A newly formed group representing 20 elected First Nation councils will present an offer on Tuesday to buy a 22.5-per-cent stake in TransCanada Corp.'s Coastal GasLink pipeline project in British Columbia.
First Nation Leadership Group (FNLG) said having elected band councils serve as co-owners of Coastal GasLink would strengthen the $6.2-billion project, which is designed to transport natural gas from northeast B.C. to the planned LNG Canada terminal in Kitimat on the West Coast.
Coastal GasLink, also known as CGL, began clearing land earlier this year to make room for work camps along the 670-kilometre route.
“This proposal will not inhibit CGL’s ability to raise capital for the initial phases of project activities in 2019, and provides a genuine opportunity for the FNLG to explore mutually beneficial partnership and investment opportunities with CGL,” according to a letter sent by the Indigenous group to TransCanada.
Members of FNLG, including Haisla Nation elected chief councillor Crystal Smith, will meet with CGL officials on Tuesday in Vancouver to discuss the proposed investment in the pipeline project. Dan George, chairman of the First Nations LNG Alliance and elected Burns Lake band chief, will also be among the Indigenous leaders attending the meeting.
Ms. Smith has been a vocal supporter of LNG Canada and the pipeline. Last week, the Haisla Nation played host to a conference and trade show in Kitimat to promote the economic spin-offs from LNG Canada, with Ms. Smith among the speakers touting exports of liquefied natural gas.
Elected chiefs backing FNLG said a series of negotiations will be required to work out details, and have asked TransCanada to allow Indigenous leaders until Oct. 30 to sort through financing arrangements, assuming the two sides agree to have 22.5 per cent allotted.
TransCanada has hired RBC Dominion Securities to manage the sale of up to 75 per cent of CGL.
FNLG said it is seeking “30 per cent of the proposed offering,” or the equivalent of 22.5 per cent of the total CGL equity. The proportion set aside for FNLG will be reduced if TransCanada decides to decrease the size of its planned equity sale.
While CGL has been approved by all 20 elected First Nation councils along the route, the B.C. project has been the target of protests led by a group of eight Wet’suwet’en Nation hereditary chiefs. A blockade supported by hereditary chiefs and environmental protesters came down on Jan. 11, allowing pipeline workers to gain access to a portion of the route in the B.C. Interior.
Five of the 20 elected band councils that support CGL belong to the Wet’suwet’en Nation: Wet’suwet’en First Nation (formerly known as the Broman Lake Indian Band), Burns Lake, Nee Tahi Buhn, Skin Tyee and Witset.
David Pfeiffer, who became CGL president in February, met with elected First Nation leaders in Vancouver last month at a preliminary gathering to open talks on Indigenous investment.
CGL told the National Energy Board in January that the pipeline project is in the hunt for co-owners.
The line is designed to carry natural gas to the Royal Dutch Shell-led LNG Canada export terminal in Kitimat. LNG Canada decided in October to forge ahead with construction of its $18-billion terminal.
On Monday, the Shell-led consortium announced that Peter Zebedee will oversee the five-year construction phase as LNG Canada’s new chief executive officer, effective July 1. Mr. Zebedee is general manager of Shell’s Scotford oil refinery near Edmonton. The current CEO, Andy Calitz, is slated to transfer to Shell’s headquarters in The Hague.
Robert Metcs, a consultant retained by elected Indigenous leaders, said CGL will benefit from having LNG Canada as the delivery point for natural gas within Canada, before ships transport LNG to Asian markets.
“There will be a long-term contractual relationship between CGL and LNG Canada that will underpin construction of the pipeline,” he said in an internal report prepared to help guide First Nations.
FNLG’s interest in the natural gas route comes as other Indigenous leaders seek to buy a stake in the Trans Mountain oil pipeline project.
A group called Project Reconciliation is organizing a bid to buy 51 per cent of the federal government’s Trans Mountain project. Last year, Ottawa bought the oil line and West Coast terminal from Kinder Morgan Canada Inc. as well as the pipeline expansion plans.


SAN JOSE — Pushed by its ambitious president, San Jose State is spending $28 million on high-tech communications systems worthy of a campus of the future — but an investigation by this newspaper shows the project was crafted largely in secret, purchased without competitive bids and adorned with pricey gadgets that many professors may not even use.
At a time of tremendous financial pressure for the university and its students, campus leaders bought some of the flashiest classroom, conference room and office equipment available. The Next Generation Technology Project — built mostly by San Jose-based Cisco Systems, a major university donor — boasts thousands of videophones costing nearly $400 each, two-way conferencing to beam in experts on giant screens, and systems to record, transcribe and broadcast lectures.
San Jose State also paid Cisco to speed up its notoriously slow and unreliable Internet service, even though the California State University system — which is coordinating Internet upgrades for its other 22 campuses — is providing similar technology at no cost to the schools, with a company that offered CSU a proposal at one-fifth the price Cisco quoted.
Campus President Mo Qayoumi, an engineer by training, has hitched his career to the promise of technological innovation embodied in the Next Gen project. But more than two years after the project’s launch, the videophones are widely unused, just five of the promised 51 high-tech classrooms have been built, and two of the campus’s major experiments in online education have fizzled.
While Cisco declined to discuss the project, Qayoumi and other campus leaders say the complicated undertaking is something to celebrate, and they stress that it is not complete. “We have a great story to tell here about our campus,” said Terry Vahey, the head of San Jose State’s IT department.
But critics say it’s unconscionable for a public university to spend such great sums of money on extravagant systems and gadgets when it has been hiking fees and turning students away from classes they need to graduate. About $9 million of the cost is being paid from campus operating funds, and another $9 million will come from student fees for expensive “special session” classes offered outside the regular academic year, according to the campus chief financial officer.
“People are outraged about what’s going on,” said Rita Manning, a philosophy professor who said she finds the spending “deeply, morally problematic,” given the campus’s pressing needs.
Also troubling to Manning and others following the project is the outsize influence they believe Cisco wields at the university.
Campus leaders have penned columns for the company in the Huffington Post and appear to have used Cisco’s own marketing language to justify their choice of vendors, this newspaper found.
Cisco co-sponsored Qayoumi’s inauguration in April 2012, just as the deal was under development, and flew the president to Australia for a conference in early 2013.
A veteran campus IT employee, one of a handful who worked with Cisco on early tests of the equipment, said he watched the university defer to the company about the products and services it needed.
“I’ve worked in central IT since the middle of 1996, and I’ve never seen anything like it before,” said Dennis Fox, who later filed whistle-blower complaints with the California state auditor about the no-bid deal.
Qayoumi set the project in motion soon after moving to San Jose State from his post as president of Cal State East Bay in July 2011.
The need for updated technology, he said, was a recurring theme in 49 town hall meetings that fall about San Jose State’s future.
But rather than launch a public bidding process, Qayoumi and university CFO Shawn Bibb say they met privately with industry leaders — whom they won’t name — and determined by early 2012 that Cisco was the best company for the complicated job.
By their own accounts, they never asked Cisco’s competitors for quotes.
Getting the “best pricing” meant comparing discounts offered by various distributors of Cisco equipment — the tech giant doesn’t usually sell directly to customers. The university chose Nexus IS, which offered an initial 61 percent discount.
In favoring Cisco, San Jose State was opting out of CSU’s efforts to provide Internet upgrades at all of its universities — an ongoing project that, because it was centrally funded, would have cost San Jose State nothing.
San Jose State officials have noted that the CSU project included only Internet upgrades, not many of the other features San Jose State wanted, such as a new phone network to replace five outmoded systems. Asked why they didn’t simply buy those features as add-ons, university officials said they didn’t know the scope of the CSU project in time — a claim that information from CSU contradicts.
Unlike San Jose State, CSU sought competitive bids for its project, and Cisco — which had provided wireless equipment to the system in previous years — fared poorly. In February 2012, the company submitted a proposal to CSU that was five times higher than that of the lowest bidder, Alcatel-Lucent, a disparity first reported in the Network World blog. CSU chose Alcatel-Lucent two months later.
But San Jose State remained loyal to Cisco and submitted plans to the chancellor’s office in May and June justifying its decision.
CSU policy requires each campus to explain in a feasibility study “plans and procedures to encourage industry participation” and, in a solicitation plan, to justify why “full and open competition is not contemplated or achievable,” if it isn’t. This policy is intended to help ensure that universities — which are exempt from the state’s Public Contract Code for IT projects — get a good deal.
But San Jose State didn’t detail in its submittals how it encouraged Cisco’s competitors to participate or why it went the no-bid route.
That was good enough for CSU. State university officials were unable to provide documentation of their decision, but it came swiftly: The feasibility study was dated June 21, 2012; about a week later, San Jose State signed its first contract.
In the next four weeks, the campus ordered more than $16 million in equipment, systems and services from Nexus, according to purchase orders reviewed by this newspaper.
Fox, the campus IT employee, said he asked tough questions about the process and the choice of technology at the meeting. When he raised them again in a follow-up message to the CFO, Bibb replied in a manner that Fox found intimidating.
The rest of the campus didn’t hear about the deal officially until an announcement Sept. 13, 2012.
And it wasn’t until this past spring — nearly two years after San Jose State submitted its plans to the chancellor’s office — that the administration surveyed faculty about what they needed from a new communications system. By then, the controversy had spread far beyond the IT department, tainting the Next Generation Technology Project.
Professor Rachel O’Malley, who heads the environmental studies department, expresses her displeasure by keeping her videophone unplugged. She is not alone: Most of the professors interviewed for this story say that in an age of FaceTime and Skype, the fancy phones are simply unnecessary.
Campus critics of the deal say there’s a clear reason it unfolded as it did: Cisco has enormous influence over the university’s leaders.
Cisco paid $2,800 for Qayoumi to travel to Australia in 2013. Qayoumi said a group of Australian academics invited him to the country after visiting San Jose State and asked Cisco’s Australian arm to fund his trip.
Before the deal with San Jose State was finalized, Cisco paid $2,000 for a table at Qayoumi’s inauguration; Bibb and Vahey were to be seated there as well, according to a document about the donation.
Qayoumi and Vahey have written advertorials — essays for Cisco-purchased advertising space — in the Huffington Post about the power of technology.
Qayoumi has been a featured speaker — apparently for free — in Cisco virtual education forums since at least 2010, when he was president of Cal State East Bay.
Cisco donated about $400,000 to the campus between Qayoumi’s arrival in the summer of 2011 and this past July, according to campus foundation records. Its CEO, John Chambers, has said publicly that about 6 percent of its employees are SJSU alumni.
Chambers received an honorary doctorate from San Jose State in 2013 and addressed students at a campus event. The award was based on a recommendation from a CSU trustee, according to Qayoumi and CSU.
It’s also clear that Cisco played a role in the Next Generation Technology Project that goes beyond simply selling equipment. One indication of the close connection emerges in the solicitation plan San Jose State sent to the CSU chancellor’s office in May 2012.
A key section of the college’s analysis includes a description of the company nearly identical to language Cisco has used to describe itself.
Bibb said he was “absolutely certain” Cisco didn’t have a hand in crafting the proposal submitted to the chancellor, but he didn’t have an explanation for the similarities.
Fox says Cisco’s sales team also heavily influenced the project’s design, judging from the meetings he attended with company employees.
San Jose State administrators concede that Cisco offered guidance on design but insist everything was vetted by university employees.
Of all the questions about the Next Gen project, one remains unanswerable: Will it turn out to be worthwhile?
Qayoumi is betting heavily that it will. Since he came to the university in 2011, he has espoused a technocentric vision for the campus.
In a 2012 white paper, “Reinventing Public Higher Education: A Call to Action,” Qayoumi called for California’s colleges to standardize dozens of popular courses online and make them free to anyone, a notion embraced by Gov. Jerry Brown and others looking for ways to lower college costs.
But so far, the reinvention — and with it, some of the justification for San Jose State’s enormous investment in classroom technology — has lagged amid concerns about the educational benefits of online offerings.
After its splashy debut in early 2013, San Jose State’s pilot project with Udacity to open for-credit entry-level math courses to the public flopped after two-thirds of the students in the experiment failed the class. And plans to offer more so-called “flipped courses” using online lectures from the MIT-based nonprofit edX went nowhere after an April 2013 news conference announcing the expansion.
Also on hold is the Center for Excellence in Adaptive and Blended Learning, which the campus was to develop with edX to study the uses of technology in teaching, a campus spokeswoman confirmed.
Some professors continue to believe the technology will enrich their students’ education. Journalism professor Bob Rucker says he and his colleagues — whose building has one of the five high-tech classrooms — see great potential in a system that allows a guest lecturer or client to interact with a class live from anywhere. And the ability to review lectures online also will help students, especially English learners, he said.
The campus reports that it has spent more than $25 million of its $28 million on the project. But Provost Andy Feinstein, who was appointed in April and helped administer the faculty survey, said it is still possible to make adjustments based on professors’ needs.
“I want to understand whether we are using these resources appropriately and how we can move forward with the plan,” he said.
Yet the system’s critics are unassuaged. They say that for every million dollars the campus has spent on flashy technology that few use, it could have offered more than 150 new classes.
Adding to concerns about waste is up to $800,000 worth of missing Internet equipment, including 500 of the 2,270 wireless access devices the campus ordered. Campus police have been investigating since March and on Wednesday arrested 39-year-old Jose Farias, a campus IT employee, on suspicion of burglary and embezzlement.
But for all the questions about the contract and its value, Qayoumi said he wouldn’t have done anything differently.
Staff writer Thomas Peele contributed to this story. Follow Katy Murphy at Twitter.com/katymurphy.


