To accomplish that, demilitarized zones should be set up on the perimeters of every school and razor-wire fences erected. Furthermore a military checkpoint and road block should be established at the entrance to every school property, possibly manned by rotating National Guard units that would check every car and person entering the grounds for weapons and other ordinance. It’s not a fail-proof measure, as has been seen in Baghdad and Kabul, but it would stop most of the armed subjects who try to enter. An assault rifle of this kind would be easily detectable.
As for the students themselves, I propose the following: because we’re dealing with what is essentially a combat-grade weapon, the state legislature should budget funds immediately to provide every North Carolina school child with Kevlar bullet-proof flack jackets, and helmets. Furthermore, every child should undergo a rigorous psychological work-up at the start and end of each school year in order to detect disturbing signals and signs of possible, future dangerous behavior.
If we really love our children and want to protect them there should be no limit to the amount of money we’re willing to spend, nor should there be a limit to the measures we employ, in order to do that.
We only need to pause and think more seriously about what it will take to provide adequate protection for our children and grandchildren against these powerful, semi-automatic, large magazine rifles, and to enact laws that will do just that.
I wish there were simpler solutions. Does anyone have a good idea? Anyone?
From a military family, Joe Moran has lived and traveled in militarized zones in Central America and Pakistan. He has grandchildren in N.C. schools. His brother, a retired police officer, manages security for his township’s pubic schools.


A solid quarter wasn't enough to keep the stock afloat.
Shares of BlackBerry (NYSE:BB) slumped on Friday after the enterprise software and services provider reported its first-quarter results. Despite the company beating analyst estimates for both revenue and earnings, the stock was down about 10% at 10:45 a.m. EDT.
BlackBerry reported first-quarter non-GAAP revenue of $217 million, down 11% year over year but about $7.4 million above the average analyst estimate. Enterprise software and services revenue tumbled 17.8%, but that decline was offset by a 30.6% increase in technology solutions revenue and a 96.9% increase in licensing, IP, and other revenue. Total software and services revenue, which includes all three categories, grew 14% year over year.
Non-GAAP earnings per share came in at $0.03, beating analyst expectations by $0.03. On a GAAP basis, the company posted a loss of $0.11 per share, worse than a loss of $0.06 per share in the fourth quarter of last year. BlackBerry posted a significant profit in the prior-year period, although it was entirely due to an arbitration award.
BlackBerry CEO John Chen commented on the company's success in the automotive market: "I am pleased that BlackBerry QNX software is now embedded in over 120 million automobiles worldwide, doubling the install base in the last three years. We are very excited about the opportunities ahead of us in automobiles and in other EoT verticals."
BlackBerry expects full-year software and services billings to grow by a double-digit percentage, with software and services revenue growth between 8% and 10%. Non-GAAP EPS is expected to be positive, while free cash flow is expected to be in the black excluding the impact of restructuring and legal proceedings.
While BlackBerry's results were better than analysts were expecting, a double-digit revenue decline and a worsening GAAP net income may be what's driving down the stock. Guidance for the full year calls for a slowdown in software and services growth compared to the first quarter, so that may also be a factor.


Dyaisha Fair, a rising senior at Edison, led the squad during the final in Johnson City.
The team from Rochester has emerged in first place at the Basketball Coaches Association of New York Summer Hoops Festival for the second time in five years.
Rochester won all five of its games in Johnson City, Broome County, including the tournament final, 54-41 over the team from the Central region of the state. Dyaisha Fair, who will enter her senior year at Edison Career and Technology High School in the Rochester City School District this fall, scored a team-high 19 points in the final.
The festival just outside Binghamton is a replacement for the high school girls basketball competition of the defunct Empire State Games.
"It's basically as good as the Empire State Games were," Rochester coach Jeff Parizek said. "Every section sends a team, except for a couple that were combined.
"It's all college-level kids, players who want to go on to Division I, II or III. It's no joke, the best of the best. Syracuse last year had five Division I kids on its team."
Rochester defeated teams from the Buffalo, Hudson Valley and Nassau County, Long Island regions during pool play. The collection of 12 present and former high school players from Section V then defeated the home region Southern Tier team during the semifinals before its double-digit victory in the final.
Player roster: Lytoya Baker (Bishop Kearney senior), Lauren Devaney (Geneva senior), Dyaisha Fair (Edison senior), Alaina Forbes (Midlakes senior), Marianna Freeman (Bishop Kearney sophomore), Alana Fursman (Pittsford Mendon senior), Lexi Green (Pittsford Mendon sophomore), Callie McCulley (Batavia Notre Dame senior), Brianne Moxley (Penfield senior), Alahna Paige (Irondequoit junior), Baylee Teal (Penfield junior), Saniaa Wilson (Bishop Kearney sophomore).
Head coach: Jeff Parizek (Kendall). Assistant coaches: Jack Rosati (Honeoye Falls-Lima), Kevan Sheppard (Bishop Kearney), Ryan O'Neill (School of the Arts), Todd Esposito (Churchville-Chili), Tim Lincoln (Waterloo).


Jorge De La Rosa answered a pair of pitching gems by the St. Louis Cardinals with one of his own. The Colorado Rockies’ offense woke up. De La Rosa held the Cardinals hitless into the seventh inning and Troy Tulowitzki’s three-run homer ended Colorado’s scoreless streak at 28 innings, sending the Rockies to an 8-2 victory Sunday.
Charlie Blackmon added a two-run homer off Jaime Garcia (4-2) for the Rockies, who snapped a four-game skid. They finished with 11 hits after totaling three in consecutive shutout losses to rookie Shelby Miller and Adam Wainwright.


Safer’s unmistakable voice was a hallmark of the classic television program for decades.
Morley Safer, the longest-serving 60 Minutes correspondent in the show’s history, died Thursday at his home in Manhattan, just one week after leaving the celebrated newsmagazine program. He was 84.
“It’s fair to say that nobody alive today has seen as much and reported on it as brilliantly as Morley,” his former colleague, Steve Kroft, said in a special, hour-long retrospective of his career that aired Sunday on CBS.
Safer, who was in declining health, became an iconic newsman in the 1960s with his groundbreaking reporting on Vietnam, broadcasting images of destroyed villages that changed the way Americans saw the war. In 1970, he joined 60 Minutes, quickly becoming a defining voice of what was for years America’s most watched news show. He would go on to file 919 reports for the program before announcing his retirement last week. Safer filed his last report in March after working at 60 Minutes for nearly 50 years.


ASTON VILLA have been rocked with the news that captain John Terry broke his metatarsal in the 2-1 home defeat to Sheffield Wednesday.
The Chelsea legend was forced off the field with just 21 minutes on the clock and now faces around three months on the sidelines.
The 36-year-old, who rejected a host of offers to sign a one-year deal with the Championship side, fell to the ground in pain following a Wednesday attack.
He was replaced by Chris Samba as he head down the tunnel with the medical staff to determine the seriousness of his injury.
Terry posted on Instagram: "Devastated is an understatement to how I'm feeling tonight, after my CT scan I have just had news that I have broken my 5th metatarsal.
"I will be doing everything I can to get back fit as soon as possible."
And after the game a dejected Steve Bruce confirmed their worst fears.
He said: "John went to hospital and it looks as if he has got a broken metatarsal which is bad news for all of us.
"How badly he has broken it, we don't know, but he will be out for quite some time, that's for sure.
"He has been immense for us during the last few months and when we analyse things tomorrow, that is when this will really hit us.
"The loss of key players is critical to us going forward especially your captain and John in particular.
"Let's hope it is not so bad. let's hope it is only one where it is six weeks out rather than 12 weeks."
Villa fell behind to an impressive Wednesday side after just 18 seconds through Adam Reach.
Jordan Rhodes then doubled the Owls' advantage before Samba grabbed a last second consolation.
It leaves Bruce's side in fifth, nine points off league leaders Wolves whilst Sheffield Wednesday move up to 11th.


He is the man literary Ireland fears most. Stephen Joyce, the highly litigious grandson of Ireland's greatest writer, James Joyce, has devoted his life to fiercely protecting his grandfather's copyright, setting his lawyers on those foolhardy enough to take the Joyce name in vain or to reproduce Joyce's words without consent.
Few are spared. He has targeted publishing houses, internet readings and even an Irish composer who requested permission to quote 18 words of Finnegans Wake and received a letter saying: "To put it politely, my wife and I don't like your music."
But now, fearful for this month's mammoth celebrations of Joyce's masterpiece, Ulysses, Irish MPs yesterday rushed through emergency legislation which will prevent Mr Joyce from suing the government and the National Library over an exhibition which displays 500 pages of Joyce manuscripts bought for €12.6m in 2002.
"James Joyce and Ulysses" is the centrepiece of the Rejoyce festival commemorating the centenary of Bloomsday, the day on which Ulysses was set.
Stephen Joyce had warned the government and the library he would take any copyright infringement seriously.
Mr Joyce, now in his 70s, is the writer's only living descendant. He lives in France and has made considerable sums from suing over copyright infringement and from fees for rights.
The government said it was closing a copyright loophole.


