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Vote confirms Christopher Hill in post after debate on diplomatic experience.
Hill will oversee the withdrawal of US forces from Iraq by the end of 2011.
However, towards the end of George Bush's presidency, Hill was criticised for the way he handled the six-party talks on ending North Korea's nuclear programme.
Sam Brownback, a Republican senator, said that Hill had not considered Pyongyang's human rights record in negotiations and that he had drawn up a flawed agreement with North Korea.
"The deeds of ambassador Hill on North Korea: No progress on human rights, terrible deal, failed diplomacy," Brownback said in his final speech before the confirmation vote.
"The only thing dismantled in the six-party talks was our strategic deterrence and moral authority."
Detractors also say that he lacks experience in the Middle East and does not speak Arabic.
Hill's appointment was supported by General Ray Odierno, the commander of US forces in Iraq, General David Petraeus, the US commander of forces in the region, and Ryan Crocker, his predecessor, who left the post earlier this year.
Hill's brief will also include helping to undertake parliamentary elections, the passing of a long-awaited law on the sharing of oil revenues and aiding the nation's regional relations.
Lizza Studios will host a reception for several local artists from 2 to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
The exhibit runs through Dec. 29.
Local artists include William Hobbs of Penn Argyl, Christopher Barbieri of Mountainhome and Jay Brooks of Calicoon, N.Y.
Other artists featured are wood sculptor William J. Underwood and painters Frank Wengen and Ed Parkinson, with music by classical guitarist Frank Galante.
Lizza Studios is located at 155 Bridge St., Tunkhannock. For more information, call (570) 836-8806 or visit www.lizzafineart.com. Gallery hours are from 9 to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.
Labour’s poll rating will improve by this time next year, Diane Abbott has said, claiming after two disastrous byelections that infighting in the party had been largely to blame for its electoral woes.
“We’ve gone through a very difficult year, as you know, and it was always going to take time to pull round from that,” the shadow home secretary and one of Jeremy Corbyn’s key allies told BBC1’s Andrew Marr Show.
Theresa May’s government would be “consumed” by splits over Europe, Abbott said, and Labour’s policy on Brexit was well placed to capitalise on this.
Corbyn’s strategy on Brexit, to say the party will support the triggering of article 50 while seeking to pressure the government over strategy, has drawn criticism from MPs.
Project management works best when kept simple. Learn how to initiate, plan, execute and close projects properly.
This guidebook provides a practical approach to what many consider a complex process: the management of projects. The guidebook is designed to simplify the management processes required to manage a project successfully from end to end. It defines project management in simple terms and provides you with all of the documentation tools required to make your project a success.
By reading it, you will learn how to initiate, plan, execute and close projects properly. You'll also learn how to manage time, cost, quality, change, risk and issues. Finally, you'll learn how to manage staff, customers and suppliers.
Method123 Ltd is a rapidly growing company, with more than 45,000 customers and staff in 10 countries worldwide. It was the first company to release project management templates on the Web, and has a long track record in helping teams deliver projects more successfully. The Project Management Template Kit offers the complete set of templates needed to manage projects. They are the most comprehensive templates on the Web. The Project Management Methodology includes all of the Method123 templates, as well as an entire methodology for managing projects.
In Los Angeles, gang violence has gotten so bad that the city council wants to raise taxes in order to fight it. Overall, the crime rate is down, but LA suffered 267 gang-related homicides last year and a 14% increase in gang crime citywide. Councilwoman Janice Hahn advocates a $72 annual parcel tax to raise $50 million to fund more ineffective social intervention programs. The city already spends $82 million on touchy-feely gang outreach, with little result.
Much of the current outrage comes from the December 15 murder of Cheryl Green, a 14-year-old black girl who was killed simply for being present on turf claimed by hispanic gangs near her home. The photo shows mother Charlene Lovett holding a picture of Cheryl.
Desperate to stem the rise of gang violence in Los Angeles, the City Council agreed Tuesday to draft a ballot measure that would impose a parcel tax to raise $50 million or more annually for intervention and prevention programs.
LA's gang violence has a strong racial component. Of an estimated 39,000 gang members, about 56 percent are in Latino gangs and 40 percent are in black gangs. Many hispanic gang-bangers are illegal aliens. Increasingly, Hispanic gang members kill random blacks to drive them out of the area — ethnic cleansing, in other words. Interestingly, even the hacks at the Southern Poverty Law Center, who have attacked the Minutemen and other friends of borders, have noticed the purposeful, racist attacks on black Americans by Hispanics.
