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<p>According to an affidavit submitted by the two Baton Rouge police officers who shot Alton Sterling, Sterling <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/la-cops-shot-alton-sterling-claim-gun-butt-visible-article-1.2707940?cid=bitly" type="external">reached for a handgun</a>, which was visible in his front pocket, before the officers opened fire, killing him.</p> <p>The Advocate reports that the affidavit was one portion of a search warrant submitted by the Baton Rouge Police Department to retrieve surveillance video from the Triple S Food Mart.</p> <p>The affidavit states that Officers Blane Salamoni and Howie Lake II confronted Sterling, 37, at the store at roughly 12:30 a.m. on July 5. Sterling refused their order to place his hands on the hood of a car. The officers first used stun guns on Sterling because they "were attempting to subdue the subject," but then &#8220;observed the butt of a gun in (his) front pants pocket.</p> <p>The affidavit asserts that Sterling "attempted to reach for the gun from his pocket, the officers fired their police-issued duty weapon at the subject to stop the threat. The subject was shot multiple times."</p> <p>Meanwhile, Triple S owner Abdullah Muflahi alleged that police stole a surveillance tape from the store and locked him in his car for four hours. He <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/man-alton-sterling-death-sues-cops-stole-video-article-1.2707524" type="external">filed a lawsuit</a> against the police department. Muflahi stated:</p> <p>I felt like a criminal at the time, and there's one of the detectives that I knocked on the window and told him it was really hot and I asked if I could sit outside by the car. And he just got really angry and started saying &#8216;you need to chill the f--k out until we get this because we're handling something right now. It wasn't right and I shouldn't have been treated like I was the one who shot the guy. They didn't handcuff me or read me any rights. They just put me in the back of a car. The seat was really hot and it felt like I was sitting on hot coals.</p> <p>Joel Porter, Muflahi&#8217;s attorney, snapped, &#8220;Not only did Sterling lose his life but my client lost his liberty. They act like this is a police state, like it's North Korea, like they can do this without impunity. This was done in order to intimidate my client. They did not want him to tell the truth.&#8221;</p> <p>(Sterling) "attempted to reach for the gun from his pocket, the officers fired their police-issued duty weapon at the subject to stop the threat."</p> <p>Affidavit from Baton Rouge police officers who shot Alton Sterling</p> <p>Blue Lives Matter explains that it was quite possible Sterling was reaching for his gun when he was shot; their analysis can be seen <a href="http://bluelivesmatter.blue/second-alton-sterling-video-vindicates-cops/" type="external">here</a>.</p>

BREAKING: Louisiana Cops Say Alton Sterling Reached For His Gun, Gun Butt Was Visible

https://dailywire.com/news/7388/breaking-louisiana-cops-say-alton-sterling-reached-hank-berrien

2016-07-12

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p /> <p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. &#8212; &#9830; LOBO BASKETBALL fans want to know if &#8220;tryouts&#8221; for the team are held to decide who walks on and who gets a scholarship. Chris Perez has worked hard for the team for three years and should have been awarded the recently available scholarship.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>&#8212; Nando</p> <p>&#9830; HEY OS, What&#8217;s the problem with succeeding in life? How do you think Bryce Alford is able to score 40 points a game? He is able to put these numbers up because he works in the gym day in and day out. Just because he is the son of a wealthy man (who by the way has greatly excelled in his profession), doesn&#8217;t mean he shouldn&#8217;t be recognized. No one in the state of New Mexico has come even close to excelling like Bryce Alford is doing this season. I congratulate Bryce for EARNING his publicity this season and wish him luck in breaking the New Mexico records.</p> <p>&#8212; Boig</p> <p>&#9830; WELCOME BACK Demetrius&#8230; we&#8217;re gonna need you down the stretch.</p> <p>&#8212; UNM Alumnus</p> <p>&#9830; I&#8217;M ROOTING for new NMSU head football coach, Doug Martin. Coach Martin said the Aggies have unlimited potential. While technically true, it&#8217;s like saying Sarah Palin will say something intelligent. Both things are possible but what are the odds?</p> <p>&#8212; Larry the VOL</p> <p>&#9830; LAST WEEK&#8217;S attendance at the Lobo women&#8217;s San Diego State game was the 2nd highest of the year next to the $2 &#8220;Pack the Pit&#8221; promotion. The game did not conflict with the Lobo men&#8217;s game&#8230;It validates everything that numerous fans have been saying for years. Now if we can only get someone on S. University Blvd. to take a stand against the Mountain West Conference on behalf of the loyal UNM fans.</p> <p>&#8212; sw7 &#8212; This article appeared on page D6 of the Albuquerque Journal</p>

Sports Speak Up!

https://abqjournal.com/238825/sports-speak-up-123.html

<p>In response to an upcoming speech by Daily Wire editor-in-chief Ben Shapiro, a professor at California State University Los Angeles (CSULA) launched into a rant this week followed by threats of "macro-aggression."</p> <p>The event, which is titled &#8220;When Diversity Becomes a Problem,&#8221; is being hosted on campus by the Young America&#8217;s Foundation (YAF) on February 25. Amy Lutz, a YAF staff member, reports having encountered Professor Robert Weide at CSULA while she and a student were placing flyers for the event on a bulletin board in the hallway.</p> <p>Weide, as you might remember, had <a href="" type="internal">threatened to physically fight</a> students who had invited Shapiro to speak on campus, last month.</p> <p>Lutz reports being ordered by Weide to stand still as he immediately tore down her flyers and called campus security. He eventually told her she and the student could either leave or stay, but said that if they left he would "follow" them.</p> <p>Weide then called the students "fascists," holding them responsible for the "death threats" he'd received after his earlier threats to fight event supporters had made national news headlines.</p> <p>"It goes without saying that YAF does not condone the actions of anyone who has threatened Dr. Weide," Lutz <a href="http://www.yaf.org/entitled-professor-tries-to-stifle-free-speech.aspx" type="external">wrote</a>, in part alluding to Weide&#8217;s own previous threats. "In fact, we cannot condone the actions of <a href="http://www.yaf.org/update-csula-professor.aspx" type="external">anyone</a> who invites others to physically fight them simply for holding different views," she added.</p> <p>As Lutz and the student waited for campus security, Weide called a campus administrator and told her they were "intimidating him." Lutz describes being repeatedly asked for her personal identification information by the angry professor, whom the administrator had to keep asking to "calm down."</p> <p>Lutz humorously describes the moment</p> <p>"By this point, I was hoping campus security would arrive, as I didn't feel safe in Dr. Weide's presence," she said. "Many college students today want 'safe spaces' to protect them from 'scary' ideas. I wanted a literal safe space to protect us from Dr. Weide."</p> <p>Finally, the two were met by campus security and after being calmly asked to not post flyers on the bulletin board, sent on their way.</p> <p>The next day, the following quote signed by Weide was seen written on a white board on his office door:</p> <p>The best response to a micro-aggression is macro-aggression.</p> <p />

CSULA Professor Threatens to 'Macroagress' in Response to Ben Shapiro Lecture

https://dailywire.com/news/3514/csula-prof-threatens-macroagress-response-ben-pardes-seleh

2016-02-19

<p /> <p>Customer experiences have become a distinct economic offering that can make or break you. &amp;#160;Mere customer satisfaction is now a commodity consumers can get anywhere, and they expect no less. &amp;#160;If you want them to remember you and return, you must surprise and delight them.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>Recent findings are startling. &amp;#160;A customer experience rating of 4.8 out of 5 sounds pretty good, but Telefaction found that customers who think their experience rates a full 5 are six times more likely to return and buy more. &amp;#160;Similarly, Ipsos reports that customers you delight are five times more likely to give you repeat business than the ones you simply satisfy.</p> <p>And customer loyalty compounds the customer delight factor significantly. &amp;#160;According to a recent study by BIA/Kelsey and Manta, existing customers spend two-thirds more than new ones, while costing 10 times less.</p> <p>What it takes to delight customers with a memorable experience is a constantly moving target, but you need to start with three fundamentals:</p> <p>Market of one</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>First, you must personalize the experience for each customer.</p> <p>Technology-enabled personalization is driving more and more business into e-commerce channels, by making each customer the star of the show. &amp;#160;Products can be curated according to individual tastes and requirements, and customers can even concoct or design their own.</p> <p>Take Madison Reed, which uses web-based tutorials and mobile apps to provide an online hair assessment and come up with a personalized salon-quality hair coloring formula. &amp;#160;Or Gemvara, which uses a product configuration application to guide customers through the creation of a unique piece of jewelry.</p> <p>Such personalization makes customers feel special, and you can&#8217;t delight them without it. &amp;#160;Fortunately, technology can learn more and more about your customers&#8217; individual preferences and tastes as they continue to interact with you. &amp;#160;By combining customer analytics and social sentiment tools, you can refine and enrich your customer experiences with increasingly personalized touch-points.</p> <p>A frictionless experience</p> <p>To raise the customer experience bar, you must improve ease-of-use by removing all friction from customer interactions. &amp;#160;The underlying technology that delivers a delightful experience must be virtually invisible.</p> <p>In this age of instant gratification, you can&#8217;t expect customers to first learn how to use your applications. &amp;#160;In the Madison Reed and Gemvara examples, the product personalization technology is so transparent that customers can immediately focus on what they want: &amp;#160;the perfect hair color or custom jewelry item.</p> <p>In fact, a delightful customer experience completely masks your company&#8217;s complex ecosystem of departments, channels, systems and processes. &amp;#160;A customer should never have to provide duplicate information or go to any extra trouble. &amp;#160;Today&#8217;s technology can immediately consider the customer&#8217;s already stated preferences, activities and current location; factor in popularity ratings; and come up with the most appropriate offerings.</p> <p>For example, digital coupon marketplace RetailMeNot uses such aggregate intelligence to sift through available coupons and match the best ones up to customers. &amp;#160;A mobile app enhances non-virtual shopping by transparently tapping location information to offer consumers in-store coupons and promotions.</p> <p>Royal treatment</p> <p>Any delight triggered by your offerings will be thoroughly dissipated by slow or ineffective customer service. &amp;#160;Through a judicious and transparently integrated mix of technology and human expertise, you must give each customer the royal treatment.</p> <p>And improving customer service doesn&#8217;t have to mean hiring more warm bodies. &amp;#160;Technology is enhancing self-help features and transforming FAQs into personalized intelligence concierges. &amp;#160;The FAQ database is correlated to a customer&#8217;s tastes and purchasing history, so customers get more relevant answers.</p> <p>Similarly, always-on touch points, service-mapping intelligence and real-time contextual routing are some of the technologies that can multiply the effectiveness of customer service agents. &amp;#160;The agents have a constantly updated and enhanced view of individual specifications and needs, and customers don&#8217;t have to repeat information they have already communicated.</p> <p>For example, ZocDoc lets medical practices offload customer-service functions such as appointment management. &amp;#160;Cancellations by doctors can be ameliorated with a nice human-touch gesture, such as sending the patient an Amazon gift card.</p> <p>Maintaining a great experience is a continual effort, because today&#8217;s experience might become tomorrow&#8217;s commodity. &amp;#160;And we stop noticing what we&#8217;ve come to expect.</p> <p>However, even small incremental improvements&#8212;e.g., going from 4.8 to 5 out of 5&#8212;can make the difference between the expected and the delightful. &amp;#160;Surprising your customers with some unexpected extras can generate massive results in both brand awareness and bottom line.</p> <p>This article was written by Jeff Crowe, Managing Partner at NVP. With over 20 years of CEO and executive experience in technology companies, Jeff joined Norwest in 2004 and became managing partner in 2013. Jeff focuses on investments in the internet, consumer, and software arenas. In 2014, Jeff was named to the Forbes Midas List of tech's top investors. He currently serves on the boards of public company RetailMeNot (NASDAQ: SALE) and private companies AdChina, Badgeville, deCarta, Extole, Lending Club, Madison Reed, Owler, true[X] media and Turn. Jeff is also responsible for NVP's investments in Spotify and Lashou. Jeff&#8217;s past investments include Admeld (acquired by Google), Jigsaw (acquired by Salesforce.com), Nano-Tex (acquired by Crypton, Inc.), The Echo Nest (acquired by Spotify), Tuvox (acquired by West Interactive), and he was a board observer at Cast Iron Systems (acquired by IBM).</p> <p>Prior to Norwest, Jeff served as President, COO and board member of DoveBid, Inc., a privately held business auction firm, which expanded during his tenure via internal growth and acquisition from a $10M revenue run rate to a $120M revenue run rate with 400 employees.</p> <p>From 1990 to 1999, Jeff was co-founder, President, CEO and Board member of Edify Corporation, a venture backed enterprise software company focused on voice and internet e-commerce platforms and applications. Jeff was responsible for all strategic and operational activities at Edify as the company went from start-up in 1990 to $80M in revenue and 400 employees. Edify held its IPO in 1996 and was sold to S1 Corporation in 1999.</p>

Satisfied vs. Delighted: Raising the Customer Experience Bar

http://foxbusiness.com/features/2014/11/10/satisfied-vs-delighted-raising-customer-experience-bar.html

2016-04-07

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>Still, the head of the House&#8217;s tax-writing committee indicated that changes to the 401(k) structure may still be on the table as Republicans push an ambitious timetable to get tax legislation written. Asked about the issue, Ways and Means Committee Chair Rep. Kevin Brady said: &#8220;I don&#8217;t want to get ahead of the committee. That will all be part of the tax reform bill.&#8221;</p> <p>And in response to whether Trump&#8217;s tweet changes in any way what the panel was planning to do, Brady replied only, &#8220;no.&#8221;</p> <p>Republicans are scrambling to find new revenue sources to pay for anticipated tax cuts exceeding $1 trillion. A proposal to eliminate the widely-used federal deduction for state and local taxes has run into heavy opposition from GOP House members from high-tax states, threatening the enactment of tax legislation that Republicans deem essential to retaining their majority in next year&#8217;s elections.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Trump pledged in a tweet there will be &#8220;no change&#8221; to tax incentives for the 401(k) retirement programs.</p> <p>The No. 2 Republican in the Senate, Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas, said he&#8217;s &#8220;sympathetic&#8221; to Trump&#8217;s opposition to curbing 401(k)s because &#8220;we don&#8217;t want to discourage people from saving.&#8221;</p> <p>But he cautioned against ruling out ideas at this stage of the legislative process. &#8220;I do think we need to be careful because there are going to be a lot of different trial balloons, and what counts is how you put all this together,&#8221; Cornyn said.</p> <p>The plan crafted by Trump and Republican leaders calls for steep tax cuts for corporations and potentially individuals, a doubling of the standard deduction used by most Americans, shrinking the number of tax brackets from seven to three or four, and the repeal of inheritance taxes on multimillion-dollar estates. The child tax credit would be increased and the tax system would be simplified; most Americans would be able to file their income taxes on a postcard, according to the plan.</p> <p>Crucial details of the plan have yet to be worked out, notably what income levels would fit with each tax bracket.</p> <p>With the possibility of the state and local deduction being at least partly preserved, some Republican lawmakers were considering limiting the amount workers could save in 401(k) retirement accounts.</p> <p>&#8220;It was a trial balloon and it crashed,&#8221; said Brian Riedl, a senior fellow at the conservative Manhattan Institute. &#8220;They&#8217;re struggling to find legitimate offsets&#8221; for tax cuts.</p> <p>&#8220;Everyone has been promised they are going to be better off with tax reform and that&#8217;s really hard to do in a fiscally responsible way,&#8221; Riedl said.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Employees&#8217; earnings from defined-contribution retirement plans such as 401(k)s aren&#8217;t taxed until retirement; pay-ins by both employers and employees also receive tax-preferred status. That cost the government $82.7 billion in lost revenue in the recent budget year ending Sept. 30, 2016 &#8212; a potentially juicy target for Republican tax-cutters.</p> <p>With 55 million U.S. workers holding some $5 trillion in their 401(k) accounts, the plans have become a touchstone of retirement security for the middle class.</p> <p>&#8220;This has always been a great and popular middle class tax break that works, and it stays!&#8221; Trump tweeted. &#8220;There will be NO change to your 401(k).&#8221;</p> <p>Appearing with Ivanka Trump in Pennsylvania, U.S. Treasurer Jovita Carranza echoed the president, telling the audience the retirement plans &#8220;will not be touched.&#8221;</p> <p>Rep. Diane Black, R-Tenn., the chairman of the House Budget Committee, said of the Trump-rejected proposal on retirement plans: &#8220;There are still some dials that do have to be turned. This is a major effort and when you dial one thing you have to look at another.&#8221;</p> <p>House Republicans will be working to pass a budget this week so they can turn their attention to the tax overhaul. Trump warned Sunday that action on tax reform is crucial to avoiding political failure in 2018. He&#8217;ll work to rally support for the plan at the Capitol Tuesday at a lunch with Senate Republicans.</p> <p>Trump personally implored House GOP members on a conference call to swiftly adopt the budget that was passed last week by the Senate, with the hope of clearing the way for what he described as historic tax cuts.</p> <p>Trump told the lawmakers they were on the verge of doing something historic, according to one Republican official, who, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss publicly what was intended as a private update for members.</p> <p>Another GOP aide familiar with the conversation said Trump told the members again and again that the party would pay a steep price in next year&#8217;s midterm elections if it failed to pass his plan.</p> <p>The Senate last week passed a budget plan that includes rules that will allow Republicans to get tax legislation through the Senate without Democratic votes or fear of a Democratic filibuster. House Republicans signaled Friday they would simply accept the Senate plan to avoid any potential delay on the tax measure.</p> <p>Republicans are desperate to rack up a legislative win after a series of embarrassing failures despite the party controlling both chambers of Congress and the White House. Topping the list: their stalled attempts to pass legislation repealing and replacing &#8220;Obamacare.&#8221; If tax overhaul legislation doesn&#8217;t pass, many in the party fear a complete rout in 2018.</p> <p>___</p> <p>AP Congressional Correspondent Erica Werner and AP writers Jill Colvin, Alan Fram and Andrew Taylor contributed to this report.</p>

Trump shoots down retirement limit to pay for GOP tax cuts

https://abqjournal.com/1081771/trump-urges-house-gop-to-move-quickly-on-budget-tax-cuts.html

2017-10-23

<p>A gang of poachers killed 11 members of an elephant family on Saturday in <a href="http://www.kws.org/parks/parks_reserves/TENP.html" type="external">Kenya's Tsavo East National Park</a>, <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20944859" type="external">the BBC reported</a>.</p> <p>It is the single worst mass elephant shooting recorded in Kenya's history.</p> <p>GlobalPost Senior Correspondent in Kenya Tristan McConnell said&amp;#160; Kenya's elephant herds are among the best protected on the planet, making this recent slaughter &#8212; inside a national park &#8212; a grave concern for conservationists.</p> <p>"Leading animal protection experts are increasingly comparing the current situation to that in the 1970s and 80s before the world ban on the ivory trade was put in place when Africa's elephants were pushed to the brink of survival," McConnel said.</p> <p>The Kenya Wildlife Service <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/07/us-kenya-poaching-idUSBRE9060JD20130107" type="external">said in a statement</a>, &#8220;The entire family of 11 elephants have been confirmed poached and tusks chopped off. All the carcasses had bullet wounds."</p> <p>The wildlife group's spokesman, Paul Udo, told Reuters, "Shows the great lengths these criminal cartels are ready to go to get ivory. It's really tragic."</p> <p>In 1989 it became illegal to <a href="http://www.fws.gov/international/laws/aeca_fv.html" type="external">shoot an elephant for ivory</a>, but that hasn't stopped its trade. A loophole in the law permits the sale of ivory that came from elephants killed before the ban went into action. Today, ivory is still used in traditional medicines, home decor and even for chopsticks.&amp;#160;</p> <p><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20944859" type="external">T</a> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20944859" type="external">he BBC report</a> <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20944859" type="external">ed that</a>around 100 elephants are killed by poachers in Kenya every year.</p> <p>Ivory demand from Asia &#8212; especially in China &#8212; has recently increased. In October, authorities in Hong Kong seized a whopping four tons of illegal African ivory. The ivory had an estimated worth around $3.4 million when it was seized in shipping containers. The haul reportedly originated in Kenya and Tanzania, <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-20016650" type="external">according to the BBC.</a></p> <p>Rangers are currently searching for suspects in the latest slaughter.</p> <p>Last year, GlobalPost visited an elephant sanctuary in Maine. Learn more in the video below:</p> <p /> <p /> <p>Follow Tristan McConnell <a href="https://twitter.com/t_mcconnell" type="external">@t_mcconnell</a>, who contributed reporting.</p>

Elephant family slaughtered in Kenya

https://pri.org/stories/2013-01-08/elephant-family-slaughtered-kenya

2013-01-08

<p>MECHANICSVILLE &#8212; Bodenburg Butte Baptist Church is located in Palmer, Alaska, a town approximately 45 miles from Anchorage and 4,700 miles from Virginia. Last month a 14-member mission team led by Don Carter, a member of Hillcrest Baptist Church in Mechanicsville, traveled &#8220;way up North&#8221; to help this congregation construct an 800-sq. foot addition to its facility and refurbish its existing building.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>The mission team consisted of members from Hillcrest, Cool Spring and Black Creek Baptist churches in Mechanicsville, Mount Vernon Baptist in Glen Allen and St. Peter&#8217;s United Methodist in Montpelier. The connection between these churches and the one in Alaska was through a relationship fostered when Carter was on a mission trip to Venezuela.</p> <p /> <p>Two teams of 20 people from Oklahoma and North Carolina had preceded the group from Virginia. When they arrived on July 11 the addition which includes a new kitchen and fellowship hall had been framed and a metal roof installed. The Virginia team continued the project by installing siding, flooring, caulking and painting and installing doors.</p> <p>The team stayed at the InterAct Ministries Alaska Field Office camp, just outside Palmer. They awoke to temperatures in the 30s and 40s but were able to shed their coats when afternoon temperatures reached the upper 70s.</p> <p>Virginia team members attended worship at Bodenburg Butte Church. Carter says there were 40 or so people in attendance. But this is summertime in Alaska with only 4 hours of darkness each day. People are busy during the summer months doing what they are unable to do in bad winter weather. Attendance during the winter would likely be 80 to 100 members.</p> <p>When the team concluded its work each afternoon, they drove around the countryside. They found mountains, glaciers, lakes, forest and meadows. They saw moose, but luckily no bears. Four members took a boat cruise and spotted otters and seals and three whales blowing air and doing flips in the water.</p> <p>&#8220;On mission trips, someone is always touched as much if not more than the people we go to help,&#8221; says Carter. You receive a blessing knowing you&#8217;re using the skills God has given you to give back to others. The congregation in Palmer, Alaska, is thankful that God led Carter and the Virginia folks to their part of the world this summer.</p>

Baptists on mission in the 49th state

https://baptistnews.com/article/baptistsonmissioninthe49thstate-2/

<p>Race before country?</p> <p>Leave it to Whoopi Goldberg, co-host of ABC&#8217;s &#8220;The View,&#8221; to come to the defense of those who burn the American flag.</p> <p>On Wednesdays show, the ladies were discussing a tweet from President-elect Donald Trump that said those who burn the flag should face some penalty.</p> <p>Sounding a lot like Colin Kaepernick, the professional football player who refuses to stand during the playing of the national anthem before games, Whoopi suggested the flag does not fly for all Americans.</p> <p>&#8220;The flag does not always represent all of its people,&#8221; she declared. &#8220;All of its people were not taken care of under our flag.&#8221;</p> <p>Whoopi then justified the actions of those who set Old Glory ablaze.</p> <p>&#8220;People are angry,&#8221; she said. &#8220;They sometimes get angry and they burn the flag.&#8221;</p> <p>Goldberg took exception to co-host Paula Faris when she said that while people may have a right to burn the flag, many do so out of &#8220;hate&#8221; for America. Faris echoed what many Americans think when she added that they should &#8220;just leave.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;They don&#8217;t hate this country,&#8221; Whoopi chimed in. &#8220;Stop saying that.&#8221;</p> <p />

Whoopi outdoes her lib-self and defends flag burners: It doesn’t necessarily fly for all Americans

http://bizpacreview.com/2016/12/01/whoopi-outdoes-lib-self-defends-flag-burners-doesnt-necessarily-fly-americans-418524

2016-12-01

<p>The staff of the International Monetary Fund is recommending that China wait until at least October 2016 to join an exclusive club of the world's top currencies.</p> <p>China wants its currency, the yuan, included in a basket of currencies used in IMF operations along with the U.S. dollar, euro, British pound and Japanese yen. It was hoping the yuan could be added this Jan. 1. The IMF board will consider later this month the staff's recommendation for a delay until Oct. 1 of next year.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>China believes it deserves to be included because it boasts the world's second-biggest economy. But the yuan is not as widely used as the other four currencies.</p>

IMF staff recommends keeping current line-up of top currencies unchanged until October 2016

http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2015/08/04/imf-staff-recommends-keeping-current-line-up-top-currencies-unchanged-until.html

2016-03-05

<p>What a coincidence! The day that Cathie Black steps down as Chancellor of the NYC school system, an 11&#215;17 glossy booklet arrives in my mailbox - &#8220;Mike Bloomberg: Fighting for our kids.&#8221; Really? The message is loud and clear:</p> <p>Kind, benevolent Mike Bloomberg is fighting the good fight with those up-state Albany bureaucrats to get money into &#8220;our schools,&#8221; to help &#8220;our kids&#8221; - a real hero for the working person. Never mind that the whole, fancy flyer contained - along with the misleading information - a total of four sentences (and about five additional sentence fragments). That is all, I guess, they think a working person educated in today&#8217;s school system can handle.</p> <p>Who, then, are &#8220;our&#8221; kids, &#8220;our&#8221; schools? Did anyone think for even one moment that the billionaire Mayor chose Cathie Black to be Chancellor because he - or anyone - believed she&#8217;d do a good job managing a system she knew little or nothing about. Perhaps we all might have expected the media mogul to have a little more media savvy; we may have thought she&#8217;d last longer than three months - passed along because she could barely open her mouth without offending one or another of the traditional stakeholders of education: parents, teachers, administrators, students, or community members. Wasn&#8217;t Black the perfect choice for Bloomberg because of her great symbolic value in the campaign to change who the &#8220;we&#8221; are meant to be? Schools, in the 21st-century &#8220;Race to the Top&#8221; context, are businesses that need to be well-managed by people with good corporate sense; no educational qualifications, experience, or interest is required.</p> <p>Parents are consumers, with the charter movement framed in the rhetoric of parental &#8220;choice.&#8221; That the corporate model reduces these choices to shells of what community-based schooling for equity and democracy used to look like is really beside the point. Charters are managed from a business model (where public monies can more easily be diverted in contracts to the friends of the business &#8220;managers&#8221; - free from pesky rules about the way government funds can be spent).</p> <p>Students are the products - and their test scores are the basis by which to judge the quality of that product. Do you want a Grade A slice of meat? Those may cost a bit more, and may spend some time in college. A Grade D slice is cheaper and may be easier to hire faster and get rid of whenever you want - but how good of a job will they do? Principals, in most cases, are little more than middle management, with some local authority but with little power to significantly shift the direction of the system. And teachers in this model are little more than cogs in the machine, to be deployed where best utilized given an immediate need, and shifted to another site or assignment when need be. A fast turnover of new and energetic idealists is perfect for these high-priced, well-educated cogs. No one with any sense would choose this as a long-term profession, especially as the field is being de-professionalized and dumbed-down, with anything but respect being shown to those who have devoted their lives to making the country a better place through the development of critical thinking skills. Well-run education centers in the corporate business &#8220;reform&#8221; model neither need nor want public critics.</p> <p>I was born and raised in Brooklyn, and am raising my two children there as well, in some of the best public elementary schools in the country. So it is with some pride to note that Chris Owens, son of the legendary leader of the Congressional Black Caucus Major Owens, along with a representative of local Assemblyman Hakim Jeffries (also a parent, with his kids also in the public schools) were two leaders of the Deny Waiver Coalition. Their statement on Cathie Black&#8217;s resignation is telling. Though a &#8220;clear victory&#8221; for the parents and community members who campaigned against her initial assignment to the position for which she was so clearly unqualified, the Coalition statement implied that the real problem - mayoral control run amuck, with no accountability to anyone - had not been addressed. &#8220;Mayor Bloomberg&#8217;s political treatment of education,&#8221; they wrote, &#8220;is leading to disaster for our children.&#8221;</p> <p>Daniel Diver, writing for the London Guardian, makes the point clearly when he writes that the Black resignation is, at best, a minor set-back for the national movement for &#8220;reform&#8221; - re-forming a system intended to serve as the &#8220;great equalizer&#8221; between rich and poor, Black and white, into a system reminiscent of the pauper schools of 150 years ago. In those days, the rich sent their kids to the private boarding schools which Cathie Black and her children are so familiar with, and the rest of us got to fend for ourselves in schools designed to prepare children for factory jobs which don&#8217;t really exist anymore. &#8220;The school privatization movement is one of unparalleled genius,&#8221; states Diver. &#8220;It proposes free-market solutions to a problem created by the free market: wealthy tax-payers refusing to adequately fund poor people&#8217;s schools and a de-industrialized service economy that has eliminated good jobs for the working class?. The &#8216;shock doctrine&#8217; - Naomi Klein&#8217;s term for big business taking advantage of crisis to get its way - is the order of the day, from Wisconsin to the school house door.&#8221; The so-called reformers have, in fact, never been stronger.</p> <p>National Black Education Agenda activist Sam Anderson helps us to connect the dots from Cathie Black to new Chancellor Dennis Walcott, all the way back to Bloomberg. With his nine years as the Deputy Mayor, asking &#8220;how high?&#8221; whenever Bloomberg suggests he JUMP!, Walcott derives some &#8220;street credibility&#8221; based upon his years as a recent New York director of not-yet-defunct, old civil rights group the Urban League. Another Bloomberg buddy, Rev. Al Sharpton, has the job of selling Walcott to the grassroots, while also cozying up to President Obama&#8217;s education czar Arne Duncan. With a national election coming up, it is a win-win situation for Bloomberg and the reforming billionaires. &#8220;With a potential $2 billion re-election war chest,&#8221; Anderson notes, &#8220;Obama will need a few &#8216;acceptable&#8217; Black folk to - once again - convince U.S. educators to gather their collective strength and campaign and vote for this version of evil.&#8221; If, on the other hand, the Republican Party seems to be in a potentially winning position, &#8216;Sir Walcott&#8217; (as Anderson calls him) &#8220;is also their man.&#8221; Walcott will have eighteen months to work with them on their national education policies - truly a lose-lose situation for parents, teachers, and students.</p> <p>The prescient blog post by &#8220;Raging Horse&#8221; put it eloquently: Cathie Black&#8217;s tenure with the NYC Department of Education &#8220;perfectly embodied&#8221; the hubris of the reformers. The scolding arrogance which Black overtly displayed in all her dealings with the &#8216;huddled masses&#8217; were, as the blog suggested, &#8220;surreal, illuminating, and emancipating&#8221; moments. &#8220;They exposed the idiot logic guiding not merely Bloomberg but all the well-heeled narcissistic imbeciles whose imaginations are so paralyzed and egos so bloated that they believe to the core of their beings that corporate business people (like themselves) have somehow attained the highest form of human intelligence and therefore that all human institutions - libraries, hospitals, governments, schools, whatever - should be subordinated to the corporate business model.&#8221;</p> <p>Tom Engelhardt, a modern-day Tom Paine who (like Paine) seeks to water the liberty tree with common sense for common people using sharp writing and reporting skills, recently asked what it might feel like to be inside of an imperial super-power when it starts to fall into decline. Surely, in the field of teaching and learning, the machinations of the &#8220;education Mayor&#8221; (as Orwellian a concept as a Nobel peace prize winner who rains down cruise missiles on North Africa, the Middle East, and parts of Asia) must present some insight as to what &#8220;end times&#8221; for empire might portend. Oregon-based scholar Yong Zhao suggests, in his Race to Self Destruction, that &#8220;America may succeed in raising test scores but it will likely end up as a nation of great test takers in an intellectually barren land.&#8221;</p> <p>So what are we to do? Where can we find hope, and help to cushion the blows, so that when this empire ends, America can become a place committed to the ideals in which at least some of &#8220;We the People&#8221; believe: true democracy (the kind that isn&#8217;t just exercised once every four years); economic, social, and cultural justice for all; peace through an end to militarism; internationally recognized human rights and liberties. Since every empire in history has had its fall, the question is one of timing: when and not &#8220;if.&#8221; More to the point, questions about the end of this empire have more to do with &#8220;how soon&#8221; and &#8220;what can we do to push it towards a fast demise that will result in progressive ideals and not fascism.&#8221; Perhaps it will be through linking support for the burgeoning (but much-attacked) union movement with the peace studies community facing similar conditions under different circumstances? Or maybe we should take a page from the insightful playbook of master strategist Bayard Rustin, whose 100th birthday celebrations will be coming up in 2012.</p> <p>Rustin has gone down in history as the main organizer of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, which in turn has gone down in history as the &#8220;I Have a Dream&#8221; march. Putting aside for the moment that Rustin had a long history in the radical nonviolence movement for two decades before that massive, historic demonstration (he was actually on leave from the staff of the War Resisters League at the time), putting aside that Rustin has also recently been celebrated for his contributions as a Gay man to the modern LGBT movement, and putting aside the fact that the March was more than &#8220;I Have a Dream&#8221; (and Martin Luther King&#8217;s politics and glorious speech-making had three more years of amazing heights before he was cut down in his prime) - putting aside all that, does anyone remember what Rustin did immediately following the August 28 march?</p> <p>Always a coalition-builder, with a special interest in the ties between the teachers unions and the civil rights organizations, Rustin was at the center of the movement to push for racial justice within the New York City school system. Early in 1964, Rustin coordinated what he long felt was one of the most successful and dramatic moments of the movement: a Schools Boycott that saw no fewer than 450,000 students and families essentially shut down the city&#8217;s schools. Even some teachers stayed away, despite broad threats and few of the job protections which teachers now have but are quickly in danger of losing. Though the 1964 boycott appeared to have little immediate effect, it was just this type of widespread, radical organizing which made the sweep of the civil rights movement an irrepressible force in the years to come.</p> <p>Perhaps, as we celebrate democracy in the coming year with campaigns, primaries, and elections, we can take a moment to do some extra building of people-centered democratic action. Perhaps, as we get ready to commemorate anniversaries and birthdays, we can work to replicate some of the alliances and militant actions which inspired people then as they would today. Perhaps, as we experience the horror of expanded warfare and death, we can begin to imagine what a post-empire US might look like, and what we would need to do to build it. And, in New York and elsewhere, as the education &#8220;reformers&#8221; seem unstoppable - with their piles of money and their breathtaking bile - perhaps we can show the force of an organized and united community of stakeholders &#8220;yearning to breathe free.&#8221;</p> <p>Perhaps, just when it seems that all (or most) is lost, we can help spark a resurgence that makes the last great tide of resistance seem, in comparison, like a little ripple. Now wouldn&#8217;t that be a nice &#8220;coincidence&#8221;?</p> <p>Matt Meyer is an educator-activist, based in New York City, and serves as convener of the War Resisters International Africa Working Group. His recent books include Guns and Gandhi in Africa: Pan-African Insights on Nonviolence, Armed Struggle and Liberation (Africa World Press, 2000), the two-volume collection Seeds of New Hope: Pan African Peace Studies for the 21st Century (Africa World Press, 2008, 2010), and Let Freedom Ring: A Collection of Documents from the Movements to Free U. S. Political Prisoners (PM Press, 2008). Meyer is a contributing member of the Editorial Advisory Board for New Clear Vision.</p> <p /> <p /> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p /> <p />

End of Empire Education

https://counterpunch.org/2011/05/06/end-of-empire-education/

2011-05-06

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p>Terry Williams, 56. (APD)</p> <p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. &#8212; An Albuquerque man has been reported missing after his apartment was found ransacked early Wednesday morning, according&amp;#160;to a flier released by the Albuquerque Police Department&#8217;s Missing Persons Unit.</p> <p>Terry Williams, 56, was last seen leaving his girlfriend&#8217;s house at 9 p.m. Tuesday, according to police. Then, around 5 a.m. Wednesday&amp;#160;his alarm company called to let her know the alarm was going off in his apartment.</p> <p>Williams&#8217; girlfriend found his apartment in disarray with the alarm panel torn off the wall and security camera wires ripped out, according to police.</p> <p>His girlfriend told police the drawers had been pulled out of Williams&#8217; dresser and night table and items were scattered around the room. She said a revolver was missing along with a folder containing Williams&#8217; personal information.</p> <p>When police watched security footage they saw two people use keys to enter Williams&#8217; apartment one minute before his alarm went off.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Police say Williams has not been seen or heard from since, and his cell phone is going straight to voice mail.</p> <p>Williams is 5 feet 11 inches and 185 pounds with brown eyes and black hair. He drives a blue&amp;#160;2000 Cadillac DeVille with the New Mexico license plate 933RWL.</p> <p /> <p /> <p /> <p />

APD: Man reported missing, apartment ransacked

https://abqjournal.com/994659/albuquerque-man-reported-missing-after-apartment-ransacked.html

<p>Dog the Bounty Hunter is the latest celebrity wading into politics as the reality TV star spent a few days in Georgia at the end of July stumping for gubernatorial hopeful Michael Williams, <a href="http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/08/02/michael-williams-georgia-governor-race-dog-the-bounty-hunter-215447?lo=ap_e1" type="external">Politico Magazine reported Tuesday</a>.</p> <p>Dog, whose real name is Duane Chapman, filmed ads, made fundraising calls, delivered sermons, and also spoke at a hotel ballroom praising Williams during his time in Georgia. He was joined by his wife, Beth, who also starred on their long-running A&amp;amp;E show that ended in 2012, &#8220;Dog the Bounty Hunter.&#8221;</p> <p>Williams, an unknown in the open race, thinks having Chapman&#8217;s support will &#8220;convey law-and-order credibility to Republican primary voters,&#8221; said Politico. Lt. Gov. Casey Eagle and Secretary of State Brian Kemp are his two top opponents.</p> <p>Williams, a Pro-Trump loyalist and two-term state senator, entered the race in June. He&#8217;s a businessman who once owned a chain of Sport Clips barber shops and loaned his own campaign $1 million.</p> <p>&#8220;People want someone willing to take a stand for what they believe, someone who will relentlessly pursue fearless conservative reform,&#8221; he said in his announcement. &#8220;If you want more politics as usual, vote for my opponents. If you want fearless conservative reform, vote for Michael Williams.&#8221;</p> <p>Williams has stood out in the race for his bombastic actions. At the Republican convention in June, he said in his speech someone attempted to bribe him to give up his run, and days later, he attended a &#8220;March Against Sharia,&#8221; where <a href="http://politics.blog.ajc.com/2017/06/10/georgia-gop-candidate-poses-with-controversial-militia-at-anti-sharia-rally/" type="external">he appeared in a photo</a> with heavily armed members of an anti-government group during a rally.</p>

Ga. Gov. Hopeful Enlists Dog the Bounty Hunter's Help

https://newsline.com/ga-gov-hopeful-enlists-dog-the-bounty-hunters-help/

2017-08-02

<p>(Reuters) &#8211; U.S. toymaker Hasbro Inc (O:) has made a takeover approach for rival Mattel Inc (O:), the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.</p> <p>The approach was made recently, the WSJ said, citing one person. The terms of a potential deal could not be learned, the newspaper added, cautioning there could be no deal. (http://on.wsj.com/2yPm6PV)</p> <p>The two companies, which had a combined market value of about $16 billion as of Friday&#8217;s close, said they do not comment on rumors or speculation.</p> <p>Shares of Mattel, the maker of Barbie and Hot Wheels, jumped about 24 percent in after-hours trading. Hasbro, which makes Disney Princess Dolls and Nerf guns, rose about 3.3 percent.</p> <p>Mattel&#8217;s shares have slumped 47 percent this year, valuing the company at about $4.8 billion. Hasbro has a value of about $11 billion after a near 18 percent increase in its stock price in 2017.</p> <p>The report comes close on the heels of the bankruptcy of Toys&#8217;R&#8217;Us &#8211; a major outlet for toy sales &#8211; that piled more pressure on an industry already struggling with online competition and lackluster demand for traditional toys.</p> <p>Two weeks back, Mattel suspended its dividend and Chief Executive Margo Georgiadis, who took the job in January, warned the company would miss its full-year revenue forecast. Mattel&#8217;s stock fell to its lowest since 2009 that day.</p> <p>&#8220;Both companies would benefit from a merger, but Mattel stockholders might oppose a deal that values the company on its depressed stock price,&#8221; said Erik Gordon, a professor at the University of Michigan&#8217;s Ross School of Business.</p> <p>This is not the first time the two biggest U.S. toymakers have held talks about coming together.</p> <p>Hasbro had approached Mattel at least twice before, first in 1996 and then again sometime in late 2015, according to media reports. But a deal did not materialize on either occasion.</p> <p>Mattel has not been the only target of Hasbro, which is trying to diversify its revenue stream.</p> <p>Hasbro ended talks to acquire U.S. movie studio and entertainment company Lions Gate Entertainment Corp, Reuters reported in August.</p> <p>That deal would have given Hasbro a direct pipeline into Hollywood, with more movies and TV shows tied to its toy brands.</p> <p>In 2014, Hasbro held merger discussions with DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc, the studio behind &#8220;Shrek,&#8221; but DreamWorks was subsequently bought by Comcast Corp (O:).</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>

U.S. toymaker Hasbro makes takeover approach for Mattel: WSJ

https://newsline.com/u-s-toymaker-hasbro-makes-takeover-approach-for-mattel-wsj/

2017-11-10

<p>Imagine finding, at one table, the worst killer crooks you ever heard of: Jack the Ripper, Al Capone, Bonnie and Clyde, the Serial Killer, maybe the pirate Blackbeard, surely a cold-blooded terrorist or two. The very worst! No matter what bootleg Scotch, yo-ho-ho rum or speakeasy gin they&#8217;d offer, Mr. Normal Citizen would want to get out &#8211; fast!</p> <p>Lower the curtain, change the scene. The atmosphere in the government building in Berlin on August 2nd is fully different, not a bit of similarity. Those present, most in tailored apparel, sit in soft leather chairs and sip aromatic drinks from fine glassware. Who are they? Germany&#8217;s power people!</p> <p>Their subject matter, not nearly so pleasant as the furnishings, was set in motion by Volkswagen, or rather the innards of its diesel motored vehicles. It was vital enough; not only is VW the world&#8217;s biggest auto producer, this industry is most powerful in a country whose economic success depends on its reputation; strong, efficient German products, always safe and respectable! Like the furnishings and those meeting in this safe and respectable meeting room.</p> <p>What had occurred? As the Financial Times of London reported: &#8220;Up to 11 million vehicles worldwide were fitted with the &#8216;defeat devices&#8217; to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions &#8211; only when they were tested.&#8221; (January 11 2017) It has since turned out that VW was not alone in this planful cheating. So were its rivals, Daimler-Benz (Mercedes) and BMW as well as some suppliers.</p> <p>But who can distrust such illustrious names? How many dreams they recall, fulfilled or unfulfilled! Happily mated since 1926, Daimler and Benz have always appealed to aristocratic tastes with their beautiful Mercedes. Other wealthy customers preferred distinctive BMW cars. In terms of quantity, Volkswagen autos sold best but, depending on the size of wallets or portfolios, many turned to other brands in the Volkswagen stable &#8211; the elegant Porsche, long connected by marriage and money, or to Audi, SEAT, &#352;koda, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini or Ducati, all acquired branches of the VW empire.</p> <p>Only a few like me, blessed with long lives but burdened with long memories, have few gleaming dreams but rather bitter recollections on hearing those names. I know, for example, about the major owners of BMW, the Quandt family. Like daughter Susanne Klatten, with a fortune of $22.5 billion the richest person in Germany and probably, after Angela Merkel, the most influential. Her younger brother Stephan Quandt has only about $20 billion. Father Quandt, a major sponsor of the Nazi movement, provided the Wehrmacht with a substantial share of its weapons, making his fortune with thousands of concentration camp slaves, many so starved they ate material used to fill the batteries for military vehicles. Ms. Klatten herself is guilty of no such crimes, and can probably drive a car and a very good bargain but not a lathe or machine drill. But her pressure against cuts in air poisoning has been considerable, and so have been her company&#8217;s contributions to political parties deciding on such issues.</p> <p>Nor can I forget that during the Nazi era Daimler-Benz was owned by Friedrich Flick, a major financial backer of Hitler and a major profiteer of his war, when 40,000-60,000 hungry slave laborers contributed to his immense wealth, over 10,000 with their lives. Mildly sentenced after 1945 but pardoned in 1950, he became the richest, most powerful industrialist of them all. His son and heir was not known for any better morals; in the giant &#8220;Flick Affair&#8221; in 1983 it was found that the family had cheated the nation of almost a billion in taxes and bribed every key minister or politician to cover it up. Daimler-Benz, always close to the top, indicated its moral improvement by defying the UN boycott and selling military vehicles to the apartheid government in South Africa.</p> <p>Volkswagen was born with a scandal; founded by Hitler to provide German workers with a car &#8211; the &#8220;beetle&#8221; &#8211; it collected their money every month in advance but then switched to weapon-making before it had delivered one of them. Only after sixteen years of post-war litigation did the cheated &#8211; and surviving &#8211; workers get a small rebate for the lost money. VW also made a giant fortune by using 40,000 war prisoners, kidnapped workers from conquered areas and concentration camp prisoners.</p> <p>But those crimes all belong to the past; their perpetrators are long gone, replaced by new men.</p> <p>And their morals? Month for month more facts came out, VW was forced to retreat step for step, already agreeing to pay huge damages in the USA for its trick use of equipment which showed the permissible and advertised level of emissions during inspection, but switched to high gear air pollution as soon as it rolled away. Then it was discovered that this was the practice in nearly all diesel-fueled vehicles in Europe, not only VW and Porsche but their competitors Daimler-Benz and BMW in the same way.&amp;#160;&amp;#160;And then it was found that they were all in it together, not only with nitrogen oxides but in general planning and pricing, agreed upon in strictly forbidden cartel meetings and agreements &#8211; known familiarly as cahoots!</p> <p>Things still moved slowly. Then a lower court judge in Stuttgart ruled that Diesel vehicles which did not conform with legal emission limits could be barred from inner cities; health came first. This was earnest; if Stuttgart could do it, might not Munich, Hamburg or Berlin? Who would then buy banned vehicles?</p> <p>Something had to be done, so the &#8220;Diesel Forum&#8221; was called, with the Transportation Minister, the Environment Minister, the big corporations involved, the heads of some German states, a few organizational representatives but none of&amp;#160;&amp;#160;those hit by asthma, cancer or other victims.</p> <p>But this was at best a sticky field. How tough could they get? The minister president of Bavaria, a major player in the Christian party union with Angela Merkel, is hardly unaware of the huge BMW corporation in his state. The head of Baden-Wurttemberg is a Green (the only one in such a job) and his party should be especially alarmed about emissions. But his presidential palace is within yodeling distance of the main factories of both Daimler-Benz (with Mercedes) and Porsche, the main props of his economy (and he conspicuously uses a state Mercedes!). As for VW itself, 20% of it is owned by the state of Lower Saxony, whose government has thus far been in the hands of the Social Democrats (with a few Greens). How&amp;#160;&amp;#160;stern can they all get? Elections, due in eight weeks, are always expensive!</p> <p>The Environment Minister can be a bit difficult, but not the more important Transportation Minister, Alexander Dobrindt, a far-right politician from Bavaria who has made a name for himself in three matters; his sharp opposition to same-sex marriage, even sharper opposition to the LINKE (Left) Party, which he thinks must be carefully watched, or better yet, forbidden, and his listing by Greenpeace as one of 33 auto industry lobbyists. A few years ago he held his protective hand over illegal carbon dioxide emissions; now it&#8217;s nitrogen oxide from Diesels.</p> <p>At issue at the forum was how best to lower the poisonous emissions. Making necessary changes to about 5 million vehicles&#8217; hardware would be extremely expensive, up to 1500 euro apiece, a heavy charge. Changing only the software at 100 euros per vehicle would be far, far preferable! It would not nearly bring poison levels down to safe levels, but would cut less of the 10 and more million annual incomes of the carmakers &#8211; a small price for years of purposely, secretly deceiving testers, purchasers, laws, society and above all human beings, especially children, who as a result die earlier, not by walking the plank or falling in a hail of bullets, but in debilitating illness and earlier death.</p> <p>Some people protested, lowering a big banner from the roof of the Transportation Ministry, with a pun on the Nitrogen oxide formula, calling it &#8220;Fort NOx&#8221;. The unamused response was to move the forum to the less accessible Interior Ministry. Need one inquire which decision was reached? After all, money does not grow on trees &#8211; nor much else either if such people continue to have their way. The obvious escape was labeled &#8220;a compromise!&#8221;</p> <p>Was my opening comparison with notorious bad-man killers too harsh? Perhaps. After all, as Shakespeare&#8217;s Anthony once said about the killers of Julius Caesar: &#8220;So are they all, all honorable men!&#8221;</p>

Diesels and Honorable Men

https://counterpunch.org/2017/08/07/diesels-and-honorable-men/

2017-08-07

<p /> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p /> <p /> <p>Initiative 1491, according to supporters quoted by <a href="http://kimatv.com/news/local/gun-violence-survivors-speak-on-campaign-tour-for-initiative-1491-in-yakima" type="external">KIMA News</a> in Yakima, &#8220;is all about empowering families to prevent tragedies before they happen.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;Every year around 700 people in Washington die facing the barrel of a gun, and it pains me to know we could have done so much more to prevent every one of those deaths,&#8221; said Yakima Deputy Mayor Carmen Mendez during a Tuesday media event.</p> <p>But wait. According to the FBI Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) for 2013 and 2014, Mendez&#8217; estimate is way off base if she is talking about homicides involving firearms. In 2014, according to the <a href="https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2014/crime-in-the-u.s.-2014/tables/table-20" type="external">UCR, Washington saw only 94 of the 172 reported slayings</a>where a firearm was the weapon.</p> <p>If one goes to the state <a href="http://www.doh.wa.gov/DataandStatisticalReports/VitalStatisticsData/Death/DeathTablesbyTopic#Cause" type="external">Department of Health</a> (DOH) website and looks at some of the links (Tables E4, E6, E8 and E10), it might provide part of the answer. Once again, the gun prohibition lobby appears to be combining suicide and homicide data to inflate their numbers.</p> <p>So, what is &#8220;gun violence?&#8221; Is that different from &#8220;knife violence&#8221; because in 2014, more than two dozen murder victims in Washington were killed with &#8220;knives or cutting instruments,&#8221; according to the FBI crime data. Forty-two were killed with &#8220;other weapons&#8221; (i.e. blunt instruments) and 11 were killed with hands, fists or feet.</p> <p>According to the DOH, in 2014 there were 695 firearm-related deaths in Washington, of which 544 were suicides.</p> <p>Preventing suicides is a noble undertaking, but instead of an initiative that smacks of gun control, there is already an effort underway that was signed into law earlier this year by Gov. Jay Inslee. It was championed by Alan Gottlieb, founder and executive vice president of the Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation. Working with Assistant Prof. Jennifer Stuber, Ph.D. at the University of Washington School of Social Work, and State Rep. Tina Orwall, a Des Moines Democrat, they put together the Suicide Awareness and Prevention Education for Safer Homes Act. The National Rifle Association was also involved in that process, and this legislation passed while measures backed by local gun control groups did not.</p> <p>Simply taking someone&#8217;s guns is no guarantee they won&#8217;t find another means of suicide, either. In 2014, according to DOH data (Table E6) there were 1,111 suicides. This raises an important question for the gun prohibitionists behind I-1491: Is it more important to prevent a suicide or establish a means of taking away someone&#8217;s firearms?</p> <p>Opponents of the initiative have voiced concerns about due process, which is protected by the 5th and 14th amendments.</p> <p>A mental health activist named David Combs has <a href="http://Know1491.wordpress.com" type="external">posted on-line</a> an interesting perspective on I-1491 that should be required reading.</p> <p>Related:</p> <p>If you haven&#8217;t checked out and liked our <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ConservativeFiringLine?fref=ts" type="external">Facebook</a> page, please go <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ConservativeFiringLine?fref=ts" type="external">here</a> and do so.</p> <p>And if you&#8217;re as concerned about Facebook censorship as we are, go <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Banned-Facebook-Enables-Militant-Islamic/dp/1944212221/ref=zg_bsnr_16022651_1" type="external">here</a> and order this new book:</p>

Are proponents of Washington initiative using deceptive data?

http://conservativefiringline.com/proponents-washington-initiative-using-deceptive-data/

