Article:

Over the holiday weekend, a group of predominantly white militiamen took up guns and began occupying the government's Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters in Oregon, culminating in a tense standoff with law enforcement in the area.

 It's a big story. This is an armed militia using the threat of violence to get the federal government to change the law — specifically, the gunmen want the feds to give up publicly managed land to local ranchers, loggers, and miners. And, yes, they are using the threat of violence: As Les Zaitz explained for the Oregonian, "In phone interviews from inside the occupied building Saturday night, Ammon Bundy and his brother, Ryan Bundy, said they are not looking to hurt anyone. But they would not rule out violence if police tried to remove them, they said."

 Yet media outlets don't seem to consider this an alarming story, instead treating it by and large as a peaceful protest. Here, for instance, is an Associated Press tweet about the events:

 Peaceful protest in Oregon rancher arson case followed by building takeover at national wildlife refuge: https://t.co/nsIKxQlyIu — The Associated Press (@AP) January 3, 2016

 For many on social media, the reaction seems very different from how the media would react if, say, black or Muslim protesters with guns took over a government building instead of a predominantly white group.

 The media's reaction to a group of armed people taking over a government building was timid

 One would think that an armed group taking over a government building would be a big deal. The public certainly seems to think so, with #OregonUnderAttack trending on Twitter and Malheur National Wildlife Refuge trending on Facebook.

 But media outlets mostly seemed to shrug at the situation, at least at first. Here is the New York Times's front page as of Sunday afternoon, when the story was relegated to a sidebar:

 And here is Fox News's front page, where it's hard to even see the story right by one about a hoverboard robbery:

 The coverage also generally had little language about the threat of violence. The AP, for example, characterized the protests as peaceful, and Fox News called the group in Oregon "armed protesters."

 Several people on social media complained that this story was getting much less — or at least a different kind of — attention than it would have gotten if these were mainly black or Muslim protesters. Here's a sampling of some tweets, which don't encompass the entire conversation but get to a lot of what people are upset about:

 Can we please get 1 Muslim to join the right-wing terrorist militia in Oregon so our media can cover it? — John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) January 3, 2016

 What's the difference between a terrorist cell and a militia? Religion and skin color. #OregonUnderAttack #GOP pic.twitter.com/mZiI0bQVDv — CDKing (@thedaleking) January 3, 2016

 For those who don't understand why people say our criminal justice system is broken. #OregonUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/jfP7xXZSLf — Thor Benson (@thor_benson) January 3, 2016

 Did I miss the call for the national guard in Oregon? I recall them in Ferguson and Baltimore. #OregonUnderAttack — rolandsmartin (@rolandsmartin) January 3, 2016

 Generally, the sentiment is that if these were black or Muslim protesters, the media reports would be much more alarmed in nature. The media and public might not even call the militia members in Oregon "protesters," but instead refer to them as "thugs" or "terrorists." After all, that's exactly what happened with the Black Lives Matter protests over the past couple years.

 The media reacted to black protesters over the past few years in a very different way

 Behind these complaints is the media's very different reaction over the past few years to Black Lives Matter demonstrators protesting racial disparities in the criminal justice system and, specifically, police use of force. Those protests led media outlets not just to cover the demonstrations as wholly violent, but to suggest that the protests led to a wave of crime and violence in 2015.

 For one, there were several instances in which victims of police shootings and Black Lives Matter protesters — even largely peaceful ones — were called thugs or other racially charged language. This is a problem that CNN, the New York Times, and Fox News all ran into.

 But it went further. After a police officer was shot and killed in Texas, investigators in the case specifically said they had no idea what the motive of the shooter was. But that didn't stop Fox News from repeatedly pinning the blame on Black Lives Matter protesters, whom pundits blamed for fostering distrust and even hatred toward police: Fox News's Elisabeth Hasselbeck wondered aloud on air why Black Lives Matter isn't considered a "hate group." Bill O'Reilly was more blunt, concluding the movement was indeed a "hate group." And Megyn Kelly characterized the movement as violent and anti-police in another segment.

 This continued to be a popular talking point among some news outlets, with the New York Post and Fox News repeatedly referencing a "war on cops." But with 2015 over, the data shows that the year was one of the safest years to be a police officer, with on-duty deaths of cops near historic lows and falling compared with 2014.

 News outlets suggested that Black Lives Matter led to not just more violence against police but more violence in general. The New York Times, CNN, USA Today, and NPR ran stories about a supposed increase in murders and crimes in 2015, usually suggesting that protests against police were one factor. In a reference to the original Black Lives Matter protests in Ferguson, Missouri, this became known as the "Ferguson effect" — the idea that protests against police had demoralized police and emboldened criminals, leading to more crime.

 While murder rates are significantly up in some US cities, crime is not. Throughout the year, criminologists also repeatedly cautioned that there's no evidence of a nationwide wave of violence; they've also said that there's no evidence that the Black Lives Matter protests have anything to do with a potential rise in violence. But that didn't stop the widespread media narratives of a "Ferguson effect."

 Asked about the discrepancies, CNN law enforcement analyst Art Roderick suggested that the differences make sense because the Oregon protesters are in a largely empty rural area and "they're not destroying property, they're not looting anything."

 But, while the Baltimore and Ferguson protests resulted in some rioting, the overwhelming majority of Black Lives Matter protests have been peaceful. And Black Lives Matter protesters never showed up to a rally with guns and vowed to take over a government building "for years" with the threat of deadly force, as those in Oregon have vowed.

 As some people pointed out on social media, it's hard to imagine news outlets viewing an armed protest as peaceful if their racial, ethnic, or religious identity were different.

 @AP When white people with guns takeover a federal building and threaten the lives of fed employees, it's a peaceful protest. — GoBrooklyn (@GoBrooklyn) January 3, 2016

 Similar media standards seem to apply to Muslim Americans. After a terrorist attack, pundits are quick to suggest that the entire Muslim community should apologize for the tragedy — as if every Muslim is in someway culpable for it. (In a particularly egregious example, CNN anchor Don Lemon asked Muslim-American human rights lawyer Arsalan Iftikhar if he supports ISIS, drawing a clearly baffled Iftikhar to ask, as Lemon nodded, "Wait, did you just ask if I support ISIS?") But there are no comparable cries demanding that all white people apologize for the militiamen in Oregon.

 To be clear, it's not that critics necessarily think the Oregon militiamen should be subjected to the same wild, unfounded accusations as black or Muslim people. The complaint, instead, is that the media seems to be quick to treat minority groups as violent, while giving a predominantly white group a pass even when it's heavily armed.

 The public (and media) really do hold racial biases, even if they don't know it

 Underlying the accusations of skewed reporting toward the media is what's known as "implicit bias," or subconscious prejudices that can change how we approach and treat people of a different race, ethnicity, and religious affiliation. Researchers have shown that this phenomenon is real time and time again.

 As part of a study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology in 2014, researchers studied 176 mostly white, male police officers, and tested them to see if they held an unconscious "dehumanization bias" against black people by having them match photos of people with photos of big cats or apes. Researchers found that officers commonly dehumanized black people, and those who did were most likely to be the ones who had a record of using force on black children in custody.

 In the same study, researchers interviewed 264 mostly white, female college students and found that they tended to perceive black children ages 10 and older as "significantly less innocent" than their white counterparts.

 "Children in most societies are considered to be in a distinct group with characteristics such as innocence and the need for protection," Phillip Goff, a UCLA researcher and author of the study, said in a statement. "Our research found that black boys can be seen as responsible for their actions at an age when white boys still benefit from the assumption that children are essentially innocent."

 Other research suggests there can be superhumanization bias at work, as well, with white people more likely to associate paranormal or magical powers with black people than with other white people. And the more they associate magical powers with black people, the less likely they are to believe black people feel pain.

 Subconscious racial biases are worrying because they may contribute to greater use of force by police. Studies show, for example, that officers are quicker to shoot black suspects in video game simulations. Josh Correll, a University of Colorado Boulder psychology professor who conducted the research, said it's possible the bias could lead to even more skewed outcomes in the field. "In the very situation in which [officers] most need their training," he said, "we have some reason to believe that their training will be most likely to fail them."

 The fact these biases exist is at the very least something media outlets and pundits should be aware about in their reporting. Because the fact is such biases could be coloring how we approach these stories, even if we like to think that's not true.

 Watch: Race isn't biologically real ||||| Meet the hardline group willing to do anything, including going against their government, to claim land for Israel.

 13 Nov 2018 08:39 GMT |||||
What is a summary?

– An armed group has taken over a federal building in Oregon, and leaders say they're willing to use force to defend themselves if the feds move in. It's getting news coverage, of course, but a post at Vox makes the case that coverage is nowhere near as intense as it would be if this group were largely Muslim or black instead of mostly white. "Media outlets don't seem to consider this an alarming story, instead treating it by and large as a peaceful protest," writes German Lopez. He notes that after terrorists attacks, pundits often ask the Muslim community at large to denounce them, "but there are no comparable cries demanding that all white people apologize for the militiamen." It's a case of "implicit bias," writes Lopez, or "subconscious prejudices that can change how we approach and treat people of a different race, ethnicity, and religious affiliation." It's important that media outlets be aware of the problem, he adds, because the resulting coverage can skew how stories are perceived. Not that everyone's taking the threat all that seriously: A Daily Beast headline refers to "Wingnut Woodstock," while al Jazeera notes that the Internet seems to have settled on the name "Y'all Qaeda" to describe the group. Click to read Lopez's full post.


– Melania Trump has kept a low profile since the GOP convention, but she's suddenly taking a more aggressive role on behalf of her husband. In interviews with CNN and Fox News, the wife of Donald Trump said she has accepted his apology over the language he used in his recent hot mic scandal, suggested he was egged on by host Billy Bush, and characterized it as "boys' talk." As for the women accusing her husband of sexual abuse, "they don't have any facts." Some excerpts: "I said to my husband that, you know, the language was inappropriate. It's not acceptable. And I was surprised, because that is not the man that I know." (To Anderson Cooper of CNN.) "Those words, they were offensive to me and they were inappropriate. And he apologized to me. ... I accept his apology. And we are moving on." (To Ainsley Earhardt of Fox.) Her husband "was led on—like, egged on—from the host to say dirty and bad stuff." (CNN) She said she'd never heard her husband talk like that. "No, that's why I was surprised, because I said like I don't know that person that would talk that way, and that he would say that kind of stuff in private." (CNN) It's "boys' talk," she said. "The boys, the way they talk when they grow up and they want to sometimes show each other, 'Oh, this and that' and talking about the girls. But yes, I was surprised, of course." (CNN) On the tactic of dredging up Bill Clinton's past: “They're asking for it. They started,” she said. "They started from the beginning of the campaign putting my picture from modeling days." (To Fox News.) Nude images of Melania Trump appeared in the New York Post, and another surfaced in an ad by a super PAC backing Ted Cruz. (Billy Bush has been fired by NBC.)