Instead of enacting another immigration tax, the city should end Special Order 40, the sanctuary law that protects illegal aliens from normal police inquiries and is quite a boon to non-American gang members.
Appearing in Magistrates Court, 33-year-old Gregory Veinotte, [22/7/82] plead guilty to keeping two unlicenced pitbulls, an adult and a puppy, at his Southampton residence between a date unknown and May 2015. Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo fined him $600 for the two offences.
The Crown Prosecutor told the Magistrate that the Dog Warden had executed a search warrant at Mr Veinotte’s residence and discovered the two pitbulls in the yard of Mr Veinotte’s residence. The Warden seized both dogs.
On checking, the adult pitbull had a micro-chip but the licence period had expired and the dog was now unlicenced.
Later Mr Veinotte appeared at the Paget pound and admitted ownership and keeping the two dogs.
Mr Veinotte told the Magistrate that he had taken the adult dog off someone else and had found the puppy on the Railway Trail and had taken it into his care.
ARSENAL star Aaron Ramsey has brushed off talk linking him to Barcelona.
Reports last week suggested the Catalan giants were lining up a surprise £50million bid for him.
This is despite the fact Barcelona can't sign any players until next summer as they are currently under a transfer embargo.
The La Liga giants are thought to have scouted Ramsey TEN times last season, but the mercurial Welsh midfielder has dismissed talk he could leave the Emirates.
"That's just something that's been written in the papers," he said.
"I'm focused on Arsenal and on winning the FA Cup.
"That sort of news doesn't affect me or enter my mind."
Ramsey insists he is solely concentrating on the FA Cup final tomorrow (5:30pm).
He added: "I'm focusing on the FA Cup, that's what appeals to me at this time."
The Air Force has chosen Veridian Corp. to support automatic target recognition and sensor fusion research efforts at the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, the company announced today.
Under the seven-year, $20 million contract, Veridian will provide data analysis, design and engineering services for the Air Force's Data, Integration and Visualization for Automatic Target Recognition Systems, or DIVAS, program.
The DIVAS program is to develop a unified knowledge-based collaborative environment to facilitate research into automatic targeting recognition and sensor fusion technologies throughout the Defense Department.
"Veridian's team possesses extensive firsthand knowledge and experience with the sensors, programs, data types and computer systems that are central to AFRL's automatic target recognition and sensor fusion development and transition programs," said Andy Zembower, vice president of the company's sensors and intelligence group. "We look forward to continuing Veridian's long history of service to the AFRL and to advancing their efforts in sensor fusion technology research."
Veridian, based in Arlington, Va., provides information-based systems, integrated solutions and services focusing on mission-critical national security programs for the intelligence community, the Defense Department and federal agencies involved with homeland security. The company has annual revenue of about $1 billion and employs more than 7,300 people.
One of the most basic fitness tracking devices is the $150 Nike+ FuelBand. The black rubberized band keeps track of your steps and miles log, then syncs the data through Bluetooth to an iOS app. Sorry, it's not Android compatible just yet. The downsides are that you can't input any more info such as calories consumed or other activities like weight lifting. The Fitbit line of products offer several features at reasonable price points, anywhere from $60 to $100. The slim, easy-to-wear device is handy for recording steps, mileage, and stairs climbed. It will sync automatically with your online account, and even allows for some friendly competition amongst other Fitbit users. Finally, the BodyMedia fit offers a wide array of features, but at a cost and convenience. People love this sleep-tracking feature amongst the other basic measurements, but complain about the $120 to $150 bulky armband and the monthly subscription fees. In San Francisco, I'm Kara Tsuboi, CNET.com for CBS News.
You’re invited to check out the 2015 WVPT Holiday Auction now online at auction.wvpt.net and review some of the 280-plus items that will be up for bid in 11 different categories.
The Holiday Auction will go live for bidding starting on Monday, November 9th and run through Tuesday, November 17th at 9:00 p.m. The auction categories include Dining, Entertainment, Health & Fitness, Jewelry, Kids, Travel, Art & Collectibles, Home & Garden, Automotive, Sports and Misc. & Services.
Once you visit the auction site, make sure you register as a bidder to be eligible to start bidding on November 9th when all the auction items will be posted. The auction will feature several “Deal of the Day” specials and many items will be featured on the WVPT Auction Preview show airing on WVPT throughout the nine days of the auction.
