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By JOSE M. ROMERO On the pitch, the Seattle Sounders are focused on their opening-round playoff series that begins this weekend against the L.A. Galaxy. Off the field, the team is firming up plans for a return to Casa Grande, Ariz., in winter 2011 for preseason camp. Sources close to the team and and Grande Sports World, the soccer complex in Casa Grande about an hour's drive south of Phoenix, said the Sounders are set for a return to the eight-field, 45-acre facility. Discussions are ongoing and nothing has been made official, but the first team to arrive at Grande Sports World is likely to be Real Salt Lake in late January. RSL was scheduled first because it has CONCACAF Champions League matches in February. The Sounders and expansion Vancouver Whitecaps are scheduled for early February arrivals, followed by the expansion Portland Timbers and New York Red Bulls, and possibly one or two more teams. RSL, Seattle and Vancouver spent time at Grande Sports World last offseason. So did the Colorado Rapids and Galaxy. Additionally, the Kansas City Wizards, who trained in Arizona last winter, are set for a return trip, this time to Surprise, Ariz., a Phoenix suburb that is also home to the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball. Reach 11, a complex of fields in North Phoenix, also figures to host MLS teams. The Columbus Crew, Chivas USA, Chicago Fire and San Jose Earthquakes rounded out the list of teams to spend time in the desert last offseason, and matches and training were held at Phoenix's Grand Canyon University and Arizona State University in Tempe. The Valley of the Sun is already home to many baseball teams' spring training; now it is a legitimate destination for MLS clubs seeking good weather and dry fields year in and year out. |
This is a continuation of Part 1 of the Zeotrope project for my Design for Digital Fabrication class. The final phase can be seen in Part 3 The next step of the project was to prototype the mechanics of the animation. The main questions were: How many frames of animation are optimal? What should the rotation speed be? At what rate should the lights flash? The Rotation Mechanism - a Turntable There were many examples of Zoetropes on the web - the majority of them used a turntable to rotate the animation. I figured this would be the quickest and most affordable way for me to get something up and running. I found and purchased a $30 used Audio Technica one on Facebook Marketplace, for which the owner said that the sound didn’t work. This would be perfect as all I needed was a consistent rotation speed. I met the owner at a coffeeshop, purchased it, and brought it back to the ITP shop: As the turntable was automatic, it had an annoying feature where when it would start up, it would force the tonearm onto the rotating plate. When I’d push the tonearm back onto the stand, the rotation would stop. The tonearm could not be on the plate when an animation is running. To solve this I removed the bar that was pushing the tonearm up and cut off the tonearm with shears: Generating the Animation in Processing For the animation, I followed the advice on Retchy’s blog on Zoetropes to use 33 divisions of a 30cm circle. I couldn’t figure out if the rpm should be 33.5 or 45 but went with 33.5 rpm for these experiments. To algorithmically generate the frames I went with Processing, as it would let me easily tweak a parameter to change things such as the disc and frame size, and would also allow me to see what the disc would look like when rotating at a desired rpm. I wrote a simple sketch that draws 33 evenly sized arcs in a circle, starting from the bottom center and rotating counter clockwise, which would render the frames in the order they appear. The key here is that the whole scene is rotated before drawing a frame - this would allow an animation frame to be drawn without having to worry about rotating all the elements, as the frame itself is rotated. int w = 800; int h = 800; final int FRAMES = 33; final int DIAMETER = w; final float ARC_ANGLE = 1.0 / FRAMES * 2 * PI; void settings() { size(w, h); } void setup() { noFill(); // draw the outer circle ellipse(w/2, h/2, w, h); for(int i = 0; i < FRAMES; i++) { drawArcForFrame(i); } } void drawArcForFrame(int frame) { pushMatrix(); noFill(); translate(w / 2, h /2); // rotate the frame before drawing it rotate(-ARC_ANGLE * frame); drawFrameBorder(); popMatrix(); } void drawFrameBorder() { arc(0, 0, DIAMETER, DIAMETER, PI/2 - ARC_ANGLE / 2.0, PI/2 + ARC_ANGLE / 2.0, PIE); } With the frames worked out, it was time to draw an animation frame in each arc. This is easier now as instead of drawing an arc, a frame of the animation can be drawn, but with a translation and rotation already applied that would draw the frame in the correct orientation and position. I animated a square that starts at the border and shrinks as it rotates towards the center. I also drew a circle in the center of the circle which would allow the 7mm diameter spindle of the turntable to fit in: int w = 800; int h = 800; final int FRAMES = 33; final float ARC_ANGLE = 1.0 / FRAMES * 2 * PI; void settings() { size(w, h); } float sizeInCm = 30; float cmScale = w / 30; float centerHoleDiameterMm = 0.7; float centerHoleSize = centerHoleDiameterMm * sizeInCm; void setup() { noFill(); // draw the outer circle ellipse(w/2, h/2, w, h); // draw the circle for the hole in the center ellipse(w/2, h/2, centerHoleSize, centerHoleSize); for(int i = 0; i < FRAMES; i++) { animateFrame(i); } } void animateFrame(int frame) { pushMatrix(); noFill(); translate(w / 2, h /2); // rotate the frame before drawing it rotate(-ARC_ANGLE * frame); drawRotatingSquare(frame); popMatrix(); } float rotationSpeed = PI / 7; final int DIAMETER = w; final int FRAME_HEIGHT = DIAMETER / 2; void drawRotatingSquare(int frame){ float percentage = frame * 1.0 / FRAMES; pushMatrix(); float size = lerp(40, 1, percentage); translate(size / 2 + lerp(-20, 0, percentage), size / 2 + lerp(FRAME_HEIGHT - 45, 0, percentage)); rotate(PI / 7 * frame); rect(-size/2, -size/2, size, size); popMatrix(); } I also wanted to test an animation that looped, so I created one with an ellipse and a square that rotate, shrink and expand in a cycle. This is the updated animateFrame method: void animateFrame(int frame) { pushMatrix(); noFill(); translate(w / 2, h /2); rotate(-ARC_ANGLE * frame); drawRotatingSquare(frame); drawRotatingEllipse(frame); popMatrix(); } final int DIAMETER = w; final int FRAME_HEIGHT = DIAMETER / 2; int HALF_FRAMES = FRAMES / 2; float getPercentage(int frame) { //int frameInHalf = frame % HALF_FRAMES; float percentage; if (frame < HALF_FRAMES) percentage = frame * 1.0 / HALF_FRAMES; else percentage = 1 - (frame - HALF_FRAMES) * 1.0 / HALF_FRAMES; return percentage; } void drawRotatingEllipse(int frame) { pushMatrix(); float percentage = getPercentage(frame); float size = lerp(3, 35, percentage); translate(lerp(-5, 7, percentage), size / 2 + 200); rotate(PI/5 * frame); ellipse(0, 0, size * 0.8, size * 1.2); popMatrix(); } float rotationSpeed = PI / 7; void drawRotatingSquare(int frame){ float percentage = getPercentage(frame); pushMatrix(); float size = lerp(40, 5, percentage); translate(size / 2 + lerp(-20, 0, percentage), size / 2 + FRAME_HEIGHT - 45); rotate(PI / 7 * frame); rect(-size/2, -size/2, size, size); popMatrix(); } Protoyping the Strobing with SVG With the animation generated, the rotation on the turntable can be simulated by saving the Processing output as svg and then modifying the svg to have a rotating animateTransform. The modified processing script that saves the output to svg: import processing.svg.*; int w = 800; int h = 800; void settings() { size(w, h); } void setup() { beginRecord(SVG, "zoetrope.svg"); noFill(); // draw the outer circle ellipse(w/2, h/2, w, h); for(int i = 0; i < FRAMES; i++) { animateFrame(i); } endRecord(); } This svg is then edited in a text editor to add the rotating animateTransform. At 33.5 RPM, the rotation is calculated to occur every 1.79s by dividing 60s by 33.5 rotations. This 360 degree rotation animation is applied to the svg at the middle of the circle (400, 400): <svg width="800" height="800"> <g> <animateTransform attributeName="transform" attributeType="XML" type="rotate" from="0 400 400" to="360 400 400" dur="1.79104s" repeatCount="indefinite"/> <g style="stroke-linecap:round;"> <circle r="400" style="fill:none;" cx="400" cy="400"/> </g> <g style="stroke-linecap:round;"><circle r="10.5" style="fill:none;" cx="400" cy="400" /> <rect x="-20" y="-20" transform="translate(400,775)" width="40" style="fill:none;" height="40"/> <!--Rest of svg left out for brevity of example--> </g> </svg> You can view the source of this svg by downloading it: To calculate the strobing rate, we need to know the frame duration. This is done by dividing the seconds per rotation by the frames, 1.79s / 33 which comes out to 0.054s per frame. This strobing can be simulated by adding an animation to the svg that changes the opacity from 0 to 1 at a desired rate. After experimenting with various on/off percentages in the svg animation, 20% on and 80% off turned out to produce the most crisp result: <svg width="800" height="800"> <g> <animateTransform attributeName="transform" attributeType="XML" type="rotate" from="0 400 400" to="360 400 400" dur="1.79104s" repeatCount="indefinite"/> <animate id="animation1" attributeName="opacity" from="1" to="1" dur="0.01085481682s" begin="0s;animation2.end" /> <animate id="animation2" attributeName="opacity" from="0" to="0" dur="0.0434192673s" begin="animation1.end" /> <g style="stroke-linecap:round;"> <circle r="400" style="fill:none;" cx="400" cy="400"/> </g> <g style="stroke-linecap:round;"><circle r="10.5" style="fill:none;" cx="400" cy="400" /> <rect x="-20" y="-20" transform="translate(400,775)" width="40" style="fill:none;" height="40"/> <!--Rest of svg left out for brevity of example--> </g> </svg> WARNING: Do not click to view the below animation if you have epilepsy as it strobes rapidly Laser Cutting These svgs were easily importable into Illustrator, from which I laser cut some matte board I had lying around. The Strobing Hardware To build the strobing mechanism, I used a basic analog rgb led strip ($10 on amazon), Arduino Uno, and prototyping shield I had lying around from another project. This shield was already setup as instructed in Adafruit’s guide to rgb leds to control the strip. I connected a potentiometer to be able to adjust the strobing rate. Both the Arduino and LEDs were powered directly by the same 12V power supply by using a barrel jack splitter. The code is below. It flashes the LEDS on and off based on an interval controlled by the potentiometer. The lights are on for 20% of the interval: #define LOWER_READ 143 #define UPPER_READ 940 #define INTERVAL_PIN A0 #define REDPIN 5 #define GREENPIN 6 #define BLUEPIN 9 #define ON_PERCENTAGE .2 long lastIntervalStart; bool on; void setup() { Serial.begin(9600); //Serial.println(frameDuration); pinMode(INTERVAL_PIN, INPUT); pinMode(REDPIN, OUTPUT); pinMode(BLUEPIN, OUTPUT); pinMode(GREENPIN, OUTPUT); lastIntervalStart = millis(); on = false; setColor(255, 255, 255); } void setColor(int r, int g, int b) { analogWrite(REDPIN, r); analogWrite(BLUEPIN, b); analogWrite(GREENPIN, g); } void loop() { float intervalDuration = constrain(map(analogRead(INTERVAL_PIN), LOWER_READ, UPPER_READ, 0.0, 200.0), 0, 200.0); float onDuration = intervalDuration * ON_PERCENTAGE; float intervalElapsedTime = millis() - lastIntervalStart; if (on && intervalElapsedTime > onDuration) { on = false; setColor(0, 0, 0); } if (intervalElapsedTime > intervalDuration) { lastIntervalStart = millis(); Serial.println(intervalDuration); on = true; setColor(255, 255, 255); } } The Final Result By fine tuning the strobing interval with the potentiemeter, I could create crisp animations: |
From left to right: Jay Beagle (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images); DeSean Jackson (Matt Rourke/Associated Press); Marcin Gortat (Kathy Willens/Associated Press) The Redskins, Capitals and Wizards combined to make a bit of history on Saturday when they all won on the same day — for the first time in 32 years. The Redskins’ win was by far the most meaningful — an NFC East-clinching 38-24 triumph against the Eagles — but the exceedingly rare D.C. Sports Trifecta was a group effort. [Caps, Wizards and Nats pulled off their own trifecta in April] Wizards The Wizards/Bullets began the trifecta with their fourth straight victory, a 111-96 win at Brooklyn. The Wizards/Bullets were 4-16 the previous 20 times they played on the same day as the Redskins and Capitals. Capitals The Capitals continued their best start in franchise history with a 3-1 win at Verizon Center over the Eastern Conference’s second-best team, the Canadiens. (Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports) Redskins The Redskins finished the job on a special Saturday night edition of “Thursday Night Football,” which makes about as much sense as D.C. sports fans having three wins to celebrate in one day. Happy New Year! The Washington Post's Gene Wang discuss the Redskins' division-clinching win over the Philadelphia Eagles. (Thomas Johnson,Randolph Smith/The Washington Post) As an added bonus for some local fans, Virginia Tech defeated Tulsa, 55-52, in the Independence Bowl, making a winner of legendary coach Frank Beamer in his final career game. Boomer Esiason and Maryland lost the Citrus Bowl to Tennessee on the day of the last Redskins-Capitals-Wizards trifecta. https://twitter.com/WashWizards/status/680973575344504832 |
Materials science and the pharmaceutical industry could soon be revolutionized by emerging nanotechnologies based on designer molecules with long complex tree-and branch structures. Such molecules offer almost limitless scope for design of bespoke compounds for specific applications in disease therapy, for novel materials such as resins, as well as electronic displays, and energy storage. Almost every field involving design and synthesis of chemical compounds will be transformed by the arrival of technologies allowing nanoscale design of these branched molecules, known as hyperbranched polymers. The great potential of the field, and corresponding challenges in exploiting it, were discussed at a recent workshop organized by the European Science Foundation (ESF)(Convenor: Dr. K. Karatasos, Co-Convenor: Dr. Alexey Lyulin). The workshop revealed the great scope of hyperbranched polymers and discussed how Europe in particular should respond to the challenges, such as identifying research priorities from the huge range of possibilities. But the immediate challenge is to develop an underlying research infrastructure for building the technologies required to develop new products, for this is very much an applied field of science. This will require uniting the two sides of the field, those experimenting with these compounds in the laboratory, and theoretical chemists simulating novel hyperbranches molecules on a computer, as Konstantinos Karatasos, the workshop's convenor, pointed out. "In principle these two communities do not interact at a desirable level," said Karatasos. "This was partly attributed to the fact that there is a lack of a "common language" between the two sides so that information can be exchanged in an efficient manner. It was proposed that this deficiency can be remedied to a certain degree, when people with different backgrounds work in a multidisciplinary environment where contacts between them are realized in a more frequent basis so that familiarization with each other's work and exchange of ideas becomes easier." Hyperbranched polymers have already been used to develop materials such as resins and wood coatings with improved durability and resistance to abrasion. These exploit the fact that molecules with multiple branches tend to cling together more strongly, making them resistant to wear. But hyperbranched polymers also have other properties, such as low viscosity, which makes them suitable for applications such as flexible electronic displays. But perhaps the most exciting property of hyperbranched polymers is the sheer range of compounds that can be made by manipulating the terminal side chains of the molecule to change its chemical character. This is now being exploited in a new generation of vaccines and other compounds designed to give people long term protection against infectious disease. At the ESF workshop delegates heard from Dr. Ulrik Boas from the University of Copenhagen how hyperbranched polymers can provide scaffolding for constructing new adjuvants, which are substances that upon injection activate a person's immune system against a particular pathogen. Boas reported that hyperbranched polymers can be used to interact with PAMPs (Pathogen Associated Molecular Patterns), which are motifs on the surface of microbes that can be used by the immune system to identify and then destroy them. The workshop also revealed industrial applications building on existing work, with Dr. Christopher Plummer from the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland explaining that hyperbranched polymers were capable of being tuned to highly specific levels of key attributes such as solubility, miscibility (ability to mix), as well as viscosity. The key point is that the chemical and physical properties of a molecule are determined by the surface characteristics rather than the internal structure, and hyperbranched polymers have large numbers of terminal branch points on the surface capable of being changed. As Plummer pointed out, this brings scope for improving on existing materials, for example designing ultra strong epoxy-resins that can undergo secondary toughening by addition of a hyperbranched polymer compound, whose low viscosity makes the mixing easier. But the greatest public interest in hyperbranched polymers is being generated by the medical potential, and another exciting application on this front could lie in their use to combat currently incurable diseases involving formation of plaques comprising wrongly folded proteins, such as Alzheimer's and prion diseases like CJD (Creutzfeldt-Jacob) disease. Highly branched molecules called dendrimers have already been shown capable of interacting with the proteins that combine together in plaques to cause these diseases, with evidence that this process can be inhibited, according to Barbara Klajnert from the University of Lodz in Poland in the workshop's first presentation. Many other topics were discussed, and the workshop set the stage for future collaboration among Europe's leading research groups in this highly promising field. The ESF Exploratory Workshop, Hyperbranched polymers as novel materials for nanoscale applications:insight from experiment, theory and simulations (HYPER-NANO) was held in Fodele in Greece during May 2008. ### |
UPDATE, JANUARY 17: Rick Scott may not be a Satanist hero after all. Upon "further review," the Miami Herald discovered that Lucien Greaves, the purported spokesman for The Satanic Temple who announced a rally for Scott in Tallahassee, is working on a film called "The Satanic Temple." Though Greaves previously insisted the rally "is not a hoax," an ad the Herald discovered on Actors Access suggests that isn't true. Greaves didn't immediately respond to HuffPost's request for comment, but the details seem to speak for themselves (not, in fact, the prince of darkness): "Spectacle Films and Polemic Media the companies behind 'The War on Kids' and 'Freeloader' are producing a mockumentary about a the nicest Satanic Cult in the world. We are looking for actors for 8 speaking roles to play minions as well as 10 featured extras. "We are seeking people from all walks of life, goths, grandparents, soccer moms, etc to be the followers of a charismatic yet down to earth Satanic cult leader. The shoot will be on January 25th in downtown Tallahassee. Actors will be required to wear tasteful Satanic garb." Well, odds are it'll be the only tasteful garb in Florida that day. Read our previous story below. |
Cold Rain & Snow, Me & My Uncle > Easy Wind, New Minglewood Blues, Alligator > drums > The Other One > Attics Of My Life > The Other One > Cryptical Envelopment > Cosmic Charlie, Drums > Good Lovin' > Drums > China Cat Sunflower > jam > I Know You Rider > Good Lovin' --This set (minus NFA) has often circulated as the 6-24-70 early show, or the 6-25-70 late show. This is now strongly believed to be from the July Fillmore East run, and 7-10 is the most likely date. A recently circulating excerpt from Weinberg's reels supplies the NFA. This version matches no other from the year, and is clearly stated to be the encore from the Fillmore East. It is possible that it could be from 7-9. plus-circle Add Review comment Reviews Reviewer: SethWax - favorite favorite favorite favorite favorite - June 24, 2018 Subject: 6/24. 6/25, 7/9 or 7/10? I'm with Brontis on this. The sound is very closely matched to Weinberg and Leigh's 6/24 recordings. But since Weinberg is getting credit for this it could be Fillmore July 70 run. If it is Port Chester, then there would have been 3 performances of Attics on 6/24, or maybe there is a 6/25? The Other One listed for 6/24 early on other versions is different than this version, Either way, it's great that both exist. Now, where is that 7/9/70 so called Dark Star. There had to be one on the run. The never ending search for the Holy Grail. - June 24, 20186/24. 6/25, 7/9 or 7/10? Reviewer: jointathan - favorite favorite favorite favorite favorite - July 10, 2016 Subject: Quite good Very listenable to those of us that appreciate a decent audience source, and for 1970, enough said. This show and recording deserve no less than 4 stars. I'm giving 5 to up the average. - July 10, 2016Quite good Reviewer: njpg - favorite favorite - June 1, 2015 Subject: - Very cloudy, blurry tape - June 1, 2015 Reviewer: Yades - favorite favorite favorite - July 10, 2014 Subject: Poor recording of a great show 1970 is one of my favorite years, and this show is no exception. Very interesting set list and transitions. The recording is fairly poor but listenable once your ears adjust. - July 10, 2014Poor recording of a great show Reviewer: spyguy29 - favorite favorite favorite favorite - July 3, 2012 Subject: Nothing wrong with this show Full disclosure - 1970 is probably my FAVORITE year for the Dead. Unfortunately, Bear was in jail, and very few soundboards were recorded. I love the AUDs that survive from this year. Is this show as good a recording as a mid-80s show? No, of course not. Is it awesome? Oh, yeah. - July 3, 2012Nothing wrong with this show Reviewer: Franklin's Towel - favorite favorite favorite favorite favorite - December 16, 2011 Subject: This show smokes Yes there is some clapping close to the mic but the music comes through quite well, and there is low end. This is a band at the top of its game on this run and all of these mid-July Fillmore East recordings should be given a fair chance. Franklin's Towel -- December 16, 2011This show smokes Reviewer: enardi - favorite favorite favorite favorite favorite - May 6, 2010 Subject: lovelight the author of the dead book skeleton key claims his first show was 1970-07-10 and the closer song was lovelight meaning either its missing or this show is from 1970-07-09 (very possible indicated by notes) - May 6, 2010lovelight Reviewer: bscalera - favorite favorite favorite favorite - August 12, 2009 Subject: typical sound for 1970 and raw, bordering on sloppy, playing make for a thoroughly delightful trip down memory lane for east coast heads. I'm thankful that guys like Marty had the foresight to tape so that we can bitch about how much better we wish this sounded!!! Regardless of which night on the tour this was, it is representative of the sound of the boys at the time - rough, raw, powerful, filled with missteps and wondrous moments. Thanks to all responsible for the site and the music. Peace - August 12, 2009typical sound for 1970 Reviewer: Chris U. - favorite favorite - October 12, 2007 Subject: Awesome recording ... ...of east coast hippies clapping themselves silly while a band plays off in the distance. Blah. - October 12, 2007Awesome recording ... Reviewer: Brontis - - October 11, 2007 Subject: Great set; poor sound quality I don't know if the Not Fade Away belongs or not, but I am still inclined to believe that this is the early show from Port Chester 6-24-70. My first copy of this years ago was on casette labeled 6-25-70. Then, later, Dead Base labeled it as the early show from 6-24-70. I don't know if there were two sets on 6-25 or two successive nights, but I *hear* this set as kindred to the established and accepted Port Chester 6-24-70 'late' show. The Attics are *very* similar-- and the playing at both sets is, well, outstanding. And one more piece of circumstantial 'evidence': shows at Port Chester in 1970 (Nov.) were INTENSE. Highlights: Awesome Cold Rain and Snow; Alligator->Other One is INCENDIARY. Very short... but I can visualize the top of the theater being blown off... And, the Attics. One of my very favorite Dead lullabys, and this the best performance of it I have ever heard. The Not Fade Away is also outstanding. One of their better jams during this period. I also suspect it is from another show. WIsh boards were available... - October 11, 2007Great set; poor sound quality Reviewer: craven714 - - July 21, 2007 Subject: St. Stephen Tease A pretty obvious one drops in a few minutes into NFA and fits the tempo well. - July 21, 2007St. Stephen Tease Reviewer: psymon - favorite favorite favorite favorite - December 2, 2005 Subject: Fun show Plenty of that 1970 enthusiasm and variety and some cool segues. The sound quality is not bad at all and gives you the feeling of being there. - December 2, 2005Fun show Reviewer: Havergill Milk - favorite favorite favorite - March 3, 2005 Subject: NFA One of the best NFAs I've ever heard. sound quality not great, but not bad either. Other highlights exist as well. - March 3, 2005NFA |
