Suffolk County Angles to Attract Film Crews

Abstract: WESTHAMPTON BEACH STEVE LEVY is standing on top of a pile of boards in the slanting late-day light and looking out over an overgrown field, and he is thinking big. All around him are weeds, scrub and battered outbuildings, but he is conjuring up a vision. It’s a 53-acre industrial park of biotech and environmental-technology companies, a hotel, conference center and — why stop there? — a film studio, or maybe two or even three, that would lure filmmakers past Manhattan and Queens to a place where movie and TV people have holiday and summer homes anyway. A new junior mecca for New York’s film and television industry: Suffolk County. “The producers will see that we have the services and facilities that they need,” said Mr. Levy, the Suffolk County executive. “They’ll come to us.” A year ago that might have seemed highly unrealistic: why would any big movie company send its studio work to Suffolk County when New York City is swimming in sound stages, crew and a full-service media industry? But early this year the landscape shifted. Facing tax-break competition from states like Connecticut, New York State tripled its film tax credit to 30 percent, coaxing television and film productions back like hungry pigeons. And in February a veteran television producer reopened a moribund production studio in East Hampton, quickly drawing an HBO pilot with a big-ticket director, Barry Sonnenfeld, because of the tax break and trailing the prospect of more business to come. At the same time, several county initiatives kicked in. Suffolk announced a developer for the Hampton Business and Technology Park at Gabreski Airport here, with a quarter of the site set aside for film production. It introduced incentives, including a $25,000 grant for independent filmmakers who shoot in the county. And Mr. Levy put before the County Legislature a proposal to have the county handle film requests, to spare producers the hassle of getting separate permits from villages and towns (although municipalities may opt out of the arrangement). It would be a first for New York, said Patricia Swinney Kaufman, executive director of the Governor’s Office for Motion Picture and Television Development, who said fragmented permit practices in New York have hindered the industry. “It’s going to be a model,” she said. “People are going to be watching it.” All this, Mr. Levy says, puts his vision well within reach. “Film and TV production should be one of the mainstays of the economy in Suffolk County,” he said, bringing all sorts of industry-related jobs but also sending a cascade of business to hotels, restaurants, delis, hardware stores and lumber yards. How much is a matter of debate. Mr. Levy said he had no hard projections, but in New York City the mayor’s office estimated that the new tax credit led to an additional $500 million in spending from city-based shoots between April 23 and Sept. 23 compared with that period last year. Long Island has been a destination for location shooting since the earliest days of film, and most recently for films like “Funny Games” (2007) and television shows like “The Apprentice.” But Nassau County gets a lot more of the action, with its Gold Coast estates and proximity to the city. Nassau had 547 film-production days last year to Suffolk’s 94, said Lisa Willner, a spokeswoman for the Governor’s Office for Motion Picture and Television Development. “We actually have people fighting over locations,” said Debra Markowitz, director of Nassau’s film commission. “I can’t even say we’re trying to attract them because they come anyway.” Mr. Levy wants their attention. When he took office in 2004, he revived the dormant film commission, appointing a new director and commissioners. His film office director, Michelle Isabelle-Stark, was charged with creating a one-stop Web site and coordinating with municipalities to make shooting in Suffolk easy for filmmakers. “We’ll bend over backward and roll out a red carpet,” Mr. Levy said. “It’s a clean industry that gets a major infusion into the economy.” Some things are standing in his way. There is the gantlet of wary villages, towns and local business groups, particularly in magnet locations like the Hamptons with long experience handling film shoots. In East Hampton Village, Larry Cantwell, who as assistant to the mayor issues 25 to 30 film and photography permits a year, is leery of a centralized permit system. “We want to deal directly with the production companies that are doing the work, we’ve got 30 years of experience doing this, we have a law that regulates it and we think we do it cooperatively and we do it effectively,” he said. But Mr. Levy has been chipping away at resistance from town and village leaders, and, he says, most towns and a handful of villages have signed on for a uniform county film application. He may have more trouble with skeptics who say the economic advantages to film tax breaks are overstated, depriving states of revenue for a return that is hard to calculate reliably. Ms. Swinney Kaufman disagrees. “We’re bursting with film in the city,” she said, adding that productions lured by the tax credit were already scouting for studio space beyond the boroughs. She called the credit “a great economic engine for New York,” generating not just money from film productions but also incubating related industries and skilled jobs — gaffers, grips, lighting technicians — for local residents. That would be good news to Mitchell Kriegman, a television producer and the writer and creator of the children’s programs “It’s a Big Big World,” “Bear in the Big Blue House” and “Clarissa Explains It All.” Mr. Kriegman, who owns Wainscott Studios, bought the adjacent East Hampton Studios in December with Michael Wudyka and within months landed a big job: “Suburban Shootout,” the HBO pilot directed by Mr. Sonnenfeld with a crew of 125 that was housed and fed locally for two months. He hopes to be a tenant in the new Westhampton Beach complex and said he was already looking at a third location in Suffolk for additional space. He envisions a time when his crews could be called up from the surrounding community, not shipped in from the city, working and keeping the local economy humming even in the off-season. “It’s not ‘If you build it they will come,’ ” Mr. Kriegman said. “It’s ‘They’re coming so you better build it before they get here.’ ”

Tax Credits
Motion Pictures
Hamptons (NY)
Taxation


Thousands Cheer Same-Sex Marriage Law in Euphoric Pride Parade

Abstract: Two days after New York became the sixth and largest state to legalize same-sex marriage , participants in the 42nd annual gay pride parade on Sunday used the occasion to reflect somberly on the gains and losses of the past year. Kidding! They came to shout, dance, cheer, strut, hug and shed tears of joy, knowing that on July 24, when the law takes effect, the season for tears will begin in earnest. The focus of much of the cheering was Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo , a Democrat, who made legalization of same-sex marriage part of his election campaign and visibly led the fight for its approval in the Republican-led State Senate. Mr. Cuomo marched with several local politicians, including Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and the New York City Council speaker, Christine C. Quinn, who is gay. But there was little question that the governor was the parade’s rock star, eliciting shrieks as he made his way down Fifth Avenue. The roar became almost deafening as the parade turned onto Christopher Street in the West Village. People leaned over police barriers to get a glimpse of the governor or to catch the attention of the cameras following him. “Finally we got someone who does what he believes in,” said Chuck Sawyer, 49, a fund-raiser for the American Lung Association, who added that he and his partner would probably get married in late summer. “He’s been doing what he said he’d do. A lot of past governors and even the president haven’t come through. He did.” Revelers held up thousands of printed signs reading “Promise Kept!” and “Thank You Gov. Cuomo,” and Mayor Bloomberg waved a rainbow flag. The signs were from New Yorkers United for Marriage, a coalition of previously squabbling organizations that Mr. Cuomo helped forge. But it was Mr. Cuomo who basked in the crowd’s attention, beaming and pointing at individuals along the route. “I’ve been to the parade many times, and there’s always a lot of energy and it’s always been a ball, but this was special,” the governor said as he stepped out of the parade on Christopher Street. “I think you’re going to see this message resonate all across the country now. If New York can do it, it’s O.K. for every other place to do it.” After a legislative session in which Mr. Cuomo drove through several measures opposed by liberals, including a cap on property tax increases, the governor said, “New York is the progressive capital of the nation. And it’s that once again, and it’s a pleasure to be part of it today.” In a rare public appearance with the governor, Mr. Cuomo’s girlfriend, Sandra Lee, a celebrity chef who has a gay brother, marched by his side. Ms. Lee figured into Mr. Cuomo’s deliberations over same-sex marriage, according to those who know the couple: she repeatedly reminded him that she wanted the law changed. Other officials in the parade included State Senator Thomas K. Duane and Assemblyman Daniel J. O’Donnell, both Manhattan Democrats; the state attorney general, Eric T. Schneiderman; and Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez, whose district includes parts of Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. Several people carried hand-lettered signs thanking by name the four Republican senators who voted for the bill. Former Gov. David A. Paterson, who unsuccessfully pushed for a same-sex-marriage bill in a Democrat-led Senate in 2009, marched a few blocks behind Mr. Cuomo. He held a blue sign that read, “Thank you Gov. Cuomo.” Earlier in the day, Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, a Republican, rejected the notion that acceptance of same-sex marriage would spread to his state. “I believe marriage should be between one man and one woman,” Mr. Christie said on the NBC News program “Meet the Press .” “I wouldn’t sign a bill like the one that was in New York.” But many people in the parade crowd were grateful that Mr. Cuomo, who was not considered an early champion of gay marriage, became one of its strongest advocates, and some said they hoped his successes in Albany would propel him toward the White House. “I predict a presidential run for Cuomo in 2016,” said Pati Scott, who attended the parade with her husband, Bruce. Another man along the route held a sign declaring himself a “Homo for Cuomo 2016.” Debbie Strom, 56, a Christian minister, and her girlfriend, Cathy Kahl, 63, a retired soldier whose 30 years of service included time in the Vietnam War, traveled to Greenwich Village from their home in Syracuse to celebrate. “It means we are able to be called human beings with all the rights of everyone else,” Ms. Strom said. She and Ms. Kahl have been together for two years and said they planned to get married. For Lisa Guadalupe and Lissette Conti, who marched with their three children, the parade on Sunday capped a week of highs and lows as they watched lawmakers labor over the marriage bill. “I’d get happy, then sad, then I didn’t want to get too happy because I was afraid it wouldn’t pass,” said Ms. Conti, a home health aide. “I held my breath for the longest time, then I screamed.” For now, though, the couple said they had no immediate plans to marry. “That costs money,” Ms. Conti said. “I want a nice big church wedding.” Their son Justin, 18, was happy to have time. “Do I have to wear a bridesmaid dress?” he said. “I’ve got to do some shopping.”