Expand this summary.

Melania Trump, wife of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, spoke out for the first time Monday since a videotape was released of her husband making lewd comments about women in 2005, saying, "we are moving on."

 Trump made the comments to Fox News' Ainsley Earhardt in an interview Tuesday morning on "Fox & Friends."

 “Those words, they were offensive to me and they were inappropriate,” Trump told Fox News. “And he apologized to me. And I expect -- I accept his apology. And we are moving on.”

 Trump added that she believes the mainstream media wants to damage her and her family by “saying lies about me, lies about my family.”

 She said in the interview that the comments that were made on the tape were not made by the person she knows and that any other allegation of Donald Trump’s sexual misconduct should be handled in court.

 Trump was then asked what she would tell women who were deterred because of the lewd tapes.

 “My husband is kind and he’s a gentleman. He cares about people. He cares about women.”

 She also said that it's fair for the media and her husband to bring up former President Bill Clinton's infidelities amid his wife's presidential campaign.

 “They're asking for it. They started,” Trump said, referring to nude images from the 1990s published by the New York Post earlier this year. “They started from the beginning of the campaign putting my picture from modeling days."

 "That was my modeling days and I'm proud what I did. I worked very hard,” she added.

 Melania Trump's image later was used in a negative ad campaign during the Republican primary.

 At the time of its release, Donald Trump accused former rival Ted Cruz of being involved and responded by tweeting an unflattering image of the Texas senator's wife. Cruz denied involvement in the release of the photos.

 As for any debate advice for her husband, Trump said that he should “be himself and talk about the issues.” ||||| (CNN) Melania Trump defended Donald Trump in her first interview since the Republican nominee faced allegations of sexual misconduct, calling those accusations "lies" and saying Trump was "egged on" into "boy talk" during a 2005 tape in which he made lewd comments about women.

 "I believe my husband. I believe my husband," she said in an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper on Monday.

 "This was all organized from the opposition. And with the details ... did they ever check the background of these women? They don't have any facts."

 She also said she hadn't heard her husband use that kind of language before.

 "No. No, that's why I was surprised, because I said like I don't know that person that would talk that way, and that he would say that kind of stuff in private," Melania Trump said.

 "I heard many different stuff -- boys talk," she said. "The boys, the way they talk when they grow up and they want to sometimes show each other, 'Oh, this and that' and talking about the girls. But yes, I was surprised, of course."

 JUST WATCHED Do politics impact which accusers you believe? Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Do politics impact which accusers you believe? 05:35

 She specifically attacked a first-person account in People Magazine, in which journalist Natasha Stoynoff said Trump made an unwanted advance while she worked on a story about his one-year wedding anniversary.

 The reporter described a chance encounter later with Melania Trump, who says it never happened -- and her lawyers have threatened to sue over the claim.

 "Even the story that came out in people magazine, the writer she said my husband took her to the room and start kissing her," she said. "She wrote in the same story about me -- that she saw me on 5th Avenue, and I said to her, 'Natasha, how come we don't see you anymore?' I was never friends with her, I would not recognize her."

 That, Melania Trump said, "was another thing like people come out saying lies and not true stuff."

 'Egged on'

 It was the first public defense Melania Trump has made of her husband since a tape in which Trump bragged about sexually aggressive behavior toward women was published by The Washington Post and NBC. In the wake of that report, several women have accused Trump of sexual misconduct.

 Trump said her husband was "egged on" in the 2005 tape in which he made lewd comments about his own sexually aggressive behavior toward women -- remarks she says were "boy talk."

 "I said to my husband that, you know, the language was inappropriate. It's not acceptable. And I was surprised, because that is not the man that I know," she said.

 "And as you can see from the tape, the cameras were not on -- it was only a mic. And I wonder if they even knew that the mic was on," she said, referring to Trump and NBC's "Access Hollywood" host Billy Bush.

 She said they were engaged in "boy talk, and he was led on -- like, egged on -- from the host to say dirty and bad stuff."

 She said she agrees with Michelle Obama's assertion that kissing or groping a woman without consent is sexual assault.

 "But every assault should be taken care of in a court of law. And to accuse, no matter who it is, a man or a woman, without evidence is damaging and unfair," she said.

 Melania Trump defended her husband's criticism on the campaign trail of his accusers' looks -- an implication that the women who have alleged his misconduct aren't attractive enough to sexually assault.

 'I know he respects women'

 "He's raw. He will say it as he feels it. So you know, I know he respects women. But he's defending himself because they're lies," she said.

 She said she jokes that her husband at times behaves like an overgrown boy -- and that she saw his "Access Hollywood" remarks as emblematic of that.

 "Sometimes I say I have two boys at home -- I have my young son and I have my husband. But I know how some men talk, and that's how I saw it, yes," she said.

 She said she would keep their personal conversations private -- but that Trump apologized for his remarks on the tape.

 "I accept his apology. I hope the American people will accept it as well. And it was many, many years ago. He's not the man that I know," she said.

 Melania Trump called her husband "real" and "raw" -- and said because of his years as an entertainer, he faced an especially tough challenge transitioning into politics, because he has made decades' worth of controversial comments.

 "It's very hard, especially for him -- when he decided to run for the presidency, because he did so many stuff in his life. He was on so many tapes, so many shows. And we knew that -- that, you know, tapes will come out, people won't want to go against him.

 "But my husband is real. He's raw. He tells it like it is. He's kind. He's a gentleman. He supports everybody. He supports women. He encourages them to go to the highest level, to achieve their dreams. He employs many, many women," she said.

 'He didn't say he did it'

 She said she wouldn't describe what Trump said on the tape as sexual assault, even though in the video Trump appeared to be describing his own actions.

 "No, that's not sexual assault," she said. "He didn't say he did it."

 Melania Trump said she believes Trump in part because she's seen him deflect brazen advances from other women.

 "I see many, many women coming to him and giving phone numbers and, you know, want(ing) to work for him -- inappropriate stuff from women. And they know he's married," she said.

 "You've seen that?" Cooper asked.

 "Oh yes, of course. It was in front of me," Trump said. "In front of me. And I've said, like, 'Why did you give your number to my husband?' "

 Melania Trump reserved her strongest critique for the political press, which she says has yet to report an accurate story about her.

 "I didn't expect media would be so dishonest and so mean. I didn't expect that," she said. "Also for me, from the beginning, I never had one correct story -- one honest story."

 She backed her husband's claims that the election is being rigged in Hillary Clinton's favor, arguing that media bias is undercutting her husband.

 "Well I see it how the media is portraying -- I see how they report things, and what they want to say and what they don't want to say," she said.

 "They're going -- just for example, he makes a speech 45 minutes long, they take a sentence out, and they're going on and on about that sentence, nothing else," she said. "And he talks about the issues, and that's what American people want to hear, it's about issues, about jobs, about the future of our country, and that's what he wants to do.

 She added: "He wants to secure the borders, he wants to secure America, he wants to bring jobs back, he wants to bring economy back, and he's very passionate about American people, because he knows he can do that. He's a worker, he's a fighter, he is, he's very passionate about it, and he will not give up, he will fight till the end, and he will fight for American people as he's fighting now for himself."

 Melania Trump also made clear she doesn't want sympathy.

 "I'm very strong. And people -- they don't really know me. People think and talk about me like, 'Oh, Melania, oh poor Melania,'" she said.

 "Don't feel sorry for me. Don't feel sorry for me. I can handle everything," she added. ||||| The drama between Billy Bush and NBC News may finally be over.

 TMZ reports that Bush and NBC have reached a financial agreement in his contract that officially ended his employment with the network.

 Sources say that Bush is happy with the final number, but it will remain confidential. When he joined “TODAY” full time, he reportedly signed a $3.5 million per year contract for three years. So you get an idea of what the settlement could be.

 RELATED: According to reports, Billy Bush is close to his exit from NBC and lawyers are determining a settlement amount

 Bush reportedly felt like a “scapegoat” following a leaked tape that featured lewd comments he made with Donald Trump during a 2005 taping of “Access Hollywood.” He felt that his dismissal was simply for PR reasons.

 According to the tabloid, staff at NBC was sent a final notice about Bush’s dismissal.

 “While he was a new member of the ‘TODAY’ team, he was a valued colleague and longtime member of the broader NBC family. We wish success as he goes forward,” the memo read. |||||


Megyn Kelly, host of "The Kelly File" on Fox News, is back from vacation -- and Donald Trump wasted no time resuming his attacks on her.

 Shortly after Monday night's broadcast, Kelly's first since Aug. 12, Trump fired off a series of tweets critical of her, including a retweet in which she was called a "bimbo" and another that remarked on her looks.

 Here's the Republican presidential candidate's reaction to the broadcast, which featured an interview with teacher and activist Cornel West: ||||| Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s fracas with Fox News’ Megyn Kelly isn’t over yet.

 Kelly, host of The Kelly File, returned to work Monday after a 10-day family vacation. And Trump quickly let the Twitter universe know what he thought about that.

 First, he commented on her interview with author and activist Cornel West:

 .@megynkelly must have had a terrible vacation, she is really off her game. Was afraid to confront Dr. Cornel West. No clue on immigration! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2015

 Then he shared his opinions on Kelly’s show:

 I liked The Kelly File much better without @megynkelly. Perhaps she could take another eleven day unscheduled vacation! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2015

 And finally, he retweeted some responses to his Kelly comments, including:

 "@mstanish53: @realDonaldTrump @megynkelly The bimbo back in town . I hope not for long ." — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2015

 Kelly hasn’t directly replied to Trump’s tweets. Before his barrage began, she simply put up this: ||||| Fox News host Megyn Kelly, who’s been on the receiving end of Donald Trump’s attack machine since the first Republican presidential debate, announced on her show this week that she’d be taking a vacation -- but the network says it has nothing to do with the Trump controversy.

