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<p>A <a href="http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_sitrep_04_08_2014.pdf" type="external">recent report</a> by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) outlines just how much funding the organization needs to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, where nearly half a million people are currently at risk of going hungry. The OCHA says their appeal "is based on the latest analysis of the required emergency assistance to meet the most critical needs of the affected population."&#160;</p>
<p>Many foreign nations have already contributed, according to the OCHA. But it's still not even half way there:</p>
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<p>The OCHA has requested $390 million in funding to go toward five humanitarian aid categories and coordination efforts.&#160;</p>
<p>Food Security</p>
<p>The OCHA estimates 485,000 people are in need of emergency food assistance and asks for "immediate emergency funds to cover massively increasing food needs."</p>
<p>Protection&#160;</p>
<p>According to the OCHA, "At least 373,000 children require direct and specialized psychosocial support (PSS). Children are showing symptoms of increasing distress, including bed wetting, clinging to parents and nightmares." The organization plans to use funds for protection to fund more shelters in occupied territories.</p>
<p>Water, Sanitation and Hygiene</p>
<p>The UN says 1.5 million people in Gaza have no access, or extremely restricted access, to water. Most of the OCHA budget for water, sanitation and hygiene will go toward making urgent repairs to already existing facilities in the area.</p>
<p>Education</p>
<p>The OCHA reports that 141 schools have been damaged by shelling in the occupied territory.</p>
<p>Health and Nutrition</p>
<p>The OCHA reports heavy damages to hospitals from the current conflict, as well as "shortages of staff and water."</p> | This is how much money the UN still needs to deliver basic aid to Gaza | false | https://pri.org/stories/2014-08-04/how-much-money-un-still-needs-deliver-basic-aid-gaza | 2014-08-04 | 3 |
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<p>Back in the 1970s, girls didn’t have a lot of strong role models in mainstream entertainment. The women we saw in films and on TV were waiting to be rescued or draped artistically over the hero. They were decoration, or prizes to be won. We read books and fairy tales where the only accomplishment of the lead female was to be lovely enough to catch someone’s eye. Even the smart ones were smart only until they found a man.</p>
<p>Little girls in the 1970s were lucky enough to find something different in Princess Leia. I was almost 4 when the film came out, and I saw it in the theater in 1977.</p>
<p>“Star Wars” did something new with their lead. Leia wasn’t just a princess to be won; Leia was a fighter in the Rebellion against the evil Empire. She stood up to Darth Vader despite seeing her entire planet blown to bits in front of her — she barely even flinched when it happened. Leia survived Vader’s torture, and when Luke Skywalker and Han Solo came to rescue her, she took over and saved all of their skins. She ran the Rebel outpost on Hoth and, after trying to save Han, she strangled her captor, Jabba the Hutt, with her own slave chains. She later became a general in the fight for freedom. If you read any of the new canon books about her, you know just how vital she was to the Rebellion for her entire life.</p>
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<p>You cannot imagine what a revelation that was for me and for girls everywhere. Many of us were sick of waiting for our prince to come or of playing in a toy kitchen or with plastic shopping carts. Many of us weren’t OK with dolls in pink dresses and Barbie dream houses. We wanted to be part of the action. We wanted our actions to mean something. We wanted to fight.</p>
<p>When I was a girl on the playground, I wasn’t sitting on top of the monkey bars waiting to be rescued, or standing by politely with my hands folded like a good little princess. I took up my stick/blaster and fought the Stormtroopers and Darth Vader. When I saw something that was wrong, I did something about it. And why not? Leia didn’t back down from anyone. She didn’t always succeed, but she always tried, despite all the odds. Being in love was great, but it wasn’t the only thing in her life. She risked her life to save the galaxy. Her friends mattered. Her cause mattered. She was certainly a better shot than those Stormtroopers.</p>
<p>Once I saw Leia, I was never going to sit quietly again. Leia inspired me to hold my head high and tell the world when something was wrong with the way women are portrayed. Because of Leia, I fight for equality. Because of Leia, I started my site, Legion of Leia, to tell the world that women love geek culture. I did it to shine a light on the things that were wrong in the world and to celebrate them when they’re right.</p>
<p>I’m hardly alone. So many women of my generation can point to a picture of themselves dressed as Princess Leia as a kid. If you walk around any comic book convention, you see dozens of little girls with those iconic cinnamon-roll buns in their hair. It stirs my heart every time I see it.</p>
<p>Carrie Fisher wasn’t just Leia, of course. Her career encompassed so many parts of the entertainment industry. Her contribution to erasing the stigma around mental illness was enormous. Her humor kept us laughing with her through her struggles and her triumphs. She was a role model as Leia, but she was one as Carrie as well: Her positive attitude and raw honesty were a guiding example to me in my own career.</p>
<p>Leia was (almost) the only woman in a group of men, and Fisher was one of the few female stars in the sci-fi world; that was something I could relate to, being one of the only women covering geekdom early on. She seemed to be able to find the ridiculous in the diciest of situations. If she could laugh at herself through it all, so could I. Her ability to do so much — write books, act, pen advice columns and more — encouraged me to keep taking on different projects until I found what I wanted to do. Leia was brave. So was Carrie.</p>
<p>Rest in peace, general. May the Force be with you.</p>
<p>– Busch is the founder and editor-in-chief of LegionofLeia.com, host and writer for sites like ComingSoon, Nerdist and Birth. Movies. Death. She is a contributing author for “Star Wars Psychology” and the PsychGeek series of books.</p>
<p>fisher-essay</p> | Carrie Fisher gave new hope to geeky girls like me | false | https://abqjournal.com/916845/carrie-fisher-gave-new-hope-to-geeky-girls-like-me.html | 2 |
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<p>When Zidane replaced Rafa Benitez midway through last season, the inexperienced former midfield standout got off to an auspicious start with a 5-0 victory over Deportivo La Coruna.</p>
<p>Eleven months and one Champions League title later, Madrid faces Deportivo again at home on Saturday with the chance of surpassing its longest unbeaten run since the club was founded in 1902.</p>
<p>On Wednesday, Madrid equaled a club record of 34 games without a loss set in 1989 under coach Leo Beenhakker when it drew 2-2 with Borussia Dortmund.</p>
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<p>“It’s important to continue to make history and continue our good run,” Zidane said after the match. “I don’t think it’s very important for me to leave my mark. What interests me the most is to continue with this great run that we’re on.”</p>
<p>Last season, when Real Madrid president Florentino Perez tapped Zidane to take over a struggling team, the decision smelled of desperation.</p>
<p>A fan favorite from his playing days as part of Madrid’s “galaticos” bunch, Zidane was promoted from coaching the reserve team to take over a side that was lurching from one embarrassing episode to the next.</p>
<p>Madrid’s 2015-16 campaign had started with Perez flubbing his play to sign away Manchester United goalie David de Gea. The team was then disqualified from the Copa de Rey for fielding an illegible player, and it endured a 4-0 defeat from Barcelona at home as it failed to click with Benitez.</p>
<p>Perez needed to make an impact move. But instead of searching for a veteran manager, he charged the unproven Zidane with turning around Madrid’s group of talented underachievers.</p>
<p>At first, the team remained erratic, and even looked set to bow out of the Champions League after a shocking 2-0 loss at German side Wolfsburg.</p>
<p>But that defeat on April 6 proved to be a catalyst. The team hasn’t lost since, recovering to claim its 11th European Cup and almost nip Barcelona for the Spanish league crown, before roaring out to lead la Liga this season.</p>
<p>Zidane, whose top-tier coaching experience had been limited to his stint as an assistant under Carlo Ancelotti, has now reached the half-century mark as head manager. During that 50-match period, he has overseen 37 wins, 11 draws and only two losses. That other loss came at Atletico Madrid in February.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>“The players have to be congratulated. They’re the ones out on the pitch, it’s them who run, fight and dig in,” Zidane said. “We also have to thank the fans, who always get behind the team and support us. They’ve got to take some credit for what the team is achieving”.</p>
<p>Gifted with world-class stars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Luka Modric, Zidane focused on getting more from Madrid’s supporting cast. He put a new emphasis on defense in his midfield by favoring Mateo Kovacic and Casemiro over flashier playmakers James Rodriguez and Francisco “Isco” Alarcon, and he has helped the little-known Lucas Vazquez blossom into an important piece of its attack.</p>
<p>“(Zidane) has gotten us to work hard and for things to go well for us, and that is paying off with this run of 34 unbeaten games,” defender Dani Carvajal said. “Everyone on the team has words of praise for him.”</p>
<p>Whereas the draw with Dortmund was disappointing because it cost Madrid a first-place finish in its Champions League group, its 1-1 stalemate earned last weekend at Barcelona tasted of victory. The “clasico” draw kept Madrid six points clear of Barcelona at the top of the Spanish table.</p>
<p>After it plays Deportivo, Madrid heads to Japan for the Club World Cup.</p>
<p>If Zidane sets the new club mark, his next goal would be the milestone held by Barcelona under counterpart Luis Enrique, whose 39-game unbeaten run was ended by Madrid last April.</p> | Zidane’s Madrid on cusp of setting new unbeaten record | false | https://abqjournal.com/904972/zidanes-madrid-on-cusp-of-setting-new-unbeaten-record.html | 2016-12-08 | 2 |
<p>MOUNT VERNON, Wash. (AP) — Authorities say one person died in a fire that destroyed a home in Mount Vernon.</p>
<p>The Skagit Valley Herald <a href="https://www.goskagit.com/news/local_news/one-dead-in-mount-vernon-house-fire/article_9a8ebfff-b8f1-5e03-8cc5-2826756e6137.html" type="external">reports</a> firefighters were called to the home at about 3:30 a.m. Tuesday and that once they arrived, they called for additional personnel.</p>
<p>Mount Vernon Fire Chief Bryan Brice confirmed that a body was found in the home.</p>
<p>Brice says an investigation into the fire's cause and the victim's identity is ongoing.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Skagit Valley Herald, <a href="http://www.skagitvalleyherald.com" type="external">http://www.skagitvalleyherald.com</a></p>
<p>MOUNT VERNON, Wash. (AP) — Authorities say one person died in a fire that destroyed a home in Mount Vernon.</p>
<p>The Skagit Valley Herald <a href="https://www.goskagit.com/news/local_news/one-dead-in-mount-vernon-house-fire/article_9a8ebfff-b8f1-5e03-8cc5-2826756e6137.html" type="external">reports</a> firefighters were called to the home at about 3:30 a.m. Tuesday and that once they arrived, they called for additional personnel.</p>
<p>Mount Vernon Fire Chief Bryan Brice confirmed that a body was found in the home.</p>
<p>Brice says an investigation into the fire's cause and the victim's identity is ongoing.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Information from: Skagit Valley Herald, <a href="http://www.skagitvalleyherald.com" type="external">http://www.skagitvalleyherald.com</a></p> | 1 dead in Mount Vernon house fire | false | https://apnews.com/amp/c1df850954ca4e6faecacb9a233df404 | 2018-01-24 | 2 |
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<p>Each January I take the narrow-gauge Swiss railway up through the snowy Alps to Davos to attend the World Economic Forum. Just as in the days when tubercular patients arrived “for the air” at the community’s sanatoriums (made famous by Thomas Mann’s The Magic Mountain), this outpost still has the rare feeling of a self-contained place — a world unto itself.</p>
<p>During the five days of the Forum, this feeling is enhanced by the steel fence erected around the conference area, the thousands of Swiss police who guard the perimeter against demonstrators, and the bunker-like Congress Centre where many of the speeches, panels, discussions and much of the endless networking that characterizes Davos take place. Here, undisturbed by the chaotic world, the two-thousand-plus participants — from corporations, government, academia, politics, the media and civil society exist as if in a bubble, but an unusual bubble, because so many of the attendees rank high on the periodic tables of wealth, power and fame.</p>
<p>In fact, I often think of Davos as a global agora, the forum-marketplace in Periclean Athens where those with citizenship — as distinguished from the lower castes and slaves — gathered to deliberate on the affairs of the city-state. In one of the many available conversation corners, you may find yourself chatting with a friend or newly met acquaintance over a cup of coffee next to the likes of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Director General, Mohamed ElBaradei, US Senator Marie Cantwell, financier George Soros, Playboy Enterprises CEO Christie Hefner, Warsaw Stock Exchange President Wieslaw Rozlucki, President of Columbia University Lee Bollinger, or the Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan Kassymzhomart Tokayev. And it is perfectly within the etiquette of the Forum to say hello and take up a conversation.</p>
<p>Almost every prominent figure is in attendance without staff, much less the customary retinue that normally trails behind the high and the mighty. There is, in fact, a curious and unexpected equivalence among the participants. One is just as likely to find the president of some country as the lowly head of an environmental NGO wandering vacantly through a narrow street, or the CEO of a mighty corporation as a poorly paid professor struggling to get his e-mail at an internet kiosk.</p>
<p>It is, in a sense, a momentary democracy of the elite, and even though this elite is sequestered in a thoroughly privileged environment, there is an enormous amount of exchange because no one is fortified against anyone else. Global decision-makers, who might normally run into each other only in the Op-Ed columns, meet personally. One regularly finds heads of environmental groups at dinner debating oil-company chieftains; well-known literary figures in discussion with the owners of hotel chains or mining companies; human rights leaders challenging heads of oppressive regimes; and journalists contradicting owners of giant media outlets.</p>
<p>Whatever one might say about the rarified air of the World Economic Forum, no one in the Davos bubble is in an individual bubble as well — or at least that was true until Vice President Dick Cheney descended on Davos, roaring up the narrow valley in his helicopter, accompanied by a squadron of military choppers as if part of some misplaced Alpine search-and-destroy operation. On what was only his second trip abroad while in office, he brought with him the bubble of all bubbles.</p>
<p>Although this year such world leaders as French Foreign Minister Dominique Galouzeau de Villepin, Pakistan’s President Pervez Musharraf, former President Bill Clinton, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Anan, and Commerce Secretary Don Evans were in attendance, Cheney proved the capo di tutti capi of this Godfather film, and wherever he went, even his unseen presence altered the prevailing chemistry.</p>
<p>Certainly, given our terrorized planet, one expected the vice president to be accompanied by a considerable security complement, but the security measures taken for him outstripped by a light year those taken for any other leader, even President Musharraf, who had just experienced two major assassination attempts. Helicopters swooped in; bomb-proof limousines appeared; caged attack dogs materialized; elaborate communications systems were set up; and scores of bulky Secret Service agents, emblazoned with tell-tale American flag lapel pins and armed with ear pieces (and who knows what else), fanned out in advance of Cheney’s every movement.</p>
<p>Whole sections of major cities are closed off when the U.S. president and vice president travel abroad — and, as it turned out, not even little Davos was exempt. Cheney’s arrival at the five-star Belvedere Hotel left the world’s elite suddenly experiencing periodic lock-downs. Some complained that they were confined to their rooms whenever he was about to enter or exit. And when he arrived at the Congress Centre to give his well-delivered speech, the normally relaxed atmosphere of the Forum was suddenly transformed. Officious officials with clipboards bustled about, security guards fanned out, and yellow tape mysteriously blocked off certain spaces. It was as if the emperor himself had suddenly appeared among the scholar-officials of ancient China, who saw themselves holding sway not only over “the Middle Kingdom,” but the known world.</p>
<p>Cheney alone seemed to have the droit de seigneur to trump the Davos ethos. While he answered a few unscripted questions from the audience after his speech, there was no schmoozing in the lobbies à la Bill Clinton, no chance encounters or random cups of coffee, and no real opportunity for him to participate in the back-and-forth that makes Davos, Davos. Like some potentate-of-potentates, he arrived, spoke, and then — as far as the rest of us elite mortals could discern – vanished behind his security shield.</p>
<p>To experience first-hand how alienated our Vice President and President have become from the world — and often the world from them — is deeply disturbing. If the Vice President needs such security in possibly the most secure place on the planet, then we are facing a truly tragic situation involving an incomparable loss for our country, not to say the world.</p>
<p>I came away from Davos sensing that the leaders of our country are ever more cut off from normal information-feedback loops so crucial to anyone who wants to stay up-to-date on how the world is turning. An administration little inclined to read the daily press, unmotivated by the kind of intellectual curiosity that makes people seek out discussion, and so tightly wrapped in fearfulness and insecurity that even Davos fills with frightening possibilities, is not an encouraging spectacle.</p>
<p>Hermetically sealed inside his bubble, Cheney for a short moment entered the larger bubble of the World Economic Forum. But like a missionary, his only urge was to deliver a message, to evangelize for his faith. Missing was any desire, perhaps even the ability to learn something meaningful about the heathen lands around him</p>
<p>Indeed, the Bush bubble reflects a spirit deeply evangelical. In its embunkered totalism, more concerned with justifying and converting than questioning and learning, it seems strangely akin in spirit to the party discipline of Leninism. What is most important to men like Cheney is “teaching” in the almost biblical sense of that word, which means “preaching.” Not emphasized is “learning,” in the sense of engaging in constant questioning or wrestling with ambiguity.</p>
<p>Whatever one may choose to say about Davos as a summit of elitist power-brokers, it is an institution deeply committed to asking questions in an informal setting that encourages spontaneous exchange. It would have been reassuring just once to spot Cheney on a couch quietly talking with some European counterpart or having a cup of coffee with an Arab journalist. But there were too many souls to be saved elsewhere for him to linger. His limousines, security guards, and helicopters were soon packed up and he was whisked away from Davos without, in a sense, ever having arrived.</p>
<p /> | A Look Inside Cheney’s Bubble | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2004/02/look-inside-cheneys-bubble/ | 2004-02-09 | 4 |
<p><a href="http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/larry.king.live/" type="external">Larry King</a> has interviewed some of the most important people on the planet, but it seems unlikely that any of those interviews brought as much joy into the world as his Friday segment with Snoop Dogg did. Larry riding dubs with a legendary rapper? What else could you ask for?</p> | Snoop Dogg on Larry King | true | https://thedailybeast.com/snoop-dogg-on-larry-king | 2018-10-07 | 4 |
<p>Android phone users may turn off their location services settings, take out their SIM card or restore their device to factory settings, but Google still collects their location data, according to a new report.</p>
<p>For the past 11 months, devices running on Android software have been sending “Cell ID codes,” which contain data on the addresses of nearby cellular towers, to Google, according to a report from <a href="https://qz.com/1131515/google-collects-android-users-locations-even-when-location-services-are-disabled/" type="external">Quartz</a>.</p>
<p>After Quartz discovered the devices were collecting data, Google admitted to the practice.</p>
<p>“In January of this year, we began looking into using Cell ID codes as an additional signal to further improve the speed and performance of message delivery,” a Google spokesperson told Quartz.</p>
<p>Every time a device with a cellular data or WiFi connection came within range of a new cell tower, it would broadcast the addresses of nearby cellular towers and send the data to Google. However, the company said the data is “distinctly separate” from Location Services, which sends a device’s location to the applications.</p>
<p>Read more</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/usa/408632-sessions-702-encryption-manhattan-terrorism/" type="external" /></p>
<p>Cell ID data only provides an approximate location of a mobile device, not a precise GPS location. However, a hacker could use other nearby cell towers to triangulate a user’s location to within a quarter-mile radius. A more narrow radius could be obtained for users in urban areas, where cell towers are much closer together.</p>
<p>There are more than 200,000 cell phone towers in the US, with a maximum range of less than 22 miles, according to <a href="https://www.statisticbrain.com/cell-phone-tower-statistics/" type="external">Statistic Brain</a>.</p>
<p>Google noted that the Cell ID data sent to their servers was encrypted, but Quartz noted that a hacker could divert the data to be collected by a third party through the use of spyware or other means.</p>
<p>Quartz found that the location-sharing was occurring on all modern Android devices. The report states that Android devices were sharing their location even when there was no SIM card installed and the user disabled location services.</p>
<p>Google’s <a href="https://www.google.com/policies/privacy/" type="external">privacy policy</a> states that users may have their location data collected through “various technologies,” including “IP address, GPS, and other sensors that may, for example, provide Google with information on nearby devices, Wi-Fi access points and cell towers.”</p>
<p>Google began using the Cell ID codes to boost their push notifications and messaging management system called Firebase Cloud Messaging, a source familiar with the matter told Quartz.</p>
<p>A source told Fox News that the Cell ID was used to ensure the devices “remain connected and that people get their messages.”</p>
<p>“In order for Android users to receive notifications and messages quickly, an Android device needs to maintain a persistent connection to Google servers using Firebase Cloud Messaging,” the source said. “To maintain this connection, devices need to ping the server at a regular interval.”</p>
<p>The Cell ID was never incorporated into Google’s network sync system and all the data was “immediately discarded,” the company said. The tech giant promised to roll out an update that removes the cell ID collecting feature by the end of this month.</p>
<p>[embedded content]</p> | Disable location access? Google collects data from Android users anyway – report | false | https://newsline.com/disable-location-access-google-collects-data-from-android-users-anyway-report/ | 2017-11-21 | 1 |
<p />
<p>IBM reported third-quarter revenue below analyst expectations and earnings per share that barely beat estimates as demand for its software services and tight cost management offset the effect of a stronger dollar on the technology and consulting company.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>International Business Machines Corp, which has shifted its focus to higher-margin software and services from tech products, said on Tuesday that earnings per share, excluding items, were $3.62, just beating average analysts' estimates of $3.61.</p>
<p>Revenue eased 5% to $24.7 billion due to a negative currency impact of almost $1 billion. Wall Street had expected a decline in revenue by about 3% to $25.36 billion.</p>
<p>Revenues from IBM's EMEA region, which includes Europe, Middle East and Africa were $7.2 billion, down 9%, without adjusting for foreign exchange effects.</p>
<p>In the Americas revenue declined 4% to $10.4 billion while Asia-Pacific revenues rose 1% to $6.5 billion.</p>
<p>IBM reiterated its outlook for the year, targeting earnings per share of at least $15.10.</p>
<p>IBM stock lost 3.6% to $203.41 in after hours trading. It closed up 1% at $211 on Tuesday.</p>
<p>Advertisement</p> | IBM Posts Mixed 3Q Results | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2012/10/16/ibm-posts-mixed-3q-results.html | 2016-01-26 | 0 |
<p>By <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/09/06/tribes-secure-limited-victory-partial-halt-dakota-pipeline" type="external">Lauren McCauley / Common Dreams</a></p>
<p>Water protectors locked themselves to machinery Tuesday, halting construction two days after the Dakota Access pipeline company bulldozed sacred burial sites. (UnicornRiot.Ninja)</p>
<p>U.S. District Judge James Boasberg on Tuesday reportedly <a href="https://twitter.com/KXMB/status/773256230458363904" type="external">denied</a> an emergency request for a restraining order filed by the Standing Rock Sioux. However, the hearing is being seen as a partial victory for the tribe.</p>
<p />
<p>In a press conference, a representative for the tribe <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TYTpolitics/videos/vb.1681900485390993/1743924215855286/?type=2&amp;theater" type="external">explained</a> that an “agreement” was reached, under which the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) company will not continue construction on the area east of North Dakota Highway 1806, which is under jurisdiction of the Army Corps of Engineers, until Friday, when Boasberg is expected to issue his ruling on the preliminary injunction. The judge said he did not have jurisdiction to suspend activities on both sides of the highway.</p>
<p>In a statement, Standing Rock Sioux chairman David Archambault II said, “We are disappointed that the U.S. District Court’s decision does not prevent DAPL from destroying our sacred sites as we await a ruling on our original motion to stop construction of the pipeline.”</p>
<p>Earlier:</p>
<p>Hours before a federal judge is expected to rule on an emergency request for a restraining order, filed in response to the <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/09/05/not-genocide-pipeline-co-bulldozing-burial-sites-prompts-emergency-motion" type="external">holiday weekend desecration</a> of sacred sites, Indigenous activists in North Dakota once again halted construction of the <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/tag/dakota-access-pipeline" type="external">Dakota Access Pipeline</a> (DAPL) on Tuesday.</p>
<p>According to images shared on social media and reporting on the ground, multiple protectors, as they refer to themselves, have locked themselves to construction equipment.</p>
<p>“Many tribal nations, our allies—everybody’s here as water protectors. This land is ours! This water is ours!” <a href="https://twitter.com/Fusion/status/773203149486039040" type="external">declared</a> Cody Hall, a representative from the Red Warrior Camp, standing in front of the occupied machinery.</p>
<p>The action comes just days after security forces hired by pipeline parent company Energy Transfer Partners <a href="http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/09/04/dakota-access-pipeline-company-attacks-protesters-dogs-and-mace" type="external">viciously attacked</a> tribal demonstrators with dogs and mace.</p>
<p>“They won’t drag us down, they won’t push us back,” Hall continued. “We are here and we will make sure this snake dies.”</p>
<p>One of the individuals on lockdown, Jules from the Oglala Lakota nation, explained how construction of the 1,172-mile crude oil pipeline would not only imperil the sacred water of the Standing Rock Sioux, but also harm native communities, which struggle with drug abuse and violence against women.</p>
<p>“I’m here on lockdown to send a message that our water is sacred, our women are sacred, our children are sacred,” <a href="https://twitter.com/UR_Ninja/status/773190968560541696" type="external">said</a> Jules, who is founder of the Mothers Against Meth Alliance. “And these pipelines bring in man camps and hardcore drugs, which leads to sex trafficking of native women, which leads to missing and murdered native women. So that’s why I’m here today.”</p>
<p>Updates on the situation are being <a href="https://twitter.com/search?src=typd&amp;q=%23nodapl%20OR%20%23Rezpectourwater" type="external">shared</a> with the hashtags #NoDAPL and #RezpectOurWater.</p>
<p>Multiple lockdowns currently in place on Dakota Access construction. Sheriff on site but no arrests yet. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/noDAPL?src=hash" type="external">#noDAPL</a> <a href="https://t.co/dUeeCIycih" type="external">pic.twitter.com/dUeeCIycih</a></p>
<p>— Unicorn Riot (@UR_Ninja) <a href="https://twitter.com/UR_Ninja/status/773184888992301056" type="external">September 6, 2016</a></p>
<p>Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., attorneys representing the Standing Rock Sioux and Cheyenne River Sioux are preparing to argue before U.S. District Judge James Boasberg that Dakota Access deliberately rerouted construction over the holiday weekend to target traditional burial grounds and ritual sites—the exact location of which were <a href="http://earthjustice.org/sites/default/files/files/Decl-of-T-Mentz-in-support-of-TRO.PDF" type="external">identified</a> (pdf) in court <a href="http://earthjustice.org/sites/default/files/files/Suppl-Dec-of-T-Mentz-Sr.pdf" type="external">filings</a> (pdf) on Friday.</p>
<p>Earthjustice attorney Jan Hasselman is seeking a temporary restraining order to halt construction in and around the site until Boasberg issues his ruling on the preliminary injunction requested by the tribes, which is expected to be handed down on Friday.</p>
<p>For its part, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the defendant in the case, has <a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3097679-Standing-Rock-Sioux-Tribe-Army-Corps.html" type="external">said</a> it would comply with a temporary halt in construction.</p>
<p>Speaking to Democracy Now! on Tuesday, Hasselman reiterated how important these ancient burial sites are to the Standing Rock Sioux and the “shock and anguish” felt by the tribes when it was clear that Energy Transfer Partners took the newly filed information about the archaeological sites and “12 hours later, the bulldozers were out.”</p>
<p>Dave Archambault II, chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe who also appeared on Democracy Now!, said that both the dog attack and the desecration of sacred sites are examples of how, throughout this months-long standoff, the pipeline company as well as the North Dakota government have tried to incite violence from the peaceful prayer camps.</p>
<p>“I think what happens is the company or the government…doesn’t understand how peaceful, prayerful standoffs work,” he said. “They look for confrontation. So, that’s what they know how to deal with. But when it’s prayerful and peaceful and when it’s something that the youth want, they have to try to figure out how to deal with us.”</p>
<p>With over 100 tribal nations now represented at the prayer camps, resistance has grown tremendously since April when the Standing Rock Sioux received notice of the construction. Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein and her vice president Ajama Baraka also expressed support <a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=images&amp;vertical=default&amp;q=%23nodapl%20OR%20%23Rezpectourwater&amp;src=typd" type="external">appearing</a> at the protest Tuesday.</p>
<p>“It’s one of the most beautiful things that I’m fortunate to witness,” said Archambault of the outpouring of tribal solidarity. “I think when tribes come together in unity and with prayer, there’s a lot of healing that is taking place. And the tribes that are all coming, every one of them will share a story on how the government or how the corporate world has infringed on their indigenous rights, has infringed on their indigenous land, has contaminated their environment or their water in one way or another. And this unity coming together just says it’s time to stop.”</p>
<p>Watch the “Democracy Now!” segment below:</p> | Tribes Secure Limited Victory With Partial, Temporary Halt on Dakota Access Pipeline (Video) | true | https://truthdig.com/articles/tribes-secure-limited-victory-with-partial-temporary-halt-on-dakota-access-pipeline-video/ | 2016-09-07 | 4 |
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<p>In a state where Democrats are used to losing, malaise hangs over this quiet African-American neighborhood in suburban Birmingham, even three days before Alabama’s high-profile Senate contest. It is supposed to be a Democratic stronghold, yet the Jones campaign signs are hard to find.</p>
<p>“A lot of people don’t vote because they think their vote don’t count,” Ebonique Jiles, 27, said after promising a Jones volunteer she would support the Democrat in Tuesday’s election. “I’ll vote regardless of whether he wins or loses.”</p>
<p>With history and math working against them in deep-red Alabama, Democrats fought Saturday to energize a winning coalition of African-Americans and moderate Republicans — a delicate balancing act on full display as Jones and his network of volunteers canvassed the state. Moore, by contrast, held no public events, a familiar strategy as he bets big that the state’s strong Republican leanings will carry him to the Senate, despite his shortcomings.</p>
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<p>During an appearance near the staging ground for Selma’s landmark “Bloody Sunday” civil rights march, Jones declared that Alabama has an opportunity to go “forward and not backward.”</p>
<p>“This campaign has the wind at its back because we are bringing people together from all across this state,” Jones said after a meeting at Brown Chapel A.M.E. Church. “The other side is trying to divide us more than they bring people together.”</p>
<p>He was later joined by New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, one of only two African-American Democrats in the Senate, who offered a warning to voters gathered at Alabama State University: “Bad people get elected when good people don’t vote.”</p>
<p>Saturday evening, Moore’s camp organized two get-out-the-vote concerts expected to draw overwhelmingly white voters — including some open-minded Republicans — in a state that hasn’t elected a Democrat to the Senate in more than a quarter century.</p>
<p>Moore got a big boost the night before in nearby Pensacola, Florida, where President Donald Trump encouraged voters to “get out and vote for Roy Moore.” Trump has also recorded a phone message on Moore’s behalf set to be distributed to Alabama voters on Monday, said White House spokesman Raj Shah.</p>
<p>The White House support comes even as the 70-year-old Moore faces multiple accusations of sexual misconduct, including allegations that he molested two teenage girls and pursued romantic relationships with several others while in his 30s. He has largely denied the allegations.</p>
<p>The explosive charges, which many Washington Republicans describe as credible, are giving Democrats a rare opportunity to pick up a Senate seat in the Deep South, where Republicans significantly outnumber Democrats. Even if Jones wins on Tuesday, many Democrats expect the GOP to re-claim the seat when the term expires at the end of 2020.</p>
<p>Beneath Jones’ biracial and bipartisan balancing act is a complex numbers game that has vexed Alabama Democrats for decades.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The party’s core of black voters and white liberals — plus a smidgen of old-guard, more conservative “Southern Democrats” who’ve held on amid the region’s partisan shift — is worth no more than 40 percent in statewide elections. That’s been true in high-turnout elections, with former President Barack Obama twice landing between 38 and 39 percent, and the most recent governor’s race in 2014, when the Democratic nominee pulled just 36 percent.</p>
<p>African-Americans make up about 25 percent of eligible voters, though Democratic pollster Zac McCrary said Jones needs black voters to comprise 27 percent or more of those who show up at the polls on Tuesday. Jones then needs to win one in three white voters in the state, which would require capturing about 15 percent of Republicans, McCrary said.</p>
<p>Such dynamics are difficult to overcome, said Democratic strategist Keenan Pontoni, who managed the campaign of Georgia congressional hopeful Jon Ossoff earlier this year. Ossoff aimed for an upset in the 6th Congressional District of Georgia, but ultimately came up short in Atlanta’s Republican-leaning northern suburbs.</p>
<p>“The only way you win in these kinds of districts and states is a coalition that is obviously very hard to put together,” Pontoni said. “You’re going after voters who think and vote very differently.”</p>
<p>Much like Jones, Ossoff used an extensive, data-driven ground game to maximize Democratic support, while using television advertising to strike a moderate, non-partisan tone. Ossoff didn’t have a controversial opponent like Moore, but he ran against Washington dysfunction as a way to reach moderates.</p>
<p>On the ground in Alabama on Saturday, Jones dispatched hundreds of volunteers across the state to knock on doors to identify likely supporters in neighborhoods that featured high concentrations of African-Americans and Republicans who supported Moore’s GOP primary opponent, current Sen. Luther Strange.</p>
<p>Jones volunteer Dana Ellis, a 64-year-old nurse, navigated icy sidewalks in Birmingham’s Kingston neighborhood, which is overwhelmingly African-American, to ensure likely Jones supporters vote on Tuesday. Unlike many states, Alabama doesn’t offer early voting.</p>
<p>“Roy Moore will not win if people turn out to vote,” Ellis said.</p>
<p>Many voters on the list provided by the campaign didn’t answer their doors Saturday morning. Those who did suggested they would support Jones, even if they didn’t know him well.</p>
<p>Oweda Clark, who lives just around the corner from 44th Place North, admits it’s hard being a Democrat in Alabama. But she told Ellis that she plans to vote for Jones anyway.</p>
<p>“I don’t like Roy Moore. I don’t like what he stands for,” she said.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Chandler reported from Selma. Associated Press writer Bill Barrow in Pensacola, Florida, contributed to this report.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>This story has been corrected to say that there are two African-American Democrats in the Senate.</p> | Aided by scandal, Dems fighting math and history in Alabama | false | https://abqjournal.com/1104478/aided-by-scandal-dems-fighting-math-and-history-in-alabama.html | 2017-12-09 | 2 |
<p>Investing.com – The euro pared some of its gains against the dollar after hitting a nearly two-week high on Thursday following European Central Bank president Mario Draghi’s comments that policymakers would decide on tapering stimulus in October.</p>
<p>Mr Draghi, however, expressed concerns over the recent rally in the euro, saying that the currency’s strength “represents a source of uncertainty which requires monitoring with regard to its implications for the medium term outlook for price stability”. Stronger currencies usually lead to an increase in imports, which tends to weigh on the pace of inflation.</p>
<p>Draghi’s comments came after the ECB kept interest rates at and confirmed that asset purchases would continue at least until December.</p>
<p>jumped 0.76% to $1.2008 while gained 0.47% to £0.9180.</p>
<p>The sharp rise in euro added pressure on the dollar which fell to its lowest since January 2015 against its rivals amid initial jobless claims data that undershot expectations.</p>
<p>The , which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, fell by 0.56% to 91.69.</p>
<p>in the period running from Aug. 27 to Sept. 2 surged by 62,000 to 298,000, reaching the highest level since spring 2015, the Labor Department said Thursday.</p>
<p>rose 0.20% to $1.3069 while fell 0.65% to C$1.2145, as the Bank of Canada’s unexpected decision to hike rates on Wednesday continued to support a move higher in the loonie.</p>
<p>fell to Y108.51, down 0.66%.</p>
<p />
<p>Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.</p> | Euro dips below $1.20 after hitting nearly two-week highs | false | https://newsline.com/euro-dips-below-1-20-after-hitting-nearly-two-week-highs/ | 2017-09-07 | 1 |
<p><a href="" type="internal">Read more</a>&#160;on how the Democratic Party has changed.</p>
<p>The retired Marine general, flanked by former military colleagues, thunders a warning: Elect our candidate, a tough, smart, proven leader, or risk turning the nation over to a novice who would retreat from the world stage and who disrespects the military. “USA! USA!” the rapturous crowd chants in response.</p>
<p>This set-piece of Republican conventions returned in full swing this summer. Except this time, it was happening in Philadelphia, at the Democratic Convention.</p>
<p>Recently, something significant has changed in the way that Democrats approach national security—something that cannot be explained simply as a response to Donald Trump’s manifest unfitness to be commander in chief. Rather, the party that has long yielded to its political rivals on the question of who best can secure the country is standing up and exerting its own primacy on these issues. Now, with security experts from both parties lining up behind their nominee, Democrats could be in a position to reverse the long-standing politics of national security for the first time in decades.</p>
<p>After the political wipeout in 2004, Third Way conducted extensive public opinion research to explore what we, at Third Way, dubbed “the security gap.” Since the Vietnam War, when liberals were seen as soft on defense, Republicans have led by 10-25 points in polls that asked respondents which party is better able to protect the country. This gap persisted despite strong national security leadership in the Democrats’ two-term presidents, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. And the rare exceptions have proved the rule: Democrats closed the gap, or briefly led on this issue, only twice since 9/11—at the nadir of the Iraq War in 2006, and after Obama’s bold stroke took out Osama bin Laden in 2011. But, in both cases, Republicans quickly regained their edge on security politics.</p>
<p>This raises serious concerns, and not just for the electoral prospects of Democrats. If voters believe that one party—the party that has controlled the White House for 16 of the last 24 years—is not tough enough to defend the country, that helps to further erode trust in government—and in dangerous ways.</p>
<p>Focus groups over the last decade highlighted a clear and consistent problem: Voters thought of Democrats as weak, vacillating, and afraid to use force in order to protect the country. While they liked the party for their foreign policy and alliance-building, they strongly preferred Republicans when it came to battling our enemies. And when they do give Democrats credit for those things, it’s short-lived.</p>
<p>Our 2014 focus groups brought this problem home. In a group of swing-voting women, when asked to identify something positive about Democrats on security, they sat in uncomfortable silence until one haltingly referenced the attack “on that one guy with the beard.” Just three years after the Abbottabad raid, bin Laden’s name had faded from memory.</p>
<p>That year, despite our warnings that the “gap” was back, and bigger than ever, Democrats turned a blind eye to security. One prominent Democratic pollster <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/23/politics/pollitics-fear-returns-isis/" type="external">said</a>, “We should not conflate an expression of concern about terrorism with it as a driver of vote choice.” And Democrats continued to minimize the very threats that, as our focus groups showed, voters were particularly concerned with. In a campaign debate, then-Senator Mark Udall, a Democrat, claimed, “ISIS is not an imminent threat.” Udall and eight other Senate Democrats lost their seats that year—security was the sleeper issue. Republicans ran ads that combined all of the public’s most pressing anxieties. One ad in North Carolina actually claimed that ISIS was bringing Ebola across the Mexican border.</p>
<p>Democrats started getting the message. By the spring of last year, <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2015/02/national-security-democrats-115374" type="external">POLITICO</a> and <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2015/04/14/hillary-clinton-foreign-policy-powers-column/25731121/" type="external">USA Today</a> were claiming that national security was creating real problems for Democrats, leading both Democrats in Congress, as well as the Clinton campaign, to pay close attention. Consequently, Third Way was involved in briefing the Democratic caucus on this issue, and was frequently asked for advice when terrorism hit the front page. Even Russ Feingold, the sole vote against the PATRIOT Act, began running tough on terrorism in his quest to return to the Senate.</p>
<p>It was clear that most in the party finally understood three things: First, in the wake of terrorist attacks at home and abroad, national security carries a high degree of salience for voters. Second, Republicans will use the same playbook that they always have to exploit their perceived advantage on security. Third, with a tough, tested, experienced person like Hillary Clinton as the Democratic nominee—and particularly with Donald Trump as her opponent—a window has opened to reclaim the advantage on security politics.</p>
<p>After the take-no-prisoners convention, a POLITICO headline <a href="http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/07/dnc-2016-security-party-214114" type="external">declared</a>, “Role Reversal: The Dems Become the Security Party.”</p>
<p>Of course, this isn’t a complete surprise. This year’s Democratic nominee has deep national security experience and internationalist instincts. But so did John Kerry, a decorated war hero. And so did Al Gore, a Vietnam vet and two-term vice president. Their conventions, and their campaigns, did not, to put it mildly, overly emphasize muscular internationalism.</p>
<p>Republicans are not simply going to cede the political territory they have commanded for a generation. Trump’s convention featured an incessant, and relatively effective, focus on supposed global danger. But this time, Democrats haven’t tried to deflect the criticism or veer toward more familiar ground. They have, at long last, begun to, forcefully, make the case that they are, in fact, the true party of national security.</p> | The End of the Security Gap | true | http://democracyjournal.org/arguments/the-end-of-the-security-gap/ | 2016-08-18 | 4 |
<p>Thom Yorke, “Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes” (Self-released)</p>
<p>There’s been a group out there defending Thom Yorke for 15 years now. They’re a hardy but dwindling lot, holding the line as fickle fans became more and more disinterested watching the increasingly inscrutable Radiohead frontman float off into the ambient atmosphere under the spell of Flying Lotus and Modeselektor.</p>
<p>Yorke’s second solo album certainly won’t slow the erosion. In fact, “Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes” most likely will be remembered more for the way it was released than for the music it actually contains (a growing theme as more big artists look for splashy new distribution models).</p>
<p>Yorke and longtime producer Nigel Godrich announced Friday they’d be releasing “Boxes” as a bundle on BitTorrent, the latest in a growing line of guerrilla releases from Yorke and his cohorts. Remember the pay-what-you-want sales model for Radiohead’s “In Rainbows”?</p>
<p>“Boxes” gives fans eight songs and a video for the happy price of $6. Yorke and Godrich hope it will offer a model for other artists.</p>
<p>All of this is interesting. Unfortunately, it’s more interesting than the bedroom electronica Yorke offers on “Boxes.”</p>
<p>The great thing about Thom Yorke, his defenders say, is he’s always doing something different. You can never guess what a Radiohead album will sound like before it’s released. Yorke’s first solo album, 2006′s “The Eraser,” also marked new territory.</p>
<p>This time around Yorke draws a straight line from his previous work. There’s little to distinguish the music here from some of the more spacey pieces on “The Eraser” and Radiohead’s last album, “The King of Limbs.” And more and more the blasphemous disenchanted, who dislike the difficult, processed vocals —now completely buried in the mix — and Yorke’s decision to leave rock ‘n’ roll behind, seem to have a point.</p>
<p>Opener “A Brain in a Bottle” is as close as Yorke and Godrich get to conventional song structure. “Guess Again!” and “The Mother Lode” carry some of the textures of Yorke’s most interesting creations, with elastic bass backbeats and paranormal piano, but neither song ever rises above its looping drum beat.</p>
<p>“Interference” revisits the dark feeling of alienation laid down so brilliantly on “Kid A” and “Amnesiac.” ″The ground may open up and swallow us in an instant, an instant,” Yorke sings, “But I don’t have the right, to interfere, to interfere.” Midway through the album, though, Yorke starts to disappear behind the loops and electronic skitters and skips.</p>
<p>In the end, it all feels familiar. But his back catalog is filled with songs worthy of your personal playlist. There’s little here worth adding.</p>
<p>Thom Yorke, “Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes” (Self-released)</p>
<p>There’s been a group out there defending Thom Yorke for 15 years now. They’re a hardy but dwindling lot, holding the line as fickle fans became more and more disinterested watching the increasingly inscrutable Radiohead frontman float off into the ambient atmosphere under the spell of Flying Lotus and Modeselektor.</p>