Rich Meeusen, CEO of Badger Meter. Credit: Badger Meter Inc.
Rich Meeusen, the president, chief executive officer and chairman of Badger Meter Inc., would receive about $8.4 million if the company were to change hands and he departed, according to filings with federal securities regulators.
Badger Meter is "exploring on a preliminary basis various options to enhance shareholder value," the company said Wednesday in a news release.
Meeusen's so-called change-in-control package is laid out in his employment and severance agreement. It says that Meeusen, 61, would receive three years' worth of salary and annual incentive compensation, along with the estimated retirement and other benefits he would have earned if he had been employed for those three years. Among the benefits included in the estimate are outplacement and financial planning services.
If he had departed on Dec. 31, 2015, following a sale, the benefit would have been worth $8.4 million, the company said in a March 8 SEC filing.
Badger Meter did not respond Thursday afternoon to a reporter's questions about Meeusen's possible compensation.
The compensation committee of Badger Meter's board — all of whom have strong Milwaukee ties — approved the agreement. That committee is headed by Steven J. Smith, who was the top executive at Journal Media Group, which was the parent company of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel before JMG was sold to Gannett Co. Inc.
Other members of the compensation committee are Gale E. Klappa, recently retired CEO of WEC Energy Group Inc.; Gail A. Lione, an adjunct professor at Georgetown University who was general counsel at Harley-Davidson Inc.; and Todd Teske, CEO at Briggs & Stratton Corp.
Meeusen has been one of the region's most high-profile executives, a lifelong Milwaukeean known for his clever quips and big ideas. He founded the Water Council in 2008 and became one of the most ardent boosters of its potential to improve the region's economy.
He also was one of the strongest supporters of the controversial right-to-work bill, promising to add jobs if it was passed and inviting Gov. Scott Walker to sign it into law on Badger Meter's factory floor in March 2015.
Reacting to news of the possibility of a sale of Badger Meter, liberal advocacy group One Wisconsin Now said in a news release that research in other states has shown that when right-to-work is enacted, the result is lower wages, less health care, fewer resources for schools and less workplace safety.


The Alan Kurdi has been stuck at sea with 80 people on board for nine days.
Another woman was evacuated from a stranded humanitarian vessel after requiring medical attention, the government said.
NGO Sea-Eye said in a statement the woman, 23-year-old Nigerian, one of the two pregnant women on board the Alan Kurdi, had suffered an epileptic seizure. Her "worried" husband remains on board.
The vessel has been stuck at sea for nine days with 80 people aboard - 64 of whom were rescued off war-torn Libya. On Tuesday, another 24-year-old woman was evacuated to Malta for medical attention by the AFM following loss of consciousness.
The ship has been denied access to Malta and Italy, with both governments repeatedly saying it was Libya's responsibility to take in the boat, Sea-Eye chairman Gorden Isler had told Times of Malta.
"We can only hope that the young woman will soon feel better again. Here on board we could not help her anymore," Capt. Werner Czerwinski said.
He expressed his concern about the coming days saying the people were constantly asking him why they had to stay on board for so long.
“They are really afraid of the next phase of bad weather. Many of them were seasick and recover only slowly. They see how two women collapsed and had to be evacuated. This is not a condition for people who have experienced such terrible things and it is also not a condition for my crew," he said.
The Migrant Offshore Aid Station delivered emergency food, water, medicines, dry clothing and blankets to the remaining migrants onboard the stranded vessel Tuesday afternoon. Another shipment had to be delivered by the AFM.
The woman’s evacuation was one of two medical evacuations carried out by the AFM on Wednesday.
In a statement, Sea-Eye, said it was still waiting for a political solution.


BEIRUT (Reuters) - The powerful Lebanese Shi’ite group Hezbollah on Tuesday urged the new government to launch talks with banks to bring down the cost of servicing the state’s massive public debt, setting out its view on the major problem in unusually clear terms.
Deemed a terrorist organization by the United States, the Iran-backed Hezbollah has assumed control of three ministries in the new government, the largest number of portfolios it has ever held.
With fixed exchange rates and some of the world’s worst debt and balance-of-payment ratios, Lebanon’s newly-formed government knows it needs to act fast to avoid sinking into a full-blown economic crisis.


Argentine Planning Minister Julio de Vido lashed out at Spanish Industry Minister José Manuel Soria by saying that oil company YPF is an Argentine corporation run by Spanish investors and should not be considered an asset of the European country.
The European Union and Mercosur concluded Friday in Brussels the eighth round of negotiations for a free trade agreement with the commitment to begin exchanging market access proposals at the next meeting.
EU trade ministers agreed on Friday to approve a free trade pact with Colombia and Peru that could boost European car and chemical exports and lift food and mineral exports from the South American countries.


Great 3/2- updated home on corner lot. Courtyard in front. Under two huge live oaks. Privacy and plenty of room to roam! Call today!
Updated: 21st April, 2019 4:13 PM.


Nissan Motor Company, Japan’s third-largest auto maker, has decided to cut its small car sourcing target from India’s biggest car company Maruti Suzuki by 80% in view of the severe downturn in Europe’s automobile market.
Nissan will now source just 10,000 units of Maruti Suzuki India’s recently launched A-Star for Europe against the earlier agreed target of 50,000 units. Nissan will rebrand the car Pixo for Europe after some exterior and interior engineering changes.
The deal, negotiations for which began in 2006, is for a single order and not an annual export commitment.
The two are, however, yet to draft the finer details of the deal. Nissan’s decision to downsize its sourcing comes at a time when October sales in Europe dropped almost 19% to 40,629 units.
Maruti Suzuki, however, has announced that A-Star exports, also to Europe, will stick to the January schedule. Maruti Suzuki plans to export 100,000 units, including to Europe, double its target for India.
We maintain a BUY on Maruti Suzuki with target price of Rs674.


According to AirFair Watchdog, 33 out of 52 major airports nationally offer free wi-fi, with no strings attached, including California airports in Ontario, Orange County, San Diego, San Jose, Sacramento and San Francisco. Another 19 smaller airports in California have free wi-fi, according to Wi-Fi Free Spot.
But when Los Angeles International Airport debuted its $1.9 billion upgrade of the Tom Bradley International Terminal last week, Hugo Martin at the Los Angeles Times asked why it was still using the same slow, wi-fi system used throughout LAX, which is free for just the first 45 minutes. A high-speed connection is also available, but that costs $4.95 an hour or $7.95 all day.
Even more in demand than fast, free wi-fi are charging stations for devices, including computers and phones. Around 87% of people surveyed wanted that. 47% of business travelers requested writing tables and 17% thought printing stations would be nice. Half the seats in the terminal have electrical outlets, but not much else was added to the terminal beyond the meager offerings already in place.
But the terminal, with its “epic visual landscapes” at the “intersection of sculpture, story and brand,” looks marvelous. Passengers are greeted by an 80-foot-tall “Welcome Wall” (pdf) of “stunning atmospherics and joyful scenes of greeting.” A 72-foot “Time Tower,” festooned with giant LED screens, dominates the setting and 42 high-end vendors hawk their wares to a decidedly high-end clientele. People can gaze upon the “Bon Voyage Wall,” featuring images of people jumping joyfully in slow-motion, while queuing up for security screening.
The 150,000 square-foot Bradley terminal, named for a former five-term L.A. mayor, sports the Antonio R. Villaraigosa Pavilion at its heart, named for the city’s last mayor. In addition to 60 shops and restaurants, it has a full-service spa.
The terminal is part of a $4.1 billion airport makeover that received some critical reviews in June from then-City Controller Wendy Greuel. One of her department’s audits faulted management for letting the 2009 projected cost of $1.545 billion grow to $1.9 billion and its over-reliance on consultants to handle work normally done in-house. The entire capital improvement project is expected to cost $6 billion over the next decade and is funded by airport revenues.
LAX was late to the movement among airports around the country to provide free wi-fi service to travelers. And even then, when finally approved a year ago by the Los Angeles city council, it was slow and free for just the first 45 minutes, while others were fast and unlimited. At the time, city officials vowed that they would embark upon a two-year quest to upgrade the service which, admittedly, was being provided by Miami-based Advanced Wireless Group under a no-bid contract that left its critics scratching their heads.
New bids for upgraded wi-fi are reportedly expected to go out soon.


Here's The New Trailer For "Bridget Jones's Baby"
She's got a lot to write about in that legendary diary.
The film hits theaters on September 16.
Bridget's got a brand new diary!
Looks like she's got a lot to write about these days.
...with whom she had a six-hour romp.
I mean, who can blame her, TBH.
I mean, what would a Bridget Jones movie be without a love triangle anyway?
Looks like we'll have to wait until September to find out who the daddy is.
So, who do you want to be the father of Bridget's baby?
Is Daniel still an option?