For now, Paper is a web-only app that you can access through your Dropbox account, although the company says it'll have a mobile app ready to go when the product comes out of beta. At first glance, Paper's UI is reminiscent of the scores of minimalist, lightweight text-editing apps that have come out in the past few years, such as IA Writer. But while IA Writer and its ilk are designed for solo composition, Paper is all about working together. As in Google Docs, multiple users can edit a document at the same time. Each is designated by a colored cursor, and the user's full name is displayed in the margins, crediting their contributions to the file. From a text perspective, Paper is quite basic; there's only one font and three sizes available. You can do your basic bold, italics, underline and strikethrough formatting and format text into a block quote, but that's about it. Dropbox specifically said that the purpose of Paper was to keep the focus on sharing ideas rather than formatting. In particular, the company made it so that you can use its app to share pretty much anything, regardless of what tools you might be using. "Work today is really fragmented," said product manager Matteus Pan. "It happens across multiple content types -- be it images, code, tables, even tasks." And that clutter extends to the tools being used. "I might be working on PowerPoint," he added. "Someone else may be writing code, another in Google Docs -- teams have really wanted a single surface to bring all of those ideas into a single place." At first glance, Paper does a pretty good job of bringing a bunch of different content and tools together. Project managers can add to-do lists, complete with checkboxes and "@" mentions to the member of your team who needs to take care of the associated task. If coding is more your game, you can start typing lines of code right into Paper and it'll automatically format it appropriately. Beyond text, any file you store in your Dropbox can quickly be added to Paper -- if you grab the sharing URL of the file and paste it into Paper, the program automatically formats a preview for you. That way, you can peek at an Excel or PowerPoint file right in line with the rest of your Paper document, or click to see it in full or save to your Dropbox. Google Docs files are even supported here -- it's the first time Dropbox has really integrated with Docs and Drive, itself a competitor to Dropbox's main business. Paper can display just about any kind of file you throw at it. Single photos can be dragged and dropped right into Paper, and you can create some mini-galleries, with two or three smaller images lined up. Everything is draggable, so you can reorder things quickly; you can also left or right align images and type text around them. For extra drama, you can blow an image up to a full-bleed, widescreen photo that takes up the entire browser window. If you need to add some multimedia, just dropping a YouTube link into the document will convert it to the full video player, and you can embed audio files and playlists from Spotify or SoundCloud as well. Naturally, you can comment on everything added to a Paper document, and Dropbox even jumped on the stickers bandwagon -- so if a giant skeleton thumbs-up is the only way you can properly express your approval, you're covered here. There are a few ways to keep track of the various documents you create in Paper. There's a quick shortcut to save items that you want to access easily into a favorites sidebar, and when you create a new document, you'll be prompted to put it in a folder. Since Paper is primarily a collaboration tool, new folders (and their contents) will be shared with your work team by default, though you can also create private ones for files that you want to keep to yourself. There's a pretty robust search feature that lets you both peer into the content of your documents and search names to find all the items that a particular person in your organization shared with you. Lastly, there's a "following" feed that lets you see chronological activity on files you own and are shared on. There's no doubt that Paper is one of the more fully realized and useful new products Dropbox has introduced in a while, particularly since Mailbox and Carousel have received few updates over the past year or so. But Paper is also entering a field crowded with big names like Google and Microsoft (and Dropbox has even spent lots of time partnering with the latter company as of late). When asked what differentiated it from the rest of the field, Pan pointed to Paper's focus on building documents that let users work and share multiple content types regardless of what's used to create them. He cited Paper as a way to collaborate that keeps things from getting overly "messy" in terms of both clean design and organization. The last differentiator is organization and helping teams find their work quicker. "Creation and collaboration are only half the problem," he said. "The other half is how information is organized and retrieved across an entire company." Simply having a good product philosophy doesn't mean people will adopt it, which is why Dropbox is being slow and deliberate with Paper's rollout. The team has been gathering feedback from its customers for months and intends to keep doing so as the beta expands. Indeed, Dropbox's focus on its business customers gives it a large base of people to test the product with and get feedback. And organizations that are already paying for Dropbox may be more likely to give Paper a try, either in beta or when the product is fully finished. Dropbox's next big product, or another project that falls by the wayside? The timing of that launch is still up in the air -- right now the focus is on getting Paper from "thousands of users to thousands of businesses and teams," Pan said. With all that feedback, Paper will likely continue to change before its official release, but the lack of a concrete timeline has to be at least somewhat concerning when you look at what has happened with some other major Dropbox initiatives -- the Mailbox for Mac app was introduced with fanfare over a year and a half ago, and it still remains in beta. But Paper plays a lot more to the company's strengths than anything it has introduced in a while. Collaboration, sharing and organization are all things the company has worked hard at with its core product for a long time. In that regard, Paper seems like a natural outgrowth of what it has done so far. Dropbox used to be all about organizing files -- but the move to mobile and the increasing power of web apps means that traditional file icons in Windows Explorer or the Mac Finder are less relevant than they used to be. Instead of organizing your company's data in files stored in your Dropbox, the company just wants you to do it all in Paper instead. |
Apple (AAPL) is the most profitable consumer electronics company in the world by a healthy margin but according to one industry watcher, the company has stopped innovating. Apple’s record-breaking iPhone 5 launch helped the company pull in $36 billion last quarter, and its high margins yielded a net profit of $8.2 billion. According to Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdry however, the record demand for Apple products at present has nothing to do with innovation, which the Cupertino, California-based company has been lacking lately. “Apple’s innovation is sputtering,” Chowdhry wrote in a research note to clients. “Why is that Apple, the company that brought touch to phones and tablets, stopped just there and did not bring touch to notebooks and iMacs? Why is it that Apple brought high-resolution screens to…some MacBooks and not to all devices? High-resolution screens are a commodity today.” What’s going on at Apple that is stifling innovation? Chowdry thinks the answer may have led to Scott Forstall’s departure and the recent executive shake-up. “Our contacts speculate that Apple executive leadership may have rushed Scott Forstall to deliver products prematurely,” Chowdhry noted. “This may also indicate that Apple may be lacking a three- to four-year product road map, because if a roadmap existed, engineers would not be pushed to ship products prematurely — especially when they are not fully tested.” Innovation or no innovation, Apple anticipates a record holiday quarter with earnings guidance at $11.75 per share on revenue that is expected to reach $52 billion. |
Obaidullah Aleem Obaidullah Aleem (Urdu: عبیدالله علیم, June 12, 1939 – May 18, 1998) was a famous modern poet of Urdu language. Aleem was an Ahmadi Muslim. Life [ edit ] Aleem was born in 1939 in Bhopal, India.[citation needed] His father lived in Sialkot and was from the Butt family.Aleem was an Ahmadi.[citation needed] He received an MA in Urdu from the University of Karachi and began working as a radio and television producer until 1967.[citation needed] His first marriage was to Nigar Yasmin in 1970 and in late 1990s he married to Tehseen Fatima.[citation needed] In 1974, his first book of poetry Chand Chehra Sitara Ankhhen was published.[citation needed] He was the chairman of the Pakistan Television Corporation until he was forced to resign in 1978 following an edict against him.[citation needed] His book of poetry received the highest award in literature in Pakistan, the Adamji Prize.[citation needed] He wrote an article 'Khurshid missal shakhs' in memory of Khalifatul Masih III in 1982.[citation needed] His second collection of poetry Viran saray ka diya was published in 1986. He first came to England in 1982, then in 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996 and in 1997.[citation needed] In March 1998 he suffered a severe heart attack in Punjab and was treated in Fazl-e-Omar Hospital for a few days. He returned to his residence at Nazimabad no 4, in Karachi, in comparatively good health but died from heart failure, following a second heart attack.[citation needed] Bibliography [ edit ] Chand chehra sitara ankhhen , (1974). , (1974). Viran saray ka diya , (1986). , (1986). Yei Zindagi Hey Hamari , (Selected Poems). , (Selected Poems). Men Khhuli Huwi Ik Sachai , (Collected Prose). , (Collected Prose). Chiragh Jaltey Hen: The Unpublished Poetry of Obaidullah Aleem, (Facsimile edition edited by Rehan Qayoom, 2014). |
Liberals have of late devoted a great number of pages to describing, analyzing, and lamenting the declining faith in American institutions, and its role in the election of Donald Trump. But, as the hung jury in the murder trial of Michael Slager—the police officer who, in April, 2015, shot an unarmed fifty-year-old black man, Walter Scott—makes clear, the resounding faith in particular institutions can be just as corrosive to democracy. Earlier this year, a Gallup poll found that only nine per cent of Americans had a lot of confidence in Congress, and that only twenty per cent had any faith in the integrity of newspapers. But fifty-six per cent of the public felt that the police were trustworthy. This is the reason that Slager’s defense could essentially argue that the jury should trust his account of the shooting—in which Scott attacked him and posed an imminent threat—over the footage captured by a bystander’s cell-phone camera, which shows Slager unloading rounds into a fleeing man, and convince at least one juror. It’s the reason that Officer Timothy Loehmann was not charged in the death of Tamir Rice, Officer Dante Servin was acquitted for shooting into a crowd in Chicago and killing Rekia Boyd, and Officer Daniel Pantaleo was not indicted in the chokehold death of Eric Garner. It’s the reason that, as this year closes, we can anticipate reading some version of this story in the one to come. Last year, in a speech to the National Press Club, Nikki Haley, the governor of South Carolina, addressed the racial tensions that had roiled the state after the Scott shooting and, weeks later, the massacre of nine churchgoers at the Emanuel A.M.E. Church in Charleston. The people of South Carolina, she pointed out, had not resorted to violence in their response, despite their frustrations. (This, she said, was in contrast to the reactions to police shootings in Baltimore and Ferguson, Missouri, where, Haley claimed, the Black Lives Matter movement had “laid waste” to black communities.) The patience of South Carolina was further tested as the trials of Dylann Roof, accused of the church shooting, and Slager were scheduled to take place at courthouses across the street from each other in Charleston. (After months of delays, Roof’s trial is expected to begin today.) The mistrial in the Scott case, reportedly the result of a single holdout juror, suggests that the patience and faith Haley extolled are actually civic liabilities, which benefit a judicial system that is incapable in most instances of justly evaluating its own officers. South Carolina’s residents remained peaceful following the Scott shooting, but to nonchalant bureaucracy peace appears to be identical to passivity. In the wake of the non-verdict, Haley urged more patience. There would be a new trial, she said. “Justice is not always immediate, but we must all have faith that it will be served.” Senator Tim Scott, the black Republican whom Haley appointed to the Senate, in 2012, and who spoke out on the Senate floor this summer about his own experiences of racial profiling, released a statement saying, too, that “we must continue to have faith in our judicial system.” This bypassed the damning fact that the jury—six white men, five white women, and a single black man, in a county that as of the last census is thirty per cent black—was unable to unanimously determine that it is illegal to shoot an unarmed man in the back. Scott’s mother spoke to the press about her belief that God would provide justice—an altogether reasonable recourse given the failure of human beings to do the same. “It’s not over until God says it’s over,” she said. There are other implications. The current conversation around police use of excessive force is focussed on the idea that body cameras can regulate police behavior. Yet the outcome of Slager’s trial should remind us of something we have known since the Rodney King verdict, twenty-four years ago: even video evidence cannot overcome subjective bias in the criminal-justice system. Taken in total, the reluctance of juries to hold police accountable is an inversion of the “fake news” crisis in the Presidential election. There, a gullible public believes outrageous claims that reaffirm its world view. In the criminal-justice system, as black America has long known, an indifferent public sees evidence of outrageous actions but chooses not to believe it in order to preserve its world view. We have moved far beyond facts. The only novelty is that the rest of the country is now seeing it. |
I look at Sovereign Tristan Durant as the Sith Lord version of his original youthful and fresh-faced Initiate self. With this evolution, he becomes yet another faceless weapon in Menoth’s army. Here you can see his Sovereign status realized with the addition of full-blown warcaster armor and menacing facemask, courtesy of concept artist Andrea Uderzo. Once again, Andrea has realized our vision for a character with stunning clarity. Tristan becomes even more menacing with a color pass by Mike Vaillancourt, which brings out Tristan’s fiery demeanor. There is no way anyone is mistaking this warcaster for one of the good guys. Whatever… Just because he is cooking up some bane knights in this illustration by the talented Néstor Ossandón doesn’t make Tristan a good guy. After all, Cryx are the heroes of my internal narrative. (NOTE: THIS IS THE SECOND NEW WARCASTER IN A ROW TO BE PUTTING THE BEATDOWN ON CRYX; I NEED TO TELL MIKE V. TO CUT THE CRAP!) With all the work we put into these characters, it’s always great to get to utilize them as much as we can. In the upcoming Forces of WARMACHINE: Protectorate of Menoth Command book, Tristan takes the spotlight in one of our faction background illustrations. We took this opportunity to show the face of the man you already know from his previous version but put him into his warcaster armor this time. Above you can see three sketches from Néstor. We wanted to showcase Tristan leading his troops, but instead of a commanding presence, we wanted to show his reverence to Menoth in the face of battle as he leads his troops in prayer to The Creator. We liked the first one the best, as it really seemed to humanize our now-faceless character. In the end, Néstor nailed all the feels with this moody image, which is one of my favorite of late. Meanwhile, behind the façade of this innocent-looking sculpting studio, Ron Kruzie has the miniature underway with the super-talented Javier García Ureña (who did an amazing job on the limited-edition bookends for the new editions of WARMACHINE and HORDES—Love you, Javier). Here you see a few of Kruzie’s notes before the sculpt is posed out. The final sculpt showcases Tristan’s leadership in a different light than his story art does and places the character firmly in his tabletop role. Shortly after completion of the digital sculpt, the kick-ass Privateer production team delivers a paint master to studio painter Dallas Kemp, whose skill and attention to detail bring the final miniature to life. As you can see, it takes a village to bring one of these characters to life. And if you want to burn a village down, make sure to pick up Sovereign Tristan Durant at GenCon and the Privateer Press Online Store next week, from August 4th through 7th. |
One of the many conclusions coming from today's European Court of Justice (ECJ) judgment on making sure insurance is gender-neutral shows that men have to rely on unelected judges in Europe to get equality.The other is the silence from the self-named 'equality' Industry. While on balance the decision means there will be equality for men in terms of paying for car insurance (there could even be a cut) and there could be a loss in terms of pension annuities, at least gender equality is being applied. Without getting into the argument about whether the ECJ should be interfering in UK affairs (that and giving prisoners the vote - an ECHR decision - are arguments for other sites) the clearest argument that the doom mongers, the insurers and others have not been able to answer is the fact that insurers cannot discriminate against race so why can they with gender? There is no answer from them. Also what can be seen from the many comments in the debates at the end of media articles is the growing ferment of anger men have towards the place in modern society as second class citizens. You can read their joy in the comments sections of newspapers and the BBC about the fact that it proves equality applies to them and allows them to cock a snook to the equalities industry that loathes them so much. It is also a defeat for the anti-male lobby, like this and the last government, the Guardian/BBC, the Fawcett Society, the Equalities Commission and others like them that who believe women should enjoy special privilege, are untouchable and equality can only be on their terms. This Cake and Eat It Brigade want equality but only so long as women can keep their perks and extra entitlements like cheaper insurance and early retirement. Coming back to my opening piece - if the judges had made a pro-women judgment then Theresa May (Minister for Women), Lynne Featherstone (Equalities Minister), Harman/Flint, Equalities Commission etc would have been singing from the rooftops. As it is seen as a pro-man judgment, there is complete silence. Such unsurprising hypocrisy. The second point is that it is shameful that men have to go through to ECJ on Strasbourg to obtain equality. The only reason men now have free bus passes, winter fuel allowance etc at the same age as a women is because of the ECJ and the work of Parity. The same is the case for the coming equality in state pension age, a discrimination that men will have suffered for 70 years by the time there is equality in 2018. And now we have equality on insurance. The shameful fact is that in Britain, men can rely only on European judges to fight their corner for equality. All because British politicians are too weak, too anti-male and too afraid of the anti-male special favours feminist lobby. Posted by Skimmington Media coverage - BBC, Conservative Home, FT, Guardian#1, Daily Mail , Guardian#2, |
By Brett Chandrasekhar Rand Paul channeled his inner Ron Paul Tuesday night, slamming the Federal Reserve like only his father had done in years past. Appearing on “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” the Kentucky senator explained his Audit the Fed bill and also gave a full-throated economic defense of the policy. Paul first credited the Federal Reserve with higher prices in the economy due to its inflationary policy. He stated “The dollar’s lost 96% of its purchasing power. What does that mean? Your prices have gone up every year. What was once worth a dollar now takes $24.” Paul specifically gave the example of senior citizens whose social security checks haven’t gotten any larger while prices at the grocery store have increased. He also pointed out that the institution increases income inequality. Asked what the average person gets from the Fed, the eye doctor humorously replied that they get the “recessions and depressions that come about.” He argued that there have been more recessions since the Federal Reserve was created in 1913, and also pointed out that the Great Depression occurred only a decade after its imposition. Finally, Paul gave a short-hand explanation of Austrian business cycle theory. Crediting the Fed with creating the housing crisis in ‘07 and ‘08, Paul explained that the interest rate, the “price of money,” plays a vital role in the economy. Because the Federal Reserve kept interest rates too low, housing was unduly stimulated, leading to the eventual crash. Paul added that the stock market was currently in a bubble and that it would eventually come to an end. Rand Paul seemed fairly optimistic about the possibility of passing the bill. Carlson stated that with Donald Trump, who has voiced support for Audit the Fed, in charge of the White House, it was perhaps more likely to pass than at any other time. Paul also noted that they had a majority of votes in the Senate, including all 51 Republicans, as well as two Democrats, including Bernie Sanders. |
On the cover, dressed in an aubergine and red Kanjeevaram silk sari with a golden border, Madhur Jaffrey looks squarely at the potential buyer, her slender arms resting daintily on a chopping board. This was her first book. An Invitation to Indian Cooking turns 40 this year. With more than 200 recipes, it introduced Delhi cuisine to the West. Subtitled Classic Indian Dishes—Mostly The Subtle, Spicy Cooking of Delhi, it was hailed by The New York Times as “the final word on the subject...perhaps the best Indian cookbook available in English". A reprint edition of Madhur Jaffrey’s first cookbook Published in 1973 by Alfred A Knopf, Invitation was edited by the legendary Judith Jones, who worked on the books of culinary greats Julia Child, James Beard, M.F.K. Fisher, Marcella Hazan, Claudia Roden and Edna Lewis. In the book, Jaffrey tells the Americans that she is giving them a “chance to understand and cook the food of one specific area—the region in and around Delhi, including the adjacent sections of Uttar Pradesh". She traces the origins of Delhi’s cuisine to the royal kitchens of the Red Fort, where the richly cooked Persian meat and rice favoured by the early Mughals was combined with Indian spices and vegetable dishes. From the empire’s heart, the recipes travelled to Hindustan’s lesser maharajas. Although Delhi’s first internationally renowned cookbook does not have a recipe for nihari, a staple of Mughal-era Dilli, it can be read for its vignettes, the scenes that infuse the recipes with a special flavour. “Under the shadow of Jama Masjid’s massive walls, surrounding it on all sides, are hundreds of tiny stalls," writes Jaffrey. “They sell everything—pots, pans, bedcovers, saris, lungis, and of course all the different kebabs." The glossary consists of terms as charming as “Dey Dal May Pani" (“put water in the dal"), “Quon Bhai Chai Hojai" (“Well now brother, how about tea?") and “Sharabi Kababi" (“one who likes to eat and drink"). Flipping through Jaffrey’s book, author Sadia Dehlvi says, “Like all Dilliwallas, my pride in our cuisine borders on arrogance, and I hesitate to put my stamp of approval on it." Stopping at a recipe, she looks horrified and says: “Keema (mince) in baingan (eggplant)! I will never do that!" Handing the book back to me, Dehlvi, who makes excellent aloo gosht, mourns the disappearance of keema bhare karele and kachnar ke phool ki subzi. “Even shabdeg is dying," she says. Nihari and paya outside Jama Masjid. Photo: Mayank Austen Soofi/Mint Perhaps like the one that Charmaine O’Brien wrote in 2003. “I researched for Recipes From an Urban Village: A Cookbook From Basti Hazrat Nizamuddin by spending four months in the basti and visiting families where traditional dishes would be cooked for me," says the Melbourne-based author about her book, which focused on the home kitchens of a central Delhi village. “I recorded the recipes passed on from mother to daughter orally." O’Brien, who has also written Flavours of Delhi: A Food Lover’s Guide, has not read Jaffrey’s first book, but she was influenced by her more popular A Taste of India. “The opening chapter is about Jaffrey’s growing-up years in Delhi and it inspired my curiosity about the city’s food history." Only a stubbornly thin Delhiite would be left unmoved by Jaffrey’s nostalgia. “But I am not sure I would follow her recipes," says Anoothi Vishal, a food columnist who curates community cuisines in the Capital. “Some of them are so basic that they may appeal only to foreigners." To Vishal, who hasn’t come across any book with satisfying versions of Delhi dishes such as bharwan pasande, ishtew, shabdeg and besan ki subzi, a truly engaging book on Dilli ka khana is still to come. “Not only should the writer document the recipes of different communities, including smaller ones like the Anglo-Indians," she says, “but she should also investigate if there are common dishes across community cuisines in the city to justify the ‘Delhi cuisine’ tag, instead of the Mughal/Kayastha/ Baniya cuisines that are community centric." ‘Paratha’ being fried at Matia Mahal. Photo: Mayank Austen Soofi/Mint Like many British cooks of her generation, Timms learnt authentic Indian home cooking through Jaffrey. “ Even in that first book, she was telling readers to avoid curry powder and embrace whole spices," she says, “urging us to try dishes like baingan bharta and gajar ka halwa—neither of which British or American readers had tasted in Indian restaurants of the time." Today, Invitation is a rare sight in book stores, though Jaffrey, who lives with her violinist husband in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village, US, has become an industry—she has written more than 30 cookbooks. Responding to my congratulatory email, the 80-year-old author said: “I didn’t even know it has been 40 years! How very nice of you to do a story on my first book." The best tribute we can pay her and to our city’s other food chroniclers is to regularly dip our fingers in Delhi’s oil-filled gravies. ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ Old Delhi’s best Lounge columnist Pamela Timms recommends her favourites The street food joint which set me off on my Old Delhi food journey is Ashok and Ashok (the Shokkys in my book). Their amazing korma is still one of the best plates of food you can eat in the city. Warm kheer at the morning hour in Bade Mian’s kheer shop in Lal Kuan. The owner, Jamaluddin Siddique, sits me down in the back of his shop with a little plate to nibble at while he packs a tub for me to take home. For a great breakfast, it’s hard to beat the ‘bedmi aloo’ at the Chaina Ram sweet shop at the Fatehpuri mosque—a great place to sit and watch the madness of Chandni Chowk. Fabulous sweets to take home too. To get away from the mayhem, I often stop for lunch at Adarsh Bhojanalaya in Haveli Haider Quli. A quiet little shop where, for a few rupees, you can sit and enjoy a delicious, all-you-can-eat vegetarian thali. Another refuge is the Jain Coffee House off Chawri Bazaar where you can park yourself on a sack of grain and enjoy a fruit sandwich made with whatever’s in season (mango, apple, pomegranate) and a chikoo milkshake. I end every day in Old Delhi at the Old Famous Jalebi Wala. This has done nothing for my waistband or blood sugar levels but has brought the wonderful Jain family, who have been making their sticky sugary treat in Chandni Chowk since 1884, into my life. ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ Emerging classics New Delhi foods you must try uTandoori Momo Started by QD’s, an eatery in Delhi University’s north campus, the momos are roasted in a tandoor and served with mint chutney. Another outlet is in south campus’ Satya Niketan. uCocktail samosa Mini samosas stuffed with potatoes that are cooked with peas and groundnuts. Sold by two street vendors near Scindia House, Connaught Place. uLitti Choka A very healthy delicacy from Bihar served in style at The Potbelly Rooftop Café and Kitchen in Shahpur Jat Village. The accompanying ‘chana dal’ alone is worth the money. u Set Dosa One of the most authentic dosas found in Delhi. A spongier smaller version of the usual dosa variety served in a set of four, it is a specilaity at Mathew Café, outside Tamil Sangam in RK Puram. u Honey & Fig Ice cream The most loved dessert at the India International Centre, the flavour of the braised fig is passing but its memory endures. u Aloo Tikki in olive oil The final frying of the tikki is done in front of you in olive oil; finished with yogurt and pomegranate seeds. Served at Bittu Tikki Wala in Pitampura. Also Read: Madhur Jaffrey | ‘All I knew then was Delhi food’ |
U.S. spy satellites reportedly captured photos of Chinese ships illegally selling oil to North Korean boats some 30 times since October. Satellite images released by the U.S. Department of Treasury appeared to show vessels from both countries illegally trading oil in the West Sea, The Chosun Ilbo reported Tuesday, citing South Korean government sources. North Korea was barred in September by the United Nations Security Council from importing natural gas and had its crude oil imports capped in response to Kim Jong Un’s nuclear missile program. The U.S. Treasury in November also sanctioned North Korea’s Maritime Administration and its transport ministry, in addition to six North Korean shipping and trading companies and 20 of their vessels, in an effort to block the rogue regime’s transportation networks. The satellite images appear to identify the ships. One of them — Rye Song Gang 1, seen “connected to a Chinese vessel” — was included in the Nov. 21 sanctions as a vessel of Korea Kumbyol Trading Company possibly transferring oil to evade sanctions. While Russia exports some oil to North Korea, China is the main source of oil for the rogue nation, according to Reuters. However, the country exported no oil products to the North during the month of November. It was reportedly the second consecutive month China didn't export diesel or gasoline to North Korea. NORTH KOREA CALLS UN SANCTIONS 'AN ACT OF WAR,' 'RIGGED UP BY THE US' “This is a natural outcome of the tightening of the various sanctions against North Korea,” Cai Jian, an expert on North Korea at Fudan University in Shanghai, told the news organization. Cai added the "tightening ... reflects China's stance." It's unknown if China supplies crude oil to the North, but it's believed by industry insiders that China provides the cutoff nation 3.8 million barrels of crude oil each year through an "aging pipeline," Reuters reported. A government source told the South Korean newspaper that, "We need to focus on the fact that the illicit trade started after a UN Security Council resolution in September drastically capped North Korea's imports of refined petroleum products." Robert Kelly, a professor at Pusan National University in South Korea, told The Telegraph that China trading oil to North Korea could be possible. NORTH KOREA'S OTHER WEAPONS: EXPERT WARNS NUKES AREN'T BIGGEST CONCERN “There is a lot of under-the-radar on the Chinese side," Kelly said. "Beijing does not police the border strictly or enforce the sanctions toughly. This could be that." Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said she had no information following Chosun’s report, but said “the Chinese government has been completely and strictly enforcing Security Council resolutions” aimed at discouraging North Korea from developing nuclear and missile technology. Hua questioned whether any country could make sure "not a single breach will happen,” but noted: “We are taking a sincere and serious attitude and forceful and effective actions." The Associated Press contributed to this report. |
