Staying afloat: using Jason-3 to measure sea level rise
The view from above: mapping Greenland's melting glaciers
Scientist Interviews | May 17, 2016
Ice-tracking satellite: the next generation
By Pat Brennan, Jet Propulsion Laboratory
The expected launch of ICESat-2 in 2017 will continue NASA's decades-long effort to monitor changes in Earth's glaciers and great ice sheets.
Ice sheets and glaciers—Earth’s cryosphere—are a major focus for NASA’s Sea Level Change Team, and for team member Alex Gardner, a glacier specialist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. Gardner studies the effects of glaciers on sea level and on the planet’s water resources. During a break from a meeting at JPL on the soon-to-be-launched ICESat-2 (Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite), Gardner answered a few questions from NASA’s Sea Level Portal.
Portal: What is the purpose of the ICESat-2 meeting?
Gardner: Each satellite has a science team. The team is supposed to guide the science mission. The satellite will launch next year; we’re now looking at what are the potential things we have to get sorted out before the satellite launches. Is the science quality going to be what we need? Does anything need to be changed before it goes up? How do we support the users? On a more “sciency” side, we are looking at how the laser (altimeter instrument on the spacecraft) interacts with the snow. More interesting is what ICESat-2 is.
Portal: And just what is it?
Gardner: ICESat-2 is a laser altimeter. The basic idea of a laser altimeter is that the satellite fires a laser pulse (light) that then passes through the atmosphere, bounces off the surface of the Earth, travels back through the atmosphere and is then received by the satellite. If you know exactly where the satellite is, where it’s pointing, how fast the laser energy (light) travels through the atmosphere, and how long it took the laser pulse to travel from the satellite to the surface and back then you will know exactly how far away the surface is from the satellite. The really amazing thing about ICESat-2 is, it’s a photon counting laser altimeter. That means that the detectors on the spacecraft are so sensitive that when a single photon finds its way back to the telescope, it records that event—every single photon it receives, the precise time and location.
What I keep telling people is, if you were standing in Boston and we put this satellite in New York and pointed it at you, we could tell whether you stepped off the curb or not. We’re close to being able to see if you mowed your lawn or not. It’s really incredible. We’re looking at centimeter precision—from space.
Portal: What are some of the questions you hope to answer with ICESat-2?
Gardner: If you use an altimeter to measure the volume of the Antarctic ice sheet, and how it changes, the really big question is how much are you losing to sea level rise. We don’t know that answer. If you have an error in your measurement of elevation change of one centimeter per year, it could double—or halve—the total signal. So you have to be able to resolve trends at the centimeter level. It has to be very, very precise.
ICESat-1 was a bit more conventional. It had a laser on it that did the same thing. It would send out a pulse and record the waveform coming back. But one of the big issues with ICESat-1 is that it didn’t directly measure the across-track slope. Imagine a sloping surface. Imagine you’re carrying a GPS and you walk in a straight line along a beach following the water’s edge, recording your elevation as you go. One year later you come back and try to walk the same transect to measure the change in surface height since you last visited, but you can only retrace your steps to within plus or minus 10 meters. Because you couldn’t retrace your steps exactly you won’t know if the elevation change you measure is because you were 10 meters higher up on the beach than the first time you visited or if the elevation of the sand had actually changed. We call this a problem of “unknown across-track slope.” With ICESat-2, we’ll have six beams, three strong, three weak, slightly offset from one another, to get the surface slope for the three beam-pairs. In addition we’ll get about nine times more coverage than we did with ICESat-1.
ICESat-2 will be also useful for sea ice. You have this floating surface always moving up and down, because of the tides and winds. What we measure is how thick the sea ice freeboard (the difference between ice height and sea surface height) is—how much is floating above the waterline. To do this, we try to measure the height of the water in the cracks between the ice and compare that to the height of the floating ice; this gives you the freeboard. When you have a surface as dynamic as the ocean, you can’t just go and measure the absolute elevation of the surface to figure how high it is above the water because you don’t know where the ocean lies. If you can see between the ice, you can find that surface. Sea ice has large implications for ocean circulation, ocean ecology and for global reflectivity (what scientists call the ‘albedo’).
Portal: It sounds like these elevation measurements are the key to understanding the effects of climate change.
Gardner: Elevation is so important to us that when ICESat-1 died in 2009, NASA started an airborne campaign, operation IceBridge, designed to keep collecting altimeter data in between the two missions. It’s likely to continue beyond that, but the community is looking forward to having the data from ICESat-2. Airborne missions simply cannot get the coverage you get with satellite missions, especially with places like Antarctica. Logistically it’s very difficult to try and cover a whole continent. IceBridge had to strategically select areas to monitor.
It all comes down to measuring the elevation very well, and even small uncertainties in elevation lead to large uncertainties in mass changes.
Portal: Have any major technical issues emerged during your meeting at JPL?
Gardner: We were a little bit concerned about the color of the laser, its green wavelength. It’s minor but it’s something we have to quantify: How much scattering of green light is there within the snow? It can affect the measurement of elevation. If you don’t know how it scatters, it’s difficult to say what is the best estimate of elevation. (But) the green laser is more stable and reflects more efficiently from the surface than ICESat-1’s near infrared laser. In many cases, in many applications, the color of the laser won’t be an issue at all. It’s just something we’re looking at.
Portal: Is ICESat-2 the most advanced laser altimeter ever launched?
Gardner: In glacier research there are four primary variables we measure from space, and they’re incredibly useful. One is gravity, one is elevation. The unique thing about those two is, they accumulate the signal. So if you have a change in the rate of ice loss or gain that happened 20 years ago, as long as you measured before the change occurred and after it occurred, it keeps the signal. Surface velocities and surface reflectance are the other ones that we measure. What’s unique about the altimeter integration signal (on ICESat-2) are the very fine spatial scales. GRACE might tell you the whole region is losing mass; ICESat can tell you where that mass has been lost. As for the big gap between the two missions (ICESat-1 and ICESat-2)—we can compare ICESat-1 elevations to ICESat-2 elevations to determine the accumulated change between the missions. The longer you wait, the larger the signal gets. If you keep doing it for another 20 to 30 years, you’ll know with a very high degree of certainty how the ice sheet has changed during that time. It also gives us the “where,” which also helps is understand the “how.” (ICESat-2 is) the most sophisticated by far.
View a video on the inner workings of the ICESat-2 laser altimeter
View a video on the ICESat-2 laser receiver
View imagery, graphics and animations on ICESat-2
Meet Alex Gardner
Alex Gardner is a Research Scientist in the Sea Level And Ice group, in the Earth Sciences Section at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology. He studies the Earth's cryosphere (frozen Earth) with a particular focus on glaciers and their impacts on sea level rise and water resources. He is interested in how glaciers respond to natural and human induced forcing. Alex is a member of the NASA Sea Level Change Team, and NASA’s ICESat-2 Science Definition Team. Before joining JPL in 2014 he was an assistant professor in the Graduate School of Geography at Clark University, Massachusetts.
Affiliation: NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California.
Expertise: Remote sensing of the cryosphere, sea level rise, glacial mass budget, climate-cryosphere interaction, snow and ice reflectance
Education: Bachelor of Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering, Great Distinction, University of Saskatchewan. Doctorate from the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta.


"Shimm, Sarah A., 1843-1885"
Byrd, Charlene Hodges, 1929-2009 1
Cummings, Ida R. (Ida Rebecca), 1868-1958 1
Douglass, Frederick, 1817?-1895 1
Grimke, Francis J. (Francis James), 1850-1937 1
Hodges, Joyce Ethel Cummings, 1903-1971 1
Morgan State College 1
Shimm, Erminie F. (Erminie Florence), 1867-1936 1
Charlene Hodges Byrd collection
smithsonian online virtual archive
Byrd, Charlene Hodges, 1929-2009
Shimm, Erminie F. (Erminie Florence), 1867-1936
Thomas, Elizabeth N. (Elizabeth Nelson), d. 1932
Cummings, Ida R. (Ida Rebecca), 1868-1958
Morgan State College
Hodges, Joyce Ethel Cummings, 1903-1971
Grimke, Francis J. (Francis James), 1850-1937
Bearden, Romare, 1911-1988
Washington, Booker T., 1856-1915
Douglass, Frederick, 1817?-1895
Shimm, Sarah A., 1843-1885
inclusive dates
bulk dates
43 Linear feet (35 document boxes and 39 oversize boxes)
The Charlene Hodges Byrd collection measures 43 linear feet, and dates from circa 1750-2009, with the bulk of the material dating from 1880-1960. The collection documents the personal life and professional career of Charlene Hodges Byrd, an African American teacher from Washington, D.C., along with material for several related families from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. Family members prominently represented include Sarah A. Shimm, teacher and essayist under the name Faith Lichen; her daughters Erminie F. Shimm and Grace E. Shimm Cummings, both teachers; and Byrd's mother, Joyce Ethel Cummings Hodges, also a teacher. Correspondence and writings chiefly discuss family life, religion, race, education, and the relationship with Frederick Douglass and his family. The collection is arranged in 10 series: Biographical Material, Correspondence, Writings, Subject Files, Financial and Legal Records, Printed Material, Volumes, Memorabilia, Textiles, and Photographs.
Charlene Hodges Byrd collection, circa 1750-2009. National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian Institution.