Much has, will and perhaps must be written about the irony of South Carolina Democrats delivering to Hillary Clinton in 2016 her first resounding early-state primary victory. It was, after all, just eight years ago that these same South Carolina voters answered the 2008 Clinton campaign's argument that she was the pragmatic and therefore best option with a similarly resounding defeat.
Indeed, in 2016, South Carolina has reversed course, and this time it turned toward what most observers will describe as the path of political pragmatism, giving Clinton a nearly 50-point victory over Bernie Sanders.
But there is another story, one that hides in plain sight but may well be ignored. Look closely at the exit poll data, and the indicators of a massive win for Clinton. There is evidence of substantial but far from record-setting overall primary turnout there, too. But, there is also this: Black voters turned out and voted in large numbers relative to other Democrats, giving their numerical majority within the party added meaning.
Black voters in South Carolina cast 6 in every 10 Democratic primary votes, according to CNN's exit poll data. That ratio is huge — and sets a record-high in South Carolina black voter participation rate. The previous high was 55 percent, set in 2008, when the first black president was on his way to being elected. And if so, what we have here is solid evidence of not one but at least two cultural and political changes that the Obama years have wrought.
First, this is what Democratic voter turnout looks like — these are its outcomes when black voters are convinced of their ability and authority to fundamentally shape American democracy. It is a result that should begin to crush the popular and often repeated myth that black political behavior in 2008 and 2012 was nothing more than a blip, a fleeting kind of emotion-only engagement inspired by a singular and history-making black candidate.
Obama's 2008 South Carolina primary win and later election as president affirmed that when active and engaged and in solid coalition with other non-white voters and progressive whites who share priorities, demographic shifts in the country's population can translate to political dominance. Saturday's South Carolina primary results indicate how essential each element of the so-called "Obama Coalition" remains for any successful Democrat.
Second, the South Carolina result challenges almost directly the rather standard and presumptive claim that the party, which is home to the most racially and ethnically diverse array of voters, must leave the earliest and most influential choice about its presidential candidate to two states that look very little like the party or the country. The argument that voters in Iowa and New Hampshire are somehow specially trained or primed and therefore "take the responsibility seriously," in some sort of unique way, seems largely emotional, even nostalgia-driven in the light of turnout results in far more diverse South Carolina.
If the turnout patterns and election outcomes look the same in most Super Tuesday states, consider that another blow. Voters in New Hampshire and Iowa didn't simply behave quite differently than those in Nevada and South Carolina; they delivered different election outcomes indicating that, for them, Sanders's message and Sanders's political priorities were a good or at least not an uncomfortable fit.
To put it bluntly, in Iowa, Sanders's race-neutral message centered around a kind of economic inequality where a dastardly 1 percent (no race mentioned) fares well at the expense of the 99 percent (no race mentioned), thus creating unjust and untenable conditions that are the same in all the 99 percent's lives has some obvious appeal to liberal voters. It is also a message that allowed Clinton a narrow win in Iowa, a blowout loss in New Hampshire, a larger but not resounding victory in more diverse Nevada and a massive win in South Carolina.
You see, there are reasons why this remains most appealing to young, white, liberal voters. For them, a race- and gender-neutral policy platform is most likely to seem sufficient to improve all Americans' lives.
But other voters — those of color — may not be so readily convinced. To them, the limits of race-neutral policy, even when shaped, formed and influenced by a black president, have been made plain during the Obama years.
Remember how often in the early years Obama used the phrase "a rising tide lifts all boats," or insisted that he intended to serve as all of America's president. The president had little choice, as has been said and written many times. He could not give lethal ammunition to his political enemies or those who are politically paranoid.
Now, at the end of the Obama era, some things are indeed quantifiably better for black America — health insurance coverage rates, unemployment, household income and wealth — than at the beginning. But by most of those measures of social and economic well-being, most of white America has recovered and left the hospital. Most black and Latino Americans remain under close observation. Some are in stable condition, but a disproportionate share remain in the ICU.
Clinton, as we have noted before, engaged in all the standard fare of black-voter stumping in 2016. She went to churches. She was seen at soul food restaurants. She collected public support and endorsements from black elected officials and other recognized names. But she also did something else.
Voters have to decide whether or not to believe her. But that is what she has said. Voters don't have to like explicit talk about race and ethnicity. But it is undeniable that, for quite some time, this was a major difference between the Clinton and Sanders campaigns.
Of course, it is true that Clinton arrived in South Carolina with some undeniable political advantages — name recognition, a beloved former president for a husband, and more campaign and outside money than any other candidate on either side of the race. But it is also true that, over the course of the 2016 election, every one of those factors have proven subservient to this: The relationship between a candidate, their policy ideas or promises and what voters believe they really need.
Demographics are not destiny. They must be paired with political engagement and action —voting, at the very least — to deliver real influence and political say.
What South Carolina's black voters — who comprise more than half of Democrats in that state and, as CNN's early exit poll data indicates, 61 percent of those who cast ballots in that state's primary — said on Saturday is that they completely and totally get that.
The question for Sanders, his supporters, and those who wish to see his campaign continue is: What do the changing demographics of America, of the Democratic Party, and a large number of voters of color expecting their experiences and priorities to share center stage, now mean that he must do differently.


Unchained Blades Coming To 3DS As A Downloadable Title?
XSEED yesterday teased a new game release, which turns out to be Unchained Blades, the Western title for the dungeon crawler UnchainBlades ReXX. Nintendo Power, in its latest edition, also reports that this game will be a digital download, one of the first full-size titles to be made available that way on the 3DS.
If super niche eastern titles can find thier way to the west via DD then I'm all for that.
If niche eastern titles make thier way to the west via DD then I'm all for that.


Why Is the Loving Dad in MetLife Hong Kong's Ad Also a Liar?
MetLife Hong Kong looks set to offer some serious competition to Thai Life Insurance, which is known for its heartbreaking spots. We see a little girl and her adoring Daddy, as she reads out an essay she's written about him. It's all about how wonderful he is, until she gets to the part where she says he's a liar. Watch the rest to find out why -- and get the tissues ready. The ad has gone super viral, with more than seven million Facebook views and over six million on YouTube.


DETROIT (AP) -- Former President Barack Obama will campaign for Democrats in Michigan.
Obama will headline a rally in Detroit Friday for Sen. Debbie Stabenow, gubernatorial candidate Gretchen Whitmer, U.S. House candidates and others 11 days before the election.
Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder will also attend. He leads a national Democratic group that is backing Michigan's anti-gerrymandering ballot proposal to put redistricting in the hands of a commission instead of lawmakers.
Obama's rally was announced Tuesday by the Michigan Democratic Party, which will provide more details later.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders rallied with top Democrats in Ann Arbor last week, while Donald Trump Jr. campaigned with Republicans in Pontiac. The president's daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, was in Jackson Tuesday to support gubernatorial candidate Bill Schuette and Senate candidate John James.


Rivals. Obama and Romney starting trading barbs as rivals this week. In more serious news, Sudan and South Sudan are also sliding closer to confrontation. And in decidedly less serious news, rival N.F.L. front offices are exchanging secrets and innuendo ahead of next week’s draft. There’s no formal rivalry in this week’s quiz, but last week’s average score only improved by two per cent, so let’s see if you can’t at least beat your own marks.


Jennifer Lopez's Twins Look All Grown Up in Adorable Back-to-School Outfits -- See the Cute Pic!
Jennifer Lopez is sending the kiddos back to school!
The “Amor Amor Amor” singer shared a sweet pic to Instagram on Thursday of her 9-year-old twins, Emme and Maximilian, as the young students prepared for their first day of fourth grade.
Not babies anymore is right! The pair looks so grown up, especially compared to a recent throwback snap J.Lo posted of her kids as toddlers.
Have fun at school, Emme and Max!
Meanwhile, Lopez recently teased her newest music video.
Watch below for what’s in store!


Nicole Scherzinger will be a judge on "The X Factor."
Cheryl Cole is out of "The X Factor."
Fox and the producers of the upcoming singing contest said Monday the British pop star will be replaced by Nicole Scherzinger as a judge. Scherzinger had originally joined the show as a host.
The network and "X Factor" producers FremantleMedia North American and Syco TV didn't offer any details on the decision in a brief joint statement. But Cole's official ouster followed weeks of reports that she might be off the show.
Among the possible reasons rumored: her lack of chemistry with fellow judges L.A. Reid, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell, who is also the show's creator. Cole was a judge on the original British "The X Factor," and it's unclear whether she'll return to that program.
Cole could not be immediately reached for comment.


German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday she would back lowering European Union tariffs on U.S. car imports, responding to an offer from Washington to abandon threatened levies on European cars in return for concessions.
U.S. President Donald Trump threatened last month to impose a 20-percent import tariff on all EU-assembled vehicles, part of a tough line on trade that has raised tensions across the world and which could upend the EU industry’s current business model for selling cars in the United States.
The U.S. ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, has repeatedly met with executives of German car makers Volkswagen (VW), BMW and Daimler and automotive suppliers including Continental, most recently on Wednesday, to discuss the issue.
An industry source told Reuters earlier that Grenell had mentioned to the executives that Trump could abandon his threats if the EU scrapped duties on U.S. cars imported into the bloc.
A spokesman for the embassy said no formal offer on tariffs had been made, and that Grenell’s goal was rather to explore the options for a wider transatlantic trade agreement.
“That is an ongoing process,” the spokesman said.
VW, BMW, Daimler and Continental declined to provide details of Wednesday’s discussion with Grenell.
Automotive stocks rose nonetheless on Thursday, on hopes that U.S. tariffs may not come after all. At 1330 GMT, shares in VW, BMW and Daimler were all up 4 per cent from Wednesday’s close. Continental was 2.5 per cent higher.
Merkel said any move to cut tariffs on U.S. vehicles would require reductions on those imported from other countries to conform with World Trade Organization rules.
“I would be ready to support negotiations on reducing tariffs, but we would not be able to do this only with the U.S.,” she said.
German automotive trade body VDA said any suggestions about mutually removing tariffs and other trade barriers were positive signals.
“But it is clear that the negotiations are exclusively being held at a political level,” it said in a statement.


It will cost about $300,000 to give every officer the nasal spray antidote for opioid overdoses.
Catholic Charities wants to build seven tiny homes for veterans near 79th Street and Emerald Avenue.
Chicago firefighters already carry naloxone, a nasal spray that can reverse opioid overdoses.
An ordinance approved Thursday would require phone dealers to prove they're not peddling stolen goods.
No-show at Midway meeting by Aviation boss Ginger Evans draws heat from aldermen.
Fourteenth Ward Ald. Ed Burke showed colleagues video of Doc Brown and his DeLorean time machine.
But the mayor left the door open to removing the Balbo monument near Soldier Field.
An effort in 2014 to ban horse-drawn carriages in Chicago fizzled.
Burke made the joke during a debate over a $38.75 million settlement involving red-light camera tickets.
Sentencing would include community service and mandatory participation in social service programs.
Zoning change for warehouse clears way for 100 units of mixed-income housing next door.
There are 5,889 men, women and children who are homeless in Chicago on any given night, officials said.
The step is being taken "ensure as many voices are heard as possible," Ald. John Arena (45th) wrote.
The lawsuit's next hearing is set for May 16, one week after the proposal goes up for zoning approval.


