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White House and State Department officials conspired with prominent conservatives, including former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, to purge the State Department of staffers they viewed as insufficiently loyal to President Donald Trump, two top House Democrats allege in a letter released Thursday.
As described in the letter, those actions would likely violate federal laws protecting federal civil servants from undue political influence.
Cummings and Engel say they are “particularly concerned” about documents showing an effort to drive out Sahar Nowrouzzadeh, a career civil servant at the State Department assigned to the policy planning staff. The letter notes that Brian Hook, the director of that division, forwarded an email from Nowrouzzadeh in which she defended herself against an attack that had been published in a conservative publication. The officials then discussed whether she was too supportive of the nuclear deal with Iran negotiated by President Barack Obama. Several of the officials discussed ousting Nowrouzzadeh. Julia Haller, a White House liaison to the State Department, wrote that Nowrouzzadeh “was born in Iran and upon my understanding cried when the President won.” Nowrouzzadeh was born in Connecticut. Haller did not cite the basis of her claim about Nowrouzzadeh’s election reaction.
Nowrouzadeh was removed from her post on the Policy Planning Staff three months earlier than scheduled in a manner she said violated a memorandum of understanding governing her assignment.
Jane Fonda has at last discovered “true intimacy” with boyfriend, Richard Perry, in her 70s. Jane Fonda told The Sun in an interview that she met Perry while recovering from knee replacement surgery in June 2009.
Jane Fonda believes Perry has contributed to her love life in ways that no other lover has over the course of her storied career.
Fonda’s former husbands include director Roger Vadim (1965- 1973), politician Tom Hayden (1973- 1989) and billionaire Ted Turner (1991- 2001). Perry was married to actress Rebecca Broussard, 49, from 1987 to 1988.
Arborists armed with chainsaws and climbing gear are always busy cleaning up from the last storm or trying to prevent the next blackout. Recreational climbers can use the same skills and equipment.
Tree climbing, the sport, is an extension of tree climbing, the job, and both have been growing in popularity in recent years.
Tchukki Andersen, an arborist with a trade group called the Tree Care Industry Association, says that demand for pros who can climb and maintain trees began to increase after the Northeast blackout of 2003, which started when trees near Cleveland touched high-voltage power lines and ultimately affected 55 million people. In the aftermath government agencies required utilities to spend more to keep their lines clear. Since then a steady sequence of hurricanes, tornadoes, and ice storms have kept up the pressure on utilities and created ongoing work for arborists. "We just seem to be more inundated with more frequent and intense storms these days," Andersen says.
As the need for tree climbers has grown, the gear has improved. And a growing number of companies are teaching the necessary skills, including Tree Climbers International, in Atlanta, Georgia; a national group called North American Training Solutions; and the New England Tree Climbing Association. Gary Gross, one of the founders of the New England group, is a 59-year-old Vietnam veteran and former engineer for Pratt & Whitney. "There's so much work for arborists that they can't keep up," he says, "and it's really not that complicated to learn."
This summer I headed to Manchester, Conn., where I joined a recreational climber and two arborists for a weekend course with Gross. As a sport, tree climbing seemed easier and safer to learn than rock climbing. And the skills could even have a payoff down the road, according to Andersen. "We'll put recreational climbers to work," he says. "They have quite a bit of the training a tree care company is looking for. And the industry pays well."
Here's what we learned, and some of the gear we used, in Gary Gross's backyard. The following overview isn't enough to get a climber started, though—to learn the sport safely, hands-on instruction is vital.
Tree climbers use "static" ropes, which lack the stretchiness of "dynamic" ropes used to arrest falls in rock climbing. This Yale Poison Ivy rope is 11.7 mm in diameter and has a rated tensile strength of 6500 pounds. The Blake's Hitch seen in this photo is the central friction hitch in tree climbing. The hitch can move up and down the rope, but if the climber simply lets go, the hitch locks in place.
Tree climbers typically use helmets designed for rock climbing, like this one made by Petzl. The harnesses are quite different, though. A tree climber sits in the harness throughout the entire session, so pros use comfortable models with wide webbing and substantial padding. The typical spare, lightweight rock harness would quickly cut circulation to the legs of an arborist and become very uncomfortable.
The Prusik attaches a loop (the white cord in this photo) to the climbing rope, providing a tool to help the climber ascend. You stand up in the loop, then advance the Blake's Hitch, which is attached to your harness with a carabiner. Then, with your weight on the harness, you reach down and slide the Prusik cord farther up the rope. Stand up on it, and repeat. Seasoned climbers dispense with the Prusik, often climbing with a technique called footlocking that secures the rope between the climber's boots.