Same-Sex Marriage Civil Unions and Domestic Partnerships


A Place Where Lost Luggage Gets Another Shot

Abstract: SCOTTSBORO, Ala. — It is a secondhand store, one of a kind. Its name, Unclaimed Baggage Center , doesn’t quite say it all. Its shelves are stocked not only with luggage lost, forgotten or ditched by airline passengers; the store also carries all the contents of that stray luggage deemed suitable for purchase. In the G.P.S. generation, when the whereabouts of things as diverse as smartphones, house pets and children’s backpacks are traceable, airline passengers and their possessions still permanently part ways. While the number of “mishandled” items, as the aviation industry describes checked luggage that disappears or is damaged on its watch, is declining, the boom in carry-on belongings left in seat-back compartments and overhead bins — think iPads — has helped keep this repository of orphaned property thriving. And there is the promise of continued good times as more travelers take to the skies for the holiday season. “Business is great,” said Brenda Cantrell, whose title of brand ambassador at Unclaimed Baggage translates to tourism overseer and spokeswoman. How great a business is unclear, given the family-owned company’s reluctance to disclose what it considers proprietary information, other than to insist that the sign that stands outside this nondescript strip mall — “7,000 new items daily” — represents truth in advertising. She did estimate the annual traffic count at nearly a million, drawn from every state and at least 40 countries — including a commercial pilot based in Qatar who drops by regularly with his wife. Buses are welcome. Little can surprise Mrs. Cantrell anymore after seeing wheelchairs, oxygen tanks, full suits of armor and rare musical instruments wander in. Some items are so unusual that they are stashed in the company “museum,” or exhibited on the store walls, unavailable for any price. On exhibit last week was a tribal breastplate and an African djembe, or drum. Amazon it is not. There is no online shopping component. The boldest claim from Unclaimed, as it is known to local residents: There is no other place like it. Exclusive contracts are locked in with major United States-based airlines to load suitcases and other stuff from primary airports in trucks and haul them back to this northeast Alabama town of about 15,000 that, if not in the middle of nowhere, is in the vicinity. Recent ramped-up promotional efforts, largely through social media, have generated news coverage. A spot on local TV lured three residents from northern Georgia last Thursday. Sandi Grimm, though impressed, found nothing that she said “floated my boat,” but the shopping cart of her friends Pam Aiken and Ed Lyon was laden with a typically odd assortment of goods seen here: a mattress and an 11-piece cooking set, both new, along with two iPads, cleansed of data from the previous owners. The price was $625 for the pair. Behind them, the glass display case containing digital cameras could have been replicated from most any department store. On the other side was an article that distinguishes Unclaimed: a saddle mounted on a faux horseback, for the right price. Nearby was an especially incongruous scene: skis and snowboards for sale in a rural Deep South store. In fact, the first Saturday of each November is Unclaimed’s version of Black Friday . Hundreds of customers with powdered slopes on their minds queue up overnight to burst through the doors for bargains on skiing gear and garb. The special last week was on jewelry and wristwatches, marked down further from the usual reduction storewide of 20 to 80 percent below retail. David Chafin, an Alabamian visiting the area for work, had bought four timepieces earlier in the day and had circled back for more, with his wife and a colleague, Taz Tillery, in tow. As “Little Drummer Boy” drifted out over the public address system, Mr. Chafin, who said he once ran a clothing and jewelry store, expressed delight with the higher-end apparel, much of which carries designer labels. He eventually toted out seven jackets. Image Guitars, electric and acoustic, now for sale. The store also keeps a museum of unusual items. Credit Joe Buglewicz for The New York Times The store “holds up to its legend,” said Mr. Tillery, a first-timer, who poked fun at his co-worker’s binge-shopping. “My expectations were lower coming in.” Standing out among the mostly affordable watches was an 18-karat piece with a $15,000 price tag, which amounts to half of the most expensive Unclaimed transaction ever — for a Rolex. A modest purchase of earrings was made by Zoe Polk, whose father, James, had grabbed artificial fishing baits for a friend. Mr. Polk, who swings by periodically, likens the experience to a treasure hunt. “You never know what you’ll find,” he said. For example, curious about the contents of a stuffed animal acquired there eight years ago, he cut it open, he recalled, and pharmaceutical drugs spilled out. For every 1,000 fliers in the United States in the first six months of this year, 3.86 dealt with mishandled bags, according to the Department of Transportation. The rate is about half the peak in 2007, but it is enough to keep Unclaimed’s trucks rolling. The trend toward carry-ons has partly offset the decline. Unclaimed must wait 90 days to obtain checked luggage while airlines hunt for the owner. Some airlines hold onto the more valuable property for a while longer, but are not required to. Laptops and cellphones are pouring in so much that Mrs. Cantrell said, “We’ve become quite the Apple Store in our own way.” The section offering headphones and earbuds seemed disproportionately large. Mr. Tillery eventually piled a stack of garments on the checkout counter. “No telling what you’re going to find,” he said, echoing Mr. Polk’s comment, before his credit card was tapped for $277.65. Most of the store’s 40,000 square feet is occupied by clothes of all sorts, including wedding dresses and mink furs. Challenging laptops for the steepest hike in incoming items are coats. “I think everybody who travels carries two jackets and leaves one behind,” said Mrs. Cantrell after detailing her own head-to-toe ensemble, including watch and necklace, that she said was acquired at the store. Significant competition from similar businesses has been closed off by what Mrs. Cantrell said were exclusive deals and strong relationships with airlines. Several who were contacted about Unclaimed declined to comment, explaining they do not identify vendors or confirm contracts with them. Unclaimed could not have started smaller, with goods procured from bus lines sold off card tables in a two-bedroom house in 1970. The founder’s son took over a quarter-century later, and inventory today — also supplied by buses and trains — spills over into a second building that serves as the children’s department. The growth of technology that will allow for more effective tracking of luggage could become a threat, Mrs. Cantrell acknowledged. Radio frequency identification devices are deployed by at least one major airport and could someday be attached to all checked baggage by airlines as the cost of such tracking devices continues to shrink. “We’ve got some interest in examining RFID technology,” a Delta spokesman, Morgan Durrant, said.

Luggage
Unclaimed Baggage Center
Retail
Travel,Tourism
Airlines,airplanes
Scottsboro AL


Brands Create Media Outlets Online, Bypassing Magazines

Abstract: In the not-so-distant past, a luxury brand like Richemont , the Swiss company that owns Piaget, Dunhill and Montblanc, would have killed for even the slightest attention from Jeremy Langmead, the editor of British Esquire. Now, he works for them, building a menswear e-commerce site. Luxury brands have always advertised in the likes of Vogue, Esquire and Architectural Digest and tried to impress their editors enough to get mentioned in the editorial pages, as well. But now companies like Richemont are reaching out directly to consumers — and cutting out the middlemen. Last year, Richemont acquired control of Net-A-Porter , the 10-year-old online luxury fashion retailer founded by the British magazine editor Natalie Massenet. When it first began, people in the industry sniffed at Net-A-Porter, suggesting it was just a tatty e-commerce site masquerading as digital fashion magazine. They’re not sniffing anymore. Net-A-Porter sold for over half a billion dollars, making it one of the most expensive purchases of a consumer publisher — if that’s what it is — in many years. Net-A-Porter now employs more than 900 people (more than a vast majority of newsrooms and magazines), features products from 3,000 high-end designers and has four million visitors a month — far more than InStyle.com from Time Inc., Style.com from Condé Nast or the Harper’s Bazaar Web site . “Brands, especially those centered around lifestyle interests or luxury, are increasingly becoming media companies,” said Steve Rubel of Edelman Digital, a digital communications and consulting firm. Anna Wintour may still turn heads every time she’s near a runway, but frankly commercial products like Net-A-Porter are pointing the way forward not only for fashion, but for publishing as well. The mainstream media have lamented, then celebrated, the digital revolution, but the fact that creating and distributing content is getting cheaper — “Look, Ma, no trucks, no printing presses!” — has not been lost on the brands themselves. On Saturday, Burberry live-streamed its menswear show from Milan. Consumers who tuned in could not only watch the fancy model boys come down the runway in a variety of outerwear, but also click and buy anything they coveted and have it delivered to their door in six to eight weeks. The luxury brand LVMH has a Web site called Nowness that features all manner of daily specials. In the United States, the Gilt Groupe, a bargain hunter’s paradise for the luxury-minded, is now adding editorial elements every day and watching visitors spend more and more time there. And it’s not just fashion: Best Buy has been watching its in-store sales shrink under pressure from the Web and has responded with On, a digital mag-a-log with editorial content and advertisements from other brands. Thrillist sends out e-mails to subscribers with a curated list of local entertainment and retail options. One Kings Lane , an e-commerce company that sells designer home décor and furnishings, just acquired Helicopter, the hotshot design firm that helped start the well-crafted and much-missed Domino magazine, as well as doing work for mainstream publishers like The Wall Street Journal, Hachette, Time Inc. and Hearst. Apart from its burgeoning Web site, Net-A-Porter’s iPad app takes commerce and content not only mobile, but one step further. The magazine (if that’s what it is) offers a pleasing editorial narrative in the horizontal format with a parade of models and various frocks, but when the user turns the device to portrait mode, individual items pop in a retail environment, ready to buy with the swipe of a finger. And the twin revenue streams of advertising from other brands and transactions make it a promising proposition. Lucky, Condé Nast’s shopping magazine, neatly foresaw this future of editorial and advertising elements blending into a single reader experience, but the company did not take the last step of making it a place that people could buy from. Adam Lavelle, the chief strategy office of iCrossing, the digital marketing agency owned by Hearst, believes that those old lines are fast disappearing. “The days when you only had someone put together a television or a magazine ad out there and then waited three months to see if it worked are over,” he said. “The old line separating church and state is not gone, but is definitely a more blurry one. And brands that are authentic, not shameless or opportunistic, have a chance to create content that people will pay attention to.” With the acquisition of iCrossing, Hearst is working quickly to build out consumer experiences that go beyond the traditional dyad of editorial girded by advertising, in part because advertisers expect more and will go elsewhere — or do it themselves — to get it. Editorial credibility, once the sole province of old-line publishing houses, is now being bought and paid for by the brands themselves. Mr. Langmead, the former Esquire editor, will oversee Mr. Porter, a male-oriented online retail site that will serve as a companion to Net-A-Porter. Andrea Linett, the former creative director of Lucky, has gone on to become eBay’s fashion creative director, while Melissa Biggs Bradley, the founding editor of Town and Country Travel for Hearst, is now the chief executive at the travel site Indagare. And many journalists who were pushed aside as publishing withered are now finding that brands in search of an audience are still interested in what they do. “For us, this is nothing new,” said Claudia Plant, editorial director of Net-A-Porter. “For 10 years, we have been giving people information they want in a compelling, entertaining format while they shop. We fuse content with commerce and fashion.” Susan Lyne, the former chief executive of Martha Stewart Living, is now head of the Gilt Groupe . As it has added more and more editorial elements, consumers are coming not only to shop, but to browse, read and investigate, which used to be the province of magazines. “We are not in the publishing business; we are in the editing business,” she said. “But if I were in the media business, I would be concerned because it used to be that in order to reach a certain kind of consumer, brands used to have to buy ads in relevant magazines or with a certain kind of television programming. That’s clearly not the case anymore.”