(X-Files/20th Century Fox) On Jan. 26, FBI agents made public a foiled plot against the Freemasons. Samy Mohamed Hamzeh was arrested with a machine gun and silencer. The FBI alleges that he intended to storm the Scottish Rite Masonic Temple in Milwaukee and kill upwards of 30 people. The complaint quotes him as saying: They are all Masonic; they are playing with the world like a game, man, and we are like asses, we don’t know what is going on, these are the ones who are fighting, these are the ones that needs to be killed, not the Shi’iat, because these are the ones who are against us, these are the ones who are making living for us like hell. So are people who are prone to believing conspiracy theories prone to violence as well? [50 percent of Americans believe in some conspiracy theory. Here’s why.] Recent events suggest they are. Robert Dear, who allegedly killed three and injured nine at the Planned Parenthood in Colorado Springs on Nov. 28, 2015, had a history of spouting anti-government conspiracy theories. He encouraged his neighbors to install metal roofing on their homes to prevent the government from spying on them. Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik, who allegedly killed 14 and injured 21 in San Bernardino, Calif., on Dec. 2, 2015, may also have been conspiracy theorists. Although their motives are only now becoming clear, early evidence suggests that they may have believed that the United States was in a war against Muslims. And a lawyer for their family invoked conspiracy theories about the Sandy Hook shooting to imply that U.S. government officials were behind events in San Bernardino. Other examples are plentiful. The Boston Marathon bombers, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who killed three and injured 264, accused the U.S. government of complicity in the Sept. 11, 2001, bombings not long before their deadly rampage in 2013. Jared Lee Loughner, who killed six and injured more than a dozen people, including then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Colorado in 2011, held similar beliefs — as did John Patrick Bedell, who wounded two police officers in a shootout at a Washington, D.C., Metro station in 2010. Which came first, the conspiracy theory or the inclination to violence? But are conspiracy beliefs driving the violence, or an excuse for violence that would be committed anyway? Most Americans buy into one conspiracy theory or another without committing violence. Many Americans are plenty violent without justifying their behavior by conspiracy theories. [Conspiracy theories aren’t just for conservatives] Our research explored these questions, collecting the first long-term systematic data on conspiracy theorists. In one nationally representative survey, we asked respondents a broad array of questions, and separated those more inclined to conspiracy theories from those less inclined. Of course, respondents are reluctant to broadcast unpopular views and surveys are imperfect indicators of people’s positions, but that’s no more true for conspiracy theories than for other complex issues. Still, the results were stunning. When asked if violence was an acceptable way to express disagreement with the government, people with a strong (denoted as high in the figure) predisposition toward conspiratorial thinking were almost fifty percent more likely than those least (low) inclined toward conspiratorial thinking to agree (16 versus 11 percent). Eighty percent of those least drawn to conspiratorial thinking disagree with the statement than violence is sometimes an acceptable way to express disagreement with the government while only 59 percent of those with a strong predisposition towards conspiratorial thinking do. Agree or disagree: “Violence is sometimes an acceptable way to express disagreement with the government.” “Low, medium, high” indicate how much the respondent sees the world as full of conspiracies. Naturally, the relationship between conspiracy theories and violent impulses is complicated. But the two may form a toxic combination. When asked about gun control, a majority of those who favored less strict gun laws were people with higher conspiratorial predispositions. More recent polls have found this as well. And previous research by psychologists Karen Douglas and Robbie Sutton, for example, showed that conspiracy theorists are much more likely to agree that it’s acceptable to engage in conspiratorial arrangements in order to achieve an important goal. So conspiracy theorists are more likely to approve of violence, lax gun laws, and secret plotting. Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh is a textbook example. McVeigh was concerned with gun rights, believed the government was conspiring to destroy liberty, and conspired to blow up a federal building in retaliation. Osama bin Laden was another conspiracy theorist. His library included books on conspiracy theories about the Illuminati, the Federal Reserve and, ironically, 9/11. Which individual conspiracy theorist will resort to violence is impossible to predict. But which types of people will tend towards violent acts is not entirely unpredictable. [Conspiracy theories won’t save the governing party in Venezuela] Most people, including most conspiracy theorists, oppose violence. Now the good news. Whether or not they believe in conspiracies, our research shows the vast majority of people object to violence. Politically motivated violence remains a minuscule fraction of all violence. From what we can tell, conspiracy-motivated violence appears to be a fraction of that. Since our nation includes hundreds of millions of conspiracy theorists, according to our research, if only one percent of those turned to terror, the country would have long ago collapsed into conspiracy-soaked chaos. But while conspiracy theory-inspired violence is rare, that is sometimes lost sight of. Mass killings have fallen in the United States over the last few decades, but conspiracy-fueled mass killings retain a strong hold on the popular imagination and an outsized influence on policy debates. The San Bernardino shooting, for instance, has been used in debates about gun control and immigration; the Boston bombing in discussions of how to stop terrorism; and if the alleged plot in Milwaukee had occurred it would have killed dozens. But the dangers ought to be put in perspective. There is a link between conspiracy theorizing and violence, but relative compared to other forms of violent death, the risks are extremely small. Why do some people fear conspiracy theorists more than the evidence warrants? That may or may not call for a conspiracy theory. Joseph M. Parent and Joseph E. Uscinski are associate professors of political science at the University of Miami and authors of “American Conspiracy Theories” (Oxford University Press, 2014). |
Earlier this month, Westworld Watchers reader Jeanne reported on some additions to the Melody Ranch site. Metal scaffolding and raised walkways have been constructed, as well as a new building on the exterior town set. As filming continues, Jeanne has sent us some pictures of the set – one of which has spoilery implications for Westworld‘s second season. More photos below the cut! You can clearly see the metal framework in place, although it’s purpose is unclear. Is it used for overhead shots of the town, or for crew to easily move from one place to another? A crew member can be seen standing on one of the overhead walkways in several of the photos. The most interesting picture of the bunch can be seen below. It appears to contain a Japanese-style structure, which is a bit out of place in a Western town. Is this another clue that we will be seeing more of Samurai World in season two? It’s hard to imagine any other reason for this building to be on set. Let us know in the comments if you spot anything else of interest! |
INTRODUCTION Spoiler Waddle Dee A thrown waddle doo does about 7% damage Instead of jumping, a waddle doo will use a beam attack. If this attack fully connects, It will do about 15-20% damage. After 3 beam attacks, they will usually disappear Spoiler Waddle Doo Spoiler Gordo THROWS Spoiler straight tilt throw upward tilt throw downward tilt throw aerial straight tilt throw aerial upward tilt throw aerial downward tilt throw Spoiler straight smash throw upward smash throw downward smash throw aerial straight smash throw aerial upward smash throw aerial downward smash throw RE-THROWS Spoiler straight "A" toss. *Note: you can still angle this as you would a normal tilt throw, but i'm lazy and didn't record the rest Spoiler straight z toss downward z toss downward z toss straight rising z toss upward rising z toss downward rising z toss WADDLE DASHING Spoiler basic waddle dash backwards waddle dash basic aerial waddle dash from upward tilt throw double waddle dash in same jump double waddle dash in separate jumps rising z toss waddle dash rising z toss double waddle dash b-reversed waddle dash b-reversed waddle dash back Spoiler waddle dashing for recovery waddle dash backward mix up waddle dash into up b UNDER CONSTRUCTION Will continue when I have examples of approach and retreat with waddle dashing and possibly more sections/edits based on suggestions A lot of people have been asking me how to implement side b into their gamplay, so I figured I'd make a quick guide. I apologize for any formatting errors, low quality of gifs, and redundancy in advance, as I have not done anything like this before. Hope it helps!Dedede's side b, also known as the waddle dee toss, allows dedede to throw a waddle dee, waddle doo, or Gordo. There is a 71.4% chance of throwing a waddle dee, a 20.4% chance of throwing a waddle doo, and an 8.2% chance of throwing a Gordo. In my own testing, I found that waddles will last on the screen for about 12-13 seconds, before disappearing. Gordo's will disappear after they hit the ground twice. Waddles and Gordos will also disappear of they fall or are hit to a blast zone. You can only have 2 waddles/Gordos on the screen at a time, and throwing another will make the one that has been out the longest disappear. If both your waddles are in hitstun, you cannot throw another.Dedede's waddles are what you want to focus on when using side b, as both waddle dees and waddle doos have similar aspects and the highest chance of being thrown. A thrown Waddle dee will deal 5% damage, and a low amount of knockback. Waddle dees and Waddle doos will only deal damage when they are thrown or attacking, and will damage each other. After being thrown out, Waddle dees will wander around and sometimes jump until they despawn. When a Waddle dee jumps, he acts as a projectile of sorts, dealing 8% damage. Waddle dees will jump at random while on the ground. Both waddle dees and waddle doos can be rethrown by pressing a while near them, pressing z while near them in the air, or air dodging into them.Waddle doos are very similar to waddle dees, besides a few important differences:A Waddle doo's beam attack allows for very easy follow ups and can damage people while they are in a grab.Gordo's will not be seen too often, but are very different than waddles. They act as a projectile the whole time they are out, will not disappear over time, have great kill potential, they cannot be rethrown, and disappear upon hit. When they hit the ground or a wall, they will bounce, and when hitting another surface after bouncing, they will disappear. They also have a very different arc then waddles and will be thrown further distances. They are also seem very floaty when thrown. Upon contact, they will deal about 22% damage. If a gordo hits a waddle, the gordo will disappear, and in most cases, that waddle will fly to the blast zone and disappear.There are two different ways to throw waddles/gordos out of side b and 3 different angles for each. Tilt throws, done by inputting the side b as a tilt, and normal throws, done by inputting side b as a smash. You can then angle these throws by tilting the stick up or down during the side b, allowing you to throw straight, upward, or downward. These options remain in the air. The throw is also faster in the air than on the ground.Tilt throws are the shortest throws Dedede can do. I find them to be good for stage control and projectile shields against certain characters, and in the air, they set up for waddle dashes very well. An upward tilt throw on the ground can act as a sort of anti-air that remains close to you, a downward throw is good if you want to have a waddle close to you for protection and waddle dashing, but straight throws are usually better to input as a normal throw instead of a tilt. In the air, the straight and downward throws work very well for spacing and stopping an opponents approach. Any rethrow Dedede does will be a tilt throw.This is the throw I generally use the most in neutral game and combos. It's length allows for excellent spacing and lets you set up waddles further down the stage for even more stage control. Upward throws serve a similar purpose to it's tilt throw version, just for a further distance and can even be used to stop air camping opponents. Straight throw is your best grounded option for a projectile and spacing, and downward serves a similar purpose to it's tilt variant. In the air, I find that retreating downward is excellent for stopping approach and escaping, and upward and stright throws serve the same purpose in the air that they do on the ground.If a waddle is on the ground or in the air, you can throw it again without taking another out. There are 3 types of rethrows: An "A" toss, a "Z" toss, and most importantly, a waddle dash. An "A" toss is performed by simply pressing A (or whatever button you have mapped to attack) close to a grounded waddle. A "Z" toss is performed by pressing Z near a waddle in the air. A waddle dash is performed by air dodging into a waddle. All rethrows throw the waddle again as a tilt throw, and they are thrown much faster than a normal side b.an A toss is probably the least useful of all rethrows. The only application I have found for it is comboing larger and heavier characters like Bowser, Charizrd, and even Dedede himself. It can be used to stop approach when someone is close to you, but waddle dashing tends to be the best option there. This can be angled the same as a tilt.This was recently brought to my attention by Metamato's thread about this found here. He summed this up quite well, and I myself haven't had much practice with this at all, so It's worth looking at what he found as it's definitely more information than I can give. Basically, it can be use as an "A" toss in the air, but also has other potential. If you jump with a waddle in front of you and press z as you rise off of the ground, you can maintain your vertical momentum and throw the waddle. This is VERY good for setting up waddle dashes and escaping some situations.This is the big one, and really the main reason I made this guide. Waddle dashing is arguably Dedede's best tool, as it allows recovery, approach, and retreat, all well throwing a waddle for a projectile. Waddle dashing is performed by air dodging into a waddle, whether they are on the ground or in the air. When you do this, Dedede will rethrow the waddle while keeping all of his momentum from the air dodge. This is because to Dedede, waddles act similar to items, except they cannot be held, so are instantly thrown. In Project M, air dodging into an item allows you to grab it, so Dedede grabs the waddle as an item and throws it, but keeps his momentum. You'll get the most momentum if you do this in the air, as you will not hit the ground to stop. To compensate for this, the higher you air dodge into a waddle on the ground, the further you'll travel.The best way to set up for these is to either use a waddle on the ground or jump and tilt throw a waddle upward, then jump again and air dodge into it. When waddle dashing, the Waddle will still be thrown as a tilt, and as always, can be angled. If you angle a waddle straight or up after an aerial waddle dash, you can jump to air dodge into it again. If you angle it downward, however, you can dash into it again without exhausting a jump. If you do this method, you will move diagonally downward, but if you use jumps, you will move generally straight. You can also set up waddle dashes extremely well with a rising z toss. Another option, mainly for mix ups, is to b-reverse a tilt throw and waddle dash into it (Thanks to OnFullTilt for b-reverse idea).Waddle dashing is Dedede's best recovery tool to cover horizontal distance. As stated previously, You can exhaust your jumps in order to gain more horizontal distance, or preserve them in going diagonal (twords the ledge in most cases). When using up b (Super Dedede Jump) out of a waddle dash, you will keep your momentum until Dedede commences the jump, so you don't always have to waddle dash twice in order to recover. This is known as the Super DUPER Dedede jump as coined by NTFSmasher . Keep this in mind, especially when recovering low, to avoid getting trapped under the stage. You can also waddle dash backwards after going forward for mix ups. I recommend doing the backwards dash if you are already over the stage, as you won't always be able to get back to the stage if you do this._________________________________________________________________________________________________________ |
Police conducting hands-free driving stings in downtown Austin Copyright by KXAN - All rights reserved Austin police officer pulling over a driver for distracted driving on Feb. 17, 2017. (KXAN Photo/Julie Karam) [ + - ] Video AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Friday morning, Austin police were looking for drivers who use their cellphones while behind the wheel. It's all part of a new stepped up enforcement by the department to crack down on drivers who are violating the hands-free ordinance. The department is targeting the downtown core because that's where it's congested and drivers are often distracted by their phones. In total, 204 citations and warnings were issued during the initiative Friday. Six were repeat violators from their initiative last week. Since the ordinance began in January 2015, citations have gone down. During the first year, the Austin Police Department wrote 5,122 citations to drivers who violated the hands-free ordinance and in 2016, 4,965. DOWNTOWN INITIATIVE CITATIONS AND WARNINGS ON FEB. 17 133 electronic device while driving citations (6 repeat violators) 26 electronic device while driving warnings 7 other hazardous citations 22 non-hazardous/seat belt citations 5 block the box citations 11 other warnings TOTAL: 204 citations and warnings During their enforcement Friday, officers on bicycle and motorcycle were in downtown Austin from 7 a.m. until 2 p.m. They did this kind of enforcement for the first time in downtown last Friday and wrote 99 citations. That citation costs $220, but there is a first-time violators program and drivers can get out of paying that ticket with the purchase of a hands-free device. "If they purchase that blue tooth device after receiving that citation they bring that device in along with the receipt to talk to one of the prosecuting attorneys they will dismiss the ticket on what's called deferred disposition," says Michael Barger, Austin Police Department Highway Enforcement Unit. Violators still have to pay court costs but APD says it amounts to less than the full citation. Next week the department will do their bus operations again. That's where an officer rides a Capital Metro bus looking for those talking on their phones, they radio to another officer who then pulls the driver over. |
You’ve heard of Serial by now, right? Oh, I’m sorry, you haven’t? Now that you’re out of your cupboard under the stairs, you’ll find what I’m talking about here. Yes, that’s Serial. Doesn’t look like much does it? It’s a smaller relation to This American Life, which is a podcast reporting slice of life stories with a Garrison Keilloresque spin. From its unassuming appearance you’d imagine Serial would fit neatly into the same folksy niche. You’d never imagine by November last year over 5 million people had downloaded it. You wouldn’t suppose that in so doing, Serial could claim to have changed the face of true crime reporting. You’d be hard pressed to believe that far from being a folksy little podcast, Serial might have the muscle to reopen a murder case and, just possibly, get a man out of jail. But let’s go back to the part about changing the face of true crime reporting, because what I want to talk about isn’t the rights or wrongs of the case which Sarah Koenig and her production team investigate in the series (although I do have an opinion about that, because Serial has a way of forcing you to have an opinion about the case, even if you don’t want to). What I want to talk about is why this podcast succeeded and succeeded so well. And as you might guess from a podcast which looks unassuming but isn’t, Serial doesn’t succeed because of the rules it follows. Serial succeeds because of the rules it breaks. Broken Rule #1: Concentrate on the facts not the people True crime shows tend to focus on the facts: the where and the how and the when of a case, but sidestep the who — the character of the people involved in the crime. You can see why this might be: you can’t argue with a fingerprint or a DNA test, or so the reasoning goes, but people…people are slippery. People are changeable. Rather than tease out the complexity of motivation, honesty and denial, when it comes to the who of crime, most shows give us little more than stock statements and clichés to base our judgments on. Serial embraces the slipperiness. It makes the slipperiness of who a person really is the heart of the show. In a way you could say it has no option but to do this, because in the case of Adnan Syed, currently jailed for the murder of Hae Min Lee, hard evidence is thin on the ground. This is a case all about people — why they do stuff, how they feel about things, what might provoke them to kill. It’s also, crucially, about the slipperiest aspect of people — when they lie and when they tell the truth. Serial looks at the key characters from every angle – where possible they speak for themselves (in the case of Lee, through the diary she kept before her death) — but added to this are the viewpoints of a multiplicity of others: friends, family, teachers, members of the community, neighbours. The result of this is to build a relatable picture of ordinary people who get caught up in an extraordinary event. We get invested in the kids of Woodlawn High School and the Baltimore community which surrounds them. We feel we know them. They smoked pot and hung out, just the way we did at age 17. They sneaked around and had sex in cars. We want to know more about them. We want to know why one of them died. Broken Rule #2: Force everyone to wear a suit and tie This concerns the bit where real people get to talk and there’s probably a technical term for this staple of the true crime show, but basically what it consists of is a headshot of a interviewee (a real person) speaking to an off-camera, silent interviewer. Soundbites are delivered in a measured, serious manner. Emotion is allowed, but only in carefully calibrated doses. The interviewee, if male, wears a shirt and tie. Serial does not give us interviews. Serial gives us conversations. When talking to the people involved in the case, Koenig, the show’s presenter, interjects and asks questions. Her respondents sound like real people: they um and aw and forget the point of what they’re saying. There’s no sense of rehearsal or preparation – if Koenig contradicts someone, as she occasionally does, you get their reaction. Sometimes, when trying to capture a tricky point, they’ll double-back on themselves, or explain further, or search for the right words. Which isn’t to say that the interviews used in Serial aren’t edited. They’re cleaned up and excerpted and presented out of sequence, so that the story can be told in the best way. But Serial also manages to not edit out the character of the people telling the story. They can wear any clothes they want, not just suits and ties. Broken Rule #3: Keep yourself out of the story From the featureless interviewee, we move to the featureless presenter. Many crime shows rely on the faceless narrator technique, but even those fronted by a personality – usually someone with a vague claim to expert status – prefer the ‘Greek God’ approach to presenting: the talking head who offers comment from the lofty heights of Mt Olympus on the antics of the mortals down below. When Koenig- not an expert- gets involved in trying to solve the case’s puzzles it hits us that we could solve those puzzles too. The Serial production team is the opposite of a Greek God (and I mean this in a good way). In her progress through the case, Koenig expresses all the doubt, confusion and frustration experienced by any normal person trying to understand the messy stuff of real, true human life. There are dead ends. There are contradictions. There are conflicting points of view which cannot be resolved. Koenig gets annoyed at the way the original investigators tidied up a key witness’s statements. She admits to the mind-numbing boringness of some of the technical detail the story involves – the cell phone records, the blueprints of shopping malls. She even questions the central premise of the story itself, allowing herself to ask the normally unaskable. Is it possible, she wonders, if Syed, who has always protested his innocence and who she finds likeable and plausible, actually has her completely fooled? Allowing the presenter to have reactions and emotions allows us the audience to have those same reactions and emotions. Stirred, we become hooked on the story. We want more. We want answers. Broken Rule #4: Leave the hard stuff to the experts I’m going to get back to Koenig’s doubts below, but let’s pause at the blueprints for a moment, because here’s one of the key reasons Serial became so popular. As I said in Broken Rule #1, the murder investigation had little to go on in the way of hard evidence, but there was some, notably Syed’s cell phone record for the day of the murder and how it matched the statement of a key witness, but also the presence or absence of a phone booth at a particular shopping mall and the minimum possible driving time between the High School and where the murder took place. Faced with technical issues like these, most crime shows call in the experts to unravel the details. Cue shirts, ties and headshots. Rarely, if ever does the crime show presenter actually do the investigating themselves, because the crowd-consciousness about crime shows dictates that investigating is what the police and experts do, not ordinary people equipped with no special skills except common sense, and no special tools except a car and access to the internet. But investigating is exactly what Koenig and her team set about. They dig up cell phone records and match them to tower pings. They get hold of blueprints and try to work out if a certain call could have been made from a certain spot at a certain time. They get in a car and drive from the High School to the site of the murder and time the journey. And this is where it gets interesting for us the listener, because all of the rules above have the effect of distancing us from the investigation, and breaking those rules – making the people real, using natural dialogue, reacting to the story – brings us into the heart of it. When Koenig- not an expert- gets involved in trying to solve the case’s puzzles it hits us that we could solve those puzzles too. From investment and engagement, we move to interactivity. Visit the appropriate sub-Reddits and you will see the results. Broken Rule #5: Pick a side and stick to it By breaking the rules, Serial invests, engages and allows interaction, but this is all preparation for its biggest and most profound bit of rule-breaking, a departure from convention that is probably the main reason for its success. Remember my parenthetical comment in the introduction that Serial forces you to have an opinion about the Syed case even if you don’t really want to? Serial has an effect on you that no other crime show can generate. Listen to this show and you will find yourself shouting at your playing device and afterwards feverishly Googling for that crucial piece of information which proves your particular theory right. How does it do that? Serial never picks a side. No piece of evidence proves conclusive. No witness statement is treated as gospel. Koenig admits that Syed might be lying, that people’s recollection of events might be faulty, that their assessment of character might be biased. The show almost never asserts one possibility without immediately admitting the converse might also be true. The effect is at first disorienting. We’re used to being spoon-fed conclusions on shows like this, the alternate scenarios usually being: ‘we got the guilty person and this is how we did it’ or ‘the wrong guy is in jail and here’s why.’ Serial leans towards the latter, but never fully commits to the miscarriage of justice narrative. There’s always room for doubt: even with the physical evidence. Here’s an example: the final episode presents some last exploration into whether a particular damning call could possibly be due to a butt-dial and not due to Syed having his phone when he said he didn’t. The conclusion? Maybe. It’s possible. Perhaps. From disorienting, the effect of all this fence-sitting quickly becomes tantalizing. We’re invested in these people. We hear their voices and their unvarnished reactions. Koenig gives voice to our own doubts and frustrations. We’re even offered a seat at the investigating table. We need to know the truth about all of this. We want those elusive answers. This is how Serial really hooks us. By refusing to pick a side, by always allowing room for doubt, Serial offers us those answers; then snatches them out of reach. Because it never picks a side – guess what? – we feel forced to choose for ourselves. Even if we don’t want to have an opinion about the show, having an opinion is what we end up with, like it or not. And what’s my opinion? As it happens, I came to the dispiriting conclusion that Syed probably is guilty, around about Episode 8 of the show. Why dispiriting? Because on balance that means Serial did more harm than good: it reopened old wounds and painful memories without the compensatory effect of freeing an innocent person or providing better closure to the relatives and friends of Hae Min Lee. But that’s just my opinion. If you listened to Serial, I’m pretty sure you have one of your own. |
