Russian police have arrested over 10,000 people in the aftermath of the terrorist attack in the North Ossetian town of Beslan. About half of those rounded up are people living in Moscow illegally. In Russia, you have to be registered with the government, as living at a particular address, to be "legal." In the Soviet period, you needed government permission to move your residence, or even travel long distances. The Russian legislature is considering reintroducing some of these restrictions. The low pay scales for police and security personnel is also being examined, as the low pay is given as a major reason for the widespread accepting of bribes by the police. It was a bribed cop that got suicide bombers on Russian aircraft last month.


MVNOs will not have to provide roaming info until 2019, while other telcos must allow customers to opt out of receiving such information under the ACMA's changes.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has amended the Telecommunications (International Mobile Roaming) Industry Standard 2013, taking into account the roaming products that are now available and the consequent drop in complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO).
The changes will allow telcos the option of delivering on-arrival roaming pricing in a single text message, rather than multiple messages; allow customers to opt out of receiving usage alerts while roaming; and postpone the requirement for mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) having to provide roaming spend-management information to customers until January 1, 2019.
If a customer does decline to receive roaming information, their telco must confirm this via SMS and advise the customer that they may request to receive notifications again at no cost at any time, with the telco to comply with such a request "as soon as is reasonably practicable".
In February, the ACMA had opened up its proposed changes to submissions from the public, saying they would "provide more flexibility to industry while maintaining consumer protections".
Both Communications Alliance and the Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association (AMTA) welcomed the final roaming changes, saying they would provide flexibility for customers while travelling as well as delaying regulatory red-tape burdens for MVNOs.
"These amendments recognise that the customer protections built into international roaming products have improved dramatically in recent years, as service providers have committed to minimising the chances of customers receiving unexpectedly high bills," said AMTA CEO Chris Althaus on Thursday.
"Products such as data packs and unlimited roaming for a fixed daily fee have changed the face of international roaming, and contributed to the halving of roaming-related customer complaints to the industry ombudsman over the past three years."
The international mobile roaming standard was first produced by the ACMA in June 2013, and came into effect in September that year. It mandated that telcos provide travelling customers with roaming and pricing info upon arrival in a new country, as well as spend-management tools such as data-usage notifications and the ability to stop roaming.
The introduction of the standard drove a 65 percent drop in customer complaints to the TIO between September 2013 and September 2015.
It was to begin applying to MVNOs from May this year, had the ACMA's changes not been waved through.
In an effort to attract more customers, Vodafone Australia in February announced that it would be waiving its usual AU$5 a day fee to use normal monthly data, calls, and messages for customers travelling to New Zealand for the next year.
With Vodafone the second most-used mobile network worldwide, it could potentially bring free roaming offerings to all countries in which it owns networks, including the United Kingdom, Germany, South Africa, India, Spain, Czech Republic, Greece, Albania, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, North Cyprus, Portugal, Romania, Turkey, Egypt, Lesotho, Tanzania, Mozambique, DR Congo, Qatar, and Ghana. It also has minority holdings and partner networks in more than 40 other countries.
Vodafone Australia's Red post-paid plans offer AU$5 a day roaming to 52 countries, which allows customers to use their regular monthly allowances worldwide.
Optus similarly charges AU$10 per day for a travel pack allowing unlimited SMS, calls, and 50MB of data per day throughout North America, Europe, and Asia.
By comparison, incumbent telecommunications carrier Telstra in December faced criticism from customers after making the decision to hike its global roaming charges during the Christmas period.
Telstra had announced the decision to triple its excess data charges for many tourist destinations, but after hundreds of customers publicly slammed the decision, Telstra CEO Andrew Penn reversed it.
As a result, Telstra scrapped the previously announced excess data fees -- which were to increase from 3c to 10c per 1MB -- while maintaining the 50 percent increase in data allowances on its Travel Passes to a greater pool of countries.
In another effort to bring down international roaming prices, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) -- signed by Australia, the United States, New Zealand, Canada, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Japan, Mexico, Peru, Brunei, and Chile in February -- is encouraging its member states to promote more transparent and reasonable costs for international mobile roaming services in order to support the growth of trade and improve consumer interests.
However, it stopped short of explicitly requiring regulation.
The wording of Article 13.6 of the Telecommunications chapter [PDF], which covers international mobile roaming, states that members "may choose to adopt or maintain measures affecting rates for wholesale international roaming services with a view to ensuring that those rates are reasonable".


The deputy mayor of Howell sold his home last week, but has not said where he's living.
HOWELL - Carmen Sandiego was easier to find.
Deputy Mayor Robert Nicastro's home was sold last week, raising questions about where the longtime official is living.
Nicastro, whose council term is up at the end of December, hasn't responded to at least three phone calls and voicemails over four days from the Asbury Park Press.
Real estate records show the sale of his home on Stream Bank Drive for $640,000 was finalized Oct. 18. When the Press knocked on the door, the new owners were occupying the house.
Municipal officials are required to live in the town they serve in, which generally means they need to vote there, get mail there and have their driver's license registered there, said Marc Pfeiffer, assistant director of the Bloustein Local Government Research Center at Rutgers University, New Brunswick.
"These things don't come up very often, and sometimes people have to move for different reasons," Pfeiffer said. "If you don't voluntarily relieve your position, it would be up to a court to make a determination as to what your domicile is and whether you have indeed moved out of town."
The transaction was an "off-market," private sale according to the real estate agent who sold Nicastro's home. The house was on the Multiple Listing Service from March 12 to Sept. 12, when it expired. The sale was made after the home was no longer on the market.
Public records show it was at no point under contract for sale while it was listed, and there was no notice of settlement, which is a document filed with the county recording office that protects a potential buyer from someone else trying to buy the same property.
The county recording office said Nicastro's deed change is in process and should be completed by next week.
Other Howell officials told the Press he's "renting in town," but could not provide an address or additional details.
A Township Council meeting scheduled for Oct. 23 was canceled.
Voter registration records checked by the Press show Nicastro still lists his Stream Bank Drive home as his residence.


Rail Road Flat and NCLB, a place and an idea that created the perfect storm—a lost community adopts “drill and kill” as a means to an end [and] test scores as the sole indicator of school success [“One-Track Minds,” August/September]. I wonder what kind of lifelong learners these children will become because of this self- admitted grind? Who will then be blamed? The taxpayers and teachers in Rail Road Flat, the California Department of Education, or the students themselves?
If it is purely a financial matter, there are two options for this community: Take all of the money being spent on the school now and just give it to the children as a form of welfare, or close the school and “save” the money.
Learning is not an academics versus character education proposition. Its main function is to enable children to become citizens—requiring basic skills, a work ethic, and a sense of community, fun, and humanity. Robots that can fill in circles on a test answer sheet may satisfy NCLB, but will they grow up to be happy adults?
The article “One-Track Minds” was the most depressing thing I’ve read in a long time. It was particularly disturbing to me to read about a school that has dispensed of student engagement strategies. In other words, students pay attention, “or else.”Although their test scores may be high, it seems to me that the students at Rail Road Flat Elementary are being robbed of a real education. Real learning requires student engagement and intrinsic motivation built over time. “Plowing ahead” may get a school into the state testing hall of fame, but how is it serving the lives of its students?
The teacher in the article called his work a “grind.” If this is really what is expected to succeed under NCLB, count me out. I’ll work at a failing school any day!


Leo Varadkar says its unlikely that Ireland could return to the markets next year and appears not to rule out the need for a second bailout.
IRELAND MAY NEED a second bailout according to one government minister who has said that it is unlikely the country will return to the bond markets next year.
The paper suggests that Ireland may need a second bailout after Varadkar added: “It would mean a second programme. Either an extension of the existing programme or a second programme”. His comments come as Ernst & Young looks set to pessimistically outline that Ireland’s economy will contract by 2.3 per cent this year.
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GSU University Players, under the direction of Dr. W. Keith Tims, accompanied by GSU faculty musicians will stage Igor Stravinsky's histoire du soldat (The Soldier's Tale) on the occasion of this seminal work's 100th anniversary.
The Soldier's Tale is a theatrical work "to be read, played, and danced" by three actors, dancer(s), and accompanied by a septet of instruments. The piece was conceived by Igor Stravinsky and Swiss writer C. F. Ramuz and is based on a Russian folk tale The Runaway Soldier and the Devil. The libretto relates the parable of a soldier who trades his fiddle to the devil in return for unlimited economic gain. The music is scored for a violin, double bass, clarinet, bassoon, cornet, trombone, and percussion, and the story is told by three actors: the soldier, the devil, and a narrator, who also takes on the roles of minor characters. A dancer plays the non-speaking role of the princess, and there are additional ensemble dancers. Igor Stravinsky wrote The Soldier's Tale during World War I when he was in exile in Switzerland. Stravinsky had already made a big splash in the musical world with his earlier trio of large-scale ballet works The Firebird, Petrushka, and the infamous The Rite of Spring, all of which were in collaboration with the famous Ballet Russes in Paris. Because of the composer's exile and the economic restrictions that accompanied WWI, The Soldier's Tale (1918) is a much more modest composition in terms of personnel, but it is a evening-length theatrical work lasting about 1 hr. and 15 minutes. It is a work on par with his other theatrical works and is known as a masterpiece of the early 20th Century avant-garde.


Leah Block compared the show's diverse cast to Vh1's "Love and Hip Hop"
Rachel Lindsay doesn't do drama.
As "The Bachelorette" was airing Monday night, former Bachelor contestant Leah Block — who first appeared on Ben Higgins' season in 2016 and who later competed in Season 3 of "Bachelor in Paradise" — made a joke regarding the current season's diverse cast.
"I'm sitting here watching @BacheloretteABC and my roommate just sat down on the couch and said, 'What is this? @LoveAndHipHop_?' DEAD," Block wrote, referring to the Vh1 reality show's predominately black cast.
It didn't take long for Bachelor Nation to swoop in and call Block out for the insensitive joke. Astrid Loch, who competed on Nick Viall's season of "The Bachelor," even mentioned one of Lindsay's suitors, Lee Garrett, whose racist tweets recently came to light. "Are you watching with Lee?" she asked. Lindsay replied to her friend's tweet, writing, "#army."
The Dallas-based attorney then responded to Block's tweet directly. "Let me know if she wants to meet Lee," she wrote. "They sound like they would have a lot in common. #ihavetimetoday."
Block, a Denver-based event planner, deleted the offending tweet and apparently deactivated her Twitter account. And her Instagram account — which has 52,200 followers — is set to private. When Lindsay learned Block's tweet had been deleted, after a viewer argued she "knew how wrong it was when she posted it," the reigning Bachelorette wrote, "Naw you just aren't funny."


