Provo • There was no need to dig deep into a dictionary at LaVell Edwards Stadium during the BYU-Northern Illinois game on Saturday to check on the official meaning of a word not usually associated with college football, but most relevant on this particular occasion: monotonous.
That adjective was defined, all spelled out in dying color, on the field.
As everybody on hand — about a third of the venue was empty — waited for some football to happen, a soccer game broke out.
It was victory and defeat by the slowest of drips.
If scoring is your thing, this was not a game for you.
If afternoon napping is your thing, this was your baby.
Final count: NIU 7, BYU 6.
As the warm autumn sun blazed down on their shoulders, these two attacks, if that’s the word to use for them, set offensive football back 50 years. It was all good, except for the fact that neither team could actually gain yardage or score points. George Halas may have approved, but somewhere, if you believe in such things, LaVell Edwards wanted to peel his name off the side of the stadium. Pele or Messi, though, would have loved it.
The whole matter looked as though it was going to have to be decided on penalty kicks.
Or field goals. BYU had two and missed one. NIU had one bounce off the left upright.
Or punts. The teams combined for 16 of them, the best being a 53-yarder by NIU that went out at the 1-foot line, with 6:24 to play, the Huskies up by one point.
BYU had 301 total yards, NIU 204.
If you paid close attention, there were a few bursts of action.
For instance, the Huskies on their first possession of the second half drove 65 yards for a touchdown, to thunder ahead of the Cougars, 7-3. That came after a 13-play BYU drive in the first quarter that resulted in the aforementioned field goal. It was a quintessential BYU drive in that it was earned in bits and pieces, on account of the Cougars having — and having had — no playmakers all season, unless they were lining up against Hawaii.
BYU had a terrific touchdown opportunity with just more than three minutes left in the third quarter, but a couple of false-start penalties short-circuited that, resulting in a field goal. And it was 7-6, heading into the fourth.
Return man Michael Shelton did provide some excitement when he muffed a punt deep in BYU territory, but the Cougars covered it. And Skyler Southam missed a 51-yard field goal attempt. That was kind of stirring.
Ultimately, though, nothing for BYU’s offense really worked.
An interception thrown by Zach Wilson with 1:39 in the game made it official.
And the worst part about the sleepy deal for the Cougars was the opponent against which it came. It was the least favorable kind for BYU in its independence, as it is trying to impress the power leagues and, well, everybody else. The troubled scenario: Playing a team that is much better than its name. What benefits the Cougars best is playing a marquee team that for whatever reason is nowhere near as good as its reputation.
NIU solidly fit the first category.
From jump, this affair had no real cachet, no regional significance, no national prestige, no history, no buzz, and then, it ended in defeat.
The Huskies were best known around these parts for having made Utah’s life a bit miserable in September during the Utes’ difficult win in some place called Dekalb. That small community, the home of NIU, happens also to be the hometown of Cindy Crawford and the place where barbed wire was invented, if you didn’t know and wanted to know.
You didn’t and you didn’t.
What you do need to know is that BYU is hurting. Its offense is not good, and that predicament has little to do with who’s playing quarterback. Wilson is not the solution, nor was Tanner Mangum the problem. The troubles run much deeper. The Cougars lack talent, those playmakers, individual players who remove the necessity of methodical 15-play scoring drives. Those are too arduous to sustain.
BYU needs explosive skill guys who can gain big chunks of yards on a single play. As long as they don’t have them, the Cougars will lose to teams like NIU.
Saturday’s loss was a snooze. Even worse, it was no big surprise.


There were more than a few eyebrows raised when Christian Eriksen’s face flashed up on the big screen inside Parken Stadion to announce him as man-of-the-match during the closing stages of Saturday’s first leg.
Afterwards, manager Age Hareide was asked why his star player had failed to show. The same question was put to him on the eve of this game. It was Eriksen, however, who had the answers.
Two years ago he was outshone by Sweden’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic as the Scandinavian rivals went head-to-head for a place at Euro 2016. Ibrahimovic scored three times over two legs. Eriksen, meanwhile, had no impact.
Not this time. Small things make the difference in big games. Denmark were trailing to Shane Duffy’s early opener when they won a corner. Seeing a posse of strapping comrades charge forward in anticipation of a cross, most takers would have duly delivered. Not Eriksen.
Noticing that Ireland had switched off, the Spurs playmaker beckoned Pione Sisto for a short corner. The hosts were out-numbered and within seconds the Danes were level, Cyrus Christie diverting the ball into his own net.
If Eriksen’s contribution for the equaliser was perhaps missed by the majority, everyone saw his stunning second. You’d be mistaken for thinking it was easy, the manner in which he climaxed a swift break by effortlessly clipping home via the underside of the crossbar from 20 yards. It wasn’t so simple, of course, evidenced by James McClean lashing over from similar distance after half-time.
By that point Eriksen had already sent his country to Russia. Again he made it look easy. Twenty yards. Right foot. Left foot. Bottom corner. Brilliant.
As for his hat-trick goal, it was more brute force than finesse, a thumping shot after anticipating a mistake by Stephen Ward. It was that presence of mind which had made the difference. Small things, again.
That is nine goals from his last eight matches in qualification. He has carried Denmark to what will be his second World Cup. Aged 18, he was the youngest player at the tournament in 2010.
Eriksen, though, is no longer the rookie. He is the master, a player at the very top of his game, for club and country.
There certainly won’t be any eyebrows raised at news of his man-of-the-match award this time.


State Police have taken over security elements for Ferguson Mike Brown presence. But residents complain that the Local Police are jacking People with weapons drawn in daylight hours. .
The coverup is well underway in Ferguson.
White cops and their armored vehicles and assault rifles have been pulled back and replaced by State police.
Succumbing to political pressure, the Chief of Ferguson released the name of the shooting officer of Mike Brown, named Darren Wilson. In that same stroke, a smear campaign was launched that suggested Mike Brown had just been involved in an armed robbery.
From all accounts, this story, like all Police narratives coming out of Ferguson is full of holes and deception.
Aside from incidents here and there, it's been more quiet on the police front, but they are working tirelessly on the coverup, and of course attempts to pacify the people is in full effect.


Is One of Africa’s Oldest Conflicts Finally Nearing Its End?
John Bolton and a former German President have helped spur the first negotiations over the Western Sahara in six years.
Daniel McCabe’s powerful documentary focusses on three years in the decades of conflict that have wracked the Central African nation.


Irish nationalists to vote on decision to recognise Northern Irish police force.
A rejection of police support would see Northern Ireland's assembly dissolved on Tuesday and the province run indefinitely from London.
Protestant politicians want Sinn Fein to agree to support the police before they consider working with them again in the Belfast-based assembly, which was set up under a 1998 peace deal.
The party is the political wing of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) which killed nearly 300 police officers during a 30-year armed campaign against British rule.
Sinn Fein's policy on the police service has been to restore the assembly, which has been suspended since 2002 amid claims that a republican spy ring was operating there.
Republicans who largely favour union with the Republic of Ireland believe Northern Ireland's police force is biased in favour of Protestants.
Earlier this week, a police ombudsman's report revealed that police colluded with, and protected ,Protestant paramilitaries in the early 1990's.
Adams faced protesters and a media scrum as he arrived for the meeting at the Royal Dublin Society conference centre.
The demonstrators included members of Republican Sinn Fein, a separate party formed in 1986 after Sinn Fein ended its abstentionist policy in the Irish parliament in Dublin and Belfast.
Placards read "Yes to British withdrawal", "No British police, no British laws, no British courts acceptable in Ireland".
Adams acknowledged that not everyone within republicanism supported the change, but as part of their preparations for government, "reaching out to unionism" was vital, he said.


Through Innovate for Life’s five-month accelerator programme, specifically designed for the African health context, the six entrepreneurs will be embedded in the Amref Health Africa organisation.
By KENNEDY KANGETHE, NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 27 – Two Kenya Start-ups are among six African Start-ups selected to benefit from the 2018 Amref Africa’s Innovate for Life Fund Accelerator programme.
Baobab Circle Limited and Ujuzi Fursa Africa joins Nigeria’s Baby Grubz and Tiny Hearts Technology as well as JOELEX from Uganda and Wastinnova from Zimbabwe.
The start-ups have been selected out of 300 applications from across sub-Saharan Africa. The program was in search of firms developing innovative solutions to improve healthcare in Africa and their leadership is African-driven.
Baobab Circle Limited is empowering those with diabetes and hypertension by providing tools and information its users need to manage their conditions anywhere, and at any time through AFYA PAP application while Ujuzi Fursa Africa is a social enterprise that provides essential home support services.
The Innovative Six 2018 vetting process was conducted by a health panel and a selection committee, consisting of African healthcare stakeholders and key investors in African ventures.
Now in its second year, the Innovate for Life Fund aims to support African entrepreneurs to accelerate home-grown health solutions for the African market.
Amref Health Africa believes that African-based, local innovations, with the realities of each country and each community embedded at their core, are vital for lasting health solutions.
Amref group CEO Githinji Gitahi, said that local entrepreneurs know all ins and outs of the market and therefore their solutions are often very appropriate and sustainable.
“Local solutions for local challenges are in the DNA of Amref Health Africa which makes the Innovate for Life Fund programme such a good fit. For over 60 years we have partnered with communities and governments to improve health in Africa. This experience is invaluable for entrepreneurs.” Githinji added.
The Innovate for Life Fund is supported by the Elsevier Foundation.