Nearly three months after the National Economic and Development Authority confirmed the Cebu bus rapid transit project as one of seven new infrastructure projects of the government, the Department of Budget and Management has approved its funding strategy for P9.48 billion. "We want to enhance urban mobility in Cebu by establishing a high-quality, viable and sustainable bus rapid transit system," said Budget secretary Florencio Abad. "Once completed, the project will give Cebu's commuters a fast, comfortable and cost-effective mode of transportation. The main idea here really is to emulate a modern rail-based transit system at a much lower cost." The NEDA approved the project for a total cost of P10.62 billion, with the DBM covering it for P9.48 million. The remaining P1.14 billion will be shouldered by the private sector "and mainly utilized for the purchase of necessary motor vehicles." "The Cebu bus rapid transit represents the Aquino administration’s efforts to cultivate a more vibrant economic environment for cities outside Metro Manila," Abad added. Continue reading below ↓ Photo from Wikimedia Commons |
Ahead of the court case Merete Hodne said she would take it all the way to the European Court of Human Rights if the Norwegian courts ruled it was religious discrimination. She has now taken the first step as the business woman refused to accept the courts decision as she claims the court was unduly influenced by her previous membership of an anti-Islam organisation. The 47-year-old risked a prison sentence of up to six months after Malia Bayan, 24, was turned away from the salon in Byrne, south west Norway, last October. EPA Merete Hodne is appealing the court's verdict that it was religious discrimination After the incident was reported to the police by the young woman, Hodne said she was fully within her rights to not colour the hijab-clad woman’s hair. The hairdresser added it would have been discriminatory against her other customers if she had not thrown miss Bayan out of the establishment. Hodne, who runs a salon in Bryne, south west in Norway, told Tv2: “I fear the totalitarian symbol of the hijab which says that I should be killed, and for me it is quite unnatural to provide good service in my situation. “As most people know hijab clad woman do not get to show their hair to men. My salon is a man and women’s hair salon. I fear the totalitarian symbol of the hijab Merete Hodne "It would have been deeply discriminatory if I had banished men from the lounge because of a woman who could not show her hair to them.” Hodne added she turned the hijab-clad woman way because “Islam is evil”. She said: “I don’t want this evil inside the doors where I’m in charge. “Evil is Islam’s ideology, Mohammedanism and the hijab are symbols of this ideology, like the swastika is for nazism. PH Hodne said she would take the case all the way to the European Court of Human Rights “I’m not afraid to lose but I won’t pay for something that is wrong. I’ll appeal to the court of human rights. “I have dedicated my life to this. I’m not a racist. I am a political activist fighting against Mohammedanism of Europe. It’s not Muslims I’m critical of.” The hairdresser was initially fined £800 by the police but the sum was increased to £900 by the court. The court ruling said: "The court... has no doubt that the defendant acted intentionally, that she deliberately discriminated against Bayan by expelling her from the salon because she is Muslim.” TV2 Malika Bayan was thrown out by the hairdresser for wearing a hijab |
I know this story isn’t precisely new to Cathologosphere, but frankly, it’s irresistible. During the First Ecumenical Council of Nicea (AD 325) there was a big argument over the divinity of Christ. Arius — a heretic — was of the idea that Christ was not divine, but rather a mere creature. The Council gave him leave to speak, to defend his claims, and he did, yammering on — I have no doubt — in a relentless flood of sophistry. Jolly Old St. Nicholas — oh yes, he was a bishop — wasn’t having any of it. He tried to listen patiently, he really did, but Arius’ speech was just so wrong, that he was compelled to get up in the midst of it and, yep, punch him in the face. I hold that this is the image of Santa Claus we need to reclaim. Because when you think about it, this was the original campaign to Put the Christ Back in Christmas. Arius would have made the nativity a non-event (woop-de-freakin-doo everyone, God made something else). He, majestically prefiguring the various sects of Happy-Holiday-ers, Winter Solstice-ers, and it’s-actually-a-pagan-holiday-ers (that’s the point, you muppets!) denied that Christmas need be a celebration of substance at all. So when the modern world promotes the consumerist image of Santa Claus over the image of Christ, it is not so much the wrath of Christ they should fear as it is the wrath of Santa Claus. He may very well climb down the chimney and wup yo ass. Christmas is about this singular, terrible reality: That the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. In the spirit of St. Nick; accept no substitute. All of which leads me to the belief that our Christmas carols need to be rewritten in light of the Grand Punch of St. Nicholas. It wouldn’t be too hard, we could sing: “Jolly Old St. Nicholas/Lend your fist this way,” “I saw Dawkins rocked by Santa Claus/flying from the podium last niiighht,” and of course, “He sees when you’re dissenting/he knows when you’ve blasphemed/he knows your schismatic doctrines/and so he’s gonna punch your face/Oh, you better not doubt/You better not divide/You better not bring scandal to the Holy Roman Catholic Church/I’m telling you why/Saaaanta Claus is smacking you down,” etc. etc. So thank you St. Nicholas, for your inspired punch. Oh I almost forgot the end of the story. I’ll let Taylor Marshall, who writes over at Cantebury Tales tell it: Now if that were the end of the story, we probably wouldn’t know about Saint Nicholas, and our children wouldn’t be asking him for presents. However, after Nicholas was deposed, the Lord Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary visited Nicholas who was being held in a prison cell for his fist-fight with the heretic. Christ then presented Nicholas with his copy of the Gospels. Next, the Blessed Virgin vested Nicholas with his episcopal pallium, thus restoring him to his rank as a bishop. All in all, St. Nicholas is the man. In the spirit of Patheos Book Club’s recent review of Between Heaven and Mirth, I am opening up the combox for a) hilarious captions to the above picture, and b) giddily mirthful corrections of Santa-Claus-related christmas songs in light of his most excellent and inspiring triumph over heresy. The most funniest gets a prize. |
On a beautiful spring afternoon, ten years ago, two young men graduated from the same college. They were very much alike, these two young men. Both had been better than average students, both were personable and both — as young college graduates are — were filled with ambitious dreams for the future. Recently, these men returned to their college for their 10th reunion. They were still very much alike. Both were happily married. Both had three children. And both, it turned out, had become entrepreneurs. But there was a difference. One of them was struggling because no one wanted to buy his product. The other was the owner of a successful million-dollar company with a product used by many. This story was adapted from what is considered the “The Greatest Sales Letter Of All Time.” This particular sales letter ran from 1975–2003 and sold $2 billion (!) worth of Wall Street Journal subscriptions. The key to success? The story. Why Stories Matter In Chip and Dan Heath’s bestselling book Made To Stick, they discuss 6 principles on how to make your messages sticky. One of these principles is the principle of telling stories. Storytelling can create movements that prospects and customers can get behind. Storytelling can make a brand more personal, more human, more memorable. All of these elements combine to create a brand that spreads by its own and generate word-of-mouth. However, despite its immense power, storytelling seems to be an elusive skill possessed by a rare few — the Christopher Nolans and Quentin Tarantinos, the Neil Gaimans and Stephen Kings. Then, how can a brand create compelling stories that eventually spread — and generate word-of-mouth? Simple: There exists a number of storytelling formulas that you can implement immediately to improve your brand storytelling. These formulas have been used repeatedly, over and over again, by Hollywood executives, fiction writers and screenwriters to churn out entertaining stories that mesmerize for years. And the best part? You can use them too. 18 Storytelling Formulas You Can Use Right Away 1. Before-After-Bridge “The distance between your dreams and reality is called action.” – Unknown This is one of the most popular and easiest to implement copywriting and storytelling formulas around. In fact, once you’ve learnt this formula, you’ll begin to notice that most pitches, stories and landing pages are written in this manner. Formula Before — Show your readers the world with Problem Paint a picture of their world with the Problem, before your solution. Make sure what you’re identifying is in tune with what the reader is really experiencing. After — Show your readers what the world would be like with Problem Solved Describe the future world once their problem is solved. How does it look like? Would they be interested in that world? What benefits do they get? Bridge — Here’s how to get there Now that they know what it looks like to be on the other side, show them how to get there… with your solution. Examples Sword & Plough 2. Problem-Agitate-Solve “When you understand that people are more likely to act to avoid pain than to get gain, you’ll understand how powerful this first formula is. (…) It may be the most reliable sales formula ever invented.” – Dan Kennedy This is another popular copywriting formula. It is simple to understand and can be applied anywhere from Facebook Ads to blog posts. Formula Problem — Present a problem First, you introduce a problem the reader is experiencing. Make sure that it is a real problem identifiable by your target audience. Agitate — Agitate the problem Intensify and add salt to their wounds by using emotional language that describes what they’re going through. Solve — Solve the problem Offer a solution for their problem. This is the moment where you introduce your product or service. Examples Ramit Sethi 3. Features-Advantages-Benefits “Consumers do not buy products. They buy product benefits.” – David Ogilvy This particular formula was designed for product-oriented stories. This helps product designers and managers describe and present their products in terms of benefits, not features. Formula Features The facts and characteristics of what you’re about to describe Advantages What the features do. Benefits Why someone should care about the advantages provided. 4. Three-Act Structure “The three-act structure is intrinsic to the human brain’s model of the world; it matches a blueprint that is hard-wired in the human brain, which is constantly attempting to rationalize the world and resolve it into patterns. It is therefore an inevitable property of almost any successful drama, whether the writer is aware of it or not.” – Edoardo Nolfo The Three-Act Structure is an old storytelling formula that has been used in many popular plays, novels, movies, comic books, video games and poetry. Most Hollywood movies follow this template, as it has been proven to be a successful method of storytelling. Formula Setup In the first act, the setup, you introduce the main characters and the setting where the story is taking place. Confrontation In act II, usually the longest part of the entire story, the main character will encounter obstacles and problems in the form of people, objects or setting that will deter him from solving the problem. These obstacles will appear in rising frequency, at times seemingly close to solving the problem, yet will be prevented from doing so. Resolution After a period of struggle with his problems and obstacles, the main character will finally prevail and the story wraps up. It is also this period of time where the main character is shown to have grown beyond what he was at the start — and is now a different person. Examples Blendtec Extra Gum 5. Hero’s Journey “A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder. Fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won.” – Joseph Campbell The monomyth, or what is known as the Hero’s Journey is the common formula used in heroic tales where a hero embarks on a journey, suffers a crisis, wins the crisis and returns transformed. This Hero’s Journey can be found in many myths and legends, including those of great religious leaders like Jesus Christ, Buddha and Moses. The monomyth was popularized by the great mythologist Joseph Campbell in his 1949 seminal work: The Hero With A Thousand Faces (a must-read!) Formula First described in 17 stages by Joseph Campbell, the Hero’s Journey has since been shortened into 12 distinct stages by Hollywood executive Christopher Vogler. The Ordinary World The hero’s life prior to leaving for his quest The Call To Adventure The event that informs the hero a major change is coming Refusal Of The Call The hero will first attempt to ignore or avoid the call. Meeting With the Mentor The hero will meet a special mentor that will aid him in his quest. Crossing The Threshold Your hero finally moves on from his life and embarks on the quest. Tests, Allies and Enemies The different people who the hero will meet that will either help or prevent him from completing the quest. Approach To the Innermost Cave The hero will be on the verge of fighting his enemy. The Ordeal The fight between the hero and the enemy. Reward The hero receives a reward for defeating the enemy. The Road Back The hero travels home and fights (possibly) with lesser enemies. The Resurrection The hero proves worthy of the reward he has received. Return With The Elixir The hero finally reaches home and receives his accolades. 6. Freytag’s Pyramid: Five-Act Structure “Neue minor neu sit quinto productior actu fabula” (“A play should not be shorter or longer than five acts” – Horace A 19th Century German novelist, Freytag analyzed the stories of ancient Greek storytellers and Shakespeare — and discovered a common pattern in them. Writing in Die Technik des Dramas, he developed a diagram eventually known as the Freytag’s Pyramid that helped writers to organize their thoughts and ideas. Formula Exposition This is the beginning of the story where the setting, the character’s back stories and so on are introduced to the audience. Rising Action This is the series of events that creates the setting for the climax, and is usually the most important part of the story. Climax The turning point that changes the fate of the main character. This is the most exciting part of the story, the moment of greatest tension. Falling Action The conflict. The protagonist may win or lose in this battle with the antagonist. Dénouement Normality is resumed and conflict is resolved. Examples Casey Neistat Harry’s 7. Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle “People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it. And what you do simply proves what you believe” – Simon Sinek In his New York Times bestselling book Start With Why, Simon Sinek introduces the idea of the Golden Circle — a formula that great companies like Apple use to inspire people and create a movement. Formula Circle 1 (Innermost): Why — Why does the company exist? Why does the company exist? Why do the founders or the employees get out of bed for every morning? Why should anyone care about the company? Circle 2: How — How do they do what they do Also known as the Unique Selling Proposition, this is the differentiating factor given to explain how the company is better than its competitors. Circle 3: What — What does the company do What does the company sell? What industry is it in? What does the company do? 8. Dale Carnegie’s Magic Formula “When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures bristling with prejudice and motivated by pride and vanity.” – Dale Carnegie Dale Carnegie, author of the classic (and still relevant) book How To Win Friends and Influence people, created a simple 3-step formula to capture attention, build credibility, eliminate nervousness and call others to action. Formula Incident Relive a vivid, personal experience relevant to the point. Telling a personal story helps the audience relate to you as human and sharing similar experiences. To start off, you can begin by answering this question: What specific incident inspired the purpose surrounding of your topic? Action In order to ensure that the reader or listen takes action, you must clearly lay out the action needed. One cannot assume that the listener will immediately and intuitively understand what is required to be done after hearing your story. Answer this: What specific action do you want your listener/reader to take? And give them one clear, specific action to take. Benefit As Robert Greene writes in the 48 Laws of Power: “Always appeal to self-interest.” Sell the action to them. Why should they do it? What do they stand to benefit? Clearly laying it out to them will ensure that the listener takes the action you want them to. Examples Beardbrand 9. Dave Lieber’s V Formula “I believe in the power of storytelling to change the world.” – Dave Lieber Dave Lieber is the Dallas Morning News Watchdog columnist as well as a popular (and funny!) keynote speaker. In addition, Dave is also a storytelling expert hired by companies like Ernst & Young, American Heart Association and The US Coast Guard to educate, enlighten and entertain. In his underrated TED talk, he shares the formula he has been using for his stories. Formula Introduce the character Introduce the character, who he/she is, the backstory and so on. Bring the story to its lowest point People want to hear about failures and how the character turn the failures into a learning lesson or a success. Using emotions, describe how things went downhill for the character. Turn the story around and finish with a happy ending Then, after the story has reached its trough, describe how things improved and then end the story on a happy ending. Examples Charity: Water 10. Star-Chain-Hook “Every letter needs a “star” to capture attention, a “chain” to pull prospects along through the sales presentation without losing interest and a “hook” that holds them until they are ready to take action.” – Bob Bly Many years ago, Dr. Frank Dignan, a consultant from University of Chicago Press created this formula for writing advertising copy. Formula Star Create an attention-getting opening that is positive and upbeat Chain Create a series of convincing facts, benefits, and reasons that transform the reader’s attention into interest and desire. Hook Create a powerful and easy-to-respond call-to-action 11. The Story Spine (aka The Pixar Formula) “The way the films look will never entertain an audience alone. It has to be in the service of a good story with great characters.” – John Lasseter In To Sell Is Human, Daniel Pink introduces a storytelling method in which he calls the Pixar Formula. It is thus named because Pixar has used this particular formula in majority of their animated movies, winning them countless awards. This formula is actually known as the Story Spine and was first created in 1991 by Kenn Adams, a professional playwright and improviser. Formula Once upon a time there was ___. Every day, ___. One day ___. Because of that, ___. Because of that, ___. Until finally ___. 12. Michael’s Hauge 6-Stage Plot Structure “Empathy is something you must create when the hero is introduced. Making your hero a victim in the middle of the movie or showing him becoming kind and loving may make your story richer, but it doesn’t create empathy and identification.” – Michael Hauge Michael Hauge is one of Hollywood’s top coaches and story experts since 1985 and has consulted on multiple projects starring world-famous celebrities like Will Smith, Morgan Freeman, Julia Roberts and Reese Witherspoon. This is his formula for writing a good story. Formula The Setup Reveal the everyday life the hero has been living, while drawing the audience into the initial setting of the story. Within here, the hero is presented with an opportunity, which creates a desire that starts the character on his or her journey. The New Situation The hero is now reacting to the new situation that arose from the opportunity. He will try to figure out what is going on, and formulate a specific plan for accomplishing his goal. The Progress The hero’s plan seems to be working as he is taking action towards moving his goal. Somewhere along the way, he must be fully committed to his goal — until the point of no return. Destroying all bridges, he can no longer return back to where he was now that he has set upon his path. Complications and Higher Stakes Achieving the goal becomes more difficult. Bigger obstacles start appearing and the hero now will have everything to lose if he fails. He will also suffer what is known as the Major Setback, where it will appear to the audience that everything is lost for the hero. The Final Push Beaten and battered, the hero now gives his all in achieving the goal. Every single strength, every courage, everything he has, he will put it all in to accomplish it. The Aftermath The hero’s objective is finally reached and the audience experiences the same emotions as the hero-excitement, relief, sadness or romance. 