 “It's been six months since I had a vacation,” Kelly said on “The Kelly File” Wednesday. “So I'll be taking the next week-and-a-half off, spending some time with my husband and my kids trying to relax.”

 The announcement, which some news outlets have called “sudden,” has generated speculation that Kelly hasn’t been able to handle the blowback from asking Trump about past sexist remarks, which the Republican presidential candidate called unfair. Even Trump guessed Friday that Kelly was taking time off on account of the controversy, saying there “probably was [a connection], but I wouldn’t know anything about it.”

 “People were very surprised that, all of the sudden, she decided to go away for 10 days,” Trump added.

 But a Fox News spokeswoman released a statement Friday saying Kelly’s vacation was planned long ago, and dismissed the “conspiracy theories” about her taking a little time off.

 “The conspiracy theories about Megyn Kelly’s vacation rank up there with UFO's, the moon landing and Elvis being alive,” the spokeswoman said. “Megyn is on a pre-planned, annual summer vacation with her family, which is much deserved. To imply otherwise, as Donald Trump and his campaign operatives have, is not only wildly irresponsible, but downright bizarre.”

 The network noted that Fox News hosts Bill O'Reilly and Gretchen Carlson had also recently taken time off. The statement also addressed Trump in particular, and expressed the network’s support of its star anchor.

 “Perhaps Mr. Trump thinks it's advantageous to his poll numbers to keep talking about Megyn, but that doesn't change the fact that Roger Ailes has fully supported her and her tough journalistic questioning since day one and is thrilled with the added exposure from the debate, which resulted in even higher ratings of The Kelly File this week,” the statement reads. “Anyone who knows Roger is aware of how historically and consistently loyal he is to all of his talent and how he protects them at all costs.”

 Also on HuffPost: ||||| In the wake of GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump's refusal to apologize to Fox News' Megyn Kelly, one of the moderators of last week's GOP debate, for his controversial comments about her, we've rounded up all of the times Trump has apologized for something he's said:

 So far, the list is empty. In a cursory Internet search of recent Trump-related kerfuffles, it appears that Donald Trump has never publicly apologized for anything.

 Following the much talked about, much "meme'd" GOP debate, Trump claimed that Kelly had it out for him and made a comment about how she had "blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her... wherever," while asking him questions.

 That quip didn't go over well. He was told not to come to a major gathering of conservatives, known as the Red State conference, held in Atlanta, Georgia, over the weekend. But he told CNN's Jake Tapper that his remarks were misunderstood, and that he "said nothing wrong whatsoever."

 Trump believes that if anyone should be issued an apology, it's him. He told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" that Kelly owes him an apology for her questions aimed at the candidate.

 Remember Trump's comments about Sen. John McCain? Mexican immigrants? Rosie O'Donnell?

 Yeah, he isn't apologizing for any of those either.

 Trump denied saying that McCain wasn't a war hero, but remarked that he would like to see him do more to help war veterans. Not an apology per se, but more like a half-denial, half-apology hybrid.

 His comments on Mexico and immigrants? Nope. No apology. Back in July, he told Fox News Channel's "MediaBuzz" that his controversial comments about Mexican immigrants being rapists and murderers stemmed from media reports on crime near the border, and therefore he "can never apologize for the truth."

 On calling women that he didn't agree with fat pigs, slobs or disgusting animals (particularly O'Donnell)? Nothing to be sorry for there, either.

 "What I say is what I say," Trump replied during the GOP debate when Kelly asked if this type of temperament was appropriate for the office of president of the United States. "And honestly, Megyn, if you don't like it, I'm sorry," he continued. "I've been very nice to you, although I could probably maybe not be, based on the way you have treated me."

 There has been one apology out of Trump's camp, however. Alas, it didn't come from the mogul himself, but rather his lawyer.

 Amidst reports of a decades-old rape allegation disclosed in Trump's early 1990s divorce from then-wife Ivana, his lawyer Michael Cohen made the comment that "you cannot rape your spouse."

 Cohen later apologized for this remark after Trump distanced himself from the situation. |||||

Write a summary.

– Those worried the Donald Trump-Megyn Kelly conflagration had burned out should don protective gear once more: Kelly is back from a 10-day vacation, and the real estate mogul is back to his online berating of her, USA Today reports. On the heels of his remarks that Kelly was bleeding out of her eyes and other orifices, as well as his issues with how she moderated the debate overall, Trump took to Twitter last night to elucidate his thoughts on Kelly's first post-vacay show yesterday. What the Huffington Post calls a "ceasefire" between the two parties, apparently orchestrated by Fox honcho Roger Ailes himself, came to an abrupt end shortly after Kelly tweeted a link last night to Trump's immigration policies. Trump's attacks began anew minutes later, after she squared off with Dr. Cornel West, who spoke on #BlackLivesMatter. ".@megynkelly must have had a terrible vacation, she is really off her game. Was afraid to confront Dr. Cornel West. No clue on immigration!" Trump tweeted, followed shortly thereafter with: "I liked The Kelly File much better without @megynkelly. Perhaps she could take another eleven day unscheduled vacation!" (Fox, for its part, says Kelly's vacation was planned, per the Huffington Post.) Trump wrapped up his Twitter tirade with a retweet of someone who apparently agrees with Trump's characterization of Kelly as a "bimbo" in a previous retweet. This one said, "The bimbo back in town. I hope not for long." (Trump's apparently not feeling very apologetic now, but click for a list of all his past mea culpas.)


So what do you get when you combine Karl Lagerfeld’s modern and innovative spirit with Faber-Castell’s reputation in crafting fine art and graphic products? The limited edition Karlbox, of course. This unique art supply storage box launched earlier this month exclusively at Gump's of San Francisco, Faber-Castell stores, Karl Lagerfeld boutiques worldwide and Harrods, London. Later this month the Karlbox will be available at select department and specialty stores.

 Designed by Lagerfeld, the elegant black box holds 350 Faber-Castell art tools for drawing and painting. Its wood exterior resembles a Chinese wedding cabinet, while inside well-crafted removable drawers store the art supplies. Not so incidentally, the shades of colors included were personally selected by Lagerfeld to represent his aesthetic and the relationship between fashion, art and design.

 “Since I was a child in Germany, Faber-Castell has been the most famous brand, known for its especially good quality,” said Lagerfeld. “That reputation remains just as true today, particularly for artist pencils.”

 During his long career, it seems the designer has used Faber-Castell products to produce countless works of art.

 “To me, drawing is like breathing and writing,” he explains. “These are things that almost relax me.”

 But this is no ordinary relaxation like you and I might enjoy. Rather it is a wellspring of creativity that takes shape on the page before him. From fashion and design to writing and penmanship, Lagerfeld turns to pen and paper to concretize his ideas, with each swoop of pencil or pastel expressing his unique vision.

 Specifically, the lacquered beech wood Karlbox holds a varied selection of premium artists’ tools, including Albrecht Dürer and Polychromos color pencils, highly pigmented Pitt Artist ink pens, Castell 9000 graphite pencils and Pitt crayons and pastels. Watercolor brushes and accessories, like a foldable water cup, an eraser and sharpeners, are also included. Shades are sorted by primary and secondary colors, which range from soft pastels to vibrant and intense hues. According to Lagerfeld, his favorite product line is the Albrecht Dürer artist range of water-soluble color pencils, and all 120 shades are included.

 Lagerfeld is known for a wide range of luxury goods, including ready-to-wear for men, women and children, accessories, bags, watches and eyewear. These collections are complemented by “Lagerfeld,” a line of casual urban menswear and premium fragrances, which were added to the portfolio in 2014. In 2015, the company announced the launch of its online global women’s flagship store on Karl.com.

 Faber-Castell, too, is no stranger to elegance and refined design. As one of the world’s oldest manufacturers of writing instruments—it was founded as a pencil factory in 1761 in Stein, Germany—it is a family-owned company embracing more than eight generations. In addition to high-end pens in its Graf line, its Art & Graphic product range embodies 255 years of experience in the design and manufacture of exclusive artist products. Renowned artists including Vincent van Gogh, Paul Klee, Oskar Kokoschka and Neo Rauch were fans of the brand’s assortment of color products and the quality they exemplified.

 Every one-of-a-kind Karlbox includes a serial number and certificate of authenticity, making each completely unique. Just 2,400 have been produced, individually priced at $2,850, which seems like a bargain considering its size and provenance. ||||| The KARLBOX unites the traditional values of the family-owned company Faber-Castell with the modern, unique and innovative spirit and style of KARL LAGERFELD. It is a symbol for the long term relationship of both brands and represents the symbiosis of the fashion, art and design worlds.

 The KARLBOX is a limited edition of 2.500 pieces worldwide.

 Every box comes with a serial number plate and a certificate of authenticity. ||||| Expand

 No matter how distant the days of Five Star notebooks and three-ring binders, the first week of September always manages to usher in a familiar feeling of going back to school, particularly for those studied in the house of Chanel. Case in point is Karl Lagerfeld, who today announced he has teamed up with Faber-Castell to create a brand-spanking-new set of fine artist tools. The limited-edition collection is fittingly labeled Karlbox with a slogan that reads: “Colours in black.” Only 2,500 have been made and each boasts its own unique serial number as well as a certificate of authenticity and a steep $2,850 price tag. Vogue.com can exclusively reveal that the Kaiser himself has already ordered five—one for each of his international offices.

 Far from your average store-bought Crayola fare, Karlbox comes luxuriously equipped with a staggering 350 different premium-grade supplies for drawing and painting, including Lagerfeld’s own personal favorite product line, the Albrecht Dürer artist’s water-soluble color pencils—all 120 shades of them. Everything is housed in an über-chic black lacquered box designed by Lagerfeld. The beech wooden frame is reminiscent of a Chinese wedding cabinet; inside, drawers store utensils carefully sorted by primary and secondary color palettes that range from soft pastels to bolder pigmentations, all of which have been handpicked by the couturier.