Scope and Contents
Series 1. Papers related to biographical and family histories of the Byrd, Cummings, Davage, Dews, Hodges, Shimm, Spruill, and Thomas families. Material includes family trees; school diplomas and certificates; programs; awards; marriage and divorce papers; funeral documents; and obituaries.
Series 2: Chiefly letters from family and friends regarding family news, financial matters, school, work, neighborhood affairs, church events, travel and the weather. The majority of the letters are addressed to Charlene Hodges Byrd, Grace E. Shimm Cummings, Ida R. Cummings, Elizabeth Dews Hodges, Joyce Ethel Cummings Hodges, Erminie F. Shimm, Sarah A. Shimm, and Elizabeth N. Thomas. Other correspondence includes letters from Booker T. Washington, Bessye Beardon, Charlotte Davage, Amelia Douglass, and Harrell S. Spruill. There are also a number of greeting cards, postcards, and empty envelopes.
Series 3. Writings include essays, speeches, papers written for school, teacher's notebooks, and a diary of Erminie F. Shimm, 1903. Topics include education, Frederick Douglass, religion, race, Africa, and the temperance movement.
Series 4. Subject files on Charlene Hodges Byrd's involvement with Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority; Book Lovers of Charleston, West Virginia, a women's book club organized in 1923; Church Women United radio program; and The Links, Inc., a volunteer service organization. The papers on Liberia relate to missionary work, and were probably gathered by Erminie F. Shimm; and the Shimm-Thomas Collection are papers related to the deposit and later return of family items housed as a collection at Morgan State College.
Series 5. The financial and legal records include invoices and receipts, bank books, real estate tax assessments, deeds, and wills. There is also material related to the estate of Erminie F. Shimm.
Series 6. Printed materials includes books, pamphlets, newspapers, newsletters, clippings, invitations and programs. The books and pamphlets are chiefly school yearbooks and newspapers and other texts related to religion, politics, music, and poetry. Also included is a copy of Frederick Douglass's autobiography and a printed copy of his speech "The Race Problem." The clippings include obituaries, articles about Charlene Hodges Byrd and her husband Charles R. Byrd, essays by Sarah A. Shimm under the name Faith Lichen, and articles on the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. The invitations and programs are primarily for school graduations, weddings, social events, and funerals. Other printed material includes newsletters; business cards; calling cards; postage stamps, chiefly from Liberia; and blank postcards. The binder on Frederick Douglass was prepared by Byrd and her goddaughter for the West Virginia School Studies Fair, and includes copies of Byrd family artifacts.
Series 7. Autograph books, guest books, and scrapbooks. The autograph book of Grace E. Shimm Cummings includes autographs from Amelia Douglass, Lewis B. Douglass, Charles R. Douglass, W. H. Clair, and Francis J. Grimke. The scrapbook of Grace E. Shimm Cummings and Erminie F. Shimm consists primarily of clippings, and was assembled from an old teacher's book with a student registration and punishment pages still intact at the back.
Series 8. Miscellaneous items in the collection including artwork, a coin purse, a piece of handwoven cloth belonging to Catherine Nelson's great grandmother, and leather hair curlers.
Series 9: The textiles are chiefly christening gowns, children's garments, and an apron. Several garments belonged to Joyce Ethel Cummings Hodges, Charlene Hodges Byrd, and Elizabeth N. Thomas. There is also a doll that belonged to Amelia Douglass's niece, Kitty Cromwell.
Series 10. Photographs include pictures of Charlene Hodges Byrd, Joyce Ethel Hodges Cummings, Frederick Douglass, Elizabeth Dews Hodges, Charles Gilmor Cummings, Grace E. Shimm Cummings, Erminie F. Shimm, and other friends and relatives of the Byrd, Hodges, Cummings, Douglass, and Shimm families. Subjects are primarily portraits and candids, along with some wedding, baby, and school pictures. While some of the photographs are annotated, many of the individuals are unidentified. Included are vintage photographs, cabinet cards, cartes-de-visites, tintypes, daguerreotypes, and negatives.
The Shimm, Thomas, Cummings, Hodges, Davage, and related African American families chiefly lived in Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. Numerous family members worked as teachers, barbers, or in the service industry. They were active in local churches and service organizations, and had established friendships with local church leaders as well as with Frederick Douglass and his family.
The Shimm and Thomas families were located in Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. The Thomas family can be traced back to Philip Nelson, who owned property in Leesburg, Virginia and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Family genealogical papers list Nelson as a descendent of British Admiral Horatio Nelson. This lineage, however, is not supported in publically available family histories of Horatio Nelson. Philip Nelson and his wife Araminta had five children: Catherine (b. 1805?), William, Levi (b. 1820?), Henrietta, and Grayson.
Catherine Nelson married Elias E. Thomas (b. 1816?) of Virginia in 1840. They wed in Philadelphia and had five children: Levi Nelson (b. 1841), Sarah (1843-1885), Edward (b. 1844), Elizabeth (1848-1932), and Charles (b. 1851).
Sarah Thomas married William Y. Shimm (b. 1841), a barber in Reading, Pennsylvania, on July 26, 1863. They had 2 daughters, Erminie (1867-1936) and Grace (1865-1910). The Shimms lived in Pennsylvania and Ohio, but had moved to Washington, D.C., around 1871. Sarah was a teacher and a writer who published under the name "Faith Lichen." Her writings, primarily essays and commentaries about race and politics, were printed in several newspapers including The National Republican, The Celtic Weekly, The People's Advocate, and The Sunday Morning Gazette.
Sarah's sister Elizabeth was also a teacher in Maryland. Her brother Charles was a lawyer in Washington, D.C., and a graduate of the first class at Howard University's law school.
Erminie and Grace Shimm became teachers in the Washington, D.C., public school system. Erminie was active in her church and supportive of missionary work in Liberia. Grace married Charles Gilmor Cummings, a pastor in Alexandria, Virginia, on July 9, 1902. They had one daughter, Joyce Ethel (1903-1971), and second child in 1905 who died in infancy. Grace died in 1910 of heart failure. After her death, Grace's sister Erminie and Charles's family helped raise Joyce Ethel in Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, Maryland.
Joyce Ethel Cummings Hodges graduated from Morgan College in 1924, and received her master's degree from Howard University in 1931. She taught at Douglass High School in Baltimore from 1924-1964. Joyce Ethel married Charles E. Hodges (1900--975) in 1927 and they divorced in 1953. The couple had one daughter, Charlene (1929-2009).
Charlene Hodges Byrd grew up in Washington, D.C., but attended the Northfield School for Girls in East Northfield, Massachusetts, for high school, graduating in 1946. She received her bachelor's degree from Connecticut College in 1950, and her master's degree in English Language and Literature from the University of Chicago in 1951. She married Charles R. Byrd (1919-2004) in 1952. They had one son in 1954, but he died four days after birth. Byrd soon began a career as a teacher and education administrator, eventually working for Kanawha County Schools in Charleston, West Virginia. She was also active in her local community as a member of the Book Lovers of Charleston, West Virginia; Church Women United; and The Links, Inc.
Charles E. Hodges was born Bridgewater, Virginia, where his father was a minister. He graduated from Morgan College in 1923 and received his master's degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1943. He was a teacher and served as principal of the North Street School in Hagerstown, Maryland. After he and Joyce Ethel divorced in 1953, he married Elizabeth Dews (1913-1999) in 1955.
Elizabeth Dews Hodges, born Elizabeth Virginia Waumbeeka, was adopted by James Edward (1889-1954) and Sarah Virginia Dews (1888?-1964) in Washington, D.C., in 1920. She graduated from Miner Teachers College in 1939, and worked as a teacher in Annapolis, Maryland, at Wiley H. Bates High School for 34 years. She was awarded a medal for her work there by the Freedom Foundation of Valley Forge in 1959. Elizabeth was active in local organizations in Maryland and Washington, D.C., including the SE/NE Friends of the Capitol View Branch Library; Eastern Star Chapter 4; Mount Ephraim Baptist Church; National Museum of Women in the Arts; National Association for the Advancement of Colored Peoples; and the Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind.
The Davage family is descended from Sidney Hall (b. 1818?) and Charles Davage (b. 1815?). Sidney was a former slave at the Perry Hall mansion in Baltimore, and was manumitted by 1840. She married Charles, a coachman, on April 12, 1842. They had five children: Eliza Jane (1843-1913), Sophia (b. 1847), Charlotte (b. 1849), Charles (b. 1854), and Hester (b. 1845). Their daughter Eliza Jane married Henry Cummings (b. 1830?). They had seven children: Harry Sythe (1866-1917), Charles Gilmor (1870-1924), William (b. 1882), Ida R. (1868-1958), Estelle (1874-1944), Carroll (b. 1875), Francis (b. 1872), and Aaron (1864?-1932).
Harry Sythe Cummings, a lawyer in Baltimore, became the city's first African American City Council member. He was first elected in 1890 and served intermittently until his death in 1917, often working on issues related to education. Cummings also delivered a speech at the Republican National Convention in 1904 seconding the presidential nomination of Theodore Roosevelt. He married Blanche Conklin in 1899, and they had three children: Harry S. Jr. (b. 1905), Lucille (d. 1906), and Louise.
Charles Gilmor Cummings graduated from Drew Theological Seminary in 1898, and was a pastor in Alexandria, Virginia and elsewhere. After the death of his wife Grace in 1910, he married Rosa Catherine Bearden, grandmother of artist Romare Bearden, in 1912.