13. Pledge-Turn-Prestige “I think cinema, movies, and magic have always been closely associated. The very earliest people who made film were magicians.” – Francis Ford Coppola In Christopher Nolan’s award-winning movie The Prestige, the narrator opens the movie with a description of the Three-Act structure of great magic tricks: The Pledge-The Turn-The Prestige. Although it is a fictional structure, it can still be applied to tell a story. Formula Pledge — Promise of something extraordinary “The magician shows you something ordinary: a deck of cards, a bird or a man. He shows you this object. Perhaps he asks you to inspect it to see if it is indeed real, unaltered, normal. But of course… it probably isn’t.” Turn —The apparent revelation The second act is called “The Turn”. The magician takes the ordinary something and makes it do something extraordinary. Now you’re looking for the secret… but you won’t find it, because of course you’re not really looking. You don’t really want to know. You want to be fooled. But you wouldn’t clap yet. Because making something disappear isn’t enough; you have to bring it back. Prestige — The actual reveal That’s why every magic trick has a third act, the hardest part, the part we call “The Prestige” 14. Andy Raskin’s Greatest Sales Deck Pitch “This is the greatest sales deck I have ever seen.” – Andy Raskin In a popular Medium post, Andy Raskin, a consultant that teaches leaders and companies how to tell strategic stories talks about the greatest sales deck he has ever seen. It was a deck belonging to Zuora, a Silicon Valley company that sells a SaaS platform for subscription billing. Andy broke down the sales deck into 5 elements, showing why it was so effective. Formula Name a Big, Relevant Change in the World Name the undeniable shift in the world that creates both big stakes and huge urgency for your prospect. Show There Will Be Winners and Losers Demonstrate how the change you just mentioned will create big winners and big losers. Meaning: show how adapting to the change will create a positive future, and how ignoring it will inevitably result in a poor future. Tease The Promised Land Present a teaser version of the Promised Land, the happily-ever-after your product/service will help achieve. This happily-ever-after conclusion, as Andy Raskin expertly points out, should be desirable yet difficult to achieve without outside help. Introduce Features As A Way To Overcome Obstacles To Promised Land Introduce your product and service and position your features as some sort of a magical solution to reach the Promised Land. Present Evidence You Can Make The Story Come True Your prospects will be skeptical that you can deliver the Promised Land. Show them it is true, and you can do it by showing the best evidence you can offer. Examples Zuora Uberflip 15. Elon Musk’s Pitch Formula “Brand is just a perception, and perception will match reality over time. Sometimes it will be ahead, other times it will be behind. But brand is simply a collective impression some have about a product.” – Elon Musk Elon Musk is a force-of-nature. I mean, who other than Elon Musk, is able to set up SpaceX, Tesla Motors, SolarCity and then Neuralink? Most CEOs struggle with 1 company, let alone 2, while Elon Musk juggles 4 (and other commitments not mentioned.) Is it any wonder that Elon Musk would also have a pitch formula that works on convincing people that his ideas will work? Formula Name Your Enemy Don’t talk about yourself or your product. Instead name the thing that is getting in the way of your customer’s happiness. “Do that by painting an emotionally resonant picture of how the world currently sucks for your customer, who/what is to blame, and why.” Why Now? Why is now the time to change for this particular problem? Convince your audience why of all problems, yours is the most important and pressing one to solve. The Promised Land Describe to your audience what it looks like in the future. How is it like when everything is solved? Explain Away Obstacles Lay out the obstacles and show how your product or service can overcome it. Win Them Over With Evidence Conclude your pitch strongly by letting your audience know you’re not lying. Show them evidence how it is already being done. Examples 16. Colin Theriot’s Viking Velociraptor Formula “This particular formula we will talk about today is all V words, but I couldn’t think of an alliterative title to match, so I called it “Viking Velociraptor” as a joke.” – Colin Theriot Colin Theriot, the leader of a massively popular 20,000-member Facebook Group named the Cult of Copy shares his formula for writing a persuasive message usable for any medium. He named it the Viking Velociraptor Formula, a name that came out because of a joke (and also because he wanted an alliteration.) Formula Verify Call out something the reader has seen, heard, observed or thought. Validate Validate their emotional gut reaction to this stimulus. Let them know that their internal reaction is correct and valid. Vantage Use the above information to insert the information you wanted to talk about into the conversation. Values Share values that you and the audience have in common. Villains Decry against villains you both stand against. Examples 17. Kishōtenketsu “He drew comics as a kid, and so he would always talk about how you have to think about, what is that denouement going to be? What is that third step? That ten [twist] that really surprises people. That’s something that has always been very close to our philosophy of level design, is trying to think of that surprise.” – Koichi Hayashida Kishōtenketsu is a four act narrative structure that describes the structure of classic Chinese, Korean and Japanese narratives. Also known as the plot without conflict, It differs from Western storytelling formulas because it is not based on conflict and resolution. Formula Ki — Introduction Establish the character, setting, situations and so on. Shō-Development No major changes occur here, as it is merely an expansion of the first act introduction. Ten — Twist The story takes a turn into a contrasting situation, a “twist”. Ketsu — Conclusion The story resolves and connects all acts. Examples Super Mario 18. Nonlinear Narratives “I’ve never read Joseph Campbell, and I don’t know all that much about story archetypes.” – Christopher Nolan Are you a fan of Pulp Fiction? Or any of Christopher Nolan’s work? Even if you aren’t, chances are… you have seen one of their movies. And you probably enjoyed it. One thing I want you to take away from this post is: Even if you possess all of the formulas in the world, one of the best things you can do is to break the formula. Learn the rules…. then break them. If you truly want to create a story that inspires and mesmerizes… Then consider creating something that is not formulaic. And that is incidentally the technique employed by both Quentin Tarantino in Pulp Fiction and Christopher Nolan in most of his movies. Nonlinear narratives. In a nonlinear narrative, the events are portrayed out of chronological order or in any other manner where the narrative does not follow the direct causality pattern. There are many ways this can be used: stories told within another story adding multiple flashbacks parallel plot lines dream immersions etc. You don’t have to use nonlinear storytelling of course… but if you want to create something that stands out, or something that is truly creative… You might want to consider doing this. Create Your Brand Story Now Here you go: A full list of storytelling formulas you can use to tell a story about your product that motivates your prospects to buy… Cements your brand… And inspires a movement. Apply these storytelling formulas to every marketing communication you do. Blog posts, advertisements, about pages, YouTube videos etc. Tell your brand story now, make it stick and change the world. How do you get other people to tell your story? It’s easier when you know what makes a story Contagious, and which ideas are Made to Stick. Ideas from these bestsellers and more in our comprehensive guide to word of mouth marketing! |
The 50-year-old, originally from Manchester, was arrested by US forces in Pakistan in 2001 as a suspected Taliban sympathiser, before being sent to Guantanamo Bay in Cuba in 2002. At the time of his release, the then home secretary David Blunkett said: “No-one who is returned...will actually be a threat to the security of the British people.” Earlier this week Isil named him as the man who had blown himself up in the car bombing at the Iraqi army base, and released a picture of him. Al-Harith’s wife Shukee Begum travelled to Syria with their five children to try to persuade her husband to return to the UK, but failed and was taken hostage before eventually managing to escape. Al-Harith, the son of Jamaican immigrants, converted to Islam in the 1990s and worked as a web designer before he travelled to the Pakistani city of Quetta in 2001 for what he claimed was a religious holiday. He has insisted he tried to enter Iran when the US invaded neighbouring Afghanistan, but was captured and imprisoned by the Taliban on suspicion of being a UK spy. When US special forces found him in a Taliban jail, they assessed him as a “high threat to the US” who was “probably involved in a former terrorist attack against the US”. Al-Harith’s prisoner file from Guantanamo Bay, published online by WikiLeaks, refers to him travelling to Sudan in 1992 with “Abu Bakr, a well-known al-Qaeda operative”. After his return to the UK - where he was released without charge - he joined three other former prisoners known as the Tipton Three in a failed attempt to sue Donald Rumsfeld, the then US Defense Secretary. His legal action against the British government was more successful, resulting in a payment of up to £1 million in return for which he agreed not to talk about his ordeal. Al-Harith profile still live on old Cage website Cage, the controversial human rights group, still features a profile of al-Harith on a part of its old website, Cageprisoners. It reads: Born Ronald Fiddler on November 20, 1966, to devout, churchgoing Jamaican parents, al Harith converted to Islam in his 20s after reading Malcom X's biography. He has two sisters, Maxine and Sharon. His family say he is a gentle, quiet man who rarely spoke of his faith unless asked, and after four years learning Arabic and teaching English at Khartoum University in Sudan, he seemed happy enough to return home where he started to study nursing. At this time, he also established a computer business. He later moved back to Manchester, where he worked as an administrator in a Muslim school. He travelled from the UK to Pakistan at the end of September 2001, retracing a journey he had made to Iran in 1993. He paid a lorry driver to take him from northern Pakistan to Iran as part of a backpacking trip, but they were stopped near the Afghan border by Taliban soldiers who saw his British passport and jailed him, in October, fearing he was a spy. He had been away from home only three weeks when he was captured. As the operation to mop up al Qaida forces went on into the spring of 2001, he was captured by US forces while being held in Kandahar Jail. He was interrogated by the CIA in Afghanistan before being taken to Guantanamo. He was released from Guantanamo and returned to the UK on 9th March 2004. After a few hours of questioning he was released without charge and reunited with his family. Jamal was the first of the British detainees to speak publicly about his ordeal. He married in late 2004 and has three children (aged 3,5, and 8) from a previous marriage. MPs attack 'scandalous' decision to award al-Harith £1 million Tim Loughton, a Conservative MP reportedly said: "This is a scandalous situation. So much for Tony Blair’s assurances that this extremist did not pose a security threat. "He clearly was a risk to Britain and our security all along. It adds insult to injury that he was given £1million in compensation because of Blair’s flawed judgement that he was an innocent." John Pugh, a Lib Dem MP, said: "This raises serious questions about the reassurances Labour gave us that this man posed no danger. "It is a kick in the teeth that he was given a fortune in taxpayers’ money after claiming he was innocent only to flee to Islamic State and pose a risk to the UK. "The Home Office needs to explain how he was able to leave the country so easily despite his background mixing with those at the very top of Islamic terrorism." Britons fighting with jihadis in Middle East As many as 850 people regarded as a national security concern have travelled to fight with jihadis in the Middle East. Just under half are thought to have returned to Britain while 15 per cent are believed to have been killed. The Foreign Office states: The UK has advised for some time against all travel to Syria, and against all travel to large parts of Iraq. As all UK consular services are suspended in Syria and greatly limited in Iraq, it is extremely difficult to confirm the whereabouts and status of British nationals in these areas. The other 4 key British jihadis known to have died fighting for Isil 1. Mohammed Emwazi / Jihadi John Emwazi was reported killed in a November 2015 air strike, with US forces saying they were "reasonably certain" he was dead. Isil later released what appeared to be an obituary to the fighter, who it called Abu Muharib al-Muhajir. It featured a smiling picture of the militant, who appeared unmasked looking towards the ground. |
Bitcoin PayPal Centralizes Payment Processing For Uber And AirBnb Understanding the way payments work is quite revealing in some cases. as it explains how a handful of companies make money off millions of transactions around the world. For example, very few people are aware of how PayPal is making a ton of money through their BrainTree hub, which is used for mobile payments by services such as Uber and AirBnb. A lot of revenue is generated for this one company powering a lot of payment options all over the world, and this type of centralization is not good news. Also read: OmniDex: Keeping You From Getting Goxxed? PayPal And BrainTree Power Your Mobile Payments Very few consumers are aware of which services are responsible for processing credit and debit card payments all over the world. Especially when it comes to mobile payments, there seem to be very few companies who can gain any significant traction. BrainTree is one of the most profitable companies, which is paying dividends for overarching company PayPal. In fact, PayPal is one of the most popular payment processing firms in the world today, thanks to their various services. Most people know PayPal itself as a way to send money all over the world by using plastic cards and bank accounts, but there is much more to this company than processing payments themselves. Among the subsidiaries of PayPal are companies such as Venmo and BrainTree. The millennial generation will be well aware of the existence of Venmo as this solution lets users split bills and transfer money by using a mobile device. Venmo is used by various retailers around the world, including Papa John’s. BrainTree, on the other hand, is lesser known by most people, even though it is one of the most commonly used payment processors in the world. Companies such as Airbnb, StubHub, and Uber are all making use of BrainTree to process card payments, which bring additional revenue to PayPal as a company. Distinguishing between companies and services with the same name is important. PayPal is both a payment processing company and a payment processor itself, despite having other subsidiaries which are also focusing on processing payments. At the same this, Venmo and BrainTree are bringing more functionality to PayPal as well, and these new features might be showing up on the Paypal platform in due time. Centralized Payment Processing Companies Are Not Good While it is interesting to note the PayPal company owns so many different payment processing tools, it is also slightly worrying to know a lot of payments are handled by the same group of people. This removes a lot of potential competition from the market, as these traditional solutions are all part of the same umbrella. But there is some positive news for Bitcoin users, as BrainTree is accepting Bitcoin payments in some capacity. However, it remains up to individual sellers and businesses to enable the Coinbase integration into their platform, an option which is not gaining any significant traction just yet. What are your thoughts on the PayPal company handling payments for so many different platforms? Let us know in the comments below! Source: Techcrunch Images courtesy of PayPal, BrainTree, Shutterstock |
Astronomers have detected a methane-shrouded world 100 light years away that may hold the key to understanding how planets form in the dust clouds swirling around stars. An instrument mounted on a telescope in Chile that was designed to study “cool” planets beyond the Solar System has found its first Jupiter-like object – a young, gas-filled planet rich in methane. The Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) attached to the Gemini South telescope in the Atacama desert, was built to discover faint, young planets orbiting bright stars – and in its first month of operation it found one, scientists said. We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view. From 15p €0.18 $0.18 $0.27 a day, more exclusives, analysis and extras. Astronomers described the extra-solar planet, called 51 Eridani b, as having about twice the mass of Jupiter, and the strongest methane signature of any “exoplanet” (a planet that orbits a star other than the Sun). The new planet is estimated to be just 20 million years old, compared with the 4.5bn years of Earth, which will allow astronomers to study the early stages of a planet’s evolution. Travis Barman, a planetary scientist at the University of Arizona who took part in the study published in the journal Science, said: “51 Eri b is the first young planet that probably looks like Jupiter did billions of years ago, making it ... our most important corner-piece of the planet-formation jigsaw puzzle.” Dr Barman added: “We have been searching for evidence of methane since the first exoplanet was discovered, as it implies conditions similar to what we see in the atmospheres of our own giant planets in the Solar System. To have found such an extraordinary example of a methane-rich atmosphere so early in our survey with GPI is really encouraging.” More than 1,000 exoplanets have been detected over the past two decades, many with the Kepler space telescope. The telescope in Chile, however, works in a different way and uses a process called adaptive optics to cut out the blinding light from a nearby sun. “Many of the exoplanets astronomers have imaged before have atmospheres that look like very cool stars. This one looks like a planet,” said Dr Bruce Macintosh of Stanford University, who led the construction of GPI and now leads the planet-hunting survey. “51 Eri b is the first one that’s cold enough and close enough to the star that it could have formed right where it is the old-fashioned way. This planet really could have formed the same way Jupiter did – this whole planetary system could be a lot like ours,” he said. We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view. At The Independent, no one tells us what to write. That’s why, in an era of political lies and Brexit bias, more readers are turning to an independent source. Subscribe from just 15p a day for extra exclusives, events and ebooks – all with no ads. Subscribe now |
By Jon Newberry Historically, the National Basketball Association has been dominated by dynasties led by legends of the game. Starting with the Lakers of the 50's (four titles), the Celtics in the 60's (nine titles), the Lakers in the 80's (five titles), the Bulls of the 90's (six titles), and the recent run of the Lakers (five titles in the 2000's), each decade has had one or two teams rise a step above the rest of the league. The 1970's are the lone exception, as eight different teams won championships. For one fleeting month, and three defiant exhibition games, the Hawks had Atlanta fans dreaming of filling that void. All of the aforementioned dynasties have one thing in common: star power. They were George Mikan's Lakers, Cousy and Russell's Celtics, Jordan and Pippen's Bulls, and the list goes on. On September 12, 1972, a Georgia Superior Court ruling allowed Julius Erving to join the Hawks training camp, and the dream that "Dr. J and Pistol Pete's Hawks" might join that list of dynasties appeared to be coming true. View the Full Slideshow: Dr. J: Memories and Dreams: "I remember those exhibition games. I would just grab a rebound, throw it out to Pete and get on the wing. Pete would always find you. He got his points, but he loved to pass the ball." - Julius Erving on playing with Pete Maravich >> MORE But let's not get ahead of ourselves. What follows is a condensed version of a complicated story that could only have taken place in the 70's, when the existence of the rival American Basketball Association (ABA), had caused players to jump from one league to the other for more lucrative offers. BACKGROUND The Hawks had been burned badly in recent years by players jumping to the ABA. Zelmo Beaty, who jumped to the Utah Stars in 1969, and Joe Caldwell, who jumped to the Carolina Cougars in 1970, had both been all-stars with the Hawks. The result was a line-up that had stumbled to a 36-46 record in 1971-72, prompting the hiring of Cotton Fitzsimmons as the new head coach and a search for talented free-agents. Adding to the Hawks urgency to improve was their impending move from Georgia Tech's Alexander Memorial Coliseum to the brand new, 16,500 seat, downtown arena called The Omni. Bill Putnam, the president of the Omni Group that owned the Hawks, the arena and the new Atlanta hockey franchise, the Flames, remained the biggest advocate of pursuing throughout the proceedings. Julius Erving had left the University of Massachusetts in 1971 after his junior year, and since the NBA did not allow underclassmen to enter the draft, he signed a four-year contract with the ABA's Squires. While the Hawks were struggling through the 1971-72 season, Julius Erving was enjoying his rookie season with the Virginia Squires, averaging 27.3 points and 15.7 rebounds per contest. ERVING INITIATES TALKS While Erving was having great success on the court, he began to question the initial contract he had signed with the Virginia team. He soon learned that Steve Arnold, his agent during negotiations, was also being compensated by the ABA and the Squires. "A lot of information was uncovered," Erving told the Atlanta Constitution's George Cunningham in a later interview. "I'm referring not only to the double agent thing but also the financial status of the Virginia team." Later, while testifying in a lawsuit brought against the Squires, Erving stated "I am informed and believe that Arnold received compensation from the Virginia Squires and the ABA or both for services rendered in its behalf. Arnold never disclosed any of these facts to me." For those reasons, Erving hired a new agent, Irwin Weiner, and quickly began gauging interest from NBA teams. "I talked to five or six NBA teams," Erving said. "Then the NBA came out with an announcement saying all valid ABA contracts would be honored by the NBA. When that happened, all but one NBA team backed out. Atlanta was the team that showed good faith." Knowing that a lawsuit would follow any signing with a team from the rival league, Erving required that the Hawks agree to cover all of his legal fees throughout the process. On April 9, 1972, one day before the NBA draft, Erving and Weiner met with the Virginia Squires' owner Earl Foreman in a last ditch effort to restructure his contract. When negotiations broke down the duo reportedly flew to Atlanta to sign a four-year contract with the Hawks that would begin once he was no longer under contract with the Squires. Erving requested that Bill Putnam and Hawks' general manager Richie Guerin not announce the signing, since his Squires were still playing in the ABA's playoffs. Without knowledge of the signing, the Milwaukee Bucks drafted Julius with the 12 th pick on April 10. LET THE DRAMA BEGIN The news of Erving's contract with the Hawks quickly leaked after the Bucks drafted him in the first round. "Julius Erving has signed an agreement with the Atlanta Hawks that will become valid at the expiration of his contract with the Virginia Squires," Putnam announced in the Associate Press report. "Even if we do have to wait three years to get him, he's still worth it. He's just turned 22 and is one of the most exciting players I have ever seen." Meanwhile, the Bucks stated some obvious objections. "As far as the by-laws of the National Basketball Association go, the rights to Julius Erving belong to the Milwaukee Bucks," commented Wayne Embry, the Bucks' general manager. "It's as clear cut as that." Little did he know at the time that nothing about this ordeal would be clear cut. INCREASING THE STAKES When the Hawks signed Erving there were obvious objections, but they were tempered by the assumption that there would be three to four years to sort things out while "Doc" played out the remainder of his existing contract with Virginia. That all changed a couple months later when Erving filed a lawsuit, claiming that his contract with the Squires should be terminated since it was negotiated while his agent was also acting on behalf of the ABA. All of a sudden the prospect of Erving joining the NBA for the 1972-73 season became a lot more plausible. The dispute was left to simmer as training camps approached in September. WHY THE HAWKS COULD WIN Using 21 st century protocol as a guide, the Hawks had made multiple violations of league rules and stood no chance of landing Erving on the roster. In 1972, however, there were plenty of examples that would provide optimism in their claim for Julius over the Squires, as well as their claim over the Bucks. Concerning the belief that Erving would successfully be able to jump leagues, Mike McKenzie, the Hawks' beat writer for the Atlanta Journal, summed it up nicely: "In the Hawks' favor is the fact that no player who has attempted to jump leagues has failed: Rick Barry, Connie Hawkins, Jim McDaniels, Zelmo Beaty and Joe Caldwell (from the Hawks), Bill Cunningham, Charlie Scott, Fred Brisker, and even Howard Porter and rookie Bob McAdoo who signed ABA contracts but did not honor them." As for the dispute between the Atlanta and Milwaukee, the Hawks contend Erving was a free agent and not eligible for the draft because he was already a pro for one year with the Virginia Squires. Both Putnam and Guerin were quick to point out a similar case from the 1971 draft involving Spencer Haywood. Haywood had jumped from the ABA's Denver franchise to the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics, and then later drafted by the Buffalo Braves. The NBA initially ruled against Seattle, but then was forced to reverse course after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the SuperSonics. "If we didn't think we were acting morally and legally right, we wouldn't have entered into this thing," commented Guerin to the Atlanta Journal. "We contend it is just like the Spencer Haywood case which the courts ruled on favorably." In fact, the Atlanta Journal learned that the Hawks consulted three different law firms early on and were encouraged enough by their evaluation to proceed with the signing of Erving. THE HAWKS WIN THE FIRST ROUND The Hawks training camp opened on September 11, 1972, with no sign of Dr. J at the team's facility in Savannah, Ga. With multiple lawsuits pending, Erving had established residence in Atlanta and had taken part in informal workouts with Atlanta players prior to camp. Ultimately, members of the Omni Group felt the legal risk of inviting him to camp was too high. Then, on September 12, Ernest G. Tidwell, a Georgia Superior Court judge, ruled that Erving's contract with the Virginia Squires of the ABA is "voidable, terminated, and of no further force for effect," before issuing an order temporarily restraining the Atlanta Hawks from not allowing Erving to play. Furman Bisher, the entertaining sports editor of the Atlanta Journal, reflected on Judge Tidwell's ruling later that week: "The most valuable player for the Atlanta Hawks this season may be a portly man of middle age who wears conventional business suits and fits well in a swivel chair, whose best shot is delivered by glass, and who answers to the name of Ernest. "Tuesday, the Hawks were the defendants in the kind of a lawsuit that delighted them. Julius Erving - and we'll get around to that name later - commisioned his lawyers to sue the Hawks for the right to perform for them. In other words, to make good on the contract they had signed him to." Immediately after the ruling, "Doc" flew from Atlanta to Savannah and joined the team for their evening workout. "I got a chance to talk to the coach," Erving commented to the Atlanta Constitution's George Cunningham following the workout. "His philosophy of having a fast-breaking team that is very unselfish with the basketball is good." As for the dispute with the Bucks, Julius quipped, "I have two contracts right now, I don't want a third one." Another future Hall of Famer in camp, Pete Maravich, had high praise for his newest teammate. "Erving's going to be fantastic. He's got the potential to be the greatest." FIRST SETBACK Walter Kennedy, Commissioner of the NBA, had hoped all along that the Hawks and Bucks could work things out amongst themselves, without requiring league intervention, but after one final negotiating session broke down on September 14, the matter was added to the docket for the Board of Governors meeting scheduled for the following week. Multiple sources reported that the Bucks were asking for an extremely steep price, such as stars Pete Maravich, Lou Hudson and draft picks. Hawks' general manager Richie Guerin wasn't giving any definitive answers to Mike McKenzie of the Atlanta Journal. "That's private business between us and them," Guerin said. "We have been on the phone with Milwaukee several times trying to work this out since a meeting in August in Chicago," said Guerin, "I truthfully have no idea what kind of statement will be issued by the board." Most people around the league believed that the Board would force the Hawks to compensate the Bucks with a higher price than they were offering, whether it be in the form of players, draft picks, or money. Instead, the Board issued a surprising ruling that Milwaukee owned the rights to Erving, and that his contract with Atlanta was not valid. The Omni Group president, Bill Putnam, was at the Board of Governors meeting, and while he was disappointed with the ruling, he remained resolute. "Our position was that the by-laws did not apply to Erving since he was not a college student and is a professional," Putnam told the Associated Press. "That still is our position... If necessary, we will defy the league." By contrast, Julius Erving was simply shocked. "Surprise, total surprise," said Erving when told about the ruling following a Hawks' practice session in Savannah. "We knew there was going to be a fight. They asked for Lou Hudson, Pete Maravich, and money to prove they meant business. But it was still the one situation we were most optimistic about, thinking it would be resolved easily." EXPENSIVE EXHIBITIONS As the first exhibition games approached, Erving continued to suit up with the Hawks in practice. In a slight twist of irony, the NBA was playing a portion of the 1972 pre-season schedule against teams from the ABA. The Hawks' first two exhibitions would be against the Kentucky Colonels, who featured Artis Gilmore and had recorded the most wins in the ABA the previous season. The first game was played on Saturday, September 23, in Frankfort, Ky. The Hawks would debut a new red and white color scheme when the 1972 regular season began, but in the pre-season they were still wearing the green and blue color scheme from the previous year. Erving was suited up wearing the number 54, although planned to wear his number 32 in the new uniforms. Erving did not disappoint anyone in the Hawks' constituency in his first appearance in an Atlanta uniform. He finished with 28 points and 18 rebounds in 42 minutes of action, helping the Hawks to a 112-109 victory. Atlanta Journal beat