text stringlengths 11 58.2k |
|---|
In other words, Israel believed that the war in the north would show the world that occupation is not what’s destabilizing the region; rather, it is the regimes in Damascus and Tehran and the terrorists operating on their behalf. These regimes are fighting Israel to eliminate it—not to reach a two-state solution. And i... |
“The assumption prevailed [among U.S. administrations] that resolving this dispute would solve other problems faced by the U.S. in the area,” wrote professor Steven Spiegel in his authoritative book about America’s Middle East policy. This was true starting with Eisenhower and through the final act of the Clinton admin... |
But now, yet again, many believe it’s time to go back to the old formula—and, it must be said, the failed formula—of “the Arab-Israeli conflict first.” The war accelerated the tendency to revert to this old habit—maybe out of conviction, but mainly out of frustration. Lacking a satisfying solution to the more difficult... |
An IOC inspector working on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics said Wednesday that a powerful typhoon and a deadly earthquake that hit Japan in the last 10 days have been a wake-up call for organizers. |
The most powerful typhoon in 25 years left 11 dead in the Osaka area of western Japan when it struck Sept. 4. A few days later, a deadly earthquake hit the northern island of Hokkaido and killed about 40. |
John Coates, an Australian who heads the inspection team, said what happened "has hit home to me." |
Coates helped organize the 2000 Sydney Olympics. He said organizers there simulated disasters. |
"You don't have to dream anything up in this country," he added. "It's very sad to say." |
He said disaster preparation "is being factored" into the planning. |
The other uncontrollable problem could be Tokyo's searing heat, which set records this summer with temperatures soaring regularly over 38 degrees C (100 degrees F). |
Coates, an International Olympic Committee member, said that body favored going onto daylight saving time. |
"It does seem a very good solution to us," Coates said. |
Yoshiro Mori, a former Japanese prime minister and head of the local organizing committee, has asked the Japanese government to consider moving the clocks forward. |
Japan does not change its clocks as many countries do. |
Mori has turned down suggestions of switching the games to October when temperatures are cooler. The 1964 Tokyo Olympics were held in October. |
This is primarily to accommodate the American broadcaster NBC, which will telecast the finals live during evening viewing hours in North America. |
There is some local resentment of scheduling events to accommodate foreign broadcasters. |
Finals are scheduled from 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. local time. Preliminary heats will be from 7-9 p.m. local time. The first final will be the men's 400-meter individual medley on July 26. |
"It's in the morning, but it's 10:30 or 11. That's not abnormal hours," said Koji Murofushi, a former Olympic gold- and silver-medalist in the hammer throw, who is the games sports director. |
"They are hinting that it is similar to forced labor," she said. |
"Volunteers are volunteers," Coates replied. "And they don't have to apply if they don't want to." |
"The economics of it necessitates having to have volunteers," Coates said. "They get trained, they get their uniforms. They are part of something very exciting." |
He added: "I think it's a fine model ... and I don't think there's a case for paying volunteers." |
In other business, organizers announced the Olympic torch will be kindled on March, 12, 2020, in Greece. The handover ceremony to Japanese organizers is set for March 19 with the torch arriving in Japan on March 20. |
The flame will be displayed in three northern prefectures hit by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami until March 26 when the relay begins from the Fukushima region and runs across Japan's 47 prefectures. |
When it comes to growing a farm, Weld County might be one of the best places in the country to do so, at least according to a new census finding released this month by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. |
Weld County added more than 500 farms from 2012 to 2017, according to the study, growing by 15 percent over that period. Weld previously had a big jump in from 2002 to 2009, but the recession seemed to wipe out those gains from 2009 to 2012, when the county lost nearly 400 farms. |
THE BIG PICTURE: Agriculture continues to thrive for Weld County with more than 2 million acres farmed – the most since the census was started in 1997. When it comes to market value, Weld’s crops accounted for more than $2 billion in sales in 2017, again a record, according to the census findings. |
WELD’S BIG CROP: When it comes to a mainstay, it’s all about the beef here in Weld County and Colorado. Beef sales accounted for 53 percent of the state’s production, and more than $1 billion of it came from cattle. Two other areas of growth was in dairy farming, where sales topped 450 million, and from raising sheep a... |
