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Jan 24, 2018 - Zoltán Kovács
Q&A on the case of Jobbik’s illegal party financing
Hungary’s State Auditor recently imposed a fine on the political party Jobbik. Some reports of the decision missed some essential details, so I thought a little briefer, in the form of a Q & A, would be helpful
party financing state audit Jobbik
Q: Why is Hungary so strict about political party financing?
In fact, the Hungarian rules are not any stricter than regulations we find in other European countries. The point is to regulate the funding to prevent the possibility that political parties receive financial support from unknown or illegal sources.
Q: What is illegal financing?
As stated in Act 33 of 1989 on the functioning and financing of political parties, political parties in Hungary may receive funding from three sources: party membership fees, subsidies from the central budget and individual donations of natural persons with Hungarian citizenship. The funding, according to the law, should be transparent. Anything that’s not transparent – as in this case with Jobbik where a company provided billboard space at little or no cost – is illegal.
Political parties in Hungary are prohibited from receiving donations from the following entities: foreign states, foreign organizations (irrespective of their legal status), persons and organizations without a legal personality in Hungary, natural persons without Hungarian citizenship. Parties in Hungary are also barred from accepting money from anonymous sources.
Q: But Hungary’s ruling alliance, Fidesz-KDNP, changed the election laws to make it more difficult for opposition parties. No?
The limitations on television media – the rule that requires that airtime during the campaign period must be provided to all parties equally or not at all – are favorable to smaller parties who would otherwise be at a disadvantage in paying for television advertising time.
The law also explicitly prohibits political parties from receiving billboard space for less than the official list price and prohibits them from running billboard campaigns outside of the election campaign period.
Yes, the previous parliament passed new election laws, but the new rules favor the smaller and financially weaker parties by reducing the possibility for illegal funding and by creating a more level playing field.
At the same time, the rules come down hard on those who try to break them. Infamous cases like the CDU’s Schwarzgeldaffäre (‘black money affair) in 1999 are examples of how hidden donations or undisclosed donations to political parties can have grave consequences.
Q: On the surface, though, it seems like the government has used a state body to cause a major setback – in the form of a fine of over one million euro – for one of its political opponents, Jobbik.
That’s why the details here are important. In fact, the State Auditor, in the course of a routine audit that all political parties have to undergo, caught Jobbik carrying out what is possibly the biggest case of party financing fraud in Hungary’s democratic history.
According to media reports, Jobbik signed a contract with a company to rent billboard space. The contract says that Jobbik would pay 27.5 million HUF (90 thousand EUR) for space that was in fact worth 129.4 million HUF (430 thousand EUR). If Jobbik failed to pay, then Jobbik would “buy” the actual ownership of 1019 billboard spaces for about 430 thousand euros (129,4 M HUF), but – here comes the twist – would only pay about 90 thousand euros (27.5 M HUF). If it fails to pay the rest, the billboards go back to their original owner after May 31, 2018. When they signed the contract the exact date of the elections was not announced, but it was clear they would be in the spring.
That would mean that Jobbik would receive a billboard space for about 12 euros per month during an eight-month period. Putting that in perspective, the same billboard space would normally go for 370 to 1000 euros per month.
That’s a donation that has a very real cash value and Jobbik did not disclose it properly. According to the law, a party that is caught cheating suffers a fine twice the amount of the value of the illegal financing.
Back in 2013, during the parliamentary debate these party financing rules, Jobbik argued for a penalty twice as high, according to Gergely Gulyás, Fidesz parliamentary group leader. Had Jobbik’s proposal passed the parliament, the party would today be facing a fine double the amount of the current penalty.
Q: But isn’t the head of the State Auditor a former member of Fidesz?
True, however it is also true that during the audit, the second in command at the State Auditor’s office was a member of the Socialist Party. The State Auditor is an independent body, and the government has no authority over it.
Q: Will Jobbik be forced to pay the fine prior to the April 8 parliamentary elections?
No. Minister for National Economy Mihaly Varga instructed the country’s tax authority to delay the collection of fines until after the elections. Gulyás also suggested that the law may be changed so that penalties would be suspended for an interim period of six months prior to the elections.
Q: But why has the State Auditor inspected only Jobbik’s compliance with the rules and not Fidesz’s?
Fidesz was audited as well. The act on party financing (cited above) calls upon the State Audit to look into party finances every second year.
The penalty imposed on Jobbik became news because of the large size of the fine in the case. Other parties were also audited, and the State Auditor found irregularities in those cases as well. But nothing compares to the magnitude of the fraud that Jobbik committed.
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Mar 27, 2018 - Zoltán Kovács
The Soros ‘mercenaries’ working against Hungary
According to a recently uncovered statement by Tracie Ahern, former chief financial officer of the Soros Fund Management, the billionaire financier commands a quasi-mercenary force of at least 2,000 people, tasked with achieving three goals: bringing down Prime Minister Orbán’s government, dismantling the border fence, and promoting immigration to Hungary.
Soros plan soros army Soros network Illegal Migration
The statement marked the latest in a series of revelations of Soros-funded efforts that attempt to influence public life in Hungary and oppose the work of the democratically elected government. Earlier this month, the Jerusalem Post broke a story about how a Soros-funded NGO in Berlin, headed by a Hungarian national, is actively lobbying the German government to apply pressure on Hungary to change laws on NGO transparency. A few weeks ago, I posted on a Hungarian media report about an astonishing revelation that George Soros spent more than 14 million USD in 2017 lobbying the US government against Hungary. We’ve also called attention repeatedly to his Open Society network’s lobbying efforts in Brussels (here and here). Hungarian media also reported on a Soros-funded NGO illegally collecting data on migrants.
Following this latest report, I have called upon these Soros organizations to make public the names of those 2,000 people and list the names of opposition party politicians on Soros’ payroll. The pending legislation that would require greater transparency from foreign-funded organizations that promote pro-migration policies and oppose our government’s efforts to curb immigration will make it more difficult for these activists to work without accountability. Until then, the Hungarian Government will resist all outside attempts to politically influence our immigration policy – a position that has broad popular support – and will apply all means necessary to prevent organizations from performing unlawful political activities.
Though there are at least 2,000 people working against Hungary’s interests, “there is no shortage of such people in Brussels either,” said Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in a Facebook video prior to last week’s EU summit. Their aim is to make Hungary an immigrant country, he said, and “this we shall not allow to happen.”
Prime Minister Orbán reiterated at the summit his government’s firm opposition to the mandatory quota system and any other policy that supports immigration. “As long as I am prime minister, there is no possibility of any such agreement,” he said.
“Europe is full up,“ the prime minister said, therefore we must focus our attention on defending our external borders.
Those who still see immigration of this scale as a positive phenomenon – despite considerable experience that suggests otherwise – have a fundamentally different vision for the future of our country and of Europe. For us, security comes first, and we must stop any organization that promotes illegal migration for ideological or other reasons that have no democratic mandate.
Is Hungary's economy growing?
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Be My Lover - La Bouche
dance 90s eurodance pop techno
"Be My Lover" is a song recorded by German Eurodance group La Bouche. It was released in March 1995 as the second single from their album, Sweet Dreams. It is one of their biggest hits alongside their other major hit "Sweet Dreams". This song was dubbed into many megamix tracks and has had remix versions. It reached number six on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. It also topped the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs for two weeks in December 1995 and hit number one in Australia, Germany and Sweden. Two different music videos were made for this song, a first (European version), which is filmed in the city, and a second (American version), which is filmed in the television studio. The song was played in the 1995 Brazilian soap opera A Próxima Vítima, in the 1997 movie Romy and Michele's High School Reunion, in the 1998 movie A Night at the Roxbury, in the 1999 movie Earthly Possessions, in an episode of the sitcom Step by Step. It was also spoofed as "One Zero 001" on the computers-themed episode of Bill Nye the Science Guy and used in Audition Online Dance Battle as a song. It can be vaguely heard in the background in the "World's Greatest Dick" episode of the 3rd Rock from the Sun, in the Gay Bar that Sally and Harry walk into at the beginning of the episode. In 2003, the song was covered by Hysterie. In 2013, Romanian dance pop singer Inna used the song as inspiration of her original composition also titled "Be My Lover". The song for her third studio album Party Never Ends and released it as an official single.
La Bouche is a Eurodance/Dance-pop duo based in Germany, originally fronted by Black American-German singer Melanie Thornton, who was killed in a plane crash near Bassersdorf, Switzerland, in November 2001. Their most successful hit "Be My Lover" was top 10 across Europe and peaked at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1996. The group was the brainchild of German producer Frank Farian. In 2000, after Melanie Thornton left the group to pursue a solo career. Show more ...
La da da dee da da da da
La da da dee da
La da da da dee da
La da da dee da da da da da
Wanna be me lover
[Verse:]
Looking back on all the time we spent together
You oughta know right now if you wanna be my lover
Wanna be my lover
Go ahead and take your time, boy you gotta feel secure
Before I make you mine, baby, you have to be sure
You wanna be my lover, wanna be my lover, wanna be my lover
Chorusx2
A ha ye heyee wanna be my lover
Girl, yes, I wanna be your lover
Take a chance, my love is like no other
On the dancefloor getting down
Hold tight, I'll never let you down
My love is definitely the key
Like boyz ii men I'm on bended knee
Loving you, not like your brother, aw yeah
I wanna be your lover
[Verse 2:]
I hear what you say, I see what you do
I know everything I need to know about you
And I want you to know that it's telling me
You wanna be my lover
Bridgex1
Oh be my lover yeeeeehhhh.
Until the end of time, wont you be mine on mine,
Oh be my lover, I know you wanna be my love, I know you wanna be miiine.
Oh be my lover, yeeehhhh.
Ice MC
1) Be My Lover
2) Sweet Dreams
3) Where Do You Go
4) SOS
5) Fallin' In Love
6) I Love To Love
7) In Your Life
8) Be My Lover (Club Mix)
9) You Won't Forget Me
10) Be My Lover - Radio Edit
11) Forget Me Nots
12) Do You Still Need Me
13) Sweet Dreams (Radio Version)
14) Rhythm Of The Night
15) Unexpected Lovers
16) Another Night Another Dream
17) Rhythm Is A Dancer
18) tonight is the night
19) Take Me 2 Heaven 2 Night
20) Be My Lover (House Mix)
21) Bolingo (Love Is In The Air)
22) A Moment Of Love
23) Whenever You Want
24) Say You'll Be Mine
25) Be My Lover [1996]
1) La Bouche - Sweet Dreams
2) Culture Beat - Mr. Vain
3) Mr. President - Coco Jambo
4) Real McCoy - Another Night
5) 2 Unlimited - No Limit
6) Dr. Alban - It's My Life
7) Snap! - Rhythm Is a Dancer
8) Corona - The Rhythm of the Night
9) Amber - This Is Your Night
10) Mr. President - Coco Jamboo
11) Ice MC - Think About The Way
12) DJ Bobo - Everybody
13) Haddaway - What Is Love
14) Corona - Baby Baby
15) Whigfield - Saturday Night
16) No Mercy - Where Do You Go
17) Aqua - Barbie Girl
18) Ace of Base - Beautiful Life
19) Gala - Freed from Desire
20) Ace of Base - All That She Wants
21) Masterboy - Feel the Heat of the Night
22) Technotronic - Pump Up the Jam
23) Reel 2 Real - I Like to Move It
24) Scatman John - Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)
25) 2 Unlimited - Get Ready For This
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Exclusive: Bermuda air disaster, 50 years on
50 years after an air disaster here killed 17, their loved ones to make a poignant visit
Simon Jones, Senior Reporter
Follow @SimonJonesSun
Wednesday, January 22, 2014 7:00 AM
JAN 22, 2014: 17 Perish after Two U.S. Air Force planes take off on a routine astronaut recovery practice mission over Bermuda, but collide in mid-air. *Film from buyoutfootage.com
Mid-air disaster: Seventeen US airmen died in Bermuda in 1964 when a US Air Force HC-54 (the model is pictured below left) suddenly banked right and collided with a US Air Force HC-97 (see below right), sheering both its wing and tail section off and sending the two planes careering into the sea off St David’s Head. *USAF photos
When tragedy struck
It was one of the worst incidents in Bermuda’s aviation history, claiming the lives of 17 airmen.
Two US Air Force planes collided in mid-air off St David’s.
The disaster was caught on film by stunned onlookers on the ground who had been tasked with recording the NASA mission.
In happened in June, 1964 and this summer, half a century later, the families of those who were killed will return to Bermuda to remember their loved ones.
It’s likely to be a highly emotional trip for the 20-strong group, who will drop a wreath at the spot where the shattered debris of the two planes hit the sea.
And for Michael Belter, who was just eight when he lost his father Lowell in the crash, it will provide a degree of closure to an incident that is still shrouded in mystery.
Those who lost family members on that fateful day in 1964 have never been told why the two aircraft collided with such disastrous consequences.
All they know is their loved ones died serving their country and taking part in a NASA mission designed to ensure the safe recovery of lunar capsules and astronauts from space.
Son of air crash victim recalls day his ‘whole life changed’
Families of those killed in one of Bermuda’s worst air disasters will return to the island this year to mark the 50th anniversary of the tragedy.
Seventeen airmen died on June 29, 1964, when two US Air Force aircraft collided in mid-air while conducting NASA operations.
Michael Belter was just eight years old when his father, Lowell ‘Mick’ Belter, a radio operator, was killed on board one of the planes.
Left, Lowell ‘Mick’ Belter with sons Doug and Ken at the front of their Blowwinds home on North Shore.
But the devastating events that took place in the air off Bermuda almost half a century ago had a profound and life-changing effect on the Belter family.
Mr Belter hopes the trip he has helped orchestrate this summer will provide some kind of closure for him as well as the eight other family members that will join him in Bermuda.
Mr Belter, who went on to become an officer in the United States Army, said: “There is a sense that we never got closure after the accident.
“And speaking to others who lost family members in the crash many feel the same way.
“It was a very tough time. I remember people telling me that I was the man of the house now and needed to look after my family.
“I remember seeing the planes on the day they crashed. I was out playing with my brother in the sea and as they came past our home on the North Shore they wing-wagged us and we waved back.
“In those days everyone in the military knew where everyone lived on the island — we were a close community.
How the Bermuda Sun reported the crash. The article contained a quote from a former US pilot who described the crash
as a great blaze of fire accompanied by a massive explosion and a huge atom-bomb-type-mushroom cloud of black smoke.
“But my dad did not come home that night. I was told he was missing after an accident. And the next day it was determined he was dead.
“Suddenly my whole life changed.
“My family had been with the Air Force my whole life, and now we were moving back to Pittsburg to live with my aunt Lil.
“I don’t remember much about the day of the accident, but I remember a memorial service at the Base chapel and family members coming over to Bermuda to help us move home.”
Mr Belter Snr, his wife, Jayne, and their four children, Michael, Doug, Ken and Johnna, moved to Bermuda in February 1964.
They lived in an old house called Blowwinds on the North Shore of Pembroke, and the children enjoyed the island life.
But soon after the crash the family were forced to leave and return to the US.
Over the past decade Michael Belter has spearheaded a project to find out what went so tragically wrong to cause the mid-air collision in 1964.
He has organized the memorial trip for families and relatives of the servicemen who died and set up a Facebook page called Bermuda Air Collision – June 29, 1964.
Left, the crash widowed Jayne — pictured with her four children, Johnna, Michael, Ken, Doug, without a father.
Mr Belter told the Bermuda Sun: “We hope to have around 20 people in Bermuda for the memorial in June.
“There are nine members of my own family who will be coming, including my wife and my grown-up son and daughter.
“My sister, my mother’s sisters and my mother’s brother also want to be there.
“But there will also be other guys ranging from servicemen who were at the base at the time and remember the sirens going off in the aftermath of the crash to a retired medic who was part of the rescue and recover operation.”
Through his work, Mr Belter has made contact with a host of former US military families that were posted in Bermuda. He has even been in touch with the ground crewman, Bill Martin, who held up the plane so his father did not miss the fateful flight on June 29, 1964.
Mr Belter said: “My father was running late, and the plane should have left without him.
“But one of the ground crew saw him running down the runway with all his stuff and they held the flight up for him. He helped him get on to the flight and put his flight bag on behind him.
‘Emotional trip’
“I have spoken to Mr Martin and he told me that he thought about letting the flight go without my dad that day, but he did not want my dad to get in any trouble.
“He says he has thought over the years about ‘what if’ he had not done that’.
“I’m looking forward to meeting Mr Martin so we can share experiences and our memories. I’m sure it will be a very emotional trip.”
Michael with his own family in the US.
The group will arrive in Bermuda in June and as part of their trip will charter a boat and visit the site where the planes crashed into the sea to lay a wreath.
Mr Belter has visited Bermuda on three occasions since the 1964 crash and now works as a finance manager for a regional group of power plants in Columbus, Ohio.
He added: “Thirteen of the 17 airmen that died in the collision had wives and children so this disaster had a huge impact on many families.
“My father’s body was never recovered like other servicemen that died that day. And speaking to their relatives they are still haunted by dreams of their loved one being washed up on a beach with amnesia and living a new life.
“We have all been affected in different ways but I hope this memorial trip will provide closure for the families who died 50 years ago, but it will also be a chance for people to reminisce about their time in Bermuda.
“Bermuda will always be a special place in my heart for the fun times an eight-year-old had for about six months to the times I have been on holiday there.”
Gone... but not forgotten
Seventeen crew were killed on 29 June, 1964:
• Major Otto William Boyd, 43, a veteran pilot from San Francisco.
• Major Martin Nisker, 43, from Minneapolis.
• Major John L Mallen from Rochester, NY.
• Major Richard ‘Dick’ F Pendleton, 40, a World War II and Korean War veteran from South Orange, New Jersey.
• Captain Donald H. Aungst, 32, from Overland Park, Kansas.
• Captain Charles C Decker from Columbus, Ohio.
• Captain Harry K.L. Lai from Waniawa, Hawaii.
• Master Sergeant Raymond K. Showalter, 44, from Miami, Florida.
• Technical Sergeant Lowell Mick Belter, 32, from Marion, Wisconsin.
• Technical Sergeant Robert A. Kramer, 36, from Dallas, Texas.
• Technical Sergeant Edward Neal Jr, 34, from Chester, Pennsylvania.
• Staff Sergeant Robert A. Maynard, 33, from Huntington, West Virginia.
• Staff Sergeant Albert Roy Everhart, 30, from Ithaca New York.
• Staff Sergeant Genero J. Gonzalez, 33, from Gatonia, North Carolina.
• Staff Sergeant Alva H. Rankin.
• Airman First Class Ernest E Chavers from Foley, Alabama.
• Airman First Class Larry W Carleton, 22, from Cherry Hill, New Jersey.
HORRIFIC: Left, the dramatic collision was captured on camera and the Denver Post carried this pictured in their report. Above, the seven who jumped prior to the crash are pictured in front of an HC-97 shortly after the accident. *Photos supplied
• Read more: Report shows cause of the collision remains a mystery
Report shows cause of the collision remains a mystery
Diver offers to lay wreath next to plane wreckage
Do you know where these planes crashed?
Families pay tribute to air disaster victims
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Filter: The Man in the Iron Mask
QUESTION: The Three Musketeers are Athos, Aramis, and…?
A) D'Artagnan
B) Porthos
C) Pathos
D) Pierre
Alexandre Dumas is one of the best-loved and prolific authors of the nineteenth century. French by birth, his novels tapped into a love of adventure that inspired translations into almost one hundred different languages. Eventually, two hundred interpretations of his films would also be created over the years. Of course, Dumas' most famous characters are the Three Musketeers, colorful characters who created waves during the reign of Louis XIV. He serialized their stories during the day, including one loosely based on the true story of The Man in the Iron Mask. The "real" man in the iron mask was a prisoner of the king from right around 1670 until his death in 1703. One of the great mysteries of history is who the man was. Dumas contended that he was the twin brother of the king.
Around a dozen interpretations of the story of The Man in the Iron Mask have been made since its first interpretation in 1909, but the one displayed in the Music Room here at the American Treasure Tour is from 1998. Its international cast includes Leonardo diCaprio, Jeremy Irons, Gabriel Byrne, John Malkovich, and even a Frenchman - Gerard Depardieu! The storyline only nominally follows the inspiration of Dumas, with the greatest differences being the character of the king versus that of his imprisoned brother. In Dumas' original, some of the Musketeers actually consider Louis XIV to be a better option as leader than his brother, while in the 1998 film written, directed and produced by Randall Wallace, Louis XIV was presented as evil and dangerous. A financially successful film, The Man in the Iron Mask was crititcally panned. DiCaprio even 'won' a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screen Couple, due to a lack of chemistry between his Louis XIV and his identical twin brother Phillippe. C'est la vie.
ANSWER: B) Porthos. D'Artagnan would have been the fourth Musketeer if there was such a thing.
Tagged: The Man in the Iron Mask, Alexander Dumas, Randall Wallace, Gabriel Byrne, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jeremy Irons, Gerard Depardieu, John Malkovich, Golden Raspberry
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Celebrating the ICC's 10 years of fighting impunity
By Anjie Zheng
Ten years ago, the International Criminal Court became the world’s first permanent international tribunal, dedicated to investigating and prosecuting those responsible for the most serious war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Since 2002, 121 countries, or nearly two-thirds of the United Nations General Assembly, have ratified the Rome Statute to become States Parties to the Court. The Court has carried out investigations in seven countries, undertaken 15 cases, and issued 20 arrest warrants. Among those sought are high-level individuals accused of orchestrating brutal policies of genocide, widespread rape, and use of child soldiers, including Joseph Kony of Uganda, Omar al-Bashir of Sudan and Muammar Gaddafi of Libya.
The current US engagement with and support for the Court reflects a positive shift in US-ICC relations. After the ICC issued its first verdict in March 2012, finding Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga Dyilo guilty of deploying child soldiers under age 15 in armed combat, the US government praised the verdict as historic. Additionally, President Obama established the US's first Atrocities Prevention Board, an interagency, high-level body on mass atrocity prevention, which met for the first time in April 2012. The ICC's tenth anniversary in 2012 underscores not only the progress of the Court, but also the increasing amount of international support for the Court's work.
The Court will use lessons learned from the Lubanga case to speed up and increase efficiency of ongoing and future cases, as Deputy Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda takes over as Chief Prosecutor on June 15, 2012. She will be the first female Prosecutor of the Court as well as the first Prosecutor from Africa.
To commemorate this milestone occasion, AMICC members will be hosting commemoration events across the country, as well as writing blog posts, Op-Eds and Letters to Editors to a variety of media outlets. Please contact us via Twitter or visit our website if you would like more information. For more information on global activities, please visit the ICC’s tenth anniversary website.
Closing Statements Begin in the Katanga and Ngudjolo Case, the ICC's Second
Germain Katanga listens to the OTP's closing statements in the Hague on May 15, 2012.
Photo credit: ICC-CPI
The Prosecutor began closing arguments in the case against alleged Congolese warlords Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui in Trial Chamber II of the ICC today. This is the second ICC case to reach this stage. It is the first case against two jointly accused defendants, and the first to deal with charges of sexual violence.
The defendants are co-charged with seven counts of war crimes and three counts of crimes against humanity allegedly committed against ethnic Hema in Bogoro, a village of the Congo's Ituri region, in February 2003. Katanga was the former commander of the Force de Resistance Patriotique en Ituri (FRPI); Ngudjolo the former leader of the Front des Nationalistes et Integrationnistes (FNI). Both militia were engaged in fighting against the rival Union des Patriotes Congolese (UPC) militia, led by recently convicted Thomas Lubanga Dyilo, in a conflict that devastated the resources-rich Ituri region.
In 2009, when the Katanga and Ngudjolo trial began, the Prosecutor noted it would be the final ICC trial regarding the Ituri conflict. The OTP indicated it would shift future focus to atrocities committed in the Kivu region. Following years of investigation, the OTP filed an arrest warrant application yesterday for Sylvestre Mudacumura, leader of one of the most active militia in the Kivu provinces. The application charged Mudacumura with five counts of crimes against humanity and nine counts of war crimes, including murder, rape, and torture.
Along with submitting an arrest warrant application yesterday, the OTP requested to add more charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes to the arrest warrant against Bosco Ntaganda. Ntaganda was co-accused in 2006 with Thomas Lubanga, yet remains at large.
After the Prosecution's closing arguments in the Katanga and Chui case, the Defense will make closing statements on May 21-23, 2012. The hearings may be viewed on the ICC's official YouTube channel.
ICC in the Media, Update #64
In the last several weeks the media has focused on a range of both old and new ICC situations. Of particular concern has been the ongoing dispute between the ICC and Libya over where Seif al-Islam, Gaddafi's son, should be tried. On a recent visit to Libya the ICC prosecutor learned that Libya has been carrying on its own investigation against Seif which has reportedly yielded "great" evidence. If Libya hopes to succeed in its appeal to have the case remain in Libya, it will have to demonstrate to the judges that it has sufficiently investigated the case and is capable of holding a fair and independent trial. Unfortunately for Libya, the ICC judges rejected its appeal as inadmissible. Representatives from Libya have reportedly insisted that they will continue to push for the trial to be held in Libya, and are continuing to actively investigate the case against Seif. Reportedly Libya's investigations are in "an advanced stage" and are expected to be completed shortly.
In other news, increasing violence and threat of violence in the Democtratic Republic of the Congo has lead to growing international pressure for the government to arrest Bosco Ntaganda and deliver him to the ICC. Recently Ntanganda reportedly mounted a rebellion against the Congolese army and has taken hold of two towns in the east. The government has not commented on how these events affect its ability or desire to arrest and extradite Ntaganda.
In the Kenya case, suspects Kenyatta and Muthaura applied to the judges of Trial Chamber V to postpone setting a date for their trial until their challenge to the court's jurisdiction is finally resolved by the Appeals Chamber. Also in the Kenya case, the East African Legislative Assembly reportedly recently adopted a motion urging the ICC to transfer the cases to the East African Court of Justice. Several days later the East Africa Community Summit resolved to extend the mandate of the EACJ to include crime against humanity, which it did not previously encompass. Critics of the move have pointed out that setting up the EACJ to deal with crimes against humanity would add years of extra delay at best, and at worst a total denial of justice. In the on-going Bemba trial, victim testimony is set to continue. To date there are reportedly 2,744 victims participating in the trial. Finally, the ICC has been closely monitoring the situation in Mali, and is continuing to investigate whether war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide have occurred. The Office of the Prosecutor has not yet determined whether a formal investigation into the matter will be opened. Photo credits: CNN, Capital FM.
Celebrating the ICC's 10 years of fighting impunit...
Closing Statements Begin in the Katanga and Ngudjo...
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Twenty years of trade: Canadians solidly support CETA in 2014; soundly opposed NAFTA in 1993
Two decades after Angus Reid Global first asked Canadians their opinions about the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the trade pact between Canada, the US and Mexico is still dividing Canadians.
However, they are more accepting of CETA, the proposed trade deal between Canada and the European Union. These are the results of public opinion surveys commissioned and conducted by Angus Reid Global.
The surveys asked Canadian adults their views in 1993 and 2014 about NAFTA, and about the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) in 2014. A majority (58%) opposed NAFTA two decades ago, while support for CETA is the majority view (68%) now.
Opinions on CETA:
Nearly seven-in-ten Canadians (68%) say they either strongly (25%) or moderately (43%) support CETA, the yet-to-be-concluded trade deal between Canada and the European Union. Just over one-in-ten (11%) either moderately (7%) or strongly (4%) oppose the pact.
A significant number of Canadians don’t offer an opinion in regards to CETA. In 1993, four per cent of Canadians responded that they were “unsure” about NAFTA. This is five times higher (22%) for CETA, reflecting the lack of public detail about this yet-to-be concluded agreement.
NAFTA: then and now
In 1993, the 58 per cent of Canadians surveyed were either strongly or moderately opposed to NAFTA. Of note, the ratio of strong opposition (39%) over moderate opposition (19%) was 2:1. By contrast, 39 per cent said they were either moderately or strongly supportive of the trade pact between Canada, the US and Mexico. Here, moderate support (26%) doubled strong support (13%).
Just over twenty years later, Canadians are more evenly divided on the benefits and/or harm caused by NAFTA. One-third (34%) say the trade pact has benefitted this country, and about the same number (31%) say it has hurt Canada. Slightly more respondents (35%) say it hasn’t had an impact on the country one way or the other.
Views are more polarized when analyzed by age. Canadians aged 18-34 are nearly twice as likely to point to the benefits of the trade deal as middle aged and older Canadians; middle aged and older Canadians are more likely to say NAFTA has hurt the country.
Competitiveness:
Regardless of their views on individual trade agreements, just over half (54%) of Canadians say their nation is “falling behind other countries” when it comes to international competitiveness, while 46 per cent say Canada is “keeping up with other countries and competing as well as we should be”. This national sentiment is generally mirrored regionally in BC, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada. Respondents in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba hold the inverse view.
Preferred Trading Partners:
When asked which countries or regions Canada should develop closer trade ties to in the future, Canadians put the EU, US and China at the top of their list (37%, 36% and 34% respectively), followed by India (18%), South and Central America (16%) and South East Asia (12%).
Respondents from British Columbia and the western provinces – Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba) were more inclined to look east to Asia Pacific trading partners. Atlantic Canada, Quebec and Ontario respondents preferred the Americas and European countries as trading partners.
Click here for detailed provincial results, charts, tables and methodology
Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)FeaturedInternational TradeThe North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
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Johnson & Johnson faces more than 14,000 lawsuits claiming harm from its iconic talc products. (J&J)
Earlier this year, Johnson & Johnson disclosed that it had received federal subpoenas into its talcum powder products, but the company didn’t say whether the investigations were civil or criminal. Now, Bloomberg reports the company is under a criminal probe at the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Federal investigators are likely looking into whether the company misled the public with statements that its talc has always been asbestos-free, Bloomberg reports, citing legal experts. Amid a swell of talc litigation, documents from the 1960s and 1970s have surfaced showing J&J employees detected asbestos in the product and debated internally about how to respond.
J&J maintains there’s nothing new in the reporting, with a spokeswoman telling the publication it has “been fully cooperating with the previously disclosed DOJ investigation and will continue to do so.”
“Johnson’s Baby Powder does not contain asbestos or cause cancer, as supported by decades of independent clinical evidence,” she added, as quoted by the news service.
Investors saw things differently, sending the company’s shares down 5% Friday after the news. Bloomberg also reports a grand jury has been empaneled as part of the probe.
The company in February disclosed subpoenas from the DOJ, Securities and Exchange Commission and office of U.S. Senator Patty Murray. After a high-profile Reuters report last year that J&J’s talc has contained asbestos, Sen. Murray reached out to J&J CEO Alex Gorsky asking for answers.
As the federal and congressional investigations play out, J&J is also defending against thousands of lawsuits claiming the iconic product caused harm. While J&J has had success defending itself in many cases, juries have hit the company with billions of dollars in verdicts. In the case of each loss, J&J has said it’ll appeal. It’s succeeded in overturning every case that’s made it through appeals, a spokeswoman said last month.
FiercePharma: Pharma
Category: News Tags: criminal, faces, Johnson, over, probe, Report, statements, talc
← In Hawaii, Rat Lungworm Disease Infects People but Eludes Researchers Meet Robin, Stranger Things’ Newest and Best Character →
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Take Your Company From Idea to Seed Funding Under One Roof. Welcome to Startup Hall.
Techstars Seattle used to be located in the South Lake Union, surrounded by Amazon buildings, construction cranes, and food trucks. But in July, we cranked it up a notch, by moving into Startup Hall in the University District. Here is the story and vision behind Startup Hall and why this is the perfect marriage.
In the early beginnings of Startup Weekend in 2010 (Now UP Global) the passionate team lead by Marc Nager worked out of the same office as Founder’s Co-op and Techstars in Seattle’s South Lake Union. But as UP Global expanded, the team behind the success had to relocate. However, already at that point there was a mutual understanding that Founder’s Co-op, UP Global, and Techstars one day should share an office again. The three organisations are natural continuations of each other. Startup Weekend is where your idea is first tested, Startup Next (also by UP Global) helps turn your idea into a business, Techstars helps refine and accelerate your business, and Founder’s Co-op helps with Seed-funding. The three organisations are natural fits and the missions are aligned.
Fast forward to 2013. Chris Devore is invited to join The Economic Development Committee created by the Mayor and Seattle City Council in 2013 with the vision of “creating and maintaining an innovative economy”. On the committee is also Michael Young, President of University of Washington. When Chris and Michael compared notes, they started seeing an opportunity for establishing a partnership. Michael Young wanted to boost commercialization at the University of Washington, and Chris Devore, similarly, had the vision of creating a mini-ecosystem, where entrepreneurs could easily move from hatching an idea all the way to receiving funding. Chris envisioned an area with a high density of academic research, startups, and venture capital firms, not unlike that of his graduate school, Stanford.
Chris Devore, Dave Parker, Marc Nager and I knew we were taking a chance by moving Founder’s Co-op, UP Global, and Techstars away from South Lake Union, but the idea of becoming the first vertically integrated startup hub in the country, possibly the world, that caters to all stages of a business, was too good an opportunity to pass up. In only 8 months, Chris Devore, Dave Parker, Michael Young, and the University of Washington took it from idea to reality. The University of Washington really pushed its boundaries, and was incredibly helpful in making this happen. The University’s Real Estate department cleverly suggested using a, basically, vacated building on campus to create an entrepreneurship powerhouse - Startup Hall.
The 70’s brutalist style building isn’t an architectural gem, but like the startups that it will house, it is a diamond in the rough - a perfect space to get the job of generating the next generation of awesome companies to IPO in the Pacific Northwest. The space creates the perfect environment for startups, and even though it still needs the final touches, a lot has happened in a short amount of time. On the north side of the second floor, it is already buzzing with activity from UP Global and the new Techstars class, and on September 19, the south side of the floor will be rented out to startups.
This unique place will become a bridge between academic research and cutting edge technology, and the opportunities for cross-pollination of ideas creates a very powerful foundation for innovation. All thanks to Michael Young, Chris Devore, Marc Nager, Dave Parker and the University of Washington without whom, this vision would not have become reality.
- Andy
August 25, 2014 by Andy Sack.
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My Work, My Choice Rally
Posted by DSPN, Inc. on October 22, 2013 at 10:46am
Commuters during the morning, noon and night Wednesday will see a rally in Portage in front of Northwoods Inc. of Wisconsin. The My Work My Choice Rally is an effort to bring awareness to a proposed federal rule that would shift funding away from facilities, like Northwoods, that offer job skills training and employment for adults with disabilities.
The proposal from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid would halt Medicaid dollars from going to such programs, based on the argument that they discriminate against the disabled population in a segregated work environment.
"They're saying we're segregated, we don't feel we are, we're part of the community and it's a training place. I like to equate it to when people without disabilities graduate high school: they go on to a training program or college before they start their life's work," said Jeff Aerts. "Northwoods provides specialized training for adults that come out of the special education system and need to have opportunities to learn how to work in a competitive job. There are a lot of people that have been put in competitive employment because of us."
Aerts is the CEO and president of Northwoods, a non-profit facility.
The rally will be in front of Northwoods at N6510 Highway 51 at intervals from 8:30 to 10 a.m.; 11:30 to 12:30 p.m.; and 4 to 5:30 p.m. Free hot chocolate, coffee and cookies will be on site for people who stop at the rally and sign on to a group letter opposing the change. In case of cold weather there will be a canopy and heaters. There is also an "advocacy" tab on Northwoods website for the public to download a letter and send it. Rep. Keith Ripp will be in attendance at about noon, and staffer Camille Solberg will stand in for Sen. Ron Johnson at about 4 p.m.
Lisa Pugh, public policy coordinator for Disability Rights Wisconsin, is one of the groups in favor of the proposal. The office is based in Madison.
"Currently, our system supports an employment model that destines a person with a disability to a life of poverty and an on-going support significantly on Medicaid dollars. This rule says we want states to invest money in a different type of employment support that will allow them to be out in the community, in a more natural setting with people without disabilities because we think it's healthier for the people and an opportunity to earn a wage to reduce reliance on public funding," Pugh said. "The rule is literally about wanting people with disabilities to be in more integrated settings. But, what we're saying is that when people can earn a competitive wage in a community-based job they can use that money in the community, pay taxes, contribute to society in a number of ways and reduce reliance on Medicaid."
Read more AND comment here.
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Alexandria’s Environmental Action Plan
Alexandria seeks comments on its draft Environmental Action Plan, on 10 topics including tree canopy, climate change, energy conservation, air quality and reducing automobile dependency.
Drones in Fairfax County
On May 21, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved the Public Safety Unmanned Aircraft Systems program developed by staff for law enforcement and emergency management operations.
The Future of Claude Moore Park
The National Park Service (NPS), George Washington Memorial Parkway office, is undertaking a planning process to decide on the future of Claude Moore farm area of Turkey Run Park near McLean.
Elect Conservation-minded Officials
Virginians will elect the entire Virginia General Assembly this year and local officials in some jurisdictions. It’s important to elect candidates who support conservation and the environment. Primary elections to elect the candidates for the Democratic Party in all jurisdictions and for the Republican Party in some jurisdictions will be held on June 11. Information on the election and candidates can be found on the website for each county and city.
Fairfax County Community-Wide Energy and ...
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is developing an energy and climate action plan and expects to invite assistance from our local organizations, as Board Chair Sharon Bulova wrote to ASNV, “to encourage community engagement and input . . . it is encouraging that the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia is willing to assist in the creation of the plan.” The schedule and next steps have not been announced.
Fairfax County Community-Wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP)
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and School Board to Form Joint Environmental Task Force
On April 2, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and the Fairfax County School Board formed a joint task force to discuss ways to collaborate on initiatives related to climate and energy, called the Joint Environmental Task Force (JET). Members of both the Board of Supervisors and the School Board will serve on this committee.
Arlington County Adopts Bicycle Plan with ASNV Improvements
ASNV efforts succeeded in convincing Arlington County officials to alter plans for two proposed bike paths that would have run through designated conservation areas in Glencarlyn and Barcroft Parks.
Report Loggerhead Shrike Sightings
The loggerhead shrike, or butcher bird, has seriously declined over the last half century, with current numbers estimated to be only a quarter of what they were in 1966. The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) is currently working to understand what is driving the decline.
Apply for ASNV Conservation Grants
Do you have a great idea for how to improve habitat for birds and other wildlife, but don’t have the funds to do it? Audubon Society of Northern Virginia can help your idea come true. We have budgeted $3,300 for conservation grants for this year, and applicants may apply for all or any part of the available funds.
On February 5, 2019 the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors met to consider whether to remove two proposed bike trails through Huntley Meadows Park in southeast Fairfax County from the County’s Comprehensive Plan and Bicycle Master Plan.
Oppose Development in Arlington County
Last month, ASNV sent comments to Arlington County staff (and Board members) on a proposed Bicycle Element to the County’s Master Transportation Plan. ASNV forcefully opposed two proposed off-street bike trails that would endanger natural resources in Glencarlyn and Barcroft Parks, including Moses Ball Spring, the associated creek to Long Branch Creek, and the globally significant Magnolia Bog. ASNV also opposed widening or adding lighting to the W&OD and Four Mile Run trails in natural areas of Glencarlyn and Bluemont Parks.
Attention Prince William County Members: We Need Your Help!
Prince William County is reviewing its Comprehensive Plan this year. The Comprehensive Plan is vitally important for county planning of amenities such as parks and natural recreation areas. The county has far less parkland per resident than is called for by its own standards, a situation that will only get worse as population increases.
Loggerhead Shrike Sightings
The loggerhead shrike, or butcher bird, has seriously declined over the last half century, with current numbers estimated to be only a quarter of what were in 1966. The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) is currently working to understand what is driving the decline.
More Drones Coming
Fairfax County law enforcement and emergency management staff are drafting an operations manual for using drones in their work. ASNV is participating in the task force drafting the manual. Below is the schedule. ASNVers may wish to speak at some of the public meetings or submit comments.
ASNV Speaks Out for Arlington County Natural Areas
ASNV submitted comments to the Arlington County Board in December on the final draft of Arlington County’s Public Spaces Master Plan (PSMP), which will guide public-space decisions for the next 20 years. ASNV urged the Arlington County Board to consider making the PSMP more unambiguously reflect the need for preservation of natural resources in Arlington County and the need for expansion of natural areas for public benefit.
12 Things to Know About ASNV Conservation Actions
ASNV’s Annual Report, now online, reviews major activities from July 2017 through June 2018, underscoring that ASNV has had a very productive fiscal year.
A Greener Loudoun?
Loudoun County officials are updating the county’s comprehensive plan, a guiding land-use document.
More Native Plants and Habitat
At the initiation of Mount Vernon Supervisor Dan Storck, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on November 20th authorized consideration of a comprehensive plan amendment to include natural landscaping at county facilities in the county’s Policy Plan.
The New Congress
The November 6th election brought a change in party leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives in the 116th Congress. Many Washington observers predict that House committees will conduct more oversight of federal-agency actions.
Localities Request Legislation
Every year, area jurisdictions prepare requests for legislation that they send to the Virginia General Assembly.
Keeping Drones Under Control
ASNV is participating in a Fairfax County drone task force, called the Public Safety Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Task Force, led by the Office of Emergency Management, which is reviewing practices for use of these systems and focusing on how to “effectively and safely implement a UAS program” in the county.
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NYPD Officer Will Not Face Federal Criminal Charges In Eric Garner's Death
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The Jewish Agency / Jewish Social Action / Fund For The Victims Of Terror / Fund For The Victims Of Terror
The Jewish Agency for Israel ©
To contribute by phone in the US: 1 (212) 318-6105
For program support in Israel: +972-3-762 8372 or 8373
The Jewish Agency's Fund for the Victims of Terror offers assistance to individuals and families in Israel who suffer hardship as a result of a terror attack or other national crisis. It offers two categories of assistance: immediate, emergency financial grants to families who have been affected by terror in the past 48 hours, to help them immediately replace damaged material necessities; and grants given in the months or years after an attack, to help victims overcome trauma and establish skills for success. Assistance is coordinated with the government of Israel to avoid duplication of services, and to complement the limited funds provided by government agencies.
After a terror attack, victims and their families often need funds quickly to rebuild what they have lost. The Jewish Agency For Israel helps them fast, providing immediate, direct assistance so that they can start the process of healing – often within 24 hours. The Fund has helped hundreds of Israeli families. Please join us in providing comfort for those whose lives are suddenly overturned by trauma. With your help we can ease their recovery and help them move on.
The Jewish Agency for Israel North American Council is a tax-exempt public charity in the United States under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations are tax deductible to the extent permitted by U.S. law.
Taking kids out of Gaza rocket range
Giving kids respite from the explosions: one day at a time
Jewish Agency aid helps family after rocket hit
A Sderot family was devastated by a direct rocket strike on their home
Toulouse: One Year After
'We cannot bring back your family, but we must learn a serious lesson from the attack'
Collective pledge against terror
Professor Judea Pearl, father of slain journalist Daniel Pearl, speaks to The Jewish Agency
Agency Aids Old City Stabbing Victim
Funds are 'a symbol of solidarity between Jews worldwide and those who are victims of terror in
From Victim to Healer
Tamar Amar-Polak, 28, was once a recipient of Jewish Agency services for victims of terror. Now, she
An Orphan With 300 Mothers
Approximately 300 children ages 6-16 participated over 10 days in the annual summer camp organized
Meeting with Victims of Terror
The Jewish Agency met with several victims of terror and their families in the past week to give
The Jewish Agency Responds to Terror
An Emotional Meeting with a Terror Victim’s Elderly Mother and Israel’s President, Reuven Rivlin
Terror Strikes Our Family
Last week’s terror attack, at a bar in the heart of Tel Aviv, was a tragedy that struck close to
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Tag: paintings
From Richard Mulholland
[Author Richard Mulholland will give a lecture on Ferdinand Bauer and his colour code at the Weston Library on 3 June at 1 pm]
With the end of the annual RHS Chelsea Flower show on Saturday, and the masses returning to their own English gardens inspired, it’s worth looking back to the 18th century, to the golden age of botanical exploration and to an artist who was arguably the finest botanical painter in history, Ferdinand Bauer. Now the Bodleian’s Conservation Research department are helping to unravel his meticulous and unusual painting technique.
Ferdinand Bauer, Iris Germanicus, watercolour on paper (MS. Sherard 245/70) © Bodleian Library, University of Oxford 2015
Outside of the natural sciences, Bauer (1760-1826), is little known. However, along with his equally talented brother Franz, he is certainly known to botanists. He has been called ‘the Leonardo of botanical illustration’, and is known in particular for the beauty and accuracy of his illustrations of flowers. Nowhere is this seen more clearly than in the paintings he made for the exquisite Flora Graeca, one of the most rare and expensive publications of the 18th century, and certainly one of the greatest botanical works ever produced.
Unprecedented in the quality of its illustrations, its printing and its attention to naturalistic detail, the Flora Graeca described the flowers of Greece and the Levant, and was published in ten lavishly-printed volumes between 1806 and 1840, purchased by an elite list of only 25 subscribers. It was the legacy of the third Professor of Botany at Oxford University, John Sibthorp (1758-1796) who funded much of the endeavour out of his own funds. Sibthorp met Bauer in Vienna in 1786, and immediately engaged him to join his expedition to collect and record specimens, and ultimately to paint the almost 1500 watercolours of plants and animals he sketched on his return to Oxford in 1787.
James Sowerby (after Ferdinand Bauer), Frontispiece [Mons Parnassus] for The Flora Graeca, 1806-40, hand coloured engraving (MS. Sherard 761). © Bodleian Library, University of Oxford, 2015
What is of interest to us however is that Bauer used a particularly unusual technique to record his specimens in the field.
Bauer is exceptional among travelling botanical artists for the unusual techniques he employed for recording colour. He certainly observed and sketched live specimens, but he did not annotate these sketches with colour in the field as other artists did. Rather, subject to the limitations of working in the field – moving from place to place quickly in often difficult territory, and unable to carry large amounts of painting materials with him, he made only very basic outline sketches in pencil on thin paper.
He recorded the vital colour information, lost almost immediately after a specimen had been picked by annotating these with a series of numerical colour codes which likely referred directly to a painted colour chart, now lost. That Bauer’s paintings were created using only this colour reference system during his 6 years in Oxford, painting them sometimes up to five years after seeing the original plants, and that they are highly regarded even today for their botanical accuracy, speaks to his expertise as an artist and his astonishing memory for colour.
Page from sketchbook for Iris Germanicus showing numerical colour codes, graphite pencil on paper, 1786-7 (MS. Sherard 247/107). © Bodleian Library, University of Oxford, 2015
More pertinently, Ferdinand Bauer (and to a lesser extent his brother Franz) appear to be the only significant natural history artists to have used this kind of colour code in a practical way. Numerical codes of up to 140 different colour tones are found on early drawings by both Bauers from the 1770s. However, where Ferdinand seems to have continued to develop this initial system of some 140 colours into one of at least 273 colours for the Flora Graeca (and from then into a considerably more complex system of 1000 colours for a later expedition to Australia in 1801-5 – though how he could have used this practically is anybody’s guess), Franz Bauer, who was by then official botanical painter to Joseph Banks at the Botanical gardens at Kew, did not did not appear to use the system after he came to London in the late 1780s. Ferdinand of course, spent a significant amount of his time working in the field, and therefore much more in need of a system of shorthand than his brother. However, it’s interesting to note that no other travelling botanical artist used such a system to the extent that Bauer did.
An early colour chart (below) that appears likely to have been used by the brothers was found in 1999 at the Madrid Botanical Gardens, but Ferdinand Bauer’s 273 colour chart from the Sibthorp expedition and the 999 colour chart he may have used for the Matthew Flinders expedition to Australia, if they ever existed, have never been discovered.
Colour chart (c.1770s) discovered in the Archives of the Botanical Gardens in Madrid in 1999, and likely to have been used by the Bauer brothers © Archivo del Real Jardín Botánico, CSIC, Madrid.
This fact, however, presents a unique opportunity for us to carry out technical research into Bauer’s materials. The Conservation Research department at the Bodleian Libraries together with the Plant Sciences Department at the University are working on a three year Research project on Bauer’s techniques, funded by a Leverhulme Trust Research Project Grant. Collaborating with the V&A, Durham University and the University of Northumbria the project aims to understand what the Flora Graeca colour chart may have looked like, and how Bauer might have used it. A large part of the project involves identifying the pigments used by Bauer in his magnificent Flora Graeca watercolours, cross reference these results with the numerical codes in his field sketches, and ultimately create a historically-accurate reconstruction of the lost colour chart.
Professor Andy Beeby from Durham University setting up a portable Raman spectrometer to analyse red pigments used on one of Bauer’s paintings © Bodleian Library, University of Oxford
How will we do this? Often it is permitted to remove a minute sample of paint from a work of art in order to identify the material components. However this is rarely possible with works of art on paper, and is most certainly not possible for one of the treasures of the Bodleian’s collection! The work therefore is carried out in situ, bringing portable instruments to the object itself, rather than the other way around. For this we currently use three analytical techniques at Oxford: Raman spectroscopy, X-ray Fluoresce spectroscopy (XRF) and Hyperspectral imaging (Imaging spectroscopy).
Durham and Northumbria Universities have particular expertise in Raman Spectroscopy of cultural heritage objects, and Durham has built a portable instrument that is capable of positively identifying many of the pigments that Bauer used. The V&A Conservation Science section has a long history of collaborating with universities on technical research, and also has a great deal of expertise in Raman spectroscopy and its use in identifying pigments on artists’ watercolours.
In addition to the excitement of recreating Bauer’s lost colour chart, the project showcases the value of technical art history, a relatively new field that encompasses both scientific analysis and historical research into the materials and methods of the artist. It will go some way toward an understanding of Bauer’s extraordinary feel for colour and pigment, how he utilised his colour code, and ultimately how he was able to achieve such an impressive degree of colour fidelity in his work.
As we progress with the project, and as we learn more about Bauer’s materials and techniques, I’ll post again with more results. But should you find yourself in Oxford before September, a copy of both the Flora Graeca, and Bauer’s original illustrations for it are on display in the Marks of Genius exhibition at Bodleian’s Weston Library.
Author Andrew BonniePosted on May 27, 2015 Categories Conservation, Manuscripts, Rare books, Visiting FellowsTags graphic arts, paintings3 Comments on Colouring by numbers: botanical art techniques investigated
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« How Are You Really Feeling? | Main | Musical Interlude »
Getting Into the Reading Zone
By Anthony Rebora on March 6, 2010 1:18 PM
Live from the Celebration of Teaching and Learning, New York
I just got back from a talk by Nancie Atwell, a 7th and 8th grade English teacher at nonprofit demonstration school in Maine and author of The Reading Zone, among other books. Atwell told the story of a former student of hers named Mike, an 8th grader who'd been transplanted to her school from California (apparently after a divorce) and who had severe ADHD. When Mike arrived in Atwell's class, he had very little interest in reading and writing--indeed had indicated on a start-of-the year survey that he was a "bad" reader and hadn't read a single book in the previous year. But over the course of the year, while he continued to struggle as a student, he become an adept and engaged writer and reader. He read 26 books, and completed dozens of writing projects--some of which (as presented by Atwell) were extremely clever and well-done. She saw his growth as one of her "small victories" as an teacher.
So what was Atwell's secret? She claims it was simply--or maybe not so simply--a matter of putting the power of independent reading and creative expression at Mike's disposal. She encouraged him to write in a variety of forms--poems, memoirs, movie reviews, parodies--about topics that interested him. (Along the way, she says, "He discovered he could be funny in print"--which she calls a major turning point for many middle school writers.) Meanwhile, she led him to young adult novels that might interest him (staring with one about baseball) and gave him "time to get lost in good stories" in a community of other student readers. This approach, she contends, was more important than plying him with comprehension, decoding, and meta-cognition strategies. As standardized tests show, she said, "the best student readers are the students who read the most." You don't want to discourage the practice, in other words.
With reference to a poem by William Stafford, Atwell described the power of reading and self-expression as a "thread" that language arts teachers must hang on to, despite the doubts of administrators and policymakers. "If we trust in the power in the reading, writing, and our students humanity," she said, "we can never be lost."
Celebration of Teaching and Learning
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Home Unlabelled Lola rennt (1998) Directed by Tom Tykwer
Lola rennt (1998) Directed by Tom Tykwer
Actually I can see very well how someone could watch this movie nowadays and say; so what? By today's standards, it's still being a very original movie but nothing that comes across as anything revolutionary. But you perhaps more need to put this movie and its perspective and go back to 1998 to see and realize how revolutionary and fresh this movie was at the time that it got made at.
The storytelling and its overall style is the main reason why this movie works out and why it's also such a refreshing one. You could say that it's visual style, with its camera-work and editing, inspired many later movies, especially within the action genre, even though this movie by itself is not an action movie.
It's a fast paced movie, that yet feels a lot longer than its 81 minutes. It's because this movie has 3 stories, with each a beginning, a middle and an end to it. These 3 stories however are also all about the same. Basically it's 3 times the same story, each with some minor difference to it, that eventually change the outcome of the story. It doesn't always feel very natural how one small thing can change the faith and outcome of certain people and events but it at least is fun to watch all.
The movie also did another thing; it launched Franka Potente's career. And really, she also is the heart and soul of this movie and mostly has to carry the movie on her own. She did a great job with all of it and her performance is worthy of all the praise.
A very refreshing and even revolutionary German movie, that helped to change cinema.
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The Liberal Democrats march to the sound of gunfire
As the phony election campaign drags on -and on- a huge number of new pollsters from around the world are descending like flies onto the carcass of the 54th Parliament of the United Kingdom. Polls are being published on a daily interval. Like many things these days it seems to be a case of a lot of data but very little information. We still don't feel that we have a very strong sense of what the result of the vote is going to be. Mostly, this is a function of the way the current electoral system warps the result, so that topping the popular vote does not necessarily mean having the largest number of MPs.
Nevertheless the polls are becoming consistent in a few features: Labour is behind- sometimes, it appears, substantially behind- the Conservatives. The Tories are consistently polling at above a third of the electorate, while the Labour Party consistently polls below this, and sometimes not much more than a quarter of the vote. Indeed the pattern is so consistent for so long, it is hard to read the runes in any other way than to forecast that Labour are headed for a thumping the like of which they have not seen since the 1980s.
However, there is another factor to consider, and this is what is making the overall outcome apparently unpredictable. The 1950s saw the two party system reach its zenith, with high turn outs and over 90% voting either Conservative or Labour. It was at this time that we could talk of governments gaining a majority- i.e. more than 50% of the vote- rather than, as now, a plurality- i.e. merely being the largest party. Indeed the fall in support for either Conservative or Labour is one of the most consistent changes over the course of the last ten elections. This is where the distortions of the electoral system become most obvious. Margaret Thatcher could gain a Parliamentary majority of 43 on a vote of 43.9% in 1979. In 1997, however, Tony Blair could get a Parliamentary majority of 179 on just a slightly smaller share of the vote, 43.2%. Indeed in 2005, Mr. Blair could still hold a larger Parliamentary majority- of 67- than Margaret Thatcher gained in 1979, on only 35.3% of the vote.
All of which is to say that the proportion of the vote matters less than the distribution. In Scotland, the Liberal Democrats do proportionately much better than the Conservatives, because the Liberal Democrat vote has historically been concentrated into certain regions, while that of the Conservatives is more evenly disseminated across the country.
So where is this leading?
Well, although many opinion polls should be taken with a whole cart load of salt, it does mean that there comes a critical point where parties can either win or lose a large number of seats on very small changes in the overall vote. There is the possibility that Labour may be in danger of getting into this position now. Although the surprise of the phony campaign has been how resilient Labour has been in the face of the multiple economic heart attacks now afflicting the UK, the story of the campaign itself could be remarkably different.
A reason for this is that one recent, but consistent, trend in the polls is that it looks very much like the Liberal Democrats are going to enter the 2010 campaign at virtually the same level as they finished the 2005 general election: 22.1%. Why is this significant? Firstly, the party nearly always benefits from the greater exposure that fair broadcasting rules allow it once the official campaign gets under way. The fact is that this election we will finally see debates between the party leaders with the Liberal Democrats getting equal billing with Labour and Conservatives. This can only benefit the Liberal Democrats- short of some unlikely utter debacle- simply by showing Nick Clegg to the British electorate in the same light as his party political rivals, Gordon Brown and David Cameron.
So, if the Lib Dems enter the campaign roughly where they finished in 2005, then the party can look forward to an increased level of voter support in 2010. This is not what punters have been forecasting ever since Charles Kennedy was forced to step down just over four years ago.
That begins to make the General Election of 2010 very interesting indeed. The party high command has been extremely astute about the way in which the inevitable "hung Parliament" question- who would you support?- has been finessed. The majority of commentators still cling to the 1950s idea that the ideological battle in British politics ultimately comes down to a choice between old left and old right. They assume that the Liberal Democrats are centrist in this battle, but spend most of their time trying to get an answer to the forced choice question: "are you closer to left or right?". They generally do not understand that the answer is "neither": we oppose the very basis of the question, and with it the two party system that it has created. By saying that -in any event- the choice lies with the voters, not the parties, the Liberal Democrats can now move on to actually discussing why their policies are better- which is what the forced choice question has always stopped them from doing before.
Socialism as a political ideology is bankrupt and has been since at least the end of the Cold War. Tony Blair was only able to win power for his party because he transformed it from being a labour movement representing trade unions to being a vaguely progressive coalition of different social movements. The combination of his own failures in office, not least the Iraq war- and the later advent of Gordon Brown, whose sympathies remained more Socialist, has meant the breakdown of the Blair coalition. Those votes are up for grabs. This is why David Cameron has attempted, only partially successfully, to appeal to former members of Blair's progressive coalition. The problem is that the Conservative brand- indeed the Cameron background- remains unpopular with large parts of the former Blair coalition. It is not the issue of being public school educated- everyone knew that Tony Blair went to Fettes. It is the attitudes of afterwards, and the disconnect between the "Bullingdon" issues plus the Cameron PR background which makes many voters doubt the sincerity of Mr. Cameron's "New Man" credentials (which is why the apparent air-brushing in his poster was such a catastrophe).
So, in fact the 2010 election is turning into a real thriller. Socialism is dead, Brown a liability. Yet Cameron is still seen as insincere and the Conservatives no longer have the novelty interest that they had. Meanwhile the Liberal Democrats vote share could get to the point where they make major rapid progress against both parties, but particularly against Labour.
On the eve of the campaign itself, after the absurd months of the phony campaign, the party is in good heart and ready for the fight. The feedback we are getting from our most winnable seats across the country is very positive. The organisation is in generally very good shape, and money and support is flowing in to the party at an historically high level.
The result could even be beyond our wildest hopes.
2010 election Liberal Democrats Liberalism
Labels: 2010 election Liberal Democrats Liberalism
Joe Kay said…
Grimmond's phrase was marching toward the sound of gunfire. Marching to the sound of gunfire means something slightly different.
Newmania said…
Chris said…
Dear Cicero,
My name is Chris Henry, I'm a reporter from Winkball.com, a video based communication
website, we would like to interview you and get your opinions on the upcoming election. Currently, Winkball is running a campaign called 'Do you know who you're voting for?' It offers every MP/PPC to tell their constituents why they should vote for them.
http://www.winkball.com/users/Election2010/
We are also interviewing political commentators, bloggers, campaigners and high profile individuals:
http://www.winkball.com/walls/Election2010/political_commentato/44801/
http://www.winkball.com/walls/Election2010/political_campaigner/
We would like to add your opinions on the upcoming election.
Chris Henry
Correspondent Corp.
Waterside House
9 Woodfield Road
London W9 2BA
Email:election2010@winkball.com
Reception: +44 20 8962 3030
mattydug said…
loved cable asking the treasury for a meet, had 20 mins and spun it into major story.
all politicians really are the same but that is the way we do politics.
see that the libs have nothing on public debt on their website.
do you think cable will commit?
Not a good name...
Barely worth a mention...
The Taken
Russia begins to rattle
Vince Cable for Chancellor
The Liberal Democrats march to the sound of gunfir...
Calling Time for Parliament
Trading Down
Stands Scotland where it did?
Perth: the Fairer City
Back in the Fair City
A Matter of Trust
What's the big idea?
Taking a Pounding
No Notes but Nothing to Say
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Mary J. Blige Interview THE HELP
by Christina Radish August 10, 2011
The Help, adapted from the best-selling novel of the same name, is one of those films that makes you laugh and cry, and then think of the Oscars. The performances are terrific from everyone, the story is both heartwarming and heartbreaking, and the music is perfectly complimentary. Multiple Grammy Award-winning recording artist Mary J. Blige contributed to the score by writing and recording the original end-credit song, “The Living Proof,” after she was touched when she saw an early screening of the film. Inspired by the women in the story, she was moved by the celebration of courage and wanted to help get the film’s message out to audiences.
At the film’s press day, music superstar Mary J. Blige, who has sold over 50 million albums in her career, talked about how easily the end-credits song for The Help came from her emotional reaction to the film, how she hopes the song gets recognized come award season, the secret to sustaining a 20-year career in the music industry, how she keeps her live performances fresh and exciting for each audience, and how she is finishing up her next album, My Life II: The Journey Continues. She also talked about her desire to do more acting, her upcoming role in the highly anticipated Rock of Ages, opposite Tom Cruise and Julianne Hough, and how she would like her career to follow in the footsteps of Queen Latifah, whose proven that you can do it all. Check out what she had to say after the jump:
Here’s the film’s synopsis:
At the dawn of the Civil Rights movement, 22-year-old Skeeter (Emma Stone) has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss and her mother just won’t be happy until she finds a husband. Aibileen Clark (Viola Davis), a wise African-American maid and caretaker suffers after the loss of her only child. And Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer), Aibileen’s sassy best friend, has a reputation as the best cook in Mississippi, but struggles to find and hold a job. Seemingly as different from one another as can be, these women will nonetheless come together for a clandestine project that will put them all at risk. Through it all, a remarkable sisterhood emerges from their improbable alliance, instilling all of them with the courage to transcend the lines that define them, and the realization that sometimes those lines are made to be crossed.
Question: How did you get involved with The Help? Were you brought in to specifically write a song for the film, or did you wait to decide that until you saw the film?
MARY J. BLIGE: I was brought in specifically to write a song. I was asked to see a screening first, and I saw it twice. I began to write different things down, when I saw the movie. I wrote down when I cried, I wrote when I laughed, I wrote when someone said something, and I wrote different things that jumped out at me. The film and television department at my label asked me to do it, and of course my management asked me to do it. I loved the movie. I cried really hard, I laughed really hard, I got angry, and I went through all kinds of different things. I typed all those things into my phone, and by the time I got to the studio to write the song, it was almost basically written.
Being from New York, how aware were you about what went on in the South during this time period?
BLIGE: Both sides of my family are from Savannah, Georgia, and my aunt was a maid. We used to go down South every summer, and she was the maid for a wealthy white family. I remember her bringing the children to my grandmother’s house to play with us, and I remember the family loving her. I don’t know if she had to use the bathroom outside or anything like that, but I know the family loved her. Just like Aibileen in the movie, she would encourage them. Whatever she would say to them, it helped them through college. They’re grown people now.
What most impressed you with the performances in The Help?
BLIGE: What most impressed me was Aibileen’s courage and Minnie’s strategic plays. At a time like that, they didn’t think she was that smart to use the shit-pie as leverage to get out of that stuff. She was very strategic. All the women did great.
Was this the first time you’ve written a song specifically for a film?
BLIGE: No, this is actually the second one that I wrote that was tailor-made for a film. It’s just that this one is a real situation where it’s being placed where they said it was going to be placed. The first time was Precious.
What was the biggest challenge in writing this particular song?
BLIGE: The only obstacle was me trying not to be literal. I didn’t want to call the song, “You Are Smart, You Are Kind, You Are Important.” I didn’t want to call it, “Chicks that Stick Together.” That was the challenge. The challenge was, “What is it?” So, when Aibileen was fired and walking up the road, I just saw that her journey was going to be long because that was such a long walk she had. She was by herself and she had come to a conclusion that, “I’m free and I’m a writer, so I can speak to my people.” She’s the living proof. She’s proof that you can come out of something terrible and still have the rest of your life ahead of you.
With the state of record companies and record sales, is writing songs for movies the way to go?
BLIGE: Nowadays, with the state of the music business, for any artist, whether you’re up-and-coming or you’ve been in it for awhile, you have to explore different revenues and different ways of expressing yourself. Because this one is closing in and is becoming a place where it’s not about your talent, but it’s about you being a needle in a haystack, or how skinny or fat you may be, or how light or dark you are. It’s really that intense, in this music business, and so many artists don’t get a fair shot because they might be too heavy or too dark. I’m not a writer for movies. This was just a blessing that fell in my lap, just like Precious was a blessing that fell in my lap. I wasn’t beating someone’s door down, saying, “I’ve gotta write a song for your movie.” This is a beautiful thing because all the businesses are suffering, so you can’t just look at it like, “Well, what about me?” You have to look at it like, “Okay, what else can I do?,” so that I’m not beating down someone’s door that don’t want me in. The music business is really, really small. The real music is becoming almost extinct, if you don’t stay true to who you are. This is me staying true to who I am, and this is a place where I actually get a chance to continue to flourish as the artist that I am. A great story in music is missing these days. We’ve got a couple. Adele has got a good story, and that’s what people want. From the beginning to the end, what’s going to happen? By the end, you’re cheering for her.
Is that why you think your career has lasted 20 years now? Is your secret that you know what your story is?
BLIGE: Yes.
Is it easier for you, as a writer, to determine ahead of time what you’re going to write about for an album, rather than trying to figure out what you want to say, song by song?
BLIGE: It’s easier to know what you’re going to do. You have to have a plan. Everything has to be planned. For me, I start with the title of my album, before I even start with the songs. My album is called My Life II: The Journey Continues. And then, it’s about, “What do I want this album to say?” I write down different things that I want it to say, and then the songs come from the different words. You’ve gotta have something to draw from.
When you’ve been in this business as long as you have and you tour all the time, is there something that you do for yourself to keep the performance fresh and exciting for each audience?
BLIGE: You have to create different things, either through lighting or changing the format of the songs and how you’re going to sing them, and even sometimes props. I can go out raw with nothing and my fans would still be happy, but I feel that I owe it to them to give them almost like a Broadway musical, at this point in my life. I have to give them something more, so I do have to think of different ways to do it.
What’s next for you, career wise? Do you want to do more acting?
BLIGE: Yeah, I’m trying some of that. I’m studying really hard. I have my acting coaches and I’m getting better. I don’t know what else is going to come of it, but I’m definitely going to try it.
What is your next acting project?
BLIGE: I’m doing Rock of Ages. That’s going to be fun.
How has it been to prepare for that?
BLIGE: That’s fine. Preparing is just like preparing for anything. I have to find out who this character is. I play a Gentleman’s Club owner, whose name is Justice Charlier. I have to put together who she is. Does she have struggles? Is she going through things? Is she the person that’s always bubbly and strong, but with the most problems? That’s the inner work. So, I have an acting coach and I’m reading books on acting.
Do you have any scenes with Tom Cruise?
BLIGE: I don’t know. I think we have a singing scene together – all of us.
Are you going to coach him with his singing?
BLIGE: I don’t have to coach Tom. He actually sounds really good. He can do anything.
Who are most of your scenes with?
BLIGE: The lead character – Ryan Seacrest’s girlfriend, Julianne Hough. Most of my scenes are with her.
When do you start working on that?
BLIGE: I start filming July 25th, for about three weeks.
What was it like to have the live theater experience?
BLIGE: I did the Off-Broadway play The Exonerated, and I played Sunny. It was good. I was nervous at first, but once I got into the character, by the time I was done, I wanted to kill myself. I’m serious. It was that much of a depressing role. I really didn’t want to live anymore, and I didn’t understand it, but I think it was Sunny’s character. She went to jail for nothing, for 20 years. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, and she had to find the light in such a dark situation. It was about different people that were exonerated and it was the stories of everyone else that were making me depressed. Guys were going to prison and getting raped. It was just crazy.
Would you do it again?
BLIGE: I wouldn’t do The Exonerated again, but I’d do Broadway again.
Are there any singers turned actresses that you’re inspired by and would love to follow the trajectory of their career?
BLIGE: Queen Latifah – that’s it. And, I’m shocked at Justin Timberlake right now.
Do you think this business forces you to make a choice between music and acting?
BLIGE: I think Justin might be loving the acting part of it. I love the music part of it. It’s my baby and my first love. I just want to do this, but do a little of that. Music is where my love is. I don’t think the acting thing is going to start outweighing that, but I think it’s going to start being a good chunk of something I want to do.
Would you like to do a full-blown comedy?
BLIGE: I think I could do comedy.
Have you ever done comedy?
BLIGE: No, but my friends know me for being funny.
Do you have any touring plans?
BLIGE: No, I’m just finishing the album.
When is the album coming out?
BLIGE: Supposedly, October 4th, but I’m trying to get this project right. Based on the title alone, it has to be right. The very first My Life album is just everybody’s favorite, not that I’m trying to beat that first one, ‘cause I can’t.
What was the inspiration for calling this album My Life II?
BLIGE: The fact that we survived My Life. After that album, we were all ready to die. We were ready to jump off a building. Anything to get up off this Earth, we were ready to do. We were very down and depressed. On this one, not only did we learn, but we learned how to regroup and survive. Not that we’re not going to have trials and tribulations or issues, or things like that, that need to be addressed, but now it’s about how to get out of them. I believe there should be no more drama, but it’s everywhere you go. It’s just about how you get out. You’ve gotta bob and weave because it’s everywhere. How do I keep the drama low? It’s about using your head.
Do you hope your song for The Help gets recognized come award season?
BLIGE: I hope so! It would be okay, if it gets nominated. I’m not going to say that I don’t want it to happen. I want it to happen. I really do.
Are there any other musical artists that you would like to collaborate with or do another cover of?
BLIGE: Right now, at the top of my list is Anita Baker, who is a really good friend and almost an angel to my career. I did something with Bono and U2 already. That was a dream come true.
What was it like to work with Anita Baker on your BET Awards performance?
BLIGE: She’s so humble. She’s one of the people in the music industry, out of the older generation, that’s not mean. Patti [LaBelle] is sweet, too. Patti and Anita are just very, very sweet people. They just have a youthful spirit and they’re very humble. Anita just kept saying, “I’m thankful. I’m grateful.” I was like, “Stop bowing. You’re the reason why I’m standing here, right now. It’s your song, ‘Caught Up in the Rapture,’ that I sang at the Galleria Mall that I gave to (record executive) Andre Harrell.” She’s beautiful.
What’s it like to have so many young people look up to you, in the way that you look up to Anita Baker?
BLIGE: It’s beautiful. It’s the real blessing. They like you, so you have to like you. You’ve just got to show them that you love them and you want them to move on and end up, 20 years from now, having to open their arms and embrace a younger generation. Whatever you want them to be, you have to be an example. When I met Ashanti, a long time ago, I just opened my arms and held her because I knew what I was to her. When I met Beyonce or Alicia Keys, or any of the girls, I’ve always been smart enough and loving enough and thankful enough to know that I’m an inspiration to them, so why would I be mean or nasty to them?
Do you mentor anyone in the younger generation?
BLIGE: No, I’m not mentoring anyone. If they called me or asked me a question or needed my help, I would do that, but I’m not a mentor. I have a foundation, where I mentor girls. I have a center in Yonkers, where I grew up, called the Mary J. Blige Center for Women. There’s a GED program there, there’s a child care system that takes care of their children when they’re trying to get jobs, there’s a computer room, we’re going to put a fitness center there too, and stuff like that. We’ve already sent 25 women to college on four-year scholarships, and we’re set up to send 25 more women. We’re a baby in this, but that’s my mentorship.
When the What’s the 411? album came out, did you have a vision that you would still be in this business, 20 years later, or do you just feel blessed to be at this point?
BLIGE: I always knew. No, I’m just kidding. I didn’t have a clue. During the What’s the 411? album, it was a big blur. Right now, I’m so thankful. It does not have to be this way. I don’t have to be here right now, and still be relevant to the new generation. It’s just crazy.
How long do you see yourself doing it?
BLIGE: For a little while longer. When it’s over, it’s over, but it’s not over yet. I don’t know. I’m not going to put a number on it. People can say, “Oh, we love you. We need you. We want you.” When it shifts, you know. When that happens, I’m hoping that my entrepreneurial side will have me at a place where I don’t have to do anything. That’s what I’m striving for.
Morgan Freeman to Play Despised Ex-Magician in NOW YOU SEE ME
Eddie Murphy to Voice HONG KONG PHOOEY
• Entertainment • Interview • Mary J. Blige • Movie • Rock of Ages • The Help
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JET STREAM SHIFT MET OFFICE PAUL HOMEWOOD UK DROUGHT FORECAST 2012 UK SUMMER FORECAST 2012
Paul Homewood: Met Office’s Private Briefing Document For The Environment Agency
Tuesday, April 9th 2013, 3:27 PM EDT
Here is part of a great blog from Paul Homewood concerning the Met Office’s Private Briefing Document For The Environment Agency....below is his section on the location of the Jet Stream, regular readers of Piers Corbyn would know the answer to this issue....
Following the wet summer in the UK last year, the Met Office provided the Environment Agency with a briefing document, giving an overview of the weather. This was discussed at the September Board Meeting of the Environment Agency, which Met Office officials attended.
As far as I know, this document, which I obtained through FOI, has never entered the public domain. It is brutally honest in admitting how little the Met’s scientists understand about what affects our climate, and, in particular, what caused the unusual weather last year. This is in stark contrast to many of the hyped up claims, made in public statements in the recent past by, among others, the Met Office themselves.
The full document is reproduced below, but there are four particular areas I wish to focus on.
....2) Jet Stream Changes
It is now well known that that last year’s wet weather, (and the drought that preceded it), was the result of changes in the position of the jet stream. The Briefing Document has this to say:-
What is causing this summer’s wet weather?
The jet stream has been displaced southwards compared to its climatological summertime position. The jetstream is the fast-moving ‘river’ of air at altitudes of around 30,000ft which forms in the mid-latitudes at the boundary between the cold air surrounding the poles and the much warmer air in the tropics. It usually runs from west to east, and acts to develop and steer the low pressure systems which are responsible for much of the UK’s rain. On average, these systems pass to the northwest of the UK, and hence northwestern parts of the UK – particularly higher ground such as in Western Scotland and Cumbria – receive the most rain.
However, when the jetstream dips to the south of the UK, the distribution of rainfall is skewed away from the climatological average, and southern areas can see periods of significantly above average rainfall and associated higher risk of river and surface water flooding. Not only do the low pressure systems steer across southern areas, but the following factors act to increase the risk of heavy rain and flooding:
· different prevailing wind direction means that different windward slopes will be subject to enhanced rainfall
· the frequent southerly to easterly component to the airflow means that warm, thundery air from the near Continent may be drawn towards the UK, increasing the potential for heavy rainfall
· fronts are more likely to become slow-moving, giving persistent rain in some areas
· between the low pressure systems themselves, the dominant low-pressure (‘cyclonic’) environment is conducive to formation of heavy showers during summer. Again, these may be slow-moving, with an increased risk of intense downpours and surface water flooding.
Low pressure systems of this nature are unusual in summer and because the atmosphere is warmer it can hold more water than in other seasons resulting in significant amounts of rainfall.
The $64000 question, of course, is why has it moved. The Met Office are admirably frank. They admit they do not have a clue. This is what they say:-
The jet stream, like our weather, is subject to natural variability – that is the random nature of our weather which means it is different from one week, month or year to the next. We expect it to move around and it has moved to the south of the UK in summertime many times before in the past. It has, however, been particularly persistent in holding that position this year – hence the prolonged unsettled weather.
This could be due to natural variability – a bad run of coincidence, if you will – but scientific research is ongoing research to investigate whether other factors at play.
Factors which might contribute include:
· North Atlantic Sea Surface temperatures are warmer than normal. These can drive low pressure during summer over NW Europe, and have been a consistent feature of the last five summers (June, July August), all of which have been wetter than the climatological average for 1971-2000;
· It has been suggested that the decline of Arctic Sea Ice may drive low pressure over the UK, although this remains very uncertain at present. Record loss of summer Arctic sea ice cover has also been a consistent feature of the last five summers;
· Recent summers have been under the influence of La Nina-type forcing from the tropical Pacific. Although the tropical East Pacific has warmed in recent months and there are indications of a transition to El Nino conditions, the recent weather patterns in the tropical Pacific are still representative of La Nina conditions, with very disturbed weather over Indonesia and the West Pacific. La Nina drives an increased risk of low pressure over the UK and predisposes the jetstream to shift southwards.
· There is evidence that the circulation changes over the UK are part of a pattern of changes which circumnavigates the whole of the northern hemisphere mid-latitudes.
So, while they are researching various factors, they actually have no evidence on any of them, and certainly none which can link jet stream changes to “climate change”.
But none of this appears to have stopped Julia Slingo telling the Telegraph “The trend towards more extreme rainfall events is one we are seeing around the world, in countries such as India and China, and now potentially here in the UK. “
Or head of the Environment Agency, Lord Smith, informing us “We are experiencing a new kind of rain. Instead of rain sweeping in a curtain across the country, we are getting convective rain, which sits in one place and just dumps itself in a deluge over a long period of time.”
Or DEFRA warning us that “The climate is changing. This means we are likely to experience more flooding”.
Source Link: notalotofpeopleknowthat.wordpress.com
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Home Friday on My Mind A degree of merit
A degree of merit
Bob Wilson February 26, 2016 February 26, 2016 Friday on My Mind
(Photo of Lee Mylne by Tommy Campion)
For reasons which may suggest the mind is searching for mental challenges, I have been admiring the initiative of a dozen or so older people who have chosen to go (back) to university. In some cases they are university virgins, spreading their intellectual wings for the first time, post-children, pre-retirement.
Others are going back, 20 or 30 years after their first degree, to take on post-graduate study. The concept of mature age study has been around a long while, but statistics suggest the incidence of older people taking on academia is rising. The Australian Bureau of Statistics says one million Australians aged 25-64 were engaged in study last year, compared with 780,700 in 2004. Merryn Dawborn-Gundlach, a lecturer from the University of Melbourne’s Graduate School of Education, completed a PHD on how mature-age students transition into their first tertiary degrees. Mrs Dawborn-Gundlach told The Age mature age students were motivated by the push for lifelong learning. “These days you don’t have the same job for life, you retrain.”
More than 40% of mature-age students in the study said they found juggling work and study a challenge, and around 60% experienced “a general feeling of stress.”
An expensive learning curve for some
I took on university for the first time aged 30. I’d left school at 15 so was full of trepidation about the challenges ahead. Luckily the academic year was split into four terms, so by Easter I had enough results back to suggest I could finish an Arts degree.
What set me on this subject was a Facebook post by freelance travel journalist Lee Mylne, a former Daily Sun colleague. Lee (pictured above) told her friends this week she was going to university after “many years.”
She was accepted into QUT’s professional doctorate program and in three years will graduate as a Doctor of Creative Industries (Journalism). What surprised me (and Lee) was the enormous amount of support and encouragement from friends; it seems more people would do it if they could afford it.
There is a fair bit of government support out there for study initiatives, including student loans, scholarships and funding for research degrees. For example, a Commonwealth scholarship in 2014 paid just under half the cost of a humanities degree (totalling $11,574), according to data in a piece by Chris Pash in Business Insider. Subsidised or not, it is a big financial and lifestyle commitment. My niece has ventured back into academia, looking to expand on her facility for languages. But at $2000 a subject she is reconsidering.
“Academia has gone through some serious changes in the past 12 years since I last studied. Not only do you have the regular essays/presentations, you also are marked on your contribution to online blogs on the weekly topic, adding to the weight of work you have to do. Everyone can see what you write and everyone can critique what you write, and it can’t just be an opinion piece, you have to cite it.”
Back in my day, oh aye
Wind the clock back 35 or so years and the first and best thing I did at university was a touch-typing course. No email or internet research in my day! Just typing and re-typing.
Luckily there was a coterie of mature age journalism students in the first-year intake at the University of Southern Queensland.
After a week or two it started to feel like home and there was the undoubted bonus of studying Australian literature with Bruce Dawe.
It was a bit of a (financial) struggle). I had a permanent debt at the university book shop and was paying off a large dentist bill at $20 a week. But for those of us who went to university in the late 1970s and early 1980s, tertiary education was still free. As music journalist and USQ graduate Noel Mengel says: “My kids would be outraged.”
In the early days I met Kev Carmody in the university library. I knew Kev from the local folk club where he played in a bush band and had lately started singing his own songs. In the late 1970s libraries were still using index cards. Kev says he had no idea how to take a book out of a library, so he sat there reading a book, quietly watching how people went about using the catalogue system.
You’ll get some sense of this Aboriginal man’s strength of character in the documentary Songman which is being shown on ABC TV on March 15. We had a preview at his live concert in Brisbane last month.
A learned foot in the door
There’s a lot to be said for acquiring some life experience and then going for an education. There was initial resistance inside daily newspapers to the idea of academic journalists. The old school, who had started as copy boys and served lengthy cadetships, resented the slow but steady influx of graduates.
By the mid-1990s, newspaper editors were starting each year with a pile of applications from bright young things, all of whom had at least one degree. Even with a Gap Year thrown in, new graduates emerge from the system aged 20 or 21, well-educated but light on life experience.
Mature age students benefit from having acquired some life skills and wisdom, but more importantly, if you are going to university aged 29 or 30, chances are you will be 100% committed to achieving your goal.
While technically not a mature age student, Noel Mengel went back to uni after working for three years in magistrate’s courts in the Queensland public service.
“I realised I was never going to get part-time study done,” he said. “And I had a disturbing vision of winding up as a country town solicitor.”
Noel recently left The Courier-Mail after 25 years as one of the country’s leading music writers. Along the way he wrote an award-winning book (RPM), played in rock bands and still does (The Casuarinas) and his name is frequently on the lists of judges for music industry awards.
Kev Carmody went on to become an internationally known songwriter with six albums to his name, a tribute album (Cannot Buy my Soul) and a collaboration with Paul Kelly, From Little Things Big Things Grow, which as Kelly remarks in Songman, became universally known without ever being played on radio.
Carmody was and still is an important voice for his people. There will be those who would say he would have achieved all that and more without having to go to university. But then we’d not have the wonderful story about his debate with the University of Queensland over parking fines, land tenure and who owed who money!
Is there a doctorate in the house?
Meanwhile my 40-something friend Kelli is on the cusp of graduating with an honours degree in occupational therapy, some new young friends and no regrets.
“I found it agonisingly difficult at times,” she said. There are commitments and expectations for a mature age student that simply aren’t there for most school-leavers. The other issue is I now have a whacking-great debt to the government which may or may not be paid out before I die.
“But I’m an infinitely more balanced person for having completed this study, although apparently I’ve now lost my mind entirely and intend to pursue a PhD!’
“My kids said ‘Mum, didn’t you tell us that if you started talking about a PhD then we should talk you out of it?’…
“Why yes, I did, but don’t worry about what I said then….”
arts degree, Bruce Dawe, free education, Kev Carmody, Mature age students, Noel Mengel, university. Bookmark.
Bedside manners
Richard Tommy Campion
Nice piece Bob, and a bit different. Well done.
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Home / 2016 / December (Page 2)
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Manufacturing in the Third Industrial Age
by Jörgen Eriksson on March 10, 2013
THE first industrial revolution began in England in the late 18th century, with the mechanization of the textile industry. Cloth previously done laboriously by hand in hundreds of weavers’ cottages were brought together in a single cotton mill, and the factory was born. Productivity increased and prices were reduced.
The second industrial revolution came in the late 19th and early 20th century, with the age of mass production. The first two industrial revolutions made people richer and more urban. Now a third industrial revolution is under way and it will mean a new paradigm shift.
The new industrial revolution means that manufacturing is going digital. This could change not just business, but also the way we live and how we use our scarce resources.
A number of remarkable technologies are converging, such as smart software, new materials, more flexible machines and robots, new processes like 3D printing and a whole range of inter-connected, web-based services.
The factory of the past was based on economies of scale, making large series of identical products. Henry Ford once said that car-buyers could have any color they liked, as long as it was black.
But with the new software and manufacturing technologies, the costs of producing much smaller batches of a wider variety, with each product tailored precisely to each customer’s requirements and taste, is falling.
The factory of the future will focus on mass customization and may look more like those weavers’ cottages before the industrial revolution than on Henry Ford’s assembly line.
Towards a third industrial age
The old way of making things involved taking lots of parts and screwing or welding them together. Now a product can be designed on a computer and “printed” on a 3D printer, which creates a solid object by building up successive layers of material. The 3D printer can run unattended, and can make many things which are too complex for a traditional factory to handle. In time, these amazing machines may be able to make almost anything, anywhere, from your shoes and clothes to your garage and your new car. ´
In the news last week it was reported that the burlesque performer Dita Von Teese had performed in a dress made by 3D printing. The dress looked like a cross between the beautiful robot and the art nouveau buildings from 1920s movie Metropolis. Not surprisingly, one of the dress’ designers was an architect.
The applications of 3D printing are especially mind-boggling. The geography of supply chains will change. An engineer working in the middle of a desert who finds he lacks a certain tool no longer has to have it delivered from the nearest city. He can simply download the design and print it on his portable 3D printer.
Other changes will be equally important. New materials are lighter, stronger and more durable than the old ones. Carbon fibre is replacing steel and aluminum in products ranging from airplanes to mountain bikes. New techniques let engineers shape objects at a tiny scale.
Nanotechnology is giving products enhanced features. Genetically engineered viruses are being developed to make items such as batteries and will maybe also replace penicillin. And with the internet allowing ever more designers to collaborate on new products, the barriers to entry are falling. Hierarchical organizations are being replaced by networks.
The capitalists of the second industrial revolution required large investments in capital to build their factories. In the third industrial age, an innovator can start with a laptop and a drive to invent. Not long ago I visited a company in a rural area of Sweden that designs a new generation of solar panels. The company was based in the founders home and manufacturing was contracted in China, with products being delivered to the end customers directly from the factory.
Like all revolutions, this one will be disruptive. Digital technology has already fundamentally changed the media and retailing industries. Most future jobs will not be on the factory floor but in the offices nearby, which will be full of designers, engineers, IT specialists, logistics experts, marketing staff and other professionals. The manufacturing jobs of the future will require more skills. Many dull, repetitive tasks will become obsolete: you no longer need machine operators when there is no mass production assembly line.
The revolution will affect not only how things are made, but where. In recent decades production from the rich world has often moved to low-wage countries to reduce labor costs. But labor costs are growing less and less important. Offshore production is increasingly moving back to rich countries, both because wages are rising in the BRIC countries and also because companies now want to be closer to their customers so that they can respond more quickly to changes in demand. In a world where everything goes faster and faster, close location is again a key competitive advantage.
Consumers will have little difficulty adapting to the new age of better products, swiftly delivered. Governments, however, may find it harder. Their instinct is to protect industries and companies that already exist, not the upstarts that would destroy them. Governments will continue to provide old factories with subsidies and bully capitalists who wants to move production abroad. This winter I have seen many examples of this in the news flow in France where I live. None of this makes sense.
The lines between manufacturing and services are blurring. Aircraft manufacturers no longer sells jets. They or their intermediaries sell the hours that the aircraft is propelled through the sky. Governments have always been lousy at picking winners, and they are likely to become more so, as entrepreneurs make designs online, turn them into products at home and market them globally from their garage.
As the revolution rages, governments should stick to the basics: better schools for a skilled workforce, development of branding factors to attract talents and investors and clear rules and a level playing field for companies of all kinds. Leave the rest to the innovators.
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Tagged as: 3d printing, third industrial age
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Labeling lies and knowing minds
I don't have super strong feelings about whether news outlets should use the word 'lies' to describe Donald Trump's lies. As long are they're super clear about how he's saying that p even though p is false, that seems to me to be the important thing. The controversy over whether to use the 'L-word' doesn't really interest me all that much.
That said, I did find it pretty interesting to read NPR's description of why they don't call Trump's lies 'lies'. The basic thought is this: in order for something to be a lie, it has to be said with an intent to deceive. So in calling something a lie, one is in part making a claim about the intentions behind it. As NPR's Mary Louise Kelly puts it: "without the ability to peer into Donald Trump's head, I can't tell you what his intent was. I can tell you what he said and how that squares, or doesn't, with facts."
This is an epistemological claim—a skeptical one. It's often tempting to say that you can never really know what someone is thinking, because all you really have to go on is how they behave. But skeptical temptations are funny things, and there's probably good reason to resist a lot of them a lot of the time. For example, notice that it's also tempting to say that you can never really know anything about the future, since it hasn't happened yet, or that you can never really know historical facts, since you weren't personally there. At an extreme, Descartes famously argued that you can never really know anything about the external world, since you might be the victim of an evil demon who is manipulating your senses in a way that doesn't correspond to reality.
These skeptical arguments do carry some intuitive force, but most of us—us epistemologists, and us people who do things in the world—are committed to their being wrong. You and I know lots of things about the external world. I know that my dog just left this room, for instance. We know many things we didn't see for ourselves, but instead rely on others to inform us about. For example, I know that Donald Trump fired Sally Yates today, even though I wasn't there. (I read about it via news websites.) We know many things about the future. For example, I know that I will give a lecture on rationalism in the morning. Do you know how you'll get to work tomorrow, or when you'll next see your best friend? I am confident that many readers do.
We also know many things about others' minds. I know that my dog noticed that squirrel—this is manifest from her behaviour. (If you ask me, "did she notice the squirrel?" I will say "yes"; I won't say "there's no way to tell without seeing into her soul".) I know, of some of my friends, that they are terrified by the Trump administration. I know about some people's romantic feelings towards other people. When I watch someone at a sports bar, I often know which team they want to win. When I watch someone struggling with their arms full of groceries fumbling around with their keys, I know what they're trying to do.
There are certainly interesting questions about how we're able to tell what people are thinking and feeling and trying to do, but there's nothing inherently mysterious or spooky about the idea. ("Mind-reading" is an active and lively area of study in psychology and philosophy of mind.) One of the traits of autism is a kind of difficulty in knowing others' minds—conversely, the ability to know others' minds is neurotypical. To use Kelly's term, we really do, in an important sense, have "the ability to peer into someone's head".
To be sure, I can't always tell what someone is thinking. Sometimes they're not giving the kind of outward signs it would require for me to tell. Sometimes I even go wrong, misattributing a mental state to someone. A con artist might deceive me about what they're trying to do, for instance. But this kind of possibility of ignorance or error does not mean we cannot often have knowledge of people's thoughts and feelings. (After all, it's possible to go wrong with our perception, too.)
So I don't think we should take our reluctance to ascribe knowledge to people's inner lives very seriously. If NPR doesn't want to say Trump is lying because it would be unhelpfully inflammatory, I have no problem with that decision. But the line that in general you can't know what's in someone's head is just bad epistemology.
It's also inconsistently applied. I took a look through a number of recent NPR stories, to find examples of reported claims that imply something about someone's inner life. It turns out, there are lots of examples where NPR seems willing to make claims that would require "peering into someone's head". Here are a few:
Frauke Petry's "political allies are worried enough to have taken stances against migrants and the European Union that sound a lot like AfD's positions." Worry is a feeling. Is NPR able to peer into the heads of those allies?
"In response to the order, in Chicago, all remaining detainees were freed after being detained by Customs and Border Protection agents at Chicago O'Hare International Airport Saturday." Here NPR is making assertions about why some people did some things. This depends on their thoughts. What makes NPR so sure that they didn't ignore the order and just coincidentally happen to free them at that moment?
"Now many listeners want to know why Kelly didn't just call the president a liar." But to really make this claim one would have to be able to discern the listeners' true intentions. (Maybe they're just asking for NPR to answer that question, but don't want to know the answer!)
"It'll soon be the Year of the Rooster, and Yuan Shuizhen is preparing chicken feet in her tiny kitchen for the big meal." The reporter can see her preparing the chicken, and they can see where she's doing it, but can they see what she's doing it for? This depends on her intentions.
"Obama oversaw a nation at war every day of his eight-year presidency... However, he tried to deploy a small U.S. military footprint, and the limited air campaigns in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and elsewhere emphasized restraint and patience." In saying that he tried to do something, NPR makes a claim about his inner thoughts; by the standards Kelly articulates, they should have said that Obama took military actions that some people interpreted as an attempt to deploy a small footprint.
"Federer watched the replay on the tournament screen, and leaped for joy when it showed his last shot was in." NPR seems willing to peer into Federer's head to divine the emotion behind his leap. If they were being more careful, they might have said that he leapt in a way similar to the way that joyful people sometimes leap.
Trump "joked that the senior staff standing near him for the signing had 'one last chance to get out' before they would have to stick to limits on lobbying laid out in the directive." Whether this was a joke depends on the President's intentions.
"Trump knows that many parts of Obamacare are popular with the white, working-class voters that put him in office." Knowledge requires belief, and belief depends on one's internal attitudes. Indeed, this knowledge ascription like it might imply enough about Trump's inner life to render certain possible actions (e.g., asserting that no parts of Obamacare are popular with those voters, lies). So if it's possible to know things like this, it should be possible to know about some lies.
My point isn't that any of these are unreasonable ascriptions. They seem perfectly natural, and I think that's right and good. But they reflect a commitment to anti-skepticism about others' minds. Kelly's claim that as a rule, NPR doesn't report on people's thoughts, is false. NPR is employing a more complicated practice—often, they tell us what people are thinking or feeling or trying to do, but not when it comes to whether the President is trying to deceive. This is not a good justification for declining to call things lies. Maybe there's a different good justification, but this isn't it.
Posted by Jonathan Jenkins Ichikawa at 1/30/2017 11:04:00 PM
Labels: applied epistemology, epistemology, lies, mental states, news, NPR, other minds, Philosophy, politics
Aaron, IL 2/02/2017 11:23:00 AM
Are you aware of the term "principal of charity"?
Could that be a good reason not to call misstatements of facts "lies", even if you "know" (read: believe), in your commitment to anti-skepticism, that the statements are lies?
Could it further be the case that Mary Louis Kelly, in her commitment to the principal of charity and in absence of knowing the Trumpster's intentions, chose to use the words she did?
Could it further be the case that neither NPR nor Kelly ever made the claim that "as a rule, NPR doesn't report on people's thoughts"? And that your claim that Kelly claimed as much is false?
The cited article makes it clear that what is at issue is not "thoughts in general" but the "deceptive intent".
Jonathan Jenkins Ichikawa 2/02/2017 12:15:00 PM
Thanks for your comment Aaron. I certainly agree that Kelly is choosing her words carefully—she gives a pretty specific justification for them. In that spirit, I'm expressing a disagreement with it.
I actually think the principle of charity is super interesting in this context. In many ways in which it's developed—certainly in the seminal work by Donald Davidson on the topic—the principle of charity is a matter of ascribing beliefs in a true or reasonable way. So the principle of charity would have it that as a general rule of thumb, people know what they're talking about. That's exactly the opposite of the assumption NPR is making. They are being deliberately skeptical with respect to whether Trump knows what he's doing. I am questioning the motivation for that. And I think the principle of charity works in my favour. But maybe you have a different understanding of the principle of charity?
You are right that I am interpreting their motivation as instance of a broader epistemic stance about thoughts in general. It seems to be the one suggested by the text, but you're right that they're not super explicit about this. So I guess one good next question would be whether there's reason to be skeptical in particular about deceptive intents, in a way that doesn't apply to thoughts in general. Did you have an idea for why this might be?
"These skeptical arguments do carry some intuitive force, but most of us—us epistemologists, and us people who do things in the world—are committed to their being wrong."
I'm a simple armchair philosopher, but I don't understand why so many philosophers are dedicated to proving Descartes wrong. I see arguments proposing when it is "appropriate" to claim to know something (e.g. Justified True Belief,) but they all seem to be inadequate on closer examination.
From what I've observed, in common use the word 'knowledge' means, "I believe [x] to be true to the extent that I no longer question [x's] truthfulness." Knowledge is simply a stronger form of belief, not something that is separate and distinct from belief.
Why is this not sufficient? Is it because it feels unsatisfactory to admit we don't have knowledge?
There's a lot to say here. I think that knowledge is deeply tied up with action and reasons—so the idea that we don't know anything is tantamount to the idea that we have no reason to do anything, which is a pragmatically disastrous conclusion. But that's controversial.
Maybe this is a useful thing to say in this context. Even if we don't literally know most of the things we take ourselves to know, it's still very important to credential some kinds of claims as established or secure in a way others aren't. Like, if you're a media outlet like NPR, you don't just publish whatever pops into your head, or whatever you overheard somebody say. You're only supposed to publish stuff that X. I think X="you know", but everybody who believes in the idea of journalistic standards should think this is true for some kind of epistemic X.
So you don't actually have to run the argument, as I did, in terms of knowledge. Do it in terms of X if you like. It seems like often, outlets like NPR feel comfortable saying lots of things about people's inner states—so they must think those claims have X—but it seems like they think deceitful intentions aren't like that. My question is: why the disanalogy?
Coming back again to the original question, this is one reason I really do think it's more harmful than people sometimes assume to capitulate to skepticism. If we say one doesn't know anything, it can feel like a short and tempting step to say that all beliefs are equally good. But this is a disaster. To deny this is to establish some epistemic criterion short of knowledge. Fine, go ahead and do so if you like. But a lot of the arguments given in terms of knowledge will be translatable into that framework.
Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. I really do appreciate it. For the record, I don't have any objections to the theme of your article wrt NPR's justification, but I have long wondered why professional philosophers are so dismissive of skepticism. The arguments I've read against it have been rather unsatisfactory. I hope you don't mind that I took the opportunity to question you about something that is not directly related to your post. (And if you choose not to continue this discussion, I totally understand.)
"...so the idea that we don't know anything is tantamount to the idea that we have no reason to do anything..."
Ahh... I see what you're saying. I disagree with this assertion, as for me belief in something is sufficient reason to act. For example, I don't *know* I'll die if I step in front of that train, but I believe I will; therefore, I choose to not step in front of the train. Knowledge is not required for me to function in the world.
"Like, if you're a media outlet like NPR, you don't just publish whatever pops into your head, or whatever you overheard somebody say. You're only supposed to publish stuff that X. I think X='you know...'"
Perhaps the fundamental difference is we're approaching the situation from different directions? It appears you want journalists to "know" the information is true before publishing, therefore you seek some objective definition of knowledge that can be applied. I believe the truthfulness is unknowable in the pure sense, therefore I use other conditions for X while recognizing that whether X has been satisfied is ultimately a subjective evaluation. Your thoughts?
"If we say one doesn't know anything, it can feel like a short and tempting step to say that all beliefs are equally good."
How are you defining "good?" I would say "all coherent belief systems that adequately explain the experiences of the individual are equally valid," by which I mean the individual has no basis to claim one is true and the other is false. Whether or not it is "good" (in a moral sense) depends on what standard it's being measured against. I don't see how a belief can be inherently good or bad.
"But a lot of the arguments given in terms of knowledge will be translatable into that framework."
Sure, but it also changes the tone of the discussion. Generally speaking, when people make a knowledge claim they do not allow for the possibility they are wrong. Further, there is often the expectation that others must agree with their knowledge claim or else the other is ignorant, stupid, irrational, etc. Reframing what we commonly refer to as "knowledge" as "a belief that I do not question" is not only more accurate, but it forces people to acknowledge the inherent uncertainty of their "knowledge."
In most everyday encounters this reframing isn't necessary as we tend to associate with people who agree with us about what is known. In my experience it is most useful when there is significant disagreement. Unfortunately, as long as the word "knowledge" carries a significance beyond "a form of belief," it will be very difficult to get people to question their own beliefs and by extension, understand why others believe what they believe.
Selective Sampling
Facts, Alternative Facts, and Definitions
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BCBH Film Series User’s Guide
About the Film Series
Conversation Guide
Facts About Child Maltreatment
More BCBH Films
Home•et;Building Community, Building Hope•et;Key Facts About Child Maltreatment In The United States
What is the definition of child abuse and neglect?
Child abuse and neglect are defined in both Federal and State laws. The types of maltreatment defined include physical abuse, neglect, emotional abuse, and sexual abuse. Details about how your state’s laws define the conduct, acts, and omissions that constitute child abuse or neglect that must be reported to child protective agencies can be found in the Child Welfare Information Gateway’s Definitions of Child Abuse and Neglect.
How many U.S. children are abused or neglected each year?
For 2013, there were a nationally estimated 679,000 victims of abuse and neglect, resulting in a rate of 9.1 victims per 1,000 children in the population. This rate only reflects children for whom a state determined that at least one maltreatment event was substantiated or indicated.[1]
[1] Unless otherwise indicated, the data cited is from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Children’s Bureau (CB). (2015). Child maltreatment 2015. Available from https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/resource/child-maltreatment-2015
How many children die each year due to abuse or neglect?
An estimated 1,520 children died as a result of abuse or neglect in 2013. This national estimate was based on data from State child welfare information systems, as well as other data sources available to the States.
Approximately how many allegations of maltreatment are reported and receive an investigation or assessment for abuse and neglect each year?
During 2013, Child Protective Service (CPS) agencies received an estimated 3.5 million referrals involving approximately 6.4 million children.
Is the number of maltreated children increasing or decreasing?
The number of victims decreased 3.8% from 2009 to 2013.
Who were the child victims?
Approximately one-fifth of the children reported to CPS were found to be victims.
What percentage of children reported to CPS were “screened in” for follow-up action?
The youngest children are the most vulnerable—about 27% of reported victims were under the age of three. Victims in their first year of life had the highest rate of victimization at 23.1 per 1,000 children of the same age in the national population.
What are the most common types of maltreatment?
Neglect, at 80%, is by far, the most common form of maltreatment. Physical abuse, at 18%, is the second most common form of maltreatment.
What are the long-term consequences of child abuse and neglect?
While many children are resilient and can recover from maltreatment, there are significant, widespread long-term consequences for their behavior and physical and psychological development.[2]
[2] For more information about the long-term physical, psychological, behavioral, and societal consequences of child abuse and neglect, see Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2013). Long-term consequences of child abuse and neglect. Washington, DC: HHS, CB. Available from https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/factsheets/long-term-consequences/
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Incoming priests had varied professions before entering seminary
Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Ind., anoints the hands of Father Nathan Maskal during an ordination Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Fort Wayne June 2, 2018. The new crop of priests being ordained in 2019 had a wide variety of careers before discerning a call to priesthood, according to a report issued May 3 by the Center for Applied Research in the apostolate. (CNS photo/Joe Romie, Today’s Catholic)
By Mark Pattison • Catholic News Service • Posted May 8, 2019
WASHINGTON (CNS) — The new crop of priests being ordained this year had a wide variety of careers before discerning a call to priesthood, according to a report issued May 3 by the Center for Applied Research in the apostolate.
Education was the top career choice of ordinands at 11 percent — more than twice any other field.
Some reported entirely different career endeavors.
“I spent five years playing guitar in a punk rock band that toured the country and recorded albums,” said Patrick Klekas of the Diocese of Reno, Nevada. Klekas’ band was called the Girlfriend Season. In a 2010 interview with his hometown newspaper, the Elko Daily Free Press, he said, “We’re hoping to get to a point where we can do this full time.” Klekas will be doing something else full time instead.
“I have a deep love of astronomy and that the study of the night sky helped lead me to baptism and faith in God at age 20,” said Dean Marshall of the Diocese of Sacramento, California, on a vocations webpage for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
“I was a pole vaulter at a Division I university,” said Derik Peterman of the Archdiocese of Detroit. “I try to keep involved with the sport by coaching and competing.”
“I once drove a taxicab — before Uber or Lyft — on the weekends while holding a full-time job during the week,” said Timothy Kalange, who will be ordained a Benedictine priest.
“I was a dental assistant before I entered the seminary. I have traveled to 15 different countries,” said Charles Moat Jr., who will be ordained for the Society of the Divine Word. “I was a member of the United States Air Force Honor Guard, where I participated in the inauguration of President George W. Bush and the funeral of President Ronald Reagan.”
Then, there are the more circuitous paths to the priesthood. Said Stephen Buting of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee: “I never altar served as a youth and was terrified of lectoring at Mass.”
With data collected annually for the past 20 years, some comparisons between then and now can be made by CARA, which is housed at Georgetown University in Washington.
The average age of ordinands who responded to the 1999 survey was 36. Over the past 20 years, that has trickled downward to 33. The youngest ordinand responding to this year’s survey was born in 1994; the oldest was born in 1949.
One-fourth of all ordinands responding to the survey, compiled by CARA’s Mary Gautier and Sister Thu T. Do, a member of the Lovers of the Holy Cross, reported having education debut before beginning seminary studies. The average debt was a hair under $30,000; some ordinands had debt as high as $119,000. During their years as a seminarian, they were able to reduce that debt by only $3,000 on average.
Religious communities, home to about a quarter of all of this year’s ordinands, did the most to help their seminarians hack away at their debt; 68 percent of religious ordinands reported that their orders helped.
Family members helped 24 percent or ordinands reduce their educational debt, and the Knights of Columbus’ Fund for Vocations helped 16 percent of reporting diocesan ordinands cut their debt, although no help from them was reported by religious order ordinands.
Other sources of financial help included parishes, the Serra Fund for Vocations, friends and co-workers, and the Mater Ecclesiae Fund for Vocations.
The CARA survey also tracks factors that may help lead men to a priestly vocation. Seventy-seven percent reported that both their parents were Catholic when they were children, and 34 percent have had a relative who is a priest or religious.
Seventy-five percent of ordinands responding to the survey said they participated in eucharistic adoration on a regular basis before entering the seminary, and 73 percent prayed the rosary. Next closest was attending prayer group or Bible study, cited by 47 percent.
Fifty-two percent reported participating in a “Come and See” weekend at the seminary or the religious order, while 66 percent have seen the vocational promotion DVD “Fishers of Men,” published by the USCCB.
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Adult Central Nervous System Tumors Treatment (PDQ®): Treatment - Patient Information [NCI]
General Information About Adult Central Nervous System Tumors
Stages of Adult Central Nervous System Tumors
Recurrent Adult Central Nervous System Tumors
Treatment Option Overview
Treatment Options by Type of Primary Adult Brain Tumor
Treatment Options for Primary Adult Spinal Cord Tumors
Treatment Options for Recurrent Adult Central Nervous System Tumors
Treatment Options for Metastatic Adult Brain Tumors
To Learn More About Adult Central Nervous System Tumors
About This PDQ Summary
This information is produced and provided by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The information in this topic may have changed since it was written. For the most current information, contact the National Cancer Institute via the Internet web site at http://cancer.gov or call 1-800-4-CANCER.
An adult central nervous system tumor is a disease in which abnormal cells form in the tissues of the brain and/or spinal cord.
There are many types of brain and spinal cord tumors. The tumors are formed by the abnormal growth of cells and may begin in different parts of the brain or spinal cord. Together, the brain and spinal cord make up the central nervous system (CNS).
The tumors may be either benign (not cancer) or malignant (cancer):
Benign brain and spinal cord tumors grow and press on nearby areas of the brain. They rarely spread into other tissues and may recur (come back).
Malignant brain and spinal cord tumors are likely to grow quickly and spread into other brain tissue.
When a tumor grows into or presses on an area of the brain, it may stop that part of the brain from working the way it should. Both benign and malignant brain tumors cause signs and symptoms and need treatment.
Brain and spinal cord tumors can occur in both adults and children. However, treatment for children may be different than treatment for adults. (See the PDQ summary on Childhood Brain and Spinal Cord Tumors Treatment Overview for more information on the treatment of children.)
For information about lymphoma that begins in the brain, see the PDQ summary on Primary CNS Lymphoma Treatment.
A tumor that starts in another part of the body and spreads to the brain is called a metastatic brain tumor.
Tumors that start in the brain are called primary brain tumors. Primary brain tumors may spread to other parts of the brain or to the spine. They rarely spread to other parts of the body.
Often, tumors found in the brain have started somewhere else in the body and spread to one or more parts of the brain. These are called metastatic brain tumors (or brain metastases). Metastatic brain tumors are more common than primary brain tumors.
Up to half of metastatic brain tumors are from lung cancer. Other types of cancer that commonly spread to the brain include:
Melanoma.
Breast cancer.
Colon cancer.
Kidney cancer.
Nasopharyngeal cancer.
Cancer of unknown primary site.
Cancer may spread to the leptomeninges (the two innermost membranes covering the brain and spinal cord). This is called leptomeningeal carcinomatosis. The most common cancers that spread to the leptomeninges include:
Lung cancer.
Leukemia.
Lymphoma.
See the following for more information from PDQ about cancers that commonly spread to the brain or spinal cord:
Adult Hodgkin Lymphoma Treatment
Adult Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Treatment
Carcinoma of Unknown Primary Treatment
Leukemia Home Page
Melanoma Treatment
Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Treatment
Renal Cell Cancer Treatment
Small Cell Lung Cancer Treatment
The brain controls many important body functions.
The brain has three major parts:
The cerebrum is the largest part of the brain. It is at the top of the head. The cerebrum controls thinking, learning, problem solving, emotions, speech, reading, writing, and voluntary movement.
The cerebellum is in the lower back of the brain (near the middle of the back of the head). It controls movement, balance, and posture.
The brain stem connects the brain to the spinal cord. It is in the lowest part of the brain (just above the back of the neck). The brain stem controls breathing, heart rate, and the nerves and muscles used to see, hear, walk, talk, and eat.
Anatomy of the brain showing the cerebrum, ventricles (with cerebrospinal fluid shown in blue), cerebellum, brain stem (pons and medulla), and other parts of the brain.
The spinal cord connects the brain to nerves in most parts of the body.
The spinal cord is a column of nerve tissue that runs from the brain stem down the center of the back. It is covered by three thin layers of tissue called membranes. These membranes are surrounded by the vertebrae (back bones). Spinal cord nerves carry messages between the brain and the rest of the body, such as a message from the brain to cause muscles to move or a message from the skin to the brain to feel touch.
There are different types of brain and spinal cord tumors.
Brain and spinal cord tumors are named based on the type of cell they formed in and where the tumor first formed in the CNS. The grade of a tumor may be used to tell the difference between slow-growing and fast-growing types of the tumor. The World Health Organization (WHO) tumor grades are based on how abnormal the cancer cells look under a microscope and how quickly the tumor is likely to grow and spread.
WHO Tumor Grading System
Grade I (low-grade) - The tumor cells look more like normal cells under a microscope and grow and spread more slowly than grade II, III, and IV tumor cells. They rarely spread into nearby tissues. Grade I brain tumors may be cured if they are completely removed by surgery.
Grade II - The tumor cells grow and spread more slowly than grade III and IV tumor cells. They may spread into nearby tissue and may recur (come back). Some tumors may become a higher-grade tumor.
Grade III - The tumor cells look very different from normal cells under a microscope and grow more quickly than grade I and II tumor cells. They are likely to spread into nearby tissue.
Grade IV (high-grade) - The tumor cells do not look like normal cells under a microscope and grow and spread very quickly. There may be areas of dead cells in the tumor. Grade IV tumors usually cannot be cured.
The following types of primary tumors can form in the brain or spinal cord:
Astrocytic Tumors
An astrocytic tumor begins in star-shaped brain cells called astrocytes, which help keep nerve cells healthy. An astrocyte is a type of glial cell. Glial cells sometimes form tumors called gliomas. Astrocytic tumors include the following:
Brain stem glioma (usually high grade): A brain stem glioma forms in the brain stem, which is the part of the brain connected to the spinal cord. It is often a high-grade tumor, which spreads widely through the brain stem and is hard to cure. Brain stem gliomas are rare in adults. (See the PDQ summary on Childhood Brain Stem Glioma Treatment for more information.)
Pineal astrocytic tumor (any grade): A pineal astrocytic tumor forms in tissue around the pineal gland and may be any grade. The pineal gland is a tiny organ in the brain that makes melatonin, a hormone that helps control the sleeping and waking cycle.
Pilocytic astrocytoma (grade I): A pilocytic astrocytoma grows slowly in the brain or spinal cord. It may be in the form of a cyst and rarely spreads into nearby tissues. Pilocytic astrocytomas can often be cured.
Diffuse astrocytoma (grade II): A diffuse astrocytoma grows slowly, but often spreads into nearby tissues. The tumor cells look something like normal cells. In some cases, a diffuse astrocytoma can be cured. It is also called a low-grade diffuse astrocytoma.
Anaplastic astrocytoma (grade III): An anaplastic astrocytoma grows quickly and spreads into nearby tissues. The tumor cells look different from normal cells. This type of tumor usually cannot be cured. An anaplastic astrocytoma is also called a malignant astrocytoma or high-grade astrocytoma.
Glioblastoma (grade IV): A glioblastoma grows and spreads very quickly. The tumor cells look very different from normal cells. This type of tumor usually cannot be cured. It is also called glioblastoma multiforme.
See the PDQ summary on Childhood Astrocytomas Treatment for more information about astrocytomas in children.
Oligodendroglial Tumors
An oligodendroglial tumor begins in brain cells called oligodendrocytes, which help keep nerve cells healthy. An oligodendrocyte is a type of glial cell. Oligodendrocytes sometimes form tumors called oligodendrogliomas. Grades of oligodendroglial tumors include the following:
Oligodendroglioma (grade II): An oligodendroglioma grows slowly, but often spreads into nearby tissues. The tumor cells look something like normal cells. In some cases, an oligodendroglioma can be cured.
Anaplastic oligodendroglioma (grade III): An anaplastic oligodendroglioma grows quickly and spreads into nearby tissues. The tumor cells look different from normal cells. This type of tumor usually cannot be cured.
See the PDQ summary on Childhood Astrocytomas Treatment for more information about oligodendroglial tumors in children.
Mixed Gliomas
A mixed glioma is a brain tumor that has two types of tumor cells in it - oligodendrocytes and astrocytes. This type of mixed tumor is called an oligoastrocytoma.
Oligoastrocytoma (grade II): An oligoastrocytoma is a slow-growing tumor. The tumor cells look something like normal cells. In some cases, an oligoastrocytoma can be cured.
Anaplastic oligoastrocytoma (grade III): An anaplastic oligoastrocytoma grows quickly and spreads into nearby tissues. The tumor cells look different from normal cells. This type of tumor has a worse prognosis than oligoastrocytoma (grade II).
See the PDQ summary on Childhood Astrocytomas Treatment for more information about mixed gliomas in children.
Ependymal Tumors
An ependymal tumor usually begins in cells that line the fluid -filled spaces in the brain and around the spinal cord. An ependymal tumor may also be called an ependymoma. Grades of ependymomas include the following:
Ependymoma (grade I or II): A grade I or II ependymoma grows slowly and has cells that look something like normal cells. There are two types of grade I ependymoma - myxopapillary ependymoma and subependymoma. A grade II ependymoma grows in a ventricle (fluid-filled space in the brain) and its connecting paths or in the spinal cord. In some cases, a grade I or II ependymoma can be cured.
Anaplastic ependymoma (grade III): An anaplastic ependymoma grows quickly and spreads into nearby tissues. The tumor cells look different from normal cells. This type of tumor usually has a worse prognosis than a grade I or II ependymoma.
See the PDQ summary on Childhood Ependymoma Treatment for more information about ependymoma in children.
Medulloblastomas
A medulloblastoma is a type of embryonal tumor. Medulloblastomas are most common in children or young adults.
See the PDQ summary on Childhood Central Nervous System Embryonal Tumors Treatment for more information about medulloblastomas in children.
Pineal Parenchymal Tumors
A pineal parenchymal tumor forms in parenchymal cells or pineocytes, which are the cells that make up most of the pineal gland. These tumors are different from pineal astrocytic tumors. Grades of pineal parenchymal tumors include the following:
Pineocytoma (grade II): A pineocytoma is a slow-growing pineal tumor.
Pineoblastoma (grade IV): A pineoblastoma is a rare tumor that is very likely to spread.
See the PDQ summary on Childhood Central Nervous System Embryonal Tumors Treatment for more information about pineal parenchymal tumors in children.
Meningeal Tumors
A meningeal tumor, also called a meningioma, forms in the meninges (thin layers of tissue that cover the brain and spinal cord). It can form from different types of brain or spinal cord cells. Meningiomas are most common in adults. Types of meningeal tumors include the following:
Meningioma (grade I): A grade I meningioma is the most common type of meningeal tumor. A grade I meningioma is a slow-growing tumor. It forms most often in the dura mater. A grade I meningioma can be cured if it is completely removed by surgery.
Meningioma (grade II and III): This is a rare meningeal tumor. It grows quickly and is likely to spread within the brain and spinal cord. The prognosis is worse than a grade I meningioma because the tumor usually cannot be completely removed by surgery.
A hemangiopericytoma is not a meningeal tumor but is treated like a grade II or III meningioma. A hemangiopericytoma usually forms in the dura mater. The prognosis is worse than a grade I meningioma because the tumor usually cannot be completely removed by surgery.
Germ Cell Tumors
A germ cell tumor forms in germ cells, which are the cells that develop into sperm in men or ova (eggs) in women. There are different types of germ cell tumors. These include germinomas, teratomas, embryonal yolk sac carcinomas, and choriocarcinomas. Germ cell tumors can be either benign or malignant.
See the PDQ summary on Childhood Central Nervous System Germ Cell Tumors Treatment for more information about childhood germ cell tumors in the brain.
Craniopharyngioma (Grade I)
A craniopharyngioma is a rare tumor that usually forms in the center of the brain just above the pituitary gland (a pea-sized organ at the bottom of the brain that controls other glands). Craniopharyngiomas can form from different types of brain or spinal cord cells.
See the PDQ summary on Childhood Craniopharyngioma Treatment for more information about craniopharyngioma in children.
Having certain genetic syndromes may increase the risk of a central nervous system tumor.
Anything that increases your chance of getting a disease is called a risk factor. Having a risk factor does not mean that you will get cancer; not having risk factors doesn't mean that you will not get cancer. Talk with your doctor if you think you may be at risk. There are few known risk factors for brain tumors. The following conditions may increase the risk of certain types of brain tumors:
Being exposed to vinyl chloride may increase the risk of glioma.
Infection with the Epstein-Barr virus, having AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome), or receiving an organ transplant may increase the risk of primary CNS lymphoma. (See the PDQ summary on Primary CNS Lymphoma for more information.)
Having certain genetic syndromes may increase the risk brain tumors:
Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) or 2 (NF2).
von Hippel-Lindau disease.
Tuberous sclerosis.
Li-Fraumeni syndrome.
Turcot syndrome type 1 or 2.
Nevoid basal cell carcinoma syndrome.
The cause of most adult brain and spinal cord tumors is not known.