E-Commerce
Net-A-Porter
Conde Nast Publications Inc
Hearst Corp
Fashion and Apparel


Manchester City Over Tottenham Hotspur, Agüero Scores Four

Abstract: LONDON — Who travels best in international soccer, attackers or defenders? It is a fair question, because strikers often live on their wits and their individual talents, whereas defenders generally rely upon coaching and cohesion. So maybe that explained how Sergio Agüero returned from a trip to Beijing and Hong Kong with the Argentine national team to score four times in Manchester City’s 4-1 home romp over Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday. And maybe, just maybe, the travails of Sunderland can be put down in part to the recent travels of its players, as the club from England’s northeast imploded and was routed, 8-0, down on the coast at Southampton. If Sunderland’s defeat was inept and seemingly uncaring, Manchester’s victory was cavalier. It owed much to the artful way that Agüero darted into spaces and how David Silva found him with quick, intuitive passes. “Agüero is the Mozart of football,” the Tottenham coach, Mauricio Pochettino, had said in the buildup to Saturday’s game. It’s an old line, previously used in the 1970s by Argentina Coach Cesar Menotti to describe the genius of Diego Maradona. And, yes, there are moments when Agüero, with his low center of gravity and his quick, impulsive moves, reminds viewers of Maradona. There is a similar end product, too: Agüero, no taller than 5-foot-8, has accumulated 61 goals in 95 appearances in the Premier league. The drawback with the quick Argentine is that he has needed to be nursed along in his career. He frequently suffers muscle strains and has been substituted in more than of half his games. That said, and even with the foresight of Pochettino, Tottenham’s defense was so wide open that it appeared that both sides had opted for all-out attack. And the referee, generous in his awarding of four penalties during the game, joined in the spirit of abandon. Two penalty kicks were netted after unerring right-to-left low shots by Agüero. A third was hit so tamely that the Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris saved it. Spurs also squandered a penalty, one hit so meekly by Roberto Soldado that it was easily stopped. City, however, outplayed Spurs throughout the game. Agüero took home the match ball for his four goals, two of which were wonderful examples of his ability to deceive defenders with a matador’s sway of the hips and then finish with low, perfect-to-the-inch shots with either foot. It seems the miles spent in the air did nothing to tire him. Once he was back on the ground, Argentina used its Mozart so sparingly that he took part for just one hour in its match in Beijing and was a bystander in Hong Kong. City might need more from him in Moscow on Tuesday, when it plays CSKA in the Champions League. More frequent flier miles, more time in the air than on the training fields, and less preparation all around. Sunderland, meanwhile, can only dream of such lofty distractions. Its coach, Gus Poyet, seemed to carry the weight of the eight-goal thrashing on his own back. His face looked hollowed, his eyes staring on in disbelief as the team capsized and allowed more goals in this encounter than it had in the previous seven combined. The Southampton coach, Ronald Koeman, had publicly warned his players via the club’s Twitter account to expect a hard game simply because Sunderland was built around a good defense and solid organization. Koeman, who has virtually rebuilt the Saints in his few months in charge, may never be taken at his word again. Koeman has re-created the team around the meticulous passes of his new Serbian midfielder, Dusan Tadic, and the attacking leadership of another new Saint, the Italian Graziano Pellè, and the club now occupies third place in the Premier League. Poyet said after Saturday’s game that he would take responsibility for his side after it was left in shambles, but players had to look at themselves. “That was probably the most embarrassing game I have been involved in as a player or a manager,” said the 46-year-old Uruguayan. “I have to say sorry for the fans. I learned a lot today about which players you can count on when things don’t go your way.” Some of his players gave up, he admitted. “I know who they are,” Puyet repeated on television in postgame interviews. “It’s important for the future. The second half was unacceptable. Some people don’t seem to understand that there is no place to hide on the pitch.” The coach had a long trip home during which he could start an inquest and possibly figure which of his players should be culled. The fans of Sunderland — one of England’s oldest and proudest clubs, dating back to the 19th century — will travel anywhere and everywhere in support of their “Black Cats” as the team is affectionately known. But every game has its turning point, and both coaches agreed that a penalty kick that was not awarded to Sunderland possibly triggered its downward spiral Saturday. Sunderland had started brightly but fell behind to a bizarre own goal by another Argentine, Santiago Vergini. His kick turned into a calamity of beautiful mishap. He tried to volley the ball away, mistimed his kick, and looped the ball over his own keeper. There were other comedies of errors, another own goal, and much plundering by Saints forwards. But at 2-0, the referee decided to give neither a penalty nor a red card to the Southampton goalkeeper, Fraser Forster, who rushed off his line and clattered into Sunderland striker Steven Fletcher with such force that Fletcher was sent pirouetting over the keeper in the goalmouth. No penalty, no reward, and ultimately no fight from the Black Cats.

Soccer
Premier League
Tottenham Hotspur Soccer Team
Manchester City Soccer Team
Sergio Aguero
UEFA Champions League


Repsol Abandons Oil and Gas Exploration Off Canary Islands

Abstract: MADRID — The Spanish energy company Repsol said on Friday that it was abandoning oil and gas exploration off the Canary Islands after an initial survey yielded insufficient results to merit extraction. The project, which started in November , had faced stiff opposition from local politicians and environmental groups. It also coincided with a plunge in oil prices that has put into question the viability of planned exploration projects around the world. Repsol is the lead operator of a consortium that earmarked $350 million for an exploration phase that was expected to last four months. It had teamed up with Woodside Petroleum of Australia and RWE of Germany. The deepwater survey was about 40 miles from Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, part of the Canary Islands off the west coast of Africa. The archipelago, which belongs to Spain, is also a major destination for tourists. The project’s oil exploration vessel, the Rowan Renaissance, will return to Angola, where Repsol has another venture. Repsol had forecast long-term yields of 110,000 barrels of oil a day from the project, enough to cover about one tenth of Spain’s oil consumption. The company initially put the chances of finding oil for exploration there at between 15 percent and 20 percent. The survey “confirmed that oil and gas have been generated in the basin,” Repsol said in a statement, but "the deposits found have been saturated with water, and the hydrocarbons present are in very thin, nonexploitable layers.” Kristian Rix, a spokesman for Repsol, said the decision to withdraw from the project had not been influenced by the recent drop in oil prices. “Angola is an interesting project for us, and it seems more promising at this stage,” Mr. Rix said. “It’s a question of where you best allocate your capital.” Pedro San Ginés, the head of the local authority of Lanzarote, welcomed the decision and called for the Spanish authorities to promote renewable energy projects around the Canary Islands. Mr. San Ginés also said that he would travel to the European Parliament in Brussels next week to push for the creation of an international wildlife sanctuary in the waters near Lanzarote and Fuerteventura. A major oil and gas discovery near the islands could have reduced Spain’s reliance on energy imports, as it imports more than 99 percent of its hydrocarbons. But the project faced fierce opposition from environmental groups. They argued that the project would endanger local flora and wildlife, including dolphins, not only because of the risk of an oil spill, but also because of tremors linked to exploration. The project also turned into a political dispute between the Spanish government in Madrid and the regional government of the islands, which tried unsuccessfully to hold a referendum on the issue last year.

Repsol
Canary Islands
Woodside Petroleum
RWE
Oil and Gasoline
Offshore drilling


Myanmar Invites Westerners to Monitor Elections

Abstract: The United States said on Wednesday that it was “encouraged” that Myanmar had invited American and European representatives to monitor elections on April 1, a milestone for Myanmar as it emerges from decades of military dictatorship. The invitation is the latest in a series of steps taken by Myanmar’s president, U Thein Sein, to pry open the country to the outside world and move toward democracy. Earlier this month, Mr. Thein Sein said that the country was seeking international recognition through “continuous efforts to win further trust.” Voting in recent years has been witnessed by a handful of foreign diplomats, including a delegation from North Korea, but the announcement on Wednesday was the first time in recent memory that Western countries were invited as observers. At stake for Myanmar is the possible lifting of sanctions. United States officials have said the handling of the elections will help determine whether Washington will rescind a raft of punitive economic measures. On Tuesday, the head office of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, is a member, announced that observers from each of the nine other Asean countries had been invited to witness the elections. Adrienne Nutzman, a spokeswoman for the United States Mission in Myanmar, said by e-mail that Washington was encouraged by the invitation but “concerned by reports of irregularities, local intimidation and a recent attack” on opposition supporters. “The Burmese authorities should take the necessary steps to ensure that the election process is free and fair, and to ensure that all political parties understand there is no place for violent attacks and intimidation,” she said. The United States did not immediately respond to the invitation. The election is a watershed for Myanmar because it signals the beginnings of the political reconciliation of the military-backed establishment and the long-suppressed democracy movement. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi , the leader of the opposition, who was kept under house arrest for the better part of two decades, is running for Parliament. The last time her party, the National League for Democracy, participated in elections was more than two decades ago, and the result was canceled by a military junta. Significantly, however, the elections do not threaten the ruling party’s hold on power. Only 48 seats out of more than 600 are being contested. The next general election is not scheduled until late in 2015. But analysts say that the military establishment is turning out to be less monolithic than often perceived. “On many key issues in Parliament, people aren’t necessarily voting along party lines,” said Thant Myint-U, a historian and former United Nations official who is one of the leading experts on the country. “Party organizations are still relatively weak, and few have clear-cut ideologies or detailed policy positions.” A recent bill in Parliament dealing with land rights was passed by one house but rejected by the other — although both are controlled by the Union Solidarity and Development Party. Mr. Thein Sein, a former general who was elected president last March, has led the changes in Myanmar, including the release of hundreds of political prisoners, peace overtures to minority ethnic groups and reconciliation with Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi.