 Expand

 The color family found in each section is thoughtfully etched along the side spelled out in three different languages: English, French, and German. All five of the individual drawers are removable so as to set them up for creative work, while essential accessories such as a foldable Clic & Go water cup are also included. “To me, drawing is like breathing and writing. These are the things that almost relax me,” said the designer in a press release. Lagerfeld is fluent in the delicate synergy between fashion and design, and is said to often turn to pen and paper when bringing his new ideas to life. Of course, the first lesson in the art of expressing oneself is all about having the right tools, making the Karlbox collection expertly tailored to seriously stylish adults this back-to-school season. Though we think Lagerfeld’s 7-year-old muse, Hudson Kroenig, would also no doubt approve.

 Karlbox is available for purchase online and sold exclusively at Faber-Castell stores, Karl Lagerfeld boutiques worldwide, Harrods London, and Gump’s in San Francisco. ||||| Displayed like a precious artifact under a clear acrylic case, a set of colored pencils in midtown Manhattan is proving irresistible to coloring aficionados and sketch artists.

 At the Museum of Modern Art’s newly-renovated design store, the KARLBOX, as it’s called, contains 350 pieces of drawing paraphernalia: pencils, markers, charcoals, and watercolor brushes, all perfectly color-sorted. The black lacquered cabinet is stamped with the distinctive pony-tailed profile of its creator: Karl Lagerfeld, creative director of Chanel and Fendi. With a price tag of $3,000+ including sales tax, each pencil is worth roughly $12 (considering the various sharpeners included).

 (Faber-Castell)

 (Faber-Castell)

 MoMA tells Quartz that there’s already a wait list for the limited edition box set. For Lagerfeld-obsessed aesthetes, the price isn’t that hard to justify—the latest Chanel tweed jackets designed by the 83-year-old fashion designer retails for at least twice that.

 Produced by 255-year-old German art supplies company Faber-Castell, the set pays homage to Lagerfeld’s love of drawing and illustration. “I wanted to become an illustrator, so I studied every book of costume from any kind of period and tried to make illustrations,” said Lagerfeld in a 2013 interview at the Lincoln Center. Aside from his fashion sketches, Lagerfeld also dabbled as a book illustrator for the 2014 Coco Chanel biography, The Allure of Chanel. |||||
What is a one-paragraph summary of the above article?

– It isn't a handbag or a pussy bow blouse, but Karl Lagerfeld's latest star turn has design aficionados swooning. There's a waiting list at New York's Museum of Modern Art's shop for Lagerfeld's KARLBOX, a collection of colored pencils, markers, paintbrushes and other artsy doodads, reports Quartz. But the breathtaking part is the $3,000 price tag (sharpeners included). Some 2,500 of the limited-edition sets made by Faber-Castell sold out shortly after going on sale online last month, per the Hollywood Reporter. "What amuses me while drawing is the fact to draw," Lagerfeld, 83, says ponderously on the KARLBOX website. "To me drawing is like breathing and writing. These are things that almost relax me." Although the collection is tagged "Colours in Black," the tools come in every color of the rainbow. Could pencils costing roughly $9 each possibly be worth it? The reviews aren't in, though the design gets raves. Vogue hails the set as "über-chic," while Forbes notes the "elegant" black wood box "resembles a Chinese wedding cabinet." Lagerfield said he's used Faber-Castell pencils since he was a kid and began sketching his own designs. "I wanted to become an illustrator, so I studied every book of costume design from any kind of period," says the Chanel impresario, per Quartz. He tested out his skills for the 2014 Coco Chanel The Allure of Chanel. (What offends Lagerfeld's design sensibilities? Lots of things.)


– Jim Carrey will answer questions about former girlfriend Cathriona White’s 2015 death by suicide under oath when he's deposed in a wrongful death lawsuit next week, People reports. White's mother (who, Carrey's lawyer tells Page Six, "didn't know" her daughter for 14 years) and estranged husband filed the lawsuit against Carrey, and in a statement, their lawyer says the actor will be forced to answer questions including "why he provided illegal drugs to Ms. White, why he gave Ms. White multiple STDs and then lied about it, and why he has engaged in a public charade of innocence crafted by his handlers." The suit alleges Carrey, using a fake name, obtained the prescription drugs White ultimately used to kill herself and gave them to her knowing she had a history of depression and suicide attempts. Carrey has repeatedly denied the accusations, and his lawyer says "there’s nothing in his deposition that is going to change the truth." The lawsuit also accuses Carrey of giving White three STDs, and claims that's why she committed suicide. In new legal documents filed as part of the case, Carrey claims White already had herpes before they met, but altered a friend's clean medical records to make it look like she didn't have the disease. She then, Carrey's documents claim, tried to extort him by showing him the "clean" records and later records, from after they started sleeping together, showing she had contracted herpes, TMZ reports. The documents say Carrey can prove his claim thanks to text messages White sent the friend asking for the medical records. TMZ earlier reported that Carrey also claims White tried to use vaginal bumps from a bad wax job as evidence of herpes in her extortion attempt.

Expand this summary.

Jim Carrey Dead Girlfriend Used Bad Wax Job to Frame Him For Herpes

 Jim Carrey, Dead Girlfriend Used Bad Wax Job to Frame Him For Herpes

 Breaking News

 Jim Carrey has fired back at the mother of his former girlfriend who committed suicide, saying the girlfriend tried to extort him by falsely accusing him of giving her herpes.

 Jim is in a battle royale lawsuit over the death of Cathriona White, who killed herself in 2015, shortly after Jim broke up with her.

 White's widower and her mom are suing Carrey, claiming he was responsible for her death. They allege in their lawsuit she was distraught over getting herpes, allegedly from Jim.

 Carrey says White did indeed text him back in 2013 that she had bumps on her vagina, but he says she actually got those bumps from a wax job. He goes on to say White, with her lawyer, falsely tried to shake Jim down for several million dollars, claiming he gave her an STD.

 Jim says the reality ... White had herpes before they even met. As for the wax job, Jim says White and her lawyer used the bumps she got as trumped up evidence of what they said was herpes and tried to pin it on him. ||||| Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)

 Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window)

 Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)

 Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

 After months of stalling, Jim Carrey will finally be forced to answer questions about his late girlfriend and her suicide in a sworn deposition next week.

 The actor, who is being sued for wrongful death, is scheduled to appear in Los Angeles Superior Court on Oct. 27, according to Michael Avenatti, lawyer for the mother and estranged husband of Cathriona White.

 “We are very much looking forward to Mr. Carrey finally being placed under oath next week and forced to answer the questions he has been dodging for years, such as why he provided illegal drugs to Ms. White, why he gave Ms. White multiple STDs and then lied about it, and why he has engaged in a public charade of innocence crafted by his handlers,” said Avenatti.

 “This is a search for the truth and we will find it,” he told The Post. ” And when we do, it will not end well for Mr. Carrey.”

 White’s estranged husband, Mark Burton, and her mother, Brigid Sweetman, are suing the “Dumb and Dumber” star — claiming he supplied the drugs that killed her, despite knowing her prior history with depression and suicide.

 Carrey’s lawyer, Ray Boucher, has previously denied the actor’s involvement, saying he had “nothing to do” with her death.

 If Carrey’s deposition is not completed next Friday, he will be required to return to court from “day to day” thereafter, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays.

 According to Avenatti, the actor’s deposition was ordered months ago under oral directives of the court, but never carried out because his legal team kept stalling.

 “Enough, the time has come,” Avenatti said Friday.

 Boucher told The Post that the actor would either appear next week or file an objection to the recent notice of deposition, which he downplayed.

 “It’s really not a big deal,” he said, adding that Carrey’s “deposition will be taken as everybody’s deposition will be taken in this case.”

 “More importantly, there’s a woman who’s died. She’s gone. That’s the sad truth. It’s a loss for anybody who cared for her. And to see [Burton], who really took advantage of [White], and a mother who didn’t know her for 14 years, dragging this poor woman through the press, is a travesty.”

 Boucher insisted that the claims about Carrey providing illegal drugs to White and giving her three STDs were completely false, saying he was being set up.

 “The truth is Cat and her lawyer used forged, fraudulent, and phony records from a friend to extort Jim now her green card husband and estranged mom are doing it again, and making the same false allegations!” Boucher said.

 Replying to Avenatti’s statement about things not ending well for Carrey, Boucher said: “It already hasn’t ended well for Mr. Carrey, he lost a women he cared deeply about, that above all else is what’s important…It’s hard and it hurts.” ||||| Jim Carrey I Have Proof Deceased GF Phonied Medical Records to Extort Me

 Jim Carrey Says He Has Proof Deceased Girlfriend Phonied Records to Extort Him

 EXCLUSIVE

 The woman who claimed she became suicidal after Jim Carrey gave her herpes created an elaborate extortion scheme with fake medical records to make it seem she was clean before she met Jim ... this according to new legal docs.

 Carrey now claims Cathriona White -- who committed suicide in 2015 -- had herpes before they met, but needed to change the facts. So he says she got her friend's medical records showing a clean bill of health, and then altered them to make it appear the records were hers.

 According to Carrey's new legal docs, White then presented the before and after medical records, claiming it was proof -- the only change was that she started having sex with him and got genital herpes.

 Carrey claims in legal docs they have a smoking gun in the form of text messages from White to her friend ... asking the friend numerous times to go to Planned Parenthood to get her medical records and one of the text messages says, "I need to see the layout ... I will need to work on it before I give it to him."

 The new docs were filed in connection with a lawsuit brought by White's husband and mother, who claim Carrey gave her the disease and that's why she killed herself.

 Carrey's legal team just made an ultimatum ... either ante up non-forged medical records or admit she had multiple STDs before she even met the actor.

 Michael Avenatti, attorney for Cathriona's estate, tells us Carrey's new claim is "complete and utter bulls**t. When the truth comes out, Mr. Carrey and certain of his advisers are going to be criminally prosecuted for their conduct in this case. They better buckle up." |||||


News article:

"Live, from New York, it's Dennis Rodman."

 Saturday Night Live doesn't often do that well with sports heroes in the hosting gig, so why not a cameo from the antithesis of sports heroes?

 During a sort of rambling, pieced together sketch mocking Kim Jong-un (played in the sketch by Bobby Moynihan), former NBA star and current best friend of the North Korean dictator, Dennis Rodman, came to... well, we're not really sure what he came to do. See below.

