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Clojure from the ground up: functions We left off last chapter with a question: what are verbs, anyway? When you evaluate (type :mary-poppins) , what really happens? user=> ( type :mary-poppins ) clojure.lang.Keyword To understand how type works, we’ll need several new ideas. First, we’ll expand on the notion of symbols as references to other values. Then we’ll learn about functions: Clojure’s verbs. Finally, we’ll use the Var system to explore and change the definitions of those functions. Let bindings We know that symbols are names for things, and that when evaluated, Clojure replaces those symbols with their corresponding values. + , for instance, is a symbol which points to the verb #<core$_PLUS_ clojure.core$_PLUS_@12992c> . user=> + # <core$_PLUS_ clojure.core$_PLUS_ @ 12992 c> When you try to use a symbol which has no defined meaning, Clojure refuses: user=> cats CompilerException java.lang.RuntimeException : Unable to resolve symbol : cats in this context , compiling : ( NO_SOURCE_PATH :0:0 ) But we can define a meaning for a symbol within a specific expression, using let . user=> ( let [ cats 5 ] ( str "I have " cats " cats." )) "I have 5 cats." The let expression first takes a vector of bindings: alternating symbols and values that those symbols are bound to, within the remainder of the expression. “Let the symbol cats be 5, and construct a string composed of "I have " , cats , and " cats" . Let bindings apply only within the let expression itself. They also override any existing definitions for symbols at that point in the program. For instance, we can redefine addition to mean subtraction, for the duration of a let : user=> ( let [ + - ] ( + 2 3 )) -1 But that definition doesn’t apply outside the let: user=> ( + 2 3 ) 5 We can also provide multiple bindings. Since Clojure doesn’t care about spacing, alignment, or newlines, I’ll write this on multiple lines for clarity. user=> ( let [ person "joseph" num-cats 186 ] ( str person " has " num-cats " cats!" )) "joseph has 186 cats!" When multiple bindings are given, they are evaluated in order. Later bindings can use previous bindings. user=> ( let [ cats 3 legs ( * 4 cats )] ( str legs " legs all together" )) "12 legs all together" So fundamentally, let defines the meaning of symbols within an expression. When Clojure evaluates a let , it replaces all occurrences of those symbols in the rest of the let expression with their corresponding values, then evaluates the rest of the expression. Functions We saw in chapter one that Clojure evaluates lists by substituting some other value in their place: user=> ( inc 1 ) 2 inc takes any number, and is replaced by that number plus one. That sounds an awful lot like a let: user=> ( let [ x 1 ] ( + x 1 )) 2 If we bound x to 5 instead of 1 , this expression would evaluate to 6 . We can think about inc like a let expression, but without particular values provided for the symbols. ( let [ x ] ( + x 1 )) We can’t actually evaluate this program, because there’s no value for x yet. It could be 1, or 4, or 1453. We say that x is unbound, because it has no binding to a particular value. This is the nature of the function: an expression with unbound symbols. user=> ( fn [ x ] ( + x 1 )) # <user$eval293$fn__294 user$eval293$fn__294 @ 663 fc37> Does the name of that function remind you of anything? user=> inc # <core$inc clojure.core$inc @ 16 bc0b3c> Almost all verbs in Clojure are functions. Functions represent unrealized computation: expressions which are not yet evaluated, or incomplete. This particular function works just like inc : it’s an expression which has a single unbound symbol, x . When we invoke the function with a particular value, the expressions in the function are evaluated with x bound to that value. user=> ( inc 2 ) 3 user=> (( fn [ x ] ( + x 1 )) 2 ) 3 We say that x is this function’s argument, or parameter. When Clojure evaluates (inc 2) , we say that inc is called with 2 , or that 2 is passed to inc . The result of that function invocation is the function’s return value. We say that (inc 2) returns 3 . Fundamentally, functions describe the relationship between arguments and return values: given 1 , return 2 . Given 2 , return 3 , and so on. Let bindings describe a similar relationship, but with a specific set of values for those arguments. let is evaluated immediately, whereas fn is evaluated later, when bindings are provided. There’s a shorthand for writing functions, too: #(+ % 1) is equivalent to (fn [x] (+ x 1)) . % takes the place of the first argument to the function. You’ll sometime see %1 , %2 , etc. used for the first argument, second argument, and so on. user=> ( let [ burrito # ( list "beans" % "cheese" )] ( burrito "carnitas" )) ( "beans" "carnitas" "cheese" ) Since functions exist to defer evaluation, there’s no sense in creating and invoking them in the same expression as we’ve done here. What we want is to give names to our functions, so they can be recombined in different ways. user=> ( let [ twice ( fn [ x ] ( * 2 x ))] ( + ( twice 1 ) ( twice 3 ))) 8 Compare that expression to an equivalent, expanded form: user=> ( + ( * 2 1 ) ( * 2 3 )) The name twice is gone, and in its place is the same sort of computation– (* 2 something) –written twice. While we could represent our programs as a single massive expression, it’d be impossible to reason about. Instead, we use functions to compact redundant expressions, by isolating common patterns of computation. Symbols help us re-use those functions (and other values) in more than one place. By giving the symbols meaningful names, we make it easier to reason about the structure of the program as a whole; breaking it up into smaller, understandable parts. This is core pursuit of software engineering: organizing expressions. Almost every programming language is in search of the right tools to break apart, name, and recombine expressions to solve large problems. In Clojure we’ll see one particular set of tools for composing programs, but the underlying ideas will transfer to many other languages. Vars We’ve used let to define a symbol within an expression, but what about the default meanings of + , conj , and type ? Are they also let bindings? Is the whole universe one giant let ? Well, not exactly. That’s one way to think about default bindings, but it’s brittle. We’d need to wrap our whole program in a new let expression every time we wanted to change the meaning of a symbol. And moreover, once a let is defined, there’s no way to change it. If we want to redefine symbols for everyone–even code that we didn’t write–we need a new construct: a mutable variable. user=> ( def cats 5 ) # 'user/cats user=> ( type # 'user/cats ) clojure.lang.Var def defines a type of value we haven’t seen before: a var. Vars, like symbols, are references to other values. When evaluated, a symbol pointing to a var is replaced by the var’s corresponding value: user=> user/cats 5 def also binds the symbol cats (and its globally qualified equivalent user/cats ) to that var. user=> user/cats 5 user=> cats 5 When we said in chapter one that inc , list , and friends were symbols that pointed to functions, that wasn’t the whole story. The symbol inc points to the var #'inc , which in turn points to the function #<core$inc clojure.core$inc@16bc0b3c> . We can see the intermediate var with resolve : user=> 'inc inc ; the symbol user=> ( resolve 'inc ) # 'clojure.core/inc ; the var user=> ( eval 'inc ) # <core$inc clojure.core$inc @ 16 bc0b3c> ; the value Why two layers of indirection? Because unlike the symbol, we can change the meaning of a Var for everyone, globally, at any time. user=> ( def astronauts []) # 'user/astronauts user=> ( count astronauts ) 0 user=> ( def astronauts [ "Sally Ride" "Guy Bluford" ]) # 'user/astronauts user=> ( count astronauts ) 2 Notice that astronauts had two distinct meanings, depending on when we evaluated it. After the first def , astronauts was an empty vector. After the second def , it had one entry. If this seems dangerous, you’re a smart cookie. Redefining names in this way changes the meaning of expressions everywhere in a program, without warning. Expressions which relied on the value of a Var could suddenly take on new, possibly incorrect, meanings. It’s a powerful tool for experimenting at the REPL, and for updating a running program, but it can have unexpected consequences. Good Clojurists use def to set up a program initially, and only change those definitions with careful thought. Totally redefining a Var isn’t the only option. There are safer, controlled ways to change the meaning of a Var within a particular part of a program, which we’ll explore later. Defining functions Armed with def, we’re ready to create our own named functions in Clojure. user=> ( def half ( fn [ number ] ( / number 2 ))) # 'user/half user=> ( half 6 ) 3 Creating a function and binding it to a var is so common that it has its own form: defn , short for def fn . user=> ( defn half [ number ] ( / number 2 )) # 'user/half Functions don’t have to take an argument. We’ve seen functions which take zero arguments, like (+) . user=> ( defn half [] 1 /2 ) # 'user/half user=> ( half ) 1 /2 But if we try to use our earlier form with one argument, Clojure complains that the arity–the number of arguments to the function–is incorrect. user=> ( half 10 ) ArityException Wrong number of args ( 1 ) passed to : user$half clojure.lang.AFn.throwArity ( AFn.java :437 ) To handle multiple arities, functions have an alternate form. Instead of an argument vector and a body, one provides a series of lists, each of which starts with an argument vector, followed by the body. user=> ( defn half ([] 1 /2 ) ([ x ] ( / x 2 ))) user=> ( half ) 1 /2 user=> ( half 10 ) 5 Multiple arguments work just like you expect. Just specify an argument vector of two, or three, or however many arguments the function takes. user=> ( defn add [ x y ] ( + x y )) # 'user/add user=> ( add 1 2 ) 3 Some functions can take any number of arguments. For that, Clojure provides & , which slurps up all remaining arguments as a list: user=> ( defn vargs [ x y & more-args ] { :x x :y y :more more-args }) # 'user/vargs user=> ( vargs 1 ) ArityException Wrong number of args ( 1 ) passed to : user$vargs clojure.lang.AFn.throwArity ( AFn.java :437 ) user=> ( vargs 1 2 ) { :x 1 , :y 2 , :more nil } user=> ( vargs 1 2 3 4 5 ) { :x 1 , :y 2 , :more ( 3 4 5 )} Note that x and y are mandatory, though there don’t have to be any remaining arguments. To keep track of what arguments a function takes, why the function exists, and what it does, we usually include a docstring. Docstrings help fill in the missing context around functions, to explain their assumptions, context, and purpose to the world. ( defn launch "Launches a spacecraft into the given orbit by initiating a controlled on-axis burn. Does not automatically stage, but does vector thrust, if the craft supports it." [ craft target-orbit ] "OK, we don't know how to control spacecraft yet." ) Docstrings are used to automatically generate documentation for Clojure programs, but you can also access them from the REPL. user=> (doc launch) ------------------------- user/launch ([craft target-orbit]) Launches a spacecraft into the given orbit by initiating a controlled on-axis burn. Does not automatically stage, but does vector thrust, if the craft supports it. nil doc tells us the full name of the function, the arguments it accepts, and its docstring. This information comes from the #'launch var’s metadata, and is saved there by defn . We can inspect metadata directly with the meta function: ( meta # 'launch ) { :arglists ([ craft target-orbit ]) , :ns # <Namespace user> , :name launch , :column 1 , :doc "Launches a spacecraft into the given orbit." , :line 1 , :file "NO_SOURCE_PATH" } There’s some other juicy information in there, like the file the function was defined in and which line and column it started at, but that’s not particularly useful since we’re in the REPL, not a file. However, this does hint at a way to answer our motivating question: how does the type function work? How does type work? We know that type returns the type of an object: user=> ( type 2 ) java.lang.long And that type , like all functions, is a kind of object with its own unique type: user=> type # <core$type clojure.core$type @ 39 bda9b9> user=> ( type type ) clojure.core$type This tells us that type is a particular instance, at memory address 39bda9b9 , of the type clojure.core$type . clojure.core is a namespace which defines the fundamentals of the Clojure language, and $type tells us that it’s named type in that namespace. None of this is particularly helpful, though. Maybe we can find out more about the clojure.core$type by asking what its supertypes are: user=> ( supers ( type type )) # { clojure.lang.AFunction clojure.lang.IMeta java.util.concurrent.Callable clojure.lang.Fn clojure.lang.AFn java.util.Comparator java.lang.Object clojure.lang.RestFn clojure.lang.IObj java.lang.Runnable java.io.Serializable clojure.lang.IFn } This is a set of all the types that include type . We say that type is an instance of clojure.lang.AFunction , or that it implements or extends java.util.concurrent.Callable , and so on. Since it’s a member of clojure.lang.IMeta it has metadata, and since it’s a member of clojure.lang.AFn, it’s a function. Just to double check, let’s confirm that type is indeed a function: user=> ( fn? type ) true What about its documentation? user=> (doc type) ------------------------- clojure.core/type ([x]) Returns the :type metadata of x, or its Class if none nil Ah, that’s helpful. type can take a single argument, which it calls x . If it has :type metadata, that’s what it returns. Otherwise, it returns the class of x . Let’s take a deeper look at type ‘s metadata for more clues. user=> ( meta # 'type ) { :ns # <Namespace clojure.core> , :name type , :arglists ([ x ]) , :column 1 , :added "1.0" , :static true , :doc "Returns the :type metadata of x, or its Class if none" , :line 3109 , :file "clojure/core.clj" } Look at that! This function was first added to Clojure in version 1.0, and is defined in the file clojure/core.clj , on line 3109. We could go dig up the Clojure source code and read its definition there–or we could ask Clojure to do it for us: user=> ( source type ) ( defn type "Returns the :type metadata of x, or its Class if none" { :added "1.0" :static true } [ x ] ( or ( get ( meta x ) :type ) ( class x ))) nil Aha! Here, at last, is how type works. It’s a function which takes a single argument x , and returns either :type from its metadata, or (class x) . We can delve into any function in Clojure using these tools: user=> ( source + ) ( defn + "Returns the sum of nums. (+) returns 0. Does not auto-promote longs, will throw on overflow. See also: +'" { :inline ( nary-inline 'add 'unchecked_add ) :inline-arities >1? :added "1.2" } ([] 0 ) ([ x ] ( cast Number x )) ([ x y ] ( . clojure.lang.Numbers ( add x y ))) ([ x y & more ] ( reduce1 + ( + x y ) more ))) nil Almost every function in a programming language is made up of other, simpler functions. + , for instance, is defined in terms of cast , add , and reduce1 . Sometimes functions are defined in terms of themselves. + uses itself twice in this definition; a technique called recursion. At the bottom, though, are certain fundamental constructs below which you can go no further. Core axioms of the language. Lisp calls these "special forms”. def and let are special forms (well–almost: let is a thin wrapper around let* , which is a special form) in Clojure. These forms are defined by the core implementation of the language, and are not reducible to other Clojure expressions. user=> ( source def ) Source not found Some Lisps are written entirely in terms of a few special forms, but Clojure is much less pure. Many functions bottom out in Java functions and types, or, for CLJS, in terms of Javascript. Any time you see an expression like (. clojure.lang.Numbers (add x y)) , there’s Java code underneath. Below Java lies the JVM, which might be written in C or C++, depending on which one you use. And underneath C and C++ lie more libraries, the operating system, assembler, microcode, registers, and ultimately, electrons flowing through silicon. A well-designed language isolates you from details you don’t need to worry about, like which logic gates or registers to use, and lets you focus on the task at hand. Good languages also need to allow escape hatches for performance or access to dangerous functionality, as we saw with Vars. You can write entire programs entirely in terms of Clojure, but sometimes, for performance or to use tools from other languages, you’ll rely on Java. The Clojure code is easy to explore with doc and source , but Java can be more opaque–I usually rely on the java source files and online documentation. Review We’ve seen how let associates names with values in a particular expression, and how Vars allow for mutable bindings which apply universally. and whose definitions can change over time. We learned that Clojure verbs are functions, which express the general shape of an expression but with certain values unbound. Invoking a function binds those variables to specific values, allowing evaluation of the function to proceed. Functions decompose programs into simpler pieces, expressed in terms of one another. Short, meaningful names help us understand what those functions (and other values) mean. Finally, we learned how to introspect Clojure functions with doc and source , and saw the definition of some basic Clojure functions. The Clojure cheatsheet gives a comprehensive list of the core functions in the language, and is a great starting point when you have to solve a problem but don’t know what functions to use. We’ll see a broad swath of those functions in Chapter 4: Sequences. My thanks to Zach Tellman, Kelly Sommers, and Michael R Bernstein for reviewing drafts of this chapter. |
A woman takes advantage of new government regulations to sell peanut-filled cones in Havana last month. Picture: AFP IN a 1998 episode of The Simpsons, Fidel Castro calls his advisers into his office and tells them: "Comrades. Our nation is completely bankrupt. We have no choice but to abandon communism." Castro's advisers, downhearted, let out a collective sigh. "I know, I know, I know," he says. "But we all knew from day one this mumbo jumbo wouldn't fly." Intended as parody, the 13-year-old scene recently enjoyed a second online wind following Castro's comment to The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg. When asked whether the Cuban economic model could or should still be exported, Castro said: "The Cuban model doesn't even work for us any more." Read Next Rarely have nine words inspired so many thousands more from the foreign affairs commentariat. Analyses ranged from the nuanced to the absurd and smug -- Cuba is not going to be embracing a free market economy any time soon -- but none failed to mention the bombshell's timing, coming as it did at the end of a long line of events and announcements that do indeed suggest a transformation is taking place. It has been an interesting couple of months for Cuba-watchers. In September, Fidel's brother and successor Raul Castro announced the state would lay off a half million employees by March, with perhaps another half million to follow, in the hope that newly loosened controls on private enterprise might kick-start the island's faltering economy. "We have to erase forever the notion that Cuba is the only country in the world in which people can live without working," he said at the time. (The law came into effect in November, with the government publishing nearly 100 pages of regulations for 178 newly privatised enterprises.) In October, the government approved a law allowing foreign investors to lease land for up to 99 years, a measure that could help the country's promising but underdeveloped tourist industry. And then there were Fidel's comments to Goldberg and, as his insistence a few days later that they had been misinterpreted, a half-hearted retraction that was aimed primarily at a domestic audience. There is no doubt among that audience, however, that Cuba is on the cusp of change. If there is doubt, it is what form this change might take and the speed at which it will do so. For Alberto, my barber on Havana's Calzada de Infanta, the effects have been immediate. "Things have certainly been better for us," he says of the new system that allows barbers and hairdressers to own and run their salons, set their own prices and pay taxes. "The old system was crazy by comparison." Alberto's wages have risen by more than 300 per cent. "I used to make 20 or 30 pesos a week. Now I'm taking home nearly a 100." Certainly, the price list on the wall has been put up only very recently; lovingly presented on coloured card, it is far and away the cleanest thing in the store. Prices range from five pesos for a basic haircut up to 15 for the works. "People tip us now, too," he says. I notice a second price list -- a tattered booklet labelled "lista oficial de precios", in which nothing costs more than one or two pesos -- pinned on the wall opposite us. Alberto follows my gaze and smiles. "That is an antique." At a second-hand bookshop on Calle Obispo, where Spanish-language editions of Ernest Hemingway jostle for shelf space alongside the works of Che Guevara and Jose Marti, the shop's co-proprietor, Roberto, says he believes the selective privatisation and increased co-operative ownership will have positive effects for the country's economy. Roberto and his co-owners may pay the equivalent of $US500 in taxes annually -- a huge amount in this part of the world -- but they have already experienced the benefits that private enterprise can bring and which those such as Alberto are experiencing for the first time. However, he doesn't believe the move towards privatisation and co-operative ownership has anything to do with any ideological belief on the part of the authorities. Nor does he believe that reform will necessarily continue after the Castros have departed. Rather, he suggests, the moves are those of a government that is desperately underfunded and is facing a population that is increasingly aware that something's got to give. "It doesn't have anything to do with Fidel, Raul or whoever else," Roberto insists. "It's about what people are willing to withstand. When people have money, things don't need to change. When they don't have money, they begin to protest." Roberto is not one of those who wants to flee to Florida but his horizons have broadened as his finances have improved. "I'd definitely want to come back to Cuba. Havana is my home. I just want to be able to visit other places. I want to be able to go to Australia, for example, and see the kangaroos." The desire to visit Australia is common among Havana's black marketeers, who often follow up their initial stage-whispered pitches -- "You want Cuban cigars? What about Cuban girls?" -- by asking a tourist where they're from. Jose and Leandro, two cigar-pushing teens who work the strip between Avenue de las Misiones and Agramonte Zulueta, are especially excited when they hear I'm from Sydney. "Australia's much nicer than Cuba," Jose says categorically. "Well," I begin. "No," he insists. "No Fidel. Australia's much nicer than Cuba." The pair pull me over to the pillar of a nearby building, which we shelter behind. "Sorry," Jose says, "but there's a camera over there and we'd get in trouble if we were caught hassling a foreigner, especially as there are two of us and one of you." Letting Jose do the talking, Leandro keeps an eye out for patrols that may approach -- not that any appear. Cuba may be socialist but it's hardly a totalitarian police state. (Immigration at Jose Marti airport is much less intimidating than it is at Los Angeles.) "There are no criminals in Cuba," Jose tells me, explaining why we had to jump behind the pillar and defending the black market in the same breath. "There are only poor people. People trying to sell you things on the street -- people like us -- are only trying to eat." Authorities believe the success of the black market is one of the signs that a limited private sector could help to reverse the country's fortunes. The black market, some believe, could become regulated. With this in mind, the government recently handed out more than one million hectares of land to individuals and co-operatives, simultaneously loosening controls that previously would have prohibited those groups from selling fruit and vegetables except illegally. As workers at the ministries of sugar, public health, tourism and agriculture begin to lose their jobs, they will be encouraged to enter into such enterprises, raising animals, growing fruit and vegetables, or joining one of the many industries released from centralised control. Whether or not this counts as a collapse of Cuban socialism, as some have claimed, is debatable. On the ground, that doesn't seem to be the case and most people don't appear to wish that it was. It is worth remembering that Fidel told Goldberg that the Cuban model is not working any more, not that another cannot be tried out in its place or that the country is abandoning "mumbo jumbo". Ever the dialectical materialists, Fidel and Raul have always believed there are as many models for socialism as there are socialist countries and that these models need to be revised in the face of changing circumstances. Indeed, speaking to the Cuban Workers Federation in November, Raul insisted the economic measures were a native product of the island, not modelled on the pro-market reforms of any other country. He was adamant the reforms do not entail "renouncing even the smallest portion of the construction of socialism". The document, titled Guidelines of Economic and Social Policy, stresses the government's determination not to sacrifice the country completely on the altar of the market. "The economic policy in the new phase will correspond with the principle that only socialism is capable of overcoming difficulties and preserving the gains of the revolution, and that in the updating of the economic model, planning will be paramount, not the market." Regardless of whether the new model succeeds or fails, it is difficult to come to the conclusion that the Cuban revolution has stopped. Julia Sweig, a Latin American expert at the Council on Foreign Relations who went to Cuba with Goldberg, has described the reforms as "a uniquely Cuban transition but within the global economy". "A hybrid is evolving which can't be said to be any one thing," she says. Or, as the proprietor of the casa where I was staying put it, in one of our many halting conversations: "El socialismo no ha muerto. It is transform." Cubans are aware of what happened in the former Soviet Union on the collapse of communism there -- the rise of gangsterism, corruption and the oligarchic control of wealth and resources that followed attempts to kick-start capitalism -- and do not want a repeat on home soil. At El Floridita, where Hemingway is said to have been a regular and where a full-size bronze statue of him stands leaning on the bar, bartender Abel puts it succinctly: "The Cuban people want change But with change comes sacrifice and uncertainty. No one wants to sacrifice the achievements we've made -- in health, in education, in safety -- and no one knows what sort of country we'll become after the Castros are gone." A busload of tourists files in to have their photos taken with the statue before leaving, most of them without having a drink. Abel rolls his eyes and mutters he should start charging them 10 pesos a photo or insist on a one-drink minimum. "That sounds like something a capitalist would do," I say. "You don't think Cuba will go that way eventually?" He shrugs. "The Cuban people don't want to have to choose between socialism and capitalism. What the Cuban people want is paradise." Read Next |
