Tom Philpott recently wrote about the latest threat to curtail commissaries posed by the looming sequestration issue. Philpott explained that funding for DeCA stores could fall by $130 million, or 9.4 percent, if Congress fails to reach a debt-reduction deal by Jan. 2. Tom Gordy, president of Armed Forces Marketing Council, told Philpott that a cut of that size "would be devastating." Gordy further explained that commissary shoppers likely would see store hours and staff services cut by next spring, and might even see some stores closed in areas where two or more bases are co-located. Federal funding for commissaries is used almost entirely for wages and benefits of its 18,000 employees. Read Tom Philpott’s ‘Military Update’ to get the full story. You can also read about the efforts to protect commissaries. Contact your elected officials to let them know how you feel about the sequestration.


Original post: Very strange stuff happening.
Oil is plunging and right now there's an "urgent" IEA press conference about to start. Nobody knows what it's about.
Update: The IEA has announced plans to release 60 million barrels of oil in the coming months to assuage supply concerns related to Libya.
30 million barrels are coming from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Oil continues to get killed this morning, and is now zooming towards $90.
further. Greater tightness in the oil market threatens to undermine the fragile global economic recovery.
help bridge the gap until sufficient additional oil from them reaches global markets.
and to ensuring a soft landing for the world economy."
their coordinated action and decide on possible future steps.


I'm writing to tell you about a group of good girls and boys. They're a little older than most of the kids who send you a wish list, and they're probably too big to sit on your lap anymore. Some of them even shave off their beards! But they have wishes, too! I'm thinking about this year's Wood River senior class of 2012.
It won't be long before these students march to the familiar strains of "Pomp and Circumstance," toss their mortarboards in the air and disperse to the corners of the earth. We do our best to make their graduation night safe, sober and memorable by holding a Senior Bash party for them. That's where you come in. After all, what's a party without prizes, entertainment and good food? Some of this costs a lot of money. And this, Santa, is our wish list.
If you agree that our local seniors from three high schools—Wood River, Silver Creek and Sage—deserve a safe haven for their party, then please help us make their wishes come true. Please contact our Senior Bash co-chairs, Kristy Sutton (309-1273) or Barb Sargeant (720-0587), and tell them how you'd like to contribute to the senior bash.
We thank you, Santa and your generous elves who live both full- and part-time in this beautiful Wood River Valley. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!


Johnathan Thurston and Shaun Johnson will headline a spectacular line-up of rugby league’s greatest players at the 2017 Downer NRL Auckland Nines.
The superstar duo are committed to playing in the February 4 and 5 pre-season rugby league showpiece – with tickets on sale from tomorrow.
Thurston, who made a cameo appearance at this year’s tournament in the Beko Legends Big Kick competition, said he could not wait to take the field alongside his Cowboys teammates in 2017.
“I had a small taste of the NRL Nines this year, and the atmosphere was simply incredible,” Thurston said. “I made up my mind right away that I would be back to play in the 2017 tournament – and hopefully lead the Cowboys to another Nines title.
North Queensland Cowboys coach Paul Green and General Manager Peter Parr confirmed his club would welcome the presence of its premier player and captain.
“Every year he’s always put pressure on me, being that attacking style suits his game and I think he’d really flourish.
“Winning the inaugural tournament, I think the tournament holds a pretty special place in the club’s history,” Green said.
Cowboys General Manager Peter Parr explains, “The main reason we’ve decided to let Johnathan play is that he wants to play.
“He’s achieved a lot in the game, he’s achieved more than most players have in the game but the one thing he hasn’t done is play in this tournament, and he’s very keen to play so we’ve decided to let him do it,” Parr said.
“Everyone will want to turn up and watch Jonathan Thurston play. I sat with him the whole tournament last year, we sat together and watched it and he was so enthusiastic about it and wanted to be a part of it so it goes to show how big the tournament is, the biggest drawcard in rugby league is going to be there putting his skills on.” Johns said.
The second premier player to confirm he will be playing in the 2017 tournament - Shaun Johnson - who led the Warriors to the 2016 final with a spectacular individual effort, said that coming so close had made him even more determined to claim an NRL Auckland Nines title for the host club.
"Making it to the final this year in front of our home fans was an awesome buzz," Johnson said. "Obviously it was a real let down not to go the whole way, but we are determined to go one better in 2017. That won't be easy when you look at the talent the other clubs have on offer. I'll admit I'm excited to see JT play he’ll put on a show."
Martin Snedden, the chief executive of Downer NRL Nines promoters Duco Events, said the presence of the glamour pair in 2017 would add to an already impressive list of star players who have graced the event.
“Over its first three years the Downer NRL Auckland Nines has attracted a who’s who of the game’s greatest players,” Snedden said.
“Fans of world class sport have had the chance to see the likes of Sam Thaiday, Paul Gallen, Semi Radradra, Benji Marshall, Darius Boyd, Roger Tuivasa-Scheck, Greg Bird, Robbie Farah and the Burgess brothers light up Eden Park,” he said.
Grant Fenn, the chief executive of naming rights sponsor Downer, said: "We are looking forward to another wonderful weekend of exciting rugby league and outstanding entertainment in Auckland and I am sure tickets will sell quickly."
Mayor Len Brown said Auckland would once again be the place to be over Waitangi Weekend.
•	CORPORATE HOSPITALITY PACKAGES: On-sale now - contact Donna Churton.
•	More speed! More tries! More fun!


Terra Motors Corporation this week announced the release of its new A4000i electric scooter, complete with smartphone connection.
Terra Motors Corporation this week announced the release of its new A4000i electric scooter, which includes a smartphone connection.
The Japanese company said it is the first to mass produce a wireless, smartphone-connected scooter.
The two-person bike comes with a built-in iPhone dock, which can collect and store details like electricity consumption, remaining battery life, average speed and mileage, and navigation information. The Tokyo startup intends to learn from that data to help develop more services over time.
"Smartphone connection can provide new service to customers," the company said in a news release. "[The] electric scooter will be more than means of transportation."
Demand for scooters in Asia is especially strong  accounting for about 80 percent of the worldwide market  due to growing gas prices and high levels of air pollution. As a result, more than 30 million electric bikes are sold each year in China alone. Still, maintenance problems and supply chain issues keep electric scooters from competing with the more popular gasoline motorcycles.
Terra Motors hopes to change that with its A4000i, which will sell in mostly Asian markets for about $4,500, and is compatible with the iPhone 3G, 3GS, 4, 4S, and 5. An iPhone-less A4000 model will also be available, but pricing has not yet been determined. By the end of 2015, the company aims to sell 100,000 electric scooters worldwide, including its older SEED model.
The white-and-blue motorcycle boasts an average range of about 65 km (40 miles); its removable lithium-ion battery can reportedly last up to 50,000 km (31,000 miles). A full battery charge takes about 4.5 hours.
Motorists have been traveling with smartphone-connected cars for years, but usually via an auxiliary cable and a USB charger plugged into the cigarette lighter. Apple last month introduced its solution to snaking cords: iOS in the Car  a service that integrates iOS devices with a vehicle's in-dash system.


A company is seeking a partnership with the state of Delaware to invest $580 million in the state's shipping economy.
International port operator Gulftainer wants to invest $574 million to retool the existing Port of Wilmington and build a new container terminal on the Delaware River at Edgemoor, Peter Richards, CEO of the company, said in an interview.
Secretary of State Jeffrey Bullock said an agreement for the company to take over the existing Port of Wilmington could double the estimated 5,700 port-related jobs in Delaware. The past decade has seen Delaware hemorrhage blue-collar jobs and state officials see Gulftainer's proposal as a relief.
"This is a really big deal," Governor John Carney said.
Gulftainer is based in the United Arab Emirates and operates 15 ports around the world. The company opened its first terminal in the U.S. in southern Florida in 2015 and is a subsidiary of Crescent Enterprises, a privately held conglomerate.
"We see Wilmington and the Delaware River as the future and a major gateway import and export to the east coast of the United States," Richards said.
Under the terms of the pending 50-year agreement, the company will take over operations at the Port of Wilmington at the confluence of the Christina and Delaware rivers. The port is currently operated by the semi-public Diamond State Port Corp.
The deal also calls for development of a new container facility on state-owned land that was home to DuPont Co.'s Edge Moor chemical production facility – and 200 jobs – before it was shuttered in 2015.
Construction of a new container terminal on that property is to begin by 2022. Richards said his company will invest some $400 million in the facility. The state bought the 114-acre property from Chemours for $10 million in 2016.
Preliminary plans call for a 2,000-foot berth built on the Delaware River to be serviced by eight of the largest cranes on the river, Richards said. The terminal will be able to unload larger ships than the existing port which is on the shallower Christina River.
Richards said Gulftainer also seeks to invest millions in the existing Port of Wilmington.
Currently, the state spends about $15 million a year subsidizing operating losses and capital expenses at the facility, which needs more than $100 million in investment to stay competitive in the coming decades, according to a study commissioned by the port's operating board.
Richards said his company will be able to make the necessary investments to satisfy the port's current major customers, which primarily import fresh fruit and juice from Central and South America.
Those customers, Dole and Chiquita primarily, are moving toward greater reliance on containerized shipping, which is a third of the port's current tonnage.
The proposed agreement between Gulftainer and the state calls for $73 million in investment in the existing port through the next decade. Richards said the investment will allow the facility more efficiently handle containers.
"We can't afford to sit still (at the current facility)," Richards said. "It is losing money and the investment has not been there to do the modernization it needs."
Richards said his company has spoken to the port's major customers and in response is planning to spend $85 million to build a cold storage distribution and fumigation center on the Edgemoor property.
The agreement sets benchmarks for traffic growth in and out of Delaware. The port now moves about 375,000 TEUs – or the equivalent of 200,000 20-foot-long shipping containers – each year. The goal is to double that in 10 years, Bullock said.
Such growth would see Wilmington surpass the current 500,000 TEU annual container traffic at the Port of Philadelphia about two hours upriver. Investments in that facility have targeted doubling its container traffic in the same period.
The agreement calls for a 75 percent increase in traffic for non-containerized goods like liquids and automobiles.
Dennis Rochford, president of the Maritime Exchange for the Delaware River and Bay, said Pennsylvania and New Jersey have committed hundreds of millions of dollars in Delaware River ports.
This is largely being driven by the dredging of the Delaware River as well as aging infrastructure on the river's ports. He said it is necessary to protect business from going to larger East Coast ports.
Richards said his company has business agreements with 19 of the top 20 shipping lines in the world. He said leveraging that will grow the local business and he sees "huge potential" for food exports to Europe and West Africa.
"We are already working their vessels and working their customers at our facilities around the globe," Richards said. "That gives me a tremendous marketing advantage."
Under the proposed partnership, the state would become more of a landlord, initially receiving annual payments from Gulftainer of $6 million, according to Secretary of State Jeffrey Bullock. The state would also receive royalties based on the quantity of goods moving through the port.
Bullock and Richards said there is no expectation for the state to aid in the planned capital investments. As a matter of policy, Carney said it is important for the state to get largely out of the port business.
"The state has been subsidizing the port since we have been the owner," Carney said. "This agreement enables the state to get out of the business of subsidizing the port. That is the business model up an down the river."
Richards said such a long-term partnership would also see his company play some role in the establishment of a maritime technology training college in Delaware.
"We are giving our lives to this," he said.
Some members of the General Assembly have expressed skepticism about how the company will deal with the local union labor. The agreement stipulates that the company must keep unionized labor at its facilities at least at its current level, Bullock said.
The state was in a similar position with a proposed agreement to turn the port over to Kinder Morgan in 2013 only to have the deal scuttled after pressure from local labor. International Longshoremen's Union Local 1694 President William Ashe indicated this situation is different.
"We are happy with the proposal and everything that is in it," Ashe said. "If we don't do something, we are going to lose what we have."
Gulftainer was chosen after the state solicited requests for proposals. Bullock said the state received about 10 proposals and winnowed the choices down with the help of a selection committee comprised of members of the port's operating board.
The proposed agreement will be debated at the April 6 meeting of the port's governing board. Bullock said he expects legislators to debate the agreement in the weeks after.
State Sen. Harris McDowell, D-Wilmington, said he was briefed by Richards on the proposal briefly last week. He said he was optimistic about the potential but said there needs to be a thorough process once the agreement is put to the General Assembly.
He said he needs to see more detail on how the company will drive growth, protect union labor and specifics on how the deal is structured.
"We will have to rely on the expertise of those who put the deal together if we can't develop our own sources of expertise," McDowell said. "I think we have a deeper responsibility than that."
Rich Heffron, president of the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce, said Delaware is playing catch up with ports upriver but called Gulftainer's interest "positive."
"If you are going to bring in more ships and bring in more cargo you are going to bring in more jobs," Heffron said.