TREND TO WATCH: One of the findings from the census was that number of farms with small revenue – less than $1,000 in sales – grew by 27 percent over five years and accounts for 38 percent of all farms in Weld County. The number of large farms – those with more than $100,000 in annual sales – declined, but earnings rem... |
HOW DOES WELD RANK? In terms of Colorado, Weld County is by far the biggest agricultural region – accounting for 27 percent of the sales statewide. Weld County is more similar economically to the large agricultural producing counties of California’s Central Valley. |
U.S. property/casualty insurers are expected to pay an estimated $1.38 billion to homeowners and businesses in insured property losses from seven catastrophe events in first-quarter 2006, according to preliminary analysis by Insurance Services Office’s Property Claim Services (PCS) unit. |
PCS estimates that the seven catastrophes produced nearly 390,000 claims in 19 states. Personal lines claims accounted for 53 percent of the total, 12 percent for commercial lines claims and 35 percent for auto claims. The large number of vehicle claims stemmed from hail and tornado damage. |
The quarter’s costliest event was an outbreak of severe weather across six Midwest states from Kansas to Indiana. The insured damage from the event is slightly more than $800 million and the claims count is in excess of 222,000. |
Missouri suffered the largest insured loss, estimated at $475 million, in the quarter, followed by Kansas at $113 million, Arkansas at $108 million, New York at $103 million and Illinois at $100 million. |
Three winter storms and four wind and thunderstorm events constitute the quarter’s seven catastrophes — slightly above the average of six events during the past decade. Since 1997, 25 winter storm catastrophes in the first quarter have caused over $6 billion of insured property damage, PCS said. During the same period,... |
A controversial new study concludes minority pitchers hinder their own performance to overcome favoritism toward whites by Major League Baseball home plate umpires. |
Johan Sulaeman, a financial economist at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, helped author the study. |
The report analyzed 3.5 million pitches at ballparks monitored by QuesTec, which accurately measures pitch placement, from 2004 to 2008. Results found minority pitchers dealt with umpire bias by playing it safe with pitches. |
Science Daily reports the study showed minority pitchers threw the ball across the plate in the strike zone more often to limit umpires' chances of calling their pitch a ball. |
Sulaeman says since most MLB umpires are white, the bias pushes minority pitchers performance down. |
The researchers also found that umps favored pitchers of the same race only when the pitch won't terminate the batter's plate appearance. |
Some weaker evidence says the bias is more among younger umpires. |
The study says a racial match with the umpire helped a starting pitcher's performance by yielding less earned runs, fewer hits and home runs. |
Since the minority pitcher's performance is negatively impacted by the favoritism of umpires, the researchers claim minority pitchers are underpaid relative to white pitchers by between $50,000 and $400,000 per season. |
The study, "Strike Three: Discrimination, Incentives, and Evaluation," is published in the current issue of the scholarly journal The American Economic Review. |
*The direct effects on pitch outcomes are small. The indirect effect on players' strategies may have larger impacts on the outcomes of plate appearances and games. |
*From the starting pitcher's perspective, a racial match with the umpire helped his statistics by yielding fewer earned runs, fewer hits and fewer home runs. |
*Because the majority of umpires are white, teams with minority pitchers have a distinct disadvantage in non-monitored parks. |
*In parks without QuesTec, pitchers of the same race threw pitches that allowed umpires the most discretion, apparently to maximize their advantage stemming from the umpires' favoritism. |
*A batter who swings is less likely to get a hit when the umpire and pitcher match. |
*Applying the effects of favoritism, and given that the average salary of starting pitchers in MLB was $4.8 million in 2006, the findings suggest minority pitchers were underpaid relative to white pitchers by between $50,000 and $400,000 a year. |
"If a pitcher expects favoritism," the authors conclude, "he will incorporate this advantage into his strategy, perhaps throwing pitches that allow the umpire more discretion." |
A parcel-tax measure to fund a second 40-hour police officer in Grand Terrace will go before voters later this year. |
After about 90 minutes of discussion Tuesday, May 22, city leaders voted 3-2 to put the initiative on the November ballot. Mayor Darcy McNaboe and Councilman Doug Wilson dissented. |