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore: The government shutdown that went into effect on Tuesday, October 1, has closed down most of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The shutdown takes effect as the fall color season begins and on the opening day of Michigan's bow hunting season. While county road accesses will soon remain open, all entries owned by the United States government will be closed or blocked. Those closures include Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive, the Dune Climb, the Visitors Center, the campgrounds and all restrooms. Only four employees will remain on duty out of the staff of 60. And the latest posting on the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore's Facebook page: "Because of the federal government shutdown this National Park Service Facebook page is inactive. We'll start the conversation again when we get back." Check back on MyNorth.com for more news about Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore closures. |
FROM playing in goal in a 25-a-side kickabout on the scalding tarmac of Baghdad to pulling the strings against Chelsea’s millions, Yaser Kasim’s route to cult hero status at Swindon Town is the path less trodden. In fact, his particular walkway is barely touched. Very few of the hundreds of professionals in English football can recount a life story quite as extraordinary as Kasim’s – the tale of how the son of an Iraqi used car parts salesman took less than a month to become the idol of several thousand football fans in Wiltshire. When the Advertiser sits down with Kasim at the County Ground, the midfielder is in typically jovial mood. The 22-year-old has learnt football the hard way, from roughing it with teenagers on Baghdad’s streets to turning down a professional deal at Tottenham, struggling at Brighton and being left to consider his future in the game, and it’s evident that that series of events has given him a rare ability to enjoy every day of every week he spends earning a living through the sport. Through the beard now revered by Town supporters, Kasim starts at the beginning and recalls his early years in war-ravaged Iraq. Baby Yaser was born on May 10, 1991, a little more than two months after the first Gulf War came to an end. He lived with his father Safa, mother Sumaya and two siblings in an apartment block in the Iraqi capital. Though the scars of coalition air strikes were far from healing and Saddam Hussein’s rabid dictatorship spread its ugly wings across the country, Kasim fondly remembers his childhood. “Life was good, to be fair,” he said, with a discernible twinkle in his eye. “When you’re a kid you don’t really think of what’s going on, even though we had a dictatorship and things like that. The weather was always good, we were always out playing until late at night, it was warm, as a kid you have no responsibilities so you mess around, you go to school, it was a very enjoyable time in Iraq.” As Kasim grew up he quickly found football. Not on lush green pitches in organised sessions, as many of his contemporaries in the Swindon team learnt the game, but in great scrums of kids. And, quite bizarrely, his footballing adventure started not in the middle of the ‘park’ but in between the sticks. “We’d have 50 or 60 players on tarmac kicking a ball with bare feet. I was playing in goal quite a bit but then I moved outfield and enjoyed it more,” he said. “It was just a mess-about and it was tough because there was no age range. There were 15-year-olds playing with seven-year-olds. By the end of the day we were all bruised, bleeding and we’d go home. I was always dirty and bleeding. My toes were always bleeding because we played in bare feet on hot tarmac. “After a while my mum got used to it. She’d be a little bit angry but she was alright.” KASIM ON DUTY AT IRAQI YOUTH LEVEL (front row, second from left) With his business struggling, Safa Kasim made the decision to move the family out of Iraq – not an easy task. “Debts were piling up so he sold everything off, got a bit of cash and the story is he left Iraq with $700. That’s what he says, that’s the story,” said Yaser. “My mum backed it up but I said ‘how can you leave with $700 for the whole family?’ There’s five of us so he’s got $700. “I think he bribed one of the guys at the border because you’re not allowed to leave and we got into Jordan. We spent a year there and applied for refugee status in the UK through the UN, and the UK accepted because my dad used to write literature about the regime in Jordan.” The Kasims arrived in England two months after the 1998 World Cup, a tournament a wide-eyed Yaser watched eagerly on TV in Jordan. The family moved into a small house in west London and Kasim joined a junior football team at the Westway Sports Centre in Kensington. In a quirk of fate, he ended up in the same squad as a certain Wes Foderingham. “Wesley was in the same team as me, as well, we used to play together and that was my first club culture,” he said. “We used to train twice a week after school, come in, pay £2, train and have fun.” Kasim’s talent was quickly recognised by his coach, Barry Leach, who gave him a foot-up into the Fulham academy. It was then that then 15-year-old had his first taste of rejection. Fulham didn’t want to retain his services. “I stayed there for a little while but then I got to Tottenham and then Fulham said they made a mistake, apparently,” he said. Fulham wouldn’t be the first club to make a mistake in letting Kasim slip away. The teenager quickly got picked up by Spurs and was part of a talented youth set-up which included the likes of Danny Rose, John Bostock, Dean Parrett, Andros Townsend and Steven Caulker. KASIM DURING HIS TOTTENHAM DAYS The attitude towards the sport was a huge departure from life back in Iraq. “As a kid you’re just playing and having fun but you don’t think about what other people think,” said Kasim. “As you grow older you do, but I was just trying to have fun and I did that at the start of my time at Tottenham. “I was playing and developing through the under 11s, under 12s and under 13s. As I was developing I could see the differences in culture and people’s mentalities. “It might have been difficult at times because there’s a little more friendship at home, they’re like your brothers. Here you see them twice a week after school, train and then have a game. There are parents and jealousy but as a kid you’re just trying to enjoy it.” Kasim spent three years at Spurs before being offered a pro deal by the Premier League side. He turned it down. “I left. They offered me professional terms and I left,” he explained. “The situation was towards the end of my scholarship I started thinking of the future a bit more and I saw the players ahead of me – one year ahead, two years ahead – were stagnating. “They weren’t necessarily well looked after because Tottenham is a big club, they want results and players are more of an asset than an actual player. For me, I thought ‘you know what, I’m not really enjoying this, I just want to go somewhere where I can play’.” One reason for Kasim’s decision to leave, according to Tottenham blogger Chris Miller, may have been the club’s reluctance to involve him in major matches at academy level. Miller, whose encyclopaedic knowledge of Spurs’ youth set-up is relayed on his website www.windycoys.com, told the Advertiser that over-hyped stars such as Bostock – a £700,000 capture from Crystal Palace aged 15 – blocked Kasim’s progress. He said: “My impression of him was he was very much being kept away from the big games. Bostock and Parrett had been brought in as high-profile signings and they were given the chance to shine in the bigger matches. “There had been a bit of hype around them and maybe there was some pressure to give those two the games. “I felt as though the balance of the team was always better when Yaser was in it. “When he left there was a bit of a rumour going around that his dad had an objection to the way things were going. Yaser is very much a family man so maybe that had something to do with it.” And so Kasim voluntarily walked away and into the wilderness. It was a choice at the time he made without hesitation. Reflecting on it now, he accepts it was made in haste. “At the time I just made the decision because I wasn’t enjoying it,” he said. “Looking back at it, it should have been a much tougher decision. But then again, what I went through was something unique. It was a hard time but it changed me. It changed me in a positive way.” KASIM LOOKED TO START AGAIN AT BRIGHTON He was picked up by Brighton, after a wrangle regarding compensation was resolved thanks to Seagulls boss Gus Poyet’s links with White Hart Lane. But Kasim only featured twice for the Sussex side. “There was always something missing at Brighton, something just didn’t click but I can’t put my finger on it,” said Kasim. “Maybe the style of play was a bit fast-paced but I can handle that. The club was in transition, they were going for promotion, the gaffer was under pressure to get results and there were a lot of players coming and going out – it never really clicked.” With his prospects at the Withdean Stadium almost non-existent, Kasim shuffled into non-league. He joined Luton and then Macclesfield, struggling to make an impression at either. MOVES TO LUTON AND MACCLESFIELD DIDN'T WORK OUT Luke Williams, now Swindon’s assistant coach, worked with the playmaker at Brighton and regards him as a close friend. During this particularly trying period of Kasim’s career, Williams remembers how the player did begin to contemplate life without football. “He seriously considered thinking about having to do something else because it didn’t look like the chance was going to come up,” said Williams. “I recommended he tried to fight for his place at another club and I know he’s not one to give up easily but I think there was a thought in his mind that he might go out of the game. “I think in England he’s a rare sort of player because he plays to try to control the game for his team and he wants to be able to be a step ahead of the opposition. In England we don’t tend to play so much like that, we tend to play without the ball a lot. “We give it to the other team and chase after it and try to rush them into a mistake. Yaser’s not going to thrive in that sort of environment.” Kasim stuck it out. Despite being moved on by Luton he refused to give up on his career and on April 23 this year he was invited by Swindon Town to take part in a development XI match against Bristol Rovers. Mark Cooper, then assistant manager to Kevin MacDonald, was in charge of the Robins’ side that day. The Swindon boss told the Advertiser: “He played at the end of last season in a trial game. He came on trial and played away at Bristol Rovers, he played in a 4-4-2 and I couldn’t see him playing for us in a 4-4-2.” Kasim got the impression that Town weren’t keen. “Sometimes you can sense whether the manager likes you or whether he thinks that you’re a good player but he doesn’t necessarily want you,” he said. “I got that sense of it being 50-50 or not really being what they want.” Then everything changed. Kevin MacDonald quit the County Ground in July, Cooper succeeded him, Swindon completely changed their playing system and with 4-3-3 in place Kasim became an option. He returned to feature in a friendly against Birmingham, impressed enough to go with the squad to Portgual for a pre-season training camp and his display in a 3-3 draw with a Tottenham XI was enough for director of football operations Lee Power, who was out in the Algarve, to offer him a deal. “Once you look at a player’s history or mentality you have to know more about him,” said Kasim. “If you look at it just on paper you’ll say ‘he’s gone there and there and it hasn’t worked out’, but if you don’t know the player you won’t know how much he wants it or what he can do for you.” Williams in particular was delighted by Kasim’s progress with Swindon. “To be involved in that break and that chance was brilliant because Yaser was very low at one point. He felt like there was a chance he might go out of football altogether so it’s a dream come true for both of us to be able to work together,” he said. “I spoke to Yaser a few times. He called me for advice and I spoke to Yaser’s agent and it was brilliant when I got to meet up with him again at Swindon.” Such has been Kasim’s impact in Wiltshire that he was the subject of a rejected £250,000 from QPR for his services in January. Furthermore, fan website The Washbag has created T-shirts in his honour with the strapline ‘Yaser’s gonna get you’. KASIM'S MOVE TO SWINDON HAS SEEN HIM BECOME A HERO Kasim was unaware of his clothing line until informed by the Adver. He laughed. Perhaps he is a little embarrassed. He shouldn’t be. This week the son of an Iraqi second hand car parts salesman earned himself a three-year deal with a Football League club, just reward for extraordinary perseverance. As level-headed as ever, the midfielder knows that the length of a contract isn’t everything. “I’ve got three years but six months ago I wasn’t really anywhere, I’m happy for that,” he said. “In six months’ time you never know what can happen in football so the most important thing is the next game.” His manager echoed those sentiments. “You see it up and down the country, people who you think are not good enough get a second chance and they take it,” Cooper said. “It gives hope and belief to a lot of young lads out there who want to make a career out of the game. “You see it all the time but I’m not sure Yaser’s that kind of boy, I think he just wants to play football. We’ll keep onto him, try to drive him and try to make him even better and with his ability there’s no reason why he can’t go and play where he wants to play.” Given everything Kasim has been through, it’s hard not to agree with Cooper on that. YASER KASIM IN ACTION |
The Austin Police Department has arrested a suspect accused of "tickling" a nine-year-old's privates at Hop N Happy. The suspect has been identified as Neander William Silva, a Brazilian national citizen who does not reside in the United States and is visiting a cousin who lives in Hutto. Neander Willian Silva has been charged with Indecency with a Child by Sexual Conduct, a Third Degree Felony. He is being held at the Williamson County Jail. Bond is set at $75-thousand dollars. On Saturday, July 2, the Austin Police Department responded to a sex crimes service call at the Hop N Happy business on Anderson Mill Road. The Victim had come to Hop N Happy with his father and two brothers around 4 p.m. The Victim and his brothers had been playing for approximately two and a half hours when their father approached them at the foam pit, where they were playing. The father noticed the Victim was laying fully covered by foam, except for the top of his head, about five feet away from his brother. Laying next to the victim, within one foot, was the suspect Neander Silva. Silva was playing in a similar position and was also covered by foam. The father told his boys it was time to go and they exited the foam pit. The suspect, Silva, got out as well. As the father and his sons were exiting the business into the parking lot he asked his sons if they had fun. The Victim stated that he had fun playing with Silva, he "tickled" him and motioned to his groin area. The father asked the Victim to describe what happened. The Victim then described to his father that Silva had "tickled his penis." The Victim stated it happened for about two to three minutes and that it was over his clothes, directly on his penis. The father asked the Victim to show him what happened and the Victim used his ahnd and made a 'massaging' motion on his penis over his shorts. The father called the Austin Police Department who arrived on scene. APD detectives spoke with Silva who is a Brazilian national citizen. His first language is Portuguese and his English is not very good. He does not reside in the United States and is visiting his cousin who lives in Hutto. Detectives spoke with his cousin, Leonardo Silva, who stated that his cousin is staying with him and that there is no time frame on his visit. The father identified Neander Willian Silva as the man that was laying nest to his, the Victim, in the foam pit when he approached his children when it was time for them to leave. Silva was arrested and charged with Indecency with a Child by Sexual Conduct. |
Do you think they can do it? Can General Beck, Major Hannity, Captain Limbaugh, and Pfc. Boortz and their legions of radio underlings rouse their drooling listeners and get them to lurch and stumble to their county courthouses and federal buildings for another round of last month's hysterical and hideously misleading tea bag rally bat squeeze? They have the perfect opportunity to try. Today President Obama presented what the New York Times describes as "a far-reaching set of proposals . . . that are aimed at the tax benefits enjoyed by companies and wealthy individuals harboring cash in offshore accounts." Simply stated it means that Obama is going to insist - through legislation - that the corporate tax cheats (which is nearly every U.S. Corporation that does business overseas) and the oh, so wealthy individual bloodsuckers who lie and steal and cheat and benefit from the predatory capitalism that is eating us alive, are finally going to have to pay their share of the cost of running the country. So, get ready for a tidal wave of pro-corporate lies and misinformation from the usual gang of puppeteers who find great sport and immense satisfaction in watching their listeners and viewers contribute yet again to their own poverty and despair, not to mention their rage and confusion. Isn't it maddening? Working class Americans with no health coverage, no retirement plans, no money to educate their kids, no way to help their aging parents, and desperately needing jobs that are slowly disappearing, will somehow be convinced yet again that it is time to storm the village green and demand more anguish for their families so the ultra-rich and the greedy corporations who moved their jobs to China will have even more profit; more tax shelter; more of the "good things" in life while the sap with the sign depicting Obama as Castro has to cut short the demonstrating so he or she can get to the food pantry before it closes. It is simply astonishing. Obama's remarks "echoed the sentiment he voiced again and again during the presidential campaign, when he pledged to crack down on "illegal overseas tax evasion." According to CNN online, Obama "is targeting companies that use loopholes in the law that allow them to legally avoid paying billions in taxes. It also focuses on wealthy individuals who break the law by creating hidden overseas accounts." Now, that's certainly reason enough for unemployed or under-employed right wing radio fans to take to the streets and demand, "NO! NO TAXES FOR OUR GLORIOUS CORPORATIONS! NO MORE SOCIALIST BURDENS FOR OUR WEARY WEALTHY!" And, they will. Give the right wing media talkers a day or two to spread the word that all this is just another attempt by the Socialist President to destroy our country, make us vulnerable to scimitar-wielding Muslim terrorists in our streets, and destroy our God-given blessings of home and hearth by letting the queers get married, and they, the flat-lined evangelicals and mouth-breathing Limbots will turn out in droves. Funny. Tragic. Horrifying, actually. According to CNN, the White House, under the plan, would eliminate the "check-the-box" provision which allows corporations to designate overseas subsidiaries as branches of the company, not subjected to taxes. This tax loophole enables companies to avoid paying U.S. taxes. One senior administration official said it has cost the U.S. government $86.5 billion over 10 years and is "the most unjustified loophole in the international tax system which needs to close down." It is a legal practice, the officials said, involving "companies taking advantage of a very bad law." (That "very bad law," by the way, was passed by a Republican Congress and signed into law by that nasty ol' librul, Bill Clinton.) Consider this: The cost of providing comprehensive, universal health insurance for our children would cost about $35 billion. Now, look at that number above one more time. $86 billion stolen by predatory corporations who care about this country about as much as Dick Cheney cares about the U.S. Constitution - which is to say zero, zip, nada. The Obama administration expects these new laws to raise at least $210 billion over the next 10 years, "to cut taxes for American families, increase incentives for businesses to create jobs in America and reduce the deficit." Yeah. To "cut taxes" for American families, reduce the deficit, etc.; the stuff about which the right-wingers will scream and snort and wave their tea bags wildly in the air, and shriek no! no! no! Obama officials also depict the new laws as a way to close unfair tax loopholes that encourage companies to send jobs overseas. They argue that if it costs the same amount to do business in, say, Ireland as in Iowa , why not do it entirely in Des Moines ? Further, this is a way to keep jobs in the United States and fight a system that is rigged by dishonest corporatists (but, I repeat myself) against U.S. companies who keep their entire business operation domestic. And, yep, the right-wing crazies will scream louder and snort more contemptuously and wave their tea bags wildly in the air and shriek no! no! no! We love you, Glenn, we love you Rush! Obama is a Kenyan! And he shook hands with that guy, you know, in Venezuela ! What's his name . . . the guy down there! A spokesman for Obama said in 2004, multinational corporations enjoyed an effective tax rate of 2.3 per cent in the United States because of such allowances. 2.3 per cent!!!! The spokesman said that was the most recent year available for analysis. Officials said the situation was indefensible. Unless, of course, you represent the sort of predatory capitalism praised and promoted by the mega-wealthy right-wing radio and television talkers who get such a kick out of jerking around and otherwise abusing their deranged "fans." We love you Neal! We love you Sean! We want to kiss you and suck your fingers! Touch us, please! touch us! Aiiieeeeeeeeee . . . When asked about the intense lobbying effort already underway against these reforms, including 200 opposition letters sent to Congress, a senior administration official said, "We expect (to see) many lobbying (efforts) against us ... " Why, of course. - MDM Mike Malloy can be heard daily on his radio show 9pm - 12pm ET. Visit www.mikemalloy.com to stream live or find a station near you. |