All auction proceeds go to support WVPT, your non-profit 501c3 local public television station wvpt.net and WVPT’s educational, commercial-free programming.
If you were lucky enough to receive a new iPad for the holidays this year, we hope you have fun exploring what the tablet has to offer. By now you've probably acquainted yourself with the built-in apps on your iPad, so you may want to reach outside the sandbox for more interesting fare. The App Store, which you can access on your iPad or via iTunes on your computer, features more than 750,000 downloadable apps. If there's something you want to do on your iPad, chances are good you can find a tool for it in the App Store. But separating the truly great apps from the weird and wacky ones can be tough. Here are a few of our favorite apps to get you started.
Apple's iBooks (free in the App Store) lets you read ePub-format books and PDFs in both portrait and landscape modes. You can purchase books from Apple's iBookstore, organize your books, create collections, and delete books you no longer want. Apple also offers support for interactive multimedia textbooks created through iBooks Author on the Mac; these are similarly available through the iBookstore, and offer a more immersive experience--one replete with videos, slideshows, and other touchable elements. You can read books by swiping virtual pages or by scrolling the content vertically as you might in Safari or Mail.
Apple's music-making software, GarageBand ($5 in the App Store), is one of three apps in the iLife suite for iOS. It offers a slew of virtual and smart instruments, and you can strum chords or bang out tunes with just a few taps. Professional and amateur musicians alike can use the app to record eight tracks of audio, and you can even plug in USB accessories such as microphones and piano keyboards using the connection from Apple's Lightning to USB Camera Adapter.
iPhoto ($5 in the App Store) is an app designed to let you perform a wide variety of tasks, including organizing photos, creating slideshows, creating Web-friendly scrapbooks, and editing, cropping, tweaking, filtering, and retouching photos.
Once you start relying on Instapaper ($4 in the App Store), you'll wonder what took you so long. The idea is simple: Reading on your iPad is much more pleasant than reading on your Mac's screen. When you come across lengthier articles online, you tap the Instapaper button, whether in your browser, RSS reader, or Twitter client, or in one of the many other apps that integrate with the Instapaper service. The next time you launch Instapaper on your iPad, it will pull down the text of that article, as well as any inline images--but it will leave all the navigation, social networking modules, and Flash advertisements by the wayside. You're left with just text and images, and you control the font and brightness and all that other good stuff. The app also makes it easy to discover more good Web content to read, based on your friends' suggestions.
Tweetbot ($3 in the App Store) began life as an excellent Twitter client for the iPhone, and the iPad version is even better. The app's unique interface and brilliantly implemented gesture support make it not only a powerful app for reading and posting tweets but also a fun one, too. Swipe to the right on a tweet to see the full conversation surrounding it; swipe to the left to see replies sent to it. Tap and hold--on a tweet, a hashtag, a username, or a link--to expose contextual options related to that element. With support for services such as Tweet Marker (for keeping you in sync with your device or desktop Twitter client), Instapaper, and more, it's a full-featured Twitter app that's a delight to use.
Some games you use to waste time, and other games you actually sit down with your tablet specifically to play them. The Room ($2 in the App Store) falls into the latter category. The game sets its eerie mood beautifully, offering detailed, painstakingly drawn, pseudo-3D graphics and an elaborate soundtrack. The gameplay itself is even better: The Room contains an intriguing safe, and your job is to break it open. To do so, you'll need to solve increasingly complex puzzles with little guidance. The game provides occasional hints, but you'll still have plenty of problem solving to do on your own. For instance, you'll notice that a seemingly ordinary panel masks a tappable portion that grants access to a hidden section, and that tapping these buttons in the right order will open a secret drawer. The Room includes at least 3 hours of entertaining gameplay, and you'll wish you could keep going when you finally finish.
Though the iPhone's Calculator app works fine, it simply doesn't exist on the iPad. PCalc Lite (free in the App Store) works on all iOS devices, and it looks great on the iPad. Beyond that, it adds tons of functionality beyond simple arithmetic, including a scientific calculator, unit conversions, constants, reverse Polish notation, multiple undos and redos, and themes. The $10 version comes packed with features, but if you start with the free Lite edition, you can add other options from the paid version with separate in-app purchases.
Other news apps exist, but no news app offers quite the polish of CNN on the iPad (free in the App Store). The app combines videos and cleanly displayed articles to keep you abreast of all the news that's fit to consume. The app is very visual, with lots of photographs, easily readable text, and high-quality video to keep you informed. You can even watch the network live within the app.