Myanmar
Elections
Thein Sein
Aung San Suu Kyi Daw


Stir in Virginia Over Rainbow Flag at a Federal Reserve Bank

Abstract: RICHMOND, Va. — The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond ran a rainbow flag up its flagpole last week and has been hearing about it ever since. From conservative groups who are outraged. From gay rights groups who are pleased. And from state lawmakers on both sides who just cannot seem to stop talking about it. The bank unfurled the flag on June 1, at the request of a group of gay and lesbian employees in honor of gay pride month. One day later, Bob Marshall, a Republican in the House of Delegates and an outspoken opponent on gay rights issues, was moved to write a letter to the bank’s president, saying that the flag was inappropriate for a quasi-governmental entity. Gay and lesbian “behavior,” he wrote, “undermines the American economy, shortens lives, adds significantly to illness, increases health costs, promotes venereal diseases,” among other things. That prompted a series of outraged rejoinders from gay rights advocates, including Adam Ebbin, a gay lawmaker from Northern Virginia who said that despite Mr. Marshall’s views, things had “gotten better for L.G.B.T. Virginians.” In many ways, the controversy mirrors the changing demographics of this fast-growing state, whose traditions and habits are mixing with an influx of immigrants and young professionals in the northern part of the state. Jim Strader, a spokesman for the bank, said the bank had fielded hundreds of phone calls and as many e-mails about the flag. The flag, he said, symbolizes “values of being open and inclusive,” and shows that the bank is “a place that doesn’t discriminate.” That is important in Virginia, said James Parrish, executive director of Equality Virginia, because House Republicans have twice blocked a bill that would protect state employees from discrimination by sexual orientation. Rainbows, which festoon entire neighborhoods in some cities during gay pride month, are hard to spot in Richmond, and Mr. Parrish said the flag outside the bank was “noticeable.” “This is not Greenwich Village or Hell’s Kitchen,” he said. One of the most popular arguments by the flag’s opponents was that the bank is a government institution and so should not be displaying a flag that promotes a cause. And now that they are, the argument goes, they have an obligation to other causes. “We hope there would be an even hand played when a Christian requests the Christian flag in September during Christian Heritage month,” said Victoria Cobb, president of the Family Foundation, a conservative advocacy group. Mr. Strader’s response is that the bank is in fact privately owned, as are all regional Federal Reserves, and that it considers requests by employees — this was the first one — but not the general public. Mr. Marshall, 67, has been vocal on gay issues. He told The Washington Post last year that he was concerned gay troops would spread venereal disease. He was also a sponsor of Virginia’s ban on gay marriage. Mr. Strader said the bank “anticipates” that it will respond to Mr. Marshall’s letter. Meanwhile, Mr. Marshall has written an opinion article that he said is scheduled to run on Sunday in The Richmond Times-Dispatch. “I am sure this flag and or Fed story will not end here,” he said.

Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
Homosexuality
Flags Emblems and Insignia
Richmond (Va)


Police Hunt for Suspects in Paris Attack as Nation Mourns

Abstract: PARIS — As France mourned, thousands of law enforcement agents mobilized on Thursday in an extensive manhunt for two brothers suspected of killing 12 people, including two police officers, at the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris. The police were focusing their search on northern France, where the suspects were reported to have stolen food from a gasoline station. One of the cars they used in their getaway from Paris on Wednesday was found abandoned in the area. Television channels carried live coverage of the search for the brothers, Saïd and Chérif Kouachi, 34 and 32. A third suspect, Hamyd Mourad, 18, turned himself in early Thursday at a police station in Charleville-Mézières, about 145 miles northeast of Paris. Image Journalists at Agence France-Presse in Paris held signs Thursday reading “Je suis Charlie” (I am Charlie) during a moment of silence for the victims of the attack at the newspaper Charlie Hebdo. Credit Francois Xavier Marit/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images The sighting of the brothers and the discovery of the car in the town of Villers-Cotterêts, in Picardy, captivated a nation that seemed to draw together on Thursday, at least for a moment of silence at noon on a rare official day of national mourning, to defend French values like freedom of the press and religious tolerance. French police officers were also guarding railway and subway stations, department stores and other potential targets like news media offices on Thursday. Officials in Britain said they were stepping up screening at ferry ports in case the two men tried to head that way. In London, the head of Britain’s MI5 Security Service, roughly equivalent to the F.B.I., warned on Thursday that Qaeda militants in Syria were plotting attacks to inflict mass casualties in the West, possibly against transport systems or “iconic targets.” Image French police questioned a motorist in Longpont, France, on Thursday. 1 / 15 Andrew Parker, in a speech prepared before the Paris attack but delivered afterward, called an attack on Britain highly likely. About the Paris attack, he said, “it is too early for us to come to judgments about the precise details or origin of the attack, but it is a terrible reminder of the intentions of those who wish us harm.” In Washington, President Obama visited the French Embassy on Thursday evening, where he signed a book of condolences and paused for a minute of silence alongside Ambassador Gerard Araud, according to the White House pool report. The moment of silence in France was widely respected, but the national mood encompassed fear, anger, unity and, ultimately, defiance. Isolated events helped fan anxiety. On Thursday morning, a police officer was killed and a city employee was wounded by gunfire near a subway station just south of Paris. Video Chérif Kouachi, one of the suspects in the Charlie Hebdo shootings in Paris, appeared in a 2005 investigative documentary about jihadism that aired on French television. Credit Credit Pièces à Conviction, France3 The police said the shooting appeared unrelated to the attack on the newspaper or the subsequent manhunt, and they announced two arrests. There was also an explosion at a kebab shop in eastern France, with no casualties reported, and two mosques were fired at, prosecutors said. The government moved quickly to try to capture the fugitive brothers and reassure the nation. The police said they had detained several people for questioning in the case and had arrested some of them. They also announced that at least five planned terrorist attacks had been thwarted in France over the last 18 months. The alert level in northern France and in Paris, the capital, was raised to the highest level. The police had their first big break in the case when they discovered that one of the brothers, Saïd, had left his identity card in the first car used by the gunmen, which was found abandoned Wednesday evening after a crash. The police reportedly found Molotov cocktails and jihadist banners in the car as well. Tracking the Aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo Attack A visual timeline of the attack and the events that followed. The authorities seemed to catch another break when the men robbed the gas station. The manager of the station said they were wearing masks and waving Kalashnikov assault rifles, like the ones used in the attack on the newspaper office. Xavier Castaing, a spokesman for the Paris police, said that two men fitting the description of the suspects were spotted in Villers-Cotterêts driving a gray Renault Clio, the same kind of car that the two fleeing suspects had hijacked late Wednesday. In the evening, a police search appeared to be scouring a stretch of forest just to the west of Longpont, a small town on the N2 highway between Villers-Cotterêts and Soissons. Officers blocked off a road leading into Longpont, and at least 50 journalists from as far away as Japan and Russia huddled in the cold and damp. At noon, in a sign of mourning for the worst terrorist attack in France since the Algerian war, bells rang, schools stopped classes, and corporate meetings were cut short. At mosques, people bowed their heads. Some electronic road signs displayed the words, “Je suis Charlie” — I am Charlie. At Notre Dame Cathedral, pedestrians wept as hundreds stood silent on a gray and rainy day to pay tribute to the victims. Dozens placed flowers in front of Charlie Hebdo’s headquarters. Through the vigils and tributes, some people held pencils, a symbol of support for freedom of the press. There was a palpable sense of determination that France and its vaunted Republican values of free speech and freedom of expression would not be subverted by religious extremism. Charlie Hebdo announced that despite the loss of so many of its people — including cartoonists who have been well known for a generation — it would publish as scheduled next Wednesday, and would print 1 million copies, rather than the usual 60,000. Many Muslim clerics and spokesmen added their voices to the sense of outrage, decrying the killings as antithetical to legitimate Islam. Abdennour Bidar, a French Muslim and professor of philosophy, said on Arte television that the killers “do not deserve the name of Muslims.” In the name of Islam, he said, he would not allow Islam to be “instrumentalized, stolen by these people who say that they are avenging the Prophet.” “It’s a disgrace, an infamy, a lie,” he said. But in a sign of how the attack was already spilling over into French politics, Marine Le Pen, leader of the far-right National Front, called on Thursday for a national referendum on whether to reinstitute the death penalty. “The Islamists have declared war against France,” she told a French broadcaster. Ms. Le Pen said that she had not been invited to join a “unity rally” on Sunday. “Things are clear from now on — the masks fall off,” she told Le Monde newspaper. “National unity is a pathetic political maneuver.”