Ida R. Cummings graduated from Morgan College in 1922, and was the first African American kindergarten teacher in Baltimore. She was also active in local organizations, and was president of the Colored Fresh Air and Empty Stocking Circle; chairman of the Woman's Section Council of Defense in Baltimore during the World War, 1914-1918; and president of the Woman's Campaign Bureau of the Colored Republican Voters' League of Maryland.
Access to collection requires appointment.
African Americans -- Maryland
African Americans -- Photographs
African Americans -- Pennsylvania
African American newspapers
African American -- Social life and customs
African American women journalists
African Americans -- Education
African Americans -- Washington (D.C.)


Beatrice (Bea) Axford, known primarily as a talented violinist, was also a pianist who taught lessons on both instruments for over seventy years. A frequent soloist on the violin, she also played first violin in orchestras for over fifty years.
Bea was born and raised in Portland, Oregon, the only child of Lily Hewitt and Jacob James Oster. Her mother sang solos in church and played the piano, while her father occasionally sang. She started lessons at age seven on piano and violin, studying with Julius Brander on the latter. By age twelve, she was playing at a level that enabled her to join the noted Portland Youth Orchestra, famous as the first youth orchestra in the nation. She was well known in the Portland area as a violin soloist.
She continued with her music throughout her high school years, the last of which was spent at Portland Union Academy, now Portland Adventist Academy. Following graduation from PUA in 1940, Bea enrolled at Walla Walla College, now University, where she completed a B.A. in music, with violin as her performance area in 1944, studying under Victor Johnson. An honor roll student, she played in the ensembles at the college and in the first violin section of the Walla Walla Symphony under conductor Frank Beezhold all during her college years.
Bea married Robert Verlin Axford in July 1943, in spite of what had been a disastrous first meeting three years earlier. They had met in the spring of 1940 when both were riding in a bus to WWC for College Days along with other students from PUA and Columbia Academy. She had trouble with her window and he, riding in the seat ahead of hers, assisted her with it, closing it on her finger, a disconcerting accident since she was scheduled to play a violin solo at the college. She later talked about what she did to care for her finger so that she could play:
I soaked my smashed finger in very hot and cold water, which took out the soreness, so I was still able to play my solo without any pain. My mother was a nurse and had taught me how to soak swollen bruises.
Following graduation from WWC, she supported Bob in his medical studies at the College of Medical Evangelists, now Loma Linda University, by teaching.
After his internship in Seattle, Washington, they moved to the north-central area of the state, where he practiced medicine for two years, before heading up a hospital on an Indian reservation in Montana for two years. The Axfords then moved to Prosser, Washington, in 1953, where they resided for nearly twenty-five years. In 1977 they moved to Kennewick, Washington, where he worked until his retirement in 1985. He passed away a few weeks after their 65th wedding anniversary in 2009.
During her married life, Bea continued to study violin and earned another degree while teaching violin and piano lessons. She also played in orchestras when possible, playing first violin in the Richland Symphony, later renamed the Mid-Columbia Symphony, for forty years. She taught both violin and piano until a few months before her death at age 91.
ds/2014
Sources: Information provided by Beatrice Axford; 65th anniversary notice in the April 2009 North Pacific Union Gleaner; and an obituary for Robert Axford in the Yakima Herald-Republic, 21 October 2009, personal knowledge.


Friends of the Earth’s mission is to defend the environment and champion a more healthy and just world. To accomplish that mission, we are working at the nexus of environmental protection, economic justice and social justice to fundamentally transform the way our country and the world values people and the environment.
The Trump administration and its allies on Capitol Hill are a disruptive force that poses a serious threat to our society and environment. We’ve seen the dismantling of critical environmental protections through the gutting of the EPA, and blatant attacks on our public lands for the benefit of the fossil fuel industry. And they’re just getting started. Coupled together, these attacks leave the environment more vulnerable than it has been in over two decades and threaten years of hard-fought victories for people and the planet.
Grassroots Organizing Fellowship
Friends of the Earth’s fellowship program is aimed at creating a pathway for people in underrepresented communities to gain further opportunities in environmental organizing.
As a result of the 2018 elections, we see an opportunity to hold the Trump administration and Congress accountable for its harmful agenda. We need to pressure the 116th Congress to take bold action on climate change and other environmental and social justice issues that they committed to when we elected them! Bold climate action means a rapid transition away from fossil fuels no later than 2030 — anything less leads to further climate catastrophe. We cannot afford to wait until 2050 for action. We need to get every member of Congress on record as to where they stand in this fight: With the greedy fossil fuel industry or with people and communities. We must stop expanding our oil and gas infrastructure, cease new fossil fuel leasing, phase out current fossil fuel extraction, end fossil fuel subsidies and invest in a transition to 100% renewable energy that doesn’t include nuclear or biomass. And we must do this in a just way that prioritizes workers and frontline communities so we do not reproduce or worsen inequities.
Friends of the Earth was made for this fight. We are tough, scrappy and aren’t afraid to speak truth to power. We pull no punches — and neither do our members. In 2018, we succeeded in forcing the resignation of two corrupt members of the Trump administration: EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke. We are organizing at the grassroots level to expand Friends of the Earth’s political power and stop the Trump administration’s environmental attacks with a diverse base of activists and grassroots leaders who are taking action at a local level to influence key national decision-makers in their districts.
Tell Congress to Fight For a Green New Deal
The science is clear: climate change is real, and it is happening right now. We must act now, starting with a bold, progressive agenda that puts communities and workers at the center of a shift away from fossil fuels. Tell leaders in Congress to make up for lost time with a Green New Deal!


Epidemic intelligence and outbreak response
Public health training
ECDC activities on health communication
Article 12 of the ECDC Founding Regulation gives details on the Centre’s role in communications:
The Centre shall communicate on its own initiative in the fields within its mission, after having given prior information to the Member States and to the Commission. It shall ensure that the public and any interested parties are rapidly given objective, reliable and easily accessible information with regard to the results of its work. In order to achieve these objectives, the Centre shall make available information for the general public, including through a dedicated website (...).
The Centre shall act in close collaboration with the Member States and the Commission to promote the necessary coherence in the risk communication process on health threats.
The Centre shall cooperate as appropriate with the competent bodies in the Member States and other interested parties with regard to public information campaigns.
ECDC activities in health communication
Health communication is integral to effective public health response to the continuing threat posed by communicable diseases in the EU and EEA countries. Furthermore, the surfacing of new infectious organisms, microbial resistance to therapeutic drugs, new environment-related phenomena and new emerging diseases have expanded the role of health communication as a core competency of public health practice.
Public health practitioners, programme managers and policy makers need to be aware of the strengths, weaknesses and costs of health communication interventions aimed at the prevention and control of communicable diseases so that impacts can be enhanced and opportunities maximised for strengthening evidence-based action.
Why focus on health communication programs
ECDC surveillance of infectious diseases clearly shows that traditional epidemiological and microbiological interventions are not enough to address key threats in contemporary infectious disease control in Europe, such as poor vaccine uptake, emergence and spread of antibiotic resistant microbes in health care settings and in the community, and transmission of HIV and STI within certain high-risk groups (ECDC, 2011). The traditional interventions therefore need to be complemented with other preventive actions.
Research shows that properly designed communication activities can have a positive impact on health-related attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors, and thus can influence individual and community decisions to reduce risks to health. The use of specific health communication strategies and techniques can tailor messages to maximise public attention, raise awareness of health risks, contribute to improved health literacy, promote solutions and increase the likelihood of adoption of health behaviors and practices.
ECDC activities in the area of health communication stem from the mandate given to ECDC in Article 12 of its Founding Regulations. They have three directions:
Efficiently communicate the scientific and technical output of ECDC to professional audiences The main scientific output from ECDC is disseminated through technical and scientific reports, which are authored by internal and external experts.
Communicate key public health messages and information to the media and the European publicHealth problems and concerns differ from country to country. ECDC therefore works closely with national authorities to ensure its public health messages have maximum impact.
Support the development of Member States’ health communication capacities ECDC supports Member States’ communications activities by delivering training in health communication skills, providing adaptable tools and guidance, and facilitating the share of best practices on health communication.
Health communication objectives
To make evidence-based information on health communication easily accessible within the EU and EEA countries;
To support countries in sharing knowledge and experiences between public health professionals undertaking health communication activities;
To promote health communication skills among public health professionals, who tackle infectious diseases in the EU and EEA countries;
To support Member States’ efforts to integrate behaviour change and risk communication strategies in their communicable disease prevention programmes and public health campaigns;To provide guidelines and practical tools to support health communication in a consistent way, e.g. developing guidance on health communication strategies and plans.
ECDC aims to support Member States in effective communication for the prevention and control of communicable diseases. For this purpose, ECDC provides outputs to meet the needs of professionals and organisations working in the field of public health, including government authorities, researchers, political think tanks and institutes, health care professionals, students and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
Outbreak communication


Lolo Loves Films
Netflix Instant Queue Movie Review: "Annie" (1982)
Movie: "Annie"
Director: John Huston
Running Time: 2 hours, 7 minutes
Annie (Aileen Quinn) is an orphan living at a home for girls run by the sinister Miss Hannigan (Carol Burnett). Despite living in a miserable situation, Annie always keeps high spirits and looks on the bright side of life. When Grace Farrell (Ann Reinking) is looking for an orphan to stay with her billionaire boss Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks (Albert Finney) for a week as a publicity stunt to improve his gruff image, she chooses Annie. Daddy Warbucks and Annie have a tumultuous start to their relationship, but eventually start to bond with one another. He even wants to adopt her, but Annie holds out hope that her parents, who gave her half of a locket when they dropped her at the orphanage, will return for her. Daddy Warbucks vows to help Annie find her parents, even if it means putting his own new found feelings aside.