When UK Brexit negotiators rejected proposals for a Northern Ireland-only customs arrangement backstop in favour of a deal that would involve continued all-UK membership of a customs union they tacitly accepted that the UK’s long term future would be in a customs union.
This is the case whether or not they acknowledged it publicly, and whether or not it meant crossing one of their own red lines.
That temporary all-UK customs arrangement is now a central element in the draft withdrawal agreement that is being pored over in London and across Europe.
The move, the UK argued, was necessary to prevent the emergence of a border in the Irish Sea, in effect to minimise the economic and customs barriers that would be necessary between Northern Ireland and the UK to safeguard the integrity of EU’s single market and the frictionless Border in Ireland. But that decision came at a price.
In the Commission’s original plans, the backstop mechanism would kick in after transition “unless and until” a “future relationship” deal provided better protection for the frictionless border. If that deal was not agreed or took years to agree the North was to have remained in its own customs union with the EU, while the rest of the UK forged its own way on the world stage.
But now, during that interim period, the UK as a whole will remain in a customs union, perhaps indefinitely. And there will be special regulatory alignment measures for the North to tighten protection of the EU single market.
British prime minister Theresa May has also reportedly agreed to “level playing field” measures tying Britain to EU rules in areas such as state aid and environmental and workers’ rights protections during the backstop. What has become clear is that UK negotiators accept the logic that any future relationship deal will also have to be based on a customs union agreement, supplemented by many of the regulatory requirements of the single market.
Briefing EU ambassadors on the proposed deal on Monday, EU deputy chief negotiator Sabine Weyand is reported to have admitted as much.
“We should be in the best negotiation position for the future relationship. This requires the customs union as the basis of the future relationship,” Ms Weyand is reported to have said according to a leaked diplomatic note of the meeting.
The implication is the backstop is permanent and the UK will stay in the customs union forever. How that reality is to be reconciled with the UK’s determination to strike its own trade deals internationally is not clear – what it means, at the least, is that its ability to do so will be constrained for some years.


The Baltimore County Council voted Monday to accept the donation of the Short Line Railroad property from the Catonsville Rails to Trails, ensuring that county will sustain the former railroad as a walking and biking trail for years to come.
"That's been a long-term goal of ours, and the County Council vote really is sealing that for us," said Tom Aljuni, president of Catonsville Rails to Trails. "I'd view us as stewards and custodians of the trail (for the next 10 years)."
Under the agreement, Baltimore County will accept the 22.5-acres as a donation and take over maintenance of the trail in 10 years. In the interim, Catonsville Rails to Trails will complete construction on the 2.2-mile trail and maintain it until the 10-year period is up.
The 2.2-mile trail, which begins near the city-county line and extends west through Catonsville to the Bloomsbury Community Center, has been under construction since Catonsville Rails to Trails began leasing the property from the Caton and Loudon Railway Co. in 2006.
The nonprofit organization began by pulling out the old railroad track. That project resulted in more than 110 tons of metal recycled from the track.
A "huge amount of trash and debris," much of it from illegal dumping, was also cleared from the site.
Thanks to such efforts, residents can enjoy what county Recreation and Parks Director Barry Williams called a "nice walking path."
"From Maiden Choice (Lane) to the Charlestown Retirement Community, the trail is really in first-class condition," Ajluni said. "We've also made substantial progress clearing from Maiden to the Beltway."
The bridge that carried trains across the Beltway no longer exists, so where the trail meets the Beltway, walkers and bikers will take back roads to Frederick Road.
As part of its ongoing renovation to the Beltway overpass at Frederick Road, the State Highway Administration has agreed to put in a sidewalk after which trail users will take Wade Avenue back to the trail.
While transferring ownership of the trail has always been a goal for Catonsville Rails to Trails, they hoped the county would agree to maintain the trail upon completion.
But Ajluni learned during negotiations that that "wasn't really in the cards" for the county.
Williams said Dec. 5 that he fully supports making Baltimore County more accessible to bikes and the organization's willingness to maintain the property for 10 years "sweetened the pot" for the county.
"In the past, the county would have said that we'll take care of it," Williams said.
A lack of manpower and financial resources on the county's end made the 10-year stewardship necessary.
"That's what it took to really make it work for them," Ajluni said, "so we were happy to do that."
Williams, who commended both County Councilman Tom Quirk and former Councilman Sam Moxley for their dedication to seeing the deal through, added that there was an "intergenerational" benefit to the trail, which starts near the Charlestown Retirement Community.
"I think it's a huge win," Quirk said. "I'm a strong and passionate believer that we need to do more in Baltimore County to promote walk-ability and bike-ability.
"It promotes more of a livable community, and that type of community helps increase property values. Lots of families want to live in those types of communities."


ST. BERNARD – There’s a special never-ending bond between twins.
It’s a link that endures. Twins Chris and Harmonie Kugele know how unbreakable that bond is.
The Roger Bacon High School seniors have accomplished many things in the last four years. Harmonie’s played volleyball, basketball and softball, while Chris competed in football, basketball and baseball.
What they accomplished together, though, means the most, even if Harmonie had to carry her younger (by five minutes) brother to get there.
“The record that we have, she has 96 percent of that,” laughed Chris, who’s committed to play football next season at Urbana University.
According to the school, no other brother-sister duo has hit more home runs than the Kugeles in Roger Bacon history.
Harmonie, who’s headed to the University of Cincinnati, broke two school records this season. First, she belted her 20th career home run, which broke the school’s all-time career home run record. Then in the regular-season finale she hit her 10th long ball, which broke the single-season home run record, bringing her career total to 22.
Chris, who hit his first and only career home run this season to give them 23 together, was in attendance when his sister became the all-time home run leader.
“I didn’t know at the beginning of the year and then she started talking to me about it … and then it just came out of nowhere,” said Chris. “Then I went to her Senior Night and that’s when she did it.
Chris and Harmonie have always been together. Growing up, Harmonie played basketball on her brother’s team until about the sixth grade. Wherever one went, the other seemed to follow. It’s a special partnership.
So when Chris leaves for college in early July, things are going to be very different.
“She’s more emotional about it,” Chris said.
They graduate on June 1.
No matter how much space is between Chris and Harmonie, that won’t change how close they are, or how they got to spend the first 18 years of their lives together, making memories.


Barack and Michelle Obama have broken their silence on the sexual misconduct allegations against Harvey Weinstein, issuing a statement on Tuesday that they’re “disgusted” by the reports.
Weinstein was a major Democratic donor, holding fundraisers for several prominent politicians on the left, some of which Barack Obama attended while he was president. The Obamas’ daughter, Malia, also interned for the Weinstein Co., which Harvey Weinstein was forced out of on Sunday.
The Obamas are only the latest Democrats to denounce Weinstein. Most recently, on Tuesday, Hillary Clinton released a statement saying that she’s “shocked and appalled” by the allegations against Weinstein, hours after the New Yorker published a report alleging that the movie mogul sexually assaulted multiple women.
Democratic politicians have steadily come out against Weinstein ever since last Thursday, when the New York Times published an article detailing dozens of sexual harassment allegations against him. In the immediate aftermath, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) announced that they were donating campaign contributions from Weinstein to charitable nonprofit groups.


Laurie McBride sporting a vintage Obermeyer sweater for Klaus Obermeyer's 97th birthday celebration.
Throughout the month of December, Aspen becomes a veritable Winter Wonderland with tree lightings, elf sightings, Santa visits, Christmas caroling, Menorah lighting, cooking baking, gingerbread house making and other festive traditions. Among my favorites still to come are the St. Regis’ annual tree lighting ritual this Saturday, Dec. 17, from 5 to 7 p.m. Also, the Aspen Historical Society’s Caroling and Cookie Exchange at the Wheeler/Stallard Museum on Tuesday, Dec. 20, from 4 to 6 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public. For more listings of can’t-miss events, visit the Aspen Chamber’s website and view the full listing on its 12 Days of Aspen’s calendar: http://www.aspenchamber.org. Happy Holidays!


Ease your holiday eve burdens with food, attractions, shopping, and cherry picking all in Jerusalem's historic 'First Station' promenade!
In Jerusalem for Rosh Hashana? Are you a native, or just visiting? Sure, there are a ton of bases to cover, and you’re probably looking for some ways to relax and enjoy the environment ahead of the important day. Let’s cover some logistical and spiritual tips that will make your life easier.
We know how it is. One parent at home, the other outside with the kids. What’s open on Erev Rosh Hashana? The First Station promenade (known locally as the Tachana Rishona) has food, attractions, and shopping for the whole family. Entrance is free. If you can drive a bit, there is cherry picking at nearby Kibbutz Ramat Rachel… fun and yum!
New year, same result: Rosh Hashana is so monumental and inspiring. You think to yourself, “This year will be different.” That might be true, but when it comes to improving your Divine service, your health, or your relationships the rule is "less is more." Why? Because you’ll actually do "less" as opposed to starting off strong with a flamboyant resolution and finding yourself on your third slice of mousse cake by the second day of the holiday. In the end, doing less really is more.


