>
<p>About Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc.</p>
<p>Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS) is the world’s largest retail bookseller, and a leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products.&#160;The Company operates 632 Barnes &amp; Noble bookstores in 50 states, and one of the Web’s premier e-commerce sites, BN.com ( <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bn.com&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.bn.com&amp;index=1&amp;md5=7681bbc4582f63b7022729d9b255b1a3" type="external">www.bn.com</a> ).&#160;The Nook Digital business offers a lineup of popular NOOK ® tablets and eReaders and an expansive collection of digital reading and entertainment content through the NOOK Store ®. The NOOK Store features more than 4.5 million digital books in the US ( <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nook.com&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.nook.com&amp;index=2&amp;md5=01108c6bdff57978ea2bb2103ce9581c" type="external">www.nook.com</a> ), plus periodicals and comics, and offers the ability to enjoy content across a wide array of popular devices through Free NOOK Reading Apps ™ available for Android ™, iOS ® and Windows ®.</p>
<p>General information on Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc. can be obtained by visiting the Company’s corporate website at <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.barnesandnobleinc.com&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.barnesandnobleinc.com&amp;index=3&amp;md5=c6d704a07c9cea51deb74dea4d0aeed6" type="external">www.barnesandnobleinc.com</a>.</p>
<p>Barnes &amp; Noble ®, Barnes &amp; Noble Booksellers ® and Barnes &amp; Noble.com ® are trademarks of Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc. or its affiliates. NOOK ® and the NOOK logos are trademarks of Nook Digital, LLC or its affiliates.</p>
<p>For more information on Barnes &amp; Noble, follow us on <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FBNBuzz&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Twitter&amp;index=4&amp;md5=483a0af5518b3ceefb4e94304dd67bfc" type="external">Twitter</a>, <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Finstagram.com%2Fbarnesandnoble&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Instagram&amp;index=5&amp;md5=8bbeb163df1dae5aa56db6906952ec4a" type="external">Instagram</a>, <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pinterest.com%2Fbarnesandnoble%2F&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Pinterest&amp;index=6&amp;md5=f81138c821fb667de7f577bed7333911" type="external">Pinterest</a> and Snapchat (bnsnaps), and like us on <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fbarnesandnoble&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Facebook&amp;index=7&amp;md5=fe5864ba8d9c78b27b6d87786a8f7154" type="external">Facebook</a>. For more information on NOOK, follow us on <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.twitter.com%2FnookBN&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Twitter&amp;index=8&amp;md5=949c6a6761c8c851d533d9f0d58e90d9" type="external">Twitter</a> and like us on <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnook&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Facebook&amp;index=9&amp;md5=42f34b44542e564eaa86a89cfdce8d35" type="external">Facebook</a>.</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>View source version on businesswire.com: <a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180108005688/en/" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180108005688/en/" type="external">http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180108005688/en/</a></p>
<p>CONTACT: Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc.</p>
<p>Mary Ellen Keating, 212-633-3323</p>
<p>Senior Vice President</p>
<p>Corporate Communications</p>
<p>[email protected]</p>
<p>or</p>
<p>Alex Ortolani, 212-633-3379</p>
<p>Director</p>
<p>Corporate Communications</p>
<p>[email protected]</p>
<p>KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA NEW YORK</p>
<p>INDUSTRY KEYWORD: SENIORS WOMEN RELIGION EDUCATION PRIMARY/SECONDARY UNIVERSITY ENTERTAINMENT PHILANTHROPY BABY/MATERNITY CHILDREN PARENTING TEENS RETAIL PRESCHOOL TRAINING BOOKS OTHER PHILANTHROPY SPECIALTY CONSUMER FAMILY MEN PETS</p>
<p>SOURCE: Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc.</p>
<p>Copyright Business Wire 2018.</p>
<p>PUB: 01/08/2018 08:30 AM/DISC: 01/08/2018 08:30 AM</p>
<p><a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180108005688/en" type="external">http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180108005688/en</a></p>
<p>NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 8, 2018--Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS), the world’s largest retail bookseller, today announced that it collected approximately 1.6 million books during its 2017 Holiday Book Drive program. The books are being donated to more than 650 local charities across the country that provide services to children.</p>
<p>The donation was made possible through the generous support of Barnes &amp; Noble customers, who purchased books for donation at Barnes &amp; Noble bookstores nationwide between November 1, 2017, and January 1, 2018. Community partners are distributing the books collected to hospitals, schools, literacy organizations and social service organizations.</p>
<p>“The annual Holiday Book Drive is a key initiative for us every year, and our customers once again came through by donating approximately 1.6 million books to kids in need this holiday season,” said Tracy Vidakovich, Vice President of Business Development for Barnes &amp; Noble. “We are always amazed to see the generosity of our customers and want to thank them for giving kids of every background the chance to read.”</p>
<p>Local recipients from the Holiday Book Drive include: Toys for Tots; Children’s Aid Society; Big Brothers Big Sisters; the YMCA; Salvation Army; First Book; children’s hospitals from around the country; Reach Out &amp; Read; Ronald McDonald House; Head Start; United Way; various school districts, schools and public libraries; and hundreds of other deserving organizations.</p>
<p>About Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc.</p>
<p>Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS) is the world’s largest retail bookseller, and a leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products.&#160;The Company operates 632 Barnes &amp; Noble bookstores in 50 states, and one of the Web’s premier e-commerce sites, BN.com ( <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bn.com&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.bn.com&amp;index=1&amp;md5=7681bbc4582f63b7022729d9b255b1a3" type="external">www.bn.com</a> ).&#160;The Nook Digital business offers a lineup of popular NOOK ® tablets and eReaders and an expansive collection of digital reading and entertainment content through the NOOK Store ®. The NOOK Store features more than 4.5 million digital books in the US ( <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nook.com&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.nook.com&amp;index=2&amp;md5=01108c6bdff57978ea2bb2103ce9581c" type="external">www.nook.com</a> ), plus periodicals and comics, and offers the ability to enjoy content across a wide array of popular devices through Free NOOK Reading Apps ™ available for Android ™, iOS ® and Windows ®.</p>
<p>General information on Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc. can be obtained by visiting the Company’s corporate website at <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.barnesandnobleinc.com&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.barnesandnobleinc.com&amp;index=3&amp;md5=c6d704a07c9cea51deb74dea4d0aeed6" type="external">www.barnesandnobleinc.com</a>.</p>
<p>Barnes &amp; Noble ®, Barnes &amp; Noble Booksellers ® and Barnes &amp; Noble.com ® are trademarks of Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc. or its affiliates. NOOK ® and the NOOK logos are trademarks of Nook Digital, LLC or its affiliates.</p>
<p>For more information on Barnes &amp; Noble, follow us on <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FBNBuzz&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Twitter&amp;index=4&amp;md5=483a0af5518b3ceefb4e94304dd67bfc" type="external">Twitter</a>, <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Finstagram.com%2Fbarnesandnoble&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Instagram&amp;index=5&amp;md5=8bbeb163df1dae5aa56db6906952ec4a" type="external">Instagram</a>, <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pinterest.com%2Fbarnesandnoble%2F&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Pinterest&amp;index=6&amp;md5=f81138c821fb667de7f577bed7333911" type="external">Pinterest</a> and Snapchat (bnsnaps), and like us on <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fbarnesandnoble&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Facebook&amp;index=7&amp;md5=fe5864ba8d9c78b27b6d87786a8f7154" type="external">Facebook</a>. For more information on NOOK, follow us on <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.twitter.com%2FnookBN&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Twitter&amp;index=8&amp;md5=949c6a6761c8c851d533d9f0d58e90d9" type="external">Twitter</a> and like us on <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fnook&amp;esheet=51739245&amp;newsitemid=20180108005688&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=Facebook&amp;index=9&amp;md5=42f34b44542e564eaa86a89cfdce8d35" type="external">Facebook</a>.</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>View source version on businesswire.com: <a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180108005688/en/" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180108005688/en/" type="external">http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180108005688/en/</a></p>
<p>CONTACT: Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc.</p>
<p>Mary Ellen Keating, 212-633-3323</p>
<p>Senior Vice President</p>
<p>Corporate Communications</p>
<p>[email protected]</p>
<p>or</p>
<p>Alex Ortolani, 212-633-3379</p>
<p>Director</p>
<p>Corporate Communications</p>
<p>[email protected]</p>
<p>KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA NEW YORK</p>
<p>INDUSTRY KEYWORD: SENIORS WOMEN RELIGION EDUCATION PRIMARY/SECONDARY UNIVERSITY ENTERTAINMENT PHILANTHROPY BABY/MATERNITY CHILDREN PARENTING TEENS RETAIL PRESCHOOL TRAINING BOOKS OTHER PHILANTHROPY SPECIALTY CONSUMER FAMILY MEN PETS</p>
<p>SOURCE: Barnes &amp; Noble, Inc.</p>
<p>Copyright Business Wire 2018.</p>
<p>PUB: 01/08/2018 08:30 AM/DISC: 01/08/2018 08:30 AM</p>
<p><a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180108005688/en" type="external">http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180108005688/en</a></p> | Barnes & Noble Customers Donate Approximately 1.6 Million Books to Children in Need Through Holiday Book Drive | false | https://apnews.com/c4f740c2c5d7416f96315078514760e7 | 2018-01-08 | 2 |
<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p>
<p>DETROIT — Takata Corp. has agreed to plead guilty to a single criminal charge and will pay $1 billion in fines and restitution for a years-long scheme to conceal a deadly defect in its automotive air bag inflators.</p>
<p>The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Detroit announced the deal Friday, hours after it unsealed a six-count grand jury indictment against three former Takata executives who are accused of carrying out the scheme by falsifying and altering test reports that showed the inflators could rupture.</p>
<p>Takata inflators can explode with too much force, spewing shrapnel into drivers and passengers. At least 11 people have been killed in the U.S. and 16 worldwide because of the defect. More than 180 have been injured. The problem touched off the largest automotive recall in U.S. history covering 42 million vehicles and 69 million inflators. It will take years for the recalls to be completed.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“The risk that they allowed to happen is really reprehensible,” said Barbara McQuade, the U.S. Attorney in Detroit, whose office worked on the two-year investigation.</p>
<p>Under the deal, Takata will pay a $25 million criminal fine, $125 million to individuals injured by the air bags and $850 million to automakers that purchased the inflators.</p>
<p>A federal judge will be asked to appoint attorney Kenneth Feinberg to distribute restitution payments. He handled restitution in the General Motors ignition switch and BP oil spill cases, among others.</p>
<p>Payments to individuals must be made soon. Automakers must be paid within five days of Takata’s anticipated sale or merger. Takata is expected to be sold to another auto supplier or investor sometime this year.</p>
<p>“Automotive suppliers who sell products that are supposed to protect consumers from injury or death must put safety ahead of profits,” McQuade said. “If they choose instead to engage in fraud, we will hold accountable the individuals and business entities.”</p>
<p>The Justice Department was criticized for failing to charge individuals in earlier high-profile cases against automakers General Motors and Toyota. Now it’s done so twice in one week. On Wednesday, prosecutors disclosed the indictment of six Volkswagen executives when they announced the settlement of a criminal probe into the German company’s emissions-cheating scheme.</p>
<p>On Friday, prosecutors unsealed a Detroit federal grand jury indictment of three former Takata executives, Shinichi Tanaka, Hideo Nakajima and Tsuneo Chikaraishi. All were suspended by the company last year.</p>
<p>According to an indictment, as early as 2000 the trio falsified and altered reports to hide from automakers tests that showed the inflators could rupture. Each was charged with six counts of conspiracy and wire fraud. Takata was charged separately with one count of wire fraud. All three worked for Takata in Japan and the U.S. Takata has its U.S. headquarters in the Detroit suburb of Auburn Hills, Michigan.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“Defendants commonly referred to the removal or alteration of unfavorable test data that was to be provided to Takata customers as ‘XX-ing’ the data,” the indictment says. In June 2005, Nakajima said in an email that “they had no choice but to manipulate test data, and that they needed to ‘cross the bridge together.'”</p>
<p>Unlike most other air bag makers, Takata’s inflators use explosive ammonium nitrate to fill the bags in a crash. But the chemical can deteriorate over time and burn too fast, blowing apart a metal canister. Authorities said the inflator problems were hidden from Takata’s customers.</p>
<p>In 2008, when Takata’s inflators began experiencing ruptures on the road, the three executives and others continued to withhold information from customers, the indictment said. As a result, automakers paid Takata more than $1 billion for tens of millions of faulty inflators. McQuade said the investigation is ongoing.</p>
<p>Tanaka served as executive vice president of inflator global operations, while Nakajima was director of engineering in the automotive systems laboratory and Chikaraishi was chief of Japan-Asia inflator operations, according to prosecutors.</p>
<p>All three are now in Japan, and McQuade said her office will work with authorities there to extradite them to the U.S. for trial. “Extradition is not automatic. It is discretionary with Japan,” she said. But she added that her office has had success in extraditing Japanese executives in automotive parts price-fixing cases.</p>
<p>As of 2015, Takata was the second-largest supplier of air bags in the world, accounting for 20 percent of the air bags sold.</p>
<p>The government said Takata had minimal internal controls and failed to notice its executives’ misconduct for years. Senior Takata executives learned in 2009 that their employees had falsified air bag reports, but failed to take disciplinary action against them until 2015.</p>
<p>McQuade said Takata wanted to make profits on air bags “knowing that they were creating a risk for the end user, soccer moms like me who drives around in my Ford Edge with my kids, who at any moment could get involved in a fender-bender and send a metal projectile into my face.”</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>This headline of this story has been corrected to show that Takata has agreed to plead guilty but has not yet entered the plea.</p> | Takata agrees to guilty plea, will pay $1B for hiding defect | false | https://abqjournal.com/927421/takata-agrees-to-guilty-plea-will-pay-1b-for-hiding-defect.html | 2017-01-13 | 2 |
<p />
<p />
<p />
<p>Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has presented a comprehensive report to President Trump and received two immediate orders.</p>
<p>In a press conference, Mattis stated that after reviewing his report, President Trump "then ordered an accelerated operation against ISIS."</p>
<p />
<p>First, "He delegated authority to the right level to aggressively and in a timely manner to move against enemy vulnerabilities."</p>
<p />
<p>Second, "He directed a tactical shift from shoving ISIS out of seized locations in an attrition fight, to surrounding the enemy in their strongholds so we can annihilate ISIS. The intent is to prevent the return home of escaped foreign fighters."</p>
<p />
<p>Mattis emphasized, "There has been no change in our rules of engagement." and "We continue all possible efforts to protect the innocent."</p>
<p />
<p>"more"</p>
<p />
<p>Source:</p>
<p />
<p>Cspan</p> | Trump Orders Mattis to Encircle and 'Annihilate ISIS' | true | http://thegoldwater.com/news/3028-Trump-Orders-Mattis-to-Encircle-and-Annihilate-ISIS | 2017-05-19 | 0 |
<p>U.S. stocks fluctuated between gains and losses at the open on Thursday after a spate of lackluster U.S. economic data constrained gains. Stock futures trimmed their advance after the data, as a larger-than-expected drop in sales at U.S. retailers stoked worries about the strength of the consumer. The data revealed a larger-than-expected decline in sales, stoking worries about the strength of the U.S. consumer. The S&amp;P 500 index shed 2 points, or 0.1%, to 2,124. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was essentially flat at 18,030. The Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 8 points, or 0.2%, to 5,182.</p>
<p>Copyright © 2016 MarketWatch, Inc.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p> | U.S. Stocks Mixed At The Open As Lackluster Data Curb Gains | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/09/15/us-stocks-mixed-at-open-as-lackluster-data-curb-gains.html | 2016-09-15 | 0 |
<p>I received an email prayer request from a friend whose daughter lost her job. Tough times loom for her, but much of his request was that God would use this trauma to illuminate her need to trust Jesus Christ for her salvation.</p>
<p>I paused to pray for the woman and as I did I realized that my words illustrated my insulation from the truly dire circumstances of those who balance on the edge of fiscal viability.</p>
<p />
<p>I prayed God would show the woman that while job loss is sudden, traumatic and brutal, she wasn’t going to be thrown into the street the next day; that her cupboards contained food so she wasn’t going to go hungry immediately; that no one stood outside her former employer’s building to repossess her car when she walked out the final time. Basically I was praying that God would show the woman job loss does not mean immediate devastation and she had time to catch her breath, pull her wits about her and evaluate her situation without panic.</p>
<p>Most people have resources upon which they can draw, accumulated over years, that provide a safety margin between the immediate panic of job loss and the more distant difficulty of having to decide if they need to downgrade their living situation, sell a car or move in with mom.</p>