Draper residents react as Mayor Troy Walker rescinds his offer of land for a homeless center as he and Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams attend a meeting at Draper Park Middle School on Wednesday, March 29, 2017.
SALT LAKE CITY — A bill backed by political heavyweights that would require Utah cities and counties not hosting homeless shelters and lacking affordable housing to contribute to other shelters has cleared its next hurdle.
After an hourlong debate and a failed attempt by a GOP legislator to cut out the requirement to bill cities and counties a collective total of $3.3 million a year, the full House voted 49-15 Wednesday to pass the bill. It now goes to the Senate.
"This is the last component of the significant homelessness reform effort that this body has undertaken," the bill's sponsor, Rep. Steve Eliason, R-Sandy, told legislators before the vote, reminding them of the tens of millions of dollars already spent to break up the troubled downtown homeless shelter and build smaller homeless resource centers at scattered sites.
Eliason told lawmakers to respond to cities who might protest the bill by asking: "What are you doing to address low-income and affordable housing? Are you willing to host a shelter?"
"See what the answers to those questions are. See if the alternative is maybe $1 per resident, and I can guarantee you what the answer would be," Eliason said. "I'd invite you to attend a meeting to site a resource center and fear for your safety when you see the emotions that can arise there."
HB462 would require cities and counties with less than the state's average of affordable and low-income housing to annually contribute sales tax dollars of up to $200,000, based on population size, to help fund operating costs of homeless shelters.
Cities that currently host or are slated to host shelters — Salt Lake City, South Salt Lake, Midvale, Ogden and St. George — would be exempt, according to the bill.
The bill's aim is to fund the estimated $13 million annual operating costs for the homeless centers meant to break up Salt Lake City's 1,100-bed downtown homeless shelter.
In addition to $3.3 million from local governments, the state would pay $3.3 million a year out of its general fund to bring the total of public dollars to $6.6 million, and the private sector would be responsible for fundraising the rest.
House Speaker Greg Hughes, R-Draper, has called the bill "critical" to efforts to homeless reform and has said it must pass this year. Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams has if a bill doesn't pass to help mitigate impact of shelters, he'll pull his support of a homeless center now slated to break ground in South Salt Lake this spring.
But Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, R-Clearfield, pitched a substitute to the bill to instead have the state pay the total $6.6 million a year rather than pulling funds from city and county budgets. She argued it unfairly "punishes" cities for a housing market issue and acts more as a "stick" than an incentive for affordable housing.
"This is inequitable and will harm cities in their ability to fund their employees and their programs," Lisonbee said.
Lisonbee's motion failed 47-18. Before the vote, House Majority Leader Brad Wilson, R-Kaysville, urged lawmakers to vote against it, noting the state has so far spent $75 million on homelessness reform.
"We have a responsibility to continue and see this effort across the finish line," Wilson said. "And we're just giving cities a choice. We're saying either have a homeless resource center … or help pay for the one somewhere else."
The Utah League of Cities and Towns, which opposed the bill and helped push Lisonbee's motion, was disappointed the bill advanced without the changes, Cameron Diehl, the league's executive director, said, but the league will continue to raise concerns and push for changes as it moves to the Senate.
"Kudos to Rep. Lisonbee and some of her colleagues on the House floor who recognized that HB462 creates an unfunded mandate on cities and towns," Diehl said. "Cities and towns are willing to help address homelessness. We fundamentally disagree with the premise that the state should charge cities and towns to pay for the operation and maintenance of homeless resource centers."


Germany and Austria were early passive house adopters (>5,000 dwellings) with Scandinavians eagerly trying to catch up. About 130 apartments in Sweden have met the passive house building standard, where each square meter of space uses a maximum 15 kWh of energy per year. Around 300 additional apartments are expected to go up in Sweden this year, and in Scandinavia 40 different projects are underway, including the single family "Fin One" in Finland and the renovation project Brogården in Alingsås.


In series of tweets, which include audio and Howard’s pastor Calvin Simmons allegedly calling the man a “f***ot in a wig,” Elijè’s story has gone viral. However, what is more disturbing is how the homophobia against Howard has gone viral. Many on Twitter have automatically believed this unknown person and have been attacking the NBA player viciously.
Former NBA player Jason Collins, who is openly gay, wrote on Twitter, “Transphobic & homophobic jokes aren’t funny and can lead to deadly consequences. Transphobia & homophobia get people killed everyday around the world.” Dwight Howard has not responded to the accusations.


Any penalties for not being able to make payments during the shutdown may also be waived.
Lafayette federal employees who are furloughed due to the ongoing government shutdown can get an extension on their property taxes.
The Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office, the entity that collects property taxes for the parish, will additionally waive any interest, penalties or fees that may result due to a federal employee's inability to make payments during the shutdown.
Documentation must be received by Feb. 15 at 5 p.m.
Anyone with questions may call the Sheriff's Property Tax Office at 337-236-5880 or visit the Tax Department Office on the fourth floor at 1010 Lafayette St.
Can Lafayette can help its unpaid TSA workers?


YORK City boss Colin Walker has not ruled out making one further signing before the start of the new Blue Square Premier season.
Former Bradford City striker and Leeds United trainee David Brown bagged a brace as the Minstermen kicked off their pre-season with a 6-0 win in front of 450 fans at Tadcaster Albion last night.
Fellow trialists Anton Foster and Nathan Fisher, who was released by Gretna last season after previously being on Middlesbrough’s books, also played at Ings Lane while experienced winger Lee Elam, released by last season’s play-off winners Exeter City in the summer, arrived at KitKat Crescent for training this morning.
York-born Brown, 19, joined Craig Farrell (2), Richard Brodie and Martyn Woolford on the scoresheet last night.
Elam, 31, is looking for a new club close to his Bradford roots, having plied his trade at Exeter, Weymouth, Crawley, Morecambe, Burton, Hornchurch, Chester, Yeovil, Halifax and Southport in the past.
About the possibility of making a further addition to his 21-man squad, Walker said: “I had a look at three players against Tadcaster because, in this game, you never know what turns up. They didn’t acquit themselves too badly and I will have a think now.
“I’ve known Browny a long time from my connections with Leeds and he’s always had an eye for goal. He’s a local lad and I’m sure he wants to do well while he’s with us.
“I’ve also got Lee Elam coming to training tomorrow as well and there are other players who want to come and play for York City. Whether we do anything with them, I don’t know yet.
Walker was pleased with the fitness levels of his players just one week into their pre-season programme.
He said: “It’s a bit early to be playing football now. Ideally, you want to get two weeks of training in first, but we wanted to take this game to help out Tadcaster after the flood damage they had last season and we’ll also play Leeds on Friday because that’s the only date they could do and we should get a good crowd.
“I thought we looked fit though, especially having also had a good two-and-a-half hour session in the morning. The fans got to see our new players and I think they will have been impressed and they will only get better.


Gary O’Neil has vowed to fight to keep West Ham in the Barclays Premier League after completing his £2million switch from Middlesbrough.
The midfielder has signed a two-and-a-half year deal at Upton Park as they battle to retain their top-flight status.
The former Hammers academy player, who has worked with coaches Avram Grant, Paul Groves and David Coles at Portsmouth, said: ‘I am really pleased to sign.
'It all happened very quickly. I played for Middlesbrough at the weekend and didn’t know anything was going to happen. It has all gathered pace since then. There was also a big rush to do it quickly when they realised I wasn’t cup-tied.
‘I enjoyed my time at Middlesbrough, the fans and staff were really good but it has been difficult time on the pitch. It is nice to be back in the Premier League and play at the top level, which everyone wants to do. I am London born so it is good to come home.
‘It is great that the club have such a massive game to look forward to. I haven’t trained yet with the team so it is up to the manager of course if he wants to use me. I will take it one step at a time but it is a big game and it could be a case of straight in at the deep end if involved.
‘I’ve watched the team a lot this season. I know Avram, Grovesy and Colesy from Portsmouth. It is a great side with top players but they just suffered from a tough start. I know we have enough quality to get out of it. I have been in a couple of relegation battles, including at Portsmouth, so hopefully that experience will help.
O’Neil, who follows Wayne Bridge through the door at Upton Park, will bolster a West Ham midfield alongside Scott Parker, Mark Noble and Jonathan Spector, while Germany international Thomas Hitzlsperger is close to finally making his debut after an injury-plaugued start to his spell at east London.


ViewCast has released Niagara Pro II, its next-generation professional-grade encoding appliance designed for the expanding online video needs of broadcasters, studios, enterprises and Internet/network service providers.
Niagara Pro II captures, encodes and streams video and audio over the Internet and mobile networks for live viewing and video-on-demand applications. To meet the challenges of streaming globally to multiplatform audiences, the Niagara Pro II comes standard with ViewCast's Simulstream and Niagara SCXPro control and management software, which are preconfigured and ready-to-use.
Both applications allow users to manage their streaming workflow from a single Web interface and enable a single video source to be streamed simultaneously at multiple resolutions, at multiple data rates, and in a variety of streaming formats, including H.264, MPEG-4, Adobe Flash, Windows Media (Silverlight-compatible) and 3GPP/3GPP2 for mobile applications.
The Niagara 7500 simplifies the complex workflows associated with the transformation and delivery of HD video to IP and mobile networks.