At least 112 demonstrators, including black activist Angela Davis, were arrested early today at the University of California as about 350 people massed for a sunrise anti-apartheid rally.
Marchers, including Oakland City Council member Wilson Riles Jr. and the Rev. Cecil Williams, linked arms and listened to speeches on the steps of University Hall. Williams, of Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco, was one of those arrested. The demonstrators were cited for blocking public access to the building and released.


The mayor of San José, Johnny Araya Monge, is the solid leader in next year’s presidential race, according to a survey by consulting firm CID-Gallup for the daily La República, released Thursday.
Araya, candidate for the ruling National Liberation Party (PLN), would have the support of 40 percent of respondents for upcoming 2014 elections, the number of voters required to win the presidency without a runoff vote, according to Costa Rica’s legislation.
All other candidates combined do not reach even half of Araya’s approval numbers.
None of Araya’s opponents, including Epsy Campbell from the Citizen Action Party (PAC), José María Villalta from the Broad Front (FA) and Rodolfo Hernandez from the Social Christian Unity Party (PUSC), managed to surpass 10 percent approval.
As for party preferences, PLN also leads the polls with 40 percent support, a clear advantage over opposition parties. PUSC received 8 percent support from respondents, PAC received 3 percent and the FA received just 1 percent.
However, the percentage of people who say they do not support any candidate remains high, with nearly a third (32 percent) of respondents saying they will not vote for any candidate in the next election.
The survey polled 834 people from April 3-5.


Ralph L. Spearly Contracting Inc. to Joseph R. Bauman and Jamie A. Bauman, Property Located on Camp Lane, $169,900.
Elaine K. Rackovan to Nathan A. Bowler and Katherine E. Bowler, 1210 Fairview Drive, $207,000.
Village of Nittany Glen LP to Matthew P. Sandbakken, 168 Rock Forge Road, $207,500.
Betsy J. Moyer Estate and Randall S. Moyer to Aaron Vonada, 395 N. Fillmore Road, $165,000.
Glenn A. Coakley and Jeri L. Coakley to Commonwealth of PA Department of Transportation, Property Located in Boggs Township, $1.
Maragret L. Teaman a/k/a Margaret L Teaman Estate, Kenneth L. Teaman and Lori T. Cummings to Cortney D Skripek, 621 Old 220 Road, $162,000.
Richard E. Young and Joan E. Young to Jeffrey L. Young and Linda L. Young, 151 Tracy Dale Road, $1.
Richard E. Young and Joan E. Young to Richard E. Young and Joan E. Young, 153 Tracy Dale Road, $1.
Sisay A. Shimelis and Olga I. Shimelis to Olga I. Shimelis, 114 Birchtree Court, $1.
John B. Lieb and Sandra M. Lieb a/k/a Sandra Lieb to State College Area School District, Property Located on Villa Crest Drive, $235,000.
Haubert Construction LLC and Fogarty Homes to Michael J. Dawson and Jennifer M. Dawson, 1195 Cottonwood Ave., $342,100.
Maher Hasan Felemban and Ala M. Felemban to Ala M. Felemban, 134 Gala Drive, $1.
O W Houts Estate, Robert F. Houts Estate, and Betty S. Houts By Agent to Commonwealth of PA Department of Transportation, Property Located in Ferguson Township, $1.
Konstantinos Moutevelis and Tracy Moutevelis to Commonwealth of PA Department of Transportation, Property Located in Ferguson Township, $1.
Charles A. Farrell and Constance B. Farrell to Commonwealth of PA Department of Transportation, Property Located in Ferguson Township, $1.
Duane E. Wriglesworth to Commonwealth of PA Department of Transportation, Property Located in Ferguson Township, $1.
Debra A. McGregor and Stephen L. McGregor to Commonwealth of PA Department of Transportation, $1.
Rebecca Miller and Neal Handly to Julie A. Haloua and Joseph D. Haloua, 2301 Tadpole Road, $559,000.
Gary D. Keck, Ralph W. Keck and Paul E Keck to Amir Rahman and Priyanka Dwivedi, 3181 Shellers Bend No. 3, $182,025.
Steven J. Pfeiffenberger and Anne Marie Pfeiffenberger to National Equity Inc. Trust, NP JR Dodge and Leslie A. Delperdang, 1292 Barnstable Lane, $616,000.
National Equity Inc. Trust, NP JR Dodge and Leslie A. Delperdang to Bobby Abraham and Tessy M. John, 1292 Barnstable Lane, $610,000.
Curtis W. Knepper and Florence Louise Knepper to Kimberly A. Dile, 240 Deepwood Drive, $88,750.
Edith M. Atmore Estate and Kathleen Eich to Samuel Atmore Estate and Kathleen Eich, 592 E. Pine Grove Road, $1.
Berks Homes LLC to Durga Zally, 145 Rushcliffe St., $345,950.
Kia N. Damon to Sean M. Bietz and Sherry L. Bietz, 118 Harvest Run Road, $327,000.
Henry Gong and Patricia M. Gong to Matthew S. Gonzales and Aimee V. Gonzales, 1641 N. Cherry Hill Road, $244,000.
Jianmin Zhang to Jianmin Zhang and Chunfang Yin, 1148 Longfellow Lane, $1.
Richard D. Lysle and Juanita W. Lysle to Kurt D. Reichenbach and Brandi J. Crabb, 816 Lower Georges Valley Road, $320,000.
Carl W. Drechsler a/k/a Carl Drechsler By Sheriff to Deutsche Bank National Trust Co., 114 Cobblestone Court, $60,000.
Rhelda J. Weaver to Gregory L. Weaver, 126 E. Henry St., $1.
John M. Pufnak and Angela S. Pufnak to Angela S. Pufnak, 125 Weather Rock Drive, $1.
Lois B. Paff to Lois B. Paff and Elisabeth J. Bala, 204 Shrineview Ave., $1.
Allen L. Metheny and Crystal G. Metheny to Allen L. Metheny, 112 Mary Elizabeth St., $1.
Kevin A. Zarnick to Chase Glickman and Ashley M. Stanko, 127 Dearing Drive, $300,000.
Putnam L. McCord and Becky J. McCord to Adam Fisher, Katherine Fisher and Jessica Neff, Property Located on Mudlick Hollow Road, $15,000.
Atta Lee Walk to Cathy D. Fisher, 6006 S. Eagle Valley Road, $1.
LSF8 Master Participation Trust to Michael Homan, 1203 Steele Hollow Road, $74,000.
Nellie E. Lucas to James T. Bowes and Lori A. Bowes, Property Located on North Eagle Valley Road, $1,000.
Joseph E. Blackburn and Kathy A. Blackburn to Francis V. McNamara III and Catherine R. McNamara, 122F Alma Mater Court, $235,000.
David W. Olds and Jennifer L. Miksis-Olds to Lauren D. Zarzar and Ronald Aaron Garner, 133 High Meadow Court, $397,500.
Sue J. Tuana Trust and Sue Tuana to Samuel H. Hawbaker and Janice I. Hawbaker, 394 Douglas Drive, $195,000.
Leo M. Waksmonski and Theresa Waksmonski to David G. Yeckley and Breanne J. Radin-Yeckley, Property Located on Camp Lane, $175,000.
DMP Northern Tier LP to Justin S. Moore, 139 Briar Court, $99,000.
Edward Kelmenson and Ann Kelmenson to Matthew J. Powell and Tracy B. Powell, 142 Brothers Court, $545,000.
Xiuyu Hu to Xiuping Zhu and Yongfeng Yuan, 105 Fernwood Court, $176,800.
LSF8 Master Participation Trust to Kin-Ky LLC, 208 Sheffield St., $49,900.
Marz Holdings LLC to Zachary I. Hamblin and Tyler M. Barraclough, 327 N. Second St., $78,900.
Watermiller Trust, R. George Wetmiller and Alicia A Wetmiller to Centre Investments LLC, 6 W. Presqueisle St., $280,000.
Richard Rider and Vicki Rider to Thomas R. Knepp and Linda A. Knepp, 310 N. High St., $255,000.
Jesse M. Darlington By Attorney and Bonnie L. Darlington to Jesse M. Darlington Jr. and Lynn M. Darlington, 246 Church Hill Road, $1.
John B. Smith to Brian J. Kolar and Nancy E. Kolar, Property Located on High Street, $2,000.
Brian J. Kolar to Brian J. Kolar and Nancy E. Kolar, 109 Creekside Trail, $1.
Valley Business Associates LP, Salvatore L. Nicosia Jr. and Pauline R. Nicosia to James Keddie and Olivia D. Hoover, 134 Pepper Ridge Drive, $69,000.
Michelle R. Thompson to Nathan W. Foltz and Victoria L. Daugherty, 508 Kinkead St., $105,500.
David Tutokey, Betty Lue Tutokey and Edward Burke to Allen F. Williamson and Rebecca S. Williamson, 204 Adams St., $79,900.
Carolyn J. Miller and Jerry A. Miller to Carolyn J. Miller, Ricky L. Bunning and Jerry A. Miller, 5585 Black Moshannon Road, $1.
Jaro Development Co. Inc. to Thomas J. Rodger and Colette Marie Rodger, Property Located on Tyrone Pike, $20,000.
David K. Pinkerton and Mary Ohashi Pinkerton to Danny G. Hartinger and Cynthia L. Hartinger, 247 Greens Valley Road, $470,000.
S&A Homes Inc. to David M. O’Shell and Melissa M. O’Shell, 142 Shady Hollow Drive, $270,200.
Grace Thomas to William E. Thomas Jr., 180 Thomas Lane, $1.
JFDC Land Acquisition LLC to Justin Leiter, 212 Jonathan Lane, $177,505.
Tyler J. Murtiff and Jill C. Murtiff to Christopher J. Maldonado and Kyla A. Maldonado, 203 Jennifer Circle, $186,900.
Alfred J. Engel and Trudie F. Engel to Mark R. Johnson, 136 Ridge Ave., $365,000.
Thomas R. Knepp and Linda A. Knepp to Kendra Boileau, 1315 Old Boalsburg Road, $267,500.
Bryan D. Heitzmann to Dane J. Brock and Rachel E. Brock, 1208 Westerly Parkway, $210,000.
Robert G. Saylor to Shamim A. Sinnar and Syed Nageeb Ali, 971 Crabapple Drive, $405,000.
Matthew J. Roan to Kevin S. Roan, 115 Sunrise Terrace, $155,000.
Jacqueline L. Hufnagel n/k/a Jacqueline L. Chiarkas to Jacqueline L. Chiarkas, 323 Bradley Ave., $1.
William J. Hall and Joan Kelly Hall to Marie E. Hojnacki and Garrett A. Sullivan Jr., 617 W. Park Ave., $1,015,000.
Mark A. Savino and Bobbie Jo Savino to Robert G. Crane and Linda Crane, 2802 S. Mountain Road, $292,000.
Donald L. Gomola to Donald L. Gomola, 220 Turkey Hill Road, $1.
Christine A. Kosempa Estate and Caroline J. Tamin to Caroline J. Tamin, 1007 W. Springfield Drive, $1.
Carlton L. Miller and Sandra L. Miller to Carlton L. Miller and Sandra L. Miller, Property Located on East Mountain Road, $1.
Carlton L. Miller and Sandra L. Miller to Carlton L. Miller and Sandra L. Miller, 1544 E. Mountain Road, $1.