"We Hadn't Any Machine Guns Or Anything Like That"
"It Was Better For Him To Die"
Richard Humphreys was a member of the Headquarters Battalion and served under Desmond Fitzgerald in the Commissariat in the General Post Office. He remembers Pearse inspecting the different positions within the building and updating the men with news from around the country.
Richard Humphreys was the nephew of Michael Joseph O’Rahilly (known as The O’Rahilly). He saw his uncle for the last time on Friday evening just before The O’Rahilly left the GPO with his small party who were tasked with trying to get to Moore Street.
Richard Humphreys was arrested after the surrender and taken to Kilmainham Gaol. It was two days before he learned of the death of his uncle who was killed while leading the charge from the GPO.
Tommy mentioned about one of the leaders, The O’Rahilly being killed, and it was a frightful shock.
Richard Humphreys was a member of the Irish Volunteers and was attached to the Headquarters Battalion in the GPO. During the War of Independence he joined ‘B’ Company, 3rd Battalion, Dublin Brigade, Irish Republican Army.
Richard Humphreys was interviewed for the RTÉ Television project 'Portraits 1916' on 1 January 1966.


Home Featured Catholic News How do we see ourselves in Church?
When we think about mission, we first need to think about Church and how it relates to us and how we see ourselves in it, according to a Boston University professor.
Fr Richard Lennan makes a point during his talk about being people of faith.
May 26 that people often do not see themselves as being part of the Church, but rather see Church as an “other thing”.
hardly anyone really thinks of herself or himself as part of the Church.
“Everyone, except me. When I think of the Church, I think about them, I don’t think about me. So the first task when we think about mission is how do we think of the Word,” he said.
He said everyone has something to be unhappy about when it comes to Church. He said some think there is too much emphasis on doctrine, while others think there is too little. Some are unhappy that the Church is too much about God and not enough about people, and vice-versa.
He said people often think that the Church would be better “if it didn’t have all those other people in it”.
But he said the diversity in the Church is a reflection of God’s own diversity, of the relationship of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and the love that makes them one.
“The challenge for us as a Church is to allow our differences to reflect the richness of God’s own life rather than to divide us. To do that, there needs to be a willingness to accept the Church as it is, not simply my creation,” he said.
Fr Lennan said it is, as Vatican II pointed out, the dynamism of the Holy Spirit in the Pentecost contrasted with the Tower of Babel in Genesis. The Holy Spirit allowed people of different languages to hear the one Word of God and unite them.
Accepting this diversity will allow people of faith to think of the Church as “us”.
“Unless we do see ourselves as the Church, then nothing is possible. Otherwise the Church remains this thing outside. What we’re offered in our baptism is not membership of a thing but a relationship with God that also involves a relationship with one another,” he explained.
He said we all have different experiences of God, yet we all have heard the word God, Jesus or Church from someone.
Fr Lennan said the reality of the Church also is that we are in it for others. “It is not what is in it for me, but how am I in it for others,” he said.
He said the Church is a work in progress, a constant movement towards God and that we, as a people of faith, are in that pilgrimage together.
Fr Lennan finds his credibility seriously diminished by his manifest failure to comply with paragraph 66 of the Directory On the Ministry and Life of Priests (Congregation for the Clergy, 31/1/1994).


For one evening only, Victoria Mature, daughter of the legendary, self-deprecating actor Victor Mature, performs her new "multi-media extravaganza." The show includes movie clips and music from his more iconic films: Pete Shaner directs. Mature once said: “I’m no actor and I’ve got 64 pictures to prove it."
When: Sunday, June 23, 2019, 7 p.m. to 9 a.m.


Awards Season went into full swing yesterday when the nominations for the 91st Academy Awards were announced. One of the most exciting things about this year is the love for Black Panther, which earned a total of seven nominations. Fans and Marvel stars alike have been celebrating the news, including Black Panther himself, Chadwick Boseman.
The actor also included the recent Entertainment Weekly video promoting their upcoming Oscars 2019 issue, which features Black Panther as the cover.
Considering the widespread love for the Marvel Studios film and the fact that it was the highest grossing movie in the United States last year, it’s no surprise EW has deemed it cover-worthy. Their article praises the film, and credits the “remarkable social momentum” for its success.
“Black Panther isn’t a traditional Black Oscar movie. Because it isn’t about the thing that almost every black film that’s been nominated for Oscars is: pain,” EW writes. They go on to list some films that have gotten serious Oscar recognition, for example, Best Picture winners 12 Years a Slave and Moonlight. While those are remarkable movies, EW explains that there’s something special about Black Panther and its success.
“It doesn’t feel that way because it’s not about pain; It’s about excellence,” they write.
Excellence that was indeed not overlooked by the Academy this year. In Boseman’s tweet he mentions making history. That’s because Black Panther is the first comic book film ever to be nominated for Best Picture. Back in 2009, The Dark Knight received eight nominations, and even took home the prize for Best Supporting Actor (which went to Heath Ledger, posthumously) and Best Sound Editing (Richard King). However, despite the film’s success and recognition, it did not receive that coveted Best Picture nomination.
In addition to its Best Picture nod, Black Panther is also up for Best Original Music Score (Ludwig Göransson), Best Costume Design (Ruth E. Carter), Best Sound Mixing (Steve Boeddeker, Brandon Proctor, Peter J. Devlin), Best Sound Editing (Benjamin A. Burtt, Steve Boeddeker), Best Original Song (Sounwave, Kendrick Lamar, Anthony Tiffith, SZA), and Best Production Design (Hannah Beachler, Jay Hart).
Pick up the Black Panther Oscar issue of Entertainment Weekly this Friday!


Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel said he doesn’t know whether to believe Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore’s accusers.
MADISON - Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel said he "starts by believing" the women accusing Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore and President Donald Trump but doesn't know enough about the allegations to say in the end whether they're true.
In an interview, Schimel broke with other top Republicans from Wisconsin when it comes to Moore. Gov. Scott Walker and House Speaker Paul Ryan last month said they believe Moore’s accusers and want him to drop out of the Senate race.
Schimel said he had not studied the specifics of accusations against Moore and Trump regarding their alleged mistreatment of women and didn’t know if they were true. He spoke on Monday, the same day Trump endorsed Moore and the Republican National Committee resumed spending on his behalf.
Schimel said rather than Moore and Trump, he is focused on cracking down and preventing sexual harassment at his Department of Justice. He did not provide specifics, but an aide said one DOJ employee had been reassigned and two had resigned after complaints were filed.
He acknowledged that the standard for determining whether someone should drop out of a race is lower than the one to prove criminal guilt, but added he didn’t know enough about the widely publicized accusations to decide whether he thought they were true.
“If I were a voter in Alabama, I would read the Washington Post article (first disclosing the allegations) and I would inform myself,” Schimel said.
At least 13 women have accused Trump of inappropriately touching them.
Schimel's Democratic opponent in next year's election, Josh Kaul, issued a statement Wednesday saying he believed Moore and Trump's accusers. He said Moore should drop out of the race for Senate and Trump should be investigated.
"I fundamentally disagree with Brad Schimel's view that our AG should only focus on what's happening internally at DOJ," Kaul said in his statement. "Our AG — our chief law enforcement official — needs to be a leader on these issues and should condemn this kind of inexcusable conduct."
While Schimel did not call for any politicians to face consequences for how they treated women, Schimel praised women for going public with their allegations.
“On this whole thing, there’s something I’m very pleased with and that is we’re seeing survivors of sexual harassment and sexual assault coming forward over and over again lately and often against people who are very powerful,” Schimel said. “And I think in the past the reaction of American society would have been to quickly reject the things they’re saying. And we’re not seeing that."
Last week, two women told The Capital Times that state Rep. Josh Zepnick (D-Milwaukee) had drunkenly kissed them without their consent in 2011 and 2015. The newspaper did not name his accusers.
Zepnick has said he did not recall the incidents, which occurred during years in which he said he had a problem with drinking. He said he has been sober for two years and issued an apology to the women accusing him.
Democratic leaders in the Assembly and the head of the state Democratic Party have called for him to resign. Zepnick has said he won’t do that.
Kaul on Wednesday said he also believed Zepnick should step down. Schimel said he was not joining the call for Zepnick to do that.
Department of Justice employees were given new training to prevent sexual harassment in 2015 and 2016 and new policies were adopted in 2016, Schimel said.
He also indicated he had taken action against employees over the issue.
“We have addressed it with several staff members who have — some have now parted ways with (the) Department of Justice, some have seen demotions as a result of allegations,” he said.
Schimel spokesman Johnny Koremenos said in 2015 there were three sexual harassment complaints at DOJ. In one case, supervisor John Knappmiller resigned after he was accused of positioning his groin close to several female workers faces and repeatedly calling one woman. Another employee resigned as a result of sexual harassment complaints that year and a third case was unsubstantiated.
In 2016, there was one complaint. It was unsubstantiated, but the employee was assigned to a different job, Koremenos said.
This year there have been two complaints, including one that was unsubstantiated. In the other case, a female DOJ workers complained she was being harassed by an Eau Claire County sheriff's captain. That case was handled by the county and a third-party investigator, which found the captain engaged in unwelcome but not illegal behavior.
Also this week, Schimel told the Wisconsin State Journal, Capital Times and Associated Press that he agrees with legislative leaders from both parties that sexual harassment complaints against lawmakers or their staffs should be kept secret. He said he would defend that position in court, even though his office has taken a different stance and released documents under the state’s open records law about harassment complaints about employees in his Department of Justice.