Roswell Youth Theatre Holds Auditions For Mary Poppins Jr.
RYT will hold auditions at the Bill Johnson Community Activity Building, Roswell Area Park, on January 14 & 15 5:30-7:30 p.m. This audition is open to all student actors, singers and dancers ages 9-17.
1 minute memorized Broadway song. Bring sheet music or accompaniment track in your correct key.
Dress comfortably for dance audition. No dance experience required.
Audition fee: $25 cash, card, or check made out to RYT.
Your favorite practically perfect nanny takes center stage in this Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious adventure based on the award-winning Broadway musical and classic Walt Disney film.
Based on one of the most popular Disney movies of all time and the Broadway musical that played for over 2,500 performances and received multiple Olivier and Tony Awards nominations, Disney and Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins is capturing hearts in a whole new way: as a practically perfect Broadway Junior musical!
The jack-of-all trades, Bert, introduces us to England in 1910 and the troubled Banks family. Young Jane and Michael have sent many a nanny packing before Mary Poppins arrives on their doorstep. Using a combination of magic and common sense, she must teach the family members how to value each other again. Mary Poppins takes the children on many magical and memorable adventures, but Jane and Michael aren't the only ones upon whom she has a profound effect. Even grown-ups can learn a lesson or two from the nanny who advises that "Anything can happen if you let it."
Disney and Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins JR. is an enchanting mixture of irresistible story, unforgettable songs and breathtaking dance numbers. This show is a perfect opportunity to showcase a strong, iconic female performer, as well as unique special effects and illusions.
Rehearsals begin Jan 21, 2019 and will be held in the Physical Activity Center in Roswell Area Park every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, 5:30-7:30. Email lkelley@roswellgov.com for more information. The performances will be held on May 10 & 11, 2019 at the Roswell Cultural Arts Center.


Amy Wilson and Margaret Ables are two super accomplished women and mothers who are challenging their fellow moms to find both joy and humor in parenting, through their witty and insightful podcast What Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face of Motherhood. The podcast, which runs every Wednesday at 8:30 a.m., is quickly approaching its 100th episode with almost one million downloads.
Wilson and Ables are no strangers to entertaining. Wilson wrote parenting blog-turned bestselling-book When Did I Get Like This, toured the country with her solo show, Mother Load, and was a series regular on several television sitcoms. Ables began her career in standup comedy, wrote for PBS Kids and MTV, and was a senior writer for Nickelodeon’s Nick Mom. She also wrote the blog, Short, Fat Dictator.
Both moms are married and have three children each that range in age from 7-16. They own very different personalities and parenting styles. Ables is the laid back, “sure it will all work out” mom and Wilson the uber-organized, self-professed “over-thinker.” They share a 20-plus year friendship and enjoy learning and laughing together, just like their listeners, through their podcast.
Podcasts are great for multitasker moms. Fans can listen to them while making dinner or while doing errands and pickups, says Ables.
In each 45-minute episode, Wilson and Ables chat about real-life issues and situations faced by moms. They tackle everything from picky eating to sleep training to how to yell less, reduce screen time or give the dreaded birds and bees talk.
Ables and Wilson get podcast topics from their own experiences and from their audience, often relayed through enthusiastic Facebook followers. Wilson takes on initial research and Ables does most of the post-production work. Producing a polished, entertaining yet informative show is priority.
With a comedic flair, the moms discuss their findings and talk about whether they have found their research useful and valid in their own experiences.
In some cases, guest experts offer life-changing advice.
Implementing that expert’s strategies transformed Wilson’s relationship with her kids.
The podcast title channels a famous phrase used by the late American writer Dorothy Parker when she answered the phone; Ables says her own mother was a Parker fan.


The member nations of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas, ALBA, have decided to give up the US dollar in trading between them.
They will instead use the sucre conventional monetary unit. The first international sucre transaction has already been made, with Cuba signing a contract with Venezuela on buying a consignment of rice.
The agreement on a single system of regional payments is to be signed during an ALBA countries’ summit due in the Venezuelan city of Kumana next April.
The financial mechanism will become operational next year to promote dollar-free cost-accounting.
The ALBA alliance comprises the Latin American and Caribbean nations that seek to promote trade and cooperation among the participants and counteract the continually US-advanced free-trade areas. The ALBA alliance was initiated by Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro back in 2004.


Strange as this may now seem, from the mid-1960's through the early 1970's Chicago had one—just one—legal tattoo parlor. How did this happen to be the case?
Producer Logan Jaffe tells the tale of Chicago's tattoo holdout, and why that one shop — for a time — took care of the entire city’s inking needs.


Prime Retail Shopping Center Availability!! This unit is primarily open with a large private office and 2 ADA bathrooms. Landlord will divide current 2400sf unit into 2 - 1200sf spaces. See MLS #776586 for 2400sf information. Landlord to install new flooring, paint the interior, and do minor build-to-suit construction. Additionally, the Landlord is offering $5,000 toward Custom Improvements for a long term lease. With a traffic count of over 52,000 cars per day, this busy shopping center is home to 14 Tenants offering local specialties and national chain recognition. Nearby amenities include, Waffle House, Kohl's, Winn-Dixie, Lowe's, Sam's, and Walmart. Close proximity to Kenwood and Bridgeport Colony Subdivisions, as well as Hurlburt AFB Housing.
If you are needing space, this lovely townhome is the place! HUGE MASTER BEDROOM AND LIVING ROOM - ANY FURNITURE STYLE OR SIZE WILL WORK. CERAMIC TILE IN KITCHEN AND DINING AREA. SMALL FENCED BACK YARD. CALL TODAY FOR AN APPOINTMENT TO VIEW. CAT ALLOWED WITH NON-REF PET FEE. Available September 1st.
1250 sf of open floor plan retail space with plenty of parking and frontage on Wright Pkwy. Located in a plaza with a grocery and laundry mat.
1,100 sf second story office space located right in the heart of Historical Downtown Fort Walton Beach. Fully renovated and naturally lit. Office space includes small kitchen and great views of downtown.


Iran's state TV on Saturday showed government supporters rallying a day after the foreign minister said a U.S. move to call an emergency UN Security Council meeting to discuss anti-government protests was another Trump administration "blunder."
The state broadcaster showed pro-government rallies in several cities, starting with Amol, in the northern province of Mazandaram, with hundreds of people waving the Iranian flag and chanting slogans against the U.S. and Israel.
State TV described the rally as a "response to rioters and supporters of the riots."
Other pro-government demonstrations were held in Shahin Dezh, in West Azarbaijan province bordering Turkey; the city of Semnan, in the northern Semnan Province; and Shadegan, in the southern Khouzestan Province near Iraq.
The rallies are meant to be a show of force against anti-government protests that broke out in Mashhad, Iran's second largest city, on December 28 and have since spread to several other cities and towns. The protests were sparked by a hike in food prices amid soaring unemployment. Some demonstrators have called for the government's overthrow.
At least 21 people have been killed and hundreds have been arrested. Large pro-government rallies have been held in response, and officials have blamed the anti-government unrest on foreign meddling.
Lawmaker Mahmoud Sadeghi said that around 90 university students— 58 of them in the capital Tehran— have been detained since protests broke out, the semi-official ILNA news agency reported Saturday. Sadeghi said the whereabouts and circumstances of around 10 of those students is unclear, meaning it's not known which security body arrested them, where they are being held or what charges they face.
Some of those detained, he said, had not participated in protests and for unclear reasons were arrested at home.
On Saturday, Iranians could access the photo-sharing site Instagram again after it was blocked for the past week. The government has suspended access to the messaging app Telegram, which was being used to publicize the protests. Twitter and Facebook were already banned.
U.S. President Donald Trump has voiced encouragement for the anti-government protesters. The U.S. called the UN meeting on Friday, portraying the protests as a human rights issue that could spill over into an international problem.
U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said the emergency session put Iran on notice that "the world will be watching" its actions.
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif wrote on Twitter after the session that the Security Council "rebuffed the U.S.' naked attempt to hijack its mandate."
He said the majority emphasized the need to fully implement the 2015 nuclear deal and to refrain from interfering in the affairs of other countries. "Another FP (foreign policy) blunder for the Trump administration," he wrote.
Russia portrayed the Security Council meeting as a U.S. attempt to violate Iran's sovereignty. Envoys from several other countries, from China to newcomer Equatorial Guinea, expressed reservations about whether the council was the right forum for the issue.