Charlie Hebdo
Hamyd Mourad
Paris France
Terrorism
Cherif Kouachi
Said Kouachi
Manuel Valls


A Turbulent Tenure for a Quiet Scholar

Abstract: When Benedict XVI became pope eight years ago at the age of 78, many Roman Catholic scholars predicted that he would be a caretaker. He would keep the ship sailing in the same direction as his beloved predecessor, John Paul II. And as the rare theologian who knew how to write for a broad audience, Benedict would keep the crew inspired and the sails billowing. If written words alone could keep the church on course, Benedict would likely be viewed as a solid success. His encyclicals on love and charity and his three books on the life of Jesus were widely praised for their clarity and contribution to Catholic teaching. But when it came to the major challenges facing the church in the real world, Benedict often appeared to carom from one crisis to the next. He inadvertently insulted Muslims on an early trip to Germany, which resulted in riots across the Islamic world and the murder of an Italian nun in Somalia. He welcomed back a breakaway bishop who had just recorded an interview denying the facts of the Holocaust. He told reporters on the papal plane winging toward Africa that condoms had helped spread AIDS. When the clerical sexual abuse scandal spread across Europe and exploded at Benedict’s door in 2010, Benedict met with abuse survivors and oversaw the development of new church policies to prevent abuse. But he was denounced by survivors and their advocates for never moving to discipline bishops who were caught in the cover-up. Among the cardinals expected to vote in the conclave to elect the next pope is Roger M. Mahony of Los Angeles, whose decades of mishandling sexual abusers in the priesthood was recently exposed by the court-ordered release of thousands of internal church documents. Even Pope Benedict’s attempt to reach out with a pastoral letter to the church in Ireland, worn down by revelations of widespread clergy sexual abuse, left many there infuriated when he appeared to blame the nation’s spiritual disillusionment on the Irish Catholics themselves. “It’s been the tin-ear papacy,” said Christopher M. Bellitto, chairman and associate professor of history at Kean University in Union, N.J., who studies the papacy. “It’s been a very small, introverted papacy because that’s who he is. The pope is an introvert.” One of the defining moments, Dr. Bellitto said, was the speech Pope Benedict gave in September 2006 at Regensburg University in Germany, in which he quoted the words of a medieval Byzantine emperor speaking of Islam: “Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.” Dr. Bellitto said: “Every professor in the universe knew exactly what he was doing, which was to start a lecture with something provocative and work off of that. But it didn’t play out that way.” Pope Benedict later apologized for the reaction, explaining that the totality of his address was intended as “an invitation to frank and sincere dialogue, with mutual respect,” with the Muslim world. He followed that up by coming out in favor of admitting Turkey to the European Union, a reversal of his previous position. He later visited Turkey and prayed at the Blue Mosque in Istanbul alongside the head mufti, a significant gesture that helped to calm the waters. Video Pope Benedict XVI is likely to be remembered for his work as a scholar, including his writings on love, charity and capitalism. Benedict’s biggest challenge was to set a course for a church that is still divided over the meaning and legacy of the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s, which opened the door to modern reforms. The council resulted in changes like empowering lay people in parish life, celebrating the Mass in the local vernacular language rather than in Latin, and allowing nuns to expand their mission beyond working in church schools and hospitals. To many Catholic traditionalists, Benedict is a hero who has reeled in the excesses of Vatican II, by promoting “the reform of the reform.” He expanded the use of the Latin Mass used before Vatican II. And he pushed the English-speaking Catholic churches to adopt a liturgy translation more faithful to the original Latin — a change that many priests protested was awkward and alienating, but which has gradually taken hold. In keeping with his previous post as head of the church’s doctrinal office, Benedict used his papacy to discipline those who questioned church teaching. He presided over two investigations of American nuns. He oversaw the censure of theologians and the removal of Bishop William Morris in Australia, who had written a pastoral letter raising the possibility of women and married priests. In 2012, he excommunicated the Rev. Roy Bourgeois, an American priest who blessed a woman in what the church considered an illicit ordination ceremony. Monsignor Kevin W. Irwin, a professor of liturgy and former dean of the school of theology at the Catholic University of America, who is currently teaching in Rome, said: “This is a theologian who wants to be clear about what the church teaches. Some would regard that as being less open to change, and less open to other possible ways of knowing theology, but this is a highly trained German professor who brought that skill of clarity to all of his writing.” But liberal Catholics from the church’s social justice wing could not help but feel that Benedict was intolerant of the church’s left wing and overly solicitous of the right. That criticism peaked after the pope lifted the excommunication of four schismatic ultraconservative bishops from the breakaway Society of St. Pius X, who reject the reforms of Vatican II. It became one of the low points of Benedict’s papacy when it was discovered that one of the schismatic bishops had denied the scope of the Holocaust in an interview available on the Internet. Robert Mickens, the Vatican correspondent for The Tablet , a Catholic weekly published in London, said of Benedict: “He leaves the church even further divided. He’s alienated the majority of Catholics, maybe not the bishops and cardinals who, because they’re in the hierarchy, support and reinforce what the pope says. But run-of-the-mill Catholics feel that the church is probably not going in the right direction, and they feel the division more now than they did eight years ago.” In the last year, the Vatican became entangled in a scandal that led to the arrest of the pope’s personal butler for leaking documents to a journalist who then published an exposé. Many church analysts said the Vatican bureaucracy was paralyzed, the church’s ship was adrift. So when the pope shocked the world on Monday with his resignation announcement, his supporters and detractors alike almost universally hailed the move as a moment of grace, sounding almost relieved to see the end of what has been a very turbulent journey.


Geithner’s Treasury Tenure Defined by Financial Crisis

Abstract: WASHINGTON — In a matter of days, the nation’s Treasury secretary, Timothy F. Geithner, will leave the department he first joined more than two decades ago and re-enter private life for the first time since he was in his 20s. Looking forward, Mr. Geithner has no plans. A regulator of Wall Street but not a creature of it, he will probably be the least likely former Treasury secretary to land there. “I’m going to take a long time,” he said in the second of two exit interviews, one conducted in the midst of the recent fiscal fight and one just after the news conference on Thursday at which President Obama formally nominated his successor, Jacob J. Lew. Looking back, he is remarkably sanguine. He is comfortable with his decisions: the policy choices available to him were far from ideal, he said, but his team did the best it could within the realm of the politically possible. “It was a very bad crisis. No playbook. No road map. No clear precedent,” he said. “If we had a different set of constraints, particularly in fiscal policy, then I think that the economic outcome could have been modestly better.” A sense of the weight of those constraints emerged in the brief speech Mr. Geithner gave at the White House news conference on Thursday, as Mr. Obama thanked him for his service. While describing the “compelling and rewarding work” of government, he mentioned the “divisive state of our political system.” In the interviews, Mr. Geithner, 51, returned to the idea that the Treasury and the Obama administration might have done more if they had been given more latitude by Congress. Image From left, President Obama, Jacob Lew and Timothy Geithner, whom Mr. Lew has been nominated to replace as Treasury secretary. Credit Doug Mills/The New York Times “The way our country is structured, by design, the founders left the Congress with all the meaningful authorities to determine the path of the economy and what you could do in a crisis,” he said, mentioning how hard the White House had pushed for more authority. “The scale of the fiscal response in particular was dependent” on what Congress would allow. Mr. Geithner ran the Treasury during the tumultuous years of the financial crisis and a recession that slowly gave way to a recovery, albeit an unsteady one. As president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York before he joined Mr. Obama’s cabinet in 2009, he was at the center of the most nerve-racking moments of the banking crisis. And his low-key but forceful insistence kept the Treasury at the center of every major economic policy decision of Mr. Obama’s first term, aside from the health care overhaul. By a combination of historical accident and his own design, Mr. Geithner will go down as one of the most influential Treasury secretaries, alongside figures like Robert E. Rubin, who served under President Bill Clinton, and Henry Morgenthau Jr., who served under Roosevelt. But he has not always been a popular one. Both Republicans and Democrats have accused him of subverting capitalism and dedicating taxpayer money to “too big to fail” institutions in perpetuity. The left has criticized him for helping “fat cat” bankers instead of regular people, especially underwater homeowners. “Is the system safer today?” said Dennis M. Kelleher, president of Better Markets, a nonprofit that advocates stricter financial regulations. “The collapse turned an implicit public guarantee into an explicit public guarantee. It is one of the most dramatic changes of federal policy in history and puts too much at stake.” Still, Mr. Geithner has attained something like a first-among-equals stature at the White House. He is one of the only top-level staff members to have remained throughout Mr. Obama’s first term, and his word and policy judgments have prevailed in fight after fight and negotiation after negotiation. Image The German finance minister, Wolfgang Schäuble, left, and Mr. Geithner in Germany in July. Credit Patrik Stollarz/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images “He went from someone who people were unsure of in the first six months to achieving the elevated status of being the guy who made the toughest and loneliest calls at the most politically perilous moments — and turned out to be right,” said Gene B. Sperling, director of the National Economic Council. In many ways, his colleagues said, Mr. Geithner’s job seemed at times to be that of a firefighter or, at its worst moments, a glorified janitor. His four years were filled with a series of crises: the collapse of the financial system, spiraling unemployment, the cratering housing market, the financial reform bill, the ailing auto industry, the European debt crisis, a debt ceiling standoff and two protracted budget negotiations. “He is so serene in good times and in bad,” said Michael Froman, a deputy national security adviser who has known Mr. Geithner for two decades and helped introduce him to Mr. Obama. Given Mr. Geithner’s background fighting financial disasters abroad as a Treasury aide, Mr. Froman said, “I think he was better prepared than anyone to deal with these crises.” The decisions Mr. Geithner made during the financial crisis remain among his most controversial. For instance, he quashed proposals to seize bonuses, impose new taxes or otherwise punish bankers, whose pay rebounded quickly after the collapse. Mr. Geithner refers to such proposals as the “Old Testament” part of the rescue and reform effort. “We just didn’t see a more effective response,” he said. “If you’re governing, your responsibility is to do what you think is going to be best for the welfare of the country.” More punitive measures might have been emotionally satisfying, administration aides said, but they might also have put taxpayer dollars at risk by destabilizing the banks. Housing is another area in which Mr. Geithner’s leadership has been criticized. The Obama administration estimated at first that it could reach three million to four million homeowners with its mortgage plans, but it has aided less than half that number and left billions of dollars unspent. Image From left, Henry Paulson, then secretary of the Treasury, Ben Bernanke, chairman of the Federal Reserve, and Timothy Geithner, then president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, in 2008. Credit Hyungwon Kang/Reuters “Our authority on housing was very, very limited,” Mr. Geithner said. “We were able to use a significant amount of the authority in the Troubled Asset Relief Program to design a program for modifying the loans of a pretty substantial fraction of Americans facing foreclosure. But we had no legal authority to compel banks to provide mortgage relief. All we could do was find incentives.” He added, “It’s not clear with greater authority we would have been able to achieve a significantly faster pace of improvement.” Such technocratic responses are typical of Mr. Geithner. His aides say that empathizing with the public and communicating his anger or disappointment with the slow pace of the recovery have always been among his weak points. He has struggled at times with the outward-facing role of the Treasury secretary. He dislikes speaking with the press and bristles at being a “potted plant” trotted out at news conferences, for instance. Aides said they prepared him for media appearances as if playing the game Taboo, banning him from using phrases like “credit-default spreads.” But within the White House, Mr. Geithner’s technocratic skills and no-drama attitude, as well as his calls on how to deal with the crisis, made him one of Mr. Obama’s most trusted aides. Though he is mostly known for his work on the financial crisis, he was also the White House’s main emissary to Europe on its debt crisis and spent hundreds of hours working on fiscal negotiations with Congress. During his tenure, he made 61 domestic trips and 37 international ones, and testified 67 times to Congressional committees. Looking back, he said, more authority or financing from Congress might have helped the administration promote the recovery. But he said he felt comfortable otherwise. Asked directly how he viewed his tenure, however, Mr. Geithner shied away. “I kind of think that’s better for history to answer,” he said.