<p>Yorke’s second solo album certainly won’t slow the erosion. In fact, “Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes” most likely will be remembered more for the way it was released than for the music it actually contains (a growing theme as more big artists look for splashy new distribution models).</p>
<p>Yorke and longtime producer Nigel Godrich announced Friday they’d be releasing “Boxes” as a bundle on BitTorrent, the latest in a growing line of guerrilla releases from Yorke and his cohorts. Remember the pay-what-you-want sales model for Radiohead’s “In Rainbows”?</p>
<p>“Boxes” gives fans eight songs and a video for the happy price of $6. Yorke and Godrich hope it will offer a model for other artists.</p>
<p>All of this is interesting. Unfortunately, it’s more interesting than the bedroom electronica Yorke offers on “Boxes.”</p>
<p>The great thing about Thom Yorke, his defenders say, is he’s always doing something different. You can never guess what a Radiohead album will sound like before it’s released. Yorke’s first solo album, 2006′s “The Eraser,” also marked new territory.</p>
<p>This time around Yorke draws a straight line from his previous work. There’s little to distinguish the music here from some of the more spacey pieces on “The Eraser” and Radiohead’s last album, “The King of Limbs.” And more and more the blasphemous disenchanted, who dislike the difficult, processed vocals —now completely buried in the mix — and Yorke’s decision to leave rock ‘n’ roll behind, seem to have a point.</p>
<p>Opener “A Brain in a Bottle” is as close as Yorke and Godrich get to conventional song structure. “Guess Again!” and “The Mother Lode” carry some of the textures of Yorke’s most interesting creations, with elastic bass backbeats and paranormal piano, but neither song ever rises above its looping drum beat.</p>
<p>“Interference” revisits the dark feeling of alienation laid down so brilliantly on “Kid A” and “Amnesiac.” ″The ground may open up and swallow us in an instant, an instant,” Yorke sings, “But I don’t have the right, to interfere, to interfere.” Midway through the album, though, Yorke starts to disappear behind the loops and electronic skitters and skips.</p>
<p>In the end, it all feels familiar. But his back catalog is filled with songs worthy of your personal playlist. There’s little here worth adding.</p> | Review: Nothing surprising on Yorke’s surprise LP | false | https://apnews.com/d718bb468d3642679b90c8f0dfd9b899 | 2014-09-26 | 2 |
<p>DENVER (AP) — Troy Tulowitzki was in no hurry to leave the dugout even after more than 6 hours of baseball.</p>
<p>The Colorado Rockies shortstop had a lot on his mind and staring out toward the field seemed as good a place as any to contemplate a seven-game losing streak that's weighing heavily on him.</p>
<p>"I care," Tulowitzki said after the Arizona Diamondbacks completed their first doubleheader road sweep since 2006 with a 5-1 victory over Colorado on Wednesday night. "Bottom line: We haven't played good baseball."</p>
<p>In the seven losses the Rockies have been outscored 65-25. Manager Walt Weiss wasn't around to see much of the second game after being ejected by plate umpire Bill Miller in the third inning for arguing balls and strikes.</p>
<p>But he didn't disagree with Tulowitzki's assessment.</p>
<p>"There's no magic pill — show up and compete," said Weiss, whose team received a brief respite from their woes when they were rained out on consecutive days before resuming Wednesday. "We've got to pitch better. We've got to take better at-bats. We've got to play better."</p>
<p>In the opening game, Aaron Hill tied a career high with four RBIs, including a three-run homer, as the Diamondbacks breezed to a 13-7 win.</p>
<p>Things certainly didn't go well in that contest for Tyler Matzek (2-1) as he threw very few strikes, leading to an awfully short afternoon — on a day the Rockies needed him to go deep into the game, too.</p>
<p>Matzek allowed four runs in two innings and matched a career high with six walks in his first start since leaving an April 27 outing at Arizona with a hamstring cramp. The lefty couldn't command his fastball. Of his 58 pitches, only 20 were for strikes.</p>
<p>"The fastball feel just wasn't there," Matzek said.</p>
<p>Jordan Lyles (2-3) pitched more effectively in the night game, allowing four runs in seven innings.</p>
<p>Still, it wasn't enough.</p>
<p>"Today wasn't a good day," Tulowitzki said. "If we talk right now, we're going to say things a little more harshly and be tougher.</p>
<p>"We knew it wasn't going to be easy. We'll see what we're made of."</p>
<p>Paul Goldschmidt homered and Robbie Ray threw six strong innings in a spot start during the second game. Ray (1-0), who allowed five hits and one run, will be sent right back to Triple-A Reno. He knew that would be the case.</p>
<p>"I went out throwing like I would any day," Ray said. "It didn't change the way I pitched. I was the same guy pitching in the big leagues or pitching in Triple-A."</p>
<p>His outing certainly caught the eye of manager Chip Hale, who said after the game, "when we need somebody he's going to be the guy."</p>
<p>The last time Arizona won a doubleheader on the road was June 3, 2006, at Atlanta. The 18 combined runs are also the most the team has ever scored in a doubleheader.</p>
<p>David Peralta broke a tie in the fifth with a two-out, two-run double that just got over the outstretched glove of right fielder Charlie Blackmon. Goldschmidt followed with an RBI single to give the Diamondbacks a 4-1 lead.</p>
<p>Mike McKenry drove in Colorado's lone run with an RBI double in the fourth.</p>
<p>TRAINER'S ROOM</p>
<p>Diamondbacks: Hale isn't sure when Patrick Corbin (elbow) will pitch again after the left-hander threw three innings Tuesday in an extended spring training game. "I think they might be giving him six days," Hale said. ... Hale had no update on 3B Jake Lamb (left foot stress reaction), who recently was cleared to walk on a treadmill.</p>
<p>Rockies: Closer Adam Ottavino (elbow) was scheduled to meet with Dr. James Andrews on Wednesday. Ottavino is concerned he will need season-ending Tommy John surgery. "Could be a long road ahead," Weiss said. "But he's ready for that." ... RHP LaTroy Hawkins (biceps tendinitis) was slated to resume throwing Wednesday. "We're not rushing this thing," Hawkins said.</p>
<p>UP NEXT</p>
<p>Diamondbacks: RHP Rubby De La Rosa (2-2, 5.40) will face the San Diego Padres on Thursday.</p>
<p>Rockies: Day off Thursday. Eddie Butler (2-2, 3.81) throws Friday when Colorado opens a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.</p>
<p>DENVER (AP) — Troy Tulowitzki was in no hurry to leave the dugout even after more than 6 hours of baseball.</p>
<p>The Colorado Rockies shortstop had a lot on his mind and staring out toward the field seemed as good a place as any to contemplate a seven-game losing streak that's weighing heavily on him.</p>
<p>"I care," Tulowitzki said after the Arizona Diamondbacks completed their first doubleheader road sweep since 2006 with a 5-1 victory over Colorado on Wednesday night. "Bottom line: We haven't played good baseball."</p>
<p>In the seven losses the Rockies have been outscored 65-25. Manager Walt Weiss wasn't around to see much of the second game after being ejected by plate umpire Bill Miller in the third inning for arguing balls and strikes.</p>
<p>But he didn't disagree with Tulowitzki's assessment.</p>
<p>"There's no magic pill — show up and compete," said Weiss, whose team received a brief respite from their woes when they were rained out on consecutive days before resuming Wednesday. "We've got to pitch better. We've got to take better at-bats. We've got to play better."</p>
<p>In the opening game, Aaron Hill tied a career high with four RBIs, including a three-run homer, as the Diamondbacks breezed to a 13-7 win.</p>
<p>Things certainly didn't go well in that contest for Tyler Matzek (2-1) as he threw very few strikes, leading to an awfully short afternoon — on a day the Rockies needed him to go deep into the game, too.</p>
<p>Matzek allowed four runs in two innings and matched a career high with six walks in his first start since leaving an April 27 outing at Arizona with a hamstring cramp. The lefty couldn't command his fastball. Of his 58 pitches, only 20 were for strikes.</p>
<p>"The fastball feel just wasn't there," Matzek said.</p>
<p>Jordan Lyles (2-3) pitched more effectively in the night game, allowing four runs in seven innings.</p>
<p>Still, it wasn't enough.</p>
<p>"Today wasn't a good day," Tulowitzki said. "If we talk right now, we're going to say things a little more harshly and be tougher.</p>
<p>"We knew it wasn't going to be easy. We'll see what we're made of."</p>
<p>Paul Goldschmidt homered and Robbie Ray threw six strong innings in a spot start during the second game. Ray (1-0), who allowed five hits and one run, will be sent right back to Triple-A Reno. He knew that would be the case.</p>
<p>"I went out throwing like I would any day," Ray said. "It didn't change the way I pitched. I was the same guy pitching in the big leagues or pitching in Triple-A."</p>
<p>His outing certainly caught the eye of manager Chip Hale, who said after the game, "when we need somebody he's going to be the guy."</p>
<p>The last time Arizona won a doubleheader on the road was June 3, 2006, at Atlanta. The 18 combined runs are also the most the team has ever scored in a doubleheader.</p>
<p>David Peralta broke a tie in the fifth with a two-out, two-run double that just got over the outstretched glove of right fielder Charlie Blackmon. Goldschmidt followed with an RBI single to give the Diamondbacks a 4-1 lead.</p>
<p>Mike McKenry drove in Colorado's lone run with an RBI double in the fourth.</p>
<p>TRAINER'S ROOM</p>
<p>Diamondbacks: Hale isn't sure when Patrick Corbin (elbow) will pitch again after the left-hander threw three innings Tuesday in an extended spring training game. "I think they might be giving him six days," Hale said. ... Hale had no update on 3B Jake Lamb (left foot stress reaction), who recently was cleared to walk on a treadmill.</p>
<p>Rockies: Closer Adam Ottavino (elbow) was scheduled to meet with Dr. James Andrews on Wednesday. Ottavino is concerned he will need season-ending Tommy John surgery. "Could be a long road ahead," Weiss said. "But he's ready for that." ... RHP LaTroy Hawkins (biceps tendinitis) was slated to resume throwing Wednesday. "We're not rushing this thing," Hawkins said.</p>
<p>UP NEXT</p>
<p>Diamondbacks: RHP Rubby De La Rosa (2-2, 5.40) will face the San Diego Padres on Thursday.</p>
<p>Rockies: Day off Thursday. Eddie Butler (2-2, 3.81) throws Friday when Colorado opens a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.</p> | Rockies swept in DH by D-backs, skid grows to 7 straight | false | https://apnews.com/amp/7f4a75bee63b4b45b18bd3664a6eed30 | 2015-05-07 | 2 |
<p>The first time&#160;Arif Shaikh's parents met was on&#160;their wedding night.</p>
<p>"The&#160;only evidence that they had that the other person existed before their marriage night was simply a small black-and-white picture and the good wishes of a couple of relatives," he says. "That's all they knew."</p>
<p>Shaikh's parents are Muslim and they lived in India at the time of their wedding back in the 1970s.&#160;He was born there too, but when he was 3, they all moved to the US.</p>
<p>Growing up, when it came to dating, relationships&#160;and girls, Shaikh would experience one thing at home, another outside.</p>
<p>At home, "there was no such thing as the words dating or relationships.&#160;It was just something that was non-existent," he recalls.</p>
<p>But outside, it was another story.</p>
<p>"You see your friends, they go out on movie dates and they go to the mall and they hold hands," he says.</p>
<p>Andra Gusman is a Muslim from Jakarta, Indonesia. He says&#160;dating isn't frowned upon in his family. "You just have to set the boundaries with your partner," he says.</p>
<p>Shirin Jaafari</p>
<p>In&#160;a nutshell, Shaikh&#160;says, he felt like&#160;they were&#160;having fun and he wasn't.&#160;Practicing Muslims are not supposed to date. At least dating in its Western sense.</p>
<p>And this creates a dilemma for young Muslims in search of love.</p>
<p>Ghazala Irshad, who also grew up in a Muslim family in Illinois, says she knows young Muslims who growing up,&#160;were&#160;told to "lower [their] gaze" when they&#160;came across the opposite sex.</p>
<p>"[But] by the time it comes to the age of trying to get married, then our parents are like, well, why aren’t you getting married, we want grandchildren ... we want you to get married. And then it’s like, what do you expect? We don’t know how to talk to the opposite sex, how do we go about this? We’re not allowed to date, we’ve been separated, we haven’t developed friendships," she says.</p>
<p>Although Irshad's family isn't aganist her dating, they have taken&#160;things into their own hands.</p>
<p>"My parents and my grandparents are constantly asking other people, anyone they meet 'do you know anyone good for my daughter?'" she says.</p>
<p>Arif Shaikh created a dating website and&#160;app called 24fate.com.</p>
<p>Courtesy of Arif Shaikh</p>
<p>Irshad says her parents aren’t pushing her into a marriage, rather "helping"&#160;in the process.</p>
<p>“Lots of grandmothers and aunties, they have these folders full of bio-data and they’re passing them around and saying, look at this girl, look at this guy, it’s like trading cards,” she says. Bio-data&#160;are what Irshad calls "dating resumes."</p>
<p>Many young Muslims&#160;feel&#160;like they're&#160;in&#160;limbo:&#160;An arranged marriage is out of the question, but they&#160;don't&#160;want to disrespect their&#160;family and religion.</p>
<p>Irshad's question — "how do we go about this?" — was the topic of conversation at a recent gathering of Muslim college students&#160;in Boston.</p>
<p>There were about 30 students and a couple of women wore colorful headscarves.</p>
<p />
<p>Muslim chaplain&#160; <a href="http://chaplaincy.tufts.edu/muslimchaplaincy/about/tufts-muslim-chaplain/" type="external">Celene Ibrahim Lizzio</a>&#160;spoke about the "spiritual aspects of finding a spouse" — of&#160;asking God for guidance in finding love.</p>
<p>"The best advice I can give them is to think first about their relationship with God, with Allah, and then if they develop that relationship strongly, I tell them, make prayer, make supplication, that God put something in their path to make it easy to understand what type of spouse would be right for them," she told me.</p>
<p>Afterwards, I sat down with some of the students.</p>
<p>Tuba Muhlise Okyay, who is from Turkey, said in her conservative family, marriages are arranged. There is, she said, a courtship period where the couple&#160;are accompanied by a chaperone&#160;on, say,&#160;a dinner.</p>
<p>Andra Gusman, another student from Indonesia, found it&#160;much easier to talk to his family about girls.</p>
<p>"The way we were brought up, I think, dating is the norm," he said, "but not in the American sense. You set your boundaries with your partner."</p>
<p>I also heard from an Iranian American, a Lebanese, a Moroccan and a Bangladeshi. They each had different experiences, depending on the family, culture and the country where they come from.</p>
<p>Arif Shaikh, who was also at the gathering,&#160;says growing up&#160;he knew some Muslim kids who did date. Secretly&#160;of course.</p>
<p>"Muslim kids who are in relationships are more secretive than Navy SEALS," he says.&#160;"They can do anything and they're completely un-traceable."</p>
<p>Shaikh says the way his parents got married doesn't work for him, or a lot of young Muslims who have grown up here.</p>
<p>That's why he created a website and an app called&#160; <a href="https://www.24fate.com/" type="external">24fate.com</a>.&#160;Muslims can sign up and connect with other Muslims either in their own area or else where.&#160;Today, there are&#160; <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/ghazalairshad/its-sunnah-to-swipe-with-your-right-hand-the-mus-19gpw" type="external">various&#160;apps</a>&#160;like Shaikh's.&#160;And they have made it easier for smart phone-wielding Muslims to connect.</p>
<p>Irshad, the young woman who grew up in Illinois&#160;says she's all for it. "That's a really promising solution where young, Muslim Americans can register to use these apps and then they can connect with each other on their own. They have the power in their own hands," she says.</p>
<p>In other words, she says, they&#160;are the ones making decisions about their future spouses, instead of&#160;a match-making grandmother&#160;or auntie.</p>
<p>But an app can only take you so far.</p>
<p>Shaikh recalls a conversation with a Muslim man who had signed up on 24fate.com. He told Shaikh that he really liked the app and that he wants to get in touch with a couple of the women on it, but having lived in a conservative Muslim family, he said he didn't know how to write an email to a woman he didn't know.</p>
<p>"I&#160;said, listen, if you can't write an email to a girl, you can't get married to one," Shaikh says.</p> | You're a Muslim who's not supposed to date. How do you find love? | false | https://pri.org/stories/2015-03-13/youre-muslim-whos-not-supposed-date-how-do-you-find-love | 2015-03-13 | 3 |
<p>LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s chief Brexit negotiator David Davis said on Sunday the European Union had made itself look silly by criticizing the British approach to the talks that Brussels said had made little progress.</p>
<p>“Bluntly, I think it looked a bit silly, because there plainly were things that we’ve achieved,” Davis told the BBC. “The commission puts itself in a silly position if it says nothing has been done.”</p>
<p>He also said it was likely Britain would continue to pay some money into the EU budget after Brexit, but that the sums would not be large over the medium to long term.</p>
<p />
<p>Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.</p> | UK minister: EU commission criticism of Brexit talks was 'silly' | false | https://newsline.com/uk-minister-eu-commission-criticism-of-brexit-talks-was-039silly039/ | 2017-09-03 | 1 |
<p>Halfway across the world, more than a half-million people live on American time. The Philippines is home to the largest call center industry in the world, and to man the phones during American business hours, many Filipinos adjust their lives to a global schedule.</p>
<p>When it's 6 p.m. on the East Coast, it's 6 a.m. in Manila. And for call center workers, it's time to get off work. Despite the morning sun, a lot of them head to 24-hour bars to unwind with a few drinks.</p>
<p>"Once you're a call center agent, your life turns 180 degrees," said Rene Reinoso. "First of all, you do not (sleep) anymore like the rest of us. Or rather, the rest of them, (those) who wake up in the morning and sleep at night."</p>
<p>Reinoso sits with a few co-workers at an outdoor bar in the business park where they work. On the street, it's morning rush hour, and normal office workers are hurrying to their jobs.</p>
<p>But Reinoso and his friends are at the bar, smoking cigarettes and stubbing them out in empty bottles of beer.</p>
<p>They're not just living in an American time zone. They're living on an American calendar:</p>
<p>"Normal workers of the Philippines would enjoy the holidays. We have a lot of holidays in the Philippines. But for us, call center agents, we only enjoy U.S. holidays, like July 4, Labor Day, Memorial Day and Christmas," Reinoso said.</p>
<p>And they're on American weather too. When a disaster hits, like flooding in New York and New Jersey, their company has all hands on deck to answer customer calls.</p>
<p>But when there's a typhoon and Manila is flooded, it's business as usual - in America.</p>
<p>"About a year-and-a-half ago, we had a major flood here in our area. And the flood rose up to up to my thighs. We had to wade through the flood to come here, and we had to wade through the flood to go home. We were not excused. Because in the States it wasn't flooded, so we had to come here and take the calls for the U.S.," he said.</p>
<p>In some ways, they're living in a different culture too. Call center workers can't have normal lives at a normal time, and their days off don't always fall on weekends. So it's hard to go to birthday parties, family dinners or get-togethers with college buddies. They mostly socialize with other call center workers.</p>
<p>It's isolating. But in a conservative Catholic country like the Philippines, it can also be liberating. The call center industry has a reputation for permissiveness. Besides all the drinking and smoking, Rene says some workers take advantage of employer-provided napping rooms to do more than just nap.</p>
<p>"There are a lot of incidents where they get caught in the sleeping quarters," he said. "It's part of the culture now. We call it the call center culture. It's part of it."</p>
<p>Rene's co-worker, Ryan de Castro says it comes from more exposure to Western media</p>
<p>"There's a big difference between the culture in the Philippines and the culture in the States," Castro said. "And I would say that the culture in the call center industry is a bit more westernized than in the normal industry."</p>
<p>Ryan says that's not a bad thing. Most poor Filipinos don't have access to the internet. For call center workers, just being able to afford it, is one of the great things about the job. Working on American time gives them an entry into an American-style, middle class life.</p>
<p>Minimum wage for office workers in the Philippines is about 10,000 pesos a month. But the starting salaries for call center agents are around 18,000 pesos, about $400, with room to move up. It's enough for them to buy the beers and Starbucks lattes they drink every day, plus nice clothes and updated cell phones.</p>
<p>For Castro, the money and the lifestyle are the tradeoffs for the crazy hours, the occasional boredom, and the havoc on his family life.</p>
<p>"But I guess I'm lucky," he said. "It's important that I have work and I'm doing well with work, so it's a sacrifice that's OK to make."</p>
<p>By 11 a.m., Castro and his friends have gone through three buckets of beer. Castro had to leave to take his son to a doctor's appointment. The rest of them look bleary-eyed. It's almost lunchtime in the Philippines, but they'll be staggering home to bed - like office workers in New York.</p> | Some Filipino call center workers turn schedules upside down, embrace U.S. time | false | https://pri.org/stories/2013-08-13/some-filipino-call-center-workers-turn-schedules-upside-down-embrace-us-time | 2013-08-13 | 3 |
<p>#BikiniBridge is defined as when "bikini bottoms are suspended between the two hip bones, causing a space between the bikini and the lower abdomen.? In the past three days, the hashtag has been retweeted over 4,000 times. There's even a <a href="http://bikinibridge.tumblr.com/" type="external">Tumblr</a> and countless Twitter accounts dedicated to the fad.</p>
<p>The latest "trend" in <a href="" type="internal">thinspiration</a>, however, can also be defined as a major hoax.</p>
<p>The bikini bridge is, of course, already earning notoriety as the thinspo-trend of 2014, replacing last year's obsession with the thigh gap. Yet while the <a href="" type="internal">thigh gap</a> was a very real body image issue, the bikini bridge may not be.</p>
<p>4chan, a popular image-board site, has reportedly (and dangerously) initiated a ploy to explode the bikini bridge across the internet. The hoax, entitled "Operation Bikini Bridge" by an anonymous user, <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/ryanhatesthis/a-bunch-of-internet-trolls-are-trying-to-make-bikinibridges" type="external">featured</a> a fairly simple, two-phase plot.</p>
<p>Phase one emphasized the importance of producing and circulating images, thereby sparking both social and media outrage. "Create propaganda parading the 'bikini bridge' to be the next big thing (pic related - that read "If you have time to complain, you have time to train," or "Getting a smoother tan line from your bikini bridge"). Circulate it throughout the internet. Simultaneously, we create reverse propoganda, denouncing the bikini bridge as an unhealthy obsession. This, too, we circulate throughout the internet."</p>
<p>The second phase followed suit, targeting those most susceptible to the trend - "After a fair amount of circulation has been accomplished," the user wrote, "we circulate the images throughout parts of the internet known to be biased on the subject of weight (i.e. thin privilege, fat shaming, etc.)."</p>
<p>And while many news outlets warned against the hoax - the <a href="http://www.today.com/health/dont-fall-bikini-bridge-prank-internet-playing-you-2D11872362" type="external">Today Show's</a> headline read "Don't Fall for the 'Bikini Bridge' Prank the Internet is Playing on You," while <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2014/01/08/the-bikini-bridge-4chans-latest-prank-is-actually-pretty-dangerous/" type="external">The Washington Post</a> wrote "The 'Bikini Bridge,' 4chan's Latest Prank, is Actually Pretty Dangerous" - it has also succeeded in 4chan's wish of turning the bikini bridge into a desirable body trend.</p>
<p>One user <a href="http://statigr.am/p/629108559372178331_339645595" type="external">posted</a> a photo on Instagram of her pre-existing bikini bridge - deep enough to hold her iPod - writing "Apparently the thigh gap is so last year and its all about the bikini bridge this summer! Haters gonna hate," followed by a series of hashtags: #hips #bikinibridge #fitness #tonned #thinsperation #fitsperation, to name a few. Another user <a href="https://twitter.com/LilFiddleDiddle/status/420194254388854785" type="external">tweeted</a>, "The feeling I get when a belly gets in the way of a perfect #bikinibridge :( Guess there's work for the new year! #thinspo #thinspiration."</p>
<p>The fact that women are particularly vulnerable to <a href="" type="internal">body-image</a> based trends, combined with the accessibility of social media, leads to the ability for these so-called trends to explode. It's an even more frightening reality that within mere hours, a new idea of how we want our bodies to look can take off.</p>
<p>"Thanks to social media, it's easy for something like this to become a trend so quickly and it's just another example of the objectification of women and their <a href="" type="internal">bodies</a>," Louise Adams, a clinical psychologist who specializes in eating disorders and body image told <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/beauty/the-bikini-bridge-emerges-as-the-latest-thinspiration-craze-20140108-30h7j.html" type="external">The Sydney Morning Tribune</a>. "Social media creates competitiveness between other women. We know this largely effects younger women and this is exactly who is using these sites. This is a generation who has grown up with social media and at the same time, eating disorder figures have doubled."</p>
<p>Isn't it hard enough dealing with the thigh gap, exposed collar bones, and skinny arm trends? Do we really need to add a bikini bridge to the mix?</p> | The Bikini Bridge to Nowhere | true | https://thedailybeast.com/the-bikini-bridge-to-nowhere | 2018-10-07 | 4 |
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<p>In addition to a shotgun, the gunman also had an undisclosed number of Molotov cocktails, but he did not use them in the attack, police said.</p>
<p>The suspect, identified by police as 19-year-old Geddy Kramer of Acworth, was found dead inside. He worked as a package handler at the sprawling facility, Cobb County police Sgt. Dana Pierce said.</p>
<p>Investigators have an idea of what his motive may have been, but they were not prepared to disclose it yet, Pierce said.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Three of the victims were critically wounded, though only one remained in critical condition by late afternoon. Police say three were in stable condition, and two others were treated and released.</p>
<p>Kramer first drove his car to a security shack outside the building and shot a guard there before heading inside, the news release said.</p>
<p>David Titus, a FedEx truck driver, said he was just coming to work around 6 a.m. when he saw a security guard shot in the abdomen. He said he heard more gunfire later from inside the building.</p>
<p>"It was chaos," Titus said. "Everyone was running, ducking and hiding, trying to get out of there."</p>
<p>FedEx clerk Liza Aiken said she was working when she heard something drop, looked to her left and saw the gunman.</p>
<p>"He had bullets strapped across his chest like Rambo" and held a knife, Aiken said at the entrance to a parking lot where employees had gathered after the attack. Before she could continue, a woman wearing a FedEx jacket told Aiken to stop talking and led her away.</p>
<p>A 28-year-old man who received surgery was in critical condition late Tuesday, while a 52-year-old woman who received surgery was upgraded to stable, police said. A 22-year-old man's condition was also upgraded to stable</p>
<p>Among the other wounded were a 42-year-old woman and two men, ages 38 and 19.</p>
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<p /> | FedEx worker opens fire, killing self, hurting 6 | false | https://abqjournal.com/391870/fedex-worker-opens-fire-killing-self-hurting-6.html | 2 |
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<p>OCCUPATION: Chief executive officer, CSI Aviation Inc.</p>
<p>CITY/TOWN OF RESIDENCE: Los Ranchos</p>
<p>PARTY: Republican</p>
<p>RELEVANT EXPERIENCE: Founded and grew a business with national and international operations; U.S. Marine Corps Reserve officer with service in three wars; national chairman, Employer Support of The Guard and Reserve 2002-03, civic involvement, husband, father, grandfather.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>EDUCATION: Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts degrees from the University of New Mexico. Additional educational courses include Executive Programs at the U.S. State Department’s Foreign Service Institute and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.</p>
<p>CAMPAIGN WEBSITE: <a href="http://www.allenweh.com" type="external">www.allenweh.com</a></p>
<p>CANDIDATE STATEMENT: I’m running to serve New Mexico and the nation. Washington is broken and most know it, but Benghazi was my compelling reason. Notwithstanding the disgrace of Benghazi, there are a number of major issues that need to be resolved quickly without partisan gridlock. The health care debacle now impacting most Americans, the sluggish recovery and loss of jobs in this state, and out-of-control federal spending. There is also the problem of our declining national defense while terrorist groups and rogue nations are gaining strength. My life experiences have prepared me to take some common sense to Washington.</p>
<p>JOURNAL PROFILE: <a href="" type="internal">Clements, Weh seek GOP nod for Senate</a></p> | U.S. Senate (R) – Allen E. Weh | false | https://abqjournal.com/395938/u-s-senate-r-allen-e-weh.html | 2 |
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<p>Spotify will add free Facebook-style apps to its streaming music service, partnering with Rolling Stone, pitchfork, Last.fm, Songkick, Billboard and CBS Corp.'s music-recommendation service.</p>
<p>The Swedish company, which launched its service in the U.S. in July, will also allow third-party developers to build new Spotify apps,&#160; <a href="http://mashable.com/2011/11/30/spotify-app-platform/" type="external">according to Mashable</a>.</p>
<p>The apps would remain subject to Spotify's approval, Chief Executive Daniel Ek said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal, comparing the approval process to the one used by Apple's App Store.</p>
<p>"It's going to be more like the Apple model," Ek reportedly said. "We want to make sure the quality of the apps we get in is really, really high."</p>
<p>The WSJ wrote that while Spotify lets users listen to any of its 15 million songs instantly, "finding new music they actually want to hear is a major focus of the new features."</p>
<p>The move "could differentiate the Swedish company amid growing competition from <a href="http://www.google.com" type="external">Google</a> Inc., <a href="http://www.amazon.com" type="external">Amazon</a>.com Inc. and <a href="http://www.apple.com" type="external">Apple</a> Inc," it added.</p>
<p>The Stockholm-based company hopes the apps will broaden Spotify's reach and take advantage of its vast music library, as well as its deeper social <a href="http://mashable.com/2011/09/22/facebook-music-spotify/" type="external">integration with Facebook</a>.</p>
<p>Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner calls Spotify, based in Stockholm, as the "ultimate jukebox."</p>
<p>At the Spotify Platform launch in New York on Wednesday, Spotify said the apps would be available first for the desktop, but depending on their success made available on other platforms.</p> | Spotify adding Facebook-style apps from Rolling Stone, Last.fm to expand reach | false | https://pri.org/stories/2011-11-30/spotify-adding-facebook-style-apps-rolling-stone-lastfm-expand-reach | 2011-11-30 | 3 |
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<p>Leaving home without a cell seems worse than forgetting your briefcase or school backpack. As a result, the use of cell phones and other devices in our cars has skyrocketed and we can see them at every stoplight.&#160;The problem is that more than half of our population - 60 percent of those under 35, it's estimated - think that talking on the phone makes no difference to our driving performance.</p>
<p>"People think they can get away with it," says multiple Emmy Award-winning producer/director Chris Schueler.&#160; "And the truth is, many times they do.&#160; But the one time they don't, is a very sad day."</p>
<p>"Driven to Distraction" airs three times over the next two weeks: It will be shown on KOB-TV at 7 p.m. Thursday and again at 5 a.m. on Saturday; and on PBS station KNME-TV at 7 p.m. on Thursday, June 12.</p>
<p>"This is crucial information for teens and for parents," says Thom Turbett, president of the board of SafeTeen New Mexico.&#160; "And in addition to the full documentary that we'll distribute to all the school districts and the PTAs, we have shorter training videos that can be used in schools along with a curriculum guide."</p>
<p>The project is presented by SafeTeen New Mexico, the New Mexico Department of Transportation, Bernalillo County Substance Abuse Prevention Program, State Farm Insurance Company, Cooperative Educational Services, Independent Insurance Agents of New Mexico, New Mexico Coalition of Educational Leaders, New Mexico School Boards Association and the New Mexico Parent Teacher Association. The Albuquerque Mayor's Youth Advisory Council is involved in the project through production, marketing and distribution work.</p>
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<p>The documentary uses interviews with distracted driving expert Dr. David Strayer, brain experts Dr. Andrew Mayer and Dr. William Shuttleworth, along with dozens of New Mexico youth to highlight how the brain works while driving and how youth are in a particularly vulnerable situation while driving distracted.</p>
<p>Here are eye-opening facts:</p>
<p>In addition to the statistics, the project also explores how quickly everything happens when an accident occurs.</p>
<p>"Time is really not our friend when we drive," says Schueler, executive director of SafeTeen, "and from the experts we learn how various distractions take precious moments away from what we should be concentrating on while driving."</p>
<p>In addition to the documentary, the hour-long program will also present a live half-hour follow-up show that will focus on solutions.</p> | Documentary explores dangers of using cell phone while driving | false | https://abqjournal.com/408713/documentary-explores-dangers-of-using-cell-phone-while-driving.html | 2 |
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<p>On Friday, a whipsawed Comey gave in. Breaking with FBI precedent and Justice Department practice, he weighed in on one side of a presidential campaign.</p>
<p>I don’t believe this was his intention. But his vaguely worded letter to Congress announcing that the FBI was examining emails on a computer used by Clinton aide Huma Abedin accomplished the central goals of the right-wing critics Comey has been trying to get off his back.</p>
<p>Especially disturbing is that some of those critics are inside the FBI. As The Washington Post’s Sari Horwitz reported on Saturday, “a largely conservative investigative corps” in the bureau was “complaining privately that Comey should have tried harder to make a case” against Clinton.</p>
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<p>For a major law-enforcement institution to be so politicized and biased against one party would be a genuine scandal. If Comey acted in part out of fear that his agents would leak against him, it would reflect profound dysfunction within the FBI.</p>
<p>One measure of the damage Comey has done to his reputation is the praise Donald Trump showered upon him after months of trashing the director for not recommending Clinton’s indictment. Winning favor from a politician who has described how he would use the government’s instruments to punish his enemies is not something a professional like Comey will ever be proud of.</p>
<p>Far from cowering, Clinton and her campaign went on the offensive, demanding more clarity from the FBI director. In light of reports that no one in the bureau has even viewed the messages, Tim Kaine, Clinton’s vice presidential running mate, said on ABC’s “This Week” Sunday: “If he hasn’t seen the emails, they need to make that plain.” Clinton called Comey’s intervention “unprecedented and deeply troubling.” Indeed.</p>
<p>Comey’s murky letter opened the way for Trump to level wild charges against Clinton and for congressional Republicans to engage in their own initiatives to twist the truth.</p>
<p>Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, chair of the Oversight Committee, quickly tweeted news of Comey’s letter Friday and stated: “Case reopened.”</p>
<p>This is not what Comey said (and technically the Clinton case was never closed). But many in the media bought Chaffetz’s hype, especially in early accounts. That’s what happens when an FBI director hands an explosive but muddled letter to a Republican-led Congress.</p>
<p>In fact, Chaffetz had already made clear that if Clinton wins, the GOP’s top priority will be to keep the Clinton investigative machine rolling.</p>
<p>“It’s a target-rich environment,” Chaffetz cheerfully told The Washington Post’s David Weigel last week. “Even before we get to Day One, we’ve got two years’ worth of material already lined up. She has four years of history at the State Department, and it ain’t good.”</p>
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<p>And on ABC Sunday, Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., chair of the Judiciary Committee, gave the Republicans’ game away when he spoke of Clinton’s “potential impeachment” before correcting himself. Note to reader: Inauguration Day isn’t until Jan. 20, 2017.</p>
<p>These are the people Comey has been trying to mollify ever since he decided there was no way the evidence justified prosecuting Clinton. His first act of appeasement was his July news conference in which he announced his decision, but also criticized Clinton and her aides for being “extremely careless in their handling of very sensitive, highly classified information.”</p>
<p>Comey had entered the political fray, and there was no turning back – especially since his Republican tormentors would not be satisfied until Clinton was brought down. As The Post editorialized, Comey had already gone “too far” in “providing raw FBI material to Congress.” He allowed himself to be sucked into a dangerous and dysfunctional relationship with one political party that set him on the hazardous course to Friday’s letter.</p>
<p>History shows that appeasing bullies never works. Maybe Comey has learned this lesson and will try to make amends in coming days.</p>
<p>As for the voters, my hope is that they reject this perversion of justice all the way down the ballot.</p>
<p /> | No turning back for FBI director in Clinton emails | false | https://abqjournal.com/880984/no-turning-back-for-fbi-director-in-clinton-emails.html | 2 |
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<p />
<p />
<p>TRACK 1</p>
<p>“Raw Wood”</p>
<p>From John Vanderslice’s Dagger Beach</p>
<p>SELF-RELEASED</p>
<p>Liner notes: “One day the pain will pass on from me to you,” sighs John Vanderslice, as disjointed drums and ghostly backing vocals boost the unease on this post-breakup ballad.</p>
<p>Behind the music: The founder of San Francisco’s Tiny Telephone studio, Vanderslice has produced for the Mountain Goats, Samantha Crain, and Spoon. He worked on the album’s lyrics while hiking in California’s Point Reyes National Seashore.</p>
<p>Check it out if you like: Anxious but articulate types, such as Thom Yorke, David Byrne, and Joanna Newsom.</p>
<p>This review originally appeared in our <a href="" type="internal">July/August issue</a> of Mother Jones.&#160;</p>
<p /> | Music Review: “Raw Wood” by John Vanderslice | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2013/07/music-review-raw-wood-john-vanderslice/ | 2013-07-29 | 4 |
<p>President Trump on Tuesday did what President Trump does every day — he sidestepped the media to take his message directly to America, delivering a detailed indictment on just how the MSM is intentionally distorting his words.</p>
<p>"If you wanted to discover the source of the division in our country, look no further than the fake news and the crooked media," Trump said to a raucous crowd of supporters in an arena in Phoenix. “It's time to expose the crooked media deceptions and to challenge the media for their role in fomenting divisions and yes, by the way, they are trying to take away our history and our heritage,” he said.</p>
<p>The president said he was quite clear in his statements after a riot in Charlottesville, VA — attended by some white supremacists, along with violent anti-fascist protesters from the Left. He condemned racist groups in four separate statements, but he said the press omitted portions of those statements and chose to declare that the president actually supports supremacists.</p>
<p>"What happened in Charlottesville strikes at the core of America. And tonight, this entire arena stands united in forceful condemnation of the thugs who perpetrate hatred and violence. But the very dishonest people — those people right up there with all the cameras," he said, pointing to the press and drawing loud boos from the audience, so long that Trump stepped away from the microphone.</p>
<p>"So the — and I mean truly dishonest people in the media and the fake media — they make up stories. They have no sources in many cases. They say 'a source says,' there is no such thing. But they don't report the facts. Just like they don't want to report that I spoke out forcefully against hatred, bigotry and violence and strongly condemned the neo-Nazis, the white supremacists and the KKK,” Trump said.</p>
<p>“I openly called for unity, healing and love and they know it because they were all there.”</p>
<p>"So what I did is ... I thought I'd take just a second — and I'm really doing this more than anything else, because you know where my heart is, OK? I'm really doing this to show you how damned dishonest these people are."</p>
<p>Trump then read from his different statements on Charlottesville — although he omitted the part of his first statement that faulted “many sides” for the violence that occurred, which the MSM seized on as evidence that Trump supports neo-Nazis and white supremacists.</p>
<p>He said the news media selectively quoted him, skipping over his condemnations of hate groups.</p>
<p>“I hit ’em with neo-Nazi. I hit them with everything. I got the white supremacists, the neo-Nazi. I got them all in there. Let’s see. KKK, we have KKK,” Mr. Trump said. "I don't want to bore you with this, but it shows you how dishonest they are,” he said.</p>
<p>“The only people giving a platform to these hate groups is the media itself and the fake news,” he said.</p>
<p>And of course, he's right on that point. <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/trump-rally-phoenix-gets-thumbs-alt-right-white-nationalist-653839" type="external">Newsweek</a> posted this story on Wednesday morning: "TRUMP RALLY IN PHOENIX GETS THUMBS UP FROM ALT-RIGHT WHITE NATIONALIST." Here's the lead: "President Donald Trump’s eighth campaign-style rally this year got a thumbs up from an alt-right white nationalist who lead a violent white supremacist march in Charlottesville, Virginia."</p>
<p>As if Trump has control over what a white nationalist's tweets — or embraces such support.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/08/trump-goes-off-script-in-hour-long-public-meltdown" type="external">Vanity Fair</a> wrote: "TRUMP GOES OFF-SCRIPT IN HOUR-LONG PUBLIC MELTDOWN — Trump explained that the biggest victim in the Charlottesville violence last weekend was, in fact, himself." For some reason, the magazine tapped Maya Kosoff to write the story (she "writes about tech for VF.com, with a focus on start-ups and venture capital," her bio says).</p>
<p>Trump sent out an early morning tweet on Wednesday once again making his case.</p>
<p>Some political watchers said Trump's speech hit the nail on the head.</p> | In Phoenix Speech, Trump Says Media 'Fomenting Divisions' In America | true | https://dailywire.com/news/20100/trump-hammers-media-phoenix-speech-media-get-joseph-curl | 2017-08-23 | 0 |
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<p>Barbara Damron, secretary of the state's Higher Education Department, left, and Gov. Susana Martinez listen to speakers at the Governor's Symposium on Meta-Majors, Credit Transfer and Articulation at Central New Mexico Community College's Workforce Training Center on Monday. (Greg Sorber/Albuquerque Journal)</p>
<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Higher education leaders from across the state gathered twice this week, once at the request of Gov. Susana Martinez, to build momentum for reforms aimed at making a more logical path to and through college in the state.</p>
<p>RENICK: Concerned for first-generation students</p>
<p>More than one hundred administrators, provosts and presidents joined Martinez on Monday to hear good news from other public universities that have implemented reforms similar to those the state's Higher Education Department has been pursuing.</p>
<p>And on Wednesday, regents and leaders from the University of New Mexico and New Mexico State University gathered for a joint regents meeting to further discuss the reforms.</p>
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<p>The state's Higher Education Department is pushing schools to streamline the transfer processes and the semester-by-semester course path through each college to graduate students on time without excessive debt accumulated from taking unnecessary classes.</p>
<p>On Monday, higher education leaders from Florida, Georgia and Tennessee had the New Mexican administrators and leaders nodding enthusiastically as presenters showed substantial - sometimes threefold - improvements in graduation and retention rates, particularly for poor students and black and Hispanic students.</p>
<p>"These are the ones who don't have parents or brothers or sisters to help navigate this Byzantine bureaucracy that we have created," said Tim Renick, a vice provost at Georgia State University, of his school's students who are the first in their families to attend college.</p>
<p>Renick's school, like those of the other presenters, implemented several reforms that schools in New Mexico are being asked to implement.</p>
<p>The focus Monday was on meta-majors, or broad groups of related degree programs, such as science or arts, that allow students who aren't ready to declare a specific major to stay on track that can lead to a major and can help them avoid taking unnecessary classes.</p>
<p>The meta-majors concept connects with other reforms of mapping the college path and standardizing codes and names of classes across the state to aid in class credits transferring toward degrees between institutions.</p>
<p>Meta-majors were also up for discussion at the special regents meeting Wednesday night as UNM and NMSU leaders prepare to implement the reforms discussed during Monday's summit.</p>
<p>Higher Education Department Secretary Barbara Damron said that many of the schools in the state already have begun work on these and other reforms to increase timely graduation and that she expects the schools to keep pushing.</p>
<p />
<p /> | Higher education leaders consider reform measures | false | https://abqjournal.com/692407/higher-education-leaders-consider-reform-measures.html | 2 |
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<p>Fmr. Republican Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld discusses joining a third-party ticket in the 2016 election.</p>
<p>The Libertarian Party now has a larger presence in the field of presidential candidates.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld announced he will be running alongside Gary Johnson, as the two look to offer an alternative to the Republican and Democratic candidates.</p>
<p>“It may make it a little more comfortable having two, two-term governors, both economically conservative—cut taxes a lot and governed in blue states and both social liberals,” Weld told the FOX Business Network’s Neil Cavuto. “So we’ve got half what the Republicans have—economic and fiscal conservatism—and half what the Democrats have which is social tolerance and freedom and moderation.”</p>
<p>Weld said recent poll data has shown that he and Johnson would do well with millennials, if they are not still with Bernie Sanders.</p>
<p>The former Massachusetts Governor, who served from 1991-1997 as a Republican, said he and Johnson will campaign hard in the west, but see northern New England as a “possibility.”</p>
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<p>“Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, maybe Massachusetts—Reagan carried it twice,” he said. “So we’ll try to pick up a few states even if we’re not in the debates.”</p>
<p>Though Weld said he gives the Republican presumptive nominee, Donald Trump, credit for his campaign so far, the Libertarian vice presidential candidate said he is concerned with some of Trump’s stances.</p>
<p>“I think the immigration proposal is hugely dangerous,” Weld said. “The sanctions on China, the treatment of Mexico, a lot of the international relations suggestions, nuclear weapons in Japan, nuclear weapons in South Korea.”</p>
<p>Weld&#160;explained his political views by referencing part of a speech he made at the&#160;1996 Republican National Convention.</p>
<p>"I want the government out of your pocketbook and out of&#160;your bedroom," he said, quoting his speech. "That’s a pretty concise statement of my political philosophy and&#160;pretty unmistakable.”</p> | Fmr. Gov. Weld Joins Johnson on Libertarian Ticket | true | http://foxbusiness.com/politics/2016/05/19/fmr-gov-weld-joins-johnson-on-libertarian-ticket.html | 2016-05-19 | 0 |
<p />
<p>Dear Insurance Adviser,</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>I just got divorced, and the judge ordered both of us to split all annuities, insurance policies, bank accounts, etc.</p>
<p>My ex says there is no value in his $100,000 term life insurance naming me as the beneficiary, so he took my name off the policy. That doesn't sound right, but I am confused about how to split a life insurance policy when we are both living. Don't you have to pass away before anyone can collect? Should I believe my ex and just forget about this policy?</p>
<p>- Patricia</p>
<p>Dear Patricia,</p>