The final round of this season's Scottish Championship fixtures has been moved from Saturday, 30 April to lunchtime on Sunday, 1 May.
Rangers' visit to St Mirren has been moved to that date with a 12:30 BST kick-off for television coverage.
The four other games have been moved to ensure all games start at the same time.
Alloa host Dumbarton, Falkirk visit Morton, Hibs welcome Queen of the South and Raith Rovers are at Livingston.
Leaders Rangers, who host Dumbarton on Tuesday, need one more win to secure the title and automatic promotion to the Premiership.
The sides finishing third and fourth in the Championship will play-off over two legs with the winner progressing to meet the league's runners-up, again over two legs.
And the victor in that semi-final will meet the team finishing second bottom of the Premiership in the two-legged play-off final, with the winner starting next season in the top flight and the loser consigned to the Championship.
Falkirk are currently second with Hibernian third. Raith Rovers are fourth and need one more win to secure a play-off place.
Bottom side Alloa Athletic's relegation from the Championship has already been confirmed. The team finishing second bottom will meet the side finishing fourth in League One in the promotion/relegation play-off semi-final.
Livingston are second bottom, two points behind Dumbarton.


The muted reaction to the resignations by Turkey’s top military officials demonstrates continued weakening of the Turkish military’s position and power.
On July 29, head of the Turkish armed forces General Isik Kosaner and three other top military officials announced they were “seeking early retirement,” effectively resigning from the armed forces. The three Turkish military officials reportedly were angry over the arrest and treatment of more than 200 military officials, including ten percent of serving generals, who currently are in jail on charges of plotting against the government. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan quickly named General Necdet Ozel as acting head of the military. The Prime Minister reiterated his support for a new constitution that will limit military intervention in civilian politics and downplayed the importance of the exodus of top officers.
The resignations by Turkey’s top military officers was a last ditch effort by the military to protest Erdogan’s arrest of Turkish military officers, an action that is viewed by many Turkey watchers as a sham. The Turkish military now appears firmly under civilian control with little political influence. Also last week, a prosecutor sought the arrest of another 22 military officials for plotting against the government.
Turkey’s military has long been the vanguard of Kemal Ataturk’s secular society, a legacy that is in conflict with Prime Minister Erdogan and his religiously rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP) that Turkey expert Claire Berlinski once described as “either the hopeful face of a new moderate Islam or the moderate face of radical Islam's new hope.” Since he took power in 2002, Erdogan has challenged secular elites and slowly undermined the strict secularism that the Turkish military has enforced for over half a century. The arrests of military officers conveniently weakened the only defender of Ataturk’s secular vision.
While the arrests of the Turkish military officers could conceivably be reversed by political pressure, a new Turkish government or a coup attempt by frustrated military officers, this is very unlikely. Erdogan is the most popular Turkish prime minister of the last half century and received a strong vote of confidence in June 2011 parliamentary elections. He has avoided radical policies and can point to demands by the EU to place the Turkish military under civilian control as a condition for Turkey joining the EU.
While the rift between Erdogan and the military could result in slower military responsiveness to civilian instructions or refusal to carry out orders, this could prompt the government to replace the entire military leadership. The real meaning of the resignations may be whether it means that Erdogan, now that he has finished off the military as a political force, will be emboldened to expand what many Turkey watchers view as a creeping authoritarian streak and an effort to push through constitutional changes that could fundamentally change Turkey.
Lisa M. Ruth is a former CIA analyst and officer. She is currently Managing Partner of C2 Research, a boutique research and analysis firm in West Palm Beach, Florida and is Vice President at CTC International Group, Inc., a private intelligence firm. Fred Fleitz is a former CIA analyst and Chief of Staff to Ambassador John Bolton.


Gary Illyes, one of our favorite Googlers, will be in be in both Sydney and Melbourne, Australia next week and you can meet up with him. Here is where you can meet him on April 11th in Sydney and April 13th in Melbourne.
On April 11th at 5pm, you can meet him at the MCA Cafe at The Rocks in Sydney.
On April 13th at 6pm, you can meet him at the Giddiup in South Melbourne.
Fine SEOs/marketers/content creators of Sydney, AU! I'm in town next month and I'd like to hear your search related problems, and try to answer your questions.