Home ownership has long been a goal for many Americans, but now more people are worried that the troubled housing market means it's not a good time to buy a home, and they're kissing their plan goodbye.
Since the housing market collapsed in 2008, forcing millions of underwater homeowners out of their houses, real estate has become a scary and unreliable investment option.
"The emotional scars left by the collapse are changing the American psyche," Pete Flint, chief executive of real estate Website Trulia.com, told The New York Times. "There was a time when owning a home was a symbol you had made it. Now it's OK not to own."
The rate of U.S. homeownership is down to 66.4%, the lowest since 1998, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Some experts say it could fall to the level of the 1980s or earlier.
U.S. home prices keep sliding as many Americans decide owning a home is not for them. Prices last week fell to their lowest level since 2002, according to the Standard & Poor's Case-Shiller Home Price Index, erasing some of the gains made since the record low reached in 2009's first quarter. Prices are down 33.1% from their July 2006 peak.
Some see falling prices as a great opportunity to take advantage of the troubled market and buy a house. But many would-be buyers are leery of investing in houses that are unlikely to appreciate any time soon. The number of Americans who think buying a home is a safe investment has fallen to about 66% from 83% in 2003, according to a national survey by Fannie Mae released May 11.
Instead, many choose to rent.
"They're renting and they're happy renting because they're scared," Douglas C. Yeardley Jr., chief executive officer of luxury homebuilder Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL), told The Times.
Even though many Americans can afford to buy homes at the current near-record lows, they prefer the benefits of renting to the commitment of owning a home. Renters have the flexibility of not being tied to a certain location, should they have to move to find work or a more affordable place to live.
"We have more of what we call ‘renters by choice' than I've seen in the 40 years I've been in the apartment business," Jeffrey I. Friedman, chief executive of Associated Estates Realty Corp. (NYSE: AEC), told The Times.
Renters pay less each month than if they had a mortgage, and use the extra money for savings and other investments that offer better returns than buying a house.
"For many households in many years, renting and investing the saved cash flow has built more wealth than homeownership," Jordan Rappaport, senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, told The Times.
Rappaport found in a recent study that homeownership only half the time builds more wealth than other investing techniques.
Still, some housing industry members remain hopeful the goal of owning a home is not dead, just on hold.
"Most people still want the big house with the big lot in the desirable school district in the suburbs," said Toll Brothers' Yeardley. "No one ever renovated the kitchen or redid a room for the kids in a rental. I think – I hope – we'll be O.K."
This prompted last week's Money Morning "Question of the Week": With the weak state of the U.S. housing market, do you recommend owning a home? Or do you favor renting? How important is it to you to be homeowner one day? How has the U.S. housing market and home prices affected your home-owning decisions? Have you been helped or hurt by low prices? When do you see prices recovering?
If you're searching the real estate market, check out the following reader thoughts on if now is a good time to buy a home.
We sold our home a year ago, and I feel very fortunate. We are currently renting, and will probably not buy again for at least a few years. Partly this is because I don't expect prices to bottom real soon, and even when they do, I don't expect a sharp rebound, but mostly it is because we want to be more free to move around. A home may be an investment, but it can be a very illiquid one.
I have a good friend in the United States, where I used to live, who got a job and moved in about a year and a half ago. He and his family immediately bought a home, but now his job has moved, and to keep his job he must move also. However, the home has depreciated since he bought it, and even worse, there are just not many buyers, so he is stuck, hoping to get lucky.
So, do I think this is a good time to buy? If you are confident that you will be in the same place for at least 10 years, then possibly. Interest rates are low, and prices are a long way off their highs, making a home relatively cheap, compared to any time in the last decade or more. But don't consider it an investment. If you can rent just as cheaply, then that may still be the better option. Certainly, if your plans change, and you need to move, life will be a lot simpler.
As an ex-realtor I have some insight into this question.
First, it would be very important to have a secure job or vocation before buying. Try to find a property near your job, preferably one you can bicycle to. If you think you may have to move before the home is paid for, or you are just starting out, get a rental property. If you do have to move, you can rent out your unit.
Get something cheap. Don't pay more than 25% of your income for housing. Pay it off as soon as possible, no longer than 20-year mortgage. When your rental is paid for, you can then buy a single-family home and use the income to help make your new payment.
I purchased my property in 2004, finished paying for it in 2007 and it has doubled in value since purchase with no improvements, just upkeep. I bought it right (previous owners were about to lose it), and it is a business – a farm.
Whether or not it's a good time to buy a home depends on your stage in life, and where you live. I would recommend owning, if you plan to live in your home forever. I don't view ownership as an investment. I think that mindset is what brought about the housing collapse, as the banks encouraged unqualified buyers to 'own' a home.
At the present time, I own several properties, including rental homes. I have no mortgages on these properties, and they bring in a modest income after taxes, insurance and maintenance. It is not for the faint of heart, and is not always easy to deal with tenants. I would actually like to sell one of these properties, but the market is too low.
Two years ago, I spent almost $7,000 for new central air to replace a worn out one. They last 13 to 15 years, I am told. In another few years, I will have to spend a few thousand dollars to replace my shingles. That and all of the other costs involved in home ownership make me wonder if it is worth it.
But, then I look forward to the time when the house is paid off and other people are still renting. The house payment I won't have is quite a lot all by itself.
I love owning my home. Finally – freedom to do what I please!
Back in June of 2009, my wife and I had no choice but to move – which turned out to be a blessing. So we looked at over 75 homes. The first realtor tried to rip us off with a sinkhole home.
Then I found a realtor who found us a home built in 2007 with an acre of land. No neighbors on either side or in front. Right near the schools. A $330,000 home before the 2008 crash and we got it for $128,000 in 2009 – 4.5% 30-year fixed mortgage through Bank of America, with my wife the only one working. They thought we would lose the home, but didn't.
Just put in $6,000 worth of Brazilian cherry flooring.
The real estate market has a long way to fall before people will buy. Nobody in their right mind would buy a home now with the market only halfway down the toilet.
[Editor's Note: Thanks to all who responded to last week's "Question of the Week" about U.S. home ownership.
Be sure to answer next week's question: Do you think we're in the middle of a new tech bubble? Why or why not? How does this tech explosion differ from the dot-com bubble, if at all? Are you investing in tech or do you think many of the recent tech IPOs are overvalued?
Send your answers to mailbag@moneymappress.com.!
Is there a topic you want to see covered as a "Question of the Week" feature? Then let us know by e-mailing Money Morning at mailbag@moneymappress.com. Make sure to reference "question of the week suggestion" in the subject line. We reserve the right to edit responses for length, grammar and clarity.
Not good from an investment perspective.
It's not a good time to buy a home at all at least for 5 yrs from my perspective, am in a finance industry as a credit analyst… wait wait and wait until the economy really start to rebound.
Seems like the majority of people would encourage others to buy. My wife and I bring in good income and we are really thinking about buying. She's definitely more excited than I am.
I am concerned because although things are going better for us financially then they were 1 or 2 years ago, I still feel some uncertainty with employment and finances. I have been back to work for 1 year after being laid off for 17 months. I make over $10,000 less then I did in 2007-2008. My wife has added some credentials over the last 2 years and her income has increased, but she is currently in her 4th position in 4 years. She was laid of in successive years (2009, 2010).
We are renters with a 15 month old daughter. Although our apartment is spacious we feel that we have outgrown our current living arrangements. I'm seriously debating renting a house or a condo somewhere at least for a year instead of investing in our own property.
1. Further indebting ourselves with a mortgage and the cost of obtaining credit on top of our student loans and other obligations such as energy costs is unattractive in an unhealthy economic environment.
2. Sure homes are cheap right now especially in Southeastern Michigan, but the added expenses of triple+ taxation by the state/local goverments (income, sales, property, regulations) really increase the costs. Due to the irresponsible and underwhelming Federal Government were suffering from increased inflation and prices. Our money has lost buying power.
With all of the maintenance and improvement costs for new home owners, buying things such as lawnmowers, roofing, paint, carpeting, furnishings, appliances, and other electronics can be intimidating. We have credit, but why would we want to further indebt our selves to buy these things as our dollar continues to weaken and with our government doing relatively little to address the issues?
3. I'm not trying to sound like mister gloom and doom, but the last thing has to do with prices raising on everthing but focusing on GAS. I don't really like the area I work in at least when it comes to buying a home. My wife is in education and works in the ghetto so we don't like her work area. No matter where we move we will be subject to higher fuel costs due to our daily commute. Spending $120-$180+ dollas per week on fuel combined with increased food costs is definitely a concern.
I would love to be a home owner, but I can't see myself being happy and confident in the investment (whether you view it as one or not it's an investment) knowing that there are fools in goverment who want to infinitely print money, raise taxes, interefere in the free market with regulations and other things, spend freely, increase government size, deindustrialize us, create unfair trade advantages, refuse to prosecute criminal bankers and then when SHTF blame it all on welfare recipients, unions, and retirees (not saying we don't have a lot of waste in entitlements).
How does the housing market bounce back when 1/5 of the country is jobless? Or 44 million Americans are dependant on the government for food?
We will continue to look for a home, but I guess I just needed to vent.
Thanks for this. And good luck.
Buy house with $140k or less and go with 7 years arm at 4% interest rate.
Plan to pay off in 7 years or less.
Either way, plan to payoff the house with in 7 years.
Keep in mind, your goal are not to have a car loan or a mortgate.
I make only 40k a year, but i dont have a mortgate or car payment, pay everything by cash.
Travel international every year. Enjoy a nice health membership club, workout every other day.
After all, being healthy is gold.
If the governement, when it had printed money, had loaned it to homeowners idirectley instead of banks it wouldn't be in the mess that it is. The collatarel would be the house. The interest rate would be .05% and folks wouldn't default. They would have more money to spend on cars and houses. Houses would then retain value and their collateral would be A grade again. Instead banks take the money at .05% create a bubble in everything, including treasury bonds paying 3% and sit back and watch the poor and dispossesed suffer. A bit more suffering and a bit more free time to realise the truth and Americans will hang the banks out to dry. They are not to big to fail. They are too lazy to try and succeed without the governements subsidies.
All around amazingly written blog..