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<p>The judge ruled that you split all cash and cash equivalents. One form of the latter is cash value in a permanent life insurance policy. Since a term life insurance policy has no cash value in most cases, your ex is correct. If he dies while the policy is in force, the $100,000 death benefit will be paid to his current beneficiary. He apparently is the owner of the policy -- the person who pays the premium and who is the only person authorized to change beneficiaries.</p>
<p>If the original purpose of the $100,000 term life insurance policy still exists and involves helping you care for any children you have together and if you would have the children full time in the event of his death, he might be willing (with or without the court's help) to transfer the ownership of the policy and the payment of premiums to you. Then you can name yourself as the beneficiary. He could pay the premiums, of course, but it's better that you pay them. It's one less thing for the two of you to hassle over.</p>
<p>On the other hand, if the purpose of the life insurance originally was to do something such as pay off a mortgage or other debt, it's probable the need no longer exists.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>Bankrate's content, including the guidance of its advice-and-expert columns and this website, is intended only to assist you with financial decisions. The content is broad in scope and does not consider your personal financial situation. Bankrate recommends that you seek the advice of advisers who are fully aware of your individual circumstances before making any final decisions or implementing any financial strategy. Please remember that your use of this website is governed by <a href="http://www.bankrate.com/coinfo/disclaimer.asp" type="external">Bankrate's Terms of Use Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> | Don't I Get Half of My Ex's Life Insurance Policy? | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2013/05/06/dont-get-half-my-ex-life-insurance-policy.html | 2016-03-06 | 0 |
<p />
<p>When it comes to refining stocks, there is only so much a company can do to affect overall earnings. Ultimately, it will all come down to market conditions. So, even though Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) did all the right things this quarter, the near-50% decline in refining margins was too much to overcome.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Still, there are plenty of items in this most recent quarter that suggest Phillips 66 remains on the right track. Let's take a look at the results for the quarter and what investors should expect from here.</p>
<p>Image source: Getty Images.</p>
<p>*in millions, except per-share data.Data source: Phillips 66 earnings release.</p>
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<p>The biggest weak spot in Phillips 66's earnings for this quarter was the rapid drop in refining earnings as well as a slide in chemical earnings. On the refining side, those declines were very much a product of the refining environment rather than the business itself. Refinery utilization for the quarter was a very impressive 97%, and its clean product yield -- the percentage of refined products that were higher-margin gasoline and diesel -- was a respectable 84%. It all pretty much came down to refining margins. In the third quarter of last year, realized refining margins were $13.96 per barrel, whereas in this past quarter, they came in at $7.23 per barrel. Refining is a very high fixed-cost, relatively low variable-cost business, so that extra $6.73 per barrel last year pretty much flowed directly to the bottom line.</p>
<p>On the chemical side of the business, the decline came mostly from a small slump in production rate -- capacity utilization dropped from 94% to 91% -- and an uptick in cash costs for its feedstock.</p>
<p>One of the more encouraging things in this earnings report was the modest improvement in midstream results. This was partially attributed to Phillips 66's investment in DCP Midstream -- the general partner of DCP Midstream Partners (NYSE: DPM) that Phillips 66 owns with Spectra Energy (NYSE: SE) -- turning back to a positive result. This part of the business was in a rough spot a year ago, when both Phillips 66 and Spectra needed to inject some cash into the business and give it some assets. Some cost-cutting measures, shifting its contract structure toward fee-based services, and the added assets have helped turn things around.</p>
<p>Data source: Phillips 66 earnings releases. Chart by author.</p>
<p>Probably most surprising was the announcement that the company reduced its capital spending outlook for the year from $3.9 billion to $3 billion and that it expects capital spending in 2017 to be slightly below $3 billion. The change in spending mostly came from the deferral of a few projects as well as what it calls a project financing issue. Over the short term, this may not be much of an issue, because the company has several projects near completion that will boost earnings, including the expansion of its Beaumont terminal, CPChem's -- the chemical manufacturing joint venture with Chevron (NYSE: CVX) -- Gulf Coast Petrochemical plant, and its Freeport LPG export terminal. The larger effect of these capital spending declines will likely become known a few years down the road.</p>
<p>Like in so many other quarters, CEO Greg Garland gave a statement that sounded very much like "steady as she goes." Based on the company's operations, it's easy to see why he thinks that way. One thing that caught my eye was that he discussed some details about how the company is planning its capital spending and distributions to shareholders for next year:</p>
<p>Those share repurchases are notable because the company has already done a lot of it since it went public back in 2012.</p>
<p><a href="http://ycharts.com/companies/PSX/average_shares_outs_diluted" type="external">PSX Average Diluted Shares Outstanding (Quarterly)</a> data by <a href="http://ycharts.com" type="external">YCharts Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>Sometimes, no news is good news. This was very much the case for Phillips 66 this quarter. The company continued to run its operations well, but the higher costs for crude oil and natural gas took a bite out of earnings for its refining and chemical businesses. 2017 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for the company as several of its assets under construction will come into service. In the meantime, Phillips 66 will continue to generate decent profits and return high rates of cash to its shareholders.</p>
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<p><a href="http://my.fool.com/profile/TMFDirtyBird/info.aspx" type="external">Tyler Crowe Opens a New Window.</a> has no position in any stocks mentioned.You can follow him at Fool.comor on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/TylerCroweFool" type="external">@TylerCroweFool Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>
<p>The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Spectra Energy. The Motley Fool recommends Chevron and DCP Midstream Partners. 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> | Phillips 66's Earnings: The Best They Could Be in a Tougher Refining Market | true | http://foxbusiness.com/investing/2016/10/31/phillips-66-earnings-best-could-be-in-tougher-refining-market.html | 2016-10-31 | 0 |
<p>SAN FRANCISCO — The final weekend of the <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/San-Francisco-Giants/" type="external">San Francisco Giants</a>‘ season was designed to be a triumphant send-off for <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Matt_Cain/" type="external">Matt Cain</a> into retirement and <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Johnny_Cueto/" type="external">Johnny Cueto</a> into a potential career-changing decision.</p>
<p>Instead, it turned into a celebration of <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Pablo_Sandoval/" type="external">Pablo Sandoval</a>‘s return.</p>
<p>Sandoval belted a season-ending home run with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning Sunday afternoon, sending the Giants into the offseason with a 5-4 victory over the <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/San-Diego-Padres/" type="external">San Diego Padres</a>.</p>
<p>The win allowed the Giants to salvage the final series from the Padres after San Diego had taken the first five from its National League West rival this season.</p>
<p>“You have a game like we did (Saturday). That was a pretty good punch in the stomach,” Giants manager <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Bruce-Bochy/" type="external">Bruce Bochy</a> said of Cain’s going-away party, which the Padres ruined with a ninth-inning rally.</p>
<p>“To win a game like this says a lot about this team.”</p>
<p>In avoiding what would have been just the second 99-loss season in franchise history, the Giants (64-98) prevailed on a day Cueto might have started his final game for the team.</p>
<p>The veteran right-hander can opt out of the final four years of his six-year, $130 million contract in the offseason.</p>
<p>Cueto staggered through the game’s first five innings, leaving in a 4-4 tie. He did not get a decision, and finished the season with an 8-8 mark.</p>
<p>“The outing today was the story of Johnny’s season,” Bochy said, “He competed well without his best stuff. He kept us in the game.</p>
<p>“He hasn’t been himself (this season), but he finds a way. The fact that he didn’t cave in … 11, 12 hits … says a lot about Johnny pitching in traffic.”</p>
<p>Padres starter Luis Perdomo enjoyed a historic day himself, even though he, like Cueto, did not get a decision.</p>
<p>Perdomo helped San Diego take an early 4-1 lead, tripling off Cueto and scoring the team’s fourth run.</p>
<p>It was his fourth triple of the season. No pitcher had recorded four or more triples in a season since <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Robin_Roberts/" type="external">Robin Roberts</a> accomplished the feat in 1955.</p>
<p>Hunter Renfroe had earlier homered for the Padres (71-91), who despite six losses in their last seven games finished three games better than last season, when they were the last-place team in the NL West.</p>
<p>“You’re always ready for a break,” Renfroe said about season’s end. “It gives you a chance to see family and friends. I’m looking forward to a little relaxation period, then pick it up in spring training. We’re hoping to make the playoffs next season. That’s our biggest goal.”</p>
<p>The Giants finished last in the West this season after losing 23 more games than a year ago.</p>
<p>Sandoval’s home run came on a full count against the third Padres pitcher, right-hander Phil Maton (3-2). It was the third career walk-off homer for the former Giants star who returned in August off the scrap heap.</p>
<p>“I feel excited for that moment,” Sandoval said. “When I was running the bases, I wanted to cry. I want to be here for the rest of my career.”</p>
<p>Right-hander Hunter Strickland (4-3), who retired four of the five batters he faced after coming on with two outs in the eighth inning, got the win.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Brandon-Crawford/" type="external">Brandon Crawford</a> had two hits and <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Buster_Posey/" type="external">Buster Posey</a> scored twice for the Giants, who finished the season winning five of their last six home games.</p>
<p>Travis Jankowski had three hits, and Renfroe and <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Erick_Aybar/" type="external">Erick Aybar</a> two apiece for the Padres, who won the season series over the Giants 12-7.</p>
<p>The Padres out-hit the Giants 12-8.</p>
<p>Renfroe’s homer was the club’s 100th on the road this season, the second-most in franchise history.</p>
<p>“We have a lot of guys who can hit the ball out of the ballpark,” the rookie insisted. “We don’t have a (home) ballpark that’s conducive to hitting homers. But we like our ballpark. We hit well there. We’re going to break that record next year.”</p>
<p>Cueto struggled to get through five innings, allowing 12 hits but just four runs. He struck out two and did not walk a batter.</p>
<p>The 12 hits allowed were a career high for Cueto in a start of five innings or fewer.</p>
<p>The Padres strung together four of those hits consecutively to start the game. After back-to-back doubles by Jankowski and Aybar produced one run, Yangervis Solarte followed a single by Carlos Asuaje with one of his one, making it 2-0 before the game’s first out.</p>
<p>Renfroe’s homer, his 26th of the season, came in the third inning after the Giants had gotten back within 2-1 on Sandoval’s infield out in the second.</p>
<p>The Giants got even in the bottom of the fourth. Crawford doubled in a run and Jarrett Parker had an RBI single before <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Nick_Hundley/" type="external">Nick Hundley</a>‘s fielder’s choice brought home Crawford to tie the game at 4-4.</p>
<p>Perdomo retained the tie through seven innings. He allowed seven hits and one walk, striking out four.</p>
<p>NOTES: The Giants held an on-field ceremony for retiring RHP Matt Cain after the game. … The walk-off win was the Giants’ ninth of the season, their most since recording 12 in 2013. … Giants C/1B Buster Posey had a double and a walk in two plate appearances, raising his season-ending on-base percentage to an even .400. … Padres 1B <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Wil-Myers/" type="external">Wil Myers</a> did not play in the game. He finished the season with six home runs at AT&amp;T Park, tying <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Colorado-Rockies/" type="external">Colorado Rockies</a> 3B Nolan Arenado for the most by a Giants opponent in a single season in the 18-year-history of the ballpark. … Among the Giants to get an early shower was RF <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Hunter_Pence/" type="external">Hunter Pence</a>, whose final play was a diving catch in right-center field on a bid for extra bases by Padres RF Hunter Renfroe. Pence got up gingerly and staggered to the dugout, then left for a pinch hitter. … The Giants finished in a tie with the <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Detroit-Tigers/" type="external">Detroit Tigers</a> for the worst record in baseball.</p> | San Francisco Giants top San Diego Padres to avoid 99-loss season | false | https://newsline.com/san-francisco-giants-top-san-diego-padres-to-avoid-99-loss-season/ | 2017-10-01 | 1 |
<p />
<p>In another example of liberal political correctness run amok and the desire to rewrite history, beloved claymation character Yukon Cornelius has had his nickel plated six shooter confiscated by toy companies.</p>
<p>As you can see in the picture below, Yukon Cornelius was a man who looked after his own well being while out in the harsh wilderness. &#160;He dressed warmly for his environment, had his wool cap and ear muffs, warm weather jacket and pants and some sturdy boots. &#160;He was also well provisioned carrying with him a backpack for supplies, a canteen, a knife, a hammer AND A GUN.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>Yet while the reasoning for a prospector who spends his life in the wilderness having a gun is pretty solid, today’s “intellectuals” with their soft constitutions and desire to only portray guns in a negative light have stripped Yukon Cornelius of his revolver in their attempt to socially engineer another generation like them. &#160;People who have an irrational and unfounded bed wetting fear of firearms.</p>
<p>Here are the toys of Yukon Cornelius today. &#160;See if you notice what is missing:</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" /> <a href="" type="internal" /> <a href="" type="internal" /> <a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>The last one isn’t even a child’s toy but more of a collectors figure from Pop. &#160;The toy companies that have created these abominations have replaced Yukon Cornelius’ six shooter for a pick ax.</p>
<p>It wouldn’t surprise me if the toy makers decided to step it up another level and change his occupation from gold mining prospector to Green Peace Environmentalist who battles against mining.</p>
<p>And this wasn’t like some small oversight by the original creators, that gun played a prominent role in the story and Yukon Cornelius even said as much when meeting his new friends:</p>
<p>&#160;Oh, well, now I’m off to get my life-sustaining supplies: cornmeal and gun powder and hamhocks and guitar strings. I’ll give you a lift. Hop aboard, mateys.&#160;</p>
<p>This may seem like a small issue on the whole scale of 2nd Amendment issues and it is…THAT’s the danger. &#160;If we allow the gun hating powers that be to subtly change the culture to where guns are NEVER used or owned by good guys it will only reinforce the fallacy that the liberal press and those who look to prosper on tragdies promote. &#160;Namely, only bad guys and the government have guns. &#160;I doubt they even note the ironic redundancy of that but there it is.</p>
<p>Gun confiscation has all ready happened in this country and it has been going on for years. &#160;The gun confiscation of the mind, teaching children that only bad people have guns is akin to stripping them of their rights before they are even aware of having them.</p>
<p>Since we are on the subject of &#160;the 1964 claymation classic “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”, let’s look at a few more reasons this movie would never be allowed to be made today.</p>
<p>Of course, we have all ready discussed about the properly armed, entreprenuerial capitalist prospector. &#160;Liberals can’t have ANY of that be a hero for children.</p>
<p>But what about Rudolph himself?</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>Picked on for being different, with that nose so bright of his. &#160;Did he go on a rampage and start goring other reindeer to death while they played their reindeer games? &#160;Did he burn the eyes of the other reindeer and set them aflame with his unregistered assault nose?</p>
<p>No. &#160;Santa didn’t come to his rescue and force the other reindeer to include him or to accept him for if he had, Rudolph’s acceptance would only be paper thin and nothing would have changed other than the thin veil of false niceties. &#160;In a way, a fate worse than the open hostility.</p>
<p>But Rudolph didn’t need Santa to intervene and he didn’t go on a murder spree.</p>
<p>He found his own way, made friends of his own and in doing so found his own self worth. &#160;He didn’t need the authority to help him. &#160;He did it all on his own.</p>
<p>Self reliance and doing things without “the authority”? &#160;Liberals can’t tolerate any of THAT either, how would they explain mandatory government-run healthcare if they did?</p>
<p>And what about good ole Hermey the Elf?</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>A union worker who wanted to break away and become a doctor? &#160;In the movie all the other union workers try their best to keep Hermey down and stay with the union. &#160;Today that part would probably be allowed to remain, but Hermey’s eventual success as a Doctor of Dental Science would be changed and instead we would find him being destitute, lying in a ditch, dying somewhere. &#160;After all, liberals can’t have their voting base think that they can succeed and prosper by leaving a union.</p>
<p>Lot’s of things have changed since 1964 and not all of them good.</p>
<p>Thinking back on this movie I am reminded that the confiscation of our rights begins long before a bill is introduced or a judge makes a ruling. &#160;It begins by those who paint the narrative that rights are bad, government is good and we can’t take care of ourselves without “the authority” hold our hand.</p>
<p>It is only when we are older that we realize (if we aren’t so brainwashed by the social engineering) that the hand holding was really the government cuffing us and limiting our liberty.</p>
<p>I personally will never buy a Yukon Cornelius toy for any of my nieces and nephews unless his gun is returned to him. &#160;I will not contribute to the brainwashing of America that will see it’s freedoms portrayed as something of a negative.</p>
<p>Even if it takes the form of a Canadian prospector</p>
<p>Merry Christmas!</p>
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<p>We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, vulgarity, profanity, all caps, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain a courteous and useful public environment where we can engage in reasonable discourse.</p> | Gun Confiscation in time for Christmas. Yukon Cornelius stripped of his trusty revolver | true | http://bulletsfirst.net/2013/12/23/christmas-time-gun-confiscation-yukon-cornelius-stripped-trusty-revolver/ | 0 |
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<p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Pseudacris_maculata.jpg" type="external" /> The world’s oldest national park cannot protect its populations of frogs and salamanders. Global warming is infiltrating park boundaries and destroying this amphibian refuge. A <a href="http://news-service.stanford.edu/pr/2008/pr-frogs-102908.html" type="external">Stanford University study</a> finds that remote ponds surveyed 15 years ago are now suffering catastrophic population declines in species supposedly not threatened. “The ecological effects of global warming are even more profound and are happening more rapidly than previously anticipated,” the researchers write in <a href="http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2008/10/24/0809090105.abstract" type="external">PNAS</a>.</p>
<p>The <a href="/blue_marble_blog/archives/2008/07/8904_farms_not_frog.html" type="external">problem</a> is disappearing ponds. The survey area lies in the lower Lamar Valley of northern Yellowstone. Dozens of small fishless ponds provide habitat once ideal for the breeding and larval development of blotched tiger salamanders, boreal chorus frogs, and Colombia spotted frogs. But high temperatures and drought are drying up the ponds.</p>
<p>The researchers studied climate and water records going back a century, ranging from handwritten logs of water flow in the Lamar River to satellite imagery. They could find no cause for the drying ponds other than a persistent change in temperature and precipitation. “It’s the cumulative effects of climate,” says biologist Elizabeth Hadly. . . Apparently national parks were a great idea of the 19th and 20th centuries. Now we need to graduate to the notion of a global park, refuge for us all.</p>
<p><a href="http://julia.whitty.googlepages.com/home" type="external">Julia Whitty</a> is Mother Jones’ environmental correspondent, <a href="http://julia.whitty.googlepages.com/juliawhittylectures" type="external">lecturer</a>, and 2008 winner of the <a href="http://www.kiriyamaprize.org/pressroom/2008/pr_040108.html" type="external">Kiriyama Prize</a> and the <a href="http://www.research.amnh.org/burroughs/medal_award_list.html" type="external">John Burroughs Medal Award</a>.</p>
<p /> | Global Warming Killing Yellowstone’s Amphibians | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2008/10/global-warming-killing-yellowstones-amphibians/ | 2008-10-28 | 4 |
<p>I could fill up an entire hard drive with evidence of Charles Koch's political influence, much less one blog post. But to him, it's not really influence because <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/election/2015/08/05/3688184/charles-koch-not-much-power/" type="external">he's not getting everything he wants as fast as he wants it.</a></p>
<p>Never mind that Kansas now runs on the Law According to Koch. Never mind that he owns half the Senate and well over half of the United States House of Representatives. Never mind all that, because it's just not happening fast enough.</p>
<p>Anti-government activists and petrochemical billionaires Charles and David Koch and their network of political organizations spent an <a href="http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/statements/2014/nov/06/joe-scarborough/which-side-spent-more-2014-midterms-democrats-or-r/" type="external">estimated</a> <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/14/koch-brothers-spending_n_5494963.html" type="external">$300 million</a> to push conservative candidates and causes in 2014 — and plan to spend almost <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/27/us/politics/kochs-plan-to-spend-900-million-on-2016-campaign.html?_r=0" type="external">$900 million</a> to do the same thing in the 2016 cycle. But in an <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2015/08/04/charles-koch-on-the-2016-race-climate-change-and-whether-he-has-too-much-power/" type="external">interview</a> published Tuesday, Charles Koch dismissed claims that he has much political power as “ludicrous,” asking, “if I had all this power, why aren’t [the many things I would change] getting changed?”</p>
<p>His statement suggests that he lacks political power — but he and his brother have built and bankrolled a network of political organizations that rival the size of any political party.</p>
<p>The elder Koch made the argument in an exclusive interview with Washington Post national reporter Matea Gold, one of a small number of journalists invited to <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/media/2015/08/03/3687249/koch-freedom-partners-media-restrictions/" type="external">cover select portions</a> of the brothers’ Freedom Partners conference for wealthy conservative donors and Republican presidential hopefuls this past weekend at the St. Regis Monarch Beach <a href="http://www.stregismb.com/photo-gallery/" type="external">luxury resort</a> in California.</p>
<p>Asked what he says to those “who believe you have too much influence,” Charles Koch told Gold, “wow, believe me, if I had too much, a lot of things would change. Just like the very things we’ve been talking about — this trend toward a two-tiered society and the trajectory we’re on that’s taking us there and criminal justice.”</p>
<p>But while Koch is correct that he does not personally control the entire government apparatus, he significantly understates his relative influence in the political system. In the 2012 elections — the <a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2012/08/2012-election-will-be-costliest-yet/" type="external">most expensive</a> in the nation’s history — the Democratic National Committee (about $319 million) and the Republican National Committee (about $404 million) combined to spend less than the Koch network’s promised 2016 budget. President Obama’s entire re-election campaign spent less than <a href="https://www.opensecrets.org/pres12/" type="external">$684 million</a>.</p>
<p>It's disingenous of him to downplay the rather significant change he's wrought in states like Kansas and Wisconsin, where the middle class is dwindling to nothing in the span of a few years. The damage he's done to progress concerning climate change is downright evil, and the corruption he's wrought on the government is immeasurable. And still, it's not enough for him.</p>
<p>Don't be fooled by his whole criminal justice push either. That stems from his own brushes with the law and the realization that he can leverage that issue with minorities while whitewashing his evil ways politically. After all, he can lay claim to "bipartisanship" with regard to that one single issue, despite the fact that he's planning the smackdown on everyone who isn't a billionaire in every other arena.</p>
<p>I am so disgusted with the fluff pieces that have come out this week following that conference last weekend. If getting press access was about whitewashing the Kochs' destructive influence on this country, they succeeded. If only our 4th estate behaved like one when it comes to billionaires, eh?</p> | Charles Koch Modestly Denies He Has Any Political Influence | true | http://crooksandliars.com/2015/08/charles-koch-modestly-denies-any-influence | 2015-08-05 | 4 |
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<p>George Zimmerman, acquitted in the high-profile killing of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin, listens in court Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2013, in Sanford, Fla., during his hearing on charges including aggravated assault stemming from a fight with his girlfriend. (AP Photo/Orlando Sentinel, Joe Burbank, Pool)</p>
<p>SANFORD, Fla. – George Zimmerman had five guns and more than 100 rounds of ammunition with him when deputies arrested him earlier this month on domestic violence charges, according to court documents released Tuesday.</p>
<p>A search warrant made public by the Seminole County court clerk shows that Zimmerman had a 12-gauge shotgun, an AR-15 assault rifle and three handguns when he was arrested Nov. 18 at his girlfriend’s house. The girlfriend, Samantha Scheibe, told deputies that Zimmerman pointed a shotgun at her during an argument and also used it to smash her coffee table.</p>
<p>Zimmerman is free on $9,000 bail on charges of aggravated assault, battery and criminal mischief. He is not allowed to have guns as a condition of his bail. He has entered a written plea of not guilty.</p>
<p>Zimmerman, 30, was acquitted of murder in July in the shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin during a confrontation in the community where Zimmerman was a neighborhood watch volunteer. The shooting sparked accusations that Zimmerman had racially profiled Martin, who was black and unarmed.</p>
<p>The gun Zimmerman used to shoot Martin remains in federal custody because of an ongoing investigation and was not among those found when he was recently arrested.</p>
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<p>Scheibe told deputies she asked Zimmerman to leave the house they were sharing during an argument. Scheibe said in an arrest report that he began packing his belongings, including some of the weapons, but became upset and took the shotgun out of the case.</p>
<p>According to the search warrant, Scheibe said she was going to call police. That’s when Zimmerman pointed the shotgun at her and asked if “she really wanted to do that,” the warrant says.</p>
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<p /> | Zimmerman had 5 guns when taken into custody | false | https://abqjournal.com/309829/zimmerman-had-5-guns-when-taken-into-custody.html | 2 |
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<p>Crowds of people are flocking to northwestern Wisconsin to trek on a frozen-over Lake Superior to reach dramatic ice caves accessible on foot for the first time in several years, courtesy of the long frigid winter.</p>
<p>The ice caves on Superior's shoreline are carved out of sandstone by waves from the lake and derive their name from the icy freeze in winter that makes them glisten with hoar frost, icicles and ice formations.</p>
<p>Reachable in warm weather by boat, the caves are accessible in winter only by walking across ice when it is thick and stable enough.</p>
<p>It has been five years since the ice caves were last reachable in the winter, officials said.</p>
<p>About 35,000 people have hiked the more than 1 mile route across the ice in the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore since officials declared the ice a "low risk" on January 15, park spokeswoman Julie Van Stappen said.</p>
<p>"We have never had this number of people coming," she said. "It has been a bit overwhelming, but it has been great for the local community, and they are gorgeous."</p>
<p>A cool autumn and early winter combined with polar vortexes helped lake ice build up weeks earlier than normal, said George Leshkevich, a researcher for the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory.</p>
<p>The Great Lakes in the last week reached its broadest ice coverage in 20 years at 88 percent, with Lake Superior at about 95 percent, according to the research laboratory.</p>
<p>Van Stappen said the round-trip trek to the caves can take three hours or more over a well-packed and slippery path with little cover to break the sometimes fierce winds.</p>
<p>Still, the number of visitors was expected to surge over the three-day Presidents Day weekend, boosting tourist activity in such towns as Bayfield, about 18 miles west of the caves.</p>
<p>Maggie's restaurant in Bayfield was doing more than double the business it normally does in February, which is typically a good winter month anyway because of events such as cross country ski races, office manager Heidi Nelson said.</p>
<p>"Our waiters and bartenders are just elated," Nelson said.</p>
<p>At the Bayfield Inn, manager Tyler Stoklasa said this may be the busiest winter season he has seen.</p>
<p>"We are doing July-type business right now," Stoklasa said.</p>
<p /> | Frozen-Over Lake Superior Provides Rare Access to Ice Caves | false | http://nbcnews.com/storyline/deep-freeze/frozen-over-lake-superior-provides-rare-access-ice-caves-n31711 | 2014-02-16 | 3 |
<p>Any combat soldier will tell you that war changes you. You leave with a young face and return with years weighing you down. Memories of battle can scar a person’s psyche in ways unknown to the rest of us. There are many ways in which a soldier will express this, but one of the oldest traditions has been labelled over the years simply “War Ink.”</p>
<p>Over a <a href="http://europepmc.org/abstract/MED/10709376" type="external">third of military personnel</a> sport tattoos, with <a href="http://publications.amsus.org/doi/pdf/10.7205/MILMED-D-13-00131" type="external">over 3/4 of those</a> sporting multiple examples of ink across their body. The US Navy has had a tattooing tradition that predates the founding of the nation, based on <a href="http://www.military-history.org/articles/war-culture-maritime-tattoos.htm" type="external">British traditions of travel</a>. However, only those tied to the Navy or Marines were commonly found with them, and in many areas of America they were frowned upon. But with the civil war, that began to change. Soldiers who went off to fight brother against brother flocked to the new phenomenon of tattoo shops, the first one being opened in 1846 by Martin Hildebrandt in New York City. In a war for the soul of the United States, it changed the image of being a soldier itself, and with that came the rise of “War Ink.”</p>
<p>On Veterans day, an online exhibition of these scars of combat, these visible signs of soldiering, opened. Titled simply “ <a href="http://www.warink.org" type="external">War Ink</a>,” it gives the soldiers not only the opportunity to show off the often times elaborate and many times stunningly beautiful work done by the tattoo artists, but to tell their stories – to share them not only with each other, but with the world.</p>
<p>By sharing their stories, be it through words or through ink, these soldiers are working to heal from the memories of the past. The more people they connect with, the easier it comes to live with the burdens. As John Heywood put down in his 1546 book Proverbs, “Many Hands Make For Light Work.” The carrying of these memories, this trauma, is difficult. By having an avenue to share them, these soldiers find this work easier. In ancient times, old soldiers would share war stories to do this, almost in a&#160;ritual&#160;with the other villagers they lived with. With modern society, this tradition is lost, but through exhibits like War Ink, perhaps it can be rekindled in a new way.</p>
<p>In the end, they need to talk, to share the burden, to have an outlet for the struggles they have within. None who were not there with them can know precisely what happened or the damage it left behind. By listening, we can at least begin to grasp it however. One of the participants in the exhibition, Mike Ergo, a former marine who now works as a councilor in California, put it best.</p>
<p>“Put your preconceived notions on hold and just talk to [a vet] like they’re a person. [Veterans] will be forgiving as long as you come across like someone who is okay with listening, really listening, not the ‘I’m waiting for my turn to talk’ listening, but active listening.”</p>
<p>It is now up to each of us to take the time to listen to them, to hear their words, to understand their stories even if just a little bit of it. That is a way to truly honor veterans. Take the time to visit the <a href="http://www.warink.org" type="external">War Ink exhibition</a>, to listen to their stories, and to see their stories written out on the canvas of their bodies.</p>
<p>A local newscast covering the opening of the exhibit.</p> | Combat Veterans Turn To Tattoos As Part Of Recovery – Now On Exhibit (VIDEO) | true | http://addictinginfo.org/2014/11/12/veteran-tattoos/ | 2014-11-12 | 4 |
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<p>Multiple sources in the White House, media, donor community and pro Trump political group have confirmed that the White House Deputy Chief of Staff, Republican Katie Walsh has been identified as the source behind the leaks that have been plaguing Trump's administration to the New York Times and other outlets.</p>
<p>A source close to the president made a statement saying that everyone knows not to talk to her in the White House unless they want to see it in the press, adding that the only question is whether or not she's doing it at the command of White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus or she's doing it to advance herself in the crooked DC media ring.</p>
<p>It's also reported by one source in particular that Walsh is close to Maggie Habberman, a New York Times reporter who was behind the fawning pro-Republican National Committee stories during last year's presidential elections, she's planted stories in Politico and The Washington Post. A senior aide also revealed that Walsh is referred to as Madame President in the White House, and it happens that it's not a compliment but to ridicule his inappropriate behavior.</p>
<p>Since she controls the President's schedule, Walsh has significant access. There has also been emails between Reince Priebus and Katie Walsh in which they discuss how to rid themselves of Trump.</p>
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<p>A source close to the President's family indicates that the president and his allies have been deliberately feeding her fake information in order to find her network and that has been going on well.</p>
<p>It's no surprise that Walsh is behind the leaks since during the campaign, she and her family never supported Donald Trump during the Presidential campaign. It's important that Trump's administration gives her the rope with which she'll hang herself and others in her network. Firing her immediately is not the best move since Trump's administration will not be in a position to exploit her and everyone else colluding with her.</p>
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<p>SOURCE: <a href="http://gotnews.com/breaking-reinces-gal-whitehouse-chief-staff-kmwalsh_gop-source-trump-leaks-nytimes-others/" type="external">gotnews.com/breaking-reinces-gal-whitehouse-chief-staff-kmwalsh_gop-source-trump-leaks-nytimes-others</a></p> | BREAKING: White House Deputy Chief of Staff,Republican Katie Walsh Identified As The Source Of Leaks | true | http://thegoldwater.com/news/1406-BREAKING-White-House-Deputy-Chief-of-Staff-Republican-Katie-Walsh-Identified-As-The-Source-Of-Leaks | 2017-02-20 | 0 |
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<p>BRUSSELS — Top European Union officials struggled Friday to reassure smaller countries from the east that they would not be left behind as the bloc charts its future without Britain.</p>
<p>At a summit in Brussels marred by a rift with Poland, the presidents of the European Council and executive Commission repeated calls for unity as the remaining 27 nations debate whether the world’s biggest trading bloc should centralize more power in Brussels or temper its ambitions.</p>
<p>“Our main objective should be to strengthen trust and unity within the 27,” European Council President Donald Tusk said after chairing the final session of the two-day meeting. “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”</p>
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<p>The session was meant to focus on preparations for a grand meeting in Italy on March 25 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the EU’s founding Treaty of Rome, but spiraled into an argument about whether heavyweight states should be allowed to forge ahead alone.</p>
<p>The 28 EU member nations already operate at different speeds in terms of inter-bloc cooperation. Only 19 use the euro single currency, smaller groups cooperate on matters such as taxes and divorce laws, and not all countries are part of Europe’s passport-free travel area.</p>
<p>Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker conceded that some countries fear this multi-speed Europe could be “seen as introducing a new dividing line, a new kind of Iron Curtain between East and West.”</p>
<p>But, Juncker said, “this is not a matter of exclusion, it is a matter or organizing progress for those who want to do more.”</p>
<p>Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who faces elections next week, said talk of different speeds “leads notably east Europeans to think they are being pressured, with questions whether they are still players.”</p>
<p>His Polish counterpart, Beata Szydlo, said that her country “will never agree to a Europe of different speeds because that would lead to the EU’s disintegration.”</p>
<p>The prospect of an influential member like Britain leaving the EU, probably in 2019, has deeply shaken its partners.</p>
<p>The bloc was already struggling to recover from the economic crisis and facing a refugee emergency that undermined trust between neighbors. Beyond that, a spate of terror attacks in European cities heightened security fears and the far-right has taken advantage in a pivotal election year.</p>
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<p>German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Europe’s motto must be “that we are united, but also united in diversity.”</p>
<p>“We already have today a Europe of different speeds,” she said, adding that the spirit should be that things are “open for every member state to participate, there is no exclusion.”</p>
<p>French President Francois Hollande also sought to reassure wary partners.</p>
<p>“It’s not about excluding anyone. It’s about being able, for those who want to and without the treaties being revised … to go more quickly, without closing the door on anyone,” he said. “But as well, we cannot allow anyone to stop others who want to advance more quickly.”</p>
<p>Complicating the calls for cohesion is a spat that broke out late Thursday between Poland and the other EU nations.</p>
<p>Szydlo’s nationalist government in Warsaw tried to block Tusk — a former Polish prime minister and bitter political rival — from a second term as Council president. Poland even refused to approve some summit texts.</p>
<p>“I see no sense, either for the Poles or the rest, in going to sulk in a corner,” Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern said.</p>
<p>Kern added that Europe must concentrate on finding a consensus on matters of substance — jobs, economic growth, migration and security.</p>
<p>Luxembourg’s prime minister made clear that frustration with Poland lingered, saying that “behavior like yesterday’s is not acceptable.”</p>
<p>“I don’t think yesterday will be the long-term state of the EU,” Prime Minister Xavier Bettel said. “I am convinced that Poland will become sensible again in the coming days and weeks.”</p>
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<p>Raf Casert in Brussels contributed.</p> | New rifts surface as EU mulls future without Britain | false | https://abqjournal.com/966198/eu-leaders-minus-britain-mull-blocs-future.html | 2017-03-10 | 2 |
<p>Texans are taking to the voting booths today. And... so what? Mitt Romney has the Republican nominee for president wrapped up. And we knew long ago that Texas would vote for any Republican presidential candidate.</p>
<p>But Texas might not be such a Republican slam-dunk forever. The state's demographics are changing quickly. Texas is 37 percent Latino, and demographers say the state could be majority Latino in less than 20 years. And those Texas Latinos have been overwhelmingly voting Democrat. But that wasn't always the case.</p>
<p>In 2004, about half of Texas Latinos voted to re-elect George W. Bush. Four years later, the Republican presidential candidate, John McCain, <a href="http://www.pewtrusts.org/our_work_report_detail.aspx?id=45944" type="external">captured only 35 percent of the Texas Latino vote</a>. That doesn't make sense to Robin Lennon, co-founder of the <a href="http://kingwoodtps.wordpress.com/" type="external">Kingwood Tea Party</a>, located just north of Houston. She thinks Texas Latinos are natural conservatives.</p>
<p>"They're such hard workers, they believe in working hard, and I can't believe that if you understand the value of hard work and earning your money, wanting the government to take it away to give it to people that don't work hard to get their money."</p>
<p>Robin and her husband Jim, who co-founded their group, say they have an open door for Latinos. But they're not actively recruiting them for this election cycle.</p>
<p>"We don't want them to think that we're only going after them in order to get them to vote our way in the primary. What we want to do is establish a long-term goal," said Robin.</p>
<p>And that long-term goal for Texas?</p>
<p>"It's going to be a Republican Latino state, you watch. I'll talk to you in 10 years," said Jim.</p>
<p>But the Republican party has a lot of work to do.</p>
<p>I went to a get-out-the-vote barbeque in southwest Houston, dubbed "Tacos &amp; Votes." There were about 150 people there, mostly Latinos. I met people like 36-year-old civil engineer Adan Gallegos, a US citizen originally from Mexico.</p>
<p>"I used to be Republican, but ever since they started the Latino bashing, I actually switched sides."</p>
<p><a type="external" href="" /></p>
<p>I asked Gallegos what he meant by "Latino bashing." He, and others I met, complained about the Republican Party's harsh rhetoric on immigration control. And they rattled off complaints about the Republican-controlled Texas legislature.</p>
<p>"The state legislature here effectively de-funded education here. The people that are most affected by that are the Latino and African American communities," said Rey Guerra, a mechanical engineer and political activist.</p>
<p>Texas lawmakers <a href="http://www.lbb.state.tx.us/" type="external">cut education funding by roughly $5.4 billion</a> in its latest two-year budget. Texas school districts have been <a href="http://childrenatrisk.org/" type="external">laying off teachers, dropping classes, and eliminating school bus services</a>.</p>
<p>Another contentious issue here is the <a href="http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Voter-ID-law-Do-the-facts-justify-it-3433773.php" type="external">new Texas law requiring voters to have a photo ID</a>.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/324586-justice-departments-decision-on-the-texas-voter.html" type="external">US Justice Department blocked the requirement</a> earlier this year, saying it unfairly discriminates against Latinos who are less likely than Anglos to have a photo ID. The case is being challenged in court.</p>
<p>At the barbeque, children took swings at a piñata. Carlos Duarte, with the group <a href="http://mifamiliavota.org/home" type="external">Mi Familia Vota</a>, handed out post it notes to people in the crowd.</p>
<p>"What I want you to write down is the obstacle that has prevented you from voting," said Duarte. "What we're going to do with that, we're going to post it on piñata, and we're going to have the youth break that piñata, symbolizing that this time the Latino community is ready to overcome all obstacles to civic participation."</p>
<p>People wrote down things ranging from a poorly informed community to apathy.</p>
<p>About a dozen kids took a turn at the piñata. Finally, it broke and the kids descended on the candy.</p>
<p>Some in Houston's Latino community may be newly galvanized, but breaking the piñata remains largely symbolic. Houston is 44 percent Latino. But even though some Tea Partiers say they are reaching out to Latinos, <a href="http://politicalscience.rice.edu/Content.aspx?id=103" type="external">Mark Jones,</a> a political scientist at Rice University in Houston, said politicians haven't paid them much attention.</p>
<p>"Ignore is probably too strong, but they certainly don't actively cultivate the votes of Hispanics."</p>
<p>Jones said Texas Latinos vote in far lower numbers than Latinos in states like California. He said this is due to a weaker Democratic party in Texas and the lack of a charismatic Latino leader in Houston and Dallas. And, in the past, Texas Republicans have played smart politics.</p>
<p>"What Republicans, particularly the more pragmatic ones, have tried to do is a dual strategy: Keep Hispanics from having an issue around which to mobilize, thereby keeping Hispanic turnout low and not doing anything that pushes Hispanics who normally would vote Republican to vote Democratic," said Jones.</p>
<p>Some Republicans I met are worried that this playbook is being ignored.</p>
<p>Houston attorney Jacob Monty sits on the board of directors for the new group <a href="http://hispanicrepublicansoftx.org/" type="external">Hispanic Republicans of Texas</a>. His great-grandfather crossed the Rio Grande and moved to El Paso. Monty said Republican policies on immigration have been "a disaster since 2004."</p>
<p>"The Republicans need to wake up on this issue, because if they don't, if their Hispanics numbers don't improve, we're going to become a minority party," said Monty.</p>
<p>Up in Kingwood, I asked Jim and Robin Lennon, the Tea Party supporters, how they expect some of their policies to appeal to Latinos. For example, the deep education cuts that disproportionately affect Latino students.</p>
<p>"Let me ask you a question, what percentage of the budget in the state of Texas goes to public education? It's 57 percent. It's a huge number, a good 20 percent of that goes to taking care of the children of illegal aliens. At what point do you say enough?" said Jim.</p>
<p>Talk like that may well resonate with fiscal conservatives. But it may not be the kind of language likely to appeal to a new generation of Latino voters in Texas.</p> | Why Texas May Become a Blue State | false | https://pri.org/stories/2012-05-29/why-texas-may-become-blue-state | 2012-05-29 | 3 |
<p>The former nursing student One Goh has pleaded not guilty to killing seven people during a shooting rampage at a Christian college in Oakland on April 2.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/01/us-usa-crime-oakland-idUSBRE84002E20120501" type="external">Reuters reports</a> that the 43-year-old Korean-American from California appeared in Alameda County Superior Court shackled at the hands and feet and spoke through a Korean interpreter.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57424546/alleged-oakland-school-shooter-one-l-goh-pleads-not-guilty/" type="external">CBS says</a> the attack on Oikos University is the deadliest gun attack on a school in the United States since 32 people were killed at Virginia Tech in 2007.</p>
<p>More from GlobalPost: <a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120403/one-goh-oakland-oikos-shooting-christian-video" type="external">'Get in line, I'm going to kill you all," Okios shooter said (VIDEO)</a></p>
<p>It describes how Goh is charged with seven counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder.</p>
<p>Law enforcement officials have said that Goh was angry that he had been denied a tuition refund by Oikos University, and had arrived on campus with a .45-caliber gun looking for the administrator, <a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hhlDcvVR6PqcryHm-sX6MM4VVq8Q?docId=CNG.f281ac5b0fa5517d6adf24512e855f05.551" type="external">according to AFP</a>.</p>