2016-09-14

<p>Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told the press on Monday that President Trump's visit to the Middle East has already begun to impact his views on Islam and Islamic culture.</p> <p>"I think the President&#8217;s views &#8212; like, we hope, the American people&#8217;s views &#8212; are going to continue to evolve," Tillerson told reporters during the flight from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to Tel Aviv, Israel on Monday ( <a href="" type="internal">a first of its kind</a>).</p> <p>"Nothing helps you learn and understand people better than coming to their homes, where they live and seeing them face to face, seeing their families, and seeing their communities," he said, according to <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/05/22/trumps-views-islam-continue-evolve-secretary-state-rex-tillerson-says/102004578/" type="external">USA Today</a>. "We all share the same wants and desires for ourselves and our people, and our families. We want our children to grow up without fear. That&#8217;s such a strongly held view around the world, certainly among the Muslim world certainly among the non-Muslim world."</p> <p>The president's trip to Saudi Arabia, said Tillerson, underscored the need to "to put a lot more effort" into understanding each other's "cultures" and "beliefs," and "talking more openly about those." The secretary of state added that he thinks "there&#8217;s a great deal that&#8217;s misunderstood about the Muslim world."</p> <p>Trump has been vociferously condemned by the left for his tough talk during the campaign on the threat of radical Islam and calls for a shut down of Muslim immigration into the country until a more responsible vetting system could be installed. However, Trump has generally earned praise for his <a href="" type="internal">strong yet measured speech</a> delivered in front of several dozen Muslim leaders in Riyadh on Sunday (video and transcript below). While the president called for the countries of the Middle East to "drive out" the extremists, he did so in a manner that even the left have found little to complain about, and most on the right are cheering as a welcome return to a more direct and bold America after President Obama's deferential posture on the world stage.</p> <p>"This is not a battle between different faiths, different sects, or different civilizations," said Trump. "This is a battle between barbaric criminals who seek to obliterate human life, and decent people of all religions who seek to protect it. This is a battle between good and evil."</p> <p>Trump forcefully condemned "Islamist extremism" &#8211; a term that many analysts have parsed as emphasizing ideology over religion, as opposed to "radical Islam" &#8211; and called for Islamic countries to confront it more aggressively.</p> <p>"Every time a terrorist murders an innocent person, and falsely invokes the name of God, it should be an insult to every person of faith," he said. "That means honestly confronting the crisis of Islamist extremism and the Islamist terror groups it inspires."</p> <p>"Drive them out!" he urged. "Drive them out of your places of worship, drive them out of your communities, drive them out of your Holy Land, and drive them out of this Earth!"</p> <p>Video and complete <a href="" type="internal">transcript</a> of Trump's Riyadh speech below:</p> <p>I want to thank King Salman for his extraordinary words, and the magnificent Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for hosting today&#8217;s summit. I am honored to be received by such gracious hosts. I have always heard about the splendor of your country and the kindness of your citizens, but words do not do justice to the grandeur of this remarkable place and the incredible hospitality you have shown us from the moment we arrived.</p> <p>You also hosted me in the treasured home of King Abdulaziz, the founder of the Kingdom who united your great people. Working alongside another beloved leader &#8211; American President Franklin Roosevelt &#8211; King Abdulaziz began the enduring partnership between our two countries. King Salman: your father would be so proud to see that you are continuing his legacy &#8211; and just as he opened the first chapter in our partnership, today we begin a new chapter that will bring lasting benefits to our citizens.</p> <p>Let me now also extend my deep and heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of the distinguished heads of state who made this journey here today. You greatly honor us with your presence, and I send the warmest regards from my country to yours. I know that our time together will bring many blessings to both your people and mine.</p> <p>I stand before you as a representative of the American People, to deliver a message of friendship and hope. That is why I chose to make my first foreign visit a trip to the heart of the Muslim world, to the nation that serves as custodian of the two holiest sites in the Islamic Faith.</p> <p>In my inaugural address to the American People, I pledged to strengthen America&#8217;s oldest friendships, and to build new partnerships in pursuit of peace. I also promised that America will not seek to impose our way of life on others, but to outstretch our hands in the spirit of cooperation and trust. Our vision is one of peace, security, and prosperity&#8212;in this region, and in the world. Our goal is a coalition of nations who share the aim of stamping out extremism and providing our children a hopeful future that does honor to God.</p> <p>And so this historic and unprecedented gathering of leaders&#8212;unique in the history of nations&#8212;is a symbol to the world of our shared resolve and our mutual respect. To the leaders and citizens of every country assembled here today, I want you to know that the United States is eager to form closer bonds of friendship, security, culture and commerce.</p> <p>For Americans, this is an exciting time. A new spirit of optimism is sweeping our country: in just a few months, we have created almost a million new jobs, added over 3 trillion dollars of new value, lifted the burdens on American industry, and made record investments in our military that will protect the safety of our people and enhance the security of our wonderful friends and allies &#8211; many of whom are here today.</p> <p>Now, there is even more blessed news I am pleased to share with you. My meetings with King Salman, the Crown Prince, and the Deputy Crown Prince, have been filled with great warmth, good will, and tremendous cooperation. Yesterday, we signed historic agreements with the Kingdom that will invest almost $400 billion in our two countries and create many thousands of jobs in America and Saudi Arabia.</p> <p>This landmark agreement includes the announcement of a $110 billion Saudi-funded defense purchase &#8211; and we will be sure to help our Saudi friends to get a good deal from our great American defense companies. This agreement will help the Saudi military to take a greater role in security operations.</p> <p>We have also started discussions with many of the countries present today on strengthening partnerships, and forming new ones, to advance security and stability across the Middle East and beyond.</p> <p>Later today, we will make history again with the opening of a new Global Center for Combating Extremist Ideology &#8211; located right here, in this central part of the Islamic World.</p> <p>This groundbreaking new center represents a clear declaration that Muslim-majority countries must take the lead in combatting radicalization, and I want to express our gratitude to King Salman for this strong demonstration of leadership.</p> <p>I have had the pleasure of welcoming several of the leaders present today to the White House, and I look forward to working with all of you.</p> <p>America is a sovereign nation and our first priority is always the safety and security of our citizens. We are not here to lecture&#8212;we are not here to tell other people how to live, what to do, who to be, or how to worship. Instead, we are here to offer partnership &#8211; based on shared interests and values &#8211; to pursue a better future for us all.</p> <p>Here at this summit we will discuss many interests we share together. But above all we must be united in pursuing the one goal that transcends every other consideration. That goal is to meet history&#8217;s great test&#8212;to conquer extremism and vanquish the forces of terrorism.</p> <p>Young Muslim boys and girls should be able to grow up free from fear, safe from violence, and innocent of hatred. And young Muslim men and women should have the chance to build a new era of prosperity for themselves and their peoples.</p> <p>With God&#8217;s help, this summit will mark the beginning of the end for those who practice terror and spread its vile creed. At the same time, we pray this special gathering may someday be remembered as the beginning of peace in the Middle East &#8211; and maybe, even all over the world.</p> <p>But this future can only be achieved through defeating terrorism and the ideology that drives it.</p> <p>Few nations have been spared its violent reach.</p> <p>America has suffered repeated barbaric attacks &#8211; from the atrocities of September 11th to the devastation of the Boston Bombing, to the horrible killings in San Bernardino and Orlando.</p> <p>The nations of Europe have also endured unspeakable horror. So too have the nations of Africa and even South America. India, Russia, China and Australia have been victims. But, in sheer numbers, the deadliest toll has been exacted on the innocent people of Arab, Muslim and Middle Eastern nations. They have borne the brunt of the killings and the worst of the destruction in this wave of fanatical violence.</p> <p>Some estimates hold that more than 95 percent of the victims of terrorism are themselves Muslim.</p> <p>We now face a humanitarian and security disaster in this region that is spreading across the planet. It is a tragedy of epic proportions. No description of the suffering and depravity can begin to capture its full measure. The true toll of ISIS, Al Qaeda, Hezbollah, Hamas, and so many others, must be counted not only in the number of dead. It must also be counted in generations of vanished dreams.</p> <p>The Middle East is rich with natural beauty, vibrant cultures, and massive amounts of historic treasures. It should increasingly become one of the great global centers of commerce and opportunity.</p> <p>This region should not be a place from which refugees flee, but to which newcomers flock. Saudi Arabia is home to the holiest sites in one of the world&#8217;s great faiths. Each year millions of Muslims come from around the world to Saudi Arabia to take part in the Hajj. In addition to ancient wonders, this country is also home to modern ones&#8212;including soaring achievements in architecture.</p> <p>Egypt was a thriving center of learning and achievement thousands of years before other parts of the world. The wonders of Giza, Luxor and Alexandria are proud monuments to that ancient heritage.</p> <p>All over the world, people dream of walking through the ruins of Petra in Jordan. Iraq was the cradle of civilization and is a land of natural beauty. And the United Arab Emirates has reached incredible heights with glass and steel, and turned earth and water into spectacular works of art.</p> <p>The entire region is at the center of the key shipping lanes of the Suez Canal, the Red Sea, and the Straits of Hormuz. The potential of this region has never been greater. 65 percent of its population is under the age of 30. Like all young men and women, they seek great futures to build, great national projects to join, and a place for their families to call home.</p> <p>But this untapped potential, this tremendous cause for optimism, is held at bay by bloodshed and terror. There can be no coexistence with this violence. There can be no tolerating it, no accepting it, no excusing it, and no ignoring it.</p> <p>Every time a terrorist murders an innocent person, and falsely invokes the name of God, it should be an insult to every person of faith. Terrorists do not worship God, they worship death.</p> <p>If we do not act against this organized terror, then we know what will happen. Terrorism&#8217;s devastation of life will continue to spread. Peaceful societies will become engulfed by violence. And the futures of many generations will be sadly squandered.</p> <p>If we do not stand in uniform condemnation of this killing&#8212;then not only will we be judged by our people, not only will we be judged by history, but we will be judged by God.</p> <p>This is not a battle between different faiths, different sects, or different civilizations. This is a battle between barbaric criminals who seek to obliterate human life, and decent people of all religions who seek to protect it. This is a battle between Good and Evil. When we see the scenes of destruction in the wake of terror, we see no signs that those murdered were Jewish or Christian, Shia or Sunni. When we look upon the streams of innocent blood soaked into the ancient ground, we cannot see the faith or sect or tribe of the victims &#8211; we see only that they were Children of God whose deaths are an insult to all that is holy.</p> <p>But we can only overcome this evil if the forces of good are united and strong &#8211; and if everyone in this room does their fair share and fulfills their part of the burden. Terrorism has spread across the world. But the path to peace begins right here, on this ancient soil, in this sacred land. America is prepared to stand with you &#8211; in pursuit of shared interests and common security.</p> <p>But the nations of the Middle East cannot wait for American power to crush this enemy for them. The nations of the Middle East will have to decide what kind of future they want for themselves, for their countries, and for their children.</p> <p>It is a choice between two futures &#8211; and it is a choice America CANNOT make for you. A better future is only possible if your nations drive out the terrorists and extremists. Drive. Them. Out.</p> <p>DRIVE THEM OUT of your places of worship. DRIVE THEM OUT of your communities. DRIVE THEM OUT of your holy land, and DRIVE THEM OUT OF THIS EARTH.</p> <p>For our part, America is committed to adjusting our strategies to meet evolving threats and new facts. We will discard those strategies that have not worked&#8212;and will apply new approaches informed by experience and judgment. We are adopting a Principled Realism, rooted in common values and shared interests.</p> <p>Our friends will never question our support, and our enemies will never doubt our determination. Our partnerships will advance security through stability, not through radical disruption. We will make decisions based on real-world outcomes &#8211; not inflexible ideology. We will be guided by the lessons of experience, not the confines of rigid thinking. And, wherever possible, we will seek gradual reforms &#8211; not sudden intervention. We must seek partners, not perfection&#8212;and to make allies of all who share our goals. Above all, America seeks peace &#8211; not war. Muslim nations must be willing to take on the burden, if we are going to defeat terrorism and send its wicked ideology into oblivion. The first task in this joint effort is for your nations to deny all territory to the foot soldiers of evil. Every country in the region has an absolute duty to ensure that terrorists find no sanctuary on their soil.</p> <p>Many are already making significant contributions to regional security: Jordanian pilots are crucial partners against ISIS in Syria and Iraq. Saudi Arabia and a regional coalition have taken strong action against Houthi militants in Yemen. The Lebanese Army is hunting ISIS operatives who try to infiltrate their territory. Emirati troops are supporting our Afghan partners. In Mosul, American troops are supporting Kurds, Sunnis and Shias fighting together for their homeland. Qatar, which hosts the U.S. Central Command, is a crucial strategic partner. Our longstanding partnership with Kuwait and Bahrain continue to enhance security in the region. And courageous Afghan soldiers are making tremendous sacrifices in the fight against the Taliban, and others, in the fight for their country.</p> <p>As we deny terrorist organizations control of territory and populations, we must also strip them of their access to funds. We must cut off the financial channels that let ISIS sell oil, let extremists pay their fighters, and help terrorists smuggle their reinforcements.</p> <p>I am proud to announce that the nations here today will be signing an agreement to prevent the financing of terrorism, called the Terrorist Financing Targeting Center &#8211; co-chaired by the United States and Saudi Arabia, and joined by every member of the Gulf Cooperation Council. It is another historic step in a day that will be long remembered.</p> <p>I also applaud the Gulf Cooperation Council for blocking funders from using their countries as a financial base for terror, and designating Hezbollah as a terrorist organization last year. Saudi Arabia also joined us this week in placing sanctions on one of the most senior leaders of Hezbollah.</p> <p>Of course, there is still much work to do.</p> <p>That means honestly confronting the crisis of Islamist extremism and the Islamist terror groups it inspires. And it means standing together against the murder of innocent Muslims, the oppression of women, the persecution of Jews, and the slaughter of Christians.</p> <p>Religious leaders must make this absolutely clear: Barbarism will deliver you no glory &#8211; piety to evil will bring you no dignity. If you choose the path of terror, your life will be empty, your life will be brief, and YOUR SOUL WILL BE CONDEMNED.</p> <p>And political leaders must speak out to affirm the same idea: heroes don&#8217;t kill innocents; they save them. Many nations here today have taken important steps to raise up that message. Saudi Arabia&#8217;s Vision for 2030 is an important and encouraging statement of tolerance, respect, empowering women, and economic development.</p> <p>The United Arab Emirates has also engaged in the battle for hearts and souls&#8212;and with the U.S., launched a center to counter the online spread of hate. Bahrain too is working to undermine recruitment and radicalism. I also applaud Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon for their role in hosting refugees. The surge of migrants and refugees leaving the Middle East depletes the human capital needed to build stable societies and economies. Instead of depriving this region of so much human potential, Middle Eastern countries can give young people hope for a brighter future in their home nations and regions.</p> <p>That means promoting the aspirations and dreams of all citizens who seek a better life &#8211; including women, children, and followers of all faiths. Numerous Arab and Islamic scholars have eloquently argued that protecting equality strengthens Arab and Muslim communities.</p> <p>For many centuries the Middle East has been home to Christians, Muslims and Jews living side-by-side. We must practice tolerance and respect for each other once again&#8212;and make this region a place where every man and woman, no matter their faith or ethnicity, can enjoy a life of dignity and hope.</p> <p>In that spirit, after concluding my visit in Riyadh, I will travel to Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and then to the Vatican &#8211; visiting many of the holiest places in the three Abrahamic Faiths. If these three faiths can join together in cooperation, then peace in this world is possible &#8211; including peace between Israelis and Palestinians. I will be meeting with both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.</p> <p>Starving terrorists of their territory, their funding, and the false allure of their craven ideology, will be the basis for defeating them. But no discussion of stamping out this threat would be complete without mentioning the government that gives terrorists all three&#8212;safe harbor, financial backing, and the social standing needed for recruitment. It is a regime that is responsible for so much instability in the region. I am speaking of course of Iran. From Lebanon to Iraq to Yemen, Iran funds, arms, and trains terrorists, militias, and other extremist groups that spread destruction and chaos across the region. For decades, Iran has fueled the fires of sectarian conflict and terror.</p> <p>It is a government that speaks openly of mass murder, vowing the destruction of Israel, death to America, and ruin for many leaders and nations in this room.</p> <p>Among Iran&#8217;s most tragic and destabilizing interventions have been in Syria. Bolstered by Iran, Assad has committed unspeakable crimes, and the United States has taken firm action in response to the use of banned chemical weapons by the Assad Regime &#8211; launching 59 tomahawk missiles at the Syrian air base from where that murderous attack originated.</p> <p>Responsible nations must work together to end the humanitarian crisis in Syria, eradicate ISIS, and restore stability to the region. The Iranian regime&#8217;s longest-suffering victims are its own people. Iran has a rich history and culture, but the people of Iran have endured hardship and despair under their leaders&#8217; reckless pursuit of conflict and terror.</p> <p>Until the Iranian regime is willing to be a partner for peace, all nations of conscience must work together to isolate Iran, deny it funding for terrorism, and pray for the day when the Iranian people have the just and righteous government they deserve. The decisions we make will affect countless lives.</p> <p>King Salman, I thank you for the creation of this great moment in history, and for your massive investment in America, its industry and its jobs. I also thank you for investing in the future of this part of the world.</p> <p>This fertile region has all the ingredients for extraordinary success &#8211; a rich history and culture, a young and vibrant people, a thriving spirit of enterprise. But you can only unlock this future if the citizens of the Middle East are freed from extremism, terror and violence. We in this room are the leaders of our peoples. They look to us for answers, and for action. And when we look back at their faces, behind every pair of eyes is a soul that yearns for justice.</p> <p>Today, billions of faces are now looking at us, waiting for us to act on the great question of our time.</p> <p>Will we be indifferent in the presence of evil? Will we protect our citizens from its violent ideology? Will we let its venom spread through our societies? Will we let it destroy the most holy sites on earth? If we do not confront this deadly terror, we know what the future will bring&#8212;more suffering and despair. But if we act&#8212;if we leave this magnificent room unified and determined to do what it takes to destroy the terror that threatens the world&#8212;then there is no limit to the great future our citizens will have.</p> <p>The birthplace of civilization is waiting to begin a new renaissance. Just imagine what tomorrow could bring.</p> <p>Glorious wonders of science, art, medicine and commerce to inspire humankind. Great cities built on the ruins of shattered towns. New jobs and industries that will lift up millions of people. Parents who no longer worry for their children, families who no longer mourn for their loved ones, and the faithful who finally worship without fear.</p> <p>These are the blessings of prosperity and peace. These are the desires that burn with a righteous flame in every human heart. And these are the just demands of our beloved peoples.</p> <p>I ask you to join me, to join together, to work together, and to FIGHT together&#8212; BECAUSE UNITED, WE WILL NOT FAIL.</p> <p>Thank you. God Bless You. God Bless Your Countries. And God Bless the United States of America.</p>

Tillerson: Trump's Views On Islam 'Continue To Evolve'

https://dailywire.com/news/16730/tillerson-trumps-views-islam-continue-evolve-james-barrett

2017-05-22

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>LAS CRUCES &#8212; Doug Martin said what coaches will say during a signing day press conference. His class announced Wednesday at least addressed some of the needs of a New Mexico State football team that finished 3-9 a year ago.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Then he said bluntly, &#8220;We are excited to have the four best high school players in New Mexico sign with us, including the player of the year in the state.&#8221;</p> <p>Bringing on Rio Rancho running back Josh Foley, Los Lunas linebacker Trevor Brohard, Mayfield receiver Gaven Swinson and O&#241;ate linebacker Matthew Young gave NMSU a little more to crow about on the heels of its win last season over the in-state rival Lobos.</p> <p>Martin said that even with a 25-player class, &#8220;we have a couple of options left &#8230; to find some guys late that maybe fall through the cracks or are late qualifying.&#8221; The Las Cruces Sun-News has reported, and Foley&#8217;s family has confirmed, that Foley is at least a candidate to be a &#8220;grayshirt,&#8221; which would delay admission until winter semester of 2018 and count toward next year&#8217;s signing group.</p> <p>NMSU has three such players that it announced Wednesday.</p> <p>In any case, Martin had compliments for Foley, the 5-foot-11, 200-pound state Gatorade player of the year, comparing him favorably to current Aggie running back Larry Rose III.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>&#8220;One of the things that was attractive about Josh was his diverse-ability,&#8221; said Martin, perhaps inventing a word. In the Aggies&#8217; offense, the running back has to be a receiver sometimes, and an I-back at others.</p> <p>&#8220;He has some ability to make people miss in space. That&#8217;s really big for us. That&#8217;s what Larry&#8217;s so good at.&#8221;</p> <p>Young, at 6-2 and 230 pounds, is the son of former Aggie great Fredd Young and brother of former New Mexico player Freddy. Martin&#8217;s point of reference on the father&#8217;s achievement is mostly word of mouth.</p> <p>&#8220;The big thing with (Fredd) was the speed, the first step that he had,&#8221; Martin said. &#8220;Matt has some of that too. Matt&#8217;s only going to get bigger too.&#8221;</p> <p>NMSU added nine prep signees and 13 junior-college transfers in addition to the three grayshirts. Of those, 10 players are already enrolled.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>The big focus is improving the defense, Martin said.</p> <p>&#8220;If we can just make some improvement defensively where we&#8217;re in the middle of the pack defensively in the Sun Belt, we really feel like we can beat anybody any Saturday,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We know we have weapons on offense.&#8221;</p> <p>BELOW ARE THE NMSU PLAYER PROFILES ON EACH AGGIE SIGNEE:</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Josh Adkins</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>6-2 | 210 | Freshman | Quarterback</p> <p>Spring Branch, Texas | Smithson Valley HS</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Three-year varsity starter&#8230; threw for a program leading 6,831 career yards&#8230; totaled 66 passing touchdowns in three seasons&#8230; rushed for 1,177 career yards&#8230; had 34 rushing touchdowns over three season&#8230; threw for a single-season record 2,985 yards and 28 touchdowns his junior year&#8230; ranks first in passing yards in program history&#8230; earned 2017 San Antonio Sports All Star Football Game MVP honors&#8230; was named 2016 San Antonio Express-News Areas Offensive Player of the Year&#8230; received 2016 Texas District 27-6A Offensive Player of the Year&#8230; got named 2nd Team All-Area, 2nd Team All-Area and Academic All-District in 2015&#8230; named 2014 All-District First-Team Offense and Academic All-District.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Trevor Brohard</p> <p>6-3 | 210 | Freshman | Linebacker</p> <p>Los Lunas, NM | Los Lunas HS</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Played three years on varsity&#8230; recorded 36 receptions for 799 yards and six touchdowns over three seasons&#8230; put up 45 rushing yards and one touchdown his senior year&#8230; recorded 188 tackles including seven for loss in 2016&#8230; posted 122 tackles his junior season and a career-best nine for loss&#8230; had 376 total tackles throughout his career&#8230; recorded four sacks with 20 yards for loss&#8230; had three interceptions over his junior and senior season&#8230; named to the All-District, All-Metro and All-State teams in 2016&#8230; chosen by USA Today as the All-USA New Mexico Defensive Player of the Year and First-Team Defense.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Marcus Buckley</p> <p>6-2 | 250 | Freshman | Defensive Lineman</p> <p>Weatherford, Texas | Weatherford HS</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>High School: Played three years of varsity football at Weatherford&#8230; made 27 tackles and had two fumble recoveries over eight games his senior year&#8230; recorded three sacks and four tackles for loss as well&#8230; made 14 catches for 124 yards in 2016&#8230; named to the 3-6A All-District Second-Team Offense and Second-Team Defense&#8230; a three-time district player of the week&#8230; also three-year varsity basketball player.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Josh Foley</p> <p>5-11 | 200 | Freshman | Running Back</p> <p>Rio Rancho, N.M. | Rio Rancho HS</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Played three years of varsity football at Rio Rancho&#8230; named the 2016-17 New Mexico Gatorade Player of the Year and totaled 2,086 rushing yards with 41 touchdowns his senior season&#8230; added 22 receptions for 352 yards and five touchdowns in 2016&#8230; won the 2016 6A High School Football State Championship&#8230; logged 1081 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns with 437 receiving yards and four touchdowns over nine games as a junior&#8230; finished his career with 20 tackles including three sacks for a loss of 25 yards&#8230; took an interception back 101 yards for a touchdown as a senior&#8230; was a four-year track and field varsity athlete&#8230; won back-to-back (2015-16) 6A State Championships in the 100-meter hurdle.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Jeremy Hodge</p> <p>6-2 | 210 | Freshman | Quarterback</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Plano, Texas |Parish Episcopal HS&amp;#160;</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: As a senior he led Parish Episcopal to score 40-plus points in eight of the team&#8217;s first nine games&#8230; named the 2016 TAPPS District 1-5A MVP&#8230; was First-Team All-District QB and TAPPS Second-Team All-State QB in 2016&#8230; earned Built Ford Tough Player of the Week honors as a senior&#8230; in 2015, Hodge completed 165-of-274 of his passes for 2,305 yards and 30 touchdowns&#8230;. rushed for 522 yards and seven scores&#8230; led the team to a 10-2 record his junior season&#8230; named Newcomer of the Year in 2015&#8230; also played varsity basketball.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Jaylon Mascorro</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>6-1 | 230 | Freshman | Linebacker</p> <p>Refugio, Texas | Refugio HS</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Played four years of varsity football&#8230; won the 2016 Texas High School 2A State Championship&#8230; compiled a 55-7 career record including 21-1 in district play&#8230; put up 1,777 rushing yards his senior season&#8230; made seven completions for 245 yards&#8230; had 10 receptions for 105 yards in 2016&#8230; won the inaugural Under Armour Quarterback Ranch Award for Texas Class 4A&#8230; played three season of varsity basketball.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Gaven Swinson</p> <p>6-3 | 200 | Freshman | Wide Receiver</p> <p>Las Cruces, NM | Mayfield HS</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Two year varsity starter&#8230; recorded 1,200 yards receiving for 11 touchdowns his junior season&#8230; was named first team all-district and first team all-state in 2015&#8230; had a season-long 56-yard touchdown reception against Rio Rancho his senior season&#8230; named to the 2016 New Mexico 6A All-State Second-Team Offense&#8230; was named to the 2016 All-USA New Mexico Second-Team Offense&#8230; competed in varsity basketball and track&#8230; was a 2015 district champion in 100 meter, 200 meter, 4&#215;100 meter and 4&#215;200 meter.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Xander Yarberough</p> <p>6-6 | 245 | Freshman | Tight End</p> <p>San Antonio, Texas | Roosevelt HS</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>High School: Was named second team all-district in 2016&#8230; recorded six receptions for 130 yards and two touchdowns his senior year&#8230; had a season-long 28-yard touchdown reception against the Judson Rockets in 2016&#8230; totaled 70 tackles including 7.5 sacks as a senior&#8230; made eight pass break-ups&#8230; posted 51 pancake blocks.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Matthew Young</p> <p>6-2 | 230 | Freshman | Linebacker</p> <p>Las Cruces, NM | Onate HS</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Played three years on varsity playing in a total of 34 games&#8230; recorded 85 solo tackles and 111 assisted tackles for a total of 196 tackles&#8230; recorded nine total sacks resulting in 36 yards for a loss&#8230; had one interception for seven yards his junior season&#8230; recovered one fumble his senior season&#8230; named to the 2016 USA Today All-USA New Mexico First-Team Defense.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Dylan Brown</p> <p>6-0 | 170 | Sophomore | Kicker</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Chandler, Ariz. | Phoenix College</p> <p>2016 (Phoenix College): Started in all 11 games&#8230; finished the season 10-12 on field goals&#8230; was 30-33 on extra points&#8230; recorded 60 total points for the Bears&#8230; booted a season-long 50-yard field goal against Mesa Community College&#8230; hit five field goals of 35-plus yards.</p> <p>High School: Started for two years on varsity&#8230; was 18-29 on field goals during his career&#8230; nailed a 48-yard field goal his senior season&#8230; hit a career-long 50 yard field goal in 2014&#8230; went 103-109 on extra points over two seasons&#8230; recorded a total of 157 points through his junior and senior year&#8230; had an average kickoff of 57.3 yards in his career&#8230; recorded a career-long 65-yard kickoff his junior season&#8230; named to the All-Arizona Division-I Second-Team Offense.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Kris&#8217;Sean Edwards</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>6-4 | 265 | Junior | Offensive Line</p> <p>Tulsa, Okla. | Northeastern Oklahoma A&amp;amp;M College</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Before NM State (NEO): Earned All-Southwest Junior College Football Conference Honorable Mention as a sophomore&#8230;blocking allowed running corps. to rush for 205.4 yards per game and 22 rumbles into the end zone&#8230;helped Norsemen rack up 5,294 yards of total offense his second year&#8230;his blocking on the offensive line helped NEO rush for 19 touchdowns.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>High School: Played two years of varsity football&#8230; led Union HS to consecutive 7-0 records in district play in 2013 and 2014&#8230; had an overall career record of 22-5&#8230; made back-to-back appearances in the Oklahoma Class 6A-I State Championship game&#8230; anchored a line that helped produce 2717 passing yards with 26 touchdowns his senior season&#8230; provided a run block that allowed the rushing attack to gain 3050 yards and 45 touchdowns in 2014&#8230; his line allowed the team to gain 3093 passing yards with 26 touchdowns in 2013&#8230; as a junior he was a part of a line that allowed for 2817 rushing yards and 50 touchdowns.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Lui Fa&#8217;amasino</p> <p>6-0 | 225 | Junior | Linebacker</p> <p>Anchorage, Alaska | Los Angeles Harbor</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2016 (Los Angeles Harbor): Started in nine games&#8230; finished second on the team with 79 tackles&#8230; led the team with 4.5 sacks&#8230; was the team-leader in tackles for loss with 12&#8230; grabbed one interception&#8230; recorded first 10 tackle game of the season against Bakersfield&#8230; posted a team leading 14 tackles and four sacks against Santa Monica&#8230; put up a career-high 17 tackles versus El Camino.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2015 (Los Angeles Harbor): Started in all 10 games&#8230; finished the season with 65 tackles&#8230; had one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries&#8230; caused three tackles for loss&#8230; had one interception&#8230; posted first 10 tackle game against Long Beach&#8230; led the team with 11 tackles versus El Camino&#8230; recorded a season-high 12 tackles against Mt. San Antonio.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>2014 (Idaho): Redshirted</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Fa&#8217;amasino carried the ball for 1,148 yards and 9 TDs during his senior season&#8230;was the only player to rush for over 1,000 yards and got named All-Conference RB in 2013&#8230; made 49 tackles during his senior season&#8230; had two fumble recoveries over eight games&#8230; led the Eagles to win the 2013 Alaska State Championship.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Davis Harker</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>6-3 | 315 | Junior | Offensive Line</p> <p>Tulsa, Okla. | Northeastern Oklahoma A&amp;amp;M College</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Before NM State (NEO): Earned All-Southwest Junior College Football Conference Honorable Mentions as a sophomore&#8230; blocking efforts allowed Northeastern Oklahoma A&amp;amp;M College rushing corp. to tally 2,054 yards on the ground &#8211; 1,600 of which came in conference play&#8230; guided running back Darwin Thompson to second-team honors with his blocking on the offensive line&#8230; also gave the Golden Horsemen&#8217;s quarterback enough time to pass for 3,240 yards on the year.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Three-year letter winner at Oklahoma state powerhouse Union High School&#8230; led UHS to two-straight district championships and back-to-back appearances in the Oklahoma High School Football State Championship game as a junior and senior&#8230; the Redskins went 32-8 overall during his time on varsity&amp;#160; and 20-1 in league play.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Komotay Koffie</p> <p>6-1 | 195 | Sophomore | Defensive Back</p> <p>Providence, R.I. | North Dakota State College of Science</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2016 (NDSCS): Led the Wildcats to the State Championship&#8230; posted 42 total tackles including three for loss&#8230; made one interception and nine pass break-ups</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2015 (Milford Academy): Recorded 14 tackles and one interception.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Started three years on varsity&#8230; had 18 carries for 131 yards and one touchdown in 2015&#8230; recorded 28 total tackles including one for loss as a senior&#8230; chosen to compete in the 2015 Border Bowl as a member of the Tennessee all-star team&#8230; competed for two years on varsity track and field.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Ron LaForce</p> <p>6-1 | 205 | Junior | Defensive Back</p> <p>Bayou La Batre, Ala. | College of the Sequoias</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Before NM State (COS): Earned 2016 all-state honors and All-Valley League defensive team honors as a sophomore after totaling 66 tackles (52 solo), five interceptions, 1.5 sacks and a fumble recovery&#8230; his 7.3 tackles per game in 2016 were good for fifth in the conference&#8230; his five picks tied for eighth-most in the California Community College Athletic Association.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Played at Alma Bryant High School for Bruce Breland with current Aggie, Connor Cramer&#8230; was a 2014 all-state defensive back as a senior and earned back-to-back all-region honors his junior and senior campaign.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Isaac McClain</p> <p>6-2 | 315 | Junior | Offensive Lineman</p> <p>Manteca, Calif. | Santa Barbara CC</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2016 (Santa Barbara CC): Led the offense to average 39.9 points&#8230; anchored a pass block that allowed the Vaqueros to throw for 2164 yards and 22 touchdowns&#8230; blocked for a rushing attack that totaled 2307 yards and 33 touchdowns&#8230; named to the First-Team All-Conference and First-Team California Region IV All-State</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2015 (Santa Barbara CC): During his first season he led the Vaqueros offense to 30.0 points per game&#8230; led a pass block that allowed Santa Barbara to throw for 2420 yards and 19 touchdowns&#8230; part of a run block that allowed the team to gain 1459 yards to go along with 20 touchdowns&#8230; earned First-Team All-Conference and First-Team California Region IV All-State honors</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Started for three years on varsity&#8230; helped the team to a 9-3 record his senior season&#8230; named to the First-Team All-Conference in 2013 and 2014&#8230; led the rushing attack to 3331 yards and 49 touchdowns in 2014&#8230; anchored the line on a team that threw for 1264 yards and 16 touchdowns&#8230; recorded 65 total tackles and 12 for loss during his career&#8230; had one fumble recovery.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Leon McQuaker</p> <p>6-3 | 215 | Junior | Linebacker</p> <p>Augusta, Ga. | Eastern Arizona College</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2016 (Eastern Arizona): Made a team leading 95 total tackles&#8230; had 2.5 sacks&#8230; recovered one fumble&#8230; helped lead the team to a 9-3 record&#8230; recorded 10+ tackles in five of the team&#8217;s final six games&#8230; recorded 12 tackles in a win over Pima CC&#8230; led the team with 15 tackles against Scottsdale CC&#8230; posted 12 tackles versus Snow College&#8230; recorded a season-high 16 tackles and two sacks against Phoenix College&#8230; put up 10 tackles in a win over Butler CC to close out the season.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2015 (Fort Valley State): Was second on the team with 55 total tackles&#8230; led the team with 5.0 sacks&#8230; made three pass break-ups&#8230; recorded a season-high 11 tackles in a 50-38 win over Lane College.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Anthony Nash</p> <p>5-11 | 200 | Junior | Defensive Back</p> <p>Elgin, Texas | Reedley College</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2016 (Reedley College): Started in 10 games&#8230; finished the season with 38 tackles including one sack for a nine yard loss&#8230; made four interceptions returned for 33 yards&#8230; totaled 492 kick return yards for an average of 24.6 per return with a long of 66.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2015 (Reedley College): Played in all 10&amp;#160; games his freshman season&#8230; made 16 tackles and had one fumble recovery&#8230; had three interceptions returned for a total of 15 yards&#8230; made seven kick returns for a total of 165 yards with a long of 35.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Two-year varsity starter&#8230; finished career with 94 tackles over 26 games&#8230; recorded 9 interceptions and made five fumble recoveries over his junior and senior seasons&#8230; over two seasons Nash made 30 receptions for 654 yards and eight touchdowns&#8230; completed a 12-yard touchdown pass as a senior&#8230; made six kickoff returns for 129 yards with a long of 83 as a senior.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Tim O&#8217;Donnell</p> <p>5-9 | 240 | Junior | Long Snapper</p> <p>Queensland, Australia | North Dakota State College of Science</p> <p>2016 (NDSCS): Part of a team that finished 9-2 and went to the state championship.</p> <p>High School: Captain of the National Champion All-State Rugby Team&#8230; named best forward in Rugby league two-times&#8230; two-time best back in rugby&#8230; two-time rugby scoring leader&#8230; named five-time MVP and was a five-time champion in rugby league&#8230; ranked No. 1 transfer long snapper in the nation according to Kohl&#8217;s Professional Camps after the latest senior challenge event.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Nakota Shepard-Creer</p> <p>6-2 | 205 | Sophomore | Defensive Back</p> <p>Vallejo, Calif. | Santa Barbara CC (Salesian Prep)</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2016 (Santa Barbara CC): Played in 10 games for the Vaqueros&#8230; posted 32 total tackles for the season&#8230; led the conference with four interceptions&#8230; had an 89-yard pick-six against Antelope Valley&#8230; recorded two blocked kicks against LA Southwest and Desert.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Billy Sharmoug</p> <p>6-2 | 315 | Junior | Offensive Lineman</p> <p>Manteca, Calif. | Santa Barbara CC</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2016 (Santa Barbara CC): Named to the 2016 All-APL second-team offense&#8230; led Santa Barbara City College to the 2016 APL championship&#8230; team threw for 2,164 yards and 22 touchdowns behind Sharmoug&#8230; anchored a run block that allowed the team to rush for 2,307 yards and 33 touchdowns.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2015 (Santa Barbara CC): Earned the offensive coaches award after the 2015-16 season&#8230; pass blocking allowed the Vaqueros to total 2,420 passing yards with 19 passing touchdowns&#8230; led a line that allowed the rushing attack to put up 1,459 yards and 20 touchdowns.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Three-year varsity starter&#8230; named to 1st Team All-Conference in 2011 and 2012&#8230; named 1st Team All-Area in 2011&#8230; earned 1st Team All-Area and 2nd Team All-Region in 2012&#8230; led the team to a win in the 2014 California State Championship.</p> <p>Jon Vogt</p> <p>6-3 | 310 | Junior | Offensive Lineman</p> <p>Canutillo, Texas | New Mexico Military Institute</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2016 (NMMI): Started as a sophomore&#8230; led a pass blocking unit that allowed the team to throw for 3,264 yards and 33 touchdowns&#8230; allowed the rushing attack to put up 1,318 yards with 16 touchdowns in nine games.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>2015 (NMMI): Anchored a line that allowed current Aggie quarterback Conner Cramer to throw for 2,682 yards and 26 touchdowns&#8230; led the way for a rushing attack that totaled 1,777 yards and 20 touchdowns over 11 games.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Two-year varsity starter&#8230; earned 1st Team All-Conference and 1st Team All-County as a senior&#8230; named First-Team All- Conference and First-Team All-County his junior year&#8230; led team to conference championship in 2013&#8230; team earned sectional championship title during 2013 season&#8230; starter on first team in school history to reach the regional championship in 2013.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Tevis Abraham (Gray Shirt)</p> <p>6-1 | 200 | Freshman | Wide Receiver</p> <p>Baton Rouge, La. | Southern Lab High School</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Led Southern Lab High School to the Louisiana Division IV State Championship his senior year&#8230; named second-team all-state for division IV and first-team all-district after guiding SLHS to the state championship&#8230; earned first-team all-state accolades after leading the Kittens to the state championship before falling in the finals as a junior&#8230; was a three-time state team champion in track and field&#8230; was a third-place finisher in the 400m as a senior and runner-up his junior season.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Cameron Matthews (Gray Shirt)</p> <p>6-3 | 210 | Freshman | Quarterback</p> <p>Crowley, Texas | Trinity Valley School</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Played at Trinity Valley School in Crowley, Texas under Aaron Mattox&#8230; named 2014 and 2015 All-Southwest Preparatory Conference Player of the Year&#8230; threw for 5,207 passing yards over career&#8230; racked up 33 passing touchdowns with the Trojans&#8230; completed 455-of-791 passes in three years for a 57.5-completion percentage&#8230; tallied three-straight years of 1,000-yards passing and a pair of 10-touchdown seasons&#8230; recorded 231 punting yards on eight punts through at TVS.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Bryce Roberts (Gray Shirt)</p> <p>6-4 | 240 | Freshman | Tight End</p> <p>Yukon, Okla. | Mustang High School</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>High School: Played at Mustang HS in Mustang, Okla., under Jeremy Dombek&#8230; ranked as the No. 41 overall prospect in the state by 247sports.com in 2015&#8230; was an all-district honoree as a tight end for MHS&#8230; selected as Honorable Mention Big All-City&#8230; started at power forward on basketball state champions team in 2014-15&#8230; played against fellow NM State signee, Davis Harker, in high school.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p>

Aggies’ Martin elated to sign “best four players in NM” (w/ video)

https://abqjournal.com/940985/aggies-martin-elated-to-sign-best-four-players-in-nm.html

<p>Donald Trump has the support of 37% of Utah voters in the latest Monmouth University poll, keeping his lead over Hillary Clinton in the state. The poll of likely voters, taken Oct. 30 to Nov. 2, showed Clinton with 31% support and independent candidate Evan McMullin in third place with 24%.</p> <p>Copyright &#169; 2016 MarketWatch, Inc.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p>

Trump Keeps Lead Over Clinton In New Utah Poll

http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/11/03/trump-keeps-lead-over-clinton-in-new-utah-poll.html

2016-11-03

<p /> <p>During <a href="" type="internal">oral arguments over the constitutionality of California&#8217;s ban on same-sex marriage</a>, Justice Samuel Alito&amp;#160;offered a novel reason not to find a constitutional right to same-sex marriage: It hasn&#8217;t been around that long.&amp;#160;</p> <p>&#8220;You want us to step in and render a decision based on an assessment of the effects of this institution which is newer than cellphones or the internet?&#8221; Alito said to Solicitor General Donald Verrilli Jr. &#8220;We do not have the ability to see the future.&#8221; The framers presumably left the &#8220;no ruling on things younger than cellphones or the internet&#8221; clause on the cutting room floor while they were putting together Article III of the US Constitution.</p> <p>As it happens, the mobile phone, <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8639590.stm" type="external">which was invented in 1973</a>, predates Alito&#8217;s bachelor&#8217;s degree, and the Internet dates back to the 1960s ( <a href="http://hnn.us/articles/when-was-internet-invented" type="external">although the World Wide Web came into being in 1993</a>). And Alito hasn&#8217;t always been so reluctant to rule on things &#8220;newer than cellphones or the internet.&#8221; Here are a few examples:</p> <p>Either restricting people&#8217;s fundamental rights based on sexual orientation is unconstitutional or it isn&#8217;t. This list is by no means exhaustive&#8212;it&#8217;s just a handful of cases in which Alito has been able to figure out how to interpret the Constitution without an egg timer.&amp;#160;</p> <p />

8 Things Justice Alito Has Ruled on That Are Newer Than Cellphones and the Internet

https://motherjones.com/politics/2013/03/eight-things-alito-has-ruled-are-younger-cell-phones-and-internet/

2013-03-28

<p>To avoid a government shutdown at the end of 2011, Republicans succeeded in <a href="" type="internal">their</a> <a href="" type="internal">campaign</a> <a href="" type="internal">to cut</a> <a href="" type="internal">the federal Pell Grant program</a> by effectively kicking up to <a href="" type="internal">100,000 low-income students</a> off the rolls.</p> <p>Last week, Arkansas constituent Kelly Eubanks, a college student who has two jobs and two children, confronted her Congressman, Rep. Steve Womack (R), at a town hall meeting over his attack on the program she now relies on. But instead of any explanation, Womack lashed out at Eubanks, telling her to pay her own way by &#8220;joining the military&#8221; like he did. After refusing to answer her question, he finally just asked her to &#8220;be quiet and listen.&#8221; Blue Arkansas <a href="http://bluearkansasblog.com/?p=8323" type="external">reports</a>:</p> <p>According to Kelly and a handful of other witnesses, Womack happily retorted that it wasn&#8217;t the federal government&#8217;s job to pay for education (he&#8217;s doing this in a college town mind you) and then quickly added that he paid for his education by joining the military, apparently suggesting that the mom of two do the same and totally oblivious I guess to the fact that it was, in fact, the federal government that paid for his education then. Well Womack tried to skirt the rest of Ms. Eubanks question and she proceeded to try and get him to address the discrepancy she pointed out. Well at this point, according to Kelly and several other people that were in the room, Womack blew a gasket.</p> <p>He skirted the rest of my question and I called him out on it.. he ended up getting pissed off.. and screaming at me.. &#8220;are you going to be quiet and listen&#8221;, [Eubanks said.]</p> <p>According to Kelly, some of his aides came up and tried to get the mike from her, but she held her ground and kept her cool, insisting her congressman answer her question.</p> <p>Watch KHBS news coverage of the town hall:</p> <p>The irony here, as Campus Progress&#8217; Emily Wood <a href="http://campusprogress.org/articles/representative_lashes_out_at_constituent_over_pell_grant_funding/" type="external">notes</a>, is that Womack actually attended college on taxpayer money by joining the National Guard. But instead of acknowledging that fact, he dodged the issue and had the mike taken away from Eubanks. Eubanks attended the town hall with the hopes of understanding Womack&#8217;s view. &#8220;I thought maybe meeting him and asking him why he&#8217;d vote to hurt students but protect Big Oil interests, face to face, would get me a real answer,&#8221; she told the Arkansas Times. &#8220;I really thought maybe he could explain it somehow. I did not think he was <a href="http://www.arktimes.com/ArkansasBlog/archives/2012/01/05/us-rep-womack-goes-ballistic-on-constituent" type="external">a heartless or arrogant person</a> going in to this, but I definitely do now.&#8221;</p>

GOP Rep. Berates Student Concerned About Pell Grant Cuts, Tells Her To Join The Military

http://thinkprogress.org/education/2012/01/13/404358/gop-rep-berates-student-pell/

2012-01-13

<p>CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) &#8212; Finding the perfect ingredients and recipe at Big Dam Pizza was never the problem.</p> <p>The struggle was finding boxes big enough to hold a 30-inch pie.</p> <p>So, the restaurant settled and reduced its pizzas to 28 inches when they found a box of that size.</p> <p>However, the slightly smaller size was possibly a better starting point.</p> <p>&#8220;Most people say we need a bigger door to get out,&#8221; said Morgan Gawronski, a manager at the restaurant. &#8220;Most people need bigger cars.&#8221;</p> <p>Once, Gawronski said a woman strapped a pizza to the roof of her car. Many customers have to move around seats or at least fit the box into the trunk.</p> <p>Ironically, the giant pies are delivered in a Prius, which only requires the back seat to be folded down, not a roof rack.</p> <p>Of course, the pizza could be eaten in-house, but if you forget to bring a team with you, even a slice to go might require an entire seat.</p> <p>Big Dam Pizza began as a play on words and the answer to Fayetteville&#8217;s need for a simple pizza shop, said owner Kellie Villenave.</p> <p>In addition to its Big Dam Pizza pies, the restaurant&#8217;s menu features &#8220;Big Dam Nachos&#8221; and &#8220;Big Dam Pepperoni Rolls.&#8221;</p> <p>One slice of pepperoni costs $5, while a whole pizza, which includes eight slices, costs $35.</p> <p>The shop&#8217;s logo features a slice of pizza serving as the side of a dam, with whitewater rushing down its edges.</p> <p>Villenave drew the design, inspired by the Summersville Dam.</p> <p>&#8220;This is a whitewater town and a lot of the whitewater starts at the dam,&#8221; said Villenave, a rafter herself.</p> <p>Many of her ingredients are sourced locally, she said. Her team makes each pie from scratch.</p> <p>&#8220;I had a general base because I&#8217;ve cooked my entire life,&#8221; Villenave said.</p> <p>She learned to cook from her grandmother, who inspired the pizza sauce recipe used in the restaurant.</p> <p>&#8220;She&#8217;s a homesteader, so we grew half of what we cooked,&#8221; she said. &#8220;From her, I learned the science of food. All it is is chemistry and love.&#8221;</p> <p>Even the dessert is local. In addition to its &#8220;Big Dam Apple Dumpling&#8221; and &#8220;Big Dam Cookies,&#8221; ice cream sold in the shop is made by Homestead Creamery, three hours away in Virginia, and the pies and cheesecake are made by a local woman.</p> <p>Villenave said the response from the community since Big Dam Pizza opened in late September has been &#8220;humbling.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;People come in when they&#8217;re not even hungry to make sure that we make it,&#8221; Villenave said.</p> <p>The restaurant skipped a soft opening and was forced to close early several times in its first week. Photos and videos on social media were not enough, people had to see and taste the giant pies for themselves.</p> <p>A ball of dough for each pizza weighs about 3 1/2 pounds. One pie requires about 11/2 pounds of cheese.</p> <p>&#8220;We accomplish it with really big ovens,&#8221; Villenave said.</p> <p>The oven, which could bake up to a 48-inch pizza, was found used in Morgantown. It was used to make bagels in its former life.</p> <p>One day, Villenave would like to use the oven to its full capacity, accomplishing a near 50-inch pizza.</p> <p>The crust of each pie is thin, with the exception of its thick, crisp edges. Gawronski compares it to New York-style pizza.</p> <p>&#8220;Go up to New York and you&#8217;re going to find something like this on every street corner &#8212; not at this size though,&#8221; Gawronski said.</p> <p>Besides the size, the pizza is also different from thin New York-style pizza because it isn&#8217;t hand-tossed.</p> <p>While some members are able to stretch it in a similar way, tossing the dough would be impossible to accomplish, Gawronski said.</p> <p>Gawronski had managed pizza shops for many years before moving from Philadelphia to help open the shop, which she heard about through a friend. She helped tweak Villenave&#8217;s recipe.</p> <p>&#8220;This is kind of a shop of friends,&#8221; Villenave said, when she introduced each team member.</p> <p>The staff is constantly trying new things and putting them on special. Like last week, when one chef created a pizza made with mashed potatoes.</p> <p>Each member of the staff took a bite, discussing what worked and what didn&#8217;t.</p> <p>The mashed potatoes were a &#8220;no&#8221; for everyone.</p> <p>&#8220;All of the staff here gets a lot of freedom,&#8221; Gawronski said.</p> <p>Villenave also works full-time as a telephone operator. She has had the job since she turned 18, 17 years ago. It provides her with health insurance, she said.</p> <p>However, eventually, she might need to gain an extra 40 hours a week to spend more time at Big Dam Pizza.</p> <p>She&#8217;d like to go even &#8220;bigger&#8221; one day, if possible.</p> <p>Big Dam Pizza is located at 190 South Court Street in Fayetteville. More information can be found at bigdampizza.com or on the Big Dam Pizza Facebook page.</p> <p>___</p> <p>Information from: The Charleston Gazette-Mail, <a href="http://wvgazettemail.com." type="external" /> <a href="http://wvgazettemail.com" type="external">http://wvgazettemail.com</a>.</p> <p>CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) &#8212; Finding the perfect ingredients and recipe at Big Dam Pizza was never the problem.</p> <p>The struggle was finding boxes big enough to hold a 30-inch pie.</p> <p>So, the restaurant settled and reduced its pizzas to 28 inches when they found a box of that size.</p> <p>However, the slightly smaller size was possibly a better starting point.</p> <p>&#8220;Most people say we need a bigger door to get out,&#8221; said Morgan Gawronski, a manager at the restaurant. &#8220;Most people need bigger cars.&#8221;</p> <p>Once, Gawronski said a woman strapped a pizza to the roof of her car. Many customers have to move around seats or at least fit the box into the trunk.</p> <p>Ironically, the giant pies are delivered in a Prius, which only requires the back seat to be folded down, not a roof rack.</p> <p>Of course, the pizza could be eaten in-house, but if you forget to bring a team with you, even a slice to go might require an entire seat.</p> <p>Big Dam Pizza began as a play on words and the answer to Fayetteville&#8217;s need for a simple pizza shop, said owner Kellie Villenave.</p> <p>In addition to its Big Dam Pizza pies, the restaurant&#8217;s menu features &#8220;Big Dam Nachos&#8221; and &#8220;Big Dam Pepperoni Rolls.&#8221;</p> <p>One slice of pepperoni costs $5, while a whole pizza, which includes eight slices, costs $35.</p> <p>The shop&#8217;s logo features a slice of pizza serving as the side of a dam, with whitewater rushing down its edges.</p> <p>Villenave drew the design, inspired by the Summersville Dam.</p> <p>&#8220;This is a whitewater town and a lot of the whitewater starts at the dam,&#8221; said Villenave, a rafter herself.</p> <p>Many of her ingredients are sourced locally, she said. Her team makes each pie from scratch.</p> <p>&#8220;I had a general base because I&#8217;ve cooked my entire life,&#8221; Villenave said.</p> <p>She learned to cook from her grandmother, who inspired the pizza sauce recipe used in the restaurant.</p> <p>&#8220;She&#8217;s a homesteader, so we grew half of what we cooked,&#8221; she said. &#8220;From her, I learned the science of food. All it is is chemistry and love.&#8221;</p> <p>Even the dessert is local. In addition to its &#8220;Big Dam Apple Dumpling&#8221; and &#8220;Big Dam Cookies,&#8221; ice cream sold in the shop is made by Homestead Creamery, three hours away in Virginia, and the pies and cheesecake are made by a local woman.</p> <p>Villenave said the response from the community since Big Dam Pizza opened in late September has been &#8220;humbling.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;People come in when they&#8217;re not even hungry to make sure that we make it,&#8221; Villenave said.</p> <p>The restaurant skipped a soft opening and was forced to close early several times in its first week. Photos and videos on social media were not enough, people had to see and taste the giant pies for themselves.</p> <p>A ball of dough for each pizza weighs about 3 1/2 pounds. One pie requires about 11/2 pounds of cheese.</p> <p>&#8220;We accomplish it with really big ovens,&#8221; Villenave said.</p> <p>The oven, which could bake up to a 48-inch pizza, was found used in Morgantown. It was used to make bagels in its former life.</p> <p>One day, Villenave would like to use the oven to its full capacity, accomplishing a near 50-inch pizza.</p> <p>The crust of each pie is thin, with the exception of its thick, crisp edges. Gawronski compares it to New York-style pizza.</p> <p>&#8220;Go up to New York and you&#8217;re going to find something like this on every street corner &#8212; not at this size though,&#8221; Gawronski said.</p> <p>Besides the size, the pizza is also different from thin New York-style pizza because it isn&#8217;t hand-tossed.</p> <p>While some members are able to stretch it in a similar way, tossing the dough would be impossible to accomplish, Gawronski said.</p> <p>Gawronski had managed pizza shops for many years before moving from Philadelphia to help open the shop, which she heard about through a friend. She helped tweak Villenave&#8217;s recipe.</p> <p>&#8220;This is kind of a shop of friends,&#8221; Villenave said, when she introduced each team member.</p> <p>The staff is constantly trying new things and putting them on special. Like last week, when one chef created a pizza made with mashed potatoes.</p> <p>Each member of the staff took a bite, discussing what worked and what didn&#8217;t.</p> <p>The mashed potatoes were a &#8220;no&#8221; for everyone.</p> <p>&#8220;All of the staff here gets a lot of freedom,&#8221; Gawronski said.</p> <p>Villenave also works full-time as a telephone operator. She has had the job since she turned 18, 17 years ago. It provides her with health insurance, she said.</p> <p>However, eventually, she might need to gain an extra 40 hours a week to spend more time at Big Dam Pizza.</p> <p>She&#8217;d like to go even &#8220;bigger&#8221; one day, if possible.</p> <p>Big Dam Pizza is located at 190 South Court Street in Fayetteville. More information can be found at bigdampizza.com or on the Big Dam Pizza Facebook page.</p> <p>___</p> <p>Information from: The Charleston Gazette-Mail, <a href="http://wvgazettemail.com." type="external" /> <a href="http://wvgazettemail.com" type="external">http://wvgazettemail.com</a>.</p>