Bake 375 for 10 minutes then turn down to 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
*Making a stuffing recipe easy!
Mix together and place outside of baking Turkey, Add liquid if to dry and also use juices in roasting pan on top of stuffing. Remove lid of roaster last hour. Will turn golden brown.


TheSource.com Premiere: Country Cousins' "Taking Risks"
Houston rapper Mardi unveils his brand new project August The Ride. Setting out to create a body of work that recaps the emotions of summer, Mardi focuses on the nostalgia that one feels when you reminisce on summer memories, the bitter sweet feelings of summer’s ending, and anticipation for the fall. Themes of impatience, hardships, and bad events paint the project’s storyline with an optimistic upshot in summer months, a time for escape and positive position.
Featuring production acclaims from Nova, Dreamchild, Cian P, and Millz Douglas, the project is a fruition of growth, introspection, and passions from 2015 up until now. August The Ride is an inevitable ride of bumps and bruises, all of which make life unpredictable yet buoyant.


Did the Obama Campaign Run Roughshod Over Voter Privacy?
The Obama presidential campaign displayed a masterful use of databases to assemble the most sophisticated voter profiles ever used in any election. But privacy advocates believe the campaign's "do as I say, not as I do" approach will undercut proposed consumer privacy initiatives.
Since 2008, the Obama campaign has assembled voter profiles using both online and offline databases, combined with information provided by donors and voters. According to a Washington Post report, the Obama campaign is considering leveraging those lists to assist the president's legislative agenda or other Democrats.
That's got privacy advocates more than a little alarmed that the administration is less than genuine about its recommendations for a consumer privacy bill of rights or tighter data collection regulations for data brokers, as suggested by reports from both the Commerce Department and the Federal Trade Commission.
"The very same information they want regulated in the commercial sphere, they are using in the political sphere," said leading privacy advocate Jeff Chester, the executive director for the Center for Digital Democracy. "They are being hypocritical."
While businesses are required to give consumers the choice to opt-out of data sharing, the Obama campaign is planning to share its lists without giving voters a choice.
"That's not what voters expected," said Chester, who is also worried about Super PAC voter profiles and lists.
The actions of the campaign could damage the administration's credibility when it comes to protecting the data privacy of consumers. So far, no one seems to be listening. "I've tried to raise this with politicians but it's been slow going," Chester said.


» The performance of Eurowings' Thailand-Germany sector so far has shown that the long-haul low-cost carrier business concept works.
» The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the gigantic free-trade agreement signed by 12 countries including the United States, has brightened the outlook of American businesses in Southeast Asia as they expect it to spur more US trade and investment in the region.
» Univentures Plc (UV) was founded in 1980 as a manufacturer and distributor of zinc oxide and listed on the SET in 1988. Over the years it has evolved and today it is a holding company specialising mainly in property and related businesses. Director Worawat Srisa-an discusses the company's strategy and outlook.
» The property developer Chewathai (CHEWA) listed on the Market for Alternative Investment in April of this year. Managing director Boon Choon Kiat discusses the company's strategy and outlook.


Lindsay Lohan has failed a court-mandated drug test, a source tells PEOPLE. The actress could now be facing 30 days in jail.
The actress, 24, was released from rehab Aug. 24 after serving almost two weeks in jail for violating probation in a DUI case.
The drug test occurred “in recent days,” adds the source.
The new judge in her case, Elden Fox, previously warned Lohan that a dirty test would be met with a month jail sentence. Lohan is currently undergoing intense outpatient treatment and is subject to random drug testing twice a week pending her next hearing date of Nov 1.
L.A. District Attorney spokeswoman Jane Robison had no comment about the failed test. Lohan’s lawyer Shawn Chapman Holley wasn’t immediately available for comment.
TMZ.com was the first to report the failed drug test.