The Unicender can replace the Blake's Hitch, along with some other pieces of hardware. In doubled-rope technique (DRT), each side of the rope carries one-half the climber's weight, and the same is true of the Blake's Hitch: If you weigh 160 pounds, the Blake's Hitch only receives 80 pounds, allowing the climber to slide it down the rope for the descent. In single-rope technique (SRT), all of your weight is on the same side of the climbing rope, and a Blake's Hitch locks too tightly to slide downward. For that reason, single-rope technique typically requires the climber to ascend using one piece of equipment, and then change over and descend using a second piece of equipment, a belay device.
The Unicender changes that: It can be used to ascend and descend in either DRT or SRT and makes climbing faster, more convenient, and potentially safer. Why doesn't everyone use it? Could be the $300 price tag.
To get a climbing rope over a branch, you first toss a lightweight, slippery line attached to a weight. Then you tie the climbing rope to the throw rope and pull it across the limb. It probably looks cooler to overhand the weight into the canopy, but the toss shown in this photo, which involves swinging the line and weight underhand like a pendulum, is more accurate and more powerful.
There are several styles, but they all do the same thing: protect tree branches from friction, while helping climbing ropes last longer. The leather model is traditional, but the metal one, which looks like conduit, is more convenient.
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - Cam Newton is everywhere these days.
If he's not flying through your television set on "Cam's Night Out" hawking Under Armour gear or sucking down Gatorade and "Winning the Fifth Quarter," chances are you've seen the 23-year-old quarterback featured prominently by the NFL in advertisements for its upcoming preseason games.
He's featured in the intro to ESPN SportsCenter.
And, if not for Calvin Johnson, he'd be on the cover of Madden NFL 13, too.
In just 15 months Newton has developed into a national celebrity unlike anything the Panthers have seen since they began play in 1995.
Charismatic, built like a Greek god and, above all, incredibly talented, Newton has taken the country by storm since being drafted No. 1 overall last year. As Panthers teammate Jon Beason said, Newton has become "a mega-superstar."
Steve Smith? Julius Peppers? Sam Mills?
All great players for the Panthers over the years, but none has come close to grabbing the national spotlight as Newton has after a record-setting season in which he combined for 35 touchdowns and became the first rookie to throw for more than 4,000 yards.
"We haven't had a guy who gets this much attention - ever," said offensive tackle Jordan Gross, now in his 10th season with the Panthers.
When asked about Newton's impact on the Panthers, teammate Charles Johnson laughed and said, "Can't you tell? Just like when he walked on to the practice field (Sunday) night."
Newton did so to a rock star's welcome, entering Wofford College's Gibbs Stadium for the first training camp practice before a fired-up crowd of 12,871. Fans wearing his No. 1 jersey were everywhere, far outnumbering any other member of the team.
It was the largest crowd ever assembled for a single practice in the 18 summers the Panthers have spent in Spartanburg, according to team spokesman Charlie Dayton.
Call it the Cam factor.
And Newton, who has a flare for showmanship, didn't shy away from attention.
He raced up the field for a 25-yard gain on a play-action fake, veered out of bounds and ran along the inside wall of the stadium pumping his left fist at fans.
After practice, Newton had a little fun with fans, pretending first to run to one side of the field and then the other. Every time he changed directions, fans cheered, each side pleading with him to come over to sign autographs.
"He's become the face of this team," Johnson said. "He's a monster out on the field. I'm glad he's on our team."
Not only do they appear to have a legit star quarterback for the first time in 18 seasons, they have an identity.
The Panthers are Cam Newton. And Cam Newton is the Panthers.
Of the season ahead, coach Ron Rivera said, "As Cam goes, we go."
"I think we need that in Charlotte," Beason said. "We're still a very young franchise in a city where NASCAR is superior. If we win more games here, more of you guys (the media) are going to show up; there will be more endorsement deals and TV commercials for everybody. I think when you do have a mega-superstar on your team it definitely helps you."
Of course, with fame come potential pitfalls.
That's one of the reasons he pulled Newton aside in February for a private talk, making sure he kept his priorities straight in the offseason.
"We talked about what he was going to be doing and he was very forthright about it - and we have no issue with it," Rivera said. "The biggest thing he understands is that once we're in the season, it's time to work. And his focus and attention is about what we do. And it is. So I have no problem."
Center Ryan Kalil said Newton's work ethic has never been questioned in the locker room.
Kalil raved about how hard Newton has been working away from the spotlight, trying to get a better grasp of the playbook and recognizing defenses.
He said Newton's desire to win is unrivaled.