Fayetteville restaurant thinking big with oversized pizza

https://apnews.com/dc628ea0e67b41e5878666998c302955

2017-12-31

<p /> <p>The treasure trove of new documents released Thursday revealing that scores of global banks pleaded for cash during the financial crisis from the <a href="" type="internal">Federal Reserve</a>&#8217;s discount window sheds new light on a central bank emergency program that had in the past carried a scarlet letter.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>Aimed at lending a helping hand to healthy banks in the midst of a short-term cash crunch, <a href="" type="internal">the Fed</a>&#8217;s discount window -- its oldest tool -- traditionally gave financial institutions a lender of last resorts. Solvent banks would put up credible collateral and receive a short-term loan at a slightly higher rate known as the discount rate.</p> <p>&#8220;The idea is that a discount window loan is supposed to tide over a bank that temporarily has problems accessing markets,&#8221; said Vincent Reinhart, a former senior Fed official and a scholar at the conservative American Enterprise Institute. &#8220;If you&#8217;re running short at the end of the day, the markets are very thin, you&#8217;re solvent, you go to the discount window.&#8221;</p> <p>Due to the negative stigma with having to come to the Fed for a loan, the identities of these banks are normally kept secret.</p> <p>However, the world&#8217;s most powerful central bank was forced to release a massive cache of documents on Thursday after a lengthy court battle between the Fed and FOX Business and Bloomberg News. The news networks argued the public had a right to know what banks received extraordinary assistance during the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression.</p> <p>Due to the panicky financial conditions created by the crisis, lending froze up, to the point where many institutions refused to lend to each other out of fear. That led to a sharp increase of banks -- not all of them healthy at the time -- forced to turn to the Fed&#8217;s discount window.</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>&#8220;In the financial crisis there were institutions that were certainly in dire straits, but had some dodgy collateral,&#8221; said Reinhart.</p> <p>All told, the Fed lent as much as $110 billion through its discount window during the depths of the financial crisis.</p> <p>&#8220;The Fed has always been portrayed as just pumping money to keep the banks up, but they took an enormous risk with that collateral,&#8221; said Charles Geisst, a finance professor at Manhattan College.</p> <p>The decision to open up the discount window to a wider variety of banks, many of them foreign, is a controversial one. Some argue the access to short-term loans caused moral hazard, meaning investors and banks have little incentive to avoid repeating the same risky decisions that led to the crisis.</p> <p>&#8220;If they didn&#8217;t, they were finished on the spot. There was no alternative," said Geisst.</p> <p>In particular, some have criticized the Fed allowing <a href="" type="internal">Bear Stearns</a> to be kept afloat by loans from the discount window, enabling its fire sale to <a href="" type="internal">JPMorgan Chase</a> (NYSE:JPM) in March 2008.</p> <p>&#8220;At a time of extreme crisis when everybody is having problems, emergency credit probably makes sense,&#8221; said Reinhart. &#8220;I would argue strongly against the extension of the discount window to Bear Stearns and JPMorgan. That was a serious mistake. They would have been better off letting Bear fail.&#8221;</p> <p>The Fed initially refused to reveal the names of banks that borrowed via the discount window, citing concern the disclosures could lead to a run on the banks. Indeed, the lending facility traditionally held a negative stigma during normal times.</p> <p>&#8220;You had to convince a [Federal] Reserve bank you really needed the funds. But if you really needed the funds, then why would any private sector party lend to you?&#8221; said Reinhart.</p> <p>However, the data revealed this week confirms almost everyone had to turn to the Fed during the financial crisis.</p> <p>&#8220;Gee, there really isn&#8217;t much stigma attached to being revealed from the window in October 2008 because everybody was in those circumstances,&#8221; said Reinhart.</p>

Demystifying the Fed's Secretive Discount Window

http://foxbusiness.com/features/2011/03/31/demystifying-feds-secretive-discount-window.html

2016-03-05

<p>Nine states have marijuana measures on the ballot this November, and chances are good that many will pass &#8212; giving pot advocates high hopes that the federal government will eventually lift its nationwide ban.</p> <p>In five states &#8212; Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts and Nevada &#8212; voters will decide on legalizing the recreational use of marijuana.</p> <p>In four others &#8212; Arkansas, Florida, Montana and North Dakota &#8212; voters will weigh in on medical marijuana, which is already legal in nearly half the country.</p> <p>As Election Day approaches, polls and research show rising support for marijuana legalization: 57 percent of U.S. adults say marijuana should be made legal, compared to just 32 percent a decade ago, found a <a href="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/10/12/support-for-marijuana-legalization-continues-to-rise/" type="external">Pew study</a> earlier this week.</p> <p>Supporters say the shift in attitude is in part thanks to successes in Colorado and Washington, the first states where voters approved recreational marijuana in 2014.</p> <p>"There's nothing more powerful when you're trying to affect social change than having examples out there that are actually working," Keith Stroup, founder and legal counsel at the nonprofit National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), told NBC News.</p> <p>Detractors' fears about the dangers of legalizing pot "simply haven't materialized," he added. "They can't really make those arguments effectively today because we have more than two years of a track record in Colorado and Washington."</p> <p>But Carla Lowe, founder of Citizens Against Legalizing Marijuana, called that "blatantly not true."</p> <p>"The increase of kids' use has gone up dramatically," she said. "Many of those kids get into drugs, gangs and crime ... The social costs have been identified."</p> <p>And marijuana still has a long way to go before it's accepted on the federal level. Just last week, the <a href="" type="internal">Drug Enforcement Administration denied a request</a> to change its classification from Schedule I -- the most restrictive class which also includes heroin, LSD and ecstasy -- to a category with fewer restrictions.</p> <p>Roger Morgan, founder and chairman of the anti-marijuana Take Back America Campaign, praised the DEA's move.</p> <p>"It's an illegal drug by federal standards for good reason," he told NBC News.</p> <p>The measures being voted on this year share many commonalities, namely that they would all legalize a limited amount of marijuana for individuals to possess (up to an ounce in most of the states) or grow (up to six plants in most of the states) for recreational use, and they have strict specifications on dispensing marijuana to patients for medical use.</p> <p>The Montana marijuana initiative differs in that it gives voters the chance to loosen restrictions on the current medical marijuana program in the state, as opposed to legalizing pot there in the first place.</p> <p>Out of all the measures, California's Proposition 64 is seen as the most crucial: Not only is California the largest, most populous state in the country, but many see it as a bellwether on the issue.</p> <p>Related: <a href="" type="internal">Battle Over Georgia's 'No-Buzz' Medical Marijuana Law Gets Personal</a></p> <p>"I think, without question, we are going to win California, and I really do believe that is the ultimate tipping point for this issue nationwide," Stroup said.</p> <p>Medicinal marijuana has been legal in California since 1996. A similar measure to Prop 64 to approve personal use of marijuana in California narrowly failed in 2010, but polls show that support now is hovering near 60 percent.</p> <p>Morgan, the marijuana opponent, said California's existing recreational pot laws have revealed the problems with legalization.</p> <p>"We already have over 50,000 illegal outdoor cultivation sites that are destroying our natural resources," he said. "The fertilizers and pesticides used are polluting the ground and the water table ... It's an environmental disaster, aside from the fact that today's high potency marijuana is extremely harmful [to users]."</p> <p>Related: <a href="" type="internal">First-Ever Marijuana Fair Opens in Oregon with Competition</a></p> <p>It's unclear whether the marijuana initiatives &#8212; long associated with a modest higher voter turnout in the past &#8212; will result in more people coming to the polls this year, or be advantageous to one party or the other, experts say.</p> <p>"Conventional wisdom for decades has been that there are certain issues that will increase voter turnout to benefit certain parties. Democrats have relied on marijuana measures for that purpose for a long time. They claim that they're very successful in that," Josh Altic, <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Main_Page" type="external">Ballotpedia's</a>director of ballot measures project, told NBC News.</p> <p>But there's conflicting data on whether that's actually true, he said. And this year, with support for marijuana legalization broadening among Americans as a whole, there may be little to no boost for either party.</p> <p>"I think it's safe to say that turnout will be higher because of having these issues on the ballot. I'm not as comfortable claiming that it's going to be a huge advantage for one party or the other," Altic said.</p>

These Nine States Will Vote on Legalizing Recreational and Medical Marijuana

http://nbcnews.com/storyline/legal-pot/these-nine-states-will-vote-legalizing-recreational-medical-marijuana-n665771

2016-10-15

<p>Former first lady Michelle Obama's healthy school lunch program was a disaster.</p> <p>So bad it even spawned its own Twitter hashtag:</p> <p>It wasn't long before President Trump and his administration rewrote the program, <a href="" type="internal">The</a> <a href="" type="internal">Daily Wire</a> reported last month.</p> <p>But Michelle is apparently angry about the criticism that the program, enacted in 2010, received. During an event on Friday, the Partnership for a Healthier American 2017 Healthier Future Summit, she complained that critics were just being &#8220;partisan&#8221; when they said the regulations on school lunch programs were leading to some pretty horrible meals.</p> <p>&#8220;So we have a lot more work to do for sure but we got to make sure we don&#8217;t let anybody take us back. Because the question is where are we going back to? I mean this is where you really have to look at motives. You have to stop and think, why don&#8217;t you want our kids to have good food at school?" said the angry first lady.</p> <p>&#8220;What is wrong with you? And why is that a partisan issue? Why would that be political? What is going on? Now that is up to moms. I&#8217;m talking to moms, think about this, take me out of the equation, like me, don&#8217;t like me, but think about why someone is OK with your kids eating crap? Why would you celebrate that? Why would you sit idly and be okay with that?</p> <p>"'Cause here&#8217;s the secret, If somebody is doing that, they don&#8217;t care about your kids. And we need to demand everyone to care deeply about our kids.&#8221;</p> <p>Yes, in the liberal utopia, it takes a village to raise your kids &#8212; and the government is there to make sure everything is perfect.</p> <p>Or maybe, just maybe, we should let local jurisdictions decide how to help parents &#8212; and make sure the federal government never gets involved in school lunch programs again. Just a thought.</p>

Michelle Goes Ballistic Over Criticism of Her School Lunch Program

https://dailywire.com/news/16412/michelle-goes-ballistic-over-criticism-her-school-joseph-curl

2017-05-14

<p>Islamabad.</p> <p>There is an essential condition in the European Union&#8217;s charter of union according to which the under-developed countries of Europe that joined the EU allowed free movement of goods (free trade) only on the reciprocal condition that the developed countries would allow the free movement of labor.</p> <p>What&#8217;s obvious in this condition is the fact that free trade only benefits the countries that have a strong manufacturing base; and free movement of workers only favors the under-developed countries where labor is cheap.</p> <p>While joining the EU, Britain compromised on the rights of its working class in order to protect the interests of the industrialists, because free trade with the rest of the EU countries spurred British exports.</p> <p>I am of the opinion that the British working classes must have overwhelmingly voted in favor of Brexit, because after Britain&#8217;s entry into EU and when the Schengen Agreement on abolishing the internal border checks among the EU member states became effective in 1995, the cheaper labor force of Eastern Europe flooded the markets of Western Europe; and consequently the wages of indigenous British labor force dropped and it also became difficult for them to find jobs because the foreigners were willing to do the same job for lesser pay, hence raising the level of unemployment among the British workers and consequent discontentment with the EU.</p> <p>The biggest incentive for the British working class to vote for Brexit is that the East European workers will have to leave Britain after its exit from the EU, and the jobs will once again become available with better wages to the indigenous workforce.</p> <p>Keeping in view the principle of reciprocity enshrined in the EU&#8217;s Charter that free trade should be made contingent upon the free movement of labor, now, when the international financial institutions, like the IMF and WTO, promote free trade by exhorting the developing countries all over the world to reduce tariffs and subsidies without the reciprocal free movement of labor, whose interests do such institutions try to protect? Obviously, such global financial institutions espouse the interests of their biggest donors by shares, i.e. the developed countries.</p> <p>Some market fundamentalists who irrationally believe in the laissez-faire capitalism try to justify this unfair practice by positing Schumpeter&#8217;s theory of &#8216;creative destruction&#8217; that the free trade between unequal trade partners leads to the destruction of the host country&#8217;s existing economic order and a subsequent reconfiguration, somehow, gives birth to a better economic order.</p> <p>Whenever one comes up with gross absurdities such proportions, they should always make it contingent on the principle of reciprocity: that is, if free trade is beneficial for the nascent industrial base of the underdeveloped countries, then the free movement of labor is equally beneficial for the working classes of the developed countries.</p> <p>The policy makers of the developing countries must not fall prey to such deceptive arguments, instead, they must formulate policies which suit the interests of their working classes. The only trouble is that the governments of the Third World are dependent on foreign investment and the global loan sharks, that&#8217;s why, they cannot adopt an independent economic and trade policy.</p> <p>The so-called &#8220;multinational&#8221; corporations based in the Western financial districts make profits from the consumer markets all over the world and pay a share of those profits to their respective governments as bribes in the form of taxes. Every balance of trade deficit due to the lack of strong manufacturing base makes the developing nations poorer, and every balance of trade surplus further adds to the already immense fortune of the developed world.</p> <p>A single large multinational corporation owns more assets than the total GDP of many developing nations. Without this neocolonial system of exploitation the whole edifice of supposedly &#8220;meritocratic&#8221; capitalism will fall flat on its face; and the myth of individual incentive would get busted beyond repair, because it only means incentive for the pike and not for the minnows.</p> <p>Although, the champions of globalization and neoliberalism all over the world must be mourning the fate of EU after Brexit, but the recent success of right-wingers all over the world: like the rise of Trump in America, Brexit in Europe, the success of Modi and his hardline BJP in India, the emergence of Buddhist extremists in Sri Lanka and Myanmar and the ascendancy of Islamic hardliners in the Muslim-majority countries, all of these are not the success of conservatism, as such. Conservatism is an outdated political ideology which is simply not a match for the more refined liberal worldview.</p> <p>The aforementioned reactionary anomalies signify only one thing: the failure of neoliberalism as a political and economic ideology. Social liberalism of &#8216;60s and &#8216;70s used to be an inclusive and egalitarian philosophy while neoliberalism, &#8216;90s-onwards, with its exclusive emphasis on economic growth and elitist values, and without any regard for social justice and class equality, is losing its appeal among the masses all over the world.</p> <p>In fact, politics has become such a comic business after the onset of neoliberalism that actual comedians like Jimmy Morales won a resounding victory in the Guatemalan elections last year; similarly, the Italian comedian Beppe Grillo&#8217;s &#8220;Five Star movement&#8221; also secured more than 100 deputies in the last Italian elections; and the biggest tragicomic of them all, Donald Trump, too, is all set for a victory in November this year.</p> <p>Finally and in the nutshell, I would contend that Brexit is actually a blessing in disguise for the EU as well as Britain. The latter always closely identified with the American interests and foreign policy, while France and Germany took the lead in managing the affairs of EU. After Britain&#8217;s exit from the EU, it will align itself more closely with the American policy; and the member states of EU too, in the absence of pro-US Britain, might be able to form a more cohesive and coherent union.</p> <p>Nauman Sadiq is an Islamabad-based attorney, columnist and geopolitical analyst focused on the politics of Af-Pak and MENA regions, neocolonialism and Petroimperialism.</p>

Brexit: a Victory for Britain’s Working Class

https://counterpunch.org/2016/06/24/brexit-a-victory-for-britains-working-class/

2016-06-24

<p>Verizon, the surveillance state-friendly communications giant, declared Tuesday that it will acquire AOL with the goal of expanding its video offerings. But the onetime king of media, as The New York Times so affectionately calls AOL Inc., in its <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/13/business/dealbook/verizon-to-buy-aol-for-4-4-billion.html?smprod=nytcore-iphone&amp;amp;smid=nytcore-iphone-share" type="external">report</a> on the Verizon deal, comes with much more than just videos; it comes with one of the biggest left-leaning websites online, The Huffington Post.</p> <p>It&#8217;s no secret that AOL and HuffPo have had a fraught relationship practically from the get-go. Just take a look at what The Guardian&#8217;s Michael Wolff <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/aug/19/tim-armstrong-tantrum-patch-aol?CMP=share_btn_link" type="external">wrote</a> early in 2013, after AOL CEO Tim Armstrong was caught on tape throwing a fit about his local-news project, Patch:</p> <p>It is no longer a technology company or, in any significant sense, part of the digital world. AOL is, the company sometime maintains, an ad-driven digital media company &#8212; in a world where no such thing has ever proven to be successful.</p> <p>Its one foot forward has been the acquisition of the Huffington Post, which, while hardly a financial advance, nevertheless made AOL one of the more important news outlets in America. Unfortunately for Armstrong, almost since AOL&#8217;s acquisition, Huffington Post founder and namesake Arianna Huffington has rather openly been planning for its exit, with Huffington and Armstrong operating as parallel entities within AOL.</p> <p /> <p>So, now, what happens to AOL?</p> <p>That&#8217;s one of those peculiar existential questions that could have been asked about the company at any point since 2000. It exists, practically speaking, by no one&#8217;s design or intentions. It goes on because it exists, but without any real hope that it will ever exactly justify its existence.</p> <p>While Wolff&#8217;s question about &#8220;what happens to AOL&#8221; has been answered with Verizon&#8217;s cash offer, another relevant question remains: Is now &#8212; as the company that acquired HuffPo is being bought by the corporation that <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/06/nsa-phone-records-verizon-court-order" type="external">handed over</a> millions of users&#8217; data to the National Security Agency &#8212; the time for Arianna Huffington to make her great escape?</p> <p>&#8212;Posted by <a href="" type="internal">Natasha Hakimi Zapata</a></p>

What Will Verizon's $4.4 Billion Cash Purchase of AOL Mean for The Huffington Post?

https://truthdig.com/articles/what-will-verizons-4-4-billion-cash-purchase-of-aol-mean-for-the-huffington-post/

2015-05-12

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p>LONDON (AP) &#8212; Social media users in London are buzzing about an apparent swarm of flying insects that has descended on one part of the city.</p> <p>Videos posted to Twitter Tuesday show people ducking as the insects descend on Greenwich in southeast London. It's not clear what the bugs were or why they appeared in unusual numbers. Some say they're bees, but <a href="https://twitter.com/NewsDeclan/status/864501239479980032" type="external">others</a> describe them as wasps.</p> <p>Transport for London, which oversees public transport in the capital, posted a <a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&amp;amp;vertical=default&amp;amp;q=greenwich%20bees&amp;amp;src=typd" type="external">picture</a> from a traffic camera showing large numbers of the insects collecting on a traffic light, and warned drivers that a pedestrian crossing was &#8220;partially obstructed by bees.&#8221; It warned: &#8220;Please approach with caution.&#8221;</p> <p>London police didn't immediately return a request for comment on whether they've received reports on the insects.</p> <p><a href="#25ac20a1-2228-46b3-9dda-02c3e7498a35" type="external">&#169; 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</a> Learn more about our <a href="http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/privacy" type="external">Privacy Policy</a> and <a href="http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/terms" type="external">Terms of Use</a>.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>

Social media abuzz as flying insects swarm part of London

https://abqjournal.com/1004182/social-media-abuzz-as-flying-insects-swarm-part-of-london.html

2017-05-16

<p /> <p>From left, U.S. Ambassador to the Dominican Republic James &#8220;Wally&#8221; Brewster, U.S. Ambassador to Denmark John Rufus Gifford, Gay and Lesbian Victory Institute President Aisha Moodie-Mills, Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTI Persons Randy Berry, former U.S. Ambassador to Romania Michael Guest and USAID Senior LGBT Coordinator Todd Larson speak on a panel at the Victory Fund&#8217;s International LGBT Leaders Conference on Dec. 8, 2016 at the Washington Hilton. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)</p> <p /> <p>&#8220;It would look bad for Trump personally and for his administration more broadly if they were to suddenly just say no more Pride flags on embassies, no more Pride celebrations, ambassadors should not march,&#8221; he said during a panel at the Gay and Lesbian Victory Institute&#8217;s International LGBT Leaders Conference that took place at the Washington Hilton. &#8220;I just can&#8217;t quite imagine he would do that because it would look bad for him and it&#8217;s about the way he is viewed personally.&#8221;</p> <p>Guest, who is a senior advisor for the Center for Global Equality, is the first openly gay ambassador confirmed by the U.S. Senate. He represented President George W. Bush&#8217;s administration in Romania from 2001-2004.</p> <p>Guest joined U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam <a href="" type="internal">Ted Osius,</a> U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Rufus Gifford, U.S. Ambassador to the Dominican Republic <a href="" type="internal">James &#8220;Wally&#8221; Brewster</a> and Special U.S. Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTI Persons <a href="" type="internal">Randy Berry</a> on the panel that Victory Institute President Aisha Moodie-Mills moderated. Todd Larson, senior LGBT coordinator for the U.S. Agency for International Development spoke at the beginning of the event.</p> <p>Tamara Adri&#225;n, the first openly transgender person elected to the Venezuelan National Assembly, was among the more than 100 elected officials and activists who attended the panel.</p> <p>&#8220;There&#8217;s no turning back,&#8221; said Osius, speaking to his fellow panelists from the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi via Skype.</p> <p>President Obama in 2011 directed agencies that implement U.S. foreign policy to promote LGBT rights abroad.</p> <p><a href="" type="internal">Argentina,</a> the Netherlands, the <a href="" type="internal">Human Rights Campaign</a> and the Arcus Foundation are among the contributors to the Global Equality Fund, a public-private partnership the State Department manages with the U.S. Agency for International Development that seeks to promote LGBT rights around the world. Berry has traveled to Jamaica, Honduras, <a href="" type="internal">Uganda</a> and more than 40 other countries since he assumed his post within the State Department&#8217;s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor in April 2015.</p> <p>The U.S. in August 2015 co-sponsored <a href="" type="internal">the first-ever U.N. Security Council meeting on an LGBT-specific issue</a> that focused on the so-called Islamic State&#8217;s persecution of LGBT Syrians and Iraqis. USAID&#8217;s rule that formally bans contractors from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity <a href="" type="internal">took effect</a> in October.</p> <p>Osius, Gifford and Brewster are among the openly gay ambassadors that Obama appointed during his second term.</p> <p>Trump has previously noted ISIS, which has publicly executed Iraqi and Syrian men who were accused of sodomy, and other Islamic extremist groups pose a threat to LGBT people. Vice President-elect Pence <a href="" type="internal">opposed U.S. efforts to promote gay rights abroad</a> when he was a member of Congress.</p> <p>It remains unclear whether the promotion of LGBT rights abroad will factor into the Trump administration&#8217;s foreign policy. Advocates with whom the Washington Blade has spoken since the election have urged the president-elect to <a href="" type="internal">leave current U.S. policy intact.</a></p> <p>&#8220;I&#8217;m going to continue to do what I do as long as they let me,&#8221; said Osius during Thursday&#8217;s panel. &#8220;It will be hard to maintain the same momentum, but I think we can continue doing what we do.&#8221;</p> <p /> <p>Randy Berry, the special U.S. envoy to promote global LGBT rights, center, speaks with gay Providencia (Chile) Councilman Jaime Parada, left, and then-LGBT Federation of Argentina President Esteb&#225;n Paul&#243;n, right, on Oct. 2, 2015, during an LGBT rights conference in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. (Washington Blade photo by Michael K. Lavers)</p> <p /> <p>&#8220;We cannot, cannot, cannot let up,&#8221; he added.</p> <p>&#8220;If we&#8217;re not visible, you&#8217;re giving up,&#8221; said Brewster.</p> <p>Obama&#8217;s 2013 decision to nominate Brewster as the next U.S. ambassador to the Dominican Republic sparked controversy among the country&#8217;s religious leaders.</p> <p>Then-Cardinal Nicol&#225;s de Jes&#250;s L&#243;pez Rodr&#237;guez of the Archdiocese of Santo Domingo described Brewster &#8212; who is married to Bob Satawake &#8212; as a &#8220;faggot&#8221; during a press conference that he held after Obama nominated him. Dominican advocates maintain that Brewster and Satawake have raised visibility around LGBT issues in spite of the criticism they have faced.</p> <p>&#8220;Representation matters,&#8221; said Moodie-Mills.</p> <p>Moodie-Mills during the panel noted the Obama administration has faced criticism over its failure to nominate a lesbian, bisexual, trans person or an LGBT person of color to an ambassadorship. The panelists acknowledged this criticism.</p> <p>Brewster, who noted his husband is Native American, said he is &#8220;confident&#8221; that Hillary Clinton would have nominated an openly lesbian woman to become an ambassador if she were elected. Gifford conceded he is &#8220;very frustrated with the lack of diversity within the State Department.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;It continues to be an issue,&#8221; he said.</p> <p>From left, then-U.S. Ambassador to Australia John Berry, U.S. Ambassador to the Dominican Republic James &#8216;Wally&#8217; Brewster, U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Rufus Gifford, U.S. Ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Daniel Baer, U.S. Ambassador to Spain and Andorra James Costos and U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius spoke at a panel for openly gay U.S. ambassadors at the Newseum in D.C. on March 24, 2015. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)</p> <p><a href="" type="internal">Aisha Moodie-Mills</a> <a href="" type="internal">Barack Obama</a> <a href="" type="internal">bisexual</a> <a href="" type="internal">Center for Global Equality</a> <a href="" type="internal">Donald Trump</a> <a href="" type="internal">gay</a> <a href="" type="internal">Gay and Lesbian Victory Institute</a> <a href="" type="internal">Hillary Clinton</a> <a href="" type="internal">International LGBT Leaders Conference</a> <a href="" type="internal">lesbian</a> <a href="" type="internal">Michael Guest</a> <a href="" type="internal">Mike Pence</a> <a href="" type="internal">Rufus Gifford</a> <a href="" type="internal">State Department</a> <a href="" type="internal">Tamara Adri&#225;n</a> <a href="" type="internal">Todd Larson</a> <a href="" type="internal">transgender</a> <a href="" type="internal">U.S. Agency for International Development</a> <a href="" type="internal">Venezuela</a></p>

Trump urged to continue pro-LGBT U.S. foreign policy

http://washingtonblade.com/2016/12/08/trump-urged-continue-pro-lgbt-u-s-foreign-policy/

<p>Driving in to work yesterday morning I heard the news that the school in Peshawar, Pakistan had been attacked by the Taliban. They killed more than 130 children. They burned a teacher in front of the students in a classroom. Early on I had some thoughts and feelings that I could wrap words around.</p>

I get tired of writing laments

https://baptistnews.com/article/i-get-tired-of-writing-laments/

<p>Lily Tomlin with director Paul Weitz on the set of &#8216;Grandma.&#8217; (Photo by Glen Wilson, courtesy Sony Picture Classics)</p> <p>Writer and director Paul Weitz&#8217;s courageous new comedy &#8220;Grandma&#8221; is a deceptively simple movie. Beneath the relatively straightforward plot, the film tackles complicated issues of access to abortion, mourning and loss, and the fight for women&#8217;s and LGBT rights with a light but insightful touch.</p> <p>&#8220;Grandma,&#8221; which opens Friday, Aug. 28 at&amp;#160; in the D.C. area at Landmark E Street and Bethesda Row Cinemas, stars Lily Tomlin in one of the most powerful dramatic performances of her distinguished career. She plays Elle Reid, a gruff lesbian poet who&#8217;s still recovering from the death of her partner of 38 years. Her protective cocoon is shattered by the arrival of her granddaughter Sage (Julia Garner) who announces that she needs $630 to pay for the abortion she has scheduled for later that day. Elle is temporarily broke (having paid down her substantial debt and turned her credit cards into a lovely set of wind chimes), so the two set off to find the money.</p> <p>Along the way, they encounter Sage&#8217;s oafish ex-boyfriend Cam (Nat Wolff), rockabilly tattoo artist Deathy (Laverne Cox), Elle&#8217;s ex-girlfriend Olivia (Judy Greer), feisty feminist bookstore owner Carla (Elizabeth Pe&#241;a), Elle&#8217;s former lover Karl (Sam Elliott), and finally, Elle&#8217;s rock-hard daughter Judy (Marcia Gay Harden) who terrifies both Sage and Elle. Along the way, Sage begins to develop some self-esteem, Elle starts to come to terms with her past and her loss, and both prepare to confront an uncertain future.</p> <p>Tomlin is terrific as the crusty poet who hides her grief and vulnerability behind a gruff fa&#231;ade. Her comic timing is both superb and endearing, but Tomlin never flinches from showing Elle&#8217;s dark secrets and unpleasant quirks. She&#8217;s surrounded by a stellar supporting cast, especially Elliott, who gets to show a lot more emotion than usual, and Harden, who finds the hidden heart of a tough character without smoothing off the flinty edges.</p> <p>Writer/director Weitz wisely keeps the movie simple: a running time of only 79 minutes, a 19-day shoot, a $600,000 budget and a spare script that lets the audience connect the dots. He also grounds the movie in a thoughtful sense of the profound social changes that have swept through society in the past 50 years. The effective pacing, crisp camerawork and the lively score also help propel the story forward.</p> <p>With a strong script and great performances, &#8220;Grandma&#8221; should be on everyone&#8217;s movie list.</p> <p><a href="" type="internal">Elizabeth Pena</a> <a href="" type="internal">grandma</a> <a href="" type="internal">grandma movie</a> <a href="" type="internal">grandma movie review</a> <a href="" type="internal">Judy Greer</a> <a href="" type="internal">Julia Garner</a> <a href="" type="internal">Laverne Cox</a> <a href="" type="internal">Lily Tomlin</a> <a href="" type="internal">Marcia Gay Harden</a> <a href="" type="internal">Nat Wolff</a> <a href="" type="internal">Paul Weitz</a> <a href="" type="internal">Sam Elliott</a></p>

Tomlin shines in ‘Grandma’

http://washingtonblade.com/2015/08/29/tomlin-shines-in-grandma/

<p>MarketWatchJon Friedman fears they'll embrace the worst aspects of tabloids. "That means, as the saying goes, they'll throw their content against a wall, and if it sticks, they'll publish it, no matter how wild or trivial it might be." DO BLOGGERS HAVE INFLUENCE?: "Some do -- but from where I sit, the rants of the vast majority of bloggers have about as much impact on the public's understanding of the daily news as the shrill eccentrics I encounter everyday on the subways in New York City." &amp;gt; <a href="http://www.sptimes.com/2005/02/26/Opinion/The_role_of_bloggers.shtml" type="external">Editorial: Blogging could boost old media's credibility (St. Pete Times)</a></p>

What will bloggers do with their newfound acceptance?

https://poynter.org/news/what-will-bloggers-do-their-newfound-acceptance

2005-02-28

<p>Zogby International has issued a <a href="http://www.zogby.com/news/ReadNews.dbm?ID=1394" type="external">statement</a> in defense of its poll showing Hillary Clinton, unlike Barack Obama and John Edwards, losing to any of the top five Republican candidates. Clinton&#8217;s chief political strategist dismissed the survey as &#8220;meaningless,&#8221; and Zogby shot back, noting that &#8220;no other campaign has made as many requests for Zogby polling data over the years than [Mark] Penn has made on behalf of Clinton.&#8221;</p> <p>In fairness to Clinton, the latest <a href="http://www.gallup.com/poll/102862/Democratic-Candidates-Look-Good-Latest-2008-Trial-Heats.aspx" type="external">Gallup poll</a> shows her winning against the same Republican candidates.</p> <p>Zogby International:</p> <p>All is fair in love and war, the centuries-old proverb states. Politics is not included, but given the way the game is played in modern-day America, maybe it should be. That&#8217;s the sense I had again this morning watching Mark Penn, the chief political strategist for Democrat Hillary Clinton, denigrate our latest Zogby Interactive survey simply because it showed his client in a bad light (Link to Latest Poll Number). Penn made the contention on the MSNBC morning news program hosted by Joe Scarborough (Link to Video)</p> <p /> <p>Penn mischaracterized this latest online Zogby poll as our first interactive survey ever &#8211; a bizarre contention, since we have been developing and perfecting our Internet polling methodology for nearly a decade (Zogby Intreractive Methodology), and since Penn&#8217;s company has been quietly requesting the results of such polls from Zogby for years. We always comply as part of our pledge to give public Zogby polling results to any and every candidate and campaign that asks for them. What is interesting is that no other campaign has made as many requests for Zogby polling data over the years than Penn has made on behalf of Clinton.</p> <p>Because Mark Penn is a quality pollster himself, we chalk up his contention that our poll is &#8220;meaningless&#8221; as a knee-jerk reaction by a campaign under pressure coming down the stretch. Several other polls &#8211; Zogby surveys and others &#8211; have shown her national lead and her leads in early-voting states like Iowa and New Hampshire have shrunk. This is not unusual. These presidential contests usually tighten as the primaries and caucuses approach.</p> <p>Fritz Wenzel Director of Communications Zogby International</p> <p>(11/27/2007)</p> <p><a href="http://www.zogby.com/news/ReadNews.dbm?ID=1394" type="external">Read more</a></p>

Zogby Defends Poll Against Clinton

https://truthdig.com/articles/zogby-defends-poll-against-clinton/

2007-11-28

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. &#8212; &#9830; MS DARLING there are two types of Lobo basketball season ticket holders, the ones that know the difference between and &#8220;Pick and Roll&#8221; and a &#8220;Kaiser Roll&#8221; and there is the country club season ticket holder who show up and complain,it&#8217;s too cold, it&#8217;s too dark, the PA is too loud, the spirit team gets in the way &#8230; PS: Lobo athletics is entertainment, and it is not free,and the participants aren&#8217;t paid. I know what the spirt team does and doesn&#8217;t do, my only child Melanie, died a year ago last week she was a 1992 Chaparral.</p> <p>&#8211; Vince Guillen</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p /> <p>&#9830; REGARDING COMMENTS made by Gwen Darling: I think it is time to cut these talented young women some slack. We cannot all say that we have gone to college, participated in a YEAR ROUND D1 sport, volunteered numerous hours in the community, and managed to still attend every men&#8217;s and women&#8217;s basketball game, volleyball game, and football game. Why don&#8217;t we stop harping on the &#8220;spirit squad&#8221; and show them some appreciation and respect for like all athletes, their jobs are not easy.</p> <p>&#8211; anonymous</p> <p /> <p>&#9830; TO BLAIR, you mentioned the Lobo three ranking for Soccer #6, Basketball #16, and Baseball #21. You forgot one, Golf, #4 Golfweek, #5 Golfstat.com</p> <p>&#8211; NATIVE Joe</p> <p /> <p>&#9830; I AGREE 100% about the singing of the national anthem before our games. It has been pathetic as well as disrespectful! I have suggested, more than once, that the Lobo band perfect their playing of the anthem and let them play every time. If the fans want to sing along, even better! At least it will be performed as it is written!!!</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>&#8211; Another Lobo fan</p> <p /> <p>&#9830; YOUR SECTIONS on the various divisions in Major League baseball carry all the optimism and expectation of pre-spring conjecture. One thing is settled already: The Chicago Cubs are inconsequential in the races. Regardless of what has happened over the winter and the changes made, the Cubs exist only as an excuse for Chicagoans to attend Wrigley Field and get soused. More beer! Their influence in baseball games is irrelevant.</p> <p>&#8211; Herb</p> <p /> <p>&#9830; JERRY BUSS got rich cleaning toilets! (Office Buildings) He had a PhD in chemistry and invented his own cleaning products for his company. The Los Angeles Lakers represented Dr. Buss in all things, some not so good. Looks like another perfect day; I love LA! RIP Dr. Buss.</p> <p>&#8211; Larry the VOL &#8212; This article appeared on page D2 of the Albuquerque Journal</p>

Sports Speak Up!

https://abqjournal.com/238939/sports-speak-up-130.html

<p>SEOUL, South Korea &#8212; He was once thought to be a Swiss-educated cosmopolitan taking the side of reform in North Korea. But some say Tuesday&#8217;s nuclear test has squandered hopes that Kim Jong Un will open the militarized nation to the world.</p> <p>That&#8217;s because the hermit kingdom is pouring its resources into nuclear weapons and missiles at the expense of the markets, says Andrei Lankov, a North Korea expert at Kookmin University in Seoul. &#8220;It&#8217;s something that authoritarian states do best,&#8221; he said.</p> <p>Now that North Korea has admitted to carrying out its third underground nuclear test, Washington suspects the isolationist state is on its way to building a device small enough to be attached to the tip of an inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM).</p> <p>The possible use of highly enriched uranium in this detonation &#8212; rather than plutonium in the far weaker nuclear tests of 2006 and 2009 &#8212; means the country is on its way to mass producing the weapons. And there&#8217;s little stopping North Korea from stepping up cooperation with Iran in the future.</p> <p>Add that fact to North Korea&#8217;s success at launching a primitive satellite into orbit in December, beating its technologically superior southern neighbor.</p> <p>Even though Washington reports the satellite is not functioning properly in orbit, it&#8217;s another factor that means North Korea could be closer to the sophistication needed to lob a warhead at North America.</p> <p>In terms of nuclear proliferation, call it a double whammy.</p> <p>But some say the North doesn&#8217;t intend to follow through with its nuclear threats, a fact that says a lot about why the regime is pursuing a nuclear program in the first place. &#8220;Kim Jong Un is following his father&#8217;s system, which works well,&#8221; Lankov said. &#8220;The major goal is survival, not economic growth.&#8221;</p> <p>Like father, like son. So what&#8217;s the Kim family recipe?</p> <p>Lankov laid out one possible strategy that leaders have embraced. First, don&#8217;t alienate China. Second, show off nukes, and use them to exploit the rivalry between Washington and Beijing. And finally, in the tradition of Stalin, jail as many dissidents as possible.</p> <p>&#8220;Kim Jong Un has shown to be a stronger leader than many expected,&#8221; Lankov said. Kim Jong Il followed a policy of Songun, also known as the &#8220;military first&#8221; policy.</p> <p>Throughout the 1990s, he directed much-needed resources into the vanguard army as the nation fell into a famine, leaving some 1 million people dead.</p> <p>Reform from the bottom?</p> <p>But others err on the side of reform, claiming that North Korea is taking small steps towards a Chinese-style opening. The nuclear test, they say, is the government&#8217;s last hope for holding off the geopolitical encroachment of the great powers.</p> <p>&#8220;Businesspeople on the ground, dealing with real North Koreans, feel there's change in the air," said Felix Abt, the former head of the European Business Association in Pyongyang, a de facto chamber of commerce.</p> <p>Indeed, the lower rungs of society could be asserting their say regardless of the nuclear ambitions of military and political elites. Farmers, for example, have long been flouting the state-supervised agricultural system, <a href="http://www.economist.com/news/briefing/21571404-sealed-and-monstrously-unjust-society-changing-ways-its-despotic-ruler-may-not-be-able" type="external">growing their own crops</a> on hillside slopes.</p> <p>For the past decade, authorities have largely tolerated private food markets despite intermittent crackdowns.</p> <p>And there&#8217;s a parallel. Pressure from the bottom was one ingredient to the openings of now-nominally communist China and Vietnam in the late 1970s and early 1980s.</p> <p>Plus, as more North Koreans watch <a href="http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/magazine/julyaugust_2011/on_political_books/watching_titanic_in_pyongyang030510.php" type="external">pirated DVDs</a> of North American and South Korean movies, they take on more negative views of the government. Some defectors cite foreign movies as one factor that prompted them to escape the country.</p> <p>Business as usual</p> <p>On Feb. 7, North Korea threatened to close the Kaesong Industrial Complex, a collaborative zone opened in 2004 where more than 120 South Korean companies make shoes and garments using cheap North Korean labor.</p> <p>It&#8217;s not clear, though, whether the regime is serious about shutting ties and exchange programs with South Korea.</p> <p>It&#8217;s one sign that the North Korean nuclear menace, as it stands now, could be withering chatter. &#8220;Neither side wants to be blamed for closing the Kaesong Industrial Complex first,&#8221; said <a href="http://mcfarland.metapress.com/content/u7u7841n0213657p/" type="external">Eul-Chul Lim</a>, an economist at Kyungnam University in Seoul who has interviewed some 30 companies in the park over the past 10 years.</p> <p>Pyongyang has every reason to keep Kaesong open: it gets <a href="http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2013/02/08/2013020800511.html" type="external">$90 million in cash</a> each year from the wages of 53,500 North Korean workers. Seoul says that Tuesday&#8217;s nuclear test has not affected business in the zone.</p> <p>The business-as-usual status quo says a lot about North Korean decision making, which is based on theatrics and atmospherics as it attempts to deter the enemies it sees everywhere. &#8220;The point,&#8221; said Lankov, &#8220;is to not succumb to outside pressure if you are a blackmail state. It is a system that works for them.&#8221;</p>

Kim Jong Un in the shadow of the Dear Leader?

https://pri.org/stories/2013-02-15/kim-jong-un-shadow-dear-leader

2013-02-15

<p>Stories detailing Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone X delays just keep coming in -- we're talking about two fresh reports thus far this week, and it's only Tuesday.</p> <p>Various component suppliers are currently suffering from low <a href="https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/03/03/report-taiwan-semiconductor-mfg-co-ltd-and-samsung.aspx?&amp;amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;amp;uuid=3ca8fc5a-a2fb-11e7-a33c-0050569d4be0&amp;amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">yield rates Opens a New Window.</a>, which measure the proportion of units from a production run that can be used. Units that cannot be used are wasted, and nobody wants that. Low yield rates effectively drive up the average cost per unit. Manufacturing always has a high proportion of fixed costs and overhead, but total costs must then be spread out over a smaller number of units.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p><a href="http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20170925PD200.html" type="external">DIGITIMES Opens a New Window.</a> reported yesterday that Apple has requested that suppliers only deliver 40% of the quantities that it had previously ordered, but some suppliers are struggling just to hit that target due to low yields on their own products. The company used a similar strategy with last year's iPhone 7, according to the report. Apple subsequently requests the remainder of the unfulfilled orders within a couple of months as it ramps. DIGITIMES doesn't specify which components it is referring to, and its sources say that Apple is waiting to see how the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus fare, as well as how iPhone X pre-orders play out.</p> <p>Alternatively, this could be also be a sign that Apple is facing a component bottleneck elsewhere within its supply chain and is simply trying to coordinate all the moving parts in order to avoid excess inventory of some components while suffering shortages of others.</p> <p>The <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Uncertainties-for-iPhone-X-production-over-3-D-sensor-issues" type="external">Nikkei Asian Review Opens a New Window.</a> was a bit more specific this morning, though, saying that the 3D sensors at the heart of the TrueDepth camera system and facial recognition technology are the culprit. The report cites two sources who work at 3D-sensor component suppliers that "are still struggling to reach a satisfactory level of output" and trying to improve yield rates.</p> <p>These 3D sensors appear to be the primary bottleneck, with Yuanta Investment Consulting analyst Jeff Pu telling the outlet that 3D sensors are the "only major issue left in the production of iPhone X."</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>OLED panel supply had earlier reportedly been a constraint (Samsung is the sole supplier), but that appears to have been <a href="https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/09/15/apple-inc-may-have-finally-solved-a-big-iphone-x-p.aspx?&amp;amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;amp;uuid=3ca8fc5a-a2fb-11e7-a33c-0050569d4be0&amp;amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">resolved Opens a New Window.</a>. Meanwhile, it's no secret that suppliers for the vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) that Apple is using are <a href="https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/09/13/this-could-be-why-apples-iphone-x-wont-ship-until.aspx?&amp;amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;amp;uuid=3ca8fc5a-a2fb-11e7-a33c-0050569d4be0&amp;amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">having issues Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> <p>For example, Finisar recently said it was experiencing delays due to a VCSEL manufacturing process change. The company is still working through the changes, but CEO Jerry Rawls (who recently announced his intention to retire) briefly discussed how the company is balancing yields with investing in manufacturing capacity. In a call earlier this month, an analyst asked if Finisar was planning on buying more equipment to ramp production, and Rawls responded:</p> <p>There is about $5 worth of VCSEL content per iPhone X, so $30 million per quarter would translate into approximately 6 million units -- or just 2 million units per month at current rates. Finisar is one of what appears to be <a href="https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/09/15/it-might-take-a-while-for-android-to-catch-up-with.aspx?&amp;amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;amp;uuid=3ca8fc5a-a2fb-11e7-a33c-0050569d4be0&amp;amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">three VCSEL suppliers Opens a New Window.</a>, and its yields continue to improve, but seeing as how Apple will need tens of millions of iPhone X units, the company is relying on VCSEL suppliers to aggressively improve production yields.</p> <p>10 stocks we like better than AppleWhen 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;amp;impression=82924c63-9d45-4088-8b37-f2dc2354a359&amp;amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;amp;uuid=3ca8fc5a-a2fb-11e7-a33c-0050569d4be0&amp;amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">10 best stocks Opens a New Window.</a> for investors to buy right now... and Apple wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys.</p> <p><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;amp;impression=82924c63-9d45-4088-8b37-f2dc2354a359&amp;amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;amp;uuid=3ca8fc5a-a2fb-11e7-a33c-0050569d4be0&amp;amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">Click here Opens a New Window.</a> to learn about these picks!</p> <p>*Stock Advisor returns as of September 5, 2017</p> <p><a href="http://my.fool.com/profile/TMFNewCow/info.aspx?&amp;amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;amp;uuid=3ca8fc5a-a2fb-11e7-a33c-0050569d4be0&amp;amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">Evan Niu, CFA Opens a New Window.</a> owns shares of Apple. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Apple. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?&amp;amp;utm_campaign=article&amp;amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;amp;uuid=3ca8fc5a-a2fb-11e7-a33c-0050569d4be0&amp;amp;utm_source=foxbusiness" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>

Yield Rates for iPhone X Components Are Terrible Right Now

http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2017/09/26/yield-rates-for-iphone-x-components-are-terrible-right-now.html

2017-09-26

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p>SEOUL, South Korea &#8212; Asian stocks were higher Tuesday, the second trading day of 2017 as upbeat Chinese factory data bolstered investor sentiment.</p> <p>KEEPING SCORE: Hong Kong&#8217;s Hang Seng index gained 0.5 percent to 22,119.16 and South Korea&#8217;s Kospi rose 0.5 percent to 2,036.48. China&#8217;s Shanghai Composite Index advanced 0.8 percent to 3,127.44. Australia&#8217;s S&amp;amp;P/ASX 200 jumped 1.2 percent to 5,733.90. Stocks in Taiwan and Singapore were higher but they were lower in Indonesia. Tokyo stock markets remained closed for the New Year holidays.</p> <p>CHINA DATA: Caixin manufacturing purchasing managers&#8217; index advanced in December in its fastest rate in three years. The index stood at 51.9, higher than market forecasts of 50.7 and an improvement from the previous month&#8217;s reading of 50.9. Over the weekend, a report showed that China&#8217;s manufacturing sector continued to expand in December, though at a slightly slower pace than the month before.</p> <p>ANALYST&#8217;S TAKE: &#8220;This showed that (Chinese) government&#8217;s measures to curb the property bubble in early October 2016 have started to have a knock-on effect on the broader economy,&#8221; <a href="https://www.cmcmarkets.com/en-gb/news-and-analysis/singapore-4q-gdp-grows-by-18" type="external">said Margaret Yang, a market analyst at CMC Markets in Singapore</a>.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>EUROPE: On Monday, European markets finished with gains. Germany&#8217;s DAX closed 1 percent higher at 11,598.33 and France&#8217;s CAC 40 rose 0.4 percent to 4,882.38. Italy&#8217;s FTSE MIB gained 1.7 percent to 19,566.53. Britain&#8217;s FTSE 100 and Wall Street remained closed.</p> <p>OIL: Benchmark U.S. crude was up 29 cents at $54.01 per barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, was up 30 cents at $57.12.</p> <p>CURRENCIES: The dollar fell to 117.39 yen from 117.41 yen. The euro was trading at $1.0481, up from $1.0467.</p>

Asian stocks higher after upbeat Chinese factory data

https://abqjournal.com/919337/stocks-start-2017-with-gains-but-many-markets-stay-shut.html

2017-01-02

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>The new measures range from Social Security and veterans benefits to work leave for caring for sick spouses. They are part of President Barack Obama&#8217;s efforts to expand whatever protections he can offer to gays and lesbians even though more than half of the states don&#8217;t recognize gay marriage.</p> <p>That effort has been confounded by laws that say some benefits should be conferred only to couples whose marriages are recognized by the states where they live, rather than the states where they were married.</p> <p>Aiming to circumvent that issue, the Veterans Affairs Department will start letting gay people who tell the government they are married to a veteran to be buried alongside them in a national cemetery, drawing on the VA&#8217;s authority to waive the usual marriage requirement.</p> <p>In a similar move, the Social Security Administration will start processing some survivor and death benefits for those in same-sex relationships who live in states that don&#8217;t recognize gay marriage.</p> <p>Nineteen states plus the District of Columbia currently recognize gay marriage, although court challenges to gay marriage bans are pending in many states.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>For Tim Fagen of Fort Collins, Colo., the implications could be profound. A retired electrical engineer, Fagen receives higher Social Security payments than his 79-year partner, Ken Hoole.</p> <p>The two will celebrate their 47th anniversary in August but until now would have been prevented from accessing each other&#8217;s benefits.</p> <p /> <p />

Benefits for gay spouses expand

https://abqjournal.com/418641/benefits-for-gay-spouses-expand.html

<p>A basket of U.S. employment indicators decreased in June, a potential sign of weakening job growth.</p> <p>The Conference Board said its employment trends index fell to 133.1 in June from its revised May reading of 133.3. The June figure represents a 4.6% increase from last year.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>The Conference Board's employment trends index combines eight market indicators, including industrial production figures from the Federal Reserve, job openings from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and jobless claims from the U.S. Department of Labor. The index filters out volatility in data to more clearly reveal underlying trends in employment conditions.</p> <p>The report follows the Labor Department's release of its June jobs report Friday, which showed the U.S. unemployment rate rose to 4.4%, up 0.1 percentage point from the prior month, its lowest level in 16 years. The rate suggests the labor market is near full employment.</p> <p>"Despite the June decline in the Employment Trends Index, job growth will remain strong in the coming months. The decline is small and comes after a series of large increases since early 2017," said Gad Levanon, chief economist, North America, at the Conference Board.</p> <p>Mr. Levanon added he expects employment to grow fast enough to continue tightening the labor market and cause stronger wage growth later this year.</p> <p>Three of the basket's eight indicators fell in June, with the largest decline coming from the "percentage of firms with positions not able to fill right row," which fell to 30 from 34 in May.</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>Write to Justina Vasquez at justina.vasquez@wsj.com</p> <p>(END) Dow Jones Newswires</p> <p>July 10, 2017 11:29 ET (15:29 GMT)</p>