writer, Mike McKenzie, wrote the following description after seeing Dr. J live: "When Erving, who is six feet, six inches tall, jumps it is awesome and a favorite trick is to stuff backhanded and hang for a moment on the rim to heighten the effect. Now the Hawks must figure out a way to keep him." The next night the two teams faced off again, this time in Atlanta. It would be the last time the team played at Alexander Memorial Coliseum before the final move to the Omni, and a large crowd filed in to get their first glimpse of the team's new star. The Hawks were defeated 104-103 after blowing a big first-half lead. Erving finished with 23 points and 14 rebounds, an average night by his standards, but that did not take away from the impression that "Doc" left on the fans and media that were seeing him play for the first time. "You'll notice the unusually a-goggled size of my eyes today," wrote Furman Bisher, the Atlanta Journal sports editor. "I've just come from watching Julius Erving play." The excitement surrounding the Atlanta Hawks was at an all-time high, but Putnam and the Omni Group turned their attention to a different court the day after the second exhibition. Following the precedent set in Seattle's case against the NBA concerning Spencer Haywood a year earlier, the Hawks asked the federal court in Atlanta for an injunction against the NBA that would bar the league from prohibiting Erving from playing for Atlanta. Soon after, Putnam received a telegram from the commissioner's office: "For playing Julius Erving in two exibition games over the past weekend in violation of my directives of Sept. 21 and 22, Atlanta is hereby fined $25,000. Please be advised that those directives are still in full force and effect." Putnam remained defiant when he told the Associated Press, "You can believe we will refuse to pay. We'll just let the courts decide the matter. At this point we have filed our suit and we'll do our talking in court. We feel strongly that the NBA action last week was illegal, which is the reason we have gone to court." ONE LAST GLIMMER OF HOPE On September 26, one day after the fine was handed down and the lawsuit was filed, the Hawks held Erving out of an exhibition in Houston. Comments made to the media led Hawks fans to believe that a positive resolution was forthcoming. "We decided to make a good will gesture," Putnam told the Atlanta Journal's Mike McKenzie, "because the league might be taking a different point of view." "This was not cop-out," Richie Guerin added. "We're not conceding anything. We're still going to protect our rights and investment. But we've been acting from this position all along, in good faith with the league. Not under the threat of fines and such." Unfortunately, court rulings were postponed and there was no positive news through the week. With no news, Putnam re-inserted Erving into the Hawks line-up that Saturday, September 30, for an exhibition against the Carolina Cougars in Raleigh, N.C. Erving was nearly perfect on offense, scoring 32 points on 14-of-15 shooting from the field as Atlanta posted a 120-106 victory. The game was a convincing display of how potent the Atlanta offense could be with Doc in the lineup. Along with his 32 points, Lou Hudson scored 33, and Maravich facilitated all of the scoring with 19 assists. It was an impressive performance, but an expensive one as well, when Commissioner Kennedy handed down a second $25,000 fine to the Hawks. BAD NEWS FROM THE COURTS While the Hawks had been preoccupied with their battle with the NBA and the Milwaukee Bucks, the other matter of the Virginia Squires' claim had largely been overlooked. As stated earlier, no player had been blocked before when trying to jump from one league to another. On Monday, October 2, U.S. District Court Judge Edward Neaher issued an injunction that effectively prevented Erving from playing pro basketball for any team except the Virginia Squires. It caught everyone off guard, especially Bill Putnam. "In all our talks with lawyers on all angles in this case, this possibility was never mentioned," Putnam told the Atlanta Journal. Neaher cited a sub-paragraph in Erving's contract with the Squires which called for arbitration in any dispute on the contract. Basically, he accepted that Steve Arnold, Erving's agent that negotiated his deal with Virginia, had allegiances to both sides, but rather than throw out the entire contract, he would let an impartial third party serve as an arbitrator. A LOT OF DEAD ENDS The Hawks did not give up their fight for Erving after the initial ruling, but he would never again sport a Hawks' uniform. There are still many twists to the story that could be told, but it all leaves Hawks fans in the same place, wondering what could have been. Here is a brief summary of some key events following Judge Neaher's ruling: Oct. 20, 1972: Erving Returns to Squires' lineup; He goes on to lead the ABA in scoring in 1972-73 August 1, 1973: A month after replacing Bill Putnam as the president of the Omni Group, Paul Wilcox negotiates a deal with the Virginia Squires and New Jersey Nets in which the Hawks received money to cover all court fees and salary paid to Erving in exchange for rescinding their signed contract. The Nets receive Erving. The Squires receive cash and the guarantee that Erving remains in the ABA. Reports were that even if Erving was cleared to play in the NBA, the league would require the Hawks to send Lou Hudson and $1 million to the Milwaukee Bucks. Putnam disagrees with the move saying, "They just don't understand that some people are worth a lot of money." June 5, 1975: Newly appointed Commissioner Larry O'Brien ruled that the Hawks must pay a $250,000 fine to the league and $150,000 to the Milwaukee Bucks in addition to two second round picks in the 1976 draft. (The league fine was later reduced to $100,000.) MOVING ON The Hawks did have a successful first season in The Omni, posting a 46-36 record under Fitzsimmons, but they would flounder through the rest of the 1970's. Meanwhile, Erving would go down in history as one of the all-time greats. He won three MVP awards and two championships with the ABA's New Jersey Nets, before moving over to the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers where he won the 1981 MVP and the 1983 championship. He finished his career in 1987 with 30,026 career points, ranking him fifth all-time. Special thanks to the Atlanta Journal and the Atlanta Constitution's beat writer's and Sports Editors from 1970-1973. |
Former national security adviser Michael Flynn denied to FBI agents in an interview last month that he had discussed U.S. sanctions against Russia with that country’s ambassador to the United States before President Trump took office, contradicting the contents of intercepted communications collected by intelligence agencies, current and former U.S. officials said. The Jan. 24 interview potentially puts Flynn in legal jeopardy. Lying to the FBI is a felony offense. But several officials said it is unclear whether prosecutors would attempt to bring a case, in part because Flynn may parse the definition of the word “sanctions.” He also followed his denial to the FBI by saying he couldn’t recall all of the conversation, officials said. Any decision to prosecute would ultimately lie with the Justice Department. A spokesman for Flynn said he had no response. The FBI and the Justice Department declined to comment. Flynn spoke to Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak following Trump’s election and denied for weeks that the December conversation involved sanctions the Obama administration imposed on Russia in response to its purported meddling in the U.S. election. Flynn’s denial to the FBI was similar to what he had told Trump’s advisers, according to the officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. (Reuters) In a recent interview with the Daily Caller, Flynn said he didn’t discuss “sanctions” but did discuss the Obama administration’s expulsion of 35 Russian diplomats it said were “intelligence operatives.” The move was part of the sanctions package it announced on Dec. 29. Earlier, in an interview with The Post, he denied discussing sanctions but later issued a statement saying “that while he had no recollection of discussing sanctions, he couldn’t be certain that the topic never came up.” Trump asked for Flynn’s resignation Monday night following reports in The Washington Post that revealed Flynn had misled Vice President Pence in denying the substance of the call and that Justice Department officials had warned the White House that Flynn was a possible target of Russian blackmail as a result. [Justice Department warned White House that Flynn could be vulnerable to Russian blackmail, officials say] One day after his dismissal, the Defense Intelligence Agency suspended Flynn’s security clearance. Officials said the spy agency was reviewing Flynn’s adherence to security procedures in part due to FBI concerns about his conduct. Two days after the FBI interview, then-acting Attorney General Sally Q. Yates and a career national security official informed Donald McGahn, Trump’s White House counsel, about the contents of the intercepted phone call in a meeting at the White House. Yates and other officials were concerned that Russia could not only exploit the mischaracterization of the call — which Pence had repeated on nationwide television — but also did not think it was fair to keep Pence in the dark about the discrepancies, according to officials familiar with their thinking. At a news conference Thursday, Trump called Flynn a “fine person” and said he had done nothing wrong in engaging with the Russian envoy. Trump said he did not direct Flynn to talk to Kislyak. However, the president added, “I would have directed him because that’s his job.” (Daron Taylor,Jhaan Elker/The Washington Post) Trump said he had asked for Flynn’s resignation because of what the national security adviser had told the vice president about his communications with the Russian diplomat. “I was not happy with the way that information was given,” Trump said. The president said the real issue in the Flynn saga was the divulging of classified information. “It’s an illegal process, and the press should be ashamed of themselves,” he said. “But more importantly, the people that gave out the information to the press should be ashamed of themselves, really ashamed.” [The Michael Flynn situation just went from bad to worse for Flynn — and the White House] Senior officials who have reviewed the phone call thought Flynn’s statements to Kislyak were inappropriate, if not illegal, because he suggested that the Kremlin could expect a reprieve from the sanctions. At the same time, officials knew that seeking to build a case against Flynn for violating an obscure 1799 statute known as the Logan Act — which bars private citizens from interfering in diplomatic disputes — would be legally and political daunting. Several officials said that while sanctions were discussed between Flynn and Kislyak in the December call, they did not see evidence in the intercept that Flynn had an “intent” to convey an explicit promise to take action after the inauguration. “It wasn’t about sanctions. It was about the 35 guys who were thrown out,” Flynn told the Daily Caller in an interview just before he resigned and published Tuesday. “So that’s what it turned out to be. It was basically, ‘Look, I know this happened. We’ll review everything.’ I never said anything such as, ‘We’re going to review sanctions,’ or anything like that.” It is not clear when the FBI began to probe Flynn’s communications with Kislyak. Senior members of the Obama administration learned in early January that the FBI was investigating the relationship, according to former officials. On President Barack Obama’s final full day in office, Yates, Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper and CIA Director John O. Brennan recommended informing the Trump team of the Flynn matter. But FBI Director James B. Comey pushed back, arguing that doing so could interfere with the bureau’s ongoing investigation. The FBI is examining contacts between Trump associates and Russian officials. Comey dropped his objections after the FBI interviewed the national security adviser. After Yates informed McGahn, the White House counsel informed Trump and then conducted an internal review of the matter, according to White House press secretary Sean Spicer. [Who is Donald McGahn?] While McGahn and Trump were briefed on the matter on Jan. 26, it does not appear that they informed Pence. A spokesman for the vice president said he first learned that he had been misled when The Washington Post on Feb. 9 disclosed that Flynn had, in fact, discussed sanctions with Kislyak, contrary to the vice president’s public statements. Flynn said in his resignation letter that he had “inadvertently briefed the Vice President Elect and others with incomplete information regarding my phone calls with the Russian ambassador.” Karen DeYoung contributed to this report. Read more: The timeline of Michael Flynn’s resignation just looks bad for the Trump White House National security adviser Flynn discussed sanctions with Russian ambassador, despite denials, officials say Michael Flynn has absolutely nothing to fear from the Logan Act |
Wayne County refuses to allow use of County Seal in unSAFE Act Enforcement On Tuesday Nov 19 the Wayne County Board of Supervisors passed the following resolution, supported by Wayne County Sheriff Barry Virts and County Clerk Mike Jankowski. Also the NYS Association of County Clerks unanimously passed the same resolution of the western region clerks. Resolution denying the State of New York permission to use the Wayne County Seal and name in enforcement of the the so-called SAFE Act: Whereas the State of New York has passed a gun control law referred to as the SAFE act, and... Whereas this act clearly indicates that then enforcement of this law is the responsibility of New York State, and... Whereas, in recent discussions the State has indicated an interest in using the Seal of Wayne County and the names of the offices of the Wayne County Sheriff and Wayne County Clerk in pistol permit recertification notices, and... Whereas the County Sheriff and Clerk have voiced their strong objection to this request and suggestion, Therefore be it... Resolved: That the Wayne County Board of Supervisors denies the State of New York permission to use the Name, seal of the County, letter head or address for purposes of correspondence with legal and registered gun owners regarding permit recertification or for any other purpose associated with the SAFE Act, and be it further... Resolved: That copies of this resolution should be transmitted to the office of the Governor of New York State, the Superintendent of State Police, NYS Senator Mike Nozzolio, Assemblyman Bob Oaks and the legislature of every County in the State of New York. |
An actress who played a popular Star Trek: Voyager character has been charged for allegedly exposing herself to young children in her Tennessee neighborhood. Jennifer Ann Lien, 41, who played the character Kes in the Voyager series in the 1990s, was arrested on Thursday, Sept 3 at her home in Harriman, TN, following a bizarre confrontation with a group of neighbors. WATE-TV in Knoxville reports Carey Smith, a neighbor, said Lien walked by her home on Sep. 3 and made a comment about how her children were behaving. “Started saying vulgar things. I mean really vulgar things, I told her to mind her own business and keep on walking,” Smith told the ABC affiliate. According to Smith, Lien then began exposing herself to the children. “All of a sudden, here come the shirt up. She started flashing and, ‘Woo hoo,’ and I said, ‘And what respect is that for kids?’ There was none. And then she turned around and dropped her pants,” Smith said. When police arrived at Lien’s house, they found an open front door, and entered at the request of the former actress. Roane County Sheriff deputies said they found Lien naked on her couch, covered with a blanket. She reportedly told the deputies she was expecting them, but then became vulgar, and told them to leave her alone. She was dressed by a female officer and arrested for indecent exposure. Her bond was set at $2,500. She had previously been arrested for aggravated assault, resisting arrest, evading arrest, and reckless endangerment earlier this year. In 2012, Lien was arrested for domestic assault. Check out this old Voyager clip with Lien and Orange is the New Black actress Kate Mulgrew: |
THERE is a famous story of a Tory duchess at lunch in the Savoy Hotel on that fateful day in July 1945 when Labour ousted Winston Churchill from Downing Street, with a whopping majority of 145. Choking on her caviar, the lady is supposed to have exclaimed: “They’ve elected a Labour government – the country will never stand for it!” On Thursday May 7, the UK witnessed a political shock of similar historic proportions to the 1945 general election. That’s not journalistic hyperbole. On Friday morning, after my own election for East Lothian, I was stopped by a group of young working class women on the main street in Haddington. They knew who I was, loudly proclaimed they had voted SNP, and requested “selfies”. They offered a reason for wanting photos: “This is history”. North of the Border, even SNP activists were incredulous as the entire post-war edifice of Scottish politics was pulverised into dust. Scottish Labour representation at Westminster was reduced to a single, measly seat in – of all places – bourgeois south Edinburgh. The party’s anointed hard man, Jim Murphy, was ignominiously handed his P45. This is history indeed, in the sense that things can never be the same again. The trick lies in understanding the dynamics of our new political landscape. The surface phenomena are easy to record. The SNP returned with 56 out of 59 Scottish seats a mere seven months after the independence referendum was supposed to have put the uppity Scots back in their provincial tartan tea caddy. Just as significant, the SNP is now led by a charismatic woman capable of appealing over the heads of the partisan British media to voters in England. Conclusion: for the first time since pro-home rule Irish nationalists captured swathes of Westminster seats in the 1880s, a party from the Celtic fringe has hijacked the cosy Westminster political agenda. The duopoly of the Conservative and Labour parties cannot recover control without dealing with the SNP. For starters, you can’t run the arcane British parliamentary machinery, with its endless committees and informal speaking rules, unless you talk to the SNP as equals. What happens if what is now Westminster’s third largest party starts using its numbers to debate reforming parliament, hold civil servants to genuine account, demand errant bankers appear for questioning, or – God forbid – hold up business unless bills get proper scrutiny? What if the SNP has, in boosting its parliamentary representation, actually broken the dominant two-party system beyond repair? Expect a sudden rash of editorials in the “quality” London media suggesting that proportional representation might not be such a bad thing after all. The historic Rubicon of May 7 extends beyond revolutionising the Westminster system. Scotland voted SNP as a reaction to being told, after voting No in September, that it should be seen but not heard. This patronising attitude was crystalised in Ed Miliband’s refusal to countenance any working agreement with the SNP, as fellow progressive parties, to lock the Tories out of Downing Street. All Miliband succeeded in doing was boosting SNP support among No-voters, guaranteeing Thursday’s landslide. It is now inconceivable that David Cameron can reject Scottish demands for greater home rule, given that all three mainstream Westminster parties – Tory, Labour and Lib Dem alike – have minimal legitimate authority in Scotland in the wake of May 7. The general election was not a mandate for a second referendum – a point reiterated time after time by Nicola Sturgeon, whatever contrary hares are set running by the battered and bruised Westminster establishment. Nevertheless, the SNP’s electoral success is undoubtedly a mandate for going far beyond the hastily conceived ragbag of new powers contained in the Smith Commission documents. Put another way, May 7 will go down in the constitutional history books as the moment that the UK was launched on an irrevocable trajectory towards federalism – or bust. If the Westminster system fumbles that move to a federal union of equal British nations, Scotland can legitimately claim it has no recourse but to seek a second referendum. The constitutional ball is well and truly in David Cameron’s end of the field. Cameron’s opening gambit may well be to offer Scotland fiscal autonomy, in return for termination of the Barnett Formula (a mechanism that matches per capita spending changes across the UK constituent nations). We all know that in present UK economic circumstances a fiscally autonomous Scotland would face a significant budget deficit. For Scotland to accept fiscal autonomy without inbuilt UK-wide fiscal balancing would be tantamount to economic suicide. However, all federal systems have mechanisms for cross subsidising regions in economic need by regions in surplus. To deny that to Scotland suggests a disingenuous Mr Cameron is hoping to derail any move to Scottish Hole Rule within the UK. Either way, May 7 is a forking of the constitutional road. BUT we speak only of Scotland. Unexpectedly, May 7 has detonated a political hydrogen bomb under Labour in England as well. Months of glacial opinion polls had pointed to a hung parliament - but with the sporting prospect that a progressive alliance between Labour and a midwife SNP would put Miliband into Downing Street. Instead we have witnessed Miliband and Ed Balls defenestrated and Labour plunged into total – and possibly existential – crisis. Like our apocryphal duchess in the Savoy, the people will never stand for it! Miliband was quick to blame the SNP for Labour’s defeat, citing a mysterious “upsurge in nationalism” since the No vote last September – in whose absence Labour would have tiptoed into Downing Street. Of course, this is arithmetic nonsense. Even if all 56 SNP seats had ended up in the Labour column, David Cameron would still have his tiny majority. The real story of the May 7 upset is that Labour was unable to win target seats in its English northern heartlands because working class voters preferred the sleezy, immigrant-bashing populism of Ukip. Rather than take on Farage and his bierkeller candidates, Miliband famously unveiled his own political tombstone. It read: “Controls on immigration”. As we have proved in Scotland, the way to keep Ukip’s nasty populism in its political box is to fight it every step of the way. But nice Mr Miliband, the son of an immigrant Jewish Marxist, told English working class voters he would “control immigration”. He thereby legitimised blaming immigrants for low wages and pressures on the NHS. Little wonder that those voters decided to vote for the real Ukip populists rather than a Labour Party so scared of Daily Mail and Daily Express headlines that it sold its political soul for votes that never materialised. ED Miliband I can just about feel sorry for. But not Ed Balls, who had his Portillo moment on Friday morning. Remember that Ed Balls was one of the original architects of New Labour – a bastard political creed that believed giving humungous tax cuts to the “aspirational classes” would win Labour enough extra middle class votes to bribe its way into power. Balls was the guy who did Gordon Brown’s number crunching in the Treasury. Latterly, Balls was the guy who preached austerity, austerity and more austerity in order to keep those aspiring City bankers on side. Ed Balls was one of the primary opponents of a deal with the SNP. Ditto Jim Murphy and Douglas Alexander, both unreconstructed members of the New Labour fan club. Time will tell if the May 7 revolution has finally seen the end of the New Labour deviation. Unfortunately, to my amazement, I heard Jack McConnell try to disinter its political corpse in the early hours of Friday morning. Jack pointed that under Tony Blair, Labour had won three general elections in a row by appealing to the wallets on middle class professionals. He went on to argue that the sweeping SNP victories on May 7 stretched across every region and demographic of Scotland – implying that this was no left-of-centre upsurge. Ergo: Labour should stick with the New Labour brand rather than adopt an anti-austerity line. The weakness in Jack McConnell’s position is that the anti-austerity project that the SNP campaigned for in the May 7 election is inherently popular with both the working class and the professional middle class – everyone has stories about not getting adequate care for aged parents and everyone is going to get old. The welfare state is crumbling because of austerity. Most folk in their heart of heats realise we get what we pay for. One of the few losers on Friday night to bow out with grace and a chuckle was Lib Dem Charles Kennedy, after 32 years at Westminster. He characterised May 7 as the “night of the long sgian-dubhs” – referring to the cull of Scottish Lib Dems and Labour MPs. Labour in general, and Jim Murphy in particular, seem in complete denial regarding who wielded the political knife. It was not the SNP – it was the Scottish voter. On May 7 the people spoke. It is time to listen to what they said. |
New flights have brought Slovakia’s Tatras mountains – and their abudance of slopes, spas and waterparks – closer for skiers who are on a budget Careering out of thick cloud came a large husky, tugging a skier behind him. The man flew over a bump and arced through the air, skis inches from my chest, then pelted at breakneck speed down the slopes. As the Slovak saying has it, he was “skiing like a Hungarian”. My Slovak hosts here in the ski resort of Tatranská Lomnica were dubious when I told them what had happened. “This, no, I never saw,” said hotel manager Michal. But he had seen bears passing outside his lobby, he said, and 30 wild boar on the roadside one night. Top 10 affordable ski chalets and lodges Read more This wild landscape was shrouded in cloud during my visit, so I had to take much of what they told me on trust. The panaroma from the 2,364-metre Lomnický peak, a cablecar ride from the top of the ski area, is apparently dramatic on clear days. Despite the heights, the skiing here in the High Tatras (including its Starý Smokovec and Štrbské Pleso resorts) is limited, and suitable mostly for beginners and families. But if that’s for you, organising a weekend ski trip here is easy, thanks to a new Wizz Air flight from Luton to Poprad, a 10-minute taxi ride from these slopes. And more experienced skiers can drive 40 minutes further to the Low Tatras, home to Slovakia’s biggest and best ski resort, Jasna. With 29 pistes, Jasna is smaller than many Alpine resorts, but has long runs and decent off-piste potential. Any outdated preconceptions of old eastern European infrastructure are soon dispelled: the lifts are modern, with heated seats and bubble covers. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Jasna has pistes up to about 2,000 metres. Photograph: Gwyn Topham Being below 2,000 metres, Jasna relies on artificial snow to keep all the pistes open, and during my visit, scant January falls meant no real off-piste. But with decent snow, the designated freeride zones on the rock-free southern slopes of 2,024-metre Chopok form a broad, accessible bowl. I encountered two rare British visitors, Katie and Mark from London, who had skied the fresh stuff under blue skies here. They were smitten by Jasna, even though their usual choice is Jackson Hole, one of America’s top resorts. They appreciated the lower costs here: a free bus serving the lifts runs along the valley road to Liptovský Mikulas, along which B&Bs can cost as little as €25 a night (visitliptov.sk). And a beer costs a magical €0.70 at the bar in Demanova village – nicknamed Club Tropicana by British visitors (“because drinks are almost free”, said Mark). Eating on the slopes is also good value: at the pricier end, Von Roll, a converted lift station, serves mains including homemade pasta from about €10. Beside the blue run, a Slovak koliba (mountain hut) cooks the halusky (the national dish of sheep-cheese gnocchi with lardons) for €5 a portion. Ski hire and lift passes each cost around €20 a dayeach for longer stays), a hefty sum by Slovakians standards - many choose instead to hike up the pistes on touring skis. There appears to be an appetite for more strenuous physical activity here: the Spartan race, a kind of cross-country mountain slog dotted with barbed wire obstacles to climb over or crawl under, was having its first snowbound outing here, with the locals emerging victorious from an international field . Facebook Twitter Pinterest Jasna has some 46km of piste There is an abundance of hotel spas and waterparks. Alarming posters for Tatralandia, linked on the free ski-aqua bus from Jasna, shows a scantily clad woman wearing a python, but it is very much a family place. Saunas and spa rooms give way to a wealth of pools and startlingly rapid slides. Skiing in eastern Europe on a budget: the best resorts Read more The High Tatras have a gentler side, with lovely Austro-Hungarian empire establishments that could double as the Grand Budapest Hotel – the sort of place where Ralph Fiennes’ concierge entertains wealthy octogenarians: all wallpaper, chandeliers and reproduced artworks In 2008, Prince Philip stayed at the Grandhotel in Stary Smokovec; Harold Wilson, who has a lounge named after him, presumably stayed, too. The Wilson bar is upstaged by the hotel’s Castro cafe, though: pictures showing Fidel stripped to the waist were taken on a 1972 visit, when he hunted chamois before an epic table tennis duel against the hotel’s boiler man. It’s a history that smacks of surreal Wes Anderson fantasy, were it not for the photographic evidence. • Accommodation was provided by Tatry Mountain Resorts , with nights at Jasna’s Ostredok hotel (doubles from €105 in ski season, ostredok.sk) and the Grandhotel in Stary Smokovec (doubles from €80, grandhotel.sk). Flights were provided by WizzAir, which flies from Luton to Poprad-Tatry from £47 return |