Outgoing CIA director John Brennan slammed this language, saying, “I think he has to be mindful that he does not have a full appreciation and understanding of what the implications are of going down that road.” The comment appears to have increased the antagonism between Trump and agencies, and has probably led to some of the information being released — but so has his unusually close relationship to a foreign entity with a vested interest in his election.
But that is more in line with traditional disgruntled government agency behavior. Where is Trump getting this paranoid “deep state” stuff?
The term, with its surrounding air of paranoia and speculation, has all the hallmarks of his longtime ally Roger Stone and his associate, right-wing conspiracy radio/internet host Alex Jones.
Stone has been Trump’s political whisperer for decades, at one point holding a leadership role in his 2016 presidential campaign, and continues to be a trusted adviser to this day. Stone has written several conspiracy minded books, including one blaming President Lyndon Johnson for orchestrating the murder of President John F. Kennedy. Stone also backed Trump’s bizarre allegation that Senator Ted Cruz’s father was involved in the JFK assassination.
But Jones is the conspiracy mother lode: He described himself as one of the “founding fathers” of the so-called “9/11 truth movement,” which claims that the 9/11 terror attacks were executed by the government of the United States. Jones believes that the government — aka the “deep state” — has orchestrated attacks and events throughout history. This includes the bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building, the massacre at Sandy Hook (he claims that many of the parents were actors), the Boston Marathon attack, and on and on.
For decades, Jones has existed at the fringes of right wing media, but Trump appeared on his show in 2015 after announcing his presidential campaign, and the two have been rhetorically joined at the hip since. During the presidential primary season, Jones enlisted his audience to vote for Trump, and Stone has been whispering in both men’s ears (he appears on Jones’ show and writes for his conspiracy website, Infowars).
Trump praised Jones for having an “amazing” reputation when he appeared on his show, and reportedly told him he was “one of the greatest influences I’ve ever seen” in a personal telephone conversation. According to Jones, he and Trump have kept in contact for months via phone conversations.
While Trump has long embraced conspiracy theories — his biggest political move before his campaign was the promotion of the racist birther conspiracy alleging President Obama was not born in the United States — his interaction with Jones has led to publicly echoing Jones’ rantings about who truly controls the world.
The mind-meld was cemented with Trump’s speech accepting the Republican nomination as he declared war on “globalism” — the overarching idea, steeped in anti-Semitism and which Jones has promoted for decades, of a vast conspiracy of wealthy, powerful “globalists” who are the hidden, invisible hands behind world events and who manipulate them in service of accumulating personal power and wealth.
The two men remained in synchronicity with each other as the campaign progressed, with Jones pushing out conspiracies (amplified by fellow conspiracy theorist Matt Drudge at his highly trafficked Drudge Report), that were echoed by Trump on the presidential campaign trail.
Jones claimed the election would be “rigged,” and Trump ran with the idea. Jones called Obama “the founding general” of ISIS, then Trump said Obama and Hillary Clinton were the “founder” and “co-founder” of the terrorist group. And on and on.
Jones was overjoyed that Trump won, but in language that Trump is now echoing with his theorizing about the “deep state” and unfounded allegations of wiretapping by President Obama, Jones claimed that Obama and the CIA were working on a plot to have Trump killed.
Both men believe that a secret plot is in place by elements of the U.S. government fighting a shadowy internal war against Trump and his administration. It is not a coincidence that their strange beliefs and behavior are in sync. Jones has Trump’s ear, and is telling him absurd nonsense that the vast majority of people would dismiss as unhinged ranting and raving.
But Trump is obviously taking it seriously, and using his platform to elevate it to a global audience. This is extremely dangerous.


Chivo will be holding its 28th reunion and potluck from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday at Oak Park on Alpine Avenue in Stockton.
The group is made up of past residents of El Barrio del Chivo (The Goat Neighborhood), a Latino community. Homes from the neighborhood were torn down about 40 years ago, but past residents meet every year.
Music at the Vineyards, a fundraiser to purchase instruments for Mariachi Juvenil de Jose Salcedo, will be at 6 p.m. Saturday, hosted by Ramon Rios Winery at 8458 W. Linne Road, Tracy. The mariachi group�s instruments were recently stolen.
Bring a picnic basket and blanket and listen to a salsa and merengue concert by Orquesta Sensual.
Alcohol will be served, but outside alcoholic beverages will not be allowed.
Tickets are $25 and are limited. The fundraiser is sponsored by Ramos Rios Winery and Tracy Hispanic Business Group.
The Native Daughters of the Golden West Ruby Parlor No. 46 will hold their annual yard sale from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday at the Angele O�Connor Native Daughters Hall, 268 Main St., Murphys.
To find out more about activities and events in your area, check out the Our Town section of www.recordnet.com.
To submit an item for Area Digest, e-mail features@recordnet.com with �Area Digest� in the subject line. You also may fax (209) 943-8570, attn.: Area Digest. Submissions must be received at least one week before the event date and must include a contact number for publication.


Tullahoma is among several Tennessee cities that offer broadband access to residents and businesses, often at cheaper rates and faster speeds than the private sector providers, and unlike satellite, they don't include data caps. Those in neighboring communities want the option of fiber access or, in many cases, just any kind of broadband access to fill in the gaps left by the private sector.
NORMANDY, Tenn. – It's usually between the 10th and the 15th day of the month when Clifton and Joanna Miller's satellite Internet account hits its data cap. Clifton, a lawyer, and Joanna, a sixth-grade math teacher, are unable to work from home. Their 16-year-old daughter, who depends on access for homework, takes a laptop to her grandmother's house nearby to complete her assignments until a new month begins.
The Millers' house is less than a mile from Tullahoma's city limit, but under state law, the Tullahoma Utilities Board cannot extend its high-speed fiber Internet network outside its electric service footprint. They would settle for basic broadband from other providers, but those companies — AT&T and Charter Communications — don't reach his neighborhood.
"Having Internet connection is a crucial part of daily life," Clifton Miller said. "If (private-sector companies) are not going to provide us with the utility, then someone should be allowed to give it to us."
The same scenario is playing out throughout the state as demand increases for reliable Internet access. Tullahoma is among several Tennessee cities — Chattanooga, Clarksville, Jackson, Bristol, Morristown, Pulaski and Columbia — that offer broadband access to residents and businesses, often at cheaper rates and faster speeds than the private-sector providers, and unlike satellite, they don't include data caps. Those in neighboring communities want the option of fiber access or, in many cases, just any kind of broadband access to fill in the gaps left by the private sector.
Nearly half of Tennesseans in rural areas don't have access to broadband Internet with 25 megabits-per-second download speeds, according to the Tennessee Municipal Electric Power Association, which supports the state bill.
A bill to lift restrictions on municipal broadband Internet reach has been filed during the past three legislative sessions and has been killed in committee each time, illustrating the sway Internet providers hold in the Tennessee General Assembly. But with a recent victory at the federal level, this time could be different.
Chattanooga's Electric Power Board won a ruling from the Federal Communications Commission on Feb. 26, giving it the green light to connect those outside its power service boundaries to its fiber network. Already, U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn has introduced legislation to block the decision, and state Rep. Jeremy Durham, a Republican representing Franklin, and two other Republican legislators have urged the Tennessee attorney general to appeal the decision, calling it an "unconstitutional violation on our state sovereignty."
"I don't want to create a slippery slope where the federal government starts regulating things that they shouldn't," Durham said.
Meanwhile, Sen. Janice Bowling of Tullahoma and Rep. Kevin Brooks of Cleveland, also both Republicans, have filed the most recent bill at the state level that would lift restrictions on municipal broadband providers. Bowling has long cheered the economic impact of high-speed Internet in Tullahoma, and Cleveland residents would benefit from access to Chattanooga's gigabit speed network.
Brooks says the FCC ruling gives new momentum to the bill, adding federal support to an issue that has been gaining local traction in pockets across Tennessee for years.
"My district said we need help. We have some folks with little service, some folks with no service," Brooks said. "This is not about government intrusion; this is a bill about service exclusion."
Brian Skelton, general manager of the Tullahoma Utility Board, says many nearby residents and those in Manchester and Lynchburg have asked to be connected, but by law, TUB has to turn them away. "In some cases, they are across the street from our electrics customers," he said.
Brooks describes the fight as a "David versus Goliath" contest, given the telecommunications companies' powerful lobbying arm. Telecommunications companies, led by AT&T and Comcast, have contributed more than $1 million to Tennessee elections in the past two election cycles, according to the National Institute on Money in State Politics.
Not surprisingly, AT&T wants to keep tighter reins on municipal expansion. The company said municipal networks should be limited to areas where private-sector providers do not operate or are not likely to operate "in a reasonable time frame" and that public funds should not be used to compete with private companies.
"Policies that discourage private-sector investment put at risk the world-class broadband infrastructure American consumers deserve and enjoy today," AT&T spokesman Daniel Hayes said in an emailed statement.
Charter did not directly state its position on the FCC decision or the state bill, but said in an email, "We are confident in our ability to compete on a level playing field and in our ability to serve our customers."
The problem is not everyone is able to enjoy that world-class infrastructure that AT&T describes.
In Clifton Miller's case, AT&T offers only dial-up to his home and Charter has quoted him a $16,000 installation fee.
Daughter Jillian Miller, who is a junior at Tullahoma High School, bemoans the Netflix and social media of which she is deprived, but more pressing are her academic concerns. Next year, her school will rely heavily on Google Chromebooks for texts and assignments, meaning Internet connection will become even more important for class.
While it's an example of how the city's LightTUBe Internet service has affected education, it also heightens the disparity between those inside and outside its service parameters.
"Every night, I'll have to use (the Internet)," Jillian Miller said. "I don't know what I'll do next year."
The city's LightTUBe was launched in 2009, funded by $16.9 million in general obligation bonds. Skelton said it has caused several people to move to the city and has kept prices from private-sector providers in check.
"It's been good for our city," Skelton said. "So many people now work from home and they need to have this Internet service."
The argument against municipal services is that it's difficult for businesses to compete against a government-subsidized entity, a point that Gov. Bill Haslam made on Tuesday in a conversation with reporters. But the private operators are failing to meet the demand in rural areas, and the restrictions are holding back entire communities in the meantime.
Durham emphasizes that he takes issue with the FCC's involvement, not the expansion of municipal broadband providers, and he said he would consider the bill lifting restrictions filed at the state level. Haslam also has opposed the FCC taking a vote on what he sees as a state issue. He has not taken a position on the state bill, but has said there is value in more people gaining Internet access in underserved areas and that the state's job is to create a "level playing field."
As it stands, the Internet providers have the advantage in those areas outside the municipal boundaries, but they are doing very little with it.
If the House and Senate bills make it to the floor this year, Durham and all those opposed to what they describe as the FCC's federal overreach can make a decision on Internet expansion on the state level, one that hopefully lifts the regulations. Those Tennesseans still lacking broadband connection would certainly prefer lawmakers spend their time and resources rolling out more Internet infrastructure than seeking legal action that stands in its way.
In 2014, Gov. Bill Haslam and U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn raised the most money among Tennessee lawmakers from the telecommunications industry. Haslam's campaign received $64,150, and Blackburn's campaign received $59,000. In 2012, Blackburn raised $66,400 from the businesses in that industry.
April 16, 2019, 9:01 a.m.
April 10, 2019, 2:09 p.m.
April 4, 2019, 11:47 a.m.
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March 5, 2019, 9:05 a.m.