Conference Board's Employment Trends Index Fell in June

http://foxbusiness.com/features/2017/07/10/conference-boards-employment-trends-index-fell-in-june.html

2017-07-10

<p>A new study finds Chicago has succeeded in getting more teachers to earn National Board certification, but built-in obstacles &#8220;could derail future efforts&#8221; to hire and retain those master teachers in the neediest schools.</p> <p>To get a handle on how to get and keep the best teachers at hard-to-staff schools, researchers Barnett Berry and Tammy King of the Southeast Center for Teaching Quality in Chapel Hill, N. C., examined the whereabouts and experiences of nationally certified teachers in four urban districts: Chicago, Charlotte, Los Angeles and Miami.</p> <p>&#8220;The four districts have something going on in terms of growing National Board-certified teachers, but no district has put all the pieces together,&#8221; Berry says.</p> <p>In Chicago, Berry and King found four barriers that could hamper future efforts to hire and keep nationally certified teachers at hard-to-staff schools:</p> <p>Few principals and teachers are familiar with National Board certification and the potential for nationally certified teachers to play a positive role in turning around poorly performing schools.</p> <p>Schools that employ National Board certified teachers have not figured out how to spread master teachers&#8217; knowledge and expertise to other faculty, a necessary step toward raising teacher quality and school improvement.</p> <p>Candidate support groups in Chicago have different philosophies about candidate recruitment. The district embraces the idea of getting as many teachers as possible to earn national certification. The teachers union, on the other hand, favors careful selection of candidates&#8212;only 25 a year&#8212;with an eye on how they would be deployed. The opposing approaches do not work well together, according to the study.</p> <p>Finally, the study&#8217;s authors say an initiative to create 100 new schools, some of which are charters that are allowed to hire uncertified teachers, sends a message that is at odds with the district&#8217;s push for more nationally certified teachers.</p>

Study: Barriers hinder efforts to get best teachers in tough schools

http://chicagoreporter.com/study-barriers-hinder-efforts-get-best-teachers-in-tough-schools/

2005-08-10

<p>Virtually every alleged achievement that Donald Trump talks about is portrayed as the greatest accomplishment of its kind in the history of the world. Needless to say, that is never actually true. However, there is something that Trump could claim as record-setting if he were of a mind to. That&#8217;s the pace at which he has lost members of his administration, from cabinet secretaries to personal assistants. The people he touted as &#8220;the best&#8221; have scattered like leaves in a hurricane.</p> <p><a href="https://www.facebook.com/NewsCorpse/posts/2094934530521331" type="external" /></p> <p>Now the President has made what may be the most surprising personnel decision since his inauguration. His daughter Ivanka, and her husband Jared Kushner, have been exiled from their White House posts, according to sources familiar with the situation. Insiders say that Trump was generally satisfied with the progress (or deliberate lack thereof) on the projects that were assigned to them. But he was infuriated by comments that Ivanka has made to the press in recent weeks. For instance:</p> <p>In addition to those blunders, Ivanka also made an unforgivable error on Twitter last Christmas by aiding and abetting the enemies in the War on Christmas:</p> <p /> <p>There were hints of these terminations recently in the news. <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/02/politics/trump-john-kelly-ivanka/index.html" type="external">Reports from inside</a> the White House indicated that Trump was secretly steering Chief of Staff John Kelly to help him push Javanka out. Kelly was said to be amenable to this because he never thought she should have had an official role in the administration in the first place.</p> <p>Also, recent disclosures by porn star Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal may explain Trump&#8217;s willingness to cut Ivanka loose. They both independently revealed that Trump told them that they remind him of Ivanka. Therefore, he has an inexhaustible pool of potential replacements for the position of First Daughter. So why not take advantage of this holiday weekend to start the process of upgrading? What better day than April First/Fools? :)</p> <p>How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QSSMOES/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;camp=1789&amp;amp;creative=9325&amp;amp;creativeASIN=B00QSSMOES&amp;amp;linkCode=as2&amp;amp;tag=newscorpsecom-20&amp;amp;linkId=TLI6JC2OYE22MUTS" type="external">Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.</a> Available now at Amazon.</p>

Donald Trump Fires His Daughter Ivanka In An Easter Sunday Staffing Rebirth

http://newscorpse.com/ncWP/?p%3D31588

<p>Why did President Donald Trump fire off an angry and threatening tweet early Thursday morning following the violent protests that had broken out the night before on UC Berkeley campus?&amp;#160; Here&#8217;s a copy of Trump&#8217;s tweet:</p> <p>&#8220;If U.C. Berkeley does not allow free speech and practices violence on innocent people with a different point of view &#8211; NO FEDERAL FUNDS?&#8221;</p> <p>Maybe the impulsive President was just angry that a controversial, rightwing speaker like Milo Yiannopoulos was unable to deliver his presentation because masked agitators began to rampage across the campus breaking windows, burning signs and wreaking havoc. That&#8217;s certainly one possibility, but there are other more intriguing explanations that seem equally&amp;#160;likely.</p> <p>Consider this: Like most Americans, Trump knows that these&amp;#160;anarchist groups show up routinely at peaceful demonstrations with the intention of raising hell and discrediting the groups that peacefully assemble to express their opinion on one issue or another. In this case, the protestors had gathered in opposition to a man who seemingly advocates religious intolerance and Islamophobia. Trump was well aware of this.</p> <p>He also knew that the UC Berkeley Chancellor and his staff did everything in their power to provide security to both the speaker and the groups that had gathered for the event.&amp;#160; Check&amp;#160;out this excerpt from an article at&amp;#160; Bloomberg:</p> <p>&#8220;Some advocates for universities and education said they were surprised by Trump&#8217;s tweet&#8230;</p> <p>&#8220;I have never seen anything like this,&#8221; said John Walda, president of the National Association of College and Business Officers. &#8220;Why would you infer that you want to punish a university&#8221; when it was only trying to protect people. The university &#8220;did exactly the right thing,&#8221; he said&#8230;</p> <p>The university said Chancellor Nicholas Dirks had made clear that Yiannopoulos&#8217; &#8220;views, tactics and rhetoric are profoundly contrary to those of the campus,&#8221; but that the university is committed to &#8220;enabling of free expression across the full spectrum of opinion and perspective&#8221; and condemned the violence.</p> <p>Berkeley seems to have done everything it can to protect students&#8217; First Amendment rights, Cohn said.&#8221;</p> <p>(&#8220; <a href="" type="internal">Trump Threatens U.C. Berkeley Funding Over Violent Protests</a>&#8220;, Bloomberg)</p> <p>So if the Chancellor&amp;#160;had already gone the extra mile to protect free speech, then&amp;#160;why did Trump decide to lower the boom on him? Was he genuinely angry with the Chancellor&#8217;s performance&amp;#160;or&amp;#160;did he interject himself&amp;#160;for political reasons?&amp;#160;&amp;#160;In other words, how did Trump stand to benefit from getting involved in this mess?</p> <p>Isn&#8217;t&amp;#160;his&amp;#160;tweet crafted to win support from his red state base who identify Berkeley with the erratic behavior of the &#8220;loony left&#8221; that burn flags, spit on veterans, and hate America?&amp;#160; Isn&#8217;t it designed to discredit the millions of&amp;#160; liberal and progressive protestors who have peacefully&amp;#160;participated in pro-immigration demonstrations or&amp;#160;anti-Trump marches across the country? Isn&#8217;t Trump&#8217;s interference&amp;#160; intended to make him look like a strong, decisive leader willing to defend free speech&amp;#160;against hypocritical leftists thugs who violently oppose anyone who doesn&#8217;t share their&amp;#160;narrow &#8220;librul&#8221; point of view. Isn&#8217;t the action part of a broader&amp;#160;plan to reinforce a&amp;#160;stereotypical view of liberals as sandal clad, fist pumping, Marxist firebrands who want to burn down the country so they can&amp;#160;create their own Soviet Utopia?</p> <p>Isn&#8217;t this&amp;#160;really why Trump decided to parachute into the event, to enlarge and polish his own image&amp;#160;while exacerbating existing political divisions within the country?</p> <p>Trump&#8217;s reaction to the incident in Berkeley is worth paying attention to if only to grasp that &#8211;what we are seeing&#8211; is not the random act of an impulsive man, but a governing style that&amp;#160;requires an identifiable threat to domestic security, &#8220;the left&#8221;.&amp;#160; A&amp;#160;divisive president only prevails when the country is divided,&amp;#160; when Americans&amp;#160;are at each others throats and split between&amp;#160;Sunni&amp;#160;and Shia. &amp;#160;That&#8217;s the goal, driving a wedge between people of differing views, exacerbating historic animosities in order to enhance the&amp;#160;authority of the executive and usurp greater control over the levers of state power.</p> <p>Once again, we&#8217;re not excluding the possibility that Trump&#8217;s tweet may have been a &#8220;one off&#8221; by an impulsive man but, by the same token, it might be an indication of something&amp;#160;more serious&amp;#160;altogether.</p> <p>Keep in mind, that Trump&#8217;s chief political strategist, Steve Bannon, is a man who produced documentary movies on Sarah Palin, Michelle Bachman, and Occupy (Wall Street).&amp;#160; According to Salon:</p> <p>&#8220;Bannon does not hide his affinity for propaganda. He has cited as an inspiration Nazi propagandist and filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl. She famously directed &#8220;Triumph of the Will,&#8221; a film commissioned by Adolf Hitler in 1933 that portrays Germany as a country returning to world power.&#8221; (&#8220; <a href="" type="internal">Three lessons we learned about Steve Bannon from this weekend&#8217;s New York Times and Boston Globe profiles</a> &#8220;, Salon)</p> <p>So at best Steve Bannon is a public relations&amp;#160;magician and at worst an&amp;#160;unapologetic propagandist. But what is so telling about Bannon is his position in the administration. Bannon occupies the seat closest to the throne which&amp;#160;shows how much&amp;#160;emphasis Trump places on image, public perception and narrative. Bannon is Trump&#8217;s most trusted ally, the&amp;#160;spinmeister&amp;#160;whose job it is to create the Great Leader who is admired and loved by his loyal base but feared and despised by his enemies. All of this fits&amp;#160;seamlessly with Trump&#8217;s Berkeley tweet.</p> <p>And it also fits with Trump&#8217;s governing style which is geared to deepen divisions, increase social unrest, and create enemies, real or imagined. &amp;#160;In this view, Berkeley was just a dry run, an experiment in perception management orchestrated to sharpen Trump&#8217;s image as the hair-trigger Biblical father who will intercede whenever necessary and&amp;#160;who is always ready to&amp;#160;impose justice with an iron fist.</p> <p>So the masked rioters actually did Trump a favor, didn&#8217;t they? They created a justification for presidential intervention backed by the prospect of direct involvement. One can only wonder&amp;#160;how many similar experiments will transpire before Trump&amp;#160;puts his foot down and bans demonstrations altogether?</p> <p>Of course,&amp;#160;that may very well be the&amp;#160;objective.</p>

The Berkeley Incident

https://counterpunch.org/2017/02/03/the-berkeley-incident/

2017-02-03

<p>A man in Las Vegas <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/woman-calls-filipino-neighbor-orange-savage_us_586db7fee4b0c56eb4b71452" type="external">recorded</a> his neighbor going on some kind of racist rant on New Year&#8217;s Eve. She tells her neighbor,&amp;#160;Dexter Manawat,&amp;#160;to go back to where he came from. She went into a whole tirade against him.</p> <p>As she <a href="http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/34186766/woman-draws-backlash-after-racial-tirade-toward-neighbor" type="external">put it</a>, she was in a &#8220;blind rage&#8221; over leaves being blown onto her side of the street. That is no excuse to be a racist jerk. Leaves don&#8217;t give you the right to call your neighbor an &#8220;orange savage.&#8221; The &#8220;orange savage&#8221; is our President-elect Donald Trump, who she may have voted for.</p> <p>The video has since gone viral. Manawat <a href="https://www.facebook.com/xtawanam/posts/1618538484842288" type="external">had</a> this to say about it in a Facebook post:</p> <p>&#8220;Today, I have decided to remove the infamous &#8220;rant&#8221; video from my page. When this video was put out, my intentions really was to reach out to my neighbor and protect my family. As absurd as that sounds, it was hard to approach her even though she lived right across from me. I wanted to reach out to her and thru all her hatred, to tell her that how she berates me, my family, and my culture is not right&#8230;&#8221;</p> <p>His neighbor said that they had had problems for years, but she shouldn&#8217;t have brought his race and nationality into it. That is not a way to solve problems.</p> <p /> <p /> <p>Featured image via YouTube <a href="https://youtu.be/W3Lx_NgYbzM" type="external">screenshot</a>.</p>

Racist Nutjob Rants At Her Filipino Neighbor

http://offthemainpage.com/2017/01/05/nsfw-viral-video-racist-nutjob-rants-at-her-filipino-neighbor/

2017-01-05

<p>I am afraid of well-meaning Christians. This is probably because I am one myself, but it is also because I encounter well-intentioned Christians all the time. They have a vision for all the good they could do to other people. For the people to whom they are going to do so much good, this is rightly a cause of fear.</p> <p>I came across one of those Christians with a vision a few days ago when I had the opportunity to meet the pastor of the congregation moving into the church building next door to <a href="/Users/Greg/Dropbox/ABP%20blog/qcfamilytree.org" type="external">The Family Tree</a>. He was excited to tell me about the vision he has for our neighborhood. It includes exciting things like a parking lot for charter buses and also a computer lab in their newly renovated building. The neighbors will surely be thrilled. This Pastor has a vision for a huge, multi-ethnic congregation that brings light to our struggling neighborhood. It is obvious in his way of seeing that we are living in total darkness and depravity. Despite his grand vision, it became clear as we talked that he did not even know the name of our neighborhood &#8211; Enderly Park. His new building is at the corner of the two busiest streets in the area, but he did not know Tuckaseegee and Parkway, the names of the streets.</p> <p>Pastor told me he was going to &#8220;blow up this corner,&#8221; which I assume is part of the vision that Jesus has given him. He clearly does not know, despite the presence of a makeshift memorial there, that just 18 months ago there was an actual explosion on the corner where he was sitting. From a gun. And after the explosion, one of our beloved young people, Khalil, was dead. At 13 years old.</p> <p>What Pastor does know is that Enderly Park fits a type &#8211; poor, black neighborhood with cheap real estate. And based on that type, he assumes that we need his church/social-services agency to come and do good things to us. He feels sure that even if we don&#8217;t really need that, we won&#8217;t be organized enough to resist. And Pastor knows that he can then write our neighborhood into his story of being the Hero-Pastor. Hero-Pastor saw our &#8216;profound need&#8217; and acted out of pity to rescue the dark inner-city [code term for &#8220;black&#8221;] neighborhood that lived in despair. Brave Hero-Pastor risked life and limb to serve a fragile, violent neighborhood. The specifics of our story &#8211; the things that make Enderly Park a neighborhood and not just a set of demographics &#8211; are unimportant to his story so long as the right target population can be found and have their lives transformed by Hero-Pastor.</p> <p>Hero-Pastor only sees our deficiencies. He has believed the lie when the Truth could set him free. From his comfortable home in the suburbs, he&#8217;ll have a hard time ever seeing past the lie. But the Truth says that Enderly Park is full of God&#8217;s People. You start to see all the goodness when you stay long enough to grow some roots. You start to know that God still shows up in the flesh of your neighbor. You learn that the neighborhood is full of heroes &#8211; saints, we call them &#8211; and that most of their work is done in secret. They are folks like Mary. Everyone calls her &#8220;Granny&#8221; because she loves them just like a Granny would &#8211; by taking them to school, feeding them, and giving them the loving lectures they occasionally need. Or Bill, a dozen years in recovery, his care-filled eyes ever on the street. He is raising his gentle and bright fourth grader alone following the recent loss of the child&#8217;s mother. Alicia is another. Young and feisty, she carries a fire for justice in her belly, and a heavy dose of compassion to go with it. There are heroes all around, working out their sainthood with little acts of compassion and resistance every day. They never call attention to themselves. They never insist on being written into the story as the heroes. Yet all their little acts of compassion, light and resilience make life joyous around here.</p> <p>It&#8217;s funny that a vision can blind you to all that goodness. You only see the shadows, and miss all the little lights everywhere. You miss the way the saints testify to the great source of Light that makes those little lights shine.</p> <p>I&#8217;m not Hero-Pastor in this case &#8211; though he is all too real &#8211; but I have been before. And sometimes I still am. But I&#8217;m trying to pay attention. I&#8217;m learning to repent, to stay quiet. I&#8217;m learning to listen and watch as the good news moves rhizome-like underground. It slips from house to house without fanfare or ado. It pops up through the cracks in sidewalks under yellow streetlights. It springs up quickly, but you must develop the eyes to see it. I&#8217;m learning to see. I&#8217;m learning to listen. I&#8217;m learning.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p>

Learning to listen

https://baptistnews.com/article/learning-to-listen-2/

<p /> <p /> <p>It was sentenced to death and should be encouraged to speed this along. Scumbag.</p> <p><a href="http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/mar/31/nidal-hasan-fort-hood-shooter-plans-hunger-strike-/" type="external">Via Washington Times.</a></p> <p>Convicted Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan says he will go on a &#8220;hunger strike&#8221; to protest &#8220;America&#8217;s hatred&#8221; for Sharia law.</p> <p>The Nov. 5, 2009, terror attack at Fort Hood, Texas, killed 13 and wounded 32 others. Hasan, a self-proclaimed &#8220;soldier of Allah,&#8221; was convicted on 13 charges of premeditated murder and 32 of attempted murder Aug. 23, 2013. Although the former Army Major psychiatrist is scheduled to be executed, he plans to use the protracted appeals process to make a political statement.</p> <p>A handwritten letter obtained by Fox News details plans to &#8220;reduce and then maintain a total body weight of 99 pounds [while protesting] America&#8217;s hatred for [Sharia] Laws.&#8221;</p> <p>Terror survivor Shawn Manning, a retired Staff Sergeant, told the network that it was absurd for Hasan to think &#8220;he still has the right to make a statement.&#8221; The veteran, who is fighting legal battles for combat-related injuries, said Hasan has &#8220;no regard for human life.&#8221;</p>

http://tammybruce.com/2017/04/fort-hood-shooter-plans-hunger-strike-protesting-americas-hatred-for-sharia-law.html

<p>A little after two on the afternoon of Sept. 26, 2002, Maher Arar, a Canadian businessman of Syrian descent, on his way home to Ottawa after a family vacation, deplaned at New York&#8217;s JFK Airport &#8212; and walked into a nightmarish history.</p> <p>Arar also found himself in an all-too-contemporary wasteland of fear, ignorance, racist xenophobia and careerist atavism otherwise known as U.S. foreign policy. It is the service of these two important books to link that gruesome past and present of his emblematic ordeal, a plight in a wider sense we all share.</p> <p>Canadians will be more familiar with the Arar case, which only two months ago brought a belated public apology from Prime Minister Stephen Harper and a $10.5-million compensation, torture-chamber money that spoke more eloquently than any ministerial words to the shame of the Canadian government. Wrongly accused of ties to al-Qaeda based on plainly bogus information and guilt by the merest association, Arar, his Canadian passport discarded like used tissue, was arrested and interrogated by U.S. agents for five days without seeing a lawyer, and more than a week before the Canadian consul finally showed up &#8212; only to lie to him by saying that the United States would not deport him to Syria as they were threatening.</p> <p>Days later, he was being beaten and tortured in a Syrian dungeon, where the young McGill University graduate would suffer for more than year, until his wife&#8217;s tireless campaign and his own desperate false confession brought his release.</p> <p>In an aftermath of mounting public outrage, Judge Dennis O&#8217;Connor&#8217;s September, 2006, inquiry found categorically that there was no evidence of a terrorist connection, that the RCMP had knowingly passed false information to U.S. authorities, and that Arar &#8212; as Ottawa and Washington both well knew, and some surely intended &#8212; was brutally tortured after being illegally deported to Syria. But Harper&#8217;s mincing if cash-laden regret for &#8220;any role Canadian officials may have played in what happened to Mr. Arar&#8221; still ceded the decision to &#8220;render&#8221; Arar to Syria to the Bush administration, which typically claims it was all quite legal and justified, and in any event secret, a matter of &#8220;national security.&#8221; Judge O&#8217;Connor and $10.5-million notwithstanding, south of the border, Maher Arar remains on the terrorist watch-list.</p> <p>Readers may be less familiar with how much this sordid tale echoes a bleak history of persecution and injustice amid political cravenness and public hysteria, figurative and literal burnings at the stake in which U.S. civil liberties and Canadian legal rights are only the latest of ashes. Robert Rapley&#8217;s <a href="" type="internal">Witch Hunts: From Salem to Guantanamo</a> is a masterful, chillingly clinical yet grippingly readable tour of the horrid heritage from 16th- and 17th-century witch hunts, through the Dreyfus case in fin-de-si&#232;cle France, to the infamous railroading of the Scottsboro Boys in 1930s Alabama, to the Guildford and Maguire terrorist prosecution miscarriages in Britain in the 1970s. What deplorable ancestry we can claim with the Arar case and the countless other renderings and outsourced torture known and unknown, and the U.S. dungeons at Abu Ghraib, Bagram and Guantanamo, the latter the first prisons created for &#8220;witches&#8221; since Salem.</p> <p>Rapley reminds us that the fears and ignorance and issues may change, but the characteristics of the witch hunt make its identity &#8212; and wanton barbarism &#8211;unmistakable. Whether the victim is a too-lively French parish priest, a willful Puritan wife, an African-American teenager, a Canadian specialist in telecommunications or an Afghan or Iraqi duly or randomly caught in the web, the marks are all the same: The accused is guilty before evidence is sought; beatings and torture are justifiable means to confessions and accusations against others; any incriminating evidence, however dubious or vague, is in, any proof to the contrary is out; false evidence may be created and used as necessary to convict; defenders of the victim, including legal counsel, are suspected accessories; the accused is by definition so dangerous as to have no normal rights; secret accusations are routine; since the &#8220;witch&#8221; is never alone, the hunt must always expand to accomplices. And, not least, the crowning glory of all witch hunts: Everything, from the most petty to the most magisterial abuse, is justified, buried, beyond revelation, appeal or accountability by virtue of the protection of society, the good of the state, national security.</p> <p>A retired civil servant in Ottawa, Rapley delivers the inescapable diagnosis of how much this madness still lodges in our bones. One is tempted to find some redemption in the conclusion that witch hunts are made, not born. But Rapley&#8217;s withering sequence shakes even that small comfort. He repeats the unforgettable indictment he made in his earlier masterpiece, <a href="" type="internal">A Case of Witchcraft: The Trial of Urbain Grandier,</a> that however we may blame these outrages on leaders of the moment (and the leaders are inevitably weak or execrable or both), there is always a willing legion of minor Eichmanns to staff these mini-holocausts: the agents at JFK, the RCMP clerks who supplied them, the ever-agreeable military warders, the waning but enduring claque around the rotting Bush regime, rationalizing the loss of civilization as glibly as the United States&#8217; loss of a war and its international standing. Like their predecessors, like their necessary accomplices in the once-screaming or cowed and silent crowd, almost all of them will go on with utter impunity when the burnings are finally done.</p> <p>Yale professor Ian Shapiro brings <a href="" type="internal">Containment: Rebuilding a Strategy Against Global Terror</a>to assure us that it can be over, if only the United States heeds another heritage. His cure comes in the form of a paean to the late U.S. diplomat and scholar George Kennan, whose famous &#8220;Long Telegram&#8221; of 1947 is legendary as authoring the postwar U.S. policy of &#8220;containing&#8221; the Soviet Union.</p> <p>Shapiro recognizes what the archival record increasingly shows: that Washington was relentlessly aggressive and probing with the Russians, while unctuously declaring its policies purely defensive, often given to &#8220;rollback&#8221; and &#8220;liberation&#8221; as well as drawing the old cordon sanitaire from which Kennan derived his notion. But he credits the principle of &#8220;containment,&#8221; even honoured in the breach, for deterring and ultimately overcoming the Soviet threat without a major war or ruinous damage to U.S. prestige and democracy, costs he sees inflicted by the rampant unilateralism of Bush&#8217;s &#8220;war on terror.&#8221;</p> <p>Putting aside this rather sweeping, simplistic and problematic verdict on the lethal ambiguities of the Cold War, whose ghosts haunt us still, Shapiro makes the unexceptionable case that everyone would be relatively better off if Washington only regained some its old anti-communist senses. By the proper mix of multilateralism, diplomatic sticks and carrots (foreign policy analysts&#8217; favourite inducements), economic means and military deterrence (with war only &#8220;a last resort&#8217;), the United States could &#8220;contain&#8221; any states prone to harbouring terrorists. And without a refuge of some sort, the terrorist threat would be reduced to a still serious, yet comparatively lesser, danger than the mad-hatter Bush crusade has made it.</p> <p>Along the way in this small book &#8212; visibly pieced together from earlier lectures and the requisite corps of student researchers &#8212; Shapiro paints a hopeful picture of how such a policy worked with once-outlaw Libya, how much U.S. allies would welcome the change, and how much the current disaster owes to the Democrats&#8217; craven surrender on the Iraq war as well as White House or neo-conservative delusion.</p> <p>Yet in the end, this is one more of those bland recipes an intellectually bankrupt establishment can smile on simply because it begs so many questions, threatens so little of the root problem in U.S. foreign policy. As Rapley understands, this is at heart a profoundly cultural crisis &#8212; America&#8217;s angry, sullen, self-justifying clash with the world and a more pluralistic modernity. There is no real answer in going back to men and policies which, in their dark hearts, were as much precursors as counterpoints of this sad, ominous moment.</p> <p>To dispel the darkness Rapley chronicles so starkly &#8212; the prospect of Patriot Act II, which with another glaring terrorist attack puts any of us on the threshold of a Bagram or a Guantanamo &#8212; will require nothing less than a political and moral honesty, an authentic regeneration that no mere policy framework can begin to touch.</p> <p>ROGER MORRIS, who served in the State Department and on the Senior Staff of the National Security Council under Presidents Johnson and Nixon, resigned in protest at the invasion of Cambodia. He then worked as a legislative advisor in the U.S. Senate and a director of policy studies at the Carnegie Endowment, and writes this Rumsfeldian history from intimate firsthand knowledge as well as extensive research. A Visiting Honors professor at the University of Washington and Research Fellow of the <a href="http://greeninstitute.net/subpage.asp?navid=&amp;amp;id=23" type="external">Green Institute</a>, where his work originally appears. He is an award-winning historian and investigative journalist, including a National Book Award Silver Medal winner, and the author of books on Nixon, Kissinger, Haig, and the Clintons. More recently, he co-authored with Sally Denton <a href="" type="internal">The Money and the Power,</a> a history of Las Vegas as the paradigm of national corruption. His latest work, Shadows of the Eagle, a history of U.S. covert interventions and policy in the Middle East and South Asia over the past half-century, will be published in early 2008 by Knopf.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p>

The Politics of the Witch Hunt

https://counterpunch.org/2007/04/01/the-politics-of-the-witch-hunt/

2007-04-01

<p /> <p>Startups typically owe their success to a few key players. We've had the benefit of being surrounded by tremendously helpful and influential people throughout our careers who gave us the tools and experience we needed to start&amp;#160; <a href="http://www.hukkster.com/" type="external">Hukkster Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>And while we plan on saying thank you to these key communities, it's probably not a bad idea to do the same. After all,&amp;#160; <a href="http://www.entrepreneur.com/topic/thanksgiving" type="external">Thanksgiving Opens a New Window.</a>&amp;#160;is a time to reflect on the people and events in our lives which have helped us to grow and succeed -- a holiday which is particularly relevant to the entrepreneurs of the world.</p> <p>Here are three clever ways to show your appreciation this holiday:</p> <p>1. Say it, uniquely.&amp;#160;In a world of e-cards, emails and even virtual flowers (yes, they exist), it may seem appealing to demonstrate graciousness toward a mentor or investor through an online exchange.&amp;#160;One of the biggest mistakes made in today's digital age is to underestimate the value of a handwritten thank you note.&amp;#160;A carefully crafted letter written on personalized stationery or note cards with a nice print becomes a sentimental item for a mentor to cherish -- a tangible reminder of her influence on you.</p> <p><a href="http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/229989" type="external">Related: 18 Easy Ways to Say 'Thanks' Opens a New Window.</a></p> <p>2. Donate in their name.&amp;#160;If you want to leave a truly indelible mark on your mentor and/or employees, consider making a donation in their honor. There are a number of apps that can help facilitate a donation in their name. Websites like&amp;#160; <a href="http://justgive.org/" type="external">Justgive.org Opens a New Window.</a>, for instance,&amp;#160;allow you to make a gift donation to almost any charity of your choosing. With so many participating organizations, it's a great way to personalize your gift while also giving back in the process.</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>3. Pay it forward.&amp;#160;If you've had the benefit of being guided by some great mentors, chances are that you are on your way to becoming one yourself -- whether you've realized it yet or not. Depending on where you are in your career, it might be time for you to return the favor by taking a few mentees under&amp;#160;your&amp;#160;wing.</p> <p>One of the best, and most accessible, places to start is at your alma mater. Becoming a point person for job seeking seniors and recent alums of your college is a fantastic way to give back to your network and foster new talent. If you're interested in mentoring those who are specifically interested in entrepreneurial ventures, Women 2.0 offers a "Lunch Mentorship" program, which matches a mentor with five mentees over lunch, as part of its nationwide conference series. If you are the founder of a successful startup, you can apply to participate as a mentor in their next conference&amp;#160; <a href="http://w2-lv-conference-2013.eventbrite.com/" type="external">here Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> <p><a href="http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/228483" type="external">Related: What Every Mentor Should Know Opens a New Window.</a></p> <p>This post originally appeared at <a href="http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/230075" type="external">Entrepreneur Opens a New Window.</a>. Copyright 2013.</p> <p><a href="http://www.entrepreneur.com/author/erica-bell-and-katie-finnegan" type="external">Erica Bell and Katie Finnegan Opens a New Window.</a> are the co-founders of&amp;#160; <a href="http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fhukkster.com&amp;amp;sa=D&amp;amp;sntz=1&amp;amp;usg=AFQjCNH_RVy_2jjz1fDog7h56Fom9HaQSA" type="external">hukkster Opens a New Window.</a>, an online shopping tool that helps you track products on sites you love, get notified when those products go on sale and gives you the ability to buy when the price and time are right.</p>

3 Ways to Thank Your Employees

http://foxbusiness.com/features/2013/11/26/3-ways-to-thank-your-employees.html

2016-04-07

<p /> <p><a href="" type="internal">Black Friday</a> has taken on a new, grayer shade this year, watered down by retail promotions that are staggered over a wider period and heavier competition from internet shopping.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>As many as 152 million people plan to shop this coming weekend, up 10 percent from last year and the biggest expected turnout ever, a <a href="" type="internal">National Retail Federation</a> survey showed. Some 34 percent of shoppers said they plan to shop on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, up from 31 percent last year and 26 percent in 2009, according to a separate survey from <a href="" type="internal">International Council of Shopping Centers</a>.</p> <p>A big question is how much of the shopping will spill into Thanksgiving Day itself. Stores are opening earlier than ever, with two of the biggest, Walmart Stores Inc. and Toys R Us, unveiling their deals to customers on Thanksgiving night. Other major retailers, including <a href="" type="internal">Target Corp</a>., Macy's Inc., <a href="" type="internal">Best Buy</a> Co. and Kohl's Corp., plan midnight openings.</p> <p>Black Friday sales are forecast to rise 1.6 percent this year, slower from a 3.8 percent increase in 2010 and a 1.9 percent gain in 2009, according to a survey of retail chief marketing officers by tax and consulting firm BDO.</p> <p><a href="" type="internal">Amazon</a>.com Inc. also looms large, giving consumers the opportunity to shop for bargains in their pajamas, before or after the turkey.</p> <p>While Black Friday doesn't a season make, it helps set the tone for retailers throughout the holiday. For the eighth year in a row, Black Friday will remain the No. 1 sales and traffic day in the holiday shopping season, according to retail foot-traffic tracker ShopperTrak. The other top four sales days are likely to land in the week prior to Christmas, ShopperTrak data indicate.</p> <p>Michael Niemira, the chief economist for the ICSC, estimates Black Friday itself to represent 10 percent of November sales at shopping centers and four percent of November and December sales combined.</p> <p>It is a year that requires extra effort by brick-and-mortar retailers, given high unemployment, low <a href="" type="internal">consumer confidence</a> and worries about debt. Walmart reintroduced layaway programs and is giving a bigger time window for price-matching guarantees. The retail behemoth also set up holiday displays earlier than usual to capture dollars ahead of the crowd.</p> <p>As usual, "door-buster" promotions for Black Friday lean heavily toward electronics, with steep discounts being offered on HDTVs, videogame consoles, laptops, Blu-ray DVD players, cameras and the like.</p> <p>The weather is generally expected to cooperate, with no big storms in the forecast for Black Friday or the weekend, according to Planalytics, which monitors weather patterns. "But because it will be warmer in most parts of the country demand for seasonal items like sweaters and outerwear will be negatively impacted," Planalytics spokesman Evan Gold said.</p> <p><a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204531404577054111809213968.html?mod=WSJ_hp_LEFTTopStories" type="external">Read more&#8230; Opens a New Window.</a></p> <p>Advertisement</p>

Early Retail Promotions Expected to Dilute Black Friday Sales

http://foxbusiness.com/features/2011/11/23/early-retail-promotions-expected-to-dilute-black-friday-sales.html

2016-01-29

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>A State Police spokesman said one of the suspects fired at officers near the end of the chase, but that no officer from either agency returned fire. The officers were uninjured.</p> <p>Around 10:30 p.m. Friday, Albuquerque Police Department officers started to chase a stolen vehicle with three passengers who were suspected of shoplifting from the Wal-Mart at Carlisle and Menaul NE. The chase ended up on northbound Interstate 25, which is where State Police and an APD helicopter joined in the pursuit.</p> <p>The pursuit continued to N.M. 165 near Bernalillo, then east to Placitas. State Police took the lead in the chase and APD officers provided backup, State Police spokesman Lt. Emmanuel Gutierrez said.</p> <p>Around 11:15 p.m., the chase ended on the state road near Mile Marker 10. The three passengers fled on foot, and one of them fired at officers. No officer returned fire, and no officer was injured, the spokesman said.</p> <p>Two suspects came out of the woods without incident.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>The APD helicopter spotted a suspect on the ground. A State Police team discovered the suspect was dead from what appears &#8220;preliminarily&#8221; to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. However, the body has been sent for an autopsy. The deceased man was later identified by State Police as Jaycob J. Gabaldon, 36, of Albuquerque.</p> <p>Police arrested 25-year-old Steven Fisher on an unrelated warrant, but they haven&#8217;t released the name of the other arrested suspect. Gutierrez did not say what criminal charges the suspects could face.</p> <p /> <p />

1 dead, 2 arrested following police chase

https://abqjournal.com/327985/1-dead-2-arrested-following-police-chase.html

<p /> <p>Indiana officials agreed to give United Technologies Corp. $7 million worth of tax breaks over 10 years to encourage the company's Carrier Corp. unit to keep about 1,000 jobs in the state, according to people familiar with the matter.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>The heating and air conditioning company will invest about $16 million to keep its operations in the state, including a furnace plant in Indianapolis that it had previously planned to close and shift the work to Mexico, the people said.</p> <p>President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence were expected to announced the deal with Carrier in Indiana on Thursday.</p> <p>The deal would cover 800 Carrier workers from the Indianapolis furnace plant and an additional 300 research and headquarters positions that weren't slated to go to Mexico, according to another person briefed on the deal.</p> <p>The company still plans to move 600 jobs from the Carrier plant to Mexico. It also will proceed with plans to close a second plant in Huntington, Ind., that makes electronic controls, moving 700 other jobs to Mexico.</p> <p>Mr. Trump has played up the partial rescue as a sign he can deliver on campaign promises. Through the presidential primary and general election, the Republican businessman had made an example of Carrier, at one point threatening to put a 35% tariff on Carrier imports unless it reversed its decision to move the jobs to Mexico.</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>"This is a big win for the incoming administration but an even bigger win for the people of Indiana," transition spokesman Jason Miller said Thursday. The transition team has declined to provide details about the cost of keeping those jobs in the state.</p> <p>Mr. Trump also will host an evening rally at U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, a Republican stronghold. Ohio was one of six states the Republican captured after being won twice by Democratic President Barack Obama. That is the start of a broader "thank you" tour that is expected to include stops in Florida and across the Midwest.</p> <p>Sen. Bernie Sanders, who during his presidential campaign had also attacked Carrier and other firms shifting work abroad, criticized the deal on Thursday, saying Mr. Trump failed to make good on his campaign pledge to save all of the jobs from moving to Mexico.</p> <p>The deal also creates a bad precedent, Mr. Sanders contended, writing that Mr. Trump "has signaled to every corporation in America that they can threaten to offshore jobs in exchange for business-friendly tax benefits and incentives."</p> <p>The deal that emerged from weeks of negotiations between United Technologies brass and officials in the Trump camp led by Mr. Pence, the Indiana governor, is a relatively standard package of state incentives, according to people familiar with the agreement.</p> <p>On Wednesday, Carrier said "incentives offered by the state were an important consideration," without providing further details.</p> <p>"This agreement in no way diminishes our belief in the benefits of free trade and that the forces of globalization will continue to require solutions for the long-term competitiveness of the U.S. and of American workers moving forward," the company said.</p> <p>In addition to Carrier, United Technologies makes Pratt &amp;amp; Whitney jet engines and Otis elevators. It employs about 200,000 people, about one third of them in the U.S.</p> <p>Representatives of the incoming administration also discussed the Farmington, Conn., company's wishes regarding federal regulations and their desires for an overhaul of corporate tax laws, according to one of the people.</p> <p>For Mr. Trump, the trips to Indiana and Ohio meant there were no announced meetings on Thursday with prospective cabinet members. Those meetings will resume on Friday in New York, where Mr. Trump is scheduled to visit with Sen. David Perdue (R., Ga.), retired Adm. Jay Cohen, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton, and Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D., N.D.).</p> <p>--Michael C. Bender contributed to this article.</p> <p>By Ted Mann</p>

Indiana Gives $7 Million in Tax Breaks to Keep Carrier Jobs

http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/12/01/indiana-gives-7-million-in-tax-breaks-to-keep-carrier-jobs.html

2016-12-01

<p>A lot can happen in a year. That&#8217;s the lesson we learn every December, when we pause to reflect on the 365 days that have come and gone. 2013 was no exception.</p> <p>This was a busy year for progressives, who celebrated <a href="" type="internal">victories</a> and regrouped after <a href="" type="internal">defeats</a>. It was also a trying year for the country as a whole, as we bid <a href="" type="internal">farewell</a> to familiar faces and <a href="http://newsfeed.time.com/2013/04/17/marathon-bombings-our-favorite-tributes-to-boston/" type="external">comforted one another amidst tragedy</a>. Around the globe, this year saw everything from a <a href="" type="internal">royal birth</a> and to a <a href="" type="internal">stately death</a>.</p> <p>Here is a look back at twelve of the iconic images from 2013:</p> <p>President Obama was <a href="" type="internal">sworn in for his second term</a> on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, marking the beginning of a year of progress on issues ranging from marriage equality to immigration to affordable health care.</p> <p>Jorge Mario Bergoglio was unexpectedly elevated to the papacy in March after his predecessor Pope Benedict resigned, the first time the leader of the Catholic Church left the position before his death in more than 600 years. Even more unexpected was <a href="" type="internal">the year that followed</a> in which Pope Francis preached the values of economic justice, and decried worsening income inequality and the fallacy of trickle-down economics.</p> <p>In April, a garment manufacturing plant that serviced some of the world&#8217;s largest apparel companies collapsed, killing more than 1,000 people. In the weeks that followed, the people of Bangladesh rose up and <a href="" type="internal">demanded a living wage</a> and higher safety standards, while 70 international brands <a href="" type="internal">signed a pact</a> that opened up their Bangladeshi suppliers to inspections for the first time.</p> <p>The celebrations that usually accompany the finish line of the annual Boston Marathon were interrupted first with a bang, then with chaos and fear, and finally with immense bravery and camaraderie on April 15, when two radicalized brothers <a href="" type="internal">set off bombs</a> that killed three people and injured hundreds more.</p> <p>Twelve and a half years after the twin towers fell in the September 11 terrorist attacks, the new One World Trade Center eclipsed Chicago&#8217;s Willis Tower to claim the title of the tallest building in the United States, <a href="" type="internal">thanks in no small part to unionized labor.</a></p> <p>It took a few hours, but by the end of the night on June 25, the eyes of the nation were affixed to Austin, Texas, where an unknown state senator was <a href="" type="internal">successfully filibustering</a> a Republican-sponsored bill aimed at further eroding women&#8217;s rights in Texas. Wendy Davis&#8217; pink sneakers instantly <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/28/wendy-davis-shoes-sales-abortion-debate-amazon" type="external">shot to the top</a> of Amazon&#8217;s bestseller list and touched off a national conversation about a woman&#8217;s right to choose.</p> <p>Friends, supporters, and couples gay and straight gathered on the footsteps of the Supreme Court in June to be the first to hear the news that the Defense of Marriage Act, which for years had ill-defined marriage as between a man and a woman, had been <a href="" type="internal">struck down as unconstitutional</a>.</p> <p>Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets in <a href="" type="internal">dozens of cities</a> across Brazil over the summer to protest <a href="" type="internal">widespread corruption and fiscal irresponsibility</a> in the halls of government. The nation is set to host to the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics, but public spending on soccer stadiums and Olympic halls at a time when funding for schools and hospitals is running dry struck a nerve with the people of Brazil.</p> <p>Angered by their inability to further cut funding for programs designed to help low-income families, Republicans in the House of Representatives refused to pass a continuing resolution to fund the federal government, effectively <a href="" type="internal">shutting down the nation&#8217;s capitol</a>&#8202;&#8212;&#8202;and things like national parks&#8202;&#8212;&#8202;for more than two weeks in October.</p> <p>The devastation wrought by Typhoon Haiyan has yet to subside, as the death toll from the November storm surpassed 6,000 people just last week. What&#8217;s becoming increasingly clear, however, is that the <a href="" type="internal">effects of global climate change</a>&#8202;&#8212;&#8202;rising sea levels, warming oceans&#8202;&#8212;&#8202;are helping to fuel storms like Haiyan and heighten their impact on those that live in their path.</p> <p>Shanghai, the world&#8217;s largest city proper and home to more than 14 million people, <a href="" type="internal">disappeared in December</a> behind a pollution-induced haze that cancelled flights and forced its residents indoors. The amount of particulates in the air were as high as 31 times above the recommended levels.</p> <p>The <a href="" type="internal">passing of Nelson Mandela</a> was a day that South Africa knew would come eventually, but that did nothing to lessen the impact of his loss. For days, the <a href="" type="internal">entire international community</a> mourned and remembered the fallen visionary, and celebrated his <a href="" type="internal">extraordinary life.</a></p>

The Iconic Photos Of 2013

http://thinkprogress.org/home/2013/12/17/3071401/iconic-photos/

2013-12-17

<p>New YorkerHendrik Hertzberg writes: "Everything about it is upside down. In the ideal template, the person being protected is an unnamed whistle-blower trying to expose government wrongdoing. This time, the protectee or protectees are unnamed government wrongdoers trying to discredit a (named) whistle-blower." &amp;gt; <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0505010420may01,1,1576119.story" type="external">Editorial: "Plame case has been a disaster for the news media" (ChiTrib)</a></p>

"Cooper-Miller case is rife with ironies and curiosities"

https://poynter.org/news/cooper-miller-case-rife-ironies-and-curiosities

2005-05-02

<p /> <p>Image source: Getty Images</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>Normal stock market trading hours for the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq are from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. However, depending on your brokerage, you may still be able to buy and sell stocks after the market closes, in a process known as after-hours trading.</p> <p>Trading hours before the market is open is known as the pre-market session, while trading periods after the market's close are known as the after-hours trading session. The ability to trade in the after hours, as well as the rules and fees involved, if any, vary depending on your brokerage. Most major brokers allow after-hours trading between the hours of 4:00 and 8:00 p.m., but this isn't a universal standard. For example, TD Ameritrade opens its after-hours session at 4:15 p.m., 15 minutes after the market closes. Others have narrower windows, such as Wells Fargo, which limits after-hours trading to a period from 4:05 to 5:00 p.m.</p> <p>Also, some (but not most) brokerages charge additional fees for extended-hours trading. Notably, E*Trade charges a $0.005 fee per share for extended-hour trades. This fee translates to an additional $5 on a 1,000-share trade, so it's worth looking into your brokerage's policies.</p> <p>There are also different rules about what types of orders can be placed, as well as different procedures regarding how orders are routed. For example, many brokerages only accept unconditional limit orders to buy, sell, and short-sell securities. Stop orders and more complex orders (such as an all-or-none order), as well as orders to buy mutual funds, bonds, or options, are not accepted in the after-hours session.</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>In a nutshell, be sure to get familiar with your brokerage's extended-hour policies before getting started.</p> <p>Before you start trading in the after-hours session, there are a few things you need to keep in mind. I mentioned that some brokerages charge additional fees for after-hours trading, so be sure to factor this cost into your trading strategy.</p> <p>Additional risks include, but are not necessarily limited to:</p> <p>If you're interested, TD Ameritrade publishes an <a href="https://www.tdameritrade.com/retail-en_us/resources/pdf/AMTD183.pdf" type="external">excellent guide Opens a New Window.</a> to the risks, and to its rules of extended-hours trading.</p> <p>The bottom line is that after-hours trading is possible and can help you react to earnings reports and other news that takes place outside of normal market hours. However, each brokerage has its own policies regarding after-hours trading, and the rules can be more restrictive, so be sure to do your homework before getting started.</p> <p>This article is part of The Motley Fool's Knowledge Center, which was created based on the collected wisdom of a fantastic community of investors. We'd love to hear your questions, thoughts, and opinions on the Knowledge Center in general or this page in particular. Your input will help us help the world invest, better! Email us at <a href="http://mailto:knowledgecenter@fool.com?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">knowledgecenter@fool.com Opens a New Window.</a>. Thanks -- and Fool on!</p> <p>The article <a href="http://www.fool.com/knowledge-center/how-does-after-hours-trading-work.aspx" type="external">How Does After-Hours Trading Work? Opens a New Window.</a> originally appeared on Fool.com.</p> <p>The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends TD Ameritrade and Wells Fargo. The Motley Fool recommends Nasdaq. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services <a href="http://www.fool.com/shop/newsletters/index.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">free for 30 days Opens a New Window.</a>. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that <a href="http://wiki.fool.com/Motley?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">considering a diverse range of insights Opens a New Window.</a> makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> <p>Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/help/index.htm?display=about02" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>

How Does After-Hours Trading Work?

http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/07/03/how-does-after-hours-trading-work.html

2016-07-03

<p>Medtronic plc (MDT) will report its next earnings on Feb 20 BMO. The company reported the earnings of $1.07/Share in the last quarter where the estimated EPS by analysts was $0.98/share. The difference between the expected and actual EPS was $0.09/share, which represents an Earnings surprise of 9.2%. Many analysts are providing their Estimated Earnings [&#8230;]</p>

Investors Catching Stocks Medtronic plc (MDT)

https://newsline.com/investors-catching-stocks-medtronic-plc-mdt/

2018-01-09

<p>Pillows that track your snoozing patterns? A bed that adjusts based on how much you twist and turn? Companies are adding more technology into their products, hoping to lure customers craving a better night's sleep.</p> <p>Some specialized businesses are making gadgets that promise to measure and improve the quality of slumber, while mass-market retailers like Best Buy are offering simpler ideas like the effect different lighting can have on falling sleep. But with ever-growing options, people may find items that are getting more sophisticated &#8212; but may still not be accurate.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>The interest in sleep has intensified. The number of sleep centers accredited by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine nearly tripled from 2000 to 2015, the group says. People are more likely to brag about how much they spent for a mattress than on their clothes, says Marian Salzman, CEO of Havas PR North America.</p> <p>"Sleep is the new status symbol," she says.</p> <p>It's a big business. One of the more expensive products is Sleep Number's 360 Smart Bed, which runs from $3,449 to $4,999. It makes adjustments based on how restless people are while they're sleeping. The Zeeq pillow, which sells for $299 and is from bedding brand REM-Fit, monitors snoring and can gently vibrate to nudge someone into a different sleep position.</p> <p>"I'm willing to spend more on sleep technology because it will hopefully help me fall asleep quicker, stay asleep longer and be more rested when I wake up," says Frank Ribitch, a self-described gadget junkie from Martinez, California, who tracks his sleep with apps connected to a Sleep Number bed and the Zeeq pillow.</p> <p>Insufficient sleep is a public health concern, federal officials say, with more than one-third of American adults not getting enough on a regular basis. That can contribute to problems like obesity and diabetes. And a study published by the Rand Corp. put the financial loss to U.S. companies at up to $411 billion a year.</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>Finding solutions could be a lucrative enterprise. Earlier this year Apple Inc. bought Finland-based Beddit, which was making an app and sleep monitoring device that's placed under the sheet on top of the mattress. The $150 sensor begins tracking when a person lies down, and analyzes data such as the portion of time someone is in bed asleep before waking up. It also monitors heart rate, temperature, movement &#8212; and even snoring.</p> <p>"Previously, it was about the sleeping pill and people didn't want to talk about sleep apnea," Lasse Lepp&#228;korpi, co-founder and now former CEO of Beddit, said before Apple bought the company. "Snoring is embarrassing. But this has been untapped opportunity."</p> <p>Apple, whose own Apple Watch tracks activity and offers sleep-tracking experiences through third-party apps, declined to talk about the future of Beddit. Leppakorpi noted before the acquisition that Beddit had been working with sleep labs like the MIT Lab, which used the devices to collect data on patients.</p> <p>At the Stanford Sleep Medicine Center, neurologist and medical director Clete A. Kushida tests new therapies and medications. Over the past two years, the analysis has expanded to wearable devices. The scientists assess how well the devices match the center's own overnight sleep studies, which use measures such as heart rate and brain wave activity to determine the length and the stages of sleep.</p> <p>Kushida's conclusion? "Consumer wearable devices are not there in accurately detecting the stages of sleep," he said. The problem: They focus on motion, which can be deceptive since a person could be lying in bed awake.</p> <p>In fact, San Francisco-based startup Hello, the maker of a product aimed at tracking sleep via a clip attached to a person's bedsheet, recently announced it was shutting down amid reports the device didn't correctly track sleep patterns.</p> <p>Still, Kushida believes the consumer products are getting better and will be able to accurately monitor and solve sleep issues in the next five to 10 years.</p> <p>Separate from gadgets, some stores are highlighting sounds and smells they say can help people sleep better. Longtime insomniac favorite HSN Inc. offers a $299 Nightingale Sleep System that masks indoor and outdoor noises. Best Buy has a Philips Lighting's system that works with devices like Nest and Amazon Alexa to let people choose the colors and brightness of lights and program them to turn off at certain times or respond to the sun.</p> <p>And a company called Sensorwake is launching a product in the U.S. that releases smells like fresh linen it says can help you sleep better.</p> <p>If nothing worked and you've had a fitful night, you can at least be woken up more gently. The same company makes a $99 olfactory alarm clock, with scent options that include a strong espresso. But if you let it go for three minutes without shutting it off or hitting snooze, it'll start making noise &#8212; good if you have a stuffy nose.</p> <p>___</p> <p>AP Video Journalist Terry Chea in San Francisco contributed to this report.</p> <p>___</p> <p>Follow Anne D'Innocenzio: http://twitter.com/ADInnocenzio</p>

Zzzzzz: Sleep gadgets adjust if you're restless _ or snoring

http://foxbusiness.com/features/2017/07/10/under-covers-sleep-technology-explodes.html

