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A Norwegian Facebook group has caused Muslim outrage after confusing empty bus seats for women wearing burkas. Johan Slattavik posted the photo on the Fatherland First [translated] Facebook page as a joke asking: “What do people think of this?” Incredibly, many Norwegians opposed to immigration believed the post was serious, failing to spot that it was actually just a photo of an empty bus, The Local reports. The question is, outside of submission, what doesn’t inflame the Muslim world? Muslim women should be inflamed that they are forced to wear those hideous garments that cover up their gender, their beauty, their womanliness. Humorless, violent, supremacist … Before the Papal coup installed this pro-Islamic Francis, Pope Benedict quoted Byzantine emperor Manuel II Palaiologos, one of the last Christian rulers before the Fall of Constantinople to the Muslim Ottoman Empire, on such issues as forced conversion, holy war, and the relationship between faith and reason, “Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.” Indeed. Bus Seats That Look Like Burqas Cause Outrage On Social Media August 2, 2017, by Gabrielle Okun, Daily caller Foundation: A Norwegian nationalist party is under attack after falling for a joke Facebook post of empty bus seats that looked like Muslim women wearing burqas. A man named Johan Slattavik originally posted the picture, which features six empty seats on an Oslo Bus, which looks like Muslim women wearing burqas. It was subsequently picked up by party Fatherland First, but the party’s message sparked outrage on social media since many of the members took it seriously. “I laid out this photo to see what happened,” said Slattavik to WorldViews, adding that it was “a little practical joke.” “What happens when a photo of some empty bus seats is posted to a disgusting Facebook group, and nearly everyone thinks they see a bunch of burqas?” wrote Sindre Beyer, a former MP of the Labour Party, Rune Berglund Steen from the Norwegian Centre Against Racism (Antirasistisk senter) that people will quickly form conclusions based on what they want to believe. The Truth Must be Told Your contribution supports independent journalism Please take a moment to consider this. Now, more than ever, people are reading Geller Report for news they won't get anywhere else. But advertising revenues have all but disappeared. Google Adsense is the online advertising monopoly and they have banned us. Social media giants like Facebook and Twitter have blocked and shadow-banned our accounts. But we won't put up a paywall. Because never has the free world needed independent journalism more. Everyone who reads our reporting knows the Geller Report covers the news the media won't. We cannot do our ground-breaking report without your support. We must continue to report on the global jihad and the left's war on freedom. Our readers’ contributions make that possible. Geller Report's independent, investigative journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we believe our work is critical in the fight for freedom and because it is your fight, too. Please contribute to our ground-breaking work here. Make a monthly commitment to support The Geller Report – choose the option that suits you best. Contribute Monthly - Choose One Subscriber : $18.00 USD - monthly Contributor : $36.00 USD - monthly Patron : $50.00 USD - monthly Silver member : $100.00 USD - monthly Gold member : $250.00 USD - monthly Platinum member : $500.00 USD - monthly |
Hamza bin Laden, Osama bin Laden’s son, has released a new audio message calling for Muslims to take revenge against Americans and their allies. As the Islamic State loses whatever territory it has left in Syria and Iraq, al-Qaida is pushing to regain some of the spotlight the terror group lost during ISIS’ ascendance, and 28-year-old Hamza bin Laden has come out with a new speech lionizing his father and proclaiming revenge against Americans, Long War Journal reports. This latest audio message, complete with English subtitles, is seen as a rallying cry to reinvigorate al-Qaida, which has been overshadowed by ISIS over the last several years. In the speech, Hamza said that his father Osama was responsible for breathing new life into jihad after the Islamic caliphate fell in the early 20th century and the broader Islamic world came under foreign occupation. Now, the Ummah, the global Muslim community, is tasked with “liberating the Muslim lands, freedom from Crusader hegemony, establishing the Islamic Shariah, living freely under its merciful shade, and inviting people to it.” Hamza asked the “truthful scholars” to promulgate jihad among the youth and stated that the “oppressed Muslim masses” should “[r]ise in rebellion against oppression and tyranny, revolt against the agents of the Americans, initiate armed uprisings to overthrow them and establish the Shariah.” “I invite Muslims generally to take revenge from the Americans, the murderers of the Shaykh [Osama bin Laden], specifically from those who participated in this heinous crime,” Hamza added. Hamza’s speech also comes following the CIA’s release of an archive of hundreds of gigs of files from Osama bin Laden’s compound, showing everything from detailed terror plans to the Western movies he had on hand. One of the videos from the collection shows Hamza’s marriage to the daughter of a senior leader in al-Qaida. It’s not entirely clear what role Hamza plays in al-Qaida, but analysts believe he’s being groomed for senior leadership and may even eventually assume the position of head of the terror organization. Follow Jonah Bennett on Twitter Send tips to jonah@dailycallernewsfoundation.org. Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org. |
In new report entitled State of the Dream 2011, progressive group United for a Fair Economy answers an important question: Who, exactly, will be impacted by the "fiscal responsibility" agenda this year that both parties have called for? The questions I put before you are these: If these policies have disproportionate effect on people of color, are they racist policies? If they are racist policies, and should President Obama approves of these policies, what are we to conclude? I'll tackle the first question as best I can and the second in a follow-up piece. First, let's note a few points in the report: Blacks are 30 percent more likely than the overall workforce to work in public sector jobs as teachers, social workers, bus drivers, public health inspectors and other valuable roles, and they are 70 percent as likely to work for the federal government. The recent income tax extension heavily favors Whites, who are three times as likely as Blacks and 4.6 times as likely as Latinos to have annual incomes in excess of $250,000, according to original analysis in this report. The unemployment rate is 15.8 percent for Blacks, 13 percent for Latinos and 8.5 percent for Whites. Blacks hold 10 cents and Latinos hold 12 cents of net wealth for every dollar of net wealth Whites hold (p. 15). In the professional and business services sector, Black males earn only 57 cents to each dollar of White male earnings. By comparison, Black males earn 80 cents to each dollar of White male earnings in the public administration sector. This trend of greater parity is also true for Black females, Latino males and females and White females (p. 24). Due to pre-existing wealth disparities, Blacks and Latinos depend on unemployment insurance in times of crisis more often than Whites. A total of 16.4 percent of White households lack enough net worth to subsist for three months at the poverty level without income while 41.7 percent of Blacks and 37.4 percent of Latinos are in that position. There is more data, but these brief points give you an idea of what you probably already know. Black and Brown people have high levels of poverty and are more likely than Whites to have high levels of public sector employment. Blacks and Latinos earn less money, own less things, and have higher relative debt than Whites. These things are obvious. The question then puts certain economic policies in context. For example, President Obama recently announced a pay freeze for federal workers. The goal of this action is to save the government some money due to budgetary constraints. However, since Blacks are 70 percent more likely to be federal employees, this particular pay freeze will have a larger impact on Black Americans than Whites. Is this a racist policy? Additionally, there is a just introduced Republican bill to cut the federal workforce by 10 percent across the board. This bill isn't designed to target Blacks, Latinos and Native Americans. At least, not explicitly. However, if large groups of people of color are far more likely to be federal employees, those are the groups that will bear a disproportionate burden for the cuts. Is this racist? Consider another example: The wealth disparities described above among people of color and Whites reflects a scenario in which people of color are more dependent on unemployment insurance than Whites. Therefore, the recent one-year extension will benefit people of color as a group more than it will benefit Whites as a group. Is this "reverse racism" at work? Could this be why so many Republicans have no problem with trying to end the program, because of their noted hostility to people of color? In my opinion, these and other economic policies are not explicitly racist in intent and application. But because we exist in a society that has an infrastructure and legacy of racism, the effect of these policies is the same as explicitly racist ones. For example, if you work at the DMV in your state and you're a minority, it probably will seem very much like racism to have your job eliminated while simultaneously the wealthy White guy at your counter is registering his new Bentley as a result of his brand new tax cut. Especially if half your co-workers are of color and most of the new luxury vehicle registrations are from people who are White. The governor may as well have said, "Give the rich White folks a tax cut and fire the coloreds." The policy isn't explicitly racist because a wealthy Black guy would get the same tax cut. The problem is there just aren't as many of those guys as a percentage of the Black population. Years of racially oppressive policies have stunted opportunity for Blacks, Latinos and Native Americans to develop an equal amount of wealth. Latinos are routinely kept away from promotion and opportunity due to discrimination. Things happen as a part of the fabric of our society. The economic policies, while racially blind, add to the problem because of the lack of attention to said fabric. So what would replace it? Would racially conscious economic and fiscal policies be preferable? For example, what if there were policies that took into account the fact that Blacks are far more likely to be federal employees. Because of institutional discrimination and racism as a part of American society, let us say that President Obama's pay freeze would only apply to 30 percent of Black federal workers and 60 percent of White federal workers. Is this fair or is it discriminatory? While it may correct for racism, it does strike a person as not the sort of "ideal" policy one would like to embody in law. Ideally, all economic and fiscal policy should be racially blind in a racially blind society. Unfortunately, we do not live in such a society. So shouldn't economic policy either match who we actually are? Or, perhaps help correct who we are? If we are going to try and negate the racist effects of economic policy, race has to be taken into account when making the policy. While we do run the risk of enshrining racial thinking into the law, the bottom line is that we are not color blind. We shouldn't go down the road of making economic policy strictly on the basis of race; however, it has to be a factor in the decision-making. |
Yeah its my first day off in like a week and I drank heavily last night. This means I basically spent the day recovering, browsing netflix and reddit, as well as (sort of) getting a few things done around the house. I mean, I cleaned a bit. I think that counts. I went on a bit of a tear today, reddit wise. At any rate, thanks for the support. Internet points dont really mean a damn thing, but I dont think anyone denies the slight mental smile that comes seeing you had a bunch of people upvote you. Oh, and for the record: dude, not that I particularly mind seeing as we're all just usernames here. This is probably going to be a long one, fyi. I would like to note that I dont necessarily ascribe the term "bigot" to people who think homosexuality is wrong. Bigotry, from my understanding, is an action rather than a perspective. I guess an argument could be made that voting against marriage equality or something could count, but we have little way of telling that here so I generally hold my tongue on that one. Still, the gesture is appreciated greatly :) I'm always excited to share perspectives with people. I want to know theirs, and I'd be glad to tell mine. Now, as to your question, its vital from the get-go to know that I dont use the word "God" the same way most other people do, but I use the term to make matters simple and to allow for conversation. I am also of the opinion that most of religion is bullshit; not all of it is, though. I think a good portion of Christianity is a wellspring of wisdom. Its definitely not all bullshit, especially since (in my informed opinion) mystics from across the millennia and from vastly different backgrounds and religions have some universal meeting points. Granted, you might have to sift through the “language” of the religion they are a part of to see that they’re saying the same thing, but the meeting points are there. For example: I believe that the hindu concept of atman and the buddist anatman (anatta) are talking about the same thing. I wrote my undergraduate thesis on it. It made a few people’s heads explode, but what can I say? Another one is the (almost universally condemned) idea that sin and bad karma are essentially the same thing, and Christ's sacrifice on the cross as an avatar, took away not just the sin debt, but the karmic debt. As I said above, I'm a sort of weird mix between pantheist and panentheist with a monist bent and a firm non-dual perspective. That is to say: divinity is the source material that makes up and infuses all things, physical, non-physical, and metaphysical (as well as anything else you can think of). I believe that one day science will show that this source material exists, especially given the recent discoveries from our friendly neighborhood quantum physicists. Hindus call it Brahman, Christians might one day call it the Holy Spirit, but its there nevertheless. Take a moment sometime and read the wiki article on Brahman (not Brahma, that’s different). Hinduism is possibly by favorite religion to study. Getting back on track: I believe All Things are One Thing, and that One Thing is what I call God. I do not, however, believe that the divine is only the entirety of existence (see Brahman). The divine extends to all that was, all that is, all that will be, all that never was, is not, and never will be. Both being and non-being are unified. If there are parallel dimensions and other universes: that too. Further, I think there is a part of divinity that is unique and transcendent to all the things listed above. Take an old clock for example. Can you show me where the 'ticking' is? It’s definitely there, I can hear it, I experience it viscerally and can confirm its existence objectively by asking other people if they can hear it, but where is it? Take the clock apart into all its pieces, and there is no tick. Put them back together, and the tick is there. God is the tick of the universe. Divinity is most purely existent in the tick, but the tick exists within each part of the clock in equal measure as well as manifested purely in the tick itself, and all parts are necessary for that “undiffused” aspect of divinity to exist, manifest, and be accessed. How do we access it? The simple answer is a single word: meditation. Prayer is a form of meditation. I’d site the study if I knew where in the world to find it again, but I read in class a few years back that the brain is functioning is the same basic manner when a person prays the rosary as its does when a person is in deep meditation. Why all the different religions, then, if divinity is universally infused in all things? Because in accessing it, divinity/God goes through the filter of our own identity, which brings with it all our opinions, cultural background, etc. This is the problem the Buddha sought to fix in the teaching of anatta, or no-self, and in his rejection of major parts of Hinduism. Remember, in the same way Jesus was a Jew, Buddha was Hindu. Put another way: the tick takes a different shape diffused in the hands of the clock than it does in the face of it. To answer your question, then, I would say that I cannot demonstrate God’s existence to you. It is impossible for me to accurately convey the experience that connection with the Allness, the Isness, the Oneness. You may access it on your own. Were it to put it into words, it would only ruin its purity. Words are the least reliable form of communication. Sure, they are the most direct, but they're also the most open to misunderstanding, the most malleable because of things like tone, texture, and cadence. Words are an awful way to communicate about anything meaningful. /prepares for other people on this subreddit to literally throw bibles at me/ It would perhaps be proper to say that I don’t believe in God, but I do believe in Godliness. The Sublime. Divinity. Whatever. I also happen to think that the Oneness is conscious as a whole (the tick, which is what I’m most often talking about when I used the word God), but at very least its conscious as both the individual and unified consciousnesses of conscious beings like ourselves. Think about it: go back to the Big Bang, and take each moment in time of the entire universe as a single object, then follow that timeline to the evolution of life. Then to the evolution of conscious life. At that moment a part of the universe became conscious. Now go to the evolution of life that is self-aware. At that moment a part of the universe became aware of itself. Pretty holy, if you ask me. I bet I sparked a million questions, probably about the problem of evil and other big topics, and I’m more than willing to get into them either in this thread or via messages if you prefer. To answer your question another way: you want me to demonstrate God’s existence? Look around you. Look within you. It’s right there. Its literally the sound and fury of all of life and existence, screaming out to itself (you), but this sound and fury signifies everything. |
Health Don't Gimme Five! Swine flu has us thinking. Maybe it's time to change how we greet each other? The CDC recommends that people maintain a 3 to 6 foot distance to cut down on viral spread. So here, NPR health correspondent Allison Aubrey and All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen illustrate some options to keep you social and safe. The Xena You may think you're safe with the hand bump, but even knuckles can carry pathogens. President Obama wants YOU to wash your hands -- the front, the back, and even under your nails where viruses and bacteria can hide out. Maintain that lather for at least 20 seconds. That's the entire Happy Birthday song. CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta is pushing the elbow bump as a safe alternative, but that can hurt your funny bone. Use your forearm instead. Be like Xena, Warrior Princess. Bow Nouveau The tete-a-tete is gaining popularity in at least one Maryland high school. And when President Obama and Michelle do it, it's downright cute. But this is a definite no — even if you hold your breath. Try out the bow, or maybe even curtsy. The Wave A cowboy howdy or the royal wave are good alternatives to the classic handshake, especially in the colder, drier months of the year when the flu virus stays around longer after you cough or sneeze. That means more virus in the air to inhale... and more chances for you to pick it up from someone's hands. Smackdown Two kisses or one? Either way, this is a close encounter. The CDC recommends that people should stay away from any kind of kiss if you have flulike symptoms... or want to avoid them. Don't forget you can carry the virus before you feel sick. Try some variation of the foot smack — there has never been a documented case of flu passing from foot to foot. Snap And Flick High-five and you might as well be kissing when it comes to passing on the virus. A snap and flick of your finger is an instant hello, and it can work for kids in schools — well-known breeding grounds for viruses. Self Hug Hugging yourself might seem odd at first, but surely it can catch on... maybe. Vote! Poll by Twiigs Poll by Twiigs Comments Got something to say? Post it! In Depth Elbow: The Weirdest Joint On the upside of the recent flu mania, one oft-neglected, seldom noticed and, come to think of it, very weird body part is receiving a new wave of attention: the elbow. Flu Shots Blog Get the latest news about swine flu. Swine Flu: On The Edge Of A Pandemic A newly discovered flu virus is infecting people across the world, from Mexico to New York to Spain. It's too early to tell whether this new strain which has elements of viruses that infect birds, humans and pigs will trigger a mild pandemic, or a devastating one. Photos: Taking Global Precautions Though Mexico remains the epicenter, health officials and travelers across the globe are taking steps to protect themselves to exposure to swine flu. |
Over the past few months, Indian and U.S. media have reported widely about right-wing Hindu groups’ plans to “re-convert” Muslim and Christians to Hinduism (and in some cases, Sikhism). Indeed, the so-called ghar wapsi (“homecoming or conversion”) effort has rung alarm bells among observers, stoking fears that the right-of-center government of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi (a self-described Hindu nationalist), are seeking to undermine post-independence India’s secular ideals. It has drawn so much attention, in fact, that it prompted President Obama to issue a not-so-subtle rebuke to Modi’s government for not doing more to protect religious minorities. Among Indian Hindus—particularly the Hindu activist groups who embrace the conflation of Indian-ness with Hindu-ness—the fear of a disappearing tradition is stoked primarily by demographics. Indian census numbers show that the percentage of those identifying as Hindus dipped below 80 percent for the first time. But while there is much talk about a rising Muslim population, the actual spikes have come among Christians, where the mass conversion of tribal groups and Dalits has been part of a sustained and systematic effort of “Great Commission” movements such as the Joshua Project. The Christian population in India is now estimated at over 70 million: there has been unprecedented conversion over the last 10-15 years, on the heels of centuries of missionary efforts. In Nagaland, for instance, Baptists make up 90 percent of the population, and Christian separatist groups like the National Socialist Council of Nagaland have fought for a separate Christian state. We’re not talking about marginalized Indian populations finding Jesus, but rather a methodical and ethically ambiguous attempt at “harvesting souls”, which the Joshua Project and other missionary groups identify as part of their 10/40 window. Moreover, Christian mission groups within India like Gospel for Asia and WorldVision are among the largest benefactors of aid, primarily from America. While these missionary groups coerce peacefully, or simply just offer money from their well-funded coffers to get locals (usually village elders first) to convert, the predatory proselytization reflects what religion scholar Rita Sherma calls “spiritual violence,” a derivation of Johan Galtung’s concept of cultural violence. From a historical perspective, however, the centuries of religious violence in India—and the country’s unwillingness to truly acknowledge the history of that violence as a means of dialogue—has left an indelible mark on the country’s social fabric. This is because religious conversion in India has been an ongoing, sublimated affair, often done behind closed doors and incentivized by free housing, education, food, clean water, and healthcare. Even during the Mughal era, violence was not the most common means of converting Hindus, Buddhists, and Jains to Islam. Instead, it was the jizya, the tax levied on non-Muslims, that over time won the most converts, and those conversions happened across caste lines. The re-introduction of Christianity by the Portuguese to India’s west coast (where Syrian Christians had lived since the time of St. Thomas) in the 15th century did not come peacefully. The systematic destruction of Hindu, Jain, Buddhist, and even Muslim holy sites (and the erection of churches in their ruins) was a central component of the Goan Inquisition, a nearly two-century campaign sanctioned by the Catholic Church to convert non-believers—often violently—into Christianity. But the violence of the Portuguese era did not manage to “win hearts and minds.” British missionaries, schooled in the ways of catering to native populations, would have the most success in converting Indians through education and other incentives. Over time, India’s social fabric incorporated Muslim and Christian norms, and ironically, many Hindu leaders embraced some of those norms in an attempt to re-interpret their religious scriptures from a modernist perspective. As a result, Hinduism itself became interpreted as more rigid and doctrinarian than its scriptural roots, and generations of Indians became Christianized (though not necessarily Christian) through India’s Christian parochial schools and a public education system shaped by Thomas Macaulay, whose stated aim was to create “a class of persons, Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste, in opinions, in morals, and in intellect.” Thanks in large part to church-funded publications and university scholarship, Christianity also became part of the rhetoric of liberation among low caste populations and regional language groups such as Tamils. This idea of Christianity “liberating” the uncivilized masses gained a following in the United States through the publication of the now comically racist Mother India by Katherine Mayo. From the late stages of British colonialism to modern times, the work of Christian mission organizations in India—and their adverse impact on local populations and ecosystems—has rarely come under scrutiny, save for an occasional piece in outlets like the New York Times. Moreover, aggressive proselytizing by Christian groups has actually increased, including attempts at converting Hindu temple-goers right outside the temple doors. To be sure, from a distance, it would appear that India’s religious minorities might suffocate from the weight of a nearly 80 percent Hindu population. But Hindu majoritarianism in India isn’t just a myth—it’s a practical impossibility because of the religion’s decentralized nature, extremely diverse and individualized practices, differences among various Hindu sects, and the geographical and political factors that have shaped the various interpretations of the religion across India and the subcontinent. Perhaps more importantly, the vast majority of Hindus (and the vast majority of Indians) are not necessarily vested in religious identity politics, which usually manifest themselves most in the days and weeks ahead of local, state, or national elections. Perhaps more problematically for progressives who critique the normative role of religion in societies, religious politics in India isn’t necessarily a left-right proposition. Hindu nationalist parties often mimic the socialist rhetoric of India’s left-of-center political establishment, while in states such as Karnataka, Kerala, West Bengal, and Tamil Nadu, political alliances between Marxists and religious minority parties (including ones funded by conservative Christian U.S. groups) are quite common. Even the BJP recently entered into a power-sharing alliance with a Muslim party in the Muslim-majority state of Jammu and Kashmir, underscoring how politics trumps religious affiliations. As such, contrary to the caricature of U.S. media portrayals, there aren’t roving Hindu mobs roaming the streets of Indian cities or rural villages converting Muslims and Christians en masse. Moreover, the lines between religion and clan, caste, and regional identity are often much more fluid and ambiguous—and often contradictory. Religious conflicts are often intertwined with politics, and the frequency of intra-religious conflict (Sunni versus Shiite Muslims, Jat versus non-Jat Sikhs, upper-caste Christians versus Dalit Christians) has also played a role in India’s recent spike in social unrest. Despite the complex nature of identity politics in India, one thing is more apparent: the unease with which Indians of all faiths are dealing with the conversation about conversion, as well as its ramifications beyond the country’s borders. As Pawan Deshpande and Padma Kuppa note, the discussion about ghar wapsi should be broadened to include the international implications of conversion politics in India. If evangelical groups are spending millions a year in coercively converting Indians (including right after natural disasters like the 2004 tsunami), then we should be having a discussion about the scale of conversion and the impact it is having on the Indian social fabric. It’s a conversation Uganda and a number of African nations have not had—which is having devastating consequences for the their LGBT communities. As scholar and social activist Jim Perkinson has reminded us, countries such as India are only a microcosm of the worldwide impact of missionary activity. “The effect on native people of predatory proselytization is typically cultural alienation, a growing sense of social inferiority, gradual or rapid displacement from local ecosystems, demonization of the stories that integrated their human activities into sustainable and respectful exchange with local plants, animals, soils, and waters,” says Perkinson, who has written extensively on the impact missionary activity has had on native cultures. “Younger people are often pulled away from traditional wisdom and thwarted in adopting the kinds of practical hands-on skills that parents and ancestors valorized and embodied.” If ghar wapsi has achieved one thing besides a few hundred re-converts, it’s been the re-examination of what it means to have religious freedom in India. After all, one shouldn’t have to convert (or be asked to convert) for the sake of food, education, healthcare and other daily necessities. Obama might have been right about Mahatma Gandhi’s shock over the state of India’s religious affairs, but the latter’s response might have been directed towards India’s institutionalization of Christian soul-harvesting. After all, as Gandhi noted so presciently: “It is impossible for me to reconcile myself to the idea of conversion after the style that goes on in India and elsewhere today. It is an error which is perhaps the greatest impediment to the world’s progress toward peace. Why should a Christian want to convert a Hindu to Christianity? Why should he not be satisfied if the Hindu is a good or godly man?’” Photo courtesy flickr user Mat McDermott via Creative Commons: “Chennai | Tamil Nadu, India: A man carrying a metal container in front of a mural of a mosque, Ganesh, and Jesus, in an alleyway off St Mary’s Road.” |