Lyft Enters the Market With a Bang - 24/7 Wall St.
Lyft Inc. (NASDAQ: LYFT) entered the market with a bang in one of the most anticipated initial public offerings (IPOs) of the year. Shares actually went out at just over $87, compared to its pricing of $72, which was at the high end of the expected pricing range of $70 to $72. Overall, 30.77 million shares were offered. The entire offering, including the overallotment option, was valued at $2.55 billion.
There were already a couple analysts with ratings out for the ride-share company ahead of the IPO. Northland Research and Wedbush each had a Neutral rating, the latter with an $80 price target. Note that these analysts can issue ratings now because they are not part of the underwriting group, which is subject to a quiet period.
It’s also worth noting that this is the biggest IPO since Facebook came public in 2012.
The IPO was expected to be one of the largest since the 2014 offering by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba and the largest since the March 2017 IPO of Snap, which raised around $3.4 billion and valued the messaging company at about $33 billion. Snap’s market cap now sits at around $14 billion.
Shares of Lyft were last seen up 15% at $83.22, in a range of $82.50 to $88.60 on the day thus far. Also, about 33 million shares had moved as of 12:25 p.m. Eastern.


Send announcements to The Loudoun Connection, 7913 Westpark Drive, McLean, VA 22102, e-mail to loudoun@connectionnewspapers.com or fax to 703-917-0991. Deadline is Friday, two weeks before the event. Photos/artwork encouraged. For more information, call Matthew Razak at 703-917-6457.
All cats adopted from the Loudoun County Animal Shelter through Nov. 30 will go home with a "Kitty Care Kit" including necessities like a litter box, scoop, food and water bowls, and toys. Plus, all cat adopters will be eligible to win a Kitty Play Center. Visit www.loudoun.gov/animals. The Loudoun County Animal Shelter is located at 39820 Charles Town Pike, Waterford.
Loudoun County Public Schools Student Art Exhibit hosted by The George Washington University Virginia Campus, through Jan. 25. The winter exhibit features two-dimensional, mixed-media works by 75 LCPS students from Emerick Elementary School, Hamilton Elementary School, Harmony Intermediate School and Loudoun Valley High School.
Artist recognition reception Monday, Dec. 4, 6:30-8 p.m. Gallery hours 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Mondays-Fridays, The George Washington University Virginia Campus, Gallery Lounge 20101 Academic Way, Ashburn. The reception is free and open to the public. RSVP for the reception by Tuesday, Nov. 28, via e-mail to reservations@va.gwu.edu or by telephone at 703-726-3650.
Aurora Studio Theatre presents an original adaptation of George Bernard Shaw’s romantic comedy "Arms and the Man," called "Arms and the Highlander," written and directed by playwright Meredith Bean McMath.
Performances run through Nov. 26, Fridays and Saturdays, at 8 p.m. and Sundays, at 3 p.m., at Hillsboro’s Old Stone School Theatre. Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for seniors and only $5 for students. All tickets at the door with the exception of block tickets an special needs, call 540-338-3493. Visit www.aurorastudiotheatre.org.
Babygarten, a program for infants and their parents or caregivers recommended for children from birth to 18 months. Babygarten classes focus on how nursery rhymes, songs and books can enrich a child's life from the very beginning and provide them with a foundation for the future.
Each Babygarten session lasts for six weeks.
Babygarten will run at Ashburn Library, Wednesdays, through Dec. 20, 2:30 p.m. and Fridays, through Dec. 29. Registration required. Call 703-737-8105.
Babygarten will run at Cascades Library Mondays, through Dec., 11 a.m. and Tuesdays, from through Dec. 19. Registration required. Call 703-444-3228 Ext. 309.
The 7th annual Pumpkinville fall festival, runs through Nov. 30, at the Leesburg Animal Park, 19720 James Monroe Highway, Leesburg, and includes a hay maze, giant hill slides, straw tunnels, rope swings, moon bounces, all-you-can-eat apples, fresh cider and pick-your-own pumpkin. Explore the 20 acre park featuring Fort Pumpkin and the new spooky pirate ship. Additional weekend activities include camel rides, face and pumpkin painting, all-you-can-eat popcorn, mini tractor rides and more. Free weekend entertainment includes nationally renowned comedians, magicians and puppeteers.
Open daily from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. through Nov. 6. Weekday admission is $6.50 per person; weekends are $10 per person. Children under 2 are free. Call 703-433-0002 or visit www.LeesburgAnimalPark.com.
Santa makes house calls, Dec. 13-21, 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Register at Arcola Community Center, 24244 Gum Springs Road or call 703-327-3111. Cost $30 for 15-minute visit, $60 for 30-minute visit.
Oatlands Plantation, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg, will be holding "For Season Teas" throughout the year. Includes autumn leaf teas, Thursday, teddy bear tea, Sunday, Dec. 17. Cost $24.95 plus tax per person; children 8 and under are $15.95 plus tax. Seating at 1 p.m.
Fall teas are served Thursdays-Saturdays, from through Nov. 30, except Thanksgiving Day. Holiday teas are served Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays, from Dec. 1-22 and Dec. 27-29, except Dec. 24. Cost $21.95 plus tax per person; children 8 and under are $12.95 plus tax. Seating are at 1 p.m. Reservations required for all the teas, call 703-777-3174 or visit www.oatlands.org.
Christmas at Oatlands, through Dec. 29, Oatlands Plantation, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg. The mansion is adorned with holiday decorations that evoke a sense of the abundant, luxurious and romantic past of the Oatlands. Daytime tours Mondays-Saturdays, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Sundays, 1-4 p.m. Cost: $10 adults, $9 seniors, $7 for children 6-16, children 5 and under free. Evening tours Dec. 15, 16, 22 and 23, 5-8 p.m. Cost $12 for adults and seniors, $8 for children 6-16 and children 5 and younger free. Call 703-777-3174 or visit www.oatlands.org.
Winter Farmers Market, every Saturday, through March 31, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., at the Virginia Village Shopping Center, 20 Catoctin Circle, Leesburg. Buy fresh products from local farmers, including eggs, apples, fall vegetables, fresh breads and baked goods and meat products. Visit www.loudounfarmersmarkets.com.
The Douglass Community Center, in conjunction with the Leesburg Police Department, Leesburg Parks and Recreation and Loudoun PRCS Youth Services offers a youth program on Friday evenings called Midnight Madness., a recreational program for youth in grades sixth-12th. Open to any youth in the community free of charge. School bus transportation is provided to and from the community center to designated stops in northeast Leesburg. Activities include basketball, football, board games and movies.
Contact the Douglass Community Center at 703-771-5913 or e-mail at dcc@loudoun.gov.
The Lucketts Community Center, 42361 Lucketts Road, offers toddle story hour, every Tuesday, 9:15-10 a.m., for ages 1.5-5 years old. For caregiver and child and includes lively stories, movement, music and more. $6. Preregister by calling 703-771-5281.
Cascades Library, 21030 Whitfield Place, Sterling, will hold the following ongoing story times. Lapsits for 2s, Tuesdays, 10:30 a.m. and Wednesdays, 11:15 a.m.; Mother Goose Nursery Time, ages 18-24 months, Thursdays, 10:30 a.m.; Pajama Story Time, Tuesdays, 7 p.m.; Story Time for 3s, 4s and 5s, Wednesdays, 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.; After School Book Break, ages 5-8, Wednesdays, 4 p.m.; Terrific 3s, Thursdays, 11:15 a.m.; Saturday Family Story Time, ages 2-6, Saturdays, 10:30 a.m. Call 703-444-3228.
Rust Library, 380 Old Waterford Road, Leesburg, will hold the following story times. Mother Goose Nursery Time, ages 18-24 months, Wednesdays, 11:15 a.m., one-on-one with your child; Lapsits for 2s, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10:30 a.m., caregivers are requested to stay with the child; Family Story Time for 3s, 4s & 5s, Thursdays, 7 p.m., sign interpreter present; Morning Story Time for 3s, 4s & 5s, Fridays, 10:15 a.m. and 11 a.m.; Saturday Family Story Time, ages 3-6 and their family, Saturdays, 11 a.m. Call 703-777-0323.
Sterling Library, 120 Enterprise St., will be holding the following ongoing story times. Preschool Story Times, ages 2-5, Wednesdays, 10:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.; Saturday Family Story Times, ages 2-5, second Saturdays of each month, 11 a.m. Call 703-430-9500.
Ashburn Library, 43316 Hay Road, offers the following ongoing story times. Mother Goose Nursery Time, ages 18-24 months, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10 a.m.; Terrific 2s: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10:45 a.m.; Preschool Story Time, ages 3-5, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11:30 a.m.; Wonderful Wednesday Stories, ages 3-5, Wednesdays, 1:30 p.m.; Pajama Story Time, ages 3-5, Wednesdays, 7 p.m.; Saturday Family Story Time, ages 2-5, Saturdays, 10 a.m. Call 703-737-8100.
On the last Friday of each month, at 7 p.m., teenagers from Loudoun and Fairfax counties are invited to the Dulles Town Center, in partnership with Next Level for Teens, for an evening devoted to teen issues and events, called Teens Talk at Dulles Town Center. Free. The Dulles Town Center is located at the intersection of routes 7 and 28. Visit ShopDullesTownCenter.com.
Leesburg Animal Park has several new animal exhibits including exotic and domestic animals, an expanded contact area to pet and feed animals, a new bird aviary, a safari ride to tour. The park will feature live entertainment on weekends.
The Leesburg Animal Park is located at 19270 James Monroe Highway, Leesburg. Admissions are $7.95 for children and seniors, $9.95 for adults. Free for children under two. Group rates are $6 with a 10-person minimum on Wednesday, Thursdays, and Fridays. Wild Wednesdays offer $2 off all admission rates, not valid with other offers. Hours are Friday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Wednesday-Thursday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Visit www.LeesburgAnmialPark.com or call 703-433-0002.
Leesburg First Fridays. Galleries and shops open their doors on the first Friday of each month with special events, refreshments and entertainment, from 6-9 p.m. There is no First Friday in January. Free. Call 800-752-6118. Visit www.leesburgfirstfriday.com.
Guided Nature or History Hikes for all ages at Claude Moore Park, 21544 Old Vestals Gap Road, Sterling. Nature hikes, Frogshackle Cabin Nature Center, history hikes and special request programs for school groups, scouts, community organizations, adults and families are available on a variety of topics throughout the year. Programs designed to foster an appreciation of Loudoun County's natural and cultural resources in a fun and informative way. Cost is $3.50 per person for a group tour, with a minimum charge of $35. Call 703-444-1275 for reservations.
Sterling Library, 120 Enterprise St., will have a new story time, every second Saturday of the month, at 11 a.m. Includes stories, music and activities. The story time is recommended for ages 2-5. Visit www.lcpl.lib.va.us.