The signs and symptoms of adult brain and spinal cord tumors are not the same in every person.
Signs and symptoms depend on the following:
Where the tumor forms in the brain or spinal cord.
What the affected part of the brain controls.
The size of the tumor.
Signs and symptoms may be caused by CNS tumors or by other conditions, including cancer that has spread to the brain. Check with your doctor if you have any of the following:
Morning headache or headache that goes away after vomiting.
Seizures.
Vision, hearing, and speech problems.
Loss of appetite.
Frequent nausea and vomiting.
Changes in personality, mood, ability to focus, or behavior.
Loss of balance and trouble walking.
Weakness.
Unusual sleepiness or change in activity level.
Spinal Cord Tumor Symptoms
Back pain or pain that spreads from the back towards the arms or legs.
A change in bowel habits or trouble urinating.
Weakness or numbness in the arms or legs.
Trouble walking.
Tests that examine the brain and spinal cord are used to diagnose adult brain and spinal cord tumors.
The following tests and procedures may be used:
Physical exam and history: An exam of the body to check general signs of health, including checking for signs of disease, such as lumps or anything else that seems unusual. A history of the patient's health habits and past illnesses and treatments will also be taken.
Neurological exam: A series of questions and tests to check the brain, spinal cord, and nerve function. The exam checks a person's mental status, coordination, and ability to walk normally, and how well the muscles, senses, and reflexes work. This may also be called a neuro exam or a neurologic exam.
Visual field exam: An exam to check a person's field of vision (the total area in which objects can be seen). This test measures both central vision (how much a person can see when looking straight ahead) and peripheral vision (how much a person can see in all other directions while staring straight ahead). Any loss of vision may be a sign of a tumor that has damaged or pressed on the parts of the brain that affect eyesight.
Tumor marker test: A procedure in which a sample of blood, urine, or tissue is checked to measure the amounts of certain substances made by organs, tissues, or tumor cells in the body. Certain substances are linked to specific types of cancer when found in increased levels in the body. These are called tumor markers. This test may be done to diagnose a germ cell tumor.
Gene testing: A laboratory test in which a sample of blood or tissue is tested for changes in a chromosome that has been linked with a certain type of brain tumor. This test may be done to diagnose an inherited syndrome.
CT scan (CAT scan): A procedure that makes a series of detailed pictures of areas inside the body, taken from different angles. The pictures are made by a computer linked to an x-ray machine. A dye may be injected into a vein or swallowed to help the organs or tissues show up more clearly. This procedure is also called computed tomography, computerized tomography, or computerized axial tomography.
Computed tomography (CT) scan of the brain. The patient lies on a table that slides through the CT scanner, which takes x-ray pictures of the brain.
MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) with gadolinium: A procedure that uses a magnet, radio waves, and a computer to make a series of detailed pictures of the brain and spinal cord. A substance called gadolinium is injected into a vein. The gadolinium collects around the cancer cells so they show up brighter in the picture. This procedure is also called nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (NMRI). MRI is often used to diagnose tumors in the spinal cord. Sometimes a procedure called magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) is done during the MRI scan. An MRS is used to diagnose tumors, based on their chemical make-up.
SPECT scan (single photon emission computed tomography scan): A procedure that uses a special camera linked to a computer to make a 3-dimensional (3-D) picture of the brain. A very small amount of a radioactive substance is injected into a vein or inhaled through the nose. As the substance travels through the blood, the camera rotates around the head and takes pictures of the brain. Blood flow and metabolism are higher than normal in areas where cancer cells are growing. These areas will show up brighter in the picture. This procedure may be done just before or after a CT scan. SPECT is used to tell the difference between a primary tumor and a tumor that has spread to the brain from somewhere else in the body.
PET scan (positron emission tomography scan): A procedure to find malignant tumor cells in the body. A small amount of radioactive glucose (sugar) is injected into a vein. The PET scanner rotates around the body and makes a picture of where glucose is being used in the brain. Malignant tumor cells show up brighter in the picture because they are more active and take up more glucose than normal cells do. PET is used to tell the difference between a primary tumor and a tumor that has spread to the brain from somewhere else in the body.
PET (positron emission tomography) scan. The patient lies on a table that slides through the PET machine. The head rest and white strap help the patient lie still. A small amount of radioactive glucose (sugar) is injected into the patient's vein, and a scanner makes a picture of where the glucose is being used in the body. Cancer cells show up brighter in the picture because they take up more glucose than normal cells do.
A biopsy is also used to diagnose a brain tumor.
If imaging tests show there may be a brain tumor, a biopsy is usually done. One of the following types of biopsies may be used:
Stereotactic biopsy: When imaging tests show there may be a tumor deep in the brain in a hard to reach place, a stereotactic brain biopsy may be done. This kind of biopsy uses a computer and a 3-dimensional (3-D) scanning device to find the tumor and guide the needle used to remove the tissue. A small incision is made in the scalp and a small hole is drilled through the skull. A biopsy needle is inserted through the hole to remove cells or tissues so they can be viewed under a microscope by a pathologist to check for signs of cancer.
Open biopsy: When imaging tests show that there may be a tumor that can be removed by surgery, an open biopsy may be done. A part of the skull is removed in an operation called a craniotomy. A sample of brain tissue is removed and viewed under a microscope by a pathologist. If cancer cells are found, some or all of the tumor may be removed during the same surgery. Tests are done before surgery to find the areas around the tumor that are important for normal brain function. There are also ways to test brain function during surgery. The doctor will use the results of these tests to remove as much of the tumor as possible with the least damage to normal tissue in the brain.
Craniotomy: An opening is made in the skull and a piece of the skull is removed to show part of the brain.
The pathologist checks the biopsy sample to find out the type and grade of brain tumor. The grade of the tumor is based on how the tumor cells look under a microscope and how quickly the tumor is likely to grow and spread.
The following tests may be done on the tumor tissue that is removed:
Immunohistochemistry: A test that uses antibodies to check for certain antigens in a sample of tissue. The antibody is usually linked to a radioactive substance or a dye that causes the tissue to light up under a microscope. This type of test may be used to tell the difference between different types of cancer.
Light and electron microscopy: A laboratory test in which cells in a sample of tissue are viewed under regular and high-powered microscopes to look for certain changes in the cells.
Cytogenetic analysis: A laboratory test in which cells in a sample of tissue are viewed under a microscope to look for certain changes in the chromosomes.
Sometimes a biopsy or surgery cannot be done.
For some tumors, a biopsy or surgery cannot be done safely because of where the tumor formed in the brain or spinal cord. These tumors are diagnosed and treated based on the results of imaging tests and other procedures.
Sometimes the results of imaging tests and other procedures show that the tumor is very likely to be benign and a biopsy is not done.
Certain factors affect prognosis (chance of recovery) and treatment options.
The prognosis (chance of recovery) and treatment options for primary brain and spinal cord tumors depend on the following:
The type and grade of the tumor.
Where the tumor is in the brain or spinal cord.
Whether the tumor can be removed by surgery.
Whether cancer cells remain after surgery.
Whether there are certain changes in the chromosomes.
Whether the cancer has just been diagnosed or has recurred (come back).
The patient's general health.
The prognosis and treatment options for metastatic brain and spinal cord tumors depend on the following:
Whether there are more than two tumors in the brain or spinal cord.
How well the tumor responds to treatment.
Whether the primary tumor continues to grow or spread.
There is no standard staging system for adult brain and spinal cord tumors.
The extent or spread of cancer is usually described as stages. There is no standard staging system for brain and spinal cord tumors. Brain tumors that begin in the brain may spread to other parts of the brain and spinal cord, but they rarely spread to other parts of the body. Treatment of primary brain and spinal cord tumors is based on the following:
The type of cell in which the tumor began.
Where the tumor formed in the brain or spinal cord.
The amount of cancer left after surgery.
The grade of the tumor.
Treatment of tumors that have spread to the brain from other parts of the body is based on the number of tumors in the brain.
Imaging tests may be repeated after surgery to help plan more treatment.
Some of the tests and procedures used to diagnose a brain or spinal cord tumor may be repeated after treatment to find out how much tumor is left.
A recurrent central nervous system (CNS) tumor is a tumor that has recurred (come back) after it has been treated. CNS tumors often recur, sometimes many years after the first tumor. The tumor may recur at the same place as the first tumor or in other parts of the central nervous system.
There are different types of treatment for patients with adult brain and spinal cord tumors.
Different types of treatment are available for patients with adult brain and spinal cord tumors. Some treatments are standard (the currently used treatment), and some are being tested in clinical trials. A treatment clinical trial is a research study meant to help improve current treatments or obtain information on new treatments for patients with cancer. When clinical trials show that a new treatment is better than the standard treatment, the new treatment may become the standard treatment. Patients may want to think about taking part in a clinical trial. Some clinical trials are open only to patients who have not started treatment.
Five types of standard treatment are used:
Active surveillance
Active surveillance is closely watching a patient's condition but not giving any treatment unless there are changes in test results that show the condition is getting worse. Active surveillance may be used to avoid or delay the need for treatments such as radiation therapy or surgery, which can cause side effects or other problems. During active surveillance, certain exams and tests are done on a regular schedule. Active surveillance may be used for very slow-growing tumors that do not cause symptoms.
Surgery may be used to diagnose and treat adult brain and spinal cord tumors. Removing tumor tissue helps decrease pressure of the tumor on nearby parts of the brain. See the General Information section of this summary.
Even if the doctor removes all the cancer that can be seen at the time of the surgery, some patients may be given chemotherapy or radiation therapy after surgery to kill any cancer cells that are left. Treatment given after the surgery, to lower the risk that the cancer will come back, is called adjuvant therapy.
Radiation therapy is a cancer treatment that uses high-energy x-rays or other types of radiation to kill cancer cells or keep them from growing. There are two types of radiation therapy:
External radiation therapy uses a machine outside the body to send radiation toward the cancer.
External-beam radiation therapy of the brain. A machine is used to aim high-energy radiation. The machine can rotate around the patient, delivering radiation from many different angles. A mesh mask helps keep the patient's head from moving during treatment. Small ink marks are put on the mask. The ink marks are used to line up the radiation machine in the same position before each treatment.
Certain ways of giving radiation therapy can help keep radiation from damaging nearby healthy tissue. These types of radiation therapy include the following:
Conformal radiation therapy: Conformal radiation therapy is a type of external radiation therapy that uses a computer to make a 3-dimensional (3-D) picture of the tumor and shapes the radiation beams to fit the tumor.
Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT): IMRT is a type of 3-dimensional (3-D) external radiation therapy that uses a computer to make pictures of the size and shape of the tumor. Thin beams of radiation of different intensities (strengths) are aimed at the tumor from many angles.
Stereotactic radiosurgery: Stereotactic radiosurgery is a type of external radiation therapy. A rigid head frame is attached to the skull to keep the head still during the radiation treatment. A machine aims a single large dose of radiation directly at the tumor. This procedure does not involve surgery. It is also called stereotaxic radiosurgery, radiosurgery, and radiation surgery.
Internal radiation therapy uses a radioactive substance sealed in needles, seeds, wires, or catheters that are placed directly into or near the cancer.
The way the radiation therapy is given depends on the type and grade of tumor and where it is in the brain or spinal cord. External radiation therapy is used to treat adult central nervous system tumors.
Chemotherapy is a cancer treatment that uses drugs to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. When chemotherapy is taken by mouth or injected into a vein or muscle, the drugs enter the bloodstream and can reach cancer cells throughout the body (systemic chemotherapy). When chemotherapy is placed directly into the cerebrospinal fluid, an organ, or a body cavity such as the abdomen, the drugs mainly affect cancer cells in those areas (regional chemotherapy). Combination chemotherapy is treatment using more than one anticancer drug. To treat brain tumors, a wafer that dissolves may be used to deliver an anticancer drug directly to the brain tumor site after the tumor has been removed by surgery. The way the chemotherapy is given depends on the type and grade of tumor and where it is in the brain.
Anticancer drugs given by mouth or vein to treat brain and spinal cord tumors cannot cross the blood-brain barrier and enter the fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. Instead, an anticancer drug is injected into the fluid-filled space to kill cancer cells there. This is called intrathecal chemotherapy.
See Drugs Approved for Brain Tumors for more information.
Targeted therapy is a type of treatment that uses drugs or other substances to identify and attack specific cancer cells without harming normal cells.
Monoclonal antibody therapy is a type of targeted therapy that uses antibodies made in the laboratory from a single type of immune system cell. These antibodies can identify substances on cancer cells or normal substances that may help cancer cells grow. The antibodies attach to the substances and kill the cancer cells, block their growth, or keep them from spreading. Monoclonal antibodies are given by infusion. They may be used alone or to carry drugs, toxins, or radioactive material directly to cancer cells.
Bevacizumab is a monoclonal antibody that binds to a protein called vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and may prevent the growth of new blood vessels that tumors need to grow. Bevacizumab is used in the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma.
Other types of targeted therapies are being studied for adult brain tumors, including tyrosine kinase inhibitors and new VEGF inhibitors.
Supportive care is given to lessen the problems caused by the disease or its treatment.
This therapy controls problems or side effects caused by the disease or its treatment and improves quality of life. For brain tumors, supportive care includes drugs to control seizures and fluid buildup or swelling in the brain.
New types of treatment are being tested in clinical trials.
This summary section refers to new treatments being studied in clinical trials, but it may not mention every new treatment being studied. Information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Proton beam radiation therapy
Proton beam radiation therapy is a type of high-energy, external radiation therapy that uses streams of protons (small, positively-charged pieces of matter) to make radiation. This type of radiation kills tumor cells with little damage to nearby tissues. It is used to treat cancers of the head, neck, and spine and organs such as the brain, eye, lung, and prostate. Proton beam radiation is different from x-ray radiation.
Biologic therapy
Biologic therapy is a treatment that uses the patient's immune system to fight cancer. Substances made by the body or made in a laboratory are used to boost, direct, or restore the body's natural defenses against cancer. This type of cancer treatment is also called biotherapy or immunotherapy.
Biologic therapy is being studied for the treatment of some types of brain tumors. Treatments may include the following:
Dendritic cell vaccine therapy.
Gene therapy.
Patients may want to think about taking part in a clinical trial.
For some patients, taking part in a clinical trial may be the best treatment choice. Clinical trials are part of the cancer research process. Clinical trials are done to find out if new cancer treatments are safe and effective or better than the standard treatment.
Many of today's standard treatments for cancer are based on earlier clinical trials. Patients who take part in a clinical trial may receive the standard treatment or be among the first to receive a new treatment.
Patients who take part in clinical trials also help improve the way cancer will be treated in the future. Even when clinical trials do not lead to effective new treatments, they often answer important questions and help move research forward.
Patients can enter clinical trials before, during, or after starting their cancer treatment.
Some clinical trials only include patients who have not yet received treatment. Other trials test treatments for patients whose cancer has not gotten better. There are also clinical trials that test new ways to stop cancer from recurring (coming back) or reduce the side effects of cancer treatment.
Clinical trials are taking place in many parts of the country. See the Treatment Options section that follows for links to current treatment clinical trials. These have been retrieved from NCI's listing of clinical trials.
Follow-up tests may be needed.
Some of the tests that were done to diagnose the cancer or to find out the stage of the cancer may be repeated. Some tests will be repeated in order to see how well the treatment is working. Decisions about whether to continue, change, or stop treatment may be based on the results of these tests.
Some of the tests will continue to be done from time to time after treatment has ended. The results of these tests can show if your condition has changed or if the cancer has recurred (come back). These tests are sometimes called follow-up tests or check-ups.
The following tests and procedures may be used to check whether a brain tumor has come back after treatment:
SPECT scan (single photon emission computed tomography scan): A procedure that uses a special camera linked to a computer to make a 3-dimensional (3-D) picture of the brain. A very small amount of a radioactive substance is injected into a vein or inhaled through the nose. As the substance travels through the blood, the camera rotates around the head and takes pictures of the brain. Blood flow and metabolism are higher than normal in areas where cancer cells are growing. These areas will show up brighter in the picture. This procedure may be done just before or after a CT scan.
PET scan (positron emission tomography scan): A procedure to find malignant tumor cells in the body. A small amount of radioactive glucose (sugar) is injected into a vein. The PET scanner rotates around the body and makes a picture of where glucose is being used in the brain. Malignant tumor cells show up brighter in the picture because they are more active and take up more glucose than normal cells do.
Brain Stem Gliomas
Treatment of brain stem gliomas may include the following:
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult brain stem glioma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Pineal Astrocytic Tumors
Treatment of pineal astrocytic tumors may include the following:
Surgery and radiation therapy. For high-grade tumors, chemotherapy may also be given.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult pineal gland astrocytoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Pilocytic Astrocytomas
Treatment of pilocytic astrocytomas may include the following:
Surgery to remove the tumor. Radiation therapy may also be given if tumor remains after surgery.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult pilocytic astrocytoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Diffuse Astrocytomas
Treatment of diffuse astrocytomas may include the following:
Surgery with or without radiation therapy.
Surgery followed by radiation therapy and chemotherapy.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult diffuse astrocytoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Anaplastic Astrocytomas
Treatment of anaplastic astrocytomas may include the following:
Surgery and radiation therapy. Chemotherapy may also be given.
Surgery and chemotherapy.
A clinical trial of chemotherapy placed into the brain during surgery.
A clinical trial of a new treatment added to standard treatment.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult anaplastic astrocytoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Glioblastomas
Treatment of glioblastomas may include the following:
Surgery followed by radiation therapy and chemotherapy given at the same time, followed by chemotherapy alone.
Surgery followed by radiation therapy.
Chemotherapy placed into the brain during surgery.
Radiation therapy and chemotherapy given at the same time.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult glioblastoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Treatment of oligodendrogliomas may include the following:
Surgery with or without radiation therapy. Chemotherapy may be given after radiation therapy.
Treatment of anaplastic oligodendroglioma may include the following:
Surgery followed by radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult oligodendroglial tumors. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Treatment of mixed gliomas may include the following:
Surgery and radiation therapy. Sometimes chemotherapy is also given.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult mixed glioma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Treatment of grade I and grade II ependymomas may include the following:
Treatment of grade III anaplastic ependymoma may include the following:
Surgery and radiation therapy.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult ependymal tumors. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Treatment of medulloblastomas may include the following:
Surgery and radiation therapy to the brain and spine.
A clinical trial of chemotherapy added to surgery and radiation therapy to the brain and spine
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult medulloblastoma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Treatment of pineal parenchymal tumors may include the following:
For pineocytomas, surgery and radiation therapy.
For pineoblastomas, surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult pineal parenchymal tumor. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Treatment of grade I meningiomas may include the following:
Active surveillance for tumors with no signs or symptoms.
Stereotactic radiosurgery for tumors smaller than 3 centimeters.
Radiation therapy for tumors that cannot be removed by surgery.
Treatment of grade II and III meningiomas and hemangiopericytoma s may include the following:
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult meningeal tumor. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
There is no standard treatment for germ cell tumors (germinoma, embryonal carcinoma, choriocarcinoma, and teratoma). Treatment depends on what the tumor cells look like under a microscope, the tumor markers, where the tumor is in the brain, and whether it can be removed by surgery.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult central nervous system germ cell tumor. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Craniopharyngiomas
Treatment of craniopharyngiomas may include the following:
Surgery to completely remove the tumor.
Surgery to remove as much of the tumor as possible, followed by radiation therapy.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with adult craniopharyngioma. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Treatment of spinal cord tumors may include the following:
Surgery to remove the tumor.
A clinical trial of a new treatment.
There is no standard treatment for recurrent central nervous system (CNS) tumors. Treatment depends on the patient's condition, the expected side effects of the treatment, where the tumor is in the CNS, and whether the tumor can be removed by surgery. Treatment may include the following:
Chemotherapy with drugs not used to treat the original tumor.
Targeted therapy for recurrent glioblastoma.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with recurrent adult brain tumor. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
Treatment of one to four tumors that have spread to the brain from another part of the body may include the following:
Radiation therapy to the whole brain with or without surgery.
Radiation therapy to the whole brain with or without stereotactic radiosurgery.
Stereotactic radiosurgery.
Chemotherapy, if the primary tumor is one that responds to anticancer drugs. It may be combined with radiation therapy.
Treatment of tumors that have spread to the leptomeninges may include the following:
Chemotherapy (systemic and/or intrathecal). Radiation therapy may also be given.
Supportive care.
Check the list of NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with tumors metastatic to brain. For more specific results, refine the search by using other search features, such as the location of the trial, the type of treatment, or the name of the drug. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that may be right for you. General information about clinical trials is available from the NCI website.
For more information from the National Cancer Institute about adult central nervous system tumors, see the following:
Brain Cancer Home Page
What You Need to Know About™ Brain Tumors
Drugs Approved for Brain Tumors
For general cancer information and other resources from the National Cancer Institute, see the following:
Chemotherapy and You: Support for People With Cancer
Radiation Therapy and You: Support for People With Cancer
Questions to Ask Your Doctor about Cancer
For Survivors and Caregivers
About PDQ
Physician Data Query (PDQ) is the National Cancer Institute's (NCI's) comprehensive cancer information database. The PDQ database contains summaries of the latest published information on cancer prevention, detection, genetics, treatment, supportive care, and complementary and alternative medicine. Most summaries come in two versions. The health professional versions have detailed information written in technical language. The patient versions are written in easy-to-understand, nontechnical language. Both versions have cancer information that is accurate and up to date and most versions are also available in Spanish.
PDQ is a service of the NCI. The NCI is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). NIH is the federal government's center of biomedical research. The PDQ summaries are based on an independent review of the medical literature. They are not policy statements of the NCI or the NIH.
Purpose of This Summary
This PDQ cancer information summary has current information about the treatment of adult central nervous system tumors. It is meant to inform and help patients, families, and caregivers. It does not give formal guidelines or recommendations for making decisions about health care.
Reviewers and Updates
Editorial Boards write the PDQ cancer information summaries and keep them up to date. These Boards are made up of experts in cancer treatment and other specialties related to cancer. The summaries are reviewed regularly and changes are made when there is new information. The date on each summary ("Date Last Modified") is the date of the most recent change.
The information in this patient summary was taken from the health professional version, which is reviewed regularly and updated as needed, by the PDQ Adult Treatment Editorial Board.
Clinical Trial Information
A clinical trial is a study to answer a scientific question, such as whether one treatment is better than another. Trials are based on past studies and what has been learned in the laboratory. Each trial answers certain scientific questions in order to find new and better ways to help cancer patients. During treatment clinical trials, information is collected about the effects of a new treatment and how well it works. If a clinical trial shows that a new treatment is better than one currently being used, the new treatment may become "standard." Patients may want to think about taking part in a clinical trial. Some clinical trials are open only to patients who have not started treatment.
Clinical trials are listed in PDQ and can be found online at NCI's website. Many cancer doctors who take part in clinical trials are also listed in PDQ. For more information, call the Cancer Information Service 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).
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The best way to cite this PDQ summary is:
PDQ® Adult Treatment Editorial Board. PDQ Adult Central Nervous System Tumors Treatment. Bethesda, MD: National Cancer Institute. Updated <MM/DD/YYYY>. Available at: https://www.cancer.gov/types/brain/patient/adult-brain-treatment-pdq. Accessed <MM/DD/YYYY>. [PMID: 26389458]
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Last Revised: 2016-08-26
If you want to know more about cancer and how it is treated, or if you wish to know about clinical trials for your type of cancer, you can call the NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-422-6237, toll free. A trained information specialist can talk with you and answer your questions.
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◄ Search Results Showing Item 1 of 1 Preferred library: Lake Agassiz Regional Library?
The consuming fire. #2 / John Scalzi.
Scalzi, John, 1969- author. (Author).
1 of 2 copies available at Lake Agassiz Regional Library. (Show preferred library)
Mahnomen Public Library SF SCA (Text) 33500012801155 New Available -
Moorhead Public Library SF SCA (Text) 33500012801163 New Checked out 07/12/2019
Thief River Falls Public Library SCA (Text) 35500006111379 Main Available -
Physical Description: 316 pages ; 22 cm.
Publisher: New York, NY : Tor, A Tom Doherty Associates Book, 2018.
Summary, etc.: "The Interdependency, humanity's interstellar empire, is on the verge of collapse. The Flow, the extra-dimensional conduit that makes travel between the stars possible, is disappearing, leaving entire star systems stranded. When it goes, human civilization may go with it--unless desperate measures can be taken. Emperox Grayland II, the leader of the Interdependency, is ready to take those measures to help ensure the survival of billions. But nothing is ever that easy. Arrayed before her are those who believe the collapse of the Flow is a myth--or at the very least, an opportunity that can allow them to ascend to power. While Grayland prepares for disaster, others are preparing for a civil war, a war that will take place in the halls of power, the markets of business, and the altars of worship as much as it will take place between spaceships and battlefields. The Emperox and her allies are smart and resourceful, but so are her enemies. Nothing about this power struggle will be simple or easy... and all of humanity will be caught in its widening gyre" -- Provided by publisher.
Booklist Reviews : Booklist Reviews 2018 October #2
The empire of humanity, the Interdependency, is collapsing. The Flow, which allows vessels to travel from world to world in a fraction of the time it would take even moving at near the speed of light, is slowly but inevitably shutting down. It's only a matter of time before the worlds of humanity are separated from one another by the yawning abyss of space. In this follow-up to the Hugo-nominated The Collapsing Empire (2017), Emperox Grayland II is scrambling to find a way to keep the empire from descending into anarchy, while her very vocal critics are preparing for a civil war that could destroy the empire before Grayland can save it. If you're picturing a plodding tome about intergalactic politics, think again: Scalzi writes, as always, in a lively, occasionally flamboyant style, and his characters are, despite the fact that they live in the far-flung future, as real and human as anyone you'd meet in the here and now. Scalzi once again demonstrates why he is one of the most popular SF novelists currently writing. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: The buzz is growing steadily around this second in Scalzi's new series, including its selection as one of Goodreads' Most Anticipated Fantasy and Science Fiction Books. Copyright 2018 Booklist Reviews.
JOHN SCALZI is one of the most popular and acclaimed SF authors to emerge in the last decade. His massively successful debut Old Man's War won him science fiction's John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. His New York Times bestsellers include The Last Colony, Fuzzy Nation, and Redshirts, the latter winning the 2013 Hugo Award for Best Novel. Material from his widely read blog, Whatever, has also earned him two other Hugo Awards. Scalzi also serves as critic-at-large for the Los Angeles Times. He lives in Ohio with his wife and daughter.
Subject: Space and time > Fiction.
Interplanetary voyages > Fiction.
Life on other planets > Fiction.
Interplanetary voyages.
Life on other planets.
Space and time.
Imaginary wars and battles > Fiction.
Space and time > Fiction.
FICTION / Science Fiction / Space Opera.
FICTION / Science Fiction / Military.
FICTION / Science Fiction / Action & Adventure.
Genre: Science fiction.
Novels.
Space operas.
Interdependency sequence ; 2
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Deuces – 2007 (Blue Hat)
Reviewed by Michael Sudhalter
The Charlie Daniels Band's 13-song duets album is one of the more ecletic duets releases by any country artist. Daniels and his collaborators perform blues, rock, soul, folk, bluegrass and traditional country.
Daniels and Travis Tritt shine on Ray Charles' "What I'd Say," and he throws the audience on a cover with a blues-rock version of "Jackson," far different than the standard Johnny Cash-June Carter recorded. But the best tracks are the bluegrass collaborations on "Maggie's Farm" (Earl, Gary and Randy Scruggs), "Evangeline" (The Del McCoury Band) and the hard country "Daddy's Fiddle," featuring Dolly Parton and a nice fiddle intro. Daniels duets with Brenda Lee on the pop ballad "Let It Be Me" and jams with Brad Paisley on the instrumental tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughan, "Jammin' For Stevie."
Not all of the songs are covers. Daniels brings in Brooks & Dunn ("Long Haired Country Boy") and Montgomery Gentry ("Drinkin' My Baby Goodbye") to put a contemporary spin on a pair of classic hits.
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»Statutes Related
46.03(18)(fm) (fm) Notwithstanding par. (a), any person who submits to an assessment under s. 961.472 shall pay a fee to the appropriate county department under s. 51.42. The department of health services shall set fees for each county department under s. 51.42 designed to offset all the costs to the county in providing the assessment program. The department of health services shall provide for the reduction or waiver of the fee for persons who are unable to pay the complete fee.
46.03(18)(g) (g) The department shall return to county departments under s. 46.215, 46.22, 51.42 or 51.437 50 percent of collections made by the department on and after January 1, 1978, for delinquent accounts previously delegated under par. (e) and then referred back to the department for collections.
46.03(19) (19) Protective services. Administer the statewide program of protective services under ch. 55.
46.03(20) (20) Payment of benefits.
46.03(20)(a) (a) The department may make payments directly to recipients of public assistance or to persons authorized to receive those payments in accordance with law and rules of the department on behalf of the counties. The department may charge the counties for the cost of operating public assistance systems that make those payments.
46.03(20)(b) (b) The department may make social service payments directly to recipients, vendors or providers in accordance with law and rules of the department on behalf of the counties which have contracts to have such payments made on their behalf.
46.03(20)(c) (c) The county department under s. 46.215, 46.22 or 46.23 shall provide the department with information which the department shall use to determine each person's eligibility and amount of payment. The county department under s. 46.215, 46.22 or 46.23 shall provide the department all necessary information in the manner prescribed by the department.
46.03(20)(d) (d) The department shall disburse from state or federal funds or both the entire amount and charge the county for its share under s. 46.495.
46.03(22) (22) Community living arrangements for adults.
46.03(22)(a)(a) In this subsection, “community living arrangement for adults" means a community-based residential facility, as defined in s. 50.01 (1g).
46.03(22)(b) (b) Community living arrangements for adults shall be subject to the same building and housing ordinances, codes, and regulations of the municipality or county as similar residences located in the area in which the facility is located.
46.03(22)(c) (c) The department shall designate a subunit to keep records and supply information on community living arrangements for adults under ss. 59.69 (15) (f), 60.63 (7), and 62.23 (7) (i) 6. The subunit shall be responsible for receiving all complaints regarding community living arrangements for adults and for coordinating all necessary investigatory and disciplinary actions under the laws of this state and under the rules of the department relating to the licensing of community living arrangements for adults.
46.03(22)(d) (d) A community living arrangement for adults with a capacity for 8 or fewer persons shall be a permissible use for purposes of any deed covenant which limits use of property to single-family or 2-family residences. A community living arrangement for adults with a capacity for 15 or fewer persons shall be a permissible use for purposes of any deed covenant which limits use of property to more than 2-family residences. Covenants in deeds which expressly prohibit use of property for community living arrangements for adults are void as against public policy.
46.03(22)(e) (e) If a community living arrangement for adults is required to obtain special zoning permission, as defined in s. 59.69 (15) (g), the department shall, at the request of the unit of government responsible for granting the special zoning permission, inspect the proposed facility and review the program proposed for the facility. After such inspection and review, the department shall transmit to the unit of government responsible for granting the special zoning permission a statement that the proposed facility and its proposed program have been examined and are either approved or disapproved by the department.
46.03(25) (25) Uniform regulation and licensing. The department shall promulgate rules to establish licensing and program compliance standards for care and residential facilities, hospitals, hotels, restaurants and the vending of food and beverages after due consideration of the relationship of a licensing code to other related licensing codes, the need for uniform administration, the need to maximize the use of federal funds and the need to encourage the development and operation of needed facilities statewide. In establishing licensing standards designed to ensure that the facility qualifies for federal financial participation, the department shall establish federal regulations as the base requirement. The department may promulgate such additional health and safety standards as it determines to be in the public interest.
46.03(26) (26) Data processing projects. Submit a report each December 31 to the joint committee on finance and to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, for distribution to the appropriate standing committees under s. 13.172 (3), regarding the data processing projects under development. The report shall include:
46.03(26)(a) (a) The schedule for implementation;
46.03(26)(b) (b) Estimates of development and operating costs; and
46.03(26)(c) (c) Proposed methods of determining charges for service where applicable.
46.03(30) (30) Primary psychiatric care contracts.
46.03(30)(a)(a) To provide for an orderly reduction of state institutional primary psychiatric services the department may approve the institutes entering into contracts with county departments under s. 51.42 for providing primary psychiatric care. If excess capacity exists at state operated mental health institutes, the department shall, subject to ss. 13.48 (14) (am) and 16.848 (1), explore the possible sale or lease of such excess facilities to a county department under s. 51.42.
46.03(30)(b) (b) No contract may be approved for a period of time greater than one year, and no contract shall be approved except under par. (c).
46.03(30)(c) (c) The counties where the mental health institutes are located may contract with the institutes for primary psychiatric care on an ongoing basis, which contracts shall be approved by the department and shall be renewed annually.
46.03(33) (33) Relief; American Indians. The department may negotiate and enter into an agreement with any appropriate agency of the federal government for provision of relief to needy American Indians.
46.03(34) (34) Fetal alcohol syndrome and drug danger information. The department shall acquire, without cost if possible, information that describes the causes and effects of fetal alcohol syndrome and the dangers to a fetus from the mother's use of cocaine or other drugs during pregnancy and shall distribute the information free of charge to each county clerk so that each county clerk may provide information to marriage license applicants under s. 765.12 (1) (a) and domestic partnership applicants under s. 770.07 (2).
46.03(37) (37) First aid instruction. In connection with first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation instruction to fitness center employees required under s. 100.178, do all of the following:
46.03(37)(a) (a) Promulgate rules establishing standards and procedures under s. 100.178 (5) (a) to (c).
46.03(37)(b) (b) Approve individuals, organizations or institutions of higher education which teach fitness center employees basic first aid and basic cardiopulmonary resuscitation under s. 100.178 (2).
46.03(38) (38) Automatic external defibrillator instruction. Approve individuals, organizations, or institutions of higher education to provide instruction in the use of an automated external defibrillator, as defined in s. 256.15 (1) (cr), for persons who are required as a condition of licensure, certification, or registration to have current proficiency in the use of an automatic external defibrillator.
46.03(40) (40) Grants for pilot programs or demonstration projects. Comply with all of the following whenever the department provides a grant after August 15, 1991, for a pilot program or demonstration project:
46.03(40)(a) (a) State on the grant application that the funding for the program or project will be provided by the department once or for a limited period of time, whichever is applicable.
46.03(40)(b) (b) Require the applicant to provide, as part of the grant application, a plan that describes:
46.03(40)(b)1. 1. How activities funded by the grant will be phased out or how the program or project will be eliminated; or
46.03(40)(b)2. 2. What other funding sources will be available to support the program or project when state funding is eliminated.
46.03(41) (41) Consolidation of allocated tribal funds. The department may consolidate funds appropriated under s. 20.435 that are authorized or required to be allocated to federally recognized American Indian tribes or bands into a single distribution for each tribe or band in each fiscal year.
46.03(42) (42) Administrative hearings and appeals. Any hearing under s. 227.42 granted by the department may be conducted before the division of hearings and appeals in the department of administration.
46.03(43) (43) Compulsive gambling awareness campaigns. From the appropriation account under s. 20.435 (5) (kg), award grants to one or more individuals or organizations in the private sector to conduct compulsive gambling awareness campaigns.
46.03(44) (44) Sexually transmitted disease treatment information. Prepare and keep current an information sheet to be distributed to a patient by a physician, physician assistant, or certified advanced practice nurse prescriber providing expedited partner therapy to that patient under s. 448.035. The information sheet shall include information about sexually transmitted diseases and their treatment and about the risk of drug allergies. The information sheet shall also include a statement advising a person with questions about the information to contact his or her physician, pharmacist, or local health department, as defined in s. 250.01 (4).
46.03 History History: 1971 c. 270 s. 104; 1973 c. 90; 1973 c. 284 ss. 2, 32; 1973 c. 333; 1975 c. 39, 82; 1975 c. 189 s. 99 (1), (2); 1975 c. 224, 377, 413, 422; 1977 c. 29, 193; 1977 c. 196 s. 131; 1977 c. 203, 205, 271, 354; 1977 c. 418 ss. 287 to 289m, 924 (18) (d); 1977 c. 447, 449; 1979 c. 32 s. 92 (1); 1979 c. 34; 1979 c. 175 s. 46; 1979 c. 221, 331, 352; 1981 c. 20, 81; 1981 c. 314 s. 144; 1981 c. 390; 1983 a. 27, 193; 1983 a. 435 s. 7; 1983 a. 447, 474; 1983 a. 532 s. 36; 1985 a. 19, 29, 120, 176, 234, 285, 328, 331; 1985 a. 332 s. 251 (3); 1987 a. 3, 5, 27, 161, 186, 307, 339, 385, 399, 403, 413; 1989 a. 31 ss. 938m to 951, 2909g, 2909i; 1989 a. 56, 105, 107, 122; 1991 a. 39, 277; 1993 a. 16 ss. 851 to 859, 3072d; 1993 a. 98, 377, 385, 446, 481; 1995 a. 27 ss. 2026m to 2038b, 9126 (19); 1995 a. 77, 201, 225, 352, 370, 404, 448; 1997 a. 3, 27, 111, 283, 292; 1999 a. 9, 83; 2001 a. 16, 59, 61, 109; 2003 a. 33; 2005 a. 25, 293, 406; 2005 a. 443 s. 265; 2007 a. 20 ss. 800 to 823, 9121 (6) (a); 2007 a. 96, 104; 2009 a. 28, 180, 280; 2011 a. 32; 2013 a. 20, 246; 2015 a. 55, 162, 170; 2017 a. 204.
46.03 Cross-reference Cross-reference: See also DHS 1- and DHS 30-, Wis. adm. code.
46.03 Annotation The legislative intent underlying sub. (22) (d) supports a holding that a community living arrangement with a capacity of 10 persons was not barred by a deed covenant limiting use to a single-family residence. Crowley v. Knapp, 94 Wis. 2d 421, 288 N.W.2d 815 (1980).
46.03 Annotation Sections 46.03 (18) and 46.10 do not constitute an unlawful delegation of legislative power. In Matter of Guardianship of Klisurich, 98 Wis. 2d 274, 296 N.W.2d 742 (1980).
46.03 Annotation Retroactive application of sub. (22) is constitutional. Overlook Farms v. Alternative Living, 143 Wis. 2d 485, 422 N.W.2d 131 (Ct. App. 1988).
46.03 Annotation Sub. (18) and s. 46.10 (3) permit the department to promulgate rules that consider non-liable family members' incomes in determining a liable family member's ability to pay. In Interest of A.L.W. 153 Wis. 2d 412, 451 N.W.2d 416 (1990).
46.03 Annotation Sub. (18) (b) imposes liability upon minors and parents for the costs of services, but does not give counties an automatic right of recovery. Section 46.10 governs enforcement procedure and allows courts to exercise discretion. In Matter of S.E. Trust, 159 Wis. 2d 709, 465 N.W.2d 231 (Ct. App. 1990).
46.03 Annotation The uniform fee system under sub. (18) and s. 46.10 allows imputing income and, consequently, looking beyond tax returns to determine ability to pay. Interest of Kevin C. 181 Wis. 2d 146, 510 N.W.2d 746 (Ct. App. 1993).
46.03 Annotation “Prisons and jails" as used in sub. (22) (a) are defined. 69 Atty. Gen. 52.
46.031 46.031 County social service and mental hygiene budget and contract.
46.031(1)(1) Budget.
46.031(1)(a)(a) Each county department under s. 46.215, 46.22, 46.23, 51.42 or 51.437 shall submit to the department by December 31 annually its final budget for services directly provided or purchased.
46.031(1)(b) (b) The department shall submit a model of the contract under sub. (2g) (a) to each county department under s. 46.215, 46.22, 46.23, 51.42 and 51.437 by May 1 annually.
46.031(2) (2) Assessment of needs. Before developing and submitting a proposed budget to the county executive or county administrator or the county board or the Milwaukee County mental health board, the county departments listed in sub. (1) shall assess needs and inventory resources and services, using an open public participation process.
46.031(2g) (2g) Contract.
46.031(2g)(a) (a) The department shall annually submit to the county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county department, the Milwaukee County mental health board in Milwaukee County for matters related to mental health, or the county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty department a proposed written contract containing the allocation of funds and such administrative requirements as necessary. The contract as approved may contain conditions of participation consistent with federal and state law. The contract may also include provisions necessary to ensure uniform cost accounting of services. Any changes to the proposed contract shall be mutually agreed upon. The county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county department, the Milwaukee County mental health board in Milwaukee County for matters related to mental health, or the county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty department shall approve the contract before January 1 of the year in which it takes effect unless the department grants an extension. The county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county department, the Milwaukee County mental health board in Milwaukee County, or the county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty department may designate an agent to approve addenda to any contract after the contract has been approved.
46.031(2g)(b) (b) The department may not approve contracts for amounts in excess of available revenues. The county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county department, the Milwaukee County mental health board in Milwaukee County for matters related to mental health, or the county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty department may appropriate funds not used to match state funds under ss. 46.495 (1) (d) and 51.423. Actual expenditure of county funds shall be reported in compliance with procedures developed by the department, and shall comply with standards guaranteeing quality of care comparable to similar facilities.
46.031(2g)(c) (c) The joint committee on finance may require the department to submit contracts between county departments under ss. 46.215, 46.22, 46.23, 51.42 and 51.437 and providers of service to the committee for review and approval.
46.031(2r) (2r) Withholding funds.
46.031(2r)(a) (a) The department, after reasonable notice, may withhold a portion of the appropriation allocated to a county department under s. 46.215, 46.22, 46.23, 51.42 or 51.437 if the department determines that that portion of the allocated appropriation:
46.031(2r)(a)1. 1. Is for services which duplicate or are inconsistent with services being provided or purchased by the department or other county departments receiving grants-in-aid or reimbursement from the department.
46.031(2r)(a)2. 2. Is inconsistent with state or federal statutes, rules or regulations, in which case the department may also arrange for provision of services by an alternate agency. The department may not arrange for provision of services by an alternate agency unless the joint committee on finance or a review body designated by the committee reviews and approves the department's determination.
46.031(2r)(a)3. 3. Is for the treatment of alcoholics or persons who are drug dependent in treatment facilities which have not been approved by the department in accordance with s. 51.45 (8).
46.031(2r)(a)4. 4. Is for inpatient treatment in excess of an average of 21 days, as provided in s. 51.423 (12), excluding care for patients at the centers for the developmentally disabled.
46.031(2r)(a)5. 5. Is inconsistent with the provisions of the county department's contract under sub. (2g).
46.031(2r)(b) (b) If the department withholds a portion of the allocable appropriation under par. (a), the county department affected by the action of the department may submit to the county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county department or to its designated agent, to the Milwaukee County mental health board if related to mental health in Milwaukee County, or to the county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty department or their designated agents a plan to rectify the deficiency found by the department. The county board of supervisors or its designated agent in a county with a single-county department, the Milwaukee County mental health board if related to mental health, or the county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty department or their designated agents may approve or amend the plan and may submit for departmental approval the plan as adopted. If a multicounty department is administering a program, the plan may not be submitted unless each county board of supervisors which participated in the establishment of the multicounty department, or its designated agent, adopts it.
46.031(3) (3) Open public participation process.
46.031(3)(a)(a) Citizen advisory committee. Except as provided in par. (b), the county board of supervisors of each county, the Milwaukee County mental health board, as applicable, or the county boards of supervisors of 2 or more counties jointly shall establish a citizen advisory committee to the county departments under ss. 46.215, 46.22, 46.23, 51.42, and 51.437. The citizen advisory committee shall advise in the formulation of the budget under sub. (1). Membership on the committee shall be determined by the county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county committee, the Milwaukee County mental health board, as applicable, or by the county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty committee and shall include representatives of those persons receiving services, providers of service and citizens. A majority of the members of the committee shall be citizen and service consumers. The committee's membership may not consist of more than 25 percent county supervisors, nor of more than 20 percent service providers. The chairperson of the committee shall be appointed by the county board of supervisors establishing it or by the Milwaukee County mental health board, if it establishes the committee. In the case of a multicounty committee, the chairperson shall be nominated by the committee and approved by the county boards of supervisors establishing it. The county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county committee or the county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty committee may designate an agent to determine the membership of the committee and to appoint the committee chairperson or approve the nominee.
46.031(3)(b) (b) Alternate process. The county board of supervisors, the Milwaukee County mental health board, as applicable, or the boards of 2 or more counties acting jointly may submit a report to the department on the open public participation process used under sub. (2). The county board of supervisors or the Milwaukee County mental health board may designate an agent, or the boards of 2 or more counties acting jointly may designate an agent, to submit the report. If the department approves the report, establishment of a citizen advisory committee under par. (a) is not required.
46.031(3)(c) (c) Yearly report. The county board of supervisors or its designated agent, the Milwaukee County mental health board, as applicable, or the boards of 2 or more counties acting jointly or their designated agent, shall submit to the department a list of members of the citizen advisory committee under par. (a) or a report on the open public participation process under par. (b) on or before July 1 of each year.
46.031 History History: 1977 c. 29 ss. 543, 544b; 1977 c. 418; 1979 c. 34 s. 2102 (20) (b); 1979 c. 221 ss. 337 to 347m, 2202 (20); 1979 c. 336, 355; 1981 c. 20 ss. 741 to 745, 2202 (20) (a); 1983 a. 27; 1985 a. 29 ss. 808, 3200 (56), 3202 (23); 1985 a. 120, 176, 332; 1993 a. 16; 1995 a. 27, 225; 2007 a. 20; 2013 a. 203; 2017 a. 34.
46.034 46.034 Authority to establish services integration and coordination pilot programs.
46.034(1)(1) The department, in order to discharge more effectively its responsibilities under this chapter and chs. 51, 250, and 251 and other relevant provisions of the statutes, may establish community human services pilot programs for the study, implementation, and evaluation of improved human services delivery systems. In the implementation of those pilot programs, the requirement of statewide uniformity with respect to the organization and governance of human services shall not apply. The department and local governmental bodies may establish such departments, boards, committees, organizational structures, and procedures as may be needed to implement the pilot programs. The departments, boards, committees, and organizational structures may assume responsibilities currently assigned by statute to the departments, boards, committees, or organizational structures that are replaced.
46.034(2) (2) The number of pilot programs shall be limited by the department's capacity to coordinate and adequately monitor pilot activities and by the availability of state and federal funds.
46.034(3) (3) With the agreement of the affected county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county department, the Milwaukee County mental health board, as applicable, or boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty department, effective for the contract period beginning January 1, 1980, the department may approve a county with a single-county department or counties participating in a multicounty department to administer a single consolidated aid consisting of the state and federal financial aid available to that county or those counties from appropriations under s. 20.435 (7) (b) and (o) for services provided and purchased by county departments under ss. 46.215, 46.22, 46.23, 51.42, and 51.437. Under such an agreement, in the interest of improved service coordination and effectiveness, the county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county department, the Milwaukee County mental health board, as applicable, or county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty department may reallocate among county departments under ss. 46.215, 46.22, 46.23, 51.42, and 51.437 funds that otherwise would be specified for use by a single county department. The budget under s. 46.031 (1) shall be the vehicle for expressing the proposed use of the single consolidated fund by the county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county department, the Milwaukee County mental health board, as applicable, or county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty department. Approval by the department of this use of the fund shall be in the contract under s. 46.031 (2g). Counties that were selected by the department to pilot test consolidated aids for contract periods beginning January 1, 1978, may continue or terminate consolidation with the agreement of the affected county board of supervisors in a county with a single-county department, the Milwaukee County mental health board, or county boards of supervisors in counties with a multicounty department.
46.034 History History: 1975 c. 39; 1977 c. 29, 418; 1979 c. 34; 1981 c. 20, 390; 1983 a. 27 s. 2202 (20); 1985 a. 120, 176, 332; 1987 a. 27 s. 724e; Stats. 1987 s. 46.034; 1989 a. 31; 1993 a. 27; 1997 a. 27; 2001 a. 16; 2005 a. 25; 2007 a. 20; 2013 a. 203.
46.035 46.035 Department, additional powers to provide structures, facilities and permanent improvements.
46.035(1)(1) As used in this section unless the context requires otherwise:
46.035(1)(a) (a) The term “existing building" in relation to any conveyance, lease or sublease made under sub. (2) (a), (b), and (c) means all detention, treatment, administrative, recreational, infirmary, hospital, vocational and academic buildings; all dormitories and cottages; all storage facilities, heating plants, sewage disposal plants, and such other buildings, structures, facilities and permanent improvements as in the judgment of the secretary are needed or useful for the purposes of the department, and all equipment therefor and all improvements and additions thereto which were erected, constructed or installed prior to the making of such conveyance, lease or sublease.
46.035(1)(b) (b) The term “new building" in relation to any conveyance, lease or sublease made under sub. (2) (a), (b), and (c) means all detention, treatment, administrative, recreational, infirmary, hospital, vocational and academic buildings; all dormitories and cottages; all storage facilities, heating plants, sewage disposal plants, and such other buildings, structures, facilities and permanent improvements as in the judgment of the secretary are needed or useful for the purposes of the department, and all equipment therefor and all improvements and additions thereto which are erected, constructed or installed after the making of such conveyance, lease or sublease.
46.035(1)(c) (c) The term “nonprofit corporation" means a nonstock corporation that is organized under ch. 181 and that is a nonprofit corporation, as defined in s. 181.0103 (17).
46.035(2) (2) In order to provide new buildings and to enable the construction and financing thereof, to refinance indebtedness hereafter created by a nonprofit corporation for the purpose of providing a new building or buildings or additions or improvements thereto which are located on land owned by, or owned by the state and held for, the department or on lands of the institutions under the jurisdiction of the department or by the nonprofit corporation, or for any one or more of said purposes, but for no other purpose unless authorized by law, the department has, subject to s. 16.848, the following powers and duties:
46.035(2)(a) (a) Without limitation by reason of any other provisions of the statutes except ss. 13.48 (14) (am) and 16.848 (1), the power to sell and to convey title in fee simple to a nonprofit corporation any land and any existing buildings thereon owned by, or owned by the state and held for, the department or of any of the institutions under the jurisdiction of the department for such consideration and upon such terms and conditions as in the judgment of the secretary are in the public interest.
46.035(2)(b) (b) The power to lease to a nonprofit corporation for a term or terms not exceeding 50 years each any land and any existing buildings thereon owned by, or owned by the state and held for, the department or of any of the institutions under the jurisdiction of the department upon such terms and conditions as in the judgment of the secretary are in the public interest.
46.035(2)(c) (c) The power to lease or sublease from such nonprofit corporation, and to make available for public use, any such land and existing buildings conveyed or leased to such nonprofit corporation under pars. (a) and (b), and any new buildings erected upon such land or upon any other land owned by such nonprofit corporation, upon such terms, conditions and rentals, subject to available appropriations, as in the judgment of the secretary are in the public interest. With respect to any property conveyed to such nonprofit corporation under par. (a), such lease from such nonprofit corporation may be subject or subordinated to one or more mortgages of such property granted by such nonprofit corporation.
46.035(2)(d) (d) The duty to submit the plans and specifications for all such new buildings and all conveyances, leases and subleases made under this subsection to the department of administration and the governor for written approval before they are finally adopted, executed and delivered.
46.035(2)(e) (e) The power to pledge and assign all or any part of the revenues derived from the operation of such new buildings as security for the payment of rentals due and to become due under any lease or sublease of such new buildings under par. (c).
46.035(2)(f) (f) The power to covenant and agree in any lease or sublease of such new buildings made under par. (c) to impose fees, rentals or other charges for the use and occupancy or other operation of such new buildings in an amount calculated to produce net revenues sufficient to pay the rentals due and to become due under such lease or sublease.
46.035(2)(g) (g) The power to apply all or any part of the revenues derived from the operation of existing buildings to the payment of rentals due and to become due under any lease or sublease made under par. (c).
46.035(2)(h) (h) The power to pledge and assign all or any part of the revenues derived from the operation of existing buildings to the payment of rentals due and to become due under any lease or sublease made under par. (c).
46.035(2)(i) (i) The power to covenant and agree in any lease or sublease made under par. (c) to impose fees, rentals or other charges for the use and occupancy or other operation of existing buildings in an amount calculated to produce net revenues sufficient to pay the rentals due and to become due under such lease or sublease.
/statutes/statutes/46 true statutes /statutes/statutes/46/03/40 Chs. 46-58, Charitable, Curative, Reformatory and Penal Institutions and Agencies statutes/46.03(40) statutes/46.03(40) section true
2017-18 Wisconsin Statutes updated through 2019 Wis. Act 5 and through all Supreme Court and Controlled Substances Board Orders filed before and in effect on April 21, 2019. Published and certified under s. 35.18. Changes effective after June 1, 2019, are designated by NOTES. (Published 6-1-19)
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Home Editorials of Interest Taipei Times Time for a serious discussion
Time for a serious discussion
Friday, 01 February 2019 05:13 Taipei Times Editorial Editorials of Interest - Taipei Times
Since taking office, the one thing President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has been reluctant to do is break the decades-long ambiguity surrounding the “status quo,” the one term that manages to trump the so-called “1992 consensus” in terms of the variety of definitions given to them.
Fortunately, that is expected to change later this year. Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) told the state-owned Central News Agency in an interview that the party plans to introduce a new resolution in September that could offer a clearer definition of the “status quo.”
The lack of consensus on what exactly the “status quo” is has bedeviled cross-strait ties, as it has allowed the leaders on both sides of the Taiwan Strait to accuse each other of “changing the ‘status quo’” without ever explaining what parts have actually been changed, causing tensions to escalate easily and quickly.
For the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the “status quo” was changed when Tsai refused to follow in the steps of her predecessor and publicly endorse a “1992 consensus” that locks Taiwan into Beijing’s “one China” framework. In its eyes, any words or actions that make Taiwan even so much as appear separate from China constitutes an attempt to alter the “status quo.”
However, the CCP does not consider its verbal threats, blocking Taiwan from participating in international organizations, or forcing foreign corporations to change how they refer to Taiwan as changes to the “status quo.” The DPP strongly disagrees, and regards actions designed to disrupt Taiwan’s democratic system as altering the “status quo.”
As for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), the main components of its definition of the “status quo” are cross-strait peace and prosperity, the “1992 consensus” and the existence of the Republic of China. The KMT sees any attempt to alter any of the three as altering the “status quo.”
It is risky to talk about maintaining the “status quo” without first having a clear, unanimous definition of what it is. Although the ambiguity around the term has given political leaders and government officials more leeway in handling cross-strait issues, it could result in misinterpretations of what the majority of Taiwanese really want, causing misjudgements and raising the risk of moves that could carry dire consequences.
While most opinion polls have shown that the majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the “status quo,” the truth is, as with the “1992 consensus,” few of them know what they are actually supporting and even fewer bother to find out.
Ask any political pundit and they would say that the “status quo” — whatever it is — cannot be maintained forever. Retaining “maintaining the ‘status quo’” as a possible option for cross-strait ties will only cause the public to remain in a state of denial and delay having the necessary serious discussions about an issue that cannot be indefinitely avoided: Do I want independence or unification?
Given the renewed support for the KMT, as evidenced by last year’s local elections, and the CCP’s ramped-up effort to push for unification under a “one country, two systems” formula, next year could prove to be a make-or-break year for Taiwan’s sovereignty.
Against this backdrop, Taiwanese society must begin a dialogue on the independence/unification issue before next year’s presidential election. The DPP’s planned resolution might determine the course of that conversation.
Source: Taipei Times - Editorials 2019/02/01
Presidential Office Spokesman Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) yesterday said he would pen a protest letter to Freedom House over its latest report alleging he meddled with news content while at the state-owned Central News Agency (CNA).
The Washington-based political and human rights watchdog this week released a full version of Freedom in the World 2010 that included individual country reports.
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150 Reps Sponsor Bill To "Fix" Supreme Ct. CWA Decisions
May 22: Congressman Jim Oberstar (D-MN), Chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, introduced legislation which he said is designed "to fix the Clean Water Act (CWA) after it was damaged by two U.S. Supreme Court rulings." The pair of rulings issued in 2001 and 2006 question the ability of the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to enforce the Clean Water Act on wetlands, streams and ponds that are not part of a major “navigable” waterway [Access various posts on WIMS-eNewsUSA Blog and the WIMS-EcoBizPort Special Report on the Rapanos Supreme Court Decision & Related Activities]. Oberstar said, “These rulings ignore everything we have learned about water pollution and wetland conservation. You have to control pollution at its source. If you wait until it hits a major waterway, it is too late to deal with the problem effectively.”
The Clean Water Act has also helped stop the draining of wetlands across the country. Oberstar indicated, “You only have to look at the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina and the flooding on the Mississippi River in the mid 1990s to see how wetlands protect us, holding back flood waters. Wetlands also filter ground water and allow it to recharge aquifers. The Ogallala Aquifer provides water to eight states from Nebraska to Texas, but many of the wetlands that filter and recharge it have lost their protection due to these Supreme Court rulings.”
Oberstar's Clean Water Restoration Act of 2007 (CWRA) was introduced along with Representatives John Dingell (D-MI) and Vernon Ehlers (R-MI). The bill has 150 co-sponsors. Additionally, CWRA is endorsed by 300 organizations representing the conservation community, family farmers, fishers, boaters, labor unions and civic associations. According to a release the bill would eliminate a complex new jurisdictional application that has been added to the Federal permitting process because of the two Supreme Court rulings. That paperwork adds up to three months of processing time to a wetlands permit.
The bill is designed to restore the authority of the Clean Water Act so it has the same effect it had prior to the Supreme Court’s rulings. It would not create new rules or regulations. The first sentence of the act reads, “The Purpose of this act is as follows: To reaffirm the original intent of Congress in enacting the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 (86 Stat. 816) to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the waters of the United States.” CWRA would also reaffirm exemptions for farming, mining, logging and other activities that are not regulated by the Clean Water Act.
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) Clean Water Project Senior Attorney Jon Devine issued a following statement saying, “We commend the introduction of this important bill and hope Congress will act quickly and decisively in passing it. For decades, the Clean Water Act has protected America’s water resources from industrial pollution, oil spills, sewage, and outright destruction. Recent interpretations of the law have placed many of the nation’s important water bodies in legal limbo, allowing polluters to discharge into water resources across the country without complying with the Clean Water Act’s intended safeguards. This legislation will end this uncertainty and ensure that all of America’s water resources remain protected for future generations.”
Access a release from Representative Oberstar (click here). Access a release from NRDC (click here). [*Water]
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President's Climate Speech Addresses Keystone XL & Fracking
Jun 25: In yesterday's speech announcing the Climate Action Plan [See WIMS 6/25/13], President Obama briefly addressed the Keystone XL pipeline, and indirectly fracking, even though neither was mentioned directly in the plan itself. Neither the actual Plan or the speech mentioned the controversial subject of natural gas exports.
The President said, "I put forward in the past an all-of-the-above energy strategy, but our energy strategy must be about more than just producing more oil. And, by the way, it's certainly got to be about more than just building one pipeline.
"Now, I know there's been, for example, a lot of controversy surrounding the proposal to build a pipeline, the Keystone pipeline, that would carry oil from Canadian tar sands down to refineries in the Gulf. And the State Department is going through the final stages of evaluating the proposal. That's how it's always been done. But I do want to be clear: Allowing the Keystone pipeline to be built requires a finding that doing so would be in our nation's interest. And our national interest will be served only if this project does not significantly exacerbate the problem of carbon pollution. The net effects of the pipeline's impact on our climate will be absolutely critical to determining whether this project is allowed to go forward. It's relevant."
The President also addressed the increasing production of natural gas much of which is possible through the highly controversial use of hydraulic fracturing or fracking. Although he did not mention fracking directly he said, "Now, even as we're producing more domestic oil, we're also producing more cleaner-burning natural gas than any other country on Earth. And, again, sometimes there are disputes about natural gas, but let me say this: We should strengthen our position as the top natural gas producer because, in the medium term at least, it not only can provide safe, cheap power, but it can also help reduce our carbon emissions.
"Federally supported technology has helped our businesses drill more effectively and extract more gas. And now, we'll keep working with the industry to make drilling safer and cleaner, to make sure that we're not seeing methane emissions, and to put people to work modernizing our natural gas infrastructure so that we can power more homes and businesses with cleaner energy. The bottom line is natural gas is creating jobs. It's lowering many families' heat and power bills. And it's the transition fuel that can power our economy with less carbon pollution even as our businesses work to develop and then deploy more of the technology required for the even cleaner energy economy of the future."
The actual Climate Action Plan addressed the natural gas issue saying, "Burning natural gas is about one-half as carbon-intensive as coal, which can make it a critical "bridge fuel" for many countries as the world transitions to even cleaner sources of energy. Toward that end, the Obama Administration is partnering with states and private companies to exchange lessons learned with our international partners on responsible development of natural gas resources. We have launched the Unconventional Gas Technical Engagement Program to share best practices on issues such as water management, methane emissions, air quality, permitting, contracting, and pricing to help increase global gas supplies and facilitate development of the associated infrastructure that brings them to market. Going forward, we will promote fuel-switching from coal to gas for electricity production and encourage the development of a global market for gas. Since heavy-duty vehicles are expected to account for 40 percent of increased oil use through 2030, we will encourage the adoption of heavy duty natural gas vehicles as well." (page 19)
Access the full text of President's climate speech (click here). Access a video of the President's speech (click here). Access the complete 21-page Climate Action Plan (click here). Access the Presidential Memo on Power Sector Carbon Pollution Standards (click here). Access a fact sheet from the White House (click here). Access a visual presentation of the President's Plan (click here). Access the White House climate change website for additional information (click here). [#Climate]
More Comments On The President's Climate Action Plan - Jun 26: The following are some additional comments in reaction to President Obama's Climate Action Plan [See also WIMS 6/25/13]:
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS), National Research Council (NRC) issued a release indicating that, "President Obama unveiled a plan today that aims to cut carbon pollution, prepare the U.S. for the impacts of climate change, and lead international efforts to combat climate change. The National Research Council has produced a number of consensus reports on these and related issues that may be of use to policymakers, researchers, business owners, and the public as they consider ways to address climate change and develop innovative solutions." The release provides a listing and direct links to various NAS reports related to climate change.
UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Executive Secretary, Christiana Figueres said: "President Obama's climate action plan is a necessary next step to meet an immediate, worrying shortfall in action to deal with climate change and can be a critical move forward on the path towards a new, global climate agreement. It remains vital that the United States as the world's largest developed economy is seen to be leading serious action to deal with climate change, both at home and abroad. These new steps will help to meet those goals, if they are implemented to the fullest extent to which they are intended. It is significant that the new plan aims to start up rapidly and covers the full menu of solutions to climate change: clean energy, renewable energy, energy efficiency and the many actions that all countries need to take to adapt to accelerating climate change. This climate action plan should be positive for the US economy and the economies of other countries, as the US shifts faster towards a sustainable, low carbon model, including addressing directly the heaviest sources of emissions from unmodified coal and gas plants.
"When the United States leads action, it also encourages more rapid international efforts to combat climate change by strengthening political trust, building business momentum and driving new technology solutions. . . I applaud the fact that the US intends to play a leading role by helping to forge a truly global solution to climate change that galvanizes international action to significantly reduce emissions, prepares for climate impacts, and drives progress through the international negotiations. This US climate action plan must also be leveraged into fresh, high-level political consensus among countries that will smooth the way for faster progress in the international climate change negotiations under the United Nations."
Earthjustice President Trip Van Noppen said: "President Obama's plan to address climate change is welcome news that deserves widespread support. Continuing to fill our atmosphere with carbon pollution is immoral. We have a responsibility to current and future generations to hand down a livable planet. We must begin now to fulfill our obligation. . . Two of the actions in the president's plan are likely to be particularly effective. The first is reducing carbon pollution from our dirtiest power plants, which is long overdue. These plants, some of which date all the way back to the 1940's, are responsible for the lion's share of the nation's carbon pollution and currently operate without any carbon pollution controls. Secondly, the president's plan to increase efficiency of the appliances we use every day will reduce our carbon pollution while saving consumers money by lowering operating costs. . ."
U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue said: "The president's plan runs a serious risk of punishing Americans with higher energy bills, fewer jobs, and a weaker economy, while delivering negligible benefits to the environment. The administration must fully, transparently, and continually evaluate the impact of its proposed rules on jobs and the economy--just as the law requires. American consumers, workers, and businesses simply cannot afford another smothering layer of new regulations whose benefits are unproven and whose true costs are hidden. It is unfortunate that on a matter of such importance to all Americans that the administration has chosen to bypass our elected representatives in favor of unilateral actions and go-it-alone tactics. . ."
House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (R-WA) said: "Years after a Democrat-controlled Congress rejected the President's plan to impose a new national energy tax, President Obama is now trying to go at it alone and take unilateral action to push through job-destroying taxes and red tape. This is the latest example of President Obama's long-running war on coal, which a White House advisor now openly admits 'is exactly what's needed.' However, this is not only a war on coal. It's a war on jobs, our economy, affordable energy, American families and small businesses. While the President is calling for new energy taxes and regulations, which will cost jobs and increase energy prices, House Republicans this week will vote to expand American energy production in order to create jobs and lower energy prices. The difference couldn't be starker. The President's plan will cost tens of thousands of American jobs and impede economic growth. The Republican plan will create over a million jobs and generate $1.5 billion in new revenue."
Charles Drevna, president of the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) said: "We welcome the fact that President Obama seems to be finally acknowledging the value of the Keystone XL pipeline. However, actions speak louder than words. We hope his statement means the State Department will immediately approve the pipeline, since several environmental reviews have concluded that building Keystone XL will lead to fewer greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions than if we did not build it. Moving ahead on this project is critical for creating thousands of jobs, as well as maintaining and strengthening America's national and economic security.
"Unfortunately, the overall plan is poised to once again pick winners and losers among energy producers, but at the end of the day, the biggest loser will be the U.S. economy. If world action is dependent on the 'United States taking the lead,' as advocates of fossil fuel energy rationing have claimed, then why haven't nations with poor environmental standards followed our lead in reducing GHGs and other emissions over the last twelve years?. . . Ironically, the President's proposal ignores his own regulatory contradictions and also makes claims with little basis in fact. He claims to have a goal of reducing GHG emissions, but is moving forward with Tier 3 gasoline and other stationary source regulations that will increase such emissions. He also expresses support for the RFS, despite data from EPA and the National Academy of Sciences showing that the broken ethanol mandate will increase GHG and other criteria pollutant emissions. . ."
Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Chairman of the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee said: "Today the President has shown he is willing to use the powers granted under existing law to accelerate efforts to contain dangerous carbon pollution. By focusing on the remedies under the Clean Air Act, the potential of using government lands to develop clean energy, and continuing efforts on fuel economy and energy efficiency, the President is using all of the tools in his toolbox, and I applaud him for that. The President's commitment today to only approve the tar sands pipeline if there is no net increase in carbon pollution is promising, but tar sands are one of the dirtiest fuels on the planet and the devil is in the details. We also need a price on carbon pollution, and I intend to work with my colleagues on this issue as part of a comprehensive plan to address climate change."
Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune said: "Today, President Obama has shown he is keeping his word to future generations. His inspiring call to action is a testament to the vibrancy of the grassroots climate movement and the work of millions of activists to make tackling climate disruption a key part of the President's legacy. The Sierra Club's 2.1 million members and supporters issued a collective cheer as they heard the President declare that the most effective defense against climate disruption will be by tackling the biggest single source of carbon pollution: coal plants. . . The President's strong commitment to using climate pollution as the standard by which Keystone XL will be decided means his decision to reject it should now be easy. Any fair and unbiased analysis of the tar sands pipeline shows that the climate effects of this disastrous project would be significant. . . There is still more work to be done. The President's climate commitment and his speech today gives us great hope that he will finally address some of the remaining, worst abuses of the fossil fuel industry, including dirty and dangerous fracking, ending the devastating practice of mountaintop removal coal mining in Appalachia, halting destructive oil drilling in the Arctic, and overhauling the sweetheart deal on public lands that pads the bottom line of coal companies at public expense"
Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Ranking Member of the Energy & Natural Resources Committee said: "The central feature of the president's climate agenda is command-and-control regulations that will drive up energy costs for all Americans. This is exactly the opposite of what we should be seeking from our energy and environmental policies. In the past several years, we've already seen substantial decreases in greenhouse gas emissions thanks to low natural gas prices, improved vehicle efficiency and other trends. Unfortunately, economic stagnation contributed to those emission decreases as well, and that is an experience we should avoid repeating. Addressing climate change will require continued American innovation, but the president does not have the power to will technologies into existence through sheer force or scope of regulation. That will require a longer-term commitment to basic, scientific research that enables genuine breakthroughs. Instead, the president is again putting us on a path where government dictates circumvent elected representatives in Congress. . ."
Access the NAS release (click here). Access the UNFCCC release (click here). Access the Earrthjustice release (click here). Access the U.S. Chamber release (click here). Access a release from Rep. Hastings (click here). Access a release from AFPM (click here). Access a release from Sen. Boxer (click here). Access a release from Sierra Club (click here). Access a release from Sen. Murkowski (click here). [#Climate}
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home // News // Letter: The link between fluoride levels and Alzheimer’s disease //
Letter: The link between fluoride levels and Alzheimer’s disease
Source: Irish Medical Times | February 22nd, 2018 | By Declan Waugh
The Irish Examiner previously published an excellent report on the increase in dementia in Ireland (‘Dementia tsunami looms’, Catherine Shanahan, June 25, 2015).
In this article, Dr Ronan Collins was quoted as saying: “I have seen the exponential growth of dementia in our clinical workload over the last 15 years, a true tsunami with the burden it imposes on increasing numbers of people and their families, and its cost both in terms of the lost social contribution of the person and through the economic cost of care needed.”
Shanahan also reported that the economic cost of dementia illness in the Republic of Ireland was estimated to be €1.7 billion in 2010.
Like Ireland, the USA has also seen an unprecedented increase in dementia in recent decades. Between 1999 and 2014, deaths rates from Alzheimer’s disease in the USA rose by more than 50 per cent.
The current cost of healthcare for dementia in the USA is US$236bn (€191.2bn). It is important to be aware that the USA and Ireland are two of the most fluoridated countries in the world, with in excess of 70 per cent of their populations provided with artificially fluoridated drinking water.
It is also important to note that in 2003, research published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry found that lower brain acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity was associated with cognitive impairment in adults, and that individuals with low AChE activity may have early Alzheimer’s disease changes in the brain.
Most people remain unaware that in 2006, the National Research Council of the National Academies in the USA reported that fluoride inhibits the activities of AChE, and warned of the possibilities that exposure to fluoride may act to increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
In 2014, the National Academy of Sciences in India reported that exposure to fluoride in drinking water resulted in significant impairment of AChE with the maximum inhibition occurring in the brain.
Importantly, the fluoride levels in drinking water in this study were comparable to that found in artificially fluoridated water in the USA and Ireland. In addition, the study found that co-exposure to fluoride and the Chlorpyrifos, a previously widely used pesticide that was permitted to be used in the agricultural sector in Ireland until March 2016, resulted in synergistic toxicity or enhanced impairment of AChE activity.
More recently, in 2015 the journal Pathophysiology published the findings of another study, which found that drinking water containing recommended levels of fluoride in drinking water resulted in brain neurotoxicity, by causing severe neuronal histomorphological changes and impairing AChE activity in the brain. As with Chlorpyrifos, co-exposure to fluoride and aluminium was found to result in synergistic toxicity.
Based on these findings, one would consider that to reduce the burden of Alzheimer’s disease, it is imperative that public health authorities and the Irish Government stop adding fluoride to our drinking water supplies.
Declan Waugh
Scientist, Researcher and Risk Management Consultant
Bandon, Co Cork
References available on request
*Original letter online at https://www.imt.ie/opinion/letters/link-fluoride-levels-alzheimers-disease-22-02-2018/
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The Ultimate Bucket List Trip: How to African Safari in Style
By SYDNEY BRASON A trip to Africa ranks at the top of many buckets lists, and many travelers assume that South Africa is the ideal safari spot. Instead, consider Kenya, which offers an immersion into tribal culture and easy access to some of the most prominent game parks, making it […]
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Bippity Boppity Boo! Disney is Back.
By JENNA JARDINE The icy wind on the Hudson invigorates the crowd of moviegoers, clutching their pre-ordered tickets, at Regal Cinemas Battery Park 11. They brave the rowdy streets of New York City on St. Patrick’s Day not to see an action-packed blockbuster or a tear-jerking drama, but a film […]
April 16, 2017 6:57 pm / Culture, Trends
Choose Chelsea
By RILEY CARDOZA If you’re headed to Manhattan thinking “been there, done that” or don’t feel like elbowing your way through packs of tourists, take the road less traveled by with a trip to Chelsea. Not just a gay bar destination (although it can be if you want it to), this […]
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Amp Up NYC Family Dining
By JENNA JARDINE Dining in the city with kids can be daunting. No matter if you’re a family of tourists, exhausted after a long day of sightseeing, or a family of New Yorkers, trying to break out of your normal routine, it can be tough to find a place with […]
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Millennials are the most stressed generation, according to the American Psychological Association (APA.) While some stress is motivating, too much can be overwhelming, and “it’s going to ultimately be paralyzing,” says Carolyn Gregoire, a psychology and mental health expert. That explains why at the end of a stress-filled week, you […]
February 26, 2017 1:08 am / Culture
Young and Drag: Millennials and Drag Queen Culture
By EMILY WOOD A brief interview with Slater Stanley. Slater Stanley is a senior at New York University. He studies Chinese language and is an RA at NYU’s Lafayette Dorm, where he runs activities for the Rainbow Rosters Explorations, which teaches about LGBTQ issues. Stanley is passionate about issues relating […]
December 9, 2014 9:53 pm / Culture, News, Students, Trends
Millennial Children of Divorce: Fear, Anxiety and Determination to End the Cycle
By LARSON BINZER Julie Smith* always Skyped her family when she was homesick through her first two years at New York University. The dial would ring and the screen would fill with the familiar chattering of her parents, brother and, of course, Gran, sending hellos and love all the way […]
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By MIA TAPER In a computer-generated 3D universe, electronic music pulses as samples of computer beeps and boops are sprinkled in. A golden, star-laden phrase “LET THE MACHINE LIVE YOUR FANTASY” bounces about as crudely animated women jerk their bodies in a circle. An enormous beige male head protrudes from […]
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Getting Dressed for Work: 3 DOs and DON’Ts That Will Help You Get Ready for Any Office
By LARSON BINZER- In the relationship between millennial employees and middle-aged employers, determining what constitutes “professional” has never been as difficult as it is in today’s age of casual Fridays and sneaker-suit combos. However, there are some timeless tricks that will help you dress for any office. The Formal Office […]
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By EMILY WOOD Speakeasy style restaurants and bars are cropping up from Chinatown, to the Upper East Side, to Brooklyn. A quick Google search reveals a host of 1920s-inspired establishments in the heart of the city—Apothéke, Sons of Essex, The Richardson, Bathtub Gin, among others. What makes them so popular […]
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The Power of Sherlock Holmes
by Sara Rosett
Photo: Cyril Thomas
According to Wikipedia, the first Sherlock Holmes story appeared 127 years ago in 1887. The novel, A Study in Scarlet, struck a cord with readers.
The publication of a several short stories in 1891 in The Strand Magazine vaulted the main character of Sherlock Holmes to popularity that continues to this day.
Sherlock has become a stable of the entertainment industry. Besides the nearly endless list of plays and feature films based on the books by Arthur Conan Doyle, we also have the popular modern day version from the BBC, Sherlock, as well as the alternate-universe TV series, Elementary, which is a “what-if” spin-off that takes the basic premise and turns it inside out: what if Holmes was a recovering drug addict and Dr. Watson was a his female sobriety companion?
Then there are the TV shows that don’t actually feature Sherlock Holmes by name, but are not so subtle homages to the character. The Mentalist, House, and Monk all feature main characters who make seemingly uncanny deductions to solve mysteries.
Derivative works can be found in the literary world as well. Laurie R. King and Carol Nelson Douglas have both written spin-offs. The Brothers of Baker Street is another modern-day mystery series featuring two brothers who work at a modern office at 221b Baker Street and become embroiled in mysteries. There are books about young Sherlock as well as a new novel, a continuation of the Holmes stories, which was authorized by Doyle’s estate.
Why do we love Sherlock so much? I think it comes down to two essential elements:
First, we’re fascinated by the character. “Brainy is the new sexy,” says Irene Adler in Sherlock, but I don’t think there’s really anything new about smart being sexy. I think readers and viewers have always been attracted to intelligent characters. Sherlock himself is a puzzle. We want to figure him out.
Secondly, we love a mystery. The mental challenge—the game of wits—draws us in. Can we sort the clues from the red herrings as cleveryly as Holmes?
I know there are other reasons Sherlock continues to fascinate. What are they? And I’d love to hear which is your favorite Sherlock story or spin-off.
Sara Rosett writes a cozy mystery series (Ellie Avery series) and a suspense series with a dash of
romance (On the Run series). As a military spouse Sara has moved around the country (frequently!) and traveled internationally, which inspired her latest suspense series. Publishers Weekly called Sara’s books, "satisfying," "well-executed," and "sparkling."
Sara loves all things bookish, considers dark chocolate a daily requirement, and is on a quest for the best bruschetta. Connect with Sara at www.SaraRosett.com or sign up for her newsletter list here. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Goodreads.
Posted by Sara Rosett at 8:00 PM
Labels: Elementary, On The Run series, Sara Rosett, Sherlock, Sherlock Holmes, Sherlock spin-offs
Betsy Ashton May 2, 2014 at 8:43 AM
I'll add THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS, a wonderful movie starring George C. Scott as a man who thinks he's Sherlock and Joanne Woodward as his psychologist, Dr. Watson. The twist is when Watson joins Holmes in his fantasy. Loved it.
Sara Rosett May 2, 2014 at 1:32 PM
Sounds intriguing, Betsy. I've heard of it, but never watched it. I'll have to see it now. :)
Marilyn Brant May 2, 2014 at 5:14 PM
Sara,
I love both "Sherlock" and "Elementary" and haven't missed an episode of either yet. Mysteries have always been one of my favorite genres, and anytime there's a character in a film or novel who is especially perceptive, I'm reminded of Holmes. Along with "The Mentalist," the short-lived TV show "Lie to Me" was also good.
I'm catching up on episodes of Elementary--enjoying the evolving relationship between Holmes and Watson. It's nice to see Watson do more than absorb Holmes' genius. :)
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Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore. Andre Gide
Bill Hoop Russell has over thirty years' experience in international markets, specializing in sales, trade and management. He is currently an industry consultant, a professional business speaker, a trainer and executive coach, and runs businesses in South Africa and New Zealand.
About Future Options
Bill Hoop Russell’s career spans thirty years and three continents. He has been successful as a trader, arbitrageur, salesperson and manager at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup – two of the world’s preeminent investment banks. He retired from Citigroup in 2007 as a Managing Director and Head of European Futures in London - and the proud recipient of Citigroup’s Excellence in Diversity 2006 Diversity Role Model Award.
Bill is a past Chairman of the Futures Industry Association’s (FIA) European Chapter and a former board member of the Futures & Options Association (FOA). He is also a past member of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and served on a number of the CME committees. Bill was an active participant in numerous industry roundtables organized by the FOA (working alongside regulators and politicians). He was also an industry representative/speaker at regulatory talks jointly hosted by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR) – as well as an industry participant at the invitation-only International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) Technical Committee conferences.
Bill Hoop Russell has frequently been a featured speaker, presenter and moderator in the financial industry, performing presentations for the FIA, FOA, CME, Euronext.liffe, and Eurex for more than a decade.
Since starting Future Options in 2007, Bill has been a keynote speaker, consultant and trainer for blue-chip companies such as J.P. Morgan, General Electric, Deloitte, and Ernst & Young. He has also given freely of his time and expertise in speaking and consulting to such charitable organizations as Speakers Trust (as a trustee), Young Enterprise, Shelter, and TEACH South Africa. He has addressed appreciative audiences in Europe, America, Africa and the Middle East.
Bill was the 2011-12 President of the Professional Speakers Association of Southern Africa’s Cape Town chapter, and is a Founder Member of the Professional Speakers Association in the UK. He is a recipient of an Associate Public Speaking Diploma (ALAM) from the prestigious London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). Bill has also been a proud member of Toastmasters International since 1995 and has held leadership roles with the organization in both Europe and Africa.
Bill is a citizen of the USA, UK and the Republic of Ireland and, as such, has no work restrictions in the US or any European Union countries.
It is rare in the business world to find a leader that not only is an expert in their field but also understands the importance of the human element. Bill can only be described as a leading authority in the Futures and Options business who also truly understands the culture dynamic in teams. Coupled with this, he is a detail oriented leader who examines all sides of a challenge before creating and implementing the solution. He is also a very engaging and entertaining professional public speaker. These qualities make it both an inspiration and pleasure to work with Bill.”
Ian Woodley
Change Creates International
www.changecreates.com
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Greene County district court, week ending Jan. 8
In Greene County district court George R. Byerly, 57, of Jefferson was sentenced Jan. 8 after pleading guilty to a charge of operating while intoxicated-first offense. He was sentenced to two days in jail and must pay a $48 per day sheriff’s fee for the time he serves. He must complete the recommendations of a substance abuse evaluation he has already completed and he must also complete a community college drinking drivers course. He was fined $1,250 with a $437.50 surcharge and a $10 surcharge for drug abuse resistance education (DARE). The court determined he is unable to pay $120 restitution for his court appointed attorney’s fees. Court costs were $100. (Sentencing: Honorable Adria A. Kester)
Beth Ann Elerick, 50, of Jefferson was granted a deferred judgment after she pleaded guilty to a charge of possession of marijuana. She was placed on informal probation for one year. She must undergo a substance abuse evaluation and complete any recommended treatment at her own expense. She must pay a civil penalty of $315, a $125 Law Enforcement Initiative (LEI) surcharge, a $10 DARE surcharge and $100 court costs. The court determined she is unable to pay restitution for her court appointed attorney’s fees. (Sentencing: Kester)
Johnathan Dale Laue, 38, of Grand Junction was sentenced to two years prison after he changed his plea to guilty to a charge of driving while license barred. The prison term was suspended and he was placed on probation for two years. He was fined $625 with a $218.75 surcharge; both were suspended. The court determined he is unable to pay $120 restitution for his court appointed attorney’s fees. Court costs were $100. Another charge of driving while license barred in a separate case was dismissed. (Sentencing: Kester)
Tyler Cordell Kirby, 34, of Des Moines was sentenced to five years in prison, concurrent to a term in a Polk County Case, after he changed his plea to guilty to a charge of possession of a controlled substance-third offense. The prison term was suspended and he was placed on probation for three years. He must complete the recommendations of a substance abuse evaluation at his own expense. His driver’s license was revoked for 180 days. Kirby was fined $750 with a $262.50 surcharge; both were suspended. He must pay a $125 LEI surcharge and a $10 DARE surcharge. The court determined he is unable to pay $180 restitution for his court appointed attorney’s fees. A companion case in magistrate court in which Kirby was charged with theft-fifth degree and possession of drug paraphernalia was dismissed. (Sentencing: Kester)
Persons pleaded not guilty at arraignment as follows: Walter Adelmo Reyes-Menendez, 27, of Perry, driving while license revoked; Trevor Michael Winters, 32, of Jefferson, OWI-first offense, Dustin Eugene Leggitt, 38, of Jefferson, OWI-first offense; Ronald Dean Mulder, 59, of Perry, felon in possession of a firearm, possession of methamphetamine-third offense, and possession of marijuana-third offense; and Damien Michael Schwering, 22, of Scfanton, domestic abuse assault-aggravated. Trial dates were set for March 1 in every case.
Cases were initiated as follows: Bridget Harnack, 23, of Jefferson, unauthorized use of credit card; Blaine Matthew Stockwell, 31, of Laurens, eluding; Devon Christopher Miller, 20, of Ames, illegal possession of prescription drugs; Jamie Ray Alvarado, 21, of Grand Junction, OWI-first offense; Nathan James Flinn, 22, of Rippey, OWI-first offense and possession of a controlled substance; and Don Eugene Wallace, 77, of Churdan, OWI-third offense.
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Groove Notes by KNKX
Examining and Discussing All Things Jazz
Groove Notes Homepage
KPLU.org
KPLU Jazz & Blues
Jazz24.org
Posted on May 23, 2009 September 12, 2011 by Kevin Kniestedt
Where is the Fine Line in Jazz?
I was recently scolded by a listener.
It is not unusual for a radio jock to get an unhappy email from a listener. In my experience, it almost always has to do with a song that is played, overplayed, or not played enough, and even though it is the music that the listener has an issue with, it is the radio host who gets the blame.
It was this most recent complaint that came across as far more angry than your average letter. In fact, the note made it quite clear that after hearing a particular song, the individual was “through” listening to my program.
The song in question was the title track to the Steely Dan album Aja. The complaint, in short, was that Steely Dan didn’t play jazz, and that Aja wasn’t jazz and didn’t sound like jazz, even if Steely Dan was a jazz band by nature.
My initial reaction to letters like this is to respond with a common defense, which is to suggest that jazz is a free art form that knows no borders, and that just because it doesn’t sound like Coltrane or Charlie Parker doesn’t disqualify it as jazz. But in this case, and for the purpose of this blog, I decided to take a deeper look.
Allmusic.com suggests that Steely Dan plays in the styles of Soft Rock, Pop/Rock, Jazz-Rock, and Album Rock, and the album Aja is listed under the same headings. In fact, if I was to try and find Aja on ITunes, I would have to look under the rock genre, not the jazz genre. Ok, so maybe not a lot in my corner so far.
But then you look a little deeper. The song Aja features some great jazz musicians, including Wayne Shorter, one of the most legendary musicians in jazz history, and sax man Pete Christlieb. The problem with that, after doing my research, is that to consider Steely Dan/Aja as jazz, based on the fact that Shorter and Christlieb play on it would also qualify the following musicians/bands as jazz: Santana, Don Henley, The Rolling Stones, Lee Ann Womack, John Denver, Vanessa Williams, Kenny Rogers, Neil Diamond, Christina Aguilera, and yes, Tony Danza. These musicians all recorded with either Shorter or Christlieb, none of which would qualify as jazz musicians or jazz bands (although Tony Danza’s album was packed full of standards).
I also can’t argue the improvisational factor. Certainly there are improvised solos on this track, even good ones, but I’ve heard good improvised solos from Slash of Guns N’ Roses too, and that doesn’t make Paradise City a jazz tune.
Pete Christlieb, ironically enough, will actually be in town at a jazz club soon performing with a group called Nearly Dan, paying tribute to the music of Steely Dan. I might have that in my corner, if they weren’t doing a pre-concert interview on our local classic rock station. That, and the fact that you could probably do a jazz tribute to Megadeath if you got the right band and arrangements together doesn’t put a lot on my side either.
So did I lose this one? Did I cross the line with Aja? Should I have just responded with “Jazz is free, it has no boundaries”? Should I have said “I’m the DJ, I’ll play what I want”?
Maybe I did the best thing I could do, and just not write back.
CategoriesRandom Thoughts Tagsaja, steely dan
0 Replies to “Where is the Fine Line in Jazz?”
Nick Francis says:
It’s quite ironic; Jazz purists think they’re a pop/rock band; rock purists insists that there’s nothing “rock” about them. Why would Marian McPartland feature Fagen & Becker on Piano Jazz?
I think the debate is silly because it’s only about surface elements.
We’re not playing the entire Steely Dan catalog on KPLU. We’ve got a few songs in our system; including Duke Ellington’s “East St. Louis Toodle-OO”.
How bout focusing on the song “Aja” itself, the composition? The chord changes, arrangements, and harmonic and rhythmic textures are extremely sophisticated. If this tune were performed with traditional acoustic jazz instruments rather than the electric ones on the record, absolutely NO ONE would consider this tune a rock or pop tune. The pop and rock elements are only on the surface.
That’s my take on why we’re playing it on KPLU.
Kevin Kniestedt says:
Thanks Nick!
Truthfully, I think any song could be picked apart until there is nothing left, whether it is to support a tune or bring evidence against it. My thoughts in response to the email probably only scratched the surface. I never even thought to mention the vocals on it. Are they the reason for a listeners like or dislike?
Improvisation, chord structures, band members, instruments, rock or jazz, vocals, etc, I think are all fine things to talk about. But what it probably comes down to for each individual is as simple as:
Do I like how the song sounds or not?
Thomas Marriott says:
I think what this discussion really highlights is the absurdity of trying to define what jazz is. Most people have a few generally-accepted guidelines of what jazz music is and isn’t and when that line gets crossed they become uncomfortable.
A few things to keep in mind – plenty of Duke Ellington’s music contains almost no improvisation. “Sketches Of Spain” contains no track with a “swing” feeling or extended improvisation over a repeated form. Nobody would argue that Duke & Miles aren’t jazz – but then again, it’s highly doubtful that the masters cared if what they played were called jazz or not.
Like any artist working in a specific medium, weather it be sculpture, textiles, poetry, or jazz, the artist tries to put forth the best work they can and if it ends up crossing the line of a specific genre, that shouldn’t reflect on what the piece of art is so long as it is accepted by the audience it was created for. I don’t know if Steely Dan intended their music for jazz audiences, but if you, the programmer, feels it deserves the attention of jazz listeners, why not play it.
I would think that what your cranky listener might take exception to is the fact that you would consider playing Steely Dan, but maybe wouldn’t consider playing any Miles post 1965 (Sorcerer, Miles Smiles, ESP, Files De Kiliminjaro, etc.) , or Trane post 1963 (Live at The Village Vanguard, or Love Supreme, etc) or Weather Report (“Birdland” not included), Return To Forever, or a host of other forms of music generally accepted as being “jazz”. If it is worthwhile to stretch the audience to consider Steely Dan as “Jazzy” enough, fair enough. But what about some jazz music that is not typically played on KPLU? I understand that requires a lengthy knowledge of the jazz idiom to present and program, but from what I have read on this blog, that shouldn’t be an issue for the talented programmers at KPLU.
Thanks for keeping the music playing, love your show! – Thomas Marriott
P.S. I would take issue with Mr. Francis’ assertion that “The chord changes, arrangements, and harmonic and rhythmic textures are extremely sophisticated.” That my be true relative to other forms of popular music, but not compared to what can be found in the lexicon of “jazz” music. That being said, I agree with his statement that “If this tune were performed with traditional acoustic jazz instruments rather than the electric ones on the record, absolutely NO ONE would consider this tune a rock or pop tune.” Well said and very true, but it isn’t performed that way and I think that’s what probably bothers the listener who wrote in.
Arnold van Klaveren says:
What if you had played East St Louis Toodle-lo by Duke, from Pretzel Logic??
I wonder if your listener would have accepted that?
I host a jazz radio program as well and I play what I listen to at home. Maybe some people don’t like that, they can always change the station.
Don’t change what your doing based on one opinion, otherwise you might not get to play anything!
That’s the beauty of jazz, everyone has a like and some artists they just won’t listen to.
arodjazz says:
Jazz ought not to be defined exclusively. If you want to play Steely Dan on your show, why the heck shouldn’t you? It’s your radio show. If someone wants to get all bent out of shape about it, that’s on them. It’s not like by playing Steely Dan you’re somehow poisoning Charlie Parker or John Coltrane. I agree with Arnold: play what you want, it’s your show!
Exclusive definitions in jazz have no merit as far as I’m concerned. There are a number of threads that connect jazz, as you enumerate, including personnel, repertoire, improvisation, “swing feeling” and many others.
Troy Oppie says:
A worthy topic, KK… I was having this same debate with a friend of mine lucky enough to have gone to the New Orleans Jazz Festival earlier this year. It’s easy to shrug off the notion that something can’t be jazz just because it’s not played by a jazz artist – and I’m as guilty of that sometimes and anyone else – but at the same time that’s what makes jazz great. Look at the great example Ray Charles set with what he did; not all of it was jazz, and Charles wasn’t even called a jazz musician half the time, but he wrote and led one of the most swingin’ bands in history. His roots were jazz and blues, but he could do country just as well. Charles is in a class by himself, but the ball swings both ways with musicians that are not primarily jazz.
I’m definitely a traditionalist – but I’ve always thought this particular way: I know jazz when I hear it.
and besides… on KPLU, if you don’t like something… just take a 5-minute break. Something new will be on then, and it’s very likely to be something I like. That’s the beauty of 88.5, your library dwarfs my own.
and just for kicks… here’s a listener call I got one night. I’ll never forget it, I laughed for 5 minutes.
Listener: “hey, you need to stop playing all this crappy Billie Holiday stuff. I mean, if I want to listen to a whiny female vocalist, I’ll call my ex-wife!”
When it comes down to it – who cares what it’s called? It’s just really great music!!!!
thejazzmonger says:
I guess I am not enough of a purist to get huffy about whether a great song like Aja is truly jazz. So shoot me! I find this kind of orthodoxy only serves to interfere with the enjoyment of good music. Steely Dan is always worth a listen. And if Duke Ellington could be widely recognized and praised for incorporating symphonics into his Jazz, why not Steely for incorporating jazz into Rock, or Rock into Jazz. This is starting to sound like a Reese’s commercial.
Keep up the good work, Kevin. You bring us good music and great insights.
Good debate, indeed. I’d have to side with the listener that Steely Dan fits better in the broad Rock genre than in the broad Jazz genre. I won’t get into the reasons as they’re not relevant to my main point. That being, it is your radio show and an engaging radio show will feature highlights of the genre (in your case, jazz) with occasional hints at recordings just outside the genre.
A classical (orchestral) program might feature Bach and Mozart and so forth but might sneak in some John Williams score for fun and to broaden the listener base. Classic Rock stations can’t limit themselves to Led Zep and CCR. They need to play the latest Tom Petty and other guitar-based band to keep things fresh and stimulating.
As long as you don’t start sneaking in Rage Against the Machine or Spike Jones, you’ll be fine.
I am a jazz DJ and I have learned that the jazz police never sleep.
Hahaha…Tom, you said it! What is it with us humans? Why do we tend do default, so easily, into this chest-bumping, “I am more serious and pure than you…” stuff?
I like Adam’s approach, just above. Now, like any person, there is some stuff I would rather not listen to. But to jump an excellent dj because he stuck a little something in that I wouldn’t choose myself is… a little bit tight-ass.
It seems to me that the best jazz is always stretching, experimenting, poking in the crannies and reaching for the new. If that’s the jazz attitude, why would we want to be closed off to any musical element?
I agree with Tom too. (And I like Spike Jones!)
Music (one of the most social art forms if you ask me) thrives on cross-pollination and hybridization. What we call “American music” today would not exist if previous advocates of musical purity had had their way. I suspect that, a hundred years ago, your critic would have most likely been working to *prevent the development of jazz in the first place*. Oh, the irony!
Often people who take the purist view feel they are defending something that is in danger of disappearing. So your critic may be worried that “traditional” or “classic” jazz is dying, and that a DJ’s gesture of eclecticism (whatever its motivation) only makes that death more imminent. However, with our increasingly niche-driven culture, in which digital technology and social networking make it possible for fans of even the most obscure art form to connect and celebrate it, this seems to me to be a less and less sustainable argument. Sure, there may never be as many “pure” jazz fans as there are Steely Dan fans (though who knows?), but the audience for the former will never disappear.
Peeling away the layers, I personally think your critic’s comments have very little to do with music per se. He / she has gone way beyond simply marveling at the wonderful variety of human taste, and being mildly inconvenienced by that variety for a few minutes. Instead, he / she seems driven by a (alas, very human) need to proclaim membership in a given club. It almost doesn’t matter what the club is *for*…
Dave from Sylvania Township, OH says:
Excuse me for living but improvization in late 1960s and 1970s rock music is probably one of two things that led me toward jazz. The other is probably growing up with a mother who enjoyed classical music.
I’m not saying that all recorded rock improvization was good. However, when it started to disappear from rock radio in the 1980s, I started searching for it and found it in jazz. Today and probably for the past 25 years, mainstream jazz is my main “listen”.
I upgraded my home system to include a SONOS to bring Internet radio to me in my living room, back in 2007. Prior to that, it was the home computer upstairs in my home office at a louder volume. I spent a lot of time that year checking out mainstream jazz radio from the Internet. Today my listening comes down to 5 stations in the US and Canada, with both KPLU and Jazz 24 being 2 of them.
KPLU and Jazz 24 probably have the widest spectrum of jazz to offer, of the 5. This is a good thing!! The other three stations probably get down deeper in mainstream. BOTH MEET MY MUSICAL NEEDS.
If Jazz purists feel their music is dying, so be it. Remember that both rock and jazz are rooted in the blues so why not cross paths. We as a people cross paths every day. Ever heard of “life”.
Kevin, please keep on playing Aja and tracks of similar question. Aja is a great song and musical piece. from a great album.
funkydale says:
Kevin, I’m sure that listener will be listening to your show tonight, tomorrow or next week. To get such a strong reaction from someone means that he/she wants to be involved in the transmission of the show.
Jazz has seen a rebirth in the past few years. Performers have adapted virtually every format of music to fit their own voices. You need only to look at the many local jazz artists to see evidence of this, and to realize the audience is adapting, too.
That’s what’s been so great about the evolution of KPLU’s jazz programming in the past couple years. Adding electric jazz tunes, diversifying the playlist, notching out sounds of particular programs, recording and airing more live studio sessions, and keeping listeners entertained. There are so many intangible qualities in the music that can’t be classified, and defy explanation, but it seems to satisfy the soul. Getting beyond a pure classification of categories is the challenge Mr. Francis seems to have taken on at KPLU, and I encourage you, Kevin, and Nick, to keep plugging away.
In the age of iPod, the only way terrestrial radio can stay relevant is by offering unique content, and extending it to websites, downloads, and discussion boards like this. Stations that don’t do this will go away.
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Rich Keith, GM says:
I think SD would fit in very nicely on a “Smooth Jazz” format. No so much on a station like ours that concentrates more on Traditional Straight Ahead Jazz and Standards. Can I explain this to you in academic terms? No, it’s just an ear thing.
By the way, I think SD is/was one of the great bands in Rock history and do appreciate the fact that they cut their teeth on Jazz in their formative years. In a decade of some pretty lousy music, the 1970s, they were one of the few things worth listening to.
As far as musicians appearing on albums. You can’t use that to classify the music because, let’s face it, most musicians (understandably) will play whatever is put in front of them if the bread is there. A lot of very good players appeared with Lawrence Welk over the years!
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Tag Archives: greggshienbaum
Work of the Week! WOW! Frank Stella – Racetrack, Agua Caliente
Posted on June 25, 2019 by admin in - WOW!
Agua Caliente, from Race Track Series
Pencil signed and numbered
About the work:
Frank Stella is an aficionado of racing of all kinds and on multiple occasions has incorporated this passion into his work. Of the different racing related series he has created, one of the most widely recognized is the Racetrack Series. This series of three prints was inspired by famous horse race tracks in California and Mexico.
This week’s Work of the Week! WOW! from the Racetrack Series is Agua Caliente.
The Agua Caliente track is located in Baja California, Mexico, approximately 4 miles from the US border. The facility was built in 1929, at the height of Prohibition and start of the Great Depression. The racetrack was attached to a casino and hotel, a resort which was very popular among wealthy Americans, including the Hollywood elite since drinking and gambling was illegal in the US. In 1935, Mexican President Lazaro Cardenas outlawed gambling, which closed down the resort and casino, however the racetrack continued to operate for many years.
Agua Caliente was the site of several horse racing firsts, such as starting gates, safety helmets, and “pick-6” wagering. “Pick-6” wagers require bettors to pick the winning horse in 6 consecutive races, no easy task but, multiple horses can be selected for each race. The more horses selected, however, the more expensive the bet.
Legendary horses, Phar Lap and Seabiscuit competed and won at the track in 1932 and 1938 respectively, both regarded as symbols of hope during the Great Depression. Today, the racetrack is still in operation, but hosts daily greyhound races as opposed to horse races.
Stella’s minimalist approach depicts Agua Caliente with 3 boldly-colored ellipses representing a bird’s eye view of the track. Despite that the work is minimalist, it is created in a large scale, measuring 81 1/8 inches across, adding to the impact of the geometric beauty.
Work of the Week! WOW! Alex Katz – White Visor
White Visor
Etching Aquatint
33 3/8 x 67 in.
Pencil signed & numbered
Blue Umbrella, Orange Band, Plaid Shirt, Red Coat, Black Scarf, and Wedding Dress . . . These are all titles of prints by Alex Katz.
Although, they look like a typical Alex Katz portrait, these works do not focus on what the subject looks like, but rather all these works (and others) give us a glimpse into the subject’s personality. These works also portray another very important element in Katz’s works, fashion.
Fashion, and what a person wears gives us a sense of a person’s personality, their style, their tastes, their likes and their dislikes. Some are simple, and other are more eccentric, daring, and even over the top. But fashion is also dictated by a time and place. We dress according to the occasion, the place, the atmosphere if you will.
This week’s Work of the Week! WOW!, White Visor, gives us a sense of just that.
Emblematic of Katz’s use of cinematic cropping and broad areas of color, this simplistic image in typical Alex Katz flatness, the white visor, a specific type of hat, is what provides the primary environmental context to this work. Katz takes the viewer to the very place that he has depicted his subject. Bare shouldered, set in front of just a clear blue sky, sporting nothing but a white visor, we do not know if the woman is on the beach, on a boat, or by a pool, but the artist engages us, and we feel as if we are sitting there right next to her.
White Visor was one of the prints selected to be featured in a 2012 Katz retrospective at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts.
Below is a photo of the artist Alex Katz and his wife Ada as they look at his work White Visor during a media preview of a retrospective of Katz’ prints at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts April 23, 2012. The exhibit’s introduction explains that the retrospective of more than 100 of Katz’ printed works shows “images that chart the people, fashions, landscapes and poetry that have caught his eye across a long artistic career.”
Work of the Week! WOW! Joan Mitchell – Bedford III
Bedford III
Joan Mitchell is one of the great American artists of the 20th century. A “second generation” abstract expressionist, she was one of the few women to gain critical and public acclaim. While best known for her work as a painter, she also dedicated herself to the creation of prints, often collaborating with Tyler Graphics studio, which at the time was located in Bedford, NY.
This week’s Work of the Week! WOW! is Mitchell’s Bedford III, from the Bedford series (a series of 3 works).
Ken Tyler the founder of Tyler Graphics had approached Mitchell about collaborating together. He was interested in the challenge of capturing her painterly vision through the process of lithography. The partnership resulted in a number of series of works, including Bedford, named after the location of the studio.
The writer Barbara Rose described the lithographs being as “concerned with calling attention explicitly to the nature of the medium. The greasiness, grittiness and oiliness of the lithographic crayon and the quicksilver liquidity of the tusche are as much the ‘subjects’ of her lithographs as the loaded brushstroke is the ‘subject’ of her paintings.
Bedford articulates a landscape distilled by the artist’s eye and skill, but also brings forth the vigor and assertiveness of Mitchell’s work.
The Baltimore Museum of Art and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art have recently revealed plans for a Joan Mitchell retrospective slated to open in 2020.
Work of the Week! WOW! Victor Vasarely – Papillon
Posted on June 3, 2019 by admin in - WOW!
Silkscreen on Arches paper
Art historians credit Victor Vasarely with creating some of the earliest examples of Op Art in the 1930s. He experimented with techniques decades before the establishment of the movement in the 60s, and is widely regarded as the Father of the Op Art movement.
“Op Art” is short for Optical Art, which was coined by Time Magazine in a 1964. It is a style known for creating optical illusions from extremely precise repeating patterns, interlocking shapes and vivid yet strictly defined color palettes.
The genre marked the first time in Art History that the Theory of Visual Perception would be systematically studied and applied by artists. In this theory, psychologists distinguish between two types of processes in perception; the first caused by our purely physical optical sense and the second by our subjectively learned world view. Op Art was therefore driven by artists who were interested in investigating various perceptual effects; effects that confuse and fascinate.
This week’s Work Of the Week! WOW! is Victor Vasarely’s Papillon.
In this work, Vasarely draws his viewer into a geometric realm, a grid-like composition that appears to warp. The vertical centre point seems to recede backwards, away from the viewer, with the left and right sides of the image swelling outwards in a bulbous spherical distortion. The French word “papillon” means butterfly which is represented in the linear symmetry of the work.
The feeling of movement and depth are created by Vasarely’s use of lines decreasing in scale towards the central line. Vasarely’s masterful use of warm and cool colors across the field also serves to provide the viewer with the feeling of kinetic energy, depth and space. These optical games physically affect the viewer, the results of which are timeless, exciting and innovative as they engage and captivate the viewer with depth perception and spatial distortion.
Vasarely truly created “an art for all.” An art that the viewer can appreciate without the knowledge of art history, an art in which the final image is the product of the viewer’s own eye without contemplation.
As Vasarely stated: “What is at stake is no longer the ‘heart’ but the retina, and the connoisseur has now become a study object for experimental psychology. Harsh contrasts, the unbearable vibration of complementary colors, the flickering of linear networks and per mutated structures…all these are elements in my work whose task is no longer to plunge the viewer into a sweet melancholy but to stimulate him.”
Work of the Week! WOW! Larry Rivers – Stencil Camel
Posted on May 21, 2019 by admin in - WOW!
Stencil Camel
Color stencil and pochoir printed on acetate and color lithograph on two sheets
25 x 21 1/2 in.
A.P. of 25
Although controversial today, cigarettes were once main-stream. The three iconic American brands that almost anyone can identify based on branding are Marlboro, Lucky Strike and Camel. The Camel pack was long a subject of interest for Larry Rivers. Rivers was one of the first to merge non-objective, non-narrative art with narrative and objective abstraction. Reproducing everyday objects of American popular culture was the foundation of Pop, and Rivers was at the forefront.
This week’s Work of the Week! WOW! is Larry Rivers’ Stencil Camel, a lithograph color stencil and pochoir.
Stencil Camel is a single work of art comprised of two pieces; cotton rag paper superimposed with acetate on top of it. The cotton rag paper makes up the background, with the lithograph creating the landscape, setting the tone for the front piece which is the acetate that bares the stenciled camel. The acetate (front piece) contains the main image in which Rivers uses the pochoir technique, a method by which the pigments are applied by brush or sponge in the negative spaces of the stencil. Rivers’ artistic thoughts and ideas of merging non-narrative and narrative served as an inspiration to many artists that came after him such as Rauschenberg, Johns, Warhol, Dine and Lichtenstein.
Work of the Week! WOW! Andy Warhol – Superman
Posted on May 6, 2019 by admin in - WOW!
Superman, from Myths
Screenprint on Lenox Museum Board
“Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap tall buildings at a single bound!”
“Look up in the sky!”
“It’s a bird, It’s a plane, It’s. . . Superman!”
“Yes, it’s Superman… he fights a never-ending battle for truth, justice and the American way!”
Superman is one of the most recognizable and beloved Super Heroes of all time. Also known as the Man of Steel, he is the ultimate symbol of truth, justice, and hope. Though his powers make him almost god-like compared to regular humans, Superman’s story is not one of greed or conquest. Instead, he represents the goodness of the human spirit.
Batman remarks of Superman: “It is a remarkable dichotomy. In many ways, Clark is the most human of us all. Then…he shoots fire from the skies, and it is difficult not to think of him as a god. And how fortunate we all are that it does not occur to him.” Superman is an extremely moral person. He believes that killing anyone under any circumstance is wrong. It is said that his alter-ego Clark Kent’s upbringing in the Midwest largely contributes to this, as his adoptive parents raised him to always try to do the right thing.
This week’s Work of the Week! WOW! is Andy Warhol’s Superman, from Myths.
Warhol was an expert at capturing deep American truths and fantasies. “Everybody has their own America, and then they have pieces of a fantasy America that they think is out there but they can’t see,” he once observed. Nowhere is this national fantasy clearer than in Warhol’s Myths Series of 1981.
The term ‘Myth’ often evokes the collected stories of the Ancient Greeks and Romans, however, it is a feature of every culture. The collection of myths, stories, or heros of any society defines its spirit and soul.
In the Myths Series, Warhol selected 10 uniquely American personas, from Santa Claus to Uncle Sam, each artwork revealing facets of America’s personality.
With the Superman portrait, Warhol captured the modern imagination as completely as the gods and goddesses of ancient mythology once did. The moment Superman was introduced to the American culture, he became a star. He was on radio stations, television shows, and cartoon series. Even today he continues to be a star and loved by society.
The emergence of Superheroes like Superman created a fantastical outlet for the American public during arguably the bleakest periods in our country’s history. In the time that superheroes first emerged in America, our country was faced with incredible difficulties including, most notably, the Great Depression. For the first time across the nation people were realizing that they were a part of a whole, suffering together and going through the same kinds of problems. Americans were facing not only economic struggles, but the threat of war in Europe. The fantasy and accessibility of the comic book became especially alluring as an escape from an unforgiving reality. Superman’s incredible strength and perseverance inspired many and gave hope to those who had long-since lost it.
Warhol understood this, and realized the importance Superman in American culture. Superman is truly an American icon, a nostalgic representation of America, theatrically reflecting American fantasies, hopes, fears and dreams. Warhol’s portrait of Superman not only captured his awe inspiring power, but also a feeling of wholesomeness. The exact two personas of Superman.
Work of the Week! WOW! David Hockney – Early Morning
David Hockey is a big deal. Just six months ago, the British Pop artist broke the auction record for a work by a living artist with a $90 million sale at Christies, and at 81 years old, is one of the most innovative artists still working today. Throughout his career, he has never shied away from using different types of mediums to push the boundaries of his artistic expression, making use of color photocopy machines to create original work, or sending an entire body of work for a gallery show via fax.
Approximately a decade ago, Hockney started using a tool familiar to us all to explore the act of drawing: the iPhone. When the iPad became available, he transitioned to that device. Of the switch, he said “I thought the iPhone was great, but this takes it to a new level – simply because it’s eight times the size of the iPhone, as big as a reasonably sized sketchbook.”
This week’s Work of the Week! WOW! is the iPad drawing Early Morning.
After spending about 25 years living in California, the source of inspiration for his famous pool-side paintings, Hockney returned to his native seaside town of Bridlington, on the north/east coast of Britain. It is in Bridlington that he started experimenting with Apple technology and the application called Brushes.
Flowers are a frequent subject of the iPad drawings. John Fitzherbert, Hockey’s partner buys a different bouquet every day – roses, lilies, lilacs – and places them on the windowsill of their bedroom. Early Morning was created at dawn, drawn from the comfort of the artist’s bed, however, the real subject of the work is light and the role the iPad plays in capturing fleeting moments.
Hockey has said that the medium is perfectly suited for the study of light. The color wheel in the app supplies every pigment on demand, making it possible to capture the dawn light rapidly before it shifts. The device’s backlight, has proven to be useful too, allowing the artist to draw at any time of day, even in dark settings, enabling him to work in almost any circumstance. Lastly, the very nature of the medium allows the artist to be able to draw as soon as inspiration hits, without having to worry about having the necessary materials at his immediate disposal.
Hockney’s iPad has effectively replaced the sketch book. In all his suits, the artist has always requested that his taylor insert a large internal pocket, which in the past, would be for a sketch book, but now holds his electronic device. For an artist who is so inspired by the outdoors, the tool enables Hockney to work in “plein air” easily and efficiently.
David Hockney is a big deal. He is an innovator, unafraid to experiment and explore the technologies at his disposal. He has said “I just happen to be an artist who uses the iPad, I’m not an iPad artist. It’s just a medium. But I am aware of the revolutionary aspects of it, and it’s implications.”
Work of the Week! WOW! Salvador Dali – Rowena, from Ivanhoe Suite
Posted on April 15, 2019 by admin in - WOW!
Rowena, from Ivanhoe Suite
Pencil signed and numbered; certified authentic by Frank Hunter of the Salvador Dali archives in New York on verso
Salvador Dali often explored literary characters in his works. Tristan and Isolde or Don Quixote are well-known series of work by the artist. He also created work based on the romantic novel Ivanhoe.
This week’s Work of the Week! WOW! is Rowena, from Ivanhoe Suite.
Ivanhoe was written by Sir Walter Scott in 1819. The story was set in medieval England during a time of political tension between the Anglo-Saxons and Normans. This created a divide between the protagonist Sir Wilfred of Ivanhoe and his father. Ivanhoe, the son of a wealthy nobleman and of Anglo-Saxon descent was disinherited by his father Cedric of Rotherwood for supporting a Norman king, and for falling in love with Lady Rowena whom Cedric looks after.
Ivanhoe and Rowena are in love throughout the novel, however Cedric forbids their marriage as he would like Rowena to marry Lord Athelstane, a powerful Anglo-Saxon contender for the crown. During a jousting tournament, Ivanhoe is wounded and his healer, Rebecca falls in love with him.
So many obstacles lie in the path of Ivanhoe and Rowena to marry, which Dali captures through symbolic images. Rowena is seen holding a melting clock, one of Dali’s most iconic images, which symbolizes the lost time for the two lovers. Rowena is holding a single rose, which symbolizes Ivanhoe and his love for Rowena. Another meaningful image is the presence of a seahorse with Dali’s ever so famous stork legs. The seahorse was considered a good luck charm in many old cultures, symbolizing the strength of the subconscious and persistence, which is relevant to the two lovers character and their desire to be together.
Despite the obstacles, Ivanhoe and Rowena are together in the end. Rebecca leaves England to study medicine in Spain, and Cedric of Rotherwood gives his blessing for the two to marry.
Work of the Week! WOW! Walton Ford – Suite of 6 Etchings
Posted on April 8, 2019 by admin in - WOW!
Benjamin’s Emblem, 2000
Compromised, 2003
La Historia Me Absolvera,1999
Swadeshi-cide, 1998
The Tale of Johnny Nutkin, 2001
Visitation, 2004
The following details apply to each piece:
6 color hardground and softground etching, aquatint, spit-bite aquatint, drypoint and roulette on Somerset satin paper
Walton Ford is a contemporary American painter and printmaker who draws on the visual and narrative language of traditional natural history painting. He examines how animals exist and survive in relation to human activity, many of the animals he depicts being extinct. Although human figures rarely appear in his work, their presence and effect is always implied.
This week’s Work of the Week! WOW! is a suite of 6 etchings by Walton Ford.
Ford’s color etchings are deeply inspired by 19th century American ornithologist and painter John James Audubon, but they aren’t just a celebration of the natural world like Aududbon’s works. Ford’s paintings are meticulous, realistic studies of flora and fauna, filled with commentary – symbols, clues and jokes referencing text ranging from colonial literature, to folktales, to travel guides. His works are complex, allegorical narratives that critique the history of colonialism, industrialism, politics, natural sciences and humanity’s effect on the environment.
In the work entitled Visitation, for example, Ford’s scene of a large flock of passenger pigeons can be seen eating corn and nuts, and recalls a written description by Audubon, “Whilst feeding, their avidity is at times so great that in attempting to swallow a large acorn or nut, they are seen gasping for a long while as if in the agonies of suffocation.” The overwhelming amount of birds feasting on the bounty of the land could symbolize the exploitation of natural resources by European settlers in the New World, which ultimately led to the extinction of the passenger pigeon.
Another American bird represented in this series can be seen in the piece Benjamin’s Emblem. This is a direct reference to the myth that Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey as the emblem of the Great Seal of the United States – his proposal for the seal was in fact devoid of birds completely. The turkey in Benjamin’s Emblem is asphyxiating a small Carolina Parakeet, an extinct bird, once the only parakeet indigenous to North America. The wild turkey was the very first print created for Audubon’s Birds of America, celebrating wild American birds. The wild turkey was Audubon’s most idolized, writing about it more than any other in his Ornithological Biography. He sealed letters with a seal bearing the likeness of a turkey and the words “America My Country,” even adopting one as a pet.
Each bird of the series has a story related to human activity such as Colonialism, Imperialism and even Communism, and their ecological effects on nature, specifically birds.
Walton Ford’s work can be found in many public collections in the US, including the Museum of Modern Art, NY; Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington D.C.
Work of the Week! WOW! Andy Warhol – Brooklyn Bridge
Posted on March 26, 2019 by admin in - WOW!
Brooklyn Bridge FS II.290
When you were young did your parents ever say . . . If your friends jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge would you follow them?
Mine did all the time, and we did not even live in Brooklyn, let alone New York.
Along with the Golden Gate Bridge, The Brooklyn Bridge is the most well-known and beloved bridge in America. It is an American Icon, representing American ingenuity, American grit, and American pride. The is why Andy Warhol chose to paint fantastic modern day marvel.
This week’s Work of the Week! WOW! is Andy Warhol’s Brooklyn Bridge.
Completed on May 24th 1883, after 14 years of construction, the Brooklyn Bridge set many records, it was the world’s first steel-wire suspension bridge, the first fixed crossing across the East River, and at the time it opened, the longest suspension bridge ever built by 50%, it is also one of the oldest roadway bridges in the US. In 1964 The Brooklyn Bridge was designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service, and in 1972 became a New York City Landmark by the Landmarks Preservation Commission.
In 1983, The Brooklyn Bridge celebrated its centennial anniversary. Exhibitions, lectures and performances were organized, including a 9,600-rocket firework display. President Ronald Reagan was also part of the festivities, leading a formal procession of cars along the bridge to mark the start of the celebrations. The entire production was put together by the Brooklyn Bridge Centennial Commission, which produced a brochure listing all the related activities taking place from May through October of 1983. It seems only fitting then that the Commission approached another American and New York City icon to create the official celebration image: Pop Art star, Andy Warhol.
Warhol’s depictions of iconic American symbols are what lead to his rise to the most famous American artist of the 20th century. He captured the political and commercial strength of the post-war American era and gave them an artistic platform.
As with most of his work, the imagery of Brooklyn Bridge is based on actual photographs. What is different in this case is the use of multiple images, as opposed to just one. The juxtaposition of the two images better captures the power and symbolism of the Brooklyn Bridge as one of the greatest American engineering feats of the 19th century. To create a visual 3D effect of the bridge on a 2D medium, Warhol used color block techniques and multi-layer superimposition of colors, tricking the eye to think the bridge is popping out of the sheet.
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Headtron is a Los Angeles based music collective that provides an all-encompassing home for today’s electronic music producers. What began as a booking agency in 2010 has evolved into a much larger platform for navigating the current music industry landscape. Comprised of a close-knit team who believe in fostering a family atmosphere, Headtron carefully helps nurture every aspect of their artists’ career. From music distribution through their own record label or on some of the most prominent in the industry, to developing a live show through Headtron’s in-house, cutting-edge visual and production team, plus professional tour booking, full management services, marketing, licensing and merchandise expertise.