Grand Terrace, with a population of about 13,000, is one of 14 cities that contracts with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department for police services. Currently, a 24/7 police unit, or about six officers, and a 40-hour patrol officer police the city, well below pre-2010 staffing levels, Lt. Doug Wolfe told city ... |
The 40-hour patrol officer assists with calls for service from 3 to 11 p.m. Monday through Friday. The city is policed by one officer the rest of the day and on weekends, but the Sheriff’s Department can call in additional resources in emergencies. |
Adding a second 40-hour officer at $330,000 per year, Wolfe noted, would provide daily relief between 3 p.m. and 3 a.m. – when activity is at its highest – and allow the Sheriff’s Department to stagger shifts throughout the week so the city is covered by two officers Monday through Sunday. |
But things have changed in recent years, he added, noting a few difficult situations an officer had to handle alone. |
The parcel tax will require a two-thirds vote to pass. It would cost $80 per single-family dwelling, $45.60 per unit within a multi-family complex and $100 on all nonresidential parcels starting in tax year 2019-20. The annual tax could be increased by up to 6 percent through 2023-24. |
The nature of the tax requires the resulting $356,000 to be used exclusively to fund law enforcement services beyond the current 208 weekly deputy hours. A citizens oversight board would be formed to ensure the money is spent accordingly. |
The City Council on Tuesday voted down potential sales tax and utility users’ tax measures. |
Late last year, Grand Terrace petitioners tried to place a parcel tax measure on the November ballot to fund additional law enforcement services. Although they failed to gather enough signatures, Hussey asked staff to bring city leaders a parcel tax measure proposal. |
In some ways it is not surprising that Mannkind (MNKD), the developer of an inhaled insulin product for diabetes, has been sued by its former chief regulatory affairs officer alleging "unlawful" clinical trial data practices, according to its Q3 2010 SEC filing: The suit is a potential explanation of many of the myster... |
MannKind was sued before by a former vp of medical/regulatory affairs, who alleged that MannKind hid from the FDA unexpected lab results showing that the product now known as Afrezza was more potent than thought. That suit was settled in 2007 and the company said it conducted more tests and found the potency wasn't a p... |
Although delivering insulin through a cool-looking inhaler (above) rather than a painful injection is a fantastic idea, MannKind has never been able to find a Big Pharma corporate partner to help it market the drug. MannKind is way too small to do a blockbuster drug justice on its own. |
... the Company terminated his employment in retaliation for his purported reporting of alleged unlawful practices in connection with the Company's clinical trials. |
Before Mr. Arditi filed his complaint, the Company had completed an internal investigation of his claims and retained an independent outside firm to conduct an independent investigation of his claims. Neither investigation found any basis for his claims. The Company believes that the allegations in the complaint are wi... |
In fact, something is wrong. Arditi filed his suit Sept. 16. His allegations could derail the entire company if they are true and if they are about Afrezza -- MannKind's only currently viable product -- but the company did not disclose the litigation until Oct 29*. It didn't include the info in its investor press relea... |
Nonetheless, management knew of a suit that would move the stock in September, sales occurred, and only after that did the company disclose the suit's existence. That does not look good. |
Jon Lecroy â€" Hapoalim Securities: Okay. And then I think in the past, you guys have said how many partners were still in the running. Do you have any comment on what you've narrowed it down to? |
Alfred Mann: No comment at this point, until we have [something] definitive to announce. |
As you can see from the transcript, Mann is a bit of a personality. In addition to naming the company after himself and funding it with more than $900 million of his own money, he's also unusually voluble and ebullient for a drug CEO. His silence between September and today is, therefore, out of character. |
*Correction: This item originally stated incorrectly that the 10-Q was filed Nov. 4. Apologies for the error. |
HYDE — For the first time in the seven-year history of the Lady Bison Basketball Blast-Off Tournament, Clearfield reigns as champion. |
Coach Joey Castagnolo had plenty of other reasons to be happy after the Lady Bisons defeated Hanover 63-52 Saturday in the Arthur J. Weiss Gymnasium, including the fact the 2-0 start for his eighth season is a first. |
With the seniors leading the way, Clearfield turned in a solid overall performance highlighted by a 20-for-23 effort at the foul line and a 36-16 advantage in rebounds. |