Kyle Lotay: PIC: Norfolk Police.
Three Norwich police officers who battled to bring a 37-year-old man back from the brink of death have received top life-saving honours.
PC Kyle Lotay, together with colleagues PC Liam Nicklin and PC Rob Wells, were called to a property in Magdalen Street, Norwich, after a man collapsed and stopped breathing.
They found the man, who had collapsed following a disturbance at the house, unconscious and not breathing on a small landing at the top of a hall stairway.
Despite problems caused by a drunk and hostile person in the property, the officers started performing cardiac pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and continued their life-saving efforts until ambulance staff arrived.
The perseverance of the police officers, in extremely difficult conditions, helped ensure that the man survived his ordeal.
All three officers are to receive Royal Humane Society Resuscitation Certificates following their life-saving efforts in the early hours of September 29 last year.
PC Lotay, who is now an acting sergeant at Earlham Police Station, said his colleagues were first on scene with him arriving at the address to assist them.
The 33-year-old, who has been a police officer since 2009, transferring to Norfolk from Essex in 2012, said their first aid training is refreshed annually - although it was the first time he was called on to do CPR.
He said: “It's the first time in 10 years I've had to it.
“What you cannot appreciate from the training is how exhausting CPR is – by the time you've done two to three repetitions of it you're exhausted.
He said the ambulance service arrived pretty quickly although it “seemed like a life time”.
Acting Sgt Lota has not seen the patient since but was delighted he survived. He said he felt really privileged to have been put forward for the award, but insisted emergency services like police and ambulance service face scenes like this every day all over the country and said the recognition was for all of them.


CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — Police are searching for a woman accused of striking a Chesterfield County Police officer with a car.
Tia Nicole Peyton, 36, is wanted on several charges, including felony larceny, felony assault on police, and driving while suspended, according to Chesterfield Police.
The officer suffered minor injuries, police said.


The crash at Somerset Airport in Bedminster about 6 p.m. Friday evening left the plane, a model CH7A built in 2009, nose-down near the runway.
A crash at Somerset Airport in Bedminster about 6 p.m. Friday evening left the plane, a model CH7A built in 2009, nose-down near the runway.
Authorities say two men involved in a single-engine plane crash in Somerset County suffered only minor injuries.
FAA spokeswoman Holly Baker tells The Star-Ledger of Newark that the American Champion plane was "landing for unknown reasons" when it came down short of the runway.
Assistant fire chief for the Far Hills-Bedminster Fire Department tells the Asbury Park Press that one man had facial injuries and the other had ankle pain. One of the victims went to Morristown Hospital for treatment but the other declined medical transport.
The airport is less than two miles west of Interstate 287 and less than three miles south of Interstate 78.


The more information you have before deciding to buy or sell a home, the better your decisions will be. There are a laundry list of factors to consider, including school zones, average home prices and house amenities. There are also the issues of accessibility, both to the building, if you or a loved one have physical limitations or to local sights or resources. All these factors can impact final sale price, and no one likes surprises.
Six members of the Forbes Real Estate Council share their best tips.


Mumbai: Corporate acquisitions in India could become costlier with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) mulling making it mandatory for acquirers to make an offer for up to 100% stake in any listed company.
The capital markets regulator has set up a Takeover Regulatory Advisory Committee, with former Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) presiding officer C. Achuthan as chairman, to look into suitable changes in the existing takeover regulations.
While any changes are expected to take effect from the next fiscal only, the committee is said to be seriously looking at increasing the open offer size from 20% to as high as 100%, while it might also increase the open offer trigger limit from 15%, sources said.
While an increase in open offer size could mean larger cash outgo for the acquirers, the step is being considered in the larger interest of retail and other public shareholders.
As per the current practice, all the public shareholders do not necessarily get an exit option even if the ownership of a company changes hands, as the open offer size need not exceed 20%.


In the age of the experience economy, customer loyalty is driven by convenience and instant access to information.
The way we perceive and interact with technology to manage and protect the lifeblood of every organisation has, historically, been a critical factor in business viability and digital transformation.
Today's ultra-competitive business environment means companies cannot afford to be offline. Having a quality product or solution sure to sell and boost the bottom line is simply not enough in the age of the experience economy, where customer loyalty is driven by convenience.
We are living and operating businesses in an age where product quality is not only a given, it's expected. But it's not enough to keep them coming back. Today, organisations must deliver what the customer wants, when they want it.
And let's face it: everyone, regardless of industry, expects instant access to information and the ability to buy products or services anytime, from anywhere. So, what in a business is the pivotal hub for the delivery of that positive experience? The answer is unquestionably: IT.
Let's unpack the experience economy. What is it?
In a world where over half the Fortune 500 companies have disappeared since 2000 simply because they didn't embrace the realities of digital business, it may seem an obvious observation that our new world is data-driven and also being referred to as the fourth industrial revolution.
This era has hailed the introduction of the digital consumer and subsequent optimisation of business. Those that didn't embrace this digital transformation have ceased to exist. Under the circumstances it is hardly surprisingly that an organisation's most critical asset has become its data; and protecting it is possibly the single most important factor in its ability to thrive.
And let's face it: everyone, regardless of industry, expects instant access to information and the ability to buy products or services anytime, from anywhere.
In September 2018, Arcserve commissioned a survey with research firm MayHill Strategies in order to acquire more insight into how businesses are modernising their approach to handle new data types, increased workload volumes and meet rising service-level agreements.
A total of 759 targeted respondents, responsible for IT management in their organisations, were interviewed online in the US, UK and Germany. Industry sector and job responsibility were factored into the results analysis to ensure a balanced sample.
According to Cyber Security Ventures, ransomware attacks are estimated to occur every 14 seconds by the end of 2019.
Whether this can be described as media scaremongering fuelling concern over data safety security is debatable but the fact is that the above headline is the result of recent research and was attested to by 58% of IT decision-makers identifying recent media coverage of data breaches and ransomware attacks as a key concern relative to their ability to safeguard business-critical data.
Yet, even with ransomware being a real concern for 91% of IT decision-makers, nearly 70% still view the threat as a data security - not recovery - issue. But it doesn't stop there. Media coverage of Facebook's recent data breach also sparked fear for 42% of IT decision-makers; more so than a digital disruption to their own business applications and systems, or recent natural disasters.
To prepare for, and mitigate against, threats of events such as cyber attacks and system outages, 89% of IT decision-makers indicate having a formal disaster recovery plan in place. What's alarming is that nearly 75% lack confidence in their ability to recover business-critical data in time to avoid business disruptions. Why would that be the case?
The answer lies in the high costs and time required to protect multi-generational infrastructures ranging from non-x86 and x86, to software-as-a-service and infrastructure-as-a-service. In fact, 64% of IT decision-makers agree that protecting business-critical data has not become easier over the past five years despite efforts to simplify operations and reduce costs.
Most IT decision-makers agree that safeguarding business-critical data has become more difficult, primarily due to resource constraints plus the high cost and multiple backup tools needed to protect complex infrastructures.
Some 51% of survey respondents cite major challenges to include the amount of time and skill required to keep backups functioning, coupled with the high expense of backup solution acquisition and support.
However, C-class executives were significantly more likely to state cost as the most difficult aspect of safeguarding data. The need for separate and/or additional backup tools to support new workloads, plus more frequent recovery points, were highlighted by nearly half of IT decision-makers as key challenges in data protection.
Yet, as backup infrastructures are clearly becoming more costly and complex, the tolerance for data loss is diminishing. Some 93% of IT decision-makers revealed their organisations could tolerate "minimal", if any, data loss from critical business applications; with half saying they have less than an hour to recover business-critical data before it starts impacting revenue.
However, IT decision-makers are divided on the importance of recovery speed versus the extent to which business activity is lost, with only half stating both are of equal importance in recovery efforts. Significantly, a quarter of respondents indicate the speed of getting back online is of more importance than how much data they actually lose.
In my second Industry Insight on this topic, I will reveal why IT decision-makers are divided on the importance of recovery speed versus lost business activity.