Tornado watch in effect for all counties, parishes south of I-20 until 7 p.m.
Today is a First Alert Weather Day for the threat of widespread severe weather throughout the day. A Tornado Watch has now been issued for all counties & parishes south of I-20 until 7 p.m. A Severe Thunderstorm Watch continues for the northern portions of NW Louisiana, the southern counties of SW Arkansas and portions of NE. Texas until 3pm. Strong storm chances continue to increase throughout the morning hours, make sure you have a way to receive weather alerts.
A warm front will be lifting up to the I-20 corridor throughout the afternoon and low pressure system from the west will also be building in. These combined will create enough stability for the threat of widespread severe weather. The Moderate Risk was shifted to the southeastern portions of NW Louisiana and far southeast Texas. Shreveport-Bossier is not under the Enhanced Risk. No matter what severe weather risk you are under today, stay weather aware. Storms could form in any portion of our area today. Make sure to stay indoors, especially this afternoon. It could be dangerous to travel in these conditions.
What exactly does a Moderate Risk mean? A moderate risk is one of our more elevated risks of severe weather. Widespread severe weather activity, whether that be thunderstorms, hail, high winds, or tornadoes are possible. The difference between this threat is that if tornadoes were to form, they could strong, long tracking tornadoes. There is also a higher risk of seeing widespread damage due to severe thunderstorms.
The main threats continue to be high damaging wind gusts and tornadoes continue to be likely across the area. The entire southeastern half of the ArkLaTex has been hatched by the Storm Prediction Center. This means that there is a higher probability that if tornadoes form, they could be quite significant or a long-track tornado. The largest threat of seeing tornadoes would be associated with any supercells or strong storms that would be produced ahead of the cold front.
As far as timing, storms will start to impact E TX and SE OK after noon today. Storms will then push into NW LA and SW AR around 4pm and east of the area between 8-9pm. Although the severe weather threat will diminish later tonight, we still do have the chance of seeing scattered rain and thunderstorms.
Heavy rainfall continues to be a threat, especially in portions of SW Arkansas and E. Texas throughout the day. An additional 2-4″ could fall in the area over a shot amount of time. The Flash Flood Watch was extended to now includes most of E. Texas & all of NW Louisiana as well as all of SW Arkansas.
A WIND ADVISORY is in effect for all of the ArkLaTex until 9pm tonight. Strong gusty winds from the southwest are possible all day long & a severe thunderstorm could make them even higher.
Make sure you are prepared before storms hit your area with a severe weather plan in place. Also make sure you know where the safest place is in your home: lowest level, most interior room, & no windows.


A budget is an important tool for first-time homebuyers and current homeowners. Throw out any negative feeling you may have toward budgeting. We're here to tell you that budgeting is a great exercise, and can free your financial mind! A budget is meant to be a guide to where you should spend your monthly income.
Budgeting can mean guilt-free fun. By making and sticking to your budget, you can spend money knowing exactly how much you need to set aside for necessities, and how much you can spend on other activities! Budgets are an important tool for the first-time homebuyer because it can help you make your move into a home with a payment that fits your lifestyle and circumstances. For existing homeowners, budgets can help you achieve or maintain financial freedom.
Budgeting can be done by anyone — it just takes time initially to set it up correctly. Gather paychecks, bills and bank statements to get started. You can write down all this information or use a budget tool. Start by calculating your monthly income, which includes not only the amount you may get from a regular paycheck, but also any money you get in government aid, child support or pensions. The next step is to look at your bills and bank statements to find out truly what you spend in each category. This accurate information will empower you to take control of your finances.
Do you see a surplus? That is great! You can take that surplus and contribute to your financial goals, whether that be saving for a down payment, taking a family vacation or building a nest egg.
Do you see a deficit? If so, you can make the changes needed to balance your budget. You can cut back on nonessential items, like eating dinners out, to get financially fit. Having this knowledge is powerful and can help you take the right steps toward financial stability.
A budget is crucial for home ownership, whether you're a first-time homebuyer or you currently own a home. A sound budget can relieve stress and help you feel confident in the way you spend your hard-earned income.
Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance, Inc. is a national housing lender that specializes in financing manufactured homes. In business for more than 40 years, the company currently services more than 200,000 home loans and works hard to tailor loans to each family's needs. Vanderbilt has an A+ grade from the Better Business Bureau and is a Berkshire Hathaway company. For more information, visit VMFHomeLoan.com.


ALRC chair of Copyright Exceptions review, Professor Jill McKeough.
University of Technology Sydney Dean of Law, Professor Jill McKeough, will lead an Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) review into the operation of copyright in the digital environment.
The review was announced by the former attorney-general Robert McClelland almost a year ago.
His replacement, Nicola Roxon, said the review would consider whether exceptions to the operation of the Copyright Act remained "adequate and appropriate in the fast-paced digital environment".
General exceptions in the Act cover issues such as fair use, content time-shifting, and the making of a copy of a computer program for back-up purposes.
Roxon said the Government was determined to encourage new opportunities within the digital economy ahead of the NBN rollout.
Draft terms of reference are expected to be released shortly.


If you’re a BB&T customer your bank will eventually have a new name. BB&T Corporation and SunTrust Banks Inc. announced they have agreed on a combined all-stock merger of equals valued at approximately $66 billion. BB&T entered central Pennsylvania a few years ago when it acquired Susquehanna Bank, and now with the pending merger it says it will become part of the sixth largest bank in the country.
Customers at BB&T will see a new name on the banks because the combined company will operate under a new name and brand, which will be determined prior to closing. The combined company’s board of directors and executive management team will be evenly split between the two institutions. A new corporate headquarters will be established in Charlotte, North Carolina. The combined company will maintain the offices in the two hometowns of the banks -- Winston-Salem, North Carolina and Atlanta, Ga.
“This is a true merger of equals, combining the best of both companies to create the premier financial institution of the future,” BB&T Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Kelly S. King said in a press release.
The merger is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2019.
Both banks are primarily located throughout the southeast and the two banks combined have had 100 acquisitions over the last 35 years. BB&T has numerous locations throughout the Harrisburg area. In addition to BB&T’s acquisition of Susquehanna Bank, it also acquired other central Pennsylvania locations when it acquired National Penn. SunTrust doesn’t have branches in Pennsylvania. Its closest locations are in Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia and Washington D.C.


All northbound lanes of I-95 were closed Wednesday morning in Prince William County, Virginia, after a crash involving a fuel spill, officials said.
The crash occurred on I-95 near Joplin Road (VA-619), according to an alert from the Metropolitan Area Transportation Operations Coordination program. Traffic was backed up for 6 miles as of noon.
All lanes had reopened by 1 p.m. Traffic was backed up for 8 miles, officials said.
Traffic was being diverted to US-1.
No information was released immediately on the cause of the crash or whether anyone was hurt.


The 28 year old steelworker is placing addressing corruption in the state legislature at the forefront of his campaign.
The former VP leads by nearly 20 points over the next closest Democratic 2020 hopeful.
Our readers gave the nod to Raja by 9 votes.
In this suburban Pittsburgh swing district, the Democrat touts her background in the Navy while the Republican embraces his immigrant story. When it comes to policy, the party line is they key to special election turnout.
Both candidates for the special election in SD37 make their final pitch to voters before tomorrow’s election. Here is the Playbook.
The PA Democratic Party endorsed a pair of Superior Court candidates, new polls capture headlines throughout the state, and a new wedge issue presents itself in the Philadelphia Mayoral race. All of that and more are in this week’s Ups and Downs.
A new Franklin & Marshall College Poll shows positive numbers for Gov. Tom Wolf, while voters have mixed feelings on President Trump. Here is the Playbook.
The District Scheduler for Rep. Mike Kelly touted her pro-life stance, support for the 2nd Amendment, and her commitment to lowering taxes.


The Sea Pines Resort is proud to announce that Mark Goodwin has joined its group sales team as senior sales manager.
Prior to joining the Sea Pines Resort, Goodwin served as the senior sales manager for the Hilton Savannah Desoto. His professional experience also includes positions with the Hilton Oceanfront Resort & Spa, the Crowne Plaza Hilton Head Island Beach Resort and the Heritage Golf Group.
A native of South Africa, Goodwin earned his bachelor’s degree in Golf Course Management and Design from Harper Adams University (Manchester, England) and completed a golf internship at Ohio State University.
Married for eight years, Goodwin and wife Kristi reside in Bluffton. They share a daughter, Cameron Brooke, and are expecting their second child in June.


Washington — The Trump administration on Tuesday issued a long-awaited regulation banning “bump stocks,” devices that allows semi-automatic rifles to shoot like a machine gun.
Connecticut banned the sale, possession or manufacture of bump stocks as of Oct. 1. Now the owners of bump stocks in the state will also face federal prosecution if they possess the devices.
The new federal regulation, signed by acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker on Tuesday, gives gun owners until late March to turn in or destroy the devices. After that, it will be illegal to possess them under the same federal laws that prohibit machine guns.
Bump stocks became the focus of debate after they were used during the massacre in Las Vegas in October of 2017, where a gunman opened fire on a crowd at a country music concert, killing 58 and injuring hundreds more.
Gun control advocates hailed the Trump administration move, but some said it took too long.
The new regulations reverse a 2010 ATF decision by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms that found bump stocks are not like machine guns and could not be regulated unless Congress acted to regulate or ban them.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., was among several Democrats who said legislation is still needed.
He also said it’s important for Congress to ban bump stocks to make it “crystal clear” the government has the authority to ban the devices.
Another reason Democrats said legislation is still needed is that Gun Owners of America, a fierce defender of gun rights, said Tuesday it would sue to block the legislation.