<p>When he was unable to find her, he "essentially executed" seven people and wounded three others, the news agency adds.</p>
<p>More from GlobalPost: <a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120416/virginia-tech-shooting-five-year-anniversary" type="external">Virginia Tech shooting five years on</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-17904742" type="external">The BBC quotes</a> Alameda County Sheriff's Office spokesman Sergeant J.D. Nelson as saying that Goh has been refusing food for several weeks and had lost about 20 pounds.&#160; However, Nelson said "he would not characterize the act as a suicide attempt or a hunger strike".</p>
<p>Goh is due back in court on 25 June for a pretrial hearing, after which prosecutors will decide whether or not to seek the death penalty.</p>
<p>More from GlobalPost: <a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/120420/hotdesking-office-space-the-latest-growing-office-trend-workplace-culture" type="external">Suite Spot - Hotdesking - The office of the (near) future?</a></p> | Oakland college shooter One Goh pleads not guilty | false | https://pri.org/stories/2012-05-01/oakland-college-shooter-one-goh-pleads-not-guilty | 2012-05-01 | 3 |
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<p />
<p>Hearings for the project’s construction permit are set to begin Thursday and expected to last until next month. It’s the second time the project has faced the proceedings.</p>
<p>This time, numerous parties are participating, including a group of Native Hawaiians who support the telescope, and dozens of witnesses are expected to testify. It’s not clear when the retired judge overseeing the hearings would issue a ruling.</p>
<p>Here are things to know about the embattled telescope:</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>THIRTY METER TELESCOPE</p>
<p>A group of universities in California and Canada plan to build the telescope with partners from China, India and Japan. Its primary mirror will measure 30 meters in diameter and be made up of 492 individual segments. Compared with the largest existing visible-light telescope in the world, it will be three times as wide, with nine times more area.</p>
<p>Scientists say the telescope would allow them to see into the earliest years of the universe. The telescope could find planets around other stars in the “habitable zone,” where liquid water is possible on a planet’s surface, the project’s website says. The 13 telescopes already on Mauna Kea have played major roles in discoveries considered among the most significant to astronomy. Partners would receive a share of observing time, along with University of Hawaii scientists.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>THE LOCATION</p>
<p>Telescope officials say Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano, is the best location in the world for astronomy. It’s Hawaii’s tallest volcano and its summit provides a clear view of the sky for 300 days a year, with little air and light pollution. Opponents say the project will desecrate land held sacred by Native Hawaiians and that there are already too many telescopes on Mauna Kea. All of the highest points in the islands are considered the home of deities, said Kealoha Pisciotta, one of the leaders in the telescope fight.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>POWER OF PROTESTERS</p>
<p>Protests disrupted a groundbreaking and Hawaiian blessing ceremony at the site two years ago. After that, the protests intensified. Construction stopped in April 2015 after 31 protesters were arrested for blocking the work. A second attempt to restart construction a few months later ended with more arrests and crews retreating when they encountered large boulders in the road. The telescope has become one of the most divisive issues in the state, with some telescope supporters saying they are afraid to publicly express their stance on the project.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>HOW WE GOT HERE</p>
<p>The telescope’s board of directors held public meetings before selecting Mauna Kea as the preferred site in 2009. In 2011, opponents requested so-called contested-case hearings before the state land board approved a permit to build on conservation land. The hearings were held, and the permit was upheld. Opponents then sued. In December 2015, the state Supreme Court revoked the permit, ruling the land board’s approval process was flawed. That meant the application process needed to be redone, requiring a new hearing.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>WHAT’S AT STAKE</p>
<p>If the project dies, not only will that be bad for Hawaii astronomy, but for any high-tech industry considering Hawaii, said Paul Coleman, a Native Hawaiian astrophysicist at the University of Hawaii’s Institute for Astronomy. The partners invested $170 million through the end of 2015, Thirty Meter Telescope Executive Director Ed Stone said. The project promises to create 300 construction jobs and employ 140 staff when operational. Earlier this year, telescope officials began looking for alternate sites in case the telescope can’t be built in Hawaii.</p> | Divisive bid to build telescope in Hawaii faces new hearing | false | https://abqjournal.com/870795/divisive-bid-to-build-telescope-in-hawaii-faces-new-hearing.html | 2016-10-19 | 2 |
<p>MSNBC's Steve Kornacki and Hallie Jackson had a little trouble with their "multi-touch collaboration screen," aka "the magic wall," during a segment about the GOP primary race.</p>
<p>Kornacki, in an attempt to highlight the upcoming voting conventions for the Republicans, decided to draw a map of the good 'ol USofA so that he could point out New York, New Jersey, Indiana, and California. Instead he just drew a giant dong that only got more awkward with every finger drawn squiggle and circle.</p>
<p>Click below for lol moment...</p>
<p>MSNBC shows maps can be hard <a href="https://t.co/hWM8J3NZwT" type="external">https://t.co/hWM8J3NZwT</a></p>
<p>And of course the Twitterverse reacted accordingly...</p>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/elliosch" type="external">@elliosch</a> <a href="https://t.co/y5d4k6FJO3" type="external">pic.twitter.com/y5d4k6FJO3</a></p>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/elliosch" type="external">@elliosch</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/benshapiro" type="external">@benshapiro</a> <a href="https://t.co/ZY7TqMzD6R" type="external">https://t.co/ZY7TqMzD6R</a> MSNBC should hire Randy Marsh to draw their maps. Very similar technique.</p>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/elliosch" type="external">@elliosch</a> seems like a microagression against texas?</p>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/elliosch" type="external">@elliosch</a> The patriarchy is strong in this one... <a href="https://twitter.com/vine" type="external">@vine</a></p>
<p>Miss Teen South Carolina 2007 gets to the heart of it:</p>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/elliosch" type="external">@elliosch</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/benshapiro" type="external">@benshapiro</a> Do those U.S. Americans have maps? Like such as: <a href="https://t.co/TYSOc1GkCI" type="external">https://t.co/TYSOc1GkCI</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.mediaite.com/tv/msnbcs-steve-kornacki-just-drew-a-giant-dong-to-represent-the-united-states/" type="external">Click here</a> for the entire MSNBC segment in which Hallie Jackson tries her best to keep it together.</p>
<p>Exit thought from this local news reporter who understands Kornacki's plight...</p>
<p /> | MSNBC'S Version of a U.S. Map Is LOL Worthy | true | https://dailywire.com/news/4892/msnbcs-version-us-map-lol-worthy-chase-stephens | 2016-04-13 | 0 |
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<p>GROVELAND, Calif. (AP) — Officials say fire crews aided by higher humidity overnight were able to increase containment of a giant wildfire burning at the edge of Yosemite National Park.</p>
<p>The U.S. Forest Service says the fire was 23 percent contained this morning, up from 20 percent the previous day. The fire has now consumed 293 square miles.</p>
<p>Crews plan to focus on structure defense along the southeast edge of the fire today and continue constructing a contingency line ahead of communities to the north, including Tuolumne City.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>The fire is threatening 4,500 structures. Forest service officials have confirmed that three commercial properties and 85 tent cabins were destroyed at a camp run by the city of Berkeley, adding to the 23 structures that were previously reported as destroyed.</p>
<p>5:57am — Yosemite fire prompts unhealthy air warnings in Nev. GROVELAND, Calif. (AP) — The giant wildfire burning at the edge of Yosemite National Park has not only destroyed buildings and threatened water supplies, electricity and sequoias, it has also unleashed a smoky haze that has worsened air quality more than 100 miles away in Nevada.</p>
<p>The plume from the Rim Fire in California triggered emergency warnings in the Reno and Carson City area. Schoolchildren were kept inside for the second time in a week, people went to hospitals complaining of eye and throat irritation and officials urged people to avoid all physical activity outdoors.</p>
<p>“It’s five hours away,” said 22-year-old bartender Renee Dishman in disbelief after learning that the source of the haze was more than 150 miles away. “I can’t run. I can’t breathe. It makes me sneeze.”</p>
<p>The Rim Fire, so far, has burned through 280 square miles, destroyed 23 structures and threatened water supplies, hydroelectric power and giant sequoias. On Tuesday night, authorities said the blaze was 20 percent contained.</p>
<p>In Nevada, the biggest impact of the Rim Fire was on the air. The air quality index briefly surpassed the rare “hazardous” level east of Lake Tahoe before improving slightly. It hovered around the next-most serious stage of “very unhealthy” for all populations in the Reno-Sparks area 30 miles north.</p>
<p>Dennis Fry, a Reno auto body specialist for nearly 30 years, remembered smoke this thick when he worked on a logging crew and helped fight fires in Oregon during the 1970s.</p>
<p>“But never in Reno, not this bad,” he said. “You could actually see the smoke inside my body shop.”</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>
<p>Everyone should avoid all physical activity outdoors when the air quality index reaches “hazardous,” considered “emergency conditions,” the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection said on its website. “People with heart or lung disease, older adults and children should remain indoors and keep activity levels low.”</p>
<p>Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno has experienced a “slight increase” in emergency room visits as a result of the smoke, said Jennifer Allen, the hospital’s clinical nursing supervisor.</p>
<p>“Patients are experiencing shortness of breath, eye and throat irritation, cough and headache due to the heavy smoke and poor air quality,” she said, adding that people with asthma and other respiratory ailments were most affected.</p>
<p>The pollution levels are among the worst ever recorded for small particulates around Carson City in the state’s air monitoring records dating to 2000, according to JoAnn Kittrell, public information manager for Nevada Division of Environmental Protection. The air quality briefly moved into the “hazardous” level in some areas on Friday as well, she said.</p>
<p>“It’s very unusual,” she said. “We just happen to be in the direct path of the plume from Yosemite.”</p>
<p>The previous peak reading in Reno came on Friday when the air quality index closed in on the “very unhealthy” stage. Schoolchildren were kept indoors during recess, high school football practices and scrimmages were canceled through the weekend and an annual air show at Lake Tahoe was canceled due to low visibility.</p>
<p>Carol Chaplin, executive director Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority, said some hotels and motels reported cancellations earlier in the week, but so far there hasn’t been any major impact for the upcoming Labor Day weekend. “I could lie and say it’s not affecting anything, but it is,” she said. She said visibility in the scenic Tahoe Basin ebbs and flows with the shifting winds.</p>
<p>“I still see people out on the lake,” she said. “At least we’re not on fire.”</p>
<p>The fire caused air pollution problems in California cities far away from the fire, including those in the Sacramento region.</p>
<p>Two dozen competitors in the 25th annual Best in the West Nugget Rib Cook-Off were taking it in stride as they prepped their grills for the barbeque festival running Wednesday through Labor Day in Sparks. The air around the event is usually filled with smoke, albeit a different kind when the barbeque festival’s in town.</p>
<p>“You can’t have too much smoke at a barbeque,” said Mike Peters of Springfield, Mo., a member of the Kansas City Barbeque Society’s Great American Barbeque Tour Team. “We’re just going to add a little hickory smell to it.”</p>
<p>____</p>
<p>Associated Press Carson City correspondent Sandra Chereb contributed to this report.</p> | Humidity helps increase containment of giant Yosemite wildfire | false | https://abqjournal.com/254406/yosemite-fire-prompts-unhealthy-air-warnings-in-nev.html | 2013-08-28 | 2 |
<p>A group of scientists, military officials and government bureaucrats signed an informal pact with the devil. The contract became public in August 1945, when U.S. bombers nuked Hiroshima and Nagasaki.</p>
<p>Since then, no other nation has used a nuclear weapon, but thousands of radiation-emitting tests have occurred and nuclear energy plants mushroomed, with promises of cheap, safe and clean power. Over the decades, however, “the nuclear industry” has faced repeated cost over-runs, and serious “accidents.” Thousands died at the Chernobyl power plant (Ukraine) and a near catastrophe occurred at the Three Mile Island (Pennsylvania) facility. Air Force planes dropped H bombs in the ocean off the Spanish coast and innumerable leaks, fires and “mishaps” occurred routinely at military and civilian nuclear installations.</p>
<p>In 1980, Jack Willis and I produced “Paul Jacobs and the Nuclear Gang” for public television. Our documentary showed government officials and nuclear mavens colluding to obfuscate their failure to keep their “cheap, safe and clean” promise. In 1977, Jacobs, a reporter (and non-smoker) covered the nuclear issue since the 1950s. He developed lung cancer, his doctors speculated, after he had inhaled a plutonium particle while covering U.S. government atomic tests. He also looked skeptically at U.S. claims of benign radiation levels near the Nevada test site.</p>
<p>In a 1957 story, Jacobs reported his Geiger counter jumping scale in a “safe” area. In his story (The Reporter), he revealed the lies told by Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) spokesmen about actual levels of radiation. Jacobs had surreptitiously acquired from a Public Health office in Las Vegas a classified document revealing AEC knowledge that so-called low level radiation constituted serious health hazards. Indeed, from later de-classified internal memos, Jacobs discovered the AEC had classified the health report not to keep it from Soviet officials, who knew about radiation’s perils, but to keep the U.S. public sedated so people wouldn’t think about choosing between nuclear tests and getting cancer.</p>
<p>In 1977, Willis and I returned with Jacobs to the “down wind” area he had investigated 20 years earlier. In southern Utah, Jacobs found those he had previously interviewed were dead or had cancer. In St. George, Utah, directly in line of the fall-out path from Nevada nuclear tests, he found a near epidemic of cancer and a public that had endured years of nuclear nervousness.</p>
<p>Before he died, he added up costs and liabilities: damage done by bombs dropped on Japan, and too many thousands of civilians and U.S. service men who served as guinea pigs during the 1950s. The Pentagon, seeking to test soldiers’ responses to nuclear battlefield conditions, positioned men near the blast, had them cover their eyes and then measured their ability to fight. We interviewed Sergeant Bates, one of the GIs ordered to “dig a trench and crawl in.” The blast, he said, “threw me fifteen feet into the air. It made all of us sick.” In 1977, he had terminal cancer.</p>
<p>Hot hailstones pelted the “downwinder” civilians, accompanied by bare-faced lies from the Atomic Energy Commission and agencies that later replaced it, assuring them of the benign nature of the blasts’ radiation levels.</p>
<p>Death and disease, however, did not deter the gang — which included major companies that made nuclear generating plants. Over the decades, various facilities accumulated “hot waste” with a half life of thousands of years, but without secure burial places. Nevadans don’t want it in their backyard (Yucca Mountain). Nor do Indians or poor African nations. In 1995, Russian sailors poured a thousand tons of radioactive liquid into the Sea of Japan.</p>
<p>The current energy crisis atmosphere seems to have induced amnesia about past nuclear “mishaps.” Nuclear lobbyists have even induced some Greens to convince Obama officials to subsidize its energy plans. But, reported Jim Snyder in The Hill, even the $18.5 billion the nuclear industry will receive in government financing won’t suffice to cover unexpected costs of “the next generation of plants.” The Nuclear Energy Institute — euphemism for industry trade group — demands $20 billion more in loan-guarantees “to kick-start the long-awaited industry revival.” (June 21, 2009)</p>
<p>Before funding the nuclear gang, Members of Congress should read from the long list of accident reports. Here are two of many:</p>
<p>1. For two decades, from the 1950s on, “thousands of workers were unwittingly exposed to plutonium and other highly radioactive metals at the Department of Energy’s Paducah Kentucky Gaseous Diffusion Plant. Workers …inhaled radioactive dust while processing the materials as part of a government experiment to recycle used nuclear reactor fuel.” (Washington Post, August 22, 1999)</p>
<p>2. In July 2000, wildfires near the Hanford facility hit highly radioactive waste disposal trenches, raising airborne plutonium radiation levels in nearby cities to 1,000 times above normal. ( <a href="http://www.lutins.org/nukes.html" type="external">http://www.lutins.org/nukes.html</a>)</p>
<p>In 64 years, those who promised to perfect nuclear power still plead (over many dead bodies): “Give us time!”</p>
<p>SAUL LANDAU’s <a href="http://www.easycartsecure.com/CounterPunch/CounterPunch_Books.html" type="external">A BUSH AND BOTOX WORLD</a> was published by CounterPunch / AK Press.</p>
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<p>&#160;</p> | The Nuclear Gang Rides Again | true | https://counterpunch.org/2009/08/28/the-nuclear-gang-rides-again/ | 2009-08-28 | 4 |
<p>Raytheon Co. reported second quarter net income of $553 million, or $1.89 per share, down from $717 million, or $2.41 per share, for the same period last year. The FactSet consensus was $1.76. Revenue for the quarter totaled $6.28 billion, up from $6.03 billion last year and ahead of the $6.23 billion FactSet consensus. Bookings in the second quarter were $6.5 billion versus $7.1 billion the prior year and backlog was $36.2 billion, up about $1.1 billion from the previous year. Raytheon sees 2017 sales of $25.1 billion to $25.6 billion versus previous guidance of $24.9 billion to $25.4 billion. EPS is expected to be $7.35 to $7.50 compared with previous guidance of $7.25 to $7.40. The FactSet consensus is for full-year revenue of $25.2 billion and EPS of $7.48. Raytheon shares are unchanged in Thursday premarket trading and up 19% for the year so far.</p>
<p>Copyright © 2017 MarketWatch, Inc.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p> | Raytheon Earnings And Revenue Beat Estimates, Outlook Updated | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2017/07/27/raytheon-earnings-and-revenue-beat-estimates-outlook-updated.html | 2017-07-27 | 0 |
<p>High-profile acts of terrorism similar to the those in Spain on Thursday night is effectively a new reality in the modern world, and no country can ensure enough protection against it, security experts told RT in the aftermath of the Barcelona attacks.</p>
<p>Read more</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/news/400006-barcelona-terrorist-attack-details/" type="external" /></p>
<p>The terrorist attack left 13 people dead and 100 injured when a van was deliberately driven into pedestrians on La Rambla, one of Barcelona’s most popular and overcrowded boulevards. Seven people were injured in a separate attack in a town of Cambrils, 120km away.</p>
<p>The Barcelona carnage is yet another incident in a growing string of lone-wolf attacks that have ripped through major European cities over the past two years. Nice, Berlin, London and Stockholm have all suffered attacks of this kind, indicating that all-round security may have become a luxury in today’s world.</p>
<p>“People have to open their eyes – two weeks ago it was Germany, last week it was France, this week Spain. No country – we’re talking Europe but there were similar attacks elsewhere, in Maghreb, in the Middle East – can say it’s safe from such an attack today,” political analyst Nikola Mirkovic told RT.</p>
<p>The phenomenon is so widespread that “each month we’re discovering that this could happen in a new country, in a new place, in a new town,” Mirkovic added.</p>
<p>“The London Mayor Sadiq Khan said we have to get used to this, the French President Emmanuel Macron said the same thing – and unfortunately they seem to be right.</p>
<p>“How do you fight, how do you stop someone ramming a van or a truck into a crowd?” Mirkovic asked. “This is extremely difficult, but they do have to be prepared.”</p>
<p>Dan Glazebrook, a British political writer, noted the new reality is very much the product of the wars the West had been waging in the Middle East.</p>
<p>“The UK has issued a statement they stand side by side with Spain against terror. This is not the first time the UK and Spain have stood side by side,” Glazebrook remarked.</p>
<p>“They stood side by side in 2003 alongside the US invasion of Iraq, and it was that invasion that unleashed this process of handing over ever largest swaths of territory to Al-Qaeda and ISIS [Islamic State or IS]… This process has continued right up to date in Libya, Syria and now, Yemen,” he added.</p>
<p>Former MI5 intelligence officer Annie Machon said the very fact that IS has claimed responsibility for the Barcelona attack “raises the idea that Spain is also one of the key points of access to Europe now for migrants and refugees coming from the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa.”</p>
<p>Read more</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/news/399969-europe-ramming-vehicle-attack-barcelona/" type="external" /></p>
<p>Geographic proximity to major migration lanes “seems to have turned into a weak spot of the EU,” Machon said.</p>
<p>She added that terrorism could possibly become commonplace given the latest developments.</p>
<p>“I think this is a new reality, yes, there’s no getting away from it across Europe – this could happen anywhere.”</p>
<p>In addition, she said, Barcelona, which is “a boiling kettle of Catalonia,” is on its way to the landmark vote on secession from Spain. “So there are a number of political and economic issues at play here in Spain and the rest of the EU.”</p>
<p>Commenting on emerging reports that the suspect had already been on police’s radar, Machon said “it represents one of the general security issues at the moment in the Western world.” She added that security agencies across the world are capable of collecting intelligence on high-profile lone-wolf terrorists, but they often fail to carry out pre-emptive action.</p>
<p>“What they have is just big database stuff,” she said, adding the problem is rooting in the bulk of information intelligence agencies cannot process alone.</p>
<p>“It is no the intelligence work, but the police work.”</p> | ‘People must open eyes to new reality’: Experts to RT in wake of Barcelona carnage | false | https://newsline.com/people-must-open-eyes-to-new-reality-experts-to-rt-in-wake-of-barcelona-carnage/ | 2017-08-18 | 1 |
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<p>Here’s a playlist of 25 of my favorite songs and notes on why they reminded me of this particular presidential contest. No “Fight Song.” I promise.</p>
<p>1. “I Need You To Survive,” Hezekiah Walker and the Love Fellowship Choir: When I was in college, I occasionally went to services at a church where the choir sang this song on loop until everyone had greeted not just their neighbors, but every single other worshiper in attendance. At a moment when the election offers a choice between division and unity, this is about as beautiful expression of the latter idea as I can imagine.</p>
<p>2. “American Land,” Bruce Springsteen: In the midst of an election that turns on the question of what American greatness consists of, it’s worth revisiting this optimistic immigrant narrative, inspired by Pete Seeger’s “He Lies in the American Land,” an adaptation of steelworker Andrew Kovaly’s poem of the same name. It’s got a warning, too: “They died building the railroads, they worked to bones and skin / They died in the fields and factories, names scattered in the wind / They died to get here a hundred years ago, they’re still dying now / Their hands that built the country we’re always trying to keep out.”</p>
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<p>3. “Bread and Roses,” Judy Collins: Yeah, yeah, I know all the objections against the arguments against the idea that women will provide a civilizing influence in politics simply because we don’t have a hand in the atrocities of governments past. Suspend that critique for the three minutes and five seconds it takes to listen to this song, an unbearably beautiful invocation of women’s political power.</p>
<p>4. “A Change Is Gonna Come,” Sam Cooke: Even more so than most presidential election, 2016 feels like a year in which the work that lies beyond Election Day is highly daunting. But if you’ve ever needed an exhortation to keep doing something difficult, Sam Cooke’s got you covered.</p>
<p>5. “Bridge Over Troubled Water / We’ve Only Just Begun,” Aretha Franklin: One of those combinations that is just otherworldly.</p>
<p>6. “If I Were a Boy,” Beyoncé: There are any number of tracks by the magnificent Ms. Knowles-Carter I might have included here, but in a year when the very different playing fields for men and women were on full display, this one just feels too right.</p>
<p>7. “Down To The River To Pray,” Alison Krauss: I feel about the best Christian music the way Ron Swanson feels about churches: The theology’s not for me, but I love the creative efforts in support of it. If you need a song that will elevate the feeling of standing in line to vote, or really, standing in line to do anything, this is a good choice.</p>
<p>8. “This Land Is Your Land,” Pete Seeger: In an election that’s suggested in stark, and often ugly terms, that we have to choose between different versions of America, or that there’s not enough of America to go around, Seeger’s joy in the scale and beauty of the country is a tonic.</p>
<p>9. “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” Bob Dylan: One of my favorite things about this song is how carefully it counts the cost of change, and how Dylan observes that sometimes, people only accept change when it’s right on top of them, and when the consequences of resisting or ignoring that change have already arrived. It’s an appropriate warning for the political moment.</p>
<p>10. “By Way of Sorrow,” Cry, Cry Cry: No matter what happens, this election will have cost us a great deal. This gorgeous song is all about acknowledging the loss that often accompanies great change, and setting a determined course for the future.</p>
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<p>11. “Sons and Daughters,” The Decemberists: This is as good a modern anti-war anthem as exists.</p>
<p>12. “Easy Silence,” Dixie Chicks: “Not Ready To Make Nice” is the most obvious Dixie Chicks choice here, but “Easy Silence,” which is about trying to balance engagement with a world that feels frightening with taking care of yourself, or another person, is a better choice for today.</p>
<p>13. “Become You,” Indigo Girls: Another great song about the hard work involved in any sort of transformation. Plus “The landed aristocracy / Exploiting all your enmity / All your daddies fought in vain / Leave you with the mark of Cain” feels pretty apropos for this political moment.</p>
<p>14. “Mama’s Eyes,” Justin Townes Earle: Am I a bad person if I admit that this utterly brutal kiss-off to Earle’s father, the country singer-songwriter Steve Earle, which ends in praise for Justin Townes Earle’s mother, is really just in here as a coded message to Tiffany Trump? Be free, Tiffany!</p>
<p>15. “Democracy,” Leonard Cohen: In college, a dear friend liked to quote one of the last lines in this song, Cohen’s declaration that “I’m junk but I’m still holding up this little wild bouquet.” This election has been draining and faith-destroying. But I’m holding onto the idea of that little wild bouquet as best I can.</p>
<p>16. “The Pill,” Loretta Lynn: To be played as loudly as possible in the direction of anyone who starts talking about Making American Great Again.</p>
<p>17. “I Will Move On Up A Little Higher,” Mahalia Jackson: When they go low, we — well, you know the drill.</p>
<p>18. “I Shall Be Released,” Nina Simone: There have been a lot of sad and frightening things about this election, and I hope that anyone who’s felt less safe in this country and in their own community because of the rhetoric on display and the policies on offer feels a modicum of relief come Tuesday night. As I’ve said earlier, I think the work is just beginning. But any break in the sense of threat that so many Americans live under will be welcome.</p>
<p>19. “Home and Dry,” Pet Shop Boys: I know, I know. This is a playlist with entirely too many slightly sobering tracks. What can I say? I’m anxious. But this song certainly expresses how I’d like to feel about the end of this election.</p>
<p>20. “The Body of an American,” The Pogues: During an election where Donald Trump repeatedly suggested that the state of America was somehow shameful or depressing, I found myself repeatedly listening to this song, which is a loud, enthusiastic blast of pride in being an American.</p>
<p>21. “Ladies First,” Queen Latifah and Monie Love: To a certain extent, it’s depressing that we’re making the same arguments all these years later. But during an election cycle where women have stepped up, repurposing Trump’s insults and making plans to “grab back,” the blast of feminist energy in Monie Love’s declaration that “We are the ones that give birth / To the new generation of prophets because it’s Ladies First” is undeniably invigorating.</p>
<p>22. “Come So Far (Got So Far To Go),” the cast of “Hairspray”: Clinton has the “Hamilton” vote, while Trump favors Andrew Lloyd Weber. But this song from the 2007 musical version of “Hairspray” takes the “there’s so much more work to do” idea that’s at the heart of so many other songs on this list and makes it absolutely, irresistibly uplifting. Use it to get “Fight Song” out of your head.</p>
<p>23. “End of the Line,” Traveling Wilburys: Like I was really going to get through the end of this list without making at least one more “Parks and Recreation” reference.</p>
<p>24. “I Decided, Part 2,” Solange: Because no Election Day playlist would possibly be complete without a song you can use as a processional for that climactic march into the voting booth?</p>
<p>25. “I Was A Teenage Anarchist,” Against Me!: For playing loudly in response to anyone who tries to talk you out of voting, or into voting, for Jill Stein.</p>
<p>election-playlist</p> | Need distraction? This playlist will carry you through Election Day | false | https://abqjournal.com/884433/need-distraction-this-playlist-will-carry-you-through-election-day.html | 2 |
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<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Gov. Susana Martinez will address the state’s business community Jan. 14 at noon at Embassy Suites in Albuquerque.</p>
<p>Tickets for the event, sponsored by the New Mexico Chamber Executives Association, are $40 for chamber members or $50 for nonmembers.</p>
<p>Business leaders from chambers throughout New Mexico will join with the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce to hear the governor’s legislative initiatives for the upcoming session, which starts Jan. 21.</p>
<p>For more information, contact Jessica Burnham or Deanda Abeyta or RSVP at <a href="mailto:[email protected]" type="external">[email protected]</a> or 505-764-3700.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | Martinez to unveil legislative agenda | false | https://abqjournal.com/330140/martinez-to-unveil-legislative-agenda.html | 2 |
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<p>Hanesbrands Inc. said Chief Executive Richard Noll will step down as CEO, effective Oct. 1, to focus on his role as chairman of the board. The apparel and underwear maker elected Chief Operating Officer Gerald Evans as its CEO. Separately, the company said it expanded the size of its board of directors to 11 members. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has lost 8.7% year to date, while the S&amp;P 500 has gained 2.6%.</p>
<p>Copyright © 2016 MarketWatch, Inc.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p> | Hanesbrands' CEO Steps Down To Focus On Role As Chairman | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/06/13/hanesbrands-ceo-steps-down-to-focus-on-role-as-chairman.html | 2016-06-13 | 0 |
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<p>Russ says, “I have personally witnessed three close calls, one of them being a motorcycle making the illegal turn and almost being taken out in the process. How can we alert APD to ask for some additional enforcement at this intersection before somebody gets hurt?”</p>
<p>Officer Tasia Martinez, public information officer for the Albuquerque Police Department, says “citizens with traffic concerns in an area can call 242-COPS for immediate assistance or file a periodic watch request at their local substation.”</p>
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<p>CROSSING GUARDS SHOULD KNOW HOW TO PARK: Jake Spidle emails that around Oñate Elementary, “the main entrance/drop off point is at a T-intersection. One street, Brentwood Hills, is maybe a three-total-lanes street and the other, Crestline, is a very tight two-laner. Congestion — and potential danger — is severe at morning and evening rush times, and the worrisome congestion is unnecessarily exacerbated by the crossing guards parking their personal cars as close to the jammed intersection as possible. Just saving some steps, I guess.</p>
<p>“C’mon, folks! How about a little common sense? Why must they make much worse an already dangerous situation?”</p>
<p>According to state law, if there’s a stop sign or signal at that intersection, they shouldn’t. And Google Maps shows a stop sign on Crestline.</p>
<p>Statute 12-6-6.1 STOPPING, STANDING OR PARKING PROHIBITED IN SPECIFIED PLACES says, in part, that drivers shouldn’t park “within 30 feet upon the approach to any flashing beacon, stop sign, or traffic-control signal located at the side of a street.”</p>
<p>GETTING TO MVD JUST ISN’T THAT HARD: Cate Dixon has a response to a recent reader concern that MVD contract offices charge drivers who are 75 and older for license renewals, though those are free at state-run offices.</p>
<p>“I don’t know how far (the original writer) lives from a state MVD office. I don’t know how far I live from one. I do know that it is easy to find, easy to park, and easy to have my license renewed. I don’t have to stand in a ‘long line every year.’ MVD has a take-a-number system. There is usually a wait, but since I have to wait so many places I go — doctors, dentists, etc. — I always take reading matter wherever I go. The process itself is very fast and easy: have my photo taken — a very unflattering photo, especially since New Mexico requires people to take off their glasses — then go immediately to the window where I have a vision test and am issued my temporary license.</p>
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<p>“These last few years I have noticed that older people (mostly women) complain about the cost of driving. They don’t, however, seem to complain about the cost of driving to visit friends, attend parties, take in cultural events and other entertainment, in fact, any of the places they want to go. Obviously, the increased cost of gasoline has affected all of us who are on fixed incomes, but it seems to be just one more thing to add to the list of complaints about anything they really prefer not to do.”</p>
<p>CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? And T.K. writes “my character/upbringing impelled me to be considerate of my truly delightful neighbors; thus I installed air horns on each of my motorcycles over many years. Instant control over if and when I choose to announce my presence on the roads at the touch of a button! Cost? About $30 to $40 per bike as opposed to hundreds for after-market mufflers, whether mellow or obnoxiously loud.”</p>
<p>KNOW SOMEONE TO PAINT ADDRESSES ON THE CURB? Angelica asks via email “about house numbers being painted on the curb. I need to get mine re-painted but am looking for a reputable/licensed business or person who paints curb numbers.</p>
<p>“If you know of such business or person, please let me know. It is hit or miss if/when someone comes door to door and IF they are reputable and/or licensed.”</p>
<p>Readers?</p>
<p>Assistant editorial page editor D’Val Westphal tackles commuter issues for the Metro area on Mondays and West Siders and Rio Ranchoans on Thursdays. Reach her at 823-3858; <a href="" type="internal">[email protected]</a>; P.O. Drawer J, Albuquerque, NM 87103; or go to ABQjournal.com/traffic to read previous columns and join in the conversation. — This article appeared on page A6 of the Albuquerque Journal</p> | Driver Seeks Police Eyes On Southern | false | https://abqjournal.com/150698/driver-seeks-police-eyes-on-southern.html | 2012-12-03 | 2 |
<p>* Investors appear unruffled by U.S. government shutdown</p>
<p>* World shares up slightly</p>
<p>* U.S. Treasury yields near 3-1/2-year high</p>
<p>* Dollar slips vs euro; oil rises</p>
<p>* Graphic: World FX rates in 2018 <a href="http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh" type="external">tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh</a></p>
<p>By Tommy Wilkes</p>
<p>LONDON, Jan 22 (Reuters) - World stocks and U.S. bond markets on Monday shrugged off a government shutdown in Washington, although the dollar pulled back and wallowed near three-year lows as the euro resumed its strong start to the year.</p>
<p>U.S. Treasury yields, which have tended to fall during previous government shutdowns, rose as investors saw limited economic fallout from the political standoff and focused instead on a global economy motoring ahead and U.S. inflation pressures.</p>
<p>After a mixed start, European shares turned positive in mid-morning trade as markets focused on a flurry of mergers and acquisitions and upcoming corporate earnings reports. Progress towards an end to political deadlock in Germany helped the mood.</p>
<p>The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.1 percent. Germany’s DAX was flat, France’s CAC-40 up 0.1 percent and the UK’s FTSE was unchanged.</p>
<p>The MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 47 countries, rose slightly.</p>
<p>U.S. stock futures were down marginally after Wall Street set record highs on Friday, but investors were taking the view that the dispute between President Donald Trump and Democrats could be resolved without a prolonged shutdown.</p>
<p>“We’re not worried as we have been here before. Perhaps this is more fractious and may take longer to resolve, but it shouldn’t have a massive economic impact,” said Patrick O’Donnell, investment manager at Aberdeen Asset Management.</p>
<p>A plan put forward by a group of senators to extend government funding to Feb. 8 and work on resolving an immigration dispute has also helped ease concerns about a more serious deadlock.</p>
<p>A vote in the Senate will be held at 12 p.m. (1700 GMT) on Monday.</p>
<p>In a sign that the market was undeterred by the dispute in Washington, the benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury yield on Monday reached close to its highest level in more than three years, an extension of the sell-off in U.S. bonds since September.</p>
<p>DOLLAR NEAR THREE-YEAR LOW</p>
<p>The dollar remained stuck near three-year lows, continuing its weak start to the year.</p>
<p>The single currency gained 0.2 percent and was trading at $1.22435, although volatility in the euro-dollar exchange rate was more muted than would have been expected, given flare-ups during previous U.S. government shutdowns.</p>
<p>“Unless the U.S. government shutdown ends very quickly, which may boost the dollar, markets are focusing on the two other cross-currents this week, namely the BOJ and the ECB, with the latter likely to surprise euro bulls,” said Alvin Tan, a currency strategist at Societe Generale in London.</p>
<p>In European bond markets, Spain’s borrowing costs dropped to a six-week low and the gap over its German peers fell to its tightest in almost three years after Fitch Ratings gave Spain its first “A” rating since the euro zone debt crisis.</p>
<p>Greece’s short-dated yields also fell after S&amp;P Global Ratings upgraded the country’s credit ratings for the first time in two years.</p>
<p>Most other euro zone bond yields were little changed. Analysts said investors were probably moving to the sidelines before the European Central Bank’s first meeting of 2018 this Thursday.</p>
<p>Oil prices climbed higher after comments from Saudi Arabia that cooperation between oil producers who have cut production to boost prices would continue beyond 2018.</p>
<p>After rising earlier, oil futures were flat. Brent crude futures stood at $68.58 a barrel by 1230 GMT, not far from the $70.37 level hit on Jan. 15. That was oil’s highest level since December 2014.</p>
<p>For Reuters Live Markets blog on European and UK stock markets, open a news window on Reuters Eikon by pressing F9 and typing “Live Markets” in the search bar.</p>
<p>Additional reporting by Dhara Ranasinghe and Saikat Chatterjee, editing by Larry King</p> Our Standards:
<a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> | GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks shrug off U.S. government shutdown, dollar dips | false | https://reuters.com/article/global-markets/global-markets-stocks-shrug-off-us-government-shutdown-dollar-dips-idUSL8N1PH2O8 | 2018-01-22 | 2 |
<p>Dec. 5 (UPI) — The <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/supreme-court/" type="external">Supreme Court</a> hears a contentious case Tuesday of a Colorado baker who refused to bake a wedding cake for a same-sex couple.</p>
<p>The issue is whether Jack Phillips, the owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop, has a <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/12/05/speech-religion-lgbt-rights-collide-supreme-court/921458001/" type="external">constitutional right to deny baking a cake</a> for the couple.</p>
<p>Phillips, 61, has argued that his First Amendment right and artistic expression would be compromised if he made the wedding cake — which he said conflicts with his religious views.</p>
<p>The five-year cake battle will ultimately test constitutional guarantees of free speech and religion against state laws that prohibit discrimination.</p>
<p>Charlie Craig, 37, and David Mullins, 33, the couple who were refused the cake by Phillips, already won at the Colorado Civil Rights Commission and the state Court of Appeals. However, the Supreme Court could result in a different outcome after the addition of conservative <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Neil-Gorsuch/" type="external">Neil Gorsuch</a> in April.</p>
<p>On Tuesday, Justice <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Elena_Kagan/" type="external">Elena Kagan</a> asked if the right to free-speech would extend to other businesses or artists including jewelers or hair stylists.</p>
<p>“How do you the draw the line?” <a href="http://beta.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-court-wedding-cake-20171205-story.html" type="external">Kagan asked</a>.</p>
<p>Justice <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Anthony_M._Kennedy/" type="external">Anthony M. Kennedy</a> said it would be an “affront to the gay community” if a baker or any business could advertise they refuse to serve LGBT persons.</p>
<p>ACLU attorney <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/David_Cole/" type="external">David Cole</a> said “the only thing the baker knew was the identity of the customer” and they refused to make the cake not because of the message on it but because of their sexual identity.</p>
<p>Chief Justice <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/John_Roberts/" type="external">John Roberts</a> and Justice <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/Samuel_Alito/" type="external">Samuel Alito</a>, however, said they were troubled by the intolerance and religious discrimination against Phillips.</p>
<p>At one point, Kennedy agreed with Roberts and Alito, saying, “Tolerance is essential in a free society” yet the state civil rights commission “has not been tolerant and respectful of Mr. Phillips.”</p>
<p>The high court agreed to <a href="https://www.upi.com/Supreme-Court-to-take-up-gay-wedding-cake-case/1191498486588/" type="external">hear the cake case in June</a> after Phillips lost a discrimination case against the couple.</p> | Supreme Court weighs case of same-sex marriage wedding cake | false | https://newsline.com/supreme-court-weighs-case-of-same-sex-marriage-wedding-cake/ | 2017-12-05 | 1 |
<p>For some years I worked in a BBC newsroom, where each morning on the way in I’d pass a friend sitting at his desk. He’d often greet me this way: “Hello, Alex. It’s a very quiet news day today. We might even have room for some of your environment rubbish.” Only he didn’t call it rubbish, using instead a cruder Anglo-Saxon term.</p>
<p>A senior editor posed a more serious problem. Quite often I’d have a decent piece of new science to report (this was in the late 1980s), and I’d mention stories for possible use in the main bulletin. Usually, this editor welcomed my pitches, but he always responded in the same way: “That’s really interesting—we’ll run that. Now go and find me an environment skeptic you can quote, so we can provide some balance.”</p>
<p>Thirty years on, my BBC moles tell me news managers are still obsessed, still insistent that their staff members inject a spurious “balance” into coverage of the environmental havoc afflicting our world. This is not journalism; articles like these simply serve as a useful megaphone for climate change skeptics. A British friend wrote to me a week ago, referring to climate change:</p>
<p>It has become personal…the thought of all those creepy Tories and the entire Republican [S]enate and [C]ongress deciding for themselves that they know better than the Met Office, the Royal Society and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, not to mention [NASA], the entire faculties of Princeton, Stanford, Columbia and Berkeley, all the great defense department laboratories in the US, the Max Planck Institutes, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and ETH Zurich. It’s their complacent self-regard and their airy dismissal of actual evidence that I can’t bear.</p>
<p />
<p>Four of us, all former mainstream media science and environment journalists, set up the <a href="http://climatenewsnetwork.net/" type="external">Climate News Network</a> in 2013 with one aim: to provide a daily news story, objectively written, on some aspect of energy or climate change. It’s free to anyone who wants it, and it’s aimed especially at providing a source to developing-world journalists who, as we know from experience working with them, often don’t have easy access to intelligible and reliable information that most of us in the global north take for granted.</p>
<p>My colleagues and I don’t have to bother anymore about cockeyed managerial notions of misconceived “balance.” We tell the story, as far as we can, just as it is. There’s only one problem, and it’s a big one: It costs money to do this.</p>
<p>Sites like Truthdig, Climate News Network and many others provide the precise opposite of fake news, and the need for these sites has grown fast in the last six months alone. But good journalism, even produced as frugally as possible, still needs to be paid for. Otherwise, our freedom from mainstream media won’t get us very far.</p>
<p>Climate News Network has had generous support from foundations and from individuals, but at the end of May 2017 we had to let our freelance editors and writers go because we’d run out of money to pay them. Now the four of us, who average in age in the early 70s, are keeping the daily output going while we scratch our heads and wonder who else we can ask to support us.</p>
<p>One idea worth exploring is for independent media outlets to make alliances with like-minded journalists, both across the world and in their own backyards. There are viable and effective partnerships at many levels, and independent journalists should be building more.</p>
<p>This won’t be easy. Journalists are among the most opinionated and competitive people around, and the idea of trimming our take on events to accommodate other people’s views is enough to make many splutter. But that needn’t be a huge obstacle—after all, much of what independent journalists aim to do is report the facts as they are, not provide their own interpretation of the facts.</p>
<p>This may sound obvious, but in today’s atmosphere, it isn’t. “Alternative facts” and actual fake news are gaining a new and virulent currency in the U.S. and the U.K. They need to be nailed, fast. Yet a lie still travels halfway around the world while the truth is still getting its boots on.</p>
<p>Digital journalism can bring the lies down far more quickly, especially if journalists agree on shared priorities. Independent outlets can concentrate their efforts and multiply their impact if they are prepared to share more with their peers.</p>
<p>There would be limits, obviously. We all know more about our own societies than people from across the world do, and we’d all need to specialize in shining a penetrating light on our own communities. But a lot of what’s needed to redress the misreporting of the environment and climate change isn’t nationally or even regionally based: It’s global. So, for example, when <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2017/07/09/delingpole-nearly-all-recent-global-warming-is-fabricated-study-finds/" type="external">Breitbart News</a> reported on July 9 that “&#160;‘Nearly All’ Recent Global Warming Is Fabricated, Study Finds,” showing the falsity of the claim would have been valuable to true media everywhere.</p>
<p>I don’t like arguing for this sort of pooled approach, because, like most of my peers, I still insist on thinking that my version of a rebuttal is bound to be superior to everyone else’s. But in a world that’s increasingly credulous and filled with readers who are increasingly presented with lies, and with money increasingly hard to find, I think the present model of journalism is going to come under growing (perhaps even terminal) strain.</p>