 I'm not really sure what the point of Rodman's appearance is. Is he satirizing his recent standing as a buddy of North Korea's Supreme Leader, pointing out that he's paid to hang out with a dictator? What's the joke here? I wonder if he's in on the joke or not, to be honest. Anyway, he gets a reaction from the crowd and gets to deliver the "Live, from New York, it's Saturday night!" line. A very baffling appearance, to say the least.

 SNL continued on a sports theme a little bit later, with host Melissa McCarthy taking on a more violent version of Rutgers coach Mike Rice. This, however, will be the one that everyone is talking about tomorrow morning, I reckon. ||||| She sang, she danced, she fell, she picked up a punch bowl and drank from it. Melissa McCarthy pulled off stellar physical comedy in hosting "Saturday Night Live" a second time.

 The "Mike & Molly" star is a natural for "SNL" because she loves performing. She goes all out to get laughs, not worrying about political correctness. She stoops to conquer, if that's what it takes, and viewers appreciate the no-holds-barred approach.

 She had a string of funny sketches that any "SNL" host would envy. In a nod to the Rutgers scandal, she was a bullying basketball coach who threw a toaster at a player. She was a fair contestant who promoted her honey-baked ham by dancing with men dressed as pigs.

 She was a shameless loan applicant who wanted money to eat pizza. She was a socially inept date who drank from a punch bowl. She spoofed Vanna White by playing a daft letter-turner on a game show.

 McCarthy was a bad singer who had the take-anyone judges on "The Voice" fighting over her, and "SNL" took some well-aimed jabs at the fellow NBC show.

 Even the bits without McCarthy seemed better than usual. "SNL" opened with a topical sketch ridiculing North Korean leader Jim Jong-Un (Bobby Moynihan), who talked about his sexual prowess. "Weekend Update" loaded up on guests: Bar Mitzvah Boy (Melissa Bayer), Charles Barkley (Kenan Thompson) and Drunk Uncle (Moynihan again). Drunk Uncle had help from "Game of Thrones" star Peter Dinklage.

 But it was McCarthy's show. She fell in her monologue, by design, because of bad shoes. But she soared once again as host because her brand of physical comedy never goes out of style. ||||| All of the elements for a truly terrific "SNL" were there -- great host, spirited audience, refreshed cast -- but it wasn't a terrific "SNL." It was a good show, fueled mostly by the physical efforts of host Melissa McCarthy, but, overall, the material wasn't there. The thing about McCarthy is that not everything has to involve her falling down or saying weird things -- she can play subversive, too (as we saw at times during the "Outside the Lines" sketch).

 The first time McCarthy hosted, it was the "McCarthy and Wiig" show, playing off the success of "Bridesmaids." Thankfully (for the sake of being too obvious), there was no cameo from Kristen Wiig, which left McCarthy open to do different types of sketches. It's just a shame that, for the most part, the writers didn't take full advantage of that. Here is your SNL Scorecard:

 Sketch of the Night

 "Outside the Lines" (Melissa McCarthy, Bill Hader, Tim Robinson, Bobby Moynihan, Jay Pharoah, Cecily Strong) Mike Rice, until recently, was the head coach for Rutger's men's basketball team. He lost that job after a video surfaced of Rice abusing players physically and verbally. It's a quite disturbing video, and "SNL" was wise to directly lampoon Rice, but instead, put McCarthy in a character who is "worse" than Rice: Not only did Shelia Kelly throw basketballs at players, as Rice was wont to due, Shelia Kelly will throw toasters and drive over players with a golf cart. This was by far the best use of McCarthy during the show.

 Score: 8.5

 The Good

 "Bathroom Businessman" (Kenan Thompson, Nasim Pedrad) Admittedly, I was initially rolling my eyes during "Bathroom Businessman," thinking, Oh, wonderful, here's a lazy commercial parody for a computer in a bathroom stall that ends with a poop joke. Lovely. Then, the rug was pulled out from underneath the segment, transforming the entire message into a plea to stop working on your electronic equipment from the bathroom because it's disgusting. "Brought to you by Decency."

 Score: 7.8

 "Weekend Update" (Seth Meyers, Vanessa Bayer, Keenan Thompson, Bobby Moynihan, Peter Dinklage) It's always nice seeing Peter Dinklage pop up somewhere, but that was a waste of a Peter Dinklage appearance. Put it this way: If someone had told me that Dinklage was going to be on the show last night, "appearing for the last two minutes of Drunk Uncle" would have been low on my wish list for him. Alas. Regardless: Hey, Peter Dinklage!

 Seth Meyers seemed refreshed and extremely sharp (perhaps rumors of getting your own late night talk show will do such things). I may be in the minority, but I love Vanessa Bayer's Jacob -- yes, she somehow does look like a 13-year-old boy. And Kenan Thompson's Charles Barkley was, like always, OK.

 Score: 7.0

 "Ham Bake-off" (Melisa McCarthy, Jason Sudeikis, Kenan Thompson, Cecily Strong, Nasim Pedrad, Taran Killam, Bobby Moynihan) The best part about McCarthy's "Ham Bakeoff" dance routine was that the word "ham" being relentlessly repeated over and over during the performance. In the end, this was certainly fine, but not quite as special as it seemed like it was going to be on first viewing -- meaning that McCarthy really sells this one.

 (Not online due to song rights issues.)

 Score: 7.0

 "Melissa McCarthy Monologue" (Melissa McCarthy, Taran Killam) It's hard to do something "different" during the monologue. Melissa McCarthy struggling to get down the stairs in her new high heels, coupled with her purposely lame jokes, was certainly different.

 Score: 6.8

 "Pizza Business" (Melissa McCarthy, Jason Sudeikis) This one grew on me. To be fair, it aired right after "Million Dollar Wheel" and I was still annoyed -- but, by the end of the sketch, I'd invest in a leftover pizza eater myself. Also of note, if this is Jason Sudeikis' last season, I will miss him playing the "normal" character. Somehow he still makes it funny.

 Score: 6.5

 "Art of the Encounter" (Cecily Strong, Kate McKinnon, Melissa McCarthy, Taran Killam, Bobby Moynihan, Tim Robinson) Well, this was certainly weird -- and certainly fit the bill for a "10 to 1" sketch. I think that my favorite part was that it was set in the 1990s, even though there really was no reason for it to be set in the 1990s. And I do like it when Cecily Strong plays "weird," something she's been doing more of lately, instead of just relying on "funny accents."

 Score: 6.0

 The Bad

 "The Voice" (Taran Killam, Melissa McCarthy, Bill Hader, Jason Sudeikis, Jay Pharoah, Kate McKinnon, Kenan Thompson) I feel "SNL" has really wanted to do a sketch based on "The Voice" -- other than that quick hit they did during Adam Levine's monologue -- for some time. (It's been killed at dress rehearsal in the past.) Of course, it appears that they didn't really know quite what to do in that sketch. Regardless, Bill Hader's Levine is fantastic -- not fantastic enough to carry an entire sketch, but it's fantastic.

 Score: 4.5

 "Cold Open: C-Span North Korea" (Bobby Moynihan, Dennis Rodman) OK, enough is enough with this sketch. Who is it that just loves this sketch so much that it just keeps on opening "SNL" and killing all momentum right off the bat? Seriously? Oh, what a change up, instead of Fred Armisen speaking gibberish underneath a translator, this time it's Bobby Moynihan Kim Jong Un. I'm sure these will continue because someone obviously loves them, but they have more than run their course. And, no, in 2013 a Dennis Rodman cameo isn't edgy or the least bit interesting.

 Score: 2.5

 The Ugly

 "Million Dollar Wheel" (Melissa McCarthy, Bill Hader, Nasim Pedrad, Fred Armisen, Tim Robinson) And, in direct comparison with "Outside the Lines," this was the worst use of McCarthy during the show. I kept waiting and waiting for the punchline. But, no, McCarthy's character really was just dumb and didn't know where the "D's" were.

 Score: 2.0

 Average Score for this Show: 5.86

 Mike Ryan is senior writer for Huffington Post Entertainment. You can contact him directly on Twitter. Click below for this week's "SNL," Not Ready For Primetime Podcast featuring Mike Ryan and Hitfix's Ryan McGee.

 Follow Mike Ryan on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mikeryan |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– Melissa McCarthy stormed Saturday Night Live a second time last night, falling down (literally and intentionally) in her opening monologue before proceeding to lead a hysterical tour de force in "stellar physical comedy," writes Hal Boedeker at the Orlando Sentinel. Perhaps most notably, McCarthy ripped on disgraced Rutgers coach Mike Rice, taking a turn as a neurotically violent women's basketball coach who threatens her players with flying toasters and golf carts. Added bonus to a solid show: Dennis Rodman dropped by the Cold Open, which featured Bobby Moynihan as Rodman's BFF, Kim Jong Un. "I wonder if he's in on the joke or not, to be honest," muses Steve Lepore at SBNation. Over at the Huffington Post, Mike Ryan has his SNL scorecard.


– The Keystone State, which set sail in 1849 as one of the largest and most luxurious steamer ships of its time, sank during a November storm in 1861 with 33 people aboard. No one knew its fate for more than a week, until debris was spotted, and it's been lost since then—until now. A shipwreck hunter found it at the bottom of Lake Huron, 40 to 50 miles from where it was last seen and far from where David Trotter expected to find it. Some historians say the ship may have been secretly hauling Civil War supplies when it sank, the Detroit Free Press reports—and there are even rumors it may have been carrying gold, according to Michigan Live. By 1857, after an economic downturn and the rise of the railroad, many ships like the Keystone State were considered too pricey to operate. By 1861, however, thanks to the Civil War, the Keystone State had been taken out of storage and refurbished. It picked up its cargo in Detroit—officially, farm implements, hardware, and grain, but "it was an emergency shipment," a historian explains; he adds that typically a ship wouldn't have made a trip like that so late in the year. Also suspect: The ship wasn't carrying any lifeboats (everyone aboard died in the wreck), which could indicate it left in a hurry. Trotter's team found her using side-scan sonar in July, and has since made 30 dives at the site—which turned up no gold or cargo. Some speculate that the crew dumped the cargo in a bid to save the ship. (Another ship was found this year in Lake Superior.)

Expand this summary.

LAKE HURON — The Civil War was only seven months old on Nov. 9, 1861, when the sidewheel steamer Keystone State passed into oblivion.