Northampton alternative quartet The Keepers are gearing up for their first headline gig at the Roadmender on Friday.
The band released their latest single You're All I Need in October which also featured the B-side No Man's Land and they already have a busy 2019 ahead of them with more gigs and a trip to Marburg in March to represent the town at the Mano Musik Festival.
Speaking about their forthcoming Roadmender gig, singer and guitarist Jordan Jones said: “It's a massively important show for us.
Jones is joined in The Keepers by lead guitarist Liam Taylor, drummer Steve Smith and bassist Oli Rumens.
You’re All I Need was written by Jordan after being fed up with politics and aspects of modern society.
He said: “I wanted to write a happy love song as a reaction and use it as a bit of an escapism.
“The B-side is different. I do a lot of traveling on trains. It's actually about Preston train station and how nothing is ever on time. You’re literally stuck in the middle of nowhere essentially.
The fifth single by the band, You’re All I Need follows There’s No Going Back, Take Me On A Trip, Another Night and Here Comes Spring.
Jordan adds: “I think I’ve written all of the tracks but I’m not sure we’re going to sit down and work on an album all in one go. I think we’ll record bit by bit next year and into the year after.
“There is the desire to get an album out at some point.
As primary singer songwriter, Jordan has been using the name The Keepers for about four years and started as an acoustic singer songwriter, gigging around pubs and working men’s clubs.
The band are influenced by “the great British guitar music from the 1960s and the 1990s”.
Jordan explains “While we’ve a fairly common set up, we want to experiment and put different sounds and instrumentation into our music.
During their time together, there have been several stand out gigs for the quartet.
Drummer Steve said: “For me, playing with Space was amazing because they are one of my 90s heroes. Also, playing at the Shiiine On festival this year was fantastic.
Jordan added: “The Moons were one of the main influences in me forming The Keepers, Andy's a bit of a hero of mine.
"Another favourite was getting to play in Paris about a month ago."
Earlier this year, The Keepers were revealed as one of the bands which will head to Marburg in March to play at the Mano Musik Festival – representing Northampton along with The Barratts and Duncan Bisatt.
“It's a really exciting thing for bands like us to be able to go out there and play some shows and represent the town and get immersed in the whole weekend,” explains Steve.
“We’re all really looking forward to it.
Looking ahead to the rest of 2019, Jordan adds a priority will be aiming to carry on gigging as well as trying to secure some form of record deal to help the band continue to release new music and aiming to play more festivals during the summer.
The Keepers play the Roadmender in Northampton on Friday, December 7.
Support is by Deaf Trap and Kilamojo.


Tame Impala make psychedelic hypno-groove melodic rock music intended for moving one's body to and for keeping still and observing other forms of movement. The Perth based band consists of members Kevin Parker, Dom Simper and Jay Watson. An EP of five home recorded tracks: Beginning with Desire Be, Desire Go's, Slide Through My Fingers, Half Full Glass Of Wine and 41 Mosquitoes Flying In Formation's is due out soon.
The Vines greet the world with the kind of blinking, wide eyed enthusiasm of a band just out of the garage band when in reality they experienced an accelerated career, lived out very publicly in a whirlwind of brilliant pop records, legendary gigs and gruelling world tours. In six short years released four albums: Highly Evolved, Winning Days, Vision Valley and Melodia. Melodia features fourteen new songs, including new single He’s A Rocker.
In 2006 Grizzly Bear released their first album Yellow House. One year ago band members, singer/songwriter Ed Droste, drummer Christopher Bear, bassist Chris Taylor and singer/songwriter/guitarist Daniel Rossen began the recording process for their latest album Veckatimest, a diverse collection of songs including hits Dory, Ready, Able and Foreground.
Irish band Ash has celebrated 19 years in the industry. Formed by members Timothy James Arthur Wheeler, Mark Alexander Hamilton and Richard Wilson McMurray in 1997, Ash released several albums such as Trailer, 1977, Free All Angels, Cosmic Debris, Meltdown and Commando and most recently they revealed their A-Z Series: 26 singles in one year, a single for each letter of the alphabet, one release every fortnight. The first taster was free download Return Of White Rabbit.
The style of American band the Scissor Sisters draws from disco, glam rock, pop and the club scene of New York City. Consisting of members Jake Shears and Ana Matronic, Babydaddy, Del Marquis and Randy Real (who joined in replacement of Paddy Boom), the Scissor Sisters achieved a number of chart hits with their debut album Scissor Sisters and their single I Don't Feel Like Dancin' was the fourth best-selling single in the UK in 2006.


A suit seeking the disqualification of the Peoples Democratic Party senatorial candidate for the Osun Central Senatorial District has been filed before the Federal High Court in Osogbo.
The plaintiff in the suit, Ibraheem Khalid of Ward 7, Olorunda Local Government Area of Osun State, alleged that the PDP senatorial candidate, Ganiyu Olaoluwa, lacked the requisite academic qualification to stand for election.
Khalid, in the suit, claimed that Olaoluwa did not attend Ikosi High School, Lagos State, between 1982-1988, contrary to the information he allegedly supplied to the Independent National Electoral Commission.
“From the records available in the school, the individual in question, Ganiyu Ayobami Olaoluwa, was not sighted in the school’s register, most especially between the years 1982 and 1988 as claimed by him,” Khalid averred in the affidavit supporting his suit.
The defendants in the suit are Olaoluwa and INEC.
The court has yet to fix a date to hear the suit.


Ashton Sautner will be in St. Louis on Saturday, but his heart will be 2,400 kilometres away.
The Vancouver Canucks face the Blues in their regular-season finale and the significance of the date is not lost on anybody with a connection to the sport and the human spirit.
Sautner had close ties to the tragic Humboldt Broncos bus collision on April 6, 2018, that claimed 16 lives, injured 13 and resulted in 29 charges against a tractor-trailer driver, who received an eight-year jail sentence.
The Canucks defenceman knew Broncos assistant coach Mark Cross, who died in the crash. He knows of the Humboldt arena where his father, Blaine, coached in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. And he knows what his uncle, Kevin Garinger, endured as team president in four agonizing months of being the public face of the tragedy before stepping down from the position last summer.
Sautner also knows how small-town pride and compassion can lead to remarkable resolve and leave a lasting impression with inspiring initiatives — including a highly successful organ-donation drive — to improve lives.
Broncos defenceman Logan Boulet, 21, died in hospital a day after the crash. His parents knew a commitment to organ donation was a priority for their son and he offered his organs before doctors could even ask — signing his card five weeks before the tragedy on his birthday. He was inspired by his late mentor and trainer Rick Suggit, who donated his organs.
Boulet’s heart, liver, lungs, kidneys and corneas have improved or saved the lives of six Canadians. And according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information, 256 Canadians died in 2016 awaiting an organ, and at the end of that year, 4,469 were awaiting a transplant.
“For people to do things like that and make an awareness is unbelievable,” said the 24-year-old Sautner, who resides in tiny Flaxcombe, Sask. — population 111 — and trains in nearby Kindersley. “It shows an awareness and how good people truly are. And when you come together with something like that it’s amazing.
In what’s being heralded as the Logan Boulet Effect, nearly 100,000 Canadians registered to become organ donors after learning that the fallen Bronco had signed his card. According to Canadian Blood Services, there were 99,742 registrations in April of 2018, a total which only included B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and P.E.I., provinces with online registration.
Sunday is also Green Shirt Day to honour Boulet, and it’s aimed at inspiring others to register.
Sautner was in Edmonton a year ago after being recalled from the Utica Comets. The elation of playing five games to measure his progression against NHL competition was erased by gut-wrenching news of the bus crash.
“We were having a team dinner and my mom was actually the first person who told me,” recalled Sautner.
Ashton Sautner’s uncle has stepped down as president of the Humboldt Broncos.
What occurred the following morning at the game-day skates was beyond moving. Canucks coach Travis Green had a hard time keeping his composure and players in both rooms spoke in solemn and stunned tones about the tragedy.
Saskatchewan native Derrick Pouliot was born in Estevan — population 11,258 — and the Canucks blue-liner played Triple-A midget and often journeyed to Tisdale, near the crash site.
Oilers prospect defenceman Ethan Bear was born in the Ochapowace First Nation at Whitewood, Sask., population 860, and was shocked at the tragedy. Like his peers, he always thought the bus was a safe place.
“The bus is one of the best parts of junior hockey,” he said. “You’re together with the guys and hanging out and having fun and playing cards. This is something you don’t wish on anybody and it’s pretty sad. I don’t really now what to say.
Sautner’s uncle didn’t travel on the team bus that fateful day and was determined to complete his one-year commitment as volunteer Broncos president. It wasn’t easy. He didn’t always have answers to endless questions and it took a tremendous toll on him.


The Ada County Coroner’s Office ruled Moran’s cause of death blunt force trauma due to the accident. As of Monday afternoon, Verity remained in jail.
Officials said they don’t believe either driver wore a seat belt at the time of the crash. The incident is still under investigation.


Is Marvel's fascist Captain America losing command of his fans?
Marvel has had a tough year. Embroiled in controversy after controversy over its current Captain America storyline, the comic book studio has been in damage control mode since last July, when it revealed that their stars-and-stripes-adorned hero was actually part of Hydra, a crypto-Nazi group.
The superhero was created by two Jewish men back in the 1940s, and made his debut by socking Hitler across the face, so readers were shocked to learn that the once proudly all-American Steve Rogers had sided with a fascistic terror group. This twist, which was masterminded by comic writer Nick Spencer, has run through various Marvel comic series, including Captain America: Steve Rogers, Captain America: Sam Wilson and the ongoing Secret Empire.
As Marvel’s own in-universe history says, Hydra and the Nazis aren’t exactly one and the same – but amid the backlash, readers won’t necessarily have recognised the distinction between the Nazis and a proxy group founded by a Nazi (Baron Wolfgang Von Strucker). Petitions have sprung up asking Marvel to reverse the storyline. For months, thousands of fans have been voicing their shock and anger, complete with a dedicated hashtag: #SayNoToHYDRACap, where they complain that Marvel has “ruined Cap” and had made him “more relatable to bigots who want to see themselves as heroes”. And, more ominously for the studio, #boycottMarvel.
But Marvel doesn’t see it that way. “We want to assure all of our fans that we hear your concerns about aligning Captain America with Hydra and we politely ask you to allow the story to unfold before coming to any conclusion,” read a rare statement from the company earlier this month, promising that the comic would “further prove that our heroes will always stand against oppression and show that good will always triumph over evil”.
Spencer, however, did not agree: “If we’re really at, ‘Don’t put us through bad things happening in stories even if it all works out in the end’, stories will not survive that,” he tweeted.
“I’m the most hated man in America today,” Spencer told the Daily Beast a year ago. Some of the criticism directed at him has been vicious: variously charged as a fascist, white supremacist and even a Nazi, all of which are completely baseless. By all accounts, Spencer is a capital-w Writer with a capital-v Vision, and he’s determined to tell a story he sees as important – despite constant calls for Marvel to change course and for him to be fired. When Secret Empire ends in August, maybe that will happen. Regardless, if he is still around, whatever title he finds himself on isn’t likely to be welcomed by a large section of the comic-reading community.
But is all this anger really about Cap? Oddly, Marvel isn’t the only studio pushing stories about superheroes-turned-fascists. DC Comics has two: their popular Injustice 2 tie-in comics have Superman as an ousted dictator, and the recently announced Nightwing: The New Order sees the former Robin heading up a fascistic regime with an anti-superhuman agenda. While some fans find these titles distasteful, there has been nothing like the anger directed at Marvel.
Some of it is bad timing. The rise of the white nationalist “alt-right” in the US hasn’t helped Secret Empire’s publicity, especially as Captain America’s iconography has been co-opted by individuals who identify as members. While Marvel has done its best to distance its fictional hate group from real-world equivalents, it’s hard for fans to think the publisher has their backs when their editor-in-chief says he is “the furthest thing from a social justice warrior” and the Marvel Entertainment CEO is an adviser to President Trump. Currently the domain Hail-Hydra.com redirects visitors to the White House’s website – perhaps the most telling indication of how Hydra – and Marvel – is seen by fans.
And after months of voicing their opposition, many fans feel Marvel is not listening. Perhaps that is the most powerful factor in all of this: readers didn’t want Captain America’s evil turn – but the studio doesn’t actually care. If Marvel can come out with a colourful distraction like the much-anticipated Marvel Legacy, maybe they will win some of these irate readers back. But comics fans have long memories, and superhero fans never forget. It will be a long time before Marvel recovers its good name among fans. They’ve had a tough year, too.