More than 20 months after closing the Bronx’s only bookstore, Barnes and Noble’s promised return has yet to materialize. Barnes and Noble in Co-op City closed almost two years ago, leaving the Bronx without a single general-interest bookstore. Corporate officials and Bronx politicians promised a swift return within 24 to 36 months but show no signs of progress.
The Bronx’s nearly 1.5 million residents are approaching two years without a bookstore, apart from a handful of religious, foreign language, or private university-owned book retailers. Once home to a thriving literary culture, the Bronx has struggled with a long decline in book availability. Barnes and Noble’s shutdown struck another blow to the chronically under-resourced borough.
The Bronx’s bibliophiles rallied behind the store and created an online petition that received more than 2,000 signatures, including several local officials, leading to the store’s decision to stay open. The impact of the grassroots effort, however, proved limited when the Barnes and Noble closed its doors in December 2016, rendering the Bronx a book desert in a harrowing end to two years of precarious survival. A department store, Saks Off Fifth, now sits in its place.
Barnes and Noble first planned to close in 2014, citing rising rents. The chain shuttered 71 of its stores between 2011-2017, according to Publishers Weekly.
Low-income communities like the Bronx struggle with book access nationwide. In an average community of concentrated poverty, only one book is available for every 300 children, compared to more affluent areas, which offer 13 books per child, according to a 2016 study conducted by education scholars from New York University.
Children who grow up without exposure to books are less likely to read as they grow older, according to a study in Reading Research Quarterly by literacy and communication scholars. This also poses consequences for low-income children’s cognitive function, which may become less advanced than their more advantaged peers. Such setbacks promote a cycle of poverty that is difficult to escape.
But for Bronxites, lack of access does not indicate absence of desire.
The Barnes and Noble first opened in the Bronx in 1999 under pressure from assemblyman Stephen B. Kaufman, who denounced the retailer’s decision to double the size of their store in Yonkers rather than opening a bookstore in the Bronx.
Kaufman condemned the store, calling it “Barnes and ignoble.” His diatribe rang loudly throughout the borough and into the corporate world, resulting in Barnes and Noble’s eventual move into the Mall at Bay Plaza in Co-op City.
Assemblyman Michael Benedetto, who represents Co-op City in the state government and supported the citizens’ petition to keep Barnes and Noble, is not aware of a concrete proposal from Barnes and Noble.
“When it shut down a few years ago, it was supposed to finalize a new operating plan, which we have not received yet,” said his chief of staff, John Collazzi. According to Collazzi, the retailer is searching for an adequately sized space in the Mall at Bay Plaza. He maintains hope that Barnes and Noble will keep its word.
“They’re in the process of analyzing a new store plan. It should be soon,” he said.
Several representatives from Prestige Properties and Development, the property owners of the Mall at Bay Plaza, had no knowledge of plans for a Barnes and Noble opening.
The state of access to books in the Bronx has ruptured the borough from its literary roots. For centuries, the Bronx was home to a thriving literary culture.
“The area that was to become the Bronx was used as a locale by writers on the colonial period, both great and obscure,” wrote Lloyd Ultan and Barbara Unger in Bronx Accent: A Literary and Pictoral History of the Borough.
As the Bronx urbanized, the narratives rising from the borough diverged from increasingly obsolete themes of solitude and nature, instead turning toward urban adventure. Jack Kerouac’s famed Road began in a train station on 242nd Street, according to the New York Times, after he attended a year of high school in Riverdale. James Baldwin, a fellow Bronx high schooler, picked up his predecessors’ literary baton to capture the racial, sexual, and political tensions of his time.
The last few decades have marked a stark difference in the Bronx’s lettered past.
Though many bookstores have struggled due to the rising dominance of Amazon, an increasing number of independent bookstores are slowly opening throughout Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens as book sales are rising across the country, according to the Association of American Publishers. The Bronx, however, has not had more than one general-interest bookstore in decades.
Communities fare better with local bookstores than corporate chains. Local retailers “keep 3.3 times as much revenue in the local economy as do their chain competitors,” according to a study from the American Booksellers Association. Keeping money in the local economy is even more urgent in low-income communities like the Bronx.
The Bronx is also at a disadvantage when it comes to online book access––the borough has 297 free WiFi hotspots, compared to 691 in Brooklyn and 1,603 in Manhattan, according to New York City Open Data.
Libraries compensate for much of the dearth of reading resources in the Bronx. Each New York Public Library branch is equipped with WiFi and several computers. The New York Public Library secured historic financial support for several branches in 2016, including three in The Bronx, after a significant increase in city funding, according to the library’s most recent annual report. In the beginning of October, the library broke ground on an $8 million renovation of the Van Cortlandt Library that will more than double the size of the current branch.
The Bronx Library Center is the fifth most attended library in New York City with over 718,000 yearly visitors, but only has a circulation rate of less than 586,000 books, compared to Flushing Library’s catalog of more than 2.2 million books, according to a 2015 study from the Center for an Urban Future, a New York City-based nonpartisan think tank.
Upset by chronic underinvestment, the closure of the Barnes and Noble galvanized Bronxites into action.
“The Bronx Book Fair’s mission is to increase literacy and readership in the Bronx as well as to connect book lovers of all ages to Bronx authors,” said Currelley.
Saraciea Fennell, a South Bronx native and book publisher, spearheaded the Bronx Book Festival and started a literacy program called The Bronx is Reading, which donates books to local school libraries. Rebekah Shoaf also operates pop-up bookstores called Boogie Down Books, with an emphasis on youth and educational literature.
Locals are also building brick and mortar stores to serve as community spaces. Noëlle Santos, a Soundview native and former human resources and payroll director for a Manhattan technology firm, crowdfunded nearly $155,000 last year to open an independent bookstore and wine bar in Mott Haven called The Lit. Bar.
“While my community’s lifeline was up for negotiation, I was somewhere in the South Bronx seizing the opportunity to create a sustainable, more accessible bookshop that addresses the shortcomings of big-box stores––reflecting and serving the unique needs of the communities they operate in,” wrote Santos, who could not be reached for comment, on her Indiegogo fundraising page.
According to her website, Santos plans to open The Lit. Bar on Alexander Avenue by November, the 23 month-mark without a bookstore in the Bronx. Her store windows are covered over with brown paper, but her website conveys steady progress, with painted walls and newly built shelves ready for books.
“Our opening date is at the mercy of the NYC Department of This and That,” she wrote.
Even if Barnes and Noble delivers on its promise to return to a location in the Mall at Bay Plaza, the site will still be restrictive for most Bronx residents. The Bx12 bus is the only nearby public transportation; this line only services a limited area in the Bronx, meaning a trip to the store would consist of at least two legs for most locals.
Kaufman is skeptical that Barnes and Noble will return.


Dal_Cooper 4 pass from Prescott (Maher kick), 6:12.
Ten_Henry 1 run (Succop kick), 9:35.
Ten_D.Lewis 18 pass from Mariota (Succop kick), 4:11.
Dal_Hurns 23 pass from Prescott (Maher kick), :39.
Ten_Jo.Smith 7 pass from Mariota (Succop kick), 5:44.
Ten_Mariota 9 run (Succop kick), 4:38.
RUSHING_Tennessee, D.Lewis 19-62, Mariota 10-32, Henry 6-27, Davis 1-4. Dallas, Elliott 17-61, Prescott 2-11.
PASSING_Tennessee, Mariota 21-29-0-240. Dallas, Prescott 21-31-1-243, Beasley 0-1-0-0.
RECEIVING_Tennessee, Davis 6-56, D.Lewis 4-60, Jo.Smith 2-33, Taylor 2-24, Batson 2-21, Henry 2-5, Jennings 1-36, Stocker 1-5, Sharpe 1-0. Dallas, Cooper 5-58, Elliott 4-51, Gallup 3-51, Beasley 3-16, De.Thompson 2-21, Jarwin 2-15, Hurns 1-23, R.Smith 1-8.
MISSED FIELD GOALS_Tennessee, Succop 28. Dallas, Maher 38.


Luke Walton, you lucky dog.
In finally getting dumped Friday by the Lakers, their former head coach made his escape like a man staggering up the embankment from a ditch occupied by the twisted metal of steaming wreckage.
Walton gets to walk away from a basketball operation being run by the “backstabbing and whispering” of the widely unpopular and generally unsuccessful Rob Pelinka.
Walton gets to depart a basketball team being run, occasionally, when he feels like it, by distracted Hollywood mogul LeBron James.
Walton gets to separate himself from a franchise being run by a formerly beloved owner who has presided over the sort of off-court drama that has turned the Lakers into the New York Knicks. Nobody, but nobody, has been more disillusioning in this mess than Jeanie Buss.
Walton soon could be coaching again in the NBA, maybe in Sacramento, and maybe there he will be allowed to continue growing with a young team. He never had that opportunity here. After two seasons, just when he was finally connecting with some of the over-hyped kids, Walton was handed the headstrong James and a handful of oddballs and the dynamic became unworkable.
For much of last season, it was like he was coaching three teams — the kids, the oddballs, and James. Rarely did all three factions agree on anything. Walton never stood a chance. He was a goner before the season began.
While the symptoms were his coaching struggles, the real disease that ended his tenure was the instability of the Lakers franchise. Even Golden State coach Steve Kerr took the unusual step of calling out the Lakers when asked about Walton’s firing during a media briefing Friday in Oakland.
Let’s dissect that quote, charge by charge, for the purposes of clarity and accuracy.
Strength of organization? Nope. Momentum? Nope. Unity? You’re joking, right?
Walton’s exit tells us several things about the Lakers, none of them good.
First, we now know exactly why Magic Johnson quit earlier this week. It wasn’t because he only wanted Walton fired, because that was going to happen. It was because he also wanted Pelinka fired and, sorry, folks, it’s now obvious that isn’t happening.
By being given the power to part with Walton, Pelinka has gained even more organizational strength; it appears he will become the new sole basketball boss, and heaven help us all.
Second, it can now be confirmed that Buss and her shadow owner Linda Rambis exist in a purple-and-gold cocoon that has little touch with the reality outside Lakerland. Wait, you say, who is Linda Rambis? She is officially the Lakers’ executive director of special projects, but it’s the worst kept secret around the league that she helps run the team as Buss’ close friend, advisor and confidant.
Buss and Rambis, the wife of former Lakers hero Kurt Rambis, are reportedly in agreement that Pelinka is doing a good job, and that’s all that counts. Forget scouring the league for some great basketball mind. Forget finding a deft scout and popular recruiter who can lead the Lakers into what could be the most important summer of their existence. They are sticking with a negotiator who helped build a team that has averaged 36 wins in each of his two seasons while seemingly alienating most of the league with his methods.
Now Pelinka has to find a new coach, and, given the Lakers’ record of placating their star, he’ll probably just let James make the pick. Instead of canvassing the league for the next Nick Nurse or Mike Budenholzer, here’s guessing Pelinka goes for Tyronn Lue, who is a good dude, but he’s James’ dude, and when James flames out in a couple of years, what happens to Lue?
It would be smart and savvy if the Lakers replaced Walton with a top coaching prospect with no allegiances, somebody who can lead the team beyond the James era. However, given that Pelinka and Johnson once signed the likes of Lance Stephenson and JaVale McGee just to make James happy, there is not much confidence that Pelinka will take a bolder tack.
This leads to the last message delivered by this Walton split, one directed toward the Los Angeles business community and the Lakers’ partners specifically.
This is a franchise whose business acumen is still strong, but whose basketball brain has become unhinged. In the course of three days, they have lost their two most popular basketball figures in Walton and Johnson, and it doesn’t appear they will make the smart decision in replacing either one. Their best player refuses to fully connect. Their young players don’t trust them. They have nobody in the house adept at trading for help or recruiting a superstar. And, of course, they’ve missed the playoffs for franchise-record six consecutive seasons.
At some point, unless something drastically changes this summer, the product on the court is going to erode a Lakers brand that has consistently filled the stands, and their partners have to wonder what is happening to their investment. Jeanie Buss needs to come up with some answers for her partners, or harder questions will be asked.
All joking aside, the truth is a sad one. A Lakers coach gets pushed out and he’s the lucky one.


The major U.S. indexes posted modest gains in the first trading session of the week, adding to five straight weeks of gains. Bobbi Rebell reports.
U.S. stocks were flat Monday. Losses in energy and basic materials shares offset a rally in healthcare. A disappointing drop in home resales last month dampened investor sentiment. The lackluster equities action follows five straight weeks of gains. Kevin Caron of Washington Crossing Advisors: (SOUNDBITE) KEVIN CARON, PORTFOLIO MANAGER, WASHINGTON CROSSING ADVISORS, (ENGLISH) SAYING: "I think part of it is profit taking." It's merger Monday. Starwood is back in Marriott's arms. It accepted its suitor's raised bid worth $13.6 billion. That topped a counteroffer from a group led by Chinese insurer Anbang. Shares of the owner of the Sheraton and Westin brands rose, while Marriott fell. IHS is paying $13 billion to buy British data provider Markit. Both shares of Markit and the publisher of "Jane's Defence Weekly" rose. Shares of Valspar catapulted higher and Sherwin-Williams fell. Valspar agreed to be sold to Sherwin-Williams in a $9.3 billion deal that unites rival paint companies. CEO Michael Pearson is leaving the embattled drugmaker, Valeant, and activist investor Bill Actkman is joining its board. That lifted Valeant's shares. In Europe, weakness in commodity stocks pulled down the major indexes.