 Nobody even knew the ship had sunk until more than a week later, when wreckage was spotted off Port Austin and the Keystone State's wheelhouse washed ashore.

 Since then, the ship has remained one of the many Great Lakes shipwreck mysteries; a tragedy that claimed the life of 33 crew members and sparked rumors about a clandestine cargo load of gold and war materials.

 This year, part of the mystery has been solved. On Monday, Dec. 9, shipwreck hunter David Trotter announced the discovery of the Keystone State in Lake Huron, about 50 miles north of Michigan’s thumb in less than 200 feet of water.

 “She wasn’t where she was supposed to be,” said Trotter, an avid shipwreck sleuth with more than 100 discoveries to his name. “I probably thought I’d never find her.”

 Trotter’s Undersea Research Associates team discovered the wreck in July using side-scan sonar and has since made several dozen dives to document the site and attempt to answer questions about the ship’s mysterious cargo, which some believe was intentionally mislabeled on the manifest.

 The 288-foot-long Keystone State, luxurious for her day, was the second largest ship on the Great Lakes when she was launched in 1849 and is one of the largest side-wheel steamers to disappear into their depths.

 The ship was bound for Milwaukee, Wis., when she left Detroit on Nov. 8, 1861, carrying what was labeled “iron implements,” or farm machinery, on the cargo manifest. Since the sinking, rumors have persisted that the Keystone State was actually carrying military supplies destined for the battlefield.

 A cargo of farm machinery in November on a special run — the ship normally moved between Detroit and Buffalo, N.Y. — invites a natural suspicion, Trotter said.

 “Farm implements are not heavily used in the winter,” he said.

 Unfortunately, Trotter’s team found an empty cargo hold. The reason probably won’t ever be fully known, but he said ship crews of the time would likely dump cargo in an effort to save a vessel in dire straits.

 The ship left Detroit in a hurry, without any lifeboats, he said.

 According to the historical record, the Keystone State was last seen off Port Austin rolling heavily in rough water. The fact that she was found further north of where most believed she’d sunk “tells you she made quite a fight of it,” he said.

 The ship’s captain, Wilkes Travers, may have been reluctant to turn the ship toward land for fear of being capsized in a sea trough, Trotter said. Control of a sidewheel steamer would be difficult in heavy seas due to the ship’s design.

 Trotter said the wreck has “settled-in” quite a bit, and his team is still trying to sort out how much damage was caused by the storm, how much happened when the hull hit the bottom and what has occurred over the last 152 years.

 The team hasn’t found any gold yet, but the wreck is surrounded by a large, yet-to-be-explored debris field, he said.

 Due to the water depth, divers only have about 15 to 20 minutes to explore the wreck before they must decompress for more than an hour on the way back up.

 Trotter, a retired Ford Motor Co. executive who lives in Canton, has been shipwreck hunting for more than 35 years.

 His recent Great Lakes shipwreck discoveries include the 238-foot steamer New York about 25 miles northwest of Harrisville in July 2012, and a joint discovery with the Michigan Shipwreck Research Association of a 90-foot double-masted schooner in deep water off the coast of Grand Haven in October 2011.

 “The most exciting shipwreck I’ve ever found is the next one,” he said. “There’s an exciting sense of discovery about being able to touch historical events that fascinates all of us.”

 Garret Ellison covers business, government and breaking news for MLive/The Grand Rapids Press. Email him at gellison@mlive.com or follow on Twitter & Instagram ||||| LATEST HEADLINES

 U-M's O-line progressing but should be tested by Utah 'Yeah, the heat's off right now going into Week 4, but if we don't play well, the heat will be back...

 Shawn Windsor: Lions already have fallen into old, familiar pattern Well, that didn't take long. Six days after the Lions' sparkling debut Monday night and … misery.

 ESPN analyst lists MSU at No. 8 to make the playoff ESPN analyst Brad Edwards, formerly the network's BCS expert, has put together his first weekly... |||||


Write an article based on this summary:

– Prosecutors are recommending felony charges against David Petraeus for allegedly divulging classified information to an old mistress, unnamed officials tell the New York Times. Now it's Eric Holder's call to either heed the FBI and Justice Dept advice or risk the perception of special treatment for the retired four-star general. The story goes back to 2012, when Petraeus retired as CIA director in the wake of his affair with Army Reserve officer Paula Broadwell. An investigation found classified documents on her computer and evidence that she had access to his private CIA email account. Petraeus denies divulging any classified information, and says he would refuse a plea deal. As the case dragged on, FBI and Justice officials questioned whether Petraeus was getting special treatment. A federal official tells NBC News that the Times leak is meant to pressure Holder, who was expected to decide on charges by the end of last year. President Obama has supported the ex-general, saying in 2012 that there was no proof Petraeus had leaked information "that in any way would have had a negative impact on our national security." So will the storied military man, who commanded US forces in Iraq in 2007 and again in Afghanistan in 2010, go on trial? So far, it's hard to get quotes on the record. "I can't say," said FBI Director James Comey when asked about the investigation. "I mean, I guess I could say, but I won’t say."

Mr. Holder has said little publicly about the investigation. The F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, asked by reporters in December why it was taking so long, said: “I can’t say. I mean, I guess I could say, but I won’t say.”

 Marc Raimondi, a Justice Department spokesman, declined to comment on the investigation.

 At a news conference shortly after Mr. Petraeus resigned, President Obama said he had no evidence that Mr. Petraeus had disclosed classified information “that in any way would have had a negative impact on our national security.”

 “We are safer because of the work that Dave Petraeus has done,” Mr. Obama said, referring to his career in government. “And my main hope right now is — is that he and his family are able to move on and that this ends up being a single side note on what has otherwise been an extraordinary career.”

 But investigators concluded that, whether or not the disclosure harmed national security, it amounted to a significant security breach in the office of one of the nation’s most trusted intelligence leaders. They recommended that Mr. Petraeus face charges, saying lower-ranking officials had been prosecuted for far less.

 Federal agents stumbled onto the affair after Jill Kelley, a friend of Mr. Petraeus’s, complained to the F.B.I. that she had received anonymous threatening emails about her relationship with Mr. Petraeus. F.B.I. agents opened a cyberstalking investigation, traced the message to Ms. Broadwell and began searching her emails. That is when they discovered evidence that she and Mr. Petraeus were having an affair.

 Mr. Petraeus is said to have begun the affair with Ms. Broadwell in 2011, soon after taking the job at the C.I.A. and while she was interviewing him for her book, “All In: The Education of General David Petraeus.”

 Mr. Petraeus resigned from the C.I.A. three days after Mr. Obama was re-elected. In a brief statement, Mr. Petraeus admitted to the affair, saying that “after being married for over 37 years, I showed extremely poor judgment.” ||||| Play Facebook

 Twitter

 Google Plus

 Embed Federal Prosecutors Recommend Felony Charges Against Petraeus 1:18 autoplay autoplay Copy this code to your website or blog

 Federal prosecutors handling the case of David Petraeus, the former director of the CIA, have recommended that charges be filed against him for mishandling classified information, according to federal officials.

 No charges have been filed, and it's up to Attorney General Eric Holder to decide whether the facts assembled by the FBI, and the case built by prosecutors, merit going to court.

 Petraeus, a retired four-star general and once America's top man in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, became CIA director in 2011. The question has been whether he gave classified information to a woman who was writing a book about him — a woman who was also his mistress.

 He acknowledged the affair when he stepped down after leading the CIA for about a year.

 Neither Justice Department nor his lawyer, who has always insisted Petraeus did nothing wrong, had immediate comment. One federal official said this leak, first reported by The New York Times, is an effort to put pressure on Holder to bring charges, especially given that other, lower-level government officials have been charged with leaking classified information.

 — Pete Williams |||||


Article:

Chris Christie has heard enough about Warren Buffett, and in typical fashion, the New Jersey governor had a certain blunt way of putting it.

 “He should just write a check and shut up,” Christie said Tuesday on CNN’s “Piers Morgan Tonight.” “Really, and just contribute. The fact of the matter is that I’m tired of hearing about it. If he wants to give the government more money, he’s got the ability to write a check — go ahead and write it.”

 Text Size -

 +

 reset Christie: Tired of Warren Buffett

 (See also: Chris Christie’s 10 best quotes)

 “I’m so tired of talking about Warren Buffett,” Christie said, interrupting Morgan. “What are you going to bring up next, his secretary? I mean, this is the old song.”

 “You haven’t even heard the question,” Morgan exclaimed.

 “I know the question,” Christie replied. “Do you really think Warren Buffett needs as much attention from the government as the most vulnerable … since I got the question right, I’m not answering the question, how about that. That’s my gift for getting the question right.”

 When they returned from a commercial break, Morgan continued to press Christie on the Buffett question.

 “First of all, Warren Buffet doesn’t live in New Jersey,” Christie said, before ultimately answering the question. “Of course, during difficult economic times you’re most concerned about the people who have the potential to suffer the most.”

 Christie made his comments in the context of saying that his job as governor is to be responsible for all New Jerseyans.

 “I’m not going to get into this class warfare business where certain people are more important than others or deserves more. … Everyone deserves to have the government responsive to their concerns and needs,” said Christie.

 Buffett, an influential billionaire, is the namesake of the “Buffet Rule,” which suggests that those earning more than $1 million a year pay at least the same rate in taxes as those from middle-class households.

 The rule had been a flashpoint in the ongoing national conversation about income inequality in the context of the Occupy Wall Street and 99 Percent movements.

 Buffett had claimed that it was an injustice that he, a wealthy investor, essentially paid a lower tax rate than his secretary. ||||| This evening on "Piers Morgan Tonight," Garden State Governor Chris Christie sits down for an hour-long, exclusive interview. As the subject turns to New Jersey state taxes, Christie offers some candid quotes regarding a certain billionaire.

 Warren Buffett keeps screaming to be taxed more," says Piers Morgan. "Yeah, well, he should just write a check and shut up," offers Christie.

 Insisting he's fed up with empty offers from the investor and philanthropist, Christie continues:

 "Just contribute, okay. The fact of the matter is, that I'm tired of hearing about it. If he wants to give the government more money he's got the ability to write a check. Go ahead and write it."