CAIRO (Reuters) - The Muslim Brotherhood on Monday rejected pleas from international envoys to “swallow the reality” that Mohamed Mursi will not return as Egypt’s president. Members of the Muslim Brotherhood and supporters of deposed Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi shout slogans and hold up posters during a rally marching back towards Rabaa al-Adawiya Square where they are camping, in Cairo August 2, 2013. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih The envoys from the United States and the European Union, trying to resolve a political crisis brought on by the army’s overthrow of the Islamist Mursi a month ago, visited jailed Brotherhood deputy leader Khairat El-Shater in the early hours of Monday. But he cut the meeting short, saying they should be talking to Mursi, Brotherhood spokesman Gehad El-Haddad said. People briefed on the meeting described it as long, in some moments intense, but constructive and useful. From the other side, a senior military source said the army and interim government would offer to free some jailed Muslim Brotherhood members, unfreeze its assets and give it three ministerial posts, in a move to end the crisis. A source involved in the diplomatic initiative said the releases from prison were expected within hours. The releases would be a confidence building measure, and the Brotherhood would be expected to make goodwill gestures to show they have good intentions. The army spokesman, Ahmed Ali, said no deal had been reached between the Brotherhood, the military and the government to end Egypt’s political crisis. Several thousand Islamist supporters marched through downtown Cairo calling for Mursi’s reinstatement and denouncing the army general who led his overthrow. Marchers chanted: “Mursi, Mursi” and “We are not terrorists”, and waved pictures of the ousted leader. The protest showed tensions still running dangerously high in Egypt despite the mediation effort by the United States, the European Union, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. “Things should move soon, otherwise we shall miss this opportunity. This is all still incredibly fragile.” said a source involved in the diplomatic initiative. MINIMUM DAMAGE Mursi became Egypt’s first freely-elected president in June 2012, 16 months after the overthrow of U.S.-backed strongman Hosni Mubarak, who had ruled for nearly 30 years. But fears that he was trying to establish an Islamist autocracy, coupled with a failure to ease economic hardships afflicting most of Egypt’s 84 million people, led to huge street demonstrations, triggering the army move. Speaking about the talks in recent days, Brotherhood spokesman Haddad said the envoys “still carry the position that we should swallow the reality and accept that the military coup has happened and try to recover with minimum damage”. “We refuse to do so,” Haddad told Reuters. There was no agreement on how to start talks, he added. Related Coverage Egypt army, government to offer compromise to Muslim Brotherhood The state news agency said earlier that diplomats, including U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns and European Union envoy Bernardino Leon, had met Shater after midnight at the Tora Prison where he is being held south of Cairo. Shater is seen as the political strategist of the group that propelled Mursi to office last year, and was arrested on charges of inciting violence after Mursi’s downfall. He told the envoys that only Mursi could “solve the mess” and the only solution was “full restoration of constitutional legitimacy and reversal of the coup”, Haddad said. “They invited him for discussions but he ended it abruptly ... then he walked out of the room,” Haddad said. Mursi is being held at an undisclosed location, facing an investigation into accusations including murder. Most of the rest of the Brotherhood’s leadership is also in custody. In Washington, State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said Burns had no plans to meet Mursi. She suggested no breakthroughs were imminent. “There is clearly much more work to do. We have the goal of helping the Egyptians get back to a democratically elected, inclusive government,” Harf told reporters. VIOLENCE ON HOLD The diplomatic push has so far helped to hold off further bloodshed between Mursi’s backers and the security forces. An EU source in Brussels said the mediators were still trying to build confidence between the various sides and did not want to raise expectations. “The real thing at this stage is to bring people together so they can actually meet and discuss these issues and for that you have to build up some trust and that can be done by very concrete measures, releasing people, dropping charges, not pressing charges, not moving into the squares, lowering the tension,” the source said. Thousands of Mursi supporters remain camped out in two Cairo sit-ins, which the government has pledged to disperse. The government said on Sunday it would give mediation a chance but warned that time was limited. Almost 300 people have been killed in political violence since Mursi’s overthrow, including 80 shot dead by security forces in a single incident on July 27. During Monday’s march, protesters sprayed graffiti on walls and statues calling army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who led Mursi’s overthrow, a murderer and a traitor. Security forces made no attempt to disperse a crowd estimated by reporters at several thousand strong. “The military came and stole our country, they stole everything,” said Mahmoud Isuafi, a businessman from the Nile Delta city of Mansoura. “I want democracy. Where is my vote? I can no longer elect my leader so I protest instead.” The military has laid out a plan that could see a new head of state elected in roughly nine months. The Brotherhood, which spent decades in the shadows before Mubarak’s downfall, says it wants nothing to do with it. Newly released deputy chairman of the Muslim Brotherhood Khairat el Shater attends a pro-democracy rally at Tahrir Square in Cairo March 4, 2011. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El-Ghany However, diplomats say the Brotherhood knows Mursi will not return as president and wants a face-saving formula for him to step down that guarantees it a stake in the political future. Two U.S. senators, Republicans Lindsey Graham and John McCain, arrived in Cairo at President Barack Obama’s request to meet members of the new government and the opposition. Before leaving on the mission, Graham said the Egyptian military must back out of politics quickly or risk a cut of the $1.5 billion in aid it receives from Washington each year. |
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is surging in battleground states Iowa and Virginia in newly released polls, consistent with the national trend reported this week by Reuters-Ipsos and other major polling operations. A handful of swing states—experts always mention at least five, and no more than eleven—will determine the winner of the presidential race, mainly concentrated in the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and Southwest. Polling numbers from two of those states seem to fit a larger trend over the past two weeks of improving chances for Donald Trump to defeat Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. An Emerson poll in Iowa has Trump up five points over Clinton, 44-39, in a sample of 600 likely voters. This brought the RealClearPolitics average of recent polls in the Hawkeye State to a +1 advantage for Trump, for the first time since the candidates held their respective conventions in mid-July. Emerson also polled in Virginia and found Clinton with only a one-point lead over Trump, in a sample of 800 likely voters. The resulting RealClearPolitics average of +7.7 for Clinton is a significant departure from recent polls showing her with a double-digit advantage in the Old Dominion, which she has enjoyed since picking Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine (who is also the state’s former governor) as her running mate. The Iowa poll was conducted Aug. 31-Sept. 1 with a margin of error of 3.9 percent, and the Virginia poll was conducted Aug. 30-Sept. 1 with a margin of 3.4 percent. These were the first Emerson polls in those two battleground states in this election cycle. Ken Klukowski is senior legal editor for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @kenklukowski. |
Motorola just announced the latest version of its flagship Moto X, which is now called the Moto X Style. It looks a lot like last year's Moto X, but it comes with a bigger, higher resolution display and a new, 21-megapixel camera. It's going to be available this September for $399 unlocked. And this time around, it will work on any of the major carriers in the US. Motorola is making a big bet and some weird branding decisions with the Style. In the US, at least, the bet is that consumers will spring to buy it directly from Motorola, Amazon, or Best Buy. We confirmed here that it will not be available in any carrier stores. That's the bet, and at $399 unlocked it's a pretty solid deal for a flagship phone — but we'll have to see where US consumers are finally ready to buy phones this way in large numbers. The weird branding decision: the Moto X Style is going to be called the Moto X Pure in the US. That's because market research has told Motorola that US consumers care a ton about "pure" Android — apparently more than they do about Style. But other than the difference in radio bands between the US and the rest of the world, Motorola says they're the exact same phone. Motorola's biggest claims for the Moto X Style are about the 21-megapixel camera. We've only had the briefest of moments to play with it and our first impressions is that it is fast. Very fast. Lighting is hit and miss here, of course, so we need more time to really say what we think of it. Motorola has set up an entire photography station here at its event, and we'll be sitting through the long line of reporters to check it out very soon. It feels much smaller than you'd expect The phone has a 5.7-inch screen but feels remarkably smaller that it ought, thanks to the very thin bezels on the left and right. The screen is pushed about as far to the edge of the phone as it can be, minimizing the overall footprint of the phone itself. I'm still not convinced that I could use this phone comfortably in day to day use — my time with the similarly-sized Nexus 6 was fraught with drops and fumbles — but if you can live with a 5.5-inch phone, you can likely live with the 5.7-inch Moto X. Aside from size, the display is bright with great viewing angles and it's impossible to see any visible pixels. We won't know until we've got a review unit in hand if it has some of the odd color casting that plagued Motorola's earlier models, but initial impressions are quite good. Performance also seems to be really good — the new X is snappy and responsive. That's likely helped by the near stock version of Android 5.1 that it is equipped with, which Motorola is once again using as a selling point. There are a few customized apps included, but they are largely limited to Motorola's camera app, Assist, Connect, and a handful of other basic services. It's still the most pure version of Android you can get this side of a Nexus. There's not too much more to say about the Moto X Style at this point — the optional wood and leather finishes feel just as great as last year, and it's still a very well-built device. The Style has the signature curve that Motorola puts on all of its phones to make them more comfortable to hold, and it has a nice dimple on the backside to rest your index finger when holding the phone in one hand. The most important story might be the price Perhaps the most important story is the price — at $399, Motorola is aggressively undercutting the competition and even beating some of the other players in the low-cost flagship smartphone space. It's within spitting distance of the just-announced OnePlus 2, and less than the recently announced ZTE Axon. That's sure to be an appealing offer for those that want to buy their phones unlocked and without a commitment, but it remains to be seen whether or not this is aggressive enough to get the rest of the smartphone buying population on board with unlocked devices. Motorola won't be selling the Moto X Style until September, but we'll be sure to put it through its paces when it's available to see if it does indeed live up to Motorola's lofty claims. |
As the United States entered the 20th century, increasing population and industrialization led to a nationwide meat shortage. Moving west to acquire more land for grazing or hunting became a limited option as the frontier closed and buffalos were hunted into near extinction. In southern Louisiana, newly invasive water hyacinths, similar to water lilies, transported to New Orleans by Japanese tourists during the 1884 World’s Fair were creating massive ecological dilemmas. In 1910, an audacious plan was put forth to address both concerns: import hippopotamuses from Africa to the bayous of Louisiana to consume the water hyacinths and provide a tasty source of meat for a hungry nation. The main proponent of this imaginative plot was Louisiana Congressmen Robert F. Broussard. In order to get Congress to approve and fund his $250,000 (ca. $6 million adjusted for inflation) proposal, Broussard needed renowned and popular “experts” to testify in Congress. He sought an unexpected duo, Frederick Russell Burnham and Fritz Duquesne, aka the Black Panther, for assistance. Burnham was the epitome of an American adventurer and Duquesne was a Boer, an African of Dutch dissent, and a notable conman. Burnham and Duquesne had a complex history together. Burnham thought it was his duty to bring “civilization” to Africa. This commonly shared supremacist mentality led Burnham and other Americans to Africa to fight for the British Empire against Boer and African resistance to British colonization. On the contrary, Duquesne fought against the British. Both men were well revered and became old-fashioned rivals with direct orders to assassinate the other, yet they never met in any of the bloody battles during the Second Boer War. The war ended in favor of the British, but the respected rivalry lingered on. To the surprise of many, Broussard managed to get the archenemies to cooperate and testify for H.R. 23621, dubbed the “American Hippo Bill”. Not even a decade before advocating together for hippo migrations, they were hunting one another in the vast stretches of Africa. The three men worked in tandem to sell the idea. Burnham continually noted that the majority of animals Americans eat, e.g., pigs, chickens, cows, sheep, etc., are not native animals. Why not bring the hippo here, just as those animals were brought centuries earlier, to regions unsuitable for most American grazing animals? Former president Theodore Roosevelt publicly supported the idea. The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, and other major newspapers also voiced their approval. The New York Times was exclaimed excitement for “lake cow bacon”. The U.S. Department of Agriculture also advocated on Broussard’s behalf. To the dismay of many, the bill failed by one vote. The dream of hippo ranches in the Louisiana bayous was crushed. The future of agriculture would continue to be one of mass industrialization and factory farms. After this failed attempt, Duquesne moved on to become a spy for Germany in New York City during WWI through a plethora of aliases. In the 1930s, he joined an American pro-Nazi party and led a massive espionage network for the Third Reich. The Duquesne Spy Ring was eventually busted by former FBI director J. Edgar Hoover. It remains the largest and most intricate espionage case in U.S. history. It seemed the Black Panther always picked the losing side of whatever conflict in which he engaged. Burnham’s colorful exploits ranged from fighting for the British in Africa through various conflicts to being celebrated as the “father of scouting” in his home country. Burnham received more awards from Great Britain than any other American during the Second Boer War. The regiment he commanded, the Lovat Scouts, became the first British sniper unit. In his later years he created a program to teach young boys the art of scouting, which eventually became known as the Boy Scouts. The entire saga will soon be made into a movie, “American Hippopotamus”. Edward Norton is signed on as producer. Four hippos did make their way to New Orleans in the 1980s to be purchased by notorious cocaine drug lord Pablo Escobar for his private menagerie on his 7,000 acre estate. After Escobar’s death, the electric fences that kept the hippos at bay ceased to operate. Hippos now roam free in the jungles of Colombia. Besides killing humans every now and then, they do not seem that problematic on the ecosystem. I emailed Jon Mooallem, author of “American Hippopotamus”, because I was curious how hippos could have altered the ecosystem of Louisiana. According to Mooallem, the environmental issues we face today, climate change and rising sea levels, “vastly overshadows any ill (or good) hippos would have done.” He’s not entirely sure how hippos would’ve impacted the ecosystem or native animals. However, “if the hippos have arrived, you might also have huge, industrialized meat production in the region…” with “giant slaughterhouses/cities of meat…” Gigantic hippo slaughterhouses might have accompanied other slaughterhouses of Old Arabi to meet the ravenous demands of New Orleans. Today, water hyacinths still plague much of the Louisiana waters by draining oxygen from the water and prematurely killing fish. The state alone spends millions spraying herbicides to destroy them. I personally remember as a kid many fishing days were ruined because of them. Hippopotamuses are ferocious animals that kill more humans than tigers, lions, and any other animal in Africa. However, I cannot help but believe that some backwoods boys would have easily learned how to track, trap, kill, skin, and make hippo meat just another ingredient in gumbo or hippo bacon an option atop eggs cochon de lait. “I’ll take a hippo po-boy, dressed.” Sources and further reading: “American Hippopotamus” by Jon Mooallem. It can be purchased from Amazon Kindle for only $2.99. Mooallem also appeared on This American Life to discuss his research. Advertisements |
The clock is ticking on a trio of bills that LGBT advocates in Arkansas claim would make it effectively “illegal to be transgender” in the state. Republicans have until March 31, which marks the end of the 2017 legislative session, to pass House Bill 1986, Senate Bill 774 and House Bill 1894 before these proposals are tabled for the year. SB 774, known as the Arkansas Physical Privacy and Safety Act, is similar to North Carolina’s controversial HB 2. It forces trans people in the state to use public restrooms that correspond to the gender listed on their birth certificate when entering government buildings and other entities owned by the state. That legislation is currently awaiting a vote by the Senate Judiciary Committee. Advertisement: Claiming it “sets a baseline for privacy,” the bill’s author, Sen. Linda Collins-Smith, defended SB 774 on Monday. “The bill truly is about all people, all dignity — making sure all areas are safe and feel comfortable,” she told press at the state’s capitol building. That bill has been opposed by the Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau, which has warned that legalizing discrimination could trigger massive economic backlash in the state. After passing HB 2 exactly a year ago, North Carolina has lost an estimated $600 million in revenue following boycotts from PayPal and Deutsche Bank, which relocated scheduled expansions that cost the state hundreds of jobs. The National Basketball Association pulled the All-Star Game from Charlotte, which would have been held in the city in February, and the league has claimed that the state will forfeit its hosting privileges until HB 2 is repealed. The bathroom bill, though, is just the tip of the iceberg. Further legislation being pushed by conservative lawmakers threatens to target trans individuals by making it extraordinarily difficult to be in public at all. Often referred to as the “bathroom bill lite,” HB 1986 actually goes further than the Physical Privacy and Safety Act by allowing individuals to bring charges against trans people for “indecent exposure.” Such actions are already a crime under Arkansas law, but HB 1986 would expand existing law on the subject. The bill defines indecent exposure as an instance in which an individual “knowingly exposes his or her sex organs to a person of the opposite biological sex: (A) In a public place or in public view; or (B) Under circumstances in which the person could reasonably believe the conduct is likely to cause affront or alarm.” Zachary Miller, who sits on the board of the Arkansas Transgender Equality Coalition, claimed that this law could be applied in ways that are extremely harmful for trans people. “That bill would have a huge impact on the entire trans community,” Miller said. “If a transgender man has top surgery, his chest could be viewed as a sexual organ, according to the the language used on the bill. Anywhere his chest is in public view — like at a public pool or going to a spa — he could be in violation of the law and be arrested.” Advertisement: Under HB 1986, trans people could face a hefty fine, as well as jail time, if another individual feels that the alleged assailant has exposed themselves in a way that would cause “affront or alarm.” If convicted of indecent exposure, transgender folks in the state would be subjected to a $2,500 penalty, in addition to a maximum sentence of a year in prison. Multiple charges dramatically escalate the severity of punishment. Should a trans person be found guilty of the crime four or five times in a 10-year span, that carries a Class D felony charge of six years behind bars, as well as a $10,000 fine. After one’s fifth conviction, the sentence is 10 years. To make matters worse, Rae Nelson of the Marsha P. Johnson Institute pointed out that there are a number of ways in which transgender people could be singled out under the law. For instance, Nelson recently went on a road trip to North Carolina with some trans friends. The group stopped off at a public restroom, and a member of her party, who is a transgender man, wanted to use the men’s facilities. But there was a major problem: Nelson explained that the “gap between the stalls was too wide.” Given that a survey from UCLA’s The Williams Institute showed that 60 percent of trans people have experienced harassment in public restrooms, it was a risk he was unwilling to take. “If there was even a chance of a person being able to catch a glimpse of him in there, he didn’t want to take it,” said Nelson, who sits on the board of the trans advocacy organization. Advertisement: But if the Arkansas law is passed, getting a “glimpse” of a transgender person using the bathroom — especially if it’s in a facility they are legally not allowed to be in — would constitute a crime. HB 1986 was already given approval by the state’s House of Representatives, who pushed it through by a 65-3 vote, and it awaits a vote in the Senate. A third anti-trans bill has been reintroduced after being voted down by the House Committee on Public Health, Welfare, and Labor earlier this month. HB 1894 would bar transgender people from amending their birth certificates to match their gender identity. “If I decided I don't want to be white, well, do I get to pick my race?” asked Representative Mickey Gates, who authored the legislation, warning during legislative debate that the bill is necessary to prevent a slippery slope of trans individuals identifying in any way they so choose, even as a different ethnicity or a different age. “What happens if you have a guy and he’s 24 years old and he decides he wants to be a 14-year-old guy so that he can have sex with a 14-year-old girl? Will that not be rape?” “Just because you have the right to identify doesn't mean the state is obligated to recognize the way you feel,”Gates added. Advertisement: But amending your birth certificate is already extremely difficult under existing state law. In order to do so, current Arkansas guidelines state that a transgender person must have a court order from a judge, as well as a letter from their physician stating that the individual has completed surgical transition. Gender confirmation surgery is an expensive, time-consuming process that many will not be able to afford. Transgender people, especially trans women of color, face the highest poverty rates of any group in the U.S. Should this bill become the law of the land, it would be next to impossible for any trans person in Arkansas to escape the aforementioned cycle of legal harassment and criminalization. Gwen Fry, president of the Arkansas Transgender Equality Coalition, argued that these bills are an attempt to “legislate the trans community out of existence.” “We’ve seen a real change in the climate here,” Fry said. “It’s a very tenuous place to be in and highly stressful for individuals in the trans community. They’re trying to make it illegal to be transgender.” Advertisement: Miller particularly noted the impact that these pieces of legislation — which he said are the first of their kind ever introduced in Arkansas — would have on transgender youth in the state. HB 1984, the HB 2-style bathroom bill, specifically calls out facility use in state-owned buildings. That would force trans students in public schools to use restrooms and locker rooms that do not correspond with their gender identity. Transgender individuals experience a disproportionately high rate of suicide attempts, especially among young people, and this would only make the trauma they already face even worse. “One in six trans youth have been sexually assaulted in schools that do not have trans-friendly bathroom policies,” Miller claimed. “One in three have been physically assaulted.” Arkansas isn’t the only state to consider legislation targeting trans rights. The Texas House of Representatives is set to hear arguments on SB 6 after the bathroom bill, which has been opposed by companies like Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Hilton, passed the state’s Senate by a vote of 20 to 10. Although Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is an enthusiastic supporter of the bill, House Speaker Joe Straus has warned it would be bad for the state’s economy. The Texas Association of Business estimated the state could lose up to $8.5 billion as a result. Miller felt that striking down Arkansas’ anti-trans bills was imperative in a year where at least eight transgender women have already been murdered. The LGBT advocate, who frequently visits the legislature to help inform lawmakers on the issues, is disheartened that these sobering numbers have yet to change the hearts and minds of the bills’ proponents. Advertisement: “They would rather see you die than go to a damn restroom,” Miller claimed. |
Emily (via email) submitted: Image transcription, since it’s a little blurry: The word “day” can be used caledrically or non-calendrically, to refer to the whole daily cycle, or it can refer just to the daylight portion of the cycle, in opposition to “night”. The word “morning” can be to refer to the daylight hours before noon, or to that part of thecalendar before noon. Thus, the “morning” is that part of the “day” which ends at noon, in either of the two calendric senses of “day”. Next time you hear someboday say, “Why are you calling me in the middle of the night? Don’t you realize it’s three o’clock in the morning?”, point out to him that he has chosen the word “night” from the day-subdivision cycle which is not put in phase with the calendar day and that he has chosen the word “morning” from the day-subdivision cycle which is put in phase with the calendar day, and explain to him that the reason is that only the latter is appropriate in expressions of clock time. |
Late Friday night, some guy in an apartment in the area of Nazing Street in Roxbury turned on his new Macbook Air - and it promptly took this photo and e-mailed it to the Jamaica Plain man from whom it was stolen on Wednesday. A Boston Police report shows the man was jumped from behind and knocked to the ground around 6:30 p.m. on St. John Street. Eric Herot, a friend of the victim who posted the photo to Twitter, reports the two muggers held him there long enough to grab his phone - on which he was talking when attacked - and his computer bag. Herot says his friend had installed software called Prey on the laptop, which is designed for just such events. Once activated, the software periodically and quickly turns on a laptop's camera, takes a picture and then mails it to the owner, along with an approximate geographic location and information about its connection to the Internet (the laptop's connecting via a wireless network called LADYFEENIX-PC_Network_1). So if you're in the Nazing Street area and know a guy with the text of John 3:16 tattooed on his chest, you might want to suggest he drop that laptop off at, oh, District B-2. Herot says his friend doesn't think this guy was one of his attackers. |
Ms. Marvel, the 1960s-era comic book heroine who inspired a generation of teenage girls as a crime-fighting former U.S. Air Force officer in an impossibly tight costume, is making a comeback. But in the iconic character’s next incarnation, she will look very different. The role of the previously blonde, blue-eyed Ms. Marvel will be filled by a Muslim teen, Kamala Khan. Khan, a 16-year-old high school student who lives in Jersey City with her Pakistani immigrant parents, can grow and shrink parts of her body and shape shift into other forms, The Associated Press reported. But her real power might reside in helping teach the American public about what it means to grow up as a Muslim girl in the United States, activists said. Khan is the first Muslim lead character in a Marvel comic series. "She is going to be a window into the American Muslim experience," said Fatemeh Fakhraie, the founder of Muslimah Media Watch, a forum on Muslim women’s representation in popular culture. Fakhraie said the new superhero "normalizes this idea of the American experience as Muslim," adding that "A lot of us are bumping up against that the idea that a lot of America is white, while that isn't what America is, we're not all white and Christian." Previously, Marvel's Muslim characters played minor roles, and included Dust, who can transform into sand and needed saving by Wolverine from a slave trafficking scam in Afghanistan. |