(CNN) -- An attack by a suicide bomber at a military base in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday killed eight Americans believed to be CIA employees, a senior U.S. official told CNN. Also Wednesday, four Canadian soldiers and a Canadian journalist were killed when a roadside bomb hit their armored vehicle in southern Afghanistan, Canada's defense ministry said. The suicide bombing happened at Forward Operating Base Chapman in Khost province, Afghanistan. The senior U.S. official who spoke to CNN said information indicates the bomber walked into a gym facility at the base and detonated a suicide vest. It is believed six Americans were wounded in addition to the eight killed. It's not known how the bomber got past security. A U.S. military source said that FOB Chapman was originally a base for the Khost Provincial Construction Team, but the team left some time ago. Authorities believe that perhaps the suicide bomber attacked just after a convoy was ending or beginning, which would account for high number of casualties. "FOB Chapman is definitely more than a listening post. You can land helos [helicopters] there," the source said. Meanwhile, the attack that killed the five Canadians happened about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) south of Kandahar, where the Canadian contingent in Afghanistan is headquartered. "The soldiers were conducting a community security patrol in order to gather information on the pattern of life and maintain security in the area," Brig. Gen. Daniel Menard, the commander of the 2,800-member Canadian contingent, told reporters. "The journalist was traveling with them to tell the story of what Canada's soldiers are doing in Afghanistan." Four other Canadian troops and a civilian official also were injured in the attack, he said. The Calgary Herald identified the reporter as Michelle Lang, 34, who had been with the paper since 2002. Lang is the first Canadian journalist killed in the Afghan war and is believed to be the first Herald reporter killed while on the job. The deaths bring the number of Canadian military fatalities in Afghanistan to 138. The names of the troops were not immediately released. The deaths are the most Canadians killed in a single incident in Afghanistan since six Canadian soldiers died in a bombing on July 4, 2007. CNN's Barbara Starr and Atia Abawi contributed to this report. |
IBM's YouTube channel is not, uh, typically the most engaging. Let's just say that at certain points in the last few weeks it has uploaded PowerPoint presentations. But a weird, weird batch of videos posted today are changing that. It's a grouping of ads of science fact vs. science fiction when it comes to artificial intelligence. The focal point is Watson, and how Watson is an improvement on AI systems of the past. Carrie Fisher plays a group therapist for the robots as the contend with Watson's collaboration with humans. Then it breaks out into the individual therapy sessions of the bots, like Duster Bot: Or Sinister Bot: Or Gadget Bot: Or even Nana Bot: Muscle Bot and Rick are also worth a ... look? Oh, and to tell about how Watson can analyze for tone, there's a borderline suicidal robot named Mope Bot: It's kind of nebulous, really. The ads seem to be bragging about the wonderfulness of Watson, but it's less about who Watson is than who he isn't. That's understandable, given that we haven't done a great job separating the sophisticated reality of artificial intelligence (which involves not exactly human brains) from the Bicentennial Mans of sci-fi and cheap sitcoms. Nobody really seems to be watching the videos, so they're not going viral. It's hard to imagine any of these spots appearing on national TV. It's hard to tell who the intended audience for these things are (except, perhaps, writers bopping around on YouTube looking for a story). An advertisement with Watson himself and director Ridley Scott seems much more focused. IBM is readying Watson's capabilities for business use with IBM Watson Discovery Advisor. It makes sense to begin pushing for that in advertising. What makes less sense is Trend Bot or Lord Overbot being the vehicle for that. But there are plenty of AI fears out there, whether it's using artificial intelligence to beneficial ends or just fearing some kind of Terminator future. So maybe IBM trying to use these off-kilter spots to welcome us to the cognitive computer era (though, depending on who you ask, Watson may not be real AI at all anyway). But I guess it's also a reminder that Watson isn't just a Jeopardy! contestant. Then again, maybe Watson should look a little more like this. |
Senior Pilot, Captain Han Hee-seong, 58, has been flying for 33 years, and despite near-death experiences, constant jet lag and rogue combat planes, he still loves what he does. After a shining career at Korean Air (where he was nominated as a top pilot), Han now resides in Shanghai and flies Boeing 777s to Europe and the United States for China Eastern Airlines. "When I was young my dream was to be a judge," he says. "But in high school all this changed. I realized that I wanted to travel and fly around the world." Based on our interview with him, we think he made the right decision. He shares seven things we didn't know about life in the cockpit. 1. Jet lag doesn't get easier with practice Meetings are just so much more awesome when everyone is wearing an aviation uniform. The most difficult part of being a pilot, according to Han, is actually something most of us might understand. "The hardest part is adjusting to different time zones and trying to get enough sleep before flying," says Han. "This problem plagues all of us pilots throughout our career." He breezes over the technical difficulties. "Sometimes we come across typhoons, sudden gusts of wind, hailstorms, fog or heavy rain, or there is a problem with one of the engines and we have to turn it off and make a quick landing," he says. "However, these things are easy to deal with once you have the experience." 2. It's not about the airline, it's about the aircraft And here we were comparing inflight bibimbap and bento boxes. "Whether you take a major carrier or a low-budget carrier, the aircraft itself is the same aircraft: a Boeing 737," says Han. "Maybe a Boeing 777 or an Airbus 330 -- those seem to be popular these days. And the pilots are veteran pilots who have done their time, until about 55 to 60, at large airlines. Flights today are very safe." Interestingly, he says that the one aircraft that all pilots he has met dislike unanimously is the Airbus 380. "We think it hasn't been tested enough, and that it's simply not as safe." 3. But you have to like the food ... But to some, the job makes the jet lag worth it. When asked if pilots dislike the airplane fare, Han replies, "If they're picky." Han is not. "I like foods from all over the world -- everything tastes fine to me." The pilot and the copilot, according to Han, eat different meals. Usually the pilot gets the first class meal and the copilot the business class meal. "This is just in case one of the meals might cause food poisoning," says Han. More on CNN: 9 easy ways to make a flight attendant go insane 4. A good airport is like a good wife (or husband) "A good airport -- such as Incheon International Airport, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Singapore's Changi Airport, or Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok -- is above all comfortable, with good facilities and good service," says Han. "Like a good spouse." So which airports are likely to end up dying alone? "New York's JFK International Airport and Chicago's O'Hare Airport have so much traffic that there's always a 25- to 45-minute line before we can take off, or after we land, park the plane," says Han. 5. 'The seatbelt sign is a lie' "Keeping the seatbelt sign turned on whenever the aircraft is below 10,000 or 20,000 feet (depending on the airline) is a rule designed to keep the passengers safe," says Han. Although he can usually cooperate with air traffic control to avoid pockets of turbulence without much fuss, he says he turns on the seatbelt sign anyway just because of the possibility of turbulence. "Technically, I suppose, then, that seatbelt sign is a lie. Ordering passengers to put on their seatbelt when they might not necessarily need them," says Han. But we're with him in thinking that it's better to be lied to than laid out on a stretcher. "We have several cases each year of passengers who did not have their seatbelt on during thunderstorms, hailstorms or particularly violent gusts of wind -- when even the aircraft was actually damaged, and the passengers, obviously, even more injured," says Han. 6. There is (or was) a real reason for regulating mobile phones on flights "I remember mobile phones disrupting the communication systems -- but then again, it was 15 years ago," says Han. "Although the more recent aircraft have shielding devices to protect the navigation and communication systems, the aircraft from 10 or 20 years ago don't have such shielding, so mobile phones do disrupt the navigation and communication." 7. It's not just hotel suites and golf, the cons include near-death experiences and health problems "I've had two dangerously close encounters with combat planes," says Han. "The first encounter was because the combat plane ignored regulations and infringed on civilian (commercial) air routes, and the second near-collision involved four planes who failed to signal that they were flying above the airport I was trying to lift off from." The environment isn't the healthiest. "The air inside an aircraft has 20 percent less oxygen than the air on the ground. We cruise at an altitude about the height of Mount Halla on Jeju Island (1,950 meters), and often suffer from chronic fatigue syndrome because of our irregular sleep schedule." Many pilots drop out during the training because their health deteriorates, don't pass the final test for their certificate, or don't make it to their retirement because of accidents and incidents. At least the thrill never dies Where the magic happens. "Flying is, simply, fun. That's why I've done it for so long, and, as long as my health allows, why I can keep doing it, until I retire at 65." And despite what you might have imagined from cockpit photos or watching unrealistic action films, it's a lot more hands-on than you might expect. According to Han, that's what's so fun about it. "Kicking off on the runway at 350 kph, lifting off in an aircraft that weighs 350 to 400 tons, flying for over 10 hours -- carrying over 300 passengers, or over 100 tons of cargo -- and then gently landing at your destination -- there's a distinct thrill in the knowledge that I made all of this happen." Besides the thrill of piloting the flight, there is also the delight of the flight itself, and the magnificent natural sights below. "I have never, ever felt that my job was boring," says Han. "Of all the pilots I've met -- they number about 2,000 -- there were less than five pilots who quit simply because they disliked the job." More on CNN: Gallery: Sexy flight attendant uniforms of the past |
The transport, which left the Moscow suburbs on Aug. 12, was organized by the Russian government without the Russian Red Cross and so far no agreement has been reached with Ukraine or the International Committee of the Red Cross that would allow it to enter Ukraine legally and be delivered to civilians in separatist controlled Luhansk. “Ukraine can accept any kind of humanitarian aid solely within international law and solely from the Red Cross,” Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said at a Cabinet meeting on Aug. 13. “The level of Russian cynicism has no boundaries. First, they supply tanks, Grads, terrorists, bandits who shoot Ukrainians, and then they supply water and salt,” he added. The head of the information department of the Ukrainian Red Cross, Viktor Sherbanuk, told the Kyiv Post that the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva had yet to receive a detailed inventory of the contents of the transport along with other requirements including an agreement with Ukraine that would allow it to transport the aid. Kyiv Post+ is a special project covering Russia’s war against Ukraine and the aftermath of the EuroMaidan Revolution. The massive transport has been the focus of extensive attention as it moves southwest. The situation is likened to a Ukrainian Cuban Missile Crisis amid accusations that the Russian government is using the convoy to actually deliver weapons and reinforcements to militants in embattled Luhansk, rather than civilians. In a press conference on Aug. 13, presidential press secretary Svyatoslav Tsegolko outlined three possible scenarios for the transport. “First, direct invasion of the Ukrainian territory under the pretense of humanitarian cargo delivery. Second, provocations with cargo on the territory of Kharkiv region with high probability of Russian aggression. Third, assistance to Luhansk will pass through the checkpoint which is the nearest to this Ukrainian city.” Meanwhile, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Igor Baluta wrote on his Facebook page on Aug. 13 that the convoy will not pass through the Kharkiv border. Separatists control border checkpoints in Ukraine’s east where the transport could enter, but Ukrainian and American officials have repeatedly said that would amount to an act of aggression. However, a senior government official told the Kyiv Post that intensive negotiations are on the way, which will hopefully lead to an agreement that will allow the aid to be transported across Russia’s border with Luhansk. “Ukraine even thinks there might be a hope of re-establishing a checkpoint at Izvaryne (Luhansk Oblast),” the official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to make official comments about this sensitive issue. Up to 200 kilometers of border in Luhansk Oblast are currently under separatist control. Without an agreement with Ukraine and the Red Cross, however, it is unclear how the transport could travel to Luhansk legally. An agreement with the separatists concerning the transport involving Ukraine and the Red Cross broke down during negotiations and was never reached. Any transport of unspecified goods unapproved by the country it is being transported to would not legally qualify as humanitarian aid. “If they go through an uncontrolled area it won’t be humanitarian aid it will be aid for the separatists,” said Sherbanuk. Kyiv Post staff writer Ian Bateson can be reached at ian.bateson@gmail.com and on Twitter at @ianbateson. |
Veteran left-handed reliever Sean Burnett will opt out of his minor league contract with the Dodgers and sign a new minor league pact with the Braves, reports Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (Twitter link). Burnett, 33, is seeking a return to a big league mound for the first time since the 2014 campaign. Once an excellent setup option for the Nationals, Burnett signed a two-year, $8MM pact with the Angels as a free agent prior to the 2013 season. A left elbow impingement in 2013, however, led to season-ending elbow surgery, and a torn ulnar collateral ligament in 2014 required Tommy John surgery (the second such operation of Burnett’s career). After a year off to recovery from that Tommy John, though, Burnett is back on a mound and now with his third organization in the past six weeks. The veteran southpaw, a client of agent Jim Munsey, was in camp with the Nationals on a minor league pact but didn’t make the club in Spring Training and subsequently latched on with the Dodgers, for whom he tossed 7 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level over the past month. In that time, Burnett allowed three runs (two earned) on eight hits and six walks (one intentional) with five strikeouts. That lack of control isn’t particularly encouraging, though some rust for a pitcher who had as long of a layoff as Burnett did is to be expected. Burnett will report to Triple-A Gwinnett tomorrow, according to Nicholson-Smith, where he’ll look to continue to iron out some of the kinks. The Braves figure to present a clearer path to the Majors for Burnett, as Atlanta’s collective 5.14 bullpen ERA is markedly worse than the collective 3.84 mark turned in by the Dodgers. The two lefties in Atlanta’s ’pen at the moment are veteran Eric O’Flaherty and 26-year-old rookie Hunter Cervenka, either of whom could conceivably be unseated by Burnett if he can rediscover his form. From 2009-13, Burnett posted a 2.77 ERA with 7.5 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9 in 243 2/3 innings between the Pirates, Nats and Angels. |
NOT long after 10 a.m. on March 27, a restless audience waited for the Supreme Court to hear arguments in the second of two historic cases involving same-sex marriage. First, however, Justice Antonin Scalia attended to another matter. He announced that the court was throwing out an antitrust class action that subscribers brought against Comcast, the nation’s largest cable company. Almost no one in the courtroom paid attention, despite Justice Scalia’s characteristically animated delivery, and the next day’s news coverage was dominated by accounts of the arguments on same-sex marriage. That was no surprise: the Supreme Court’s business decisions are almost always overshadowed by cases on controversial social issues. But the business docket reflects something truly distinctive about the court led by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. While the current court’s decisions, over all, are only slightly more conservative than those from the courts led by Chief Justices Warren E. Burger and William H. Rehnquist, according to political scientists who study the court, its business rulings are another matter. They have been, a new study finds, far friendlier to business than those of any court since at least World War II. In the eight years since Chief Justice Roberts joined the court, it has allowed corporations to spend freely in elections in the Citizens United case, has shielded them from class actions and human rights suits, and has made arbitration the favored way to resolve many disputes. Business groups say the Roberts court’s decisions have helped combat frivolous lawsuits, while plaintiffs’ lawyers say the rulings have destroyed legitimate claims for harm from faulty products, discriminatory practices and fraud. |
Ivanka Trump and her clothing brand are entangled in an intellectual property battle in which she wants no part. Fashion designer Edgardo Osorio, co-founder and creative director of fashion brand Aquazzura, has taken legal action against Trump for allegedly copying the design of his iconic “Wild Thing” sandal that catapulted his brand to international success. Instead of facing the lawsuit, however, Trump has shielded herself behind her official White House title. According to a Bloomberg report, when Osorio first noticed that a number of labels had copied his design, his brand filed multiple lawsuits, mainly targeting larger brands like Marc Fisher and Steve Madden. One of the other companies on his list was Trump’s which was selling his $785 shoe for only $65. Aquazurra called out Trump on its Instagram account, writing that copyrighted design theft was “one of the most disturbing things in the fashion industry.” The Ivanka Trump brand reportedly ignored a subsequent cease-and-desist letter issued by Aquazzura requiring Trump’s label to destroy existing pairs of the shoe in question, in addition to halting any advertising for it, and to hand over any profits earned from its sale. When Trump’s brand reportedly refused to comply, Aquazurra filed a complaint in Manhattan federal court, accusing Trump’s brand of infringement, deceptive trade practices, and unfair competition. Advertisement The letter argued that Trump’s brand was “seeking the same success Aquazzurra experienced but without having to put in the hard creative work.” According to Bloomberg, lawyers for Ivanka Trump’s brand are currently in settlement talks with Aquazzura. At the time Aquazzura started taking legal action against Ivanka Trump, she had not yet taken a position in the White House. Since then, the first daughter has taken on an advisory position in her father’s administration, making trips abroad and meeting with foreign officials in high profile settings. Although the dispute is being settled outside of the courtroom, this still poses a problem for Trump, who appears eager to sidestep the controversy in any way possible — including by hiding behind her duties in the White House. If it goes to court — which is set to occur in March next year, should the two parties find themselves unable to reach a settlement — things could get even worse for the first daughter. “The burden of a deposition of Ms. Trump would far outweigh any likely benefit to Aquazzura,” company lawyer Darren Saunders argued in a letter to U.S. District Judge Katherine Forrest. Saunders added that Trump’s role as a “high ranking government official” should excuse her from having to submit a deposition, according to Bloomberg. Unfortunately for Trump, she may end up having to testify anyway. In response to Saunders’ letter, Forrest stated that Trump could not avoid a deposition, as “she is alleged to have personal involvement in the events at issue in this lawsuit.” Advertisement While Trump has stepped away from the day-to-day operations of the company, she still retains ownership, and according to The Washington Post, representatives from the company have said she has the power to veto any new deals. Trump herself has been ducking behind her White House job to avoid legal responsibilities tied to her brand for some time now. Over the summer, three Chinese activists were arrested for attempting to expose the labor conditions at a Trump-linked factory that manufactured most of Ivanka Trump’s line. The group for which the activists worked, China Labor Watch, issued a report on the factory and alleged that the employees were forced to work 12-hour days, at least six days a week, at a monthly salary of about 2,500 yuan, or $365. The workers had been given no safety training, even though many came into contact with hot oils and glues regularly. In Bangladesh, where many of the Ivanka Trump branded denim is manufactured, garment workers similarly earned a minimum wage of about $70 a month, according to the Washington Post. Trump utilized her position in the White House to avoid speaking out about those conditions and related controversies. Jamie Gorelick, her attorney, told the Post that Trump, because of her role in the White House, “has been advised that she cannot ask the government to act in an issue involving the brand in any way, constraining her ability to intervene personally.” Meanwhile, Ivanka has worn pieces of her own line to help promote her personal brand of #WomenWhoWork and has championed herself as an advocate for working women across the globe. |