<p>Forging these alliances is one way to ensure that honest environmental journalism will thrive. Environmental and science journalists should also be covering adaptation to climate change. How many methods of preparing for a warmer world are being tried? How many of these methods are succeeding against the odds? How many could be replicated more widely?</p>
<p>A final suggestion for improving environmental journalism includes reporting the voices of those who are living the reality of climate change today—climate refugees, as well as those who risk and lose their lives to defend the global commons.</p>
<p>To implement these changes, far-sighted editors and committed reporters need to think like techies and system designers who can make a small amount of money go a long way in digital journalism. Nothing is certain; everything is possible.</p>
<p>A BBC colleague of mine was once asked how he would define journalism. He replied: “To analyze, and to bear witness.” That seems a good summary of what Truthdig does and of what we at Climate News Network try to do. It also describes what distinguishes us from the establishment media. Many millions of people around the world rely on us to go on doing it.</p>
<p>As Truthdig 3.0 sets sail, I wish it the best possible future. I hope those who steer it will find a way to make the lifeblood media it personifies so well something that can support itself sustainably—and then share the secret with the rest of us.</p> | Joining Forces for Honest Environmental Journalism | true | https://truthdig.com/articles/progressive-media-environmental-journalism/ | 2017-08-12 | 4 |
<p>Despite US media focus on Russia’s “troll army,” it’s clear that Western nations have a much bigger one. (cc photo: Ray)</p>
<p>Early this month, Pando Daily’s Mark Ames ( <a href="http://pando.com/2015/04/02/the-kremlins-social-media-trolls-are-real-as-is-the-medias-amnesia-about-them/" type="external">4/2/15</a>) noticed a curious trend: Western media, somewhat strangely, keep breaking the same story of Russia’s paid Internet trolls over and over again as if it’s something new:</p>
<p>The story of how Kremlin trolls are being weaponized to subvert our hallowed social media first broke into the English-language media in mid-March in an article headlined <a href="http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-trolls-headquarters-media-internet-insider-account/26904157.html" type="external">“The Trolls Who Came in From the Cold”</a> — published in, ahem . . . ‘scuse me, somethin’ caught in my throat here… published on the website of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.</p>
<p>Yes, that’s Radio Liberty, aka “Radio Liberation from Bolshevism” aka the US government’s psychological warfare media outfit set up by the CIA during the Cold War, and covered <a href="http://pando.com/2015/03/01/internet-privacy-funded-by-spooks-a-brief-history-of-the-bbg/" type="external">extensively</a> in Pando by Yasha Levine.</p>
<p>The two government outlets [RFE/RL and BBC] bounced the Kremlin Troll Army story back and forth enough times to create critical hack mass, leading to sensational followups everywhere from the <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/27/interview-russian-troll-factory-employee/" type="external">tech press</a> to <a href="http://motherboard.vice.com/read/how-professional-trolls-help-russia-with-online-propaganda" type="external">Vice</a>, the <a href="http://nypost.com/2015/03/29/putin-pays-army-of-internet-trolls-to-spread-fake-good-news-about-him/" type="external">New York Post</a>, the <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/revealed-putins-army-of-prokremlin-bloggers-10138893.html" type="external">Independent</a>, and, today, the <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/02/putin-kremlin-inside-russian-troll-house" type="external">Guardian</a>….</p>
<p>It’s the trolling story that keeps on giving, with all the regularity of a herpes outbreak, but with no memory to go with it, because each time this Internet Research Agency story is reported, it’s more shocking than the last time.</p>
<p>Both the original report and a <a href="http://www.rferl.org/content/how-to-guide-russian-trolling-trolls/26919999.html" type="external">follow-up interview</a> on Radio Free Europe that spurred this latest paranoia, it should be noted, came the exact same week NATO announced a new plan to counter the alleged Russian social media propaganda (AP, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2015/03/22/world/europe/ap-eu-nato-russia-information-war.html?_r=1" type="external">3/22/15</a>):</p>
<p>NATO’s supreme commander says the West must do more to counter Russia by employing a rapid-reaction approach to Internet communications that counteracts Russia’s “false narratives” spread on social media.</p>
<p>Gen. David Petraeus touted “Operation Earnest Voice,” the Pentagon’s program to manipulate social media, as an effort to be “first with the truth.” (photo: Cliff Owen/AP)</p>
<p>If this appears to be a coordinated messaging effort on behalf of a US military psychological operation, that’s because it almost certainly is. On cue, despite the anonymous sourcing, and the utter staleness of the “revelation” in question, the media uncritically ran with the US government-backed report. In all these stories, however, the rather glaring fact that the US has a long-documented history of manipulating social media is not mentioned once. In fact, the Pentagon’s efforts alone–to say nothing of other US intelligence agencies or other NATO nation states–spent at least 200 times more than Russia, according to the last available figures (Guardian, <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2011/mar/17/us-spy-operation-social-networks" type="external">3/17/11</a>):</p>
<p>The multiple persona contract is thought to have been awarded as part of a program called Operation Earnest Voice (OEV), which was first developed in Iraq as a psychological warfare weapon against the online presence of Al Qaeda supporters and others ranged against coalition forces. Since then, OEV is reported to have expanded into a $200m program.</p>
<p>As Buzzfeed’s Max Seddon ( <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/maxseddon/documents-show-how-russias-troll-army-hit-america#.hqAlk5dAP" type="external">6/2/14</a>) breathlessly <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/maxseddon/documents-show-how-russias-troll-army-hit-america#.fqQJa9Jwa" type="external">reported</a> the third or fourth time this story “broke” last summer:</p>
<p>The bizarre hive of social media activity appears to be part of a two-pronged Kremlin campaign to claim control over the Internet, launching a million-dollar army of trolls to mold American public opinion as it cracks down on internet freedom at home.</p>
<p>While it’s possible the Kremlin has other programs whose budget remains unknown, we can also assume the Guardian‘s 2011 report was not exhaustive of US efforts as well–to say nothing of staunch US allies UK and Israel,&#160; both of whom have <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/08/14/israel-pay-students-propaganda_n_3755782.html" type="external">well-documented programs</a> to <a href="http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2015/02/the-british-army-is-right-about-social-media-being-a-battlefield/" type="external">propagandize online</a>.</p>
<p>As power centers throughout the globe clamor to influence public opinion online, the pretext of the “other guy” doing it better and faster is essential to continuing the arms race and further handing over social media to cynical, militarized interests of all stripes. Indeed, as Pando‘s Ames <a href="https://twitter.com/MarkAmesExiled/status/587667772001406977" type="external">pointed out on Twitter</a>, the “Kremlin troll” narrative is new version of the “missile gap”–the wildly inflated assertion by US officials during the Cold War that the Soviet Union had radically more nuclear weapons than the US did.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/08/what-missile-gap/309484/" type="external">We now know that was false,</a> and that Soviet military capability was continually hyped up to justify more US military power. But, fed largely by US government sources, convenient leaks, and inevitable cultural myopia, the press routinely frames the manipulation of social media as a uniquely Russian enterprise. This is especially true in how the phenomenon is framed. Indeed, even when acknowledging Western powers manipulate social media, the way it’s presented is radically different:</p>
<p>—AP</p>
<p>—Guardian</p>
<p>But when it’s Russia:</p>
<p>—Atlantic</p>
<p>—Vice</p>
<p>Israel has students” “defending” it online. The UK has “warriors” countering “enemy propaganda.” The Kremlin has “trolls” spreading “propaganda.” The general public’s ignorance of how these complicated mechanisms of online infiltration work is heavily shaped by how they’re framed. Notice, for example, the images that go with these reports on Israel vs. Russia paying people en masse to spam comment sections and social media. On one side, you have a daytime shot of patriotic young people waving flags outside Auschwitz:</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" /> Above the Atlantic‘s piece, a beast-like Russian “troll” hides in an underground bunker:</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal" /></p>
<p>Both these countries are doing the exact same thing: paying people to promote their government’s message online. Yet by skimming the headline and graphics, one is given two radically different impressions of their intention and effect.</p>
<p>Another fact that’s left out of stories of Russia’s “Kremlin trolls” is how truly amateur they appear to be. We know that even as far back as 2011, the Pentagon was building sockpuppeting software that would allow US military personnel to operate online personas with relatively greater sophistication, operating as many as <a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CBxC_KeUAAAe7rQ.png" type="external">ten online personas per person</a>. The Guardian would explain:</p>
<p>The Centcom contract stipulates that each fake online persona must have a convincing background, history and supporting details, and that up to 50 US-based controllers should be able to operate false identities from their workstations “without fear of being discovered by sophisticated adversaries.”</p>
<p>Once developed, the software could allow US service personnel, working around the clock in one location, to respond to emerging online conversations with any number of co-ordinated messages, blog posts, chatroom posts and other interventions.</p>
<p>The Air Force’s <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/personamanagementcontract.pdf" type="external">own RFP</a> makes a lack of discovery by “sophisticated adversaries” essential to awarding the contract; most Russian “trolls” can be spotted by any passing observer. And, it should be noted, what we know about the US’s sockpuppeting capacity is almost four years old (possibly because the most tenacious journalist <a href="http://wiki.echelon2.org/wiki/Persona_Management" type="external">working to uncover it</a>, Barrett Brown, is <a href="https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2015/01/22/barrett-brown-sentenced-five-years-vows-keep-investigating-government-wrongdoing/" type="external">currently serving five years in federal prison),</a> so it’s likely far greater now.</p>
<p>Yet here we are, hand-wringing over “revelations” the Kremlin pays some partisans $700 a month to sit in a room to engage in what is a rather routine and common propaganda initiative. Indeed, given the size and scope of what we know about US sockpuppeting efforts and an overall military budget <a href="https://d28wbuch0jlv7v.cloudfront.net/images/infografik/normal/chartoftheday_2162_Military_expenditure_in_2013_n.jpg" type="external">735 percent greater</a> than Russia’s, one can logically infer that the primary reason US-paid online personas aren’t as well-documented is because US trolls are simply much better at what they do.</p>
<p>Reading Western press, however, one would get the distinct impression the US–with a military budget greater than the <a href="http://www.janes.com/article/40083/analysis-us-no-longer-spends-more-on-defense-than-next-10-biggest-countries-combined" type="external">next eight countries combined</a>–is really a scrappy underdog looking to catch up to the mass of Kremlin troll hordes. This impression, while making for a neat story, does little to provide proper context or truly explain the informational challenge posed by social media manipulation.</p>
<p>Adam Johnson is a freelance journalist; formerly he was a founder of the hardware startup Brightbox. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="https://twitter.com/adamjohnsonnyc" type="external">@adamjohnsonnyc</a> or on his blog <a href="http://citationsneeded.com/" type="external">Citations Needed</a>.</p>
<p>Subscribe: <a href="" type="internal">Android</a> | <a href="" type="internal">RSS</a></p> | Reporting on Russia’s Troll Army, Western Media Forget West’s Much Bigger, Sophisticated Troll Army | true | http://fair.org/home/reporting-on-russias-troll-army-western-media-forget-wests-much-bigger-sophisticated-troll-army/ | 2015-04-14 | 4 |
<p>IERAPETRA, Greece (AP) — Hour after hour, the coast guard boats shuttled from the crippled freighter to a concrete pier, discharging a steady flow of humanity: Families with small children, black-clad elderly women, battered-looking youths with backpacks.</p>
<p>For nearly 600 migrants, most of them fleeing the conflict in Syria for Europe, the harrowing journey on a smuggling ship that broke down in gale-force winds ended Thursday in the southern town of Ierapetra on the Greek island of Crete.</p>
<p>The Baris cargo ship lost engine power Tuesday in international waters, and limped into Ierapetra at sunrise after being slowly towed for 40 hours by a Greek navy frigate.</p>
<p>In brief interviews while being shepherded away by police, many refugees said they had fled violence by militants from the Islamic State group in Syria or Iraq.</p>
<p>"They attacked us and killed our people, so we came here to save ourselves," said one man who said he was from Iraq. He only identified himself by his first name, Mohaned, to protect his kin, who stayed behind, from retribution.</p>
<p>Another who identified himself as Qassim, from the besieged northern Syrian town of Kobani, said he and his family had spent 11 days on the Baris.</p>
<p>"It was a very chllenging operation: A large number of people in a confined space ... after leaving stressful circumstances," Serafeim Tsokas, the head of Greece's Civil Protection Authority, said.</p>
<p>"After serious illnesses on the ship were ruled out ... everyone was brought ashore safely."</p>
<p>Authorities said its passengers were exhausted but overall in good health. The number of immigrants on board was revised down from an estimate of more than 700 to 585 after all were brought to shore. Nineteen of them were arrested on human smuggling charges.</p>
<p>As dozens of Ierapetra residents looked on from behind a police cordon, newly-disembarked passengers received preliminary care and food before being taken to temporary shelter at a basketball arena. One young woman knelt and kissed the rough harbor concrete, and a child held a piece of cardboard that read: "Thanks for Greece government saving children in the ship."</p>
<p>It was one of the largest single crossings of its kind in recent years. Tens of thousands of people fleeing war and poverty in African and the Middle East risk the journey to Europe every year, paying smuggling gangs to transport them in usually unseaworthy craft ranging from dinghies to aging rust-buckets. Most end up in Italy.</p>
<p>According to Greek security and health officials, about 500 of the migrants said they were Syrians. One official involved in the operation said the passengers had been charged $2,000 to $6,000 to be taken to Italy, and about 20 suspected smugglers were arrested on the ship. He asked not to be named as he was not authorized to brief the press.</p>
<p>According to the latest figures from the U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR, at least 3,000 people have drowned or disappeared trying to make the trip this year — almost 2 percent of the estimated total of 165,000 to attempt the journey.</p>
<p>The 77-meter (250-foot) cargo ship lost power the same day Pope Francis called on European governments to do a better job of welcoming migrants in speeches to the European Parliament and Council of Europe. Francis said "we cannot allow the Mediterranean to become a vast cemetery!"</p>
<p>The mayor of Ierapetra, a town of 16,000 people on a wide, open bay overlooked by jagged hills, said he sympathized with the migrants. But stretched local authorities couldn't offer them shelter indefinitely, Theodossis Kaladzakis said.</p>
<p>"Ierapetra can look after these people for a week, but afterward, unfortunately, we simply won't have that ability," he said. "It's not that we don't want to. We just can't."</p>
<p>Doctors conducted preliminary health checks and polio vaccinations for children from Syria, where the disease has made a comeback, senior Greek public health official Panayiotis Efstathiou said. Kurds, Afghans and Palestinians were also aboard the ship, which originated in Antalya, Turkey, Efstathiou told The Associated Press.</p>
<p>A pregnant woman, who was hemorrhaging, was airlifted to a hospital Wednesday, but there were otherwise no reports of serious health problems aboard the Baris. Rumors of armed men aboard the vessel proved unfounded, the coast guard said.</p>
<p>Efstathiou said the Syrians will receive refugee status and be released, while other passengers deemed to be in Greece illegally will be interned pending deportation.</p>
<p>A UNHCR spokeswoman in Athens said more than 99 percent of Syrians reaching Greece eventually gain refugee status in a lengthy and cumbersome process.</p>
<p>"There are people who have to visit application centers, which can handle very few people a day, 10-15 times," Ketty Kehagioglou said. "And there should be a mechanism for their integration, because now people complete the refugee process and then end up in the street."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Bishr El-Touni contributed to this story from Ierapetra.</p>
<p>IERAPETRA, Greece (AP) — Hour after hour, the coast guard boats shuttled from the crippled freighter to a concrete pier, discharging a steady flow of humanity: Families with small children, black-clad elderly women, battered-looking youths with backpacks.</p>
<p>For nearly 600 migrants, most of them fleeing the conflict in Syria for Europe, the harrowing journey on a smuggling ship that broke down in gale-force winds ended Thursday in the southern town of Ierapetra on the Greek island of Crete.</p>
<p>The Baris cargo ship lost engine power Tuesday in international waters, and limped into Ierapetra at sunrise after being slowly towed for 40 hours by a Greek navy frigate.</p>
<p>In brief interviews while being shepherded away by police, many refugees said they had fled violence by militants from the Islamic State group in Syria or Iraq.</p>
<p>"They attacked us and killed our people, so we came here to save ourselves," said one man who said he was from Iraq. He only identified himself by his first name, Mohaned, to protect his kin, who stayed behind, from retribution.</p>
<p>Another who identified himself as Qassim, from the besieged northern Syrian town of Kobani, said he and his family had spent 11 days on the Baris.</p>
<p>"It was a very chllenging operation: A large number of people in a confined space ... after leaving stressful circumstances," Serafeim Tsokas, the head of Greece's Civil Protection Authority, said.</p>
<p>"After serious illnesses on the ship were ruled out ... everyone was brought ashore safely."</p>
<p>Authorities said its passengers were exhausted but overall in good health. The number of immigrants on board was revised down from an estimate of more than 700 to 585 after all were brought to shore. Nineteen of them were arrested on human smuggling charges.</p>
<p>As dozens of Ierapetra residents looked on from behind a police cordon, newly-disembarked passengers received preliminary care and food before being taken to temporary shelter at a basketball arena. One young woman knelt and kissed the rough harbor concrete, and a child held a piece of cardboard that read: "Thanks for Greece government saving children in the ship."</p>
<p>It was one of the largest single crossings of its kind in recent years. Tens of thousands of people fleeing war and poverty in African and the Middle East risk the journey to Europe every year, paying smuggling gangs to transport them in usually unseaworthy craft ranging from dinghies to aging rust-buckets. Most end up in Italy.</p>
<p>According to Greek security and health officials, about 500 of the migrants said they were Syrians. One official involved in the operation said the passengers had been charged $2,000 to $6,000 to be taken to Italy, and about 20 suspected smugglers were arrested on the ship. He asked not to be named as he was not authorized to brief the press.</p>
<p>According to the latest figures from the U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR, at least 3,000 people have drowned or disappeared trying to make the trip this year — almost 2 percent of the estimated total of 165,000 to attempt the journey.</p>
<p>The 77-meter (250-foot) cargo ship lost power the same day Pope Francis called on European governments to do a better job of welcoming migrants in speeches to the European Parliament and Council of Europe. Francis said "we cannot allow the Mediterranean to become a vast cemetery!"</p>
<p>The mayor of Ierapetra, a town of 16,000 people on a wide, open bay overlooked by jagged hills, said he sympathized with the migrants. But stretched local authorities couldn't offer them shelter indefinitely, Theodossis Kaladzakis said.</p>
<p>"Ierapetra can look after these people for a week, but afterward, unfortunately, we simply won't have that ability," he said. "It's not that we don't want to. We just can't."</p>
<p>Doctors conducted preliminary health checks and polio vaccinations for children from Syria, where the disease has made a comeback, senior Greek public health official Panayiotis Efstathiou said. Kurds, Afghans and Palestinians were also aboard the ship, which originated in Antalya, Turkey, Efstathiou told The Associated Press.</p>
<p>A pregnant woman, who was hemorrhaging, was airlifted to a hospital Wednesday, but there were otherwise no reports of serious health problems aboard the Baris. Rumors of armed men aboard the vessel proved unfounded, the coast guard said.</p>
<p>Efstathiou said the Syrians will receive refugee status and be released, while other passengers deemed to be in Greece illegally will be interned pending deportation.</p>
<p>A UNHCR spokeswoman in Athens said more than 99 percent of Syrians reaching Greece eventually gain refugee status in a lengthy and cumbersome process.</p>
<p>"There are people who have to visit application centers, which can handle very few people a day, 10-15 times," Ketty Kehagioglou said. "And there should be a mechanism for their integration, because now people complete the refugee process and then end up in the street."</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>Bishr El-Touni contributed to this story from Ierapetra.</p> | For 600 migrants, harrowing sail ends in Greece | false | https://apnews.com/amp/8ac7aa6c3e4f4f909ac30af0ebe80b36 | 2014-11-27 | 2 |
<p>This week, thousands are descending on North Carolina for the Bank of America shareholders’ meeting. The protest comes on the heels of the successful Wells Fargo shareholder event in San Francisco, where thousands of protesters shut down the conference, and the U.S. Bank meeting in Minneapolis, where dozens of homeowners spoke out against foreclosures. A sequence of direct action trainings and spokescouncils will culminate in three marches at 8 a.m. on May 9, which will converge on the doors of the shareholders’ meeting. There, thousands will protest Bank of America’s laundry list of abuses: funding mountaintop coal removal, perpetuating student debt that has now surpassed $1 trillion nationally, laying off more than 100,000 workers in the last few years and, of course, foreclosing on millions of homeowners across the country. In anticipation, the Charlotte City Council has already passed laws criminalizing protest, as well as camping and carrying permanent markers.</p>
<p>Organizers are thinking about much more than just the shareholders’ meeting, however. Just as important as the mass action are the homeowners across North Carolina who are building a grassroots resistance network that will keep the pressure on the banks long after the May 9 action.</p>
<p>A month before the shareholders’ meeting, North Carolinian homeowner Nikki Shelton went face-to-face with an armed, 20-person SWAT team during the first home reoccupation in the state’s recent history. The action, organized by Mortgage Fraud North Carolina and bolstered by Occupy activists, is part of a growing wave of home takeovers occurring across the country, one that has spread from major urban centers all the way to enemy territory: the suburbs of North Carolina, mere hours from the international headquarters of Bank of America.</p>
<p>The foreclosure battle is both physical and psychological in North Carolina. People won’t talk about foreclosures outright; they tend to mention it evasively, as if in code. In the conservative suburban and rural regions of the South, housing developments exploded after World War II and homeownership is a way of life, both economically and culturally. For African Americans, homeownership is a particularly powerful symbol of freedom and upward mobility, and many tell stories of grandparents who grew up as slaves and, after emancipation, saved money to purchase a home for their family.</p>
<p>One fall afternoon in 2010, Nikki Shelton’s 17-year-old son broke the cultural gag order on the foreclosure crisis in a moment of unintentional organizing. Their neighbor, Marcella Robinson, was visibly pregnant and gardening in her front lawn, and Shelton’s son stopped to express his surprise at a pregnant woman doing manual labor. Robinson explained that it was soothing and that she was feeling pressure from being under constant threat from Bank of America and its subsidiary, Countrywide Financial. Shelton’s son told her that his mother, who lived only a few doors down, was going through the same thing. After making that connection, Robinson and Shelton started knocking on doors and learned that many of their neighbors were struggling not only with Countrywide’s adjustable-rate mortgages — a loan so dangerous that Countrywide executives revealed it to their staff only in a meeting in an underground bunker — but also outright fraud.</p>
<p>By the following May, Shelton and Robinson had assembled a group of more than 50 homeowners, Mortgage Fraud North Carolina, and held their first meeting in Shelton’s backyard. They had to meet outside because she and her family had been evicted from the home that Easter Sunday. A year later, the group would break the locks and reoccupy the house.</p>
<p>Shelton believes that the fight over foreclosures will require radical reeducation to completely transform how people think about the mortgage crisis. She’s tired, for instance, of reporters asking her how many mortgage payments she missed. (The answer is only one, in April of 2008.) Reporters never ask questions, meanwhile, like whether the bank illegally foreclosed on her through robosigning (it did) or whether crooked local lawyers and court clerks are aiding and abetting its fraud (they are).</p>
<p>Shelton sees all foreclosures as “fictional orchestrations,” a performance of greed and illegality that requires what she calls collective “conservative ignorance” in order to continue. The banks, lawmakers and the media reinforce the shame and silence that perpetuates this ignorance through intimidation (like the bank contractors sneaking around Robinson’s home taking pictures), violence (like the SWAT team that removed Shelton from her house) and the blaming of victims (like debates about whether principal reduction is a “moral hazard” for homeowners when the $7.7 trillion federal bailout doesn’t appear to pose such problems for banks).</p>
<p>As the efforts of Shelton and Robinson demonstrate, community building and education can spark direct action even in corners of the United States without long histories of housing organizing and where home ownership is deeply entrenched. The combination of large-scale protests, such as what is taking place at the Bank of America shareholders’ meeting, and on-the-ground homeowner organizing can turn symbolic actions into meaningful victories. In Minneapolis, for example, Occupy Our Homes combined a six-month grassroots campaign&#160; <a href="" type="internal">for the house of a woman named Monique White</a>&#160;with a highly successful protest and speak-out at the U.S. Bank shareholders’ meeting. The result: Monique White won her home last Thursday — offering hope of similar victories for Shelton and other homeowners in North Carolina.</p>
<p>“Wall Street was not banking on the American citizens getting educated,” Shelton says. “They were not counting on us saying, ‘I know what’s going on.’ And now that they are starting to realize that we’re getting educated, that’s when the chaos starts.”</p>
<p>Laura Gottesdeiner&#160;is author of&#160;A Dream Foreclosed: The Great Eviction and the Fight to Live in America&#160;forthcoming from&#160; <a href="http://www.zuccottiparkpress.com/" type="external">Zuccotti Park Press</a>.&#160;She has organized with Occupy Wall Street and other anti-foreclosure organizations, and has lived in homes, apartments, tents and in Zuccotti Park. Laura is currently a precarious renter and has no aspirations to own a home.</p> | Organizing Against Bank of America | true | https://counterpunch.org/2012/05/10/organizing-against-bank-of-america/ | 2012-05-10 | 4 |
<p>A bomb exploded Tuesday on a busy street in Mogadishu, Somalia killing 70 people and injuring many more.</p>
<p>Many of the victims were students who had gathered near a government building to register for scholarships to study in Turkey.</p>
<p>The al-Qaeda affiliated group al-Shabab claimed responsibility.</p>
<p>It is always difficult to imagine what could motivate an individual, whether in Somalia or Afghanistan or anywhere to carry out such a horrific attack.</p>
<p>Author Ken Ballen has tried to grapple with the logic.</p>
<p>He interviewed more than a hundred extremists for his new book "Terrorists in Love: The Real Lives of Islamic Radicals."</p>
<p>Among those he profiles is a star-crossed couple.</p> | An Author's Quest to Understand the Mind of Terrorists | false | https://pri.org/stories/2011-10-04/authors-quest-understand-mind-terrorists | 2011-10-04 | 3 |
<p>Quick quiz: What's the legal standard for defamation?</p>
<p>Not sure.&#160; Well, don't post on Facebook.&#160; At least that's what the Indian government seems to be saying.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-16044554" type="external">According to the BBC</a>, India has asked social networking sites and internet companies to police the web, removing content that defames religious or political leaders.</p>
<p>But how is the site to know?&#160; Last I checked, defamation was grounds for a lawsuit, in which the injured party has to prove that the statements made about him aren't true.</p>
<p>In that sense, many Indian politicians and more than a few religious leaders wouldn't have a leg to stand on.</p>
<p>Telecom minister Kapil Sibal reportedly gave some educational examples, showing the web execs doctored pictures of Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi, the BBC said.&#160;</p>
<p>So, one wonders: Do only Congress Party politicians get hammered on the web?</p>
<p>Here's the Atlantic Wire's Adam Clark Estes on the parallels with China's crackdown on web speech:</p>
<p>India's proposed site-screening sounds rather unworkable. Apparently, it all started six months ago, when India's acting telecommunications minister Kapil Sibal told government officials that disparaging comments on the Congress Party president Sonia Gandhi's Facebook page were "unacceptable" and eventually asked executives from Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Yahoo "to set up a proactive prescreening system, with staffers looking for objectionable content and deleting it before it is posted." India Ink's Heather Timmons explains that the companies' representatives "will tell Mr. Sibal at the meeting on Monday that his demand is impossible, given the volume of user-generated content coming from India, and that they cannot be responsible for determining what is and isn't defamatory or disparaging." And the volume must be huge; Facebook alone has 25 million users in India.</p>
<p>Sibal's request resembles the Great Firewall of China, but the execution is notably different. Internet companies' obeying the Indian government and removing "unacceptable" user generated content opens up the possibility of pretty broad-based censorship, but we don't yet know many details about what the Indian government's proposal would block. Do Indian officials want to block certain bad words or offensive images? That already happens all over the world, including the United States, and falls more in the more justified realm of keeping obscenity off of sites accessible to all ages. Do Indian officials want broader powers, like the ability to stifle any and all criticism? This is starting to sound Tiananmen-inspired. &#160;</p>
<p>&#160;</p> | India asks Facebook et al to censor content | false | https://pri.org/stories/2011-12-06/india-asks-facebook-et-al-censor-content-0 | 2011-12-06 | 3 |
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<p />
<p>Timberlake flew from California to Tennessee to vote early this week, but his posting of an image of himself at the voting booth on Instagram on Monday drew questions about whether he was breaking the law.</p>
<p>A Tennessee law that took effect earlier this year bars voters from taking photographs or video while they’re inside a polling location.</p>
<p>While secrecy in the voting booth has become a thing of the past for those ready to share their views and daily lives on social media, laws nationwide are mixed on whether voters are allowed to take pictures of themselves voting and their ballots.</p>
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<p>Federal courts have struck down bans in New Hampshire and Indiana, and on Monday, a judge in Michigan blocked enforcement of a ban on ballot selfies, saying it violates free speech.</p>
<p>Tennessee Secretary of State spokesman Adam Ghassemi said officials are “thrilled Justin can’t stop the feeling” but reminded voters to use their phones inside polling locations only to help them vote.</p>
<p>Timberlake lives in California, but grew up in the Memphis area and owns property near Nashville.</p>
<p>How states handle the question :</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>STATES WHERE BALLOT SELFIES ARE ALLOWED</p>
<p>CONNECTICUT: No law bans ballot selfies, according to Patrick Gallahue, a spokesman for Secretary of State Denise Merrill. But election moderators have discretion to prohibit activity “that threatens the orderly process of voting or the privacy of another voter’s ballot.”</p>
<p>DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: There’s no ban. Election officials discourage people from taking pictures but won’t do anything to stop them, said Tamara Robinson, a spokeswoman for the D.C. Board of Elections.</p>
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<p>HAWAII: A law passed this year allows voters to share a digital image of one’s own marked ballot.</p>
<p>IDAHO: There’s no law banning them, the secretary of state’s office said.</p>
<p>INDIANA: A federal judge last year barred the state from enforcing a new law prohibiting ballot selfies.</p>
<p>KENTUCKY: Secretary of State spokesman Bradford Queen says state law does not allow people to record the likeness of a voter, but the law does not say whether voters can record their own likeness. Therefore, the secretary of state’s office routinely tells county clerks the law does not prohibit ballot selfies.</p>
<p>LOUISIANA: Secretary of State Tom Schedler says ballot selfies are allowed in the state, though he’s not a fan of them.</p>
<p>MAINE: The secretary of state discourages ballot selfies because there’s a ban on making unauthorized ballot copies, but there’s no law against voters posting photos of their marked ballot.</p>
<p>MICHIGAN: A federal judge on Monday blocked enforcement of a ban on ballot selfies, saying it violates free speech. Lawyers for Secretary of State Ruth Johnson predicted “chaos” at polling places and asked the judge to consider freezing her order while they pursue an appeal in a higher court.</p>
<p>MINNESOTA: Allowed as long as they’re not shown to fellow voters at the polling place or capture another person in the photo.</p>
<p>MONTANA: Law does not specifically prohibit the use of cameras at polling places, but election administrators and judges have broad authority to limit disruptive activity, according to Emily Dean, spokeswoman for the secretary of state. Sharing photos of absentee ballots is also not banned.</p>
<p>NEBRASKA: Gov. Pete Ricketts signed a bill in April that allows someone to show their marked ballots to others without risking a $100 fine.</p>
<p>NEW HAMPSHIRE: The 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston last month upheld a decision that a ban was unconstitutional, saying it suppresses a large swath of political speech and there was no evidence to support the state’s concerns.</p>
<p>NORTH DAKOTA: Photos inside polling places are allowed.</p>
<p>OREGON: All voting is done through mail-in ballots, which voters are free to photograph. A state law prohibiting showing a marked ballot to another person was repealed in 2014, according to Molly Woon, a spokeswoman for Secretary of State Jeanne Atkins.</p>
<p>RHODE ISLAND: The Board of Elections adopted new rules in time for November’s election that allow for selfie-taking inside polling places. The updated regulations allow voters to take photos as long as they don’t show another person’s ballot.</p>
<p>UTAH: Gov. Gary Herbert signed a bill last year that makes it legal for people to snap pictures of themselves with their ballots. The law makes it a misdemeanor to photograph someone else’s ballot.</p>
<p>VERMONT: No rules regarding photos in polling places. Clerks are encouraged to adopt specific rules for their polling places to maintain order, according to Jim Condos, a spokesman for the secretary of state.</p>
<p>VIRGINIA: Attorney General Mark Herring issued a formal opinion last month that says ballot selfies are legal in Virginia. Nothing in Virginia law prohibits voters from taking pictures of themselves, fellow voters or their ballot within the polling place, he said.</p>
<p>WASHINGTON STATE: It’s not against the law in Washington, but a spokesman for Secretary of State Kim Wyman said the office doesn’t recommend it.</p>
<p>WYOMING: No laws against ballot selfies. Law does allow judges of elections to “preserve order at the polls by any necessary and suitable means.”</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>STATES WHERE BALLOT SELFIES ARE ILLEGAL</p>
<p>ALABAMA: Not allowed because voters have “a right to cast a ballot in secrecy and in private,” said a spokesman for Secretary of State John Merrill.</p>
<p>ALASKA: A state law bans voters from showing their marked ballots, but Division of Elections Director Josie Bahnke says there is no practical way to enforce it.</p>
<p>COLORADO: Ballot selfies or any public dissemination of a marked ballot are considered a misdemeanor. A 2016 bill to repeal the ban failed.</p>
<p>FLORIDA: Photographs are not allowed in polling places or of mailed ballots.</p>
<p>GEORGIA: Law prevents photos of ballots or the screens of electronic voting machines.</p>
<p>ILLINOIS: Banned by a law that considers “knowingly” marking your ballot so that another person can see it is a felony that carries a prison sentence of one to three years.</p>
<p>KANSAS: Secretary of state says a selfie showing a picture of the actual ballot violates state law.</p>
<p>MASSACHUSETTS: Taking a photo of a completed ballot in a polling location is banned in Massachusetts. But the state’s top election official, Secretary William Galvin, says there’s little the state can do to prevent it. Photos of mailed ballots are also banned.</p>
<p>MISSISSIPPI: Photos showing how someone marked their ballot after voting are prohibited.</p>
<p>NEVADA: Photos inside polling places are not allowed, except by the media. Photos of mailed ballots are also banned.</p>
<p>NEW JERSEY: Law prohibits voters from showing their ballot to others. A pending legislative measure would allow voters to take photos of their own ballots while in the voting booth and share it on social media.</p>
<p>NEW MEXICO: Law prohibits voters from showing their marked paper ballot “to any person in such a way as to reveal its contents.”</p>
<p>NEW YORK: Photos showing a completed ballot or indicating how a person cast their vote are not allowed.</p>
<p>NORTH CAROLINA: Photographing or otherwise recording a voted official ballot is not allowed.</p>
<p>SOUTH CAROLINA: Law bars voters from allowing their ballots to be seen. A 2012 state attorney general’s opinion says that makes it illegal to reproduce a ballot by cellphone, video camera or iPad.</p>
<p>SOUTH DAKOTA: Secretary of State Shantel Krebs says ballot selfies are not allowed because they can be considered influencing a vote or forcing someone to show proof of voting.</p>
<p>WISCONSIN: State law prohibits sharing photos of ballots.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>STATES WHERE THE LEGAL STATUS IS MIXED OR UNCLEAR</p>
<p>ARIZONA: Bars photography within 75 feet of polling places. But the Legislature changed the law that barred showing photos of completed ballots in 2015 to allow posting of early ballots on social media.</p>
<p>ARKANSAS: Nothing in state law prohibits taking photos while in a polling place as long as it’s not disruptive or being used for electioneering purposes, but state law on sharing voter choices is unclear.</p>
<p>CALIFORNIA: Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill last month that repeals a 125-year-old law barring voters from showing people their marked ballots. The change will take effect nearly two months after the presidential election, but legislative analysts have found no occasion of the ban being enforced. The author of the bill, in fact, has been sharing constituents’ photos of marked ballots on social media since the law passed.</p>
<p>DELAWARE: Has a policy against cellphones in voting booths, but elections Commissioner Elaine Manlove said: “I don’t know that we can control what happens behind the curtain.”</p>
<p>IOWA: Law prohibits the use of cameras, cellphones or other electronic devices in voting booths, so Secretary of State Paul Pate has asked voters not to take selfies with ballots. Photos of absentee ballots are OK.</p>
<p>MARYLAND: Bans electronic devices in a polling place except for the media. And even media members aren’t allowed to photograph a ballot that shows how someone is voting. But photos of mailed ballots are OK.</p>
<p>MISSOURI: Law prohibits voters from allowing others to see their ballots if the intent is to show how they voted. Secretary of State spokeswoman Stephanie Fleming described ballot selfies as a “gray area” and advises voters to check with local election authorities.</p>
<p>OHIO: Has a longstanding prohibition against voters letting their ballot be seen with the “apparent intention” of letting it be known how they are about to vote. The state elections chief has advised local election boards to consult their own attorneys about how to apply the law. Two Republican lawmakers are sponsoring a bill they say will let voters photograph and make public their marked ballots.</p>
<p>OKLAHOMA: Officials recommend against it, noting that state law dating back about 40 years suggests it is illegal but outlines no penalties.</p>
<p>PENNSYLVANIA: Law prohibits someone from revealing their ballot “letting it be known how” they’re “about to vote.” But officials recently released guidance on electronic items in polling places that noted the recent court cases that “found a First Amendment right to take ‘ballot selfies.'”</p>
<p>TENNESSEE: Voters are not allowed to take photos or videos while in polling places. They’re only allowed to use electronic devices for informational purposes to assist during voting, according to Adam Ghassemi, a spokesman for Secretary of State Tre Hargett. The state’s law doesn’t address mail-in ballots.</p>
<p>TEXAS: Bars photography within 100 feet of polling stations, so selfies are not allowed. Photos of mail-in ballots are OK.</p>
<p>WEST VIRGINIA: Electronic devices are banned inside voting booths, according to Secretary of State Natalie Tennant. Nothing in the law prohibits photos of mail-in ballots.</p> | Justin Timberlake’s ballot selfie highlights mixed laws | false | https://abqjournal.com/875332/justin-timberlakes-ballot-selfie-highlights-mixed-laws.html | 2016-10-26 | 2 |
<p>WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama suggested strongly on Friday that Russia’s Vladimir Putin knew about the email hackings that roiled the U.S. presidential race, and he urged his successor, Republican Donald Trump, to back a bipartisan investigation into the matter.</p>
<p>“Not much happens in Russia without Vladimir Putin,” Obama said in his year-end news conference. The president said he had warned Putin there would be serious consequences it he did not “cut it out,” though Obama did not specify the extent or timing of any U.S. retaliation for the hacking, which many Democrats believe contributed to Trump’s victory over Hillary Clinton.</p>
<p>Obama also expressed bewilderment over Republican lawmakers and voters alike who now say they approve of Putin, declaring, “Ronald Reagan would roll over in his grave.”</p>
<p>Trump has dismissed recent talk about hacking and the election as “ridiculous.”</p>
<p>Clinton has even more directly cited Russian interference with the U.S. election. She said Thursday night, “Vladimir Putin himself directed the covert cyberattacks against our electoral system, against our democracy, apparently because he has a personal beef against me.”</p>
<p />
<p>Obama did not publicly support that theory Friday. He did, however, chide the media for that he called an “obsession” with the flood of hacked Democratic emails that were made public during the election’s final stretch.</p>
<p>U.S. intelligence assessments that Russia interfered in the election to benefit Trump have heightened the already tense relationship between Washington and Moscow. Separately, Obama has blamed Russia for standing in the way of international efforts to stop the civil war in Syria, where government forces have beaten back rebels in their stronghold of Aleppo.</p>
<p>Obama said he feels “responsible” for some of the suffering in Syria, but he defended his decision to avoid significant military action there. He said that while military options short of invasion were tempting, it was “impossible to do this on the cheap.”</p>
<p>Still, he pinned the bulk of the blame on Russia, as well as Iran, for propping up Syrian President Bashar Assad.</p>
<p>“This blood and these atrocities are on their hands,” he said as he addressed reporters from the White House briefing room shortly before leaving on his annual Christmas vacation to Hawaii. The news conference lasted about an hour and a half, longer than usual.</p>
<p>The president is ending his eighth year in office with his own popularity on the rise, though Trump’s election is expected to unwind many of Obama’s policies. He’s leaving his successor a stronger economy than he inherited, but also the intractable conflict in Syria and troubling issue of whether Russia was meddling in the U.S. election to back Trump.</p>
<p>U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded with “high confidence” that Russia interfered in the election on Trump’s behalf. The president-elect has disputed that conclusion, setting up a potential confrontation with lawmakers in both parties.</p>
<p>The president rejected any notion that the dispute over the origin of the hacking was disrupting efforts to smoothly transfer power to Trump. Despite fiercely criticizing each other during the election, Obama and Trump have spoken multiple times since the campaign ended.</p>
<p>“He has listened,” Obama said of Trump. “I can’t say he will end up implementing. But the conversations themselves have been cordial.”</p>
<p>The president did weigh in on Trump’s decision to speak with the leader of Taiwan, a phone call that broke decades of U.S. diplomatic protocol. Obama advised Trump to “think it through” before making changes the “one-China” policy, in which the U.S. recognizes Taiwan as part of China.</p>
<p>Trump has openly questioned why the U.S. upholds that policy, particularly given that Washington has other contacts with Taiwan. Offering his own take, Obama noted that Taiwan is of utmost importance to the Chinese and Beijing could have a significant response to any change in U.S. policy.</p>
<p>Trump’s election has upended the Democratic Party, which expected to not only win the White House but also carry the Senate. Instead, the party finds itself out of power on both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue.</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>In a moment of self-reflection, Obama acknowledged that he had not been able to transfer his own popularity and electoral success to other sin his party.</p>
<p>“It is not something that I’ve been able to transfer to candidates in midterms or build a sustaining organization around,” Obama said. “That’s something I would have liked to have done more of but it’s kind of hard to do when you’re dealing with a whole bunch of issues here in the White House.”</p>
<p>As he leaves office, the president has said the shaping the future of the Democratic Party now falls to others. But he all but endorsed his Labor Secretary Tom Perez to head the Democratic National Committee, lavishing praise on his Cabinet aide.</p>
<p>The DNC leadership elections have become a proxy fight in the broader battle for control of the party after eight years of Obama’s leadership.</p> | Obama hopes Trump takes foreign intervention in US elections seriously | false | https://reviewjournal.com/news/politics-and-government/obama-hopes-trump-takes-foreign-intervention-in-us-elections-seriously/ | 2016-12-16 | 1 |
<p>Most "locker room" guys don't talk like that.</p>
<p>Donald Trump during Sunday night's <a href="" type="internal">second presidential debate</a> used the term "locker room talk" to defend 2005 remarks he made about making unwanted advances on women — an excuse that <a href="http://fortune.com/2016/10/09/donald-trumps-locker-room-talk-would-get-average-worker-fired/" type="external">didn't satisfy many skeptics</a>, with several <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/oct/10/donald-trump-locker-room-banter-athletes-reaction" type="external">professional athletes, coaches</a> and other <a href="http://www.cosmopolitan.com/politics/a5248065/twitter-responses-donald-trump-locker-room-talk/" type="external">celebrities</a> condemning the implication.</p>
<p>Related: <a href="" type="internal">Poll: More Voters Say Trump Doesn't Respect Women After Lewd Tape Surfaces</a></p>
<p>Trump on Friday used a variation on the phrase in his <a href="https://www.donaldjtrump.com/press-releases/statement-from-donald-j.-trump" type="external">first public statement</a> on the leaked video, in which he said it was "locker room banter" and added, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-apology_us_57f80c2ae4b068ecb5de5f33?" type="external">"I apologize if anyone was offended.</a>"</p>