The suspect in Berkeley’s first homicide of the new year has been identified as Pablo Gomez Jr., a University of California Berkeley student and left-wing activist. Berkeleyside reports Gomez allegedly stabbed a woman who, despite her injuries, had managed to flag down assistance. Eventually authorities discovered the dead body from another “violent crime” incident, leading them to tag Gomez as the main suspect. A Chicanx/Latinx Studies major, Gomez is involved with Berkeley’s Queer Alliance Resource Center and “is a senior climate action fellow at Alliance for Climate Education,” according to their respective Facebook pages. Sharp-eyed College Fix readers may recognize the student as one of the activists who confronted the Berkeley College Republicans back in September. In the video, Gomez is shown grabbing their Donald Trump cut-out, telling them it’s “f*cked up.” Berkeley CR President José Diaz had said at the time that the agitators demanded that the cut-out be removed “due to the perceived offensive nature that it represents towards them.” Meanwhile, Berkeleyside ended up amending their original article about Gomez’s arrest with the following: “This story was updated after publication to reflect Gomez Jr.’s preferred pronoun, according to a friend who contacted Berkeleyside.” That’s right, an accused killer’s correct pronoun — “they” — had to be used. The Daily Caller points out that commenters to the Berkeleyside report expressed anger and disbelief at the update: “Is this for real? Dude (allegedly) kills someone and we’re worried about the pronoun he goes by? Who cares!” one commenter wrote. “Who the hell cares what pronoun he/she/it prefers to be called by? I’ll bet his victims would have preferred not to be stabbed,” wrote another. Fox 2 KTVU news reports the homicide victim is UC Santa Cruz student Emilie Inman, 27, that Gomez is on a psychiatric hold while in custody, no motive is known at this time, and prosecutors have yet to review the case. MORE: Protesters bum-rush Berkeley Republicans, try to nab Trump cutout MORE: ‘Escape hatch’ built for Berkeley admin building after repeated sit-ins Like The College Fix on Facebook / Follow us on Twitter IMAGE: YouTube |
Energy Secretary Rick Perry spoke briefly this afternoon to a group of reporters to address topics in energy. The Trump administration has deemed this week “Energy Week” and has tasked its appointees, including Perry, to pitch what an “energy-dominant America” looks like to the American people. Perry painted a vision of America’s energy future in broad strokes this afternoon and said that the US would become a net exporter of energy through natural gas and oil exports. The Energy Information Administration has said that the US could become a net energy exporter by 2026. Perry, who has been dismissive of climate change in the past and has close ties to the fossil fuel industry, also called on the US to “reaffirm our commitment to clean energy,” while at the same time embracing fossil fuels. "That binary choice between pro-economy and pro-environment that has perpetuated—or, I should say, been perpetuated by the Obama administration—has set up a false argument," Perry said. "The fact is, we can do good for both—and we will." Under the Obama administration, solar, wind, and natural gas jobs grew, although coal jobs did fall. Perry is also a supporter of nuclear energy. “No clean energy portfolio is truly complete without nuclear power,” Perry added this afternoon. Research into advanced nuclear reactors and small modular reactors, he said, would be “a game changer.” The secretary was vague on details about how exactly the Department of Energy (DOE) would boost the ailing nuclear energy industry—this year, major reactor builder Westinghouse suffered a bankruptcy—but he did offer a few ideas. “One of the things we want to do at Department of Energy is make nuclear energy cool again” to young people who might want to study it, Perry said. He later added, “this industry has been strangled all too often by government regulations.” The Secretary also said there hadn’t been any decision on Yucca Mountain, the planned nuclear waste facility in Nevada that had been put on hold indefinitely due to local opposition. The Trump administration has expressed a willingness to reopen Yucca Mountain planning, setting the stage for a political battle down the line. Perry caught flack last week for denying that carbon dioxide is a primary factor in climate change, something that reporters pressed him on again today. But over several questions, Perry’s response was far from clear. “The climate is changing, man is having an impact on it,” Perry said, expressing frustration that “we can’t have an intellectual conversation about just what are the actual impacts.” Another reporter sought to clarify whether Perry was saying that humans are affecting climate change, and now the discussion is about how to handle that change. “Sure,” Perry offered. But later the secretary walked his statement back and said “climate’s changing, always has, man at this point in time is having an effect on it... [but] how much effect is what’s at question here.” The secretary said he had not spoken to President Trump, who has wrongly called climate change a hoax, about the changing climate. Perry also defended Trump’s decision to announce his withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on the grounds that the US is already a leader in renewable energy. In a response to a question about how the US would proceed in the aftermath of pulling out of the Paris Agreement, Perry said that, although Trump promised he would renegotiate for a better deal, no such negotiations have started taking place yet. “I’m pretty sure the president of the United States wakes up every day thinking about how to get a better deal on a host of different things,” Perry said. The secretary also called for the US to support carbon capture and storage projects like the Petra Nova coal plant outside of Houston, Texas, which came online this year and is expected to capture 90 percent of its carbon dioxide emissions. Although the Trump administration has put forward budget proposals that would dramatically decrease the amount of funding for energy research, Perry touted the country’s national labs as places where the US could find new uses for coal (specifically, he mentioned mining coal deposits for rare earth minerals). Secretary Perry also said, “I think that renewables are proving themselves to be a valuable diverse portfolio.” |
Watch the Women’s Ashes Test LIVE and FREE on cricket.com.au and the Cricket Australia Live app, with enhanced coverage thanks to the support of Commonwealth Bank. Australia have trimmed their 15-player squad by two for the historic Commonwealth Bank Women's Ashes Series day-night Test match, with leg-spinner Kristen Beams and fast bowler Belinda Vakarewa omitted. The pair were informed after Australia's three-day pink-ball practice match against an ACT Invitational XI in Canberra on Sunday. The team arrived in Sydney yesterday to finalise preparations for the first-ever day-night Ashes Test starting Thursday at North Sydney Oval. A win in the four-day Test would earn Australia the four points they need to retain the trophy they won off England two years ago. Beams was 12th man for Australia in Canberra while Vakarewa, the sole addition to the playing group that won the ODI leg 2-1, represented the ACT. "Belinda showed promising signs with the ball and is definitely a player of the future, and whilst she would be disappointed, it's pleasing to see so many pace bowlers putting their hands up for selection," said selector Shawn Flegler. "Kristen was also unlucky to miss out on selection, with the Panel opting to go with just the one leg-spinner in the side. "A win in this match could see Australia take an unassailable lead in the series and retain the Ashes, so it was important that the side was well-balanced and capable of taking 20 wickets." Having whittled the squad by two, Australia's selectors will need to cull two more when finalising the playing XI for the Test match. The squad includes five uncapped Test players: Ashleigh Gardner, Tahlia McGrath, Amanda-Jade Wellington, Beth Mooney and Lauren Cheatle. QUICK SINGLE Aussie bats warned to get on front foot early While Australia's top seven looks set, even if the batting order is still unknown, the make-up of the bowling attack is set to be the toughest selection dilemma. Spearhead Megan Schutt is a certain starter, as is leg-spinner Wellington, while Cheatle's left-arm point of difference will be hard to ignore. Which leaves Jess Jonassen, McGrath and Gardner potentially fighting for one spot in the XI. Each player offers something different and the pitch at North Sydney Oval will likely have a lot to say in who gets the nod. It’s all getting very real... final fitting for my test blazer & only 2 more sleeps until we take on Eng in the first ever d/n Ashes test 🙌🏻 pic.twitter.com/x2uqqD8ZxI — Rachael Haynes 🏏 (@RachaelHaynes) November 6, 2017 Should the pitch be green and deemed helpful for seam bowling, McGrath's right-arm medium pacers could be an asset, as shown when she picked up the wickets of Elyse Villani, Rachael Haynes and Ellyse Perry in the space of four balls on Sunday. If the wicket looks set to take turn, the right-arm off-spin of Gardner and her explosive batting would go up against Jonassen's left-arm orthodox and Test match experience. Jonassen made 99 at Canterbury the last time Australia and England squared off in a Test match. Should Gardner debut she would become just the third player of Indigenous descent to play Test cricket for Australia behind Faith Thomas in 1958 and Jason Gillespie, who debuted in 1996 and captured 259 Test wickets. QUICK SINGLE Beyond Bourke to the Baggy Green Previewing the match on this week's episode of The Unplayable Podcast, former Australia captain Lisa Sthalekar believes Australia have the edge over England. "I think the (Australia) batters are a little more stable and contributing more than England," Sthalekar said. QUICK SINGLE Broadcast quality live stream for Ashes Test "I think (Australia's) bowlers, and I'm basing this on ODI cricket where England were obviously the world champions, they've come out and picked up regular wickets and bowled in better areas than England. "Unless (Katherine) Brunt and (Anya) Shrubsole at the top change things and everyone else can feed off them, I think England will really struggle to pick up 20 wickets." The Australians will train under lights at North Sydney Oval on Tuesday evening before completing their final hit-out on Wednesday afternoon. Australia Test squad: Alex Blackwell, Nicole Bolton, Lauren Cheatle, Ashleigh Gardner, Rachael Haynes (c), Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Tahlia McGrath, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Elyse Villani, Amanda-Jade Wellington Meanwhile, the Governer-General's XI to play a T20 match against England ahead of the shortest format section of the Women's Ashes has been named, featuring a mix of international stars and rising talent, including seven teenagers, the youngest of whom is Rachel Trenaman, a 16-year-old leg-spinner from NSW who played in the corresponding fixture a year ago in a win against South Africa. The side will be captained by Southern Stars regular Nicole Bolton, a veteran in this squad at age 28, and Flegler said giving the next generation an opportunity against the England side was important. "It’s really pleasing to be able to give some of Australia’s young talent chance to test themselves against an international side," Flegler said. "With an average age of 20, It’s great to see some new faces put their hand up, with only three of these squad members part of last year’s team. “Nicole Bolton will bring some fantastic skills and experience to the side and will be looking to lead this young team from the front.” The squad will asemble in Sydney on November 14 ahead of the matchat Drummoyne Oval from 6.30pm the following evening. Governor-General’s XI squad: Nicole Bolton (WA, 28), Hayleigh Brennan (VIC, 18), Lauren Cheatle (NSW, 20), Josephine Dooley (QLD, 17), Erin Fazackerley (TAS, 19), Heather Graham (WA, 21), Mikayla Hinkley (NSW, 19), Sophie Molineux (VIC, 19), Naomi Stalenberg (NSW, 23), Rachel Trenaman (NSW, 16), Chelsea Veney (Cricket ADF, 22), Georgia Wareham (VIC,18) Commonwealth Bank Women's Ashes Australia lead England 4-2 Australia squad (ODI and Test): Rachael Haynes (c), Alex Blackwell (vc), Kristen Beams, Nicole Bolton, Lauren Cheatle, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Tahlia McGrath, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Belinda Vakarewa (Test only), Elyse Villani, Amanda-Jade Wellington. England squad: Heather Knight (c), Tammy Beaumont, Katherine Brunt, Sophie Ecclestone, Georgia Elwiss, Jenny Gunn, Alex Hartley, Danielle Hazell, Laura Marsh, Anya Shrubsole, Sarah Taylor, Nat Sciver, Fran Wilson, Lauren Winfield, Danielle Wyatt. Schedule First ODI Australia won by two wickets Second ODI Australia won by 75 runs (DLS method) Third ODI England won by 20 runs (DLS method) Day-Night Test North Sydney Oval, November 9-12 First T20 North Sydney Oval, November 17 North Sydney Charity Partner: McGrath Foundation Second T20 Manuka Oval, November 19 Third T20 Manuka Oval, November 21 Canberra Charity Partner: Lord's Taverners ACT |
The problem with art in our time is, quite simply, the problem of disenchantment. I’ve been writing Christmas songs over the past few years, and maybe for much the same reason that AMC fills the airwaves with its zombie-apocalypse television show "The Walking Dead"; why the CW has given us "Supernatural" for ten seasons; why Syfy has added "Z Nation," and Stephen King has increased his horror-genre fortune with CBS’ "Under the Dome"; why dozens of other programs and movies these days concern magic, science-fiction disasters, super heroes, and the occult. The problem with art in our time is, quite simply, the problem of disenchantment. We need what we lack, here in late modernity — a living connection with the past, a density of reference, a thickness of vocabulary, and an external world that glows with cosmic meaning. All the lyric writing I’ve been attempting in recent years has been an effort in my poetry (such as it is) to reach back into the thick past. And with the Christmas songs, in particular, I’ve also tried to reach toward one of the last few enchantments left in our public world. Or, as I put it in “Some Come to See the Lord,” one of this year’s newly recorded carols in my two-song EP Grace and Gladness: Some come because as children they sang old Christmas songs. That’s the happy past. And yet, too: Some come because as children they suffered hurts and wrongs. And that’s the sad past that claws at us still in the present: The wounded, poor, and shattered — the heartsick, lost, and battered: Some come for life restored. Some come to see the Lord. We seek the manger because Christ is the solution to the damage in our souls. But we also seek the sleeping child because, like the Magi, we realize that Christ is a solution — a cosmically meaningful, metaphysical rich, supernaturally powerful moment in this otherwise thin world. Think of it this way: If meaning comes only from us — if meaning arrives only via the human outlook on the world — then there is nothing meaningful in itself. Oh, sure, we have great emotions and great hungers. That’s part of what we want art to express. But what outside ourselves is inherently worthy of having our great feelings attached to it? In a thin world, nothing is enchanted. Nothing is naturally weighty, meaningful, infused with power. Nothing is rich, thick, and alive with the kind of true beauty that art needs to survive beyond a few generations. Throw in a few zombies, however, and you’ve got a world, for screenwriters and viewers, that thrums with all the deep meaning of the apocalypse and the end of days. Toss in some vampires, ghosts, and demons, and you have a world in which evil and good have palpable presence. In other words, a hunger for a metaphysically rich, supernaturally thick, emotionally wrought world is written across our age. And Christmas still provides it to artist and audience. Or, as I put it in “Joy Will Keep,” the other of this year’s newly recorded carols: Dreamers seek the source of dreaming. Wise men search for wisdom’s throne. Christ has shown the cause of meaning: truth itself at last made known. That’s pages and pages of St. Bonaventure, compressed down into a quatrain. All art ends up saying something about the artist. I have, I know, a tendency to fall into sad funks and self-despisings, and if I find the mad festival of Christmas an answer of joyous unselfconsciousness, well, who would be surprised to discover that all this appears in the lyrics? Across the fields in winter, the snow lies soft and clean. Across the fields in winter, a new-made world is seen. We will escape the sadness. There lives now grace and gladness, and peace beyond the sword — this child who is the Lord. |
Written by Tom Williams on September 25, 2015 New “Radicalisation Awareness Kits” provided to schools by the Federal Government suggest a link between the “alternative music scene” and violent extremism, as well as ideological violence. The Government’s 32-page ‘Preventing Violent Extremism And Radicalisation In Australia’ booklet was launched this week, featuring a section on violent extremism, which suggests that teenagers who listen to “alternative music” show signs of potentially becoming violent extremists. In the case study provided, the made-up story of a girl named Karen begins with her growing up “in a loving family who never participated in activism of any sort”. When Karen moves out of home to attend university though, she becomes “involved in the alternative music scene, student politics and left-wing activism”. At this point she sounds like a pretty cool gal, but the Government doesn’t seem to think so. As she enjoys her “alternative music”, Karen attends an environmental protest and drops out of uni to live in a “forest camp” for a year to disrupt logging activities. Fighting between protesters and loggers goes down, and Karen is arrested for trespass, damaging property, assault and obstructing police. These days, Karen apparently thinks her time spent enjoying “alternative music” was just “typical teenage rebellion that went further than most”. Gosh darn that “alternative music”! Just look at these violent extremists: The Government’s anti-radicalisation kit aims to highlight circumstances in which young people could become radicalised. It’s all very in-keeping with their terrorism narrative, but environmentalists, teachers and music lovers are up in arms about it. As Jess Origliasso from The Veronicas has tweeted today, “About to ‘Radicalise’ 4000 kids today at slimefest wearing my Nirvana shirt and talking about Sea Shepherd. #freeKaren.” Jonathan La Nauze from the Australian Conservation Foundation says the Government’s anti-radicalisation booklet is misleading and potentially dangerous. “It sounds like something that’s been dreamt up in the cigar room of the Institute of Public Affairs. There’s no resemblance to the way that people in Australia feel about their environment and the need to stand up to protect it,” he says, via the ABC. The Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Terrorism, Michael Keenan, who launched the anti-radicalisation booklet, says its main targets are young people at risk of being radicalised by Islamist groups such as Islamic State. He also says the booklet is designed to help teachers understand “certain signs” which “would lead them to be concerned about somebody”. According to the Karen case study, one of those signs is “alternative music”. Maurie Mulheron, the president of the New South Wales Teachers’ Federation, says the anti-radicalisation kit is designed to create fear in the community. “I think it’s a fairly cynical move by the Federal Government not to make anyone feel safer but to engender fear and intolerance,” he says. “I’m very doubtful that the Federal Government has pure motives in this area. They’ve got a track record now of trying to engender division within the community on these issues and I don’t think that what they’re proposing will make one iota of difference.” You can read the Government’s full Karen case study alongside some reactions from music lovers, below, and the full 32-page anti-radicalisation booklet on the Living Safe Together website. Until next time, #FreeKaren. ‘Preventing Violent Extremism And Radicalisation In Australia’ Booklet – Karen Case Study (Click to expand) They got Karen in with music & then she was locking on to bulldozers. #FreeKaren #auspol Radicalisation Awareness Kit http://t.co/rU9EIq26t8 — WACA (@akaWACA) September 24, 2015 If a Border Force agent asks if you like alternative music, ask them to define alternative music. This will give you ample time to escape. — ABC News Intern (@ABCnewsIntern) September 24, 2015 About to "Radicalise" 4000 kids today at slimefest wearing my Nirvana shirt and talking about Sea Shepherd. #freeKaren — Jessica Veronica (@Jessicaveronica) September 24, 2015 Listened to a lot of punk in high school, now I think that breaking international law to torture asylum seekers is wrong #freeKaren — Wizard Nathan (@nlfharrison) September 24, 2015 Is it a sign of my radical, music-listening youth that I thought #freekaren was a Sonic Youth reference? — Andrew Giles MP (@andrewjgiles) September 24, 2015 Federal Govt schools 'Radicalisation Awareness Kit": the only case study under "violent extremism". pic.twitter.com/fOHUgCw9tD — Mark Colvin (@Colvinius) September 24, 2015 https://twitter.com/ABCenvironment/status/647185840955768832 |
Get the biggest Manchester United FC stories by email Subscribe Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Could not subscribe, try again later Invalid Email Rio Ferdinand will be with Manchester United's squad in a training camp with Dubai later this week, despite speculation he wouldn't be making the trip. The defender is among those being whisked to the Middle East as David Moyes looks to put his stars through a rigorous training programme. The squad will be flying out after tomorrow night's match against Arsenal. But as Steve Bates of the Sunday People reported over the weekend, Moyes was concerned that the trip would look like a REWARD for his struggling side. After a last-minute Darren Bent goal gave Fulham a point at Old Trafford on Sunday, Moyes said: “Today was as bad as it gets,” he said. “We gave away a diabolical second goal. You could use maybe mental softness as an excuse, in that we didn’t see the job out and get the job done. I’d agree with that. “The players are hurting. I can see every day that they’re hurting, because the results aren’t going the way they want. They’re really good professionals in the way they go about their work and what I see in training makes me feel they’ll get results." |
DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings will part with some players and add a few parts this offseason, but they don't have the salary cap space or the need to make major moves. Any changes they make likely will be minimal, especially if Nicklas Lidstrom returns. That is why improvement must come from within. They have a lot of players who need to elevate their game and others who should be better by being healthy and rested. "A message has been sent to myself as a coach and the management that we have to improve our team,'' Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. "How do you improve your team? "You improve your team by Val Filppula taking a big step. He's at that point in his career he's got to take a step. You improve by Mule (Johan Franzen) being healthy, by (Jonathan) Ericsson taking a big step.'' Two days after being eliminated by the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference semifinals, the Red Wings cleaned out their lockers Monday following the team photo. Looking ahead to next season, Babcock expects more from players they already have, not anybody they might acquire. Filppula, who missed 26 games early in the season with a broken wrist, is a playmaker, not a finisher, but the team thinks he is capable of being a 20-goal, 70-point producer. Dan Cleary missed 18 games with injuries and battled inconsistency after posting consecutive 20-goal seasons. Franzen might have topped the 30-goal mark again if he hadn't missed 55 games because of a torn knee ligament. Stars Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg figure to produce more than 70 points each. The Red Wings' biggest addition likely will be Jiri Hudler, who will bolster their offense after spending one year in Russia. "It's 70 points we didn't have. That's a second power-play unit that can score,'' Babcock said. "It's more goals for everyone because of the plays he can make. We're going to give him an opportunity to be a top-six forward. He's got to show he can be one.'' The Red Wings need more skill and scoring punch from their third line. Filppula, Cleary and/or Hudler can help in that area if they're not playing on one of the top two lines. The club must decide whether to re-sign Todd Bertuzzi. Jason Williams isn't expected to return. On defense, Nicklas Kronwall and Ericsson figure to be better. Kronwall wasn't the same after returning from a knee injury that idled him for two months. Ericsson struggled during his first full NHL season after showing much promise in the 2009 playoffs. "(Ericsson) has got to come back next year and take a real step,'' Babcock said. "He's very capable.'' Jakub Kindl, their 2005 first-round pick, will compete for the sixth spot on defense, possibly with veteran Andreas Lilja, if he is re-signed. Brett Lebda is not likely to return. "There's a number of things we can do internally, and then we'll make some changes to help ourselves get better,'' Babcock said. "In the end, we weren't deep enough.'' A longer offseason will help players re-energize. "In our organization, we believe the final four is the measure,'' Babcock said. "You have to be in it every year. And when you don't get there, you're disappointed. The gift of it this year is they can take now and until the end of May off and have 15 weeks to train. You can get your body back.'' No question that three long playoff runs took their toll. "I guess that's the good thing you can take out of losing early,'' Lidstrom said. "You can recharge for an extra three or four weeks.'' This team's success will hinge, to a large extent, on whether Lidstrom, the six-time Norris Trophy winner as the NHL's top defenseman, returns or retires. He said he will decide before July 1, the start of free agency. Babcock is optimistic. "I just think he'll be back. I'm not one bit concerned,'' Babcock said. "He's got too much good hockey left in him. I think if he believed we didn't have a chance to win, it might be different. But I think he's like the rest of us, he thinks we'll be right back knocking on the door.'' |
“You dropped a 150 grand on a fucking education that you could’ve got a $1.50 in late charges at the public library” – Good Will Hunting (1997) I love that quote. It not only speaks to the accessibility of knowledge, it also speaks to the importance of being efficient with your learnings. I just recently shut down Rewire Attire, the exclusive high end apparel marketplace. We hand picked and recruited high end fashion designers to list their designs for sale. We marketed and sold those designs. We arranged shipment and accepted payment. Designers packaged their orders and dropped them off for shipment. One of our biggest selling features for shoppers was our “perfect fit” technology. The pitch was to get away from inaccurate generic sizing terms like “small”, “medium” and “large” and move to a system based on body measurements. While it’s impractical to use body measurements in a traditional bricks and mortar retail environment, the internet is well suited to log a shoppers body measurements and compare those measurements to a catalogue of fashion designs – “have designs try you on instead”. Even after shutting down the business, writing about it still gets me excited. I still feel the future of fashion retail (or clothes shopping) involves an improvement on sizing with the help of the internet (and data). Here’s the problem. I’m not the target audience. The target audience for Rewire Attire, the high end fashion marketplace, was women with enough money to afford high end fashion and that are young enough to be comfortable shopping for clothes on the internet. It turns out that these women are not comfortable sharing their body measurements, overwhelmingly so, despite the benefits. I found this out by spending $100 on a Google consumer survey: …after already investing over a year of my time and over $40,000 developing the business. Even though I’d listened Eric Reis speak at Stanford (via podcast…thanks Stanford for sharing). And even though I read Steve Blank‘s The Four Steps to the Epiphany. I was still inefficient with my learnings. Needless to say, I’m now an even bigger proponent of The Lean Startup. Cheers T Advertisements |
Seth Gordon is in negotiations to direct Dwayne Johnson in Paramount’s bigscreen adaptation of the TV series “Baywatch.” Johnson is attached to star and will produce along with his partner Dany Garcia through their Seven Bucks Productions banner along with Montecito Pictures producing along with Beau Flynn. Michael Berk, Douglas Schwartz, Greg Bonnan will exec produce. While plot details are currently vague, sources close to the project have said the studio wants to go the comedic route for the project. Paramount has been trying to get the right ingredients in place in order to move forward with the film, and Gordon is the sort of director the studio has been looking to over the years. Gordon’s hit vulgar comedies like “Horrible Bosses” and “Identity Theft” have made him a popular director at the studios amid moviegoers’ craving for R-rated comedies. Paramount would hope for similar results. Damian Shannon & Mark Swift wrote the latest draft of the script. Gordon had been attached to Sony’s “Uncharted” but recently left the project. He is repped by WME, Brillstein Entertainment and Sloane Offer. |
Could you make $500 in a day from reading into a microphone? The simple answer is yes, but there's a lot of time and effort that goes into that "yes". Recently, I was browsing a reddit thread that posed the question, "What's the easiest way to make an extra $500 a month outside of your day job?" Following a handful of obscure responses, a user mentioned "narrating audio books," without giving any sort of context regarding the difficulty or effort it required. Almost immediately, dozens of users were replying with questions about how they could do it themselves or how much money they could potentially make from it. While I'm most-definitely not an expert in this field, I was met with mixed feelings about the post. Firstly, uninitiated users were mislead to think that this was something anyone could easily do as a side gig. It down-played the realities of what it takes to be a voice actor, especially as a hobby or "side gig". At the same time, however, I was happy to see so much interest in voice acting. The fact is, if you ever plan on making money from voice acting, you will need to invest both time and money before you ever see a dime. It will never be as simple as buying a cheap USB microphone and reading a script, unfortunately. If you've already gotten your toes wet in voice-over work, you already know why. For the curious or the new-comers, read on! |