Coursera, the Silicon Valley-based provider of massive open online courses, announced on Thursday a series of deals with state universities that would place the young company squarely in the middle of the current upheaval in public higher education. The company, which has made its name by working outside higher education's tuition-based credentialing system, announced partnerships with 10 public institutions that would extend well beyond providing support for new MOOCs. Under the new deals, Coursera is recasting itself as a platform for credit-bearing courses that would be offered to students enrolled at multiple campuses within a public-university system. The deals mark a shift for Coursera, which until now has focused on making free, online versions of courses taught by professors at elite colleges. Daphne Koller, a co-founder of Coursera, acknowledged that the company was venturing into new terrain. After studying their MOOC users, the company realized that most of them had already earned college degrees, said Ms. Koller. That was well and good, but it suggested to Coursera's founders that MOOCs would not be sufficient to achieve their ambitions. "If you're looking to really move the needle on fundamental educational problems, inside and outside the United States, you're going to need to help people reach the first milestone, which is getting their degrees to begin with," Ms. Koller said. The company's new partners are the State University of New York system, the Tennessee Board of Regents and the University of Tennessee systems, the University of Colorado system, the University of Houston system, the University of Kentucky, the University of Nebraska system, the University of New Mexico system, the University System of Georgia, and West Virginia University. What the Contract Says The Chronicle obtained a copy of Coursera's contract with the University of Kentucky, and the document provides details on how the partnerships might work. (Ms. Koller said the new contracts were all "pretty much identical, with minor tweaks.") The document differs substantially from the ones Coursera signed with its early university partners. Those contracts focused on the dynamics of producing and collecting revenue from MOOCs open to the public. The Kentucky contract deals with additional kinds of collaboration. For example, the document outlines how the university would administer "guided" or "adopted" courses—courses that are developed, either by Kentucky or another Coursera partner, for use by students at the university. It also addresses how the university and the company would go about licensing Kentucky's Coursera courses to other colleges, and how they would divide revenue generated by any of those courses. Advertisement When it comes to content Kentucky creates for its own students on the Coursera platform, the revenue-sharing agreement is set up to nudge the university toward using each "guided" course widely across the system. In a typical case, the company would charge the university a flat fee of $3,000 for "course development." After that, Coursera would charge a per-student fee that would decrease as more students registered for the course. The first 500 students would cost the university $25 per student; the next 500 would cost $15 per student; the university would pay the company $8 for each student beyond that. Payments to Coursera for use of "adopted" courses—those developed elsewhere—would be similarly tiered. Under the contract, if the university charged each student in a course the same tuition rate, it would get to keep a greater share of tuition revenue as it enrolled more students in the course. In all likelihood, a university offering a "guided" Coursera course to enrolled students for credit would provide them with additional support and opportunities for interaction with instructors and classmates, making those courses fundamentally different from conventional MOOCs. Nonetheless, Coursera's "guided" offerings could change the scale of delivery for certain courses, said Ms. Koller. "I think it is going to be massive in the sense that a single course would be offered across an entire university system," she said. 'A Robust Debate' There is, of course, a difference between accounting for those scenarios and bringing them into being. There is no guarantee that Coursera's new partners will pursue some of the more provocative uses of the company's materials immediately, if at all; and even then, there are politics to consider. At Kentucky, for example, the use of "guided" and "adopted" Coursera courses is purely hypothetical, said Vince Kellen, a senior vice provost. The university is more interested in building MOOCs—specifically, a course in chemistry aimed at preparing high-school students for college-level work—and has no immediate plans to use "guided" or "adopted" courses through Coursera, he said. "If we get to the stage where these were to be offered for credit, I'm sure we would have a robust debate within the faculty and the University Senate," said Mark S. Meier, chair of the chemistry department at Kentucky. Still, Mr. Kellen said he would not rule out using the Coursera partnership to streamline certain parts of the curriculum in the future. "I am fairly confident that MOOC-like techniques could be a viable option for certain high-volume operations," he said. "And I would say large lectures are one of those." |
WATERLOO, Iowa -- Days after the release of a new audio message from the Taliban's leader Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour calling for insurgents "to fight until we bring an Islamic rule" to Afghanistan, Gov. Chris Christie says he would not bring home the nearly 10,000 U.S. troops stationed there, as is currently planned. "I think what we really need to be concerned about is that we don't want Afghanistan to turn back into a place that is a refuge for terrorist organizations," said Christie, speaking to reporters at an Irish heritage street fair in the Iowa town of Waterloo on Saturday afternoon. "Part of this ongoing fight that we have against Islamic terrorism in the world, it's going to mean that we're going to have troops in different parts of the world to try to keep things under some measure of control." While U.S. combat operations have ceased in Afghanistan, nearly 10,000 U.S. troops remain to train Afghani forces to fight the Taliban. These U.S.-trained Afghani forces have helped secure last year's run-off election of Afghanistan's President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, borne casualties and moved from a defensive to offensive posture. However, it's not clear if the Afghani army will perform better alone against the Taliban than the U.S.-trained Iraqi troops that deserted en masse this May in the face of ISIS insurgents, just three and a half years after American troops pulled out in December 2011. In late March, President Obama said he would honor a request from Afghanistan's president to delay the planned pullout of U.S. forces, keeping 9,800 troops in Afghanistan through the end of the year but vowing to end the American military involvement by the end of his term in office in 2017. "As president, you have to evaluate all that," Christie said. "But my inclination would be ... to keep them there. We don't want to just turn Afghanistan back into a place that becomes a refuge for terrorist groups to launch attacks against us or against our allies in Europe." MORE CHRIS CHRISTIE Claude Brodesser-Akner may be reached at cbrodesser@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @ClaudeBrodesser. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook. |
Origami, the art of paper folding, only works when you fold in a specific order. Scientists at North Carolina State University have taken that concept one step further: with hands-free origami that folds itself. Researchers used polymer sheets that were cut into specific shapes, which would eventually fold into a cube or an origami flower. Lines of colored link (yellow, blue, and red) were printed on parts of the sheet that would be folded. They then used blue, red, and green colored lights to heat up the plastic. The printed lines absorb more energy than the rest of the material, and so specific colored lines would heat up when exposed to certain colored lights. For instance, when the sheet was blasted with red light, the lines of blue ink would heat up and begin to bend. By changing the color of the lights, researchers could control the order in which the sheet would fold remotely . Researchers hope this discovery can be applied to space technology, like folding solar panels on satellites, or even medical devices, which need to be assembled in sterile environments without humans. Watch our video to see how the self-folding origami works. |
Tony Abbott hoses down Kevin Rudd's suggestions he discussed NBN with Rupert Murdoch Updated The Federal Opposition has rubbished suggestions Tony Abbott discussed the National Broadband Network with media mogul Rupert Murdoch. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has accused his political rival of conspiring with Mr Murdoch over the future of Labor's multi-billion-dollar broadband policy. But Mr Abbott says the NBN has never been a topic of conversation with Mr Murdoch. "I do from time to time talk to Rupert Murdoch. My discussions with Rupert Murdoch are so secret, I wrote about it in my Spectator diary a year ago," the Opposition Leader told a press conference in Launceston. "Have I ever spoken to Rupert Murdoch about the NBN? No, I haven't. Have I ever spoken to Rupert Murdoch about the NBN? No, I haven't. Tony Abbott "What we have got from Mr Rudd at the moment is further examples of just how thin-skinned he's becoming." Mr Rudd is caught up in a public row with Mr Murdoch, and has accused him of using his newspaper empire to attack Labor because he sees the NBN as a commercial threat to his Foxtel network. Mr Rudd has also questioned whether the News Corporation chief would benefit from the Coalition's broadband policy. Speaking on the ABC's program 7.30 last night, he also pointed out that the plan was launched in studios owned by News Corp. "I've only just been looking back on the files today and discovered that in fact Mr Abbott's NBN policy was launched at the Fox Studios here in Sydney," Mr Rudd said. "I would like to hear some answers as to what discussions Mr Abbott may have had with Mr Murdoch on the future of Australia's National Broadband Network." Turnbull says Rudd is 'not much of a detective' But Opposition communications spokesman Malcolm Turnbull says the Prime Minister is "clutching at straws". "[The policy launch] was on every station, every network. He didn't have to do much research. It was reported widely," he said. "[Mr Rudd] looks like Tin Tin but he's not much of a detective. "His attempt to create some conspiracy theory, to distract from his own failures in Government, is just the latest pathetic performance by the PM." Mr Turnbull says Mr Murdoch's views on the "reckless, over-expensive" NBN project are shared by many in the business community. Mr Murdoch has said he likes the "ideal of the NBN", but has questioned how the policy would be paid for. Amid the ongoing row between Mr Rudd and Mr Murdoch, the News Corp-owned Daily Telegraph paper has taken an anti-Labor stance. After controversy over a beer shared between Deputy Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and controversial former Labor MP Craig Thomson, the paper is today featuring "Thommo's Heroes". It depicts Mr Rudd as Nazi soldier Colonel Klink, Mr Albanese as Sergeant Schultz and Mr Thomson as Colonel Hogan - characters from cult TV show Hogan's Heroes. The paper has previously called on voters to "kick this mob out" on September 7, and declared "it's a ruddy mess" following the release of Labor's economic statement. Senior Labor figures have brushed off the Telegraph's stance, with Health Minister Tanya Plibersek saying it is "like reading a university newspaper" and Mr Albanese saying Australians would be "pretty offended that they are being told what to think". News Corporation has previously denied its newspapers are influenced by Foxtel's interests. "Any suggestion that the editorial position of our newspapers is based upon the commercial interests of Foxtel demonstrates a complete ignorance of both our business and of Foxtel," it said in a statement on Wednesday. Topics: government-and-politics, federal-elections, federal-government, abbott-tony, internet-technology, information-and-communication, print-media, business-economics-and-finance, australia First posted |
— Crumbs is shuttering all of its stores just a week after the struggling cupcake shop operator was delisted from the Nasdaq. The New York City-based company said all employees were notified of the closures Monday. A representative for Crumbs could not immediately say how many workers were affected or how many stores it had remaining on its last day. “Regrettably Crumbs has been forced to cease operations and is immediately attending to the dislocation of its employees while it evaluates its limited remaining options,” the company said in an emailed statement. That will include filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation. A press release from its website in March listed 65 locations in 12 states and Washington, D.C. The website had not been updated with notification of the closures late Monday. “I came to get some cupcakes for my son and all of a sudden I see it’s closed,” Upper West Side resident Noel Mercedes told CBS 2’s Tony Aiello. “I went there today to get a cupcake. It’s a shame they had excellent coffee too! (Disappointed?) Disappointed, but I don’t know the cupcake craze, maybe it’s over?” said Upper West Side resident Robin Tendler. New Yorker Jason Bauer started Crumbs in 2003 with his wife Mia, selling giant cupcakes in flavors including Cookie Dough and Girl Scouts Thin Mints. They sold half of their stake for $10 million just before the company went public in 2011, Aiello reported. In three years the stock tumbled from $13 a share down to 35 cents a share. For the three months ending on March 31, Crumbs Bake Shop Inc. reported a loss of $3.8 million, steeper than the loss of $2 million from the same period a year ago. The company had warned in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission this past May that it “may be forced to curtail or cease its activities” if its operations didn’t generate enough cash flow. Crumbs struggled as consumers became more calorie and cost conscious. A single specialty cupcake had as many as 1,050 calories and a single specialty cake could set you back $34, Aiello reported. “A lot of people are counting each penny and may not be willing to spend $7, $8, $9 for a cupcake right now when you could go without and maybe even reduce the waistline a little,” said business consultant David Selig. As of the end of last year, Crumbs listed about 165 full-time employees and about 655 part-time hourly employees working in its stores. “I’m emotionally frazzled, but at the end of the day I just want to put a smile on my customers’ face,” Crumbs employee Sandra Davis told Aiello. The news generated a lot of commentary on our Facebook page. “Cupcake fad over,” wrote Myra Garcia. “Bummer. Who doesn’t love cupcakes?” wrote Andrea Perez. “I’m sorry for the employees, but not surprised this has happened. For how many years have we been eating them? Like everything else, cupcakes were a fad food; I’m curious to see what’s next on the horizon,” wrote Rachel Corso Poland. When Crumbs opened on the Upper West Side, it boasted a menu of an “irresistible blend of comfort-oriented classics and elegant baked goods.” The chain offered more than 50 varieties, each baked fresh daily and a new cupcake of the week every Monday. Cupcakes came in three main sizes from the 1-inch “taste” to the 6.5-inch “colossal.” You may also be interested in these stories: (TM and © Copyright 2014 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2014 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.) |
LOS BAÑOS, Laguna—When a team of scientists went up the enchanted Mt. Banahaw in 1998, they had been warned of mystical forest creatures. Though no one had ever seen them before, the locals believed in these “little people,” whether dwarves or fairies, whose creepy giggles resound once the sun sets. ADVERTISEMENT “True enough, we did hear it,”said Dr. Ireneo Lit Jr., a curator of the Museum of Natural History-University of the Philippines Los Baños (MNH-UPLB). “It sounded like ‘hihihi,’—very typical of the witches laughter we hear from movies,” he recalled. Not one to be easily spooked, Lit followed the sound that led him to a tree on the mountain peak. There he found no dwarf or fairy but a tiny, noisy cicada, no more than an inch long, that seemed to be making fun of him. Cicadas, popularly known in Filipino as “kuliglig,” are insects known for making a distinct sound. So far, only 15 species of this genus, Psithyristria, had been discovered and all of them from Luzon island. The most recently discovered was the Psithyristria ridibunda sp. nov. or the “laughing cicada,” which produces a sound very similar to someone laughing. Lit was able to collect three samples of the laughing cicada during a 1998 biodiversity documentation to Mt. Banahaw de Lucban, a part of the Mt. Banahaw range in Quezon province. But he said he had to set aside the study for years after being appointed director of MNH. In 2011 though, during a Manila forum of science experts from the California Academy of Sciences, Lit mentioned about the laughing creatures he had collected from Lucban town. The thought of an insect laughing caught the attention of the local and international media that reported it as one of the 300 new species discovered in the Philippines. “I did not get the chance to correct (the reports) but at that time, it was still ‘unknown’ or has not been (scientifically) described,” Lit explained in a phone interview on Sunday. By this, he meant that no formal study has been completed to confirm that the laughing cicada was a newly discovered species. It was only in 2014 that Lit finally found the chance to revisit his cicada specimen. He collaborated with cicada expert Dr. Young June Lee of the University of Connecticut for the description of the laughing cicada that eventually proved that it was new to science. ADVERTISEMENT Lit and Lee published the science description on the New Zealand journal Zootaxa on April 21, 2015. MNH issued a statement regarding the publication on Friday. Among the 15 species, the laughing cicada is closely similar to the Psithyristria incredibilis Lee & Hill, 2010, Lit said. It is also known for its unique “laughing” sound that its male produces to attract the female. “That’s why there is this sexist joke among entomologists that the male cicadas are the luckiest (male species), because they have silent wives,” he quipped. Lit said the discovery of the laughing cicada dispels myths about mountain elementals but opens a lot of new doors for science research. These new species are also found only in the densest forests on mountain peaks and preserving their natural habitat is one sure way to keep these laughing creatures happy, he said. Read Next LATEST STORIES MOST READ |
The payment system is being increasingly taken over by cashless payment mechanism and contactless payments are soon becoming the new normal. In the United Kingdom, the spending limit on contactless payment has been increased to £30, up from £20, as reported by Wired UK. With the supermarket spending average around £25, more customers will now resort to the increasingly popular payment method. According to The UK Cards Association (UKCA), while some of the payment terminals might not be updated to support the new limit, most card terminals should already be able to process the higher transaction. "The growth in contactless payments shows people want to use contactless cards and increasing the limit gives customers even more opportunities to pay in this way," said Graham Peacop, chief executive of UKCA. The industry trade body also noted that despite increased use, fraud on contactless cards was still "extremely low" at one penny for every £100. It is worth mentioning here that bitcoin has been providing this contactless payment service for quite some time now, notes Inside Bitcoins. OneBit, a Bitcoin startup, is developing an exclusive wallet app that will enable users to make contactless mobile payments. There are several other examples of Bitcoin wallets, which enable contactless payments. Airbitz offers the ability to send bitcoins via Bluetooth, Circle offers a digital money platform that delivers streamlined, user-friendly functionality similar to that of traditional online payment tools. Given the pace at which the payment technology is developing, cash transactions will soon become a thing of the past. |