<p>Then I realized how disconnected I truly am from the pain of poverty. This, despite my own “plunge to poverty” experience of just six weeks ago with North Carolina Woman’s Missionary Union when I gave up my identity with a group of others to “live on the streets” of Roanoke Rapids, N.C., and mingle with the homeless for 24 hours.</p>
<p>The simple fact is, when job loss occurs for them and maybe for my friend’s daughter, their cupboards already are bare. They don’t have a car to sell, and one missed rent payment puts them on the street. The majority of those living in poverty have a job, but the wage is so low and the mouths to feed are so many that any diversion from the stream of a steady paycheck instantly puts them all at risk.</p>
<p>Time contracts for the poor. There is no next year for investments to mature, waiting for dividends or a tax refund to provide a cash influx to get over the hump. There is barely a “tomorrow” to consider if a meal is not scrounged to get them through today.&#160;&#160;</p>
<p>The first news of a friend losing a job is like the fat, heavy raindrops you try to avoid if you’re caught outside. You change your course; pick up your pace, hold something over your head. But soon, the constant drizzle of job loss soaks you and you can’t get any wetter and you don’t notice the next drops falling on your already soaked skin and another friend losing a job is just another statistic lost in the noise of all the news.</p>
<p>But each job loss notification is its own deluge to the one getting the news. Remember that when you hear the bad news from another friend who is suddenly stroking for the surface to keep her head above water.</p>
<p>Don’t forget about them. Pray for their encouragement — and for a job.</p>
<p>Patty Shaver, whose graphics design job was eliminated even while her husband was looking for work, has developed a career preparation and search website that may be helpful to you: <a href="http://www.mycareervoyage.com/" type="external">http://www.mycareervoyage.com</a>.</p>
<p>Norman Jameson, former editor of North Carolina's Biblical Recorder, is a freelance writer.</p> | OPINION: Watch your assumptions about job loss | false | https://baptistnews.com/article/opinionwatchyourassumptionsaboutjobloss/ | 3 |
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<p />
<p>Image source: The Motley Fool.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Bed Bath &amp; Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY) reported third-quarter results on Dec. 21. The home-goods retailer is struggling with sluggish sales and falling margins.</p>
<p>Data source: Bed Bath &amp; Beyond Q3 2016 earnings <a href="http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=97860&amp;p=irol-newsArticle&amp;ID=2231254" type="external">press release Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>Net sales inched up 0.1% year over year to $2.955 billion. On a comparable basis, sales fell 1.4%, compared with a 0.4% increase in the year-ago quarter, as the impact of "low-single-digit" declines in Bed Bath &amp; Beyond's same-store sales more than offset a greater than 20% increase in comps from the company's digital channels.</p>
<p>"The lion's share of our business is done in bricks and mortar," said CEO Steven Temares during a conference call with analysts. "And the foot traffic that we're seeing, the reduction in foot traffic, I think has been seen across all retail, and as long as we have a significant component in bricks and mortar like that, that is a bit of a headwind for us."</p>
<p>Bed Bath &amp; Beyond's profitability also continued its downward trend, with gross and operating margins falling to 37% and 7.1%, respectively -- down from 37.8% and 9.9% in the prior-year period. Higher coupon, shipping, labor, and technology costs all contributed to the decline.</p>
<p>All told, net earnings plummeted 29% to $126 million, while earnings per share, which were helped somewhat by share buybacks, dropped 22% to $1.05.</p>
<p>These results led Bed Bath &amp; Beyond to cut its full-year sales forecast. Comparable sales are now projected to decline by approximately 50 basis points, with net sales increasing about 1%. Bed Bath &amp; Beyond's previous guidance was for full-year comparable sales to be flat to up 1%, with net sales expected to rise about 125 to 140 basis points than the increase in comp sales.</p>
<p>Bed Bath &amp; Beyond also said that it now expects its fiscal 2016 earnings per share to come in at the low end of its guidance range of $4.50to $5.00.</p>
<p>"In summary, it continues to be a transitional time for retail," said Temares. "As our business transforms, we are navigating the competitive landscape and adapting as customer preferences and purchasing behavior evolve."</p>
<p>10 stocks we like better than Bed Bath and Beyond When investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.*</p>
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<p>*Stock Advisor returns as of Nov. 7, 2016</p>
<p><a href="http://my.fool.com/profile/TMFGuardian/info.aspx" type="external">Joe Tenebruso Opens a New Window.</a> has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Bed Bath and Beyond. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services <a href="http://www.fool.com/shop/newsletters/index.aspx?source=isiedilnk018048&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">free for 30 days Opens a New Window.</a>. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that <a href="http://www.fool.com/knowledge-center/motley.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">considering a diverse range of insights Opens a New Window.</a> makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> | Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. Profits Plunge 29% | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/12/22/bed-bath-beyond-inc-profits-plunge-2.html | 2016-12-22 | 0 |
<p />
<p>Shi Tao, a Chinese journalist, wrote for Dangdai Shang Bao (Contemporary Business News), a Chinese Daily. On April 30, he was convicted of sending foreign-based websites the text of an internal message that the Chinese government had sent to his newspaper to warn journalists of possible unrest that could result from the return of certain dissidents on the 15th anniversary of the <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/4/newsid_2496000/2496277.stm" type="external">Tiananmen Square massacre</a>. Shi concurs that he sent the email, but denies that he is guilty of “illegally providing state secrets to foreign entitites.” He has been sentenced to ten years in prison.</p>
<p>Shi’s case is of interest, not only because he is a journalist, but because the Chinese government obtained his email from Yahoo!. Here is part of Yahoo!’s <a href="http://www.amnesty.org/images/resources/ec/Yahoo_response.pdf" type="external">response</a> to a letter from <a href="http://www.amnesty.org/" type="external">Amnesty Internationa</a>l:</p>
<p>Yahoo! Hong Kong, our subsidiary in Hong Kong, was not involved in any way in the disclosure of Shi Tao’s information to the PRC authorities. In this specific case, the PRC government ordered Yahoo! China to provide user information and Yahoo! China complied with applicable PRC law. Neither Yahoo! Hong Kong nor any other Yahoo! subsidiary would respond to a PRC law enforcement request, other than in accordance with their own applicable laws. …</p>
<p>Yahoo! China received a valid and legal demand for information from PRC law enforcement authorities according to applicable PRC laws and the procedures we had established with Chinese law enforcement officials. As in most jurisdictions, including the United States, the Government of China is not required to inform service providers why they are seeking certain information and typically does not do so.</p>
<p>According to <a href="http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=14884" type="external">Reporters without borders</a>, Yahoo! Holdings (Hong Kong) is subject to Hong Kong legislation, which does not spell out the responsibilities of companies providing email services in this type of situation. However, the mail servers appear to be located on the Chinese mainland, which would explain the existence of a court order from China.</p>
<p>Both <a href="http://web.amnesty.org/pages/chn-310106-action-eng" type="external">Amnesty Internationa</a>l and Reporters without borders have questioned to what degree Yahoo!’s desire for Chinese business has blurred the company’s commitment to ethical responsibilities. Internet companies, including both Yahoo! and Google, have established self-censoring search engines in China</p>
<p /> | Chinese journalist serving 10-year sentence for sending email | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2006/02/chinese-journalist-serving-10-year-sentence-sending-email/ | 2006-02-07 | 4 |
<p>MAY 13, 2010</p>
<p>By KATY GRIMES</p>
<p>Mention workers’ compensation reform in a crowd, and eyes immediately glaze over. It can be a droll subject – unless you have skin in the game.</p>
<p>The Senate Labor and Industrial Relations Committee held a hearing Wednesday in order to decide if the Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) is “appropriately serving California’s injured workers.”</p>
<p>And everyone with skin in the game testified before the committee… except for most of the employers who write the big checks to workers compensation insurance companies.</p>
<p>Representing labor, applicants’ attorneys, the California Commission on Health and Safety and Workers’ Compensation (CHSWC), the Division of Workers Compensation (DWC), the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR), and the Legislative Analysts Office (LAO), three panels presented information about the effects of workers’ compensation reform changes to the committee. Grimway Farms was the employer present.</p>
<p>Judge Lach Taylor (CHSWC) and CHSWC Executive Officer Christine Baker gave the update of the current status of the permanent disability ratings schedule stating that “raising benefits to injured workers actually saves money.” The LAO recommended to the committee that the Legislature clarify the statute because the system for measuring a permanent disability can be rebutted, triggering additional litigation and higher awards. The LAO recommendation suggested that tightening up the language would provide more uniformity and objectivity in the workers’ compensation system.</p>
<p>After explaining that the best they can do is to define the injured workers in workers’ compensation claims, DIR Director John Duncan, DWC Chief Counsel Destie Overpeck, and Administrative Director Carrie Nevans received a stern reprimand from Sen. Mark DeSaulnier, D-Concord, the committee chairman, for ignoring the required status update of the 2005 Permanent Disability Ratings. DeSaulnier asked several times whether they ignored the law requiring the status update. Duncan dodged the question but DeSaulnier finally asked, “Did you obey the law?” Duncan said that they had. DeSaulnier, appearing unhappy with their answers, stated that he is frustrated with a couple of state agencies ignoring the Legislature. He asked that if the law needs to be changed, why they didn’t bring it to the attention of legislators. Overpeck answered, “It was the choice we took.”</p>
<p>DeSaulnier then asked the panel if its members were concerned with creating the potential for greater litigation, or even getting the state sued. Nevans insisted to DeSaulnier that they had spoken with legislators and staff and “made clear we were going to miss the deadline.”&#160; When DeSaulnier pressed for whom specifically in the Legislature Nevans had spoken with, she said she had spoken with legislative staff. When Nevans could not answer to whom she had spoken, DeSaulnier explained that while he wasn’t interested in “playing gotcha,” he said that he reserved the right to go to the Rules Committee and have the panel come back before him under oath. Duncan finally admitted that they were responsible for not taking action in updating the permanent disability ratings, and felt that the hearing was “a good start.”</p>
<p>Duncan ended the panel presentation saying that his department has made it “a top priority looking for uninsured employers to keep the playing field level.”</p>
<p>DeSaulnier explained to Duncan, Nevans and Overpeck that he understood that the hearing had been uncomfortable, but respect was owed to the people of the state and it is the responsibility of the DWC and DIR, concluding, that it was “troubling at best when you ignore the larger responsibility.”</p>
<p>The final panel consisted of applicants’ attorneys, labor, and one employer representing farming.</p>
<p>Linda Atcherley and Brad Chalk with the Applicants Attorneys Association said that they want flexibility in the workers compensation ratings and stated that the LAO report is inaccurate. The need to litigate some workplace injuries is necessary in order to “measure the ability to exist as a human being,” according to Chalk. Chalk explained that the lack of uniformity in medical care and costs was due to the American Medical Association (AMA) doctors who write the guide books on which all workplace injury care and compensation is based.&#160; “The AMA makes a lot of money traveling around the country selling books. The guides are highly political,” said Chalk, as “there is a business intent selling books.”</p>
<p>Sean McNally, vice president of Grimway Farms, said the 2004 workers compensation reform resulted in lower costs to business as well as a much higher level of satisfaction by the injured worker of the medical care they received. McNally said there was far too much litigation over everything in the workers compensation system, and there is a need for changes without increasing costs to employers.</p>
<p>Angie Wei of the California Labor Federation identified some problems with “insurance companies enjoying higher bottom line,” after the 2004 reforms. Wei said that her goal was to “restore dignity” to the injured worker.</p> | Workers' Comp officials reprimanded | false | https://calwatchdog.com/2010/05/13/new-workers-comp-officials-reprimanded/ | 2018-05-20 | 3 |
<p>AMES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa lawmaker says he’s taking full responsibility for his decision to drive drunk.</p>
<p>State Rep. Francis “Chip” Baltimore, a Republican from Boone, was arrested Friday morning in Ames near Interstate 35. His blood alcohol tested out at nearly twice the legal limit, and a pistol was found under the driver’s seat.</p>
<p>Baltimore told station <a href="http://www.weareiowa.com/news/local-news/only-on-5-rep-baltimore-apologizes-for-dui-incident/928400875" type="external">WOI</a> that he “made a very, very bad decision to get behind the wheel.”</p>
<p>Baltimore, an attorney, is serving his fourth term as a state representative. He is chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, a legislative body that has advanced legislation in recent years to add more penalties for individuals arrested for drunken driving.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: WOI-TV, <a href="http://www.woi-tv.com" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.woi-tv.com" type="external">http://www.woi-tv.com</a></p>
<p>AMES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa lawmaker says he’s taking full responsibility for his decision to drive drunk.</p>
<p>State Rep. Francis “Chip” Baltimore, a Republican from Boone, was arrested Friday morning in Ames near Interstate 35. His blood alcohol tested out at nearly twice the legal limit, and a pistol was found under the driver’s seat.</p>
<p>Baltimore told station <a href="http://www.weareiowa.com/news/local-news/only-on-5-rep-baltimore-apologizes-for-dui-incident/928400875" type="external">WOI</a> that he “made a very, very bad decision to get behind the wheel.”</p>
<p>Baltimore, an attorney, is serving his fourth term as a state representative. He is chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, a legislative body that has advanced legislation in recent years to add more penalties for individuals arrested for drunken driving.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: WOI-TV, <a href="http://www.woi-tv.com" type="external" /> <a href="http://www.woi-tv.com" type="external">http://www.woi-tv.com</a></p> | Iowa lawmaker takes responsibility for driving drunk | false | https://apnews.com/87e3b639a39d42468897ba807fbece4b | 2018-01-22 | 2 |
<p>Happy Friday! It’s also the last day for Gov. Jerry Brown to sign legislation, so expect a flurry of signatures and vetoes.</p>
<p>Thursday had quite the flurry of signatures as well. One of the most consequential measures signed into law yesterday&#160;makes&#160;it so that&#160;most workers in California will be automatically enrolled in a private retirement account run by the state, starting around 2018.</p>
<p>Through&#160;a legislative&#160;measure, signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday, most workers in the state who don’t have access to an employer-provided retirement plan will automatically join the&#160; <a href="" type="internal">Secure Choice Retirement Savings Trust</a> through their work, although employees can opt out.</p>
<p>Senate President Pro Tempore Kevin de León, who championed the bill, argued that while anyone already has the option of enrolling in a private account, many are not.&#160;</p>
<p>The legislation also has provisions to block the state and employers from incurring any liabilities associated with the new program. However, critics are unconvinced that enough safeguards are in place.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">CalWatchdog</a> has more. &#160;</p>
<p>In other news:</p>
<p>“A bill reining in abuse of civil asset forfeiture laws by law enforcement agencies was signed by Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday, marking a significant victory for advocates of civil liberties,” reports <a href="" type="internal">CalWatchdog</a>.</p>
<p>“In a win for lobbying efforts in a&#160;budding industry, California has made it through another year with few limits on drones in&#160;its skies.&#160;Gov. <a href="http://www.latimes.com/topic/politics-government/jerry-brown-PEPLT007547-topic.html" type="external">Jerry Brown</a> on Thursday signed legislation that protects&#160;emergency responders and volunteers from liability should they damage a drone in the course of their work.&#160;But he vetoed the last&#160;four&#160;pending&#160;drone&#160;bills, saying he found it “more prudent to explore a more comprehensive approach” to the regulation of unmanned aircraft systems.” The <a href="http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-sac-essential-politics-updates-few-new-rules-on-the-use-of-drones-as-1475190376-htmlstory.html" type="external">Los Angeles Times</a> has more.&#160;</p>
<p>“Many faces have changed, but much about the California Legislature remains the same as a decade ago: Lawmakers consider thousands of bills and other measures, which frequently pass or fail strictly along party lines.&#160;But those lines were notably fuzzier in the just-completed session compared with a decade ago, legislative voting records show.” <a href="http://www.sacbee.com/site-services/databases/article105039246.html" type="external">The Sacramento Bee</a> has more.</p>
<p>“Single-user restrooms to become gender neutral in California,” reports the <a href="http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-sac-essential-politics-updates-california-single-user-restrooms-to-1475188201-htmlstory.html" type="external">Los Angeles Times</a>.</p>
<p>Republican voter registration advantage in Orange County continues to narrow. <a href="http://www.ocregister.com/articles/percent-730586-county-trump.html" type="external">The Orange County Register</a> has more.&#160;</p>
<p>Legislature:</p>
<p>Gov. Brown:</p>
<p>Tips: [email protected]</p>
<p>Follow us: @calwatchdog @mflemingterp</p>
<p>New follower:&#160; <a href="https://twitter.com/fionama" type="external">@fionama</a></p> | CalWatchdog Morning Read – September 30 | false | https://calwatchdog.com/2016/09/30/calwatchdog-morning-read-september-30/ | 2018-09-20 | 3 |