Sanath Jayasuriya said his team was all set to take on world champions Australia in the Champions Trophy semifinal. "It is going to be a tough match for both sides.
Sri Lankan cricket captain Sanath Jayasuriya said Thursday his team was all set to take on world champions Australia in the Champions Trophy semifinal. "It is going to be a tough match for both sides.
Our confidence is good, all our players are in good form and we have the advantage of a good support from the home crowd," Jayasuriya said of preparations for the second semifinal match Friday.
Jayasuriya, however, said he had not fully recovered from the shoulder injury he suffered during the final match of Morocco Cup against South Africa in August.
However, the Sri Lankan captain returned to play in the Champions Trophy and guided his side to victory against Pakistan in its opening league match of the 12-nation tournament. The win against Pakistan, helped by a century from Jayasuriya, ensured Sri Lanka a place in the semifinals.
Australia and Sri Lanka have not played each other for more than three years.
"They are one of the best sides in the world. We will have to do well ... be it batting, bowling or fielding to beat them," Jayasuriya said. "We have got a good plan against them."
The winner of Friday's match will face India, which scored a thrilling 10-run victory over South Africa to enter the tournament final on Sunday.


Margaret F. Suzuki, 94, of Hilo, a retired cafeteria worker at Ha‘aheo and Wai akea elementary schools, died at home. She was born in Paauilo, Hawaii. She is survived by sons Ronald E., Wendell, Howard, Clayton and Gaylen I.; brother George Shigeru; sisters Dorthy T. Adachi, Irene Kuioka and Sueako Spinelli; five grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Private services.


Rajan Datar will be roaming across India for a special edition of the show. He visits Mumbai to report on its growing nightlife and looks at how technology is changing tourism.
Presenter Rajan Datar will be roaming across India for a special edition of the travel news show. He will be in Mumbai to report on its growing nightlife as well as looking at how technology is changing tourism, and visiting the city's first theme park Adlabs Imagica. Then it's on to Kochrab Ashram in Ahmedabad where you can live like Gandhi for a week. Moving to Goa Rajan meets volunteers of Clean Up India, before visiting the coast of Karnataka to ask if it will can be the new Goa. And in light of recent incidents Rajan will also explore how safe India really is female travellers.


Kings 2, Sharks 0: Jonathan Quick made 35 saves for his second shutout of the postseason while defenseman Slava Voynov and Mike Richards each recorded a goal and an assist as host Los Angeles drew first blood in its Western Conference second-round series against sixth-seeded San Jose.
Jeff Carter and blue-liner Rob Scuderi notched an assist apiece for the fifth-seeded Kings, who have won 11 straight home games. Los Angeles hosts Game 2 on Thursday.
Antti Niemi stopped 18 shots for the Sharks, who were 0-for-3 on the power play after going 7-for-24 during their first-round sweep of Northwest Division champion Vancouver.
The Pacific Division rivals both registered eight shots in the first period, but the Kings were the only team to get on the scoreboard. Richards carried the puck down the right wing and over the blue line before leaving it for Voynov, who skated to the top of the right faceoff circle before ripping a rising shot past Niemi with 12.9 seconds remaining.
The goal was the third of the postseason for Voynov, with all three being game-winners.
Richards and Voynov teamed up again in the second session to double Los Angeles' advantage. Voynov unleashed a shot from the right point that deflected off Richards and past Niemi with 7 1/2 minutes left.
That was more than enough for Quick, who turned aside 11 shots in the middle period and 16 in the third en route to his sixth career postseason shutout. The reigning Conn Smythe Trophy winner faced as many shots in the final 4 1/2 minutes (four) as the Kings registered in the entire final session.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Los Angeles has won a franchise-record four consecutive home playoff games. ... The Sharks were shut out for the 17th time in franchise postseason history. ... D Justin Braun and C James Sheppard were the only members of the Sharks who did not register a shot on goal. D Matt Irwin led the club with six. ... Richards leads the Kings with seven points this postseason.


(CNN) — "We have products, history here that you don't find anywhere else in the world," says Esben Holmboe Bang, the Danish head chef of Oslo's three-Michelin-starred restaurant Maaemo.
"Norway being as long as it is, being as untouched as it in nature, you have things here that are unique.
"For me it was mind-blowing. I saw the way they preserved fish, meat and I just thought I've never seen this before."
Norway's distinctive cuisine has been shaped by its 100,000-kilometer coastline, by its long winters and brief summers, by the forests that cover a third of its surface, and by the mountains that cut west off from east.
Here are 18 of Norway's greatest -- and strangest -- specialties.
"You have to try it once in your life. This is amazing thing," says Eirik Braek, owner of Oslo deli Fenaknoken, holding up a whole sheep's head.
Fenaknoken is an Aladdin's cave of cured, dried and salted delicacies, with hams strung from the ceiling like chandeliers, and Braek is a charming and enthusiastic host, giving all visitors to his shop a tasting tour of Norwegian food history.
Smalahove -- literally sheep's head -- is a Christmas treat in Western Norway.
"You start with the eyes," says Braek, because the fatty areas taste better warm. "This one you have to serve hot."
"The sea is something we live off now and it's something that we lived on for centuries," says Holmboe Bang. "There's a strong belonging to the sea."
The cold waters mean seafood takes longer to grow, making the flesh is extra plump and tender.
In the Norway episode of "Culinary Journeys," Holmboe Bang and Maaemo's diver Roderick Sloan feast on "salty, intensely sweet" Great Scallops, served in their shell with reindeer moss and juniper.
People love fish so much, says Braek, that they'll drink Omega 3 at Christmas to line their stomachs pre-revelry: "Just a small scoop. You can have more alcohol, maybe."
The world's oldest animal ever is said to be a sprightly little bivalve mollusk by the name of Ming, who was dredged off the coast of Iceland in 2006 and estimated to be 507 years old.
The ones found off Norway's northern coast will usually have been chilling in the Arctic depths for 150 to 200 years.
Says Roderick Sloan: "My job is like going to the moon every day.
"When I'm on the bottom, I only have two sounds: the sound of my heart and the sound of my breath."
"In Norway we dry everything, because we have to," says Braek. "We did this to survive in the future. We salted and dried things."
Fermenting, pickling, salting, curing, smoking: "It's all about trying to prolong summer, it's about making the taste of summer last.
"We've developed these intensely special, completely different flavor profile than the produce has in the summer, but that's for us the taste of winter."
"People did this for thousands of years," he adds.
"When you think about the way people had to survive, you had to preserve your fish, you had to think 'I have to stock up my larder for the winter, otherwise me and my family are going to die'... We don't have that mentality any more.
"I feel like now we live in a society where everything is available all the time, and that's a blessing and a curse."
Klippfisk -- literally "cliff fish" -- is dried and salted cod, in a tradition dating back to the 17th century.
In the "Culinary Journeys" video above, Holmboe Bang is schooled in the method by Nordskot expert Erling Heckneby.
The season for fresh fish is January to April, says Braek.
Skrei -- or cod -- is one of Norway's greatest exports but one specialty that hasn't been such a hit abroad is cod tongue.
The cut is less the actual tongue than the underside of the cod chin, should you find "cod chin" sounds more appealing.
The best way to wrap your lips round some cod tongue is to toss them in seasoned flour and fry them in butter.
Gamalost means "old cheese" -- and this is one that was actually eaten by Vikings.
It's a hard, crumbly brownish-yellow cheese with a sharp, intense flavor and a pungent scent to match.
"Some people love it, some people hate it," says Braek.
Those who really love it can join the annual Gamalost Festival held in Vik in May.
"This cheese we can keep forever. This never gets old," adds Braek, explaining that it was a Norwegian staple in the days before refrigeration.
Production is very labor-intensive, so it's rare to find gamalost for sale outside Norway.
MORE: Best country in the world to live? Still Norway, according to the U.N.
Much easier to find than gamalost, brunost is the sweet-savory brown cheese that delights Norwegians and surprises foreigners.
It's a goat's cheese made from caramelized whey -- giving it a sharp, sweet-sour dulce de leche taste -- and its fat and sugar content is such that a truck of the stuff burnt for five days when it caught fire in a Norwegian tunnel in 2013.
Norwegians eat it on toast, with crispbread, with jam and at breakfast -- though any meal will do.
A classic combo is sliced brunost on top of one of Norway's sweetly heart-shaped waffles. They're softer and more pliable than the Belgian variety, making them easier to fold in the hand.
At Christmas they're eaten on toasted buttered julecake -- a festive cake flavored with cardamom and dotted with fruit and candied peel.
Eirik Braek gives visitors to his deli a whistlestop tour of Norwegian food culture.
Forget the Pepsi Challenge -- visitors to Fenaknoken can sample dried elk and dried reindeer side by side.
"Elk is like a dry, more wild taste," says Braek. Reindeer is a "much smaller animal so it's much sweeter."
Reindeer moss -- so called because reindeer eat it -- is a lichen found in Arctic tundra. "It's very special to Norway," explains Sloan. "This is where the reindeer get all their flavor from."
It's also sometimes used in the making of akvavit, the famous Scandinavian spirit.
"This is a map of Norway," explains Braek, holding a vacuum-packed leg of lamb and pointing out the west coast, where cuisine was influenced by the shipping trade and mixing cultures, and the isolated mountain-bound east.
"At Christmas I have about 1.5 tonnes of lamb ribs" hanging from the roof of the shop, he says, a welcome sight for homesick Norwegians returning home for the festive season.
"I have people stand here and cry. 'I'm home!'"
Pinnejott -- "stick meat" -- is a festive dish of salted and dried lamb or mutton ribs, typical to the west and north.
The national dish, however is farikal, a lamb and cabbage casserole traditionally eaten in fall.
Norway has a Willy Wonka-esque inventory of evocative berry names: cloudberries, crowberries ... but sadly no snozzberries.
The ethereal cloudberry is golden-yellow and only found in the wild. Its rarity earns it the nickname Arctic gold.
They have a tart appleish flavor and are often made into jam. "If you find any, don't tell anyone where you find them," says Braek.
Crowberry is a black cold-climate berry found in northern Europe, Alaska, Canada, Greenland and beyond.
If a gelatinous mix of dried fish and lye doesn't sound appealing, you might not be alone.
When we visited the world's only Lutefisk Museum, in Norway's "Christmas town" of Drobok, on a sunny day in May the entire place was empty -- a piscine Marie Celeste with no staff, no customers, but one forlorn pile of children's letters to Santa.
Lutefisk is a festive specialty, made by air-drying fish, reconstituting it by soaking it in cold water for a week, then soaking it in caustic lye soda for two days.
Then, to get rid of the poisonous lye, it's soaked in water for another couple of days.
It's not eaten in the summertime, but out of season visitors can console themselves with a light and frothy fiskesuppe (fish soup) in the cherry blossom-shaded courtyard of the Skipperstuen restaurant opposite the Museum and Aquarium, overlooking the Oslofjord.
Yes, the Norwegians like salting everything so much, they even do it to their candy.
The controversial mouth-puckering treat is wildly popular in the Nordic countries and widely reviled elsewhere.
It's an acquired taste, but if you like your aniseed strong, and your gustatory receptors tingling in tandem, it might just be the candy for you.
Snack-sized torrfisk for dried fish on the go.
Torrfisk, or stockfish, is unsalted air-dried fish, usually cod.
It's been "made in Norway for, people say, about 1,000 years," says Braek.
It's mentioned in the 13th century Icelandic work "Egil's Saga," when a chieftain ships stockfish from Norway to Britain in 875 AD.
As such, it was Norway's biggest export for centuries.
Rakfisk is salted, fermented trout, and it packs a pungent -- and delicious -- punch.
It's usually fermented for two to three months, but it can be up to a year.
It's often eaten with flatbrod (Norwegian flat bread) or lefse (potato bread), onions and sour cream.
Like the sound of a King Crab safari?
A number of tour operators offer trips to Kirkenes, on the border with Russia, to hunt the Arctic King Crab between the months of December and April.
The mighty crustaceans can grow to a leg span of 1.8 meters.
Seagulls are arguably the most thuggish of seabirds, raised -- in the UK, at least -- on a diet of ketchup, French fries and stolen sandwiches.
But in late April or early May in northern Norway, locals like to eat hard-boiled seagulls' eggs washed down with a pilsner beer from Tromso's Mack's brewery.
We don't recommend you attempt to harvest any yourself -- to protect the species, but also to protect yourself. Those gulls can be pretty handy when it comes to a fight.
Norway is one of only three countries still involved in the controversial practice of whaling, alongside Japan and Iceland.
For those who can stomach it, whale meat -- or hvalkjott -- is widely available and often marketed at curious tourists.
"I've tried whale and reindeer," says Jen, a Canadian on a one-woman tour of Norway.
"Whale's really good. I'm from the east coast, so we have a lot of fish but we don't do whaling."
As whales are mammals rather than fish, the taste is similar to a gamey meat such as venison.