Hundreds of teens turned out for what’s been described as a flash mob incident last Monday. Twenty received citations for disorderly conduct for the disruption, which happened along 15th Street near City Hall. Several people were injured. Police Commissioner Richard Ross said “they were actually beaten, maced and claim to have even been tased,” adding that four of the teens were being investigated for assault. This would appear to be the fourth such flash mob since October, raising questions of why these incidents continue to happen in Philly. Around 10 teens told Billy Penn last week that they believe kids flash mob for attention. “I think they’re trying to show off in front of people,” said Irvin Dinkins, 16, while on South Street with a friend Thursday. “I don’t know,” Vasean White, 15, who was also with friends, just below Ninth and South, before adding, “To get recognition. They want to be cool.” “Birds of a feather flock together. Some people just come by association, like parties,” said Kezia Lawrence, 17, while sneaker shopping Friday. “If they don’t have that parental guidance, they look to the streets and their friends to see their way through,” said Kenyatta Smalley, 17, who was a shopping with Lawrence. “And sometimes, it don’t always work like it should.” What’s a flash mob, anyway? We can trace these Philadelphia flash mobs to the summer of 2009, but we should probably start further back than that, to the term’s coinage. You might associate the term flash mob with a group of people who agree to show up at a mall at a predetermined time for a surprise dance routine or theatrical demonstration. That perception comes directly from the term’s original use. The first flash mob is largely thought to have happened in 2003: Bill Wasik, an editor at Harper’s, organized a large performance art event in Midtown Manhattan’s Macy’s. After this, coordinated flash mobs of this nature became something of a craze, of course propelled through social media, where such events could be easily orchestrated and captured. The earliest such “Philly mob” incident we found took place on South Street in May 2009, when thousands of teenagers gathered after coordinating plans through social media. “A few dozen outliers in this adolescent crowd turned violent, ransacking a convenience store, pulling drivers from their cars and, in the most serious incident of the evening, assaulting a cyclist and leaving him unconscious and bleeding in the street,” researchers Christian DuComb and Jessica Benmen wrote in a paper on the phenomenon. It was local media that called it a flash mob. DuComb and Benmen found that in the first quarter of 2010, there were four violent mob incidents. When these mass disturbances made national headlines that March, Wasik told the New York Times that he was surprised the trend he started had gone in that direction: “It’s terrible that these Philly mobs have turned violent.” At the time, these “mobs” were also taking place in other cities, like Chicago and DC, but the frequency of incidents in Philadelphia in 2010 made the city stand out in national coverage. And the fights and attacks that took place led to injuries, many gruesome, of both students and passersby. The cyclist who was injured in the first flash mob was reportedly attacked by roughly eight people, and abandoned by his attackers while he had a serious seizure. In 2010, a suburban uninsured waitress accumulated $7,000 in dental and medical costs after she was punched on South Street during a mob, leaving a front tooth busted and her upper lip split. In 2011, local journalist Emily Guendelsberger, whose name was in the news recently for allegedly conning her way into the GOP retreat and leaking recordings of discussions there, was left with a broken leg after teens attacked the group she was with near Broad and Green. Fear spread throughout the city that flash mobbing kids were a menace. As many young people who attended social media organized events peacefully, the media would later be accused of fear mongering, but Philadelphia’s politicians also had strong language for the incidents. Then-City Councilman Jim Kenney called it “urban terrorism” in 2010. In a now-infamous remarks, then-Mayor Michael Nutter condemned the craze while speaking to his church in 2011: “You’ve damaged yourself, you’ve damaged another person, you’ve damaged your peers and, quite honestly, you’ve damaged your own race.” Nutter’s comments, and the setting where he shared them, were significant. A common critique of the discourse around flash mobs (especially because of its bifurcated usage— corresponding to lighthearted dance celebrations in a whiter, more suburban context, but being used to signify violence when describing the actions of Philadelphia’s black youth) is that the term is highly racialized. “It’s almost as if the emphasis shifted from flash to mob,” said Vanessa Massaro, an urban geographer who studied Philadelphia’s flash mobs in 2011. “It’s just such a conversation that continues criminalizing youth in Philadelphia… but not looking at the services that aren’t available to them.” Philadelphia Police spokesman Sekou Kinebrew was careful to say that the department does not use the term flash mob to categorize these events. “We’re aware that that’s a colloquial term. [But] we use terms that are consistent with the crime being committed,” Kinebrew said. So, Philadelphia Police treats incidents based on whether alleged disorderly conduct occurred, or assault took place, and so on. A more general term used at the department is “disorderly crowd,” Kinebrew explained. ‘Where they belong, and where they don’t’ There isn’t a large body of research that explains, based on student responses, why flash mobs occur. “There are a lot of assumptions that haven’t been empiricized,” said Massaro. One issue is the Philadelphia use for “flash mob” remains imprecise. This is a term that isn’t hinged on specific motives, that covers gatherings under a long range of sizes, from dozens to thousands, and isn’t limited by activities, encompassing peaceful and violent actions under the same terminology. Kinebrew wouldn’t say whether Philadelphia Police suspects a link to gang activity with last Monday’s incident, but did reply, “When those connections are apparent we do have resources in place specifically to deal with those.” More generally of flash mobs, he said, “Many times, it is disputes and rivalries that were inflamed through personal interaction or social media.” Last Monday’s incident fits the profile of the type of mass disturbance that gets the most coverage and backlash under the flash mob umbrella. It was in Center City, near Dilworth Park. There were injuries. The participants were largely black male teens. “In the past this has always been in the neighborhood,” anthropologist Philippe Bourgois explained to CityLab in 2011. “It’s kids getting violent on the main street of their neighborhood, the five to 10 blocks their universe usually stays in. What we’re seeing with flash mobs is technology changing this.” Bourgois also told the news site, “There’s a tipping point at some point, where kids just get too bored, and fashions develop around the conjunction of violence and new technology that’s available to young people, new levels of poverty, and lower levels of services going to youth.” As then-CityLab contributor Dan Denvir noted though, there is “no historical correlation between absolute violence and economic hardship,” but rather a potential link to wealth disparities. Aside from the use of social media and text messaging, another key dynamic is space. Flash mobbers are oft-described as students who study, but do not live downtown, and locations where gatherings take place are indicative of popular spots where the students congregate and routes to transit stops. Ninth District Police Captain Ray Convery explained to Billy Penn last year that many students hail from downtown charters, but invite friends who attend schools in other neighborhoods to meet up with them. Convery spoke to Billy Penn after an estimated 600 students had gathered near City Hall last March, spurring fights and hysteria as students and non-students rushed away from scrums. The Gallery, of course, was a popular meeting place for working class black teens. Its closure for renovations has inspired meditations on the loss of black spaces. But, as Convery detailed, Gallery renovations have pushed teens to gather farther west, like by the Clothespin at 15th and Market streets and the Wendy’s one block south of there. Convery said the district could handle crowds of 200 easily, but acknowledged, “I don’t think I have a formula, for 600.” Kinebrew wouldn’t disclose much of the department’s strategy for quashing flash mobs, citing the need to protect their tactics. He did say that the fencing at 15th and Market, that some locals assumed was an anti-flash mob fence, was not constructed by Philly PD. More officers have been patrolling the city’s core in response to last Monday’s incident, and Ross isn’t too happy about that. “We do have other things to do,” he said, according to Philly.com. “We have a whole host of other responsibilities, and devoting resources to something that really doesn’t have to be is ridiculous.” Massaro said that heavy policing in Center City, especially when it appears uneven in regards to other neighborhoods, creates a powerful distinction. Massaro pointed to the 2011 curfew that Nutter instituted to quash flash mobs; the curfew was put on Center City and University. “It sends a clear message about where they belong, and where they don’t belong,” said Massaro. “Those messages are not particularly subtle, and they’re internalized.” Massaro was critical of news coverage on a similar note. “These are young people who confront real incidents of violence every day and there’s not really a conversation about that,” she said. “What concerned us as geographers is that when [incidents] happen in schools or these neighborhoods where the kids are from, it doesn’t get this kind of coverage.” Teens had varying views on the additional cops patrolling Center City after last Monday’s incident. “I think it’s kind of better, because now people can go into Wendy’s and eat and enjoy,” said Raeven Wilson, 18, while in Forever 21 Friday. “Now kids can walk, and go home and be down there. But sometimes cops be drawlin’ though,” she added. Stephon Everett-Bey, 16, who was browsing in H&M, had mixed feelings. “I think they’re good, but I also think they’re bad because why is all the police down here?” He mentioned North Philly and West Philly, and wondered if added patrols would makes responses slower to those neighborhoods. “What’s happening in other places?” he asked. Donnera Massey, 17, was also shopping in Forever 21. She thinks the police presence isn’t having too much of an impact. “It’s not going to stop nothing. [Those kids are] still going to fight. They’re going to find a way around it,” Massey said. “Under the sub. They want to fight you— they catch you under there. Like, it don’t really make a difference.” “It’s extra,” said Massey. She pointed Liberty Place’s no teens policy as a particularly unfair: “Not everyone is coming down here to fight.” |
coolshots File this one under "Sad but true." The old American Dream of prancing down the wedding aisle and straight into your dream home has quickly become a thing of the past. In today's economy, renting is all the rage. In fact, apartment vacancy rates have fallen from 8 percent in 2009 to just 5.6 percent at the end of 2011, according to Zillow.com. It isn't the right path for everyone, but for newlyweds ready for a fresh start, renting could be the smartest move for your future finances. Every newlywed couple isn't a pair of rosy-cheeked college grads, but there's still a question about whether you should rush into throwing all your savings into a new home straight away. Amy Bohutinsky, CMO of Zillow.com, said she and her husband learned that lesson the hard way when they purchased a small home two months after they tied they knot. It was early 2007 and they figured they'd just sell and buy a bigger pad when they expanded their family. But the housing crisis threw a wrench in that plan. "Five years later, we're positively bursting at the seams of the home we bought when it was just the two of us," she said. "And we've lost a substantial amount of money," due to declining home values. Speaking of the housing market, although mortgage rates are the lowest they've been in years, don't get swept up in any sales pitch that tries to convince you these offers "are not going to last forever!" "It is my feeling that the housing market will continue to struggle till around 2016 or so, at which point, we'd be lucky to see modest gains," said Adam Koos of Libertas Wealth Management. And unless you plan on committing to a home for 10 years - which would hopefully give the market enough time to bounce back and your home to accrue value - Koos says you're better off as a renter anyway. "I think there is a lot be said for renting and being able to walk away from your home without incurring the financial hardships, hassle, and stress that home ownership brings in this kind of market," he added. That flexibility is a crucial factor for newlyweds, especially in a topsy-turvy economy where job loss and financial insecurity are very real possibilities. "Renting absolutely gives you the flexibility that if things in your lifestyle change, you can find a new place," Bohutinksy says. "Let's say one of you decides to go back to school and you lose one salary. Renting lets you go with the flow." Even so, it doesn't come without its set of cons. For one thing, you'll need to have any home improvements approved by a landlord or building manager beforehand, which perhaps one of the biggest draws of being a homeowner. (See 8 crucial tips for accidental landlords.) Negotiating is a crucial skill to have in this case, Bohutinsky says. Ask your property owner upfront about whether you're able to plant a garden or they're against you knocking out a wall for a nursery. (See 9 ways to renovate without ticking your landlord off.) And after you've vetted your new neighborhood to be sure the neighbors from hell aren't living next door, your final move should be a phone call to your insurer to sign up for a renter's policy. "Agents recommend at least a basic policy to cover what you own - unless, of course, you think it would be no problem to replace it all in case of a disaster," writes Your Money contributor V. L. Hendrickson of BrickUnderground. "And even if you think your possessions are not that valuable, all those clothes, furniture, electronics, and other personal items can really add up." In the end, the true beauty of a rental is that it can be as temporary or long-term as you like, especially as your family grows. "There are just some things you don't think about when you're a newlywed with stars in your eyes,'" Bohutinsky said. |
Some might find it unusual to see a Shui Xian tea listed in our collection of Taiwanese teas. Shui Xian Oolong Tea, otherwise known as Fairies’ Tears or Water Sprite tea, is a very famous oolong originating from the Wuyi Mountains in the northern part of Fujian Province in mainland China. Our local variation is made in the same style with a Taiwanese twist, featuring local leaf varietals grown in our local terroir and showcasing the roasting talents of our own tea master. An amateur of original Wuyi Shui Xian will find our tea quite surprising in the way it respects the distinctive aromatic characteristics of true Wuyi Shui Xians. Made from carefully twisted Jin Xuan leaves, this tea is oxidized (medium level) to retain the characteristic orchid scent, then, skillfully roasted to reveal the characteristic smooth wild honey taste and smooth finish with distinctive mineral notes. No overbearing, raspy finish here (like it is the case with some cheap Chinese variations you can find on the market)! The roasting skills of our tea master, that spans from generations of knowledge, shines despite his great humility. We are proud to showcase his skills with this deserving contribution. |
Dipa Karmakar, the first female Indian gymnast to qualify for the Olympics, will be performing one of the sport's most dangerous and difficult moves in Brazil in August. Photo: Karan Deep Singh/The Wall Street Journal Dipa Karmakar is set to become India's first female gymnast to take part in the Olympic Games in August. The 22-year-old sportswoman is known for being able to complete a life-threatening vault that has been attempted by only a few gymnasts in the world in a competition. The move, a front-handspring double somersault called "produnova," ranks as one of the most difficult in gymnastics. When Ms. Karmakar, from the northeastern state of Tripura, competes in the female artistic gymnastics contest in Rio, she'll also become the first Indian gymnast to take part in the Olympic Games in 52 years. India has won only 26 medals at Olympics since it started participating a century ago, while China bagged 88 medals in 2012 alone. Ms. Karmakar started the sport aged seven in a state which lacked proper infrastructure and equipment and overcame flat feet to become one of the country's best gymnasts. In this video, she explains why she chose to attempt one of the most dangerous moves in the sport. For breaking news, features and analysis from India, follow WSJ India on Facebook. |
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today approved capital investment subsidy to four industrial units located in North Eastern Region (NER), including under Central Capital Investment Subsidy Scheme (CCISS), 2007 of North East Industrial Investment and Promotion Policy (NEIIPP), 2007. The subsidy amounting to Rs.264.67 crore was cleared with a view to promote industrialisation in the region. The CCEA, chaired by Prime Minister Modi, also revised financial powers for approval of capital investment subsidy claims upto Rs 500 crore which will now be approved by the Minister of Commerce and Industry. This aims to facilitate expeditious settlement of claims. The grant of subsidy to the industrial units will not only provide incentives to the operational units but also boost confidence of existing investors as well as potential investors in the states of NER. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) |
Share “The major advantage of these smart eyeglasses is that once a person puts them on, the objects in front of the person always show clear, no matter at what distance the object is,” Carlos Mastrangelo, the electrical and computer engineering professor who led the research with doctoral student Nazmul Hasan, told Smithsonian Mag. The sight problem most people have as they get older lies in their eye lens’ inability to change shape in order to accommodate different distances. Today, this is remediated with reading glasses or bifocals, but in the future, those may not be necessary. The prescription glasses you wear now don’t help your eyes adjust to different distances — instead, they just change the range of what your eyes can focus on. That means that when you don a pair of reading glasses, you can see up close, but you’ll have to take them off to see far away. But the new smart glasses hope to remediate this problem. With lens that are made of glycerin enclosed in flexible membranes, these glasses are a novel approach to eyesight problems. “The lenses are set in frames containing a distance meter on the bridge, which measures the distance from the wearer’s face to nearby objects using infrared light,” Smithsonian Mag explained. “The meter then sends a signal to adjust the curve of the lens. This adjustment can happen quickly, letting the user focus from one object to another in 14 milliseconds.” And like all the latest smart objects, the glasses come with a companion app. By making use of a wearer’s prescription, the app can automatically calibrate the smart glasses’ lenses by way of Bluetooth. If your prescription changes, just update the app with your new information. “This means that as the person’s prescription changes, the lenses can also compensate for that, and there is no need to buy another set for quite a long time,” Mastrangelo said. Don’t get too excited, though. The glasses have yet to undergo formal testing, and today’s prototype isn’t exactly fashion forward. But Mastrangelo hopes that within the next two or three years, we may have a pair of smart glasses that will change the way we see — in every sense of the word. |
Palestinian Detainee Dies In Israeli Prison 10:35 PM Saturday February 23, 2013; Palestinian Ministry of Detainees, Issa Qaraqe’, stated that a Palestinian detainee held under interrogation at an Israeli detention and interrogation facility, died Saturday after being tortured and subjected to harsh conditions. The detainee has been identified as, Arafat Shahin Jaradat, 33, from Sa’ir town, near Hebron city in the southern part of the occupied West Bank. Qaraqe’ stated that a lawyer working for the Ministry Of Detainees visited Jaradat two days ago, and Jaradat complained that he was subject to torture and very harsh detention conditions leading to several health complications. Jaradat was then moved to the Majiddo Israeli prison where he was interrogated again and subject to the same torture and abuse. Some Israeli sources claimed that the detainee suffered a heart attack and died instantly. Qaraqe’ held Israel responsible for the death of Jaradat, and called on human rights groups to intervene and act on revealing all incidents that led to Jaradat’s death. Jaradat was taken prison a week ago, and was subject to harsh interrogation and torture since then, the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) reported. Jaradat is married and a father of two children. Palestinian detainees held by Israel sad that they will hold a hunger strike Sunday in protest to the death of Jaradat and the ongoing Israeli violations against the detainees. On January 21, the PPS reported that a former Palestinian political prisoner from Hebron, died at a hospital in Jerusalem after falling into a coma 50 days ago due to a serious health condition resulting from his imprisonment by Israel, and the lack of medical treated while in prison. The PPS said that Ashraf Abu Thra’, 27, from Beit Awwa village, west of the southern West Bank city of Jenin, was hospitalized at the Augusta Victoria hospital in Jerusalem where he fell into a 50-day coma until his death. 79 detainees have died in prison since the beginning of the Al-Aqsa Intifada (In late September 2000) due to torture, medical neglect, excessive use of force by the soldiers and interrogators, in addition to several detainees who were executed by the arresting officers, former Political Prisoner, Palestinian Researcher, former political prisoner, Abdul-Nasser Farawna said. More than 202 detainees died or were killed in Israeli prisons since 1967; dozens of detainees also died after they were released due to diseases they encountered in prison or due to complications resulting from extreme torture and bad conditions in prisons. |
“A driving, wild and hilarious ramble of a book, what might have happened had Hunter S. Thompson embedded himself in a network studio.”—The Washington Post “Dostoyevsky by way of 30 Rockefeller Center . . . the best new book I’ve read this year or last.”—The Wall Street Journal “This book is absurd fiction. . . . Scathing and funny.”—The New York Times “Hilarious and filled with turns of phrase and hidden beauty like only a collection of Norm Macdonald stories could be.”—Esquire “Raucous . . . a hilarious, innovative work.”—A.V. Club “Part personal history and part meta riff on celebrity memoirs, the book, it quickly becomes clear, is also just partly true (and all hilarious).”—Vulture “My three favorite books: 1. The Bible, by Moses and other guys 2. The Art of the Deal, by President of the United States of America, Donald J. Trump (a.k.a. President Trumpy) 3. Based on a True Story, by Norm Macdonald I have not read the first two. I have read Based on a True Story, and I believe it to be largely bullshit, but it is very, very, very funny! Thanks, Norm, for letting me be part of this Booker Prize–for–literature–quality effort.”—David Letterman “Norm is brilliant and thoughtful and there is sensitivity and creative insight in his observations and stories. A lot of comics over the years have been compared to Mark Twain, but I think Norm is the only one who actually matches the guy in terms of his voice and ability. I seriously f**king love Norm Macdonald. Please buy his book. He probably needs the cash. He’s really bad with money.”—Louis C.K., from the foreword “Norm is one of my all-time favorites, and this book was such a great read I forgot how lonely I was for a while.”—Amy Schumer “I always thought Normie’s stand-up was the funniest thing there was. But this book gives it a run for its money.”—Adam Sandler “Norm is one of the greatest stand-up comics who’s ever worked—a totally original voice. His sense of the ridiculous and his use of juxtaposition in his writing make him a comic’s comic. We all love Norm.”—Roseanne Barr “Norm Macdonald makes me laugh my ass off. Who is funnier than Norm Macdonald? Nobody.”—Judd Apatow “Norm Macdonald is more than a triple threat—he’s a septuple threat. He is smart, funny, wry, rakish, polite, rakish . . . no, wait. He is polite, insightful, and . . . aaaaah . . . warm. No. He’s exciting. Yeah. Exciting! You never know what he’ll do. Okay, then make that unpredictable. Add that up. He’s amazing.”—Alec Baldwin “Norm only has to grunt to make me laugh. And this book is three hundred pages? Sign me up.”—Sophia Amoruso, author of #GIRLBOSS “Norm is a double threat. His material and timing are both top-notch, which is unheard of. He is one of my favorites, both on- and off-stage.”—Dave Attell “David Letterman said it best: There is no one funnier than Norm Macdonald.”—Rob Schneider |