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<p>BUFFALO, N.Y. — Local officials are joining New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in calling for state regulators to investigate how utilities responded to last week’s windstorm that knocked out power to more than 200,000 customers in the western part of the state.</p>
<p>Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz wants the Department of Public Services to conduct an investigation into New York State Electric and Gas Corporation’s response to Wednesday’s storm that left tens of thousands of homes and businesses in the Buffalo area without power.</p>
<p>More than half of the overall outages were in the Rochester area, which Cuomo visited on Friday. The next day the Democrat directed the PSC to investigate RG&amp;E’s preparation and response to the storm that brought wind gusts of 70 mph to 80 mph.</p>
<p>More than 30,000 RG&amp;E customers spent a frigid weekend without heat or lights. Some 8,000 customers remain without power early Monday.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | State probes into NY utilities’ windstorm response sought | false | https://abqjournal.com/967707/state-probes-into-ny-utilities-windstorm-response-sought.html | 2 |
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<p>State of Flux:</p>
<p>There's speculation that Jon Huntsman could replace Hillary Clinton as the next secretary of state. Hunstman, a Republican, previously served in the Obama administration as its ambassador to China. The early favorite, Sen. John Kerry, could get passed over because of Democrats' fears that Republican Scott Brown, who lost to Elizabeth Warren in the Massachusetts Senate race, could win in a special election for Kerry's seat. ( <a href="http://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2012/11/08/obama-faces-familiar-world-of-problems-in-2nd-term" type="external">Read more</a>)</p>
<p>West End: It's official: Tea party favorite Allen West has lost his congressional race, but is refusing to concede. According to Florida results that were released over the weekend, Democrat Patrick Murphy defeated West by more than 2,400 votes, which is beyond the half-point margin needed to mandate a recount. ( <a href="http://swampland.time.com/2012/11/12/fla-gop-house-incumbent-allen-west-refuses-to-concede-defeat/" type="external">Read more</a>)</p>
<p>Trailblazers: 2012 has been a year of election firsts. In Wisconsin, Democrat Tammy Baldwin won her race to become the first openly gay person elected to the Senate. In California, Democrat Mark Takano became the first openly gay minority to be elected to Congress. And on Monday, Democrat Kyrsten Sinema was declared the winner of her Arizona race, which will make her the first openly bisexual member of Congress. ( <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/11/kyrsten-sinema-becomes-first-openly-bisexual-member-of-congress/" type="external">Read more</a>)</p>
<p />
<p>Another Run Brewing: Arizona Republican Gov. Jan Brewer says she hasn't ruled out seeking a third term in office, even if it means challenging state law to do so. Arizona law stipulates that the governor can serve only two consecutive terms. Brewer took over for Janet Napolitano when the Democrat left the job to become secretary of homeland security in 2009. As her former attorney Joe Kanefield explained, Brewer's ability to run depends on whether "term" applies to a governor who inherited the office. ( <a href="http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1112/83720.html?hp=f3" type="external">Read more</a>)</p>
<p>Head Honcho: Grover Norquist, founder of Americans for Tax Reform, has his own theory on why Mitt Romney lost the election. Let's call it the "Poopy Head Theory." Here's how Norquist eloquently explained it on CBS? "This Morning" on Monday: "The president was elected on the basis that he was not Romney and that Romney was a poopy head and you should vote against Romney." By the way, Norquist is the man behind the no tax pledge that has been signed by most congressional Republicans. ( <a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/267287-grover-norquist-obama-reelected-by-characterizing-romney-as-a-poopy-head-" type="external">Read more</a>)</p>
<p>Video of the Day: Months before she was identified as the woman having an affair with David Petraeus, Paula Broadwell appeared on "The Daily Show" to promote her biography of the now ex-CIA director. Among the things she joked with Jon Stewart about was how scandal-free Petraeus was. Oh, the irony.</p>
<p />
<p><a href="http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-january-25-2012/paula-broadwell" type="external">The Daily Show with Jon Stewart</a>Get More: <a href="http://www.thedailyshow.com/full-episodes/" type="external">Daily Show Full Episodes</a>, <a href="http://www.indecisionforever.com/" type="external">Political Humor &amp; Satire Blog</a>, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/thedailyshow" type="external">The Daily Show on Facebook</a></p>
<p /> | Allen West Loses, Grover Norquist on Obama's 'Poopy Head' Strategy, and More | true | https://truthdig.com/articles/allen-west-loses-grover-norquist-on-obamas-poopy-head-strategy-and-more/ | 2012-11-13 | 4 |
<p>In this Malawian town, these two teenage boys say they eat food made from cornmeal three times a day. This is the case for many in Malawi, and over 90% of Malawi's cultivated land is devoted to corn. But it wasn't always this way. Maize is native to the Americas. Maize first came to Africa in the 16th century and it became a key crop grown during the slave trade. But as recently as the 1950s, subsistence farmers didn't rely on maize for the main crop. But in 1960s, corn production really took off in Africa. This researcher says international aid agencies thought maize could be the key to food security for Africa, and a hybrid maize crop was introduced to Africa. In Asia, special varieties of rice transformed famine stricken countries and people talk about this period as Asia's green period. But it didn't turn out that way in Africa because many farmers couldn't afford the hybrid maize and fertilizer and droughts left the crops withered. The researcher says it all fell apart in places like Malawi. Because corn displaced other formerly reliable crops, the switch to corn left people hungrier than before. Malawi's dependence on corn has also made for meals that often lack complete protein and malnutrition and stunting. Malnutrition and HIV also make for a dangerous combination. A poor diet weakens the immune system, which makes fighting the AIDS virus even more difficult. There are, however, sharp differences as to how to tackle this problem. The Malawian government remains committed to the corn crop and government officials are trying to provide fertilizer to grow more corn, but this researcher is trying to get Malawians to grow a wider variety of crops. But he's had only limited success because people are reluctant to giving up corn. The researcher says the outside world did too good a job of convincing people that maize is a better crop. But a few are changing their attitudes.</p> | Corn in Africa | false | https://pri.org/stories/2008-11-27/corn-africa | 2008-11-27 | 3 |
<p />
<p>Are you satisfied just to draw a salary or break even? Learn how to measure success and earn back double the investment you put into your business.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>One of the top reasons why entrepreneurs start new businesses is to make money. It’s a good goal, too.</p>
<p>Entrepreneurs are very much like farmers in that they plant and sow seeds for a lucrative harvest. So what constitutes a successful harvest? Just how much money should business owners expect to make on their invested capital?</p>
<p>Here are some benchmarks to inspire your goal-setting:</p>
<p>- Compare to key stock indices. According to <a href="" type="internal">Morningstar</a>, from 1926 through 2009, large company stocks returned an average of 9.8 percent to investors. During the same period, small company stocks that investors might find in the Russell 3000 index returned an average of 11.9 percent.</p>
<p>Of course, some years are better than others. Last year, the Russell 3000 returned a robust 14.8 percent to investors. In 2008, the Russell 3000 lost about 38 percent!</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>Because entrepreneurs typically pull their savings from the stock or bond market, comparing public market index returns is a helpful exercise. Most investors define success as beating the S&amp;P 500, which returned about 15 percent in 2010. This should be your minimum expectation of investment success.</p>
<p>- Match private equity investment expectations. During the last 20 years, the Venture Capital Index returned 25.6 percent. This nifty return was achieved through a “portfolio” approach to venture investing.</p>
<p>Venture capital (“VC”) funds, as well as experienced angel investors, specialize in investing in startup and growth-oriented privately held companies. They understand the statistical risks of business failure within their investment portfolio. They know that on average, only four out of 10 investments in promising entrepreneurial companies will deliver any profit to VC fund investors.</p>
<p>This means that those four winners must cover the six losers to achieve a blended 20-percent-plus portfolio return. This is why VCs and angels aim extra high and turn down investment opportunities that don’t represent a “grand slam home run potential” to the overall fund.</p>
<p>- Understand the time value of money. Another insightful way to think about your investment returns is to consider the time value of money. Typically, angel and VC funds are tied up for a good five years before their portfolio companies are ready for harvest — typically through a sale to a larger company.</p>
<p>The same is true for entrepreneurs. If you triple the value of your investment in three years, you will earn a robust return of 44 percent. If you triple the value of your investment in five years, your return drops to 38 percent. The longer you expect to have your funds tied up in your company, the greater your return expectations should be.</p>
<p>- Diversify your portfolio. Investments that entrepreneurs make in their own businesses differ from those of angel and VC limited-partner investors in one important way. Investing in privately held companies typically represents a small portion of their total investment activity — usually less than 5 percent.</p>
<p>In contrast, entrepreneurs can go “all in” and invest everything they have in a new company. The upshot is the risks and opportunity costs of holding an underdiversified investment portfolio are substantially greater for entrepreneurs than independent investors. Again, greater risk demands greater potential rewards.</p>
<p>Make sure you’re compensated My concern with too many business owners is they set very low standards for their investment dollar. They are content to break even or just draw a salary when the business can afford it. Even worse, they continue to invest in troubled companies in which they might not ever get their funds back.</p>
<p>My advice to entrepreneurs is to try to at least double total invested capital plus the value of any contingent liabilities associated with guaranteeing bank debt, real estate leases and equipment leases. Building a successful business is hard work. Earning a salary is not enough to compensate for all the risks and effort involved with business ownership.</p> | What’s a Successful Return on Investment? | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2011/08/17/whats-successful-return-on-investment.html | 2016-03-23 | 0 |
<p />
<p>Shares of Palo Alto Networks (NYSE: PANW) have fallen nearly 30% this year, due to slowing sales growth, widening GAAP losses, and the threat of rising competition. By comparison, the PureFunds ISE Cybersecurity ETF (NYSEMKT: HACK) -- which owns a basket of top cybersecurity-related stocks -- rose 4% during that period.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Will Palo Alto fall even further next year? Let's take a closer look at its tailwinds, headwinds, and valuation to find out.</p>
<p>Image source: Getty Images.</p>
<p>The good news for Palo Alto -- which is bad news for companies, governments, and other organizations -- is that the number of data breaches is rising worldwide. That's why the global security market could grow from $122.45 billion todayto $202.36 billion by 2021, according to Research and Markets.</p>
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<p>Palo Alto is widely considered the "best in breed" provider of next-gen firewalls. It serves over 35,000 customers in more than140 countries, and has added over 1,000 new customers per quarter for 20 straight quarters. Over 85 of the Fortune 100 and half of the Global 2000 companies use its services, andGartnerhas ranked it as an enterprise firewall market leader for the past five years.</p>
<p>That growing customer base boosted Palo Alto's revenue by 49% to $1.4 billion last year, and analysts expect its sales to rise another 31% this year. Its non-GAAP earnings more than doubled to $152.6 million last year, and Wall Street expects that figure to rise another 67% this year.</p>
<p>Looking ahead, Palo Alto's Next-Generation Security Platform -- which bundles together natively integrated technologies, automated protection solutions, and threat intelligence sharing solutions in an all-in-oneplatform -- could widen its moat against bigger tech companies like Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) and Symantec (NASDAQ: SYMC). Palo Alto is also frequently cited as a potential takeover target for those larger companies, but its enterprise value of $11 billion makes it a pretty big buy.</p>
<p>On the surface, Palo Alto looks like a great growth play. But if we dig beneath the headline numbers, the cracks start appearing. The first issue is its slowing sales growth. Its revenue rose 34% annually to $398.1 million last quarter, but that missed estimates by $2.1 million and represented its slowest growth rate since its IPO in 2012.</p>
<p>That slowdown was attributed to slower enterprise spending, tougher competition in the firewall market, and a market shift from on-site appliances to automated solutions and subscription-based software and services. Those headwinds might be acceptable for a company with a lower valuation, but Palo Alto's price-to-sales ratio of 8 leaves little room for disappointment.</p>
<p>The second issue is its widening GAAP losses. Last quarter, Palo Alto's GAAP loss widened from $39.9 million in the prior year quarter to $61.8 million. That loss was mainly caused by its stock-based compensation (SBC) expenses, which surged 55% annually and claimed 29% of its revenues. Unless Palo Alto can get those costs under control, many investors will likely question its ability to ever generate a real profit.</p>
<p>Lastly, competition in the firewall and perimeter security market remains fierce. Cisco bundles technologies it gained by acquiring Sourcefire, ThreatGRID, andother smaller security companies into its networking hardware and software. Symantec dramatically expanded its end-to-end security capabilities with the acquisitions of Blue Coat and LifeLock, andFortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT) has bundled additional security services into its next-gen firewalls. If Palo Alto increases its R&amp;D or sales and marketing expenses to counter those threats, its SBC expenses will likely spike and cause its GAAP losses to widen.</p>
<p>2017 won't likely be Palo Alto's "worst" year ever. That title will still belong to 2016, which saw the stock's worst full-year performance since its IPO. But 2017 also probably won't be a turnaround year for the stock, unless it can either report accelerating sales growth or narrower GAAP losses.</p>
<p>10 stocks we like better than Palo Alto Networks When investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.*</p>
<p>David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the <a href="http://infotron.fool.com/infotrack/click?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fool.com%2Fmms%2Fmark%2Fe-foolcom-sa-bbn-dyn%3Faid%3D8867%26source%3Disaeditxt0010449%26ftm_cam%3Dsa-bbn-evergreen%26ftm_pit%3D6312%26ftm_veh%3Dbbn_article_pitch&amp;impression=2481ec7b-c27b-4be1-9ed2-a6617071cb45&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">10 best stocks Opens a New Window.</a> for investors to buy right now... and Palo Alto Networks wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys.</p>
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<p>*Stock Advisor returns as of Nov. 7, 2016</p>
<p><a href="http://my.fool.com/profile/TMFSunLion/info.aspx" type="external">Leo Sun Opens a New Window.</a> owns shares of Cisco Systems. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Gartner. The Motley Fool recommends Cisco Systems and Palo Alto Networks. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services <a href="http://www.fool.com/shop/newsletters/index.aspx?source=isiedilnk018048&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">free for 30 days Opens a New Window.</a>. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that <a href="http://www.fool.com/knowledge-center/motley.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">considering a diverse range of insights Opens a New Window.</a> makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> | Will 2017 Be Palo Alto Networks Inc's Worst Year Yet? | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/12/21/will-2017-be-palo-alto-networks-inc-worst-year-yet.html | 2016-12-21 | 0 |
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<p>NEW YORK - As the Girl Scouts' membership continues a sharp decline, its leaders are betting on technology to reverse the trend - including a major expansion of its year-old program enabling Girl Scout cookies to be sold via mobile apps and the girls' personalized websites.</p>
<p>The Digital Cookie upgrade, being announced on Tuesday, comes amid persistent challenges for the 103-year-old organization. According to figures provided to The Associated Press, youth membership for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30 was just under 1.9 million, down more than 6 percent from 2014, and adult membership was about 784,000, down by 3 percent.</p>
<p>The total youth and adult membership is down more than 15 percent over three years, and down 30 percent from a peak of more than 3.8 million in 2003.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | Girl Scouts hope tech initiatives will curb membership drop | false | https://abqjournal.com/687721/girl-scouts-hope-tech-initiatives-will-curb-membership-drop.html | 2 |
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<p>Shares of recreational vehicle retailer Camping World (NYSE: CWH) surged 15% in August, according to data provided by&#160; <a href="http://marketintelligence.spglobal.com/" type="external">S&amp;P Global Market Intelligence Opens a New Window.</a>. A strong second-quarter report featuring double-digit revenue growth and better-than-expected earnings was the main driver behind the soaring stock price.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Camping World reported second-quarter revenue of $1.28 billion, up 20% year over year and $110 million higher than the average analyst estimate. Same-store sales surged 10.6% to $1.1 billion, with the rest of the company's revenue coming from new locations. Camping World sold 21,930 new units during the quarter, up 38.2% year over year, and 9,073 used units, down 8.4% year over year.</p>
<p>Non-GAAP net income came in at $0.91 per share, up from $0.65 per share in the prior-year period and $0.23 better than analysts were expecting. "We believe these results clearly demonstrate the power and leverage of our unique operating model, which sells a comprehensive portfolio of products and services across a growing database of consumers being driven by our national network of retail locations that cater to RV, boating and outdoor enthusiasts," said Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis.</p>