About The Author Janko Jovanovic is user interface designer, software engineer, blogger, speaker and artist. In his free time, he writes about user interfaces on his blog … More about Janko… Web Form Validation: Best Practices and Tutorials Smashing Newsletter Upgrade your inbox and get our editors’ picks twice a month. Your email Subscribe → Ideally, users will fill the web form with necessary information and finish their job successfully. However, people often make mistakes. This is where web form validation comes into play. The goal of web form validation is to ensure that the user provided necessary and properly formatted information needed to successfully complete an operation. In this article we will go beyond the validation itself and explore different validation and error feedback techniques, methods and approaches. Further Reading on SmashingMag: Validation methods User’s input can be validated on the server and on the client (web browser). Thus we have server-side and client-side validation. We’ll discuss pros and cons of each. Meet Smashing Book 6 — our brand new book focused on real challenges and real front-end solutions in the real world: from design systems and accessible single-page apps to CSS Custom Properties, CSS Grid, Service Workers, performance, AR/VR and responsive art direction. With Marcy Sutton, Yoav Weiss, Lyza D. Gardner, Laura Elizabeth and many others. Table of Contents → Server-side validation In the server-side validation, information is being sent to the server and validated using one of server-side languages. If the validation fails, the response is then sent back to the client, page that contains the web form is refreshed and a feedback is shown. This method is secure because it will work even if JavaScript is turned off in the browser and it can’t be easily bypassed by malicious users. On the other hand, users will have to fill in the information without getting a response until they submit the form. This results in a slow response from the server. The exception is validation using Ajax. Ajax calls to the server can validate as you type and provide immediate feedback. Validation in this context refers to validating rules such as username availability. You can read more about validation with Ajax in this excellent tutorial on jQueryForDesigners. This diagram shows differences between client-side and server-side validation and other techniques. Client-side validation Server-side validation is enough to have a successful and secure form validation. For better user experience, however, you might consider using client-side validation. This type of validation is done on the client using script languages such as JavaScript. By using script languages user’s input can be validated as they type. This means a more responsive, visually rich validation. With client-side validation, form never gets submitted if validation fails. Validation is being handled in JavaScript methods that you create (or within frameworks/plugins) and users get immediate feedback if validation fails. Main drawback of client-side validation is that it relies on JavaScript. If users turn JavaScript off, they can easily bypass the validation. This is why validation should always be implemented on both the client and server. By combining server-side and client-side methods we can get the best of the two: fast response, more secure validation and better user experience. Rich, instant validation feedback is done on the client on TypePad There are several different types of validation you can perform: required fields, correct format and confirmation fields. Required information The first and most obvious information that should be validated is required information – information without which operation cannot be completed successfully. Thus, validation has to ensure that the user provided all the necessary details in the web form and it has to fail if at least one of the fields is not provided. Required fields should be clearly marked in order to inform users about what information has to be provided up front. Required fields on Komodo Media blog comment form are marked with "required" help text. A common way to mark required fields is with an asterisk (*). However, not all users know the meaning of an asterisk sign. Beginners or older users are very likely to have only a general idea of what an asterisk might mean. This is the reason why it is a good practice to either put a note on the top of the form that indicates that all fields marked with an asterisk are required or to use required field markers. In case that all fields are required there is no need to place asterisks or markers in the form. A simple message that all fields are required is enough. Facebook doesn't provide information about required fields. Users get information that all fields are required only after they press the "submit"-button. Last year, we conducted an survey on Web form design. According to that survey “designers tend to remove all unnecessary details and distractions which don’t help the user to complete the form”. More detailed analysis showed a trend of using very few mandatory fields – more than 50% of forms used at most 5 mandatory fields, while optional fields were often avoided. This can be useful to you when deciding on required fields. Correct format Apart from ensuring that users provide necessary information, validation has to ensure that users provide information in the correct format. This applies to various cases such as email address, URL, dates, phone numbers and others. If the information is not in the correct format, users should be informed and correct format should be suggested. Probably the easiest way to validate the “correct” formatting is to use regular expressions. Please notice that it is often a good idea to not impose a strict input pattern on the users; it’s better to actually permit users to enter text in a variety of formats and syntaxes, and make the application interpret it intelligently. The user just wants to get something done, not think about “correct” formats and complex UIs. Let the user type whatever he needs, and if it’s reasonable, make the software do the right thing with it. This design pattern is also often called forgiving format UI design pattern. Carbonmade sign-up form validates URL format, informs the user about the error and provides ways to correct it. To learn more about regular expressions be sure to read Essential Guide To Regular Expressions: Tools and Tutorials or if you already know the basics: Crucial Concepts Behind Advanced Regular Expressions. We’ll discuss some other format techniques later in the article. Confirmation fields When dealing with data that is important to the system, it is a good practice to let the users confirm their input using additional confirmation fields. This way users can be certain that they provided correct information. A typical case when confirmation field is used is for passwords, but it can be used in other cases like an email address. Photobucket sign-up form required users to re-type password they previously entered in order to ensure it has been correctly entered. A confirmation field should be placed next (or below) the target field. It has to clearly describe the purpose of the field such as “Confirm your password”. If two values do not match, the user should be informed. As an option, you can use a success indicator if values DO match. The second part of our survey shows interesting information about confirmation fields. Email confirmation was mandatory in only 18% of sites, while password confirmation was mandatory in 72% of web sites. Surprisingly, large websites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Stumbleupon and Twitter don’t require password confirmation. Validation feedback If validation fails, the system should let the users know it by providing a clear and unambiguous message (usually one or two sentences) and ways to correct errors. Since users need to notice an error message immediately, it is a good practice to position it at the top of a web form, before all the other fields. This will also allow screen readers to easily access the message. The message should be shown preferably in red since this is the color that people usually associate with errors and it should contain an appropriate icon in order to get more attention. Icon should be globally recognizable, such as a red circle with white cross. This will also help people with visual impairments identify the meaning of the message. In addition to this, users should be informed about which input fields need to be checked. The Invoice Machine Sign-up form doesn't provide error feedback. Error message is missing and input fields are colored with pastel red that is not easy to spot. Apart from the error message and a list of invalid fields, the system should clearly mark fields that are invalid. This can be done in one of the following ways (or any combination of them): By providing red inline messages or markers next to every invalid field By changing the background color or border color of invalid fields (to red) By changing the color of field labels By providing error tips (balloons) next to each field If you provide error tips or help, be short and informative. For example, if date is in an incorrect, format provide users with details on how to format it properly: “The date should be in the dd-mm-yyyy-format”. It is sometimes also a good idea to have these hints as the initial value of your input fields. Thus, the user will first read the hint inside the input box and when he/she will start typing the data, the hint will disappear. Validation upon submit The “classic” way to perform validation is when the user submits his data via the “submit”-button. The validation is executed and if any errors are found, feedback is returned and displayed to the user. This way users will be able to fill the form without any interruptions. But, that could be a disadvantage as well. Users will be able to fix the errors only after they try to submit the form and get the response back from the server. This technique is typical for server-side validation, but can also be done on the client side. Feedback on Ballpark sign-up form occurs upon submit. It shows an obvious error message with incorrect fields at the top of the form and marks each incorrect field with a tip. Real-time validation (or instant validation) In contrast to the previous technique, real-time-validation alerts users while they are filling in the form. That doesn’t necessarily mean that the validation is performed on every single key press but rather when a field loses focus. This way users will get immediate feedback about their input, e.g. if a username is available or if a date is in the correct format. Obviously, instant validation occurs during typing in an input field or after the input field loses focus. Usually, it is complemented with a text message, tip or a status icon. Yahoo registration form implements password strength meter that gives feedback as you type in the letters. Instant validation should be implemented carefully and in appropriate cases because it might be distracting if overused or misused. Sign-up form on TypePad not just provides instant validation feedback that informs users of different validation errors – it also indicates successfully entered information. What to avoid? There are two things you should really try to avoid when designing form validation. First, single error pages are bad practice. Singe error page means that users are redirected from the Web form they filled to a page that shows some feedback. In this case, users are forced to browse back in order to fix errors. When they browse back they will have to memorize the information you provided in the error message. The same applies to feedback messages in popup windows. Not only are popups annoying, but once they are closed all the feedback is lost. An interesting finding in the second part of SM survey is that “30% of the forms displayed only an error-message at the top of the form (no input fields were highlighted)” while “29% had highlighted input fields with corresponding messages next to the input field (no error-messages were provided at the top of the page)”. Only 25% used both error-messages and input fields. Probably the most surprising facts are that 14% of sites still use JavaScript popup for showing validation feedback, while Ajax validation is present only on 22% of sites. This shows big variations in validation feedback. Better safe than sorry Apart from the pure validation, there are several techniques that can help users make fewer mistakes. Although not all of these techniques can be considered validation, they do help by guiding users and preventing them from making mistakes. Help hints If a web form requires complex information to be filled in, help hints can significantly help users in the process of filling in the correct information. By guiding them how to fill particular information, you let them fill the form faster and avoid potential validation errors. Help hints are usually shown as simple text next to or above the input field. The design of help hints should differ from the design of form labels. It is usually shown in smaller, grayed text. The advantage of help information is that it is always visible to the user even if JavaScript is turned off. WishListr provides useful help information on the right side of each field. Help indicators (tooltips) In contrast to help hints, tooltips initially hide information and make it visible “on demand”. They are usually triggered by an icon with a question mark. Help information is shown by hovering over the help icon or clicking on it. Once the mouse is moved away from the icon, the tooltip disappears. Help indicators can reduce clutter, especially if help text is too long. Sign-up form on TicketTrunk contains obvious help indicators that provide help information on hover. Dynamic tips Similar to the previous case, dynamic tips are initially not visible to users. Once the user enters a particular input field, related tip is shown. This way tips are emphasized and clutter in the form is reduced. Tips should be shown in such a way that they don’t cover other information on the form. They are usually shown next to input fields, but you should always try to place them on the right side of the fields since that is less distracting. Digg registration form has discrete dynamic tips that show help information related to the field that has the focus. Masking and reformatting user’s input Apart from validating user’s input and assisting users, web applications can also take part in providing correct data by formatting user’s input. This can be done by masking input fields in order to force users to enter information in an appropriate format. Mask is an expression that controls what users can enter in an input field. Masking can be implemented easily with one of the following plugins: Typecast demo page shows different masking options. In some cases users might fill partially correct information or correct information but in different format. In those cases web application can provide a mechanism to correct and rewrite the user’s input. Some of the possible scenarios when you might consider rewriting user’s input are: if, for instance, a user enters URL without “http://” prefix, the system can just add this string to the beginning of URL. if a user provides data in the dd-mm-yyyy-format, but the required format is yyyy-mm-dd, the system can rewrite the date so it is well-formed if a user provides credit card number without dashes, the system can add dashes to appropriate positions in the credit card number Tumblr provides a sort of masking for URL. These ideas are just some of the cases when this technique can be used. However, auto-formatting should be used carefully and – if not used properly – can be confusing to users. Also, not all user’s input is predictable. If, for example, user enters “www.smashingmagazine” and omits the extension, the system can’t assume that the extension is “.com”, but should rather raise a validation error. In this context it’s again worth mentioning the “forgiving format” design pattern. Instead of restricting user’s input to a specific format you can allow users to provide various formats and let the system parse it. In many cases this would require a lot of server processing; back-end would be responsible for parsing the input, extracting information and converting it to appropriate formats for further processing. Google Calendar has a very clever implementation of this technique with one-field for adding events. Users can enter information in various formats (even use "tomorrow" instead of date); the system parses it and stores it as a new event. If user provides information that can't be parsed, system assumes that this information is event title and redirects the user to a longer version of the form with filled event name. This way Google completely omitted validation. According to our survey. 67% of sites use help text and tips, 10% of which use dynamic tips. Surprisingly, only 26% of tips are positioned on the right side of the fields, while in other cases tips are positioned above, below and even on the left side of input fields. Are you human? Web form validation wouldn’t be complete without mentioning Captcha. Captcha is a significant part of validation as it is responsible for finding out if the user of a system is a human or a bot. In its simplest form, captcha consists of an image showing text, numbers or an expression and a field that expects content of the image as input. The earliest captcha generated images with numbers (e.g. “8356”) and that number was expected to be entered by the user. If correct number wasn’t entered (or not entered at all), the form couldn’t be submitted. In fact, today most spam bots are able to recognize the text embedded in a simple captcha-image, so it’s a good idea to pose some question that only humans could answer correctly, e.g. “What color does the Sun have?” with correct answer “yellow” in all its variations (“YELLOW”, “yellow”, “Yellow” etc.). You may also want to consider the technique called Honeypot Captcha where the idea is to create hidden form elements and check on the server side that they remain blank. Another option is to create a form field with a label that says, “Leave this field blank” and then is marked as a required field (thank you, Shawn McCool). Simple captcha requires an answer to a semantic question. The kind of captcha presented above caused a major problem in accessibility. Blind, visually impaired or dyslexic users have difficulties or are even impossible to complete the web form with Captchas. As the Web evolved, so did captchas and today there are implementations that have audio support for users with disabilities. Captchas can show hardly recognizable words. Can you easily read the word on the left? Still most users hate captchas (and there is a good reason for hating them!). Of course, people just don’t like filling in forms. If they can’t do it fast and effortlessly, there is a high probability that they won’t do it at all. This is where a captcha doesn’t help at all: it can take too much time for users to read (if text is messy) which happens oft in practice. Remember, Captcha helps site owners, not their users. Therefore it’s always a good idea to avoid using Captchas if you can avoid them. To read more about Captchas and accessibility, read Inaccessibility of CAPTCHA. Captcha on Digg registration form has audio support. If unable to read, users will be able to hear the letters shown in the image. Useful resources Here are some of the frameworks, plugins and tutorials that might help you easily implement validation in your forms. Conclusion You saw different methods and techniques that you can use to implement validation in your forms. Although there are many possibilities, you should carefully plan validation for each project. Not all techniques provide a solution for everything. Some of them are very helpful and easy to implement, but some lack usability and simplicity. If you are new to web form design here is a short list of what to consider in Web form validation design). That might be enough for you to start. Rules of thumbs in web form validation design |
The F1 paddock is alive with rumours that Renault may be bought by Proton and re-launched as Team Lotus, putting them against the existing Lotus Racing team next season. However, many Formula 1 experts believe this double Lotus confusion could be just the tip of a very Lotusy re-branding iceberg. It seems certain that Williams will reap the benefits of a new specific software-related sponsorship deal with a division of IBM, a deal which is likely to be almost as valuable as McLaren’s soon-to-be-announced partnership with the new American arm of Poland’s national airline and Force India’s expected link-up with international logistics giant, the Laramie Organization, based at Arizona’s Tucson airport. Meanwhile, Sauber are hotly tipped to announce a major sponsorship deal for 2011 which will involve the promotion of a new Lotu roadster from Chinese company Hzi-jen, and in particular the high powered version of this car, whilst it seems likely that Mercedes’ key sponsor for next year will be haulage giant Logistik oder Transport, based just around the corner from Daimler-Benz HQ in Untertürkheim, Stuttgart. Not to be left out, Torro Rosso is believed to be on the verge of signing a major title deal with Italian food conglomerate Latteria Orvieto Toscana e Umbria SpA whilst sister team Red Bull may be used to promote the reduced sugar version of the company’s new Taurine Ultra Shake energy beverage. If these deals work out as planned Williams Lotus, McLaren LOT US, Force India LO (TUS), Sauber Lotu S, Mercedes LoT US, Torro Rosso LOTUS and Red Bull Lo TUS will join Team Lotus and Lotus Racing on the grid for 2011. ‘Shit,’ said Tony Fernandes, yesterday. |
With superhero stories filling mall multiplexes, crowding TV screens and taking up bandwidth on Netflix’s streaming service, you have a wealth of material to work with if you’re going to send up the worlds of spandex-clad crime fighters. The local comedians behind “Reel Superheroes: Comedy Edition” are taking satirical aim at DC and Marvel mainstays, returning to the Bing’s stage following several programs that have parodied other popular films and genres. “With each show, everybody’s acting has progressed,” said comedian Steven Tye. “The writing has gotten stronger and stronger, which is why we’re really excited.” Eight local comedians conceived and produced the show, and they’re all playing different roles in a collection of live sketches, filmed segments and stand-up performances. The Comedy Edition movie nights began last year, with a rotating group of comedians providing live, “Mystery Science Theater 3000”-style commentaries over films like “The Terminator,” “The Silence of the Lambs” and “Jurassic Park.” “It’s really hard to write five minutes of jokes about that one sex scene in ‘Terminator’ that goes on forever,” said comedian Tom Meisfjord, who spearheaded the Comedy Edition movie nights and does much of the writing and editing. “We’d watch the movie six or seven times and record ourselves talking about it, then we’d listen back to it and pick out jokes,” said comedian Greg Beachler. “By the end, you hate the movie,” Tye said. “All you see are the plot holes.” “Once you’ve memorized every second of ‘Jurassic Park,’ you just can’t like dinosaurs anymore,” Meisfjord added. The group’s last show, titled “Reel Romance,” took aim at the absurdities of various cinematic love stories, sending up everything from “Fifty Shades of Grey” to “Love Actually.” It deviated from the talking-over-movies format of previous shows, relying instead on live and pre-taped sketches. “It just feels more dynamic, because we’re constantly changing between stand-up comedy and a live sketch performance, then moving to a filmed sketch,” said comedian Jay Mitz. “It’s about constantly keeping the audience engaged.” The sketches themselves are charmingly low-rent, but the limited budget is all part of the joke. For the “Jurassic Park” show, for example, Meisfjord crafted a velociraptor out of cardboard boxes and pieces of an old couch; the “Terminator” event involved a T-1000 bot made out of silverware and old lotion bottles. This time, it’s obvious that Captain America’s all-powerful shield is made out of cardboard. “We try and make the show as inexpensive as we possibly can,” Meisfjord said. “We can’t do a sketch where the whole Justice League shows up, because we can’t afford that many $30 costumes.” “In the (romance) show, there was a deathbed scene,” Tye said, “and our EKG machine was me with a cardboard box over my head going, ‘beep, beep, beep.’ Everyone seemed to really love it.” And the more familiar you are with the tropes of superhero films and comics, the more you’ll enjoy the troupe’s skewering of Daredevil’s blindness, Batman’s gruffness and Captain America’s misplaced swagger. Although the comedians all profess to love the genre, Meisfjord points out that it still provides fertile ground for parody. “At some point, culturally, we all decided to be children that take things too seriously,” Meisfjord said. “You’re not able to have a Batman movie that’s just about a guy in a bat costume fighting people. He has to be a very serious, real hero. And anytime something takes itself as seriously as Batman has in the last decade, it’s really, really easy to make fun of.” |
Photo: Douglas Fairbairn/CHM Doug Brotz does a live demonstration on the restored Xerox Alto. Advertisement The Xerox Alto, widely recognized as the first modern personal computer, pioneered just about every basic concept we are familiar with in computers today. These include windows, bit-mapped computer displays, the whole idea of WYSIWIG interfaces, the cut/paste/copy tools in word processing programs, and pop-up menus. Most of this vision of the “office of the future” was first unveiled at a meeting of Xerox executives held on 10 Nov 1977, which was 40 years ago last week. To celebrate that birthday, the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, Calif., brought together some of Parc researchers who worked on the Alto on Friday. They put it through its paces in a series of live demos. These demos used an Alto that had been restored to working order over the past eight months. (Though Doug Brotz, now a fellow at Adobe systems, noted that today’s Alto emulator for Mac computers runs some five times as fast as an actual Alto.) The demo event is now available for streaming on Facebook. The biggest takeaway? Very little has changed in the everyday software—the email clients, word processing programs, and circuit design and graphics editing tools—that we use on our personal computers; the Alto team bestowed upon the machine a host of good ideas that have yet to be bested. Photo: Douglas Fairbairn/CHM From left: John Shoch, Dan Ingalls, Doug Brotz, Bob Sproull, Tom Malloy, Charles Simonyi and David C. Brock. “My kids wouldn’t find anything impressive” about that evening’s demos, said John Shoch, now a general partner at Alloy Ventures. Every feature, he pointed out, would be familiar to them from software today. Shoch was a member of the Xerox Parc research staff, and later served as president of Xerox’s Office Systems Division. But, it turns out, the Alto had feature or two that got left behind when Steve Jobs and others were grabbing at all of its bits and pieces and turning them into mass market computers. The one that got probably the biggest gasp—a “wait, I want that” reaction from the crowd attending the demos live—was a feature called “Replay” that was part of the Alto’s word processing system. Photo: Douglas Fairbairn/CHM Tom Malloy demonstrates the “replay” function of the Bravo word processing program as Charles Simonyi observes. During the demo of the Bravo word processing program, Tom Malloy, retired now but most recently senior vice president and chief software architect at Adobe Systems, made a (perhaps staged) mistake that ended up deleting most of the document. Like today’s word processing programs, Bravo had an undo feature that would have allowed him to recover had he not performed any actions after the delete. Unfortunately, he had (an annoyance I run into far too often). But Bravo wasn’t limited to “undo.” It had another way of handling mistakes: You could “replay” all your previous edits (in something that looked somewhat like a high-speed video) and simply stop wherever you wanted. I want that. A less obvious, but also useful feature, Shoch pointed out, was the Alto’s ability to rebuild its directories from information stored with the documents, even if the directories themselves were irreversibly damaged. Of course, at any reunion of tech pioneers, stories are told. I’ve been covering the history of the Alto since the early 1980s [PDF], so I thought I’d heard most of them. But not all, it turns out. While history has focused on the developers, there was another side to it all—that of the users. Once the researchers got laser printing working, the lure of using these tools for personal business was irresistible. “The researchers—and their spouses—were doing PTA reports, personal correspondence, doctoral theses,” said Charles Simonyi, who oversaw the development of Word and other Microsoft Office applications and is now back at Microsoft after its acquisition of his startup, Intentional Software. And a few of those documents weren’t just PTA reports and letters to Mom. The original business plan for the Macintosh computer was written at Parc on an Alto and printed using Parc’s Dover laser printer, Shoch reported. As was the screenplay for the movie Tron. This broad range of users pushed the envelope in another way. Says Brotz, who worked on Laurel, the Alto’s email client software: “Email prior to Laurel was confined to hard-core computer people, who just wanted to use email to get their work done.” Things got weird, however, when the user community broadened, he reported. “We found a number of sociological phenomena we hadn’t seen before,” he said, leading to the second manual written for the software. That edition included a chapter on email etiquette—just one more way the researchers at Parc were pioneers. |
There sure is a lot of speculation about Rutina Wesley’s return to Season 5 of True Blood. Last week we dispelled the rumor that Rutina was to be in the upcoming film, by director Ridley Scott, Prometheus. Now, we’ve seen a post on a Walking Dead message board that said the following about Rutina with a photo of her attached: “We have received word from one of our sources that a certain actress from A show called true blood will be playing Michonne in the Walking Dead TV series, scheduled to make her debut on the very last episode of season 2. ( NOTE: This is not confirmed just coming from our source, who has always been spot on in the past, but we will wait and see).” We have learned, “exclusively” from Rutina’s representatives, that, once again, this is not true.” They said that she: “Likes the show, but not true.” With all these rumors being declared as untrue it seems even more possible that Rutina will be back on True Blood for Season 5. Can’t wait to find out! |