I was having breakfast the other day with a friend who was giving dating advice to his son. For purposes of his anonymity, I am going to call just call him "Son." My friend said, "Son, you're 18 years old, so I am going to tell you how you date. Since you are 18 years old, you are allowed to date a woman half your age plus seven." Son looked at him and said, "Alright, Dad. You're 50, so that means you can date a woman who is 32. And that means I can date a woman who is 16." From where did this ridiculous rule come? You can date someone as young as half your age plus seven years? It's so male-skewed that it's ridiculous. It's no wonder that so many women feel that men their own age are too immature. It's because of this urban legend that has gone around forever. Based upon this rule, the only time that a man can date a woman his own age is when he's 14 years old (because half of 14 is seven, and seven plus seven is 14). So the ripe old age of 14 -- the age when you still have pimples, are as insecure as can be and are unlikely to get anything more than a kiss from a woman your own age -- is the only time when you can enjoy dating a woman your own age? What about if your 10-year-old looks at you and says, "I'm ready to date, Dad"? Do you say, "No problem. Half your age is five. Add seven to that, so you can date a 12-year-old -- an older woman"? There is so much a 12-year-old can teach a 10-year-old -- advanced coloring, advanced texting, and so many other important life skills. Then you get a little older. You're 20 years old and, under this rule, you can date a 17-year-old. Great! There you are in college, and you get to go back to high school again to find a girlfriend. When you're 25, you can date a 19-and-a-half-year-old. So there you are in the working world for the last three years, and now you can date sophomores in college. You can go back to attending frat parties and having people throw up on you. When you're 30, you can date a 22-year-old. That's exactly where you want to be. You have been out in the business world for eight years, and you want to be dating a girl fresh out of college? Do you really want to date someone who hasn't actually had a real job yet and is still going out and drinking like a college student? When you're 35, you can date a 24-and-a-half-year-old woman. Now you're dating someone 11 years younger than you. Your friends are going to be really impressed that you can date a younger woman. When you're 40, you can date a woman who is 27 years old. All right. So now she seems like an older woman, at least. She's been around the block a bit, but she's still not a luscious, incredible woman over the age of 30 yet. Under this formula, you can't even date a woman over the age of 30 until you have hit 46. At 46, you can finally date a woman who is 30. That's when women start to hit their sexual peak. So at 46, you finally get to have incredible sex with a beautiful, mature woman -- but you have to wait 46 years to do it, according to this urban legend. When you're 50, you can date a 32-year-old woman. That makes sense, considering the fact that an 18-year age difference is something to which you should really be accustomed. At 60 you can date a woman who is 37. At 70 you can date a woman who is 42. Wow, at 70, the 42-year-olds are probably some of your daughter's friends from high school who grew up hanging out at your house and who have now gone through divorces. So finally, after all these years, you can actually date the kids you knew when they were kids. At 80 you can date a woman who is 47. That's exactly what women are looking for at that age. They would love to hang out with an 80-year-old guy. Here they are, still looking great, young and fantastic, and there you are with your skin sagging everywhere. Half the time you can't even get out of bed without feeling pain, but thanks to Cialis, you're always ready to go. So how convenient is this rule for men? And why can't women institute this rule? Why can't they go younger? When women date younger men, they are called "cougars," and people say they are messing around with younger guys. There is a negative connotation to a woman dating a younger man. As a man, though, you are congratulated if you are 80 years old and dating a woman who is 47 years old. Come on, guys. It's insane how ridiculous these rules are. |
Gameplay and item/skill builds Now that the lengthy introductions are out of the way, on to item builds and gameplay. Gemini should generally be played as a solo hero. Starting item build: Standard regen and a Pretenders Crown that you can build later into a bracer. I have found that a hatchet is rather necessary to lane with because of Gem's low base damage and low lane control. The ranged ability will net a lot of extra ck over the course of the lane and lets you stay much further back more often. Fire Ice Fire Ice Fire Twin Strike is not useful until very late in the game, when you will need to stay in Gemini form more and fight more often. Twin Fang scales rather poorly with levels, so I take it last. use your judgement when tweaking this build. How to conduct yourself at mid before level 6 If you are playing against a ranged hero, try not to be too aggressive unless the opponent is out of position. If you will inevitably take four or more hits from your opponent in order to get one creep kill, Do not ferry over a bottle or marchers despite what all your games of HoN have taught you. Gemini plays much differently than any other hero. Make it difficult for your opponent to get last hits and try to get some in yourself. As I said before, you main goal is to level quickly. Because of your points in stats, don't be afraid to be slightly more liberal with yourself than you would normally playing safe, but still be very careful. After level 6 The moment you hit level 6 you will pick up your game considerably. Immediately skill your ult and use it. Fire Ice Fire Ice Ice Fire Ice Fire Ice The r est of the midgame Note how I stay with the theme of pure stat items. The only stats you need are strength and Agility. As a general rule, strength should be emphasized more than agility. Buy a Mighty Blade and an Arm Band that can be built into Steam Boots and and Ice Brand later on. Carry a tp always just in case, but you should not use nearly as many tps as you would with most heroes. Gemini does not necessarily need early boots. If other items are a priority, buy those instead. Fire and Ice have static movement speeds that are not affected by boots. You should eventually build your Mighty Blade into a Frost Brand and get Steam Boots . Buy an Abyssal Skull after your Frost Brand for a huge dps and survivability boost followed by a firebrand to complete your Frostburn. Gemini's gameplay and role during the midgame is relatively simple to describe Fire Ice Fire Ice Fire Ice Ice Fire Note that the courier can deliver items to Fire and they will appear on Gemini when you merge again. Everything functions as if you had made a normal delivery to Gemini. The stat gain, however, will not appear on the wolves until they reform. This style of play is why Gemini should not try to build very bulky, large items until later into the game. Large periods in which you do not get any stronger create openings and chances for your opponent to catch up. Buy smaller items, such as the recommended quick blades and mighty blades to stay ahead as much and as long as possible You'll want to build a Brutalizer in most games. It is the perfect transition from your mid game Fire and Ice focus to your late game Gemini focus, giving stats for Fire and Ice while synergizing very well with Gemini's Twin Strike. Late game "Tiered out"ish items You'll generally want a Shrunken Head first thing after you start using Gemini more toward the late game. If you don't feel you need it, go straight for a Savage Mace for ridiculous dps boost. After your Shrunken if the game still continues on you may want to consider replacing your Abyssal Skull with a DPS item for Gemini (again, generally Savage Mace). He is not the greatest solo in the world, but he can get a reasonable number of creeps kills while staying alive due to Twin Fangs. He desperately needs early levels, however. As such, unless you are certain you will be destroyed in a particular mid match up or other extenuating circumstances present themselves, you should go mid. Gameplay in a dual lane is very similar to gameplay in a solo lane for Gemini the only difference being that you will be severely limited for a good portion of the early game in a dual lane.In general, however, this guide will assume a solo mid gemini.Here's the basic skill build:This build focuses onandform. Becauseandform relies entirely on stats, leveling your other skills is not as effective as simply skilling stats. I am not implying that the other skills are useless, but that that leveling them quickly is not entirely necessary. Having a high stat score early, however, to allow you to stay inand Ice form, is completely necessary.Your first skill is preferably stats, but if you expect a level 1 gank or some other form of danger very early on you should skill Twin Fangs to escape. Do not decide on what to level first until the creeps spawn and you are aware of where the enemy heroes are on the map.you probably should just leave it. Your main goal is not to farm (although you should certainly try your best), but to get levels. If you need an extra potion, which is unlikely, then ferry it over. Don't be reluctant. You should ferry over the components to create two Bracers as soon as you can.If you are against a squishier hero at mid with no escapes such as flint or if you have harassed the enemy hero an adequate amount, you can kill him or her right now. If not, leavein lane and sendto a lane that can be ganked. Focus your camera onwhileis traveling and be careful as you will be rather vulnerable to the enemy mid.If the enemy heroes in the lane thattraveled to are ever out of position, moveto a somewhat safe spot and teleport him to. His channeling should end just as the enemy heroes are being initiated upon for the highest efficiency. A more in-depth discussion on how to fight withandis presented later in the guide.Item progression for mid game.but very difficult to put into practice efficiently. Usingandat this point in the game requires experience and practice. Keep this in mind during your games and do not be afraid to experiment.andshould never be together unless they are fighting enemy heroes. There is no reason for them to move around the map or farm together and doing so essentially cuts their mobility and general utility in half. The general form the two wolves will be taking in most circumstances isfarming or pushing whileroams. Although the two wolves are very similar,is slightly better in case he is caught alone in a fight against opposing heroes because of his slow whileis a slightly better farmer/pusher because of the burn damage on his spray.Trips to fountain should be few and far between and if it needs to be done, use only one wolf to take the trip. The only time both wolves should ideally be at the fountain is when you are buying items, which will seem painfully slow after such mobile gameplay but must be done at times. When things are quiet and you have 2k+ gold saved up don't be afraid to take a little shopping trip.Try to push with one wolf whenever you have an opening. Your purpose mid game is to control the game and to ensure your team is always on superior footing. Gemini is the only hero that can completely produce an "everywhere at once" effect and this is where his strength lies.In essence, your goal is to be as painfully bloodily annoying as possible. Poke, prod, pester, follow, do whatever it takes to annoy the other team to no end. Mobility and constant awareness of your wolves and how quickly they can access each other is key.As late game drags on, you will inevitably fall behind true hard carries especially if you remain in Fire and Ice form most of the time. You will still be a force to be reckoned with, however, especially if you transitioned well into Gemini carrying with his Twin Strike and Shrunken. You are able to push frighteningly well and still output a lot of damage and are extremely survivable. your wolves may need to be together for longer periods of time as teams will be moving as five almost always. Of course, you should always stay in ult form as you have throughout the entire game but you can be much less afraid of Gemini himself getting his hands (paws) dirty. Focus down heroes as you would normally. Highest dps and lowest hp heroes should be taken out first and then down from there. Keep your wits about you and make sure a wolf doesn't get caught. You'll have much less time to react than during early and mid game if something goes wrong. |
In a Quebec first, a team of physicians at the McGill University Health Centre has infused a woman with Type I diabetes with insulin-producing cells, avoiding the need for a potentially risky organ-transplant operation and the lengthy hospital stay associated with it. The hour-long procedure was carried out on May 23 at the MUHC superhospital and was the culmination of a decade of research. The MUHC hopes it will become a centre of excellence for the procedure — known as an islet transplant — for eastern Quebec and the northeast United States. There is only one other centre in Canada, in Edmonton, that has developed the ultra-specialized expertise to perform islet transplants. The MUHC has already attracted researchers from Boston to learn more about its program. “We certainly hope that this will not only be an MUHC network resource but a Quebec resource, and that transplant centres in Eastern Canada and Ontario will use us,” said Dr. Steven Paraskevas, director of the program. The procedure involves injecting a needle in the patient’s liver and slowly infusing it with a solution containing several hundred thousand islets, the cells that make insulin. Those islets come from a pancreas donated upon someone’s death, but instead of grafting the organ into the body of the patient, only the cells are transplanted. “For some patients, pancreas transplantation may be an option, but there are significant risks, and the surgery often involves specialized care in the ICU and a hospital stay that could be as long as a month,” Paraskevas explained. By comparison, the patient is awake during the islet transplant and stays in the hospital for monitoring for just a few days, saving Quebec’s health-care system tens of thousands of dollars in medical expenses. The patient is also is spared a long, unsightly scar and possible surgical complications. Zohra Nabbus, a 50-year-old Pointe-Claire woman, was the first patient to undergo the islet transplant at the MUHC. Five years ago, doctors transplanted her with a kidney and a pancreas, but the latter was rejected by her body’s immune system. Nabbus had no choice but to inject herself with insulin four times a day, and she soon became prone to hypoglycemia attacks, losing consciousness after her blood sugar dropped. Nabbus had to give up driving for fear of blacking out behind the wheel and was consumed with guilt that her children had to take care of her. “I was always tired,” she recalled. “I was not active at all. I was sleeping a lot.” Within days of the islet transplant, Nabbus’s energy levels rebounded and the hypoglycemia attacks disappeared. “I am so happy,” she said. “I can now take care of my family instead of them taking care of me.” Before doctors can schedule a patient for the procedure, the islets must be extracted from the donated pancreas. The process is carried out in a lab that is three times more sterile than an operating room. For 12 hours, two highly skilled lab technicians, Craig Hasilo and Marco Gasparrini, skim the islets from the pancreas using a special solution of enzymes. Once that’s done, they test the islets for another two days to make sure they are sufficient in quantity and quality to be safely infused in the patient. The actual infusion is performed by a radiologist, Dr. Benoit Gallix, whom the MUHC recruited from France, in part, because of his experience with islet transplants. aderfel@montrealgazette.com Twitter.com/Aaron_Derfel |
October 10th, 2011 RMS – Too Crude to Lose When it comes to software freedom, Richard Stallman is a bomb throwing anarchist. That’s a good thing. The FOSS community needs a few bomb throwers in its arsenal. His job is to keep the bad guys, those who constantly attempt to usurp our principles for their own gain, at bay. More importantly, his job is to expose them, which helps keep us FOSSers from believing the spinmasters when they use Orwellian magic to convince us that “closed is open.” We are susceptible to such spin. We love our Linux, we love our GPL, we love our “free and open” so much that we often jump on the bandwagon to proclaim projects “free and open” just because they contain some open source code. Look how pleased many of us are that Android runs atop the Linux kernel. That means it’s got to be FOSS, doesn’t it? Nope. Nyet. Nada. We get confused. We think that OSS is the same as FOSS, which it isn’t. There are lots of open source licenses that don’t guarantee software freedom, and the closed source guys are always more than willing to take advantage of them. Take Apple’s OS X for example. It’s built atop one of the open sourced BSDs. Apple makes most of the source code available for a look see and attempts to win us over by calling that “open source.” But what can you do with with the OS X source code after you look at it? Can you install it on your vanilla version X86 machine? Can you distribute it freely to all of your friends? Can you modify it and make those modifications available to the public? The answers: nope, nope and nope. The list of companies pushing non free software on us under the banner of “open source” is long. There are also companies embedding open source software in their devices in ways that are completely contrary to license restrictions. We FOSSers often drink the Flavor Ade and accept non free software as free because we get drunk on the idea that we’re winning, just because there’s OSS in the lineage. As for free code that’s hidden in devices, we’d never even know it was there if not for the suspicious minds of Stallman and his ilk keeping a wary eye out. ********** So Stallman said that he’s glad Steve Jobs is gone. Now everyone is acting surprised, exclaiming “I can’t believe he said that” and calling for his head on a stick. This reaction is just nuts. Of course he said that. What part of RMS do you not understand? He’s a bomb throwing anarchist, remember. Also remember, we need bomb throwing anarchists – and we don’t need them to just throw bombs when it pleases us. When he threw the Jobs bomb, FOSS media was covering the death of Apple’s founder as if he was a tech Gandhi. Being caught up in the spirit of the moment, we were drinking the Flavor Ade being served up by the mainstream press. Wasn’t that an inspiring commencement speech he gave at Stanford? Didn’t his products make computing more assessable to the public and didn’t the iPhone revolutionize mobile computing? The answers: yep, yep, and yep. However, we were about to forget that those things were only a part of Steve Jobs. We were about to forget that Steve Jobs had a dark side and that he was absolutely no friend to FOSS. That’s when RMS threw his bomb or slapped us in the face or (insert your metaphor here). Steve Jobs was also a tyrant; you wouldn’t want to work for him. And what about the way that Apple, under his direction, was going about filing lawsuits seeking to stop Android at every turn? Or how about the fact that much, if not most, of Apple’s software is built on open source code that has been turned proprietary and closed – with very little being returned to the open source community? Yes indeed, Mr. Stallman is very crude. His farts probably stink and his piss probably smells like urine. I doubt whether RMS cares whether we like him or not. He just wants to stop the bad guys. He just sees himself as a software freedom fighter – which I guess he is. If we win the war for software freedom, a consequence might be we’ll find we’ve won other freedoms as well. I’m sorry that Mr. Stallman can be a jerk – but I’m glad he’s on our side. Related |
Last week, I told you about how Louisiana approved oil-fouled seafood based on a simple “smell test”. State officials opened some waters to allow fisherman to start hooking redfish and trout, and will allow shrimping season to open next week based on the ability to sniff out oil and dispersant in the catch. As far as eating the gulf seafood, let's just say the “smell test” didn't give me much confidence. But the latest tragedy out of the Gulf proves you don't need a keen sniffer to detect oil in your seafood – you can see it with your own two eyes! Visible oil specks have been found in the larvae of the blue crab, a species near and dear to me as a Baltimorian. In Baltimore, eating blue crab is a summertime rite of passage. A few dozen steamed crabs, caked in Old Bay seasoning and accompanied by a case or two of Natty Boh – B'More's swill of choice – is heaven on the harbor. (In the time-consuming process of cracking these crustaceans limb from limb, the beer goes a long way...) We had a mighty crab feast in the Green Chip Living offices last week, and I was actually surprised to see that the crabs were from Maryland. We've had to cut back on our local crab consumption due to pollutants in the Chesapeake Bay over the years. When I ate crabs last summer, the bushel came from – you guessed it – the Gulf. Now the crab population in the Gulf could be in serious danger. "In my 42 years of studying crabs I've never seen this," Harriet Perry, a biologist with the University of Southern Mississippi, told the AP. Scientists have found oil in crab larvae all across the Gulf coast, which indicates the crude has begun working its way into the food web. In some areas, 100% of the larvae contained oil droplets. Some scientists have contended that the oil dispersant used by BP may be breaking the oil into droplets small enough to infiltrate creatures like that have a shell, like crabs and shrimp. The gulf has a delicate food web, as Green Chip Living wrote about earlier this month. What's worrisome is that crabs reproduce around this time of the year, which obviously put them at greater risk. If these larvae are tainted with oil and dispersant, their ability to reproduce would be hampered. "I think they should be more concerned that we might be losing whole cohorts of these animals when they're very small, and we won't see the impact in the adults but three or four years from now," noted Dr. Martin O'Connell from the University of New Orleans. But the crab population isn't the only thing in danger... "So many things feed on larvae, that's the disturbing part," Darryl Felder of the University of Louisiana-Lafayette told Science Magazine. He also said it was premature to predict what larger effects the oil may have on the ecosystem. So while government and business officials are scrambling to convince the public that the leak has been plugged, the oil dissipated, and the seafood safe... findings like this are a stark reminder that serious damage may have already been done. In any case, it looks like we'll be seeing less crabs next summer, which is a bummer, not only for the crabs and their predators, but for the fisherman that are used to netting $300 million annually from the trade. If there is any encouraging news to take from this, it's that the larvae are still alive, despite the oil and dispersant pollution. We can only hope the ecosystem will bounce back and prove its resilience. But only time will tell.. Be Well, Jimmy |
New report finds 49% transgender people in Delhi, India, 37% in Phnom Penh, Cambodia and 34% in Jakarta, Indonesia have HIV A new report highlights the ‘serious threat’ that HIV remains to transgender people in Asia and the Pacific. Asia Pacific Transgender Network (APTN) and the Asia Pacific Coalition on Male Sexual Health (APCOM) released the report on Friday for IDAHO (International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia). ‘For Asia and the Pacific, HIV rates among transgender people are disturbingly high, ranging from 49% in Delhi, India to 11% in Bangkok, Thailand,’ said a statement released with the report, Overlooked, Ignored, Forgotten: HIV and Basic Rights of Transgender People in Asia and the Pacific. The report recommends specific research on the estimated 10 million transgender people in the region. ‘We need more quality research that is transgender specific, rather than transgender people being a sub category of MSM [men who have sex with men],’ said Midnight Poonkasetwattana executive director for APCOM. The trans rights advocates say that stigma and prejudice are just as damaging to transgender communities as HIV. ‘Marginalization leaves transgender people more vulnerable to risky situations,’ said the statement from APTN and APCOM. ‘For instance, they may feel the need to settle for romantic partners who may be abusive, or encourage unsafe behaviors, such as illicit drug use or unsafe anal, vaginal or neo”vaginal [a vagina surgically created for transwomen] sex.’ ‘While HIV remains a significant issue, it’s not the only serious issue affecting the health and well-being of transgender community,’ said Khartini Slamah, founder of APTN. ‘Transgender women and men still face a lot of stigma and discrimination, often on a daily basis.’ |
Breaking: CBO just pulls numbers out of a hat How else can you explain them thinking that premiums would go down with Obamacare if the government mandates and taxes were excessive and everyone was required to buy insurance but will double if people can buy at a lower cost and if they are not forced to buy? If the young were allowed low-cost options, they might just choose to buy insurance. When the government subsidizes anything and forces consumption, the price is always higher than if the market is free and not subsidized. Think of the cost of higher education. Something we can count on is that the media will just repeat these numbers with almost no questions, despite how far off CBO predictions have been in the past. After all, their agenda is exactly the same as the Democrats' agenda, and facts haven't mattered for a long time. I thought Democrats were for freedom of choice. |