<p>Camping World generated a substantial amount of revenue from areas beyond selling new and used units. Consumer services and plans produced $48.1 million of revenue, parts, services, and others produced $174.2 million of revenue, and finance and insurance added up to $101.0 million of revenue.</p>
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<p>Lemonis sees Camping World catering to a wide swath of consumers, not just RV owners: "While our business model has traditionally been focused on the RV owner, we see a much broader opportunity to leverage our products and services across the larger base of outdoor lifestyle consumers."</p>
<p>Camping World's second-quarter results were impressive. RV sales is an area of retail that's unlikely to be disrupted by e-commerce, although it remains highly sensitive to the overall health of the economy. For now, the good times are rolling at Camping World.</p>
<p>10 stocks we like better than Camping World HoldingsWhen investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.*</p>
<p>David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the <a href="http://infotron.fool.com/infotrack/click?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fool.com%2Fmms%2Fmark%2Fe-foolcom-sa-bbn-static%3Faid%3D8867%26source%3Disaeditxt0010449%26ftm_cam%3Dsa-bbn-evergreen%26ftm_pit%3D6312%26ftm_veh%3Dbbn_article_pitch&amp;impression=e6fdbb61-26a5-4e1d-800a-5f6f252f5a0a&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;uuid=6b665968-93f9-11e7-b7e1-0050569d4be0&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">10 best stocks Opens a New Window.</a> for investors to buy right now... and Camping World Holdings wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys.</p>
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<p>*Stock Advisor returns as of September 5, 2017</p>
<p><a href="http://my.fool.com/profile/TMFBargainBin/info.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;uuid=6b665968-93f9-11e7-b7e1-0050569d4be0&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">Timothy Green Opens a New Window.</a> has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Camping World Holdings. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;uuid=6b665968-93f9-11e7-b7e1-0050569d4be0&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> | Why Shares of Camping World Jumped 15% in August | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2017/09/08/why-shares-camping-world-jumped-15-in-august.html | 2017-09-08 | 0 |
<p>While hyper-leftist MSNBC seems to be doing better in the era of President Donald Trump (the network couldn't really do much worse, right?), some bastions of the liberal press cabal are getting beaten to a pulp.</p>
<p>"The estimated total U.S. daily newspaper circulation (print and digital combined) in 2016 was 35 million for weekday and 38 million for Sunday, both of which fell 8% over the previous year," <a href="http://www.journalism.org/fact-sheet/newspapers/" type="external">Pew Research Center</a> reported earlier this month. "Declines were highest in print circulation: Weekday print circulation decreased 10% and Sunday circulation decreased 9%."</p>
<p>While digital traffic is rising, it's not enough to offset revenue loss from circulation loss. Hence, some newspapers are making cuts to stay in the black.</p>
<p>Now, even The New York Times is facing big cutbacks. The liberal paper has said it is simply restructuring — or "streamlining," as Executive Editor Dean Baquet and Managing Editor Joe Kahn call it — but the <a href="https://nypost.com/2017/06/23/new-york-times-bloodbath-could-include-reporter-jobs/" type="external">New York Post</a> reports it's much more than that.</p>
<p>“This proves what we have suspected all along,” NewsGuild president Grant Glickson said, according to the Post. “The Times' ‘restructuring’ of the newsroom is really about the bottom line and not about making the editing process more efficient, as they claim.”</p>
<p>And now, it appears everyone is vulnerable. At first, top editors said the "streamlining" would allow the paper to hire as many as 100 new reporters, but in a mid-June meeting with department heads, "Baquet admitted that journalists could be targeted in a new round of layoffs once the editing ranks are culled," the Post reported.</p>
<p>“'I just attended a department head meeting with Dean and the rest of the staff,' Metro Editor Wendell Jamieson said in a June 15 memo to his own staff. 'While much of the buyout discussions have focused on editors, the buyouts are also available to reporters. Dean made it clear that, should the Times find itself in a layoff situation, reporters will also be vulnerable.' The memo eventually made its way to the NewsGuild, where it triggered a new uproar," the Post said:</p>
<p>Reporters at the New York Times could soon be “vulnerable” to the ax. If the ongoing round of voluntary buyouts being offered to editing staff does not get enough takers, the Gray Lady could begin another round, NYT Executive Editor Dean Baquet recently warned his top department editors.</p>
<p>“Up until now, the company had not indicated that layoffs would happen if targeted numbers weren’t achieved,” Grant Glickson, president of the NewsGuild, told Media Ink.</p>
<p>As part of the NYT’s ongoing restructuring of its editing ranks, 109 copy editors have had their jobs eliminated. There are estimated to be about 50 new jobs available in the restructured editing operation that the Times envisions for its digital- and video-oriented future.</p>
<p>So, while Trump has ushered in a new era of "winning" for many businesses — and especially the stock market — the news industry is not faring so well.</p>
<p>And that's not fake news.</p> | New York Times Faces Bloodbath, Set To Fire Reporters As Part Of 'Streamlining' | true | https://dailywire.com/news/17910/new-york-times-faces-bloodbath-set-fire-reporters-joseph-curl | 2017-06-25 | 0 |
<p />
<p>Image source: <a href="http://www.telkom.co.id/" type="external">Telkom Indonesia Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Telekomunikasi Indonesia recently <a href="http://www.telkom.co.id/assets/uploads/2013/05/Telkom-Info-Memo-FY15_addaward.pdf" type="external">reported results Opens a New Window.</a>for the fourth quarter and full fiscal year of 2015. Here's what the leading telecom in the fourth-largest nation on Earth had to say.</p>
<p>Telkom Indonesia's results: The raw numbers</p>
<p>Data source: Telekomunikasi Indonesia. Results reported in Indonesian rupiah, converted into U.S. dollars at the rate of 13,500 rupiah per dollar.</p>
<p>What happened with Telkom Indonesia? Most of the revenue improvements in 2015 came from mobile data subscriptions, as 90% of Telkom's new mobile subscribers are selecting 3G/4G broadband plans.</p>
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<p>Looking ahead, management provided some guidance in broad terms for the 2016 fiscal year.</p>
<p>What management had to say With 52.6% of Telkom's shares in the hands of the Indonesian government, the company often acts like a loosely attached arm of the state. From that perspective, it's not surprising that the company is heavily invested in giving Indonesia better access to the global Internet.</p>
<p>"We are in progress to develop Indonesia's global network project connecting Europe to Indonesia through a submarine cable system," said CEO Alex Sinaga in a conference call with analysts. "This cable network is expected to be completed by fourth quarter 2016. Meanwhile, a global backbone network connecting Indonesia to United States is expected to be completed by the first quarter 2017."</p>
<p>Looking ahead The broadband boom still has a long way to go. Sixty percent of Telkom's mobile subscribers still don't have 3G/4G data plans, and the fixed broadband network only reaches 4 million subscribers in a nation with more than 60 million households.</p>
<p>Telkom's annual meeting of shareholders is slated to take place on April 22. Apart from the usual activities seen in American shareholder meetings, Telkom owners will also get to approve (or not) the company's fiscal plan for 2016 and the proposed dividend payout. This is not controversial stuff -- over 99% of shareholders voted in favor of last year's fiscal proposals.</p>
<p>The article <a href="http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/04/14/how-did-telkom-indonesia-do-in-2015.aspx" type="external">How Did Telkom Indonesia Do in 2015? Opens a New Window.</a> originally appeared on Fool.com.</p>
<p><a href="http://my.fool.com/profile/TMFZahrim/info.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">Anders Bylund Opens a New Window.</a> has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Telkom Indonesia. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services <a href="http://www.fool.com/shop/newsletters/index.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">free for 30 days Opens a New Window.</a>. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that <a href="http://wiki.fool.com/Motley?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">considering a diverse range of insights Opens a New Window.</a> makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/help/index.htm?display=about02" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> | How Did Telkom Indonesia Do in 2015? | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/04/14/how-did-telkom-indonesia-do-in-2015.html | 2016-04-14 | 0 |
<p>The Stormy Daniels affair is turning into one of the most persistent scandals of Donald Trump’s presidency. And given the sheer volume of scandals, that’s really saying something. It doesn’t help that this incident involves Trump’s own personal attorney, Michael Cohen, who arranged the $130,000 in hush money to keep Trump’s infidelity out of the news. Cohen is a long-time Trump toady who can always be relied on to prop up his pal, no matter how repulsive his behavior.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.facebook.com/NewsCorpse/posts/2068659326482185" type="external" /></p>
<p>Having made himself the subject of the Stormy affair by asserting that he paid her from his own funds, Cohen is now as much an accomplice as he is an attorney. And his story that he ponied up the cash out of the kindness of his heart is <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/michael-cohen-used-trump-org-email-stormy-daniels-arrangements-n855021" type="external">falling apart</a>. Consequently, he is adopting the tactics of his boss in order to deflect attention from his own potential criminal liability. On Saturday morning he tweeted this:</p>
<p />
<p>Cohen has somehow gotten the impression that the media is obsessed with his email account. In fact, they are just being responsible journalists by reporting that his contacts with Stormy were made using his Trump Organization email address. That’s relevant due to his prior insistence that the arrangements he made with Stormy had nothing to do with Trump and Trump knew nothing about them. By the way, that would be a violation of the New York Bar Association’s standards of conduct. An attorney may not take actions on behalf of a client without full disclosure and permission.</p>
<p>Having no other defense, Cohen is resorting to attacking the media on a completely different topic. And, much like Trump, his attack is rooted in deliberate falsification of reality. Cohen saying that he didn’t see reporting about the jobs numbers anywhere except for Fox News is really just a confession that he doesn’t watch anything but Fox News. Every other major news organization reported these numbers, as they do every time they are released. Just a few obvious examples:</p>
<p>So Cohen didn’t see or hear any of this? Is he blind and deaf? Or is he just a lying, propaganda sewer who parrots the anti-media bullshit of Donald Trump? If nothing else, he’s exposing his fear about the legal walls that are closing in around him. This painfully desperate tweet is evidence of his knowledge that he and his favorite client are going down fast. And there’s nothing he an do about it.</p>
<p>How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QSSMOES/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B00QSSMOES&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=newscorpsecom-20&amp;linkId=TLI6JC2OYE22MUTS" type="external">Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.</a> Available now at Amazon.</p> | Trump’s Lawyer Tries to Deflect Crimes with Desperate and Obviously False Attacks on the Media | true | http://newscorpse.com/ncWP/?p%3D34022 | 4 |
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<p>PHILIPPINESINQ7.netPRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Monday called for sobriety and said government would not intervene in the alleged sex scandal involving a popular Catholic bishop "unless there was a culpable violation of the law." "I am saddened by the turn of events, but I also know that the (Catholic) church has the leadership, fortitude, and strength to surmount these trials," said Macapagal in expressing shock and sadness amid reports that Bishop Teodoro Bacani had sexually harassed his secretary. In a statement, the President urged the public not to "dwell on speculations or rumors." Bacani, whose case was being investigated by the Vatican, left for the United States early Monday after issuing an open letter that said he was "deeply sorry for the consequences of any inappropriate expression of affection to my secretary."</p> | Gov't hands off in bishop sex scandal: Macapagal | false | https://poynter.org/news/govt-hands-bishop-sex-scandal-macapagal | 2003-06-09 | 2 |
<p>LOS ANGELES - A reputed gang member who beat a murder charge decades ago and went on to land a job as a police officer was convicted Thursday of the 30-year-old killing after DNA evidence put him at the crime scene.</p>
<p>Pierre Romain, 53, was convicted in Los Angeles Superior Court of first-degree murder for a botched carjacking outside a Hollywood nightclub in June 1987.</p>
<p>Commentary by Jon Masters,</p>
<p>Romain was trying to steal a customized 1984 Nissan 300 ZX that was identical to a friend's car he had recently crashed, police said. He fatally shot Jade Clark behind the wheel of the car and was struck in the arm by a shot returned by the driver.</p>
<p>Romain was arrested shortly after the killing, but charges were dismissed because of lack of evidence. At the time, investigators didn't have DNA science to connect him to the bloody bullet fired by Clark that struck the killer.</p>
<p>Detective Rick Jackson, who investigated the original case, was working in the cold case homicide unit when San Francisco police inquired about Romain in 2003 because he had applied for a job there. Romain was working at the time for the Department of Defense as a sergeant providing security at Los Angeles Air Force Base in El Segundo.</p>
<p>He was arrested when his DNA was detected on the slug recovered at the crime scene.</p>
<p>Romain testified at trial that he had nothing to do with the shooting, had never been to the nightclub and was not a member of the Rollin? 60s Crips, though he said he later joined the gang in jail for self-preservation purposes, defense lawyer Winston McKesson said.</p>
<p>"We challenged every aspect of the DA's case," McKesson said. "From motive to DNA to pointing out who was the actual killer."</p>
<p>The defense pinned the crime on Romain's late brother, who died in 2011 and more closely matched the description of the shooter, McKesson said. They also disputed that a scar on Romain's arm was from a bullet and an expert testified that his DNA could have come from a jacket of his often worn by his brother.</p>
<p>Romain, an Air Force veteran, had been a candidate for a job as a Los Angeles police officer at the time of the shooting but was later disqualified.</p>
<p>About a decade later, he was hired by the federal government after undergoing background checks that revealed information about his arrest in the fatal shooting but showed the charges had been thrown out.</p>
<p>When he was charged with the killing in 2003, a spokeswoman for the base told the Los Angeles Times that Air Force personnel had access to court files, but not the LAPD case file.</p>
<p>He was fired after his arrest, McKesson said.</p>
<p>Romain faces a sentence of 27 years to life in prison when sentenced Sept. 15.</p>
<p>McKesson said he'll ask for a new trial and if that fails an appeal will be filed.</p>
<p /> | Ex-Cop Pierre Romain Convicted of Murder From Days as Gang Member | false | https://studionewsnetwork.com/news/ex-cop-pierre-romain-convicted-of-murder-from-days-as-gang-member/ | 2017-08-21 | 3 |
<p>After a wave of brutal attacks against Jewish children and civilians, Palestinian Islamists are inciting more violence against the state of Israel. Violent expressions of anti-Semitism have hit a fever-pitch in a Palestinian territory rife with indoctrinated hatred and rancor.</p>
<p>A Palestinian imam, or better-yet cult leader named Sheikh Mohammad Saleh “Abu Rajab,” a supposed spiritual guide for Palestinian youths, has called on the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ummah" type="external">Ummah</a>, or Muslim community, to stab Jews indiscriminately and slit their throats. On Friday, he cited Islamic history to justify his calls for barbarity. “The soldiers of the Prophet Muhammad are here. Brothers, this is why we recall today what Allah did to the Jews. We recall what He did to them in Khaybar,” <a href="http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/201709#.Vhvn03pViko" type="external">spewed</a> the holy imam.</p>
<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khaybar" type="external">The expulsion of Jews</a> from Khaybar under the direction of the Mohammad is embedded in the mythology and history of Islamic scripture. Islam’s birth signaled slaughter for Jewish communities in the Arabian Peninsula. During the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khaybar" type="external">reign of Caliph Umar</a> (634-644), Mohammad’s Muslim army butchered the Jews of Khaybar, a town 153 km north of Medina. The town was inhabited by Jewish tribes, indigenous to the province, before Mohammad’s newly-formed Islamic army destroyed its fortresses and colonized the territory in 629 A.D. The genocide of Jews is a recurring plot-line in early Islamic history.</p>
<p>The Jewish tribes of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banu_Qurayza" type="external">Banu Qurayza</a> were cruelly subjected to the same fate. The Prophet Mohammad and his army of followers <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banu_Qurayza" type="external">conquered</a> the Banu Qurayza in 627 AD and consequently rendered a lethal verdict on their supposed insolence. After the Jews refused to convert to Islam, a new religion during the early 7th century, Mohammad personally chose his close companion <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sa%27d_ibn_Mu%27adh" type="external">Sa’d ibn Mu’adh</a> to wield punishment on the Jews. The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banu_Qurayza" type="external">verdict</a> condemned all Jewish men to death and all Jewish women and children to captivity and enslavement. Sa’d <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Banu_Qurayza" type="external">decreed</a>, “The men should be killed, the property divided, and the women and children taken as captives.” Mohammad <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Banu_Qurayza" type="external">praised</a> the verdict as divine will, ordering the punishment be carried out. All male members of the tribe (post pubertal boys counted as men according to Mohammad) were <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Banu_Qurayza" type="external">beheaded</a>. Islamic <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Banu_Qurayza" type="external">sources</a> later say the Jewish women and children were sold as slaves in return for weapons and horses.</p>