"People see him on commercials and think that's what he's been doing in the offseason, but they don't know what he's done behind the scenes," Kalil said. "Cam has been in there with Chud (offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski), with (quarterbacks coach) Mike Shula, and he's been working his tail off. You might think he's about the commercials, but that's not the deal. You don't see what we see."
Newton didn't want to talk about his endorsement deals Monday, saying his focus is solely on football - and winning.
"I'm just working on being great," Newton said. "It's the little things. Everybody wants to win the Super Bowl, but let's worry about today. Tomorrow is not promised. Let's worry about trying to go out and execute every play and focus on the small things."
Gross said Newton has done a great job of separating business from football.
And that has endeared him to teammates.
All that attention can often distance a player from his teammates, Gross said.
"But Cam fits in great," he added. "We goof around and have fun and give him a hard time just like everybody else, and he gives us a hard time. That's the little things that will make guys follow someone, when they know he's there and he's just one of the guys."
Andrew Tupper, a member of Troop No. 182 in Eugene, was honored at an Eagle Court of Honor on Dec. 6 at Allison Park Christian Church. Eagle Scout is the highest honor awarded by the Boy Scouts of America.
Tupper, a senior at Churchill High, is the son of Craig and Kris Tupper of Eugene. He earned 34 merit badges and a special award in world conservation.
His service project centered on habitat restoration in Alton Baker Park.
It is good that more attention is being given to energy issues. However, much still needs to be done to define for the public the parameters of this Regulatory Authority. Certainly we don’t understand, and we don’t think the public understands much either, exactly what role the regulatory authority is going to play.
Is there going to be a singular authority encompassing telecommunications energy, and other sectors? If that’s the case there certainly needs to be a high-level environmental input as was contemplated by the sustainable development initiative of almost 10 years ago. Or if there are going to several regulatory authorities, their boundaries and responsibilities need to be communicated and made public, before substantive power is devolved to them.
We need to know more before fully endorsing a large-scale solar facility at the airport. The idea at its root is a good one. The concept of acquiring more of our energy from solar rather than fossil fuels is one we would support in principle. As with many things, it is the details where most scrutiny will be required.
BEST has been invited to attend and make contributions to this Energy Summit. We don’t know much yet about the format or how contributions to the summit will be used. Nor is there much time to prepare a formal submission.
On the face of it this seems to be a very good step. We are aware that some prospective developers have adopted the practice of asking for forgiveness after having completed their developments rather than asking for permission to develop in the first place. In one case, for example, a developer has submitted at least half a dozen retroactive applications.
Since retroactive applications are permitted under the Planning Act, there has in the past seemed little that the Department could do to discourage this kind of behaviour. If these new powers will empower the Director of Planning to deal more forcefully with habitual offenders, we will support it wholeheartedly.
These proposed amendments to the Water Resources Act as expressed in the Throne Speech would be a gain for Bermuda’s Marine environment, and a move we would support.
We would support this provided the commitment includes a thorough examination of the environmental liabilities associated with aquaculture, particularly the potential for unintended genetic traits to escape from farmed fish into the wild.
We understand that the government doesn’t want to rush into a decision, but we caution against further study if it serves mostly to delay decision-making.
Wastewater servicing and infrastructure in St. George’s and Hamilton need study and attention. Specifically, our production of solid and liquid wastes is straining our ability to cope with them. More and more of our activities ranging from traffic congestion to being overwhelmed with the volume of tourists exiting mega cruise ships to coping with our volumes of waste all indicate a need for the words “carrying capacity” to be integrated into government thinking and policies.
We should be asking the same questions about carrying capacity when looking to accommodate cruise ships in St. George. Next generations of cruise ships only get larger and larger. At what point will the discharge of passengers overwhelm our facilities and become a negative experience for local facilities and personnel as well as for the tourists themselves? We charge the Bermuda tourism Authority to diligently examine these issues. The long-term success of tourism will require more than rubberstamping the practices of the recent past.
Again and again we must ask what is the carrying capacity of our island. At dockyard and in the Western parishes, we have experienced overload for transportation, beach going and entertainment when thousands of cruise ship passengers descend onto Dockyard at one time. In the interest of our own image, sanity and credibility we should be asking how many cruise ship passengers landing at one time on one dock can we provide with a pleasantly memorable tourism experience?
In general, we have little objection to the recycling of already developed “brownfield” sites.
Our support is 100% behind efforts to make the railway right-of-way fully accessible, including the bridge across Bailey’s Bay, the footbridge over Store Hill and at other gaps In the continuity. As our roads become more and more congested with speeding motorised traffic it will be even more important to reserve some pathways for pedestrians and pedal cyclists.