<p>After that statement failed to prevent a series of high profile <a href="" type="internal">GOP defections</a> from his campaign, Trump <a href="" type="internal">released a second statement</a>, this time on video:</p>
<p>The real estate mogul abandoned the "locker room" defense in that public apology, only to resurrect several times again at the presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis, repeatedly dismissing moderator Anderson Cooper's questions about whether he had actually committed the acts he was describing (he eventually insisted he hadn't).</p>
<p>The consensus of opinion appears to be reflected in a <a href="http://www.tmz.com/2016/10/10/doc-rivers-donald-trump-leaked-tape-nba/" type="external">statement</a> Los Angeles Clippers head coach Doc Rivers made to TMZ: "That's a new locker room for me."</p>
<p>Meanwhile, some stars seized on the comments from the Republican presidential candidate to mock him.</p>
<p>Clippers forward Blake Griffin riffed on his oft-parodied "heavy breathing" as <a href="https://twitter.com/blakegriffin32/status/785290365888638976?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">"locker room-esque"</a> and UFC mixed martial artist CM Punk called the "locker room" statement more of a <a href="https://twitter.com/CMPunk/status/785294067580084225?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">"Ted Bundy quote,"</a> than illustrative of what men actually say behind closed doors.</p>
<p>Related: <a href="" type="internal">Poll: After Trump Tape Revelation, Clinton's Lead Up to Double Digits</a></p>
<p>Still, as far as the <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;source=web&amp;cd=1&amp;cad=rja&amp;uact=8&amp;ved=0ahUKEwiIuMG809DPAhWIVT4KHZ9nDBUQFgghMAA&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nsvrc.org%2F&amp;usg=AFQjCNFiVD6GTztiHT7v3IXVeBU9PcRt-Q&amp;sig2=4aWe2jZTSb19NmQ1lw2G6Q" type="external">National Sexual Violence Resource Center</a> is concerned, there is nothing comical about Trump's attempt to deflect the controversy.</p>
<p>"Recent comments by Donald Trump illustrate what needs to change across our culture in order to end sexual assault and create a society of respect, safety and equality," the NSVRC CEO Delilah Rumburg told NBC News. "Every conversation that conveys disrespectful attitudes or encourages illegal acts, even in private, continues to foster a culture where sexual assault is normalized and puts people at risk."</p>
<p>“'Locker room talk" is not an excuse for unacceptable behavior and is insulting to other men and boys across the country," Rumburg said, adding, "We are encouraged to see many men, including professional athletes, speaking out against this damaging, disrespectful language."</p>
<p>Despite claiming that "no one" respects women more than him, Trump and his company have been accused of mistreating women in at least 20 lawsuits, <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2016/10/09/trumps-lawsuits-include-20-involving-allegations-mistreating-women-president-republican/91832012/" type="external">according to USA Today</a>.</p>
<p>He has also spent much of the 2016 election cycle <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/oct/09/donald-trump/trump-early-morning-sex-tape-tweet/" type="external">defending controversial statements and insults</a> he'd made about women in the past, including most recently a former Miss Universe, <a href="" type="internal">Alicia Machado</a>, who he body shamed while he ran that beauty pageant in the late 1990s.</p>
<p /> | Athletes and Coaches to Donald Trump: Sexual Assault Is Not ‘Locker Room Talk’ | false | http://nbcnews.com/news/us-news/not-lot-love-trump-s-locker-room-defense-n663706 | 2016-10-10 | 3 |
<p>Oil prices oscillated Monday morning, with U.S. crude recovering a fraction of its losses from the last session and Brent trending downwards.</p>
<p>Brent crude, the global benchmark, was down 0.3%, at $53.61 a barrel in London midmorning trading. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate futures were trading up around 0.6%, at $47.78 a barrel.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Harry Tchilinguirian, global head of commodity markets at BNP Paribas, said the market was still determining the extent of the damage of Hurricane Harvey on oil refineries, while anticipating the impact of Hurricane Irma, which made landfall in the U.S. over the weekend.</p>
<p>In a "dramatic situation" like a hurricane, there is going to be "a lot of volatility in the numbers," Mr. Tchilinguirian said. He noted that the impact of Harvey on U.S. crude demand was "not as weak as initially anticipated," which was providing a slight boost to WTI.</p>
<p>U.S. crude had declined by roughly 3% on Friday, further widening the spread with Brent to over $6.</p>
<p>The differential "can be explained in part by lower demand for U.S. crude oil in the next few weeks, as some refineries on the [Gulf Coast] will remain closed...while demand is also likely to suffer as a result of the devastation caused by Hurricane Irma in Florida," according to analysts at Commerzbank.</p>
<p>Brent had risen to a five-month high last week before giving up some of those gains by the end of the day Friday. Analysts widely expect the price gap between Brent and WTI to narrow in the coming days and weeks.</p>
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<p>Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia--the world's largest exporter of crude oil--said Sunday that the country's energy minister and his Venezuelan counterpart had discussed the possibility of extending OPEC's oil output cut deal beyond the March 2018 expiration date. Analysts at consultancy JBC Energy said those talks should prove supportive for crude prices.</p>
<p>The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, of which Saudi Arabia is the largest member, and 10 other producers including Russia first agreed late last year to cap their production at around 1.8 million barrels a day lower than October 2016 levels. The goal of the deal, which was extended in May, was meant to drain a global oversupply that has kept prices depressed amid a resurgence in U.S. shale production.</p>
<p>Investors and analysts were also looking ahead to monthly reports from OPEC and the International Energy Agency later this week.</p>
<p>Among refined products, Nymex reformulated gasoline blendstock--the benchmark gasoline contract--was down 0.8%, at $1.65 a gallon. ICE gasoil, a benchmark for diesel fuel, changed hands at $418.25 a metric ton, down more than 1% from the previous settlement.</p>
<p>Write to Christopher Alessi at [email protected]</p>
<p>(END) Dow Jones Newswires</p>
<p>September 11, 2017 06:48 ET (10:48 GMT)</p> | Crude Prices Diverge After Irma Lands | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2017/09/11/crude-prices-diverge-after-irma-lands.html | 2017-09-11 | 0 |
<p>The United States will reduce the number of refugees for resettlement to 45,000 over the next year, officials said Wednesday.</p>
<p>The decision will disappoint refugee advocates and United Nations agencies, which are struggling to cope with millions displaced by several major wars.</p>
<p>In the 2016 fiscal year, the United States accepted 84,995 refugees from around the world. This year it is on course to take in around 50,000.</p>
<p>The United States is still the world's biggest destination for refugees, but arrivals are well down from a high of more than 200,000 in 1980.</p>
<p>These are people selected abroad, vetted and admitted to the US, where they are ultimately eligible for permanent resident status. So they are seen as not comparable to the millions of refugees fleeing war and hardship and taken in, in recent years by countries in the Middle East and Europe.</p>
<p>President Donald Trump has made no secret of his hostility to resettlement, having ordered a moratorium on new arrivals and tougher background checks.</p>
<p>Officials said they plan to complete a review of security procedures for vetting new arrivals by next month, but arrivals next year will be reduced.</p>
<p>"The security and safety of the American people is our chief concern," a senior US official told reporters on a call to announce the new figure.</p>
<p>"We need to ensure refugee resettlement opportunities go to those who are eligible for such protection and who are not known to present a risk to the safety or the security of our country."</p>
<p>Those who are accepted for resettlement in the United States are selected by the United Nations refugee agency from among the most vulnerable displaced people.</p>
<p>Widows with children, the elderly and the disabled are given priority and subjected to a thorough screening process by US security and intelligence agencies.</p>
<p>The process takes between 18 months and two years, and only then are the refugees assigned to resettlement agencies working under contract with the State Department.</p>
<p>The agencies help families find housing and employment, mainly in small and medium cities around the United States.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, Trump has ordered a security review to further tighten procedures, slowing acceptances.</p>
<p>The International Refugee Assistance Project, part of the New York-based Urban Justice Center, condemned the announcement as a case of the United States abdicating its leadership role on humanitarian issues at time when the world is grappling with the largest number of refugees since World War II.</p>
<p>"Resettlement is only an option in the most urgent refugee cases," said Betsy Fisher, IRAP's policy director.</p>
<p>"It's hard to comprehend why the administration would move to limit resettlement, when the need is greater than ever. We are abandoning desperate people in life-or-death situations, including children with medical emergencies, US wartime allies, and survivors of torture."</p> | The US slashes the number of refugees it will resettle | false | https://pri.org/stories/2017-09-28/us-slashes-number-refugees-resettlement | 2017-09-28 | 3 |
<p />
<p>Today, an earthquake <a href="http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqinthenews/nc40148755/index.html" type="external">estimated at 6.5</a> hit central California.&#160; <a href="http://www.seismo.unr.edu/ftp/pub/louie/class/100/magnitude.html" type="external">Here's the&#160;quake scale</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.seismo.unr.edu/ftp/pub/louie/home/home.html" type="external">John Louie</a> of the University of Nevada <a href="http://www.seismo.unr.edu/ftp/pub/louie/class/100/magnitude.html" type="external">says</a>:</p>
<p>Although each earthquake has a unique magnitude, its effects will vary greatly according to distance, ground conditions, construction standards, and other factors. Seismologists use a different <a href="http://www.geo.mtu.edu/UPSeis/Mercalli.html" type="external">Mercalli Intensity Scale</a> to express the variable effects of an earthquake.</p>
<p>More resources:</p>
<p>An <a href="http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqinthenews/nc40148755/nc40148755.afterwarn.html" type="external">aftershock warning</a> is up for the area now. U.S. Geological Survey says, "At this time (immediately after the mainshock) the probability of a strong and possibly damaging aftershock IN THE NEXT 7 DAYS is greater than 90 PERCENT."</p>
<p />
<p>Localizing the Terror Alert Story</p>
<p>How is your newsroom going to staff the holidays to be sure you could respond if there is an emergency? <a href="http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/" type="external">The Department of Homeland Security</a>, on Sunday, said the threat of domestic terror is the highest it has been since September 11, 2001.&#160; <a href="http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/index.jsp" type="external">Here's the statement from the DHS.</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.boston.com/dailynews/355/region/Nation_s_threat_level_goes_to_:.shtml" type="external">The AP said:</a></p>
<p>Orange means a high risk of terrorist attack. Since May, the level had been at yellow, or an elevated risk, and in the middle of the five-color scale. (Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge) cited reports that Osama bin Laden's terrorist network is trying find holes in U.S. aviation security, and that "extremists abroad" are anticipating attacks that will rival or exceed the scope of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.</p>
<p>How will your emergency workers such as police, airport security, and EMS staff be affected this week given the higher threat? What effect will this have on big New Year's gatherings? Are cities planning increased security? I wonder if airlines will see holiday cancellations.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?content=2707" type="external">Tom Ridge said on Sunday</a>:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?content=2687" type="external">Just last week DHS</a> announced $173 million in homeland security grants to states. Is your state one of them? <a href="http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?content=2568" type="external">Two weeks ago</a>, the government announced $179 million in new spending on port security. What is your port planning? <a href="http://www.dhs.gov/interweb/assetlibrary/Port_Security_Spreadsheet.xls" type="external">Here is a city-by-city breakdown</a>&#160;(in Microsoft Excel format) — easily a way for you to localize the terror alert story.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20031222/1050469.asp" type="external">The AP said</a>:</p>
<p>"Information indicates that extremists abroad are anticipating near-term attacks that they believe will rival or exceed the scope and impact of those we experienced in New York, at the Pentagon, and in Pennsylvania more than two years ago," Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said in a statement released before his news conference on the announcement. He cited reports that Osama bin Laden's terrorist network is trying find holes in U.S. aviation security.</p>
<p>On Friday, the Arabic television network <a href="http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/E177A6E2-7D23-4F60-AB40-A7CCF655497D.htm" type="external">Al-Jazeera</a> broadcast a new statement from Ayman al-Zawahri, the chief deputy of Osama bin Laden. <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3760496/" type="external">The CIA said Saturday</a> it believes the tape is authentic.</p>
<p>"We are still chasing the Americans and their allies everywhere, even in their homeland," according to the voice on the tape.</p>
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<p>Today is Busiest Shipping/Delivery Day</p>
<p>Al's Morning Meeting reader Doral Chenoweth III at the Columbus Dispatch suggests you trail along with some delivery folks this week as delivery companies ride out the huge wave of deliveries that hit their peak last Wednesday and stay high through tomorrow. He says FedEx is calling Monday the busiest shipping day of the year. Doral says:</p>
<p>I checked with FedEx's web site, which had this Q and A:</p>
<p>What will be your busiest night this year?</p>
<p>We anticipate that FedEx Express may handle more than 3.9 million packages on Monday, December 22.</p>
<p><a href="http://ups.com/pressroom/us/press_releases/press_release/0,0,4375,00.html" type="external">UPS says:</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.sbsun.com/Stories/0,1413,208%257E12588%257E1833162,00.html" type="external">The San Bernadino Sun reported last week</a> that Mother's Day is the second-busiest holiday for the U.S. Postal Service, after Christmas.</p>
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<p>Keeping Santa Healthy</p>
<p>Can you imagine playing Santa at a shopping center with so many sick kids running around these days? Can you imagine how many runny noses and assorted creeping crud cases sit in a Santa's lap every year? And what with the flu, what is a Santa to do this year to stay well? Go and see!</p>
<p><a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3727780/" type="external">I saw an AP story with an Omaha dateline that asked around</a> and said:</p>
<p>The Santas have several methods for staying healthy and avoiding the spread of germs. Charlie Russell, spokesman with The Noerr Programs Inc. of Golden, Colo., which contracts out Santas to malls nationwide, said employees are not required to get flu shots, but many do anyway.</p>
<p>Elves at Westroads Mall, which gets its Santas from St. Louis-based Santas Plus, use disinfectant spray on Santa's chair each night and wash his suit frequently, said Charlene Bentzinger, 19, one of Santa's helpers.</p>
<p>Del Peck, who has played Pioneer Santa at the Great Platte River Road Archway Monument in Kearney for two years, said he hasn't gotten a flu shot and simply plans to pace himself so he doesn't get run down. He suggests parents of sick children send or deliver their child's wish list instead of risking an in-person visit.</p>
<p>"I think (a written list) is a good way to communicate if the child is sick and can't be out and about," Peck said.</p>
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<p>News Photographers Give Tips</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">The other day</a> I suggested that newspapers and TV stations turn to their photo staff for some good tips they could pass along to the public about how to make better pictures for the holidays. Little did I know <a href="http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/ptech/photodesk2/120403ccptechphotodesk.9ca60.html" type="external">the Dallas Morning News folks</a> already do this. The photo department regularly supplies expertise on the personal technology page. Here is <a href="http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/ptech/photodesk2/120403ccptechphotodesk.9ca60.html" type="external">their story</a> on how to take better holiday pictures.</p>
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<p>Purse Parties</p>
<p>Reporter Debra Bogstie at WPEC-TV (West Palm Beach, Fla.) sent an idea about something I have never heard of —&#160;purse parties. She writes to Al's Morning Meeting:</p>
<p>The sellers and buyers are well aware the bags are designer knockoffs, but they buy them because they're much cheaper than the real Guccis and Louis Vuittons. And, they look similar because they contain the actual designer labels. We're talking $400 purses (if they were real) being sold for $40 or $50. The big-name companies are trying to crack down because they say they're losing billions of dollars in business. I just did the story because our police just busted a woman who sells these goods... after Tiffany's tipped them off to the fake jewelry/purse pusher. She now faces two felony charges and her apparent knockoff career has been knocked out.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.thewpbfchannel.com/news/2716106/detail.html" type="external">Here is a version of that story from WPBF-TV.</a></p>
<p>In a similar story, <a href="http://www.channelcincinnati.com/news/2207934/detail.html" type="external">WLWT-TV Cincinnati reported:</a></p>
<p>Buying the imitation bags isn't illegal, but selling them is. It's called trafficking in counterfeit goods. Even if you tell the buyer they're fake, the minute you knowingly sell a knock-off bearing a passable designer label, it's a federal crime."</p>
<p>The station said:</p>
<p>How do you know if you're buying the real thing? First, if you can peel off the label, it's a fake, and the real thing will have a tag indicating where it was made. Finally, real designer handbags are sold at either company stores or major department stores, not at home parties or on the street.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=%22purse+parties%22" type="external">Google "purse parties."</a> You can find a local purse-peddler in your area. You can also find advice on how to pick the best-of-the-best fake merchandise. It might be worth a call to local police and prosecutors to see what they think.</p>
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<p>We are always looking for your great ideas. <a href="" type="internal">Send Al</a> a few sentences and hot links.</p>
<p /> | Monday Edition: Earthquake Resources | false | https://poynter.org/news/monday-edition-earthquake-resources | 2003-12-21 | 2 |
<p>Paris Fashion Week opened in the city of lights (and fashion) Tuesday, and will showcase an array of international designers in addition to some of France's biggest names.&#160;</p>
<p>Designers from around the world are converging on what many consider the style capital of the world (there, there, New York) to showcase their pret-a-porter, or ready-to-wear, Spring/Summer 2013 collections over the nine-day fashion showcase.&#160;</p>
<p>Portuguese designer Fatima Lopes showed her collection in the opening show at Paris' historic Gare de L'Est Tuesday, offering up a contrast to the vintage surroundings with bright colors and sharp, futuristic ensembles. Belgian designers Veronique Branquinho and&#160;Anthony Vaccarello are also on the schedule for the Week's first day, <a href="http://nymag.com/thecut/runway/" type="external">New York Magazine reported</a>.&#160;</p>
<p>More from GlobalPost: <a href="http://www.globalpost.com/series/fashion-week-2012-well-dressed-world-6" type="external">Series: A Well-Dressed World</a></p>
<p>Also on the schedule for the week are five Asian designers, including South Korean designers Moon Young-Hee and Lie Sang Bong, Taiwan's Shiatzy Chen, Chinese designer Masha Ma, and Japanese label Sacai, <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/features/article/muriel-piaser-cultural-influences-impact-on-every-level-of-creation" type="external">the Malaysian Insider reported</a>.&#160;</p>
<p>Indian fashion designer Manish Arora will also show his collection, inspired by Indian jewelry, which was also seen influencing major designers at New York Fashion Week like Vera Wang and Marchesa. &#160;</p>
<p>"I thought that it is high time that I actually showcase the real Indian silhouette to the world," Arora <a href="http://english.manoramaonline.com/cgi-bin/MMOnline.dll/portal/ep/contentView.do?contentId=12466255&amp;tabId=1&amp;programId=11565556&amp;channelId=-1073865025" type="external">told Manorama Online</a>. "India is on everyone's mind- silhouette wise or fabric wise. We saw at the recently-held New York Fashion Week. So, I thought why not me?"&#160;</p>
<p>German designer Wolfgang Joop, who has been on a two-year hiatus, will also be back on the runway this week with a new collection for his label "Wunderkind," <a href="http://www.dw.de/dw/article/0,,16259330,00.html" type="external">Deutsche Welle reported</a>.&#160;</p>
<p>The industry's newer designers will give way later in the week to heavy-weights like Dior, Chanel, Mui Mui and Marc Jacobs, Vogue reported.&#160;</p>
<p>More from GlobalPost:&#160; <a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120910/dont-be-so-modest-how-islam-upending-the-fashion" type="external">Don't be so modest: How Islam is upending the fashion world</a></p>
<p>Here, some of the best photos from Paris so far:&#160;</p>
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<p>Which collections are you most looking forward to? Are there enough international designers represented at Fashion Week? Let us know in the comments.&#160;</p>
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<p>Source: <a href="http://statigr.am/p/288253953300231661_10926020" type="external">statigr.am</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/globalpost/" type="external">GlobalPost</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com" type="external">Pinterest</a></p>
<p>&#160;</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://statigr.am/p/288218018163794605_19660327" type="external">statigr.am</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/globalpost/" type="external">GlobalPost</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com" type="external">Pinterest</a></p>
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<p>Source: <a href="http://statigr.am/p/288226084156101388_220857067" type="external">statigr.am</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/globalpost/" type="external">GlobalPost</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com" type="external">Pinterest</a></p>
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<p>Source: <a href="http://statigr.am/p/287669529903956154_3537111" type="external">statigr.am</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/globalpost/" type="external">GlobalPost</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com" type="external">Pinterest</a></p>
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<p>Source: <a href="http://statigr.am/p/288242560380913808_3707513" type="external">statigr.am</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/globalpost/" type="external">GlobalPost</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com" type="external">Pinterest</a></p>
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<p>Source: <a href="http://statigr.am/p/288246686092135104_48923361" type="external">statigr.am</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/globalpost/" type="external">GlobalPost</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com" type="external">Pinterest</a></p> | Paris Fashion Week opens with a bevy of international designers | false | https://pri.org/stories/2012-09-25/paris-fashion-week-opens-bevy-international-designers | 2012-09-25 | 3 |
<p>In another example of how those on the left will create a false story to target conservatives, then creep back into their hiding places when the truth is revealed, <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IStandWithShane?src=tren&amp;data_id=tweet%3A823822275275202560" type="external">#IStandWithShane</a> started trending after YouTube star Shane Dawson targeted The Blaze’s Tomi Lahren, claiming he was kicked out of an event hosted by Lahren at the Sundance Film Festival.</p>
<p>Dawson’s complaint was soon launched into the Twittersphere through his tweets and given a push by this video:</p>
<p>Dawson’s cause was aided by celebrities like Kathy Griffin:</p>
<p>Then Lahren fired back on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TomiLahren/posts/1209854975774354" type="external">Facebook</a> with her description of the actual timeline of events:</p>
<p>Let's talk about this fake news circulating tonight by Shane Dawson. I hosted an event called "Remind the Nation" at the Sundance Film Festival. The event showcased the amazing work of Zero Film Productions and The Veteran's Project, among other veteran organizations. It was a celebration of the service and sacrifice made by our veterans and active duty service members. I was taking photos after the film screening when two gentlemen approached me for a photo. I was happy to do it. I put my arms around them when all of the sudden they jumped in front on me and started kissing. They were not there to support the event. They were not there to take a photo with me. They were there to instigate and make a spectacle to advance whatever political message they placed above common courtesy for our veteran event. These are the tricks of the Left. Designed to instigate and make a scene. It's sad they choose to play the game and make a scene when I welcomed them to take a photo with me. Security escorted them out because they were causing a scene at our private event. Go ahead and spread your fake news. It's sad you stand on such flimsy moral ground you have to create a fake story for attention. Though you tried to detract from the night, you failed. The unloving and intolerant Left strikes again but whatever you were trying to do didn't work. The Left has become so desperate for validation they resort to instigation, planned stunts and outright lies to remain relevant and garner attention. Sad. Anyone who knows me knows I am a social moderate and have always welcomed the LGBT community to my show. The dialogue has always been open to you as it is to anyone I may disagree with or differ from. It's sad you didn't take the opportunity to engage in a meaningful conversation but rather tried to disrupt and derail an event for veterans and service members. God bless our veterans and those who support and honor them. Those there know what happened. God knows what happened. If you had an ounce of dignity you wouldn't drum up a fake story for attention. Praying for you.</p>
<p>Whoops. Dawson started deleting his tweets and apologizing:</p>
<p>Slinking back, as all leftists do when they promulgate a false story, then get caught in the act.</p> | Leftists Try To Troll Tomi Lahren, Fail Dramatically | true | https://dailywire.com/news/12775/leftists-try-troll-tomi-lahren-fail-dramatically-hank-berrien | 2017-01-25 | 0 |
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<p>After enduring several weeks of conflicting comments by Federal Reserve officials that whip-lashed the U.S. stock market, befuddled investors could get a dose of clarity next week on where the Fed stands on its path towards rate hikes.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Minutes of the Fed's March meeting will be released on Wednesday, giving investors a chance to comb through the summary for tips on when rate increases will hit.</p>
<p>If traders believe that less vocal policymakers will support Fed Chair Janet Yellen's expressed go-slow approach to raising interest rates, they may bid up stocks further.</p>
<p>Most Wall Street Fed watchers expect an interest rate hike in June. Yellen has indicated she would not want to raise rates unless data, such as increasing inflation, proved such a move timely.</p>
<p>"If it comes out more dovish, you've got to suspect that the equity markets would really like it," said Jeff Weniger, senior strategist at BMO Private Bank. Should the minutes show real caution by other Fed policymakers, energy, gold, emerging markets and materials could benefit the most, Weniger said.</p>
<p>Equity markets could suffer if the Fed shows a more aggressive stance. Shares of banks and other financial companies, which have been damaged by low interest rates, could be the lone sector to win.</p>
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<p>Investors may trade on even the subtlest of information next week as there is a paucity of big market-moving events. This week, Fed talk and the employment report helped markets rise; later in April, the start of the first-quarter corporate earnings reporting season likely will drive share prices.</p>
<p>The seven-week U.S. stock market rally could still have room to run and beat a record high set by the S&amp;P 500 last May, in part because the Fed has walked back from an expectation of four interest rate hikes this year to two.</p>
<p>The S&amp;P 500 would need to rise less than 3 percent to take out its record closing high.</p>
<p>Stock reacted positively to Chair Janet Yellen's cautious tone at the end of the Fed's mid-March meeting, with the benchmark S&amp;P 500 moving into positive territory for the year.</p>
<p>A series of comments by other Fed members, however, sent the index back into the red just days later. Stocks resumed an upward trajectory when Yellen reiterated her intentions to "proceed cautiously" this week.</p>
<p>Eric Wiegand, senior portfolio manager at U.S. Bank's Private Client Reserve in New York, is one of the many who will be reading those minutes closely.</p>
<p>"Getting any color will continue to be very important and so will getting a sense of what type of dissent was present among voting members," he said. (Reporting by Laila Kearney; Editing by Nick Zieminski)</p> | Week Ahead: Street Looks for Fed Clarity | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/04/03/week-ahead-street-looks-for-fed-clarity.html | 2016-04-03 | 0 |
<p>A shooting on Sunday night at a Las Vegas music festival has left at least 50 people dead and hundreds injured. <a href="" type="internal">Vegas police say</a> they believe the suspected shooter, identified as Stephen Craig Paddock, fatally shot himself before the police could enter his hotel room.</p>
<p>Videos from the scene showed&#160;the chaos as people&#160;ran or&#160;ducked&#160;from the spray of bullets coming from the suspect, who was firing from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino.</p>
<p>Warning: Content may be disturbing.</p>
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<p /> | Videos Show Terror Of Las Vegas Shooting Massacre | true | http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/vegas-shooting-massacre-music-festival | 4 |
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<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - The Albuquerque City Council has approved a three-year contract of $100,000 to expand Albuquerque Economic Development's Existing Business Development Program.</p>
<p>The new contract, approved Feb. 17, supplements a $50,000 annual contract from the city.</p>
<p>"This highly successful outreach program helps local companies with their expansion efforts, which encourages these companies to remain in our community and creates jobs for our <a href="" type="internal" />neighbors," Ceela McElveny, AED vice president of operations, said in a prepared statement.</p>
<p>Under the program, AED connects existing businesses with guidance on financing, workforce training and state incentives.</p>
<p>The program has been in operation for 12 years and now helps assists about 100 businesses each year. McElveny said the additional funding will allow AED to double its outreach to existing businesses within three years.</p>
<p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> | AED to expand existing business program | false | https://abqjournal.com/728854/aed-to-expand-existing-business-program.html | 2 |
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<p>INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Four teams, four drug-testing policies.</p>
<p>Players at Kentucky, Wisconsin, Michigan State and Duke operated under the same rules on their road to the Final Four this season — except when it came to the frequency of their doping tests and the penalties they faced for failing.</p>
<p>All players fall under the umbrella of the NCAA drug-testing program, which tests urine for performance-enhancing and recreational drugs at its championship events and for PEDs during infrequent visits to campus the rest of the year. The main source of deterrence? The programs in place at individual schools.</p>
<p>There are some small changes up for consideration. However, even if those changes occur, the standards could be as varied as the 351 Division I universities.</p>
<p>INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Four teams, four drug-testing policies.</p>
<p>Players at Kentucky, Wisconsin, Michigan State and Duke operated under the same rules on their road to the Final Four this season — except when it came to the frequency of their doping tests and the penalties they faced for failing.</p>
<p>All players fall under the umbrella of the NCAA drug-testing program, which tests urine for performance-enhancing and recreational drugs at its championship events and for PEDs during infrequent visits to campus the rest of the year. The main source of deterrence? The programs in place at individual schools.</p>
<p>There are some small changes up for consideration. However, even if those changes occur, the standards could be as varied as the 351 Division I universities.</p> | Final Four teams have 4 different sets of drug-testing rules | false | https://apnews.com/6d1165c102164b2daa8070af867663e2 | 2015-04-02 | 2 |
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<p>Chrysler will formally respond to safety officials' request to recall 2.7 million model-year 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee and 2002-2007 Liberty SUVs within the next six days.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>The Detroit automaker legally has until June 18 to respond to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration request. Chrysler has announced plans to formally respond but hasn't said when exactly the detailed rebuff would be issued, however a response of that kind would likely take some time to prepare.</p>
<p>NHTSA is claiming that the aft-axle position of the fuel tank in those Jeep vehicles poses a greater risk of fire in the event of a rear-end collision, leading in some cases to injury or death.</p>
<p>Chrysler has been <a href="" type="internal">standing by the safety of those vehicles</a> and CEO Sergio Marchionne said Friday they were in line with what the industry was producing at the time.</p>
<p>Once NHTSA reviews Chrysler's response, it will issue an "initial decision" that will lay out why it does or doesn't agree with the automaker. If NHTSA still determines a recall is necessary, it will convene a public hearing. Once reviewing all of the public feedback, it will then determine whether to issue a mandatory recall.</p>
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<p>If the automaker continues to disagree, the issue could go to court.</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">A recall can be costly</a>, particularly in Chrysler’s case where an entire overhaul of the structure of the vehicle might be needed to move the placement of the engine. However, a mandatory recall could prove even costlier if NHTSA is able to mount enough evidence to determine those vehicles are an imminent danger to public safety.</p>
<p>Under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, auto companies have five days to report to NHTSA that a defect exists and in a timely matter issue a recall.</p>
<p>If NHTSA concludes that a manufacturer is in violation, automakers could face civil penalty fines of up to $17.35 million as well as potential wrongful death suits that in the past have extended beyond the billion-dollar mark.</p> | Chrysler to Issue Formal Response to NHTSA Within Six Days | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2013/06/12/safety-officials-give-chrysler-june-18-recall-deadline.html | 2016-01-25 | 0 |
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<p>Today’s New York Times reports that the federal government stuck plans for a nuclear weapon up on the Internet, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/03/world/middleeast/03cnd-documents.html?hp&amp;ex=1162616400&amp;en=d6e60f288e881789&amp;ei=5094&amp;partner=homepage" type="external">free for the taking</a> (until yesterday). The “Operation Iraqi Freedom Document Portal” was set up at the behest of Congressional Republicans smarting from the failure to find WMD’s in Iraq; the website, which contained 55,000 boxes of Saddam-era documents, was meant to be a post-facto freelance intelligence-gathering free-for-all. The Weekly Standard and conservative bloggers were big fans of this idea. But the cache also included what experts are calling a “basic guide to building an atom bomb.” Oops. (Not that the amateur WMD-hunters are buying it: Jveritas, an Arabic-speaking blogger who has translated many documents, claims the prospect of, say, Iran using the nuclear plans is <a href="http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1731259/posts" type="external">“a laughable idea.”</a>)</p>
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<p>This is not the first time that Iraqi nuclear plans have been shared online by the U.S. government. As Kurt Pitzer reported in the September/October 2005 issue of Mother Jones, spin got the better of security when the military picked up Dr. Mahdi Obeidi, the mastermind behind Saddam’s nuclear centrifuge program in 2003:</p>
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<p>On June 26, the CIA posted a press release about Obeidi’s cache — the most valuable WMD evidence the U.S. has yet obtained in Iraq — on its official website. It also put up digital photos of the components and even one of the key centrifuge diagrams. The pictures, which [former U.N. weapons inspector David] Albright says could be “incredibly useful” to any regime trying to start a covert nuclear program, were online for almost a week — long enough to be downloaded and made freely available on the Internet — before the agency took them down. Literally buried for 12 years, some of Saddam’s hoard of nuclear knowledge got out because of the U.S. government, not in spite of it.</p>
<p>Read the rest of the story <a href="/news/feature/2005/09/armageddon.html" type="external">here</a>.</p>
<p /> | Free Nuke Plans, Courtesy of the U.S. Gov’t – Again | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2006/11/free-nuke-plans-courtesy-us-govt-again/ | 2006-11-03 | 4 |
<p>The first-round results of France's presidential election on Sunday offered encouragement for the European Union but warnings for the established center-right and center-left parties that have dominated Europe's politics for decades.</p>
<p>Results based on counting more than 80% of votes in Sunday's first round put the EU's favored candidate, Emmanuel Macron, into the final round on May 7. There he will face the far-right candidate Marine Le Pen.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Opinion polls for the final, head-to-head contest have been far more decisive than for Sunday's fragmented, multicandidate vote. Surveys up until last week consistently showed Mr. Macron beating Ms. Le Pen by 20 percentage points or more in a one-on-one duel.</p>
<p>Still, the outcome triggers alarms for Europe's established parties on the center-right and center-left. France's long-dominant Socialists and conservatives failed to reach the runoff -- an outcome that leaves both parties in crisis. Mr. Macron, a centrist with an eclectic policy platform, has no conventional party behind him.</p>
<p>Victory for Mr. Macron, 39 years old and a staunch EU supporter, would strengthen the conviction of Europe's mainstream politicians that they can beat back the challenge from anti-EU nationalists such as Ms. Le Pen.</p>
<p>"A Macron presidency would change the narrative for the European Union, feeding the perception that we are past peak populism," said Nicolas Veron, a French economist and fellow at Brussels-based think tank Bruegel. "Lower political uncertainty could also help economic growth in the eurozone."</p>
<p>After a year of political shocks, however, few incumbents in Europe's capitals will rest easy until the contest is over. And Ms. Le Pen still has a shot at power. Her pledges to disband the euro and dilute the EU would undo decades of efforts to unite Europe politically and economically. Her foreign-policy views, including her closeness to Russian President Vladimir Putin, would call into question France's commitment to its security alliance with Western powers such as the U.S. and Germany.</p>
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<p>A Le Pen presidency would deliver the third blow within a year to the integrated, liberal-internationalist order of the Western world, following the U.K.'s referendum vote last summer to leave the EU and the election of Donald Trump in the fall as U.S. president on a nationalist, populist platform.</p>
<p>More recently, the tide in parts of Europe has turned in favor of centrist politicians who support the EU and multilateral cooperation.</p>
<p>Nationalist parties fell short of their ambitions in recent Dutch and Austrian elections. In Germany, where parliamentary elections are due in September, traditional parties are dominating the race while a nationalist upstart group is mired in internal squabbles.</p>
<p>Many political scientists warn that the decline of established parties is a long-term phenomenon, however, and that antiestablishment populists such as Ms. Le Pen aren't going away.</p>
<p>In the runoff, most observers expect French voters from a broad swath of the political spectrum to rally behind Mr. Macron in order to block the radical challenge from the far right.</p>
<p>On Sunday, defeated candidates, including conservative François Fillon and Socialist Benoit Hamon, asked their voters to support Mr. Macron.</p>
<p>One factor is the euro. Surveys suggest a large majority of French voters want to keep the currency, rather than return to the French franc as Ms. Le Pen proposes.</p>
<p>Mr. Macron is an ardent supporter of the EU, but also argues that the bloc and the euro need growth-friendly overhauls.</p>
<p>To persuade a skeptical Germany, however, he may first have to deliver on his promise to reform France's sluggish economy.</p>
<p>The contest between the 39-year-old pro-EU centrist Mr. Macron and the 48-year-old Ms. Le Pen is "incredibly binary," says François Heisbourg, special adviser to the Foundation for Strategic Research, a Paris think tank. "On the one hand, you have a potential for a revitalization of the EU. On the other hand, complete and utter destruction of the EU. There is very little in between."</p>
<p>In neighboring Germany -- France's main partner in driving European integration since the 1950s -- ruling politicians made no secret on Sunday that they hope Mr. Macron wins. "All the best for the next two weeks," Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman said in a tweet directed at Mr. Macron.</p>
<p>"Macron is clearly the most pro-EU candidate and the most supportive of Franco-German cooperation," said Volker Perthes, director of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs.</p>
<p>If Mr. Macron wins, Germany will hope he can also form an alliance in parliament that allows him to enact economic overhauls, Mr. Perthes says.</p>
<p>The contest between centrists and populists over France's future will only conclude with June's elections for the national legislature.</p>
<p>Write to Marcus Walker at [email protected]</p>
<p>The first-round results of France's presidential election on Sunday offered encouragement for the European Union but warnings for the established center-right and center-left parties that have dominated Europe's politics for decades.</p>
<p>The EU's favored candidate, Emmanuel Macron, won the first round with 23.9% of the vote, according an official tally of 96% of votes, ahead of far-right candidate Marine Le Pen, with 21.4%. They will face off in the final round on May 7.</p>
<p>Opinion polls for the final, head-to-head contest have been far more decisive than for Sunday's fragmented, multicandidate vote. Surveys up until last week consistently showed Mr. Macron beating Ms. Le Pen by 20 percentage points or more in a one-on-one duel.</p>
<p>Still, the outcome triggers alarms for Europe's established parties on the center-right and center-left. France's long-dominant Socialists and conservatives failed to reach the runoff -- an outcome that leaves both parties in crisis. Mr. Macron, a centrist with an eclectic policy platform, has no conventional party behind him.</p>
<p>Victory for Mr. Macron, 39 years old and a staunch EU supporter, would strengthen the conviction of Europe's mainstream politicians that they can beat back the challenge from anti-EU nationalists such as Ms. Le Pen.</p>
<p>"A Macron presidency would change the narrative for the European Union, feeding the perception that we are past peak populism," said Nicolas Veron, a French economist and fellow at Brussels-based think tank Bruegel. "Lower political uncertainty could also help economic growth in the eurozone."</p>
<p>After a year of political shocks, however, few incumbents in Europe's capitals will rest easy until the contest is over. And Ms. Le Pen still has a shot at power. Her pledges to disband the euro and dilute the EU would undo decades of efforts to unite Europe politically and economically. Her foreign-policy views, including her closeness to Russian President Vladimir Putin, would call into question France's commitment to its security alliance with Western powers such as the U.S. and Germany.</p>
<p>A Le Pen presidency would deliver the third blow within a year to the integrated, liberal-internationalist order of the Western world, following the U.K.'s referendum vote last summer to leave the EU and the election of Donald Trump in the fall as U.S. president on a nationalist, populist platform.</p>
<p>More recently, the tide in parts of Europe has turned in favor of centrist politicians who support the EU and multilateral cooperation.</p>
<p>Nationalist parties fell short of their ambitions in recent Dutch and Austrian elections. In Germany, where parliamentary elections are due in September, traditional parties are dominating the race while a nationalist upstart group is mired in internal squabbles.</p>
<p>Many political scientists warn that the decline of established parties is a long-term phenomenon, however, and that antiestablishment populists such as Ms. Le Pen aren't going away.</p>
<p>In the runoff, most observers expect French voters from a broad swath of the political spectrum to rally behind Mr. Macron in order to block the radical challenge from the far right.</p>
<p>On Sunday, defeated candidates, including conservative François Fillon and Socialist Benoit Hamon, asked their voters to support Mr. Macron.</p>
<p>One factor is the euro. Surveys suggest a large majority of French voters want to keep the currency, rather than return to the French franc as Ms. Le Pen proposes.</p>
<p>Mr. Macron is an ardent supporter of the EU, but also argues that the bloc and the euro need growth-friendly overhauls.</p>
<p>To persuade a skeptical Germany, however, he may first have to deliver on his promise to reform France's sluggish economy.</p>
<p>The contest between the 39-year-old pro-EU centrist Mr. Macron and the 48-year-old Ms. Le Pen is "incredibly binary," says François Heisbourg, special adviser to the Foundation for Strategic Research, a Paris think tank. "On the one hand, you have a potential for a revitalization of the EU. On the other hand, complete and utter destruction of the EU. There is very little in between."</p>
<p>In neighboring Germany -- France's main partner in driving European integration since the 1950s -- ruling politicians made no secret on Sunday that they hope Mr. Macron wins. "All the best for the next two weeks," Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman said in a tweet directed at Mr. Macron.</p>
<p>"Macron is clearly the most pro-EU candidate and the most supportive of Franco-German cooperation," said Volker Perthes, director of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs.</p>
<p>If Mr. Macron wins, Germany will hope he can also form an alliance in parliament that allows him to enact economic overhauls, Mr. Perthes says.</p>
<p>The contest between centrists and populists over France's future will only conclude with June's elections for the national legislature.</p>
<p>Write to Marcus Walker at [email protected]</p>
<p>(END) Dow Jones Newswires</p>
<p>April 23, 2017 20:30 ET (00:30 GMT)</p> | Macron, Le Pen Outcome in France Offers Encouragement for EU | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2017/04/23/macron-le-pen-outcome-in-france-offers-encouragement-for-eu.html | 2017-04-23 | 0 |
<p>Customers who have helped foot a multibillion-dollar bill for two new nuclear reactors won't see a dime in refunds even though the project has been abandoned.</p>
<p>South Carolina Electric &amp; Gas and Santee Cooper customers have been paying for the reactors since 2009. Both utilities decided Monday to scuttle their project at V.C. Summer Nuclear Station north of Columbia after years of delays and cost overruns and the bankruptcy of its main contractor.</p>
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<p>Executives with SCE&amp;G's parent company, SCANA, told state regulators Tuesday they will seek permission to recover its outstanding $5 billion in costs over 60 years.</p>
<p>Despite the continued expenses, which include securing the site, customers won't see further increases for at least several years, said CEO Kevin Marsh. He could not specify how long. The company plans to use its share of a $2.2 billion settlement to offset hikes.</p>