<p>"Today, we realize why the [Jews] build walls. They do not do this to stop missiles, but to prevent the slitting of their throats."</p>
<p>Sheikh Mohammad Saleh “Abu Rajab</p>
<p>Following in this tradition, Sheikh Mohammad Saleh “Abu Rajab,” the holy imam, gave a fiery sermon to his Palestinian audience, continuing his speech that should be entitled: In Defense of Genocide. “Today, we realize why the [Jews] build walls. They do not do this to stop missiles, but to prevent the slitting of their throats,” <a href="file:///C:/Users/joshu/Desktop/Today,%20we%20realize%20why%20the%20%5bJews%5d%20build%20walls.%20They%20do%20not%20do%20this%20to%20stop%20missiles,%20but%20to%20prevent%20the%20slitting%20of%20their%20throats" type="external">exploded</a> the imam, "Now, we are imposing a curfew with daggers, and in the next phase, which is Allah willing, about to be realized… The Islamic military court has made the divined ruling: You will get nothing in our land except for slaughtering or stabbing!"</p>
<p>The Palestinian Sheikh demanded that his fellow Muslims "form stabbing quads,” as part of the “first stage” in the ultimate plan to annihilate the Jewish people from the face of the earth. These are Israel’s negotiating partners: sheikhs, clerics, and imams citing Islamic scripture and justifying the wholesale slaughter of Jews.</p>
<p>President Obama, a self-appointed champion of human rights and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, doesn’t see any problem with this sort of incitement. Instead of challenging Palestinian indoctrination and its culture of Jew-hatred, Obama has spent his time insulting the Prime Minister of Israel and <a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/21/17396987-obama-appeals-to-israelis-give-justice-to-the-palestinians?lite" type="external">denouncing</a> the only Jewish state in the world:</p>
<p>Given the frustration in the international community, Israel must reverse an undertow of isolation. And given the march of technology, the only way to truly protect the Israeli people over the long term is through the absence of war — because no wall is high enough, and no Iron Dome is strong enough and perfect enough, to stop every enemy that’s intent on doing so from inflicting harm.</p>
<p>This drivel from Obama's lips comes despite Israel having been attacked by a barrage of knife-stabbings and other brutal assaults in the last few days alone. President Obama has claimed that he cares about the well-being of both Palestinians and Israelis, but supports Palestinian statehood with very little pre-conditions.</p>
<p>Based on the imam’s words, years of anti-Jew conditioning, violent reprisals, and its democratically elected leaders (ie. Hamas), any future Palestinian state would most likely look like a place straight out of hell: an anti-Semitic, homophobic, misogynistic, genocidal, and oppressive police state. Basically, it would look like the rest of the Arab world.</p> | Palestinian Imam Carrying Knife Calls on Muslims to Stab Jews | true | https://dailywire.com/news/368/palestinian-imam-carrying-knife-calls-muslims-stab-michael-qazvini | 2015-10-12 | 0 |
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<p>**Bumped up from TAM Wire. Posted by RedeemtheTime**</p>
<p>Last week, Yasmina Haifi, an official at the National Coordinator for Security and Counterterrorism in the Netherlands, stated that ISIS has nothing to do with Islam, and that it is a Zionist plan to make Islam look bad.</p>
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<p>Via Gatestone Institute: <a href="http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/4641/isis-zionist-plot#" type="external">Dutch Official Calls ISIS “A Zionist Plot”</a></p>
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<p>On Tuesday last week, Yasmina Haifi, an official at the National Coordinator for Security and Counterterrorism in the Netherlands, tweeted: “ISIS has nothing to do with Islam. It is a preconceived plan of Zionists who want to deliberately make Islam look bad.”</p>
<p>….The outcry from the general public that followed her remarks initially did little to make her take back her words. The next day, however, she deleted the tweet, saying: “Realise the political sensitivity in relation to my work. This was never my intention.” The same day, Haifi told national broadcast Radio 1 that she had no idea her comments would cause such an upheaval. “I assumed I was living in a democratic country,” she said. “Apparently freedom of speech in the Netherlands applies to particular groups and not to others.”</p>
<p>Haifi said she had based the information on “multiple sources from the internet.” These consisted of a supposed statement by Edward Snowden, that the Mossad and the U.S. created ISIS. A simple background search would have shown this to be a firmly debunked hoax which was created by Iranian authorities. Even Snowden himself vehemently denies ever having said anything about ISIS….</p>
<p>Haifi was suspended on Wednesday…</p>
<p>Haifi’s comments come at a time when widespread anti-Semitism among Muslims has become painfully visible. In the past months in The Hague, three pro-Gaza rallies have taken place, all of which have featuring ISIS flags, along with signs in Arabic calling to “Kill all Jews,” and a quote from the hadith [the acts and sayings of Muhammad] that, “There is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.” The police were remarkably reluctant to arrest the protesters….</p>
<p>The reluctance thoroughly to screen Muslim security officials, the reluctance of the Dutch authorities to see the genocidal terrorist group ISIS for what it is, and the reluctance to fire Ms. Haifi from all her government and party positions, all illustrate how the charge of “Islamophobia” is being used as a political weapon — to silence people so that any opposition will be neutralized before it can even start….</p> | true | http://tammybruce.com/2014/08/dutch-official-isis-a-zionist-plot.html | 0 |
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<p>FBI Director James Comey’s letter to Congress regarding an unexpected development in his agency’s investigation of Hillary Clinton’s private email server was brief and vague, creating a&#160;vacuum that has been filled by distorted claims — mostly from the campaign of Clinton’s opponent, Donald Trump:</p>
<p>On Oct. 28, the FBI director sent a <a href="https://twitter.com/ReutersPolitics/status/792078893670862848" type="external">three-paragraph letter</a> to Congress that said FBI&#160;investigators, during the course of an unrelated investigation, found “the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent” to its prior investigation into Clinton’s use of a private email server as secretary of state. The letter said the FBI will review those emails “to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation.”</p>
<p>Comey wrote that “the FBI cannot yet assess whether this material may be significant” or how long the review will take.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/fbi-re-open-investigation-clinton-email-server-n674631" type="external">Multiple</a> <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/29/us/politics/fbi-hillary-clinton-email.html" type="external">news</a> <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/source-huma-abedin-had-no-knowledge-of-emails-on-anthony-weiners-computer/" type="external">reports</a>, citing anonymous law enforcement officials, said&#160;emails were found on a computer owned by Anthony Weiner, who is the&#160;estranged husband of&#160;Huma Abedin, a longtime Clinton aide and former deputy chief of staff at the State Department.</p>
<p>The news came more than three months after Comey <a href="https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/statement-by-fbi-director-james-b-comey-on-the-investigation-of-secretary-hillary-clinton2019s-use-of-a-personal-e-mail-system" type="external">announced</a> on July 5 that the FBI had completed its investigation and&#160;recommended that no charges be brought against Clinton or her aides for mishandling classified information.</p>
<p>The FBI’s review of potentially new evidence comes less than two weeks before Election Day. The lack of hard information and the timing of the FBI’s announcement have created conditions that are ripe for distortions.</p>
<p>At a&#160;rally in Manchester, New Hampshire, on the day of the FBI director’s surprising announcement, Trump <a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?417631-1/donald-trump-reacts-fbi-review-hillary-clinton-email-investigation&amp;start=604" type="external">claimed</a> that “this is bigger than Watergate in my opinion,” referring of course to the scandal that led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon and the convictions of numerous others.</p>
<p>But Trump’s case is weak. He supports his conclusion by distorting the facts to fit his conspiracy theory, mostly by repeating already debunked claims about Clinton’s emails.</p>
<p>Trump, Oct. 28: But real change also means getting rid of the corruption in Washington, and again, maybe that’s happened. Wow. We have a big day. No think of it, I won my first primary in New Hampshire and I am getting here and the news this morning is — this is bigger than Watergate. This is bigger than Watergate in my opinion. This is bigger than Watergate.</p>
<p>Hillary bleached and deleted 33,000 e-mails after receiving a congressional subpoena. That alone to me — there were more serious things done, but how does it get much more? But that was so obvious. She gets the subpoena and she bleaches and deletes 33,000 e-mails. That to me — because it was so simple, you know? Not — it’s not about the sale of the uranium that nobody knows what it means — I know what it means — to Russia. Then she talks to me about Russia. 20 percent of the uranium in our country to Russia.</p>
<p>But you know, the deletion of 33,000 e-mails, boy, that just sort of is so out there, after receiving a subpoena from the United States government. She lied to Congress, she lied to the FBI, she made 13 phones disappear, some with a hammer. The Clinton crew gave more than $675,000 to the wife of the deputy director of the FBI&#160;and the man who was overseeing the investigation into Hillary’s illegal server.</p>
<p>Trump conflates and distorts three separate issues to make his Watergate comparison. Let’s take them in order.</p>
<p>“Hillary bleached and deleted 33,000 e-mails after receiving a congressional subpoena.”</p>
<p>Trump is referring to 31,830 emails that Clinton’s lawyers had deemed personal. These emails did not have to be turned over to the State Department, which in the summer of 2014 requested all work-related emails that the former secretary of state had in her possession. (See “ <a href="" type="internal">A Guide to Clinton’s Emails</a>.”)</p>
<p>The department’s policy allows its employees to determine which emails are work-related and must be preserved.&#160;“Messages that are not records may be deleted when no longer needed,” according to the&#160;State Department’s Foreign Affairs Manual&#160;(5 FAM 443.5).&#160;(See “ <a href="" type="internal">Trump on the Stump.</a>“)</p>
<p>That means Clinton was within her right to delete these emails, so that’s the first thing to know.</p>
<p>Now, Trump is right that these emails were deleted about three weeks after Clinton received a subpoena on March 4 from a Republican-controlled House committee investigating the 2012 deaths of four Americans in Benghazi. However, there is no evidence that she knew that the emails were deleted after the subpoena was issued.</p>
<p>According to&#160;the FBI’s investigative notes, Cheryl Mills, Clinton’s former chief of staff, in December 2014 told Platte River Networks that Clinton had preserved her work-related emails and “no longer needed access to any of her e-mails older than 60 days.” At that time, Mills instructed a PRN employee “to modify the e-mail retention policy” on Clinton’s server “to reflect this change.” That would automatically delete the old emails. But the PRN employee told the FBI that “he had an ‘oh shit’ moment” after learning about the subpoena sometime between March 25 and March 31, 2015, which is when he deleted Clinton’s emails.&#160;Clinton told the FBI that she was not aware that PRN deleted her emails in late March 2015, and the FBI did not say when she learned that they were deleted. (See “ <a href="" type="internal">The FBI Files on Clinton’s Emails</a>.”)</p>
<p>PRN used a free software program called BleachBit to delete the emails. That’s what Trump means when he says the emails were “bleached.” Other times he has said that Clinton “ <a href="http://crooksandliars.com/2016/08/trump-sure-hillary-used-chemicals-delete" type="external">used chemicals</a>” to “ <a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?414823-1/donald-trump-campaigns-greenville-north-carolina&amp;start=1814" type="external">acid wash or bleach</a>” her emails. That’s part of the deception, too. (See “ <a href="" type="internal">Trump, Pence ‘Acid Wash’ Facts</a>.”)</p>
<p>“She made 13 phones disappear, some with a hammer.”</p>
<p>It is true that the FBI said (on&#160; <a href="https://vault.fbi.gov/hillary-r.-clinton/hillary-r.-clinton-part-01-of-04/view" type="external">page 8</a>) it “identified 13 total mobile devices … which potentially were used to send e-mails using Clinton’s clintonemail.com e-mail addresses.” But only eight of the 13 were used while Clinton was secretary of state, the FBI said, so Trump exaggerates the number of devices she had during her four years in office.&#160;(See “ <a href="" type="internal">A Guide to Clinton’s Emails</a>.”)</p>
<p>The FBI also quoted a Clinton aide (on&#160; <a href="https://vault.fbi.gov/hillary-r.-clinton/hillary-r.-clinton-part-01-of-04/view" type="external">page 9</a>) as saying that he could recall on two occasions that he got rid of old mobile devices by breaking them in half or hitting them with a hammer.</p>
<p>Trump insinuates that there is something sinister about owning several mobile devices and destroying the old ones when they are replaced. But the FBI came to no such conclusion, and security experts interviewed by the technology website Wired <a href="https://www.wired.com/2016/09/actually-clinton-destroyed-phones-better/" type="external">said</a>&#160;destroying old devices is a good way to erase data — if done properly.</p>
<p>Wired, Sept. 7: Whether you’re a Secretary of State with a phone full of classified documents or an average sext-sending citizen, data removal is a crucial security step before you let a device leave your control or recycle it. And security experts agree there’s at least one surefire way to be certain that data is truly removed and unrecoverable: kill the hardware.</p>
<p>If anything, Wired said, Clinton’s aides “should have wrecked them more thoroughly” than they did. The website said her staff should have used a “jackhammer” instead of a hammer, to ensure that data was destroyed and not just the mobile device.</p>
<p>“The Clinton crew gave more than $675,000 to the wife of the deputy director of the FBI.”</p>
<p>Trump says the “Clinton crew,” but he isn’t talking about Clinton or anyone in Clinton’s campaign. He is talking about Democratic Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a longtime friend and supporter of Bill and Hillary Clinton. A political action committee controlled by McAuliffe and the&#160;Virginia Democratic Party combined donated more than <a href="http://followthemoney.org/entity-details?eid=31990894&amp;default=candidate" type="external">$675,000</a>&#160;to&#160;Dr. Jill McCabe, who <a href="http://www.loudountimes.com/news/article/state_sen._black_holds_on_to_13th_district_seat432" type="external">unsuccessfully ran</a> for a seat in the Virginia Senate in 2015.</p>
<p>McAuliffe’s PAC, <a href="http://followthemoney.org/entity-details?eid=25869695&amp;default=contributor" type="external">Common Good VA,</a>&#160;made other large donations in 2015: $803,500 to state Senate candidate <a href="http://wtop.com/virginia/2015/11/the-latest-gop-sturtevant-shakes-hands-in-liberal-precinct/" type="external">Jeremy McPike</a>, who won his election, and $781,500 to <a href="http://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/government-politics/article_c9cfd8ac-8392-55f4-9924-af3684df8a77.html" type="external">Daniel Gecker</a>, who lost.&#160;The big donations were part of an&#160; <a href="http://www.dailypress.com/news/politics/dp-nws-election-senate-control-20151103-story.html" type="external">all-out effort by the Democratic governor</a> to help his party gain control of the Senate in the November 2015 elections. That effort failed, and the makeup of the Senate remained unchanged with the Republicans holding a narrow 21 to 19 advantage.</p>
<p>Trump focuses on the donations to McCabe, because she is the wife of Andrew McCabe, who at the time of the donations was either head of the FBI field office in Washington, D.C., or assistant deputy director of the FBI. Andrew McCabe was not involved&#160;in the FBI investigation of Clinton’s emails when his wife was running for office. He&#160; <a href="https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/andrew-mccabe-named-deputy-director-of-the-fbi" type="external">was promoted</a> to deputy director in February 2016, and at that time he assumed “an oversight role in the investigation into Secretary Clinton’s emails,” according to a statement from an FBI spokesman.</p>
<p>There is no evidence that Clinton had any knowledge of the donations or that they were made to influence the FBI investigation of her handling of classified information. (See “ <a href="" type="internal">Clinton’s Connection to FBI Official</a>.”)</p>
<p>Trump assembles — or rather disassembles — these half-truths and innuendos to reach his shaky conclusion that “this is bigger than Watergate.”&#160;That’s his opinion, but at least one person who was involved in Watergate disagrees.</p>
<p>John Dean, who served as White House counsel to Nixon from 1970 to 1973.&#160;wrote an <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/31/opinion/no-emailgate-is-not-worse-than-watergate.html?action=click&amp;pgtype=Homepage&amp;clickSource=story-heading&amp;module=opinion-c-col-left-region&amp;region=opinion-c-col-left-region&amp;WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&amp;_r=1" type="external">op-ed in the New York Times</a> calling the Watergate comparison “nonsense.”</p>
<p>“Only someone who knows nothing about the law, and the darkest moment of our recent political history, would see a parallel between Nixon’s crimes and Mrs. Clinton’s mistakes,” Dean said,&#160;noting that “some four dozen Nixon aides and associates were convicted of or pleaded guilty to criminal misconduct, including me.”</p>
<p>Trump also has repeatedly claimed that Clinton’s “criminal action was willful, deliberate, intentional and purposeful.” But the FBI&#160;disagrees. Comey said the FBI’s investigation didn’t find evidence that Clinton “intended to violate laws” on classified information.&#160;And he said that&#160;“no charges are appropriate in this case.”</p>
<p>Trump made the claim in Oct. 29 speeches in both <a href="https://youtu.be/zWoTl4V4WLg?t=10m57s" type="external">Colorado</a> and <a href="https://youtu.be/ylzh5eqtAw4?t=13m13s" type="external">Phoenix</a>.</p>
<p>At his <a href="https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/statement-by-fbi-director-james-b-comey-on-the-investigation-of-secretary-hillary-clinton2019s-use-of-a-personal-e-mail-system" type="external">July 5 press briefing</a> on the FBI’s investigation into Clinton’s use of a private email server, Comey explained that the inquiry specifically concerned whether classified material had been mishandled “either intentionally or in a grossly negligent way” in violation of federal law or if classified information has been “knowingly remove[d]” from “appropriate systems or storage facilities.”</p>
<p>Comey, who said there was evidence Clinton and her colleagues had been “extremely careless” in handling classified material, said that the FBI didn’t find any evidence of an intent to violate such laws.</p>