What's not to love about an adorable orphan girl with the cutest red hair you ever saw? A lot, apparently.
This movie was adapted from the stage and brought to life by director John Huston, whose previous accolades include "Treasure of the Sierra Madre," "Key Largo," "The Maltese Falcon" and "The African Queen," some of the best films ever made. While this family film is not spectacular, it does have a bit of heart to it here and there. It also helps that most of the songs are ones that are either super catchy or ones that I was already familiar with since I was forced to sing them in choir. Though he was not the best singer, Albert Finney manages to be both likable and unlikable as a character. Daddy Warbucks is where we see the little bit of heart this movie contains as he eventually comes around to the idea of having a girl orphan instead of a boy one, subsequently leading he and Annie to sing a couple of cute, great songs together. His role is really the only one we connected to throughout the movie. Carol Burnett is fantastic as the wretched orphanage runner Miss Hannigan and she really brought some true nastiness to her character. Tim Curry and Bernadette Peters play a pair of con artists and though they aren't on screen a heck of a lot of time, what they manage to bring to the table is a couple of much needed perilous yet funny scenes.
Many critics back in the day thought the choice to direct "Annie" was an odd one for John Huston, and now we can see why. Despite the heart it has going for it, there's just something about this movie that doesn't allow it to connect to us. All of the "heart" we mentioned above does seem rather baseline and expected. There's nothing that's overly unique about 'the feels' that this movie gives us. The movie as a whole is also marred by extremely slow pacing and there's really no way it needed to be over 2 hours long. On the same note, some of the musical numbers in the middle of the movie feel draggy and misplaced. While titular character Annie, played by Aileen Quinn, is a cute enough character, her singing, as well as the singing of the other orphan girls, isn't the best and feels sort of forced. There are also a ton of racist moments at Daddy Warbucks' mansion, mainly involving a character who is literally named Punjab. We're not overly sensitive people, but COME ON. He performs his 'magic levitation tricks' to an overtly stereotypical Indian instrumental song behind him! Their Asian limousine driver is also a martial arts master. All of these stereotypical moments distract from true point of the story and left us scratching our heads.
We're not sure that another remake of this movie is warranted, but damned if we're not looking forward to it based on the trailer they have been running since January!
My Rating: 6/10
BigJ's Rating: 6/10
IMDB's Rating: 6.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 50%
Do we recommend this movie: Sure, why not?
One year ago, we were watching: "Out of the Furnace"
Posted by Lolo at Thursday, December 18, 2014
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Pickpocket Scheme: 5 things you can do to protect your valuables
An older man became the target of a pickpocket scheme in the District last week, and it was caught on camera.
Surveillance video from a parking garage elevator in the 2100 block of Pennsylvania Avenue in Northwest D.C. showed the crime in action.
The victim was an older man using a cane. The more experienced pickpocket was standing in the back wearing a dark suit and a hat. His accomplice was the man in the white shirt standing in front of him.
"It was 98 degrees pretty much all last week. I have to wear a sport coat, but they [pickpockets] wear a sport coat in the summertime. That's kind of a telltale sign that they're up to something," said Det. Sgt. Vernon Clayton, head of the pickpocket detail for Metro Transit Police.
As the victim prepared to leave the elevator, the first person of interest got off and dropped something. When the victim backed up, the second person of interest adjusted himself to access the man's wallet.
Clayton said pickpockets generally have a prop to cover their hands. In this case, the alleged pickpocket used his coat.
"What he did was use his hands with his jacket covering his hands, so he can manipulate the wallet and pull it out," said Clayton.
Other props used by pickpockets include newspapers, bags and suitcases.
Clayton said pickpockets are mostly found in crowds. That's why it's so important to know where your wallet is located at all times.
Police are still looking for the persons of interest from the video.
5 THINGS YOU CAN DO TO PROTECT YOUR VALUABLES:


Home Business Despite worldwide tobacco decline, economy can thrive
Malawi’s economy can thrive despite a worldwide decline in tobacco demand and production.
Agricultural Transformation Initiative (ATI) is working with smallholder tobacco farmers to facilitate the development of complementary structured value chains to make the agriculture sector globally competitive.
“As the global demand for tobacco decreases, we believe it’s imperative to support efforts to diversify economies and lessen the reliance of smallholder farmers on tobacco.
This is particularly true in Malawi where tobacco accounts for over 60 percent of the country’s total annual earnings and 13 percent of the economy as measured by the gross domestic product.” said Jim Lutzweiler, VP, Agriculture and Livelihoods, Foundation for a Smoke-Free World.
One of the ATI’s first actions was to issue a request for expressions of interest to operate and manage a new Center for Agricultural Transformation in Malawi.
The Center’s goal is ultimately to transform the lives of Malawian smallholder tobacco farmers by leveraging innovation in agricultural science and technology.
In October, the ATI issued two requests for proposals (RFP) in support of additional projects in Malawi.
“The diversification of smallholder farmers can only succeed through inclusive business models that effectively connect them to markets, finance, and technology in ways that provide much greater economic value to all actors in the ecosystem,” said Eduardo Tugendhat, Director of Thought Leadership at Palladium.
The first RFP asks eligible private sector firms, research institutions, other interested entities, and partnerships or consortia to submit proposals that present viable market-led solutions aimed at solving current challenges for transforming smallholder agricultural livelihoods in Malawi.
The second RFP seeks to engage in a 3-year preferred collaboration with qualified research partners to provide independent program evaluation and decision-focused research support to the ATI. The preferred partners will help nurture and promote the use of rigorous evidence by the ATI to improve its impact on smallholder tobacco farmers in Malawi.
The ATI is a core pillar of the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World, an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with the purpose of improving global health by ending smoking in this generation. Recognizing that the Foundation’s mission entails an accelerated decline in global tobacco demand, the ATI aims to diversify tobacco-dependent economies.
The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with the purpose of improving global health by ending smoking in this generation.
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Tobacco bill a relief for the sector


Mar 10, 2016	by	Scott Greenfield	-
Did Gawker Cross Hulk Hogan’s Line?
Mar. 10, 2016 (Mimesis Law) — Personal and confidential to Gawker former Editor-in-Chief, Albert James “A.J.” Daulerio:
Don’t be a wise-ass in a deposition. Sarcasm never reads as well on paper as it sounds when you say it. You’re welcome.
The exchange from Daulerio’s testimony at the Bollea v. Gawker trial, Terry Bollea being Hulk Hogan’s sensitive persona, didn’t help matters any. The deposition testimony was awful:
“Can you imagine a situation where a celebrity sex tape would not be newsworthy?” asked the lawyer, Douglas E. Mirell.
“If they were a child,” Mr. Daulerio replied.
“Under what age?” the lawyer pressed.
It was a stupid question. It was an even stupider answer. In some worlds, an attorney might have chimed in with an objection, but not, apparently, this world. Yet, it goes to the issue that Bollea’s lawyers sought to argue, that Gawker has no standards at all.
Gawker’s founder, Nick Denton, had a more straightforward editorial policy:
Nick Denton, the site’s founder, has long rejected the editorial standards that he believes handicap more traditional news outlets: notions like “importance,” “fairness” and “of public concern” that adorn the high-minded mission statements of other publications.
“I have a simple editorial litmus test,” Denton told Politico Media in 2015: “Which is: is it true, and is it interesting?”
Is there something wrong with this? That’s what Bollea’s lawyers contend. To that end, they do what all lawyers do, well aware that it serves their client’s interest well. They hire an academic to say what they want said.
But on Wednesday, Hogan’s lawyers did their best to argue that Gawker’s behavior didn’t meet journalistic ethical standards — at least, not according to University of Florida journalism professor Mark Foley. [Ed. Note: It’s Mike Foley, not Mark.]
Foley, who was for three decades a reporter, editor and executive at the St. Petersburg Times — now known as the Tampa Bay Times — testified that the Gawker editors’ choices were beyond the pale. Reporters are obliged to avoid invading a subject’s privacy unless the news demands it, and to avoid going into lurid detail for mere shock value.
“You think how will Mr. and Mrs. St. Petersburg react over breakfast. … You have to step back and ask, ‘Is it necessary?’” he said, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Freedom of the press is “extremely important,” he continued, but “common sense must drive what we do.”
Well, there are a lot of “tests” in there, gertruding notwithstanding. Is the freedom of the press constrained by what “Mr. and Mrs. St. Petersburg” feel comfortable with? If they grimace, does that mean the media has gone too far? What about the very sensitive St. Petersburgs, the ones who cringe when they read something outside of their itty bitty worldview? Who are these people anyway?
Or is it “common sense”? If so, where does it say what common sense is, since we all have it and it differs from person to person. And the fact that “common sense” is the absence of any cognizable thought doesn’t help either.
Maybe it’s the “beyond the pale” rule, if someone has the ability to draw the “pale” line so we know when we’re stepping beyond it.
Then again, the problem may well be that Mike Foley, the journalist cum academic. While he’s listed as a “master lecturer” rather than a professor (and I refuse to make the joke so don’t even think it), he is being asked a question that can’t be reasonably answered. Of course, he could have refused the expert witness fee and not taken the gig, knowing that he would be put on the stand to offer an opinion about which he had nothing to offer, but hey, money talks, right?