Center Elizabeth Sopic was the coaches\’ choice for the Most Valuable Player Award after scoring 12 points and pulling down 17 rebounds on the heels of a 10-point, nine-rebound effort against Bald Eagle Area Friday night even though she got into early foul trouble. |
Playmaker Nikki Collins handled the Hanover pressure defense and also led the Lady Bisons with 17 points, including a three-pointer and eight consecutive free throws. Shooting guard Brooke Jordan had 12 points and Juliana Howell came off the bench to chip in with 11. Jordan, who hit a pair of three-pointers, and junior... |
\”It\’s so nice to finally win one,\” Castagnolo said several minutes after the championship trophy presentation. \”Hanover wouldn\’t go away. They\’re so well coached. |
Free throws decided the title game as the teams matched field goals, 19, and three-pointers, five. The Lady Nighthawks just didn\’t get to the charity stripe enough, for they canned nine of 10 foul shots. |
The see-saw first quarter ended 13-13 when Jordan swished two free throws and a field goal to erase Hanover\’s biggest lead. Sopic then began to dominated inside and triggered a 9-3 run in the first five minutes of the second period with three field goals from short range and two foul shots. |
After the Lady Bisons went in front 25-18 when Jordan nailed a three, Howell raced down floor on fast breaks for three rapid-fire field goals, one a three-pointer, that ballooned the spread to 32-21. Chelsea Kehr, who had a game-high 22 points, sliced four points off the Lady Nighthawks\’ deficit in the final minute of... |
With 6-0 senior Kathryn Rapp back home for SAT testing, the Lady Nighthawks were already at a disadvantage under the boards when 5-10 Jamie Fry picked up her fourth personal foul with 3:51 left in the third quarter after hitting four points to make it a 35-29 contest. Clearfield took command after that, expanding its l... |
Collins kept the Lady Bisons comfortably ahead during the next four minutes with a trey, a conventional three-point play and four foul shots, and the Lady Nighthawks never got closer than nine points, 59-50 with 1:31 remaining. |
Kehr and teammate Jenna Kincaid joined Jordan, Luzier and DuBois Central Catholic\’s Rachel Coggins on the all-tourney team. |
Coggins, a 6-0 pivot player who was the top pointmaker for the tourney with 34, scored 21 points as the Lady Cardinals opened a 20-11 lead in the first quarter, matched Bald Eagle Area point-for-point in a fast-paced second period and went on to a 64-57 win in the consolation game. DuBois Central Catholic also got 16 p... |
In the junior varsity prelim, Clearfield defeated DuBois Central 34-27 to balance its record at 1-1. Jayme Ryan led the Lady Bisons with 10 points. Meagan Thomas topped the Lady Cardinals with 10. |
Arentz 3 0-0 9, Kincaid 2 2-2 7, Beans 1 2-2 4, Fry 2 2-2 6, Kehr 9 3-4 22, Day 1 0-0 2, Sunday 1 0-0 2, Cookerly 0 0-0 0, Frederick 0 0-0 0. Totals: 19 9-10 52. |
Collins 4 8-8 17, Jordan 3 4-4 12, E. Sopic 4 4-4 12, A. Janocko 2 2-2 6, M. Janocko 0 1-2 1, Luzier 1 0-0 3, Howell 5 0-0 11, Peters 0 1-3 1, Ryan 0 0-0 0, M. Sopic 0 0-0 0, Porter 0 0-0 0, Byerly 0 0-0 0. Totals: 19 20-23 63. |
Three-Point Field Goals — Hanover 5 (Arentz 3, Kincaid 1, Kehr 1). Clearfield 5 (Collins 1, Jordan 2, Howell 1, Luzier 1). |
Coggins 7 7-9 21, Ferraraccio 6 2-2 16, Pernesky 1 0-2 2, Moyer 6 3-3 15, Yebernetsky 2 3-4 8, Braun 0 0-0 0, Goldbach 0 0-0 0, Thomas 0 0-0 0, Boyce 0 2-2 2. Totals: 22 17-22 64. |
Weaver 4 1-2 9, Kristofik 3 2-2 8, D. Reese 6 1-2 13, Masters 3 4-6 10, W. Giedroc 1 1-2 3, Mann 0 1-2 1, Doran 3 4-4 10, Hoover 0 3-4 3, Simpson 0 0-0 0. Totals: 20 17-24 57. |
Three-Point Field Goals — DuBois Central Catholic 3 (Ferraraccio 2, Yebernetsky 1). |
Keystone XL: Drill It or Kill It? |
Will the conclusion of this study finally allow a decision on the Keystone XL pipeline? |
The much-anticipated State Department report, the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, was released on January 31. The 1,179 mile pipeline in question would transport more than 800,000 barrels of crude oil a day from Alberta, Canada, to smaller existing pipeline... |
The report both encourages and discourages the pipeline by stating that the transported oil would create carbon emissions equal to 5.7 million cars on the road, but that no pipeline would just cause the oil to be burned anyway. The oil would just be transported through other means, primarily by rail, but also by trucks... |
Approval by the State Department is necessary because the pipeline crosses a U.S. border. Other departments will have 90 days to comment on the findings of the report before the State Department makes its official recommendation to the Office of the President. |
The forgotten losers in all of this are the Canadian Pacific (NYSE:CP) and Canadian National (NYSE:CNI) railways, as the potential to use this pipeline to pump heavy crude oil from the Bakken region could severely impact these two companies. They are currently holding strong as the infrastructure is already in place fo... |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.