COEUR d'ALENE - The nonprofit Coeur d'Alene Glass Recycling Co. founder said recycling will continue in 2014.
Founder Ben Mello said last month it looked like operations would cease, as the pulverized glass - called cullet - was building up in the warehouse and there weren't enough takers of the free material.
"This past month, we have started working with a number of local individuals and agencies to use the glass cullet," Mello said. He started the nonprofit with his wife, Melissa, earlier this year.
Local Boy Scout troop 201 is among the consumers of the cullet who have emerged since Mello said the nonprofit was on the verge of going under.
The scouts are bagging the cullet for traction bags, which are being sold at Ace Hardware and Big R. The scouts are receiving money to benefit the troop.
"Also, the city of Coeur d'Alene has expressed an interest in using the cullet," he said.
In November, Mello said the nonprofit was sitting on approximately 60 18-gallon bins filled with cullet.
"Right now, we don't have any crushed glass in the warehouse, so I am feeling great," Mello said Thursday. "I hope that we can continue to get the product out into the community and I would like to see someone use it in commercial applications for countertops and sidewalks."
This year, the nonprofit operated on donations, which covered leasing a facility, insurance, utilities, and maintenance on the crushing and sifting machines.
There are no paid employees, as everyone that does work is a volunteer, Mello said. The eight volunteers converge on the recycling facility every other Saturday to process the glass.
Coeur d'Alene Glass Recycling operates in a warehouse in an industrial area in north Coeur d'Alene. Mello doesn't give out the specific address to prevent random drop-offs of glass.
He said there is a waiting list to drop off glass for recycling.
Those who would like to reserve a slot for glass drop-off must contact the nonprofit by Jan. 15, he said. The minimum donation is $120 to participate in recycling and become a "member."
Mello said there were 200 members who signed up this year to have their glass recycled. The members included individuals and businesses.
The nonprofit's mailing address: Coeur d'Alene Glass Recycling Co., 600 W. Clayton Ave. No. 3, Coeur d'Alene, ID, 83815.


Turkey fraud probe: Tip of the iceberg?
With a high-level corruption scandal embarrassing the prime minister, we ask what it means for him and his AK Party.
A wide-ranging corruption scandal has engulfed the highest levels of the Turkish government.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has reshuffled his cabinet, and replaced 10 ministers, after the three who were implicated in the scandal resigned.
Erdogan had long ago announced that the cabinet was due for a reshuffle. But it has not stopped talk of a deepening crisis at the heart of the government - one that the prime minister is failing to control.
If the resignations had come just after the probe started they would have been more meaningful .… There is an impression among the society that actually what we have seen is the tip of the iceberg. People think there is more to the story.
Of the three ministers to quit, Environment Minister Erdogan Bayraktar has the potential to hurt the prime minister the most. Despite being Erdogan's long-time ally, he refused to go quietly, saying the prime minister should follow suit.
But Erdogan insists his government is clean, and has dismissed the corruption allegations as being part of a conspiracy. He insists the probe is politically motivated and backed by international interests.
"The reason our party has been successful, the reason we took the helm and we have been ruling the country for 11 years, is because of our honesty, our commitment to the country and our determination to fight against corruption," he said.
He added that his AK Party does not overlook nor tolerate corruption and should it do that, it would be removing its "raison d'etre".
"We are facing an attack against the Turkish people and the Turkish republic, which is presented as a corruption probe. Everybody is aware that this is not a corruption probe but this is an obvious conspiracy, a set-up against Turkish politics and people," he said.
But that message did not satisfy many people in Istanbul. Instead, they held protests in parts of the city where they were met with tear gas and water cannon, when riot police tried to disperse the crowds.
The corruption case is seen as part of an escalating feud between Erdogan and a former ally Fethullah Gulen, the leader of a religious and social movement known for its network of schools in more than 140 countries.
In Turkey, Gulen followers serve in institutions that include the police, the judiciary, the media, even the AK party itself.
And the party has benefited from its relationship with Gulen - who backed its members to three successive election victories. But the relationship did not last.
The rift seems to stretch back to a Gulenist prosecutor who tried to question the head of Turkey's national intelligence agency - one of Erdogan's allies. And more recently, the prime minister's decision to shut down Gulen-run schools was seen as a provocation.
So, what does the current crisis mean for Erdogan as he and his AK Party struggle for their political lives? Is the prime minister addressing the corruption issue effectively, and is he wrong to blame the present crisis on an international plot?
To discuss this, Inside Story presenter Dareen Abughaida is joined by guests: Yavuz Baydar, a columnist with Today's Zaman, Turkey’s English language newspaper; Ozgur Unluhisarc?kl?, the Ankara office director of the German Marshall Fund; and Galip Dalay, a researcher at the SETA Foundation in Turkey.
"It does not have to be an international plot … The main perception among columnists in Turkey is that none of these people see this as a corruption case per se. It is like [a] politically-motivated corruption case."
We ask if an investigation into corruption is a mere battle of wills or if it can have an effect on Turkish politics.
Police fired water cannons and tear gas at protesters denouncing Prime Minister Erdogan's government over corruption.


Fluffy, furry and warm. Sounds like pets would make pretty good pillows.
When Patty Moore says she has found comfort in her pet dog’s death, she means it quite literally.
She made the 10-pound terrier into a pillow. Well, the dog’s ashes at least. Moore hasn’t stopped there and now runs a company that furnishes tons of worldwide orders for dead pet pillows.
The company is called Soft-hearted Pillows, and Moore has been making a killing. She takes the ashes of dead dogs, cats, birds and even rabbits and sews them into embroidered pillows with the animal’s name on it. It’s a treasured keepsake, albeit a creepy one, Moore admits.
Most pet lovers can’t seem to let go of their dead four-legged friends so the idea isn’t so far fetched. Many pet owners cremate their pets and others go so far as to have the animals stuffed so they can still touch their furry friend.
So, in a sense, pet pillows are the next step in evolution. After all, what is more comforting than laying on your pet in bed? Just imagine having Fluffy the cat stuffed in a fluffy pillow.


This just in: Donald Trump is still a moron.
In an exclusive interview with The Daily Caller, POTUS doubled down on his insane conspiracy theories concerning the ongoing Florida recounts. Trump claimed U.S. elections have been undermined by widespread voter fraud—a myth that has been consistently debunked—and that the only way to combat these alleged crimes is to implement stricter ID laws.
"The Republicans don't win and that's because of potentially illegal votes," Trump whined, presumably about the GOP's recent midterms defeat. "When people get in line that have absolutely no right to vote and they go around in circles. Sometimes they go to their car, put on a different hat, put on a different shirt, come in and vote again. Nobody takes anything. It's really a disgrace what’s going on."
Oh, but it gets worse. Trump went on to suggest that the U.S. voting process should be similar to—wait for it—the process of buying a box of cereal. No, really.
"If you buy a box of cereal—you have a voter ID," Trump, our nation's leader, said. "They try to shame everybody by calling them racist, or calling them something, anything they can think of, when you say you want voter ID. But voter ID is a very important thing."
These comments have understandably sparked plenty of questions: Is Trump truly that ignorant about the country's voting process? IS he that out of touch with the rest of America? And, has he ever actually set foot inside a grocery store?
He made similar comments during a Florida rally earlier this year.
"We believe that only American citizens should vote in American elections, which is why the time has come for voter ID, like everything else. Voter ID," Trump told the crowd. "You know, if you go out and you want to buy groceries, you need a picture on a card, you need ID. You go out and you want to buy anything, you need ID and you need your picture."
No, Donald, you actually don't.


As expected, the Switch will cost lower than the competition. The console is also presumed to launch with a Mario game and the remastered Skyrim, but Zelda: Breath of the Wild will remain incomplete by the time March comes around.
آ…UK specialist gaming retail chain GAME has been informed of the Nintendo Switch’s wholesale price to retailers, and is planning on selling their basic SKU (stock keeping unit) of the system in stores for آ£199.99. It is important to note this is not a Nintendo set RRP (recommended retail price), as Nintendo do not set UK RRP prices for consoles. However, it is safe to assume this gives us a solid indication of the price the system will sell at nationwide. We have also learned that a separate SKU featuring more internal storage and a packed in game is planned to sell at آ£249.99. We have heard rumours as to what this pack in game is, but we currently have only one source on this information so we are unwilling to talk about that pack in title at this time.