User-generated content (UGC) – blogs, reviews, comments, essentially any digital interaction your customer has with your brand – is becoming an increasingly important part of many businesses’ marketing plans. It is a low-investment, high-impact way of raising your profile online.
Mike Peates, founder and director of the homemade chocolate business Owow Chocolate has focused on turning his customers into brand advocates from the start.
When his business was starting up, Peates focused more on engaging than selling and was relentless on social media. He sent packs of chocolate to people he’d been talking to and encouraged them to share their thoughts on Twitter.
This worked particularly well, largely because the business makes branded chocolate gifts and his target market are other small firms who use them for promotion and client rewards. His customers help him promote his business, while his whole business focuses on promoting theirs.
You can create opportunities for engagement in many ways. Encourage your customers to get involved in social media competitions, ask them to show you what they love about your product or simply tap into their personal life and encourage them to share their interests.
At Bozboz we ran a Mother’s Day competition on Facebook for one of our clients, an airline company based in Africa. We asked people to send in a picture of their mother and explain what made their relationship special. Thousands of people entered for a chance to win flights on a route our client was keen to promote. As a result, we were left with thousands of images of happy customers, which we could then use in marketing material for the airline.
But be aware: you need to obtain permission to use any images, even if they have been sent to you.
The psychological phenomenon of “social proof”, which says that people are drawn to a product or service that they know others are already engaging with, is a pivotal part of marketing. So appointing brand ambassadors, people who genuinely like your brand, is a great way to spread your message.
About Balance, a health and wellbeing centre in Brighton, got in touch with a local writer and offered them a week of free therapies in exchange for them becoming their “wellbeing ambassador” and writing about their experience in local publications. This is becoming more of a trend among small businesses who are engaging with bloggers, offering them a taste of their product or service in exchange for a review.
Clearly there are no guarantees that a review will be positive. However, if a blogger writes a negative review, you should acknowledge this and respond in the comments. Also, contact the blogger personally to try to resolve or understand what could have been done differently. Although negative reviews aren’t the ideal result, more often than not it’s how the business responds that’s more important. And, if it’s done correctly, it can turn the situation around into a positive PR exercise.
Modcloth, an online business that sells vintage-inspired fashion, encourages customers to review its clothes by posting pictures of themselves in their new outfits, along with their opinion on how it fits. This way, other customers can see how the item sits on someone with a similar body type. This approach to co-curated content encourages Modcloth’s customers to feel invested in the development of the brand – they are the models helping to sell the clothes.
Create opportunities for your customers to comment on your product or services. Pay attention to Google reviews, TripAdvisor and any other relevant review platforms. Follow up with a personalised message when people say something about your brand – particularly if it’s negative. Find out what your customers like and don’t like about your business and use this as invaluable research to spur growth.


It’s long been projected that Millennials are destined to dominate the housing market in upcoming years. Now, new data from Realtor.com shows that it's finally happening. Millennials are finally buying houses. Lots of them.


In the article "US Redirects Africa Policy," May 26, the author mentions a visit by the Nigerian head of state to Washington, stating, "Clinton refused to meet with Maj. General Ibrahim Babangida when the Nigerian military leader visited Washington recently."
This statement is incorrect. President Babangida has never visited Washington since assuming office.
Editor's note: General Babangida did not in fact visit the United States, but US officials sent clear signals that President Clinton would not receive the general. Who's wallowing in water?
While your article "California Rethinks Water Issues," June 3, is timely, it incorrectly states that farmers are using 80 percent of the state's water and implies that the environment is getting shortchanged. Although about 80 percent of the developed water is used for irrigated agriculture, this represents less than 30 percent of the total water supply of the state. Environmental uses such as scenic rivers, instream uses, and wetlands compromise 65 percent of this total runoff.
Recent demands by environmentalists to take from agriculture's 30 percent to dump additional water into the ocean in unproven efforts to protect endangered species will severely reduce irrigated acreage in an agricultural state, affect our food supply, and substantially increase unemployment.
The Opinion page article "Keep `First to File' Patent Rule Pending," June 7, makes a strong case against a "first to file" patent system for our country.
However, many competitive businesses need a mix of patent protection and secrecy. Often the only way to protect innovations against imitative competitors is to keep them secret.
Under the present system, a choice must always be made to either file a patent application on an innovation or try to keep it secret. The "prior-user rights" provision in the proposed "first to file" system can minimize the risk that someone will independently invent and patent an innovation that another company had already invented and invested in but chose to maintain as a secret.
The author makes some important points in the Opinion page article "Cleaning Up the Small Screen," June 3. However, he does not mention one solution that a small yet growing number of people have found here: Get rid of the television and rediscover the art of serious reading and the quiet, more satisfying voice of decent radio.


Back from a long stretch not feeling well Drew Rathgeber and his time tested “Rath Overlay” weekly market update! Here you will see a quick 5 min. overview of all your favorite Future & Commodity markets.


Not only is this good news for Android users, its helpful for anyone switching phones to share in a consistent experience across mobile platforms.
Tweet details page. Twitter has changed the layout of the timeline and introduced a Tweet details page, which you can access by simply clicking on a Tweet. This feature – which is already available in Twitter for iPhone, Twitter for iPad and Twitter for Windows Phone – makes it easier to click on links and reply to, retweet, or favorite a Tweet. This also brings the application up to par with other third party apps such as TweetDeck.
Speed. The app is now even faster. In this version, Twitter has created a new way of drawing a timeline of Tweets that optimizes for scrolling speed. Try it for yourself to see how quickly you can scroll up and down your timeline.
Pull to Refresh: This feature, also available through the iPhone app, functions just as it sounds – when you’re at the top of your timeline, simply pull down to load new Tweets. No more need to push the refresh button and wait.
Swipe to Reveal: Swipe across a Tweet to get quick access to several options, such as viewing a user’s profile, sharing a tweet, or replying.
Quote a Tweet: Clicking the retweet icon now gives you the option to quote a Tweet, a major feature for users who were tired of being forced to simply retweet. Of course, you can still retweet as you normally would.
In addition, make sure to smile for the camera — your avatar is now in hi-res. These are welcome addition to Twitter for Android. Try them out and tell us what you think!


This will go down as the year the economy became synonymous with jobs. The financial panic that prevailed early in 2009 caused an avalanche of layoffs that only now seems to be subsiding.
since World War II had ended. But how long will it take to recover the 7 million jobs that have been erased during the recession and create work for 15.4 million unemployed Americans?


To be honest, I’m feeling rather stupid about not understanding until now how to make sense of the ever-changing rationales for the ever-changing demand for higher interest rates. As someone who started in international trade, I more than anyone should have known that specific factors, not Stolper-Samuelson, is usually the way to go.
For the 99.9 percent of readers who have no idea what I’m talking about: One of the landmark papers in international trade theory was the demonstration by Wolfgang Stolper and Paul Samuelson, way back in 1941, that the income distribution effects of protectionism typically swamp any efficiency considerations. If you said something judicious along the lines of “Well, protectionism might increase labor’s share, but workers will still end up losing because the economy will become less efficiency”, you were just wrong in terms of the standard model: if an economy imports labor-intensive goods, protectionism will raise real wages — end of story.
So trade policy should have big effects on the distribution of income between broad classes of players — labor versus capital, highly educated versus less-educated labor, and so on. But if you try to understand the political economy of trade policy, what you see is much narrower interests at play — not capital in general but the owners of textile factories or sugar plantations. Blessed are the cheesemakers, not any manufacturers of dairy products. And the right model to think about this is the specific factors model of trade, in which capital is temporarily stuck in a particular industry; in the long run it may be fungible, but lobbyists don’t worry about that.
So we’ve had a long discussion of the distributional effects of QE and all that, which are ambiguous but also, I now realize, irrelevant. Is QE good or bad for capital, for rentiers, whatever? No matter — it’s bad for bankers, because it leads to a compression of the net interest margin, the spread between deposit rates and lending rates. And that is why there’s so much agitation for rate hikes on the part of finance. Furthermore, while I don’t think institutions like the BIS are corrupt in any direct sense, they probably pick up by osmosis from all the bankers they meet the general prejudice against easy money, leading to increasingly baroque attempts to justify rate hikes despite low inflation.
Incidentally, this also means that the common claim that QE is a giveaway to bankers is the opposite of the truth; to the extent that journalists with close ties to bankers spread this story, it’s Orwellian. Remember, the Fed isn’t lending money at low interest to banks — banks, with their $2.5 trillion (!) of excess reserves, are lending vast sums at low interest to the Fed.
It’s all falling into place.