2017-07-10

<p>Editor&#8217;s note: The story of America is the story of immigrants. But since Donald Trump became president, the immigration issue has become a humanitarian crisis in the United States. Truthdig political correspondent Bill Boyarsky investigates the impact of Trump&#8217;s anti-immigrant racism on Los Angeles&#8212;home to 1 million undocumented immigrants&#8212;in this ongoing series for Truthdig called &#8220;Demonizing the City of Angels.&#8221; You can read all of Boyarsky&#8217;s stories in the series <a href="" type="internal">here</a>.</p> <p>Los Angeles is at the center of the immigration debate, and Mayor Eric Garcetti, who is thinking of running for president, is in the middle of it.</p> <p>&#8220;This is ground zero,&#8221; Garcetti told me when we talked in his City Hall office Jan. 5. &#8220;I have a particular responsibility as mayor of Los Angeles, which has one of the largest immigrant populations, one of the largest undocumented populations, to try to move this country toward sane immigration policies and, in the meantime, try to defend the families and people who are here.&#8221;</p> <p>Garcetti spoke of President Donald Trump with contempt.</p> <p /> <p>&#8220;With this president, we&#8217;ve had the death of values, the dismissal of experience, and evidence that we&#8217;ve had the decline of our strength globally and domestically. We have a president who hasn&#8217;t spent very much time living with everyday people. He doesn&#8217;t understand a city like Los Angeles, or one like Kansas City, that depends on the workings of a pluralistic society. He continues to blow the dog whistle of anti-immigrant feelings to mobilize his vision of American identity.&#8221;</p> <p>I asked whether he&#8217;s considered running for president. That, he said, &#8220;is something I am thinking about.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;I think every patriot in this country should be thinking about how we can change the White House now,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I would never make a decision on this based on a single issue (such as immigration) but whether it is an attack on women, whether it&#8217;s an attack on immigrants, whether it&#8217;s changing the courts, whether it is losing all of our power internationally&#8212;there are too many things to boil it down to one and say, &#8216;This is what disturbs me in this country right now.&#8217; I think we are all called in an increasingly national role to speak up and speak out.</p> <p>&#8220;I think there have been so many lies peddled: the coal jobs will come back, that we would be stronger abroad, tax reform would help the middle class, that we&#8217;ll help the environment. All these things Trump said he was for have been the opposite. So I&#8217;m not a one-issue kind of guy. I don&#8217;t think most Americans are.&#8221;</p> <p>But when it comes to immigration, Garcetti said, &#8220;There has been a particular betrayal.&#8221; He was talking about &#8220;Dreamers,&#8221; the beneficiaries of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Trump has refused to renew the program unless Congress approves money for his controversial border wall.</p> <p>In regard to Dreamers, Garcetti said, Trump promised &#8220;he would take care of them, they have nothing to worry about. Ask a DACA recipient right now: They&#8217;ve got a hell of a lot to be worried about. Every single day they live in fear.&#8221;</p> <p>If Garcetti runs, he likely would be part of a large field of 2020 hopefuls struggling to find a winning message after Hillary Clinton&#8217;s unexpected and shattering loss to Trump in 2016. At this stage of the game, even a long shot like Garcetti may have a chance.</p> <p>I interviewed Garcetti while pursuing immigration stories for Truthdig. He&#8217;s got more on his mayoral agenda, including <a href="" type="internal">intractable homelessness</a> and a growing shortage of affordable housing. But on this particular day, I wanted to explore his views on immigration and Trump.</p> <p>Garcetti supports the long-standing Los Angeles Police Department policy of limiting cooperation with federal immigration officers in dealing with undocumented immigrants. This is a linchpin of the national &#8220;sanctuary city&#8221; movement. He and the Los Angeles City Council are working on ordinances to strengthen these procedures, and Garcetti&#8217;s office has reached out to help immigrants in other ways.</p> <p>Thomas Homan, acting director of the Department of Homeland Security, has threatened officials of cities like Los Angeles. &#8220;We got to take these sanctuary cities on,&#8221; Homan told Fox News. &#8220;We got to take them to court. And we got to start charging some of these politicians with crimes.&#8221; The Trump administration is withholding law enforcement grants to cities that won&#8217;t cooperate. Los Angeles and other cities have gone to court to fight Trump.</p> <p>Garcetti is unperturbed about the threat of going to jail with other pro-immigrant mayors, such as Darrell Steinberg of Sacramento. &#8220;I guess Steinberg could be your cellmate,&#8221; I said.</p> <p>&#8220;A pretty good cellmate,&#8221; Garcetti replied. &#8220;We&#8217;re close friends. If I got to go, I&#8217;ll go with him. Get a lot of reading done. Send us the classics.&#8221;</p> <p>Joking aside, Garcetti sees the jail threat as reflective of the Trump administration&#8217;s hostility toward democracy. &#8220;We&#8217;ve had to address threats. You know, the latest: One of his lackeys was saying people like me should be arrested. These (threats) are deeply un-American&#8212;their attacks on immigrants, on defenders of immigrants, cities that do a good job of writing the next chapter of the American immigrants&#8217; stories.&#8221;</p> <p>Does he think racism is behind Trump policies?</p> <p>&#8220;Yea,&#8221; Garcetti said. &#8220;[Through] ignorance or calculation&#8212;I think racism comes from both. &#8230; It comes out of a place where he has offered an American identity that is an exclusionary identity.</p> <p>&#8220;You have to remember this is the foundation of his campaign for president,&#8221; he noted. &#8220;It started with a speech talking about Mexicans being rapists and drug dealers, and he very effectively flipped a lot of districts which had gone for Obama but have [since then] had higher immigrant numbers.&#8221;</p> <p>Garcetti said Trump and his team could actually hurt enforcement of immigration laws.</p> <p>&#8220;They can cause disruption,&#8221; he said. &#8220;They can never do what they say. In Southern California, it is estimated there are 2 million undocumented immigrants, and they have 400 ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] agents. Let&#8217;s say they doubled that. I know from experience with LAPD and others, when you try too quickly to hire people in law enforcement, in a good economy, you have to lower the bar, and you have to get people who are going to cost that agency money, who are going to make missteps.</p> <p>&#8220;But quality aside, even if they were able to double it, which I doubt they can in this economy, that&#8217;s 800 people to try to find 2 million. &#8230; Wouldn&#8217;t you want your ICE agents going after the most dangerous criminals out there&#8212;the sharks, as I call them? That takes a lot of dedicated work to find a shark in the ocean. It&#8217;s not easy.</p> <p>&#8220;What they are doing now is saying, &#8216;We&#8217;re not going after sharks any more.&#8217; &#8220;</p> <p>Rather, Garcetti said, under Trump, ICE is going after all undocumented immigrants, and in the process, he is missing those who are dangerous. That, said Garcetti, is &#8220;making us less safe because you didn&#8217;t get the bad person off the street.&#8221;</p> <p>Garcetti&#8217;s views on immigrants are informed by his background. His mother, Sukey Garcetti, is the daughter of Harry Roth, whose family fled Russia to escape the czar&#8217;s anti-Semitic pogroms. His father is former Los Angeles County District Attorney Gil Garcetti, whose own father was brought to California as a child refugee of the Mexican Revolution and grew up to become a barber.</p> <p>&#8220;My family has lived the American dream,&#8221; he said. &#8220;If Donald Trump had been in charge, they would have been prevented from that. And what a poorer country we would have been.&#8221; Many people, he notes, can tell &#8220;that story of struggle&#8212;people fleeing anti-Semitism, people fleeing the Mexican Revolution. And this country didn&#8217;t ask them about their past. It only gave them a route to work hard for the future. Nothing came easy. My grandfather (from Mexico) had to fight in World War II, he had to scrap, he didn&#8217;t graduate from high school. He saved money, he and my grandma opened up this barber shop when she was working as a meatpacker on the night shift. I literally wouldn&#8217;t be here without them.</p> <p>&#8220;So when I think about this issue, I&#8217;m not doing this because I have a huge [Latino] population [in Los Angeles]. I wouldn&#8217;t be mayor of this city if my grandfather hadn&#8217;t had that opportunity. And here you have [Trump], who is married to an immigrant, who had married two immigrants in his life, whose own son&#8217;s mother is an immigrant to this country, his own flesh and blood.</p> <p>&#8220;We want leadership in this country that is a partner to immigrants, not who scapegoats them,&#8221; Garcetti concluded.</p> <p>&#8220;Scapegoating equals racism?&#8221; I asked.</p> <p>&#8220;Absolutely,&#8221; he replied. &#8220;In this case, it is when scapegoating is of a particular ethnic group. More than that, this is a man who is not comfortable with embracing what&#8217;s different. &#8230; The future of this world and the beauty of this country has always been that difference. We embrace it. We run to it.&#8221;</p> <p>On Monday, Garcetti reiterated his support for immigrants and his opposition to Trump after the president announced plans to deport almost 200,000 Salvadorans who came to the U.S. as refugees from natural disaster or civil strife.</p> <p>&#8220;America has always been a place of refuge and healing for people fleeing violence or rebuilding their lives after a natural disaster,&#8221; Garcetti said in a statement. &#8220;Ending temporary protected status for El Salvador is a cruel, disastrous strike against that legacy&#8212;forcing hundreds of thousands of people already living in this country to make anguished decisions about the safety, security, and well-being of their families. This order creates hardship and uncertainty for young Americans who are making extraordinary contributions in the only home they know. L.A. will always stand with the immigrant community.&#8221;</p> <p>We&#8217;ll see if Garcetti makes that stand on the national stage in 2020.</p>

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti Could Be Trump's Kryptonite

https://truthdig.com/articles/los-angeles-mayor-eric-garcetti-trumps-kryptonite/

2018-01-12

<p>A <a href="http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/pdf/2011/PPP_Release_OH_930.pdf" type="external">PPP poll</a> of Ohio released last night gives President Obama a 49-45 lead. The margin of error is 3.5 points. PPP concludes: &#8220;It&#8217;s a mistake to think based on recent polling in Ohio that the race there is over. Obama is not popular in the state. . . .&#8221;</p> <p>The Romney campaign expands on this theme by making the following points about the PPP poll:</p> <p>&#183; More people disapprove than approve of Obama in Ohio. 49% of respondents disapprove of the job Obama is doing, and only 48% approve. There are plenty enough people in Ohio who disapprove of Obama for Mitt Romney to persuade and win the state&#8217;s 18 electoral votes.</p> <p>&#183; Undecided voters overwhelmingly disapprove of Obama. Among those still undecided on the election, just 13% approve and 65% disapprove of Obama. Mitt Romney has a huge pool of undecided voters to talk to in October who have already concluded that Obama has done a poor job in office.</p> <p>&#183; This poll was a D+5 sample, closer to reality. As we&#8217;ve pointed out, many of the Ohio public polls show outrageous leads for Obama were caused by dramatic oversampling of Democrats. This survey is a bit more realistic. It&#8217;s amazing what happens when you stop oversampling Democrats &#8211; you find a race in Ohio that is tight-as-a-tick. As a reminder, in 2008 Democrats enjoyed a partisan turnout advantage of eight points (D+8). In 2004, Republicans had an advantage of five points (R+5). We believe this race will fall somewhere well inside those confines, even as some national media surveys give Democrats an advantage outside those bounds.</p> <p>&#8220;Tight as a tick,&#8221; huh. When did Dan Rather join Team Romney?</p> <p>The Romney campaign also touts its ground game in Ohio:</p> <p>Mitt Romney&#8217;s campaign in Ohio is absolutely crushing its ground game metrics as part of the Republican Party&#8217;s Victory effort. Sometime this week the campaign will knock on its one millionth door and make its three millionth phone call since May. More doors have been knocked in Ohio than in any other swing state by the Romney-Ryan Victory effort, and public and private polling continues to show a similar number of Ohioans who say they&#8217;ve been personally contacted by the Romney and Obama campaigns. This is a significant achievement considering that Obama&#8217;s operators claim to have hundreds of offices and thousands of staffers in Ohio who&#8217;ve been prepping their effort for four years. The Romney-Victory effort began in May. This tells us that Obama&#8217;s ground game claims are largely made for press release fodder and not actual voter contact.</p> <p>Last week, the Romney-Ryan Victory effort in Ohio knocked on 162,506 thousands doors. The week before it was 137,948, leaving the astonished Ohio Democrat Party Chairman exasperated in <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/decision2012/canvassers-always-knock-twice/2012/09/30/31e83b24-0b29-11e2-bd1a-b868e65d57eb_story.html" type="external">this Washington Post article</a>. Sorry to ruin your Monday morning, Mr. Chairman. In fact, over 300-thousand Ohio doors were knocked in the last two weeks by thousands of Ohio Republican volunteers hungry for a change in leadership in the White House. These volunteers know that the Romney-Ryan road to victory in November runs through Ohio, and they are doing everything in their power to make that a reality.</p> <p>According to the Romney campaign, the bottom line in Ohio is this: &#8220;The race in Ohio is close, undecided voters are extremely unhappy with Barack Obama, and Mitt Romney&#8217;s campaign has built a ground game that is at the very least matching Obama&#8217;s while surpassing all previous Republican efforts when it comes to knocking on doors and contacting voters face-to-face.&#8221;</p> <p>That sounds right to me.</p> <p>STEVE adds: Roger Beckett of the Ashbrook Center sent along these observations yesterday:</p> <p>The Columbus Dispatch <a href="http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2012/09/30/1-dispatch-poll-shows-obama-in-lead.html" type="external">released a poll</a>showing Obama up by 9% in Ohio. I find this unbelievable. In the Dispatch poll, 860 respondents (52.6%) voted for Obama and 669 respondents (40.9%) voted for McCain. So this poll samples 11.7% more Obama voters than McCain voters. But in 2008, Obama won Ohio by only 4.6%. This poll heavily oversamples Obama voters, and there is no way that this poll is reflective of likely voters in Ohio.</p> <p>There is a simple explanation for why it is much easier for pollsters to reach Obama supporters in the Buckeye state this year: there are&amp;#160; <a href="http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/news/subsidized-cell-phone-program-nearly-doubles-in-oh/nRDqC/" type="external">over a million Obama-Phones floating around Ohio</a>.</p>

It’s still very much a race in Ohio

http://powerlineblog.com/archives/2012/10/its-still-very-much-a-race-in-ohio.php

2012-10-01

<p /> <p /> <p>In an attempt to combat crime and terrorism more effectively, German federal and state Home Secretaries held a conference where they agreed that stricter measures need to be taken against crime - by making sure that all online messaging services can be surveilled by authorities.</p> <p /> <p>With terrorists actively using apps like WhatsApp and Telegram to communicate, law enforcement officials aren't content with not being able to surveil the online activity of all citizens. Phones and phone messages can already be viewed by authorities, yet companies like Apple and WhatsApp refuse to let them read whatever specific individuals post on their messaging apps.</p> <p /> <p>But that will not stop them. German wiretapping officials are working on new software that, if installed on a phone, would allow them to read messages before they're even sent. However, as the software would work much like a malicious trojan, antivirus programs would eventually be able to render it harmless.</p> <p /> <p>Whatever the method, German ministers and secretaries agree that law enforcement needs to be able to technically and legally access any online messaging content shared by any citizen.</p> <p /> <p>Following the online surveillance measures, general improvements in organized police operations are also being pursued, in response to the rising number of terrorist attacks in Europe and all over the world. German authorities want a consistent nationwide security standard. Also, in response to the increasing number of attacks carried out by underage terrorists, the fingerprints of asylum seekers between the ages of six and fourteen will be registered from now on in order to detect fake identities in the future.</p> <p /> <p>The German National Association of Police Organizations reacted to these statements negatively. In order to enact the new measures as described and fight terror effectively, they stated that more than 70,000 additional police officers and law enforcement specialists would be needed.</p> <p /> <p>By enforcing an open-borders policy, it looks like German authorities created the very problem they are now trying to solve by curtailing the freedoms and privacy of law-abiding German citizens.</p>

Germany Resorts to Mass Wire-Tapping

http://thegoldwater.com/news/3680-Germany-Resorts-to-Mass-Wire-Tapping

2017-06-14

<p>July 22 (UPI) &#8212; A federal judge ruled that the state of Kentucky is required to pay legal fees to couples who sued Rowan County clerk Kim Davis to attain marriage licenses.</p> <p>District Judge David Bunning ruled Friday the state <a href="http://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article162885388.html" type="external">will pay almost $225,000 in legal fees</a> and court costs to the plaintiffs in the case against Davis after she halted her office from issuing marriage licenses following the U.S. <a href="https://www.upi.com/topic/supreme-court/" type="external">Supreme Court</a>&#8216;s ruling that legalized same-sex marriage on June 26, 2015.</p> <p>Bunning&#8217;s decision stated it would be unfair to hold Rowan County or Davis herself responsible for the fees, because the state awarded her the authority to issue marriage licenses and the couples prevailed in the case against Davis in her &#8220;official capacity&#8221; as a public official.</p> <p>&#8220;Davis represented the Commonwealth of Kentucky when she refused to issue marriage licenses to legally eligible couples. The buck stops there,&#8221; the judge wrote.</p> <p>He added that the plaintiffs April Miller, Karen Ann Roberts, Shantel Burke, Stephen Napier, Jody Fernandez, Kevin Holloway, L. Aaron Skaggs and Barry W. Spartman, clearly &#8220;won the war&#8221; by emerging victorious from the lawsuit, which by law entitled them to to be compensated for bringing their case.</p> <p>&#8220;The plaintiffs prevailed by every measure of victory,&#8221; Bunning said. &#8220;Plaintiffs obtained marriage licenses that could not be revoked. And two of the plaintiff-couples married on those licenses. That is enduring relief. There is nothing more the court could do.&#8221;</p> <p>Mat Staver of Liberty Counsel, which represented Davis in the case, said the counsel was pleased its client wasn&#8217;t responsible for the debt but <a href="http://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/2017/07/21/judge-rowan-county-must-pay-226-695-attorneys-fees-same-sex-couples-who-sued-clerk-kim-davis/499280001/" type="external">argued the lawsuit was moot</a> because Davis received the accommodation she sought</p> <p>He said Bunning was incorrect in declaring the plaintiffs the prevailing parties as the General Assembly eventually passed a law providing the religious liberty accommodation to remove the names of clerks from marriage license form and added the group would appeal the decision to have the state pay the court fees.</p> <p>&#8220;Without prevailing party status, there can be no attorneys&#8217; fees,&#8221; Staver said.</p> <p>The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky praised the ruling, stating it should serve as a message to voters and state officials.</p> <p>&#8220;It is unfortunate that Kentucky taxpayers will likely bear the financial burden of the unlawful actions and litigation strategies of an elected official, but those same voters are free to take that information into account at the ballot box,&#8221; ACLU legal director William Sharp said.</p>

State of Kentucky to pay almost $225,000 to plaintiffs in Kim Davis case

https://newsline.com/state-of-kentucky-to-pay-almost-225000-to-plaintiffs-in-kim-davis-case/

2017-07-22

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p><a href="" type="internal" />ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. &#8212; The 32,000 New Mexicans who signed up for coverage under terms of the Affordable Care Act are paying an average health insurance premium of $120 after receiving federal tax credits, according to a Health and Human Services Department study released Wednesday.</p> <p>The average premium before tax credits is $314. HHS reported that 78 percent of New Mexicans who bought health insurance under the ACA have received subsidies, which come in the form of federal personal income tax credits.</p> <p>The average premium paid by the 5.4 million insurance purchasers in the 36 states that used the federal health insurance exchange was $82 a month after subsidies. Before-subsidy premiums averaged $346. HHS said that 87 percent of those purchasers received subsidies.</p> <p>HSD&#8217;s analysis covered only those where the federal government took the lead in setting up new insurance markets. About 2.6 million people bought coverage in states with state-run insurance exchanges.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p>

Average NM ACA premium is $120

https://abqjournal.com/417886/average-nm-aca-premium-is-120.html

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>&#8220;What should be changed in France in 2017?&#8221; it asked. One by one, voters submitted their answers on multicolored papers that were suspended with clothespins on a line strung around a mall in the center of town.</p> <p>The responses reflected the key concerns, hopes and tensions in the campaign for the April-May election: jobs, immigration, discrimination, pensions and the bleak prospects for French youth.</p> <p>Activists from the far-left party of presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon were behind the weekend initiative, but they said their goal was inspiring disenchanted voters to talk politics as much as getting votes for Melenchon.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>&#8220;Some people said they were not even sure if they would go and vote. So this is worrying, because it means they don&#8217;t have a handle on politics,&#8221; said activist Florence Fusin, 48, of Melenchon&#8217;s Left Front party. &#8220;I think it&#8217;s upsetting and sad to see people giving in.&#8221;</p> <p>Fusin said party members working on the project did not immediately disclose their Left Front affiliation.</p> <p>&#8220;There&#8217;s no censorship. We listen, people talk to us, offload what they think,&#8221; she said. &#8220;Now, if we want to go further and if we see they are interested, we can talk to them about our candidate, but it&#8217;s not the main objective.&#8221;</p> <p>The working-class town of Crepy is fertile ground for candidates on the extremes of the spectrum after years of economic decline. Unemployment is high and crime is up since a car carpet factory shut down. Some employees had even threated to bomb the factory.</p> <p>It&#8217;s the kind of town where the far-left will probably do well again this year on Melenchon&#8217;s promises to take back power from vested interests and to wield it on behalf of the working class.</p> <p>It&#8217;s also the kind of town where support is broad for far-right candidate Marine Le Pen of the anti-immigrant National Front party, thanks to her pledges to protect French jobs and industry from both global trade and immigrants.</p> <p>France is holding a two-round presidential election this spring. The two top vote-getters in the April 23 ballot move on to a presidential runoff on May 7. Current national polls suggest Le Pen would win the first round of voting, but lose the ensuing runoff.</p> <p>&#8220;Work for French people first, before foreigners,&#8221; one voter suggested, a woman named Chantal.</p> <p>Others fear Le Pen&#8217;s message will further strain French society.</p> <p>&#8220;More justice and equality,&#8221; suggested 47-year-old Aubertin.</p> <p>&#8220;Less racism,&#8221; pleaded 52-year-old Jean-Claude.</p> <p>Some proposals were more pragmatic: One 2-year-old dictated a wish for &#8220;more playgrounds.&#8221;</p>

How would you change France? Voters in downbeat town respond

https://abqjournal.com/958765/how-would-you-change-france-voters-in-downbeat-town-respond.html

2017-02-28

<p>WASHINGTON &#8212; A bill to expedite the licensing and development of Yucca Mountain nuclear waste site in Nevada was passed by a subcommittee Thursday, clearing the first hurdle for legislation expected to be taken up in the House this year.</p> <p>The House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on environment approved the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act on a voice vote. The bill now goes to the full committee for approval.</p> <p>Rep. John Shimkus, R-Ill., the subcommittee chairman and author of the bill, said the legislation reforms nuclear waste management policy to ensure the federal government meets its legal obligation to dispose of spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste.</p> <p>Yucca Mountain was determined by a congressional act in 1987 as the site for long-term storage.</p> <p>The bill passed by the subcommittee &#8220;preserves&#8221; Yucca Mountain as the most expeditious path for spent nuclear fuel while authorizing interim and private storage &#8220;to provide optionality until Yucca Mountain is fully licensed and prepared to receive shipments.&#8221;</p> <p>Amendments to create a pilot program for interim storage sites, and another addressing water rights, were withdrawn.</p> <p>But Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., who is not on the committee, attended the hearing and spoke on the House floor later to denounce the bill as one that ignores serious challenges from Nevada, which has denied the federal government water rights to develop the site.</p> <p>Titus said the bill &#8220;usurps the state&#8217;s water rights, one of our strongest legal defenses against the repository.&#8221;</p> <p>During the hearing, the ranking Democrat on the panel, Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., agreed. He said the bill as written would &#8220;essentially override the state of Nevada&#8217;s objection over its water rights.&#8221;</p> <p>Tonko said that would also draw opposition from lawmakers in other Western states, where water rights have been a long source of contention.</p> <p>In addition, Titus said the legislation &#8220;ignores the fact that other states are willing &#8212; at this very moment &#8212; to store nuclear waste.&#8221;</p> <p>Shimkus is moving ahead with the legislation citing a need to store waste produced by nuclear generators nationwide.</p> <p>Spent fuel is accumulating in 121 communities in 39 states because of a lack of a permanent storage site, the legislation contends.</p> <p>Senate&#8217;s version</p> <p>The Senate is preparing its own bill to address nuclear waste storage with an emphasis on temporary sites to address the growing stockpiles of spent fuel and materials. That bill is expected to be filed in the coming weeks.</p> <p>Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., chairman of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee for energy and water development, said the bipartisan bill would address the need for interim storage, support development of Yucca Mountain and create an agency to seek additional storage sites.</p> <p>Alexander and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., the ranking Democrat on the Senate appropriations subcommittee, noted that the Senate and House approaches differ widely.</p> <p>If the bills advance in their respective chambers, those differences would need to be ironed out in a House-Senate conference committee, which would write final legislation.</p> <p>The House bill mirrors the Trump administration call for a restart of licensing for Yucca Mountain. The president included $120 million in his budget blueprint for fiscal year 2018, which begins Oct. 1.</p> <p>The Department of Energy first sought an application for a license with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to develop and operate Yucca Mountain in 2008. The DOE tried to withdraw the application in 2010 and President Barack Obama defunded the program in 2012.</p> <p>More than $15 billion has been spent studying the site and preparing for the licensing procedure, which includes adjudication of legal challenges.</p> <p>200 challenges</p> <p>Nevada has filed more than 200 challenges, mostly citing safety over groundwater and transportation issues.</p> <p>Titus on Thursday handed lawmakers a state-produced research paper that showed moving nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain would cross through 329 congressional districts nationwide by rail or highway.</p> <p>Yucca Mountain licensing also faces legal challenges in U.S. circuit courts.</p> <p>Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval this week reiterated his pledge that the state would oppose the Yucca Mountain project.</p> <p>&#8220;The state of Nevada will continue to fight and defeat this dangerous project at every opportunity and in any venue,&#8221; Sandoval said in a statement.</p> <p>Officials in Nye County, where Yucca Mountain is located, support the licensing process to determine whether the site is suitable for nuclear waste storage.</p> <p>But even as legislation wends its way through Congress, development of the site, if approved, would be years away.</p> <p>The NRC chairwoman told the Senate last week that the licensing process alone could take between three to five years.</p> <p>Contact Gary Martin at 202-662-7390 or gmartin@reviewjournal.com. Follow @garymartindc on Twitter.</p> <p /> <p>What&#8217;s in the bill:</p> <p>Source: House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on environment</p> <p /> <p /> <p><a href="" type="internal">Nevada officials face challenge stopping revival of Yucca Mountain</a></p> <p><a href="" type="internal">Nevada Senate vote sends Yucca Mountain resolution to Congress</a></p> <p><a href="" type="internal">Nevada has science edge if Yucca Mountain licensing resumes</a></p> <p><a href="" type="internal">Plan to revive Yucca Mountain to get first hearing in Congress</a></p> <p />

Bill to expedite Yucca Mountain licensing clears 1st hurdle

https://reviewjournal.com/news/politics-and-government/nevada/bill-to-expedite-yucca-mountain-licensing-clears-1st-hurdle/

2017-06-15

<p /> <p /> <p /> <p /> <p /> <p>It&#8217;s been a bad year for the <a href="http://www.whaleresearch.com/thecenter/2008_About.html" type="external">southern resident population of orcas</a> in Puget Sound. <a href="http://www.whaleresearch.com/thecenter/2008_News_SevenMissing.html" type="external">Seven have gone missing</a> and are presumed dead. Including the nearly <a href="http://www.whaleresearch.com/thecenter/2008_K7_.html" type="external">100-year-old matriarch</a> of K Pod, along with two reproductive-age females <a href="http://my.earthlink.net/article/nat?guid=20081024/490299c0_3ca6_15526200810251347853007" type="external">vital to the future</a> of the whales. One female, L-67 showed clear signs of emaciation before she disappeared in September. That leaves only 83 animals in this <a href="http://www.whaleresearch.com/thecenter/2008_Facts0004.html" type="external">culturally-unique population</a> of orca.</p> <p>It&#8217;s been a bad year for salmon too&#8212;the primary prey of southern resident orca. Researchers suspect the missing whales may have starved. Now researchers at the U of Washington <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/conserv/resident_orcas.html" type="external">Center for Conservation Biology</a> are trying to answer that question using a specially trained dog. The <a href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008408354_orca19m0.html" type="external">Seattle Times reports</a> how Tucker, a black Lab, has been deployed two of the past three summers to track orca scat from the bow of a research boat.</p> <p>Analysis of hormone levels in the scat suggest mortality among the orca was highest when their thyroid hormone levels were lowest. This means they&#8217;re malnourished. <a href="http://orcinus.blogspot.com/2008/07/tucker-dog-whale-research.html" type="external">Katherine Ayres</a>, a UW graduate student working on the study says: &#8220;It is interesting and sad. We have a link to what scientists have been saying for a long time.&#8221;</p> <p>The orcas&#8217; favorite food, Puget Sound chinook salmon, were listed as a threatened species nearly 10 years ago. In recent years the whales have been ranging as far south as Monterey looking for California salmon. But it&#8217;s been a brutal year for California&#8217;s fish too. A <a href="http://www.caltrout.org/article.asp?id=359&amp;amp;bc=1" type="external">report out today by California Trout</a> forecasts that 65% of native salmon, steelhead, and trout species will be extinct within 100 years.</p> <p>No salmon, no orca. Work hard, Tucker the black Lab. Maybe Malia and Sasha could adopt you from afar and shed light on the plight of these whales in the wildlife-deprived halls of Washington DC&#8212;where their <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27812209/" type="external">future will be decided</a> one way or another.</p> <p><a href="http://julia.whitty.googlepages.com/home" type="external">Julia Whitty</a> is Mother Jones&#8217; environmental correspondent, <a href="http://julia.whitty.googlepages.com/juliawhittylectures" type="external">lecturer</a>, and 2008 winner of the <a href="http://penusa.org/go/news/comments/1290/" type="external">PEN USA Literary Award</a>, 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</a>.</p> <p />

Dog Helps Orca

https://motherjones.com/politics/2008/11/dog-helps-orca/

2008-11-20

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>There didn&#8217;t seem to be much support on the court for the executive branch&#8217;s reading of the law at issue, but there was also some puzzlement about whether Congress really intended what the law seemed to say.</p> <p>The past three presidents have made more than 100 appointments under the administration&#8217;s interpretation of the law, said acting solicitor general Ian Gershengorn, representing the Obama administration, and no one had challenged them until the current case.</p> <p>The court was not reviewing the president&#8217;s powers under the Constitution, but instead under a federal statute, the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998. It allows the president to immediately fill jobs that will ultimately require Senate confirmation.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>The law prohibits a person from serving as both the acting officer and the president&#8217;s nominee for the position, except under certain conditions.</p> <p>So the law says that the &#8220;first assistant&#8221; to the position could automatically take over on an interim basis. Or the president could pick a high-ranking officer from another agency to fill the job. Or the president could appoint a senior employee from the same agency.</p> <p>But another clause in the law says that &#8220;notwithstanding&#8221; the language about the first assistant, such a person cannot become both the acting officer and the nominee for the job unless he or she has been the first assistant for at least three months.</p> <p>This was to keep the president from quickly making someone a first assistant and then slipping them into the top job.</p> <p>The government claims this applies only to first assistants who automatically move up to the top job, not everyone.</p> <p>But Gershengorn received tough questioning about the &#8220;notwithstanding&#8221; clause, even if justices had to revert to food analogies to make things clearer.</p> <p>Justice Elena Kagan wondered about ordering three things: a house salad, a steak and a fruit cup.</p> <p>&#8220;And then I tell the waiter, notwithstanding order number three, I can&#8217;t eat anything with strawberries,&#8221; she said. &#8220;So on your theory, the waiter could bring me a house salad with strawberries in it, and that seems to me a quite odd interpretation of what&#8217;s a pretty clear instruction: no strawberries.&#8221;</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Additionally, Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. challenged Gershengorn&#8217;s assertion that the executive branch&#8217;s interpretation of the law was correct because Congress had not objected to it.</p> <p>&#8220;A significant number of people in Congress want to see that vacancy filled . . . even though it contravenes these more general provisions, and that might not be a particular battle they want to fight at that time,&#8221; Roberts said.</p> <p>The case involved Lafe Soloman, who President Barack Obama appointed to serve as acting general counsel of the National Labor Relations Board. Soloman had not served as the first assistant to the position, and Obama also nominated him to the job permanently.</p> <p>The Senate refused twice to confirm him, and the position eventually went to someone else.</p> <p>A company against which Soloman had issued an unfair labor practice sued, saying Soloman lacked authority because of the law&#8217;s prohibition of him being both the acting general counsel and the nominee. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit agreed.</p> <p>Justice Stephen Breyer told Shay Dvoretzky, the lawyer for the company, that he presented an understandable reading of the law.</p> <p>&#8220;I would just wonder, were I from Mars, what&#8217;s the point of such a statute?&#8221; Breyer asked. Why tie the hands of the president from appointing the best person as the acting official and also nominate him or her as the permanent replacement?</p> <p>Even Kagan seemed concerned that Congress had not made a fuss when three administrations interpreted the law differently from Dvoretzky and the lower court.</p> <p>The case is National Labor Relations Board v. SW General, Inc.</p> <p>scotus</p>

Rules surrounding the president’s picks for top jobs heard by the Supreme Court

https://abqjournal.com/884036/rules-surrounding-the-presidents-picks-for-top-jobs-heard-by-the-supreme-court.html

<p /> <p>The stars are lining up to&amp;#160; get the Keystone XL pipeline approved. It is not enough that <a href="http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2013/02/keystone-pipeline-protest-rally-climate-change-washington%20" type="external">35,000 people rallied in Washington DC</a>, the largest ever US Climate Rally ever. It is not enough that protestors in <a href="http://treealerts.org/region/europe/2013/03/protesters-slam-brand-canada-as-tar-sands-legacy-comes-back-to-bite/" type="external">Berlin</a> and the <a href="http://www.no-tar-sands.org/2013/03/canadian-high-commissioners-visit-to-oxford-tarred-by-local-protest/" type="external">UK</a> are lashing out at Canada&#8217;s charm offensive to promote its environment damaging extraction of tar sands. It is not enough that <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/11/keystone-pipeline-leak_n_894526.html" type="external">a study by a professor of civil engineering at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln finds</a> that potential leaks by the Keystone XL pipeline are underestimated. The pipeline will be built.</p> <p>While the Sierra Club has decided to <a href="http://chieforganizer.org/2013/02/22/keystone-xl-pipeline-forces-sierra-club-change-in-tactics/" type="external">change its 120 year tactics that banned civil disobedience</a>, this comes much too late to build the necessary momentum to stop this juggernaut. The President has gotten implicit cover from s State Department draft environmental impact statement. According to <a href="http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/01/17149564-state-department-admits-keystone-environmental-impact-but-says-theres-no-better-way?lite" type="external">U.S. News on NBCNews.com</a></p> <p>Construction of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline would create "numerous" and "substantial" impacts on the environment, the State Department said Friday in a draft environmental impact statement. But the project is a better bet than any of the alternatives, it said in essentially clearing the project to go ahead.</p> <p>The report concluded that the Canadian synthetic crude oil the pipeline is slated to transport into the U.S. produces 17 percent more greenhouse gases than natural crude oil already refined here. In addition, it said the construction phase of the project would result in carbon dioxide emissions equivalent to about 626,000 passenger vehicles operating for a full year.</p> <p>Sometimes it is best to sit back and regroup. The fact that there is not a groundswell of opposition in the cities and suburbs of America, mean much more work needs to be done to educate the population at large and to create a more substantial grassroots movement.</p> <p>New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman hopes that the President will turn down the pipeline but does not think he will. In his piece &#8220; <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/10/opinion/sunday/friedman-no-to-keystone-yes-to-crazy.html?ref=politics" type="external">No to Keystone. Yes to Crazy</a>&#8221; he states that</p> <p>So I hope that Bill McKibben and his 350.org coalition go crazy. I&#8217;m talking chain-themselves-to-the-White-House-fence-stop-traffic-at-the-Capitol kind of crazy, because I think if we all make enough noise about this, we might be able to trade a lousy Keystone pipeline for some really good systemic responses to climate change. We don&#8217;t get such an opportunity often &#8212; namely, a second-term Democratic president who is under heavy pressure to approve a pipeline to create some jobs but who also has a green base that he can&#8217;t ignore. So cue up the protests, and pay no attention to people counseling rational and mature behavior. We need the president to be able to say to the G.O.P. oil lobby, &#8220;I&#8217;m going to approve this, but it will kill me with my base. Sasha and Malia won&#8217;t even be talking to me, so I&#8217;ve got to get something really big in return.&#8221;</p> <p>Friedman is wrong if he believes that will give Republicans the idea this close up to the decision that somehow the President is extracting an ounce of flesh out of his base for approving the pipeline project. The mainstream media will simply caricature that event which will only attract a few and characterize them as a fringe.</p> <p>The narrative that the Keystone XL pipeline project is a major job creator has not been sufficiently refuted. The <a href="http://keystonepipeline-xl.state.gov/documents/organization/205719.pdf" type="external">latest report states</a></p> <p>Construction of the proposed Project would generate temporary, positive socioeconomic impacts as a result of local employment, taxes, spending by construction workers, and spending on construction goods and services. Including direct, indirect, and induced effects, the proposed Project would potentially support approximately 42,100 average annual jobs across the United States over a 1-to 2year construction period (of which, approximately 3,900 would be directly employed in construction activities).</p> <p>Generally, the largest economic impacts of pipelines occur during construction rather than operations. Once in place, the labor requirements for pipeline operations are relatively minor. Operation of the proposed Project would generate 35 permanent and 15 temporary jobs, primarily for routine inspections, maintenance, and repairs. Based on this estimate, routine operation of the proposed Pipeline would have negligible socioeconomic impacts.</p> <p>The narrative that the Keystone XL pipeline must be built because it will provide US energy security since it is a North American source of oil is at best disingenuous. The article by The Worlds environmental editor Peter Thomson, &#8220; <a href="http://www.theworld.org/2012/03/where-would-keystone-xls-canadian-oil-go-and-does-it-matter/" type="external">Where Would Keystone XL&#8217;s Canadian Oil Go? And Does it Matter?&#8221;</a>, presents a very balanced view.</p> <p>Proponents contend that this oil will increase US &#8220;energy security&#8221; and decrease US reliance on other sources of foreign oil. They imply that the oil will go directly into the US market, without actually promising that it will.&amp;#160; Opponents argue that it won&#8217;t improve our energy security at all, because both the composition of the oil and the location of the Gulf coast refineries it would serve make it highly likely that the refined products will end up going overseas.</p> <p>In fact, both may be partly right.&amp;#160; But that just begs a bigger question: What is energy security, and and how does or doesn&#8217;t this pipeline help us achieve it?</p> <p>So yes, it might increase our energy security somewhat, but nowhere near the extent that supporters are suggesting.</p> <p>But it also is likely that most of the actual hydrocarbons that flow through the refineries at the end of this proposed pipeline will end up being burned elsewhere, at least under current market conditions. So on that count, opponents may prove to be technically correct.</p> <p>Still, the argument that the pipeline wouldn&#8217;t help improve US energy security because the oil would go elsewhere is a bit of a red herring.</p> <p>The global oil market is massively complex, as is the US&#8217;s role in it (for instance, we are both an importer AND an exporter), and it generally doesn&#8217;t matter where any particular barrel of oil ends up.&amp;#160; Ultimately, prices and availability (&#8220;energy security&#8221;) are largely a function of global supply and demand.&amp;#160; The oil flowing through the new pipeline would increase global supply and so have a moderating influence on global prices and a positive impact on global availability.</p> <p>And like I said, that&#8217;s good for &#8220;energy security,&#8221; at least in the short term.</p> <p>But the more overarching&#8212;and more honest&#8212;argument against the pipeline is that this kind of short-term energy security for the US is not a good thing for the climate, and so for the country in the long-term.&amp;#160;</p> <p>Pragmatically speaking the environmental impact of building the pipeline is bad; however it may not be worth expelling unidirectional energies to stop it. Stopping it in this political climate with a population that is not completely engaged will be used to stymie other efforts. In the long run Americans must be educated that long term environmental damage will have a material effect on their lives. It will reduce their standard of living, their health, and ultimately their entire lifestyle. Sandy, Katrina, Heat Waves, and winter storms notwithstanding, Americans tend to have short memories. Climate change is a slow and non-linear process.</p> <p>In the short term the White House must be put on notice. If the President ultimately support the pipeline, a gift to corporate America,&amp;#160; middle class America must get something major in return. After all, even as the middle class wages and <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/04/business/economy/corporate-profits-soar-as-worker-income-limps.html" type="external">jobs are stagnant, Wall Street is at record levels, and corporate profits are at record levels</a>. Force Republicans to pass the <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/09/08/fact-sheet-american-jobs-act" type="external">various job programs</a> (stimuli) already proposed for infrastructure spending, investments in education, and alternative energy,</p> <p>Let the President know that absent those concessions, middle class America would have realized that all the talk about middle class centric policies was just that talk. If no one is willing to standup for the middle class as corporate America continues to flourish on their backs, then a real peaceful disruptive movement will be necessary that affects ALL, but specifically the bottom line of those that are the real taker in America.</p> <p><a href="" type="internal" /> LIKE My <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/EgbertoWilliescom/181893712536" type="external">Facebook Page</a> &#8211; Visit My Blog: <a href="http://www.EgbertoWillies.com" type="external">EgbertoWillies.com</a></p>

Keystone XL Pipeline Will Be Approved–Demand Job & Green Stimulus In Exchange

http://egbertowillies.com/2013/03/10/keystone-xl-pipeline-will-be-approveddemand-job-green-stimulus-in-exchange/

2013-03-10

<p>The <a href="http://variety.com/t/alamo-drafthouse/" type="external">Alamo Drafthouse</a> chain is taking a step into the past by launching <a href="http://variety.com/t/video-vortex/" type="external">Video Vortex</a>, a reimagining of classic video rental stores, at its upcoming 11-screen location in Raleigh, N.C.</p> <p>The company, now in its 20th year with 29 locations in operation, is touting Video Vortex as one of the largest video archives on the planet. The North Carolina location will open in the first quarter of next year. Visitors can return rentals on their next trip to the location or mail DVDs and Blu-rays back to the shop with a return envelope.</p> <p>Along with Blu-ray and DVD titles, Video Vortex will contain a &#8220;massive&#8221; rental selection of rare VHS tapes, including titles never released on digital formats. The store will also rent VCRs as well as provide renters with the equipment for RCA adapters free of charge. The space will also feature a selection of curated Blu-rays for sale, film-related merchandise, and Mondo releases.</p> <p>The inspiration for Video Vortex comes from a long-running <a href="http://variety.com/2017/film/news/cinefamily-harassment-drafthouse-culture-hadrian-belove-1202579620/" type="external">Alamo Drafthouse</a> programming series that celebrates straight-to-video movies from the 1980s through the early 2000s. That series is curated by Joseph A. Ziemba, founder of review site Bleeding Skull and director of genre programming for Alamo Drafthouse, and Bleeding Skull writer Annie Choi.</p> <p>&#8220;It gives me hope for humanity to see Video Vortex grow from a series at the Alamo to an actual video store,&#8221; says Ziemba. &#8220;VHS is still the only way to see hundreds of forgotten genre movies. But in this era of rare tapes selling for insane amounts of money, Video Vortex will make them easily accessible for everyone in the Raleigh film community.&#8221;</p> <p />

Alamo Drafthouse Launching Video Rental Store in 2018 (EXCLUSIVE)

https://newsline.com/alamo-drafthouse-launching-video-rental-store-in-2018-exclusive/

2017-12-18

<p /> <p>Theranos Inc. withdrew its request for emergency clearance of a Zika-virus blood test after federal regulators found that the company didn't include proper patient safeguards in a study of the new test, said people familiar with the matter.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>The move is another setback for the Palo Alto, Calif., company as it tries to recover from crippling regulatory sanctions that followed revelations by The Wall Street Journal of shortcomings in Theranos's technology and operations. Theranos has said it is appealing.</p> <p>Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes announced Aug. 1 a new blood-testing device called miniLab that she said was designed for use outside a clinical laboratory and could run accurate tests from a few drops of blood.</p> <p>Ms. Holmes also said Theranos was seeking clearance for its Zika test, and a company news release said Theranos had collected finger-stick blood samples from patients, including in the Dominican Republic, and run the tests on the new miniLab device, which showed that the Zika test worked.</p> <p>But during an inspection by the Food and Drug Administration earlier this month, regulators concluded that Theranos had collected some data supporting the accuracy of the Zika test without implementing a patient-safety protocol approved by an institutional review board, according to the people familiar with the matter. Institutional review boards ensure that patients are treated safely and ethically during medical studies.</p> <p>"We hope that our decision to withdraw the Zika submission voluntarily is further evidence of our commitment to engage positively with the agency," said Dave Wurtz, Theranos's vice president of regulatory, quality and clinical affairs. An FDA spokeswoman declined to comment on the inspection, citing the agency's policy on pending product applications.</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>It isn't clear if the problem affected any patients. Some data in the submission was collected under review-board-approved protocols, the people said. Theranos didn't contest the agency's findings and withdrew its submission for authorization of the new Zika test, according to people familiar with the matter.</p> <p>Theranos executives told employees about the setback during a staff meeting last week, one person familiar with the meeting said.</p> <p>In an email to Theranos investors Saturday, the company said it plans to collect additional data requested by the FDA under properly reviewed protocols and resubmit the Zika application. The letter said Theranos would handle a submission for an Ebola test "in the same manner."</p> <p>The miniLab that Ms. Holmes, Theranos's chief executive, unveiled to laboratory scientists in Philadelphia signaled a potential shift in the closely held company's business model and a new source of revenue. FDA approval of the miniLab would allow Theranos to sell the device for outside use even if she is banned from owning or running a lab for at least two years.</p> <p>The federal agency that oversees labs, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, imposed the ban and other penalties in July because of problems it found at a Theranos lab. The agency said the deficiencies affected test accuracy and put patients at risk.</p> <p>Theranos is appealing the lab's closing, Ms. Holmes's ban and other sanctions imposed by CMS and is continuing to negotiate a possible settlement.</p> <p>Theranos also has said it is doing no patient testing at the lab where the deficiencies were found. In its investor email Saturday, Theranos said its appeal will argue that CMS hasn't "fully accounted for the progress we have made toward correcting" problems.</p> <p>A CMS spokesman said Tuesday the agency is "reviewing a copy of Theranos's appeal." He declined further comment.</p> <p>Theranos has pursued a manufacturing-focused business model before. An initial agreement with former retail partner Walgreens, now part of Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc., called for Theranos to sell blood-testing devices directly to the drugstore giant and have Walgreens perform the tests, according to a 2010 contract between the two companies.</p> <p>The arrangement later shifted as Theranos sought tighter control over its proprietary technology and operations, according to people familiar with the negotiations. Michael Polzin, a Walgreens spokesman, declined to comment.</p> <p>The FDA's inspection in August was triggered by Theranos's request for "emergency-use authorization" to sell its new Zika test, a person familiar with the matter said.</p> <p>The FDA has cleared Zika tests from several other companies since invoking a rule allowing the agency to lower hurdles for new medical products during emergencies.</p> <p>An epidemic of the mosquito-borne Zika virus has swept through parts of South and Central America and reached into South Florida in recent months. The virus can cause serious birth defects in developing fetuses, including distinctively undersized heads and brain abnormalities.</p> <p>Theranos's news release on Aug. 1 as Ms. Holmes spoke at the American Association for Clinical Chemistry's annual meeting said the company believed no other test for Zika that uses tiny blood samples collected by finger sticks was available.</p> <p>"Theranos scientists conducted the tests reflected in the AACC presentation in 2016 under IRB-approved protocols," the company added, referring to the review-board process.</p> <p>Theranos told investors that company officials "recognized" during the FDA's inspection that some patient data was collected before the review-board protocols were in place.</p> <p>After an inspection in August 2015, the FDA declared Theranos's finger-stick collection device, called the "nanotainer," an uncleared medical device, and the company said it stopped using it on patients in the U.S. The agency earlier approved the use of nanotainers for a herpes test.</p> <p>Theranos said in its news release that it used the nanotainer as part of its blood-collection system for the Zika study, which included the Dominican patients.</p> <p>Separately, Theranos's general counsel, Heather King, is leaving the company to return to law firm Boies Schiller &amp;amp; Flexner LLP, according to the email sent to investors.</p> <p>Theranos announced Ms. King's hiring in May 2015, and she led the company's legal response to accusations of technological snags. Boies Schiller Chairman David Boies is a Theranos director.</p> <p>"We appreciate Heather's leadership and we wish her the very best," Theranos said in its email to investors Saturday.</p> <p>In a sign that the blows to Theranos's credibility during the past year continue to hang over the company, leaders of the University of Washington's medical laboratory division balked when a Theranos manager approached the lab in late July about working with Theranos on research.</p> <p>"This is a disgraced company that has not responded to the sanctions in an honorable way," the lab's compliance officer wrote in an email to the University of Washington technician who fielded the inquiry from Theranos. "As such, do not set up a client account for this company," according to the email, which was reviewed by the Journal.</p> <p>Write to John Carreyrou at john.carreyrou@wsj.com and Christopher Weaver at christopher.weaver@wsj.com</p>

Theranos Walks Away From Zika Test

http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/08/31/theranos-walks-away-from-zika-test.html

2016-08-31

<p>House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel thinks that Republican attempts to remove him from his post are unfair.</p> <p>From the <a href="http://www.politico.com/blogs/glennthrush/" type="external">Politico</a></p> <p>Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) is weighing in on GOP attempts to push him out as a House Ways and Means Chairman &#8211; and he&#8217;s not happy.</p> <p>&#8220;I think its unfair, but I expected it,&#8221; Rangel said of the push, walking into a meeting at the Capitol.</p> <p>Asked about the House Ethics Committee&#8217;s months long probe into a host of potential offenses, he said, &#8220;I don&#8217;t know anything and I can&#8217;t ask,&#8221; adding only that he &#8220;hopes&#8221; the deliberations will end soon.</p> <p>House Republicans are expected to introduce a resolution calling for Rangel&#8217;s ouster as early as next week, and House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) continued the leaderships anti-Charlie mantra at his weekly presser on Thursday.</p> <p>&#8220;It&#8217;s improper for Chairman Rangel to remain in his position&#8230; while these serious allegations remain hanging,&#8221; Boehner said of Rangel. &#8220;He knows it would be the right thing to do.&#8221;</p> <p>Rangel&#8217;s supporters say there&#8217;s little precedent for ousting a committee chairman before the results of an ethics investigation are made public.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>It is doubtful that the Ethics Committee will do anything but give Rangel a slap on the wrist for his lapses and give Nancy &#8216;drain the swamp&#8217; Pelosi cover so that she doesn&#8217;t have to do the right thing and ask Rangel to relinquish his post.</p> <p>Once again the Democrats hold their members to a far lower standard than Republicans.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>Post #2369</p>

Rangel: ‘GOP Calls for Ouster Unfair’

http://aim.org/don-irvine-blog/rangel-gop-calls-for-ouster-unfair/

2009-10-02

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>This week, the Farmington Daily Times reported that four Farmington-area high schools changed security protocol, which now includes identification checks, bag searches and metal detectors for entering prep basketball games and other campus events. The schools, Farmington, Piedra Vista, Aztec and Kirtland Central, are in District 1-4A.</p> <p>The protocols will be put in place by the beginning of the district basketball season Jan. 31.</p> <p>Kirtland Central athletic director Kevin Graham told the Daily Times: &#8220;I think we&#8217;re just trying to get out in front on this, and you&#8217;ll see this statewide before long.&#8221;</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Ken Barreras, athletic director for the Albuquerque Public Schools, said making such changes in the Duke City &#8220;hasn&#8217;t been anything that&#8217;s really on our radar quite yet. First, there would be conversations I&#8217;d have with our own police chief, the deputy police chief and personnel that help secure our events.</p> <p>&#8220;I know what&#8217;s going on in different parts of the country that have experienced critical situations, and I think we always want to be proactive. &#8230; I&#8217;d be interested to hear a little bit more about what (District 1-4A is) doing and what they&#8217;ve experienced that has caused them to do this, and what kind of result they&#8217;re looking for.&#8221;</p> <p>The new policy will require adults and high school students to show photo IDs before being allowed admission into any event.</p> <p>Elementary and middle school students or any students without IDs will need to be accompanied by an adult, the Daily Times reported.</p> <p>Sally Marquez, executive director of the New Mexico Activities Association said she isn&#8217;t surprised by the change. She said athletic directors are required to be Safe Sport Zone certificated. At the ADs annual meetings in Albuquerque in October, they had a mandatory presentation by Jay Hammes, an athletic director from Wisconsin who is certified by the National Interscholastic Association of Athletic Administrators.</p> <p>&#8220;What we wanted to do was give the athletic directors some training and information to go back to their schools and help them,&#8221; Marquez told the Journal . &#8220;&#8230; All (Hammes&#8217;) thoughts were in regards to the safety of the fans, the kids, the administration.&#8221;</p> <p>As far as seeing major statewide changes, Marquez said: &#8220;I think there are going to be schools and districts that are going to take pieces of (the presentation). We had a lot of information that was given. Some may work for some schools, and some may not.</p> <p>&#8220;In anything, safety comes first, and the more we&#8217;re prepared the better we&#8217;ll all be &#8211; with CPR, first aid, someone having a heart attack. We all need to be prepared for any situation that arises.&#8221;</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>In District 1-4A games, purses and backpacks will be permitted but will also be subject to random searches.</p> <p>School administrators said they do not anticipate an increase in security costs because of the new protocols. &#8220;We have security at these games already, and we&#8217;ll reallocate the people we have working,&#8221; Piedra Vista athletic director Kelly Thur told the Daily Times.</p> <p>Bruce Carver, athletic director of Rio Rancho Schools, said the presentations at the October meetings &#8220;have a lot of people talking,&#8221; and changes could eventually occur.</p> <p>&#8220;Time will tell. I think we definitely, in our society, have to look at safety and security every day. Look at what happened (Tuesday),&#8221; Carver said referring to the middle school shooting in Roswell. &#8220;We have more security guards than most schools at all of our games. But we have an athletic council looking at (changes) and talking it through. We haven&#8217;t made any big changes like in Farmington, but we&#8217;re certainly looking at it.&#8221;</p> <p>Carver said there is more to changing protocol than just beefing up security.</p> <p>&#8220;The financial part comes into play,&#8221; he said. &#8220;How many extra people are you going to hire? And if you have a small event that doesn&#8217;t have many people coming in, how much are you going to lose that night? We haven&#8217;t been in the business of increasing budgets the past few years. They&#8217;ve been decreasing and shrinking.&#8221;</p> <p>Carver said changes would also likely lead to complaints from fans who didn&#8217;t want to be searched.</p> <p>&#8220;Certainly, people have always been able to come to a game and enjoy it without taking off their shoes, like at the airport, or those type of things,&#8221; Carver said. &#8220;On the flip side, maybe it&#8217;s too easy to walk in (a game).&#8221;</p> <p /> <p />