Headtron’s connections run deep in both the underground community as well as within the mainstream entertainment industry. Each of the artists that make up the collective believe in working together to create something special in the dance music scene and they help to push one another to reach their full potential. For the Headtron family, it’s always been about the pure love of music and that burning passion is continually poured into everything they do.
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sábado, enero 05, 2019
BOLSONOMICS: THE REFORM PLANS OF BRAZIL´S NEW PRESIDENT / THE FINANCIAL TIMES
| Etiquetas: Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro
Bolsonomics: the reform plans of Brazil’s new president
Does Jair Bolsonaro have the political will to push through his economic proposals?
Joe Leahy and Andres Schipani in São Paulo
When department store chain Havan opened in Brasília in November, customers were greeted with a curious sight. Lying prone in the car park was a 35-metre-long replica of the Statue of Liberty.
Havan’s owner, Brazilian businessman Luciano Hang, has turned the statue into a group trademark — similar lady liberties hold their torches aloft over his stores in malls across Latin America’s largest country.
But in Brasília, the conservative entrepreneur who is a staunch supporter of Brazil’s president-elect, the far-right politician Jair Bolsonaro, was barred from erecting the statue because of bylaws limiting the height of advertising.
The sort of red tape that grounded the replica was for Bolsonaro stalwarts a microcosm of the malaise afflicting Brazil. With his appointment of Brazilian investor Paulo Guedes, a PhD in economics from the University of Chicago, as economy minister, Mr Bolsonaro has pledged to end Brazil’s historic legacy of overbearing bureaucracy and usher in a more American style of capitalism when he assumes office on January 1.
“The Brazilian state is broken. So there is a historic opportunity to really move Brazil torwards a free market,” says Carlos Langoni, a former central bank president. Or as a supporter of Havan’s Mr Hang put it on Twitter, referring to the upcoming inauguration: “President Bolsonaro will ascend the ramp and the statue will rise as well.”
Yet for all the sound and fury of October’s bitterly fought presidential election, Mr Bolsonaro said little of substance during the campaign about what he intended to do about the economy.
Known for his disparaging remarks about women and gay and black people as well as his defence of torturers from Brazil’s former military dictatorship, the gruff former army captain used social media to exploit popular anger with a deep recession and corruption. Many voters saw him as the antidote to the leftist Workers’ party, or PT, whose founder and former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was jailed for corruption earlier this year.
Mr Bolsonaro won over part of the business community with his one decisive act on economic policy — the choice of Mr Guedes, a tough-talking champion of liberal reform.
“This may be the first time we have a real chance of having capitalism in Brazil,” says Alfredo Valladão, a Brazilian political scientist at Sciences Po in Paris.
Supporters hope Brazil can re-emerge as one of the world’s most dynamic large economies, with some economists predicting it may grow faster in 2019 for the first time in six years than Mexico, Latin America’s other large economy, which is shifting left under new president Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
Balanced against these hopes, however, are questions over whether Mr Bolsonaro has the political skill to deliver such a transformation. His coarse rhetoric may please loyalists on the far right, but his ability to negotiate proposed reforms with the 30 parties in Brazil’s fractious congress or to deal with tough trade partners, such as China and the US, is untested.
Critics say he did not help pass a significant bill during his decades as a lawmaker — during which time he regularly voted with the left to defend the interventionist policies and special privileges he now criticises.
“The question is much more about the political capacity of the government to execute and define priorities than about the technical agenda,” says Marcos de Barros Lisboa, an economist and president of the Insper business school in São Paulo.
For Kevin Gibson, Latin America chief executive of recruitment consultancy Robert Walters, the change in economic sentiment after the election victory of Mr Bolsonaro has been immediate. Businesses have suddenly begun trying to recruit again after a long hiatus. “Companies believe the opportunities for growth are now far better and they want to beat the rush for talent,” he says.
After the economic disaster of the former PT government, which presided over a collapse in gross domestic product of more than 7 percentage points between 2015 and 2016, big business was eager for a change, analysts say.
Mr Bolsonaro has public support too. According to a survey by polling company Ibope, 64 per cent of Brazilians believe his government will be “good” or “great”.
In his favour is a cyclical economic recovery. Analysts surveyed by the central bank are predicting growth in gross domestic product of 1.3 per cent this year and 2.5 per cent next year. Inflation and the central bank’s benchmark Selic interest rate are subdued.
“We already have a cyclical recovery under way, inflation is low, the Selic is low and credit is recuperating,” says Leonardo Fonseca, chief economist at Credit Suisse in São Paulo.
These tailwinds are creating the conditions to tackle Brazil’s fundamental challenges — its ballooning fiscal bill and its excessive bureaucracy and taxes. The government’s budget deficit in 2018 was about 7 per cent, the central bank says. This has raised gross public debt to 76.3 per cent — high for a developing country, particularly one with Brazil’s history of elevated interest rates.
The pension system allows many people to retire in their mid-50s, especially career public servants. Last year, pension expenditure consumed a third of the government budget.
The unpopular outgoing government of Michel Temer, which took office after the 2016 impeachment of president Dilma Rousseff, was unable to get even a watered down pension reform through congress.
With his greater political capital, Mr Bolsonaro should be able to pass at least Mr Temer’s diluted reform, which sets a minimum retirement age for urban male workers of 65 years old and women of 62 years old, analysts say.
However, the military and police, his main constituents, would likely oppose a stronger reform, which would impact their own generous retirement systems. He would also need a constitutional majority of three-fifths of the lower house of congress to pass the measures.
Other ambitious reforms include a long list of proposed privatisations, streamlining the tax regime and opening up the economy by lowering tariffs.
“The argument usually used is that we need first to modernise the economy to be competitive then to open up,” says Mr Langoni. “I would say the opposite, we need to first open up to be competitive.”
If the pension reform passes, companies may start to feel confident about investing again as they would have less reason to fear that high government debt levels would be met with increased inflation. Most equity strategists expect the Ibovespa stock index to rally too.
“We see greater room for Brazil to keep surprising to the upside and for Mexico to behave in an opposite fashion,” says UBS Global Wealth Management in a note.
Mr Guedes, a 69-year-old native of Rio de Janeiro, describes his partnership with Mr Bolsonaro by referring to the words “Order and Progress”, which are written on the Brazilian flag. In Mr Guedes’ telling, Mr Bolsonaro represents “order” and the financier “progress”.
Mr Guedes has made market-friendly appointments, including fellow University of Chicago alumni Roberto Castello Branco as head of state-owned oil company Petrobras and Joaquim Levy, a former finance minister, as head of Brazil’s influential development bank BNDES. Rogério Marinho, an experienced congressmen, was appointed special secretary for social welfare.
“The latest appointments in the ministries have been very good,” says Insper’s Mr Lisboa.
However, there are a series of risks facing the new government. They start with Mr Guedes himself. He is under investigation over suspected fraud in dealings with state-owned pension funds — allegations he has dismissed.
Mr Guedes could also fall out with his tempestuous boss. Mr Bolsonaro will come under intense pressure from erstwhile allies when he introduces pension and other reforms. Oxford Economics says the second biggest “downside risk” for Latin America after a China slowdown is the possibility that “Bolsonaro fires his orthodox finance minister and fails to deliver on his promised economic reforms”.
The other risk is political. Mr Bolsonaro is pursuing a different way of doing politics in Brasília. Instead of allotting ministries among allied parties in congress, he has largely appointed technocrats and retired military officers to his cabinet. He is also wooing individual congressmen directly, analysts say, rather than negotiating with party leaders, who still wield power because of their control of election funds.
If congress turns hostile, Mr Bolsonaro could go “full Caesar” and appeal directly to the people via social media on important reforms, says Matias Spektor, a professor of international relations at the Getúlio Vargas Foundation. But this would be a fraught strategy. “It’s very unlikely that the people will take to the streets to put pressure on lawmakers because the reforms, particularly pensions, are deeply unpopular,” says Mr Spektor.
Corruption scandals are another emerging risk — especially given the role that the backlash against graft played in electing Mr Bolsonaro.
Prosecutors are investigating the finances of a former driver of one of Mr Bolsonaro’s sons, Flávio, who was elected to the senate this year, after it was revealed that large sums of money had passed through the driver’s account that had little relation to his income.
The Bolsonaros have denied responsibility. Onyx Lorenzoni, Mr Bolsonaro’s chief of staff, is also under investigation over receiving illegal campaign payments.
Another risk is the adherence of Mr Bolsonaro, his sons and some of his ministers to sometimes obscure rightwing and Christian ideas. Mr Bolsonaro has appointed as foreign minister Ernesto Araújo, a mid-level diplomat and Donald Trump fan who once described John Lennon’s song “Imagine” as “both the anthem of economic hyper-globalisation and the hymn of Marxism in its communist ‘dream’”.
The new government is re-orienting foreign policy towards Israel and the US and away from the Arab Middle East and China, which are major trading partners, without receiving any apparent concessions in return, analysts say.
The strategies are already exposing rifts in the new government between the ideologues and the pragmatists.
“Our relationship with either the US or with China has to be one of a global player,” says Mr Bolsonaro’s vice-president-elect, retired general Hamilton Mourão, who is emerging as one of the more cautious voices in the new government. “There has to be mutual benefits in this relationship.”
On other foreign policy issues too, the incoming administration is making what analysts call “mistake after mistake”. The president-elect is scepticalon climate change and the environment. His pandering to rural lobbies, which want to open lands belonging to indigenous and traditional communities to agriculture, could compromise the international reputation of Brazil’s soyabean and meat exports, analysts say. Foreign farmers could use deforestation to pressure their governments to block Brazilian exports.
“It’s almost childish, a very simplistic way to move internationally,” says Michael Freitas Mohallem, a professor at law school FGV Direito Rio.
For now, markets are treating these controversies as the teething problems of a new administration. Whatever its ideological whims might be, say economists, it will have no choice but to pursue market-oriented reforms.
But with expectations sky high, Mr Bolsonaro will need to deliver — or his administration’s honeymoon with both voters and markets will be shortlived.
New president keen to side with the US and other nationalist leaders
Ernesto Araújo, Jair Bolsonaro’s crusading incoming foreign minister, seems poised to upend Brazil’s longstanding tradition of consensual “rainbow” diplomacy. He has called climate change a Marxist plot, bemoaned the leftist “criminalisation” of red meat, fossil fuels and Disney movies, and wants to leave the global pact on immigration.
“We’re not in the world to be Miss Congeniality,” he wrote in an article cited by the Folha de S.Paulo newspaper.
His thesis is that Brazil needs to side with US President Donald Trump and, among others, the Hungary of Viktor Orban and the Italy of Matteo Salvini. He would also like to create a “nucleus composed of the three largest Christian countries, Brazil-US-Russia”.
Mr Araújo also wants to impose “pressures on all fronts” on China. How this would work is unclear, as the trade war started by Mr Trump has made Brazil increasingly dependent on China, which now accounts for about one-quarter of all Brazilian exports; the US ranks second, receiving 12 per cent of its total exports.
“Instead of taking advantage of the trade war between Washington and Beijing, Mr Araújo is playing with the fantasy of a holy anti-China alliance whose only concrete result will be to have Beijing play its diplomatic weight against Bolsonaro,” says Matías Spektor of the Getúlio Vargas Foundation.
Eduardo Bolsonaro, the gun-loving congressman and son of Brazil’s president-elect, is working to reshape the country’s foreign policy alongside Mr Araújo. Last month he visited Washington, where he met Jared Kushner, Mr Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, and was seen sporting a “Trump 2020” cap.
When leftist Dilma Rousseff was sworn in four years ago for a second term, former US vice-president Joe Biden was in attendance. Despite Mr Bolsonaro’s efforts, neither Mr Trump nor his vice-president Mike Pence will attend his inauguration on January 1.
DECEMBER WAS BEST MONTH FOR GLOBAL BONDS IN MORE THAN A YEAR / THE FINANCIAL TIMES
| Etiquetas: Bond Markets
December was best month for global bonds in more than a year
Safest fixed-income assets turned positive for the year as economic clouds gathered
Robin Wigglesworth in New York
Global bond markets enjoyed their best month in more than a year in December, as rising concerns over the health of theglobal economy sent investors in search of relatively safe assets.
The Santa Claus rally that was missing from equity markets was in full swing in fixed income, bringing some respite to battered debt investors.
The global bond market has been under intense pressure for most of 2018, as economic growth fanned fears of inflation. The Federal Reserve kept raising US interest rates and shrinking its balance sheet, and the European Central Bank trimmed and ultimately ended its own bond-buying programme.
As a result, by mid-November the Bloomberg Barclays Multiverse index, a broad gauge covering $53tn worth of government and corporate debt around the world, was nursing a 3.7 per cent loss for the year. Although modest compared to the decline in some equity markets, that put the global bond benchmark on track for its worst year in more than a decade, and US bonds were heading for their worst year since 1994.
However, the equity market ructions and fading optimism over the international economic growth outlook for 2019 sent investors scrambling back into the safety of fixed income, lifting the Multiverse index by 1.7 per cent in December. That is its best monthly gain since July 2017, and pared its loss for the year to 1.6 per cent.
“The US economy is slowing, and will likely continue to slow as this long growth cycle simply runs out of gas,” said Kevin Giddis, head of fixed income at Raymond James. “The Fed will be on hold for the foreseeable future. They may not tighten at all in 2019, and may even ease if conditions deteriorate from here.”
Underscoring the rising doubts over the economy and mounting expectations that the Fed will have to ease back on its monetary tightening plans, the global bond market bounce has been powered by the safest bonds.
The yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds has dipped from a seven-year high of 3.26 per cent in early November and on New Year’s eve it fell below 2.7 per cent for the first time since February, to end the year at 2.68 per cent. That helped the overall US government bond market to a 1.9 per cent gain in December, the best in almost two years. Yields fall as bond prices rise.
Higher-rated European and Asian government debt, as well as US municipal bonds, have also rallied from their lows, helping produce annual gains for those markets as well.
Mr Giddis believes that “unless something radical occurs”, slower growth, political gridlock in Washington and still-subdued inflation will push the 10-year Treasury yield further down to 2.25 per cent in 2019.
However, corporate debt has remained under pressure, especially bonds rated below investment grade by the major credit rating agencies, commonly called “junk” or high-yield bonds.
The Bloomberg Barclays Global High Yield index has lost 4.2 per cent this year, its worst performance since the financial crisis and only the fourth annual loss since at least 1990. Investment grade corporate debt also managed to pare losses in December, but still notched up a 3.3 per cent decline in 2018.
Scott Minerd, chief investment officer at Guggenheim, sees riskier assets, such as equities and corporate bonds, remaining unloved.
“The past month has provided not just a meteor or two but a virtual storm,” Mr Minerd said. “No doubt there is more volatility to come and, with holiday-dampened liquidity, I don’t see many investors willing to step in to buy — especially given that so many were caught offside.”
THE SECOND PARTITION OF UKRAINE? / GEOPOLITICAL FUTURES
| Etiquetas: Europe Economic and Political, Russia, The West, Ukraine
The Second Partition of Ukraine?
The country lost part of its territory nearly five years ago. Was that just the beginning?
By Jacob L. Shapiro
In the 18th century, the once-mighty Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth collapsed, ending an empire that, just a century prior, had been the most populous entity in Europe. After 100 years of war, corruption and sclerotic rule, it was dismembered over 23 years by three of its neighboring rivals – the Russian Empire, Prussia and Habsburg Austria. Present-day Poland still bears the scars of those partitions. For another 200 years after its division, Poles were deprived of their autonomy, which was only regained following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Those years of subjugation remain the driving force behind Polish national strategy today. While Austria no longer poses a risk, Russia and Germany are the biggest threats to Poland’s independence and prosperity.
You may be wondering what any of this has to do with Ukraine. The answer is, Ukraine is in danger of experiencing disintegration similar to what Poland endured in the 18th century. In fact, Poland is one of a number of regional rivals that have claims to Ukrainian territory and may be waiting for an opportunity to take back what they see as rightfully theirs. Poland’s own dismemberment hasn’t prevented the emergence of a nascent Polish revanchism, and the same can be said to varying degrees of Hungary, Romania and, most notably, Russia. Caught between these stronger powers, beset with acute internal political fractiousness, bereft of significant military force and governed by a corrupt and well-entrenched oligarchic class, Ukraine is a ticking time-bomb, and it’s becoming increasingly uncertain whether anyone is willing or able to defuse it.
Underlying Problems
Ukraine’s fragility has been widely overlooked. The narrative in the Western media narrative around Ukraine has been shaped mainly by a combination of understandable, if hysterical, fears in Ukraine about Russian domination and an intense anti-Russia bias. Just last week, the Institute for the Study of War, a resource we’ve occasionally cited in our own work, published a report predicting possible imminent Russian “offensive operations against Ukraine from the Crimean Peninsula and the east.” The evidence for a Russian offensive includes the movement of a few military convoys, a few Foreign Ministry statements, a planned naval drill in the Black Sea and the transfer of “more than a dozen” fighter jets to a base near Sevastopol. Taken together, these moves might well give the impression that Russia is preparing for an operation in eastern Ukraine. But the reality is more complicated. And the underlying problems in Ukraine are more serious than the threat of a limited Russian incursion.
Internally, Ukraine is facing a number of challenges. Its gross domestic product dropped by 17 percent in the two years following the 2014 revolution, Russia’s subsequent seizure of Crimea and insurgencies in Luhansk and Donetsk. Sensing an opportunity to pull Ukraine further into the Western camp, the International Monetary Fund in 2015 approved a $17.5 billion loan over four years to help boost Ukraine’s economy. It took roughly two years and a dispersal of about half the total amount for the IMF and its Western backers to become dissatisfied with how Ukraine was spending the money and suspend the loan. (The IMF agreed to a new $3.9 billion program with Ukraine just last week.) Then-U.S. Vice President Joe Biden even said the U.S. might have to abandon sanctions against Russia if Ukraine couldn’t overcome its corruption problems. He might as well have asked the sky to stop being blue.
Ukraine has taken some small steps in recent months to satisfy its creditors. Fearful of what the IMF might do if Kiev didn’t at least appear to be meeting the obligations of its loan program, it followed through on a promise to raise gas prices by almost 25 percent in October. Ukraine was in danger of a serious liquidity crisis – in July, it had to delay pension and public sector salary payments – and without more IMF funding, it might have been unable to meet its debt payments and finance its budget. This is the cost of keeping Ukraine in the pro-West camp and why Russia feels less urgency than most think it does to reverse the outcome of the 2014 revolution. It’s happy enough to wait for Ukraine to revert to a more neutral position while the West grows tired of footing the bill for its recovery.
The situation will only get worse in the year ahead. In 2019, Russia will complete work on the TurkStream and Nordstream 2 pipelines, which will enable Russian natural gas exports destined for Europe to bypass Ukraine and slash Ukrainian revenue from delivery of these exports through its territory. (Last year, Ukraine earned roughly $3 billion in transit fees from Russian gas exports to Europe – no chump change for a country on the edge of a liquidity crisis.) In March, Ukraine will hold its first presidential election since the 2014 Maidan Revolution. Due to its struggling economy, social divisions and competition between political factions with conflicting business interests and personal allegiances, no single candidate has even 25 percent of the vote so far. Russia’s main concern, therefore, is not a pro-Western government in Kiev but that chaos following the election could cause volatility on the Russian border.
External Issues
Ukraine also has several external problems, chief among them being Russia. Russia doesn’t want instability in Ukraine any more than the United States or any other Western country does – but it’s more affected by economic uncertainty and political competition in Ukraine than the other outside powers involved in the frozen conflict there. And while Russia isn’t exactly a 21st-century incarnation of the Soviet Union – Moscow isn’t peddling a global ideology and has no delusions that it can compete as an equal with Washington on the world stage – the Russian government has relied heavily on Russian nationalism to legitimize its rule. And its brand of nationalism requires Moscow to protect Russians wherever they live – including in eastern Ukraine. Vladimir Putin’s government can’t abandon the ethnic Russian population there without looking weak.
There’s no doubt Russia has beefed up its military presence on its western border and is increasingly active in the Black Sea, but these are more signs of Moscow preparing for a meltdown in Ukraine than precursors to an invasion. Russia has wanted relief from U.S. and EU sanctions for years, and it behooves Russia not to antagonize the West but to find some kind of accommodation (especially with a potential global recession and possibly lower oil prices approaching). But to do so, it can’t be seen as the aggressor in a conflict with Ukraine – and Ukraine knows it, which is why Kiev made such a big deal out of the Kerch Strait incident, a relatively minor affair, all things considered. There are some in the Russian establishment who want to make up for the embarrassment of losing Kiev in 2014, and perhaps even some who think a show of force in eastern Ukraine might distract Russians from their own financial woes. But it’s more likely that Russia is preparing for any eventuality, including a possible internal collapse in Ukraine – and, meanwhile, is biding its time.
Russia, however, isn’t the only country eyeing Ukrainian territory. Hungary has long wanted to reabsorb parts of western Ukraine that still have a majority ethnic Hungarian population. Similarly, Moldova and Romania both have claims to Ukrainian territory along their borders, though they have been less vocal about their grievances than the Hungarians. (For its part, Romania doesn’t want to jeopardize its close relationship with the United States by compounding Ukraine’s problems. Washington barely pretends to care about Ukraine and certainly doesn’t want to get involved in squabbling over post-World War II territorial claims, especially if such squabbling could make blocking Russian ambitions in the region even costlier.)
Poland, too, has had political disputes with Ukraine. The ethnic Polish population in Ukraine was less concentrated after World War II than the ethnic Hungarians and Romanians, so it’s harder to point to a specific area that Poland wants back. But Poland once held much of the territory now in western Ukraine. Present-day Lviv was once a powerful Polish city called Lwow – almost 60 percent of the city’s population in 1944 was Polish. But just six years later, Ukrainians had become the largest ethnic group in Lviv and today represent more than 90 percent of the population. Poland is an emerging power in Eastern Europe, but its power has limits. Its curse is that it’s located on the North European Plain, but in times of strength, that curse becomes a temptation. Indeed, Polish influence and economic ties in western Ukraine have been growing. And although most Poles don’t think in these terms, the stronger Poland is, the more its influence is felt in the region, especially in Ukraine.
Ukraine is facing a number of serious internal and external challenges. Internally, a corrupt, oligarchic ruling class is presiding over a crisis-prone economy dependent on outside aid to remain afloat. Elections are upcoming, and if the polls and previous elections are any indication, they could once again stir up discontent in the country. Russia, meanwhile, is preparing for a time when it may need to intervene in Ukraine to secure its interests and protect ethnic Russians living beyond its border. Others are waiting in the wings for an opportunity to settle old scores and redraw borders while keeping Russia sufficiently at bay. None of this is yet inevitable, but the forces threatening to tear Ukraine apart are very real. Considering the history of the region – including the loss of Crimea nearly five years ago – it’s reasonable to ask whether Ukraine stands on the precipice of a second partition.
SELL STOCKS BEFORE THE CORPORATE DEBT BUBBLE BURSTS / SEEKING ALPHA
| Etiquetas: Corporate Debt, Investment Strategies, Stock Markets, U.S. Economic And Political
Sell Stocks Before The Corporate Debt Bubble Bursts
by: Global Opportunities Analys
- Corporations have piled on record amounts of debt to buy stocks.
- Recently their investment in stocks has turned sour while their debt burden has just started feeling heavier.
- Corporate executives will likely cut back on share purchases, and this in itself is bad news for the future.
- Add to the above the fact that the economy is slowing and executives expect recession, and stock investors become even rarer.
It was just on December 15th when I argued that the S&P 500 was "likely to crash deep below 2.600", and a few days ago that I wrote that it was a good time to buy stocks as the S&P 500 was around 2.400. My buy recommendation was for a relatively short period of time. The market has since bounced back nicely. Things have been moving dramatically, and the US stock market of the past couple of weeks has behaved nothing short of extraordinary. You don't see such movements every year, and there have been many decades without such sudden market crashes in the US. These times have also been great opportunities for making good profits from short-term trading, though obviously extremely few people are able, or willing, to enter such trades involving gut wrenching volatility.
Now that the market has recovered quite a bit I believe it is time to start looking at the truly bad fundamentals and position for the coming year. And I believe, as I also mentioned in my last article, that 2019 will be a bad year for risk assets, particularly for stocks. It is not very wise to stay invested until the economy starts showing significant signs of weakness. But early signs of weakness are already there, as housing, and the economy in general, have started to lose steam in recent months.
These weaknesses are likely to get worse as the economic cycle moves along its already historically long lifespan. There are some serious concerns out there, which actually led to the crash we had from October to December. Let's start from perhaps the most immediate and important concern - the corporate debt bubble. Most people talk about the trade war with China, or the Fed rate hikes, but the fact is that a strong economy can withstand such challenges. The real risk, and the real fear of the market, is growth, or the lack of it.
What led to the financial crisis of 2008? Most would agree that, ultimately, it was about easy money. Easy money pushed capital toward wasteful investments which eventually popped and caused a massive crash. The major wasteful investment that popped back in 2008 was real estate. What happened after 2008? As everybody knows, money got even cheaper. Central banks in the whole world cut interest rates and took other monetary measures (such as QE) in order to tackle the dire economic consequences of the crash of 2008. Central bank rates are currently, still, below zero in Europe and Japan.
With hindsight, we know what was the major wasteful investment before 2008. What few agree upon though is about the wasteful investments afterwards. Very few before 2008 thought that investing in real estate could ever blow up in their faces, let alone cause a global financial meltdown. Since many economists and politicians thought that it was improper banking regulation that led to the 2008 crash - rather than too low interest rates - they believe that we are going to be just fine this time around because there have been significant changes, and improvements, to banking regulations. And they believe this will prevent another financial crisis, or at least one as bad as 2008. It is indeed unlikely we will get exactly the same kind of crisis we had last time, but cheap money has, again, and on a much larger scale, pushed capital into risky, speculative, and wasteful investments. And wasteful investments always blow up, sooner or later. I believe that wasteful investments have been aplenty in the years since the financial crisis of 2008. One popular case is China, where zombie corporations, and ghost towns, have been spreading in recent years. Of course there are too many areas of wasteful investments, all around the world (not just in China), and even real estate is not far from what it used to be before the 2008 crash. Many real estate markets are again overvalued and there is a lot of building going on which can, again, go bad. But I'm going to focus more on the US corporate debt problem, which it seems, is in a more immediate danger than other bubbly areas of the world economy. And since money has been much cheaper, for longer, I don't see why a potential future crisis would not be much bigger, and a lot more complicated (perhaps even impossible) to contain than the crisis we had a decade ago. Let's not forget that the world's central banks no longer can cut interest rates by 500 basis points (5%) as the Fed did last time (or in earlier recessions), which led to a rather quick recovery in asset prices. The absence of this monetary tool is probably the greatest of worries economists, and investors alike, should think about.
What first comes to my mind about the consequences of cheap money, which could blow up much sooner than many think, is the corporate debt bubble in the US. US corporations are carrying more than $9 trillion in debt. The share of non-financial corporate debt to GDP is at record levels, higher than its inflated levels during the 2008 financial crisis (chart below).
But the most important issue is not the size of the US corporate debt, but what most of that debt has gone to, which is alarming. This year alone US corporations are supposed to have spent $1 trillion in share buybacks (chart below).
Corporations have massively borrowed money to buy back their own shares. Why have they done so on such a scale? They thought interest rates are not going to stay low for too long, and that the low interest rate environment is a rare and extraordinary occasion they have to take advantage of. The belief that inflation, and interest rates, were going to rise over the coming years was almost unanimous up until a month ago. However I argued back in June that longer duration interest rates would likely go lower. My belief was almost seen as equal to madness.
Up until a month ago it seemed like there was competition among economists, business executives and investors, on who would predict higher interest rates for the coming quarters, or perhaps couple of years. Back in August one of the most respected US executives, JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon, not content with his previous prediction of 4% longer-term interest rates, went even further and predicted a 5% yield for the US 10-year treasury. Such beliefs offered motivation to borrow as much as possible, as early as possible. Interest rates did go up for a while this year - as bearish bets against long-term US treasuries reached record levels - but they have been falling quite sharply in recent weeks. US corporations piled on debt to buy back their shares and those trillions of dollars pushed their stock prices to record levels. What happens now that some corporate executives are beginning to see a major flaw in what they believed - that interest rates aren't exactly going up? Does all that debt used for buying shares get riskier, and cheaper, than it used to be? Corporate bonds have already started feeling the heat.
What happens if it is not only the interest rates not going up, but also stock prices going down because the Fed just raised its benchmark rates again while the economy softened? And this is what just happened for the past couple of weeks. Corporations have used longer duration debt, bearing interest ranging usually between 3 to 6 percent, to buy back their own shares (or other companies' shares in mergers and acquisitions) in the belief that higher inflation will take care of most of their debt burden. If inflation is low (and interest rates are also very low, historically), and you get a 10-year loan with fixed (low) interest, and then inflation rises, this makes your loan a nice deal as inflation erodes your debt and makes repayment much easier.
This is what most companies binging on debt were thinking of. They are now starting to fear they may have been wrong. However the fear is not really strong yet, and it has a lot more room to spread and become rather mainstream.
Corporate executives didn't believe inflation could stall, or perhaps fall in the following years.
As US longer duration treasury yields show, bond investors believe that inflation is not going to rise any time soon. The 10-year US treasury is yielding around 2.7%, which is just slightly higher than the Fed overnight rate of 2.5%. And the data are showing that inflation is not rising above the 2% target of the Fed but it is rather showing signs of slowing.
The recent stock market selloff was a warning sign, first of all, for all the companies which have piled on debt to buy shares. I think the market has started to scare them, and they will most likely cut back on share purchases on borrowed money. This action alone can cause further weakness in the stock market. If you spend trillions of dollars in buying back your own shares, and you see the stock price crash - as they just did - it makes you think more carefully about future buybacks. This is beside the fact that a slowing economy, without higher inflation, is making their debt-laden balance sheets more vulnerable. Not many executives are panicking yet, but they might start soon. After all, the market is still a lot higher than it was just a couple of years ago, and this often justifies some smart panicking. It is also reasonable to expect not so many share buybacks next year based on the serious pessimism permeating US executive scene for 2019 and 2020. According to a study recently published, 80% of American CFOs believe recession will hit by 2020 (and almost half expect recession by 2019). Why would they, rationally, invest in share buybacks now?
Nevertheless so far not many are fretting about the dangers that all the trillions spent on share purchases, either in buybacks or in mergers and acquisitions, can pose to corporate balance sheets in an unfriendly market environment and how it can cause panic and a serious crisis, in sectors we can consider completely unrelated. After all, the 2008 crisis started from real estate and spread to all corners of the economy, and to all the trading partners of the US, which had nothing to do with real estate speculation. This is why I believe it is a good idea now to sell and just stay opportunistic. A corporate debt panic in the US can cause a lot of damage and it would not be contained easily. The crash of 1929 was mostly caused by stock market speculation on margin - meaning borrowed money.
It is true that we do not have exactly the same situation now, as companies are not involved in short-term speculation of share prices. Nonetheless, fundamentally speaking, it is still called stock market speculation on borrowed money, though the time horizon of the speculators is longer now than it was in the late 1920s. Corporate executives have been speculating on their share prices, and they have been doing so with borrowed money. Corporation will not be forced to dump the shares they have bought, as retail speculators did back in 1929 after margin calls, but corporations can face serious difficulty with their record debt levels. Corporate 'margin calls' can occur when their bonds get dumped and they can no longer refinance. Corporations may soon face the reality of having squandered trillions of dollars on share prices which have crashed. In case inflation goes much lower, and US treasury yields fall further, corporate debt repayment will become impossible for many companies. And this thought has just turned into a real possibility with the recent stock market crash associated with a sharp fall in US treasuries (chart below).
Maybe the market goes up a little bit more, or maybe it stays around current levels for a while.
But the future, especially next year, looks very risky, and not worth investing in risk assets, especially when you can still buy US treasuries which yield more than 2.5% and carry no risk.
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SELL STOCKS BEFORE THE CORPORATE DEBT BUBBLE BURST...
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Additive and the architect – how 3D technologies are impacting construction
admin May 11, 2018 Construction No Comments
Do you know the origin of the word architect?” asks Eric Barendse, Designer and Researcher at Studio RAP during a phone conversation last month. I enjoy a good bit of etymology. I’m from a town called Widnes, which apparently earned its name from the Vikings who took a liking to the “wide nose” shape of the land projecting into the River Mersey. It’s not the most glamorous origin story but I can appreciate its history in the same way the source of “architect” got me thinking about how words and their meanings change over time. It comes from “arkhi”- and “téktōn”, which mean “chief” and “builder”, the latter of which doesn’t exactly fit the job description of a modern architect.
I call Eric following a visit to Studio RAP’s space inside Port of Rotterdam’s Innovation Dock, an oasis of technological research and creativity featuring giant robotic arms modified for 3D printing, water drones, and all. Studio RAP also has its own hidden meaning; robots, architecture and production, which is exactly what the team deploys across a wide field of work ranging from the functional to the weird and wonderful.
“We are an architectural practice, but we don’t just design buildings, we also develop technology to make those buildings,” Eric explains. “What is very difficult about many of our projects is we design projects with technology that does not exist yet and we then develop the technology to make what we have designed.”
Advanced design and manufacturing technologies have changed much of the way we create our world. CAD and simulation tools mean designers can draft ideas and apply different forces to test how a structure will fare in a real environment. Cloud computing means that entire construction teams have access to the same data and can communicate and resolve any challenges quickly. Additive manufacturing (AM), though not commonplace on a building site, is a tried and tested way of quickly producing accurate scale models in architectural offices and we’re also seeing more and more examples of how large-format concrete AM might be adopted to produce alternative housing. Studios like RAP are embracing that with a range of robotic fabrication and design process including wire cutting, AM and brick stacking to make complex or curved optimised shapes which could not be made in a traditional mould.
“There are a lot of things starting up, some making pace, but the technology is not mature enough to be implemented on a larger scale,” Eric comments on the adoption of AM in the fi eld. “That will come in the next few years, I’m quite sure about that but it will still start on a small scale.”
Along with design and consultancy work, the studio has a sister company which has developed its own software called RAPCAM which allows designers to take 3D models and translate that into code that can be used in industrial robots. The entire chain is connected digitally so there is no loss of data from the CAD model to production.
Eric started out in his own backyard with a giant 3D printer which he built himself and used it to experiment with concrete printing. It’s not identical to the type of concrete you would find in a DIY store and it has a slightly different consistency to make it suitable for extrusion but in the Netherlands the material has been deemed appropriate for use in construction. Using 3D printing, the studio can design and build a column or wall in a matter of hours compared to the 12 weeks it would normally take with traditional construction tools. When I visited the studio, there were examples of structures built using a similar process with clay which show how the technology might be used to print hollow structures filled with traditional materials or to produce interesting colour gradients showing which fade through the visible print layers. There was also a prototype created for the Circular Experience project for ABN Amro’s new building in Amsterdam’s financial district, where RAP proposed a design for the pavilion’s interior walls where wooden strips and waste material are reused in a parametrically controlled, robotic fabrication process.
“It’s very efficient but also very flexible and quick,” says Eric on the range of processes. “You can respond to what someone is asking very quickly so that takes away a lot of problems with a client. It takes a lot of slowness and frustration out of the process.”
Now the studio is working with a small Dutch concrete construction company, Bruil who approached the company around three years ago with an interest in reducing waste using 3D printing, a tool it felt would be crucial to its future due to the declining numbers of traditionally skilled workers coming into the industry.
The role of the architect has changed. Once a chief builder, their job now is to design and plan a building or structure. You might see them on a construction site wearing a high-vis jacket and hard hat but it’s unlikely they’ll be taking part in the physical building. Without that hands-on experience, adopting and exploiting those new technologies may pose a challenge.
“There is a lot of curiosity,” Eric says. “Mostly from more engineering minded people, many structural engineers come with lots of ideas as to how to optimise structures and shapes which couldn’t be produced before. Many architects have a hard time coming up with ideas that are appropriate, it really takes a different mind-set than many mainstream architects are used to.”
Architects will consider not just the look of a building but also functionality, safety and economics. With something like 3D printing, that list of considerations becomes even greater; optimisation, material behaviour, best print paths to reduce material consumption, which geometries are possible and perhaps most importantly, is it the best process for this particular project?
“There is a huge, widespread, bonfire explosion of shapes, forms, images, colours and textures but at the moment the question of why you would want to do this, I haven’t seen a very good answer for yet,” Eric says of the more elaborate headline stealing examples of AM in construction. “Often these buildings are extremely well optimised and perfect but they’re holding up nothing, or there’s nothing on it, or it doesn’t translate well if you step out of your technical viewpoint. There are other ways that are a lot cheaper, more efficient.”
Demands from the construction industry are also evolving at a similar pace. Nicholas Mangon, VP AEC Strategy at Autodesk recently spoke about the need to double the size of some cities by 2020 during the launch of the software giant’s new manufacturing site in Birmingham, a city which he later referred to fondly in a tweet as “a giant construction site”. Advances such as pre-fabrication off -site in controlled modules (think cells where individual blocks might be built in a high-tech manufacturing facility and slot into place on the construction site) or transportable robotic systems for large AM parts, may provide a solution to achieve that goal in this short time frame. Rather than a case of technology killing the carpenter, this is about becoming more hands on in order to embrace the benefits of automation, sustainability and beyond. In order to design and plan efficiently for these technologies, perhaps the role of the architect needs to adapt once again (archi-tech, anyone?) or go back to the roots of chief shipbuilders and carpenters it once reflected.
ZVerse Integrates with PlanGrid to Turn Blueprints into Beautiful 3D Printed Models
This 3-D Printed Home Was Built In A Day For $4,000
Middle East construction news: Sponsored: Modular builder Dubox eyes UAE, Saudi expansion in 2019 – Business
Voxeljet targets construction industry with 3D printed formworks
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Revelle, Roger, 1909-1991
Roger Randall Dougan
Revelle, Roger Randall Dougan, 1909-1991
Affiliation Start: 1950
Affiliation End: 1963
Organization: Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Organization: Harvard University
Organization: University of California, San Diego
Seattle (Wash.)
San Diego (Calif.)
Associated Locale
Oceanographers
College administrators
Additional Related Forms
Revelle, Roger, 1909-
Roger Revelle Label from public data source Wikidata
found: NUCMC data from Univ. of Calif., San Diego. Scripps Instit. of Oceanography, La Jolla for His Papers, 1933-1963(Roger Randall Dougan Revelle, 1909- ; oceanographer; director of Scripps Instit. of Ocean., 1950-1963; prof. of population policy, Harvard Univ., 1964-1970)
found: LC data base 12-18-85(hdg.: Revelle, Roger, 1909- ; usage: Roger Revelle)
found: WWA, 1962-63(Revelle, Roger; educator; b. 1909)
found: Roger, c1996:t.p. (Roger Revelle) p. 94 (d. July 15, 1991)
found: Wikipedia, Nov. 15, 2013:(Roger Revelle; Roger Randall Dougan Revelle (March 7, 1909 - July 15, 1991) was a scientist and scholar who was instrumental in the formative years of the University of California, San Diego and was one of the first scientists to study global warming and the movement of Earth's tectonic plates. UC San Diego's first college is named Revelle College in his honor; Revelle left Scripps in 1963 and founded the (now defunct) Center for Population Studies at Harvard University. In his over ten years there as its Director, he focused upon the application of science and technology to the problem of world hunger. In 1976 he returned to UC San Diego as Professor of Science, Technology and Public Affairs (STPA) in the school's political science department; born March 7, 1909 Seattle, Washington; died July 15, 1991 San Diego, California)
found: A short history of SIO, March 25, 2019( Roger Revelle was appointed SIO's associate director in the same year [1948]; Revelle was appointed acting director in 1950, and then director in July 1951; In September 1961, Revelle left SIO to become the first science advisor to the U.S. Secretary of the Interior. Fred Noel Spiess was named acting director and then appointed director three years later when Revelle resigned the position) - https://scripps.ucsd.edu/sites/scripps.ucsd.edu/files/node/228/edit/sio-day_short_history.pdf
Revelle, Roger, 1909-1991. Sci
Gee, Haldane, 1901- Calcium eq
Kohn, Walter, 1923-2016. Persp
Moberg, Erik G. (Erik Gustaf),
Revelle, Roger, 1909-1991. Sun
Revelle, Roger, 1909-1991. Vik
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new indie pop
STREAM: Cults “I Can Hardly Make You Mine”
August 14, 2013 August 15, 2013 Josh Morton animal collective, columbia, concert tickets, cults, duo, forthcoming album, full length, i can hardly make you mine, indie, infectious magazine, music, new cults music, new indie pop, october music, page 3b, pop, pop duo, release date, self release, snippets, static, Washed Out0 comment
Indie-pop duo, Cults, have released their first full-length single from their forthcoming album, Static, set for a release date of October 15 via Columbia Records. While Cults did self-release an album teaser back in July featuring snippets of a few songs, “I Can Hardly Make You Mine,” is the first full song that fans will get to get a taste of before the album’s release. Static will be Cults’ sophomore album, serving as a follow up to their 2011 self-titled LP which featured their breakout single, “Go Outside.” Cults recorded the album…
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VOX: A heroic Playboy reporter defended CNN’s honor at the White House press briefing
By Peter Lance on June 28, 2017 No Comment
by Jeff Guo@_jeffguo Jun 27, 2017
Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told the White House press corps to watch a video, “whether it’s accurate or not,” from conservative provocateur James O’Keefe on Tuesday — and a Playboy correspondent rose to the media’s defense.
CLICK IMAGE above for direct link to VOX story & video.
The sequence of events started when deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was tossed a softball question from Charlie Spiering of Breitbart, a right-wing website. Spiering asked about the recent controversy at CNN, which recently published and retracted a story alleging that the Senate was investigating a meeting between a top Trump campaign staffer and an official from a Russian investment fund. The mistake caused three CNN employees involved with the story — including Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Eric Lichtblau — to step down Monday.
“The president went on Twitter this morning and repeated that CNN was fake news,” Spiering said. “Why wasn’t [CNN’s] response good enough for the president?”
Sanders took this as an opportunity to restate her complaints about the mainstream media. She also told reporters to watch a video from ambush artist James O’Keefe, which shows a CNN producer criticizing his own channel’s treatment of the Trump-Russia story. That producer, John Bonifield, works on CNN’s health team and does not appear to be connected to CNN’s political coverage. (It also seems that Bonifield was taped without his knowledge, a major ethics violation.)
“There’s a video circulating now — whether it’s accurate or not, I don’t know — but I would encourage everybody in this room, and frankly everybody across this country, to take a look at it,” Sanders said. “I think if it is accurate, it is a disgrace to all of media, all of journalism.”
I think we have gone to a place where if the media can’t be trusted to report the news, then that’s a dangerous place for America. And I think if that’s the place where certain outlets are going, particularly for the purpose of spiking ratings, and if that’s coming directly from the top, then I think that’s even more scary, and certainly more disgraceful.
Sanders went on to scold the media for using unnamed sources, when a reporter — apparently Brian J. Karem, a correspondent for Playboy — interrupted her with a sharply worded rebuttal:
Come on, you’re inflaming everybody right here, right now, with those words. This administration has done that as well. Why in the name of heaven — any one of us are replaceable, and any one of us, if we don’t get it right, the audience has the opportunity to turn the channel or not read us.
You have been elected to serve for four years at least. There is no option other than that. We’re here to ask you questions. You’re here to provide the answers. And what you just did is inflammatory to people all over the country who look at it and say, “See, once again, the president is right and everybody else out here is fake media.” And everybody out here is only trying to do their job.
Sanders responded coolly. “I think if anything has been inflamed, it’s the dishonesty that often takes place by the news media,” she said.
VOX: A heroic Playboy reporter defended CNN’s honor at the White House press briefing added by Peter Lance on June 28, 2017
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NYT: Trump Jr. Was Told of Moscow’s Link
By Peter Lance on July 11, 2017 No Comment
By MATT APUZZO, JO BECKER, ADAM GOLDMAN and MAGGIE HABERMAN JULY 10, 2017
WASHINGTON — Before arranging a meeting with a Kremlin-connected Russian lawyer he believed would offer him compromising information about Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump Jr. was informed in an email that the material was part of a Russian government effort to aid his father’s candidacy, according to three people with knowledge of the email.
CLICK IMAGE ABOVE for direct link to NYT story.
The email to the younger Mr. Trump was sent by Rob Goldstone, a publicist and former British tabloid reporter who helped broker the June 2016 meeting. In a statement on Sunday, Mr. Trump acknowledged that he was interested in receiving damaging information about Mrs. Clinton, but gave no indication that he thought the lawyer might have been a Kremlin proxy.
Mr. Goldstone’s message, as described to The New York Times by the three people, indicates that the Russian government was the source of the potentially damaging information. It does not elaborate on the wider effort by Moscow to help the Trump campaign.
There is no evidence to suggest that the promised damaging information was related to Russian government computer hacking that led to the release of thousands of Democratic National Committee emails. The meeting took place less than a week before it was widely reported that Russian hackers had infiltrated the committee’s servers.
But the email is likely to be of keen interest to the Justice Department and congressional investigators, who are examining whether any of President Trump’s associates colluded with the Russian government to disrupt last year’s election. American intelligence agencies have determined that the Russian government tried to sway the election in favor of Mr. Trump.
The Times first reported on the existence of the meeting on Saturday, and a fuller picture has emerged in subsequent days.
Alan Futerfas, the lawyer for the younger Mr. Trump, said his client had done nothing wrong but pledged to work with investigators if contacted.
“In my view, this is much ado about nothing. During this busy period, Robert Goldstone contacted Don Jr. in an email and suggested that people had information concerning alleged wrongdoing by Democratic Party front-runner, Hillary Clinton, in her dealings with Russia,” he told The Times in an email on Monday. “Don Jr.’s takeaway from this communication was that someone had information potentially helpful to the campaign and it was coming from someone he knew. Don Jr. had no knowledge as to what specific information, if any, would be discussed.”
It is unclear whether Mr. Goldstone had direct knowledge of the origin of the damaging material. One person who was briefed on the emails said it appeared that he was passing along information that had been passed through several others.
Jared Kushner, Mr. Trump’s son-in-law, and Paul J. Manafort, the campaign chairman at the time, also attended the June 2016 meeting in New York. Representatives for Mr. Kushner referred requests for comments back to an earlier statement, which said he had voluntarily disclosed the meeting to the federal government. He has deferred questions on the content of the meeting to Donald Trump Jr.
A spokesman for Mr. Manafort declined to comment.
But at the White House, the deputy press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, was adamant from the briefing room lectern that “the president’s campaign did not collude in any way. Don Jr. did not collude with anybody to influence the election. No one within the Trump campaign colluded in order to influence the election.”
The president, a prolific Twitter user, did not address his son’s controversy on Monday, and instead sought to highlight other issues throughout the morning.
In a series of tweets, the president’s son insisted he had done what anyone connected to a political campaign would have done — hear out potentially damaging information about an opponent. He maintained that his various statements about the meeting were not in conflict.
“Obviously I’m the first person on a campaign to ever take a meeting to hear info about an opponent… went nowhere but had to listen,” he wrote in one tweet. In another, he added, “No inconsistency in statements, meeting ended up being primarily about adoptions. In response to further Q’s I simply provided more details.”
The younger Mr. Trump, who had a reputation during the campaign for having meetings with a wide range of people eager to speak to him, did not join his father’s administration. He runs the family business, the Trump Organization, with his brother Eric.
On Monday, after news reports that he had hired a lawyer, he indicated in a tweet that he would be open to speaking to the Senate Intelligence Committee, one of the congressional panels investigating Russian meddling in the election. “Happy to work with the committee to pass on what I know,” the younger Mr. Trump wrote.
Mr. Goldstone represents the Russian pop star Emin Agalarov, whose father was President Trump’s business partner in bringing the Miss Universe pageant to Moscow in 2013. In an interview Monday, Mr. Goldstone said he was asked by Mr. Agalarov to set up the meeting with Donald Trump Jr. and the Russian lawyer, Natalia Veselnitskaya.
“He said, ‘I’m told she has information about illegal campaign contributions to the D.N.C.,’” Mr. Goldstone recalled, referring to the Democratic National Committee. He said he then emailed Donald Trump Jr., outlining what the lawyer purported to have.
But Mr. Goldstone, who wrote the email over a year ago, denied any knowledge of involvement by the Russian government in the matter, saying that never dawned on him. “Never, never ever,” he said. Later, after the email was described to The Times, efforts to reach him for further comment were unsuccessful.
In the interview, he said it was his understanding that Ms. Veselnitskaya was simply a “private citizen” for whom Mr. Agalarov wanted to do a favor. He also said he did not know whether Mr. Agalarov’s father, Aras Agalarov, a Moscow real estate tycoon known to be close to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, was involved. The elder Mr. Agalarov and the younger Mr. Trump worked together to bring a Trump Tower to Moscow, but the project never got off the ground.
Mr. Goldstone also said his recollection of the meeting largely tracked with the account given by the president’s son, as outlined in the Sunday statement Mr. Trump issued in response to a Times article on the June 2016 meeting. Mr. Goldstone said the last time he had communicated with the younger Mr. Trump was to send him a congratulatory text after the November election, but he added that he did speak to the Trump Organization over the past weekend, before giving his account to the news media.
Donald Trump Jr., who initially told The Times that Ms. Veselnitskaya wanted to talk about the resumption of adoption of Russian children by American families, acknowledged in the Sunday statement that one subject of the meeting was possibly compromising information about Mrs. Clinton. His decision to move ahead with such a meeting was unusual for a political campaign, but it was consistent with the haphazard approach the Trump operation, and the White House, have taken in vetting people they deal with ahead of time.
But he said that the Russian lawyer produced nothing of consequence, and that the meeting ended after she began talking about the Magnitsky Act — an American law that blacklists Russians suspected of human rights abuses. The 2012 law so enraged Mr. Putin that he halted American adoptions of Russian children.
Mr. Goldstone said Ms. Veselnitskaya offered “just a vague, generic statement about the campaign’s funding and how people, including Russian people, living all over the world donate when they shouldn’t donate” before turning to her anti-Magnitsky Act arguments.
“It was the most inane nonsense I’ve ever heard,” he said. “And I was actually feeling agitated by it. Had I, you know, actually taken up what is a huge amount of their busy time with this nonsense?”
Ms. Veselnitskaya, for her part, denied that the campaign or compromising material about Mrs. Clinton ever came up. She said she had never acted on behalf of the Russian government. A spokesperson for Mr. Putin said on Monday that he did not know Ms. Veselnitskaya, and that he had no knowledge of the June 2016 meeting.
Ms. Sanders said at a news briefing that the American president had learned of the meeting recently, but she declined to discuss details.
The White House press office, however, accused Mrs. Clinton’s team of hypocrisy. The office circulated a January 2017 article published in Politico, detailing how officials from the Ukranian government tried to help the Democratic candidate conduct opposition research on Mr. Trump and some of his aides.
News of the meeting involving the younger Mr. Trump, Mr. Kushner and Mr. Manafort blunted whatever good feeling the president’s team had after his trip to Europe for the Group of 20 economic summit meeting.
The president learned from his aides about the 2016 meeting at the end of the trip, according to a White House official. But some people in the White House had known for several days that it had occurred, because Mr. Kushner had revised his foreign contact disclosure document to include it.
The president was frustrated by the news of the meeting, according to a person close to him — less over the fact that it had happened, and more because it was yet another story about Russia that had swamped the news cycle.
NYT: Trump Jr. Was Told of Moscow’s Link added by Peter Lance on July 11, 2017
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Change in law ensures agility in releasing measures to protect women
President Jair Bolsonaro says the objective is to give immediate support to the woman
The President of the Republic, Jair Bolsonaro, enacted Law 13,827, which allows the delegate or police to issue urgent protective measures to threatened women with life or physical integrity, in the absence of a judge on duty and / or unavailability of a police station. municipality.
In her social networks, Bolsonaro commented that the intention is to offer more support to women. "The objective is to give immediate support to women in this type of critical situation, which often takes time to happen, costing the victim's physical integrity and life," he said.
The changes are intended to ensure greater agility, consistent database and, mainly, aim to preserve the lives of women in situations of violence, according to the Ministry of Women, Family and Human Rights.
The law, which was sanctioned on Monday (13), also allows law enforcement officers to withdraw, in case of absence of a delegate, at the time of the complaint. The protective measure applied by the police authority should be informed to the Court within 24 hours, with the judge having the same period to evaluate the maintenance or revocation of the act.
The Minister of Women, Family and Human Rights, Damares Alves, explained that the law will be an efficient instrument for the protection of women. "The woman who goes through a situation of violence is in a hurry, especially in those areas where there is no district, she is not protected, so the protective measure is guaranteed and the Judiciary analyzes the validity of the measure within 24 hours", explains the minister View Forum Posts "I want you to imagine a city there in the interior of the Amazon, eight days to get there, there is no police officer, the police can do that." The law comes to protect women, especially from far away places, "he said.
"We face a serious problem of domestic violence in the country and all actions that seek to ensure the lives of women should be celebrated. Now we need to follow the implementation of the new legislation, "says assistant secretary Rosinha Adefal.
* With information from the Ministry of Women, the Family and Human Rights
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You are here: Home > Story Shelf > All Authors > Nigel Gordon > Workbench Chat | Nigel Gordon
Workbench Chat
by Nigel Gordon
The old man sat, his back towards the bench, holding his hands out towards the potbellied stove, which was just starting to put out some heat.
"So," he asked, "w'at brings a lad like you to be sleeping in my doorway on a night like this?"
"It was sheltered and out of sight," the boy replied.
"Aye, it is that," the old man stated. The door to his workshop was set back a good two feet in a covered passageway between two buildings. Once, that had been an open thoroughfare between the old town gate and the market place. Over the years the buildings on each side had been redeveloped and in the process reached out across the open space until now it was a covered passage, just over seven feet wide, running from Wall Street to Market Street. The wall and market which had given them their names were long gone, as was the town gate which had caused this passageway to come in to being in the first place.
"That don't say, though, why you be sleeping in it, this night of all nights," the old man commented. "You be in trouble?"
"Maybe," the boy responded.
In the corner an old electric kettle started to splutter as it came to the boil. The old man got up and walked across to it. Then he poured its contents into a dark, chipped teapot. The first thing he had done when he had entered the workshop after finding the boy was to fill the kettle and switch it on. He had put three teabags in the pot, thinking he needed to make a good strong brew.
"You either be in trouble or you ain't," the old man commented. "Are the cops after you?" He thought it doubtful: the types of boys who got into problems with the police were usually the types of boys who had friends where they could hide out for at least a day to two. Also, the boy was cleanly dressed but clearly not fashionably dressed. From what the old man knew about boys of that age—which he thought was anything from thirteen to sixteen—if they had mates, they were in a competition to look good.
"Nha, it's not the cops," the boy stated. The old man nodded. What the boy had not said was more telling than what he had said. He had not denied that someone was after him. Best not to press the point: no doubt it would come out in conversation, if he could get the boy talking.
He took a couple of mugs off a shelf by the sink, dumped three sugars in one of them, and then poured the tea. He stirred the mug with the sugar in it, and then handed it to the boy.
"Sorry, no milk. I don't use it. Anyway there ain't nowhere to keep it here."
The boy looked around the workshop. It was small, probably about eighteen feet by twelve, he thought. Most of the walls were filled with shelves, and fittings hung from the roof beams. High in the wall opposite the door was a small window, which the boy thought probably did not let in much light when it was not dark outside. There was a old fashioned stone sink immediately under the window. To one side was a table, with the kettle and the tea-making stuff on it. On the other side, in the corner, was a pot-bellied stove. The old man spotted the boy looking at the stovepipe chimney, which went up and across, gaining egress through what had once been a pane in the window.
"The walls of this place are over three feet thick and solid stone," he stated. "Used to be part of the old keep, before Cromwell blew it up. No way you could put a hole in for the chimney; easier to go through the window."
"So, this was part of the defensive wall?" the boy asked.
"No," the old man replied. "It was almost certainly some sort of storeroom in one of the buildings inside the keep. If you look at the window, you will see the marks of where the bars used to go."
The boy stood and walked over to the window. For a few moments he stood there looking up at it; then he climbed on the sink and reached up to run his hand over the stones that made up the window sill.
"So, this was a dungeon," he asked.
"No, I told you it was a store room. They had bars on the window to keep people from stealing the contents. Remember, back then they did not have glass in windows."
"Must have been bloody cold," the boy stated.
"It was," the old man responded as he seated himself at the workbench that stood in the middle of the room. "Though of course, in those days nobody spent any time in this room. They would just haul stuff in or out as the case may be. If they wanted to be warm they'd be in the Great Hall, had a big bloody fire burning in there."
"Where was that?" the boy asked.
"Roughly where Smith's is today," the old man replied, referring to the large newsagents and stationery shop on the far side of Westgate. He turned in his seat and picked up a stack of papers that had been lying on the shelf behind them. Placing them on the workbench, he turned back to the shelf and removed a flat oblong of wood with strips of wood fastened down two of its sides. The boy noted that there was a small gap where the two strips would have meet in the corner.
"What's that," he asked, coming across to the bench to look.
"It's a folding jig," the old man replied. "Allows me to line up the edges of the signatures as I am folding them." He picked up a set of papers from the top of the stack, placed them face up in the jig, and then folded them over, lining up the edges of the folded-over pieces with the edge of the jig.
"I thought a signature was something you signed. Like when you sign a letter?"
"Oh it is," the old man confirmed. "It is also the term for a set of pages that go to make up a book. Like this." He held up the folded set of pages. The boy could see that they were pages from a book.
"You make books here?" the boy asked and then felt stupid because around the workshop were a number of books, all seemingly in some stage of manufacture. He had not noticed that before.
"No son, I only bind them, it is writers that make books. They put the words together in a way that seems right. A way that tells a story, or imparts information. All I do is give their work a binding that is worthy of what they have produced."
"I love books," the boy stated.
"Really?" There was a hint of disbelief in the old man's tone.
"Yes," the boy stated. "When I can, I go to the library and sit and read."
"You don't read at home?"
"We've got no books at home. Dat says they're old fashioned. Anyway, he says only wimps read books and there's no wimps in his house."
The old man nodded. He had caught the use of "dat" for dad, the faint touch of accent, not much but enough. Now he knew where the boy was from. He could well imagine that there were no books in the house: in all likelihood the father could not read. There had, he also noted, been no mention of a mother.
Things though did not add up. The boy was clean, or at least as clean as anybody could be who had been trying to sleep in a doorway off a backstreet alley. His clothes, whilst somewhat rumpled, were clearly cared for. They were not the clothes one associated with Gypsy boys, even those who had settled down in houses. The old man though had no doubt that the boy was Romani get. His accent said it, and the way he looked at and touched things. The old man smiled as he watched the traits in the boy that he knew from his own past, now long past. He looked at the boy, catching his eye.
"What?" the boy asked.
"Poshrat?" The boy blanched.
"So, your mother was a geyri?" the old man asked. The boy looked at him and nodded. Then there was silence. The old man took an upright frame and started to fasten tapes to it. Once he had three tapes in place and taut, he put the pile of signatures on the board in front of the tapes. Having aligned them as he wanted, he marked the position of the tapes with a pencil on the back of the spine of the signatures. "Tell me about your mother?" he finally asked, feeling the need to break the silence.
"Not much to tell," the boy responded. He watched as the old man removed the signatures from the frame and put them between two boards and placed them in a vertically mounted press. "She died when I was eight."
"Sorry to hear that," the old man replied, picking up a backed tenon saw. "Was she from around here?" He proceeded to cut a number of grooves in the spines of the signatures.
"Yes, my grandparents live at the top end of Mill Street, though I have never met them," the boy responded. The old man nodded as he sawed more grooves into the back of the signatures. "What yu doing?"
"I'm making the holes in the signatures for me to sew them to the tapes. That will form a book block."
"Oh," the boy responded. "I thought they were just stuck in."
"A lot of books are. Most commercial books are what we called Perfect Bound. That is, the spines of the signatures are glued together to form the book block," the old man stated. "It works for books that are only going to be read once or twice. If you put too much use on them, though, the glue starts to come apart and they break up. What we do is to sew the signatures together and fasten them to tapes or cords which hold them in place."
"Why're using a saw?" the boy asked.
"It is easier than using an awl to make the holes. Anyway, this way we cut all the holes at once for each position, so we know they line up.
"So your mam was from Nobs End," the old man stated. That was the local name for the top end of Mill Street with its large houses. Once it had been occupied by prosperous wool merchants, now by the better off members of the community.
"Yea, but the family didn't want 'er after dad get 'er with my brother," the boy responded.
"So you have a brother?"
"Two: Tom's sixteen. He's off working on a tarmacking gang. Harry's ten—he's living with Aunt Jane, my mother's sister. My sister Ruth—she's six—is with Aunt Jane as well. She took 'em when ma died but said us older uns were too much trouble." The old man removed the signatures from the press and laid them on the sewing frame. He checked the line-up of the sawn holes against the tapes and thought about what he had just learnt. So the older brother was off tarmacking. A typical occupation for travellers. Going from door to door offering to repave the tarmac drives. Then they would do a quick skim over the old tarmac and charge for a complete relaying job.
"So, are you Dick or Richard?" he asked.
"Usually Rick although my proper name is Richard. How did you know?"
"Tom, Dick and Harry—it's an old name sequence. Been around since sixteen-fifty-seven at least. That's when it is first recorded. A chap called John Owen used it in an address at Oxford University."
"You know a lot," Rick stated.
"Comes from working with books. You tend to read a lot," the old man responded. "By the way my name is Robert. Robert Arthur Timpson, known as Ratty at school, now called Bob."
"Did they really call you Ratty," Rick asked.
"Yes. Partly because of my initials, more so because of my hair: then it was black and very unruly."
Rick looked at him. Bob's hair was white and neatly trimmed. It was hard to visualize that head with black untamed hair upon it. The distant chimes of the church clock rang nine. In another three hours it would be Christmas. That brought a question to Rick's mind. "How come yu're 'ere working? It's Christmas Eve."
"I know what day it is Rick. It's a day for families, not for old men like me."
"You don't have a family?"
"I do, Rick, but I'm not with them anymore. They have their own lives to lead and I am no longer part of those lives. There's always work to do, caring for books. They need care, you know?"
Rick thought about that for a moment, then responded. "I suppose they do. So that's what yu do 'ere, care for books?"
"Yes. I repair them when I can. Sometimes though you have to rebuild them, take them to pieces and then put them back together with new bindings and covers. Then there are those books that are special. They should have a special binding from the start."
As they had been talking, Bob had started to sew the signatures to the tapes. Rick looked on, fascinated by the way that the stitching bound the signatures together. After he had sewn each one into place Bob knocked it down with a stick that fitted between the tapes.
"Would you like some soup?" Bob asked. Rick looked up at the old man and nodded. "Yes please, I've not eaten since..."
Bob stood up and moved over to the stove. From the cupboard beside it he withdrew a saucepan and a tin of soup. He placed the pan on the top of the stove, then opened the tin and poured its contents into pan. "Sorry," he stated, "there's no bread but I think there are some crackers in that tin by the door." He indicated a large biscuit tin on a shelf by the door. Rick got up and went over and picked it up.
"They may be a bit stale." Bob warned.
"They're better than nothing," replied Rick, opening the tin and taking one of the crackers out. It was a bit stale, but he was not about to complain. Bob returned to his sewing of the signatures, every now and then turning to look at the pan on the stove. Soon it began to simmer. He went over to the stove and moved the pan off the heat, and then took a bowl out of the cupboard and poured the contents of the pan into it before handing it and a spoon to the boy.
"Ain't yu having any?" Rick asked.
"No," the old man replied. "I don't eat much these days. At my time of life you get out of the habit of eating."
The boy took a spoonful of soup. "This is good, w'at is it?"
"Mulligatawny." Bob responded.
"Indian?" the boy asked, dipping a cracker into the soup.
"No, English. It is one of the things we got with the Raj. Its name comes from the Tamil for pepper water. Originally it was a sauce but we made it into soup when returning expats brought it home to England."
"Never had soup like this before." Rick stated.
"There are a lot of things you probably have never had." the old man replied. "I know there are a lot of things I've never had. Not much chance I will try them now."
"Why not?"
"Well, you see, it's a bit too late for me. Not too late for you though, you have your whole life in front of you."
"So long as Dat doesn't find me ..." The boy stopped a look at horror on his face. He had not meant to say that.
"It's your father you're hiding from then," the old man said. There was no need for the boy to reply, it was not a question, but a statement. He just nodded his head, acknowledging the correctness of it.
There was a period of silence as the old man removed the book block from the sewing frame, squared it up, and then clamped it in a press. He proceeded to smear glue over the spine of the book.
"I thought yu didn't glue the parts together," Rick commented.
"I don't, it is the tapes and the sewing that holds the signatures together. The glue reinforces them, making them stronger. Now I have to wait for it to dry, though that won't take long." He took a large sheet of grey mill board from a shelf and moved over to the guillotine, that stood against the back of the workbench, where he cut off wide strip, that he then cut into three pieces, two a bit larger than the book block and one narrow one.
Rick watched him finding the process fascinating. "W'at yu're doing?"
"I'm cutting the boards for the cover. Really, I should measure the book block to calculate the size required for the boards, but I know it is made up of A5 signatures so I have a pretty good idea without having to measure. Anyway, you always have to trim the boards before final assembly.
"So, Rick, what have you done to upset your father?"
"It's not what I've done, it's what I am that's upset him." Rick stated in reply. The old man looked up at him, their eyes meeting. Rick wanted to turn away from that gaze. It seemed to him that Bob was looking into his very soul at that moment.
"How did he find out?" Bob asked. It was to be many years before Rick realised that the old man had not asked what he had found out. It was as if he knew, but there was no way he could have.
Rick replied, though, on the basis that Bob knew. "He come back early and found me with a mate."
"I assume in something of a compromising position?" the old man commented.
Rick looked at him and realised he was smiling. "Yea, I was sucking him off."
"Not good."
"I know it's not good, but it is the way I am!" Rick exploded.
"I did not mean that you weren't good," the old man commented. "What I meant is that is not good that you were caught. It's hard being one of the people when you are only a half-gypsy. It is even harder when you are paplbno." He let out a deep sigh as he used the old word something that was unacceptable or not quite right. "I had hoped that it might be possible to get him to take you back but that is clearly out of the question."
"He not only won't take me back; he won't let me stay in the town. Said he would fucking kill me if he caught me within sixty miles of here."
Bob moved across to one of the large flat shelving units and pulled a large sheet of marbled paper off it. He quickly cut two sheets from it in the guillotine. "So it is probably not a good idea for you to stay around here?"
"It bloody well isn't but I can't get away till the 27 th —there are no buses or trains till then. I was going to start walking in the morning."
"That, Rick, is probably not a good idea; it will start to snow before sunrise."
"You mean we're going to have a white Christmas?"
"Yes, Rick."
"That's great. I've never seen one, and now one's come I'm bloody stuck out in it," Rick observed.
"That's as maybe," Bob responded. He folded the two sheets of marbled paper in half then ran the paste brush along the folded edges before gluing them at each end of the book block.
"What are those for?" Rick asked.
"Those are the end papers. They actually hide the way the book block is attached to the covers when everything is assembled." Bob replied as he placed the book block into what looked like a large wooden vice. Rick noticed there was a groove along the top of one of the jaws of the vice.
Bob placed a piece of mill board behind the book block so that it stuck up just above the front edge of the book block, and then he closed the jaws of the vice to hold everything firm. He then picked up what to Rick looked like two wooden blocks, connected together with a set of metal rods. One of the blocks had a couple of studs in its base that fitted into the groove on the vice jaw. Once the old man had placed the blocks on the top of the vice jaws, he moved it forward until it was over the book block, then adjusted them using the handle that stuck out of the side if one of the blocks. After a few moment's fiddling, he seemed satisfied and pushed the blocks forward before pulling them back towards him. A movement he repeated and then repeated again and again.
"What yu doing?" Rick asked.
"I'm ploughing," the old man replied.
"Nha yu not, yu need a tractor to plough and yu do that outside in the fields."
"Rick," Bob responded, "the word plough means to cut into something. So the farmer cuts into the soil when ploughing the land. I'm cutting into the book block. Come over and have a look." Rick left his stool by the side bench and walked over to where Bob was working. When he looked closely at what the old man was doing he could see that one of the wooden blocks had a blade protruding from its base. Every time the old man pulled the block towards him it cut a sliver of paper from the front edge of the book block.
"Why are yu doing that?"
"It's to make the edge of the book smooth. Every time I push the plough forwards I turn the handle a quarter turn, which brings the blocks closer together, so when I pull back the blade cuts through one or two pages of the book block. Want to have a go?"
Rick nodded. For the next fifteen minutes or so he was ploughing the book block, first the fore-edge, then the head and the foot. In the hands of an expert like the old man, the process was quick, but for the inexperienced it was not so easy, as Rick found out. There was, though, something of a sense of achievement with the smooth finish on the final edges, even if he had made only a small contribution to it.
Once they had finished, Bob removed the book block from the ploughing press and placed it flat on the workbench. At first he just pushed the spine of the block to force it into a rounded shape, turning it over a couple of times to get the shape he wanted. Then he picked up a hammer and started to hammer it round.
"I suppose I better leave," Rick stated.
"Because I'm a fucking queer."
"If you are going to use language like that, maybe you should leave but not because you are homosexual. I presume you are."
"Yes," Rick admitted, "I've known for a couple of years that I fancy boys rather than girls."
Satisfied that the spine was sufficiently rounded Bob placed it vertically in a press which had angled metal plates on the jaws. It took him a couple of minutes to get the book block positioned so there was about four mil between the top of the press jaws and the start of the spine.
"So what are you doing now?" Rick asked.
"I'm backing it," Bob replied, taking a hammer and hitting the spine of the book, forcing it over the edges of the jaws. "Basically I am knocking the spine round the edge of the backing plates in the jaws so as to form a lip on the spine. The cover of the book sits in the lip."
"So you are just hitting it?"
"No," Bob responded, "there's a bit of a trick to it. You have to hit the spine in a certain way to make it spread out evenly over the lips. It is a sort of circular glancing blow to the spine.
"How about you make another pot of tea whilst I get this finished? I'll need a break then."
Rick got up and filled the kettle, setting it to boil. Bob continued backing the book block. When he finished he removed it from the backing press and moved back to the main workbench. There he had a lying press, two pieces of thick wood with chamfered top edges, connected by wooden screw threads. He inserted the book block into the press and tightened it, so that it held the book spine up.
As Rick made and poured the tea, Bob applied a layer of paste to the spine of the book block. When asked what it was for he informed the boy. "Holding the book in the press stops its springing back. Applying the paste holds the spine in the shape I have forced it into, rather like hair gel on your hair."
"I don't use hair gel!" Rick exclaimed.
"Really, I thought all boys your age did," Bob answered.
"Maybe. Couldn't 'ford it. Had to use soap."
Bob laughed. Rick brought a mug of tea over and put it on the bench next to him.
"Bring your tea over and take a seat here," the old man told him.
The boy did as instructed. Bob took the two pieces of mill board and measured out then drew two lines along the cards edges, each a few millimetres from the edge.
"Could you cut the board along those lines for me?" he asked. He placed a sharp looking craft knife and a metal safety ruler on the bench. "Use those, and cut the boards on that green cutting board." He indicated a large green board to the boy's left.
Carefully Rick placed the first of the boards on the cutting surface and positioned the ruler along the line. He then tried to push the blade of the knife through the board to cut it.
"Not like that. Too much like hard work and you won't get a clean cut." Bob informed him.
"Then how?" Rick asked.
"I'll show you." Bob took the knife from the boy, then, holding the ruler firmly in place lightly scored along the length of the line. He did that a couple of times. "That's how to do it. Don't try to go all the way through at once. Just keep making like cuts going a little bit at a time. That way you will use less energy and you'll get a clean cut. Once you have the cut line established, it will guide your blade, which makes things easier. Do you think you can do it now?" The boy nodded. Bob handed him the knife and returned to the book block.
Whilst Rick scored his way through the boards Bob removed the book block from the laying press. He carefully cut the tapes so that about thirty mil of tape projected from each side of the spine. Then he applied glue to them, sticking them down onto the endpapers, and forcing them into the lip that now existed between the spine and the book body.
At each end of the spine he attached a decorated headband. The boy looked at him and asked him what it was for.
"Nowadays," he informed him, "it's mostly for decoration, though it still has a role in protecting the end of the spine. We used to hand sew them: on special book we still do, but mostly now we use machine made ones which we just glue into place." The boy nodded as if he understood; in some way he did, though he was not certain how. Then he got back to cutting the boards.
Bob took a length of linen and cut it to the distance between the headbands and sufficiently wide that it overlapped each side of the spine by about twenty-five mil. Once he was satisfied he had it the correct size, he pasted it up and applied it over the spine, with the overlaps going onto the end papers. Carefully he forced the linen into the fold of the lip on each side of the spine, knowing that this made for a good hinge for the book.
Satisfied with his work and knowing the boy was watching him, he replaced the book in the laying press, somewhat higher than before, to allow it to dry. The boy finished cutting the boards. The old man took them and inspected them.
"For a first time, very good," he said. He pointed to a slightly rough area at the end of one edge. "See here, that's where you tried to force the knife through. Nothing a bit of sanding won't tidy up." With that he took a sanding block and run it over the rough burr, removing it.
"Now," the old man told the boy, "over there are some pieces of leather. Would you like to choose one? I need a piece about three hundred by four hundred. That's about this big." He indicated the size with his hands.
The boy got up and walked over to the shelf with the leather on it. He started to look through the pile.
"What colour do you want?" he asked.
"You choose," Bob told him. "Whatever you think would look good on a book." The boy sorted through the pile and selected a piece which was a deep red. He brought it over to the work bench. The old man smiled.
"Good choice," he told Rick. "I had been keeping that for something special."
Bob took a strip of paper and wrapped it round the spine of the book block, then marked off the edges of the spine. Once he had done that, he measured the markings.
"Right," he told Rick, "over there are some pieces of thin card. Can you get a piece and cut me a strip thirty-three mil wide and two hundred and eight mil long.
"You need these," he added, placing a pencil and plastic rule on the cutting board. Rick went over and found some card, which he then set about marking up the card.
"Remember," Bob told him. "Measure three times, cut once." The boy looked at him questioningly. "If you measure it three times you are fairly certain you have the measurement correct. If you don't you will probably find you have something wrong and when you go to use the piece it won't fit. Then you have to cut it again."
Rick nodded, understanding what he had been told. He carefully rechecked his measurements; they seemed out. So he checked them again. He had made a mistake. Carefully he re-measured it, drawing new lines, then checked them twice. This time he was right. Once certain that the measurements were correct, he started to cut the slip of card.
Whilst he was doing that, the old man had taken a strip of brown paper and cut it to fit exactly on the spine. Then he had pasted it into place.
Moving the press that was holding the book to one side, Bob swept the working surface then laid a sheet of white paper on it.
"Wat's that for?" the boy asked.
"I'm going to start to build the cover. The paper protects the outside of the cover while I'm working on it. Don't want to get the outside dirty. It would not look good." The boy nodded, understanding the information.
"So," Bob asked, "what do you intend to do when you get to where you're going?"
"Dunno," Rick replied. "Word'll be out, so the gangs won't take me. Anyway, I'm too small." Bob had to agree there. A lot of the tarmacking gangs used underage boys to make up the numbers, but they had to look as if they were sixteen or more. Rick looked more like a twelve or thirteen-year-old, though there was something about him that said he was older.
"Poss," Rick continued, "I'd end up hawking myself." Bob looked at him, an expression of horror and concern crossing his face.
"Don't look at me like that." Rick stated. "I know w'at boys my age do to survive on the streets."
"And you would do that?" Bob asked.
"'Ave no choice wud I?" Rick replied. "Better than starving or Dat beating the life out of me." From that perspective Bob had to agree, though he did not like it.
"What," he asked, "would you like to do?"
"Get some schooling," Rick replied.
"Really?"
"Yea, the boys that go to school they get good jobs. They do interesting stuff, like this." He nodded towards the work Bob was doing. "Nha chance for people like me. We miss too much when out on the road."
That Bob could understand. It was not easy when for six months of the year your family upped sticks and moved off in their van, following the seasonal work around the area. Few of the travelling folk children got a good education.
"Well, maybe now is your chance," Bob commented. "Get a place to stay and go to school."
"Who'll 'ave me?" Rick asked. "I'm gypo."
"So what? The fact that you're Roma does not mean you can't be somebody."
"But I'm a queer gypo." Rick responded.
"And?"
"School and stuff not for my kind." Rick stated.
"What is your kind?" Bob asked. "Your father has driven you out, so you are not of the people. There again, with your mixed blood it would be hard for the people to accept you. Stop thinking of what you are and learn who you are. That is what is important."
Laying the leather skin side down on the white paper, Bob placed the two boards and the spine card in the position where he wanted them. Experience allowed him to judge the space between the boards and the spine cards. He was not a fool, though, and tested his placement with a template. Then satisfied, he drew a line around the positioned pieces, and then a border around the whole lot.
Taking a sharp knife, he cut the leather to along the border line he had drawn. As he did, he started to explain to Rick the positioning of the pieces, telling him that the gap between the spine card and the two boards was just a bit more than the size of the lip on the spine. That way there would be enough movement to allow the book to open.
Rick looked on. He had never realised there was so much that went into making a book. Then again, he had never thought about how books were made before. He had really been into reading but not that much into books until recently. He would read the newspapers and magazines in the library. He could read quite well, a lot better than his father or his older brother. The thing was, there was not really a place for books in the life he had led. If you needed to know something, you got told it, like when the old men spoke about the old days when they travelled around the country. He thought, though, that it would be nice to have a book. Something he could read and read again. Where the story was always the same, not like when his father told a story, changing it to fit the audience he was talking to.
"What do you mean?" Rick asked.
"Well, it's like this," Bob replied. "You can make yourself into whatever you want to be. You do not have to be what people tell you to be. They have no right to. It is up to you to decide who you are and who you want to be.
"It does not matter if you are Roma, Sinti or Traveller. Gay or straight makes no difference. Neither does being black, white, yellow or any other skin colour. They are all about what you are. Who you are is up to you. You can make yourself whoever you want to be."
"Do you believe that?" Rick asked.
"It's nha a case of believing, it's a case of kenning," Bob replied, the old dialect coming to his lips as naturally as when he was a child. Rick looked at him. Bob nodded. Then he picked up the boards and pasted them, before placing them in position.
"So yu saying that w'at I am does not mean w'at I'll be?" the boy asked.
"T'at's w'at I say lad, now yu ken it?" The boy nodded. There was disbelief in his nodding but acceptance as well.
The old man picked up another knife. With this he quickly pared down the edges of the leather, explaining as he did that he was making it thin enough to fold over the boards. Once this task was completed, he pasted up the spine card and the boards and put them in place on the leather. Then he cut diagonally across the corners, a short distance out from the boards, before pasting up the edges and turning them in, using a bone folder on each edge at the corner to force the small excess piece into place. Rick watched.
"So," the old man asked, "what are you going to do?"
"Find a place for the night," Rick replied.
"Don't think that's going to be a problem," Bob replied. Rick looked at him. The old man smiled. Then turned and lit a gas ring under a metal plate at the end of the workbench. Once that was alight he went over to a cabinet and pulled out a draw of type. From the shelf above the old man took a type holder and started to set the type in it.
"Well," Bob replied, "I'll make sure you have somewhere for tonight."
"Ta," Rick responded, though he was not certain he believed it.
Bob placed the type holder on a stand that surrounded the burner which he had lit before. The head of the holder resting on the plate above the gas ring. As the head of the type holder was heating Bob carefully cleaned the front of the cover he had been working on. Then he placed a piece of foil on the cover.
The church clock sounded the half hour. Rick looked up at the clock on the wall at the end of the workroom. Bob noted where he was looking.
"It'll be Christmas in a half-hour," the old man commented. The boy nodded. "Do you think you can run an errand for me?"
"What?" Rick asked.
"Mrs Carlisle will be at the midnight mass. I promised her I would have her Book of Hours rebound for Christmas but got a bit behind with it. Only just finished it. Could you take it to the church and give it to her?"
"Yes," Rick replied.
"Good," Bob stated, acknowledging the boy's reply. "First, though, I must finish this. So no chatting till it's done." He took the type holder from the burner and pressed it onto a damp rag at the side of the bench. When it stopped sizzling he lifted it from the rag and pressed it down on the foil that lay on the spine of book cover. Mentally he counted to three, and then lifted up the type holder and placed it to one side. Peeling back the foil from the spine he revealed the word 'KIM' in large type and below it 'Rudyard Kipling' in much smaller type.
The old man took the book block and placed it between the covers, checking it fitted how he wanted it to. Then he reached below his bench and pulled up a large sheet of what to Rick looked like thick paper, with a pattern of blue lines forming large squares printed on one side. Bob deftly cut two rectangles from the large sheet and then returned it to below the desk. He then started to play about with the corner of one of the rectangles he had cut.
"This has made life a lot easier," he commented, "once you can get the backing to start to peel off."
"What is it?" Rick asked.
"Double sided adhesive film. Sometimes called mounting film. We used to have to wait to or three days for a book to dry once we had pasted it up. Now there is no wait." With that he pulled off the backing sheet from the rectangle and then placed the mounting film, sticky side down, on the outside of the front end paper. Once he had smoothed it down and was satisfied he had it correctly in place, he peeled off the protective paper revealing the other adhesive side to the film. That done, he closed the cover down sharply. The carefully opened it and inspected his work. Satisfied, he repeated the operation with the back end papers and cover.
One that was done, he closed the book and placed it between two boards, then he slipped the stack into a screw press, which he rapidly closed by swinging the weighted arm at the top round.
"Well, that's done," he stated. Opening up the press and removing the stack from it. He lifted off the top board and then picked up the book and examined it. "And not a bad piece of work. Now this is something they say you should never do to a book." From his shirt pocked he drew out an old fashioned fountain pen. Opening the book to the title page he wrote in it, then handed the book to Rick.
Rick looked at the inscription. "To Richard from Robert Timpson, Bookbinder. Enjoy this and be your own man." Below the inscription was the date, time, and Robert Timpson's signature.
"But…" the boy started.
"It's yours lad, I bound it for you. Always wondered why I kept that stack of signatures for Kim . Knew they were for you when you came in. Now you better take this for Mrs Carlisle. You won't be able to miss her. Bright purple coat and a large pink hat. Always wears the same outfit to midnight mass every year." Bob handed Rick a small book bound in dark blue leather.
The boy took the book and went towards the door.
"You better put your coat on, lad, and put the Kim in your pocket, so you don't lose it." Rick did this and then left, shutting the door behind him. He got to the church just as congregation started to come out. Rick soon spotted Mrs Carlisle, with the big pink hat and the purple coat. He went up to her.
"'Cuse me Misses," he stated, drawing attention to himself. Mrs Carlisle looked down at the small rather grubby boy standing by her. "Mr Smith asked me to bring you this." He held up the book that Bob had told him to give the lady.
"Oh, my Book of Hours. When did he give you this?"
"'Bout five min ago. I've just come from the workshop." Rick replied.
"Well, we better go and thank him," Mrs Carlisle stated. She turned to her friends. "If you'll excuse me but I must go and thank Mr Timpson; he knew how much I wanted to have this for Christmas. He must have worked on it specially for me today."
"Said he came in specially this morning to finish it," Rick interjected.
"Come on then," Mrs Carlisle told the boy, "we'll go to the workshop."
The boy followed Mrs Carlisle down the street to the alley. When he got there, Mrs Carlisle was standing by the workshop door, puzzled. Rick caught up with her and slipped between her and the door, turning the handle and giving the door a push. It did not move. He knocked on the door but there was no reply. Then he realised Bob must have left while he was delivering the book. Under the impact of that thought, he slipped down the door and sat on the step, sobs racking his body, tears streaming down his face.
"What's wrong, boy?" Mrs Carlisle asked.
"I thought he would let me sleep here tonight," Rick stated.
"And why, may I ask," Mrs Carlisle stated, "would he do that?"
"'Cause I have nowhere to stay. Mi Dat throwed me out earlier, said not to go back or he would kill me. 'Pose I'll have to sleep here tonight."
"Now we can't have that, boy. What's your name?"
He was about to say Rick then he remembered the inscription in the book. "Richard, Misses."
"Well, Richard, you better come with me. If nothing else, you can keep me company on Christmas day—nobody else does these days."
= = = = =
Richard Carlisle stepped out of the station and looked around the town that lay before him. It had been over ten years since Mrs Carlisle had taken him home with her. She had never adopted him, just given him a home where he felt safe and secure. Also she had given him the support and assistance he had needed to do what he had wanted to do. This he appreciated. That is why had changed his name to hers on his eighteenth birthday. The first day he could. He knew that had pleased her. It had not pleased her family who had seen him only as an interloper. Somebody after the old lady's money.
She had taken him home that night. They had first gone to her niece Susan's house, where she was supposed to have spent Christmas. When the niece had made it clear that Richard was definitely not welcome and should be taken to the police station, Mrs Carlisle had marched him out to her car, put him in it and driven off. So far as Richard was aware, she had never gone back to the niece's during her lifetime.
She had given Richard a place to live and to grow at her home—it was in a small village, some thirty miles away—once the legal issues had been sorted out and Mrs Carlisle had obtained guardianship of the boy. He never did find out how she had done that.
School had, of course, been a bit of a problem. For the first six months he was living with her, she had arranged for him to be home schooled, with tutors coming in daily to teach him. He was, though, a bright boy, and he quickly caught up to where he should have been. All the reading he had done in the city library had no doubt helped.
He had gone on to attend a minor public school as a day boy. It was less than two miles from Mrs Carlisle's home. Although he had caught up well, he had never achieved the depth that anybody with ten years uninterrupted studies had behind them. He did do well though, especially in art and design, which had resulted in him going to Goldsmiths College London.
His time at Goldsmiths had brought him back into contact with bookbinding and had brought back memories of that Christmas long ago. So he had gone onto do a MA in bookbinding and conservation. Even though Mrs Carlisle was ill by then she had insisted on coming down to London to see him collect his degree and to celebrate him gaining a job in the conservation department of the British Library.
That had been over two years ago. She had taken him out for dinner at Roules that evening. It was over dinner that she told Richard—he was always Richard to her, never Rick—that she had only a few months to live. She also told him that besides a small legacy to make sure he had enough funds to move them, the only thing she had left him in her will was her library.
Richard had been amazed that she had left him that. He had not expected anything from the old lady. She had been more than generous whilst he was living with her. Anyway, he was fully aware that the family had never liked him living with Mrs Carlisle and were always saying he was just after her money.
He remembered the look on the family's faces when he had turned up at the house for the reading of the will. They were of course worried that some of their money might end up in his hands. As it was, there was a general sigh of relief when the solicitor read:
To my foster son, Richard Carlisle, I leave my library, together with the sum of seven hundred and fifty pounds to cover the cost of removal from my residence to such location as he thinks fit.
The looks then turned to smiles as various nephews and nieces received legacies of money. Those legacies ranged from a two or three thousand right up to twelve thousand. There were also gifts of various pieces of jewellery, items of furniture, and ornaments from the house where she lived or the flat she maintained in the old town. She had not used the latter for many a year.
Her final legacies were to her housekeeper, five thousand pounds, and the gardener/handyman, another five thousand pounds. Finally, the residue of the estate, some one thousand five hundred pounds was to go to the minor public school that Richard had attended, to help fund scholarships for those in financial need. That had upset the family. Then the solicitor announced that was the end of the will.
"But what about the property?" asked the niece who had refused to have Richard stay that first Christmas.
"Mrs Carlisle had no real property," the solicitor responded.
"There's this place, the flat in town, the farm over the border. I know for the fact that she owned the house Susan lives in," a nephew who had flown in from New York stated. Susan, looked embarrassed by that remark.
"Ah," the solicitor sighed. "Those properties. Well you see Mrs Carlisle sold them many years ago to a property investment company. I believe it is owned by a Swiss trust. It provided her with a guaranteed income." With that he closed he folder of papers, slipped them into his case, stood up and exited.
Richard had hired a van locally that day and loaded it up with the contents of the library. Fortunately, he lived near the airport, so it had been easy, though expensive, for him to arrange a one-way hire. It had ended up being a long day, and it was well past two in the morning before he arrived home with a van load of books and no idea where he was going to put them. There was just not enough space in his small one-bedroom flat in Croydon. The next morning, he had found a storage unit not far from his flat and loaded them in there, before taking the van to the drop off point.
Over the next three months he had sorted through the books. Some, which had a special meaning for him, like the ones he had read to Mrs Carlisle on those evenings when her eyesight was not up to reading for herself, he moved into the bookcase in his flat. There they joined the hand bound copy of Kim that he had kept through all the years. He had kept it partially in memory of Bob, the old bookbinder, who had sent him to Mrs Carlisle, and partially for the message he had found in reading that book, which he had no doubt that Bob had wanted him to understand.
That copy of Kim now rested in the shoulder bag that swung at his side. He tended to take it with him whenever he travelled, so that he would have something to read on his journey. Today he carried it for a different reason.
It had come as something of a surprise when, two years after Mrs Carlisle had died, her solicitors had contacted him again, on his twenty-fifth birthday, of all days, requesting that he call in at their London offices. The young lady, into whose office he was shown and who was introduced as Miss Wadestone, had been very efficient.
"As you may know, Mr Carlisle, the late Mrs Carlisle's family were somewhat unhappy with her taking you in," she stated, once he was seated across the desk from her. He indicated that he was aware of that fact. "It appears that they were worried that she was going to leave her money to you. Indeed, her nephew," she paused at this point to look at her notes, "Michael had in fact written to her specifically on this point."
Richard remembered that Michael was the nephew who had flown in from New York. So far as he could recall, he had never been to visit Mrs Carlisle during her lifetime, or at least not whilst Richard had been living with her.
"I am not surprised," Richard stated. "They never did like the fact that the old lady fostered me. They always thought I was after her money. Money couldn't buy what she gave me."
"And what was that?" Miss Wadestone asked.
"Security, affection, a feeling that you were worth something and that you had a place where you belonged." Miss Wadestone nodded.
"Well, Mr Carlisle," she continued. "It seems that Mrs Carlisle was worried that the family might attempt to challenge the will if she left you any major legacy."
"I have no doubt they would. You got the feeling the only reason they put up with her was in the hope of getting something."
"Precisely, Mr Carlisle. That is why she took the effort to make provision for you outside of the will." Richard was puzzled. What had the old lady done?
"I think before I go any further that you better read this." Miss Wadestone removed an envelope from the package of papers and handed it to Richard. It bore his name in her handwriting, in the turquoise ink she always used. "I am, Mr Carlisle, aware of the general contents of that letter but not its details. If you would like to read it in private, I will leave you alone for a few minutes." She stood and walked out of the office.
Richard opened the envelope pulled out the enclosed letter and started to read.
My Dear Son,
Yes, Richard, you are my son in spirit if not by blood or in law. I made a mistake in not adopting you but I am grateful you have taken on my name. I did consider adopting you and looked into the legal implications of it, but it was made very clear that as a seventy-year-old it was unlikely I would be allowed to adopt a then fifteen-year-old. Also my nieces and nephews made clear their objections to any such move on my part.
From that Christmas when you brought me the Book of Hours that Mr Timpson had rebound for me, it has seemed to me that I have been blessed to have you in my life. You have been a fine boy and you have grown into a fine young man. Despite all the disadvantages you had in life you have grown to be your own man, doing what you want to do, not what others tell you that you should do.
The fact that you are reading this means that I am dead. The doctors have given me only a few months, I intend if possible to prove them wrong and see you get your Masters. I doubt if I will make it much beyond that though. That bunch of hangers on, who have been waiting for me to drop dead so they can get my money and who call themselves my family, have made it clear that if I leave you my money in my will, they will challenge it. They made that clear when I first looked at adopting you.
As the only people who make anything from challenges to wills are normally the lawyers, by time they have finished there is usually too little left in the estate to have made it worth it, I decided to find another way to provide for you. I am, as you are no doubt aware by now from my will, a wealthy woman. Actually, I am far more wealthy than my so called family think. My late husband left me a number of properties and over the years I have used the income from those properties to buy more.
For tax reasons I placed those properties some years ago into a property investment company and I placed the ownership of that company with a Swiss based trust. I have named you the beneficiary of that trust and for you to come into beneficial ownership of the trust on your twenty-fifth birthday.
I hope what I have left you will enable you to fulfil your dreams and set up a bindery that will keep the traditions of Mr Timpson going.
I may be gone, now that you are reading this, but let me wish you a Happy Birthday.
Richard folded the letter and returned it to the envelope, which he then slipped into his inside jacket pocket. He wondered how long Miss Wadestone would give him. It turned out to be another five minutes.
"So, you've read the letter?" she asked.
"Yes, though not sure I understand it," Richard replied.
"Well, I better give you the full explanation. My grandfather was Mrs Carlisle's solicitor. He had been at primary school with her and, if the truth be known, he always carried a bit of a flame for her. Indeed, after her husband died and his first marriage broke down, I think he actually proposed to her.
"Anyway, that is beside the point. It was my grandfather who arranged it so that Mrs Carlisle could foster you. There were one or two rather grey areas about the arrangement which he put in place. He later looked into the issue of adoption for Mrs Carlisle. It probably would have taken place if some of Mrs Carlisle's family had not made their objections known. As it was, Mrs Carlisle decided not to go ahead, as there was a risk that if they took their objections to the Social Services it could result in her losing the fostering rights.
"However, she was quite determined to leave you the bulk of her estate. She was also certain that if she did, the family would certainly contest the will. In this Mrs Carlisle had a certain advantage as a large proportion of her wealth was already offshore. Her late husband had invested in Dutch and German banking stocks in the immediate post-war period. What had originally been a rather modest investment had, over the years, grown to quite a large capital sum. She was able to use this money to set up a Dutch-based finance house, who then loaned the sum of money to a UK property investment company that was required to buy Mrs Carlisle's property from her. She sold the property to the investment company at something of a knock down price but still within the acceptable market valuations.
"She then put the investment company shares into a Swiss-based trust. This is where the scheme was very clever. As the company owed the money used to buy the properties to the Dutch finance house, it essentially had no value. So, the shares had no value. As such, even if she had died immediately after making the gift of the shares to the trust, there would have been no tax liability. It was an assignment of an asset of no value.
"Mrs Carlisle then used the funds she received from the property sale to purchase an annuity from the Dutch investment company. Over the last eight years Mrs Carlisle has been living on that annuity. The Dutch finance house was put into the Swiss trust at the same time as the UK company. You were the named beneficiary of the trust, with control of the trust coming to you on your twenty-fifth birthday. The outcome of all this is that you are currently the beneficial owner, through the trust, of a UK property investment company, which is valued at just over five million and a Dutch finance house that has a similar level of funds. Since the original deal was set up, it has made further advances from the capital and interest that was paid back, on other secured loans. These have been made to both the UK company and companies completed unrelated to Mrs Carlisle.
"So, Mr Carlisle, you are now a rich man. When Mrs Carlisle got my grandfather to set up the trusts, he asked her why she was doing it. She told him that ' one day that boy will be something to be proud of.' My grandfather asked me to tell you that she was proud of you."
That was why he was now back in the town. The town he had thought he would never return to. He made his way down Station Road and turned left into Wall Street. Then he turned into the alley between the shops. A few yards down the alley he came to the door. It was clear it had not been opened for years. Cobwebs hung across the keyhole and around the corners of the doorframe.
Richard was not surprised. He had worked out that Bob must have been in his seventies when he met him—that was just over ten years ago. Somehow, though, he had hoped someone would have taken on the business. He walked back to Wall Street, turned right and then entered the shop that fronted onto the street. A bell above the door rang. The scent of old books filled his nostrils.
A man came out from the back of the store. He looked to be in his sixties. There was a passing resemblance to in his features to Bob, and Richard hoped that the man might be related. If he was, no doubt he be able to tell him how to find Bob.
"Can I help you?" the man asked.
"Yes," Richard replied. "Do you know anything about the bindery that backs onto your premises, the one down the alley?"
"How did you know there was a bindery there?" the man asked.
"Oh," Richard responded. "I was in it some years ago. Robert Timpson bound a book for me." Saying that, he opened his satchel and removed the copy of Kim he had been given ten years before, showing it to the man.
The man took it and opened it. He looked at the inscription on the front piece. As he read it the colour drained from his face. "Rachel," he called.
"Coming uncle," a voice sounded from the back of the store followed by a woman who Richard guessed was in her mid-thirties. She walked up to the man and then noticed how pale he was.
"What's up, Uncle?"
"You need to look at this," the man commented, showing her the front page of the book. She also went white as she read it.
"I'm sorry," the man said, looking at Richard. "I'm Charles Smith. Robert Timpson's nephew. This is my niece Rachel. She is Robert Timpson's great niece. Would you care to come through to the back, I could offer you some tea and would like to hear how you came by this book, as it may explain a mystery."
Richard went into the back of the shop and, over a pot of tea and some cakes, told the story of how he came to have the book. In doing so he also told the story of meeting Mrs Carlisle.
When he had finished Charles looked at him, tears in his eyes as he nodded his head.
"That's just like Uncle Bob. He could never leave a job unfinished and was always one to help. It also explains a mystery that has puzzled us for some years. Though the answer raises more questions."
"And what are those?" Richard asked.
"Well, Mrs Carlisle brought the Book of Hours in on the 20 th of December. She was very upset about the fact that one of her nieces had split wine on it and ruined the binding. Uncle Bob assured her he could restore it and told her it would be ready for Christmas.
"The bindery, as you know, is at the back of the shop but the only access to it is through the alley. The wall between the shop and the bindery is three feet thick, part of the old keep, so there was no way we could put a door through. Uncle Bob did, though, do all his business through the shop. Actually, we still get people coming in today asking if we can get books bound.
"Anyway, I am digressing. Uncle Bob dealt with Mrs Carlisle and then took the book to the bindery, but came back a short time later complaining of a headache. The headache got worse as the day progressed and we had to call the doctor. He called an ambulance and uncle Bob was admitted to hospital. He died later that night.
"He was seventy-eight and had been unwell for some years. Even so, it shocked us all a bit. So much so that I completely forgot about Mrs Carlisle's Book of Hours. It was not till Christmas day that I remembered. So, Rachel and I came down to the bindery to look for it. Thought we would send it back to Mrs Carlisle with an explanation. Anyway, we could not find it. We looked for it on Christmas day and again when we re-opened on the twenty-seventh.
"I phoned Mrs Carlisle on the evening of the twenty-seventh and told her that I was phoning about the Book of Hours. You can imagine my surprise when, before I had a chance to say anything, she told me that she had it, that the boy had delivered it, and that I was to thank my uncle for the note saying that he was sending it as a gift.
"You see Richard, when you watched my uncle bind this book and you took the Book of Hours to Mrs Carlisle, he had been dead for three days." With that, he handed the copy of Kim back to Richard, who sat there with tears on his face.
"Now I understand," he said.
"Understand what?" Rachel asked.
"Mrs Carlisle, sometimes she said that I was the best gift she had ever had."
Copyright © Nigel Gordon 2017 – all rights reserved.
My thanks to Peter Chastain for editing this.
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Adam Grant on Why Giving is Good
July 16, 2014 By Neelima Mahajan
Giving is good, we have all been told. It makes you a good person and it is the right thing to do. Now Adam Grant, Professor of Management at Wharton School of Business, is joining the chorus. Grant, who among other things is also a professional magician and a former All-American and Junior Olympic springboard diver, has studied different styles of reciprocity. He divides people into three categories: givers, takers and matchers.
All through life we come across people who fall into these categories. Takers, often the most hated, focus on getting as much as they can from others. They feel entitled to receiving more than they give. They often try to walk away with the majority of credit while working on collaborative projects. Givers, on the other hand, help others without any strings attached. That might involve sharing knowledge, being a mentor, or introducing people who can benefit from connecting. Matchers sit in between: they believe in quid pro quo and in trading favors evenly.
As Grant dug deeper, he found a correlation between giving and success: contrary to popular belief, giving actually helps you succeed in the long run. Grant’s book on this theme, Give and Take, has scorched bestseller charts and received much critical acclaim.
In this interview, Grant explains why giving is a good thing, and also when too much giving can be counterproductive.
Adam Grant, Professor of Management, Wharton School of Business, Author of Give and Take
Q. From your perspective, why was it important to study reciprocity styles?
A. Particularly in the west, we tend to look at success driven by individual forces like hard work, talent, and luck. We overlook the ways that our interactions and relationships with other people shape what we achieve. I was excited to understand that.
The other reason was because I was struck by the sheer number of people who said: ‘My goal professionally is to be able to make a difference and give back, but I also refuse that because I’m afraid it will sacrifice my success.’ They basically become takers or matchers and show that they can accumulate enough wealth and power. They have the freedom to start giving back. I had evidence that the fear about the consequences of giving might be misguided. I was struck by the fact that although there are people who succeed first and then start giving back, it seems to be more common that people who give first succeed later.
Q. Do you believe in karma, in the idea that what goes around comes around?
A. Yes and no. I’m trying to use science to explain why karma happens and also when it happens. My view is that when karma occurs, it’s usually because most people are matchers. Matchers believe in a just world—what goes around comes around—so matchers hate seeing takers succeed. That’s unfair. They also hate seeing givers fail, because people ought to get rewarded because they are generous. So matchers often become the karma police. They go out of way to make sure that takers’ reputations are known, so that other people can protect themselves.
They are also very motivated to spread the reputation of givers, so that givers benefit from their action of helping, caring and compassion. If you are in an organization where there are a lot of matchers, you actually are more likely to see what looks like karma.
Q. Does the idea of giving intersect in any way with the concept of ‘servant leadership’, an idea in which the leader puts the needs and development of others first?
A. There is a point for conversion for sure. Servant leaders tend to be givers. Givers often embody servant leadership which is again, more like saying ‘when I lead, I’m going to put other people’s interest ahead of my own’.
I actually had a mixed reaction to the language of servant leadership because it suggests self-sacrifice. I think that’s a wrong approach because if you sacrifice yourself for others, you put yourself as the doormat. Successful givers are more likely to look for ways in which they can align their interest with others.
Q. Are the three reciprocity types—givers, takers and matchers—hardwired personality traits or does our style change from one situation to another?
A. I would say exactly halfway in between. If you look at the data, there is a personality component in that. If you are a giver in one role of a relationship, you’re more likely to be one in another. There is a general trait that givers tend to have in common like empathy or feeling a sense of responsibility. There is also a lot of fluctuation. We all have moments where we give, where we take, and where we match.
For me, your style is how you treat most of the people most of the time as you make different choices. If a taker changes their tune and says, ‘Instead of trying to get something, I’m going to propose a trade’, or: ‘I’m going to offer something without asking or expecting anything in return’, if you make those choices repetitively in different ways, then your style can change over time.
Q. In your book you say we often categorize givers as chumps and doormats. If giving is such a good thing, why do givers get such a bad deal?
A. A lot of people are afraid because of takers. Many people overestimate the number of takers because there is a lot of evidence that they are bad and stronger than the good psychologically. The worse acts of selfishness often get burnt into our memories more vividly than some of the greatest acts of generosity. A lot of people just get scared away— either they are victims of takers or they have experienced their extreme selfishness.
A lot of people confuse being a taker with being a narcissist. They think that they have to say yes to all the people all the time with all the requests. That is the recipe for becoming a doormat: burning yourself out and running into a bad deal. People should recognize early on that just because you are motivated and help others, doesn’t mean you have to become somebody who dumps everything to help anyone who asks no matter what. Most successful givers are a lot more thoughtful and selective about whom, how and when they help, so that they are not being overly generous to takers. They tend to choose a couple of ways of helping that they enjoy, which is more likely to make giving energizing and efficient rather than distracting from their tasks.
Also be careful of the block-out time to say: ‘I have my own priority and ambition. I need to get my own work done. Proceeding with that, I will also help others in separate periods of time.’
Q. But there is also this temptation when you see takers winning as well.
A. Yes. That’s part of the other reason that people move in the taker direction. They look at the hierarchy. In most organizations, successful takers are the most visible people. Even if the dominant [style] in your organization is matching or giving, the takers are really credited and in the spotlight. It’s easier to spot them. Takers rise quickly but they also fall quickly. It’s a lot harder to sustain success as a taker than as a giver or a matcher, because most people are matchers and matchers are often on a mission to take down takers.
New evidence suggests that, in fact, takers are also motivated to eliminate takers. If you are a cheater, you want to be the only one who cheats because otherwise cheating doesn’t give you any advantage. The takers are the ones who say, ‘I’d want to be the only taker in the system or that won’t help maintain my success’. So takers not only pull off the matchers but other takers as well.
Takers burn a lot of bridges. They destroy their relationships and reputations At some level, if you are a successful taker, people are gunning for you. If you are a successful giver, people are more likely to be rooting for you. I think that just made it easier to succeed.
Q. If I am a giver, is there any way that I can recognize the point where giving becomes not so much of a good thing, where I move from being a smart giver to being a doormat?
A. The easiest sign is when you start keeping scores. Most givers prefer not to keep track of the help they give. They don’t feel that other people owe them. But when things get out of balance, most of us have our basic matcher instinct kick in. As you start to notice that things are out of balance or feel resentful of the people that you are helping, that probably is the sign things are going towards the wrong direction.
Related to that, if you start feeling out of energy or exhausted, you may be stretching yourself too far. The sign that things are going well is that people are coming to you with meaningful requests, and they are actually relying on your expertise and your interest. [But when] people are coming to you with all kinds of things that you are not actually uniquely qualified [to deal] with, that’s an early warning signal.
Q. Are there any techniques one can use to become a smart giver?
A. The ‘five-minute favor’ is one of my favorite techniques. So many people think that they have to be Mother Teresa or God to be a giver, but that’s not sustainable for most of us. The point of the successful serial entrepreneur Adam Rifkin is you can just become a giver by doing more ‘five-minute favors’ every week. It’s just a way of adding high value to other people’s lives at a low personal cost. Adam’s favorite is to make introductions. He’s made three introductions every day for the past seven years. That’s added tremendous value to other people’s lives. Through the introductions he has made, dozens of companies have been formed.
Smart givers end up consolidating their helping so they try to make it more efficient. A former student served in the military and then he worked for a major tech company. A lot of military veterans would reach out to him for career advice on making the transition from military to business. He was taking more than a hundred calls per month in his free time. He became smarter about this. He scheduled an equivalent of virtual ‘office hours’ once a week. Instead of having the same conversation with 20 people each week, he had this same conversation once with 20 people.
Q. In most organizations, the reward systems are geared around individual performance and in such cases, giving does not seem like such a great idea.
A. Organizations often create a work system where they are evaluating and promoting individual accomplishments. That is not the most fertile environment for givers because it’s very easy for takers to maximize their individual success and climb up the ladder. I’d like to see more organizations that have a dual matrix that values on the one hand, individual achievement, and on the other hand, how your achievement benefits others. While being efficient and successful, you are making others more successful. The data shows that in the long run an organization that can balance its considerations actually achieves higher performance.
If you are stuck in an organization which basically rewards takers, the first thing you have to do is align your giving with your organizational goals. You are not just helping indiscriminately, but you are focusing your energy and contributions on the most direct ways that you can make your organization more successful.That’s more likely to get rewarded.
The other thing you can do is to build a protective community of givers and matchers. Figure out who the non-takers are in your organization and bring them together to try to support and help each other. In that way you can shield yourself.
Q. Are there any companies that have successfully implemented such measures?
A. Yes, one of my favorite examples is Corning Incorporated that makes Gorilla Glass for iPhones and iPads. The highest achievement you can get as an engineer or a scientist at Corning is to be named a fellow. Fellows get jobs for life and a lab for life. They have a huge amount of freedom and resources to work on the most exciting innovation projects that are meaningful to them and the company.
There are two categories of the matrix that they use to evaluate the chance of becoming a fellow. One, being the lead author on a patent that’s driven enormous revenue for the company. Two, whether you are contributing to other people’s success along with driving your own success. One of the things they look at is if you are a supporting author on other people’s patents. It often takes 8-10 years to get a patent through [so you] help others for 10 years and get a little bit of the secondary credit. Very rarely [do] takers wait patiently. You have to be a great individual achiever but you also have to be someone who helps people around you to be a fellow. They weigh these two measures equally.
Q. What is your favorite example of a giver?
A. There is a woman called Kat Cole. She is a single mother who has three jobs to support her family. The day that Kat was old enough to work, she started working at a restaurant. She became the first person in her family to go to college. But she was so busy helping others in the restaurant that she had to drop out college because her grades suffered. Then one day in the restaurant a cook quit, so Kat volunteered to help cook. Another day the manager quit. She organized the schedule so everybody would know when to come to work. She volunteered to help behind the scenes without asking or receiving any credit or recognition. And it’s a story that really tells the horrible downside of giving. Kat was so helpful that she dropped out of college. But as we know, giving can be inefficient in the short run but extremely valuable in the long run. In Kat’s case, she was invited to apply to open up the first restaurant in Australia. She was working in the US at the time.
She said she wasn’t qualified because she had less education and less experience than all the other candidates. But because she has found every way to help all the colleagues, she was the only person in the restaurant that has done every job. They were giving her this position because she is more knowledgeable and more skilled than everyone else. One of the things that drives us crazy is that givers actually have a knowledge and skills advantage. They learn more and build more expertise than matchers and takers because their time spent solving other people’s problems enabled them to gain the whole set of insights, ideas and information that nobody has.
Kat went to Australia, opened up a new restaurant, and did the same thing in Asia. Then she went back to the US for corporate training. Her career just skyrocketed. At the age of 32, she was named the President of a billion-dollar brand called Cinnabon. If you ask her what made her successful, she will tell you that more than anything else is the fact that she was a giver.
Filed Under: All Articles, Best Practice, Conversations, Employment, ExpertSpeak, Know China, Management, Strategy, Talent, The Thinker Interview Tagged With: #Corporate Culture, Business Strategy, Give and Take, Hiring, Human Resources, Slider
Real Estate in China: If You Build It, Will they Come?
Real estate in China has gone into a downward spiral and the slowing property market is casting a shadow over developers. On...
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Home » Europe Looks East: The Crisis of Foreign and Domestic Policy in the USA
Europe Looks East: The Crisis of Foreign and Domestic Policy in the USA
Joaquin Flores
An overview and introduction to the internally destabilizing US failures on issues ranging from race, class, and criminality within the US, to its imperial foreign policy aimed at unipolar hegemony through destabilization in the world. This piece touches on a number of subjects which are often presented as unrelated, but are brought together here as being a set of symptoms of the same ailment, resulting in a growing realization for more cooperation between the EU and Eurasian sphere if the US cannot adjust to the new reality of a multi-polar world of equal partners. -
The deterioration of the overall political and economic situation in the world is largely due to the irresponsible actions of the United States, aimed at preserving its hegemony, the imposition upon other countries of a certain socio-political model, presented as the only proper one, and an aggressive defense of its own interests are which are designated by Washington as global interests. This is causing an ostensibly undesirable reaction for Washington, as it threatens to push the EU and Eurasian spheres closer together
The reasons for this lay in the numerous crises phenomena characteristic of American society. There is a growing problem in the United States, which have both subjective and objective character. These are: subjective and superstructural - withdrawal of investment capital from the country due to a lack of confidence in speculation, unbalanced domestic policy resulting in social stratification (class) and interracial conflicts; as well as objective and apolitical - a sharp decline in production, declining rate of profit, capital-social development in competitive 'emerging' markets outside of the US that have now matured, inertia of subjective problems reaching points which irreversibly compound upon objective and apolitical spheres.
Unprecedented in modern American political life were statements by activists from a number of states (Hawaii, Alaska, Texas) about the illegitimacy of entry into the United States and, in the case of Hawaii, initiating the process of secession through the UN. Separatist movements were registered in other states (California), and opposition to federal policy expressed by representatives of various ethnic groups - the indigenous Native American population, African Americans, Hispanics. These vocal activists and organizations, according to the Reuters poll of Sept. 2014 (see: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/20/us-usa-secession-exclusive-idU... ) represent the opinions of least 1/3rd of the citizens of the respective states, with between 20% and 25% being the sentiment regarding secession, nation-wide.
We will analyze the problems of modern America in more detail.
A crisis processes has been observed in the economy. In the four-year review of the State Department's diplomatic and development published in 2015 indicated that 46% of US goods were sold to trade partners through various agreements. Exports in general stimulated 11.7 million jobs in the US in 2013 [1]
Meanwhile, the fourth quarter of 2014 was marked by the growth of the current deficit to 98.9 billion. In the third quarter, to 113.5 billion. The deficit of goods and services rose to 127 billion in the fourth quarter of 2014, from 123.9 bn. in the third quarter. This statistic shows the growing problems, both in the purchasing power of the citizens of the US and in global financial and economic opportunities. If the US will not be able to resolve the issue of their deficits through the inflow of investment capital, the dollar will lose its value. But as for the purchase of debt which was needed to secure a recommendation of "secure" from the three international rating agencies located in the United States, it is obviously a case of artificial stimulation, demonstrating the speculative nature of such activities.
The growth of external debt for the US, and the "overheating" of the Federal Reserve System, responsible for the machinations of the global financial and economic system, with the dollar as the reserve currency, raises serious doubts about the competence of American politicians and economists. The collapse of the dollar system can lead to a domino effect similar to what was the collapse of the "dotcom" bubble in the stock exchange in 2001, but with more devastating consequences for the world, due to the binding of various national economies to the US dollar.
The oil sector in the US is also paralyzed. As of January 2015, 342 rigs had been closed out of 1140 functioning. When the price of oil drops below $50 per barrel, there is a high risk of rendering 40 thousand workers laid-off. If the immediately related industries are considered, this figure jumps to more than 120 thousand. The United Steel Workers union, resulting from a lack of progress in negotiations with the major oil companies to improve working conditions and win higher wages, staged a strike involving more than 5000 workers. This fact points to the growing problems of social stratification and class conflict in the US.
Events in Ferguson corroborate problems of race relations, social stratification, and the potential for conflict along both race and class lines. Meanwhile, supporters of the scientific field known as 'critical race theory', consider that racism in a veiled form has always remained in their country, and only for reasons of foreign policy imperatives, i.e., the desire for superiority in the confrontation with the Soviet Union on the issue of the level of democracy in society, people of color from time to time were given rights and freedoms, though in limited form.
According to the analyst and former Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Jeh Johnson, Islamophobia in the US is rising. According to the Social Research Center Social, 50% of Americans believe that Islam as a religion is more conducive to violence than other faiths. This trend runs counter to President Obama's assertions that social conflict on religious grounds in the US is less severe than in Europe.
At the beginning of 2015, on the eve of an international summit on combating violent extremism, the Southern Poverty Law Center conducted a study of the problem of domestic terrorism in the United States. 51% of terrorist incidents constituting so-called 'hate crimes' were motivated by "hatred" for racial, religious, or sexual grounds. 90% of them are carried out by individual citizens, and not by known groups or organizations.
Immigration policy in the United States reveals a double standard. While at the international level Washington stands for freedom of movement (one of the core beliefs of liberalism), even with migration flows in the EU reflecting and catalyzing problems in Europe, the demographic pressures the US exerts on Mexico are significant. This causes an influx of migrants to the US, causing the US to take protective measures, including the construction of physical barriers and other legal controls. In the south-western states, citizens have felt compelled in their spare time, organized over the internet, to engage in monitoring the border with Mexico through the installation of a network of surveillance cameras, as well as citizen 'vigilante' patrols, sometimes with questionable results on the level of basic human rights. Registered volunteers have a system wherein they call the border patrol centers and send operational information obtained from their surveillance system, about the whereabouts of ''illegal'' migrants. This trend also reveals another problem area at the intersection of race, identity, and class problems, which also directly involve issues of regional trade, NAFTA, and geopolitical concerns at the continental level.
The health status of citizens of the United States also shows negative trends, the health care reform program put in place by Obama and the major insurance companies actually cannot solve these problems.
According to the US National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (a division of the National Institutes of Health) 14% of the adult US population suffers from alcoholism. These problems are experienced by about 27 million Americans.
A no less serious situation is drug use. In 2013, 36% of students reported that they had used marijuana, which on the face of it may not be so alarming. But earlier, in 2006 this figure was at 30%. Large levels of drug use has been noted among youth. At the same time, most of the drugs cited here relate to prohibited and not medically prescribed narcotics. The contribution to this problem by pharmaceutical companies, both through over-the-counter and prescriptions is perhaps even more concerning in terms of long-term health.
In addition, the website of the National Institute on Drug Abuse announced an extremely negative trend of increasing overdoses from the use of synthetic drugs (Spice, K2, etc.) in a number of states, as of May 8, 2015. [2]
In the area of childcare, there have been problems with foster care in the United States, where children are often victimized by their caretakers. The human rights organization "Advocates for Children in Therapy" indicates that the prevalence of bullying and beating of children has been contributed to by the so-called "Attachment Therapy", wherein the abuse of children is actually part of the therapy.
"Attachment Therapy" is widely used as a means of caring for foster children, but it is more like torture and is dangerous for the life and health of the foster children. The US government has done nothing to prevent the emergence and widespread practice of this theory. This theory can be said to be giving validity, legal cover, and some pseudo-scientific justification for the historically known problem of foster child abuse in group homes within the US.
The torture of children within the US is mirrored in its practices abroad. The scandal over the torture of prisoners at Guantanamo (in occupied Cuban territory), Abu Ghraib (in Iraq) and other secret CIA prisons also continued, and this discredits and even implicates a much larger number of people and organizations in the area of psychology, psychiatry, and mental healthcare, which are involved with or cooperating with, US intelligence agencies.
An article in the "New York Times" on April 30th, 2015 states that the American Psychological Association (APA) has worked with the administration of George Bush on the question of justifying and legitimating torture when applied to prisoners and detainees within the framework of the US's "War on Terror". [3] A group of dissident human rights activists, psychologists and occupational doctors who documented violations of medical ethics in the consultation process, published a report which implicated representatives of the APA and the CIA. [4] The public representative of the APA, Rhea Farbermen, rejected accusations that their group performed on orders of the government. But this was contradicted by the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, William Winkenwerder, who confirmed that the Pentagon sought help of psychologists. Thus the double standards, hypocrisy, and intentional obfuscation which permeates the US scientific community are revealed.
In addition, the dissident group studied declassified documents, that indicate that psychologists the CIA employed were two representatives of the APA - James Mitchell and Bruce Jessen - who helped work on the program of torture by the CIA in secret prisons around the world. These declassified reports contain language that they "do special things with the special people in special places."