Matt McAllester had been taking a leave of absence.
Newsweek Media Group has formally severed ties with global editor in chief Matt McAllester, who the company had recently announced was on a leave of absence. Bob Roe, who has filled in as editor of the magazine's U.S. and international operations, has been elevated to take McAllester's position permanently.
On Aug. 9, a spokesperson for Newsweek told The Hollywood Reporter that McAllester was on a planned leave of absence from the company, but that it was unrelated to a recent employee discrimination lawsuit that featured him prominently, stemming from his time at Time Inc. McAllester was not formally named in the suit against Time Inc. but was heavily criticized by former colleague Catherine Mayer.
While the leave of absence was presented as temporary, company sources insisted that McAllester would not return to his position, and a memo from Newsweek Media Group CEO Dev Pragad on Friday made that official.
"Former Global Editor-in-Chief Matt McAllester is no longer with Newsweek," Pragad wrote in a memo obtained by THR. "We thank Matt for his outstanding service at Newsweek as Europe Editor, International Editor and ultimately as Global Editor-in-Chief. We wish Matt all the best in his career and Bob every success in his new assignment."
Roe, who has been with Newsweek for four years, "has given us all a glimpse of how he will steer Newsweek to success on the newsfeed and the newsstand," Pragad wrote.


APRIL 29--A California businessman is suing Virgin America airlines, claiming that he was improperly detained by police after flight attendants reported that he did not flush an airplane toilet and quarreled with them over the purchase of a soft drink.
In a U.S. District Court complaint, Salvatore Bevivino, 52, alleged that he was “taken into custody against his will” last April as he sought to disembark from a flight from Philadelphia to San Francisco. Bevivino said he was detained by six “uniformed officers” and taken to a room where he was questioned.
A flight attendant told cops that Bevivino argued with her over the ordering of a soda via a computer touchscreen. “My time is precious, you are here to serve me,” Bevivno said, according to the flight attendant.


A 19-year-old mother has been charged with felony evading arrest, reckless endangerment after car chase with children in tow.
A 19-year-old Hendersonville mother has been charged with felony evading arrest, reckless endangerment, child passenger restraint violation and driving on a suspended license after leading officers on a vehicle chase May 14.
According to a news release from the Hendersonville Police Department, an officer attempted to conduct a traffic stop at 9:30 p.m. Monday. The vehicle refused to stop and drove onto Highway 386 at approximately 71 mph.
The driver, Franchescia Robinson, was forced to leave the interstate when she got a flat tire. Officers followed the vehicle to an apartment complex located at 1037 Center Point Road, where she was taken into custody. According to the news release, her two minor children were found in the vehicle and were not restrained.
A second suspect, Tavarus Brinkley, fled on foot and was located a short time later hiding in the attic of one of the nearby apartments. Officers found a semi-automatic handgun in a dumpster where Brinkley had disposed of it, according to the release. Brinkley, 22, of Antioch, was charged with felon in possession of a weapon, evading arrest and tampering with evidence.
Anyone with information regarding this or other crimes is encouraged to call the Hendersonville Crime Stoppers at 615-573-5400.


Robert Ellis weaves text and paint and symbolism together to make us think about what it means to be a New Zealander, and about our relationship to the sky and the land. Charlotte Wilson visits him in his studio to ask about the role of music in his life and work.
The works of Robert Ellis occupy a uniquely important place in this country’s art. In 60 years of activity he has held over 60 exhibitions: and not just paintings, either. There are the stained glass windows of the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Auckland: the world’s largest tapestry hanging in the Aotea Centre; the smaller works in etchings, metal casting, lithography, photography, film. He is so prolific that he admits that there are some of his works that he doesn’t even remember.
What he is most famous for, though, is his connection to Māoritanga: through his wife, Elizabeth Aroha Ellis, who is herself a distinguished figure in the arts and comes from Ngāti Porou and Ngāpuhi in the far north. Hence the Rakaumangamanga series from Rāwhiti, the motorways period of the 1970s, or the recent survey Tūrangawaewae, A Place to Stand: Ellis’s works weave Pacific and European symbolism together with text and paint, in a deep exploration of what it means to be a New Zealander and our relationship to the sky and the land.
Born in Northampton in England in 1929, Robert Ellis studied at the Northampton School of Art and later the Royal College of Art in London, before moving to Auckland in 1957 to take up a position at the Elam School of Fine Arts – first as Head of Design, then Head of Painting, and retiring as Emeritus Professor after a career of 37 years.
And he loves music! He plays flamenco guitar, and has an extraordinary instrument collection that includes a Paraguayan harp and an Indian sitar.
He was appointed ONZM for services to Fine Arts in 2001, and the magnificent, full-colour book Robert Ellis by Hamish Keith for Ron Sang Publications, came out in 2014.
Holy Trinity Cathedral - the Robert Ellis windows. Photo credit Calvin Sang.
Art, Life, Music is a series in which Charlotte Wilson explores the connections between music and art, visiting celebrated NZ artists, in their studios, to talk about their work and their life and their love for music – because each of these artists has a connection to music, in some way. Here, they choose their favourite pieces, and explain in their own totally unique and various ways, what makes them tick.


Some things never go out of style. Great music, it is said, is always great, no matter how much time passes.
So it is not surprising, 100 years after his birth, that people are still performing the music of Leonard Bernstein, a composer, conductor, pianist.
On Saturday, East Lansing favorite and soprano Morgan James and conductor Teddy Abrams will be bringing their Bernstein show, The Best of Bernstein’s Broadway, to Wharton Center’s Cobb Great Hall.
Bernstein was born in 1918 to Ukrainian-Jewish immigrants and became one of the first American-born and trained conductors to perform with prestigious symphonies such as the New York Philharmonic and the Boston Symphony. He was also a composer who created 32 orchestral works, 11 theater works, one film score, 16 songs and song cycles, eight choral and keyboard works, and nine piano works.
While the show features James vocal stylings and hauntingly beautiful voice, she is backed by a full 68-piece orchestra, an orchestra put together by MSU College of Music Professor Richard Sherman. He said this is the biggest show he’s had to contract in his history of recruiting and hiring instrumentalists for Wharton Center touring shows.
“In the 15 years I’ve been doing it, I’ve never had a show of this magnitude where I’ve had to hire this big of a group. This is a full symphony,” said Sherman.
James describes the show as deceptively difficult, not an average pops program, which adds to Sherman’s challenge in finding the right musicians who are as geographically close as possible.
Putting up out-of-town musicians gets expensive for the show and Sherman said there are plenty of talented Greater Lansing and Michigan musicians, so he tries to favor local musicians.
James, who does a lot of original and cover work as a soloist, said that Bernstein has been an important part of her musical journey, that she’s done many unique and interesting projects that have involved Bernstein, which made this show a natural for her and her long-time collaborator Abrams to put together.
One such project is that she’s done five different productions of Bernstein’s “Mass” since 2008, starting in Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. It’s one of Bernstein’s lesser-known pieces, a musical commissioned by Jacqueline Kennedy that was first performed in 1971.
She’ll be performing “Simple Song” from Mass.
She said they tried to put together a mix of popular music and some of his lesser known, more challenging pieces. They also spend time talking about Bernstein and what he did for the American musical landscape.
After taking the show on the road, they’ve been able to refine it into something that has met receptive audiences.
James is also thrilled to be returning to East Lansing where she said Wharton’s executive director, Mike Brand, has helped her develop a local fan base.