This article was published 27/2/2017 (781 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Patrick Michalishyn volunteers while most people are asleep.
The 30-year-old volunteers his time as a DJ at CKUW 95.9 FM, the on-campus radio station at the University of Winnipeg. His show, The Wonderful & Frightening World of Patrick Michalishyn, airs Friday mornings from midnight to 6 a.m.
Tune in and you’ll hear everything from rock to punk to hip hop to industrial, much of it pulled from Michalishyn’s own 4,000-plus CD collection.
Patrick Michalishyn, 30, is a longtime volunteer with CKUW 95.9 FM, the University of Winnipeg’s on-campus and community radio station.
"I try to go for mood over genre," Michalishyn says when asked how he describes the theme of his show. "I like playing some weird, (messed) up stuff."
You’re also likely to hear weird recordings such as, say, selections from Ballads for the Age of Science, a six-CD collection Michalishyn owns that consists of educational recordings from the early ’60s.
Michalishyn, who works as a server/bartender and runs a record label called Sounds Escaping, enjoys the freedom that comes with CKUW’s mandate to present music and ideas that cannot be found in the mass media.
"I like that I’m not hindered by length," he says. "Sometimes I’ll play a 70-minute Japanese experimental freak-out if I want to take a nap."
Other than some time spent living in Australia, Michalishyn has had the same time slot since he was 19 years old. He was initially part of a rotating cast of hosts on a show called Dreamweapon. A few months later, he became Dreamweapon’s sole host and renamed it Radio Schizophrenia.
When he returned from Australia in 2015, he was able to get his time slot back, and he gave the show its current name.
Michalishyn became a "full-blown music lover nerd" at the age of 13 when he discovered Canadian instrumental rock band Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet via the sketch comedy TV show The Kids in the Hall.
"Something just grabbed me by the ears and wouldn’t let go," he says.
Volunteering at CKUW allows Michalishyn to share his encyclopedic knowledge and passion for music with listeners.
"It’s amazing being in this little cramped room with no windows, with the music blasting out of the monitors, just sending a signal out to whoever might catch it," he says. "It’s like my happy place."
Michalishyn is one of 120 volunteers at the station who host shows, conduct interviews, help with the news department and serve on the station’s board of directors.
"Without volunteers, the station wouldn’t be able to function as it does right now," says Ugonna Chigbo, CKUW’s volunteer co-ordinator.
The station is looking for more volunteers. Anyone interested can email volunteer@ckuw.ca or call 204-786-9782.
For Michalishyn, one of the best parts about being involved at the station is the camaraderie.
"I like that when I meet other volunteers from CKUW, they are just as passionate and ready to geek out over music as I am," he says. "That’s my favourite thing: meeting a complete stranger but knowing you have that one thing that you’re just going to click on."
The following is a list of volunteer opportunities for Winnipeg and surrounding areas. For more information about these listings, please contact the organization directly. Volunteer Manitoba does not place volunteers with organizations, but we can assist you in finding a volunteer opportunity. To learn more about our programs and services, please visit volunteermanitoba.ca or call 204-477-5180.
Misericordia Health Centre looking for Gift Shop volunteers. Need Tuesday or Friday afternoons, or Wednesday mornings. Also looking for Information Ambassador volunteers. Free Parking provided for both roles. Apply online at misericordia.mb.ca/Volunteer.html or call 204-788-8131 for info.
Pregnancy and Family Support Services require a handyman/handywoman to provide friendly and courteous customer service, maintenance duties in the store and warehouse. Day or half day shifts during weekdays, flexible. Email: spence.street.thrift.shop@gmail.com or phone 204-783-9281.
Hands of Hope, a non-profit organization that provides free furniture and household goods for people in need, require volunteers to pick up and deliver furniture with supervisor. Email handsofhopewinnipeg@gmail.com or phone 204-952-2511.


Accepted Offer with Contingencies. Amazing one story property in highly sought after South Corvallis area. Close proximity to parks, school and Hwy 34 for access to I5 or Hwy 99. The well laid out floor plan boasts large kitchen and family room. Don't miss the enormous garage at 660 Sq Ft! Your personal touches will bring this home to life.


Take a look at these incredible style transformations.
Jonah Hill's fitness transformation has been the chatter of the internet this week. But it's more than just the actor's physique that's changed. The dude has come into his own when it comes to getting dressed. And Hill isn't the only famous guy whose style evolution played out right before our eyes—Hollywood has a long list of 'em. Here's a look back at some of the most iconic changes.
Beckham is an icon, period. This spiky hair, brown leather jacket, and ombre shades aren't exactly good, but they're just the beginning.
Behold, the personification of aging like a fine wine.
Pratt got crazy ripped and invested heavily in a great wardrobe (and, likely, a stylist). As you can see, it worked for him.
If we're being honest, Harry Styles wasn't ever really not stylish—even as a kid in 2012. His looks were just tame and boy-ish.
Fast forward to 2017, and Styles is one of the men changing the face of modern menswear. If only we could own as much Gucci as he does.
2001 cornrow Jared Leto is an inspirational one, for sure. Pair that with a red dress shirt, track pants, and some sort of thick blue shoe and you've got yourself an icon.
Another walking ad for Gucci, Leto has recently been game for any sort of long jacket and/or cape layer.
2006 Jonah did not follow the cardinal rule of poor fit: baggy clothes make you look bigger.
2017 Jonah still leans toward a laid-back style, but it's cleaned up this time with a fitted tank, Vans, and mid-calf socks.
2003 Justin Timberlake in a fedora, chain, and a puke-green shirt. Hard pass.
JT has one of the most impressive style evolutions of all time. For that, we are grateful.
At the 2003 ESPYs, Kevin Love showed up with a buzz cut, a goatee, Air Force 1s, and no clue about how his clothes should fit.
The NBA star got cut (he credits eliminating dairy from his diet, among other changes), and tightened up his looks. This 2015 ESPYs look was a great one.
IS THIS A ZOOT SUIT, 2004 LeBron?
And in 2016: a hundred million times better.
At the 2004 MTV Movie Awards, Shia wore what appears to be an "I Got Served" T-shirt, because why the hell not?
Modern day Shia is a menswear anomaly. He wears whatever he wants—like sweatpants tucked into his military boots and stained T-shirts—but does so in a smooth, purposeful way.
Here we have a 2003 Alexander Skarsgard wearing an abhorrent red shirt and a tie that isn't even close to being the right length.
Dude really found his style, though. His go-to look is a pair of slim-fit pants and boldly patterned short sleeve shirt.
Like Styles, Zac Efron's style evolution was really more about maturity. Like in 2008, when he thought a man scarf on the red carpet would be a good look.
A much better red carpet choice: a perfectly tailored suit and a great haircut.


A Dave Boundy hat-trick catapulted Orange City into the box seat of their Orange District Cricket Association second grade clash with Centrals on the weekend, the former Western Zone swing king decimating the red and blacks’ top order. The Warriors had declared earlier in the day at 7-232 and in reply Centrals worked their way to 1-23, the red and blacks were looking to steady the ship after Dylan Caughlan snared Sean Kelly (0) straight away. The Boundy went to work. Hooping the ball around from a semi-long run-up, first Boundy trapped Brenton Anthony (6) in front with the fifth ball of his first over. MORE IN CRICKET: TEAM OF THE WEEK | Gurney goes ballistic as bowlers take big hauls Then, across the last two balls of his next over and the first of his third, he lured Tristan Moon (0) into a false shot before uprooting Mitch Stanley (0) and Roshan Eiseman’s (0) castles to snare a rare hat-trick, and leave Centrals reeling at 5-23. With Mick Evans producing a maiden in between those two, Boundy actually took 4-0 in the space of 13 balls. Brock Walker (18 not out) and Gareth Faul (0 not out) will resume at the crease on day two, their side needing another 210 for victory. In the other second grade clash CYMS look on track to down Cavaliers, although Matt Baker’s dismissal late on day one was somewhat untimely. After Cavaliers posted 206, Baker led his side to 1-110 with an unbeaten 61 but in the shadows of stumps he was trapped in front by Al Harper. The green and golds didn’t lose any more wickets and will resume at 2-113 though, with at least 80 overs left they remain firmly in the box seat. ALSO READ: Hot Coles breaks Wentworth’s drought to claim inaugural Steve Roach Memorial Trophy In third grade CYMS managed two victories over Kinross in as many days, the two sides faced off on Saturday before playing a catch-up game on Sunday too. Both were low-scoring, yet thrilling affairs. On Saturday CYMS skittled Kinross for 92 but the students fought back hard with the ball, it eventually took the green and golds 35 overs to edge home with just two wickets left in the bank. Sunday’s game played out much the same, but for a match-winnings innings from Ben McNiven. Kinross made 100 and McNiven came to the crease with his side reeling at 7-51, but played a composed innings to finish 42 not out and secure his side victory. Again, CYMS had two wickets in the bank. Waratahs (9-133) also defeated Orange City (9-132) in third grade, edging home by a single wicket, while the results of the other two games were not available at time of publication. In Centenary Cup Kinross Super Kings (9-157) defeated CYMS (69) and Orange City handed Kinross Blue their first defeat of the 2018-19 summer. Logan Buckley blasted 83 to lead the students to a defensible 9-168 but Jeremiah Murphy (72) and Darcy Climpson (57) once again combined well, inspiring their side’s five-wicket victory just seven days after doing something similar against CYMS.
A Dave Boundy hat-trick catapulted Orange City into the box seat of their Orange District Cricket Association second grade clash with Centrals on the weekend, the former Western Zone swing king decimating the red and blacks’ top order.
The Warriors had declared earlier in the day at 7-232 and in reply Centrals worked their way to 1-23, the red and blacks were looking to steady the ship after Dylan Caughlan snared Sean Kelly (0) straight away.
The Boundy went to work.
Hooping the ball around from a semi-long run-up, first Boundy trapped Brenton Anthony (6) in front with the fifth ball of his first over.
Then, across the last two balls of his next over and the first of his third, he lured Tristan Moon (0) into a false shot before uprooting Mitch Stanley (0) and Roshan Eiseman’s (0) castles to snare a rare hat-trick, and leave Centrals reeling at 5-23.
With Mick Evans producing a maiden in between those two, Boundy actually took 4-0 in the space of 13 balls.
Brock Walker (18 not out) and Gareth Faul (0 not out) will resume at the crease on day two, their side needing another 210 for victory.
In the other second grade clash CYMS look on track to down Cavaliers, although Matt Baker’s dismissal late on day one was somewhat untimely.
After Cavaliers posted 206, Baker led his side to 1-110 with an unbeaten 61 but in the shadows of stumps he was trapped in front by Al Harper.
The green and golds didn’t lose any more wickets and will resume at 2-113 though, with at least 80 overs left they remain firmly in the box seat.
In third grade CYMS managed two victories over Kinross in as many days, the two sides faced off on Saturday before playing a catch-up game on Sunday too.
Both were low-scoring, yet thrilling affairs.
On Saturday CYMS skittled Kinross for 92 but the students fought back hard with the ball, it eventually took the green and golds 35 overs to edge home with just two wickets left in the bank.
Sunday’s game played out much the same, but for a match-winnings innings from Ben McNiven.
Kinross made 100 and McNiven came to the crease with his side reeling at 7-51, but played a composed innings to finish 42 not out and secure his side victory. Again, CYMS had two wickets in the bank.
Waratahs (9-133) also defeated Orange City (9-132) in third grade, edging home by a single wicket, while the results of the other two games were not available at time of publication.
In Centenary Cup Kinross Super Kings (9-157) defeated CYMS (69) and Orange City handed Kinross Blue their first defeat of the 2018-19 summer.
Logan Buckley blasted 83 to lead the students to a defensible 9-168 but Jeremiah Murphy (72) and Darcy Climpson (57) once again combined well, inspiring their side’s five-wicket victory just seven days after doing something similar against CYMS.
Discuss "Big, bad Boundy bags hat-trick as Centrals buckle, CYMS bounce Kinross back-to-back | Photos"