Fact following fiction? Scientists plan mission to blow up an asteroid 'hurtling towards Earth' Plan is similar to the plot of Hollywood film Armageddon Scientists plan to smash a spacecraft into an asteroid so that they are prepared for having to stop one hurtling towards Earth. The news came as Nasa moved to calm fears that a comet is on a collision course with our planet. The plans for a test mission to stop an asteroid from colliding with Earth come from Nasa’s cousin, the European Space Agency. Rescue plan: The European Space Agency is planning mission Don Quijote - to blow up a huge asteroid that could potentially be hurtling towards Earth In the Hollywood movie Armageddon, Bruce Willis attempts to blow up a huge asteroid hurtling towards Earth. In real life, the mission, called Don Quixote, will see two spacecraft launched. One will be fired at an asteroid at break-neck speed in an attempt to push it off its course. The other will analyse data with the aim of informing future missions in which the future of mankind may be at stake. One potential target for the test mission is a 1,600ft-wide asteroid called 99942 Apophis, which has a tiny chance – around one in 250,000 – of hitting Earth in 2036. Nasa scientists yesterday took the unusual step of officially dismissing claims sweeping the internet that comet Elenin, discovered by an astronomer last December, is on a deadly course. Brucey bonus: Armageddon starred Bruce Willis as the leader of a team of astronauts who destroy an asteroid that threatens to wipe out Earth Scare stories include the comet plunging the Earth into darkness for three days by blocking out the sun, colliding with Earth, moving tides or continents and throwing the planet off orbit. It is even claimed that a fleet of UFOs are streaking towards us in the comet’s wake, and that Nasa has conspired with media organisations to create a news blackout on the comet to avoid mass panic sweeping the world. But the space agency said Elenin will never come closer to Earth than 22million miles and will not compromise our planet in any way. |
Image caption Aleix was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes aged 18 The first trial of a pioneering therapy to retrain the immune system and slow the advance of type 1 diabetes has shown it is safe. The disease is caused by the body destroying cells in the pancreas that control blood sugar levels. The immunotherapy - tested on 27 people in the UK - also showed signs of slowing the disease, but this needs confirming in larger trials. Experts said the advance could one day free people from daily injections. Aleix Rowlandson, from Lancashire, was diagnosed in 2015 aged 18. "Your blood sugars affect how much energy you have," she told the BBC. "If they're high, they can make you feel tired. If they're low, you can feel shaky. "I'm more optimistic knowing that the study has gone well and they can use that to find further treatments. "Even if it doesn't help me, myself, and it might help other people in the future, I'm very happy." Aleix's immune system is attacking her beta cells, which release the hormone insulin to keep blood sugar levels stable. As a result, she has to inject insulin several times a day. Balance Aleix is taking part in the trials of immunotherapy at the National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre at Guy's and St Thomas'. It is an attempt to stop her diabetes by tapping into the immune system's natural checks and balances. The body's defence system is primed to attack hostile invaders. But it also has "regulatory T cells", which calm the immune response and prevent it attacking the body's own tissues. Immunotherapies try to get regulatory T cells on-side by exposing them to fragments of proteins found in beta cells. Prof Mark Peakman, from King's College London, told the BBC News website: "This is a landmark in the sense it's the first time it has been done. "Importantly, [the trial] shows the overall safety is good and there is some evidence we're restoring the balance and getting some regulatory T cells activated." Patients given the therapy did not need to increase their dose of insulin during the trial. However, it is too soon to say this therapy stops type 1 diabetes and larger clinical trials will be needed. And further types of immunotherapy that should deliver an even stronger reaction are already underway. Beta cell saver The trial focused on patients newly diagnosed with type 1 as they still have about a fifth of their beta cells left. Even retaining these cells would make it easier to manage the condition, but the ultimate goal is to intervene even earlier to hopefully prevent the disease starting. However, it is not likely to help people diagnosed with type 1 years ago. Prof Peakman added: "At that stage, most of the beta cells have gone and we don't find, with any therapies tried, any evidence of regeneration so it seems unlikely to help someone who has had the disease for a while." All the volunteers were injected either every two or four weeks for six months. Karen Addington, the UK chief executive of the type 1 diabetes charity JDRF, said: "Exciting immunotherapy research like this increases the likelihood that one day insulin-producing cells can be protected and preserved. "That would mean people at risk of type 1 diabetes might one day need to take less insulin, and perhaps see a future where no-one would ever face daily injections to stay alive." Follow James on Twitter. Diabetes There are two main types of diabetes: type 1 - where the pancreas does not produce any insulin type 2 - where the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or the body's cells do not react to insulin Type 1 diabetes can develop at any age, but usually appears before the age of 40, particularly in childhood. About 10% of all diabetes is type 1, but it is the most common type of childhood diabetes, so it is sometimes called juvenile diabetes or early onset diabetes Type 2 diabetes tends to develop later in life and is linked to lifestyle and being overweight. Source: NHS Choices |
The Gaza war has given birth to a new Jewish organization of young people who are highly critical of the Jewish establishment’s support for Israel. Called #IfNotNow, the group held an organizing meeting in New York last night. Eighty people attended (by the looks of it, almost all of them young). Its new website declares: We are witnessing Israel’s third military operation in the Gaza strip in the past six years. We are alarmed and horrified by the death and destruction being committed in our name. This is a moment of truth for the Jewish community, a moment that demands action. And Monday night to commemorate Tisha B’av, the holiday of the destruction of the temple, several hundred demonstrated at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, led by #IfNotNow. A poster at the front said, “Stop the War on Gaza.” As Alex reported, nine members of the group were arrested a week back in a civil disobedience action at the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organization. Here’s video from that “Kaddish action,” which included Jewish song. KungFuJew went to the Brooklyn event Monday and describes #IfNotNow as coming from the heart of Jewish establishment life: I lived in Brooklyn for seven years and I recognize so many of my colleagues in the photos: rabbinical students, young Jewish professionals, lay leaders of the Jewish social justice movement, and scions of famous rabbis. This is the center of New York young Jewry. Rachel Sandalow-Ash, a leader of the Open Hillel movement on campuses, has also been working with IfNotNow; and she tells me: From my experience organizing with IfNotNow DC these past couple weeks, it seems that If Not Now takes no position on Zionism/non-Zionism, but rather is focused on ending the war on Gaza and ending the occupation. I think the closest analog to this group is All That’s Left: Anti-Occupation Collective, a group of (mostly) diaspora Jews living in Israel/Palestine focused on ending the occupation and building the diaspora angle of resistance. Like “If Not Now,” “All That’s Left” utilizes direct actions and focuses on the unfortunate role that ‘establishment’ Jewish institutions have played in promoting violence and occupation. Some impressions of the movement: it is of this moment; it draws directly on Jewish religious tradition; it has Jewish Voice for Peace’s blessing but is keeping its independence from existing orgs; it is reaching out to Jews who were indoctrinated in Zionism and embracing them and helping them to escape the snares and toils of that ideology without being aggressively anti-Zionist (as I am); there is nothing assimilationist about its messaging; it will have the effect of bringing mainstream Jews into the Boycott Divestment Sanctions movement on their own terms; and it is dedicated to direct action, thus the reference to Hillel’s famous statement If not now, when? and has the greatest promise of any Jewish movement of bringing Jews into an IDF office to spill their blood in the file drawers. Following the hashtag #IfNotNow, I read Ophir Bruck’s recommendation for Michael Lerner’s excellent piece on Zionism’s hijacking of his religion, at Salon: This. Israel has broken my heart: In mourning for a Judaism being murdered by Israel And there’s a link to this poem by Casey Tova Markenson, called UnAnthem, published today: Blue fire rains explosive in my sleep. Faces erased: Omar al-Fyumi. Twenty three. Black shirts pray in protest streets. If I am not for me, who will I be. Hymns hum, my name softly knocks – I wear no star but I’m a public Jew. Blood wine spills, we offer mourner’s rocks, My friend is cuffed and questioned on the news. If I unlearn the lyrics to Hatikvah, Can I relearn any Hebrew letters? Flashbacks to erev my Bat Mitzvah, A purple suit, a plain day in November. How jagged are the myths that we call home; Dagger tales, a place I’ve never known. Josh Nathan-Kazis reported at the Forward that #Ifnotnow drew energy from people disaffected by J Street, the liberal Zionist organization that has found itself incapable of condemning the Gaza slaughter: The [#IfNotNow] effort was launched by four activists, two of them former high-ranking J Street staff members: Carinne Luck, who joined J Street before its launch in 2007 and left in 2012, when she was the group’s vice president of field and campaigns, and Daniel May, director of J Street U, the group’s university arm, from 2010 through 2013. A third, Max Berger, worked as a new media assistant at J Street. He was arrested with eight other protestors during the July 29 action after entering the lobby of the Presidents Conference building and refusing to leave. Some of the arrested activists were held until midday the following day. Other former high-ranking J Street staffers attended one or both of the #ifnotnow protests, including J Street’s vice president of communications and new media from 2008 until 2011, Isaac Luria, who wrote the 2008 Gaza letter that Yoffie condemned, and Tamara Shapiro, director of J Street U from 2009 to 2010. Simone Zimmerman, the national president of J Street U’s student board in the 2012-2013 school year, is #ifnotnow’s media liaison. We’ll have more on #IfNotNow in days to come. I wanted to get these notes up now; it’s news. |
Back in June, Paul McGann stated that "It feels like it ain’t quite over", with the 'it' in question being his days of running around with a sonic screwdriver in live-action Doctor Who adventures. We've now got a bit of an update on that. Who fan Steve Dunn has written into Doctor Who Magazine (which CultBox spotted and reported online), asking showrunner Steven Moffat to “Please do [a multi-Doctor story with] the Eighth Doctor with the Twelfth Doctor.” Moffat's response was to neither confirm nor deny that he'd be up for it, merely stating that it's a tough task: "A multi-Doctor story is best contemplated from the position of not having to write one. The one time I’ve done it, I found it rancidly difficult and awful." Moffat added, "what I kept saying to people at the time was this: ‘There’s a reason there’s usually only one Doctor in Doctor Who.'" Call me an optimist, but that doesn't sound quite like he's ruling it out, does it? We'll keep you posted as we hear more. Here's our previous story, from June 2016... It’s that time of year again when someone asks Paul McGann - star of the 1996 Doctor Who TV movie and the much-adored 2013 short The Night Of The Doctor - if he thinks he’ll ever play the Eighth Doctor in the live-action realm again. This time, the honour of asking fell to Doctor Who Magazine. “We’ve all got a shelf life”, McGann admitted, before adding “It’s not going to go on forever. I’m in the slightly unusual position, even from McCoy and Colin Baker in that, with the Eighth [Doctor], it feels like there’s still a bit of potential. It feels like it ain’t quite over… Often we’re subject to rumours, and rumours are only ever rumours. But because I came back to do the Doctor, it was all the proof these fans needed that there’s still life in this thing.” “I’m not that different. It’s only 20 years since we made the pilot”, he added. “And I’m younger than Capaldi, not by much, but I am. What am I doing?! I’m not trying to talk myself into a job!” Upon being asked asked about the fan petitions for an Eighth Doctor spin-off series, McGann said this: “I don’t think I’ve ever said this, but I’ll say it now… part of me wouldn’t mind at all.” “The material would have to work, like The Night Of The Doctor worked. That was clever and in-keeping. It would be pointless to come back and do something just for the sake of doing it. First and foremost, it would have to be a good acting job, to merit it. It’ll probably never happen, of course! It’s always probably never going to happen! But certainly if it did, I would…” Doctor Who Magazine is on sale now. |
Sea-level rise may be the most predictable outcome of climate change. Expanding warmer waters and melting land ice both contribute to flooding – and scientists agree that we are locked into sea-level rise for centuries to come. The question is not if we will retreat from the coast, but when. Still, the rush to develop the coast occurs at a maddening pace. We now know that 13.1 million people are at risk of flooding along the US coast by the end of this century. A new study published in Nature Climate Change further suggests that massive migration will occur unless protective measures are taken. Since sea-level rise will speed up after the end of the century due to increased glacier and ice sheet melting, the flooding we face in this century is just the tip of the iceberg. The problem is particularly severe along our 3,000-mile low-lying sandy barrier island coast extending, with a few breaks, all the way from the South Shore of Long Island to the Mexican border. Along this long barrier island coast, Florida has the longest and most heavily developed shoreline. In Miami, a city perilously perched atop a very porous limestone, two multibillion-dollar construction projects are under way, despite the fact that parts of the city routinely flood during high tides and that widespread flooding by the rising sea in a few decades is a virtual certainty. No sea walls, levees or dikes can stop the rising waters from flowing through the underlying spongy limestone and into the city. Miami is ultimately doomed. A few miles to the north, Fort Lauderdale is undergoing equally intense development and population growth. This city has more beachfront high-rise buildings per mile than any other American beach. According to Katherine Bagley of Inside Climate news “nearly 5,000 apartments or condos are or soon will be under construction” in the city, which already faces routine nuisance flooding. The city’s many canals make Fort Lauderdale all the more vulnerable to rising seas. In light of the wet future in store for the city, increased density is insane. On the other side of the Florida peninsula along the Gulf of Mexico, a Fort Myers Beach developer proposes to build a massive project to include four beachfront hotels, nine restaurants and a 1,500-car parking structure; all to be protected with a soon-to-be-constructed half-mile-long seawall. If you need to build a seawall to protect your construction project, you should not be building at that site. Remember – seawalls destroy beaches. Two barrier island communities deserve attention as the nation’s most vulnerable to sea level. On the east coast, North Topsail Beach in North Carolina is a narrow, low, rapidly-eroding island segment. In spite of the obvious natural dangers, the town has several immovable high-rises, at least one of which may soon fall in. On the Gulf coast, Dauphin Island, Alabama is an extremely low island that is frequently overwashed by storms, and repeated beach nourishment has done almost nothing to stop erosion. Storms have severely damaged the west end of Dauphin Island five times since 1973. While the west end has no high-rises, storms, including hurricanes Katrina and Ike have repeatedly destroyed houses. And, just a few years after Hurricane Sandy flooded much of the area, New Jersey’s Gold Coast (the Hudson waterfront) is experiencing a construction boom. Developers are building numerous high-rise structures, hoping to attract commuters seeking cheaper quarters than those available in nearby New York City. They have taken measures to make these structures more resilient, but in this age of certain sea-level rise, it is preposterous to continue to build in areas that were previously inundated by floodwaters and will certainly be inundated in the future. The time has passed for such foolish projects. The frequency of super costly “natural” disasters on the coast will only increase if we continue to cram buildings up against the beach and treat storms as urban renewal projects. It is time for a profound new outlook – where we construct smaller, less expensive and perhaps mobile structures and do not replace buildings destroyed and damaged in storms. It is time we prepare to retreat from the rising sea. |
The Andrews government is trying to keep Victorians in the dark on doubts over the proposed West Gate Tunnel, relying in part on a precedent of confidentiality set by former premier Denis Napthine during his failed bid for the East West Link. The premise is being used to deny the government's own hand-picked experts access to a review of traffic predictions for the $5.5 billion toll road. An artist's impression of the West Gate Tunnel exit near Shepherd Bridge in Footscray. The report by New Zealand transport expert John Allard is critical of traffic modelling done by project builder Transurban and the government. That modelling helped Premier Daniel Andrews justify his support for the toll road, and to claim it would return $1.30 to the Victorian economy for every $1 spent building it. |
Hey guys, Jana here, ‘Donnie Darko‘ is a 2001 film from Richard Kelly (‘The Box‘, ‘Domino‘) that boasts of a ridiculously star-studded cast and is one of the first films mentioned when putting together a list of cult-classics. It’s been released in what seems like a dozen different formats, but we’re looking at a 4K release now! Kelly announced on Twitter that he was working on a 4K transfer with Arrow Films that should be available around the holidays, and who isn’t excited about that?! The cast features Jake Gyllenhaal, James Duval, Daveigh Chase, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Patrick Swayze, Seth Rogen, Drew Barrymore and Jena Malone. Donnie Darko doesn’t get along too well with his family, his teachers and his classmates; but he does manage to find a sympathetic friend in Gretchen, who agrees to date him. He has a compassionate psychiatrist, who discovers hypnosis is the means to unlock hidden secrets. His other companion may not be a true ally. Donnie has a friend named Frank – a large bunny which only Donnie can see. When an engine falls off a plane and destroys his bedroom, Donnie is not there. Both the event, and Donnie’s escape, seem to have been caused by supernatural events. Donnie’s mental illness, if such it is, may never allow him to find out for sure. |
adidas Originals’ SoHo, New York store has unveiled a new art exhibit by none other than Gary Lockwood, better known as Freehand Profit. Freehand Profit is the one responsible for the current craze of custom-made masks, assembled from deconstructed sneakers. “You can call what I do Hip-Hop steampunk, or Hip-Hop cosplay. Whatever the spin, Hip-Hop is at the heart of it,“ offers Freehand Profit. “I think of chopping up sneakers the way a DJ or producer samples a record, taking an existing art form and scratching, cutting and remixing until you have an entirely new art form.” Freehand recently joined with adidas as a part of their “Original is Never Finished” campaign, in which many of his masks were worn by streetwear influencers, featured prominently across numerous platforms, including film. 26 more Previous Next For the new SoHo installation, seven Freehand Profit masks are showcased, crafted from reconfigured pairs of adi favorites such as the NMD and EQT. The exhibit (115 Spring Street between Mercer and Greene Streets) is currently open to the public through March 21. Subscribe Words by Jonathan Sawyer Staff Writer Not NYC, not LA. |
Taiwan's environmental minister is calling on the island's men to sit down when they urinate in order to keep toilets clean, drawing a mixed reaction from the public Published 1:49 PM, August 28, 2012 TAIPEI, Taiwan - Taiwan's environmental minister is calling on the island's men to sit down when they urinate in order to keep toilets clean, drawing a mixed reaction from the public. Stephen Shen, head of the Environmental Protection Administration, said Monday, August 27, he himself had adopted the habit, and suggested other men follow suit so toilet seats will be ready for the next user. An environmental official contacted by AFP Tuesday acknowledged the advice would be hard to follow in public restrooms, where urinals constitute the main facilities. Therefore, she said, men are encouraged to first try to develop the new habit at home. Reactions to the proposal on the Internet forums and chatrooms were mixed, with some calling it a good idea that should have been brought up sooner while others were more critical. "Brain-damaged politician, why doesn't the environmental bureaucrat start to wear a skirt," said a message posted by a user on the United Daily News forum. "I'd love to see Stephen Shen and (President) Ma Ying-jeou demonstrate on TV how to sit down to pee," said another message left on the forum. - Agence France-Presse |
Rhonda Lee ( KTBS ) The firing of this small market meteorologist has turned into a national story - provoking questions about race, beauty and gender in television, what social media interactions cross the line, and whether the station’s actions were out of proportion. The blog Richard Prince’s Journal-isms reported the news of Lee’s firing and subsequent controversy Monday. It said Emmitt Vascocu, a viewer, wrote on the KTBS Facebook page: the black lady that does the news is a very nice lady.the only thing is she needs to wear a wig or grow some more hair. im not sure if she is a cancer patient. but still its not something myself that i think looks good on tv. what about letting someone a male have waist long hair do the news.what about that (cq). Lee posted this reply: Hello Emmitt--I am the ‘black lady’ to which you are referring. I’m sorry you don’t like my ethnic hair. And no I don’t have cancer. I’m a non-smoking, 5’3, 121 lbs, 25 mile a week running, 37.5 year old woman, and I’m in perfectly healthy physical condition. I am very proud of my African-American ancestry which includes my hair. For your edification: traditionally our hair doesn’t grow downward. It grows upward. Many Black women use strong straightening agents in order to achieve a more European grade of hair and that is their choice. However in my case I don’t find it necessary. I’m very proud of who I am and the standard of beauty I display. Women come in all shapes, sizes, nationalities, and levels of beauty. Showing little girls that being comfortable in the skin and HAIR God gave me is my contribution to society. Little girls (and boys for that matter) need to see that what you look like isn’t a reason to not achieve their goals. Conforming to one standard isn’t what being American is about and I hope you can embrace that. Thank you for your comment and have a great weekend and thank for watching. A more recent exchange with a viewer who posted an offensive comment on Facebook (which has been removed) may have been the last straw for Lee says Tommy Christopher of the media commentary website Medialite . Christopher published the transcript of the exchange and asserts Lee’s response to the offensive comment was “admirably measured.” But Randy Bain, KTBS News Director told Journal-isms that Lee “repeatedly” violated social media policy which had been emailed to staff. He added she was not let go for “for her appearance or defending her appearance.” This excerpt of station’s social media policy email was posted on Media Bistro: When we see complaints from viewers, it’s best not to respond at all. Responding to these complaints is a very sensitive situation and sometimes our off-the-cuff response will be the wrong response … if you choose to respond to these complaints, there is only one proper response: provide them with [redacted]‘s contact information, and tell them that he would be glad to speak with them about their concerns. Once again, this is the only proper response. But Lee’s account of the circumstances surrounding her firing, which she provided to Journal-isms, presents an alternative view. I had a meeting with my ND [news director] and GM [general manager] Friday trying to get my job back. They told me the policy I violated isn’t written down, but was mentioned in a newsroom meeting about a month-and-a-half prior. A meeting I didn’t attend. So when I asked what rule did I break there isn’t anything to point to. In a CNN interview Wednesday morning, Lee repeated this account. A number of media commentators and one leader in the meteorological community have weighed in on this matter, siding with Lee. The Root DC’s Lauren McEwen expressed a sympathetic view, explaining she too has lost patience with narrow-minded views on race, beauty and gender issues: I’m fed up with explaining why diversity is good and beautiful and natural. I’m bored of being forced to listen to antiquated ideas about race and beauty and gender. I’m sick of calmly responding to Internet trolls who throw hatred out into the world, and expect calm responses in return. Marshall Shepherd, President-elect of the American Meteorological Society (AMS) said he was “appalled” by the Lee situation. “There is no pre-set formula for beauty or professional style,” Shepherd said. “As our society diversifies, we must accept all presentations.” But the reality as seen by TV viewers may be something different. As a striking contrast to Shepherd’s sentiment, consider the Mother Nature’s Network web presentation of “America’s hottest weather forecasters”. Of the women profiled, all had long hair, none were black. In postings on Twitter, Shepherd suggested Lee’s defense of herself was understandable, stressing broadcasters are “human” and that he was “[s]upporting colleague [R]honda [L]ee.” On the question of Lee’s social media conduct, Philadelphia Inquirer Style writer Jenice Armstrong argued Lee’s station might have been more lenient under the circumstances: C’mon now. Even if Lee violated her company’s social media policy, an exception should be made in this instance. As someone who’s been there, it’s hard to sit back and let people criticize you because of what grows out of your head naturally. Medialite’s Tommy Christopher concludes the station’s actions - to leave offensive comments up on its Facebook page while terminating Lee - say little about its sensitivity to racial issues. “It appears the station is more comfortable with racism than they are with a meteorologist who is (politely) not comfortable with it,” Christopher opines. Outraged viewers have peppered KTBS’ Facebook page with comments condemning Lee’s firing. Supporters have established an online petition to “rehire” Lee. Controversy seems to have followed Lee to Shreveport from Austin where she was fired by the NBC affiliate and sued the station for racial discrimination. “Race has been the issue with me since I started. That much is VERY true,” Lee told Journalisms. “Weather is an older white boy business and arms have been less than open for a young black girl — a polar opposite.” African Americans have historically been an minority in meteorology. A 2008 American Meteorological Society survey revealed less than 2 percent of its members were black (that breakdown is for the entire meteorology industry; statistics regarding race/ethnicity in the broadcast industry were not provided in that survey) Lee completed her weather coursework at Mississippi State University and has lived in Winchester, Herndon and Ashburn, Va. among many other locations according to her biography. |