While Foley’s attempt at explaining some unwritten code of journalistic ethics as to what’s too sordid to publish is painfully obvious to anyone who appreciates the fact that there is no line that can ever be enunciated as to where newsworthiness crosses over to the dark side, phrases like common sense often resonate with juries. People love the idea of “common sense,” as it saves them tons of time that would otherwise be required for thinking. And thinking causes headaches, and no one wants to get a headache.
But Eric Goldman also chimes in on the question of how far is too far.
“Right now there’s an ‘anything goes’ mentality when it comes to publishing information about celebrities. If Gawker loses, we might begin to see some rethinking of that mentality,” says Eric Goldman, co-director of Santa Clara University’s High Tech Law Institute. “If Gawker wins, I think it will further embolden online publishers that anything related to celebrities is fair game. That could be used to justify publication of unredacted photos from the Fappening, for example.”
And indeed, Eric’s got a point. The internet has never been very good at respecting limits. Some see that as a flaw. Others as a feature. It’s all according to whose ox is being gored.
But even if Eric is right, it offers little guidance for the establishment of liability. Certainly, the amorphous “common sense” doesn’t help. Nor do Mr. and Mrs. St. Petersburg’s, whoever they are, feelings. Or even “beyond the pale,” wherever that may be. If the internet goes too far, it still doesn’t answer the question of how far is too far.
And since there is no rule of journalism by which Gawker, or any other media, must limit its exercise of the constitutional rights to a free press and free speech, there is no basis upon which a jury can find they crossed the line. And the question of why there’s even a trial remains a mystery.
AJ Dauleriofault linesGawkerHulk HoganMike FoleyNick Denton
3 Comments on this post.
Cornflake S. Pecially
10 March 2016	at 5:18 pm	- Reply
I think I would have went with:
Flawed Fappenening Features
P.S. I could ghost write, Lawyers and Lines It’s Where the Monies At, for you this summer. Such a title might make for an excellent election release by the looks of things. I don’t see how you could go wrong.
Jeff Davidson
I was kinda hoping it was Mick Foley instead of Mike or Mark…
A Free Press And The Ickiness of Newsworthiness | Simple Justice
18 March 2016	at 12:41 pm	- Reply
[…] the Hulk v. Gawker trial, the one that should have never been, winds toward verdict, the New York Times’ Room for […]
Where’s Your Fault Lines Subscription?
Does the Constitution End with a Bullet in Se ...
by Scott Greenfield - Feb 23, 2017
Cross: Patrick Frey, Prosecutor By Day and Pa ...


The CA Web Site has been redesigned
[<<] [>>] by Ian Vincent
28th March 2002 (Other News)
The CA Web Site has been redesigned by the CA publishing committee, chaired by Ian Vincent.
The CA publishing committee have redesigned and restructured the CA Web Site to enhance it as a way of providing information to both potential and existing players and others interested in the game. We gratefully acknowledge the inspiration and commitment of Bill Arliss in setting up and maintaining the site and hope that the seed he has sown will continue to grow as more material is added.
As chairman of the committee I would like to thank to Samir Patel and Dave Kibble who have done the bulk of the work and to the other members of the committee for their ideas and support.
Please e-mail webmaster#croquet.org.uk with any comments or suggestions to further improve the site, or, even better, with material to add to it!


Paragliding in Famara
Fly to the Mirador del Río
A classic flying area in Lanzarote, where the constant wind make it possible to do sports like paragliding. This take off point, situated on the Famara cliff itself, in the north of the island, is located precisely in Chimida. With a west-northwest wind direction, it is an ideal place not only for paragliding but also for hang gliding and treats gliders to spectacular views if they follow the mountainside northwards, in line with the striking cliffs which lead to Mirador del Río.
Landings on Famara beach
The take off spot for this fantastic thermodynamic flight is at an altitude of 450 metres. To get to the spot, Chimida, take the dirt track of just over one kilometre which leaves the town of Teguise and is suitable for cars. The landings are also easy, because apart from Famara beach, there are plenty of flat areas so they can be made 300 metres across from the beach, on the other side of the road under the take off point.
The best flying season begins in October and finishes in the month of March. In summer, however, the constant presence of the trade winds make flying a difficult task.


Richest 1% of Americans close to surpassing wealth of middle class
They now control more than half of the equity in U.S. public and private companies, according to data from the Federal Reserve.
By Alex Tanzi and Michael SassoBloomberg
The U.S.’s historic economic expansion has so enriched one-percenters that they now hold almost as much wealth as the middle- and upper-middle classes combined.
The top 1 percent of American households have enjoyed huge returns in the stock market in the past decade, to the point that they now control more than half of the equity in U.S. public and private companies, according to data from the Federal Reserve. Those fat portfolios have America’s elite gobbling up an ever-bigger piece of the pie.
The very richest had assets of about $35.4 trillion in the second quarter, or just shy of the $36.9 trillion held by the tens of millions of people who make up the 50th percentile to the 90th percentile of Americans – much of the middle and upper-middle classes.
Chalk up at least part of their good fortune to interest rates, said Stephen Colavito, chief market strategist at Lakeview Capital Partners, an Atlanta-based investment firm for high-net-worth investors. People can’t get much of a return on certificates of deposits and other passive investments, so they’ve pumped money into stocks and propped up the market overall, he said.
In turn, those investments make the wealthy eligible to put money into exclusive hedge funds and private equity funds. Many such funds require $5 million of investments to qualify.
“The wealthier that the wealthy get, the more opportunity they have,” Colavito said.
It may not be long before one-percenters actually surpass the middle and upper-middle classes. Household wealth in the uppermost bracket grew by $650 billion in the second quarter of 2019, while Americans in the 50th to 90th percentiles saw a $210 billion gain.
While the Federal Reserve data measure wealth, by another measurement the top 1 percent of taxpayers had incomes starting at $515,371 in 2017, according to the latest Internal Revenue Service data.
For now, those Americans in 90th to 99th percentiles – well-to-do, but not the super rich – still control the biggest share of wealth, with $42.6 trillion in assets.
The lone group left out of the fun: the bottom 50 percent of Americans. Those households have 35.7 percent of liabilities in the U.S. and just 6.1 percent of assets.
Age also plays a role in wealth. Some young people have recently taken to mocking older Americans for being out of touch, hurling the term “OK boomer” around social media. However, baby boomers born between the end of the Second World War and 1964 may have the last laugh. They had wealth that was 11 times higher than that of millennials as of the second quarter.
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How the DSA bolsters the Democratic Party establishment: The case of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
By Isaac Finn
The New York City media is giving substantial attention to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who is running in the Democratic primary in the 14th Congressional District as a “democratic socialist” against incumbent Joe Crowley, a key figure in the Democratic congressional leadership. The primary election takes place next Tuesday, June 26.
Ocasio-Cortez has centered her campaign on the need to “acknowledge that not all Democrats are the same,” attacking Crowley on the basis that he is part of the Democratic Party machine. She has also criticized Crowley for being disconnected from working class and Hispanic residents in the 14th District, which includes parts of the boroughs of Queens and the Bronx in New York City, separated by the East River and connected only by the Bronx/Whitestone Bridge.
In conventional terms of money and endorsements, Crowley is a heavy favorite to win the primary. He has raised more than $2.7 million in campaign funds, nearly 25 times the $115,653 raised by Ocasio-Cortez, according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission at the end of March. He also has the full support of the Democratic Party machine, which he heads, as chair of the Queens County Democratic Party. He has held his congressional seat for 20 years, and was last challenged in a Democratic primary in 2004.
Crowley is also chair of the House Democratic Caucus, putting him fourth in the Democratic Party leadership in the House of Representatives, and making the 56-year-old a potential successor to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. The top three Democrats in the House are all at least 20 years older than Crowley: Pelosi is 78, Minority Whip Steny Hoyer is 79, and Assistant Minority Leader Jim Clyburn is 77.
The race between Ocasio-Cortez and Crowley to some extent echoes the 2016 Democratic presidential primaries, with Ocasio-Cortez, who worked as an organizer for the Bernie Sanders campaign, seeking to channel mass opposition to Trump and American capitalism back into the two-party system. She is sowing illusions that the Democratic Party can be transformed either through “progressive” Democratic candidates winning primaries or by pushing their opponents (in this case Crowley rather than Hillary Clinton) to the left. As with the Sanders campaign, a wide range of liberal publications and pseudo-left organizations have thrown their weight behind Ocasio-Cortez.
So far her campaign has been endorsed by Sanders’ Our Revolution, Brand New Congress and Justice Democrats, as well as the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). The DSA, to which Ocasio-Cortez belongs, has organized phone banks, canvassed for her and produced her campaign video. Curiously however, despite publicly endorsing her, the DSA has made no further comment on her campaign and its affiliated publication Jacobin has remained quiet. A search of the websites of both the DSA and Jacobin for “Ocasio” yields the response “no result.”
This reflects an apparent agreement between the DSA and the Democratic Party establishment, at least as far as recent elections are concerned: DSA candidates may run for local and state legislative seats, as they did last year in Virginia and this year in Pennsylvania, California and other states, but they will not interfere in the central concern of the Democratic Party leadership, which is to win back control of the US House of Representatives, and so gain a “place at the table” in negotiations with the Trump administration over domestic and foreign policy.