Dropbox (free in the App Store), a free Web service, lets you create a folder on your Mac that syncs automatically with whatever other computers you tell it to. The iPad app isn't beautiful, but it does afford you access to all the files and folders you store in your computer's Dropbox folder. You can upload your saved photos and videos to your Dropbox folder, or open saved files in compatible apps on your iPad--including word processing documents, PDFs, images, and MP3s.
A horde of decaying zombies invaded San Francisco's downtown Apple store on Friday evening, hunting for brains, terrifying the customers, and gnawing on iMacs.
I've placed some photos here. I'm pleased to report that the zombies ultimately decided human brains were tastier than plastic iMacs, although it wasn't for lack of effort in trying to vary what must be a monotonous diet.
It was difficult to judge the exact number of zombies that shuffled through the city's shopping district, losing limbs, blood, and unmentionable body parts along the way, but probably at least 150 converged on Union Square. Then they decided to visit nearby businesses, including the Apple store, Nordstrom, the Disney store, and the Westfield Mall.
The event was titled "SF Zombie Mob 2007," and it was organized by the gruesome-minded folks at eatbrains.com. It's akin to a flash mob, though because the participants trek around the city after gathering, the Zombie Mob was closer in concept to the Critical Mass bicycle ride, which coincidentally was happening at the same time along the same street. In truth, it was a pretty polite affair: only passers-by who volunteered to become zombie-fied were, and no arrests took place.
It may be worth noting that the Westfield Mall and Disney security tried to bar the zombies from entering, but Apple store security did not. In fact, salespeople were jostling one another for a position where they could take the best photo of the zombies (or themselves with the zombies, or their brains being eaten by the zombies).
This Tour has been marred by incidents.
BAGNERES DE-LUCHON, France (AP) — Four-time champion Chris Froome was among riders whose eyes needed treatment for tear gas when a farmers’ protest interrupted the 16th stage of the Tour de France on Tuesday.
Bales of hay blocked the road 30 kilometers into the 218-kilometer leg from Carcassonne to Bagneres De-Luchon. Tour organizers said police used tear gas to disperse the protesters as the peloton approached.
Froome, race leader Geraint Thomas, and world champion Peter Sagan were among those affected by the chemical. Froome was treated with eye drops and Sagan poured water over his face to clean his eyes.
The stage resumed after a 15-minute delay.
According to French media, the small group of farmers from the local Ariege department protested against the reduction of European Union funding.
Race organizers have struggled to deal with angry fans protesting Froome’s participation. After fans threw flares at riders in the climb to the ski resort of Alpe d’Huez, Tour organizers banned the use of smoke flares for the rest of the race.
Froome raced all season under the cloud of a potential ban for using twice the permitted level of salbutamol during his victory at the Spanish Vuelta in September. He was cleared only just before the Tour. He said he has been repeatedly spat at since the race started, and spectators have punched him and tried to make him fall off his bike.
Froome sits second in the general classification, 1 minute, 39 seconds behind Sky teammate Thomas.
I'd like to offer the graduates in our area a belated congratulations and a tidbit of advice — because you haven't received enough of that in the last couple of weeks, right?
Over the past couple of years, my message to the cap-and-gown crowd has focused on getting some sun and enjoying the brief summer respite before life hits you right in the face with a fire hose.
I am reasonably sure that whoever penned this philosophical tidbit was the kind of eternal optimist who sees the glass half full. The outer shell of the oyster, while course and jagged, is unique and like no other. The meat can be prepared and eaten any number of ways, depending on your preference.
Its undiscovered pearl was probably a metaphor for your life — its riches just waiting to be discovered from within. It is a thing of beauty made so only through the passage of time.
To the glass-half-empty pessimist, the oyster is something nearly impossible for an amateur to open without getting one's hand sliced to ribbons by the shucking knife. Once you get out of the emergency room, you have the same culinary options, but without proper experience, you could serve yourself a tainted morsel that could have you feverish and vomiting for a few miserable days.
And more likely than not, your oyster is not going to have a pearl — someone else got that one.
The wisdom I'm trying to impart via the shellfish is this: Your life is going to turn out exactly as you see it.
If you want to see your life as a shell you can't crack open without frustrating and hurting yourself, it will be that way. If your every endeavor is shaded by the imminent threat of discomfort and disease, it will be yours. And if you are prone to believe you will choose the oyster with nothing of beauty and value within while others get the pearl, why would you be surprised if that is exactly what you get?