 Tune in to "Piers Morgan Tonight" this evening at 9pm ET/PT as the New Jersey Governor reveals his views on sam-sex marriage, and shares his advice for GOP candidate Mitt Romney.

 » Follow Piers Morgan Tonight on Twitter |||||
What is a summary?

– Chris Christie has just about had it with that pesky Oracle of Omaha and all his talk about millionaires paying more taxes. The New Jersey governor cut off Piers Morgan's Warren Buffett question at the pass in an interview last night on CNN, telling him, "He should just write a check and shut up. Really, and just contribute. The fact of the matter is that I'm tired of hearing about it. If he wants to give the government more money, he's got the ability to write a check—go ahead and write it." As Morgan protested that he hadn't heard the question, Christie said, "I know the question. Do you really think Warren Buffett needs as much attention from the government as the most vulnerable?" Christie relented a bit, notes Politico, saying that "during difficult economic times you're most concerned about the people who have the potential to suffer the most," but that "I'm not going to get into this class warfare business where certain people are more important than others."


Summarize this article:

"Giving permission to shoot a strongly protected animal without a clear potential threat is a criminal offence,” Chris Heinrich, a WWF board member said in a statement which explained why they decided to file charges against the head of a public order office in Brandenburg.

 “After more than 250 years a wild bison had been spotted again in Germany and all the authorities could think to do is shoot it.”

 A man had spotted the European bison next to the river Oder near the town of Lebus on Wednesday and alerted the authorities, according to police.

 The head of the local public order office decided that the bison needed to be killed in order to protect the population and instructed two local hunters to kill the beast on Thursday.

 According to Polish authorities, the animal was probably a bull which had been running around the Ujście Warty National Park on the German-Polish border for some time before wandering into the Bundesrepublik.

 The European bison is Europe’s largest land mammal and has not been seen in the wild in Germany for over 250 years. They are considered “vulnerable” by conservation bodies internationally and are on the list of Germany’s “strongly protected animals”.

 The bison are not known to be dangerous, Brandenburg's Environment Minister Jörg Vogelsänger told Der Tagesspiegel. If they were, then “half of Poland, where the animal is a national symbol, would have to be declared a danger zone,” as they roam freely there, he said.

 A spokesperson for the Environment Ministry also suggested that a tranquiliser dart could have been used to neutralise any danger to nearby citizens, which could have been provided by any country vet.

 Heinrich blamed a “lack of professionally trained staff in the area”. he added that "the state of Brandenburg has proven itself to be less than professional in its treatment of wild animals in the past, as shown by how it deals with wolves and elk." ||||| A video showing a rare confrontation between a pack of wolves and a heard of bison has been released by Poland’s forest service.

 Shot by a fixed camera in the snow-covered Bialowieza forest, which straddles the Polish-Belarusian border, the night-time footage first shows startled bison fleeing as wolves break from the cover of the trees to launch an attack.

 Then, perhaps remembering they are Europe’s largest land animal, the bison stand their ground before mounting a slow charge that sends the wolves scurrying back into the safety of the forest.

 Weighing up to 2,200lb, an adult European bison has no natural predator so it is probable the wolves were hoping to isolate and kill a calf. A couple of calves appear in the video, protected a by a phalanx of adults.

 Both bison and wolves have enjoyed a renaissance in Europe in recent decades after years of suffering at the hands of hunters.

 Bison were hunted to the edge to extinction in Europe in the early 20th Century with the last wild bison shot in Poland in 1921, leaving only 50 in zoos scattered across the continent.

 Since the end of the Second World War successful conservation programmes, especially in Poland, have led to bison numbers growing to over 4,600 worldwide.

 They have also been slowly re-introduced to the wild, with Poland now boasting 1,212 free-ranging animals.

 Anti-hunting laws have led to a surge in wolf numbers across Europe and wolves returning to countries, such as Germany, where they once eradicated.

 Estimates of wolf numbers in Poland now range from 800-900. ||||| Hello Poland, where the European bison has been brought back from the brink of extinction after the last one in the wild was shot in 1919 in the Bialowieza Forest. This remnant of Europe's primeval forest is now a refuge for bison, bears, wolves and lynx, as well as countless other species, but can nature thrive without our help?

 Somewhere in the depths of Poland’s Bialowieza Forest I have taken the wrong path. I thought I was retracing my footsteps to a road, but it suddenly dawns on me that this stretch of trees, underbrush and wild flowers doesn’t look at all familiar.

 With a sudden surge of panic I cast around for a recognizable landmark. All I see are huge oaks, elegant beeches, crumbling, moss-enveloped stumps and patches of long grass. A sudden gust of wind stirs the branches and a few leaves drift slowly down to earth. A magpie lets out a mocking chuckle, then silence settles. I fight the urge to go rushing off blindly and try to think where I could have gone astray. After a moment spent composing myself, I decide on a route back through the trees, finally arriving at a wider path after ten minutes.

 This seems more hopeful and soon the distant sound of a fast-moving car tells me the road must be somewhere near. Speeding up in anticipation, I don’t notice the three men until I have almost bumped into them. Silently they emerge from a copse of birch trees and one of them raises a hand for me to stop. From their camouflaged jackets and caps – not to mention their holsters and ammunition pouches – I presume they must be border guards.

 Here, on the northeastern edge of Poland, we are just a few kilometers from the boundary fence with Belarus and it is not unknown for people to try to slip into the European Union through Bialowieza. The four-hour drive from Warsaw has taken me through villages where head-scarved women herd cows along the main road, where freshly picked mushrooms are sold in lay-bys and where village elders sit on benches watching lorries clatter past on their way to all parts east and west.

 Good luck. They hide well.

 But that is not at the forefront of my mind as I give an apologetic smile and try out my best Londoner’s Polish. “Dzien dobry. Szukam droga Bialowieza? (Hello. Which way is Bialowieza?)” The leader inclines his head and replies in English: “Over there. Left on the road.” He looks me up and down. “English?” I nod. “Birdwatching?” I shake my head: “I’m hoping to see Zubr (bison).” He nods: “Good luck. They hide well.”

 He is right, but the task is made easier if you enlist the help of an expert. The next day I return to the forest, this time in the company of Tomasz Kaminski, a biologist at Poland’s Mammal Research Institute. Guided by Tomasz’s compass, map and seemingly limitless forest knowledge, we move further and further into the thick trees and undergrowth of this long-standing national park in search of survivors of an age when giant mammals roamed the continent. Tomasz, an expert in bison behavior, is weighed down by a heavy-looking, hand-held aerial that is receiving signals from one of a few individuals that has been fitted with a radio collar. Thanks to this we are gradually homing in on our quarry.

 As we push on, Tomasz describes his job. “I spend a lot of time gathering data about the bison – so I’m out in the forest most days. They’re the largest terrestrial animals in Europe and they’re absolutely fascinating creatures, especially as – even somewhere like this – they’re living in a place that’s heavily influenced by people and is a mixture of forest and farmland.”

 Suddenly, he stops. “Bison… Bison,” he whispers, pointing towards a stand of sun-dappled beech and maple trees. Even through binoculars I cannot see anything but foliage, tree trunks and shadows. Then something moves. One of the shadows has a tail. A group of five or six bison is grazing among the trees. Despite their massive size, standing at least two meters at the shoulder, measuring around three meters long and weighing around 800kg, they are almost silent and their dusty grey flanks provide near-perfect camouflage among the trunks.

 Every time I see them I’m amazed

 We watch in rapt silence for more than ten minutes as the bison gradually move down a gentle slope, before slowly disappearing once again into the forest.” Every time I see them I’m amazed,” says Tomasz reverently. “They were saved from extinction and now they live in freedom in a large European country like Poland. It just shows how flexible they are as a species.”

 There are now around 800 bison in the forests here, around 480 on the Polish side of the border and more than 300 on the Belarusian. Things could have been very different, though. The bison came within a whisker of extinction in eastern Europe in the 20th century. Bialowieza was once a royal hunting ground – its name harks back to the ‘white tower’ of a local hunting lodge – and it was a popular venue for the kings of Poland and, later, the Russian tsars.

 Those crowned heads viewed the bison as a most desirable quarry and that somewhat dubious honor ensured the species survived for centuries – albeit at a cost that today seems a high one. An aged, grey obelisk on the outskirts of the forest provides a reminder of those times. In swirling, ornate script it records the day in 1752 when a hunt led by King Augustus III of Poland accounted for 42 bison (including six calves), 13 elk and two roe deer.

 Tsar Nicholas II was another who enjoyed the thrill of the chase here. He had tracks created that would allow him to speed unheard through the forest aboard a troika, letting him take up a position from which to bring down the unsuspecting wildlife. World War I, however, not only proved fatal for the tsar, it was disastrous for the bison of Bialowieza – which were hunted to extinction by hungry soldiers and civilians alike.

 Descended from just seven ancestors

 By the early 1920s there were just 54 European bison left in the world. A select few from European zoos were introduced into the national park and their descendants have been here ever since, even managing to survive throughout World War II. But there is an enduring issue that is hard to overcome – a shallow gene pool. The bison here are descended from just seven ancestors.

 Returning from my modern version of a hunt, I find out more about the realities of reintroduction from naturalist Dr Krzysztof Niedzialkowski, whom I meet at the quiet, modern headquarters of the Mammal Research Institute in Bialowieza village. “That low genetic diversity could have a negative effect,” he says, “so we have to monitor the situation regularly and try to diversify the population as much as we can.”

 One way of doing that may be by expanding the bisons’ range so that, instead of one big population, there are a number of separate groups. Such a move helps guard against disease, an outbreak of which could be disastrous among such a genetically similar population. “In winter, the bison are fed with hay at various places in the forest – it’s a tradition that dates back around 300 years,” says Krzysztof. “It helps ensure the animals eat well in winter, but we end up with large concentrations of bison that provide potential for the spread of parasites and disease. It can also contribute to more aggressive behavior.”

 As many as 50 animals are shot each year

 And there is another controversial issue associated with feeding the animals in winter. It makes survival easier and that can lead to an excess of numbers. Rare as the European bison is, the park authorities feel they have to enforce a cull – and that means as many as 50 animals are shot each year, a practice that is strongly questioned by many, outside the park authorities. After all, it is an animal more rare than the black rhino. Those carcasses are then used for meat and fur, but, argue some ecologists, the forest ecosystem would benefit if nature was allowed to take its course, not only in selecting which animals should die, but also in leaving their bodies to sustain other species – foxes, wolves and others – especially during the winter months.