Timothy F Geithner
Treasury Department
Appointments and Executive Changes
US Politics


Bracing for Change on Scotland’s Border, Whatever the Referendum Result

Abstract: BERWICK-UPON-TWEED, England — This is England’s northernmost town, and it has changed hands between the Scots and the English more than a dozen times in the last 1,400 years. It hasn’t been a true border outpost since the unification of the two countries more than 300 years ago, but it may soon become one again. And the people of Berwick, many of them of Scottish origin, are not too happy about it, fearing that the uncertainty and instability could disrupt a feeble economic recovery. The opinion polls are close, the debate is exhausting and the mood is anxious. “People feel and fear that however it goes, the relationship between Scotland and England will never be the same,” said Tom Forrester, a town councilor. “My heart tells me that most right-minded people will see that it is safer and better for us to stay in this relationship with each other,” said Liz Murray, who owns a shop that sells cookware in Berwick but lives across the border in Scotland. “But I’ve seen enough of the passion of the Scots to see that that might carry the day.” A Scottish vote for independence on Thursday would create huge waves on both sides of the border, shaking the British government of Prime Minister David Cameron, undermining the electoral future of the British Labour Party and making it more likely that Britain will have a referendum on its own continued membership in the European Union. An independent Scotland would raise questions about currency and finance, about where to base Britain’s fleet of nuclear submarines, about border security in a period of terrorism, about whether Scotland would still get BBC television and about whether members of Parliament from Scotland, the vast majority of them from the Labour Party, would lose their seats. And then, of course, there is the question of whether the United Kingdom would need to replace the Union Jack, and with what. It would be an enormous victory for the Scottish National Party and its leader, Alex Salmond, and would kick off a difficult 18 months of negotiations with the British government about the terms of the divorce, which would become official in March 2016. Image Berwick-upon-Tweed, in northern England. Across the border, Scots will vote on Thursday in an independence referendum. Credit Andrew Testa for The New York Times But should the Scots vote against independence on Thursday, said Dougie Watkin, a farmer with land and sheep on both sides of the border, “half the population will be very disappointed.” The leaders of the three main British parties have promised all kinds of new powers for Scotland if the Scots do vote no. Even so, if the margin proves to be narrow, the issue of independence, as in Quebec, is unlikely to go away anytime soon. Even in Berwick, with a population of 15,000, the questions range from the effects on trade and immigration to whether small businesses would have to fill out two sets of tax forms and deal with two currencies. “If there’s independence, will I be paying income tax in one country and business tax in the other?” Ms. Murray asked. “I can’t afford an accountant, and there’s already so much paperwork now, that would put us out of business.” What about pensions and university education, when Scotland offers free tuition and England does not? What if Scotland has a different corporate or personal income tax rate? “What are the plans in place for all these issues?” Ms. Murray asked. “They’re not there.” Keith Siseman, who runs an art gallery with a liquor license called Pier Red, said that Scottish independence would turn things “upside down.” The power and influence of Britain in the world would be diminished, he said, with new questions about whether Britain could afford to keep its nuclear missiles, which are submarine-based, in a Scotland that says it wants to be nuclear-free. Berwick is two miles from the border and is the only English town with a soccer team, the Rangers, that plays in the Scottish league, a legacy of the days when a poor railway network made the rest of England difficult to reach. That feeling of remoteness carries on. Many people in Northumberland say they feel much the same alienation from the Westminster Parliament as the people of Scotland do. Video On Sept. 18, Scotland is scheduled to vote on seceding from Britain. We take a look at the issues at stake for the Scottish people. Credit Credit Andy Rain/European Pressphoto Agency “When the Scots say these posh boys from southern England are very far away and don’t care about them, I know just what it’s like, here in the northern end of Northumberland,” said Simon Heald, who runs a used-book shop. The no campaign has tried to frighten the Scots on pocketbook issues, which patronizes and infuriates them, when Mr. Cameron and his colleagues “should have been pouring love up north, and not fear,” Mr. Heald said. “You can’t put the fear of God into a nation like Scotland that’s up for a fight,” he said. “We didn’t send the Scottish battalions into war first for no reason.” The no campaign “has been more like picking a fight,” Ms. Murray said. “Do that to a Glaswegian and he’ll head-butt you.” Mr. Cameron and the Labour leader, Ed Miliband, have been fiercely criticized for leaving their campaign to preserve the union until too late, assuming that the no vote would win easily. And Mr. Cameron, by insisting on only one question — independence or not — has made this vote into a great gamble. Even Mr. Salmond had wanted another option on the ballot, one of further devolution of power over Scotland’s affairs to the Scottish Parliament, which already has substantial autonomy from the central government in London. “We want to control our own country,” said Roddy Low, 47. “A lot of people are fed up with being told what to do by Westminster, and not just by the Tories. This has been growing for 30, 40 years.” He was speaking across the River Tweed in Coldstream, Scotland, the original home of the Coldstream Guards, one of the few British regiments that now help to guard Queen Elizabeth II, and from where, in 1660, soldiers marched to London to restore Charles II to the throne. Video As Scotland prepares for its referendum on independence, many English and Scots that live in border towns feel an acute uncertainty that could remain no matter which way the vote goes. Credit Credit Andrew Testa for The New York Times John Dickson, who was buying lamb in the local butcher shop in Coldstream, said he had no doubts. “It’s the only chance we’ve had in 300 years, and if we miss it, there’ll never be another,” he said. “If people want to go to bed with the English, I’ll help them carry the mattress south.” Malcolm Campbell, 53, a pro-independence Scot who was fishing for salmon in the Tweed, said that of course there would be problems to solve if Scotland voted for independence, but that Scotland could work them out. “They try to scare us about the pound,” he said. “But we’ll have a currency and it will work, and we won’t go back to the barter system of a kilo of tomatoes for a pound of salt. If people want it to work, it will work.” His son, Grant, 22, also said he would vote yes. He went to Abertay University in Dundee at no cost, under legislation passed by the Scottish National Party that distinguishes Scotland from England, where college students typically have to pay thousands of pounds in tuition. “It’s almost like a thank you to the S.N.P.,” he said. “Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to go to university.” In Scotland, which is largely left-leaning, “we have a completely different set of political principles from England,” the younger Mr. Campbell said. “We can still have a social union with the English, so I see no sadness in it.” But in Coldstream, too, there is anxiety and a sizable number of people, like Malcolm Bolam, the owner of the butcher shop, who say they will vote no but who are keeping their heads down given the deep passions of the campaign. “There are far too many questions unanswered for me to say yes,” Mr. Bolam said. He has two young girls, and he worries about big companies and banks moving to England, about jobs disappearing and taxes then going up in a Scotland where North Sea oil and gas are slowly being depleted. “I’ve got a lot of customers from the other side” for his pure Scottish meat, he said. “I don’t want to lose them.” Back in Berwick, Mr. Siseman predicted further dissolution. “This is a happy family that could be getting divorced for no real reason,” he said. “And that’s scary, because it won’t end here. Because if the Scots get it, the Shetland Islanders will want it, and we’ll end up with the United Nothing.”