The conventional wisdom about this year’s presidential race is that it has broken out of stasis to become wildly unpredictable. And yet, after a period of polling turmoil following President Obama’s convention in Charlotte, N.C., and Mitt Romney’s sharp rebound after the first presidential debate in Denver, the polling in most swing states now looks very similar to the way it did for much of the late spring and summer. When we introduced this year’s FiveThirtyEight forecast model on June 7, the closest states were Colorado, Ohio and Virginia, each of which slightly favored Mr. Obama. In Florida and North Carolina, meanwhile, we had Mitt Romney listed as a modest favorite. Pretty much the same could be said about the race today. In fact, our projected leader in all 50 states is the same as it was at our launch of the forecast in June. The table below lists our projected results in the 18 states (and one Congressional district, in Nebraska) that were predicted to produce a single-digit race as of our original forecast in June. On average, our projection of the popular vote in each state has moved by just one and a half percentage points, in one or another direction, since then. Photo The change has been especially small in several of the most important battleground states. In June, Mr. Obama was projected to a 3-point lead in Nevada, a 2.3-point lead in Iowa, a 1.3-point lead in Virginia, a 1.1-point lead in Ohio and a 1-point lead in Colorado. The forecast in those states has moved just four-tenths of a point since then, on average; the largest shift has been in Ohio, where Mr. Obama’s polling has been reasonably resilient and he now has a 2.2-point edge. Which states have shown more movement? Wisconsin, clearly, became more competitive after Mr. Romney’s selection of Representative Paul D. Ryan as his running mate. Mr. Obama enjoyed a more comfortable margin in New Hampshire in June than he does now. And in Indiana and Missouri, two states that are ordinarily red-leaning but which might qualify under a broad definition of swing states, the campaigns have spent few resources and polls there have gradually drifted toward showing a clearer edge for Mr. Romney. The states where Mr. Obama has made gains since the June forecast are fewer in number (although the fact that Ohio is among them makes Mr. Obama’s electoral math stronger). Mr. Obama is running slightly stronger in Florida now than he was in June, although that still reflects a disappointment for him since he was leading in our forecast there before the Denver debate. Mr. Obama has also made gains in Oregon and New Jersey, counterparts to Indiana and Missouri in that they might have become competitive had Mr. Romney made more of an effort to contest them, but Mr. Romney did not do so. In blue states, Mr. Obama’s numbers are little changed on average from the June forecast. New York is one exception; polls there have shown an especially large lead for Mr. Obama, larger than we originally predicted. And Mr. Obama might have to settle for a single-digit margin of victory in New Mexico, but he is in little danger of losing it. Change in FiveThirtyEight Forecast — Blue States Photo It’s in deeply red states where the forecast has shifted more. On average, Mr. Romney has gained two percentage points since June between the red states you see in the chart below. Photo Could the race really have been this stable? Part of it is in the way the FiveThirtyEight forecast is constructed, since it uses nonpolling factors in a state (like its past voting results, relative to the national mean) in cases where the polling is sparse, helping to avoid unwarranted fluctuations based on one or two outlier polls. But consider this interpretation of events. Prior to the Democratic convention, Mr. Obama’s favorability ratings exceeded his approval ratings by several points. The voters who took a favorable view of Mr. Obama but had lukewarm views of his performance may have represented easy targets for the president, and they were brought into the fold by the strong speeches given by Bill Clinton, Michelle Obama, and Joseph R. Biden Jr., who praised Mr. Obama’s accomplishments. After the convention, Mr. Obama’s approval ratings caught up with his favorability ratings, and his performance in horse-race polls against Mr. Romney improved as a result. If Mr. Obama won over his share of Democratic-leaning undecided voters in Charlotte, however, Mr. Romney claimed most of the Republican-leaning ones after Denver. That event precipitated a sharp improvement in Mr. Romney’s favorability ratings as voters saw him share the stage with Mr. Obama, and appear competent, confident and presidential. Some other truly undecided voters may have jumped on the bandwagon along the way, favoring Mr. Obama after Charlotte but Mr. Romney after Denver based on the momentum they perceived in the race. However, their support may be inherently fickle; Mr. Obama now appears to have regained roughly a percentage point of the support he lost after Denver, which may come from this group. (It may also be that the magnitude of the respective bounces was slightly exaggerated in the polls because of the tendency of more enthusiastic voters to respond to surveys.) The national polls certainly look different than they did in June, but part of that may be artificial as well. In June, many of the national polls were conducted among registered voters rather than likely ones. In national polls that have reported both registered-voter and likely-voter results throughout the course of the year, Mr. Romney has run about three points stronger in the likely-voter version, on average. (Interestingly, this difference is smaller in state polls, where the difference is about two points on average.) Some of what looks like movement toward Mr. Romney in other polling averages instead reflects pollsters switching to their likely-voter models. The FiveThirtyEight model, since its design converted registered-voter polls into likely-voter ones from the start, will recognize that a change in methodology is different than a new trend in the race. This change has been less pronounced at the state level, since a larger fraction of the state polls were reporting likely-voter numbers to begin with. We alerted you back in August to the prospect that the different-seeming results between state and national polls would become more apparent as more national pollsters flipped over to their likely-voter models. Of the remaining gains that Mr. Romney has made in national polls, much of it may have come from his improved performance in deeply red states; that is where our state-by-state forecasts show his numbers improving the most. It might be kept in mind that, during the Republican primaries, Mr. Romney’s performance was strongest in states and counties that are Democratic-leaning in general elections, while being weaker in deeply red areas. As highly conservative voters became more comfortable with Mr. Romney, however, he made gains among them. So sure, there have been some twists and turns along the way — but that is true in every presidential election. Anyone who thinks this race has been especially wild need only look at the polling trajectory in 1976, 1980 or 1992 to get a sense for what a truly variable presidential election looks like. Over all, instead, this race has been fairly stable relative to most presidential elections. And especially in the state polls, the results we’re now seeing are quite consistent with what the economic fundamentals might dictate: a very tight race, narrowly favoring Mr. Obama. There is always the chance that the race could be disrupted again over the final week of the campaign, perhaps because of the candidates’ responses to Hurricane Sandy. And there is the possibility that this will be one of those years where the polls miss the mark badly in one or another direction on Election Day. There is a pretty good possibility, however, that our forecast in every state on Nov. 6 will be the same as it was on June 7. Colorado, Virginia and Florida, being the closest states in the forecast now, are the most likely to switch sides. Sunday’s Polls The polls released on Sunday were mostly unremarkable. The eight national polls showed about a tied race, on average, with each candidate gaining ground in some polls but losing it in others. Photo The state polls out on Sunday were slightly favorable to Mr. Obama, with polls by the firm Public Policy Polling showing him making gains in Ohio, Florida and New Hampshire. In another poll of Ohio, from Gravis Marketing, Mr. Obama held a one-point edge, versus a tied race before. Photo It should be noted that Public Policy Polling is showing a more pronounced shift toward Mr. Obama than any other pollster. Their polls were strongly Democratic-leaning at the start of the year, but then showed a poor run of numbers for Mr. Obama after the Denver debate, with their polls often being slightly more Republican-leaning than the consensus. Now, Mr. Obama has rebounded in their surveys, typically by two or three percentage points in the different swing states that they’ve polled, to the point that they now seem to be Democratic-leaning again by a percentage point or two. Our forecasts adjust for these pollster “house effects” — whether pollsters are Republican- or Democratic-leaning relative to the consensus. But one innovation that we might consider in future years is to also apply an adjustment for the variance or “swinginess” in a poll. Some pollsters, like Public Policy Polling, American Research Group and Gallup, show more pronounced fluctuations. In others, like Rasmussen Reports and polls for the online firm YouGov, the numbers seem to move much less. There are sometimes logical reasons why these patterns occur — Rasmussen Reports, for example, weighs the results by party identification, which tends to dampen swings (if also potentially missing real changes in the electorate). Still, there are now so many active polling firms, especially in states like Ohio and Florida, that one or two new polls won’t affect the forecast much. (In Ohio, Mr. Obama advanced only to a 2.2-point lead on the basis of the new surveys, as compared with a 2.1-point lead in Saturday’s forecast.) Even in this last full week before the election, I’d encourage you to take a more macroscopic view of the election. We have seen, broadly speaking, a mild recovery for Mr. Obama over the past week or so in the polls. Among polls that have surveyed the race more than once since Denver, his numbers have improved more often than they have worsened in the most recent edition of the survey, and Mr. Obama’s predicted probability of winning the Electoral College has improved as a result (to 74.6 percent as of Sunday). Then again, it may be best not to make too much of these mild fluctuations. There certainly seemed to the the possibility in a brief period after Charlotte that Mr. Obama would run away with the race, although even then forecast expected some reversion to the mean. But other than in that convention bounce period, the polls have usually told about the same story: that Mr. Obama has a modest edge, but far from an insurmountable one, in the states necessary for him to win him 270 electoral votes. The forecast model is a bit more confident now about Mr. Obama’s potential to turn that edge in to an Electoral College victory because there is so little time remaining in the race. Still, an election held today would probably keep us up quite late before we knew the result with much certainty — and so, in all likelihood, will the one on Nov. 6. |
Want to win a free bundle of Out of the Park Baseball 17 and Franchise Hockey Manager 2? Yes, you do! We are giving away a bundle of a new Out of the Park Baseball 17 (delivered upon release) game and Franchise Hockey Manager 2 (delivered immediately) to 10 lucky people! To qualify, all you have to do is respond to our brand new survey that will help us build our games and understand what's most important to you. Simply complete the survey right here to enter, and help us out at the same time. Out of the Park Baseball 17 Look for an important announcement about the exciting new features and pre-order dates for Out of the Park Baseball 17 next month! It's All Star Weekend, and Franchise Hockey Manager 2 has a new low price! Franchise Hockey Manager 2 can now be had for the new low price of $29.99, just in time for the All Star Game! Dive into an entire universe of ice hockey, featuring the biggest and best set of features the sport has ever seen. Click here to get your copy today! A new year means new ways to experience and play Out of the Park Developments games! We're proud to announce the launch of our brand-new Twitch channel! We'll be broadcasting Out of the Park Baseball and Franchise Hockey Manager each and every Wednesday at 9 PM Eastern. But don't worry if you can't make it live, because all the streams will be archived there and available on our YouTube page. Our live streams feature Out of the Park Baseball Community Manager T.J. "ThatSportsGamer" Lauerman and Franchise Hockey Manager Community Manager Adam "KnightAttack" Burnett, two passionate players who bring their love of all things Out of the Park to the table. "Twitch is an amazing platform that lets us connect to our fans in a way that builds on our active community in our forums. Our streams will keep our fans abreast of what is going on in baseball today plus take them on strolls down memory lane - all powered by Out of the Park Baseball," T.J. says. "For me, our Twitch and Youtube streams are about raising awareness of Franchise Hockey Manager," Adam added. "I'm starting out as a GM, trying to turn around a franchise that's off to a really rough start. In addition to that, I'll step back in time to rewrite history over the course of the next few months. Should be a blast!" Getting Started with Franchise Hockey Manager 2! Are you new to Franchise Hockey Manager 2? Well, we've got some great news for you. FHM Community Manager Adam Burnett has put together the first of a series of "Getting to know Franchise Hockey Manager 2", starting off with a great 'getting started' guide right here! What happens when an Out of the Park fan and author creates an entire universe? We certainly didn't see this coming. Philadelphia radio legend and Out of the Park Baseball fan Mike Dunn has written a novel, combining a baseball league dreamed up in OOTP and a fantastical steampunk world embroiled in a brutal civil war. Check out Mike's unbelievable story right here! |
Grab some supplies from your local hardware store to create a paint stick flag and add a custom laurel monogram for a personalized touch to your front door this summer. I have seen a few of these patriotic paint stick flag projects on Pinterest and loved the idea of a cost effective project that looks upscale with the help of our hand-tooled monogram sitting on laurel leaves. I made my American paint stick flag rustic with a little sandpaper and personalized it with an exclusive monogram design to welcome guests. Items Needed: Laurel Monogram, mine is 6″ wide 8 paint sticks Red, white and blue craft paint Foam and smaller bristle paint brushes Paper plate or paint tray Sandpaper Masking tape Hot glue gun and glue Twine Buy a Laurel Monogram Our 4th of July Sale is happening right now! Use the code 4July18 to save 15% on your entire order! Hurry, offer expires 6.20.18 |
FORT COLLINS, Colo. -- Video of a police officer taking a woman to the ground went viral on social media over the weekend, CBS Denver reports. The video, which was taken outside a bar and grill, shows 22-year-old Michaella Surat being thrown to the ground by a Fort Collins Police Services officer. Those who know Surat told CBS Denver she may have been celebrating her birthday when the arrest occurred. The video only shows the takedown, and not what lead up to the arrest. Fort Collins Police Services released a statement saying the arrest came after an altercation involving Surat’s boyfriend. Police were attempting to break up a fight when Surat shoulder checked an officer, according to police. Police said Surat was told to leave when she struck an officer. Police said the technique used to take Surat down was “standard arrest control.” Surat was taken to the Larimer County Jail where she was charged with third-degree assault and obstructing a peace officer. On Saturday, days after the video was filmed, many were overheard discussing the arrest near Old Town, where the incident occurred. Many told CBS Denver that the video was not enough to help them choose a side. “(Watching the video) was a little shocking, just purely from the size difference from the cop and the girl,” said Jason Pocalyko, a Fort Collins resident. “It did seem a little excessive,” he said, adding, “You can’t hear the video, and what is happening in it.” “I don’t want to make a judgement before I know all the information,” he said. “You definitely need to know the whole story about why the cops were originally talking to her,” said Meredith Winslow, a Fort Collins resident. CBS Denver reached out to Surat for comment, and an explanation of her side of the story. Request for comment via phone calls and texts were not returned. While eyewitness video only captured what happened as officers took Surat to the ground, body camera video from the department should be presented in court. |
Figure 1: Abqaiq oil decline 1946-2006. Figure 2: Saudi Arabia oil & gas creaming curve from IHS data 1935-2007. cumulative production (CP) = 99 Gb, remaining 1P = 260 Gb, 2P = 292 Gb, 3P =363 Gb and contingent resources 238 Gb Figure 3: Aramco (Baqi & Saleri) reserves as of end 2003. Figure 4: Saudi Arabia oil cumulative discovery and remaining plus produced. Figure 5: Hubbert Linearization from OPEC production data. Figure 6: Saudi Arabia and Kuwait oil production and number of rigs. Figure 7: Saudi Arabia Crude Oil and NGL production. Figure 8: Saudi Arabia NG and NGPL production. Figure 9: Saudi Arabia oil and NGL production forecast & consumption. Figure 10: Saudi Arabia population forecasts. Figure 11: Saudi Arabia fertility rate. Figure 12: Country by country 2006 retail gasoline price versus cumulative oil consumption. Figure 13: Oil consumption in 20 countries where 2006 retail gasoline price was below normal. Figure 14: Saudi Arabia oil consumption and population (UN 2006 medium) forecast. Reserves reporting in Saudi Arabia (SA), being unaudited as all OPEC reserves, are mainly political as confirmed by Sadad al Husseini (former VP of Aramco) with the 300 Gb referenced by OPEC being just a speculative number and not a proved one. Field production data are confidential, except for a few publications by Aramco to reply at Matt Simmons book “Twilight In The Desert” IHS is obliged to follow Aramco's reporting and has increased cumulative oil discovery from 313 Gb in 2004 to 395 Gb in 2006. It is difficult to check field reserves estimates with oil declines, because of production quotas and incomplete data, except for Abqaiq which was reported by the end of 2003 as being 73 % depleted (CP = 11.8 Gb or U = 16 Gb) .Abqaiq's oil ultimate is about 15 Gb when calculated from the decline profile, when Baqi reported 16 Gb in 2004, Saleri 17 Gb in 2007 with wishful EOR. IHS reports 18 Gb (30 Gb OIP) in 2008 (plus 0,5 Gb condensate), but in 1993 was reporting 15 Gb. Old data (before the quotas fight) seem more reliable.In the bookpublished by Aramco in 1980 before nationalisation, Saudi Arabia proved reserves were reported to be 113 Gb and probable reserves 65 Gb, with cumulative production by the end of 1979 being 38 Gb. 2P discovery was 216 Gb for Aramco in 1979. Since then, discovery have been negligible, as shown by the creaming curve (cumulative discoveries versus the cumulative number of New Field Wildcats - NFW). The first 40 NFW (1935-1968) found 360 Gb in 22 fields while the last 40 NFW (1994-2007) found only 6 Gb with 33 fields! From IHS data, the oil ultimate is about 400 Gb and natural gas ultimate about 65 Gboe (= 400 Tcf). Recent natural gas exploration by IOCs has been dry (6 NFW) and Total has withdrawn.Aramco (Baqi & Saleri 2005) reported as of end 2003:All of this for an oil in place of 700 Gb. Saleri seemed to have forgotten that contingent resources are potentially producible one day and he assumes that all oil will be produced without leaving one drop in the ground (!) when the range is from 99% to 5%.Aramco discovery as of end 2003 is then 2P 391 Gb, giving an increase from the 1980 estimate of +175 Gb, mainly for political reasons, because of the quotas fight.IHS was obliged to accept Aramco's field estimates and reports 396 Gb at the end 2007 . But Sadad al-Husseini (VP of E&P) when retired in 2007 stated that the 300 Gb proved reserves increase from 1985 to 1990 by OPEC are based on speculative resources and that Saudi Arabia's increase in 1990 was 90 Gb. In 1980 Aramco's 2P reserves were about reported 1P.Colin Campbell estimates Saudi Arabia's ultimate to be at 275 Gb. Production linearization is not reliable, ranging from 180 Gb to infinite depending on the selected period. The plot is linear only if the pattern is logistic but this is not the case because of above and below ground conditions.Oil production seems to have been pushed very hard with new drilling. The comparison between oil production and number of rigs seems to show that oil production is at the peak, despite that the new drilling could be the redevelopment of fields like Khurais and Khusanyah.Anyway King Abdallah has declared that, if new fields are discovered, they will be kept for the next generation.I am inclined to choose 250 Gb for the oil ultimate with 110 already produced as of end 2006. Colin’s 275 Gb seems optimistic and the maximum is 300 Gb, far from IHS 400 Gb.But there are also NGL (natural gas liquids, reported as natural gas plant liquids by USDOE/EIA) and it is hard to forecast NGL production which increases more than crude oil because it is outside OPEC's quotas and Saudi Arabia has high needs for gas (in water desalt plants).Natural gas (NG) production data varies with sources. The ratio Mb NGPL to Tcf NG seems stable at 200 Mb per Tcf during the last 20 years.If the NG ultimate is 400 Tcf (assuming no overestimation as for oil because there's no quotas), the NGPL ultimate is about 80 000 Mb (400 x 200) or 80 Gb. The ultimate for Oil + NGL could be about 250 Gb + 80 Gb, rounded to 300 Gb.Crude Oil+NGL production (CP 2007 = 122 Gb) is plotted assuming a plateau up to 2020 and a decline of 3%/a after 2020 with a 300 Gb ultimate, but the big problem is domestic oil consumption which is increasing with population. The oil consumption estimated in Figure 14 is plotted as the volume of production less consumption available for export, which could be zero in 2050.Oil consumption is plotted, estimated from population forecasts (UN 2006, USCB, PRB = population reference bureau) and per capita consumption.Population forecasts are based on fertility rate forecasts, but Saudi Arabia's fertility rate is badly reported.Oil consumption per capita was about 25 annual barrels, but it has increased lately to 32 b because domestic gasoline price is well below the normal price: in 2006 gasoline was 0.16 $/l compared to a normal price of 0.58 $/l (USDOE/EIA study).Oil consumption for the producing countries where gasoline price is well below the normal price increases more than the world's mean, meaning that their exportation will decrease rapidly.Saudi Arabia domestic oil consumption could reach 4 Mb/d in 2050 if consumption per capita stays at the present ratio of 32 b/a, but it has to decrease because Crude Oil+NGL production will be at this level (Figure 9).There are many uncertainties in liquids forecasts mainly because of the poor quality of the data for production and population. Saudi Arabia should improve the quality of these data in order to manage the coming crisis. Saudi Arabia could stop exporting oil in 2050 meaning that they will be in trouble to finance their budget.Furthermore the world needs to know that Saudi Arabia cannot fulfill the wishes of many countries in increasing their oil imports. |
Posted by Smart Motiv on June 9, 2014 12:33 pm / 0 Comments Ever since the advent of the iPhone the age of touch-screen interfaces has dawned, pixels have been the default upon which interfaces are built. But that is now. What will the UIs of the future look like? Will touch interfaces continue to be pixel-centric or will we go back to and interface that we can actual touch in 3D? MIT believes the future of computing is tactile. At the MIT Media Lab, the Tangible Media Group has unveiled their vision of what interfaces will look like in the future. Their vision has been translated into the inFORM which looks like a bed that houses a living organism made of 3d bar charts or pins (similar to the pin screens). It can three-dimensionally change shape in real-time. A very interesting feature is that interaction with the inFORM can be done physically touching it, but also by using gesturing from hundreds of miles away! MIT describes it as follows: inFORM is a Dynamic Shape Display that is able to render 3D content in physical form, so users can interact with digital information in a tangible way. inFORM can also interact with the physical world around it, for example moving objects on the table’s surface. Remote participants in a video conference can be displayed physically, allowing for a strong sense of presence and the ability to interact physically at a distance. inFORM is a step toward our vision of Radical Atoms How does it work? It is actually not that complex. We’ve established that the inFORM looks like a bed consisting of bars that can change shape. The shape is changed by each bar changing hights individually. Each bar is connected to a motor under the bed. This motor is controlled by a computer. These bars can not only render 3D objects, but it can also register and adapt to real-lie interaction. This means that one could play chess by using a separate interface, (i.e. a digital interface) and move a chess piece on the inFORM. If one were to be able to rotate the inFORM 90 degrees so it were facing the inFORM it would be possible to display faces or antire bodies (well, so far, half it). Once the resolution follows a similar path touch screens have Skype sessions of the future may be a totally new and immersive experience! In the Marvel movie Iron Man we see Tony Stark “grab” one of his files and “physically” throw it in a bin. This is physically manipulating purely digital objects. If you have a 3-D model, for example, you can translate this into a physical 3D object and then manipulate it with your hands to adjust, tweak and transform the digital blueprint. This will help sculpting for example to really get its act into this millennium. Getting back to tactile interfaces after so many years of touch interfaces may seem like a step back, but from a design perspective we are ending up with an almost indistinguishable clutter of black rectangle screens. Gone are the days of physical buttons, dials, levers, etc. But there is a very good reason to bring the physical back in tactile. Although our current devices don’t focus on physical buttons or dial wheels, the functionality of them has incorporated in the touch UI design in such a way that we can live without them. At MIT however they say it is not the way it is supposed to be. Humans have evolved by physically interacting with their environments and have learned from tactile sensation. It allows one to learn about about limits, proves physical guidance and adds connection. According to MIT the digital interfaces miss an important element: matter. The obvious next step in technology is to incorporate this missing element. For designers and other creative minds this is shaping into a great new challenge: the combination and collaboration of pixels and the physical world, where time and form are working together with pixels. |
Initially, I laid down on my bed hoping for it to subside enough before I could drive myself to a hospital. The pain only got worse, so I knew that I needed to call an ambulance. It took me to a hospital where they seemed to question my claims that I had insurance because I could not provide them with a card or name or policy number. I had just started my new job that week and had not received that information. I am fairly sure that my lack of insurance information, coupled with my dress (more appropriate for a mid-20s young woman joining friends for a Saturday night out drinking than a hospital) influenced the level of care, or more accurately lack of care that I received at that hospital. I arrived at the hospital around 10 PM. In an ER exam room, the male nurse went through standard health related questions. Was I pregnant? Not that I knew. Had I ever been pregnant? Yes, once and it was an ectopic pregnancy and I had surgery before my fallopian tube ruptured. Alone, I did my best to answer questions even though I was in excruciating pain and was becoming disoriented. The nurse wanted to do a pregnancy test (seemed smart), but I was completely incapable of urinating, something that annoyed the male nurse greatly. Meanwhile, I was asking for something—anything—for the pain, which they refused until they could confirm that I was not pregnant. I was showing signs that I recognized as signs of internal bleeding (shoulder pain, etc), which I also told the ER nurse. Finally, after making me attempt to urinate three times, they decided to insert a catheter. Up until the pregnancy test came back positive, I was sure that I had appendicitis; it seemed like the only thing that made sense. With a positive pregnancy test, I was certain that I had another ectopic pregnancy, but it became clear that neither the doctor nor the nurse shared my concern. At this point, I had been at the hospital for a few hours and it was past midnight. Any slight movement was painful. The ER physician came in to talk to me, and made it clear they would not give me any drugs that would harm the “baby.” I quickly got the impression that I was being treated like a “drug-seeker.” I told the doctor, again, that I had an ectopic pregnancy before. I knew the symptoms of a ruptured ectopic pregnancy because of my first one about six years before. I pointed out to the ER physician that my shoulder pain was a sign of internal bleeding because of blood pooling in my abdomen. The ER physician disagreed and was pretty sure that I just had an ovarian cyst rupture, but that it was not serious. I made it clear that if the pregnancy was viable (although I was certain that it was not) that I had no intentions of remaining pregnant. I begged for some sort of pain relief, which they gave me sometime between 1:00 and 6:00 AM. I asked for an ultrasound, but I was told that they did not have anyone on staff at that time at night on Saturday. Sometime before 6:00 AM, the nurse informed me that I needed to leave since they were not going to admit me. I either needed to have someone pick me up or they would call me a cab. At this point I was incapable of arguing or doing much of anything. I called my older brother, who came to pick me up. The doctor explained that I likely had a cyst rupture. He wrote a prescription for pain medication and told my brother that I should probably eat something. When I left, the jeans that I came in would no longer button or zip up because my abdomen had swollen so much during the eight hours I was at the hospital. My older brother dropped me off at home. Although he did not think I looked well, he trusted that the doctors knew what they were talking about. In my apartment, alone, I laid in my bed and drifted in and out of consciousness, only to wake enough occasionally to vomit. My mother, who lived out of state, called about every hour, but she became worried as I became less coherent. At some point my mother called my younger brother and asked that he take me to a different hospital. Around 3:00 PM that Sunday, my younger brother rushed me to a different hospital. As soon as the people working in admitting saw my condition, I was quickly rushed into a room and I tried to give them details about my condition starting from the night before. Within a matter of 15 minutes, I was getting an ultrasound, and they immediately began prepping me for surgery while wheeling me to the operating room. The last words I heard right before the anesthesia took effect was the anesthesiologist telling me “honey, you are going to feel so much better when you wake up.” I required multiple blood transfusions during surgery and I was about as close to dead as you can be and still recover. In fact, with as much blood as I lost, I really should not have survived. As painful as surgery is, the anesthesiologist was right; I woke up just over 24 hours after my fallopian tube ruptured feeling so relieved that I was not in pain like I was before. An ectopic pregnancy occurs when a fertilized egg implants outside of the uterus, most commonly in the fallopian tube. The fertilized egg will continue to develop, eventually threatening the structure that it is attached to, particularly the fallopian tube. A ruptured ectopic pregnancy is a medical emergency. It is also one of the most common pregnancy complications. A woman who has had one ectopic pregnancy is much more likely to have another ectopic pregnancy. You do not have to be an MD to know that if a pregnant woman presents at the ER with a sudden onset of extreme pain, with abdominal swelling and shoulder pain, you do not send her home without at least doing an ultrasound. My employer was amazing, and my insurance covered my medical costs. Once I was home and recovering, I became increasingly furious. I decided to file a complaint with the Missouri Board of Healing Arts. I wrote a letter, very similar to what I described here, and I mailed it to BHA. I also sent a copy to the CEO of the first hospital. I included a cover letter saying that if I was a CEO of a company that is about to be the subject of a complaint to a regulating agency of my business, that I would want to know and I would want to find out what happened as soon as possible. I received a carefully worded letter from the CEO’s office apologizing that my condition changed after I left their hospital (which is not true—my tube ruptured before I arrived there by ambulance). Eventually, the complaint proceeded and I met with an investigator for Board of Health Arts. The investigator followed up with me later and told me that although she could not give me the specifics, considerable changes were made at the hospital and those directives came from the top of the organization as the result of my letter to the CEO. I have never really been satisfied with the conclusion. At the time I did speak with attorneys and I received exactly the same response that I just heard Joe discuss on NPR. I was told that unless I could prove irreparable harm, there was not much that could be done. Apparently, almost dying is not enough, but if I had died, my family would have had one heck of a case. |