“They’re doing high-fives in the Clinton campaign right now when they hear this,” Mr. Bush said. But policy details and disagreements, for the most part, replaced nasty potshots in the early going on Tuesday night, laying bare real fissures within the Republican Party on immigration, national security, trade and the meaning of being a conservative. The candidates used the 90 seconds they were allotted for each answer to promote their tax proposals, to lament what they said were intrusive business regulations and to delve into the country’s monetary policy. Even when Mr. Kasich sought to speak at one point when he was not called on, it was because he wanted to discuss a value-added tax. Mr. Rubio was not only able to avoid being drawn into the contentious immigration debate, but also repeatedly received questions that allowed him to answer with versions of his stump speech. Even he seemed unable to believe his good fortune when he was asked to make his case against Mrs. Clinton. He chuckled for a moment before unspooling a well-rehearsed argument: why he can prosecute a “generational” case against her. “If I am the nominee, they will be the party of the past, and we will be the party of the 21st century,” said Mr. Rubio, 44. Less than three months before Iowa begins the Republican nominating contest, the jostling in Milwaukee reflected the growing urgency the candidates feel to stand out in a sprawling 14-person field. With a pair of political novices, Mr. Trump and Mr. Carson, atop the polls, the other candidates appeared determined to remain in the campaign until there is more clarity on who is likely to be the nominee. But the muddled picture is clearly starting to unnerve many in the party. Some of the candidates expressed this frustration and sought to distinguish themselves by speaking more aggressively about their plans to cut taxes or create jobs — even if they did not deliver many specifics. They barely explored recent controversies roiling the Republican race, particularly accusations that Mr. Carson had embellished or even fabricated part of his inspiring life story. Asked if he was worried about those questions, Mr. Carson drew strong applause from the audience by criticizing the news media as biased against him. “The fact of the matter is, we should vet all candidates,” Mr. Carson said. “I have no problem with being vetted. What I do have a problem with is being lied about.” He then accused Mrs. Clinton of initially lying about the motives of the terrorists who killed four State Department employees in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012, and charged that the news media had not held her accountable. As for himself, he said, “People who know me know that I’m an honest person.” |
Enable and use Chrome built-in Password Generator Not many of you may know this. Google Chrome browser includes a built-in Password Generator, which can generate complex passwords for you when you are signing up for new online services. Currently, it is not enabled by default; you will have to enable it first so that you can use this useful feature. Chrome Password Generator For this feature to work, you will need to be signed into your Google Account. In case you are not, then open your Chrome web browser, type chrome://settings in the address bar and hit Enter. Here, under Settings, you will see the option to Sign in to Chrome. Ensure that the Password box is checked. This allows Chrome to sync the passwords that you generate using Chrome. Once you have done this, type chrome://flags in the address bar and hit Enter. Click Ctrl+F to open the search bar and search for Enable password generation. You will find the setting as Default. From the drop-down menu, select Enabled. Scroll down and click on the Relaunch Now button. This will enable the Chrome Password Generator. Now the next time you go on to sign up for any online service when you click inside the Password box, Chrome will suggest you a password. The password will be a strong password. If you select it, it will also save and sync your password using your Google account. You do not need to save the password that is generated. It happens automatically. Read: Google Chrome tips & tricks. This feature will work for sites that work with both Password Managers and Autofill. Read this post if you are looking for some good free Password Managers for Windows 10/8/7. |
Shortly after the London Knights captured the Memorial Cup, the Hockey Hall of Fame started securing artifacts from that thrilling overtime victory in Red Deer. The hall took Christian Dvorak’s gloves, Matthew Tkachuk’s stick, Olli Juolevi’s helmet and Mitch Marner’s black No. 93 sweater. That final item has put the Knights into a sticky situation, possibly on the verge of a messy court battle. Back in March, at the end of the OHL’s 2015-16 regular season, the Canadian Hockey League’s auction site offered up a number of authentic London game-worn jerseys for sale, including Marner’s black threads. The blacks are considered London’s third set of jerseys — their road and home jerseys are green and white — but the Knights wore them more than usual this past season. By the time bidding closed May 19, Marner, the Knights star forward and Maple Leafs prize prospect, had led the OHL post-season in scoring and was named both regular-season and playoff most valuable player. He would go on to be named the Memorial Cup MVP, tournament top scorer and CHL player of the year. Scott Galbraith, a Londoner and die-hard Knights fan, provided the winning bid and shelled out $3,510, plus tax and delivery, for an authentic black, game-worn Marner jersey. The highway construction foreman is an avid collector of game-worn sweaters, specifically Knights attire. He received a black Marner jersey from the team, but believes the sweater he paid for is now in possession of the Hockey Hall of Fame. The Knights, aware of a CHLPA (Canadian Hockey League Players Association) Twitter campaign accusing them of memorabilia fraud in this matter, argue Galbraith was provided with exactly what he was promised in the original auction process. “We’ve done nothing wrong,” Knights governor Trevor Whiffen, a lawyer, said. “What we were offering for sale on the CHL site were sweaters worn during the regular season. At no time did we say we were going to give him a playoff sweater, an OHL championship sweater or a Memorial Cup sweater. “We gave him a game-worn Marner sweater. That’s what he accepted knowing the Memorial Cup sweater was in the hall of fame. We said if you’re not happy with that, we’ll refund your money.” Whiffen claims Galbraith wants more than that and has threatened to sue the team. The Knights offered to try to reclaim the jersey from the hall, but wanted the collector to sign a final release in a confidentiality agreement before handing it over. “We tried to get you the sweater (from the hall),” Whiffen said. “We don’t think you’re entitled to it but let’s resolve this amicably, but you’ve got to give us a final release. We’ve tried to pacify him, but there is nothing that will make him happy unless we write a cheque and we’re not going to do that. “They just wanted to have a fight and get their names in the paper, I guess.” Galbraith has not yet made his next move public. The kicker in this dispute? Galbraith’s lawyer is Cohen Highley’s Gene Chiarello, second on the Knights all-time list of goaltending victories and a director of the hockey team’s alumni association. “I’m not discussing this case in advance of any litigation,” he said. The defending Memorial Cup champs don’t sound like they’re about to back down. “I think it would be completely ill-conceived for Gene Chiarello or any other lawyer to issue a claim,” Whiffen said, “but if they do, I can defend it vigorously — and I will.” rypyette@postmedia.com |
Though Aquaman will have been thoroughly introduced in Justice League, Jason Momoa promises the DC hero's standalone film is very much an origin film. During an exclusive interview with ComicBook.com during a Justice League event in London, the actor opened up about his next endeavor as the Atlantean hero which comes in the form of the self-titled Aquaman film in December of 2018. "Zack [Snyder] brought me in," Momoa said. "He definitely wanted this Outlaw Josey Wales. He wanted someone that wasn't accepted in Atlantis, wasn't accepted on land." "He really was this outsider and lived on the fringes of society. We talked about him just being raised with his father, this blue collar worker. His father was a lighthouse keeper, but I probably worked on oil rigs. I'd be underwater and I could just rip the rig off and just weld." The Aquaman seen in Justice League is really just "a weekend in his life" according to Momoa, as the true evolution of the character is to be seen. "And that was when I was alone," Momoa said. "There's people that I would save, that I could save, and there's people that I couldn't. The human side of me is that heartbreak of he couldn't save someone. Not knowing what to with these powers, he was a drinker. He'd just down that emotion. He couldn't ever get that out. "You're going to see that I really wanted him to be that gruff thing, because he has to become king. If Justice League is like seeing him at his lowest, and not just his lowest, but this loneliness that I wanted about him, so when we get to Aquaman you know why he became that, and how he had been put in that lonely spot. "And how he has to bring these two worlds together. Because you're going to see this ocean world, which we just pollute, and how do these people feel underwater with what the land does to the ocean. And this war that is going to come between the two, and I'm the only one that can link the two. He has to do it. He doesn't want to do it." In regards to the tone of the Aquaman movie, Momoa described it as a combination of an origin, an epic battle, and a big road movie. "In the story, we're going to see a couple different younger versions of me. And even before I was born, so you'll know where my mother came from, Atlantis. We've got to establish seven different kingdoms and the threat," said Momoa. "Surpassing Justice League, this moment in time is his call to become king. The only thing that can save Atlantis is me fighting my own brother. There's a big battle, and there's an epic [fight]. It's also a big road movie, because we travel all over the world. It's got that Star Wars quality of gigantic ships and guys riding sharks. It's going to be this whole world you've never seen before. You're going to see him start as this guy who probably rides bikes, works on cars. You get to see him this one way as kind of a dirty, dark, drunkard, and then turn into this regal king." Aquaman stars Jason Momoa and is directed by James Wan. Aquaman is scheduled to be released in movie theaters on December 21, 2018. Momoa's first outing comes in the form of Justice League on November 17, 2017. |
VANCOUVER -- The Conservative government's plan to move medical marijuana plants out of patients' basements and into commercial facilities was dealt a significant setback Friday, after a Federal Court judge ruled anyone already licensed to grow the drug may continue to do so. Judge Michael Manson issued an injunction exempting patients who are licensed to possess or grow medical marijuana under the current rules, either for themselves or someone else, from new regulations that would have made the practice illegal. A group of patients behind a constitutional challenge asked for an injunction to preserve the status quo until their legal case goes to trial. The federal government announced its plans to overhaul the production of medical pot last year, arguing the current system had grown out of control and was rife with problems ranging from unsafe grow-ops to infiltration by criminals. The new regulations restrict medical marijuana production to commercial growers, though the court injunction does not affect the new licensing system. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit argued the updated regulations violate their right to access important medicine, because marijuana is expected to initially be more expensive under the new system. They also complained they won't have as much control over which strains of the drug they use. The judge concluded some patients will not be able to afford marijuana if prices increase as expected. "This group will be irreparably harmed by the effects of the (new regulations)," wrote Manson. "I find that the nature of the irreparable harm that the applicants will suffer under the (updated regulations) constitutes a 'clear case,' which outweighs the public interest in wholly maintaining the enacted regulations." Under the terms of the injunction, patients who were licensed to grow marijuana as of Sept. 30 of last year can continue to do so. The ruling also applies to anyone approved since that date. Patients will be restricted to possessing 150 grams of dried marijuana, which is a limit set by the new regulations, the decision says. Health Canada had warned that any patients licensed to grow pot who didn't confirm they had destroyed their plants would be reported to the police. A written statement, Health Canada said the department was reviewing the decision and considering its options. "Health Canada is committed to the implementation of the Marijuana for Medical Purposes Regulations in order to provide Canadians reasonable access to dried marijuana for medical purposes, while protecting public safety," said the statement, which also repeated many of the government's arguments in favour of the changes. "It is also important for Canadians to remember that marijuana is not an approved drug or medicine in Canada." John Conroy, the lawyer representing the patients, said they clearly have a right to access medical marijuana that they can afford. "Economic access to the medicine is a factor, and not coming up with a scheme that covers everybody is not a viable exemption," Conroy said in an interview. Conroy said it's not clear how the ruling affects new patients who need medical marijuana but aren't already approved. They may be forced to turn to the new commercial market, he said. Canada first regulated medical marijuana in 2001, a year after an Ontario court concluded the law at the time violated the rights of sick people who used pot to alleviate their symptoms. The number of people authorized to possess -- and often grow -- marijuana has increased to 37,000 this year from fewer than 100 in 2001. The federal government says the current licences translate to about 3.5 million plants. In a hearing earlier this week, a government lawyer said the law is designed to protect the public from the dangers of home grow-ops. The government also argued there is no constitutional right to cheap medicine. Neil Boyd, a criminologist at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, B.C., said the court judgment is a significant rebuke of the government's policies around medical marijuana. "It's pretty clear that the way in which the government has gone about this has really very little to do with science or medicine," said Boyd. "The people who are growing to suit their own needs have very legitimate concerns about what expenses might be involved in this new system and what the different strains will be, and that doesn't seem to be a big part of what the government is encouraging." While the injunction application didn't specifically target the new commercial licensing regime, the government argued that allowing some patients to continue growing their own pot would prevent the fledgling medical marijuana industry from fully developing. The Federal Court ruling acknowledges that the injunction could affect the commercial market, but it says the impact will be short-lived and won't have a major impact. A trial on the constitutional argument has not been scheduled, though it is expected to take place within nine to twelve months. |
(Adds details on destruction, army comment; dateline previously ABUJA) By Garba Muhammad ZARIA, Nigeria, Dec 14 (Reuters) - At least 60 people were killed this weekend when the Nigerian army raided a minority Shi'ite sect and arrested its leader in the northern city of Zaria, the director of a local hospital said on Monday. The army said the Islamic Movement in Nigeria was trying to assassinate the chief of army staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai, when members of the sect blocked his convoy in Zaria on Saturday. The sect was conducting an annual ritual to usher in the month of Maulud, the birth month of the Prophet Mohammed. On Sunday, the army raided several buildings connected to the sect and the home of its leader, Ibrahim Zakzaky. They arrested him and killed members of the group, such as spokesman Ibrahim Usman. The group changed its statement on the fate of Zakzaky's second-in-command, Muhammad Turi, saying he was still alive on Monday and receiving treatment. "As of yesterday, we had 60 corpses in our morgue," Khalid Lawal, chief medical director of Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, told Reuters by phone. Lawal said 28 others were injured. On Monday evening, Major General Adeniyi Oyebade, based in Kaduna, said that there were casualties on both sides but did not give figures. Oyebade said Zakzaky was in their custody along with his wife. The Shi'ite sect claims that hundreds of its members were killed. The army took most of the bodies away, making it impossible to verify the claim. Residents said they heard loud blasts during the raids centred on the group's headquarters and Zakzaky's residence. A Reuters reporter was barred entry to the areas that were cordoned off on Sunday but could see smoke rising. On a return trip to Zaria on Monday, Reuters saw blood-stained streets and that the three buildings of the Shi'ite group's headquarters had been destroyed, leaving just the fence and open field where worshippers used to gather. At Zakzaky's residence, bullet holes pockmarked the central structure as well as a vehicle. Witnesses said the Shi'ite members were defending themselves with bows and arrows and hand-held catapults. Most of Nigeria's tens of millions of Muslims are Sunni, including the Boko Haram jihadist militants who have killed thousands in bombings and shootings, mainly in northeastern Nigeria, since 2009. But there are also several thousand Shi'ites, mostly followers of Zakzaky, whose movement was inspired by the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Shi'ite Iran. Iran condemned the attack on Monday and summoned Nigeria's representative there, according to its state news agency. Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif called on the Nigerian government to take "prompt and serious" action. Spokesmen for Nigeria's presidency declined to comment and referred Reuters to the army spokesman, who did not answer multiple requests for comment. A similar altercation between the sect and the army occurred last year during a procession. Zakzaky said that 30 followers and three of his children were killed. (Reporting by Isaac Abrak; Additional reporting by Bozorgmehr Sharafedin in Dubai; Writing by Julia Payne; Editing by Larry King and Leslie Adler) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. |
Once humanoid robots become more intelligent, what will they think of their human peers? (Issei Kato/Reuters) The Boston-based Future of Life Institute, backed by a $10 million donation from Elon Musk, recently announced its list of 37 winners of research grants in the field of artificial intelligence. Spurred by concerns from luminaries such as Musk, Stephen Hawking and Bill Gates that we’re ill-prepared for the coming age of machine super-intelligence, the grants — ranging in size from $20,000 to $1.5 million — are part of a bigger plan to prevent AI from wrecking the planet. At the very least, one hopes, the ideas and concepts being explored in these winning AI grants might help prevent some of the “unintended” and “disastrous” consequences hinted at by the Future of Life Institute earlier — such as robot homicides in factories or road collisions involving self-driving cars. 1. Keeping super-smart weapons systems under human control When most people think about killer AI taking over the planet, they usually think of a “Terminator”-like scenario populated by rogue cyborgs, Skynet and an epic battle between man and machine. While even the Future of Life Institute admits that a “Terminator” future for AI confuses fact and reality, there is a real need to make sure that super-smart autonomous weapons systems don’t start overriding their human masters in the future. Which might be why one of the grants highlighted by the Future of Life Institute was a $136,918 grant to University of Denver visiting professor Heather Roff Perkins, who is studying the links between “Lethal Autonomous Weapons, AI and Meaningful Human Control.” According to the project’s summary, once autonomous weapons systems (think military drones and battlefield bots) start to become superintelligent, there’s always a risk that they will start to slip the bonds of human control, and in so doing, “change the future of conflict.” 2. Making AI systems explain their decisions to humans in excruciating detail At some point, computers are going to far surpass the intellectual capacity of their human operators. When that day happens, we’re going to need to know how they think and all the little assumptions, inferences and predictions that go into their final decisions. That’s especially true for complex AI autonomous systems that integrate sensors, computers and actuators – all of these systems will be able to process and make decisions about much more data than humans are capable of analyzing by themselves. As a result, Professor Manuela Veloso of Carnegie Mellon University received a $200,000 grant to find ways to make complex AI systems explain their decisions to humans. As she suggests, the only way to make them truly accepted and trusted is if we make these AI systems completely transparent in their decision-making process. This may not be a big deal if it’s a matter of challenging your Internet of Things device why it turned off the lights at home, but a much bigger deal if you’re relying on AI medical assistants to prescribe medications or treatments. 3. Aligning the interests of machines and humans Once computers become superintelligent, they are going to have very specific interests in mind. They may not be afflicted by classic human failings – envy, lust, greed – but they may be driven by purely algorithmic factors, including a need for more resources. Just watch the Hollywood dystopian film “Transcendence” to get an idea of what happens when an AI machine demands more and more resources to fulfill its goals – it doesn’t end well for humanity. In order to align the interests of superintelligent systems with those of humans, Benja Fallenstein of the Machine Intelligence Research Institute is using a $250,000 grant to study how to override or reprogram machines to bring them into alignment with humanity’s interests. That could be tough if machines become imbued with a sense of their own infallibility — they might resist efforts by human programmers to fix errors or tweak initial mission goals. Fallenstein talks of the need for “corrigible agents” doing the bidding of humans, rather than, one presumes, “incorrigible agents” naughtily undermining the work of humans without us knowing. 4. Teaching machines about human behaviors and values It may seem like common sense that machines, programmed by humans, will think like us and act like us. Presumably, that would be enough to keep them from launching a robot rebellion. However, the big problem is that humans aren’t exactly the most rational creatures – we suffer from all kinds of biases and preconceptions. We procrastinate and we’re prone to impulsive, if not downright addictive, behaviors. Pity the poor machine that tries to learn from us in order to develop rules about the known universe. As a result, Owain Evans of the University of Oxford is attempting to develop techniques to help AI systems learn about human preferences from observing our behaviors. That means understanding all of our human foibles and what makes us tick, to make sure machines are not learning the wrong things from us. Machines live in a rational world of optimal decision-making, humans don’t. As Evans suggests, the ability to infer human values can be broken down to the following: learning the difference between “ought” and “is” when it comes to decision-making. For machines, it’s a case of Do as I say, not as I do. 5. Ensuring an economic future where humans still have jobs Like it or not, we’re transitioning to an “AI economy” where much of the work we do is fully automated – not just the blue collar factory jobs, but also the white collar work we typically associate with office professionals. To make that transition as smooth as possible, Stanford’s Michael Webb is studying how to keep the economic impacts of AI beneficial. That’s actually harder than it sounds, because the fully automated economy may change the economic incentives for humans. At some point, says Webb, humans may actually have an incentive to stop technological progress. The easiest way to think about this is if an AI robot were to show up at your job tomorrow, claiming that it could do the work you did — only better, faster and cheaper. Would you go down without a fight? *** All of these winning AI grant proposals hint at the complex ethical and philosophical questions at the heart of AI. They also suggest that the real question is not about machines, but rather, about humans. Will we be smart enough to design an AI future that is “robust and beneficial”? The difficult of answering that question might explain why the biggest grant of all ($1.5 million) was awarded to the University of Oxford’s Nick Bostrom, for his plan to create a joint Oxford-Cambridge research institute for artificial intelligence. That’s the same Nick Bostrom who helped to helped to kick off the scare around AI with his 2014 book “Superintelligence,” which proposed a hypothetical scenario in which machines decide that humans are just expendable widgets as they carry out a misguided plan to convert the Earth into a giant paper clip factory. If that’s really a possibility, let’s hope that this AI research center gets built as soon as possible. |