Access to information is now deemed almost a universal human right. We welcome news that PATI is to become operative next year.
Who actually cares about BEST? They would rather see us all living in caves with no development.
The ignorance demonstrated by your remark is profound.
What they have to say is normally rational. In particular think about what is said regarding carrying capacity. I for one am glad that there is somebody on the island who is prepared to stand up to prevent our natural assets and our environment from being destroyed by short-sighted politicians looking for unsustainable political and financial gains.
BEST also attempts to bring information into the development process that might otherwise be left out in order to avoid dramatic and foolish developments instead of having to protest against them.
So at the very least try to use your head when you are criticizing people whose contributions you obviously know nothing about.
SA Police are renewing their appeal for assistance from the public to locate missing Kangaroo Island man Alan Hamer. Alan Hamer, aged 62 of Kingscote, was last seen at Fullarton Road, Glenside about 8.30pm on Monday, December 17, 2018. Police are concerned for his welfare. Mr Hamer is 174cm tall, 65kg, slim build, with thin grey hair, long grey beard and a moustache. Anyone who sees Alan Hamer or has any information on his whereabouts is asked to contact the Police Assistance Line on 131 444.
STILL MISSING: Alan Hamer, aged 62 of Kingscote, was last seen in Adelaide on Monday, December 17.
SA Police are renewing their appeal for assistance from the public to locate missing Kangaroo Island man Alan Hamer.
Alan Hamer, aged 62 of Kingscote, was last seen at Fullarton Road, Glenside about 8.30pm on Monday, December 17, 2018.
Mr Hamer is 174cm tall, 65kg, slim build, with thin grey hair, long grey beard and a moustache.
Anyone who sees Alan Hamer or has any information on his whereabouts is asked to contact the Police Assistance Line on 131 444.
Discuss "Renewed appeal for missing KI man Alan Hamer"
Obama hopes prosecutor will "reconsider the excessive charges"
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Rev. Jesse Jackson criticized Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Tuesday over his reaction to the arrest of six black juveniles in Jena, Louisiana, on murder charges, accusing the Illinois senator of "acting like he's white," according to a South Carolina newspaper.
The Rev. Jesse Jackson speaks to the press Tuesday in Jena, Louisiana.
The comments reportedly came during a speech at Benedict College, a historically black college in Columbia, South Carolina.
The newspaper reports Jackson later said he did not recall saying Obama is "acting like he's white," but continued to condemn the Illinois Democrat as well as the other presidential candidates for not bringing more attention to this issue.
He also said Obama needs to be "bolder" in his stances if he wants to make inroads in South Carolina. Obama currently trails rival Sen. Hillary Clinton in South Carolina by 18 points, according to a recent LA Times/Bloomberg poll.
In a statement released Wednesday afternoon, Obama said his previous statments about the Jena 6 case "were carefully thought out" with input from his national campaign chairman and Jackson's son, Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr., D-Illinois.
"Outrage over an injustice like the Jena 6 isn't a matter of black and white. It's a matter of right and wrong," he said in the statement.
Jackson, who ran for president twice in the 1980s, endorsed Obama's White House bid earlier in the year. Jackson won the South Carolina Democratic primary, where African American voters play an influential role, in both presidential bids.
"If I were a candidate, I'd be all over Jena," the prominent civil rights activist said Tuesday in Columbia, South Carolina, the The State newspaper reports. "Jena is a defining moment, just like Selma was a defining moment."
In a statement released Wednesday, Jackson reaffirmed his support for Obama.
"He has remarkably transcended race, however the impact of Katrina and Jena makes America's unresolved moral dilemma of race unavoidable," he said. " I think Jena is another defining moment of the issue of race and the criminal justice system. This issue requires direct and bold leadership. I commend Sen. Obama for speaking out and demanding fairness on this defining issue. Any attempt to dilute my support for Sen. Obama will not succeed."
Tensions had simmered at Jena High School and in the small town for first three months of the 2006 school year after a black student asked the vice principal if he and some friends could sit under an oak tree where white students typically congregated.
Told by the vice principal they could sit wherever they pleased, the student and his pals sat under the sprawling branches of the shade tree in the campus courtyard.
The next day, students arrived at school to find three nooses hanging from those branches. According to The Town Talk in nearby Alexandria, the school's principal recommended expulsion for those involved in placing the nooses. Instead, the newspaper reported, a school district committee suspended three white students for three days calling the incident just a "prank."
On December 4, several students jumped a white classmate, Justin Barker, knocking him unconscious while stomping and kicking him. The charges against the six blacks -- dubbed the " Jena 6" -- resulted from that incident.