 To gain some more insights on the issue I talk to Staffan Widstrand, award-winning photographer and a founder and managing director of the mass communication initiative, Wild Wonders of Europe. Staffan is focusing increasingly on re-wilding initiatives and how these can be successfully achieved. “As human beings we’re obsessed with the management of nature; thinking that if we don’t manage it things will go terribly wrong. But we should be treating nature more like an adult, not like a sick child.”

 “For an example, you need only look at the exclusion zone around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine and Belarus. There are an amazing number of large herbivores there now; nature seems to be doing quite OK on its own without any management from people.”

 And Chernobyl is not the only place in the region where human tragedy has brought an unexpected benefit for nature. Some 470km south of Bialowieza, on the border with Ukraine and Slovakia, Poland’s Bieszczady National Park owes its origins to the forced resettlement of many of its ethnic Ruthenian inhabitants by the Soviet authorities in the years immediately after World War II. In 1973 the area was officially designated a national park and today measures around 30,000 ha, with a further 30,000 ha of managed forest on its borders.

 “It’s pretty much the only place in Europe with the full range of species – if you exclude the two that are extinct – the aurochs [wild cattle] and the tarpan [wild horse],” says Staffan. “The wildlife is incredible: wolf, lynx, bear, bison, moose, red deer and roe deer all live there.”

 Legal hunting and poaching is a problem

 For all its diversity, though, the current situation at Bieszczady also raises some issues regarding the wider possibility of rewilding in Europe. The park borders on to national parks in Ukraine and Slovakia and in both of these legal hunting and poaching is a problem. On the Polish side – as at Bialowieza – there is also officially sanctioned hunting to limit populations of herbivores. Staffan says: “What typically happens is that in winter the animals move down from the higher altitude national park area to the managed forests where it isn’t as cold. Then they run a high risk of being shot as part of a policy to keep down numbers.”

 For ecologists such as Staffan such a philosophy seems ill-founded at best. “Forestry managers at Bieszczady say they have the ‘optimum’ number of animals in their forests. They’ve decided that’s four deer per hectare – if there are more than that they start eating the young trees and if there are more than 10 they start eating bark – which can kill fully-grown trees. But perhaps their ecological role is exactly that – to kill trees and to create a more open, less wooded landscape.

 “It’s part of a wider problem in Europe generally. Many national parks are managed by state forestry companies so many of the people involved have a forestry background. To them, protecting a forest means protecting trees. For an ecologist a forest is an eco-system that includes animals and dead trees. If the animals bring down trees ultimately to create a mosaic of woodland and grassland then that’s fine.”

 The bison, for example, though now associated with dense forest, has only been forced into such areas to escape the activities of mankind. Says Staffan: “These animals are serious grass eaters and there is not much of that within an old-growth forest, so they go out into neighboring farmland in search of it and that doesn’t make the farmers very happy.”

 The challenge is to find such places in Europe

 In a bid to avoid such issues, the national park authorities at Bialowieza have considered corridors of habitat complete with feeding stations that lure the bison to alternative areas of forest. But in the end, the only real solution may be to create large, open, wild grassland areas in which large herbivores can live in extensive social herds. The challenge is where to find such places in Europe. Bialowieza ecologist Krzysztof Niedzialkowski says: ‘“Bison aren’t always seen positively by neighboring communities and occasionally there are problems. We have had cases of individual animals moving into inhabited areas and becoming more and more accustomed to people.”

 One bison, he adds, began approaching cows in farmers’ fields and was responsible for some minor attacks. Ultimately, the animal had to be shot. Environmentalists such as Krzysztof would like to see the area of Bialowieza national park increased, to allow for more wildlife-friendly management and boost the area’s tourism potential. Such ideas, however, may not be well received by local communities who believe their access to the forest might be reduced and forestry jobs may be lost.

 Both Polish and Belarusian forests are part of the same Unesco World Heritage site and the long-term hope is that a larger, zoned park could be created with separate areas primarily dedicated to wildlife, commercial forestry and recreation. That still leaves one problem, however. Currently, the border fence that divides Poland – not to mention the rest of the EU – from Belarus runs straight through the forest, splitting it in two and separating two populations of bison that, combined, would have more genetic diversity. That fence is unlikely to come down any time soon.

 For now, the way to enter Belarus – provided your paperwork is in order – is via a pedestrian crossing manned by serious-looking soldiers with red stars on their berets. A few hundred meters away from the gate there is little to suggest I have changed countries or political systems. The forest is every bit as impressive as on the other side of the border; huge fungi sprout from fallen tree trunks and ferns grow in abundance around pools colored an almost psychedelic green by algae and moss. During World War II, this area became a base for Polish and Soviet partisans, who would attack German army supply lines and then disappear among the trees. A merciless war was fought here and occasional memorials to its victims provide a reminder that the area was not always as tranquil as it is today.

 Bialowieza is popular with bird watchers

 Entering a clearing I disturb a family of wild boar, the adults a surprising shade of black, the piglets a lighter, dappled brown. With a remarkable turn of speed they are gone almost before I have time to register their presence. Overlooking the scene is a tall wooden tower that offers a useful vantage point. In this perch it is easy to see why Bialowieza is so popular with bird watchers. A group of goldfinches, with yellow flashes on their wings and bright red faces, chatter noisily in a nearby ash tree; pink and black long-tailed tits bob through the lower branches and a duo of buzzards circle away to the west.

 Up here it is hard to imagine that the vast majority of the forest has been actively managed for at least 100 years. But there is an exception to this rule. One strictly protected area on the Polish side, though, measuring 4,747 hectares, has remained virtually untouched throughout the centuries. This fragment is perhaps all that remains of the primeval lowland forest that once covered vast tracts of Europe. It has an ecosystem to match, with wolves, red deer, lynx, elk and beaver all present – as well as numerous smaller creatures.

 Back in Poland some hours later, and comfortably positioned in the restaurant of the modern Hotel Bialowieski, I meet Mateusz Szymura, a national park ranger. As we each demolish a steaming bowl of solyanka – a traditional soup made with salted ham, sausage, cabbage and carrots and garnished with sour cream and dill – he explains more about this primeval survivor. “The forest has existed here for 10,000 years – since the last Ice Age,” he says. “Then, in the medieval period, when many areas were being cleared for farming – this place became a royal hunting ground. The bison was declared a species that only kings could hunt. In those days, the kings of Poland also controlled Lithuania and this area was a good stopping off point between their courts in Krakow and Vilnius.”

 After a second course of pierogi (small dumplings stuffed with minced pork) and a Zubr beer – its green, white and gold label adorned by the image of a bison – we take a hike from the village, past meadows that are rapidly transforming into birch woods, towards the immense trees that mark the tract of truly ancient forest. Inside, it is easy to imagine the age of some of the trees by the sheer size of their trunks, while the thick canopy brings with it a crepuscular shade and thick, moss-cloaked branches, slowly rotting, sprawl across the ground. “People are often surprised by how untidy the forest looks,” says Mateusz, “but a fallen tree is home to perhaps 1,000 species. When it was living that same tree housed maybe 100. So you shouldn’t really call it dead wood, it’s still living.”

 The forest is far from impenetrable

 Full of life and darkly mysterious it may be, but the forest is far from impenetrable. The ground cover is nowhere near as thick as I expected – and for obvious reasons: deer and wild boar eat seedlings and shrubs, and the spreading leaves of those giant trees cuts off sunlight from reaching the ground. The only time the canopy is breached is when one of the giants falls. And therein lies a subject for discussion, adds Mateusz. The strictly protected area where we are standing forms but a tiny fragment of the larger national park that lies within an overall tract of forest covering 150,000 hectares – 62,500 in Poland, 87,500 in Belarus. Commercial foresters often have a different understanding of what constitutes good practice than national park wardens.

 This debate has in recent years surfaced in the shape of what to do with a creature called the bark beetle, Dendroctonus micans, which, while it may look insignificant, can over time bring down a 50m-high spruce tree. Conventional forestry wisdom involves either felling infected trees and quarantining areas of forest or introducing a predatory beetle called Rhizophagus grandis to provide a biological solution to the problem. If you are preserving a forest as a primeval relic untouched by humanity, however, you cannot offer up solutions that involve chainsaws and alien species. “The bark beetles are part of the natural process,” says Mateusz. “Yes, they will kill some trees, but they won’t kill them all – that’s not in their interest. Also – and very importantly – when an old tree falls, it opens up a big gap where young trees can flourish – ultimately helping the forest regenerate. The beetles are part of nature – there’s no such thing as a pest here.”

 The afternoon sun is painting the foliage a mellow, golden hue and all is quiet in the forest, the silence broken only by the sound of faintly rustling branches. Suddenly, not very far away, a red deer begins to roar out a challenge – a deep, throaty growl that sounds as if it could belong to some sort of fierce primeval creature.

 I am glad my friend knows these paths and trees so well – it might not be a good idea to lose your way.

 Sharing is caring |||||

– Conservationists are expressing outrage after an official in Germany ordered hunters to shoot the first wild bison seen in the country in more than two centuries. Calling the killing a criminal offense, the World Wildlife Fund says it will file charges against the official who gave the order, the Local reports. “After more than 250 years a wild bison had been spotted again in Germany and all the authorities could think to do is shoot it," says Chris Heinrich, a WWF board member. The bison was seen by the river Oder near the eastern town of Lebus on Wednesday. Thinking the beast was a threat to public safety, a local official sent a pair of hunters to take care of it. It was unclear if any of them knew the European bison is classed as a "vulnerable" species and on Germany’s list of "strongly protected animals." The victim was likely a bull that had wandered across the border from Poland from its home in a national park. While they may be the continent's largest land mammals, weighing up to 2,200 pounds, the bison are not considered dangerous. If they were, says the local environmental minister, then "half of Poland, where the animal is a national symbol, would have to be declared a danger zone." Hunted to near extinction in Europe in the early 20th century, the bison are making a comeback thanks to conservationists, with more than 1,200 now roaming around Poland, per the Telegraph, which published a video showing bison fleeing, then standing up to, a pack of wolves. (The US bison is the country's first national mammal.)