CHAMPIONS Prestatyn Town Reserves are within two points of Mackenzie Jones Clwyd League Premier Division leaders Mochdre Sports with four games in hand following Easter Monday's 3-0 victory at bottom side Halkyn.
CHAMPIONS Prestatyn Town Reserves are within two points of Mackenzie Jones Clwyd League Premier Division leaders Mochdre Sports with four games in hand following Easter Monday's 3-0 victory at bottom side Halkyn.
Second half goals from Tom Lloyd, Mark Hughes and a Ben Rowley penalty secured the spoils for Mark Boulton's side who are unbeaten all season in the league – a run of 20 matches.
Fellow title chasers Abergele Rovers were resounding 9-3 winners at Aston Park Rangers..
David Clayton fired four as Llandyrnog United Reserves ran out 7-0 winners over Brynford United on Monday, which followed a 7-1 win against Halkyn United Reserves in the second round of the Premier Cup thanks to a hat-trick from Ian Dunn.
Denbigh Town Reserves drew 0-0 on Monday at Flint Town, while Llansannan went down 1-0 at home to Penmaenmawr Phoenix.
Sion Burrows was on target for Rhuddlan Town in a 2-1 defeat at Sychdyn.
In Division One, Abergele Rovers Reserves shared a 3-3 draw with Point of Ayr, Brett Johns, Dale Adamson and John Terry for the Colliers, while Rhuddlan Town Reserves lost 2-1 at home to Aston Park Rangers Reserves.
A 1-0 win over St Asaph was enough to clinch the Division Two title for Mostyn Dragons last Saturday, but the Saints made up for their disappointment with a 5-1 home hammering of Bro Cernyw on Monday.
Adam Cassidy (2) Matthew Quinny, Warren Hughes and Steve Williams all fired for the home side.


MARNIE Simpson has quit Geordie Shore after five years.
The reality star joined the MTV reality show in 2013 but now she has decided to step away from the show and take her career to the next level.
A source exclusively told The Sun Online: "Marnie has loved her time on Geordie Shore but it's time for her to move on.
"She will still be around for this series but that's it - she won't return for the next."
Marnie has had her ups and downs in the show, famously her romances with the likes of Aaron Chalmers and Scotty T.
She also made history as the first LGBT member of the cast after coming out as bisexual in 2016.
The insider added: "Marnie's got loads of exciting opportunities coming up including new TV shows so she won't be off screens for long.
"Her contact lens business is massively popular too.
"She's loved her time on Geordie Shore and it's given her an incredible platform, but now she wants to move on and start new chapter in her life."
Marnie appeared on Celebrity Big Brother in 2016, eventually coming fourth.
Outside of the show Marnie has recently moved in with boyfriend Casey Johnson.
The pair met on MTV show Single AF last year and have been together throughout Marnie's last series though she did previously admit how it was tough being apart.


A recent assessment of Republican reproductive policy in developing countries found that the Mexico City policy, known outside the administration as the “global gag rule,” is essentially failing to prevent the spread of AIDS and blatantly ignoring the pressing healthcare needs of women and families in some of the world’s most impoverished nations.
The global gag rule requires any organization or clinic that provides reproductive services to sign an agreement stipulating that abortion will not be mentioned or discussed with patients. A recent study by Population Action International, Ipas, and Planned Parenthood Federation of America discovered just how debilitating that policy is to clinics in developing nations, where the policy sometimes caused the closure of the only available healthcare service within a day’s walk.
“‘In practice, that is what is happening. They are getting blackballed,’ said Wendy Turnbull, legislative policy analyst with Population Action International and one of the authors of the report.


People chase money and fame so they can live like Jimmy Buffett. Beaches, margaritas, cheeseburgers, sea captain hats. The thing is, as a new profile in the New York Times outlines, Buffett hasn’t been a card-carrying resident of Margaritaville in years. He has an apartment in New York City’s bustling Columbus Circle, finds refuge in shopping malls, quit smoking pot in favor of occasional vaping, and only consumes sugar on Sundays. He calls Warren Buffet “Uncle Warren”; not because they’re related, but because they’re friends and are very, very rich.
That’s not to call him a “sell-out” or any such thing. In Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s thorough profile, she paints Buffett as a workhorse devoted to maintaining the quality of a brand that, while built on a fantasy, has nearly spiraled out of control. Only Krusty The Clown surpasses Buffett in the sheer volume of their branded products.
And, god bless him, he’s really trying to uphold the vision of paradise his music (some of which, the piece points out, is actually quite sad) imparts to loyal Parrotheads. These days, that’s through his multi-million dollar Broadway musical, Escape to Margaritaville, which he likens more to Rocky Horror than he does a traditional musical.
And this exemplifies a struggle: Creating the illusion of leisure takes a shitload of work. If there’s one sentiment you’ll be left with after reading it’s that Buffett could really use a vacation. But you’ll also be left knowing he probably wouldn’t be able to enjoy it.


Britain's David Florence stormed to his third Canoe Slalom World Championships gold as he won the individual C1 on home water at Lee Valley.
The Scot, 33, who won the C1/C2 double at the 2013 Worlds, pipped Slovenia's Benjamin Savsek by just 0.04 seconds.
Fellow Briton Ryan Westley, the first man to go in the final, held on to take a superb bronze medal.
Kimberley Woods (fourth), Eilidh Gibson (fifth) and Mallory Franklin (seventh) narrowly missed out in the women's C1.
One mistake by Woods between the last two gates cost her after Czech Katerina Hoskova set the pace, Spaniard Nuria Vilarrubla pushing the Briton into third before Australia's defending champion Jessica Fox came down last to take gold, almost five seconds clear.
British trio Richard Hounslow, Bradley Forbes-Cryans and Joe Clarke all failed to reach the men's K1 final.
Double-Olympic silver medallist Florence won a team bronze on Saturday, but had to settle for fifth with partner Richard Hounslow in the C2.
"That was more like it," he said. "I was really pleased just to get to the final again as it is always a fight to get there, but once you get there that's your chance to deliver.
"I got into some real trouble to be honest around gates five, six and seven and lost a bit of an edge, tried to recover it and didn't quite manage. I thought I had recovered it, but was pushing the wrong way and eventually got back on line and just had to try and re-focus.
"The crowd were incredible, there was an absolute buzz. The rest of the course just went really well and it was enough to win by a very small margin - enough to become world champion again."


The woman many expect to be the next president of the National Farmers Union spoke to farmers at the AGM of the Berkshire Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire branch of the NFU at The Oxfordshire Golf Club near Thame.
Minette Batters, currently NFU deputy president, has put her name forward for the presidency after the current incumbent Meurig Raymond announced his intention not to seek re-election at the AGM in February next year.
And so it was no surprise to find more than 100 farmers at the Thame meeting, keen to see the person who may take farming through the period of Brexit negotiations.
Ms Batters, a tenant farmer in Wiltshire, runs a beef enterprise and co-founded the campaigning initiative Ladies in Beef. She runs a diversified mixed farming business and as well as the beef and some arable land she does horse liveries and operates a wedding and corporate events venue, and a catering business.
So she is clearly a woman with a passion for farming, but also a successful businesswoman - essential ingredients for the role of NFU president. She has been a member of the NFU from grass roots through to many official roles. She began her address in Thame by paying tribute to the hard work of Mr Raymond and NFU vice president Guy Smith before talking about a wide variety of topics currently taxing the minds of farmers.
These included the Basic Payment Scheme operated by the Rural Payments Agency; rural crime with particular emphasis on the problem of hare coursing; and bovine TB.
On the issue of Brexit, she said the NFU was working alongside other agencies including the Country Landowners Association, the Tenant Farmers Association and the Young Farmers to talk to the government about the best possible outcome for the future of agriculture.
Questions from the floor included the need to identify Buy British options on supermarket online shopping; HS2; and the need to attract the right quality of young applicants to the industry.