Further evidence that the United States has arrived at a morally questionable dead-end can be seen at least in the position of Princeton University professoer Peter Singer, who on a live radio broadcast on April 19, 2015 on the waves of New York's AM 970 show "The Answer", and Philadelphia's News Talk 990 AM, called upon doctors to kill newborn disabled babies. [5]
He justified this by the need to rationalize the US health care program known as Obamacare. Singer is a supporter of the so-called "non-voluntary euthanasia," movement, i.e., killing people without their consent, which may include children, the elderly, and people who after an accident have become disabled.
These examples above are completely inconsistent with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states that everyone has the right to life (Art. 3), and no one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (Art. 5).
It is also obvious that the statements of Singer wildly contradict the US's own framework, enshrined in Declaration of Independence, which states that "all men are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness." For example, Singer maintains that our conception of what makes 'a living person' is an error, it is not based on the fact that a person is 'alive' in the clinical sense. Instead, he argues that it is "characteristics such as rationality, autonomy and self-awareness that make a difference."
These problems are typical of modern America, resulting from the American worldview, and complicit in this crimes against humanity are its own policy managers and executors.
Again, these problems are manifested upon the world at large. The inadequate (or intentional) strategy of Washington against a number of countries has led to the destabilization of entire regions. Intervention in internal affairs, including through a coup tactic disguised as "color revolutions" plunged North Africa and the Middle East into bloody chaos. In Europe, a similar trend is observed.
After the active participation of the United States with the assistance of some European politicians to overthrow the government of Viktor Yanukovych in Kiev, Ukraine was gripped by a severe social and political crisis, compounded by ultra-nationalism. This leading US policy called the organizers of murder and other serious crimes in Ukraine "peaceful protesters" and "freedom fighters", and by this denied the right to freedom of expression and equal protection under the law of ordinary citizens who represent a variety of ethnic, political, and social groups.
Since the beginning of the Ukrainian crisis the United States has had full control of the negotiation process in Ukraine, on behalf of the Kiev government. It was revealed in February 2015, a telephone conversation between the French Foreign Minister, Laurent Fabius, with John Kerry, which showed that the main content of the talks the leaders of Europe had with Russian President Vladimir Putin to resolve the Ukrainian conflict were coordinated by the US Secretary of State.
The vast American influence on the position of Kiev shows Washington's total guilt in the escalation of the situation and in the deaths of thousands of civilians in the south-east of Ukraine. It is the maintenance of tensions in the region, in a predictably stalwart opposition to any Russian support for the people of Donbass, which allows the White House to create a relatively high degree of negative perception for Europeans about Kremlin policy on the Ukrainian question, and then continue to block any possible rapprochement.
In Ukraine, the USA is interested in maintaining or escalating the conflict, which is beneficial to Washington for several reasons, some which may contradict each other or relate to various contingencies in the event of the failure of the others:
1) privatization of real estate and land by US companies;
2) capture different markets in Ukraine and the establishment of long-term dependence regime through international agreements;
3) the sale of various goods Ukrainian military-industrial complex;
4) manipulation of the EU under the pretext of diversification of energy resources (replacement of natural gas exports from Russia, which, in fact, there is no alternative);
5) preservation of a buffer zone between Russia and the EU - this idea was developed in the early twentieth century. Anglo-Saxon ideologues - not afford to join a union of Russia, China and Germany;
6) experiments in social engineering, in particular, the imposition of bourgeois gender policy (promotion of a 'elite' homonormative over 'commoner' heteronormative;), which can be used later in other regions;
7) A 'black hole' sapping of Russian resources, creating political instability and internal dissention in all social strata over real or perceived losses in Eurasian space;
8) Alternatively, the potential to use the conflict in Ukraine to create an ever broader conflict in the region, and beyond, including the destruction of Ukrainian institutions and a scorched earth policy (failed state);
9) Provocation of Russia to act openly and defensively within Eurasian space, which will be used by the west to justify increased military and economic activity against Russia and Eurasian Union states.
With strong pressure from the US, the threat of the use of the Ukrainian scenario against legitimate governments are being faced by a number of countries in the Balkan region. The latest example - Macedonia, where mass protests and attacks were organized immediately after the statement of the Prime Minister's interest in the participation of the gas pipeline "Turkish Stream", which was strongly opposed by Washington. It should be noted that the capital - Skopje- the US Embassy functions as a base of intelligence gathering and a logistics hub, to monitor and influence the situation throughout the Balkans.
One of the essential problems of the world is the emergence of an Islamic state. Declassified documents distributed by WikiLeaks to world press and intelligence agencies also showed that IS was created on the initiative of the CIA during the beginning of the "Arab Spring."
The organization "Judicial Watch", on the basis of these kinds of revelations, has determined that the US Defense Department and the State Department actually participated in the creation of an Islamic state. [6] According to Judicial Watch, Washington coordinated that Libyan weapons seizures by the rebels in Benghazi were sent to jihadists in Syria. In addition, it was found that the information on the preparation of an attack on the US Consulate by Islamists in Benghazi, had been known for at least 10 days prior to the attack, which was carried out by the organization "Brigades of prisoner Omar Abdul Rahman," associated with the Muslim Brotherhood and Al Qaeda.
The Middle East, Ukraine and the Balkans - these are the most optimal target regions for US intervention involving European partners. Thus we see here the attempts to displace other geopolitical forces, in particular in the Balkans - Russia and China, which have their own economic projects in the framework of bilateral relations and towards multipolarity.
In parallel, the United States works to stimulate migration flows to Europe, the recent upsurge of which are the result of upheavals in North Africa and the Middle East and, as well as the military intervention in Iraq and Afghanistan. These processes destroy the European cultural, civilizational and religious identity, atomizing populations and ripening them for further control by commercial, mercantile, and corporate forces. This is despite the recognition of the leaders of Germany and France that the policy of multiculturalism has been a failure, an exported policy developed in the US in the 60's in response to its own historical race, class, and colonial problems.
Washington insists on its continuation, which destroys the long-standing European institutions and subverts decision-making on important issues. Although there is a positive experience in several countries (Switzerland, not a member of the EU, decided by referendum the question of migration and Islamization, that was reflected in the crime statistics), the EU continues to hold to neoliberal policies, which could eventually lead to a change in the demographic balance and serious civil conflict.
Islamic fundamentalism is used as a tool of US policy in Europe. In some cases this is done almost openly. For example, the leader of the Albanian terrorists who killed the Macedonian police in Kumanovo was a close friend of the US ambassador to that country.
Similarly, use of religious "Christian" fundamentalists is another factor; post-Protestant sects , evangelical sects, and 'new religious cults' that have headquarters in the United States - the Jehovah's Witnesses, the Church of Latter Day Saints (Mormons), 7th Day Adventist Church, and - while not Christian at all, it must be included - the Church of Scientology. Many American citizens working on official US projects abroad, as well as well placed individuals at prestigious universities, are members of, or are closely connected to, these various tightly knit sects, which exercise considerable control over their memberships and are able to regulate in-group behavior.
This issue of cults such as Scientology, reaches into Ukraine, with the coup-installed prime minister Arseni Yatsenyuk likely being a member of the Church of Scientology - a claim which he denies but which there are considerable reasons to think are true (see: http://m.strategic-culture.org/news/2014/04/01/the-charge-of-the-sciento...). These religious organizations act as both vetting and control mechanisms.
Washington carries out its agenda in Europe by a number of institutions - NATO, the European Parliament, the European branch of the Council on Foreign Relations, foundations such as the Carnegie Foundation, the European branch of the RAND Corporation, the National Endowment for Democracy, and others. The work on the ground allows the US to respond quickly to local problems, to carry out the required and measured social changes which the US wants to make in Europe, which subsequently is a part of the implementation of the overall strategy of Washington in relation to Europe.
At the level of bilateral relations and joint activities, American diplomats, representatives of the White House and the President of the United States directly influence the EU leaders. An illustrative example is the statement of Prime Minister David Cameron, who, after meeting with Obama, said that governments should exclude those who advocate for a way out of the EU. He put forward that those who favor putting the question of EU membership to a referendum would have their relationship within the EU legal structures critically reviewed as a consequence, even though earlier, and hypocritically, he had just spoken about the future of his own country's withdrawal from the association.
NATO, which is known to be led by the US, had previously raised the issue about increasing the contribution of each member to 2% of GDP, as well as active participation in various operations and maneuvers, the most ambitious of them stemming from the NATO summit "Transformation for the Future, Serious Failure in the Moment" (see: http://www.atlanticcouncil.org/events/past-events/nato-s-summit-transfor... ) - It began in 2014 and officially does not have an end date.
These proposed cost increases by the US were received very critically by many members of NATO, but the rhetoric about the need to increase funding for the needs of the alliance is taking place concurrently with a promise from the US for economic aid to a number of countries that strictly comply with all the requirements of Washington (Poland, Romania, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia).
Against the backdrop of the crisis is the mismatch of the globally oriented, NATO allied, political elites in the EU versus the wishes of the majority of the population in many countries where there is a tendency of both left and right pro-social populism combined with nationalism and anti-imperialism.
According to Stratfor, the last 10 years the level of citizens' trust in the EU institutions has dropped significantly, while the support of the national idea is the high stability.
As part of the picture of nationalism, left and right populism, and identity among broad sections of the masses of EU member states is the matter of their attitude towards sanctions against Russia; this also reveals certain dynamics.
Thus, the growing influence of eurosceptic parties is directly related to the choice of the strategic vectors - between the US and Russia. As a rule, moderate and radical skeptics, despite the political struggle with each other and competition for influence, are in favor of the lifting of sanctions imposed against Russia.
According to the analysis from Stratfor, the future configuration of the EU may be two levels - the first consisting of the EU institutions with the leading role of Germany, will try to continue integration policy; the second level will include associate members who are interested in receiving preferences from the membership in the euro zone, but not to be subjected to further assimilation. In addition, France may return to the idea of a Mediterranean Union - a project that has been blocked by Germany since its inception.
Such a multi-vector policy of the EU member states, if successfully implemented in any of the ongoing projects, will help any member of the EU improve bilateral relations with Russia as a natural partner. This resumption of cooperation with Russia, in turn, will benefit European countries that are now experiencing a serious decline of turnover and services due to the present US enforced sanctions policy.
Meanwhile the United States implements a wide range of aggressive interventions against states and/or political forces which adequately understand the destructive role of Washington in the current process and try to resist it. This even includes states and political forces engaged in the dissemination of truthful information through alternative media.
Putting pressure on the EU and other partners, the United States has a pragmatic interest since Washington needs draw into its zone of economic influence as many states as possible: this is critical for the US to be the primary beneficiary of the global economy.
Obama economic adviser Jason Furman, in particular, noted that the United States lobbied hard: " As I mentioned in my speech at Brookings earlier today, values-driven trade agreements, like the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (T-TIP), will put the United States at the center of integrated trade zones making up nearly two-thirds of the world economy.." (see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2015/04/08/4-ways-trade-drives-american-... .)
However, the European public is critical of the initiative of the United States. The researchers note that, according to international norms and laws, EU officials only have a mandate to negotiate, but behind closed doors are under US pressure. Moreover, from Washington there were repeated attempts to undermine the European data protection rules. [7] This is evidenced by the reports of both European and American consumer organizations and civil society representatives. Such actions are usually carried out through the lobbying of corporate law-firms such as Hogan Lovells, which created the front, cynically titled, the "Coalition for Privacy and Free Trade". Obviously connected are the direct political interests of the US, as the company Hogan Lovells has in their employment such heavyweights as former US Ambassador to the EU Hugo Paemen, and former US Trade Representative Clayton Yeutter, former deputy head of the Internet Policy in the White House Daniel Weitzner. [8]
A group of authors in the article "How Elites and the Public See US Foreign Policy", published in a special edition of "Foreign Affairs", notes that "there is a gap between the political preferences of society and the actions of the leaders of the country. After some time, this gap could undermine Washington's ability to project to the international arena their authority and credibility, and create democratic accountability at home. " [9]
Meanwhile, along with the eurosceptics, the old political elite of Europe also criticized the actions of the US and those who support them.
The visit of the former French President Giscard d'Estaing at the end of May 2015 in Moscow, where he delivered a lecture at the Moscow State University and criticized American foreign policy and the countries that follow the path Washington, shows reluctance on the part of the European political elite to serve the interests of the United States.
Some experts convincingly explain why sanctions against Russia are unprofitable for the EU. According to the American political analyst living in Germany, William Engdahl, EU sanctions against Russia "ricocheted back", which resulted not only in the prohibition of the supply of food from Europe but in Russia's transition to self-sufficiency and a search new suppliers, who they have found in Asian, African and Latin American countries. They suspended multimillion-dollar contracts with the German Siemens and the French Total S.A. [10]
At a press conference April 14, 2015 in Paris, Prime Minister of Bulgaria B. Borisov said that his country, in the event of implementing "South Stream", would become a "gas hub" of energy resource transit to the EU. And now when the project is actually folded, resulting from his vacillation and ultimate reneging, he is waiting for help for compensation for "lost benefits" from the initiators of the anti-Russian sanctions. Attending the event, Francois Hollande expressed the view that France would cover its own costs if it had found itself in the same position as Sofia. While Hollande spoke in general terms about hypothetical French private investment in Bulgarian energy markets, the same decisions of the Sofia government to renege on the pipeline project ultimately undermined Paris's profitable energy talks with Russia.
In the United States, actual advisers and decision makers actually have an objective assessment of the sanctions. Stephen Sestanovich of the Council on Foreign Relations stated in a testimony regarding European sanctions on Russia to the Senate Committee on Armed Services on April 28, 2015 that "many people say they did not work well ... Putin has convinced the public that Russia should not be pressured" . [11] For himself, he added that he considers the sanctions effective as a solution to political issues. The influential publication Foreign Policy also indicates that sanctions against Russia are not working, but due to the myth of their efficiency, many continue to think that they are an important instrument of US foreign policy. [12]
Concluding Thoughts
The United States has a number of foreign and domestic policy problems which are both corrosive and inherent. Consequently, there is a growing opinion among those in the US that their state would be better off if it exited the United States. US debt grows, markets for US goods shrink, and global energy markets are finding solutions which increasingly do not rely on the US approved middle-men, including the petrodollar. The Federal Reserve has essentially doubled the number of dollars in circulation since 2008, while the US uses all forms of hard and soft power to maintain a dollar value which does not reflect the present saturation.
The US uses Islamophobia and Russophobia to justify its foreign policy and related spending, pushing forward unpopular immigration solutions both in Europe and the US. Simultaneously, deviant behavior such as drug and alcohol abuse remains high, which reflects both failed policy in any number of related spheres compounded by a culture of alienation which requires escape.
US policy on Europe, looking abroad, has increasingly alienated its once solid ally. An analysis of political parties and electoral preferences, the social situation, including alternative media in Europe, shows that the vast majority are tired of the totalitarian Washington regime, which is disguised by the rhetoric of human rights, humanism, and the search for the mythical threat (recently this scarecrow is Russian). Mass protests against the signing of the transatlantic partnership agreement attest to its unpopularity; virtually unanimous is the view that this law has been lobbied for with the exclusive interest of the United States, and a few large multinational corporations in mind. This is to the detriment of the rights and freedoms of European people. Previous agreements between the US and the EU on communication and information sharing across Europe also raised serious criticism.
The inability of the US to create for itself a mission and identity not based on a hegemonic identity of 'global leadership' is reflective not only of inherited modes of thinking from the relatively recent past, but also reflects an inability to shift gears and interact with a world which neither requires or desires such leadership and unipolar hegemony.
The economic foundation in the military-industrial complex has created a system where gunboat diplomacy and various coup techniques are employed to maintain markets for US goods and services, instead of building genuinely competitive enterprises which use labor saving technologies and superior techniques to produce higher quality commodities and a better cost.
Towards that end, the US has instead plunged several regions of the world from Eastern Europe to the Middle-East into states of perpetual strife, in order to maintain a competitive edge and frustrate its perceived geostrategic opponents.
The trans-humanist project, promoted by the United States, is increasingly perceived in the EU as a mechanism of the destruction of European nations with a rich culture and history. Unfortunately, a number of laws, such as the legalization of gay marriage and gender education have already been implemented in Europe, but they cause serious resistance in the vast majority and may be revised in the future. On the face of it, they may seem benign, when in fact the ruling class is not basing these 'legal reforms' based on a mass-popular upsurge from below. Several matters confuse this - one is the generally uncompassionate and shrill tone of those who oppose gender education etc., who pander to the politics of 'moral panic' instead of looking at the balance of rights and interests of all parties involved.
The other is the manner in which elites are able to stage these gender/identity 'struggles' making them appear as mass-popular upsurges, when by and large they are not - they do not affect the vast majority of people and do nothing to respond to the very real issues of employment, education, housing, war, and other concerns. On the one hand, these serve as cynically placed wedge issues which divide constituents around issues with high emotive charge and content. On the other hand they work long-term towards building or reinforcing a repressive mechanism that simultaneously shames or relativizes the gender or sexuality of 95-99% of the population; thus privileging minoritarian gender issues in a manner which mirrors the minoritarian property rights of the ruling class.
The rejection of the west's Gender/sex identity politics are being used by the US not only as a litmus test but increasingly as a casus belli. Imperial ambitions are being pink-washed as human rights concerns.
Other projects from the US are aimed at exporting the unique forms of psychological traumas and disorders to the rest of the world. From foster care child abuse, to Guantanamo bay torture chambers, there is a continuum of practice; one may be seen as the training ground for the other. A society that produces one will almost inevitably produce the other, even if policy weren't oriented with the aim in mind.
The whole doctrine of exclusivity and messianism, professed by the political elite in the US states is increasingly rejected by the EU and other regions, which automatically brings to the agenda the strengthening of national sovereignty and the establishment of regional alliances (multipolarity). This scenario is the only possible alternative for the world political system, if the task is to eliminate the consequences of the irresponsible behavior of the United States, achieve a stabilization of the international economy, and bring an end to conflict.
[1] http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/241429.pdf
[2] http://www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/emerging-trends#spice
[3] http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/01/us/report-says-american-psychological-...
[4] http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/05/01/us/document-report.html
[5] http://www.wnd.com/2015/04/princeton-prof-kill-severely-disabled-infants...
[6] http://www.judicialwatch.org/press-room/press-releases/judicial-watch-de...
[7] http://www.statewatch.org/analyses/no-257-ttip-ralf-bendrath.pdf
[8] http://www.hoganlovells.com/hogan-lovells-forms-coalition-forprivacy-and...
[9] https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2015-06-09/measuring
[10] http://www.globalresearch.ca/washington-blows-itself-up-with-its-own-bom...
[11] http://www.cfr.org/russian-federation/russia-ukraine-us-policy/p36485
[12] https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/06/09/its-time-to-kill-the-feel-good-myth...
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Home » Context of 'August 4, 2008: Conservative Radio Host Hannity: No One Can Claim He or Other Conservatives Have ‘Made an Issue of Obama’s Race;’ Facts Prove Otherwise'
Context of 'August 4, 2008: Conservative Radio Host Hannity: No One Can Claim He or Other Conservatives Have ‘Made an Issue of Obama’s Race;’ Facts Prove Otherwise'
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January 24, 2007: Conservative Radio Host Limbaugh: Obama, Actress ‘Halfrican Americans’
Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh calls Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) and actress Halle Berry “Halfrican Americans.” According to progressive media watchdog organization Media Matters, Limbaugh, discussing Obama’s nascent presidential candidacy, says, “Barack Obama has picked up another endorsement: Halfrican American actress Halle Berry.” Limbaugh then says, “‘As a Halfrican American, I am honored to have Ms. Berry’s support, as well as the support of other Halfrican Americans,’ Obama said.” Limbaugh later concedes that Obama “didn’t say it.” Limbaugh tells his audience that Obama “is the son of a white mother from Kansas and a black father from Kenya.” [Media Matters, 1/24/2007]
Entity Tags: Barack Obama, Rush Limbaugh, Media Matters, Halle Berry
February 1, 2008: Conservative Radio Host: Democratic Presidential Primary ‘First Affirmative-Action Election in American History’
Michael Savage. [Source: Portland Indymedia]As reported by progressive media watchdog site Media Matters, conservative radio host Michael Savage calls the Democratic presidential primary race, now between African-American Barack Obama and female Hillary Clinton, “the first affirmative-action election in American history.” Savage says: “We have a woman and a multi-ethnic man running for office on the Democrat side. Is this not akin to an affirmative action election? Isn’t that why the libs are hysterical, tripping over themselves to say amen and yes to this affirmative election vote?” Because Americans do not support affirmative action, Savage asserts, voters will reject either Democratic candidate in the November presidential elections. “When they are heard from, the affirmative action ticket goes down in flames… I don’t really care who’s gonna be on the other side, they win. America’s not ready for an affirmative action presidency. I stand by those words.” Savage goes on to characterize Democratic supporters as “radical red-diaper doper babies from Brooklyn who made a fortune in the film business by urinating on the American flag and decimating the American value, the values that you grew up loving. They [are t]he ones who made a fortune hating America.” [Media Matters, 2/4/2008]
Entity Tags: Michael Savage, Barack Obama, Media Matters, Hillary Clinton
May 19, 2008: Conservative Radio Host Accuses Obama of Behaving Like a ‘Thug’
’Gunny’ Bob Newman. [Source: Newsradio 850 KOA]As reported by progressive media watchdog site Media Matters, conservative radio host “Gunny” Bob Newman, the host of a popular Denver talk show, responds to a Tennessee Republican Party ad attacking presidential contender Barack Obama (D-IL)‘s wife Michelle to accuse Obama of behaving like a stereotypical black street hood. Calling Obama a “clown” and asking if he is “some sort of a bad _ss,” Newman then addresses Obama directly, demanding: “What are you gonna do, Obama, come to Denver and try, key word try, to whip my white _ss? Son, you are not some sort of macho tough guy, trust me. You are just another blowhard, make-believe thug who wants to be the most powerful man on Earth. You’re a far-left, terrorist-hugging politician, not the bad-boy gangsta you want people to believe you are.” Obama called Republican attacks on his wife “unacceptable” and “detestable,” apparently provoking Newman’s response. [Media Matters, 5/20/2008] In previous broadcasts, Newman accused Obama of dressing like a terrorist sympathizer (see February 25, 2008).
Entity Tags: Bob Newman, Media Matters, Michelle Obama, Barack Obama
June 2, 2008: Limbaugh: Democrats Chose Obama for Presidential Candidate Only Because ‘He’s Black’
Discussing the presidential candidacy of Barack Obama (D-IL), conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh tells listeners that the Democratic Party is “go[ing] with a veritable rookie whose only chance of winning is that he’s black.” Limbaugh’s comments are reported by progressive media watchdog organization Media Matters. [Media Matters, 6/2/2008]
Entity Tags: Rush Limbaugh, Barack Obama, Democratic Party
June 26, 2008: Conservative Commentator Crowley Repeats Falsehood that Obama Is ‘Arab-African’
A 2003 publicity photo of Monica Crowley. [Source: 96.9 FM WTKK]Fox News commentator Monica Crowley, guest-hosting conservative radio host Laura Ingraham’s show, tells her audience that Democratic candidate Barack Obama is not African-American, but “Arab African.” Crowley admits that she has done no research to verify her claim, but is quoting conservative blogger Kenneth Lamb, who himself provided no verification to his February 2008 claim. Crowley says: “[A]ccording to this genealogy—and again, because I haven’t done the research, I can’t verify this—but according to this guy Kenneth Lamb, Barack Obama is not black African, he is Arab African.… And yet, this guy is campaigning as black and painting anybody who dares to criticize him as a racist. I mean, that is—it is the biggest con I think I’ve ever seen.” (Lamb has consistently refused to provide the research to back his claim, but has instead challenged critics to do the research themselves—including surreptitiously obtaining samples of Obama’s DNA for testing—and accused the administration of Harvard University of complicity in perpetuating the “sleight of hand.”) [Media Matters, 6/26/2008] In September 2008, radio host Rush Limbaugh will repeat the falsehood (see September 22, 2008).
Entity Tags: Laura Ingraham, Barack Obama, Fox News, Harvard University, Kenneth Lamb, Monica Crowley, Rush Limbaugh, Media Matters
August 4, 2008: Conservative Radio Host Hannity: No One Can Claim He or Other Conservatives Have ‘Made an Issue of Obama’s Race;’ Facts Prove Otherwise
Sean Hannity. [Source: Halogen Guides (.com)]Conservative radio show host Sean Hannity tells his listeners that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama “can’t point to a single instance in which President Bush or [Republican candidate John] McCain or [Bush political adviser] Karl Rove or Sean Hannity or talk radio or any other major Republican has made an issue of Obama’s race.” Hannity’s claim is proven false by data collected by progressive media watchdog organization Media Matters. Hannity himself asked his audience on March 2, 2008, “Do the Obamas have a race problem of their own?” He has also repeatedly distorted the content of Michelle Obama’s 1985 Princeton University senior thesis to suggest that Mrs. Obama believes, in Hannity’s words, “blacks must join in solidarity to combat a white oppressor.” (Mrs. Obama was documenting the attitudes of some black Princeton alumni from the 1970s and not expressing her own views.) [Media Matters, 8/7/2008] Media Matters has also documented numerous examples of other radio and TV personalities making “an issue of Obama’s race” (see January 24, 2007, February 1, 2008, May 19, 2008, June 2, 2008, June 26, 2008, and August 1, 2008 and After). The issue of race will continue with conservative pundits and radio hosts (see August 25, 2008, September 22, 2008, October 7, 2008, October 20, 2008, October 22, 2008, October 28, 2008, and November 18, 2008).
Entity Tags: Media Matters, Barack Obama, George W. Bush, John McCain, Karl C. Rove, Princeton University, Sean Hannity, Michelle Obama
August 25, 2008: Conservative Radio Host Savage: Obama, Democrats ‘against the White Person’; White Women Particularly Easy to ‘Dupe’
Conservative radio host Michael Savage calls the Democratic Party “the minority party,” Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is “a minority, a half minority at least,” and both Obama and the Democratic Party are “against the white person.” According to progressive media watchdog organization Media Matters, Savage goes on to say of the Democratic Party, “The membership is made up largely of minority blocs, the Hispanic caucus and the gay caucus—caucuses that are all against the white person.” Savage says that Democrats are “trying to pose as a centrist party, trying to win over the white male voter” and continues: “Now, the white women generally are not as hard-nosed about things as the white male, and so many white women don’t even understand that they’re being duped, and they vote for a Democrat, not knowing that they’re digging their own grave.… But now they’re going after the working-class white male, who is traditionally leery of the Sister Helen Prejeans [an opponent of capital punishment], the gay lobby, the caucuses and the other lobbies that are trying to take away his child’s birthright.” [Media Matters, 8/26/2008]
Entity Tags: Michael Savage, Barack Obama, Helen Prejean, Democratic Party
September 22, 2008: Conservative Radio Host Limbaugh: Obama an Arab, Not African-American
Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh tells his audience that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is “not black.” As reported by the progressive media watchdog site Media Matters, Limbaugh asks the rhetorical question: “Do you know he has not one shred of African-American blood?… He’s Arab. You know, he’s from Africa. He’s from Arab parts of Africa.… [H]e’s not African-American. The last thing that he is is African-American.” Media Matters documents this claim being advanced as far back as February 14, when blogger Kenneth Lamb wrote that Obama “is actually Arab-American [and] not legally African-American.” Lamb produced no evidence of his claim, but since then, conservative bloggers and some radio hosts have repeated the claim. In reality, Obama’s father was a African from Kenya, in the black part of Africa, and his mother was a Caucasian American. [Media Matters, 9/22/2008]
Entity Tags: Rush Limbaugh, Barack Obama, Media Matters, Kenneth Lamb
October 7, 2008: Pastor Calls Obama’s Mother ‘Trash,’ Says Only ‘Trashy White Woman’ Would Have Married Black Man in the 1950s and 1960s; Conservative Talk Show Host Promotes Video
As reported by progressive media watchdog site Media Matters, conservative radio host Chris Baker promotes an Internet video that features a Harlem preacher calling Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s mother “trash.” Baker discusses the video, by the Reverend James David Manning of ATLAH World Missionary Church, on his radio show, and posts the video on his Web site. Baker says of the video: “Oh God, you have to—you have to see this. This guy—I mean, this guy just goes off. And he’s not really wrong, either. That’s the best part, at least, you know—at least, in my hate-filled opinion.” Manning contrasts Obama’s mother, Ann Dunham, with Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, whose daughter Bristol is carrying a child out of wedlock. Manning says: “The difference between Obama’s mama and Bristol Palin is that Obama’s mama was trash. I mean, she was dirt. She was a bag of trash sitting on the sidewalk waiting there in Honolulu on one of those streets for the garbage truck to come by and pick her up and take her to the dump.… [M]y mama told me back in the ‘50s and the ‘60s, the only kind of white women that would take up with a black man back in the ‘50s and the ‘60s was a trashy white woman. The only kind of white woman that would take up with a black man in the ‘50s and the ‘60s was a sloozy, was a floozy, was a lowlife, snail-eating, white woman. That’s the kind of woman that Obama’s mama was.… Want to talk about Bristol Palin? Let’s talk about that piece of trash called Obama’s mama. Want to talk about Bristol Palin? Let’s talk about that trash that hatched Obama. Yeah.” Obama’s mother, who died in 1995, was a white American, and his father was a black African. [Media Matters, 10/8/2008]
Entity Tags: Bristol Palin, Ann Dunham, Barack Obama, Sarah Palin, Chris Baker, James David Manning, Media Matters
October 20, 2008: Conservative Radio Hosts: Powell Endorsed Obama because ‘He Wants to Be Black Again’
Rose Tennent and Jim Quinn. [Source: OrbitCast]As reported by progressive media watchdog site Media Matters, conservative radio host Rose Tennent, on her nationally syndicated talk show Quinn & Rose, says that former Secretary of State Colin Powell endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama “because he doesn’t want to be known as an Uncle Tom anymore. He wants to be black again.” Co-host Jim Quinn says of Powell: “He’s tired of being called an Oreo.… [R]emember, when he was in the Bush administration, he was a white guy.” Tennent responds: “Blacks hated him. They—‘Oh, he doesn’t count. It doesn’t count that you have someone black in the administration. He’s not really black, he’s an Uncle Tom.’” Tennent says that Powell’s endorsement of Obama “is racism.” [Media Matters, 10/20/2008]
Entity Tags: Rose Tennent, Barack Obama, Jim Quinn, Bush administration (43), Media Matters, Colin Powell
October 22, 2008: Conservative Radio Host: Public Assistance Recipients Should Not Be Allowed to Vote
As reported by progressive media watchdog site Media Matters, conservative radio host Michael Savage tells his audience that Americans who receive public assistance should not be able to vote. “Do you think a person on welfare has the right to vote?” he asks. “I don’t. Why should a person who is on public assistance maintain the right to vote? Tell me why. Where is it written that they should have the right to vote?… I support them, and they should have the same vote I do? That would be like saying an infant has the right to vote or an insane person has the right to vote. Why should a welfare recipient have the right to vote? They’re only gonna vote themselves a raise.” Savage then brings up Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama: “So if you get a demagogue like Obama coming along, and he says to the welfare recipient, elect me, and I’ll make sure that we have trickle-up poverty, and the rich—so-called, that is anyone who works for a living—will give you more money, more welfare, of course you’re gonna vote for the demagogue Obama. See, if I was in charge, I’d pass a law which says, OK, you can’t support yourself for whatever reason, you’re on welfare, you lose the right to vote.… You get back on the self-sufficiency, you get the right to vote. Then we’ll have a fair election in America. Otherwise, it’s all over. We have a communist nation either now or in the very near future.” [Media Matters, 10/23/2008] A day before, radio host Jim Quinn said that only landowners should be allowed to vote (see October 21, 2008).
Entity Tags: Jim Quinn, Media Matters, Michael Savage, Barack Obama
October 28, 2008: Conservative Radio Host Says Obama’s Father Typical Black Father: ‘They Simply Leave’
As reported by progressive media watchdog site Media Matters, conservative radio host Bill Cunningham, discussing Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s parentage, says of Obama’s father: “[I]magine at the age of one or two seeing your father for the last time. See, his father was a typical black father who, right after the birth, left the baby. That’s what black fathers do. They simply leave.” Cunningham then calls Obama’s mother “a Communist” who married “a radical Muslim,” who he refers to as “Barry Soetoro,” and then “rejected” her son at age 10, resulting in Obama’s being sent to Hawaii to live with his grandparents. [Media Matters, 10/30/2008] However, the name of Obama’s stepfather is Lolo Soetoro, not Barry Soetoro. In addition, he is said not to have been a devout Muslim. For example, according to the New York Times, he was “a nominal Muslim who hung prayer beads over his bed but enjoyed bacon, which Islam forbids.” [New York Times, 4/30/2007]
Entity Tags: Bill Cunningham, Barack Obama, Lolo Soetoro, Media Matters
November 18, 2008: Conservative Radio Host Savage: ‘Socially Promoted’ Obama Will Fire ‘Competent White Men’ throughout Federal, State, Local Governments
Conservative radio host Michael Savage, who has previously accused President-elect Barack Obama of being part of “the first affirmative-action [campaign] in American history” (see February 1, 2008), of being a radical Islamist (see January 10, 2008, February 21, 2008, and April 3, 2008), and of being sympathetic to the Nazis (see March 13, 2008), says Obama will oversee the “wholesale replacement of competent white men” from government jobs through the federal, state, and even local levels. As reported by the progressive media watchdog site Media Matters, Savage tells his listeners: “You haven’t seen any of what’s coming in this country. You are going to see the wholesale replacement of competent white men, and I’m targeting exactly the group that’s gonna be thrown out of jobs in the government. And I’ll say it, and I’ll be the first to say it, and I may be not the only—the last to say it. I am telling you that there’s gonna be a wholesale firing of competent white men in the United States government up and down the line, in police departments, in fire departments. Everywhere in America, you’re going to see an exchange that you’ve never seen in history, and it’s not gonna be necessarily for the betterment of this country.”
Accusation of 'Social Promotion' - Savage says that Obama was “socially promoted” to the presidency, a disparaging reference to the practice of promoting children to higher grades even if they have not done the work necessary to be promoted, and says: “If you’re socially promoted your whole life and nobody challenges you because you’re of the proper constitution and composition and you look exactly right and no one’s—everyone’s afraid to say a word to you, why, you then go to Harvard, you then go to the law review, you then get elected, you then get elected to the next level. This is what happens in a country that’s intimidated by its own policies and its own fears.” [Media Matters, 11/19/2008]
Obama Avoided Mention of Race on College Application? - Some of Obama’s classmates recall that when he applied for Harvard Law School, he refused to indicate his race so as to avoid benefiting from affirmative action, an action the Obama campaign has declined to affirm or deny. In 1990, as a law student defending the program, Obama wrote that he had “undoubtedly benefited from affirmative action” during his educational career. [New York Times, 8/3/2008]
Entity Tags: Media Matters, Barack Obama, Michael Savage
July 28, 2009: Professor Says Republicans May Be Using Racist Rhetoric to Exploit Perceptual Divide between Blacks, Whites
Melissa Harris-Lacewell. [Source: Melissa Harris-Lacewell]Melissa Harris-Lacewell, professor of politics and African-American studies at Princeton, attempts to explain the increasingly overt and virulent racism being promulgated by some conservative lawmakers, talk show hosts, and anti-health care protesters (see February 1, 2008, August 1, 2008 and After, August 4, 2008, August 19, 2008, November 18, 2008, February 24-26, 2009, April 7-8, 2009, July 24, 2009, July 25, 2009, and July 28, 2009). “[A]s a political scientist, you always want to start with the assumption that a political party, whatever choices it’s making are trying to seek office,” she says. She says one must assume that the racist rhetoric “is somehow a strategy of the right or strategy of an element of the GOP to somehow gain office either in the mid-term elections or more long term for the presidential race.” However, that is not the entirety of the reasons behind the rhetoric: “[T]he other part, I think, that I have maybe not been thinking about as carefully is that when we think about the history of race in America, sometimes we have to put aside the notion of strategy and just embrace the reality that race in this country has often brought out irrational anger, fear, anxiety, emotionalism. So it is possible that this is not actually a GOP or a conservative strategy but is instead really kind of an emotional tantrum on the part of some members of the conservative wing who really just are floundering as they look at a world that is changing so dramatically around questions of race.” MSNBC host Rachel Maddow expands on Harris-Lacewell’s point, saying: “I was with you on it being an irrational tantrum until I started to see the same very specific tactic used in very different venues about very different subjects, this idea of the person who is not white being the problem racist, being used against [Supreme Court nominee Sonia] Sotomayor (see May 26, 2009, May 26, 2009, May 28, 2009, May 28, 2009, May 29, 2009, May 29, 2009, June 5, 2009, and June 12, 2009)… being used against the president now, inexplicably, unrelated to any policy issue but just as a free floating critique of the president. And it does make me wonder about this as an overt political strategy.” Harris-Lacewell replies: “President Obama paused in the middle of the primary race to speak in Philadelphia about the question of race in America. And he set up sort of two possibilities, black anger rooted in a history of African-American inequality and white resentment rooted in a sense of kind of a loss of racial privilege. Now, I think in many ways it’s a very accurate assessment of sort of the ways that blacks and whites, not completely and not perfectly, but often perceive things quite differently. So I spent the month in New Orleans and Hurricane Katrina is a perfect example of this. Everybody in the country was mad but African-Americans saw the failures of the federal government around Katrina as a race issue. White Americans who were still angry about the failures of the government saw it primarily as a bureaucratic issue rather than a race issue. So here, you have these two groups with very different perspectives. Now, that made all the difference in being able to make policy. So I think that they’re hoping that these differences in how blacks and whites often see the world can be a perfect kind of wedge to use on health care, to use on education, to use on a wide variety of issues that, in fact, really—if we don’t fix health care, it is bad for all Americans. But if we can somehow kind of suggest that the president is just trying to do things that are good for black people and bad for white people, then it opens up that kind of possibility of anxiety, distrust, and different perceptions.” [MSNBC, 7/30/2009]
Entity Tags: Rachel Maddow, Melissa Harris-Perry
April 28, 2011: Conservative Radio Host: Obama’s Release of ‘Long Form’ Birth Certificate ‘Proves’ 2012 Re-Election Campaign Will ‘Run on Race’
Conservative radio host Laura Ingraham tells her listeners that President Obama’s decision to present his “long form” birth certificate as proof of his US citizenship (see April 27, 2011) proves his 2012 re-election campaign will hinge on race. After playing a montage of audio clips from commentators accusing Obama of racism, or saying that his campaign will focus on race, she tells her audience: “It’s official. The Obama campaign is going to run on race. No? They might not say that, but let there be no misunderstanding of where this is going. This is going right to the heart of liberalism. Liberals see people, not as individuals who are capable of anything if given the opportunity, and freed up and loosened from the bonds of government regulation and bureaucratic restraints. No. They see people as a certain color, or a certain gender, or a certain sexual orientation. They have to be put in these boxes. The favorites boxes of the bean counters. Liberals have always looked at people that way. The truth about race, and this president, is not a pretty truth.… The truth about this administration and race goes right to the core of what liberalism has done to the black family, to minorities in general. The great diversion of liberalists has always been to drop the charges of racism, the spurious and the negative and the perjorative charges of racism [against conservatives], every time they are proven to be incorrect and the way they approach a problem” (see September 4, 1949, and After, March 12, 1956 and After, 1969-1971, 1978-1996, 1980, 1981, March 15, 1982, 1983, June-September 1988, 1990, September 1995, August 16, 1998, March 1-2, 2001, August 29, 2001, March 15, 2002, July 15, 2002, August 2002, September 26, 2002 and After, August 5, 2003, September 28 - October 2, 2003, May 17, 2004, May 18, 2004, October 9-13, 2004, November 15, 2004, November 26, 2004, December 5-8, 2004, December 8, 2004, May 10, 2005, September 28-October 1, 2005, September 30 - October 1, 2005, September 30, 2005, 2006, March 29, 2006, December 2006, January 19, 2007 and After, January 24, 2007, April 2007, April 2, 2007, July 22, 2007, August 21, 2007, September 22, 2008, October 8-10, 2008, October 24, 2008, January 6-11, 2008, November 10, 2008, January 25, 2008, January 31, 2008, February 1, 2008, February 28, 2008, May 19, 2008, June 2, 2008, June 6, 2008, June 26, 2008, August 1, 2008 and After, August 4, 2008, August 4, 2008, August 19, 2008, August 25, 2008, October 7, 2008, October 20, 2008, October 22, 2008, October 28, 2008, November 18, 2008, January 18, 2009, February 24-26, 2009, March 3, 2009, April 7-8, 2009, May 26, 2009, May 26, 2009, May 27, 2009, May 27-29, 2009, May 28, 2009, May 29, 2009, May 31, 2009, June 2, 2009, June 5, 2009, June 7, 2009, June 12, 2009, June 20, 2009, June 25, 2009, July 8, 2009, July 16, 2009, July 21, 2009, July 23, 2009, July 23, 2009, July 27, 2009, July 28, 2009, July 28-29, 2009, August 8, 2009, August 12, 2009, August 19, 2009, September 2009, September 14, 2009, October 13, 2009, February 25, 2010, March 20, 2010, July 14, 2010, July 15, 2010, September 11, 2010, September 12, 2010, September 12, 2010 and After, September 15, 2010, September 18, 2010, September 21, 2010, September 24, 2010, October 22-23, 2010, November 9, 2010, November 12, 2010, December 22, 2010, January 14, 2011, February 20, 2011, March 2011, March 19-24, 2011, April 1, 2011, April 5, 2011, April 14-15, 2011, April 15, 2011, April 22, 2011, April 26, 2011, April 26, 2011, April 26, 2011, April 26, 2011, April 26, 2011, April 27, 2011, April 27, 2011, April 27, 2011, April 27, 2011, April 27, 2011, April 27, 2011, and April 28, 2011). Liberals, Ingraham says, rely on racial politics, divisiveness, and “class warfare” to succeed in the political arena. “[I]n the end,” she says, “it’s kind of all they have, that and abortion.” She derides people “on the left” for attacking billionaire television host and enthusiastic “birther” Donald Trump for being racist (see April 14-15, 2011, April 26, 2011, April 27, 2011, April 27, 2011, and April 28, 2011). Any such charges, she says, are ridiculous. But those charges will be used by anyone who criticizes Trump for his challenge to Obama’s citizenship, she predicts, and cites Trump’s recent exhortation for Obama to “get off the basketball court” and focus on national issues as an example of an unfair charge of racism (see April 27, 2011). “And the very thing the left always starts to accuse the right of is what they are most guilty of,” she says. [Media Matters, 4/28/2011] Ingraham has had her own issues with racism and gender (see 1984, April 1997, and July 17, 2009).
Entity Tags: Barack Obama, Laura Ingraham, Donald Trump
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January 24, 2008: Judge Orders Written Report on Destruction of CIA Videotapes
US District Judge Richard Roberts says that CIA interrogation videotapes may have been relevant to a case before him and orders the administration to explain why they were destroyed in 2005, and also to say whether other evidence was destroyed. The government has three weeks to produce the report, as the judge thinks the tapes may have been relevant to the case of Guantanamo detainee Hani Abdullah. The charges against Abdullah are based, at least in part, on information obtained from militant leader Abu Zubaida, who was shown on the tapes and was subjected to waterboarding and other “enhanced techniques” (see Spring-Late 2002 and Mid-May 2002 and After). The report also has to explain what the government has done to preserve evidence since Roberts issued an order in July 2005 not to destroy it, what it is doing now, and whether any other potentially relevant evidence has been destroyed. [Associated Press, 1/24/2008]
Entity Tags: Central Intelligence Agency, Hani Abdullah, Richard W. Roberts
Category Tags: Destruction of CIA Tapes, High Value Detainees, Counterterrorism Policy/Politics
January 29, 2008: US Predator Drone Kills Al-Qaeda Leader in Pakistan’s Tribal Region
Abu Laith al-Libi. [Source: Associated Press]The US fires a missile from a Predator drone at a house in North Waziristan, in Pakistan’s tribal region. The missile reportedly kills about 13 people. Some of them are said to be militants, and US officials will later confirm that one of those killed is al-Qaeda leader Abu Laith al-Libi. He is considered a top field commander and a liaison between al-Qaeda and the Taliban. [Newsweek, 3/22/2008; Washington Post, 3/27/2008] He is relatively unknown to the public, but in September 2007, the Washington Post profiled him as about one of a dozen of the most important current al-Qaeda leaders. He also survived a US rocket attack in June 2007. [Washington Post, 9/8/2007]
Entity Tags: Abu Laith al-Libi
Category Tags: Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, Key Captures and Deaths, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11, Drone Use in Pakistan / Afghanistan
January 30, 2008: MSNBC Finds over One Quarter of 9/11 Commission Report Endnotes Cite Dubious Detainee Interrogations
MSNBC counts the number of endnotes in the 9/11 Commission report that cite detainee interrogations and finds that more than a quarter of them—441 out of over 1,700—do so. It is widely believed that the detainees were tortured while in US custody, and that statements made under torture are unreliable. One of the detainees, alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, whose interrogations are mentioned hundreds of times in the report (see After January 2004), was extensively waterboarded (see Shortly After February 29 or March 1, 2003), and a CIA manager said that up to 90 percent of the information he provided under questioning was unreliable (see August 6, 2007). The endnotes often give the sources of the information contained in the main text. MSNBC comments: “The analysis shows that much of what was reported about the planning and execution of the terror attacks on New York and Washington was derived from the interrogations of high-ranking al-Qaeda operatives. Each had been subjected to ‘enhanced interrogation techniques.’ Some were even subjected to waterboarding.” In addition, many of the endnotes that cite detainee interrogations are for the report’s “most critical chapters”—five, six, and seven—which cover the planning of the attacks and the hijackers’ time in the US. In total, the Commission relied on more than 100 CIA interrogation reports. Its Executive Director Philip Zelikow admits that “quite a bit, if not most” of its information on the 9/11 conspiracy “did come from the interrogations.” Karen Greenberg, director of the Center for Law and Security at New York University’s School of Law, says, “It calls into question how we were willing to use these interrogations to construct the narrative.” [MSNBC, 1/30/2008]
Entity Tags: Center for Law and Security, 9/11 Commission, MSNBC, Philip Zelikow, Karen Greenberg
Category Tags: 9/11 Commission, Role of Philip Zelikow, 9/11 Investigations
Late January 2008: Spanish Criminal Case Reveals French Intelligence Had Informant in Al-Qaeda Safe Haven
On January 16, 2007, a young man known as Asim arrives in Barcelona. He had recently been living in the Pakistani tribal region of Waziristan as an informant for French intelligence. He comes to Barcelona to inform on a group of Pakistanis living in that town who spent time in Pakistani training camps and allegedly are planning a series of suicide attacks in Spain and possibly other European countries. He is posing as one of the suicide bombers. Fearing that an attack is imminent, Spanish authorities arrest most of the suspects three days later (see January 19, 2008). But the Spanish decide that they don’t have enough physical evidence to successfully prosecute the arrested suspects, and they turn Asim into a protected witness for the prosecution. The New York Times will comment, “the case has caused diplomatic friction among investigators. Spain’s handling of the French informant has enraged officials at France’s intelligence agencies and eroded trust between the countries, French and other European officials said. The informant’s value as a source was destroyed when he was made a prosecution witness and the contents of his statements were leaked to the news media.” Asim’s case contradicts the commonly held notion that intelligence agencies have been unable to penetrate al-Qaeda’s central command (see March 20, 2008). But many questions remain. It is unclear when he first penetrated Waziristan as an informant, how much time he spent there, and how high level his al-Qaeda contacts there were. [New York Times, 2/10/2008]
Entity Tags: Al-Qaeda, Direction Générale de la Sécurité Extérieure, Asim
Category Tags: Other Possible Moles or Informants, Al-Qaeda in Spain, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region
January 31, 2008: Civil Liberties Organization Says Abuse of Detainees ‘Undermines Credibility’ of 9/11 Commission Report
The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), an organization dedicated to the protection of civil liberties, releases a statement saying it is “outraged” by revelations about the extent to which the 9/11 Commission report was based on statements from detainees who are said to have been tortured. After MSNBC finds that over a quarter of the report’s endnotes cite detainee interrogations (see January 30, 2008), CCR President Michael Ratner says: “If the Commission suspected there was torture, they should have realized that as a matter of law, evidence derived from torture is not reliable, in part because of the possibility of false confession…at the very least, they should have added caveats to all those references (note: the Commission’s report does contain one caveat related to two chapters—see After January 2004). The Commission’s heavy reliance on tainted sources reinforces the notion that we as a nation have not yet come to terms with the reality that the US engaged in torture. Until we do so, we undermine our credibility in the eyes of the world as a nation of hypocrites.” [Center for Constitutional Rights, 1/31/2008]
Entity Tags: 9/11 Commission, Michael Ratner, Center for Constitutional Rights
Category Tags: 9/11 Commission, 9/11 Investigations
February 2008: Considerable Video Footage of 9/11 Hijackers Remains Unreleased
Hani Hanjour (left) and Majed Moqed (right) captured by surveillance video on September 5, 2001. [Source: FBI]An FBI timeline of the 9/11 hijackers’ activities compiled in late 2001 and released this month indicates that considerable video footage of the hijackers has yet to be released. Most of the footage appears to come from surveillance video discovered after the 9/11 attacks. So far, the only known footage made public has been two video stills of Hani Hanjour and Majed Moqed using an ATM machine, one still each of Waleed Alshehri and Satam Al Suqami, several stills of Mohamed Atta and Abdulaziz Alomari in Portland the night before 9/11 (see September 10, 2001), and a few more stills and footage of several hijackers in airports on the morning of 9/11 (see (Between 5:45 a.m. and 5:53 a.m.) September 11, 2001 and (7:15 a.m.-7:18 a.m.) September 11, 2001). But the FBI’s timeline reveals video footage that has never even been publicly hinted at:
Mohamed Atta used an ATM in Palm Beach, Florida, on July 19, 2001.
Salem Alhazmi and Ahmed Alghamdi used an ATM in Alexandria, Virginia, on August 2.
Hanjour and Mojed used a Kinko’s for half an hour in College Park, Maryland, on August 10.
Moqed and Nawaf Alhazmi shopped at an Exxon gas station in Joppa, Maryland, on August 28.
Waleed and Wail Alshehri wandered around a Target store in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on September 4.
Atta and Abdulaziz Alomari were in a Florida bank lobby on September 4, and the audio of Atta calling Saudi Arabia was even recorded in the process.
Fayez Ahmed Banihammad used an ATM on September 7 in Deerfield Beach, Florida.
Salem Alhazmi was at the Falls Church DMV on September 7. Low quality surveillance video at the Milner Hotel in Boston showed Marwan Alshehhi and possibly Mohand Alshehri on multiple occasions in the days just before 9/11.
Ziad Jarrah and possibly Saeed Alghamdi were videotaped using a Kinko’s for about an hour near Newark on September 10. [Federal Bureau of Investigation, 10/2001 ]
Additionally, an FBI document will later be made public that indicates there is footage of Saeed Alghamdi entering the Marriott Hotel at the Newark International Airport on September 8, carrying a black roll along bag (he will not have any checked luggage on 9/11).
This same document indicates Ziad Jarrah is also seen on videotape shortly after midnight on September 8 at the same Marriott Hotel, making credit card and cash payments for two hotel rooms. He is accompanied by two young men, who most likely are Saeed Alghamdi and Ahmed Alnami. [Investigative Services Division, FBI Headquarters, 4/19/2002]
Entity Tags: Saeed Alghamdi, Wail Alshehri, Waleed Alshehri, Ziad Jarrah, Salem Alhazmi, Nawaf Alhazmi, Mohamed Atta, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Abdulaziz Alomari, Mohand Alshehri, Ahmed Alghamdi, Fayez Ahmed Banihammad, Ahmed Alnami, Marwan Alshehhi
Category Tags: Alhazmi and Almihdhar, Marwan Alshehhi, Mohamed Atta, Hani Hanjour, Ziad Jarrah, Other 9/11 Hijackers, FBI 9/11 Investigation, 9/11 Investigations
February 2008: Ex-US Soldier from Bosnia War Emerges as Al-Qaeda Leader in Somalia
Abu Mansoor al-Amriki. [Source: Al-Jazeera]A militant in a video message released this month has an interesting background. The message supports Shabab, one of two radical Islamic groups fighting for power in war-torn Somalia. According to a US intelligence source, the militant in the video, Abu Mansoor al-Amriki, is an ex-US soldier who fought in Bosnia in the early 1990s. No US soldiers officially fought in the Bosnia war, but about a dozen Muslim ex-US Special Forces soldiers fought in Bosnia and trained al-Qaeda and other mujaheddin forces there around 1993 (see December 1992-June 1993). At the time, the US military and Saudi government apparently had an interest in sending Muslim ex-Special Forces there (see December 1992-June 1993 and December 1992). Mansoor is said to be a high-ranking member of al-Qaeda’s East Africa leadership, and is a lead trainer for Somali insurgent forces. Although he only appears on video wearing a face mask, it is clear that he is Caucasian. [Middle East Times, 2/28/2008]
Entity Tags: Al-Qaeda, Shabab, Abu Mansoor al-Amriki
Category Tags: Al-Qaeda in Balkans, Alleged Al-Qaeda Media Statements
February 4, 2008: Willie Nelson Questions Official 9/11 Story
Willie Nelson. [Source: Adam Bielawski / Photorazzi]Renowned country singer and songwriter Willie Nelson publicly questions the official account of what happened on September 11. Appearing on Alex Jones’s talk radio show, Nelson suggests the World Trade Center was brought down with explosives. He says, “I saw those towers fall and I’ve seen an implosion in Las Vegas, there’s too much similarities between the two.” Referring to WTC 7, which fell in the afternoon of 9/11 though no plane hit it, he says: “I saw the building fall that didn’t get hit by nothing. So, how naive are we, you know, what do they think we’ll go for?” [KVUE News, 2/4/2008; Associated Press, 2/5/2008] Nelson has previously engaged in political activism, such as raising money for small family farmers and writing a song protesting the Iraq war. [Reuters, 1/1/2004; Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1/19/2004]
Entity Tags: Willie Nelson
Category Tags: US Government and 9/11 Criticism
February 4, 2008: Seattle Post-Intelligencer Calls for New 9/11 Inquiry
The editorial board of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer calls for a new inquiry into 9/11, as it believes the 9/11 Commission’s investigation may have been compromised. The call is due to a new book by New York Times journalist Philip Shenon, The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Commission. The book highlights the close relationship between 9/11 Commission Executive Director Philip Zelikow and the White House, in particular National Security Adviser Condoleeza Rice, as well as an attempt he made to connect Iraq to al-Qaeda. The Post-Intelligencer writes of Zelikow that “[s]omeone with an apparent deference for the White House should not have been trusted with such a valued task.” It comments, “If bulletproof, the book prompts us to add one more thing to our to-do list for the next administration: Pressure it to charge a panel of independent experts to write a real, nonpartisan report on the attacks.” [Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2/4/2008]
Entity Tags: Condoleezza Rice, Bush administration (43), Philip Shenon, Philip Zelikow, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 9/11 Commission
February 11, 2008: Pentagon Intends to Try Six Alleged 9/11 Conspirators, Will Seek Death Penalty
The Defense Department announces that it is bringing death penalty charges against six high-value enemy detainees currently being held at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. The six, all charged with involvement in the 9/11 attacks, will be tried under the much-criticized military tribunal system (see October 17, 2006) implemented by the Bush administration. They are:
Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, a Pakistani who claims responsibility for 31 terrorist attacks and plots, is believed to have masterminded the 9/11 attacks, and claims he beheaded Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl (see January 31, 2002). Mohammed was subjected to harsh interrogation tactics by the CIA, including waterboarding.
Ali Adbul Aziz Ali, Mohammed’s nephew and cousin of jailed Islamist terrorist Ramzi Yousef. He is accused of facilitating the attacks by sending $120,000 to US-based terrorists, and helping nine of the hijackers enter the US.
Ramzi Bin al-Shibh, accused of being a link between al-Qaeda and the 9/11 hijackers. Bin al-Shibh is accused of helping some of the hijackers obtain flight training.
Khallad bin Attash, who has admitted planning the attack on the USS Cole (see October 12, 2000) and is accused of running an al-Qaeda training camp in Afghanistan. He claims to have helped in the bombing of the US embassy in Kenya (see 10:35-10:39 a.m., August 7, 1998).
Mustafa Ahmad al-Hawsawi, accused of being a financier of the 9/11 attacks, providing the hijackers with cash, clothing, credit cards, and traveller’s checks.
Mohamed al-Khatani, another man accused of being a “20th hijacker;” al-Khatani was stopped by immigration officials at Orlando Airport while trying to enter the US. He was captured in Afghanistan.
Many experts see the trials as part of an election-year effort by the Bush administration to demonstrate its commitment to fighting terrorism, and many predict a surge of anti-American sentiment in the Middle East and throughout the Islamic world. Some believe that the Bush administration is using the trials to enhance the political fortunes of Republican presidential candidate John McCain, who has made the US battle against al-Qaeda a centerpiece of his campaign. “What we are looking at is a series of show trials by the Bush administration that are really devoid of any due process considerations,” says Vincent Warren, the executive director head of the Center for Constitutional Rights, which represents many Guantanamo detainees. “Rather than playing politics the Bush administration should be seeking speedy and fair trials. These are trials that are going to be based on torture as confessions as well as secret evidence. There is no way that this can be said to be fair especially as the death penalty could be an outcome.”
Treatment of Detainees an Issue - While the involvement of the six detainees in the 9/11 attacks is hardly disputed, many questions surround their treatment at Guantanamo and various secret “black sites” used to house and interrogate terror suspects out of the public eye. Questions are being raised about the decision to try the six men concurrently instead of separately, about the decision to seek the death penalty, and, most controversially, the admissibility of information and evidence against the six that may have been gathered by the use of torture.
Details of Forthcoming Tribunals - While the charges are being announced now, Brigadier General Thomas Hartmann, the Pentagon official supervising the case, acknowledges that it could be months before the cases actually begin, and years before any possible executions would be carried out. Hartmann promises the trials will be “as completely open as possible,” with lawyers and journalists present in the courtroom unless classified information is being presented. Additionally, the six defendants will be considered innocent until proven guilty, and the defendants’ lawyers will be given “every stitch of evidence” against their clients.
'Kangaroo Court' - British lawyer Clive Stafford Smith, who has worked with “enemy combatants” at Guantanamo, believes nothing of what Hartmann says. The procedures are little more than a “kangaroo court,” Stafford Smith says, and adds, “Anyone can see the hypocrisy of espousing human rights, then trampling on them.” Despite Hartmann’s assurances, it is anything but clear just what rights the six defendants will actually have. [Independent, 2/12/2008] The charges against al-Khahtani are dropped several months later (see May 13, 2008).
Entity Tags: Vincent Warren, US Department of Defense, Khallad bin Attash, Daniel Pearl, Clive Stafford Smith, John McCain, Mohamed al-Khatani, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, Thomas Hartmann, Center for Constitutional Rights, Ramzi Yousef, Ramzi bin al-Shibh, Bush administration (43), Mustafa Ahmed al-Hawsawi, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, Al-Qaeda
Category Tags: Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, Al-Qaeda in Germany, 1998 US Embassy Bombings, 2000 USS Cole Bombing, High Value Detainees, Counterterrorism Policy/Politics, Ramzi Bin Al-Shibh, 9/11 Related Criminal Proceedings
February 18, 2008: Moroccan Police Raid Islamist Militant Group Led by Belgian Government Informant
Moroccan police arrest 35 people for involvement in a radical militant group led by an informant for the Belgian government. Over the next several weeks, it will gradually be leaked to the media that the arrested leader of the group, Abdelkader Belliraj, has worked for Belgian intelligence and possibly the CIA since at least 2000 (see February 29, 2008). Belliraj holds both Belgian and Moroccan citizenship and is a Shiite. His unnamed group has both Shiite and Sunni Muslim links, and is linked to Islamist militant groups like al-Qaeda as well as to traditional organized crime. Others arrested in Morocco with Belliraj include local politicians, businessmen, a police commander and Hezbollah television station correspondent. A large stockpile of weapons is found in police raids, including assault rifles, machine guns, and detonators. Two days after the raids, the small Islamist party al-Badil al-Hadari is officially dissolved after several of those arrested are found to have links to the party, including the party’s secretary general. The Moroccan government claims Belliraj’s group was planning a series of political assassinations in Morocco. [Los Angeles Times, 2/27/2008; Terrorism Focus, 3/4/2008]
Entity Tags: Abdelkader Belliraj
Category Tags: Other Possible Moles or Informants, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11
February 18, 2008: Opposition Parties Triumph in Pakistan’s Parliamentary Elections; Musharraf Remains President but Is Greatly Weakened
Pakistan holds parliamentary elections, and opposition parties are the overwhelming winners. President Pervez Musharraf does not lose his presidency, as he was reelected by the National Assembly several months earlier (see October 6, 2007). However, his party, Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q), loses control of the National Assembly, enabling the opposition parties to select their own prime minister a short time later. Much power will now shift to the position of prime minister, which had been completely overshadowed by Musharraf and his presidency since he took power in a coup in 1999 (see October 12, 1999). The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) wins 120 seats. The PPP was led by Benazir Bhutto until her recent assassination, and is now led by her husband, Asif Ali Zardari. The Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N), the party led by former primer minister Nawaz Sharif, gets 90. Musharraf’s PML-Q only wins 51 seats. Surprisingly, the Islamic parties are almost completely wiped out. The alliance of Islamic parties, the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), did well and won two provincial elections in the last election in 2002, but this time it only wins six seats. A secular and moderate party, the Awami National Party, wins in the North-West Frontier Province, taking control from the MMA and forming the new provincial government there. No single party holds a majority, but the PPP immediately announces a coalition with Sharif’s PML-N party, shutting Musharraf’s PML-Q party out. Musharraf once had 80 percent popularity ratings in polls, but after many recent controversial moves, including declaring a state of emergency for over a month to stay in power (see November 3-December 15, 2007), his popularity rating is down to about 20 percent. [Rashid, 2008, pp. 390-391] One month later, the coalition selects a relatively unknown figure, Yousaf Raza Gillani, to be the new prime minister (see March 22-25, 2008).
Entity Tags: Benazir Bhutto, Awami National Party, Pakistan People’s Party, Pervez Musharraf, Asif Ali Zardari, Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, Pakistan Muslim League-Q, Pakistan Muslim League-N, Nawaz Sharif
February 22, 2008: Attorney General and Director of National Intelligence Attribute Failure to Exploit Yemen Hub Calls to 1981 Executive Order
Attorney General Michael Mukasey and Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell write to Silvestre Reyes, the Democratic chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, about their desire to see the Protect America Act renewed. In the letter, they mention the failure to exploit NSA intercepts of calls between the 9/11 hijackers in the US and al-Qaeda’s main global communications hub, which apparently had the potential to thwart the 9/11 plot (see Early 2000-Summer 2001). They write: “[O]ne of the September 11th hijackers communicated with a known overseas terrorist facility while he was living in the United States. Because that collection was conducted under Executive Order 12333, the intelligence community could not identify the domestic end of the communication prior to September 11, 2001, when it could have stopped that attack.” [US Department of Justice and Office of the Director of National Intelligence, 2/28/2008 ] Executive Order 12333 became law in 1981 and governed general activities by the US intelligence community. [US President, 12/4/1981] The order did allow the NSA to disseminate information about US persons to law enforcement officials in the event of an impending terrorist act. [US Congress: House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, 4/12/2000] The letter does not give more detailed reasons why Mukasey and McConnell think the NSA could not have traced the calls and informed the FBI of the two hijackers’ presence in the US (see (Spring 2000)). [US Department of Justice and Office of the Director of National Intelligence, 2/28/2008 ] Similar incorrect statements have been made by numerous intelligence officials since December 2005, when the NSA’s warrantless wiretapping program was revealed (see December 17, 2005).
Entity Tags: National Security Agency, Michael Mukasey, Mike McConnell, Silvestre Reyes
February 23, 2008: Wanted US Citizen Gives Public Speech in Yemen and Remains Free Despite $5 Million Reward for His Arrest
Jaber Elbaneh’s appearance in court. [Source: Associated Press / Mohammed al-Qadhi.]Jaber Elbaneh, an Islamist militant wanted by the US, comes out of hiding to appear in court in Yemen, but is not arrested. Elbaneh, a US citizen and whose family came from Yemen, had lived in Lackawanna, New York, before the 9/11 attacks. He went to Afghanistan to train at an al-Qaeda training camp along with about six other men from Lackawanna, but while the others dropped out and returned to the US, Elbaneh never returned (see April-August 2001). He moved to Yemen. The Yemeni government says he also helped plan the 2002 attack on the oil tanker Limburg off Yemen’s coast (see October 6, 2002). He was arrested there in 2004 after being charged in the US for attending the training camp. He was sentenced to ten years in prison, but in February 2006, he and 22 other suspected al-Qaeda operatives escaped from a high-security Yemeni prison (see February 3, 2006). The US offered $5 million for information leading to his arrest. Elbaneh was then implicated in a September 2006 bombing in Yemen that took place several days before national elections (see September 15, 2006). Some suggest the bombers may have colluded with the government to use the bombing to successfully help Yemeni President Ali Abdallah Saleh win reelection. Elbaneh was convicted, but allowed to stay at home under a loose form of house arrest. Given the outstanding $5 million reward for him, Elbaneh appears to surprise everyone by appearing in court where his conviction in the 2006 bombing was being appealed. Furthermore, he gives a speech proclaiming his innocence. He says that after his prison escape, he surrendered directly to President Saleh in May 2007, who absolved him of any jail time. The New York Times comments: “Perhaps the greatest mystery surrounding [Elbaneh] is his decision to appear in court… The Yemeni government has generally instructed the jihadists with whom it arranges amnesty to avoid the news media and keep low profiles. But Mr. Elbaneh deliberately spoke out in a public setting, with journalists present, and named the president in his brief tirade.” [Reuters, 2/27/2008; New York Times, 3/1/2008]
Entity Tags: Jaber Elbaneh, Ali Abdallah Saleh
Category Tags: Yemeni Militant Collusion, "Lackawanna Six"
February 27, 2008: Report: US Finally Decides Imam to 9/11 Hijackers Is Linked to Al-Qaeda
The Washington Post reports that US intelligence has finally determined that Anwar al-Awlaki is linked to al-Qaeda. Al-Awlaki was an imam at two different mosques attended by hijackers Nawaf Alhazmi, Khalid Almihdhar, and Hani Hanjour, and he has been suspected of assisting the 9/11 plot. An anonymous US counterterrorism official tells the Post, “There is good reason to believe Anwar al-Awlaki has been involved in very serious terrorist activities since leaving the United States [after 9/11], including plotting attacks against America and our allies.” However, the US apparently did not ask Yemen to extradite him when he was arrested there in 2006, because there was no pending legal case against him. He continues to reside in Yemen and apparently still has not been charged with any crime. [Washington Post, 2/27/2008] In December 2007, just two months before this article, the US approved the release of al-Awlaki in Yemen, apparently because there still was no pending legal case against him (see Early September 2006-December 2007). He also does not appear to be on any public wanted list.
Entity Tags: Anwar al-Awlaki, Al-Qaeda
Category Tags: FBI 9/11 Investigation, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11, Possible Hijacker Associates in US, 9/11 Investigations, Anwar Al-Awlaki
February 28, 2008: US Predator Drone Kills at Least 12 in Pakistan
A missile fired from a US Predator drone kills at least 12 people in Pakistan. The missile hits a house in the village of Kaloosha, near the Afghan border. Some suspected militants are reportedly killed, but details are scanty. [BBC, 3/16/2008; Washington Post, 3/27/2008]
Category Tags: Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11, Drone Use in Pakistan / Afghanistan
February 29, 2008: Director of National Intelligence McConnell Says Afghan Government Is Losing Control
Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell testifies before Congress that the security situation in Afghanistan is “deteriorating.” He estimates that the official Afghan government led by Hamid Karzai controls only about 30 percent of Afghanistan, while the Taliban controls 10 percent and the rest is controlled by various tribes and warlords. He says that the key to the Taliban’s success “is the opportunity for safe haven in Pakistan.” Karzai’s government denies McConnell’s claims. However, various think tank reports echo McConnell’s conclusions. One report headed by former NATO commander Gen. James L. Jones concludes that “urgent changes” are immediately required to “prevent Afghanistan becoming a failed state.” [Guardian, 2/29/2008]
Entity Tags: Taliban, Hamid Karzai, James L. Jones, Mike McConnell
Category Tags: Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, Afghanistan
February 29, 2008: Arrested Leader of Moroccan Militant Group Revealed to Be Belgian Informant with Possible CIA Links
Abdelkader Belliraj. [Source: Agence France-Presse]The Belgian media reports that Abdelkader Belliraj, a dual Belgian-Moroccan citizen arrested in Morocco earlier in the month, is actually a long-time informant for Belgium’s internal security service, State Security. [Agence France-Presse, 2/29/2008; Los Angeles Times, 8/24/2008] The Belgian government initially denies the charges but soon tacitly admits them when the head of State Security, Alain Winants, complains about the leak of the “highly classified” status of Belliraj several days later. Agence France-Presse reports that although the “accusations were at first met with scepticism in Belgium, authorities now consider them credible.” Belliraj has been personally involved in armed robberies and murders dating back to the 1980s, and has links to al-Qaeda, Hezbollah, and other Islamist militant groups. It remains unclear if Belliraj was committing all his crimes with the approval of Belgian officials or if he may have been duping them to some degree. One anonymous Belgian police official speculates: “How could he travel freely since the 1980s from Belgium to various terrorist hot-beds around the world? There are two possibilities: either he worked for a secret service or else the State Security is full of idiots.” [Agence France-Presse, 3/11/2008] On Belgian newspaper claims that at the same time he was a paid Belgian informant since 2000, “It’s almost certain that at the same time he worked for another foreign secret service, possibly the French DGSE or American CIA.” [Het Laatste News, 3/4/2008] Another major Belgian newspaper, De Morgen, claims that Belliraj had both French and US intelligence links while working with Belgium too. [Maghreb Arabe Presse, 3/4/2008]
Entity Tags: Central Intelligence Agency, Direction Générale de la Sécurité Extérieure, Abdelkader Belliraj, Alain Winants, State Security (of Belgium)
Spring 2008: CIA Director Told about Al-Qaeda Assassination and Capture Program
CIA Director Michael Hayden and his top aides are told about one aspect of an agency program to capture and assassinate al-Qaeda leaders. The program was proposed in the wake of the 9/11 attacks and has been under development at the agency for years, although it has not yet become operational (see Shortly After September 17, 2001). Details of what Hayden is told are unclear, although he is told about plans that involve gathering sensitive information in a foreign country. Hayden orders that the operation be scaled back and that Congress be notified if the plans become more fully developed. However, Congress is not informed before Hayden’s successor cancels the program (see June 23, 2009). [New York Times, 7/14/2009]
Entity Tags: Central Intelligence Agency, Michael Hayden
Category Tags: Counterterrorism Policy/Politics
March 6, 2008: US Agents Arrest Al-Qaeda-Linked Arms Dealer Victor Bout in Thailand
Victor Bout in handcuffs in Thailand on the day of his arrest. [Source: Associated Press]Victor Bout, the world’s biggest illegal arms dealer, is arrested in Thailand. The US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) had set up a sting operation to nab Bout. For months, DEA agents posed as members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a militant group linked to drug trafficking and organized crime. DEA agents and Thai police meet Bout at the five-star Sofitel Silom Hotel in Bangkok, supposedly to finalize an arms deal, and immediately arrest him and his bodyguards. According to a Thai police officer, Bout does not resist arrest but merely says, “The game is over.” A relatively new DEA task force is behind Bout’s arrest, even as news reports indicate Bout’s fleet of aircraft has been shipping supplies to the US military in Iraq in recent years. The DEA agents posed as arms dealers working for FARC but went after Bout because of evidence that he had been involved in drug smuggling as well. Bout faces up to 10 years in prison in Thailand for taking part in illegal weapons deals there. US officials are also seeking Bout’s extradition to the US so he can face more charges. Bout is a Russian citizen and has been based in Russia in recent years, but the Russian government has decided against seeking his extradition. Mother Jones comments, “Willing to work for anyone, Bout’s business divorced itself from any political, philosophical, or moral constraint. It delivered military cargo with equal enthusiasm to terrorists, guerrilla insurgents, rebel warlords, embattled dictatorships, legitimate businesses, humanitarian aid groups, and sovereign governments, including the United States” (see Late April 2003-2007). He also worked with the Taliban and al-Qaeda-linked groups (see Summer 2002 and Late July 2006). Experts note that Bout’s network has been unique in providing a full range of smuggling services and it is unlikely it will survive without him. [Mother Jones, 3/16/2006]
Entity Tags: Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, Drug Enforcement Administration, Victor Bout
Category Tags: Victor Bout, Drugs, Key Captures and Deaths, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11
March 14, 2008: Alleged Al-Qaeda Leader Sent to Guantanamo, Declared ‘High Value’ Prisoner
Alleged al-Qaeda leader Muhammad Rahim al-Afghani is transferred to the US-run prison in Guantanamo, Cuba, and officially declared a “high value” prisoner. Rahim was captured in Lahore, Pakistan, by local forces in July 2007 (see July 2007) and then was held in a secret CIA prison until his transfer to Guantanamo (see Late July 2007-March 14, 2008).
Why Is Rahim Considered Important? - Rahim is just the 16th person the US government has declared a “high value” prisoner. Fourteen prisoners were given that label when they were transferred from secret CIA prisons to Guantanamo in September 2006 (see September 6, 2006 and September 2-3, 2006). The 15th was Abd al-Hadi al-Iraqi, who was held by the CIA in autumn 2006 and sent to Guantanamo in April 2007 (see Autumn 2006-Late April 2007). [Los Angeles Times, 3/15/2008] Although there had been reports in Pakistan about Rahim shortly after his arrest, virtually nothing was known about him until his transfer to Guantanamo. [Asian News International, 8/2/2007] He may have experienced extreme sleep deprivation during CIA interrogations (see August and November 2007).
Hayden's Memo - There still are no published photographs of him. At the same time Rahim is sent to Guantanamo, CIA Director Michael Hayden issues a memo to CIA employees explaining Rahim’s alleged importance. Hayden calls Rahim a “tough, seasoned jihadist” with “high-level contacts,” and claims his arrest “was a blow to more than one terrorist network. He gave aid to al-Qaeda, the Taliban, and other anti-coalition militants.” According to Hayden, Rahim sought chemicals for an attack on US forces in Afghanistan and tried to recruit people who had access to US military facilities there. He helped prepare Tora Bora as a hideout in 2001, and then helped al-Qaeda operatives flee the area when US forces overran it in late 2001. But perhaps most importantly, Rahim had become one of Osama bin Laden’s most trusted facilitators and translators in the years prior to Rahim’s arrest. [Los Angeles Times, 3/15/2008; New York Times, 3/15/2008]
Entity Tags: Muhammad Rahim al-Afghani, Al-Qaeda, Abd al-Hadi al-Iraqi, Central Intelligence Agency, Osama bin Laden, Michael Hayden
Category Tags: High Value Detainees
March 16, 2008: US Predator Drone Kills at Least 16 in Pakistan
A missile fired from a US Predator drone kills at least 16 people in Pakistan. The missile hits a house in the village of Toog in South Waziristan, part of Pakistan’s tribal region where al-Qaeda leaders are believed to be residing. The house is said to belong to an unnamed militant leader, and several militants are reportedly killed. However, details are scanty. [BBC, 3/16/2008; Newsweek, 3/22/2008]
March 18, 2008: WTC Developer Wants over $12 Billion Damages for 9/11
It is revealed that Larry Silverstein, the developer of Ground Zero, is seeking $12.3 billion in damages from airlines and airport security companies for the attacks on 9/11. Silverstein sought the damages in a claim filed in 2004, alleging that the companies failed to prevent the hijackers from taking over the planes that destroyed the World Trade Center buildings. The size of his claim was previously unknown, but is now revealed at a status conference in the US District Court in Manhattan. [New York Times, 3/27/2008] Of the $12.3 billion sought, $8.4 billion would be to replace the property destroyed in the attacks, and the other $3.9 billion would cover lost income and expenses associated with renting the new buildings. Companies named in the suit include American Airlines, United Airlines, Continental Airlines, Boeing, and the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport), which manages Logan Airport in Boston, from where the two planes that hit the WTC took off. [CNN, 3/27/2008] Silverstein’s case is consolidated with similar, earlier lawsuits by other property owners and some families of 9/11 victims. Silverstein is by far the biggest of the claimants. A lawyer for the airlines says that if Silverstein wins, it could push the total claims beyond the amount of insurance the airlines and security companies have available. Silverstein, the CEO and president of Silverstein Properties, only signed the 99-year lease on the World Trade Center six weeks before 9/11 (see July 24, 2001). He has already won nearly $4.6 billion in insurance payments stemming from the attacks (see May 23, 2007). [New York Times, 3/27/2008; NY1 News, 3/28/2008]
Entity Tags: Boeing Company, Continental Airlines, American Airlines, Massachusetts Port Authority, United Airlines, Larry Silverstein
Category Tags: 9/11 Related Lawsuits
March 19, 2008: Alleged Audio Recording of Bin Laden Claims Publication of Cartoon Showing Muhammad Worse than Bombing Civilians
A new audio recording is released, allegedly from al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. The voice on the tape directs the message to “the intelligent ones in the European Union” and discusses a cartoon said to be offensive to Muslims—showing the prophet Muhammed with a bomb in his turban—that was recently re-printed by all major Danish newspapers. The tape, which criticises US-led bombing of “those modest mud villages which have collapsed onto our women and children,” says that the “morals of fighting” should be observed in conflict, but the west has abandoned them, “even if you hold aloft its slogans in theory.” However, the publication of the cartoon and other similar ones is worse than bombing innocent civilians: “Although our tragedy in your killing of our women and children is a very great one, it paled when you went overboard in your unbelief and freed yourselves of the etiquettes of dispute and fighting and went to the extent of publishing these insulting drawings. This is the greater and more serious tragedy, and reckoning for it will be more severe.” The voice also claims that, despite the publication, “you haven’t seen any reaction from the one and a half billion Muslims.” [Council on Foreign Relations, 3/19/2008] In actual fact, when the cartoons were first published there were protests around the world in which dozens were killed, and Danish diplomatic offices were destroyed in two cities. [BBC, 3/20/2008] The voice argues that the cartoons should not have been published under freedom of expression, as US troops in Europe are not subject to European law, and, according to the voice, those who question the amount of Jews killed in the holocaust are suppressed. In addition, when the King of Saudi Arabia told Britain to stop its investigation of the corrupt al-Yamamah deal, British Prime Minister Tony Blair complied. [Council on Foreign Relations, 3/19/2008] The message comes on the fifth anniversary of the US-led invasion of Iraq (see March 19, 2003). [BBC, 3/20/2008] However, the man thought to be bin Laden makes no mention of Iraq on the tape. [Council on Foreign Relations, 3/19/2008] The audio message is released in video form with a graphic showing a still image of bin Laden holding an AK-47 and bearing the logo of as-Sahab, al-Qaeda’s media wing. There is a written translation of the message in English. It is unclear when the message, released by posting at an Islamist website, was recorded. [BBC, 3/20/2008]
Entity Tags: As-Sahab, Osama bin Laden
Category Tags: Osama Bin Laden, Alleged Al-Qaeda Media Statements
March 20, 2008: Washington Post Promotes Myth that Intelligence Agencies Have Failed to Penetrate Al-Qaeda
The Washington Post publishes a front page story promoting the myth that al-Qaeda has never been effectively penetrated by intelligence agencies. The article by Craig Whitlock is titled After a Decade at War With West, Al-Qaeda Still Impervious to Spies. It states that “al-Qaeda’s core organization in Pakistan and Afghanistan has so far proved impervious to damaging leaks.” It quotes Michael Scheuer, former head of the CIA’s bin Laden unit, who says that from 1992 until November 2004 (when he left the CIA), “[the CIA] worked side by side with the Egyptians, the Jordanians—the very best Arab intelligence services—and they didn’t recruit a single person who could report on al-Qaeda.” The article seems to be a reaction to the case of Abdelkader Belliraj, which was publicly exposed several weeks earlier, when Belliraj was arrested in Morocco (see February 18, 2008 and February 29, 2008). The article notes that Belliraj was a Belgian government informant and important Islamist militant leader who had al-Qaeda links for years and met with al-Qaeda second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri in Afghanistan (see 2001). Belliraj’s case seemingly undercuts the thrust of the article, but the rest of the article mostly quotes a series of anonymous intelligence officials who say penetrating al-Qaeda would be next to impossible. [Washington Post, 3/20/2008] Whitlock’s article ignores numerous reports that al-Qaeda has repeatedly been penetrated by the CIA and other intelligence agencies. For instance:
In 2002, US News and World Report reported, “Once thought nearly impossible to penetrate, al-Qaeda is proving no tougher a target than the KGB or the Mafia—closed societies that took the US government years to get inside.” An unnamed US intelligence official said: “We’re getting names, the different camps they trained at, the hierarchy, the infighting. It’s very promising” (see September 22, 2002).
In 2004, author Ronald Kessler wrote, “Often, the CIA used operatives from Arab intelligence services like those of Jordan, Syria, Egypt, and other countries to infiltrate bin Laden’s organization.” He quoted a longtime CIA officer who said, “Egyptians, Jordanians, [and] Palestinians penetrated the bin Laden organization for us. It’s B.S. that we didn’t” (see Before September 11, 2001).
In 2006, journalist Ron Suskind reported that by late 2002, the CIA had developed “a source from within Pakistan who was tied tightly into al-Qaeda management.” He also noted that other informants had been recruited since 9/11, and commented, “It has been generally acknowledged that the United States does not have any significant human sources… inside al-Qaeda. That is not true” (see Late 2002).
In a 2007 book, former CIA Director George Tenet claimed that the CIA had over 100 assets in Afghanistan by 9/11 (see Before September 11, 2001). He also claimed that “a group of assets from a Middle Eastern service” sharing information with the CIA penetrated al-Qaeda, and some of them penetrated al-Qaeda camps in Afghanistan before 9/11 (see Early September 2001).
In February 2008, the New York Times reported that French intelligence had an informant that penetrated al-Qaeda’s safe haven in Pakistan’s tribal region (see Late January 2008).
Entity Tags: Al-Qaeda, Craig Whitlock, Michael Scheuer, Abdelkader Belliraj
Category Tags: Other Possible Moles or Informants, Media
March 20, 2008: Bin Laden Allegedly Releases New Tape
A man thought to be Osama bin Laden releases a new audio message urging Muslims to join the insurgency in Iraq, as this is the “nearest jihad battlefield to support our people in Palestine.” The message comes one day after the previous communication thought to be from bin Laden (see March 19, 2008) and just over five years after the invasion of Iraq (see March 19, 2003). According to the person thought to be bin Laden, “Palestine cannot be retaken by negotiations and dialogue, but with fire and iron,” and Arab leaders were complicit in Israeli attacks on Gaza. “The people of the blessed land should sense the great favour God has bestowed upon them and do what they should do to support their mujahideen brothers in Iraq,” the speaker says. “It is a great opportunity and a major duty for my brothers the Palestinian emigrants [in Arab countries], between whom and jihad on the plains of Jerusalem a barrier has been built.” [BBC, 3/20/2008]
Entity Tags: Al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden
March 22-25, 2008: Victors of Pakistan’s Parliamentary Elections Pick New Prime Minister, Effectively Sidelining President Musharraf
President Musharraf swearing in Yousaf Raza Gillani as Pakistan’s latest prime minister. [Source: Agence France-Presse - Getty Images] (click image to enlarge)In parliamentary elections in February 2008, a coalition of opposition parties led by the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) took effective political control from President Pervez Musharraf, although Musharraf remains president (see February 18, 2008). On March 22, the leader of the PPP, Asif Ali Zardari, picks Yousaf Raza Gillani to become Pakistan’s new prime minister. Gillani assumes the position in a ceremony on March 25. Zardari is the husband of the recently assassinated and very popular Benazir Bhutto. He reportedly wants the prime minister position for himself, but he is not yet eligible for it as he does not hold a seat in parliament. Gillani is a relatively unknown low-key party stalwart. The New York Times comments that Gillani’s selection seems a “prelude to a drive by Mr. Zardari to take the job himself in the next few months.” [New York Times, 3/23/2008] Within hours of becoming prime minister, Gillani frees the judges that had been placed under house arrest during Musharraf’s state of emergency several months before (see November 3-December 15, 2007). He frees Supreme Court head Iftikhar Chaudhry, the 13 other Supreme Court judges, and 48 High Court judges who refused to sign a loyalty oath. [New York Times, 3/25/2008]
Entity Tags: Yousaf Raza Gillani, Pakistan People’s Party, Asif Ali Zardari, Iftikhar Chaudhry, Pervez Musharraf
March 23, 2008: Al-Zawahiri Releases New Audio Tape Calling for Revenge for Gaza Raids
Al-Qaeda second in command Ayman al-Zawahiri releases a new audio tape calling for attacks on Israeli and Western targets to avenge recent Israeli raids on the Gaza Strip. The tape is released by posting to the Internet and produced by al-Qaeda’s media arm, As-Sahab. “O Muslims. Today is your day. Hit the interest of the Jews and the Americans and all those who participated in the aggression against Muslims,” says al-Zawahiri. “Monitor the targets, collect the money, prepare the hardware, plan accurately, and then attack.” Al-Zawahiri adds, “No one can say today that we should fight the Jews in Palestine only,” and calls for Muslims to support Palestinians in the Gaza Strip against Israel. Demonstrations only serve to let off steam, he says, so Palestinians should focus on armed struggle. “Let them know that they would bleed for every dollar they spend on killing Muslims,” he says. “They cannot… insult our prophet and support Israel, and expect to live in peace in their countries.” Al-Zawahiri also accuses Arab leaders of colluding with the US and Israel in blockading Palestinians in Gaza. “The satanic alliance shows us its ugliness and how low it is, an alliance of the crusaders and the Jews and with them [Egyptian President Hosni] Mubarak, and [Saudi Arabia’s ruling] Saud family, and the son of al-Hussein [Jordan’s King Abdullah].” [Reuters, 3/24/2008]
Entity Tags: Al-Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahiri, As-Sahab
Category Tags: Ayman Al-Zawahiri, Alleged Al-Qaeda Media Statements
March 24, 2008: Soon-to-Be UN Official Wants Investigation of Possible Neoconservative Role in 9/11
Richard Falk. [Source: Richard Lord / World Council of Churches]Days before being selected for a United Nations Human Rights Council post, retired international law professor Richard Falk says he wants an official commission to investigate the role neoconservatives may have played in the 9/11 attacks. [New York Sun, 4/9/2008] Falk is professor emeritus of international law at Princeton University. [London Times, 4/15/2008] In a radio interview, he says: “It is possibly true that especially the neoconservatives thought there was a situation in the country and in the world where something had to happen to wake up the American people.… All we can say is there is a lot of grounds for suspicion, there should be an official investigation of the sort the 9/11 Commission did not engage in and that the failure to do these things is cheating the American people and in some sense the people of the world of a greater confidence in what really happened than they presently possess.” Two days later, on March 26, Falk will be appointed by the UN Human Rights Council to a newly created position to report on human rights in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Arabs. [New York Sun, 4/9/2008] In 2004, he wrote the foreword to The New Pearl Harbor by David Ray Griffin, a book that put forward evidence that the Bush administration may have orchestrated the 9/11 attacks or deliberately allowed them to happen (see March 1, 2004). [Griffin, 2004, pp. vii-x; New York Sun, 4/9/2008] Falk also contributed a chapter to the book, co-edited by Griffin, 9/11 and American Empire: Intellectuals Speak Out. [Griffin and Scott, 2006, pp. 117-127; London Times, 4/15/2008]
Entity Tags: Richard Falk
March 24, 2008: US Effort to Fight Financing of Terrorism Is ‘Foundering’
A front page article in the Los Angeles Times reports that the US effort to fight the financing of terrorism is “foundering.” Insiders complain that the Bush administration’s efforts are stumbling over legal difficulties, interagency fighting, and disagreements with allied nations. Michael Jacobson, a recently retired senior adviser in the Treasury Department’s Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, says, “The international cooperation and focus is dropping, the farther we get from 9/11.” The Times notes that “Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and other key nations have not taken the necessary steps to crack down on terrorist financing or suspect money flowing across their borders.” Designations of terrorist financiers has slowed to a “trickle.” Militant groups are also using methods that are harder to trace, including sending money by donkey or mule. Robert Grenier, recently retired director of the CIA’s Counterterrorist Center, says the US has exaggerated the successes of financial enforcement: “There’s been a lot of work done on it, a lot of focus. But as a method for identifying and capturing terrorists, it has not been significant.” [Los Angeles Times, 3/24/2008]
Entity Tags: Robert Grenier, US Department of the Treasury, Counterterrorist Center, Michael Jacobson
Category Tags: Terrorism Financing, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11, Counterterrorism Policy/Politics
March 27, 2008: Attorney General Makes Puzzling Claim about Pre-9/11 Communication Intercept
Attorney General Michael Mukasey makes an apparent reference to the intercepts of the 9/11 hijackers’ calls by the NSA before the attacks in a speech pleading for extra surveillance powers. Mukasey says: “[Officials] shouldn’t need a warrant when somebody with a phone in Iraq picks up a phone and calls somebody in the United States because that’s the call that we may really want to know about. And before 9/11, that’s the call that we didn’t know about. We knew that there has been a call from someplace that was known to be a safe house in Afghanistan and we knew that it came to the United States. We didn’t know precisely where it went.” [FORA(.tv), 3/27/2008; New York Sun, 3/28/2008] According to a Justice Department response to a query about the speech, this appears to be a reference to the Yemen hub, an al-Qaeda communications facility previously alluded to by Mukasey in a similar context (see February 22, 2008). [Salon, 4/4/2008] However, the hub was in Yemen, not Afghanistan and, although it acted as a safe house, it was primarily a communications hub (see Early 2000-Summer 2001). In addition, the NSA did not intercept one call between it and the 9/11 hijackers in the US, but several, involving both Khalid Almihdhar and Nawaf Alhazmi, not just one of the hijackers (see Spring-Summer 2000, Mid-October 2000-Summer 2001, and (August 2001)). Nevertheless, the NSA failed to inform the FBI the hub was calling the US (see (Spring 2000)). (Note: it is possible Mukasey is not talking about the Yemen hub in this speech, but some other intercept genuinely from an al-Qaeda safe house in Afghanistan—for example a call between lead hijacker Mohamed Atta in the US and alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who may have been in Afghanistan when such call was intercepted by the NSA (see Summer 2001 and September 10, 2001). However, several administration officials have made references similar to Mukasey’s about the Yemen hub since the NSA’s warrantless wiretapping program was revealed (see December 17, 2005).)
Entity Tags: Michael Mukasey
Timeline Tags: 9/11 Timeline, Civil Liberties
March 29, 2008: Media Confused over Attorney General Mukasey’s New Claim of Afghan Intercept before 9/11
Some media outlets pick up on a claim made by Attorney General Michael Mukasey on March 27, 2008, when he said that the US intercepted a call to a 9/11 hijacker in the US from an al-Qaeda safe house in Afghanistan (see March 27, 2008). This was possibly a garbled reference to an al-Qaeda hub in Yemen (see Early 2000-Summer 2001) mentioned by several administration officials since the NSA’s warrantless wiretapping story was exposed (see December 17, 2005). The San Francisco Chronicle notes that Mukasey “did not explain why the government, if it knew of telephone calls from suspected foreign terrorists, hadn’t sought a wiretapping warrant from a court established by Congress to authorize terrorist surveillance, or hadn’t monitored all such calls without a warrant for 72 hours as allowed by law.” [San Francisco Chronicle, 3/28/2008] Salon commentator and former civil rights litigator Glenn Greenwald will attack Mukasey over the story, commenting, “These are multiple falsehoods here, and independently, this whole claim makes no sense.” [Salon, 3/29/2008; Salon, 4/4/2008]
9/11 Commission Comment - In response to a query from Greenwald, former 9/11 Commission executive director Philip Zelikow comments: “Not sure of course what [Mukasey] had in mind, although the most important signals intelligence leads related to our report… was not of this character. If, as he says, the [US government] didn’t know where the call went in the US, neither did we.” [Salon, 4/3/2008] (Note: the 9/11 Commission report may actually contain two cryptic references to what Mukasey is talking about (see Summer 2002-Summer 2004).) [9/11 Commission, 7/24/2004, pp. 87-88, 222] Former 9/11 Commission vice chairman Lee Hamilton initially refuses to comment, but later says: “I am unfamiliar with the telephone call that Attorney General Mukasey cited in his appearance in San Francisco on March 27. The 9/11 Commission did not receive any information pertaining to its occurrence.” [Salon, 4/3/2008; Salon, 4/8/2008]
Other Media - The topic will also be covered by Raw Story and mentioned by MSNBC host Keith Olbermann, who also attacks Mukasey: “What? The government knew about some phone call from a safe house in Afghanistan into the US about 9/11? Before 9/11?” He adds: “Either the attorney general just admitted that the government for which he works is guilty of malfeasant complicity in the 9/11 attacks, or he’s lying. I’m betting on lying.” [Raw Story, 4/1/2008; MSNBC, 4/1/2008; Raw Story, 4/3/2008] The story is also picked up by CBS commentator Kevin Drum, who appears to be unaware that information about some NSA intercepts of the hijackers’ calls was first made public by the Congressional Inquiry five years previously. However, Drum comments: “[T]his deserves some followup from the press. Mukasey has spoken about this in public, so if he’s claiming that FISA prevented us from intercepting a key call before 9/11 he also needs to defend that in public.” [CBS, 4/3/2008; CBS, 4/4/2008] A group of Congressmen also formally asks the Justice Department for an explanation of the matter (see April 3, 2008).
Entity Tags: Michael Mukasey, Kevin Drum, Lee Hamilton, Philip Zelikow, US Department of Justice, Glenn Greenwald, Keith Olbermann
Category Tags: Yemen Hub, Role of Philip Zelikow, 9/11 Commission, 9/11 Investigations
April 2, 2008: Former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura Rejects Official Account of 9/11
Jesse Ventura. [Source: Publicity photo]Former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura declares that he believes the World Trade Center was destroyed with explosives, and says he regrets not asking more questions about the 9/11 attacks when he was governor. The former professional wrestler, who served as Minnesota governor from 1999 to 2003, appears on the Alex Jones Show, a syndicated radio program. He says that, based on his demolition training as a Navy SEAL, a visit to Ground Zero a few weeks after 9/11, and watching slow motion video of the collapses, he believes the Twin Towers fell due to controlled demolition. Describing the collapse of WTC Building 7, he says: “How could this building just implode into its own footprint five hours later? That’s my first question.… The 9/11 Commission didn’t even devote one page to that in their big volume of investigation.” [Associated Press, 1/5/2008; Associated Press, 4/3/2008; MinnPost, 4/3/2008] Ventura also raises questions about 9/11 in his new book, Don’t Start the Revolution Without Me! He writes: “My doubts about the official story have grown steadily over the last couple of years.… I wondered, why did President Bush put up roadblocks for two years to any type of investigation? If you have nothing to hide, you shouldn’t care whether or not a commission looks into what happened.… It seemed our government wasn’t reacting like an innocent victim, but like they were guilty of, or about, something.” [Ventura and Russell, 2008, pp. 209]
Entity Tags: Jesse Ventura
April 2, 2008: Al-Zawahiri Issues First Part of Responses to Questions from Public
Al-Qaeda second in command Ayman al-Zawahiri issues a 90-minute audiotape with the first part of responses to questions solicited from the public and journalists (see December 19, 2007). In the replies, he rejects criticism of attacks by al-Qaeda’s followers that have killed thousands of people, maintaining al-Qaeda does not kill innocent people. “We haven’t killed the innocents, not in Baghdad, nor in Morocco, nor in Algeria, nor anywhere else,” says al-Zawahiri. “If there is any innocent who was killed in the mujahedeen’s operations, then it was either an unintentional error or out of necessity.” [Associated Press, 4/2/2008] The second part of the responses will be issued later in the month (see April 17, 2008).
Entity Tags: Ayman al-Zawahiri, Al-Qaeda
April 2, 2008: Republican Congressman Will Not Back Government Financing for Treatment of Emergency Responders: Government Can’t ‘Do This Every Single Time a Similar Situation Happens’
Darrell Issa. [Source: Washington Post]Congressman Darrell Issa (R-CA) says during a House subcommittee meeting that he does not understand why the federal government should pay any more money to assist 9/11 emergency responders who have become ill after working at Ground Zero. Hundreds of firefighters, police officers, and paramedics have become ill, some terminally so, from exposure to smoke and toxins released in the collapse of the World Trade Center; the subcommittee is considering whether to reinstate federal funding for the 9/11 victims’ fund. Minutes after a retired New York City police officer, Michael Valentin, speaks of the serious health problems he has suffered since responding to the attacks, Issa says: “I have to ask why… the firefighters who went there and everyone in the City of New York needs to come to the federal government… How much money has the federal government put out post-9/11, including the buckets of $10 and $20 billion we just threw at the State and the City of New York versus how much has been paid out by the City and the State of New York?… It’s very simple: I can’t vote for additional money for New York if I can’t see why it would be appropriate to do this every single time a similar situation happens, which quite frankly includes any urban terrorist. It doesn’t have to be somebody from al-Qaeda. It can be someone who decides that they don’t like animal testing at one of our pharmaceutical facilities.” The attacks on the World Trade Center did not involve a dirty bomb or chemical weapons, Issa notes. “It simply was an aircraft, residue of the aircraft and residue of the materials used to build this building,” he adds. Issa’s colleague, Anthony Weiner (D-NY), is visibly enraged at Issa’s comments, replying, “The notion that this is the City of New York asking for more money because we were the point of attack on this country is absurd and insulting…. There are people every single day, bit by bit by bit, who are dying from that attack.” [Newsday, 4/1/2008; New York Post, 4/2/2008] A day later, Issa will retreat from the harshest of his comments after enduring a withering barrage of criticism (see April 3, 2008).
Entity Tags: Darrell E. Issa, Michael Valentin, Anthony D. Weiner
Category Tags: Internal US Security After 9/11
April 3, 2008: Congressman Issa Retreats from Refusal to Fund 9/11 Victims’ Fund
Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA) tries to back away from his comments from the day before, where he disparaged New York City first responders who are now suffering long-term disabilities and illnesses stemming from the 9/11 attacks (see April 2, 2008).
Firestorm of Criticism - Frank Fraone, a California fire chief who led a 67-man crew at Ground Zero after the collapse of the World Trade Center, says: “That is a pretty distorted view of things. Whether they’re a couple of planes or a couple of missiles, they still did the same damage.” Republican colleague Peter King (R-NY) notes: “New York was attacked by al-Qaeda. It doesn’t have to be attacked by Congress.… I’m really surprised by Darrell Issa. It showed such a cavalier dismissal of what happened to New York. It’s wrong and inexcusable.” 9/11 victim’s relative Lorie Van Auken calls Issa’s comments “cruel and heartless.” She adds: “It’s really discouraging. People stepped up and did the right thing. They sacrificed themselves and now a lot of people are getting really horrible illnesses.”
Partial Withdrawal - Issa withdraws some of his earlier statements, now saying, “I want to make clear that I strongly support help for victims who suffered physical injury as a result of an attack on America, including support from Congress and the federal government.” Yet he refuses to withdraw his comments that the 9/11 attacks were little more than unremarkable plane crashes unworthy of any federal financial response. He now says that he only “asked tough questions about the expenditures.” Health officials estimate that it could cost up to $1 billion to properly care for survivors of 9/11 suffering from physical and emotional disabilities. A new bill to fund that care is being prepared for House debate. [New York Daily News, 4/3/2008; New York Post, 4/3/2008] A New York Daily News op-ed accuses Issa of “demeaning 9/11” and calls his remarks “callous in the extreme.” [New York Daily News, 4/3/2008]
Entity Tags: Lorie Van Auken, Peter T. King, Frank Fraone, Darrell E. Issa
April 3, 2008: Congressmen Ask Attorney General Mukasey to Explain Pre-9/11 Hijacker Intercept Comments
A group of congressmen led by House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) asks for an explanation of a recent statement by Attorney General Michael Mukasey about a pre-9/11 NSA intercept of a call to the 9/11 hijackers in the US (see March 27, 2008 and March 29, 2008). The group calls Mukasey’s statement “disturbing” and says it “appears to suggest a fundamental misunderstanding of the federal government’s existing surveillance authority to combat terrorism, as well as possible malfeasance by the government prior to 9/11.” Mukasey had implied that the law prior to 9/11 did not allow the call to be traced, but the congressmen state: “[I]f the administration had known of such communications from suspected terrorists, they could and should have been intercepted based on existing FISA law.… [A]s of 9/11 FISA specifically authorized such surveillance on an emergency basis without a warrant for a 48 hour period.” They ask Mukasey to clarify his comments. The congressmen also ask about a secret Justice Department memo regarding the president’s powers in wartime in the US (see April 1, 2008). [Raw Story, 4/3/2008]
Entity Tags: John Conyers, Michael Mukasey
Category Tags: Yemen Hub
April 8, 2008: Engineering Journal Publishes Scientific Challenge to Government Account of WTC Destruction
For the first time, a scientific journal publishes a letter by scientists who think the World Trade Center buildings were destroyed by explosives, rather than impact damage and fire. The letter, cautiously entitled “Fourteen Points of Agreement with Official Government Reports on the World Trade Center Destruction,” is published in the Open Civil Engineering Journal. The lead author is Steven E. Jones, a physicist formerly at Brigham Young University. The abstract says: “Reports by FEMA and NIST lay out the official account of the destruction of the World Trade Center on 9/11/2001. In this Letter, we wish to set a foundation for productive discussion and understanding by focusing on those areas where we find common ground with FEMA and NIST, while at the same time countering several popular myths about the WTC collapses.” [Open Civil Engineering Journal, 4/8/2008; Deseret News, 5/3/2008] However, unlike the vast majority of journals, the Open Civil Engineering Journal charges authors to publish their articles or letters in it. [Open Civil Engineering Journal, 2007]
Entity Tags: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Steven E. Jones, Federal Emergency Management Agency
Category Tags: WTC Investigation, 9/11 Investigations
April 10, 2008: US Unable to Send More Troops to Afghanistan Due to Commitments in Iraq
The US is unable to find more troops to send to Afghaninstan, due to the war in Iraq. On April 10, 2008, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Michael Mullen tells a Congressional committee: “I’m deeply concerned. In this economy of force operation, we do what we can. Requirements exist that we simply cannot fill and won’t likely be able to fill until conditions improve in Iraq.” The US would like to send 7,000 more troops to Afghanistan to fight the growing Taliban resistance there, but the US is unwilling to divert forces from Iraq due to renewed violence there, and NATO allies remain unwilling to send more troops as well. A study by the Afghanistan NGO Safety Office, a group funded by the European Commission, reports that there were 704 insurgent attacks causing 463 civilian deaths from January through March of 2008, compared with 424 attacks causing 264 civilian deaths during the same months in 2007. US officials privately admit that their estimates are similar. [McClatchy Newspapers, 4/15/2008]
Entity Tags: Michael Mullen
Category Tags: Iraq War Impact on Counterterrorism, Afghanistan
April 10, 2008: Defense Secretary Says US Is Fighting in Afghanistan Today Partly Because of Mistakes Made during 1980s Soviet-Afghan War
Speaking before a public hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Defense Secretary Robert Gates says, “We were attacked from Afghanistan in 2001 and we are at war in Afghanistan today in no small measure because of mistakes this government made—mistakes I, among others, made—in the end game of the anti-Soviet war there some 20 years ago.” [US Department of Defense, 4/10/2008]
Entity Tags: Robert M. Gates
Category Tags: Soviet-Afghan War
April 11, 2008: President Bush Admits to Knowing of High-Level Approvals of Torture
President Bush admits he knew about his National Security Council Principals Committee’s discussion and approval of harsh interrogation methods against certain terror suspects (see April 2002 and After). Earlier reports had noted that the Principals—a group of top White House officials led by then-National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice—had deliberately kept Bush “out of the loop” in order for him to maintain “deniability.” Bush tells a reporter: “Well, we started to connect the dots in order to protect the American people. And yes, I’m aware our national security team met on this issue. And I approved.” Bush says that the news of those meetings to consider extreme interrogation methods was not “startling.” He admitted as far back as 2006 that such techniques were being used by the CIA (see September 6, 2006). But only now does the news of such direct involvement by Bush’s top officials become public knowledge. The Principals approved the waterboarding of several terror suspects, including Khalid Shaikh Mohammed (see Shortly After February 29 or March 1, 2003 and March 10, 2007); Bush defends the use of such extreme measures against Mohammed, saying: “We had legal opinions that enabled us to do it. And no, I didn’t have any problem at all trying to find out what Khalid Shaikh Mohammed knew.… I think it’s very important for the American people to understand who Khalid Shaikh Mohammed was. He was the person who ordered the suicide attack—I mean, the 9/11 attacks.” [ABC News, 4/11/2008] Bush’s admission is no surprise. The day before Bush makes his remarks, law professor Jonathan Turley said: “We really don’t have much of a question about the president’s role here. He’s never denied that he was fully informed of these measures. He, in fact, early on in his presidency—he seemed to brag that they were using harsh and tough methods. And I don’t think there’s any doubt that he was aware of this. The doubt is simply whether anybody cares enough to do anything about it.” [MSNBC, 4/10/2008]
Entity Tags: George W. Bush, Central Intelligence Agency, Condoleezza Rice, Jonathan Turley, National Security Council, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed
Timeline Tags: Torture of US Captives, 9/11 Timeline, Civil Liberties
Category Tags: High Value Detainees, Counterterrorism Policy/Politics, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed
April 17, 2008: Al-Zawahiri Posts Audio Replies to Questions, Says Rumor Israel behind 9/11 Started by Iran
Al-Qaeda second in command Ayman al-Zawahiri issues a second set of responses to questions solicited by al-Qaeda in December 2007 (see December 19, 2007 and April 2, 2008). [NEFA Foundation, 4/17/2008 ; Associated Press, 4/22/2008; Associated Press, 4/23/2008] The response comes in a two-hour audio recording posted to an Islamic website and accompanied by the logo of As-Sahab, al-Qaeda’s media arm. Al-Zawahiri’s comments include:
The theory that Israel carried out the September 11 attacks is false and was started by Iran and its proxy Hezbollah, through the Al-Manar television station. “The purpose of this lie is clear—[to suggest] that there are no heroes among the Sunnis who can hurt America as no [one] else did in history. Iranian media snapped up this lie and repeated it,” he says. “Iran’s aim here is also clear—to cover up its involvement with America in invading the homes of Muslims in Afghanistan and Iraq.” In recent audio recordings, al-Zawahiri has accused Iran of seeking to extend its power in the Middle East, particularly in Iraq and through Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The insurgent umbrella group Islamic Nation of Iraq led by al-Qaeda is “the primary force opposing the crusaders and challenging Iranian ambitions” in Iraq.
In response to a question about whether al-Qaeda plans to attack Western countries involved in Iraq, he replies: “My answer is: Yes! We think that any country that has joined aggression on Muslims must be deterred.”
This includes Japan, which pulled its non-combat troops out of Iraq in 2006, because “Japan provided help under the banner of the crusader coalition… therefore it participated in the crusader campaign against the lands of Islam.”
Global warming reflects “how criminal, brutal, and greedy the Western crusader world is, with America at the top.” However, global warming will “make the world more sympathetic to and understanding of the Muslims’ jihad against the aggressor America.”
There are no women in al-Qaeda, although “the women of the mujaheddin are playing a heroic role in taking care of their houses and sons.”
The Taliban have taken over 95 percent of Afghanistan and are sweeping Pakistan as well. “The crusaders and their agents in Pakistan and Afghanistan are starting to fall,” al-Zawahiri adds.
It is against Islamic religious law for any Muslim to live permanently in a Western country because in doing so they would “have permanent stay there under the laws of the infidels.” [Associated Press, 4/22/2008; Associated Press, 4/23/2008]
Al-Zawahiri also singles out some countries for threats, such as Denmark, saying: “Denmark has done her utmost to demonstrate her hostility towards the Muslims by repeatedly dishonoring our Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him salvation. I admonish and incite every Muslim who is able to do so to cause damage to Denmark in order to show your support for our Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him salvation, and to defend his esteemed honor.” [NEFA Foundation, 4/17/2008 ] Al-Qaeda will attack the Danish embassy in Pakistan six weeks later. [Jyllands-Posten, 6/2/2008]
Entity Tags: As-Sahab, Al-Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahiri
April 17, 2008: Iranian President Ahmadinejad Casts Doubt on 9/11 Official Story
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad declares: “Four or five years ago, a suspicious event occurred in New York. A building collapsed and they said that 3,000 people had been killed but never published their names.… Under this pretext, [the US] attacked Afghanistan and Iraq and since then, a million people have been killed only in Iraq.” [Ha'aretz, 4/17/2008]
Entity Tags: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
April 17, 2008: Former Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu Says 9/11 Attacks and Iraq War Good for Israel
Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tells an audience at Bar Ilan university in Israel that the 9/11 attacks were beneficial for Israel. “We are benefiting from one thing, and that is the attack on the Twin Towers and Pentagon, and the American struggle in Iraq. […] [The attacks] swung American public opinion in our favor.” [Ha'aretz, 4/17/2008]
Entity Tags: Benjamin Netanyahu
Category Tags: Iraq War Impact on Counterterrorism, Israel
April 18, 2008: Al-Zawahiri Said to Mark Fifth Anniversary of Iraq Invasion with New Tape
A man thought to be al-Qaeda’s second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri releases a 16-minute audio tape around five years after the US and others invaded Iraq. The man calls on Islamist fighters to turn Iraq into a “fortress of Islam,” and says the establishment of a greater Islamic state is “the most important” duty of every Muslim. The tape contains references to recent events—testimony by US General David Petraeus to Congress and a strike by textile workers in Egypt. The man is also critical of Iran for siding with the US against Sunni Arabs in Iraq. [Guardian, 4/18/2008]
Entity Tags: Ayman al-Zawahiri
April 21, 2008: Indonesia Finally Declares Jemaah Islamiyah an Illegal Organization
An Indonesian court officially declares Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) an illegal organization. JI is believed to be al-Qaeda’s main affiliate in Southeast Asia. The Indonesian government had previously refused to ban JI, even though it supported a United Nations ban on JI shortly after the 2002 Bali bombings (see October 12, 2002 and October 24, 2002). This court decision takes place during a trial of two high-ranking JI leaders, Zarkasih and Abu Dujana, both of whom were arrested the year before. Both are sentenced to 15 years in prison for supporting terrorist activities. Counterterrorism expert Rohan Gunaratna calls the decision “a huge victory against terrorism.” He adds: “This will have a direct impact on the leadership of JI, the most lethal terrorist group in Southeast Asia. Unless a terrorist was about to commit an attack, or had committed an attack, the Indonesian police couldn’t arrest them. Today if anyone is distributing propaganda and that person is linked to JI, that person can be arrested.” [Sydney Morning Herald, 4/22/2008]
Entity Tags: Zarkasih, Jemaah Islamiyah, Abu Dujana, Rohan Gunaratna
Category Tags: Al-Qaeda in Southeast Asia, 2002 Bali Bombings
April 27, 2008: Afghan President Karzai Survives Assassination Attempt; Pakistani ISI Blamed
Hamid Karzai on parade, April 27, 2008. [Source: massoud_hossaini_afp_getty]On April 27, 2008, there is an attempted assassination of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, as assailants fire guns and mortars towards him, scores of senior officials, and foreign diplomats during a military parade in downtown Kabul. Karzai escapes unharmed, but three Afghans are killed, including a member of parliament. Two months later, Afghanistan’s intelligence agency accuses the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, of organizing the assassination. The agency claims that phone calls from the cell phones of those arrested show a Pakistan link. Investigators suspect one assassin tried to call his supervisor in Pakistan from a nearby hotel to ask for instructions because he could not get a clear shot at Karzai from the hotel window. Investigators believe Jalaluddin Haqqani, a Taliban leader based in the Pakistani tribal region of Waziristan with long-time ISI ties, instigated the plot. Karzai’s spokesman makes the same accusation against the ISI more obliquely, “Evidence shows the hallmark of a particular foreign intelligence agency which we believe was behind this attack.” [Agence France-Presse, 6/25/2008; Washington Post, 6/27/2008]
Entity Tags: Hamid Karzai, Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, Jalaluddin Haqqani, National Directorate of Security (Afghanistan)
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, Afghanistan
May 2008: US Intelligence Allegedly Hears Head of Pakistani Military Call Taliban Leader ‘Strategic Asset’
According to a later book by New York Times reporter David Sanger, in May 2008, US intelligence records General Ashfaq Kayani, head of Pakistan’s military, referring to militant leader Jalaluddin Haqqani as “a strategic asset.” Haqqani heads a group of militants in Waziristan, in Pakistan’s tribal region, that is known as the Haqqani network. It is considered a semi-independent branch of the Taliban. The surveillance was ordered to confirm suspicions that the Pakistani military is still secretly supporting the Taliban, even though the US gives aid to help fight the Taliban. The transcript of Kayani’s comments is passed to Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell. US intelligence will later intercept calls from Pakistani military units to Haqqani, warning him of an imminent Pakistani military operation in the tribal region designed to make it appear to the US that Pakistan is taking action against militant groups. An unnamed source will later explain, “It was something like, ‘Hey, we’re going to hit your place in a few days, so if anyone important is there, you might want to tell them to scram.’” Further US surveillance will reveal a plot between the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, and Haqqani to bomb the Indian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan (see July 7, 2008). Pakistani officials deny they are supporting Haqqani. [London Times, 2/17/2009] An unnamed senior Pakistani intelligence official also called Haqqani an asset in 2006 (see 2006).
Entity Tags: Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, Taliban, Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, Haqqani Network, Jalaluddin Haqqani, Mike McConnell, US intelligence
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, 2008 Kabul Indian Embassy Bombing
May 1, 2008: US Missile Strike Kills Al-Qaeda-Linked Leader in Somalia
Aden Hashi Ayro. [Source: Intelcenter / Associated Press]A US missile strike kills Aden Hashi Ayro, the alleged head of al-Qaeda’s operations in Somalia. Ayro and up to ten others are killed in the region of Dusamareeb, an area a few hundred miles north of the capital of Mogadishu. The strike is said to be the fifth US attack in Somalia since Ethiopia invaded Somalia in December 2006 with US support (see December 24, 2006-January 2007). Ayro is said to have attended an al-Qaeda training camp in Afghanistan in the late 1990s. Then he returned to Somalia in 2003 and quickly rose up the ranks of al-Shabab, the military arm of the Islamic Court Union. He is said to be in charge of al-Qaeda’s operations there, although he is not a formal member of al-Qaeda. He was reportedly behind the scattered deaths of some foreigners in Somalia between 2003 and 2005. But despite this death, in recent months militant groups such as al-Shabab have been gaining ground against Somalia’s weak transitional government and the occupying Ethiopian troops keeping it in power. [Washington Post, 5/1/2008; Time, 5/2/2008]
Entity Tags: Shabab, Islamic Courts Union, Aden Hashi Ayro
Category Tags: Key Captures and Deaths
May 3, 2008: Demolition of WTC Building 7 Suggests Official Complicity, Says Arizona State Senator
Karen S. Johnson. [Source: Publicity photo]Arizona state senator Karen S. Johnson, a Republican, says she suspects a government conspiracy and calls for a new investigation into 9/11. Calling attention to the unexplained collapse of WTC Building 7, she writes: “Why, for example, did Building 7 collapse? It wasn’t hit by a plane, as the towers were. The 9/11 Commission Report completely ignores Building 7. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) report discounts fire as a cause and concludes that the reasons for the collapse of Building 7 are unknown and require further research. But when FEMA issued this report, it already cleared the site and disposed of the dust and steel (evidence from a crime scene), thus possibly committing a felony and complicating any ‘further research.’ The National Institute of Standards and Technology, a federal agency, which evaluated the collapse of the towers, has yet to issue its report on Building 7. ‘We’ve had trouble getting a handle on Building 7,’ said the acting director of their Building and Fire Research Lab. Yet a number of private-sector engineers, architects, and demolition experts have not had that problem. They think Building 7 came down by controlled demolition. The building collapsed suddenly, straight down, at nearly free-fall speed. People heard the explosions, and saw the squibs and the characteristic billowing clouds of pulverized concrete so unique to demolitions. There is no reason to think that Building 7 came down for any other reason than explosive demolition.” [Arizona Republic, 5/3/2008]
Entity Tags: Karen S. Johnson
May 4, 2008: All USS Cole Bombing Suspects in Yemen Remain Free
A front-page Washington Post story reveals that, eight years after al-Qaeda bombed the USS Cole just off the coast of Yemen and killed 17 US soldiers (see October 12, 2000), “all the defendants convicted in the attack have escaped from prison or been freed by Yemeni officials.”
Two Key Suspects Keep Slipping from Yemeni Prisons - For instance, Jamal al-Badawi, a Yemeni and key organizer of the bombing, broke out of Yemeni prisons twice and then was secretly released in 2007 (see April 11, 2003-March 2004, February 3, 2006 and October 17-29, 2007). The Yemeni government jailed him again after the US threatened to cut aid to the country, but apparently he continues to freely come and go from his prison cell. US officials have demanded the right to perform random inspections to make sure he stays jailed. Another key Cole suspect, Fahad al-Quso, also escaped from a Yemeni prison and then was secretly released in 2007 (see May 2007). Yemen has refused to extradite al-Badawi and al-Quso to the US, where they have been indicted for the Cole bombing. FBI Director Robert Mueller flew to Yemen in April 2008 to personally appeal to Yemeni President Ali Abdallah Saleh to extradite the two men. However, Saleh has refused, citing a constitutional ban on extraditing its citizens. Other Cole suspects have been freed after short prison terms in Yemen, and at least two went on to commit suicide attacks in Iraq.
US Unwilling to Try Two Suspects in Its Custody - Two more key suspects, Khallad bin Attash and Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, were captured by US forces and have been transferred to the US-run Guantanamo prison. Al-Nashiri is considered the mastermind of the Cole bombing, but the US made the decision not to indict either of them because pending criminal charges could have forced the CIA or the Pentagon to give up custody of the men. Al-Quso, bin Attash, and al-Nashiri all attended a key 2000 al-Qaeda summit in Malaysia where the 9/11 attacks were discussed (see January 5-8, 2000).