<p>Comey, July 5:&#160;Although we did not find clear evidence that Secretary Clinton or her colleagues intended to violate laws governing the handling of classified information, there is evidence that they were extremely careless in their handling of very sensitive, highly classified information.</p>
<p>The FBI director went on to say that while there was evidence of “potential violations” of classified information statutes, “no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case” in this instance. Why? Comey specifically pointed to the issue of intent. He said that past cases that were prosecuted involved “clearly intentional and willful mishandling of classified information” combined with&#160;other factors, such as “vast quantities of materials exposed,” adding that the FBI didn’t see that in the Clinton case.</p>
<p>Comey, July 5: Prosecutors necessarily weigh a number of factors before bringing charges. There are obvious considerations, like the strength of the evidence, especially regarding intent. Responsible decisions also consider the context of a person’s actions, and how similar situations have been handled in the past.</p>
<p>In looking back at our investigations into mishandling or removal of classified information, we cannot find a case that would support bringing criminal charges on these facts. All the cases prosecuted involved some combination of: clearly intentional and willful mishandling of classified information; or vast quantities of materials exposed in such a way as to support an inference of intentional misconduct; or indications of disloyalty to the United States; or efforts to obstruct justice. We do not see those things here.</p>
<p>In his campaign speeches, Trump went on to speculate that Clinton “set up an illegal server for the obvious purpose of shielding her criminal conduct from public disclosure and exposure.” No such cover-up of any criminal conduct has been revealed.</p>
<p>The FBI “read all of the approximately 30,000 e-mails provided by Secretary Clinton to the State Department in December 2014,” Comey said. And the bureau also found “several thousand work-related e-mails” that weren’t in that batch.</p>
<p>Comey said that it was “not surprising” that the FBI found emails that Clinton hadn’t given to the State Department. “Our assessment is that, like many e-mail users, Secretary Clinton periodically deleted e-mails or e-mails were purged from the system when devices were changed,” he said.&#160;And, the FBI found no evidence of any kind of cover-up. Comey said the investigation “found no evidence that any of the additional work-related e-mails were intentionally deleted in an effort to conceal them.”</p>
<p>In <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/transcript/2016/10/30/gov-mike-pence-on-new-fbi-probe-into-clinton-emails-robby-mook-responds-to-fbi/" type="external">an Oct. 30 interview</a> on “Fox News Sunday,” Pence said that “Hillary Clinton continues to refuse to turn over some 33,000 e-mails.” But, as we said earlier, Clinton’s non-work-related emails were deleted more than a year ago, so Clinton doesn’t have them to turn over.</p>
<p>As <a href="" type="internal">we have previously written</a>, Clinton’s office&#160; <a href="" type="internal">disclosed</a>&#160;on March 10, 2015, that she gave the&#160;State Department 30,490 work-related emails on Dec. 5, 2014, and “chose not to keep” 31,830 emails she deemed “personal.”</p>
<p>“We went through a thorough process to identify all of my work-related emails and deliver them to the State Department,” Clinton said at a <a href="http://time.com/3739541/transcript-hillary-clinton-email-press-conference/" type="external">press conference</a> on March 10, 2015. “At the end, I chose not to keep my private personal emails.”</p>
<p>The 31,830 personal emails were deleted “sometime between March 25-31, 2015,” according to the FBI notes of its investigation. As we said earlier, the emails were deleted by a PRN employee about three weeks after Clinton received a congressional subpoena on March 4, 2015.</p>
<p>So Clinton is not “continu[ing] to&#160;refuse to turn over some 33,000 e-mails,” as Pence claimed. Because they were deleted by PRN, she doesn’t have them to release.</p>
<p>In a press conference on Oct. 28, Clinton <a href="https://youtu.be/bQPl1EaaffA?t=1m30s" type="external">claimed</a> that <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/10/28/us/politics/fbi-letter.html" type="external">the letter Comey sent that day</a>&#160;to Congress was “sent to Republican members of the House.” A few minutes later in that press conference, Clinton <a href="https://youtu.be/bQPl1EaaffA?t=3m27s" type="external">said</a> that letter was “only going originally to Republican members of the House.” Both claims are false.</p>
<p>The letter was addressed to Republican chairmen of eight House and Senate committees, but it was sent to the committees, not just those individuals. Listed at the bottom of Comey’s letter are the ranking Democratic members of those committees, and, in fact, one of them issued a statement on Oct. 28 indicating that he had&#160;received the letter.</p>
<p>The press release from Democratic Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, ranking member of the&#160;House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform,&#160; <a href="http://democrats.oversight.house.gov/news/press-releases/cummings-issues-statement-on-fbi-letter-to-congress" type="external">said</a> that he was issuing “the following statement after receiving a letter from the FBI explaining that it would review new emails related to its investigation of Secretary Clinton.”</p>
<p>Cummings and Rep. John Conyers Jr., the Democratic ranking member of the House Committee on the Judiciary, <a href="http://democrats.oversight.house.gov/news/press-releases/cummings-and-conyers-request-full-disclosure-from-doj-and-fbi-on-email" type="external">wrote a joint letter</a> to Comey and Attorney General Loretta Lynch, also dated Oct. 28, that said the FBI director had “sent a letter to eight Congressional Committees.”</p>
<p>The Clinton campaign <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/oct/30/hillary-clinton/clinton-wrongly-says-fbi-director-sent-letter-abou/" type="external">told PolitiFact.com</a> that she had misspoken.</p>
<p>On CNN’s “ <a href="http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1610/30/sotu.01.html" type="external">State of the Union</a>,” John Podesta, Clinton’s campaign chairman, claimed the FBI decision to review a new batch of emails “might not be about [Clinton’s] server,” citing reports based on anonymous sources.</p>
<p>Podesta, Oct. 30:&#160;So far there’s no charge of wrongdoing. There’s no charge even that Hillary — and the reporting that backs it up coming from anonymous law enforcement sources indicates it might not be about her server, it may not be about her at all.</p>
<p>Podesta is right that there’s no charge of wrongdoing. But is it true that the latest FBI review “might not be about [Clinton’s] server”? We asked the Clinton campaign what Podesta meant. But we did not get a response.</p>
<p>We don’t know if the FBI review isn’t about Clinton’s server, but neither does Podesta.</p>
<p>Here&#160;is what we know: The FBI director’s statement said investigators during the course of an unrelated investigation found “the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation.” By investigation, Comey said he means “the investigation of former Secretary Clinton’s personal email server.”</p>
<p>The FBI does not know yet if the emails are pertinent, and that is the point that Podesta and the campaign have stressed.</p>
<p>However, as we said earlier, news reports indicate that the emails were found on a computer owned by Weiner, the former congressman and estranged husband of Abedin. When she was interviewed by the FBI, Abedin told&#160;investigators ( <a href="https://vault.fbi.gov/hillary-r.-clinton/hillary-r.-clinton-part-03-of-04/view" type="external">page 86</a>) that she had an email account on Clinton’s private server — [email protected] — and that she “routinely forwarded emails from her state.gov account to either her clintonemail.com or her yahoo.com account so she could print them.” That would explain how the FBI came to discover potential classified information on Weiner’s computer.</p>
<p>NBC News’ Pete Williams&#160; <a href="https://twitter.com/BraddJaffy/status/792069375964569600" type="external">reported</a> that he was told by law enforcement that “these are not emails from Hillary Clinton,” and that may explain Podesta’s comment. But Williams did not say that the latest FBI review “might not be about [Clinton’s] server.”</p>
<p>Also, the New York Times <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/31/us/politics/justice-department-warrant-clinton-abedin-fbi.html?hp&amp;action=click&amp;pgtype=Homepage&amp;clickSource=story-heading&amp;module=a-lede-package-region&amp;region=top-news&amp;WT.nav=top-news" type="external">reported</a> that “[s]ome of Ms. Abedin’s emails passed through Mrs. Clinton’s private server,” citing unnamed law enforcement officials.</p>
<p>Comey, James B. Director, FBI. <a href="https://twitter.com/ReutersPolitics/status/792078893670862848" type="external">Letter to Honorable Richard M. Burr, chairman, Select Committee on Intelligence, et al</a>. Reuters. 28 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>Williams, Pete. “ <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/fbi-re-open-investigation-clinton-email-server-n674631" type="external">Emails Related to Clinton Case Found in Anthony Weiner Investigation</a>.” NBC News. 28 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>Goldman, Adam and Alan Rappeport. “ <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/29/us/politics/fbi-hillary-clinton-email.html?_r=0" type="external">Emails in Anthony Weiner Inquiry Jolt Hillary Clinton’s Campaign</a>.” New York Times. 28 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>Flores, Reena. “ <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/source-huma-abedin-had-no-knowledge-of-emails-on-anthony-weiners-computer/" type="external">Source: Huma Abedin ‘surprised’ about emails on Anthony Weiner’s computer</a>.” CBS News. 30 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>“ <a href="https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/statement-by-fbi-director-james-b-comey-on-the-investigation-of-secretary-hillary-clinton2019s-use-of-a-personal-e-mail-system" type="external">Statement by FBI Director James B. Comey on the Investigation of Secretary Hillary Clinton’s Use of a Personal E-Mail System</a>.” Press release. FBI. 5 Jul 2016.</p>
<p>Kiely, Eugene.&#160;“ <a href="" type="internal">A Guide to Clinton’s Emails</a>.” FactCheck.org. 5 Jul 2016.</p>
<p>Farley, Robert.&#160;“ <a href="" type="internal">Trump on the Stump.</a>”&#160;FactCheck.org. 28 Sep 2016.</p>
<p>Kiely, Eugene. “ <a href="" type="internal">The FBI Files on Clinton’s Emails</a>.”&#160;FactCheck.org. 7 Sep 2016.</p>
<p>Kiely, Eugene. “ <a href="" type="internal">Trump, Pence ‘Acid Wash’ Facts</a>.”&#160;FactCheck.org. 8 Sep 2016.</p>
<p>Kuns, Karoli. “ <a href="http://crooksandliars.com/2016/08/trump-sure-hillary-used-chemicals-delete" type="external">Trump is Sure Hillary ‘Used Chemicals’ to Delete Her Emails</a>.” Crooks and Liars. 30 Aug 2016.</p>
<p>“ <a href="https://vault.fbi.gov/hillary-r.-clinton/hillary-r.-clinton-part-01-of-04/view" type="external">Hillary R. Clinton Part 01 of 04</a>.” FBI Records: The Vault. Accessed 31 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>Newman, Lily Hay. “ <a href="https://www.wired.com/2016/09/actually-clinton-destroyed-phones-better/" type="external">Actually, Clinton Should Have Destroyed Her Phones Better</a>.” Wired. 7 Sep 2016.</p>
<p>Gore, D’Angelo. “ <a href="" type="internal">Clinton’s Connection to FBI Official</a>.” FactCheck.org. 25 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>National Institute on Money in State Politics. <a href="http://followthemoney.org/entity-details?eid=31990894&amp;default=candidate" type="external">Campaign finance database</a>&#160;for McCabe, Barbara Jill.&#160;Undated, accessed 31 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>Peskin, Dale. “ <a href="http://www.loudountimes.com/news/article/state_sen._black_holds_on_to_13th_district_seat432" type="external">State Sen. Black holds on to 13th District seat</a>.” Loudoun Times-Mirror. 4 Nov 2015.</p>
<p>National Institute on Money in State Politics. <a href="http://followthemoney.org/entity-details?eid=25869695&amp;default=contributor" type="external">Campaign finance database</a>&#160;for Common Good VA. Undated, accessed 31 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>“ <a href="http://wtop.com/virginia/2015/11/the-latest-gop-sturtevant-shakes-hands-in-liberal-precinct/" type="external">The Latest: Democrat McPike claims victory in Senate 29 race</a>.” Associated Press. 3 Nov 2015.</p>
<p>Martz, Michael. “ <a href="http://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/government-politics/article_c9cfd8ac-8392-55f4-9924-af3684df8a77.html" type="external">Sturtevant defeats Gecker in critical 10th District Senate race</a>.” Richmond Times-Dispatch. 3 Nov 2015.</p>
<p>Fain, Travis. “ <a href="http://www.dailypress.com/news/politics/dp-nws-election-senate-control-20151103-story.html" type="external">Republicans hold Virginia Senate</a>.” Daily Press.&#160;3 Nov 2015.</p>
<p>“ <a href="https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/andrew-mccabe-named-deputy-director-of-the-fbi" type="external">Andrew McCabe Named Deputy Director of the FBI</a>.” Press release. FBI. 29 Jan 2016.</p>
<p>Dean, John. “ <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/31/opinion/no-emailgate-is-not-worse-than-watergate.html?action=click&amp;pgtype=Homepage&amp;clickSource=story-heading&amp;module=opinion-c-col-left-region&amp;region=opinion-c-col-left-region&amp;WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&amp;_r=1" type="external">No, ‘Emailgate’ Is Not Worse Than Watergate.</a>” New York Times. 31 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>“ <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/transcript/2016/10/30/gov-mike-pence-on-new-fbi-probe-into-clinton-emails-robby-mook-responds-to-fbi/" type="external">Gov. Mike Pence on new FBI probe into Clinton emails; Robby Mook responds to FBI’s October surprise</a>.” Transcript. Fox News. 30 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>“ <a href="" type="internal">Staff Q-and-A</a>.” Press release. Office of Hillary Rodman Clinton. 10 Mar 2015.</p>
<p>Miller, Zeke J. “ <a href="http://time.com/3739541/transcript-hillary-clinton-email-press-conference/" type="external">Everything Hillary Clinton Said on the Email Controversy</a>.” Transcript. Time. 10 Mar 2015.</p>
<p>“ <a href="http://democrats.oversight.house.gov/news/press-releases/cummings-issues-statement-on-fbi-letter-to-congress" type="external">Cummings Issues Statement on FBI Letter to Congress</a>.” Press release. Office of Rep. Elijah Cummings. 28 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>“ <a href="http://democrats.oversight.house.gov/news/press-releases/cummings-and-conyers-request-full-disclosure-from-doj-and-fbi-on-email" type="external">Cummings and Conyers Request Full Disclosure from DOJ and FBI on Email Investigation</a>.”&#160;Press release. Office of Rep. Elijah Cummings. 28 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>Carroll, Lauren. “ <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/oct/30/hillary-clinton/clinton-wrongly-says-fbi-director-sent-letter-abou/" type="external">Clinton wrongly says FBI director sent letter about emails ‘only’ to Republicans</a>.” Politifact.com. 30 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>“ <a href="http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1610/30/sotu.01.html" type="external">Interview with John Podesta</a>.” Transcript. CNN’s State of the Union. 30 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>“ <a href="https://vault.fbi.gov/hillary-r.-clinton/hillary-r.-clinton-part-03-of-04/view" type="external">Hillary R. Clinton Part 03 of 04</a>.” FBI Records: The Vault. Accessed 31 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>Jaffy, Bradd. (@bradjaffy). Senior news editor and writer, NBC Nightly News. “ <a href="https://twitter.com/BraddJaffy/status/792069375964569600" type="external">NBC’s Pete Williams: Sr. officials say—During separate investigation ‘a device’ led to add’l emails–not from Clinton</a>.” Tweet. 2:23 p.m., 28 Oct 2016.</p>
<p>Apuzzo, Matt et al. “ <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/31/us/politics/justice-department-warrant-clinton-abedin-fbi.html?hp&amp;action=click&amp;pgtype=Homepage&amp;clickSource=story-heading&amp;module=a-lede-package-region&amp;region=top-news&amp;WT.nav=top-news" type="external">Justice Department Obtains Warrant to Review Clinton Aide’s Emails</a>.” New York Times. 30 Oct 2016.</p> | Spinning the FBI Letter | false | https://factcheck.org/2016/10/spinning-the-fbi-letter/ | 2016-10-31 | 2 |
<p>NEW HAVEN (CT)Hartford CourantMay 24, 2003 By KIM MARTINEAU, Courant staff writer A former student at an all-girls Catholic high school claims she was sexually assaulted more than a decade ago by a nun who taught morals and religion and was in charge of recruiting young women into the sisterhood.Landa Mauriello-Vernon, now living in Rhode Island, says the nun, Sister Linda Cusano, repeatedly forced her into a vacant office in a secluded wing of the school, wrestled her to the floor and threw her body on top of hers, telling her to "submit herself to God," and "join me in the convent." The allegations were contained in a lawsuit Mauriello-Vernon filed against Cusano and Sacred Heart Academy in Hamden on Friday in New Haven Superior Court. School principal Ritamary Schulz did not return repeated calls for comment and the school's lawyer, Stephen Fogerty, could not be reached.Mauriello's parents decided to send both of their daughters to Sacred Heart so they would get a "solid education in a safe environment," said Mauriello-Vernon's lawyer, Patricia Cofrancesco. They grew alarmed when their oldest daughter, Landa, quit the volleyball team and choral group senior year, between 1991 and 1992, and started talking about abandoning her plans for college.</p> | Lawsuit Alleges Sex Abuse By Nun | false | https://poynter.org/news/lawsuit-alleges-sex-abuse-nun | 2003-05-24 | 2 |
<p />
<p>If you’ve scanned the news today, you’ve probably seen the story about the six men who were <a href="http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1618404,00.html" type="external">arrested before they could execute a plan</a> to attack New Jersey’s Fort Dix Army base and “kill as many soldiers as possible.”</p>
<p>According to a federal spokesman, four of the men were born in the former Yugoslavia, one was born in Turkey and one was born in Jordan. A report on this that I saw earlier had a quote from a federal official calling their plot a potential act of terrorism, but that quote has been removed — this is where <a href="/arts/books/2007/05/terrorist_apprentice.html" type="external">definitions get murky</a> — and currently there is no evidence that a foreign terrorist organization was involved.</p>
<p>I will say this: Worst. Plan. Ever. Not to make light of a plot to kill American servicemen (or anybody, really), but is there a worse place for six random dudes to attack than a United States Army base? Why not rob the police station while you’re at it? They couldn’t think of something that might have a higher chance of success and lower than a 100% chance of death?</p>
<p>I guess that’s the point — martyrdom — but seriously, folks.</p>
<p /> | Six Arrested in New Jersey for Worst Plot Ever | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2007/05/six-arrested-new-jersey-worst-plot-ever/ | 2007-05-08 | 4 |