Republican Donald Trump skipped the debate where Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly co-moderated. Here's a look back at the clash that started with an earlier debate in August 2015. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post) Donald Trump’s criticisms of Megyn Kelly have been weak, sexist, thin-skinned. His decision to back out of Thursday night’s debate is childish and reflects a fear of having to debate his competitors on issues facing the country. All that said, this dispute is turning into a spectacle with two losers. Fox News unwisely sent out a statement yesterday designed to mock the Republican front-runner for his decision to launch a Twitter poll on whether he should participate in the debate. Here’s what that statement said: We learned from a secret back channel that the Ayatollah and Putin both intend to treat Donald Trump unfairly when they meet with him if he becomes president — a nefarious source tells us that Trump has his own secret plan to replace the Cabinet with his Twitter followers to see if he should even go to those meetings. On CNN’s “New Day” this morning, co-host Alisyn Camerota, who formerly worked at Fox News, espied certain fingerprints on that statement: “God, this is such typical Roger Ailes playbook. I worked for him for many years; I recognize this.” [Donald Trump, Fox News and the implosion of conservative media’s “bias" critique] Other pundits recognize it as well — and they’re using it to aver that Trump has some firm footing in bailing on Fox News. Firm footing that he’d never have otherwise. Example: On SiriusXM’s “Breitbart News Daily,” host Stephen K. Bannon welcomed Eric Trump, son of the candidate/real estate mogul, to tee off on the Fox News release. Bannon set up the younger Trump with these words: “To have a network, a news network, send out a press release that takes our two mortal enemies — the Persians and the Ayatollah and [Vladimir] Putin and the Russians — and makes it, like, some mockery thing … Would Bill Paley do that at CBS back in the old days? Would the heads of NBC do that in the old days? Would ABC News do that in the old days? Has anybody in the history … of media ever sent out a press release to a presidential candidate that’s leading … and they would mock him as commander in chief? Who does that?” Though it’s a radio interview, you can almost hear Eric Trump nodding in agreement. He responded: “It gives the American people, actually, I think, the first look into politics. It’s something I had never seen before until I got a back-row seat to this whole crazy race. But it shows that there are a couple of people up at the top who try to control politics a lot more, right? I mean, this should be the decision of the American people, this should be the decision of them, not the decision of some network which wants to influence which candidate will ultimately be the head of the GOP. And that’s really what’s happening and it’s really kind of disingenuous. Politics have really been turned on their face, right?” Right, Eric Trump — especially the politics of Fox News. [Donald Trump’s very own “bimbo" eruption] For years and years, others have articulated this same critique of Fox News. Commentator Frank Rich, for one, ripped the network as a “right-wing propaganda machine.” Former Obama White House communications director Anita Dunn said on CNN in 2009 that “Fox News often operates almost as either the research arm or the communications arm of the Republican Party.” Former New York Times executive editor Bill Keller called Fox News the “cultural home of the Republican Party and a nonstop Obama roast.” Media Matters has much, much more on the topic. What’s new is that these arguments are now being articulated by Eric Trump, the son of the Republican presidential front-runner. It’s a problem that no statement from Fox News, no matter how clever, can resolve. |
Well we knocked the bastard off. If you’ve had a chance to pick up our Wilderness Issue, there’s a more than likely chance that you’ve come across a few badass individuals. Whether smoke jumpers or our good friend Forest Woodward, there are some legends past and present that have lent a hand to our notion that there were and always will be people doing great for the environment and for this world. One of those extraordinary humans is Sir Edmund Hillary, the first badass to summit Mount Everest, and pioneer (literally) of modern Alpine climbing. This post can go no further without giving a nod to Hillary’s legendary Sherpa —Tenzing Norgay—without whom, Hillary may not have stood a chance against the world’s tallest mountain. When tasked by Wilderness Issue guest editor Chris Burkard to develop a piece on handwritten journals from legendary explorers across time, the native New Zealander was top of mind and is the first featured in our Explorer Journal series. We were lucky enough to stumble across his grandkids’ collection through the Auckland Museum, and our luck continued when they were in possession of Sir Edmund’s handwritten journal pages from May 29, 1953, the day he reached the summit of Mount Everest. First attempted in 1921 by the British, the formidable mountain had turned away at least ten major expeditions (not to mention two solo attempts—not recommended apparently) before reaching the summit. But in 1950, the discovery of a southern approach to the mountain in newly opened Nepal, and the “yellow brick road” to the summit had been discovered. In 1952, the Swiss almost became the first ascenders of the legendary mountain, also led by super-sherpa Tenzing Norgay, but were thwarted by weather and turned back less than 300 meters from the summit. The following year, the Brits led an expedition behind leader Sir John Hunt, with multiple teams capable of reaching the summit, in hopes to plant the British flag at the highest point on earth. Recruiting Norgay, it was originally planned for another Brit to be the first ascender, but due to oxygen tank issues and a slow pace, the expedition turned to the 33-year-old beekeeper, Sir Edmund Hillary, and his trusty partner Tenzing to be the first to summit. Having trained on the glaciated peaks of his native New Zealand, Hillary was perfectly primed for the challenge, and his attention to detail in his journal pages highlights just part of what it takes. Tenzing and I shook hands and he so far forgot himself as to embrace me. It was quite a moment! We took off our O2 and for ten minutes I photographed T holding flags, the various ridges of Everest and the general view. I left a crucifix on top for John Hunt and T made a little hole in the snow and put in some food offerings, lollies and biscuits and chocolate. We ate a Kendal Mint Cake and then put back on our O2. The last difficult section, about 20 minutes from the summit, was appropriately named The Hillary Step after Sir Edmund, who was the first to traverse it. After the major earthquakes that occurred Nepal in May of 2017, climbers reported that the Hillary Step is no more, the end of an era in modern alpine climbing, and a strong signal to the commercialization of the Earth’s wonders and its resulting impact. All images courtesy of the Auckland Museum and the Hillary Family. |
Anamika* was ten, when on a cold December morning, she found her mother in a comatose state from an overdose of sleeping pills. Her parents’ marriage had been in disarray and the families had deemed divorce out of the question. This, she reasoned much later, must have seemed like the only way out for her mother. Anamika remembers the violence in vivid detail: both verbal and physical abuse was routine at home. “I once saw my father pull my mother by the hair out of their bedroom,” she said. “That fight started when she told him they shouldn’t sleep in the same bed anymore.” When she found her mother nearly dead, Anamika, who is now 35, said she remembered “feeling like I was watching a stranger... and that I was a stranger in my own home, which was suddenly filled with these doctors pushing tubes down this woman’s body”. What made this profoundly disturbing experience worse was that Anamika’s grandmother, who had always shared an antagonistic relationship with Anamika’s mother, called the police immediately after to register a case against her daughter-in-law. “My mother was still slurring and barely conscious when the inspector came to take her statement,” Anamika recalled. “She tried again a few days later. Bringing in the police didn’t help. If anything, bringing them in as a threat made it worse for her.” The matter was played down and charges dropped once the police had a long talk with her grandfather, but the experience shaped the rest of Anamika’s life. She was fourteen when she tried to end her life for the first time. Since then, she has attempted suicide at least half a dozen times. Her own attempts at killing herself have mirrored that of her mother thrice – once, she took over fifty sleeping pills. “That was an epic fail,” she said smiling wryly, as we sat in her doctor’s empty waiting room. Twice, she’s tried to slit her wrist, and once she ate rat poison. “It only makes you throw up,” she said. “Or maybe I didn’t eat enough, I don’t know.” Until March, attempting suicide was a criminal offence. If people tried to end their lives and somehow survived, they could be prosecuted under the draconian Section 309 of the Indian Penal Code. Instead of mandating suicide watch, or therapy, Indian law would be used to put suicidal people on trial, and eventually in jail for at least a year. The court, in amounts decided by judges, would also fine such persons. In numerous cases, suicidal people have been fined up to Rs 10,000 or Rs 20,000. The Law Commission of India recommended repealing the section in its 42nd report dated 1971. Then, again in October 2008, it pointed out in a paper that “the World Health Organization has in regard to attempted suicide expressed the view that punishing with imprisonment a behaviour consequent to either a mental disorder or a social difficulty gives completely a wrong message to the population”. Diagnosed with severe clinical depression at the age of sixteen, Anamika was taken to a psychiatrist by her father after her third suicide attempt. For the past nine years, she has made erratic trips to a psychologist. Another psychiatrist has put her on medication for depression. “One to wake my soul up; another to make it sleep at night,” she said. “I’m basically living on life support, but in the form of pills.” The medication has helped, but she has not given up on the idea of suicide completely. “I think of these attempts as monumental failure on my part because – for the love of god – how many tries does it take before I can get this pain to end?” Anamika is not certain if she is better yet. But suicide in many ways is a way to reclaim the sense of agency that life has deprived her of. “When that feeling takes over me, that kind of hopelessness I feel… it feels better to not feel at all… no law has ever stopped me from wanting to end everything in that moment,” she said. “It’s not like the government could help me feel differently, so why should I care whether they agree with my decision or they don’t?” The issue of decriminalising suicide has been repeatedly taken up by courts across the country. In a 1981 judgement, the Delhi High Court said, “A young man has allegedly tried to commit suicide presumably because of over emotionalism. It is ironic that… the result is that a young boy driven to such frustration so as to seek one’s own life would have escaped human punishment if he had succeeded but is to be hounded by the police, because attempt has failed”. Five years later, while deciding the case Maruti Shripati Dubal v State of Maharashtra, the Bombay High Court pointed out that “no deterrence is going to hold back those who want to die for a social or political cause or to leave the world either because of the loss of interest in life or for self-deliverance”. By passing the Mental Health Bill 2017, the Indian government took note of such arguments, and a more humane and logical stance towards those who feel driven to self-harm. The Act passed by the Lok Sabha on March 27, read down Section 309 of the IPC. As the law stands today, attempted suicides have been decriminalised. Instead, the Act creates an automatic assumption, that “any person who attempts to commit suicide shall be presumed, unless proved otherwise, to have severe stress”. Photo credit: Victor/Flickr [Licensed under Creative Commons BY 2.0] Eleven years ago, SL* stared through teary eyes at the grey tiles on her bathroom floor. Hours ago, she had been diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, a chronic disease which causes symptoms including vision loss, pain, fatigue and impaired coordination. The disease doesn’t reduce life expectancy, but as a patient loses motor skills, including speech, vision, MS severely affects a patient’s quality of life. A lively, stylish, 25-year-old corporate manager for Ernst & Young, SL wondered if she would see her 26th year. Given the disease’s slow and painful decline, did she even want to? “Should I just kill myself?” she asked her best friend on the phone. The thought of leaving her parents behind, the fear that they would be harassed for her suicide held her back. “The decision to take my life had to be with me being diagnosed with MS, and it was my decision entirely if I had come to it.” Much like the courts, numerous mental health professionals have stated that Section 309 of the IPC had no deterrent effect on a person who is already suicidal. “There’s a lot that happens when suicidal thoughts start surfacing... inter-personal causes such as disappointments on the work/ family/ relationship front, including loneliness and feelings of being unwanted,” said Dr Lubhana Malik, an independent psychotherapist who specialises in family and couples work. “Many clients feel that their families/relationship partner would be better off, if they did not exist or that the lives of their loved ones would not change even if they committed suicide.” Now 38, SL has moved homes, changed jobs and lives life to the fullest: trying every adventure thrown her way, mincing no words about the experience when she speaks even to strangers. Yet, the weight of the disease is ever-present on her mind. The decision to not take her life is one she said was “a cowardly one”. The effects of IPC Section 309 remain long-standing. It is responsible, in some part, for the stigma around suicide attempts, which prevents people from coming out with their stories. The subjects for this story requested that they remain anonymous despite the law’s repeal. “Some times people do register cases, but the reason to report can usually be traced back to some enmity, not concern,” said a Delhi Police officer who wished to remain unidentified. He added that often families pass off attempted suicide as an accident, especially if the person who tried to kill themselves is young, or female, because the family fears that they could be slapped with an additional charge of cruelty to women. The new Act has been hailed by mental health professionals as ushering in a more treatment-oriented approach to mental illnesses – especially since depression is considered one of the leading psychological problems ailing Indians. Many cases can be attributed to Indian society’s aversion to talking about the mental health issue. A person can only be helped if she or he reaches out for help, and has the option to do so without judgement or fear of the law. According to the World Health Organisation, India has one of the largest populations with mental illnesses, and are the worst hit with depression. WHO estimates 36% of all Indians suffer from depression. The latest National Crime Records Bureau statistics show that 79,773 men and 40,715 women have tried to end their lives. As per rounded off figures provided by the NCRB, on an average, 15 suicides an hour or 371 suicides a day had taken place. Young Indians between the age of 15 and 29 make up the world’s largest number of suicides. NCRB data also points out that family problems and illnesses are the leading reasons for depression and suicide. These numbers are just a third of all suicides in the country. Senior citizens also account for 7.7% of suicides in India. According to the World Health Organisation, over 135,000 people commit or attempt to commit suicide in India every year. Diseases can make a patient spiral uncontrollably too. While suicidal tendencies are often associated with depression, the act or the thought of it is also common among those who have terminal illnesses. “It is definitely a thought that crosses a terminally ill person’s mind too,” said Dr Raheja, a psychotherapist at the Hope Care clinic. “Many may act upon it or feel tempted to do so. Depression is not the major causes alone. There’s a lot of inter-personal causes including the person feeling alone, lonely, not reaching out for help.” The new law is therefore a better alternative and takes into account the reality of the psychological issues that are adversely impacting Indians. An important factor in it is that it separates the attempt to suicide from the Indian Penal Code. Photo credit: RebeccaWithey/Pixabay [Licensed under Creative Commons BY CC0] Though it has only been two months, doctors are hailing the changes brought in with the Mental Health Act 2017. Dr Raheja said, “This is definitely welcome because at the end of it for somebody who is already plagued with depression or stress, for them or their families to deal with the police too is extremely stupid and ridiculous. How this pans out is to be seen. But… at the end of the day, a human life saved is a human life nurtured.” * Some names have been changed or shortened to initials on request. |
The identity of the suicide bomber, who killed a police officer in Istanbul's Sultanahmet district on Tuesday, led to further debate on Thursday as some media outlets claimed the attacker was a Russian national of Chechen origin. A lack of an official statement on the attack further fuelled rumors that it was not actually the Revolutionary People's Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) that conducted the attack at the police station in the historic Istanbul district. The terrorist organization had claimed responsibility for the attack and even named the suicide bomber as Elif Sultan Kalşen. Yet, her family denied it and said the body found at the scene was not their daughter. Kalşen remains missing. Interior Minister Efkan Ala told reporters Thursday that they identified the attacker but stopped short of naming her, citing that a covert investigation was underway to find out those behind the attack. "We've made progress on the attack. We've identified the bomber but we don't think it is right to make an elaborate statement at the moment for the safety of the investigation," Ala said. Ala stated they had foiled several attacks in the past weeks but they were not reported by the media since they were prevented. "Therefore, you don't know how efficient the intelligence services are working," he said. Video footage of the assailant as she heads to the police station prior to the bombing led to more speculation as it clearly shows a woman of a shorter stature and a paler complexion than Kalşen. Several media outlets, including Doğan News Agency, claimed the suicide bomber was Riana Ramazova and she was registered as a tourist when she entered Turkey in June while İhlas News Agency reported she was a Russian citizen. Police reportedly identified her through a cellphone found in her pocket. Turkish media outlets, quoting testimony of a taxi driver who gave a lift to the assailant to Sultanahmet, said the attacker was speaking Russian. Rumors that the woman was of Chechen origin raised concerns that she may be part of shahidka, infamous Chechen female suicide bombers who had targeted Russia in the past in retaliation of Russia's crackdown on Chechen dissidents. Turkey maintains good relations with Russia but it also gives shelter to a considerable number of Chechen dissidents opposing the pro-Russian regime of Chechnya and the Kremlin's crackdown on insurgency. |
"The 'regime of silence' in Aleppo and its province has been extended by 48 hours from Tuesday 01:00 am (local time) to midnight on Wednesday," a statement early Tuesday said. The temporary truce, initially for two days and then prolonged until Tuesday at 00:01 am (21:01 GMT Monday), was decided after fighting killed nearly 300 people since April 22 in Aleppo, where some areas are held by opposition and others by government forces. The announcement came as Russia and the United States agreed to boost efforts to find a political solution to Syria's five-year war which has killed more than 270,000 people and displaced millions, according to AFP. The two powers also agreed to extend a truce across the whole of the country. "The Russian Federation and United States are determined to redouble efforts to reach a political settlement of the Syrian conflict," according to a joint US-Russian statement published by the Russian foreign ministry. To this end, Russia "will work with the Syrian authorities to minimize aviation operations over areas that are predominantly inhabited by civilians or parties" to the ceasefire, it said. The two powers brokered a February 27 ceasefire between the government and the armed opposition that did not, however, include terrorist fighters such as the Daesh (ISIL) group and Al-Qaeda's Syria affiliate, Al-Nusra Front. On Sunday, armed opposition groups fired rockets into a government-held district of Aleppo, killing five civilians including two children. |
I can’t promise long-term quiet, Netanyahu acknowledges Hamas suffered a near-fatal military and diplomatic blow during Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza Strip, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday night, but he acknowledged that he could not guarantee sustained quiet for Israel — the key goal of the operation. He said the Islamist group had achieved none of its stated objectives after 50 days of fighting, assessed it would be wary of initiating another round of violence, and indicated that planned indirect negotiations on a long-term arrangement next month might go nowhere. Netanyahu warned that if Hamas were to resume attacks against Israel in any form, the IDF would strike back “sevenfold.” “What we have is a great military achievement and a great diplomatic achievement,” Netanyahu said in a press conference in Jerusalem, alongside Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon and IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz. “Hamas was badly beaten and received none of the conditions it had demanded in return for a ceasefire. [Hamas] demanded a seaport and did not get one; an airport – not accepted; a release of Shalit deal prisoners — not accepted. [Hamas] demanded to have a Qatari brokered deal — not accepted; Turkish mediation – not accepted.” He stated that Israel, as opposed to Hamas, had received comprehensive legitimacy from the international community to carry out attacks against terror targets in the Palestinian enclave. The IDF, he specified, destroyed “terror tunnels” and rocket launchers, killed some 1,000 fighters, and targeted many command-and-control centers in the Gaza Strip. “It is too early to determine whether we achieved our goal of a prolonged calm, but the damage to Hamas increases the chances that such a goal has been reached,” he said. “Hamas was surprised by the unity of Israel’s citizens; we showed that we will not tolerate a drizzle [of rockets] on any part of the State of Israel.” “I said that attrition would be met with a pounding,” Netanyahu recalled, and thus, when Hamas broke the previous truce last Tuesday, “the terror towers fell and Hamas understood that the price was very high.” Netanyahu was referring to Israel’s bombing of high-rises in Gaza in the final days of the operation, where Hamas was said to have command centers. Asked why Israel had not succeed in completely rooting out Hamas, Netanyahu stated that fighting a terror organization required patience and resolve, and presented serious difficulties for democratic states in particular. The US had failed to extinguish Al-Qaida, he noted. Addressing rumors that much to the cabinet’s discontent, the current truce was accepted without a vote by ministers, Netanyahu said the cabinet backed the Egyptian ceasefire proposal from the get-go. Later, the cabinet voted to authorize the prime minister and defense minister to accept ceasefires on their own, without a cabinet vote, he added. Netanyahu said that if a long-term arrangement were to be presented to Israel, the cabinet would be informed of it. However, the prime minister cast doubt on such an arrangement ever materializing. “It’s not clear there will be [a long-term negotiated deal],” he said. “[But] the talks will begin in a month.” The fact is, he reiterated, “Hamas abandoned all its demands” and signed an open-ended ceasefire “without preconditions.” — Read Adiv Sterman’s full report here. |
Image copyright PA Image caption Justin Welby says governments should not look to the past to improve education The Archbishop of Canterbury has criticised grammar schools as "contrary to the notion of the common good". Speaking in the House of Lords, the Most Rev Justin Welby called for education to focus on "drawing the best out of every person", rather than a selective approach. He said governments should not look to the past and "waste our time rummaging there for the solutions of tomorrow." Some Tory MPs said grammar schools offer "invaluable opportunities". The archbishop led a debate on education, saying the country was now in a "fourth digital revolution" and schools had one of the "greatest challenges" in tackling the "seismic shift" when it comes to preparing children for the future. However, he said "children of privilege continue to inherit privilege" and the system was not acting in a way to help everyone. "The academic selective approach to education, one which prioritises separation as a necessary precondition for the nurture of excellence, makes a statement about the purpose of education that is contrary to the notion of the common good," the archbishop said. "An approach that neglects those of lesser ability or because of a misguided notion of levelling out does not give the fullest opportunity to those of highest ability or does not enable all to develop a sense of community and mutuality." 'Social mobility' His comments have been denounced by some MPs who back the schools. Conservative Andrew Bridgen told the Daily Mail: "[Mr Welby] is obviously entitled to his own views, but the evidence is that grammar schools are a great way for under-privileged children to escape poverty. "It is well known that they provide social mobility for the under-privileged." Fellow Conservative MP Conor Burns also told the newspaper: "Many grammar school provide invaluable opportunities for children from both poor and rich backgrounds, and give them the opportunities they may not otherwise have." Selective ban In 2016, Theresa May outlined plans to introduce a "new generation" of grammar schools by 2020, removing the ban introduced by Labour in 1997. However, after the general election in June - and without a majority in Parliament - the government scrapped the plans, saying instead they would "look at all options" for opening new schools, without removing the ban. |
Stephen Colbert examined whether news organizations are biased in their coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict Thursday, declaring that he personally saw no bias on CNN’s “The Situation Kibbutz.” The “Colbert Report” host addressed concerns that Palestinians are trying to show the news media as many dead bodies as possible to win a public relations war. Also read: Watch Jon Stewart’s Supercut of CNN Disses (Video) “That’s how war works,” he said. “We all know whoever has the most dead bodies wins.” He noted that the International Press Institute had created a guide to avoiding “loaded language” in covering the conflict, and attempted to follow it. With the help of an intern and a red light, he attempted to say anything about the conflict without offending anyone. Also read: CNN Anchor Calls Fox Nation ‘Willfully Ignorant F—sticks’ For example, he will no longer use the term “disputed areas,” because some believe that the term legitimizes Israel’s control of those areas. “I will call them shoot-y places,” Colbert said. Watch the video: |