Four Corners schools increase security measures to enter prep games

https://abqjournal.com/337438/14a-schools-increase-security.html

<p>Thousands of women took to the streets in cities across Mexico on Sunday, calling for the government to tackle the growing number of femicides -- or acts of extreme, deliberate violence against women.</p> <p>The murder of 19-year-old university student Mara Fernanda Castilla sparked outrage among activists and those in the central Mexican state of Puebla, who organized marches to demand justice.</p> <p>Castilla's body was found Friday in a ditch a little more than 50 miles outside of Mexico City, Puebla State Gov. Tony Gali <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/sep/18/mexico-woman-murder-student-ride-hailing-service-cabify" type="external">told The Guardian</a>.</p> <p>The university student had been missing since the early morning hours of Sept. 8 when she used the ride-sharing service, Cabify, to get home after going clubbing with friends.</p> <p>Security cameras show the driver pass Castilla's apartment, but she is never seen exiting the vehicle or going into her apartment. Instead, investigators say she was taken to a hotel where she was sexually assaulted and strangled.</p> <p>Castilla's driver from that night has since been arrested, The Guardian reports.</p> <p>As news of the student's murder spread, the hashtag #SiMeMatan -- &#8220;if they kill me&#8221; -- began trending on social media. The hashtag, accoring to The Guardain, has previously been used when authorities have suggested female victims were to blame for the crimes committed against them.</p> <p>Ride-sharing apps like Uber and Cabify have been growing in popularity because they are believed to be safer than taxis in Mexico.</p> <p>Since Castilla's murder, Cabify released a statement condemning her death.</p> <p>Now, activists in Mexico are calling on the government to do more to protect women from this type of violence.</p>

The murder of a university student prompted women in Mexico to march against femicide

https://circa.com/story/2017/09/19/world/mara-fernanda-castillas-murder-sparked-anti-female-violence-marches-in-mexico

2017-09-20

<p>America&#8217;s Byzantine campaign financing system is like the slave auction block in days of yore.</p> <p>As a corporate finagler, you buy and pay for your politician and put him to work for your corporation or in your industry&#8217;s behalf. A good day&#8217;s pay for a good day&#8217;s work. The American way.</p> <p>Everybody knows that most politicians are in some corporate pocket or beholden to some special interest, a m&#233;lange of corruption and cronyism. When Ike Eisenhower, our hero of World War II and two-term President left office in 1961, he warned the citizens of this nation, &#8220;Beware the Military-Industrial Complex&#8221;. Obviously, we didn&#8217;t heed the warning.</p> <p>For the last, long, four years, our Military-Industrial-Privatized Mercenary Security Corporations have been sopping up billions of our taxpayer dollars. Our criminally inclined President Bush and the oligarchy he represents, has kept a meaningless war going in Iraq. Our former head of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan, a long-time tool of the oligarchy, now tells us it does have a meaning. He says this war is about oil. An interesting admission on his part, but not the whole story. He knows, as well as everybody else, that this war is also about corporate profits, the destruction of democracy in America &#8212; and death.</p> <p>No one seems to know how to save themselves and the nation. The laxity is especially pernicious in the Congress of the United States. They talk about &#8220;exit strategy&#8221; but everybody has a different time-line for when to get out. Except for Dennis Kucinich who says, &#8220;Get out now&#8221;.</p> <p>The representatives of the people are supposed to serve the people of this nation&#8211;not Norman Hsu, an alleged Hong-Kong apparel mogul, about whom presidential candidate, Senator Hillary Clinton, was embarrassed enough to refund a total of $850,000 in bundled contributions she received from this benefactor&#8211; and his bundling associate, Winkle Paw.</p> <p>Or Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut who collected $197,000 in campaign contributions from the insurance industry. His wife, Hadassah, works as a lobbyist for the pharmaceutical industry so he gets it both ways.</p> <p>It&#8217;s not just Democrats or former Democrats. Republicans are equal opportunity scroungers.</p> <p>Rudy Giuliani, former Mayor of New York City, and presently presumed front runner for the Republican primary in the 2008 presidential race, has tapped into the Bush family&#8217;s Texas connections and Big Oil billionaires.</p> <p>Rudy is now a partner in the Houston law firm of Bracewell &amp;amp; Giuliani LLP. The firm has more than 400 lawyers in offices in a half dozen cities in the US as well as overseas in Dubai, London and Kazakhstan. The firm&#8217;s area of specialization includes energy, banking, environmental strategies and especially noteworthy, white-collar criminal defense.</p> <p>Bracewell&#8217;s clients have included massive coal-burning power plants like the Atlanta-based Southern Company; more than 450 oil companies represented by the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association and Texas heavy hitters like Enron, ChevronTexaco and Valero Energy. All these interests had a major stake in persuading George W. Bush to abandon his campaign pledge to regulate carbon dioxide, the leading source of green-house gas emissions&#8211; Partner Giuliani now wants to become President Giuliani.</p> <p>And so it goes&#8211;with our elected representatives. What can we do about it? Senators McCain and Feingold made a stab at it in 2002 with their Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA).</p> <p>The Act became the law of the land. But it was a paper tiger. One of its goals was to control soft money in campaign financing. Soft money are funds spent by organizations that are not contributed directly to candidate campaigns and which do not &#8220;expressly advocate&#8221; the election or defeat of a candidate.</p> <p>Candidates get around this by &#8220;bundling&#8221;, the practice of one donor gathering donations from many different individuals and presenting the sum to a campaign.</p> <p>Public funding is available but those who do accept it are subject to spending limits. The amounts are puny compared to the filthy lucre needed in today&#8217;s highly charged campaigns. It&#8217;s rumored that Hillary has already corralled about $35 million and that&#8217;s only for the Democratic primary campaign. So the bidding is still open. Hillary and the other candidates are still on the block. Elections can no longer be called &#8220;democracy&#8217;s feast&#8221;.</p> <p>But where&#8217;s the fix?</p> <p>The subject is debated endlessly, on the left and on the right and in the center. The spin goes on, twirling the same, safe issues&#8211;the war, health insurance, immigration, abortion, gay marriage, prayer in schools&#8211; even the economy. In the earlier Bill Clinton campaigns, James Carville, the &#8220;Ragin&#8217; Cajun&#8221;, one of Clinton&#8217;s flacks, came up with a neat slogan&#8211;&#8220;It&#8217;s the economy, Stupid!&#8221; It may have won Bill the election.</p> <p>In the present campaign, I haven&#8217;t heard any candidate say, &#8220;It&#8217;s the system, Stupid!&#8221; However, you do hear a mention, now and then, about the depredations of capitalism in the mass media. Is there a shift in the tectonic plates? Not much of one. One swallow doesn&#8217;t a summer make. Capitalism, like Israeli policy, is a taboo subject in the fearful lexicon of most newspaper editors, radio and TV program managers.</p> <p>In our national security interest, a little debate about our moribund system might be helpful. Speak truth to power. What power? Corporate power.</p> <p>Go back in history and get it from the horse&#8217;s mouth. What horse? Benito Mussolini, the pre-World War II dictator of fascist Italy. He coined the word Fascism and he defined it as Corporatism. When corporations take over the government, by whatever means, that&#8217;s Fascism, said Benito. Wealth flows up to the few. Misery flows down to the many.</p> <p>Tax cuts for the rich. Welfare for the corporations. George Bush and Dick Cheney are very good at providing that. Through them and their cronies, the corporadoes are running the government and its foreign policy.</p> <p>If a Democratic regime makes it to power in 2008, will it change much?</p> <p>Aren&#8217;t you sick and tired, yet, of voting for the evil of two lessers? No, there&#8217;s not a dime&#8217;s worth of difference between the two parties&#8211;maybe a cent&#8217;s worth. Either way, the capitalist system leads to oligarchy. And oligarchy trumps democracy.</p> <p>So, let&#8217;s talk about the stupid system, shall we?</p> <p>STEPHEN FLEISCHMAN, television writer-director-producer, spent thirty years in Network News at CBS and ABC, starting in 1953. In 1959, he participated in the formation of the renowned Murrow-Friendly &#8220;CBS Reports&#8221; series. In 1983, Fleischman won the prestigious Columbia University-DuPont Television Journalism Award. In 2004, he wrote his memoir. See: <a href="http://www.ARedintheHouse.com/" type="external">http://www.ARedintheHouse.com/</a>, E-mail: <a href="mailto:stevefl@ca.rr.com" type="external">stevefl@ca.rr.com</a></p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p>

The Greening of the Oligarchy

https://counterpunch.org/2007/10/29/the-greening-of-the-oligarchy/

2007-10-29

<p>Boeing Co said on Tuesday that its next-generation 737 MAX jet will beat its previous fuel-efficiency target, delivering a 14 percent improvement, instead of the 13 percent gain promised earlier this year.</p> <p>The 1 percentage point increase follows firm design configuration of the jet and completion of engineering reviews that confirmed the improvement over existing single-aisle jets, Boeing said on a conference call with reporters.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>First delivery of the jet in the third quarter of 2017 is "on track," Boeing said.</p> <p>The 737 MAX competes with the Airbus SA A320neo family of planes. Both are derivatives of current best-selling single-aisle aircraft with updated engines that are the main source of the fuel consumption savings.</p> <p>(Reporting by Alwyn Scott; Editing by Maureen Bavdek)</p>

Boeing says next-generation 737 MAX plane is even more efficient

http://foxbusiness.com/features/2013/10/29/boeing-says-next-generation-737-max-plane-is-even-more-efficient.html

2016-01-26

<p>If you join a fight for social justice you many win or lose, but just by being part of the struggle, you win, and your life will be better for it.</p> <p>&#8211; &#8211; Howard Zinn</p> <p>Already defenders and apologists for the Democrat&#8217;s health care legislation are busy at work. In the next few weeks they will be working overtime to persuade, cajole, shame and ruthlessly attack if necessary, anyone opposing health care legislation. They&#8217;ll reserve special hysteria, invective and contempt for those of us who continue to support a single-payer, national health care system.&amp;#160; And because it is the holiday season, we will be called heartless health care Grinches and silly, single payer, Bernie Sanders Scrooges. There will be accusations: &#8220;If you don&#8217;t support health care reform legislation, you support the status quo.&#8221; Implicit in the indictment is single-payer advocates, with their pie-in-the-sky idea that health care is a human right for all, will be responsible for the continued impoverishment and immiseration of the American people if a bill doesn&#8217;t pass.</p> <p>Joshua Holland, an editor and senior writer for AlterNet and Uwe E. Reinhardt, an economics professor at Princeton, have begun the onslaught. In a piece posted on AlterNet November, 24th titled, &#8220;Is the House&#8217;s Health Bill Really Worse than Nothing?&#8221; Holland attacks Dr. Marcia Angell, author, former editor of the New England Journal of Medicine and a leader of Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP.) Dr. Angell opposes the House bill and believes it&#8217;s &#8220;worse than nothing.&#8221; For that she earns the disdain of Joshua who just can&#8217;t accept there isn&#8217;t something in the bill worth supporting, even though he agrees with her trenchant criticism of the bill&#8217;s gaping defects. He claims she ignores the &#8220;primary thrust of the legislation&#8221; which for Holland is &#8220;the fact that the House legislation would do quite a bit for millions of real Americans struggling through a very real health care crisis.&#8221; &#8220;Real&#8221; Americans, a &#8220;real&#8221; health care crisis? The insinuation is Angell, and by affiliation PNHP, isn&#8217;t operating in the real world of real suffering if they don&#8217;t support whatever bill Congress delivers to the Oval Office for a signature. That&#8217;s interesting. An organization of 16,000 doctors that conducts research on major aspects of the health care crisis and have been on the frontlines for real reform for decades doesn&#8217;t understand what&#8217;s real?</p> <p>Holland argues Angell negates her original thesis when she writes, &#8220;The bill has a few good provisions (expansion of Medicaid, for example) but they are marginal.&#8221; It doesn&#8217;t. Her central contention is even with an expansion of Medicaid and a few other &#8220;good&#8221; provisions, the bill is a bomb because on balance, it entrenches the power and profits of the private insurance industry &#8211; the source of the health care crisis.</p> <p>This isn&#8217;t the first time an expansion of Medicaid has been offered as a partial panacea for the health care crisis. And it has to be said: It isn&#8217;t necessary to create a huge, complex and expensive piece of national legislation in order to expand the Medicaid Program. Any state can decide at any time to change eligibility rules and insure more residents (Massachusetts did in 2006.) But the overall trend has been the opposite.</p> <p>According to a study published in the Annals of Family Medicine, &#8220;Medicaid programs in all 50 states implemented cost-savings strategies, including benefit reductions, cost sharing and tightened administrative rules during the recent economic downturn.&#8221; Medicaid operates within the dysfunctional, multi-payer health care system and has suffered from an expand-contract cycle since its inception. It&#8217;s a favorite target for blame-the-victim politicians who want to get poor people off welfare (and health care) and into the workforce with no health care. Under the Clinton Administration&#8217;s &#8220;welfare reform,&#8221; hundreds-of-thousands of mostly women and children lost Medicaid coverage. The Medicaid program is not an entitlement or a right. An onerous redetermination is done every year in most states. And in fact, losing Medicaid coverage for a variety of reasons is the norm.</p> <p>It&#8217;s true &#8211; the expansion of Medicaid would help millions of low-income Americans, but for how long? Expansion of Medicaid is a short-term, incremental fix, not a permanent one. And that should be the goal of legislation &#8211; a permanent fix to the health care crisis so there is no longer a health care crisis.</p> <p>Holland thinks the subsidies are &#8220;rather generous.&#8221; It&#8217;s curious he isn&#8217;t asking these questions: If the government were truly reforming health care, why would millions of people need subsidies? Shouldn&#8217;t the cost of coverage come down so much its affordable without government assistance?</p> <p>Here&#8217;s the conundrum &#8211; if you support subsidies to help people buy insurance and the expansion of Medicaid, you are forced to support the transfer of billions of taxpayer dollars into the coffers of the investor-owned insurance industry and a mandate that criminalizes and punishes people. You also have to accept the Stupak Amendment and the denial of health care to millions of undocumented workers.</p> <p>There are more poison pills to swallow. Holland thinks it&#8217;s fine insurance will still be linked to employment &#8211; tell that to the millions who are unemployed and being laid off by the thousands every day. In the House bill, if employers offer insurance, they must pay at least 72.5 percent of the premium for individuals and 65 percent for families. That&#8217;s too low and gives companies who pay a higher percentage an incentive to shift costs onto employees until they hit the government-mandated limit. Workers will then be dumped into the insurance exchange because it will be cheaper for employers and once there, because of the mandate, forced to buy stripped down plans with no limits on premiums.</p> <p>Currently, there are over twenty-five million people underinsured. The majority of people who declared medical bankruptcy started out with insurance. That is the wave of the future. The government will claim more people are insured and technically they will be, but are you really insured if you have a $5000 deductible, high co-pays and less than one-hundred percent coverage for hospitalizations, expensive medication and diagnostic tests?</p> <p>And what about the much ballyhooed public option which was supposed to keep the rapacious insurers honest and give millions quality, inexpensive health care that Joshua argued for at the expense of advocating for single-payer which he is a supporter of? Eviscerated, not robust at all, and what Paul Krugman now calls &#8220;medium-strength.&#8221; It&#8217;s not even that. The &#8220;progressive&#8221; Democrats abandoned Holland and his ilk and voted in favor of the bill after they swore not to if it didn&#8217;t contain a robust public option with rates tied to Medicare. These are the same &#8220;regressive&#8221; Democrats that voted in favor of the Stupak Amendment. Holland argues if the final legislation contains Stupak it can&#8217;t be supported. But if &#8220;Progressive-Regressive&#8221; Democrats voted for it the first time, they will vote for it a second time because they don&#8217;t have the spines to stand up to President Obama, or for abortion rights.</p> <p>Toward the end of his assault on Dr. Angell&#8217;s position, Holland writes, &#8220;&#8230;drawing the line at the House bill is privileging ideology over getting something done in the short-term, however imperfect it might be overall.&#8221; But that is precisely the problem. For decades short-term, imperfect reforms are offered that inexorably lead right back to the crisis. Then more short-term, imperfect reforms are offered and the cycle continues. Instead of attacking the privileged ideology of for-profit, corporate controlled health care, Joshua attacks single-payer ideology and argues to abandon it in order to get something, anything done.</p> <p>Single-payer supporters also reject his false choice of &#8220;trying to push for the best package possible or leaving a disastrous status quo in place&#8230;&#8221; The not so subtle message is if a bill doesn&#8217;t pass we will be responsible for the disastrous status quo that is the state of health care in this country. Sorry Joshua, but that responsibility will rest with the Obama Administration that at every turn placated the profit hungry, parasitic insurance and pharmaceutical industries.</p> <p>And if a bill does pass this year, we can hurry up and wait 4 years because that&#8217;s when it will be enacted! So, disastrous status quo for 4 more years, then in 2013 implementation of a disastrous bill that will continue to leave 20 million uninsured. I can hardly wait.</p> <p>Uwe E. Reinhardt dismisses and disrespects Dr. Don McCanne, another leader of PNHP, for arguing current health care legislation can&#8217;t be supported and instead the fight for a single-payer health care system must continue.</p> <p>Reinhardt wrote in response to Dr. McCanne&#8217;s comments on the letter he and 22 other prominent economists sent to President Obama: &#8220;Don is a mensch, but a dreamer. Let&#8217;s face it, this very limited bill, should it pass into law, is the very best Americans can hope for. This country will never have a sensible, efficient health care system, and perhaps not even a totally humane one. For better or worse, we must get used to it.&#8221;</p> <p>Reinhardt&#8217;s work is full of contradictions. He writes extensively on health care and understands that a government-run, single-payer system is the best way to control the cost of health care and insure everyone. Like in Taiwan. But Reinhardt is thoroughly pessimistic the political movement that is necessary to bring about that kind of system can be built and can win. So he tells us we have to get used to 45 thousand people dying every year for lack of health care. We have to get used to millions of families being bankrupted from medical bills. It&#8217;s the very best Americans can hope for and if you don&#8217;t hope for that you are a stupid dreamer. I couldn&#8217;t disagree with Dr. Reinhardt more. We cannot and will not get used to that barbarism. Obviously Reinhardt hasn&#8217;t been paying attention to the movement for single-payer and what we have accomplished during this round in the health care debate.</p> <p>Reinhardt needs to come down from his Ivy Tower and join the movement for single-payer. It&#8217;s really not so bad down here at the grassroots level, Uwe. There is PNHP with 16,000 members. The California Nurses Association (CNA) supports single-payer and has thousands of members, too. Sections of the labor movement support single-payer. There are grassroots, single-payer organizations in almost every state with committed members who got arrested in acts of civil disobedience at insurance company headquarters. And poll after poll consistently shows the majority of Americans want government-run, guaranteed and financed health care.</p> <p>If Reinhardt came over strongly and unequivocally to the side of single-payer, he could help the movement take a giant step closer to winning a humane, efficient health care system. He could use his prodigious talents of number crunching and economic analysis to demonstrate the superiority of single-payer and to demoralize and defeat The Powers That Be who listen to his economic prognostications on health care reform. Reinhardt could be a founding member of an organization of economists for single-payer and name it Economists for Single-Payer Network (ESPN.) He could be a proud member of a social movement struggling to make health care a human right in the richest capitalist country in the world.</p> <p>HELEN REDMOND, LCSW, is a medical social worker in Chicago. She can be reached at <a href="mailto:redmondmadrid@yahoo.com" type="external">redmondmadrid@yahoo.com</a>. She blogs at <a href="http://helenredmond.wordpress.com" type="external">http://helenredmond.wordpress.com</a></p>

Yes, This Health Care Bill Really is Worse Than Nothing

https://counterpunch.org/2009/12/08/yes-this-health-care-bill-really-is-worse-than-nothing/

2009-12-08

<p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) &#8211; U.S. President Donald Trump urged fellow Republicans on Friday to begin work on tax reform legislation immediately, exhorting them to hurry up after two days in which he stunned members of his party with overtures to opposition Democrats.</p> <p>&#8220;Republicans must start the Tax Reform/Tax Cut legislation ASAP. Don&#8217;t wait until the end of September. Needed now more than ever. Hurry!&#8221; Trump wrote on Twitter.</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>

Trump urges Republicans to start tax reform immediately: Twitter

https://newsline.com/trump-urges-republicans-to-start-tax-reform-immediately-twitter/

2017-09-08

<p>(Shannon Purser as Barb in &#8216;Stranger Things.&#8217; Screenshot via YouTube.)</p> <p>Shannon Purser, best known for her roles as Barb on &#8220;Stranger Things&#8221; and Ethel Muggs on &#8220;Riverdale,&#8221; has come out as bisexual.</p> <p>The 19-year-old actress revealed her sexuality on Twitter after fans of &#8220;Riverdale&#8221; accused the show of queerbaiting. Two of the main characters, Betty and Veronica, share a kiss in an earlier episode of the show. Nothing romantic has been&amp;#160;explored between the two characters since and fans of the relationship, known as &#8220;Beronica&#8221;, have taken to social media to tweet their disappointment.</p> <p>In a now deleted tweet Purser mentioned,&amp;#160;&#8220;angry Beronica stans&#8221; which caused &#8220;Riverdale&#8221; fans to share their issues with the kissing scene. Purser addressed the fighting in the fandom saying she was &#8220;disappointed with hateful people.&#8221;</p> <p /> <p /> <p>She eventually opened up about her own sexuality in a note posted on Twitter.</p> <p>&#8220;I don&#8217;t normally do this, but I figure now is just as good a time as any to get personal,&#8221; she wrote. &#8220;I&#8217;ve only just recently come out as bisexual to my family and friends. It&#8217;s something I am still processing and trying to understand and I don&#8217;t like talking about it too much,&#8221; Purser writes.</p> <p>&#8220;I&#8217;m very very new to the LGBT community. I have never heard the term &#8216;queer-baiting&#8217; in my life until today. That being said, I have never ever wanted to alienate anyone and my tweet was thoughtless. I wasn&#8217;t referring to all the Beronica shippers, just the ones who had been particularly cruel to me personally,&#8221; Purser continues.</p> <p /> <p>Earlier this <a href="" type="internal">month</a>, Purser revealed she had been experiencing anxiety reconciling her faith and her sexuality.</p> <p>&#8220;Getting comfortable with your sexuality is a process. It&#8217;s going to be ok. I wish I&#8217;d known that sooner,&#8221; Purser tweeted,</p> <p>&#8220;Riverdale&#8221; airs on Thursdays at 9 p.m. on CW.</p> <p><a href="" type="internal">CW</a> <a href="" type="internal">Riverdale</a> <a href="" type="internal">Shannon Purser</a> <a href="" type="internal">Stranger Things</a></p>

‘Stranger Things’ star Shannon Purser comes out as bisexual

http://washingtonblade.com/2017/04/20/stranger-things-star-shannon-purser-comes-bisexual/

<p><a href="" type="internal">Anderson Cooper</a>, the highly-successful CNN anchor and now host of two shows on the formerly-pioneering cable news network, has long been thought to be gay. Rumors surround Cooper and the man many believe to be his same-sex partner,&amp;#160;Benjamin Maisani. But now <a href="http://gawker.com/5868224/is-anderson-cooper-prepping-his-coming-out-episode" type="external">Gawker&#8217;s Brian Moylan is reporting that Cooper may be paving the way to come out publicly</a>, and step one &#8212; according to Moylan, who often writes about LGBT-related issues at Gawker &#8212; is happening today.</p> <p>Moylan writes that a &#8220;tipster&#8221; is alleging that Anderson Cooper&#8217;s show Anderson &#8220;is prepping Anderson&#8217;s big coming out episode for February sweeps.&#8221;</p> <p>Here&#8217;s what the tipster had to say.</p> <p>Daytime talk show &#8220;Anderson&#8221; is having their first Christmas party tomorrow night, 15 December, at the Russian Tea Room. Anderson Cooper is bringing Benjamin Maisani. And introducing him as his &#8220;boyfriend&#8221; to the staff. The staff is prepping Anderson&#8217;s &#8220;coming out&#8221; show for the next sweeps. Check the ratings. They&#8217;re getting desperate.</p> <p>A call to the Russian Tea Room verified that the party is in fact taking place there tomorrow evening, so at least that part is true. Whether or not Andy brings Ben and just how he introduces him, I won&#8217;t know since somehow I did not get invited. It makes sense he would attend since Anderson has already taken him to the&amp;#160; <a href="http://gawker.com/5488608/anderson-cooper-brought-his-boyfriend-to-the-vanity-fair-oscar-party" type="external">Vanity Fair&amp;#160;Oscar party</a>&amp;#160;and on his&amp;#160; <a href="http://gawker.com/5778744/anderson-cooper-brought-his-boyfriend-to-mardi-gras?comment=37513363" type="external">Mardi Gras float</a>. The company Christmas party isn&#8217;t nearly as public and spouses are possibly invited, so it seems self-evident.</p> <p>We have absolutely no idea if any of this is true, heck, until he says it, we don&#8217;t even know if the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anderson_cooper#Awards" type="external">award-winning</a> Anderson Cooper is gay, but if it is, please, Anderson, don&#8217;t cheapen your coming out for a ratings boost. That would be a slap in the face to everyone whose had to endure homophobic bullying and hate crime attacks.</p> <p>Frankly, I&#8217;m sick and tired of people using gays &#8212; even gay people using gays &#8212; to boost their ratings, bank accounts, poll numbers, magazine sales, and so on, and so on, and so on.</p> <p>Homosexuality is not something to be bought, sold, or traded.</p> <p>Recently, the Kim Kardashian machine used an anti-gay attack on her soon-to-be-ex-husband, Kris Humphries, to sway public opinion and to generate cash.</p> <p>Every major GOP presidential candidate this season has used &#8220;the gays&#8221; to burnish their conservative credentials.</p> <p>NOM uses &#8220;the gays&#8221; to raise money. In fact, the entire reason for the existence of&amp;#160;NOM, the National Organization For Marriage, is to fight &#8220;the gays.&#8221;</p> <p>Logo&#8217;s A-List totally uses &#8220;the gays&#8221; and possible anti-gay hate crime reports to boost their ratings.</p> <p>Ann Coulter loves to gay bash, and does t regularly to keep her entrenched in the good graces of conservatives, who politely &#8220;forget&#8221; she&#8217;s on the Board of GOProud, a gay tea Party group.</p> <p>And don&#8217;t get me started on GOProud themselves.</p> <p>So, Anderson, please, if you want to come out, please do. Just don&#8217;t use sweeps week as the reason.</p> <p>Instead, why not do what so many others have done recently? Come out because our community&#8217;s kids are hurting and dying and need all the support and role models they can get.</p> <p><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-P5D887IcI&amp;amp;feature=related" type="external">This is the Anderson Cooper I&#8217;d like to think of</a>when and if you do come out.</p> <p>And this:</p> <p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Anderson_Cooper.jpg" type="external">Image</a></p> <p>Tagged as: <a href="" type="internal">anderson</a>, <a href="" type="internal">Anderson Cooper</a>, <a href="" type="internal">benjamin maisani</a>, <a href="" type="internal">brian</a>, <a href="" type="internal">brian moylan</a>, <a href="" type="internal">CNN</a>, <a href="" type="internal">cooper</a>, <a href="" type="internal">do not</a>, <a href="" type="internal">Gay</a>, <a href="" type="internal">gay people</a>, <a href="" type="internal">moylan</a>, <a href="" type="internal">paving</a>, <a href="" type="internal">publicly</a>, <a href="" type="internal">social issues</a>, <a href="" type="internal">sweeps</a>, <a href="" type="internal">tea party protests</a>, <a href="" type="internal">vanderbilt family</a>, <a href="" type="internal">week</a></p> <p>Friends:</p> <p>We invite you to <a href="http://visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin?v=001whLQo73KzGhEjdskYG07rHNy_XoDDkSBBO4INZHx6oD9kfp2yeeQAJeMQUu9oTviZa0VEl5k0rNiLifxlZsOFScMz8rVGmIaN-FFOO3GTKc%3D" type="external">sign up for our new mailing list</a>, and&amp;#160; <a href="http://feedburner.google.com/fb/a/mailverify?uri=TheNewCivilRightsMovement&amp;amp;amp;loc=en_US" type="external">subscribe to The New Civil Rights Movement via email</a> or <a href="http://feeds2.feedburner.com/thenewcivilrightsmovement" type="external">RSS</a>.</p> <p>Also, please&amp;#160; <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-New-Civil-Rights-Movement/358168880614" type="external">like us on Facebook</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/gaycivilrights" type="external">follow us on Twitter</a>!</p>

If You’re Gay, Anderson Cooper, Please Don’t Use Sweeps Week To Come Out

http://thenewcivilrightsmovement.com/if-youre-gay-anderson-cooper-please-dont-use-sweeps-week-to-come-out/news/2011/12/15/31917

2011-12-15

<p>By Bob Allen</p> <p>Southern Baptists&#8217; go-to authority on &#8220;gender issues&#8221; is no fan of Mattel&#8217;s new Barbie ad challenging the stereotype that boys do not play with dolls.</p> <p>Bob Stith, founder of Family and Gender Issues Ministries in Southlake, Texas, and former National Strategist for Gender Issues for the Southern Baptist Convention, told Baptist Press he does not believe parents should buy their sons toys that are &#8220;clearly feminine.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;Male children can certainly be drawn to things that are considered more feminine,&#8221; Stith <a href="http://www.bpnews.net/45875/boy-in-barbie-ad-blurs-gender-id-experts-say" type="external">said</a>. &#8220;They may be more artistically inclined, more sensitive. This is not a bad thing. The danger is when we as a culture encourage that child to pursue a feminine identity.&#8221;</p> <p>Baptist Press asked Stith to comment on an ad going viral on the Internet introducing Moschino Barbie, a first-time collaboration between the American <a href="http://www.mattel.com/" type="external">toymaker</a> Mattel and the Italian fashion company Moschino.</p> <p>The campaign combines a limited-edition doll dressed in miniaturized Moschino clothing and jewelry with a line of corresponding <a href="http://www.moschino.com/us/women/moschino-barbie_gid32806" type="external">adult-size wear</a>. Despite a price tag of $150, the Moschino Barbie was a big hit, <a href="https://twitter.com/Barbie/status/664119295446614016" type="external">selling</a> out in less than a day on Nov. 9.</p> <p>The commercial shows a boy with a blond Mohawk haircut playing with the Moschino doll with two other girls. &#8220;Moschino Barbie &#8212;&amp;#160;so fierce!&#8221; he <a href="http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/barbie-features-boy-in-its-ads-for-first-time--watch-the-moschino-collab-ad-w157877" type="external">tells</a> the camera.</p> <p>Mattel, which for years has been criticized for promoting gender stereotypes and unrealistic body images for girls, suddenly <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-34852408" type="external">drew praise</a> for an &#8220;inclusive move&#8221; similar to retailer Target&#8217;s recent decision to remove gender distinctions on products for kids.</p> <p>Mattel clarified the commercial won&#8217;t be showing up on Saturday morning cartoons, <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-34852408" type="external">describing</a> it in a statement to the BBC as a &#8220;fauxmercial&#8221; parodying iconic Barbie commercials from the 1980s.</p> <p>The boy is made up to look like Moschino creative director Jeremy Scott, who called the creative shots during the filming paid for by Mattel.</p> <p>&#8220;When I dreamt up the concept for the Moschino Barbie fauxmercial, I felt it was natural to have a little boy representing for all the little boys like myself who played with Barbies growing up,&#8221; Scott said.</p> <p>Stith <a href="http://www.bpnews.net/45875/boy-in-barbie-ad-blurs-gender-id-experts-say" type="external">told</a> Baptist Press the ad clearly portrays the boy as &#8220;effeminate,&#8221; pointing to his mannerisms, voice inflections and little wink at the end.</p> <p>Stith said his issue with the ad is not the abandonment of &#8220;gender stereotyping,&#8221; but rather &#8220;abandoning gender identity&#8221; in a culture bent on eliminating gender distinctions.</p> <p>&#8220;It seems clear also that many today think that it is ultimately helpful to a child to affirm him or her if they manifest tendencies that are not generally considered to be consistent with their biological gender,&#8221; Stith said.</p> <p>&#8220;This ultimately adds to a child&#8217;s confusion rather than lessening that confusion,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;It has contributed to a culture that seeks to convince the world that it is harmful &#8212;&amp;#160;and even evil &#8212;&amp;#160;to seek to help a child grow into his true gender identity, but it is a good thing to give them drugs and ultimately surgically mutilate them.&#8221;</p> <p>Stith said it is more important than ever for churches to learn how to encourage children to accept their &#8220;biological gender identity.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;We must understand and teach that there is nothing inherently wrong with a male child who is sensitive and/or artistic,&#8221; Stith said. &#8220;He may have no interest in hunting or playing sports. That doesn&#8217;t determine gender identity.&#8221;</p> <p>Stith said he is also not overly concerned about very young boys playing with dolls.</p> <p>&#8220;This can help them learn and express tenderness,&#8221; he said. &#8220;But this should not be what they play with exclusively, and it shouldn&#8217;t be long term.&#8221;</p> <p>Stith, who for 37 years served as pastor of Carroll Baptist Church in Southlake, Texas, introduced a motion at the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in 2001 establishing a task force &#8220;to inform, educate, and encourage our people to be proactive and redemptive in reaching out to those who struggle with unwanted same-sex attractions.&#8221;</p> <p>In 2007 LifeWay Christian Resources and the SBC Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission jointly hired Stith to work with the convention&#8217;s <a href="http://www.sbclife.net/Articles/2007/08/sla9" type="external">Ministry to Homosexuals Task Force</a>, unveiled as Southern Baptists&#8217; &#8220;next step in ministry to homosexuality.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;While we as Southern Baptists have consistently resisted the efforts of some in the culture to affirm homosexuality as normal and acceptable, we must remember that homosexual behavior is not the unpardonable sin,&#8221; then-ERLC President Richard Land <a href="http://www.sbclife.net/Articles/2007/08/sla9" type="external">said</a> at the time. &#8220;We must be committed to sharing God&#8217;s love with all people &#8212;&amp;#160;including homosexuals.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;Our biblically based opposition to the normalization of homosexuality and the affirmation of homosexual behavior should not hinder us from ministering to homosexuals and offering them the love and healing environment they need to leave this destructive and unbiblical lifestyle,&#8221; Land said.</p> <p>At a June 13, 2007, press conference, Stith <a href="https://erlc.com/article/sbc-steps-up-ministry-to-homosexuals" type="external">said</a> he harbored a &#8220;degree of condemnation and judgment&#8221; toward homosexuals before God convicted him of his attitude in 1994.</p>

SBC expert claims boy in Barbie ad bends gender

https://baptistnews.com/article/sbc-expert-says-boy-in-barbie-ad-bends-gender/

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>Right before the cooking-heavy months of November and December, Amazon rolled out a monthly payment option for its grocery delivery service, AmazonFresh. On Monday it expanded to several new cities including Chicago and Dallas.</p> <p>Amazon &#8212; which has been working on expanding grocery delivery since 2007 &#8212; is taking aim at the $650 billion grocery industry. It&#8217;s a highly competitive arena filled with rivals like Walmart and Instacart trying to lure customers away from traditional grocery stores. Some reports suggest that Amazon plans to open grocery stores of its own, but the company has declined to comment.</p> <p>&#8220;Grocery is a massive market opportunity for them,&#8221; said R.W. Baird analyst Colin Sebastian. It&#8217;s a notoriously tough business with low margins, since it&#8217;s expensive to store and transport produce. But Amazon has spent years ironing out the kinks with its delivery service, he said.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Amazon near-decade of experimentation &#8220;gives them the scale and expertise that comes with time, allowing them not only to fine tune the service, but also perhaps accelerate the rollout into other areas,&#8221; Sebastian said.</p> <p>HUMBLE BEGINNINGS</p> <p>Amazon started its grocery delivery business around its home town of Seattle, and has since expanded to about 18 cities and regions, including London and New York. It has changed its pricing structure, too, having started with an annual $299 fee that included Prime membership. Its monthly pricing program &#8212; $15 a month for members of its $99-a-year Prime loyalty program &#8212; started earlier this month.</p> <p>Amazon doesn&#8217;t disclose whether or not grocery delivery is profitable, but analysts say it&#8217;s probably not. Rather, it&#8217;s a way to drive revenue growth and hook users into the idea that they can buy every product from Amazon.</p> <p>&#8220;They have a user base with Prime that is inclined to use Amazon, and they&#8217;re clearly leveraging that loyal membership base,&#8221; Sebastian said. Amazon&#8217;s monthly pricing model could indicate the business has become less of a money loser.</p> <p>&#8220;I think they&#8217;ve gotten to the point they can be more flexible,&#8221; Sebastian said. &#8220;It&#8217;s an expensive business to run and that flexibility in pricing shows they&#8217;ve gained some efficiencies.&#8221;</p> <p>EVER-EXPANDING PRIME</p> <p>Amazon has been continuously adding services to its Prime loyalty program, which offers free two-day shipping on many items and boasts an estimated 65 million members (Amazon does not disclose the figure). It also includes streaming music and video, photo storage and other perks. Adding services like grocery delivery and original video programming costs money, but Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos says it&#8217;s worth it because Prime members spend more at Amazon.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>&#8220;If you become a Prime member you buy more from us,&#8221; he said at a luncheon in New York on Thursday. And people that watch Prime Instant Video, for example, are more likely to convert from free trials to paid Prime membership, and are more likely to renew their Prime membership in subsequent years, he said.</p> <p>&#8220;That&#8217;s what closes the loop from the business angle,&#8221; he said.</p> <p>After posting little-to-no profit for years each quarter as it invested in its business, Amazon has begun to balance spending with revenue more prudently and has reported a profit in each of the past five quarters. On Thursday, Amazon said net income tripled to $252 million, or 52 cents per share, from $79 million, or 17 cents per share, in the prior-year quarter. That missed analyst expectations of 85 cents per share, according to Zacks Investment Research.</p> <p>Revenue jumped 29 percent to $32.71 billion in the period, which topped Street forecasts. Twelve analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $32.57 billion.</p> <p>For the current quarter ending in December, Amazon said it expects revenue in the range of $42 billion to $45.5 billion. Analysts surveyed by Zacks had expected revenue of $44.7 billion.</p> <p>The third quarter is a seasonally light one compared to the bustling holiday quarter coming up.</p>

Amazon courts food shoppers

https://abqjournal.com/876510/amazon-courts-food-shoppers.html

2016-10-27

<p>This is the last of three articles by Anna Malyukova about her memories of the Soviet Union, where she grew up and lived before its collapse in 1989. Anna's account is not a detached political analysis of the situation in the former Soviet Union but rather a story of her personal experiences, which illustrate the deep contradictions that marked the society and the everyday lives of the people.</p> <p>The Russian Revolution has been subject to multiple misrepresentations, particularly in the United States. The anti-communist policies of successive U.S. administrations during the second half of the twentieth century made it possible for socialism to be identified with totalitarianism, oppression, and lack of freedoms. American capitalism, by contrast, has presented itself as the best possible social system. However, after eight years of economic recession and after the election of Donald Trump, things seem to be changing.</p> <p>People across the world, including in the United States, know that capitalism is a system that deserves to die. The most sinister face of the "American way of life" is the exploitation and precarization of millions of workers, the rampant police violence, systemic racism, the mass incarceration of America's Black population, and the persecution of immigrant workers. Globalization has enabled American transnationals to enrich themselves by exploiting millions of workers, while oppressed people everywhere, especially in the Global South, suffer under the yoke that is the criminal economic and political hegemony of the US - the superpower that is sometimes commanded by Democrats and sometimes by Republicans.</p> <p>In this context, it is useful to shed some light on what was the most impressive working-class revolution in history. It is true that the Communist Party was the main agent of capitalist restoration in Russia; however, some of the achievements of the Revolution endured into the 1980s, such as access to education and culture, healthcare, and recreation. These important public goods and services, which are effectively withheld from millions of workers in the US, in particular from people of color and Latinx, were a lasting feature of Soviet society, and this was possible only because the revolution had expropriated the capitalist class. The laboring masses had taken their destiny into their own hands by taking political power and making the means of production the property of the state.</p> <p>While the Russian Revolution of 1917 remains a most impressive testament to the profound changes that the working class is capable of bringing about, the subsequent developments in the Soviet Union are evidence of the nefarious role of the Stalinist bureaucracy, which used the theory of "Socialism in one country" in order to isolate the country in the world. As a result of the Stalinist counter-revolution, revolutionary movements all around the world were stopped in their tracks, as socialism was supposed to exist in "peaceful coexistence" with imperialism.</p> <p>There are profound lessons to learn from the Bolshevik revolution. First and foremost among these lessons is the fact that a society without capitalist exploitation is possible. This is of immense importance especially for new generations of workers and young people who begin to embrace the idea of ""socialism and are looking to study the history of the Russian Revolution and of the Soviet Union in order to understand better how to build revolutionary movements that are prepared to take up the fight against global capitalism today.</p> <p>******************************************************************************* Read Anna's first article <a href="" type="internal">here</a> and her second article <a href="" type="internal">here</a>.</p> <p>When I was three years old, my parents bought a little summer house on the bank of Klyazma river in a small provincial town, 250 kilometers east of Moscow. It was 1982, and we were living in the Soviet Union. The summer house was more like a cabin with two stories, one room on each floor. My father later built a summer kitchen.The cabin came with an additional piece of land, about 5000 square feet, where my parents grew a variety of fruits and vegetables. The season usually began in May and ended in September, and for those five months our lives centered around our summer house - our dacha.</p> <p>The school year generally ended in the last week of May and started again in the first week of September which left us kids with three months of summer vacation. My parents each were entitled to a month of vacation, and they usually arranged it in such a way that they would have two weeks overlapping so that we could take a trip to the Black Sea together sometime in August. We would spend two weeks with one parent on our dacha, then two more weeks on dacha with our aunt, uncle and cousins, and then we would all go to Sochi, a resort town on the Black Sea, for two weeks, and as we returned we would spend the last two weeks of summer with our second parent on dacha. And then there were the weekends. Our whole summer was spent there. That's how I remember it, anyway.</p> <p>Some people were able to afford cars and drove to their dachas, but the majority would bike or take a local train. My parents biked there; later my brother and I did, too. We would ride our bikes in a line. Dad was always first, then my brother, and then my Mom. My parents took turns riding me on their bikes. Since there were no fancy bike seats for children available in stores, my dad made one for me so I could sit with my parents. I clearly remember the amazing feeling of air softly hitting my face while I steered the bike with them.</p> <p>These summer houses were all located on the outskirts of the town and part of a community of dachas. Each major organization would oversee a large piece of land and allow its workers to purchase small pieces for gardening. My father worked in an electro-mechanical factory as a hydraulics engineer, and when all the restrictions for land purchases were lifted in 1980, we became one of the families who owned a summer house.</p> <p>These dachas were community-run, and each season, members of each dacha would choose leaders. There were rules to be followed, and each member was responsible to contribute or volunteer a certain number of hours to oversee the dachas and make sure the community was safe and ran smoothly. Each evening, several members of the dacha community would walk through the territory and check to be sure there were no intruders. I imagine that this was a nuisance for my parents, but as kids, we loved it. We would walk with the adults, flashlights in our hands, while our parents sang songs as they walked slowly through the gardens, checking for intruders and admiring each other's gardens and dachas. We would run through elaborate paths in the dark, flashing lights flickering in our hands, and imagine ourselves as spies. It was an adventure every time.</p> <p>The dacha itself was peaceful and comfortable. The second floor of the cabin was the kids' area. My mother made it very cozy up there. There were two simple beds with lace curtains over them to protect us from the from mosquitoes and flies while we slept. Our second-floor room opened onto a large balcony where we would play, sunbathe, and have tea parties. From up there, we could see the river and a railroad bridge with trains going to and from Moscow as well as other locations in our vast country. I would lay in bed and listen to the sound of trains going over the bridge, imagining myself on one of those trains going to faraway places. The breeze from the balcony would move the lace curtains over my bed, and the sun beams would stream through them, creating elaborate patterns. It was the perfect environment for daydreaming.</p> <p>On the floor was a huge rug made out of old fur coats. It was like a patched-up blanket, Russian style. There were pieces of rabbit fur and sheep wool, with patches of old foxtail hats. I remember laying on that warm carpet, the hairs tickling my skin. As I ran my fingers through the different textures, my mind wondered about everything and nothing at the same time. What were these animals like when they were alive? What kind of clothing had these pieces been made into before they ended up as a rug? I could feel my mother's careful stitches putting these old pieces together into a single rug as I traced them with my hands. I imagined snow falling on fur hats and coats, sticking to the hairs, and could almost see my mother's face with a foxtail hat wrapping her head, snowflakes dancing around, music from Doctor Zhivago playing in my head.</p> <p>My mother collected old magazines and soviet posters. I must have looked through them a thousand times. I would study the images and try to copy them. Images of evil capitalism are still imprinted in my brain from those propaganda posters and caricatures. But there were others which encouraged citizens to have good work ethics and strong moral character.</p> <p>Translation: He earned according to how hard he worked!</p> <p>Left flag: "Cheer for the worker-peasant soviet reign!" Right flag: "All power to the capitalists! Death to the workers and peasants!" Bottom: "Death to capital, or death under the foot of capital."</p> <p>Meals were simple but delicious and straight from the garden. Most men spent early mornings and evenings fishing, and their catch would become a source of protein in many of our meals. Boiled baby potatoes, salads with tomatoes, cucumbers and lots of other greens, and fish from the river was often our dinner. We had tea made out of mint, cherry, and currant leaves with fresh jam for dessert.</p> <p>We didn't really like having to help in the garden, but the rest of the time, we were free to do anything else we liked. We owned a row boat and took little boat trips on the river when parents had time. It was thrilling every time as we traveled up and down the river, going around small islands, building fires on their banks, and exploring. We learned how to swim and fish in the same river. The kids became friends over the summer and played together. Occasionally we would go back to our apartments in the town to get groceries, do laundry, or take a bath.</p> <p>For weeks at a time, evenings were devoted to reading, playing cards and games, singing, and eating. There were no TVs or phones in the dacha on the community of dachas, so we were stuck entertaining each other. To me it was glorious. To my parents, I imagine, it was a lot of work, but they seemed happy as well. A few years later, when the Soviet Union collapsed, the dacha became our primary source of provision for the whole year and not just a place to be and grow food during the summer. But until then, I could look at the sun streaming through the lace curtains on my bed on the second floor of our dacha, eat strawberries straight from the patch, enjoy boat trips to the different parts of the river, collect water lilies while playing pirates, and flip through magazines of Soviet propaganda, happily and content. Growing up on dachas was such a vividly remembered part of my childhood that I still see our dacha in my dreams.</p> <p>Related</p> <p><a href="Art-Culture" type="external">Art &amp;amp; Culture</a>&amp;#160;&amp;#160;&amp;#160;/&amp;#160;&amp;#160;&amp;#160; <a href="Former-USSR" type="external">Former USSR</a>&amp;#160;&amp;#160;&amp;#160;/&amp;#160;&amp;#160;&amp;#160; <a href="Russia" type="external">Russia</a></p>

Summers in Soviet Russia

https://leftvoice.org/Summers-in-Soviet-Russia

2017-03-05

<p>On November 9, 2011, the family of Juan Carlos Galvis &#8211; a prominent union leader with Sinaltrainal and personal friend of ours &#8211; was subjected to a violent home invasion by two presumed paramilitaries. &amp;#160;The intruders entered the Galvis home while Juan Carlos and his son were away and assaulted his wife, Mary, and his two daughters, Jackeline and Mayra. &amp;#160;They grabbed Mayra, a child with Downs Syndrome, and put a gun to her head, threatening to kill her if Mary did not tell them the whereabouts of Juan Carlos and his son. &amp;#160;They then bound and gagged Mary and Jackeline, again asking them to say where Juan Carlos and his son were. The assailants then proceeded to spray paint Mary and Juan&#8217;s faces on a wedding photo the family had posted on the wall. Before leaving the home, they stole two laptops, some USB memory drives, documents, and trashed the house. The traumatic attack left Mayra in shock for days and unable to speak.</p> <p>The family was forced to flee to another town where they are now hiding. Their fears are well founded. Two of Juan Carlos&#8217; Sinaltrainal colleagues, John Fredy Carmona Bermudez and Luis Medardo Prens Vallejo, were killed in recent months.</p> <p>All in all, 30 unionists were killed in Colombia last year. The National Labor School (ENS) reports that 4 have already been killed this year, and other trade union movements have reported additional murders (e.g., Justice for Colombia has reported 6). Such killings have made Colombia, where around 3,000 unionists have been killed since 1986, the most dangerous country in the world to be a trade unionist, and if the assassination rate this year continues as it has thus far, Colombia will most certainly retain this notorious distinction.</p> <p>Meanwhile, the Colombian government has done nothing effective to prosecute those responsible for such anti-union violence, with the UN recently reporting that Colombia&#8217;s rate of impunity for such crimes remains at 95% &#8211; meaning that only 5% of the union killings have ever been successfully prosecuted.</p> <p>It was these two factors &#8211; the unprecedented rate of union killings and the high rate of impunity for these killings &#8211; that led Barack Obama in 2008 to declare in his third debate with John McCain that he opposed the Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA).</p> <p>While being a trade unionist in Colombia is dangerous, those that are unionists are the few that can more freely organize. Under the Alvaro Uribe Velez Administration the &#8220;associative labor cooperatives&#8221; (CTAs) model proliferated throughout Colombia. This union-busting model that precludes direct contracts between workers and companies gravely debilitates working conditions, salaries, and occupational safety protections. Workers have risked losing their meager livelihoods by holding stoppages to obtain direct contracts that are more likely to guarantee their basic labor rights.</p> <p>In April 2011, Presidents Obama and Santos presented a Labor Action Plan designated to address anti-union violence, persecute union crimes, do away with labor intermediation, and improve conditions for workers in the port, sugar, oil palm, and other sectors. Since the LAP was signed, Colombia has played the game of appearing to comply with the LAP while at the same time undermining its purpose. It has met surface requirements like setting up the Labor Ministry, passing legislation, and fining abusive companies.</p> <p>While the number of trade unionists killed has gone down (and of course, as Father Javier Giraldo opined some time ago, there are indeed many less unionists to kill), the security climate and death threats against them has not changed. This leaves the possibility that the number of murders and attacks could flare up once the FTA moves forward. The murder of trade unionists and labor activists is often spun to be unrelated to their labor rights activities&#8212;robbery, jealous lovers or links to narcotrafficking are the reasons used to whitewash the murders. For example, Hernan Dario, a lawyer who represented the largest public sector union in Valle del Cauca (Sintraemcali) and several labor activists in the sugarcane sector, was murdered. His name was subsequently dragged through the mud based on unsubstantiated allegations linking him to drug dealers. This tactic was utilized in order to create an environment of confusion and impede actions for justice in this case.</p> <p>Last year, Colombia passed a law that supposedly banned CTAs, yet the reality is that this only restricts them by name since other forms of labor intermediation, including the Simplified Stock Companies, shell companies, and supposed &#8220;union contracts,&#8221; have replaced them. In the sugar and port sectors, leaders of work stoppages and those affiliated to trade unions are rarely rehired through these new contracts. The Ministry of Labor and the labor inspectors designated by the LAP are not effectively intervening to remedy these situations. Over 70 Afro-Colombian port workers in Turbo who attempted to form a union in October 2011 have been fired. Those workers were given an ultimatum&#8212;sign a letter stating they will not affiliate with a trade union or enjoy unemployment.</p> <p>The Ministry is not even intervening to implement the International Labor Organization&#8217;s (ILO) recommendations as mandated by the Labor Action Plan. The case of 51 fired public sector workers of EMCALI is just one of many examples. Rather than implement the ILO&#8217;s March 2012 recommendations to rehire the workers, authorities proceeded to evict the workers who held a hunger strike in Cali last week. These victims of Colombia&#8217;s unjust labor practices, all of whom have been unemployed since 2004 since they were blacklisted for standing up for labor rights, are not even permitted to protest.</p> <p>Some of the workers who would most benefit from effective implementation of the Labor Action Plan are Afro-Colombians. Most Afro-Colombian workers, who make up an estimated 25% of Colombia&#8217;s population and a disproportionate number of the country&#8217;s over 5.2 million internally displaced, work in sectors where labor rights standards are weakest. As such, many are not able to freely exercise their right to unionize, and if they try to do so face death threats or impoverishment. Many Afro-Colombian workers describe their situation as &#8220;modern day slavery.&#8221;</p> <p>Afro-Colombian dockworkers in Buenaventura, a key port for the FTA, work in one of Colombia&#8217;s most abusive environments. In this port, Afro-Colombians come to work in hazardous conditions for 24 to 48 hours straight, often sleeping on the containers. The demanding environment obligates them to stay inside the port complex for an entire week without the possibility to return home. Healthcare is often reserved for the more privileged individuals working in offices, and workers who are hurt or disabled are often fired. Those attempting to organize are threatened or denied employment. It took a work stoppage in January 2012 for some of these workers to receive direct contracts. The majority of port workers continue to be employed through intermediaries, and those with the direct contracts have low salaries and are prohibited from unionizing. Only today, after months of pressure, has the Ministry of Labor opened up an investigation into some of these abuses.</p> <p>Still, despite continued anti-union violence, the high rate of impunity, serious impediments to union organizing, and the dire conditions faced by workers, President Obama is now poised to announce at the Summit of the Americas that Colombia has complied with the Labor Action Plan. Working conditions and protection for trade unionists in Colombia do not reflect the U.S. government&#8217;s evaluation of the Labor Action Plan. If Obama goes ahead with his plans in Cartagena to green light the FTA, Colombian and U.S. workers will lose their last bit of leverage to stem the tide of anti-union violence and defend the rights of Colombia&#8217;s most vulnerable populations.</p> <p>Daniel Kovalik is general counsel of the United Steelworkers.&amp;#160;</p> <p>Gimena Sanchez-Garzoli and Anthony Dest work for the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA)</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p>