More than one observer has said that Pixar seems to be working the kind of revolutionary magic Disney once did. And while most of us are familiar with Pixar blockbusters like "The Incredibles" and "Toy Story," many innovations first appeared in the studio's shorter works. Here's a glimpse at some of them.
In the first Pixar short, 1986's "Luxo Jr.," a baby lamp finds a ball to play with, and it's all fun and games until the ball bursts. When Pixarite John Lasseter, formerly of Disney, was learning how to make digital models, he chose the nearest, easiest subject: an architect's lamp on his desk. "Luxo Jr." was nominated for an Oscar.
Nighttime scenes used to be unusual in digitally animated films until Pixar set off to explore the territory in the 1987 short "Red's Dream." In it, a unicycle named Red faces life as the lone sale item in the clearance corner of Eben's Bikes.
The 1988 short "Tin Toy" marked the first time a character with lifelike bendable arms and knees, surfaces and facial components was animated digitally. The film won an Academy Award for best animated short.
Life as a snowman trapped in a snow-globe blizzard can be tough. For the 1989 short "Knick Knack," creator John Lasseter says he wanted to do something "pure cartoony, like a Chuck Jones cartoon."
In 1997, Pixar released its animated short "Geri's Game." The film marked advances in the ability to animate skin and cloth.
The birds in the 2000 Academy Award-winning short "For the Birds" have countless feathers. Pixar worked with its existing technology to digitally create natural-looking feathers.
More than one observer has said that Pixar seems to be working the kind of revolutionary magic Disney once did.


Four people were arrested in The Netherlands last week after a police raid on a premises that had been using 3D printers to create fake Nintendo cartridges, inside which were hidden a variety of drugs like LSD, cocaine and MDMA.
As De Telegraaf report, Dutch police raided a dark web drug dealing setup last year (it’s a fascinating story, which you can read about here), and rather than shut it down, kept it running for a few weeks so they could gather the names and addresses of buyers. The four arrested, three men and a woman, were part of that list.
The three men were picked up in a home in Amsterdam, while the woman was found in a large shed in the town of Werkendam, which had banks of 3D printers creating not just fake Nintendo cartridges (news reports did not specify which system they were supposed to be imitating, but the image above from De Telegraaf might be a crude Famicom cart replica), but replica ink cartridges as well.
Once packed, the drugs were being shipped as far afield as Singapore, Australia and New Zealand.


Afghan Insurgents Use Drones in Fight Against U.S.
Something that’s already happening on the battlefields in Iraq and Syria.
NATO no longer has a monopoly on drones on the battlefields of Afghanistan. Because now insurgents are using them.
The drones are small, commercial-use and cheap. But they’re effective. With eyes in the sky, insurgents can conduct spy on coalition forces and target them in mortar attacks with real-time live feeds of the battlefield. In October, the Taliban even used a drone to record a suicide bombing attack for propaganda purposes.
But what’s more worrying is the possibility of insurgents arming drones with bombs — and it’s already happening in Iraq and Syria. Numerous videos of militant group purportedly dropping explosives from jerry-rigged drones have already populated YouTube (see here and here). And in October, the Islamic State attacked French and Kurdish forces in Northern Iraq with an exploding drone that killed two Kurdish soldiers.
The Pentagon is scrambling to deploy counter-drone technology to troops to respond to the threat. In October last year, Lt. Gen. Michael Shields, the director of the Pentagon’s Joint Improvised Threat-Defeat Organization (JIDO) said at a media event his organization would test state-of-the-art tools to rebuff drones in January or February.
Still, Salvin said NATO wasn’t losing any sleep over the drone threat in Afghanistan yet. “It’s something we watch for, [but] we believe their use will have very little impact to our operations,” he said.


Well-known hacking group DerpTrolling has released a list of usernames and passwords that it claims belong to thousands of Windows Live, 2K Games and Playstation Network (PSN) accounts.
The collective has made the information available via a Pastebin document that contains the log-in details of 2,131 PSN accounts, 1,472 Windows Live accounts and 2,000 2K Games accounts.
According to IBTimes, the validity of the leak has not yet been verified, but the group is also claiming credit for the recent DDoS attack on Blizzard’s World of Warcraft servers.
DerpTrolling also claims to be in the possession of millions of additional usernames and passwords, acquired from other websites and social media outlets.
"We have around 2 million Comcast accounts, 620,000 Twitter accounts, 1.2 million credentials belonging to the CIA domain, 200,000 Windows Live accounts, 3 million Facebook, 1.7 million EA origins accounts, etc," said an anonymous member during an interview with CNET.
The group claims that there is no malicious intent behind the leaked account information, but rather that its aim is to force companies to improve their security against hacks.
"There are a lot of people and fellow hackers who believe that DerpTrolling is just a bunch of kids," he added. "But the truth is we have been associated with and assisted every well-known hacking group aside from The Syrian Electronic Army and LizardSquad (although we were invited to join LizardSquad)."
So far there has been no comment from either Sony, Microsoft or 2K Games regarding the alleged leak.


Rockstar recently issued a new title update for PC gamers playing Grand Theft Auto V. The update addresses issues in GTA V and the GTA Online portion of the game after players reported frame-rate issues occurring after the original update went live.
Over on the Rockstar Games support forum the company acknowledged that they've looked into the frame-rate issue that occurred during the last update patch and have addressed it. Once you log into the game, update 1.28 should automatically download to get your version up to par.
However, in providing this title update Rockstar did something that players aren't very appreciative of: some of the mods appear to be breaking in result of the title update.
We also received some reports linking decreased performance when using Story Mode mods to TU 1.28. As mentioned previously, we are not actively targeting players using mods in Story Mode, nor are we explicitly implementing protections against them in-game. Our primary focus is on protecting GTA Online against modifications that could give players an unfair advantage, disrupt gameplay, or cause griefing.
Modding GTA V has become a massive sub-culture all its own. YouTubers love streaming and posting videos of their exploits as they test out new weapons, drive new cars or explore the world of Los Santos using tsunami mods or angry airplanes.
The mods for GTA IV is what kept the game running long after the retail shelf sales died down for the title. Many times PC gamers would pick up a copy of the title whenever Ice Laglace would release a new iCEnhancer mod for GTA IV. The mod would give the game unprecedented visual quality above and beyond what most gamers thought possible within Rockstar's Advanced Game Engine.
For GTA V the iCEnhancer and ENB mods are coming along a heck of a lot slower due to Rockstar's insistence on maintaining secure servers and prohibiting players from going online with single-player or multiplayer mods.
Shortly after the game released and modders found out that GTA V was heavily encrypted, scripters quickly got work on finding a workaround for Rockstar's encryption. It worked... for a while. Rockstar and the modders have been butting heads ever since the April release on PC. Rockstar has acknowledged that they support modding for GTA V but not at the expense of disrupting the game for those who play GTA Online.
So far the OpenIV Team who help provide tools for gamers to mod Rockstar's latest title have not said anything about title update 1.28 breaking or affecting their software, but Rockstar has mentioned that some players are saying that they are being affected.
Expect this cat and mouse game to continue on as each new update will bring some surprises that modders and gamers may not appreciate, just the same as modders will likely release new ways to get around the game's security that Rockstar may not appreciate.


Colliers International will hold its 16th Annual Links for Life Charity Golf Tournament on Thursday, May 5 at Las Vegas Country Club.
All proceeds raised through sponsorship, foursomes and donations, result in a direct contribution to Links for Life Foundation beneficiaries – Southern Nevada’s children in need.
The Links for Life Foundation is a 501(c) (3) non-profit charitable organization, and over the past 15 years, the Foundation has donated $2,100,000 to local children’s charities. Quite often donations from Links for Life serve as the bridge between what a charity has already raised and the realization of a specific goal here in southern Nevada.
To help, Colliers International requests you become a sponsor or participant in the Links for Life Golf Tournament. They are also accepting donated auction items and packages for live and silent auctions, as well items for a raffle.
With questions, please contact Gina Jones at 735-5700.
Anyone who earned less than $49,000 in 2010 can receive free tax preparation at two upcoming events sponsored by United Way of Southern Nevada.
With the April 15 IRS tax filing deadline approaching, United Way of Southern Nevada's "Earn It Keep It Save It" collaboration encourages southern Nevadans who earned less than $49,000 last year to take advantage of its free services at two Super Saturday events April 2 and 9.
Both events will take place at Cardenas Market locations from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The April 2 event will be at 4421 E. Bonanza Road near Lamb Blvd. and Bonanza Road, and the April 9 event will be at 4700 Meadows Lane near Decatur Blvd. and Meadows Lane.
IRS-certified volunteers and community partners will be on site to assist with free tax preparation.