<p>Sen. Mike Fanning, D-Great Falls, said customers have essentially thrown billions of dollars in the trash.</p>
<p>"They've abandoned the citizens of South Carolina who weren't asked if they wanted to pay. They were required," he said.</p>
<p>The project's abrupt end angered regulators who green-lighted the project nearly a decade ago and approved yearly rate hikes that now make up 18 percent of residential electricity bills.</p>
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<p>"It's a grim day," Public Service Commission Chairman Swain Whitfield told the executives. "Even your harshest critics have called it a sad day. I'm going to go further in saying public trust is at stake here."</p>
<p>Commissioner Elizabeth Fleming said the news came "like a gut punch."</p>
<p>She hopes the utilities can somehow revive the project. But Marsh said he's tried unsuccessfully for months to find another partner. He said he's also sought help from the Trump administration, but requests for a grant went unanswered.</p>
<p>Derek Anderson of Lexington said the utility should immediately take that 18 percent tab toward the scuttled project off people's bills.</p>
<p>"I was pretty infuriated," said Anderson, adding his monthly bill averages $170 for a single person in a well-insulated home. "Why should we be forced to pay higher rates because a bunch of morons and idiots work at SCEG?"</p>
<p>The project employs about 6,000 people in a rural county of fewer than 25,000 residents. That includes 650 SCE&amp;G workers, who were informed Monday that they no longer have a job. Contracts are spread among more than 100 companies statewide, said SCANA CFO Jimmy Addison.</p>
<p>"This is going to shatter lives, hopes and dreams in Fairfield County and the state of South Carolina. It's going to be devastating," said Whitfield, who lives in the county seat of Winnsboro.</p>
<p>Private utility SCE&amp;G, which owns 55 percent of the project, must win state approval of its abandonment plans.</p>
<p>Fanning and other local lawmakers are encouraging the commission to reject it.</p>
<p>"The fight is not dead. Fairfield County is not accepting abandonment," Fanning said. "We want to see heads roll."</p>
<p>The project has been shrouded in doubt since Westinghouse, hired as primary contractor in 2008, filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year. Utility officials say they've since gotten access to information they previously lacked.</p>
<p>Under a timeline adopted in 2012, the first reactor was supposed to be operational earlier this year, and the second reactor was supposed to follow in May 2018. The utilities' latest analysis shows the project likely couldn't be completed until 2024.</p>
<p>Construction is roughly one-third complete. The utility contends the project is two-thirds complete when counting what's been spent on equipment and materials that now must go into storage, Addison said. The company hopes to sell as much as possible.</p>
<p>A 2007 state law allows electric utilities to collect money from customers to finance a project before it generates power.</p>
<p>Santee Cooper has increased rates five times to pay for the escalating costs. The project accounts for about 8.5 percent of its residential bills. But the Public Service Commission has no authority over the state-owned utility.</p>
<p>The utilities announced last week that Westinghouse's parent company, Toshiba Corp., agreed to jointly pay them $2.2 billion regardless of whether the reactors are ever completed.</p>
<p>Santee Cooper will use its $1 billion share from Toshiba — to be collected between October and 2022 — to help prevent bills from rising, said CEO Lonnie Carter.</p>
<p>But another unknown is whether Toshiba can actually pay. In May, the Tokyo-based company projected a 1.01 trillion yen ($9.2 billion) loss for the fiscal year that ended in March. But Addison said he's confident the utilities will get the money from the sale of Westinghouse.</p>
<p>Environmental groups want customers to be refunded at least some of the money they've paid upfront. A hearing on that request had been set for October. The Public Service Commission will consider Wednesday whether to roll that into SCE&amp;G's request.</p> | Sorry, no customer refunds for now-abandoned nuke project | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2017/08/01/sorry-no-customer-refunds-for-now-abandoned-nuke-project.html | 2017-08-01 | 0 |
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<p>Tucson Police Chief Roberto Villaseñor said investigators were combing through the diary for evidence as they build a criminal case against the 32-year-old mother and 34-year-old stepfather.</p>
<p>Villaseñor declined to reveal the diary’s contents but said the teen kept one of her most prized possessions – a photo of singer Enrique Iglesias – in the journal, which the girl kept inside a satchel.</p>
<p>Investigators say the two younger girls, ages 12 and 13, escaped through the window of the bedroom they shared and alerted a neighbor Tuesday after the stepfather tried to break down the room’s door and was brandishing a knife.</p>
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<p>Police later discovered the 17-year-old was being held separately from her sisters in a nearby room. The three girls were malnourished and dirty, police said, and told officers they hadn’t taken a bath in up to six months.</p>
<p>Investigators were trying to determine the last time the girls attended a school. Villaseñor said the girls’ mother claims her children were home-schooled.</p>
<p>The girls’ accounts of being held in captivity were consistent, Villaseñor said. They are now in the custody of a state child welfare agency.</p>
<p>A judge set bail of $100,000 for the stepfather and $75,000 for the mother at their initial court appearances Wednesday. They face multiple counts of kidnapping and child abuse, and the man also faces one count of sexual abuse.</p>
<p>The Associated Press is not naming the couple to avoid identifying the children.</p>
<p>The brief court appearances made by video did not include entering pleas, and it wasn’t immediately clear whether the man and woman had lawyers.</p>
<p>The girls’ maternal aunt, Chame Bueno, said outside of the court hearing that the mother had said the family was living in San Diego when they actually were in Tucson, and wouldn’t let her speak with her nieces on the phone.</p>
<p>Bueno, 34, said the stepfather was mentally abusive toward his wife.</p>
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<p>“She always talked him up, ‘Oh, well, he pays for all my kids’ clothes and he takes them here and he takes them to eat and do this’ – and all that time being locked up in a room,” said Bueno, of Tucson. “And he hasn’t done nothing she said. She has just been lying.”</p>
<p>Villaseñor said the home had video surveillance and locks on the girls’ bedroom doors. But he said another method, which he declined to reveal, was used to keep the girls from escaping.</p>
<p>The police chief said music blared loudly and constantly from the girls’ bedrooms, and ductwork was sealed and towels were forced against doors to prevent the sound from being heard outside.</p>
<p>Police were investigating whether the girls had also been imprisoned in a home in Catalina, about 20 miles north of Tucson, where the family lived previously.</p>
<p>The mother agreed to speak with investigators, but Villaseñor declined to give details of what she said. The stepfather declined to speak with investigators, the police chief said.</p>
<p>Villaseñor said police made a few prior visits to the family’s home, but none pertained to the children being held in captivity.</p>
<p>A resident who has lived in the neighborhood for about five years told The Arizona Daily Star that she didn’t know anyone was living in the home, which is set back from the street.</p>
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<p /> | Police study diary for info in imprisonment case | false | https://abqjournal.com/310502/police-study-diary-for-info-in-imprisonment-case.html | 2 |
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<p>As a writer on relationships, sex, and feminism, I often get e-mails from readers along the lines of “I’m a feminist, but my partner isn’t – can the relationship still work?” or “Is my partner sexist?” or “How can I make my partner a feminist?”</p>
<p>First of all, to all those people: I hear you. I’ve been in this situation myself.</p>
<p>My first serious partner was definitely not a feminist. If I tried to talk about sexism, he’d come back with a comment about how <a href="" type="internal">men have it hard</a>, too. While this is true, these comments derail conversations about major problems by making them about other, smaller ones.</p>
<p>It was like being in the ER for a sixth-degree burn and hearing, “Yeah, I get that, but we need to acknowledge that I burned my hand on a stove once.”</p>
<p>I constantly felt invalidated.</p>
<p>He was also anti-choice and once said that “ <a href="" type="internal">pro-choice</a> girls shouldn’t have sex” (though apparently, if his own behavior was any indication, having sex with a pro-choice girl was A-okay in his book).</p>
<p>My next boyfriend wasn’t much better on the feminism front. When I first <a href="" type="internal">referred to myself as a feminist</a> in his presence, he said he was cool with it – under the condition that white men don’t owe women or people of color special treatment for “past wrongs” because “all we have is now.”</p>
<p>Yeah, he was also one of those people who “ <a href="" type="internal">didn’t see color</a>.”</p>
<p>What did I put up with these people? Well, for one thing, I didn’t realize at the time how important feminism was to me.</p>
<p>That’s the problem with forming morals and values: It gets really hard to date people who don’t share them.</p>
<p>Oh, and there was one other glaring factor: the fact that I loved them. When you love someone, being with them and putting up with sexism seems worse than not being with them at all.</p>
<p>But the thing is, it wasn’t.</p>
<p>With my anti-choice boyfriend, I worried about what would happen if I got pregnant. I would feel pressure to keep the baby, and if I didn’t, he would feel as if I’d wronged him.</p>
<p>And with both of these people, I felt the need to censor myself. I knew that if I complained about sexism, they’d accuse me of being biased or overly sensitive, and I’d end up <a href="" type="internal">questioning the validity of my own experiences</a>. So I saved those conversations for my friends.</p>
<p>But as feminism became more and more important to me, hiding it felt more and more like hiding myself.</p>
<p>I also noticed gender stereotypes creep into those relationships. Once, my ex boyfriend told me that he felt I took a more emotional approach to our relationship, while he took a more logical one. He said that “feminine energy” was based on going with the flow, while masculine energy was based on structure and planning.</p>
<p>Looking back, this wasn’t true at all. In fact, one big source of conflict for us was that I was always planning and organizing and he always wanted to be spontaneous.</p>
<p>Why am I telling you all of this?</p>
<p>My point is, if you’re wondering if a relationship between a feminist and a sexist can work, my short answer is “no.” Chances are, you’ll be either arguing all the time or repressing your thoughts so you don’t argue.</p>
<p>But I think you already knew that.</p>
<p>The problem is, the logical conclusion of that statement is that you should <a href="" type="internal">break up with your sexist partner</a>. And when you’re in love and attached to someone, you’ll do anything to avoid a breakup, including convincing yourself that their sexism doesn’t bother you or that it can change.</p>
<p>Then so be it. Don’t break up with somebody because I told you to. In my experience, if you break up with someone just because someone else thinks you should, you’ll end up pining over them or back with them anyway.</p>
<p>But do know that if the possibility of a breakup has been on your mind, this is a valid reason. It’s hard to make a relationship work if your strongest morals conflict. If you don’t share your core values, one of you is eventually going to get fed up. It’s just a question of who will first.</p>
<p>But, you may be thinking, are there any exceptions? (I know you’re probably thinking that, because we all want to be the exception.)</p>
<p>There is one situation where a feminist might be able to date someone who’s not a feminist: when the latter person just doesn’t quite get what feminism is or why it’s necessary, but still holds feminist values.</p>
<p>Maybe, for example, they’d be really angry about <a href="" type="internal">sexism in the workplace</a> if they realized how often women are harassed, belittled, and excluded at work. But since they haven’t experienced it themselves, they assume women who are angry about it must be overreacting.</p>
<p>Maybe they just need a little push to see how bad things are and why feminism is in fact a movement to make things less bad for women and gender minorities, not to make things worse for men.</p>
<p>But I can tell you from experience that if they’re not actively trying to learn more about the issue, these conversations are really freaking exhausting.</p>
<p>Plus, it’s not your place to try to change someone’s values, no matter how misguided they are. If you can discuss gender in a mutually respectful manner, great. There’s hope. But if you keep having the same conversation over and over again and nobody wants to budge, that’s just going to frustrate you both.</p>
<p>At the end of the day, you can’t be in a relationship with someone’s potential. If they’re not particularly interested in becoming a conscious feminist ally, you need to assess whether you want a relationship with them. As they are. Right this moment.</p>
<p>Think of it this way: If you end a relationship because you disagree about feminism, you’re actually doing the other person a favor. Just as you want someone who accepts your feminism, they probably want someone who accepts them as they are.</p>
<p>Again, if you’re already in this situation, I’m not saying you have to slam the door in your partner’s face and walk out right this minute. If leaving is unfathomable, just keep it in the back of your mind and know the option’s there.</p>
<p>And know that if your partner tries to <a href="" type="internal">gaslight you about feminism</a> or complain when you bring up sexism, you are not the problem, no matter what they say.</p>
<p>If you’re single, on the other hand, you may be in a better position to take my advice. You have the chance to avoid getting into a relationship like this in the first place.</p>
<p>You might even want to consider instituting a feminist-only dating policy. That way, you’ll get out of relationships with <a href="" type="internal">anti-feminists</a> before you get attached and breaking up becomes easier said than done.</p>
<p>I know it’s shitty not to be able to make things work with someone you would’ve gotten along with just fine before your feminist awakening.</p>
<p>But whether you’re a feminist or not, that’s part of growing up.</p>
<p>When you first start dating, you often just want someone who is cute and nice and likes you.</p>
<p>As you become more sure of who you are and what you believe, the pool of people you’re compatible with shrinks. And that’s nothing to be ashamed of.</p>
<p>You deserve someone who embraces every part of you, feminism and all.</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>Suzannah Weiss is a Contributing Writer for Everyday Feminism and a New York-based writer whose work has appeared in The Washington Post, Salon, Seventeen, Buzzfeed, The Huffington Post, Bustle, and more. She holds degrees in Gender and Sexuality Studies, Modern Culture and Media, and Cognitive Neuroscience from Brown University. You can follow her on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/suzannahweiss" type="external">@suzannahweiss</a>.</p>
<p>Filed Under: <a href="" type="internal">Articles</a>, <a href="" type="internal">Posts</a> Tagged With: <a href="" type="internal">Love</a></p> | You’re a Feminist and Your Partner Suddenly Seems Really Sexist – Now What? | true | http://everydayfeminism.com/2016/06/partner-seems-sexist-now-what/ | 2016-06-12 | 4 |
<p>Prominent members of the far right including former English Defence League (EDL) leader Tommy Robinson have been stripped of their blue-tick verification badge on Twitter. Robinson tweeted the “quisling elite censor us because they know they can’t refute us.”</p>
<p>Twitter announced new guidelines for blue ticks, saying users can lose their status if they “promote hate,” harass or threaten people based on “race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age, disability [or] disease.” The rules apply to behavior “on and off” Twitter, meaning users can lose their verification even if they do not violate its rules directly.</p>
<p>On Wednesday night, Twitter withdrew the verification of some accounts, which have been linked to white supremacy and the far right. They included Robinson, American white-supremacist Richard Spencer, and Jason Kessler, who organized a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville.</p>
<p>Robinson responded to being de-verified by saying “the truth is now hate speech,” and mocked that being de-verified has “triggered” him. He then tweeted that he was being censored: “Quisling elite censor us because they know they can’t refute us. When we published #MohammedsKoran [Robinson’s book Mohammed’s Koran: Why Muslims Kill For Islam] we expected the censorship to increase cos they can’t refute the 20th century experts on Islam.”</p>
<p>The truth is now hate speech <a href="https://t.co/LHHFgdD05P" type="external">pic.twitter.com/LHHFgdD05P</a></p>
<p>— Tommy Robinson (@TRobinsonNewEra) <a href="https://twitter.com/TRobinsonNewEra/status/930934719876870144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">November 15, 2017</a></p>
<p>Quisling elite censor us because they know they can’t refute us. When we published <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MohammedsKoran?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">#MohammedsKoran</a> we expected the censorship to increase cos they can’t refute the 20th century experts on Islam, whose works expose The Grand Lie: Islam is Peace</p>
<p>— Tommy Robinson (@TRobinsonNewEra) <a href="https://twitter.com/TRobinsonNewEra/status/931150316627726336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">November 16, 2017</a></p>
<p>He went on to claim that multiple steps had been taken to keep his book hidden. “Muslims created a fake version, Amazon de-listed it as a Koran, Google won’t take Ads, Police State stopped launch events in Manchester &amp; Newcastle. What next: public burning? It’s book, refute it,” he tweeted.</p>
<p>Some of those who had their verified badge removed said the new policy was being applied inconsistently, highlighting other accounts of disgraced celebrities who had not lost the icon.</p>
<p>Other Twitter users criticized the change in policy, saying it is placing moral judgment in the hands of a few employees of the service.</p>
<p>Twitter: We’ve made the process of verification too confusing.</p>
<p>Also Twitter: Okay now we’re going to start unverifying people who express opinions we find objectionable.</p>
<p>— David Chen (@davechensky) <a href="https://twitter.com/davechensky/status/931021205217218560?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">November 16, 2017</a></p>
<p>Whoever advised Twitter to turn verification into an approbation of views rather than a confirmation of identity did not think this through. Now Twitter can be held accountable for every controversial thing said by a blue checkmark.</p>
<p>— (((Yair Rosenberg))) (@Yair_Rosenberg) <a href="https://twitter.com/Yair_Rosenberg/status/930958087627988993?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">November 16, 2017</a></p>
<p>“In short: if users don’t prescribe to certain Twitter guidelines, **even on public sites other than Twitter**, they can kiss their blue check marks goodbye.” <a href="https://t.co/qTbCBnb1a8" type="external">https://t.co/qTbCBnb1a8</a></p>
<p>— Palmer Luckey (@PalmerLuckey) <a href="https://twitter.com/PalmerLuckey/status/931075881992273920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">November 16, 2017</a></p>
<p>Others celebrated the removal of verification for far-right users.</p>
<p>Twitter pulling the verification badges of Nazis is possibly the best thing Twitter has ever done for its users</p>
<p>— Heidi N Moore (@moorehn) <a href="https://twitter.com/moorehn/status/931019469782179840?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">November 16, 2017</a></p>
<p>Hi <a href="https://twitter.com/TwitterSupport?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">@TwitterSupport</a>, good work on the Neo-Nazi purge so far.</p>
<p>Now to remove the blue tick of Far-Right agitator <a href="https://twitter.com/PrisonPlanet?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">@PrisonPlanet</a> please.</p>
<p>His TL is absolute filth.</p>
<p>— R Evans (@Mativenko80) <a href="https://twitter.com/Mativenko80/status/930956484174925824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">November 16, 2017</a></p>
<p>Twitter should give little pointy white hats and masks to all the far-right accounts whining about losing their blue tick.</p>
<p>— Danté Banks (@Dante_Banks) <a href="https://twitter.com/Dante_Banks/status/931146429078351872?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">November 16, 2017</a></p>
<p>Twitter has officially verified the accounts of politicians, celebrities and other public figures since 2009. In July 2016, it opened up the scheme to the wider public and allowed anybody to apply for a verified badge. The mark was meant to confirm authenticity, but it has since been seen as a badge of honor.</p>
<p>Verification was meant to authenticate identity &amp; voice but it is interpreted as an endorsement or an indicator of importance. We recognize that we have created this confusion and need to resolve it. We have paused all general verifications while we work and will report back soon</p>
<p>— Twitter Support (@TwitterSupport) <a href="https://twitter.com/TwitterSupport/status/928654369771356162?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" type="external">November 9, 2017</a></p>
<p>Last week, Twitter came under fire for verifying Kessler’s account, and soon after halted its verified profile scheme. It said it had not intended the blue badge to be an endorsement of views shared.</p>
<p>Twitter tweeted on Wednesday: “We are conducting an initial review of verified accounts and will remove verification from accounts whose behavior does not fall within these new guidelines. We will continue to review and take action as we work towards a new program we are proud of.” It admitted that the verification had “long been perceived as an endorsement” and said it “should have addressed this earlier.”</p> | Twitter strips Tommy Robinson & other far-right users of coveted blue tick | false | https://newsline.com/twitter-strips-tommy-robinson-other-far-right-users-of-coveted-blue-tick/ | 2017-11-16 | 1 |
<p>Editor &amp; Publisher</p>
<p>Chicago Tribune foreign editor Colin McMahon says his five embedded reporters are able to quickly file stories without blackout restrictions from the military. "Some folks are nervous about going into combat but they're ready to be involved," he adds. &gt; <a href="http://www.jsonline.com/news/gen/mar03/126878.asp" type="external">EMBEDDED REPORTER KATHERINE SKIBA WRITES</a> that she spent "56 nervous minutes" in a foxhole on Wednesday. "When I gathered my senses, I mouthed the 'Act of Contrition.' I began negotiating with God. 'Get me out of this,' I asked, and "I'll...'"</p> | Editors say embedded reporters seem to be doing fine | false | https://poynter.org/news/editors-say-embedded-reporters-seem-be-doing-fine | 2003-03-20 | 2 |
<p>By Harro ten Wolde and Georgina Prodhan</p>
<p>FRANKFURT/LONDON (Reuters) - Germany's SAP AG expects to reach the high end of its 2011 forecasts after a strong second quarter, confounding fears of a slowdown in economically fragile Europe and lifting its shares.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Echoing comments from peer <a href="" type="internal">IBM</a> , the world's biggest maker of business software said on Tuesday its visibility for the rest of the year had improved, raising hopes for a good year for the corporate technology sector.</p>
<p>SAP shares surged 6.9 percent in New York by 1740 GMT (5:40 p.m. EDT) and closed up 6.1 percent on the <a href="" type="internal">Frankfurt stock exchange</a> .</p>
<p>Co-Chief Executive Jim Hagemann Snabe told journalists on a conference call SAP had won market share from all competitors in its core businesses thanks to new products that enable mobility, cloud computing and faster data retrieval.</p>
<p>Software sales grew strongly in all regions.</p>
<p>Addressing concerns about a debt crisis in Europe, Snabe said: "I see strong commitment from the main leaders in Europe to see that the euro is stable." Snabe said he could not predict what effect a possible U.S. debt default would have on SAP.</p>
<p>Investors had feared that technology sales would slow in the second half, hurt by the economic uncertainty in Europe and Japan, as well as a drop in government spending.</p>
<p>SAP's sales of software and related services, which are key to future lucrative maintenance revenue streams, grew 20 percent at constant currencies in the year to end-June, helped by growth in all regions, although Europe grew the least.</p>
<p>SAP said it now expected to reach the high end of its 10 to 14 percent growth 2011 forecast for software and related services, which were 9.87 billion euros ($14.3 billion) last year.</p>
<p>It also said it expected its 2011 operating profit to come in at the high end of the previously given range of between 4.45 billion euros and 4.65 billion, after operating profit grew 26 percent in the second quarter, raising its margin by 1.5 percentage points.</p>
<p>SAP bases its key outlook figures on non-international financial reporting standards, which exclude acquisition-related and other charges, saying it allows investors a better comparison of year-on-year operating performance.</p>
<p>Last week, IBM said signings of new business at its services division surged 16 percent in the second quarter, and SAP's arch-rival <a href="" type="internal">Oracle</a> reported last month that software sales rose 19 percent in its fiscal fourth quarter.</p>
<p>(Editing by David Holmes)</p>
<p>Advertisement</p> | SAP raises outlook in defiance of weak Europe fears | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2011/07/26/sap-raises-outlook-in-defiance-weak-europe-fears.html | 2016-01-28 | 0 |
<p>When Erik Messerschmidt&#160;stepped into the role of <a href="http://variety.com/t/david-fincher/" type="external">David Fincher</a>’s cinematographer on “Mindhunter” — a series centered on an elite FBI serial crime unit that premieres on Netflix on Oct. 13 — he and the director were already in sync.</p>
<p>“David and I see the world in a similar way,” says Messerschmidt, who was Fincher’s gaffer on “ <a href="http://variety.com/t/gone-girl/" type="external">Gone Girl</a>.” “I felt like I had a lot of freedom to try things visually and take some calculated risks. He was a huge supporter of that.”</p>
<p>Working as a cinematographer was Messerschmidt’s goal since he got his film degree from Emerson College. But in the early years of his career, like so many beginning DPs, he was shooting mostly low-budget music videos and short films, none of which broke through to bigger work.</p>
<p>“It was frustrating,” Messerschmidt says, and as time passed and he needed to support himself and his family, he began to take gigs as an electrician and gaffer on small movies. He eventually joined the union as a gaffer and worked his way from television to features.</p>
<p>“That was a great way to come up,” he says, “because I saw so many wonderful DPs at work. I was able to learn from them in a really intimate way. They’ve all become tremendous mentors and lifelong friends. I’m really glad I took that path; it was like a 15-year master class.”</p>
<p>Messerschmidt had done a few commercials with DP Jeff Cronenweth, Fincher’s&#160;longtime collaborator, and it was Cronenweth who brought him on “ <a href="http://variety.com/2016/film/news/fox-murder-mystery-a-simple-favor-as-movie-exclusive-1201692352/" type="external">Gone Girl</a>.” That relationship led Messerschmidt to his first big project as a cinematographer — with Fincher no less.</p>
<p>“Jeff is a true master, and he and David have a kind of shorthand that’s really special,” Messerschmidt explains, adding that he watched their collaboration closely. “Gaffers learn to tune their taste to the people they’re working with,” he says. “It’s a way to better anticipate a DP’s needs. Because I had worked a lot with Claudio Miranda [‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’] and Jeff” — both of whom have shot films for Fincher — “my intuitive decision making had been influenced by them in a major way.”</p>
<p>Key to Messerschmidt’s work on “Mindhunter” is a new RED camera that Fincher — who is an executive producer and directed four episodes — commissioned from the manufacturer to shoot the series.</p>
<p>According to Messerschmidt, the concept, which Fincher had been talking about for years, is to get back to the days of simpler cameras. “Lately, we stick all sorts of aftermarket boxes on cameras: wireless video transmitters, timecode boxes, focus controls, motors, etc.,” he says. “All of these boxes need cables and mounting hardware, and they turn an otherwise elegant camera into a big mess. David’s idea was ‘Hey, if we need all this stuff on the camera, why can’t it be built in?’ That’s what RED did for us.”</p>
<p>“Mindhunter” used three of the so-called Xenomorphs delivered by RED Digital Cinema president Jarred Land and his team of engineers. Messerschmidt loved simply sticking a lens on the front, a battery on the back and shooting. “No messing around with extra stuff,” he says.</p> | ‘Mindhunter’ DP Recounts Rise From ‘Gone Girl’ Gaffer to Cinematographer on Netflix Series | false | https://newsline.com/mindhunter-dp-recounts-rise-from-gone-girl-gaffer-to-cinematographer-on-netflix-series/ | 2017-10-12 | 1 |
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — In coming days, <a href="" type="internal">Facebook users will see</a> fewer posts from publishers, businesses and celebs they follow. Instead, Facebook wants people to see more stuff from friends, family and other people they are likely to have "meaningful" conversations with — something the company laments has been lost in the sea of videos, news stories (real and fake), and viral quizzes on which "Big Bang Theory" character you are.</p>
<p>Here are some frequently asked questions about what users and businesses might expect from the changes.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>WHY IS FACEBOOK DOING THIS?</p>
<p>CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been doing a bit of soul-searching about the negative effects his company may be having on society and its users' psyches. He's come a long way since November 2016, when he dismissed the notion that fake news on Facebook could have influenced the U.S. presidential election as a " <a href="" type="internal">pretty crazy idea</a> ."</p>
<p>Now it's his <a href="" type="internal">personal goal for 2018</a> to fix the site and weed out hate, abuse, meddling by malicious nation states, while also making it more "meaningful" and less depressing for users.</p>
<p>While he acknowledges that Facebook may never be completely free of malign influences, Zuckerberg says that the company currently makes "too many errors enforcing our policies and preventing the misuse of our tools."</p>
<p>The company also faces pressure from regulators in the U.S. and abroad, and a growing backlash from academics, lawmakers and even early executives and investors about the ways in which social media may be leaving us depressed, isolated, bombarded by online trolls and addicted to our phones.</p>
<p>Facebook would much rather make changes on its own than have its hand forced by regulators — or to see disillusioned users move on to other, newer platforms.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>HOW WILL IT AFFECT THE COMPANY'S BUSINESS?</p>
<p>Facebook's stock price dropped almost 6 percent on Friday morning before regaining some ground. That suggests investors take Facebook seriously when it says the move will likely make users spend less time on its service. Less time, of course, means fewer advertising eyeballs at any given time.</p>
<p>This is a huge shift for Facebook, which until recently has been laser-focused on keeping users glued to the service by offering a bevy of notifications and "engaging" but low-value material.</p>
<p>Facebook has been doing very well financially. Its stock hit an all-time high earlier this month, and the company's market value is more than $522 billion. Its quarterly results routinely surpass Wall Street's expectations.</p>
<p>So arguably the company can afford to shift its focus a bit away from quarterly profit gains and metrics like "user engagement" that get advertisers salivating. Zuckerberg already signaled this would happen late last year, when he said the company's planned investments in preventing abuse would hurt profitability.</p>
<p>While the changes could hurt Facebook's business in the short term, happier users could make for better profits over the long term. At least, that's what the company hopes.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>IS THIS THE END FOR BRANDS AND PUBLISHERS ON FACEBOOK?</p>
<p>Many news organizations, bloggers and businesses have grown reliant on Facebook to spread information — articles, videos, infomercials — to their followers without paying for ads. The changes could jeopardize that route to their audiences, though some speculate it could be a ploy to force these companies to buy more Facebook ads.</p>
<p>"It's obvious that the days of getting exposure as a business on Facebook are coming to an end," said Michael Stelzner, the CEO of social media marketing company Social Media Examiner. While Facebook has made plenty of changes to its news feed algorithm in the past, he said, this time might be different.</p>
<p>That's because Facebook is being "far more explicit" in its wording about what sorts of posts will diminish. "It has never been this black and white," Stelzner said.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>WON'T THIS JUST REINFORCE THE "FILTER BUBBLES" THAT TRAP USERS AMONG THE LIKE-MINDED?</p>
<p>Do you enjoy arguing with people you disagree with? Maybe, maybe not. But Facebook's goal is to make people happier using the site — not to expose them to opposing views. So yes, this is possible.</p>
<p>That said, company says this is how people make friends and interact with each other offline. We gravitate toward people like us. And Facebook says its own research shows that users are exposed to more divergent views on its platform than they would be otherwise. Of course, this is difficult to verify independently, since the company doesn't often show that data to outsiders.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>ARE PEOPLE REALLY GOING TO SPEND LESS TIME ON FACEBOOK?</p>
<p>Admitting that its changes will likely reduce the time people spend on Facebook less was a big deal for the company. Video, especially, has been a big focus for the social media giant — and videos have been especially good at keeping users around. This latest move, however, will de-emphasize videos too.</p>
<p>While it's too early to tell what users will do, there's little reason not to trust Facebook on this particular question.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>WILL THE CHANGES MAKE PEOPLE HAPPIER OR SADDER?</p>
<p>The jury is still out on how seeing mostly exuberant posts from friends and family affects people over time.</p>
<p>Facebook obviously believes most of its users enjoy keeping up with what's happening in their social circles, even if the material being shared mostly revolves around parties, vacations and other fun times while omitting life's inevitable challenges and tedium. Sharing these moments together, Facebook reasons, deepens the connections between people, even if they can't always be together offline.</p>
<p>But some research and anecdotal evidence suggests that Facebook can make people feel isolated, inadequate or alienated as they experience a phenomenon known as "fear of missing out," or FOMO. Teenagers are particularly prone to "Facebook depression" as they try to measure up to and fit in with their peers, <a href="http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/pediatrics/early/2011/03/28/peds.2011-0054.full.pdf" type="external">according to the American Academy of Pediatrics</a> .</p>
<p>But other researchers believe how people react to Facebook depends on their personality. If you're prone to anxiety, insecurity or already unhappy with your life, then seeing other people having fun could deepen your feelings of missing out or being left out. If you're confident and content with your life, then seeing a friend or family member with a smile on their face could make you happy too.</p>
<p>A <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1745691617713052" type="external">recent article</a> in Perspectives on Psychological Science concluded that already lonely people who use Facebook and other social media as a substitute for real-life relationships tend to end up feeling more isolated. But when Facebook is used to deepen friendships that have already been struck and to forge new relationships, the social network helps people feel less alone.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>AP technology writer Michael Liedtke contributed from San Ramon, California.</p>
<p>NEW YORK (AP) — In coming days, <a href="" type="internal">Facebook users will see</a> fewer posts from publishers, businesses and celebs they follow. Instead, Facebook wants people to see more stuff from friends, family and other people they are likely to have "meaningful" conversations with — something the company laments has been lost in the sea of videos, news stories (real and fake), and viral quizzes on which "Big Bang Theory" character you are.</p>
<p>Here are some frequently asked questions about what users and businesses might expect from the changes.</p>
<p>__</p>
<p>WHY IS FACEBOOK DOING THIS?</p>
<p>CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been doing a bit of soul-searching about the negative effects his company may be having on society and its users' psyches. He's come a long way since November 2016, when he dismissed the notion that fake news on Facebook could have influenced the U.S. presidential election as a " <a href="" type="internal">pretty crazy idea</a> ."</p>
<p>Now it's his <a href="" type="internal">personal goal for 2018</a> to fix the site and weed out hate, abuse, meddling by malicious nation states, while also making it more "meaningful" and less depressing for users.</p>
<p>While he acknowledges that Facebook may never be completely free of malign influences, Zuckerberg says that the company currently makes "too many errors enforcing our policies and preventing the misuse of our tools."</p>
<p>The company also faces pressure from regulators in the U.S. and abroad, and a growing backlash from academics, lawmakers and even early executives and investors about the ways in which social media may be leaving us depressed, isolated, bombarded by online trolls and addicted to our phones.</p>
<p>Facebook would much rather make changes on its own than have its hand forced by regulators — or to see disillusioned users move on to other, newer platforms.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>HOW WILL IT AFFECT THE COMPANY'S BUSINESS?</p>
<p>Facebook's stock price dropped almost 6 percent on Friday morning before regaining some ground. That suggests investors take Facebook seriously when it says the move will likely make users spend less time on its service. Less time, of course, means fewer advertising eyeballs at any given time.</p>
<p>This is a huge shift for Facebook, which until recently has been laser-focused on keeping users glued to the service by offering a bevy of notifications and "engaging" but low-value material.</p>
<p>Facebook has been doing very well financially. Its stock hit an all-time high earlier this month, and the company's market value is more than $522 billion. Its quarterly results routinely surpass Wall Street's expectations.</p>
<p>So arguably the company can afford to shift its focus a bit away from quarterly profit gains and metrics like "user engagement" that get advertisers salivating. Zuckerberg already signaled this would happen late last year, when he said the company's planned investments in preventing abuse would hurt profitability.</p>
<p>While the changes could hurt Facebook's business in the short term, happier users could make for better profits over the long term. At least, that's what the company hopes.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>IS THIS THE END FOR BRANDS AND PUBLISHERS ON FACEBOOK?</p>
<p>Many news organizations, bloggers and businesses have grown reliant on Facebook to spread information — articles, videos, infomercials — to their followers without paying for ads. The changes could jeopardize that route to their audiences, though some speculate it could be a ploy to force these companies to buy more Facebook ads.</p>
<p>"It's obvious that the days of getting exposure as a business on Facebook are coming to an end," said Michael Stelzner, the CEO of social media marketing company Social Media Examiner. While Facebook has made plenty of changes to its news feed algorithm in the past, he said, this time might be different.</p>
<p>That's because Facebook is being "far more explicit" in its wording about what sorts of posts will diminish. "It has never been this black and white," Stelzner said.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>WON'T THIS JUST REINFORCE THE "FILTER BUBBLES" THAT TRAP USERS AMONG THE LIKE-MINDED?</p>
<p>Do you enjoy arguing with people you disagree with? Maybe, maybe not. But Facebook's goal is to make people happier using the site — not to expose them to opposing views. So yes, this is possible.</p>
<p>That said, company says this is how people make friends and interact with each other offline. We gravitate toward people like us. And Facebook says its own research shows that users are exposed to more divergent views on its platform than they would be otherwise. Of course, this is difficult to verify independently, since the company doesn't often show that data to outsiders.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>ARE PEOPLE REALLY GOING TO SPEND LESS TIME ON FACEBOOK?</p>
<p>Admitting that its changes will likely reduce the time people spend on Facebook less was a big deal for the company. Video, especially, has been a big focus for the social media giant — and videos have been especially good at keeping users around. This latest move, however, will de-emphasize videos too.</p>
<p>While it's too early to tell what users will do, there's little reason not to trust Facebook on this particular question.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>WILL THE CHANGES MAKE PEOPLE HAPPIER OR SADDER?</p>
<p>The jury is still out on how seeing mostly exuberant posts from friends and family affects people over time.</p>
<p>Facebook obviously believes most of its users enjoy keeping up with what's happening in their social circles, even if the material being shared mostly revolves around parties, vacations and other fun times while omitting life's inevitable challenges and tedium. Sharing these moments together, Facebook reasons, deepens the connections between people, even if they can't always be together offline.</p>
<p>But some research and anecdotal evidence suggests that Facebook can make people feel isolated, inadequate or alienated as they experience a phenomenon known as "fear of missing out," or FOMO. Teenagers are particularly prone to "Facebook depression" as they try to measure up to and fit in with their peers, <a href="http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/pediatrics/early/2011/03/28/peds.2011-0054.full.pdf" type="external">according to the American Academy of Pediatrics</a> .</p>
<p>But other researchers believe how people react to Facebook depends on their personality. If you're prone to anxiety, insecurity or already unhappy with your life, then seeing other people having fun could deepen your feelings of missing out or being left out. If you're confident and content with your life, then seeing a friend or family member with a smile on their face could make you happy too.</p>
<p>A <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1745691617713052" type="external">recent article</a> in Perspectives on Psychological Science concluded that already lonely people who use Facebook and other social media as a substitute for real-life relationships tend to end up feeling more isolated. But when Facebook is used to deepen friendships that have already been struck and to forge new relationships, the social network helps people feel less alone.</p>
<p>___</p>
<p>AP technology writer Michael Liedtke contributed from San Ramon, California.</p> | Q&A: What Facebook's shift could mean to users, businesses | false | https://apnews.com/amp/588b04191cd344b0b4d4bc771577b9c9 | 2018-01-12 | 2 |
<p>Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s visit to the United States has prompted an outcry, including protests and tabloid headlines calling him “evil” and a “madman.” As Juan Cole says, “The real reason his visit is controversial is that the American right has decided the United States needs to go to war against Iran. Ahmadinejad is therefore being configured as an enemy head of state.” The Bush administration, which maintains that “all options” remain on the table with Iran, should vigorously pursue the diplomatic option, instead of moving inexorably toward the military option.</p>
<p>Ahmadinejad said in a “60 Minutes” interview, “It’s wrong to think that Iran and the U.S. are walking toward war. Who says so? Why should we go to war? There is no war in the offing.” Iran has not threatened to attack the United States, or Israel for that matter, except if it is attacked first. Iranian authorities sent a proposal to the United States in May 2003 offering negotiations on a deal for Iran to freeze its nuclear program if the United States would end its hostility against Iran. The Bush administration thumbed its nose at the Iranian proposal, then tried to cover up the story, according to Trita Parsi, in his new book, <a href="" type="internal">Treacherous Alliance: The Secret Dealings of Israel, Iran, and the United States</a>.</p>
<p>Bush has pursued a belligerent policy toward Iran ever since he inaugurated it into his “axis of evil” in January 2002. General David Petraeus and Bush both menacingly mentioned Iran five times in their respective August speeches touting how well things are going in Iraq. Petraeus referred to “malign actions” by Iran; Bush discussed Iran and al-Qaeda in the same breath even though Iran has never attacked us.</p>
<p>U.S. plans for war with Iran continue to escalate. Centcom (U.S. Central Command) has engaged in detailed contingency planning for an attack on Iran for more than two years. In June, the U.S. Air Force established Project Checkmate tasked with “fighting the next war.” The Pentagon is building a military base near the Iran-Iraq border. Earlier this month, British forces, at the request of the Americans, were sent from Basra to the Iranian border. Two aircraft carrier groups (USS Nimitz and USS Truman) are reportedly en route to the Persian Gulf to join the USS Enterprise.</p>
<p>Philip Giraldi wrote last month in The American Conservative that Dick Cheney ordered the U.S. Strategic Command to draw up a “contingency plan” for a large-scale air assault on Iraq using both conventional and tactical nuclear weapons. “As in the case of Iraq,” according to Giraldi, “the response is not conditional on Iran actually being involved in the act of terrorism directed against the United States. Several senior Air Force officers involved in the planning are reportedly appalled at the implications of what they are doing–that Iran is being set up for an unprovoked nuclear attack–but no one is prepared to damage his career by poising any objections.”</p>
<p>Bush will likely provoke a confrontation with Iran, then strike back in “self-defense.”</p>
<p>The Sunday Telegraph reported, “A strike will probably follow a gradual escalation. Over the next few weeks and months the U.S. will build tensions and evidence around Iranian activities in Iraq . . . Under the theory–which is gaining credence in Washington security circles–U.S. action would provoke a major Iranian response, perhaps in the form of moves to cut off Gulf oil supplies, providing a trigger for air strikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities and even its armed forces.”</p>
<p>Steve Clemons likewise wrote on Salon that David Wurmser, a member of Cheney’s national security staff, allegedly discussed convincing Israel to launch a low-yield cruise missile strike against the Natanz nuclear reactor in Iran, to “hopefully” prompt a military reaction by Iran against U.S. forces in Iraq and the Gulf.</p>
<p>Former CIA counter-terrorism chief Vincent Cannistrano, now a security analyst, stated, “The decision to attack was made some time ago. It will be in two stages. If a smoking gun is found in terms of Iranian interference in Iraq, the U.S. will retaliate on a tactical level, and they will strike against military targets. The second part of this is: Bush has made the decision to launch a strategic attack against Iranian nuclear facilities, although not before next year. He has been lining up some Sunni countries for tacit support for his actions.”</p>
<p>Patrick Cronin, director of studies at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, concurs. “Washington is seriously reviewing plans to bomb not just nuclear sites, but oil sites, military sites and even leadership targets. The talk is of multiple targets,” he said. “In Washington there is very serious discussion that this is a window that has to be looked at seriously because there is only six months to ‘do something about Iran’ before it will be looked at as a purely political issue.”</p>
<p>The United Nations’ chief nuclear weapons inspector, Mohamed ElBaradei, warned against an “out of control” drift to war with Iran. “I would not talk about any use of force,” he said. “There are rules on how to use force, and I would hope that everybody would have gotten the lesson after the Iraq situation, where 700,000 innocent civilians have lost their lives on the suspicion that a country has nuclear weapons.” The UN Charter only permits the use of force in self-defense or with the blessing of the Security Council. “Many of the potential targets are in populated places, endangering civilians both from errant bombs and the possible dispersal of radioactive material,” cautioned Peter Galbraith in the New York Review of Books. The failure to protect civilians violates the Geneva Conventions.</p>
<p>Yet Bush continues his march to war. In an end run around the UN Security Council, “Washington and its allies are developing a parallel track to the UN effort in the event that a third resolution ends up only modestly increasing pressure on Iran,” according to the Washington Post. “We’ll continue on the UN track, but we also have the track of the U.S.-E.U.,” a State Department official said.</p>
<p>Former General Wesley Clark is a likely presidential running mate for Hillary Clinton, who also intends to keep the military option against Iran on the table. In Sunday’s Washington Post, Clark laid out a detailed military plan to ensure that we “win” the next war. “Today, the most likely next conflict will be with Iran,” he wrote, while cautioning that war is the last resort.</p>