The Colombo High Court today allowed the trial over the assassination of former TNA MP Nadaraja Raviraj in the presence of special jury.
High Court Judge Manilal Waidyathilaka made the decision considering the provisions vested in Criminal Procedure Code and the prosecution's request.
Earlier, The Colombo High Court allowed prosecution to proceed the trial in the absence three suspects who had gone missing, under Section 241 of the Criminal Procedure Code.


Two earthquakes felt over the weekend were aftershocks from February's magnitude 4.6 event and the magnitude 5 event that rocked Boulder in 2010.
Geoscience Australia duty seismologist Hugh Glanville said two events were recorded a few hours apart on Friday night.
"We had two earthquakes, a magnitude 3 out near where we had that 4.6 in February and then a magnitude 2.6 a few hours later closer to Kalgoorlie that was felt by many more people."
People in Kalgoorlie reported having objects move and windows rattle by the quakes.
"We are having more at the moment, because we've had these larger events we're having aftershocks associated with them," Mr Glanville said.
"So on average in the area you have had about four a year for the past 20 years, at the moment we're having about 6 or 8 a year and these are mostly associated with the magnitude 4.6 and the magnitude 5 in 2010."
Mr Glanville said so far this year the Goldfields region has had five or six magnitude 2 earthquakes in addition to February's 4.6, but also smaller quakes unable to be detected by sensors.
"We expect a few more aftershocks from this 4.6, they should diminish over time so they will spread further apart.
"There is always a chance of having another big one like the one in 2010, it's not likely but it could happen.
"In Australia we have on average, a magnitude 6 which is what we term a 'big one' probably once every 10 years and we are overdue for one but that could occur anywhere in Australia, not necessarily in Kalgoorlie."


How Did The Meter Get Its Length? The U.S. doesn't routinely use the metric system. The U.S. government definition of a foot is 0.3048 meters. But if the length of a foot is based on the meter, what's the length of the meter based on?
How Did The Meter Get Its Length?
The U.S. doesn't routinely use the metric system. The U.S. government definition of a foot is 0.3048 meters. But if the length of a foot is based on the meter, what's the length of the meter based on?
Three countries in the world do not routinely use the metric system for making measurements. Those three countries are Liberia, Myanmar and the United States of America. Although to be fair, both Liberia and Myanmar are taking steps to go metric. Not to say the United States does not make use of the metric system. The official U.S. government definition of a foot is 0.3048 meter. But if the length of the foot is based on the meter, NPR science correspondent Joe Palca wondered, what is the length of the meter based on? That's the latest question he's posing as part of his series, Joe's Big Idea.
JOE PALCA, BYLINE: The 18th century is famously known as the Age of Reason. Disorder was upsetting. And over in France, there was plenty of disorder.
KEN ALDER: The world of measurement in 18th century France and throughout Europe, at that time, was one of mind-boggling diversity.
PALCA: That's Northwestern University historian of science, Ken Alder. He's a good person to talk to about how the meter got its length because he wrote the book about it, literally. It's called "The Measure Of All Things."
ALDER: Historians have estimated that, within France alone, there were 250,000 different units of measurement in use at the time.
PALCA: So this is a big problem. Alder says there was a simple solution to the problem.
ALDER: Which was to take the Parisian measures and expand them to the whole country. But a group of scientists or savant, as they would've been called in those days, had a different idea. And they wanted to base the unit on nature, a unit that would be the same for everybody, because nature was the same for everybody.
PALCA: So the savant did what savant do - they argued and debated and discussed - trying to decide what aspect of nature they should use to base their unit of measure on.
ALDER: The proposal that ended up sort of winning the day was a proposal that based the measure on the size of the world itself.
PALCA: A meter would be defined as one 10-millionth of the distance from the North Pole to the equator - trouble is, no one knew exactly what was the distance from the North Pole to the equator. So in 1792, an expedition was mounted. Now, going all the way to the Pole and the equator seemed a bit too ambitious, so the idea was to measure the distance between two cities - Dunkirk in France and Barcelona in Spain - that were on a straight line directly north-south of one another. By knowing the exact latitude of the cities, the savant could use the distance between them to extrapolate the distance from the Pole to the equator. The job of making the measurements went to two astronomers named Delambre and Mechain. Delambre headed north and Mechain went south.
ALDER: The expedition is originally expected to be done within a year. In the end, it takes them seven.
ALDER: For one thing, war breaks out between Revolutionary France and the rest of Europe. And who are these strange men - climbing into high towers and fortifications and churches, peering out into the distance with these strange scientific instruments? And they're repeatedly hauled down from these towers, thrown in jail and, at times, threatened with death.
PALCA: Eventually, Mechain and Delambre delivered their results to the savant. The savant spent a year doing calculations. And in the end, they create a bar with the calculated the length.
ALDER: Made out of platinum that will serve as the actual embodiment of that physical standard, the meter.
PALCA: So that's the story. Well, not quite. Turns out the savants and the surveyors made some errors. And Mechain even secretly redid some of his measurements, got different numbers and didn't tell anybody. So in the end, that bar of platinum is close to one 10-millionth of the distance from the North Pole to equator. But Alder says scientists now know, it's short by two-tenths of a millimeter. Or as we Americans, and our friends in Myanmar and Liberia, would say around eight-thousandths of an inch.
ALDER: And the irony here is that, in a sense, they could have started out by simply creating a bar and calling it the standard meter. And indeed, some people from the very beginning had suggested - really, why was it necessary to go so far to find what lay so near? Why not simply declare, yo, it's a meter.
PALCA: So even though it isn't exactly one 10-millionth of the distance from the North Pole to the equator, the length of that bar is what the world first knew as a meter. Joe Palca, NPR news.
INSKEEP: The program that measures up. Its MORNING EDITION from NPR News.
Previous versions of this story said a platinum bar cast in the 19th century was what the world used as the official length of a meter. It was the first official standard for the length of the meter. There's another in effect today.