Colombia: Obama’s Bloodiest Betrayal?

https://counterpunch.org/2012/04/11/colombia-obamas-bloodiest-betrayal/

2012-04-11

<p>A senior rebel commander in Ukraine's separatist eastern region has threatened an onslaught on Ukrainian military checkpoints if they are not withdrawn on Thursday, according to a video posted on the Facebook page of a rebel politician.</p> <p>Sergei Zdrilyuk, dressed in military fatigues, clearly tired and sometimes mixing his words, said he had covert groups already in place. "I am ready to draw the first blood myself."</p> <p>In the 30-minute video, he moved from military strategy and strengths to problems with a rival fighting unit and, in a reference to his Ukrainian home, troubles with his mother's flock of geese.</p> <p>The eastern rebellion by pro-Russian separatists has shaken Ukraine and pushed Western powers into a Cold War-style confrontation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom they accuse of destabilizing Ukraine.</p> <p>Zdrilyuk introduced himself as deputy to Igor Strelkov, appointed head of rebel forces on Monday after the southeastern region of Donetsk held an unofficial referendum that rebels said gave 80 percent support for a break with Kyiv. Both are regarded as "terrorists" by Kyiv.</p> <p>The Ukrainian intelligence service SBU showed on its website photographs of him, giving his codenames "Abwehr" (former name of the German military intelligence service) and "Adler" (German for eagle). It described him as a Ukrainian who had taken Russian citizenship in February.</p> <p>In a possible allusion to tensions between rival groups among the rebels, Zdrilyuk complained about the activity of a "curly-haired man" he identified as an ex-member of the Russian security service FSB. He said the man, going by the nicknames of "Magician" and "Joker," had a group of 30 armed accomplices.</p> <p>He said Strelkov, whom Kyiv identifies as a Russian military intelligence officer and proof of their contention the rebels are led by Russian special forces, commanded a force of 10,000 fighters and 1,000 armored vehicles. The commander had moved from his stronghold of Slaviansk to the town of Donetsk.</p> <p>There was no way of verifying his figures. The rebels are an amalgam of trained soldiers and volunteer fighters armed with a mix of automatic rifles, pistols and hunting weapons.</p> <p>"It doesn't matter if they (the Ukrainians) are conscripts or professional soldiers," Zdrilyuk said in what seemed to be a news conference posted on the Facebook page of rebel official Pavel Gubarev.</p> <p>"If equipment is not withdrawn 20-30 km from Donetsk, all checkpoints will be destroyed; we have heavy guns," he said. "Our intelligence and covert groups are ready to move and some are already in place."</p> <p>Asked what deadline he was setting, he replied: "In 24 hours." He looked at his watch and added "By nine o'clock (Thursday evening)."</p> <p>The rebels have set deadlines on several occasions in the past that have come to nothing. But tensions are running high around the Donetsk region, which has declared itself a separate "Donetsk People's Republic."</p> <p>Changing nickname</p> <p>The Ukrainian checkpoints on main roads and ringing key cities do appear vulnerable and many have been attacked already, some changing hands many times.</p> <p>Separatists inflicted their biggest casualties yet for any single attack on Tuesday when they killed seven Ukrainian soldiers in an ambush in Kramatorsk. There have been increasing signs of professional leadership among the groups, which nonetheless remain a loosely organized force.</p> <p>At one sandbagged checkpoint near the rebel stronghold of Slaviansk, Ukrainian Lieutenant-Colonel Andriy Prykhodko appeared unconcerned by the deadline. "We are here to protect the peaceful population, maintain law and order and prevent illegal movement of arms and ammunition," he said.</p> <p>The Ukrainian intelligence service SBU says Zdrilyuk was fired from their ranks in 2003 because he worked too closely with Russia. It charges that Zdrilyuk and Strelkov were involved in the takeover of Ukraine's Crimea region that led to annexation of the peninsula by Moscow in March.</p> <p>Zdriluyk often appeared confused and weary during the half-hour video and repeatedly apologized for mixing his words.</p> <p>"I haven't slept properly for months; excuse me, for weeks."</p> <p>"We are not in favor of killing our brothers, no matter what their political opinions. I ask all people of the Ukraine, my soul hurts, it is weeping ...to stop this process. For me it is hard to speak. I wasn't ready for these events."</p> <p>He said he had decided to change his fighting nickname from "Abwehr" to "Spravedlivy," meaning "the Just One."</p> <p>Zdrilyuk's superior, Strelkov, goes by the nickname "Strelok," Shooter. Ukrainian intelligence says Strelkov's real name is Igor Girkin, an officer in the Russian GRU intelligence agency.</p> <p>Zdrilyuk said some television journalists had visited his mother in a village in central Ukraine and misrepresented her comments about him. They showed her, he said, tending her flock of geese, suggesting they sought to demean her.</p> <p>Several geese from a flock of 20 had died, he said.</p> <p>"It was after rain. If you live in a village, you know that young geese are very sensitive creatures," he said.</p> <p>(Reporting by Natalya Zinets; writing by Ralph Boulton; editing by Mark Heinrich)</p>

A senior rebel commander warns of an onslaught on Ukrainian forces

https://pri.org/stories/2014-05-15/senior-rebel-commander-warns-onslaught-ukrainian-forces

2014-05-15

<p>Whether one agrees with the Iran deal or not, President Obama concluded the agreement with the backing of most of the Washington establishment, even former Secretary of State Clinton, who would later run for president supporting the deal. There were plenty of critics, especially those like Senator Schumer, whose primary interest is supporting Israel before the security interests of his own country. In the next Congress, he will be the incoming Senate Minority Leader.</p> <p>The Prime Minister of Israel was an outspoken critic of the Iran deal. To what extent did he display his opposition? The <a href="" type="internal">Christian Science Monitor</a> &amp;#160;opined that he was meddling in the US election by favoring Romney over Obama because of the Iran deal. He was pushing Obama for &#8216;red lines&#8217; in any negotiations with the Iranians. Obama was expected to win his re-election race against Romney but it was Netanyahu&#8217;s desire to sow a rift between Obama and his Jewish and Zionist supporters and enjoin those supporters in an unholy alliance with Mitt Romney.</p> <p>Yet more and more Jewish voters, especially younger ones, are not as committed to Israel as their elders. That bond is no longer as strong as it was as the fears of another Jewish genocide are far from their memories. Younger Jewish voters are trending towards seeing Israel as undemocratic and oppressive towards its indigenous Palestinian and other populations. The holocaust card just doesn&#8217;t have the pull it once had.</p> <p>Although his candidate Romney lost big to Obama, Netanyahu continued his relentless attacks on US foreign policy. At the invitation of Republican senators, and without consulting the White House, on March 3, 2015 he spoke before an open session of Congress blasting the US&#8217;s foreign policy. He received 23 standing ovations.</p> <p>In spite of the overwhelming support he got from his Congress, there were notable dissenters coming from the hard right in the US and Israel: Fox News&#8217;s Chris Wallace, Jeffrey Goldberg, Dan Margalit of the Israeli tabloid Israel Hayom, among others. They correctly saw that the speech could, and did, backfire, and support for the Iranian deal actually grew to the point where a veto of the agreement was unlikely.</p> <p>Just imagine if someone like Russian President Vladimir Putin would openly support Donald Trump before a presidential election. Imagine him going to the United Nations and blasting Hillary Clinton for her war mongering and open threats against the Russian people, or would speak to a joint session of Congress blasting the extension of NATO forces on the very edge of Russian territory? Sure, that would never happen as it would have the overwhelming support of most in Congress and the acquiescence of the American people, who don&#8217;t even have a clue what&#8217;s going on with NATO or even what NATO is.</p> <p>So why the double standard we&#8217;re seeing today? Why is Russia, and Putin in particular, the center of a McCarthy-like hysteria seeing &#8216;Reds&#8217; in every closet and under everyone&#8217;s bed? Why didn&#8217;t we see anti-semitic&amp;#160;caricatures Jews snooping&amp;#160;around corners plotting a one-world Zionist government like we are seeing parodied cartoons showing <a href="" type="internal">Boris and Natasha</a>.</p> <p>Unlike the case with Israel, there is no evidence presented to the public regarding Russian interference in our recent election. There was no hack of voting machines. There was no hack of people&#8217;s emails. John Podesta lost his cell phone with all his emails. UK Ambassador Craig Murray claims he knows where the leaks came from and it wasn&#8217;t the Russians. A reliable theory is that it was a disgruntled Democratic operative who supported Sanders and saw what was happening inside the Clinton Foundation. Julian Assange, with a 10-year record of reliability, vehemently denies the Russians being the source of the leak.</p> <p>The US and Russia (Soviet and later Federation) have long been adversaries. Being an agrarian nation, it quickly industrialized, becoming an economic rival to the European west and the US. After the Bolshevik Revolution the US contributed troops to fight the Red Army to overthrow the new Soviet Republic.&amp;#160; After WW2 McCarthyism took hold of the American conscience and has been with us ever since. Russia was the Evil Empire under President Reagan. Even after Gorbachev took Reagan&#8217;s suggestion and tore down that wall, Russia remained an adversary. Not during Yeltsin&#8217;s tenure of course. The US likes drunken Russian presidents. They&#8217;re easily manipulated. But here comes Putin, who plays chess while American heads and future heads of state play checkers.</p>

Russia No, Israel Yes

https://counterpunch.org/2016/12/20/russia-no-israel-yes/

2016-12-20

<p>Tomorrow, September 17, is the 221st anniversary of the day in 1787 when 39 members of the Constitutional Convention signed the Constitution in Philadelphia. It is a sad fact as we approach that anniversary that for the past seven and a half years, and especially since 9/11, the Bush Administration has treated the Constitution and the rule of law with a disrespect never before seen in the history of this country.</p> <p>By now, the public can be excused for being almost numb to new revelations of government wrongdoing and overreaching. The catalogue is breathtaking, even when immensely complicated and far reaching programs and events are reduced to simple catch phrases: torture, Guantanamo, ignoring the Geneva Conventions, warrantless wiretapping, data mining, destruction of emails, U.S. Attorney firings, stonewalling of congressional oversight, abuse of the state secrets doctrine and executive privilege, secret abrogation of executive orders, signing statements. This is a shameful legacy that will haunt our country for years to come.</p> <p>There can be no dispute that the rule of law is central to our democracy and our system of government. But what does &#8216;the rule of law&#8217; really mean? Well, as Thomas Paine said in 1776: &#8216;In America, the law is king.&#8217; That, of course, was a truly revolutionary concept at a time when the King, quite literally, was the law.</p> <p>Over 200 years later, we still must struggle to fulfill Paine&#8217;s simply stated vision. It is not always easy, nor is it something that once done need not be carefully maintained. Justice Frankfurter wrote that law:</p> <p>is an enveloping and permeating habituation of behavior, reflecting the counsels of reason on the part of those entrusted with power in reconciling the pressures of conflicting interests. Once we conceive &#8216;the rule of law&#8217; as embracing the whole range of presuppositions on which government is conducted . . ., the relevant question is not, has it been achieved, but, is it conscientiously and systematically pursued.</p> <p>The post-September 11th period is not, of course, the first time that events have caused great stress for the checks and balances of our system of government. As Berkeley law professors Daniel Farber and Anne Joseph O&#8217;Connell write: &#8216;The greatest constitutional crisis in our history came with the Civil War, which tested the nature of the Union, the scope of presidential power, and the extent of liberty that can survive in war time.&#8217;</p> <p>But as legal scholar Louis Fisher of the Library of Congress notes, President Lincoln pursued a much different approach than our current President when he believed he needed to act in an extra-constitutional manner to save the Union. He acted openly, and sought Congress&#8217;s participation and ultimately approval of his actions. According to Dr. Fisher:</p> <p>[Lincoln] took actions we are all familiar with, including withdrawing funds from the Treasury without an appropriation, calling up the troops, placing a blockade on the South, and suspending the writ of habeas corpus. In ordering those actions, Lincoln never claimed to be acting legally or constitutionally and never argued that Article II somehow allowed him to do what he did. Instead, Lincoln admitted to exceeding the constitutional boundaries of his office and therefore needed the sanction of Congress&#8230;. He recognized that the superior lawmaking body was Congress, not the President.</p> <p>Each era brings its own challenges to the conscientious and systematic pursuit of the rule of law. How the leaders of our government respond to those challenges at the time they occur is, of course, critical. But recognizing that leaders do not always perform perfectly, that not every President is an Abraham Lincoln, the years that follow a crisis are perhaps even more important. And soon, this Administration will be over. So the obvious question is: &#8216;Where do we go from here?&#8217;</p> <p>I believe that one of the most important things that the next President must do, whoever he may be, is take immediate and concrete steps to restore the rule of law in this country. He must make sure that the excesses of this Administration don&#8217;t become so ingrained in our system that they change the very notion of what the law is.</p> <p>That, of course, is much easier said than done. It&#8217;s not simply a matter of a new President saying, &#8216;Ok, I won&#8217;t do that anymore.&#8217; This President&#8217;s transgressions are so deep and the damage to our system of government so extensive that a concerted effort from the executive and legislative branches will be needed. And that means the new President will, in some respects, have to go against his institutional interests.</p> <p>Russell Feingold represents Wisconsin in the US Senate.</p> <p><a href="" type="internal">Your Ad Here</a> &amp;#160;</p> <p /> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p>

Restoring the Rule of Law

https://counterpunch.org/2008/09/16/restoring-the-rule-of-law/

2008-09-16

<p>HONOLULU (AP) &#8212; Tom Gray&#8217;s family has waited for more than 70 years to bring home the remains of his cousin who was killed in the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941.</p> <p>On Tuesday, they got a step closer when the military announced it would exhume and attempt to identify the remains of almost 400 sailors and Marines from the USS Oklahoma who were buried as unknowns after the war.</p> <p>Gray&#8217;s cousin, Edwin Hopkins, of Swanzey, New Hampshire, was a 19-year-old fireman third class on board the USS Oklahoma when the battleship was hit by nine torpedoes and capsized on Dec. 7, 1941. His remains weren&#8217;t identified and his family was told he was missing.</p> <p>Gray said Hopkins&#8217; mother never accepted that. She believed he had amnesia and he would show up one day, Gray said.</p> <p>Hopkins&#8217; parents, Frank and Alice Hopkins, put his name on their headstone in Keene, New Hampshire, thinking he would join them one day, Gray said.</p> <p>They did so, &#8220;just waiting for him to come home,&#8221; Gray said.</p> <p>Altogether, 429 sailors and Marines on board the Oklahoma were killed. Only 35 were identified in the years immediately after.</p> <p>Hundreds were buried as unknowns at cemeteries in Hawaii. In 1950, they were reburied as unknowns at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific inside a volcanic crater in Honolulu.</p> <p>The military is acting now because advances in forensic science and technology as well as genealogical help from family members have made it possible to identify more remains, said Lt. Col. Melinda Morgan, a Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency spokeswoman.</p> <p>Officials plan to begin the work in three to six weeks, Morgan said. They aim to identify the remains of up to 388 servicemen within five years.</p> <p>In 2003, the military disinterred one casket from the Honolulu cemetery, commonly called Punchbowl, based on information provided by Ray Emory, a Pearl Harbor survivor who has spent years doggedly scouring documents.</p> <p>Many remains were comingled when buried, and the military was able to identify five servicemen from that casket. But the coffin also contained the remains of up to 100 others who haven&#8217;t been identified.</p> <p>Gray said his family in 2008 learned from a group of USS Oklahoma survivors that Emory had identified discrepancies in the records of the 22 buried as unknowns, including his cousin.</p> <p>The 22 are buried in about five graves at Punchbowl, Gray said.</p> <p>&#8220;Since then, the families have been fighting to have these sailors disinterred and brought home,&#8221; said Gray, who lives in Guilford, Connecticut.</p> <p>Gray said he understands it&#8217;s an honor to be buried at a national cemetery. At the same time, he said Hopkins is part of his family.</p> <p>&#8220;I also think that a boy gives up his life at 19 years old and ends up in a comingled grave marked as &#8216;unknown&#8217; isn&#8217;t proper. I never did,&#8221; Gray said.</p> <p>The unidentified remains of sailors and Marines from other Pearl Harbor battleships, like the USS West Virginia, are also buried at Punchbowl.</p> <p>On Tuesday, the Pentagon announced new criteria for exhuming these and other remains from military cemeteries for identification.</p> <p>In the case of comingled remains, the military must estimate it will be able to identify at least 60 percent of the people exhumed. For individual unknowns, there must be at least a 50 percent chance it will be able to identify the person disinterred.</p> <p>HONOLULU (AP) &#8212; Tom Gray&#8217;s family has waited for more than 70 years to bring home the remains of his cousin who was killed in the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941.</p> <p>On Tuesday, they got a step closer when the military announced it would exhume and attempt to identify the remains of almost 400 sailors and Marines from the USS Oklahoma who were buried as unknowns after the war.</p> <p>Gray&#8217;s cousin, Edwin Hopkins, of Swanzey, New Hampshire, was a 19-year-old fireman third class on board the USS Oklahoma when the battleship was hit by nine torpedoes and capsized on Dec. 7, 1941. His remains weren&#8217;t identified and his family was told he was missing.</p> <p>Gray said Hopkins&#8217; mother never accepted that. She believed he had amnesia and he would show up one day, Gray said.</p> <p>Hopkins&#8217; parents, Frank and Alice Hopkins, put his name on their headstone in Keene, New Hampshire, thinking he would join them one day, Gray said.</p> <p>They did so, &#8220;just waiting for him to come home,&#8221; Gray said.</p> <p>Altogether, 429 sailors and Marines on board the Oklahoma were killed. Only 35 were identified in the years immediately after.</p> <p>Hundreds were buried as unknowns at cemeteries in Hawaii. In 1950, they were reburied as unknowns at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific inside a volcanic crater in Honolulu.</p> <p>The military is acting now because advances in forensic science and technology as well as genealogical help from family members have made it possible to identify more remains, said Lt. Col. Melinda Morgan, a Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency spokeswoman.</p> <p>Officials plan to begin the work in three to six weeks, Morgan said. They aim to identify the remains of up to 388 servicemen within five years.</p> <p>In 2003, the military disinterred one casket from the Honolulu cemetery, commonly called Punchbowl, based on information provided by Ray Emory, a Pearl Harbor survivor who has spent years doggedly scouring documents.</p> <p>Many remains were comingled when buried, and the military was able to identify five servicemen from that casket. But the coffin also contained the remains of up to 100 others who haven&#8217;t been identified.</p> <p>Gray said his family in 2008 learned from a group of USS Oklahoma survivors that Emory had identified discrepancies in the records of the 22 buried as unknowns, including his cousin.</p> <p>The 22 are buried in about five graves at Punchbowl, Gray said.</p> <p>&#8220;Since then, the families have been fighting to have these sailors disinterred and brought home,&#8221; said Gray, who lives in Guilford, Connecticut.</p> <p>Gray said he understands it&#8217;s an honor to be buried at a national cemetery. At the same time, he said Hopkins is part of his family.</p> <p>&#8220;I also think that a boy gives up his life at 19 years old and ends up in a comingled grave marked as &#8216;unknown&#8217; isn&#8217;t proper. I never did,&#8221; Gray said.</p> <p>The unidentified remains of sailors and Marines from other Pearl Harbor battleships, like the USS West Virginia, are also buried at Punchbowl.</p> <p>On Tuesday, the Pentagon announced new criteria for exhuming these and other remains from military cemeteries for identification.</p> <p>In the case of comingled remains, the military must estimate it will be able to identify at least 60 percent of the people exhumed. For individual unknowns, there must be at least a 50 percent chance it will be able to identify the person disinterred.</p>

Pentagon plans to identify hundreds killed in Pearl Harbor

https://apnews.com/bbaa41ad9b7342388b8e3c156399e5ac

2015-04-15

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p>Public schools in Santa Fe didn&#8217;t fare as well as others statewide with letter grades released Thursday by the New Mexico Public Education Department.</p> <p>While more than 70 percent of schools across the state either maintained or improved their grades over last year, 55 percent of Santa Fe&#8217;s public schools held steady or got better marks this year.</p> <p>Capital High School was a bright spot, jumping from a D to a B. Santa Fe High moved up, from C to B.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Santa Fe Public Schools Superintendent Joel Boyd was still reviewing the results when contacted by the</p> <p>Journal on Thursday, but acknowledged there&#8217;s room for improvement.</p> <p>&#8220;We don&#8217;t accept mediocrity,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Overall, the results appear to be mixed &#8211; up in some areas and down in others. What we&#8217;ll work to do is analyze any data point in the context of the data we already have. But we&#8217;re not going to overly celebrate any big jump or be overly critical of any drop. We&#8217;ve got to make sure we understand the data for all our schools.&#8221;</p> <p>This is the second year that PED has used the A-F grading system, a performance measure passed by the Legislature in 2011.</p> <p>Replacing the Adequate Yearly Progress reports mandated by the federal No Child Left Behind Act, it is intended to be a more helpful and understandable way to describe the level of school performance.</p> <p>&#8220;New Mexico&#8217;s new A-F system allows us to identify and invest in schools that are struggling, while providing a much more useful and clearer picture to parents and community members of how each of our state&#8217;s schools is performing,&#8221; Gov. Susana Martinez said in a news release. &#8220;Most importantly, these grades place critical emphasis on student achievement and growth, instituting a level of accountability in education that has not existed previously in New Mexico.&#8221;</p> <p>The grades are based on several measures, including current standing and growth, which represent a combination of Standard-Based Assessment test scores in reading and math.</p> <p>Graduation rates and career/college readiness are used in grading high schools. All schools can also earn bonus points for such things as extracurricular activities and efforts by the school to improve parent involvement.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Gains and losses in Santa Fe</p> <p>Two Santa Fe schools were among the 82 schools statewide that received A grades on the A-F grading system. Wood Gormley Elementary earned an overall A grade, as it did last year. The Academy for Technology and the Classics charter school improved from a B to an A.</p> <p>Six other Santa Fe schools including Capital and Santa Fe high schools showed improvement. Tierra Encantada charter school also improved by two grades, from the F it received last year to a C.</p> <p>Other schools within the district that improved were Carlos Gilbert and Tesuque elementary schools, the Academy at Larragoite and Santa Fe High. Tesuque Elementary and Academy at Larragoite improved from D to C, while Carlos Gilbert went from C to B.</p> <p>The improvement within the high schools was consistent with those across the state and, as Boyd noted, the SBA scores released last month.</p> <p>&#8220;The high schools are performing at a higher level, and we learned that with the SBA results,&#8221; Boyd said. &#8220;We improved in areas but still require additional growth.&#8221;</p> <p>All three of Santa Fe&#8217;s middle schools received Ds, Capshaw dropping from the B it received last year.</p> <p>Most of the decline in grades within SFPS occurred at the elementary school level, with four of them &#8211; Aspen Community Magnet School, Cesar Chavez, Kearny and Sweeney &#8211; each receiving failing grades.</p> <p>Last year, Tierra Encantada Charter School was the only Santa Fe school to receive an F.</p> <p>&#8220;Some (grades) align with our data and some appear to be anomalies,&#8221; Boyd said. &#8220;A school doesn&#8217;t become good or bad overnight. We have to analyze the data and make sure we&#8217;re making improvements in every area.&#8221;</p> <p>Boyd said the results are useful, functioning like a dashboard to gauge where the schools are at and where improvement is needed most.</p> <p>&#8220;The data is an extremely important part of leading the district toward change,&#8221; said Boyd, who implemented a series of reform measures since he was hired a year ago. &#8220;It&#8217;s important that we try to understand the data in its context and what&#8217;s underneath it before we make any conclusions about spikes or trends.&#8221;</p> <p>Boyd said his staff will spend the next several weeks studying the results.</p> <p>&#8220;We still have considerable analysis to undertake, considering the complexity of the system,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We&#8217;ll make sure we include the data within the full analysis of each school and meet with the principals and have a full discussion. We&#8217;ll then present it to the public during the board study session in August.&#8221;</p> <p>The school board&#8217;s study session is scheduled for Aug. 12.</p> <p /> <p />

SF schools fall short on grades

https://abqjournal.com/220380/sf-schools-fall-short-on-grades.html

<p>U.S. stocks opened higher on Tuesday, with both the Dow and the S&amp;amp;P 500 trading in record territory and the Dow moving closer to the key psychological level of 20,000 as energy companies continued their recent advance. Investors are also looking ahead to the start of a two-day meeting by the Federal Reserve that is widely expected to end with the announcement of higher interest rates on Wednesday afternoon. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4%, or 71 points, to 19,863.65, with Chevron Corp. up 0.9%, tracking a 0.6% rise in the price of crude oil. If the blue-chip index closes higher, it will notch its seventh straight gain and end at another record high. The S&amp;amp;P 500 gained 0.3%, or 7.35 points, to 2,264.5. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose added 0.4%, or 20.3 points, to 5,433.</p> <p>Copyright &#169; 2016 MarketWatch, Inc.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p>

U.S. Stocks Open Higher As Investors Await Fed; Energy Shares Rise

http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/12/13/us-stocks-open-higher-as-investors-await-fed-energy-shares-rise.html

2016-12-13

<p /> <p>Photo by Marc Nozell | <a href="" type="internal">CC BY 2.0</a></p> <p>&amp;#160;</p> <p /> <p>Trump is President. To avoid repeating the causes of Trump winning requires knowing what the causes were.</p> <p>Liberals point at the FBI, Russian interference, the electoral college, racists and sexists, Trump voters, and also Trump haters who were too busy excoriating Clinton to urge voting against Trump. Radicals point at mainstream media, the Democratic Party, the Republican Party, the electoral system, corporate power, and neo-Nazis. Advocates for lesser evil voting point at arguers against lesser evil voting. Advocates of abstaining or voting Green everywhere point at lesser evil voters. Critics of single issue politics point at people who emphasize one or another single issue. Advocates of a single issue point at those who didn&#8217;t highlight their preferred issue enough. Those who predicted Trump could win point at those who guaranteed Trump would lose. Those who guaranteed Trump would lose point at those who excoriated Trump. Those who pleaded Trump would be a disaster point at those who claimed Trump would be just another president. Those who celebrated that Trump-hating would rejuvenate radicalism point at Trump-defilers&#8217; &#8220;debilitating negativity.&#8221; Nearly all who regret Trump winning urge that we let bygones be bygones and go forward.</p> <p>Consider all those who would love to write an obituary for the FBI, who know Russia&#8217;s reasons of state only pursue elite benefit, who abhor the Democratic Party, who call Clinton a war criminal, who call Trump a barbarian, who warned Trump could win, who urged lesser evil voting, who offered positive aims, who fight for the entwined importance of race, gender, and class and against prioritizing any one above the rest, who seek multi-issue, multi-tactic, cross constituency and cross-border solidarity and activism, and who oppose mainstream media and support alternative media. Considering only familiar reasons, such folks were not even a partial proximate cause of Trump winning. But are there other reasons for Trump&#8217;s victory to consider?</p> <p>Radical leftists are not even a smidgen at fault for the rich exploiters who voted for Trump. Or for the powerful trend makers who did so. Or for the pathologically depraved on account of their being grotesquely deprived who did so. But what about that any black people voted for Trump, or that any Latinos did, or that so incredibly many white women and men voted for Trump? What caused those realities? To answer, we have to look at more than the last year.</p> <p>Consider only people who for whatever reasons know quite a lot about fascism and even more about current society. Only people who are intent on winning fundamental social change around race, gender, and economy. Only people who favor anti-authoritarian approaches, who favor full classlessness, and who know the difference between Trump and Clinton. Only people who devote themselves to communicating with others about the need to win change. Only people who know a lot about popular mindsets, feelings, and motivations. Does even that group need to reassess?</p> <p>Am I circling the wagons and pointing at allies and self rather than only at more obvious causes of Trump winning? To correct our failings we must acknowledge them. But do any individuals, organizations, or outlets urge correcting their own prior failings as part of mounting an effective opposition? If everyone avoids identifying their own choices as contributions to Trump&#8217;s victory, won&#8217;t our own choices remain as they were?</p> <p>Is finding fault with ourselves more painful than spinning nightmare scenarios of Trumpian apocalypse? More painful than piling on essay after essay documenting coming disasters to audiences who already know how horrible Trump will be? More painful than finger pointing at everyone other than ourselves? More painful than calling for unity while shrouding our own past mistakes?</p> <p>1/ As an anti-sexist feminist I look at Trump&#8217;s female vote and I ask myself, what did we do wrong over months, years, and literally a half century during which we have been trying to develop feminist awareness and commitment? Why have five decades of feminist efforts left society with so many women and men who did not cry out at Trump&#8217;s obviously misogynistic intentions? Have we polarized away potential allies too often? Have we attracted potential allies, but conveyed insufficient clarity and commitment for them to stay? Were our feminist values, aims, or methods flawed? Does anyone believe that in five decades we could not have done better? Doesn&#8217;t it follow that rather than bemoaning the choice of women and men who voted for Trump, we should ask what we ought to change about how we make demands and organize about gender so we attract rather than repel those who don&#8217;t agree? Being morally and socially right for decades about the scope of society&#8217;s gender injustices hasn&#8217;t created an unstoppable tide against sexism. Perhaps we need to say more about medium and long run goals. Perhaps we need to seek feminist outcomes in ways that put off fewer potential allies and pull more constituencies more sustainably into feminist commitment. Can we find a way to talk about gender that doesn&#8217;t polarize away men and neglect other social phenomena like class and race?</p> <p>2/ As an anti racist internationalist I look at the admittedly small numbers of low or modest income blacks and Latinos confused about Trump and I wonder how any could exist. I look at the relatively modest support from Blacks for Sanders against Clinton &amp;#160;&#8211; which was part of the whole election turning out as it did &#8211; and I wonder how that too could exist. And while I certainly understand considerable racism still existing in various white constituencies, I see the relative lack of fury at Trump&#8217;s racism, Islamophobia, and immigrant bashing, and I have to wonder, again, how can that exist? Has decades of anti racist organizing not tried often enough to reach whites who resisted the appeals due to our preaching overwhelmingly only where we already have a receptive audience? Have our messages too often failed due to their tone or substance alienating those we meant to reach? Have anti-racist communities been pursuing too narrow an understanding, thus concluding Clinton was preferable to Sanders? Have anti racist values, aims, or methods been flawed? Does anyone believe that in over a half century we could not have done better? Rather than bemoaning the choices of whites who voted for Trump, shouldn&#8217;t we ask what we ought to change about how we make demands and organize about race so we attract rather than repel those who don&#8217;t agree? Being morally and socially right for decades about the scope of racism&#8217;s ills hasn&#8217;t created an unstoppable tide against racism. Perhaps we need to say more about medium and long run goals. Can we find a way to talk and make demands about race that doesn&#8217;t polarize away white people and that better accounts for other social phenomena like class and gender?</p> <p>3/ As an anti capitalist I look at a narcissistic billionaire bully attracting tens of millions of working class votes and I wonder how that could exist. How could five decades of anti capitalist organizing leave so many workers susceptible to Trump&#8217;s rhetoric and posturing? Was it something about our substance, such as not sufficiently addressing what working people feel and experience in ways they relate to? Was it something about our approach, such as giving off hostility toward working people quite like what they daily encounter from authority figures in hospitals, courts, and workplaces? Why when working people are furious at their plight do anti capitalists have little connection to and often even little empathy for workers&#8217; rising fury? When Clinton called working class Trump supporters deplorable was she manifesting sentiments widely held on the left? What must we change about how we talk about, make demands about, and organize about class and economy so we reach those who don&#8217;t yet agree? Does anyone believe that in a half century we could not have done better? Rather then bemoaning the choice of working class people who voted for Trump, shouldn&#8217;t we ask what we ought to change about how we make demands and organize about class and economy so we attract rather than repel those who don&#8217;t agree? Being morally and socially right for five decades about capitalism&#8217;s horrors hasn&#8217;t created an unstoppable tide against class oppression. Perhaps we need to say more about medium and long run goals. Perhaps we need ways to seek anti capitalist outcomes that put off fewer potential allies and pull more constituencies more sustainably into anti classist commitment. Can we talk and make demands about economy in ways that don&#8217;t polarize away workers, and that don&#8217;t ignore other social phenomena like gender and race? Could the issue be part style and part substance, with both parts owing to inadequately understanding the situation of workers and being too dismissive of them, and perhaps even aspiring to be above them both in the movement and in a new economy?</p> <p>4/ Finally, I look at progressive and left writing over the past year and I see a lot of people saying that Trump has a silver lining. Trump will galvanize us. Trump is just another ruling class lackey same as the rest. And, not voting in contested states or voting for Stein in contested states was a wise choice. I wonder how the callousness such views display toward those who will most suffer Trump&#8217;s fascistic inclinations and ecological madness could exist. I wonder how such confusion about the prospects of movements trying to seek radical progress against a right wing thug rather than against a liberal woman could exist. How such views can exist for radicals immersed in left literature and activism? I wonder what those of us who knew better have done that has caused us to fail to reach the commentators who have offered such suicidal views? I wonder how months, years, or decades of involvement in radicalism could leave so many thinking such confused thoughts? I wonder what has been wrong with the accumulated sum total literature and practice of all the left&#8217;s many parts, some of which I feel responsible for both as a left writer and speaker and as a left publisher, such that a good many left commentators and incredibly many young radicals could be highly versed in all that radical output and yet nonetheless hold the views many have been propounding.</p> <p>Here is the bottom line. If what we each acknowledge and seek to change includes only things like FBI machinations, Russian hacking, electoral college imposition, and everything other than traits of our own, then we won&#8217;t alter much of the decades long movement practices that allowed for 1-4 above to occur. But 1-4 are issues we must solve to attain lasting success in the future.</p> <p>That we need to look in the mirror seems evident.</p> <p>&amp;#160;</p>

Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall…

https://counterpunch.org/2017/01/03/mirror-mirror-on-the-wall/

2017-01-03

<p>Published time: 3 Sep, 2017 14:01Edited time: 3 Sep, 2017 14:19</p> <p>Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping have agreed to &#8220;appropriately deal&#8221; with the recent nuclear test conducted by North Korea, Chinese Xinhua news reports.</p> <p>&#8220;The two leaders agreed to stick to the goal of denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and keep close communication and coordination to deal with the new situation,&#8221; the report says.</p> <p>The presidents&amp;#160;met in the southeastern Chinese city of Xiamen for the ninth BRICS summit, which is scheduled for September 3-5.</p> <p>Read more</p> <p><a href="https://www.rt.com/news/401861-pyongyang-tested-hydrogen-bomb/" type="external" /></p> <p>Earlier in the day, the Russian Foreign Ministry condemned the North Korean test, adding that in a situation like this, it is essential &#8220;to keep composure and to restrain from any acts, which may lead to further escalation of tensions.&#8221;</p> <p>The test is &#8220;another example of Pyongyang&#8217;s outright disregard&#8221; of UN Security Council resolutions and international law, the ministry said in a <a href="http://www.mid.ru/en/foreign_policy/news/-/asset_publisher/cKNonkJE02Bw/content/id/2851809" type="external">statement</a>.&amp;#160;</p> <p>&#8220;We cannot but regret the fact the DPRK [North Korea] leadership is creating grave threats to peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and the whole region by its actions, which are aimed at undermining the global non-proliferation regime. The continuation of this line is fraught with grave consequences for the DPRK itself.&#8221;</p> <p>On Sunday, North Korean state media reported that Pyongyang successfully tested a hydrogen bomb which can be mounted on an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM). The test followed Pyongyang&#8217;s claims that it developed a new, more advanced hydrogen nuke that is small enough to be fitted on an ICBM.</p> <p>The bomb test was a &#8220;perfect success&#8221; and was a &#8220;meaningful&#8221; step to complete the North&#8217;s nuclear weapons program, state television reported.</p> <p />

Putin & Xi agree to ‘appropriately deal’ with N. Korea nuclear test – Xinhua

https://newsline.com/putin-xi-agree-to-appropriately-deal-with-n-korea-nuclear-test-xinhua/

2017-09-03

<p /> <p>Microsoft's HoloLens is about to rack up some serious frequent flier miles on Japan Airlines.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p><a href="/connected-traveler" type="external" />At Microsoft's partner conference on Monday, the airline <a href="https://blogs.microsoft.com/transform/2016/07/11/japan-airlines-creates-yet-another-first-class-experience-this-time-using-microsoft-hololens/#sm.000095ahgjck7ervwe42eypbfgyf3" type="external">announced Opens a New Window.</a> it is using the augmented-reality headset as part of two proof-of concept programs, one of which will provide supplemental training for engine mechanics and another for flight crew trainees who want to be promoted to co-pilots.</p> <p>Until now, flight crew trainees have relied on videos and printouts of cockpit panel instruments and switches. Now, the airline is using HoloLens to bring those lessons to life, and help covert "intellectual memory to muscle memory," according to Koji Hayamizu, senior director of the planning group for Japan Airlines' products and service administration department.</p> <p>For the uninitiated, HoloLens overlays 3D holographic content on the physical world. With HoloLens, trainees can interact with a detailed hologram displaying cockpit devices and switches to get more hands-on experience while learning about operational procedures.</p> <p>Meanwhile, mechanics can tinker around with virtual engines and parts, "just as if they were working on the actual engine or cockpit," Hayamizu added. In the past, getting hands-on training often meant waiting for a plane to come into the hangar for maintenance. Now, "mechanics can learn an engine structure by extracting important parts with the simulation," whenever they want.</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>"We believe that HoloLens can contribute to the safety of our business, which is the most important criteria for airlines," Hayamizu said.</p> <p>Japan Airlines is following in the footsteps of another organization using HoloLens for training: NASA. Astronauts Scott Kelly and Tim Peake recently <a href="http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2499816,00.asp" type="external">received the headset Opens a New Window.</a> to play around with at the International Space Station as part of an effort to explore the possibilities of holographic computing in space. NASA says the new technology could potentially reduce crew training requirements and increase astronauts' efficiency in space.</p> <p>This article <a href="http://www.pcmag.com/news/345992/japan-airlines-using-microsoft-hololens-for-training" type="external">originally appeared Opens a New Window.</a> on <a href="http://www.pcmag.com" type="external">PCMag.com Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>

Japan Airlines Using Microsoft HoloLens for Training

http://foxbusiness.com/features/2016/07/11/japan-airlines-using-microsoft-hololens-for-training.html

2016-07-11

<p>&amp;#160;</p> <p><a href="" type="internal" />It might take more than a cow catcher to push Quentin Kopp from standing in the middle of the track trying to stop California&#8217;s high-speed rail project. A former head of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, which oversees the project, he also is a former state senator and Superior Court judge.</p> <p>On March 17, his declaration against the project became part of the court record in the lawsuit by Kings County and two if its residents whose property would be taken, John Tos and Aaron Fukuda. The plaintiffs included his declaration in their court brief filed that day with California&#8217;s Third District Court of Appeal.</p> <p>The Court of Appeal is considering the CHSRA&#8217;s appeal to have the case dismissed. If the case is allowed to continue, it will return to the courtroom of Superior Court Judge Michael Kenny.</p> <p>In his&amp;#160; <a href="http://transdef.org/HSR/Taxpayer_assets/HSR%20Declarations%20of%20Experts.pdf" type="external">declaration</a>,&amp;#160;Kopp wrote:</p> <p>&#8220;As Authority Chairman, I appeared several times before legislative committees in the Assembly and the State Senate testifying on HSR plans. The Senate Transportation Committee, then under the chairmanship of State Senator Alan Lowenthal, particularly participated in developing the statutory language of AB3034 and, hence, the language of the underlying ballot measure which became known thereafter as <a href="http://ballotpedia.org/California_Proposition_1A,_High-Speed_Rail_Act_(2008)" type="external">Proposition 1A</a>.</p> <p>&#8220;I was familiar with the concerns of various legislators and professed objectives and desires concerning language of Proposition 1A. I was also well-aware of the intent of the Authority in conforming its&amp;#160;implementation of HSR plans to satisfy legislative concerns and the Authority&#8217;s ability to fulfill promises that would be made and were made to California voters in the November 4, 2008. &#8230;</p> <p>&#8220;In my opinion, the HSR project, as it has evolved in the 2012 Authority&#8217;s Business Plan, is no longer a genuine HSR system, as covenanted to California voters and the Legislature. Instead, it has been distorted in a way directly contrary to the high speed rail plan the Authority attempted to implement while I was Chairman, namely, a true HSR system containing all the features, terms and protections desired by the Legislature and honoring restrictions placed upon use of Proposition 1A bond proceeds by the Legislature. Accordingly, it is my opinion the project is not lawfully eligible to receive Proposition 1A bond funds.&#8221;</p> <p>The Third District Court of Appeal in Sacramento will not just review&amp;#160; <a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/court-instructs-hsr-to-redo-funding-plan-refuses-to-validate-state-bonds" type="external">the rulings of</a>&amp;#160;Judge Kenny, it will be reviewing all the evidence in the case.&amp;#160;&amp;#160;That will allow project opponents the chance to win additional arguments previously not granted by the Superior Court.</p> <p>In filing their <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/212989922/Tos-Et-al-response-in-3rd-district-appellate-court-case-C075668-High-Speed-Rail" type="external">answer</a>&amp;#160;before the Court of Appeal&amp;#160;to the CHSRA&#8217;s court filing, Kings County, Tos and Fukuda have introduced something new.&amp;#160;They want the court to invalidate the <a href="http://inhabitat.com/california-approves-8-billion-for-high-speed-rail-after-contentious-debate/" type="external">Legislature&#8217;s 2012 vote</a> to appropriate $8 billion to the rail project. (Judge Kenny had not required a reversal of that vote in his August 2013 ruling advancing the case.)</p> <p>Wrote Stuart Flashman, co-counsel for the plaintiffs, in a court brief:</p> <p>&#8220;Not only did the Authority&#8217;s Funding Plan itself violate the bond measure&#8217;s requirements, but the presentation to the Legislature and the Governor of an inadequate Funding Plan violated the procedure the bond measure had mandated to assure that any appropriation of bond funds would be made prudently and based on full and accurate information. Because the inadequate Funding Plan violated the protective measures intended and approved by the voters, and undermined the reliance the voters had placed on the review of that Plan, the resulting appropriation of bond funds should also have been declared invalid.&#8221;</p> <p>The position of the CHSRA all along is that it is complying with Prop. 1A. Kopp&#8217;s successor as chairman, Dan Richard, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/07/us/high-speed-train-in-california-is-caught-in-a-political-storm.html?_r=0" type="external">told the New York Times</a>of Judge Kenny&#8217;s actions:</p> <p>&#8220;The rulings were significant, there&#8217;s no question about it. But a lot of the dire predictions about how they would affect us are dramatically overblown. While we would have preferred not to have gone back to some of the issues the rulings raise, I do believe we can find a way to comply&#8221; [with Prop. 1A].</p> <p>And&amp;#160;Attorney General Kamala Harris wrote in her <a href="http://www.dof.ca.gov/reports_and_periodicals/documents/Petition_for_HSR_review.pdf" type="external">Jan. 24 brief</a>:</p> <p>&#8220;The rulings thwart the intent of the voters and the Legislature to finance the construction of high-speed rail, and do so in a manner that has implications for other important infrastructure projects. The Legislature and the voters necessarily vested the Authority and the Committee with the power to make discretionary decisions in building and financing this historic project.</p> <p>&#8220;For the democratic process to work, the courts must fairly interpret laws in a manner that permits government to accomplish their objectives, rather than adopting cramped constructions that frustrate legislative and voter intent.&#8221;</p> <p>If the CHSRA&#8217;s&amp;#160; <a href="http://transdef.org/HSR/Extraordinary_assets/Petition-for-Extraordinary-Writ-of-Mandate.pdf" type="external">plea</a>&amp;#160;is answered by the court, Judge Kenny&#8217;s ruling would be permanently over-ruled, possibly allowing the bonds to be sold and the project to move forward.</p> <p>However, plaintiffs&#8217; Co-Counsel Mike Brady told CalWaltchdog.com, &amp;#160;&#8220;The opinions of Judge Kenny were very well reasoned. They were based upon admissions by the Authority that the Authority had violated the law. &amp;#160;Therefore, it will be very difficult for the Authority to convince the appellate court to reverse those decisions.&#8221;</p> <p>A hearing is expected at the end of April or early May, with a decision soon after. The case is being expedited after a request by the CHSRA.</p>

High-speed rail brief includes Quentin Kopp objections

https://calwatchdog.com/2014/03/19/high-speed-rail-brief-includes-quentin-kopp-objections/

2018-03-20

<p>A press conference is scheduled for 2:30pm&amp;#160;ET in Ferguson, Missouri to give details on an arrest that was made this afternoon in connection with the shooting of two police officers this week during protests in the St. Louis suburb. St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch and Police Chief Jon Belmar are expected to brief the press on the nature of the arrest and details about the possible suspect.</p> <p>Fox News interviewed Missouri Lt. Governor Peter Kinder regarding the arrest, who described the shooting as a "savage attack on civilization itself" but had no further details. Truth Revolt will bring up to date news from the press conference as it becomes available.</p>

BREAKING: Arrest Made In Ferguson Shooting of Two Police Officers

http://truthrevolt.org/news/breaking-arrest-made-ferguson-shooting-two-police-officers

2018-10-03

<p>The Boston Globe is reporting that the family of a woman who was given free Newport cigarettes as a child living in Boston housing projects has won a $152 million judgment against Lorillard, makers of Newport cigarettes. Evans first received free cigarettes at the age of 9 and was a regular smoker by the time she was 13 years old. Evans died of lung cancer in 2002, and her family sued Lorillard for its negligence in giving out free cigarettes to children, knowing the addictive qualities of cigarettes.</p> <p>The groundbreaking case has exposed an industrywide marketing strategy that began a half century ago to promote cigarettes to youngsters. In Evans' case it was Newport, a brand particularly popular among young smokers and the black community. The judgment, $71 million in compensatory damages for Evans' estate and her son, and $81 million in punitive damages for her estate, is among the largest in the country from a tobacco wrongful-death suit, and the largest for any trial in a Massachusetts court, industry analysts said. The case is not over yet. Judge Elizabeth Fahey, who presided over the trial in Suffolk Superior Court, is considering whether to award more money under the state's consumer-protection laws. Lorillard denies targeting cigarettes toward young people and plans to appeal the verdict. Giving out cigarettes to 9-year-olds? What could possibly be the company's defense?</p> <p>Read more at <a href="http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/health/articles/2010/12/21/cigarette_verdict_may_be_felt_across_us/" type="external">Boston.com</a>.</p>

Woman's Family Wins $152 Million Judgment Against Cigarette Company

https://theroot.com/womans-family-wins-152-million-judgment-against-cigare-1790882050

2010-12-21

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>Mitt Romney, the GOP&#8217;s 2012 presidential nominee, got a single write-in vote in the country&#8217;s &#8220;First in the Nation&#8221; balloting.</p> <p>Two other New Hampshire towns claiming &#8220;First&#8221; status, Hart&#8217;s Location and Millsfield, cast and counted their ballots after midnight Tuesday as well. The grand total for all three gave Trump a 32-to-25 edge over Clinton.</p> <p>Clinton got 4 votes in Dixville to Trump&#8217;s 2; 17 in Hart&#8217;s Location to Trump&#8217;s 14; and 4 in Millsfield to Trump&#8217;s 16.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>The latest polling from New Hampshire would suggest a wholly different outcome. An Emerson College poll conducted between Nov. 4-5 gives Clinton a 1 percentage point advantage. A WMUR/University of New Hampshire survey taken Nov. 3-6 gives her an 11 point edge.</p> <p>But no one has ever suggested that these tiny hamlets are representative of the state or predictive, rather than entertaining, benign novelties designed to generate a little publicity, in the case of Dixville, for the Balsams Grand Resort Hotel, where the balloting is conducted.</p> <p>Following a tradition dating back to 1960, the tiny town of Dixville just 20 miles south of the Canadian border began voting at midnight and within a few minutes counted the ballots and posted the results.</p> <p>The town voted unanimously for Republican Richard M. Nixon in 1960, when Democrat John F. Kennedy was elected president. In 2012, voters split evenly with 5 for President Obama and 5 for Romney.</p> <p>In 2008, Obama was the first Democrat to win Dixville Notch in a presidential election since 1968.</p> <p>Then again, Dixville Notch has never claimed any distinction other than being first, a status now challenged by wannabe towns in New Hampshire.</p> <p>Also reporting results shortly after midnight and claiming &#8220;First in the Nation&#8221; status was the town of Hart&#8217;s Location, N.H.</p> <p>Hart&#8217;s Location, a veritable metropolis compared with Dixville, reported results as follows:</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>Clinton: 17</p> <p>Trump: 14</p> <p>Gary Johnson: 3</p> <p>Bernie Sanders got 2 write-in votes and John Kasich another.</p> <p>Finally, in Millsfield, N.H., Trump beat Clinton by a margin of 4 to 1 &#8211; with the Republican getting 16 votes to the Democrat&#8217;s 4 votes, the Associated Press reported.</p> <p>elect-dixville</p>

Clinton wins Dixville Notch, N.H., with 4 votes to Trump’s 2

https://abqjournal.com/884459/clinton-wins-dixville-notch-n-h-with-4-votes-to-trumps-2.html