<p>Senators Joe Lieberman and Jon Kyl just introduced an amendment to the defense authorization bill that would authorize Bush to attack Iran. Here is the language from the amendment:</p>
<p>(3) that it should be the policy of the United States to combat, contain, and roll back the violent activities and destabilizing influence inside Iraq of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, its foreign facilitators such as Lebanese Hezbollah, and its indigenous Iraqi proxies;</p>
<p>(4) to support the prudent and calibrated use of all instruments of United States national power in Iraq, including diplomatic, economic, intelligence, and military instruments, in support of the policy described in paragraph (3) with respect to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran and its proxies.</p>
<p>If the Congress adopts this amendment, U.S. policy would be to “combat” Iran with “all . . . military instruments.” It is imperative that this amendment be defeated.</p>
<p>As Bush and Cheney once again go through the motions of diplomacy as they did during the run-up to war with Iraq, they move steadily toward war. They would do well to heed the sentiments of the Bipartisan Security Group, which advocates the Middle Powers Initiative. That statement says, “Resolution of differences between the United States and Iran through diplomatic means has become imperative. The catastrophe of Iraq should inform us that the use of force under present circumstances will bring even greater tragedy to the war-torn Middle East. Any threat to unilaterally use overwhelming force is irresponsibly hazardous. There is no imminent threat posed by Iran. There is a practical, legal and moral obligation to obtain security through peaceful and law abiding means.”</p>
<p>The initiative points to the United States’ hypocrisy of condemning Iran for seeking nuclear weapons while maintaining the right to use nukes against Iran. “The United States and other nuclear weapon states can more credibly insist on Iranian compliance with its international obligations if they meet their own. To decry the Iranian potential of developing nuclear weapons while brandishing arsenals of unimaginable destructive capacity on launch-on-warning status is inconsistent . . . Accordingly, the United States is required to renounce the use of nuclear weapons against Iran rather than to maintain that ‘all options are on the table.'”</p>
<p>MARJORIE COHN is a professor at Thomas Jefferson School of Law and president of the National Lawyers Guild. She is the author of <a href="" type="internal">Cowboy Republic: Six Ways the Bush Gang Has Defied the Law</a></p>
<p>&#160;</p> | Pursue Diplomacy, Not War, with Iran | true | https://counterpunch.org/2007/09/25/pursue-diplomacy-not-war-with-iran/ | 2007-09-25 | 4 |
<p>Turkish police arrested around 40 people on Tuesday, many of them journalists, in raids that targeted suspected Kurdish rebels accused of terrorism charges, according to media reports.</p>
<p>Turkish officials said they suspect the detained dozens were members of the "press and propaganda wing," the state-run Anatolian Agency reported. More than 10 journalists from the pro-Kurdish Dicle news agency were arrested, including an Agence France Presse photographer.</p>
<p>The Paris-based AFP confirmed to media that one of its photographers were among the arrested.</p>
<p>More from GlobalPost:&#160; <a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/turkey/111204/turkey-syria-bashar-al-assad-erdogan" type="external">Turkey vs. Syria</a></p>
<p>The recent arrests have been part of a two-year-old police investigation that has detained hundreds of people, including elected mayors, charged with ties to the Kurdistan Workers Party. The PKK is an internationally recognized terrorist organization.</p>
<p>Turkey's latest crackdown against the press has renewed concerns from human rights and pro-democracy groups.</p>
<p>"The Kurdish issue will not be solved by attempts to suppress dissident views in the name of combating terrorism. The authorities must stop trying to criminalize journalism, including political committed journalism,? <a href="" type="external">the Associated Press</a> quoted the press advocacy group Reporters Without Borders saying.</p>
<p>More from GlobalPost:&#160; <a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/middle-east/111213/violence-intensifies-near-syria-turkey-border" type="external">Violence intensifies near Syria-Turkey border</a></p>
<p>Reporters Without Borders ranked Turkey in the bottom 40 countries of the world when it comes to press freedoms.</p>
<p>Turkey has 70 some reporters in jail, one of the highest number of imprisoned journalists in the world, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/20/turkey-kurds-idUSL6E7NK23720111220" type="external">Reuters reported</a>.&#160;</p>
<p>The European Union, which Turkey has been seeking to join, could view the arrests as a reason to deny membership.</p>
<p>Turkey's battle with the PKK has claimed more than 30,000 mostly-Kurdish lives since the insurgency began in the 1980s.</p> | Turkish police arrest dozens, including journalists | false | https://pri.org/stories/2011-12-20/turkish-police-arrest-dozens-including-journalists | 2011-12-20 | 3 |
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<p>SANTA FE, N.M. — Sixteen people went through a graduation ceremony at Santa Fe Community College on Wednesday. It would have been 17, but one person didn’t attend because they had already reported to their new job, paying $100,000 a year in the oil and gas industry.</p>
<p>“That’s what it’s all about: jobs. Right?” asked Pablo Sedillo, who was there representing U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman at the graduation of SFCC’s first class of environmental technicians.</p>
<p>The group had received competency certificates for completing an intensive six-week course in hazardous waste operations and emergency response, first aid, CPR and incident command.</p>
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<p>Sedillo received a rousing response in the affirmative from the group, who themselves represented many ilks — men and women of Anglo, Hispanic, Native American and African-American heritage.</p>
<p>They all entered the program with one thing in common, said Ann Black, associate dean for economic and workforce development.</p>
<p>“Everybody in the program either is unemployed or were in the process of being laid off and from low-income families,” she said. “A lot of them came through the Department of Workforce Solutions and were chosen based on their ability to participate and complete the program and had a desire to work in the field.”</p>
<p>The course came at no cost to the students and some were even paid a $200 stipend to help cover travel costs.</p>
<p>Black said the program was made possible by a $300,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency and funds leveraged through the Department of Energy and the Workforce Investment Act. The money will be used to fund two additional programs. One, in partnership with New Mexico Highland’s University’s Forest and Watershed Institute, covers forestry technician training and begins in January. The other is technician training for environmental cleanup and investigation and starts in March.</p>
<p>After receiving their certificates, students were invited to speak, and nearly everyone did. One after another stepped to the podium and turned to the guests, which in addition to Sedillo included representatives from U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján and the Eight Northern Indian Pueblo Council, and appealed to them to continue funding the program.</p>
<p>Just as many thanked their instructor, Janet Kerley, who was largely responsible for developing the curriculum.</p>
<p>Afterward, the graduates celebrated with cupcakes and punch.</p>
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<p>“My brain is overloaded. They cram two years of instruction into a six-week course,” quipped Jerry Lucero, who at 53 was the oldest in the graduating class. “We got 40 hours of training in hazardous waste operations, learned sample testing, testing for sewage plants, underground storage, New Mexico water laws. … It was intensive, but I enjoyed it.”</p>
<p>Lucero, a native of Taos now living in Rio Rancho, said he used to work as an inspector for a weatherization program, but lost his job due to budget cuts. He’s been taking various courses in the past year, but is hoping the one he just graduated from will be the last.</p>
<p>“It has opened a lot of doors,” he said. “I’ve had four interviews already and have another one with DOT in Roswell on Monday.”</p>
<p>At 18, Ryan Hamburg was the youngest grad.</p>
<p>“I just got my GED and was looking for job opportunities,” said the Pojoaque native. “My cousin told me about this and the potential for job placement in the environmental field. I wasn’t prepared for it initially, but now it’s starting to come together.”</p>
<p>Hamburg said he’s going to continue to look for jobs and may try to get into the forestry program in January. “It depends on how my job search goes,” he said.</p>
<p>Juliana Lujan is one of a handful of women who completed the program. She’s also one of a half-dozen Native Americans in the group, hailing from Taos Pueblo.</p>
<p>A former elementary school teacher, she’s now pursuing other career opportunities.</p>
<p>“I’m just trying to keep moving forward, and I’m looking for something that has to do with the environment,” she said. “There are all sorts of avenues in the field, like water treatment or municipal solid waste. I’m trying to decide which way to go.”</p>
<p>Another woman, Colette Kubichan, earned cheers for her remarks at the podium following the ceremony.</p>
<p>“Thank you for putting this grant together,” she said, turning to the invited guests. “I hope the elected officials will keep this funding. It gave us all an education that we didn’t have to go into debt for.”</p> | Good Job Outlook for Grads | false | https://abqjournal.com/139380/good-job-outlook-for-grads.html | 2012-10-18 | 2 |
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<p>Yesterday, the St.&#160;Petersburg Times <a href="http://www.tampabay.com/news/courts/civil/article1158818.ece" type="external">reported</a> on a new civil case in&#160;Tampa, Florida that’s become a cause célèbre on the right:</p>
<p>Hillsborough Circuit Judge Richard Nielsen is being attacked by conservative bloggers after he ruled in a lawsuit March 3 that, to resolve one crucial issue in the case, he will consult a different source.</p>
<p>“This case,” the judge wrote, “will proceed under Ecclesiastical Islamic Law.”</p>
<p>According to some conservatives, this is a troubling sign that the American legal system is under attack from&#160;Sharia law (one activist called it a sign of a new “ <a href="http://specialguests.com/guests/viewnews.cgi?id=EFpplFpVVAQsquhBmN&amp;tmpl=default" type="external">Islamic Tsunami</a>“). Adam&#160;Serwer <a href="http://prospect.org/csnc/blogs/adam_serwer_archive?month=03&amp;year=2011&amp;base_name=sharia_panic_hits_florida&amp;utm_source=twitterfeed&amp;utm_medium=twitter" type="external">examines the evidence</a> and says that, actually, this is really, really normal:</p>
<p>The judge however, isn’t invoking Islamic law because he simply felt like it, he’s doing so because this is essentially a contract dispute in which the agreement was drawn up according to sharia…</p>
<p>Where there’s a conflict between civil law and the terms of a contract, civil law holds sway. You could not, for example, sell yourself into slavery or force your spouse to sign a contract where they would be subject to abuse. So the notion that the presence of Islamic law in civil arbitration will inevitably lead to sharia replacing the Constitution is nonsense. This kind of case is a sign of America’s <a href="http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1872/muslim-population-projections-worldwide-fast-growth" type="external">growing</a> Muslim population, which for many of those complaining is probably the real source of worry.</p>
<p>Right. The argument you tend to hear from conservatives concerns impending implementation of radical forms of Sharia. That is, if we don’t act now, at some indeterminate point in the future the bad kind of Sharia—stoning, for instance—will take hold in the United States and we’ll be powerless to stop it.&#160;Sounds scary.&#160;But stories like this one out of Florida, and the ensuing freakout, reveal that to be somewhat disingenuous. Anti-sharia activists think that any sort of Islamic law is a threat to be taken seriously, even if it’s something so mundane as a contract dispute between the Islamic Education Center of Tampa and two aggrieved former trustees—and even if it’s not much different from Jewish or Christian codes.</p>
<p /> | Anti-Sharia Activists Raise Alarm Over…Contract Law? | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2011/03/right-freaks-out-over-fairly-normal-contract-law-case/ | 2011-03-23 | 4 |
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<p>YouTuber Max Emerson sent social media ablaze when he posted photos with his boyfriend&#160;Andrés Camilo of the couple going out to army prom.</p>
<p>Camilo, who is in the National Guard, is shown in one photo with his arms around Emerson in the stereotypical prom pose dressed in his formal army attire. The couple was attending prom at West Point, The United States Military Academy in Orange County, N.Y.</p>
<p>“Hello from gay army prom,” Emerson captioned the photo.</p>
<p>In another photo, the couple stands shoulder to shoulder with the caption, “My date is the best!”</p>
<p />
<p>The photos have received thousands of likes and hundreds of comments on Instagram.</p>
<p>Emerson introduced Camilo to his YouTube audience with his popular video “Meet My Boyfriend” in June. The video has received more than 300,000 views.</p>
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<p>&#160;</p>
<p><a href="" type="internal">Andrés Camilo</a> <a href="" type="internal">gay army prom</a> <a href="" type="internal">Max Emerson</a></p> | Gay couple’s army prom photo goes viral | false | http://washingtonblade.com/2017/04/05/gay-couples-army-prom-photo-goes-viral/ | 3 |
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<p>This piece also appeared in the Los Angeles Daily Journal. The hyperlinks do not appear in the published versions.</p>
<p>Judge Stephen Reinhardt of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has long seemed to enjoy remarkable good fortune in getting assigned to sit on ideologically charged cases. Suspicions that his good fortune hasn’t been entirely due to luck were bolstered recently when the 9th Circuit <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/bench-memos/392889/hijinks-ninth-circuit-clerks-office-ed-whelan" type="external">revealed</a> that its clerk’s office had had a longstanding but undisclosed practice of assigning expedited cases — which tend to be of special importance — to the calendar panel with the most senior presiding judge. The arch-liberal Reinhardt was appointed to the court by President Jimmy Carter in 1980 and has long been very senior among active judges, so this practice would have especially benefited his case assignments.</p>
<p>Concerns that judges or court clerks might engineer case assignments for ideological purposes can’t simply be dismissed. A Texas Law Review <a href="http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=957650" type="external">article</a> from 2000 makes a compelling case that 5th Circuit case assignments in civil-rights cases in the early 1960s were manipulated to ensure pro-civil rights majorities. In a controversial case a decade ago, the 6th Circuit’s chief judge <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/bench-memos/393791/chief-judgemotions-panel-shenanigans-ed-whelan" type="external">added himself</a> to an open spot on a panel instead of using the random draw that court rules required. In trying to minimize his violation, one of his colleagues offered the curious excuse that the chief judge did that frequently.</p>
<p>Judges and court clerks are people, too. They have their biases and their temptations to indulge those biases, especially when they think they can get away with it. Respect for the courts depends on the public’s trust that they act impartially. That’s why it’s important that courts develop and implement transparent procedures designed to ensure that the assignment of judges to cases is random and neutral.</p>
<p>Just before his term as 9th Circuit chief judge ended, Alex Kozinski kindly <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/bench-memos/393074/chief-judge-kozinski-responds-ed-whelan" type="external">responded</a> by email to questions I posed to him about the 9th Circuit’s now-abandoned practice of assigning expedited cases. I’m sorry to say that his responses didn’t alleviate my concerns.</p>
<p>For starters, it’s not at all clear that other 9th Circuit judges were ever informed of this practice. (Kozinski’s response is vague on the point.) One veteran judge wrote to tell me he had never heard of it. That’s consistent with what I’ve heard from other chambers.</p>
<p>Even more telling was Kozinski’s evident lack of interest in ensuring that case-assignment shenanigans don’t occur. I referred him to a law-review article that faults the 9th Circuit for having a case-assignment system that could be abused and suggested that the article might be of interest to him. His blunt reply: “No.”</p>
<p>The practice that the 9th Circuit has now abandoned was rife with potential for abuse. Among other things, the clerk’s office staff has been delegated authority to decide which cases to expedite, and it can select among calendar weeks in a way that affords plenty of opportunity for panel-shopping. So, for example, the clerk’s office ordered the Nevada marriage case expedited to “be calendared as soon as possible” and then <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/bench-memos/393479/more-hijinks-ninth-circuit-clerks-office-ed-whelan" type="external">passed over</a> other calendar weeks to assign it to a panel with Reinhardt as the presiding judge.</p>
<p>There’s also evidence that the clerk’s office didn’t uniformly apply the practice and that it may simply have used it as one of several tools to direct cases to Reinhardt. Under the practice, the anti-Proposition 8 appeal in 2010 apparently <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/bench-memos/393410/re-hijinks-ninth-circuit-clerks-office-ed-whelan" type="external">should have gone</a> to a panel headed by Mary Schroeder. Instead, it went to a panel headed by Reinhardt (who, to compound the irregularities, <a href="" type="internal">declined to recuse himself</a> even though the American Civil Liberties Union affiliate his wife then headed had taken part in the case and she had publicly celebrated the district-court ruling against Prop. 8).</p>
<p>The 9th Circuit has also been <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/bench-memos/390294/re-somewhat-higher-one-787-trillion-ed-whelan" type="external">faulted</a> for failing to separate the process of assigning judges to panels from the process of assigning cases to panels. That lack of separation makes it all the easier for rogue personnel to engineer the assignment of cases to panels with particular judges.</p>
<p>A new <a href="http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2520980" type="external">study</a> by law professors Adam S. Chilton and Marin K. Levy finds that case assignments in several circuits, including the 9th, display “statistically significant deviations from random assignment.” In particular, they find that the deviation in the 9th Circuit is ideological in nature. While they refrain from inferring or alleging that the skewing is intentional, they provide ample cause for others to wonder.</p>
<p>Having operated a system that allows for abuses, the 9th Circuit owes it to the public to conduct a thorough investigation into how its case-assignment process has in fact operated. That investigation, preferably assigned to an outsider, should require information from clerk’s office staff as well as from the various chief judges over the years. Among other things, it should aim to uncover just how and when the recently disclosed practice of assigning expedited cases developed and operated. It should also examine case assignments as to which questions have been raised. And it should yield a detailed public report on these matters as well as on how the case-assignment process should be improved.</p>
<p>As Kozinski himself recently noted, chief judges “don’t get picked because of [their] administrative skills.” But that’s no excuse for them not to ensure that their courts have in place neutral rules that are administered faithfully. As the U.S. Supreme Court <a href="http://scholar.google.ca/scholar_case?case=3166560998749928304" type="external">observed</a> a few years ago — in the course, as it happens, of blocking the broadcasting of the anti-Prop. 8 trial and condemning the violation of rules by Kozinski and U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker — “If courts are to require that others follow regular procedures, courts must do so as well.”</p>
<p>If the 9th Circuit fails to act responsibly on this matter, it will be inviting an investigation by the Senate or House judiciary committee.</p>
<p>Edward Whelan is president of the Ethics and Public Policy Center and is a regular contributor to National Review Online’s Bench Memos blog on judicial matters.</p> | A Curious Panel Selection Procedure | false | https://eppc.org/publications/a-curious-panel-selection-procedure/ | 1 |
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<p>HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) _ The winning numbers in Thursday evening’s drawing of the Pennsylvania Lottery’s “Pick 5 Evening” game were:</p>
<p>4-3-3-5-8, Wild: 8</p>
<p>(four, three, three, five, eight; Wild: eight)</p>
<p>HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) _ The winning numbers in Thursday evening’s drawing of the Pennsylvania Lottery’s “Pick 5 Evening” game were:</p>
<p>4-3-3-5-8, Wild: 8</p>
<p>(four, three, three, five, eight; Wild: eight)</p> | Winning numbers drawn in ‘Pick 5 Evening’ game | false | https://apnews.com/d2c387f5fa9b488989c427fc528e6aef | 2018-01-26 | 2 |
<p>Late last week, some Sarepta Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SRPT) investors were worried. Now the weekend is over, and all of those worries seem to have dissipated.</p>
<p>Concerns arose after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) made its database of prescription drug adverse events easily searchable. Sarepta stock fell on Friday after investors saw troubling adverse event data for the biotech's Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) drug Exondys 51. However, Sarepta's share price jumped 7% on Monday. What happened to ease investors' minds?</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>One factor probably at work is that investors are realizing they overreacted to the FDA data for Exondys 51. It's true that the FDA's Adverse Events Reporting System (FAERS) showed 11 reports of serious adverse events for patients taking Sarepta's drug. It's also true that three patients taking Exondys 51 died. But the FAERS data doesn't provide the full context for these adverse events.</p>
<p>For example, FAERS doesn't indicate if the medication caused the adverse events or contributed in any way to them. Any event that occurs with patients on prescription drugs must be reported to the FDA. FAERS simply lists all of those events, with no analysis on root causes.</p>
<p>In the three cases where patients who were using Exondys 51 died, the FAERS database indicated that the product was being used for an unknown indication (in two cases, an unknown indication in addition to DMD). Sarepta has only obtained FDA approval for Exondys 51 in treating DMD, but physicians can prescribe drugs for off-label indications.</p>
<p>Leerink analyst Joseph Schwartz wrote a note to investors that was especially worth heeding. Schwartz said that the adverse events for Exondys 51 identified in the FAERS database "are generally expected outcomes of a progressive fatal disease like DMD." In other words, there really wasn't anything unexpected at all that some DMD patients would experience serious problems and even die. It's a horrible disease. But these cases don't mean that Exondys 51 is ineffective, nor do they mean the drug isn't safe.</p>
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<p>The likelihood that the Friday sell-off was an overreaction received confirmation on Monday with an analyst's vote of confidence in the stock. Morgan Stanley&#160;analyst Matthew Harrison <a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/story/sarepta-therapeutics-shares-surge-75-after-morgan-stanley-upgrade-2017-10-02-10912547?siteid=yhoof2&amp;yptr=yahoo" type="external">upgraded Sarepta to "overweight" Opens a New Window.</a> with a price target of $60 per share. That's a 25% premium to the current share price.</p>
<p>Harrison mentioned two factors behind his optimism about Sarepta. First, he thinks that Exondys 51 sales will top expectations when the biotech reports its next quarterly update. He pointed to encouraging results from a recent survey that show more patients taking the drug and slightly better reimbursement levels.</p>
<p>But Sarepta's future isn't limited to just Exondys 51. Harrison said that "Sarepta's underappreciated pipeline drives long-term optionality." The company's pipeline prospects <a href="https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/09/06/why-sarepta-therapeutics-stock-is-rising-today.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;uuid=09efb30e-a787-11e7-bdc5-0050569d4be0&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">enjoyed a boost recently Opens a New Window.</a> with Sarepta's encouraging results from a phase 1/2 study of&#160;golodirsen in treating DMD patients amenable to skipping exon 53. Harrison thinks Sarepta's chances of winning approval for golodirsen appear to be reasonably good.</p>
<p>Those results for golodirsen in treating exon 53 patients could also bode well for Sarepta's opportunity with exon 45. The company is also evaluating experimental drug SRP-4045 in a late-stage study for treating DMD patients amenable to skipping exon 45.</p>
<p>There are three upcoming events that mean a lot more to Sarepta than the FAERS data. First, the company <a href="https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/09/26/3-biotech-stocks-with-major-catalysts-in-october.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;uuid=09efb30e-a787-11e7-bdc5-0050569d4be0&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">presents more information on those golodirsen results Opens a New Window.</a> on October 7 at the&#160;World Muscle Society conference. Second, Sarepta is only a few weeks away from announcing its third-quarter results, which will show how much momentum Exondys 51 is picking up.</p>
<p>The third event relates to a potential competitor. An FDA advisory committee <a href="https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/09/29/the-unusual-reason-ptc-therapeutics-inc-is-bouncin.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;uuid=09efb30e-a787-11e7-bdc5-0050569d4be0&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">voted 10-1 against recommending approval Opens a New Window.</a> for PTC Therapeutics' (NASDAQ: PTCT) DMD drug Translarna. It seems highly likely that the FDA will turn down approval for Translarna and require more data. That would be good news for Sarepta, because the company would be able to enjoy its U.S. monopoly in DMD for a while longer.</p>
<p>10 stocks we like better than Sarepta TherapeuticsWhen 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=3795c454-8140-4972-9b62-50bfaf3677ed&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;uuid=09efb30e-a787-11e7-bdc5-0050569d4be0&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">10 best stocks Opens a New Window.</a> for investors to buy right now... and Sarepta Therapeutics 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/TMFFishBiz/info.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;uuid=09efb30e-a787-11e7-bdc5-0050569d4be0&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">Keith Speights Opens a New Window.</a> has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?&amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;uuid=09efb30e-a787-11e7-bdc5-0050569d4be0&amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> | Sarepta Therapeutics Stock Soars Despite Adverse Event Worries | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2017/10/03/sarepta-therapeutics-stock-soars-despite-adverse-event-worries.html | 2017-10-03 | 0 |
<p />
<p>This video shows Rudy Giuliani explaining his stance on guns to the NRA. He cites 9/11 as one of the reasons why he is changing his pro-gun control views.</p>
<p />
<p />
<p>Tim Grieve at <a href="http://www.salon.com/politics/war_room/2007/09/21/giuliani/index.html" type="external">War Room</a> asks the obvious questions: “Could the citizens of New York have stopped the attacks of 9/11 if they’d opened fire on those airplanes with handguns and hunting rifles? Should airline passengers be allowed to carry weapons on board?” I’ll add: does Rudy Giuliani think American citizens will soon be fighting terrorists in the streets of their hometowns? Is that what he envisions as the future of The Terrorists’ War on Us?</p>
<p>The easiest explanation for all this nonsense is that Giuliani is pandering, plain and simple. The more complex reason is that Giuliani’s experience on 9/11 made him overly paranoid about the world’s dangers and simultaneously hardened him to what is normal, sane, and good in the world. He now sees danger around every turn — primarily from Islamic terrorists but really from everyone, from everywhere, and at all times.</p>
<p>And, I’ll be perfectly honest, there is a portion of America that actually wants those qualities in a leader. This is the country in which we live, no?</p>
<p /> | Giuliani: 9/11 Changed My Views on Gun Control | true | https://motherjones.com/politics/2007/09/giuliani-911-changed-my-views-gun-control/ | 2007-09-24 | 4 |
<p />
<p>China's main stock indexes were largely unchanged on Tuesday, after data showed the country's inflation picked up to multi-year highs and reinforced a shift by Beijing to a more tighter policy stance.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>The blue-chip CSI300 index was unchanged at 3,435.80 points, while the Shanghai Composite Index was also flat at 3,217.93 points.</p>
<p>China's consumer inflation rate in January grew the most since May 2014 compared with the previous year, and its producer price index rose the fastest since August 2011, both beating market expectations and adding to signs of economic recovery.</p>
<p>Still, Capital Economics analysts cautioned in a research note that both indexes would peak soon and "hopes for a sustained reflation in China will be disappointed."</p>
<p>While higher inflationary impulse would reinforce a recent shift by authorities a to tighter policy stance, which is unfavorable for equities, any signs that demand-led inflation might peak also presents hurdles to riskier assets because of the negative implications for wider growth.</p>
<p>Major insurance stocks slid, with China Life shedding 1 percent, as insurance sector's premium income growth is expected to slow in 2017 on tighter regulations.</p>
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<p>Most sectors edged lower, while gains were led by material shares.</p>
<p>An index tracking major non-ferrous metals producers rose 1 percent to close at a 2-month high. The index was up for the 7th straight session.</p>
<p>Shares of Leshi Internet rose 3.7 percent, as Jia Yueting, founder and controlling shareholder of the company proposed awarding 20 new shares for every 10 shares held by all investors.</p>
<p>(Reporting by Luoyan Liu and John Ruwitch; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)</p> | China Shares Flat After Inflation Data | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2017/02/14/china-shares-flat-after-inflation-data.html | 2017-02-14 | 0 |
<p>A look at New York Stock Exchange 10 most-active stocks at 1 p.m.:</p>
<p>AT&amp;T Inc. rose 1.1 percent to $33.16 with 23,563,400 shares traded.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Bank of America Corp. fell 1.5 percent to $15.39 with 49,071,300 shares traded.</p>
<p>FXCM Inc. rose 3.8 percent to $2.47 with 12,822,600 shares traded.</p>
<p>Ford Motor Co. fell .7 percent to $14.60 with 18,732,600 shares traded.</p>
<p>Freeport McMoran Copper &amp; Gold Inc. fell 2.6 percent to $17.91 with 15,662,900 shares traded.</p>
<p>General Electric Co. fell 1.1 percent to $24.12 with 21,676,400 shares traded.</p>
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<p>Peabody Energy Corp. fell 1.8 percent to $6.13 with 17,520,400 shares traded.</p>
<p>Pfizer Inc. fell .9 percent to $32.30 with 14,355,500 shares traded.</p>
<p>Twitter Inc. fell 1.8 percent to $38.22 with 13,506,500 shares traded.</p>
<p>United States Steel Corp. rose 14.0 percent to $24.24 with 21,969,500 shares traded.</p> | New York Stock Exchange's 10 most active stocks at 1 p.m. | true | http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2014/12/26/new-york-stock-exchange-10-most-active-stocks-at-1-pm.html | 2016-03-06 | 0 |
<p>Supervalu ( <a href="/quote.html?stockTicker=SVU" type="external">SVU</a>), which was expected to report fourth-quarter earnings early Thursday morning, struck a deal with private equity firm Cerberus to sell its Albertsons chain for $100 million cash, Dow Jones Newswires reported.</p>
<p>Continue Reading Below</p>
<p>Cerberus will also reportedly offer to buy 30% of Supervalu at $4 per share.</p>
<p>Shares of Supervalu jumped 48 cents, or 15.79%, in pre-market trading Thursday.</p>
<p /> | Cerberus Strikes Deal for Albertsons, Offers to Buy 30% of Supervalu | true | http://foxbusiness.com/features/2013/01/10/cerberus-strikes-deal-for-albertsons-offers-to-buy-30-supervalu.html | 2013-01-10 | 0 |
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<p>Ford saw 23 percent growth in September, while Fiat Chrysler's U.S. sales jumped 14 percent, and General Motors climbed 12 percent.</p>
<p>Analysts expected most automakers to report strong results, partly because of the later holiday. Labor Day is typically one of the biggest sales weekends of the year as dealers hold model year-end clearance sales. Last year, it was counted as part of August sales. This year it's in September.</p>
<p>Kelly Blue Book forecast a 12 percent increase in sales from a year ago to 1.39 million cars and trucks.</p>
<p>The U.S. market has remained a bright spot for automakers as the Chinese economy slows. China is still the No. 1 market globally.</p>
<p>Ford Motor Co. said Thursday that it sold 221,599 vehicles last month, with its popular F-Series climbing 16 percent to more than 69,000 trucks. Under the Ford brand, Fusion sales rose 15 percent to nearly 25,000.</p>
<p>Fiat Chrysler sold more than 193,000 vehicles in what the company described as its best September since 2000.</p>
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<p>The carmaker said September Jeep sales rose 40 percent in the brand's third-best month ever. Jeep Cherokee sales climbed 38 percent to 20,224, while another popular brand, the Wrangler, rose 26 percent to 17,583.</p>
<p>Gains from the company's Jeep brands offset slower growth elsewhere. Sales for the company's Ram and Dodge brands climbed 4 percent and 3 percent, respectively.</p>
<p>General Motors Co. sold 251,310 vehicles in September. Total Chevrolet sales rose 11 percent, and the company said GMC's 24 percent increase represented its best September results since 2004.</p>
<p>"The economy still has room to grow and so do auto sales, particularly now that the (millennials) are entering the workforce and starting households," said GM's chief economist, Mustafa Mohatarem, in a statement from the company.</p>
<p>Shares of GM climbed 45 cents to $30.47 shortly after markets opened, while Ford rose 8 cents to $13.65. Meanwhile, broader markets slipped at the start of trading. U.S.-traded shares of Fiat Chrysler rose 19 cents to $13.40.</p> | US auto sales surge in September at Ford, Fiat Chrysler, GM | false | https://abqjournal.com/652031/fiat-chrysler-sales-jump-14-pct-amid-big-sector-expectations.html | 2015-10-01 | 2 |
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<p>As the eurozone's 19 finance ministers were meeting in Luxembourg to discuss the country's outlook, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras was set to submit his government's draft 2016 budget to parliament later Monday.</p>
<p>The budget will outline reforms required under the country's new three-year, 86 billion-euro ($96 billion) international bailout. Without delivering on its side of the bailout deal agreed in July, Greece would not be able to tap the bailout funds and once again face the prospect of bankruptcy and an exit from the euro.</p>
<p>"A lot of work has to be done," said Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the eurozone's top official. "It's in the Greek interest to deliver as quickly as possible."</p>
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<p>He said Greece must enact a chunk of its promised reforms before creditors can also start discussing how to lighten the country's debt load.</p>
<p>Greece has relied on bailout funds from its eurozone partners as well as the International Monetary Fund since the spring of 2010. Despite years of spending cuts and tax increases that were required in return for the bailouts, the country is still not in a position to meet its debt commitments on its own.</p>
<p>In return for the third bailout, which was negotiated after months of tortuous negotiations that saw Greece's banks shuttered for weeks and strict controls on money flows imposed, the Greek government has to deliver on a series of measures, such as sales taxes increases, labor market reforms and privatizations.</p>
<p>Pierre Moscovici, the European Commission's top economy official, said he's encouraged by Tsipras' recent pledges that his government will meet its promises.</p>
<p>"I am confident there is a common will to avoid a new drama, a new tragedy with Greece, but at the same time we must also be vigilant," Moscovici said arriving for the meeting in Luxembourg. "There is a positive dynamic in relations between the eurozone and Greece."</p>
<p>He said the key word for Greece is "implementation."</p>
<p>The Greek government is hoping that meeting its obligations will pave the way to some debt relief in the form of longer repayment periods and lower interest rates on its bailout loans. The most recent figures show Greece owed a little more than 300 billion euros at the end of the first quarter, which equates to just under 170 percent of its annual GDP.</p>
<p>The eurozone has said it will look at Greece's debt after the country clears the first review due under the terms of bailout agreement. Initially that was expected in October. The IMF has said Greece needs massive debt relief if it's going to lend the country more money. It has suggested doubling the grace period on Greece's loans from eurozone countries to 20 years and the subsequent repayment period to 40.</p>
<p>Because of Greece's general election last month, which saw Tsipras' left-wing Syriza retain power in coalition with the Independent Greeks, there are some concerns in the markets that Greece is behind schedule and that the first payments due from the bailout may be delayed.</p>
<p>However, finance ministers did not appear to be in a critical mood as they arrived for Monday's meeting.</p>
<p>"There are one or two points which are delayed by the elections," said Austrian Finance Minister Hans Joerg Schelling. "I believe Greece at the moment is on track, as far as the implementation goes."</p>
<p>And Wolfgang Schaeuble, the German finance minister who suggested earlier this year that Greece should be given a temporary opt-out from the euro currency, appeared conciliatory on his arrival at Monday's meeting.</p>
<p>"It's a little early to talk about delays. Rather, we will naturally await the first report and then we'll see," Schaeuble said.</p> | Greek creditors hopeful new government will deliver reforms | false | https://abqjournal.com/654611/greek-creditors-hopeful-new-government-will-deliver-reforms.html | 2 |
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<p>Investing.com – Crude oil jumped in Asia as industry estimates of US crude supplies offered solid support, but await confirmation from official data from the government later on Wednesday.</p>
<p>On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude futures for December delivery rose 1.46% to $57.66 a barrel, while on London’s Intercontinental Exchange, rose 0.57% to $63.06 a barrel.</p>
<p>The American Petroleum Institute (API) said Tuesday that US crude stocks fell by 6.356 million barrels last week. Analysts expected a 1.545 million barrels drop in crude stocks, while distillate stocks were seen down by 1.164 million barrels and gasoline inventories were expected up by 737,000 barrels.</p>
<p>The API data also showed a rise of 869,000 barrels in gasoline stockpiles, while inventories of distillates fell by 1.7 million barrels.</p>
<p>The estimates will be followed by official data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Wednesday.</p>
<p>Overnight, prices settled higher on Tuesday as traders weighed the prospect of an extension to the production-cut agreement against expectations of higher US output.</p>
<p>Oil prices pared some of Monday’s losses to settle higher amid expectations that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will agree to extend output curbs beyond the March 2018 deadline at its upcoming meeting on Nov 30.</p>
<p>In May, Opec producers agreed to extend production cuts for a period of nine months until March, but stuck to production cuts of 1.2 million bpd agreed in November last year.Some market participants, however, remained uncertain whether Russia will agree to extend output cuts for a prolonged period amid fears that major oil producers who are not part of the pact will ramp up output to gain market share.</p>
<p>Data last week showed U.S. oil producers – not part of the production-cut agreement – ramped up output to record levels, fuelling fears that rising US output will continue to undermine OPEC’s efforts to rebalance oil markets.</p>
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<p>Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.</p> | Crude Oil Jumps In Asia As API Estimates Show Major Draw | false | https://newsline.com/crude-oil-jumps-in-asia-as-api-estimates-show-major-draw/ | 2017-11-21 | 1 |
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<p>Then, as recently as April 1 and just as the spring outdoor recreation season was getting underway, the Forest Service took away trash bins and padlocked bathrooms in several of the same areas, which are used by thousands of New Mexicans on any given weekend.</p>
<p>Pointing to federal budget uncertainties, the Forest Service says it can’t afford to maintain the areas. Agency spokesmen also said they can’t cut budgets for some facilities while preserving full services in others.</p>
<p>Maybe so, but as Pecos-area residents and river enthusiasts also pointed out last week, the Forest Service has so far gotten only an 8 percent cut in funding, but has cut its the budget for operation and maintenance at recreation areas by 25 percent.</p>
<p>And while we understand in principle that applying budget cuts across the board is one way of lessening their impact on individuals, be they people or programs or recreation areas, that strategy ignores some real consequences of popularity and heavy use.</p>
<p>The Pecos River valley from the town all the way up to the wilderness boundary attracts tens of thousands of day-trippers every season. Two of the half-dozen or so Forest Service campgrounds along the river are the most heavily used in the state. Surely it makes better sense to maintain services for so many people even if it means cutting amenities in areas where fewer people venture.</p>
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<p>That said, it should be noted that trash — including human waste — has long been a problem along the Pecos. And shame on those who think nothing of throwing trash on the ground and worse. But in the last several years, local government, area businesses and just plain citizens have banded together in an effort to improve the situation.</p>
<p>And they have done so — the river is finally off the “impaired” waters list, due to septic tank and cesspool cleanup. Business have adopted stretches of river and highway to help control trash; the Forest Service’s trash barrels and potties have helped, too. Even the area’s legislators have gotten into the act — Santa Fe’s Rep. Lucky Varela, who grew up in Pecos, has tried several years running to get the upper Pecos River declared a state park, an effort he thinks can only increase the resources available to improve the area.</p>
<p>By pulling basic services along the Pecos, the Forest Service has robbed these community efforts of momentum, threatening to set the clean-up effort back at least five years.</p>
<p>And by applying its one-size-fits-all budget-cutting policy across the board, instead of evaluating individual programs, the agency deserves comparison with Congress, where across-the-board ideologues are likewise responsible for the ongoing budget war, the real root of the Pecos River’s latest problems.</p> | Don’t trash Pecos services | false | https://abqjournal.com/191149/dont-trash-pecos-services.html | 2013-04-21 | 2 |
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<p>Fred Eaglesmith is planning on making a new album once he gets off tour in March.</p>
<p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — There’s not enough time for anything extra. Just ask Fred Eaglesmith.</p>
<p>The alt-country singer has been on the road since his last album, “Tambourine,” was released in 2013. He’s been working on new music, but has to sort through it when he has some time off.</p>
<p>“I’m hoping to get through this inventory of songs in March,” he says during a recent phone interview. “I recently moved into a new house and I am in the process of getting a new home studio built.”</p>
<p>Because Eaglesmith is a songwriter, this affords him the means of writing in other genres of music. He says it’s important to push himself when it comes to writing and being able to dabble in other genres helps fuel his fire.</p>
<p>“I write, and the songs all go into the inventory,” he says. “When I’m ready to get material out for a new album, I’ll look at all the songs and see what captures the mood I’m in.”</p>
<p>Eaglesmith says he has two projects that he’d like to work on; it’s just a matter of carving out the time.</p>
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<p>“I like to keep moving forward with everything in my life,” he says. “It’s important for me to not feel like I’m standing still.”</p>
<p>As for his live show, Eaglesmith says he likes to keep it full of energy, though no one set is the same. He doesn’t keep a set list and says he will never do so.</p>
<p>“I like the element of surprise,” he says. “There are many times I’ve been surprised by the audience and that spills over into the energy that I have on stage.”</p>
<p>Eaglesmith says after years of touring, he still looks forward to how the audience responds to the set.</p>
<p>“Being on stage is what I’ve always wanted to do,” he says. “I’m fortunate to be able to get on stage and do what I love.”</p>
<p /> | Energy and surprises: Fred Eaglesmith brings his tour to The Cooperage | false | https://abqjournal.com/533657/albuquerque-altcountry-2.html | 2 |
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<p>Daiquan Fields, who has been charged in the girl's death in Arlington County, told investigators he left the girl, who has not been publicly identified, in a car the morning of April 20, after forgetting to drop her off with a babysitter.</p>
<p>For more than seven hours, the girl sat in her car seat in the warming vehicle as Fields, 32, spent the day at his girlfriend's Annandale home, eating a pizza and drinking a beer at one point, according to the search warrant filed in Fairfax County Circuit Court.</p>
<p>Fields, also of Annandale, told investigators he was thrown off because he had not followed his normal routine, which was to drop the girl off at a babysitter first and then take his girlfriend's two older children to school. Fields told investigators the eldest child was running late on April 20, so he dropped the eldest off first.</p>
<p>Fields returned to the girlfriend's home at 8:25 a.m., leaving the youngest girl in the car. Highs were in the 60s and Fields spent the day in the home, according to the search warrant.</p>
<p>Fields told investigators he got back in the car that afternoon to pick up his girlfriend, who worked at Macy's at Pentagon City. When he arrived there around 3:10 p.m., he noticed the girl in the back seat. He told investigators she was blue and fluid was coming out of her nose.</p>
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<p>Fields then called 911 and the girl was rushed to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead, according to the search warrant.</p>
<p>Fields told detectives he occasionally used marijuana, so they obtained a search warrant for blood samples, according to the search warrant. Police also searched the girlfriend's residence, recovering suspected marijuana, two pipes and other drug paraphernalia.</p>
<p>Fields has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and felony child neglect. A medical examiner could not determine whether the girl died in Fairfax or Arlington counties, so prosecutors in Arlington decided to take the case.</p>
<p>It could not immediately be determined which defense attorney is representing Fields.</p> | 2-year-old who died after being left in car had second-degree burns, Va. police say | false | https://abqjournal.com/763925/2-year-old-who-died-after-being-left-in-car-had-second-degree-burns-police-say.html | 2 |
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<p>South Korean prosecutors said on Thursday that they had raided the shipping safety watchdog as part of their expanded investigation following the fatal <a href="" type="internal">sinking of the Sewol ferry</a>.</p>
<p>The ship sank last week and more than 300 people, most of whom are students and teachers from the same school, have drowned or are missing presumed dead.</p>
<p>"The objective was to investigate malpractices and corruption in the entire shipping industry," Song In-taek, head deputy chief prosecutor at Incheon District Prosecution Service, told reporters.</p>
<p>A lawmaker claimed Wednesday that the ship was <a href="" type="internal">overloaded with more than three times its recommended weight of cargo</a>, and prosecutors are investigating whether the ship's operator, Chonghaejin Marine Co. Ltd., bribed government inspectors to give the vessel a clean safety certificate.</p>
<p>The raid of the watchdog took place on Wednesday when prosecutors also raided the home of Yoo Byung-un, the head of a family that owns the Chonghaejin Marine Co.</p>
<p>Financial watchdog and prosecutors are looking into the assets of Yoo's family for any possible embezzlement, prosecutors added.</p> | South Korea Ferry Watchdog Raided in Corruption Probe | false | http://nbcnews.com/storyline/south-korea-ferry-disaster/south-korea-ferry-watchdog-raided-corruption-probe-n88386 | 2014-04-24 | 3 |
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