A few years ago, my husband and I moved from Missouri to Idaho to pastor a church. Having spent approximately 48 hours of my life in the state—and only for the interview process—I fully expected Idaho to be true to the stereotype: potato fields as far the eye could see. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that while Idaho does, of course, have field upon field of potatoes, it also has breathtaking streams and rivers, snow-capped mountains, and pristine mountain lakes. My fisherman husband has been in fish-catching heaven ever since.
But in 2015, something strange happened—99 percent of the sockeye salmon run died. Dead fish. Everywhere. What happened? The water was clear, and food sources were readily available. It was as if there was something in the water, some unseen force at work, making the environment inhospitable.
In the same way, there seems to be something in the water of many churches, at both the local and denominational level—something that is hindering women from thriving at the same level as their male counterparts. In generations past, it was easy to identify explicit structures and policies that hindered women from obtaining and succeeding in pastoral roles, but in many cases, those overt barriers have been eliminated. Even so, the number of female pastors hasn’t shifted much. According to Hartford Institute for Religion Research, only 12 percent of congregations in the United States have female lead pastors, and, in evangelical churches, that number drops to 9 percent. If so many barriers have been eliminated, why haven’t the number of women and men in lead pastorates and denominational leadership positions equalized?
Let’s be clear. We’re not calling out men for evil intent and taking names. There are no torches lit. Women and men both appear to be oblivious to this bias, perhaps aware that something is amiss but with no apparent ability to name it or amend it. Nevertheless, there is something holding women back.
A culture in which women have limited access to reputable and established sponsors in their field. Research shows time and again that people in positions of power tend to seek out up-and-comers that remind them of themselves, thus eliminating most women.
A culture in which job expectations are highly gendered. This would include requiring a person to be available almost 24/7, odd work hours, and major geographical moves for the organization. Because women still carry more than half of the home/child workload, and because they are more likely to have a partner with his own career (unlike their male counterparts), women do not put themselves forward for consideration.
I have personally experienced the challenge of finding a personal mentor. The vast majority of leaders with the experience and skill from which I long to learn are more likely to invest their time and attention in young male clergy. The influence of the Billy Graham rule exacerbates this issue.
Many women often find themselves unable to apply for church positions that require moves or are unbending with schedules as they often have husbands with careers that serve as the more significant source of income for the family. Such limitations stifle the range of job opportunities significantly.
Many organizations, including the church, have tried the “add women and stir” solution, hoping that just intentionally hiring more women will eliminate the disparity over time. But, no dice. That book everyone read once, or that conference on equality in the church everyone attended in 2012? Not cutting it either. These small changes fail to address the inhospitable environment in a systematic, comprehensive way. This results in “sick fish,” women who do not thrive in the environment, thus reaffirming falsely-based assumptions that women simply “can’t hack it” in church leadership.
In the case of the dying salmon, wildlife managers discovered that, for a variety of reasons, the temperature of the river had risen above what was safe for the salmon population. By releasing additional cold water from a reservoir in northern Idaho, they were able to adjust the water in such a way as to make it hospitable for the salmon once again.
So, how do we adjust the water of the church, making it a hospitable environment for all called to serve the church? These ideas are helped along by the research of Kolb, Ibarra, and Ely.
1. Take the temperature of the water.
In partnership with other women and men, spend time evaluating the culture of your church or denomination. Identify areas in which second-generation gender bias might be at work. Consider how you might make actionable steps and encourage those in leadership, through kind and Christ-like conversation, to partner with you in making changes to the culture.
2. Embrace your identity as a leader and get to work.
The water may still be too warm, but there is work to do. Explore your gifts and graces, and don’t count out what might not seem like “typical” female characteristics. You are designed in a unique way in order to bless the church and contribute to the mission of God as only you can. Let your God-given calling and purpose be your guide, rather than a need to prove yourself to others.
Think outside the box, both in how you seek out mentors and in how you negotiate work arrangements. Who says a mentoring relationship has to be in person? Or that a group of peers can’t serve as a mentoring unit, lifting up, challenging, and encouraging one another? When a potential job doesn’t seem to fit with family commitments, what practical solutions can you suggest to keep that door of opportunity open? I have worked both remotely so my kids could play or nap, and I have hauled a pack-n-play and toy bags into my office. I have taken mornings off for park visits and worked after bedtime instead. It’s possible. Make the offer.
Once the wildlife managers responded to the inhospitable water, the salmon population thrived once again. So too, might we bear witness to an explosion of women leaders, preachers, and teachers if we will take the time to adjust the water in which we swim. By the grace of God and empowering work of the Holy Spirit, it is possible. Let’s get to work.
Stephanie Dyrness Lobdell is a Nazarene pastor, wife, mommy of JoJo and Jack, teacher, lover of learning, and friend. She and her husband, Tommy, have served as co-pastors of several churches. Currently, Stephanie serves as co-lead pastor with Tommy, as well as the worship pastor at Mountain Home Church of the Nazarene, an extraordinary community of believers in Mountain Home, Idaho, and blogs at www.stephanielobdell.com.


A cameraman for NBC affiliate KCRA-TV films a robot climbing stairs maneuvered by members of Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 3 on the station's morning during Sacramento Navy Week. Sacramento Navy Week is one of 15 Navy weeks planned across America for 2012. Navy weeks are designed to show the investment Americans have made in their Navy and increase awareness in cities that do not have a significant Navy presence.
This work, EOD robot climbs stairs at Sacramento Navy Week [Image 5 of 5], by SCPO Susan Hammond, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.


It was really just a bit of a family affair and a bit of a love from the beginning.
But deciding on a speciality was harder. As Kossler progressed through school, she became interested in both plastic surgery — following formative trips to Cambodia and Bolivia — and in ophthalmology, the speciality chosen by her sister. With her family's guidance, she became a oculoplastic surgeon, a field that marries her two passions.


UNITED NATIONS, March 24 -- The UN hosts many cultural events, but few as moving as the concert of Sarod master Amjad Ali Khan and two of his sons on March 24. It was sponsored by India's Mission to the UN and was followed by a reception at the Mission which included the musicians.
UN officials ranging from former Indian Permanent Representative Vijay Nambiar to Department of Field Support Ameerah Haq were in attendance, along with current Permanent Representative from such countries as Turkey, Angola, Fiji, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Brazil and the European Union.
Hardly anyone left the Dag Hammarskjold Library Auditorium during the more than one hour concert. There were ragas and a song by Tagore; there was drumming and call and response. And afterward, there was conversation.
In this scenario, would there immediately be an election for a new, five or ten year SG, from Eastern Europe? Not necessarily: Deputy Jan Eliasson could fill in, or someone like Helen Clark be appointed "ad interim." Such was the discussion.
On the substance of Ukraine and Crimea, some scoffed at the "Western hype," pointing out the South Sudan, Timor Leste and Kosovo all broke away. Others called the "land grab" a major precedent, with some blaming it on perceived Western weakness. In either view, Russia was not as "isolated" in the UN as it is being made out in Western capitals.
But back to the inside-UN story: at the end of the concert, Ambassador Sinclair now the deputy chief of staff of General Assembly President John Ashe was called forward, as was a tireless UN events coordinator. The destruction or busting of the UN staff union under Ban Ki-moon was commented on.
Footnote: The concert took place, Inner City Press notes, in the same Dag Hammarskjold Library Auditorium where the scribes of the old United Nations Correspondents Association not only screened a propaganda film of the Sri Lankan government denying war crimes, but then tried to get the investigative Press thrown out of the UN for writing about the background, click here for that.
Now the Free UN Coalition for Access opposes all that, defending the right of free press in the UN and beyond. And of free music, with Amjad Ali Khan as a role model. Watch this site.