<p>After the Battle of Teruel in the Spring of 1938 Franco’s forces began the Aragon offensive which pushed into Catalonia and severely hampered the Republican cause. From March 7th through to April 19th the Francoists, who were backed up by the Nazi Condor Legion and Mussolini’s volunteer corps, brutalised the exhausted Republicans.</p>
<p>The Aragon offensive was conducted with severe force by the Francoists.&#160; From the air Nazi planes conducted a campaign of terror bombing while on the ground Italian expeditionary forces crushed a deflated Republican force. Amid all this chaos and destruction were brigadistas from Ireland who continued the fight against fascism.</p>
<p>James O’Connor from Dublin was killed in action at the Aragon front on March 11th. Born in 1905 on Lower Gloucester Street, he emigrated to Canada where he worked as a labourer in Vancouver. O’Connor joined the Communist party there and in the Summer of 1937 he travelled to Spain to defend its republic against the fascist coup.</p>
<p>Thomas Sheehan was born in Skibbereen, West Cork, in 1904 and went to England to work as a shop assistant in Brighton. Sheehan joined the British Communist party in 1935 and in February 1938 he arrived in Spain with the International Brigade. A month later he fell under a barrage of fascist bullets on the Aragon front.</p>
<p>Ben Murray from Monaghan had served with a Canadian Cavalry regiment during WWI and when he returned to Ireland he joined the Irish Communist Party. Murray became a familiar face in West Belfast where he would cross the divide and go door to door selling the Daily Worker newspaper in the Protestant Shankill Road and the Catholic Falls Road. Murray went to Spain to fight&#160; against General Franco and&#160; received wounds at the Battle of Brunette but, once he recovered he got back into the thick of action and on the 14th of March he was killed by a bomb in Abalate. He was buried in an olive grove by the Ebro River, in the crater made by the bomb that extinguished his life.</p>
<p>During the retreat in Belchite Matthew McLaughlin was gunned down by advancing fascists. Born in Derry city in 1908, he emigrated to Canada at the age of 19 where his left wing ideals flourished through the Canadian Communist party. In the summer of 1937 McLaughlin went to Spain to fight, and subsequently die, for the Republican cause.</p>
<p>Another Derry man to lose his life in the same retreat was James Donald. Born in 1916, his family relocated to Scotland where he worked as a miner in Fife. With the British battalion of the International Brigade, Donald arrived in Spain in January but by March he was buried in a mass grave in Belchite.</p>
<p>Alexander Madero from Dundalk Co. Louth, was wounded during the retreat from the Aragon front and was captured by Franco’s troops on March 17th, St Patrick’s Day. He died of his wounds a month later in a fascist concentration camp.</p>
<p>John Finnegan was born in 1909 in Castleblaney Co. Monaghan and emigrated to Canada at the age of 20. He worked as a blacksmith and joined the Communist party before going to Spain in 1937. In April 1938 he went missing in action on the Aragon front.</p>
<p>Another Irishman to disappear in the hell of the Aragon offensive was Francis Ash from County Down. Ash was born in 1909 in Downpatrick and was still an infant when his family moved to Glasgow. Ash was a merchant seaman and emigrated to Canada where he joined the Canadian reserve rifles. He also joined the Communist party and arrived in Spain in January 1938. Two months later he went missing in action during the Aragon retreats.</p>
<p>Those who did not die or escape were captured and placed in concentration camps. Joseph Leo Byrne from Dublin was one of those who was captured by Franco’s troops during the Aragon offensive. A welder by trade, Byrne had gone to Liverpool to seek employment but left wing politics diverted his attention to stopping the spread of fascism on the Iberian peninsula. Byrne arrived in Spain in February 1938 but, just weeks later he was captured and made prisoner near Calaceite. Another Dubliner by the name of Byrne also fell into the clutches of Francos troops in March 1938. Patrick Byrne from Dame Street in Dublin City was a seaman who deserted his ship The Florentine on route to Barcelona at Christmas 1937 but his adventures in Spain were cut short in March 1938 when he was rounded up with hundreds of other anti fascist fighters and imprisoned.</p>
<p>Thomas Heaney from Galway was just 19 years old when he was taken prisoner during the Aragon offensive in March 1938.&#160; Heaney was the son of a butcher from Galway’s Upper Abbey Gate Street but emigrated to London in 1937 where he worked as a van guard in Bishopsgate station. David Kennedy was a house painter from Armagh who arrived in Spain in February 1938 but was imprisoned only a month later. Both Heaney and Kennedy, like many others captured during the Aragon offensive were later repatriated back to their homeland where, unfortunately, many faced blacklisting.</p>
<p>Jackie Lemon from Waterford was working at the HMV gramaphone factory in London when he joined the Communist party and went to Spain in the summer of 1937. He was captured in March 1938 and repatriated a year later.&#160; William McChrystal from the Waterside in Derry was a tailor but on St Patrick’s Day 1938 he was captured during the Belchite retreat and repatriated in 1939.</p>
<p>Maurice Levitas from Warren Street in Dublin was a plumber who joined the British Communist party when he moved to London. On the 31st of March he was captured with Frank Ryan, leader of the famed Connolly column of the International Brigade. Ryan was leading over 300 men on the road between Gandesa and Alcaniz when Italian troops surrounded and arrested them. Ryan was sentenced to death but was later allowed to escape and died in Dresden in 1944. Levitas was repatriated a year after his capture in Spain but his fight against fascism did not end there, he would later serve in the Royal medical corps during WWII.</p>
<p>Frank Ryan had left Ireland in December 1936 with 80 volunteers to defend the Spanish Republic. By spring of 1938 the defence of the Republic was in tatters and Ryan, along with many other Irish men fell into the hands of Franco while others fell into Spanish graves and as the months passed many more would join them.</p> | Captured or Killed: The Irish Anti-Fascist Fighters at the Aragon Front | true | https://counterpunch.org/2018/03/08/captured-or-killed-the-irish-anti-fascist-fighters-at-the-aragon-front/ | 2018-03-08 | 4 |
<p>Nov. 11 (UPI) — He might not be booked for a UFC fight, but <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Conor-McGregor/" type="external">Conor McGregor</a> had no trouble recently jumping into an MMA cage.</p>
<p>“The Notorious” did notorious things Friday at Bellator 187 in Dublin.</p>
<p>He was watching a fight between SBG Ireland teammate Charlie Ward and John Redmond. Ward won the match.</p>
<p>After the Bellator prelim bout, McGregor jumped over a tall wall of the cage and fell into the action. He ran full speed and jumped into Ward, before getting into it with referee Marc Goddard.</p>
<p>Goddard attempted to pull the emotional teammates away from one another and McGregor didn’t like it.</p>
<p>McGregor followed Goddard around the stage before shoving him in the back. McGregor was shouting at the veteran official relentlessly. He eventually exited.</p>
<p>A penalty for McGregor’s actions has not yet been announced.</p>
<p>I operate with integrity, belief and values.</p>
<p>I hold MMA in a deep rooted place in my life and have considered myself most fortunate to have done so for so long.</p>
<p>Family first. Everything else second.</p>
<p>Respect.</p>
<p>— Marc Goddard (@marcgoddard_uk) <a href="https://twitter.com/marcgoddard_uk/status/929264778232713216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">November 11, 2017</a></p>
<p>McGregor has not had a UFC fight this year. His last fight came in a boxing bout loss to <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Floyd_Mayweather/" type="external">Floyd Mayweather</a> in August in Las Vegas.</p>
<p />
<p>“I hold MMA in a deep rooted place in my life and have considered myself most fortunate to have done so for so long.”</p>
<p>“Family first. Everything else second.”</p>
<p>“Respect.”</p>
<p>This isn’t the first testy interaction between McGregor and Goddard. McGregor was trying to coach up Artem Lobov during his UFC Fight Night 118 loss to Andre Fili. Goddard noticed McGregor’s instruction and told him to go back to his seat at the Poland arena.</p>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/spike/status/929155095488425984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mmamania.com%2F2017%2F11%2F10%2F16636250%2Fvideo-bellator-uses-conor-mcgregor-melee-in-commercial-to-promote-dublin-event-mma-ufc" type="external">Spike and Bellator are using</a> the McGregor melee to promote Bellator 187 in the United States.</p>
<p>“Mr. McGregor is not bigger than the sport of MMA!!!” ABC president Mike Mazzulli <a href="https://twitter.com/MMAjunkieSteven/status/929076682748653568?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&amp;ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fmmajunkie.com%2F2017%2F11%2Fconor-mcgregor-jumps-cage-at-bellator-187-confronts-referee-marc-goddard" type="external">told MMA Junkie.</a></p> | UFC star Conor McGregor jumps into MMA cage, pushes official | false | https://newsline.com/ufc-star-conor-mcgregor-jumps-into-mma-cage-pushes-official/ | 2017-11-11 | 1 |
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<p>NEW YORK — Citigroup’s board of directors is awarding CEO Michael Corbat a pay package worth $15.5 million for 2016, down from $16.5 million in 2015.</p>
<p>Citi’s board said Friday that in addition to his $1.5 million base salary, Corbat will receive $4.2 million in cash and $9.8 million in stock awards. The board said the pay package reflects Corbat’s progress to shrink and restructure Citi following the financial crisis.</p>
<p>For example, Citigroup almost entirely wound down Citi Holdings in 2016, which is the “bad bank” part of Citigroup where the company housed all of the toxic assets it had from the mortgage bubble.</p>
<p>However Citi’s full-year profits fell in 2016, with the bank earning $14.78 billion compared with $17.07 billion in 2015.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | Citigroup CEO Corbat takes home $15.5 million for 2016 | false | https://abqjournal.com/952403/citigroup-ceo-corbat-takes-home-15-5-million-for-2016.html | 2 |
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<p>Tim Martin, an Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta volunteer, was among a crew that was installing signs that point in the direction of different cities around the world. (Marla Brose/Albuquerque Journal)</p>
<p>Copyright - 2015 Albuquerque Journal</p>
<p>Tom Christopher and his volunteer crew at Balloon Fiesta Park were busy Thursday nailing to a tall wooden post signs with the names of foreign and U.S. cities, each sign pointing in a slightly different direction:</p>
<p>Mondovi, Italy, 8,989 km; Lorraine, France, 8,637 km; Indianola, Ind., 823 mi; Battle Creek, Mich., 1,256 mi.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Acknowledging that no one was working with the benefit of a compass or a map, Christopher smiled widely: "The Sandia Mountains are east, Santa Fe is north. We're getting them in the right general direction, I think. Brazil - that one's going to be tough. Maybe we'll just point it toward the ground," he said.</p>
<p>All across the expansive park people were making final preparations in anticipation of Saturday's opening of the 44th annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, which will feature 550 balloons, 16 of them from foreign countries, and 105 special shapes balloons. Visitors will find a full spectrum of fine art, folk art and balloon-related art and jewelry; as wide an assortment of food as is available at the State Fair, including funnel cakes, corn dogs, burgers, burritos and behemoth turkey legs; and two separate kid zones with rides and games.</p>
<p>A harried vendor still putting the finishing touches on his food booth called out to a couple of guys milling about at the rear of a semitrailer truck loaded with food and soft drinks, "Hey, you gonna look at that stuff or you gonna unload it? Let's get moving; we're running out of time."</p>
<p>Many of the 43 food vendors and 45 merchandise vendors were trying to get their booths up and running with less than 48 hours left before tens of thousands of people would crowd the field during the opening day mass ascension. The entire length of Main Street at Balloon Fiesta Park was lined with parked semitrailer trucks, box trucks and pickups, all unloading building materials, merchandise, equipment and supplies.</p>
<p>"I think it will be a good year," said Marcus Cassimus, owner of Hello Deli, who was still organizing his booth. "Last year was a decent year, but not great. A lot of my regulars didn't make it to the fiesta because of the heavy traffic and construction from the I-25 and Jefferson road projects. That's done, so I'm expecting a larger turnout. Of course, everything depends on the weather."</p>
<p>Walgreens will have a retail outlet once again, selling candy, drinks, disposable cameras, hats, blankets and more.</p>
<p>"We'll also be offering flu shots," said manager Robert Torres. "Last year, about 500 people took advantage of flu shots. They're $10 and most insurance plans cover it, and when people see that they're available they appreciate the convenience of it."</p>
<p>The launch field at Balloon Fiesta Park will remain a large open expanse of grass, but the south end, where the corporate tents are located, was being spruced up Thursday with some 400 potted plants and shrubs. Crews from The Hilltop landscaping company were busy strategically placing rose bushes, desert willow, photinia, purple plum, caryopteris blue mist and others.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>"We should have most of them set by the end of the day and finish up Friday with some planters located on Main Street," foreman Greg Domme said.</p>
<p>Troy Bradley launches a Rainbow Ryders hot-air balloon Thursday as part of a ceremony to mark the 10th anniversary of the Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum. (Marla Brose/Albuquerque Journal)</p>
<p>Pilots and their crews were also busy Thursday with a mandatory viewing of a safety video and registration in the new Sid Cutter Pilots Pavilion, a large, modern building that replaces the enormous tent previously provided for the convenience of pilots.</p>
<p>"We will probably have half to two-thirds of all the pilots registered by the end of the day," said Paul Petrehn, the balloon fiesta's event director. The pilots also get a "bag of goodies," a rugged gym-type bag that includes a program, maps, event passes, a balloon fiesta jacket, miscellaneous coupons to local restaurants and retail outlets, and a special gift of a pair of pre-programmed two-way radios that allow pilots to have better continuous contact with their chase crews, Petrehn said.</p>
<p>For Austin pilot Bruce Lavorgna, fiesta preparation began weeks ago with the smoking, dehydrating and cooking of food for the crew of his balloon, "Aerodactyl."</p>
<p>"For our tailgate parties, I made 16 pounds of beef jerky, nine pounds of salmon jerky and a 30-pound platter of a five-layer lasagna with seven kinds of cheese and two kinds of meats," he said.</p>
<p>Lavorgna, who operates an airplane upholstery business in Texas, said this will be his 29th year attending the Albuquerque balloon fiesta, and the 24th fiesta in which he has piloted a balloon.</p>
<p>Three years ago, he and his crew were participating in the Albuquerque Aloft program in which pilots inflate and sometimes launch from elementary schools around the city to teach students, teachers and parents about how hot-air balloons fly.</p>
<p>"We were at La Mesa Elementary School, which is in a poor neighborhood, and it was early in the morning and it was cold and we noticed that a lot of kids didn't have jackets or coats," Lavorgna said. "So we collected four dozen gently used coats, which we handed out last year."</p>
<p>This year, he and his crew will donate between $500 and $800 for snacks for La Mesa's after-school program, he said.</p>
<p>"We've had so much fun coming to the balloon fiesta all these years, so this is our way of giving back."</p>
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<p /> | Rush to the start for Balloon Fiesta | false | https://abqjournal.com/652722/volunteers-vendors-in-a-hurry-for-fiesta.html | 2015-10-02 | 2 |
<p>Here's a list of the 20 places still in contention for Amazon's second headquarters:</p>
<p>Atlanta</p>
<p>Austin, Texas</p>
<p>Boston</p>
<p>Chicago</p>
<p>Columbus, Ohio</p>
<p>Dallas</p>
<p>Denver</p>
<p>Indianapolis</p>
<p>Los Angeles</p>
<p>Miami</p>
<p>Montgomery County, Maryland</p>
<p>Nashville, Tennessee</p>
<p>Newark, New Jersey</p>
<p>New York</p>
<p>Northern Virginia, Virginia</p>
<p>Philadelphia</p>
<p>Pittsburgh</p>
<p>Raleigh, North Carolina</p>
<p>Toronto</p>
<p>Washington D.C.</p>
<p>Here's a list of the 20 places still in contention for Amazon's second headquarters:</p>
<p>Atlanta</p>
<p>Austin, Texas</p>
<p>Boston</p>
<p>Chicago</p>
<p>Columbus, Ohio</p>
<p>Dallas</p>
<p>Denver</p>
<p>Indianapolis</p>
<p>Los Angeles</p>
<p>Miami</p>
<p>Montgomery County, Maryland</p>
<p>Nashville, Tennessee</p>
<p>Newark, New Jersey</p>
<p>New York</p>
<p>Northern Virginia, Virginia</p>
<p>Philadelphia</p>
<p>Pittsburgh</p>
<p>Raleigh, North Carolina</p>
<p>Toronto</p>
<p>Washington D.C.</p> | A list of the 20 places still vying for Amazon's 2nd HQ | false | https://apnews.com/amp/1c83bca380c1441c93b7cb5424e5bbc8 | 2018-01-18 | 2 |
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<p>A panel of Navajo Nation lawmakers has settled on terms that the American Indian tribe would like to see adopted as part of a new gambling compact with the state of New Mexico.</p>
<p>The tribe's current compact is set to expire in June, and negotiations with Gov. Susana Martinez's office have been ongoing for months.</p>
<p>Navajo Speaker Pro Tem LoRenzo Bates says the result is a compact that's fair for Navajos and for New Mexicans.</p>
<p>Under the formula outlined in the proposal, revenue sharing with the state would range from 8.5 percent to 10.75 percent depending on the amount of net winnings and the duration of the 23-year compact.</p>
<p>A similar effort to renew the contact failed during the last legislative session.</p>
<p>The Navajos operate three casinos in New Mexico and one in Arizona.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | Navajo panel moves forward with gambling compact | false | https://abqjournal.com/519115/navajo-panel-moves-forward-with-gaming-compact.html | 2 |
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<p>Kim Guadagno’s husband, Michael, is an appeals court judge. To collect his pension, he’s required by law to notify Kim Guadagno in her dual role as secretary of state that he’ll reach the mandatory retirement age of 70 this month.</p>
<p>In the letter, Michael Guadagno wrote that with her term ending in January 2018 and his income “substantially reduced,” it may be an “excellent opportunity for you to consider a career change to a more lucrative position.”</p>
<p>He wrote that they could discuss it “over dinner.”</p>
<p>Kim Guadagno is running in the GOP primary to succeed Republican Gov. Chris Christie, and her husband’s letter seems to take a shot at the state’s current chief executive.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“While we are on the subject, I take this opportunity to remind you that you receive no pension for your work as Lieutenant Governor or Secretary of State, even though, to date, you have served as acting Governor for more than five hundred days,” he wrote. That refers to times when Christie was out of state, including when he ran for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination and served as chairman of the Republican Governors Association.</p>