Turnout has plummeted 37 percent since 2012, the state School Boards Association said Tuesday.
ALBANY - If you’re seeing fewer residents at the polls to vote on school budgets each May, you’re not alone.
Turnout has plummeted 37 percent since 2012, the state School Boards Association said Tuesday, as voters appear complacent if their districts stay under the property-tax cap.
Turnout for last week’s school budget votes was the lowest since the tax cap was put in place in 2012 — with 50,000 fewer voters than a year ago, the group found in an analysis of state Education Department data.
The total number of votes cast statewide last Tuesday was 505,075 — a 9.5 percent drop from 2017.
Over the six-year period, the number of votes cast fell a whopping 300,000.
"Some of the drop may be blamed on the weather" this year because of heavy storms in the Hudson Valley, said Timothy Kremer, the group's executive director.
"But it still represents a disturbing trend, since the outcomes of school budgets — and school board races — are being decided by fewer and fewer people."
Nearly all school districts in New York, with the exception of big city school districts, hold their budget votes and elections for school board on the third Tuesday of May each year. The big city school districts don't hold budget votes.
But when districts stay under the property-tax cap, there is often little controversy and thus fewer voters.
"I think the tax cap has induced a sense of complacency," said E.J. McMahon, founder of the Empire Center, a fiscally conservative think tank in Albany.
"It’s seen as automatically keeping a fairly tight lid on the levy. But at the first sign of fiscal stress and added pressure for higher taxes, I'd expect turnout to rebound."
Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state Legislature installed the tax cap in 2011 as a way to limit the growth in property taxes.
The cap limits the growth in property taxes to 2 percent a year or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower.
The cap this year was 2 percent for the first time in several years after it fell below that because of low inflation.
To exceed the tax cap, a school district has the uphill challenge of getting 60 percent of voters to agree.
This year, voters approved nearly 98 percent of school budgets. Just 14 districts sought an override, and half of those attempts failed.
A revote for those budgets that were rejected by voters is scheduled for June 19.
Joseph Spector is chief of USA TODAY Network's Albany Bureau.


Sara Netanyahu, the wife of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could likely be indicted on charges of fraud and misuse of state funds, Israel’s Justice Ministry said on Friday.
The Attorney General is considering prosecuting Mrs. Netanyahu for using state funds amounting to around US$100,000 for personal luxury dining and other purchases, such as catering for private events, and paying for furniture and home improvements.
“Hundreds of meals from restaurants and chefs worth 359,000 shekels (US$102,399) were received from the state fraudulently,” the ministry statement said.
An indictment would lead to a future hearing, the date of which is still unknown.
Significantly, the case may also be a precedent for moving forward with charges against the Prime Minister himself.
Benjamin Netanyahu is currently under investigation for several cases related to bribery, fraud, breach of trust, and misuse of funds. He is accused of receiving “lavish” gifts from wealthy supporters, such as luxury goods, and of purchasing positive coverage from newspaper owners.
His personal lawyer, David Shimron, is facing a corruption case over shady interests in a defense contract deal to purchase submarines from a German company. Prime Minister Netanyahu himself will be testifying in the case.


Question. Can I freeze the blue cheese crumbles I use to toss with salads?
Answer. Soft cheese should not be frozen, but you can freeze hard and semi-soft cheese. Just keep in mind that freezing changes cheese's texture. And while most experts agree that freezing is acceptable, though not the ideal method for preserving cheese, most are not as stringent as Steven Jenkins in Cheese Primer: "Cheese suffers enormously from being frozen, so simply get the notion out of your head," he writes.
Katie Neuser, manager of the information center at the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board, explained that cheese's texture changes after being frozen because protein and milk-fat portions in the cheese freeze and thaw at different rates, with a tendency to make semi-soft and hard cheese "a little bit crumbly."
But since you're interested in freezing crumbles, go right ahead.
Freeze (up to 6 months) only pieces 1 pound or less.
Thaw cheese in the refrigerator, and use within a few days of thawing.
Q: I have a recipe calling for 1/2 package compressed yeast. Can I substitute dry yeast?
A: Yes. There's an equal exchange for compressed yeast or fresh active yeast, which is an extremely perishable yeast sold as tiny square cakes, and active dry yeast, writes Sharon Tyler Herbst in Food Lover's Companion. One 0.6-ounce cake of fresh yeast is equivalent to one envelope of dry yeast, or 2 1/2 teaspoons.
1. Place flour, salt, baking powder in food processor fitted with metal blade. Add butter; process, pulsing machine on and off, for several seconds, until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add egg yolk, water; process just until dough forms a ball, several seconds more. Do not overprocess. Flatten dough into disc. Place in 9-inch pie plate lined with foil or 9-inch fluted tart pan. For pie plate, press dough into bottom and three-quarters of the way up sides. For tart pan, press dough into bottom and up sides. Prick bottom with fork. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate 30 minutes or overnight. Heat oven to 375F. Uncover. Bake 20 minutes or until golden; cool.
2. Cut red peppers into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Alternately arrange red peppers and cheese on bottom of tart shell. Top with prosciutto; sprinkle with rosemary and zest. Bake 10 minutes. Cool 10 minutes on wire rack. Remove from pan onto platter. Garnish with rosemary.
Variation: To make minitarts, prepare dough and shape into 24 balls. Press into bottom and up sides of 1 3/4-inch diameter mini-muffin pans. Prick bottoms with fork; refrigerate 30 minutes or overnight. Bake in 375 F oven 15 minutes or just until cheese is bubbly. Cool slightly; remove from pans. Makes 24 minitarts.


Palisade Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) by 31.1% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 38,565 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 17,395 shares during the period. Palisade Asset Management LLC’s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $6,528,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in GD. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 1.6% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,914,278 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $391,891,000 after buying an additional 29,753 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 5.0% during the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 61,144 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $12,517,000 after buying an additional 2,936 shares during the last quarter. Man Group plc grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 31.7% during the third quarter. Man Group plc now owns 1,712 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $351,000 after buying an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the third quarter worth about $5,118,000. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in shares of General Dynamics by 1.5% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 158,962 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $32,543,000 after buying an additional 2,362 shares during the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
In other news, Director Lester L. Lyles sold 4,580 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.42, for a total transaction of $789,683.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 12,314 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,123,179.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher J. Brady sold 2,327 shares of General Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.23, for a total transaction of $398,452.21. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 5,134 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $879,094.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,547 shares of company stock valued at $3,609,299. 7.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.
NYSE:GD traded down $2.93 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $172.00. The stock had a trading volume of 1,209,242 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,371,198. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $50.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.06, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.12. General Dynamics Co. has a twelve month low of $143.87 and a twelve month high of $229.74.
General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $3.07 EPS for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $2.98 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $10.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.34 billion. General Dynamics had a net margin of 9.24% and a return on equity of 28.33%. The firm’s revenue was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.50 earnings per share. Analysts expect that General Dynamics Co. will post 11.72 EPS for the current year.
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 12th will be given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. This is an increase from General Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. General Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.73%.
A number of research firms recently issued reports on GD. Zacks Investment Research lowered General Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, March 11th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Credit Suisse Group lowered General Dynamics from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $190.00 to $184.00 in a report on Friday, February 15th. Drexel Hamilton reissued a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Monday, February 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on General Dynamics from $186.00 to $178.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. The stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $204.43.
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General Dynamics Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense company worldwide. It operates in five segments: Aerospace, Combat Systems, Information Technology, Mission Systems, and Marine Systems. The Aerospace segment designs, manufactures, and supports business-jet aircraft; and offers business-aviation services, including maintenance, fixed-base operation, government fleet, aircraft management, charter, and staffing services, as well as integrated aviation solutions.
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The concept American Revolution (1775-1783) represents the subject, aboutness, idea or notion of resources found in Boston University Libraries.
A history of the American revolution: : comprehending all the principal events both in the field and in the cabinet., By Paul Allen, esq. To which are added the most important resolutions of the Continental congress, and many of the most important letters of General Washington ..
A history of the campaigns of 1780 and 1781 in the southern provinces of North America, by Lieutenant-Colonel Tarleton ..
A new historic manual concerning the three battles at Trenton and Princeton, New Jersey, : during the war for American independence, in 1776 and 1777., By C.C. Haven ..
Battles of the American revolution. 1775-1781. : Historical and military criticism, with topographical illustration ..., By Henry B. Carrington ..
Biographical sketches of loyalists of the American Revolution, : with an historical essay., By Lorenzo Sabine ..
Histoire de la participation de la France à l'établissement des États-Unis d'Amérique. : Correspondance diplomatique et documents,, par Henri Doniol ..
Historic pilgrimages in New England; : among landmarks of Pilgrim and Puritan days and of the provincial and revolutionary periods,, by Edwin M. Bacon ..
Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774-1789., Edited from the original records in the Library of Congress ..
Katharine Walton; or, The rebel of Dorchester,, by W. Gilmore Simms ..
Lives of the heroes of the American revolution ... also embracing the Declaration of independence and signers' names; the Constitution of the United States and amendments; together with the inaugural, first annual and farewell addresses of Washington ..
Memoirs of his own time; : including the revolution, the empire, and the restoration., By Lieut.-Gen. Count Mathieu Dumas ..
Record of service of Connecticut men in the I. War of the Revolution, II. War of 1812, III. Mexican War, compiled by authority of the General Assembly, under direction of the Adjutants-General ..
Soldiers and sailors of France in the American War for Independence (1776-1783), by Captain Joachim Merlant ..
Songs and ballads of the American Revolution., With notes and illustrations by Frank Moore ..
The American Revolution, 1763-1783; : being the chapters and passages relating to America from the author's History of England in the eighteenth century,, by William Edward Hartpole Lecky ... Arranged and ed., with historical and bibliographical notes, by James Albert Woodburn ..
A history of the American revolution: : comprehending all the principal events both in the field and in the cabinet.
A narrative of Col. Ethan Allen's captivity.
A new historic manual concerning the three battles at Trenton and Princeton, New Jersey, : during the war for American independence, in 1776 and 1777.
Biographical sketches of loyalists of the American Revolution, : with an historical essay.
Correspondence of General Washington and Comte de Grasse, 1781, August 17-November 4. : With supplementary documents from the Washington papers in the Manuscripts Division of the Library of Congress.
Extra official state papers. : Addressed to the Right Hon. Lord Rawdon and the other members of ... Parliament, associated for the preservation of the constitution and promoting the prosperity of the British empire.
Journal of Lieutenant Isaac Bangs, April 1 to July 29, 1776.
Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774-1789.
Letters of Brunswick and Hessian officers during the AmericanRevolution.
Life and correspondence of John Paul Jones : including his narrative of the campaign of the Liman.
Life of Jonathan Trumbull, sen., governor of Connecticut.
M'Fingal: : an epic poem.
Major-General Anthony Wayne and the Pennsylvania line in the Continental Army.
Memoirs of his own time; : including the Revolution, the Empire, and the Restoration.
Men and times of the revolution; : or, Memoirs of Elkanah Watson, including his journals of travels in Europe and America, from the year 1777 to 1842, and his correspondence with public men, and reminiscences and incidents of the American Revolution.
Men and times of the revolution; or, Memoirs of Elkanah Watson, : including journals of travels in Europe and America, from 1777 to 1842, with his correspondence with public men and reminiscences and incidents of the revolution.
Oration on the hundredth anniversary of the surrender of Lord Cornwallis to the combined forces of America and France, : at Yorktown, Virginia, 19th October, 1781: delivered at Yorktown, 19th October, 1881.
Orderly book kept by Jeremiah Fogg. : Adjutant Colonel Enoch Poors̕ Second New Hampshire regiment on Winter Hill, during the siege of Boston, October 28, 1775, to January 12, 1776.
Satiric poems: : The progress of dulness and M'Fingal.
Seventeen hundred and seventy-six, : or, The War of Independence; a history of the Anglo-Americans, from the period of the union of the colonies against the French, to the inauguration of Washington, the first President of the United States of America.
Songs and ballads of the American Revolution.
The Yorktown Campaign and the surrender of Cornwallis, 1781.
The financier and the finances of the American revolution.
The history of Woburn, Middlesex County, Mass. from the grant of its territory to Charlestown, in 1640, to the year 1860.
The history of the Navy of the United States of America.
The journals of each Provincial congress of Massachusetts in 1774 and 1775, : and of the Committee of safety, with an appendix, containing the proceedings of the county conventions-narratives of the events of the nineteenth of April, 1775-papers relating to Ticonderoga and Crown Point, and other documents, illustrative of the early history of the American revolution.
The life and public services of Samuel Adams, : being a narrative of his acts and opinions, and of his agency in producing and forwarding the American Revolution. With extracts from his correspondence, state papers, and political essays.
The life of James Otis, of Massachusetts: : containing also, notices of some contemporary characters and events, from the year 1760 to 1775.
The literary history of the American revolution, 1763-1783.
The orderly book of Colonel William Henshaw, : of the American Army, April 20-Sept. 26, 1775.
The pulpit of the American revolution: or, The political sermons of the period of 1776. : With a historical introduction, notes, and illustrations.
The wagoner of the Alleghanies. : A poem of the days of seventy-six.
The writings of George Washington from the original manuscript sources, 1745-1799 : prepared under the direction of the United States George Washington Bicentennial Commission and published by authority of Congress.
Three plays for Puritans: : The devil's disciple, Caesar and Cleopatra, & Captain Brassbound's conversion.