In this edition: Industrial feasts, crabby weekends, welcome refuges KOSMOKRAB (30/08) After many successful pop-up appearances and brunches at Kosmonaut (main image), Holy Crab, purveyor of sustainable sea snacks such as crab balls, popcorn from the sea and Hail Mary oysters, will be taking over their basement from Thursday 8th September. They will be singing sea shanties and serving pescetarian treats in the Northern Quarter hangout every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. You might be familiar with their work at their regular stall on Altrincham market, market stalls, pop up events and ‘all kinds of other sea parties’. @holycrab_uk INDUSTRIAL WAFFLE (28/08) DAN Doherty, the executive chef behind London's hottest (and highest) 24 hour restaurant, Duck and Waffle, will be bringing his playful gourmet style to Manchester this October, hosting a special one-off banquet at this year's Manchester Food and Drink Festival. The feast for 175 people, designed around the theme of 'industry', is set to celebrate one of most integral aspect of Manchester’s heritage and will be held at the historic Bonded Warehouse at Old Granada Studios - a former Victorian goods warehouse turned TV studio and high-end mixed-use development. Writer, Blue Badge Guide and Confidential Editor-at-Large, Jonathan Schofield, will set the historical scene throughout dinner by bringing the building’s past to life, whilst Doherty - recently voted amongst London's 1000 most influential people - mans the pans. Tickets for the banquet are priced at £75, with all profits going towards Action Against Hunger, a charity which aids malnourished children in countries such as Ethiopia, South Sudan, Nigeria, Nepal and Somalia. More here NEW APPOINTMENT (26/08) Chef Mike Jennings has been appointed head chef of Prestbury’s Bacchus Restaurant, following a short-lived spell at Spinningfields celeb haunt, Neighbourhood. Jennings – a former pupil of chefs Gary Rhodes, Nigel Haworth and Shaun Rankin – will take the reins at the Modern British restaurant, following the collapse of his two AA-Rosette restaurant, Grenache, in Walkden earlier this year. Jennings told The Caterer: “I am full of excitement and aim to bring some accolades to the already popular venue.” In between jobs, Mike clawed out a career in crab ventriloquy LEFTBANK (25/08) We've just had a sneak peak of new plans for Leftbank. The victors of The Kitchens street food start-up project, Bangers & Bacon, are to relaunch next month with their first standalone restaurant, BEASTro – a meaty all-day bistro serving dishes such as short rib bonbons, bacon swirls and oxtail risotto. Whilst waiting for a full English wedged between two pancakes, we got the first look at designs for the new gaff. Is that a chef's table we see? Nice. But we reckon that kitchen will need some kit. Oh, and while we’re that way, we see the unit opposite is beginning to stir once more, with the imminent arrival of a bloke named Carl and his healthy soups, salads and sarnies. More here. ENZO GROW (22/08) We see Nantwich-based pizza, coffee and cake outfit, Enzo, have put in for a property on Manchester’s Fountain Street – near to The Shakespeare boozer and, awkwardly, Pizza Hut. Inspired by a particularly chirpy Italian bus driver with a passion for beans and dough, Enzo’s specialities include the Lasagne Pizza, the Breakfast Calzone and the ‘Spiked Hot Chocolate’ – which sounds a little ominous. Enzo’s licence application will go to council consultation on 15 September. CRAFTY PAIR UNITE (22/08) The co-founder of Manchester’s Cloudwater Brewery has teamed up with the owner of Northern Quarter’s Common bar and Port Street Beer House to form All Our Yesterdays – the collective trusted with the running of Manchester’s new community-built pub, The Pilcrow. Since its inception early last year, the project has seen dozens of professional makers, creators and tradespeople lead hundreds of volunteers in workshops ranging from tile glazing to cooperage, conduit laying to coppicing. From the bar stools to the crisp flavourings, the 3D printed washers to the ‘Manchester log end’ dart board, every element of the new boozer has been knocked together using traditional techniques and local graft. The ‘safe hands’ will take charge of the venture - located in Sadler’s Yard within Manchester’s emerging £800m NOMA district – when it opens in September. More here TAKE REFUGE (21/08) Confidential's just been for a sniff behind the scenes of The Refuge, the new lounge, bar and restaurant project from the DJs-turned-restaurateurs behind the award-winning Volta in West Didsbury and Chorlton local Electrik. Luke Cowdrey and Justin Crawford have been brought in by new owners Starwood to ‘curate’ the food and drink side of The Palace Hotel's wider £25m revamp… and by the small plates we snaffled during our tour, they’re doing a fine job indeed. Gordo’s currently thrashing out the write-up, but in the meantime take a look at the pre-opening menu and the gorgeous morsels below. The Refuge by Volta launches at The Palace Hotel next month. Aubergine fritters Radicchio, pomegranate, orange blossom Tuna tartare 'NAM NUMS (20/08) Just the three bits of Vietnamese food and booze news today. Firstly, we see Oldham Road's small indie Vietnamese cafe, Ca Phe Viet, have just opened a second venue at 520 Wilbraham Road, Chorlton. PhoBowl Cholton promise to bring 'traditional Vietnamese dishes right to the heart' of the suburb, such as the eponymous Pho bone broth, Bahn Mi Vietnamese baguettes and Bun rice noodles. Open 12-9pm weekdays and 12-10pm weekends (closed Mondays). @PhoBowlChorlton Elsewhere, within the Manchester penny-pincher's palace of Arndale Markets, award-winning Vietnamese street food traders ViET Shack are preparing to launch 'Manchester's first healthy bakery'. Simone's will offer a range of guilt-free, sugar-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, flour-free, butter-free desserts. Sounds like a riot, eh? Simone's opens later this week. Lastly, to celebrate their first birthday in the Corn Exchange, Vietnamese restaurant Pho are throwing a super-awesome 'Snapchat Birthday Party', in which everybody, presumably, stays sat at home on their arse sending their regrets using a rainbow-spewing catface filter. We joke. What they're actually doing is offering 2-4-1 on booze (between 4pm and closing on Sun 28 Aug) when you add 'PhoRestaurant' on Snapchat and send them a birthday snap. There'll whip you a snap back containing a voucher code and off you pop. You'll also have chance to win a meal for four by using their special birthday filter, pouring a full bowl of Pho down your kecks and sticking a summer roll up your schnoz. CUBAN-OH MY LORD THAT'S GOOD (20/08) If you’ve ever watched Chef, the now-cult American movie about a gifted LA chef who gets spanked by a restaurant critic, goes (unknowingly) bat-shit on social media, quits his job, buys a food truck, travels across the States and ultimately rediscovers his love for both food and his neglected son, then you’ll know that a proper Cubano sandwich can bring a strapping, hairy-arsed Latino construction worker to his knees. Now, in tribute to Chef and their own take on the Cubano (one of Confidential’s Top 9 Sarnies in Manchester), everywhere street foodsters Bangers & Bacon are to launch the first in a series of ‘Cinefeasts’ this weekend, serving dishes inspired by the film as you watch the story unfold on the giant projector screen above. Choose the three course ‘street truck’ menu for £15, or the seven course ‘El Jefe’ menu for £45. Fri 26 Aug, 7pm, Cork & Bull, Old Granada Studios - tickets here ON YOUR MARKS (18/08) Marks & Spencer are to launch a new upmarket food hall on the ground floor of Allied London’s new £73m No.1 Spinningfields tower – which is due to complete next year. The developer says the space will be ‘home to exclusive ingredients and dishes’ and include an in-store bakery, cheese and olive counters, alongside an extensive beer and wine selection. The new food hall adds to a growing food and drink mix within the 19-storey Ian Simpson-designed office block, which will also include a champagne/oyster bar and a coffee shop on the ground floor, as well as a high-end rooftop restaurant by the D&D Group – which operate 35 restaurants in cities such as London, New York and Tokyo, including two Michelin-starred restaurants (Launceston Place and Angler) in London. MICHELIN GOES LIVE (17/08) For the past few years, it’s been harder to prevent news from leaking before the official Michelin Awards announcement, so for the first time in the UK and Ireland, restaurants being awarded prestigious new Michelin Stars will be revealed at a live event in October. This will be the first time the selection has been announced at a live event since the first Michelin Guide to the British Isles appeared in 1911. The presentation will coincide with the publication of the Michelin Guide Great Britain and Ireland 2017 which recommends more than 3,300 places to eat and sleep - including those restaurants and pubs awarded Michelin Stars for the quality of their food, and it is expected to attract top chefs and key food industry figures. Michael Ellis, International Director of the Michelin Guides, will break the news (of zilch for Manchester) at the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), Savoy Place, London on October 3. We’re just wondering who they’ve asked to do the catering... BUCKLE UP, IT'S BOLTON FOOD FESTIVAL (17/08) 25 free cookery demos with sixteen different chefs will take place this coming Bank Holiday weekend as part of Bolton Food and Drink Festival from August 26 -29. Michelin-starred chef Michael Caines, Aiden Byrne of Manchester House, Masterchef winner Simon Wood and celebrity chefs Andrew Nutter and James Martin are just some of exciting guests at this year’s event. The long-running festival will also incorporate a market with 150 food stalls spread across the town centre and a Mad Science Zone for children in Le Mans Crescent. The festival is organised by Bolton Council in association with Aldi. For further details visit their website. WEDDING DISTRESS (17/08) Manchester-based Individual Restaurants hit the national headlines recently with a heart-warming story after coming to the aid of a wedding party let down by the sudden closure of Italian restaurant Avalanche. John and Jo Young, from Bolton, got married on Friday afternoon at Manchester Town Hall but were distraught when they turned up at Avalanche for their wedding breakfast with their family and 27 wedding guests to find it closed with a bailiffs notice on the door. The best man and ushers stepped into action by looking for nearby restaurants that might be able to accommodate the wedding party at the last minute. Despite it being 7pm on a Friday evening, Piccolino on Clarence Street immediately arranged a Prosecco reception, while they prepared the private dining area in their sister venue, Restaurant Bar and Grill on John Dalton Street. Within an hour they had designed a three-course menu to give the happy couple a proper Italian wedding and the chefs even managed to knock up a wedding cake. Piccolino to the rescue REAL JUNK FOOD FOR 110TH BIRTHDAY DINNER (17/08) Victoria Baths will be turning the grand old age of 110 this September and plan to celebrate with a birthday dinner on Thursday 8th by joining forces with Real Junk Food and their head chef Mary-Ellen McTague who will create a feast made entirely from perfectly edible ingredients that would otherwise have gone to waste. The Real Junk Food Project Manchester is a not for profit community interest company which intercepts waste food from supermarkets, restaurants and a number of other sources, and turns it into healthy, nutritious meals. This family-style celebration meal will be served in the Males 2nd Class Hall. There will be music in the Turkish Baths Rest Room and the Gala Pool, which will be filled with water during the birthday week celebrations. Tickets for the dinner and a pre-dinner drink are £45 each (+ booking fee). They are on sale at www.victoriabaths110.eventbrite.co.uk proceeds will help raise funds for the £3.5m restoration and re-opening of the beautiful, historic Turkish Baths suite. HIP HOP PUB PLOT (16/08) We caught a tweet the other day from Hip Hop Chip Shop, the ‘untraditional fish and chip shop inspired by the inventive and experimental ethos of hip hop culture.’ Now their residential at The Kitchens in Leftbank, Spinningfields, has finished, they’re ready to move to pastures new so have put out this shout, ‘We're looking for pub kitchens to take over on a short/long term basis #Manchester #Leeds #Liverpool Ideas?’. Suggestions welcome. In the meantime, you’ll find their award-winning funky chippy truck parked at Media City, private events, Grub Beer Festival (Aug 27th) and Manchester Food and Drink Festival (from Oct 5th – 9th) HOT FOOD TRENDS (16/08) According to analysis by online restaurant booking service Quandoo UK, reservations for Caribbean food increased massively between 2015 and 2016. Manchester saw an increase of 297% and Liverpool a whopping 716%. It seems we just can’t get enough Jerk Chicken, Rice and Beans, Fried Plantain and Dumplings. Manchester city centre is served by branches of Turtle Bay on Oldham Street and Oxford Road as well as Onje in the Arndale Centre, but arguably the best places can be found further afield such as Dougie’s and Sasa’s in Hulme, Chicken Run in Alexander Park, M&M’s Caribbean Spice in Old Trafford or Jerk Junction in Whalley Range. Everyone has their favourite, but don’t be surprised to find the queues getting longer. GOLDEN TICKETS (15/08) Manchester’s Corn Exchange is celebrating the first anniversary of its £30m transformation into a multi-dining option destination, by giving away spot prizes and surprise meal upgrades. Over the past twelve months, over 785,000 guests have visited the thirteen new restaurants and public spaces, enjoying a range of globally inspired dining options including Indian, Mexican, Brazilian and Italian. KuPP and Alston Bar and Grill have both expressed an interest in becoming the final two operators. Phase two of the scheme will see the upper floors developed into a 114 bedroom boutique aparthotel, managed by Roomzzz which is due to open in 2017. To mark its first birthday, visitors between Monday 15 to Wednesday 17 August will be given the chance to win some golden tickets from a selection of restaurants. Prizes include free meals for two at Tampopo, vouchers for Pho, Wahaca and Cabana. GOING FOR A BRAZILIAN (15/08) Speaking of Cabana, the Olympics in Rio might inspire some to go to the gym, have a swim or even book in for a painful tidy of the lady garden, but it simply makes us want to put on an OTT headdress and samba over to the Corn Exchange for a flame grilled skewer and a Caipirinha. This buzzing Brazilian bolthole will be serving the Menu of Champions until 19 September; which includes Chimichurri Cabana Steak, Cheesy Dough Balls, Biro-biro Rice and Rio Beans, all for £19.95. It’s also worth noting that kids eat free throughout August with every paying adult. To support their official charity Brazil’s Children’s Trust (part of Childreach International) they’ll be adding an optional £1 to every bill until 19 September with all proceeds protecting and empowering at-risk children in Brazil. NEW LEASE OF LIFE FOR CITY CENTRE PUBS (15/08) Owners of The Crafty Pig in the Northern Quarter have taken over two more city centre pubs; Town Hall Tavern in Tib Lane and The Waldorf on Gore Street near Piccadilly. Both will be given a modern upgrade allowing for a ‘relaxed high quality feel’. Bermondsey Pub Company, part of the Enterprise Inns empire, will close the traditional boozers during the refurbishment, with the Town Hall Tavern due to reopen on September 8, followed by The Waldorf on September 16. WELL HUNG IN BOLTON (15/08) James and Richard from Bangers and Bacon have temporarily moved out of The Kitchens in Spinningfields, while the whole of their side of the Leftbank canteen is being transformed into a permanent bistro. They will be taking their show out on the road and are off to Bolton for a collaboration with Inca Pop-Ups, for a two day takeover of the Chef’s Quarter at The Vaults in Bolton on 19 and 20 August. The mighty meaty menu will include short rib bonbon with charred sweetcorn, sirloin tartare with traditional trimmings, asparagus and bone marrow 'salad', oxtail and pearl barley risotto with beetroot, with homemade pecan pie and vanilla crème to finish. Tickets are priced at £30 and are available here, or by calling Richard on 07703455347. A licensed bar selling local ales and fine wines is located next to the Chef's Quarter. HAWKSMOOR GIVE MORE (15/08) If your idea of a good time is six courses of great food, cocktails, wine, whisky and a few mildly entertaining stories, this event might just be for you. Enjoy a special feast in the private dining room at Hawksmoor Manchester with matched wines as part of an all-inclusive dinner to raise money for Action Against Hunger on Thursday 1 September. The Hawksmoor Classics menu includes: Shortrib Nuggets with Kimchi Ketchup, Scallops with White Port & Garlic, Tamworth Pork Belly Ribs, Fillet or Rib-eye Steak with sides and sauces, Sticky Toffee Pudding with Clotted Cream and Salted Caramel ‘Tributes’ to take away. Tickets cost £100, all of which will be directly donated to the international humanitarian organisation Action Against Hunger, and are available here. CHINESE SUMMER YUM FUN (15/08) Tattu, the upmarket Chinese restaurant and bar will be embracing the final days of summer with an afternoon celebration on Sunday 28 August, with food, drink and live DJs providing uplifting vibes along with its unique Yum Cha dining experience. Guests are invited to enjoy a special light three course menu of delicious dim sum, choice of small plates such as Peking duck pancakes and chilli salt baby squid as well as desserts, accompanied by unlimited Tattu mimosas. Priced £40 per person, tables from 12pm – 4:45pm are available to book via reservations@tattu.co.uk or by calling 0161 819 2060 CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF (15/08) News has reached us of an unexplained arson attempt on the new Cat Cafe in the Northern Quarter. Firefighters and police were called to the scene at 1.50am to discover a burning pile of rubbish outside the venue, which is on the ground level of an apartment block. Owners, sisters Ellie and Sarah Close, believe that the culprits tried to smash a window near the High Street reception before setting fire to the rubbish outside, causing the glass window to crack. Fortunately none of the resident cats were harmed, as they were in a completely different room, but staff were badly shaken up by the incident. It is as yet unknown if this was a targeted act by animal rights activists against the enforced petting of house cats, or if it was a bit of tomcatfoolery. FESTEJAR TAPAS BAR (15/08) Now in its third year, Festejar, a celebration of all things Spanish, will be back in Albert Square for four-days from Thursday 1 to Sunday 5 September. The festival, sponsored by a leading Rioja brand, will showcase authentic Spanish food from tapas to tortillas, alongside craft traders, and an array of activities and spectacles from Spanish dancing lessons to live bands, transforming the square into a 'Little Spanish Oasis' in the heart of a city being slowly invaded by quality Spanish restaurants and enriched by its people. We've picked out some highlights here |
One has 32.9 million Twitter followers; the other has 31 million. When U.S. President Donald Trump met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House on June 26, Trump chose to draw attention to something the leaders have in common by saying “We are world leaders on social media.” Prior to the June 26 meeting, news analysts focused on how the U.S.-India relationship was strained over possible changes to the U.S. H1B visa program. Approximately 70 percent of these visas were issued to Indians in 2014. Another source of friction: Trump’s remarks railing against India and China while withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement. But Modi’s meeting with Trump showed these events would cause little loss of momentum in U.S.-India relations. In fact, as a scholar of U.S.-India relations, I’d argue that the ties between the two countries are so intertwined that derailment is almost impossible. From logjam to strategic partnership The economic relationship between the two countries has seen a tenfold increase in the past 15 years – from US$5.6 billion in 1990 to $103 billion in 2015. The U.S. has displaced Russia as the biggest supplier of arms to India. It is also the country with which India conducts the most military exercises. These stronger economic and military ties are two signs of ways the U.S. and India have drawn closer since the end of the Cold War. Other common interests including securing the Indo-Pacific region as China increasingly asserts itself there and fighting Islamic extremism. A lesser-known catalyst pushing the U.S. and India together – lobbying by Indian-Americans – is the subject of my new book. In my view, this relatively new political force has played a pivotal role in transforming U.S. foreign policy toward India. The emergence of Indian lobbying Although Indian-Americans make up just about 1 percent of the total American population, they are an influential group. Measured by per-capita income, Indian-Americans are the wealthiest ethnic group in the U.S. Beginning in the 1990s, their professional success gave the community confidence to play a more active role in the American social and political life. Backed by their own financial resources and growing population, Indian-Americans took to lobbying through a network of professional and political organizations such as the Indian American Forum for Political Education, Indian American Committee for Political Awareness and U.S.-India Political Action Committee. The bipartisan Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans was formed in 1993. The caucus expanded from its original membership of eight to 50 within 12 months of its founding. Its membership peaked at approximately 200 members a decade later. Although it is somewhat smaller now, it continues to be the largest caucus dedicated to a single country. In 2004, a bipartisan India Caucus was formed in the U.S. Senate which was headed by Hillary Clinton, Democratic senator of New York, and John Cornyn, Republican senator of Texas. This was the first time a Senate caucus was formed dedicated to a single country. An evolving strategy In the beginning of the 1990s, the Indian lobby focused on countering the Pakistani lobby groups, which had a strong presence during the Cold War period. The first major test came in defending India’s nuclear test in 1998, an act by which India essentially declared itself as a nuclear power in defiance of international norms. Another early test was exposing exposing Pakistan’s military adventurism in Kargil War in 1999 and creating a more objective view of the Kashmir issue. However, it was during the passage of the U.S.-India Civilian Nuclear Agreement Bill in the U.S. Congress in 2008 that the real clout of Indian lobbying was confirmed. The India lobby emphasized the positive aspects of the civilian atomic agreement, ensuring its safe passage at every stage in the U.S. Congress. The caucus members were responsible for turning around the negative impression of India that dominated the Cold War period. They highlighted India’s credentials as a democracy, the value of its market economically and its growing strategic importance. The growing support for India in the U.S. Congress was reflected when 40 congressional representatives attended an address given by Modi in Manhattan in September 2014 and by the applause Modi received during his address to a joint session of Congress two years later. Visits from Modi Modi’s frequent visits have reinvigorated both the India-U.S. ties and the Indian lobbying. During his second visit to the U.S. in 2014, Modi met with a 50-member delegation of the Oversea Friends of BJP, India’s center-right ruling party, and listened to their concerns and issues. The first-ever U.S. convention to mobilize the diaspora , organized by the same group, helped Modi connect with the Indian community. The Indian lobby is paying close attention to the issue of H1B visa as the IT industry is one of the major success stories in the India-U.S. relationship. But Indo-U.S. ties go way beyond any single issue. The Trump administration seems to realize this. Welcoming Modi’s visit to the U.S., White House spokesperson Sean Spicer listed “fighting terrorism, promoting economic growth and reforms and expanding security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region” as common priorities for the two countries. The Indian side was looking for “a new direction for deeper bilateral engagement.” Modi and Trump each have a corporate style of administration. This may help the India-U.S. economic cooperation accelerate and achieve their target of $500 billion in trade in the coming years. A challenge for both leaders will be how to reconcile Trump’s “America First” policy with Modi’s “Make in India” campaign. However, I believe the synergies between the two economies are strong enough to overcome this challenge, especially with the help of the India lobby. |
– August 13, 2013 Contrary to popular belief, the National Security Agency is not Batman. They don’t have some intricate system of wires and cameras that allow them unfettered access to the hearths, homes, and cell phones of the American people. That might work for the caped crusader, but in real life? Not so much. I’m talking, of course, about the recent headlines regarding the NSA. You know what I mean. The recent developments that brought to light certain foreign-intelligence collection programs that have been, if I may be so bold, categorically misunderstood. At this point, I think many people have already established their opinions on the NSA, PRISM, Snowden, what have you, but I’m not entirely sure that everyone knows exactly what they’re having opinions about. What is the NSA actually doing? Did we lose all of our digital privacy years ago? Are they really reading all of our emails? The short answer is no. The long answer is something that I think you need to hear (or read) from the man who knows best. Army Gen. Keith Alexander is the current director of the National Security Agency, Chief of the Central Security Service, and commander of United States Cyber Command. Recently he spoke at the national Black Hat convention to address these somewhat touchy topics. In spite of Internet-wide disbelief, and in the face of actual hecklers, Gen. Alexander explained to an audience of hackers – and other denizens of the tech world – just what the NSA is doing. The truth? It may actually surprise you. “The issue that stands before us today is one of what do we do next,” Gen. Alexander said. “How do we start this discussion on defending our nation and protecting our civil liberties and privacy? It’s equally important, from my perspective, that you have the facts.” Those facts start with understanding why the NSA wasn’t out there blogging out their daily activity to everyone. That answer should not come as a surprise…to anyone. “There are good reasons why some of this is classified, and why some of this is stuff that we just don’t put out there,” he explained. “The big reason, from my perspective, is because terrorists use our communications. They live among us. How do we come up with a program to stop terrorism, and to protect our civil liberties and privacy? This is perhaps one of the biggest issues facing our country today.” Times have changed, the general pointed out. Threats to our nation can come in many forms, and the people who work for the NSA, “their reputation is tarnished because all the facts aren’t on the table.” To fix that, Gen. Alexander said he wants people to articulate the truth. “It is important to understand [the role of the NSA] so the people know what we do, and what we do not do.” A good example of this, he said, can be demonstrated in the recent history of terrorism. Starting with the attack on the World Trade Center in 1993, through 9/11 and today, terrorism is a real and dangerous threat. It’s also something that the NSA is designed to mitigate. He also goes on to say that before one can understand the programs themselves, it’s important to first understand the people of the National Security Agency. That is, what they do and how they do it. Gen. Alexander says the mission is simple: “Our job is defending this country; saving lives, supporting our troops in combat.” Over 6,000 NSA employees have gone to Afghanistan and Iraq, he said. Of those men and women, twenty of them, cryptologists, paid the ultimate price to ensure that our troops had the intelligence they needed. “The mindset of these people [NSA employees] is foreign intelligence to save lives, our lives, our military, our civilians. That is a true and noble effort.” An effort that does not go unregulated. Actually, that brings up a good point. Why do people think that the NSA is just monitoring everything as they please? Anyone who has ever worked for or encountered the government knows that the line from concept to execution is a long one that usually requires many signatures. The NSA is no different. “I think it’s important to understand the strict oversight that goes into these programs,” said Gen. Alexander. “The assumption is that people are out there just wheeling and dealing. Nothing could be further from the truth. We have tremendous oversight and compliance in these programs, auditability.” Every part of the process is audited, he explained. One-hundred percent. “What comes out is that we’re collecting everything,” he said. “That is not true. What we’re doing is, for foreign intelligence purposes, we’re going after counter-terrorism, counter-proliferation, cyber-attacks. And it’s focused.” Focused as in specific. As in the government is not keeping records of everything everyone does online everywhere. Like they need to know you pinned a picture of waterfalls on Pinterest and then emailed yourself your grocery list. Because collecting absolutely every single bit of data on everyone everywhere would be a colossal and oppressively difficult undertaking. “If you think about net flow, and the amount of information, you couldn’t afford – and don’t want – to collect everything. It makes your analysis harder.” The intent, he said, is to thwart foreign adversaries who are trying to harm the nation. Period. Additionally, “industry just doesn’t dump stuff to us and say, ‘hey, here’s some interesting facts’. They are compelled by court order to comply.” I know that may seem a little intimidating, but it doesn’t mean what you might think. In the “metadata” program that’s been disclosed, “This does not include your phone calls,” Gen. Alexander said strongly, “or mine. Your emails, nor mine. Your SMS messages. There is no content. There are no names in the database. No addresses. No credit card numbers. No locational information is used.” Only 35 people are authorized to run queries at NSA. They have to go through 3 separate training regiments and pass a test to actually do queries. In 2012, there were less than 300 numbers that were approved for queries. Yes, you read that right: less than 300 numbers. Those queries resulted in 12 reports to the FBI. Those reports contained less than 500 numbers. Not millions, not hundreds of thousands, not tens of thousands, less than 500. “The intent of this program was to find a terrorist active and identify that to the FBI,” Gen. Alexander said. “This [PRISM program] is for foreign intelligence purposes. This is CONTEL [counter-intelligence]. This is not targeting U.S. persons. This is targeting threats overseas. This is our lawful intercept program which is analogous to many other countries around the world. They compel service providers to provide information just as we do.” So, you know when people say that the NSA is listening to all of our communications? That’s just not happening. They are not authorized to do that. “A lot of people might say, ‘I hear what you’re saying but I don’t believe you’,” the general said to his hacker audience. “Congress did a review of this program over a four-year period. In that four-year period, they found no willful or knowledgeable violations of the law or the intent of the law in this program. More specifically, they found no one at NSA had ever gone outside the boundaries of what we’ve been given. That’s a fact.” He said anyone who stepped outside of those boundaries would be noticed by the auditing program, and held accountable for their actions. He went on to say that the people who maintain this program take their jobs very seriously. “Their intent is not to go after our communications. Their intent is to find the terrorist who walks among us.” Under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, the other issue that’s been in the news, the government is permitted to target only non-U.S. persons reasonably believed to be outside of the United States, and then only when there is a foreign intelligence purpose. Gen. Alexander says it’s important to have a national conversation about these issues. He implores people to check the facts, to read the Congressional testimony, before forming an opinion. “Look at what we’re talking about here because this is our nation’s future. This is what we’ve done in these programs.” And yes, some of this stuff is going to be classified, but it’s not classified to keep it from good people, as he pointed out. It’s classified because there are people out there – real, bona fide bad guys – who wish us harm. If we tell people exactly what we’re doing then the adversaries will know how to get to our defenses. The damage to our country could be significant and irreversible. Preventing future terrorist attacks is, after all, the whole point. And it’s working. “I think it is worth considering what would have happened in a world if those attacks [that have been stopped] – 42 of those 54 terrorist plots – if they were successfully executed,” Gen. Alexander pointed out. “[Think about] what that would have meant to our civil liberties and privacy.” Because when it comes down to it, this isn’t an issue of stepping on digital toes, it really is about the future of our country and the welfare of our people. Those are things that we should treasure protecting, whether that’s the NSA, the FBI, or even a room full of hackers helping to make that possible. Although, for all the facts, sometimes you still have to deal with a troll or two. Something Gen. Alexander didn’t bat an eye at, I might add. When a heckler yelled, “Read the Constitution!” from the audience he said, ever so confidently, “I have. You should, too.” It was met with roaring applause. Jessica L. Tozer is a blogger for DoDLive and Armed With Science. She is an Army veteran and an avid science fiction fan, both of which contribute to her enthusiasm for technology in the military. Follow Armed with Science on Facebook and Twitter! ———- Disclaimer: The appearance of hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by the Department of Defense of this website or the information, products or services contained therein. For other than authorized activities such as military exchanges and Morale, Welfare and Recreation sites, the Department of Defense does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations. Such links are provided consistent with the stated purpose of this DoD website. |