Share Currently raising funds on Kickstarter, the Flavour Bottle is a regular water bottle with a scented silicone spout. Since smell accounts for up to 80 percent of our sensation of taste, the idea is that the proximity of the scent essentially tricks your brain into thinking that what you’re drinking carries a flavor when in fact it’s purely water. Flavors available for pre-order include strawberry, watermelon, orange, grape, and cola (which can be augmented by using carbonated water), so interested parties should be able to find one they like to quench their thirst. “I am a future medical school student who had the idea when I was in my college anatomy class and learned about the connection between taste and smell,” Munir told Digital Trends. “I’ve worked on this product for the past three years, starting with a scented water bottle cap, scented ring, and eventually to a prototype scented straw and then scented spout. The straw worked the best because drinking through it allowed a person to breathe in while drinking, while the ring and cap did not work as well because a person had to consciously smell and drink at the same time. That is how we came to create the scented spout.” Each scent reportedly lasts up to twelve months, depending on usage. You don’t have to throw the whole thing away once the taste has worn off, though, but can instead buy additional lids to replace the old one. Munir said that the lids are safe, with the spout made of a material similar to the edible waxes that are incorporated into paper coffee cups to keep them from leaking. The flavorings have also been approved by the FDA. “We think it’s great for people who are trying to get in their water goals, but can’t because of their addiction to sugary drinks,” Munir continued. “It’s also great for kids to build up healthy water habits, [as well as for] diabetics as they cannot enjoy sugary beverages — but with this product they are able to get a taste of that.” Flavour Bottle prices start at $20, with a shipping (or should we say “sipping?” No, we shouldn’t!) date set for July 2017. |
The Battle of Bucharest, also known as the Argeş–Neajlov Defensive Operation in Romania, was the last battle of the Romanian Campaign of 1916 in World War I, in which the Central Powers' combatants, led by General Erich von Falkenhayn, occupied the Romanian capital and forced the Romanian Government, as well as the remnants of the Romanian Army to retreat to Moldavia and re-establish its capital at Iaşi. The battle was of defensive nature, as the Romanian Army was joined by a part of the imperial Russian army. The Romanian Army, led by General Constantin Prezan, had previously been unable to stop the German counterattack in Muntenia. The armed forces that made up the German counterattack were mostly German, two armed groups attacking concentrically, one from the direction of Oltenia and the other from the South of the Danube. The sheer number of troops involved, as well as the large area of operations, make it one of the most complex battles fought on Romanian soil during the war. The battle took place between 13 December and 16 December 1916. At the same time, between 14 December and 19 December 1916, the battle of Argeș took place. There, the Bulgarian and German armies led by General August von Mackensen reported a glorious victory. The outcome of the two battles was Bucharest being occupied on 19 December by the Central Powers and the Romanian and Russian forces' retreat to Moldavia, all the way to the Siret. Background [ edit ] After three months of heavy fighting, the Central Powers finally managed to push all Romanian troops beyond the Olt River on 26 November 1916. The next day, they began their advance towards the city. The Prunaru Charge launched by the Romanian Cavalry the following day managed to delay the Central Powers, giving precious time to the Romanian forces who were building up east of the Argeș river. Commanders [ edit ] The Romanian and Russian forces, made up of approximately 150.000 men, were led by General Constantin Prezan, while the Central Powers' armed forces were led by General August von Mackensen and Erich von Falkenhayn. Following a series of losses on the Romanian Army's side in Oltenia and Muntenia, the political authorities decided to appoint General Constantin Prezan commander of Army 1, with the immediate objective of organizing the defense of Bucharest. "Through a Supreme Order you are temporarily named commander of Army 1. As such, we ask of you report tomorrow, 10 November, at 10:30 A.M. at the General Quarters. You shall take Captain Antonescu Ion with you from the North Army."[2] The strategy [ edit ] In spite of the disastrous strategic situation that he was presented with, Prezan, alongside of the leader of the newly arrived French military mission to Romania, General Henri Berthelot, elaborate a plan of operations that involved a surprise flanking maneuver at the division between Mackensen's armed forces and Kühne's. That division referred to a 20-kilometer area between the German forces' two groups of combatants. Prezan ordered a concentrated attack made up of seven divisions against Mackensen's group. Divisions 18 and 21 attacked frontally to pin the German forces down, while Divisions 2/5, 9/19 Infantry and Division 2 Cavalry attacked the exposed left flank of Mackensen's group. At the same time, two newly arrived Russian divisions, Cavalry 8 and Infantry 40 attacked the left flank.[3] The battle [ edit ] The conduct of military actions Operations in Romania, November 1916 to January 1917 On 13 December, the Romanian Army began its attack, striking the 20 km wide gap between the Mackensen and Falkenhayn groups, thus causing the retreat of Mackensen's platoon and the reversal of von Falkenhayn's platoon's flank.[4] The plan succeeded in its early stage, as the Romanian and Russian forces managed to surprise the enemy. Romanian forces captured thousands of prisoners and significant quantities of material during this counter-offensive.[5] German General Erich Ludendorff considered the situation to be very serious: "On 1 December the left flank of the Danube Army was very powerfully attacked South-West of Bucharest and pushed back. The German troops who crossed the Neajlov were cut off and isolated. The situation most certainly became very critical."[6] Only the last-minute intervention of the 26th Turkish Infantry Division on 2 December saved Mackensen's group from encirclement.[5] The Romanians suffered a considerable setback when a staff car carrying attack plans accidentally drove into a German position and was captured.[7] These plans were vital to the Germans. As various developments took place, (General Culcer's "betrayal", the lack of involvement on the part of the Russian armed forces), the German, Bulgarian and Turkish forces, by taking advantage of their superior numbers, soon managed to recover and push back the Romanian forces, leaving the way to the capital open. Thus, on 6 December 1916, the German troops entered Bucharest and occupied it. In the end, the Romanian Government and the Romanian armed forces were forced to retreat to Moldavia. Even though the Battle for Bucharest was lost, it only served as a tactical defeat in the end, as the Central Powers failed their strategic goal of eliminating Romania from the war. The Battle for Bucharest is considered to be the most complex military operation undertaken by the Romanian Army in 1916, both because of the number of men involved and because of its length, as well as because of the length of its front line. Bucharest was eventually liberated after the Central Powers capitulated in 1918. Aftermath [ edit ] After the battle, minor actions were fought in the fortifications surrounding Bucharest between the invading Germans and the Romanian reserves which had failed to arrive due to the actions of Alexandru Socec [ro], a subordinate of Constantin Prezan and a naturalized German. The city was eventually occupied by the Central Powers on 6 December. However, in spite of the human, material and military efforts made by the Central Powers throughout this period, they failed to achieve their fundamental political and strategic goal, namely Romania's defeat and her getting out of the war. Despite heavy casualties, some 250,000 men, which were almost one third of the manpower mobilized in August 1916, and losses of combat material, the Romanian Army was still a force taken into consideration by allies and enemies alike and capable to offer resistance to further attacks. Before retreating, Romanian troops burned down the oil wells at Ploiești along with the surrounding wheat fields so as to keep them out of the hands of the Central Powers. Bucharest was eventually liberated after the Central Powers' surrender in 1918. |
This article is from the archive of our partner . Tens of thousands of Syrians, mostly Kurds, have crossed into Turkey in the past 24 hours, as ISIS militants have seized dozens of villages along the border in northern Syria, officials say. Turkey opened its border on Friday to Syrians who were fleeing the Kurdish town of Kobane, with approximately 300 Kurdish fighters crossing into Syria from Turkey to help defend the strategic town. Kurdish sources say that ISIS fighters are about 10 miles from the town. Refugees had been amassing along the border since Thursday but Ankara refused to allow them safe passage into the country, sparking protests. Saturday's decision to open the border suggests that Turkey anticipates a clash in the town of approximately 45,000 is imminent. "As of today, the number of Syrian Kurds who entered Turkey has exceeded 60,000," Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus told reporters in the southern Turkish province of Sanliurfa on Saturday. The new flood of Syrians means that Turkey is rapidly approaching one million refugees who have entered the country since the uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad began three years ago. The influx has creating economic and social stress on the country and, in some cases, xenophobia and other forms of discrimination. This article is from the archive of our partner The Wire. We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to letters@theatlantic.com. |
Sen. Bernie Sanders (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images) and Hillary Clinton (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) BOSTON (CBS) – After his decisive victory in neighboring New Hampshire, Bernie Sanders also leads Hillary Clinton in Massachusetts, according to a new poll released ahead of the state’s presidential primary. The Vermont senator holds a 49-42 advantage over the former Secretary of State, according to a Public Policy Polling survey published Wednesday. Full Poll Results (PDF) Massachusetts voters head to the polls on March 1. The survey revealed that Bay Staters trust Clinton over Sanders on who would be a good commander-in-chief, and on race relations, immigration and women’s issues. But Sanders has a large advantage over Clinton on the issues of cracking down on Wall Street and raising the incomes of average Americans, results show. On The Issues: Balancing The Burden Of Income Inequality Public Policy Polling says Clinton is still ahead in 10 of the 12 early March primaries, whereas Sanders only leads in Vermont and Massachusetts for now. |
Maybe they should look into used Crown Vics. In Italy, where distracted driving and auto anarchy is a cultural thing, a few police officers patrol in Lamborghini Gallardos that make well over 500 horsepower. So it was only a matter of time before a driver — even one trained in using the supercar — racked one up. Of course, it wasn’t his fault, according to The Guardian. The bruised and battered officer, cruising in Cremona, apparently tried to avoid a Seat Ibiza slowly emerging from a gas station. The Seat driver clipped the Lambo — no word of its speed at the time, but likely well under the 200-mile-per-hour maximum — and it rammed into a line of parked cars. One of the stationary cars was hit so hard that it flipped and landed on the Gallardo’s roof. The policeman and his passenger were injured, but not seriously, the newspaper said. The front end of the $200,000 police car was crushed. A trio of Lamborghini LP560-4s were presented to the Italian state police last year to help contain speeders on the autostradas (more than 4,700 people died on Italy’s roads last year). The cars are tricked out in police-blue-and-white trim and equipped with a video surveillance camera, gun racks, GPS, organ transplant fridge (in the luggage compartment) and defibrillator. |
poster="http://v.politico.com/images/1155968404/201702/1864/1155968404_5332903275001_5332868082001-vs.jpg?pubId=1155968404" true White House blames 'professional protesters' for rowdy GOP town halls White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Wednesday that “professional protesters” make up the “base” of the dissenting crowds at GOP town halls across the country. “Some people are clearly upset, but there is a bit of professional protester, manufactured base in there,” he said. “But obviously there are people who are upset, but I also think that when you look at some of these districts and some of these things, that it is not a representation of a member's district.” Story Continued Below Congressional Republicans, even in consistently conservative districts and states, have faced hostile crowds at town halls. Many protesters are expressing concern about losing their health insurance if the Affordable Care Act is repealed, as President Donald Trump has promised. Spicer offered no evidence to defend his claims, which Trump has also expressed on Twitter. The so-called angry crowds in home districts of some Republicans are actually, in numerous cases, planned out by liberal activists. Sad! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 21, 2017 “It is a loud group, small group of people disrupting something in many cases for media attention, no offense,” Spicer said. “It's just I think that's, that necessarily, just because they're loud doesn't necessarily mean that there are many, and I think in a lot of cases that's what you're seeing.” However, even some Republicans, including Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, have not been on board with the White House's claim. Grassley faced a rowdy town hall himself Tuesday, and he described the crowd as part of a representative government that includes people disappointed with the election results. "I want to make clear: it's all legitimate," he said. "If Hillary Clinton had been elected president, there would be people from the conservative end of the spectrum might be doing the same thing." Republicans face backlash at town halls poster="http://v.politico.com/images/1155968404/201702/3648/1155968404_5331844205001_5331796227001-vs.jpg?pubId=1155968404" Vice President Mike Pence, during a speech in Missouri Wednesday, said those attending these town halls and saying they were concerned about losing insurance are “liberal activists.” “Despite the best efforts of liberal activists, at many town halls across the country, the American people know the truth,” Pence said. “Obamacare has failed and Obamacare must go.” Spicer added that fears over losing insurance are “a false narrative.” “If people are truly worried about losing their coverage, they should be applauding the president's action for wanting to make sure we put a system in place that does what they were supposed to have been promised a while back,” Spicer said. “I think that's what I think is missing from this dialogue.” Spicer said the president’s Obamacare replacement plan would be out “in the next couple weeks.” |
The Thai military court has postponed their decision to indict the scholar and prominent socially engaged Buddhist, Sulak Sivaraksa, on charges of criminal lèse-majesté, or defaming the monarchy, for claiming that a historic duel on elephantback never happened. Since the military coup in Thailand in 2014, the lèse-majesté law has been used regularly to silence critics of the military junta. Sivaraksa appeared before the public prosecutor in Bangkok on December 7 expecting to hear if the military court would move forward and formally charge him with defamation or dismiss his case. He was ordered instead to return to court on January 17. “At least I’m a free man for one more month,” Sivaraksa told Tricycle in a telephone interview shortly after leaving court. The 84-year-old Sivaraksa is accused of defaming the monarchy because of his historical analysis of a 16th-century battle. At a history symposium at Thammasat University in October 2015, Sivaraksa questioned if King Naresuan had led his soldiers to victory in an elephant duel against the Burmese, or if the story was part of royal mythmaking. King Naresuan, who died in 1605, is considered a hero by the Thai military today. Sivaraksa reportedly advised the academic audience “not to easily believe in anything, otherwise you will fall prey to propaganda.” The crime of lèse-majesté in Thailand forbids criticism of the king, queen, crown prince, or regent, and is punishable by up to 15 years in prison. The crime, which lies somewhere between treason and blasphemy, is usually reserved for defamation of royal individuals who are alive, but in recent years has been extended to include deceased royalty. Since the military coup in 2014, the lèse-majesté law has been used regularly to silence critics of the military junta. The lèse-majesté case that has garnered the most attention since then is that of the student and activist Jatupat Boonpattaraksa, who last August was given a reduced prison sentence of two and a half years for posting a BBC profile of the current King Vajralongkorn on Facebook that the crown found offensive. Thousands of other people shared the same article. Since the military coup in Thailand in 2014, the lèse-majesté law has been used regularly to silence critics of the military junta. The International Federation for Human Rights has recorded more than 100 lèse-majesté arrests since the 2014 coup. “The junta’s abusive use of the lèse-majesté law has reached a new height of absurdity when a prominent scholar is charged with a criminal offense for questioning the occurrence of a 16th-century battle,” said Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch, in a statement. “Academic freedom and free speech in Thailand will suffer devastating blows if the trial against Sulak [Sivaraksa] proceeds.” International civil rights activists consider the application of lèse-majesté in Thailand as arbitrary, and because anyone can file a complaint against someone else, journalists often draw parallels to the Salem witch trials in the United States. “The police rarely dismiss lèse-majesté complaints because they themselves are afraid that they would then be complicit in the crime of defamation,” says David Streckfuss, an independent scholar living in Thailand and author of Truth on Trial in Thailand: Defamation, Treason, and Lèse-majesté. Sivaraksa is no stranger to lèse-majesté. He has been charged on at least four previous occasions but has been acquitted each time. Sivaraksa’s rebukes of the Thai monarchy have brought public notoriety to his name, especially in the 1980s and 90s. He is seen in Thailand by the mainstream as a thorn in the side of not only the monarchy but also other pillars of society, including senior Buddhist monks and political leaders. Despite his criticism of Thai society, Sivaraksa has long asserted that he is loyal to his country, the buddhadharma, and the monarchy, but that his “loyalty demands dissent.” For his speeches and writings, Sivaraksa has been exiled from Thailand on two occasions (in 1976–1977 and 1991–1992), jailed and harassed, and repeatedly subjected to criminal prosecution, but never convicted of a crime. The current legal battle is the latest in the decades-long struggle between Sivaraksa and the Thai establishment. Sivaraksa will return to the military court on January 17 to hear if they will proceed with an indictment. |
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump addresses the crowd during a campaign rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Dec. 21, 2015. (Reuters/Rebecca Cook) A Somalian terrorist group affiliated with al-Qaeda is using footage of Donald Trump in a new recruitment video, CBS News reported. The 51-minute video, posted online by al-Shabab on Friday, reportedly shows footage of Trump supporting “a total and complete shutdown” on immigration into the US by Muslims. The clip is bookended by remarks from Anwar al-Awlaki, an al-Qaeda official who was killed in Yemen during a US airstrike in 2011, saying that the US would become “a land of religious discrimination and concentration camps” and that “the West will eventually turn against its Muslim citizens.” The video also cites the fatal shootings of Michael Brown in Missouri and Walter Scott in South Carolina at the hands of police to argue that young black Americans should convert to Islam. It was originally posted via Telegram, an encrypted messaging app, and distributed via Twitter before being posted by SITE Intelligence Group, a private company that tracks Islamic terror groups and white supremacist organizations. SITE director Rita Katz posted screenshots from the video on Twitter, as seen below: 3) New #Shabaab vid shows #Trump proposing Muslim travel ban & Awlaki predicting bigotry & “concentration camps” pic.twitter.com/2KMpzYf3ui — Rita Katz (@Rita_Katz) January 1, 2016 4) #Shabaab vid exploits racial tensions in US, footage of police brutality, protests; Promotes Islam as colorblind pic.twitter.com/6ZA350EQzi — Rita Katz (@Rita_Katz) January 1, 2016 The video comes less than a month after Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said in a debate that another group, Islamic State, might use Trump’s rhetoric targeting Muslims for recruiting purposes. “And we also need to make sure that the really discriminatory messages that Trump is sending around the world don’t fall on receptive ears. He is becoming ISIS’s best recruiter,” Clinton predicted. “They are going to people showing videos of Donald Trump insulting Islam and Muslims in order to recruit more radical jihadists. So I want to explain why this is not in America’s interest to react with this kind of fear and respond to this sort of bigotry.” Trump’s campaign subsequently demanded an apology, which she has refused to provide. [h/t Think Progress] |
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