'The Forgotten Attack' - A week after the Cole bombing, President Bill Clinton vowed to hunt down the plotters and promised, “Justice will prevail.” But less than a month after the bombing, George W. Bush was elected president. Roger Cressey, a former counterterrorism official in the Clinton and Bush administrations who helped oversee the White House’s response to the Cole bombing, says, “During the first part of the Bush administration, no one was willing to take ownership of this. It didn’t happen on their watch. It was the forgotten attack.”
'Back to Square One' - Former FBI agent Ali Soufan, a lead investigator into the bombing, complains, “After we worked day and night to bring justice to the victims and prove that these Qaeda operatives were responsible, we’re back to square one. Do they have laws over there or not? It’s really frustrating what’s happening.” The Post comments, “Basic questions remain about which individuals and countries played a role in the assault on the Cole.”
Possible Government Complicity - One anonymous senior Yemeni official tells the Post that al-Badawi and other al-Qaeda members have had a long relationship with Yemen’s intelligence agencies and have targeted political opponents in the past. For instance, in 2006, an al-Qaeda suicide attack in Yemen came just days before elections there, and Saleh tried to link one of the figures involved to the opposition party, helping Saleh win reelection (see September 15, 2006). Furthermore, there is evidence that figures within the Yemeni government were involved in the Cole bombing (see After October 12, 2000), and that the government also protected key bombers such as al-Nashiri in the months before and after the bombings (see April 2000 and Shortly After October 12, 2000).
Bush Unwilling to Meet with Victims' Relatives - Relatives of the soldiers killed in the bombing have attempted to meet with President Bush to press for more action, to no avail. John P. Clodtfelter Jr., whose son died on the Cole, says, “I was just flat told that he wouldn’t meet with us. Before him, President Clinton promised we’d go out and get these people, and of course we never did. I’m sorry, but it’s just like the lives of American servicemen aren’t that important.” [Washington Post, 5/4/2008]
Entity Tags: John P. Clodtfelter Jr., Ali Soufan, Ali Abdallah Saleh, Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, Fahad al-Quso, Jamal al-Badawi, William Jefferson (“Bill”) Clinton, Yemen, Khallad bin Attash, Roger Cressey, Robert S. Mueller III, George W. Bush
Category Tags: 2000 USS Cole Bombing, Yemeni Militant Collusion, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11
May 13, 2008: Alleged ‘20th Hijacker’ Will Not Be Charged by Military Tribunal for Role in 9/11 Attacks
The US military dismisses charges against Mohammed al-Khatani. In February 2008, al-Khatani was part of a small group of detainees held at the Guantanamo prison charged before a military tribunal with involvement in the 9/11 attacks (see February 11, 2008). Al-Khatani is said to be the would-be “20th hijacker” who was refused entry to the US in August 2001 (see August 4, 2001). However, he was later captured and subjected to months of torture at Guantanamo (see August 8, 2002-January 15, 2003). The Pentagon official who announces the dismissal of charges against him, Convening Authority Susan Crawford, gives no explanation. The charges are dismissed “without prejudice,” which means they could be reinstated at any time. However, many believe that the charges against him are dismissed because of the torture he underwent, as well as the fact that he appears to have only been a unsuccessful low-level figure in the plot. [New York Times, 5/14/2008] In 2006, MSNBC predicted that he would never face trial due to the way he was tortured (see October 26, 2006). However, he still remains imprisoned at Guantanamo. In January 2009, Crawford will confirm that she dismissed the case against al-Khatani because he was indeed tortured (see January 14, 2009). She will say that the treatment suffered by al-Khatani “did shock me,” and will continue: “I was upset by it. I was embarrassed by it. If we tolerate this and allow it, then how can we object when our servicemen and women, or others in foreign service, are captured and subjected to the same techniques? How can we complain? Where is our moral authority to complain? Well, we may have lost it.” Crawford will lay much of the blame for al-Khatani being tortured at the feet of then-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. “A lot of this happened on his watch,” she will say. [Washington Post, 1/14/2009]
Entity Tags: Donald Rumsfeld, Mohamed al-Khatani, Susan Crawford
Category Tags: High Value Detainees, Counterterrorism Policy/Politics
May 13, 2008: Bush Says Electing a Democrat as President May Lead to Another 9/11 Attack
President Bush says that the election of a Democrat in 2008 might lead to another 9/11-like attack on the US. Reporter Mike Allen asks: “I wonder if you—various people and various candidates talk about pulling out next year. If we were to pull out of Iraq next year, what’s the worst that could happen, what’s the doomsday scenario?” Bush replies, “Doomsday scenario of course is that extremists throughout the Middle East would be emboldened, which would eventually lead to another attack on the United States.” After making this statement, Bush repeats several statements that he has been making for years: Iraq “just happens to be” part of the global war on terror, Iraq “is the place where al-Qaeda and other extremists have made their stand,” and terrorists “can’t stand to live in a free society, that’s why they try to fight free societies.” [Associated Press, 5/13/2008] MSNBC commentator Keith Olbermann calls Bush’s claim “ludicrous, infuriating, holier-than-thou and… bone-headedly wrong,” and says, “Terrorism inside Iraq is your creation, Mr. Bush.” [MSNBC, 5/14/2008]
Entity Tags: Mike Allen, Al-Qaeda, George W. Bush, Keith Olbermann
May 14, 2008: Predator Strike Kills Al-Qaeda Leader in Pakistan’s Tribal Region
Damadola Strike in May 2008. [Source: Mohammed Sajjad Associated Press]A missile fired from a US Predator drone reportedly kills al-Qaeda leader Abu Suleiman al-Jazairi. He and 15 others are killed in the strike on a house in the village of Damadola in Pakistan’s tribal region. The house is said to belong to former Taliban defense minister Maulvi Obaidullah, and members of Obaidullah’s family, including women and children, are thought to be among the dead. Al-Jazairi is said to be a trainer and explosives expert, and involved in planning attacks in Europe. Damadola has been hit by drones twice before (see January 13, 2006 and October 30, 2006). Al-Jazairi was little known in the media prior to the strike. [New York Times, 5/16/2008; Observer, 6/1/2008] Obaidullah apparently is not killed. He had been imprisoned in Pakistan since 2003, and had been released several days before as part of a swap for Pakistani Ambassador to Afghanistan Tariq Azizuddin, who had been kidnapped in February. [PAN, 5/20/2008]
Entity Tags: Tariq Azizuddin, Maulvi Obaidullah, Abu Suleiman al-Jazairi
Category Tags: Key Captures and Deaths, Pakistan and the ISI, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, Drone Use in Pakistan / Afghanistan, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11
May 16, 2008: Bin Laden Possibly Releases Audio Message about Palestine
A new audio message is released by a man thought to be Osama bin Laden. In the message, which lasts about nine minutes and is posted to a website commonly used by al-Qaeda, the speaker calls on Muslims to continue the fight to liberate Palestinian land. The speaker pledges to continue fighting the Israelis and not give up “a single inch of Palestine,” adding that the Palestinian cause is the most important factor driving al-Qaeda’s war with the West. The tape’s release comes around the time of Israel’s 60th anniversary, when US President Bush is in Israel to attend the anniversary celebrations [BBC, 5/16/2008]
May 18, 2008: Bin Laden Possibly Releases Message about Israel and Gaza
A man thought to be Osama bin Laden releases an audio tape calling on Muslim fighters to help end the Israeli blockade of Gaza. In the tape, released by posting on the Internet, the speaker says it is the duty of every Muslim to fight the “oppressive closure.” The tape is released two days after the previous one (see May 16, 2008), on the day US President Bush ends a visit to the Middle East. [Sky News, 5/18/2008]
June 4, 2008: Al-Zawahiri Releases New Audio Tape Marking Anniversary of Six-Day War
Al-Qaeda second in command Ayman al-Zawahiri releases a new audio tape criticizing his native Egypt for not opening up its border to Palestinians. The 11-minute tape is released by posting to the Internet to mark the 41st anniversary of the Six-Day War between Israel and some of its Arab neighbors. “The brother from Gaza is refused entry [by Egypt], while an Israeli tourist is allowed to enter without a visa,” says al-Zawahiri, calling for an end to Israel’s economic blockade of the Gaza Strip. He also terms Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and his troops “criminal traitors” for perpetuating the siege of Gaza. “Salvation of the Muslim nation is through the march of its sons on the path of jihad,” he adds. [Al Jazeera, 5/5/2008]
June 6, 2008: Reporter: Afghanistan, Pakistani Terrorism ‘Far More Serious Threat[s] for US National Security than Iraq’
In a panel discussion hosted by PBS’s Bill Moyers, journalist Jonathan Landay, discussing the US war in Afghanistan, notes that the vast majority of media coverage has been granted to the Iraq occupation. The war in Afghanistan is largely forgotten by the media, or merely rolled into Iraq coverage. Landay notes that Afghanistan is “a far more serious threat for US national security than Iraq is.” Similarly, the media rarely reports on the dire terrorist threats centered in the tribal areas of Pakistan. “[T]his is a black hole virtually which the United States is deeply involved in that we don’t see a lot of meaningful, I mean, in-depth coverage of,” he says. [PBS, 6/6/2008]
Entity Tags: Public Broadcasting System, Bill Moyers, Jonathan Landay
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Afghanistan, Counterterrorism Policy/Politics
June 22, 2008: Article: Pakistani Border Forces Helping Taliban Attack US Troops in Afghanistan
Members of the Frontier Corps near Shakai, in the region of South Waziristan, in August 2004. [Source: Kamran Wazir / Reuters / Corbis]The British newspaper The Observer reports that the Frontier Corps, a Pakistani government paramilitary force operating in Pakistan’s tribal regions near the border with Afghanistan, sometimes join in attacks on US-led forces in Afghanistan. The article alleges there are “box loads” of after-action reports compiled after armed clashes near the border, detailing the Frontier Corps working with the Taliban and other allied militants. Some attacks are launched so close to Frontier Corps outposts that Pakistani cooperation with the Taliban is assumed. There has been a dramatic increase in cross-border incidents compared to the same time the year before. An anonymous US official says: “The United States and NATO have substantial information on this problem. It’s taking place at a variety of places along the border with the Frontier Corps giving direct and indirect assistance. I’m not saying it is everyone. There are some parts that have been quite helpful… but if you have seen the after-action reports of their involvement in attacks along the Afghan border you would appreciate the problem.” The US government continues to downplay such incidents, worried about its relationship with the Pakistani government. A NATO spokesman says: “The real concern is that the extremists in Pakistan are getting safe havens to rest, recuperate and retool in Pakistan and come across the border. The concerns have been conveyed to the Pakistan authorities.” [Observer, 6/22/2008]
Entity Tags: Frontier Corps, Taliban
Late June 2008: US Intelligence Allegedly Discovers ISI and Taliban Faction Are Planning Spectacular Bombing in Afghanistan
US intelligence allegedly discovers that the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, and a faction of the Taliban are planning a spectacular bombing somewhere in Afghanistan. US intelligence is intercepting Pakistani government communications in an attempt to find out if the Pakistani government is still supporting militants fights US soldiers in Afghanistan. Communications intercepts already revealed an active link between the Pakistani government and the Haqqani network, a semi-autonomous branch of the Taliban headed by Jalaluddin Haqqani (see May 2008). According to a later book by New York Times reporter David Sanger, new intercepts at this time show that the ISI is working to carry out a spectacular bombing in Afghanistan. But apparently, the exact target is not known. Two weeks later, the Indian Embassy in Kabul will be bombed (see July 7, 2008). Afterwards, the US will accuse the ISI and the Haqqani network of plotting the bombing, mostly based on these intercepts from before the bombing (see July 28, 2008 and August 1, 2008). [London Times, 2/17/2009]
Entity Tags: Jalaluddin Haqqani, Haqqani Network, Taliban, Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, US intelligence
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, 2008 Kabul Indian Embassy Bombing, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11
June 28, 2008: Justice Department’s Investigation of CIA’s Destruction of Torture Videotapes Is Proceeding Slowly
Newsweek reports that the Justice Department’s criminal investigation into the CIA’s destruction of video of the torture of al-Qaeda leaders Abu Zubaida and Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri is continuing, but proceeding slowly. Federal prosecutor John Durham has recently filed a federal court affidavit that states he is examining whether anyone “obstructed justice, made false statements, or acted in contempt of court or Congress in connection with the destruction of the videotapes.” He is specifically attempting to determine if the destruction violated any judge’s order. But progress is slow, and the investigation is likely to take six months or more, which means any criminal charges will probably come after the November 2008 presidential elections. Two sources close to former intelligence officials who are potential key witnesses in the case say these officials have not been summoned to give grand jury testimony. One of them has not even been questioned by the FBI yet. [Newsweek, 6/28/2008] Attorney General Michael Mukasey appointed Durham to head the investigation in January 2008 (see January 2, 2008).
Entity Tags: John Durham, Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, Central Intelligence Agency, US Department of Justice, Abu Zubaida
Category Tags: Destruction of CIA Tapes
June 30, 2008: Al-Nashiri to Be Tried at Military Tribunal for Cole Bombing, Could Be Sentenced to Death
The Defense Department announces that it is charging al-Qaeda leader Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri with “organizing and directing” the bombing of the USS Cole in 2000 (see October 12, 2000) and will seek the death penalty. Al-Nashiri was captured in 2002 (see Early October 2002), held and tortured in secret CIA prisons until 2006 (see (November 2002)), and then transferred to Defense Department custody at the Guantanamo prison (see September 2-3, 2006). He will be tried there in a military tribunal. Al-Nashiri told a hearing at Guantanamo in 2007 that he confessed a role in the Cole bombing, but only because he was tortured by US interrogators (see March 10-April 15, 2007). CIA Director Michael Hayden has conceded that al-Nashiri was subjected to waterboarding. [Associated Press, 6/30/2008] Khallad bin Attash, who is being held at Guantanamo with al-Nashiri and other al-Qaeda leaders, allegedly had a major role in the Cole bombing, but he is not charged. Presumably this is because he has already been charged for a role in the 9/11 attacks.
Entity Tags: Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, Khallad bin Attash, US Department of Defense
Category Tags: 2000 USS Cole Bombing, High Value Detainees
June 30, 2008: New York Times: US Policy Fight Al-Qaeda’s Pakistan Safe Haven Is ‘Drifting,’ Plagued by Mistakes and Lack of Strategy
The New York Times publishes a long front-page analysis of the policy disputes and mistakes that have bogged down US efforts to combat al-Qaeda’s safe haven in Pakistan’s tribal region. The article reveals that the US effort has often been “undermined by bitter disagreements within the Bush administration and within the CIA, including about whether American commandos should launch ground raids inside the tribal areas.… [B]y most accounts, the administration failed to develop a comprehensive plan to address the militant problem there, and never resolved the disagreements between warring agencies that undermined efforts to fashion any coherent strategy.” Richard Armitage, deputy secretary of state for President Bush’s first term and the administration’s point person for Pakistan, says, “We’re just kind of drifting.” Pakistan’s policy as led by President Pervez Musharraf has also been adrift and/or ineffective: “Western military officials say Mr. Musharraf was instead often distracted by his own political problems, and effectively allowed militants to regroup by brokering peace agreements with them.” The Times concludes, “Just as it had on the day before 9/11, al-Qaeda now has a band of terrorist camps from which to plan and train for attacks against Western targets, including the United States.” The camps are smaller than the ones used prior to 9/11, but one retired CIA officer estimates that as many as 2,000 militants train in them at any given time, up from several hundred in 2005. “Leading terrorism experts have warned that it is only a matter of time before a major terrorist attack planned in the mountains of Pakistan is carried out on American soil.” [New York Times, 6/30/2008]
Entity Tags: Al-Qaeda, Richard Armitage, Pervez Musharraf, Bush administration (43)
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, Counterterrorism Policy/Politics
July 1, 2008: Polish Intelligence Warns Taliban Plan to Attack Indian Embassy in Kabul
Polish intelligence warns India and the US that the Taliban are likely to attack the Indian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. The embassy will be bombed one week later, killing 54 (see July 7, 2008). The document giving the warning is entitled, “Threat Report… Threat to Indian Embassy.” It is based on information received one day earlier. It states, “Taliban are planning to carry out an attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul.” It goes on to describe how a suicide bomber plans to use a stolen Afghan government car and stolen uniform to get past security. The document will be publicly leaked in 2010 as part of a massive WikiLeaks release of US documents relating to the US war in Afghanistan. [Press Trust of India, 7/27/2010] It is unclear how or where Polish intelligence got this information. US intelligence apparently learns around this time that the Taliban and ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, are planning a spectacular bombing somewhere in Afghanistan (see Late June 2008). However, it appears that India acts on at least one of the warnings, because the Indian ambassador to Afghanistan will later say that India took extra security measures in the weeks before the bombings because “we were expecting trouble.” Most importantly, sand-filled blast barriers are placed around the main embassy building. That, plus the quick action of security guards, will prevent the bomber from getting closer to the building, and thus reduce the number of lives lost. [Associated Press, 7/9/2008]
Entity Tags: Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, Taliban, Poland
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, 2008 Kabul Indian Embassy Bombing, Afghanistan, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11
July 1, 2008: CIA Veteran Challenges Claim that Harsh Interrogations Have ‘Saved Thousands of Americans’
Milt Bearden, a retired 30-year CIA veteran who served as senior manager for clandestine operations, writes: “The [Bush] administration’s claims of having ‘saved thousands of Americans’ can be dismissed out of hand because credible evidence has never been offered—not even an authoritative leak of any major terrorist operation interdicted based on information gathered from these interrogations in the past seven years. All the public gets is repeated references to Jose Padilla (see June 10, 2002), the Lackawanna Six (see April-August 2001), the Liberty Seven (see June 23, 2006), and the Library Tower operation in Los Angeles (see October 2001-February 2002). If those slapstick episodes are the true character of the threat, then maybe we’ll be okay after all. When challenged on the lack of a game-changing example of a derailed operation, administration officials usually say that the need to protect sources and methods prevents revealing just how enhanced interrogation techniques have saved so many thousands of Americans. But it is irresponsible for any administration not to tell a credible story that would convince critics at home and abroad that this torture has served some useful purpose.” Bearden suggests that the CIA might have been permanently “broken” by its use of torture, and that some US officials will likely face the threat of being arrested overseas on torture charges for years to come. [Washington Independent, 7/1/2008]
Entity Tags: Milt Bearden, Central Intelligence Agency
July 7, 2008: Suicide Bombing on Indian Embassy in Kabul Kills 54; Afghan and Indian Governments Blame ISI and Taliban
A suicide bombing at the Indian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, kills 54 people and injures 140 others. The main target appears to be a diplomatic convoy that had just entered the embassy gate, directly followed by the suicide truck. Among the dead are two senior Indian diplomats, including the military attaché, Brigadier Ravi Mehta. Many of those killed are people standing in line waiting for visas. [London Times, 8/3/2008] The Indian government received at least one warning about an attack on the embassy, and it took extra security precautions that helped reduce the loss of lives (see July 1, 2008). The Afghan interior ministry quickly asserts that the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, helped the Taliban with the attack. A presidential spokesman states at a news conference, “The sophistication of this attack and the kind of material that was used in it, the specific targeting, everything has the hallmarks of a particular intelligence agency that has conducted similar terrorist acts inside Afghanistan in the past.” The Afghan government has asserted that the ISI is responsible for other attacks in Afghanistan, including an attempted assassination of President Hamid Karzai in late April 2008 (see April 27, 2008). The Indian government also quickly blames the ISI and the Taliban. [Financial Times, 7/8/2008; Taipei Times, 7/9/2008] The Taliban deny involvement in the attack, but the New York Times notes that the Taliban usually deny involvement in attacks with a large number of civilian casualties. [New York Times, 7/8/2008] Less than a month later, US intelligence will accuse the ISI of helping a Taliban-linked militant network led by Jalaluddin Haqqani to plan the bombing (see August 1, 2008). President Bush will even directly threaten Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani with serious consequences if another attack is linked to the ISI (see July 28, 2008).
Entity Tags: Ravi Mehta, Jalaluddin Haqqani, Haqqani Network, Taliban, Afghanistan, India, Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, 2008 Kabul Indian Embassy Bombing, Afghanistan
July 14, 2008: Pakistani Taliban Impose Strict Islamic Law in Tribal Region of Mohmand
Tehrik-i-Taliban, a group of Pakistani militants linked to the Taliban, declares the imposition of Sharia law (strict Islamic judicial code) in the Mohmand tribal area in Pakistan. Islamic courts have been established in the four regions of Mohmand, and the group has established similar courts already in the adjacent region of Bajaur. [Dawn (Karachi), 7/15/2008]
Entity Tags: Tehrik-i-Taliban
Category Tags: Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region
July 17, 2008: Alleged Female Al-Qaeda Sleeper Agent Arrested in Afghanistan
Aafia Siddique in Afghan custody on July 17, 2008. [Source: Associated Press]Aafia Siddiqui, a female Pakistani neuroscientist and alleged al-Qaeda operative, is arrested by Afghan police in the town of Ghazni, Afghanistan. Police reportedly also find bomb-making instructions, substances in bottles and jars, and papers describing US landmarks. There are conflicting accounts about what happens next:
US Government's Version - The next day, a group of US agents come to visit her, but she is being held unsecured in a room, hiding behind a curtain. One of the US agents puts his rifle down. She allegedly picks up the rifle to shoot at the group. She shoots twice and misses, while a US agent shoots back and hits her at least once. [CNN, 8/4/2008; Reuters, 8/5/2008]
Afghan Police Version - According to Reuters, “Afghan police in Ghazni however, [tell] a different story.” They claim that they find Siddiqui in Ghazni after reports of her behaving suspiciously. They find maps of the town, including one of the governor’s house, and arrest her and a teenage boy. US troops then request that she be handed over to them, but Afghan police refuse, according to a senior police officer there. US soldiers then disarm the Afghan police at which point Siddiqui approaches the US soldiers complaining of mistreatment by the police. The US soldiers, under the impression that she could have explosives and would attack them as a suicide bomber, shoot her and take her away. The boy remains in Afghan police custody. [Reuters, 8/5/2008]
She is extradited to the US a couple of weeks later, where she is due to stand trial for attempting to murder the US agents. Siddiqui had lived and studied in the US for many years. She was in Pakistan in March 2003 when it was announced that 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed had been arrested. She disappeared several days later (see Late September 2001-March 2003). The FBI issued an alert for her arrest, alleging that she had been an al-Qaeda sleeper agent in the US. There has been speculation that she had been secretly arrested by the US or Pakistan, and what happened to her since 2003 still remains a mystery. [CNN, 8/4/2008]
Entity Tags: Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, Aafia Siddiqui
Category Tags: Afghanistan, Key Captures and Deaths
July 25, 2008: Al-Qaeda Linked Suicide Bombing in Yemen Kills Four
Ahmed al-Mashjari (right) with unidentified associate, in propaganda video. [Source: Public domain]A suicide bomber named Ahmed al-Mashjari crashes a van full of explosives into a government security headquarters in the eastern province of Hadramaut in Yemen. Four are killed, including a Yemeni soldier. The al-Qaeda affiliate Soldiers of Yemen Brigades takes credit for the bombing, calling al-Mashjari a “heroic martyr.” The Yemeni government is said to have a tacit agreement whereby al-Qaeda operatives are left alone and in return they do not attack targets within Yemen. But Nadia al-Sakkaf, editor of the Yemen Times, says: “There was a deal [with the jihadis] but it’s not working any more. Now there are just fanatics who want to be hired by al-Qaeda, people who have come back from Iraq or Afghanistan and have no skills, who are not integrated into society and have no education. They are brainwashed. Jihad is all they know.” [Yemen News Agency, 7/27/2008; Guardian, 7/30/2008]
Entity Tags: Al-Qaeda, Ahmed al-Mashjari
Category Tags: Yemeni Militant Collusion, Alleged Al-Qaeda Linked Attacks
July 28, 2008: US Drone Strike Kills Al-Qaeda Leader Midhat Mursi in Pakistan’s Tribal Region
A US drone strike kills al-Qaeda leader Midhat Mursi (a.k.a. Abu Khabab al-Masri). He is one of six people killed in the strike on a compound in South Waziristan, in Pakistan’s tribal region. Mursi, an Egyptian, was considered a poisons and explosives expert, and was accused of training the suicide bombers in the 2000 USS Cole bombing. He also is believed to have run the Darunta training camp in eastern Afghanistan until it was abandoned during the US invasion in late 2001. The US had put a $5 million bounty on him. A statement by al-Qaeda leader Mustafa Abu al-Yazid posted on the Internet about a week later will confirm his death. [Associated Press, 8/3/2008]
Entity Tags: Al-Qaeda, US Military, Mustafa Abu al-Yazid, Midhat Mursi
Category Tags: Key Captures and Deaths, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, Drone Use in Pakistan / Afghanistan
July 28, 2008: President Bush Privately Accuses ISI of Helping Islamist Militants; Issues Ultimatum
Yousaf Raza Gillani. [Source: Public Domain]Pakistan’s prime minister, Yousaf Raza Gillani, visits the US and meets with President George Bush in Washington, D.C. Bush privately confronts Gillani with evidence that the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, has been helping the Taliban and al-Qaeda. US intelligence has long suspected that Pakistan has been playing a “double game,” accepting over a billion dollars of US aid per year meant to help finance Pakistan’s fight with Islamic militants, but at the same time training and funding those militants, who often go on to fight US soldiers in Afghanistan. The London Times reports that Gillani “was left in no doubt that the Bush administration had lost patience with the ISI’s alleged double game.” Bush allegedly warned that if one more attack in Afghanistan or elsewhere were traced back to Pakistan, the US would take “serious action.” The key evidence is that US intelligence claims to have intercepted communications showing that the ISI helped plan a militant attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, earlier in the month (see July 7, 2008). US officials will leak this story of ISI involvement to the New York Times several days after Bush’s meeting with Gillani (see August 1, 2008). Gillani also meets with CIA Director Michael Hayden, who confronts him with a dossier on ISI support for the Taliban. Pakistanis officials will claim they were shocked at the “grilling” they received. One Pakistani official who came to the US with Gillani will say, “They were very hot on the ISI. Very hot. When we asked them for more information, Bush laughed and said, ‘When we share information with your guys, the bad guys always run away’.” When the story of Bush’s confrontation with Gillani is leaked to the press, Pakistani officials categorically deny any link between the ISI and militants in Afghanistan. But senior British intelligence and government officials have also told the Pakistanis in recent days that they are convinced the ISI was involved in the embassy bombing. This is believed to be the first time the US has openly confronted Pakistan since a warning given several days after 9/11 (see September 13-15, 2001). The US is said to be particularly concerned with the ISI’s links to Jalaluddin Haqqani, who runs a militant network that the US believes was involved in the bombing. And the US is worries about links between the ISI and Lashkar-e-Toiba, a Pakistan-based militant group that is said to have been behind a recent attack against US forces in Afghanistan that killed nine. [London Times, 8/3/2008]
Entity Tags: Yousaf Raza Gillani, Jalaluddin Haqqani, Al-Qaeda, George W. Bush, US intelligence, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, Taliban, Michael Hayden
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, 2008 Kabul Indian Embassy Bombing, Afghanistan, Counterterrorism Policy/Politics
August 1, 2008: Pakistani Official Admits that Some in ISI Still Support Taliban, then Backtracks
Sherry Rehman, Pakistan’s information minister, admits to journalists that the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, still contains pro-Taliban operatives. She says, “We need to identify these people and weed them out.” However, she later changes her statement, claiming that the problems were in the past and there will be no purge. [London Times, 8/3/2008] Her comment comes right as US intelligence accuses the ISI of involvement in a recent bombing of the Indian embassy in Afghanistan (see July 7, 2008 and August 1, 2008).
Entity Tags: Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, Sherry Rehman, Taliban
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Afghanistan, 2008 Kabul Indian Embassy Bombing
August 1, 2008: US Intelligence Officials Claim ISI Helped Islamic Militants Bomb Indian Embassy in Afghanistan
The New York Times reports that US intelligence agencies have concluded that the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, helped plan the July 7, 2008, bombing of India’s embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. The attack was initially blamed on al-Qaeda-linked Islamist militants, and 54 people were killed (see July 7, 2008). It is said US intelligence intercepted communications between ISI officers and militants who took part in the attack. The communications were intercepted before the bombing, but apparently were not specific enough to stop the attack. Anonymous US officials would not specifically tell the Times what kind of assistance the ISI gave the bombers. However, it was noted that the ISI officers involved were not renegades, suggesting their actions could have been authorized by superiors. [New York Times, 8/1/2008] The US also claims to have arrested an ISI officer inside Afghanistan, apparently for a role in the attack, but who this person is and what their role exactly allegedly was remains unclear. India and Pakistan have been traditional enemies, and Pakistan is concerned about India’s influence in Afghanistan. Many Western intelligence officials have long suspected that the ISI gets aid from the US and its allies and then uses this support to help the militants the US is fighting. However, solid proof has been hard to find. However, one British official tells the London Times, “The Indian embassy bombing seems to have finally provided it. This is the smoking gun we’ve all been looking for.” [London Times, 8/3/2008] One State Department official similarly says of the bombing evidence, “It confirmed some suspicions that I think were widely held. It was sort of this ‘a-ha’ moment. There was a sense that there was finally direct proof.” US officials believe that the embassy bombing was probably carried out by members of a network led by Jalaluddin Haqqani, who in turn has close alliances with al-Qaeda and the Taliban. US officials also say there is new evidence that ISI officials are increasingly providing militants with details about the US military campaign against them. In some cases, this has allowed militants to avoid US missile strikes in Pakistan. [New York Times, 8/1/2008] Several days before these accusations against the ISI were leaked to the press, British and US officials privately confronted Pakistani officials about the charges. President Bush even directly threatened Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani with serious consequences if another attack were linked to the ISI (see July 28, 2008).
Entity Tags: Jalaluddin Haqqani, US Department of State, US intelligence, Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Afghanistan, 2008 Kabul Indian Embassy Bombing, Pakistani ISI Links to 9/11
August 2, 2008: Al-Qaeda Leader Fazul Narrowly Escapes Capture in Kenya
Pages from two passports seized in the raid. Both show pictures of Fazul but have different names. [Source: East African Standard]An al-Qaeda leader named Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, (a.k.a. Haroun Fazul), narrowly escapes capture in Kenya. The US government claims that Fazul had important roles in the 1998 embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania (see 10:35-10:39 a.m., August 7, 1998) and the 2002 hotel bombing in Mombasa, Kenya (see November 28, 2002). Fazul was indicted for the embassy bombings before 9/11, and there is a $5 million reward for him. On August 2, 2008, Kenyan police raid a house in Malindi, a town on Kenya’s coast. Two passports bearing Fazul’s picture but different names are found, as well as his laptop computer. A Kenyan newspaper reports that a local police officer may have tipped off Fazul about the raid minutes before it took place. A half-eaten meal is discovered in the house, and the television is still on, leading police to believe that he ran out of the house just before they arrived. Three Kenyans are arrested and charged with helping to hide him. He reportedly narrowly escaped a US air strike in Somalia in 2007 (see December 24, 2006-January 2007), as well as a police raid in Kenya in 2003. [CNN, 8/4/2008; East African Standard, 8/5/2008] He will be killed in Somalia in 2011 (see June 10, 2011).
Entity Tags: Fazul Abdullah Mohammed
Category Tags: 1998 US Embassy Bombings, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11
August 4, 2008: Scientific Journal Article Claims Presence of Thermite Could Explain Environmental Anomalies at WTC Ground Zero
Explosives on a chip [Source: Gary Meek/Georgia Institute of Technology]According to an article published in The Environmentalist, a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Springer Netherlands, air quality data collected by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at Ground Zero support the hypothesis that cutting charges made with thermite were used to demolish the World Trade Center. The article by authors (and 9/11 truth activists) Kevin Ryan, James Gourley, and Steven Jones says the presence of thermite would best explain three major documented anomalies: [Ryan, Gourley, and Jones, 8/4/2008]
1) The Persistence of Fires at Ground Zero - As has been extensively reported, the rubble at Ground Zero continued to burn for months after 9/11, despite rain as well as firefighters’ use of large quantities of water and of the chemical fire suppressant Pyrocool. [New York Times, 11/19/2001] There is also eyewitness and photographic evidence of molten metal (see September 12, 2001-February 2002) and of explosions accompanied by white dust clouds. The book Aftermath: World Trade Center Archive by photographer Joel Meyerowitz shows a picture of such an explosion taking place on November 8, 2001. [Meyerowitz, 2006, pp. 178] Another photography books by NYPD officer John Botte also shows a picture of smoke emerging from the pile at Ground Zero and explains: “Occasionally, a huge flame would shoot out from the middle of the pile, sounding like a blow torch, as it did here.” [Botte, 2006, pp. 48-49]
2) Spikes of Certain Chemicals in the Air - EPA data shows that several spikes of chemical products of combustion, called volatile organic chemicals (VOC), occurred in October and November 2001, and in February 2002. According to the authors, these spikes indicate “abrupt, violent fires.”
3) The Presence of 1,3-Diphenylpropane - A third anomaly was the presence of large quantities of 1,3-diphenylpropane (1,3-DPP) in the air, a chemical that had not been found in previous structure fires. An EPA scientist told Newsday, “We’ve never observed it in any sampling we’ve ever done.” [Newsday, 9/14/2003]
A possible explanation would be the presence of novel “energetic nanocomposites” which include 1,3-DPP, according to scientific articles reviewed by Ryan et al. Such materials are “amenable to spray-on applications.” A 2002 report said: “The energetic coating dries to give a nice adherent film. Preliminary experiments indicate that films of the hybrid material are self-propagating when ignited by thermal stimulus.” [Ryan, Gourley, and Jones, 8/4/2008] The main center for nanocomposites research is Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). An October 2000 article in a LLNL publication provided an introduction to the research conducted there: “Energetic nanocomposites have a fuel component and an oxidizer component mixed together. […] In one such material (termed a thermite pyrotechnic), iron oxide gel reacts with metallic aluminum particles to release an enormous amount of heat. ‘These reactions typically produce temperatures in excess of 3,500 degrees Celsius’ says [LLNL researcher Randy] Simpson.” [Science & Technology Review, 10/2000] The authors conclude that “[t]he presence of energetic materials, specifically energetic nanocomposites, at [Ground Zero], has the potential to explain much of the unusual environmental data seen at the WTC. Thermite […] is such a pyrotechnic mixture that cannot be easily extinguished and is a common component of energetic nanocomposites.… [T]he detection of 1,3-DPP at the WTC supports this hypothesis. Finally, the spikes in VOCs, detected by EPA on specific dates, are more readily explained as a result of short-lived, violent fires caused by energetic materials.” [Ryan, Gourley, and Jones, 8/4/2008]
Entity Tags: Steven E. Jones, James R. Gourley, Environmental Protection Agency, Kevin Ryan
August 10, 2008: Al-Zawahiri Releases New Audio Message in English
Al-Qaeda second in command Ayman al-Zawahiri releases a new audio tape about Pakistan on which he speaks English. This is the first recording he has released in English, a language al-Zawahiri says he chose because he wants to speak directly to the Pakistani people, but cannot speak Urdu, the predominant language there. The message, produced by al-Qaeda’s media arm As-Sahab, is aired by the ARY One World news network, but is apparently not made available anywhere else on the Internet. On the tape, al-Zawahiri lists a series of grievances he has against the Pakistani government and US involvement there, as well as relating his own personal experiences living in Pakistan. [ABC News, 8/10/2008]
Entity Tags: Al-Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahiri
August 18, 2008: Threatened with Impeachment, Pakistani President Musharraf Resigns
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf announces his resignation. Opposition to Musharraf’s rule had been slowly growing, especially since he declared a state of emergency in late 2007 to remain in power (see November 3-December 15, 2007) following a controversial reelection (see October 6, 2007). In early 2008, opposition parties united and won parliamentary elections (see February 18, 2008). The opposition then chose Yousaf Raza Gillani as the new prime minister, and Gillani took away much of Musharraf’s power (see March 22-25, 2008). The opposition parties united again to start impeachment hearings against Musharraf for his state of emergency and other claimed abuses of power. His resignation speech came hours after the opposition finalized its charges against him and prepared to launch an impeachment trial. Musharraf claims he could have defeated the charges, but he wanted to spare the country the conflict caused by the trial. Gillani remains prime minister, and the Speaker of the Pakistani Senate, Muhammad Mian Sumroo, automatically takes over as caretaker president. [BBC, 8/18/2008]
Entity Tags: Muhammad Mian Sumroo, Yousaf Raza Gillani, Pervez Musharraf
Timeline Tags: US International Relations, War in Afghanistan
Shortly After August 18, 2008: New US Policy Increases Drone Attacks in Pakistan; No Longer Asks Permission from Pakistan First
The US dramatically increases the number of CIA drone attacks on Islamist militant targets in Pakistan, and no longer relies on permission from the Pakistani government before striking. Bush administration officials had been increasingly concerned about al-Qaeda’s resurgence in Pakistan’s tribal region. A 2006 peace deal between Islamist militants and the Pakistani government gave al-Qaeda and other militant groups a chance to recover from earlier pressures (see September 5, 2006). However, the Bush administration had close ties with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, who did not want more aggressive US action. But Musharraf resigns on August 18, 2008 (see August 18, 2008), and within days, President Bush signs a secret new policy.
More Drone Strikes - From August 31, 2008, until late March 2009, the CIA carries out at least 38 drone strikes in Pakistan’s tribal region. By contrast there were only 10 known drone strikes in 2006 and 2007 combined. There were three strikes in 2006, seven strikes in 2007, and 36 in 2008 (all but seven of those took place after Musharraf resigned in August). Drone capabilities and intelligence collection has improved, but the change mainly has to do with politics. A former CIA official who oversaw Predator drone operations in Pakistan will later say: “We had the data all along. Finally we took off the gloves.”
Permission No Longer Needed - Additionally, the US no longer requires the Pakistani government’s permission before ordering a drone strike. US officials had suspected that many of their targets were tipped off by the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency. Now this is no longer a concern. Getting permission from Pakistan could take a day or more. Sometimes this caused the CIA to lose track of its target (see for instance 2006). [Los Angeles Times, 3/22/2009]
Entity Tags: Central Intelligence Agency, Al-Qaeda, Bush administration (43), Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, Pervez Musharraf, George W. Bush
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, Hunt for Bin Laden in Pakistan, Drone Use in Pakistan / Afghanistan
August 21, 2008: NIST Releases Draft Final Report on WTC 7 Collapse
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) releases a draft version of the final report of its investigation of the collapse of World Trade Center Building 7, the 47-story skyscraper which collapsed late in the afternoon of 9/11 (see (5:20 p.m.) September 11, 2001). [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008] The report describes NIST’s conclusions on how fires that followed the impact of debris from the north WTC tower’s collapse resulted in the eventual collapse of WTC 7. It evaluates the emergency response and building evacuation procedures, and provides 13 recommendations for construction of buildings in the future, and improved procedures and practices. [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. xiii ] Some of the report’s key findings are:
NIST describes its theory of what caused WTC 7 to collapse: “The probable collapse sequence… was initiated by the buckling of a critical interior column.… This column had become unsupported over nine stories after initial local fire-induced damage led to a cascade of local floor failures. The buckling of this column led to a vertical progression of floor failures up to the roof and to the buckling of adjacent interior columns to the south of the critical column. An east-to-west horizontal progression of interior column buckling followed, due to loss of lateral support to adjacent columns, forces exerted by falling debris, and load redistribution from other buckled columns. The exterior columns then buckled as the failed building core moved downward, redistributing its loads to the exterior columns. Global collapse occurred as the entire building above the buckled region moved downward as a single unit.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. xxxii ]
The collapse of WTC 7 “represents the first known instance of the total collapse of a tall building primarily due to fires. The collapse could not have been prevented without controlling the fires before most of the combustible building contents were consumed.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. 43 ]
The fires in WTC 7 “were ignited as a result of the impact of debris from the collapse of WTC 1, which was approximately 370 ft to the south.… The fires were ignited on at least 10 floors; however, only the fires on floors 7 through 9 and 11 through 13 grew and lasted until the time of the building collapse.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. xxxi-xxxii ]
“Even without the initial structural damage caused by debris impact from the collapse of WTC 1, WTC 7 would have collapsed from fires having the same characteristics as those experienced on September 11, 2001.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. 44 ]
“Had a water supply for the automatic sprinkler system been available and had the sprinkler system operated as designed, it is likely that fires in WTC 7 would have been controlled and the collapse prevented.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. 43 ]
Other skyscrapers had previously survived comparable fires. “The fires in WTC 7 were similar to those that have occurred previously in several tall buildings (One New York Plaza, 1970, First Interstate Bank, 1988, and One Meridian Plaza, 1991) where the automatic sprinklers did not function or were not present. However, because of differences between their structural designs and that of WTC 7, these three buildings did not collapse.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. 43 ]
NIST found that “temperatures did not exceed 300°C in the core or perimeter columns in WTC 7,” including the three interior columns that NIST says were the first to buckle in the collapse. “None of these columns were significantly weakened by elevated temperatures.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. 49-50 ]
NIST says it found “no evidence to suggest that WTC 7 was not designed in a manner generally consistent with applicable building codes and standards.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. 53 ]
The report concludes that neither explosives nor fuel oil fires fed by diesel tanks in WTC 7 played any role in the collapse (see August 21, 2008 and August 21, 2008). [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. 44-45 ]
However, the report points out that WTC 7 “and the records kept within it were destroyed, and the remains of all the WTC buildings were disposed of before congressional action and funding was available for this investigation to begin. As a result, there are some facts that could not be discerned, and thus there are uncertainties in this accounting. Nonetheless, NIST was able to gather sufficient evidence and documentation to conduct a full investigation upon which to reach firm findings and recommendations.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. xxxi ]
NIST released a progress report in June 2004, which had included its “working hypothesis” at that time for the collapse of WTC 7 (see June 18, 2004). [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 6/18/2004] After suggestions are made by members of the public in response to the current draft report, NIST will release the finished version of the report in November 2008, which includes the same major findings and recommendations as the draft version (see November 20, 2008). [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 11/20/2008]
Entity Tags: World Trade Center, National Institute of Standards and Technology
August 21, 2008: Critics Unconvinced by NIST’s Claim that Explosives Not Used to Bring Down WTC 7
After the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announces the results of its investigation into the collapse of World Trade Center Building 7, some critics dispute its explanation for the collapse and question its apparent debunking of claims that explosives were used to demolish the building. The 47-story tower collapsed late in the afternoon of 9/11, even though no plane hit it (see (5:20 p.m.) September 11, 2001). Some have argued that fire and the falling debris from the Twin Towers’ collapses should not have brought down such a large steel and concrete structure. [Associated Press, 8/21/2008]
NIST Lacks 'the Expertise on Explosives' - James Quintiere, a professor of fire protection engineering at the University of Maryland who previously worked as the chief of NIST’s fire science and engineering division, says that NIST does not “have the expertise on explosives, so I don’t know how they came to that conclusion,” that explosives did not cause the collapse. However, Quintiere says he never personally believed explosives were involved. [Los Angeles Times, 8/22/2008] Richard Gage, a California architect and leader of a group called Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth, complains, “How much longer do we have to endure the cover-up of how Building 7 was destroyed?” The New York Times points out that “the collapse of 7 World Trade Center—home at the time to branch offices of the Central Intelligence Agency, the Secret Service, and the Giuliani administration’s emergency operations center—is cited in hundreds of Web sites and books as perhaps the most compelling evidence that an insider secretly planted explosives, intentionally destroying the tower.” [New York Times, 8/21/2008]
NIST Presentation - At a presentation of its findings earlier in the day, NIST announced that, in its three-year study of the collapse, it found no evidence showing explosives were used to bring the building down. [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008; National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008] During his summary of the findings of NIST’s WTC 7 investigation (see August 21, 2008), lead investigator Shyam Sunder said, “We did not find any evidence that explosives were used to bring the building down.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008]
'No Witness Reports' of Loud Explosions - In the draft version of its final report on the collapse, which is released on this day (see August 21, 2008), NIST explains: “Blast from the smallest charge capable of failing a critical column… would have resulted in a sound level of 130 dB to 140 dB at a distance of at least half a mile if unobstructed by surrounding buildings.… This sound level is consistent with standing next to a jet plane engine and more than ten times louder than being in front of the speakers at a rock concert. There were no witness reports of such a loud noise, nor was such a noise heard on the audio tracks of video recordings of the WTC 7 collapse.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. 44-45 ]
NIST Rules out Thermite - Skeptics have argued that an incendiary material called thermite was used to bring down WTC 7 (see August 4, 2008), and this would not necessarily have created such a loud explosive boom. [New York Times, 8/21/2008] But in a fact sheet published on this day, NIST responds: “To apply thermite to a large steel column, approximately 0.13 lb of thermite would be needed to heat and melt each pound of steel. For a steel column that weighs approximately 1,000 lbs. per foot, at least 100 lbs. of thermite would need to be placed around the column, ignited, and remain in contact with the vertical steel surface as the thermite reaction took place. This is for one column… presumably, more than one column would have been prepared with thermite, if this approach were to be used. It is unlikely that 100 lbs. of thermite, or more, could have been carried into WTC 7 and placed around columns without being detected, either prior to Sept. 11 or during that day.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008] Sunder says that investigators therefore decided not to use their computer model to evaluate whether a thermite-fueled fire might have brought down WTC 7. Pointing to the omission, one skeptic says, “It is very difficult to find what you are not looking for.” [New York Times, 8/21/2008] In a 2006 fact sheet, NIST in fact admitted it “did not test for the residue” of explosives or thermite in the remaining structural steel from the WTC collapses (see August 30, 2006). [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/30/2006] And, as the New York Times notes, “Adding to the suspicion is the fact that in the rush to clean up the site, almost all of the steel remains of the tower were disposed of, leaving investigators in later years with little forensic evidence” (see Shortly After September 11, 2001 and September 12-October 2001). [New York Times, 8/21/2008]
Extensive Preparations for Demolition - NIST’s new fact sheet also points out: “For [WTC 7] to have been prepared for intentional demolition, walls and/or column enclosures and fireproofing would have to be removed and replaced without being detected. Preparing a column includes steps such as cutting sections with torches, which produces noxious and odorous fumes. Intentional demolition usually requires applying explosive charges to most, if not all, interior columns, not just one or a limited set of columns in a building.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008]
Entity Tags: Richard Gage, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Shyam Sunder, World Trade Center, James Quintiere
August 21, 2008: NIST Rules out Diesel Tanks in Collapse of WTC 7
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) publicly rejects the theory that diesel fuel tanks installed in World Trade Center Building 7 played any role in the 47-story tower’s collapse, late in the afternoon of 9/11. This is clearly set out in a question-and-answer factsheet published on this day, together with an announcement of NIST’s draft report on the building’s collapse (see August 21, 2008 and August 21, 2008). The factsheet asks, “Did fuel oil systems in WTC 7 contribute to its collapse?” The answer is “No…. The worst-case scenarios associated with fires… could not have been sustained long enough, could not have generated sufficient heat to weaken critical interior columns, and/or would have produced large amounts of visible smoke from the lower floors, which were not observed.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008; New York Times, 8/21/2008] These findings are echoed in the draft version of its final report on the collapse. [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/2008, pp. xxxii ] WTC 7 had three emergency power systems, all of which ran on diesel fuel. The systems contained two 12,000 gallon fuel tanks and two 6,000 gallon tanks located beneath the building’s loading docks, and another 6,000 gallon tank on its first floor. There were also 275 gallon tanks on the fifth, seventh, and eighth floors, and a 50 gallon tank on the ninth floor. [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008] It has previously been suggested that diesel stored in these tanks might have contributed to fires that led to WTC 7’s collapse (see March 2, 2002). [New York Times, 3/2/2002] This possibility was proposed in the final report of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) investigation of the WTC collapses, published in May 2002 (see May 1, 2002). [Federal Emergency Management Agency, 5/1/2002, pp. 5-28 - 5-29] But in his summary of the findings of NIST’s three-year study of WTC 7, lead investigator Shyam Sunder says the building’s collapse was “not due to fires from the substantial amount of diesel fuel stored in the building.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008]
Entity Tags: World Trade Center, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Shyam Sunder
August 21, 2008: NIST Announces Conclusions of WTC 7 Investigation, Presents New Theory for Collapse
NIST lead investigator Shyam Sunder answering questions about NIST’s three-year study of the collapse of WTC 7. [Source: Don Berkemeyer / National Institute of Standards and Technology]The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announces the findings of its study of the collapse of World Trade Center Building 7, and says the 47-story tower fell late in the afternoon of 9/11 primarily due to fires. [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008; National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008] NIST releases its findings as part of a 915-page report, which is the result of three years’ work by over 50 federal investigators and a dozen contractors (see August 21, 2008). [New York Times, 8/21/2008]
Collapse Is 'No Longer a Mystery' - In a news conference at NIST’s headquarters in Gaithersburg, Maryland, lead investigator Shyam Sunder admits: “[W]e knew from the beginning of our study that understanding what happened to Building 7 on 9/11 would be difficult. It did not fit any textbook description that you could readily point to and say, yes, that’s why the building failed.” But, he says, “[T]he reason for the collapse of World Trade Center 7 is no longer a mystery.” [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008; New York Times, 8/21/2008]
'New Phenomenon' Caused Collapse - Sunder says the “critical factor” that initiated the collapse was “thermal expansion of long-span floor systems located in the east side of the building,” and adds that NIST’s study “has identified thermal expansion as a new phenomenon that can cause structural collapse. For the first time we have shown that fire can induce a progressive collapse.”
Collapse Sequence - Sunder describes the sequence of events NIST believes led to the collapse of WTC 7. He says debris from the collapse of the north WTC tower “started fires on at least 10 floors of the building. The fires burned out of control on six of these 10 floors for about seven hours. The city water main had been cut by the collapse of the two WTC towers, so the sprinklers in Building 7 did not function for much of the bottom half of the building.” He continues: “Fires on floors 7 through 9 and 11 through 13 were particularly severe.… Eventually, a girder on floor 13 lost its connection to a critical interior column.” Floor 13 collapsed, beginning a cascade of floor failures down to the fifth floor. “With the support of these floors gone, column 79 buckled, which initiated the fire-induced progressive collapse of the building.… This in turn caused the failure of nearby columns 80 and 81 and floor failures up to the roof line.… As the roof line begins to fall adjacent columns buckle as well. In quick succession, the remaining interior columns failed from east to west across WTC 7, until the entire core began moving downward. Finally, the remaining outer shell or façade of the building fell.”
NIST Created 'Virtual WTC 7' Model - Sunder says that NIST reached its conclusions about the collapse “by reconstructing the entire building, beam by beam, column by column, connection by connection into a computer model, a virtual WTC 7 building. We then filled that virtual building with as much detail as possible about exactly what types of furnishings were on each floor. Then we set fire to those virtual offices on the floors where video and other visual evidence told us the fires burned.” The investigators “used a well-validated computer program developed at NIST, for studying the growth and spread of fires, to calculate temperatures throughout the building.… And we used well-established data on the properties of structural steel, the sprayed fire resistive material or fireproofing, and other building materials to determine how those temperatures affected the structure.”
Explosives Not Used - Sunder says that the investigators “did not find any evidence that explosives were used to bring the building down” (see August 21, 2008), nor was the collapse “due to fires from the substantial amount of diesel fuel stored in the building” (see August 21, 2008). NIST commenced its investigation of the WTC collapses in 2002 (see August 21, 2002) and issued its findings on the collapses of the Twin Towers in October 2005 (see October 26, 2005). Since then it has been focused on WTC 7. [Government Computer News, 8/21/2008; National Institute of Standards and Technology, 8/21/2008]
Final Report to Be Released - After suggestions are made by members of the public in response to its current report, NIST will release a finished version of the same report in November 2008, thereby completing its WTC investigation (see November 20, 2008). [National Institute of Standards and Technology, 11/20/2008]
August 23, 2008: Pakistani Prime Minister Gillani Publicly Opposes US Drone Strikes, Privately Allows Them
US Ambassador to Pakistan Anne W. Patterson sends a diplomatic cable back to the US reporting on recent discussions she had with Pakistani leaders. In the cable, she discusses a meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani. The issue of when the next US drone strike in Pakistan’s tribal region would be politically feasible came up. According to the cable, Gillani said: “I don’t care if they do it as long as they get the right people. We’ll protest in the National Assembly and then ignore it.” The cable will later be released by the whistleblower website WikiLeaks. [Christian Science Monitor, 12/1/2010; Dawn (Karachi), 12/2/2010]
Entity Tags: Yousaf Raza Gillani, Anne W. Patterson
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Counterterrorism Policy/Politics
August 28, 2008: President Bush Extends National Emergency Declared after 9/11
In his last full year in office, President Bush announces that he is again renewing the national emergency he proclaimed in response to the 9/11 attacks (see September 14, 2001). Bush issues a notice that states: “Because the terrorist threat continues, the national emergency declared on September 14, 2001, and the powers and authorities adopted to deal with that emergency, must continue in effect beyond September 14, 2008. Therefore, I am continuing in effect for an additional year the national emergency I declared on September 14, 2001, with respect to the terrorist threat.” [White House, 8/28/2008] The national emergency has been renewed on a yearly basis since 2001. [US President, 9/16/2002; White House, 9/10/2004; White House, 9/8/2005; White House, 9/5/2006; White House, 9/12/2007]
Category Tags: Counterterrorism Policy/Politics, Internal US Security After 9/11
September 2008: After First Classified Briefing, Obama Is Convinced Bin Laden Is Hiding in Pakistan
As the Democratic Party’s nominee for US president, Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) is given his first classified intelligence briefing. The briefing includes information on the hunt for Osama bin Laden. An unnamed senior official will later say that Obama already is under the impression that bin Laden has to be hiding in Pakistan, and the briefing solidifies that view. The official says, “What I remember in terms of the aftermath of that briefing and into the transition was just how much the focus became on Pakistan.” [Reuters, 5/12/2011]
Entity Tags: Osama bin Laden, US intelligence, Barack Obama
Timeline Tags: War in Afghanistan, 2008 Elections
Category Tags: Hunt for Bin Laden in Pakistan
September-December 2008: US Special Forces Unwittingly Train Less than One Mile from Bin Laden’s Abbottabad Hideout
From September to December 2008, a team of US Special Forces trainers is based in Abbottabad, Pakistan, ironically less than one mile from the compound Osama bin Laden is hiding in at the time. The trainers are in Abbottabad as part of an unpublicized mission to train Pakistani Frontier Corps forces. The training takes place in Kakul Military Academy, Pakistan’s equivalent of the US’s famous West Point military academy. The training is later moved to Warsak, Pakistan. [Radio Free Europe, 5/6/2011; Washington Post, 5/11/2011]
Entity Tags: Osama bin Laden, US Special Forces, Kakul Military Academy
September 8, 2008: Al-Zawahiri Releases New Video Accusing Iran and US of Collaboration
Al-Qaeda second in command Ayman al-Zawahiri releases a video accusing Iran of collaborating with the United States. Excerpts of the video are played on the Qatar-based pan-Arabic TV channel Al Jazeera, but apparently not posted to the websites usually used for disseminating such videos. Al-Zawahiri says Tehran is “cooperating with the Americans in occupying Iraq and Afghanistan,” and denounces the Iranians for recognizing the two governments. “Not even one Shiite authority—whether in Iraq or elsewhere—has issued a fatwa [religious edict] obligating jihad and taking up of arms against the American crusader invaders in Iraq and Afghanistan,” he adds. The video also features clips of al-Qaeda operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia. [Los Angeles Times, 9/9/2008]
Entity Tags: Al Jazeera, Ayman al-Zawahiri, Al-Qaeda
September 8, 2008: Member of European Parliament Calls for International Tribunal to Investigate 9/11
Giulietto Chiesa, a prominent Italian journalist who is also a member of the European Parliament, calls for an international tribunal to probe the events of 9/11. Chiesa makes his appeal in Berlin where he is to show his documentary Zero: An Investigation of 9/11, which argues that the US government’s account cannot be true. He says: “If feelings were strong enough a positive result could be obtained, but it would not happen immediately. So far it’s been the US administration that has won the information fight and obtained their result—unfortunately. Our task is to inform millions of people of the true situation. Everybody should be involved in this struggle with a tribunal or commission helping once we win approval for the idea.” Chiesa was a correspondent in Moscow for many years (see June 16, 1999). He announces that his film will be shown on Russian television (see September 12, 2008). [Deutsche Presse-Agentur (Hamburg), 9/8/2008]
Entity Tags: Giulietto Chiesa
September 8, 2008: US Drone Attack Fails to Assassinate Taliban Leaders Linked to ISI
Jalaluddin Haqqani. [Source: New York Times]A US drone attack targets the Haqqani network in the tribal region of Pakistan. Pakistani officials will say that five missiles kill 23 people and wound 18 more. The missiles hit a compound in North Waziristan run by Sirajuddin Haqqani, the son of Jalaluddin Haqqani. It appears they are targeted, since family members arrived at the compound just a half hour before. However, neither Haqqani network leader is killed. Officials say one of Jalaluddin Haqqani’s two wives, his sister, sister-in-law, and eight of his grandchildren are killed. The Haqqani network is considered a semi-autonomous part of the Taliban. The US believes the Haqqani network has been involved in recent attacks in Afghanistan, including the bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul (see July 7, 2008) and a failed assassination attempt against Afghan President Hamid Karzai (see April 27, 2008). The Haqqani network is widely believed to be closely linked to the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency. [New York Times, 9/10/2008]
Entity Tags: Jalaluddin Haqqani, US Military, Sirajuddin Haqqani, Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, Haqqani Network
Category Tags: Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, 2008 Kabul Indian Embassy Bombing, Afghanistan, Drone Use in Pakistan / Afghanistan, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11
September 9, 2008: New Metal Research May Explain WTC Collapses, Scientist Says
’Iron atoms in steel: Black balls show irregularities that disrupt magnetic fields, weakening steel.’ [Source: BBC]Sergei Dudarev, a scientist with Britain’s Atomic Energy Agency, says that newly-discovered properties of steel could explain why the World Trade Center towers collapsed. Dr. Dudarev researches steel that can withstand the extreme temperatures inside a nuclear fusion reactor. He says that at about 500° Celsius, a temperature often reached in building fires, tiny irregularities in the structure of steel can cause a softening of the metal, although that is still far below the melting point. Dudarev says: “The steel didn’t melt, it just became soft. It is an unusual state and the temperatures in the Twin Towers were high enough to cause it because the thermal insulation was knocked off the girders through the impact with the aircraft.” [Guardian, 9/9/2008; BBC News, 9/10/2008; Independent, 9/10/2008; ABC Radio National (Australia), 9/20/2008]
Entity Tags: Sergei Dudarev
September 9, 2008: Zardari Becomes New President of Pakistan after Quick Election
Asif Ali Zardari, the husband of assassinated former leader Benazir Bhutto, becomes president of Pakistan. Pervez Musharraf resigned as president the previous month after growing pressure suggested he could be impeached (see August 18, 2008). A three-week election campaign quickly followed, and Zardari easily won the election (an electoral college vote, not a general election). Zardari’s elections completes Pakistan’s return to civilian rule after Musharraf seized power in a military coup nine years earlier. [Guardian, 9/9/2008]
"Mr. Ten Percent" - Zardari has a troubled history of numerous corruption allegations. His popular nickname, “Mr. Ten Percent,” refers to the widespread belief in Pakistan that he took a cut from many business deals when his wife Bhutto was prime minister of Pakistan twice in the 1990s. He spent 11 years in prison on corruption charges, although he was never actually convicted of a crime. Bhutto seemed poised for a return to power, but when she was assassinated in late 2007, Zardari essentially took her place as head of her political party, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). Supporters say he has matured during his years in prison. [Wall Street Journal, 9/5/2008]
Entity Tags: Pakistan People’s Party, Benazir Bhutto, Pervez Musharraf, Asif Ali Zardari
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region
September 10, 2008: US May Have Committed 9/11 Attacks, Says Former Syrian Minister
Mahdi Dakhlallah, a former Syrian minister of information, writes in the newspaper Teshreen that the US may have orchestrated the 9/11 attacks to justify the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. “These plans were ready and prepared [in advance]—and all that was needed was to find a pretext to begin their immediate implementation.… No one believes that it was possible to invade Afghanistan and Iraq in the same way and so fast had it not been for the 9/11 attacks. That’s how it always is: the end justifies the means.” [Jerusalem Post, 9/11/2008; Middle East Media Research Institute, 9/11/2008]
Entity Tags: Mahdi Dakhlallah
September 12, 2008: 9/11 Documentary Shown on Russian Television Is Praised by Panel Members
Russia’s Channel One broadcasts Zero: An Investigation into 9/11, a documentary made by the Italian journalist Giulietto Chiesa that disputes the US government’s account of the 9/11 attacks, followed by a discussion between various Russian and foreign personalities. While some panel members defend the US government’s account, others reject it and praise the film. Vitaly Tretyakov, the former editor in chief of Nezavisimaya Gazeta, a major daily newspaper, calls the 9/11 Commission’s report “fiction” and says he could not believe that a small group of terrorists could have masterminded the attacks. Another journalist, Mikhail Leontyev, who is a Channel One presenter and editor in chief of Profil magazine, also expresses disbelief: “A certain organization committed a totally extraordinary act from the point of view of its coordination. Allegedly, this organization still exists, it continues fighting and killing people; it is keeping the US army in two countries in the world and, at the same time, there has not been a single [terrorist] act on the territory of the United States since.” He also says that the alleged organizers were controlled by US intelligence: “all the people who are regarded as the fictitious or real organizers of this [terrorist] act, all these people were controlled by the American special services.” The collapse of the World Trade Center is also discussed. Ashot Tamrazyan, the director of the Risks and Security of Buildings research center, says his organization had created a model and carried out many tests that had shown that the Twin Towers could not have collapsed unless there were other contributing factors. Robert Bridge, the editor in chief of the Moscow News, an English-language newspaper, says he does not believe Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon because of the lack of debris: “In any plane crash there are remains left. There is luggage, there are seats, etc.… Why did this plane crash so differently from any other crash we have seen?” Vladimir Dezhurov, a cosmonaut who observed the 9/11 events from the International Space Station, also questions the Pentagon crash (see (Between 10:00 and 11:00 a.m.) September 11, 2001). He says an air crash always leaves debris behind. [Francesco Tre and Franco Fracassi, 2008; BBC Monitoring, 9/12/2008] Commenting on the broadcast, a Weekly Standard article entitled “The Russian Government Warms Up to 9/11 Conspiracy Theories” says that the Kremlin is promoting 9/11 skepticism to stoke anti-Americanism (see also November 2, 2008). [Weekly Standard, 10/13/2008]
Entity Tags: Giulietto Chiesa, Vladimir Dezhurov
September 19, 2008: Martyr Video of 9/11 Hijacker Is Released Too Late for 9/11 Anniversary
Ahmed Alghamdi in his martyr video. [Source: Public domain]Al-Qaeda releases a martyr video of 9/11 hijacker Ahmed Alghamdi. In the ten-minute video, in Arabic with English subtitles, Alghamdi says, “There are many proofs which clarify and encourage martyrdom operations. They are one of the ways of massacring the enemies of Allah, so you must carry them out.” The video was most likely recorded in Afghanistan in March 2001, at the same time most of the other hijackers recorded martyr videos (see (December 2000-March 2001)). This is the seventh one released. [Sun, 9/22/2008] Alghamdi’s speech is part of a 90-minute video featuring speeches by al-Qaeda second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri and others. Al-Qaeda promised through the Internet to release the video in time for the 9/11 anniversary, as it did with other 9/11 hijacker videos each year, but the video appears one week late. Some counterterrorism experts say the delay could be a sign that al-Qaeda’s propaganda efforts are faltering. [Associated Press, 9/19/2008; Sun-Herald (Sydney), 9/21/2008] Al-Qaeda will not release any hijacker videos in 2009 or 2010.
Entity Tags: Ahmed Alghamdi, Ayman al-Zawahiri, Al-Qaeda
Category Tags: Other 9/11 Hijackers, Alleged Al-Qaeda Media Statements
September 21, 2008: Remains of 13 Hijackers Still in US Custody
The New York Times reports that the FBI and the New York City medical examiner’s office have identified the remains of 13 of the 9/11 hijackers. The remains are still in their custody because no one has claimed them (see Summer 2002). The FBI holds the remains of the nine hijackers who took over Flight 77 and Flight 93, which were recovered from the Pentagon and Shanksville crash sites. The identity of the remains was established indirectly. First, investigators identified the victims using DNA profiles provided by relatives. Those remains that could not be matched to any profile were assumed to belong to the hijackers. The New York City medical examiner’s office also has the remains of four hijackers recovered from the World Trade Center site. A DNA profile for each of the 10 hijackers who took part in the New York attacks was established by the FBI from recovered personal items, such as luggage and cigarette butts left in a rental car. The FBI then supplied these profiles to the medical examiner’s office but without naming them. Therefore, the examiner’s office could only match the four recovered sets of remains but could not identify them by name. Both the FBI and the medical examiner’s office refuse to disclose where exactly the remains are being kept. [New York Times, 9/21/2008; Newsweek, 1/12/2009]
Entity Tags: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Medical Examiner’s Office, New York City
Category Tags: FBI 9/11 Investigation, 9/11 Investigations
September 30, 2008: Pakistan Replaces ISI Director Due to US Pressure, but Pro-Militant Policy Remains
ISI Director Nadeem Taj is replaced by Ahmad Shuja Pasha. [Daily Times (Lahore), 9/30/2008] One day ago, it was reported that the US was intensely pressuring Taj and two of his assistants to resign from the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, because of alleged “double-dealing” with militants. Taj became ISI head only a year ago (see 2007). [Australian, 9/29/2008] In March 2009, the New York Times will report that shortly after Asif Ali Zardari became president of Pakistan in September 2008 (see September 9, 2008), he faced accusations by the US that the ISI helped the militants bomb the Indian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan (see July 7, 2008 and July 28, 2008). Zardari promised that the ISI would be “handled” and anyone working with militants would be fired. This apparently led to the replacement of Taj and his assistants. The Indian embassy bombing occurred during Taj’s brief time as ISI director. However, the Times will also report that many US and even Pakistani officials have since complained that the ISI’s support for militants remains as strong as ever (see March 26, 2009). [New York Times, 3/26/2009] In October 2001, the US also successfully pressured Pakistan to replace its ISI director and several others because of their support for Islamist militants, only to see the replacements continue the same policy of supporting militants (see October 8, 2001).
Entity Tags: Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence, Nadeem Taj, Asif Ali Zardari, Ahmad Shuja Pasha
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, 2008 Kabul Indian Embassy Bombing, Counterterrorism Policy/Politics
Shortly Before October 1, 2008: FBI Denies Permission for Television Interview of Agents about Key Failure before 9/11
The FBI attempts to prevent two agents who were involved in a key pre-9/11 failure from talking about it in a television interview. The agents, Doug Miller and Mark Rossini, were on loan to Alec Station, the CIA’s bin Laden unit, before 9/11. They were involved in the deliberate blocking of a cable to the FBI saying that 9/11 hijacker Khalid Almihdhar had a US visa (see 9:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. January 5, 2000) and later, under pressure, falsely claimed not to remember anything about it when interviewed by the Justice Department’s inspector general (see (February 12, 2004)). The FBI allowed Miller and Rossini to be interviewed by author James Bamford for a book and they told him they helped block the cable on the orders of a female CIA officer known only as “Michael” and the station’s deputy chief, Tom Wilshire. However, when Bamford wants them to repeat their stories for a PBS documentary he is making, the FBI initially says yes, but then retracts its approval, saying the bureau “doesn’t want to stir up old conflicts with the CIA.” [Congressional Quarterly, 10/1/2008] However, Rossini will actually appear in the documentary, although Miller will not. [PBS, 2/3/2009]
Entity Tags: James Bamford, Mark Rossini, Doug Miller, Central Intelligence Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Category Tags: Alhazmi and Almihdhar, CIA Hiding Alhazmi & Almihdhar, 9/11 Investigations, Other 9/11 Investigations
October 3, 2008: Reporter Says Bin Laden Is Living in Pakistani Villa, Not a Cave; Source Is US Intelligence Officer
Christiane Amanpour on “Real Time With Bill Maher” on October 3, 2008. [Source: Real Time with Bill Maher]ABC News reporter Christiane Amanpour says that Osama bin Laden is living in a villa in Pakistan, not in a cave. She makes these comments as a guest on HBO’s Real Time With Bill Maher. She says: “I just talked to somebody very knowledgeable… [who] thinks that [bin Laden is] in a villa, a nice comfortable villa… in Pakistan. Not a cave.” After bin Laden’s death in an urban compound in May 2011 (see May 2, 2011), Amanpour will explain that she’d heard the information a short time earlier from a “US intelligence officer who had recently left a top position.” [ABC News, 5/3/2011]
Entity Tags: Christiane Amanpour, Osama bin Laden, US intelligence
Category Tags: Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, Hunt for Bin Laden in Pakistan
October 13, 2008: Pakistan Denies Role in Kabul Embassy Bombing, but Admits Link to ‘Bad Guys’ Who May Have Done It
Mahmud Ali Durrani, Pakistan’s national security adviser, visits India and meets with Indian officials. He tells them that neither the ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, nor any other part of the Pakistani government had a role in the bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, earlier this year (see July 7, 2008). The Indian government and other governments have blamed the ISI working with the Taliban for the bombing (see August 1, 2008). However, Durrani does admit, “We have some contacts with bad guys and perhaps one of them did it.” This comment is not made publicly, but it is mentioned in a US State Department cable about the meeting that is leaked by WikiLeaks in 2011. According to the cable, Durrani later repeats the comment to a US official. [Hindu, 5/20/2011]
Entity Tags: Mahmud Ali Durrani, Pakistan Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence
Category Tags: Pakistan and the ISI, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, 2008 Kabul Indian Embassy Bombing, Afghanistan
October 16, 2008: US Drone Strike Kills Al-Qaeda Leader Khalid Habib in Pakistan’s Tribal Region
A CIA drone kills al-Qaeda leader Khalid Habib. The drone strike hits the village of Taparghai, South Waziristan, in Pakistan’s tribal region. The CIA claims that Habib, an Egyptian, is the group’s fourth-ranking leader. Four people are said to be killed. It is said Habib became al-Qaeda’s chief of operations for the tribal region after Abu Ubaida al-Masri died from hepatitis around January 2008. [New York Times, 10/17/2008; Asia Times, 10/29/2008] Little had been previously reported on Habib. But in early 2007, a New York Times article listed him as one of a handful of important new al-Qaeda leaders, and the FBI called him “one of the five or six most capable, most experienced terrorists in the world.” [CBS News, 3/15/2007; New York Times, 4/2/2007] A drone strike failed to kill Habib in 2006 (see 2006).
Entity Tags: Khalid Habib, Abu Ubaida al-Masri, Al-Qaeda, Central Intelligence Agency
Category Tags: Key Captures and Deaths, Haven in Pakistan Tribal Region, Drone Use in Pakistan / Afghanistan, Counterterrorism Action After 9/11
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West Boylston 8, Burncoat 5
Friday, April 24, 2015, at West Boylston
Junior Jake White went 2 for 3 with an RBI double and two runs to power the Lions (4-2) past the visiting Patriots (0-6). West Boylston sophomore Alec Tata went 2 for 3 with a two-run double and classmate Tom Silva had two singles, an RBI and two runs. Burncoat's Seamus O'Connor went 3 for 4 with a homer and three runs and Yadiel Sanchez had an RBI double.
Burncoat 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 8 2
West Boylston 1 1 2 1 1 2 0 8 12 2
BUR — Seamus O’Connor, John Alicandro (2), Yadiel Sanchez (3), David Howard (6) and .Yadiel Sanchez and Jorge Nieves (4)
WB — James Masse, Andy Proietti (5) and Tom Silva
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NJC: Bonnie appearance on a new Axel Rudi Pell - Ballads V compilation
Danny 06:18 am MST 02/22/17
From Melodicrock.com:
AXEL RUDI PELL
" - New ballads album "The Ballads V" out April 21 -
- Digital single and video for "Love's Holding On" feat. Bonnie Tyler out March 31 -
In January 2016, just after its release, his most recent studio album 'Games of Sins' entered the charts in Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Austria, Czech Republic and for the first time in the UK. Now Bochum-based guitar wizard AXEL RUDI PELL has announced the arrival of his next offering: 'The Ballads V' is set to hit record stores and digital platforms on 21st April 2017 via Steamhammer/SPV. In true PELL tradition, part five of his successful ballad compilation series features a smooth balance between the past six years and some brand-new songs.
For the first time ever in his almost thirty-year career as a solo artist, AXEL RUDI PELL welcomes a special guest star on one of his albums: rock legend BONNIE TYLER has recorded a stunning duet with ARP's longtime singer Johnny Gioeli. AXEL RUDI PELL is justly proud of his new single 'Love's Holding On' (street date: 31st March 2017), saying: 'BONNIE TYLER only records songs she personally likes. So I wrote this tune just for her and she really loved it. She came to the studio and we recorded it within a couple of hours. The result is amazing – another soon-to-be PELL classic in the making. If I haadn't been a fan already, I would have turned into one instantly.'
Apart from another brand-new track called 'On The Edge Of Our Time', PELL has again risen to new challenges with his rocking version of the Ed Sheeran hit 'I See Fire' (known from the motion picture blockbuster 'The Hobbit'), which is an interesting take on one the best ballads in recent years. It shows that even hard rockers like PELL can have a sensitive side, and quite successfully at that.
The other seven tracks on 'The Ballads V' (among them a new take on Neil Young's 'Hey Hey My My', a live version of the Deep Purple classic 'Mistreated' and a previously unreleased live recording of his own fine ballad 'The Line'), present AXEL RUDI PELL at his best.
PELL has established himself as an outstanding rock star, having sold up to 1.5 million records worldwide. Since leaving the influential German metal outfit Steeler in 1989, he's been out there on his own, recording and touring with some of the finest vocalists from the world of rock music: Charlie Huhn (Ted Nugent, Gary Moore, Victory, Humble Pie, Foghat), Rob Rock (Impelliteri, Driver, Joshua, Avantasia), Jeff Scott Soto (Yngwie Malmsteen, Soul Sirkus, Talisman, Journey, Trans-Siberian Orchestra) and last but not least the mighty Johnny Gioeli, who has been working with Axel since 1997 (having been in Hardline before that, a project started by Journey guitar legend Neal Schon in 1991).
"The Ballads V" will be released on April 21st 2017 through SPV/Steamhammer as CD digipack (incl. poster), double gatefold purple vinyl, limited boxset (incl. CD digipack, powerbank, CD slim case single, sticker, photocard - Europe only), download and stream.
1) Love's Holding On 5:06 (new song feat. Bonnie Tyler)
2) I See Fire 6:02 (new cover version, Ed Sheeran song)
3) On The Edge Of Our Time 7:42 (new song)
4) Hey Hey My My 5:02
5) Lived Our Lives Before 6:31
6) When Truth Hurts 6:46
7) Forever Free 8:27
8) Lost In Love 6:05
9) The Line (live) 7:31 (previously unreleased)
10) Mistreated (live) 14:12
Live 2017:
14.06.D-Augsburg - Spectrum
15.06.D-St. Goarshausen - RockFels Festival
16.06.CH-Pratteln - Z7
17.06.B-Dessel - Graspop Metal Meeting
Tour Agency: www.continental-concerts.de
www.axel-rudi-pell.de
www.de-de.facebook.com/axelrudipellofficial
www.spv.de
www.facebook.com/steamhammerofficial
URL: LINK
Previous: Bat Out Of Hell Musical - Bass Guitarist VLOG - angie 07:29 am MST 02/22/17
Next: ITV behind the scenes clip - angie 04:04 pm MST 02/21/17
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Pre-Distributive Economics and Sufficiency for the Long Haul
« The Greening of Wal-Mart
Browse in Commons Diseconomy Economics Inequality
« The Missing Sector
Part I: Inequality, The Iatrogenic Spiral, and Systemic Diminishing Returns
The problem is that the explosive growth of the global economy has not brought a corresponding increase in global well being. To the contrary, in large degree the opposite has occurred.
In conventional economic terms, the gap between the well off and everyone else has broadened, both between countries and within individual ones. At the same time, the quest for this global expansion had brought about degradation of the habitat at an accelerating pace.
Whether or not these trends are necessary in theory, they have occurred in practice; and the inner dynamic of corporate globalism is such that they are not likely to change. That much is the accepted critique in the leftward camp. But the problem actually goes deeper. and this part is crucial. Increasingly the system is failing on its own terms. It is not delivering well being even to those it statistically benefits.
The reason is that much that goes under the euphemistic terms “growth” and “progress” actually is regress in statistical disguise. This goes far beyond the manufactured wants of the 1950s and ‘60s, of which John Kenneth Galbraith wrote. It goes beyond too the new research on human happiness, and how stuff does not increase it beyond a certain – and relatively modest – amount.
We are looking now at an economic process that creates actual pathologies that people then resort to more buying to solve. This is not a trip to the mall, however superfluous, however prompted by advertising, and however little it might add to actual happiness.
It is buying that most people gladly would forsake if they could, but which this thing we call “the economy” pretty much compels them to do.
For example, one of the fastest growing parts of the U.S. economy is medical care. Much of that growth in turn is a response to the epidemic of market-related disease in the form of cancer, obesity, stress and the like. Create the problem and then sell a remedy for it.
This is not economy but diseconomy – prosperity with an ironic twist. It is an iatrogenic spiral that is playing out in an ever-enlarging swath of the economy at large.
The thing we most need is need itself; and it is the thing the US now produces most prolifically and best. We are paying a toll not just in individual health, but also in the breakdown of the social economy that serves needs the corporate market can’t. Community breakdown has become systemic; as have, paradoxically, loneliness and isolation in this most wired age. Stress has become the trademark affliction of an age of unmatched prosperity as reckoned in conventional terms.
Ecological depletion increasingly is matched by a psychological and social kind. All of this complicates the challenge of addressing inequality, and in a fundamental way. The presumed remedy, for much of the last century, has been to grow the economy faster. This, along with redistributive policy, would bring prosperity to the masses and solve whatever ailed the middle class.
But built-in problems of distribution aside, the old theory can’t work, because an increase of economic dysfunction just means more of it. The actual content of the economy no longer corresponds to the tendentious abstractions used to describe it. Increasingly goods are no longer good and services no longer serve. A redistribution of illth isn’t doing anyone any favors.
This is a problem for which conventional economic reasoning has no answers, because that reasoning has no way even to cognize it. There is not even a language – no term for illth for example — in the textbook script. The possibility that monetary expenditures can be anything but benign does not exist. There are externalities, which are unfortunate consequences for those not party to a transaction. But there is no corresponding concept of internalities; which is to say, unfortunate consequences for the buyer him or her self.
This is something new in the history of market economics – namely, systemic diminishing returns. It is not just a particular product or industry that is reaching the limits of its own utility, but the system as a whole. This goes way beyond inequality of distribution to the nature of that which is to be distributed more adequately.
Statist remedies are no more an answer than are the conventional liberal ones, because those have delivered the worst of both worlds – material inadequacy, mal-distribution, and externality up the kazoo. They are a worse path to the old goal rather than a better path to a new one. The old question was whether to have more or less government. Ultimately it went to the ownership of the means of production.
The new question goes deeper, to the nature of production in an era in which need itself is the engine that drives the economy onward, with grim consequences for the earth and for those who inhabit it.
Production of the traditional kind must continue of course. But more and more there is a parallel need not to produce in the conventional sense; but rather to rely more on the innate productivity of nature and society outside of both market and governmental structures. At the same time there is a need to turn that natural productivity into a means of sustenance for the most needy, as well as greater well being for all.
It sounds contradictory, even absurd. It is that, given the assumptions and strictures of conventional economic thought. But once those yield, new things become possible. It becomes possible for example to introduce a new/old kind of property into the economic script — common property, which is neither public nor private in the conventional sense.
Property is not neutral. Different kinds of property are encoded to achieve different results. Common property can be encoded in a way that helps reconcile what appear to be the conflicting aims of greater adequacy for the poor and husbandry of the habitat for the long haul. It can start to replace the diseconomy of illth with a new kind of productivity. The result can be an economy that helps to replenish psychological and social resources rather than continually depleting them.
Part II The Commons Wealth Solution
A. Inequality or Something Else?
Inequality is not the problem in and of itself. If Jack makes twice as much as Joe does, or even ten times as much, that is not a problem for Joe so long as Joe and his family have enough, and so long as their lives are not worse because Jack and others like him have so much more.
But too many Joes of the world do not have enough; and contrary to the accepted view, the increasing gap between the Jacks and themselves makes it less likely that the inadequacy will be erased. The gap leads moreover to a host of pathologies even for those who are not deprived in material terms.
There are many manifestations, from the malfunctioning of democracy to an erosion of individual health. Perhaps most basic is the broken feedback loop that diminishes the possibility that such problems will be addressed. When those of greatest influence are cut off from the problems they create for the rest of us, those problems are likely to persist.
The inconvenience of capital gains taxes has been the object of much legislative solicitude in recent years. The problem of usurious credit card interest rates for ordinary Americans has gotten just about none. Estate taxes have been the object of incessant whining and wailing. The lack of an estate – taxable or otherwise – on the part of a majority of Americans, gets little attention if any.
This is broken feedback, and a symptom of what happens when the gap between the most influential persons in a society and everyone else becomes too endemic and large. To put this another way, the reason to address inequality is not gratuitous leveling or class envy. The aim is sufficiency for all rather than absolute equality; and also social and ecological health of a kind that has legs for the long haul.
B. Redistribution vs Pre-distribution
There is a pervasive belief that the concept of social supports took root in the US during the New Deal. In some quarters, this belief comes with an angry corollary; namely that the result was dependency and servitude that have afflicted the national character ever since.
This is total myth. Systemic social supports go back to the first New England colonies, and beyond that to the England from which those settlers came. But these were different from the New Deal version, because economic circumstances were different. They were based not on the redistribution of income, but rather on the pre-distribution of the wealth – common wealth – from which the entire society drew.
In other words, provision for the needy was built into the prevailing notions of property itself. In England it took the form of the commons, which was the portion of the domain available to those who were not owners for agriculture, hunting, fishing, foraging and the like. This was not a handout but rather a traditional right for the property-less to obtain their sustenance through their own toil.
The early colonists brought a version of this system with them to the New World. It was not common field agriculture, but rather the conviction that forests, streams, waterfronts and the like were to some degree common for purposes of sustenance, even if a private owner held legal title to them. This was not the view of a radical fringe. James Madison introduced the bill in the Virginia state legislature that declared unfenced forests a commons for this purpose.
Vestiges of this view persisted to some degree. The Morrill Act for example dedicated specific portions of the public domain to the support of land grant colleges. But on the whole the role of the commons declined, and not always for admirable reasons. In the South for example the woodland commons had supported the slaves during their long bondage. After emancipation the white ruling class sought to re-subordinate the former slaves by closing that commons and thereby take away a source of their economic independence.
But the main reason was that the nation became urban, and no one ever figured out how to translate the traditional economic role of the commons to an urban setting. The New Deal was in part a gesture in this direction. As John Kenneth Galbraith pointed out, the New Deal really was a belated response to urbanization. On the farm families had a built-in safety net. When the cash economy crashed there was a measure of self-sufficiency. There also was a refuge for those from the city \who had fallen on hard times. (One sees this today in a country such as the Philippines.)
But as fewer Americans lived on the farm or had parents who did, this safety net ceased to exist. The financial supports of the New Deal were a rough substitute. But they went only so far. They filled in to some degree for the family farm; but they didn’t replace the common woodland that stood beyond it. There was a redistribution of income; but not much by way of pre-distribution of common wealth.
This is the unfinished business, and something the Founders of this country – the more reflective ones at least – knew was coming. As William Appleman Williams points out in The Contours of American History, Madison brooded over the problem of economic equity in a republic. The West would provide an outlet of opportunity; hence the crucial role of expansion in their general outlook. But what would happen when that space filled up?
Madison knew that expansion merely put off the day of reckoning. But there was no other answer, at least within the framework of the Founders’ thought. (Thomas Paine had some thoughts on the subject.) This is a main reason that the closing of the frontier a century later was so traumatic. Now, the closing of the ecological frontier a century after that, combined with the systemic diminishing returns of the corporate market, and its gradual descent into an iatrogenic spiral, have made the solution of that conundrum not only imperative, but also – unlikely as this may seem – more possible.
C. Pre-Distributive Economics
1. Monetized Common Wealth
a. Atmosphere and other natural resources – income from conservation
b. Site values, parking space and other social resources – recapture of socially-created value
c. Copyrights, patents, airwaves — replenish the common pool.
2. Direct Sustenance from the Natural Commons —
a. Hunting and fishing,
b. Community gardens
3. Direct Sustenance from the Social Commons
a. Time Dollars and reciprocal exchange
b. Neighborhoods, main streets and the social synergies of design
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The King Is Dead
If you know the name Carlos Figueroa, you’re probably a New England racing fan. The trainer most associated with the defunct Massachusetts fair circuit died at age 88 on Tuesday at his home in Salem, New Hampshire. He had been recently ill. “His wife, Pearl, reportedly went to wake him, but could not.”
You could call Figueroa “colorful” — he had a flair for attracting attention wherever he went. Lynne Snierson passes along a characteristic story:
[Michael] Blowen, who labored in the barn for two years without ever seeing a paycheck, has many fond memories of his former mentor and holds him close in his heart.
“We have a horse here at Old Friends named Summer Atttraction, who I think just turned 23, that I owned. Carlos ran him as a 2-year-old in a two-furlong maiden race at Suffolk Downs in a four-horse field in 1997 on a big day. One of the other horses was owned by Jim Moseley (Suffolk’s late track owner and a prominent owner and breeder) and that horse cost over $200,000. Summer Attraction, whom I paid $5,000 for, won.
“So Carlos decided to next run him at Saratoga in the Sanford (G3). The race came up so tough that Favorite Trick (eventual 2-year-old champion and 1997 Horse of the Year) scratched out of it.
“In the paddock, the reporters all wanted to talk to Carlos even though Nick Zito, Wayne Lukas, and the other big-time trainers were there with their horses. Carlos told them, ‘If my horse wins, they’re going to rename the race Sanford & Son.’ My horse ran two furlongs and stopped cold. That story sums up The King.”
Blowen* captured Figueroa for the Boston Globe in 1982:
Trainer Carlos Figueroa, wearing a panama hat and a red polo shirt, is standing on top of a yellow tractor on the infield shouting at the top of his lungs, “Quatro, quatro, quatro,” as the horses in the eighth race at the Three County Fair in Northampton turn for home.
This is no ordinary race. It is the second leg of the Lancer’s Triple Crown, a series of races running from late August through late September that is as important to Figueroa as the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont are to Woody Stevens. And the horseman is trying to scream home his entry, Icy Defender, No. 4.
“Of course this race is important,” said Figueroa, as he strolled through the backstretch earlier that morning. “It’s the Triple Crown of the fairs. But I’m not in it for the money, I want the fame. Fame.”
Figueroa, who looks as if he could play Juan Peron in “Evita,” won the first leg two weeks earlier at the Marshfield Fair with Cheers n’ Tears, a 5-year-old who worked his way down the Suffolk Downs claiming ladder from $6500 on the Fourth of July to $3000 on Aug. 9. He received his trophy and had his picture taken by the track photographer just a few hours before the lady mud wrestlers and fireworks display took over the infield.
“I like records,” he said, while checking Cheers n’ Tears’ foreleg. “That’s why I want to win today. I have two horses in the race — this one and Icy Defender. I want to be the first one to win the Triple Crown.”
It was a horse named Shannon’s Hope that made Figueroa’s legend. Robert Temple tells the story in his book “The Pilgrims Would Be Shocked“:
… in 1963 Figueroa entered … Shannon’s Hope a total of eight times in 13 days and won five straight at distances from about 5 furlongs to about 6 1/2 furlongs.
The saga of Shannon’s Hope began August 12 when he finished fifth at the Weymouth Fair. The next day he finished third and two days later he was fourth. Then Shannon’s Hope began his hot streak. He won closing day at Weymouth on August 17 and moved to the Marshfield Fair on August 20 where he was a five length winner. He then won at Marshfield on three successive days (August 22-24) by a total of nine lengths.
Talk about durability. Shannon’s Hope ran a total of 309 races, winning 29 of them for total winnings of $39,848. When I asked Figueroa … why he entered Shannon’s Hope so often he replied, “He just like to run, run, run.”
In 1999, the trainer was suspended by the Suffolk Downs stewards for 90 days and fined $500 after a horse named Watral’s Winnebug tested positive for cocaine. The suspension was later shortened to 45 days by the state racing commission. Figueroa defended his innocence, telling the Globe:
“I know how to train horses,” said Figueroa, who was represented by attorney Frank McGee. “I don’t need cocaine to make horses run. I’m a good horse trainer. Cocaine is no good to me. Horses run on good food, a good trainer, and a good jockey.”
The state racing commission cited his reputation and record — he had never been suspended before — as a reason for reducing his days. “I don’t think he had anything to to do with [the positive],” said one of the commissioners.
Figueroa, “a fixture at Suffolk since the 1950s,” started his last horse at the East Boston track on November 13, 2010. His career stats on Equibase only go back to 1976 — between that year and his retirement, he won 846 races from 9,841 starts, earning more than $4.1 million.
T.D. Thornton remembers:
For anyone who knew Figueroa at Rockingham Park and Suffolk Downs, the two main tracks at which he was stabled for decades, conversations with “King Carlos” often involved being shouted at in heavily accented English while trying to avoid his wildly gesticulating arms. He was forever phoning the Suffolk press box with good-natured demands for publicity and press coverage, and Figueroa liked to regale anyone who would listen with outlandish, difficult-to-document claims, like the time he allegedly singled all the winners in the very first Pick Six in the country when Rockingham offered the bet in the 1960s.
Here’s one more story:
When I announced Carlos won Trainer of the Week at Suffolk he called me and said "I am the trainer of the century!" https://t.co/O2uGiN22sj
— Larry Collmus (@larrycollmus) January 3, 2017
*In a 2000 column for the Globe, Blowen’s wife, Diane White, recounts the deal Figueroa made with him when he went to work for the trainer:
“You are a student at Figueroa University,” he told Michael, “and you are on scholarship.”
Posted by JC in Racing on 01/04/2017 @ 12:44 pm / Tagged Carlos Figueroa, Fairs, Massachusetts, New England, New Hampshire, RIP, Rockingham Park, Suffolk Downs, Trainers / Follow @railbird on Twitter
← ICYMI: Reading Racing 2016 Perry Martin’s HOTY Speech →
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Synthesis of multimetallic nanocomposite materials utilizing block copolymers.
SYNTHESIS OF MULTIMETALLIC NANOCOMPOSITE MATERIALS UTILIZING BLOCK
COPOLYMERS
Laura B. Sessions
Professor Robert B. Grubbs (chair)
Professor Jane E.G. Lipson
Professor Robert Ditchfield
Professor Thomas A. Spencer
Professor Todd Emrick
Call No. QD382.B5 S47 2006
Author Sessions, Laura B.
Title Synthesis of multimetallic nanocomposite materials utilizing block copolymers.
Abstract Nanocomposite materials containing both gold and cobalt were synthesized using block copolymers as agents for controlling spatial organization of the nanoparticles. The targeted polymers are polystyrene- block -poly(alkyne-functional)styrene copolymers where the alkyne groups were specific for incorporation of cobalt carbonyl, a precursor for cobalt nanoparticles. Cobalt-composite materials utilized diblock copolymers made by nitroxide-mediated polymerization (NMP), but extensive investigation revealed participation of the alkyne-functional groups in this polymerization method. By using polymerization solvent and low conversions, NMP could be used to make the desired diblock copolymers. A post-polymerization modification route utilizing NMP polymers of 4-bromostyrene with Sonogashira coupling of terminal alkynes to yield the desired polymers was therefore investigated. Successful coupling was obtained with room temperature conditions for terminal alkynes, 1-hexyne and phenylacetylene, on homopolymers with low molecular weight. Phenylacetylene was also successfully coupled on homopolymers of high molecular weight (up to 70 kg/mol) and multiblock copolymers. Finally, this class of diblock copolymers was extended by inclusion of a thiol endgroup, from synthesis by reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization (RAFT), allowing attachment to gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and thereby creating the possibility for inclusion of multiple metals in these systems. Gold nanoparticles were synthesized in situ from hydrogen tetrachloroaurate using thiol endgroups on the RAFT diblock copolymers and superhydride as reducing agent. Ex situ syntheses using blends of diblock copolymers with pre-made gold nanoparticles were also investigated. After incorporation of cobalt carbonyl into the gold-composite materials by formation of cobalt carbonyl adducts with pendant alkyne groups in one block of the polymer, carbon monoxide ligands were removed by solvothermolysis or thermolysis in thin films to yield cobalt nanoparticles or elemental cobalt species. Gold-cobalt nanoparticles formed by solvothermolysis showed magnetic response despite residual carbon monoxide ligands. Gold-cobalt nanocomposites formed by thermolysis in film had organization from the polymer, but were not magnetic.
Description xi, 195 leaves : ill. (some col.) 28 cm.
Advisor Robert B. Grubbs
Subject Block copolymers. Nanostructured materials -- Synthesis. Metallic composites -- Synthesis.
College Dartmouth College -- Department of Chemistry.
Full Text SYNTHESIS OF MULTIMETALLIC NANOCOMPOSITE MATERIALS UTILIZING BLOCK COPOLYMERS A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry by Laura B. Sessions DARTMOUTH COLLEGE Hanover, New Hampshire October 20, 2006 ____________________________ Charles K. Barlowe, Ph.D. Dean of Graduate Studies Examining Committee: ________________________________ Professor Robert B. Grubbs (chair) ________________________________ Professor Jane E.G. Lipson ________________________________ Professor Robert Ditchfield ________________________________ Professor Thomas A. Spencer ________________________________ Professor Todd Emrick
Synthesis of multimetallic nanocomposite materials...
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Life Story Funeral Home®, Traverse City
We’ve Moved! 400 Hammond Road West
Life Story Experience
Planning & Costs
Traverse City, MI
Life Story / Obituary
Visitation / Service / Other
Contributions & Flowers
Poetry & Eulogies
//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/01a/126519/126519-00.jpg
Carolyn Johnson Lewis, 66, died peacefully at home on March 24th from dementia related complications. Born in Traverse City on January 30, 1953, she was the second child of Mary and Walter Johnson. She was graduated from Traverse City Central High School in 1971 and set out, as she said, “to see the world.” Those travels took her to Minnesota and then to Long Island, New York where she continued her education at Suffolk County Community College. Having moved to Brooklyn, New York, she finished her undergraduate degree in creative writing in the Gallatin Division of New York University in 1984. She married Stephen Lewis in 1986 and finished her law degree from the Touro Law Center on Long Island in 1988 while nine months pregnant with their daughter Danielle.
She was a legal editor for West Publishing, but after Danielle was born, she worked from home as a freelance editor for both legal and creative writing. During this time, she provided her father materials describing the purchase of development rights from farmers program that had been instituted in Suffolk County where she then lived. Her father used those materials to help establish a similar program now in place in Peninsula Township.
In January 2002, after her husband had retired, and in response to her desire to return to her roots, the family moved to Old Mission near her parents, siblings, and their families. Moving back to Old Mission responded to one of her passions, her love for that place, and its history. Her attraction to Old Mission extended to its history, particularly that of its original Native American inhabitants as well as the settlers, including her own family, who followed. Introduced by her father to the OMP Historical Society, she wrote for its newsletter, expanded the Log Cabin Day festivities at the Hessler Log House in Lighthouse Park at the tip of the Peninsula to include additional craft presenters, pushed to have the lighthouse open to visitors that day, and advocated for the restoration of the Dougherty Mission House, a project dear to her father’s heart.
She loved the landscape of the Peninsula, picking up interesting objects on her walks, such as odd-shaped stones or occasionally an ancient farm implement such as the oxen yoke now sitting on a shelf in her living room. She was also an avid gardener, hiring a landscape designer to beautify her property and then maintaining the planting beds. She fed the birds and kept an eye out for the occasional deer roaming the property or hawk in the sky.
Always stubbornly independent, if not willful, she overcame any obstacles. Afraid of heights, she built up her nerve so she could fly. Gentle and accommodating on the outside, her inner self was steel as anybody who crossed her or her family soon discovered. Of a curious mind, she dreamed of visiting China even while her heart remained always in Old Mission where she grew up as a farmgirl , owning her own horse, and helping on the farm by becoming the first woman cherry shaker driver on the Peninsula.
Because she was an intensely visual person, she was a serious photographer and collector of prints for her walls. Her chief passion, however, was the printed word. She told how when she was young, and having been sent out by her father on some farm chore, she would be found underneath a tree reading a book. She grew up to be a gifted writer herself, incorporating that visual imagination, and winning awards for her short stories, planning a novel based on the French fur traders, and doing immense research on Sarah Lane, the first woman keeper of Mission Point Light, projects which her early onset disease prevented her from completing.
In recognition of her writing life, a reading of her works is being planned for later this spring.
She is survived by her husband Stephen, daughter Danielle Lewis of Minnesota, stepdaughters, Kerri Levy and Tracy Abramson of New York, mother Mary Johnson, brothers Dean and Ward Johnson, and sister Jane Boursaw of Traverse City.
They, and others whose paths crossed her, will cherish her memory.
Please visit www.lifestorytc.com to sign the guestbook and share your thoughts and memories with the family.
©2019 LifeStoryNet, LLC
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in Business, Economy, Featured, News, Politics, US News, World News
Today, the European Union and the United States delivered on a significant element of the Joint Statement agreed by Presidents Juncker and Trump in July 2018. The positive transatlantic trade agenda established in the Joint Statement includes a commitment from both sides to reduce barriers and increase trade in a range of sectors, including pharmaceuticals.
The recognition today by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of Slovakia, the last outstanding EU Member State, marks the full implementation of the EU-U.S. Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) for inspections of manufacturing sites for human medicines in their respective territories. This can make it faster and less costly for both sides to bring medicines to the market.
Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis, in charge of Health and Food Safety said: “The completion of the Mutual Recognition Agreement is not only a step forward in the trade relations between the EU and the U.S., but it will also ensure high quality medicines for the benefit of patients. It means that, on both sides of the Atlantic, the authorities in charge of medicines can now rely on inspections results to replace their own inspections. Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has completed the capability assessments of the 28 EU competent authorities, the result of five years of close transatlantic cooperation”.
US to sanction Turkey over S-400
South Africa Confirms Plans to Block Extradition of Ex-Mozambique Finance Minister
The US Should Not See Europe as a Competitor
This Mutual Recognition Agreement is underpinned by robust evidence that the EU and the U.S. have comparable procedures to carry out good manufacturing practice inspections for human medicines.
Together, Europe and the United States account for more than 80% of global sales of new medicines. As a result of the full implementation of this agreement, both the industry and public authorities on both sides will be able to free resources that could be used to inspect facilities in other large producing countries.
The pharmaceutical industry is a strategic sector in which EU-U.S. regulatory cooperation is much more advanced than in most other sectors. Since May 2014, teams from the European Commission, EU national competent authorities, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have been auditing and assessing the respective supervisory systems. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has now assessed positively all national competent authorities of the EU.
From now on, the batch testing waiver will also start to apply. This means that the qualified persons in the EU pharmaceutical company will be relieved of their task for carrying out the quality controls when carried out already in the United States.
The Mutual Recognition Agreement implementation work will continue with view to expanding the operational scope to veterinary medicines, human vaccines and plasma derived medicinal products.
In 1998, the EU and the U.S. signed a broad Mutual Recognition Agreement, which included a Pharmaceutical Annex providing for anticipated and limited reliance on each other’s Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) inspections.
2017 marked the entry into operation of the agreement between the EU and the U.S. to recognise inspections of manufacturing sites for human medicines conducted in their respective territories. This agreement strengthens reliance upon each other’s inspection expertise and resources. Initially it applied between the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and those EU Member States that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration had assessed. This has been gradually extended to all EU countries and now the regulatory authorities in all 28 EU Member States were recognised by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Meanwhile, the EU made the same determination about U.S. Food and Drug
Source: Europa
Tags: European UnionFoodJunckerTrumpUnited States
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Math Central - mathcentral.uregina.ca
— glossaries Resource Room
Mathematics Glossary - Middle Years
Maxine Stinka, Saskatchewan Education, Curriculum and Instruction
Note: The definitions included here are those that are used in the Saskatchewan Education document "Mathematics 6-9: A Curriculum Guide for the Middle Level".
Various mathematics dictionaries may have different definitions. These definitions are designed to be meaningful to middle level mathematics teachers.
Select the first letter of the term that you wish to look for.
A | B | C | D | E | F | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
the first element in a coordinate pair. When graphed in the coordinate plane, it is the distance from the y-axis. Frequently called the x coordinate.
an angle whose measure is between 0o and 90o.
acute triangle
a triangle with three acute angles.
additive inverses
two numbers whose sum is 0.
adjacent angles
two angles that share a vertex and a common side between them but have no interior points in common.
< ABC and < CBD are adjacent.
a step-by-step procedure for carrying out computation.
alternate angles
two angles that are in opposite locations when lines are cut by a transversal. If the angles are between the lines, they are called alternate interior angles; if they are outside the lines, they are called alternate exterior angles. If the lines are parallel, the alternate angles are congruent.
c and f
d and e
a and h
b and g
length from the uppermost point of a triangle to the line opposite.
associative property
when performing an operation on three or more numbers, the result is unchanged by the way the numbers are grouped. Addition and multiplication of numbers are associative since a+(b+c)=(a+b)+c and (ab)c=a(bc).
i.e. 6 + (7 + 9) = (6 + 7) + 9 and (4 x 3) x 5 = 4 x (3 x 5).
Subtraction and division are not associative.
i.e. (8 / 4) / 2 and 8 / (4 / 2) are not equal.
axis (axes)
the horizontal and vertical lines that form the quadrants of the coordinate plane. The horizontal axis is usually called the x-axis. The vertical axis is usually called the y-axis.
base of a triangle
any side of a triangle.
points of reference used in estimation.
e.g. The square corner on a piece of paper can be used as a benchmark when estimating angle measures.
a polynomial consisting of two terms.
e.g. 3x2 - 8
bisector of an angle
a segment or ray that divides an angle into 2 congruent angles.
bisector of a line segment
a point, segment, ray or line that divides a line segment into 2 congruent segments.
box-and-whiskers plot
a type of graph used in data management particularly useful in showing the spread of the distribution of the data.
broken-line graph
a type of graph used in data management where the data points are joined by line segments.
Questions or comments about the glossary can be directed to TheCentralizer@MathCentral.uregina.ca or see About Us page for more information.
Math Central is supported by the University of Regina and the Imperial Oil Foundation.
about math central :: site map :: links :: notre site français
* Registered trade mark of Imperial Oil Limited. Used under license.
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Forklift Elevator-Borderline
Self-Release/Indpendent
It looks as if I'm on a Italian kick today as first there was one-woman occult/doom rock project Psychedelic Witchcraft and now we've got the heavy metal act Forklift Elevator. While the first one is inspired by groups such as Jefferson Airplane, Fleetwood Mac, Iron Butterfly, and Coven this band lists the likes of Pantera, Black Label Society, Lamb of God, Rammstein, Korn, and System of a Down as their influences. There is one connection between both of these Italian bands though and that would be the mutual influence of one Black Sabbath. Both Psychedelic Witchcraft and Forklift Elevator owe a debt to the English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, but let's be honest here and just say that there are LOTS of bands that would fall into that category! It's simply a curious notion that one particular band (in this instance it's Tony Iommi's band) could have such wide-ranging impact. Not that it's all that important to the issue at hand. It's just curious. Anyway, as we are here today to talk about the self-produced "Borderline" let's jump on into that fire!. Forklift Elevator's first full-length album is available on Soundcloud and on the group's official website and for a group that began life in 2009 as a cover band it sure seems as if they've come quite a ways! These days Mirco Maniero (rhythm guitarist) and Enrico M. Martin (lead vocalist) are all that remain of the original line-up, but given the chemistry that members Stefano Segato (lead guitar, backing vocals), Marco Daga (bass) and Andrea Segato (drums) bring to the party everything about "Borderline" is right as rain! What exactly are we looking at then when it comes to "Borderline"? With influences as wide flung as Black Sabbath and Pantera (by way of the nu metal band Korn it should be noted!) this one particular slab of metal has a nu metal thrash vibe going for it and my friends it most certainly IS better in person than it is on paper! The band's sound works because it's foundation is built out of legit metal riffs as made popular by the likes of Black Sabbath, (early) Metallica, Slayer and Motörhead. That being said, Forklift Elevator could stand to adopt more of the lead guitar work of said bands. Mirco Maniero's rhythm guitar seems to get most of the action and these five musicians would benefit a great deal by focusing more of their attention on the Lamb of God and Black Label Society influences and less on the Korn and System of a Down! Or at least that would be my preference as I always prefer ripping leads over heavy riffage. Both styles have their place in heavy metal and it's likely that Forklift Elevator are more geared towards their sound for a reason. As they are already working on a new album that is scheduled for release in the second half of 2016 maybe, just maybe that will be a fortunate change for the band. Either way I like what I hear on "Borderline" and I'm board this band's rock train as they roll on out of the station and make their way down the line. Now backed by Atomic Stuff Promotion, Forklift Elevator have every-chance in the world to make-it or break-it. That ball is in their corner so we'll just see what their next move is....
Labels: 2015, Atomic Stuff Promotions, Forklift Elevator, heavy/thrash metal, Italy, nu metal, self-release
posted by Andy at 1:30 PM
Psychedelic Witchcraft-Black Magic Man
Pendulous-A Palpable Sense of Love & Loss
Insect Ark-Portal/Well
Inside Metal: Pioneers Of L.A. Hard Rock And Metal...
The Golers-South Mountain Style
Bad Touch-Half Way Home
Tony Tears-Follow The Signs Of The Times
Raging Dead-Born In Rage
LostPray-That's Why
Free Metal Monday: CrashDollz-CrashDollz
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Rear Window; thriller-drama, USA, 1954; D: Alfred Hitchcock, S: James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey, Thelma Ritter, Raymond Burr
Photographer L.B. Jefferies broke his left leg and from there on spends the days in a wheelchair, bored and alone in his apartment. But the next week his orthopedic cast is finally going to get removed and his girlfriend Lisa visits him. One night he wakes up because he heard a scream and spots his neighbor Torwald through the window, having an argument with his wife. The next day, the wife is gone while Torwald is chopping something with an axe. He hires a detective, but he doesn't discover anything. Jefferies realizes that he killed her, but needs evidence. By luring Torwald outside, Jefferies' nurse examines the soil and Lisa his apartment. Torwald captures her and goes on to attack Jefferies, who flashes him with his flashbulbs. The police arrests Torwald, while Jefferies falls out of the window. Case solved, but now he has two broken legs.
"Rear Window" is one of the reason why Alfred Hitchcock is remembered even today, and why he should be more considered as the 'master of experiment' than the 'master of suspense', whereas he even announced how he considers it one of his favorite films. "Window" is quite frankly a subtle ode to voyeurism, a story set around the hero, Jefferies (very good James Stewart), who never leaves his room throughout the entire film (!) - except for a few scenes towards the end - from which he observes his neighbors through the window, which is why his perspective becomes the movie's only perspective, and in some other director's hands this could have turned out boring, even monotone, but in Hitchcock's hands it was transformed into a simple murder mystery that intrigues. He has sense for subtle details in the exposition in which he shows the orthopedic cast of the hero that has a signature stating: "Here lie the broken bones" or even the photo of the formula in the sole moment of the crash. Hitchcock again toys with the audience because he doesn't explicitly show the murder, but just how Jefferies saw something through the window at night, and the camera doesn't even leave the apartment when Lisa goes on to sneak in into the apartment of the suspicious neighbor, who is shown on the other window, right next to her. Because of such distanced approach, the story brings the viewers to want to engage in it more. It's a occasionally stiff and not that suspenseful, but well developed thriller. It was nominated for an Oscar (best director, screenplay, sound and cinematography), for a BAFTA (best film) while it won the New York Film Critics Circle Award (best actress Grace Kelly).
The End of Violence
The Rhythm of Crime
Not One Less
Shanghai Triad
The Story of Qiu Ju
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie
Chariots of Fire
The Thing Called Love
A Very Long Engagement
What's Eating Gilbert Grape?
The Sheltering Sky
Last Tango in Paris
The Ninth Circle
Left Luggage
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“The Decision” made!
The big question behind this site that we’ve been trying to figure out over the last nine months is “do we stay here in Tennessee for the rest of our lives, or uproot and make the move to live near Disney World?” In a previous post, I mentioned the plan we had come up with gave us five years to answer that question.
Way ahead of schedule… we’ve made “the decision”!
Keep in mind the question has never been “do we want to move to Disney?” The answer to that has always been a resounding “yes!” The real question was “are we going to do it or not?” The five-year plan mentioned in that previous post was all about trying to make the decision on whether to stay or move easier. We thought using our brains and doing smart things like getting our house in shape and saving money would give us clarity as to whether this dream was something we should pursue.
But as the song says, “a dream is a wish your heart makes”. And after nine months of discussions, reading blogs by people who made the move, watching videos from locals at the parks, looking at houses in the area, and generally just imagining our lives there, we’ve come to an unmistakable conclusion.
We really want to live close to the magic for the rest of our lives — and we’re going to make it happen!
While our brains may be able to help get us there, it was our hearts that had to make the decision.
So where do we go from here? Well for starters, this blog is now about our journey to get to Orlando! Our deadline of trying to make a decision by 2022 has become when we want to be there by! And we now have a lot of work to do!
Using that date as a goal we only have three years to get there. That may seem like forever — and it does feel that way when we’re watching our favorite Disney vloggers spending a warm evening at Disney Springs while we’re freezing up here in Tennessee! But in terms of doing those smart things mentioned above we need to pick up our pace. We have three fairly big projects we want to get done to prepare the house for sale. And they aren’t going to be cheap! That means we may only be able to do one of them each year. If you’re doing the math, that gives us no wiggle room at all!
We’re also going to be making our very first research trip next month! We’re obviously not going to be looking at houses at this point — or even specific neighborhoods yet. Our goal for this trip is to get a feel for the different areas around the parks: what they’re like, how the typical houses in our price range compare, traffic conditions, what’s nearby, etc. Looking at individual houses on Trulia is fun and somewhat useful, but seeing the area around the house is something we can’t really do online. Another thing difficult to judge from here is commute times to the parks. Online map estimates are very inconsistent, so getting to drive the actual roads to see for ourselves will be so helpful. And just getting a general sense of the layout of everything will make our later online searches that much more meaningful.
Something else we need to look into that we haven’t really considered much is what else is out there besides Disney that might be of interest to future locals? In the limited amount of time available during vacations, we immerse ourselves in the magic. Which means not leaving the property unless necessary. So beginning to figure out what other options the Orlando area has to offer is also on the agenda. While Disney may be the reason we’re coming, our entire life won’t revolve around the mouse, will it…!?
We made the (painful!) decision not to visit a park while there. It would just be too distracting and we need to work. That doesn’t mean there will be no time for fun. We’ll definitely be hitting Disney Springs. We have to at least take a monorail ride. And reservations at Whispering Canyon Cafe have already been made! But not spending any of the few days we’ll be in town at a park will help us keep focused on the research we need to do.
If you can’t tell, we’re very excited! Making this decision ended up being easy, but now comes the really hard parts: the work to make it a reality… and the wait!
« Virtual house hunting Research trip #1 »
Moving to Disney
My name is James and I live in Tennessee with my wife and two high school aged children.
We are at the very beginning stage of making a life-altering choice — do we stay here in Tennessee for the rest of our lives, or uproot and make the move to live near Disney World?
We really don't know what our final decision will be at this point. But you're welcome to join us on our journey... wherever it leads!
Hear from other people
who have made the move!
WDW Radio
Living by Disney
The Castle Run
The Brookhart Project
WDW at Reddit
Moving to Orlando
james@whitson.email
Original content © 2018- MovingToDisney.com
All other copyrights belong to their respective owners.
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A December 24, 1878 Lease provided that in reciprocity for rent-free tenancy in a city-built Central Park building [the initial building was 60,000 sq. ft. while today the Museum occupies 2,000,000+ sq. ft. of sprawling, inter-connected buildings], the Museum must provide free of charge admission to New Yorkers as follows:
FOURTHLY. That the exhibition halls of said building shall on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday of each week, and on all legal and public holidays except Sundays, be kept open and accessible to the public1 free of charge from ten o’clock AM until half an hour before sunset under such rules and regulations as [the Museum] shall form time to time prescribe; but on the remaining days of the week the same shall be only open for exhibition to such persons and upon such terms as [the Museum] shall from time to time direct. But all professors and teachers of the public schools of the City of New York or other institutions of learning in said City in which instruction is given free of charge shall be admitted to all the advantages offered by [the Museum] through its Museum, library, apparatus and collections or otherwise, for study, research, and investigation, free of any charge therefore, and to the same extent and on the same terms and conditions as any other persons are admitted to such advantages as aforesaid. [emphasis added]
1 Given the timeframe of 1878 and the exclusion for schools of the City of New York to special use, while respecting that passage was by the NY State legislature, at best the “public”, in FA’s view, is the “State” of New York and at the least, the “City” of New York.
Founders of the Museum were Sunday Sabbath worshippers and, accordingly, provided for Sunday closure in the original 1878 Lease. However, the “working class” New Yorker wanted worthwhile [non-work day] access and so they campaigned for Sunday and evening openings. [At the time, the press reported on this campaign calling it “the Sunday Question”.] In 1892, Ch. 419, of the Law of New York State providing year-round free admission passed the legislature. However, Museum founders feared the City would fail to budget enough dollars for its operations, and in 1893 sought legislative relief to permit it to charge an admission fee two days in the week. Ch. 476 of the Laws of 1893 amended Ch. 419 and provided for what each of the Museum’s founders and New Yorkers sought, as follows:
# 1. The Department of Public Parks in the City of New York is hereby authorized to apply in each year for the keeping, preservation and exhibition of the collections in the buildings in Central Park that are now or may be hereafter occupied by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, … upon condition that the collections in the said Metropolitan Museum of Art shall be kept open and accessible to the public hereafter free of all charge throughout the year for five days in each week, one of which shall be Sunday afternoon, and also for two evenings in each week, within such hours and subject to such rules and regulations as may be determined by the Trustees of said Museum; and provided furthermore, that on the two days in each week during which said Museum may remain closed to the general public, it shall be open and accessible to art students, copyists and schools, within such hours and subject to such rules and regulations as may be determined by the Trustees of said Museum. [emphasis added]
The Museum and the City seemingly complied with Ch. 476 until 1970 by charging a fee only two days in the week to all visitors, including New Yorkers. [The Museum had not met the two evenings a week mandate, however.] But, when the Museum reported in its 1970 Annual Report that a “discretionary” admission fee to all visitors would be charged to help “supplement income”, it became clear that the Museum and City leaders had not considered interpretation of the existing Lease and Law.
In this regard, the Museum introduced its pay-what-you-wish but you-must-pay-something [PWYWBYMPS] admission policy for all visitors. [The NYC Council condemned the policy calling it an “admission fee in the guise of a voluntary contribution”. (Res. No. 334, December 15, 1970)]
Undaunted, the Museum fought back negative commentary because, it said, a “voluntary” fee could be as little as "a penny" despite the Museum publicizing a “suggested” or “recommended” amount and the resultant notion that proper entry warranted that amount. Additionally, in her Opinion, Judge Kornreich found that the Museum is virtually free because you can pay a penny. [Judge Kornreich in effect legislated from the bench.] And in the wake of these attitudes, and for nearly five decades, New Yorkers, unwilling or unable to pay the “suggested” amount, avoided visiting the Museum because of the PWYWBYMPS recommended or suggested fee policy.
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Obesity accounts for 21 percent of U.S. health care costs
By Susan Kelley |
Obesity now accounts for almost 21 percent of U.S. health care costs -- more than twice the previous estimates, reports a new Cornell study.
The research, which is the first to show the causal effect of obesity on medical care costs, uses new methods and makes a stronger case for government intervention to prevent obesity, the authors say.
The Cornell study reports that an obese person incurs medical costs that are $2,741 higher (in 2005 dollars) than if they were not obese. Nationwide, that translates into $190.2 billion per year, or 20.6 percent of national health expenditures. The study appeared in the January issue of the Journal of Health Economics (31:1). Previous estimates had pegged the cost of obesity at $85.7 billion, or 9.1 percent of national health expenditures.
Cawley
"Historically we've been underestimating the benefit of preventing and reducing obesity," said lead author John Cawley, professor of policy analysis and management in the College of Human Ecology and professor of economics. "Obesity raises the risk of cancer, stroke, heart attack and diabetes. For any type of surgery, there are complications with anesthesia, with healing [for the obese]. ... Obesity raises the costs of treating almost any medical condition. It adds up very quickly."
The 5 percent of Americans who are morbidly obese generate the highest costs. "These elevated costs are incurred not by the person who is 10 pounds overweight, but the person who is 100 pounds overweight," said Cawley, who is co-director of Cornell's Institute on Health Economics, Health Behaviors and Disparities.
The study, conducted with Chad Meyerhoefer of Lehigh University, represents the final, peer-reviewed version of the researchers' 2010 working paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
Cawley and Meyerhoefer used a federal survey of 24,000 non-elderly U.S. adults, their doctors and other medical care providers from 2000 to 2005. The data include the individuals' weight and height and two years' worth of their medical care and its cost.
The new study estimates the effect of obesity on medical expenses by treating the heritable component of weight as a natural experiment. Previous research simply reported the difference between the medical expenses of heavier and lighter people, which is a misleading estimate of the causal effect because obese and non-obese individuals differ in so many ways. Cawley explains, "For example, I could have injured my back at work, and that may have led me to gain weight. The injury could have led to a lot of health care costs that are due to my back, not my obesity."
The research provides hard evidence for policymakers to use in cost-effectiveness analyses when deciding whether and how much to fund obesity prevention programs, Cawley said. Since previous studies have underestimated the medical costs of obesity, the economic rationale for governments to intervene to reduce obesity has been underappreciated.
The study also shows that obesity raises costs in Medicaid, suggesting that we're all paying for obesity through higher taxes, Cawley said. "That means that obesity isn't just a personal issue. This is relevant to all of society, because the health care costs of obesity are borne by the population as a whole."
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Joe Wilensky/Cornell Chronicle
Tsiorasa Barreiro ’00, center, surrounded by family and community members of the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe, laughs while listening to remarks at the ceremony honoring him with the Cornell New York State Hometown Alumni Award Oct. 27.