Battle of the Bulge Tips the Scales on Cancer War University of Colorado Cancer Center Researchers Link Extra Fat Around the Waist to Increased Cancer Risk and Death Americans overwhelmingly rank cancer as their No. 1 health concern, far outstripping concerns about obesity. But it turns out that rather than independent health concerns, the conditions are linked. Worried about cancer? Take care of your weight, say University of Colorado Cancer Center researchers. According to the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR), every year an estimated 110,000 cancer deaths in the U.S. can be attributed to obesity, making it the second leading cause of cancer deaths, behind smoking. Besides raising the risk of dying from cancer, obesity also elevates the risk of developing cancer. Seven types of cancer are strongly associated with obesity: endometrial, esophageal, pancreatic, kidney, gallbladder, breast and colorectal. One U.S. study, using National Cancer Institute Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results data, estimated that in 2007 nearly four percent of new cancer cases in men and seven percent in women were due to obesity. While cancer percentages due to obesity varied widely by cancer type, endometrial cancer and esophageal adenocarcinoma were the highest. Colorado’s obesity rate may be the lowest in the country, but even here the rate is climbing and at an alarming rate. From 1995 to 2008, Colorado’s obesity rate climbed 89 percent, while the number of obese adults nationwide rose 67 percent, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. “Everyone in Colorado likes to brag that we’re the thinnest state,” says Ann Thor, MD, CU Cancer Center investigator. “But it’s cause for concern that the state’s rate is growing faster than the rest of the country. At this rate, we’re going to continue to see jumps in obesity’s comorbidities–heart disease, diabetes and cancer.” A Balancing Act: Apples Versus Pears All fat isn’t created equal. Subcutaneous fat, which lies directly under the skin and is found on the upper arms, buttocks, hips and thighs, is the body’s protective wrap and energy store. Visceral fat found deeper in the body cushions the body’s vital organs and contributes to belly bulge. It’s this bulge that equals poorer health, says Thor. “We’re starting to look more at a person’s body fat distribution,” Thor says, “and the central fat around a person’s abdomen, or an apple-shaped body, appears to be particularly troublesome.” While eating an apple a day keeps the doctor away, looking like one predicts cancer risk. Conversely, pear people (who collect fat in their hips and thighs) have lower risk despite equal overall rates of fat. To be considered healthy, waist measurements should be under 40 inches for males and under 35 inches for females. Anything above that equals higher cancer risk. “Really it comes down to does a person store their extra fat above the waist or below the waist,” says Paul MacLean, PhD, CU Cancer Center investigator. Researchers also take into account body mass index (BMI) or a person’s weight-to-height ratio when understanding obesity. A BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 is generally regarded as healthy or normal. At more than 25, a person is considered overweight; more than 30, they’re obese. However, BMI doesn’t take into account a person’s waist measurement. A person can be labeled obese according to BMI, but healthy according to waist measurement. “Essentially, it’s all about where the fat is gained and when the fat is gained,” Thor says. Fat’s Attack on Age If you thought fat’s greatest assault was on how others perceive your bikini body, think again. It may be on the inside and not on the outside that fat does the most damage. Scientists have found that fat cells around the waist boost the body’s production of hormones such as estrogen, insulin and insulin-like growth factor 1—all of which cause cells to divide more rapidly. Fat also produces a variety of proteins that cause chronic inflammation, supporting cell growth. Both are characteristics of cancer. In women, lifetime exposure to estrogen can positively or negatively impact their risk of developing hormone-associated cancers: breast, ovarian and endometrial. Early menarche, late menopause and not bearing children all increase a woman’s exposure to estrogen, and correlate with increased cancer risk. Coupled with post-menopausal weight gain, overweight or obese women have a higher incidence of breast cancer since cancer cells are fueled by glucose. The more glucose the body has, the more fuel cancer cells have to aid their growth and dispersal. “Even if a woman is not overweight or obese prior to menopause, the average woman gains 20 pounds post-menopause; and it’s usually within the first few years,” says MacLean. “It’s this rapid weight gain that we’re concerned about.” MacLean and other CU Cancer Center researchers believe if they can identify the peri-menopausal window, they can potentially reduce glucose levels, rapid weight gain and elevated estrogen levels in women. “If we can find the window where everything comes together, it may be possible to develop prevention and treatment strategies that specifically target the risk window of menopause,” says Pepper Schedin, PhD, investigator and co-director of the Young Women’s Breast Cancer Translational Program at the CU Cancer Center. Fat, Rats and A Big Window In 2005, Schedin wanted to learn more about obesity and its potential impact on breast cancer. She was introduced to MacLean, an expert in obesity and nutrition. The two joined forces to apply for a CU Cancer Center seed grant to study whether obesity promoted post-menopausal breast cancer. The grant allowed them to make fat rats. The team started off with two groups of rats: lean and obese. Both groups underwent surgical ovarectomy, were fed high-fat, “western diets” and had prior tumors. Regardless of whether the rats were lean or obese, both groups gained a lot of weight, says MacLean. “The obese rats had more tumors that progressed and less that regressed.” MacLean says. “No matter how you look at it, the obese rats came out of ovarectomy with more tumor burden and incidence.” But the research team wanted to take it to the next level. Schedin and MacLean recruited two more CU Cancer Center investigators: Steve Anderson, PhD, an expert in breast cancer molecular biology, metabolism and glucose utilization; and Thor, an expert in dietary factors and hormones. The four became the “Fat Rat Group.” Looking back on data, the team was surprised by the short period of time it took the rats to gain the weight—all during the three weeks post ovarectomy. This spurred the team to consider interventions that could be utilized prior to high-risk women hitting menopause. “In normal women the menopausal transition can vary from one to several years, or it can be very quick if a woman has a hysterectomy for other health-related reasons,” says Schedin. “That’s a big window to target. But, if we can find high-risk women, who may have a family history of breast cancer, prior to menopause, we may be able to alter their future health outcomes.” Metformin: A Historical Wonder In 2008, the ‘Fat Rat Group’ was awarded a three-year, $600,000 grant from the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation to try a drug on their fat rats—a common diabetes drug called metformin, which Thor had found killed breast cancer cells. Knowing that the body’s tissues “don’t clear glucose fast enough” in the obese condition, Anderson says that clearing glucose may be an opportunity to improve metabolic regulation in post-menopausal women. This is where the wonder drug metformin comes in. “In our current study, we want to show that metformin stabilizes blood glucose levels, stops the breast cancer tumors from growing and improves overall metabolic function,” Anderson says. While metformin has been around since the mid-1900s, it’s just begun to be studied in epithelial cancers—breast, lung, colon and prostate. Data suggests that metformin reduces breast cancer cells’ addiction to sugar, inhibits tumor growth, and induces cell death making this inexpensive, easy to come by and low-toxicity drug exciting, says Thor. “Metformin has the possibility of preventing cancer,” Thor says. In the long run, Thor believes metformin will reduce the incidence of breast cancer in patients with diabetes, but she believes physical activity and diet should be part of the equation. Dropping the Fat, Improving the Outcomes The NCI estimates that one-third of cancers can be prevented through diet, physical activity and weight management. However, researchers haven’t discovered the magic number of pounds it takes to reduce cancer risk. At the CU Cancer Center, cancer prevention and control experts Tim Byers, MD, MPH, and Rebecca Sedjo, PhD, are conducting an new trial called Exercise and Nutrition to Enhance Recovery and Good Health for You (ENERGY)—an NCI-funded study looking at the effects of weight loss on quality of life and eventually cancer recurrence in breast cancer survivors. Four cancer centers are following 800 participants over the course of two years. “Typically if breast cancer survivors are heavier they have worse outcomes for recurrence and mortality,” Sedjo says. “Right now, we think that weight loss can change those outcomes but there is no population data. This study will be the first to really help answer that question.” While researchers can’t conduct clinical trials requiring people to gain weight, they can help people lose it. Preliminary studies suggest that even modest levels of weight loss among the obese may reduce cancer risk. The ENERGY trial is encouraging participants to lose seven percent of their body weight—a number that has shown to reduce the risk of diabetes and poor cardiovascular health. But researchers know that weight loss isn’t easy. One way to encourage weight loss is to connect dieters with a support group of like-minded dieters, and so the ENERGY trial is designed to build an instant support group. “The great thing about the ENERGY trial is all of the participants are breast cancer survivors, all of them are overweight, and all of them are women creating an ideal support system needed for weight loss,” Sedjo says. Only time will tell if the ENERGY trial produces the results necessary to improve cancer outcomes. In the meantime, CU Cancer Center researchers like Thor, MacLean, Anderson, Schedin, Byers and Sedjo will continue building the connections between obesity and cancer, and convincing people that ‘pears’ are better than ‘apples.’ “Here at the CU Cancer Center, we’re really in an ideal position,” MacLean says. “We have cancer and metabolic researchers who are all interested in understanding the relationship between obesity and cancer, coming together under one roof.” “And instead of waiting until people get cancer and then treating it, we’re figuring out ways to prevent it,” adds Thor |
Alarmed over possible budget cuts, more than 100 people turned out for an enthusiastic rally on May 27 in support of Dallas Animal Services, the city's animal shelter. The rally was quickly organized in response to a recent Dallas city council meeting, during which city manager A.C. Gonzalez presented a 2014-15 proposal that slashed the shelter's budget in basic areas such as vaccinations, dog food and staff. The rally took place on the notoriously animal-friendly patio at Lee Harvey's and featured not only Lee Harvey's burgers and trademark onion rings, but also remarks from city officials, including council member Sheffie Kadane and Dallas code compliance director Jimmy Martin, under whose department the shelter resides. Describing the budget process as "always a struggle," Martin urged attendees to communicate their support for the shelter to the city council. Kadane said he was impressed with the shelter's progress in the past few years. "I'm one of the members of the city council that is a total animal lover," Kadane said. "I'm glad to see us get closer and closer to a non-kill shelter. That's what I want to see in Dallas." The budget is in the early stages of development, but as it stands, the number of contract workers at the shelter would be cut by half, from 35 to 17. Although some cuts are expected to be overruled, supporters are concerned that the shelter will not get the funds it needs. The shelter has seen big improvements since the appointments of manager Jody Jones and director Dr. Cate McManus. The duo has increased the number of adoptions and also formed beneficial relationships with dozens of rescue groups across Dallas-Fort Worth. The rally was not just a yes vote to more money for the shelter; it showed how successful those relationships have become. Representatives from Dallas Pets Alive, Duck Team 6, Animal Rescue of Texas, DFW Rescue Me, Angie's Friends, Rockwall Pets and Feral Friends Community Cat Alliance all warned of the negative effects a budget cut would have. Suleika Bloom from Dallas Pets Alive, which works with the shelter to find adoptees, asked why the dollars-per-citizen in Dallas were so low compared to other cities in Texas. Austin gets $10 per person, and San Antonio gets $8 per person; in Dallas that number is only $5. Paige Anderson from Animal Rescue of Texas said cutting staffers would ultimately cost the shelter more money. "It seems like it's punishing manager Jody Jones and veterinarian Cate McManus for having already turned the shelter around on a low budget," she said. Emcee Chris Watts said it was important to appeal to non-animal lovers too. "Even those people who are afraid of strays would agree that cutting the budget is a bad idea," he said. |
These posters were declard 'insulting' by a Paris court Calling someone a homophobe is an insult, a Parisian court has ruled. Laure Pora, formerly president of the Paris branch of the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP), was ordered by the Cour d’Appeal to pay €800 to anti-LGBTI group La Manif pour tous. She also has to pay the judicial cost of €1,500. In 2013, ACT UP staged a protest against the pro-life Jerome Lejeune Foundation, which provides ‘research, care, and advocacy for people with genetic intellectual disabilities’. It was staged because the foundation supports La Manif Pour Tous and employed the organization’s founder, Ludovine La Rochère. As part of the protest, activists threw condoms filled with fake blood against the wall and put up posters showing the logo of La Manif Pour Tous as well as pictures of La Rochère. Some of the posters had the word homophobe brandished across them. La Manif Pour Tous has staunchly opposed not just same-sex marriage, but also adoption rights for same-sex couples; they also renounce gender theory and fight against rights for trans people. ‘Describing La Manif pour tous as homophobic is a criminal offence,’ said the organization’s lawyer, Henri de Beauregard, according to Le Monde. Karine Géronimi, representing ACT UP, called the court’s decision ‘particularly unfair’ and said she couldn’t see an insult. In the first instance, the courts deemed Manif Pour Tous’ complaint ‘inappropriate for a procedural problem’, according to Le Monde. The court’s decision comes two years after Jean-Pierre Michel, a former senator, was cleared of a similar charge. He had been sued by La Manif pour tous after accusing them of ‘the worst kind of homophobia’ and being in denial about it. |
Nicole Scherzinger threw a 'booze-fuelled afterparty' with X Factor's Matt Linnen after last weekend's live shows, sources have claimed. The Pussycat Dolls star, 39, reportedly ended up drinking with the hunky plasterer, 28, until the early hours of Monday morning at the London studios. The show heartthrob and father-of-three allegedly has a 'huge crush' on Nicole and was 'flirting' with her all night - amid claims he has dumped love interest and fellow contestant Grace Davies. Scroll down for video Rumour has it: Nicole Scherzinger threw a booze-fuelled afterparty with X Factor's Matt Linnen (far right) after last weekend's live shows, sources have claimed Sources claimed the Overs mentor threw the party for all her contestants on Sunday night in her dressing room - and ended up getting on famously with Matt. 'Nicole hosted a bit of a party after the show last weekend and she and Matt ended up staying till very late drinking,' a source told The Sun. 'They get on really well and are pretty flirty with each other, though obviously it's all innocent as Nicole is still seeing her boyfriend. 'The next day Matt was really feeling it and could barely manage rehearsals.' Hmm: The heartthrob and father-of-three allegedly has a huge crush on Nicole and was flirting with her all night - amid claims he has dumped love interest and fellow contestant Grace Davies (pictured) Firm friends: The Pussycat Dolls star, 39, reportedly ended up drinking with the hunky plasterer, 28, until the early hours of Monday morning at the London studios Security at the studios were reportedly unimpressed by their late-night partying as they wanted to lock up and head home. However, a source has disputed the claims to MailOnline and insisted the party wasn't a 'lock in', due to the hopeful's rehearsal schedule. They claimed: 'Nicole invited all of her contestants to her dressing room after the show on Sunday to say goodbye to Tracey, they were disappointed she was having to leave the show. 'They didn’t have a lock in as they all had to start work early the next morning.' MailOnline has contacted representatives for The X Factor and Nicole for comment. Nicole been dating tennis ace Grigor Dimitrov for two years since splitting from Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton. Close: 'Nicole hosted a bit of a party after the show last weekend and she and Matt ended up staying till very late drinking,' a source told The Sun Loving life: 'They get on really well and are pretty flirty with each other, though obviously it's all innocent as Nicole is still seeing her boyfriend,' they added Good friendship: Overs mentor Nicole has struck up a close bond with Matt during the audition process It comes amid claims Matt's flirty behaviour towards Nicole has fuelled his alleged split from fellow X Factor contestant Grace Davies, 20. 'Grace and Matt had a bit of a thing together, but he ended it and she is devastated,' a source told The Mirror. 'They hooked up in the kitchen on one occasion, and it looked to everyone else as if they were developing feelings for one another, but Matt cooled things off. 'There's a bit of an atmosphere in the house, now. And it doesn't help that Matt is always flirting with his mentor, Nicole Scherzinger.' Grace brushed over the romance rumours on Thursday, saying she is simply focusing on her singing career. 'Everyone seems to be speculating on it,' she said at the ITV gala. 'I'm just concentrating on getting on with my singing.' Oops: Security at the studios were reportedly unimpressed by their late-night partying as they wanted to lock up and head home Party animal: Sources claimed the Overs mentor threw the party for all her contestants on Sunday night in her dressing room - and ended up getting on famously with Matt Going strong: Nicole been dating tennis ace Grigor Dimitrov for two years since splitting from Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton It was initially claimed Matt and Grace had struck up a brief romance inside the X Factor mansion. A source told the Daily Star: 'Matt and Grace aren't dating – it was basically just for fun. They now act as if nothing has happened. This is the sexiest series yet.' The insider added: 'There are a lot of attractive people in the house so some contestants are bound to be hooking up. 'Contestants are worried that people talking about flings will affect the votes - they're petrified their fans will turn their back on them.' It comes after Matt revealed he actually has three children, all under the age of 10, whom he has kept very quiet about throughout the audition process. Over before it begun? It comes amid claims Matt's flirty behaviour towards Nicole has fuelled his alleged split from fellow X Factor contestant Grace Davies, 20 'Devastated': 'Grace and Matt had a bit of a thing together, but he ended it and she is devastated,' a source told The Mirror He explained his reasons for not bringing his personal life into the process thus far, namely that he wants to keep his eight, six and four-year-old kids out of the public eye. 'I have a supportive family, but my children don't really know about what's going on,' he told MailOnline. 'Although they've had their teachers at school making comments to them about it.' He elaborated: 'My music isn't to do with my kids, really. I've seen it as a separate thing. I'm in the public eye, not them.' One time thing? 'They hooked up in the kitchen on one occasion, and it looked to everyone else as if they were developing feelings for one another, but Matt cooled things off,' the source said Rivalry? The source added: 'There's a bit of an atmosphere in the house, now. And it doesn't help that Matt is always flirting with his mentor, Nicole Scherzinger' While Matt admitted he's doing The X Factor to make a better life for his family as well as for himself, he also remarked that he doesn't want to 'use' the children as a way to pull on the nation's heartstrings. 'I do worry that people think,' he said. Matt - who is not in a relationship with any of the children's mothers - spoke about the attention he's been getting thanks to his rugged good looks, having been branded the heartthrob of the competition. 'It's flattering – it's nice,' he said, coyly. 'It's a little hard to take, but if it gets me votes then I'll take that,' he added, jokingly. Father: It comes after Matt revealed he actually has three children, all under the age of 10, whom he has kept very quiet about throughout the audition process |
SPRINGFIELD ‒ While voter support has dropped in recent weeks for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson's respective Democratic and Republican presidential campaigns, the candidates saw widespread support among middle and high school students as they won the Iowa Youth Caucus this week. Sanders, who has trailed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in recent national polls, bested the former first lady and fellow 2016 Democratic opponent Martin O'Malley in the mock caucus. Carson, whose campaign has struggled in recent weeks, meanwhile, led the GOP presidential field with more than 22 percent of the vote. Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate's office organized the Thursday-evening mock caucus in conjunction with the state's Republican and Democratic parties. More than 1,600 middle and high school students from 22 counties registered to participate in the fist statewide, bipartisan youth caucus event. Not surprisingly, Sanders, whose campaign has strived to resonate with younger voters, held a wide lead over other Democratic presidential contenders, with more than half of the mock caucus participants backing the Vermont senator's White House bid. O'Malley trailed Sanders with just under a quarter of support among youth caucus voters, while Clinton received nearly 15 percent of the vote, according to Pate's office. Carson held a less dominant lead over 2016 Republican presidential contenders, beating out party front-runner Donald Trump by a 22 to 15 percent margin. U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., trailed with nearly 15 percent, followed by U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., with 14 percent. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, meanwhile, received more than 8 percent of the vote, while former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush pulled-in 7.5 percent. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, businesswoman Carly Fiorina, former Arkansas Gov. John Kasich, former New York Gov. George Pataki and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum each received less than 6 percent of the vote, Pate's office said. The Iowa Caucus is scheduled to take place in early February. |
The Laundry List – 14 Traits of an Adult Child of an Alcoholic We became isolated and afraid of people and authority figures. We became approval seekers and lost our identity in the process. We are frightened by angry people and any personal criticism. We either become alcoholics, marry them or both, or find another compulsive personality such as a workaholic to fulfill our sick abandonment needs. We live life from the viewpoint of victims and we are attracted by that weakness in our love and friendship relationships. We have an overdeveloped sense of responsibility and it is easier for us to be concerned with others rather than ourselves; this enables us not to look too closely at our own faults, etc. We get guilt feelings when we stand up for ourselves instead of giving in to others. We became addicted to excitement. We confuse love and pity and tend to “love” people we can “pity” and “rescue.” We have “stuffed” our feelings from our traumatic childhoods and have lost the ability to feel or express our feelings because it hurts so much (Denial). We judge ourselves harshly and have a very low sense of self-esteem. We are dependent personalities who are terrified of abandonment and will do anything to hold on to a relationship in order not to experience painful abandonment feelings, which we received from living with sick people who were never there emotionally for us. Alcoholism is a family disease; and we became para-alcoholics and took on the characteristics of that disease even though we did not pick up the drink. Para-alcoholics are reactors rather than actors. Tony A., 1978 Note: The Laundry List serves as the basis for The Problem statement. |
During a hearing with House Democrats on Tuesday, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi argued that the bill proposed by Republicans did not have the adequate resources to help unattended minors crossing the border with the immigration court process. The bill, announced by Republicans on Tuesday, would spend $659 million in new spending in response to the crisis on the border. Citing a friend, Pelosi said that “we cannot have deportation without representation,” and she praised the groups that were working to help the detained children. The hearing featured unattended minors, now living in the United States, who complained about how border officials treated them. Pelosi noted that sending the children back to their home countries would be like sending them “back into a burning building.” She again compared the children to the baby Jesus, who fled his home country as an infant to escape violence. |
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