Now that Halliburton is buyingBaker Hughes in order to make a run at Schlumberger , many investors are probably wondering which one of these two oil-field services companies is the better buy today. So we asked two of our energy contributors to lay out why one should be higher on your buy list than the other. Here's what they had to say.
HAL P/E Ratio (TTM) data by YCharts.
Because of Schlumberger'slarger size and scale, investors have traditionally paid a premium to own its stock. This irks Halliburton's senior management because their company's operational returns have been better than its larger peer, particularly over the past few years, as we see in this next slide.
Halliburton, thus, believes it deserves the premium valuation from investors. But it realizes that won't happen until it can rival Schlumberger in size. This is aprimary driverbehind the company's desire to merge with Baker Hughes: It feels the combination will provide it with synergies and new opportunities, as well as the scale it needs to demand a higher valuation multiple.
It's my belief that once the deal closes Halliburton will indeed begin to close itsvaluation gap with Schlumberger. Which is why I think its stock has the potential to outperform Schlumberger over the long term -- investors are not only getting a better value now, but also a company that should enjoy a much higher valuation in the future once the energy market settles down a bit. So if I had to choose between the two, I believe Halliburton is unquestionably the better buy now.
I'm not afraid to admit that Halliburton's stock might perform a little better than Schlumberger'sover the next year or so. Over that sort of time period, though, it's too much of a crap shoot to pick a clear winner.If looking to buy one of these companies and hold on to it for a long time, on the other hand, the following chart makes it hardto argue Halliburton is a better investment than Schlumberger.
HAL Total Return Price data by YCharts.
It isn't sheer coincidence that Schlumberger's stock has outperformed Halliburton's by close to four times over this decades-long time horizon. It comes down to a few key things.
Schlumberger runs a leaner operation.I'm going to act like a sports journalist and accuse Halliburton of juicing -- on debt, that is. Those higher return numbers from Halliburton (as seen in Matt's chart above)are in part because it has been running a higher debt leverage ratio, and it takes a higher level of working capital than Schlumbergerfor the company to generateearnings. This can help a company look better in the good times like these past few years, but it can also sink a company when the market goes south.
Schlumberger's revenue is tied to longer-term, higher-margin projects, such asdeepwater operations and international business, while Halliburton is much stronger in North America and in onshore shale drilling. While both of these sources of oil and gas are high cost and will likely decline, it takes far more time to wind downa deepwater project than to closea shale well, meaning the impacts of the production decline will be felt faster by Halliburton. Throw in Schlumberger's more technology-driven, less-commoditized services, and you get EBITDA margins 5 percentage points higher.
It's far too brazen to say Schlumberger's stockwill continue to crush Halliburton's as it has over the past several decades, but that 2.4% dividend yield (compared to Halliburton's 1.8% and Baker Hughes' 1.2%) certainly has helped. Bottom line, Schlumberger has had a higher valuation for a reason: it's just the better company.
The article Better Buy Now: Schlumberger vs. Halliburton originally appeared on Fool.com.
Matt DiLallo has no position in any stocks mentioned. Tyler Crowe has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Halliburton. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.


BANGKOK (AP) — The head of Thailand’s immigration police said Monday that a young Saudi woman who was stopped in Bangkok as she was trying to travel to Australia for asylum to escape alleged abuse by her family will not be sent anywhere against her wishes.
Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun remained barricaded in an airport hotel room while sending out desperate pleas for help over social media. The 18-year-old began posting on Twitter late Saturday after her passport was taken away when she arrived in the Thai capital on a flight from Kuwait. She has been appealing for aid from the United Nations refugee agency and anyone else who can help.
Earlier in the day, Thailand’s immigration police chief, Maj. Gen. Surachate Hakparn, said Alqunun’s father would arrive Monday night, and that officials would see if the young woman was willing to depart with him.
“As of now, she does not wish to go back and we will not force her. She won’t be sent anywhere tonight,” Surachate said at a news conference at the airport where Alqunun is stuck.
On Twitter, Alqunun wrote of being in “real danger” if forced to return to her family in Saudi Arabia, and has claimed in media interviews that she could be killed. She told the BBC that she had renounced Islam and is fearful of her father’s retaliation.
Alqunun’s planned forced departure Monday morning was averted as she stayed in her hotel room, with furniture piled up against the door, photos she posted online showed.
Her plight mirrors that of other Saudi women who in recent years have turned to social media to amplify their calls for help while trying to flee abusive families. Alqunun’s Twitter account has attracted tens of thousands of followers in less than 48 hours and her story has grabbed the attention of foreign governments and the U.N. refugee agency.
It also shows the limits of reforms being pushed by Saudi Arabia’s powerful Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman as he struggles to repair damage to his reputation after the grisly killing three months ago of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents in Istanbul.
A Thai court declined to issue an injunction against her being sent back to her parents in Kuwait, from where she began her journey. A family trip to Kuwait apparently allowed her to evade Saudi Arabia’s restrictions on travel.
Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch, told The Associated Press that Thailand should give Alqunun back her passport and let her continue her journey to Australia.
Immigration police chief Surachate contradicted parts of Alqunun’s story, including her claim that she had an Australian visa. However, he did not show her passport.
Some opposition figures in Australia urged that country’s government to support Alqunun’s efforts.
“I implore the government to do everything they can to help bring this young woman to Australia to give her the opportunity for freedom,” said Australian Sen. Sarah Hanson Young.
Alqunun has said she was tricked into giving up her passport upon arrival in Bangkok by a man she has variously identified as a Kuwait Airways employee or a Saudi Embassy official. She said Saudi and Thai officials then told her she would be returned to Kuwait on Monday, where her father and brother are awaiting her.
While the Saudi Embassy in Thailand denies Saudi authorities are involved in attempts to stop Alqunun from traveling to Australia, the kingdom has in the past forcibly returned citizens home.
Saudi Arabia’s charge d’affaires in Bangkok, Abdullah al-Shuaibi, was quoted in Saudi media as saying that Alqunun was stopped by Thai authorities because she did not appear to have a return ticket, a hotel reservation or itinerary to show she was a tourist. He said the Saudi Embassy has no authority to stop anyone at the airport and that such a decision would rest with Thai officials.
Batrawy reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press journalists Tassanee Vejpongsa and Kaweewit Kaewjinda in Bangkok and Sam McNeil in Sydney contributed to this report.