Tsiorasa Barreiro receives NYS Hometown Alumni Award
By Joe Wilensky |
Tsiorasa Barreiro ’00, an Akwesasne native and executive director for tribal operations of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe in Akwesasne, Franklin County, was recognized as a community leader and presented with the Cornell New York State Hometown Alumni Award Oct. 27.
Joel Malina, Cornell vice president for university relations, presents Tsiorasa Barreiro ’00 with the Cornell New York State Hometown Alumni Award at the Akwesasne Boys and Girls Club Oct. 27.
The ceremony drew on historical connections between Cornell University and Native Americans in New York state as Barreiro’s extended family community gathered together. Barreiro’s many connections demonstrated how the tribe’s “full circle” concept aligns with the qualities the award celebrates: that students bring their educational experiences, skills and abilities with them as they return home to benefit their communities.
The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe operates community programs in education, health services, the environment, economic development and human services. All division directors report to Barreiro. The tribe has about 15,000 members, nearly 10,000 of whom live within the 21-square-mile territory that sits on the border of Canada and the United States along the St. Lawrence River. Dozens of Akwesasne students have attended Cornell over the decades.
Barreiro, who earned his bachelor’s degree in communication from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, minored in Native American studies and was president of Native American Students at Cornell.
After graduation, Barreiro worked for Cornell’s American Indian Program and served as the residence hall director of Akwe:kon on North Campus. He became vice president of the fifth-largest Native American-owned company in the U.S., Ongweoweh Corp. in Ithaca, before moving north to Akwesasne about five years ago.
Joel Malina, Cornell vice president for university relations, noted at the ceremony that Barreiro told him Cornell “exposed him to new ideas and cultivated a simultaneous appreciation for the immensity and interconnectedness of our world.”
At Akwesasne, Barreiro, who comes from a long line of tribal leaders, is active as a youth sports coach and mentor. As executive director, he has been instrumental in helping plan and complete projects and venues for the community, from new buildings and sidewalks to park expansions and venues for programming to help children and teens make positive life choices.
Barreiro “is exactly the person we seek to honor with our Hometown Alumni Award,” Malina said.
From left, Tsiorasa Barreiro’s father, Jose Barreiro, Tribal Chief Beverly Cook, and Tsiorasa's mother, Katsi Cook, at the award ceremony, where they presented him with a ring made by his great uncle, a former tribal chief and silversmith.
Barreiro was joined by his wife, Randi Rourke Barreiro, and their children, Kanatires, Tehokwirathe and Karakwatiron. Also joining Barreiro were his parents, Katsi Cook and Jose Barreiro. Malina noted that Cook is a Mohawk midwife who studied at Cornell and was instrumental in a major study in the 1980s on the effects of PCBs on Mohawk children; Jose Barreiro served as associate director and editor in chief of Cornell’s Akwe:kon Press and the journal Native Americas at Cornell from 1984 to 2002.
Tribal chiefs Eric Thompson, Beverly Cook and Mike Conners described Tsiorasa Barreiro’s dedication to his community and the impact he has had on the tribe for the past five years. Cook noted “how he works with his team and how he creates forward momentum by the sensitivity that’s in his heart and the gentleness of his mind.”
“The people I love most are here in this room,” Barreiro said, “and that really means a lot.” The award from Cornell is an honor, he noted. “Cornell has played a large role in my life and my family’s life. It’s not just four years at school; it’s our family experience – moving to Ithaca and experiencing everything we did there.”
Tsiorasa Barreiro ’00 speaks after being presented with the Cornell New York State Hometown Alumni Award Oct. 27.
From ages 9 to 15, Barreiro grew up in Ithaca, immersed in the Native American community at Cornell through his parents. “It was really great to see these pioneering projects and the engagement with the communities take place, and that’s something I hope we always continue at Cornell, because of that relationship with our Indian communities in New York state,” he said.
Barreiro described Cornell’s long history supporting American Indian and indigenous studies, from the Indian Extension Program in the 1920s to the modernization of the program in the 1970s, the establishment of the Akwe:kon program house in the 1990s, to the trust Cornell has built and sustained with the Haudenosaunee (Iroquios Confederacy) communities and in New York state today.
“I often say that here at home we do the best we can with what we have,” Barreiro said. “And that’s whether it’s our budget, our human resources or our heartfelt feelings for one another. And part of what we have is a special relationship with Cornell University.
Dairy farmer Nate Chittenden receives first Hometown Alumni Award
Christa Glazier ’01 receives Cornell NY Hometown Alumni Award
“And that helps us to create better outcomes, and better conditions, for our people. So we’re going to continue to draw upon that relationship – whether it’s Cornell Cooperative Extension, the [American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program] itself, the Akwe:kon House – as we move forward.”
As part of the award, Cornell will donate $500 to the Akwesasne Boys and Girls Club, where the celebration was held, and $500 to the Akwesasne Freedom School, in Barreiro’s name.
The Cornell University New York State Hometown Alumni Award recognizes Cornell graduates who return to their home counties or regions to start or enhance a business or nonprofit, and who regularly volunteer and are making an impact in those communities.
Lindsey Hadlock
lmh267@cornell.edu
Akwe:kon' celebrates 20 years of inclusiveness
Seven projects awarded 2018 digitization grants
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Series 8 Q&A Highlights
Monday, 24 November 2014 - Reported by Marcus
The BBC has released highlights from the special Q&A event hosted by Frank Skinner with guests Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Samuel Anderson, Michelle Gomez and Steven Moffat, to mark the DVD and Blu-ray release of DoctorWho Series 8.
YouTube - Series 8 Q&A Highlights
The Complete Eighth Series is out now in the UK and Australia - and will be released soon to the US and Canada.
FILTER: - Blu-ray/DVDSeries 8/34
Deep Breath released on DVD/Blu-ray
Wednesday, 17 September 2014 - Reported by Chuck Foster
Peter Capaldi's debut story Deep Breath is now available to buy on Blu-ray and DVD, and the BBC have release a short clip from the story's 'prequel' which was originally shown alongside the episode in cinemas last month.
Doctor Who on Facebook
The release also includes behind-the-scenes material and the live programme Doctor Who Live: The Next Doctor which introduced the world to Capaldi as the latest incarnation.
The episode is available to buy from our Amazon shop on Blu-ray (UK/US/CA) or DVD (UK/US/CA).
The Complete Series Eight boxed set is also available for pre-order, due out on the 17th November in the UK (BD/DVD) and on the 9th December in the US (BD/DVD) and Canada (BD/DVD).
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New minimum wage: good or bad for Niagara business?
Niagara Falls. (File photo)
Jan 31, 2018 | Wednesday
In January, the provincial government raised the minimum wage to $14 an hour — now that it’s been a month, how exactly are businesses faring?
Has the world come to an end for employers or is it business as usual?
Niagara Now talked with some business owners in Niagara to see how they’re coping with the increase.
Many said they’ve raised prices to compensate for the increased wages — others said they’ve felt the effect in other ways.
Kellie Crossley, owner of Color by Kellie, a hair salon on Queen St., Niagara Falls, said although her business doesn’t have enough employees to see a direct impact from the wage increase, she’s noticed as high as 30 per cent price increases from her distributors, who supply the business with the essential products to stay in operation.
“Everything I order in, those companies are going to want to subsidize their wage increase, so soon enough I’m noticing everything I’m ordering is starting to cost more. So I’m being affected that way,” said Crossley.
“Even the delivery — I notice the delivery charges are going up as well, because the people who do the deliveries, they’re paying their employees more.”
“It’s a ripple effect,” she said. “A big ripple effect.”
Crossley said she’s been forced to raise prices at the salon, and it’s become a constant challenge of explaining the increase to customers, who often don’t understand it isn’t the wages of her employees she’s paying, but the wages of the distributor’s employees.
“We don’t feel it as much when we’re paying an employee … and I don’t think my clients understand that. They think ‘oh well you just have one or two employees,' but they don’t realize that I’m actually having to pay more for everything.”
Tony Forio, owner of Ragged Glory, a thrift shop in Niagara Falls, said he hasn’t seen any direct effect yet, having no employees to pay.
He said he thinks the wage hike was long overdue.
“The people complaining about (the increase) are all the successful ones — like Tim Hortons,” said Florio.
He said he doesn’t believe the increase should affect anybody who is running a successful business.
Jeff Freimanis, owner of Jeffro’s Barbecue, said it’s simply too soon to see the true impact the minimum wage increase is going to have, especially during the city’s winter slow season.
He said he only has four employees, so it's hard to say the impact so early on, though he did increase his prices.
“You have to,” he said.
Freimanis said he’ll have a better understanding of the impact about six months down the line, once the tourist season is in full-swing.
Dolores Fabiano, executive director of Niagara Falls Chamber of Commerce, said many business owners have had to adjust prices and axe expansion plans to meet the demands of the new minimum wage.
“We have heard mostly from small business service providers as well and retail and hospitality,” she said, adding plans to hire additional staff have also been put on hold for many businesses.
For Chamber members, she said it’s not that they don’t think their employees deserve a living wage, but that the increase should have been gradual.
“We all agree that a fair living wage should be paid,” said Fabiano.
“I don’t know of any business owner who would not like to pay good, hard working staff more money, but there does need to be an understanding that with any increased costs, businesses need to re-evaluate their own plans to ensure their viability.”
She noted the Chamber does have many local businesses who are not impacted by the minimum wage increase as they consistently pay higher and said she isn’t aware of any Chamber members who have closed their businesses due to the minimum wage increase.
Fabiano isn’t personally opposed to the increase, she said, though she thinks it should have been implemented more gradually.
“I am not opposed to an increase in our minimum wage. It is not reasonable to assume that an individual can live on the same wage for years when at bare minimum we experience a cost of living increase,” said Fabiano.
“I do, however, feel that this increase was a big one, and should have been implemented over a longer period of time.”
“Most employers are good people who do want to do right by their employees. Given an appropriate amount of time, most would have incorporated the cost into their plans with far less fear and trepidation.”
She said the increase created a feeling of apprehension amongst Chamber members when it was announced.
Positive Living Niagara’s executive director Glen Walker said the increase is a positive step towards meeting a living wage for Niagara resident — calculated at $17.57 an hour by the Ontario Living Wage Network.
Walker said an important factor to keep in mind is that most people who are receiving the increased minimum wage will likely be spending the money locally.
“I think overall in terms of the local economy — as we are probably seeing — is that the money that’s going out to those employees is going back into our local economy,” he said.
“People sometimes kind of forget about that, when you’re looking at the bottom line of increased costs for a business.”
In light of the new minimum wage and associated labour relations changes, The Southern Niagara Chambers of Commerce will be hosting a breakfast forum on Feb. 22 to provide insight into current best practices for restaurants and small business owners, in terms of managing costs and improving short medium and long term business prospects. The keynote speaker will be Steve Virtue, vice-president of Restaurants Canada.
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NWS - Timetables
NWS - Fares
ABS - Timetables
ABS - Fares
NORTHWEST TRANSPORT INVESTMENTS
Northwest Star (PTY) Ltd
ATTERIDGEVILLE BUS SERVICE
NWS - Overview
NWS Company Profile
Northwest Star (Soc) Ltd (NWS), is a subsidiary of Northwest Transport Investments (Soc) Ltd (NTI) which is a parastatal company of the North West Provincial Government. The North West Provincial Government is the sole shareholder of NTI. Northwest Star (Soc) Ltd (NWS) was the primary source of transport in the North West Province since its inception, providing transport service also in Limpopo, Mpumalanga and Gauteng Provinces to thousands of commuters (monthly) with a fleet of 640 buses. Northwest Star (Soc) Ltd is widely regarded as one of the premier transport operators on the African continent.
The operations of the company started in 1973 under the then BIC and CED and the company was established in 1986 and has had several name changes. With the promulgation of new Provinces after the 1994 elections, the company’s name changed to Northwest Star (Soc) Ltd.
The current Northwest Star (Soc) Ltd Company structure is depicted as follows:
The Company is managed through a decentralized management system and head office is responsible for the execution of inter alia the strategic direction and plans of the group, risk action plans, policy and procedures, control and profitability and day to day running of the business of the group. The disciplines vested at Head Office consist of Operations, Finance, Technical, Human Resources and Corporate Services inclusive of security disciplines, business intelligence, research and development, reengineering of business processes. Comprehensive management information systems in all disciplines are in place to monitor the decentralized business activities of the group on a daily basis.
All fixed assets i.e. infrastructure is vested in NTI. All other assets are owned by NWS.
The head office structure includes experts in all transport related disciplines and includes a dedicated internal audit department managed on an outsourced basis.
Executive management reports to a Board of Directors appointed by the shareholder in line with the companies act and encompass an Audit Committee and a Procurement Committee. The Audit Committee is chaired by an independent Chairman consisting of nominated non executive Board Members. The Procurement Committee consists of non executive directors, executive management and labour representatives.
A shared service centre under the auspices of the Executive Finance was established during October 2000 to optimise productivity and centralize administration and human resources function. This centre is divided into three sections, namely: administration, human resources and information technology. Shared Service Centre consists of a total of 21 employees.
The operating centres are as follows and are located as depicted in the picture below:
Northwest Star Operating centres
These centres are ideally located to serve our passengers to their best interest and for easy access to communicate transport needs and requirements on an ongoing basis.
For the purpose of continued communication Transport Forums, selected by
our passengers, were established that meets monthly and assist the company to keep abreast
of our passenger’s changing transport requirements and new transport demands.
Northwest Star (Soc) Ltd provides a network of public transport services to commuters, linking the North West Province and Mpumalanga to the City of Tshwane, Ekurhuleni and Midrand. Mainly these services are operated in terms of a contract with the department of transport in which a substantial portion of our passenger’s fare is being subsidized by government.
Apart from providing transport services to our working passengers and school children, off peak services are also provided to shoppers, and transport destinations that include services to hospitals, clinics, pensioner pay points etc.
SERVICES AND EMPLOYMENT
NWS offers employment for over 1 904 people and employees working from/on these centres have access to offered medical centres, cafeteria, sleeping quarters and restroom facilities.
These operating centres maintenance the fleet through:
Provide Bus Washing Facilities
Providing Re-Fueling Stations
Bus Service centres
Central Command Point
Private Hire (Touring and Social) transport services are also provided to organised groups in our community to any required destination. Such services in the past include destinations such as Polokwane, Lesotho, Swaziland, Mozambique and many others. To make use of these services you are welcome to contact any of our Operating centres for a quotation.
Batswana Gare Transport situated at Mabopane Industrial Area - operates a fleet of 235 buses, transporting cumulatively 10,2 million passengers over 12.5 million kilometers per annum,Bothlaba Tswana Transport consists of depots situated at Babelegi Industrial Area, Waltloo Industrial Area and Pretoria West Industrial Area – operates a fleet of 289 buses, transporting cumulatively 13,1 million passengers over 17,1 million kilometers per annum.
The Pretoria West facility is providing maintenance, administrative, operational, bus cleaning and fuel and lubrication services and also host Atteridgeville Bus Service(Soc) Ltd which provides passenger Transport Service to Atteridgeville Township in terms of a contract with the Department of Transport. ABS operates that operates 116 buses, transporting cumulatively 4,2 million passengers over 5,1 million kilometers per annum.
The passenger transport services operated by Northwest Star (Soc) Ltd are currently performed in accordance with interim transport contracts with the Gauteng Department of Transport. The passenger transport services operated by Atteridgeville Bus Service (Soc) Ltd are currently performed in accordance with a tendered contract service with Gautrans.
The management teams of these centres consist of an Operating Centre Manager and four departmental heads, namely: operations, technical, financial and human resources and include, inter alia, a comprehensive security discipline under the auspices of the administration department.
Executive Authority
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Government of Canada navigation bar
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission
Nuclear substances
Medical Imaging and Radiotherapy
In Canada, 48% of the radiation we will be exposed to in our lifetimes will come from medical procedures. Exposure to the sun and the naturally radioactive isotopes in the soil, air, food and water will account for 99% of the rest.
Every day, ionizing radiation is used to treat and diagnose diseases. The use of ionizing radiation to treat diseases is known as radiotherapy, while the use of radioisotopes for diagnostic purposes is referred to as nuclear medicine imaging. The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) regulates all nuclear substances in Canada, including the use of radioisotopes and linear accelerators in medicine.
External Beam Radiotherapy
Teletherapy
This is the most common form of radiotherapy used for the treatment of cancer. A high energy beam of X-rays or gamma rays is directed at the tumour. The beams are produced by medical linear accelerators or by devices containing one or more high-activity, sealed radiation sources. The total radiation dose is usually "fractionated" into multiple treatments, delivered over a period of several weeks.
Stereotactic Radiation Therapy
Also called radiosurgery, this procedure utilizes highly focused external beams of X-rays or gamma rays to destroy small target tissues (such as metastases or arteriovenous malformations) while preserving adjacent normal tissue, without the need for a surgical incision. The total dose is typically delivered in a single treatment.
Radionuclide Therapy
Brachytherapy - temporary implants
A device called a "brachytherapy remote afterloader" positions high-activity, sealed radiation sources at several locations near or within the tumour for a short period of time. The sources are then removed.
Brachytherapy - permanent implants
The tumour is implanted with 80 to 120 low-activity radioactive "seeds". These seeds remain within the patient and decay to background levels within about two years.
Radioactive materials are ingested or injected into the patient. This is used to treat thyroid cancer, to relieve pain, or to treat cancers that have already spread throughout the body.
Nuclear Medicine Imaging
SPECT SCAN Single-Photon Emission Computed Tomography
A patient is injected with (or inhales or consumes) a short-lived gamma-emitting radioisotope. A gamma-camera takes multiple pictures of the radioisotope's activity from multiple angles, creating a 3D model that tracks the movement and absorbtion of the radioisotope within the body.
PET SCAN Positron Emission Tomography
A patient is injected with (or inhales or consumes) a positron-emitting radioisotope. These positrons then combine with electrons to form two gamma rays which travel in opposite directions. A gamma camera tracks them to create a 3D model of the movement and absorption of the radioisotope within the body.
Imaging accounts for the use of 90% of all medical radioisotopes.
Radiation Doses
These green and yellow cubes represent the comparative radiation doses you receive from natural sources and from medical procedures.
The grey cubes represent dose sizes that can potentially affect your health.
Health thresholds
Dose that could lead to death if it was received all at once and not medically treated
5,000 mSv
Lowest dose which may cause symptoms of radiation sickness (e.g, nausea, vomiting) if received within 24 hours
Lowest dose at which damage to organs or tissues have been observed following an acute exposure
100 mSv
Annual natural background radiation in Canada (includes radon)
1.8 mSv
Average annual dose due to indoor radon in Canada
1.15 mSv
Annual cosmic radiation
Annual dose from food
Annual dose from the earth's crust
Cosmic radiation exposure from a transatlantic flight
1 day of natural background radiation in Canada
0.005 mSv
Eating 1 banana
0.0001 mSv
PET or SPECT scan
2.6 mSv to 17.7 mSv
Chest CT scan
7 mSv
Typical abdominal X-ray
Typical mammogram
Typical chest X-ray
Bone density X-ray
Measuring Radiation
Becquerel (Bq)
This tells us: How many atoms are "decaying" per second?
This unit measures the radioactivity of a radioactive substance. The amount of radioactivity is determined by both the rate of decay or "half life" of the substance and the total quantity of the substance present.
The becquerel is named after Antoine Henri Becquerel (photo), who shared a Nobel Prize with Pierre Curie and Marie Curie in 1903 for their work in discovering radioactivity
Gray (Gy)
This tells us: How much radiation am I exposed to?
This unit is used to calculate absorbed dose. The calculation is affected by the amount of time you spent being exposed, how much distance there was between you and the source, and by what shielding there was was, if any.
The gray was named after British physicist Louis Harold Gray (photo), a pioneer in the field of X-ray and radium radiation measurement, and their effects on living tissue.
Sievert (Sv)
This tells us: What effect will this exposure have on me?
This unit is used to calculate equivalent dose and effective dose. Equivalent dose takes into account the mass, charge, and energy of the particles involved.
Effective dose then further adjusts this result by what body part was exposed. Some parts are more sensitive to radiation than others, so a weighted number for each body part is applied. effective dose determines your increased risk of developing cancer in the future.
The sievert is of fundamental importance in dosimetry and radiation protection, and is named after Rolf Maximilian Sievert, a Swedish medical physicist renowned for work on radiation dosage measurement and research into the biological effects of radiation.
Exposure factors
The more time you spend near a radioactive source, the more your body is exposed to the radiation emitted by that source. Minimizing the time spent near radioactive material reduces your dose.
As your distance from the source increases, the radiation it emits becomes more diffuse, just as the light from a lightbulb becomes dimmer the further you get from the bulb. Doubling your distance from a source reduces the dose to ¼ of what it would have been. This effect is known as the "inverse square law".
Different materials may be needed to block different types of radiation. In addition, the more energy a particular radiation has, the greater the thickness of material required. Gamma rays are most effectively shielded by dense, heavy materials such as concrete or lead. High-energy beta particles can be effectively blocked by materials such as glass or plastic. Alpha particles only travel a few centimetres in air and can be completely blocked by a simple piece of paper.
In Canada, 48% of the radiation we will be exposed to in our lifetimes will come from medical procedures. This infographic features information nuclear medicine imaging and radiotherapy.
Download PDF version (2,048 kb)
Careers at CNSC
Values and Ethics at the CNSC
Report a Nuclear Incident
External complaints (Whistleblower reporting)
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Personalities.
Lieut. J. R. Duncan, of the Records Section, A.I.F. Headquarters, Cairo, has returned to Australia, for discharge as med-icaly unfit. Lieut. Duncan left Australia as a private with the 15th Battalion, in 1914, and was scon promoted. He sustained shell-shock on Gallipoli. He was taken on the strength of the Third Ecnelon in June, 1915, and promoted Warrant Officer six months later. In January, 1917, he was invalided to Australia, returning to Egypt in June the same year, and receiving his commission shortly afterwards.
Major N.B. Loveridge, A.A.S.C., who left for Australia on October 19th., 1917, on leave of absence, has returned to Egypt, and rejoined his unit. Major Loveridge was mentioned in despatches on March 18th., 1917.
Lieut. L.A. Wilkie, 4th. 4.L.H. Regt., who has been in Australia on leave, is back in Egypt. In November, 1917, while waiting for notification to embaric on leave, he was wounded in the thigh, and he did not sail till December.
Mrs A.C. Chisholm, Organiser and Superintendant of the Soldiers' Club ana Rest Camp, Kantara, has been appointed an officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. Miss Verania McPhillamy, Assistant Superintendant, has been appointed a member of the order.
The wedding of Captain Charles J.F.W. Daniels, Indian Army (3rd. O.A.O. Ghurka Rifles), eldest son of the late Alfred Daniels, Richmond, Surrey, England, and Miss Hylda Frances Chinery, A.A.N.S., second daughter of the lae John Charles Chinery, Albury, New South Wales, was celebrated on March 1st. last, at the British Consulate, and afterwards at St. Mark's, Alexandria, by the Rev. B. Foster, C.F. The bride, who was given away by Miss Gemme] (Matron), A.A.N.S., looked very charming in a smart coat and skirt of champagne silk, with hat to match. The bridesmaid was Miss Rail, A.AN.S.,who wore uniform. The bridegroom's gift to the bride was a diamond and pearl cluster ring. Lieut. Lattery, Indian Army, was best man. The only guests nresent were Miss Wilson, Matron of theOfficers' Hospital, Ras-el-Tin, and Miss Condon, A.A.N.S. After the ceremony, the nappy couple left for Luxor, where the honeymoon was spent.
Lieut-Colonel C.G. Powles, D.S.O., N Z. S.C., has been awarded the C.M.G. Colonel Powles was Officer in charge No 5 Area Group, Welling on, N.Z., when War broke out. He was appointed Brigade Major, N Z.M.R. Brigade, and served with theBrig-ade throughout the Gallinoli campaign. He commanded Canterbury Mounted Rlfles from Dec. 12th., 1915, to Dec. 27th., 1915; and on the formation of the Anzac Mounted Division was appointed A.A. & Q.M.G., which position he still holds. Colonel Powles served in South Africa, and holds the Queen's Medal, with four clasps; he has been mentioned in Despatches four times.
Brigadier-General Charles Frederic Cox, C.B., C.M.G., V.D., commanding the 1st. A.L.H. Brigade, was born at Parramatta, N.S.W., on May 2nd. 1863. Serving in the South African "War, he took part in operations in Cape Colony, Orange Free State and the Transvaal, and commanded the N.S.W. Mounted Rifles, 1901-2. He was mentioned in despatches and has the Queen's medal, with six clasps, and the King's medal, with two. General Cox left Australia as Lieut-Colonel, in command of the 1st. A.L.H. He was wounded in the knee on Gallipoli, in May. 1915. Invalided to England in June, 1916, sufferine from influenza and broncho-pneumonia, the General returned to Egypt two months later. He has been rrentioned in despatches three times, and was appointed C.M.G. in January last, for distinguished services.
(Photo Anglo-Swiss Studio, Cairo.)
Brig.-General C.F. COX, C.B., C.M.G., V.D.
Cpl. E. B. Picton, M.M., D.C.M., 7th. A.L.H., who was reported wounded and missing on March 28th last, enlisted in October, 1914, and was on Gallipoli, He was promoted Corporal in January, 1917. and has been twice mentioned in despatch's. Cpl. Picton was awarded the D.C.M., for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. In charge of a section of pointers to a screen, he displayed dash and able leadership. With only three men, he moved straight on to an enemy bivouac, and captured 40 prisoners.
Major W. S. Kent Hughes, M.C., 8th, A.L.H., D.A.Q.M.G., Aus. Mtd. Div., who went to Australia on leave in January last, has returned to Egypt, Major Kent Hughes has been mentioned in despatches three times. He was awarded the Military Cross in June, 1917.
Staff Nurses A.L. Longman, A.M. Jacob-sen, F.A.Adams, E. H.O'Loughlin and B.L. Forrester, N Z.A.N.S., all of whom have served in Egypt for t he past two years, have been transterred toEngland. They left Egypt on April 7th.
Sister E. Hodges, A.R.R.C., New Zealand Army Nursing Service, is returning to the Dominion on duty, alter marly three years active service. Staff Nurse M. Hodges arrived from New Zealand recently.
Auckland Mounted Rifles claim S.S.M. H. Eisenhut, who was lately awarded the D.C.M., "for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty whilst under fire". Sergt Major Eisenhut left New Zealand with the Main Body, saw service on Gallipoli, and has taken part in every fight since Romani,
Captain Harper, M.C., D.C.M., N.Z.M.R. Brigade Machine Gun Squadron, who was invalided to New Zealand recently, has now been awarded the Distinguished Service Order.
Sergt. Pa George Karika, New Zealand Rarotongan Company, has been awarded the D CM., "(or conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty, while in charge of a platoon; he did excellent work throughout and set his men a splendid example". Sergt. Karika in the first member of the Rarotongan Company, in Egypt, to receive this decoration.
Major-General E.W.C. Chaytor, C.B; A.D.C., T.D., G.O.C. Anzac Mounted Division, has been awatded the K.C.M.G., by His Majesty the King. A photograph of Sir Edward Chaytor appeared in last issue.
Major C. L. Sommerville, Wellington Mounted Rifles, died on April 2nd. from wounds received in action when in command of the 2nd. Squadron. Major Sommerville left New Zealand in 1916.
Congratulations to Miss M. McDonell and Miss M. Macdonald, mentioned in despatches. These two ladies, in conjunction with Mrs Blackmore (nee Duncan), founded "Aorea" Convalescent Home at Heliopolis, and have served continually there since it was opened, in 1915.
Lieut-Colonel J.N. McCarroll, D. S. O., Officer Comanding Auckland Mounted Rifles, has been awarded a bar to his decoration, for gallantry and distinguished service in the Field.
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People Behind the Science Podcast - Stories from Scientists about Science, Life, Research, and Science Careers : 390: Materials Engineer Working at the Interface of Experimental and Modeling Approaches to Understand Material Microstructure - Dr. Daniel Lewis
390: Materials Engineer Working at the Interface of Experimental and Modeling Approaches to Understand Material Microstructure - Dr. Daniel Lewis
Dr. Daniel Lewis is an Associate Professor In the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He received his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. each in Materials Science and Engineering from Lehigh University. Afterwards, he was awarded a National Research Council postdoctoral fellowship to work at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Before joining the faculty at Rensselaer, Dan conducted materials science research at GE Global Research. Dan was the recipient of an NSF CAREER Award, as well as a the International Metallographic Contest Jacquet-Lucas Award. He is here with us today to talk about his research and give us an inside look at his experiences in life and science.
Direct download: 390_Daniel_Lewis_Final.mp3
Copyright 2005-2006 People Behind the Science Podcast - Stories from Scientists about Science, Life, Research, and Science Careers : 390: Materials Engineer Working at the Interface of Experimental and Modeling Approaches to Understand Material Microstructure - Dr. Daniel Lewis | Design by Andreas Viklund | Powered by Libsyn
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Home » News Centre » Ontario Human Rights Chief Commissioner Barbara Hall remarks to the standing committee on Justice Policy regarding Bill 107, an Act to amend the Human Rights Code
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A message from the Chief Commissioner
Ontario Human Rights Chief Commissioner Barbara Hall remarks to the standing committee on Justice Policy regarding Bill 107, an Act to amend the Human Rights Code
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Statement (Compare against delivery)
Good morning. I am pleased to be with you this morning and to bring you the view of the Commission on Bill 107 and its implications for the Human Rights System in Ontario. I anticipate that over the next few days and weeks you will hear many considered and informed opinions about the proposed legislation.
We have already heard different parties say many different things about this Bill.
However, I think it is important to remember, as we proceed, that in many respects we are all on the same side. Each of us who speaks to the committee – every group, every individual – is here because we feel the discussion is of fundamental importance. We are all committed to strong human rights: to building a better system, to promoting and protecting rights more effectively, to bringing the message to everyone.
What disagreements we have relate to how we do it. But I think the differences are not, in fact, that great – and over the past few months we have seen much movement towards a common ground.
The Commission applauds that progress. We support the sense of compromise and consensus building that have resulted in the amendments proposed by the Attorney General. If there is more work done, in that same spirit, we are confident that many differences can be addressed and hopefully resolved.
We have been working with the Ministry of the Attorney General for some months, recommending changes and amendments to Bill 107. New changes to the bill are still being developed. The Commission will review them thoroughly and provide the committee with our formal comments before the end of the hearings.
I hope that we are all agreed that the status quo is not an option. There is important work to be done and reform is needed to complete that work.
How we got to this point
The Ontario Human Rights Code is a fundamental piece of legislation. It provides the framework, a roadmap upon which our human rights system is based.
To be successful the Code must be recognized and accepted as an essential standard on which our society is built.
But from time to time, maps need to be updated and revised.
As times change, the needs of the people of Ontario change with them. The time has come – is probably past due, in fact, for important changes to our human rights road map.
The Commission wants change.
A crucial part of our work is identifying and acting on new problems that need attention.
For example – our work on the Forrester case has helped establish new ways to protect the rights of transsexual people.
We have championed the fight against racial profiling, including the development of a new Policy to help guide police services and others.
With a renewed, broad mandate to conduct inquiries, do research and develop enforceable policies we can continue to have a human rights system that is always moving forward.
Finding the balance
From our position, monitoring the system and the people it serves, we are looking for change that will lead us to a better balance.
That balance must be between effectively addressing individual claims and proactively creating a culture of human rights.
We are all too aware of the limitations of the existing Code and have, many times, called for amendment and improvement.
That is why we have welcomed and shared the Government’s vision of a strengthened Commission, based on international principles, more focused on prevention and systemic issues, inside a re-balanced system for enforcing and promoting human rights.
From the time that Bill 107 was first proposed last spring, the Commission has taken an active role in the discussion about its merits. We have met with stakeholders, outside and inside government.
The Commission has carefully considered the potential impact of each section of the proposed legislation, comparing it to what we have now. As I said earlier, we have recommended many improvements to the government.
One that remains outstanding is the Commission’s capacity to appeal Tribunal decisions to the higher courts. In the past, although rare, such appeals have played an important role in advancing human rights through precedent setting case law.
Many individuals and groups have spoken out passionately about the bill.
They have sincere beliefs about what reforms are needed to improve Ontario’s human rights system.
Sometimes those beliefs have clashed. The result at times has been a difficult and even divisive process.
At the Commission, it has often been hard for us to hear criticisms, and sometimes inaccuracies, about our work. However, I believe we’ve learned from the criticisms and we’ve been able to correct some of the public misconceptions.
And I am happy to say we’ve also heard about our strengths and our successes.
Since I began my work here, a year ago this month, I’ve experienced first hand – what has been recognized nationally and internationally – how effective the Commission can be.
We are recognized and emulated around the world not simply because we are one of the first Human Rights Commissions, but because of the outstanding quality of our work. Our thanks are due to the talented and committed staff of the Commission.
Fear of losing these strengths may be the source of some of the concern and alarm expressed about the Bill: the concern that individual complainants might not have what they need going forward; the fear that the good things we do now and that we are recognized for – the outreach, the systemic inquiries and the policy work – might be lost.
At the Commission we’ve listened to these legitimate concerns and considered how they might best be addressed, For us the bottom line is: any change needs to protect vital elements of the Human Rights system but also bring progressive change for the better.
Given the opportunity, I know the Commission - and the system - can do more, and do it better.
A perfect bill?
So here we are with Bill 107, and its proposed amendments. Is it perfect? Frankly, I don’t think I know of any perfect legislation. But it must create a framework strong enough to build on and move forward to a place we want to go, with the tools, opportunities and resources to do that.
Will this bill advance the cause of human rights in Ontario?
Overall, we think it can.
Clearly, not everyone agrees. However:
We do all agree, individual complainants must have their cases dealt with fairly, quickly and effectively.
And we believe the system must change to allow that to happen.
We also believe that a Human Rights system primarily focused on individual complaints, as the current one is, ignores broader issues that cry out for attention.
Consider - there are 13 million people in this province, often described as amongst the most diverse population in the world.
We know from polling, from anecdotal stories, even intuitively, that many more people experience discrimination than those who make it to the Commission; many more than could ever hope to obtain justice in an individual case by case process.
So when we are looking for change, we’re looking for the infrastructure necessary to address tough issues; to identify and get rid of barriers to equity; to make our communities healthy and safe; to create that “climate of understanding and mutual respect for the dignity and worth of each person” spoken of in the Preamble of the Code and in the International Human Rights Declaration.
The best way to reduce the need for individual complaints is to effect genuine social change.
The Commission needs to focus its energy on making social change happen if we are going to achieve a culture of human rights.
We need to tackle the big systemic issues - through public inquiries, Commission initiated complaints, public education and outreach.
We also need to maintain our broad mandate, as set out in the United Nations’ “Paris Principles”.
Working though a transition
We must also make sure we make a smooth transition from the old system to a new framework.
While we talk about what change might look like, the Commission is still working on existing complaints and receiving dozens of new ones, every week.
There will need to be a period of some months when two systems will need to operate side by side. That will be a challenge.
We will also need to find ways to ensure that the skill and knowledge of the staff are not lost to the system.
But with adequate resources, the transition can be made smoothly.
Protecting AND promoting
We believe the key task is to bring balance to the system so that the system can protect and promote human rights.
To do that, we need to be prepared to make big changes. Tinkering with the current system is not enough.
We need to make sure the money is there to do the job right. Balance depends on that.
We have an historic opportunity right now. If we don’t take it, I fear it will slip by, and it may not come around again for years.
This opportunity could help us change focus in important ways.
Our Annual Report this past year reminds us that issues such as racism, Islamaphobia, homophobia, harassment and violence towards women, and barriers faced by people with disabilities, continue to loom large in our communities.
A recent survey indicated age discrimination is on the rise.
Relieved of individual complaints, the Commission could expand its ability to address these issues in a strategic, systemic way.
We could take the lessons learned in the restaurant initiative and apply them proactively in many other sectors.
The Commission also could put more of its energy into addressing fundamental areas of human rights where the United Nations is currently focusing its international attention: economic, social and cultural rights such as the right to housing.
We need to find new ways to involve the community in the work of the Commission, and the Commission in the work of the community – such partnerships are essential as we move towards creating a culture of human rights.
If this bill is passed, the Commission will work hard with all the individuals and organizations for and against to make this a reality.
The new legislation will need to be carefully monitored and reviewed. There may be unforeseen problems that will have to be addressed promptly. We will do that.
The bottom line is that we can make reform work to meet the needs of Ontarians and ensure our position as a leader in human rights - in Canada and abroad.
It is important work that is urgently needed. Together, we can make it happen.
Ministry of the Attorney General's:
Press Release on amendments to Bill 107
Proposed amendments table
OHRC Footer Icons
OHRC Footer Menu
Expense Disclosure
© Queen's Printer for Ontario
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Posters & Handbills
by The Pink Floyd Archives
This section of the Pink Floyd Poster Gallery documents Pink Floyd posters and handbills January through June 1971.
Ads from magazines and newspapers are not included.
Contact PFA
Any comments, corrections or additions to this listing would be greatly appreciated.
Quick Click Guide
[The Pink Floyd Poster Gallery]
[Reference Directory] [Pink Floyd Archives home page]
Farnborough Technical College poster, February 13, 1971
Poster reprint
Munster, West Germany poster, February 24, 1971
Hamburg, West Germany poster, February 25, 1971
Offenbach, West Germany poster, February 26, 1971
Doncaster, Yorkshire poster, April 16, 1971
Norwich Lads Club poster, April 22, 1971
Garden Party at the Crystal Palace Bowl, May 15, 1971
Handbill
Edinburgh, Scotland poster, May 19, 1971
Dusseldorf, West Germany poster, June 4, 1971
West Berlin, West Germany poster, June 5, 1971
Italian poster, June 19, 1971
Poster #1 (Milan)
Poster #2 (Bologna)
Amsterdam Free Concert poster, June 26, 1971
Farnborough Technical College poster
1a1) Farnborough Technical College poster
Date & Venue: Students Union Bar, Technical College, Farnborough, Hampshire, England, February, 13, 1971
Bands: Pink Floyd
Poster Artist: Bob Lewis
Notes: A poster for the Pink Floyd concert at Farnborough Technical College on February 13, 1971. The poster is of the Mekon, the arch enemy of Dan Dare.
1a2) Poster reprint:
Note: This poster was reprinted by the artist, Bob Lewis of Eye of Argus, in 2005. The word "Argus" is written in the bottom right margin.
Munster, West Germany poster
1b) Munster, West Germany poster
Date & Venue: Munsterlandhalle, Munster, West Germany, February 24, 1971
Bands: Pink Floyd with orchestra and choir
Poster Size: 33 3/16” x 24”
PT: .004"
Notes: A poster for the Pink Floyd concert at the Munsterlandhallein Munster, West Germany on February 24, 1971.
Hamburg, West Germany poster
1c) Hamburg, West Germany poster
Date & Venue: Grosser Saal, Musikhalle, Hamburg, West Germany, February 25, 1971
Poster Size: 32 21/32” x 23”
PT: .0044"
Notes: A poster for the Pink Floyd concert at the Grosser Saal, Musikhalle in Hamburg, West Germany on February 25, 1971.
Offenbach, West Germany poster
1d) Offenbach, West Germany poster
Date & Venue: Stadthalle, Offenbach, West Germany, February 26, 1971
Notes: A poster for the Pink Floyd concert at teh Stadthalle in Offenbach, West Germany on February 26, 1971.
Doncaster, Yorkshire poster
2a) Doncaster, Yorkshire poster
Date & Venue: Top Rank Suite, Doncaster, Yorkshire, April 16, 1971
Bands: Pink Floyd, Quiver, America, Forevermore
Notes: A poster for the Pink Floyd concert at the Top Rank Suite in Doncaster on April 16, 1971.
Norwich Lads Club poster
2a) Norwich Lads Club poster
Date & Venue: Norwich Lads Club, Norwich, Norfolk, England, April 22, 1971
Notes: A poster for the Pink Floyd concert at the Norwich Lads Club in Norwich, Norfolk, England on April 22, 1971. In order to keep people from taking the posters down prior to the concert, the promoters would put a slash in the center of the poster with a razor blade. As a result, this poster is often found with a cut in the middle of the poster.
Garden Party at the Crystal Palace Bowl poster
3a1) Garden Party at the Crystal Palace Bowl poster
Date & Venue: Crystal Palace Bowl, London, May 15, 1971
Bands: Pink Floyd, Mountain, The Faces, Quiver
Poster Size: 29 5/8” x 19 ½”
Notes: A poster for Pink Floyd at the Garden Party at the Crystal Palace Bowl in London on May 15, 1971.
Garden Party at the Crystal Palace Bowl handbill
3a2) Garden Party at the Crystal Palace Bowl handbill
Notes: A handbill for Pink Floyd at the Garden Party at the Crystal Palace Bowl in London on May 15, 1971.
Edinburgh poster
3b) Edinburgh poster
Date & Venue: Caledonian Cinema, Edinburgh, Lothian, Scotland, May 19, 1971
Notes: A poster for Pink Floyd at the Caledonian Cinema in Edinburgh, Lothian, Scotland on May 19, 1971.
Dusseldorf, West Germany poster
4a) Dusseldorf, West Germany poster
Date & Venue: Philips Veranstaltungshalle, Dusseldorf, West Germany, June 4, 1971
Poster Size: 33” X 23”
Notes: A poster for the Pink Floyd concert at Philips Veranstaltungshalle in Dusseldorf, West Germany on June 4, 1971.
West Berlin, West Germany poster
4b) West Berlin, West Germany poster
Date & Venue: Sportpalast, West Berlin, West Germany, June 5, 1971
Poster Size: 32 11/16" x 23 7/16"
Notes: A poster for the Pink Floyd concert at the Sportpalast in West Berlin, West Germany on June 5, 1971.
Palazzo del Ghiaccio, Milan, Italy poster
4c1) Palazzo del Ghiaccio, Milan, Italy poster
Date & Venue: Palazzo del Ghiaccio, Milan, Italy, June 19, 1971
Notes: The poster has the venue as Palazzo del Ghiaccio, Milan, Italy, June 19, 1971, but the concert was actually held at the Palazzo dello Mostra, Brescia, Italy on June 19, 1971.
Palazzo dello Sport, Bologna, Italy poster
4c2) Palazzo dello Sport, Bologna, Italy poster
Palazzo dello Sport, Bologna, Italy, June 19, 1971
Palazzo dello Sport, Rome, Italy, June 20, 1971
Notes: The poster has the venues as Palazzo dello Sport in Bologna, Italy, June 19, 1971, and at the Palazzo dello Sport in Rome, Italy on June 20, 1971 but the concerts were actually held at the Palazzo dello Mostra in Brescia, Italy on June 19, 1971, and at the Palaeur in Rome, Italy on June 20, 1971.
Amsterdam Free Concert poster
4d) Amsterdam Free Concert poster
Date & Venue: Amsterdamse Bos, Amsterdam, Netherlands, June 26, 1971
Bands: Pink Floyd, CCC Inc., Humble Pie, America, Focus, Pearls Before Swine
Notes: A poster for Pink Floyd at the Amsterdam Free Concert in the Netherlands on June 26, 1971.
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Welcome to the Rhinestone Phoenix Charity Foundation web site. My name is Glenn Anderson, I am the President of the society.
I would like to tell you a little about our history. The Rhinestone Phoenix has had the pleasure of being a part of Vancouver’s gay community for nearly a quarter century.
The first Mr. & Ms. Gay Vancouver were elected in 1980. This honour went to Richard McGuiness and Pussy Galore. The titles were held under the Dogwood Monarchist Society for the first four reigns. It was at this point that Ms. Gay Vancouver IV, Ms. Wiggins decided to give her Mr. Gay, Crema, a step down gift. A Society for the Mr. & Ms. Gay Vancouver to call their own.
It was at this point, that in honour of the symbol of office that Crema had used, the PHOENIX that the Phoenix Heraldic Society was born.
Over the years many people have had the honour of holding the tile of Mr. & Ms. Gay Vancouver, including myself as Mr Gay Vancouver XVI. The society has under gone many changes in including a name change to the Rhinestone Phoenix Charity Foundation in 1997.
Many of the people who have held the titles in the society have gone on to become Emperor or Empress of the city of Vancouver, as well as other cities in Canada.
It is a great honour to be a part of this society and the work that we do for the community. Over the years thousands of dollars have been raised and distributed to various organisations in Vancouver, both gay and straight.
As we look towards our Silver Jubilee in 2005, we invite one and all to come and be a part of the society. We can always use volunteers and supporters. And hey, you never know, maybe you could be one of the future reigns in this legacy.
Please watch for up coming events. And don’t be shy come up to any of us and say HELLO! We look forward to working in the community for another 25 years.
Should you have any questions regarding the society, please feel free to contact us via e-mail at rhinestonephoenix@hotmail.com , through links on this website, anyone on our executive, at any of our shows or Mr. & Ms. Gay Vancouver both past and present. I am sure they would be happy to talk with you.
Working Together To Make The Community A Better Place!
President, The Rhinestone Phoenix Charity Foundation
Mr. Gay Vancouver XVI
Emperor XXII of Calgary, Alberta
The Golden Gladiator, and Keeper of the Supreme Rose
Glenn Anderson DeMylar Fuca Wilson Boink Towers Duyahwanna DeWitt Blake
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International statement: We fight dictatorships, imperialist aggression and Daesh. We reject the politics of “national security”, racism and austerity. It’s time to mobilise!
Over recent months, people across the Middle East have been hit by an intensification of conflict in Syria and Iraq. That escalation has been sponsored both by global imperialist powers – chiefly the USA, Russia and European countries – and regional imperialist actors including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and Iran. These conflicts are the product of two distinct forms of counter-revolution: local dictatorships and counter-revolutionary regimes on one hand, and reactionary Islamic forces like Daesh on the other. The determination of major international and regional powers to impose their political and economic hegemony over the region is also a central cause of the current tragedy.
In Syria, the first form taken by the counter-revolution is support for the Assad regime. Russia’s deadly raids and the intervention of Iran, Hezbollah and sectarian Iraqi militias champion this profoundly reactionary, anti-democratic project. Assad is fuelled too by the mistrust Western powers routinely demonstrate towards democratic and revolutionary forces in Syria, including Kurdish forces.
Those fighting for a democratic and socially just future are the first targets of the Syrian regime, imperialists and their allies in the region. Syrian democratic forces are also the target of Islamic forces playing a counter-revolutionary role, supported at one time or another, directly or indirectly, by the Gulf monarchies and Turkey.
As always, women are the first victims of war. Rape, abduction and even the sale of women are gruesome outgrowths of the conflict.
What is Daesh? It is the creation both of international and regional imperialist aggressions and of the dictatorial, sectarian nature of regimes in the region, particularly in Iraq and Syria. The rise of sectarian tensions in the region is also the consequence of this deadly compound of domestic repression and external aggression.
It is in this context that we should understand the recent attacks in Ankara, Beirut, Paris, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia, and the attack on the Russian aircraft in Egypt. These attacks only strengthen the evil that spawned them – state terrorism.
The rhetoric of the “War on Terror” finds material expression in the ramping up of authoritarian state security policies, in war and in racism. Racism, particularly Islamophobia, has increased exponentially and has become state policy across Europe. Imperialist powers have used the rhetoric of counter-terrorism to justify their support for dictatorships and their restrictions on freedoms, while regional dictators have used the same language to defend their own repression.
Now it is this same overarching worldview that unites France, Russia, the US, Turkey and the Syrian regime – though each has its own particular interests – such that they coordinate, directly or indirectly, their strikes and military manoeuvres in Syria.
In the name of a war “against terrorism”, today the French state demands the power to terrorise. In the name of so-called “French values”, freedoms are being attacked. In an authoritarian headlong rush, François Hollande bombs Syria and Iraq while all the talk of war and noble “values” is unable to provide answers to the political and social aspirations of the French working classes. Meanwhile, undocumented migrants, refugees, Muslims, veiled women, the Roma, foreigners and others are all prone to being designated “enemies within”.
Throughout the wider Middle East, state repression of political opponents and social movements is on the rise; in Egypt and elsewhere, hundreds of death sentences have been issued in recent months.
In the face of the temporary demobilization and disorientation of large sectors of the oppressed, we must step up to the challenge with constructive initiatives. In practice that means:
Oppose draconian policies; defend the democratic rights of everyone.
Oppose all imperialist aggression, alongside implacable opposition to dictatorships and counter-revolutionary regimes.
Oppose the Western military campaign in Syria, which includes bombing and other direct participation of Western military forces and also includes the armed participation in the conflict of forces supported by the West.
Fight against all forms of counter-revolution in the Middle East and the Maghreb, as elsewhere.
Fight repressive security policies, racism and austerity – whether in Europe, Asia or Africa.
Fight “fortress Europe”; demand the opening of borders and decent living conditions for all refugees and migrants.
Strengthen solidarity with people fighting for their liberation and emancipation in the Middle East, the Maghreb and around the world.
Solidarity with democratic and progressive anti-imperialist forces throughout the Arab region.
Solidarity with the people of the Middle East and the Maghreb in their legitimate struggles for emancipation and against foreign aggression: we insist that the emancipation of the people of the region will be the work of the people themselves.
Revolutionary Left Current – Syria
Socialist Forum – Lebanon
Revolutionary Socialists – Egypt
Workers’ Left League (LGO) – Tunisia
New Anticapitalist Party (NPA) – France
Socialist Workers Party (SWP) – Britain
revolutionary socialism in the 21st century (rs21) – Britain
The Editors, Salvage – Britain
Revolutionary Communist League-Socialist Workers Party (LCR-SAP) – Belgium
SolidaritéS – Switzerland
International Socialists Scotland (ISS) – Scotland
French and Arabic versions of the statement are also available
This is shared from revolutiontary socialism in the 21st century
counter-revolution
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UWP gathers for free and fair elections
A man holds up a sign at the protest
An irate crowd of United Workers Party (UWP) supporters gathered outside the Electoral Office on Friday afternoon claiming that the 8th December 2014 elections were tainted, not "free and fair" at all.
Lennox Linton, political leader of the UWP and Opposition Leader-in-waiting, announced on December 11, 2014 that he would be visiting the Electoral Office for a meeting with the Chief Elections Officer and the Chairman of the Electoral Commission. After waiting for more than an hour, and surrounded by the police in battle gear, Linton and his supporters concluded that the officials would not show up.
"We are assembled here, we have agreed for three people only to go inside and we have gone inside and there is nobody there, no chief elections officer, no chairman of the commission; they knew we were coming because hours ago they had police blockade areas hundreds of yards across the facility to restrict the people's access to the people's building and now they are not there," Linton told the crowd.
He added: "We have the Grand Fond matter top on our agenda this afternoon; we announced last night that I will be visiting the Electoral Office today and I did invite people who had an interest in this matter to come down as well."
Supporters of the UWP claim that the 8th December 2014 elections, won decisively 15-6 by the ruling Dominica Labour Party (DLP) were tainted and that they were robbed of victory. They say the elections were certainly not free and definitely not fair. But an Organisation of American States (OAS) observer mission had a different opinion.
"The Mission congratulates Prime Minister-elect Roosevelt Skerrit and the Dominica Labour Party (DLP) for their victory in yesterday's General Election and recognizes the efforts undertaken by the Electoral Commission and the Chief Elections Office to organize the electoral process and ensure that the elections were carried out successfully," the mission stated in its preliminary report.
At the end of Friday's gathering, Linton told the crowd outside the Electoral Office that the police officers said that the gathering was illegal and that the crowd should disperse immediately.
Linton stated: "I have said to the police we are already here we wish to wait for the elections officials until 4:00 pm which is the close of business, if they are not here by 4:00 pm I will address you again and we will go about our business in peace and we will come back another day because we have business here to do and nobody is going to take us away from doing our business; we will be responsible; we don't have any intention of destroying or damaging anybody's property but we have to do the business of the people of Dominica and free and fair elections is the business of the people of Dominica."
Meanwhile, UWP candidate for the Grand Fond Constituency Dr Thompson Fontaine who claimed last week that his seat at Riviere Cyrique was "stolen" told the crowd: "The plan was simple do not allow Thompson Fontaine to be announced the winner the night of the election so they announced Ivor as the winner.
"The same person that was tampering the votes the night before was there for the final count. In this final count when they realize every challenge of mine was successful because they could not defend why a clean cross, two clean lines they could not define why these were in the rejected ballots.
"They began to turn good ballots bad; so instead of my tally going up with the rejected ballots that were mine my tally started going down as a result.
"We have requested from the Electoral Commission to take action against these two officers; we will be writing to the police to arrest these two officers because what they did was corrupt and illegal and they need to be charged as a result.
"All we are asking for is a fair count of the votes; we did not sign off on the count the Electoral Commission knowing what was happening failed to send anybody up to Castle Bruce and they signed full well knowing that the ballots were disputed.
"With a fair and straight count I have won this election and that is why we are here," said Dr Fontaine.
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AcousticSunday
AcousticSunday@The MeetingPlace with Peter Hagenbuch
Come along and enjoy a short, informal time of worship @ the Meeting Place on the 3rd December at 6.30pm. The theme is 'Road less Travelled'.
Our invited guest is Peter Hagenbuch. Peter plays in a bluegrass band called Albakirkie who regularly play at festivals, clubs and churches.
Peter was born in Cambridge in 1954 and moved to Canterbury when he was 10. He started playing guitar when he was 12 and learned to fingerpick, playing songs by Ralph McTell, Al Stewart, Michael Chapman and others. In his 20s he started to play mandolin and flatpicking bluegrass guitar.
At university he got interested in pig breeding and went on to work on pig farms in Stoke Mandeville and Switzerland then with the Meat and Livestock Commission in Bletchley. Around this time, he became treasurer of Milton Keynes Guide Dogs. As the group were discussing fundraising ideas Peter remembered being inspired as a teenager, reading about a 50-mile walk in the Kentish Gazette, from Margate to London. He did his first 50-mile walk from London to Milton Keynes in 1982, raising £159 for Guide Dogs and a deaf charity – his sister has two deaf children. He got married in 1983 and in 1986 accepted a job with a chicken breeding company and moved to Uphall in West Lothian.
Peter and Wendy have two daughters. The oldest runs a cat sitting business called Team Feline. The second has cerebral palsy. Through her he has been involved with disability sport, especially the game of boccia, which is a Paralympic sport – Peter is a qualified referee.
He was brought up in the church but I stopped attending when he left school and home. Nearly twenty years later he returned to the church and came to faith at the age of 37, on Easter Day 1992.
In 2005 he went to Honduras for two weeks with the Christian charity Tearfund on their Transform Programme. The idea is that you spend time in a developing country and are transformed by the experience – it changes your outlook on life. After he returned from Honduras he started sponsoring a child from Honduras with the charity Compassion. Since then he has sponsored many other children. Peter currently sponsors 29 children.
His trip to Honduras was the start of a Latin American adventure which took him back to Honduras, then to the Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Brazil. He’s also been to India and Kenya. All these trips were in connection with child sponsorship, charities and projects that he supports.
Peter continues to do 50-mile walks, nearly every year. This year will be his 29th 50-mile walk and has raised around £50,000 for various charities from these walks.
Hope to see you on the 3rd!
Louise Mairs
Tagged: AcousticSunday, PeterHagenbuch
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Resilient Cities Concludes with a Firm No to Unsustainable Development
ICLEI South Asia participated in the 10th Global Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation organised by ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability in Bonn, Germany. The event was held from the 26th to 28th of June.ICLEI GexCom member Kinlay Dorjee, Mayor, Thimphu Municipality, Bhutan also represented South Asia at the Congress.ICLEI South Asia organised a session on ‘The Urban Nexus: Tool to Localize and Deliver Global Agendas’ which was...
Korean Experts Study Himachal’s Waste Management Issues
An ICLEI South Asia team along with experts of the Korean Environmental Corporation (KECO) and the University of Seoul visited the Kullu-Manali-Solang and Dharamshala-Triund regions of Himachal Pradesh recently. The visit to the Himachal Pradesh regions was conducted under the aegis of the “Supporting the Development of Sustainable Solid Waste Management Strategies for the Mountainous Regions of Pakistan, India and Nepal” project. The primary...
Europe Tour Inspires Climate-Smart Vision in Urban-LEDS II Cities
A study tour of Europe was organised under the project “Urban-LEDS II - Accelerating climate action through the promotion of Urban Low Emission Development Strategies” from 17th to 24th June 2019. Participants from 18 countries visited three leading European cities that are part of the Urban LEDS network. They got an opportunity to explore first-hand how these cities were taking ambitious climate action through a wide range of solutions in...
PROMISE Impact: Stakeholders Call for Connecting Rural, Urban Futures
ICLEI South Asia organised the second national exchange workshop under the PROMotion of Inclusive, Sustainable Growth and Diversity to Strengthen Local Governments (PROMISE) project in Jabalpur on 19th and 20th June 2019.The project was funded by the European Union. The workshop was organised in partnership with the Jabalpur Municipal Corporation (JMC), under the guidance of the Urban Administrative and Development Department, Madhya Pradesh....
Urban95 Set to Give Udaipur a Child-Friendly Makeover
ICLEI South Asia (ICLEI SA) recently held an event in Udaipur to launch the Urban95 Programme in the city. The technical partner for the programme, ICLEI SA is implementing the project in partnership with the Bernard Van Leer Foundation (BvLF), with support from the Udaipur Municipal Corporation (UMC).Urban95 is the BvLF’s 30-million euro initiative, which aims to create healthy, prosperous and vibrant cities where families can thrive. The...
BLOG: Gender Equity in Climate Finance – Why Does it Matter?
Aditi Paul, CDKN Asia and ICLEI South Asia, argues that climate finance provides too good an opportunity to miss, as a vehicle for advancing women’s wellbeing and development and righting some of the deep gender inequalities in society. She recommends how the design, delivery, monitoring and evaluation of climate finance projects could be improved to help achieve gender equity goals.
Himalayan Project Begins Participatory Landscape-level Mapping
Detailed field studies have begun in the Lahaul landscape, Himachal Pradesh, under the UNDP-supported SECURE Himalaya project. The aim of the exercise is to understand people’s dependence on forests for livelihood, the impact of climate change and the people’s perception of the issue of degradation and its consequences. A project team has carried out focus group discussions in Udaipur, Urgos, Tindi and Khanjar villages in the Lahaul landscape....
Capacity Building Workshop Weighs Sustainable Urban Freight Management
ICLEI South Asia held a two-day capacity building workshop on sustainable urban freight management in Kochi on 7th and 8th June 2019. The Kochi Municipal Corporation was the co-host, while the Kochi Metro Rail Limited was the technical partner of the event, which was organised as part of the “EcoLogistics -- Low Carbon Freight for Sustainable Cities” project.More than 175 stakeholders such as government officials and representatives of central...
Kochi Councillors Call EcoLogistics Project a Timely Initiative
ICLEI South Asia presented the EcoLogistics project to the elected representatives of the Kochi Municipal Corporation at a meeting held at the council hall in Kochi, Kerala, on the 27th of April. The agenda of the meeting, held under the chairmanship of Hon’ble Mayor Ms. Soumini Jain, was to promote synergy of the projects being implemented by different organizations and agencies in Kochi. The mayor said that such a synergy would help to...
CDKN Guide Offers Practical Advice on Communicating Climate Change
This week, CDKN launches Communicating climate change: A practitioner’s guide, the revised 2019 edition. The guide is full of tips for communicating climate change effectively, drawn from CDKN’s experience in South Asia and Southeast Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean. It is by practitioners and for practitioners.If you have ever tried to explain to colleagues in your organisation, policy-makers, or the broader public...
Urban-LEDS II Builds on Phase 1 Synergies, Successes
The Urban-LEDS phase II project is expanding work on low emission planning to Colombia, Bangladesh, Lao PDR and Rwanda. Funded by the European Commission, the project is being implemented by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI).This project, which is being implemented in the 2017-21 period, takes forward the work of Urban-LEDS I, which was conducted in Brazil, India,...
CapaCITIES Initiatives Help Cities Scale Up as Project Concludes
The first phase of the CapaCITIES project, supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), is drawing to an end, after three years of extensive work, assisting the cities of Coimbatore, Rajkot, Siliguri, and Udaipur to plan and implement several interesting mitigation and adaptation measures.The good practices and successful initiatives introduced through pilot quick win interventions in the cities are now being replicated...
BLOG: Should Indian Cities be More Empowered to Take Decisions?
Philadelphia is a sweet reminder of what the city government can do to ensure a quality life for its citizens, it is also a reminder of the role that the city governments must perform in the future, writes Tikender Panwar
Experts Concur to Sustain Practices Implemented under Urban Nexus Project
The Ninth and the concluding Regional Workshop on the “Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities- The Urban Nexus”, project funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by Regional GIZ in partnership with UNESCAP and ICLEI-Southeast and South Asia was organised on 22nd and 23rd of May at Bangkok. More than 100 representatives from national, sub-national and local government; officials...
BLOG: Resilient Cities Asia Pacific – Delegates Challenged to Think Long Term
Bedoshruti Sadhukhan of CDKN’s Asia team and the ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability Delhi office reports on key themes in this year’s Resilient Cities Asia Pacific Congress.
Kochi to get Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan
A Local Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (LBSAP) is being prepared for Kochi, as part of the INTERACT-Bio project, which is supported by Germany’s Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU). The action plan is one of the major outputs of the project. Detailed ward-level discussions on biodiversity conservation and associated issues were initiated in the city in May. The outcome of these discussions...
Gangtok Meeting Highlights City Biodiversity Issues
A stakeholder consultation was organised in Gangtok on the 21st of May as part of the Gangtok Municipal Corporation-funded project on the management of natural resources in the city. The consultation helped to identify the critical ecosystems in Gangtok and the problems these areas faced. The attendees participated in group exercises and discussions, and came up with some possible solutions to help improve the city’s biodiversity. These inputs...
Partner Agencies Unveil Plans at SECURE Himalaya Project Meet
The Himachal Pradesh forest department held its third state-level meeting as part of the UNDP-supported SECURE Himalaya project in Shimla on May 17, 2019. All partner agencies presented their fieldwork plans at the meeting. The expert committee highly appreciated the presentation made by ICLEI South Asia.The SECURE Himalaya project team also made its first field visit and held meetings with district officials in Keylong, Manali and Udaipur. A...
CDKN Workshop Puts Focus on 2020 Themes
SouthSouthNorth (SSN) hosted a three-day workshop at its office in Cape Town, South Africa, from May 14 to 16, 2019, as part of a team-building and planning event held under the aegis of the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN).The participants included CDKN's Country Engagement Leads from Nepal, India and Bangladesh, besides Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana and Peru, as well as Ecuador, in addition to project partners from SSN, ICLEI South...
CDKN Launches in Nepal, Conducts Action Labs in Asia
ICLEI South Asia, the Asia Regional Coordinator for Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) programme, organised Action Labs in India, Nepal and Bangladesh in the month of April 2019. The purpose of the Action Labs was to have close engagement with in-country actors at national, regional and city level actors as well as identify Knowledge Brokering Partners (KBPs) that CDKN team will work with over the next year in the target countries....
Reflecting on Approaches and Methodologies under INTERACT-Bio Project
A methodology workshop was organised as part of the ongoing Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety (BMU), Germany supported INTERACT-Bio project. The workshop provide the opportunity for project partners to reflect on the approaches and methodologies followed so far and plan for the remainder of the project. During the workshop, discussions were held on the need to start documenting the overarching approach...
Developing Low Emission Development Strategies in India and Bangladesh
The Urban-LEDS phase II project (2017 – 2021) supported by the European Commission, and implemented in partnership with UN-HABITAT, in its second phase is actively supporting the cities of Narayanganj and Rajshahi in Bangladesh and Nagpur and Thane in India in developing climate resilient strategies and action plans, while also developing innovative pilot projects and supporting the preparation of bankable projects. Further, four satellite...
Smart Cities Project: Experts Highlight Policy Bottlenecks
ICLEI South Asia hosted a roundtable discussion on the way forward for Sustainable Urban Mobility and Built Environment under the Smart Cities Mission on the 17th of April at Eros International Hotel, Nehru Place, Delhi. It was organised as part of the Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation-supported “Assisting Sustainable Urban Transport & Built Environment in Four Indian Smart Cities” project. ICLEI South Asia is implementing the project in...
Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific Congress Ends with Deliberations on ‘Delhi Call’
The Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific 2019 was brought to an end, as Gino Van Begin, Secretary General of ICLEI, and Emani Kumar, Deputy Secretary General of ICLEI, presented the key takeaways of the Congress. The three-day Congress was composed of 8 plenary sessions and 7 parallel sessions, gathered over 200 participants from 90 local governments of over 25 countries, covering the main pillars of: Localization of global frameworks;Capacity...
CDKN Facilitates Discussion on How to Enhance Effective Communication of Climate Knowledge to Meet Sub-national Needs
ICLEI South Asia, with the support of the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) organised a panel session on the effective communication tools and pathways that can be adopted to meet climate knowledge needs. The session was held on Day 3 of the 4th Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific Congress 2019 in New Delhi.During the panel discussion, Kinlay Dorjee, Mayor, Thimphu, shared, "Economic development is necessary but environment...
International Finance Organisations Discuss Improving Cities’ Access to Financing Mechanisms to Foster Lasting, Effective Strategies towards Resilience and Urban Development
“Money is just money until it is in your pocket. When you put that money out, then it becomes capital,” shared Ms. Supee Teravaninthorn, Director-General of Investment Operations Department of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the People’s Republic of China during the fourth plenary session of Resilient Cities Asia Pacific 2019 which delved into financing urban resilience.The plenary discussion, moderated by Maryke van Staden,...
Experts Discuss Solutions for Climate Adaptive Water Management
A session on Climate Adaptive Water Management was organised by ICLEI with support from the International Development Research Centre on the second day of the 4th Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific Congress 2019. This session presented advanced understanding on the impacts of climate and human development on sustainability of water resources. It focused on climate induced challenges to water resource management and collaborative approaches for...
Addressing Urban Biodiversity and its Role in Urban Climate Resilience
The Nature Based Adaptation Solutions session focused on the efforts and initiatives being implemented in various cities and city-regions on nature-based solutions to build urban resilience and addressed questions such as how alternative approaches to infrastructure development, e.g. nature-based solutions, contribute towards both improved service delivery and building urban resilience, how existing institutional tools and processes (e.g. EIA)...
Peer Exchange on Finance and Investable Climate Action Planning
On behalf of the Global Platform for Sustainable Cities Resource Team, ICLEI organized the session Peer Change on Finance and Investable Climate Action Planning as part of the Resilient Cities Asia Pacific 2019. The session was supported by the Resource Team comprised by World Resource Institute, C40 and ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability.The Global Platform for Sustainable Cities is a platform that supports cities by providing...
Highlighting Public Participation as a Crucial Tool in Forwarding Local Climate Action: A Discussion on Citizen Engagement by City Representatives, Experts, and Stakeholders
Every failure is an opportunity to learn how to do better is a sentiment that underscored the discussion in Plenary 3 of RCAP 2019. The session focused on sharing stories on good urban governance mechanisms to improve climate resilience. In this session, the critical role of public participation was discussed with reference to a range of Indian projects under the PROMISE project, which examined community engagement across four projects in public...
Learnings and Insights on Integrated Action Planning for Urban Climate Resilience
The second plenary session of Resilient Cities Asia Pacific 2019 delved into looking at the outcomes and learnings from the CapaCITIES (Capacity Building Project on Low Carbon and Climate Resilient City Development in India) Project supported by Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. The session gathered key city representatives from Coimbatore, Rajkot, Siliguri, and Udaipur. Marylaure Crettaz, Head of the Swiss Agency for Development and...
Asia-Pacific Cities Share Learnings and Experience in Forwarding Low Emission Development in the Region
The Asia LEDS Partnership, in cooperation with ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability, organized the session, Low Emission Development Strategies for the Asia Region at the 4th Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific Congress which took place on 15 April at the Hotel Eros, New Delhi. The key theme of the session was how these low-carbon initiatives all have a role to play in not only helping countries meet their NDCs, but also raising ambition. The...
Local Governments, Experts, and Partners Discuss Strategies to Integrate Resilience into Local Development Plans and Programs
100 Resilient Cities, National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) and ICLEI South Asia organized a session on Transformative Actions to Enhance Urban Resilience at the 4th Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific Congress 2019 held at Hotel Eros, New Delhi. The session delved into the integration of urban resilience actions within municipal development projects and plans.“The initiatives of 100 Resilient Cities and NIUA are focusing on institutionalising...
UN Agencies Discuss Local Governments’ Role in Achieving SDGs, NDCs
The United Nations session at the 4th Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific Congress 2019 brought together representatives from various UN agencies like UNDP-GEF, UNESCAP, UN-HABITAT and UNISDR to discuss the role of local and sub-national governments in the implementation and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), the Sendai Framework and the New Urban Agenda of 2016.The session,...
Resilient Cities Asia Pacific 2019 Opens Strong with a Firm Message on Multilevel Action for Resilience
The 4th Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific Congress, organised by ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability and hosted by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation, opened today at the Hotel Eros, New Delhi. Gathering more than 200 participants from over 70 cities from over 25 countries across the globe. RCAP 2019 provides a platform for multi-stakeholder discussions and peer learning on the opportunities and mechanisms of implementing the Sustainable...
Urban Nexus Presented as a Good Means of Implementation to Deliver Global Agendas
The ‘Policy Development Workshop on Applying Urban Nexus Concept to Implementing Global Agendas’ was organised on the 5th and 6th of March, 2019 in Bangkok under the framework of the Regional GIZ Urban Nexus Project supported by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development. The Urban Nexus project’s political partner is United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia Pacific (UNESCAP) and the implementing partner is...
Workshop Stresses Practical Solutions to Urban Problems
Regional GIZ Urban Nexus, Yashwantrao Chavan Academy of Development Administration (YASHADA) and ICLEI South Asia jointly organised an Urban Nexus Training on 25th and 26th February 2019 in Pune. The event was organised under the framework of the Regional GIZ “Integrated resource management in Asian Cities: Urban Nexus” project. It was financed by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented jointly...
Kochi Meeting Lays Groundwork for Biodiversity Action Plan
A Local Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (LBSAP) for Kochi will be one of the main outputs of the INTERACT-Bio project, supported by Germany’s Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety. Representatives from all the wards of Kochi attended a meeting in the city recently, with the aim of laying the groundwork for the LBSAP. Ward-level issues connected to biodiversity conservation and drivers of degradation...
Stakeholders Call for Eco-Friendly Plastic Waste Disposal
A stakeholder workshop to discuss the baseline and potential strategies for improving plastic waste management was conducted on 11th March 2019 in Hyderabad. ICLEI South Asia is providing technical assistance to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to assess the baseline and prepare a plastic waste management strategy. This is in partnership with IGES – CCET (the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies Centre Collaborating...
Webinars Give Useful Pointers on Smart City Planning
Cities are engines of growth for India’s economy. Currently 31% of the country’s population lives in urban areas, contributing 63% of the GDP. This is expected to increase to reach 75% by 2030, with a simultaneous jump in the urban population to touch 40%.An inclusive and people-centric approach, comprising physical, institutional, social and economic infrastructure development, is required for improving the quality of life in cities. Keeping...
SUNYA Success Story Attracts Attention at NULM Workshop
The Regional Centre for Urban and Environmental Studies, Mumbai, of the All India Institute of Local Self-Government (AIILSG), conducted the Converging SBM (Urban) and NULM for Clean Cities workshop on 7th February in Jaipur. The event was supported by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, GOI.AIILSG selected the SUNYA pilot as a best practice to promote urban livelihoods through various activities under the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), and...
RURBAN Meeting Reviews Project Progress
Second Meeting in SolapurThe second RURBAN meeting in Solapur was held on 2nd March 2019. It was conducted under the aegis of the IDRC-supported Integrated Rural Urban Water Management for Climate Based Adaptations in Indian Cities (IAdapt) project.The meeting was organised by ICLEI South Asia in collaboration with Smart City cell, Solapur. The aim of the meeting was to update the stakeholders on ongoing project activities, share the results of...
ICLEI Addresses Landscape Degradation in Himachal Pradesh
ICLEI South Asia is working on measures to address landscape degradation in the Lahaul, Pangi and Kinnaur landscapes of Himachal Pradesh, as part of the UNDP-supported SECURE Himalaya project.Detailed discussions were held with the Himachal Pradesh Forest Department to finalise the project methodology and to develop a deeper understanding of the landscape. The ICLEI South Asia team also participated in a workshop organised by the Wildlife...
BLOG: Blended Finance for Climate and Food Security – The Potential of the Farm Sector
Reducing poverty in Asia, even in countries like India, Indonesia or others with relatively high per capita income, remains a challenge. Key priority areas like food and water security, gender equality, tackling climate change, and making cities more liveable can help eradicate poverty.
Delhi University Experts Study Solapur Micro-Catchment Issues
Experts from the University of Delhi made a field visit to the Solapur micro-catchment area on 26th and 27th February 2019. The visit was conducted under the aegis of the IAdapt project, supported by the International Development Research Centre, Canada. Professor C. R. Babu, CEMDE, Department of Environmental Studies, Delhi University, and Dr. Vijay Kumar, Assistant Professor, Department of Zoology, Delhi University, visited Ekrukh lake, Tale...
Happy Cities Summit Calls for ‘Blue-Green Cities’
ICLEI South Asia and the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority jointly organised the second Happy Cities Summit in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, from 13th to 15th February 2019.Emani Kumar, Deputy Secretary-General, ICLEI, moderated a session on nature-based solutions at the summit, focusing on the need to develop cities with blue-green infrastructure and not just concrete structures.The session discussed the efforts and initiatives...
Municipal Solid Waste Management Exposure Workshops in Indore
ICLEI South Asia conducted Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) solid waste management exposure workshops, supported by National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA), in Indore from 6th to 8th of February 2019 and 12th to 14th of February 2019 respectively. The workshops seek to strengthen institutional capacities at ULBs towards collection, treatment, disposal and efficient management of various types and categories of wastes, promote 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse,...
Understanding Ecosystem Services by Mangroves in Kochi
As part of the BMU supported INTERACT Bio project, a study on ecosystem services provided by mangroves in Kochi has been initiated. The study aims to understand the ecosystem services provided by mangroves and develop an investment case for mangrove restoration in Kochi. The meeting of the technical support group was held in Kochi to discuss the baseline information that has been collected and the work plan ahead. The technical group also...
Nagpur Announces Deep Dive Commitment with Building Efficiency Accelerator
Nagpur, India is the latest city to be selected for a deep dive partnership with the Building Efficiency Accelerator (BEA), a public-private collaboration that accelerates local government implementation of building efficiency policies and programs. As a deep dive partner, Nagpur will benefit from enhanced technical support with the goal of reaching an ambitious 10 percent energy reduction target by 2021. ICLEI South Asia will work with Nagpur...
Rajkot to be one of the First Indian Cities to Develop District Cooling System
A workshop on 'Cooling Smart Cities: The Arrival of District Energy in India’ was organised on the 7th of February 2019 in Rajkot, Gujarat, by UN Environment with support from ICLEI South Asia and Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation funded CapaCITIES project.The aim of the workshop was to raise awareness, accelerate investments and unlock supportive policy frameworks for district energy systems in India. Various national and...
Mapping and Documenting Tree Diversity of Subhash Bose Park in Kochi
As part of the ongoing BMU supported INTERACT Bio project, a pictorial handbook of the trees of Subhash Bose Park has been developed. This handbook aims at communicating the significance of biodiversity to the citizens of Kochi. The handbook also consists of tree distribution maps of the Park. It was released on the 3rd of February at a function held at the Park in presence of Smt Soumini Jain, Mayor, Kochi Municipal Corporation; several...
State Level Meeting to Discuss Project Activities in Solapur
A state level review meeting with the officials of Water and Sanitation Support Organisation (WSSO) of Maharashtra, under the IAdapt project, was held in Navi Mumbai on the 8th of February, 2019. The IAdapt project is funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada and being implemented at Solapur in Maharashtra and Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh. The project team updated various state level departments, including Water...
Swiss, National Experts Share Ideas on Best Practices
Under the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) supported CapaCITIES project, a Best Practice Workshop was organised by the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) with support from ICLEI South Asia on the 30th and 31st of January in New Delhi. The workshop addressed good practices on integrating climate measures in urban planning and development. It presented the climate resilient action plans on building resilience in water,...
BLOG: Indian Infrastructure Must Be Climate-Proofed to the Core
Bedoshruti Sadhukhan of ICLEI South Asia argues that climate resilience must be not just a guiding principle, but the focus of new infrastructure projects in India. Despite increased awareness, planning decisions and infrastructure designs still do not address resilience adequately.
Toolkit for preparation of Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure Projects by ULBs
ICLEI South Asia provided technical support to the Global Infrastructure Basel to develop a project preparation checklist tool – “Preparation of Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure Projects”, that would enable cities to consider aspects of sustainability and resilience while preparing a project proposal for investment. It will help cities track project progress by monitoring achievement of milestones, including project preparation,...
Transport Experts Plan to Decongest Siliguri Roads
As part of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation supported CapaCITIES project, a study to decongest major arterial roads in Siliguri has been initiated. A team of transport experts from The Urban Lab visited the city in this regard. They carried out extensive discussions with officials of Siliguri Municipal Corporation to understand the present situation of transport in the city. The team also undertook detailed...
EcoLogistics Aims to Transform Urban Freight
ICLEI South Asia was invited by Transport Department, Government of Kerala to initiate discussion on sustainable urban freight management in Kochi as part of proposals for transforming transportation in Kerala. The discussion on urban freight was part of a deep-dive workshop on the transportation in Kerala held on the 15th January 2019 at Transport Commissionerate, Thiruvananthapuram. The meeting was chaired by Mr. K Padma Kumar, IPS, ADGP and...
Understanding the Mechanism of Value Addition for Bioresources in Goa
As part of the Goa State Biodiversity Board supported Value Chain Analysis project, discussions have been carried out with farmers, middlemen and processors to understand the entire mechanism of value addition for 9 bioresources (Kokum, Arecanut, Kalprasa, Prawn, Muscle, Mackerel, Jackfruit, Honey Pollen, Xylia xylocarpa). The primary data thus collected, along with related secondary data which has been collected is being analysed. Value chain...
Documenting Goa Villages' Biodiversity
Continuing the work on development of People's Biodiversity Registers in 10 villages in Goa, the team from ICLEI South Asia conducted extensive biodiversity surveys in all the villages. Through these surveys the biodiversity in these villages has been documented, along with traditional ecological knowledge associated with the various species. Focus was also given on documentation of cultural practices with emphasis on nature. Change in lifestyle...
Financing NDC Implementation through Blended Finance and Green Bonds
Asia LEDS Partnership (ALP) and LEDS Global Partnership (LEDS GP) Finance Working Group with funding support from Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) organized a workshop on ‘Financing NDC Implementation through Blended Finance and Green Bonds’ on 19 December 2018 in New Delhi, India. The workshop was supported by several knowledge partners including UNDP Asia Pacific, cKers Finance, Climate Bonds Initiative, GIZ China, GGGI...
Scoping Study in Panaji under INTERACT-Bio project
As part of the BMU supported INTERACT-Bio project, a scoping study was undertaken in Panaji, Goa. The same was coordinated by Dr. Julian Rode from the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Germany. As part of the scoping process, detailed interactions were carried out with subject matter specialists, Goa State Biodiversity Board and officials of the city corporation. The inputs from these meetings and information collated from secondary...
CDKN at COP24: The Start of a ‘Big Conversation’ on Communicating Climate Change
At COP24 in Katowice, Poland in December, the CDKN team shared top tips on communicating for climate action – and helped push the boundaries on audience engagement.“How do I communicate better with colleagues in my organisation about climate change and opportunities for climate action?”“How about communicating with other stakeholder groups, and with the general public?”“How do I get others to work with me on the climate agenda?”These are some of...
Citizen Engagement for Climate Resilient City Action Plan in Siliguri
A citizen engagement event was organised by ICLEI South Asia and NIUA in Siliguri on 17th of December, 2018.As part of the CapaCITIES project, the Climate Resilient City Action Plan for the city has been prepared. The same has been ratified and accepted by the city through a Council Resolution in September 2018.The citizen engagement event aimed at informing the citizens about the climate action plan and discussing the same with them.The event...
Decoding Katowice Climate Package: What it Means for South Asia
The 24th Conference of the Parties (COP24) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) recognised the imperatives for rapid, sustained, ambitious and far reaching climate action, and encouraged nations to aim for restricting temperature rise by 2100 to 1.5 deg. C above pre-industrial levels. Amid calls for deep decarbonisation pathways, nations delivered on the universally acceptable “rulebook” for operationalisation of the Paris...
Eighth Regional Workshop on Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities: The Urban Nexus, Bangkok, Thailand
The Eighth Regional Workshop on “Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities: the Urban Nexus” was held in Bangkok, Thailand from the 14th to 16th of November, 2018. The workshop was organised by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (UN ESCAP) in partnership with Regional GIZ and ICLEI Southeast and South Asia. The workshop was organised as part of the project “Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities:...
Can Cities Act As Drivers of Electric Mobility Adoption?
ICLEI South Asia participated in the India Electric Mobility Advisory Group Workshop which was held on the 11th of December, 2018 in New Delhi. The Electric Mobility Initiative was launched by Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation, in 2018, to support India's ambitious goal to usher in electric mobility in a big way. The initiative aims to facilitate knowledge transfer, policy analysis and research as well as capacity building and implementation...
Climate-Resilient Urban Infrastructure: The G20 Adaptation Work Programme at COP24
ICLEI South Asia was part of the 'Climate-resilient Urban Infrastructure: The G20 Adaptation Work Programme', a side event organised by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) at the COP24 in Katowice, Poland on the 11th of December, 2018.Mr. Emani Kumar, Executive Director, ICLEI South Asia talked about the role of local governments in the 'Climate-resilient Urban Infrastructure - Contributions from Insurance,...
Stakeholders Discuss Low Carbon and Climate Resilient City Development in India at COP24
To showcase best practices being implemented in Indian cities and share knowledge on ways to integrate low carbon and climate resilience measures in urban planning, ICLEI South Asia supported National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) to hold a session on ‘Climate Smart City Initiative in India’ during COP24 at Katowice, Poland. The session witnessed knowledge sharing and deliberations featuring distinguished representatives...
Side Event Session Discusses Water Resource Conservation and Management for Climate Resilient Development at COP24 India Pavilion
As an enabler of promoting Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM) in urban centres, ICLEI South Asia was invited by the Ministry of Water Resource, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation to showcase its IUWM project implementation experiences in India during a side event at India Pavilion on the 12th of December, 2018. The session witnessed gathering of various key speakers and experts discussing on diverse challenges in the water resources...
Capacity-Building for Achieving Low Emissions and Climate Resilient Strategies in Cities at COP24
ICLEI South Asia participated in the 'Capacity-Building for Achieving Low Emissions and Climate Resilient Strategies in Cities' session at the COP24 in Katowice, Poland on the 11th of December, 2018.The session, organised by ICLEI World Secretariat, aimed to present specific policy proposals to address capacity building gaps and needs relevant to the implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in the context of the Paris...
Sustained Cross-Country Learning and Collaboration through Regional Communities of Practice for NDC Implementation – NDC Partnership, the LEDS GP and regional partnerships at COP24
During the 24th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the NDC Partnership and Government of Vietnam conducted a side event on “Sustained Cross-Country Learning and Collaboration through Regional Communities of Practice for NDC Implementation” on the 10th of December, at the NDC Partnership Pavilion. This event was convened by the Asia LEDS Partnership along with the LEDS Global Partnership (LEDS...
CDKN Invites Stakeholders for New Phase Launch in India and Bangladesh
The Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) launched its new phase in Bangladesh and India on the 19th and 20th of November respectively.ICLEI South Asia is one of the four supporting partners in this programme along with non-profit organisations SouthSouthNorth, Fundación Futuro Latinoamericano, and the Overseas Development Institute.In the new phase, CDKN will focus on deep engagement with countries like India, Bangladesh and Nepal,...
Role of Cities in Biodiversity Conservation Discussed at CBD-COP14
ICLEI South Asia participated in the 6th Global Biodiversity Summit of Local and Subnational Governments at the CBD-COP14, UN Biodiversity Conference, organised at Sharm-El-Sheikh, Egypt. The Summit was organised by ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability, nr4SD, Secretariat of Convention of Biodiversity and Government of Egypt. The Summit deliberated on issues pertaining to biodiversity conservation across the globe and the need for cities...
Solid Waste Management (SWM) City Cluster Exposure Workshops
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has engaged National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) to conduct a series of Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) solid waste management exposure workshops in the country. NIUA has further contracted ICLEI South Asia, Infrastructure Development Corporation (Karnataka) and India PPP Capacity Building Trust to conduct these training in Pimpri-Chinchwad (Maharashtra), Warrangal and Hyderabad (Telengana)....
EcoLogistics Project Presented at Urban Mobility India Conference and Expo 2018
Mr. Ashish Rao Ghorpade, Deputy Director, ICLEI South Asia presented EcoLogistics: Low Carbon Freight for Sustainable Cities project at the Urban Freight technical session during the Urban Mobility India (UMI) Conference and Expo 2018 in Nagpur. The session was chaired by Dr. Nitin Kareer, Principal Secretary, Urban Development Department, Government of Maharashtra. The annual UMI Conference and Expo is a flagship event held under the aegis of...
EcoLogistics Team Commence City Assessment Visits
EcoLogistics - Low Carbon Freight for Sustainable Cities project team commenced city assessment visits to Panaji, Kochi and Shimla to initiate project activities. The project is supported by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU).The two-day visit to each city was carried to interact closely with the local governments in cities along with other stakeholders such as Road Transport Officer (RTO),...
Swiss Film Screens at Siliguri International Film Festival 2018
As part of the ‘Swiss Films on Wheels’ project, children’s films – Heidi and My Life as a Zucchini – were screened at the Siliguri International Film Festival and Modela Caretaker Centre and School respectively. The ‘Swiss Films on Wheels’ is a friendship bus that carries, throughout India, a message of friendship, trust, respect and endurance. The event was organised under the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation funded CapaCITIES...
ICLEI Member city Singra receives first Urban Resilience Award 2018
Singra Municipality of Bangladesh, a member of ICLEI, received the “Urban Resilience Award 2018”, at the Third Annual National Conference on Urban Resilience to Climate Change, for its excellence in urban resilience and climate actions. The conference is held every year since 2016, jointly organised by International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD) at Independent University Bangladesh (IUB), Asian Cities Climate...
Bangladesh hosts Cities and Regions Talanoa Dialogue
ICLEI South Asia and International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD) jointly organised the Cities and Regions Talanoa Dialogues: The Bangladesh Dialogue on the 18th of November during the Third Annual National Conference on Urban Resilience in Dhaka, Bangladesh. ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability is supporting the Talanoa Dialogue – a United Nations (UN) process to take stock of climate action and...
Rajkot City Won OPCC Award 2018, Urban LEDS II launched at WWF-India Event
ICLEI member city Rajkot was felicitated with One Planet City Challenge (OPCC) award at the ‘Role of Cities in Addressing Climate Change’ conference organised by WWF-India in partnership with ICLEI South Asia on the 12th of November in New Delhi.The city was announced as the winner and was also felicitated at the OPCC global award ceremony during the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco, United States. Along with Rajkot, 10 other cities...
Roundtable on “Road-map for Electrifying IPT sector in Indian Cities” at Urban Mobility India Conference and Expo 2018
ICLEI South Asia organised a roundtable on “Road-map for Electrifying IPT Sector in Indian Cities” at Urban Mobility India (UMI) Conference and Expo 2018 in Nagpur from 2nd to 4th of November 2018. The annual UMI Conference and Expo is a flagship event held under the aegis of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India. The roundtable was around the idea that numerous cities intend to accelerate the electrification of the IPT...
Cities discuss development of sustainable cities at the Green Cities Conference in Melaka
In our bid to enable peer-learning among cities and sub-national entities, ICLEI South Asia, as a technical partner, supported the Green Cities Conference in Melaka from the 1st to 3rd of October, 2018. The Conference hosted by the Melaka province in Malaysia, was supported by the Asian Development Bank and conducted by the Center for IMT-GT Cooperation and the Green Growth Foundation. ASEAN cities, technical partners and funders gathered at the...
The CapaCITIES Project Cities Participate in Local Renewables Conference 2018
As part of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation supported CapaCITIES project, Siliguri, Rajkot, Coimbatore and Udaipur - project cities - participated in the Local Renewables Conference 2018 in Freiburg, Germany. A session dedicated to the project was organised in the conference which emphasised on discussing initiatives focussing on renewable energy and circular economy that have been implemented by the project cities. The cities...
Stakeholders Gather for the First Talanoa Dialogue in India
The Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEFCC) Government of India and ICLEI South Asia jointly organised the Cities and Regions Talanoa Dialogue workshop in New Delhi.The one-day workshop brought together stakeholders from governments, academia, international community, private sector and civil society with an aim to strengthen aspects of multi-level governance to enable accelerated and effective on-ground action aimed at...
The EcoLogistics - Low Caron Freight for Sustainable cities kicks off in India
The national kick-off workshop for the project “EcoLogistics - Low Caron Freight for Sustainable cities” was organised on the 31st of October in New Delhi. The project aims to prioritise strategies that will focus on promoting the transportation of goods with minimised impacts on air quality, noise, health, fatalities & injuries, traffic congestion and reduced GHG emissions. A first of its kind and a global initiative, the project will...
Workshop Discusses Gender Inclusive Framework under CDKN Programme
Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) workshop was organised under the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) programme in London from the 9th-11th of October, 2018. The event brought together the four alliance partners of CDKN: ICLEI South Asia, Fundacion Futuro LatinoAmericano (FFLA), SouthSouthNorth (SSN) and the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) to discuss and agree on the initial design of the MEL Framework.CDKN is...
Partners training program on Decision Support Tool
A training program was conducted by Athena Infonomics on the 8th of October, 2018 in Chennai for IAdapt Project Partners on the Decision Support Tool (DST) being developed under the IDRC supported IAdapt project to facilitate and support local governments and catchment managers to make climate informed decision for sustainable water management. The tool will be tested in the project cities to prioritise climate adaptive water management...
Exposure Visit for Solapur Officials to Nagpur Under the IAdapt Project
ICLEI – South Asia organised an exposure visit for the officials of Solapur Municipal Corporation (SMC) to Nagpur city under the project on Integrated Rural Urban Water Management for Climate Based Adaptations in Indian Cities (IAdapt) supported by IDRC, Canada. The project is being implemented in two cities - Solapur and Vijaywada and focusses on the principles of Integrated Urban Water Management and Integrated Water Resource Management not...
Sensitisation Workshop on Environmental Conservation and Climate Change for Delhi Schools
With support from Department of Environment, Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi, a Sensitisation Workshop on Environmental Conservation and Climate Change was organised for students and teachers from over 100 schools in Delhi. The workshop aimed at making the students aware of the significance of biodiversity and natural resources and how climate change is impacting the same. The students and teachers also participated in a group...
First Project Steering Committee Meeting in Delhi
With support from Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMU) through the International Climate Initiative (IKI), the INTERACT-Bio: Integrated sub-national action for Biodiversity-Supporting Implementation of National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan project is being implemented in the cities of Kochi, Panaji and Mangalore. The project is supported by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and...
Siliguri Becomes the First City to Adopt Climate Resilient City Action Plan
The Climate Resilient City Action Plan (CRCAP), developed for the city of Siliguri through Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) supported CapaCITIES project, was deliberated upon in a stakeholder consultation on the 14th of September 2018. Following the same, the plan was tabled in the Member Mayor in Council Meeting, where it was accepted. The plan was then presented in the Board Meeting of SIliguri Municipal Corporation and...
ICLEI South Asia Provides Technical Assistance to Support Low Carbon Mobility Strategies in Delhi
ICLEI South Asia, with support from Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation, aims to provide technical support to Delhi and develop strategies for improving its mobility sector for a period of one year. The project team will focus to assist the city in improving and strengthening the existing public transport with a special focus on low carbon transport including buses, improving last mile connectivity and introduction of electric vehicles. ICLEI...
ICLEI South Asia Facilitates Technical Training and Exposure Visit to Innovative Solid Waste Treatment Processes in Germany
The GIZ Regional Urban Nexus project, financed by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) offered an opportunity for introducing and building the capacities of the officials on innovative solid waste treatment process at Ringsheim, Germany. Officials from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, NITI Aayog and the State Government of Karnataka were part of the tour.The four-day training programme introduced...
Waste Management and Waste Segregation Activities Organised in Udaipur
As part of the CapaCITIES project, supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), ICLEI South Asia organised a Jan Choupal (public meeting) in ward 1 of Udaipur city on the 2nd and 3rd of September. The initiative was part of the Information Education Communication (IEC) activities that have been done in both ward 1 and 41 to make people aware of waste management and waste segregation.As of now, at least 60% of the waste is...
Awareness Programme for Corporation School Students in Coimbatore
To create awareness among the school students, Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation organised an awareness program at Corporation Girls Hr. Sec. School, R.S. Puram on the 6th of September 2018. The initiative was under the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation funded CapaCITIES Sunya project with support from Sri Ramakrishna Engineering College. The aim of this programme, conducted by the MBA interns, was to sensitize the students...
ICLEI South Asia Member Cities Shine at Global Climate Action Summit 2018
Rajkot city has been declared as the National Winner for WWF’s global One Planet City Challenge (OPCC), which is in partnership with ICLEI South Asia, for the second time in a row. The city was felicitated at the OPCC global award ceremony on the 12th of September during the Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS) in San Francisco, United States. Along with Rajkot, 10 other cities from India participated in the 2017-2018 round of this global...
Working Group Meeting in Vishakapatnam, Ludhiana under Cities Shift Project
SHIFT Working Group meeting was organised in Visakhapatnam and Ludhiana under the, Hewlett Foundation and EcoMobility Alliance funded, Cities SHIFT: Capacity building and Networking for Sustainable Urban Mobility project. The SHIFT Working Group consists of stakeholders who are related to the mobility system of the city such as the urban planning department, transport department, public transport operator, and road safety unit. The meeting...
Stakeholder consultation meeting under PROMISE project in Warangal
A city level stakeholder consultation meeting, under the European Union funded PROMISE project, was organised with the Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC) officials in Warangal, Telangana on the 18th of September, 2018. The objective of the meeting was to update the officials on the progress of the project, formulation of city core group committee for development and management of recreational/green spaces in the city and...
CDKN Partners Meet in Amsterdam to Kick off CDKN’s Next Phase
A team headed by Mr. Emani Kumar, Executive Director, ICLEI South Asia, attended the Climate and Development Knowledge Network’s (CDKN) project inception meeting for its next phase from 6th to 8th of August in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The meeting brought together the four alliance partners of CDKN: ICLEI South Asia, Fundacion Futuro LatinoAmericano (FFLA), SouthSouthNorth (SSN) and the Overseas Development Institute (ODI). The next phase of CDKN...
Kochi Takes Part in One Planet Cities Pedalathon
ICLEI South Asia along with World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)-India, with support from Kochi Municipal Corporation, organised a public event called ‘One Planet Cities Pedalathon’ on the 4th of August in Kochi. The objective of the event, under WWF funded One Planet City Challenge (OPCC) project, was to raise awareness and gather support from the citizens for adopting smarter and greener choices of commute.In the presence of various chairpersons...
Documenting Goa's Biodiversity and Traditional Knowledge
As part of the ongoing project on development of People's Biodiversity Registers in 10 villages in Goa, supported by Goa State Biodiversity Board, the first round of meetings was conducted in all the villages. During the meeting, the Village Panchayat, members of Biodiversity Management Committee and other residents were explained in detail about the process of development of People's Biodiversity Register, role of BMC and Panchayat and role of...
ICLEI South Asia has recently initiated a project on mainstreaming biodiversity conservation into urban planning in the city of Gangtok. The project is supported by Gangtok Municipal Corporation. Situated in Eastern Himalayas - a global biodiversity hotspot, the city of Gangtok has been home to rich biodiversity, which is being lost due to rapid urbanisation. Through the project an assessment of the existing biodiversity and ecosystem...
New Project Solid Waste Management Exposure Workshop under Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) Phase III Begins
ICLEI South Asia has initiated a new project through National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) supported by Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) which is about conducting Solid Waste Management Exposure workshops for the officials of 1600 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) under Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) Phase III (2018 – 2019).Under this project, ICLEI South Asia will conduct Solid Waste Management Exposure workshops for the local...
Training Program on Solid Waste Management in Ajmer City
A training program was organised by ICLEI South Asia on Solid Waste Management under the Global Water Partnership funded project on “Integrated Urban Water Management Planning and Implementation in Ajmer” on the 28th of August.The program was chaired by City Sanitary Officer; Ajmer Municipal Corporation; Mr. Chandresh Sankhla, Councilor Ward-60, District Head for Cleanliness in Ajmer; Dr. Veena Khanduri, Executive Secretary, India Water...
Coimbatore Witnesses First E-bin Initiative
Green Era Recyclers, along with Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) and ICLEI South Asia, launched an e-bin initiative in Ward 22, Corporation Park, near BSNL Office under Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation funded CapaCITIES Sunya Project. The e-bin aims to collect electronic wastes which are being disposed with regular kitchen wastes. Dr.K. VijayaKarthikeyan, Corporation Commissioner, had visited the e-bin located site...
SDC and CapaCITIES team visit Kolkata
As part of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) supported CapaCITIES project, a round of meetings were held with officials in the State Government in Kolkata in order to apprise them about the work that is being carried out in the city of Siliguri through the project. In this regard, a delegation comprising of Ms. Marylaure Crettaz, Counsellor and Head of Swiss Cooperation Office, India in the Embassy of Switzerland; Dr....
Review Meeting held at Udaipur under Shakti Smart Cities Project Phase II
ICLEI South Asia under the project Supporting Sustainable Urban Transport & Built Environment in four Smart Cities in India, funded by Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation, conducted project review meeting in Udaipur - one of the project cities.Meetings were held with the Mayor, Udaipur Municipal Corporation (UMC); Additional Chief Engineer, UMC; Executive Engineer, UMC; Deputy Town Planner Udaipur Smart City and Chief Construction Manager,...
ICLEI South Asia’s initiatives in Warangal city under PROMISE Project
On-ground activities under the European Union funded PROMISE project have been initiated in Warangal city, with a series of consultation meetings with the Mayor, Collector Warangal District, Commissioner Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC) and other city officials. These meetings were followed by primary surveys and focussed group discussions in Shivay Nagar - the study area which comprises of parts of ward 9, 18 and 19. The...
Visit of the SDC to Rajkot
Ms. Marylaure Crettaz, Dr. Shirish Sinha and Mr. Andrin Fink from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) office in India, visited our partner city of Rajkot on the 13th & 14th of August, 2018 to inaugurate some of our projects and meet with the officials of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC).Inauguration of the Groundwater Recharge Structure on Race Course RoadGround water availability in general is dwindling in Rajkot...
IIHS Team visits Siliguri to Study Climate Change Impact on Migration
As part of the study on the impact of climate change on migration, being carried out by Indian Institute of Human Settlements (IIHS), a visit to the city of Siliguri was undertaken by a team from IIHS. During the visit, the team carried out detailed interviews with some migrants who have varied professional background. These discussions were carried out in ward 24 with over 30 people. Focus group discussions with females from migrant...
Training on Urban Nexus Conducted under Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities: the Urban Nexus
ICLEI South Asia, with the support from GIZ Urban Nexus and National Institute of Urban Affairs, organised a two-day Urban Nexus Training from the 31st of July to 1st of August in New Delhi. The training was conducted with the objective to use the framework of the New Urban Agenda to evolve a contextual and localised understanding of the importance of integrated resource (water, energy and food security) management and to identify potential...
Nagpur Municipal Corporation signs an MoU with ICLEI South Asia for implementation of the Urban-LEDS II Project
An Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) was signed on the 25th of July, 2018 for implementing Accelerating Climate Action Through the Promotion of Urban Low Emission Development Strategies (Urban LEDS II) project supported by the European Commission. The project will be implemented by UN-Habitat and ICLEI South Asia. The overall objective of the project is to contribute to the reduction of...
BLOG: Lessons in Sustainability from India's Past- Changing the Nature of Agricultural Practices
In the southwest coast of one of the southern most states of India lies the Kuttanad region - an area which is spread across the districts of Alappuzha and Ernakulam of Kerala. Here, Pokkali, a dying traditional practice of cultivating salt-tolerant rice varieties is being sown.
People's Biodiversity Register Project Begins in Goa
With support from Goa State Biodiversity Board, ICLEI South Asia has initiated a new project on development of People's Biodiversity Register (PBR) in 10 villages in Goa. As a thematic support group, ICLEI South Asia will build the capacity and support the Biodiversity Management Committees in these villages to develop the People's Biodiversity Registers. A People's Biodiversity Register is a legal document that is recognised by the Government...
ICLEI South Asia Presents CapaCITIES Project at TIA Summit 2018
ICLEI South Asia participated at The India Advantage (TIA) Summit 2018 held on the 19th and 20th of July in Bengaluru. The Summit was a stimulating experience where global partnerships for innovation and the sustainable development of cities were explored. In a session called NGOs and Institutions, Mr. Ashish Rao Ghorpade, Deputy Director of ICLEI South Asia, spoke on CapaCITIES: The Pathway Towards City Climate Resilient Development, which is a...
Dehradun Students Encouraged to Adopt Eco-friendly Commute
ICLEI South Asia and World Wide Fund (WWF) India, with support from Nagar Nigam Dehradun, organised an interschool drawing competition on the theme “Sustainable Mobility for One Planet” in Dehradun on the 14th of July, 2018. The One Planet City Challenge (OPCC) project funded by the WWF, supported this activity. The program, conducted at Rajiv Gandhi Navodaya Vidyalaya, witnessed participation from 200 students from different schools. Mr. Vijay...
SUNYA Project Gets Appreciation in Coimbatore
The CapaCITIES SUNYA project is being implemented in wards 22 and 24 with the support of Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) in Coimbatore. With the support of Residential Awareness Association of Coimbatore (RAAC), Bharathi Park Ladies Association (BPLA), Jawahar Nagar Ladies Association (JNLA) and Robert Bosch, the Information Education Communication (IEC) activities have been organised in these wards for the past five months in...
ICLEI South Asia Participates in Discussion on Waste Management in Mumbai, organised by Consulate General of Switzerland
On the occasion of "70 Years of Swiss Indian Friendship", a panel discussion on ‘Waste: A Problem or a Resource?’ was hosted by the Consulate General of Switzerland and TARQ in Mumbai on the 13th of July, 2018. Ms. Deepali Sinha Khetriwal, Managing Director, Sofies and Ms. Ritu Thakur, Manager, ICLEI South Asia shared their experiences while Mr. Andrin Fink, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) moderated the...
Workshop on WASH activities in Solapur’s Haglur Village
As part of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) supported Integrated Rural Urban Water Management for Climate based Adaptations in Indian cities (IAdapt) project, ICLEI South Asia conducted Training Programme on awareness and improvement of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) in various schools in rural areas of Ekrukh micro catchment in Solapur. Awareness activities with the school children included training on WASH best...
Solar Photovoltaic System Gets Inaugurated in Rajkot
The Hon’ble Chief Minister of Gujarat Shri Vijaybhai Rupani, inaugurated a 145 kilo watt power (kWp) grid connected Solar Photovoltaic (SPV) System installed at the Aji Water Treatment Plant, on the 15th of July 2018, during the Smart City Expo in Rajkot. Hon’ble Mayor of Rajkot Municipal Corporation, Smt. Bina J. Acharya was also present at the event. This pilot project is funded by the CapaCITIES project, supported by the Swiss Agency for...
ICLEI South Asia Organises Shared Learning Dialogue in Kota Kinabalu
ICLEI South Asia is assisting Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia to prepare a Kota Kinabalu Green City Action Plan with support from the Asian Development Bank. On 11th and 12th of July, 2018 ICLEI South Asia organised a Shared Learning Dialogue with the Dewan Bandaraya Kota Kinabalu (DBKK) and local stakeholders to conduct a vulnerability assessment of the city. The Shared Learning Dialogue was organised over two days and attended by officials from...
First Shared Learning Dialogue organised in Udaipur
As part of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) supported CapaCITIES project, a Shared Learning Dialogue (SLD) was organised in Udaipur. The SLD aimed at identifying the vulnerable urban systems of the city and the impact that climate change will have on the same. Climate fragility statements thus developed were extensively discussed and risk assessment of the same was carried out. During further discussions, vulnerable...
ICLEI South Asia Supports AIIB's Infrastructure Plans in Asian Cities
ICLEI South Asia, along with ICLEI East Asia, is supporting the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in its infrastructure plans for Asian cities for which the 3rd Annual Meeting was organised in Mumbai from the 25th to 26th of June, 2018. The event was jointly organised by the Department of Economic Affairs under Union Finance Ministry, India and AIIB. The theme for this year’s meeting was ‘Mobilising Finance for Infrastructure:...
ICLEI South Asia participates in the global urban dialogue at ICLEI World Congress 2018
ICLEI South Asia participated in the ICLEI World Congress 2018 which was held in Montreal, Canada from the 19th to 22nd of June. The Congress brought together over 1,000 people and 120 political leaders from 177 cities and regions to discuss sustainable urban development. The South Asian delegation consisted of mayors from the cities of Thimpu in Bhutan, Nagpur and Rajahmundry in India as well as one of our board members Prof. A.K.Maitra....
ICLEI South Asia partners with CDKN in new initiative to match climate knowledge to developing country needs
ICLEI South Asia is one of the four supporting partners in Climate and Development Knowledge Network’s (CDKN) new phase that was launched on the 21st of June, 2018 in Cape Town, South Africa. In this initiative, CDKN will focus on providing developing countries with enhanced knowledge resources to support ambitious climate action, as well as boost climate leadership and learning on climate compatible development. The event was...
Asia LEDS Partnership’s Community of Practice on Grid-scale Renewable Energy meets at the Asia Clean Energy Forum 2018
The Asia LEDS Partnership (ALP) Secretariat, hosted by ICLEI South Asia in partnership with ICLEI South East Asia and ICLEI East Asia, is convening a Community of Practice on Grid-Scale Renewable Energy (GRE CoP). The GRE CoP is an interactive network comprised of governments, regulators, system operators and technical institutions addressing real-time policy, financing and technical challenges and solutions related to RE deployment. Country...
Operationalising E-rickshaw in Gwalior under Smart City Mission
ICLEI South Asia presented the action plan to operationalise e-rickshaw in Gwalior, under Smart City Mission of Government of India, to the Gwalior city officials such as Mr. Vinod Sharma, IAS, Commissioner of Gwalior Municipal Corporation (GMC), Mr. Mahip Tejasvi, CEO, Gwalior Smart City Development Corporation Limited (GSCDCL) and other officials.The action plan which includes proposed routes for e-rickshaw was approved by Mr. Sharma, who is...
Rajkot City Discusses Climate Resilient City Action Plan
Stakeholders in Rajkot convened on the 6th of June 2018 to discuss the Climate Resilient City Action Plan (CRCAP) 2018-2023 for Rajkot, prepared with assistance from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) supported CapaCITIES project, implemented by ICLEI South Asia, South Pole Group, econcept and other partners. Rajkot Municipal Corporation officials, experts, policy makers, academic institutions and various stakeholders...
Solid Waste Quantification and Characterisation in Siliguri under CapaCITIES
On the occasion of World Environment Day the solid waste pilot “Sunya” initiative under the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation supported CapaCITIES Project was launched in Ward 2 of Siliguri by the Hon’ble Mayor, in the presence of Deputy Mayor, Member Mayor in Council (Conservancy and Vehicles) and the Ward Councillor. The aim of this initiative is to ensure collection of household level segregated waste and treatment of the dry and...
Exposure Visit for Solapur Rural Core Team
An exposure visit was conducted by ICLEI South Asia for the administrative and elected representatives of TaleHipparga, Ekrukh and Haglur villages and the Agriculture Officer for Integrated Watershed Management Program from the District Collectorate in Solapur on the 6th of June, 2018. The visit was organised under the Integrated Rural Urban Water Management for Climate based Adaptations in Indian cities (IAdapt) project which is funded by...
Coimbatore, Siliguri celebrate World Environment Day through CapaCITIES project
On the eve of World Environment Day, ICLEI South Asia organised a celebration program in Bharathi Park and Azad Road of wards 22 and 24 in Coimbatore. The event was held under the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation funded CapaCITIES - Sunya project. The event was headed by Mr. S.V. Kumar, Assistant Commissioner, West Zone and Mr. R. Radhakrishnan, Zonal Sanitary Officer, West Zone. The participants were representatives from ICLEI...
Onsite demonstration for improving traffic conditions conducted in Ludhiana
ICLEI South Asia conducted an onsite demonstration for managing traffic problems at Mata Rani Chowk in Ludhiana under Shakti Smart Cities – Phase II funded by Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation. Before conducting the demonstrations, ICLEI South Asia, with support from Sandeep Gandhi Architects (SGA) and inputs from Ludhiana Municipal Corporation (LMC), conducted a detailed study for six problematic junctions in the city. Mata Rani...
ICLEI South Asia team initiates the Urban LEDS II project in Bangladesh
ICLEI South Asia is implementing the Urban LEDS II project in India and Bangladesh, in partnership with UNHABITAT. Several cities in Bangladesh expressed their interest in implementing the project, which will be implemented over a 48 month period, starting April 2017. Meetings were held in the month of May with national government representatives and city Mayors and officials in Bangladesh, to finalise the project cities and initiate project...
Udaipur Mayor inaugurates AAQMS under CapaCITIES project
The Ambient Air Quality Monitoring System (AAQMS) was inaugurated at the Sukhadiya Circle Location in Udaipur city on the 30th of May, 2018. The AAQMS was flagged off by Mr. Chandra Singh Kothari, Mayor of Udaipur; Mr. Keshar Singh Sisodiya, Ward Councilor; and Mr. Shirish Sinha, Deputy Head, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation in the presence of ICLEI South Asia team. "This initiative has been taken to gauge air as...
ICLEI South Asia presents solutions to address water management in cities
Dr. Monalisa Sen, Program Coordinator, Biodiversity, ICLEI South Asia participated in a session focused on Smart Solutions for Wastewater Management in Liveable Cities at the Smart City Expo 2018 on the 24th of May in New Delhi. In her presentation she emphasized on the need for innovation both in the form of equipment and, hardware as well as innovation in the implementation process. She presented two case studies, based on the work that is...
ICLEI South Asia organises Session for City Leaders on Sustainable Transport for Smart Cities
ICLEI South Asia organised a City Leaders Round Table Meeting on Sustainable Urban Transport in Indian Smart Cities at the Smart City Expo 2018 in New Delhi from 23rd to 25th of May 2018. City leaders from more than 10 cities which included Mr. Siddharth Sihag, Commissioner, Udaipur; Sanyam Aggarwal, Additional Commissioner, Ludhiana; Dr. Sonawane, CEO, Nagpur Smart City Development Ltd; Mr. Mahip Tejaswi, CEO, Gwalior Smart...
Pilot Implementation in Varanasi ward under Development of Holistic Waste Management Strategy
ICLEI South Asia, with support from the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) is developing a Holistic Waste Management Plan for Varanasi City, in consultation with several stakeholders. During initial meetings and discussions with Varanasi Nagar Nigam (VNN) and other stakeholders, it was decided to leverage this opportunity to implement and showcase sustainable waste management practices at a pilot scale in Ward 21 in the city. Ward 21...
Students attend Urban Biodiversity workshop on International Biodiversity Day
As part of the national outreach activities under the INTERACT: Bio project, supported by The Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) through the International Climate Initiative (IKI), a workshop on Urban Biodiversity was organised in Delhi on the 22nd of May. The event organised on International Biodiversity Day was held in collaboration with Department of Environment, Government of National...
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank organises a Workshop on Engagement with CSOs and NGOs
A stakeholder engagement meeting was organised by Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) with cooperation from ICLEI South Asia on the 16th and 17th of May, 2018 in New Delhi and Mumbai.India is a founding member and the 2nd largest shareholder in AIIB, and also the host for its upcoming Annual Governors’ Meeting (AGM) to be held in Mumbai on the 25th and 26th of June, 2018. Therefore, this workshop was convened to reach out to the CSOs and...
SDC Deputy Head visits Siliguri
Dr. Shirish Sinha, Deputy Head, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) visited the city of Siliguri in May 2018. During his trip, he had a detailed discussion with the Mayor of Siliguri on the work that is going on under SDC funded CapaCITIES project. The discussion also focused on other development issues and initiatives being taken up by the Siliguri Municipal Corporation (SMC). He also briefed the Mayor about activities...
BLOG: Why strengthening our public transport is the need of the hour
It is no news that the air quality we breathe is highly polluted. The ambient as well as household air quality is above the alarming level thus triggering spate of diseases in the world. The State of Global Air 2018 was released recently. The report covers the entire globe and maps the air quality for the countries. It does not just provide valid data for ambient air quality but also for the household air pollution mainly from the...
Workshop on ‘Moving towards Sustainable, Energy Efficient, Urban Mobility in Emerging Cities’
The Asia LEDS Secretariat, hosted by ICLEI South Asia and with support from the Swiss Agency for Development & Cooperation, facilitated the participation of national government representatives from Bhutan, Sri Lanka and India in the workshop on ‘Moving towards Sustainable, Energy Efficient, Urban Mobility in Emerging Cities’, in Singapore from the 7th to 9th of May 2018. The workshop was supported by ALP as part of ALP’s Transport Community...
ICLEI South Asia joins hands with WWF for public green awareness event in Panaji
ICLEI South Asia and WWF-India , in collaboration with the Corporation of The City of Panaji, organised the ‘One Planet Streets for All’ event in Panaji to reinforce the idea that everyone has a right to use roads, irrespective of their mode of transport- motorised or non-motorised. This event was conducted on the 6th of May, 2018 and was supported by WWF – India. The event focused on raising awareness about smarter and greener choices of...
Swiss expert visits Coimbatore for Landfill Site Planning
As part of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) funded CapaCITIES Project, Mr. Stephan Textor from Textor Engineering Ltd. visited the city of Coimbatore from 30th of April to 5th of May, 2018. ICLEI South Asia team facilitated the expert visit to the city. The primary objectives of the visit were to: Conduct a status review of the project on movement of openly dumped waste at the landfill site in Coimbatore.Conduct a...
Solapur holds its first RURBAN SLD under IAdapt Project
The First RURBAN Shared Learning Dialogue (SLD) in Solapur under the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) funded IAdapt project was conducted on the 15th of May, 2018. The meeting provided a platform for both rural and urban stakeholders to discuss common water related issues. The main objectives of the meeting were: To introduce the project to the local stakeholders and explain the ideas and objectives behind the project.To...
GCoM launches regional chapter in South Asia to help build more climate resilient cities
The Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy (GCoM), an international coalition of city leaders committed to raising the global ambition for climate action, launched a regional chapter for South Asia on the 5th of May in New Delhi, India. The GCoM South Asia aims to support the efforts of cities in India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and make their communities more...
CapaCITIES study on water resource augmentation showcased at Govt. of Gujarat’s Sujalam Suflam Jal Abhiyan conservation mission
The State Government of Gujarat launched India’s biggest state level water conservation mission Sujalam Suflam Jal Abhiyan on Gujarat Foundation Day, falling on 1st May, 2018. A total of 13,000 lakes will be deepened and 34 rivers will be rejuvenated as part of this mission. Rajkot city is developing a new lake at Race Course 2 in the Raiya area as part of the Smart City Mission. The construction of this lake, which will be constructed over 45...
ICLEI South Asia presents its IAdapt project at Resilient Cities 2018
Mr. Emani Kumar, Executive Director, ICLEI South Asia participated as a panelist at the Resilient Cities 2018 that was held from the 26th to 28th of April, 2018 in Bonn, Germany. The congress was organised by ICLEI World Secretariat. The focus of the 9th Global Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation was on the Talanoa Dialogue for climate ambition this year.Mr. Kumar presented on Integrated Rural Urban Water Management for Climate based...
Study on impact of climate change on migration in Siliguri under CapaCITIES project
A study to understand the impact of climate change on migration has been initiated by the Indian Institute of Human Settlements in Siliguri. This initiative is also supported by Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the results from the same will complement the ongoing work under the CapaCITIES project in the city. As part of this initiative four wards - 20, 24, 4 and 46 have been identified for detailed studies. Focus group...
First National Exchange Workshop in Karnal under PROMISE project highlights projects being implemented under National Schemes
A national exchange workshop was organised by ICLEI South Asia under its European Union funded PROMotion of Inclusive, Sustainable Growth and Diversity to Strengthen Local Governments (PROMISE) project in Karnal on the 20th of April, 2018. PROMISE project is being implemented in the cities of Karnal, Jabalpur, Ajmer and Warangal in association with the Administrative Staff College of India. The project aims at inclusive and...
Visit of landfill expert to Siliguri under CapaCITIES project
Mr. Stephan Textor from Textor Engineering, Switzerland carried out a visit to the city of Siliguri to understand the situation of the dumpsite in the city, and help the city in better management of the same. The six-day visit, under Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) funded CapaCITIES project, comprised of meetings with the mayor and other officials of Siliguri Municipal Corporation (SMC) and carrying out gas estimations at the...
Second Annual Partners Meeting for IAdapt project
The Second Annual Partners Meeting for the Integrated Rural Urban Water Management for Climate Based Adaptation in Indian Cities (IAdapt) Project supported by International Development Research Centre, Canada was conducted on 16th and 17th of April at ICLEI South Asia’s office in New Delhi. The meeting was attended by representatives of the different project partners, including ICLEI South Asia, Athena Infonomics, IIT Madras, in person with...
CapaCITIES captures Siliguri’s imagination through its Sunya initiative
The city of Siliguri held an awareness rally wherein common citizens walked alongside the elected representatives and city officials to raise awareness regarding a “Clean and Green Siliguri” on the 15th of April. The activity was carried out on the occasion of Bengali New Year, which is the first day of the year as per the lunar calendar that is followed in many parts of India, including West Bengal. The participation of the citizens was...
Singra Municipality: A winning candidate of the first TUMI Global Urban Mobility Challenge 2018
Singra Municipality of Bangladesh has been selected as a winning candidate of the first TUMI Global Urban Mobility Challenge 2018.The Transformative Urban Mobility Initiative (TUMI) enables leaders in developing countries and emerging economies to create sustainable urban mobility. It offers technical and financial support for innovative ideas. In TUMI the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) has brought together...