The DSA is not backing any “left” candidates for Congress in districts targeted by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee as potential takeovers from the Republicans. In the case of Ocasio-Cortez, whether she wins or loses in the primary, there is no chance that the Democrats would lose the seat, since the Republican Party is virtually moribund in 14th Congressional District. Its token candidate in 2016 took 17 percent of the vote against Crowley.
Ocasio-Cortez has been given some publicity by a section of the corporate media, with multiple references to her campaign appearing in both New York Times, which functions as the mouthpiece of the Democratic Party, and the Wall Street Journal. This media attention is a reflection of a section of the ruling elite, which fears that the complete discrediting of the two-party system amid a wave of working class protests against inequality, austerity and the Trump administration. They view her candidacy as a potential safety valve.
The last thing on Ocasio-Cortez’s agenda is any break with the Democratic Party. She has spent her entire adult life in or around it. She first worked as an intern for Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy, while attending college at Boston University. After graduating she joined the publishing house Brook Avenue Press and in 2012 shared a platform with New York Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, where she endorsed the senator’s bill for tax breaks for new businesses. After a four-year hiatus from politics, she joined the Sanders campaign.
Ocasio-Cortez was recruited by Brand New Congress, a political action committee (PAC) established by former Sanders campaign staff, to run against Crowley. Her campaign has been based on a platform (universal healthcare, abolishment of private prisons, a federal jobs guarantee, defunding of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, etc.) that has popular appeal, and which would never be implemented by a Democratic Party Congress or administration.
While denouncing Crowley for accepting donations from large corporations, Ocasio-Cortez continued to reference Gillibrand (who has raised over $16 million between 2013 and 2018 predominantly from corporate backers) as a supporter of a federal jobs guarantee on her election website.
After Gillibrand endorsed Crowley, Ocasio-Cortez pleaded with the senator, tweeting to her, “5 years ago you asked me speak [sic] in favor of your Small Biz Support Act. I showed up and we worked together… I’m surprised you left me out today. If you’d like to reconsider, I’m happy to talk. DM [direct message] me.” Ocasio-Cortez has since removed the reference to Gillibrand on her campaign website, only including a link to an article in Nation magazine that includes quotes from Ocasio-Cortez and Gillibrand.
Similarly, she has adapted herself to the Democratic Party leadership’s policy of running openly right-wing candidates in so-called competitive districts. As she said in an interview with the online news website Splinter, “When you look at what we’ve got in the Democratic Party, the people who have these safe seats are centrist, corporatist Democrats. If we have to have centrist Democrats in the party, let those Democrats come from swing districts. But in districts that are very highly Democratic, we should be advancing the national conversation on prison abolition, on student debt cancelation [sic], on Puerto Rico, on a Marshall Plan, on 100% renewable energy in ten years.”
What her position translates to is that she is perfectly fine with the Democratic Party running pro-corporate politicians—and advocating and carrying out such policies—as long as it makes room for its “left” supporters in districts like the 14th CD in New York, where they can blather on about policies that the Democratic Party leadership flatly opposes, in order to provide a left cover.
While the DSA has kept Ocasio-Cortez largely under wraps, other pseudo-left tendencies have been more outspoken. Socialist Alternative, which fully embraced the Sanders campaign in 2016, declared their support for Ocasio-Cortez in an article published on their website on June 11. After making a purely rhetorical criticism about attempting to transform the Democratic Party from within, Leon Pinsky writes, “Socialist Alternative is working with Ocasio’s supporters to win the best result in the primary on June 26. It would be a political earthquake if Ocasio defeated the strongest Democrat in Queens who is also rumored to be the next Speaker of the House if the Democrats retake the chamber this fall.”
Pinsky reiterates Socialist Alternative’s claim that a section of the Democratic Party can be convinced to break from the party establishment and lay the basis for a “new mass party,” in other words, a new, somewhat more “left” talking capitalist party that would serve as an additional barrier to the struggle for the political independence of the working class based on a socialist program.
Ocasio-Cortez has also been featured on The Intercept, the liberal website edited by Glenn Greenwald that makes no secret of its embrace of the Sanders wing of the Democratic Party, and its all-out support for a Democratic victory in the 2018 congressional elections. In an interview with Greenwald, she said, “For as long as the Democratic Party continues to work with special interests, lobbyist groups and corporations to really perpetuate economic marginalization of Americans, as well as social and racial marginalization, then we’re not gonna get anywhere.” Another commentator on The Intercept gushed that Ocasio-Cortez “has a better grasp of identity politics than any politician I can recall.” The Intercept highlighted a conflict between Ocasio-Cortez and Crowley over the challenger’s emphasis on her Puerto Rican roots—the Bronx portion of the district is heavily Hispanic, while the Queens portion includes large Irish, Greek, Hispanic and Asian populations. Crowley at one point complained that Ocasio-Cortez was “making the race about race,” and asked what was wrong with his emphasizing his Irish heritage.
The two Democrats debated each other two weeks before the primary, and even The Intercept had to admit in its report that “Crowley might be right: the candidates’ positions don’t, as he put it, have much ‘daylight’ between them.” Crowley emphasized the fight against Trump, and his own potential leadership role if the Democratic Party wins control of the House. He claimed to be a “progressive” and cited his ties to Obama, Gillibrand and California Senator Kamala Harris.
He also pledged to support Ocasio-Cortez if she won the primary, and asked her to do the same, but she declined. (Significantly, Crowley has the endorsement of the Working Families Party, controlled by a section of the union bureaucracy, and could use that ballot line to continue his campaign in the fall if he loses the Democratic primary).
The debate underscored the lack of any genuine, substantive differences between the two candidates. Crowley is an uninspired and uninspiring political hack who may prevail in the primary by sheer financial and organizational muscle. Ocasio-Cortez offers youth, ethnicity, and the label “democratic socialist,” but like Bernie Sanders she does not actually offer a single policy that could legitimately be called socialist. She is merely a new coat of paint on a dilapidated signboard.
In order to address issues of the attack on immigrant rights, inequality and war, young people and working people must break with the Democratic Party, including figures like Ocasio-Cortez and various pseudo-left forces attached to her campaign, and build a mass socialist movement. The World Socialist Web Site encourage anyone serious about carrying out this fight to join the Socialist Equality Party build the leadership for the emerging working class struggles.
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Can I Sue if I Am Poisoned in Maryland?
Poisoning comes in many forms. You can suffer a sudden illness from infected food or become sick over years of exposure to tainted water, radiation or chemicals in the air. Although our food and environment are strictly regulated, unscrupulous manufacturers, government entities and others sometimes cut corners. Every year or so a major food poisoning scandal hits the headlines. When clients ask our lawyers can I sue if someone poisons me in Maryland? We tell them it’s certainly possible if not always straightforward.
Poisoning can be extremely serious and life-threatening. Baltimore personal injury lawyer Randolph Rice can help you gather evidence in these cases. Keep reading about the different types of poisoning and who you can sue for food, water, lead, or other bodily poisoning in Maryland.
Common Types of Poisoning
Food poisoning is one of the most common causes of illness from a tainted product. Many people have suffered the symptoms for food poisoning at some time in their lives but it’s not usually severe. It’s only worth suing if you suffer significant health impacts from food poisoning.
People who file lawsuits over food poisoning usually sue a restaurant, a store, a food manufacturer or a hotel. Food poisoning is typically a result of negligence and poor hygiene at one stage in the manufacturing process. Common causes of food poisoning include:
Salmonella bacteria are harmful and can be found in poultry or meat, dairy products and, vegetables, spices, water, and nuts. Symptoms include sickness, vomiting, diarrhea, blood in the stool, chills, and fever. Salmonella can be fatal, particularly in elderly and young people.
Coli are bacteria that live in your intestines as well as in the intestines of animals. Although most types of E. coli are safe, some strains make you sick. E. coli can be found in beef contaminated with feces, unpasteurized milk and apple cider, alfalfa sprouts, and contaminated water.
Listeria is a food-borne infection. Although many infected people don’t suffer severe symptoms, it can be deadly for pregnant women, elderly people, and those with weakened immune systems. Listeria infection may lead to miscarriage. Later in pregnancy, listeria infection can cause stillbirth, premature birth or potentially fatal infection in the baby post-birth, states the Mayo Clinic.
Campylobacter is a common bacterial infection that can linger for as long as two weeks. It can be caused by processed meat that’s not thoroughly cooked or contaminated milk, fruit or vegetables. It’s rarely fatal in healthy people.
Who Can I Sue for Food Poisoning in Maryland?
You may have grounds to sue one or more parties over food poisoning in Maryland. They include:
Growers and Packers
Food can be infected early in the process. One of the worst episodes of food poisoning in recent years occurred in 2011 when listeria in cantaloupes was linked to 33 deaths and many injuries. The infection was traced to a farm and packing plant in Colorado.
Poor hygiene in a production facility can cause infections. In 2009, 714 people fell ill with salmonella and nine died from eating peanut butter produced by Peanut Corporation of America. Numerous poisoning and product liability lawsuits were brought against the company and its former owner was imprisoned for 28 years.
A store that sells contaminated food can be sued by people who are poisoned.
Many fast-food chains and family-owned restaurants have been sued following food poisoning outbreaks. The deaths of four people and sickness in hundreds of others from meat contaminated with E.coli at Jack in the Box hamburgers in 1993 caused a massive panic, lawsuits, and the end of the fast-food chain. However, Taco Bell survived an E.coli outbreak that hospitalized 53 people in 2006.