Releasing Haskell web applications on Heroku has become much easier with Heroku’s Docker support. This article explains how to deploy a Servant application on Heroku using Docker. I’ve prepared an example application you can use to try deploying to Heroku. This article is divided into three sections. The first section explains how to run the example application locally. The second section explains how to run the example application locally using Docker. The third section explains how to deploy this application to Heroku. If you want to deploy to Heroku without running locally first, feel free to skim through the first and second sections. However, if you’re new to Haskell development, I recommend going through all three sections. Running the application locally WITHOUT Docker The example application is a small JSON API. It provides two APIs. One is to submit simple comments. The other is to display all comments that have been submitted. The comments are saved to a PostgreSQL database. The following will walk through how to build and run the application locally, without involving Docker or Heroku. Build the application locally First, clone the repository and build the application. $ git clone https://github.com/cdepillabout/servant-on-heroku $ cd servant-on-heroku/ $ stack setup # install the required version of ghc on your system $ stack build # install all dependencies and build the application An error may occur when building the application because of missing PostgreSQL libraries. On Arch Linux, these missing PostgreSQL libraries can be installed with the following command: $ sudo pacman -Ss postgresql-libs On Ubuntu, the following command can be used: $ sudo apt-get install libpq-dev Other platforms may use a different command to install these libraries. Once the required PostgreSQL libraries have been installed, try running stack build again. It should succeed this time. Now try running the application: $ stack exec -- servant-on-heroku-api Oops! It should fail with the following error: servant-on-heroku-api: libpq: failed (could not connect to server: Connection refused Is the server running on host "localhost" (::1) and accepting TCP/IP connections on port 5432? could not connect to server: Connection refused Is the server running on host "localhost" (127.0.0.1) and accepting TCP/IP connections on port 5432? ) The example application is trying to connect to PostgreSQL. Comments are stored in PostgreSQL, so you need PostgreSQL running locally. Setup PostgreSQL Most OSs and distributions will have different ways of installing PostgreSQL. Check with your platform documentation on how to install PostgreSQL. For example, here is the Arch Linux documentation for installing PostgreSQL. Here is the Ubuntu documentation. Once PostgreSQL is installed and running, try running the application again: $ stack exec -- servant-on-heroku-api Another oops! It should fail with the following error: servant-on-heroku-api: libpq: failed (FATAL: role "mydbuser" does not exist ) Looks like a PostgreSQL user and database need to be setup for our application. If you check out the application source code ( src/Lib.hs ), you can see that it is reading in the DATABASE_URL environment variable and using it to connect to the PostgreSQL server. If the DATABASE_URL environment variable is not specified, the application defaults to using: It is trying to use the user mydbuser with password mydbpass to access the database named mydb . Let’s create this user and database in PostgreSQL. The following commands are specific to Arch Linux. They may differ slightly if you are on a different platform. Check your platform documentation if they don’t seem to be working. First, create the mydbuser user with password mydbpass : $ sudo -u postgres -- psql --command "CREATE ROLE mydbuser NOSUPERUSER NOCREATEDB NOCREATEROLE INHERIT LOGIN ENCRYPTED PASSWORD 'mydbpass'" Create a database named mydb : $ sudo -u postgres -- createdb mydb Make sure that mydbuser can access the mydb database: $ sudo -u postgres -- psql --command "GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE mydb TO mydbuser" PostgreSQL might need to be restarted: $ sudo systemctl restart postgresql It should now be possible to connect to the mydb database locally as the mydbuser user: $ psql -U mydbuser -d mydb -h 127.0.0.1 Testing the API Now that PostgreSQL is setup correctly, the application can be run with the following command: $ stack exec -- servant-on-heroku-api running servant-on-heroku on port 8080... Let’s try sending a comment. With the application still running, try the following command: $ curl --request POST \ --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \ --data '{"author": "DG", "text": "Pretty good"}' \ 'http://localhost:8080/add-comment' { "text" : "Pretty good" , "author" : "DG" } Now let’s list all the comments: $ curl --request GET \ --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \ 'http://localhost:8080/get-comments' [{ "text" : "Pretty good" , "author" : "DG" } ] Looks like it’s working. Now let’s try with Docker! Running the application locally WITH Docker Docker is used to build and run the application inside a container. The following section assumes basic familiarity with Docker. Installing Docker Docker is installed differently on different platforms. Check your platform documentation for more advice. For instance, here are the instructions for installing on Arch Linux and Ubuntu. After installing Docker, make sure it is running with the following command: $ docker info Building with Docker We will build the application inside of Docker and create a docker image for the application. Use docker build to build a Docker image for the application: $ docker build -t servant-on-heroku . This uses the Dockerfile in the current directory to build the application. The Dockerfile lists all the steps to build the application and create a reusable image. If you take a look at the Dockerfile , you can see that it is performing the following steps: Install required packages with apt-get . Install stack . Install GHC using stack based on the application’s stack.yaml file. Install Haskell dependencies for the application using the application’s .cabal file. Building the application with stack . Create a non-root user to use to run the application. Run the application. docker build can take up to one hour to finish creating the servant-on-heroku image. Testing the API with Docker Once docker build finishes, docker images can be used to list all local images: $ docker images REPOSITORY TAG IMAGE ID CREATED SIZE servant-on-heroku latest ff591d372461 30 seconds ago 3.92 GB ... You can see the servant-on-heroku image that was just created. Let’s try running the servant-on-heroku image. This will run the application in Docker: $ docker run --interactive --tty --rm servant-on-heroku Oh no! It looks like the PostgreSQL problem is back: servant-on-heroku-api: libpq: failed (could not connect to server: Connection refused Is the server running on host "localhost" (::1) and accepting TCP/IP connections on port 5432? could not connect to server: Connection refused Is the server running on host "localhost" (127.0.0.1) and accepting TCP/IP connections on port 5432? ) What’s happening here? Well, since the servant-on-heroku container is running as a Docker container, by default it can’t see our local network. It can’t see that PostgreSQL is running on localhost:5432 . Here’s a small trick we can use. When running the servant-on-heroku container, we can tell Docker to just let the container use our local network interface. That way, it can see PostgreSQL: $ docker run --interactive --tty --rm --network host servant-on-heroku running servant-on-heroku on port 8080... With the servant-on-heroku container running, let’s try the curl commands from the previous section. Posting a comment: $ curl --request POST \ --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \ --data '{"author": "EK", "text": "Not enough CT"}' \ 'http://localhost:8080/add-comment' { "text" : "Not enough CT" , "author" : "EK" } Getting the comments: $ curl --request GET \ --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \ 'http://localhost:8080/get-comments' [{ "text" : "Pretty good" , "author" : "DG" },{ "text" : "Not enough CT" , "author" : "EK" }] By the way, in order to open a shell and inspect the image by hand, the following command can be used: $ docker run --interactive --tty --rm --network host servant-on-heroku /bin/bash Now that we are confident our application works in Docker, it’s time for Heroku. Heroku Once we have the application building and running successfully in Docker, it’s easy to move to Heroku. The first step is creating a Heroku account. Creating an Account Go here to sign up for a Heroku account. If you already have a Heroku account, you can skip this step. We will deploy the application using Heroku’s “Free” tier, so you don’t need to worry about registering a credit card. The majority of the instructions in this section are condensed from Heroku’s own documentation on integrating with Docker. Check out their documentation if anything is unclear. Install the Heroku CLI Application Heroku provides a CLI application to make it easy to work with their service. This is similar to AWS’s CLI or Digital Ocean’s CLI. On Arch Linux, Heroku’s CLI application can be installed with the following command: $ yaourt -S heroku-toolbelt This installs the heroku binary to the system. Instructions for other platforms can be found on Heroku’s site. Once the CLI application has been downloaded, it can be used to login and authenticate with Heroku’s API: $ heroku login You will be asked for the username and password of the account you just created. Create an Application on Heroku The first step of releasing our Servant API to Heroku is to create a Heroku Application. The following command will create a new Heroku application called servant-on-heroku . You may need to use a different name for your own application: $ heroku apps:create servant-on-heroku The following command lists information about the application just created (although it won’t be too interesting yet): $ heroku apps:info servant-on-heroku === servant-on-heroku Auto Cert Mgmt: false Dynos : Git URL: https://git.heroku.com/servant-on-heroku.git Owner : [email protected] Region : us Repo Size: 0 B Slug Size: 0 B Stack : cedar-14 Web URL: https://servant-on-heroku.herokuapp.com/ Make sure to take note of the Web URL . It will come in handy later. Install Heroku Docker Plugin The Heroku CLI application has a plugin architecture. This allows the user to install plugins that can be used to access different parts of Heroku’s API. There is a plugin for using Heroku’s Docker Container Registry. The following command can be used to install the plugin: $ heroku plugins:install heroku-container-registry After installing the plugin, the following command can be used to make sure it works: $ heroku container 4.1.1 It should return the version string for the plugin. In order to actually use the plugin, the following command can be used to login to Heroku’s container registry. $ heroku container:login This adds login information for Heroku’s container registry to the file ~/.docker/config.json : $ cat ~/.docker/config.json { "auths" : { "registry.heroku.com" : { "auth" : "xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx=" } } } Get the Application Running on Heroku In order to get the application actually running on Heroku, the following command is used: $ heroku container:push web This builds a Docker image for the application based on the Dockerfile in the current directory. Internally, docker build is used to do this. If the image was already built in the previous step (when running docker build from the command line), then this heroku container:push command will just use the previously built image. The image is sent to Docker’s Container Registry. Now let’s check heroku apps:info again: $ heroku apps:info servant-on-heroku === servant-on-heroku Auto Cert Mgmt: false Dynos : Git URL: https://git.heroku.com/servant-on-heroku.git Owner : [email protected] Region : us Repo Size: 0 B Slug Size: 0 B Stack : cedar-14 Web URL: https://servant-on-heroku.herokuapp.com/ Hmm, that’s not right. See where it says Dynos: ? A “dyno” is Heroku-lingo for a server that runs the web application. This line means that there aren’t any servers running the application. In order to fix this, the heroku ps:scale command can be used to spin up one dyno to run the application: $ heroku ps:scale web=1 This creates one “web” dyno, which will run the Servant API. Now run the following command to make sure the dyno is actually running: $ heroku ps Free dyno hours quota remaining this month: 549h 2m (99%) For more information on dyno sleeping and how to upgrade, see: https ://devcenter.heroku.com/articles/dyno-sleeping === web (Free) : /bin/sh -c /opt/servant-on-heroku/bin/servant-on-heroku-api (1) web.1 : starting 2017/03/22 19:05:04 +0900 (~ 8s ago) The output is somewhat noisy, but you can tell that there is now one web dyno running. Now that the application is running, the following command can be used to access the application’s Web URL with curl. (The application Web URL can be found in the output of heroku apps:info .) $ curl --request POST \ --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \ --data '{"author": "MS", "text": "Gotta make it professional"}' \ 'https://servant-on-heroku.herokuapp.com/add-comment' That’s strange, there appears to be another error. Let’s see how to investigate application errors on Heroku. Debugging Application Errors Heroku has a really nice log system. The application’s stdout and stderr logs can be inspected with the following command: $ heroku logs 2017-03-22T10 :05:49 heroku[web.1]: proc start ` /opt/servant-on-heroku/bin/servant-on-heroku-api ` 2017-03-22T10 :05:52 app[web.1]: servant-on-heroku-api: libpq: failed (could not connect to server: Connection refused 2017-03-22T10 :05:52 app[web.1]: Is the server running on host "localhost" (127.0.0.1) and accepting 2017-03-22T10 :05:52 app[web.1]: TCP/IP connections on port 5432? 2017-03-22T10 :05:52 app[web.1]: ) 2017-03-22T10 :05:52 heroku[web.1]: State changed from starting to crashed Oh no! It’s the same error that has been plaguing us this whole time. Why is it occurring again? Well, it’s because we haven’t setup a PostgreSQL database on Heroku! PostgreSQL on Heroku Heroku has nice support for PostgreSQL. Heroku provides a PostgreSQL database that can be used free-of-charge. The following command can be used to enable the PostgreSQL database add-on for the application: $ heroku addons:create heroku-postgresql:hobby-dev This enables the heroku-postgresql add-on in the hobby-dev tier (which is free). After enabling it, the following command can be used to make sure the PostgreSQL database has been successfully created: $ heroku addons:info heroku-postgresql === postgresql-tetrahedral-44549 Attachments : servant-on-heroku::DATABASE Installed at: Wed Mar 22 2017 19:22:14 GMT+0900 (JST) Owning app: servant-on-heroku Plan : heroku-postgresql:hobby-dev Price : free State : created The database info can be checked with the pg:info command: $ heroku pg:info === DATABASE_URL Plan : Hobby-dev Status : Available Connections : 0/20 PG Version: 9.6.1 Created : 2017-03-22 10:22 UTC Data Size: 7.2 MB Tables : 1 Rows : 0/10000 (In compliance) Fork /Follow: Unsupported Rollback : Unsupported Add-on : postgresql-tetrahedral-44549 Restart the App Now that the PostgreSQL database is up and running, let’s try restarting the application: $ heroku ps:restart Let’s take a look at the application logs again: $ heroku logs 2017-03-22T10 :22:15 heroku[web.1]: State changed from crashed to starting 2017-03-22T10 :22:54 heroku[web.1]: proc start ` /opt/servant-on-heroku/bin/servant-on-heroku-api ` 2017-03-22T10 :22:56 app[web.1]: Migrating: CREATe TABLE "comment" ( "id" SERIAL8 PRIMARY KEY UNIQUE, "author" VARCHAR NOT NULL, "text" VARCHAR NOT NULL) 2017-03-22T10 :22:57 heroku[web.1]: State changed from starting to up Looks like it worked this time! Finally! Let’s try accessing the app using curl again: $ curl --request POST \ --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \ --data '{"author": "SPJ", "text": "Avoid heroku-at-all-costs"}' \ 'https://servant-on-heroku.herokuapp.com/add-comment' { "text" : "Avoid heroku-at-all-costs" , "author" : "SPJ" } And once more: $ curl --request GET \ --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \ 'https://servant-on-heroku.herokuapp.com/get-comments' [{ "text" : "Avoid heroku-at-all-costs" , "author" : "SPJ" }] Success! Looks like everything is working well! How does the app on Heroku know how to connect to the database? You may be wondering how the application running on Heroku knows how to connect to the database. Well, Heroku has configuration variables that it passes to the application as environment variables. These configuration variables can be inspected with the following command: $ heroku config === servant-on-heroku Config Vars DATABASE_URL : postgres://someusername:[email protected]:5432/databasename Setting up the PostgreSQL database creates a configuration variable called DATABASE_URL . Heroku passes this configuration variable to the application on startup as an environment variable. As discussed in a previous section, the application uses DATABASE_URL to connect to the correct database . Heroku’s DATABASE_URL can also be used to connect to the database on the command line: $ psql " $( heroku config:get DATABASE_URL ) " psql (9.6.1) SSL connection (protocol: TLSv1.2, cipher: ECDHE-RSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384, bits: 256, compression: off) databasename= > select * from comment ; id | author | text ---- | -------- | --------------------------- 1 | SPJ | Avoid heroku-at-all-costs ( 1 row ) Future (Normal) Releases Performing future releases of the application is extremely easy. Just run the following command: $ heroku container:push web This rebuilds the docker image for the application and pushes it to Heroku’s container repository. It then restarts the dynos so they are running with the new code for the application. Future Work This application works pretty well, but there are a couple places for improvements. The lowest hanging fruit would probably be the Dockerfile . Here are a couple ideas that would make the Dockerfile a little better: Use a slimmer image as the base image for the Dockerfile . Right now it is using Heroku’s images, but I don’t think there is any reason that something like Alpine Linux couldn’t be used. . Right now it is using Heroku’s images, but I don’t think there is any reason that something like Alpine Linux couldn’t be used. Base the image on something with stack , GHC, and popular Haskell libraries already installed. This would greatly reduce the time it takes to do the very initial docker build . , GHC, and popular Haskell libraries already installed. This would greatly reduce the time it takes to do the very initial . At the very end of the Dockerfile , remove stack , GHC, and all Haskell libraries. This would hopefully make the docker image a little smaller. It would take less bandwidth to send the image to Heroku’s container repository. It would also be nice to use something like docker-compose to setup the PostgreSQL database using Docker when running locally. Alternatives to Docker for Deploying on Heroku The only strong alternative to using Docker for deploying Haskell code to Heroku is haskellonheroku. This is a normal Heroku buildpack for Haskell. With this buildpack, you are able to use Heroku like you would with dynamic languages. All you need to do is git push your code to Heroku’s remote git repository. The new code is automatically compiled and deployed. This sounds really good in theory, but in pracitce haskellonheroku has two big drawbacks: Heroku build times are limited to 15 minutes. haskellonheroku gets around this in a complicated way, requiring use of Amazon S3 to upload prebuilt libraries before doing a git push . haskellonheroku uses halcyon internally to accomplish most build steps. halcyon is a tool similar to stack and nix . However, it appears that development has stopped 2 years ago. halcyon does not support any of the latest GHC versions. halcyon might have been nice a few years ago before stack existed. But now that stack is regularly used for Haskell development, moving to an alternative build tool doesn’t seem like a good decision. Related Work Alternative Dockerfile for deploying with Docker Conclusion As long as you have Docker running on your local machine, it’s pretty easy to get your Haskell code on Heroku. Heroku’s free plan is nice for testing application ideas and showing them to others. It may not work for any sort of business application, but as a proof-of-concept, it’s great! If you decide your proof-of-concept works well and you want to release it, it’s easy to add a credit card to Heroku and start running on their cheapest paid tier. Heroku has a very nice upgrade path. |
An undercover police officer recorded British Muslim extremists calling for gay people to be thrown from 'high buildings', a court heard today. Five men are accused of addressing or arranging meetings in support of the terror group at a church hall and the back garden of a home in Luton, Bedfordshire, last summer. The first defendant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, allegedly told one gathering: 'We know that Islam is going to dominate all of this earth.' On trial: Mohammed Sufiyan Choudry, 22, left, of Maidenhead, Berkshire, accused of encouraging support for ISIS. Right, Rajib Khan, 38, of Luton, Bedfordshire, accused of encouraging support for ISIS He is one of four defendants who are said to have attended a meeting on June 27, 2015, in which a speaker criticised the annual Gay Pride parade in London, saying 'there's no pride in being gay'. The speech was recorded by an undercover officer, referred to only as 'Kamal', who spent 20 months infiltrating the group and attending their meetings. In a clip played to the Old Bailey, the speaker, identified only as 'Mohammed', said: 'When the parliament are making laws and having Gay Pride today in the UK, Gay Pride, where's the pride in being gay? There's no pride in being gay.' He added: 'Alhamdullilah [praise be to God] the people haven't caught you, or it's high building for you.' He continued: 'Brothers, there's no time to sleep in your chair, no time for relaxation, we should be asking for forgiveness from Allah every night. Oh Allah, forgive that we're living amongst these people and we're not completing our duty towards you.' Accused: Yousaf Bashir, 36, of Luton The meeting allegedly took place in a marquee erected in the back garden of a home in Luton. 'Mohammed' also called on the audience not to 'feel sorry' for the British tourists killed in the terrorist attack on a beach resort in Sousse, Tunisia, in June 2015; or the factory worker who was beheaded in Lyon, France, that same month, the court heard. Another audio recording allegedly captured the first defendant telling the undercover officer about a clamp down on extremism. Speaking as he left the Kokni mosque in Luton on July 3, 2015, he is said to have told the officer that parents could have their children taken into care if they said they 'do not agree' with homosexuals, as 'that's a sign they are becoming extreme'. He added: 'You've got to be careful bruv. Can't live here any more. Hijrah [emigrate] bruv, time for hijrah.' The Old Bailey also heard that the first defendant chose 'the Victory of Islam' as his topic for a speech at a meeting at St Margaret's Methodist Church hall in Luton on June 29. He allegedly told his audience: 'We know the Khilafah [Caliphate] has been established, we are waiting for all the scenarios and one great thing that is going to happen, it’s going to be the last battle, this great battle which is going to take place between the believers and, obviously, the Christians. He continued: 'Allah has promised victory for the believers… we know that Islam is going to dominate all of this earth.” He added: 'Obviously we heard David Cameron say that the terrorists, they will never come here, Britain will succeed. They used to say in the past, the sun will never set on the British Empire, well the sun has set on the British Empire and the sun has started to rise for this Islamic State.' Sean Larkin QC, prosecuting, told the jury ISIS had been proscribed by the Home Secretary a year earlier because it was 'probably the most notorious terrorist organisation currently in operation'. Marquee in the back garden of a house in Luton, where meetings in support of ISIS allegedly took place The first defendant is accused of addressing meetings in June and July last year at which he 'encouraged support for a proscribed organisation,' namely the Islamic State. Some of the meetings were held in St Margaret's Church, Luton and others in a marquee behind a house in Luton. Yousaf Bashir, 35, is charged with addressing a meeting on June 29, to encourage support for ISIS and Rajib Khan, 37, is accused of arranging, managing or assisting in the arranging of a meeting on July 11, and addressing the same meeting to encourage support for Islamic State. The fourth defendant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is said to have arranged three meetings in July, which he knew were to support Islamic State. The fifth defendant, Mohammed Sufiyan Choudry, is accused of addressing a meeting on July 2, to encourage support for ISIS. |
Chris Pratt has admitted that a naked prank on the set of Parks and Recreation got him into trouble. The actor was formally reprimanded by NBC after he went fully naked for a scene with co-star Amy Poehler on the comedy. Ian West PA Images He told The Graham Norton Show: "We were shooting a scene where my character turns up naked at my co-star's door. I was wearing skin coloured underwear and I wasn't getting quite the right reaction I was hoping for. "It was late in the day so I decided to improvise and drop my trousers for the take. Her reaction was great and it's the take they used! "Then I got a letter from NBC's HR department that said, 'There is a protocol about nude scenes. This is not a joke and you are being reprimanded and you can't go around telling people about this like some kind of joke!' I've framed the letter!" Ian West Meanwhile, the Jurassic World star also explained that he can only do one British accent, and it's all down to his wife's love of The Only Way Is Essex. "When I was filming Guardians of the Galaxy in the UK we watched a lot of garbage TV, and my wife went crazy for TOWIE," he said. "She fell in love with the show and I started picking up the accent so now the only British one I can do is an Essex one." You may remember that Pratt introduced the American audience to the Essex accent with an amazing impersonation last year. The Graham Norton Show airs tonight (May 29) at 10.35pm on BBC One. Watch Chris Pratt in the trailer for Jurassic World below: |
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