Preparations for Kota Kinabalu Green City Action Plan begin
ICLEI South Asia has once again joined hands with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and The Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) to prepare a Green City Action Plan (GCAP) for the city of Kota Kinabalu. The team is following a multi-stakeholder consultative process and replicating or rather enhancing the Melaka’s experience. Kota Kinabalu will be the first city in Malaysia to have its own GCAP. However, Melaka, State of Malaysia,...
EcoLogistics project begins in three Indian cities to streamline urban freight movement
With the aim to streamline urban freight movement and to reduce emission from urban freight sector, ICLEI South Asia is starting the EcoLogistics project in three Indian Cities. The potential Indian cities for the project are - Kochi in Kerala, Panaji in Goa and Shimla in Himachal Pradesh. The project will focus on enhancing capacities, strategies and policies to promote low carbon urban freight through local action and national support....
Udaipur city promotes e-rickshaws on CapaCITIES project anniversary
A two-day e-rickshaw promotional program is organised by ICLEI South Asia, and being implemented jointly by Municipal Corporation of Udaipur (MCU) on the 13th and 14th of April, 2018. The event is organised on the occasion of the anniversary of CapaCITIES e-rickshaw project. Last year, in a bid to transform the IPT fleet and demonstrate the benefits of e-rickshaws in Udaipur (Rajasthan), Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation...
Workshop on NBSAP- LBSAP
With support from the Kochi Municipal Corporation and the Centre for Heritage, Environment and Development, a workshop on National Biodiversity Strategy Action Plan and Local Biodiversity Strategy Action Plan development guidelines was organised under the INTERACT-Bio Project. The workshop aimed to introduce the concepts of national, state and local biodiversity strategy action plans to the participants and highlight the need for the...
ICLEI South Asia participates in Asia Pacific Clean Air Partnership Joint Forum
Mr. Ashish Rao Ghorpade, Deputy Director at ICLEI South Asia, represented the organisation at UNEP’s Asia Pacific Clean Air Partnership Joint Forum 2018 which was held in Bangkok, Thailand from the 19th to 23rd of March, 2018 as part of the Clean Air Week. The Asia Pacific Clean Air Partnership aims to promote better air quality management in Asia Pacific and thereby reduce air pollution and associated health impacts including...
Understanding Nature’s Benefits in Kochi
As part of the Interact: Bio project, Dr. Julain Rode, technical expert from the project partner- UFZ (Helmontz Centre for Biodiversity) carried out a visit to the project model city- Kochi in the month of March. This visit comprised of discussions with the Mayor and other city administrators and subject matter specialists. Dr. Rode also conducted a workshop on Nature’s Benefits in Kochi. The workshop aimed at understanding how to identify...
BLOG: Kochi Airport, a role model for us to adopt organic farming?
The Kochi airport is not just the busiest airport of Kerala, it is a lighthouse in many aspects and is a unique one because of several reasons. This airport has multi-stakeholders. The government of Kerala is the largest shareholder (33.36 %) followed by Indian government companies like Airports Authority of India or AAI (8.74%). But the majority of 38 % is with the ten thousand personal investors from 29 countries, mostly non-resident...
Swiss Ambassador attends 1st City Level Dialogue in Coimbatore
His Excellency Dr. Andreas Baum, Ambassador of Switzerland to India and Bhutan, attended the 1st City Level Dialogue in Coimbatore as part of the CapaCITIES project on the 16th of March, 2018. The event was organised by National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) and ICLEI South Asia to discuss the climate resilient city action plan (CRCAP). It consisted of an inaugural session and two technical sessions. The speakers for the inaugural...
BLOG: A Road to Resilience, Implementing ICLEI-ACCCRN Process in Bangladesh
The ICLEI ACCCRN Process (IAP) has been developed by ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability’s South Asia and Oceania offices through involvement with the Rockefeller Foundation supported Asian Cities Climate Change Resilient Network (ACCCRN) program.
Swiss Ambassador inaugurates AQMS, establishes biomethanation plant in Coimbatore
His Excellency Dr. Andreas Baum, Ambassador of Switzerland to India and Bhutan visited Coimbatore, as part of the CapaCITIES project, on the 15th of March, 2018. The CapaCITIES project is supporting various quick win projects in Coimbatore such as the establishment of four air quality monitoring stations at 4 places in the city. One of these, located at the Town Hall where a display board is projecting the air quality results from these 4...
Asia LEDS Partnership announces Community of Practice on Energy, Finance and Transport
The Asia LEDS Partnership has launched three Communities of Practice (CoPs) on energy, transport and finance. In 2018, each of the CoPs will focus on peer learning, expert assistance and knowledge exchange through discussions, workshops, seminars, case studies, and such like. The CoPs provide opportunity for sustained engagement among countries for learning and technical collaboration, and the opportunity for additional direct technical support...
Stakeholder Engagement Event on 'Ecosystem Services and Poverty Alleviation in Urbanising India'
A conference on 'Ecosystem Services and Poverty Alleviation in Urbanising India' was organised by Ecosystem Services and Poverty Alleviation (ESPA) and ICLEI South Asia in New Delhi on the 6th of March, 2018. The stakeholder engagement event was to disseminate the insights on urbanisation in South Asia generated through the ESPA programme, which was funded by the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), Department for International...
BLOG: Is climate change responsible for the early blooming of the Himalayan Rhododendron?
The impact of climate change and overall warming up of the planet does not require any special theorem. It is happening rapidly in our surrounding environment. The Himalayan region, especially the states of Himachal and Uttrakhand, that used to have a long spell of winters from November to March, is witnessing a dramatic change in the temperatures and seasons. The winters have shrunk and there is a decrease in snowfall according to Dr. Manmohan...
Community Bin Removal under Sunya Project
After the successful launch of CapaCITIES Sunya Project, the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) officials, stakeholders and ICLEI team conducted awareness campaigns on source segregation in wards 22 & 24. The ultimate aim to reduce the quantum of waste is going to compost yard. In order to achieve 100% source segregation and collection, the team decided to take up initially four streets in ward 22 and three streets in ward 24...
ICLEI South Asia conducts Focused Group Discussions in Ajmer and Jabalpur under PROMISE Project
ICLEI South Asia conducted focused group discussions with stakeholders in Ajmer and Jabalpur in the form of Shared Learning Dialogues (SLD). Various stakeholders, including the marginalised communities, were consulted to understand their issues and identify the acceptable solutions to make urban service (sewage and solid waste management) more comprehensive. In Ajmer these discussions were held with the Municipal officials, political...
Discussions on the implementation of the New Urban Agenda at WUF9
The Ninth Session of the World Urban Forum (WUF9) was the first global event to focus on the implementation of the New Urban Agenda adopted at Habitat III in Quito, Ecuador in October 2016. ICLEI participated in the Forum very actively. ICLEI's delegation at the WUF9 included 30+ members and 17 staff participated in over 40 events that look at anything from sustainable and resilient city-region food systems to advancing climate resilient and low...
Swiss Transportation Experts visit Rajkot and Udaipur
Mr. Martin Buck and Mr. Nicolas Muhlich, Swiss experts, from SNZ Engineer, Switzerland, Planner AG with National team members from SGA Architects Pvt. Ltd, and Mr. Vijay Saini, Senior Project Officer from ICLEI South Asia visited Rajkot on the 5th and 6th of February, 2018.They conducted a pre-feasibility study of the last mile connectivity and electrification of the Bus Rapid Transport System (BRTS) corridor under CapaCITIES project which is...
ICLEI South Asia attends workshop to finalise operational roadmap for e-mobility in India
In response to growing concerns about air pollution, climate change and transport sector’s dependence on polluting fossil fuels, many countries around the world have been trying for electrification of their transport fleet. India is also working in this direction. Given India’s energy targets – 175 GW of renewables, and climate targets; 40% of power plants powered by non-fossil fuels, the Government of India recently announced its electric...
Visit of IDRC to Solapur
Dr. Melanie Roberston from International Development Research Centre (IDRC) conducted a site visit to Solapur from the 4th to 5th February, 2018. Prior to the visit, a detailed discussion on the project progress was carried out in Delhi with the entire project team. Dr. Robertson visited the selected micro catchment in Solapur. Meetings with the local residents and government officials were conducted in the Ekrukh village and TaleHipparga...
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation Visits Siliguri
Ms. Marylaure Crettaz, Head, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and Dr. Shirish Sinha, Deputy Director, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation carried out a three day visit to Siliguri. They were accompanied by all partners of the CapaCITIES team. The delegation carried out detailed discussions with the officials of Siliguri Municipal Corporation, including Shri Asok Bhattacharya, Mayor; Shri Dilip Singh, Chairman; Shri Ram...
Technical Training Workshop on Vacuum Sewer under the Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities: the Urban Nexus
Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC), with the support from GIZ Urban Nexus and ICLEI South Asia, organised a two-day technical workshop on Vacuum Sewer on the 23rd and 24th of January, 2018 in Rajkot, Gujarat. The first day of the workshop was inaugurated by the Mayor Dr. Jaiman Upadhayay in the presence of the Deputy Mayor Dr. Darshita Shah, Deputy Commissioner Mr. Arun Mahesh Babu, IAS, and delegates from the Regional GIZ Nexus team in Bangkok...
Integrated Urban Water Management Planning and Implementation in Kishangarh finds success
ICLEI South Asia successfully completed a project on Integrated Urban Water Management Planning and Implementation in Kishangarh, Rajasthan. The project was funded by Global water partnership and was implemented by ICLEI South Asia in partnership with India water partnership. Various activities were conducted to build a systematic collection and disposal of municipal solid waste in the catchment areas of the main water body in the city....
BLOG: It’s time to bring the green machine back
Delhi, one of the most populous cities in India, has a major problem of transport. Cross-section of people live in the city, and commuting is an essential element to earn the livelihood. The basic services to the city’s population is being provided by the working class who are responsible for water, sanitation, housekeeping, construction etc. The major forms of transport include metro, buses, taxis, private cars, pedestrians and the 200-year-old...
Developing Natural Asset Maps for Panaji and Kochi
Natural Asset Maps can be used as effective tools in the Natural Resource Management of a region. Natural assets are often referred to as ecological goods and services — the processes by which the environment produces resources that benefit society. By mapping the spectrum of natural resources of a city, decision makers and planners can make more integrated and holistic development decisions. The Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature...
Support offered by ICLEI South Asia in Vishakhapatnam under Shakti Smart Cities Project- Phase II
ICLEI South Asia under the project “Supporting Sustainable Urban Transport & Built Environment in four Smart Cities in India” is assisting Greater Vishakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) by providing mobility solutions. ICLEI South Asia is working closely with the GVMC for various activities such as junction improvement, parking policy and promoting non-motorized transport in the beach area. With inputs from the GVMC, 10 problematic...
ICLEI South Asia starts on ground activities under PROMISE project in Jabalpur
As a part of our on ground activities, under the PROMISE project, ICLEI South Asia undertook sector specific surveys in the third project city - Jabalpur. The surveys were conducted to understand the views of the residents on sewerage sector in the selected ward. The surveys targeted the households which have been connected with the sewerage connection by the Municipal Corporation, households without sewerage connection and the commercial area....
BLOG: Lessons in sustainability from India's past: Water, water everywhere?
Agriculture has played a significant role in human evolution. As human beings evolved from hunting-gathering to farming, agricultural societies began to expand into lands used by hunter-gatherers. With agriculture came the first forms of government, food security and increased human-curated evolution.
SUNYA Project Launched in Coimbatore
The official launch of the SUNYA project was held on the 29th of December, 2017 at Bharathi Park Road 2nd Cross, ward 22 of West Zone, Coimbatore Corporation, by the Commissioner Dr. K. Vijayakarthikeyan IAS.To begin with, the Commissioner briefed the citizens of ward 22, local NGOs, Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) Officials, sanitary workers and stakeholders about the project. He requested the residents of the ward to segregate...
Initiation of Awareness Generation Activities for Sunya Project Implementation
With support from Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Siliguri Municipal Corporation is implementing a project on Capacity Building for Low Carbon and Climate Resilient City Development in India (CapaCITIES). ICLEI- Local Governments for Sustainability, South Asia is the main implementation agency of the project. As part of this project, ICLEI South Asia in coordination with Siliguri Municipal Corporation has initiated a pilot...
Initiation of Ward Level Meetings for the SUNYA Initiative
As part of the Capacities project in Siliguri, SUNYA initiative is being undertaken in wards 2 and 17 in the city. Detailed ward level meetings were carried out in both these wards (ward 17 on 21st of December and ward 2 on 22nd of December. These meetings were attended by the solid waste management committees in both the wards, along with the local councillor, borough chairperson and borough officer. In the meeting Dr Monalisa Sen, City Coach,...
Quantification and Characterisation of Municipal Solid Waste conducted in Rajkot under the CapaCITIES project
In order to support the city in its larger objective of sustainable waste management, with focus on the reduction of GHG emissions from waste disposal, ICLEI South Asia, under the project Capacity Building for Low Carbon and Climate Resilient City Development (CapaCITIES), supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) conducted quantification and characterisation of municipal solid waste generated in three zones of the...
Capacity Building workshop on ‘Financing Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure in India’ held in New Delhi
The Global Infrastructure Basel, Switzerland, with support from the ICLEI South Asia, has convened a capacity building workshop ‘Financing Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure in India’ on the 20th of December, 2017 at Development Alternatives, New Delhi. The workshop had addressed the two central questions: “How to make infrastructure more sustainable and resilient?” and “How can we accelerate the implementation and financing of these more...
BLOG: Sustainable development goals: a long way to go
The Resilient Cities Asia Pacific Congress (RCAP) and Asia LEDS Patnership Forum (ALP), jointly organised by the Ministry of Planning and Investment, Vietnam, ICLEI South Asia and Asia LEDs partnership, finished off successfully in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam in the first week of December.
Technical review of the pilot projects implemented under AdoptIUWM
An external review was conducted by professor V. Srinivas Chary, Director of Centre for Energy, Environment, Urban Governance and Infrastructure Development at Administrative Staff Collage of India, Hyderabad (ASCI), in Solapur and Ichalkranji (Maharashtra) and Kishangarh (Rajasthan) in December, 2017. During his visit, Dr. Chary interacted with various stakeholders in the city including officials of the local government, political...
Support offered by ICLEI South Asia in Udaipur and Ludhiana under Shakti Smart Cities - Phase II
ICLEI South Asia under the project “Supporting Sustainable Urban Transport & Built Environment in four Smart Cities in India” is assisting Udaipur Municipal Corporation in various activities like introducing a Public Bike Sharing scheme in the city, developing Smart Janpath road and intersection improvement of Kumharon ka Bhatta. Recently, ICLEI South Asia project team discussed the PBS details for Udaipur which included the approach for...
ICLEI South Asia starts on ground activities under PROMISE project
As a part of our on ground activities under the Promotion of Inclusive, Sustainable Growth and Diversity to Strengthen Local Governments (PROMISE) project ICLEI South Asia has started undertaking sector specific surveys in two of the project cities - Karnal and Ajmer. The surveys are being conducted to capture the thoughts of various stakeholders and to understand their priority requirements. In order to promote sustainable development and...
RCAP 2017: Summary and Highlights
Day 1:ICLEI offices in the Asia and Pacific in partnership with Ministry of Planning and Investment, Government of Vietnam, Asia LEDS Partnership, and LEDS Global Partnership (GP) hosted the Resilient Cities Asia Pacific 2017 in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam with an aim to forge partnerships and the ultimate goal of identifying implementable solutions and creating lasting impacts for cities in the region.The first day of Resilient Cities Asia Pacific...
ALP 2017: Summary and Highlights
Day 1Inaugural SessionDr. Pham Hoang Mai, Director General, Department of Science, Education, Natural Resources and Environment, Ministry of Planning and Investment, Government of Vietnam started the day by presenting important questions that the forum can address. These questions delve on stakeholder mobilization, integration, monitoring, and technical support. He reminded every one that both LEDS GP and ALP are platforms for collaboration and...
ICLEI South Asia visits China for Sino-Indian collaboration on environmental technologies and industry exchange
ICLEI South Asia along with the representatives from the The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), The National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Limited (IL&LS), Paradigm Environmental Strategies Pvt. Ltd and Hon’ble Mayor of Gwalior City Vivek Narayan Shejwalkar visited China for Sino-Indian collaboration on environmental technologies and industry exchange between...
The District Energy in Cities Initiative in India moves to the next phase
ICLEI South Asia has been actively working with UN Environment and other public and private partners under the District Energy in Cities Initiative to undertake rapid assessments on district cooling in the five Indian cities of Bhopal, Coimbatore, Pune, Rajkot and Thane. The rapid assessments have been recently completed and will help national and local governments, policy makers, private sector and financiers to understand the potential of...
International and National transport experts visit CapaCITIES project cities
Mr. Nicolas Muhlich from SNZ Engineers and Planners AG visited Rajkot on the 17th and 18th November, 2017 to understand the existing public transportation infrastructure and on ground situation for a prefeasibility study of electrification of Bus Rapid Transport System (BRTS) corridor in Rajkot under the CapaCITIES project. A meeting was carried out with Mr. Jaiman Upadhyay, Mayor, RMC; Mr. Banchhanidhi Pani (IAS), Municipal Commissioner, RMC;...
Meeting held with the International and National transport experts
An introductory meeting was held at the ICLEI South Asia office in New Delhi on the 16th of November, 2017. Mr. Ashish Rao Ghorpade, Dr. Monalisa Sen and Ms. Bedoshruti Sadhukhan from ICLEI South Asia, Mr. Rohit Garg from the South Pole Group, Ms. Harshita Mehta from Sofies India, Mr. Nicholas Muehlich from SNZ Engineers and Consultants, Mr. Sanjay Gandhi from SG Architects along with a representative and Mr. Utpal Deka, were present. Dr....
BLOG: South Asian and South East Asian Cities at crossroads: Role in International Climate Change Efforts
Rapid urbanisation brings new and substantial challenges, ranging from governance and citizenship to infrastructure, housing, and the environment.
BLOG: Rising temperatures and social unrest
Quite often climate change and catastrophes relating to health, disasters are linked with it.
Session on NDC Implementation in Asia at Cities & Regions Pavilion, COP23 - Bonn
ICLEI South Asia, ICLEI South East Asia and ICLEI East Asia in their capacity as the Asia LEDS Partnership (ALP) Secretariat organised a session on 'NDC implementation in Asia' on the 11th of November, 2017 at Cities & Regions Pavilion, COP23 - Bonn. Mr. Emani Kumar - Deputy Secretary General of ICLEI Global & Executive Director of ICLEI South Asia gave opening remarks. This was followed by presentations by Mr. Ron Benioff,...
UNEP supported Holistic Waste Management Strategy for Varanasi
United Nations Environment programme (UNEP) and ICLEI – South Asia signed a Small Scale Funding Agreement in September, 2017 with an objective of developing a holistic waste management strategy for the holy city of Varanasi. The project will identify relevant stakeholders involved in managing waste in the city and assess the baseline situation of the existing waste management practices and its impact on water and air pollution in the city. The...
Initial visit by consultant for conducting leak detection study in Zone 1 in Siliguri
Water leak detection study is being taken up in Zone 1 of the city of Siliguri, through CapaCITIES project. Zone 1 comprises of Ward numbers 6, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and part of 15 (Figure 1) and covers an area of 2.14 km2. The total length of the pipeline network in Zone 1 is 28.229 km, of which 25.406 km are asbestos cement (AC) pipes and 2.823 km are ductile iron (DI) pipes.A team comprising of an expert from Taisei Technical Services Private...
Source Segregation Initiated Successfully in Two Wards in Udaipur under the CapaCITIES Project
As a part of the CapaCITIES project supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), ICLEI South Asia along with other partners initiated source segregation of waste in two wards (Wards No. 1 and Ward No 41) in Udaipur city.In a bid to improve the existing municipal solid waste management practices in the city, Udaipur Municipal Corporation (UMC) aims to introduce and institutionalise the process of collection and...
Melaka Chief Minister Visits ICLEI South Asia Office in Delhi
A high level delegation from the state of Melaka, Malayasia, headed by the Hon’ble Chief Minister YAB Datuk Seri Ir. Hj. Idris bin Hj. Haron paid a visit to the ICLEI South Asia Delhi office on the 31st of October, 2017. YB Datuk Ar. Hj. Ismail bin Hj. Othman, Melaka State Executive Councillor for Local Government, Housing and Environment, Ybhg. Datuk Zainal bin Hussin, Mayor of Melaka Historic City Council and YBhg. Datuk Hj. Kamarudin bin Md....
Stakeholder consultation in Kochi
Under the German funded INTERACT- Bio project in Kochi, a stakeholder consultation was organised by ICLEI South Asia, with support from Kochi Municipal Corporation on the 27th of October, 2017. In the inaugural session, the Honorable Mayor of Kochi, Ms. Soumini Jain expressed her pleasure at Kochi having been selected as the model city for this project, from among all Indian cities. She emphasised on the need and criticality of the project for...
Communicating biodiversity conservation with schools in Kochi
As part of the INTERACT Bio project, an initiative has been commenced from October 2017, which is aimed at communicating biodiversity conservation with the school children of Kochi. Ten schools in Kochi have been selected for this initiative. A set of activities (presentation on global biodiversity hotspots and significance of biodiversity, quiz competition, inter-school drawing and bio-craft competitions and development of school biodiversity...
First City Level Dialogue in Rajkot as part of CapaCITIES Project
A workshop on ‘First City Level Dialogue in Rajkot as part of Capacity Building for Low Carbon and Climate Resilient City Development in India’ (CapaCITIES) was recently organised on the 6th of October in Rajkot city of Gujarat. The aim was to create an awareness on low carbon and climate resilient city development, provide an opportunity to know existing urbanisation challenges and its solution, and to capture and exchange knowledge under Swiss...
BLOG: Let us remember that life cycle and water cycle are one
By Tikender PanwarThe 8th world water forum will be held in March 2018 in Brazil. The mission statement speaks about promoting awareness, building political commitments followed by actions to facilitate efficient conservation, management and use of water on environmentally sustainable basis. This happens to be a laudable goal. But is it just a utopian target or will the world community, especially the people in South Asia, reach anywhere near...
Capacity Building on Climate Resilient Development for Government Officials in Chennai
ICLEI South Asia organised a training programme for senior officials of Greater Chennai Corporation and parastatal bodies in Chennai on climate change and urban resilience to build their capacity to assess climate change threats and address them in the city. The two-day workshop, held on 24th and 25th of October, focused on introduction to the basics of climate change, causes and impacts, the concepts of mitigation and adaptation,...
ICLEI South Asia forms Core Group Committees in three cities under the PROMISE project
ICLEI South Asia formed core group committees in three out of the four project cities under the project “Promotion of Inclusive, Sustainable Growth and Diversity to Strengthen Local Governments” (PROMISE). The core group committees have been formed in Karnal (19th of July), Ajmer (26th of September) and Jabalpur (17th of August) with an objective to monitor and guide the project activities in the city, facilitate interdepartmental coordination...
ICLEI South Asia assists Udaipur & Ludhiana to tackle Urban Mobility issues
ICLEI South Asia under the project “Supporting Sustainable Urban Transport & Built Environment in four Smart Cities in India” is assisting Udaipur Municipal Corporation in building visually compelling streets between Rangniwas Chowk to Jagdish Chowk.This is being carried out on pilot basis by making the parking areas and streets more attractive by painting the street surfaces, temple wall and a dead tree at Hemraj Akhara in a colour...
The Asia LEDS Partnership Secretariat participates in deliberations on Sri Lanka’s Nationally Determined Contribution
The Asia LEDS Partnership (ALP) Secretariat was invited to participate and contribute to the ‘NDC Dialogue’ organised by the Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment, Government of Sri Lanka in collaboration with United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Global Environmental Facility (GEF) and the ALP on the 16th of October, 2017 in conjunction with the “Sri Lanka NEXT: A Blue Green Era” Programme conference held from the 16th to...
Household Survey and Water Quality Analysis in Singanallur Tank Catchment Area at Coimbatore
Under the CapaCITIES Project, supported by The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), an assessment is being made for the water quality and possibility of cleaning up the lakes within the city that are currently polluted due to the release of waste water from neighbouring areas. For this, a detailed assessment is being made for one lake – the Singanallur Tank in the city of Coimbatore.A household level survey for 10% of the...
BLOG: Where are we headed this Diwali
By Tikender PanwarI remember attending a workshop on water, in Gurgaon, where the mere collection of clouds in the sky scared the residents of water clogging. As we all know, rains in our country become an actual disaster. Akin to that the nearing of Diwali shivers the residents of Delhi, and the national capital region with the air they are going to breathe. When only 10 days are left for the festival, the air pollution in the city has...
Kick-Starting of Investment Grade Energy Audits on Two RMC Buildings in Rajkot under Building Efficiency Accelerator Project
SE4ALL Building Efficiency Accelerator (BEA) assists sub-national governments to improve the energy efficiency of buildings in their jurisdictions to reduce energy costs, create new market opportunities and reduce pollution. ICLEI South Asia is one of the key partners in the SE4ALL Building Efficiency Accelerator (BEA) in South Asia region. ICLEI South Asia Rajkot office is the BEA Local Lead Partner organisation and will assist the City in...
Preparation of the nomination dossier of Majuli River Island as a World Heritage Site
Majuli Island is a district located mid-stream in the Brahmaputra River in the state of Assam. Separated from the mainland by 2.5 km the island of Majuli today houses a total of 243 small and large villages. Majuli was recently declared as Assam’s first biodiversity Heritage site and first carbon neutral district. Majuli has remained the cultural capital of Assamese civilisation since the 16th century when, the social reformer Sankardeva, who...
Udaipur shares its Low Carbon Strategies at Climate Change and City Transformation Forum
Mr. Chandra Singh Kothari – Udaipur mayor - presented the various ongoing low carbon initiatives in Udaipur city at the 2017 Climate Change and City Transformation Forum on the 29th and 30th of September, 2017. The event was organised in collaboration between the New Taipei City Government and ICLEI South Asia. The Forum was guided by the theme “Climate Change and City Transformation” that focuses on the action items in order to achieve the...
Kick-off meeting - Energy interventions in Kochi as part of their Smart City Plan
A kick-off meeting was organised on the 28th of September, 2017 at the Grand Hotel in Kochi for the project entitled “Energy interventions in Kochi as part of their Smart City Plan”. The meeting was chaired by the mayor of Kochi Municipal Corporation and was attended by a diverse set of stakeholders including Kochi Municipal Corporation, state government departments, local commerce and businesses, resident welfare associations, local NGOs etc....
Civil Society and Government representatives applaud the second series of India’s independent GHG Emission Estimates
The GHG Platform India launched its second series of independent estimates and analysis of India’s GHG emissions, covering the period 2005-2013, at an event held on the 28th of September, 2017 at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. The estimates launched include national-level GHG emissions as well as emissions for the states in India across key sectors such as energy, waste, industry, agriculture, livestock, forestry and land-use and land-use...
Akshay Urja Website Launch in Rajkot by Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani
With an aim to make Rajkot a smart and sustainable city, the Chief Minister of Gujarat Shri Vijay Rupani launched Akshay Urja Rajkot/Rajkot SMART Energy Lab website on the 22nd of September, 2017. The SMART Energy Lab is developed in partnership with ICLEI South Asia under the project Building Efficiency Accelerator (BEA). Akshay Urja Rajkot/SMART Energy Lab is a Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) initiative seeking to link policy...
BLOG: Ghazipur, a reminder of the state in which we are
By Tikender Panwar If this picture (below) of Ghazipur seems like an isolated gory tale then hey, caution it is not! This is a reality with many such cities in India who are screaming at various levels to meet their solid waste management demands. Just a cursory look at the CPCB data reveals that over 150000 metric tonnes of municipal solid waste is generated in the country every day. However, just 12 % of it is treated. The rest is either...
ICLEI South Asia Gets Awarded for its IUWM Project
ICLEI South Asia has been awarded the third prize at the World Water Challenge 2017 for 'Integrated Urban Water Management: Tradition to Solution for Cities' (IUWM) project, which is supported by the European Union, for its 'outstanding solution'. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in Korea launched a 'World Water Challenge 2017' which is the contest for creative solutions about the water problems that the world faced. It...
BLOG: Cities and Resilience Strategies
By Tikender Panwar Today, while travelling in a cab in Delhi, ‘Surender Rawat’ the driver of the taxi made an interesting comment that ‘Delhi’ has not just changed but the city shows many surprises with respect to the changes in climate and weather, which affects the poor more but still there is something in the city because of which it still moves on. Was he speaking about the weakness or the strength of the city, I wondered. I guess both. I...
Peri-Urban Ecosystems for Enhancing Urban Resilience
The two-day conference ‘Peri-Urban Ecosystems for Enhancing Urban Resilience’ was held on the 18th and 19th of September in New Delhi.The event witnessed some key remarks from speakers such as Dr. Shiraz A. Wajih - President, Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group (GEAG), Mr. Emani Kumar – Deputy Secretary General, ICLEI and Executive Director ICLEI South Asia, Prof. Chetan Vaidya – Director, School of Planning and Architechture, Delhi, Ashvin...
ICLEI South Asia Organises in the Green Cities Conference
The two-day conference on Green Cities – ‘Leveraging Regional Cooperation & Integration for a Green Growth Cities Network in Asean’ was held in Melaka, Malaysia on the 5th and 6th of September, 2017. The event, organised by ICLEI and Asian Development Bank (ADB), focused on sharing experiences from the development and implementation of Green City Action Plans, and on the need for ensuring green growth and sustainable development in the ASEAN...
ICLEI South Asia at UEA Summit 2017
ICLEI South Asia participated in the Urban Environmental Accords (UEA) Melaka Summit 2017 held during 6th to 9th of September in Melaka, Malaysia. UEA is an international collaborative organisation working to develop the Urban Environmental Evaluation Index together with UNEP, and apply it to cities worldwide. Mr. Emani Kumar - Deputy Secretary General, ICLEI and Executive Director, ICLEI South Asia – in his keynote address, highlighted the ever...
Meet Sita Verma, Executive Officer - Vijaynagar Municipal Board, Ajmer
You recently got awarded for the work done in Vijaynagar city in Ajmer. Please tell us about the challenges and the work done in that city. Vijaynagar is an important city located on the boundaries of Ajmer and the Bhilwara district. It has got importance due to the presence of cotton and thread weaving industries. The city was facing multiple problems like no proper solid waste management, no segregation of the waste, littering of the waste...
Micro-catchment delineation and socio-environmental assessment in Solapur and Vijayawada catchments
Under the International Development and Research Centre, Canada supported IAdapt Project, ICLEI South Asia along with its consortium partners, has delineated the micro-catchments in the catchment areas of Solapur and Vijayawada city.These micro-catchments will be assessed to select the one in each city, where the project activities will be carried out. Micro-catchment delineation was carried out considering topography, water resource maps and...
Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) preparing Green building policy for Rajkot city under BEA
The first draft of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) green building policy guidelines for Rajkot city as part of “Building Efficiency Accelerator” partnership has been completed and is shared with key RMC officials including the Commissioner and all Deputy Municipal Commissioners for their inputs and feedback. The Rajkot Municipal Commissioner Shri. Banchhanidhi Pani made a press statement regarding the same and announced that after being...
ICLEI South Asia signs MoU with Ludhiana under Supporting Sustainable Urban Transport and Built Environment in Four Indian Smart Cities
ICLEI South Asia has signed the Memorandam of Understanding (MoU) with the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation in the city of Ludhiana under the project ‘Supporting Sustainable Urban Transport and Built Environment in Four Indian Smart Cities’. The project aims to deliver city scale action plans under transport and built environment for four smart cities. The primary intended outcome of the project is to build capacity of city level authorities...
Amaravati's infrastructure development under The National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) Scheme
Amaravati, known for the Amaralingeswara Swamy temple, Mahachaitya Stupa and Dharanikota Fort, was facing severe infrastructural challenges.Today, Amaravati is getting transformed due to infrastructure development under The National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) Scheme of Ministry of Urban Development that started in 2015. The focus of the scheme is on holistic development of heritage cities. Under the scheme, around...
Pune City's Selection as Solar City Under 'Development of Solar City' Program
Pune City has been selected as Solar City under the program ‘Development of Solar City’ by Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) in 2016. ICLEI South Asia has been selected as the consultant for the preparation of Solar City Master Plan for Pune city. As per MNRE’s guidelines, first stakeholder was conducted on the 19th of August, 2017 in which various stakeholders have participated. The list includes representatives from Pune municipal...
Training Program on Solid Waste Management in Kishangarh City
A training program was conducted on door to door segregated waste collection and management under the Integrated Urban Water Management Planning and Implementation project on 11th August in Kishangarh Municipal Council. The training was headed by sanitary chief officer Kishangarh municipal council and was attended by Municipal officials, sanitary workers and municipal contactors working under door to door waste collection program in the...
Increasing Efficiency in Water Supply in Siliguri
As part of the CapaCITIES project supported by Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, two acoustic water leak detection machines have been procured and handed over to Siliguri Municipal Corporation. The machines were handed over to the Corporation by ICLEI South Asia on the 8th of August 2017. These acoustic water leak detection machines will help reduce the wastage of water from the leaks by pinpointing the leak in the water supply...
Council of Kochi Municipal Corporation resolves to work with ICLEI South Asia for implementation of INTERACT- Bio project
INTERACT-Bio is a four-year project designed to improve the utilisation and management of nature within fast-growing cities. It aims to provide expanding urban communities in the Global South with nature-based solutions and associated long-term benefits. The project is funded by German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety through the International Climate Initiative and being implemented in...
Result oriented Monitoring for PROMISE project
An independent review of the on-going PROMISE project “Promotion of Inclusive, Sustainable Growth and Diversity to Strengthen Local Governments”, supported by the European Union, was conducted recently. The purpose of the review was to engage with the community in the pilot ward, and understand the issues faced by various stakeholders. It involved meetings and discussions with stakeholders such as Municipal officials, project implementation...
Awareness Building Rally in Mongla
An awareness building rally and meeting was conducted in Mongla city on the 9th of August as part of a project being implemented with support from the Rockefeller Foundation through the Small Grants Programme that was administered by ICLEI South Asia. The project is being implemented by the city as one of the resilience building initiatives identified by the city using the ICLEI ACCCRN Process. The ACCCRN Project helped prepare City Resilience...
All Project Cities Visit Panjim to Learn Key Principles of Sustainable Waste Management under the CapaCITIES Project
One of the key objectives of the CapaCITIES project is to facilitate cross-city learning, within the project partner cities and with other cities nationally and internationally. All four partner cities (Coimbatore, Rajkot, Siliguri and Udaipur) have indicated that solid waste management is a priority sector; in the short term, each of the cities have indicated that they are planning to improve all aspects of solid waste management in the city,...
ICLEI South Asia participates in the 1st International Green Cities Forum in Thailand
ICLEI South Asia participated in the first International Green Cities Forum in Thailand between 7th and 9th of August. ICLEI South Asia is preparing a sustainable urban development framework for the IMT-GT Region. As the ALP Secretariat, ICLEI South Asia also conducted a session on the Benefits of the ALP to members of the IMT-GT region. Significant interest was evinced in the partnership cities like Banda Aceh, Hat Yai, Songkhla, Penang state,...
Integrated Urban Water Management Planning and Implementation
Integrated Urban Water Management Planning and Implementation project funded by Global Water Partnership (GWP) is being implemented in partnership with India Water Partnership (IWP) and with the support of Kishangarh Municipal Council in ward number 13 and 18 of Kishangrh city. The aim of this pilot project is to improve the catchment of the Hamir Sagar pond and Gundolav pond. Activities under pilot project on door to door segregated waste...
Pedestrianisation Plan carried out for Udaipur’s Walled City
ICLEI South Asia, under the project Supporting Smart Urban Mobility and Built Environment, supported by Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation, carried out a pilot experimentation of the Pedestrianisation Plan in the Walled city area in Udaipur.The walled city, which not so long ago was reeling under the glory of its rich past, is now facing the harsh realities of crumbling infrastructure and serious traffic and transport problems. The inner city...
Second Instalment of the Climate Action Plan Workshop for CapaCITIES Project - Coimbatore
As part of the CapaCITIES project supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), ICLEI South Asia will develop a Climate Change Action Plan for the city of Coimbatore, with interventions to build urban resilience in the city and address both climate mitigation and climate adaptation. As part of the series of consultative workshops to formulate the City Climate Action Plan, the second Climate Action Plan Workshop for...
Meet Nikhil Kulkarni, a Sustainability Champion at ICLEI South Asia
In conversation with Nikhil Kularni, Senior Project Officer at ICLEI South Asia based in Thane, who shares his journey with the organization and the experience he has gained. Edited excerpts:Tell us a little bit about your journey at ICLEI and how you have been able to put into practice your knowledge and skills. I joined ICLEI – South Asia in July 2013. In addition to a long-term project on Adopting Integrated Urban Water Management in Indian...
Meet Mrs. Renu Bala Gupta, Mayor of Karnal, India
In conversation with ICLEI South Asia, Renu Bala Gupta, Mayor of Karnal, India shares how Karnal will make the transition to a smart city and the steps the city is taking to improve its traffic management. What are the challenges that Karnal presently faces with regards to mobility? Karnal’s city centre is also the business district and is the area with the most amount of traffic. Roads leading to the business centre are usually jam-packed....
Udaipur Commences Segregation at Source under CapaCITIES project
As a part of the CapaCITIES project supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), ICLEI South Asia along with other partners initiated source segregation of waste in two wards (Wards No. 1 and Ward No 41) in Udaipur city. In a bid to improve the existing municipal solid waste management practices in the city, Udaipur Municipal Corporation (UMC) aims to introduce and institutionalize the process of collection and...
Seventh Regional Workshop on Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities: The Urban Nexus
More than 150 local and international participants representing six National Governments gathered at the Seventh Regional Workshop on ‘Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities: The Urban Nexus,’ held during the 19th to 21st of July in Tanjungpinang City, Indonesia, to review and discuss their experiences in project implementation over the past year (2016-17). The workshop was organized by the city government of Tanjungpinang in partnership...
Supporting Kochi's Smart City Plan
ICLEI South Asia has had a longstanding relationship with Kochi Municipal Corporation having worked on projects dealing with energy planning, climate adaptation, and sustainable transport. World Resources Institute (WRI) India, is, as part of an ongoing project with Kochi Metro Rail Corporation (KMRL), providing technical support for the implementation of Kochi’s Smart City Plan. In order to assess the synergies amongst different plans...
Expert Visits made to Rajkot City under the CapaCITIES Project
As part of the CapaCITIES project supported by Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), a team from ICLEI South Asia along with Ms. Simone Buetzer, Division Manager, Hunziker Betatech made various site visits in Rajkot between the 17th and 19th of July. At Raiya Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) they met with Mr. M.H. Ghoniya, In-Charge City Engineer, Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC); Mr. Chetan Mori, Deputy Executive Engineer, RMC; and...
Climate Action Plan Workshop in Siliguri
As part of the CapaCITIES project supported by Swiss Development Corporation, ICLEI South Asia will develop a Climate Change Action Plan for the city of Siliguri, with interventions aimed at building urban resilience and address both climate mitigation and climate adaptation. The first Climate Action Plan Workshop for the same was conducted in Siliguri on 14th July, 2017. This workshop was a Shared Learning Dialogue (SLD) with the Stakeholder...
First Instalment of the Climate Action Plan Workshop for CapaCITIES Project - Rajkot
As part of the CapaCITIES project supported by Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, ICLEI South Asia will develop a Climate Change Action Plan for the city of Rajkot, with interventions to build urban resilience in the city and address both climate mitigation and climate adaptation. The first Climate Action Plan Workshop for CapaCITIES Project was conducted in Rajkot on July 17, 2017. This Workshop was a Shared Learning Dialogue (SLD)...
Dr. Jaiman Upadhyay was elected as Mayor of Rajkot City in 2015 and is medical doctor by profession. He has also served Rajkot Municipal Corporation as Standing Committee Chairman in year 2012 and 2013. Under Dr. Upadhyay’s leadership, Rajkot City has been widely regarded as the best-run city in the State of Gujarat and has received many awards. Here, he talks to us about the green initiatives taken up and the efforts being made to transition to...
Meet Nagendran Nagarajan, a Sustainability Champion at ICLEI South Asia
In conversation with Nagendran Nagarajan, Project Officer at ICLEI South Asia based in Coimbatore, who shares his journey with the organization as a GIS Expert. Edited excerpts: ICLEI has carried out many projects with the Coimbatore Municipal Corporation over the years. What are the projects that you have been involved in and how has the journey been beneficial for you? I have been involved in a number of projects connected with the...
ICLEI Africa Technical Team Visit Delhi and Kochi
As part of the activities under the ongoing INTERACT- Bio project, a two experts from the ICLEI Africa Secretariat- Dr. Ingrid Coetzee and Dr. Ernita Van Wyk made a week-long visit to India in the first week of July. Detailed discussions on the project work plan, activities and deliverables were carried out with the ICLEI South Asia team. During the joint discussion, the experts were also appraised about the issues pertaining to biodiversity...
Multi-level Governance and the NDCs in Asia: Accelerating subnational implementation and raising national ambitions
Asia LEDS Partnership in collaboration with the LEDS GP Sub-national Integration (SNI) Working Group (WG)and with support from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) conducted a workshop on ‘Multi-level Governance and the NDCs in Asia: Accelerating subnational implementation and raising national ambitions’ in Bangkok, Thailand on 23rd June 2017. Teams of sub-national and national officials from four ALP countries - Bangladesh, Bhutan,...
Expert Visit on Solid Waste Management to Coimbatore
Under the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation supported project CapaCITIES, ICLEI South Asia facilitated the visits of two solid waste management experts. Mr. Raphael Fasko, from Rytec AG and Mr. Stephan Textor from Textor Engineering Ltd visited the city between June 12 and 16, 2017. As part of the visit, ICLEI South Asia organized The Strategy Workshop for Solid Waste Management for Coimbatore with the solid waste officials of CCMC on...
Supporting Karnal Municipal Corporation under the PROMISE project
ICLEI South Asia, under the project “Promotion of Inclusive, Sustainable Growth and Diversity to Strengthen Local Governments” supported by the European Union recently conducted a rapid assessment of the existing status of the Mobility sector in the city. The assessment was based on the analysis done by the ICLEI South Asia team supported with the information collected from the Municipal Corporation and other city agencies. The assessment...
City Visits Initiated and Support Garnered under INTERACT-Bio
Initiating project activities in the selected cities, visits to the cities of Kochi and Mangaluru were undertaken. A visit was also carried out to Trivandrum for a discussion with the Kerala State Biodiversity Board. In Kochi, project discussions were carried out with Mrs. Soumini Jain, Mayor, Kochi Municipal Corporation; Mrs. Shiny Mathews, Chairperson, Standing Committee- Town Planning; Dr. Rajan Chedambath, Centre for Heritage, Environment...
Asia Clean Energy Forum 2017
The 12th Asia Clean Energy Forum (ACEF), co-hosted by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Korea Energy Agency (KEA) was held in Manila, Philippines, from the 5th to 8th June 2017. The forum witnessed interactions and discussions among more than 1,500 professionals from across the technology, finance, and policy communities working in clean energy. There were 21 deep dive...
Closure Reports for the project 'Supporting Smart Urban Mobility and Built Environment in Indian Cities'
Implemented during period of October 2015 to January 2017, the Supporting Smart Urban Mobility and Built Environment in Indian Cities project aimed at providing handholding support to two Indian states (Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh) through technical advisory and capacity building. Its focus was to engage with state level officials in two states and with targeted authorities in cities on urban transport and building regulations. This technical...
Rapid IUWM: Rapid Integrated Urban Water Management Planning and Implementation
Scaling up initiatives implemented under the AdoptIUWM project in Kishangarh city, ICLEI South Asia initiated the Integrated Urban Water Management Planning and Implementation Project. The project is supported by Global Water Partnership (GWP) in association with India Water Partnership (IWP) and aims to strengthen the Integrated Urban Water Management Approach in the city focussing on cleaner catchments and local water security.The project will...
Meet Mr. Anwar Ali, Mayor of Kushtia city, Bangladesh
“We recognize that it is the poor who are the most impacted by climate change and would like to partner with ICLEI South Asia to enhance our capacity as well as tap into available funds that can help provide a safer and more secure future for our citizens.” In conversation with ICLEI South Asia, Anwar Ali, Mayor of Kushtia, Bangladesh, shares how the city has begun to improve the lives of its most vulnerable citizens to the impacts of flooding...
Lessons in sustainability from India's past: Revisiting the ecological roots of sustainability
In this era of globalization, we seem to have left behind the solutions that worked many centuries ago. Through a series of blogs, Rithika Fernandes, makes an effort to revisit the patterns and practices that are now lost in our quest for "development" and "technological advancement". Learn how the concept of sustainability came about in this edition and keep following for more!
Parking Management Plan piloted for Ashwini Bazaar, Udaipur
ICLEI South Asia, under the project Supporting Smart Urban Mobility and Built Environment, financed by Shakti Energy foundation, carried out a pilot experimentation of the parking management plan along Ashwani Bazaar road in Udaipur. The plan was prepared after discussions with city stakeholders such as officials from the Corporation, Traffic Police and representatives from Ashwini Bazaar Market Association (ABMA). Ashwini Bazaar Road is a...
ICLEI South Asia at the Smart Cities India Expo 2017
Recognizing smart cities as an important platform to drive progressive change, the 3rd Smart Cities India Expo was held from the 10th to the 12th of May, 2017 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. The three day event facilitated discussions around the challenges and solutions related to the sectors of buildings, solar energy, transport, smart cities and water. ICLEI South Asia participated across several parallel sessions on all three days...
Ongoing Consultations to develop Green Building Policy Guidelines under BEA
The development of green building policy guidelines for Rajkot city under the "Building Efficiency Accelerator" partnership is progressing well. The initial draft of the guidelines was discussed with the concerned stakeholders during a workshop in Rajkot in March 2017. Since then, the team has been conducting one on one consultations with various experts and stakeholders in the field of building development within the region. In this...
Global NDC Conference 2017 held in Berlin
The Global NDC Conference 2017 was held in Berlin, Germany from the 2nd-6th of May 2017. The theme for 2017 was on integrated governance, finance and transparency for delivering climate goals. Jointly organized by the LEDS GP, the GIZ Support Project for the Implementation of the Paris Agreement (SPA), and the UNDP Low Emission Capacity Building (LECB) Programme, in collaboration with the NDC Partnership, the Conference advanced the...
Inviting EOI under CapaCITIES for Climate Exposure Analysis
ICLEI- Local Governments for Sustainability, South Asia is the implementing agency for the Capacity Building Project on Low Carbon and Climate Resilience City Development in India (CapaCITIES). CapaCITIES is a multi-year cooperation project between Switzerland and four Indian cities aiming at strengthening the capacities of city authorities to plan and implement measures for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and to cope with the effects of a...
ICLEI South Asia conducts City GHG Emission Inventory Training in Malaysia
ICLEI South Asia conducted a training session on the preparation of greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories on May 3, 2017, in Melaka, Malaysia, at the launch event of the Global Environment Facility's (GEF) Sustainable Cities Integrated Approach Pilot in Malaysia, implemented by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). The Melaka Sustainable Cities Conference 2017 on May 3, 2017 was held to launch the Sustainable City...
Meet Anandhan Subramaniyam: a sustainability champion at ICLEI South Asia
In a conversation, Anandhan Subramaiyam, senior project officer at ICLEI South Asia, shares his perspective on his journey and the organisation's initiatives in energy sector. Edited excerpts: Please tell us about your journey in the organisation, the projects you have been associated with and the skills that have helped you pave your path. I am associated with ICLEI South Asia for more than four years now. It has been an enriching experience...
Workshops held in Kushtia, Bangladesh under ACCCRN small grants programme
Two workshops were held in April 2017, in Kushtia Municipality of Bangladesh, under ACCCRN’s Engagement Building Small Gants Fund. The initiative in Kushtia is dedicated to “Construction of RCC Drain & Supporting Road to Save and Improve the Life Standard of the People at Gorai Ashroyan Phase-2”. Earlier this year, two cities in Bangladesh had received Engagement Building Grants provided by the Rockefeller Foundation and facilitated by ICLEI...
ICLEI South Asia signs MoU with 3 cities under the PROMISE project
ICLEI South Asia has signed the Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with the local governments in the city of Karnal, Warangal and Jabalpur under the project “Promotion of Inclusive, Sustainable Growth and Diversity to Strengthen Local Governments (PROMISE to strengthen Local Governments). The project aims to build and improve the capacities at the local level in order to support the local authorities. The proposed PROMISE tool under the project...
Implementation partners meet to begin activities on integrated rural urban water management
To initiate the implementation of the Integrated Rural Urban Water Management for Climate Based Adaptations in Indian Cities (IAdapt), supported by International Development Research Centre, Canada, a partners’ meet was held at IIT Madras, Chennai. This two-day meeting was attended by all project partners - ICLEI South Asia, Athena Infonomics, IWMI and IIT Madras. Partners presented learnings from earlier work that they have done, which can be...
Model and satellite cities identified for INTERACT- Bio
The model and satellite project cities in India for the INTERACT-Bio: Integrated sub-national action for Biodiversity project – funded by BMUB – have been identified. Also, in a series of meetings held last month, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, has also extended its full support to the initiative that aims at fostering synergies between climate protection and biodiversity by conserving and restoring ecosystems essential...
ICLEI ACCCRN Process used to develop resilience strategies for Ramgad Watershed
The ICLEI ACCCRN Process, which was developed by ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability, with support from the Rockefeller Foundation - particularly for local governments, has now been used by the Kumaon University, Nainital to develop the resilience strategy in the Ramgad watershed area near Nainital. The toolkit that has successfully been used for 40 cities in South and South East Asia has been used at the watershed level successfully...
ICLEI South Asia represents BEA at 3rd Sustainable Energy for All Forum in New York
Over 1,000 high-level representatives from different governments, businesses, civil societies and international organisations gathered in New York City, from April 3-5, 2017 for the 3rd Sustainable Energy for All Forum – its theme “Going Further, Faster – Together.” The Building Efficiency Accelerator (BEA) was well-represented at the event: Nine BEA cities and 18 BEA partner organisations were present, totaling nearly 50 people. ICLEI South...
Interview: Mayor of Gangtok Shakti Singh Choudhary on how Gangtok is treating waste as treasure
In conversation with ICLEI South Asia, Shakti Singh Choudhary, Mayor of Gangtok, Sikkim, shares how the hill city is capitalising on the waste that is generated and what the challenges involved are. Edited excerpts: What are the measures that the city has adopted to manage waste? The city has a huge vegetable market that generates lot of waste left-over waste every day. Gangtok now has a decentralised system to process waste rather than...
GoI officials visit HRIDAY sites in Amaravati, give recommendations on development
The senior officials of the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD), Government of India, recently visited the ancient town of Amaravati to assess the progress of projects being implemented under Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana, also known as HRIDAY Scheme of the Government of India. Located along the Krishna River in Guntur District of Andhra Pradesh, Amaravati is one of the twelve pilot cities selected under the HRIDAY Scheme,...
ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia, in association with partners Sandeep Gandhi Architects, worked with and supported four Indian smart cities -- Udaipur, Kakinada, Vizag and Jaipur - during 2015-16 through an initiative supported by Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation. A new phase has been initiated for taking forward the engagements with the city and state governments and continuing technical support as the cities...
Asia LEDS Partnership: LEDS GP supports country assistance to Bangladesh on green growth strategy
An in-country assistance programme was recently carried out in Bangladesh with collaboration between Programming Division of Bangladesh Planning Commission and LEDS Global Partnership (LEDS GP). Under this programme, Mr. Thomas Peterson, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Climate Strategies (CCS), USA, visited Bangladesh from 19-23 March, 2017, as a climate expert. The broad objective of the visit was “to identify gaps and...
ICLEI South Asia offers consultancy to future solar city Pune
The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has appointed ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia as a consultant for implementation of “Development of Solar Cities” programme. The programme has been launched by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India, with an aim to achieve at least 10 percent reduction in projected demand of conventional energy in five years’ time frame by 2022. The desired reduction will be...
Rajkot takes forward discussions on Building Energy Efficiency in city
A workshop was recently organised in Rajkot city of Gujarat to discuss the 18-month plan for building energy efficiency under the Building Efficiency Accelerator (BEA) project, funded by UNEP-GEF and in partnership with World Resources Institute. Rajkot is a deep dive partner for this project, with ICLEI South Asia as a technical consultant to lead Rajkot’s building energy efficiency through reforms in local building bylaws, identification and...
ICLEI participates in Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development
The fourth session of the Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD 2017), organised by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, was held from 29-31 March 2017, at the UN Conference Centre in Bangkok, Thailand. APFSD 2017 focused on ‘eradicating poverty and promoting prosperity in a changing Asia-Pacific’. The Forum also discussed means to strengthen implementation of the 2030 Agenda in the Asia-Pacific region. At...
Review Forum for the UNESCO Global Action Programme (GAP) on Education for Sustainable Development
ICLEI South Asia recently participated at the Review Forum of Global Action Programme (GAP) on Education for Sustainable Development of the UNESCO, held in Ottawa, Canada. The Review Forum was organised from 6-8 March, 2017 within the framework of the UNESCO Week for Peace and Sustainable Development: The Role of Education, back‐to‐back with the Third UNESCO Forum on Global Citizenship Education (GCED). The events at the Forum emphasized the...
Urban Nexus: Mongolian delegates visit Nagpur for knowledge exchange
In a peer-to-peer learning event recently organised in Nagpur under “Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities: the Urban Nexus” project, delegates from Mongolia – along with the Regional GIZ Urban Nexus team – visited the city to know more about its developments and pioneering initiatives. The project is being implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and financed by the German Federal Ministry of...
Lessons in sustainability from India's past
In this era of globalization, we seem to have left behind the solutions that worked many centuries ago. Through a series of blogs, Rithika Fernandes from ICLEI South Asia makes an effort to revisit the patterns and practices that are now lost in our quest for "development" and "technological advancement". Here is the introductory post.
Spotlight on Siliguri - Interview with Mr Sonam W Bhutia (WBCS-Exe), Commissioner, Siliguri Municipal Corporation
Siliguri is a city in the foothills of Himalayas in the north-eastern part of the country. In this conversation, Mr Sonam W Bhutia, Commissioner (WBCS-Exe), Siliguri Municipal Corporation talks about the city’s challenges and efforts towards sustainability. Edited excerpts: What is the idea of sustainability for Siliguri? How does the city plan to be a climate resilient, sustainable city in the future?The second largest city in West Bengal is...
ICLEI South Asia marks milestone closure for AdoptIUWM in four Indian cities, launches Toolkit to help more cities in integrated urban water management
ICLEI South Asia recently conducted the closure workshop to mark successful implementation of European Union (EU) funded AdoptIUWM project implemented in four cities of India – Jaisalmer and Kishangarh in Rajasthan, and Ichalkaranji and Solapur in Maharashtra, in partnership with ICLEI European Secretariat and Association of Flemish Cities and Municipalities (VVSG). Held on March 22, 2017 at Le Meridian, New Delhi, the workshop aimed at...
PROMISE team meets in Warangal to identify sector of engagement and initiate next steps
ICLEI South Asia, with partner Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), recently conducted a two-day visit to Warangal, Telangana to meet city officials of Warangal Municipal Corporation and Collectorate and identify a priority sector of engagement PROMotion of Inclusive, Sustainable Growth and Diversity to Strengthen Local Governments (PROMISE) project in the city. Supported by European Commission, the project includes four cities, each of...
CapaCITIES: Udaipur set to promote e-rickshaws through pilot project
In absence of a robust public transport system in the Udaipur, intermediate public transport (IPT) caters to the need for mobility of citizens. IPT in Udaipur, a city in Rajasthan, India, consists of auto rickshaws running on diesel engines, which leads to high emissions and vehicular pollution. Vehicular pollution increases risks for various respiratory diseases and other health risks, which is a major public health concern across India’s...
ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability has initiated a project on mainstreaming biodiversity across city-regions in India, Brazil and Tanzania. The INTERACT-Bio: Integrated sub-national action for Biodiversity: Supporting implementation of National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plans (NBSAP) through the mainstreaming of biodiversity objectives across City-Regions project is supported through the International Climate Initiative 2016 of...
AdoptIUWM: European Union team visits project cities in Rajasthan
A team from European Union recently visited the project cities of Adopting Integrated Urban Water Management in Indian cities (AdoptIUWM) project that is being implemented by ICLEI South Asia, in partnership with ICLEI European Secretariat and Association of Flemish Cities and Municipalities (VVSG). The project is being implemented in two cities of Rajasthan (Jaisalmer & Kishangarh) and two cities of Maharashtra (Solapur & Ichalkaranji)...
Workshop in Thailand marks closure of ACCCRN Project
After more than four years of action in four Asian countries, the Rockefeller Foundation supported Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN) initiative of translating and scaling up the ICLEI ACCCRN Process came to a closure through a conference held in Bangkok, Thailand from Feb 28 – March 1, 2017. The workshop was organised jointly by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and ICLEI Oceania in...
Ms. Sonali Malik, one of the youngest staff members at ICLEI South Asia
A project officer at ICLEI South Asia, Ms. Malik believes that her work with cities in the area of sustainability has left a mark in her personal life too. “Working in the field of sustainability has made me more aware and conscious towards my lifestyle. Most of my actions and decisions now also consider the probable impacts on the environment, along with other factors such as convenience, feasibility and affordability,” she says. Tell us...
Meet Mrs. Sushila Abute, Former Mayor of Solapur
Mrs. Abute has been actively involved in city’s quest for better management of water resources. Her efforts are a reason behind the success of AdoptIUWM project in the Maharashtrian city. “For a city facing immense challenges like pollution, water conflicts and transportation losses, it was crucial to stand together and overcome all the challenges that came in its way,” says the former Mayor.What are the main challenges for Solapur on water...
Urban Resilience and Informality: Problem Statements and Solution Baskets
With support from Misereor, ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia undertook a project on climate resilience in the informal settlements in four cities of three countries (two in India, one each in the Philippines and Indonesia). The project methodology comprised of a mix of research work to understand the present situation and develop the problem statements, and innovative thinking to develop solutions baskets, along with...
Waste and industrial emissions: A Roundtable Discussion under GHG Platform – India
Experts from Waste and Industrial Sectors gathered together to discuss on the waste and industrial emission estimates, in a roundtable discussion held on February 3, 2017 for the next phase of GHG Platform India. Held in Kolkata, the event was attended by over 30 participants from government and non-government organisations, educational institutes, industrial associations, and private organisations such as Central Statistical Office of Ministry...
Asia LEDS Partnership releases new publications, gets new Steering Committee
The Asia LEDS Partnership has released a set of case studies and issue briefs in January 2017. These resource materials have been prepared after a few months of research and a few interviews with the resource persons. The Partnership is one of the three regional platforms of the LEDS Global Partnership and is funded by USAID LEAD Program.The case studies that have just been released include: NABARD Framework for Financing Mitigation Actions...
Rithika Fernandes: Sustainability champion at ICLEI South Asia
Rithika Fernandes is a Project Officer at ICLEI South Asia where she works with the sustainability team. Her passion for bringing sustainability to lives is not restricted to her profession. She believes in taking that to her own life too and is an inspiration for many at the workplace. Here are edited excerpts from a conversation with her How would you briefly describe your so far journey with ICLEI?My journey with ICLEI South Asia, although a...
Engagement Building Grants released for Bangladesh; cities begin work on urban drainage and roads
Two cities in Bangladesh have received Engagement Building Grants to kick start their initiatives. With the help of the funds, the Mongla Port Municipality and Kushtia Municipality in Bangladesh will implement a pilot based on the City Resilience Strategy that has been developed under the ACCCRN project. Both the cities that have received their first tranche and are all set to begin their work targeted on improvement of drainage in pilot...
ICLEI South Asia assesses climate impact on new capital city Amaravati
ICLEI South Asia has undertaken a short-term assessment of the impacts of climate change on the development of the new Capital City Amaravati for Andhra Pradesh, India. The new capital city that lies between Vijayawada and Guntur cities on the upstream of Prakasam Barrage on river Krishna was proposed following the bifurcation of the state in February 2014. The city, with current area of 217.23 sq.km and a population of 97,960, is spread over 25...
Smart City Mission: Jaipur's journey led by integration and innovation
Sandesh Nayak, IAS, is the Chief Executive Officer of Jaipur Smart City Limited that is a special purpose vehicle (SPV) created under the Smart City Mission, as directed by the Government of India. In this conversation with ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia, he talks about the Pink City’s plans for the Smart City programme and the challenges that lie on the road ahead. Edited excerpts: What are Jaipur’s focus areas to make...
Asia LEDS Partnership activities aimed at supporting members in different ways
The Asia LEDS Partnership (ALP) Secretariat, hosted by ICLEI South Asia and other ICLEI offices in the region, is in its second year of operation. Efforts are afoot to enhance the membership by not only reaching out to country and provincial members but also to other partners in the region. In a move aimed at the same, the Secretariat representatives recently concluded a series of meetings with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Cities...
Recognition for AdoptIUWM city on India’s Republic Day
ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia has recently been recognised for its efforts in integrated urban water management in Rajasthan.On January 26, 2017, Sub Divisional Magistrate Kishangarh and Chairman of Kishangarh Municipal Council awarded Rahul Rathi (Senior Project Officer, ICLEI South Asia) for successful implementation of door-to-door collection of waste in two wards, under European Commission funded Adopt IUWM Project....
Stakeholders come together at ICLEI South Asia event to share experiences and challenges under Smart City Mission
A knowledge sharing round table on Supporting Sustainable Urban Transport and Built Environment in Indian Smart Cities was held on January 17, 2017, at India Habitat Centre, in New Delhi. The roundtable (on invitation only) was attended by about 30 participants, including a range of stakeholders – architects, planners, consultants, government stakeholders, and individuals involved in smart city projects. The discussion focussed on the...
Development of Sustainable Urban Development Framework (SUDF) for IMT-GT Region
ICLEI South Asia, with support from the Centre for IMT-GT Cooperation (CIMT), is developing a Sustainable Urban Development (SUD) Framework for the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) region. The IMT-GT is a sub-regional cooperation initiative by the Governments of Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, to accelerate economic transformation in the region. The SUD Framework is envisaged as an enabling framework to support...
Meet Kavita Khatri - Mayor of Jaisalmer city
Jaisalmer is a tourist city in the desert state of Rajasthan in India and faces scarcity of water. Through AdoptIUWM project, ICLEI South Asia – along with the city government – has been trying to revive and conserve traditional ponds and rain water harvesting structures and to manage waste that has been held responsible for localised flooding in the city in the past. Here are edited excerpts from conversation with Kavita Khatri, Mayor of...
Efforts to bring resilience to urban informalities in Asia conclude
With support from Misereor, ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia undertook a project on climate resilience in the informal settlements in four cities of three countries (two in India, one each in the Philippines and Indonesia). The project methodology comprised of a mix of research work to understand the present situation and develop the problem statements, and innovative thinking to develop solutions baskets, along with pilot...
Bangladesh cities learn more about ICLEI ACCCRN Process as tool to strengthen urban resilience
The “First National Annual Conference on Urban Resilience” was organised by International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD), Independent University of Bangladesh (IUB), and Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN), Bangladesh, in Dhaka from December 17-19, 2016.The Conference highlighted the sustainable urban development goals and ways to make cities resilient. At the conference, participants from national and...
ACCCRN: 20 City Resilience Strategies developed for cities in India and Bangladesh
City resilience strategies have been developed for 20 cities in India and Bangladesh using the ICLEI ACCCRN Process (IAP) under the ACCCRN – Translation and Scaling Up Project supported by Rockefeller Foundation. In India, the CRS has been prepared for the cities of Dharamshala, Mandi, Dehradun, Nainital, Keylong, Shillong, Gangtok, Kurseong, Siliguri, Patna, Nashik, Panaji, and Kochi. For Bangladesh, the cities are: Barisal, Singra, Mongla,...
Meet Ankit Makvana, a sustainability champion and project officer at ICLEI South Asia
Mr Ankit Makwana is a project city officer with ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability, based in Gujarat. In a candid conversation, Mr Makwana talks about the challenges he has faced in implementation of pilot projects with the city and how the journey with ICLEI has groomed him both personally and professionally. Edited excerpts: Your work is primarily in Rajkot city in Gujarat. Could you highlight one approach that is helping the...
Meet Amrapali Kata: a young, inspiring District Collector of Warangal city, Telangana
What is the perspective of sustainability for Warangal City?Warangal is a 1,100-year-old city which has rich cultural tradition. Spread across the radius of 400 sq.km., the city has about 100 water bodies, and a dense forest cover. The challenge is to develop the city in a sustainable way for all defining priorities of today, without ignoring what is needed in the long term. The city administration is very clear that it wants to preserve and...
Disaster Risk Reduction: Towards Disaster Resilience in cities
ICLEI South Asia analysed the disaster loss and damage database for three countries (Indonesia, Cambodia and Sri Lanka), with an aim to correlate trends in loss and damage from disasters reported at the national and subnational levels (in the database), with disasters and damage recorded at the city level. City level data collection on climate change and disaster patterns along with disaster preparedness, were carried out. following this, City...
Meet Tejas P Shinde, sustainability champion at ICLEI South Asia
Tejas P Shinde, Senior Engineer, Energy and Climate tells us why he thinks cities have many opportunities to address climate change and how climate is everyone’s concern How do you think your area of work and skills have helped ICLEI in its goal of achieving better, sustainable cities?There are many opportunities wherein cities can address climate change. With help of ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability, the cities have been able to...
Project cities share experiences on IUWM implementation at national workshop for Toolkit launch
ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia conducted a national level workshop on November 23 and 24 to launch the final draft for the Integrated Urban Water Management Toolkit for Indian cities under the AdoptIUWM project (Adopting Integrated Urban Water Management in Indian cities). Supported by European Union and in partnership with ICLEI European Secretariat and Association of Flemish Cities and Municipalities (VVSG), the project...
ICLEI South Asia launches PROMISE project at a workshop in Delhi
ICLEI South Asia, with partner Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), formally launched the PROMotion of Inclusive, Sustainable Growth and Diversity to Strengthen Local Governments (PROMISE) project on November 24, 2016. The project aims to improve local authorities’ capacity to perform as development actors for improving quality of life in an inclusive manner. The project also involves support to the authorities to create, enable and...
Rajkot honoured as Earth Hour City Challenge national capital in Quito
In an award ceremony organised by Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) in Quito, the national and the global Earth hour capitals were honoured for winning the challenge. At the event, Rajkot city from India won the title of National Earth Hour Capital out of the 10 Indian cities that participated in the challenge. The city’s credible actions in energy conservation, renewable energy and energy efficiency have been acknowledged as the models to follow...
ICLEI South Asia offers to partner with China to bring environmental technologies to Indian cities
This year, IFAT India, a leading environmental trade fair for water, sewage, refuse and recycling has been hosted in Mumbai from September 28 – 30, 2016. The platform witnessed government representatives, industry leaders and non-profits discussing approved and innovative environmental technologies that can help tackle issues of solid waste, water management and air pollution. This year, as a special and in order to facilitate bilateral...
Meet Rahul Singh: the sustainability champion who works at ICLEI South Asia
Rahul Singh has been with ICLEI South Asia for about four years now. Over these years, he has worked for a variety of projects aimed at bringing sustainability to cities. In this interview, Mr Singh shares his journey and experiences. Edited excerpts: How do you think your area of work and skills have helped ICLEI in its goal of achieving better, sustainable cities?Cities drive economic growth, consumption of materials and...
Producing biogas from solid waste will help us build capacities: Mr. Md. Zannatul Ferdous, Mayor of Singra Municipality, Bangladesh
Singra Municipality is a Member of ICLEI for two years now. The city in Bangladesh is more vulnerable to climate change than ever, facing erratic rainfall and extreme events of floods and droughts. However, through the years, Singra has initiated certain steps to build resilience and combat climate change. In this interview, Mr. Md. Zannatul Ferdous, Mayor of Singra suggests a few such initiatives that the low lying city has taken....
Narayanganj City Corporation of Bangladesh joins ICLEI’s network
ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia has been implementing various projects across cities of Bangladesh for years now. These projects include: Realising DReAMS, Supporting Urban Sustainability, SUNYA: Towards Zero Waste in South Asia, among others. Presently, ICLEI South Asia is implementing the ICLEI ACCCRN Process, a Toolkit developed for urban local governments to help them assess their climate risk and build climate...
ICLEI South Asia’s efforts to bring District Energy Systems to cities gather pace
In a move that signals significant progress in getting District Energy Systems to cities of India, stakeholder discussions were initiated in Bhopal and Thane to share information on the project and build interest of local real estate developers on district cooling. The meetings are a part of ‘Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency in Buildings & Cities: Assessing Potential for District Energy Systems (DES) in Indian Cities’ project,...
Regional partners meet in Singapore kicks off Building Efficiency Accelerator project
A regional partners’ meeting to advance peer learning amongst cities on opportunities and challenges regarding building energy efficiency was recently organised to kick start the Building Efficiency Accelerator project. The meet was organised by World Resource Institute (WRI), along with ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, World Secretariat, in Singapore. Held on September 8, 2016 at the office of Building and Construction Authority,...
ACCCRN: Small Grants Fund to help two cities fight problems of water and waste
Nainital and Gangtok – two mountain cities of India – have recently been awarded the Small Grants Fund provided by the Rockefeller Foundation and facilitated by ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia. While Nainital is a tourist town from the Kumaon region of Himalayas in Uttarakhand and is known for its fresh water lake, Gangtok is the capital of Sikkim, a state in the Northeast of the country. Both the cities have identified...
Junction design improvements continue in Udaipur
After the success of interventions made to decongest Suraj Pole junction in Udaipur, ICLEI South Asia has implemented another junction design improvement at Delhi Gate, in the same city. The activity that was taken up as an experiment under Handholding support to cities in Urban Mobility and Built Environment, supported by Shakti Energy foundation. The junction design improvement was done in support with Udaipur Municipal Corporation (UMC),...
ICLEI South Asia inks four MoUs with two cities in a month
In September 2016, ICLEI South Asia inked four MoUs in Rajkot and Nagpur on sustainable, low carbon development, with support from SDC, GIZ, and WRI. While under the Capacity Building Project on Low Carbon and Climate Resilient City Development in India (CapaCITIES), ICLEI will be working to develop and support/facilitate implementation of the city’s climate change action plan, focusing both on mitigation and adaptation plans, for the Building...
Meet Geeta Sandal – Senior Project Officer of Sustainability Management
An urban planner and water expert, Geeta has been a part of the Sustainability team at ICLEI South Asia since 2014. She is primarily involved in the project dealing with Integrated Urban Water Management System for Indian cities. How do you think your area of work and skills have helped ICLEI in its goal of achieving better, sustainable cities? There has always been a debate about the methods used to determine the sustainability of a place or a...
Spotlight on Bhagalpur (India) - Interview with Hon'ble Mayor Deepak Bhuwania
What do you think are Bhagalpur's main achievements in the field of sustainability? Bhagalpur is considered as the second largest economic and educational hub of Bihar and well known for its silk and cottage industry in India. The city has two air quality measuring stations; one in Aadampur and second in Chameli chowk. The ambient air quality of the city is within permissible limits. The Municipal Corporation frequently initiates...
Cities to get grants for building climate resilience infrastructure
The Small Grants Fund that was constituted to support innovative and result-oriented interventions to build resilience in partner cities of Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN) in India and Bangladesh, shall be disbursed to Gangtok and Nainital in India and to Singra, Mongla and Kustia in Bangladesh. The grant is aimed at encouraging local stakeholders to implement actions in high risk urban systems identified through the...
Bio- toilets for improving sanitation facilities in informal settlements in Nashik
ICLEI South Asia in collaboration with Nashik Municipal Corporation has recently initiated implementation of the pilot project in Amrapali and Phule Nagar slums. The resilience intervention identified for the same is the establishment of bio- toilets (which is an eco-friendly mode of waste management).This implementation is a part of Misereor funded project on Urban Resilience and Informality which was launched in January 2016 in Nashik,...
ICLEI extends segregation and door to door plastic waste collection to the city of Jaisalmer
The pilot project on door to door plastic waste collection is ongoing in Jaisalmer. The city has now shown interest to expand the scope of the project to segregation and collection of all waste at household level in ward five. Eco friendly bags are presently being used by residents of fort city and ward five to segregate plastic waste which is being collected on alternate days with support from Jaisalmer Municipal Council. Residents of the same...
Government of India releases manual on municipal solid waste management
The Minister of Urban Development Shri M Venkaiah Naidu launched the revised CPHEEO Manual on Municipal Solid Waste Management, while inaugurating the Swachh Survekshan 2017 in New Delhi, on 6 August, 2016. ICLEI South Asia was involved as the national technical expert in revising the first version of the manual. The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (India) commissioned and supported this endeavour. A national...
Meet Sasi Madambi: ICLEI employee who has championed the art of multi-tasking
Mr Madambi has spent four years at ICLEI and internalised the processes involved in ICLEI South Asia’s work. Not only does he handle multiple tasks at the organisation, he also tries his best to help out his colleagues. It has been more than four years since you have been working with ICLEI. Could you give a brief overview of your journey with the organisation? I joined ICLEI South Asia in February 2012. Most commonly, employees take time to...
ICLEI's PROMISE to strengthen capacities of four cities in India
ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia has selected four city governments whose capacities would be strengthened under Promotion of Inclusive, Sustainable Growth and Diversity to Strengthen Local Governments (PROMISE) project. The project that is supported by the European Union aims to build capacities on integrated, participatory, inclusive and sustainable development, and efficient resources mobilisation and utilisation....
Abandoned borewell recharge in Solapur, an AdoptIUWM city, sets an example for drought-hit Maharashtra
A pilot project for recharge of abandoned bore wells in Neelam Nagar area of Solapur, being implemented under the AdoptIUWM project, has been inaugurated on July 29, 2016. Mayor Ms Abute, along with the representative from European Commission Mr Shouvik Dutta, inaugurated the roof top rain water harvesting structure at Shantai Ashram in Neelam Nagar. The pilot project focuses on undertaking roof top rain water harvesting and...
ACCCRN expands to two more cities of Bangladesh
ICLEI South Asia has begun work on building resilience in two more cities of Bangladesh by initiating stakeholder discussions. The discussions were held in in Kustia and Rajshahi cities using the ICLEI ACCCRN Process that was supported by Rockefeller Foundation. Going forward, ICLEI will coordinate with the “Core Teams” of these cities to identify resilience interventions that can help to reduce their vulnerability. Before this, we have been...
Habitat III: Months before Quito, nations come together for prep meet; ICLEI hosts side event
ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability recently collaborated with Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Cities Development Initiative for Asia (CDIA), Communitas Coalition, Iskandar Regional Development Authority, the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing of Indonesia, and the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES)-Japan for a side event at Habitat III PrepCom3, held on July 27 in Surabaya, Indonesia. At the...
Civil society comes together to launch India’s first independent GHG emission estimates
India’s first civil society platform for GHG estimation and analysis – GHG Platform India – was launched on 15th July, 2016 in New Delhi. The platform provides national estimates for GHG emissions from the energy, industry, waste and agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) sectors from years 2007-2012 by accounting CO2, CH4 and N2O gases. These estimates are publicly available on the platform website allowing users to view and download...
Nagpur and Rajkot from India are project cities for Urban Nexus
The Sixth Regional Workshop under the project “Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities: the Urban Nexus” was organized in Santa Rosa, Philippines from June 22 to 23, 2016. The two-day workshop was conducted as a part of the project, Integrated Resource Management in Asian Cities: the Urban Nexus (thereafter called “Urban Nexus”), financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by...
Asia LEDS Forum 2016 unlocks finance for priority actions in Asia
Practitioners and advocates of low-emission, climate-resilient development in Asia – including state policymakers, officials from development agencies along with financial institutions, and potential investors – recently convened for the opening of the Asia Low Emission Development Strategies (LEDS) Forum 2016: Mobilizing Finance for Priority Actions, at Sheraton Hotel in Hanoi. The event was organized by the Asia LEDS Partnership and hosted by...
Urban LEDS: An overview
An Urban Low Emissions Development Strategy (Urban-LEDS), or Low Emissions Urban Development Strategy, defines a pathway to transition a city to a low emission, green and inclusive urban economy, through its integration into city development plans and processes. By exploring this, local governments can achieve immediate, direct, cost effective and scalable greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions, while improving livelihoods for their citizens...
Panaji has benefited immensely from GreenClimateCities programme: Goa Commissioner
Shri. Dipak Deesai, Commissioner of Corporation of Panaji Goa talks about how the Urban LEDS project and city's association with ICLEI has impacted the city over the years. Edited excerpts: How has Panaji benefited from the Urban LEDS project?Panaji was fortunate to be among eight hand-picked Cities in India for Urban-LEDS programme to strengthen Low Emission Development planning. I specially want to mention the GreenClimateCities (GCC)...
Rajkot’s journey towards low carbon, sustainable development
Rajkot city of Gujarat state in western India has always been in limelight for its bold and innovative steps towards sustainable growth. It is the regional and local leadership of this fast developing city that has brought several accolades to the city in arenas such as sanitation and cleanliness, industrial development and other contemporary aspects such as adoption of renewable energy, building energy efficiency, efficient transport system and...
Six Indian 'satellite' cities benefit from approaches and practices of low-emission urban development
The Urban-LEDS project supports rapidly growing cities in four emerging economy countries: Brazil, India, Indonesia and South Africa. From India, Panaji, Gwalior, Shimla, Coimbatore, Nagpur and Pimpri-Chinchwad are six of the emerging cities that have been chosen as satellite cities or the cities that are closely involved in observing, sharing and learning from the two model cities – Rajkot and Thane – and embarked on the process of low carbon...
Thane shows the way through municipal schools and street lighting programmes
The Thane city, located in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region in western India, is best known for its ambitious commitments and actions to promote renewable energy and energy efficiency. The Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) joined the Urban-LEDS programme in 2012 to accelerate its progressive climate action trajectory.Guided by ICLEI’s Green Climate Cities (GCC) process, Thane embraced its role as a model city under the programme by adopting a...
Rajshahi: the city that took on air pollution – and won
In Bangladesh, one of the world’s most polluted cities and an ICLEI Member city has led the way globally in ridding itself of harmful PM10 particles. This is an offshoot of the Realising DReAMS project - the work started in the project is being continued by Rajshahi and has recently been featured in Guardian, a UK-based publication.
Shimla among world's first five cities to get City Resilience Index (CRI)
Arup, in association with ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability, South Asia and Municipal Corporation of Shimla (MCS), piloted the City Resilience Index (CRI) tool in Shimla. The tool was developed by Arup with support from Rockefeller Foundation to help the city build resilience. Read full report: City Resilience Index Shimla, India Apart from India, the other cities where the tool was piloted are Hong Kong, China; Liverpool, England;...
Panaji makes it to Smart Cities List under Fast Track Mode, two more ICLEI members selected
Panaji, the capital city of Goa, has successfully made it to the list of cities selected under India’s Smart City Mission Fast Track Mode. The names of 13 cities selected under Fast Track Mode were announced on Tuesday by Union Minister Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu. These cities, in addition to the initially selected 20 Smart Cities would be implementing their proposals under the Smart Cities Mission of Government of India. Some of the...
Habitat III: ICLEI's response to Zero Draft of New Urban Agenda
On 15 May, local and regional governments and networks from around the world convened at the first session of the Second World Assembly of Local and Regional Governments in New York City to provide input into the United Nations Habitat III Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development. This meeting was the first in the three-part Second World Assembly series organised by the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments. The...
Interview: How Gangtok is moving towards development that is sustainable
Shakti Singh Choudhary, Mayor of Gangtok, Sikkim (India) shares how the hill city is introducing measures that can help the city become more liveable, without hampering its livelihoods and ecology
Bhagalpur city from Bihar joins ICLEI’s network
Bhagalpur, popularly known as silk city situated on the southern bank of the Ganges in the Indian state of Bihar, has successfully become an ICLEI member. The third largest city in Bihar and the largest city in eastern Bihar, is also one of the major educational, commercial and political centres of eastern India. The city covers an area of 110 square kilometre with 410,210 population. The City has recently been shortlisted by the Ministry of...
Pune hosts the energy fair under Earth Hour City Challenge
ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability, South Asia, in collaboration with World Wide Fund (WWF) India and Pune Municipal Corporation, recently organised a one-day renewable energy fair at Rajiv Gandhi Zoological Park on April 25, 2016. The renewable energy fair was organised under Earth Hour City Challenge, the on-going programme between ICLEI South Asia and WWF India. The objective of the one day energy fair was to raise general awareness...
Asia LEDS holds webinars to share knowledge on energy tools
The Asia LEDS Partnership, along with LEDS Global Partnership’s Energy Working Group, has been holding webinars to spread the word about its toolkits and to share some case studies.The webinar on “Long range Energy Alternatives Planning (LEAP) System: Applications in Vietnam and Indonesia”, held in March, showcased two case examples of the tool’s application in Asia. LEAP is a widely-used software tool for energy policy analysis and climate...
Towards building resilience: vulnerability assessment and ground-truthing in Kurseong and Gangtok
ICLEI South Asia in collaboration with the Kurseong Municipality (KM) and Gangtok Municipal Corporation (GMC), in April this year, organised the 2nd Shared Learning Dialogue (SLD) workshops under Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN) project supported by Rockefeller Foundation, in the respective cities. ICLEI South Asia team facilitated the workshop to undertake the vulnerability assessment due to climate change which...
Enhancing climate resilience in India's Gorakhpur city
ICLEI South Asia recently partnered with the RUAF Foundation (Resource Centers on Urban Agriculture and Food Security) to undertake a formative evaluation of the "Enhancing Climate Resilience of Gorakhpur city by Buffering Floods in the City” project. The project that focuses on climate resilient peri-urban agriculture has been implemented by Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group (GEAG).Both the project and the evaluation were supported by...
HRIDAY cities strive to improve access to heritage sites
Amravati, a town in Andhra Pradesh and known for its temples and stupas, is now geared up to improve its heritage asset-related infrastructure and additional urban infrastructure, under the Government of India’s Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY).Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC), which is implementing agency for HRIDAY has appointed the executing agencies for “upgradation of approach roads to...
Building resilience in informal settlements
ICLEI South Asia and ICLEI South East Asia have undertaken a new project to mull the issues related to informal settlements in four cities of Asia. Presently, the teams are preparing a solutions basket for the problem areas that were identified after a detailed research. The exercise is a part of a Misereor-funded project on Urban Resilience and Informality, launched in January 2016, and is being conducted in collaboration with Nashik Municipal...
APFSD 2016: Delegates from Asia-Pacific meet to discuss regional priorities for implementation of SDGs
The third season of the Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD 2016), organised by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, was held from 3 to 5 April 2016, at the United Nations Conference Centre, in Bangkok, Thailand. A representative from ICLEI South Asia participated in the event and presented ICLEI’s stand. “The SDGs will pave the way for a fully transformative agenda if they are considered as the floor,...
IUWM campaigns promote water conservation and solid waste management
A catchment cleanliness drive was organised in February by ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia and Solapur Municipal Corporation as a supporting initiative for the pilot project on “Ground Water Recharge through Abandoned Bore wells”. The drive was organised at Neelam Nagar, Solapur under the project Adopt Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM). The objective of the event was to initiate catchment cleanliness drive and also...
Coimbatore sets a Guinness World Record
ICLEI South Asia has been recognized for its contribution and participation in the “largest recycling lesson” which was attended by 12,994 participants and was organized by Coimbatore Municipal Corporation.The city flourishingly accomplished the title in Guinness World Records, with the objective to create a better understanding about community involvement in source segregation, litter collection, waste handling and disposal and was able to...
Mandi, the Kashi of Himachal, is now an ICLEI member
Mandi, formerly known as Mandav Nagar, situated in India’s northern state of Himachal Pradesh, is ICLEI's newest member in South Asia. Mandi is one of the leading cities of the state, with a municipal council in Mandi District. Also referred to as "Varanasi of Hills" or "Kashi of Himachal", Mandi is one of the oldest and fastest growing cities of Himachal Pradesh. Situated on the banks of river Beas and with...
ICLEI South Asia to manage the Secretariat of the Asia LEDS Partnership
ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability - South Asia, in partnership with ICLEI South East Asia and ICLEI East Asia, has been awarded the management of Asia LEDS Partnership Secretariat. The Asia LEDS Partnership Secretariat has been managed by consulting firm ICF International, as lead implementer of the USAID Low Emissions Asian Development (USAID LEAD) program, since 2012. Services have been sub-contracted to ICLEI by USAID LEAD to carry...
Three Indian cities selected as finalists for WWF global city challenge
Rajkot, Pune and Coimbatore are in the final run-up to become the global capitals under World Wildlife Fund’s Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) 2015-16. One out of these is bound to be named as India’s National Earth Hour Capital 2016. Launched in 2011, EHCC inspires and supports cities to become solution hotspots for building sustainable cities. This challenge aims to mobilize action and support from cities in the global transition towards a...
RCAP 2016: Local governments commit to resilience partnerships in Melaka Call for Action
Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister endorses inclusive resilience at ICLEI event
High level segment at RCAP 2016 reasserts role of cities in achieving sustainability
After two days of deliberations that reinstated the importance of building resilience in cities and promoting initiatives and participation that comes from city mayors and councillors, the Resilient Cities Asia Pacific 2016 congress has entered the official closing day. The Congress, held in conjunction with the 16th International Convention on Melaka Twin Cities, was officially opened by YB Datuk Abdul Rahman bin Dahlan, Minister of Urban...
Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific 2016 Opens with Assessment of "Milestone" 2015
The 2nd Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific Congress was officially opened today in Melaka, Malaysia by Datuk Seri Ir. Haji Idris Haron, the Chief Minister of Melaka. Haron highlighted Melaka's credentials as a resilient city, pointing out its goal of becoming a Green Technology City State by 2020 and its alignment with the national target of reducing CO2 emissions by 40 percent by 2020. As part of this effort, Melaka State - with the help of ICLEI -...
District Energy Systems: Towards efficient cooling for buildings in India’s cities
ICLEI South Asia, in collaboration with United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), has initiated a project to help Indian cities accelerate their transition to low-carbon and climate-resilient development through modern District Energy Systems (DES). Called as “Renewable and Energy Efficiency in Buildings & Cities: Assessing Potential for District Energy Systems (DES) in Indian Cities”, the project aims to provide technical assistance...
IUWM: Water use training for students in two cities of Rajasthan
Under Adopt Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM) project, ICLEI organized a sensitization training for students in Kishangarh and Jaisalmer cities of Rajasthan, in collaboration with local authorities. For the purpose of workshop, information, education and communication tools were used. The activities were taken up under pilot projects on closed loop water management to encourage recycling, recharge and reuse of water, in Kishangarh, and...
Smart, healthy and sustainable cities: PEER learnings from US, China & India
A high-level workshop was recently organized by ICLEI South Asia and University of Minnesota where experts, policy makers and city representatives of three countries exchanged their learnings on infrastructural transitions towards sustainability. The two-day event was organized on January 11 and 12 in New Delhi, in collaboration with Yale University, Georgia Institute of Technology and Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur. Titled “Developing...
COP 21 acknowledges role of cities in building resilience
The Paris Agreement that emerged from COP21 in December 2015 affirmed the critical role of cities and subnationals in the global climate regime. The Conference of Parties in Paris that saw historic commitment of 185 nations was also remarkable for strong presence of cities, together with their networks and partners. The Climate Summit for Local Leaders at the Paris City Hall on 4 December saw the largest ever mobilization of local leaders during...
Gwalior’s quest for a sustainable future: an interview with Mayor Vivek Narayan Shejwalkar
Gwalior city is ranked 22 in the first Smart City list released by the Government of India. The city must be hoping to make it to the next phase of the programme. What would be the key initiatives of the city ones it starts development under the Smart City Project? Though Gwalior city could not make it to the first list despite our dedicated plans and scored the 22nd slot, it now has an opportunity to submit the revised proposals to...
Meet ICLEI’s new sustainability champions
If you dream of a sustainable, resilient and better world and wish to contribute to the cause, ICLEI could be the place for you. Meet our colleagues who have joined us in the past few months and bring with them a pool of talent and experience. We welcome them and wish them good luck in their journey! Mehvish KidwaiCommunication OfficerMehvish joined ICLEI in November 2015. She holds a Bachelor's degree in advertising and is a post graduate in...
Kolkata builds capacities to achieve climate resilience
Kolkata, the City of Joy, went through a series of training workshops on climate change and its impacts on the city. The objective of 16 sessions held in August and September was to sensitise councillors and other government officials of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC). The workshops were organized by ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, South Asia (ICLEI South Asia), in collaboration with the Bengal Chamber of Commerce and...
Smart City Mission: ICLEI congratulates first batch of selected cities
ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia is proud to note that it has been in close association with most of the 20 cities selected for the first phase of Indian government’s “Smart Cities Mission”. Of the 20 cities that will be developed under the first phase of the NDA-government led mission, 11 are ICLEI’s member cities. These include: Pune, Bhubaneshwar, Jaipur, Surat, Solapur, Ahmedabad, Jabalpur, Vishakhapatnam, Guwahati,...
Ten Indian cities take first step towards global Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC)
The Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) 2015-2016 is an initiative by ICLEI and World Wide Fund (WWF) to promote renewable energy and prepare for climate change. In this year-long competition, cities across the world are recognized for their efforts to create more sustainable and resilient cities. The participants also compete for the title of Earth Hour Capital. The competition encourages cities to come forward and report their Greenhouse Gas...
ICLEI welcomes COP commitments; but nations need to steer green growth
Though it has been almost a month since the Paris Agreement has been signed, nations are yet to provide an ambitious response to end a fossil-dependent era. It is unfortunate that despite the need for an unstoppable transformation into an urban development model based on 100 per cent renewables, nations have been reluctant to commit funds for the same. ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability though welcomes the landmark commitments of...
Urban Development Minister and Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh launch HRIDAY scheme in Amaravati
HRIDAY, Making of India’s Heritage Cities… Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu, along with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, launched the projects under National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) and Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spirituality Augmentation Drive (PRASAD), at Amaravati in Guntur district on December 5, 2015. The projects include evaluation of current situation of...
Panaji begins its journey towards becoming a smart city!
Panaji, the capital of the State of Goa, is among the ninety eight Cities identified as potential Smart Cities by the Government of India under its flagship Smart Cities Mission. The Corporation of the City of Panaji is now competing to be among the to-be-chosen 20 cities, to access funding for Smart City implementation. ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability, South Asia is proud to assist the City of Panaji to develop a sustainable Smart...
HRIDAY cities advance towards rejuvenating heritage asset related infrastructure
Amravati, a popular heritage city in India, most known for the Amaralingeswara Swamy temple, Mahachaitya Stupa and Dharanikota Fort, all built during the second and third century BC, is now working towards improving its heritage asset related infrastructure and additional urban infrastructure, under the Government of India’s Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY). With support from ICLEI South Asia, the heritage assets in...
Shimla will soon have its own City Resilience Index
Shimla has been selected as one of the five cities in the world where a combined effort of The Rockfeller Foundation; Arup, a British professional services group; ICLEI South Asia; and the Shimla Municipal Corporation (SMC) have joined hands to create a resilience profile for the town using the City Resilience Index (CRI). A recent survey shows that in Shimla 48 per cent people prefer walking, 45 per cent use public buses and 7 per cent use...
Bright days ahead for Cochin’s transport scenario
Under the EU supported SOLUTIONS project, Mr. Kezhen Wang, Director, Hangzhou Public Transport Company along with Mr Chao li, Research Officer, China Academy for Transport Studies from ‘leading city’ Hangzhou recently visited ‘take up’ city Cochin to understand the mobility scenario in the city, as part of the knowledge exchange process under the project. Cochin Mayor, Mr. Tony Chammany, through local media channels, introduced the project and...
Strengthening Local Urban Resilience Plans in Southeast Asia
UNDP, through varying levels of support, is instrumental in the development of disaster loss and damage databases and associated institutionalisation at the national and subnational levels in over 25 locations. Online disaster loss and damage databases are available for several countries in the South and Southeast Asian region. It is of critical value to these countries to assess and analyse information in these databases within the context of...
Highlights of Kurseong, Gangtok and Panaji’s journey towards building resilience
The Rockefeller Foundation funded Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN), has been working towards helping cities in improving their climate resilience and protecting themselves from projected impacts of climate change. ACCCRN cities from India, Kurseong, Gangtok and Panaji are advancing at a commendable pace towards making themselves more resilient and increasing their capacity to withstand, adapt and recover from climate...
Launching IEC materials for building climate resilience in Kolkata
Under the UK-KMC (United Kingdom-Kolkata Municipal Corporation) MoU on Low Carbon and Climate Resilient Kolkata signed in November 2013 during the UK Prime Minister’s visit to Kolkata, ICLEI South Asia is assisting British Deputy High Commission in Kolkata to implement the ‘Sensitisation Programme for Kolkata Municipal Corporation Councilors and Members of Mayor-in-Council on Climate Change’. Under this programme, ICLEI South Asia in...
Here comes the light: Kochi’s solar city master plan now approved!
Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has approved the Rs. 696-crore master plan for the Kochi solar city project. The project is part of the Centre’s ambitious scheme to develop solar cities in selected regions across the country. The master plan for Kochi was approved at a meeting of MNRE held in New Delhi on Friday, September 11th, 2015. ICLEI South Asia was engaged by Kochi Municipal Corporation to prepare the solar city master...
Spotlight on Dehradun, India – An interview with Mayor Vinod Chamoli
What would you describe as Dehradun’s main achievements in the field of sustainability?Dehradun has been a distinguished centre of learning for long. After formation of Uttarakhand as a new state, the city gained further prominence as the capital. Evidently, the population pressure has increased and the responsibilities gotten bigger. Subsequently, the city has become more aware and further active on sustainability actions. It has partnered with...
Solapur, now an ICLEI member, finalises pilot project sites for implementation
Located in the south-eastern region of Indian state of Maharashtra, Solapur, is also known as “The City of Martyrs” due to the city’s active role during the Indian Independence Movement. With an impressive number of sugar factories (33 in total) and the world's second-largest and Asia's largest spinning mill, Solapur is the fourth-largest district in Maharashtra in terms of land area, and seventh-largest in terms of population. We welcome...
For a safer future - Insights on climate resilience from India
“The earth is warming, it’s just the beginning,” goes a new farming song in Uttar Pradesh, India as rainstorms and flooding become more frequent, and property and crops across the state are ruined. The increasing number of weather disasters, as a result of climate change, is making it harder for people to get back on their feet after each one. A film released by the Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group (GEAG) and TERI India, in association with...
Kurseong now an ICLEI member!
Best known for its formidable league of tea estates and a rush of Raj-era boarding schools, Kurseong is a tiny and bustling hill town 32 Km south of Darjeeling, West Bengal and now is ICLEI’s newest member in the South Asian region. The word Kurseong means – the place of White Orchid. Because of its lower elevation, Kurseong enjoys milder and very healthy climate throughout the year. Kurseong is currently a part of the Rockefeller Foundation...
Towards developing a Climate Resilient Panaji
A shared learning dialogue, as part of the Rockefeller Foundation supported Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN), was recently held in Panaji city which aimed at discussing the sectors identified to be impacted by climate change. This workshop was inaugurated by the Hon’ble Member of Legislative Assembly, Panaji, Mr. Siddharth Kunkolienkar who emphasised on the need for such a study in order to ensure sustainable development...
New at ICLEI South Asia!
If working towards a sustainable, resilient, low carbon and resource-efficient city is your passion, ICLEI South Asia is the place to be. Meet our new sustainability champions – Dr. Monalisa SenSenior Manager (Sustainability Management) With over 14 years of experience in the fields of Biodiversity Conservation, Community Development, Enterprise Based Conservation and Restoration Ecology, Mona is now working on developing the biodiversity...
Thane's journey so far in transition to low emission development
In its role as a model city under the European Commission funded Promoting Low Emission Urban Development Strategies in Emerging Economy Countries (Urban - LEDS) project, Thane is actively engaged in accelerating its transition to low emission development. The Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC), guided by ICLEI’s GreenClimateCities (GCC) methodology, has identified a set of priority low emission strategies and is undertaking a range of actions at...
Integrating ICLEI's IUWM and waste initiatives with Swachh Bharat Mission activities in Rajasthan
ICLEI South Asia has been selected as one of the facilitators for IEC (Information, Education and Communication) and capacity building components under Swachh Bharat Mission in Rajasthan. The existing ICLEI initiatives: European Commsion supported project on Integrated Urban Water Management (being implemented in Jaisalmer and Kishangarh) and UNEP supported Kota Holistic Waste Management project (being implemented in Kota) are being integrated...
Expanding urban mobility knowledge with SOLUTIONS E-learning courses!
The second round of the SOLUTIONS E-learning courses have been launched and are all set to start in September 2015. The SOLUTIONS courses are intended for professionals working in the field of urban mobility who wish to expand their knowledge and share their experiences with participants from around the world. These free online courses, which are a part of the project activities under SOLUTIONS, are an eco-friendly way of achieving more...
Meet Nikhil Kolsepatil – Senior Engineer (Energy and Climate)
An engineer and energy technologist, Nikhil has been a part of the Energy and Climate team at ICLEI South Asia since 2013. He is primarily involved in work on energy efficiency, renewable energy and climate mitigation. What has your contribution to city governments been through ICLEI? I have been able to help local governments understand the local and global challenges posed by climate change and the need to address these through their...
Small Grants Fund to support resilience actions in India and Bangladesh
A Small Grants Fund has been constituted to support innovative and result-oriented interventions to build resilience in partner cities of Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN) in India and Bangladesh. The grant is aimed at encouraging local stakeholders to implement actions in high risk urban systems identified through the ICLEI-ACCCRN Process (IAP). It would provide tangible, financial support for city-community partnerships....
Dehradun is now an ICLEI city!
Dehradun, the capital city of hill state Uttarakhand, is the newest ICLEI member in the South Asian region.From being a gateway to the tourist destinations in Kumaon and Garhwal Himalayas, Dehradun has now grown as a prominent city in North India. It is an important educational centre, with few highly reputed schools alongside national institutes like Forest Research Institute (FRI) and Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (IIRS) among many other...
Supporting Swachh Bharat Mission activities in Nellore
In line with the requirements of the Swachh Bharat Mission, ICLEI South Asia is supporting Nellore city in developing a city sanitation plan, leading to the development of a Detailed Project Report for Solid Waste Management. With a population a little over 5 lakhs, the leadership in Nellore is committed to achieving an open defecation free and clean city, ensuring a healthy and happy community. With past experience in successfully implementing...
Rajkot’s bike sharing program - advancing towards low carbon mobility
As awareness is increasing among cities and its people for sustainable and low carbon modes of transportation, bicycles are emerging as a new top trend. Bikes, with their numerous health benefits, add to making the city more sustainable and to increase awareness towards low carbon mobility. Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC), supported by Rajkot Rotary Midtown library and a popular radio channel, Radio Mirchi, has initiated bicycle rental...
Making disaster planning a possibility for slums in South and Southeast Asia
ICLEI south Asia will play the role of an international partner, along with few other organisations, for the “Crowdsourcing Community Resilience in Urban Slums” project which is one of the 17 projects selected in the first stage of the bigger Global Resilience Partnership. The Partnership, convened by The Rockefeller Foundation, USAID, and Sida aims to help millions in Africa and Asia build more resilient futures. An essential feature of the...
Revamping heritage cities as part of the HRIDAY Scheme
ICLEI South Asia, with its partners, will be playing the role of a city anchor for three cities – Amaravati, Ajmer and Badami, under the Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India’s National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY). The scheme focuses on holistic development of heritage cities. The scheme also aims to preserve and revitalise the heritage city to reflect the city’s unique character by encouraging...
Exploring solutions for an enhanced IUWM approach
Under the Adopting Integrated Urban Water Management in Indian Cities (AdoptIUWM) project, a one week exposure visit to Europe was conducted in the month of April. The aim of this tour was to expose the participants to the best practices in the field of Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM) being undertaken in Europe and to provide options for Indian cities that are currently facing challenges in the Water sectors. Three European countries,...
ICLEI Leaders and Members to strengthen Pope Francis’ efforts on climate, modern slavery and sustainability
On 21-22 July 2015, a delegation of more than 60 Mayors from around the world will meet Pope Francis in the Vatican for a two-day event on climate change, human trafficking and sustainable development. (See the official press release of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences and the full program on July 21 on modern slavery and climate change and on July 22 on sustainable development and post2015 development agenda in collaboration with UN...
MobiPrize 2015 – Get recognised for your innovative sustainable transport actions
UM-SMART’s MobiPrize is back, honoring New Mobility enterprises and innovators that are making the world a better place through sustainable transportation innovation! All entrepreneurs addressing transportation-related challenges and opportunities with innovative and sustainable solutions and business models (anywhere in the world) are encouraged to apply. So are government agencies that are fostering a New Mobility industry, enterprise, and...
ICLEI member Shimla shines at the World Summit in Lyon
Shimla was among the three cities (hailed for Urban-LEDS (Low Emissions Development Strategy) held at the World Summit – Climate and Territories in Lyon, France on July 2. Addressing over 800 Summit participants, representatives of Urban-LEDS cities Shimla (India), Fortaleza (Brazil), KwaDukuza (S. Africa) and Copenhagen (Denmark) shared their low carbon actions and commitments. Shimla municipal corporation, along with 50 others organizations,...
Will your city be the next Earth Hour Capital - Earth Hour City Challenge 2015-16 is now open!
Cities have been actively participating in Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) for three consecutive years. Acknowledging the zeal and vigour of the numerous cities which have been a part of this initiative, the EHCC 2015-16 campaign was launched on 1 July, 2015. WWF has invited over 20 countries this year to demonstrate their climate leadership and ambition by reporting their inspiring climate commitments, performance and actions. The theme for...
Cochin releases its Solar City Master Plan
The Cochin solar city master plan is a comprehensive document detailing city’s present energy consumption in various sectors, energy demand forecasting and sector wise action plan for integrating renewable energy and energy efficiency measures in different activities. It begins with the introductory city profiles which encapsulate the city’s current energy demands and also the Municipal Council services which are intrinsic to the city’s growing...
Spotlight on Solapur, India – An interview with Mayor Sushila Laxman Abute
What would you describe as Solapur’s main achievements in the field of sustainability? Being a city from an arid region, Solapur faces problems of scarcity of water, high T & D losses in water supply network, sewage treatment, river/nallah pollution and air pollution. Recently our city has initiated implementation of 3 decentralized wastewater treatment plants to prevent nallah/river pollution. City authorities are extending and...
Meet Keshav Jha – Senior Project Officer (Energy and Climate)
Been a part of the ICLEI family from early 2011, Keshav has been an integral part of the energy and climate team here at ICLEI South Asia. He has a Master's degree in Environment and two Postgraduate Diplomas in Urban Planning & Development and Environmental Law & Management and an Appreciation program in Sustainability Sciences. He is a Salzburg Global Fellow and a Climate Reality Leader trained by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore,...
Learning from implementation: 8 Pilot Projects selected for IUWM cities
Under the Adopting Integrated Urban Water Management in Indian Cities (AdoptIUWM) Project, a series of activities have been conducted over the past few months. These include: State Level Review Meeting in Rajasthan and second Stakeholder workshops in all project cities where each city formulated an IUWM based vision for a sustainable Water Future and selected Pilot Projects for implementation (total 8 pilot Projects) through a participatory...
Moving steadily towards building climate resilience
10 Indian cities namely, Leh, Dharamsala, Mandi, Dehradun, Nainital, Panaji, Nashik, Kurseong, Shillong and Gangtok and 3 cities of Bangladesh - Singra, Mongla and Barisal, are currently a part of the Rockefeller Foundation funded Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN), working towards improving their climate resilience and protecting themselves from projected impacts of climate change. Following are highlights of the...
Few in-depth thoughts from our ICLEI pillars and REXCom members
Congratulations to ICLEI South Asia on its 10th Anniversary. I have visited your offices, met with your members and staff and talked about the urban challenges before us. Your region is one of the most critical in the world the young energy you exhibit can make the 21st century livable and sustainable. Invite new cities and citizens to join with ICLEI and become part of the sustainable solution. - David Cadman, President 2006-2015,...
100 Mayors adopt Seoul Declaration for sustainable cities
Together with ICLEI President Park Wonsoon (Mayor of Seoul), ICLEI First Vice President James Nxumalo (Mayor of Durban) and ICLEI Secretary General Gino Van Begin, 100 mayors from around the world were onstage at today´s ICLEI World Congress 2015 Opening Plenary to adopt the Seoul Declaration. The Seoul Declaration (ES) is a collaborative document that sets out a path to urban sustainability. It acknowledges the grave issues facing...
Solutions Gateway now open to all cities
The Solutions Gateway, an online platform on Low Carbon Solutions for Urban Development created for cities and towns, was launched at the ICLEI World Congress 2015 in April 2015. It is now available to all local governments, free of charge. This innovative platform, tailor-made for local governments, was developed to assist cities and towns in mainstreaming low emission development into urban plans, projects and processes. Through advanced...
Seoul City Mayor elected as new ICLEI President
ICLEI- Local Governments for Sustainability has elected Seoul City Mayor Park Won Soon as its new President. The announcement was made at the ICLEI World Congress 2015 – the biggest gathering of local and subnational leaders committed to sustainability. Former ICLEI President David Cadman officially handed over his legacy to Mayor Park who is a keen enthusiast of sustainable approaches to climate change. As the new President, Mayor Park’s...
All India Environmental Journalism Competition 2015
Our environment is degrading every minute and this is and should be an issue of serious concern for each one of us. This environmental degradation needs urgent action to be taken, which should be continuous and widespread. Awareness towards causes of environmental degradation, effects on the livelihood of many and ways to prevent this degradation, combined with tremendous community involvement are the needs of the hour. To steer the...
Thane wins “National Earth Hour Capital 2015” title
At the Earth Hour City Challenge award ceremony in Seoul, Korea on the 9th April 2015, Thane was announced as India’s National Earth Hour Capital 2015, with Seoul winning the title of the Global Earth Hour Capital. After a rigorous exercise of deliberating and assessing the sustainable activities reported by the finalist cities under the Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC), an expert jury panel has declared Thane as the winning...
Brainstorming towards an integrated transport system in Cochin
A two day workshop on sustainable transport solutions was held in Cochin, India to resolve transport issues of the city and to identify prospective solutions. The workshop, organised as a part of the SOLUTIONS project, was attended by representatives of various organisations from the city, who discussed various solutions that could be implemented as short, medium and long term measures and reiterated the advantages of current density patterns...
Official Statement of Local and Regional Authorities Major Group at UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction
A statement was read out by Mayor Illiza Saaduddin Djamal of Banda Aceh, Indonesia, on behalf of the Major Group on Local and Regional Authorities, and their global networks United Cities and Local Governments and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, at the 3rd UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction on 17 March 2015. This statement will further feed into the 2015 Sendai outcome. Given below is the official...
Moving towards sustainable transport solutions for Cochin
25-27 March 2015 will witness Cochin, India, hosting a workshop on sustainable transport solutions for the city. The three day workshop on sustainable transport solutions will gather various stakeholders from the urban transport field in the city and international expert organisations to discuss on possible solutions that can resolve the overwhelmed transport demand. Cochin has been selected as one of the take up cities under the...
Risk award to support slum dwellers in Pune
Activities for risk reduction must integrate the people at risk and make use of their traditional coping techniques and knowledge. All the key drivers of risk are present in the Indian city of Pune where 25,000 people living in ten slums will benefit from a project by the All India Institute of Local Self-Government (AIILSG) which has won the 2015 Risk Award and a grant of €100,000 at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction....
Aiming towards creating a climate friendly future for Pune at the Green Energy Fair
More than 500 people visited the Green Energy Fair, organised in Pune city on 4 March 2015, with support from Pune Municipal Corporation and WWF – India, as part of the Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) project. The fair, wherein essential information on various applications of renewable energy was shared with the citizens of Pune city, was inaugurated by the additional commissioner, Pune Municipal Corporation, Mr. Rajendra Jagtaap followed by...
Urban Green Growth Strategies for Indian Cities - Report launched!
Indian cities are at the core of the economic transformation being envisaged by the Government of India. Considering the anticipated growth in cities, local governments face enormous challenges in providing urban infrastructure and services that match the growing demand sustainably while ensuring good quality of life for its citizens. In this context, Green Growth- an approach which integrates economic and social objectives with environmental...
Replicating Green Pilgrimage Network's knowledge to strengthen the base for HRIDAY
By Rakesh Kamal Bhagavatula In December 2014 the Minister of Urban Development Mr. M.Venkaiah Naidu announced the sanctioning of 5000 million rupees for 12 cities under the National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) scheme. The cities selected under this scheme are Varanasi, Amritsar, Warangal, Ajmer, Gaya, Mathura, Kanchipuram, Vellankini, Amaravati, Badami, Dwaraka and Puri. He said, “HRIDAY...
Rajkot takes a leap towards a greener lifestyle with the Green Energy Fair
As part of the global Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) and the associated people’s choice campaign called We Love Cities, a Green Energy Fair was organised jointly by Rajkot Municipal Corporation, WWF-India and ICLEI-South Asia, at Dr. Vikram Sarabhai Energy Park, Rajkot on 9 February 2015. The fair attracted many people from across the city and included various renewable energy manufacturers, school students, teachers and other people...
Expand your knowledge about urban mobility - E-learning with SOLUTIONS
E-learning opportunities on numerous themes such as public transport, city logistics, transport infrastructure, integrated planning / sustainable urban mobility plans, network and mobility management and clean vehicles are now being offered under the European Union funded Sharing Opportunities for Low carbon TransporTatION (SOLUTIONS) project as part of the project initiatives. The SOLUTIONS courses are intended for professionals working in...
ICLEI South Asia releases Policy Review report to address efficiency in the Urban Built Environment
The building sector (and infrastructure) is one of the major consumers of energy in Indian cities. The smallest unit of the built environment is the building, which links up to other buildings and urban services – such as transport, water supply and treatment, etc. Before zooming out to a city level, groups of buildings form communities and neighborhoods. A building is typically constructed by an individual entity, and ownership rests...
Exploring solutions and developing new trends at the Michelin Challenge Bibendum
Representatives from Cochin, India and Matale, Sri Lanka, under the European Union funded Sharing Opportunities for Low carbon Urban transporTatION (Solutions) Project, had an opportunity to explore next generation mobility solutions and smart commuting in cities by participating in the 12th edition of the Michelin Challenge Bibendum held in Chengdu city, China in November 2014. Mr. Daljith Nandal from Matale Council and Dr. Rajan from...
Replication of the SUNYA project in more wards and generating compost from wet waste - Coimbatore makes commendable progress!
Inspired by the success of the SUNYA project in R.S Puram in Coimbatore, residents of Bharathi Park led by Bharathi Park Ladies Association have begun the process of segregation of waste at source by launching the SUNYA-Towards zero waste in South Asia project, in the presence of Mayor P. Rajkumar, who promised the support of Coimbatore City Corporation. Around 200 houses from Bharathi Park and nearby areas will be a part of this...
Pune, Rajkot and Thane are among the three Indian cities that will compete to bag the title of Global Earth Hour Capital in WWF’s Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) 2015. A total of 50 cities from across 17 countries have entered the final round. The three Indian cities will also be competing with each other for the title of National Earth Hour Capital. Coimbatore was named as the National Earth Hour Capital in 2014. All the three finalist...
NAZCA – Building the will for action on Climate Change
“We can, we must, and we will take action on climate change” - Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary, UNFCCC At the UN Climate Change Conference in Peru (COP 20, running to 12 December) governments are busy negotiating a new universal climate change agreement, and discussing ways to raise climate ambition before 2020, when the new agreement is to take effect. The conference comes not long after the highly successful UN Climate...
Now a study that provides a hands-on approach for implementing Urban NEXUS solutions
GIZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH) and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability are pleased to announce the publication of their joint study, “Operationalizing the Urban NEXUS: Towards resource efficient and integrated cities and metropolitan regions”. The study highlights benefits of Urban NEXUS approach for resource optimization in cities around the world. The pioneering study was carried out on behalf...
Delhi State Action Plan on Climate Change – How it all began...
India’s National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) released in 2008, outlines the country’s strategy to meet the challenges of climate change. After the NAPCC was announced, the then Prime Minister of India called upon all the states of the country in an address on 18 August 2009 to expeditiously prepare their individual State Action Plans on Climate Change which would be parallel to the strategy outlined in the National Action Plan on...
Spotlight on Shimla, India - An interview with Mayor Sanjay Chauhan
“Urban Local Bodies are the most important part of the government with direct linkages to the community and the local people. Cities entrusted with planning and implementation are the ones who have the power to shape the future" What would you describe as Shimla’s main achievements in the field of sustainability? Shimla, being located in a hilly geographical terrain and vulnerable climate, requires environmental preservation along with...
SUNYA cities to prepare zero waste management action plans
All the seven cities under the ‘SUNYA – Towards zero waste in South Asia’ project are now in the process of developing their respective Zero Waste Management Action Plans. These plans aim at ensuring the sustainability of the project beyond the actual project period. It will also help in being a stepping stone for the respective cities and paving the path towards formalizing a scientific and sustainable solid waste management system which will...
Meet Meesha Tandon – Senior Manager (Sustainability)
Been a part of the ICLEI family since 2012, Meesha is an Architect Planner by Profession with specialization in Catchment Management. Here at ICLEI South Asia she has been working closely with cities in the water sector and has previously worked extensively in the urban sector for preparation of City Development Plans. What has your contribution to city governments been through ICLEI? I have been working with cities in Rajasthan and...
ICLEI signs partnership agreement for more sustainable water management
In an effort to boost the sustainable management of water at local and regional levels, ICLEI has formally partnered with United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), UN-Habitat/Global Water Operators’ Partnerships Alliance (GWOPA), the World Water Council, the Daegu Gyeongbuk Development Institute and the National Committee of the 7th World Water Forum. The partnership was agreed in Marseille on 28 October 2014. The partners committed to work...
International Conference & Exhibition on Emerging Trends in Sustainable Habitat & Integrated Cities
For the past 11 years Municipalika, the International Conference and Exhibition on Making Cities Work, has been instrumental in highlighting pertinent issues revolving around urban challenges and opportunities, sharing best and leading practices, evolving technological and managerial solutions, and providing inputs for policy interventions. Municipalika 2014 is being organised on 13-15 November 2014 at Mahatma Mandir, Gandhinagar,...
Johannesburg takes up the challenge of a car-free city
A unique event will take place in Johannesburg from 1-31 October 2015, during South Africa’s Transport Month. The City will be organizing the world’s second-ever ‘EcoMobility World Festival 2015’ – a month-long car-free city district event. The project will visualize an ecomobile future for residents and visitors in Johannesburg. “We want to close off certain streets in Sandton, our second largest Central Business District (CBD) to car...
Visit of ICLEI President David Cadman to South Asia
28 September – 8 October 2014 was a special time for all at ICLEI South Asia – ICLEI President Mr. David Cadman was here with us! Though the visit was short, Mr. Cadman managed to visit quite some places, speak at events and share his wisdom and knowledge with the ICLEI South Asia staff and city representatives. The 2nd Asia BRT conference held in Ahmedabad, India, witnessed Mr. Cadman highlighting the importance of a BRT system in...
Indian Cities work for Low Emissions Development
With both population and economy rapidly growing, India will play a crucial role in any low-carbon scenario. Two model cities, Rajkot and Thane, and six satellite cities were selected to participate in the Urban LEDS program, funded by the European Commission and implemented by UN-Habitat and ICLEI, with the objective of enhancing the transition to low emission urban development in four emerging economy countries. Urban-LEDS stands for...
Mandi and Dharamsala advance on their ICLEI ACCCRN Process path
Shared Learning Dialogues were organised in Indian cities Dharamsala and Mandi by ICLEI South Asia with the climate core team of Dharamsala and Mandi under the Rockefeller Foundation sponsored Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN) project on 23rd and 26th of September, 2014. The broad objective of the visit was to execute ICLEI ACCCRN process (IAP) in the cities - Phase II “Climate Research and Impact Assessment” in...
Why Does #UrbanSDG Matter? Join Our Campaign!
On 31 October this year, for the first time, the planet will celebrate World Cities Day. The event will be held promote the international community’s interest in global urbanization, encourage cooperation among countries in meeting opportunities and addressing challenges to urbanization in establishing sustainable urban development and planning. Why is this important? Because cities matter. The urban population in 2014 accounted for 54% of the...
An interview with Mukund Kumar – Office and Field Assistant
How long have you been at ICLEI South Asia and what is your role here? I have been a part of the ICLEI South Asia family since 2011. I have myriad roles here, from taking care of all bank-related issues, to submitting documents to various organisations, maintaining the office and office premises, helping with logistics for events, workshops and conferences organised by ICLEI South Asia etc. How has the experience of working at ICLEI...
13 Indian cities will be competing this year for the EHCC 2015 crown
The 13 Indian cities that have been finalised to compete for the Global Earth Hour City Challenge 2015 are Ahmedabad, Cochin, Coimbatore, Dehradun, Gandhinagar, Gwalior, Kota, Nashik, Panaji, Pune, Rajkot, Shimla and Thane. All the cities have successfully reported all relevant data on energy consumption, mitigation and adaptation actions, action plans, etc, on carbonn Climate Registry (cCR). 7 out of these 13 cities are from the...
Towards a Climate Resilient Panaji
On 24th September 2014, a day after the Climate Summit 2014 hosted by United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in New York, the Corporation of the City of Panaji in collaboration with ICLEI South Asia organised a workshop to review the efforts undertaken so far and to plan for a climate resilient future for Panaji city. An initial version of Panaji City’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory was released at the event by Mr. Sanjit Rodrigues,...
Pioneering Mayors unite to galvanize climate action
At the Climate Summit 2014, Mayors from around the world marched the streets of New York and unveiled new initiatives that will catalyze climate action worldwide. These initiatives – including the historic Compact of Mayors – show the solidarity, leadership and commitment of cities to fight climate change at full speed. "The Climate Summit 2014 marks a new peak in the journey of globally coordinated local climate action. This...
Global Mayors Compact - A powerful symbol of unity among the world’s cities
The number of cities committing to fight climate change is rising, and so does the level of their climate ambition. Many cities are now setting bolder targets of slashing 40, 70, 100 per cent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 and improving climate change resilience. Collectively, they will be crucial in delivering substantial cuts in global GHG emissions and ensuring the safety of their citizens, infrastructure and environment. This is...