Proving Fault in a Food Poisoning Lawsuit in Maryland
Most food poisoning complaints aren’t related to high-profile recalls or well-publicized outbreaks. Gathering evidence is a challenge. If you believe you suffered food poisoning from a Maryland restaurant it can be difficult to prove, especially if there has been a time lapse between your meal and the illness.
It can be difficult to prove a particular meal made you ill rather than another meal or a virus. Seek medical advice as soon as possible and try to find out the type of food poisoning you suffered and a likely source. Even in rare cases where you have some evidence that the food from the restaurant made you ill such as a sample in your fridge, you may struggle to make a case. If you test the food and it contains salmonella, the restaurant can claim the food became infected in your home.
Can I Sue I Am Poisoned Through the Water Supply in Maryland?
Concerns over poisoned water supplies gripped a handful of U.S. cities in recent years, most prominently in Flint, Michigan.
The crisis began in 2014 when the City of Flint switched its water supply from Lake Huron to the Flint River to save money. A lack of treatment meant lead from pipes leached into the water supply. Residents of Flint have filed class-action lawsuits claiming the lead harmed their children’s health. The contamination is also linked to a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak that caused at least 12 deaths.
In April 2019, a federal judge ruled residents of Flint could bring lawsuits against the federal government over the water crisis.
Your Rights for Suing for Toxic Exposure in Maryland
There are many forms of toxic exposure that can poison residents and workers. People can suffer chemical exposure from industry, chlorine leaks from railroad accidents, toxic dust, improper workplace protection, fires, and spills. You may have grounds to sue the liable party that caused harmful toxic exposure at work or in another place of business.
Can I Sue Someone for Lead Poisoning in Maryland?
Lead poisoning is a potent threat to children and pregnant women. Many older homes contain lead paint that is harmful to children who eat it. Local authorities and other housing entities have been sued over lead poisoning. According to Vox, as many as 1.2 million children in the United States suffer from lead poisoning that can harm intellectual development.
Court actions against paint manufacturers have failed but local authorities, property managers, and landlords have been held liable for lead paint poisoning in Maryland.
In 2016, a family from Baltimore won a $1.6 million verdict in a lead paint poisoning case for their son who was exposed to lead paint at the age of two. He has struggled academically since and is now 18, the Baltimore Sun reported. The verdict was awarded against the young man’s former landlords.
Talk to Our Baltimore Toxic Exposure Lawyer About Your Maryland Poison Injury Lawsuit
It’s not always obvious if you’ve been poisoned. You may suffer a range of symptoms. It can also be hard to pinpoint the source of your poisoning. If your symptoms persist and you suspect you were poisoned, call our Maryland personal injury attorney for a free consultation at 410-431-0911.


Canada's SNC-Lavalin unit pleads guilty to fraud charge in Libya case
By Allison Lampert
SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., headquarters seen in Montreal
MONTREAL (Reuters) - A division of SNC-Lavalin Group Inc pleaded guilty to one fraud charge and will pay a C$280 million fine related to projects in Libya, the company said on Wednesday, in a case that engulfed Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government in crisis.
The Montreal-based construction and engineering company said it reached a settlement after being accused of bribing Libyan officials to get contracts between 2001 and 2011. Shares in SNC, which were halted on the Toronto Stock Exchange early on Wednesday, soared as much as 35.3% to C$32.59 following the announcement.
On Sunday, a Quebec jury found a former top SNC-Lavalin executive guilty of fraud and corruption charges related to the Libya case. Government prosecutors had suggested Sami Bebawi, the former head of SNC's international construction arm, was a key figure in the bribery scheme.
In a statement, SNC said its SNC-Lavalin Construction unit will plead guilty to a fraud charge.
As part of the settlement, all charges against SNC-Lavalin Group Inc and its international marketing arm, SNC-Lavalin International Inc, have been withdrawn, the company said.
SNC-Lavalin Construction will pay a C$280 million ($211 million) fine in equal instalments over five years, and will be subject to three years probation, SNC said. The company said it will engage an independent monitor as part of the probation.
"This is a game-changer for the company and finally allows us to put this issue behind us," SNC Lavalin CEO Ian Edwards said in the statement. "I apologize for this past misconduct and welcome the opportunity to move forward."
A court conviction would have barred SNC-Lavalin from bidding on government contracts for 10 years, threatening job losses in Canada. The company employs around 9,000 people in Canada and tens of thousands abroad.
The construction unit has not bid on any new contracts since 2015, and SNC said it does not expect the division's guilty plea to affect the company's ability to compete for future projects.
Earlier this year, Trudeau’s government faced allegations that top officials pressured former Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould to direct prosecutors to strike a deal rather than go ahead with a trial.
Trudeau was re-elected with a minority government in October.
SNC had asked for a deferred prosecution agreement on the grounds it had removed the executives who were in charge at the time and overhauled its ethics and compliance systems.
Rachel Rappaport, a spokeswoman for Justice Minister David Lametti, was not immediately available to comment.
(Reporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal; Additional reporting by Kelsey Johnson in Ottawa; Editing by Amran Abocar and Lisa Shumaker)
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Roald’s childhood church
Meditation & Spirituality
Roald Dahl and the Norwegian Church
Roald Dahl and his family worshipped at this pretty little Norwegian church when he was a child.
With its attractive white clapboard structure and stubby spire, the Norwegian Church provides a striking counterpoint to the modern buildings in the Cardiff Bay development. How much do you know about it, though? Let us fill you in.
What is the Norwegian Church?
Cardiff's Norwegian Church is the oldest surviving church in Britain founded by the Norwegian Seamen's Mission. These days it houses an arts centre and public space, plus you can savour one of their an award-winning cakes from the café - why not sit on terrace and enjoy the lovely views out across the bay?
Norwegian Church, Cardiff Bay
View Credits
© Hawlfraint y Goron / Crown Copyright
Why is there a Norwegian church in Cardiff?
During the late 19th century, thousands of Norwegian sailors visited Cardiff aboard merchant ships. These ships brought strong, straight Scandinavian timber to Wales so that it could be used to make pit props in the mines. Once they'd dropped off their cargo, they would pick up Welsh coal and export it all around the world.
Churches like this one, which dates back to 1867, were built to provide religious and social care to the Norwegian sailors who found themselves far from home for weeks on end. Some of them were so busy with their work, they never went home.
Norwegian Church
What does Roald Dahl have to do with the church?
Good question! One of the most famous members of the church’s congregation was best-selling children’s author Roald Dahl. He was born to Norwegian parents who lived on Fairwater Road in Llandaff, Cardiff.
His father Harald, who came to Wales from Oslo, co-founded a ship-broking company in Cardiff around 1880. Roald spent his childhood and school days in Cardiff. His family worshipped at the Norwegian Church when it was at its original location in the Cardiff Docks. In fact, he and his siblings were all baptised there.
When the church fell into disrepair in the 1970s, Roald was at the forefront of a campaign to raise money to save it. Funds were raised locally and in Norway, with the end goal of dismantling and repairing the church so that it could be relocated to a new site in Cardiff Bay in 1992, where it stands today.
Unfortunately, Roald didn’t live to see the project completed – he died several years earlier. The church is still in great shape and is well looked after. It was extensively renovated in 2011 and reopened on 17 May, Norwegian Constitution Day.
A gallery upstairs at the church hosts temporary exhibitions of photography and art by local artists. Naturally, it’s been named the Dahl Gallery. If you visit, look out for the silver christening bowl which belonged to the family and is now on show here today.
Dating back to 1869 @NorwegianChurch, the oldest building still in use here in #CardiffBay. Our history spans three centuries. Working with the @WelshNorwegian society we will host a number of events through the year in the lead up to our 150th anniversary on December 16th 2019 pic.twitter.com/3qDOwYlf4b
— Norwegian Church / Eglwys Norwyaidd (@NorwegianChurch) January 30, 2019
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West Wales, home to Wales' patron St David, has a fascinating religious heritage with much of it still possible to enjoy. Here are some suggestions for special places to visit and enjoy across West Wales - from ornate cathedrals and Bishop's Palaces to ruined chapels and ashrams.
St David's Day


School receives grant for cafeteria equipment
By Drew C. Wilson
dwilson@wilsontimes.com |
Sallie B. Howard School for the Arts and Education has received a grant to improve serving equipment in the school cafeteria.
According to R. Nicole Guzman, child nutrition director at the school, …
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Posted Sunday, July 14, 2019 6:00 pm
According to R. Nicole Guzman, child nutrition director at the school, the $61,300 grant is from the N.C. Department of Public Instruction’s child nutrition program.
“With that grant, we are going to buy new serving lines,” Guzman said. “The current servings we have, one is from 1993 and the other is 1985, so we are going to have brand-new serving lines.”
A serving line consists of the wells used to keep food hot or cold when children are being served meals at the school.
“We served about 1,030 (children daily) last year; however, we are becoming a high school in the next year or so, and we will be having more students to serve,” Guzman said.
Sallie B. Howard High School for the Arts and Science is currently under construction and scheduled to open for students in the fall of 2020.
“Currently, on our older serving lines, we didn’t have the cold wells, so we constantly had to replace the cold with ice,” Guzman said. “It will be more efficient and effective for my staff. They won’t have to be going back putting ice in the serving line. We also were approved to get under-counter refrigeration so my staff doesn’t have to go back and forth to the refrigerators. They can just turn right around and take out the cold condiments or the lettuce or tomatoes. It is a lot safer for them so they won’t slip and fall, and it’s more efficient for them as well.”
Guzman has about 10 child nutrition workers.