Mini biographies of late Hollywood actor Heath Ledger and “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin have been included in the latest edition of the Collins Concise English Dictionary.
They are joined by entries describing top sportsmen Lewis Hamilton and Joe Calzaghe, and comedian Russell Brand, among others.
Brand finds his entry in the word list sandwiched between that of Romanian sculptor Constantin Brancusi and the definition of Branade a provincial dish of salt cod pureed with olive oil and milk.
This latest edition is the only dictionary in concise format to include encyclopaedic entries, and is available for the first time online.
A spokesman said: “We are the only dictionary publisher to include biographical entries, but we cannot put in every celebrity or sportsman or politician; they have to be very well known.
New definitions in the word list include carbon-neutral and green tax, e-card, norovirus, non-dom and Skype.
Collins lexicographers used the Bank of English, a vast database of real-life examples of English in use which grows by 35 million words every month, to compile the dictionary.


Wiley Kaikou Muir, infant son of Cynthia and Jeffrey, died in Honolulu. He was born in Honolulu. Private services.


Pixar's co-founder John Lasseter will take a leave of absence from the company following allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct.
John Lasseter, one of the founders of Pixar and the chief creative officer of Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios, will take a leave of absence from the company after a report detailed a history of alleged sexual harassment and misconduct, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Several former Pixar insiders and other sources in the animation community detailed Lasseter’s history of making unwanted advances, such as “grabbing, kissing, making comments about physical attributes.” Women at Pixar would reportedly turn their heads to avoid Lasseter’s kisses, and there was even a move known as “the Lasseter” that women used to keep him from putting his hands on their legs.


Cardi B announced her split with husband and Migos rapper Offset.
Cardi B has announced her split from husband Offset in an Instagram post Wednesday morning. The post, which included the caption “There you go..peace and love,” detailed the couple’s decision to call it quits.


Theresa May has become the master of the fudge.
She has put off time and again the decisions that will truly shape Brexit. Some people have called this “madness” but there is some method to it.
The fudge cannot go on though – this is crunch time.
It has been a wild week in Westminster. By Monday evening the government was quietly confident it had the numbers required to get the Brexit Bill through and dump it back in the House of Lords.
There were still nerves of course but the whips believed they had done enough – just.
Then a little-known junior minister quit spectacularly and said he would be voting against the government on key aspects of the Bill and suddenly all hell broke loose.
Phillip Lee’s bombshell came out of the clear blue sky and for a time appeared to tip the balance in the favour of the Tory rebels led by former attorney general Dominic Grieve.
• If there is no agreement by February 15, 2019, the government have to bring the matter to the Commons within five days.
These three clauses would have taken the ultimate power over the final Brexit deal away from the executive and to parliament. The rebels – and the opposition parties – believe that MPs should be more involved in the process.
However the government argued that this would give the European Union the upper hand during negotiations and would compel Brussels to offer the worst possible deal. And Brexiteers feared it took the possibility of the UK walking away from negotiations off the table.
Most MPs agree no deal to be the very worst option for the UK – but the threat does give the UK a nuclear option that will seriously worry Brussels.
Taking that option away is a definite red line for Jacob Rees-Mogg and his merry band of Brexiteers the European Research Group.
So Mrs May was faced with a difficult decision: defeat or concession? But, it appears, she decided against both and instead went for her tried-and-tested favourite tactic – the fudge.
As the amendment over the meaningful final vote was debated the whips worked feverishly and in a last-gasp attempt to quell the revolt gathered 14 MPs and put them in front of the prime minister.
Exactly what was said in that meeting is a point of some conjecture but there was clearly enough persuasion on the part of the prime minister to avoid a government defeat.
Afterwards the rebels claimed the government had agreed to put Mr Grieve’s first two points straight in the Bill when it went back to the Lords and the third point would be discussed.
Remainers claimed victory and furious Brexiteers gathered to discuss what could be done. There were even whispers by some of the more hard-line Leavers that now was the time to challenge Mrs May.
But the Remainers’ joy was short-lived as the government began to back-pedal.
Now comes the crunch. If it is the rebels that have been double-crossed they will never trust Mrs May again. And she faces the real danger of a similar amendment being insert again in the Lords and then being defeated when it comes back to the Commons.
If it is the Brexiteers who have been lied to Mrs May faces the real possibility of being toppled.
Surely she cannot try another fudge?
The moment has come for Mrs May to speak openly and honestly about her plans for Brexit – if not to the public then to her own party. The divisions over Europe within the Conservative ranks have rumbled on for decades – and will continue. But Mrs May needs to face one of the two sides down. She cannot continue to lead by telling everyone they will get what they want.
She is a weak leader because she has no majority. But she must now show some strength for the sake of the Brexit process if nothing else. Clarity is sadly lacking and that is damaging to the UK – economically and otherwise. Mrs May must finally pick her battle.


"Thanks to all the Canadian crew who are partying right now at the Palais Royale in Toronto. This is for you."
Canada didn't have a huge presence at this year's Academy Awards, but Toronto got an Oscar-sized shoutout as millions around the globe watched Hollywood's biggest night.
Canadians Paul Austerberry, Jeffrey A. Melvin and Shane Vieau won an Oscar for best production design for The Shape of Water, and when they took the stage to accept the award, they gave a nod to their team in Toronto and Hamilton, where much of the film was shot.
"First of all, thank you to all the Canadian crew who are partying right now at the Palais Royale in Toronto. This is for you," said Austerberry.
"Thank you to the academy. Guillermo, may you keep dreaming up your monsters and their wonderful stories so people like us can help shape their worlds," said Austerberry, referring to the film's director, Guillermo del Toro.
Austerberry then gave thanks to the production department, and others involved in the film.
"A big thank you to our amazing crew back in Toronto," added Vieau. "Without you guys, we definitely wouldn't be here today."
The Shape of Water also won best picture, best director for del Toro, and original score for French composer Alexandre Desplat.


FOR many in Yorkshire, even including those politically active or interested, the election of a metro mayor for the Sheffield City Region on May 3 may seem to be a complete irrelevance.
They would be wrong. For although there has been great controversy both within South Yorkshire and across the historic county as a whole, the resource and powers devolved over the next year or two to this particular city region will have greater importance for Yorkshire than many might think.
Part of the controversy has been the wish for Barnsley and Doncaster’s leadership to instead back a Yorkshire-wide mayor. That long-term dream is shared by the leaders of the bulk of the city and district authorities across the county. But the Government has been very clear over the last two years that the original “city deal”, with the four metropolitan districts in South Yorkshire (and at one time local authorities in the North Midlands), should stand.
For me, the issue has never been one of the Sheffield City Region or a Yorkshire-wide election. The two seem to me to be perfectly compatible if, and for some it has been a big if, the idea of an incremental approach makes common sense.
This could quite easily then form a building block to a future wider deal for those who believe that it is in the best interests of the whole of Yorkshire to come together.
There are many arguments for and against this. Yorkshire is, in population, the size of Scotland, and would be by far the largest area with a single elected politician outside London. This could be a good thing in terms of the clout (as we in Yorkshire call it) that this would give. Of course the additional resource that could be drawn down on would be substantial – not just from central government but collectively across the area.
On the other hand, the further away the politician elected is from those actually engaged in the election, the more likely that alienation, disinterest and downright antagonism is likely to emerge.
So, there is a balance to be struck between just how large an area has to be, and how distant from those that the politicians serve, before it becomes counter-productive.
But all this is for the future. The challenge now is to get an elected mayor, with sufficient backing, and therefore turnout in the election on May 3 to provide legitimacy and to ensure that there is a voice for the area that can negotiate with the Government, and the local authorities. This is necessary to draw down the cash which has already been forgone for the last two years, and some of the powers that have been promised from the start of negotiations over the “city deal”.
One illustration of how urgent all this is can be seen from a paradox. We already know that the amount of investment in London and the South East is vastly greater then we have in our region. Something like a ratio of 10 to one.
But few people seem to realise that there can be a detrimental knock-on effect from the substantial investment in transport that currently is concluding in the capital.
What is known as Thameslink, linked to Crossrail, is going to improve journey times and convenience for a very large number of people in and around London.
It comes however at a considerable price. It means that at least for the time being, journey times from Sheffield to London, with trains terminating at St Pancras, will find the timetable adjusted in the wrong direction.
In other words, there will now be slower trains and greater inconvenience. This is all to do with signalling and scheduling, which will result in an eight- minute addition in journey time for the early morning Master Cutler service, which is of course a crucial business journey.
Smaller delays will be noticed through the rest of the day and promises that things will improve in future sound hollow given that the Transport Secretary Chris Grayling has a record of cancelling his own promises, never mind those of his predecessors – including on electrification.
So, what is this got to do with the metro mayor? Well quite a lot. It is after all one of the key functions of the new elected mayor to deal with the question of infrastructure and how the economy, employment and productivity of the area affected can be improved by negotiating with government for both power and resources.
By way of an example, consider the long-awaited, much promised and never present, HS3. Joining up the major urban areas across the whole of North of England, this would form a genuine attempt at the Northern Powerhouse again, something much talked of but little noticed by long-suffering men and women east of the Pennines.
It is time to come out from the shadows. To embrace the opportunity of an elected mayor, to see it as just one part of shifting the axis from London and Greater Manchester to London and the whole of the North of England.
Whatever the aspiration of a Greater Yorkshire, the success in years to come of the elected mayor for the Sheffield City Region can only be good news for all of us.
David Blunkett is a former Cabinet minister who was MP for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough from 1987-2010. Now a Labour peer, he will be writing a monthly column for The Yorkshire Post.