This weekend, Southeast hit back with an ad campaign and new website that says Atrium’s move will “seriously jeopardize patient safety,” and that the system’s motive is to increase profits but not necessarily lower patient bills. Southeast, which is based in Charlotte and serves most of Atrium’s area hospitals, also alleges the system intends to adopt a radically different anesthesiology model with greater reliance on nurse anesthetists.
Charlotte-based Atrium and the doctor who was awarded the new anesthesiology contract with the hospital system strongly deny such claims.
Dr. Thomas Wherry says doctor staffing won’t decrease when his Charlotte-based company, Scope Anesthesia of North Carolina, takes over July 1.
Wherry said he is committed to an industry best practice of one anesthesiologist being responsible for no more than four patients at a time, and that Atrium has the same expectations: “It’s actually very clear that we’re not to exceed one-to-four,” he said.
At the heart of the debate is a large contract to provide anesthesiologists at Atrium’s Charlotte-area hospitals: Cleveland, Mercy, Lincoln, Kings Mountain, Pineville, Union – and its flagship location in Dilworth that handles many trauma patients. Wherry and Atrium declined to disclose the contract’s terms.
Since losing a deal it says it’s had for 37 years, Southeast has warned local doctors that Scope might be planning to slash anesthesiologist numbers throughout hospitals. In making such claims, Southeast has pointed to advice Wherry gave in August as a consultant to Atrium. In that presentation, Wherry noted among other things that no state requires nurse anesthetists to be supervised by anesthesiologists.
“That was for discussion purposes and education only and not the basis of any plan moving forward,” Wherry said. “Mednax is taking it out of context to confuse the situation,” he said, referring to the publicly traded Florida company of which Southeast is an affiliate.
Wherry emphasized benefits he said his business model will bring to Charlotte. He said Scope will pay its doctors the same or more than Southeast’s doctors. He also noted that privately run Scope will be able to provide services at lower costs because of less overhead than Mednax.
“I can say with confidence the revenue, instead of going to Florida and to Wall Street, it’s going to stay here in Charlotte for patient care and for support of the community,” said Wherry, who moved from Maryland to Charlotte this year to launch Scope.
But Southeast says it’s concerned anesthesiologists could be supervising nurse anesthetists in operating rooms at significantly higher ratios than Southeast’s model of one anesthesiologist to no more than four nurses. At some Atrium sites, nurse anesthetists could be performing procedures without an anesthesiologist present, Southeast says.
“Atrium’s proposal could jeopardize patient care and safety during surgeries and other high-risk scenarios when the training, experience and expertise of highly trained, board-certified anesthesiologists are needed most,” Southeast’s new website claims.
Atrium dropped Southeast because it was “philosophically out of sync” with Atrium’s efforts to lower costs for patients while improving quality of care – a shift other health care providers across the U.S. are under pressure to make, said Dr. Brent Matthews, chair of Atrium’s surgery department.
“If you look at just costs, which is a major component of this, that was out of balance in the direction that we needed to go to, to deliver value-based care,” Matthews said.
It’s not the first Atrium contract Mednax has lost, Matthews said. In 2014, Atrium did not choose the provider to continue services at its University hospital.
Southeast is part of Mednax subsidiary American Anesthesiology, which acquired Southeast in 2010.
Atrium put Mednax on notice last year and shared its concerns as well as proposed changes with the company, Atrium Chief Operating Officer Ken Haynes told the Observer. Atrium then tried working with the company to address the issues but the companies didn’t reach an agreement, resulting in the contract not being renewed, Haynes said.
Scope will not be providing anesthesiologists for all Charlotte-area Atrium hospitals.
Northeast Anesthesia Pain Specialists, which is based in Concord, still serves Atrium’s NorthEast and University hospitals, and several surgery centers, Haynes said. The system has no plans to end that relationship, the chief operating officer said.
Atrium also said Albemarle Anesthesia still serves its Stanly hospital in Albemarle.
Wherry, who completed an anesthesiology residency at Johns Hopkins Hospital, said he’s recruiting doctors in Charlotte as well as outside North Carolina for his new company.
One question that remains unanswered is where doctors employed by Southeast will now work.
Atrium has said it would like the doctors to continue working in its facilities, but both Atrium and Southeast have acknowledged non-compete agreements stand in the way. According to its website, Southeast has 90 anesthesiologists.
Wherry said he would hire Southeast’s doctors if the non-compete restrictions didn’t exist. He said he won’t impose non-compete agreements on any doctors he hires.
Southeast argues it’s not the non-compete clauses that are preventing its doctors from working at Atrium facilities, but rather that Atrium is stripping Southeast’s doctors of their hospital privileges. Southeast’s doctors have worked at Atrium in the past without a contract, Southeast noted. It also pointed out that Atrium uses similar non-compete agreements with other physicians and practices.
Southeast said Atrium hired an outside consultant to create a new anesthesiology model without Southeast's input. The company said it had just begun to examine the model and share its concerns when Atrium abruptly cut off discussions and terminated Southeast's contract.
In a letter Friday to Atrium CEO Gene Woods, Southeast expressed concerns with Wherry’s models. Southeast said if it had accepted Atrium's offer it would have had to slash doctor compensation to the tenth percentile for the region and have zero profit margin.
If Atrium isn't intending to make big changes to its anesthesiology model, why is it replacing Southeast, a recognized leader in anesthesiology? Southeast said in a statement to the Observer. The company said it has been highly successful in developing measures designed to decrease costs while simultaneously enhancing patient safety and quality.
"On the other hand, Atrium Health has a dubious record on achieving affordability in patient care," Southeast said. "The system recently announced a massive effort to cut $300 million from its operating budget, to make care more affordable. More likely: Atrium is slashing costs to increase profits, fund aggressive expansion and cover administrative overhead including million-dollar compensation packages for its senior executives."


2003-05-21 04:00:00 PDT Fort Worth, Texas -- Annika Sorenstam has said she thinks her appearance in a PGA Tour event is a one-time deal.
The PGA Tour might be moving to assure Sorenstam that she is accurate in that thought.
Tom Pernice Jr., a member of the Tour's Policy Board, told The Chronicle on Tuesday that player unhappiness over Sorenstam's sponsor's exemption into Thursday's Bank of America Colonial is so strong that he anticipates a movement to change the written bylaws of the Tour.
As it is currently written, there are no bans on women playing PGA Tour events. The policy board meets next month in Chicago.
"I'm sure this will be discussed, because it's a major issue on Tour, no question," Pernice said. "Players just don't think it's right."
The LPGA, for instance, has specifically written bylaws that restrict the playing field to women. Because the PGA Tour does not, Sorenstam -- the world's top-ranked woman golfer -- accepted a sponsor's invite to play the Colonial, becoming the first woman since Babe Didrikson Zaharias in 1945 to play in a PGA event. When Zaharias played the Los Angeles and Tucson opens then, there was no women's pro circuit.
"She hasn't done anything wrong," Pernice said. "Because our regulations are written to where people thought this would never happen. Whereas with (the LPGA), their bylaws are specific.
"A lot of players disagree with it, but she has a right to be here."
Olin Browne and David Toms -- and four independent directors. The ninth member is the PGA of America director. The Policy Board solicits opinions from the Players' Advisory Councils, which are designed to provide an outlet for players to change policy -- "like the House of Representatives," Pernice said. Apparently, the feedback from the Advisory Council has suggested it might be time for a change.
Pernice said he anticipates Commissioner Tim Finchem would be opposed to such a move among players, with Pernice guessing it would prove unpopular in the court of public opinion.
"The commissioner will probably be against it, but Tim doesn't vote," Pernice said. "I don't want to speak for Tim, but in his position, he'd probably want to take the safe road. And if we did this, we'd get criticized. We take a lot from what the Players Advisory Council has to say."
Many players have resisted embracing Sorenstam, fearing spots in their fields will be given to more women who are eager to play the men's tour. Already, 13-year-old Hawaii sensation Michelle Wie has accepted a sponsor's exemption to play in a Nationwide Tour event; and Connecticut club pro Suzy Whaley qualified, playing from the forward tees, to play in July's Greater Hartford Open.
"If (Sorenstam) plays really well," Tour rookie Arron Oberholser said, "she'll open up a can of worms. If she makes the cut, maybe they'll give her more exemptions. And what's to stop Michelle Wie from getting an exemption?
"And you want to talk about opening a can of worms? Let's say (Sorenstam) has God, Jesus and the Holy Ghost on her side and she wins -- because it would take an act of divine intervention -- then she's a member of the PGA Tour. All hell will break loose."
Tee times were announced on Tuesday, and Sorenstam's two playing partners are Tour rookies Dean Wilson, a 32-year-old from Hawaii who once won two "majors" on the Japanese Tour, and Aaron Barber, a 30-year-old Minnesotan who has missed 10 of 13 cuts this year. Wilson and Barber had their own news conference on Tuesday, and Wilson showed his support for Sorenstam by wearing a green button that read "Go Annika."
He bought it himself in the pro shop.
"For three bucks," Wilson said.
"I feel she has every right to be in this tournament and I'm all for her playing well," Wilson said.
Said Barber, similarly magnanimous: "She didn't take a spot. She earned this based on her resume. That's how you get sponsor's exemptions."
Barber should know: He, too, is one of the 12 sponsor's exemptions at Colonial, something he said he and his agent requested via letter at the start of the year.
Do they worry about being beaten by Sorenstam?
"No," Wilson said. "If she plays well, and I play bad -- anybody can beat me when I play bad."
Said Barber: "She's going to beat some people, there's no doubt. And I'm worried about 113 people beating me every week. . . . When I first got the call this morning, I thought: 'Oh, boy.' I was nervous. Then I turned that into excitement. You have to make it a positive. It's just fun to be part of history."


Winnipeg’s mosquito population is still high and the weather conditions are keeping it that way. The city has started its second treatment of fogging after successfully covering the entire city, including East St. Paul and West St. Paul.
At a news conference Thursday morning, Stuart was mum on what the ordered review by the Executive Policy Committee of the mosquito control policy would entail. Speaking near the Duck Pond at St. Vital Park, Stuart said he couldn’t comment on the exact changes he’d like to see be made, but did say he would be the first line of contact to review the questions EPC has put forward. “It’s good. We always should review policies, and that’s what we’ll be doing.” Stuart said. However, before speaking publicly on any changes he’d like to see, Stuart will need to consult with his superiors. One of the suggestions floating around has been to adopt a similar aerial mosquito assault program as used in Grand Forks. The North Dakota city doesn’t believe in buffer zones.
On Wednesday, crews were out for a second time in St. James, Charleswood and Brooklands. Spraying will continue tonight in East Kildonan, West Kildonan, Garden City, and a list of other areas found on the city’s website. Thursday’s citywide trap count was 100.