Within the last two years, the cafeteria has undergone major renovations to replace floors, remove asbestos, repaint and replace seating and dining tables and install walk-in freezer and walk-in refrigeration units and a dishwasher for the kitchen.
“It wasn’t an expansion for our kitchen, so our kitchen is still a little on the smaller side as far as serving,” Guzman said. “However, we make it work.”
Guzman said the plan is to have meal service on a staggered entry with kindergarten through eighth grade having breakfast between 7 and 7:45 a.m., and the high school students having breakfast an hour later.
Guzman said the cafeteria still stresses serving homestyle meals
“I still do a lot of homestyle cooking, so we don’t have a lot of out-of-the-box, processed foods,” Guzman said. “Most of the time my staff is cooking from 6 in the morning until 1:30 in the afternoon, so the cooking is constant.”
Guzman said the new stainless steel equipment will arrive July 25.
“The previous ones were kind of short, so we had to have my shorter staff on the shorter line, so we will have the taller staff on a little bit taller line,” Guzman said. “This one is going to be the middle school serving line so the children are going to be taller.”
“My staff cannot wait,” Guzman said.


Northwood shooters heading to world tournament
Northwood High School students are going to a world championship archery competition.
Northwood shooters heading to world tournament Northwood High School students are going to a world championship archery competition. Check out this story on thetowntalk.com: https://www.thetowntalk.com/story/news/education/2016/05/25/northwood-shooters-heading-world-tournament/84775458/
Leigh Guidry, lguidry@gannett.com Published 1:55 p.m. CT May 25, 2016 | Updated 4:27 p.m. CT May 25, 2016
Northwood High School eighth-grader Tommy Aaron, 12, is in his second year of archery. He likes shooting at 3-D targets, which are like real animals, rather than bull's-eyes. He and 12 classmates are going to a world competition in June. He prepares to shoot during practice Tuesday.(Photo: Melinda Martinez/The Town Talk)Buy Photo
LENA — Northwood High School students will compete in a world championship competition for archery next month. Until then, the 13 qualifying students are practicing three days a week.
Coaches Randall Dunn and Cynthia McGlothlin lead them in practice during the school year and now during the summer. Northwood High has been offering archery for students from fourth to 12th grade for three years. Kids take the class at the end of the day.
They started the year with 54 kids in the program. Each one had the opportunity to shoot at a regional competition at LSUA. Twenty-two qualifiers went on to the state competition and then 16 moved on to nationals in Louisville, Kentucky, earlier this month.
The group has been whittled down to 13 who qualify for "World," or National Archery in the Schools Program's World Tournament, in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, June 24-26.
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Northwood High School eighth-graders Ella Basco (back) and Kenzie Allen (front) are headed to a world competition in archery. They prepare to shoot at practice Tuesday. (Photo: Melinda Martinez/The Town Talk)
Dunn thinks the sport attracts a big group at Northwood because many in the area are hunters like himself. He also has about nine years of experience working in archery shops in Natchitoches and Pineville.
"Out here everybody hunts," Dunn said, like Ella Basco, 13, and Kenzie Allen, 12, who are headed to the world competition.
But some just wanted to try something new. Tommy Aaron, 12, is in his second year of archery. He prefers shooting at 3-D targets, which are like real animals, rather than bull's-eyes. Tommy has learned a few things since his first year.
"I learned everything has to be the same each time," he said. "You have to be precise. I like it because of my friends and the fact that it's not as intense as other sports. It's calm."
Dunn echoed that.
"It's all about form," he said.
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Read or Share this story: https://www.thetowntalk.com/story/news/education/2016/05/25/northwood-shooters-heading-world-tournament/84775458/


IHS Markit Launches First Global Index for Carbon Credits
The new IHS Markit Global Carbon Index is the first benchmark for the global price of carbon.
Global Carbon Index combines proprietary information and futures markets data to produce the first benchmark for the global price of carbon
News Media:
Alex Paidas
alex.paidas@ihsmarkit.com
press@ihsmarkit.com
IHS Markit (NYSE: INFO), a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions, today announced that it has launched the IHS Markit Global Carbon Index, the first benchmark for the global price of carbon credits.
According to the IHS Markit Global Carbon Index, the global weighted average price of carbon credits is $23.65. Since the beginning of 2018, the total return potentially gained by investors in global carbon is 132 percent, index data show.
The design, construction and administration of the IHS Markit Global Carbon Index is a result of extensive collaboration among the firm’s Indices, Environmental and Energy businesses, including OPIS, the company’s energy price reporting arm, which offers data and pricing services to help businesses manage costs and risks associated with national and regional environmental compliance programs.
“The IHS Markit Global Carbon Index creates a valuable new benchmark for corporations, investors and financial services firms, all of which have to navigate the emerging but increasingly important markets for carbon credits,” said Sophia Dancygier, managing director and head of Indices at IHS Markit. “It also demonstrates our ability to apply our expertise in data, energy and other major industries and capital markets to develop unique products to address the most pressing and complex information demands within business today.”
The Global Carbon index tracks the performance of the largest, most liquid and most accessible tradable carbon markets, namely the European Union Emission Trading System (EU ETS), the California Cap-and-Trade Program, and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The index is calculated using OPIS data and carbon credit futures pricing in those markets.
Putting a price on carbon dioxide emissions through cap and trade programs and other market-based mechanisms is a primary strategy for reducing carbon emissions. Worldwide, 57 jurisdictions have carbon pricing mechanisms, up 34% since 2017.
The IHS Markit Global Carbon Index was developed in consultation with Climate Finance Partners, a specialist in climate finance.
“The IHS Markit Global Carbon index creates an important benchmark which helps financial institutions to better assess and price climate-related financial risks,” said Eron Bloomgarden, co-founder of Climate Finance Partners. “We see growing investor interest in carbon credits as an asset class.”
IHS Markit administers more than 14,000 benchmark, economic and tradable indices across assets. More than $130 billion in assets under management are held by exchange-traded funds referencing IHS Markit indices.
The new index is an example of the firm’s growing set of solutions covering carbon markets, sustainable investing and corporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) needs. The firm’s Environmental Registry tracks the issuance, transfer and retirement of over 350 million carbon, water, and biodiversity credits. Last year, it launched a repository to collect, store and disseminate corporate ESG data, including carbon emissions.
IHS Markit is also well known for its daily OPIS Carbon Market Report, national carbon policies database and for developing industry standard methodologies for greenhouse gas accounting and disclosures. Its research and expertise on carbon policy impact, low-carbon and cleantech technologies and carbon risk management guide companies in energy, petrochemical, automotive, shipping, agriculture and other sectors critical to the global economy.
About IHS Markit (www.ihsmarkit.com)
IHS Markit (NYSE: INFO) is a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions for the major industries and markets that drive economies worldwide. The company delivers next-generation information, analytics and solutions to customers in business, finance and government, improving their operational efficiency and providing deep insights that lead to well-informed, confident decisions. IHS Markit has more than 50,000 business and government customers, including 80 percent of the Fortune Global 500 and the world’s leading financial institutions. Headquartered in London, IHS Markit is committed to sustainable, profitable growth.
IHS Markit is a registered trademark of IHS Markit Ltd. and/or its affiliates. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners © 2019 IHS Markit Ltd. All rights reserved.
First global carbon credit index launched by @IHSMarkitFinSer using data from @OPIS
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Logan Lucky Turns Trump's America Into One of The Year's Best Movies
Logan Lucky Turns Trump’s America Into One of The Year’s Best Movies
Stephen Hladik
The promotion for Steven Soderbergh’s newest movie Logan Lucky entices audiences to “come and see how the other half steals”. A heist movie at its heart, the film also has the difficult realities of life in middle-class America coursing through its veins. It’s light and fun and enjoyable, but it also doesn’t let its audience forget that its characters aren’t just trying to rob a NASCAR event for jollies, it’s trying to gain power over a system that pushes them to the side. Perhaps if Logan Lucky came out during Obama-era America, it would just be viewed as a fun, end of Summer good-time popcorn movie with major movie stars, which it essentially is. But in the age of Drumpf, there’s something sort of daring, and even difficult about seeing these characters (who almost certainly would have voted for Donald Drumpf) being the heroes of a major motion picture. How can we root for characters who would have supported our current Commander in Chief without feeling kind of gross about it? The movie doesn’t really offer much of answer in that way, nor does it necessarily need too.
This isn’t a meditative or gently thoughtful film about the “angry working class” we so often keep hearing about in the news lately. It’s a movie about a family trying to stay together and reclaim their humanity by pulling off a major heist, scamming their way through one of middle America’s favorite pastimes as a way of keeping themselves out of poverty. Perhaps that’s where the movie succeeds; it puts its characters in situations that are very relatable for all types of people in this country. For all of the action and elaborate heist scenes, it’s a movie about family, which anybody can relate to. It’s neither an endorsement or critique of its characters and the type of environments they populate, it simply presents them as they are, and there’s something quite noble in it. It’s also a hell of a good time.
The cast is dynamite, with Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, and especially Daniel Craig having a blast playing against type as blue- collar criminals. Riley Keough continues to be one of the most exciting presences in movies of television, always able to convey so much even with so little. Cameos by Seth MacFarlane, Katherine Waterston, and Hilary Swank are sprinkled throughout the movie all of which make for great fun, which is exactly what Logan Lucky is. It’s not asking us to love these people, but it shows us that they are capable of great joy and depth, just like the rest of us.
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