If, on the other hand, you see your life as a completely original thing of beauty, filled with opportunity and waiting to be opened, it will be. You want your options to be varied and vast? It's your choice. If you believe your life will contain the pearl, it will.
The universe is a very generous thing. It'll give you exactly what you want. But don't take my word for it. Go ahead and see your life as excruciatingly difficult. Look at the future as hopeless. See the notion of financial stability as something others achieve, and watch how generously the universe delivers on your thoughts.
Conversely, try thinking and dreaming big. See your life as full of potential. Envision yourself eventually having the life you want and experiences that make you happy.
Unlike when you were a child, you now have the choice to determine your existence. What happens next is up to you.
So go ahead and expect your success, not your failure. Do what you need to make your life extraordinary. If it means going back to school, that's great. If it means moving to another part of the country, that's great too. There are no rules or set ways to make life wonderful.
There is no proven path to success except to do the things that bring you joy and cause no other person or thing pain. Why is this last part important? Because everyone around you has their own idea of what their proverbial oyster is. It's not up to you to define it for them. Focus on your own oyster.
And finally, be patient. Because what you are getting this afternoon is probably what you asked for a while back.
The two Sudans, both north and south, share a troubled history, fear of the present, and hope for a peaceful and prosperous future within and across their borders.
The people of two Sudans may live in two independent sovereign states, yet are bound by ongoing conflicts, civil wars, and economic awes. Both are struggling in their different ways to overcome these challenges and carve out a brighter future for their citizens.
Analysts agree that none of the two Sudans will ever make it alone without the assistance and support of the other. Together the Sudans will fall. And together they will stand. And stand, they must. However, without a clear understanding of the brutal facts and factors underpinning the current unrest in Sudan, and prospect for peace in South Sudan, the political instability caused by economic challenges in the two countries may persist long into the distant future.
On 19 December 2018, a day that marked the 63rd anniversary of the unilateral declaration of Sudan’s independence inside the Parliament (which took place on 19 December 1955), demonstrations broke out in Sudan. First in Atbara, Nahud, and Gadarif, and then spreading to engulf many cities, among them the capital, Khartoum.
“Enemies those who killed our son. Enemies those who divided our country”, went the revolutionary song in social media played in the background of demonstration images intended to whip up emotions of the citizens to rise up against Al-Bashir’s government. High prices and the shortage of basic commodities such as bread and fuel were amongst the reasons that sparked the anger. As we begin a new year, the demonstrations have already entered their thirteenth day.
On their part, the Sudanese authorities responded with full force of the state, followed by political mobilisation of the ruling party support base, and massive deployment of special forces, locally called “Rapid Support Forces” in order to protect property and bring the situation in the capital and the country under control. The government has also expressed readiness to address the concerns raised by the demonstrators and political forces behind them. A very positive step.
Then some 740 miles South of Khartoum, in Juba, the capital of South Sudan, President Salva Kiir hosted a reception to celebrate Christmas day in which politicians, eminent personalities, and opposition figures queued up patiently to offer their greetings and well wishes to the President, expressing to the media their commitment to full implementation of the recently signed revitalized peace agreement, which was achieved with the assistance of Sudan government.
And to lend further credence to the intertwined politics of two Sudans, the war-displaced Sudanese, mostly from Blue Nile region and Nuba Mountains, and probably Darfur; organised a peaceful march in Juba to express their solidarity with the ongoing demonstrations in Sudan.
The big question is what can we make of all this? We need to first acknowledge that the signing of Sudan Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005 that allowed South Sudan to exercise the right of self-determination in a referendum, and subsequently, the declaration of its independence from Sudan on July 9th, 2011, was an important milestone in the long road to untangling and sorting out what Dr John Garang called “the Sudanese problem.” It was not a mere impulsive decision by Al-Bashir government as many Sudanese opposition figures would like us to believe. However, the independence of South Sudan was by no means the end of the Sudanese problem. This is evident from conflicts and wars that have continued to rage in both countries since 2012.
What is the lasting cure to the “Sudanese problem”, then? We may ask. To be brutally honest, I see no quick fixes, nor priceless solutions around the corner, apart from the exercise of true statesmanship to move the two countries to the next level. Still, one can engage in useful conversation that can assist us to discover the avenues to finding more sustainable cures.