Spotlight on Cochin, India - An interview with Mayor Tony Chammany
What would you describe as Cochin’s main achievements in the field of sustainability? The city of Cochin has a strong Solid Waste Management system that involves door-to-door collection, segregation and transportation of waste. We are also focusing on water transportation to ease the traffic congestion; a detailed project report will be prepared for this purpose. Another major achievement of the city is the preparation of the draft Master...
Congratulations to the winners of the All India Environmental Journalism Competition
Media is undoubtedly one of the best modes of spreading awareness. It has the power to reach out to millions, create a buzz and cause action. The second edition of the All India Environmental Journalism Competition, which has now been concluded, by GIZ, ICLEI South Asia, Asian College of Journalism, The Third Pole, DW Akademie and IFAT India aimed towards encouraging media coverage of environmental issues by acknowledging and awarding good...
Meet Ashish Verma - Manager (Energy and Climate)
With ICLEI South Asia for more than 5 years, Ashish has a Master’s degree in Energy Management from the University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun. He is an integral part of the Energy and Climate team and focuses primarily on projects related to renewable energy, energy efficiency and low carbon sustainable development. What has your contribution to city governments been through ICLEI? ICLEI has provided me with the...
Warm welcome to the Portuguese city of India into the ICLEI family
Slung along the banks of the wide Mandovi River, Panaji (also still widely known by its former Portuguese name Panjim), is the newest ICLEI member in the South Asian region. Goa’s small and spritely state capital since 1843, boasts its own laid-back brand of originality. Panaji means “land that never floods”. It has terraced hills, concrete buildings with balconies and red-tiled roofs, churches, and a riverside promenade. The Baroque Our Lady...
Briefing series unpacks climate change impacts for cities and other sectors
Scientists, corporate leaders, military strategists, financial analysts, and sustainability and conservation experts have all hailed a briefing series focusing on the implications of climate change for cities and various sectors. Comprising the series are 13 briefings based on the Fifth Assessment Report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and compiled by the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability...
Rejuvenating the Nehru Place District Centre
The Nehru Place Revitalization project began in July 2013 by ICLEI South Asia and partners with the funding support of the Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation. The project aims to develop a rejuvenation and reclaiming plan for one of Delhi’s prime commercial district centres, Nehru Place. With over 100,000 visitors each day, Nehru Place is the largest market for electronics and IT in the city, country and region, and is today a bustling yet...
The revised CPHEEO Solid Waste Management manual to be released soon!
ICLEI South Asia is supporting the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, under their Indo-German Environment Partnership (IGEP) Program, in revising the existing CPHEEO manual on municipal Solid Waste Management (SWM) in order to better support political decision-makers, administrative staff, supervisors and service providers in implementing an integrated municipal solid waste management system throughout the...
A common platform for sharing knowledge at the 2nd Asia BRTS Conference 2014
Urban mobility issues in Asian cities are escalating due to population growth, rapid rate of motorization and rapid growth of the city. As a result, the cities are facing acute problems of congestion, pollution and traffic safety. Public transit is widely accepted as a critical tool to mitigate these issues. Many Asian cities have looked at bus based systems as a sustainable option. Many successful Bus Rapid Transit Systems (BRTS) around the...
ICLEI ACCCRN Process – Helping cities in strengthening awareness of potential climate risks
Watch out this space for the toolkit which will be released soon! Cities as centres of economic activities cater to half of the world’s population – and this share is growing. Not only as centres of growth but also as major consumers of resources, urban areas are one of the major emitters of greenhouse gases. In addition, these global emissions are leading to climate change and variability causing adverse impacts at the local level in terms...
People of Nashik promise to carry on the legacy of the Urban Nexus project
The Urban Nexus project created a remarkable impact on the city of Nashik, specially in Makhmalabad which was chosen as the place for pilot project implementation, in a short span of six months. The level of community involvement that this project witnessed is commendable. For the first time, as an outcome of the project implementations and initiatives, a tripartite agreement was signed between the local community, the Nashik Municipal...
Providing a perfect blend of adaptation and mitigation measures for Nashik
The first project to be using an integrated approach comprising of both adaptation and mitigation measures, the Nashik Sustainable Urban Habitat Action Plan (SUHAP) is progressing at a commendable pace. The ICLEI South Asia team has collected the energy and climate data, analysed the impact of energy consumption on climate change, identified the vulnerability of urban services due to climate change and ascertained the risk status for...
Jaisalmer and Kishangarh receive training for water quality testing
Citizens of Jaisalmer and Kishangarh will now be able to test and monitor water quality in their cities for the various parameters using the water testing kit; on which they recently received hands on training under the European Commission funded project on Adopting Integrated Urban Water Management in Indian Cities (AdoptIUWM). These training programmes in water quality monitoring were undertaken, on request from project cities, as part of...
Deadline extended for Earth Hour City Challenge
Registration for the Earth Hour City Challenge has been extended to 15 September, allowing interested cities ten extra days to confirm their involvement. Run by WWF in collaboration with ICLEI and the Swedish Postcode Lottery, the EHCC initiative celebrates cities and towns that are taking actions to create a greener, cleaner and more sustainable urban environment, while inspiring other cities to do the same. Cities can register for EHCC...
Bogota Declaration echoes global voices in praising UrbanSDG
Cities are key to achieving sustainable development goals, states the new Bogota Declaration. The Declaration, to be presented at the Habitat III preparatory meeting in New York in September, is the main outcome document of the conference Rio+20 High-level Dialogue on Sustainable Cities, Transport and Tourism held on 10-12 August 2014 in Bogota, Colombia. Convening over 500 experts and local government leaders, the conference tackled...
ICLEI and WBCSD announce collaborative partnership
Advanced technology and innovation are urgently needed to ensure sustainable urban development. Sustainable and efficient solutions for urban transport and mobility can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and noise, improve air quality, and help to create high-quality public spaces. Technological solutions can contribute to enhancing and sustaining healthy ecosystems and ecosystem services, for example by reducing water...
Spotlight on Nashik, India – An interview with Mayor Yatin Wagh
"ICLEI South Asia has been working intensively with us. With their support, we at Nashik Municipal Corporation have started developing our own Sustainable Urban Habitat Action Plan (SUHAP) and are also looking into the benefits of an urban nexus approach for Nashik, through the identification of inter linkages between the water, energy and food sectors. We ardently hope that through the ICLEI - Nashik relationship, we will help Nashik...
An ardent welcome to the marble city of India – Kishangarh, Rajasthan
Known as the marble city of India, Kishangarh is located in the Ajmer District of Rajasthan and is famous for its artistic paintings, religious places and marble processing industries. The city is also known for its famous Bani Thani paintings, which have also been engraved on one of the Indian Governments' postal stamps. The city is strategically located in close proximity to Ajmer and Jaipur and is hence a prominent commercial...
Few days to go for submitting entries to the All India Environmental Journalism Competition 2014
As India moves on a path of rapid economic growth, environmental degradation is becoming severe. To take up and walk on the path of sustainable development, awareness and knowledge about the state of the environment and sustainable solutions are key. Media has a crucial role to play in sensitising people to environmental concerns and raise public awareness by providing environment-related information and analysis. Accurate, critical and...
Sensitisation programme prepares councilors in Kolkata to respond to climate change
Already now among the top ten cities with the highest exposure to flooding (according to an OECD paper of 2008) , Kolkata’s vulnerability to climate change is expected to increase even further. Conscious of such risks, Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has included a “resource efficient” and “eco-friendly” growth goal in their Vision 2020 Strategy, aiming to “provide social amenities, community facilities and securities to all”. In their...
Creating innovative transformation in service delivery for Amritsar and Ludhiana
ICLEI's initiatives in Amritsar and Ludhiana get a boost through the World Bank's “Urban Transformation in Service Delivery in Amritsar and Ludhiana”, a project initiated by state Government of Punjab, in which ICLEI South Asia is assisting in developing an Environmental Management Action Plan. Ludhiana- a prominent industrial hub known to be the small scale industrial capital of India, and Amritsar - a huge pilgrimage centre catering to...
Meet Laasya Bhagavatula – Manager (Urban)
Having completed five years in ICLEI this month, Laasya is from an architecture and sustainable building design background. She is an integral part of the Urban team here at ICLEI South Asia and focuses primarily on projects related to sustainable built environments. What has your contribution to city governments been through ICLEI? The more you work in the sector, the more you realise that the philosophy of ICLEI to enable local action by...
Stories of change on climate compatible development from CDKN and ICLEI South Asia
The Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) and 5 ICLEI offices joined forces to reflect on the drivers, barriers, enabling factors and innovative solutions that lead to climate compatible development at city and sub-national level and released ‘Inside stories’ from South Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America. ICLEI South Asia worked with CDKN and partners in the region to develop four such Inside Stories. The ‘Inside...
GPC 2.0: Harmonized method for measuring cities’ GHG emissions open for public comments
After a successful nine-month pilot test from May 2013 to January 2014, the improved second version of the Global Protocol for Community-scale Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GPC 2.0) is now open for public comments until 18 August 2014. Practitioners and technical experts in the fields of energy, transportation, waste management, agriculture and forestry, and city officials are invited to comment. The GPC is a global framework that...
Steering Mandi and Dharamsala towards the path of resilience
Cities from the north-west region of India, Mandi and Dharamsala have now begun their journey of building resilience and taking action against the impacts of climate change through the introduction of the Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network project. A kick-off meeting and a series of introductory meetings had been organised by ICLEI South Asia, which aimed at presenting the Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN)...
Earth Hour City Challenge – Helping cities create climate friendly lifestyles
“Earth Hour City Challenge has clearly demonstrated that global level of ambition can be easily raised with ambitious local leaders and actions. Now it is the responsibility of national governments to tap this potential into the new global climate regime,” said Gino Van Begin, Secretary General of ICLEI, the focal point of local governments at the UNFCCC. From 6 countries in 2012-13 to 14 in 2013-14 and 18 in 2014-15, the participants in...
2015 'Water for Life' UN-Water Best Practices Award invites nominations
The 'Water for Life' UN-Water Best Practices Award is now accepting nominations for its 5th edition. The award aims to acknowledge and promote efforts to fulfill international commitments made on water and related issues by 2015, by recognizing outstanding best practices that can ensure sustainable long-term management of water resources and help achieve the water and sanitation targets of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), Agenda 21 and...
A walk down ICLEI’s memory lane with Mrs. Hansa Patel
“I was one of the speakers at the Summit and, as I was representing India, I was wearing a sari; when they called me on stage, they asked if the ‘lady in a sari’ could go up and give her opinion. I went and I said ‘Local governments are the strongest body as they are the level closest to the citizens. However, I am not an elected person: can I get my mayor?’ and went off to get Mr. Ranjit Chavan, at the time Mayor of Baroda, who...
Coimbatore invites bidders for managing the on-street parking system
In Coimbatore, a number of major corridors which have high demand for on-street parking have been identified to better understand the characteristics of the parking scenario in the city. Potential measures to reduce the parking demand have also been suggested by the ICLEI South Asia project team to the City Corporation including an appropriate pricing strategy. Recognising the efforts made, Coimbatore City Corporation has provisionally...
Meet Rashmi Sinha – Manager, Maharashtra Operations
With more than eight years of experience in the field of environment, Rashmi has been a part of the ICLEI family since 2008 and manages the activities of Maharashtra. She is currently working with Thane Municipal Corporation in developing green building policies and assessing the techno-economic feasibility of energy efficiency in street lighting in the city. She is also helping in developing a tool kit for Integrated Urban Water Management...
An adaptation primer dedicated to local governments in Asia
Local governments in Asia and elsewhere have to acknowledge that climate change is happening and adds another layer of complex challenges to their local sustainable development agenda. Clearly, the impacts of climate change - in combination with population growth, rapid urbanisation, increasing informal settlements and high economic inequality - are stretching the limits of urban infrastructure and systems, and jeopardise the provision of...
City of Coimbatore priding itself on a bin-free ward
Progressing under the ‘SUNYA – Towards zero waste management in South Asia’ project, ward no. 23 of R.S. Puram in Coimbatore, India, has now become a bin-free ward, marching towards achieving a zero waste status, through the adoption of several measures, including door to door collection of segregated waste , home composting and management of recyclables. As a result, all 89 garbage bins have been removed within the ward since they are no...
Helping Indian cities to identify finance opportunities for adaptation projects
Identifying priority urban resilience and infrastructure investment projects was the main aim of the city visits to Bhubaneswar and Mysore (India) by a team comprised of representatives from ICLEI South Asia and ADAPT Asia-Pacific from 9-13 June 2014. Previously, ICLEI South Asia had been working with these cities to help them develop Climate Resilience Strategies as part of the Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN)...
Hetauda bags the award for the cleanest city of Nepal 2014
ICLEI member city Hetauda was declared the cleanest city of Nepal for 2014 by the Solid Waste Management Technical Support Centre under the Ministry of Urban Development, Nepal. The municipality was honored with a cash prize and a Letter of Appreciation during a programme organised in Lalitpur to announce the Cleanest City 2014. Hetauda stood out to be the winner because of its integrated and sustainable waste management schemes, green growth...
North-east Indian cities advance on their resilience building process
Two new cities – Kurseong and Gangtok, India, are now ready to take action against climate change and have begun the process of building local resilience through a series of introductory meetings (30-31 May 2014 in Kurseong, 2 June 2014 in Gangtok), organised by ICLEI South Asia to kick start the Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network (ACCCRN) project. Both cities are experiencing changes in the overall climate and rainfall patterns -...
Seize opportunities of a new Urban World to ensure a life of dignity for all, says ICLEI
The long-awaited UN Environment Assembly should seize opportunities of a new Urban World to safeguard the survival of planet Earth and all generations of humankind. Welcoming the first United Nations Environment Assembly as a new player in the institutional framework for sustainable development, ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability encourages government delegations and Ministers of Environment to reinvigorate bold policies and...
ICLEI member city Mumbai Scoops Global Sustainable City Project Award
The Gorai Garbage Site Closure Project in the city of Mumbai (India), ICLEI member since 2008, has become the winner of the City to City Barcelona FAD Award 2014. The prize is awarded by FAD (Fostering Arts and Design) and Barcelona City Hall, in order to recognise on an international scale any urban transformation processes experienced by a particular city anywhere in the world. The award was given in the hope that the method of...
Yet another feather in ICLEI’s cap – New member, Gangtok, India
An important centre of Tibetan Buddhist culture and learning, Gangtok, the capital of the state of Sikkim, India, is the newest member of the ICLEI family. Wreathed in clouds, Gangtok is a cosmopolitan town, which, once an important transit point for traders traveling between Tibet and India, is today a busy administrative and business centre and presents an interesting mix of cultures and communities. "Our city has benefited...
Climate action transparency key to trustworthiness
422 local and subnational governments from 44 countries serving 12% of the world’s urban population are on track to trustworthiness, according to the carbonn Cities Climate Registry (cCCR) 2013 Annual Report released recently at the UN Bonn Climate Change conference in Bonn, Germany. New carbonn Cities Climate Registry (cCCR) report reveals that global voluntary reporting of local climate action triggers trustworthiness,...
On-ground work to help determine crucial issues and actions needed in Nashik
A two day visit was made to Nashik by the ICLEI South Asia team for the project Nashik Sustainable Urban Habitat Action Plan (SUHAP) to validate on the ground the information on energy consumption and critical issues regarding water supply, sewerage, solid waste etc. that had been collected through stakeholder dialogues and from different departments of Nashik Municipal Corporation. The visit was also an opportunity for the team to directly...
Meet Ashish Rao Ghorpade – Regional Executive Manager
An Architect and an Urban planner by training, Ashish Rao Ghorpade has been a part of the ICLEI family since 2008. His core areas of work at ICLEI South Asia are Urban Planning, Sustainable Urban Transport and Green Urban Built Environment. What has your contribution to city governments been through ICLEI? As an ICLEI employee, one is constantly interacting with local politicians, administrators, technical experts, local NGOs, institutions...
Matale engages students to achieve a state of zero waste
A framework for developing a zero waste management strategy for the city of Matale, operations and management of the existing box-composting plant, management of the existing dump site and streamlining current on-site composting practices in schools and institutions were the main topics of discussion of the recent visit of ICLEI South Asia team to Matale, Sri Lanka for the European Commission funded ‘SUNYA – Towards Zero Waste Management in...
Key Findings from the Intergovernmental IPCC Fifth Assessment Report
Cities account for 37–49% of global greenhouse gas emissions and urban infrastructure accounts for over 70% of global energy use. This is just one of the facts found in the “Climate Change: Implications for Cities - Key Findings from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report.” ICLEI President David Cadman stressed the relevance for integrated climate action at the local level, a process led by local governments in...
Asia-Pacific countries chart the way for an ambitious post-2015 development agenda
“For the last 20 years, through Local Agenda 21 ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability mobilized thousands of communities to discuss and localize the concept of sustainability but if we want to ensure a full transformation of all our settlements, we need a standalone goal on Sustainable cities and human settlements, considering the relevance that cities and other territories have for poverty eradication, sustainable infrastructure...
Spotlight on Kota, India – An interview with Mayor Ratna Jain
“ICLEI has helped me to build capacity to act in an innovative manner. It is helping me fulfill my dreams to make my city clean, green and livable.” What would you describe as Kota’s main achievements in the field of sustainability? Kota has been a part of the ‘Development of Solar Cities’ programme sanctioned by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy in India, which has supported our city in the preparation of a road map to become a...
Renewables 2014 Global Status Report now out!
“Developing and emerging economies account for 70% of countries globally which support Renewable Energy uptake through relevant policies and actions,”comments Emani Kumar, ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability Deputy Secretary General and ICLEI South Asia Executive Director, on the newly released Renewables 2014 Global Status Report. “Cities and regions are adopting very ambitious goals of meeting 100% of the energy demand by...
Rajasthan IUWM cities advance forward with support from the State
The State Government of Rajasthan has embarked on an initiative to establish a State Level IUWM (Integrated Urban Water Management) Committee, comprising of departments related to water and allied sectors at the State level to facilitate uptake of principles and practices based on IUWM at the State level. This was one of the key outcomes of the State level review meeting held in Jaipur, Rajasthan on 26 March 2014 for the EU funded...
New film captures how Asian cities are responding to climate change
FULL VIDEO available here! According to Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, released by the UN intergovernmental panel on climate change in March this year, Asian cities are expected to suffer particularly acutely from the impacts of global warming. Flooding, heat stress, extreme precipitation, drought and water scarcity are already having a profound effect on city dwellers across the continent. Through a three year...
The role of finance for a safer place to live at the 4th GIB Summit
'Without sustainable energy, we will not meet the Millennium Development Goals. Let us work to bring sustainable energy to the developing countries’, said Ratna Jain, Mayor of Kota, India, at the 4th Global Infrastructure Basel Foundation (GIB) summit, the world’s leading platform for sustainable infrastructure financing which brought together high-level decision-makers from around the world to advance sustainable infrastructure. Held on...
Lighting the roads of Thane in an energy efficient way – ESCO street lighting
ICLEI South Asia will provide lead services to assist in structuring and developing an Energy Service Company (ESCO) project for 10,000 street lights for improving the illumination level of the city of Thane; ensuring large scale energy efficiency in municipal street lighting, modernising and ensuring the proper operation and maintenance of street lighting services in the city; with the sole aim of reducing the energy burden of the...
Collective intelligence to work towards a better future
Do you have ideas about how to deal with climate change? If yes, Climate CoLab’s 2014 series of contests could be your platform to come and share, with people from all over the world, your thoughts and proposals about what to do about climate change! The goal of the Climate CoLab is to harness the collective intelligence of thousands of people from all around the world to address global climate change. Inspired by systems like...
A new inclusion to the ICLEI family – Singra, Bangladesh
Bound by the historical Chalan beel in the East, Singra is the newest ICLEI member in the South Asian region. Established in 1999, Singra, one of the eight municipalities of the district Natore in Rajshahi Division in the North West region of Bangladesh, is a small town with a current population of 53,322. Mayor of Singra, Shamim Al Razi, commented, “Singra has been facing major climate changes like droughts and change in rainfall...
Meet Bedoshruti Sadhukan – Senior Manager (Sustainability)
With a Masters degree in Environment Management, Bedoshruti has been a part of the ICLEI South Asia family from 2007 and is a part of the sustainability management team, working on ecoBudgeting, water and waste related issues. She is also involved in climate adaptation projects. What has your contribution to city governments been through ICLEI? Through ICLEI I have helped cities to develop integrated environmental management and poverty...
Improved access to finance opportunities for Kota, Galle, Dhaka and Thimphu
Senior financial officials from ICLEI member cities from the South Asian region, Kota (India), Galle (Sri Lanka), Dhaka (Bangladesh) and Thimphu (Bhutan) availed the opportunity to learn the process of improving the creditworthiness and access to finance of their cities for climate-related infrastructure by being a part of the Second City Creditworthiness Academy which was held in Seoul, South Korea, on April 21-26,...
AdoptIUWM cities come together to review progress and share experiences
A Review cum Sharing Workshop for Urban Local Bodies in Development was conducted by the European Commission at Pune on 3rd and 4th April, 2014 in which officials from project cities for Adopting Integrated Urban Water Management in Indian cities (AdoptIUWM) - Jaisalmer and Kishangarh in Rajasthan, Solapur and Ichalkaranji in Maharashtra, came together with the ICLEI South Asia team, stakeholders and experts from other EU funded projects, with...
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Britain's libel reform bill hijacked
Britain's libel laws, which provide an astonishing degree of immunity to the world's wealthiest people at the expense of democracy, are an international disgrace. Recently, there has been a remarkable push by members of civil society and others to make them more in line with the laws of more reasonable countries. But now this, from the Libel Reform campaign.
"The Libel Reform Campaign has worked hard to win the case for reform - to show the chilling effects of the current law on citizens, to secure commitment from the three main parties and to get a bill that ends bullying and protects the public interest.
We did all of this and politicians rose above the fray to work together on it.
But it is now threatened. As you may have read over the past week, the bill has been hijacked by a group of peers who have inserted amendments to introduce press regulation proposals from the Leveson debate 'by the back door'. The bill needs to go back before the Commons in the next two weeks, but the Government has not tabled it. It has to do so, because if the bill does not complete its passage before the parliamentary session ends in late April or early May it will be lost."
This is very, very important indeed. If these hijackers get their way, a lot of stories about tax havens (among many other important things) will go untold, because journalists will be too terrified of the libel vengeance to investigate and publish.
Please sign the petition now. It will take you almost no time, and they allow submissions from overseas (and why not?). And please pass it on.
posted by TJN at 12:34 am
Inequality in the USA: a grim reality
HSBC’s UK tax bill looks to be £566 million less t...
Links Mar 1
The Netherlands as a huge tax haven: new book
More cries for help from UK's Jersey tax haven
Mongolia kills tax treaty with Netherlands. Good.
Many UK councils expect majority to pay no council...
Country by Country reporting, a big step forward
TJN on Fox News: What to Do with $20 trillion in O...
Links Feb 27
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Modern Masters Volume 20: Kyle Baker -
120 page Trade Paperback with COLOR - By Eric Nolen-Weathington
Kyle Baker may well be the funniest man in comics. With books like The Cowboy Wally Show, Why I Hate Saturn, Plastic Man, and The Bakers on his resume, along with four (of his eight) Eisner Awards in the "Best Writer/Artist Humor" category, it's hard to argue against him. But he does serious, too—and you can't get much more serious than Nat Turner. He is the all-around cartoonist—he can write, pencil, ink, and color with the best of them. His work has appeared in such diverse publications as The New York Times, Esquire, Rolling Stone, and Mad. Without question, Kyle Baker is a Modern Master, and this book presents a career-spanning interview and discussion of his creative process, plus plenty of rare and unseen art, including an 8-page color section, and a gallery of commissioned work!
Diamond Comic Distributors Order Code: FEB141452
Back Issue! 90
Comics Gone Ape!
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The 3rd Inter-University Mediation Competition
UNESCO Beirut, in partnership with the Professional Center for Mediation (CPM) at the University of Saint Joseph (USJ), launched on 2 May 2019, and for the third consecutive year, the Inter-University Mediation Competition, at USJ, Amphitheater Gulbenkian. Organized in collaboration with the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ-ZFD), the competition aims at promoting the spirit of mediation and peaceful resolution of conflicts in the minds of youth.
The competition is part of a training program in mediation that took place between January and March 2019, and that targeted 250 students from 9 Lebanese universities. At the end of the training, 20 teams of 52 students representing the 9 universities participated in the competition. For four days, students competed on mediating conflicts and settling disputes peacefully based on case studies that were specifically designed for the competition. In total, 34 sessions of mediation took place, in two languages (French and Arabic). They were facilitated by 90 mediators, coaches, trainers, jury members, and supervisors.
At the launch ceremony, Mrs Joanna Hawari Bou Rjeili, director of the CPM, pointed out that mediation encourages the parties to “abandon power relations and engage in cooperative effort to achieve a common goal.” Bou Rjeili noted that the mission of the CPM, established in 2006, is to spread and promote the culture of mediation, among a wide spectrum of actors, including teachers, students, youth, university staff, and alumni.
As to Ms Urte Luetzen and Ms Justine Abi Saad, representatives of the GIZ-ZFD, they staged an argument between a mother and her daughter. At the end of their theatrical performance, they said: "In a conflict, we enter into a vicious circle of attack and counter-attack. One of the means to get out of this vicious circle is to listen to the needs of the other, and engage in mediation".
UNESCO Beirut’s Programme Officer for Basic Education and representative of UNESCO Beirut’s director, Mrs Maysoun Chehab, said in her speech: “We talk about mediation as a way for peace during critical times for humanity. Poverty remains enduring, just as inequalities are deepening. Conflicts continue to tear societies apart, exposing millions of women and men to immense suffering. Violent extremism is on the rise. The world is facing the most important refugee and displacement crisis of our time. World Heritage sites are destroyed to eradicate the message of tolerance and dialogue that they embody. The planet faces rising pressures from the consequences of climate change. All of this weakens the foundations for peace and highlights the vital importance of global action, guided by the values and principles of the United Nations”.
Ms Chehab addressed the students participating in the competition: “As the whole world is rethinking education systems and content nowadays, as the whole world is talking about the 21st century skills, the skills of mediation, dialogue, critical thinking, and communication are given the most importance. We are talking here about the most relevant, 21st century skills that prepare you for the future and enable you to address the major challenges and opportunities of our times. In addition, those skills will support you to preserving the cultural diversity and to promoting a culture of dialogue and peace in the face of violence, division, and hate. That is why UNESCO believes in the importance of this initiative, its objectives, and courses”.
AUF Beirut Regional Office Director, Mr Herve Savourin, highlighted the “symbolic dimension” of this competition, as it “perfectly illustrates the ability of the academic world to address issues that impact the overall development of our societies; it brings together young students around values that are at the heart of the francophonie, the values dialogue, tolerance, and living together; and it promotes linguistic diversity, as the mediation sessions happen in Arabic and French”.
Finally, Father Michel Scheuer, vice-rector of USJ, and representative of rector Father Salim Daccache, asserted: “We are pleased to host this inter-university competition on mediation, for three reasons. First, because mediation is a crucial step towards ending disagreements and conflicts. Second, because by training students on mediation, we offer a service to society. Third, because the inter-university character of this competition is highly important, especially in our region where universities are often seen as competitors rather than partners”.
On 6 May 2019, the final sessions took place, and two universities were qualified for the 1st Prize: the Lebanese University (students Jana Abdallah Bassil, Nelly Akiki et Alondra Feghali), and USEK (students Lena Hawat, Karen Hajj, and Léa Laoun).
Read more in Arabic and French.
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Tag Archives: jack hues
Wang Chung Revisit Your Favourite 80s Hit ‘Dance Hall Days’ With New Orchestral Version
Conquering the UK, US and global charts in the 80s, Wang Chung have released their orchestral version of hit ‘Dance Hall Days’ – a track that undoubtedly contributed to the shaping of a decade.
Having become a staple of movie, TV, game soundtracks and commercials over the years, their name has almost uniquely passed into popular culture. The line “Everybody Wang Chung Tonight” from their mega-hit Everybody Have Fun Tonight has developed a life of its own, prompting the band to appeal to their fans around the world to have it officially recognised in dictionaries as a verb.
Returning in the form of their key protagonists Jack Hues and Nick Feldman, the band have taken ‘Dance Hall Days – Orchestral Version’ from their forthcoming album Orchesography – an orchestra-boosted version of their best-known tracks, including both ‘Everybody Have Fun Tonight’ and ‘Let’s Go’.
Welcoming their return will not only be their legion of fans but also a new audience that would have heard their songs on popular cultures such as The Breakfast Club, Sex and The City, Breaking Bad, Grand Theft Auto: Theft City, Walking Dead and the soundtrack to legendary William Friedkin’s ‘To Live & Die in LA’.
Following their reform in 2010, their latest release has set an exciting precedent for the new versions of nostalgic tracks we all know and love.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WangChungMusic
Website: https://www.wangchung.com/
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/august-day-records/sets/wang-chung-dance-hall-days-2019-orchestral-version/s-ASd7r
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6LSZttltZM
Posted in Pop Tagged 80s hits, 80s music, 80s orchestral versions, breaking bad music, dance hall days, everybody have fun tonight, jack hues, nick feldman, sex and the city music, the breakfast club music, to live & die in LA soundtrack, walking dead, wang chung Leave a comment
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What > Events • Arts • Communities • Conflict • Cultures • Death • Domestic • Dynasties • Education • Exploration • Health • Industries • Institutions • Issues • Kids • Law • Miscellaneous • Nature • Philosophy • Politics • Religion • Science • Sports • Reference
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15 of 541 items
14000 MYA
BIG BANG : Formation of the Universe
The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological model for the earliest known periods of the universe and its subsequent large-scale evolution. It states that the Universe was in a very high density state and then expanded. If the known l...
4600 MYA
Earth, 3rd Planet from the Sun
Earth is the third planet from the Sun. It is the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets. It is sometimes referred to as the world or the Blu...
300 MYA - 200 MYA
Pangaea, Supercontinent
Pangaea or Pangea was a supercontinent that existed during the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic eras. It formed approximately 300 million years ago and then began to break apart after about 100 million years. Unlike the present Earth, much...
3 MYA
Lucy, Australopithecus, Found 1974
Lucy is the common name of AL 288-1, the 40% complete Australopithecus afarensis skeleton discovered on November 30, 1974 by the International Afar Research Expedition (IARE; director: Maurice Taieb, co-directors: Donald Johanson and Yves C...
Control of Fire by Early Humans
The control of fire by early humans was a turning point in the cultural aspect of human evolution that allowed humans to cook food and obtain warmth and protection. Making fire also allowed the expansion of human activity into the dark and...
Cave paintings, Parietal Art
Cave paintings (also known as "parietal art") are painted drawings on cave walls or ceilings, mainly of prehistoric origin, dated to some 40,000 years ago (around 38,000 BCE) in Eurasia. The exact purpose of the Paleolithic cave paintings i...
Ishango Bone, Mathematical Tool - 1960
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OpinionPeople
Curious Scientist Dr. Doyeol Ahn Writes the Best Seller!
The UOS Times | webmaster@uos.ac.kr
First of all, I would like to explain why he wrote a novel. And I’ll introduce to you which sources he got these ideas from.
Compared to other professors, Professor Doyeol Ahn is unique. Maybe, you really want to ask ‘Why?’ or ‘What is the reason?’ The answer is simple. He writes novels. Actually, he is both a writer and a professor at the UOS now. He writes a novel whenever he has spare moments. And finally, he completed his first book ¡AImperial Korea¡B with weaving plots in his intervals. His work was motivated by the presupposition that whoever can get a question about our history.
And nowadays, Korea is in a state of disorder. He added, through this novel, that there is the need of leadership in our society. “It’s about ten years ago. When I used the ‘HITEL’, which a program that we used to connect to the Internet, I began to publish a novel serially. How would the history go if the past had been changed? Above all, I had the image of changing the peasants’ uprising at that time and following that. It was the start of ¡AEncyclopedia Coreana¡B.
The idea just popped up from the modern Sci-Fi movies like the ¡AStar track¡B, ¡ABack to the Future¡B, ¡A2009 Lost in Memories¡B, and ¡ATimeline¡B. These movies show a war history coexisting with time and history. They helped me to develop a novel in detail.”
In those days, even these imaginary historical novels that had a great vogue were not smooth in all the process of publication. He started to write this book in the early 1990. However, the novel was discontinued for almost 10 years, because he was so busy studying.
Anyway thanks to the netizens who read my novel on the Internet and asked me to publish a novel serially, it can finally issue out. When the novel came out, he was glad just like a baby was born. “As it is considered as MY first work, I am so satisfied.” 10 copies of the first edition have been published. I gave my first novel to my dear hearts.
I bestowed the book as a gift to the president, my mother, my best friends and lastly one student who got a good grade on the Engineering Mathematics’ term quiz. He looked confusing at first, however, liked it very much soon,” He smiled.
His literary style has something special.
Probably, once you read his novel, you can find the style somewhat similar to other books. Both Raymond Carver and especially Murakami Haruki had an effect on his literary style. Most of Raymond’s stories are the third person style. However, ¡AGod’s children dance¡B which influenced Dr. Ahn is the first person style. In latter case, Murakami Haruki, the subordinate culture had an effect on him.
“Hmm... usually, what is called, the frequent contacts and the interactions among people communicating with each other make a quality of customs and youth. He is known as a writer who changed a novel paradigm with Japan. Like this, his literary style that is affirmative, clear, and concise was made to imitate.
And Raymond Carver was a writer who has written only short stories or medium-length stories for 50 years. In my shallow view, the realm of his literary was excessively realistic. Thus, at the outset, I had no trouble to read his novels for it was easy to understand and also it had been related to my major.
If I make a long story short, as I was mentioned, both former and latter might influence my style.
Merits or Demerits of the Writing
Writing a novel as a doctor of Engineering, I have gotten merits rather than demerits. In my case, the inspiration for a novel moved in my laboratory.
It is just one of those common things. For instance, two times calculations of two dimensions simply turn into one time calculation from three dimensions. That is only possible in a fictional world. However, now this idea has become the basic principle to realize the quantum computing.
But, it’s not always good. It has both bright and seamy sides. The harder I write, I can’t throw the decreased interpersonal relationships away. Anyway, each follows its own kind. However, I never regret what I has chosen as I could find the worth.
If you give a message to people who want to open a new field, what advice do you give to them?
“In ¡AEncyclopedia Coreana¡B I like to write a composition constitutionally. Even me, I started it without knowing how it would end. So to say, I embarked in this job with nothing. Only for interest! You know, if you do something with deep interest, you can do anything.
‘What do I really want to do?’ is the very significant question. It is natural for people to enjoy doing things they like rather than things they dislike.”
Final question, about his scheme and some words he wants to ask the UOSians for.
“I wish you visit my site at http://cafe.daum.net/encyclopcorea or Ujoa.com. And try to write a novel in your own style.”
“The UOS is excellent and UOSians are distinguished from other university students in the proportion of professors to students, and also different in leadership. To begin with, you must know yourself about what you want to be.” He expressed feeling at a loss. “Plan ahead! I really like this sentence personally.
Taking it as my motto, I constantly do my best under any circumstances. For this reason, whenever I write a novel I’m dreaming of taking the rostrum. Enjoy the present, the UOSians!”
1988 -He graduated from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. (During the period of attendance at the university, he was chosen as a Grand for Teaching Excellence (GTE) fellow, and also he was prized with both Ross J. Martin Award and Robert T. Chien Memorial Award) 1988~1989 -At a research laboratory of IBM Thomas J Watson Lab, he was a researcher in New York.
1989~1992 -He became an assistant professor at the Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering at the PoHang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH).
1992~1996 -He was the chief researcher at the LG research institute. 1996~ -He became a professor at the University of Seoul (UOS).
1998~ up to now -He is a professor of the UOS at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Also, he is the head of the project, Creative Research Initiatives of Quantum Information Processing.
The UOS Times의 다른기사 보기
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The Elmhurst Police Department recently reported the following arrests and citations. Persons charged with domestic battery are not named in order to protect the privacy of victims. Readers are reminded that an arrest does not constitute a conviction, and that subjects are considered innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law. Juveniles age 17-or-younger are not named.
Criminal damage to property
Jan. 18-Jan. 19
Police said a complainant related that she checked the men’s washroom before her shift began at a gas station in the 600 block of W. North and there was no evidence of damage. Later she checked the washroom and found the urinal wall divider was broken off of the wall. Damage is estimated at $100.
Domestic battery, domestic incident
Police said that subsequent to a call for a hit-and-run near North and Route 83 at around 7:46 a.m., a victim stated her husband followed her from her parent’s residence in Lombard and attempted to run her off the roadway. The
victim struck a box truck during the incident. The suspect was later located by Addison Police Department and placed under arrest. The suspect, a 31-year-old Lombard man, was charged with one count of domestic battery and one count of aggravated assault.
A 51-year-old Northlake man was charged with domestic battery in the 500 block of W. Grand at around 8:42 a.m. A victim told police that her ex-boyfriend came to the hotel room and tried to enter her room. The victim tried to push the door closed but the suspect reportedly grabbed her around the neck, leaving some red marks on her neck.
Police said officers responded to the report of a domestic incident involving a telephone threat in the 100 block of Bonnie Brae at around 6:59 p.m., and that a party involved may use a firearm. Upon arrival, the occupant of the home, the suspect, reportedly refused to exit and provided false information stating she was in Bellwood. Elmhurst Police used crisis negotiators and the suspect eventually exited the home safely. The suspect was taken into custody on a warrant out of DuPage County. The warrant was confirmed as valid. No firearm was found at the scene. The suspect was issued a new court date and released. Investigation of the domestic battery and telephone threat is ongoing.
Police said a complainant in the 500 block of W. Grand told police at around 10:50 a.m. that that following an argument, the suspect slapped him in the face and he pushed her away. The suspect related the complainant grabbed her by the throat. Due to conflicting stories, no visible injuries and neither party wishing to pursue charges, no arrests were made.
DUI, illegal transportation of alcohol, open alcohol in public, consumption of alcohol by a minor, public intoxication
Nayeli J. Estrada, 33, of Sterling, Ill., was charged with DUI, trespassing on railroad property and improper lane usage, while Jose I. Estrada, 25, of Melrose Park, was issue a citation for illegal transportation of alcohol subsequent to a call of a vehicle stuck on the Union Pacific railroad tracks in the 100 block of W. Park at around 1:45 a.m.
James Cuffe, 30, of Elmhurst, was charged with DUI in the 600 block of W. Crockett at around 6:03 a.m. Police said that subsequent to a suspicious vehicle with the engine running and parked in the roadway, Cuffe was passed out behind the wheel and found to be DUI.
Police said that while an officer was on patrol near York and Church at around 1:32 a.m., Eric W. Larmon, 20, of Evergreen Park, threw a snowball at the officer’s patrol vehicle. According to police, Larmon was found to be under the age of 21 and had consumed alcohol. Police said he provided a breath sample and also was found to be in possession of a fraudulent Michigan driver’s license containing his name, photograph and a false date of birth. He was charged with consumption of alcohol by a minor and possession of a false ID.
Frank B. Rapport, 62, of Oak Lawn, was issued a citation for public intoxication near Spring and the Canadian National railroad tracks at around 10:39 p.m. Police said officers responded to the report of a highly intoxicated subject who was yelling at people. According to police, Rapport was located stumbling in the middle of Spring Road, was slurring his words, and was unable to care for himself.
Marquiez Y.D. Sanders, 20, of Elmhurst, was issued a citation for consumption of alcohol by a minor subsequent to a report of a loud party in the 200 block of N. West at around 12:34 a.m.
Amy Koczor, 25, of Elmhurst, was charged with two counts of DUI, improper turn and failure to signal when required subsequent to a traffic stop near Butterfield and York at around 12:20 a.m. Police said Koczor failed field tests and was placed under arrest for DUI. At the police station, Koczor provided a breath sample of a 0.179, according to police.
Sydni Gizynski, 19, of Highland, Ind., and Alexis Ramos, 18, of Merrillville, Ind., were each issued citations for consumption of alcohol by a minor in the 100 block of Van Buren at around 11:54 p.m.
Fugitive from justice
Josiah Yeaman, 45, of Wheaton, was charged with being a fugitive of justice in the 100 block of W. First at around 1:11 p.m. Police said a reporting officer observed Yeaman, who was yelling at people and appeared intoxicated. A check of his information revealed an extraditable warrant out of Jackson County, Ind., according to police.
Harassment, threats
Oct. 18-Jan. 22
A victim in the 400 block of S. York told police that he has been receiving numerous harassing phone calls from the suspect between the above dates. The suspect admitted to making the phone calls, stating his friends told him who to call and what to say. Further investigation is pending.
Possession of cannabis, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of a
Zaire Parker, 22, of Maywood, was charged with possession of cannabis, improper passing of an emergency vehicle and driving while license suspended subsequent to a traffic stop near Roosevelt and Route 83 at around 12:53 a.m.
Brandon Lam, 21, of Addison, was charged with possession of cannabis with intent to deliver, driving while license suspended, no rear registration plate, loud muffler/exhaust and no insurance, while Sergio Amparan, 25, of Villa Park, a passenger in the vehicle, was charged with possession of cannabis with intent to deliver, subsequent to a traffic stop in the 700 block of W. North at around 8:29 p.m. Police said officers located 240 grams of cannabis inside the vehicle. Lam also had three warrants out of DuPage County, according to police.
Jarrett Matthews, 27, of Chicago—a passenger in a vehicle—was issued a citation for possession of cannabis subsequent to a traffic stop near North and Highview at around 11:54 a.m.
Steven Y. Morales-Rivera, 21, of Chicago, was charged with possession of cannabis and no seat belt subsequent to a traffic stop near Route 83 and St. Charles at around 11:20 a.m.
Kennedy A. Harris, 22, of Chicago, was issued citations for possession of cannabis and possession of drug paraphernalia subsequent to an investigation of a suspicious vehicle in the 500 block of W. Lake at around 2:56 a.m.
Juan Claudio, 21, of Cicero, was charged with possession of cannabis and no front license plate, while Kevin Robles, 20, of Cicero, was charged with possession of cannabis subsequent to a traffic stop near North and Route 83 at around 9:40 p.m.
Danielle Dicarlo, 23, of Arlington Heights, was charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia in the 200 block of N. York at around 4:20 p.m. Police said a reporting officer noticed Dicarlo staggering in the above area. The officer contacted Dicarlo to check on her well-being. During the subsequent investigation, it was learned Dicarlo had recently ingested heroin, according to police. Medics were called to the scene and Dicarlo was transported to Elmhurst Hospital for treatment. Police said she had in her possession a controlled substance as well as drug paraphernalia.
Suspicious circumstances
Police said officers responded to Elmhurst Hospital for the report of a sexual assault at around 9:01 p.m. It was determined that the incident occurred in Chicago. The Chicago Police Department was advised of the incident. An investigation is pending.
Police said a complainant in the 100 block of E. First located a black Walther pistol, three boxes of .25 caliber ammunition, one box of .38 SPL ammunition and twor pistols holsters in his mother’s apartment in Chicago. He brought them into the police station to be destroyed. All of the property was entered into evidence for destruction.
Theft/burglary/attempted theft or burglary/identity theft/fraud/forgery/deceptive practice/obstruction/robbery
David Fultz, 25, of Maywood; Michael Goodwin, 25, of Maywood; and Christie Lopez, 25, of Naperville, were charged with attempted burglary and possession of burglary tools in the 100 block of Columbia at around 12:39 a.m. Police said that while a reporting officer was on patrol, the officer located a suspicious vehicle near the above location. The reporting officer made contact with the occupants of the vehicle who
were found to be planning to burglarize a store in the 500 block of N. York, according to police. Police said Lopez also had three active arrest warrants.
Theft was reported in the 700 block of Poplar at around 6:11 p.m. A victim told police that an unknown suspect removed the mail from their front porch mailbox. The victim observed footwear impressions in the snow on the front walkway.
Attempted residential burglary was reported in the 400 block of Arlington at around 8:22 p.m. A witness reports seeing two suspects reportedly attempt to steal an air compressor from an unoccupied house which is in the process of being renovated. The witness observed the two suspects running from the house and fleeing the area in a red Dodge pickup truck with front driver side damage. The victim responded to the scene and determined no tools or equipment were missing.
Retail theft was reported at a store in the 300 block of S. Route 83 at around 2:31 p.m. Police said officers responded for a retail theft in progress. The suspects allegedly exited the west doors of the store with a shopping cart containing $836 worth of stolen Nike apparel. The suspects abandoned the cart full of merchandise, entered a green Honda Accord and fled the scene northbound on Route 83. The first suspect was described as a black male approximately 50 years old, wearing a red hooded sweatshirt with blue writing on the front, black pants, a red hat and glasses. The second suspect was described as a black male approximately 25 years old wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and grey pants.
Police said officers responded to the 800 block of S. Hillcrest at around 4:18 p.m. for the report of an aggravated vehicular hijacking. A victim told police that an unknown male pointed a gun at him and demanded his car
keys. The suspect reportedly entered the victim’s vehicle and fled the scene westbound on Butterfield Road. The vehicle was recovered in Chicago and was towed to the Elmhurst Police Department. The suspect was described as a black male with light skin and a light goatee on his chin, wearing a purple hooded sweater with the hood tied over his head, blue jeans and black shoes that look like a boot-style sneaker.
Identity theft was reported at a hotel in the 900 block of Riverside at around 9:51 p.m. A complainant told police he lost his wallet and later recovered it from the hotel’s front desk. His recovered wallet contained his credit card and debit card, but was
missing cash and his driver’s license. The victim related that upon checking with his bank, he learned that an unknown suspect(s) used his credit card and debit card numbers to make fraudulent purchases. The victim’s driver’s license was entered into LEADS.
Police said an Elmhurst College custodian located a wallet in a lower floor of Cureton Hall and turned it into security at around 5:22 a.m. A fraudulent driver’s license, bearing the suspect’s information, as well as a valid California driver’s license with an altered date of birth and address was turned over to the reporting officer, police said. The wallet and identifications were placed into evidence pending investigation.
Identity theft was reported at Elm Creek Drive at around 10:57 a.m. A victim told police that upon checking her credit report, she discovered a collection notice for three transactions which she did not complete. The victim contacted the credit company and reported the fraudulent transactions.
Identity theft was reported in the 200 block of Glade at around 4:02 p.m. Police said that subsequent to receiving a package from Verizon Wireless containing two new iPhone, valued at approximately $2,500, the victim learned that an unknown suspect(s) used her personal information to open a fraudulent cell phone account.
Commercial burglary was reported in the 100 block of N. Addison. A victim told police that an unknown suspect(s) entered an unlocked business and removed multiple musical instruments. The victim stated he uses an “app,” which can remotely lock and unlock the door. The app shows the door being locked on at around 2:35 p.m. Jan. 13 and then unlocked at 2:37 p.m. Jan. 17. The app did not show the door being locked afterwards. This case is pending investigation.
Burglary to a vehicle was reported in the 600 block of W. Lake. A victim told police that he dropped off his vehicle at an auto repair shop on Jan. 12 for repairs. On Jan. 17, the victim’s employees went to the shop to remove tools from the van and noticed the vehicle had been burglarized. The van had been parked outside the business while waiting for parts to arrive. An unknown suspect(s) entered the van through an unlocked side door and removed various tools.
Identity theft was reported in the 200 block of Niagara at around 1:32 p.m. A victim told police that an unknown suspect(s) made several fraudulent transactions from their Fifth-Third Bank account.
Aug. 1-Jan. 2
Theft was reported at a food store in the 100 block of E. Schiller between the above dates. Police said the suspect’s mother brought the suspect into the police station and related that over several months, while the suspect was employed at the store, the suspect stole multiple items. The case is being forwarded to the Investigations Division for follow up and juvenile disposition.
Sept. 25-Dec. 24
Identity theft was reported in the 400 block of Hampshire. A victim told police that a suspect had opened an account with T-Mobile using his personal information. The suspect failed to make payments on the account from September 2018 through December 2018. The victim does not wish to sign complaints. The reporting officer was unable to contact the suspect at this time.
The Independent Newspapers
Elmhurst Memorial Pink Elephant Shop closes after 35 years
By Marisa Mancini
FOR THE ELMHURST INDEPENDENT
The Elmhurst Memorial Re-sale Pink Elephant Shop, an Elmhurst icon for nearly 35 years, will close its doors for good on Friday June 28, 2019. It will be greatly missed by many local resi-dents.
The Pink Elephant, founded by Elmhurst Memorial Hospital in 1984, originally re-sided on Addison Street. It was run by the Elmhurst Hospital Guild, a volunteer organization who oversaw its management, staffing, and day-to-day operations. After suffering a fire in 1999, it relocated to 121 West First Street, where it remains today – at least until June 30.
Though the shop always generated a profit, the Elmhurst Hospital Guild determined the Pink Elephant needed improvement. In November 2005, Elmhurst Hospital hired Patrick McDonald to manage the shop. With seven years of experience as St. Vincent DePaul’s manager, and a former manager at Baskin’s Clothing Company, McDonald was a perfect fit.
“My first impression of the store was that it desperately needed updating and organization,” McDonald recalled. “I was particularly shocked that the price tags were stapled to the items, frequently causing permanent damage, and that there was no sizing system for clothing. Also, I noticed merchandise looked tired and was not moving. My philosophy for the store was to bring in fresh merchandise, and strategically display them to increase sales.”
Six months after McDonald started, Pink Elephant’s prof-its doubled and increased every year going forward. As purchases increased, so did the volume of high-quality donations.
“My biggest challenge was selling the volunteers on my vision for the store,” he stat-ed. Most of the Pink Elephant volunteers were in their 70s and 80s, and McDonald had to win them over to change.
“Once they saw the store’s increased success, each and every volunteer worked hard to change and improve the store. It takes a village to run a store, and that’s what I was fortunate enough to get – a strong team of volunteers devoted to making this store great.”
Setting itself apart
McDonald’s efforts set the Pink Elephant apart from tradition resale shops. To attract and educate customers, it offered periodic seminars on a wide range of topics including accessorizing outfits, chalk painting, and glassware collecting. The store also put on a yearly (sometimes bi-yearly) fashion show showcasing outfits selected and modeled by the volunteers -– who also provided food and refreshments for the guests. Additionally, McDonald’s dedication to customer service elevated the tone of the store.
“I pride myself in instilling in each volunteer the desire to assist every customer that entered the store.”
Customers received the same personal attention they did at a department store. “The store became an upscale resale shop which I feel improved the image of the City.”
McDonald feels the volunteers changed his life in many ways. Witnessing their self-less dedication without expecting anything in return humbled and enlightened him. But what impressed him most was the dignity and respect the volunteers showed to every client, whether paying or in need.
“That’s what we were all about – providing services and goods to all who entered the store, because our business was to serve the community,” said McDonald.
Volunteers share their stories
Kay Ryan, a Pink Elephant volunteer for 10 years, first chose to volunteer because she knew it benefitted Elmhurst Hospital.
“My experience here has been very fulfilling,” she said. “The customers are wonderful and we work together like a family. I receive the most satisfaction picking out clothes from our store for the poor or homeless patients at Elmhurst Hospital who have nothing more than a hospital gown.”
McDonald and the volunteers also take great pride knowing the store’s proceeds funded hospital programs and needed equipment.
Reflecting on the volunteers and customers at the Pink Elephant, McDonald stated, “We formed personal connections and cared about each other. We became family.”
These sentiments are echoed by its customers.
“The Pink Elephant is a social outlet for many in the community – a place to meet friends, enjoy conversations, and find good deals,” stated Elmhurst resident George Slaidas, a Pink Elephant customer for 25 years. “Some people came in every day, some once a week, and others periodically. Patrick always accommodated people and treated them with respect and class. He made it a nice part of our day. It will be big loss for the Elmhurst community.”
As McDonald gazed at the few items remaining in the store, he stated, “I will always be grateful to Elmhurst Hospital for the opportunity to make my vision for the Pink Elephant a reality. Knowing the store benefited the community in so many ways will give me a lifetime of satisfaction and I will always miss my Pink Elephant family!” ... See MoreSee Less
Village planning for Summerfest
On Friday, June 14 and Saturday, June 15, the Village will host its annual Summer-fest celebration in the Ardmore Business District at Ardmore & Park, along the Illinois Prairie Path by the Gazebo.
The fest opens on Friday, June 14 from 6 to 11 p.m. for food, beer, bands, a car show and a bags tournament.
Summerfest takes place all day and into the evening on Saturday, June 15 when it opens form 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Saturday entertainment includes interactive children’s activities, live bands, an arts and crafts fair, local vendors, community groups a food fair and much more. Kids entertainment and attractions are open on Saturday until 8 p.m.
The beer tent will be sponsored by the Villa Park Chamber of Commerce.
During the car show on Friday evening from 6 to 9:30 p.m., enjoy the sounds of Hip Pockit on the gazebo from 6 to 8 p.m., followed by the Good Clean Fun Band from 8:30 to 11 p.m.
On Saturday, the fund begins at 12:15 p.m. with a roaming magic and balloon animal art. At 12:45, Discover Dance will perform, followed by Minors of Rock from 1:50-2:50 p.m. From 3;10-4:10 p.m., Pippin and The Frogs entertain, followed by Serendipity from 4:30-6 p.m.
In the evening, Money Beats Soul will play from 6:30-8 p.m., followed by CK and The Gray from 8:30-10:30 p.m.
At this time, sponsors include:
Roy Strom Refuse Removal Service, Inc.
Nikro Industries, Inc.
Quality Lift Truck Service
AAA The Auto Group Club
Cottage Hill Operating Co.
G.M. Smith & Son Realtors
Mike's Market
Triple A Door, Inc.
MEM Electric, Inc.
Steuerle Funeral Home, Ltd. ... See MoreSee Less
101st Memorial Day Parade
Come downtown to view some 90 entries as they march in Elmhurst’s 101st Annual Memorial Day Parade through downtown Elmhurst, stepping off at 9:30 a.m. After the parade, there will be a Memorial Day service held at the Veterans Memorial in Wilder Park. Free and open to the public
The Park District is offering “Party in the Park” one Friday of each month during the summer. Kids of all ages are invited to Plunkett Park for some good old-fashioned fun. The Park District will provide bubbles, hula hoops, jump ropes, giveaways and refreshments. Eco the Racoon might just make an appearance as well. Free and open to all ages. Free and open to the public.
At 2 p.m. in the Education Center, the Elmhurst History Museum will host When the World Came to Chicago: The 1893 Columbian Exposition. The World’s Columbian Exposition is often credited with putting Chicago on the map, and citizens have long been fascinated with the spectacle of this amazing fair that welcomed more than 27 million visitors. Al Walavich, a life-long Chicagoan, architectural tour guide, local historian, and collector will share stories about the planning, construction, and celebration of the fair along with his personal collection of photos and memorabilia. FREE to Members/$5 Non-Members. Registration required at elmhursthistory.org (Adult Programs section). Info: 630-833-1457 or elmhursthistory.org.
At 10 a.m., Elmhurst Senior Commission and the City of Elmhurst present another Community Conversation about the Park District’s Vi-sion 2020 Plan, particularly the plan of a new Senior Center, led by Jim Rogers, executive director of the Elmhurst Park District. Held at Elmhurst City Hall, 209 North York Rd. Free but reservations are required, as space is limited. To register, call 630-306-7077.
From 1-4 p.m., the Elmhurst History Museum invites the public to explore the museum on a day when it is traditionally closed. Come in to play games, make crafts and picnic on the grounds, weather permitting. Crafts available while supplies last. Drop in program appropriate elementary school age children, accompanied by an adult. Free, no registration required. Info: 630-833-1457 or elmhursthistory.org.
Beginning at 2 p.m., Olde Tyme Base Ball returns to the community, played by the wildly different rules of 1858. Learn to cheer and jeer in fine Victorian fashion as two Elmhurst clubs, chock full of local celebrities, play for your favor. Bring a picnic basket and lawn chairs for a family-friendly game played by true sportsmen from an era of wooden bats and iron men. Game takes place at the Elmhurst College Mall (in front of Hammerschmidt Chapel). Free and open to the public.
The Elmhurst Artists’ Guild (EAG) will host A Myriad of Media, a solo exhibition featuring the art of Charlene LeeFreislinger. The show will feature works in graphite, pen and ink, watercolor, acrylic, collage, and photography. The show runs now through June 7 in the EAG Gallery at the Elmhurst Art Museum (EAM), in Elmhurst’s Wilder Park.
• Widows or Widowers (WOW) meet every third Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 537 S. York Road. WOW lends support and provides social activities for those who have lost a spouse. Admission: $5 per person includes live entertainment. Info: Dave at 630-620-4060 or visit WOW.cfsites.org.
• The Elmhurst American Legion, T.H.B. Post No. 187, hosts a fish fry every Friday night from 6-8:30 p.m. New York steaks are available first Friday of the month. Musical entertainment follows. Karaoke on the second Friday of each month. Bingo on Wednesdays, starting with Early Birds at 6:45 p.m. Info: 630-833-7800.
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Browse: Home / Chinese sisters take different approach to helping disabled
Chinese sisters take different approach to helping disabled
Posted by CNS on September 5, 2017 in World, World & nation | 26 Views | Leave a response
Sister Ma Suling, center, poses with staff and children at the Liming Family/House of Dawn therapy center for children with disabilities in Gaoyi, Hebei province, China. At the center, 60 children up to age 16 receive therapy, 33 of them for physical disabilities. (CNS photo/Melanie Lidman, GSR)
by Melanie Lidman
BEIJING (CNS) — As soon as the first sisters moved onto the church grounds in a rural region outside of Beijing, the babies started showing up on the doorstep. They were babies with severe disabilities, abandoned at a few months old, with no trace of the family who left them behind.
China’s one-child policy was not enforced in the rural countryside, like here in Hebei province, where families continued to have an average of three or four children.
“These are very poor families, and these parents have a lot of pressure, not only for taking care of the disabled kids, but also taking care of many other children,” said Sister Niu Chun Mi, director of the Gaoyi Therapy Center for the Liming Family. The Liming Family is the primary ministry for the St. Therese of the Child Jesus Sisters, known locally as the St. Therese of the Little Flower Sisters. The Liming (House of Dawn) Family is a group of three institutions that serve children and adults with severe mental and physical disabilities.
“Parents began abandoning these children in front of the door to the church, and the bishop asked the sisters to take care of them,” recalled Sister Xeufen Zhang. Sister Xeufen was one of the original 10 founders of the St. Therese sisters in 1988.
“In the beginning, we kept the orphans in the same house as us, and we slept together, and we ate together,” said Sister Xeufen. “Before I entered the community, I thought that sisters live in a house with a big wall and pray all day. When I entered, I saw that a sister’s life was very different. We needed to build the house ourselves, brick by brick. We needed to take care of these orphans and students. I didn’t choose to be a mother, but suddenly I needed to be a mother and a father, too.”
It wasn’t until 1998 that the sisters formally opened the orphanage in a separate building, with guidance from sisters from Hong Kong. Today, the Liming Family has three branches. Biancun Nursing Center provides accommodations for the youngest children who do not have families. The Gaoyi Therapy Center offers special education, speech therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and “integrative sensory” therapy, an occupational therapy for children with both physical and mental disabilities.
At the Ningjin Occupational Center for young adults, staff train the residents to make crafts that are sold locally and yield a small income.
“It started with the orphanage, but there were more and more orphans, and our former superior said we needed to reduce the number of orphans,” said Sister Ma Suling, superior general of the St. Therese Sisters.
“Many parents don’t want to abandon their kids, but reality forced them to,” she said.
The sisters started the therapy center in 2006, with the purpose of providing resources and support to parents, so they could keep their children at home.
“Some hospitals accept these kinds of children for therapy, but it’s very expensive,” said Sister Ma. “They need a lot of long-term therapy, even for years. If a child has cerebral palsy, they might need three to five years to learn how to walk with a device.”
At the Liming centers, the therapy is heavily subsidized. Forty-minute sessions cost 25 yuan (about $3.50), less than half of the cost of hospital therapies. Families are charged on a pay-as-you-can basis, but Sister Ma said only about a third of the families are able to afford treatment. The rest is covered by donations from private individuals, including Catholics throughout China.
“We also do training work for the parents, and the parents often accompany the kids during therapy,” explained Sister Zhang Cun Cun, vice director of the therapy center in Gaoyi. “That’s good for the long-term therapy for the kids.”
“Teachers teach the kids to take care of themselves,” Sister Zhang added. “This reduces their expense to the families. They give them the therapies, and also personal hygiene. They teach them how to wash their own bowls and tie their own shoes.”
It’s a radically different approach from how institutions and the public used to treat people with disabilities, expecting that they could not do anything for themselves, the sisters said.
There are 130 children and young adults living at the Liming Family centers, which have helped more than 1,800 people since they started.
In addition to providing services for people with disabilities, the St. Therese sisters are trying to influence how society treats people with disabilities. They have a speakers bureau that brings young adults from their center to tell community center and university audiences about their lives.
“Their stories inspire a lot of people,” said Sister Mi Lihong.
The Liming centers also organize talent shows, showcasing residents who can play the piano, sing, write poetry on a computer using their toes to type, or paint using their mouths. One resident, Tian Herbal, is now studying on a full scholarship at Beijing Normal University. She does not have use of her limbs and paints watercolors of giant flowers using a brush clamped between her teeth.
“Through these activities, we want the society to know our value of life, that we respect life like this,” said Sister Mi.
Tian, which means “gift from God,” is the last name that the sisters give all of the orphans. Tian Hua Hua, 23, is part of the speakers bureau and a professional photographer. His work, featuring shots of intimate, spontaneous moments of people with disabilities going about their daily lives at the Liming Center, was shown in a gallery in Beijing and in international media.
The sisters actively promote a connection between the community and the Liming Family centers. They recruit local families to be “supportive parents.” For 300 yuan (about $40 per month), a family “adopts” one of the residents at the Liming Center.
“Sometimes they come to visit, sometimes they take our patients to their house,” said Sister Mi. “We want to make a family that is there to support them for an emotional perspective.”
They also match “supportive parents” with families of children with disabilities, to help give them extra support and enable the children to live at home.
Originally, the Liming centers were run only by sisters, but eventually the nuns realized that hiring experienced laypeople for administrative positions helped the organization run more efficiently. Sister Mi said that, at the beginning, there were some clashes in leadership style between the sisters and the laypeople, some of whom are not Catholic.
“We’re still on our way to seeking the best management,” she said.
Posted in World, World & nation
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The Lunas
James Priestner: Vocals/Guitar
Ian Cardona: Drums/Vocals
Lubo Ivan: Guitar
Chad Watson: Bass/Vocals
The Lunas are an alt-pop band from Vancouver, BC. Singer and founder James Priestner first starting writing songs while playing in the Western Hockey League and shortly after gave up his career as a goaltender in pursuit of starting a band. It was in Vancouver he met drummer Ian Cardona, guitarist Lubo Ivan, and bassist Chad Watson. With influences such as Arctic Monkeys, The Strokes, Modest Mouse and Twenty One Pilots, you’ll hear powerful vocals, a contagious energy, and a strong focus on melody that’s bound to get stuck in listeners heads.
In just over a year since the inception of the band, The Lunas have twice toured Canada, sharing the stage with Barney Bentall, JPNSGRLS, and Mobina Galore. They’ve had songs played on local radio stations across the country and were finalists in The Roxy Launch Project in Vancouver where they won recording time with Tommy Mac of Hedley. 2017 marks the release of their debut EP, set to come out early in the year. Curious Life was produced by Juno nominated producer/engineer Dean Maher (Hedley, Rise Against, AC/DC).
The Permanent Rain Press wrote about The Lunas: “Multi-genre, ranging from indie-pop to alternative to even some jazz elements. All members of the band were young, charming, and very good in their performances. I had never heard of The Lunas before that night, but consider me a converted fan. I look forward to hearing more from them in the future.”
©2017 The Lunas. All Rights Reserved. Website by Railway Design
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October 19, 2009 / Unity
Senator Gillibrand, ERLC Join in Saying Monserrate Should Resign
by The New Agenda
Another women in government and another women’s organization joined the chorus demanding that Monserrate resign.
Thus far, State Senator Liz Krueger was the first Democratic state senator to speak out. Followed by State Senator Betty Little, the first Republican state senator to call for his resignation. And now, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand issues a release which says:
Domestic violence has no place in our society, and certainly has no place in the State Legislature. A court of law has found Sen. Monserrate guilty of domestic violence, and I believe he should resign immediately. If he does not resign, then the Senate should move to expel him. We must take a hard line against violence toward women in our society.”
Also this afternoon, Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy Committee issued a press release (read full statement here):
On Thursday, October 15th, Democratic State Senator Hiram Monserrate was convicted of assaulting his girlfriend by slashing her face with a piece of glass. The ERLC joins together with our Board member and State Senator Liz Krueger, NARAL, NOW, and the New Agenda in calling for the resignation of Hiram Monserrate from the New York State Senate and in demanding that the Senate take immediate action to remove him from office.
GO GIRLS GO!!!
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And to Think That He Kissed Him on Lorimer Street by Richard Grayson (A)
Richard Grayson is a prolific writer of over 200 stories, articles, and books. In the 80s, he staged a satiric run for the White House against Ronald Reagan. He has obtained a J.D. degree from University of Florida with honors and is, in addition, a master satirist and a keen observer of the American scene from his own and unique viewpoint. Grayson writes in a deceptively simple style that is, nevertheless, hard to imitate. Using this kind of autobiographical method, bordering on a confessional, Grayson looks through shifting viewpoints (gay and straight; white and black; American and immigrant; young and old) at the people, times, and palaces of a fictional Brooklyn.
In these fictions, Grayson meditates on various topics, mostly race, sexual identity, age, and change by using the device of popular culture, mixing in liberally the icons of pop culture with persons and places from memory to construct a solid literary edifice.
The collection is filled with resonant stories about the lives of ordinary people, and this focus is what makes them interesting and memorable. Somehow, though Grayson's master touch, the ordinary becomes fascinating and highly readable literature. Many of these stories, however, reflect a deep sadness that exists in the heart of the common man and his experience. Nothing seems to happen for the protagonists in these stories, their lives stupefying their subjects. Grayson reminds us with his fiction that our lives are, in the end, rather banal, revolving around the mundane, the ordinary, and the common. At the same time, there seems to be a kind of weird current of apathy that flows beneath the surface of the stories. In the title story, we wonder, for example, whether the narrator is incredibly open-minded about his son's sexuality and the kiss between the boys, or whether he's just too apathetic to care, and we wonder because the title seems to be a kind of subconscious expression of protest by the protagonist. Apathy, or more precisely, a kind of stupefaction, perhaps synergized by the bathos of pop culture, rears its head in "Shirtless Tea-bag Eating White Boys", in which two characters, one stupefied by Haldol, the other just tranquilized by American culture, watch internet videos, which somehow are appropriate for the mentally dysfunctional character and the young elementary school teacher; the first prefers to watch a purple hippo, and the latter prefers to view shirtless tea-bag eating white boy clips.
Some of these stories are biographical, and those are the stories that I like the best. Especially likable are "Branch Libraries of Southeastern Brooklyn", in which Grayson's character reminisces about the libraries that he had known and how they had evolved over the years-this one is probably my favorite story, as I do love libraries, and it seems that Grayson is a true lover of the library as well-and "The Lost Movie Theatres of Southeastern Brooklyn and Rockaway Beach", another story of nostalgia and memory, where we are treated to reminiscences about the various theatres that the author remembers. "1001 Ways to Defeat Green Arrow" deals with change in gay relationships and the longing and emptiness that result. "My Life in The New York Post" is a collection of strange but somehow funny clips from, apparently, the Post regarding a fictional Grayson's plots and schemes.
Other stories that I liked were "In the Sixties", a kaleidoscope-like summary of the Sixties; "Diary of a Brooklyn Cyclones Hot Dog", which deals with the life of a lesbian Uzbek immigrant who is promoted to being the Relish in a Hot Dog Race; and "Mohammad's Therapy Monkey", in which the protagonist, a college student with some issues is assigned a roommate with a pet monkey, which helps him find acceptance and a relationship of his own in a place that he detests.
Grayson chronicles the real through his funny, sometimes sad, but always genuine, if slightly offbeat, fictional world.
Richard Grayson has a website at http://www.richardgrayson.com/
Grayson has been interviewed by Geoffrey Philip.
Grayson's Wikipedia entry is here.
Labels: 2007, literature, review, Richard Grayson, Short Stories
Richard Grayson also has a wonderful, original, 100-word story up at Tuesday Shorts. Good stuff.
Great review.
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(Democratic Republic of the Congo)
a) Armed conflict and political instability;
b) Poaching by nationals and Sudanese;
c) Ill-adapted management capabilities.
Threats for which the property was inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger
Increased poaching;
Pressure linked to the civil war, thereby threatening the flagship species of the property.
Corrective Measures for the property
The following corrective measures were recommended by the 2006 World Heritage Centre / IUCN mission and approved by the World Heritage Committee at its 30th session (Vilnius, 2006):
a) Ensure the protection of the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Sudan within and adjacent to the property ;
b) Improve the efficacy of the military brigade posted around the property to secure the Park and adjacent hunting areas by replacing the current brigade by a brigade that went through the reunification and retraining programme and by ensuring they are adequately equipped;
c) Ensure that the ICCN guard force is properly equipped and, in particular, has adequate arms and ammunition;
d) Undertake, in cooperation with the United Nations Organization Mission to the DRC (MONUC), a disarmament campaign within the communities living around the property, whilst at the same time improving the security situation in the region;
e) Reinforce cooperation with the Government of Sudan to better control incursions of armed groups into the DRC and the property;
f) Maintain and strengthen anti-poaching efforts, in particular in the southern sector of the Park where the presence of Northern white rhino was confirmed by the 2006 survey;
g) Strengthen efforts to improve relations with local communities surrounding the Park, particularly through developing and implementing a community conservation progamme;
h) Take urgent measures to reinforce and reinvigorate the Garamba Park guard force;
i) Reinstate detailed monitoring of the rhino population in the property through a specialized monitoring team, building on the know-how available in ICCN and the African Rhino Specialist Group (AfRSG);
j) Establish a trust fund for the rehabilitation of the DRC World Heritage properties.
UNESCO Extra-Budgetary Funds until 2009
Total amount provided to the property : Conservation Programme for the RDC World Heritage properties ("RDC Programme") financed by the UNF, Belgium and Italy: (2001-2005) approximately USD 400,000; (2005-2008): USD 600,000. Two additional amounts from the Rapid Response Facility (totalling USD 60,000) training of guards and more recently replacement of communication equipment.
Requests approved: 12 (from 1980-2000)
Total amount approved : 248,270 USD
2000 Emergency assistance to World Natural Heritage of the ... (Approved) 5,400 USD
1999 Support to Resident Staff of Garamba, Virunga, Kahuzi ... (Approved) 30,000 USD
1994 Purchase of equipment for Garamba National Park ... (Approved) 10,000 USD
1993 Purchase of equipment for Garamba National Park (Approved) 10,000 USD
1992 Review of the state of conservation of World Heritage ... (Approved) 3,750 USD
1991 Purchase and shipment of 3 all-terrain motorcycles for ... (Approved) 15,000 USD
1988 Purchase of 2 vehicles to continue the activities of ... (Approved) 50,000 USD
1986 Purchase of equipment for the project to protect the ... (Approved) 20,000 USD
1985 Equipment for the project to protect the rhinoceros ... (Approved) 20,000 USD
1985 Contribution to the project for to rescue the white ... (Approved) 25,000 USD
1983 Equipment for rescue programme for white rhino and ... (Approved) 40,000 USD
1980 Equipment for Garamba National Park (Approved) 19,120 USD
2006: World Heritage Centre/IUCN monitoring mission. Several UNESCO missions in the framework of the « DRC Programme ».
2001 Report on a mission led by the Director of the World Heritage Centre to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 24 ...
2000 Report on intermediary mission to the DRC
1996 Mission Report, WWF-Frankfurt Zoological Society-IUCN, Garamba National Park
1979 Mission au Zaïre (19-30 août 1979) (Parc National de la Garamba)
In 1996, the consequences of the outbreak of the Great Lakes conflict that raged through the region for more than ten years, the retreat into the property of the armed bands and rebel groups, with the accompanying poaching and over-exploitation of the natural resources, led to the inscription of Garamba National Park (GNP) on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 1997. The unsatisfactory state of conservation of the property and the continuing lack of security despite the official decree concerning the end of the conflict, and in spite of strong support to the property have led the World Heritage Committee to consider a more global approach to the issue of the deterioration of the situation in all the DRC World Heritage properties. In 2007, the reinforced monitoring mechanism, recently adopted by the World Heritage Committee (31 COM 7A.32), was applied to the property.
The World Heritage Centre received the state of conservation of the property on 2 February 2009. It is evident that most of the property’s conservation problems are connected to the presence of Ugandan rebels of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) who have installed their base of operations in the GNP and in the surrounding hunting domains. Lack of security is particularly critical in the frontier region with Sudan.
Since the 32nd session of the World Heritage Committee, the security situation has greatly deteriorated, particularly following the joint operation carried out by MONUC, the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (AFRDC) and the Ugandan army against the LRA rebels installed in and around the property. This operation began in December 2008. Lack of security in the region has a negative impact on the Park.
Following this military operation, the LRA rebels resorted to guerrilla warfare directed against the local population and also targeting the road networks around the Park. These clashes with the LRA are the origin of a serious human crisis. Numerous civilians have been killed or taken hostage, women have been raped, houses ransacked and burnt and numerous people displaced. The Park has not been spared by the actions of the LRA who, on 2 January 2009, attacked the headquarters of the Park, resulting in several killed and seriously wounded. To this human toll, major material damage at the Nagero Station, the biggest in the Park, was sustained. Several buildings have been destroyed as well as extensive damage caused to transportation and communication equipment. Fuel stocks and rations for the patrols were also looted. Through the Rapid Response Facility (RRF), the World Heritage Centre was able to provide USD 30,000 for the replacement of essential communication equipment and the resumption of surveillance operations. On 10 February 2009, a Park vehicule was attacked and the three occupants were killed. On 23 March 2009, a new attack was reported at 5 km from the Nagero Station where a guard was killed.
At the request of the Park management authorities, the World Heritage Centre has undertaken to contact MONUC to request its support to the Park staff and to ensure a minimum of security around the Nagero Station.
The breakdown of security has had important repercussions on the implementation of corrective measures adopted by the World Heritage Committee at its 30th session (Vilnius, 2006). As has been mentioned in earlier reports, an emergency plan which was being implemented at the property was beginning to produce positive results in the Park. Control of large-scale ivory poaching and bush meat had greatly improved. Furthermore, community conservation activities supported by the World Heritage Centre and aimed at improving relations with the local communities was pursued despite the conditions.
Another concern is the presence of the remaining Northern white rhino. In fact there is serious alarm that this sub-species has currently disappeared. Intensive searches have been unsuccessful. In view of the above-mentioned situation, discussion regarding translocation is no longer appropriate.
As indicated above, the breakdown of security has greatly perturbed the implementation of corrective measures:
a) Ensure the protection of the border between the DRC and Sudan in and around the property
Armed groups continue to operate between Sudan and the DRC. As indicated above, the constant presence of Ugandan rebels of the LRA is responsible for the continuing lack of security in the region.
b) Improve the efficiency of the military brigade posted around the property to secure the Park and adjacent hunting areas by replacing the current brigade by a brigade that has undergone the reunification and retraining programme and by ensuring they are adequately equipped
As mentioned in the previous report, the military brigade posted around the Park was withdrawn in 2007 in the wake of serious incidents involving some of its members. Following the 2 January attack, military brigades of the AFDRC were temporarily deployed in the region, mainly around Dungu (region of the Azandé hunting domain), Faradje, Nagero and at Gangala na Bodio. The AFDRC military deployed in the region had logistic support from MONUC. Nevertheless, in the face of the guerrilla techniques used by the LRA, they have not yet been able to restore security in the region.
c) Ensure that the ICCN guard force of the property is properly equipped and, in particular, has adequate arms and ammunition
Most of the clothing and bivouac equipment provided by the African Parks Foundation (APF) in 2007 for the guards to work in optimal conditions for three years, was burnt during the LRA attack. According to the APF, the replacement of this equipment should be settled rapidly.
The major problem confronting the guards is the non-availability of arms and ammunition. This problem leaves them very vulnerable and is an important obstacle in the control of more distant regions occupied by the LRA and/or by Sudanese poachers. The AFRDC Headquarters has been approached with respect to the provision of appropriate scheduling of equipment.
d) Undertake, in cooperation with MONUC, a disarmament campaign within the communities living around the property whilst at the same time improving the security situation in the region
A MONUC brigade is posted permanently at Dungu but, as indicated in the previous report, little progress has been achieved in the implementation of this recommendation due to priority given to civilians. However, in the framework of the combat against poaching and thanks to a new « Information » team, the guards have been able to recuperate military weapons as well as those of artisanal manufacture from the neighbouring populations.
e) Reinforce cooperation with the Government of Sudan to better control incursions of armed groups into the DRC and the property
On 24 September 2008 a technical meeting was held at the Nagero Station between the South Sudan authorities, the ICCN Management Authority and authorities of the Garamba and Lantoto National Parks, with support from the African Park Network (APN). The objective of the meeting was the resumption of discussions concerning, on the one hand, transborder cooperation between the two countries and the strengthening of the combat against poaching to ensure the transborder conservation of these contiguous protected areas, on the other. This cooperation should entail the exchange of information regarding poaching, surveillance and research between the two parks. Cooperation in the field would depend upon the security situation in the region. The two parties also discussed a possible transborder extension of the property.
f) Maintain and strengthen anti-poaching efforts, in particular in the southern sector of the Park where the presence of northern white rhino was confirmed by the 2006 survey
In 2007, a strong presence of guards was maintained in the southern sector of the Park. An average of 1,500 man/day patrols per month was maintained. A recruitment plan and training programme have been established to strengthen the surveillance team, with recruitment of an additional 59 guards. Between January and April 2008, guards received special training and benefitted from support in the field throughout the year. The total current force of active guards numbers 120.
Moreover, numerous missions were carried out in the hunting areas of Gangala na Bodio and Mondo Missa as well as in the territory of Faradje to identify poachers and gather information on illegal activities. Twenty-seven poachers were arrested during these missions and ten weapons seized.
The property also benefits from aerial surveillance using an ULM. Two ULMs were burnt during the 2 January attack, but should be replaced rapidly.
g) Strengthen efforts to improve relations with the local communities surrounding the Park, particularly through developing and implementing a community conservation programme
Staff of the Department for Community Conservation continue activities and collaboration with the thirteen local committees for Community Conservation (CLCD). Specifically, it facilitated the identification of 26 project proposals in three chieftaincies adjacent to the Park. Its teams visited 15 villages and organized numerous awareness raising meetings, workshops and training activities with the participation of more than 5,000 persons. The meetings organized by the Department of Community Conservation emphasized in particular the need to conserve the nature and to cooperate in rhino research. They also dealt with socio-economic issues and the presentation of micro-projects. Problems of security, notably in the Azande region, prevented any work in that area.
h) Take urgent measures to reinforce and reinvigorate the Garamba Park guard
i) Reinstate detailed monitoring of the rhino population in the property through a specialized monitoring team building on the know-how available in ICCN and the African Rhino Specialist Group (AfRSG)
Throughout the year, the Department of Research and Monitoring has concentrated on the search for evidence of the presence of Northern white rhino. In accordance with the recommendations of the last meeting in May 2008 of the African Rhino Specialist Group (AfRSG) in Arusha (United Republic of Tanzania) the research team concentrated its efforts on the hunting area of Gangala na Bodio (DCGB). The preconceived methodology was used during the intensive search operations carried out between July and December 2008. In April 2008, two Zimbabwean expert trackers reinforced the research team. They were relieved from October to December 2008 by two expert Kenyan trackers. In total, 4,709 km were covered between the hunting area of Gangala na Bodio and the southern part of the Park, with no conclusive results.
j) Establish a trust fund for the rehabilitation of the DRC World Heritage properties, to which the Government of the DRC committed to contribute at the 2004 UNESCO Conference on Heritage in Danger in the DRC
See the Report on Virunga National Park (Document WHC-09/33.COM/7A)
The World Heritage Centre and IUCN are very concerned with regard to the breakdown in security in the property and the loss of human lives which could endanger the achievements of these past years, notably halting large-scale poaching of elephants and other flagship species. The Centre and IUCN are also very concerned by the fact that the major efforts deployed to seek the last Northern white rhino have been unsuccessful and it seems more and more probable that this sub-species is now extinct.
Since the 31st session, the property is the subject of the reinforced monitoring mechanism and the World Heritage Centre ensures a permanent monitoring of the state of conservation of the property through its « DRC Programme ». In view of the current situation at the property, the World Heritage Centre and IUCN recommend the continued application of the reinforced monitoring mechanism.
33 COM 7A.31
World Heritage properties of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
1. Having examined Document WHC-09/33.COM/7A,
2. Recalling Decision 32 COM 7A.31, adopted at its 32nd session (Quebec City, 2008),
3. Regrets that the State Party has not yet proposed a new date for the high level meeting requested by the World Heritage Committee at its 31st session (Christchurch, 2007) and urges the State Party to set a date for this meeting as soon as possible in consultation with the Office of the Director General of UNESCO, the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee and the President of IUCN;
4. Welcomes the continued commitment of MONUC to develop a Memorandum of Understanding with the protected area authority to improve cooperation for the conservation of the properties and also urges the State Party to follow up on this proposal, in cooperation with the World Heritage Centre and IUCN;
5. Reiterates its request to the State Party to adopt a comprehensive approach involving the different relevant Ministries to address the urgent threats to the five World Heritage properties situated within the Democratic Republic of Congo, in particular in relation to the outstanding issues such as the cancellation of mining and oil exploration and exploitation concessions, the relocation of the Nyaleke army camp, and the measures required to address illegal occupation of the Kahuzi-Biega corridor;
6. Also recalls its request to the State Party and the international community to raise international awareness and promote the implementation of the recommendations of the World Heritage Committee and particularly the proposed corrective measures.
33 COM 7A.6
Garamba National Park (Democratic Republic of the Congo) (N 136)
2. Recalling Decision 32 COM 7A.6, adopted at its 32nd session (Quebec City, 2008),
3. Expresses its most sincere condolences to the families of the guards killed in the course of operations linked to the protection of the property, as well as to the other victims of the different attacks against the park;
4. Notes with deep concern the most recent breakdown of security that continues to delay the implementation of conservation activities and risks to threaten the achievements of these past years that had halted large-scale poaching of elephants and other flagship species;
5. Expresses its great concern with regards to the possible extinction of the Northern white rhino of which no evidence has been identified to date, despite intensive searches within the property and in the adjacent hunting areas;
6. Urges the State Party, in cooperation with the Mission of the United Nations Organization for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC), to strengthen its efforts to disarm all the national and foreign armed groups operating in and around the property and restore security;
7. Reiterates its request to the State Party to implement the corrective measures adopted by the World Heritage Committee following the 2006 monitoring mission;
8. Reiterates its requests to the State Party, in consultation with the World Heritage Centre and Advisory Bodies, to develop a draft Statement of Outstanding Universal Value and a proposal for the desired state of conservation for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 34th session in 2010;
9. Requests the State Party to invite a joint World Heritage Centre/IUCN reactive monitoring mission to assess the state of conservation of the property and progress achieved in the implementation of the corrective measures, establish the desired state of conservation for removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger, update the required corrective measures and the timetable for their implementation;
10. Also requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2010, a report on the state of conservation of the property, including information on the status of the population of the Northern white rhino and other flagship species of the property, an update on the disarmament of the armed groups in the park and progress achieved in the implementation of the corrective measures, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 34th session in 2010;
11. Decides to continue to apply the reinforced monitoring mechanism to the property for one more year;
12. Also decides to retain Garamba National Park (Democratic Republic of the Congo) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.
33 COM 8C.2
Update of the List of World Heritage in Danger
1. Following the examination of the state of conservation reports of properties inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger (WHC-09/33.COM/7A, WHC-09/33.COM/7A.Add and WHC-09/33.COM/7A.Add.2, WHC-09/33.COM/7A.Corr),
Afghanistan, Minaret and Archaeological Remains of Jam (Decision 33 COM 7A.20)
Afghanistan, Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of the Bamiyan Valley, (Decision 33 COM 7A.21)
Central African Republic, Manovo-Gounda St Floris National Park (Decision 33 COM 7A.1)
Chile, Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works (Decision 33 COM 7A.28)
Côte d'Ivoire, Comoé National Park (Decision 33 COM 7A.2)
Côte d'Ivoire / Guinea, Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve (Decision 33 COM 7A.3)
Democratic Rep. of the Congo, Virunga National Park (Decision 33 COM 7A.4)
Democratic Rep. of the Congo, Kahuzi-Biega National Park (Decision 33 COM 7A.5)
Democratic Rep. of the Congo, Garamba National Park (Decision 33 COM 7A.6)
Democratic Rep. of the Congo, Salonga National Park (Decision 33 COM 7A.7)
Democratic Rep. of the Congo, Okapi Wildlife Reserve (Decision 33 COM 7A.8)
Ecuador, Galápagos Islands (Decision 33 COM 7A.13)
Egypt, Abu Mena (Decision 33 COM 7A.15)
Ethiopia, Simien National Park (Decision 33 COM 7A.9)
India, Manas Wildlife Sanctuary (Decision 33 COM 7A.12)
Iraq, Ashur (Qal'at Sherqat) (Decision 33 COM 7A.16)
Iraq, Samarra Archaeological City (Decision 33 COM 7A.17)
Islamic Republic of Iran, Bam and its Cultural Landscape (Decision 33 COM 7A.22)
Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls (Decision 33 COM 7A.18)
Niger, Air and Ténéré Natural Reserves (Decision 33 COM 7A.10)
Pakistan, Fort and Shalamar Gardens in Lahore (Decision 33 COM 7A.23)
Peru, Chan Chan Archaelogical Zone (Decision 33 COM 7A.29)
Philippines, Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras (Decision 33 COM 7A.24)
Senegal, Niokolo Koba National Park (Decision 33 COM 7A.11)
Serbia, Medieval Monuments in Kosovo (Decision 33 COM 7A.27)
United Republic of Tanzania, Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani and Ruins of Songo Mnara (Decision 33 COM 7A.14)
Venezuela, Coro and its Port (Decision 33 COM 7A.30)
Yemen, Historic Town of Zabid (Decision 33 COM 7A.19 )
Draft Decision : 33 COM 7A.6
3. Expressesits most sincere condolences to the families of the guards killed in the course of operations linked to the protection of the property, as well as to those victims of the different attacks against the Park;
5. Expresses its great concern as regards the possible extinction of the Northern white rhino of which no evidence has been identified to date, despite intensive searches within the property and in the adjacent hunting areas;
7. Reiterates its request to the State Party to implement the corrective measures adopted by the World Heritage Committee following the 2006 monitoring mission and the 2007 reinforced monitoring mission;
8. Requests the State Party to invite a joint World Heritage Centre/IUCN reactive monitoring mission to assess the state of conservation of the property and progress achieved in the implementation of the corrective measues, establish the desired state of conservation for removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger, update the required corrective measures and the timetable for their implementation;
9. Reiterates its requests to the State Party, in consultation with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies, to develop a draft Statement of Outstanding Universal Value, including conditions of integrity and a proposal for the desired state of conservation in view of removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 34th session in 2010;
10. Also requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2010, a report on the state of conservation of the property, including information on the state of the population of the Northern white rhino and other flagship species of the property, an update on the disarmament of the armed groups in the Park and progress achieved in the implementation of the corrective measures, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 34th session in 2010;
11. Decides to continue to apply the reinforced monitoring mechanism to the property;
12. Also decides to maintain Garamba National Park (Democratic Republic of the Congo) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.
Criteria: (vii)(x)
Danger List (dates): 1984-1992, 1996-present
WHC-09/33.COM/7A
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Head-to-Head: Nicolas Otamendi (Manchester City) vs Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham Hotspur)
It’s second vs fourth in the Premier League title race at the Etihad in Sunday’s late game, with both sides playing catch-up to Leicester City, and this clash is likely to be one of the decisive games in the run-in. Nicolas Otamendi has endured a difficult time in Manchester since his big-money transfer from Valencia last summer. The £32 million man has been regularly criticised in recent weeks, but manager Manuel Pellegrini will be hoping the Argentine defender has a more convincing performance against an in-form Harry Kane. In contrast, Alderweireld has been one of the signings of the season for Mauricio Pochettino’s men. He has brought a new-found defensive solidity to a Spurs side often considered soft. The Belgian has been an ever-present as the North Londoners have conceded a league-low 19 goals in 25 games this season. He will once again need to be on the top...
Head-to-Head: Mesut Ozil (Arsenal) vs Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City)
Sunday’s lunchtime game provides Leicester City with another chance to strengthen their Premier League title credentials, when they travel to face third-placed Arsenal. Should they win at the Emirates, they will open up an eight-point advantage over the Gunners. Meanwhile, the hosts will be looking to cut the Foxes’ lead to just two points. Following their professional display in their 2-0 win over Bournemouth last weekend, the North Londoners will once again be looking to Mesut Ozil to demonstrate his creative genius against a Leicester side who have only conceded two goals in their last seven matches. The Gunners dismantled their opponents 5-2 at the King Power in September, with the German creating seven chances and providing the assist for his side’s third goal. The Foxes will travel to the capital fresh from their 3-1 demolition of another title rival, Manchester City, last Saturday. Several pundits said that should Leicester...
Home » Stats
Posted on Feb 14, 2016 in All, Head-to-Head, Man City, Premier League, Stats, Tottenham
It’s second vs fourth in the Premier League title race at the Etihad in Sunday’s late game, with both sides playing catch-up to Leicester City, and this clash is likely to be one of the decisive games in the run-in. Nicolas Otamendi has endured a difficult time in Manchester since his big-money transfer from Valencia last summer. The £32 million man has been regularly criticised in recent weeks, but manager Manuel Pellegrini will be...
Posted on Feb 14, 2016 in All, Arsenal, Head-to-Head, Leicester, Premier League, Stats
Sunday’s lunchtime game provides Leicester City with another chance to strengthen their Premier League title credentials, when they travel to face third-placed Arsenal. Should they win at the Emirates, they will open up an eight-point advantage over the Gunners. Meanwhile, the hosts will be looking to cut the Foxes’ lead to just two points. Following their professional display in their 2-0 win over Bournemouth last weekend, the...
Head-to-Head: Cesc Fabregas (Chelsea) vs Jonjo Shelvey (Newcastle United)
Posted on Feb 13, 2016 in All, Chelsea, Head-to-Head, Newcastle, Premier League, Stats
Disappointing results over the course of the Premier League campaign mean both Chelsea and Newcastle have endured much-maligned seasons in the top-flight. These two stuttering sides will be looking to their respective creative midfielders to help them earn three points this Saturday evening at Stamford Bridge. The last time these two teams met at St James’ Park, Newcastle threw away a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 in a pulsating game....
Head-to-Head: Jermain Defoe (Sunderland) vs Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)
Posted on Feb 13, 2016 in All, Head-to-Head, Man United, Premier League, Stats, Sunderland
Saturday’s early kick-off sees Sunderland host Manchester United in a game which carries significance at both ends of the table. Black Cats striker Jermain Defoe has been in sparkling form as he has almost single-handedly kept his side in with a chance of avoiding relegation this season. The former England forward has scored six goals since the turn of the year, including a vital late equaliser against Liverpool last time out. The...
FA Cup Head-to-Head: Enner Valencia (West Ham United) vs Christian Benteke (Liverpool)
Posted on Feb 9, 2016 in All, FA Cup, Features, Head-to-Head, Liverpool, Premier League, Stats, West Ham
Tonight’s FA Cup fourth-round replay represents an opportunity for both West Ham United and Liverpool to bounce back from disappointing results on Saturday in the Premier League. The Hammers were unable to find a way past Fraser Forster and Southampton at the weekend, despite playing 40 minutes against ten-men. West Ham will be looking to Enner Valencia to fire them into the next round and move another step closer to lifting the...
One to Watch: Tottenham Hotspur’s Josh Onomah
Posted on Feb 8, 2016 in All, One to Watch, Premier League, Stats, Tottenham
On Wednesday afternoon, Tottenham Hotspur’s 18-year-old wonder-kid Joshua Onomah put pen-to-paper on a new contract which keeps him at the club until 2020. The highly-rated midfielder signed a new deal only last summer, but Spurs have improved and lengthened it to 2020 to ward off interest from clubs such as Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool. He has already featured a number of times this season for the first team, and, at such a...
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S.T. Karnick October 30, 2009 10:27 am Tags: causes, consequences, cultural consequences, culture, Great Depression Category: Journalism & Media, Manners and Morals, Omniculture, Television
PBS and the Great Hangover
Government broadcaster PBS is running a new, five-part series on a subject naturally interesting in our time: American Experience: The 1930s. Episodes are available for online viewing here.
The program is just what one would expect from PBS: earnest, well-researched, skillfully presented, and eager to lick the boots of government while criticizing individual freedom for everything wrong in the world, S. T. Karnick writes.
There are two main lessons to be learned from the Depression, in my view:
The government causes business cycles and downturns through its erratic, manipulative policies intended to benefit powerful voting blocs at the expense of those less able to fight back. The market works when left alone, and government interference should be limited to redressing actual harms done by one party to another. This includes combating fraud, enforcing valid contracts, and setting clear but liberal guidelines for transactions made across political borders. And nothing more.
The Great Depression brought on a cultural conservatism and moral regeneration of the American people. This is an aspect of the era which few people seem to understand. It was in the early ’30s, for example, that the movie industry was finally badgered into imposing a Production Code ensuring all widely distributed films would conform to a set of standard plotlines, language restrictions, and limits on visual sensationalism (a move which undoubtedly had salubrious results but was probably unnecessary given the change of public taste in a more conservative direction; in addition, the movie studios engaged in it voluntarily, even if under the threat of state regulation; thus the Code was surely less drastic, damaging, arbitrary, and politically controlled than it would have been if imposed by government). During the 1930s the American people revolted against what they saw as the social and cultural excesses of the 1920s just as strongly as they did against what they saw as the economic excesses of the time. Earnestness and attention to the political, economic, and moral implications of human action were on the rise in all media. Breaking economic and political corruption was a major concern of the American culture.
The Great Depression was widely seen at the time as a punishment for the economic, social, and moral changes of the 1920s, when the nation had moved in a more classical-liberal direction affording greater economic, social, and personal freedom. The Roaring ’20s were seen in retrospect as a time of excessive license in all things (which they indeed were in some cases), and the Depression was viewed as an understandable payment that had to be made–the hangover after the party.
Thus the nation decided to swear off the booze of individual liberty altogether. As a cure, the people turned to government control of the economy and tighter moral strictures against individual freedom. If this sounds like today’s regnant political agenda, that’s because the two are indeed identical in means, motive, and opportunity. And they are both criminal in their stupidity.
I believe that both the moral reaction and economic impositions of the Depression era were overwrought and unnecessary, but the moral reaction was the more justifiable of the two because it largely avoided using government force for its implementation. As a result of its relatively voluntary, organic nature, the moral response to the Roaring ’20s managed to do some good, as noted above, while refraining from doing much harm.
Of the economic puritanism of the time, the very opposite was true. That is the way of government action.
Given PBS’s track record as a diehard advocate of a statist, progressivist agenda, it should surprise no one that the American Experience series refuses to incorporate liberal notions such as these, choosing instead to smother the truth in a miasma of irrelevant moralization.
Right at the beginning of episode 1, "The Crash of 1929," the narrator refers to "the promise and the illusion of the 1920s," setting the moralistic tone of the episode. Immediately thereafter, the noted statist economist the late John Kenneth Galbraith is shown saying, "Let us not think for a moment the illusion, the aberration of the 1920s is unique. It is intimately a part of the American character."
In other words, people will go mad if not constrained by a gigantic, all-powerful benevolent government. We are undoubtedly supposed to be grateful for the warning.
Immediately thereafter, two commentators criticize the lovely Irving Berlin song "Blue Skies" as emblematic of the 1920s "illusion" that freedom was a good thing. The machinations of stock market manipulators in the decade are limned in some detail, and the commentators explicitly condemn the lack of government regulation.
What they do not note is that fraud of the sort described in this part of the program is illegal now and was illegal then. Thus while the perpetrators of such actions were morally responsible for their wrongs, from a social perspective the real culprit behind such market manipulation was in fact the government, in failing to perform its basic function of preventing fraud, enforcing valid contracts, and otherwise preventing people from harming one another.
Indeed, a commentator in the program explicitly states that such manipulation was legal at the time, which is quite wrong and would be deceptive even if true. Yes, it was the case that there were no specific laws explicitly criminalizing a variety of particular manipulative actions in the stock market, but those acts were fraud and could have–and should have–been prosecuted under existing laws. In addition, the failure to have laws preventing such fraud would be a failure of government criminal law, not of economic policy.
Economic regulation, however, is the agenda here, and every possible means is used to argue for it. The episode briefly criticizes New York Mayor Jimmy Walker for his fiscal imprudence, but the moment is conveyed as a critique of 1920s excessive exuberance and liberality, not as a matter of government corruption and a failure of government to do its duties.
Similarly, the role of the Fed in the 1920s bubble (which it fed by debauching the currency) and in the subsequent Depression (which it created and prolonged by by tightening the currency far too much and excessively interfering in the markets, thus preventing the needed corrections from occurring) is alluded to but presented in moralistic terms, as another example of excessive liberality followed by a painful but necessary corrective action.
Individual investors are likewise presented in moralistic terms, depicted as greedily and foolishly chasing after "the one lucky break," as one person puts it. One is given no understanding of how the investors’ actions could in fact have seemed at the time to be rational, not speculative. The reality is that, then as now, an individual must look at the possible returns and risks involved in investing one’s money and also in not doing so. If the government reduces apparent risk to zero–as the Fed did during the 1920s and 2000s–what on earth does one think investors will do but continue to invest in a wide variety of ventures based on increasingly risky foundations?
This is what happens in all bubbles, and it is what happened in the most recent one, but American Experience refuses to acknowledge this critical fact. Thus here too a failure of government is elided and its effects blamed on the allegedly free choices of individuals in an allegedly underregulated market.
Tellingly, as the program describes the stock market crash of 1929 and the events that led up to it, nothing about Fed policy or the money supply is mentioned. Yet the Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman has convincingly argued that the manipulation of the money supply caused both the bubble and the bust. That particular truth, however, does not contribute to and in fact contradicts the program’s agenda for government power and against individual liberty. Thus it, too, is redacted from the story.
Near the end of the episode, Galbraith blames it all explicitly on the investors–the "suckers" as he crudely and callously calls them–and says that such crashes happen every twenty or thirty years because that’s how long it take
s for the "suckers" to forget that their earlier greed and foolhardiness led to disaster. The alternative explanation–and the true one–is not given any attention: that every twenty or thirty years the government’s renewed manipulation of the economy as a means of buying votes results in disaster.
The program concludes with an argument that what the stock market crash taught Americans was a great lesson in humility. Certainly that was the lesson that the American people took from it. The real lesson, however, is that governments’ attempts to manipulate the economy always bring catastrophic consequences in time.
Of course it’s true that many people did many bad things both in the stock market and in other areas of human endeavor in the 1920s. But that’s always the case, human beings being what we are. What was different about the 1920s and ’30s was the choices government made, and the consequences were world-changing.
The real moral failure to be found in American Experience: The 1930s is in many people’s continual refusal to recognize that freedom of choice is a good, and coercion an evil, regardless of who is doing which.
–S. T. Karnick
Those Who Write and Tell The Stories, Control the Culture | Keeping Your Kids Christian on The Hot Fall TV Trend
Mike D'Virgilio on Science is Becoming God’s Best Friend
rayster on Science is Becoming God’s Best Friend
Chris Cass on Science is Becoming God’s Best Friend
Culture and Economics
Omniculture
The American Culture
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Comedy Toast with the Crust Cut Off
Billy Kelly
my first comedy album
"Like any great album, “My First Comedy Album” holds together as a total work as well as in individual bits. Kelly is a natural, as is the delighted response of his multi-generational audience."
—Kathy O'Connell, Kids Corner, WXPN Philadelphia.
Welcome to Billy Kelly's web site. These are but a few of the words you will encounter on the site.
My First Comedy Album is Billy Kelly’s first comedy album, hence the name. Spoiler alert: it is squeaky clean! This comedy is so darn clean that kids can listen to it, and to prove that point Billy invited kids to the recording of this album. Srsly, it was kind of nuts.
Think of My First Comedy Album as comedy toast with the crust cut off; if that crust was made of swear words and jokes about dating. So basically there is none of that stuff — just good clean, nutritious, gluten-free laughs and absurd fun that people of all ages can enjoy together. Hashtag fun.
Billy Kelly has been entertaining people of all ages with his quirky, funny music since the late 20th century, AD. Over the course of his 20 year music career Billy Kelly has opened for President Barack Obama, duetted with Davy Jones of The Monkees, and been nominated for a Grammy Award — in that order. Although comedy has always been part of Billy’s act, My First Comedy Album represents the culmination of several years of focused comedy writing and several hundred stand-up performances. With the release of this album, Billy hopes to bring laffs to nice people everywhere.
My First Comedy Album was recorded in front of two different audiences on June 11, 2016, and edited together for your listening pleasure. Kids ages 8 & up were in attendance for the first performance; the second performance was adults only. Billy performed all the same jokes at both shows. Kids laughed and drank juice boxes, adults laughed and drank whatever they wanted. BILLY KELLY IS NOT THE BOSS OF THE ADULTS! The point is this: people of (nearly) all ages enjoying stand-up comedy together, just like we always talked about.
bloggynewsblog
376 Van Brunt St
47-33 5th St
Long Island City, NY — 11101
25 Union Square West
New York, NY — 10003
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Event Categories: birnCORE
Cabaret Live from the Red Room
Time: 8:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Tune in to birnCORE on Friday, May 3 at 8:00 pm for a performance of Cabaret live from the Red Room at Cafe 939!
Cabaret Presents: New Works Ensemble
Tune in to birnCORE on Wednesday, May 1 at 8:00 pm for a performance by the New Works Ensemble live from the Red Room at Cafe 939!
Mogli and Josin Live from the Red Room
Tune in to birnCORE Thursday, May 9 at 8:00 P.M. for a live broadcast featuring two amazing artists.
Berklee’s Original Band Showcase Live from the Red Room
Time: 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. EDT
Tune in to birnCORE Thursday, April 18 at 7 P.M. for a broadcast of Berklee’s original bands showcase live at Café 939.
A&R Showcase Live from the Red Room
Tune in to birnCORE Wednesday, April 17 at 8 P.M. for a broadcast of the Berklee’s A&R Group’s spring showcase.
Alicia Witt Live from the Red Room
Tune in to birnCORE on Thursday, May 2 at 8:00 p.m. for a live performance by singer, writer, and actress Alicia Witt.
Anna Clendening Live from the Red Room
Tune in to birnCORE Saturday, April 27 at 8 P.M. for a broadcast of the live performance by singer-songwriter Anna Clendening.
Songs for Social Change Live from the Red Room
Tune in to birnCORE Tuesday, April 9 at 7:30 P.M. for a broadcast of the live performance by the winners of the of the Songs for Social Change contest.
Click here to listen to birnCORE!
Hip Hop Night Live from the Red Room
Time: 7:00 p.m.- 9:00 p.m.
Tune into birnCORE on Tuesday, April 16th at 7 p.m. for a live broadcast of Hip Hop Night from The Red Room @ Cafe 939.
Greg Holden / Ben Thornewill Live from the Red Room
Tune in to birnCORE Thrusday, April 25 at 8 P.M. for a broadcast of the live performance by singer-songwriter Greg Holden and pianist Ben Thornewill.
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Home Top Stories Calais Schools Receive $1 Million Grant Calais Schools Receive $1 Million Grant
Calais Schools Receive $1 Million Grant
By Kaileigh Deacon
The Calais School System received an AWARE Grant for a total of $1 million over the course of five years, an allotment of $200,000 per year. The grant provides services, strategies and curriculum for students with mental health or behavioral needs. The grant will also provide money for the education of current staff and allow for the hiring of a new coordinator position for all Calais Schools. The position would require the candidate to have a bachelor’s degree, teaching endorsements and at least three years’ experience in working with students with behavioral needs.
Superintendent Jenkins is hoping that the position will be posted after the next meeting for the grant, taking place on October 25, when they will have a clearer description of what is needed. They are hoping that the position will be filled by Christmas time. “I believe that part of the reason we received this grant was because of our very well respected Blue Devil Health Center,” Superintendent Jenkins said.
Though the school year is well underway, the Calais School System had a few positions that remained unfilled or had positions that had been filled only temporarily. One position the School Committee had yet to fill was the position of a science teacher at Calais Middle High School. The position had been offered to a candidate prior to the start of the year, however, the candidate found a position elsewhere. To get the year started, the school filled the position with a long-term substitute. The committee approved making the long-term substitute Isaac Turner, a first-year probationary teacher with Tom Robb opposed. Principal Mary Anne Spearin said she will continue working with Isaac on the areas that need improvement. Mr. Turner will remain in the position through the end of the 2018-2019 school year.
With the end of the fall sports season approaching, the School Committee looked ahead to the approaching winter season and the two vacant coaching positions. The committee needed to fill the Junior Varsity Coaching positions for both boys and girls basketball. After interviews, the committee heard the Superintendent’s recommendation on who should fill the position. The committee unanimously approved the hiring of Marty Cushing for Boys’ JV Basketball Coach and John Cowell as the Girls’ JV Basketball Coach.
The committee also unanimously hired Sarah Lambrecht as the long-term substitute for the Calais Middle High School. Lambrecht has office experience prior to the position and was a very energetic candidate, according to Superintendent Ron Jenkins.
The Calais Elementary School also filled out their kitchen staff with the hiring of Angela Demmons for a three-hour a day position. Demmons had subbed in the position for five days prior to the School Committee meeting and had demonstrated her capacity for this position.
Students at the Calais Middle High School will have the opportunity to participate in the Outdoor Adventure Club again. The program encourages students to participate in outdoor activities such as hiking, skiing, snowshoeing and other similar activities. The club will offer students the opportunity to do three big outings throughout the year, with several smaller ones scattered throughout. The program is free for students and will not only be fun but educational as well. Superintendent Jenkins’ recommendation was for Stephanie Griffin to fill the stipend advisor position for the program.
Elementary and Middle School students had their own outdoor adventures this past week and will have more in the upcoming weeks. With a grant received by Spencer McCormick at the WCCC Outdoor Adventure Center, students will get to participate in three outings over the course of the year. The students will canoe on the Grand Falls Flowage and explore the outdoors. The two additional trips will take place this winter and spring for grades five through eight.
The next School Committee meeting will be held on November 13 at 6 p.m.
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HomeAviation Museum NewsYankee Air Museum Seeks Information on B-24J Known as Michigan
Yankee Air Museum Seeks Information on B-24J Known as Michigan
April 22, 2019 Editor Aviation Museum News, Yankee Air Museum 0
The Yankee Air Museum is seeking details about B-24J 44-40429, especially first hand accounts from any of her crew or maintenance personnel. Nicknamed "Michigan", and representing the University of Michigan with a cheerleader, the football team and the famous stadium they played in, the aircraft served with the 63rd BS, 43rd BG in the Pacific Theatre. This image is believed to have been taken at Clark Field in the Philippines. (image via Yankee Air Museum)
April 22, 2019— The Yankee Air Museum in Ypsilanti, Michigan is actively seeking first person accounts from airmen whom served on a B-24 Liberator bomber nicknamed Michigan which flew in the Pacific Theatre during WWII. This particular Liberator is B-24J 44-40429 which served with the 64th Bomb Squadron, 43rd Bomb Group of the 5th Air Force from 1942-1946. It was decorated with a massive painting of the famous “Big House,” the University of Michigan’s football stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and a U of M cheerleader as its nose art. Although the Museum does not have a flying B-24 in its fleet, it is closely connected to this type of aircraft by its location on the grounds of the historic Willow Run Airport where 8,685 Liberators were built between 1942 and 1945.
Another view of the nose art featured on the B-24J known as “Michigan”. The mural was the creation of the well-known commercial artist, Sarkis Bartigian, who was a prolific nose art painter. He is perhaps most famous for the work on 44-40973, another 43rd BG B-24J, known as “The Dragon and His Tail.” (image via Yankee Air Museum)
“We believe at least one of the crew on this aircraft had strong ties to the University of Michigan in general and the football program in particular,” said Ray Hunter, Chairman of the Board, Yankee Air Museum. “The Museum has been searching for years for anyone who was attached to the B-24 ‘Michigan’. As we approach the 75th anniversary of the end of World War Two next year, it’s time to renew that search.”
The Museum is looking for surviving crew members who flew or maintained this aircraft, or details from their family members. The hope is to honor the local heroes and obtain first person stories, or perhaps additional photos of this B-24.
As a pilot and Air Force Veteran, Ray Hunter also has a personal interest in the Michigan and her crew. He rose to the rank of Colonel by 1985 and reported for duty in Ann Arbor as Commander of the Air Force Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program at the University of Michigan. Colonel Hunter retired from the Air Force in 1988. Each year now, he frames a picture of the B-24 Michigan nose art and presents it with a special inscription to an excellent student graduating from the University of Michigan ROTC.
“It would be great to have some living history references to this plane,” added Hunter. “It’s remarkable how inspirational theses accounts can be to future U.S. Air Force Officers especially from members of the Greatest Generation who flew on a plane bearing Michigan nose art.”
Hunter explained thennose art saying that during World War Two, decorating combat aircraft was a common practice. In fact, this era is known as the Golden Age of Aircraft Artistry. The majority of the art reflected girlfriends, wives’ names, names of towns, or other reminders of the “Home Front.” Nose art regulations, if they existed at all, were very relaxed and many examples were indeed risqué, to put it mildly. According to Hunter, with heavy losses of aircrew and aircraft during bombing missions, there was really no pressure to be politically correct when it came to how the aircraft were adorned.
The B-24 Liberator four-engine bomber was a popular palette due to its large expanse of relatively open painting space on the nose of its massive fuselage.
SSgt Sarkis Bartigian is credited with painting the nose art on the Michigan. Bartigian was a renowned commercial artist whose only occupation during World War Two seemed to be creating and painting nose art on large aircraft. His body of work is extensive, and some of it may be found at the following link HERE.
“Most of the nearly 18,500 B-24s manufactured, including the Michigan, were scrapped at a smelter in Arizona and melted down after World War Two ended,” said Hunter. “The B-24 Liberator Michigan was not built at the Ford Willow Run Bomber Plant and only four Willow Run bombers remain.”
Hunter added that two of the remaining Ford-built B-24s are located at museums in England, and the others in Canada and Louisiana. Please contact Ray Hunter at the Yankee Air Museum if you have information regarding the B-24 Liberator known as Michigan. His email address is: ray.hunter@yankeeairmuseum.org .
B-24J Liberator "Michigan"
Sarkis Bartigian
Hawker Typhoon Mk.IB RB396 – Restoration Fund Raiser
D-Day Squadron Announces Kick-Off for North Atlantic Crossing
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Musings: The Drawing of the Dark
I have had The Drawing of the Dark on my shelf for some years now. I am not sure who first told me that I should read Tim Powers, but whoever it was probably knows my reading tastes pretty well. Powers specializes in historical fantasy. He takes real-world events and then puts a twist on them to explain what "really" happened.
In this book, he puts his spin on Suleiman's attempt to take Vienna in 1529. That whole situation wasn't just about economics and empire-building. Oh, no! It was all about beer.
Well, beer and the infinite battle between East and West.
But let me start at the beginning. Brian Duffy is an Irish mercenary living in Venice when he meets a strange old man named Aurelianus. Aurelianus hires him to be the bouncer at his brewery in Vienna and Brian sets off immediately to take on his duties. But strange things happen along the way. Weird animals and monsters follow him and protect him. Other things try to kill him. He has strange dreams about a sword and a lake. And all the while, Suleiman's army is advancing...
This story sounds exactly the sort that I would enjoy. Unfortunately, it didn't work for me. The story moved very slowly. One of the most painful things (in my opinion) as a reader is to know something before the main character does and then have to sit around waiting for him to catch up with you for many more pages than is ideal. In this book, at least a few things were very obvious to me while I read the book, but Brian Duffy just did not catch on. There were also a lot of battle scenes that I think would appeal to a different type of reader but did not appeal to me.
Additionally, there are really only two characters that are fleshed out at all in this book- Brian and Aurelianus. Everyone else is completely one-dimensional and flat. For example, Brian has a semi-love interest for most of this book- she has hardly any useful dialogue, though, and spends a lot of time crying. And Brian seems to lose interest in her very quickly- she becomes quite vague and fades into the background.
My main problem with the book, though, was that the premise was never properly explained. Why are the East and West at war? That is never explained. It is just taken as a given. Aurelianus says that if the East takes Vienna, it could wipe out Western civilization and they would all go back to living in caves and drawing with rocks on walls. But why is this the case? Wouldn't it just be that they were all absorbed into Eastern culture? Aurelianus also blithely ignores the many occasions in which the West went forward against the East in attempts to conquer and would have apparently left the East in much the same state. I just didn't understand why the two sides were fighting, and how the "teams" were formed except by geography. And how does the New World figure into all of it? Are they on a totally different "team"? There was just a lot left unexplained.
What I did like was the mish-mash of all sorts of mythologies and folk tales, even if I didn't quite understand how they fit together. We have King Arthur and Merlin, the Fisher King and Norse gods. In a way, this book reminded me of American Gods, but only because of the god-elements in it. It also reminded me of Silverlock in that I'm sure I didn't get all the literary and mythological elements at all! The book also had some great humor in it.
Overall, though, it was a sad book. Brian Duffy is nearly always drunk or hungover. He reflects on the life he could have had and is sad by the way his life actually turned out. Most people in the book seem to feel that way, really. There was a lot of regret and "If only we had another chance"-ness. And the way the book is set up, with East fighting West, you know at the end that it isn't really the end. That there will be more battles. It wasn't so much that the East was considered evil here, but that they were considered the "Other." And there must always be an element of conflict between one side and the "Other." It was an interesting way to describe conflict, but ultimately did away with all the complexities and intricacies of the conflict in a way that left me unsatisfied.
I hope the other Power books I have - On Stranger Tides- is one that I'll enjoy more. (How could it not be, as it's about pirates?!) I have also heard great things about The Stress of Her Regard. Have you read any Tim Powers? What do you think of him?
Musings by Aarti at 11:06 PM
Labels: 16th century, arthurian, europe, fantasy, historical fantasy, mythology, religion
Well, this sounds like it was no where up to the standards of Guy Gavriel Kay's historical fantasy, and for a moment there in your summary I was really gung-ho about trying this one. Unfortunately I think I would have much the same issues as you did with this book. First of all when it takes a character too long to play catch-up, it annoys. Secondly, I think I would need more meat about the actual conflict and what it means to each side involved. I also don't like that the "whys" were not explained at all. Much to my disappointment, I think I am going to have to pass on this one, but I really did appreciate your beautiful and comprehensive review.
I don't think I've heard of Tim Powers' novels before, so even though you didn't enjoy it as much, I'm glad you posted about it. The mythological elements sound very intriguing.
Zibilee - No, it was nothing like GGK, but I don't think he was trying to be, either. I think what bothered me the most was the lack of the whys. I think GGK generally gives good background on that sort of thing, as do a lot of fantasy authors. And there was none here, sadly.
chasingbawa - Yes, I am definitely looking forward to giving his other two novels on my shelf a try (turns out I actually own Stress of Her Regard!). Don't want to write him off quite yet as I think he did some things really well.
Apologize? No need to, but then I love love love fantasy ;) It is my escapist read too
Memory 4/01/2011
Oh no! As soon as you described Tim Powers's milieu and said what this one was about, I thought, "Must read!" Now I'm not so sure. Perhaps I'll start with another of his books. I've heard good things about ON STRANGER TIDES, which was apparently the basis for the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.
Blodeuedd - Yes, I think we're the same that way!
Memory - Yes, I plan on reading that one soon(ish), too. If you want to read it together, let me know!
Jenny 4/02/2011
I started reading The Stress of Her Regard a few years ago and couldn't get anywhere with it. I think part of it was to do with my frame of mind at the time, and part of it was how slow the story was to get started, and part of it was it was seriously icky. So that's my two cents.
Col (Col Reads) 4/03/2011
I have never heard of Tim Powers, but I'm definitely going to research his work -- it sounds really interesting!
Jenners 4/03/2011
I've not heard of this author and I'm not sure he would be my cup of tea. It sounds like this book was promising but fell apart. I hate when that happens. Here's hoping the other ones work out better for you.
Monica 4/05/2011
I've never read historical fantasy. How fascinating. I ought to give it a go.
*/* 4/05/2011
hi, i stumbled accross your blog, very good tips indeed... since you like historical fantasy books, have you heard of the Libanese french language writen Amin Maalouf? he writes great historical fictions (not exactly fantasy...)
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UPS 747 Crash in Dubai Kills Crew
3 September 2010; United Parcel Service (UPS); 747-400F; N571UP; flight 6; Dubai, United Arab Emirates: The aircraft was on an international cargo flight from Dubai, UAE to Colonge, Germany, and crashed shortly after takeoff about 10 km (6.2 mi) north of the airport. The two crew members were killed.
About the Boeing 747
This was the second fatal plane crash involving 747-400 series. The only previous fatal crash of a 747-400 was a 2000 crash of a Singapore Airlines in Taipei, Taiwan. The various models of the 747 have been involved in 28 crashes that have resulted in the death of at least one passenger, and seven fatal crashes of cargo or military versions of the aircraft. The earliest fatal passenger plane crash was a 1974 Lufthansa accident in Nairobi, Kenya, and the most recent passenger crash was a 2005 Saudi Arabian Airlines crash in Sri Lanka. The most recent cargo crash was a 2008 accident in Colombia involving Kalitta Air that killed three people on the ground.
About United Parcel Service
United Parcel Service (UPS) has been offering air cargo services since the early 1980s. The current UPS fleet has well over 200 aircraft, including about a dozen 747s. This is the third UPS crash that destroyed an aircraft, and the first fatal crash for United Parcel Service.
UPS plane crashes
747 plane crashes
UPS fleet
Graphic: Gulf News
Labels: 747, boeing, crash, fatal, parcel, plane, service, united, ups
Anonymous 05 September, 2010 02:56
Badly written and difficult to understand.
CBS Radio Interview about Suspicious Passengers
Russian Airliner Makes Emergency Landing at Abando...
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