Scotland
Referendum
England
Great Britain


Beyond French Open Favorites, Some Who Could Surprise

Abstract: Here is a look at some players to watch in the men’s and the women’s fields at the French Open, which begins on Sunday: Men KEI NISHIKORI Nishikori, who shocked Novak Djokovic in the semifinals of the United States Open last year, is a legitimate threat to win a Grand Slam. He is comfortable on red clay, where his stunning ball striking pushes opponents deep behind the baseline. Like Djokovic, Nishikori can transform a baseline rally off either side with breathtaking pace and accuracy. He has had a solid clay-court season, reaching the semifinals of Madrid with wins over David Goffin, Roberto Bautista-Agut and David Ferrer — all stellar clay-court players — before losing to a red-hot Andy Murray. Nishikori’s two-handed backhand, which he loves to take on the rise, is one of the game’s best. ROBERTO BAUTISTA-AGUT Bautista-Agut was voted the ATP Tour’s most improved player in 2014 after cracking the top 20 for the first time. A superb clay-court player, Bautista-Agut has transformed himself from a tireless baseline retriever into a more offensive player with an uncanny sense of when to change tactics. The best-of-five format favors Bautista-Agut, whose mental toughness and physical conditioning make him one of the toughest outs in tennis. He beat Thomaz Bellucci and Pablo Cuevas to reach the quarterfinals in Madrid. He has the game to make a deep run on the red clay of Roland Garros. Image Carla Suárez Navarro of Spain, who made the final in Rome, has a deft drop shot. Credit Alessandra Tarantino/Associated Press THANASI KOKKINAKIS When you think of the next great star in men’s tennis, the lithe and powerful young Australian Nick Kyrgios comes to mind. But there is another player from Down Under, Kokkinakis, a 19-year-old from Adelaide who last week won the clay-court title in Bordeaux, battling through qualifying and then winning five matches to boost his ranking to 83rd in the world. Kokkinakis shares more than Greek ancestry with Kyrgios. At 6 feet 5 inches, he, too, possesses a booming serve and a powerful forehand. A dangerous floater in the draw, Kokkinakis has the game to pull off a few upsets and go deep into the second week. Women CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO One of the few women on tour with one-handed backhands, Suárez Navarro arrives in Paris full of confidence. She reached the final in Rome, defeating Eugenie Bouchard, Petra Kvitova and Simona Halep before falling in three sets to Maria Sharapova. Suárez Navarro has an exceptional feel for the ball and a deft drop shot, an important weapon on red clay. She mixes spin, height and pace to upset her opponents’ rhythm, and her unique game style is a refreshing contrast to the ubiquitous power game. DARIA GAVRILOVA Gavrilova began 2015 ranked No. 233 in the world and in just five months has climbed to 45 in the WTA rankings. She upset Ana Ivanovic, 7-6, in the third set of a spellbinding match at the Fioro Italico in Rome before falling to Sharapova in the semifinals. She wins with a genius-level tennis I.Q., outstanding movement and the ability to compete at a high level from the first point to the last. Her meteoric rise is remarkable, and she looks like a future top-10 player. VICTORIA AZARENKA After being sidelined with injuries last year, Azarenka is regaining championship form. She had triple match point against Serena Williams in Madrid but lost, 7-6, in the third set when her nerves got the better of her. But Azarenka’s fearless ball striking, punctuated by her trademark high-pitched shriek, makes her a looming threat in the draw. Azarenka plays to win, and if she can survive the first week, look for her level of play to rise.

French Open
Kei Nishikori
Tennis
Thanasi Kokkinakis
Victoria Azarenka
Carla Suarez Navarro


State to Preserve Heart of Adirondacks

Abstract: State environmental officials agreed on Thursday to preserve a vast swath of wild acreage in the northern part of Adirondack Park, using a combination of outright purchase and conservation easements meant to protect both wilderness and jobs. The deal was praised by environmental groups, which had urged the state to act quickly to gain control of most of the 161,000 acres that the Nature Conservancy acquired from a paper company last year. The land is considered crucial to protecting the heart of the Adirondacks. Local leaders in the Adirondacks, who have been concerned about land conservation crowding out economic opportunity, will have several months to approve or reject the plan. As laid out by state officials in meetings with local officials and environmental groups on Thursday, New York State will buy more than 57,000 acres that had been owned by Finch, Pruyn & Company since the Civil War and add it to the existing forest preserve, which is off limits to development or timber cutting but open for public recreation. In addition, the state will buy conservation easements on 74,000 more acres of woodlands formerly owned by Finch, Pruyn (pronounced PRINE) and now controlled by the conservancy. The easements prohibit development but allow recreation and logging under strict sustainable forestry standards. The conservancy expects to sell the land with the easements attached to private timber management companies, which would provide wood pulp to the paper mill in Glens Falls, formerly owned by Finch, Pruyn. “We were hoping a little more land would go into the forest preserve, but it appears that they have protected the most environmentally sensitive areas, namely Boreas Ponds, the Essex chain of lakes and the Hudson River Gorge,” said John Sheehan, a spokesman for the Adirondack Council, a private group. Pete Grannis, commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation, said he felt confident that the agreement would safeguard “all the truly precious pieces of property” that were available in the huge tract. In all, the state is committing to protect about 130,000 of the 161,000 acres of Finch, Pruyn land that was acquired in a complex $110 million deal last July by the Nature Conservancy with the help of the Open Space Institute. Mr. Grannis said the state was having the property appraised to determine how much it should pay for it, probably using money from the state’s Environmental Protection Fund. The Nature Conservancy has begun a $35 million fund-raising drive, suggesting that it expects the state to provide $70 million to $80 million for its purchases and easements. The conservancy would pay taxes on the land until the deal with the state was complete. The state would then pay the taxes. One sticky issue in the transaction is what to do with hundreds of private hunting and fishing clubs that have leased their land — sometimes covering thousands of rural acres — from Finch, Pruyn for generations. Eleven clubs that lease nearly 40,000 acres where the state intends to buy conservation easements would be permitted to continue leasing their properties, said Michael T. Carr, executive director of the Adirondack chapter of the Nature Conservancy. Twenty other clubs, whose land is entirely within the proposed forest preserve, would have a 10-year transition period during which they would gradually have to share their land with the public. At the end of 10 years, they would have to give up their leases, and their land would revert to public ownership and use. Another controversial aspect of the plan would connect existing snowmobile trails to create a network linking North Hudson, Newcomb, Long Lake, Minerva and Indian Lake, the five towns where most of the 134,000 acres of the northern holdings are situated. Mr. Grannis said that some environmental groups have already expressed opposition to the expanded trail network, but that the project would benefit the five rural towns. “These trails and the network of support services and businesses that go along with having lots and lots of people visiting us have a huge potential for building and sustaining economic interest in the area,” Mr. Grannis said. The plan would also make available 1,000 acres for ball fields and other public recreational use, along with affordable housing. In the southern part of the park, 27,000 acres of undeveloped land are scattered through 22 towns. The land was previously owned by Finch, Pruyn, but it is not included in the present proposal. Mr. Carr said he intended to continue negotiating with the towns to determine the best way to handle the additional tracts of land.

New York State
Environment
Adirondack Mountains (NY)
Wilderness Areas
Forests and Forestry


U.S. E-Mails Reveal Early Views of Libya Attack

Abstract: WASHINGTON — A series of three leaked e-mails sent by State Department officials beginning shortly after the fatal attack began on the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya , last month — including one that alerted the White House Situation Room that a militant group had claimed responsibility for it — stirred new debate on Wednesday about the Obama administration’s shifting positions on the cause of the attack. The first e-mail, sent about a half-hour after the assault began, said the State Department’s regional security officer in Tripoli, Libya, had reported that the mission in Benghazi was under attack, and that “20 armed people fired shots.” An e-mail 49 minutes later said the firing at the mission “has stopped and the compound has been cleared,” while a response team was trying to find people. In the next message, 1 hour 13 minutes after the second, the embassy in Tripoli reported that a local militant group, Ansar al-Shariah, had claimed responsibility through postings on Facebook and Twitter. In the hours after the Benghazi attack, American spy agencies intercepted electronic communications from Ansar al-Shariah fighters bragging to an operative with Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Al Qaeda’s North African arm. But Ansar al-Shariah has publicly denied having anything to do with the attack. A White House spokesman, Jay Carney, with President Obama on Air Force One on Wednesday, said the e-mails, reported by Reuters, were unclassified and among “all sorts of information that was becoming available in the aftermath of the attack.” The e-mails surfaced as the Tunisian government confirmed it had arrested a Tunisian man reportedly linked to the attack, which killed Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans on Sept. 11. A spokesman for the Tunisian Interior Ministry, Tarrouch Khaled, told The Associated Press that the suspect, Ali Harzi, 28, was in custody in Tunis. Mr. Khaled did not provide details. Some Republicans have criticized the United States ambassador to the United Nations, Susan E. Rice, for stating five days after the attack that it had resulted from a spontaneous mob that was angry about an anti-Islamic video, even though some intelligence reports and witness accounts indicated a terrorist attack. Ms. Rice said she had based her comments on unclassified talking points prepared by the Central Intelligence Agency. The issue seemed to die down after Mitt Romney did not press Mr. Obama on the matter in their debate on Monday night. On Wednesday, three Republican senators, John McCain of Arizona, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, criticized Mr. Obama in a letter , saying the series of e-mails “only adds to the confusion surrounding what you and your administration knew about the attacks in Benghazi, when you knew it, and why you responded to those tragic events in the ways you did.” Intelligence officials say the gap between the talking points and the contemporaneous field reports illustrates the lag between turning often contradictory and incomplete field reporting into a finished assessment. Administration and intelligence officials made that point again on Wednesday in trying to put into context the e-mails sent by the State Department operations center to scores of officials at the Pentagon, the State Department and the White House. “You know, posting something on Facebook is not in and of itself evidence, and I think it just underscores how fluid the reporting was at the time and continued some time to be,” Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told reporters in Washington.