It's often considered one of the greatest classic rock songs of all time and on Monday, Sept. 15, Panic! at the Disco shared a video of them covering Queen's legendary 'Bohemian Rhapsody' live on stage.
The band had been performing the song as part of The Gospel Tour, which concluded in August.
'Bohemian Rhapsody' was first released in 1975 from Queen's 'A Night at the Opera' album. It's considered one of the most elaborate recordings ever due to its complex nature of mixing a ballad, a guitar solo, an opera-like section and regular hard rock into one song. It's lyrics have also been a mystery in that the late Freddie Mercury never fully explained to the public what the song was truly about. Critics and musicians over the years have debated the meaning of the song several times.
Click on the video above to see Panic! at the Disco tackle Queen's epic hit.


A YEAR ago in these pages, I congratulated the Danish government on its revolutionary experiment. It had just implemented a world-first fiscal and public health measure – a tax on food products containing more than 2.3 per cent saturated fat.
This experiment has now been dropped. Under intense pressure from the food industry in an already weak economy, the Danish government has repealed the fat tax and abandoned an impending tax on sugars.
Nobody likes taxes, and the fat tax was especially unpopular among Danish consumers, who resented having to pay more for butter, dairy products and meats – foods naturally high in fat.
But the real reason for the repeal was to appease business interests. The ministry of taxation’s rationale was that the levy on fatty foods raised the costs of doing business, put Danish jobs at risk and drove customers to buy food in Sweden and Germany.
In June this year, a coalition of Danish food businesses organised a national repeal-the-tax campaign. The coalition said that fat and sugar taxes would cause the loss of 1300 jobs, generate high administrative costs and increase cross-border shopping – precisely the arguments cited by the government for its U-turn.
We can now ask the obvious questions. Did the tax achieve its aims? Was it good public policy? What should governments be doing to reduce dietary risk factors for obesity?
The purpose of food taxes is to reduce sales of the products concerned. In bringing in its fat tax, the Danish government also wanted to raise revenue, reduce costs associated with obesity-related diseases, and increase health and longevity. A year is hardly time to assess the impact on health, but the tax did bring in $216 million. Danes will now face higher income taxes to make up for the loss of the fat tax.
Business groups insist that the tax had no effect on the amount of fat that Danes ate, although they chose cheaper foods. In contrast, economists at the University of Copenhagen say Danish fat consumption fell by 10 to 20 per cent in the first three months after the tax went into effect. But it is not possible to know whether it fell, and cross-border shopping rose, because of the tax or because of the slump that hit the Danish economy.
A recent analysis in the BMJ suggests that 20 per cent is the minimum tax rate on food to produce a measurable improvement in public health. The price of Danish foods hit by the tax increased by up to 9 per cent, enough to cause a political firestorm but not to make much of a difference to health.
Is a saturated-fat tax good public policy? A tax on sugary drinks would be a better idea. To see why, recall that obesity is the result of an excess intake of calories over what we burn. Surplus calories, whether from carbohydrate, protein or fat, are stored as body fat. All food fats are a mix of unsaturated and saturated fatty acids; all provide the same number of calories per unit weight.
Saturated fats raise the risk of coronary heart disease, although not by much. Trans fats, banned in Denmark since 2003, are a greater risk factor. Because the different saturated fatty acids vary in their risk, imposing a single tax on them as if they are indistinguishable is difficult to support scientifically.
For these reasons, anti-obesity tax measures in other countries have tended to avoid targeting broad nutrient groups. Instead, they focus on processed foods, fast food or sugary drinks – all major sources of calories. Taxing them seems like a more promising strategy.
What else should governments be doing? That they have a role in addressing the health problems caused by obesity is beyond debate, not least because they bear much of the cost of dealing with such problems. In the US, economists estimate the cost of obesity-related healthcare and lost productivity at between $147 billion and $190 billion a year. The need to act is urgent. But how?
One lesson from Denmark is that small countries with open borders cannot raise the prices of food or anything else unless neighbouring countries also do so. But the greater lesson is that any attempt to encourage people to eat less will encounter fierce food-industry opposition. Eating less is bad for business.
In the US, state and city efforts to tax sugary drinks have met with overwhelming opposition from soft-drink companies. They have successfully spent tens of millions of dollars lobbying legislators and convincing the public that such measures deprive voters of their “right to choose” or, as in Denmark, can damage the economy.
What’s more, the poor cannot be expected to support measures that increase food costs, even though obesity-related problems are much more common among low-income groups.
If governments really want to reduce the costs of obesity-related chronic diseases, they will have to address the problem at its source: the production and marketing of unhealthy food products.
A review by the American Heart Association cites increasing evidence for the benefits of anti-obesity interventions: food taxes, subsidising healthy foods, media campaigns to promote exercise and good diet, restrictions on portion sizes, and restrictions on the marketing of unhealthy foods and their sale in schools.
Governments must decide whether they want to bear the political consequences of putting health before business interests. The Danish government cast a clear vote for business.
At some point, governments will need to find ways to make food firms responsible for the health problems their products cause. When they do, we are likely to see immediate improvements in food quality and health. Let’s hope this happens soon.


NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Matt Niskanen scored his second goal of the game 7:29 into the third period, and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Nashville Predators 3-1 on Tuesday night to snap a three-game skid.
Niskanen and the Penguins helped ruin the return of Nashville goalie Pekka Rinne in his first game since Oct. 22 following an E. coli infection in his surgically repaired left hip.
Chris Kunitz scored a goal, and Sidney Crosby had three assists to add to his NHL-leading point total. The Penguins have not lost more than three straight this season.
Patric Hornqvist scored for Nashville, which has lost two consecutive games. Rinne made 16 saves.
The Penguins took the lead for good during a power play after David Legwand was called for hooking Kunitz. Crosby found Niskanen for a slap shot that went under Rinne's glove.


A man from the Meskwaki Tribe was charged with murder during an appearance in federal court in Cedar Rapids Wednesday. Prosecutors say 20-year-old Jonathan Curtis Youngbear killed 17-year-old Severn Jefferson February 24th .
Reports say Youngbear stabbed Jefferson at a residence on the Meskwaki Settlment near Tama after a day of drinking and smoking meth. Youngbear is being held without bond until his next court date on Monday.


Cloudy early with some clearing expected late. Low 37F. Winds light and variable..
Cloudy early with some clearing expected late. Low 37F. Winds light and variable.
Julian Assange gestures as he arrives at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, after the WikiLeaks founder was arrested by officers from the Metropolitan Police and taken into custody Thursday April 11, 2019. Police in London arrested WikiLeaks founder Assange at the Ecuadorean embassy Thursday, April 11, 2019 for failing to surrender to the court in 2012, shortly after the South American nation revoked his asylum .
SYDNEY (AP) — Australia said on Friday it would oppose the death penalty for Julian Assange if he's extradited to the United States, as protesters in Sydney called for his release and Australia's journalists' union voiced its strong support for him.
The Australian WikiLeaks founder was arrested Thursday in London's Ecuadorian Embassy and the judge found him guilty of breaching his bail conditions. He faces a U.S. charge of conspiring to reveal government secrets.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said any extradition plans had "nothing to do with Australia," and that Assange would receive only standard assistance from Australian consular officials. Tthe 47-year-old would have to face the consequences of any breach of the law in foreign jurisdictions, Morrison said.
Foreign Minister Marise Payne, however, responded to fears from Assange's supporters over his possible punishment in the U.S., saying Australia is "completely opposed to the death penalty." She said Britain had sought assurances from the U.S. that Assange would not be exposed to the death penalty if he was extradited.
"The extradition process itself is a matter between the United States and the United Kingdom, but we have also been provided with that advice from the U.K.," Payne told reporters. "Australia ... is completely opposed to the death penalty and that is a bipartisan position and one which we have continued to advocate."
Signs of support for Assange emerged in his home country on Friday, where about 30 people marched in central Sydney after gathering outside the British Consulate and calling for the release of a figure they regard as a crusader for truth, and freedom of speech.
Holding signs with messages including "Free Assange — No U.S. extradition," they chanted: "Free the truth; Free Assange; Don't shoot the messenger."
Another small protest in support of Assange took place in Melbourne later on Friday.
Australia's journalists' union, the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance, also supported calls for Assange's release.
The union's Federal President Marcus Strom said Assange was being pursued for "acts of journalism." Pointing out that WikiLeaks had in 2011 been bestowed with Australian journalism's highest honor, the Walkley Award, Strom said Assange's case was a press freedom issue.
"Julian Assange is being pursued over acts of journalism committed by WikiLeaks ... and that was revealing information that was clearly in the public interest, around atrocities and possible war crimes committed in Iraq and Afghanistan," Strom told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
Strom said those reports had been published in newspapers such as the New York Times, Britain's the Guardian, and in Australia in the Sydney Morning Herald and the Melbourne Age.
"So on those grounds it becomes a press freedom issue," he said. "It's not a personal issue about Julian Assange."
Strom suggested there'd been less than universal support from journalists for Assange because "as a personality, he's clearly a divisive figure."
"But now that ... the issues are around questions of journalistic principle, people will gain a stronger voice to stand up and call for Julian Assange to be released."
The MEAA awarded Assange, a long-term member of the union, lifelong membership in 2010 as a show of solidarity.
Also on Friday, Assange's mother, Christine Assange, took to Twitter to call for police and prison and court staff to be gentle with her son.
She tweeted he had been "8 years detained WITHOUT charge," and for six years had been "deprived fresh air, exercise, sun," for three years had been "sick/in pain denied proper medical/dental care" and for one year he'd been "isolated/tortured."
"Please be patient, gentle & kind to him," she said.
Assange took refuge in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London in 2012 after he was released on bail in Britain while facing extradition to Sweden on sexual assault allegations that have since been dropped. He refused to leave the embassy, fearing arrest and extradition to the U.S. for publishing classified military and diplomatic cables through WikiLeaks.
Morrison confirmed Assange would receive "normal" consular assistance following a request put by his legal team to the Australian High Commission in London.
"It's the normal consular support that is provided by our missions overseas for people who are going through justice systems," he told Australia's Channel 7 television network. "He will have to face the justice system. When Australians go overseas and if they violate other countries' laws, then obviously they have to face the process for those alleged actions.
"He won't be getting special treatment from Australia. He will be getting the same treatment that any other Australian would get in those circumstances," Morrison said.