<p>Kim Guadagno said in a phone interview that her husband took her by surprise with the letter.</p>
<p>“It came into the office cold,” she said. “Nobody was more surprised than me that it was coming.”</p>
<p>Michael Guadagno’s retirement also means he can campaign for his wife. He was unable to do so in 2009 and 2013 since he was a judge.</p> | Lieutenant governor gets resignation letter from husband | false | https://abqjournal.com/954557/lieutenant-governor-gets-resignation-letter-from-husband.html | 2 |
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<p>SAN FRANCISCO, April 17 (Reuters) -&#160;Facebook&#160;Inc launched a review on Monday of how it handles violent videos and other objectionable material, saying it needed to do better after a video of a killing in Cleveland remained on its service for more than two hours on Sunday.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>The world's largest social network plans to look for ways to make it easier for people to report videos and to speed up the process of reviewing items once they are reported, Justin Osofsky,Facebook's vice president for global operations and media partnerships, said in a blog post.</p>
<p>"We prioritize reports with serious safety implications for our community, and are working on making that review process go even faster," Osofsky said.</p>
<p>U.S. authorities on Monday widened a manhunt for a murder suspect who, according to police and&#160;Facebook, posted a video of himself on the online service shooting an elderly man in Cleveland.</p>
<p>Police said they had received "dozens and dozens" of tips about the possible location of the suspect, Steve Stephens, and tried to convince him to turn himself in when they spoke with him on his cellphone on Sunday after the shooting.</p>
<p>Advertisement</p>
<p>But Stephens remained at large as the hunt for him expanded nationwide, police said.</p>
<p>The shooting was the latest violent incident shown on&#160;Facebook, raising questions about how the company moderates content.</p>
<p>(Reporting by David Ingram; Editing by Chris Reese and Bill Rigby)</p> | Facebook to Review Handling of Videos After Cleveland Killing | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2017/04/17/facebook-to-review-handling-videos-after-cleveland-killing.html | 2017-04-17 | 0 |
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<p>After Thursday’s embarrassing failure to round up enough votes for passage of the GOP-sponsored American Health Care Act, the White House insists the House vote on a bill that:</p>
<p>– Knocks 24 million people off coverage</p>
<p>– Increases the costs for many older, rural voters</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>– Removes requirements to include 10 basic items (e.g. pediatric care)</p>
<p>– Cuts Medicaid by $880 billion</p>
<p>– Is silent on selling insurance across state lines</p>
<p>How did this happen? How did the populist president who appealed to “the forgotten” men and women wind up with a bill that’s so harmful to his base, something that is aimed at cutting and de-federalizing Medicaid and giving huge tax cuts to the rich?</p>
<p>One is tempted to say Trump never intended to make good on his promises. Perhaps he always planned on betraying his base and was interested only in big tax cuts for the rich. The man who conned customers into buying inferior products (a “university” education, vodka, steaks) may simply have said whatever he thought people wanted to hear — with no intention of following through.</p>
<p>There is, however, a more nuanced explanation. Trump, he admits, never thought he would win the presidency. He never cared for nor developed detailed policies, because he saw the race as a giant media show in which substance was irrelevant. He never dreamed he would actually have to figure out what “terrific” insurance looked like. He was candid when he said recently that “nobody [i.e. Trump] knew health care could be so complicated.” He really had no idea what he was doing.</p>
<p>Once in office, Trump still had no idea to make good on his promise, so he delegated everything to House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Tom Price, his health and human services secretary. Trump paid no attention, nor did Stephen Bannon (who helped birth Trump’s populist message but became obsessed with immigration and other matters). Ryan, of course, never promised to protect Medicaid. He told us that he had dreamed of block-granting it to the states since he was in college (!). Ryan was intent on re-privatizing health care (which was impossible because we have laws requiring people to be treated, and we have government-paid health care for the elderly and very poor) and slashing taxes (most of which had been put on the rich). Ryan was intent on using Trump to help push through an unprecedented rollback of an entitlement, a more radical goal than anything his party had ever tried.</p>
<p>Ironically, Ryan pulled a bait-and-switch — Trump promised something “wonderful” to members of his base, and Ryan gave them a right-wing fantasy plan. Ryan’s plan turned out to be in populist terms atrocious and exceedingly unpopular. In the latest Quinnipiac poll, it gets only 17 percent support.</p>
<p>Sure enough, Trump is beginning to blame Ryan, letting it be known that Ryan was the one who insisted on going first on health care. He might be accurate in fingering Ryan, but in that case, Ryan conned Trump. Had Trump paid attention (rather than fixating on a false claim that President Barack Obama had wiretapped him), cared one whit about policy or hired competent staff, he might not have gotten “played.” He can try to shift the blame to Ryan, but he has only himself to blame for getting trapped in the quagmire of health care.</p>
<p>—</p>
<p>Rubin is a Washington Post columnist.</p> | Trumpcare: How we got from ‘wonderful’ to widely panned | false | https://abqjournal.com/975462/trumpcare-how-we-got-from-wonderful-to-widely-panned.html | 2 |
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<p>PORTLAND, Ore. - The Internal Revenue Service announced this week that taxpayers who need to make a payment in cash can now do so at 7-Eleven convenience stores.</p>
<p>While it may seem unusual to pay your taxes where you might otherwise pick up a Slurpee, it caters to a large number of Americans who do not have a bank account or credit card. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation estimates one in 13 households in the U.S. do not have a bank account.</p>
<p>"We continue to look for new ways to provide services for our taxpayers - this provides a new way for people who can only pay their taxes in cash without having to travel to an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center," said IRS Commissioner John Koskinen.</p>
<p>The IRS said payments would be accepted at more than 7,000 7-Eleven stores nationwide.</p>
<p>Individuals who want to use this option should visit the IRS.gov payments page, and follow instructions there for how to make cash payments. Taxpayers will receive an email confirming their information and once verified by the IRS, a link with a payment code and instructions. They can then make a payment at a nearby store.</p>
<p>Because it is a multi-step process, the IRS urges people to start it well ahead of this year's April 18 tax deadline to avoid any interest and penalty charges.</p>
<p>The 7-Eleven stores will provide a receipt for the payment, which usually posts to the taxpayer's account within two business days. There is a $1,000 payment limit per day and a $3.99 fee per payment.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | Pay taxes, buy a Slurpee: IRS now accepts taxes at 7-Eleven | false | https://abqjournal.com/753198/pay-taxes-buy-a-slurpee-irs-now-accepts-taxes-at-7-eleven.html | 2 |
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<p>Maya Arulpragasm (best known as MIA), <a href="http://www.spin.com/#articles/mia-maya-the-message-tumblr-nsa-leaks/" type="external">predicted</a> the NSA spying scandal. She is pop’s most rebellious musician. And after a delay of several years, her new album, which she has <a href="http://pitchfork.com/news/47402-details-on-upcoming-mia-album-emerge/" type="external">described</a> as sounding like “Paul Simon on acid,” was finally released earlier this month. Whether or not it lives up to her characterization, Matangi—titled after MIA’s namesake, the Hindu goddess of music and the spoken word—is decidedly eclectic, ranging from reggae rhythms to club beats, hip-hop vocals to slower love songs, and Eastern instrumentation to a mainstream pop style.</p>
<p>An MIA album would be nothing without a complex, varied message, and Matangi delivers. It’s replete with allusions to Hindu stories and spirituality, alongside more current (if slightly outdated) pop-culture references: “YALA” (you always live again) plays off the cultural meme YOLO (you only live once) popularized by Drake’s “The Motto.” MIA’s response explores the Hindu concepts of reincarnation and karma. “YOLO?” she sings. “I don’t even know anymore…back home where I come from we keep being born again and again and again.” “Come Walk With Me,” ostensibly a song about modern love and romance, is accompanied by a an animated video of Hindu imagery.</p>
<p>Matangi also offers a strong (if ambiguous) political message. “Brown girl, brown girl, turn your shit down. You know America don’t want to hear your sound,” she raps on the short track “Boom.” Meanwhile, “aTENTion” was “written with all the words that have ‘tent’ in them,” she <a href="http://www.npr.org/2013/11/05/243083622/i-built-the-platform-myself-m-i-a-on-being-heard" type="external">told</a> NPR. “It’s sort of to describe the refugee philosophy—people who live in tents—because I feel like they are the modern-day untouchables…they’re faceless and placeless.” The song, weirdly enough, was written with the help of Wikileaks’ Julian Assange, who came by her London studio while she was <a href="http://pitchfork.com/news/46179-watch-the-first-episode-of-wikileaks-julian-assanges-tv-show-featuring-mias-music/" type="external">working</a> <a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/m-i-a-records-music-for-julian-assange-tv-show-20120413" type="external">on his</a> <a href="http://assange.rt.com/" type="external">TV series</a>. Mixed messages aside, Matangi, is everything you’d thought it would be, and gets better with every listen.</p>
<p /> | Hindu Lore to Racial Politics, MIA’s “Matangi” Delivers | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2013/11/mia-matangi-review-album/ | 2013-11-18 | 4 |
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<p>Houston attorney Darrell Jordan was among five prosecutors tapped by the Waller County district attorney to review evidence after Sandra Bland was found dead in her Waller County jail cell on July 13. The Chicago-area woman was arrested three days earlier after a routine traffic stop turned contentious and ended with the white state trooper holding Bland on the ground.</p>
<p>The grand jury had its first meeting on Nov. 12, but prosecutors discovered they needed more information, Jordan said. Among the information sought - but so far not found - is the identity of the person who took a second video of the arrest that was posted online. The arrest also was record on the state trooper's dashcam.</p>
<p>"It would be helpful if we had the person who shot that video, if there were things that happened before the video recorded and after," Jordan said.</p>
<p>Sen. Royce West, a Dallas Democrat who has been a vocal leader in the case, released a statement earlier Monday saying investigations were wrapping up and it would soon "be up to a grand jury to decide whether the evidence presented warrants a criminal trial."</p>
<p>The 28-year-old woman's death came after nearly a year of heightened national scrutiny of police and their dealings with black suspects, especially those who have been killed by officers or die in police custody.</p>
<p>Shortly after Bland's death, West - one of two black members of the Texas Senate - met at Prairie View A&amp;M University with the lieutenant governor, the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, and other state and Waller County officials. They watched the dashcam video of the arrest. Bland had been pulled over for an improper lane change in Prairie View, where she went to interview and accept a job at the school.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>West noted that several other investigations have been completed: The Texas Commission on Jail Standards concluded that Bland wasn't properly monitored while in the jail; the Texas Department of Public Safety has said the trooper who arrested Bland, Brian Encinia, didn't properly follow guidelines when he pulled her over.</p>
<p>The Texas Rangers have been handling the Department of Public Safety probe, the Waller County sheriff has said the results of an internal investigation could result in discipline against jail employees, and the FBI also has been asked to review the case.</p>
<p>Bland was unable to post about $500 bond after being arrested on an assault charge. A medical examiner ruled her death a suicide.</p>
<p>West's spokesman, Kelvin Bass, noted that some people initially questioned whether Bland had been killed by someone else, but said West accepted the medical examiner's findings.</p>
<p>Bland's mother has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the trooper who arrested Bland, the Texas Department of Public Safety, Waller County, the sheriff's department and two county jailers. Her attorneys didn't immediately respond to messages seeking comment Monday.</p> | Special prosecutor confirms Bland case nearly complete | false | https://abqjournal.com/683474/texas-lawmaker-sandra-bland-investigations-nearly-complete.html | 2015-11-30 | 2 |
<p>Credit: Robert Simmon, NASA</p>
<p />
<p>The latest analysis of data from 2002 and 2009 shows no slowing of the North Atlantic portion of the “ <a href="" type="internal">ocean conveyer</a>” that <a href="" type="internal">keeps Europe warm</a>.</p>
<p>Physical oceanographer <a href="http://blogs.jpl.nasa.gov/?author=13" type="external">Joshua Willis</a> of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena analyzed sea surface height using satellite measurements, combined with temperature, salinity, and velocity data collected by free-floating <a href="http://www.argo.ucsd.edu/" type="external">Argo drifters</a> to calculate the flow of the conveyor at 41°N.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.agu.org/pubs/crossref/2010/2010GL042372.shtml" type="external">His paper</a> in the current Geophysical Research Letters finds no significant slowing in the critical climate switch known as the <a href="http://maps.grida.no/go/graphic/modeled-strength-of-the-atlantic-meridional-overturning-circulation-at-30-north" type="external">Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation</a>. From the abstract:</p>
<p>Global warming has been predicted to slow the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), resulting in significant regional climate impacts across the North Atlantic and beyond. Here, satellite observations of sea surface height (SSH) along with temperature, salinity and velocity from profiling floats are used to estimate changes in the northward-flowing, upper limb of the AMOC at latitudes around 41°N. The 2004 through 2006 mean overturning is found to be 15.5 ± 2.4 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sverdrup" type="external">Sv</a> (106 m3/s) with somewhat smaller seasonal and interannual variability than at lower latitudes. There is no significant trend in overturning strength between 2002 and 2009. Altimeter data, however, suggest an increase of 2.6 Sv since 1993, consistent with North Atlantic warming during this same period. Despite significant seasonal to interannual fluctuations, these observations demonstrate that substantial slowing of the AMOC did not occur during the past 7 years and is unlikely to have occurred in the past 2 decades.</p>
<p><a href="http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2010/03/steady-as-she-goes-for-oceans-co-1.html" type="external">Science Now reports</a> that a finding of no slowing is fine by physical oceanographer <a href="http://puddle.mit.edu/~cwunsch/" type="external">Carl Wunsch</a> of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology:</p>
<p>The satellite-drifter analysis is only the latest evidence against a slowing, Wunsch says. And at this rate, it will likely be decades before the conveyor changes enough to be detected by in situ or satellite-borne instruments.</p>
<p>The video is one of NASA’s better pieces, with Josh Willis decribing how the satellite observations of sea surface height work.</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p /> | Ocean Conveyer Holding Steady | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2010/03/ocean-conveyer-holding-steady/ | 2010-03-30 | 4 |
<p><a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/07/murdochs-have-decided-to-remove-roger-ailes.html" type="external">According</a> to New York magazine, Roger Ailes, 76, the iconic head of Fox News, may be fired by the end of 2016 by Rupert Murdoch and his sons Lachlan and James, who own parent company 21st Century Fox.</p>
<p>A sexual-harassment investigation of Ailes conducted by New York law firm Paul, Weiss apparently found enough damaging information to catalyze James Murdoch’s position that Ailes should resign or be fired immediately; Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch want to wait until the GOP convention is concluded; all three Murdochs believe Ailes should leave the company.</p>
<p>The investigation was triggered by accusations of sexual harassment against Ailes from Gretchen Carlson, whose claims of sexual harassment were buttressed by nine other women making similar claims in <a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/07/six-more-women-allege-ailes-sexual-harassment.html" type="external">New York</a> magazine and <a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/07/06/could-fox-news-chairman-roger-ailes-become-the-next-bill-cosby.html" type="external">The Daily Beast</a>, but the investigation broadened to include questions about how Ailes managed the company. Sources told New York Magazine that interviews with former female employees of Fox News as well as current staff have been held at Paul, Weiss’s midtown offices because of fears Fox offices could be bugged.</p>
<p>Questions have arisen concerning claims that Ailes urged employees to denounce his detractors; one instance was an <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/neil-cavuto-roger-ailes-fox-news-2016-7" type="external">op-ed</a> written by Fox Business anchor Neil Cavuto. Cavuto described allegations against Ailes as “sick.”</p>
<p>21st Century Fox released a statement asserting, “This matter is not yet resolved and the review is not concluded.” Ailes’s spokesperson, Irena Briganti, had no comment. A Fox host told New York Magazine that Ailes supporters are “scared to death. The mood is bleak.”</p>
<p>Ailes has run Fox News since 1996; it amasses $1 billion in profit annually. James and Lachlan Murdoch assumed control in June 2015, they have had a strained relationship with Ailes, according to <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2016/07/18/if-roger-ailes-is-on-way-out-at-fox-heres-who-could-take-over/#5cd81fb72d1b" type="external">Forbes</a>. Tom Eagan of Telsey Advisory Group told Forbes, “James and Lachlan have been looking to put their stamp on the <a href="https://www.forbes.com/business/" type="external">business</a> for a while now. If they do anything, it will be partly as a reflection of them making decisions at Fox.”</p>
<p>Possible successors include Bill Shine, Fox News’ senior executive VP, who runs the channel’s non-news programming, and Jay Wallace, who runs all news programming and newsgathering operations.</p> | Roger Ailes Out At Fox? | true | https://dailywire.com/news/7566/roger-ailes-out-fox-hank-berrien | 2016-07-18 | 0 |
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