This is the most important decision the Wild will make this season because the roster figures to be pretty similar to what it was last year. Will it be a retread, a fresh talent or someone else?
The Star Tribune’s Michael Russo outlined several key issues facing the Wild this offseason in a great piece today. Of particular note to me, though, is the impending coaching search. This is the most important decision the Wild will make this season because the roster figures to be pretty similar (again) to what it was last year. It will be up to a new coach to get more consistency and production out of the same group of players.
Russo tossed out several names of potential candidates and divided them into categories. I won’t pretend to attempt to add to this list, but let’s work through those names a bit in an attempt to guess what direction the Wild will and/or should go.
Randy Carlyle: The 60-year-old won a Stanley Cup with Anaheim in 2007 and would bring a strong voice to the locker room. His all-time coaching record of 364-260-80 in more than 700 career regular-season games suggests he is a solid choice. On the other hand, Carlyle has also been fired twice (by Anaheim and Toronto), and his teams have tended to play better earlier in his tenure than later. For a Wild team that will be trying to win in the short-term, though, he could be a good fit — with the organization willing to live with the potential for future regression.
Marc Crawford: Had a great first run as head coach, winning the 1996 Stanley Cup with the Avalanche. But that was 20 years ago, and his last three coaching stops have been far less successful. With Vancouver, he didn’t make it past the second round of the playoffs in six full seasons. With the Kings and Stars, he missed the playoffs all four combined seasons (two with each team). More recently he’s had success coaching in Switzerland, but he hasn’t been an NHL head coach in five years.
Paul MacLean: Coached Ottawa for parts of four seasons, making the playoffs twice before getting fired during his fourth year in 2014-15.
Guy Boucher: Took Tampa bay to the Eastern Conference finals in his first season (2010-11), but the Lightning slipped from 103 to 84 points in his second year, and he was fired early during his third season. Wikipedia says he has a Master’s Degree in sports psychology, which might be an interesting thing in the Wild locker room.
Kevin Dineen: Similarly, Dineen made the playoffs with Florida his first year (2011-12), had a swift regression the next year and was fired early in his third year.
Kirk Muller: Missed the playoffs all three seasons with Carolina.
Travis Green: Has compiled an impressive minor league record but has no NHL experience, even as an assistant.
Phil Housley: Minnesota native who coached Team USA to the World Junior Championship in 2013 and is a well-regarded Nashville assistant but again has limited experience.
Luke Richardson: Another coach with a good minor league track record in the Ottawa organization. He’s been a head coach with their affiliate since 2012-13, and he turned down an assistant position with the Senators to remain in that role.
John Torchetti: A career grinder whose only NHL head coach chances have come in an interim role, Torchetti is a character who came in and did a credible job to at least get the Wild to the postseason.
As Russo noted, this isn’t an overwhelming list of candidates in terms of strength, though one has to imagine the Wild would be able to land pretty much anyone from this list.
I’d consider Torchetti a long shot. The team needs an overhaul, and even though he did a decent job this season it feels as though the Wild needs to go bigger with this hire than the status quo. The middle tier doesn’t excite me, with the possible exception of Boucher.
GM Chuck Fletcher has tried two up-and-comers already for his two full-time hires (Todd Richards and Mike Yeo), and they have produced mixed results. But that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t do it again. One has to imagine that if this coaching hire fails to produce results, Fletcher will be out of a job, too. So he can feel free, in a sense, to pick the best candidate possible instead of feeling like he needs to go against the grain of what he previously did.
That said, this also seems to be a team in need of a strong locker room presence — a veteran coach that commands respect. Given what we know about the Wild, it would be awfully risky to give the job to someone who hasn’t proven he can deal with NHL egos. In that sense, a retread with a track record in the NHL might actually be the best fit for this team.
Carlyle would seem to be the most attractive of this kind of candidate, at least among those available now. His message might wear thin after 2-3 years, but that’s the Wild’s window to be competitive as currently constructed.


John A. Boffa, 90 years, beloved husband of Emma, neeDeGregorio, loving father of Louise Valventin; proud and loving grandfather of Jonathan and Francesca; dearest brother of the late Philip (Violet), late Steven (Frances) and the late Josephine; fond uncle of many nieces and nephews.
Member of the American Legion (Pat Petrone) Post.
Visitation Friday, 3 to 9 p.m. atSalerno's Galewood Chapel, 1857 N. Harlem Ave., Chicago.
John Rago Sons, F.D. Funeral Mass Saturday, 10:30 a.m. at St. Giles Church.


The couple will be taking their custody battle before a judge.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have been in a bitter custody battle over their six kids since they split in 2016. They’ve fought over money, child support and custody. After a temporary agreement expired, the stars are now headed to court regarding their children. Keep reading for more details.
Angelina and Brad’s custody showdown is set to begin on December 4, according to court documents obtained by Radaronline.com. The hearing is going to be in front of a temporary judge and won’t be public.
The documents also state that they’ll split the cost of the judge’s services.
According to ET, the Hollywood A-listers had reached “an interim custody arrangement” that allowed the actor to have custody of the kids through the summer.
The estranged couple is fighting over their brood of six: 17-year-old Maddox, 14-year-old Pax, 13-year-old Zahara, 12-year-old Shiloh and 10-year-old twins Vivienne and Knox.
As OK! readers know, they met on the set of Mr. and Mrs. Smith in 2004, while Brad was still married to Jennifer Aniston. The co-stars then began their courtship in 2005 , before tying the knot in 2014 .
Are you team Angelina or team Brad? Let us know in the comments.
Want to stay on top of Maddox Jolie-Pitt news? Sign up for OK INSIDER!


Net profit was down to Rs 301 crore from Rs 421 crore in the corresponding quarter in 2017.
The company's net profit in the same quarter of 2017-18 was at Rs 421 crore.
Mumbai: ICICI Prudential Life Insurance posted a 28.5 per cent decline in net profit during the quarter ended September 30, 2018. Net profit was down to Rs 301 crore from Rs 421 crore in the corresponding quarter in 2017. Net income is up 16 per cent while income from investment was down 56.35 per cent in the quarter.
Income from investments declined from Rs 2,812 crore in the quarter ended September 2017 to Rs 1,227 crore in the quarter ended September 2018 due to volatile market conditions.
“Despite volatile markets, opportunities in both savings and protection continue to be robust for life insurers,” said NS Kannan, MD & CEO, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance. “This underlines the long-term nature of the business.” The value of new business of the insurer grew by 41.5 per cent to Rs 590 crore for the quarter ended September 2018 from Rs 417 crore in the quarter ended September 2017. Embedded value of the business also increased by 11.8 per cent to Rs 19,248 crore from Rs 17,210 crore.
The insurer faced a marginal decline in 13th month persistency to 82.7 per cent for the quarter ended September 2018 compared to 83.5 per cent for the corresponding quarter in September 2017 but witnessed improvements in 49th month from 63 per cent to 64.3 per cent and 61st month persistency from 54.4 per cent to 58.7 per cent.


The run-up to Dover was the most tumultuous week in Chase history.
The run-up to Dover was the most tumultuous week in Chase history. First, the car of New Hampshire winner Clint Bowyer failed inspection three days after the race. While Bowyer got to keep the win, he was docked 150 points. So in terms of the standings, Bowyer’s “win” was the equivalent of a 40th-place finish. Then points leader Denny Hamlin, the New Hampshire runner-up, took a dig at Richard Childress Racing, declaring that he’d had “the fastest legal car” at Loudon. That prompted a skirmish at Dover between Hamlin and Bowyer’s Richard Childress Racing teammate, Kevin Harvick. During practice. But after all the bluster, there was a sense of same ol’, same ol’ by the time Dover’s AAA 400 ended. As he’s done in so many other Chase races during his four-year reign as champion, Jimmie Johnson ruled. He won the pole, won the race and scored maximum points. Here’s how things shake out heading into Week 3.
Johnson, of course, leads the pack this week. He climbed from sixth to second in the standings while shaving his deficit from 92 points to 35. Just as important, he ended his three-month losing streak and silenced talk of the No. 48 team’s vulnerability. At least for now. But it was also a decent day for Hamlin and his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Kyle Busch. Busch held onto the third spot in the Chase standings while Hamlin shrugged off the controversy that had dogged him all weekend to finish ninth, his first top-10 Chase finish at Dover since 2006. (Third-place Joey Logano had the highest finish of any JGR entry.) Jeff Burton rebounded nicely from his fuel-starved 15th-place finish at New Hampshire to finish second and remain in the hunt.
There’s already considerable separation between the top 8 and the rest of the pack. Tony Stewart’s 21st-place finish at Dover made his fuel-mileage gamble at New Hampshire (he ran out of gas while leading at the white flag and finished 24th) look even more ill-advised in hindsight. At 10th in points, 162 points off the face, Stewart can afford no more missteps in the last eight races. Ditto for Greg Biffle and his Roush Fenway teammate Matt Kenseth, each of whom finished a lap down at Dover and now sit ninth and 11th, respectively, in points. Stewart and Biffle, at least, have reason for optimism this week. Not so Kenseth, whose average finish at Kansas Speedway in the Chase era is 20.7.
Richard Petty Motorsports driver Paul Menard finished seventh at Dover, his first top-10 since July. But the most impressive non-Chaser was Menard’s RPM teammate. It’s not often that A.J. Allmendinger can call a top-10 finish a disappointment, but that was the case last Sunday. After starting alongside Johnson and leading 143 laps, Allmendinger cut a tire and went a lap downbefore battling back. Given his recent strong runs (eighth at Richmond, 12th at New Hampshire) and decent performance history at several remaining Chase tracks, including Kansas, there’s reason to believe Allmendinger could spice up the title fight by scoring his first career Cup win before season’s end.
At least Bowyer could appeal the 150-point penalty he incurred after New Hampshire. There was no appealing his finish at Dover, which was unappealing indeed: three laps down, in 25th place, worst among Chasers.
WHY HE MATTERS: He’s a two-time Kansas winner.
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY: He backslid from fourth in the standings to eighth after finishing 11that Dover.
THE LOWDOWN As the first of five “intermediate” tracks (from 1.5 to 2 miles) in the Chase, Kansas could reveal who’s genuinely hot and who’s genuinely not as the competition heats up. But this much is already certain: Jimmie Johnson runs well at intermediate tracks, including Kansas, where he has a win (in 2008) among his six top-10 finishes in eight career starts. Then again, Johnson also runs well at Dover and Martinsville and Phoenix and … it’s no wonder he’s won the Chase four straight times.
“How can a car pass pre- and post-race inspection and three days later get such a huge fine?” – New Hampshire winner Clint Bowyer on the 150-point penalty NASCAR assessed the next Wednesday.
Sunday’s pre-race show on ABC starts at noon Eastern, followed by the race at 1:00.
The list of drivers who have averaged a top-five finish at Kansas during the Chase era is short. And if you’re a Greg Biffle fan, it’s pretty sweet. Even if you extend the criterion to top-10 finishes, Biffle remains in a class by himself (see chart). If Biffle is to establish himself as a contender rather than pretender this season, Sunday is the day to do so. Same goes for Tony Stewart, who has had two Chase wins at Kansas but has also logged finishes of 39th and 40th. For the rest of the contenders, Kansas is about survival – particularly Kyle Busch, whose average finish of 24.3 doesn’t even place him among the top 20.
Austin Dillon, 20-year-old grandson of Sprint Cup team owner Richard Childress and a rookie in the NASCAR Camping World Truck series, scored his second win of the season last Saturday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Dillon, who has just 22 career truck starts, won his first race at Iowa in July and is fourth in truck series points.
Kyle Busch’s victory in Saturday’s Dover 200 was his 11th Nationwide win of the season, a series record. Jimmie Johnson’s victory at Dover on Sunday was the 19th Chase win of his career, most of any driver since the format’s inception.