Diplomatic Service Embassies and Consulates


Toyota’s President Offers ‘Full Responsibility’

Abstract: WASHINGTON — Akio Toyoda, the president of Toyota , was billed as the main attraction at a House hearing Wednesday into the company’s recalls of millions of cars — recalls for which he profusely apologized and took personal responsibility. But the transportation secretary, Raymond LaHood, offered more surprises in testimony that was sometimes heated, including many occasions when he was unable or declined to answer detailed questions about his department’s dealings with the auto company. Both men spent hours before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, one of three Congressional panels investigating the recall of more than six million vehicles and the delay in responding to problems of sudden acceleration. Mr. Toyoda, with a translator to his right and the company’s chief operating officer for North America , Yoshimi Inaba, on his left, spoke in a calm, detached manner. He was criticized by a representative on the committee for failing to show adequate remorse for those who had been killed in accidents involving acceleration problems. “I extend my condolences from the deepest part of my heart,” Mr. Toyoda said. Mr. LaHood, however, seemed defensive throughout the hearing. He initially was supposed to be joined by David Strickland, the newly confirmed head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration . Although Mr. Strickland and other officials of his agency were at the hearing, Mr. LaHood insisted on appearing alone, saying he bore full responsibility for his department’s actions. As questioning of Mr. LaHood continued into its third hour, he grew testy when asked by Representative Jason Chaffetz, a Republican of Utah , whether Toyota was being treated in the same way as General Motors , which received a government bailout, and other carmakers. “Absolutely,” Mr. LaHood said. Asked whether the safety agency had become too close to the industry, Mr. LaHood replied in an exasperated tone, “There is not a cozy relationship. In the past three years, we’ve recalled 23 million cars.” In his testimony, Mr. LaHood caused a stir in the committee room by declaring that the millions of recalled Toyotas “were not safe,” echoing a public comment he made a few weeks ago that owners should not drive their recalled cars. As he did with those earlier comments, he later amended his declaration before the committee, saying that cars recalled by any auto company needed to be repaired, and he urged their owners to visit dealerships. The hearing also shed new light on ways in which Toyota in Japan was disconnected from its global operations. Under questioning, Mr. Inaba, Toyota’s highest-ranking executive in the United States , acknowledged that Toyota was aware of issues with sticking pedals in Europe for a year before accidents in the United States. That has been a crucial issue, because Toyota executives in the United States have said they found out about sticking pedal issues only last October. The first reports of sticking pedals surfaced in Britain and Ireland in late 2008. By August 2009, Toyota began a production change on cars sold in Europe that was completed by January, weeks before it recalled millions of vehicles in the United States. “We did not hide it,” Mr. Inaba said. “But it was not properly shared. We need to do a much better job sharing what we knew in Europe with the United States to see if there is any danger to American consumers.” Mr. Inaba said the American side of Toyota “was not aware or not informed of” the European situation until January, when he learned of it. Mr. Inaba said the information was contained in a company database, but he indicated that it could be found only if a staff member knew where to look. Representative Mark E. Souder, a Republican of Indiana , said he was “very concerned” about suggestions that the company addressed the problem in Europe before the United States. Mr. Inaba responded, “There is no way we can differentiate American drivers from any of the rest.” In his testimony, Mr. Toyoda tried to reassure lawmakers that the company was addressing problems that led to the recalls. In addition, he said, the company was moving to repair its damaged reputation. “I have personally placed the highest priority on improving quality over quantity,” Mr. Toyoda said. “And I have shared that direction with our stakeholders.” But in one blunt exchange, Representative Elijah E. Cummings, a Democrat from Maryland , asked Mr. Toyoda, “Why should we believe that things are going to get better?” Later, Mr. Toyoda concluded his day at a meeting with company employees and dealers at the National Press Club. His voice broke momentarily when he thanked them for their support and again expressed his apologies. Asked what he would tell President Obama , Mr. Toyoda said, “Toyota cars are safe.” It was the second time in two days that Toyota executives testified at Congressional hearings. The latest appearances came amid questions about whether the electronic system of the vehicles, and not simply the floor mats and gas pedals, contributed to the unintended acceleration. On Tuesday, James E. Lentz III, the president of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., told the House Energy and Commerce Committee that the prescribed repairs might “not totally” solve the problem. In response to a question, Mr. Lentz said that Toyota was still examining the sudden acceleration problem, including the possibility that the electronics system might be at fault. Mr. Toyoda and Mr. Inaba both said, however, that they were confident that the computer system was not at fault. Representative John L. Mica, a Republican of Florida , was critical of a company presentation obtained by the committee that listed “Toyota safety wins,” including $100 million in savings because the safety agency permitted the company to recall the floor mats on 55,000 Toyota Camry and Lexus ES 350 sedans, rather than the cars themselves. The July 6 presentation bore Mr. Inaba’s name. “It’s one of the most embarrassing documents I’ve ever seen,” Mr. Mica said. In response, Mr. Inaba said the presentation had been made to him shortly after he rejoined the company after a two-year absence. He said he did not have an in-depth recollection of it, but added, “It is so inconsistent with the guiding principles of Toyota.” Mr. Toyoda said the presentation did not reflect “the drifting of the entire company.” The Toyota executives assured lawmakers that the cars involved in its recalls were safe, and agreed, under questioning from Representative Edolphus Towns , Democrat of New York, to look at extending to drivers in all states a settlement reached earlier in the day with the New York attorney general, Andrew M. Cuomo . In that settlement, Toyota agreed that it would pick up cars and trucks at the homes of drivers, pay for out-of-pocket transportation costs and offer drivers free rental cars during repairs.

Akio Toyoda
Toyota Motor
House of Representatives
Accidents and Safety
Brake
Customer service
Recalls and Bans


Peng Chang-kuei, Chef Behind General Tso’s Chicken, Dies at 98

Abstract: Peng Chang-kuei, the Taiwanese chef who invented General Tso’s chicken, a dish nearly universal in Chinese restaurants in the United States, died on Wednesday in Taipei. He was 98. The death was reported by The Associated Press. The British food scholar Fuchsia Dunlop has called General Tso’s chicken — lightly battered pieces of dark chicken fried in a chili-accented sweet-and-sour sauce — “the most famous Hunanese dish in the world.” But like many Chinese dishes that have found favor with Americans, General Tso’s chicken was unknown in China until recently. Nor was it, in the version known to most Americans, Hunanese, a cuisine defined by salty, hot and sour flavors. Mr. Peng, an official chef for the Nationalist government, which fled to Taiwan after the 1949 revolution in China, said he created the dish during a four-day visit by Adm. Arthur W. Radford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, during the Taiwan Strait crisis of 1955. On the spur of the moment, he assigned it the name of a Hunanese general, Zuo Zongtang, who had helped put down a series of rebellions in the 19th century. “Originally the flavors of the dish were typically Hunanese — heavy, sour, hot and salty,” Mr. Peng told Ms. Dunlop, the author of “Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook” (2007), which is devoted to the cuisine of Hunan. “The original General Tso’s chicken was Hunanese in taste and made without sugar.” The dish made its way to New York in the early 1970s after Chinese chefs in New York, preparing to open the city’s first Hunanese restaurants — Uncle Tai’s Hunan Yuan and Hunam — visited a restaurant that Mr. Peng had opened in Taipei. They adapted the recipe to suit American tastes. “We didn’t want to copy chef Peng exactly,” Ed Schoenfeld, an assistant to the restaurant’s owner, David Keh , told the website Salon in 2010. “We added our own spin to dishes. And so our General Tso’s chicken was cut differently, into small dice, and we served it with water chestnuts, black mushrooms, hoisin sauce and vinegar.” The chef was Wen Dah Tai. At Hunam, the chef Tsung Ting Wang — who was also a partner with Michael Tong in another prominent Chinese restaurant in Manhattan, Shun Lee Palace — put a Sichuan spin on the dish. He crisped up the batter and sweetened the sauce, producing a taste combination that millions of Americans came to love. He called it General Ching’s chicken. But as the dish traveled, the General Tso name adhered. Both restaurants were awarded four stars, the highest rating, by Raymond Sokolov, the restaurant critic of The New York Times. In 1973, with Hunan fever raging, Mr. Peng came to New York and, with Mr. Keh, opened Uncle Peng’s Hunan Yuan on East 44th Street, near the United Nations. Mr. Peng discovered, to his consternation, that his creation had preceded him, and that the child was almost unrecognizable. Image Peng Chang-kuei in an image from the 2014 documentary “The Search for General Tso.” Credit Wicked Delicate Films “New Yorkers didn’t realize he was the real thing, and some treated him like he was copying,” Mr. Schoenfeld said. The tangled history of the dish was explored in 2014 in a documentary, “The Search for General Tso,” directed by Ian Cheney. Peng Chang-kuei was born in Changsha, the capital of Hunan Province, in 1918. His family was poor. At 13, after running away from home, he began serving an apprenticeship under the celebrated Hunanese chef Cao Jing-shen. Formerly a family chef to Tan Yan-kai, prime minister of the Nationalist government in the late 1920s, Mr. Cao had opened the restaurant Jianleyuan in Changsha. In the 1930s, after the Japanese invasion, Mr. Peng moved to Chungking, the temporary Nationalist capital, where he began to gain renown. After World War II, he was installed as the government’s head banquet chef. He emigrated to Taiwan in 1949, leaving his wife and two sons behind, and continued to cater official functions. He is survived by a son, Peng Tie-Cheng. Complete information on other survivors was not available. New York proved to be a fraught experiment, as Mr. Peng’s restaurant soon closed. “Doom trailed Uncle Peng,” the food critic Gael Greene wrote in New York magazine in 1973. “The pressures of Manhattan restaurant reality were too much for the brilliant teacher.” Undaunted, Mr. Peng borrowed money from friends and opened Yunnan Yuan on East 52nd Street, near Lexington Avenue, where Henry A. Kissinger, then the secretary of state, became a faithful customer. “Kissinger visited us every time he was in New York, and we became great friends,” Mr. Peng told Ms. Dunlop. “It was he who brought Hunanese food to public notice.” General Tso’s chicken began to assume celebrity status when Bob Lape, a restaurant critic, showed Mr. Peng making the dish in a segment for ABC News. The station received some 1,500 requests for the recipe. Encouraged, Mr. Peng reopened his old restaurant as Peng’s, bringing his signature dish with him. Reviewing the restaurant in the The Times in 1977, Mimi Sheraton wrote, “General Tso’s chicken was a stir-fried masterpiece, sizzling hot both in flavor and temperature.” He left the restaurant in 1981 and opened Peng’s Garden in Yonkers, then returned to Taiwan in the late ’80s and opened the first in a chain of Peng Yuan restaurants there. The menu featured General Tso’s chicken. It was listed on the menu in Mandarin as Zuo Zongtang’s farmyard chicken, and in English as chicken à la viceroy. In 1990 he opened a branch of his restaurant in the Great Wall Hotel in Changsha, but it was not a success. As Hunanese chefs adopted General Tso’s chicken, the dish entered a strange second career. In a sweeping act of historical revisionism, it came to be seen as a traditional Hunan dish. Several Hunanese chefs have described it in their cookbooks as a favorite of the 19th-century general’s.

Peng Chang-kuei
Chef
Taiwan
Restaurant
Obituary
Cooking
Chinese Food