Who are the Democrat frontrunners for 2020?
A great majority of Democrats believe that what their party needs is an influx of new faces for the coming 2020 presidential race. According to a survey by Rasmussen Reports, 73 percent of Likely Democratic Voters believe the party should look for new faces for the 2020 race. Of those polled, 16 percent disagree and thus prefer familiar faces from races past.
The Rasmussen poll also indicated that a majority of Democrats don’t want Hillary Clinton on the ticket. Among all likely voters, 65 percent say Democrats should find a new face for 2020, while only 19 percent believe the party nomination should go to someone who has run for the White House before. As for Clinton, 58 percent believe she has been bad for the Democratic Party, while only 22 percent think she has been good for Democrats.
The Washington Post averred that Oprah Winfrey does not wish to run for the White House. She has never held office, even though she has expressed support for Democrats such as Barack Obama in the past and has instant name recognition. She has said that she expects God to tell her whether she should run. But she has not heard from Him yet. As for running for the White House, Winfrey recently told British Vogue: “I would not be able to do it. It's not a clean business. It would kill me."
However, Steve Bannon -- who briefly worked on the Trump campaign and at the White House -- predicted that Winfrey could be President Donald Trump's toughest challenger in 2020 . Bannon said that Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren or any of the other Democratic hopefuls pale in comparison. On CNBC on Wednesday night, Bannon said, "I think we're in a different era," and added, “I think we're in an era that media and understanding media and understanding how to communicate on a mass basis to the American people is so much more important than being in a state legislature."
All the same, Bannon said he believes that Trump will be reelected. Even so, Bannon said that other non-politicians to watch are actor Dwayne Johnson (a.k.a. The Rock) and businessman and Mark Cuban. "Don't dismiss people today that are either executives that understand media or people that are media types," Bannon told show host Michelle Caruso-Cabrera. "Do not think that those people can't somehow start to get traction, more so than some guys in the U.S. Senate."
Democrat Gov. Bullock has three more years to go in his term, having already served one term in an overwhelmingly Republican state. He won reelection by four percentage points in the same year that Donald Trump carried Montana by 21 points. While he professes agnosticism about running for the White House, he did make a stop in Iowa during the 2016 primary season. The Washington Examiner noted earlier in July that Bullock is getting closer to making a decision to run, however. However, as a sportsman and gun owner, he may be too moderate for Democrats who are currently trending to the left.
A two-term governor of Montana, a state that went for Trump in 2016, faces the challenge of being unknown and looking to take on fellow Democrats with more cachet. However, the Democrat party appears to be growing in that part of the country and Bullock has been on the move in early primary states in what looks like an effort to set the ground for 2020. He will need to offer a message that Democrats needs to set up their own big tent.
Patrick has support from Barack Obama’s supporters to run in 2020, but he has not been himself decisive about running. However, he has promised to make a decision by year’s end. He has campaigned for Democrats outside of Massachusetts. Last week, for example, Patrick stepped into a Texas House race in a competitive district that includes part of Dallas. He has also been in discussions with Beto O’Rourke -- the Democrat seeking to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz (R) .
Sen. Gillibrand had been closely tied to Bill and Hillary Clinton for years. Gillibrand replaced Hillary Clinton in the Senate and recently ran afoul of Bill Clinton after she said that he should have resigned the presidency in the wake of the Monica Lewinsky scandal. She has been on the left wing of the party regarding immigration, and was one of the first in Congress to call for the dissolution of the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. At a May 2018 conference of the Center for American Progress, Gillibrand touched on familiar themes for Democrats: “What President Trump stands for undermines everything we value — whether you care about women’s rights or LGBTQ rights, clean air, clean water — literally everything we care about is at risk with this president.” The Washington Post recently named her one of the most likely candidates among prominent Democrats. In March, Gillibrand -- who was once counted as a moderate Democrat -- told The Nation magazine that she supports a federal job guarantee, which is an idea that not even socialist Bernie Sanders has openly advocated.
Recently, Harris told Kasie Hunt on MSNBC that she is "not ruling out" a 2020 presidential run. Also, she signed a book deal with Penguin Press for her upcoming “The Truths We Hold: An American Journey” which is due to come about just a few months before the Democratic primary season goes into full swing next year. According to Penguin, Harris will write about “the core truths” of the United States. Harris, a former Attorney General for the state of California, was the first in her caucus to call for the resignation of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen over the Trump administration’s policy regarding how it processes illegal immigrant children at the border. Besides, Harris has been making the kinds of junkets that can be expected of a presidential hopeful, including a recent trip to Nevada. Democrats in Michigan, a state that went for Trump (just barely), lionized her at party conference in May. Among Democrats, Harris appears to be the most active in going for the gold.
Harris comes from a state where Democrat donors have deep pockets, where she will have to dig if she does run. And her law-and-order background as a prosecutor may earn her support from moderates.
Sometimes derided as “Fauxcahontas” for her as-yet uncorroborated claims of Native American ancestry, Warren has continued to be a progressive pacesetter. She was an early advocate of abolishing the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) , also known as ICE. In what some analysts claim is the clearest sign she has yet given of her presidential ambitions, Warren said in a speech earlier this year that “No one — not even the president of the United States — will ever take that part of me away,” in a reference to President Trump’s use of the “Pocahontas” nickname for her. And unlike 2016, when she did little to convince anyone that she had presidential ambitions, Warren is now making moves to suggest that she will enter the hustings in 2020, having reached out to politicos in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.
But even though he is not technically a Democrat, Sanders remains one of the most beloved in the Democrat party and still enjoys favorable ratings. In the 2016 Democrat primary vote, he garnered 43 percent. And he can be credited for starting the leftward drift of the Democrat party since then. But as a white male, and an also-ran, Democrats may not see him as a fresh face anymore.
Booker, a former mayor of Newark, is currently focused on helping fellow Democrats get re-elected in 2018. That being said, Democrats are known to nominate first full-term black senators who have recently given a big Democratic National Convention speech. (Remember who?) But because he is considered a moderate in the Democrat party, Booker will have to work hard to allay concerns among leftists that he is too close to Wall Street.
Barack Obama’s sidekick may not really fit in with the current Democrat Party. At 75, he is a white male who has been in politics for more than 40 years. But...he is on the top of early polls of voters looking at the 2020 lineup. Biden is leading in national polls, early primary state polls, and it a possible matchup against President Trump. Even though there is no guarantee he can win the party nomination, there are indications that he will keep his hand in until the end. After all, he did and in a matchup against Trump. That's no guarantee Biden wins the nomination -- but if history holds, it's an indicator he'll be right there until the end. A Harvard/CAPS poll showed recently that one-third of Democrats favor Biden over Hillary Clinton for 2020.
President Trump is unconcerned. In an interview with CBS that aired on Thursday, the president said that he would like to run against any Democrat, but is especially confident about Biden. "I dream about Biden. That's a dream," Trump said. "Look, Joe Biden ran three times. He never got more than 1 percent and President Obama took him out of the garbage heap, and everybody was shocked that he did. I'd love to have it be Biden."
Landrieu, the scion of a political family that includes his father (a former mayor of the Big Easy) and a sister who was a U.S Senator for Louisiana, was once mentioned by former President Barack Obama as exemplifying the future of their part. He rules over a majority-black city that is still recuperating from Hurricane Katrina and decades of corruption and mismanagement. Landrieu was lauded by progressives and ethnic group advocates for tearing down the city’s historic monuments to the Confederacy. This year he went on a media tour for his new book, “In the Shadow of Statues” and was the headliner at this year’s Gridiron Dinner in Washington. On the “The Daily Show,” he acknowledged applause when show host Trevor Noah called on him to run in 2020. In March, Landrieu said “never say never” when asked if he will run.
Brown has a liberal record and comes from a state that is essential to any presidential race. He has not publicly enunciated any interest in the White House, being occupied with now with a re-election campaign as senior U.S. Senator for Ohio. CNN suggests that Democrats are not keen on nominating a white man for 2020. And Brown has had to dodge a 26-year-old claim that he physically assaulted a former wife. In his re-election bid, Brown leads Republican Rep. James Renacci by double digits in all recent polls.
Holder has been making the rounds on late-night television and has been unstinting in his condemnations of President Trump. He is likely to be seen as Barack Obama’s favorite in the coming presidential race. When he was asked in New Hampshire recently about challenging the current president, he said: "Two guys from Queens. That would be interesting. New Yorkers know how to talk to other New Yorkers." He also recently said that he will make a decision by the end of the year whether “whether there is another chapter in my government service.” But he currently appears to be focusing on his role in helping Democrats challenge the coming redistricting across the country as a result of the 2020 Census.


WASHINGTON (AP) — Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, under fire for ethics violations, said Thursday that he has no intention of leaving his job even as the White House hinted at the possibility of "personnel changes" to lead the beleaguered agency.
Speaking at a budget hearing, Shulkin expressed regret for "distractions" that have shifted attention from his efforts to fix veterans' health care and pledged to put the government's second largest department back on track.
Shulkin, the lone Obama administration holdover in Trump's Cabinet, praised the congressional oversight committees for largely standing behind him to fix the Department of Veterans Affairs, compared to critics he said were "more interested in politics."
"With all of the distractions that are happening in Washington and all the distractions in VA, the events that have happened should remind us all about why it's so important that we're doing what we're doing today to get this budget right and get VA on track," he told a House appropriations subcommittee. "I came here for one reason and that is to improve the lives of veterans."
Addressing a government investigation underway into his alleged use of security detail for personal errands, Shulkin denied that he was using the taxpayer-paid armed guards any differently from other members of the Trump Cabinet. "I publicly acknowledge the distraction is something I deeply regret," he said.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders declined to offer an endorsement of Shulkin om Thursday. She said President Donald Trump believes the nation's veterans are being generally well-served but the White House was actively studying ways to improve the VA, such as possible changes "at the top level."
"The president has a large number of individuals that are working hard to make sure that the VA is helping veterans at the best level possible," she said. "I can tell you that everyday we're looking for how we can better the system, whether it's through policy changes or personnel changes, not just at the top level but across the board."
Amid the controversies swirling around him, the White House in recent days has floated the name of Energy Secretary Rick Perry as a replacement. But Perry said Wednesday he had no interest in the job.
Rumors also circulated that conservative "Fox & Friends" contributor Pete Hegseth might be tapped for the job. Trump once seriously considered Hegseth, a former military officer and former CEO of the conservative Concerned Veterans for America, for the position.
A person familiar with Hegseth's thinking told the AP late Wednesday that if offered the position, Hegseth would take a "hard look." The person said that when Trump considered Hegseth for the post in late 2016 before settling on Shulkin, Hegseth told Trump he would "of course" accept, and Hegseth's stance hasn't changed since. The source demanded anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the private conversation.
Two administration officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday that Shulkin's position is precarious and that he could be out of a job within the week, but they cautioned that nothing was finalized. Those officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive personnel matter.
Shulkin has faced several investigations, including a bruising VA watchdog report that found ethics violations in connection with a trip to Europe with his wife last summer. In recent weeks, Shulkin has faced an insurgency within his department and fresh allegations that he used a member of his security detail to run personal errands.
The VA inspector general is looking into a complaint by a member of Shulkin's 24-7 security detail that he was asked to accompany the secretary to a Home Depot and carry furniture items into his home, according to two people familiar with the allegation who requested anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.
The uncertainty over Shulkin's status has left the VA, which employs 360,000 people, virtually paralyzed, with members of Congress confused over who's in charge and what's being done to improve care for 9 million military veterans in more than 1,700 government-run health facilities. On Wednesday, Republican Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona became the second lawmaker to call for Shulkin's resignation, joining House Veterans Affairs Committee member Mike Coffman , R-Colo., in chastising a "culture of inefficiency and complacency" within a "broken VA system."
In an AP interview Thursday, Coffman noted that Shulkin has yet to admit he did anything wrong after the VA inspector general concluded that he had improperly accepted Wimbledon tennis tickets and that his then chief of staff had doctored emails to justify his wife traveling to Europe with him at taxpayer expense. Shulkin is among several Cabinet secretaries who have been investigated for pricey travel.
"He absolutely, fundamentally was not honest and was not transparent," Coffman said. "When other Cabinet members have been exposed on the same issues, they just came forward with it and said 'Yes, I made a mistake.'"
"We need somebody who's going to be very aggressive in cleaning up the VA, and there's absolutely no way that he has the moral authority or the leadership to do that," Coffman said.
Still, for the most part, Republican and Democratic lawmakers were standing behind Shulkin, viewing him as the department's best guardian to fend off Trump administration efforts to privatize VA care.
Associated Press writers Catherine Lucey, Ken Thomas, Jonathan Lemire, Laurie Kellman, Matthew Daly and Darlene Superville contributed to this report.