The Senate Ethics Committee said Thursday that Democratic Sen. Robert Menendez, who avoided conviction in a federal corruption trial last year, violated federal law and Senate rules in accepting unreported gifts from a friend and political ally.
The Ethics Committee findings complete a winding, six-year saga in which the New Jersey senator was accused of corrupt dealings to benefit a political donor, Melgen, only to see his prosecution end in a mistrial in November after 10 weeks in court.
As long as Menendez repays the gifts, he is unlikely to face further official sanctions. But the stern reprimand stands to cloud his pending campaign for a third Senate term, though he retains an advantage as a Democratic incumbent in a liberal-leaning state.
“With the Ethics Committee process now concluded, Sen. Menendez looks forward to continuing to serve the people of New Jersey,” Elias added.
After the mistrial, most jurors told reporters that they believed Menendez had not committed the crimes federal prosecutors alleged and a grand jury had charged him with. On Jan. 31, a judge dismissed all charges against Menendez after prosecutors decided not to pursue a second trial.
It was not immediately clear how much Menendez might have to repay. In 2013, after media reports detailing gifts he had taken from Melgen, he repaid Melgen $58,500 for a pair of 2010 trips aboard Melgen’s private plane — an expenditure that, according to personal financial disclosures, cut deeply into Menendez’s modest personal wealth.
But prosecutors detailed more than a dozen flights on private jets paid for by Melgen, and other significant gifts, including use of Melgen’s Caribbean villa, a Paris hotel stay and golf outings. The Paris stay, paid for with Melgen’s American Express rewards points, is alone valued at nearly $5,000. Their indictment also characterizes as a gift $40,000 in donations that Melgen and members of his family made to a Menendez legal defense fund in 2011 and 2012.
Tricia Enright, a Menendez spokeswoman, said the senator made an additional repayment of $46,975 in 2014 to cover other gifts and separately repaid the hotel bill. Elias said that after Menendez made the initial repayments, Menendez “halted further remedial action” at the Ethics Committee’s request, including updating his financial disclosure forms.
Since prosecutors abandoned their case, Menendez has moved to reassert his place in the Senate, taking back the ranking Democrat post on the Foreign Relations Committee that he temporarily vacated during his prosecution. As the most senior senator of Latino heritage, he has also reemerged as a strong advocate for immigration reform, including protections for the young immigrants covered under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
Before Thursday’s letter, Menendez appeared to be well-positioned in his race against a relatively unknown Republican challenger, pharmaceutical executive Bob Hugin. A Quinnipiac University poll published last month gave Menendez a 17-point lead and found that fewer than 40 percent of voters believed he had engaged in “serious wrongdoing” in office.
Federal prosecutors, after media reports of Menendez’s actions to help Melgen settle business disputes with the federal government, secured indictments on 14 charges, including bribery. They alleged Menendez used his office to help Melgen after the doctor gave gifts to Menendez, including the private-jet flights and stays at Melgen’s Dominican Republic villa. Melgen also gave campaign donations that were funneled to Menendez’s 2012 campaign.
But in court, Menendez successfully argued that there was no illegal quid pro quo, that Melgen was a bona fide friend and that the gifts he received and the favors he did for him were unconnected.
The panel concluded that Menendez’s efforts to aid Melgen “went well beyond Senate norms” — including arranging a 2012 meeting with then-Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
The letter also singled out the private-jet flights for particular scrutiny, noting that Menendez — just days after joining the Senate — voted for legislation requiring senators to pay fair-market value for any private-plane travel.
While it is rare for the Senate Ethics Committee to investigate a sitting senator, it has broad power to investigate lawmakers’ conduct, both while in office and beforehand, and it has taken serious action on several occasions.
Since the committee’s establishment in 1964, it has twice recommended that senators be expelled from the body: Sen. Harrison A. Williams Jr. (D-N.J.) in 1982 after he was convicted on corruption charges; and Sen. Bob Packwood (R-Ore.) in 1995 after a lengthy investigation found evidence of rampant sexual misconduct. Both senators resigned before the Senate could vote on their expulsion. In that time, three other senators have been recommended for censure, an official rebuke that falls short of expulsion.
Since 2002, the panel has issued letters of admonition to six senators. One was delivered to another New Jersey Democrat, Robert G. Torricelli, who was ordered in 2002 to repay a political donor after accepting a TV, CD player and three pairs of earrings for less than their full-market value. Torricelli subsequently abandoned his campaign for a second term.


Gillette has started using RFID to determine whether stores have stocked their shelves with a specific item in time for a marketing promotion. Gillette is doing that by analyzing data from retailers with RFID scanners, which read the electronic product codes on each tag at receiving docks and at various points between stockrooms and store entrances.
Imagine they take this a step further? Imagine a system that automatically books a radio spot or online banner campaign when it monitors that a certain product line isn’t shifting? Ad agencies could prepare a bank of direct response ads for every product category that get broadcast when the system decides they need advertising support!


HIGH living costs continue to prevent Slovaks from moving for work. In turn, due to the low mobility of the workforce in Slovakia, industrial companies expect that in the future they will suffer from shortages of qualified labour.
The PSA Peugeot-Citroen car plant in Trnava, for example, has noticed a lack of interest among people from central and eastern Slovakia in working at its new plant, with only 15 percent of the 41,000 job applications it has received coming from these areas of the country, the Hospodárske noviny reported.
According to PSA's human resources director, Barbora Šípošová, over the next four years more than 50,000 new workers will be needed in the mechanical engineering and automobile industries. "The unwillingness of people to move is not only influenced by the Slovak mentality, but also by the high costs of living and the lack of housing," said Šípošová.
The property price boom in Trnava and Žilina, the sites of the country's large new auto factories, has contributed to this problem. A three-room apartment in the eastern Slovak town of Michalovce fetches about Sk670,000 (€17,910) on the market at the moment, the same price as a one-room flat in Trnava or Žilina. The situation is similar in other towns in eastern Slovakia.


LAS VEGAS, Nov. 3, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In response to explosive sales interest and the need for future development, Cipherloc Corporation (OTCQB:CLOK) announces the upcoming opening of its new Office of Development and Sales location in Texas, near Austin.
Austin is sometimes referred to as the "Silicon Hills", mainly due to the large number of technology companies who make their home there. The Austin area includes such top companies as 3M, Dell, Apple Inc., Hewlett-Packard, Google, Facebook, AMD, Applied Materials, Cirrus Logic, Cisco Systems, eBay/PayPal, Bioware, Blizzard Entertainment, Hoover's, Intel Corporation, National Instruments, Samsung Group, Silicon Laboratories, Oracle Corporation, Hostgator, and United Devices that have operations in this Central Texas technology hot spot.
"This is the next logical step for Cipherloc. Our new facility positions us right in the midst of this high-tech hot spot. Austin is the perfect place for such an endeavor, and the timing couldn't be more perfect, as Cipherloc, whose newly patented, and never seen before technology, was deemed to be "unable to be hacked" by CyberDin earlier this year, offers unparalleled security options that are becoming necessary and will shortly be in high demand," says Michael DeLaGarza, CEO. "We are excited about the future, and this next step makes us highly accessible, by cutting commute time for our future customers."
The new center will open in March of 2016, and will serve as the Texas hub, for future development and sales to high tech companies.
This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All forward- looking statements are inherently uncertain as they are based on current expectations and assumptions concerning future events or future performance of the company. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are only predictions and speak only as of the date hereof. In evaluating such statements, prospective investors should review carefully various risks and uncertainties identified in this release and matters set in the company's SEC filings. These risks and uncertainties could cause the company's actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements.


Missy Elliot, Morgan Freeman, Busta Rhymes and Peter Dinklage have appeared in a new commercial set to be screened at the Superbowl.
In it, Missy Elliott coaches Freeman and Busta Rhymes coaches Dinklage ahead of the actor’s head to head challenge.
The full battle between Freeman and Dinklage is set to premiere during the full commercial.
The rappers give them a series of tongue-twisters to practise with often hilarious consequences. You can watch the teaser for the commercial below.
Justin Timberlake is set to perform at next month’s Superbowl, causing rumours that his former boyband N-Sync could reunite at the event.
JT and his bandmates went their separate ways in 2002. Though they announced their split as a “temporary hiatus” at the time, they haven’t recorded together since. Five years later, Lance Bass confirmed they had “definitely broken up”.
The group did however join Timberlake on stage during his MTV VMA performance in 2013.
Now, ahead of the ‘Man In The Woods’ popstar’s Super Bowl appearance, former band member Joey Fatone has debunked rumours of a potential reunion.