July 2, 2012  How can an inmate beat out a sitting president in his party's primary? In parts of West Virginia, the answer is easy to explain. Just ask those who say Obama's policies threaten the culture of coal.
May 5, 2012  When the gates fly open at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., on Saturday, all eyes will be on the 20 racehorses that launch themselves into the 138th Kentucky Derby. That's a lot of horses, and a special challenge for the men charged with getting them into the starting gate safely.


"The Post-Trump Presidency: Who, What, When, Where, and Why"
Surprise! The Trump presidency will end sooner than you think.
The demise will begin after the mid-term elections in which the Democrats will bust the Republican Party's monopoly.
December 2-6 will set off a serious of events by which the Trump administration will begin to unravel. At the same time, leaks or actual proceedings in the Mueller investigation may begin to expose some incriminating evidence that will highlight Trump's nefarious dealings, resulting in a classic disconnect by the flaccid Republicans as they turn on Trump, their moneymaker.
Not wanting anything to do with Trump anymore the Republicans will then confer with the Democrats to find the most painless exit from this rather embarrassing moment in American History. As a result, by consensus, they will offer an "agreement" to forgo the blame game and move forward. The Democrats will once again oblige.
However, the complete remedy will be to ask Trump to resign in lieu of impeachment proceedings. Trump will be allowed to use whichever excuse he chooses but the Truth will be obvious.
As for any potential criminal proceedings, barring treason, they may also agree to allow the next president to grant a pardon to Trump for any non-treasonous crimes and the nation will be asked to reset its government and to move forward.
January 22-26, 2019 will signal the end of the Trump presidency.
Now, welcome to the post-Trump presidency.....President Michael Pence!
Bohdan Yuri is an Ukrainian-American and the author of "Ukraina: Sons and Daughters" (short stories) and "The Letters".
"Donald Trump: Russia's Saboteur in the White House"
"Healthcare for a Suicidal Nation"
"The Present American Civil War and The Battles for Democracy"
Donald Trump: "Russia's Lobbyist in the White House"


Every weekend, Tali Rapaport and her team cruise the streets of San Francisco, searching for ways to improve the experience for both drivers and riders of the nation’s second-most popular ride-sharing service. These excursions have led to several products that distinguish Lyft, particularly in terms of driver loyalty. In 2016, Lyft made it possible for drivers to be paid instantly; Rapaport says that people can now “wake up, realize you need to get paid, [pick up passengers] for a couple of hours,” and have the money they need that afternoon. Another feature allows a driver to enter a destination—such as her home—and only pick up people headed in that direction. To ease customer pickup, Rapaport and her team developed a dashboard LED beacon called Amp: When a driver approaches her intended passenger, the Amp and the rider’s phone will light up in the same color, reducing both frustration and cancellations.


US science writer Jeff Wise, who has been widely promoting himself as central to CNN’s coverage of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, has once again put forth his conspiracy theory implicating Putin – this time providing some “clear” insights.
Almost two years since the whole world began wondering how a huge airplane with 239 passengers on board could have simply vanished en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur on March 8, 2014, the American expert has come forward to finally tell the world: it was Putin.
Although Wise’s “suspicion fell on Russia” back then, he still “had no idea” as to “why, exactly, would Putin want to steal a Malaysian passenger plane.” Though he hypothesized that “maybe he [Putin] wanted to demonstrate to the United States... that he could hurt the West and its allies anywhere in the world,” or that Russia’s leader could have been after “the secrets of one of the plane’s passengers,” or that he may, rather, have saved the plane so that it could “unexpectedly show up somewhere packed with explosives,” real clarity as to the exact motive behind the mystery still alluded the journalist-sleuth.
A UK-based amateur investigative group called Bellingcat has recently released a new report blaming Putin for another Malaysia Airlines crash – the case of flight MH17 that was downed over eastern Ukraine in July of 2014. The new “fascinating” findings of this “very highly regarded group of amateur analysts” (as described by the American writer) provided new clues for the deep-digging researcher, who was finally able to put two and two together in a Eureka! moment.
“The relevance of this [MH17] story to MH370 should be clear. Within four months, two Malaysian Airlines 777s were taken out of the sky under suspicious circumstances. Imagine if you were a farmer who’s been raising chickens for many years without incident. Then one day, for the first time ever, one of the chickens goes missing. Then the next day, you see the neighbor’s dog jumping over your fence with a second chicken in its mouth. Now would you have a theory about what happened to the first chicken?” Wise wrote on his blog.
However, before the official search for MH370 in the southern Indian Ocean southwest of Australia finally wraps up at the end in June, here are some other suggestions on where to look for the plane and who’s to blame for its disappearance – according to ever-searching conspiracy theorists.
The missing Boeing might have been stolen by North Korea, a number of theorists have suggested. While some have linked the flight’s disappearance to South Korea’s claim that a Chinese passenger plane had nearly been taken down by a North Korean missile just three days ahead of MH370’s last recorded flight, others have theorized that the aircraft was hijacked, rather than shot down, at the order of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who was probably after the American technology it contained.
Another theory suggests that the Mossad was behind MH370’s disappearance, with its agents commandeering the Boeing for insidious purposes. Speculating on reports that two Iranian nationals had been traveling on the flight with forged passports, the blame-Israel camp think the plane has been hidden in a hangar in Tel Aviv, waiting for its time to serve as a bomb, like the planes on September 11 in New York. They further speculate that after the mass terror attack has been carried out, the two Iranian passengers will resurface, thus giving Israel a chance pin the blame on Iran.
The US military has also been implicated in the MH370 tragedy, with claims that it is somehow linked to Washington’s military base on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. Here opinions are divided: some online researchers claim that the base was used to hide the passenger jet after it was hijacked by Americans, while others say the Malaysian plane was shot down by American fighter jets to prevent it from crashing onto the base after it was hacked.
A former airline director (and novelist) from France, Marc Dugain, even travelled to Maldives in an attempt to unlock the mystery, where he reportedly heard witnesses saying that they had seen a “huge plane” with Malaysia Airlines colors flying low above their atolls in the direction of Diego Garcia.
A number of theories have also evolved speculating that the Malaysia Airlines Boeing shot from Ukrainian skies en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was, in fact, the same plane from flight MH370 that had disappeared some four months before, after being hijacked and hidden somewhere (maybe even Diego Garcia, theorists say). Citing visual “proof” indicating that the downed plane’s fuselage and that of MH370 were one and the same, proponents of this scenario claim that the tragedies were brought about as part of a false-flag operation against Russia.
With modern day technology providing satellite images of the most remote parts of our planet to anyone with internet access, thousands have been sitting glued to their computer screens, searching for anything resembling a Boeing 777 where it doesn’t belong. Numerous clouds and floating junk have been excitedly taken for the lost plane.
“I’m no expert but up close this does look like a plane and an oil slick,” American musician Courtney Love posted on Facebook, with a picture of the sea attached.
So TIL that the plane used in MH370 is the 404th 777 to be built. Error 404 - Plane not found.


Quick: Which holiday generates the most flower and plant sales? If you guessed Valentine's Day, you're wrong. Feb. 14 is actually No. 4 on the list, behind Christmas/Hanukkah, Mother's Day, and Easter.
Still, Valentine's Day, considered by many to be a "Hallmark holiday," is a big one for spending. This year, Americans plan to shell out an average of $94.50 per household - up 12 percent from last year's $84.20 - according to a survey by the International Mass Retail Association.
Cards, candy, and flowers are the most popular gifts. Valentine's Day is the No. 2 greeting-card holiday, after Christmas. Not counting children's packaged valentines for school, some 163 million cards are exchanged, according to Hallmark.