<p>.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........</p> <p /> <p>McCain, R-Ariz., who has sharply attacked Trump&#8217;s message on a host of international issues, most notably his approach to Russia, is a former Republican standard-bearer who remains chairman of the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee. His exclusion from access to the Oval Office may suggest that Trump is focusing on wooing allies already sympathetic to him while spurning dissenters, even if they could potentially provide political cover and support.</p> <p>&#8220;I have not talked to the president,&#8221; McCain said at the Brussels Forum, a conference organized by the German Marshall Fund of the United States. &#8220;I met him some years ago. I have not met him since.&#8221;</p> <p>McCain said he speaks almost daily to Trump&#8217;s national security team, including Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and national security adviser H.R. McMaster. But the Republican senator added that he was &#8220;not positive who the president listens to,&#8221; and he expressed worry that Stephen Bannon, Trump&#8217;s chief political strategist, was more influential than the president&#8217;s more conventional foreign policy hands.</p> <p>McCain&#8217;s acknowledgment that he has not met with Trump comes at a delicate political moment for the president. Trump has been struggling &#8211; and, so far, failing &#8211; to assemble a workable Republican House coalition to pass an overhaul of the Affordable Care Act. Though McCain&#8217;s criticisms focused more on international affairs than on domestic policy, the splits over health care have made clear that Trump still needs to woo all sides of his fractious party if he is to pass his ambitious political agenda.</p> <p>McCain, asked what advice he had for Trump, told him to &#8220;stop tweeting&#8221; and to reach across the aisle.</p> <p>ADVERTISEMENT</p> <p>And in trying to explain the increasing reluctance of the Republican base to get involved in world affairs, he reached toward prominent 1930s-era figures who were notable for their sympathetic approach to the Nazis. McCain pointed to Henry Ford and Charles Lindbergh as examples of a persistent strain of isolationism in U.S. politics.</p> <p>McCain repeated a call for a &#8220;select committee&#8221; to investigate alleged ties between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin, saying that &#8220;right now there is great skepticism, actually, as to whether Congress can conduct an investigation in a thorough and efficient fashion.&#8221;</p> <p>&#8220;This is a most serious issue,&#8221; McCain said. &#8220;The question is how significant were those ties.&#8221;</p> <p>His call for an independent investigation came after Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said this week that he had briefed Trump on the committee&#8217;s investigation into the Russia ties, prompting critics to say he was acting more like an advocate for the president than an independent investigator.</p> <p>&#8220;It&#8217;s bizarre,&#8221; McCain said.</p>

https://abqjournal.com/975663/975663.html

<p /> <p>Image source: iStock/Thinkstock.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>Bank of America turned in one of the best performances in April compared with other big bank stocks, rising by 7.6%. While it's impossible to pinpoint exactly what caused its shares to climb this much, there are three likely culprits.</p> <p>1. Primed for a reboundThe first is that Bank of America's shares were primed for a rebound. Bank stocks have struggled since the end of 2015, with Bank of America's shares off by nearly 24% since the middle of last December.</p> <p><a href="http://ycharts.com/companies/BAC" type="external">BAC</a> data by <a href="http://ycharts.com" type="external">YCharts Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> <p>There were multiple reasons for investors to be concerned. The Chinese economy seemed to be teetering on the brink of a crisis. Britain announced that it will hold a referendum to decide whether to stay in the European Union. Interest rates are still woefully low. The prolonged decline in oil and gas prices are pressuring borrowers in the energy industry. And multiple banks, including Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase, had forewarned that first-quarter trading and investment banking revenues were trending materially lower than the year-ago period.</p> <p>This pessimism caused bank stocks to plummet, which in turn laid the groundwork for a recovery in April, after Bank of America and others reported better-than-expected first-quarter results.</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>2. Earnings beatOne side effect of these well-publicized concerns is that they led analysts to repeatedly drop their profit expectations for the nation's biggest banks in the lead-up to first-quarter earnings season.</p> <p>In Bank of America's case, analysts had expected it to report earnings per share of $0.20 for the three months ended March 31. Consequently, when the $2.2 trillion bank announced earnings per share of $0.21, the market responded by sending its stock higher.</p> <p>Data source: The Wall Street Journal.</p> <p>But this shouldn't be interpreted as evidence that Bank of America had a good quarter. Indeed, by most accounts it was dismal. Its top line revenue dropped by 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. And its return on assets came in at a mere 0.5%, which is roughly half as profitable as a reasonably well-run bank should be.</p> <p>3. Innate volatilityLast but not least, Bank of America's shares tend to be more volatile than the typical stock, irrespective of the bank's fundamental performance. You can see this by looking at its beta, which measures how much a particular stock moves in relation to the broader market.</p> <p>Bank of America's beta is 1.8, according to YCharts.com. On any given day, in turn, investors can expect shares of the nation's second biggest bank by assets to move 80% more than the S&amp;amp;P 500. If the S&amp;amp;P 500 increases by 1%, Bank of America's shares will on average be up by 1.8%. (The same is true on the downside.)</p> <p>Given this situation, it should come as no surprise that Bank of America's shares not only outperformed the broader market in April, which ended the month higher, but also that their rise outpaced most other big bank stocks, as the average large bank has a beta of 1.4.</p> <p>The article <a href="http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/04/30/3-reasons-bank-of-americas-stock-rose-76-in-april.aspx" type="external">3 Reasons Bank of America's Stock Rose 7.6% in April Opens a New Window.</a> originally appeared on Fool.com.</p> <p><a href="http://my.fool.com/profile/JohnMaxfield37/info.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">John Maxfield Opens a New Window.</a> owns shares of Bank of America and Wells Fargo. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Wells Fargo. The Motley Fool has the following options: short May 2016 $52 puts on Wells Fargo. The Motley Fool recommends Bank of America. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services <a href="http://www.fool.com/shop/newsletters/index.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">free for 30 days Opens a New Window.</a>. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that <a href="http://wiki.fool.com/Motley?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">considering a diverse range of insights Opens a New Window.</a> makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/Legal/fool-disclosure-policy.aspx?source=eptfxblnk0000004" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p> <p>Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a <a href="http://www.fool.com/help/index.htm?display=about02" type="external">disclosure policy Opens a New Window.</a>.</p>

3 Reasons Bank of America's Stock Rose 7.6% in April

http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/04/30/3-reasons-bank-america-stock-rose-76-in-april.html

2016-04-30

<p>HANOI, Jan 25 (Reuters) - In a post-war first, the United States will send an aircraft carrier to Vietnam, Hanoi&#8217;s defence ministry said on Thursday, in a major demonstration of deepening military ties between the former enemies more than four decades after the Vietnam War.</p> <p>The announcement of the proposed visit, that could bring the most U.S. forces to the country since the conflict ended in 1975 came during a two-day visit by U.S. Defence Secretary Jim Mattis to Hanoi which was expected to focus on shared concerns about China.</p> <p>The arrival of a U.S. aircraft carrier in Vietnam is expected to be welcomed by an emerging network of countries who are nervously eyeing China&#8217;s military rise, particularly its assertive stance and island-building activities in the South China Sea, a vital global trade route linking Northeast Asia with the Middle East and Europe. (Reporting by Phil Stewart and James Pearson; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)</p> Our Standards: <a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> <p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort on Wednesday filed a motion in federal court seeking to dismiss charges against him, saying that the special counsel had exceeded his authority by charging Manafort with crimes not related to Russian meddling in the 2016 election.</p> Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort departs from U.S. District Court in Washington, U.S., February 28, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas <p>In a 46-page filing with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Manafort&#8217;s attorney Kevin Downing also said Manafort had been threatened with additional indictments and &#8220;faces a game of criminal-procedure whack-a-mole&#8221; by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who has massive government resources he cannot possibly match.</p> <p>Reporting by Sarah Lynch; Writing by Eric Walsh; Editing by Eric Beech</p> Our Standards: <a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> <p>PARKLAND, Fla. (Reuters) - U.S. students spilled out of classrooms by the tens of thousands on Wednesday, chanting slogans like &#8220;No more silence&#8221; and &#8220;We want change&#8221; as part of a coast-to-coast protest over gun violence prompted by last month&#8217;s massacre at a Florida high school.</p> <p>The #ENOUGH National School Walkout was intended to pressure federal and state lawmakers to tighten laws on gun ownership despite opposition by the National Rifle Association (NRA), the powerful gun rights advocacy group.</p> <p>With some students dressed in orange, the color adopted by the gun control movement, the walkouts began at 10 a.m. local time in each time zone and were scheduled to last 17 minutes. Many rallies went longer.</p> <p>The duration was a tribute to 17 students and staff killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on Feb. 14. It was the latest in a series of shootings that have plagued U.S. schools and colleges over the past two decades.</p> <p>While many school districts gave their blessings to the walkouts, others said anyone who participated would face discipline. Many students defied the warnings and left school anyway. They included over two dozen at Lindenhurst High School on New York state&#8217;s Long Island, who were at first suspended, then had their punishment reduced to detentions, according to a senior and the school superintendent.</p> <p>In Parkland, thousands of students slowly filed onto the Stoneman Douglas school football field to the applause of families and supporters beyond the fences as law enforcement officers looked on. News helicopters hovered overhead.</p> <p>Ty Thompson, the principal, called for the &#8220;biggest group hug,&#8221; and the students obliged around the 50-yard line.</p> <p>&#8220;We want change!&#8221; students chanted on the sidewalks outside the school. &#8220;Can you hear the children screaming?&#8221; read one of the signs.</p> <p>But not all students in Florida were in favor of gun control. About 80 miles (129 km) north of Parkland at Vero Beach High School, chants of &#8220;No More Silence, end gun violence,&#8221; were countered by shouts of &#8220;Trump!&#8221; and &#8220;We want guns&#8221; from other students, according to video posted by local newspaper TCPalm.</p> <p>At New York City&#8217;s Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School, crowds of students poured into the streets of Manhattan, many dressed in orange, symbolic of the bright color worn by hunters to avoid being shot by accident.</p> <p>&#8220;Thoughts and prayers are not enough,&#8221; read one sign at LaGuardia, a jab at a response often uttered by lawmakers after mass shootings.</p> <p>In Akron, Ohio, hundreds of students wearing orange t-shirts with black targets on the front walked out of Firestone High School.</p> <p>At Granada Hills Charter High School in Los Angeles, students laid prone on the field of a football stadium to form a giant #ENOUGH, symbolizing the thousands of youth who die of gun violence every year in the United States.</p> <p>Students at Columbine High, Colorado remembered the 1999 massacre at their school that began an era in which mass shootings became common in U.S. schools.</p> Students from Washington, DC-area schools carry signs during a protest for stricter gun control during a walkout by students at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., March 14, 2018. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts <p>&#8220;I grew up in a community still haunted by the tragedy from 19 years ago,&#8221; said 16-year-old sophomore Abigail Orton.</p> LOBBYING LAWMAKERS <p>The walkouts were part of a burgeoning, grassroots movement prompted by the Parkland attack and came 10 days before major protests planned in Washington and elsewhere. Survivors have lobbied lawmakers and President Donald Trump in a push for new restrictions on gun ownership, a right protected by the U.S. Constitution&#8217;s Second Amendment.</p> <p>&#8220;We don&#8217;t feel safe in schools anymore,&#8221; said Sarah Chatfield, a high school student from Maryland, standing with hundreds of other protesters outside the White House.</p> <p>Chanting &#8220;Hey hey, ho ho, the NRA has got to go!&#8221; students, many of whom will be able to vote in 2020, marched to the U.S. Capitol, where Democratic lawmakers emerged from the white-domed landmark to praise them.</p> Slideshow (30 Images) <p>The student-led initiative helped bring about a tightening of Florida&#8217;s gun laws last week, when the minimum age of 21 for buying any handguns was extended to all firearms. But lawmakers rejected a ban on the sort of semiautomatic rifle used in the Parkland attack.</p> <p>In Washington, however, proposals to strengthen the background-check system for gun sales, among other measures, appear to be languishing.</p> <p>After protests began on Wednesday, the NRA tweeted a picture of a semiautomatic rifle with the caption &#8220;I&#8217;ll control my own guns, thank you.&#8221;</p> SCHOOLS VARY IN RESPONSE <p>Students from more than 3,000 schools and groups joined the walkouts, many with the backing of their school districts, according to the event&#8217;s organizers, who also coordinated the Women&#8217;s March protests staged nationwide over the past two years.</p> Related Coverage <a href="/article/us-usa-guns-legislation-passage/house-passes-bill-to-prevent-gun-violence-in-schools-in-rare-bipartisan-vote-idUSKCN1GQ2W7" type="external">House passes bill to prevent gun violence in schools in rare bipartisan vote</a> <a href="/article/us-usa-guns-florida/suspected-florida-school-shooter-silent-in-court-judge-enters-not-guilty-plea-idUSKCN1GQ2OB" type="external">Suspected Florida school shooter silent in court, judge enters not-guilty plea</a> <p>In Newtown, Pennsylvania, more than 100 students walked out of Council Rock High School despite warnings they would face discipline if they left the building.</p> <p>But after the walkout, Superintendent Robert Fraser said &#8220;the level of maturity and sincerity was amazing&#8221; among protesters, and the school district waived any punishments.</p> <p>At Norton High School in the rural-suburban district in northeastern Ohio, a small group of students, including a teenage boy with an American flag draped over his shoulder, stood apart from a larger gathering of nearly 300 students who walked out of class. One of the students also flew a large Trump flag at the end of his truck.</p> <p>Ryan Shanor, the school&#8217;s principal, said the small group wanted to honor the victims but disagreed with sentiment they considered to be against the Second Amendment.</p> <p>&#8220;They did not agree with everything they thought the protest was about,&#8221; he said.</p> <p>Additional reporting by Gina Cherelus, Jonathan Allen and Alice Popovici in New York; Suzanne Barlyn in Newtown, Pennsylvania; Joe Skipper in Parkland, Florida; Scott Malone in Boston; Kim Palmer in Cleveland; Susan Heavey, Richard Cowan, Sarah N. Lynch and Ian Simpson in Washington; Lindsey Wasson in Seattle; Keith Coffman in Colorado; writing by Jonathan Allen and Andrew Hay; editing by Frank McGurty and Jonathan Oatis</p> Our Standards: <a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> <p>(Reuters) - A Japanese Nobel-winning chemist was discovered wandering in rural Northern Illinois and his wife found dead nearby, some nine hours after they had been reported missing from their home 200 miles away, police said on Wednesday.</p> FILE PHOTO - Ei-ichi Negishi of Japan (R) and his wife Sumire Negishi (2nd R) are surrounded by his family members as he displays his diploma and medal after winning the 2010 Nobel Prize in Chemistry during the award ceremony at the Concert Hall in Stockholm December 10, 2010. Henrik Montgomery/TT News Agency via REUTERS/File Photo <p>Nobel Prize winner Ei-ichi Negishi, 82, was transported to a local hospital for treatment after he was spotted walking near Rockford, Illinois, at 5 a.m. on Tuesday, the Ogle County Sheriff&#8217;s Department officials said in a written statement.</p> <p>Deputies later found the couple&#8217;s car and the body of his wife, Sumire Negishi, at the nearby Ochard Hills Landfill, the sheriff&#8217;s department said. Rockford is about 100 miles west of Chicago.</p> FILE PHOTO - Mrs. Sumire Negishi, wife of Nobel Prize laureate for Chemistry Ei-ichi Negishi of Japan attends the Nobel banquet at Stockholm's City Hall, Sweden December 10, 2010. REUTERS/Pawel Kopczynski/File Photo <p>An autopsy was pending on the body of Sumire Negishi but foul play was not suspected in her death, the sheriff&#8217;s department said. No information was released on the condition of Ei-Ichi Negishi.</p> <p>The couple was reported missing to the Indiana State Police at about 8 p.m. central time on Monday. They were last seen at their home in West Lafayette, near the Purdue University campus where Ei-Ichi is a professor of chemistry.</p> <p>The scientist was awarded the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 2010.</p> <p>Reporting by Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Michael Perry</p> Our Standards: <a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> <p>(Reuters) - Bankrupt Toys &#8216;R&#8217; Us Inc is preparing to sell or close all 885 stores in its U.S. chain, risking up to 33,000 jobs, after failing to reach a deal to restructure billions of dollars in debt, a person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.</p> <p>With shoppers flocking to online platforms like Amazon.com Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=AMZN.O" type="external">AMZN.O</a>) and children choosing electronic gadgets over toys, Toys &#8216;R&#8217; Us has struggled to service debt from a $6.6 billion leveraged buyout by private equity firms KKR &amp;amp; Co LP ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=KKR.N" type="external">KKR.N</a>) and Bain Capital and real estate investor Vornado Realty Trust ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=VNO.N" type="external">VNO.N</a>) in 2005.</p> <p>Toys &#8216;R&#8217; Us had been closing one-fifth of its U.S. stores as part of efforts to emerge from one of the largest ever bankruptcies by a specialty retailer.</p> <p>But creditors decided they can get more from liquidating assets of the toy seller, the largest in the United States and one of the best known in the world, rather than finding a way to keep the business alive, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the private negotiations.</p> <p>A Toys &#8216;R&#8217; Us spokeswoman declined to comment.</p> <p>The company is expected to make a filing with the bankruptcy court late on Wednesday, the person said.</p> <p>The planned closure in coming months is a blow to generations of consumers and hundreds of toy makers that sold products at the chain, including Barbie maker Mattel Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MAT.O" type="external">MAT.O</a>), board game company Hasbro Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=HAS.O" type="external">HAS.O</a>) and other large vendors such as Lego.</p> <p>In Britain, the remaining 75 Toys &#8216;R&#8217; Us shops will close within six weeks, joint administrators for the retailer said earlier on Wednesday, after they were unable to find a buyer for all or part of the business, resulting in the loss of about 3,000 jobs.</p> <p>The Wall Street Journal earlier on Wednesday reported that Toys &#8216;R&#8217; Us Chief Executive David Brandon told U.S. staff about the likely closures on a conference call.</p> Slideshow (4 Images) <p>Efforts to restructure collapsed this month after lenders decided, absent a clear reorganization plan, they could recover more by closing stores and raising money from merchandise sales, sources with knowledge of the matter said.</p> <p>&#8220;It&#8217;s a relentlessly difficult retail environment for mall-based retailers. There just aren&#8217;t the same feet coming through the doors,&#8221; said Brian Davidoff, a financial restructuring lawyer.</p> <p>More than 8,000 U.S. retail stores closed in 2017, roughly double the average annual store closures in the previous decade, according to data from the International Council of Shopping Centers.</p> <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=AMZN.O" type="external">Amazon.com Inc</a> 1591.0 AMZN.O Nasdaq +2.82 (+0.18%) AMZN.O KKR.N VNO.N MAT.O HAS.O <p>Toys &#8216;R&#8217; Us is also likely to liquidate in France, Spain, Poland and Australia, Brandon said, according to The Wall Street Journal. It quoted Brandon as adding that the retailer also planned to sell operations in Canada, Central Europe and Asia.</p> <p>Toys &#8216;R&#8217; Us was already working with liquidators Tiger Capital Group LLC, Great American Group LLC, Hilco Merchant Resources LLC and Gordon Brothers Retail Partners LLC on previously announced store closures, and the four are expected to continue with the additional closings, sources said.</p> <p>The future of the retailer&#8217;s big-box shops, many located in strip centers, was uncertain.</p> <p>The disappearance of Toys &#8216;R&#8217; Us in the United States and the UK leaves a void for hundreds of toy makers that relied on the chain as a top customer alongside WalMart Inc ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=WMT.N" type="external">WMT.N</a>) and Target Corp ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=TGT.N" type="external">TGT.N</a>).</p> <p>Shares in Mattel, the world&#8217;s largest toymaker, and No. 2 U.S. toymaker Hasbro tumbled last week on liquidation reports. Both companies rely on Toys &#8216;R&#8217; Us for roughly 10 percent of their revenues, according to their 2016 annual reports.</p> <p>The liquidation will be more painful for small, independent toy makers that relied on the chain as a major showcase, said Lutz Muller, president of consultancy Klosters Trading Corp.</p> <p>&#8220;A large number will go to the wall,&#8221; Muller said.</p> <p>Reporting by Tracy Rucinski in Chicago; Additional reporting by Ismail Shakil and Sangameswaran S in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Henderson, Richard Chang and Leslie Adler</p> Our Standards: <a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>

U.S. aircraft carrier to visit Vietnam in March - defence ministry Former Trump campaign manager Manafort files to dismiss charges 'ENOUGH': U.S. student walkout sends message on gun violence Nobel prize winner hospitalized, wife found deceased in Illinois Toys 'R' Us plans to close all U.S. stores; 33,000 jobs at risk: source

https://reuters.com/article/usa-vietnam-mattis-carrier/us-aircraft-carrier-to-visit-vietnam-in-march-defence-ministry-idUSL4N1PK23Q

2018-01-25

<p>BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Apple&#8217;s ( <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=AAPL.O" type="external">AAPL.O</a>) announcement that it will pay $38 billion in U.S. tax on its overseas cash will not reduce the $16 billion tax bill the company owes Ireland following a European Union ruling, the EU&#8217;s executive said on Thursday.</p> A 3D printed Apple logo is seen in front of a displayed Irish flag in this illustration taken September 2, 2016. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo <p>&#8220;Nothing has changed,&#8221; a spokesman for the European Commission said, with regards to its 2016 ruling that Apple received illegal state aid in Ireland through sweetheart tax deals with the government.</p> <p>At the time of the ruling, the Commission said the amount Apple would have to pay to Ireland could be reduced if other countries found the company should have recorded its sales there instead of Ireland, or if its European subsidiaries were to pay more tax to the U.S. parent company.</p> <p>However, Apple&#8217;s announcement on Wednesday that it would pay about $38 billion in one-time U.S. tax payments on its overseas cash do not fit either of these criteria.</p> <a href="/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=AAPL.O" type="external">Apple Inc</a> 174.73 AAPL.O Nasdaq +0.59 (+0.34%) AAPL.O <p>&#8220;The Commission&#8217;s 2016 state aid decision found that, over many years, tax rulings issued by Ireland had allowed Apple to pay less tax on profits recorded in Ireland than other companies subject to (the) same national taxation laws. This gave Apple an illegal advantage in breach of EU state aid rules, which must now be recovered by Ireland - nothing has changed in that regard,&#8221; said the Commission spokesman.</p> <p>The Commission ordered Apple to pay Ireland up to 13 billion euros ($16 billion) in August 2016 and has since taken Dublin to court over its delays in recovering the money.</p> <p>A spokesman for the Irish finance ministry also said it had no indication the U.S. tax payment would affect its recovery of the money.</p> <p>&#8220;Ireland has an obligation to recover (money) that is binding under EU law. Changes to U.S. legislation do not alter such an obligation,&#8221; the spokesman said.</p> <p>Apple on Wednesday unveiled a $30 billion U.S. investment plan and said it would pay about $38 billion in foreign cash taxes.</p> <p>It is unclear whether Apple will be able to offset the Irish tax bill against the 15.5 percent U.S. tax on offshore tax piles.</p> <p>Additional reporting by Padraic Halpin in Dublin; Editing by Mark Potter and Elaine Hardcastle</p> Our Standards: <a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> <p>WASHINGTON/BEIRUT (Reuters) - U.S., British and French forces launched air strikes on Syria in response to a suspected poison gas attack that killed dozens of people, aiming to degrade its chemical weapons capabilities in the biggest intervention yet in the conflict by Western powers.</p> <p>U.S. President Donald Trump announced the military action from the White House, saying the three allies had &#8220;marshalled their righteous power against barbarism and brutality.&#8221;</p> <p>As he spoke, explosions rocked Damascus.</p> <p>British Prime Minister Theresa May described the strike as &#8220;limited and targeted&#8221; and said she had authorized the British action after intelligence indicated Syrian President Bashar al-Assad&#8217;s government was responsible for an attack using chemical weapons in Douma last Saturday.</p> <p>French President Emmanuel Macron said the strikes had been limited so far to Syria&#8217;s chemical weapons facilities.</p> <p>With more than 100 missiles fired from ships and manned aircraft, the allies struck three of Syria&#8217;s main chemical weapons facilities, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Joseph Dunford said.</p> <p>The targets included a Syrian center in the greater Damascus area for the research, development, production and testing of chemical and biological weaponry as well as a chemical weapons storage facility near the city of Homs. A third target, also near Homs, contained both a chemical weapons equipment storage facility and a command post.</p> <p>Mattis called the strikes a &#8220;one time shot,&#8221; but Trump raised the prospect of further strikes if Assad&#8217;s government again used chemical weapons.</p> Related Coverage <a href="/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-russia/russia-likely-to-call-u-n-meeting-over-syria-attack-russian-lawmaker-idUSKBN1HL075" type="external">Russia likely to call U.N. meeting over Syria attack: Russian lawmaker</a> <a href="/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-israel/israel-says-u-s-led-strikes-have-enforced-syria-red-line-idUSKBN1HL0A4" type="external">Israel says U.S.-led strikes have enforced Syria red line</a> <a href="/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-explosions/western-attack-struck-syrian-research-center-other-targets-idUSKBN1HL02U" type="external">Western attack struck Syrian research center, other targets</a> <p>&#8220;We are prepared to sustain this response until the Syrian regime stops its use of prohibited chemical agents,&#8221; the U.S. president said in a televised address.</p> <p>The Syrian conflict pits a complex myriad of parties against each other, with Russia and Iran giving Assad military and political help while fractured opposition forces have had varying levels of support at different times from the West, Arab states and Turkey.</p> <p>The strikes risked raising tensions in an already combustible region, but appeared designed not to trigger a military response from Russia and Iran.</p> <p>Nevertheless, Assad&#8217;s government and Russia responded angrily.</p> <p>&#8220;Again, we are being threatened. We warned that such actions will not be left without consequences,&#8221; Anatoly Antonov, Russia&#8217;s ambassador to the United States, said on Twitter.</p> <p>Syrian state media said the attack would fail and called it a &#8220;flagrant violation of international law.&#8221;</p> <p>Russia was likely to call for a meeting of the United Nations Security Council to discuss the air strikes, lawmaker Vladimir Dzhabarov, the deputy head of Russia&#8217;s foreign affairs committee, was quoted by the RIA news agency as saying.</p> <p>The strikes seemed unlikely to have much impact on the balance of power in Syria&#8217;s seven-year-old civil war, in which Assad&#8217;s government has steadily gained the upper hand against armed opponents since Russia intervened in 2015.</p> &#8216;ABSORBED THE STRIKE&#8217; <p>At least six loud explosions were heard in Damascus and smoke was seen rising over the city, a Reuters witness said. A second witness said the Barzah district of Damascus had been hit in the strikes. Barzah is the location of a major Syrian scientific research center.</p> <p>A senior official in a regional alliance that backs Damascus told Reuters the Syrian government and its allies had &#8220;absorbed&#8221; the attack, and that targeted sites were evacuated days ago thanks to a warning from Russia.</p> <p>Iran&#8217;s Foreign Ministry condemned the U.S.-led attacks and said Washington and its allies would bear responsibility for the consequences in the region and beyond, state media reported.</p> <p>State-controlled Syrian TV said Syrian air defenses shot down 13 missiles fired in the attack. The Russian defense ministry said none of the rockets launched had entered zones where Russian air defense systems are protecting military facilities in Tartus and Hmeimim.</p> <p>The combined U.S., British and French assault appeared more intense than a similar strike Trump ordered almost exactly a year ago against a Syrian air base in retaliation for an earlier chemical weapons attack that Washington attributed to Assad.</p> <p>At a Pentagon briefing, Dunford said the air strikes on Saturday were planned to minimize the risk of casualties among Russia&#8217;s forces in Syria.</p> <p>May said the missile strike was designed to minimize any civilian casualties and was not an attempt to change the Syrian government. Britain&#8217;s defense ministry said initial indications were that the precision weapons and meticulous target planning had &#8220;resulted in a successful attack&#8221;.</p> <p>Mattis acknowledged that the United States conducted the air strikes only with conclusive evidence that chlorine gas was used in the April 7 attack in Syria. Evidence that the nerve agent sarin also was used is inconclusive, he said.</p> <p>Allegations of Assad&#8217;s chlorine use are frequent in Syria&#8217;s conflict, raising questions about whether Washington had lowered the threshold for military action in Syria by now deciding to strike after a chlorine gas attack.</p> <p>Mattis, who U.S. officials said had earlier warned in internal debates that too large an attack would risk confrontation with Russia, described the strikes as a one-off to dissuade Assad from &#8220;doing this again.&#8221;</p> <p>But a U.S. official familiar with the military planning said there could be more air strikes if the intelligence indicates that Assad has not stopped manufacturing, importing, storing or using chemical weapons, including weaponized chlorine.</p> <p>The official acknowledged that could require a more sustained U.S. air and naval presence in the region, as well as intensified satellite and other surveillance of Syria.</p> A missile is seen crossing over Damascus, Syria April 14, 2018. SANA/Handout via REUTERS TRUMP STILL WANTS TO EXIT SYRIA <p>Trump has been leery of U.S. military involvement in the Middle East, and is eager to withdraw roughly 2,000 troops who are in Syria as part of the battle against Islamic State militants.</p> <p>The air strikes, however, risk dragging the United States further into Syria&#8217;s civil war, particularly if Russia, Iran and Assad opt to retaliate.</p> <p>&#8220;America does not seek an indefinite presence in Syria, under no circumstances,&#8221; Trump said in his eight-minute address.</p> <p>&#8220;The purpose of our actions tonight is to establish a strong deterrent against the production, spread and use of chemical weapons,&#8221; he said.</p> <p>The U.S. president, who has tried to build good relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, had sharply critical words for Russia and Iran over their support of Assad.</p> <p>&#8220;To Iran and to Russia, I ask, what kind of a nation wants to be associated with the mass murder of innocent men, women and children?&#8221; Trump said.</p> <p>Last year, the United States fired 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles from the guided missile destroyers USS Porter and the USS Ross that struck the Shayrat air base.</p> <p>The targets of that strike included Syrian aircraft, aircraft shelters, petroleum and logistical storage facilities, ammunition supply bunkers, air defense systems and radar. At the time, the Pentagon said that a fifth of Syria&#8217;s operational aircraft were either damaged or destroyed.</p> Slideshow (11 Images) <p>The U.S.-led attack on Syria will be seen as limited if it is now over and there is no second round of strikes, said a senior official in the regional alliance that has supported Assad in the Syrian war.</p> <p>&#8220;If it is finished, and there is no second round, it will be considered limited,&#8221; the official told Reuters.</p> <p>Reporting by Steve Holland and Tom Perry; Additional reporting by Phil Stewart, Tim Ahmann, Eric Beech, Lesley Wroughton, Lucia Mutikani, Idrees Ali, Patricia Zengerle, Matt Spetalnick and John Walcott in Washington; Samia Nakhoul, Tom Perry, Laila Bassam Ellen Francis in Beirut; Michael Holden and Guy Faulconbridge in London; and Jean-Baptiste Vey, Geert de Clerq and Matthias Blamont in Paris; Polina Ivanova in Moscow; Writing by Yara Bayoumy, Warren Strobel and Nick Tattersall; Editing by Kieran Murray, Clive McKeef, Robert Birsel and Mike Collett-White</p> Our Standards: <a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> <p>LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Saturday she had authorized British forces to conduct precision air-launched cruise missile strikes on Syria to degrade its chemical weapons capability, saying there was no alternative to military action.</p> <p>Four Royal Air Force Tornado jets using Storm Shadow missiles had taken part in the attack on a military facility near Homs where it was assessed Syria had stockpiled chemicals, Britain&#8217;s Ministry of Defence (MoD) said.</p> <p>Britain joined the United States and France in what May cast as a &#8220;limited and targeted&#8221; strike after intelligence indicated Syrian President Bashar al-Assad&#8217;s government was responsible for an attack using chemical weapons in Douma last Saturday.</p> <p>May said the missile strike was designed to minimize any civilian casualties and was not an attempt to change the Syrian government.</p> <p>&#8220;This is not about intervening in a civil war. It is not about regime change,&#8221; May said in a statement.</p> <p>Britain&#8217;s defense ministry said initial indications were that the precision weapons and meticulous target planning had &#8220;resulted in a successful attack&#8221;.</p> <p>May said Britain and the West had an obligation to deter both Assad and others from using chemical weapons after the poison gas attack in Douma near Damascus killed up to 75 people including children.</p> <p>May added Britain and its allies had sought to use every diplomatic means to stop the use of chemical weapons, but had been repeatedly thwarted, citing a Russian veto of an independent investigation into the Douma attack at the U.N. Security Council this week.</p> <p>&#8220;So there is no practicable alternative to the use of force to degrade and deter the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime,&#8221; she said.</p> <p>The Western missile strikes demonstrate the volatile nature of the Syrian civil war, which started in March 2011 as an anti-Assad uprising but is now a proxy conflict involving a number of world and regional powers and a myriad of insurgent groups.</p> <p>U.S. President Donald Trump said he was prepared to sustain the response until the government of Assad stopped its use of chemical weapons.</p> <p>Russia, which intervened in the war in 2015 to back Assad, has denied there was a chemical attack and has accused Britain of helping to stage the Douma incident to stoke anti-Russian hysteria.</p> CHEMICAL WEAPONS TARGETS <p>Britain&#8217;s defense ministry said &#8220;very careful scientific analysis&#8221; had been applied to maximize the destruction of stockpiled chemicals while minimizing any risk of contamination to surrounding areas.</p> <p>&#8220;The facility which was struck is located some distance from any known concentrations of civilian habitation, reducing yet further any such risk,&#8221; the MoD said in a statement.</p> <p>May said while the strike was targeted at Syria, it sent a message to anyone who used chemical weapons. Britain has accused Russia of being behind last month&#8217;s nerve agent attack on former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury, southern England, a charge Moscow has rejected.</p> Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May tours Alexander Stadium in Birmingham, April 11, 2018. Christopher Furlong/Pool via Reuters <p>&#8220;This is the first time as prime minister that I have had to take the decision to commit our armed forces in combat &#8211; and it is not a decision I have taken lightly,&#8221; she said.</p> <p>&#8220;I have done so because I judge this action to be in Britain&#8217;s national interest. We cannot allow the use of chemical weapons to become normalized &#8211; within Syria, on the streets of the UK, or anywhere else in our world.&#8221;</p> <p>Many politicians in Britain, including some in May&#8217;s own Conservative Party, had called for parliament to be recalled from a break to give authority to any military strike.</p> <p>Former Prime Minister David Cameron lost a parliamentary vote on air strikes against Assad&#8217;s forces in 2013 when 30 Conservative lawmakers voted against action, with many Britons wary of entering another conflict after intervention in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya failed to bring stability to the region.</p> <p>May is not obliged to win parliament&#8217;s approval before ordering military action, but a non-binding constitutional convention to do so has been established since a 2003 vote on joining the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.</p> <p>A YouGov poll for The Times newspaper this week indicated that only a fifth of voters believed that Britain should launch attacks on Syrian military targets and more than two-fifths opposed action.</p> A plane lands on RAF Akrotiri, a military base Britain maintains on Cyprus, April 14, 2018. REUTERS/Yiannis Kourtoglou <p>Opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn had said Britain should press for an independent U.N.-led investigation into the suspected chemical attack in Douma rather than wait for instructions from Trump on how to proceed.</p> <p>Former Labour foreign secretary David Miliband, now head of humanitarian relief group the International Rescue Committee, said military action needed to be part of a wider political strategy.</p> <p>&#8220;Bombing cannot substitute for diplomacy,&#8221; he said.</p> <p>Reporting by Michael Holden and Guy Faulconbridge; editing by Richard Pullin</p> Our Standards: <a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> <p>PARIS (Reuters) - French Mirage and Rafale fighter jets were involved in air strikes on Syria together with four frigate warships, a presidency source said on Saturday.</p> A French fighter jet prepares to land on RAF Akrotiri, a military base Britain maintains on Cyprus, April 14, 2018. REUTERS/Yiannis Kourtoglou <p>This included an air defense frigate, three multi-mission frigates, Mirage 2000 jets, Rafale, AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) and support and supply assistance, the source said.</p> <p>The strikes were aimed at a research center and two production sites, the source said.</p> <p>The air strikes are over but the military is ready to act upon request, the source said.</p> <p>Reporting by Jean-Baptiste Vey and Marine Pennetier; writing by Ingrid Melander; editing by Matthias Blamont and Jason Neely</p> Our Standards: <a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a> <p>BEIRUT (Reuters) - Western air strikes on Syria will not diminish the army&#8217;s resolve to press the fight against all remaining militants in the country, the military said in a televised statement on Saturday.</p> <p>The United States, Britain and France struck Syrian military targets before dawn over a suspected gas attack last week, which Western powers blamed on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his allies.</p> <p>The army said nearly 110 missiles hit targets in the capital Damascus and other territory, and air defense systems brought most of them down.</p> <p>&#8220;Such attacks will not deter our armed forces and allied forces from persisting to crush what is left of the armed terrorist groups,&#8221; the military said.</p> <p>Damascus with key allies Russia and Iran, have lambasted reports of the suspected gas attack as bogus. The Syrian government has accused Washington of seeking to use it as a pretext for attacking.</p> <p>The foreign ministry said earlier on Saturday that the U.S.-led strikes would only &#8220;lead to inflaming tensions in the world&#8221; and threaten international security.</p> <p>&#8220;The barbaric aggression ...will not affect in any way the determination and insistence of the Syrian people and their heroic armed forces,&#8221; state media cited an official source in the ministry as saying.</p> <p>Reporting by Ellen Francis; editing by Robert Birsel and Jason Neely</p> Our Standards: <a href="" type="internal">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a>

Apple's U.S. tax payment does not change EU's Irish tax ruling U.S., British, French air strikes target Syrian chemical capabilities Britain had no choice but to conduct missile strikes against Syria, PM May says French Mirage, Rafale jets and frigates involved in Syria strikes: source Syrian army vows Western attack will not deter its battle

https://reuters.com/article/us-eu-apple-taxavoidance/apples-us-tax-payment-does-not-change-eus-irish-tax-ruling-idUSKBN1F721H

2018-01-18

<p>&amp;#160; &amp;#160; Michael Hayden. ( <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/gageskidmore/" type="external">Gage Skidmore</a> / <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/" type="external">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>)</p> <p>Making the George W. Bush-era NSA chief and CIA director the go-to expert on the subject of Trump and his relationship to intelligence agencies is misguided; Harvard students are developing an anti-Trump &#8220;Resistance School&#8221;; meanwhile, more reasons why octopuses are &#8220;aliens living on earth&#8221; are found. These discoveries and more below.</p> <p><a href="http://www.cjr.org/first_person/cia_michael_hayden_expert.php" type="external">Stop Treating Former CIA Chief Michael Hayden as an Arbiter of Truth</a> On the subject of Donald Trump and his relationship with intelligence agencies, there&#8217;s one commentator you are bound to see quoted more than anyone else: Michael Hayden, the former NSA chief and CIA director under George W. Bush.</p> <p><a href="http://www.wbal.com/article/231349/130/pinkwashing-populism-gay-voters-embrace-french-far-right" type="external">&#8216;Pinkwashing&#8217; Populism: Gay Voters Embrace French Far-Right</a> A political party that would abolish same-sex marriage &#8211; one whose founder wanted AIDS patients rounded up and branded homosexuality &#8220;a biological and social anomaly&#8221; &#8211; is now winning LGBT votes in France.</p> <p /> <p><a href="https://hyperallergic.com/362413/measuring-the-social-impact-of-internet-images/?utm_medium=email&amp;amp;utm_campaign=An%20Exhibition%20Offers%20a%20Visual%20Biography%20of%20Sylvia%20Plath%20Including%20Her%20Little-Known%20Art&amp;amp;utm_content=An%20Exhibition%20Offers%20a%20Visual%20Biography%20of%20Sylvia%20Plath%20Including%20Her%20Little-Known%20Art+CID_378b42e761953c121d801d3e3383fea3&amp;amp;utm_source=HyperallergicNewsletter&amp;amp;utm_term=Measuring%20the%20Social%20Impact%20of%20Internet%20Images" type="external">Measuring the Social Impact of Internet Images</a> An ambitious exhibition at the International Center of Photography examines the relationship between new media and the offline world.</p> <p><a href="http://www.chronicle.com/article/How-One-Campus-s-Faculty/239715?cid=rclink" type="external">How One Campus&#8217;s &#8216;Faculty Resistance&#8217; Is Speaking Out Against Trump</a> President Trump&#8217;s election shocked many people in higher education, and his policies have provoked widespread anger among academics.</p> <p><a href="http://www.chronicle.com/article/Harvard-Students-Build/239735/?cid=db&amp;amp;elqTrackId=a041bf2d05e0410182a2777cc05d8910&amp;amp;elq=18c983f8bd34432ca435eabf3fd64f1b&amp;amp;elqaid=13362&amp;amp;elqat=1&amp;amp;elqCampaignId=5546" type="external">Harvard Students Build &#8216;Resistance School&#8217; to Harness Anti-Trump Sentiment</a> Students of a Harvard class on resistance have likened their efforts to Dumbledore&#8217;s Army, a student-led movement organized to battle the villain Lord Voldemort in the fictional Harry Potter series.</p> <p><a href="https://www.wired.com/2017/04/cephalopod-gene-editing/?mbid=nl_4617_p6&amp;amp;CNDID=14997515" type="external">Science Reveals Yet Another Reason Octopuses and Squid Are So Weird</a> Octopuses are aliens living on Earth.</p> <p><a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/teach-ins-helped-galvanize-student-activism-in-the-1960s-they-can-do-so-again-today/" type="external">Teach-Ins Helped Galvanize Student Activism in the 1960s. They Can Do So Again Today.</a> Then as now, the origin of a national political movement was in the initially obscure actions of ordinary individuals.</p> <p><a href="https://aeon.co/essays/people-born-intersex-have-a-right-to-genital-integrity" type="external">Intersex Rights</a> Children born with in-between sex development are subject to surgeries that many believe violate their human rights.</p> <p><a href="http://nautil.us/issue/47/consciousness/is-matter-conscious?utm_source=Nautilus&amp;amp;utm_campaign=0536a94f5a-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_04_05&amp;amp;utm_medium=email&amp;amp;utm_term=0_dc96ec7a9d-0536a94f5a-60251221" type="external">Is Matter Conscious?</a> Why the central problem in neuroscience is mirrored in physics.</p> <p><a href="http://fusion.net/the-long-lucrative-right-wing-grift-is-blowing-up-in-t-1793944216?rev=1491407805733" type="external">The Long, Lucrative Right-wing Grift Is Blowing Up in the World&#8217;s Face</a> For years, the conservative movement peddled one set of talking points to the rabble, while its elites consumed a more grounded and reality-based media.</p> <p><a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2017/04/mississippi_s_hb_1523_the_nation_s_worst_anti_gay_bill_goes_on_trial.html?wpsrc=newsletter_tis&amp;amp;sid=5388f22add52b8ef1100002e" type="external">The Nation&#8217;s Worst Anti-Gay Bill Goes on Trial</a> A federal court scrutinizes Mississippi&#8217;s HB 1523, which protects the &#8220;religious freedom&#8221; of people discriminating against the LGBTQ community.</p>

We Need to Stop Treating Michael Hayden as an Arbiter of Truth

https://truthdig.com/articles/we-need-to-stop-treating-michael-hayden-as-an-arbiter-of-truth/

2017-04-09

<p>Euro gains slightly from late-Wednesday levels</p> <p>European stocks wavered Thursday, potentially moving toward their first loss in six sessions. Shares in Swedish apparel retailer H&amp;amp;M slid after a disappointing earnings report, but bank shares extended gains on rate-hike prospects.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>The Stoxx Europe Index was up less than 1 point at 385.74 and has been swaying between small gains and losses. Decliners were led by consumer-related and utility stocks. But oil and gas and financial shares were among advancing sectors. The index on Wednesday closed up 0.4% (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/european-stocks-jump-to-10-week-high-led-by-alstom-after-siemens-deal-2017-09-27), marking a 10-week high and its fifth win in a row, aided by gains for bank stocks.</p> <p>Bank stocks outperformed the broader market again Thursday, pushing the Stoxx Europe 600 Banks Index up by 0.8%, as investors priced in the prospect of higher interest rates. Higher rates tend to boost the banking sector as it means they can charge more for their loans.</p> <p>In that group, Germany's Deutsche Bank AG (DBK.XE) (DBK.XE) drove up 3.9%, Spain's Banco Santander SA (SAN) rose 1.2%, France's Societe Generale SA (GLE.FR) gained 1.3% and the U.K.'s Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LLOY.LN) (LLOY.LN) rose 0.6%.</p> <p>Bank of England's Chief Economist Andy Haldane, in a Sky News interview (http://news.sky.com/story/interest-rate-rise-should-not-be-feared-says-bank-of-england-economist-11056411) published late Wednesday, said a rise in borrowing costs would represent a "good news story" as it would reflect improvement in the British economy.</p> <p>"The markets believe a hike in U.K. rates could come after the Bank of England November 2nd meeting, with suggestions of a 0.25% hike to 0.5%," said analysts at FXPro in a note.</p> <p>Advertisement</p> <p>Haldane's comments came as Boston Federal Reserve President Eric Rosengren late Wednesday said he backs 'regular and gradual' interest-rate rises (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/feds-rosengren-backs-regular-and-gradual-interest-rate-hikes-2017-09-27). Earlier this week, Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen said she plans for the Fed to keep raising interest rates gradually even though inflation has softened.</p> <p>Stock movers: Hennes &amp;amp; Mauritz AB, better known as H&amp;amp;M, (HM-B.SK) stumbled 5.5%, with the shares on track for their biggest loss in more than a year. The move came after the company's third-quarter pretax profit of 4.94 billion krona fell short of expectations of 5.19 billion krona, according to Dow Jones Newswires.</p> <p>H&amp;amp;M said its growing online sales didn't fully compensate for reduced footfall to stores in several of its established markets. That "has resulted in our total sales development not reaching our targets so far this year," said H&amp;amp;M Chief Executive Karl-Johan Persson in a statement.</p> <p>Shares of Imperial Brands PLC (IMBBY) (IMBBY) dropped 2.2% after the tobacco company said it's on track to meet its full-year targets (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/imperial-brands-says-set-to-meet-fy-expectations-2017-09-28) and that it's working on a rescue deal for struggling wholesaler Palmer &amp;amp; Harvey Holdings PLC.</p> <p>TUI AG was down 1% after the travel operator said recent hurricanes had affected its Caribbean operations (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/tui-backs-guidance-despite-impact-of-hurricanes-2017-09-28). The company, however, still backed its 2017 fiscal guidance and said the summer 2017 season is closing out almost fully sold at 97%.</p> <p>Indexes: France's CAC 40 index was up 0.2% at 5,291.11. Germany's DAX rose 0.4% to 12,701.54.</p> <p>In the U.K., the FTSE 100 index rose 0.1% to 7,317.</p> <p>Spain's IBEX 35 index rose 0.1% to 10,374.</p> <p>Read:Disputed Catalonia independence referendum set for Oct. 1 (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/german-election-result-revives-eurozone-jitters-as-investors-turn-attention-to-spain-2017-09-25)</p> <p>The euro bought $1.1766, up slightly from $1.1745 late Wednesday in New York.</p> <p>(END) Dow Jones Newswires</p> <p>September 28, 2017 06:21 ET (10:21 GMT)</p>

EUROPE MARKETS: European Stocks Seesaw Around 10-week High As Banks Rise, H&M Slides

http://foxbusiness.com/features/2017/09/28/europe-markets-european-stocks-seesaw-around-10-week-high-as-banks-rise-h-m-slides.html

2017-09-28

<p /> <p>America doesn&#8217;t like to think, much less talk, about homelessness. Case in point: who knew that last week was National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week? Promoted by the <a href="http://www.nationalhomeless.org/awareness.html" type="external">National Coalition for the Homeless</a>, the week brought together a number of schools, communities and cities take part in a nationwide effort to bring greater awareness to the fate of America&#8217;s 3.5 million homeless, at least 750,000 of whom will spend the night of Thanksgiving on the street.</p> <p>When people do think about the homeless, it&#8217;s usually to figure out how to &#8220;punish&#8221; them or at least get them out of the way. Most cities tackle the problem of homelessness by effectively criminalizing it. The National Coalition for the Homeless recently published a report titled &#8220; <a href="http://www.nationalhomeless.org/civilrights/crim2003/index.html" type="external">Illegal to be Homeless: the Criminalization of Homelessness in United the States</a>.&#8221; It found a nationwide pattern of draconian measures against the homeless.</p> <p>&#8220;In Milwaukee, a church has been declared a public nuisance for feeding homeless people and allowing them to sleep there. In Gainesville, police threatened University of Florida students with arrest if they did not stop serving meals to homeless people in a public park. In Santa Barbara, it is illegal to lean against the front of a building or store, and no one can park a motor home on the street in one place for more than two hours.</p> <p>&#8230; Almost 70% of the cities surveyed in the first report have passed at least one or more new laws specifically targeting homeless people since January 2002, making it increasingly difficult to survive on the streets. Cities are attempting to make it illegal to perform life-sustaining activities in public, while at the same time refusing to allocate sufficient funds to address the causes of homelessness.</p> <p>&#8230; &#8216;Instead of the compassionate responses that communities have used to save lives in the past two decades, the common response to homelessness is to criminalize the victims through laws and ordinances that make illegal life-sustaining activities that people experiencing homelessness are forced to do in public,&#8217; said Donald Whitehead, Executive Director of the National Coalition for the Homeless, who is himself formerly homeless.&#8221;</p> <p>A separate report, &#8220; <a href="http://www.nlchp.org/Press/detail.cfm?PRID=23" type="external">Punishing Poverty: The Criminalization of Homelessness, Litigation and Recommendations for Solutions</a>&#8221; published by the National Law Center on Homelessness &amp;amp; Poverty, found more of the same.</p> <p>&#8220;Recent years have seen a steep rise in the incidence of homelessness: record increases were documented over the past two years. At the same time, shelters and other emergency resources are insufficient to meet the growing need. Consequently, a growing number of people, many ill, live on the streets, in parks or other public places. In response, some cities have adopted laws that &#8216;criminalize&#8217; activities associated with homelessness, such as sleeping, sitting or eating in public.</p> <p>Five cities stand out as being particularly harsh:</p> <p>&#8211;New York, NY. Homeless people are legally allowed to sleep on church stairs by the churches but are still ordered to move on by police officers even after court order 5th Avenue Presbyterian Church v. City of New York.</p> <p>&#8211;Palm Beach County, FL. A church that was housing homeless people was fined over $27,000 for alleged zoning violations even after the Church agreed to stop housing people in exchange for elimination of the fine.</p> <p>&#8211;Albuquerque, NM. Local advocates report an ongoing campaign against homeless people, citing: police arrests and beating of a group of homeless teenagers standing in a parking lot in the morning while waiting for a program for homeless teens to open. In addition, advocates report that police confiscate homeless persons&#8217; property routinely, even if no arrest is made or citation is given.</p> <p>&#8211;New Orleans, LA. Local advocates cite ongoing harassment in the French Quarter: Homeless persons are repeatedly arrested for &#8216;obstructing a public passage&#8217; while standing on public sidewalks and waiting for paychecks. They often receive 30-day sentences. Additionally, advocates report that police discretion is regularly misused to arrest homeless people for &#8216;public drunkenness&#8217; without basis.</p> <p>&#8211;Orlando, FL. The City has passed laws prohibiting sitting or lying on sidewalks in the downtown core district- but the law provides an affirmative defense to virtually all but homeless people.</p> <p>Some city ordinances raise constitutional concerns: under the first, fourth, eighth and fourteenth amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Some have been struck down by courts in response to challenges. City attempts to criminalize homelessness not only raise legal concerns, they also raise policy concerns: they worsen homeless people&#8217;s circumstances, making exiting homelessness harder; they waste resources and make little fiscal sense, and because they simply move people from place to place, they do not work.&#8221;</p> <p>Although stereotypes of &#8220;lazy and addicted bums&#8221; dominate the discussion about homelessness, the truth is a lot more nuanced. According to a <a href="http://usmayors.org/uscm/news/press_releases/documents/hunger_121802.asp" type="external">U.S. Conference of Mayors report</a> from last year, the homeless population is diverse: 41 percent are families with children, 22 percent work, 22 percent are mentally disabled, 10 percent are veterans.</p> <p>Anna Quindlen, writing in Newsweek, notes that <a href="http://www.msnbc.com/news/997103.asp" type="external">today&#8217;s homeless</a>, at least in New York City, defy the old stereotypes, as more and more people are sucked into the underclass.</p> <p /> <p>There&#8217;s a new kind of homelessness in the city, and a new kind of hunger, and a new kind of need and humiliation, but it has managed to stay as invisible as those sleepers were by sunup. &#8220;What we&#8217;re seeing are many more working families on the brink of eviction,&#8221; says Mary Brosnahan, who runs the Coalition for the Homeless. &#8220;They fall behind on the rent, and that&#8217;s it, they&#8217;re on the street.&#8221; Adds Julia Erickson, the executive director of City Harvest, which distributes food to soup kitchens and food pantries, &#8220;Look at the Rescue Mission on Lafayette Street. They used to feed single men, often substance abusers, homeless. Now you go in and there are bike messengers, clerks, deli workers, dishwashers, people who work on cleaning crews. Soup kitchens have been buying booster seats and highchairs. You never used to see young kids at soup kitchens.&#8221;</p> <p>The homeless are poorly represented by the mainstream media, which, when it doesn&#8217;t ignore them entirely, treats them either as outlaws. The homeless have long worked to counter their stereotypical portrayal by publishing their own news. See <a href="http://www.nationalhomeless.org/streetnews/directory2002.pdf" type="external">here</a> for a directory of homeless papers. AlterNet also publishes <a href="http://www.alternet.org/sns/" type="external">a monthly round up of the best writing from homeless papers</a>, and, aided by library internet access, at least one <a href="http://thehomelessguy.blogspot.com/" type="external">homeless guy has started his own blog</a>.</p> <p />

Home Truths

https://motherjones.com/politics/2003/11/home-truths/

2003-11-27

<p>Consumers increased their borrowing in December at the slowest pace in six months, as growth in credit card usage decelerated sharply.</p> <p>The Federal Reserve says total borrowing rose $14.2 billion in December, a slowdown from November's increase of $25.2 billion. Borrowing in the category that covers auto loans and student loans rose by $11.8 billion, just slightly below the $13.4 billion increase in November.</p> <p>Continue Reading Below</p> <p>But borrowing in the category that covers credit cards slowed to a gain of just $2.4 billion after a surge of $11.8 billion in November. It was the weakest showing since credit card debt had fallen last February.</p> <p>The big November gain in credit card debt had been viewed as a good sign at the start of the holiday shopping season.</p>

Growth in consumer borrowing slowed in December

http://foxbusiness.com/markets/2017/02/07/growth-in-consumer-borrowing-slowed-in-december.html

2017-02-07