Robert L. Park (Op-Ed, Dec. 30) asserts that the work of futurists is pseudoscientific. Why so? Futuristics is not a mystical practice; it is simply the analysis of the state of a social system, together with the forces acting upon it, with the aim of identifying possible system changes and their probabilities.
Mr. Park, in citing Herman Kahn's doomsday scenarios and the colonization of Mars, seems to suggest that because predictions of human social behavior and organization are inevitably imperfect, they are pointless.
Let's examine just one issue.
It seems certain that our projections regarding the demographic composition of the United States in 2050 will need correction over time. Would Mr. Park propose that statisticians, policy analysts, legislators and social planners abandon efforts to project the rapid aging of our population and its implications?
Social data are always incomplete. Still, it seems the much wiser course to predict and plan for our future rather than to resign from the field.
The writer is a health communications consultant.


Intel Corp. agreed to sell a majority stake in its computer-security unit to private-equity firm TPG, partly reversing a five-year-old acquisition that has largely proved disappointing.
TPG will take a 51% stake in the business in a deal that values it at $4.2 billion including debt, Intel said in a statement Wednesday confirming an earlier report in The Wall Street Journal. The business, recently called Intel Security, will use the McAfee name originally associated with it.
Intel's security business was originally known for antivirus programs. But it has branched into other varieties of software aimed at preventing attackers from breaking into corporate networks. In the first half revenue rose 11% to $1.1 billion.
Intel bought McAfee for $7.7 billion in 2011 as the chip giant sought to diversify. It paid a lofty 60% premium, causing some analysts to worry the technology giant was overpaying and moving too far beyond its expertise in designing computer chips.
The move is now generally regarded as a disappointment. Intel, which has long looked for successful franchises beyond the chips for personal computers on which it built its fortune, originally characterized the McAfee transaction as a promising source of additional profits. Intel executives talked up the possibility of using expertise from McAfee to build more security features into chips.
As part of Wednesday's deal, TPG is making a $1.1 billion investment to help the business expand further and sharpen its focus, Intel said.
McAfee has drawn controversy lately. It took its name from co-founder John McAfee, an entrepreneur who sold his interest in its key assets in 1991. He recently filed a suit in U.S. District Court in New York against Intel, seeking a declaration that he has the right to use his name in connection with security products. Intel had warned him in a letter that his use of the name would constitute a trademark violation. Intel had recently de-emphasized the McAfee name in favor of what it calls Intel Security.
In April, Intel said it would slash 12,000 jobs, 11% of its workforce, partly due to the chip maker's failure to take advantage of the industry's transition to smartphones. The restructuring was Intel's largest in terms of the number of employees affected.
The continuing decline in personal computers has forced Intel to focus on growth areas such as computers for data centers and non-computer devices outfitted with data-processing and communications capabilities, known as the Internet of Things. Intel is also expecting growth to come from selling chips for servers and other gear related to cloud computing.
Last year, Intel completed the $16.7 billion acquisition of Altera Corp., its largest acquisition ever. Altera's chips are used in an array of devices that include networking equipment. The deal came on the heels of several other major deals among semiconductor companies.
The McAfee deal would add to an active market for technology mergers broadly, a trend underlined by privately held PC maker Dell's combination with EMC, which closed Wednesday. Cybersecurity assets have also been changing hands. Symantec Corp. in June agreed to buy Blue Coat Systems Inc. in a $4.65 billion deal.
The sector has also provided fertile ground for private-equity firms, which otherwise have struggled to find chunky acquisitions amid competition from corporate buyers and tighter bank regulations that have kept a lid on financing. Year-to-date, private-equity firms have put $33.8 billion into U.S. leveraged buyouts in the tech sector, or 49% of all buyout volume, according to Dealogic.
The deal marks TPG's boldest bet yet on the need for protection from increasingly sophisticated hacking attacks. Last year, the firm led a $100 million investment in internet security company Zscaler Inc. and a $120 million funding round for security and information technology vendor Tanium. Unlike those smaller investments in relatively new technology providers, McAfee gives entree to a host of corporate customers and a platform to make additional and potentially larger deals in cybersecurity.
TPG, founded in 1992 and with over $70 billion of assets, also has a long history of investing in units of larger companies, In 2005, it took a stake in Lenovo Group Ltd. to finance the Chinese computer company's purchase of International Business Machines Corp.'s PC unit. In 2002, it participated in a $2.26 billion deal to buy Burger King from consumer-goods conglomerate Diageo PLC.


Chippewa Falls freelance photographer Tony Wilder captured the northern lights over Lake Wissota last night. The solar flare activity causing the northern lights is expected to continue tonight.
A small solar flare erupted from the sun early Sunday, shooting out a burst of plasma like milk blown through a straw at 2.5 million miles an hour.
Headed toward Earth, the solar activity - called a coronal mass ejection - created a beautiful aurora borealis Tuesday night and Wednesday morning captured by photographers in northern Wisconsin and elsewhere on the planet. Conditions are ripe for a repeat of the show the rest of this week.
If you live in southern Wisconsin, you'll need conditions to cooperate to get a look at the aurora borealis. The best viewing requires clear skies.
In Chippewa Falls, freelance photographer Tony Wilder grabbed his camera and tripod and headed out around 11 p.m. Tuesday.
"You could definitely see the bright green," Wilder said. "You drive along the highway, you could see this bright green halo to the north. We had cloud cover but it didn't matter. It kind of silhouetted the clouds pretty nicely."
The small solar flare erupted at 3 a.m. Sunday, ejecting an outflow of plasma through the solar corona, the extended outer atmosphere of the sun. When hitting Earth, the plasma can produce significant geomagnetic storms, according to the National Weather Service. The coronal mass ejection was recorded arriving at 11:41 a.m. Tuesday, inciting a small geomagnetic storm.
At the National Weather Service office in Sullivan, a staff member monitored a site detecting flare activity Wednesday that showed the skies were very active, but unfortunately nothing could be seen during the daytime, said Jeff Craven, science and operations officer at the office.
Mark Hobson searched the skies over Madison Tuesday night in vain - it was too hazy.
"You want a pretty darn dark sky," said Hobson, public information coordinator for the University of Wisconsin-Madison Space Science and Engineering Center. "As long as the solar flare activities continue, that will spark higher aurora borealis activity."
Though binoculars or telescopes can be used to see them, the naked eye is the best way to gaze at northern lights because they're typically so large they fill the night skies, said Rich Talcott, senior editor at Astronomy magazine, published in Waukesha.
While solar flares are not rare, what's unusual about this week's solar activity is that nary a peep has come from the sun recently.
"These tend to happen when the sun is active," said Talcott. "We haven't seen much of the flares or coronal mass ejections in the last couple of years."


The Richardson police officer who was shot while responding to an apartment complex has been identified as 37-year-old David Sherrard. He was a 13-year veteran and member of the SWAT unit.
"He exemplified the professionalism, heroism and strong character inherent in all Richardson police officers," the department posted on Facebook. "We are grieving and deeply hurt by this loss."
30-year-old Rene Gamez was also killed during the shooting. Plano police told the Dallas Morning News that Gamez lived in the apartment complex.
The Richardson Police Department tweeted Wednesday that there was an active shooter scene at North Star Road and Renner Road. An officer was shot responding to a disturbance at the apartments at the location.
The Dallas Morning News said the suspect, 26-year-old Brandon McCall, has been charged with capital murder of a peace officer.
The identity of the officer has not been released at this time.


Opportunity for a qualified ACA/ACCA Audit & Accounts Executive to develop their career with a Top 20 firm.
As Audit & Accounts Executive you will be working in a team, reporting to Manager and Partner level working closely with clients, managing junior staff and developing your technical, commercial and people management skills.
Candidates matching the requirements or Audit and Accounts Executive position looking for a part-time or flexible role, which is workable around other commitments, will be considered for this opportunity alongside full time applicants.
Planning Audit assignments for multi million turnover SMEs.
Managing and supervising junior staff with involvement in their training and development.
Significant client contact, being an integral part of the communication process with clients.
Involved with business advisory requirements and an opportunity to work on projects for clients.
ACA or ACCA fully qualified with practice experience at Audit and Accounts Executive level.
For this role as Audit & Accounts Executive It is essential that you have relevant Practice experience and in particular already have a sound knowledge of auditing Owner Managed Businesses.
If you are fully qualified ACA or ACCA with an audit and accounts background this is an excellent opportunity to continue with your Professional development as part of the next stage of your career.


After months of rumours, Amazon confirmed that it’s now officially launching its Alexa smart assistant to Canada.
Amazon Echo – the original voice-controlled speaker that provides Alexa access will be available in Sandstone, heather grey, and charcoal. It will be available at launch for an “introductory price” of $99. Regular price is $129.99.
Echo Dot – the compact device that is designed to extend Alexa into multiple rooms, or connect with a better speaker, is available in black and white. It’s being introduced for $49.99 and its regular price is $69.99.
Echo Plus – The recently-introduced sequel to the original Echo features all the Alexa features, plus ZigBee wireless smart home connections. Its introductory price is $169.99 and regular is $199.99.
Air Canada will allow customers to check for information on flights, ticket prices, and baggage carousel updates.
In addition to the Echo hardware, Amazon is releasing its Prime Music service to Canada. That allows members of the Amazon Prime service to access the cloud music service at no additional cost. Amazon is also making a Smart Home store available on its e-commerce site.
Other Alexa-enabled devices will also be available in Canada soon, including the Toronto-based Ecobee’s ecobee4 smart thermostat. Also, Canadian firm Fabriq’s multi-room Chorus speakers will become available.
If you’re setting up your Alexa flash briefing, make sure to check out ITWC’s daily technology news podcast Hashtag Trending. Just add it to your flash briefing lineup to learn everything you need to know about the top trending stories in technology every day in about two minutes.